AS the whirlwind election season gathers momentum in India, with voting to be held in seven phases shortly between April and May, conflicting signals have emerged about the economy, especially with regards to growth and job creation. And this is finding its way into the political discourse.

According to the latest government data, India's GDP (gross domestic product) growth was down to 6.6 per cent in the December quarter, lower than market forecasts. On top of that, growth was revised down to 7 per cent in the preceding quarter ending September 30, 2018. The government expects full-year growth for fiscal year 2018-2019 (ending March 2019) to be 7 per cent, down from the last year's 7.2 per cent pace.

The numbers suggest a definite slowdown of an economy that appeared last year to have recovered from the twin shocks of the ban of high denomination currency notes and a botched rollout of a Goods and Services Tax (GST). However, interestingly the February Nikkei Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for manufacturing activity indicates that the country bucked the regional trend of a slump. India's manufacturing PMI rose to 54.3 from January's 53.9, its highest level since December 2017, and growth of new orders was the fastest since October 2016. A PMI of over 50 indicates market expansion. Mirroring the manufacturing PMI, India's services sector activity also gathered momentum in February, with the Nikkei India Services Business Activity Index rising to 52.5 from January's 52.2. This expansion was also driven by quicker expansion of new work orders that supported a faster increase in output and job creation.