India Leaves Behind Large Economies in Manufacturing, Services Expansion The data highlighted that for April 2025, India's manufacturing PMI stood at 58.2, while its services PMI came in at 58.7.
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India's manufacturing and services sector performed significantly better than other large economies in April, thereby signalling the country's steady economic growth as compared to others, a recently released dataset revealed.
While manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) averaged at 58.2 in April, the services PMI stood at 58.7, the dataset revealed.
In contrast, according to China's National Bureau of Statistics, the manufacturing PMI in April was 49, a decrease of 1.5 percentage points MoM. Considered as the world's second-largest economy, its services PMI stood at 50.1, the official data noted.
In the US, the manufacturing PMI showed contraction and stood at 48.7 in April, 0.3 point lower compared to the 49 recorded in March. Its services PMI, as recorded by ISM, was 51.6. For the unversed, PMI serves as a key indicator of economic activity in the manufacturing and services sectors. A reading above 50 signals growth, while a score below 50 reflects a contraction in business activity and thereby the economy.
France's manufacturing and services PMI, compiled by S&P Global, stood at 48.2 and 47.9, respectively.
To surmise based on data, it can be easily said that India continues to show growth while other countries struggle to outpace its manufacturing and services sector. Experts claim that both legacy entrepreneurs and start-ups, and government initiatives are responsible for the upward trajectory.
"India's potential to lead in manufacturing and services stems from strategic policy alignment and demographic agility. The manufacturing sector, contributing 17 per cent to GDP, is revitalised by the INR 1.97 lakh crore PLI scheme, which has driven INR 12.5 lakh crore in incremental production and INR 4 lakh crore in exports since 2020. Sectors like electronics and pharmaceuticals exemplify this growth, with mobile exports surging from INR 1,566 crore (2014-15) to INR 1,28,982 crore (2023-24). Despite a recent slowdown (1.4 per cent growth in FY24), April 2025's manufacturing PMI 58.2 signals resilience, supported by FDI inflows of INR 165.1 billion (2014–24)," said Mukul Goyal, co-founder, Stratefix Consulting.
Simultaneously, services contributing 58.7 PMI in April 2025 thrive on digital innovation and global demand, he added.
A few days back, HSBC released a survey stating that the Indian manufacturing industry rose at a sharp rate after 10 months in April 2025 on the back of strong demand and output.
The seasonally adjusted HSBC PMI also reported the same numbers as the dataset, showing a marginal rise from 58.1 in March to 58.2 in April in the manufacturing sector.
"The notable increase in new export orders in April may indicate a potential shift in production to India, as businesses adapt to the evolving trade landscape and US tariff announcements. Manufacturing output growth strengthened to a ten-month high on robust orders. Input prices increased slightly faster, but the impact on margins could be more than offset by the much faster rise in output prices, of which the index jumped to the highest level since October 2013," Pranjul Bhandari, chief India economist, HSBC, said.
Besides manufacturing, HSBC survey had also reported a marginal growth in India's services sector in April, rising from 58.5 in March to 58.7 in April.
