KEY TRENDS   • Oxfam India's 2023 India Supplement report on poverty and inequality in India reveals that the gap between the rich and the poor is widening. Following the pandemic in 2019, the bottom 50 per cent of the population have continued to see their wealth chipped away. By 2020, their income share was estimated to have fallen to only 13 per cent of the national income and have less than 3...

Livemint.com The automobile industry witnessed a strong start to 2023 with retail sales across segments, including passenger and commercial vehicles, and three-wheelers, surpassing the 2020 pre-pandemic levels in January. However, declining income of rural households continued to impact sentiments of two-wheeler buyers, resulting in 13% lower sales during January from a year ago, vehicle registration data compiled by Federation of Automobile Dealers’ Association (Fada) showed. Vehicle registration was up 14% in the...

-The Telegraph Alertness among public and preparedness by healthcare institutions is always good, says Organised Medicine Academic Guild’s secretary-general New Delhi: A body of medics has called on fellow doctors and government agencies to acknowledge India’s largely safe status against existing coronavirus variants and avoid “scaremongering” lest the public disregard caution if and when a “real wolf” arrives. The Organised Medicine Academic Guild (Omag), a body of 15 professional medical Associations with a...

-The Hindu Business Line Retailers’ Association of India pointed out that the impact of inflationary challenges on the discretionary segment was visible Retailers posted a 15 per cent growth in sales in November over pre-pandemic levels. According to the latest edition of Retail Business Survey released by the Retailers’ Association of India (RAI), this growth was led by segments such as footwear, sports goods and jewellery. The industry body, however, pointed out...

-The Hindu Business Line Players said they have begun witnessing good demand for winter products Apparel and footwear companies said they are closely monitoring inflationary trends with some even looking at rolling back price hikes on existing range or upcoming season offerings, especially at the mass-end. Players also said they have begun witnessing strong demand for winter season-related products. This comes at a time when there has been some softening in raw material...