GDP at 8.4 per cent in Q3 FY24; above estimates

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The government released the GDP growth estimate for the December quarter of financial year 2023-24. According to the data released by the Ministry of Statistics, the country’s GDP growth during the December quarter was 8.4 percent. The figures are much higher than the estimates that were being made. The country’s largest public sector bank, the SBI had estimated a growth of 6.7 to 6.9 percent for the December quarter. Last year, GDP growth was 4.3 percent during Q3 FY23

Due to the increase in the growth estimate for the December quarter which just gone passed by, the estimate for the entire financial year 2023-24 has also been raised. It is now estimated that there will be a growth of 7.6 percent during the financial year 2023-24. The estimates released in early February were showing a growth of 7.3 percent for FY24.

The growth estimates for the first and second quarters of the financial year 2023-24 have also been revised upwards to 8.2% and 8.1%, respectively.

According to government data, the agriculture sector recorded negative growth during the December quarter. The growth of the agriculture sector was recorded at a negative 0.8% from October to December. However, other sectors performed well. The manufacturing sector grew by 11.6% and the construction sector by 9.5% during the December quarter.

In terms of real value, India’s GDP at constant prices was recorded at Rs 43.72 lakh crore during the December quarter. This was Rs 41.85 lakh crore in the September quarter and Rs 40.34 lakh crore in the December quarter of the previous fiscal.

The share of private consumption in the country’s GDP increased to 58.6% during Q3 FY24 from 55.9% in the September 2023 quarter. However, the share of government spending along with exports and imports has declined. The contribution of government expenditure to the country’s GDP was only 7.8% during the December quarter, which was 9.2% during the preceding quarter.