The growth in production of eight key infrastructure sectors contracted 1.8 per cent in August this year due to a decline in the output of coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, cement and electricity, according to official data released on Monday. The growth rate was 6.1 per cent in July. The growth of core sectors -- coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement and electricity -- was 13.4 per cent in August 2023. During April-August this fiscal, the output of core sectors rose 4.6 per cent against 8 per cent in the same period last fiscal. The eight core sectors contribute 40.27 per cent to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) which measures overall industrial growth.

The current account deficit stood at $9.7 billion, or 1.1 per cent of the GDP, in the fiscal first quarter, compared with a deficit of $8.9 billion or 1 per cent of GDP in the same quarter a year ago

Net tax receipts for the period were 8.74 trillion rupees, or 34% of the annual target, compared with 8.04 trillion rupees for the same period last year, according to the data

India's net-zero carbon strategy has focused intensely on sectors such as automotive, power, steel, aviation, cement, and agriculture, which collectively contribute significantly to carbon emissions

The Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office of NITI Aayog has sought proposals from consultancy firms to support the evaluation of Centrally Sponsored Schemes

The Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, chaired by Congress leader KC Venugopal, has decided to assess the performance of regulatory bodies established by Acts of Parliament this financial year

Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma gave approval for the Rajasthan Investment Promotion Scheme-2024 during a cabinet meeting on Sunday. Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumari, while briefing the media about the decisions, said that the government aims to attract maximum investment for the Rising Rajasthan Global Investment Summit scheduled to be held from December 9 to 11. In this context, the cabinet approved the Rajasthan Investment Promotion Scheme 2024 (RIPS-2024), which she stated is the most attractive investment promotion scheme in the country in terms of incentives for investors. She said necessary provisions have been made in RIPS-2024 to attract investment. "The minimum investment limit for incentives under the Standard Services Package in RIPS-2024 has been reduced from Rs 50 crore to Rs 25 crore. For tourism units, it has been further reduced to Rs 10 crore," the deputy CM said. New and emerging sectors like aero and space, defense, drones, semiconductors, agri-tech and waste

Was third-most stable Asian currency against greenback

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday held a detailed discussions with companies that are getting fiscal benefits under the production linked incentive (PLI) scheme. The minister engaged with 140 companies out of the 1,300 manufacturing units across 14 sectors, which have been the beneficiaries of the scheme. "We had estimated that in the 14 sectors, about Rs 1.46 lakh crore would be invested...Our estimate is that we could look at an investment of upward of Rs 2 lakh crores being seeded through the production linked incentive scheme (throughout the scheme period)," Goyal told reporters here after the meeting. At the job front, he added that originally it was estimated about 8.5 lakh jobs will be created under the PLI scheme, but looking at the numbers that some of them are saying, "we could easily look at about 12 lakh (jobs)". "It was also our expectation that we'll see additional production of about Rs 11 lakh crore. But hearing some of the numbers today, my own

The government is considering setting up a foreign investment regulatory mechanism for post-investment review and monitoring in the country, according to sources. At present, the consideration is at the discussion level only, they added. "It has been observed that all countries do oversight on the FDI (foreign direct investment), which is coming into their country. People suggest that in India also, there should be an oversight mechanism. It's a kind of oversight on money, which is coming up in the country as FDI," one of the sources said. It can help ascertain that the FDI coming into the country is beneficial to the economy and originates from legitimate sources. India is a major destination for foreign direct investments given its 1.4 billion market, stable policies, demographic dividend, good investment returns and skilled workforce. The government has taken a series of measures to attract overseas investments like promoting ease of doing business through simplifying procedure

Foreign investors have poured Rs 57,359 crore into Indian equities in September, making it the highest inflow in nine months, mainly driven by a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve. With this infusion, foreign portfolio investors' (FPIs) investment in equities has surpassed the Rs 1 lakh crore mark in 2024, data with the depositories showed. Going ahead, FPI inflows are likely to remain robust, driven by global interest rate easing and India's strong fundamentals. However, the RBI's decisions, particularly regarding inflation management and liquidity, will be key in sustaining this momentum, Robin Arya, smallcase Manager and founder & CEO of research analyst firm GoalFi, said. According to the data, FPIs made a net investment of Rs 57,359 crore in equities until September 27, with one trading session still left this month. This was the highest net inflow since December 2023, when FPIs had invested Rs 66,135 crore in equities. Since June, FPIs have consistently bought equities after

With 7 per cent economic growth, India is not creating enough jobs as reflected by the number of applicants for vacant posts in some states, Reserve Bank's former governor Raghuram Rajan said and suggested the government needs to focus on promoting labour-intensive industries to generate employment. Rajan further said some Indians, especially those at upper level, are comfortable and have high incomes, but consumption growth from the lower half of the country has still not recovered to pre-pandemic level. "That is the unfortunate part...You would think with 7 per cent growth, we would be creating a lot of jobs. But if you look at our manufacturing growth, it is more capital intensive," he told PTI. Rajan was asked whether the Indian economy, which is growing at 7 per cent, is creating enough jobs. According to him, the industries that are more capital-intensive are growing faster, but labour-intensive industries are not growing. "It is not going well at the lower level. I think th

Foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in India from January to June stood at nearly 4.78 million, with Bangladesh and the US being the top two source countries, according to official data issued by the Ministry of Tourism. The data sheet was shared on Friday on the occasion of the World Tourism Day and figures showed that inbound tourism in the country is trailing the pandemic levels. The ministry shared the figures for the month of June as well as for the January-June period. The FTAs in June 2024 were 7,06,045 as compared to 6,48,008 in June 2023 and 7,26,446 in June 2019 registering a growth of nine per cent and a fall of 2.8 per cent with respect to 2023 and 2019 respectively, according to the data. "The FTAs during the period January-June 2024 were 47,78,374 as compared to 43,80,239 in January-June 2023 and 52,96,025 in January-June 2019, registering a growth of 9.1 per cent and minus 9.8 per cent with respect to 2023 and 2019 respectively," it added. According to a data chart on t

The Centre lifted the ban on the export of non-basmati white rice on Friday with immediate effect, according to a notification. In July 2023, the government imposed the ban to ensure the domestic supply of rice and keep prices under control. Exporters hailed the decision, dubbing it a "game-changer" for the sector. "India's bold decision to lift restrictions on non-basmati white rice exports is a game-changer for the agricultural sector," said Rice Villa CEO Suraj Agarwal. "This strategic move will not only boost the income of exporters but also empower farmers, who can expect higher returns with the impending arrival of the new kharif crop," he said. The government has also reduced the export duty on parboiled rice to 10 per cent from 20 per cent, the notification said. Another rice exporter, Keshab Kr Halder of Halder Group who was seeking immediate removal of the ban lauded the government's move.

Indications were that decision on this would be taken in September

The previous record of $689 billion was hit in the week ended September 13. The total reserves rose on the back of an increase in foreign currency assets which rose by $2.05 billion during the week

The proposed investment is expected to generate around 28,000 jobs, with the highest investment of Rs 6,800 crore in the renewable energy sector

Household financial assets include currency, deposits, equity and investment funds, insurance funds, and pension funds

The GII report uses seven indicators: Institutions, Human Capital and Research, Infrastructure, Market Sophistication, Business Sophistication, Knowledge and Technology Outputs, and Creative Outputs

This surge in CD issuances is driven by quarter-end reporting, as funds raised through CDs are included under aggregate deposits, the report highlighted