Processing .....please wait.. 
The article has been forwarded.... 
Indian services sector records robust growth
Thursday, 02 October 2003, 19:30 IST
NEW DELHI: Propelled by spectacular growth in mobile telephony, the Indian services sector surged 10 to 20 percent in the first half of the current fiscal, according to a leading industry lobby.
The cellular services sector itself grew 180 percent during April-September, said the survey by CII-ASCON, the research wing of the Confederation of Indian Industry.
Of the 11 sectors surveyed, five reported excellent growth of more than 20 percent. Another five reported high growth of 10 percent or above, said the survey report, released Thursday.
The leasing industry is the only one that once again turned in a poor performance, registering a negative growth of three percent, the report states.
"The main reason for the poor showing is the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) restrictive policies which drastically curtails the growth of non-banking financial companies (NBFC)," it states.
Overall, the report states that the services sectors has recorded excellent growth, with the number of high growth sectors going up from three to five for the period April-September 2003 over corresponding period last year.
India has recorded a 5.7 percent GDP growth in the first quarter of the fiscal from April-July, led by a higher 6.4 percent growth in manufacturing sector and 7.1 percent in services. The expectations are of over 6.5 percent growth in the remainder part of the fiscal fuelled by a good monsoon and a bumper crop.
Commenting on the 180 percent growth in cellular services, the survey states that "the present growth rate would continue over the next few months."
Housing finance with a growth rate of 35 percent as against 34 percent in the same six-month period last year "reveals a commendable increase".
The survey attributed to the result to government's commitment "to create better housing facilities. With the incentives provided in the budget, the amount of housing finance would increase during the next six months".
The other two sectors that recorded excellent growth are project consultancy with 43 percent and software exports 40 percent.
"The software industry also registered excellent growth with software - both domestic and exports registering a growth of 20 and 40 respectively. It is distinctly higher than the corresponding period last year, and the trend is expected to continue with its upward march," the survey states.
It reveals that construction sector recorded a high growth rate of 14 percent on production and an impressive 43 percent growth on exports.
"Gradual improvement in infrastructure has gradually led to the sustained high growth of the construction sector," it stated.
Other sectors that registered high growth are air cargo transportation, including export and import cargo, and hotel and tourism industry.
While air cargo transportation has recorded 13 percent growth, export cargo registered 14 percent and import cargo 13 percent rise reflecting rising overseas trade.
In the case of hotels and tourism industry, the 13 percent growth reflects around 12 percent growth in foreign tourist arrivals and a rise in domestic traffic.
The survey expects the high occupancy in hotels to continue upward movement in the months ahead, which are in fact the peak tourist season in the country.
Source: IANS
Source: IANS