Indian manufacturing has accelerated through the second quarter of 2023–24 and is probably going to continue for the remaining quarters of the financial year 2023–24, according to the industry group FICCI's most recent quarterly poll. In its most recent quarterly survey, the trade association evaluated the performance and attitudes of manufacturers for the July–September 2023–24 quarter across ten key industries: machine tools, metal and metal products, textiles, apparel and technical textiles, paper, cement, chemicals, fertilisers, and pharmaceuticals; automotive and auto components; capital goods and construction equipment; electronics and white goods; and miscellaneous.
It requested answers from more than 380 manufacturing facilities with a total yearly revenue of more than Rs 4.88 lakh crores, spanning the major and SME divisions. The manufacturing industry in India is now seeing an average capacity utilisation of approximately 74%, which is marginally higher than the 73% observed in the preceding quarters.
Compared to the previous quarter, the prognosis for future investments has also improved, with over 57% of respondents reporting intentions for expansions and investments in the upcoming six months. Additionally, there has been a small improvement from the last poll. Demand is one of the main obstacles preventing India's manufacturing industry from reaching its full potential, with more than 40% of respondents seeing this as a barrier.