Economy / Market Snapshot -December 2025 – Bye Bye 2025, Welcome 2026!

General News

• Winter session of Parliament ends, both Houses adjourned sine die.
• Lok Sabha’s productivity was around 111% while Rajya Sabha recorded 121% productivity.
• Parliament Passes VB-G RAM G Bill Replacing MNREGA Amid Fierce Protests.
• Cabinet approves Atomic Energy Bill, paving way for private participation in nuclear power sector.
• Govt brings photos and personal data shared with AI under legal protection.
• Congress announces public agitation campaign to repeal abolition of MGNREGA.
• EC releases draft voter rolls for states underwent SIR exercise; lakhs of voters deleted.
• EC flags technical issue in 2002 rolls, halts hearings for ‘unmapped’ electors in West Bengal.
• Census 2027: Cabinet clears ₹11,718 crore budget, to be done in 2 phases between April’26 & February’27.
• India approves proposals worth nearly $8.8 billion to enhance capabilities of armed forces.
• DAC approves ₹79,000 crore defence procurement proposals.
• Defence Ministry inks ₹4,666 crore contracts for battle carbines, torpedoes.
• Rajnath Singh inaugurates 125 infra projects constructed by BRO in Ladakh.
• Centre fast-tracks strategic Great Nicobar airport to boost defence reach in Indian Ocean.
• J&K Army trains village defence guards to enhance operational readiness.
• President Murmu undertakes Submarine Sea Sortie from Karwar Harbour in Karnataka.
• Indian Navy and Brazilian Navy sign MoU in Brasilia to boost Scorpène-class maintenance cooperation.
• ISRO successfully launches US AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird Block-2 communication satellite.
• DRDO successfully completes user evaluation trials of Akash-NG missile system.
• India eases Chinese business visas, cuts approval time to under a month.
• Russian President Putin visits India; Vision 2030 document signed to boost economic ties, explore FTA.
• Russia delivers first batch of nuclear fuel for Kudankulam-3 nuclear plant.
• PM Modi meets Italy’s Deputy PM Antonio Tajani, discusses joint strategic action plan.
• Indian Ambassador Kwatra discusses AI, defence, trade with US lawmakers.
• PM Modi was on three-nation visit to Jordan, Ethiopia and Oman.
• India and UAE reaffirm commitment to economic corridor and global south.
• Jaishankar meets Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
• India and Saudi Arabia sign visa waiver agreement to facilitate official travel.
• India, Argentina sign Work Plan 2025-27 to boost bilateral agricultural research & technology exchange.
• President Murmu presents National Awards for empowerment of persons with disabilities 2025 in Delhi.
• President Murmu confers PM Rashtriya Bal Puraskar to 20 children.
• PM Modi visits West Bengal, launch ₹3,200-crore highway projects.
• PM Modi inaugurates Rashtriya Prerna Sthal on Vajpayee’s birth anniversary.
• PM Modi lays foundation stone of ₹10,601 crore fertiliser plant in Assam.
• Amit Shah-led committee approves ₹507 crore for community-based disaster risk reduction in 20 states.
• Delhi to pay ₹10,000 to construction workers affected by GRAP III curbs as air quality worsens.
• Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Raj Thackeray’s MNS announce alliance ahead of Mumbai civic polls.
• VV Rajesh elected as BJP’s first mayor of Thiruvananthapuram Corporation.
• Indian Ministry of Education organises the fourth Edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam (KTS) in Varanasi
• Diwali makes it to UNESCO list; joins Yoga, Durga Puja among intangible culture list.
• National Herald Case: Delhi court refuses to take cognisance of ED chargesheet against Gandhis.
• SC stays its own order on new Aravalli range definition; orders formation of new expert committee.
• Former bureaucrat Raj Kumar Goyal sworn in as Chief Information Commissioner.
• Former Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil passes away at 91 in Maharashtra.
• US launches $1 million Trump gold and platinum cards amid immigration crackdown.
• Trump administration changes US H-1B visa process, replaces lottery with wage and skill based selection.
• US President signs executive order to assert US space dominance and expand national capabilities.
• Operation Hawkeye: US launches airstrikes on Syria, calls it ‘declaration of vengeance’.
• EU leaders to loan €90 billion to Ukraine, but fail to agree to use frozen Russian assets.
• Zelensky proposes demilitarized zone in Eastern Ukraine as way to peace with Russia.
• French President meets Xi Jinping in Beijing for talks on Ukraine and trade.
• Bangladesh to hold 13th national parliamentary election on 12 February.
• Bangladesh’s former PM & BNP chairman Khaleda Zia passes away at 80.
• Asim Munir becomes Chief of Defence Forces in Pakistan.
• Thailand, Cambodia sign ceasefire agreement to halt fighting along their disputed border.
• Southeast Asia flood–landslide toll surges past 1,200; millions affected.
• IPL 2026: KKR buys Cameron Green for whopping ₹25.2 crore, RCB snap up Venkatesh Iyer for ₹7 crore.
• Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma become joint most expensive uncapped players.
• Deepti Sharma makes history, becomes first Indian cricketer to take 150 wickets in T20Is.
• India vs Sri Lanka Women’s T20I: India sweeps the series 5-0.
• India men clinch 5 match T20I series against South Africa 3-1.
• Pakistan beat India to clinch U19 Asia Cup title.
• India T20 World Cup Squad Shubman Gill dropped; Ishan, Rinku back in squad; Axar named vice-captain.
• Arjun Erigaisi and Koneru Humpy win bronze at 2025 FIDE World Rapid Championships.
• Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty Win Bronze at BWF World Tour Finals 2025.
• Lionel Messi’s GOAT tour covers Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kolkata.
• FIFA releases 2026 World Cup match schedule; final set for July 19 at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Business News

• Govt issues key guidelines for Export Promotion Mission, allocates ₹4,531 crore for market access
  support.
• Centre disburses ₹61,000 crore to states under capex loan scheme till mid-December.
• Govt clears Smart Sea Project under Indo-Canada R&D pact to develop 20-passenger electric boat.
• Sonowal flags off first indigenous hydrogen fuel-cell vessel in Varanasi.
• Railways rationalises fares from 26th; ordinary class up to 215 km unchanged.
• ADB approves $650 million loan to accelerate rooftop solar adoption in India.
• First-ever Investors’ Meet organized in Lakshadweep Islands Sees Rs 519 Crore Worth Investment Plans
• India, France seal treaty revamp giving Paris dividend relief, Delhi tax rights.
• India, Oman sign Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement to deepen economic engagement.
• India seals FTA with New Zealand, gets zero duty access for all exports.
• Government announces telecom reforms to strengthen security and ease compliance.
• DRDO hands over seven indigenous defence technologies to armed forces.
• Indian Army indigenises 91% of ammunition variants, cuts import dependence.
• RBI cuts repo rate 25 bps to 5.25%, keeps stance neutral as inflation eases; projects FY26 growth at 7.3%.
• AU Small Finance Bank receives DFS’ approval for increase in foreign investment limit from 49% to 74%.
• SEBI unveils PaRRVA to verify past returns, curb mis-selling and improve supervision.
• IRDAI clears risk-linked capital, new accounting norms for insurers.
• ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company, Meesho make their market debut among others.
• Fino Payments Bank becomes first to secure RBI nod for small finance bank conversion.
• RBI clears Paytm arm PPSL as payment aggregator for offline transactions.
• CAMSPay receives authorization from RBI to operate as a Payment Aggregator.
• Mswipe Technologies receives RBI payment aggregator licence for online and physical channels.
• BSE and India Post sign MoU to expand mutual fund access in rural India.
• Tata Advanced Systems, Lockheed Martin announce new defence MRO facility
• Tata Advanced Systems hands over first lot of WhAP 8×8 vehicles to Royal Moroccan Army.
• China’s trade surplus hits record high, crosses $1 trillion for first time.
• Saudi Arabia, Qatar sign high-speed rail deal to link capitals.
• US Federal Reserve cuts its benchmark interest rate by 25 bps.
• ECB leaves key interest rate unchanged at 2.15%.
• Bank of England has cut interest rates from 4% to 3.75%.
• IndiGo faces operational chaos due to a failure to update its pilot roster system.
• DGCA rolls back order on crew weekly rest requirements amid airline’s disruptions.
• Centre releases ₹109 crore for Vellore, Neyveli and Salem airports under UDAAN.
• India okays new airlines; Al Hind Air, FlyExpress, Shankh Air cleared for takeoff.
• Navi Mumbai International Airport starts commercial flight operations.
• Ram Mohan Naidu flags off the inaugural flight of the #DhruvNG helicopter in Bengaluru.
• Ford to use Renault technology, plants for cheaper European EVs to fend off Chinese rivals.
• Hyundai Motor India enters commercial mobility segment with ‘Prime Taxi’ range.
• Ola Electric Roadster X+ gets approval, first e-motorcycle with 4680 Bharat Cell battery.
• HD Hyundai picks Tamil Nadu’s Thoothukudi for multi-billion dollar shipyard project.
• EU agrees to permanently stop Russian gas imports and phase out Russian oil by 2027.
• Saudi Arabia cuts January oil prices to Asia to five-year low.
• Indian Oil buys first Colombian oil under Ecopetrol contract.
• Suzlon, Yanara sign 306 MW wind turbine deal in Rajasthan.
• Israel signs historic $35 billion gas agreement with Egypt.
• TCS acquires US-based salesforce consulting firm Coastal Cloud.
• US tech firm UST partners with Volkswagen’s Audi, takes majority stake in Italdesign.
• Trump clears way for Nvidia to sell powerful AI chips to China.
• Google to build three subsea cables in Papua New Guinea under Australia-funded defence pact.
• Cognizant opens largest Cyber Defense Center (CDC) in Bengaluru.
• India launches DHRUV64, first indigenously designed 1.0 GHz 64-bit microprocessor.
• Cognizant and Microsoft expand partnership to co-innovate and deliver AI solutions.
• HCL signs an agreement to purchase the Telco Solutions business from HPE for $160 million.
• Tata Electronics and Japan’s ROHM form strategic partnership for semiconductor manufacturing in India.
• Google rolls out Gemini 3 Deep Think to deliver advanced reasoning.
• Meta launches unified support hub with AI assistant for Facebook, Instagram.
• Google launches Disco, an AI-first browser to take on ChatGPT Atlas.
• Nokia, Airtel open up network APIs for developers to build new digital services.
• Vodafone Idea gets big relief as Cabinet freezes ₹87,695 crore AGR dues, payable FY32–FY41.
• Reliance relaunches 75-year-old SIL brand to enter packaged foods market.
• China clears Haier to dilute stake in India arm; Bharti–Warburg set to buy 49%.
• Trump unveils major drug price deals with Pharma giants, launches TrumpRx.gov to cut medicine costs.
• Patanjali Ayurved signs MoU with Russian govt to promote health & wellness.
• Elon Musk wins U.S. court appeal of $56 billion Tesla pay package.
• SoftBank completes $41 billion OpenAI investment, to hold 11% stake in ChatGPT maker.
• Warner Brothers likely to reject $108.4 billion Paramount bid, back Netflix in bidding war.
• Russia clamps down on Apple’s FaceTime as part of wider crackdown on calling apps.
• Australia begins enforcing world-first teen social media ban.
• ByteDance signs deal to sell over 80% of TikTok’s US assets to avoid ban.
• Dream11 returns with second-screen sports platform, targets $10 bn global revenue opportunity.
• Hyundai secures ICC premier partnership for six global cricket events.