During April-July, the eight sectors grew by 3% compared to 5.9% in the same period previous year.

Growth in core sector activity quickened in July 2019 to 2.1%, due almost entirely to a recovery in the cement sector, according to official data released on Monday.

The Index of Eight Core Industries had grown at just 0.7% in June 2019. However, July's growth rate is far lower than the 7.3% growth registered in the same month last year.

The cement sector saw growth accelerating to 7.9% in July 2019 compared with a contraction of 1.7% in the previous month. The coal sector, however, slipped into contraction in July, contracting 1.4% compared with a growth of 3.2% in June.

The crude oil sector continued contracting for at least the thirteenth consecutive month, contracting 4.4% in July, compared with a contraction of 6.8% in June. The natural gas sector contracted 0.5% in July compared with a contraction of 2.1% in the previous month.

The refinery products sector also contracted in July, by 0.9% compared with a contraction of 9.3% in June. Growth in the fertiliser sector remained flat at 1.5% over the period.

The steel sector saw growth moderate to 6.6% compared with 8.4% in June. The electricity sector, too, saw a slowdown in growth in July, to 4.2%, compared with 8.1% in the previous month.