Indian economy hits five year low

In the quarter April-June 2019 the increase in GDP was "only" at 5.7%; in the same period of 2018 it was 8%. The collapse in growth is due to the contraction in consumer demand and private investments, due to the erosion of savings and the increase in bank debts. 7.51%, a record in unemployment.

New Delhi (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Indian economy continues to contract and has hit its lowest level recorded in the past five years according to a Reuters study on the country's growth.   According to experts, in the April-June 2019 quarter the increase in gross domestic product (GDP) was "only" 5.7%: far lower than the same period in 2018, when growth was 8%, thus loosing its place as the world's fastest growing economy.

Analysts believe that the incessant decline of the Indian economy is due to the contraction in consumer demand and the lower stimulus of private investment. Both factors are due to the negative climate on international markets and the trade wars between China and the United States.

Sunil Sinha, chief economist of India Ratings, Fitch's Indian branch, one of the world's leading credit rating agencies, says: "Economic growth is collapsing". The expert explains that the slowdown is driven by the collapse of private savings and the increase in bank debts, which have affected private investments.

He says the worst has yet to come. "The decline of the Indian economy - he warns - could continue for the next 2-3 years, if these structural problems remain in consumption and in the decline in manufacturing growth".

In the April-June period, the government's capital expenditure amounted to 630 billion rupees (8.81 billion dollars), or 28% less than last year. The reason for the restrictions is the new projects announced by the executive during the electoral campaign that led to the re-election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Finally, another negative figure on unemployment: according to the Indian Economy Center for Monitoring, a private think tank in Mumbai, in July the number of non-employees reached a record level of 7.51%, up from 5.66% of the last year.