Flash HSBC India Composite PMI Output Index At 61.0 in September

New Delhi: Despite marking a slight slowdown, India’s business activity remained resilient in September, with the Flash HSBC India Composite PMI output index coming in at 61.9 from 63.2 in August. The index has now stayed above the 60-mark level for four consecutive months, underscoring the economy’s resilience, a private survey showed on Tuesday.

As per the survey, the HSBC Flash India composite PMI output showed that the performance was supported by both manufacturing and services sector, while growth in factory output outpaced that of services, although the pace of increase moderated across both the sectors. “However, both manufacturing and services saw a marginal easing, slipping to 58.5 and 61.6 respectively in September, from 59.3 and 62.9 in the previous month,” the survey said.

Commenting on the survey, Pranjul Bhandari, chief India economist at HSBC said that the manufacturing PMI moderated but its pace of expansion remains healthy. “The imposition of the 50 per cent tariff rate by the US on India likely resulted in a slower rise in new export orders over August-September. This comes on the back of strong frontloading of exports to the US since early-2025,” Bhandari said.

The survey also said that the September data was another substantial increase in new business placed with Indian private sector companies and the pace of expansion was sharp and well above trend but receded from August. “Meanwhile, new domestic orders rose for the last two months, likely on the back of announcements of lower GST rates. All said, the impact of higher tariffs have been somewhat offset by lower tax rates in the data so far,” Bhandari added.

The survey also showed that international sales trends diverged across the manufacturing and service economies. “In the latter, growth slowed to the joint-weakest since March 2025, contrasting with a quicker upturn at goods producers. Subsequently, aggregate new export order volumes increased at the softest pace in six months,” it said.

The survey pointed out that although private sector workforces continued to increase at the end of the second fiscal quarter, the rate of expansion receded from August and was moderate overall. “Slower rates of increase were noted across both the manufacturing and service sectors. In fact, the proportion of companies indicating job creation in the aforementioned segments stood at around 3 per cent and 5 per cent respectively,” it said, adding that the vast majority of survey participants reported having sufficient labour for current requirements.