Ankishinde

The sowing of summer crops has commenced across India, with the acreage under such crops reaching 1.52 million hectares as of Friday, up nearly 3% from 1.48 million hectares sown in the corresponding period last year, according to a report from the agriculture ministry. The area under rice, the country's largest summer crop by both acreage and production, was down nearly 3% on year at 1.28 million hectares.
The area sown under all coarse cereals rose 64% on year to 82,000 hectares, the report showed. The acreage under maize, the leading coarse cereal in terms of area and production during th

Spot gold prices fell Tuesday tracking futures contracts on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India and the COMEX due to thin trading as major markets are shut for public holidays, analysts said. China and many other Asian countries’ markets are shut Tuesday for Lunar New Year celebrations. Markets in the US were closed on Monday for Presidents’ Day. Prices were also down due to easing geopolitical tensions.
In Mumbai, the spot price of gold of 99.9% purity was INR 151,195 per 10 grams on Tuesday, down from INR 154,080 per 10 grams on Monday, said Kumar Jain, spokesperson for the India Bullion

The government has raised the base import price of gold by $106 to $1,624 per 10 gm, according to a notification issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs late Friday. The base import price of silver has been raised by $50 to $2,707 per kg. The base import prices of both precious metals were last revised on Feb. 3.
The government normally revises base import prices of gold and silver every fortnight, and these are used to calculate the duty on these precious metals that individuals bring into the country. India is one of the world's biggest importers of silver and the largest

The Reserve Bank of India Friday issued draft amendment directions on lending to Real Estate Investment Trusts and Infrastructure Investment Trusts. It sought comments on the draft by Mar. 6. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra had announced the regulator's plans to allow banks to lend to REITs at the outcome of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting on Feb. 6.
The above draft Amendment Directions propose to permit commercial banks to extend finance to REITs, subject to appropriate prudential safeguards including regulatory ceiling for exposure to REITs," the RBI said in the release. The regulator h

Traditionally seen as a threat to jobs, Artificial Intelligence has the potential to improve the state of employment in India, according to Chief Economic Adviser to the Government V. Anantha Nageswaran. Urgent reforms with holistic effort from the government, academia, and the private sector can help India become "the first large society where human abundance and machine intelligence reinforce, and not undermine, each other", Nageswaran said Monday.
This will not happen by drift; this will require an urgent say. It will require political will, it will require state capacity, and it will req

Prices of chana and urad are expected to decline in the short term, while prices of tur are likely to be range-bound to weak, the India Pulses and Grains Association said in its weekly report on Monday. Chana and urad prices are weighed down by a rise in arrivals of the new rabi crop amid a slowdown in demand from millers. Tur prices are likely to be under pressure from arrivals, but a steep fall in prices could be prevented due to costlier imports, the association said.
Chana prices are expected to remain under pressure in the near term due to a rise in arrivals of the new rabi crop from Gu

Spot gold prices fell Friday tracking the futures contracts on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India and the COMEX. Prices fell due to profit booking after futures contracts rose to a record high in the previous session, analysts said. Market sentiment was also hurt by rumours that the US Federal Reserve could get a more hawkish Chair. However, the fall in prices could be limited due to the geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran.
In the Mumbai spot market, the price of gold of 99.9% purity was INR 168,475 per 10 grams, lower than INR 176,121 per 10 grams Thursday, said Kumar Jain, sp

As Swiggy Ltd.'s net loss increased in the December quarter, the company blamed market irrationality for impacting overall growth of entities in the food delivery and quick-commerce space. This irrationality, along with intense competition, is likely to continue in the coming quarters as well, with companies struggling to retain customers as they rapidly switch from one platform to another, the management said in a post-earnings conference call with analysts.

The competition that we saw started in fact from October itself...and we believe that it will remain at the same level. There are e

The Economic Survey for 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) made a case for the government to continue with just debt-to-GDP fiscal consolidation glide path without laying down a definite fiscal deficit path, dashing the hopes of those expecting an announcement on the latter in the upcoming Budget for FY27. According to the Survey, authored by a team led by Chief Economic Adviser to the government V. Anantha Nageswaran, a debt glide path lets the government continue with fiscal consolidation while ensuring there is adequate room to make adjustments based on the evolving needs of the economy.

The Reserve Bank of India’s announcement of an INR-250-billion, 90-day variable rate repo auction Friday has brought confusion among market participants due to the unusually long length of the operation. That initial hesitation has turned to anticipation of full subscription after the RBI introduced a unique prepayment option for subscribers at the auction.
On Tuesday, the RBI said participants will have an option to prepay the amount borrowed at the 90-day VRR auction at least two days prior to the original date of reversal, which is Apr. 30. However, there is no option for partial prepayme

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday urged all manufactureres, producers and industrilaists to take advantage of the free trade agreement India has signed with the European Union, as the pact has thrown open a big market for them.
Addressing mediapersons outside Parliament, the prime minister also called upon members of Parliament to "come forward and expedite the process of decisionmaking" in the Budget Session. In a dig at the opposition, Modi said this was not the time for "interruption but for solutions".

Prices of tur, or pigeon pea, have been on a steep upward trend for a few days as production of the 2025-26 (Jul-Jun) tur crop is seen falling short of expectations in terms of both quality and quantity, analysts and traders said. A slowdown in imports and the government's procurement is also driving prices of the legume higher, they said. Tur prices are likely to rise further, with some market participants expecting them to touch the INR 9,000 per 100 kilogram mark in the near term.
On Tuesday, prices of tur in Akola, Maharashtra, were INR 6,700-INR 8,400 per 100 kg, while prices in Katni,

India's talks with Chile for a free trade agreement are nearing conclusion, a commerce ministry official said. Discussions for a trade deal with the US are also ongoing in a "cordial manner," the official added. The government official mentioned that Canada wants to expedite the trade talks with India. New Delhi, which is engaged in trade talks with several countries and regions, recently concluded a free trade agreement with the European Union, making it the fourth trade deal this financial year.

Futures contracts of gold and silver on the Multi Commodity Exchange hit fresh record highs, tracking the all-time highs hit by contracts on the COMEX. Prices of silver surged past the INR 400,000 per kilogram mark, while those of gold rose above the INR 180,000 per 10 grams level as tensions between the US and Iran fuelled safe-haven demand. Prices were also supported by a weak dollar.
Threat of war between the US and Iran loomed after US President Donald Trump told Iran that time was running out and that a huge US armada was moving quickly towards the country “with great power, enthusiasm

The trade talks that began in 2023 concluded on Monday during the visit of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa in New Delhi. The EU accounts for more than 15% of India's total exports. India shipped goods worth $78.85 billion to the bloc in 2024–25 (Apr–Mar) and posted a trade surplus of $15.17 billion.
Under the trade deal, India will cut tariffs to 0% on plastics, aircraft, chemicals, iron and steel, pharmaceuticals, sheep meat, biscuits, pet food, pastries, bread, pasta, chocolate, fruit juices, non-alcoholic beer, 20% of pearls,

Star Health and Allied Insurance Co. Ltd. is likely to post a double-digit on-year rise in its net premium income for the December quarter, according to brokerages tracking the company. The rise in net premium income is due to growth in the health segment following the exemption from the goods and services tax and the normalisation of the 1/n regulation impact.
The health insurer is expected to report a rise of over 11% on year in its net premium income to INR 42.32 billion for the December quarter, according to the average of estimates from four brokerages. The company's net premium income

Recognising the importance of commercial and investment partnerships in each other's energy sector, India and Canada Tuesday signed a joint statement on energy cooperation. Under this agreement, Ottawa will ship more crude oil, liquefied natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas to India, while New Delhi will send more refined petroleum products to Canada.
The joint statement was agreed upon by Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri and Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Canada Timothy Hodgson during the ongoing India Energy Week in Goa. The two countries agreed to d

The government has raised the base import price of silver by $595 to $3,545 per kg, according to a notification issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs late on Tuesday. The base import price of gold has been kept unchanged at $1,567 per 10 gm. The base import price of silver was last revised on Jan. 22.
The government normally revises base import prices of gold and silver every fortnight, and these are used to calculate the duty on these precious metals that individuals bring into the country. India is one of the world’s biggest importers of silver and the largest consumer

India and the European Union agreed to a very big agreement, which some have called the "mother of all deals", on Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Tuesday. The deal represents one-third of global trade and 25% of global GDP, Modi added. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa are currently in New Delhi.
The free trade agreement concluded between New Delhi and Brussels will strengthen trade, manufacturing, and supply chain for India, Modi said in an address in online mode at the India Energy Week. This deal will compliment India

The government is likely to miss its tax collection target for 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) by as much as INR 2 trillion, with both direct and indirect tax collections trailing the growth assumed in the Budget. The shortfall in collection of direct taxes alone, which is the biggest component of the government's total tax revenue, and the driver of strong revenue in the last few fiscal years, is expected to be INR 1.5 trillion, based on latest available data for eight months and the trend of collection in the last four months of the year across the last three fiscal years. The actual shortfall in total t