Says renewables won't produce petrochemicals, need focus on oil demand reduction

The overall market sentiment has remained positive after the government said it aims to reduce the fiscal deficit and lower its gross borrowing by a wide margin next financial year

In terms of percentage, revenue deficit amounted to 2.19 percent of the GSDP while the fiscal deficit was 4.18 percent

The 13th Ministerial Conference (MC) will be held from February 26-29 at Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE)

India will overtake China as the biggest driver of global oil demand in 2027 as transportation and industry consumption in the world's fastest-growing major economy will drive growth despite a big push for clean energy and electrification, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday. The Paris-based agency in a special Indian Oil Market Outlook to 2030 report released at the India Energy Week here, said the country's oil demand will rise from 5.48 million barrels per day in 2023 to 6.64 million bpd in 2030. China currently is the biggest driver of oil demand and India ranks No.2 in growth. The numbers given by IEA in the report seem to talk of crude oil processed into fuel for domestic as well as for exports. The domestic consumption as per the oil ministry data is around 5 million barrels per day (bpd). "India's oil demand will grow at a rapid pace by 2030 despite accelerated green energy moves," IEA director of energy markets and security Keisuke Sadamori said. "Growth in .

The government has set up a task force under the Department of Commerce to identify, categorise and develop tailored strategies for the resolution of non-tariff barriers, Parliament was informed on Wednesday. Such barriers include prior registration requirements in the exporting country, cumbersome testing and certification requirements and unreasonable domestic standards/rules. Different countries enforce various regulatory measures to ensure the safety and quality of the products placed in their territory. These measures apply equally to domestic manufacturers and importers. However, such measures may sometimes act as trade barriers due to various reasons like gaps in the regulatory frameworks and quality compliance requirements of the trade partners, lack of transparency, arbitrariness or differing interpretation of the rules, and improper implementation. "Taking cognizance of the challenges involved in mapping the trade barriers, and to give increased focus, a task force has

Trade between India and the UAE totalled $85 billion for the financial year ending March 2023, according to Indian government data

The country is already second largest net importer of the fuel, say agency in report on energy security

Any such move could add to the rally in benchmark Asian rice prices, which are hovering near a 15-year high after India began restricting sales of key varieties in 2023

The agency forecast India's demand would reach 6.6 million bpd in 2030, up from 5.5 million bpd in 2023

The rise in the cost of a veg thali signals that the food inflation inched up in January as compared to January 2023

This was followed by the decline in workforce in the states such as Jharkhand (-8.9 per cent), West Bengal (-8.3 per cent), Kerala (- 8 per cent) and Karnataka (-7.8 per cent)

The country has expanded its list of source nations for oil and gas to 39 nations, up from 27 countries two years ago

Sri Lanka on Tuesday said it has plans to establish a free trade agreement with India by the end of 2024, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said here as the cash-strapped island nation tries to spur economic growth. Similar Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) would be worked out for Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and China too by the year's end, Sabry told reporters here. These agreements will open up new markets for the cash-strapped Sri Lankan businesses, contributing directly to the nation's economic growth. The government continues to struggle to restructure its external debt on the one hand and has raised utility rates and taxes on the other. Sri Lanka and India resumed talks on the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement in Colombo at the 12th round in October last year. The original talks were stalled after several rounds of talks between 2016 and 2018 due to political and trade union opposition. Last week, Sri Lanka inked an FTA with Thailand. This has already provided Sri Lanka acc

Moody's Investors Service on Tuesday said growth in Asia Pacific will decelerate in 2024 as a downshift in China's growth trajectory will spill over in the region through trade in goods and services, but India will be able to mitigate the challenge aided by robust domestic demand. In a report on Asia-Pacific, Moody's said the region is marked with a heavy calendar of elections in 2024, notably in India, Taiwan, Indonesia, Korea and Bangladesh. "The election outcomes will either facilitate domestic policy continuity or lead to increased polarization, and have a bearing on geopolitical relationships," said a Moody's report titled 'Growth headwinds, tight funding and geopolitics will define 2024 conditions'. It said a downshift in China's economic growth rate and a cyclical slowdown in the US will weigh on Asia-Pacific (APAC)'s credit conditions in 2024. Peaking inflation globally will provide space for monetary tightening cycles to slow, but financial conditions will remain difficult

The number of people earning above Rs 1 crore annually has risen to over 2.16 lakh as on December 31, 2023, for Assessment Year 2023-24, Parliament was informed on Tuesday. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary gave assessment year-wise details of the number of individuals submitting ITR with income of more than Rs 1 crore. The number has increased from over 1.09 lakh in AY 2019-20 to about 1.87 lakh in AY 2022-23. The number of ITRs filed till December 31, 2023, with income over Rs 1 crore for AY 2023-24 has risen to 2.16 lakh. Chaudhary further said the total number of individuals who reported income from 'Profession' in AY 2023-24 is 12,218, up from 10,528 reported in AY 2022-23. In 2019-20, the number of people reporting income from 'profession' was 6,555. In reply to a separate question, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said direct tax collection (for the financial year 2023-24 up to January 31, 2024), personal income tax has grown at a rate of 27.6 per cent ...

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said the inflation has come down within the tolerance band as a result of the steps taken by the government to check price rise, especially in perishable commodities. Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, Sitharaman said Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) is working with the government on de-humidification of onions through Gamma Rays to give it a longer shelf life. "The government is seized of the difficulties, which arise due to shortage of perishable goods, which are not grown in India. The committee sits and reviews periodically, and the efforts have shown on the ground that inflation is now within the tolerable band," she said. India's retail inflation has declined from an average of 6.8 per cent in April-December 2022 to 5.5 per cent in the corresponding period of 2023. The retail inflation is now stable and within the notified tolerance band of 2 per cent to 6 per cent. The minister said that in order to check the volatil

India on Tuesday signed a USD 78 billion deal to extend LNG imports from Qatar by another 20 years till 2048 at rates lower than current prices. Petronet LNG Ltd, India's biggest liquefied natural gas (LNG) importer, in a statement said it has signed a pact with QatarEnergy to extend the deal to buy 7.5 million tonne a year of gas for producing electricity, making fertilizers and converting it into CNG. The deal was signed on the sidelines of India Energy Week (IEW) here. Sources said the renewal is at a "significantly" lower price than the current deal. At current prices, India will save about USD 0.8 per million British thermal unit at the renewed terms. This translates into savings of USD 6 billion over the contract period. Petronet imports 8.5 million tonne per annum (MTPA) of LNG from Qatar under two contracts. The first 25-year deal is to expire in 2028 and has now been extended for 20 additional years. The second deal for 1 MTPA entered into in 2015, will be negotiated ...

The RBI MPC meeting will conclude on February 8, following which the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das will announce the decision of the committee

The expression 'animal spirits' was coined by celebrated economist John Maynard Keynes to refer to investors' confidence in taking action in terms of investment