New Delhi: India has come a long way from the early days of its journey towards FTAs, which really began with an “early harvest scheme” with Thailand that had limited coverage of under 100 products. The duty concessions to the South East Asian country meant that companies such as Honda and Sony began importing gear…
US stocks edged higher on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 breaching the 7,000-point mark for the first time, underscoring sustained investor optimism around artificial intelligence, resilient Big Tech earnings prospects and expectations of eventual monetary easing.The benchmark index rose 0.3 per cent, extending gains after its latest record close. The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced…
India-US trade deal: The much-awaited trade deal between India and the US may be finalised ‘any day now’. A report quoting sources in the Ministry of External Affairs has said that discussions between the two sides are underway and significant progress has been made towards the goal of finalising a trade deal. US President Donald…
India’s approach to sourcing crude oil is increasingly tilting toward supplies that carry lower risk. (AI image) India and the US trade talks have so far failed to yield a deal, and Russian oil continues to play a role in any tariff relief that India would want from the Donald Trump administration. India faces 50%…
The rupee on Wednesday depreciated 31 paise to close at an all-time low of 91.99 against the US dollar, marking the second instance in less than a week that the currency has settled at its weakest-ever level, pressured by heightened month-end demand for the greenback and lingering geopolitical concerns, traders said.At the interbank foreign exchange,…
Canada has conveyed its intent to expedite the launch of formal negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) with India, signalling a reset in bilateral trade engagement after talks were paused in 2023, PTI reported citing an official statement on Wednesday.Canada’s Minister of Export Promotion, International Trade and Economic Development Maninder Sidhu has invited Commerce…
The Indian Stainless Steel Development Association (ISSDA) on Wednesday described the India–European Union free trade agreement as a significant step in India’s global trade engagement, while cautioning that adequate safeguards will be needed to protect domestic stainless steel producers, PTI reported.India and the EU announced the conclusion of negotiations for the FTA earlier this week….
The Union Budget 2026–27 will be framed against an increasingly fragile global backdrop marked by geopolitical flux, volatile financial markets and a sharp rally in commodities, but India is expected to retain its macro stability with a calibrated fiscal strategy and sustained public investment, according to a pre-Budget assessment by State Bank of India Research.SBI…
India’s industrial production growth accelerated to a more than two-year high of 7.8% in December 2025, driven by strong performances across mining, manufacturing and electricity, official data released on Wednesday showed.Factory output, measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), had grown 3.7% in December 2024, PTI reported.“Industry momentum further strengthened in December 2025 as…
As finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman prepares to present the Union Budget 2026 on February 1, defence spending is expected to remain a key focus amid rising geopolitical uncertainty and sustained emphasis on military modernisation. Defence outlay shows steady rise Over the last five years, India’s defence expenditure has followed a clear upward trajectory. Spending rose…
