India’s Index of Core Industries (ICI) saw a 5% growth in June this year compared to the same period last year. The surge in iron ore, electricity, and cement production drove this growth, as per the latest data released. The Office of the Economic Adviser, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), introduced a revised series of the ICI with the Base Year 2022-23, replacing the previous series based on 2011-12.
The growth rate in June represents an improvement from the 3.2% recorded in May 2026. Notably, iron ore, electricity, cement, steel, and coal exhibited year-on-year growth rates of 43.9%, 9.8%, 9.8%, 4.6%, and 1.4%, respectively. Conversely, natural gas, crude oil, refinery products, and fertilizers experienced negative growth during the same period. Iron ore and electricity emerged as key drivers of the overall growth of the ICI in recent months.
The cement sector demonstrated robust growth in June, fueled by sustained demand attributed to significant government investments in infrastructure projects like highways, ports, and railways. The cumulative growth rate of the ICI for April-June 2026 stands at 3.6%, a notable increase from 1.0% in the corresponding period last year. In the revised ICI series, iron ore has been added as a new core industry item, expanding the total core industries from eight to nine.
The steel index in the new ICI series now utilizes gross production data instead of net production data from the previous series to align with the Index of Industrial Production. Additionally, the new ICI series retains only raw coal, excluding coal middling and washed coal to prevent double counting, given that coal middling and washed coal are derived from raw coal.
