BENGALURU, April 2 Reuters India39;s manufacturing industry enjoyed solid growth in March, expanding at the fastest pace in 16 years thanks to accelerating demand, according to a survey that also showed hiring increased at the strongest rate in six months.

Ahead of a general election this month, the data is likely to boost support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi39;s government, which has focused on manufacturing to improve the economy, already the fastestgrowing among its major peers.

The HSBC final India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers39; Index, compiled by SP Global, rose to 59.1 last month from February39;s 56.9, the highest since February 2008, but slightly lower than a preliminary estimate of 59.2.

That puts the reading above the 50mark, which separates growth from contraction, for a 33rd consecutive month the longest streak since July 2013.

The HSBC final India Manufacturing PMI indicates that production growth continued to be strong, supported by both domestic and external demand, said Ines Lam, economist at HSBC.

Both output and new orders subindexes rose to their highest levels since October 2020. Exports expanded at the fastest pace in nearly two years.

That boosted hiring in March and employment generation was at its strongest since September after remaining largely stagnant in the previous two months.

Buoyed by robust demand and improving profit margins, manufacturers have an optimistic outlook about future business conditions, added Lam.

While…