Economics

‘More tariff cuts will worsen trade deficit in plantation commodities’ The United Planters’ Association of Southern India (UPASI) has said that plantation commodities should be kept out of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), if India signs the agreement. AL. Rm. Nagappan, president, UPASI, said in a statement that in …

‘Tussle between economists, IAS lobby’ The appointment of the deputy governor in the Reserve Bank of India to fill up the vacancy that was created after Viral Acharya’s departure could be a complicated one. This is because there is a strong view in a section of the bureaucracy that the …

West Bengal allows 15% of land in a tea garden to be used for economic activities The tea industry in West Bengal is witnessing a major boost to employment with the State government’s relaxation of norms for use of leasehold land in a tea garden. The move may induce garden …

The United Nations aviation watchdog, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), is “not empowered to intervene” in the affairs of a country and will examine inputs from both India and Pakistan before it takes a decision to pursue the issue of denial of overflight to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s aircraft during …

A rise in average temperatures across India would increase death rates by 10%, translating into an extra million and a half deaths by the end of the century, says a report by researchers based at The Climate Impact Lab, a collaboration of researchers from multiple U.S. universities and organisations. This …

As much as 97% of GST refunds due to MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) as of August 23 has been paid by the government, according to the Finance Ministry. In a status report on the implementation of measures announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in August and September, the …

Positive momentum continued in the equity markets, with benchmark indices closing with gains for the fifth consecutive day. The BSE Sensex also touched its all-time high of 40,392.22 points before correcting to close at 40,129.05 , up 77 points or 0.19%, on Thursday. The top gainers in the Sensex pack …

Two new departments, with specialised cadre on supervision and regulation within the Reserve Bank of India, will start functioning from November 1, indicating the changes in the central bank’s approach to these two crucial issues of the financial system that has dominated public discourse in recent times. These departments have …

Output of eight core infrastructure industries contracted by 5.2% in September, indicating the severity of the economic slowdown. As many as seven of eight core industries saw a contraction in output in Septe-mber. Coal production fell steeply by 20.5%, crude oil by 5.4%, and natural gas by 4.9%. Output of …

Cheaper imports from Vietnam via Sri Lanka, duty-free, blamed for distress A drastic fall in the price of black pepper and low production owing to climate vagaries are the major concerns of farmers in Kerala and Karnataka, the two major pepper producing States in the country. Black pepper prices have …