US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Kolkata for a four-day diplomatic tour to India, marking the first visit by a US secretary of state to the city in 14 years. His itinerary includes meetings with Indian officials, energy talks, and a Quad Foreign Ministers Meeting.
In trade negotiations, as in chess, sometimes you need to accept a temporary disadvantage to secure a better long-term position, points out Sonal Varma, chief economist (India and Asia ex-Japan) at Nomura.
India's purchase of US crude oil has picked up in 2025 and could easily double their previous levels, government officials said on Wednesday. The surge comes in the wake of the then-incoming Donald Trump administration's announcement that it would consider hiking tariffs on a reciprocal basis, and pushed some countries, especially those with large trade surpluses with the US, to buy more of its energy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged US President Donald Trump to prioritise the safety of Indian seafarers in the Strait of Hormuz during the implementation of Washington's proposed Iran peace deal, as both leaders focused on repairing strained bilateral relations at the G7 summit.
The BRICS nations have expressed concern over the proliferation of trade-restrictive actions in the form of 'indiscriminate rising' of tariffs, particularly measures used as a means of 'coercion', cautioning that such practices risk marginalising the Global South countries.
The Congress has strongly criticised the US government's temporary waiver allowing India to purchase Russian oil, raising concerns about continued 'American blackmail' and its impact on India's energy policy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed various aspects of India-US bilateral ties, focusing on defence, trade, energy, and technology. Rubio extended an invitation from President Donald Trump for PM Modi to visit the US.
India emerged reasonably well from 2025. But now, the oil shock and war-related supply disruptions have again driven funds out of India and significantly weakened the rupee, points out Ajay Chhibber.
Donald Trump's tariffs, meant as political punishment, have avoided the predicted chaos, lifting US growth, weakening rivals, and letting him claim victory in a resilient global economy, observes T T Ram Mohan.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval has travelled to Russia to hold crucial talks on bilateral energy and defence ties and to prepare ground for Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to India later this year.
A senior Russian diplomat has called the US pressure on India for its procurement of Russian crude oil "unjustified," expressing confidence in continued energy cooperation between India and Russia despite external pressures.
Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has expressed caution regarding 'extreme volatility' risks stemming from the West Asian conflict, which could impact global oil demand and the company's margins, while also noting that near-term retail consumption demand may remain sensitive to macro conditions. Chairman Mukesh Ambani, in the annual report, remained silent on the timeline for Jio Platforms' anticipated public listing, stating the group will 'continue to evaluate strategic pathways'.
Markets face risk of a prolonged bear phase as oil shocks and geopolitical tensions test inflation, growth and investor confidence globally, points out Debashis Basu.
US President Donald Trump warned India about potential tariffs for continuing to purchase oil from Russia, claiming he received assurances from Prime Minister Narendra Modi that India would halt such purchases.
Sharp differences between Iran and the UAE over the West Asia conflict were on full display during the BRICS foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi, signalling the challenges the bloc faces in reaching a consensus position on the crisis.
'India should understand that we are not going to make the same mistakes with India that we made with China 20 years ago.'
Reliance Industries' digital arm, Jio Platforms, may see its initial public offering (IPO) delayed to the second half of fiscal 2027, according to CreditSights. The delay is primarily attributed to ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, which could impact market conditions and investor sentiment.
The Indian government is set to accelerate reforms, including measures to enhance foreign direct investment, speed up divestment, and boost asset monetisation, to maintain economic growth despite rising fuel and fertiliser import costs driven by the West Asia crisis.
'Existing investors who have not acted so far may consider holding on to these funds with the understanding that the higher returns they expected from them may now take longer to materialise.'
Donald Trump says several issues were settled during the final day of talks with Xi Jinping covering trade, tariffs, and diplomacy.
The White House has revised a fact sheet on the interim trade deal between the United States and India, removing the reference to "pulses" from the list of American products on which India would eliminate or reduce tariffs. The revised sheet also changed "committed" to "intends" regarding India's purchase of American products.
Former White House official John Bolton suggests that tariffs imposed on India by the US for purchasing Russian oil may have unintended consequences, potentially driving New Delhi closer to Beijing and Moscow.
Amidst escalating tensions with Iran, the US has granted India a temporary 30-day waiver to continue purchasing Russian oil, aiming to stabilise global energy markets and encourage future US oil imports by India.
US President Donald Trump has claimed that China has committed to halting weapon supplies to Iran, following his personal diplomatic interventions with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
'It was diminishing even before Trump came to power.' 'The US was at the centre of the global economy. That position is going to become less and less important and less central.'
India's EV ecosystem is growing, but remains too underdeveloped to cushion a major oil supply shock.
US President Donald Trump announced a new global levy on imported items, resulting in a lower tariff rate for India, following a Supreme Court verdict against his previous sweeping tariffs.
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.
"I understood tariffs better than any human being in the world. And now with my tariffs, they were all dropping them. India was the most highly tariffed nation... And you know what, they've offered me no tariffs in India anymore. No tariffs," Trump said.
India's brittle energy security is inextricably linked to two opposing paradigms - fossil fuels, and the transition to green energy. The first powers the present; the second paves the way for Viksit Bharat in 2047.
Trump's post on Truth Social comes a day after the US asked G7 countries to impose tariffs on countries purchasing oil from Russia.
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.
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."
The US-China rapprochement, however tenuous, is not without implications for India. Both China and Pakistan have become closer to the US, notes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has proposed a 20-point policy agenda to the finance ministry, including a conflict-linked emergency credit line guarantee scheme and tax rationalisation on energy inputs, to support MSMEs, exporters, and energy-intensive industries affected by the ongoing West Asia war.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has called on Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa (BRICS) to defend the multilateral trading system amid increasing protectionism and tariff volatility during a meeting of the bloc's foreign ministers in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly session.
Insights from behavioural economics suggest that an ambitious nudge can be effective if three conditions are met, points out Ram Singh Insights from behavioural economics suggest that an ambitious nudge can be effective if three conditions are met, points out Ram Singh, director, Delhi School of Economics.
India's first trillion-dollar company will be built on technology it owns, not just operates, predicts Ajay Kumar.
Among Sensex firms, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Eternal, Axis Bank, Maruti, Tata Steel, HDFC Bank and Asian Paints were the gainers. However, Adani Ports, Trent, Tata Motors, Hindustan Unilever and NTPC were among the laggards.
High energy costs, long a drag on India's manufacturing competitiveness, are finally easing. Power and fuel expenses accounted for 1.98 per cent of net sales in 2024-25, the lowest level in data compiled by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) over the past two decades.
