Global markets today: Nikkei 225, Kospi trade lower on US-China trade talk
Japan's Nikkei 225 dropped 0.61%, while the Topix index slipped 0.76%.
South Korea's Kospi shed 1.09%, and the Kosdaq, focused on smaller stocks, declined by 0.88%. Meanwhile, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 also ended lower, falling by 0.42%.
Investors are also looking ahead to the outcome of the U.S. Federal Reserve meeting scheduled for Wednesday, where a decision on a potential interest rate cut is expected.
(This is a developing story)
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
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Mint
2 hours ago
- Mint
Singapore's GIC sees AI opportunity for India as "raw ingredients" are in place
As the world scrambles to navigate the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI), GIC, which manages Singapore's foreign reserves, is a few steps ahead. It has already made AI a core pillar of its long-term investment strategy. In this journey, India stands out as a key growth engine, backed by its deep talent pool, accelerating digitisation, and early adoption of AI across sectors like healthcare, finance, and infrastructure. In an exclusive interview with Mint, GIC's group chief investment officer Bryan Yeo shared insights on the firm's AI investment thesis, the role of its flagship Bridge Forum, a platform connecting AI startups with global corporations, and how it is also deploying AI internally to improve investment decisions. Edited excerpts: Amid the prevailing geopolitical uncertainty, particularly around US-India trade ties, how is GIC positioning itself in India, especially in AI-related investments? We certainly acknowledge the rising geopolitical and structural uncertainties globally, including around the US-India tech and trade relationship. However, we are not overly concerned about near-term volatility. At GIC, we take a long-term, thematic approach to investing. Artificial intelligence is not just transformational, but foundational: a multi-decade theme. Read more: Unfazed by new players, GIC Re gears up to reclaim market share So, our focus remains on enduring opportunities like AI, where we see significant value creation, especially in a growing economy like India. While geopolitical risks are factored into our underwriting, they don't change our core thesis. Diversification is a key part of our strategy to ensure portfolio resilience, and India continues to be an important geography for us. Can you elaborate on how GIC is approaching AI investments in India? Where do you see the most immediate opportunities? Our framework divides the AI value chain into three categories: enablers, monetizers, and adopters. Enablers include companies building the infrastructure needed for AI, such as data centers and semiconductors. Monetizers are startups developing AI-native products and services. Adopters are large corporations integrating AI into their operations to drive productivity and transformation. Right now, we are most deeply invested in enablers across the globe, including global partnerships in data infrastructure. But in India, we are mostly invested in adopters through large- and mid-cap listed tech companies, as well as industrial and financial companies. We take a bottom-up approach with all our investments. While there is no dedicated fund for AI investments in India, we are invested in various layers of the Indian AI ecosystem through both public and private equity. What role does the Bridge Forum play in supporting your AI strategy in India? The Bridge Forum is GIC's flagship initiative to foster synergies between AI startups and large global enterprises. It's held biennially in Silicon Valley—the last edition was in May 2025—and we've made over 500 curated introductions between founders and 250+ C-suite leaders from 20 countries. In 2023, we brought the Bridge Forum to India for the first time. It was a CTO-focused edition, with participation from leading Indian startups such as Flipkart, Razorpay, Zepto, Postman, and global players like Microsoft, Snowflake, Databricks, and Stripe. We are hosting the next India edition in Mumbai later this year, where we aim to connect Indian tech founders with CIOs and CTOs of multinational corporations. The goal is to help Indian startups scale by selling into global markets, while enabling MNCs to adopt cutting-edge AI technologies — creating commercial value for all parties, including GIC. India still lags behind the US and China in AI innovation. What's your view on this gap, and how can India catch up? I see it as a journey. India, if compared with the US, is behind in terms of maturity of the startup ecosystem and growth. However, we are very optimistic about India's long-term potential. The growth of the ecosystem is supported by the large pool of strong engineering talent, a rapidly growing digital economy, and a supportive regulatory environment that India has. We hire many fresh graduates in our India offices and see first-hand the technical capabilities. While the AI startup ecosystem is still nascent, we believe the raw ingredients are in place. Our approach is to deploy patient capital and support proven, commercially viable startups as they scale. What's your view on India's government-led initiatives such as the IndiaAI Mission? Do state partnerships affect GIC's investment focus? The IndiaAI Mission and similar government initiatives can provide a strong push for AI adoption and digital infrastructure development. Government-backed projects can provide validation for how good a product or service is as they need certain markets to pilot and grow. GIC's focus, however, remains on commercial use cases. What matters to us is whether a company has a solid business model, strong management, and scalable technology. You've spoken about digitalization being a key driver. How significant is that for your India portfolio? Digitisation is a major value creator, especially in the financial sector, where we have been long-term investors. GIC's exposure to financial services in India is around $20 billion—this includes banks, NBFCs, and insurance companies across public and private markets. We've been invested here since the early 1990s. AI is now a key enabler in digitising financial operations—from customer onboarding and credit scoring to fraud detection and operational efficiency. Read more: Exclusive: Greenko founders buy Orix Corp.' 20% in Greenko Energy for $1.4 billion, announcement on Monday We also see strong potential for AI adoption in healthcare — in medical imaging analysis, drug development, and clinical safety testing. In supply chains and manufacturing, AI is being used for predictive routing, quality control, and process optimization. GIC is actively invested in Indian infrastructure, real estate, IT services and manufacturing. AI adoption in these sectors will only accelerate and open up new investment opportunities. How is GIC using AI internally? We are undergoing a multi-year transformation to become an AI-enabled organization ourselves. One standout project is the Virtual Investment Committee (IC) Member — a platform that ingests investment memos, analyses them in about an hour, and generates reports with probing questions, risk flags, and discussion prompts. This tool is already in use by our real estate and fixed income teams, and it draws on decades of deal data to simulate IC discussions and identify the blind spots. We are now developing varied AI personas — such as a risk manager — to further enhance decision-making. This kind of internal adoption helps us improve efficiency and analytical rigour. It is not about replacing people, but augmenting our capabilities with intelligent, agentic tools. And finally, given the AI-driven disruptions, how do you think companies, including those in India, should prepare? We see AI as both an opportunity and a risk. It will create immense value, but will also disrupt traditional business models. Companies that embrace AI early will likely gain a significant competitive edge, while those that resist may fall behind. In India, companies across sectors—from finance to pharma—need to proactively invest in AI adoption. At GIC, we will continue supporting businesses that are positioning themselves to thrive in this new environment. Read more: The spectre of AI is staring Indian IT in the face
The Hindu
3 hours ago
- The Hindu
Rupee falls 12 paise to close at 86.82 against U.S. dollar
The rupee depreciated 12 paise to close at 86.82 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday (July 29, 2025), weighed down by a jump in the U.S. dollar index and a surge in crude oil prices. Forex traders said month-end dollar demand from Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) and importers further pressurised the rupee. Moreover, investors remained on the sidelines ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan's monetary policy decision this week. At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 86.76 against the greenback and touched an intra-day low of 86.92 against the greenback. At the end of Tuesday's (July 29, 2025) trading session, the local unit settled at 86.82 (provisional), down 12 paise over its previous closing price. On Monday (July 28, 2025), the rupee had settled at 86.70 against the dollar. 'The Indian rupee fell by nearly 20 paise on a jump in the U.S. dollar index and a surge in crude oil prices. The U.S. dollar rallied on optimism over the U.S.-EU trade deal. However, a bounce back in the domestic equities after falling sharply over the past three sessions cushioned the downside,' said Anuj Choudhary – Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan. Forex traders said investors traded cautiously awaiting the outcome of India-U.S. trade talks ahead of the August 1 deadline. 'The lingering trade deal between India and the U.S. may continue to weigh on the rupee. Rising crude oil prices and foreign outflows may also pressurise the rupee. FIIs have offloaded stocks worth nearly ₹37,000 crore till date, the biggest selling since February 2025,' Mr. Choudhary added. If the discussions fail or get delayed, Indian exporters could face fresh pressure -- adding to the rupee's challenges. However, if a deal is reached, it could offer a much-needed breather. Until then, the uncertainty is likely to keep market participants cautious. 'Month-end dollar demand from OMCs and importers may further pressurise the rupee,' Mr. Choudhary said, adding, 'investors may remain cautious ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan's monetary policy decision this week.' Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose marginally by 0.13% to 98.75. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, went up by 0.46% to $70.36 per barrel in futures trade, as developing trade agreements eased tariff concerns and boosted future energy demands. In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 446.93 points, or 0.55%, to close at 81,337.95, while the Nifty rose 140.20 points, or 0.57%, to settle at 24,821.10. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹6,082.47 crore on a net basis on Monday (July 28, 2025), according to exchange data.
Mint
4 hours ago
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Understanding Your Business Loan EMI: A Key to Smart Financial Planning
Running a business involves smart planning, especially when it comes to managing finances. If you are considering a business loan for growth, it is helpful to understand your potential monthly payments. A business loan EMI calculator can assist with this. This tool offers a clear picture of your loan repayment schedule quickly. Read on to know more about the EMI calculator. An EMI, or Equated Monthly Instalment, is the fixed amount you pay every month towards your business loan. This payment covers both the principal (loan amount) and the interest. Instead of manually calculating this amount, you can simply use an online EMI calculator that does all the work for you. Let's see how a business loan EMI calculator works: Using a business loan EMI calculator is simple. You need to enter three basic details: The loan amount you plan to borrow The interest rate offered by the bank or lender The tenure of your loan in months or years Once you fill in these values, the calculator will display your monthly EMI, the total interest over the loan period, and the overall repayment amount. The EMI is calculated based on the loan amount, interest rate, and loan tenure. A longer tenure generally results in a lower EMI, but you may end up paying more interest. Conversely, a shorter tenure means higher EMI but potentially less interest in the long run. The calculator uses these values to provide a consistent monthly repayment amount throughout the loan term. Using a business loan EMI calculator can be beneficial for several reasons: Knowing your EMI in advance helps with planning monthly expenses. You can check whether the repayment aligns with your business cash flow without causing any financial pressure. If you are exploring loan offers from multiple lenders, you can use the calculator to compare them. You can input different interest rates or tenures to see which loan might be more manageable over time. Manual calculations can be time-consuming and prone to errors. A calculator provides accurate results quickly, aiding faster decision-making for loan applications. With clear EMI details, you can make informed decisions about adjusting the loan amount, tenure, or discussing interest rate with the lender. A business loan EMI calculator is a helpful tool for making informed borrowing decisions. It offers a clear understanding of how much you will repay each month and assists in selecting a loan plan that aligns with your business goals. Whether you are starting a new venture or expanding your current operations, this tool can contribute to more accurate and less stressful financial planning. Note to the Reader: This article is part of Mint's promotional consumer connect initiative and is independently created by the brand. Mint assumes no editorial responsibility for the content.
