GDP to grow at 6% in Apr-Jun

New Delhi: India's economy will grow at a median rate of 6 per cent during the first quarter of the current financial year ended June 30, according to a Ficci report.

The country's economy grew at 8.2 per cent in April-June 2018-19. The growth numbers for the first quarter are expected to be released by the Central Statistics Office next week.

"The recently released unemployment numbers by NSSO reaffirm the grim situation with regard to employment in the country," said Ficci Economic Outlook Survey.

It pegged the annual median GDP growth forecast for 2019-20 at 6.9 per cent, with a minimum and maximum estimate of 6.7 per cent and 7.2 per cent, respectively.

A majority of the participating economists in the survey suggested the RBI will continue its accommodative stance, with a further cut in the repo rate in the remaining part of 2019-20. They felt that the prevailing real interest rates were high.

They also signalled that tardy deposit growth is haunting the banks as it is limiting their ability to lend and is preventing adequate transmission.

The participants identified four key areas of improvement that would help create more jobs: cost of doing business; regulatory reforms; labour reforms and announcement of sector specific special packages.

They observed that slower global growth will impact India's growth prospects going forward.

In fact, economists unanimously indicated that India's potential growth rate would be between 7-7.5 per cent, which is lower than the 8 per cent plus potential growth rate estimated until a few years back, Ficci stated.

However, a majority of participants felt that potential GDP growth would settle at 7.5 per cent.