Business Standard

Withdrawing to the West: US defence strategy raises global concern

America First reshapes US defence priorities, urging allies to secure themselves and raising fresh doubts over Taiwan and Asia's stability as Washington turns inward

In a fragile world: Economic Survey 2026 will enable informed debates

Economic Survey 2025-26 flags stronger growth but warns that global uncertainty, fiscal discipline, and lower import protection are key to sustaining momentum

Creating employment: India-EU FTA can increase labour-intensive exports

The India-EU FTA offers major export and job gains for labour-intensive MSME sectors, but success will hinge on meeting EU standards and easing logistics bottlenecks

Market signals: Global factors will continue to drive stock markets

Indian investors are in a difficult spot, given the uncertainty. In January to date, the benchmark Nifty saw a small correction of around 3.3 per cent after gaining 9.8 per cent in 2025

Rewiring power reforms: Discom profitability is an encouraging start

India's discoms return to profitability after a decade of losses, boosted by fuel cost pass-through, smart metering, and sector reform incentives

A big deal: The India-EU partnership will open up new opportunities

India and EU seal historic free trade deal, opening vast markets and cooperation avenues while urging India to boost competitiveness and reforms

Strategic alliance: Pax Silica can reshape global tech supply chain

The bloc brings together complementary strengths. The US and Japan can provide technological leverage while South Korea dominates chip manufacturing

Demographic shift: State finances reflect the rapid transition ahead

Nationally, the working-age population is expected to peak around 2031, but several states have already crossed that point

Digital intervention: Fiscal efficiency can work together with soil revival

Linking urea sales to digital farmer IDs could curb leakages and fiscal waste-but only a phased, inclusive rollout can protect farmers and revive soil health

March of a Republic: India must find its way in an uncertain environment

As global order frays and the US turns inward, India's Republic Day optics underline a strategic pivot towards Europe and faster reforms at home

India's power reforms: New policy aims to address persistent fault lines

The policy rightly recognises that tariff dysfunction is at the heart of the sector's problems

A deal on ice: US President Trump dials back Greenland rhetoric in Davos

Trump's Greenland gambit may have paused in Davos, but it signals a deeper erosion of the rules-based order as great powers test how far coercion can go

India's export growth will come from states that are truly prepared

Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu together account for roughly 56% of India's exports, with Gujarat alone contributing close to 30%

AI-led growth looks strong, but concentration risks are hard to ignore

The IMF has reaffirmed India's position as the fastest-growing major economy, with its 2025-26 forecast revised to 7.3 per cent

Shifting global dynamics: Europe seeks new partners, India must act

Speaking at the WEF on Tuesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen laid out a European response that focused on building 'a new form of independence' from the US

Suboptimal response: DGCA must ensure Indigo-type chaos is not repeated

According to the DGCA, overoptimising operations, inadequate regulatory preparedness, and deficiencies in system-software support were among the primary reasons for the disruption

Signs of recovery: IT sector's results promising, guidance lifts outlook

Infosys and HCL Tech have both materially raised guidance. TCS has said that it expects FY26 international revenues to exceed the level of FY25

Disinvestment revival will be useful in sustaining capital expenditure

It is encouraging that the government's dependence on disinvestment receipts in managing its finances has reduced, but the instrument should not be discarded

Trump's return has left allies anxious and institutions under siege

The President himself has been far more radical, resentful of the cases levelled against him in his time out of office and very willing to test and even break the bounds of presidential powers

Tiger Global tax ruling risks shaking foreign investor confidence

The India-Mauritius DTAA has been under scrutiny since it was signed in 1982. It was always seen as a route to avoid tax