India GDP data Q3 FY24: Economy expands 8.4% in Q3, better than economists' expectations

India's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 8.4 per cent in the October-December period, boosted by double-digit expansion in the manufacturing sector, according to official data released on Thursday. That was much higher than 7.6 per cent in the previous quarter and 4.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2022-23. 

The latest quarterly GDP reading was also way better than economists' estimates. 

A poll of economists had projected GDP growth for the third quarter of the current financial year at 6.6 per cent.  

Here's how the economy fared across some of the key sectors:

Describing the third-quarter GDP numbers as good, Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran said the agriculture sector was expected to register strong growth in the next financial year. 

The government raised its estimate of GDP growth for the full year ending March 31, 2024, to 7.6 per cent from 7.3 per cent, roughly three weeks after the RBI raised its comparable forecast to 7.3 per cent from 7.0 per cent. For the next financial year, the central bank pegs GDP growth at 7.2 per cent in the first quarter, 6.8 per cent in the second, 7.0 per cent in the third, and 6.9 per cent in the fourth. 

"India is clearly on a high and sustained high growth path," said Infomerics Ratings Chief Economist Manoranjan Sharma. 

Official GDP data on the final three months of the financial year will be released on May 31.