India’s Services Sector Grows Strong in 2024, Says Economic Survey
The Economic Survey 2023-2024 reveals that India’s services sector saw a significant growth in FY24, with a credit of Rs 45.9 lakh crore and a 22.9% year-on-year increase. The sector accounted for 55% of the economy and 44% of total exports. The services PMI reached 61.2 in March 2024, indicating robust expansion.
India ranked fifth in services exports, following the European Union, the United States, the United Kingdom, and China. The services sector has maintained a steady momentum post-pandemic, contributing significantly to India’s growth.
The government has played a key role in fostering this growth through policy reforms, investment promotion, skill enhancement, and market access facilitation. The services sector’s contribution to the overall GVA has increased significantly over the last decade.
Globally, India’s services exports made up 4.4% of the world’s commercial services exports in 2022. The sector’s transformation is marked by a shift towards digital services like online payments, e-commerce, and entertainment platforms.
The Economic Survey 2023-2024 was presented in Parliament by the Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman.
Doubts Revealed
Services Sector -: The services sector includes businesses that provide services rather than goods. Examples are banking, education, healthcare, and IT services.
Economic Survey -: The Economic Survey is a report by the Indian government that reviews the country’s economic progress and challenges over the past year.
FY24 -: FY24 stands for Fiscal Year 2024, which is a one-year period used for accounting and budget purposes, starting from April 1, 2023, to March 31, 2024.
Rs 45.9 lakh crore -: Rs 45.9 lakh crore is a large amount of money. ‘Rs’ stands for Indian Rupees, and ‘lakh crore’ is a way to express very large numbers in India. 1 lakh crore is equal to 1 trillion rupees.
Year-on-year -: Year-on-year means comparing data from one year to the same period in the previous year to see how things have changed.
PMI -: PMI stands for Purchasing Managers’ Index. It is a number that shows the health of the services sector. A PMI above 50 means the sector is growing.
Policy reforms -: Policy reforms are changes made by the government to improve laws and regulations to help the economy grow.
Infrastructure development -: Infrastructure development means building and improving facilities like roads, bridges, and internet networks to support economic activities.
Services exports -: Services exports are services provided by a country to people or businesses in other countries, like software development or customer support.
4.4% of the world’s commercial services exports -: This means that out of all the services sold by countries around the world, 4.4% were sold by India.