IPA Staff
12646 stories by IPA Staff
Tariff Disturbances Stall Momentum In Engineering Exports
NEW DELHI: The US-induced upheaval in world trade through tariffs and counter tariffs has stalled the growth in India’s export of engineering products. The growth in these shipments, which remained in positive territory for nine months in a row bucking the stagnation in other sectors, fell 8.62% on year...
India Proposes To Remove 6 Per Cent Google Tax From April 1
NEW DELHI: India proposes to remove the 6% equalisation levy imposed on online advertisement services offered by companies such as Google and Meta — known widely as the Google tax — from April 1. The move is likely aimed at placating US President Donald Trump, who has threatened retaliatory...
Rupee Recovers Its 2025 Losses; Jumps 31 Paise To Close At 85.67 Against US Dollar
MUMBAI: Rising for the seventh straight session, the rupee appreciated 31 paise to close at 85.67 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, wiping off all its losses in 2025, supported by a positive trend in domestic equity markets and fresh foreign capital inflows. Besides, lower global crude price...
India, US To Focus On Increasing Market Access: MoS Finance
NEW DELHI: India and the US would focus on increasing market access, reducing tariff and non-tariff barriers, and enhancing supply chain integration, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said on Monday. In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Chaudhary said India continues to engage with the US...
Export duty removal on onion to aid farmers’
NEW DELHI: The government’s decision to withdraw 20 per cent customs duty on onion exports effective April 1 will boost farmers’ income, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan saidon Monday. “There will be no duty on onion export so that onion grown by our farmers with hard work reaches the...
CRA To Scrutinise Claims By Investment Service Providers
NEW DELHI: Markets regulator Sebi has said that risk-return metrics of services offered by investment advisers, research analysts and algo trading providers will be scrutinised by a credit rating agency, a move aimed at checking claims of high returns. Under the new norms, the credit rating agency (CRA) will...
India’s Tech Startups Clinch $2.5 Billion Funding In Q1 2025
NEW DELHI: India’s tech startups raised $2.5 billion in the first quarter of 2025, marking a 13.64 per cent increase over the previous quarter and an 8.7 per cent rise from the year-ago period, a feat that secured its spot as the third most-funded country globally after the US...
Will Bangladesh Army Step In Again To Restore Stability In Bangladesh?
By Nitya Chakraborty Is the Bangladesh Army going to take over control of their politically turbulent country, either from front or behind, to precipitate the holding of early elections? This question is being raised by the seasoned political observers in Dhaka, as the whole of last week was dominated...
US Attacks On Houthi Rebels Send A Red Alert On Red Sea
By Nantoo Banerjee Another maverick action by United States President Donald Trump, launching large-scale military strikes against Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi pirates, who have made cargo movement through the Red Sea a high-risk exercise since the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza broke out over a year ago. At a stake is...
Two-Month Campaign Against Labour Codes Begins, Strike Action On May 20
By Dr. Gyan Pathak Workers’ two-month campaign against the four controversial labour codes has just begun afresh, after the adoption of a declaration in this regard in the National Convention of Workers organised by the joint platform of the 10 Central Trade Unions and Independent Sectoral Federations and Associations....
Astronaut Sunita Williams’s Return To Earth Is A Great Win For Space-Science
By Kalyani Shankar NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, of Indian origin, is in the news these days. Her team has returned safely to Earth after spending nine months in space. They intended to be in space for eight days, but technical problems extended their mission. The spacecraft returned without them...
Shinde Supporters Have Done More Harm To Him By Vandalising Kamra’s Studio
By Sushil Kutty The statement ‘Comedian Kunal Kamra keeps me in splits’ is not comedy. Neither is ‘Kunal lives in a room which is his surname!’ And if a child drops the line “Papa bought me a Kunal Kamra to take pictures”, it still isn’t a joke. What’s called...
RSS Pratinidhi Sabha Left BJP Presidentship Choice To Modi-Bhagwat Meet On March 30
By Arun Srivastava Will the RSS succeed in retaining its grip on the BJP? The three day Pratinidhi Sabha of the RSS which concluded in Bengaluru on Sunday threw this question in a very strong way. The delegates who had assembled in Bengaluru left disillusioned as the Sabha could...
Arrest Of Istanbul Mayor Signals Turkiye’s Slide Towards Autocracy
By Asad Mirza On Wednesday, last week, the arrest of Istanbul’s mayor – the largest Turkish city- could be described as a watershed moment in the country’s continued shift away from democracy. Opponents of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan fear it is a move to sideline the sole challenger capable...
US Tariffs Looming, India Looks At Easing Non-Trade Barriers, Relaxing Chinese FDI
MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: With some dialling down of tensions between India and China along the border, policy makers are more open to upgrading bilateral economic relationships now. It is being viewed as an opportune time, particularly when US President Donald Trump is pushing India to the corner on reducing tariffs...
GST On Insurance May Be Slashed To 5 Per Cent
NEW DELHI: The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council may settle for a reduction in the tax rates on health & life insurance, instead of a full waiver. The GST, which now applies at 18% on gross premiums, is likely to be reduced to 5%, while retaining the facility...
MSME Loan Threshold Under Digital Footprint Model Hiked To Rs 10 Crore
NEW DELHI: The government has urged public sector banks (PSBs) to extend loans up to Rs 10 crore through the newly launched digital footprint-based credit assessment model from Rs 25 lakh to Rs 5 crore now, to accelerate seamless credit flow to the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs)....
State-Run Banks Bearing Good Deal Of Credit Card Bad Debt
MUMBAI: State-run banks are grappling with elevated levels of bad loans in their credit card portfolios, particularly from cards issued between September 2021 and October 2023, when they aggressively expanded customer base amid intense competition from fintech players. Public sector banks (PSBs) had a credit card bad loan ratio...
