This year's Economic Survey and the Union Budget were more closely followed for more reasons than one.
The country's largest lender SBI is open to collaborating with foreign banks once the Reserve Bank makes it possible for local banks to do acquisition finance, its chairman CS Setty said on Tuesday. Speaking to reporters, weeks after the central bank announced its intent to allow Indian banks to fund companies for executing domestic acquisitions, Setty acknowledged that the "MNC (multinational companies) banks" are dominant in the space.
The Budget emerges as a measured, credible and forward-looking policy document that reinforces India's commitment to remaining a stable, reform-oriented economy amid an increasingly fragmented global landscape, says A Balasubramanian.
'Global uncertainty is something which definitely occupies the minds of officials when we are preparing for the Budget.'
Shares of brokerage-related companies nosedived 18 per cent on Sunday after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed raising securities transaction tax on commodity futures to 0.05 per cent from 0.02 per cent in the Union Budget 2026-27.
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The government on Friday received financial bids for the strategic disinvestment of IDBI Bank, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (Dipam) said in an official statement on X.
Building on last year's clearance of 172K cases, I-T department is pushing for faster appeal disposals, penalty reforms and system-driven processes to curb litigation and boost tax certainty.
The Lokpal, India's anti-corruption ombudsman, has been allocated Rs 30 crore in the Union Budget 2026-27. The Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has been allocated Rs 54.56 crore.
The CBI has requested the Andhra Pradesh government to take action against senior TTD officers for alleged deliberate omissions and failures in tender conditions, leading to the supply of adulterated ghee used in Tirupati laddu production.
After a 25 basis point rate cut in December, the RBI on Friday decided to pause on the policy rate front amid geopolitical uncertainties.
Gold prices are likely to trade firm next week as traders await key economic data, including US inflation numbers, for fresh cues on interest rate outlook, while silver may remain volatile amid shifting risk sentiment and speculative activity, analysts said.
Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended lower on Thursday, snapping a three-day rally, amid a weak trend in global stock markets.
Two dedicated freight corridors -- Eastern and Western -- are in operation covering several states and districts.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed to increase the outlay on electronics manufacturing to Rs 40,000 crore in the 2026-27 fiscal year.
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.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's biggest challenge will be to find a new growth driver, particularly against the backdrop of a global economy ravaged by heightened uncertainty and fragmentation, financial markets on a precipice, and global commodity prices on a continued uptrend.
Sometimes, the most powerful Budgets whisper and the wisest investors listen, notes Ramalingam Kalirajan.
Enforcement agencies have highlighted risks related to money laundering and terror financing, prompting closer scrutiny of crypto platforms operating in India.
The gold loan portfolio across the system has nearly doubled to Rs 15.6 lakh crore in two years to November 2025, as a spike in prices of the precious commodity encouraged lenders to increase their exposures to the safer segment, a report said on Wednesday.
Gold and silver prices plunged up to 9 per cent in futures trade on Sunday, hitting their lower circuit levels ahead of the Union Budget for 2026-27, as investors extended profit booking after the recent record-breaking rally.
Customs regimes can lead to labyrinthine legal disputes. Budget 2026 must recognise that an excessively defensive Customs posture can itself become a trade barrier, point out Mukesh Butani and Shankey Agrawal.
Rahul Gandhi said that had an INDIA Bloc government negotiated the trade agreement with the US, it would have told US President Donald Trump that he should treat India as an equal.
The Budget offers a limited-time regularisation window with clear thresholds, defined payments, and immunity from penalty or prosecution.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday announced an increase in the Securities Transaction Tax (STT) on Futures and Options trade with a view to discouraging small investors from speculative trading in derivatives, which led to a sharp decline in the stock market.
India's services sector growth rose to a two-month high of 58.5 in January, on faster expansion in new business intake and output, prompting service providers to hire additional staff, a monthly survey said on Wednesday.
India is a global leader in software development services, IT enabled services, knowledge process outsourcing services and contract R&D services relating to software development, Sitharaman said noting these business segments are quite inter-connected with each other.
'The trade deficit in some sectors is huge and that is an area of opportunity to localise.'
The government's flagship Khelo India programme received an allocation of Rs 924.35 crore.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed to reduce the tax collection at source (TCS) rate to 2 per cent for education and medical purposes under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) as well as on sale of overseas tour program package.
The Union Budget 2025-26 had allocated Rs 2,33,210.68 crore (BE) to the ministry helmed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Sunetra Pawar, wife of the late Ajit Pawar, has been unanimously elected as the leader of the NCP legislature party in Maharashtra and is set to become the state's first woman Deputy Chief Minister.
The Union Budget allocates Rs 1,492 crore for the functioning of both Houses of Parliament, with specific provisions for Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and related secretariats.
India's state-level fiscal rules have improved headline deficits, but the gains are fragile and uneven with major states still grappling with high debt levels, a World Bank report submitted to the 16th Finance Commission (FC) said. According to the report, despite nearly two decades of adoption of fiscal responsibility laws (FRLs), debt levels have not converged.
Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) remained in a selling mode in January, withdrawing nearly Rs 36,000 crore (about $3.97 billion) as global uncertainties persisted. Meanwhile, a higher securities transaction tax (STT) proposed in the Union Budget may weigh on overseas investor participation in the near future.
In the Indo-Pacific's new era -- where perception shapes reality faster than treaties -- the real entrapment is not of China or the United States. It is the test Japan has set for itself -- and whether partners like India, acting as balancers rather than accelerants, can help ensure that the story ends in stability, points out Varun Arya.
Highlights of the Economic Survey 2025-26
Sitharaman in her budget speech said that the customs proposal "aim to further simplify the tariff structure, support domestic manufacturing, promote export competitiveness, and correct inversion in duty".
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's remarks come ahead of a high-level summit where India and the European Union are expected to formally announce the conclusion of negotiations on a comprehensive free trade agreement.
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