The government is likely to come out with a second stimulus package to propel economic growth, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said on Thursday.
"We have to ensure that our domestic demand continues and government will be taking all steps. We are again looking at something (package) for next week," he told reporters after a function organised by Spanish Institute of Foreign Trade and industry chamber Ficci.
The second stimulus package, Nath said, would be aimed at generating employment and ensuring that the credit needs of the companies are met.
In the next package, the minister said, "We will look at engineering sector, greater re-finance facility for exporters and textile and agriculture sectors."
As part of an estimated about Rs 35,000-crore (Rs 350 billion) stimulus package last Sunday, the government reduced 4 per cent excise duty across the board and announced plans to raise public expenditure by additional Rs 20,000 crore (Rs 200 billion) during 2008-09.
Besides, the government announced incentives for exports sector, and also mentioned sops for and small and medium enterprises which will shortly be announced by banks.
The Reserve Bank has already pumped in additional Rs 3 lakh crore (Rs 3 trillion) into the system to ease credit crunch being faced by the companies.
The second stimulus package assumes significance as the World Bank in its report yesterday expressed fears of a deeper and prolonged slowdown which may pull down the global economic growth to less than one per cent in 2009.
Many of the developed nations like the United States, Japan and some countries in the Eurozone are already in recession and India is witnessing the ripple effects of the slowdown.
Last week's economic package: