New Delhi: Data from the Central Statistical Organisation revealed that industrial production increased by 10.9 per cent in January, compared to 8.5 per cent reported in January 2006.

The overall performance was boosted by a three-fold improvement in mining output and robust growth in manufacturing and intermediate goods. The cumulative growth rate during the April-January period stood at 11 per cent, compared to eight per cent in the same period last fiscal.

However, capital goods output decelerated considerable in January this year. While capital goods output had increased by 27 per cent in January 2006, the figure is down to 8.6 per cent this year. Fluctuations in the growth pattern of the capital goods sector have been a prominent trend in most months of the current fiscal.

In August, growth in this sector was 14.7 per cent, but it fell to a low of 2.2 per cent in September. It rose again in October to 8.2 per cent and then to 25.7 per cent in November, before sliding a bit to 20.2 per cent in December.

The increase in production of consumer goods during January 2007 stood at 9.9 per cent.