Average employee salaries in India are set to increase by 9 per cent in 2026, with a renewed focus on short-term incentives and skills-based systems, a report said on Wednesday. According to Mercer's Total Remuneration Survey 2026, organisations in India are shifting toward broader, more holistic value propositions and the top factors influencing salary increases include individual performance, inflation and the organisation's competitiveness in the job market, among others.
Investors who constantly hop between 'top-performing' funds often end up earning far lower returns than the very funds they invest in -- simply because they enter late and exit early. Best investors don't chase returns, they chase discipline, says Ramalingam Kalirajan.
Equity investors are up for an eventful trading week ahead as the 90-day suspension period of the reciprocal tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump ends on July 9, analysts said, adding that a positive outcome from the trade negotiations could further lift market sentiment, particularly benefiting trade-sensitive sectors.
'In the long run, India's strong growth story and reforms to make assets globally attractive will determine the rupee's resilience.'
Prices of televisions are expected to rise by 3-4 per cent from January next year on account of the rising cost of memory chips and depreciation of the rupee, which recently crossed the 90-to-a-dollar mark for the first time.
Indian envoy Vinay Mohan Kwatra discussed fair, balanced and mutually beneficial trade ties with US lawmakers amid ongoing tariff tensions between New Delhi and Washington.
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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.
MEA data show that the number of Indian students in the UAE in 2025 was 253,832, just behind the United States with 255,447 students, and Canada being on top at 427,085.
Navarro's remarks came after the public display of bonhomie by the three leaders on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin on Monday.
'India is a big market for StanC, and it is also fastest growing economy in the world.'
After a record-breaking year, India's automobile industry is entering 2026 on a relatively strong footing, with sales growth expected in the 6-8 per cent range. The outlook is underpinned by policy support, including GST rationalisation, easing monetary conditions, and income tax relief, which together are likely to improve affordability and sustain consumer demand across vehicle segments.
Trump said California has been particularly "hard hit" because of this, blaming democrat Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, for this loss, calling him "weak and incompetent."
'...not merely in managing fiscal mathematics, but in demonstrating conservatism and prudence within that framework.' 'Looking forward, we believe sufficient growth drivers exist -- ranging from government reforms to revival in consumption to favourable monsoons. Numerous factors support the Indian economy.'
India's initial public offering (IPO) market is rewriting the rules of sectoral dominance, with a diverse slate of companies entering the stock market arena.
'Earnings growth will be the main driver of India's market in 2026, with profits expected to rise 9% to 10% in H2 FY26 and accelerate to 12% to 15% in FY27.'
Investors will take cues from the December quarter corporate earnings, with blue-chips like Infosys, Reliance Industries scheduled to report their results this week, in addition, inflation data and trading activity of foreign investors will also be crucial in dictating market trends, analysts said.
Market regulator Sebi on Thursday said that timelines for portfolio rebalancing in mutual fund schemes will now be applicable to all types of passive breaches across actively managed schemes, which was earlier limited to only asset allocation. A passive breach refers to unintended deviations from the mandated asset allocation or regulatory limits that do not arise from the direct actions or omissions of asset management companies (AMCs).
'Calibrated depreciation will help rebalance external fundamentals, offset some of the tariff differentials with competitors, improve the competitiveness of domestic substitutes vis-a-vis Chinese imports, and contribute to the easing of financial conditions at a time when the inflation rate is unusually low,' explains Sajjid Z Chinoy, head of Asia Economics at JP Morgan.
Trump administration's chief negotiator Brendan Lynch is arriving in India to hold talks on the India-US bilateral trade deal, which were impacted after the US imposed 50 per cent import tariffs on Indian goods.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar defends India's purchase of Russian oil, stating it is not the largest purchaser and that the US had previously supported such actions to stabilize energy markets. He also addresses concerns about tariffs and trade relations with the US.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit India around December 5 to hold annual summit talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi to further solidify bilateral strategic ties.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra, and Deputy Governors Poonam Gupta, T Rabi Sankar, Swaminathan J, and S C Murmu on Friday addressed issues during the post-policy media interaction.
The reduction in the goods and services tax (GST) rates has increased the momentum in India's economic activity both on the supply and demand sides, while robust agricultural activity - reflected in the strong onset of rabi sowing and adequate reservoir levels - has reinforced the outlook for food supply and rural incomes, the finance ministry said on Thursday.
During a visit to the UK, former US President Donald Trump reiterated his claim of intervening to resolve a conflict between India and Pakistan, linking it to trade negotiations. He also discussed tariffs on India for buying Russian oil and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
The RBI advisory follows a labour ministry request earlier this year seeking the central bank's expertise to identify gaps in EPFO's investment strategy and fund management practices, including accounting, risk management, and internal governance.
India's crude oil imports from Russia saw a marginal decline in September, but continued to account for over one-third of the country's total oil purchases, despite US pressure to curb the trade over concerns that it supports Moscow's war effort in Ukraine. India's crude imports in September were around 4.7 million barrels per day, up 220,000 bpd month-on-month and flat year-on-year.
Using an expletive in his post on X, Navarro said, "Fact: India didn't buy Russian oil in large quantities before Russia invaded Ukraine. It's blood money and people are dying."
NSA Ajit Doval has indicated that dates for Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to India are being worked out during his meetings in Moscow. Discussions also covered bilateral energy and defence cooperation, amidst ongoing concerns over India's procurement of Russian crude oil.
Asian Paints reported a good performance for the second quarter (July-September) of 2025-26 (Q2FY26), with some help from base effects, despite strong competition and extended monsoon. Volume grew in low double digits in the key domestic decorative paints, and value in that segment grew by 6 per cent. Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) grew 21 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y), and PAT (profit after tax) grew 14 per cent. Asian Paints also defended market share better after several quarters where it had lost ground to Birla Opus.
Vance also hinted that the US may drop additional tariffs on countries if the US make a deal with Russia, and also apply more tariffs on the countries to bring this war to a close.
"So I think what happens is it's all bravado, because you think it feels good to fight with the biggest client in the world, but eventually your businesses are going to say you've got to stop this and go make a deal with America."
The government on Wednesday approved two schemes worth Rs 45,000 crore to help exporters tide over the impact of high tariffs imposed by the US on Indian shipments.
The US's recent 50 per cent tariff on Indian exports will have a trickledown effect on India's affordable housing, potentially derailing demand as well as supply in this segment, according to experts. Pointing to worker incomes and jobs in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that typically make up majority of the customer base of affordable housing, would take a hit in the near terms due to the tariff change, further crippling India's affordable housing sector, already reeling from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
A guide to travel in 2026.
Macroeconomic data announcements, the last batch of Q1 earnings and global trends are the major factors that would influence trading sentiments in the equity market in a holiday-shortened week ahead, analysts said. Besides, trading activity of foreign investors would also be a crucial factor in dictating movement in the market. Equity markets would remain closed on Thursday for Independence Day.
Goldman Sachs is bullish about Indian aerospace and defence, preferring private companies over public sector units (PSUs) as the country ramps up its export target for the sector to Rs 50,000 crore by FY29 from Rs 23,600 crore last year. The American investment bank's top 'buy' recommendations include Solar Industries, Bharat Electronics, Data Patterns and PTC Industries, while Bharat Dynamics is rated 'sell'.
Lavrov, who addressed the UN General Assembly shortly before External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's speech at the high-level General Debate, said India and Russia share a "particularly privileged strategic partnership".
UBS has turned bullish on emerging markets (EM), including India, as it finds benign macro trends, positive momentum in earnings revisions, and resilient EM currencies helping these economies sustain higher valuations and attracting flows. Among regions, it has upgraded Mainland China to 'attractive' and China Tech to 'most attractive', while downgrading Philippines to 'neutral'.
'Raising the entire amount in one go may not be prudent, given the market dynamics.'
