India has completely protected the interests of its agriculture and dairy sector in the India-US trade agreement.
The question is no longer whether the war will expand. It has. The next few days will tell us whether the war stabilises around Hormuz or whether the Strait itself becomes the trigger for a far larger rupture. What to watch for over the next 48 hours is simple: Any move by the US toward direct naval control of the Strait; any credible Iranian attempt to disrupt or mine shipping lanes and, critically, whether energy infrastructure in the Gulf continues to be targeted.If those lines are crossed in tandem, the war will no longer be containable within the region.
Whether Trump will actually press ahead with the oil sanctions remains unclear, since keeping Russian oil out of the world market risks high oil prices which could boomerang on the US economy and be damaging politically for Trump, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
In a major setback to Trump's pivotal economic agenda for his second term, the US Supreme Court, in a 6-3 verdict written by Chief Justice John Roberts, ruled that the tariffs imposed by the president on nations around the world were illegal.
The deal shifts the US posture towards India from hostile to neutral, and that matters for growth, points out T T Ram Mohan.
India and the US have decided to reschedule their meeting to finalize the interim trade pact due to recent developments and implications, including changes in US tariffs.
'Based on the joint statement, a formal agreement will be drafted, which may take a month or month-and-a-half to finalise. We aim to sign the formal agreement by mid-March.'
Reliance Industries Ltd, India's largest buyer of Russian oil and most impacted by the latest US sanctions, on Friday said it will comply with all applicable restrictions and will adjust its refinery operations to meet compliance requirements.
Following a Supreme Court setback, Donald Trump has announced an increase in global tariffs from 10% to 15%, impacting international trade relations and raising concerns about economic repercussions.
India has fully protected its sensitive sectors like dairy, rice, wheat, pulses, tea, genetically modified (GM) goods, and coffee by not granting any import duty concessions to the European Union (EU) under the bilateral free trade agreement, according to the Commerce Ministry.
After a three-month slowdown, India's oil imports (already landed) from Russia bounced back in the first 15 days of October to 1.8 million barrels per day.
In the wake of the FTA between India and the European Union, the United States has described the Europeans as 'very disappointing', saying they were unwilling to join Washington, DC in putting tariffs on New Delhi for its purchases of Russian oil because of this trade deal.
A 500 per cent tariff would effectively shut out India's goods and services exports to the US.
'Trump had done a deal with the current regime minus Maduro. The current regime is giving Trump entry into Venezuelan oil. They are obeying him and doing whatever he says.' 'They are happy because they have saved their heads by sacrificing only two, Maduro and his wife. Thousands of Venezuelan military leaders would have been jailed or killed in American action had Maduro stayed in power.'
A new study reveals that green hydrogen's potential as a sustainable fuel is contingent on the rapid decarbonisation of energy grids worldwide.
India's goods exports rebounded in July after two months of contraction, with outbound shipments rising 7.3 per cent to $37.24 billion, led by a surge in exports to the United States before the country's reciprocal tariff kicked in and bolstered by a recovery in exports to other key markets.
Domestic equities surged on Tuesday, posting their best single-day gains in more than eight months after a long-awaited trade deal between India and the US. The deal, which lowered tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent, significantly improved investor sentiment and lifted a key overhang for the market.
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.
Two days after Russian President Vladimir Putin concluded his visit to India, during which he assured that Moscow would remain a reliable energy supplier, the Kremlin on Monday said that India, as a sovereign nation, is free to buy oil from sources it deems beneficial. It expressed confidence that New Delhi will continue to prioritise its economic interests.
Actress Tamannaah Bhatia has been appointed as the brand ambassador for Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Limited (KSDL), the makers of Mysore Sandal Soap, sparking controversy over the choice of a non-Kannada speaking actor. The government defends the decision as a business strategy to boost sales outside Karnataka.
'Trump says India will buy over $500 billion of US goods.' 'At present, India's annual imports of goods and energy from the US are under $50 billion.' 'Reaching $500 billion would likely require more than 20 years, suggesting the figure refers to a long-term aspiration rather than a near-term commitment.'
US and India will promptly implement this framework and work towards finalising the interim agreement with a view to concluding a mutually beneficial bilateral trade agreement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Micron Technology's semiconductor plant in Sanand, Gujarat, highlighting India's growing presence in the hardware sector and its strong partnership with the United States in AI and chip technologies.
The US government, under President Trump, justifies the intervention as a security necessity rather than a resource grab. The primary official reasons include: narco-terrorism charges, national security and migration crisis.
A trade deal makes sense only if it is fair and reciprocal. If the cost is strategic dependence or loss of policy space, waiting is the wiser option, asserts Ajay Srivastava.
The US said India will lower tariffs on a "vast array" of American industrial and agricultural goods, such as "fruits, vegetables", to zero per cent under the trade deal announced by President Donald Trump.
Both countries commit to provide each other preferential market access in sectors of respective interest on a sustained basis
'The contours of the trade deal need to be reworked now.'
Stock market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty ended 2.5 per cent higher on Tuesday after India and the US agreed to a trade deal under which Washington will bring down the reciprocal tariff on Indian goods to 18 per cent.
India's merchandise trade deficit widened to a record $41.68 billion in October, as gold imports trebled and outbound shipments registered their sharpest contraction in 14 months, according to data released by the commerce department.
India's retail inflation, which has stayed below the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) 4 per cent target in recent times, is likely to remain benign in the coming months, RBI Deputy Governor Poonam Gupta said in a speech, on Friday, which was uploaded on the central bank's website on Tuesday. Headline inflation dipped to multi-year lows of around 1.5-2.8 per cent in late 2025.
'The problem is not just slower growth, but also the quality of growth.'
From the 30-Sensex firms, Bharat Electronics surged nearly 9 per cent post its December quarter earnings. Eternal, Bajaj Finance, Power Grid, Trent, Mahindra & Mahindra and UltraTech Cement were the other major gainers. Maruti, Sun Pharma, Infosys and Bharti Airtel were among the other laggards.
'It is too early to conclude that there will be a bloodbath, that there will be no jobs, and that there will be civil unrest.' 'Let's calm down.' 'AI is a tool, it is not a weapon, it is not a virus.'
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.
India and the US have entered a new phase in their relationship, marked by greater parity, point out Harsh V Pant and Vivek Mishra.
If the current situation prevails, exports to China could fall by 10-15 per cent. Meanwhile, even the prices of cotton, of which Gujarat is one of the leading producers, have taken a hit.
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.
In a veiled attack on US President Donald Trump, Canada's Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Tim Hodgson on Tuesday said India's free trade agreement with the European Union is a "perfect" answer to global hegemons that use tariffs and economic integration as tools of coercion.
The government has raised the windfall profit tax levied on domestically produced crude oil as well as on the export of diesel and ATF, in line with firming international oil prices, according to an official order. The levy on crude oil produced by companies such as Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has been increased to Rs 2,100 per tonne from Rs 1,700 per tonne, the order dated January 2, said. Crude oil pumped out of the ground and from below the seabed is refined and converted into fuel like petrol, diesel and aviation turbine fuel (ATF).
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