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Tripura Finance Minister Pranajit Singha Roy on Friday presented Rs 32,423.44 crore budget for 2025-26, proposing a total of 13 new welfare schemes to help job seekers, mentally challenged persons, visitors to the state capital and others. No new tax was proposed in the budget with a deficit of Rs 429.56 crore. In the budget, emphasis was given to capital expenditure by allocating Rs 7,903 crore to boost economy and generate employment. Roy said the government will set up centres in Agartala, Udaipur and Ambassa to provide aspirants with quality coaching for various competitive examinations. Noting that the government focuses on inclusive growth, the minister said, «More focus was given on capital expenditure in the budget by allocating Rs 7,903 crore which is Rs 7,000 crore in the budget for 2024-25. The focus on capital expenditure will boost infrastructure building and generate employment for the youth,» he said. Roy said the government is set to establish a centre for computer-based examinations at Hapania International Fair ground in West Tripura so that the aspirants do not need to travel outside the state to appear in online examinations with a cost of Rs 15 crore.

Chinese equities this week — the largest weekly inflow since October 2024 — as blockbuster rallies in electric vehicle giant BYD and Chinese AI firms reignited confidence in China’s market rebound, driving global fund managers to ramp up their bets on Asia’s biggest economy.

Jim O'Neill, Former Economist, Goldman Sachs, says for the rest of this decade, it is quite likely that US equity markets are going to underperform much of the rest of the world. A more positive way to put it is, the rest of the world which was very cheap, particularly Europe and to some degree China, is probably going to outperform the US and of course that has already been the case in the short two-and-a-half months of 2025 so far. While the period between now and April 2nd will probably see some near-term recovery of the dollar, O’Neill does not think that the combination of what the US is trying to do is at all good for the sustainability of the dollar and he thinks this time next year, the dollar will be a bit weaker against major currencies around the world. We are talking at a time when nobody knows what is coming. All we know is that American markets have reversed and there are fears of a genuine slowdown in the United States. Investors are moving out of the long dollar trade. What is the big headline of March 2025 for financial markets? Jim O'Neill: As I have discussed with you in December, you have to be very careful of a very strong consensus when some of the underlying factors are not so clear-cut and I was quite sceptical on the immediate euphoria of Trump being elected as this was going to further accentuate so-called American exceptionalism and the reality that we have seen over the first 60 to 70 days the US is not exceptional.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. BERLIN—Germany’s mammoth spending package cleared its last parliamentary hurdle, paving the way for as much as €1 trillion in civilian and defense investments to jolt the region’s economy and reduce its military reliance on the U.S.

shares fell on Friday, led by travel stocks after a fire at Heathrow Airport, while investors continue to assess the effects of brewing trade tensions. The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.5% as of 0815 GMT, with losses led by Europe's travel and leisure index, down 2.1%.

SBI Card, Axis Bank, IDFC First Bank have revised the benefits. SBI Card credit card changes Starting April 1, 2025, SBI Card will implement significant changes to the benefits associated with its Club Vistara SBI Credit Cards and Club Vistara SBI PRIME Credit Cards. One of the key modifications is the removal of economy and premium economy ticket vouchers as renewal benefits. Additionally, milestone benefits that previously offered ticket vouchers on reaching spending thresholds of Rs 1.25 lakh, Rs 2.5 lakh, and Rs 5 lakh will be discontinued.

Federal Reserve's hint at rate cuts this year also fostered appeal.

Federal Reserve indicating no rush to cut interest rates. The risk-sensitive Australian and New Zealand dollars remained on the defensive after steep slides on Thursday as worries about the economic drag from U.S. President Donald Trump's aggressive campaign of global trade tariffs dented sentiment.

tariff concerns. Selling pressure has intensified in recent weeks after a string of economic indicators signaled the economy and consumer sentiment may be cooling as the Trump administration imposes reciprocal trade tariffs.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Central banks in emerging markets often face the dilemma of whether to quell inflation or spur economic growth, but it’s unusual for the US Federal Reserve to be caught in a cleft. This week, it took the safe option of holding its policy rate steady at 4.25-4.5%, while signalling two possible cuts later this year.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Businesses across the country have five months to adopt stricter norms to reduce their environmental impact, by crafting clear policies, setting sustainability goals, and adopting eco-friendly practices in daily operations. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has tightened standards for so-called environmental management systems (EMS), internal company systems to minimize impact and improve performance on the environmental front.

Hindustan Unilever (HUL) on Thursday said it is acquiring a 14.3% stake in Lucro Plastecycle, a recycled flexible plastics maker, as part of its sustainability goals and to scale up the use of recycled content in packaging. Lucro is a waste management, recycling and product manufacturing company, working to create a circular plastics economy and fits in line with the government's vision of a zero plastic waste future, HUL said. «This investment is a significant step in building the capabilities in recycling and developing the circular economy model for plastic, which is in line with our firm belief that what is good for India is good for HUL,» HUL CMD Rohit Jawa said.

interest rates steady. The Nasdaq Composite gained 0.3%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 both rose by 0.2%. This marked a continuation of Wednesday’s rally, which was fueled by Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s reassuring statements on inflation and recession risks. Despite prior concerns, Powell’s projection of two rate cuts later this year encouraged investor confidence.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Bank of England left its key interest rate unchanged, with major economies on both sides of the Atlantic confronting a nasty mix of faltering economic growth, rising inflation and President Trump’s trade threats. The BOE left the rate at 4.5% on Thursday, matching the Federal Reserve’s move a day earlier.

Indian IT sector is experiencing a slowdown, and experts predict a longer period of moderate growth. Challenges from the global economy and technological changes are increasing risks to revenue. This weaker growth is expected to have a limited impact on the overall economy. Analysts note that growth is uneven across different IT companies, influenced by individual company circumstances. “Change in tech cycle is likely to create a transition phase for tech services companies (like 2016/17), causing growth to moderate in short term. We are lowering our dollar revenue growth forecasts by 100-200 bps and expect growth of 4.5% in FY26 and 6% in FY27 for large-cap IT companies,” analysts at Morgan Stanley reported. Jeffries, an investment firm, downgraded the IT sector due to growing concerns about the US economy. They cited a weaker US growth outlook and a declining US dollar, which could reduce a previous advantage for Indian IT firms related to currency exchange. Morgan Stanley added that while IT stocks have already declined, their valuations compared to the broader Indian stock market remain near their five-year average. They see potential risks to current revenue predictions and the possibility of lower valuations in the future.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. America’s prodigious wealth and power are founded on two pillars: universities and businesses. The first produces the ideas, research and training that have made the country a Mecca for the world’s best minds.

Indian rupee hit a near two-month high on Thursday, boosted by dollar sales by foreign banks and the culling of bearish wagers as seasonal inflows propped up the currency. The rupee touched a high of 86.2075, its best since January 24, marking a 1.2% appreciation over the past seven trading sessions. The currency was last quoted at 86.29, up 0.2% on the day.

The Trump administration appears to be breaking from that order, with foreign and economic policies that have challenged U.S. allies, undercut some multilateral institutions and used tactics such as tariffs. While it is unclear what will eventually emerge, interviews this month with more than a dozen senior bankers, investors and officials based in Asia showed that they are not waiting to find out. They are looking for an 'America plus 1' strategy, which reduces their reliance on the United States going forward.

Ajay Bagga, Market Expert, says it will not be very politically prudential or possible to bring the value chains back into the US. But when it is organised chaos and insanity as a stated policy, it is very difficult then for markets and it turns volatile. So, April 2nd is a very big event risk. That might just end with a whimper and get postponed for another three months, and that means volatility will again get enhanced. Yesterday, the Bank Global Manager survey showed 55% are putting the risk of a global recession because of Trump trade wars as the biggest risk. Bagga says by June, a bottom should be in place. Price wise, 21,800 was probably a bottom price level. Now from here, markets could go down in the very short term on some event risk, but fundamentally, we are better off than we were in September. Let us first address the big market setup. The markets are finally rebounding. Is relief finally on the anvil or there is more concern on the horizon? Have we bottomed out? Ajay Bagga: It is difficult to say that we have bottomed out but if we look at the macro, we are much better off than we were in September.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Earlier this year, the National Statistical Office (NSO) released the report for the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) for the period August 2023 to July 2024. This is the second in the series of HCES data after the HCES 2022-23, for which a fact sheet was released just before the announcement of general elections in 2024.

recession talk in the United States is growing louder with each passing day and this will be completely driven by President Trump's upending of tariff structures. A recent Reuters poll found that 95% of economists across Canada, the US and Mexico thought the risk of a recession in their respective countries had increased following Trump's tariff rollout. Going by his talk, the President is not going to relent anytime soon. In fact he is doubling down on his rhetoric to impose reciprocal and sectoral tariffs on various countries come April 2. India, this time, will be on the receiving end.