Growth of the country's infrastructure sector slowed to a 3-month low of 1.1 per cent in July, as the output of crude oil, natural gas and steel contracted. The eight core sectors, which contribute about 38 per cent to the overall industrial production, had grown at 4.1 per cent in July last year. According to data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry, crude oil output contracted 0.4 percent, natural gas output contracted 4.4 percent, and steel output fell 2.6 per cent in July this year. Growth in coal output stood at 0.3 percent, cement output grew 1.3 percent, and electricity generation rose 3.5 per cent in July. Refinery product output rose 2.9 percent, and fertiliser production expanded 8.6 per cent during the month. During the April to July 2015 period, core sector output expanded by 2.1 per cent, against 5.5 per cent growth in the first four months of the last fiscal.