What Household Surveys Reveal About India’s Growth Disconnect

RBI consumer surveys suggest the gap between reported growth and household experience is being driven less by inflation than by concerns over jobs and economic conditions.

Deepa Vasudevan

iStock.com

Week in Numbers: Tracking India’s Economic Pulse

Industrial output accelerates to 8% in August, led by manufacturing and power, while fiscal pressures rise as tax collections weaken.

Datametricx

istock.com

Rahul Has Covered a Lot of Ground, but Congress Still Has Catching Up to Do

Rahul Gandhi has travelled far from the days of being written off. But between becoming the face of the opposition and taking Congress back to power lies a different test.

Amitabh Tiwari

Wikimedia Commons

How China’s New Investment and Export Controls Jeopardise India’s Economic Choices

India is opening doors to Chinese investment. Beijing is tightening its grip on what can leave. What happens when India’s industrial ambitions meet China’s new rules?

Sharmila Kantha

istock.com

Geopolitics

Indian Diplomacy in Crisis Mode

India’s strategic autonomy is under growing strain as Washington’s renewed engagement with Pakistan, pressure over Russian oil and the deepening US-China rivalry complicate its choices.

Rajesh Ramachandran

iStock.com

The Climate Action Paradox: Why Catastrophe Has Not Produced Transformation

Wars, pandemics and financial crises have forced sweeping change. Why has climate catastrophe struggled to do the same—and what would it take to break the pattern?

Arvind Mayaram

iStock.com

The Cost That Falls Either Way: How India Should Deploy Its Liquidity Surplus

India’s FCNR-driven liquidity surplus leaves the RBI deciding where sterilisation costs should fall, even as banks face growing incentives to move excess reserves into credit.

Anil Katia

istock.com

The Twin Liquidity Deficits and India’s Equity Market

India’s secondary market is under stress as investors are choosing short-term gains in IPOs over long-term investments in listed stocks.

Chokkalingam G

Istock.com

India’s Credit Boom Needs a Stronger Link to Investment and Employment

India’s credit surge needs to translate into productive assets and lasting jobs, not merely larger loan books and higher collateral values.

Kalluru Siva Reddy

Chinmay Joshi

Istock.com

Audit the FTAs

An FTA gives away tariff revenue and policy space in return for market access, investment and exports. India should publish the balance sheet of every such bargain, measure what it delivered and learn from it before negotiating the next one.

Srinath Sridharan

Arjun Raghavendra M.

istock.com

Regulating for the Public Good

The RBI, SEBI and IRDAI share a public purpose. Their recent interventions show why preparation and communication matter as much as intent.

Babuji K

TRAI Directive Could Expose Telecom’s Pricing Trick

The telecom sector regulator wants to let customers refuse mobile data they do not use. For telecom investors, the test is whether operators can offer that choice without weakening the value of a basic connection.

Krishnadevan V

Istock.com

Was the Import Duty Cut for Vegetable Oils Really Needed?

With excess production globally, the duty cut on vegetable oil imports may add to the stress for local growers

G. Chandrashekhar

istock.com

When Regulators Become a Source of the Uncertainty they Seek to Reduce

Regulators must act against genuine risk, but frequent rule changes can unsettle markets. Credibility rests on restraint as much as intervention.

R. Gurumurthy

Istock.com

The Opposing Forces Reshaping Global Finance

Financial technology is accelerating global integration, while geopolitical tensions are driving fragmentation. How will these opposing forces reshape finance over the next five years?

Mohamed A. El-Erian

Istock.com

El Nino to Reduce Kharif Production for 2026-27, Rabi Crops Also Under Stress

Kharif harvest is seen short of the season’s production target, and below last year’s government estimate, tightening supply-demand fundamentals of many crops

G. Chandrashekhar

istock.com

The Independent Director Indian Cooperative Banks Have Long Been Missing

Cooperative banks need more than professional expertise. Independent judgement must improve oversight without displacing elected representatives

Rabi N. Mishra

Komal Gupta

istock.com

The SIR Conundrum and the Controversy Over Differences Among Election Commissioners

India's Election Commission finds itself in the most serious credibility crisis of its history, and this time the trouble isn't coming from outside the institution — it's coming from within.

Amitabh Tiwari

istock.com

Lies, Election Lies, and Trump's Statisticians

An obviously amateurish brief published by the US Census Bureau should raise alarms for all businesses, investors, and others who rely on official government statistics. By recklessly undermining trust in what should be an apolitical public service, Donald Trump is jeopardizing a critical pillar of American prosperity.

Michael R. Strain

White House

Columnists

Vivek Kaul

Vivek Kaul is a writer and an economic commentator.

Michael Debabrata Patra

Michael Patra is an economist and former RBI Deputy Governor.

Duvvuri Subbarao

Dr Subbarao is a former governor of RBI

Arvind Mayaram

Arvind Mayaram, former Finance Secretary, is Chairman of the Institute of Development Studies, Jaipur.

Ashima Goyal

Dr Ashima Goyal is an Economist, Ex MPC Member.

Ajay Srivastava

Ajay Srivastava is the founder of the Global Trade Research Initiative.

Abheek Barua

Abheek is an Independent Economist and the Former Chief Economist at HDFC Bank.

Vijay Chauhan

Vijay Singh Chauhan, a former IRS official, is a Senior Visiting Fellow at ICPP, Ashoka University

R. Gurumurthy

Gurumurthy is an ex-central banker who handled markets, and later, financial stability for RBI.

Gaura Sen Gupta

Gaura is Chief Economist at IDFC First Bank.

Sharmila Kantha

Sharmila Kantha is an industrial policy specialist and author.

Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain (Retd)

Lt Gen Hasnain is Governor, Bihar, and Former Commander of Chinar Corps.

Dhananjay Sinha

Dhananjay, a D-School alum, is CEO and Co-Head of Equities at Systematix Group.

Sharmila Chavaly

Ex-civil servant Chavaly held key Railways, Finance roles; specialises in infra & PPPs

Srinath Sridharan

Srinath is an author, corporate advisor, and independent director on corporate boards.

Amitabh Tiwari

Amitabh Tiwari tracks politics with a strategic eye

Vivek Kaul

Vivek Kaul is a writer and an economic commentator.

Michael Debabrata Patra

Michael Patra is an economist and former RBI Deputy Governor.

The Bureau

RBI MPC’s October Hike May be Easy Call; Size of Rate Cycle is Bigger Debate

Gilts Look Beyond Expected RBI Hike to Liquidity Action, Policy Guidance

Finance Ministry Flags Inflation Pressures

Benchmark 10-year gilt yield seen steady at 7.15% Oct-end; RBI October rate hike priced in

September Rush Keeps First-Half Corporate Bond Issuance Near Last Year’s Level

Week in Numbers: Tracking India’s Economic Pulse

Was the Import Duty Cut for Vegetable Oils Really Needed?

El Nino to Reduce Kharif Production for 2026-27, Rabi Crops Also Under Stress

GDP, Geoeconomics & The China Conundrum?

In Search of the Lesser Florican

Maneet Pal Singh

Economy

Vivek Kaul

Michael Debabrata Patra

Duvvuri Subbarao

Arvind Mayaram

Ashima Goyal

Ajay Srivastava

Abheek Barua

Vijay Chauhan

R. Gurumurthy

Gaura Sen Gupta

Sharmila Kantha

Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain (Retd)

Dhananjay Sinha

Sharmila Chavaly

Srinath Sridharan

Amitabh Tiwari

Vivek Kaul

Michael Debabrata Patra

The Bureau