'What we are seeing today is India stepping into its digital confidence, not as a follower but a leader.'
India is the second-most-preferred destination among chief executive officers planning international investments - up from the fifth spot last year, according to PwC's 29th Annual Global CEO Survey released on Tuesday. The United States is their first choice.
With a confident new generation of innovators, India now has the scale and self-belief to shape its own digital destiny marked by creation, observes Ajay Kumar chairman, UPSC.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a strong attack on the Congress party, accusing them of being unable to accept their repeated electoral defeats and highlighting the achievements of his government.
BJP MP C Sadanandan Master addressed the Rajya Sabha, appealing for unity and highlighting the government's achievements while raising concerns about migration in Kerala.
India and the US have agreed to a trade deal that will see Washington reduce reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods from 25% to 18%, according to US President Donald Trump. The deal also includes commitments from India to reduce tariffs and non-tariff barriers against the US and to increase purchases of American products.
"The policy of Macaulay, which sowed the seeds of mental slavery in India, will complete 200 years in 2035. This means there are 10 years left. Therefore, in these very 10 years, we all must come together to free our country from the slave mentality," he said.
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.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday said Indian goods will have a competitive advantage in US markets compared to products from China and other competitor countries, which face higher levies, following the reduction in reciprocal tariffs to 18 per cent.
President Droupadi Murmu addressed the nation on the eve of Republic Day, emphasising India's role in promoting peace, the empowerment of women, and the country's economic growth.
Indian pacer Mohammed Siraj is likely to replace Harshit Rana in the T20 World Cup squad after Rana sustained an injury during a warm-up match against South Africa.
New investors should enter gradually and with a long horizon. 'Staggered investment through systematic purchase plans is advisable rather than lump-sum buying.'
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.
This is the first Budget in my memory of Budgets over the last half a century which has embraced upfront, enthusiastically and emphatically, technology, modernity and fiscal sobriety, notes Shreekant Sambrani.
The Netherlands will face Namibia in a T20 World Cup Group A clash. The Netherlands are coming off a close loss to Pakistan, while Namibia begins their campaign. Both teams will be looking for a win to shape their World Cup trajectory.
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.
The government's Budget announcements providing tax holiday for data centres, setting up of city economic regions (CERs) and funding to improve infrastructure in Tier-II and -III cities may give an indirect boost to India's realty sector, said industry executives.
Gross GST collections rose 6.2 per cent to a three-month high of over Rs 1.93 lakh crore in January, indicating increased consumption is making up for rate cuts late last year, sources said on Sunday.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday makes history as she presents a record ninth consecutive Budget that is expected to unveil measures to sustain growth momentum, maintain fiscal discipline, and contain reforms that could buffer the economy from global trade frictions, including US tariffs.
The Congress party has strongly criticized the Union Budget, calling it 'lacklustre' and 'disappointing,' claiming it fails to address the needs of farmers, unemployed youth, and other key sectors.
'We kept this Budget on a larger plank, rather than on one incident, however serious.'
Former England captain Kevin Pietersen believes India are the favorites to win the T20 World Cup, but cautions that the format is unpredictable and that India's 'favourites' tag comes with its own dangers.
'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.'
Rahul Gandhi claims the Indo-US trade deal will compromise the data security of 1.5 billion Indians, alleging Prime Minister Modi is surrendering India's data resources to the US. He warns of potential job losses in the IT sector due to AI and the importance of controlling India's data pool.
Seeking foreign loan had forced Pakistan to 'bow' its head and make compromises at the 'cost of self-respect', Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said in a candid admission about the humiliation involved in approaching 'friendly countries' for financial aid.
While many areas compete for resources, defence, education, and adaptation deserve focus for maximum impact, suggests Laveesh Bhandari.
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.
Trump announced that India and the US agreed to a trade deal under which Washington will charge a reduced reciprocal tariff on Delhi, lowering it from 25 per cent to 18 per cent.
While the US-Iran conflict leading to a spike in global oil prices and trade war between the US and the EU topped the chart with 25 per cent, other major risks to the global economy include coronavirus, debt burdens causing a recess across emerging markets and Hong Kong protests causing an exodus from Asia's biggest financial centre.
What's different this time is that global financial stress -- which has its genesis in four policy choices made in recent years -- is juxtaposed with a more resilient real economy, observes Sajjid Z Chinoy, chief India economist at J P Morgan.
This Budget positions India's taxation ideology as not merely a revenue source but as a strategic catalyst for growth, inclusion and long-term confidence.
The Indian economy is likely to grow at 7.4 per cent in 2025-26, up from 6.5 per cent in the previous fiscal, mainly on account of better performance of manufacturing and services sectors, as per the government data released on Wednesday.
The fiscal tilt towards capex benefits companies in investment-related sectors like capital goods, defence equipment, engineering & construction and metal & mining. The planned cut in revenue expenditure will weigh on companies in consumption sectors like FMCG, consumer durables and retail.
'There is a lot of euphoria in the country after a trade agreement is signed. But it is an illusion for us. What is more important is making it real.'
'The trade deficit in some sectors is huge and that is an area of opportunity to localise.'
'The immediate impact for India will be very minimal as the share of Venezuela in our total overseas production is very low.'
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.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says India and the EU are close to a 'historic trade agreement' that could create a market of two billion people and account for almost a quarter of the global GDP.
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