Foreign portfolio investors have started 2026 on a cautious note, extending their selling streak from last year by withdrawing Rs 7,608 crore ($846 million) from Indian equities in the first two trading sessions of January. The withdrawal of funds followed the largest outflow of Rs 1.66 lakh crore ($18.9 billion) recorded in 2025, triggered by volatile currency movements, global trade tensions and concerns over potential US tariffs, and stretched market valuations.
The rupee witnessed its worst single-day decline in around two months since November 21, 2025, due to demand for dollars among importers, said dealers. The maturing short positions in the non-deliverable forwards market further weighed on the local currency.
The aggregate net worth of the country's 176 dollar billionaires dropped to $984.2 billion during 2025, down from a record $1,036.2 billion at the end of December 2024.
While many areas compete for resources, defence, education, and adaptation deserve focus for maximum impact, suggests Laveesh Bhandari.
Banks are witnessing a surge in hiring for sales staff in secured segments such as home, vehicle and gold loans as compared to the recovery category, driven by a boost in business growth, and a host of regulatory measures aimed at improving ease of doing business, according to industry experts.
rediffGURU Vipul Bhavsar answers readers' personal income tax queries.
Mandakini Shah, 87, and her sibling, Ushaben, 84, have become local stars since they started riding through Ahmedabad on their scooter
In a world fractured by uncertainty, India stands out for its policy consistency, paired with sustained ambition, points out Pritam Banerjee.
The forthcoming Budget could think of maintaining public capital expenditure at 3 per cent so that domestic resources are available for private investments, points out N R Bhanumurthy.
Global risks include a potential delay in the US-India trade agreement, the possibility of a sharp correction in US equity markets, and renewed geopolitical tensions.
'This Budget has a one-year agenda, which you can call the sprint, and the marathon is towards Viksit Bharat.'
The Union Budget for 2026-27, presented by Finance Minister (FM) Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday, which was a first, had an excellent domestic macro backdrop. According to the first advance estimates, gross domestic product (GDP) in constant prices is projected to grow 7.4 per cent in the current financial year, against 6.5 per cent in 2024-25.
The most common mistake is investing without assessing suitability and long-term implications.
A large-scale international study published in the journal, Molecular Psychiatry, has been tracking over 7 lakh individuals and has shown that 34.6 per cent of mental disorders begin before the age of 14 years, 48.4 per cent before 18 years and 62.5 per cent by the age of 25 years.
The Centre is considering amendments to the Recovery of Debt and Bankruptcy Act in the Budget to allow some Debt Recovery Tribunals to focus only on high-value cases.
'A breakout above 158,000 to 160,000 could trigger the next leg higher toward 165,000 to 170,000.'
Three people, including the CEO of a private IT company, have been arrested for alleged gangrape of a female manager of the company after a birthday party in Rajasthan's Udaipur, police said on Friday.
'Economic activity appears to have peaked in the second quarter of FY26, with industrial output, exports, and business confidence all softening from October 2025.'
rediffGURU Anu Krishna, a mind coach and co-founder of Unfear Changemakers, counsels a young girl on how to be safe on social media.
Sustaining 8 per cent-plus growth rates is necessary if we are to reach high-income status by 2047, points out Amitabh Kant.
Worries about global politics and trade are pulling the Nifty 50 down. Experts say the market could drop further low.
'For those in for the long haul, this is a God-given opportunity.' 'Your market is falling despite strong fundamentals, and such a clear roadmap has been announced.'
Gross GST collection rose at a slower pace of 0.7 per cent in November at Rs 1.70 lakh crore, as domestic revenues declined, according to the government data released on Monday.
India is growing fast, but to keep growing strong, the government must make more things at home, create jobs, and spend money wisely, suggests Rajiv Memani, regional managing partner, Africa-India Region, EY.
Investors and startup executives are calling for extending the period for an entity to be recognised as a startup from 10 to 15 years for deep-tech companies.
A farmer in Uttarakhand allegedly committed suicide after being defrauded of Rs 4 crore in a fake land deal. He posted a video online before his death, naming the accused. The Congress party has criticized the BJP government over the incident.
Supported by strong buoyancy in public sector capital expenditure (capex), growth in infrastructure investment is expected to accelerate in 2025-26 (FY26) compared to 2024-25 (FY25), according to the First Advance Estimates of gross domestic product (GDP) for FY26 released by the National Statistics Office (NSO) on Wednesday.
Only 17 per cent of boards play an active role in shaping company strategy, said a survey by the Indian School of Business (ISB). According to the survey, 83 per cent of the boards remain passive, playing no active role in the company's management.
In a prospective arranged marriage, the bride-to-be feels that her groom is avoiding her. She turns to rediffGURU Dr Upneet Kaur for advice.
The first day of the year 2026 was positive for the debt market with foreign investors buying a net domestic debt of Rs 7,524 crore, the highest single-day inflow since May 29 last year.
'The volatility in the stock markets since September 2024 has hurt the pace of accretion of new investors.'
Companies would have to recognise the increase in gratuity liability arising from new labour codes in their interim financial statements and results for the period ending December 31, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has said in its FAQs on the new labour codes.
'Retail portfolios were going nowhere even as headline indices moved higher, prompting investors to sell holdings and shift money to IPOs, attracted by listing-day gains.'
India's services sector growth moderated in December, as the rates of expansion in incoming new work and output eased to the slowest in 11 months, and companies refrained from recruiting additional staff, a monthly survey said on Tuesday. The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index fell from 59.8 in November to 58.0 in December, indicating the slowest rate of expansion since January.
The country's banking system, while remaining "resilient" with bad loans at over a decade low and strong capital buffers, will continue to face intense competition from non-bank sources for resource mobilisation, said the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) Trend and Progress of Banking in India 2024-25 report.
Total pending Customs arrears, including amounts under litigation, court stays and cases where the appeal period has not expired, stood at about Rs 1.36 trillion at the end of December 2024.
India was being evaluated for a potential weight of around 1 per cent in the index, an allocation that could have translated into $25 billion of inflows, spread over roughly 10 months.
India's household debt climbed to 41.3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) at the end of March 2025, marking a sustained rise from its five-year average of 38.3 per cent, with consumption-related loans accounting for bulk of the borrowings, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its Financial Stability Report.
Gross GST collections rose 6.1 per cent to over Rs 1.74 lakh crore in December 2025, even as sweeping tax cuts slowed down growth in revenues from domestic transactions, according to government data released on Thursday.
This is the second-worst performance by the pack during this period over the last five years since CY20.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances