Page 22 - Editorial Comment

Lack of regulatory clarity could drive away private ESG finance for India

Political shift is affecting ESG investing

Bureaucratic interventions in the form of QCOs hurt Indian manufacturing

Steel is a case in point. The industry is naturally concerned about the impact of overcapacity in China, which might render Indian-made steel uncompetitive

Chessboard promises: Gukesh's win reflects India's growing prowess

Gukesh, for instance, has a five-year sponsorship deal, and his campaign for the world title was backed by a team of six top players who helped with analysis and preparation

Letter and spirit: Constitution will help fulfil citizens' aspirations

The biggest example of its success is the continued peaceful transition of power, reflecting the people's will

Demand-supply mismatch: Affordable housing shortage must be addressed

A Knight Frank study shows that India will face an affordable housing shortage of 31.2 million units by 2030. There is already an existing shortage of 10.1 million units

Marketing reforms: India's agri-marketing system needs an upgrade

Agricultural reforms should, therefore, not remain limited to factor-market reforms, but should also include efforts to liberalise constraints to marketing

Lingering debt danger: External debt levels dangerously high globally

The IDR focuses specifically on external debt and classifies countries by income level

What extending T+0 settlement to 500 stocks may mean for market liquidity

According to the Sebi circular, the T+0 cycle will be available on an optional basis for the top 500 companies by market capitalisation from January 31, 2025

Turning the page: Focus on external front new RBI governor's first test

Mr Das' term over the past six years was fairly challenging for both the Indian economy and the RBI, largely because of the pandemic

Reckoning in Syria: Bashar al-Assad's ouster adds to West Asian tumult

al-Assad's overthrow was the result of the distractions of his chief backers, the Iran-sponsored Hezbollah and Russian President Vladimir Putin

SME platform reforms: Sebi focuses on safeguarding retail investors

The regulator had in May 2010 prescribed a revised framework for setting up a stock exchange or a trading platform (by the existing stock exchanges) with terminals across the country for SMEs

A level playing field: Supreme Court removes asymmetry in PPP contracts

Ensuring a level playing in arbitration is critical, given the rapidly expanding involvement of the private sector in the government's infrastructure programme

Fed's future path: Donald Trump's election victory increases uncertainty

Higher tariffs and tax cuts will benefit American companies but will increase inflation and the Budget deficit. This explains the different positions of the debt and equity markets

Funding higher education: Easy financial assistance is not enough

The market for education loans in India has evolved significantly over the years, with the outstanding portfolio under education loans growing by 17 per cent to Rs 96,847 crore in 2022-23

Policy approach: How RBI is taking a selective and cautious stance

In the context of US elections and possible uncertainty, Mr Das said the Indian economy and the financial sector were well placed to deal with any spillover impact from global economy

Policy process: Currency-market intervention should be more selective

On monetary policy, Mr Das categorically noted that a rate cut would be premature and could be "very, very risky"

Differential exposure: How climate change hits the poor the hardest

Among Indian firms, the paper finds smaller non-agricultural firms are more exposed to flooding and heat than larger firms

Safety first: Ensuring women's security is as critical as stringent laws

The bigger danger implicit in the extremist approach in the Aparajita Bill, as with similar Bills passed by other states, is a fundamental misunderstanding of the nature of the crime of sexual assault

Inflation debate must consider downsides of alternative frameworks

To be fair, the RBI or the MPC on its own cannot change the target or stop taking into account one part of the consumer basket without appropriate amendment to the RBI Act

Why RBI cannot ignore food price pressures in overall inflation management

High food inflation can lead to the unanchoring of inflation expectations, which could significantly complicate overall inflation management