'Intellectual dishonesty': SBI hits back at 2.6% GDP growth claim
The State Bank of India has challenged assertions of low nominal GDP growth, asserting that the 2.6% figure arose from inconsistent data comparisons. The bank highlights that the official real GDP growth for Q1 FY27 remains robust at 7.8%. It's common for quarterly GDP figures to be adjusted, and further revisions will continue until the data is finalized.
Economist Neelkanth Mishra responded to accusations that India's most recent GDP growth figure was inflated by the revision of national accounts series, dismissing the allegations as "ill-educated and egregiously wrong" and asserting economic activity indicators indicate a robust economy. Mishra, recently appointed by the World Bank, noted that waning fiscal headwinds and rising credit growth were transforming into tailwinds for the economy.
He added that the improvement in momentum could raise consensus estimates for India's trend growth rate above 7%. The debate erupted after the new national accounts series revised the previous year's current-price GDP estimate from around ₹86 lakh crore to ₹80 lakh crore, leading to claims that the lower base had artificially boosted the latest growth rate.
The government refuted this claim, attributing the change to a move to the new GDP series, better data sources, and methodological improvements. Mishra criticized those who argued that India's June 2026 growth rate would have been significantly lower if the original June 2025 base had been retained. He emphasized that the new GDP series, launched in February 2026, had enhanced both the underlying data and methodology.
Mishra highlighted high-frequency indicators, such as personal vehicle dispatches, personal two-wheeler growth, commercial vehicle dispatches, tax collection growth, and bank credit growth, as evidence of strengthening economic activity. However, he cautioned that the economy still had some slack, indicated by weak real-wage growth, which would need several quarters of above-trend growth to tighten and alleviate inflation pressures.
Written by urgent.news from The Economic Times - Economy's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
Also reported by 1 other outlet
- ‘I was shocked’: Neelkanth Mishra hits back at ‘egregiously wrong’ claims on India’s GDP growth economictimes.indiatimes.com
