Economic News

Startups and venture capital firms are urging the government to introduce tax parity between foreign and domestic funds to attract foreign investment in Indian AIFs. They also seek incentives for insurance companies, banks, and pension funds to invest in startups, and call for relaxed tax norms for employee stock ownership plans.

The Ministry of Finance announced that 1,646 food processing projects worth Rs 31,830 crore have been sanctioned under PM Kisan Sampada Yojana, expected to generate 13.42 lakh jobs and benefit 51.24 lakh farmers. The PMFME Yojana supports over 3.10 lakh SHGs and 1,14,388 individuals.

RBI economists predict faster economic growth in the second half of the fiscal year, driven by rural demand, public infrastructure investment, and easing inflation. However, food price stickiness and rising input costs in manufacturing pose risks. Private consumption, particularly through ecommerce, is anticipated to further stimulate the economy.

Technology, innovation and resource mobilisation will be the focus of the government as it plans high-speed corridors and access-controlled expressways across the length and breadth of the country to strengthen India’s national highways network and make it world-class, befitting a developed nation by 2047.

Calibrated import and export policies, along with incentives for domestic production, have maintained price stability benefiting consumers and farmers. Measures such as tweaking export policies for onions and removing procurement ceilings for pulses have successfully moderated CPI pulses inflation from 19.54% in January 2024 to 3.83% in December 2024.