AKIPRESS.COM - The Indian economy will grow at a 5-year high of 7.6 per cent in the fiscal ending March, overtaking a slowing China, on the back of improvement in manufacturing and farm sectors.

Gross domestic product (GDP) will expand by 7.6 per cent in 2015-16 compared with 7.2 per cent a year earlier, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO). The previous high at 8.9 per cent was recorded in 2010-11.

China grew 6.9 per cent in 2015 while Russia contracted 3.7 per cent. Brazil is forecast to shrink 3.7 per cent.

However, India's GDP growth slowed to 7.3 per cent in October-December, from the revised 7.7 per cent of the previous quarter. It, however bettered the 6.6 per cent in the same period of the last fiscal.

On the GDP data, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said: "The direction of the numbers is very positive. The policy and reform measure the government has undertaken in last one and a half years are beginning to show results."

The economic growth projection of 7.6 per cent for the current fiscal by CSO has surpassed the estimates of the Finance Ministry, Reserve Bank and other multilateral agencies.

The CSO's estimate is higher than the Finance Ministry's mid-year economic analysis, which projected a growth rate of 7-7.5 per cent for the current fiscal. It is also higher than 7.4 per cent estimated by the Reserve Bank of India.

IMF has projected India's growth at 7.3 per cent while Asian Development Bank expected India's GDP to expand at 7.4 per cent in 2015-16. Moody's Investors Service has put the corresponding figure at 7 per cent for this fiscal.