BENGALURU, Aug 1 Reuters Growth in India39;s manufacturing activity eased in July for a second month, with some moderation in output and new orders, although the pace of expansion remained healthy, a private business survey showed on Tuesday.

The sector has remained resilient despite declines in manufacturing activity in other major producers, suggesting Asia39;s thirdlargest economy is still on robust footing.

The Manufacturing Purchasing Managers39; Index, compiled by SP Global, dipped to 57.7 last month from June39;s 57.8 but was slightly higher than the Reuters poll expectation for 57.0.

Still, the reading marked over two years of the index being above the 50mark, which separates expansion from contraction.

The … sector has maintained its position as one of the star performers globally, bucking the trend of demand weakness seen in other parts of the world, noted Andrew Harker, economics director at SP Global Market Intelligence.

The Indian manufacturing sector showed little sign of losing growth momentum in July as production lines continued to motor on the back of strong new order growth.

New orders remained robust in July, and while output growth moderated to a threemonth low it remained strong.

Foreign demand stoked exports at the fastest pace since November. Firms expected activity to stay elevated over the coming year and the future output subindex remained high at 65.3, albeit slightly lower than in June.

That optimism encouraged firms to hire more…