At a time when global trade is facing geo-political uncertainties, India's exports of goods like automobiles and gold jewellery have ventured into uncharted territories of Central Asia, Africa and Latin America, according to an analysis by the commerce ministry. The analysis has shown that India has penetrated into what are termed as "absolutely new markets" in regions such as Africa, Central Asia, Latin America and North America during April-December 2023. The "absolutely new markets" refer to areas where India did see any export during April-December 2022, but healthy growth of certain principal commodities like motor vehicles, two- and three-wheelers, petroleum products, sugar, gold and other precious jewellery were recorded in April-December 2023. Exports of these commodities to the absolutely new markets during April-December 2023 stood at USD 234 million as against nil shipments during the same period of 2022. It added that these commodities captured a greater number of marke

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) continued their bullish stance on the country's debt markets with a net infusion of over Rs 18,500 crore so far this month, driven by upcoming inclusion of Indian government bonds in the JP Morgan Index. This came following a net investment of over Rs 19,836 crore in January, making it the highest monthly inflow in more than six years. This was the highest inflow since June 2017, when they infused Rs 25,685 crore. "With introduction of India in global bond indices this year, Indian debt inflows should get steady flows going ahead. Also, further front-loading before actual inclusion in June this year is also expected. This is also in line with long-term aim to deepen our underdeveloped debt-markets," Kislay Upadhyay, smallcase Manager & Founder Fidelfolio, said. On the other hand, foreign investors pulled out Rs 424 crore from equities during the period under review. Before this, they withdrew a massive Rs 25,743 crore in January, data with the ..

As many as 431 infrastructure projects, each entailing an investment of Rs 150 crore or above, were hit by cost overrun of more than Rs 4.80 lakh crore in January 2024, an official report stated. According to Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), which monitors infrastructure projects worth Rs 150 crore and above, out of 1,821 projects, 431 reported cost overrun and 780 projects were delayed. " Total original cost of implementation of the 1,821 projects was Rs 26,09,679.38 crore and their anticipated completion cost is likely to be Rs 30,90,135.99 crore, which reflects overall cost overruns of Rs 4,80,456.61 crore (18.41 per cent of original cost)," the ministry's latest report for January 2024 said. According to the report, the expenditure incurred on these projects till January 2024 is Rs 16,43,821.69 crore, which is 53.20 per cent of the anticipated cost of the projects. However, it stated that the number of delayed projects decreases to 583 if delay is ..

The Household Consumption Expenditure Survey, released late on Saturday, estimates average rural consumer spending rose to Rs 3,773 a month per person

The decision could lead to smoother foreign currency transactions, lower inter-bank fees, and increased trade and investment, according to Moody's Analytics Industry Practice Lead Mohamed Daoud

Among other measures imposed on Russia following the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the US and its allies slapped an oil-price sales cap on the country's exports

Underlining that global commons are getting "contested", top admirals from the UK, France and the US on Friday pitched for forging partnership between like-minded nations to respond to ongoing crises in the world, provide stability, reduce risks and restore confidence. Navy Chief Adm R Hari Kumar; Adm Sir Ben Key, First Sea Lord and Chief of Naval Staff, the UK; Adm John C Aquilino, Commander, US Indo-Pacific Command; Adm Nicolas Vaujour, Chief of the Naval Staff, France; and Air Marshal Robert Chipman, Chief of the Air Force, Australia took part in a panel discussion titled 'From the Aegean Sea to the South China Sea: Responding to Maritime Sieges', held at the Raisina Dialogue here. "If you can see what is happening in the South China Sea, and Red Sea where people are seeking to impose their will on the global commons... then that ripple will be felt far and wide, and not just in that point. And, this is what separates the maritime environment from the land environment," Adm Key ..

India needs a multi-pronged approach for the Electronics System Design and Manufacturing (ESDM) sector to leverage the momentum for value chain resilience, as the window of opportunity created by the current geopolitical context is very small, according to a report. "Decisive policy action is the need of the hour," said PwC India's report on 'The India Opportunity: Developing Resilient Electronics Supply Chains'. It noted that India is uniquely placed among global economies, having garnered goodwill as a reliable partner for countries across the world. "The country must now leverage this momentum to ensure that its internal strategy and operations enable it to become future ready. A multi-pronged approach is essential to ensure that the centre of the ESDM sector in India holds firm," the report said. Emphasising that the next decade will be crucial for this, given the window of opportunity for India to be a part of the value chain -- created by the geopolitical context -- is very .

Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw Friday said the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project will prove to be a corridor of economic prosperity, transforming towns and cities along the route and becoming a learning experience for future initiatives. Vaishnaw triggered a blast to build a shaft at Vikhroli to lower tunnel boring machines (TBM) for the construction of the 21-km underground tunnel, which is considered to be a technological marvel of India's first bullet train project. "Trains will zip through the tunnel at a maximum speed of up to 320 km. Constructing it without disturbing the tall buildings in the area is a challenge," the railway minister said. The shaft at the Vikhroli site of the National High Speed Rail Corridor is one among the four to be built for the entire 21-km-long underground stretch of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project. The shaft-2 will be used to launch two TBMs -- one towards the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) station's east end and the other towards Sawl

India's forex reserves declined USD 5.24 billion to USD 617.23 billion for the week ending February 9, according to weekly data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday. The forex kitty stood at USD 622.5 billion for the week ended February 2. However, in the current fiscal, the forex reserves have increased USD 50.28 billion, the RBI data showed. Foreign currency assets, which constitute the largest component of the reserves, dropped USD 4.07 billion to USD 546.52 billion during the week under review, as per the latest data. The reserves had peaked in October 2021, when kitty had reached USD 645 billion. The reserves took a hit as the central bank sold dollars to defend the rupee amid pressures caused majorly by global developments since last year. As a result, the rupee has been the best Asian currency so far this fiscal. The sharp fall in the overall reserves was due to a sharp decline in foreign currency assets, which are the single largest component of the ...

The corporate component of the scheme is voluntary in nature and includes people working in public sector organisations, private limited companies or public sector banks, among others

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, India has moved up to the fifth position from the 10th spot in the world in terms of economy. "In the next year and a half, we will be at the third position," she said, adding that the standard of living of the citizens is better in a country that has a strong economy and everyone benefits from it. The senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said this is the first government in the country that listens to people, then makes schemes and works to deliver the benefits of such schemes to people. "The BJP is such a party in which even the smallest worker can reach the highest position by working for the party," she said. Claiming that the INDIA opposition bloc has disintegrated, Sitharaman said nothing is achieved by taking photographs. "They (Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav) have nothing left to say to the public. Prime Minister Modi has a

Road Secretary Anurag Jain says capacity augmentation, lane widening will touch a record high in FY24

The industrial sector, after registering a 13.2 per cent growth in the second quarter, is expected to grow at 8 per cent in Q3FY24, the report said

India's oil imports hit 5.24 million barrels per day (bpd) in January, up 17% from December and 3.5% higher than in the corresponding month a year earlier, according to the data

The minister was responding to a question on India's trade negotiations with the UK and the European Union (EU) becoming more complicated

India on Friday expressed hope that other countries will come to the WTO meet in Abu Dhabi with a positive attitude and listen to the concerns of developing nations for providing free and fair solutions to their problems. Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal also said that though the World Trade Organisation (WTO) has played an important role in setting robust rules for global trade, there are significant problems in the organisation. Trade ministers of 164 countries will gather in Abu Dhabi, UAE from February 26 to discuss a range of issues pertaining to areas such as agriculture, fisheries subsidies, and a moratorium on imposing customs duty on e-commerce trade. "I do hope that other countries will also come to the table with a positive attitude as does India...(I do hope that) other countries are also willing to listen to us and other less developed and developing countries' concerns and give free and fair solutions to the problems," Goyal said at the Raisina Dialogue ...

Successful conclusion of India's proposed trade agreements with the UK, Oman and four European nation bloc EFTA will reflect its commitment to trade liberalisation and economic integration at a time when the whole world is turning protectionist, according to a report. Economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said the free trade agreements (FTAs) have become pivotal instruments for India's economic expansion and integration into the world market. These nations and the bloc are eager to finalize these agreements before the upcoming general elections, GTRI said, adding the talks are on the verge of conclusion. Signing of these three agreements will take India's FTA tally from 13 to 16. Number of countries with comprehensive FTAs will go up from 22 to 28. In addition India has six small scope PTAs (preferential trade agreements). Last pact was signed with Australia in March 2022. "Everyone wants to do an FTA with India. The main reason for this is India's high impo

The US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma has met with senior Indian ministers and officials in New Delhi to advance the US-India global strategic partnership and ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific region, according to his spokesperson. Verma, the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources, is the highest-ranking Indian American in the State Department. The former US Ambassador to India was on an official visit to India from February 19 to 21. He met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra, Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane, and Deputy National Security Advisor Vikram Misri in New Delhi, State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said here on Thursday. Verma's meetings explored opportunities to strengthen US-India cooperation and people-to-people ties to ensure a free, open, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region, Miller said. He also met with Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal to discuss further expanding t

Ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha and assembly elections, the Odisha government on Thursday decided to extend its farmers' welfare scheme 'KALIA' for another three years, sanctioning a total outlay of Rs 6,029.70 crore for the purpose. The state cabinet headed by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik approved three proposals in this regard, Agriculture and Farmers' Empowerment Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain told reporters. He said the state has been implementing the Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA) scheme since 2018-19 as a majority of the population of the state is directly or indirectly dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. Similarly, the state had implemented the KALIA scholarship to ensure the educational development of the children of KALIA beneficiaries so that they avail of professional and technical education in different educational institutions, Swain said. For hassle-free and smooth implementation of this welfare scheme and to bring the ..