Fitch Ratings on Thursday revised upwards its FY24 economic growth forecast for India to 6.3 per cent from 6 per cent it had predicted earlier, citing a strong GDP up by 6.1 per cent in the first quarter, auto sales, PMI surveys and robust credit growth in recent months.

“The economy also continues to benefit from high bank credit growth and infrastructure spending with more to come from the latter,” it said in a statement, making India one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.

The growth forecast compares with 7.2 per cent GDP expansion in FY23. In the previous fiscal (FY22), the economy had grown 9.1 per cent.

“India’s economy has been showing broad-based strength— with GDP up by 6.1 per cent year-on-year in 1Q23 (January-March) and auto sales, PMI surveys and credit growth remaining robust in recent months — and we have raised our forecast for the fiscal year ending in March 2024 (FY23-24) by 0.3 percentage points to 6.3 per cent,” the rating agency said.

Stating that GDP growth in January-March was higher than expected, Fitch said there has been a recovery in manufacturing after two consecutive quarterly contractions, a boost from construction, and an increase in farm output. In expenditure terms, GDP growth was driven by domestic demand and a boost from net trade.