How strong is the economic recovery? Economists go the extra mile to find out

A string of high-frequency alternative indicators, along with government-issued data sets such as goods and services tax (GST) collection, foreign trade, e-way bills and Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), have shown the economy has gathered pace. But gauging the true extent of recovery is proving difficult, given the distortion caused by the extreme base effect of Covid-hit FY21.