Union Budget: Economic Survey 2023-2024 to be presented today

New Delhi, July 21: The government will present the Economic Survey 2023-2024 on Monday, ahead of the much-anticipated Union Budget 2024-25 a day later.

The Ministry of Finance said in a post on X on Sunday that Chief Economic Adviser Dr V. Anantha Nageswaran will address the media in the afternoon after the Economic Survey 2023-24 is presented in the Lok Sabha.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will table the pre-budget document in the Parliament. The document has been prepared by the Economic Division of the Department of Economic Affairs in the Ministry of Finance and formulated under the supervision of the Chief Economic Adviser.

A report card on the economy and also the growth outlook ahead, the survey gives a detailed account of the state of the economy, prospects and policy challenges.

The Economic Survey provides statistical information and analysis on various sectors of the economy as well as data on employment, GDP growth, inflation, and the budget deficit.

India has retained its tag as the fastest-growing economy, and the economic survey will be presented at a time when the IMF has just raised its economic growth forecast for the country for FY25 to 7 per cent from 6.8 per cent projected in April. In June, the Reserve Bank of India revised the growth forecast to 7.2 from 7 per cent.

According to RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das, if the average growth India recorded over the three years is seen, the average comes to 8.3 per cent and in the current year, they have given a projection of 7.2 per cent growth.

The Union Budget will focus on supporting consumption via higher allocation for the rural economy, welfare schemes, and agriculture with higher allocations for schemes like PMAY and MNREGA, according to rating agencies. It expects a focus on manufacturing and capex to continue as the government is likely to retain its interim budget’s target of capex and an increase in PLI allocation to more labour-intensive sectors like textiles, leather footwear and toys to aid job creation

Meanwhile. as the Centre is set to present the Union Budget 2024-2025 on July 23, stock market experts bet big on four key sectors -- capital goods, defence, electronics system design and manufacturing (ESDM) and Tourism.

The market anticipates a continuation of last year's incentives, maintaining the status quo. A continued focus on infrastructure, including roads, railways, ports, airport expansions, defence, and tourism, is vital.

In the past week, Nifty has recorded a slight gain of 0.3 per cent, driven by strong performances and positive growth forecasts from IT majors TCS, Infosys, and HCL Tech.