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Manas Chakravarty

Group Consulting Editor

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No country for working women

BUSINESS

No country for working women

A data-driven analysis revealing why India's marginally improving female unemployment rate masks a deeper crisis of scarce, precarious, and often unpaid work for women

India’s Power Tightrope: Growth, vulnerabilities, and opportunity in IEA World Energy Outlook 2025

BUSINESS

India’s Power Tightrope: Growth, vulnerabilities, and opportunity in IEA World Energy Outlook 2025

The IEA’s World Energy Outlook 2025 sees India as the world’s biggest driver of energy demand growth — yet import dependence, mineral shortages and climate stress could threaten its momentum

October CPI hits rock-bottom 0.25%: GST cuts shine, but food deflation rings alarm

BUSINESS

October CPI hits rock-bottom 0.25%: GST cuts shine, but food deflation rings alarm

October’s CPI just hit 0.25%—the lowest since the 2011-12 series began. A triumph of policy? A statistical mirage? A rate cut in December? Or a warning bell for rural India?

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | What's Driving Indian Stocks Into Year-End

BUSINESS

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | What's Driving Indian Stocks Into Year-End

IMF sees India’s fiscal deficit stalling after FY26

BUSINESS

IMF sees India’s fiscal deficit stalling after FY26

According to the IMF’s Fiscal Monitor, India’s fiscal consolidation is set to lose momentum after FY26, signalling deep-rooted structural limits in its public finances

Bihar's Job Promises: A confession of crisis

POLITICS

Bihar's Job Promises: A confession of crisis

The extravagant job pledges dominating Bihar's elections reveal a deeper truth about the state's crippling underemployment and economic distress

Tepid tax revenue growth raises stakes for consumption-led recovery, post festive season

BUSINESS

Tepid tax revenue growth raises stakes for consumption-led recovery, post festive season

With only 2.8% tax revenue growth in H1, the government’s fiscal roadmap hinges on a strong consumption rebound fuelled by GST cuts and lower rates—any shortfall risks spending cuts and a tighter FY27 budget

Data Story: India’s Golden ATM

BUSINESS

Data Story: India’s Golden ATM

A massive Rs 1 lakh crore expansion in gold loans in the last six months is unlocking the vast, dormant wealth of India's unproductive family gold hoards

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | Kicking Multiple Cans Down the Road

BUSINESS

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | Kicking Multiple Cans Down the Road

A shaky US–China truce, a cautious Fed, and an underperforming India—markets may have dodged a bullet, but the pressure is far from over

Lopsided IIP Growth: Five sectors drive gains, half of manufacturing languishes

BUSINESS

Lopsided IIP Growth: Five sectors drive gains, half of manufacturing languishes

September's industrial production data reveals a troubling paradox: while consumer durables and automobiles surge on festive demand, the broader manufacturing base is shrinking, with staples contracting and robust growth concentrated in just five of 23 sectors

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | From PMI to ‘Political Science’

BUSINESS

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | From PMI to ‘Political Science’

While India's growth indicators remain strong, October's softer PMI and persistent trade uncertainties raise uncomfortable questions

Aatmanirbharta with Chinese characteristics: How China's five-year Plan counters America

BUSINESS

Aatmanirbharta with Chinese characteristics: How China's five-year Plan counters America

China's 15th Five-Year Plan is a blueprint for economic fortification, pivoting towards technological self-reliance and domestic consumption to counter US rivalry

Data Story: September 2025 core sector data signal caution, but policy tailwinds could stabilise outlook

BUSINESS

Data Story: September 2025 core sector data signal caution, but policy tailwinds could stabilise outlook

India's core industries contracted sharply in September, highlighting a significant slowdown, though newly implemented GST cuts and anticipated RBI rate moves are expected to stimulate a recovery

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | Samvat 2082: The Will to Rise

BUSINESS

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | Samvat 2082: The Will to Rise

After a turbulent Samvat 2081, the markets step into the new year not with fireworks but with quiet resolve and the will to rise

Decoding India's Trade Deficit -- Strong domestic demand, not tariffs, is the real story

BUSINESS

Decoding India's Trade Deficit -- Strong domestic demand, not tariffs, is the real story

Recent trade data reveals that while Trump's tariffs impacted specific US-bound exports, India's overall trade story is dominated by resilient export diversification and a domestic demand-driven import surge, particularly in gold

Data Story: Trump’s Tariffs and Indian Jobs: What the latest PLFS data reveal

BUSINESS

Data Story: Trump’s Tariffs and Indian Jobs: What the latest PLFS data reveal

The sharp 50% tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on Indian exports have raised alarms about job losses, but September’s unemployment data reveal that the impact, while real, remains concentrated and nuanced rather than a broad spike

IMF flags fragile foundations beneath market optimism

MARKETS

IMF flags fragile foundations beneath market optimism

The IMF’s latest reports reveal a global economy holding firm on the surface, but hiding deeper financial vulnerabilities that investors shouldn't ignore

The message from this year’s Economics Nobel: Ideas drive development

BUSINESS

The message from this year’s Economics Nobel: Ideas drive development

The pioneering work of Nobel laureates Mokyr, Aghion, and Howitt reveals that economic growth is fundamentally powered by the institutions that fuel innovation and the market processes of creative destruction

As tariffs, rare earths roil markets, will Trump settle for a deal?

BUSINESS

As tariffs, rare earths roil markets, will Trump settle for a deal?

As new tariffs and rare earth controls trigger market panic and supply chain fears, the central question becomes whether economic pressure will once again force a tactical pause in the US-China trade war

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | India Earnings Season: Why Q2 doesn't matter, and the rusty nail of US tariffs

BUSINESS

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | India Earnings Season: Why Q2 doesn't matter, and the rusty nail of US tariffs

The September quarter results may be largely irrelevant--sandwiched between export front-loading before Trump's tariff deadline and consumer spending deferred for the GST cuts. Much depends on how soon we can pull out the rusty nail of Trump's tariffs

World Bank wants South Asia to cut tariffs despite global protectionist wave

BUSINESS

World Bank wants South Asia to cut tariffs despite global protectionist wave

As the world builds tariff walls, the World Bank wants South Asia to tear them down. With 16 million people entering the job market annually but only 10 million finding work, the region faces a stark choice: embrace trade liberalisation that could unlock manufacturing growth or maintain protectionist barriers that may be trapping workers in low-productivity sectors

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | Festive fumes

BUSINESS

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | Festive fumes

Festive spending surges with GST cuts and supportive RBI policies, but growth continues to be below aspirations

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | When the Ground Shifts

BUSINESS

Moneycontrol Pro Weekender | When the Ground Shifts

In a week where the fault lines of markets, technology, and policy all seemed to move at once, the only certainty is that change is now a constant

GST cuts to fuel demand — But is consumption already at full throttle?

BUSINESS

GST cuts to fuel demand — But is consumption already at full throttle?

The latest GST rate reductions aim to boost consumption, but data show India is already operating near peak demand levels

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