The Office of Economic Adviser, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, will release the revised series of the Index of Core Industries (ICI) with the base year 2022-23 on July 20, 2026 at 5:00 PM. According to the latest statement from the Commerce Ministry, the revised series will replace the existing ICI series with the base year 2011-12. The ICI is compiled on a monthly basis and the release includes the provisional ICI for June 2026 along with the back series from April 2023 to May 2026 (38 months). This marks the first overhaul of the index in more than a decade, representing a significant milestone in India's industrial data framework. With this upgrade, all of India's main economic metrics — capturing its national accounts, inflation levels, and industrial performance — will have been updated and upgraded, enhancing key economic indicators for policymaking and economic analysis.
Core infrastructure sectors' growth accelerated to 5% in June 2026, marking the fastest reading in five months and a significant improvement from 3.2% growth in May 2026 and 1.1% growth in June 2025. According to the inaugural release of the new ICI series, the growth was driven by iron ore posting the strongest growth at 43.9%, followed by cement production rising 9.8% during the month, with the growth accelerating from 8.4% in the preceding month, indicating a jump in construction activity. Electricity also expanded 9.8% in June, while steel production remained robust, rising by 4.6% in the last month after a 5.1% climb in May. Coal production increased 1.4% after an 9.5% decline in the preceding month. The gains in cement, electricity, and iron ore helped offset contraction in crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, and fertilizer sectors. Crude oil output continued to be under pressure, falling by 4.2% in June, while natural gas production continued to slip, falling 7.4% in comparison to a decline of 5% in May. Fertiliser output decreased by 3.3% in June, after 1% de-growth in May. The petroleum refinery products, which hold the most weightage in the index, declined by 4.7% after a decline of 8.2% the previous month. As per ICRA Ltd, the pickup in June was not broad-based and was led by an improvement in the performance of just four of the nine sectors, with fertiliser output contracting for the fourth consecutive month likely reflecting the continued adverse impact of West Asia tensions.
As reported by the Commerce Ministry, the weights for the ICI (2022-23) series have been derived from the weights of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) 2022-23 series released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). The weights of the ICI basket items, drawn from the IIP, have been redistributed on a pro-rata basis to total 100 for finalising the weights of the ICI item basket. This methodology ensures consistency with the broader industrial production data and maintains the established framework for industrial performance measurement. The revised series is expected to improve comparability with the new IIP base year and better reflect the evolving structure of India's industrial economy, providing more accurate and reliable industrial performance indicators for policymakers and economists. The combined weight of the nine core industries in the IIP basket stands at 32.88 per cent, compared with 40.27 per cent for the eight core industries in the 2011-12 series. The revised series also recalibrates sectoral weights based on the new IIP series, with electricity carrying the highest weight at 30.93%, followed by refinery products at 22.57% and steel at 17.58%.
In view of the extensive use of iron ore in industrial production and its significant contribution to industrial development, Iron Ore has been included as a core industry in the revised ICI series, increasing the number of core industries from eight to nine. This expansion has increased the number of core sectors to nine, broadening the scope of industrial coverage in the index. The existing eight industries — Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity — have all been retained in the new series. These eight core industries comprise 40.27 per cent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) and serve as a good indicator of the overall industrial growth in the economy. The government stated that the move reflects iron ore's extensive use in industrial production and its growing contribution to the economy. According to the Commerce and Industry Ministry, owing to intensive use of iron ore in the production process and its contribution to industrial development, it has been included in the list of core industries as a new item in the revised series.
During April-June 2026-27, the nine core infrastructure sectors expanded by 3.6%, compared with 1% in the same period last year. The first-quarter number suggests that infrastructure-linked activity has begun the year on a stronger footing than in the corresponding period of the previous year, though the sectoral performance remains uneven. The government has discontinued the old 2011-12 base series and the next ICI release, for July 2026, will be issued on August 20 under the new series. The core-sector index serves as a high-frequency indicator of infrastructure and industrial activity, making the revision significant for policymakers and economists tracking India's industrial performance. Notably, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has revised the base year for Index of Industrial Production (IIP) from 2011–12 to 2022–23, with this being the second set of data under the revised base year. The government noted that iron ore and electricity have been the main contributors to the overall growth in the core sector in recent months.
