New Delhi, Feb 20 (.) India’s core industrial sectors recorded robust growth in January 2026, with the combined Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) rising by 4 per cent compared with the same month last year, said an official statement released on Friday.
The index, which tracks performance across major industrial segments, reflects a positive momentum in key sectors of the economy.
The eight industries covered under the ICI — coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilizers, steel, cement and electricity — together account for over 40 per cent of the country’s broader industrial output.
The latest provisional figures show that several major industries contributed to the overall expansion, underlining continued industrial resilience.
Among individual sectors, cement production surged by over 10 per cent, while steel output expanded by nearly 10 per cent, signalling strong demand for construction and infrastructure-related materials.
Electricity generation also posted a healthy growth of around 3.8 per cent, bolstering the overall industrial upturn. These gains were partly offset by declines in extractive segments such as crude oil and natural gas, which each saw production fall, highlighting ongoing challenges in upstream energy supply.
Fertilizer output increased by around 3.7 per cent in January, and coal production recorded modest growth, reflecting a gradual recovery in resource-intensive sectors. Petroleum refinery products remained stable, contributing to a balanced performance for the energy cluster within the core index.
For the cumulative April-January 2025-26 period, the ICI posted a provisional growth of 2.8 per cent compared with the same nine-month span last year, signalling sustained industrial activity despite mixed results among sub-sectors. Notably, strong performances in steel, cement, and electricity continued to support broader industrial growth trends.
. SAS PRS