Recent 6 months news in Economy

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has facilitated the first-ever commercial export of fresh mangoes from Jharkhand to the United Kingdom.

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has facilitated the first-ever sea shipment of botanical-infused ready-to-cook millet functional foods from Karnataka to New Zealand.

This initiative is expected to boost the agri-food exports of India, increase the income of farmers, and strengthen the agri-export ecosystem.

Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has released the Third Advance Estimates of Production of Major Agricultural Crops for the 2025–26 crop year. India’s total foodgrain production is estimated at a record 376.56 million tonnes (MT) for 2025–26, marking a 5.3% increase over the previous year’s production of 357.73 MT.

Rice production is estimated at a record 154.02 MT, while wheat production is projected to increase by 2.29% to reach 120.65 MT. Total oilseeds production is estimated at 43.05 MT, which includes 13.07 MT of groundnut, 12.59 MT of soyabean, and 13.76 MT of rapeseed and mustard.

The Taiwan Stock Exchange has surpassed India to become the world’s 5th largest stock market, with a market capitalization of $4.95 trillion compared to India’s $4.92 trillion.

The leading global equity markets, ranked by market capitalization, include the USA, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, and South Korea.

Japan has suspended all fresh mango imports from India for the 2026 season, following the identification of critical safety lapses at Indian export processing centres.

This suspension, issued by the Yokohama Plant Protection Association, halts 20 years of uninterrupted trade during the peak summer harvesting window.

According to the “World Economic Situation and Prospects 2026” report released by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA), the GDP growth of India for FY27 is revised down to 6.4% from the previous projection of 6.6%. The growth forecast for FY28 is also reduced to 6.6%.

According to a report by ICRA Ltd (formerly Investment Information and Credit Rating Agency of India Limited), the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of India for FY27 is revised down by 30 basis points (bps) to 6.2%, compared to its previous estimate of 6.5%. The GDP growth for FY26 is projected at 7.5%.

According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoC&I), the European Union (EU) has emerged as the third-largest seafood export market for India in FY26, after the USA and China. India’s seafood exports to the EU stood at $1.593 billion, contributing 18.94% of the total seafood export value and showing robust growth in both value and quantity.

According to the Mid-Year Outlook report released by Morgan Stanley, India’s real GDP growth forecast for FY27 has been revised upward by 50 basis points (bps) to 6.7%. The report projects the GDP growth for FY28 at 7%. Additionally, India’s inflation is expected to average 4.7% for FY27.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved an increase in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for 14 Kharif crops for the 2026-27 marketing season. The highest absolute increases in MSP compared to the previous year were for sunflower seeds (₹622 per quintal), cotton (₹557 per quintal), and sesamum (₹500 per quintal).

Among major food grains, the MSP for common paddy has been raised to ₹2,441 per quintal (an increase of ₹72), while the rate for Grade A paddy is set at ₹2,461 per quintal.

Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel has inaugurated the second edition of the “India Aircraft Leasing and Financing Summit” (IALFS 2.0) at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) in Gandhinagar.

The summit was organised through a collaboration between the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI). Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu presided over the summit. During the event, he highlighted that India is set to emerge as the third-largest civil aviation market in the world by 2035.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved the increase of Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) for sugarcane to ₹365 per quintal for the 2026-27 season. This is based on a 10.25% basic recovery rate and marks a 2.81% increase from the ₹355 per quintal rate of the 2025-26 season. The new price will be effective from October 2026.

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has introduced an updated Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to expedite the clearance of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposals. The new SOP identifies 40 sub-sectors, where FDI proposals from countries sharing land borders with India will be processed within 60 days.

The expedited timeline applies to investments from China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Afghanistan. These 40 sub-sectors are grouped into 6 primary segments: capital goods manufacturing, electronic capital goods and components, advanced battery components, polysilicon and wafers, rare earth processing, and rare earth permanent magnets.

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) has issued a notification to empower the Principal Bench of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT) in New Delhi to function as the National Appellate Authority for Advance Rulings (NAAAR). The notification will come into effect in April 2026, at which point the President of GSTAT will serve as the Presiding Officer for the NAAAR.

According to data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), India’s retail inflation increased marginally to 3.48% in April 2026 from 3.4% in March 2026.

During the month, rural inflation was recorded at 3.74% while urban inflation stood at 3.16%. Food inflation, as measured by the All India Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI), also saw a rise to 4.2% in April 2026 compared to 3.87% in March 2026.

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has facilitated the inaugural shipment of 20 metric tons (MT) of honey from the Baksa district of Assam to the USA.

The Ministry of Power has revised the “Make in India” procurement norms for High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) substations of the Line Commutated Converter (LCC) type.

The updated guidelines introduce a phased roadmap to achieve a minimum local content (MLC) of 60% by 2035, replacing the previous uniform 60% requirement. The MLC targets for HVDC LCC type substations under EPC or turnkey projects are set at 30% by FY28 and 40% by FY30. The targets will subsequently increase to 50% by FY32 and reach the final 60% by FY35.

According to a report by the SBI Research, the real GDP growth of India for FY27 is estimated at 6.6%. The report projects growth rates of 6.8% for Q1 and 6.6% for Q2, while the growth for the second half (H2) of the fiscal year is projected at 6.5%.

According to the 'India Forward- Emerging Perspectives' report jointly released by S&P Global Market Intelligence and CRISIL Ratings Ltd, the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of India for FY27 is revised downward by 50 basis points (bps) to 6.6%.

The report estimated the GDP growth for FY26 at 7.6% and the average annual growth between FY23 and FY26 at 7.3%. The retail inflation is projected to average 5.1% in FY26. The Current Account Deficit (CAD) is expected to expand from 0.8% of GDP in FY26 to 2.2% in FY27. Further, the debt-to-GDP ratio of India is forecasted to increase to 57.5% from 56.1% in FY26.

The Union Cabinet has approved the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) 5.0 with an outlay of ₹18,100 crore to assist Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in mitigating short-term liquidity stress arising from the crisis in West Asia. The scheme provides 100% credit guarantee coverage for MSMEs and 90% for non-MSMEs and the airline sector. Eligible borrowers include MSMEs and non-MSMEs with existing working capital limits and scheduled passenger airlines with outstanding credit facilities as of March 2026, provided their accounts are classified as standard.