India Economics Weekly Key takeaways from PM Modi’s media interview In a rare media interview published this week, Prime Minister Modi discussed several economic issues. Among the key takeaways, it is clear that the government wants policy to be loosened even further... 16th August 2019 · 4 mins read
India Economics Weekly Kashmir tensions to have limited economic impact Developments in Kashmir this week have again raised tensions between the Indian and Pakistani governments. History suggests the most likely scenario from here is that, after plenty of posturing... 8th August 2019 · 6 mins read
India Economics Weekly Fiscal deficit target doubtful, banking code amended India’s fiscal deficit in Q1 of FY19/20 provides little assurance about the government’s ability to meet the 3.3% target that it set in the union budget last month. We think that the finance ministry... 2nd August 2019 · 5 mins read
India Economics Weekly Acharya steps down, labour reform bills tabled Dr Viral Acharya, who stepped down from the MPC this week, was one of the most hawkish members of the committee. As such, his departure boosts the chances of further rate cuts in the near term. But it... 26th July 2019 · 4 mins read
India Economics Weekly A little sinning would do no harm Borrowing in foreign currency has been at the root of virtually every major EM sovereign debt crisis, which is why it gets called the “original sin” of emerging economies. It is unsurprising... 19th July 2019 · 3 mins read
India Economics Weekly (Another) fraud scandal at PNB, vehicle sales slump The latest fraud scandal engulfing Punjab National Bank – one of India’s largest state-owned banks – is a stark reminder that recent measures to revive the banking sector need to be supplemented with... 12th July 2019 · 5 mins read
India Economics Weekly A US$5trn economy by 2025? The main message from the annual Economic Survey released this week is that the government has made it a key objective to turn India into a US$5trn economy by FY24/25, from US$2.7trn currently. But... 5th July 2019 · 5 mins read
India Economics Weekly The bad loan cycle is turning The RBI’s confirmation this week that the NPL ratio has dropped over the past year suggests that the government’s efforts to tidy up the banking sector are gradually having an impact. We are... 28th June 2019 · 4 mins read
India Economics Weekly Tax exemptions, RBI minutes Ahead of the full budget for FY19/20 on 5 th July, the early leaks have focused on potential changes to income taxes. By themselves, these won’t have a material impact on the fiscal position. But they... 21st June 2019 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly GDP doubts resurface The release this week of analysis by Arvind Subramanian questioning the quality of India’s GDP data has caused a stir. Questions about India’s data are not new. We argued that the new methodology used... 14th June 2019 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Pressure for reform ratcheting up The withdrawal this week of the preferential trade status granted by the US to several Indian products will have limited economic impact given that exports of the affected goods were worth just 0.2%... 7th June 2019 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Modi sworn in, Finance Minister speculation Prime Minister Modi was sworn in for his second term this week, and one of his first key tasks will be to select a new Finance Minister after Arun Jaitley announced that he would be stepping down from... 31st May 2019 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Can the party continue? Election fever has gripped Indian financial markets this week, with equities and the rupee rallying as it became increasingly clear that Prime Minister Modi’s BJP would secure another resounding... 24th May 2019 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Bankruptcy code is finding its feet Three years to the week that it was ratified, India’s bankruptcy code is now making a significant difference to the speed at which bankruptcy cases are resolved and the amount that creditors are able... 17th May 2019 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Data concerns come to the fore again Recent revelations have once again cast a spotlight on the accuracy of Indian data, but unfortunately, we doubt that the formation of an independent regulator, that some have called for, would lead to... 10th May 2019 · 1 min read
India Economics Weekly Record GST revenues, weaker rupee The surge in GST revenues over recent months won’t be enough to solve the government’s fiscal woes in the near term. However, it does suggest that compliance with the new tax system is improving, and... 3rd May 2019 · 1 min read
