But even with the price hikes, HUL just posted its strongest volume growth in 15 quarters at 6%. Net profit jumped 21.3% to ₹2,994 crore, beating analyst estimates comfortably. So, consumers are still buying. The question is how long that holds.

When everyday essentials like detergent and shampoo get pricier, do people trade down or simply buy less? HUL’s CFO Niranjan Gupta is betting on low elasticity—these are daily necessities, after all.

Home Care takes the biggest hit from input costs, followed by personal care and beauty. The company is also quietly adjusting fill levels, meaning your pack might look the same but contain slightly less. Worth checking the fine print. Read the full report by Neethi Lisa Rojan.

MARKET WATCH

As of 6:50 pm, 30 April 2026.

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Musk takes OpenAI to court

What started as a Twitter spat has landed in federal court, and the stakes are high. Elon Musk, OpenAI Inc.’s co-founder-turned-rival, is suing another co-founder and CEO Sam Altman for $150 billion, calling the company a “stolen charity” that abandoned its non-profit roots for commercial glory.

Is he wrong, though? OpenAI went from an open research lab to an $850-billion juggernaut backed by Microsoft Corp., Amazon.com Inc., and SoftBank. That’s quite a journey from ‘AI for humanity’. The verdict could fundamentally redraw how the world’s most powerful AI companies are built, funded, and governed. Read on.

The surprising price of Ozempic nobody talks about

Weight-loss injections are flying off shelves across India, but nobody warned patients about what happens to their face.

Doctors are seeing a surge of new cosmetic clinic visitors, not for vanity, but because rapid fat loss is leaving faces hollow, sagging, and older-looking. 3-4 in 10 GLP-1 users are showing signs of “Ozempic face”.

With semaglutide now off-patent and 50-90% cheaper versions flooding the market, this is only getting started. The real worry is an unlicensed beauty industry already rushing in to “fix” what the injections left behind. Read more.

Is India’s stock market in a bubble?

India’s Buffett Indicator, market cap as a percentage of gross domestic product, just hit 137.7%—the highest since the 2007 bull-run peak. Alarm bells? Maybe. But experts say the context is very different this time.

Unlike 2007’s leverage-fuelled frenzy, today’s balance sheets are cleaner, retail participation is deeper, and more of India’s economy is formally listed. That changes the math considerably. Still, HSBC and JPMorgan have quietly downgraded Indian equities, citing stretched valuations and earnings pressure. Read on.

BSNL wants to earn 50% more per user

BSNL has set itself a target to grow average revenue per user from ₹101 to ₹150 this fiscal. That’s a near-50% jump for a company whose core business revenue barely grew 3% last year.

The math is tricky. Either users spend significantly more, or active subscriber base shrinks, and analysts suspect it’s more of the latter. Meanwhile, Jio sits at ₹214 and Airtel at ₹259. Now, without meaningful tariff hikes or a genuine network leap, this target looks like a stretch. Read more.

The barefoot ‘mango’ scientist of India

Kongara Ramesh never finished school. Yet, this 72-year-old from Andhra Pradesh has created mango varieties that defy science, co-authored international research papers, and treated over 165,000 patients, all for free. His crowning achievement? Amrutham. A mango you can freeze skin-on, peel like a banana, and eat like an ice lolly.

In a country that loses enormous export potential due to mangoes’ short shelf life, that’s quietly revolutionary. Earlier this year, he lost his 40-acre farm overnight. His response was, “I will start afresh.” Read on.

AROUND THE WORLD

• Powell won’t leave. The Fed won’t cut. Warsh will have to deal with both.

• US pitches new coalition to get ships moving via Strait of Hormuz

• Big tech strikes gold with AI, but at a steep cost

• Retirees, here’s what a Warsh Fed could mean for you

• A glimpse into cybersecurity’s AI-driven future

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Mango takes over summer menus

The Mango Medley Brunch puts the spotlight on mango, moving between savoury and sweet with ease—think mango chilli prawns with a mild kick, grilled chicken finished with a mango glaze, and mango basil noodles that lean fresh and herbaceous while still feeling familiar.

The brunches revolve around a distinct theme, drawing on seasonal produce and varied cuisines that are ideal for a laid-back afternoon with family and friends. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

EU’s historic expansion

On this day in 2004, the European Union welcomed 10 new member states in its largest-ever single expansion, bringing Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia into the fold.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

The push comes as China continues to dominate mining and processing, exposing countries like India to price swings and geopolitical risks. A recent exports curb on rare earths highlighted just how fragile these supply chains can be.

The reserve would combine domestic sourcing with overseas procurement, acting as a buffer against volatility. Demand is only set to rise, especially with electric vehicles and energy storage scaling up. Read more.

MARKET WATCH

As of 8:15 pm, 29 April 2026.

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IRDAI eyes distribution overhaul to curb mis-selling

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India is preparing a major clean-up of how policies are sold, amid rising complaints of mis-selling and high costs. The focus is shifting from liberalisation to fixing structural gaps in pricing, distribution and customer outcomes, IRDAI Chairman Ajay Seth told Mint in an interview.

A discussion paper on reforms is expected soon, alongside coordination with the Reserve Bank of India to tighten oversight of bancassurance. The goal is to make insurance more transparent, affordable and widely accessible, as the sector grapples with low penetration despite strong growth. Read more.

Mythos: An AI breakthrough or cyber threat?

Anthropic PBC’s Mythos marks a leap in AI, with the ability to detect and even exploit cybersecurity flaws faster than humans.

Tested by global technology and financial firms, the AI model signals a shift from AI as an assistant to an autonomous actor in cybersecurity.

For governments and banks, the challenge is clear: to harness its defensive potential while preventing large-scale misuse that could threaten critical infrastructure and financial systems. Read more.

Banks cushion Q4 earnings amid margin pressure

The first batch of fourth-quarter earnings shows India Inc. is holding up on profits, even as cracks emerge beneath the surface.

A Mint analysis of 220 companies shows net profit rising 10% year-on-year, largely driven by banks, even as non-financial sectors like Consumer and IT face margin pressure. Revenue growth has slowed sharply, and a surge in crude oil prices has squeezed profitability. The demand is there, but not converting into earnings.

Analysts warn the real impact will show from the June quarter, as higher-cost inventory kicks in and geopolitical risks continue to weigh on sentiment. Read more.

China holds steady as India slips in EM rankings

China retained the top spot on Mint’s Emerging Markets Tracker for March 2026, largely weathering the West Asia shock, while India slipped to sixth.

A surge in crude prices, currency weakness and foreign outflows hit India’s ranking, even as domestic demand stayed resilient. China stood out with a stronger currency and market stability.

India’s heavy reliance on oil imports and gulf trade routes amplified the war impact, exposing vulnerabilities that could persist if the geopolitical risks continue to pile on. Read more.

India’s highway strategy gets a city focus

India is reworking its highway strategy to focus on easing urban congestion, with the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways prioritising ring roads, bypasses and elevated corridors around 50 large urban centres.

The move marks a shift from intercity highways to intracity roads. By diverting long-haul traffic away from city centres, the plan aims to cut logistics costs and improve mobility.

With congestion dragging average highway speeds to about 50 kmph, the new approach could unlock efficiency, although experts say success will depend on better urban planning alongside infrastructure. Read more.

AROUND THE WORLD

• War is stretching Europe’s finances thin. Why a debt crisis isn’t likely.

• Married adults are less likely to get cancer than singles, study suggests

• USA’s biggest World Cup home game is still not sold out

• AI tools are being prepared for the physical world

• Why AI startup offices in NYC are flashy but mostly empty

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Summer pet grooming tips explained

The pet grooming industry has grown rapidly, and in many ways, that is a good thing. Cleaner coats, better parasite control, and easier maintenance for pets in busy households. But grooming has quietly shifted from being a basic aspect of care to something more aesthetic, more frequent and at times more aggressive than necessary. The problem is not grooming itself. It is how we are beginning to think about it. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

The Reich falls

On 30 April 1945, inside Berlin’s Führerbunker, Adolf Hitler and Eva Braun took their own lives less than 40 hours after marrying, as Soviet forces closed in on the city. That same day, the Red Army raised the Victory Banner over the Reichstag—a powerful symbol of Nazi Germany’s imminent defeat.

The two events—one hidden underground, the other unfolding in plain sight—marked the collapse of the Third Reich and the approaching end of World War II in Europe.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

Net profit of India’s largest carmaker by sales rose 1% over the previous year to ₹14,679 crore in the fiscal ended 31 March, on revenue that rose 20% year-on-year to ₹1.83 trillion. Its market share fell below 40% for the first time since at least 2014, even as production and exports rose to an all-time high.

Chairman R.C. Bhargava has made it abundantly clear that the company is not overly concerned about losing market share. His focus is on running plants at full capacity and maintaining profitability. With ~200,000 pending orders even after record sales of more than 2.4 million units, Maruti Suzuki continues to be supply constrained.

To sustain growth, the company is planning additional capacity of 500,000 units in FY27. Exports are emerging as a strong driver, while local demand remains steady.

Bhargava struck an optimistic note on small cars, saying the government is increasingly mindful of affordability concerns. With supportive policies likely, the segment could see a gradual comeback, helping Maruti Suzuki reinforce its core strength in entry-level vehicles. Read more.

MARKET WATCH

As of 9:00 pm, 28 April 2026.

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UAE’s OPEC exit could ease India’s oil bill

The United Arab Emirates’s decision to exit OPEC can work in India’s favour, for the move is likely to soften crude oil prices over time.

According to experts, UAE’s exit is likely to weaken OPEC’s grip on crude oil pricing and allow the UAE to ramp up production independently. A diversified basket can reduce India’s import bill, and thereby risks to inflation. Still, near-term volatility persists as the Strait of Hormuz remains choked without an end to the Iran war in sight. Read more.

Paytm’s life without a bank licence

The cancellation of Paytm Payments Bank’s licence marks the end of a core piece of Paytm’s original ecosystem, but it may also clear the way for its next phase of growth.

For years, the payments bank structure limited One97 Communications Ltd. from expanding freely into lending—a key profit driver in fintech. With that constraint gone, Paytm has more flexibility to deepen its credit business, either by pursuing an NBFC licence or partnering with banks. Read more.

India’s gender budget grows, but gaps remain

India’s gender budget has swelled to ₹5 trillion, about 9% of total spending, signalling a strong push for women’s inclusion. Millions have benefited from schemes like Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana and self-help groups, but the transition to formal entrepreneurship remains limited.

Women dominate small-ticket loans, yet their presence drops sharply in higher-value credit tiers, suggesting most funds support subsistence rather than scale. Meanwhile, the share of women-led registered businesses has inched up only marginally.

Add patchy data and poor tracking, and a pattern emerges. The system is good at distributing funds, but far less effective at helping women build sustainable, formal enterprises. Read more.

AI training moves to the shopfloor

AI skilling at India Inc. has transitioned from the office to shopfloor, with companies like Tata Steel Ltd. and Tata Motors Ltd. training factory workers on Python and related software.

The idea is to improve safety, reduce errors and boost efficiency. Use cases range from predictive maintenance to detecting safety violations and quality issues in real time.

While AI has not replaced blue-collar jobs yet, its boost to productivity isn’t lost on white-collar decision makers. The bigger challenge now is training workers, and training them fast. Read more.

The Health Factory’s ‘loaf’ story

The Health Factory is quietly reshaping India’s commoditised bread market by turning a low-margin staple into a premium, high-repeat product. How? By playing the high-protein, preservative-free card.

And that bet is paying off. The Mumbai-based startup has scaled rapidly, tripling revenue to $14 million in FY25.

Still, bread remains a tough business with short shelf life and high wastage. The bigger play lies in expanding into adjacent categories like biscuits and cakes, and building a broader health-focused food brand. Read more.

AROUND THE WORLD

• OpenAI misses its own financial goals in high-stakes sprint toward IPO

• Britain rethinks its “special relationship” with America

• AI is confronting a supply-chain crunch

• The Best Place for a Data Center? Croatia

• Can social-media fame power an IPO? Bill Ackman is about to find out

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

How creative play supercharges your child’s brain

Research from the World Health Organization emphasises that sedentary screen time in early childhood should be replaced with active, creative play to support mental well-being. In clinical practice, this shift can also help reduce anxiety. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

The city of “Good Winds”

This coastal city traces its name to a stroke of maritime luck.

Early Portuguese sailors, grateful for favourable winds that helped them reach its shores, gave thanks to Santa Maria de los Buenos Aires—“Holy Mary of the Good Winds”. Earlier, Catalan missionaries had settled on a nearby hill they favoured for its fresher air, away from the swampy stench of the old settlement. Put it together, and you get Buenos Aires—a name born from both geography and gratitude.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

With $20 billion in investments and duty-free access for all Indian exports from Day 1, the India-NZ FTA opens up meaningful opportunities, especially for MSMEs involved in textiles, leather and engineering goods.

There’s also a strong people angle. Easier mobility for professionals, new visa pathways, and more flexibility for students make this more than just a goods-and-services pact—it’s about deeper economic and talent integration.

For New Zealand, the logic is straightforward: diversify exports and gain a stronger foothold in one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. For India, it’s about expanding its global presence while still protecting sensitive sectors like dairy and agriculture.

Of course, signing a deal is the easy part. The real question is execution. Will Indian exporters be able to scale up quickly and tap this opportunity? Can smaller businesses navigate a new market effectively?

The intent is clear—this is about long-term growth and global positioning. But as with most trade deals, its success will depend on how it plays out on the ground. Read more.

MARKET WATCH

As of 9:55 pm, 27 April 2026.

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Sun Pharma’s $11.75-billion pivot

Sun Pharma’s $11.75-billion acquisition of Organon may look like a bold push into the United States, but the real story lies elsewhere. The deal gives India’s largest drugmaker access to new markets like China, South Korea and Spain, signalling a pivot beyond the increasingly crowded generics space.

For years, Indian pharma thrived on US patent expiries. That playbook is fading amid pricing pressure and fewer easy opportunities. Organon brings branded generics, women’s health and biosimilars—segments with better margins and stability.

In effect, Sun Pharma isn’t just buying scale, but also repositioning for the next phase of growth, where diversification and specialty drugs matter more than traditional generics. Read more.

Renewables > Coal, for the first time

Renewables have overtaken coal use for global power generation for the first time in more than a century, and India and China are at the heart of this shift. But India’s transition is uneven. Coal is used to generate 70% of its electricity, with solar contributing less than 10%.

As energy prices spike amid the Iran war, the push toward renewables and electrification could accelerate. The direction is clear, the pace of change is the real question. Read more.

Iran war impact on Indian economy

The energy shock emanating from the Iran war has started showing in India’s households. With crude oil prices near $100 and supply routes under strain, airlines to ceramics and fertilisers are under pressure. The longer this war lasts, the more it could push up inflation and slow growth. Read more.

ISRO unit hikes satellite bandwidth prices

NewSpace India Ltd., the commercial subsidiary of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has raised satellite bandwidth prices by 20% from 1 April, for the first revision in a decade.

The move reflects shifting demand —direct-to-home usage is weakening, and demand from aviation, maritime and defence sectors is strengthening. The hike will affect broadcasters, DTH operators and enterprise users, although some players with long-term contracts are likely to see limited impact.

To be sure, the increase was long overdue, given rising costs and unchanged pricing for years. As India’s dominant domestic satellite provider, NSIL’s move signals a broader reset in how scarce orbital capacity is priced. Read more.

SWIFT ❌ Swift ✅

Indian exporters are increasingly choosing fintechs over banks for faster settlements, often within a day. The appeal is simple: quicker payments, clearer pricing, and fewer surprises on forex margins.

The shift follows regulatory support. The Reserve Bank of India has enabled cross-border payments aggregators and is pushing banks to improve speed and transparency. Read more.

AROUND THE WORLD

• SpaceX just showed off its IPO secret weapon

• Fed’s Powell confronts his final big decision: Stay or Go

• Big brands boost creator spending, but smaller firms dominate deals

• Pete Hegseth wages war on Anthropic

• Will Kevin Warsh Trumpify the Federal Reserve?

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

A royal banquet to remember from 1897

A century-old dinner menu, dated 31 January 1897, from Vadodara’s Laxmi Vilas Palace, caused a stir when Gurugram-based food historian Neha Vermani shared it online in February.

The menu was for a dinner hosted by Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III of Baroda for Maharaja Madhavrao Scindia of Gwalior. And yet, what they ate that evening reads like something from a European dining room. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

Moonmen and the Mineral

Discovered in lunar samples brought back during the Apollo 11 Moon Landing, this titanium-rich mineral carries a name that’s actually a clever mash-up.

It combines parts of the surnames of the mission’s three astronauts—Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins—forming a unique tribute to the team behind humanity’s first Moon landing. The result? Armalcolite, one of the rare minerals named after living individuals at the time.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

The irony is that representation actually improves with age. Women account for over 35% of DINs in the 31-45 bracket, and 36% in the 46-60 group. So, it’s not that Indian boardrooms have given up on gender diversity, it’s just that the pipeline is leaking right at the entry point, where it matters the most.

And the pipeline problem has consequences. Women make up just 20.8% of board members across BSE and NSE-listed companies. For every seven male key managerial personnel, there’s fewer than one woman. Male directors earn 3.6 times what female directors do—a gap that’s been widening.

The Companies Act increased women’s representation in the boardroom to 18% from 6% in a decade. Progress, yes. But much of it is compliance-driven tokenism rather than genuine inclusion.

The question isn’t whether Indian companies want women in boardrooms. It’s whether they are willing to invest in getting them there—mentorship, early leadership roles, and flexibility that actually works.

Right now, the answer, for most, is no. Read the full story by Ritiksha Baruah, Rituraj Baruah and Gireesh Chandra Prasad.

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India is finally getting serious about AI

India has created an inter-ministerial body, the AI Governance and Economic Group, to coordinate AI policy across the government. Sounds significant, but nothing changes for startups building in the space right now.

AI companies still operate under a patchwork of the DPDP Act, IT laws and sector rules, with no formal definition of an “AI system”, no risk classification, and no clear liability framework. The EU has all of this. India is still laying the groundwork. AIGEG’s real value is the signal that structured AI regulation is coming. Read on.

The India-Korea FTA isn’t working

Sixteen years ago, India signed a free trade agreement with South Korea expecting mutual gains. Instead, India’s trade deficit with Korea has more than tripled since then.

Bilateral trade doubled to $27.4 billion, but Korean imports into India grew twice as fast as Indian exports to Korea. India buys sophisticated machinery and electronics from Seoul; Korea buys metals and commodities from New Delhi. Not exactly a partnership of equals.

Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has called out the deal publicly. A re-negotiation is underway. As India signs more FTAs, with the EU, UK, and now possibly the US, is it getting any better? Read more.

Indian IT has an AI problem. CEOs finally admit.

For three years, India’s IT bosses danced around it. This earnings season, they said it plainly: AI is compressing revenue. TCS, Infosys, HCLTech, Wipro, Tech Mahindra—all of them acknowledged it on their post-earnings calls.

The math is simple and brutal. AI tools do faster what armies of engineers once did slowly. Clients pay less. Billings shrink. HCLTech’s CEO estimates up to 5% deflation. Analysts think the pain lasts 24-36 months. Each company insists new AI work will compensate. Investors didn’t buy it, stocks fell up to 10% after the earnings. Read on.

India’s F&O market has a tax problem

On 1 April, STT on equity futures jumped 150%. The market noticed. Fast. In just 16 trading sessions, Nifty and Bank Nifty futures volumes have crashed 33%. Index options aren’t far behind, down 24%.

When you make it significantly more expensive to trade, people trade less. The West Asia war is adding noise, as wild intraday swings keep some retail investors on the sidelines, while seasoned prop traders double down. But analysts are clear that the STT hike is the bigger culprit here. Ironically, the one segment the tax didn’t touch was equity cash, which is up 8%. Read more.

Didi vs Dada: This time it’s personal in Bengal

Fifteen years is a long time. Long enough for hope to curdle into frustration. Across West Bengal, the mood is complicated. Voters who once chanted Mamata Banerjee’s name with fervour are now asking questions about jobs, ‘cut money’, women’s safety after RG Kar, and whether TMC has simply become the new Left Front in different clothes.

And yet, didi isn’t finished. Her welfare schemes, her rooted image, and a Muslim electorate deeply wary of BJP’s politics remain formidable shields. The BJP is betting on anti-incumbency. Bengal is deciding whether that’s enough. Read on.

AROUND THE WORLD

• Aborted Pakistan trip leaves Trump with tough choices on Iran

• We’re all talking to each other less than we did a decade ago

• Internships are more crucial than ever—and even harder to find

• Trump names his next chief economist. Who is Christopher Phelan?

• A mogul alleges he’s been swindled by a Trump-affiliated crypto project

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Raghu Rai (1942-2026) — An obituary

“A photograph has picked up a fact of life, and that fact will live forever,” ace photojournalist Raghu Rai had once famously said. His imagery wasn’t just confined to life on the street; rather, his portraiture extended to the pulse of the moment in politics and culture, becoming important visual repositories of the time. Read on.

WHAT THE FACT

Left-handed typing

When typing with proper hand position, the left hand does 56% of the work; quietly outworking the right on every keyboard.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

Because CEO Salil Parekh used one word that spooked everyone: “compression”. AI foundation models are quietly hollowing out the kind of routine, high-volume tech work that Indian IT companies have built their empires on. Clients are automating faster, insourcing more, and spending cautiously amid geopolitical uncertainty.

Infosys isn’t alone. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. cut more than 23,000 jobs last year. Wipro’s revenue shrank. Even HCL Technologies Ltd., the sector’s fastest growing company at 5.95%, flagged four major clients pulling back commitments.

The picture across India’s Big Five IT firms is mixed at best. Some growing, some shrinking, all worried about what AI does to their business model next.

Infosys is betting on acquisitions, spending $800 million last year, its highest ever, and eyeing financial services and energy clients for growth. It’s a reasonable playbook. But reasonable may not be enough. Read the full story by Jas Bardia.

MARKET WATCH

As of 8:05 pm, 23 April 2026

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The steel rally has an expiry date

India’s steel companies are heading into Q4 FY26 results season with a spring in their step. Hot-rolled coil prices jumped 21%, rebar surged ~27%—both recovering from multi-year lows hit just last November.

A perfect storm of safeguard duties, tighter Chinese exports, coking coal cost pressures, and a construction rush after last year’s extended monsoon all conspired to push prices higher. But probably it may not hold beyond May. Once the monsoon arrives, construction slows, demand softens, and the music typically stops until November. Read on.

India stares at power shortage in Summer 2026

It’s only April, and India’s power grid is already gasping. Peak demand has shot up to nearly 240 GW this week, close to last summer’s all-time high of 250 GW, and we haven’t even hit May yet.

With temperatures running 4-8°C above normal across large swathes of the country, air-conditioners are working overtime. The Central Electricity Authority sees demand hitting a record 271 GW this season. The kicker: a below-normal monsoon could mean no relief even in July. Read more.

India’s heroines await their franchise moment

Hollywood has Wonder Woman, Black Widow, and The Hunger Games. Bollywood has…Mardaani. And soon, Alpha.

Alia Bhatt’s spy thriller is a genuine milestone, a big-budget, female-led entry into YRF’s Spy Universe. But trade experts are quick to point out it’s more an exception than trend. Most Hindi franchises were built around male heroes from day one, leaving little room for women to anchor their own chapters. Maybe Alpha changes the math. Or maybe it just proves the rule needs breaking sooner. Read on.

₹1 trillion changed hands—and nobody’s talking about it

While the headlines obsess over a bearish market, something extraordinary is happening on Dalal Street. Over ₹1 trillion has changed hands through block and bulk deals in just the first four months of 2026, up 25% from last year.

Why? M&A is frozen, IPOs have slowed, and PE firms need exits. Block deals are faster, cleaner, and don’t require a roadshow. The irony is the volatility that scared retail investors away is precisely what’s creating entry points for domestic mutual funds snapping up the other side. Read on.

NSE wants MCX’s crown

MCX has ruled India’s commodity derivatives market for over two decades, with 99.9% market share in non-farm futures. NSE is a rounding error.

But NSE isn’t giving up. Having launched Brent crude futures on 13 April, it’s now planning a liquidity enhancement scheme, essentially paying select brokers to make markets and kickstart trading volumes from scratch.

It’s the classic challenger playbook of differentiating the product, subsidising early liquidity, and hoping participation follows. NSE dominates futures with 99.8% share. Commodities, though, is MCX’s home turf. Read more.

AROUND THE WORLD

• Fear of shortages boosts global factories, but Eurozone activity declines

• DeepSeek looks to tap external investors including Alibaba, Tencent

• US officials try to get a grip on risks bubbling inside private credit

• In a slow market, some houses are still selling fast

• Crypto miners are quietly colonising computers

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Rooftops to community centres, films find alternative spaces

At the fifth edition of the P.K. Rosy Film Festival that concluded in Chennai earlier this month to commemorate Dalit History Month, a few unfamiliar faces hovered around the venue. They were neither delegates queuing for screenings nor filmmakers engaging with audiences. Instead, they occupied corners quietly, stepping in and out of screening halls, sitting through panel discussions, lacking the curiosity of cinephiles. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

The long and short of English

The longest one-syllable words in English are “scraunched” and “strengthed”, each with 10 letters. “Screeched” and “strengths” are close runners-up at nine letters. “Squirreled” is sometimes suggested, but most dictionaries pronounce squirrel as two syllables—squir-rel—so it doesn’t qualify.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

Pirojsha Godrej doesn’t flinch at big numbers. He took Godrej Properties Ltd. from ₹40 crore in sales to ₹34,000 crore. Now, at 45, he’s setting his sights on something far more audacious—tripling the entire Godrej Industries Group to a ₹5 trillion market cap in five years.

Pirojsha plans to list Godrej Capital and Godrej Chemicals, double market share in real estate, revive FMCG on the back of GST tailwinds, and build a full-service financial empire. And launch film studios in Mumbai.

What keeps him up at night? Not the businesses, it’s the unpredictability from Washington. “With the current occupant of the White House, you have no idea how to plan,” he says, with candour.

And for those wondering if India’s next big business leader will burn himself out chasing it all, he laughs off the 70-hour work week. “Not at all, not at all.” Read the full interview by Nehal Chaliawala and Satish John.

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THE MAIN STUFF

India halts new LPG connections amid Iran war

Planning to get a new gas connection? You will have to wait. State-run oil firms have quietly paused issuing new LPG connections as supply tightens due to disruptions in West Asia and the Strait of Hormuz.

There’s no official circular, but the systems simply aren’t accepting requests. The focus is to ensure uninterrupted refills for existing users. With India importing nearly two-thirds of its LPG, the ripple effects are real. Some households are even shifting to piped gas. Read on.

Explained — RBI’s new e-mandate rules

The Reserve Bank of India is stepping in on auto-debits. New rules tighten how e-mandates for your OTTs, SIPs, bills work, with clearer alerts, stricter authentication, and easier cancellations. Now, you’ll get a heads-up 24 hours before every debit, and payments above ₹15,000 need extra verification. There’s also better grievance redressal if something goes wrong.

The idea is: more control, and less confusion. But will added checks improve trust, or make payments feel more cumbersome? Read more.

BJP’s Tamil-Bangla test

As Tamil Nadu and West Bengal head to the polls, the contrasts couldn’t be sharper. In Tamil Nadu, it’s a battle of tradition. Will power alternate again, or can M.K. Stalin break the cycle?

Meanwhile, West Bengal tests longevity. Can Mamata Banerjee secure a fourth term amid a strong Bharatiya Janata Party push? Add freebies, voter roll tensions, and economic contrasts, and the stakes rise further. Read on.

PwC plans one global consulting playbook

Can consulting finally go borderless? PwC is exploring a global reset, aligning teams across countries to deliver the same playbook, technology, and process for clients everywhere. The aim is to cut the “fragmented” experience and compete better with integrated rivals.

But timing is tricky. With deal pipelines slowing and AI reshaping consulting, will standardisation boost speed, or dilute local expertise? For PwC India, adoption will hinge on local partners. Read more.

India plans stricter AI regulations

Is India about to get stricter on AI? The government is rethinking its relaxed stance, with expert panels now working on sharper, more prescriptive rules. Why the shift? Rapid advances, and rising risks, across sectors like finance and energy. So far, India relied on existing IT laws. But with powerful new AI models and concerns like deepfakes, that may not be enough anymore. Will tighter rules boost trust, or slow innovation? Read on.

AROUND THE WORLD

• More banks are earning $100 million fees for advising big M&A targets

• Secretive shipments of Iranian oil to China are under threat by the US

• How Asia’s biggest nations are riding out the energy shock

• A tale of two indexes: Which inflation metric should you trust?

• Israel’s open-ended wars have eroded its security

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Wellness vs Psychotherapy

The New Yorker recently ran a piece titled, What I Know About You Based on How Many of Your Friends Are Becoming Therapists. It was witty, filled with observations that many of us can relate to. The article indicated a trend we are seeing across the globe: many people in their late 30s-50s are now studying to become therapists. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

First YouTube video goes live

On this day in 2005, YouTube saw its very first upload by co-founder Jawed Karim from the San Diego Zoo. What started as a casual 18-second video soon sparked a global content revolution. Within just a year, the platform had ballooned to around 100 million videos.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

If you’ve ever struggled with rising premiums or delayed claim settlements, this could be a turning point. The government plans to use data from the National Health Claim Exchange to create a public ‘Health Claims Index’. The move is aimed at making insurance pricing and claim processes far more transparent.

Think of it as a report card for insurers. Backed by data from bodies like the National Health Authority and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India, the platform will track claim timelines, efficiency, and costs, giving you real-time visibility and helping you choose better policies.

Insurers could soon price policies based on deeper, real-world data, potentially leading to fairer premiums, and even discounts for healthier lifestyles. Will this finally fix trust issues in health insurance? Read the full report by Priyanka Sharma and Subhash Narayan.

MARKET WATCH

As of 8:05 pm, 21 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

Apple’s CEO move decoded

Apple Inc. has named John Ternus as its next CEO, succeeding Tim Cook. In an increasingly AI world, Apple is doubling down on hardware. Cook’s era saw revenue more than double and Apple hit $4-trillion valuation, powered by the iPhone and a suite of services. Yet, AI remains a relative weak spot.

So, does picking a hardware leader signal confidence or caution? For India, the stakes stay high. With manufacturing and exports surging, will Apple’s next chapter deepen its India play? Read on.

Investors hold their nerve

When the stock market falls, do you panic, or buy more? In March, when the BSE Sensex fell 11%, Indians chose the latter. Equity mutual funds saw strong inflows, with retail investors continuing their systematic investment plans (SIPs) and even increasing contributions.

What’s changing? A mindset shift. Instead of reacting to volatility, investors are treating dips as opportunities—domestic institutional investors (DIIs) are stepping up even as foreign investors exit. Is this the new normal for Indian investors? Read more.

India’s consumption story is showing cracks

Feeling like your spending decisions are getting tighter? You’re not alone. India’s consumption story is showing cracks, with inflation and uncertain monsoons weighing on demand.

Data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy shows that sentiment dipping, especially among lower-income households hit by rising essentials like LPG, while affluent consumers grow cautious about the future.

What’s changing? Big-ticket buys are on pause, replaced by smaller, practical spends. Even FMCG growth has cooled. Read on.

A smartphone sales slowdown in India

Are you using your smartphone longer than before? You’re not alone. India’s smartphone upgrade cycle is stretching to nearly four years, as rising prices and incremental upgrades make new purchases feel…unnecessary.

Premiumisation worked. Until it didn’t. With devices now lasting longer due to durability and extended software updates, buyers are choosing repair over replacement. Even high-end users are holding back. Have brands priced themselves out of demand? Read more.

Tamil Nadu’s four-way battle

Tamil Nadu’s elections just got unpredictable. For decades, the battle was between Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, but now new players are shaking things up.

Actor-turned-politician Joseph Vijay’s party and Naam Tamilar Katchi are drawing young voters, turning it into a four-cornered contest. Despite strong growth and welfare schemes, anti-incumbency is brewing. Will voters stick with stability, or take a chance at change? Read on.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• Wall Street brings sophisticated Quant Trading to the masses

• The rise of Apple’s new CEO: A hardware guy takes over in AI era

• Saudi Arabia and Iraq are caught in a hidden war within the war

• Amazon deepens ties, investment in AI startup Anthropic

• A ceasefire will not prevent the Iran war’s economic harm

CHART OF THE DAY

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Vienna: A city that brings art to life

Europe’s cultural capitals often compete for attention, each with their own massive collections, blockbuster exhibitions and global art events. But not Vienna.

2026 marks 270 years since Mozart’s birth and 129 years of the Secession art movement and exhibition hall, but celebrations will be without showmanship. The instinct to treat culture not as performance but as presence makes Vienna one of Europe’s most quietly powerful art capitals. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

The first Earth Day

On this day in 1970, Earth Day was first celebrated in the United States, with nearly 20 million people participating, marking the largest single-day protest in American history. What began as a mass environmental movement soon grew into a global event.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

India’s banking sector is quietly entering a high-stakes transition phase. Over the next 18–24 months, leadership calls at HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and IDFC First Bank will come under the scanner.

While incumbents like Sashidhar Jagdishan and Sandeep Bakhshi are eligible, the real intrigue lies beneath: Has a strong second line truly been built, or will boards look outside yet again? Recent trends suggest the latter isn’t off the table, with lateral hires becoming more common amid a shrinking leadership pool.

The banking regulator has tightened expectations, pushing for governance-heavy profiles. That’s why CFOs and audit-savvy leaders are suddenly front-runners. But does this shift risk sidelining business-first bankers?

As regulatory oversight deepens and banking complexity rises, succession is no longer a routine exercise. It’s a strategic gamble. Read the full story by Shayan Ghosh and Devina Sengupta.

MARKET WATCH

As of 7:50 pm, 20 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

Why inflation feels higher than it is—why that matters

While India’s inflation, tracked by the consumer price index, may look stable on paper, households perceive it to be 4–6% higher. Why? Because they don’t track indices. They track grocery bills, fuel costs, and daily expenses.

Recent findings from the Reserve Bank of India show inflation anxiety is rising again, especially after global uncertainties like the West Asia conflict. Even if official inflation was just 3.4% in March, expectations for the future are climbing sharply. What’s driving this disconnect? Food and fuel prices—quick to rise, slow to ease—shape perceptions more than anything else. And for lower-income households, the anxiety is even sharper. Read on.

GIFT City vs Mumbai’s BKC

Imagine being offered a 50–60% salary hike, a house, and even your child’s school fees. Would you relocate? That’s exactly what asset managers are pitching as they try to move talent from Mumbai’s BKC to GIFT City.

Driven by stricter norms from regulators like International Financial Services Centres Authority, firms need key executives on-ground. But fund managers aren’t rushing. Lifestyle shifts, family ties, and limited talent pools are slowing the move. Is money enough to build India’s next financial hub? Or will GIFT City need more than perks to truly compete with Mumbai? Read on.

The changing face of market power

Something interesting is brewing in India’s stock market. The dominance of giants like Reliance Industries and Adani Group is slowly easing, not because they’re shrinking, but because everyone else is rising faster.

The share of Top 10 conglomerates in total market cap has slipped from 31.4% in FY22 to under 24% now. Yet, they’re still growing, even outpacing the BSE Sensex in recent months. A broader rally is happening. Mid-sized firms, infra plays, and new-age businesses are stepping up, expanding the market pie.

But will this trend last? Or will investors run back to big, stable names when volatility hits again? Read more.

Kidfluencers and compliance

Cute reels, viral fame and, now, stricter rules. As India tightens norms under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, parents of kidfluencers are reworking strategies to keep content monetisable. From running accounts in their own names to appearing alongside kids, they are navigating regulatory grey zones.

But while brands still love child-led engagement, questions around consent and awareness remain. Do kids truly understand their online fame, or is it all managed for them? Read more.

The rise of premium Indian staples

Would you pay ₹2,000 for ghee or gourmet granola made from forest flowers? A growing tribe of conscious consumers is saying yes.

Traditional staples, from mahua to heirloom grains, are getting a modern makeover, with startups turning them into premium FMCG products. Brands like Two Brothers Organic Farms and Anveshan are selling traceability, sustainability, and trust.

Backed by social media buzz and quick commerce, even niche ingredients are finding urban buyers. But is this a lasting food revolution, or just a premium trend? Read on.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• Kevin Warsh pitched a case for Fed rate cuts. His future colleagues are sceptical.

• A new drug could prove to be a much needed hope against pancreatic cancer

• Pete Hegseth’s feud with army secretary Dan Driscoll spills into public view

• How to invest in AI power now—and what to avoid

• Why China’s central bank won’t save the country from deflation

CHART OF THE DAY

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A new book frames artists in their studios

Portrait of an Artist is the latest title to delve into the workspaces of creative practitioners. Conceptualised and shot by Rohit Chawla, the book features the studios of 68 artists, ranging from modern to contemporary. It contains text by writer-curator Kishore Singh besides contributory essays by Ina Puri and Girish Shahane.

Among many striking images, three frames stand out—there is a closeup of the late Akbar Padamsee with his eyes closed. If this image is about looking inwards, the one that follows is that of revelation. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

Farewell to a people’s pope

On this day last year, just a day after attending Easter services, Pope Francis died at 88. The first pope from the Western Hemisphere, South America, and the Jesuit order, he reshaped the Church with reform-driven leadership and humility.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

Tata Trusts plans to amend clauses that restrict trustee roles at an affiliate to Zoroastrians, signalling intent for a more inclusive governance framework. The move follows a dispute triggered by former trustee Mehli Mistry, who challenged the eligibility of vice chairmen Venu Srinivasan and Vijay Singh.

The Trusts also reaffirmed confidence in CEO Siddharth Sharma, after he faced criticism for asking the vice chairmen if they would step down from the affiliate body. While one resigned, the episode exposed governance tensions within the group’s philanthropic arm.

The proposed changes, likely to require regulatory or judicial approval, aim to align legacy trust deeds with the group’s stated values of inclusivity and public service, even as legal and internal debates continue. Read more.

THE MAIN STUFF

Air India’s modernisation delayed by two years

Air India plans to complete the retrofit of its legacy aircraft by 2029, nearly two years later than originally planned.

The final phase of the programme will cover 19 wide-body jets, starting in the second half of 2027, and is expected to take up to two years to complete. 26 such aircraft have already been retrofitted.

The initiative is part of a $400-million fleet modernisation plan under Tata Group’s five-year revival strategy for Air India, which was acquired in 2022. Read more.

Banks cautious despite strong Q4 growth

India’s top private lenders, including HDFC Bank Ltd. and ICICI Bank Ltd., reported solid growth in the March quarter but flagged rising uncertainty ahead. While domestic demand is steady, tensions from the Iran war are clouding visibility, especially for MSMEs and export-linked sectors.

With risks involving the Strait of Hormuz and, in turn, global supply chains, banks expect some impact on growth in FY27, prompting a more cautious, watchful stance. Read more.

India’s GDP rethink raises fresh questions

India’s revised GDP methodology aims to fix long-standing gaps, but it also reshapes the growth story. New estimates show slightly lower output and mixed changes in growth rates, challenging the perceptions of a stronger economy.

Critics say past calculations overstated growth and masked weakness in indicators like credit, taxes and informal sector incomes. The government disputes sharper revisions suggested by independent economists.

At stake is more than statistics. The GDP data shapes views on deficits, policy and global rankings. The update may not dent India’s fastest-growing tag, but it complicates the narrative of steady, resilient expansion over the past two decades. Read more.

India eyes flex-fuel shift to cut oil risk

India is planning a policy push for flex-fuel vehicles that can run on up to 85% ethanol, as volatile oil prices amid the Iran war revive concerns over import dependence. A govt panel will present a rollout plan this week.

The move builds on the E20 programme but faces industry concerns over pricing, supply and higher vehicle costs.

With ethanol capacity exceeding demand, producers are pushing for higher blending. While flex-fuel vehicles can reduce emissions and imports, experts say further testing and consumer trust will be key, especially after complaints of lower mileage under current ethanol-blended fuels. Read more.

AI slop is flooding the internet

Low-cost, AI slop is crowding the internet, hurting discovery, monetisation and trust. Mass-produced videos, covers and posts are pushing quality work out of view, worsening visibility for creators in an already skewed market.

A Deloitte report says over 92% of content in India now uses generative AI, sharply lowering production costs. Platforms face a deeper challenge as users grow wary of synthetic content, denting engagement.

While the likes of YouTube are tightening their AI rules, experts say current systems are reactive, as content farms adapt quickly, raising concerns over long-term algorithm integrity and platform trust. Read more.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• America’s allure fades in China, keeping talent away

• Inflation forecasts depend on Hormuz. So does the Fed’s next move.

• In the AI propaganda war, Iran is winning

• The Navy Sends in the Robots to Clear Hormuz of Mines

• Tumour cells use a genetic trick to become drug-resistant

CHART OF THE DAY

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How to train for global marathons in India

With running growing in popularity, and many chasing the glory of completing all seven Abbott World Marathon Majors and earning the coveted medal, training for these races has become a serious, structured pursuit in India. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

Hitler’s last public moment

On this day in 1945, Adolf Hitler marked his 56th birthday inside Berlin’s besieged Führerbunker—a stark contrast to the grand celebrations of earlier years. With Soviet forces closing in, this day also became the last time he was seen in public, briefly emerging to greet members of the Hitler Youth amid the ruins of the capital. Just ten days later, he would take his own life.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

Wipro Ltd. has announced its biggest-ever buyback, at 19% premium no less, after reporting three straight years of revenue declines. What gives?

It’s simple. There’s excess cash on the balance sheet, so much that the IT firm can finance its M&A ambitions even after repurchasing 600 million shares for ₹15,000 crore.

Still, the contraction clouds sentiment. Wipro’s revenue fell 0.32% year-on-year to $10.48 billion in FY26. Net profit fell even more—8.6% to $1.4 billion. Analysts are already flagging a slowdown in client additions delays in deal ramp-ups.

While operational profitability improves and deal pipelines remain strong, macroeconomic uncertainty, rising automation, and cautious client spending continue to weigh on India’s IT/ITeS sector. The Wipro buyback may support investor sentiment, but a sustained turnaround will depend on reviving organic growth. Read more.

MARKET WATCH

As of 8.50 pm, 16 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

India’s farm reforms, one state at a time

India is shifting to a state-by-state farm policy approach, moving away from one-size-fits-all reforms. The central government is co-designing agriculture roadmaps with states like Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh to tailor strategies to local conditions, improve climate resilience and boost farm incomes.

The shift, which comes amid forecast of a sub-par monsoon, sheds light on a deeper imbalance: Agriculture contributes 15.6% to GDP but employs 46.1% of the workforce. Growth has averaged about 4.4% in recent years, driven more by livestock and fisheries than crops. Read more.

Govt plans to double minimum wage in India

The government is finalising plans to double the national floor wage to 350-450 per day, as worker protests and uneven wage growth weigh on policy.

The move, under the Code on Wages, will set a binding national baseline, forcing states to revise wages upward. The monthly salary will be pegged at 26 times the daily wage.

The push comes as corporate profitability stays strong while real wages lag. States like Haryana and Uttar Pradesh have already raised wages, with others expected to follow. Experts say regular, inflation-linked revisions are key to avoiding sudden shocks and labour unrest. Read more.

India’s trade engine hits a war-sized snag

India’s trade has ran into turbulence, and West Asia is at the centre of it. Exports fell 7.4% and imports were down 6.5% in March, but the headline numbers mask a sharper regional shock.

Trade with key Gulf partners such as the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar has fallen steeply, dragging overall flows lower.

Exports to the UAE fell over 60%, while imports from major oil suppliers like Iraq and Qatar shrank steeply. The trigger? The escalating conflict in West Asia, disruptions in oil infrastructure, and the closure of critical routes such as the Strait of Hormuz. Read more.

Is weight-loss drugs a treatment for PCOS?

A 34-year-old Pune woman, diagnosed with PCOS as a teenager, saw her first natural menstrual cycle in February—six months after starting Mounjaro for weight management. This spotlights a broader shift, as more women with the condition turn to weight-loss drugs for metabolic relief and, in some cases, improved fertility.

The trend is accelerating across India, doctors said, even though these drugs are not officially approved for treating PCOS and are prescribed primarily for Type-2 Diabetes and obesity. Read more.

The crude dynamics of Russian oil for India

India will keep buying Russian crude even after the US’s one-month waiver on sanctions lapses, two people said, with one of them saying that the imports would not depend on it.

Now, Indian refiners are in talks for future imports after recently tying up a total of 800,000 tonnes of LPG supplies from Russia, Australia and the US, the first person said. Read more.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• How to end the war in Iran

• Trump aims to force a quick Iran deal with a slow squeeze

• Wall Street is spending its big windfall on Wall Street

• More and more countries are banning kids from social media

• Why everyone hates the Ivy League

CHART OF THE DAY

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Easy Diner

India’s dining scene may be getting bigger and better, but the experience of eating out increasingly feels like a battle. As diners continue to be spoiled for choice, it doesn’t help when finding a table is next to impossible especially on weekends. More often than not, the buzz around the latest restaurant openings only makes the process more cumbersome. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

A Tower that Grows

On a hot summer day, Eiffel Tower isn’t quite the same height as in winter. Built entirely of iron, the structure expands when temperatures rise—a basic principle of physics known as thermal expansion.

At its peak, the tower can grow by as much as 15 cm, subtly stretching upward as the metal warms. Come winter, it contracts again, returning to its actual size. Invisible to the eye but scientifically precise, the Eiffel Tower quite literally breathes with the seasons.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

India’s biggest conglomerates have emerged as the dominant buyers of stressed assets under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. Adani Group, JSW Group, Reliance Industries Ltd. and the Tata Group have cornered nearly a quarter of the total value of bad loans resolved over the past decade.

While these four groups acquired only 28 companies, their share of value is much higher, especially in large cases worth more than ₹1,000 crore each, which account for 86% of admitted claims. Adani Group has made the most acquisitions out of the four, using them to rapidly scale its power business.

Their edge lies in deep pockets, sectoral expertise and the ability to extract synergies, helping them outbid rivals and revive distressed assets. Deals like Bhushan Steel highlight how these assets can be turned around and expanded.

For lenders, this has meant better recoveries. For the Indian economy, it has ensured stranded assets are put back to productive use, even as big business tightens its grip on India’s insolvency-driven dealmaking. Read more.

MARKET WATCH

As of 8.45 pm, 15 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

Sebi eases India IPO rules amid war

India’s market regulator has allowed changing IPO size by up to 50% without refiling draft papers, in much-needed flexibility amid volatility triggered by the US-Iran war.

The relaxation, valid for IPOs opening till 30 September 2026, comes with safeguards, including unchanged issue objectives and regulatory compliance.

SEBI has also extended IPO approval validity and eased public shareholding norms, giving companies more breathing room as market sentiment remains uncertain and deal pipelines face pressure. Read more.

Weather & War risk for India’s farmers

The forecast of a sub-par monsoon and a looming fertiliser shortage brought on by the Iran war has Indian farmers stressed.

Rainfall is pegged at 92% of the long-period average, with El Niño likely to weaken late-season rains. Fertiliser stocks are under half of kharif needs.

While past resilience suggests limited impact on output, pulses and oilseeds remain vulnerable. Food inflation, already rising, could firm up further, while higher input costs and erratic yields may keep farm incomes under pressure, dampening rural demand. Read more.

SIFs finds takers outside the metros

India’s new Specialised Investment Funds (SIFs), introduced by SEBI, are seeing strong traction beyond metros, with 33% of assets from B30 cities versus 18.9% for mutual funds, per Computer Age Management Services.

Their appeal lies in hybrid, low-risk strategies that blend equity and debt, attracting conservative investors.

Though still small at ₹10,620 crore versus mutual funds’ ₹73.7 trillion, SIFs are gaining ground, aided by distributor networks and rising interest from older investors seeking stable, hedged returns in volatile markets. Read more.

India’s non-profit boom is irregular at best

India’s non-profit sector is expanding, but growth remains uneven, according to a study by Impactica.org. The country has more than 360,000 registered entities, deploying nearly ₹11 trillion, or 3.78% of GDP. However, funding is concentrated in richer states, with five regions accounting for 60% of NGOs.

While new-age incubators are attracting more funding, traditional NGOs face slower growth. Government initiatives like NITI Aayog’s Aspirational Districts Programme show some progress, but gaps persist, highlighting the need for better alignment between funding and grassroots needs. Read more.

Amid LPG shortage, higher CBG blending

Amid an LPG shortage triggered by the Iran war, India is considering raising CBG blending in city gas networks to as much as 20%, up from current targets of 1–5%.

Backed by policy support from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the plan will require scaling up local CBG production, which remains nascent.

While blending poses minimal operational challenges, experts flag supply constraints and the need for incentives to expand capacity and ensure steady feedstock availability. Read more.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• If it starts, a nuclear arms race will be unstoppable

• Iran’s regime has changed—for the worse

• Wall Street has an elite coffee-tasting force. It’s struggling to find recruits.

• Europe drafts postwar plan to free up Hormuz without US

• Process to refund tariffs to begin next week

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

What your appraisal cannot tell you about your career

Appraisal season in India has become more complicated than ever. For a few weeks each year, organisations assign ratings, revise compensation, and signal future expectations. This year, those conversations feel different. Layoffs across sectors, cautious hiring, and rapid shifts driven by AI have made careers less predictable than before. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

Beginning of a great journey

On this day in 1853, the Great Indian Peninsula Railway launched India’s first passenger train, running 34 km from Bori Bunder to Thane. Pulled by three steam locomotives—Sahib, Sindh, and Sultan—the train carried about 400 passengers, marking the beginning of India’s railway journey.

What started as a short colonial-era route soon grew into one of the world’s largest rail networks. Bori Bunder was later replaced by the Victoria Terminus in 1888. It was renamed to Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in 1996.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

India is exploring a price stabilisation mechanism for petrol, diesel and LPG, on the lines of the Price Stabilisation Fund for agricultural products, to shield consumers from global crude shocks. The plan involves creating fuel buffers through contracts with refiners, allowing supplies to be released amid crises.

Unlike strategic crude oil reserves, this plan targets refined fuel for direct market intervention. Still, key questions remain around funding, trigger points and execution without distorting markets.

Experts say such a fuel buffer can improve crisis response but may require significant storage expansion and careful calibration to balance fiscal costs with consumer protection.

To be sure, the surge in crude oil prices—a direct fallout of the Iran war—has yet to reflect in fuel prices as state-run refiners are absorbing the hit.

THE MAIN STUFF

An unintended fallout of Noida protests

The Noida protests, where workers are demanding higher wages and better working conditions, is set to raise cost pressures for manufacturers. That may trigger a flight to automation.

India still benefits from low-cost labour, but rising wages and frequent disruptions could push firms towards AI-led production and digital systems. While automation can boost efficiency and stability, it also risks displacing low-skilled jobs. Read more.

Big Money wants a seat in the deals—not just funds

Big investors are no longer content to just back funds, they increasingly want to invest directly in the deals those funds pursue.

In India’s private markets, this push for co-investment rights is giving limited partners more control over where their money goes and better economics, while encouraging fund managers to offer access to secure commitments and execute larger deals.

Essentially, what was once optional is quickly becoming the standard in fund negotiations. Read more.

Vietnam’s rise holds lessons for India

Vietnam’s viral tourism appeal masks a deeper economic story. From post-war poverty, it has emerged as a high-growth manufacturing hub, with exports now approaching 100% of its GDP.

The success stems from early reforms, multiple trade deals and a plug-and-play model within global value chains, attracting firms looking beyond China.

India, despite its scale and so-called “demographic dividend”, can learn a thing or two here from Vietnam if it wants to become ‘China+1’. Read more.

A digital revamp to track urea sales

The government is working on a mobile app for tracking urea sales in real-time. The idea is to curb diversion and improve distribution of India’s most subsidised fertiliser.

The mobile app will enable biometric authentication, inventory checks and advance booking by farmers. Over time, it will integrate land records, crop data and fertiliser needs.

India is the world’s largest importer of urea despite being the third largest fertiliser producer. Any efficiency gains, by way of digitisation, is welcome, especially since urea attracts ₹1.71 trillion in subsidy outgo. Read more.

The algorithm of a cry

A new crop of Indian “babytech” startups is turning early parenting into a data-driven exercise, using AI to decode infant behaviour. Think smart cribs to cry analysers.

Investors see potential in building full-stack ecosystems that track a child’s growth over time, rather than single-use products. But as algorithms enter the nursery, putting privacy at risk, can technology truly replicate a parent’s instinct? Read on.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

• 𝟤.𝟧 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗉𝖾𝗈𝗉𝗅𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺 𝗐𝗁𝗈 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗅𝖽 𝖿𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗈 𝗉𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗍𝗒 𝖽𝗎𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖶𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖠𝗌𝗂𝖺 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖿𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗍, 𝖺𝗌 𝗋𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖿𝗎𝖾𝗅, 𝖿𝗋𝖾𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗈𝖽 𝖼𝗈𝗌𝗍𝗌 𝖾𝗋𝗈𝖽𝖾 𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗌𝖾𝗁𝗈𝗅𝖽 𝗉𝗎𝗋𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗉𝗈𝗐𝖾𝗋, 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗌 𝖻𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝖭.

• 𝟧𝟧.𝟤%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗏𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗀𝖾 𝗈𝗇𝖾-𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝗋𝖾𝗍𝗎𝗋𝗇 𝖽𝖾𝗅𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖾𝗊𝗎𝗂𝗍𝗒 𝗆𝗎𝗍𝗎𝖺𝗅 𝖿𝗎𝗇𝖽𝗌 𝗂𝗇𝗏𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗇 𝗀𝗅𝗈𝖻𝖺𝗅 𝗆𝖺𝗋𝗄𝖾𝗍𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖤𝖳𝖥𝗌 𝖺𝗌 𝗈𝖿 𝟣𝟢 𝖠𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗅 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨, 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝟨.𝟩% 𝖺𝗇𝗇𝗎𝖺𝗅𝗂𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗋𝖾𝗍𝗎𝗋𝗇𝗌 𝗌𝗈 𝖿𝖺𝗋 𝗂𝗇 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨.

• $𝟦,𝟣𝟢𝟧: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗉𝗋𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖺 𝖥𝗋𝗈𝗇𝗍 𝖢𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗀𝗈𝗋𝗒 𝟣 𝗌𝖾𝖺𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖥𝖨𝖥𝖠 𝖶𝗈𝗋𝗅𝖽 𝖢𝗎𝗉 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨 𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗇𝖾𝗋, 𝖴𝖲 𝗏𝗌 𝖯𝖺𝗋𝖺𝗀𝗎𝖺𝗒, 𝗈𝗇 𝟣𝟤 𝖩𝗎𝗇𝖾 𝖺𝗍 𝖲𝗈𝖥𝗂 𝖲𝗍𝖺𝖽𝗂𝗎𝗆, 𝗎𝗉 𝗌𝗁𝖺𝗋𝗉𝗅𝗒 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝗅𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝗐𝖾𝖾𝗄’𝗌 𝖢𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗀𝗈𝗋𝗒 𝟣 𝗍𝗈𝗉 𝗉𝗋𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝗈𝖿 $𝟤,𝟩𝟥𝟧.

• 𝟤𝟣%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗆 𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗆𝗎𝗆 𝗐𝖺𝗀𝖾 𝗁𝗂𝗄𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝗇𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖼𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝗍𝗍𝖺𝗋 𝖯𝗋𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗌𝗁 𝗀𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖦𝖺𝗎𝗍𝖺𝗆 𝖡𝗎𝖽𝖽𝗁𝖺 𝖭𝖺𝗀𝖺𝗋 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖦𝗁𝖺𝗓𝗂𝖺𝖻𝖺𝖽, 𝖾𝖿𝖿𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝟣 𝖠𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗅, 𝖿𝗈𝗅𝗅𝗈𝗐𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗏𝗂𝗈𝗅𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗍𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗌 𝖺𝗍 𝖭𝗈𝗂𝖽𝖺 𝖯𝗁𝖺𝗌𝖾 𝟤’𝗌 𝖧𝗈𝗌𝗂𝖾𝗋𝗒 𝖢𝗈𝗆𝗉𝗅𝖾𝗑.

• ₹𝟥,𝟢𝟣𝟫.𝟥𝟧 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗀𝗅𝗈𝖻𝖺𝗅 𝖻𝗈𝗑 𝗈𝖿𝖿𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖣𝗁𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗁𝖺𝗋 𝖿𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖼𝗁𝗂𝗌𝖾 (𝖣𝗁𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗁𝖺𝗋 𝟣 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖣𝗁𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗁𝖺𝗋 𝟤), 𝖻𝗈𝗍𝗁 𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖱𝖺𝗇𝗏𝖾𝖾𝗋 𝖲𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗁, 𝗆𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺𝗇 𝖿𝗂𝗅𝗆 𝗌𝖾𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 ₹𝟥,𝟢𝟢𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗆𝖺𝗋𝗄.

• 𝟤𝟧%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋-𝗍𝗈-𝖽𝖺𝗍𝖾 𝗀𝖺𝗂𝗇 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖳𝖺𝗂𝗐𝖺𝗇’𝗌 𝖳𝖺𝗂𝖾𝗑 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗑 𝗌𝗈 𝖿𝖺𝗋 𝗂𝗇 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨, 𝗈𝗎𝗍𝗉𝖺𝖼𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖬𝖲𝖢𝖨 𝖠𝗌𝗂𝖺 𝖯𝖺𝖼𝗂𝖿𝗂𝖼 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗑’𝗌 𝟫.𝟩% 𝗋𝗂𝗌𝖾, 𝖿𝗎𝖾𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖠𝖨 𝗌𝗁𝖺𝗋𝖾𝗌.

• $𝟣𝟢 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖴𝖲 𝖯𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗂𝖽𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝖣𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅𝖽 𝖳𝗋𝗎𝗆𝗉’𝗌 𝖽𝖾𝖿𝖺𝗆𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗅𝖺𝗐𝗌𝗎𝗂𝗍 𝖺𝗀𝖺𝗂𝗇𝗌𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖶𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝖲𝗍𝗋𝖾𝖾𝗍 𝖩𝗈𝗎𝗋𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖱𝗎𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗍 𝖬𝗎𝗋𝖽𝗈𝖼𝗁, 𝖽𝗂𝗌𝗆𝗂𝗌𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖺 𝖿𝖾𝖽𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗅 𝗃𝗎𝖽𝗀𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖿𝖺𝗂𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗏𝖾 𝖺𝖼𝗍𝗎𝖺𝗅 𝗆𝖺𝗅𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖤𝗉𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗂𝗇 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• Donald Trump’s blockade of Hormuz is a dangerous gamble

• The bond market is ‘moving on’ from the Iran war

• ‘Trump as Christ’ sparked a backlash on the religious right

• Meta expected to unseat Google as world’s largest digital-ad player

• Saudi Arabia is pressing US to drop its Hormuz blockade

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Why your kids should start lifting weights

Parents in India love to enrol their kids for extra-curricular activities, from sports to dance and martial arts, but rarely do any of them send their kids for any kind of strength training that involves weights. The scene is different in the rest of the world where special strength-training sessions are held for kids in gyms and schools, especially if they play any kind of sport. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

An Emperor’s Downfall

The emperor penguin has been classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, largely due to climate change.

As Antarctic sea ice shrinks and becomes less stable, these penguins lose the very platform they depend on for breeding, feeding, and raising chicks. Without reliable ice, colonies struggle to survive, making the emperor penguin one of the most visible victims of a warming planet.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

India could be headed for one of its driest monsoons in years, with Skymet predicting rainfall at 94% of the long-period average, below the normal 96-104% range. The IMD has pegged it at at 92% of the 50-year average.

The El Niño effect raises the odds of poor rainfall, with 70% probability of below-normal or drought-like conditions—higher than that in 2023.

While forecasts broadly align with expectations, their reliability remains a concern. Both Skymet and the IMD have frequently missed rainfall intensity, with Skymet’s accuracy slipping in recent years.

A weak monsoon carries significant economic risks. Agriculture, which depends heavily on rains, supports nearly 40% of India’s workforce and drives rural demand. Past below-normal rainfall years have seen farm output weaken and inflation spike.

With global supply disruptions already in play, a poor monsoon could worsen food prices and strain growth. Even so, forecasts offer directional cues for planning, though large errors could lead to missteps in agriculture and water management.

MARKET WATCH

As of 8.30 pm, 13 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

Tata Trusts to discuss ‘vexing’ issues in May

Tata Trusts is expected to discuss several vexing issues, including whether to retain Tata Sons as a private company and the possibility of giving a third full term to Chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran, during a meeting in the second week of May.

Also on the agenda is how to provide an exit to largest minority shareholder SP Group, especially after Shapoorji Mistry called for listing of the holding company of the salt-to-software conglomerate. Read more.

India’s inflation rate at highest in FY26

India’s retail inflation rose to 3.4% in March from 3.21% in February, driven by higher food and energy prices amid the Iran war. Food inflation climbed to 3.87%, while housing inflation remained largely stable. The reading matched economists’ expectations and stayed below the RBI’s 4% target.

The data comes days after the RBI kept the repo rate unchanged at 5.25%, citing growing uncertainty from rising oil prices and currency pressures. With inflation inching up and growth expected to slow, policymakers face increasing stagflation risks in the months ahead. Read more.

India wants to be a battery powerhouse

India is planning an Approved List of Battery Manufacturers to mandate trusted, local suppliers for government-backed energy storage projects, aiming to reduce import dependence and strengthen energy security.

The move, part of the broader India Battery Vision 2047, will set localisation norms across the battery value chain, from minerals to recycling. The ALBM will act as a non-tariff barrier—similar to the solar power sector—and guide participation in projects worth $38 billion.

With demand for battery storage rising, the policy seeks to build domestic capacity, attract investment, and ensure control over critical infrastructure components. Read more.

Rising costs set to dent India Inc.’s Q4 earnings

The cascading effect of Iran war is expected to weigh on India Inc.’s March-quarter performance, with Nifty 50 profit growth likely slowing to about 4% year-on-year from 10% in the previous quarter. While revenues may still grow 10–13%, higher crude and commodity prices are squeezing margins, widening the gap between sales and profits.

Analysts say earnings quality is weakening as growth is driven more by pricing than demand. Sectors like FMCG, paints and chemicals face pressure, while autos and BFSI offer some support. Overall, FY26 earnings growth may moderate to around 6%, with risks of further downgrades ahead. Read more.

GIFT City’s second act

GIFT City is emerging as a hub for outbound investing, with firms like Marcellus Investment Managers and Mirae Asset launching global funds.

Backed by regulatory support from International Financial Services Centres Authority, it is easing access to overseas markets. However, friction persists under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, including a 20% tax collected at source. Despite this, demand is rising as investors seek diversification beyond India’s narrow market, positioning GIFT City as a key bridge to global investing. Read more.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

• ₹𝟣𝟦𝟦.𝟧 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖽𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗂𝗍 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖲𝗉𝗂𝖼𝖾𝖩𝖾𝗍 𝗐𝖺𝗋𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗅𝖽 𝖼𝖺𝗎𝗌𝖾 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖼𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖺𝗉𝗌𝖾 𝗂𝖿 𝗉𝖺𝗂𝖽 𝗂𝗆𝗆𝖾𝖽𝗂𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗅𝗒, 𝖺𝗌 𝗂𝗍 𝖻𝖺𝗍𝗍𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝖼𝖺𝗌𝗁-𝖿𝗅𝗈𝗐 𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗌 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖶𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖠𝗌𝗂𝖺 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖿𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗍 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗋𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖠𝖳𝖥 𝗉𝗋𝗂𝖼𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖽𝗂𝗌𝗉𝗎𝗍𝖾 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝖪𝖺𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗂𝗍𝗁𝗂 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝖺𝗇.

• ₹𝟣,𝟣𝟢𝟧 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖢𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗎𝗌 𝖳𝗋𝖺𝗇𝗌𝖭𝖾𝗍 𝖨𝗇𝗏𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝖳𝗋𝗎𝗌𝗍 𝖨𝗇𝗏𝖨𝖳 𝖺𝗂𝗆𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗌𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖨𝖯𝖮 𝗍𝗁𝗂𝗌 𝗐𝖾𝖾𝗄, 𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗋𝗂𝗅𝗒 𝗍𝗈 𝖺𝖼𝗊𝗎𝗂𝗋𝖾 𝗋𝗈𝖺𝖽 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗃𝖾𝖼𝗍 𝖲𝖯𝖵𝗌, 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖲𝖱𝖯𝖫 𝖱𝗈𝖺𝖽𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗈𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋𝗌.

• $𝟤𝟢 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖠𝖨 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗆 𝖧𝗎𝗆𝗒𝗇 𝖫𝖺𝖻𝗌 𝗂𝗌 𝗂𝗇𝗏𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖾𝗑𝗉𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖽𝖺𝗍𝖺 𝖼𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖺𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺, 𝖲𝗈𝗎𝗍𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝖠𝗌𝗂𝖺, 𝖫𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗇 𝖠𝗆𝖾𝗋𝗂𝖼𝖺, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖶𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖠𝗌𝗂𝖺 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗇 𝗉𝗁𝗒𝗌𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗅 𝖠𝖨 𝗌𝗒𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗆𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗏𝗈𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝗆𝗈𝖽𝖾𝗅𝗌.

• ₹𝟣.𝟪 𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗍𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗅 𝖥𝖯𝖨 𝗈𝗎𝗍𝖿𝗅𝗈𝗐 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺𝗇 𝖾𝗊𝗎𝗂𝗍𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨 𝗌𝗈 𝖿𝖺𝗋, 𝗌𝗎𝗋𝗉𝖺𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗎𝗅𝗅-𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟧 𝖾𝗑𝗂𝗍 𝗈𝖿 ₹𝟣.𝟨𝟨 𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖻𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝖲-𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖿𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗍, 𝗋𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖼𝗋𝗎𝖽𝖾 𝗉𝗋𝗂𝖼𝖾𝗌, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗋𝗎𝗉𝖾𝖾 𝖽𝖾𝗉𝗋𝖾𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇.

• 𝟨,𝟢𝟣𝟥: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖨𝖯𝖫 𝗋𝗎𝗇𝗌 𝖱𝗈𝗁𝗂𝗍 𝖲𝗁𝖺𝗋𝗆𝖺 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝗌𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖬𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖺𝗂 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺𝗇𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝟤𝟥𝟣 𝗆𝖺𝗍𝖼𝗁𝖾𝗌, 𝗆𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗁𝗂𝗆 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖼𝗁 𝟨,𝟢𝟢𝟢 𝗋𝗎𝗇𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖼𝗁𝗂𝗌𝖾, 𝖺𝗍 𝖺𝗇 𝖺𝗏𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗀𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝟤𝟫.𝟩𝟨.

• ₹𝟥,𝟧𝟦𝟩 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝖺𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖯𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗏𝖺𝗇𝗄𝖺𝗋𝖺 𝗂𝗇 𝖰𝟦 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝗎𝗉 𝟣𝟫𝟢% 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 ₹𝟣,𝟤𝟤𝟧 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝖺𝗆𝖾 𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗈𝖽 𝗅𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋, 𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖺𝗌 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖼𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝗋𝗈𝗌𝖾 𝟥𝟨% 𝗍𝗈 ₹𝟣,𝟤𝟣𝟥 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾.

• 𝟧𝟢%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗃𝖾𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗌𝗎𝗋𝗀𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖳𝖲𝖬𝖢’𝗌 𝗇𝖾𝗍 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝖿𝗂𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖰𝟣 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨—𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗎𝗋𝗍𝗁 𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍 𝗊𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗋𝖾𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽 𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗌 𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖻𝗒 𝖻𝗈𝗈𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝟥-𝗇𝗆 𝖠𝖨 𝖼𝗁𝗂𝗉𝗌.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• Trump weighs limited strikes on Iran after talks collapse

• America’s next Fed chair is caught in a vice

• Donald Trump is the war’s biggest loser

• White House fields warnings about Iran war’s economic hit

• Meta expected to unseat Google as world’s largest ad player

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Obituary | Asha Bhosle (1933-2026)

The death of Asha Bhosle, one of India’s most beloved, prolific, and genre-defying singers, doesn’t just feel like the loss of a musician but also like saying goodbye to a voice that’s always been there, to that kindly neighbour whose door you could always knock on. For decades—across generations, languages, and styles—she was part of the everyday soundtrack of life. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

The day Lincoln fell

On this day in 1865, US President Abraham Lincoln was shot at Ford’s Theatre in Washington D.C. by actor John Wilkes Booth while watching a play.

The attack came just days after the end of the Civil War, turning celebration into shock. Lincoln died the following morning—the first US president to be assassinated. His death plunged the US into mourning and left reconstruction without its guiding figure at a critical moment in American history.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

After years of holding back, India is quietly reopening its wheat taps, and at scale. With export quotas set to more than double, the move comes on the back of a record 120 million tonne harvest and comfortable domestic stock levels.

Timing is everything. As global supply chains wobble amid the Iran war and food prices inch up, India is positioning itself as a steady supplier. Higher exports of wheat and staples like atta and maida could ease surplus at home while improving price realisation for farmers.

But can India expand globally without unsettling local markets? For now, policymakers seem confident. Beyond trade, this is strategy. A well-timed export push could boost farm incomes, strengthen trade ties, and elevate India’s role in global food security. One shipment at a time. Read the full story by Dhirendra Kumar.

THE MAIN STUFF

SpaceX eyes historic debut

SpaceX is heading to the stock market. Reports suggest a potential $75 billion IPO, bigger than Saudi Aramco, with a staggering valuation nearing $2 trillion.

But this isn’t just another listing. With businesses spanning rockets, satellite internet (Starlink), AI (via xAI), and X (formerly Twitter), SpaceX is no longer just aerospace, it’s an integrated tech giant. Add Elon Musk’s unpredictability, and the intrigue only deepens.

Can markets absorb something this massive? And will retail investors globally, even from India, get a real shot? Read on.

Oracle’s AI push triggers its biggest layoffs yet

Oracle Corp. has recently been in the headlines after cutting up to 30,000 jobs globally, including 10,000-12,000 in India, even as it doubles down on AI infrastructure. But this isn’t just about efficiency. Oracle’s massive spending on AI data centres, fuelled partly by a $300-billion deal with OpenAI, has stretched its balance sheet, pushing debt and costs sharply higher.

Is this a smart long-term play or a risky overreach? With rising debt, falling stock, and heavy reliance on one customer, the stakes are high. Read more.

Will falling TCS payouts hurt Tata Sons?

Tata Group’s biggest cash engine, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., is seeing a steady dip in shareholder payouts, with FY26 returns falling 12% to ₹28,292 crore, raising concerns for Tata Sons Pvt. Ltd. The reason is bigger bets. From M&A to AI, TCS is spending more, leaving less cash to distribute.

Tata Sons relies heavily on TCS, which contributes over 80% of its revenue. Can the group sustain its ambitious investments without its biggest cash cow firing at full strength? Read on.

Nifty 50 faces a tough Monday test

Last week’s rally, was it real strength or just a pause? With US-Iran talks failing in Islamabad, markets may be in for a shaky start.

The recent rebound was largely driven by FPI short-covering, not fresh optimism, and that cushion could now vanish. As weekly Nifty expiry lines up today, volatility could spike further. FPIs, already heavily bearish, may rebuild short positions, putting pressure on indices.

While a sharp crash seems unlikely unless tensions escalate, a downside bias and consolidation look probable. Read more.

The rise of AI music impersonators

Imagine opening your music profile and finding songs you never made, sounds unreal, right? That’s exactly what happened to Ankur Tewari, as AI-generated tracks impersonated him on Spotify and Apple Music.

With AI tools churning out songs in seconds, fake uploads are hijacking artist identities, audiences, and even royalties. The real worry? It’s happening at scale, and platforms still rely heavily on trust over verification. Now who owns your art in the AI age? Read on.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

$𝟣𝟩 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖨𝖡𝖬 𝖺𝗀𝗋𝖾𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈 𝗉𝖺𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝖲 𝗀𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗍𝗈 𝗌𝖾𝗍𝗍𝗅𝖾 𝖺 𝖿𝖾𝖽𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗅 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝖻𝖾 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗈 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖣𝖤𝖨 𝗉𝗋𝖺𝖼𝗍𝗂𝖼𝖾𝗌, 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗈𝗅𝗎𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖣𝖮𝖩’𝗌 𝖢𝗂𝗏𝗂𝗅 𝖱𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝗌 𝖥𝗋𝖺𝗎𝖽 𝖨𝗇𝗂𝗍𝗂𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗀𝖾𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖣𝖤𝖨 𝗉𝗈𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗂𝖾𝗌.

₹𝟧𝟧.𝟧/𝗅𝗂𝗍𝗋𝖾: 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗏𝗂𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗐𝗂𝗇𝖽𝖿𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝗍𝖺𝗑 𝗈𝗇 𝖽𝗂𝖾𝗌𝖾𝗅 𝖾𝗑𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝗌, 𝗁𝗂𝗄𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 ₹𝟥𝟦/𝗅𝗂𝗍𝗋𝖾, 𝖺𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀𝗌𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝖺 ₹𝟣𝟤.𝟧/𝗅𝗂𝗍𝗋𝖾 𝗁𝗂𝗄𝖾 𝗈𝗇 𝖠𝖳𝖥 𝗍𝗈 ₹𝟦𝟤/𝗅𝗂𝗍𝗋𝖾, 𝗉𝖾𝗋 𝖺 𝖿𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗒 𝗇𝗈𝗍𝗂𝖿𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇.

₹𝟦𝟪,𝟤𝟣𝟥 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋𝖾𝗂𝗀𝗇 𝗂𝗇𝗏𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗌 𝗉𝗎𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺𝗇 𝖾𝗊𝗎𝗂𝗍𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝟣𝟢 𝖽𝖺𝗒𝗌 𝗈𝖿 𝖠𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗅, 𝖿𝗈𝗅𝗅𝗈𝗐𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺 𝗋𝖾𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽 ₹𝟣.𝟣𝟩 𝗅𝖺𝗄𝗁 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗌𝖾𝗅𝗅𝗈𝖿𝖿 𝗂𝗇 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝖼𝗁 𝖺𝗆𝗂𝖽 𝗀𝖾𝗈𝗉𝗈𝗅𝗂𝗍𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗅 𝗍𝖾𝗇𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗀𝗅𝗈𝖻𝖺𝗅 𝗎𝗇𝖼𝖾𝗋𝗍𝖺𝗂𝗇𝗍𝗒.

𝟧𝟤𝟢: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖫𝗎𝖿𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇𝗌𝖺 𝖿𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝗌 𝖼𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝖽𝗎𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝖺 𝗈𝗇𝖾-𝖽𝖺𝗒 𝖴𝖥𝖮 𝗎𝗇𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖼𝖺𝖻𝗂𝗇 𝖼𝗋𝖾𝗐 𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗄𝖾 𝗈𝗇 𝖥𝗋𝗂𝖽𝖺𝗒, 𝖽𝗂𝗌𝗋𝗎𝗉𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽 𝟫𝟢,𝟢𝟢𝟢 𝗉𝖺𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗇𝗀𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝖺𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 𝖦𝖾𝗋𝗆𝖺𝗇 𝖺𝗂𝗋𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝗌 𝖽𝗎𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖤𝖺𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗏𝖾𝗅 𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗈𝖽.

𝟣𝟧–𝟤𝟢%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗋𝗂𝗌𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝖽𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖼𝗈𝗌𝗍𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖿𝗂𝗅𝗆 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖮𝖳𝖳 𝗌𝗍𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗈𝗌 𝖺𝗌 𝗇𝖾𝗐 𝗅𝖺𝖻𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝖼𝗈𝖽𝖾𝗌 𝖾𝗑𝗍𝖾𝗇𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗋𝗆𝖺𝗅 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗍𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝗀𝗂𝗀 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄𝖾𝗋𝗌, 𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖾 𝗉𝖺𝗒 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗌𝗁𝗈𝗈𝗍𝗌 𝗋𝗎𝗇𝗇𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝟣𝟤-𝟣𝟨 𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗋𝗌.

𝟤𝟧,𝟢𝟢𝟢: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖿𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗃𝗈𝖻 𝗈𝖿𝖿𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝖾𝗑𝗍𝖾𝗇𝖽𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖳𝖢𝖲 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟩, 𝗌𝗁𝖺𝗋𝗉𝗅𝗒 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝟦𝟦,𝟢𝟢𝟢 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝖺𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝖳 𝗀𝗂𝖺𝗇𝗍 𝗍𝗂𝖾𝗌 𝖿𝗎𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝖼𝖺𝗆𝗉𝗎𝗌 𝗁𝗂𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖾𝗏𝗈𝗅𝗏𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌.

𝟫%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖽𝖾𝖼𝗅𝗂𝗇𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝗀𝗈𝗅𝖽 𝗉𝗋𝗂𝖼𝖾𝗌 𝗌𝗂𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝗐𝖺𝗋 𝖻𝖾𝗀𝖺𝗇 𝗈𝗇 𝟤𝟪 𝖥𝖾𝖻𝗋𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒, 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝖺𝗇𝖺𝗅𝗒𝗌𝗍𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝗋𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖿𝗎𝗋𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝗇𝖾𝖺𝗋-𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗆 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇𝗌𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝖺𝖿𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖨𝗌𝗅𝖺𝗆𝖺𝖻𝖺𝖽 𝗉𝖾𝖺𝖼𝖾 𝗍𝖺𝗅𝗄𝗌 𝖼𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖺𝗉𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝖺 𝖽𝖾𝖺𝗅.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• White House fields warnings about Iran war’s economic hit

• How Lionel Messi became Miami’s billion-dollar economic engine

• The US sank one of Iran’s navies. The other still controls Hormuz.

• Iran’s nuclear program has survived, giving it leverage in talks

• The ‘real’ oil price is a lot higher than it looks

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Why lower back pain is becoming everyone’s problem

What’s the one thing Jasprit Bumrah, Neeraj Chopra, and you? Lower back issues. According to the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2021, lower back pain is the most prevalent health problem in the world today. A systematic analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021, published in June 2023 in The Lancet Rheumatology, found that low back pain affected 619 million people globally in 2020. And since no one is getting younger, it’s worth noting that its prevalence increases with age, with peak rates observed at around 85 years. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

Iran strikes Israel

On this day in 2024, Iran launched hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel during the ongoing Israel-Hamas War, marking their first direct military confrontation.

Edited by James Mathew. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. has been hit by an unusual surprise—its first full-year revenue decline in dollar terms since listing. A modest 0.5% dip may not seem alarming, but it raises a question: Is the traditional IT services model under pressure?

Blame it on a double whammy, global uncertainty slowing tech spending, and AI reshaping how clients buy services. Companies now want outcomes, not effort. That means faster delivery, fewer people, and tighter budgets.

There’s a silver lining, though. Strong deal wins, rising margins, and growing AI revenue. But clients aren’t fully AI-ready yet, delaying large-scale adoption.

So, is this just a cyclical dip or a structural shift? Read the full Q4 earnings report by Jas Bardia.

In today’s edition of Top of the Morning:

• Inside Anthropic’s Project Glasswing

• EV overdrive enters the fast lane

• What’s left of online gaming in India?

MARKET WATCH

As of 8:55 pm, 9 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

Inside Anthropic’s Project Glasswing

Can AI outsmart hackers before they strike? That’s the big idea that powers Anthropic’s Project Glasswing—a coalition using advanced AI to detect hidden software flaws even experts miss.

With cyberattacks rising and a shortage of skilled professionals, this could be a game-changer. The AI can not only spot “zero-day” vulnerabilities but also suggest fixes, potentially transforming how cybersecurity works. Could this disrupt traditional cybersecurity firms, too? Read on.

India tightens vaccine-testing norms

India may soon tighten vaccine-testing norms, but at what cost? The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) is planning to shift all testing of vaccines and biologics to government labs, aiming for stricter quality control and uniform standards.

While this could boost safety in a sector critical to public health, it may also slow approvals as private labs, known for faster turnaround, are sidelined. Is this a necessary quality upgrade or a bottleneck in the making? Read more.

EV overdrive enters the fast lane

Electric vehicles may still be small in number, but they’re making a big impact. In FY26, EVs contributed nearly 20% of the growth in car sales, helping Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. and Tata Motors Ltd. overtake Hyundai Motor India Ltd. in rankings.

EVs are just nearly 4% of total sales, yet they’re driving momentum. With sales surging 84%, domestic players are clearly ahead in this race. Will late movers catch up, or has the lead already widened beyond reach? Read on.

India, a growth story: World Bank

India is set to remain one of the fastest-growing major economies, but can it stay resilient amid global turmoil? The World Bank pegs growth at 6.6% for FY27, supported by strong fundamentals like low inflation, solid banks, and healthy reserves. Yet, risks loom.

Prolonged geopolitical tensions and high oil prices could weigh on growth. For now, the outlook stays positive, but the road ahead depends on how well India navigates global shocks. Read more.

What’s left of online gaming in India?

India’s gaming industry is hitting reset, but can it rebuild without real money? After the ban on cash-based gaming, companies like Dream11 are scrambling to reinvent themselves, shifting to subscriptions, content, and new formats.

The challenge is monetisation. What once drove easy revenues now demands scale, engagement, and patience. Many are cutting costs, experimenting, and hoping users stick around. With 500 million gamers still in play, the opportunity remains. Read on.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

• 𝟨–𝟩%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗁𝗂𝗄𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖴𝖪 𝗏𝗂𝗌𝖺 𝖿𝖾𝖾𝗌, 𝖾𝖿𝖿𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝟪 𝖠𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗅, 𝖼𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗆𝗈𝗌𝗍 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄, 𝗏𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗍𝗈𝗋, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝖾𝗍𝗍𝗅𝖾𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝖼𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗀𝗈𝗋𝗂𝖾𝗌, 𝖺𝗌 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝖪 𝗀𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍’𝗌 𝗉𝗎𝗌𝗁 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝗎𝗂𝗅𝖽 𝖺 𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗆𝗅𝗂𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝖽𝗂𝗀𝗂𝗍𝖺𝗅 𝗂𝗆𝗆𝗂𝗀𝗋𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗌𝗒𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗆.

• ₹𝟣,𝟧𝟦𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗉𝗋𝖾-𝗌𝖺𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗒 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗆 𝖲𝗂𝗀𝗇𝖺𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝖦𝗅𝗈𝖻𝖺𝗅 𝗂𝗇 𝖰𝟦 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝟧% 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 ₹𝟣,𝟨𝟤𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝖺 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝖺𝗀𝗈, 𝖺𝗌 𝗁𝗈𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝗅𝗈𝗐𝖾𝖽 𝗂𝗇 𝖦𝗎𝗋𝗎𝗀𝗋𝖺𝗆.

• 𝟦𝟦,𝟩𝟪𝟩: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗋𝖺𝗂𝖽𝗌 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖽𝗎𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖯𝗎𝗇𝗃𝖺𝖻 𝖯𝗈𝗅𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝖾 ‘𝖦𝖺𝗇𝗀𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝖳𝖾 𝖵𝖺𝖺𝗋’ 𝖼𝖺𝗆𝗉𝖺𝗂𝗀𝗇 𝖻𝖾𝗍𝗐𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝟤𝟢 𝖩𝖺𝗇𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝟣𝟧 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝖼𝗁, 𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗎𝗅𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗇 𝟣𝟦,𝟪𝟫𝟦 𝖺𝗋𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗌 𝖺𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 𝖼𝗋𝗂𝗆𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝗇𝖾𝗍𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄𝗌.

• 𝟣,𝟢𝟢𝟢: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗂𝗓𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽 𝗈𝖿 𝗅𝖺𝗒𝗈𝖿𝖿𝗌 𝖺𝗍 𝖶𝖺𝗅𝗍 𝖣𝗂𝗌𝗇𝖾𝗒 𝖢𝗈. 𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗇𝖾𝗐 𝖢𝖤𝖮 𝖩𝗈𝗌𝗁 𝖣’𝖠𝗆𝖺𝗋𝗈, 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗋𝖾𝗌𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗅𝖾𝗌𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇 𝟣% 𝗈𝖿 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝗀𝗅𝗈𝖻𝖺𝗅 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄𝖿𝗈𝗋𝖼𝖾..

• $𝟥 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗅𝗈𝖺𝗇𝗌 𝖻𝖾𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗌𝗒𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖺 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗉 𝗈𝖿 𝖻𝖺𝗇𝗄𝗌, 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖭𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗑𝗂𝗌, 𝖬𝖴𝖥𝖦, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖲𝗈𝖼𝗂𝖾𝗍𝖾 𝖦𝖾𝗇𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗅𝖾, 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖺 𝖬𝖾𝗍𝖺-𝖻𝖺𝖼𝗄𝖾𝖽 𝖽𝖺𝗍𝖺 𝖼𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖮𝗁𝗂𝗈, 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖻𝗎𝗂𝗅𝖽𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝖠𝖨 𝗂𝗇𝖿𝗋𝖺𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾.

• ₹𝟣,𝟥𝟨𝟨 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖺𝗇 𝗈𝗋𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝗌𝖾𝖼𝗎𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖧𝗂𝗆𝖺𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗅 𝖥𝗎𝗍𝗎𝗋𝗂𝗌𝗍𝗂𝖼 𝖢𝗈𝗆𝗆𝗎𝗇𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝖺 𝗍𝗂𝖾𝗋-𝟣 𝖼𝗎𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗋 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗅𝗒𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗈𝗉𝗍𝗂𝖼𝖺𝗅 𝖿𝗂𝖻𝗋𝖾 𝖼𝖺𝖻𝗅𝖾𝗌, 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾 𝖾𝗑𝖾𝖼𝗎𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖣𝖾𝖼𝖾𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨.

• 𝟨.𝟨%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖶𝗈𝗋𝗅𝖽 𝖡𝖺𝗇𝗄’𝗌 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗃𝖾𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖦𝖣𝖯 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁 𝗋𝖺𝗍𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟩, 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝟩.𝟨% 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝖽𝗎𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝖾𝗇𝖾𝗋𝗀𝗒 𝗌𝗁𝗈𝖼𝗄𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝖽𝖾 𝖽𝗂𝗌𝗋𝗎𝗉𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖶𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖠𝗌𝗂𝖺 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖿𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗍.

howindialives.com

AROUND THE WORLD

• Inside the race to protect submarine cables from sabotage

• Why Iran thinks it won the war despite huge military losses

• Trump allies, US officials fear Iran victory lap is premature

• Why Blackrock is weathering the private credit storm better than peers

• Oracle’s new CFO comes from the power industry. That tells you everything.

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

On a breakfast trail through the streets of Varanasi

In Varanasi, as in some other parts of northern India, breakfast—or a morning meal—is called kaleva, derived from the older Sanskrit word kalyavarta. That the idea of a light morning meal is well entrenched in the culinary cultures in these parts is confirmed by the region’s time-honoured colloquialisms, proverbs, and idioms.

An old expression declares: naan bahu, nun kaleva. For a petite daughter-in-law, mere salt can be breakfast. Numerous devotional songs from the region, composed around the dark-skinned Lord Krishna, describe in detail morning rituals of waking him up and feeding him his breakfast. These songs are collectively called kaleo or kaleva. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

First image of a black hole

On this day in 2019, astronomers unveiled the first-ever image of a black hole, captured at the centre of galaxy Messier 87, marking a breakthrough in space science.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

India’s stock markets erupted in relief after the US-Iran ceasefire, but is this the start of a sustained rally or just a pause in the storm? The Nifty 50 and S&P BSE Sensex surged nearly 4% each, marking their strongest single-day gains in months, while volatility cooled sharply and ₹16 lakh crore was added to market value.

At first glance, the mood feels upbeat. Lower immediate geopolitical risk and the Reserve Bank of India holding the repo rate steady added to the optimism. Even global markets joined the rally.

But the ceasefire is temporary. Oil prices, though off highs, remain elevated, and damage to energy infrastructure could keep supply tight. Add slowing earnings growth and persistent FII outflows, the underlying risks haven’t disappeared.

For now, it looks like a classic relief rally—strong, broad-based and encouraging but still dependent on how geopolitics and oil prices evolve from here. Read the full report by Srushti Vaidya.

In today’s edition of Top of the Morning:

• India’s nuclear breakthrough

• Demat growth cools in India

• RBI maintains a status quo

MARKET WATCH

As of 7:45 PM, 8 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

India’s nuclear breakthrough

India just crossed a major milestone, but why does it matter?

The indigenously built Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam achieving criticality means a self-sustaining nuclear reaction is now a reality. This technology can produce more fuel than it consumes, unlocking India’s vast thorium reserves and reducing reliance on imported uranium. It also puts India among a select few nations, alongside Russia, with this capability.

With a 100 GW nuclear target by 2047, this could be a crucial step toward cleaner, more self-reliant energy. Read on.

Risk-on/Risk-off

Just when things seemed to spiral, there was a sudden ceasefire—markets cheered, oil cooled. But is this calm sustainable? From shifting US rhetoric to central banks hitting pause, the world is clearly in wait-and-watch mode.

Currencies are under pressure, tech layoffs are rising as AI reshapes jobs, and El Niño looms, threatening growth, productivity, and even India’s monsoon. So, what’s the bigger picture? A fragile global balance where geopolitics, climate, and technology are all pulling in different directions. Read more.

Investor frenzy fades

Has the retail investing frenzy finally cooled? After a record run, new demat account additions dipped 22% in FY26, reflecting a more cautious investor mood. The total base still crossed 225 million, but the pace has clearly slowed.

Why the change? Volatile markets, weaker returns, and softer IPO gains have taken away the “easy money” appeal. Even benchmark indices had a muted year, nudging investors to think twice. But is this a slowdown or a sign of maturity? Experts say retail investors are becoming more selective, not disappearing. Read on.

RBI shuns hawkish signal

The Reserve Bank of India has hit pause, repo rate stays at 5.25%. With inflation still under control but risks rising from crude oil prices and global disruptions, the RBI is walking a tightrope.

Growth looks solid at 7.6%, backed by consumption and investment, but cracks could emerge if external shocks intensify. Is the message stability for now, or flexibility ahead? Will the next move be a cut, a hike, or a longer pause? Read more.

Change vs continuity in Kerala

Is Kerala ready for a shift, or sticking with continuity? As the state heads to polls, a subtle anti-incumbency mood is building—not out of anger, but a desire for change after a decade of LDF rule.

While Pinarayi Vijayan banks on welfare and development, the Congress-led UDF senses opportunity. Meanwhile, the BJP is pitching itself as a third alternative. But beneath the politics lies a bigger worry of Kerala’s fragile finances. Read on.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

• $𝟨 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖽𝗈𝗅𝗅𝖺𝗋-𝖽𝖾𝗇𝗈𝗆𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗈𝗇𝖽𝗌 𝗌𝗈𝗅𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖯𝗈𝗅𝖺𝗇𝖽, 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗇𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝗌𝖺𝗅𝖾 𝗌𝗂𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝗐𝖺𝗋 𝖻𝖾𝗀𝖺𝗇, 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝟧-, 𝟣𝟢-, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝟥𝟢-𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖼𝗁𝖾𝗌.

• 𝟣𝟩𝟢: 𝖭𝖾𝗍 𝗇𝖾𝗐 𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝖾𝗌 𝖺𝖽𝖽𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖳𝗂𝗍𝖺𝗇 𝖢𝗈. 𝖫𝗍𝖽. 𝗂𝗇 𝖰𝟦 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝟦𝟤 𝗂𝗇 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺, 𝗍𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝗍𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗅 𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖺𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗌𝗎𝗆𝖾𝗋 𝖻𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗇𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗌 𝗍𝗈 𝟥,𝟨𝟢𝟥 𝗀𝗅𝗈𝖻𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗒.

• $𝟤 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇’𝗌 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗉𝗈𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗇𝗌𝗂𝗍 𝖿𝖾𝖾 𝗉𝖾𝗋 𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖲𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝖧𝗈𝗋𝗆𝗎𝗓 𝖺𝗌 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖴𝖲-𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝗍𝗐𝗈-𝗐𝖾𝖾𝗄 𝖼𝖾𝖺𝗌𝖾𝖿𝗂𝗋𝖾 𝖿𝗋𝖺𝗆𝖾𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄, 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾 𝗌𝗁𝖺𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝖮𝗆𝖺𝗇, 𝗆𝖺𝗂𝗇𝗅𝗒 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗉𝗈𝗌𝗍-𝗐𝖺𝗋 𝗋𝖾𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇.

• ₹𝟣 𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝖻𝗂𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗂𝖽𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝗌𝖺𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗍 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝗍𝗈𝗉 𝖿𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗅 𝖾𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝖾 𝖽𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗅𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗌, 𝖦𝗈𝖽𝗋𝖾𝗃 𝖯𝗋𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗍𝗂𝖾𝗌, 𝖫𝗈𝖽𝗁𝖺, 𝖣𝖫𝖥 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖯𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗀𝖾 𝖤𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗌 𝖺𝗂𝗆 𝗍𝗈 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗂𝗋 𝗌𝖺𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝗀𝗎𝗂𝖽𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾.

• 𝟨.𝟫%: 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝖦𝖣𝖯 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁 𝖿𝗈𝗋𝖾𝖼𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟩, 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖱𝖾𝗌𝖾𝗋𝗏𝖾 𝖡𝖺𝗇𝗄 𝗈𝖿 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺 𝖺𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖠𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗅 𝗆𝗈𝗇𝖾𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝗉𝗈𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗒 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗆𝗂𝗍𝗍𝖾𝖾 𝗆𝖾𝖾𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀, 𝗅𝗈𝗐𝖾𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝖺𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝟩.𝟨% 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨.

• 𝟣𝟧: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗆𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗆𝗎𝗆 𝖺𝗀𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗌𝗈𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝗆𝖾𝖽𝗂𝖺 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝖾𝗌𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖦𝗋𝖾𝖾𝖼𝖾, 𝖺𝗌 𝖯𝗋𝗂𝗆𝖾 𝖬𝗂𝗇𝗂𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖪𝗒𝗋𝗂𝖺𝗄𝗈𝗌 𝖬𝗂𝗍𝗌𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝗇𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖼𝖾𝖽 𝖺 𝖻𝖺𝗇 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋-𝟣𝟧𝗌 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝟣 𝖩𝖺𝗇𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟩, 𝖼𝗂𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝖽𝖽𝗂𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗁𝖾𝖺𝗅𝗍𝗁 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝖼𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗌.

• 𝟤𝟧%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗎𝗍 𝗂𝗇 𝗅𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖼𝗁𝖺𝗋𝗀𝖾𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖽𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝖼 𝖿𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍𝗌 𝗈𝗋𝖽𝖾𝗋𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝖺𝗂𝗋𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍 𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗂𝖿𝖿 𝗋𝖾𝗀𝗎𝗅𝖺𝗍𝗈𝗋 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝖾𝖾 𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗌, 𝗈𝖿𝖿𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝗂𝗋𝗅𝗂𝗇𝖾𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗅𝗂𝖾𝖿 𝖺𝗆𝗂𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝗐𝖺𝗋-𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖿𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗇𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗇.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• Greece to ban social media for under 15s

• AI giants go on charm offensive to avert public backlash

• After five weeks of airstrikes, travellers are adapting to flying in wartime

• Why more people are dropping out of the job market

• The crew of Artemis II is returning to a planet they have cheered up

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Emotional lightness is key to better mental health

At a wedding recently, a nine-year-old asked me what a psychotherapist did. Explaining one’s work to children is a delicate process. I said I listen to people when they feel sad, lonely or when life feels difficult. At this, the child asked, “So it’s only listening?” I said, “Using research and science-backed methods, I help people listen to themselves and find hope when it goes into hiding.”

The child was quiet for some time and then asked, “Do people only cry or they laugh too when they come to you?” Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

Fall of Baghdad

On this day in 2003, Baghdad fell to US-led forces weeks after the start of the Iraq War, as George W. Bush justified the invasion to oust Saddam Hussein over alleged weapons of mass destruction and terror links.

Edited by Vikram Kumar. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

India’s AI and data centre boom is gathering pace, but can the power grid keep up? As billions flow into digital infrastructure, the Central Electricity Authority is rethinking electricity demand forecasts to avoid future disruptions.

Reason for the urgency: data centres are energy guzzlers, running 24X7. With capacity expected to jump from about 1.2 GW today to nearly 10 GW by 2030, power consumption could soar to 40–45 TWh. And since these hubs are concentrated in a handful of states, they could significantly alter local demand patterns, and even risk grid instability if not planned right.

To stay ahead, states and discoms may soon be required to factor in data-centre demand in their long-term resource plans, covering generation, storage, and transmission.

But, will all projected demand actually materialise, or is this another overestimation? Read the full story by Rituraj Baruah.

In today’s edition of Top of the Morning:

• Air India’s next pilot

• IndiGo faces headwinds

• RBI repo rate decision today

MARKET WATCH

As of 9:10 PM, 7 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

New Covid Variant

A new covid variant, BA.3.2, has brought back the disease in the spotlight. Part of the Omicron family, this ‘cicada’ variant has been quietly evolving before resurfacing across multiple countries. It carries a high number of mutations, but, so far, there’s no evidence of higher severity or hospitalisations.

Even the World Health Organization has tagged it as “under monitoring”, not a major threat. Symptoms are pretty familiar—fever, cough, fatigue. Vaccines? Still doing their job. Read on.

Air India’s next pilot

Air India is on the hunt for a new CEO, but is this just a leadership change or a deeper reset? After Campbell Wilson’s early exit amid mounting losses and turbulence, the Tata Group has set up a panel to find his successor.

Wilson’s stint saw big moves, mergers, fleet expansion, and system upgrades. Yet, rising fuel costs, geopolitical disruptions, and operational setbacks kept pressure on profitability. Now, with losses widening and competition heating up, can the next leader steer Air India back to stability? Read more.

IndiGo faces headwinds

India’s biggest airline is facing a rough patch, and it’s not just one issue. From pilot shortages and flight cuts to soaring fuel prices and a weakening rupee, IndiGo is navigating multiple headwinds at once. The result? A sharp 33% stock drop and mounting pressure on profitability.

With crude prices spiking and fuel costs already forming a big chunk of expenses, the path ahead looks tricky. But can IndiGo bounce back like it has before, or is this turbulence different? Read more.

Markets lead, but RBI may not follow

The Reserve Bank of India may be eyeing a pause, but markets aren’t buying it. Traders are already pricing in multiple rate hikes, and borrowing costs are rising even before any policy move. Blame it on soaring crude, a weaker rupee, and global tensions.

The OIS market is flashing signals of tighter rates ahead, pushing loan and bond yields higher across the economy. So, if expectations keep running ahead, will the central bank be forced to rethink? Read on.

A vote for development?

As Assam heads to polls, what’s really shaping voter choice, development or identity? On the ground, the answer seems clear. Roads, welfare schemes, cash transfers and better access to basics are dominating conversations, especially among women voters who’ve seen tangible benefits.

Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma remains central to the BJP’s pitch, while Gaurav Gogoi faces an uphill battle amid organisational challenges. But it’s not one-sided. Concerns over inflation, uneven benefit distribution, and discomfort with communal rhetoric persist. Read on.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

• $𝟥𝟢 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖠𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗉𝗂𝖼’𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝗇𝗎𝖺𝗅𝗂𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝗋𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗇𝗎𝖾 𝗋𝗎𝗇-𝗋𝖺𝗍𝖾 𝖼𝗎𝗋𝗋𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗅𝗒, 𝗎𝗉 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 $𝟫 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖺𝗍 𝖾𝗇𝖽-𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟧, 𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖻𝗒 𝗀𝗅𝗈𝖻𝖺𝗅 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖢𝗅𝖺𝗎𝖽𝖾 𝖠𝖨 𝗆𝗈𝖽𝖾𝗅𝗌.

• ₹𝟤.𝟧 𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗋𝖾𝖽𝗂𝗍 𝗀𝗎𝖺𝗋𝖺𝗇𝗍𝖾𝖾 𝗌𝖼𝗁𝖾𝗆𝖾 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗀𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗂𝗌 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗌𝗂𝖽𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗌𝗎𝗉𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍 𝗆𝗂𝖼𝗋𝗈, 𝗌𝗆𝖺𝗅𝗅 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗆𝖾𝖽𝗂𝗎𝗆 𝖾𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗌𝖾𝗌 (𝖬𝖲𝖬𝖤𝗌) 𝗁𝗂𝗍 𝖻𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖶𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖠𝗌𝗂𝖺 𝖼𝗋𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗌.

• ₹𝟣𝟢𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝖾𝖾𝖽 𝖿𝗎𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖮𝖿𝖿𝖡𝖾𝖺𝗍 𝖲𝗍𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗈𝗌, 𝖿𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖻𝗈𝖠𝗍 𝖼𝗈-𝖿𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽𝖾𝗋 𝖠𝗆𝖺𝗇 𝖦𝗎𝗉𝗍𝖺, 𝗂𝗇 𝖺 𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗇𝖽 𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖡𝖾𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗆𝖾𝗋 𝖵𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝖯𝖺𝗋𝗍𝗇𝖾𝗋𝗌.

• ₹𝟨𝟢,𝟨𝟧𝟧 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖥𝖯𝖨𝗌 𝗉𝗎𝗅𝗅𝖾𝖽 𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝖿𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗇𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝗌𝖾𝗋𝗏𝗂𝖼𝖾𝗌 𝗌𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗈𝗋 𝗂𝗇 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝖼𝗁, 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋 𝟧𝟢% 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗅 𝖾𝗊𝗎𝗂𝗍𝗒 𝗈𝗎𝗍𝖿𝗅𝗈𝗐𝗌 𝗈𝖿 ₹𝟣,𝟣𝟩,𝟩𝟩𝟧 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾, 𝗉𝖾𝗋 𝖭𝖲𝖣𝖫 𝖽𝖺𝗍𝖺.

• ₹𝟤𝟢,𝟧𝟥𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖻𝗈𝗈𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖫𝗈𝖽𝗁𝖺 𝖣𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗅𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝗎𝗉 𝟣𝟨% 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 ₹𝟣𝟩,𝟨𝟥𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗉𝗋𝖾𝗏𝗂𝗈𝗎𝗌 𝖿𝗂𝗌𝖼𝖺𝗅, 𝖻𝗎𝗍 𝗌𝗁𝗈𝗋𝗍 𝗈𝖿 ₹𝟤𝟣,𝟢𝟢𝟢 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝗀𝗎𝗂𝖽𝖺𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝖽𝗎𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝗐𝖺𝗋 𝗂𝗆𝗉𝖺𝖼𝗍𝗌.

• ₹𝟣𝟪 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖠𝗇𝖺𝗇𝗍 𝖠𝗆𝖻𝖺𝗇𝗂 𝗉𝗅𝖾𝖽𝗀𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗈𝗐𝖺𝗋𝖽 𝗍𝖾𝗆𝗉𝗅𝖾 𝗂𝗇𝖿𝗋𝖺𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖺𝗇𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗅 𝗐𝖾𝗅𝖿𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖪𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗅𝖺, 𝗂𝗇𝖼𝗅𝗎𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 ₹𝟣𝟤 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝗋𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖱𝖺𝗃𝖺𝗋𝖺𝗃𝖾𝗌𝗁𝗐𝖺𝗋𝖺𝗆’𝗌 𝖤𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝖦𝗈𝗉𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗆.

• 𝟤𝟥.𝟦𝟪 𝖬𝖳: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗋𝗎𝖽𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝖾𝖾𝗅 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝖽𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖳𝖺𝗍𝖺 𝖲𝗍𝖾𝖾𝗅 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝗎𝗉 𝟪% 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋-𝗈𝗇-𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋, 𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖻𝗒 𝖼𝖺𝗉𝖺𝖼𝗂𝗍𝗒 𝗋𝖺𝗆𝗉-𝗎𝗉 𝖺𝗍 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖪𝖺𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀𝖺𝗇𝖺𝗀𝖺𝗋 𝗉𝗅𝖺𝗇𝗍, 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗏𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝗎𝗉𝖽𝖺𝗍𝖾.

howindialives.com

AROUND THE WORLD

• Some Republicans set their own deadline on Iran war. It’s getting close.

• Inside a corporate retreat that went very badly wrong

• Allies fear they are tied to an erratic US and now have nowhere to turn

• Iran and America are spinning stories about the size of their victories

• How the Iran war may be stopping a different full-scale conflict

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

How to maintain a retreat routine at home

At a retreat, dincharya feels almost natural. You wake up early because the light comes in gently and there’s nowhere urgent to be. Meals arrive at predictable times and there is space in between activities for you to gather your thoughts.

Then you return to the city, where mornings begin with alarms and emails, dinner often ends up being at 10:30 pm, and “routine” feels like something that belongs to someone else’s life. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

Delhi Pact sealed

On this day in 1950, Jawaharlal Nehru and Liaquat Ali Khan signed the Delhi Pact, ensuring safe passage and protection for refugees displaced after India and Pakistan cut economic ties in 1949.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

India’s kitchens may be on the brink of a quiet revolution. Amid an LPG shortage brought on by the Iran war, the government is planning to ramp up on induction cookstoves under the National Efficient Cooking Programme. But can India truly unplug from LPG dependence?

The push is ambitious. State-run EESL is exploring interest-free EMI options, in talks with global lenders like the World Bank and ADB, to make induction cooking accessible for economically weaker households. Why now? Because LPG, of which India imports nearly 65%, is increasingly vulnerable to global disruptions.

What’s interesting is the timing. Induction stoves are already 25–30% cheaper to run, yet adoption has lagged. Now, with prices soaring due to panic buying and demand rebounding, the government is ramping up tenders and rethinking targets.

But challenges remain. Can supply chains keep up? Will electricity demand surge too fast? And can consumers shift habits built over decades? Read the full report by Rituraj Baruah and Manas Pimpalkhare.

In today’s edition of Top of the Morning:

• Decoding Subway’s success in India

• Smartphones get pricier in India

• Is the IPO party in India over?

MARKET WATCH

As of 8:05 pm, 6 April 2026

THE MAIN STUFF

$100+ oil puzzle

Oil is boiling past $100, but is relief really coming? OPEC+ plans to raise output in May, yet the question remains: Will it matter at all?

With the Strait of Hormuz blockade choking nearly 20% of global supply, markets are already tight. Add war risks, damaged infrastructure, and premium pricing from suppliers like Russia and Iran, and the pressure only builds. Even the IEA’s record reserve release hasn’t cooled things much.

For India, the impact is creeping in—higher fuel premiums, duty cuts, and a growing fiscal strain. Read on.

What explains Subway’s success in India

While Subway is shutting stores in the US, it’s doing the exact opposite in India. Isn’t that a contrast?

After crossing 1,000 outlets here in 2026, the sandwich giant is clearly riding India’s QSR boom, powered by rising incomes, younger consumers, urban lifestyles, and the delivery app habit.

India’s food market is no longer just about eating out, it’s about convenience, choice, and customisation. From healthy bites to family meals, QSRs are fitting neatly into changing lifestyles. Read more.

Smartphones get costlier in India

Thinking of upgrading your phone? You might want to pause. Prices across brands like Vivo, Oppo and Samsung have surged by as much as 40%. Why? A mix of global tensions and a sharp spike in memory chip costs, thanks to AI demand. Consumers are already tightening wallets amid rising fuel and daily expenses.

So, are smartphones becoming a “later” purchase? Many are now delaying upgrades, opting for repairs, or even second-hand devices. With no near-term price relief in sight, will demand bounce back? Read on.

Compliance isn’t enough for SEBI

Are independent directors truly independent, or just ticking boxes? The Securities and Exchange Board of India seems to think it’s time for a reset.

Amid governance concerns sparked by developments at HDFC Bank Ltd., SEBI is working on a new collaborative framework to strengthen the role and effectiveness of independent directors. The idea? Move beyond formal compliance to real oversight. The plan involves corporates, academia, and professional bodies, but will this finally empower directors to challenge management decisions more openly? Read more.

Is India’s IPO party over?

Remember when IPOs felt like easy money? Not anymore. For many retail investors, the thrill has faded into caution as listing gains shrink and volatility rises. From blockbuster returns earlier to muted, or even negative, debuts now, the shift is hard to ignore. Add global tensions and liquidity crunch, and suddenly IPOs don’t look like quick wins. Even big names are delaying listings.

So, what’s changed? The stock market is now rewarding fundamentals over frenzy. Is this a temporary slowdown, or a reality check for investors chasing “easy gains”? Read on.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

• $𝟥𝟩𝟧 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖺𝗆𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍 𝖶𝗂𝗉𝗋𝗈 𝖫𝗍𝖽. 𝗐𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝗉𝖺𝗒 𝗍𝗈 𝖺𝖼𝗊𝗎𝗂𝗋𝖾 𝖬𝗂𝗇𝖽𝗌𝗉𝗋𝗂𝗇𝗍, 𝖮𝗅𝖺𝗆 𝖦𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗉’𝗌 𝖨𝖳 𝖺𝗋𝗆, 𝖺𝗌 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝖺 𝖻𝗋𝗈𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋 $𝟣 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝖾𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍-𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗍𝗋𝖺𝖼𝗍 𝗐𝗂𝗍𝗁 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖲𝗂𝗇𝗀𝖺𝗉𝗈𝗋𝖾-𝖻𝖺𝗌𝖾𝖽 𝖿𝗈𝗈𝖽 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝖼𝖾𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗀𝗂𝖺𝗇𝗍.

• 𝟣𝟫–𝟤𝟢%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗃𝖾𝖼𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋-𝗈𝗇-𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 g𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 o𝗋𝖽𝖾𝗋 v𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 (𝖦𝖮𝖵) 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖲𝗐𝗂𝗀𝗀𝗒 𝖫𝗍𝖽. 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖤𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖫𝗍𝖽. 𝗂𝗇 𝖰𝟦 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟨, 𝗉𝖾𝗋 𝖤𝗅𝖺𝗋𝖺 𝖢𝖺𝗉𝗂𝗍𝖺𝗅, 𝖽𝖾𝗌𝗉𝗂𝗍𝖾 𝖫𝖯𝖦 𝖽𝗂𝗌𝗋𝗎𝗉𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌, 𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖻𝗒 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝗁𝗂𝖿𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖰𝖲𝖱𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗇𝗈𝗇-𝖫𝖯𝖦 𝗏𝖾𝗇𝗎𝖾𝗌.

• 𝟧𝟩.𝟧: 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝖲𝖾𝗋𝗏𝗂𝖼𝖾𝗌 𝖯𝖬𝖨 𝗂𝗇 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝖼𝗁 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨, 𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝟧𝟪.𝟣 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖾𝖻𝗋𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗅𝗈𝗐𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖾𝗑𝗉𝖺𝗇𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗂𝗇 𝟣𝟦 𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗌, 𝖺𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇 𝗐𝖺𝗋 𝖽𝖺𝗆𝗉𝖾𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝖽𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝖼 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗇𝖾𝗐 𝖻𝗎𝗌𝗂𝗇𝖾𝗌𝗌 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁.

• 𝟧,𝟦𝟦𝟥: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗌𝗁𝗈𝗐𝗌 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖱𝖺𝗇𝗏𝖾𝖾𝗋 𝖲𝗂𝗇𝗀𝗁’𝗌 𝖣𝗁𝗎𝗋𝖺𝗇𝖽𝗁𝖺𝗋 𝟤 𝖺𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺, 𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖺𝗌 𝗂𝗍 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗌𝗌𝖾𝖽 ₹𝟣,𝟤𝟣𝟧.𝟪𝟥 𝖼𝗋𝗈𝗋𝖾 𝖺𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖽𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝖼 𝖻𝗈𝗑 𝗈𝖿𝖿𝗂𝖼𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝟣𝟫 𝖽𝖺𝗒𝗌 𝗌𝗂𝗇𝖼𝖾 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗅𝖾𝖺𝗌𝖾.

• 𝟤𝟢𝟢: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗋𝗈𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝖬𝖾𝗍𝖺 𝖯𝗅𝖺𝗍𝖿𝗈𝗋𝗆𝗌 𝖨𝗇𝖼. 𝗂𝗌 𝖾𝗅𝗂𝗆𝗂𝗇𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝗍 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝖲𝗂𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗈𝗇 𝖵𝖺𝗅𝗅𝖾𝗒 𝗈𝖿𝖿𝗂𝖼𝖾, 𝖺𝗌 𝖢𝖤𝖮 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝗄 𝖹𝗎𝖼𝗄𝖾𝗋𝖻𝖾𝗋𝗀 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝖾𝗅𝖾𝗋𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗉𝖺𝗇𝗒’𝗌 𝖠𝖨 𝗉𝗎𝗌𝗁 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗌𝗍𝗋𝖾𝖺𝗆𝗅𝗂𝗇𝖾𝗌 𝗐𝗈𝗋𝗄𝖿𝗈𝗋𝖼𝖾.

• 𝟤𝟢𝟤: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗐𝗂𝖼𝗄𝖾𝗍𝗌 𝖼𝗅𝖺𝗂𝗆𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖡𝗁𝗎𝗏𝗇𝖾𝗌𝗁𝗐𝖺𝗋 𝖪𝗎𝗆𝖺𝗋 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝟣𝟫𝟤 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺𝗇 𝖯𝗋𝖾𝗆𝗂𝖾𝗋 𝖫𝖾𝖺𝗀𝗎𝖾 𝗆𝖺𝗍𝖼𝗁𝖾𝗌, 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖿𝗂𝗋𝗌𝗍 𝖿𝖺𝗌𝗍 𝖻𝗈𝗐𝗅𝖾𝗋 𝗍𝗈 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖼𝗁 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗆𝗂𝗅𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗇𝖾.

• 𝟣𝟫%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋-𝗈𝗇-𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁 𝗂𝗇 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝗆𝖾𝗋𝖼𝗂𝖺𝗅 𝗏𝖾𝗁𝗂𝖼𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗍𝖺𝗂𝗅 𝗏𝗈𝗅𝗎𝗆𝖾𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝖬𝖺𝗋𝖼𝗁 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨, 𝖽𝗋𝗂𝗏𝖾𝗇 𝖻𝗒 𝗀𝗈𝗏𝖾𝗋𝗇𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗂𝗇𝖿𝗋𝖺𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗎𝗋𝖾 𝗌𝗉𝖾𝗇𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀, 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖦𝖲𝖳 𝗋𝖾𝖽𝗎𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• Jamie Dimon warns of higher inflation, interest rates from Iran war

• Saudi Arabia’s grand vision slams into financial reality—and the Iran war

• How elite American forces are trained to survive behind enemy lines

• A downed airman, a mountain hideout and a high-risk rescue in Iran

• Have other Epstein crimes gone unpunished?

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

Dining out in the shadows of Jodhpur’s past

Rationalists would scoff but Jodhpur’s mesmerising Mehrangarh Fort may well have mythical powers. I have visited almost half-a-dozen times and still come away in awe of how it was built in a world without earthmovers and cranes. Rudyard Kipling’s father’s joke that it was the handiwork of giants seems the only plausible explanation. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

WHO comes to life

On this day in 1948, the World Health Organization was officially established as a specialised agency of the United Nations—marking a global commitment to public health and international cooperation.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.

The Reserve Bank of India is expected to hold rates on 8 April, with economists signalling a cautious shift in tone as the Iran war reshapes the macroeconomic outlook. A Mint poll shows unanimous expectations of a pause after 125 basis points of cuts in 2025, with the repo rate at 5.25%.

One basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.

Rising crude oil prices and a weakening rupee are pushing inflation higher while dampening growth. Estimates now peg India’s GDP growth rate at 6.5-7% and inflation closer to 4-4.7%, with upward risks.

Markets will closely watch the RBI’s revised projections for cues on policy direction. While the rupee remains under pressure, analysts expect the central bank to rely on regulatory tools, not rate hikes, to manage volatility.

Overall, the policy is likely to emphasise caution, signalling a wait-and-watch stance amid rising global uncertainty. Read more.

In today’s edition of Top of the Morning:

• A senior-level exodus at TCS amid AI churn

• Reliance’s silence on US ops is deafening

• Oil shock pushes India to accelerate EV shift

THE MAIN STUFF

An oil shock for global economy in 2026

Oil is back at the centre of the global economy. The price swings due to the Iran war have crushed hopes of a supply glut and darkened growth prospects. Costlier fuel is likely to hit demand, especially for discretionary items, slowing global trade.

For India, the GDP growth rate could fall from 6.5% at $85 oil to around 5% at $125, according to ICRA estimates. The WTO also expects weaker global GDP and trade growth. There is some relief in services, where India remains competitive, but AI-led disruption and prolonged high energy costs could reshape exports, hiring and overall economic momentum. Read more.

India’s staples stay steady for now

Indian consumers have some relief on the kitchen budget in the midst of the ongoing war. According to the government, the prices of key essentials are largely under control, despite worries over imported inflation and global disruptions. Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare said that officials are tracking 40 essential commodities daily, stepping in quickly with measures such as buffer stock releases and supply-side action when needed.

The latest data suggests those moves are working. As of 4 April, cereal prices were broadly flat from a year ago, with rice, wheat and atta all slightly lower. The takeaway: stable domestic supplies and timely intervention are helping shield households from sharper food inflation, at least for now. Read more.

A senior-level exodus at TCS

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. is losing its aura of stability. Layoffs, AI-led restructuring and weak variable pay have driven an unprecedented churn, with about 300 senior executives, or 16% of the top ranks, exiting in eight months. Once known for low attrition and lifetime employment, TCS now faces a trust deficit among long-serving leaders.

Analysts see this as a structural shift as AI reduces need for layered oversight. Slowing growth, client losses and cautious tech spending have added to the strain. Still, the exits raise concerns over execution strength, even as the IT bellwether navigates a rapidly evolving IT services market. Read more.

Reliance’s silence on US ops is deafening

A stray comment by Donald Trump has put Reliance Industries and India’s disclosure norms in the spotlight. Weeks after the US president mentioned a possible US investment by RIL, there is still no clarity from the company or stock exchanges.

Under current rules, RIL may not have been required to respond since its stock did not move enough to trigger disclosure, but experts say exchanges could still have stepped in and asked questions.

The episode shows how tricky third-party claims and global deals can be, and why India’s relatively new rumour verification framework may need sharper, clearer guidelines going forward. Read more.

Oil shock pushes India to accelerate EV shift

Rising oil risks are nudging India to move faster on electric mobility. As the Iran war disrupts supplies, the central government is reviving its ‘Go Electric’ campaign with a sharper focus on two-wheelers, which as a sector consumes the highest amount of fuel.

The Bureau of Energy Efficiency has begun talks with companies like Ather Energy, Ola Electric and Hero MotoCorp to boost awareness and adoption.

The idea is simple: cut oil dependence and shield the economy from price shocks. With EV costs nearing parity and sales rising, the push comes at a critical time, though concerns around charging and range still need to be addressed. Read more.

NEWS IN NUMBERS

• 𝟤𝟫.𝟩%: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗋𝗂𝗌𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝗊𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗅𝗒 𝗌𝖺𝗅𝖾𝗌 𝗋𝖾𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖧𝗈𝗇 𝖧𝖺𝗂 𝖯𝗋𝖾𝖼𝗂𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗎𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗒 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖰𝟣 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟨, 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖼𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀 $𝟨𝟨.𝟧 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝖺 𝗌𝗂𝗀𝗇 𝗈𝖿 𝗌𝗎𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗂𝗇𝖾𝖽 𝖠𝖨 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖽.

• ₹𝟣.𝟧 𝗍𝗋𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗀𝖾𝗍 𝖽𝖾𝖻𝗍 𝗅𝖾𝗏𝖾𝗅 𝖿𝗈𝗋 𝖭𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖧𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗐𝖺𝗒𝗌 𝖠𝗎𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗋𝗂𝗍𝗒 𝗈𝖿 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟩, 𝖺𝗌 𝗉𝖺𝗋𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝗂𝗍𝗌 𝗉𝗅𝖺𝗇 𝗍𝗈 𝖻𝖾𝖼𝗈𝗆𝖾 𝖽𝖾𝖻𝗍-𝖿𝗋𝖾𝖾 𝖻𝗒 𝟤𝟢𝟥𝟢 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁 𝗁𝗂𝗀𝗁𝖾𝗋 𝖻𝗎𝖽𝗀𝖾𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝖺𝗅𝗅𝗈𝖼𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖺𝗌𝗌𝖾𝗍 𝗆𝗈𝗇𝖾𝗍𝗂𝗌𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇.

• $𝟣𝟪 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖾𝗌𝗍𝗂𝗆𝖺𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖨𝖯𝖫 𝖾𝖼𝗈𝗌𝗒𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗆 𝗂𝗇 𝖥𝖸𝟤𝟧, 𝗇𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗅𝗒 𝗆𝖺𝗍𝖼𝗁𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗂𝗋𝖾 𝗌𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝗌 𝗂𝗇𝖽𝗎𝗌𝗍𝗋𝗒 𝖺𝗍 𝖺𝖻𝗈𝗎𝗍 $𝟣𝟫 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇, 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖪𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗄 𝖬𝗎𝗍𝗎𝖺𝗅 𝖥𝗎𝗇𝖽.

• $𝟤𝟫 𝖻𝗂𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗈𝗇: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗏𝖺𝗅𝗎𝖾 𝗈𝖿 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺’𝗌 𝗉𝗁𝖺𝗋𝗆𝖺 𝖾𝗑𝗉𝗈𝗋𝗍𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝟣𝟣 𝗆𝗈𝗇𝗍𝗁𝗌 𝗍𝗁𝗋𝗈𝗎𝗀𝗁 𝖥𝖾𝖻𝗋𝗎𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝟤𝟢𝟤𝟧, 𝗋𝖾𝖿𝗅𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝖺𝖻𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝟧% 𝗀𝗋𝗈𝗐𝗍𝗁 𝖿𝗋𝗈𝗆 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝖺𝗆𝖾 𝗉𝖾𝗋𝗂𝗈𝖽 𝖺 𝗒𝖾𝖺𝗋 𝖾𝖺𝗋𝗅𝗂𝖾𝗋.

• 𝟦𝟨,𝟨𝟧𝟢 𝗍𝗈𝗇𝗇𝖾𝗌: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝖫𝖯𝖦 𝖼𝖺𝗋𝗀𝗈 𝖼𝖺𝗋𝗋𝗂𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝖨𝗇𝖽𝗂𝖺-𝖿𝗅𝖺𝗀𝗀𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝖺𝗇𝗄𝖾𝗋 𝖦𝗋𝖾𝖾𝗇 𝖲𝖺𝗇𝗏𝗂, 𝗐𝗁𝗂𝖼𝗁 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝗌𝖺𝖿𝖾𝗅𝗒 𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗇𝗌𝗂𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖲𝗍𝗋𝖺𝗂𝗍 𝗈𝖿 𝖧𝗈𝗋𝗆𝗎𝗓 𝖺𝗆𝗂𝖽 𝗍𝖾𝗇𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖺𝖿𝖿𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗋𝖾𝗀𝗂𝗈𝗇𝖺𝗅 𝖾𝗇𝖾𝗋𝗀𝗒 𝗌𝗁𝗂𝗉𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗌.

• 𝟦,𝟨𝟨𝟢: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖺𝗎𝗑𝗂𝗅𝗂𝖺𝗋𝗒 𝗉𝗈𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝖺𝗉𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗏𝖾𝖽 𝖻𝗒 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝖤𝗅𝖾𝖼𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝖢𝗈𝗆𝗆𝗂𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗈𝗇 𝗂𝗇 𝖶𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖡𝖾𝗇𝗀𝖺𝗅, 𝗍𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗍𝗈𝗍𝖺𝗅 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝗉𝗈𝗅𝗅𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗌 𝗂𝗇 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗍𝖾 𝗍𝗈 𝟪𝟧,𝟥𝟩𝟫.

• 𝟥𝟩: 𝖳𝗁𝖾 𝗇𝗎𝗆𝖻𝖾𝗋 𝗈𝖿 𝖼𝗈𝗇𝗌𝖾𝖼𝗎𝗍𝗂𝗏𝖾 𝖽𝖺𝗒𝗌 𝖨𝗋𝖺𝗇’𝗌 𝗇𝖺𝗍𝗂𝗈𝗇𝗐𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝗂𝗇𝗍𝖾𝗋𝗇𝖾𝗍 𝖻𝗅𝖺𝖼𝗄𝗈𝗎𝗍 𝗁𝖺𝗌 𝗅𝖺𝗌𝗍𝖾𝖽 𝗌𝗈 𝖿𝖺𝗋, 𝗆𝖺𝗄𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗂𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝖾 𝗅𝗈𝗇𝗀𝖾𝗌𝗍 𝖼𝗈𝗎𝗇𝗍𝗋𝗒𝗐𝗂𝖽𝖾 𝗌𝗁𝗎𝗍𝖽𝗈𝗐𝗇 𝗈𝗇 𝗋𝖾𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽, 𝖺𝖼𝖼𝗈𝗋𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝖭𝖾𝗍𝖡𝗅𝗈𝖼𝗄𝗌.

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AROUND THE WORLD

• Trump’s claims of victory clash with Iran war’s gritty reality

• Microsoft is on a new AI journey after reworked OpenAI deal

• This engineer wants to make computer chips on the Moon

• Life and death aboard ships stranded near the Strait of Hormuz

• China creates new aviation mystery with offshore warning zones

CHART OF THE DAY

LOUNGE RECOMMENDS

What is GABA tea?

GABA is an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system, which is said to have a calming effect, and helpful in controlling stress and anxiety. Keeping the health claims aside, GABA tea seems to have its loyal fans, and is seen as a natural fit for the growing wellness beverage space. Read more.

WHAT THE FACT

‘Shell Shock’

The term shell shock was coined during the Battle of Loos in 1915, when doctors tried to explain the severe psychological collapse seen in soldiers exposed to relentless artillery bombardment.

It was initially believed that exploding shells physically damaged the nervous system, but many cases were what we would now recognise as trauma-related psychiatric injury, including mutism, fugue states, and symptoms later associated with PTSD. What began as a battlefield diagnosis became one of the earliest and most haunting terms for combat trauma.

Edited by Alokesh Bhattacharyya. Produced by Tushar Deep Singh.