With Delhi hotel rates surging ahead of the India AI Impact Summit, a survey shows most Indian consumers want a ceiling on room tariffs and stronger government action against excessive pricing

Taj Palace, Delhi

Business Standard

IndiGo has increased its crew buffer from zero in December to around 3 per cent in February and has also raised its pilot-to-aircraft ratio

indigo airlines, indigo

Around 35,000 delegates from across the world are likely to attend India AI Impact Summit on February 19-20

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PwC's latest survey finds 36% of Indian family businesses lack a clear succession plan, even as most remain confident about growth and expansion despite governance gaps

pwc family business survey, indian family businesses, succession planning india, family enterprise governance, women on boards india, next generation leadership, family business growth india, pwc india report

Revised FAR/FSI limits, height relaxations lead to increased investor interest

Homestay in a serviced apartment offers privacy, luxury and the freedom from hotel rules of behavior. (Stock photo)

Homestay, hotel

The Competition Commission is probing the alleged cartelisation by steel manufacturers and the investigation report has been shared with the parties concerned to provide their objections and suggestions in accordance with the competition law, the government said on Monday.
The corporate affairs ministry also informed the Lok Sabha that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) registered 54 cases related to anti-competitive practices/and received 149 merger (M&A) filings. in 2025.
In a written reply, Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said CCI has registered a case pertaining to the alleged cartelisation by steel manufacturers pursuant to the directions of the Madras High Court.
After investigation, CCI's Director General (DG) submitted the investigation report, which has been shared with the parties with directions to file their objections/suggestions in accordance with the provisions of the Competition Act, 2002.
"The matter is presently under inquiry before the ...

Nirmala Sitharaman, Nirmala

"The matter is presently under inquiry before the Commission as per the provisions of the Act," she said

Press Trust of India

Sebi on Monday proposed a sharp reduction in the minimum investment required from individual investors in social impact funds to Rs 1,000 from the existing Rs 2 lakh, in a move aimed at widening retail participation and easing fundraising for not-for-profit organisations (NPOs) on the Social Stock Exchange (SSE).
In its consultation paper, Sebi also proposed extending the registration period for NPOs on the SSE without fundraising and lowering the minimum subscription requirement for issuing Zero Coupon Zero Principal Instruments (ZCZP).
The regulator said the measures are intended to "further strengthen the SSE framework, facilitate ease of fund raising and encourage greater participation by NPOs".
Under the current Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) Regulations, individual investors are required to invest a minimum of Rs 2 lakh in a social impact fund that invests exclusively in securities of NPOs listed or registered on the SSE.
Sebi has now proposed lowering this threshold to Rs

Securities and Exchange Board of India, Sebi

The regulator said the measures are intended to "further strengthen the SSE framework, facilitate ease of fund raising and encourage greater participation by NPOs"

Passenger vehicle retail sales rose to 5.13 lakh units in January, led by a 14.4 per cent growth in rural markets, while overall automobile retail sales grew 17.6 per cent, Fada said

Automakers, carmakers, auto industry

Overall, automobile retail sales, including passenger vehicles, too increased by 17.6 per cent to 2.72 million units

Automobile retail sales rose nearly 18 per cent year-on-year to over 27 lakh units in January, led by continued post-GST momentum, healthy rural cash flows on the back of harvest and weddings, and sustained demand visibility across freight, dealer's body FADA said on Tuesday.
Overall retail sales last month grew to 27,22,558 units, up 17.61 per cent, as against 23,14,940 units in January 2025.
Passenger vehicle retails stood at 5,13,475 units last month, a growth of 7 per cent, as against 4,78,915 units in the year-ago period.
"The growth story is increasingly being written in non-metro India -- Rural PV grew by 14.43 per cent YoY, significantly ahead of Urban at 2.75 per cent YoY.
"This reinforces the structural expansion of PV demand beyond the top cities, aided by a strong SUV/compact-SUV preference, revival of entry-level cars, product availability and continued schemes," FADA President C S Vigneshwar said in a statement.
Two-wheeler retail sales grew 21 per cent year-on-year 

carmakers, auto industry

On the business outlook for the next three months, Fada stated that dealer confidence remains decisively constructive, with 79.70 per cent of respondents expecting growth

Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Jaguar Land Rover have commenced operations at their ₹9,000 crore Panapakkam plant in Tamil Nadu, rolling out the Range Rover Evoque as the first vehicle

The ₹9,000 crore unit will begin assembling the Range Rover Evoque on February 9. CM Stalin may launch the first vehicle from the unit (Photo: Company)

Zero-duty imports of Harley-Davidson motorcycles above 800 cc may sharpen competition at the premium end but are unlikely to disrupt domestic players such as Hero MotoCorp, analysts said

X440

The tariff removal will lower prices of Harley's large-displacement imported motorcycles, which retail between ₹14.5 lakh and ₹45.8 lakh

Compared with last year's Budget, the Union Budget 2026-27 builds on the credit framework while moving decisively towards equity funding, market-linked liquidity, and structured compliance support

MSMEs

TNC Rajagopalan answers SME queries related to GST, export and import matters

export

Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy unveiled third round of speciality steel PLI scheme with relaxed thresholds, updated pricing benchmarks, and wider MSME participation to boost steel manufacturing

H D Kumaraswamy (Photo: X/@hd_kumaraswamy)

Base year revised, thresholds relaxed to reflect current market trends

Trade expert cites FTP Para 1.08 and CBIC circulars requiring that export consignments not be detained beyond three days, and clarifies documentation norms under the Advance Authorisation scheme

trade

Banks see strong revival in corporate lending as higher bond yields and improved working capital utilisation push companies back to bank loans in Q3FY26

SBI Chief C S Setty said economic activity picked up in Q3 after GST rationalisation, which led to better utilisation of working capital loans

Sidbi, Nabfid and Hudco will raise Rs 13,500 crore through bond issuances this week, even as higher yields and geopolitical risks continue to weigh on corporate debt fundraising

Bond market, Bond Yield

Led by the country's biggest lender State Bank of India (SBI), public sector banks logged a record cumulative profit of Rs 52,603 crore in the third quarter of the current fiscal, reflecting an 18 per cent year-on-year growth.
All 12 public sector banks (PSBs) together made a profit of Rs 44,473 crore in the December quarter of FY25. Thus, the increase in profit in absolute terms was Rs 8,130 crore as compared to the same quarter of the previous financial year.
Market leader SBI alone contributed 40 per cent to the total earnings of Rs 52,603 crore, as per the published numbers on stock exchanges.
SBI posted the highest quarterly net profit of Rs 21,028 crore in Q3 FY26, 24 per cent higher than the same period of the previous fiscal.
In percentage terms, Chennai-based Indian Overseas Bank reported the highest net profit growth of 56 per cent to Rs 1,365 crore, followed by Central Bank of India with a 32 per cent rise to Rs 1,263 crore.
During the quarter, all 12 public sector bank

State Bank of India, SBI history, SBI 70 years, SBI journey, Imperial Bank of India, SBI deposits 2025, SBI branches India, largest Indian bank, SBI data report, SBI mortgage lender

Market leader SBI alone contributed 40 per cent to the total earnings of ₹52,603 crore, as per the published numbers on stock exchanges

Thrissur-based ESAF Small Finance Bank will wait at least two years to seek a universal banking licence as it pivots to secured lending to improve asset quality and profitability

esaf sfb md paul thomas said that the bank would be maintaining the secured book at around 60-65%

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