Economy / Market Snapshot – February 2025

General News

• Cabinet approves revised Waqf Amendment Bill; to be tabled in the upcoming Parliament session.
• Lok Sabha adjourned till March 10 after uproar over JPC report on Waqf Bill; registers 112% productivity.
• 1Lok Sabha forms 31-member Select Committee to examine new Income Tax Bill.
• PM Modi holds bilateral talks with US President; trade, tariffs and visas dominate Trump-Modi talks.
• PM holds delegation-level talks with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
• PM Modi co-chairs AI Action Summit in Paris, hold talks with President Macron.
• PM Modi holds delegation-level talks with Amir of Qatar; India, Qatar ink MoUs to strengthen economic ties
• Jaishankar meets Chinese FM Wang Yi on sidelines of G20 Foreign Ministers meeting in Johannesburg.
• Jaishankar meets Ukrainian counterpart on sidelines of Munich Security Conference.
• India, U.S. ink pact for cooperation in cybercrime investigations.
• EAM Jaishankar, Omani counterpart discuss cooperation in trade, investment, energy security.
• Over 3,232 km of India-Bangladesh Border Fenced, over 800 km border yet to be fenced: MHA.
• Defence Ministry signs contracts worth ₹10,147 crore for Pinaka ammunition.
• MoD inks ₹624-crore contract with BEL for 28 key systems for Indian Navy.
• India and Pakistan Armies agree to uphold February 2021 ceasefire agreement.
• India-Maldives hold joint military exercise ‘Ekuverin’.
• India’s Army chief discusses security, tech, and training in France.
• ISRO achieves milestone with development of 10-tonne solid propellant mixer.
• US military plane flies illegal immigrants back to India.
• PM Modi releases 19th instalment of PM-KISAN scheme in Bihar’s Bhagalpur.
• Centre approves ₹1,554 crore additional assistance to 5 states affected by natural calamities.
• Govt introduces Ayush Visa for foreigners with up to 5-year extension.
• Rekha Gupta takes oath as Delhi CM, bringing BJP back to power after 27 years.
• Delhi govt to implement Ayushman Bharat with ₹5 lakh top-up.
• Former CM Atishi chosen as Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly.
• AAP’s Delhi liquor policy led to ₹2,002 crore revenue loss: CAG report.
• Manipur CM N. Biren Singh resigns amid political uncertainty.
• Telangana’s caste survey reveals BCs at 56.33%; sets blueprint for data-driven governance.
• Centre sanctions ₹529.50 crore loan for Wayanad rehabilitation, to be utilised by Mar 31.
• Maharashtra issues resolution to use Marathi language in all government offices.
• Nitish Kumar expands Bihar cabinet: 7 new BJP MLAs sworn in as ministers ahead of state elections.
• Telangana Tunnel Collapse: Survival chances diminish as rescue authorities struggle to reach trapped workers.
• Madan Rathore re-elected unopposed as BJP’s Rajasthan unit chief.
• Gyanesh Kumar elevated as Chief Election Commissioner; senior IAS officer Vivek Joshi is new EC.
• Former RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das Appointed Principal Secretary-2 to PM Modi.
• Mahakumbh 2025: 66 crore 21 lakh devotees took holy dip at the Triveni Sangam during the 45-day long Hindu religious event.
• Aero India 2025 showcases India-U.S. ties, Indo-Pacific security.
• 1984 anti-Sikh riots: Delhi court awards second life term to ex-Congress leader Sajjan Kumar.
• Centre expands Aadhaar authentication to boost good governance, ease of living.
• Kerala, TN, Karnataka, Telangana adopt joint resolution against UGC draft rules, demand withdrawal.
• Over 29,500 registered drones in India with Delhi having the maximum number at 4,882: DGCA.
• Hamas releases civilian hostages held in Gaza in exchange of arbitrarily detained Palestinians.
• Israel sends negotiators to Cairo to extend phase-one of Gaza ceasefire.
• Ukrainian President Zelensky holds fiery meeting with President Trump in US.
• Zelensky calls for creation of armed forces of Europe amid Ukraine conflict.
• Foreign leaders arrive in Kyiv to mark third anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
• Top Russian, US officials meet for talks on Ukraine war without Kyiv.
• UN adopts resolution demanding Russia immediately withdraw troops from Ukraine.
• President Trump signs executive order for withdrawing USA from United Nations Human Rights Council.
• DOGE cancels over $750 million in international aid, includes $21 million aimed at boosting voter turnout in India.
• Costa Rica, Honduras join Panama as stopovers for foreign deportees.
• Kash Patel sworn in as 9th FBI director, takes oath on Bhagavad Gita.
• Trump floats $5 million ‘gold card’ as a route to US citizenship.
• Ousted Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina vows political comeback.
• Bangladesh student group that led uprising to launch new political party.
• Friedrich Merz set to become Germany’s chancellor as Conservative alliance leads federal election.
• Japan, Philippines agree to deepen defence ties amid mutual alarm over Chinese aggression.
• Sachin Tendulkar honoured with Col. C.K. Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award by BCCI.
• Jasprit Bumrah & Smriti Mandhana Named Best International Cricketers of 2023-24.
• India wins 2nd straight U19 Women’s T20 World Cup.
• India wins 5 match T20I series against England 4-1.
• Jasprit Bumrah ruled out of ICC Champions Trophy 2025; Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy added in squad.
• England, Pakistan knocked out of the Champions Trophy.
• Ranji Trophy: Final between Vidarbha and Kerala being played at Nagpur..
• WPL 2025: Delhi Capitals storms to the top of the points table.

Business News

• GDP grows at 6.2% in Q3 2024-25, up from 5.6% in Q2.
• GST revenue records ₹1.95 lakh crore collection in January.
• Services PMI loses growth momentum as it drops to 2-year low of 56.5 in January.
• RBI cuts repo rate by 25 basis points to 6.25%, a first in 5 years.
• RBI projects India’s GDP growth at 6.7% for FY26; fiscal Deficit for FY26 estimated at 4.4% of GDP.
• 98.15% of ₹2,000 notes returned, only ₹6,577 crore still with public: RBI.
• EPFO retains 8.25% interest rate on employees’ PF deposits for 2024-25.
• Govt allows Aadhaar-enabled face authentication in private entities’ mobile apps.
• Govt to focus on 20 countries, six focus sectors to boost exports.
• e-NAM expands with 10 new commodities, enhancing agricultural trade opportunities.
• Govt acts tough on OTT, social media platforms, asked to adhere to laws of the land.
• Govt classifies barytes, felspar, mica, quartz as major minerals.
• PM virtually inaugurates India Energy Week 2025, says India first nation to meet goals of agreements of Paris G20.
• Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Yogi Adityanath unveil ₹1,028 crore infra projects in UP.
• Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw meets OpenAI’s Sam Altman, discuss collaboration.
• Railways operated more than 16,000 trains operated during Maha Kumbh.
• EU, Ministry of Textiles launch 7 projects in 9 states to boost industry.
• India, Argentina agree to strengthen cooperation in Lithium exploration and mining.
• Karnataka labour minister seeks transparency, consistent hiring policies in IT industry.
• Bengal business summit ends with ₹4.40 lakh crore investment proposals.
• Invest Karnataka 2025 kicks off: Karnataka’s global meet draws 19 nations.
• Invest Kerala Summit: State targets 15,000 startups and 1 lakh jobs by 2026.
• PM Modi inaugurates Advantage Assam 2.0 Summit, says state has become a hub of start-ups.
• India sets up EFTA (European Free Trade Association) desk to promote trade, investment, business facilitation.
• UK minister Jonathan Reynolds arrives in India to restart Free Trade Agreement talks.
• India, Qatar announce strategic partnership, $10 billion investment.
• RBI bars New India Co-operative Bank from doing fresh business, withdrawal of funds.
• Hexaware Technologies makes muted D-Street debut; shares list at 5% premium over issue price.
• SBI MF launches ₹250 SIPs under ‘JanNivesh’ scheme.
• PM Modi addresses AI Action Summit, says India ready to share expertise.
• Donald Trump imposes 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico, 10% on China.
• Canada announces 25% retaliatory tariffs on imports from America.
• Trump announces reciprocal tariffs on US trading partners.
• China hits back with targeted tariffs after Trump imposes new levies.
• Pakistan-Bangladesh resume direct trade since 1971 separation.
• Zelenskyy leaves White House without signing minerals deal after Oval Office blowup.
• Project Waterworth: Meta announces world’s longest subsea cable project spanning five continents.
• RBI clears sale of Tata Communications’ payment arm to Australian fintech Findi.
• BSNL, MTNL get a boost for 4G; cabinet approves ₹6,000 crore more.
• Airtel partners with Apple to offer exclusive streaming, music services to its wi-fi, postpaid customers.
• Vodafone Idea begins 5G trials in Mumbai ahead of Holi launch
• Nokia bags Airtel contract to expand 5G Fixed Wireless Access devices for high-speed internet.
• Elon Musk debuts Grok-3 AI Chatbot to rival OpenAI, DeepSeek.
• Nissan to reject Honda’s acquisition offer; Foxconn signals interest in buying Renault’s stake in Nissan.
• Honda Cars India achieves E20 petrol compliance certification for all models.
• EV giant Ola Electric enters Motorcycle market with Roadster X series.
• Air India enters into codeshare partnership with Virgin Australia and Lufthansa Group.
• Bharat Forge teams up with AMD for Made-in-India high performance servers.
• Tata Group to invest ₹500 crore in JV with Malabar Cements for boat-building venture.
• Star Cement inks MoU with Assam for ₹3,200 crore plant.
• JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar merge to form new platform JioHotstar, announce new subscription plans.
• Jio launches India’s first operating system for smart TV – JioTele OS.
• BP inks pact with EIL to collaborate on oil, gas and refining activities.
• US emerges as 5th top oil seller to India in January, Russia at No.1.
• India beats China to become second largest diamond market; Chinese luxury segment loses shine.
• India and Thailand sign MoUs to boost gem and jewellery exports.
• PhonePe introduces device tokenisation for debit, credit card payments.
• Google Pay begins charging fee for bill payments via credit, debit cards.
• Reliance Consumer Products acquires Velvette to revive iconic FMCG brand.
• Amul to invest ₹600 crore to set up dairy facility with world’s largest curd plant in Kolkata.
• ₹6,606 crore GainBitcoin fraud: CBI seizes crypto currency worth ₹23.94 crore.
• TikTok returns to Apple, Google App stores in US after Trump delays ban.
• Amazon to shut down its Android app store, Coins programme by August 2025.
• WhatsApp bans over 8 million Indian accounts in a month.
• Finance Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey appointed as new SEBI Chairman.
• Govt extends Chief Economic Adviser Nageswaran’s term until March 2027.
• Tata Sons boss N Chandrasekaran appointed as Ratan Tata Endowment Foundation Chairman.

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