📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementatio
Business
India’s Q4 GDP Growth Not 2.6%: Old and New Series Must Stay Separate
✍️ Moneycontrol.com
🗓 02 Sep 2026, 05:38 PM
👁 3
India’s latest GDP data shows that the growth rate for the fourth quarter was not 2.6%, as earlier estimates suggested. The discrepancy arises because the old and new GDP series cannot be combined.
India’s latest GDP release from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) has clarified that the growth rate for the fourth quarter of the fiscal year was not 2.6% as previously reported. The discrepancy stems from the fact that the old and new GDP series use different base years and calculation methods, and they cannot be combined without distorting the figures.
MOSPI’s revised estimate shows the fourth‑quarter growth at 2.5%, a slight dip from the 2.6% figure that appeared in earlier preliminary data. The change is purely methodological and does not indicate a slowdown in the economy.
Economists warn that mixing the two series can lead to misleading conclusions about the pace of growth. The new series, which started in 2016, incorporates updated price indices and a revised sectoral composition.
The clarification is expected to reassure investors and policymakers that the underlying economic trend remains stable, even though the headline number has been adjusted.
MOSPI’s revised estimate shows the fourth‑quarter growth at 2.5%, a slight dip from the 2.6% figure that appeared in earlier preliminary data. The change is purely methodological and does not indicate a slowdown in the economy.
Economists warn that mixing the two series can lead to misleading conclusions about the pace of growth. The new series, which started in 2016, incorporates updated price indices and a revised sectoral composition.
The clarification is expected to reassure investors and policymakers that the underlying economic trend remains stable, even though the headline number has been adjusted.