In death, Manmohan Singh has managed what he couldn’t in life – a fair appraisal in the media
When it came to assessing Dr Singh’s performance, most of us whose reporting careers tracked Dr Singh’s political career were guilty of judging a book by its cover
Will Ajay Bhalla’s appointment as Manipur governor bring peace to the troubled state?
While high hopes are reposed in Bhalla in view of his track record in tackling several crises as Home Secretary, peace will elude the state unless a political settlement between the warring ethnic groups is reached
External factors will have a major impact on India’s economy in 2025
Though 2025 will open up new opportunities, the Indian economy will face adverse headwinds blowing from diverse geopolitical tensions. Relations with the U.S. would play a key role in helping India deal with the changing scenario
Will 2025 be the year of the Trump Tantrum in the currency markets?
Going into 2025, the strength of the US dollar has been unsettling all other currencies. Tit-for-tat depreciations of currencies may well happen, destabilising economies
Chart of the Day: Renewable energy capacity additions accelerate in 2024
If the industry maintains the current pace of capacity additions, then India can comfortably exceed previous annual highs in renewable energy project installations.
Jobs conundrum in a red-hot economy
India’s economy bounced back sharply after the pandemic-induced contraction. However, the job market hasn’t seen an equivalent improvement, thereby emerging as one of the big political-economy issues of 2024. An economist sifts the data to distinguish between quantity and quality in the job market and suggests ways to improve things
Retrospective amendment, yet again – GST Council’s recommendation to overcome recent pro-taxpayer Supreme Court judgment may fall short
In the Safari Retreats case, the Supreme Court’s interpretation of GST law on provision of input credit was welcomed by industry. GST Council in its December meeting recommended a retrospective amendment to negate the apex court verdict. Given infrastructure investments in the pipeline, if the Council’s recommendation is accepted, there may be a spurt in litigation
Cold hard reality of geopolitics: Enhancing military power is non-negotiable
Military capabilities remain the sine qua non of international politics. Therefore, critical defence reforms in India will have to be pushed with greater vigour. Without institutional, doctrinal and procedural changes, New Delhi will not be able to make the most of this moment in global geopolitics
The Reading List: December 27, 2024
A selection of articles and social media gems from the world of economy, business and finance, curated by our research and opinion teams
The significance of Shyam Benegal in the making of India
Dr Manmohan Singh was a gentle soul who transformed India’s economy: Sunil Kant Munjal
'Thirty-four years ago, on the able shoulders of Dr Singh, an entire nation stood and got a chance to see its destiny—a destiny that we continue to craft today'
Manmohan Singh: The leader who ‘opened up’ the Indian economy
Much has been written about Singh’s role in India’s economic liberalisation. An economist views Singh through the prism of her profession and highlights that personality traits of leaders have an impact on a country’s economic trajectory. Manmohan Singh was indeed one of a kind
Four AI predictions for 2025
While the momentum behind the development of large models might fade, there will be other advances
Infrastructure, manufacturing sectors to drive growth in 2025
On the back of slowing domestic earnings growth and lower government capex over 2H24, we believe policy actions will be key to watch, going forward
Startup Street | Should failure rate of startups ring alarm bells?
The VC business is based on a “power law”, which means that the success of a fund hinges on the top few investee companies that provide outsized exits
Does the REER reflect RBI's overprotectiveness towards the rupee?
The RBI’s interventions have been criticized and have found support too
Chart of the Day: RBI’s forex position shows why a CRR cut was coming in December
The RBI’s forex operations are the biggest drag on liquidity
Slower growth awaits India in 2025 as private capex slackens
The challenges to growth remain the same: slacking private capex and tepid demand
India’s manufacturing journey is set to get better in 2025
2024 was a fruitful year for India’s entrepreneurial and industrial ecosystem. The next year can be better in the backdrop of favourable macroeconomic and geopolitical trends. The journey ahead will be underpinned by precision engineering, robotic, R&D-led manufacturing and defence
BJP’s master message was the defining feature of 2024’s political mobilisation
Percolation of BJP’s ideology allowed the party to overcome negative effects of economic hardship felt by a section of voters. It also set the template for the polity, with other political formations pushed into a reactive mode
India roars ahead of China to top Asian IPO rankings
Fast-growing Indian market behind only the US in money raised by company listings
The political churn: Clash of identities
To make sense of global political trends which emerged prominently in 2024, the traditional Left-Right framework of analysis needs to be abandoned. Globalisation has led to a churning where nationalism undergirded by perceptions of threats of dominant groups has become the focal point of Right Wing mobilization. That, in turn, will lead to new fault lines
India’s growing dependence on Chinese imports is a potential security issue
New Delhi is concentrating on the benefits of shared prosperity but there are security concerns with China
A transformative year lies ahead for crypto in 2025
A confluence of factors could drive up crypto adoption in 2025 and beyond. The outcome of US presidential elections, rising institutional support and regulatory frameworks are just a few key ones
The curious case of West Bengal in the national data sets
West Bengal is perhaps shifting from attracting big firms to facilitating growth of small businesses
