-TheWire.in The most important concern is that of increasing public spending. There are really only two numbers to look out for in the forthcoming budget: how much did the government claim to have spent in 2020-21, and how much does it intend to spend in 2021-22. These two numbers will determine whether there is any real hope of sustained macroeconomic recovery in the near future, notwithstanding any claims of green shoots or revival...

-Livemint.com Over 1.8 million vehicles were sold across India last month, 10 percent higher than December 2019, vehicle registration data suggests. This is the first time during the pandemic that vehicle registration data has shown a year-on-year increase India’s economic recovery appears to have picked up pace over the past few weeks, led by the largest states of the country. All four high-frequency indicators of economic activity considered in Mint’s monthly state...

-The Hindu “Economic conditions continued to improve through November on the back of the uptick in agriculture and manufacturing,” RBI officials say in an article in the central bank’s monthly bulletin. There is now more evidence to show that the Indian economy “is pulling out of COVID-19’s deep abyss and is reflating” at a pace that beats most predictions, RBI officials, including Deputy Governor Michael Patra, said in an article in the...

-Livemint.com Data from the corporate affairs ministry show the setting up of new firms, which indicates investment intent, fell 19.5% in November to 13,453 from the preceding month The tally of newly incorporated companies, as well as electronic permits raised for transporting goods, declined on a sequential basis in November for the first time since April. This loss of momentum in economic recovery after the initial turbulence caused by the pandemic could worry...

Preliminary findings of a survey among 3,994 respondents from 11 states reveal that most vulnerable households and communities, such as SCs, STs, OBCs, PVTGs, slum dwellers, daily wage labourers, farmers, single women headed households, etc. continue to witness depressed incomes during September-October in comparison to their income levels prior to the lockdown. The face-to-face survey conducted by the Right to Food Campaign and Center for Equity Studies (instead of telephonic...