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...

Wheat prices have stayed stubborny high in India, despite several steps by the government including an export ban and announcing open market prices. - Mint Official figures show that daily retail wheat flour (atta) prices as on 1 February were 22% higher year on year, while wholesale prices were 31% higher. Wheat prices have been inching up through 2022 after a heat wave cut production and pushed the government to ban exports...

The Economic Survey 2022-23, released today, has flagged threats to the Indian economy, even as it forecasts a GDP growth rate of 6.5% for the next fiscal year. The survey has said that the challenge of the Indian rupee depreciating remains. "However, the challenge of the depreciating rupee, although better performing than most other currencies, persists with the likelihood of further increases in policy rates by the US Fed". What...

-Business Standard External storms are morphing into hurricanes. India is in a relatively better position than many other countries, but this period of heightened volatility will require agility and clarity on policy Despite recovering from the pandemic, repeated global shocks have presented numerous challenges for India’s economy this year, driving inflation and evoking balance of payments (BoP) pressures. These shocks will likely persist for much longer.  In the US, even amidst signs of...

-Livemint.com Tackle deficiencies of capital mobilization, access to state provisions and women’s participation to boost FPCs across India. In 2017, the Indian government reaffirmed its commitment to reduce rural distress among nearly 93 million farming households through efforts to double farmers’ income. What has been remarkable is the emergence of farmer producer companies (FPCs) as a viable way of supporting this approach. The last two years have been tumultuous. Pro-market legislation introduced in...