IMF is plagued by the dominance of the US on account of its veto power and the lack of representation of all partakers in the society, he said.
In a world fractured by uncertainty, India stands out for its policy consistency, paired with sustained ambition, points out Pritam Banerjee.
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.
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.
In its June 2025 review, the International Monetary Fund spotlighted India's Unified Payments Interface as the world's most dominant retail instant-payment network, moving more transactions than any other system on the globe.
India has managed high government debt-to-GDP, a slowing domestic revenue engine, lower household savings and a more hostile geopolitical environment separately in the past. But together, they threaten to undo the growth narrative on which today's optimism rests, warns Debashis Basu.
The International Monetary Fund, in its report on the Indian economy, said the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) Amendment Bill addresses many deficiencies but it has not provided for the participation of operational creditors or rules for executory contracts. The IMF staff report said that the business dynamism in India remains relatively low, marked by low rates of entry and exit, and a high share of inactive or inefficient firms reflecting structural rigidities and high compliance levels.
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.
Glimpses from around the world that will make you smile and cry.
The operator's liability in the case of an incident is limited to 3,000 crore for reactors with thermal power above 3,600 Megawatt; 1,500 crore for reactors with thermal power between 1,500 Mw and 3,600 Mw; 750 crore for reactors with thermal power between 750 Mw and 1,500 Mw; 300 crore for reactors with thermal power between 150 Mw and 750 Mw; and 100 crore for reactors having thermal power up to 150 Mw, fuel cycle facilities other than spent fuel reprocessing plants and transportation of nuclear materials.
The Indian government has introduced a bill to overhaul the civil nuclear sector, allowing private participation and establishing a new liability regime. The SHANTI Bill, 2025, aims to repeal existing acts and address industry concerns.
India, the world's fourth largest economy, is set to maintain the 'goldilocks' phase with tailwinds of good growth, low inflation and robust banking performance as well as reform initiatives poised to sustain the economic pace witnessed during 2025.
India's new national accounts will leverage new data sources and surveys to enhance the measurement of the country's informal economy, and introduce double deflation methods across sectors, replacing the current system that relies on a single deflation mechanism in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) calculations.
'Maybe he was wrong, but they believed he genuinely meant what he said.'
A neutral monetary policy stance, heavy government borrowing, and issuers adjusting to a higher-for-longer yield environment have set the stage for a largely stable corporate bond market in 2026.
The Indian government has expressed its disagreement with the IMF staff's 'baseline' assumption that the 50 per cent US tariffs on its goods exports 'would remain in place indefinitely', based on which the staff pegged the country's GDP growth at 6.6 per cent this year, and pared its 2026-27 projection by 20 basis points to 6.2 per cent.
Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party reiterated its promise to scrap the liquor ban in Bihar if elected, planning to use the revenue to secure loans from international financial institutions.
'Only four or five original companies remain; the rest have been replaced every decade as sectors evolve or leadership shifts.' 'Companies that fail to adapt -- like many textile mills from the 1970s and shipping firms from the 1980s -- disappear.' 'Benchmark indices reward those who reinvent themselves in line with economic demands.'
About 85 per cent of the digital payment transactions take place through UPI in India, and the country can be a case study in inclusive, secure, and scalable Digital Public Platforms (DPPs), Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra has said. He was speaking at a "High-Level Dialogue on Forging Economic Resilience through Digital Public Platforms" organised by RBI on the sidelines of the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in Washington, DC on Tuesday.
India's equity markets may have expanded rapidly, but initial public offerings (IPOs) are increasingly becoming exit vehicles for early investors rather than as engines for raising long-term capital, a shift that undermines the spirit of public markets, Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran warned on Monday at a CII event.
The best way for India to prepare is by preserving and strengthening the RBI's hard-won credibility, point out Rajeswari Sengupta and Vaishali Garga.
In 2024, Pakistan shelled out $10.2 billion in defence spends.
'It will increase the contribution to gratuity, which is something the employer has to give.'
India should refrain from playing cricket with Pakistan in view of the ongoing tension with the neighbouring country, Arvind Sawant (SS-UBT) said on Monday in the Lok Sabha.
Silver prices extended their record-breaking rally for a sixth straight session on Monday, surging 6 per cent to touch a lifetime high of Rs 2,54,174 per kilogram in futures trade amid strong investor demand and bullish global trends. On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), silver futures for March delivery surged Rs 14,387, or 6 per cent, to hit a new record of Rs 2,54,174 per kilogram.
ilver continues to outperform the yellow metal, with the gold-to-silver price ratio declining to its lowest level since 2013. The ratio fell to around 57 on Wednesday in the international market, from a five-year high of 100.8 at the end of April 2025.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) does not target any price level on the rupee, Governor Sanjay Malhotra reiterated at an International Monetary Fund and World Bank event on Wednesday.
India has opposed the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) proposal to extend fresh loans of USD 2.3 billion to Pakistan, citing concerns that the funds could be misused for financing state-sponsored cross-border terrorism. India abstained from voting at the IMF meeting, expressing concerns about Pakistan's track record and the possibility of debt financing being misused for terrorism. The IMF took note of India's statements and its abstention from the vote. India's opposition comes at a time when military conflict between India and Pakistan has intensified following a terrorist attack in Kashmir.
'The danger is that when the music stops, the fall will be sudden, faster, and deeper than anyone expects,' warns Debashis Basu.
If Xi Jinping is dethroned in the future, the instrument for that may well be embedded within the PLA, notes former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
"We are contributing about 18 per cent, which is more than the US where the contribution is expected to be much less -- about 11 per cent or something. We are doing very well and we will continue to improve further," RBI governor Sanjay Malhotra said, replying to a question on Trump's recent comments.
Fitch Ratings on Wednesday raised India's GDP growth forecast to 6.9 per cent for current fiscal year, from 6.5 per cent earlier, citing strong June quarter growth and domestic consumption-led demand.
Pakistan's Ministry of Economic Affairs X account was hacked and a fake appeal was posted, calling for more international loans to help defuse tensions with India following the Pahalgam terror attack. The post urged the international community to help de-escalate the situation and requested more loans to address "heavy losses" caused by the tensions. The hacking incident occurred during a crucial meeting of the IMF executive board to decide on the next installment of a USD 7 billion loan for Pakistan.
What appeared to be a generous act of friendship was, in truth, a manoeuvre within a much larger strategic game. The United States used the 1962 war not just to aid India but to test how far it could be pulled into the Western fold, points out Dr Kumar.
Pakistan on Friday said that the X account of its ministry of economic affairs was hacked and an appeal was posted on it for more international loans to meet the 'heavy losses' caused by the current tensions with India.
India had vehemently opposed Asian Development Bank's decision to grant $800 million loan to Pakistan saying the fund could be misused for increasing expenditure on its military, government sources said.
Sri Lanka stays with you not just in memory, but gently reminds you what a society can achieve when heart and heritage guide the way.
The disbursement of the second tranche comes on a day when the International Monetary Fund is holding virtual discussions on Pakistan's upcoming budget, as the visit of its mission to Islamabad was delayed due to security concerns in the region.
India will oppose the World Bank funding to Pakistan next month, arguing that Islamabad has used such funds in the past to procure arms and ammunitions. India previously lobbied against the IMF extending a USD 2.3 billion assistance to Pakistan earlier this month, presenting evidence of Pakistan's misuse of funds for military purposes. India feels that Pakistan has failed to act on terror emanating from its territory and has been diverting funds from multilateral agencies to buy arms and ammunition.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said its executive board granted $1 billion in assistance to Pakistan this month after finding out that the country met all conditions and targets for it.