India outperforms other major economies even as growth slows in April-June

India’s economic growth slowed to 6.7% year-on-year in the April-June quarter as a decline in government spending during national elections weighed, data showed on Friday, but it remained the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
The rise in gross domestic product was less than a 6.9% expansion forecast by a Reuters poll, and compared to 7.8% growth in the previous quarter.
Still, it was faster than 4.7% growth in China, Asia’s biggest economy, in April-June, and India’s slowdown is expected to be temporary as economists forecast that easing inflation and a pickup in government spending will shore up growth in the coming months.
V. Anantha Nageswaran, India’s chief economic adviser, said growth momentum remained strong backed up strong investment demand and upbeat business sentiments.
“In the medium term, the Indian economy can grow at a rate of 7% plus on a sustainable basis if we can build on the structural reforms undertaken over the last decade,” he told reporters after the release of data.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken several steps to boost the economy since recent national elections, in which his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) failed to win an outright majority and is having to rely on allies to run the government for the first time in a decade.