The country's industrial production shrank 0.8 per cent in April this year, dragged down by a poor performance of the manufacturing and capital goods sectors. Factory output, as measured by the Index of Industrial Production, IIP, had expanded 3 percent in April last year. Data released by the Central Statistics Office showed that the manufacturing sector, which constitutes over 75 per cent of the index, contracted 3.1 per cent in April this year. Capital goods output–a barometer of investment–shrank a hefty 24.9 per cent during the month. Overall consumer goods output dipped 1.2 per cent in April, while consumer non-durable production fell 9.7 percent. But production of consumer durables jumped 11.8 per cent, and electricity generation surged 14.6 per cent during the month.