Dear Friends,

Yesterday India released its GDP data for the 4th quarter of 2007. Contrast that with the US’s pitiful number of 0.6% that we got from the Commerce department.

Are there any doubts that the East is fast on its way to becoming the economic powerhouse of the 21th century? Keep in mind that India and China both historically love the ancient yellow metal unlike the West which goes out of its way to disparage it.

Indian GDP grows 8.4 pct in Oct-Dec yr/yr
Fri Feb 29, 2008 11:18am IST

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's economy grew in the October-to-December quarter by 8.4 percent from a year earlier, boosted by services and manufacturing, data showed on Friday.

The data showed that annual growth in the third quarter of the 2007/08 financial year slowed down from 8.9 percent in the July-Sept quarter.

Asia's third-largest economy is expected to expand at 8.7 percent the fiscal year to March 31, after an 18-year high of 9.6 percent in 2006/07.

The figures showed that farm output expanded 3.2 percent from a year earlier, while manufacturing grew 9.3 percent.

The data was released just ahead of a budget address by India's finance minister.

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