Indian factory output up 2.7%

NEW DELHI: India's manufacturing output rose for a fourth month in July as higher government spending and lower interest rates boosted domestic demand, a key gauge showed.

Markit Economics' Purchasing Managers' index stood at 55.3 in July, unchanged from June, according to a report released yesterday. It was the fourth monthly reading above 50, which indicates factory production increased.

"Business conditions in India continued to strengthen in July," Gemma Wallace, an economist with Markit Economics, said in the report. "The domestic market remained the primary impetus to growth, although the export market also played a part as its recovery gained pace."