India's economic growth forecast continued to be revised downward by rating agencies and global investment bankers amid COVID-19 impact.
On Wednesday, S&P Global Ratings lowered India's economic growth to 5.2 percent for calendar year 2020 from its 5.7 percent predicted earlier while Bank of America has cut its real Gross Value Added forecasts by 30 basis points and by 80 basis points for the March and June quarter respectively to 4 percent on rising COVID-19 related shutdowns.
"Our BofA (Bank of America) India Activity Indicator continues to point to a long bottom. While growth improved to 4.3 percent in January from 3.5 percent in December, it is still below October-November's 4.4 percent," said the Bank of America report.
These two forecasts follow a similar outlook issued on Tuesday by Moody's Investors Service that had lowered its forecast for 2020 to 5.3 percent from 5.4 percent, on coronavirus impact on the Indian economy.
Earlier this week on Monday, India's Central Bank Governor also stated that Indian economy was not immune to coronavirus. "Second round of effects of the pandemic could operate through a slowdown in the domestic economic growth and it would obviously be a result of synchronised slowdown in global growth and as a part of that, the growth momentum in India would also be impacted somewhat," the Governor said.
As of Wednesday morning, India had 147 COVID-19 cases including 25 foreign nationals. So far, 14 persons have been discharged after treatment while there have been three casualties.
Several states across Asia's third largest economy has shut down educational institutions, public places, gymnasiums as well as archaeological monuments and museums as the infection cases rise impacting the aviation, tourism, hospitality and the trade at large.
Indian railways too have restricted their operations by cancelling trains as passengers have cut out their travel plans and have preferred to stay at home that is an indication about the changing consumption pattern impacting demand severally.
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