Just read a piece about India sharply increasing gold and silver import duties to 15% while also capping tax-exempt bullion imports for jewellers. Traders say imports are already slowing significantly because current domestic prices don’t justify the higher costs yet.
The move comes as the government tries to protect the rupee and manage inflation pressures linked to Middle East tensions and rising energy costs.
What stood out to me is that despite weaker physical demand, analysts still expect overall gold consumption to remain strong through ETFs, digital gold, and investment demand.
India imported 721 tons of gold worth nearly $72 billion in FY26, making bullion one of the country’s biggest imports.
SBI is reportedly planning to hire around 4,000 employees specifically for loan collection and recovery work.
Makes me wonder whether banks are expecting some pressure to build up in retail or MSME lending going forward. Either way, it will be interesting to see PSU banks moving towards more dedicated recovery-focused teams instead of handling it through branches.
Came across some long-term data on state GDP shares and found this interesting. West Bengal used to contribute over 10% to India’s GDP in the 1960s, and today it’s closer to ~5.5–6%.
The economy has grown in absolute terms, but other states seem to have grown faster over time.
Edit: The 2000–01 value (8.2%) is accurate as per the source. There is a slight uptick in that period, though it isn’t very prominent in the chart; the long-term trend remains downward.
Today, I saw the rupee touch ₹95 against the US dollar, continuing a broader weakening trend. From what I understand, a few key factors seem to be driving this:
The RBI also appears to be intervening mainly to smooth volatility, rather than defend a specific level.
Gold prices dropped over 2% while oil prices continued rising as tensions keep shipping disrupted through the Strait of Hormuz. Higher oil prices increase inflation risks globally. For India, which imports most of its oil, sustained high crude prices could push fuel costs and inflation higher.