Latest news with #policymaking
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
India Remains Key Driver of Global Growth, RBI's Malhotra Says
India's central bank said the country remains a key driver of global economic growth as domestic inflation continues to align with its target. The country's growth momentum is 'buoyed by strong domestic growth drivers, sound macroeconomic fundamentals and prudent policies,' Reserve Bank of India Governor Sanjay Malhotra said in the central bank's bi-annual Financial Stability Report released on Monday.
Times of Oman
6 days ago
- Business
- Times of Oman
India's economy and exports seen resilient despite the geo-political developments in West Asia
New Delhi: The limited trade exposure to Israel and Iran, coupled with proactive engagement on infrastructure and technology, ensures that the ongoing conflict does not impact India's economic ambitions. As the world navigates an increasingly unpredictable geopolitical landscape, India offers a rare blend of economic resilience and policy foresight, anchoring its role as a stable force in the global economy. The global economy in 2025 continues to be clouded by geopolitical volatility, tariff tensions, and region-specific conflicts. Yet, amid the storm, India stands out as an exception, demonstrating resilience and stability in both economic performance and external trade. The deepening crisis in West Asia, particularly between Israel and Iran, has had little to no visible impact on India's economic trajectory or its export performance. Supported by robust fundamentals and prudent policymaking, the Indian economy has not only withstood external shocks but also shown encouraging growth signals across sectors. Indian Economy Remains Steady Amid Global Uncertainty Despite the global uncertainty stemming from geopolitical conflicts, trade restrictions, and financial tightening in developed economies, the Indian economy continues to expand steadily. According to the latest data, India's GDP growth in Q4 of 2024–25 has remained strong, signalling the continuation of a resilient growth path. The economy has benefited from a confluence of factors such as macroeconomic stability, effective fiscal management, and growing domestic demand. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has reached a three-year high in 2024-25, reflecting strong investor confidence in India's long-term potential. In the current year, 2025-26, the April FDI inflows were at USD 8.8 billion, manufacturing and business services accounted for half of the gross FDI inflows. Simultaneously, India's merchandise exports have touched an all-time high in 2024-25, contributing positively to the current account and boosting industrial production. India's exports grew at 2.7% in the month of May 2025, showing significant resilience despite global headwinds. Inflation, a key concern for many economies, has eased significantly in India, falling to a seven-year low due to well-managed food supplies, lower core inflation, and the Reserve Bank of India's calibrated policy stance. GST collections also hit an all-time high in May 2025, underlining robust consumption and formal sector expansion. On the capital markets front, Indian equities have performed steadily despite external pressures, supported by domestic inflows and improving corporate earnings. As India enters the new fiscal year, expectations of a good monsoon, rising rural demand, and improved credit flows to consumers and producers are poised to reinforce growth momentum. Private Sector Gains and Rural Boost Reinforce Momentum India's private sector activity surged in June 2025, hitting a 14-month high, a clear indication of expansion in the services and manufacturing sectors. The manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) reached 58.4, while the services PMI climbed to 60.7 — a 10-month high in June 2025. This uptick is attributed to strong domestic demand, increasing export orders, and favourable cost conditions for inputs. Enterprises across both sectors reported not only improved sales and higher new export orders but also increased hiring, a sign of expanding production capacities and confidence in business prospects. With inflationary pressures softening, firms are better positioned to maintain pricing power while offering competitive goods and services globally. In parallel, the rural economy is also showing promising signs. By June 20, 2025, Kharif sowing had increased by 10% over the same period last year, reaching 13.2 million hectares. The enhanced progress of the monsoon has particularly benefitted crops like rice and pulses, ensuring greater income support for rural households. While cotton sowing has slightly declined, the broader trend points toward an encouraging agricultural season. Strong Outlook for 2025–26 Amid External Headwinds S&P Global Ratings recently upgraded India's GDP growth forecast for FY2025–26 to 6.5%, citing favourable macroeconomic conditions such as a normal monsoon, declining global oil prices, and improved financial conditions. The report also notes that India's growth will continue to be driven by domestic demand, both consumption and investment, even as global exports face a slowdown due to weak external demand. While concerns remain over the sluggish global trade environment, India's well-diversified export portfolio and growing services trade offer a cushion. Additionally, the government's continued push toward infrastructure investment, ease of doing business, and Make-in-India initiatives are expected to strengthen the domestic industrial base and improve export competitiveness. No Impact of West Asia Conflict on India's Exports Despite the escalated hostilities between Israel and Iran, there has been no significant impact on India's exports to West Asia. This continuity can be attributed to India's well-managed port infrastructure, diversified export destinations, and strong bilateral mechanisms. Concerns over crude oil price volatility, often linked to Middle Eastern conflicts, have also been downplayed. Analysts believe that short-term fluctuations in oil prices are unlikely to have a major impact on India's macroeconomic stability, especially since India maintains adequate strategic reserves and benefits from hedging practices. These are temporary, event-driven fluctuations, they are unlikely to alter the long-term trajectory of India's energy or trade policies. Limited Trade Exposure to Israel and Iran A closer look at India's bilateral trade data further confirms that India's overall economic exposure to the Israel-Iran conflict remains limited. India's total trade with Israel and Iran during 2024–25 stood at approximately $3.7 billion each — a modest fraction of India's overall trade basket, which crossed $824 billion last fiscal 2024-25 India's exports to Iran primarily include rice, engineering goods , and petroleum products. On the other hand, exports to Israel are more diversified into gems and jewellery, engineering goods and electronic goods. On the import side, India majorly sources electrical machinery and precious stones from Israel. Imports from Iran are primarily agricultural and natural, comprising fruits, minerals & oil, and chemicals. Given the relatively narrow base of imports and exports with these countries, any disruption, even if it occurs, would have only a limited effect on India's aggregate trade flows. Strategic Engagement and Regional Connectivity India's relations with both Israel and Iran are not just transactional but strategically nuanced. In April 2025, India signed a revised agreement with Israel for agriculture cooperation, focusing on advanced technologies, R&D, and productivity enhancement. The agreement aims to establish more Centres of Excellence and bolster water-use efficiency and food processing , steps that have the potential to raise farmer incomes and improve product quality. With Iran, India's strategic interests are most visibly tied to the Chabahar Port Project. In May 2024, India and Iran inked a 10-year agreement for the operation of the Shahid Beheshti terminal at Chabahar Port. Under this arrangement, India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) will invest approximately USD 120 million in equipment and operations, and an additional USD 250 million in credit lines for other mutually agreed-upon infrastructure projects. This partnership holds immense potential for improving regional connectivity, especially toward Afghanistan and Central Asia, and strengthening India's presence in the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC). Chabahar's growing significance offsets any perceived short-term trade disturbances. Conclusions In conclusions, India's macroeconomic stability and foreign trade momentum remain intact, despite the geopolitical turbulence in West Asia. The country has managed to insulate itself from the adverse external environment through diversification, strategic autonomy, and consistent economic reforms. With rising private sector activity, strong agricultural output, resilient exports, and record-breaking GST collections, India is well-positioned to continue its growth path in FY2025–26.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Morning Mail: Ley leads Coalition reform push, fears over school absenteeism, club's Savage truth
Morning everyone. Sussan Ley will preside over a crucial Coalition party room meeting today to outline her plans for a more ground-up policymaking process. There are calls for more action to stem the rising tide of absenteeism in schools, while a men-only Melbourne club plans to welcome 'lady guests'. Overseas, the Trump administration has again defended its bombing of Iran's nuclear sites and the Bezos wedding provides a perfect illustration of growing inequality. Savage stress | 'Lady guests' will be welcomed into one of Australia's oldest private clubs as the cost-of-living crisis pushes the men-only Melbourne Savage Club into a six-month trial of mixed dining. Ley's line | Sussan Ley will ask Coalition MPs to endorse a more inclusive policy development process designed to empower backbenchers and include more diverse voices as she tries to address some of the problems of the Dutton era. Exclusive | NSW government members have suggested cannabis reform is inevitable after a parliamentary inquiry found the current regime is discriminatory because people with means can obtain medicinal cannabis legally while others are criminalised. Country 'insult' | Queensland's Labor opposition claims the state's public servants have been issued a 'strict directive' not to include acknowledgments of country in email signatures, calling the policy an 'insult'. Exclusive | With a growing number of children missing more days at school, a new report has urged the federal government to collect national data on chronic absenteeism and embed layers of support in schools to tackle the crisis. Ayatollah threat | Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has threatened to respond to any future US attack by striking American military bases in the Middle East. The US defense secretary, Pete Hegseth (pictured), has maintained that the strikes on Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities were successful but – as senior international reporter Peter Beaumont writes – the saga is reminiscent of the tailoring of intelligence that led to the 2003 Gulf war. Australians who were advised by the government to flee Iran via its border with Azerbaijan meanwhile say they were marooned at the crossing without consular help for days. Border closure | Israel has closed crossings into northern Gaza, cutting the most direct route for aid to reach hundreds of thousands of people at risk of famine, as airstrikes and shelling killed dozens more people in the devastated territory. In the West Bank, Palestinians are mourning three people they say were killed by the IDF when they tried to defend themselves against a group of 100 masked settlers. Mamdani's message | Zohran Mamdani said his brand of campaigning and leftist political stances can translate to anywhere in the US after he won a surprise victory in the Democratic party's mayoral primary in New York. 'Inequality spiral' | A group of 40 former presidents and prime ministers has warned the world is facing an 'inequality spiral' that could see the first trillionaires emerge while nearly half of humanity still languishes in poverty. Bezos bash | The €40m wedding party being hosted in Venice by Jeff Bezos and his wife-to-be, Lauren Sánchez, serves as a perfect illustration of such inequality with famous faces jetting from all over the world for the three-day bash. Newsroom edition: The risks for Australia in backing US military action Nour Haydar is joined by editor Lenore Taylor and deputy editor Patrick Keneally to discuss Australia's entangled relationship with the US. Sorry your browser does not support audio - but you can download here and listen $ The first hearing of a Victorian parliamentary inquiry into the Andrews-era plan to demolish all 44 of the state's public housing blocks has brought the debate about the scheme to boiling point. Residents and advocates say it will mean the end of public housing and enable business interests to muscle in, while the government says it is not economic to keep maintaining the towers and that it will increase the stock of homes. Benita Kolovos listened in on the debates. Images from Mama, a series by Polish photographer Aneta Grzeszykowska of her daughter interacting with a silicone replica of herself, forms part of a new exhibition at the Buxton Contemporary gallery in Melbourne exploring memory and identity. Ariela Bard catches up with Grzeszykowska to find out what inspired her eerie work. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Cricket | Australia's bowlers hit back after a poor morning session to bowl out West Indies for 190 and regain the initiative in an absorbing and fluctuating first Test at Bridgetown. Football | Holly McNamara has scored her first international goal but Joe Montemurro was left with plenty to ponder after his side scratched out an unconvincing 3-0 win over Slovenia in Perth in his first outing as Matildas coach. In Miami, Juventus are playing Manchester City in the Club World Cup. Follow it live. Women in sport | The pay, ranking and status of female athletes should be protected when they have children, according to recommendations released yesterday and backed by the federal government. The Albanese government has listed white supremacist network Terrorgram as a terrorist organisation, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. The Domain property portal says a Sydney apartment has sold for $141m to millionaire Yan Zhang, making it the most expensive home in the country. A detective who helped catch outback killer Bradley Murdoch tells NT News that Murdoch 'may have forgotten' where he disposed of Peter Falconio's body. And the Age says pressure is mounting on Carlton coach Michael Voss after a crushing defeat to Port Adelaide. Canberra | The Coalition is holding a party room meeting is behind held to discuss reforms and federal election review. Sydney | NSW political staffers are set to appear at Dural caravan plot inquiry. Perth | There is a sentencing due following the trial over the murder of Cassius Turvey. Technology | Melbourne is hosting the International EV Autoshow. If you would like to receive this Morning Mail update to your email inbox every weekday, sign up here, or finish your day with our Afternoon Update newsletter. You can follow the latest in US politics by signing up for This Week in Trumpland. And finally, here are the Guardian's crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword
Forbes
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
Trump's Big Beautiful Bill Shows How He Is A ‘Narcissistic Populist' President: Economist
Clifford Winston, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, joined "Forbes Newsroom" to discuss President Trump's leadership style in his second term, and how that is impacting his policymaking and the American people. Watch the full interview above.
Washington Post
30-05-2025
- General
- Washington Post
Graham has a good bill on Russia. Why don't these senators support it?
The Senate, recently passive regarding its prerogatives and deferential regarding presidential assertiveness, might insert itself into policymaking concerning Ukraine. And the Senate — hopefully with the House concurring — might do so where presidents are most protective of their ability to act unilaterally: foreign affairs. The Senate's contemplated action has been 'coordinated' with the current president, who is a notably aggressive assertor of executive prerogatives.
