Ongoing geopolitical tensions not to put significant pressure on rupee, inflation: S&P
New Delhi, Jun 24 (PTI) The ongoing geopolitical tensions are unlikely to put a "significant pressure" on the rupee or inflation as global energy prices are lower than last year, which will limit current account outflows and domestic energy price pressures, S&P Global Ratings said on Tuesday.
S&P Global Ratings Economist Vishrut Rana said a key mitigating factor of India is that energy prices are still lower than last year -- Brent crude oil traded at roughly USD 85/barrel a year ago and current prices are still lower.
"This will help contain both current account outflows and domestic energy price pressures -- while energy prices may rise moderately, the path of food prices will have a higher impact on inflation. Overall, we do not expect significant pressure on the Indian rupee or inflation," Rana told PTI.
Rates of the benchmark Brent crude fell to around USD 69 a barrel after US President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Iran have agreed to a "complete and total ceasefire".
Israel and Iran have been at war over the past 12 days with Israeli military strikes, followed by counterstrikes by Iran. US, too, joined the war with military strikes on Iran's three most critical nuclear facilities.
India imports more than 85 per cent of its crude oil and roughly half of its natural gas requirement. More than 40 per cent of the oil imports and half of gas imports come from the Middle East.
S&P estimates inflation to average 4 per cent in 2025, down from 4.6 per cent in 2024.
It forecasts rupee to weaken to 87.5 a dollar by the end of 2025, from 86.6 at 2024-end.
The Indian rupee opened at ₹ 86.13 to a dollar in morning trade on Tuesday, up 65 paise over Monday's close.
Rana also said heightened risk-aversion in global financial markets due to ongoing geopolitical tensions may cause INR volatility.
In addition, higher oil prices may lead to higher current account outflows for India and contribute to a weaker Indian rupee.
"However, a key mitigating factor is that energy prices are still lower than last year," Rana added.
To a query on the impact of conflict on GDP growth, Rana said the impact on growth prospects for the world is modest for now, but prolonged geopolitical tensions are a risk to growth.
On Tuesday, S&P Global Ratings raised India's GDP forecast for the current fiscal year to 6.5 per cent assuming a normal monsoon, lower crude oil prices, and monetary easing.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
30 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Corporate India has a caste problem. And it is time to talk about it
On June 23, the Indian aviation industry was again in the news, however, for all the wrong reasons. Reports started coming in of an IndiGo pilot trainee alleging caste based discrimination by his bosses. An FIR has been filed, and a police investigation is underway. Meanwhile, IndiGo has strongly refuted such claims, saying it stands for 'zero-tolerance policy towards any form of discrimination'. The investigation will take its own course, but it opens the avenue to talk about a much larger issue: Corporate India's caste problem. Post the 1990s, when the private sector started to expand immensely owing to policy changes, it was primarily the Savarna entrepreneurs who benefited greatly. Among them, the rise of Bania capital within India Inc has been mapped extensively. However, this has been perceived as an organic development, born out of inherent merit, developed in some sort of 'casteless vacuum'. However, the material realities of labour and capital are intrinsically caste-coded. The overrepresentation of communities in some sectors of the economy is directly and (often) proportionally related to the absence of other communities in the same. Babasaheb Ambedkar had analysed caste as not just a system of division of labour, but rather a division of labourers. Within corporate India, this division and categorisation of labourers is starkly visible. In the last decade or so, even as corporate culture internationally veered towards 'Diversity, Equity, Inclusion', also known as DEI practices, India Inc has remained caste-blind. Not just within corporate structures and the industry, but even within allied ecosystems — from B-schools to market commentators, journalists, and podcasters — there has been no serious or critical conversation on caste as a key variable in business management and planning. This is very surprising because most of the real economy is based on kinship networks and 'contacts' which often overlap with political funding and are ultimately mediated through caste connections. In the absence of any meaningful discourse on these intersections, the corporate understanding of Indian market realities remains stunted, myopic and unsuited for Indian needs, as it frequently over-fixates on some socio-cultural segments while invisibilising large swathes. India's commerce minister, Piyush Goyal's recent comments on the lopsided nature of startup/business priorities of corporate India also seem to suggest the same. The minister's comments stirred up a debate. Most business leaders responded with a litany of complaints against the government itself and lamented the business challenges they faced. While there is certainly a lot of validity in their collective grievance, very few actually acknowledged that there was a 'priority gap'. Fewer still tried to analyse why the 'gaze' of India Inc remains limited only to a very small range of business models, often urban-situated and catering usually to high-net-worth individuals. Even as every B-school teaches its MBAs to 'think outside the box' and all industry captains talk ad nauseum about innovation — it seems that in the last 30 years no one has realistically found a way to innovatively create value for large sections of Indian masses outside those wealthy urban enclaves (almost always populated by other wealthy Savarnas like themselves). It may well be because of the lack of diversity in their leadership, in the one-dimensional, non-diverse pedagogy (in spaces of training) that celebrates itself as ground-breaking and inventive. India Inc, despite three decades of neoliberalisation, remains a social formation that is run by Savarnas, for other Savarnas and trained by Savarnas. This total ubiquity of Savarna-ness renders corporate culture in its own shape, where the omnipresent becomes the invisible. As per David Foster Wallace's allegory about the fish swimming in water does not 'see' the water, the caste stratified codes of corporate India become invisible to Savarnas within it. But almost immediately, it manifests to folks who come from different socio-cultural realities, often in hostile and contradictory ways. So much so that for many marginalised people, to survive and move ahead in India Inc, they have to internalise and validate Savarna idioms of business success. Whether it is the casteist ad campaign run by Zomato, Narayan Murthy's work-life balance ideas or Swiggy's decision for veg-only fleets (rescinded upon backlash) — that is how you emerge with statements or decisions. And on occasion, where friction within teams emerges, inherent, embedded caste prejudices come to the fore in ways that are traumatic for caste-marginalised people but may seem totally normal or par-for-the-course to other Savarnas. It remains to be seen whether this is the case in the aforementioned IndiGo matter. Irrespective of how the matter unfolds, these types of flashpoints remain an unspoken reality for the minority caste-marginalised professionals working in top positions. In most cases, one stays silent and compliant, and internalises the bias as the structure itself is coded in the vocabulary of the dominant caste. At a time when a strong online campaign is emerging against caste-based reservation among educated, elite Savarnas, it is perhaps time for India Inc to reflect upon itself and give shape to the unfulfilled promise of diversity and consider reservations in the private sector as an innovative, bold and progressive step in bridging market reforms, nation-building mandates as well as dignity to all working professionals. The writer is Associate Dean at Woxsen University, Hyderabad. His latest book is Meet the Savarnas: Indian Millennials Whose Mediocrity Broke Everything
Hindustan Times
39 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
Tata Harrier EV scores 5 stars in Bharat NCAP crash test
The score for adult occupant protection for the Harrier EV is 32 out of 32, whereas for the child occupant protection is 45 out of 49. Check Offers Bharat NCAP has crash-tested the Tata Harrier EV. It has scored 5 stars in the Adult Occupant Protection as well as Child Occupant Protection. The crash test rating is applicable to all the variants of the Harrier EV. Tata Motors recently announced the prices of the rear-wheel drive variants of the Harrier EV in the Indian market. The Harrier EV scored a perfect 32 out of 32 for the adult occupant protection and 45 out of 49 in child occupant protection. In the frontal offset deformable barrier test and the side movable deformable barrier test, it scored 16 out of 16. For the child occupant protection, the dynamic score and CRS installation store were perfect, 24 out of 24 and 12 out of 12. In the vehicle assessment score, the Harrier EV scored 9 out of 13. Also Read : Tata Harrier EV vs Mahindra XEV 9e: Price comparison What is the price of the Tata Harrier EV? The pricing details for the Tata Harrier EV rear wheel drive (RWD) models have been revealed. The new flagship electric SUV from Tata Motors begins at ₹ 21.49 lakh, reaching a maximum price of ₹ 27.49 lakh for the RWD variants. All prices are ex-showroom. When can you book the Tata Harrier EV? The Harrier EV was officially launched on June 3, 2025, and bookings for the vehicle will start on July 2. The Tata Harrier EV features a 14.5-inch touchscreen, supports wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and offers two battery packs (65 kWh and 75 kWh). It scored 5 stars in crash tests, with prices starting at ₹ 21.49 lakh. Bookings open on July 2, 2025. What are the features of the Tata Harrier EV? The Harrier EV features an upgraded 14.5-inch Samsung Neo QLED touchscreen infotainment system, complemented by a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster. This infotainment system supports wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and the instrument cluster is capable of displaying maps for enhanced convenience. Additional significant updates within the cabin consist of a new rotary dial that allows the selection of six distinct terrain modes: Normal, Sand, Mud Ruts, Snow/Grass, Rock Crawl, and Custom. Also Read : Tata Harrier EV at Quad Day: Capability without drama and technology with real purpose What are the specifications of the Tata Harrier EV? The Tata Harrier EV is available with two battery pack options and two motor configuration choices. The lower variants of the Harrier EV utilize a 65 kWh battery pack, while the higher trim levels are equipped with a 75 kWh battery pack. This battery pack option includes two motor configurations: RWD and QWD. The QWD variants generate 391 bhp and 504 Nm of torque, whereas the performance metrics for the RWD variants have yet to be determined. The range for the RWD variants equipped with the 75 kWh battery pack is 627 km (MIDC), with a real-world range of 480 to 505 km according to C75. Check out Upcoming EV Cars in India. First Published Date: 24 Jun 2025, 12:46 PM IST
Business Standard
39 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Nifty trades above 25,250; metal shares rally for 3rd day
The domestic equity indices traded with significant gains in the early afternoon trade, tracking a sharp rally in Asian markets after US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire agreement between Iran and Israel. The easing of geopolitical tensions led to a pullback in global crude oil prices, providing further support to domestic equities. The Nifty traded above the 25,250 mark. Metal shares witnessed buying demand for the third consecutive trading session. At 12:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, zoomed 996.28 points or 1.22% to 82,893.77. The Nifty 50 index rallied 309.25 points or 1.24% to 25,281.45. In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.95% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 1.12%. The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,869 shares rose and 946 shares fell. A total of 175 shares were unchanged. Derivatives: The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, declined 2.54% to 13.69. The Nifty 26 Jun 2025 futures were trading at 25,313.80, at a premium of 32.35 points as compared with the spot at 25,281.45. The Nifty option chain for the 26 June 2025 expiry showed a maximum call OI of 149.5 lakh contracts at the 26,000 strike price. Maximum put OI of 133 lakh contracts was seen at the 25,000 strike price. Buzzing Index: The Nifty Metal index jumped 1.97% to 9,379.65. The index rallied 3.75% in three consecutive trading sessions. Steel Authority of India (up 4.55%), Welspun Corp (up 3.16%), NMDC (up 3.15%), Hindustan Copper (up 3.1%), Tata Steel (up 2.89%), Jindal Steel & Power (up 2.73%), Adani Enterprises (up 2.40%), Lloyds Metals & Energy (up 2.39%), JSW Steel (up 2.27%) and Hindalco Industries (up 1.68%) advanced. Stocks in Spotlight: Ugro Capital jumped 4.75% after the company announced the elevation of Anuj Pandey as its new chief executive officer, effective 1 July 2025. Glenmark Pharmaceuticals added 0.37%. The company announced that it had launched TEVIMBRA (tislelizumab) in India after receiving approval from the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO). Metro Brands rose 0.61%. The company stated that it has entered into a strategic partnership with British footwear brand 'Clarks, marking the brands re-entry into the Indian market.
