According to statistics released by the Indian government, although industrial production in the country’s manufacturing sector rose 79.36% in January 2006 compared with January 2005, the leather industry posted a 21.5% fall in industrial production year-on-year.

The manufacturing sector covers 17 groups of industries. Of the 17 groups, seven groups grew at more than 10% compared with January 2005, but five groups, including leather and its products, posted negative growth.