Foreign investors fled Indian equities in 2025 at a scale never seen before, pulling out a record Rs 1.6 lakh crore (USD 18 billion) as volatile currency movements, global trade tensions, especially potential US tariffs, and stretched valuations eroded risk appetite, though flows are expected to turn sustainably positive in 2026.
India Inc on Sunday hailed the Union Budget 2026-27 as a 'structural shift' in the country's technology landscape, noting that the government is moving beyond fragmented pilots to build foundational layers where AI serves as a 'horizontal enabler' for the entire economy.
The IMF on Monday raised India's growth projection to 7.3 per cent for fiscal 2025-26, up 0.7 percentage point from its October forecast, on the back of better-than-expected performance of the economy. The Washington-headquartered multilateral lending agency has also revised India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth forecast to 6.4 per cent for fiscal year 2026-27 beginning April 1, 2026, from its earlier estimate of 6.2 per cent.
Largecap equity funds remain suitable for conservative and moderate risk-taking investors seeking relatively stable returns.
At present, e-mobike penetration in India is close to negligible, unlike the scooter segment, where electric scooters account for nearly 20 per cent of sales.
'Global uncertainty is something which definitely occupies the minds of officials when we are preparing for the Budget.'
Both India and the EU are likely to announce a conclusion of trade talks on January 27.
Stock market investors this week would track the renewed tariff tensions between the US and China, domestic inflation data, besides, quarterly earnings from blue-chips HCL Tech, Infosys and Reliance Industries would also drive the momentum in equities, analysts said.
'In three years, you will have an AI model that will be smarter than the smartest mathematician or the smartest scientist.'
New Delhi will substantially reduce tariffs on industrial and agricultural goods while continuing to protect sensitive sectors. Tariffs on some agricultural products that are not traditionally considered sensitive will be brought down to zero, while in the case of relatively sensitive items, duties will be reduced in a graded manner and quotas will be imposed.
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.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Adani Ports, HCL Tech, Power Grid, Trent, Bharat Electronics and Bharti Airtel were among the biggest laggards. However, Tata Steel, Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, and Eternal were among the gainers.
After the last Budget's announcement of a major tax relief for those earning an annual salary of less than Rs 12 lakh, there is not much that individuals can look forward to in the forthcoming Budget, points out A K Bhattacharya.
Japanese auto major Honda considers India a key market for its future growth alongside the US and Japan, according to Honda Cars India President and CEO Takashi Nakajima. The Tokyo-headquartered automaker, which operates in India through a wholly owned subsidiary, plans to drive in more SUVs in the country, as the segment continues to see robust sales across varied price points.
Ajit Pawar became a ray of hope for Muslims, the only man in power who could resolve their grievances.
'As long as apps show impossible delivery times, delivery and packaging workers will be pressured to meet unsafe, unhealthy standards.'
From a surge in startups to crewed mission preparations, 2025 marks a transformative year as India eyes $44 billion space economy by 2033.
Customs duty cannot be levied on electricity supplied from a special economic zone (SEZ) to the domestic market, ruled the Supreme Court on Monday while upholding Adani Power's appeal against a 2019 judgment of the Gujarat high court. The 2019 judgment had denied relief to Adani Power from Customs duty on electricity supplied from its Mundra SEZ unit to the domestic tariff area (DTA).
India's first maritime lender, state-owned Sagarmala Finance Corporation Ltd (SMFCL) hit the ground running with a Rs 4,300 crore disbursement announcement last Tuesday, within months of being registered as a non-banking financial company (NBFC) in June 2025.
Equity markets will keenly track outcome of the US Federal Reserve policy meeting this week amid heightened expectations of an interest rate cut along with WPI inflation data, analysts said. Any further development on the USndia trade front would also drive trends in the equity market, experts said.
'India may never fully participate in the AI hype cycle, but we can position ourselves to benefit from its inevitable disenchantment and the cycle of disillusionment,' alerts Akash Prakash.
The banking sector could see better loan growth in the third quarter of financial year 2026 (Q3FY26) with improved net interest margins (NIMs), though the full impact of latest rate cuts will be largely felt in the fourth quarter. There may be lower slippage in unsecured loans and microfinance institutions (MFIs) along with steady recovery trends, which should lower credit cost.
Maharashtra has pipped Tamil Nadu in NITI Aayog's latest Export Preparedness Index (EPI) for 2024. While Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh gained ground, Karnataka and Haryana slipped out of the top five, the central government think tank said in its report released on Wednesday.
Inderjit Bindra, who raised Indian cricket on the world stage in the 1990s and early years of this century, passed into the ages on Sunday. 26 years ago, Mr Bindra spoke at length to Rediff about his vision for Indian cricket, an interview which we republish in his memory.
'Economic activity appears to have peaked in the second quarter of FY26, with industrial output, exports, and business confidence all softening from October 2025.'
'A balanced portfolio mix of domestic and international equity, fixed income, and precious metals is recommended.'
'In India's competitive automotive market, staying relevant means continuously raising the bar.'
State-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) is willing to dilute a 30-40 per cent stake in its upcoming greenfield refinery in Andhra Pradesh, with Gulf energy major Saudi Aramco and upstream player Oil India Ltd (OIL) likely to join as partners, a senior BPCL executive said.
After three post-pandemic years of an upcycle, it was a mixed bag for the realty sector in 2025, with sales volumes in the residential real estate moderating across top cities, and commercial real estate and institutional investments emerging as standout performers. Residential: Volumes soften, value holds firm.
Real GDP growth surprised on the upside in 2025, but weaker nominal growth, trade uncertainty, and soft demand signal a bumpier road ahead.
With discretionary spending still under pressure, the information technology (IT) services industry continued to face an uncertain demand environment in the third quarter of 2025-26 (Q3FY26).
'India is clearly moving toward more targeted treatment pathways in high-burden cancers.'
Mumbai recorded its strongest housing market performance in 14 years in 2025, with property registrations rising to 150,254, amid a sustained end-user demand and supportive supply-side ecosystem, according to Knight Frank India.
'The real story of 2025 is that India officially stopped being a 'market of the future' and started acting as the world's primary economic engine.'
Biocon Limited has launched its GLP-1 peptide, liraglutide, for the treatment of diabetes and obesity in the Netherlands, as the biopharmaceutical firm positions itself as a global player in the fast-growing diabetes and obesity market currently dominated by the likes of Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly.
IT services firm HCLTech on Monday reported a 11.2 per cent decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 4,076 crore in the October-December quarter of FY26.
Foreign investors pulled out Rs 17,955 crore (Rs 2 billion) from Indian equities in the first two weeks of this month, taking the total outflow to Rs 1.6 lakh crore (Rs 18.4 billion) in 2025.' This sharp withdrawal follows a net outflow of Rs 3,765 crore in November, extending the pressure on domestic equity markets.
Non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) such as Bajaj Finance, Shriram Finance, Muthoot Finance, and IIFL Finance have regained their growth momentum after losing market share to banks in the post-Covid period. The growth surge is being led by diversified lenders and gold-loan companies while development-finance institutions such as Power Finance Corporation (PFC), REC, and Housing & Urban Development Corporation (Hudco) continue to grow at a slower pace.
'As a nation, we create beautiful content and a high volume of it (films) but we are limited by the number of theatres and screen density.' 'You now have a living-room large screen available to showcase that.'
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