Markit has released the Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for Dec 2011, which is up to a high value of 54.2 (remember, lower than 50 is contraction, above 50 is expansion).
This comes after three tough months of touching close to 50; interestingly, they say:
All in all, these numbers suggest it’s premature for the RBI to replace inflation with growth
as the main concern.
Inflation still remains stubbornly high – and I’m sure the dollar situation with the rupee will show up in inflation numbers for Dec or Jan.
Note that this is only manufacturing. The true picture will come only after the services PMI is released, which will be on the 4th.