India Financial News

Pakistan's cargo ship will soon reach Bangladesh's Mongla Port in 53 years. By allowing Pakistani ships to dock at its ports, Bangladesh's interim government is sending a a clear message to India. The erstwhile Sheikh Hasina government had given India access to Bangladesh's Chittagong and Mongla Ports to bolster sub-regional connectivity. Pakistan flagged carrier vessel, loaded with 25 metric tonnes of rice, left Karachi's Qasim port a few days ago and is expected to anchor at Chittagong Port this week, according to persons familiar with Pakistan-Bangladesh ties. After unloading 60% of the cargo (rice) at Chittagong, the vessel with the remaining quantity of rice will move towards Mongla, claimed one of the persons.

Manoj Sinha on Monday said his government remains steadfast in its commitment to address the legitimate desire of restoration of full statehood. The 40-day budget session started in the winter capital of Jammu with Sinha's address who reiterated his commitment to holding panchayat and urban local bodies elections in the Union Territory. «One of the foremost aspirations of the people of J&K is the restoration of full statehood. My government remains steadfast in its commitment to addressing this legitimate desire of the citizens of Jammu and Kashmir,» said Sinha. The LG said his government recognises the 'emotional and political significance of statehood' for the people of J&K. «We are actively engaging with all stakeholders to facilitate this process in a manner that ensures peace, stability and progress,» said Sinha.

The «misuse» of a 20-year-old foreign exchange rule, originally intended to make life easier for young Indians attending foreign universities, is believed to have drawn the attention of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), sources told ET. In 2003, the central bank allowed students going abroad to study to be treated as 'non-resident Indians' (NRIs). The regulation was issued to primarily help students who take up jobs in a foreign land to supplement their income. Until then, they were considered 'residents'. Since 'residents' are required under the law to send their foreign earnings back home, the rule was meant to shield working students from unwittingly breaching the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) which was enforced in 2000.

Narendra Modi on Monday announced the Asiatic lion population estimation exercise in May and unveiled conservation plans for tigers, gharials and a critically endangered bird while pushing for using AI to combat forest fires and human-animal conflicts. He made a slew of announcements while chairing the seventh meeting of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL), in his capacity as ex-officio chairperson, at Sasan in Gujarat's Junagadh district.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. India’s second-largest pathology lab chain, Metropolis Healthcare, is strengthening its foothold in North India with another acquisition. The diagnostics player announced Monday that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Metropolis Clinical Pathology Pvt.

Samsung India, Mobile Experience, Vice President, Aditya Babbar said the new A series devices would be made in India. «As per Counterpoint Research, there are 89 million happy customers on A series. We are targeting greater than 100 million devices in A series this year,» he noted. Babbar said that according to Counterpoint Research, last year, Samsung was an absolute leader in the price segments of Rs 25,000-35,000 and Rs 35,000 to Rs 50,000 in which Galaxy A56 and Galaxy A 36 are being launched, and the company expects to maintain that trend.

Radisson Hotel Group said on Monday its strategy is to have 240 hotels in operation and under development in India by end of 2025, driven by a strategic focus on tier 2 and 3 markets and the increasing demand for luxury lifestyle and midscale accommodations. Headquartered in Belgium, the chain is one of India’s largest international hotel operators, with currently a robust presence of over 194 hotels in operation and development across 114 destinations. «As a global hospitality leader, we are committed to deepening our ties between Belgium and India, two nations united by a shared vision for growth and collaboration,» said Nikhil Sharma, managing director and area senior vice president, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group.

India Inc is investing heavily in an artificial intelligence (AI)-ready workforce. Companies such as Wipro, Genpact and Ericsson are creating personalised AI training programmes for employees, partnering with universities, setting up skilling academies and enhancing internal learning platforms to build a future-ready workforce. At Wipro, more than 55,000 employees have become advanced AI practitioners, and at Genpact, 60,000-70,000 employees dedicate eight to nine learning hours each month on new-age skills like AI.

Invincible Season 3 continues its weekly episode release, with Episode 7 set to premiere on March 6, 2025. The season features significant events. Fans can expect major developments as the storyline progresses.

All that changed last Friday, when fresh estimates for GDP growth in 2024-25 and Q3 estimates for the current fiscal suddenly showed growth in a new, much brighter light. Not only is growth in Q3 (6.2%) a marked improvement over the previous quarter's upwardly revised 5.8%, but growth for FY25 has also been revised upward. From 6.4% in FAE released on Jan 7, growth in 2024-25 is now pegged higher at 6.5%. Even better, across-the-board upward revisions in growth estimates for the previous two fiscals — from 8.2% to 9.2% in 2023-24 (the highest in the previous 12 years, except for 2021-22, when GDP grew 9.7% on account of rebound from Covid), and from 7% to 7.6% in 2022-23 — along with upward revisions for Q1 and Q2 of FY25 show the economy in fine fettle.

The note dated Sunday was the latest from analyst Adam Jonas, a longtime Tesla bull who has praised the company's push beyond autos as sales face pressure from high U.S. borrowing costs and fierce Chinese competition including from BYD.

Returning to America, these ships carried prized Indian products: indigo dye and delicate silk. These imports reshaped American manufacturing, influencing textile production, dyeing methods and fashion trends. This historical exchange illustrates a timeless lesson: trade, at its core, fosters innovation and benefits both sides. Today, that spirit of cooperation is under strain. Donald Trump's administration has embraced protectionism, aiming to bring manufacturing jobs back to American shores through a policy called 'Fair and Reciprocal Plan'. Underpinning this policy is frustration over trade imbalances and unequal market access. As the White House recently highlighted, 'The US average applied tariff on agricultural goods is 5%. But India's average applied tariff is 39%. India also charges a 100% tariff on US motorcycles, while we only charge a 2.4% tariff on Indian motorcycles.' Such tariff disparities have soured economic relations, even as the US and India have grown strategically closer.

Australia captain Steve Smith addressed the media in a pre-match press conference ahead of their high-stakes ICC Champions Trophy semifinal clash against India on Tuesday. With India entering the match on the back of an unbeaten run, Smith acknowledged their dominance and shared his thoughts on the challenges ahead. When asked if Australia had a plan to silence the Indian crowd, Smith responded, «Yeah, I don't really have a message to be honest. Just going out and playing, and hopefully, we can put on a good show.» Discussing whether India had an advantage playing in Dubai, Smith admitted that familiarity with the conditions could play a role.

Sebi on Monday extended the deadline by a month to March-end for reporting differential rights issues by Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs). A one-time reporting requirement was set for AIFs that filed their Private Placement Memorandum (PPM) with SEBI on or after March 1, 2020, and issued differential rights outside the standard guidelines. This report was initially due by February 28, 2025. Following the requests for more time from the AIF industry, the deadline has been extended to March 31, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said in a circular.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Mumbai: General insurers issuing third-party vehicle insurance policies are grappling with rising underwriting costs as inflation and a near three-year pause on rate hikes eat into their business. India mandates third-party vehicle insurance, or liability insurance, for all motorists to cover damages or injuries caused by the policyholder to someone else.

Yogi Adityanath on Monday dismissed reports of pollution at the Sangam during the Maha Kumbh, asserting that extensive water quality monitoring showed the river remained clean throughout the event. Speaking at a gathering of Indian Institute of Management officials and Indian Postal Service officers in Lucknow, Adityanath said, «Despite baseless claims, our state pollution control board and independent labs consistently found water quality at the Sangam to be within safe limits.» He pointed out that concerns about the environmental impact of the Maha Kumbh had been raised, including by UNESCO, given the massive scale of the event. «In 2013, when the Prime Minister of Mauritius visited, he refrained from taking a dip after seeing pollution in the Ganga. We ensured that such an incident did not happen this time,» Adityanath said.

Veera, India’s homegrown mobile-only internet browser, said it has expanded to 108 countries, bringing its suite of Web3 features to a global audience. The company was developed to address the complexities associated with Web3, aiming to simplify user interactions with decentralised technologies. Since its launch, Veera has scaled to 4 million users in less than a year, with a monthly active user base of one million. The ⁠⁠overall Web3 user base expected to be between 100-200 million globally and this market is projected to grow to $104.04 billion by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 45.47% over the forecast period of 2024-2032.

Ankur Warikoo recently opened up about the time he decided to drop out of his PhD programme and join the Indian School of Business for his MBA. Taking to X, the YouTuber wrote about how, 20 years ago, he received a “life-changing email.” The ‘Do Epic Shit’ author recalled how, despite being on track to realising his cherished dream: Completing his PhD, joining NASA, and going to Mars. “I had dropped out of my PhD program a year back (in 2004), come back to India from the US, giving up on what was a dream life—100% scholarship, a generous stipend, top of my class, fast track to complete my PhD. Everyone was devastated. Disappointed in me. I was disappointed in myself,” he wrote.

In a troubling trend, many vehicle owners have reported receiving toll deduction messages from their FASTag wallets even when their cars were parked or they hadn’t passed through a toll plaza. Officials attribute these errors to toll operators mistakenly entering vehicle numbers, often due to the FASTag being unreadable or when tags are carried in wallets, TOI has reported. In response to these “false” deductions, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has taken action, penalizing toll collectors in at least 250 cases. The highways authority's toll management entity, IHMCL, has begun imposing a hefty fine of Rs 1 lakh for each violation.

Kenneth Andrade, the ace investor known for his high-conviction calls, looks for businesses early into a business cycle as part of his investment philosophy. The chief investment officer of Old Bridge Capital Asset Management observed that India's market capitalisation to GDP ratio is 130%, which still indicates overvaluation. However, he still sees pockets of opportunity in the market. Andrade shared his market outlook recently during a presentation on his fund's position and where he sees investment opportunities.

Investors in direct mutual funds lean toward certain equity-fund categories, while regular-plan investors favour others. Direct plans are those that are bought directly from asset management companies, while regular plans flow through banks’ distribution arms, national distributors or individual distributors — or a mix of these.