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Global nickel prices have been soaring since violence erupted in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia last week

With inflation cooling to a three-year low in April, some economists are now all but guaranteeing that the first interest rate cut of the Bank of Canada‘s tightening cycle will come in June.

presidential election this year ahead of the parliamentary election. Sources confirmed that he told the Cabinet meeting earlier in the day that financial allocations have only been reserved so far for the conduct of the presidential poll. Despite speculation that a General Election will precede a Presidential election, Wickremesinghe informed the Cabinet that the Presidential election will be held first this year.

₹2.11 lakh crore to the Government of India for the financial year 2023-24. It was announced in the 608th meeting of the Central Board of Directors of Reserve Bank of India, which was held today, May 22, in Mumbai under the Chairmanship of Shri Shaktikanta Das, Governor.

WASHINGTON–The share of U.S. adults who said they were doing OK financially fell last year, underscoring one of the key hurdles to President Biden’s re-election hopes. The Federal Reserve said Tuesday that 72% of respondents to its annual survey of financial well-being said they were “doing at least OK" in 2023.

In one sense, US President Joe Biden’s punitive new tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) are indeed necessary, just as he argues. What makes them so are the enormous sums that the administration is devoting to expanding US capacity to produce its own EVs. An almost-invariable characteristic of industrial policy is to start with one dumb idea, after which many more then follow—by necessity.

Modi has highlighted economic growth as one of his biggest achievements. He has «guaranteed» the voters that he would make India the third largest economy, two notches higher than its current position if he gets a third consecutive term. He has said that the development done in the last 10 years was just an appetizer and the main course would come in the third term Click here to participate in our Lok Sabha Elections Survey to gauge the mood of the nation Confident of a win even as many analysts too see him cruising to a third term, Modi has also set an ambitious 100-day agenda if he returns to power. Addressing an election rally in Mumbai about a week ago, he announced that the blueprint for the first 100 days of his third term is ready. He stated that his 100-day plan would begin promptly after June 4 to avoid any delays in decision-making.

Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government in West Bengal, saying only the bomb-making industry is flourishing in the state. Addressing a public meeting in Kanthi Lok Sabha seat, the BJP leader said, “TMC has turned Bengal into a safe haven for infiltrators." “Mamata Banerjee is compromising national security for the sake of the vote bank. Once BJP gets 30 Lok Sabha seats in Bengal, TMC will disintegrate, and the exit of Mamata Banerjee's government is certain," Shah said at the Kanthi rally today.

Paytm warned of job cuts and said it would trim non-core assets after reporting its first sales decline on record, reflecting fallout from a regulatory probe that curtailed much of the Indian fintech pioneer’s business. Once a role model for India’s nascent startup economy, Paytm’s net losses swelled several-fold to 5.5 billion rupees ($66.1 million) for the three months through March. The company known as One 97 Communications Ltd. reported a 2.6% slide in revenue to 22.7 billion rupees — the first drop since its 2021 stock-market debut. Its shares slid as much as 2%. Also Read: Paytm Q4 Results: Loss widens to Rs 550 crore; revenue drops 3% YoY

Inflation in the U.K. fell sharply to its lowest level in nearly three years in April on the back of big declines in domestic bills

Kate Middleton is unlikely to return to royal duties soon, although she continues to be briefed on the work of her main causes while she undergoes cancer treatment.

Dammu Ravi, Secretary (Economic Relations) in the Ministry of External Affairs, represented India at the meeting of the SCO council of foreign ministers in Kazakhstan's capital Astana on Tuesday. One of the main items on the agenda were the comprehensive preparations for the upcoming meeting of the SCO Heads of States Council, which is to be held in July 1st week. Tuesday's meeting discussed preparations for the upcoming Summit of the SCO council of heads of state, reviewed ongoing cooperation in the SCO, and exchanged ideas on regional and global developments of common concern including extremism.

China's latest measures and pledges to fix the weakest parts of its struggling economy, domestic investors are scooping up shares in a cheap stock market, while most foreign investors are hopeful but taking it slow. Last week's sweeping measures to support the property sector, which authorities dubbed as historic, were the latest in a series of steps China has taken since February in a bid to boost consumption, funnel state money into priority sectors and underpin the stock market.

Americans may have a worsening view of the economy, but their personal financial well-being hasn’t changed much last year in an annual survey by the Federal Reserve. 

Bolvin Wealth Management Group President Gina Bolvin discusses the move in commodities, expected inflation data, the housing industry and her outlook for consumers.

Unemployment data edges up and wage growth persists despite a recent cooldown with the  Office for National Statistics revealing that the UK unemployment rate rose to 4.3% in the first quarter, up from 3.8% during the last three months of 2023. Mehta similarly argued the US economy is «not out of the woods» yet, after the Federal Reserve decided this keep interest rates steady this month as inflation persisted. In April, US inflation dropped to 3.4%, down from 3.5% the previous month, prompting bets on interest rate cuts later this year. US inflation drops to 3.4% in April Mehta...

The American Bankers Association (ABA) on Monday urged House leaders to back a bill that would stop the Federal Reserve from creating a CBDC for individuals and using it for monetary policy tools.

Easing of rates by the Reserve Bank of India might still have to wait going by the hawkish tone in an assessment of the economy published by the RBI economists in its latest monthly bulletin. “A modest easing of headline inflation in the reading for April 2024 confirms the expectation that an uneven and lagged pace of alignment with the target is underway” wrote the Reserve Bank of India deputy governor Michael Patra and his team in their assessment of the economy published in the latest monthly Bulletin. Significantly the statement seems to suggest that full alignment with the target may still have to wait. Hence easing of rates. The views expressed are not that of the Reserve Bank of India.

Our post-pandemic slump in household savings should disappoint but not alarm us A current account deficit occurs when the total value of goods and services a country imports exceeds the total value of goods and services it exports. "Bank deposits, which constitute the largest chunk of gross financial savings, grew 13.5% in fiscal year 2024, compared with 9.6% in the previous year. Bank deposits also grew faster than the 9.1% nominal GDP growth in fiscal 2024," the report said.

ALSO READ: Mumbai most expensive city for expats in India; see full list here According to the report, Delhi fared better than Mumbai in several parameters, including Economics, Human Capital, and Quality of Life. Delhi was worse in the Environment ranking, while all the Indian cities ranked 380 on Governance.

Also read | For international travellers, India remains a distant destinationAccording to the report, a big dampener for India has been the steady reduction in government funding for overseas tourism promotions over the years, from ₹524 crore in 2021-22 to ₹341 crore in FY23, and further down to ₹167 crore for FY24. In contrast, substantial funds have been directed towards the development of pilgrimage destinations, with an increase of 66%, from ₹150 crore in FY23 to ₹250 crore in FY24. Despite these shifts, the overall budget for the tourism sector remains unchanged at ₹2,400 crore, the same as in FY23.