COST Financial News

We have been here before. In the 1970s, US President Gerald Ford urged Americans to combat escalating energy costs in response to the Arab-Israeli war. His Whip Inflation Now (Win) initiative encouraged people to grow vegetables in their yards, car pool and use cold water in the laundry.

India’s goods and services tax (GST) still struggles with a basic design problem: the integrity of its input tax credit (ITC) chain. The recent rate rationalization simplified slabs, but its merger of the 12% category with the 5% slab largely applies to supplies where ITC is restricted or unavailable. In such cases, the system resembles cascading turnover-style taxation and weakens the value-added tax (VAT) principle of seamless credit and tax neutrality.

₹29,845 crore in February, down 4% from ₹31,002 crore in January, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi).As markets fall, many investors are seeing negative returns and wondering whether to stop SIPs. The math suggests they shouldn’t.The core mechanism behind SIPs is rupee cost averaging. When markets fall, a fixed monthly investment buys more units.

auto parts imports from India to about 25%, from roughly 2%.Mint reported in December that stress among European auto part makers has created opportunities for Indian component manufacturers such as Sona BLW Precision Forgings (Sona Comstar) and Samvardhana Motherson.“Per companies’ management commentary, step-up in closure of EU foundries on labour shortage, rising energy cost, worsening financial stress is creating opportunity for Indian suppliers offering huge benefits on the inherent low manufacturing cost,” Emkay said in its 9 March note based on takeaways from management interactions.“The trend is intensifying, as EU OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) are aggressively seeking alternative sourcing options. In North America, Indian players offer 20-30% benefit despite tariff headwinds; this helps gain share with existing clients, catering to new clients,” they added.Chennai-based MM Forgings makes steel forgings for commercial and passenger vehicles, while Noida-based Uniparts India manufactures driveshafts and precision machine parts.

tyre companies that normally sell more than half of their volumes in the replacement market.Within OEMs, Uno derived about 48% of its revenue from the passenger car segment in the first three quarters of FY26 (9MFY26), with Maruti Suzuki India being a prominent customer besides Hyundai Motor India.An The Economic Times report suggested Indian automakers are delaying shipments to West Asia and North Africa as escalating regional tensions have made sea routes through the Strait of Hormuz risky. Moreover, freight and insurance costs have soared.

In normal times, being Porsche’s boss would rank as one of the world’ s most desirable jobs. But I do not envy new Chief Executive Officer Michael Leiters one bit.Barely two months after taking the helm, he made a decent fist on Wednesday of outlining what ails the German sportscar manufacturer and providing the first hints of how he plans to put things right. He’s committed to restoring the company’s “former glory” and insists Porsche “represents a compelling recovery story.” But investors hoping his arrival marks an immediate start of better times for the storied brand could be disappointed.

Mint.In India’s fast-growing but tightly regulated beer market—dominated by three global brewers controlling about 80% of sales—smaller players face mounting cost pressures and limited pricing flexibility. Premiumization is emerging as a key strategy for these brewers to protect margins and expand.Bhatia said the company expects healthy growth in line with or higher than the market average from its FY25 turnover of ₹400 crore, adding that the business has been profitable since its third year of operations.The brewer currently operates at an Ebitda margin of around 20%, compared with 10-15% for listed beer companies, which are significantly larger in scale.The company’s growth comes even as beer makers grapple with rising packaging and logistics costs.Bhatia said packaging accounts for nearly half the cost of production, particularly in cans and glass bottles, while the liquid itself contributes roughly 10-15% of the total cost.These pressures are making the low-priced segment increasingly difficult for smaller brewers, he said.Bhatia said the pricing playbook followed by Budweiser Magnum, owned by AB InBev, has reshaped how smaller brewers think about margins.

₹199- ₹2,300, depending on the nature of the flight. With Pakistan airspace already shut for Indian airlines, the disruption in flight routes through West Asia has increased travel time and cost.The financial damage of such disruptions would mount quickly for Indian airlines.

Renault S. A.

fertilizer industry is coordinating with the Centre and states on increasing supply from more countries, the Fertiliser Association of India (FAI) said. “Production planning, imports and logistics are being actively coordinated to maintain adequate availability during the upcoming cropping season.

Mint.On Friday, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) raised about ₹6,000 crore through one-year CDs at 7.35%, around 25 basis points (bps) higher than interest rates seen a week ago.“For a three-year paper, Nabard was willing to pay 7.50%, but the demand was at 7.60-7.70%, so they did not raise funds through three-month maturity but raised one-year paper, and if rates are high, they will borrow short-term,” a senior treasury official said on the condition of anonymity.Treasury officials expect more companies to tap the money market after Nabard, but warn that even short-term borrowing will be challenging.Since the beginning of the month, interest rates on three-month CDs, issued by scheduled commercial banks and select all-India financial institutions (AIFIs), have risen by 25-50bps to 7.30-7.80% as of 13 March, while one-year CD rates have increased by about 25bps to 7.15%, according to data from Derivium Tradition Securities India Pvt. Ltd.Rates on three-month CPs issued by non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) have jumped by 45bps to 7.55-8.05%, while those with one-year maturities have risen by 25-30bps to 7.50-7.60%.Typically, short-term interest rates rise in March due to seasonal fiscal-year-end factors, as banks and financial institutions step up funding activity to maintain liquidity amid tax outflows.“Because of advance tax outflows and goods and services tax (GST) outflows, it was expected that short-term rates would go up, but signs are visible that, despite RBI’s liquidity injection through open market operations, short-term rates have spiked,” the treasury official added.So far, the central bank has conducted two auctions of ₹50,000 crore each.

conflict and disruptions to flows.IEA projects global oil supply to plunge by 8 mbpd in March. With that, an old nemesis of central banks may return: elevated inflation and muted economic growth. Every 10% rise in oil prices that persists for a year leads to 40 basis point growth in global headline inflation and a 0.1–0.2% decline in global output, estimates the IMF.Higher energy prices feed into transport and food costs, pressurizing household budgets.

Mint, even during the Russia-Ukraine crisis, crude prices initially surged but eventually moderated as markets adjusted.He added that apart from geopolitical tensions, key risks for Indian markets include global liquidity conditions, movements in crude oil prices, and the availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and oil, as rising household energy costs could disrupt consumption momentum. Edited excerpts:Markets typically react first to headlines and then gradually reassess fundamentals.

₹10,900-crore PM E-Drive scheme, to ease component shortages and support early EV deployments.This is the second time that rules for local manufacturing have been relaxed for these vehicle segments. Earlier in September 2025, the ministry of heavy industries (MHI) had deferred the deadline till March 2026 to stop imports of this component under the scheme's sourcing rules.In a 13 March notification, the government has allowed the use of imported traction motor sub-assemblies in electric trucks and buses till 1 September 2026.PM E-Drive, or Prime Minister Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement, scheme aims to promote electric mobility in the country by subsidising electric vehicles and charging infrastructure.While rare earth magnet-free motors are being used in electric two-wheelers and some electric three-wheelers, larger electric vehicles need to import sub-assemblies where the magnets are already fused with the motor.Mint reported on 29 December that e-bus and e-truck makers were seeking a one-year relaxation in localisation rules under the scheme.Analysts said that the government's move to extend relaxation was a pragmatic step to increase sales of zero-emission commercial electric vehicles (EVs).

The US fiscal outlook continues to worsen. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects the country will run annual budget deficits of about 6% of GDP per year over the next 10 years. This would push the total federal debt burden (relative to the size of the economy) to new highs, far exceeding the peak before World War II.Several factors are at play.

₹13.22 crore, just 3.7% of the targeted ₹350 crore in interest subvention, according to a parliamentary written response by the Union ministry of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).The MSME ministry’s Lok Sabha disclosure, a written response by minister of state Shobha Karandlaje on 12 March, showed Tamil Nadu had the most MSE beneficiaries at 1,067, followed by Punjab (610) and Rajasthan (608).The scheme, which began in 2023-24 and runs until 2025-26, is set to end on 31 March.

largest manufacturer of wires and cables and is a fast-growing electrical equipment company.The stock of Polycab India has been on a declining trend over the past few days. Since closing at ₹8,566 on 5 March, the price has fallen 13%.Here are some key factors that may influence the stock's future trajectory.Read on…Polycab is the largest wires and cables manufacturer in India, with a significant market share in the organized sector, giving it strong brand recognition and distribution power.The company historically has very low or near-zero debt and strong cash reserves, allowing it to fund expansion through internal accruals.

₹1,250.10 apiece on 2 February. However, the stock is still about 6% down in the past two weeks since the West Asia conflict began.

trading. In this case, the individual will be the broker.Providing funding to clients using prop books is a way of earning money for some brokers who were not able to capture retail clients, added the second person.

Shree Cement had earlier adopted a similar value-over-volume approach to bridge pricing gaps with competitors—a strategy that has begun to show results.However, the move came at a time when the industry was consolidating and peers were pursuing volume-led growth through aggressive expansions. As a result, Shree Cement lost market share, and despite some cost advantages, muted cement prices weighed on its realizations.Ambuja believes consolidation in the sector has not yet delivered the expected pricing discipline.Instead, the company plans to rely on cost efficiencies and premiumization to drive margin expansion.Management expects revenue growth to outpace volume growth as the share of premium products rises.

₹1,549 a month on Furlenco. The platform also offers an option to buy it for ₹32,500, which is roughly equivalent to 21 months of rent.