Latest Updates on El Nino

Finance ministry says domestic demand remains resilient, but an intensifying El Nino and weather-related risks warrant caution on food inflation and agricultural output

A new study suggests that El Ninos - the natural climatic chaos agent that pops up periodically and spikes global temperatures - are getting stronger because of human-caused climate change. El Ninos are more than 36% stronger than they were before the industrial age began in the mid 1800s, with a 16% jump in just the last 40 years showing that the increase is accelerating, according to a study in Thursday's journal Science. The findings come as a strong El Nino that formed a couple months ago is forecast to be the biggest on record in coming months. El Ninos, which are a temporary warming of parts of the equatorial Pacific, warp weather worldwide and increase extreme events, including heat waves, floods in some places and droughts in others. They can cost trillions in damage. "That's important because strong El Ninos have much stronger impacts on climate hazards and extremes worldwide. When we set out to answer the question of why this might be happening, we set our data up against

El Nino brings powerful consequences for the globe, drying out some regions, like Western and Southern Africa, Australia and India, while potentially raising rainfall in others, such as southern US

India's power demand is expected to rise 6.5-7.5 per cent this fiscal to 1,825-1,835 BU, driven by an expected increase in cooling demand due to higher temperatures and lower rainfall

A weak monsoon and El Nino could hurt rural incomes and repayments, prompting major NBFCs to tighten portfolio monitoring and underwriting in vulnerable segments

El Nino could intensify through October, threatening India's monsoon and farm sector, while a positive Indian Ocean Dipole may partly offset its impact

Weak monsoon and delayed kharif sowing may have pushed rural women's unemployment to a one-year high in June despite higher labour force participation

India's peak power demand surged last week to nearly 270.1 gigawatts (GW), ‌driven by higher cooling demand as an El Nino pattern contributed to weaker rainfall

This year's monsoon opened with India's fifth-driest June on record and rainfall almost 40% below normal levels, followed by a sudden deluge early this month

Keeping in mind the factors on crop prospects, it stands to reason that rate cuts are out, and an unchanged position can be expected.

The recent acceleration in rainfall has provided a sentiment lift, but from a fundamental standpoint, it has only partially mitigated D-Street's underlying anxieties.

AM Karthik of ICRA Ltd said that NBFCs slow down disbursements, tighten their credit norms and prioritise collections and loan quality over loan growth when macroeconomic headwinds intensify.

Tractor sales, the JM Financial study said, were most sensitive to El Nino conditions, recording weaker sales growth during the La Niña period, which is associated with excess rainfall.

Analysts said the impact of a weak monsoon would depend more on the distribution of rainfall across key agricultural regions rather than the overall national rainfall figure.

Weak monsoon rains linked to El Niño have lowered reservoir levels, curbing hydropower generation and increasing India's reliance on coal to meet rising electricity demand

A poor monsoon can trigger a chain reaction across the economy, from lower farm output and higher food prices to weaker demand and changes in RBI policy

Skipping the ideal and pushing doable urban reforms immediately is key to reviving India's sputtering city growth engines