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Original analysis, derived from public data. India-anchored.

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Mumbai high-rise towers, some still under construction with cranes, against a hazy twilight sky

Markets

The Rupee Is Far Cheaper, but India's Trade Gap Is Still Widening

The rupee is about 15 percent cheaper in real terms than in November 2024, and exports jumped 26 percent in August. The trade gap is still wider, foreign portfolio money is still leaving, and the RBI has just hiked.

October 8, 2026

Children's hands reaching for cucumber slices from a shared lunch box on a wooden table, among fruit, juice bottles and biscuits

Health

WHO Bars Obesity Drugs for Children Under 10 as Cheaper Versions Reach India

WHO's new guideline rules out obesity drugs and surgery for children aged 0 to 9, on thin evidence. In India, generic semaglutide at Rs 1,300 to Rs 4,200 a month has removed much of the price barrier, leaving guidance as the main one.

October 8, 2026

A dense spread of purple 100 rupee notes, each printed with the words Reserve Bank of India

Business

After a Rate Hike, India's Repo Rate Is Still Below Its Own Inflation Forecast

The RBI raised the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.50 per cent. By the central bank's own projections, inflation still runs above that rate in the quarter now under way and the two after it.

October 7, 2026

Mumbai's high-rise skyline at twilight, with construction cranes and a telecom tower among the buildings

Business

India's Data-Sharing Rail Reaches 2.8 Billion Accounts, but Customers Have Linked Only 11 Percent

The Account Aggregator rail has 2.8 billion accounts enabled for sharing, and customers have linked 310 million. RBI's new interoperability rule goes after that gap, not the plumbing.

October 7, 2026

A mobile phone tower rising above trees and apartment blocks under a grey, cloudy sky in an Indian city

Business

Airtel Raised Postpaid Prices After Its Record Quarter of Postpaid Gains

Airtel's Rs 50 postpaid increase is worth at most about 1 percent of its India revenue. What it tests is whether its fastest-growing customers will pay more for a bundle they may never use.

October 7, 2026

A smartphone on a display stand in a bright electronics store

Technology

India Lost Its Cheapest Phones to the AI Memory Boom, and Almost Nothing Else

India's smartphone market fell 11.1% in Q2 2026. Strip out phones under US$100 and the rest of the market did not shrink at all. AI data centres are repricing one band of buyers, not everyone.

October 6, 2026

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