Current Affairs - Economy - Discussion

India’s Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) recorded a year-on-year growth of 7.9% in September 2026, compared with the revised growth of 5.9% in August 2026. The increase reflected strong performance in key sectors, particularly iron ore, electricity, coal and refinery products. Iron ore registered the highest growth at 18.4%, followed by electricity at 11.4%, coal at 10.7% and refinery products at 10.3%. In contrast, fertilizers, natural gas and crude oil recorded negative growth. The cumulative growth of the index during April–September 2026 reached 5.1%, compared with 2.5% during the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.