FT Alphaville » India

An Indian flash crash

David Keohane — Fri, 05 Oct 2012 08:55:16 +0000

See if you can spot it (chart of the Nifty from Google Finance):

Reserve Bank of India: we’re holding rates, YOU sort it out!

David Keohane — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 08:35:34 +0000

Right, we’ve had a few looks at India over the last while — at its crumbling rupee, widely reported deficits and stumbling, ineffective political system. Heck, Standards & Poor’s even got in on the act and prompted us to ask if the Brics are about to become the Brcs.

That all makes Monday’s decision to keep rates on hold by the Reserve Bank of India a bit more suprising than it might otherwise have been. From the RBI’s statement (our emphasis):

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Are the Brics going to lose an I?

Masa Serdarevic — Mon, 11 Jun 2012 13:04:03 +0000

Slowing GDP growth and political roadblocks to economic policymaking could put India at risk of losing its investment-grade rating.

That’s the Standard & Poor’s latest warning on India, coming just two months after it revised the country’s BBB- rating (one notch above junk) from stable to negative as GDP growth fell to 5.1 per cent in the first quarter. Are the Brics about to become the Brcs?

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India: a sliding rupee in a frozen system

David Keohane — Wed, 23 May 2012 14:30:03 +0000

“Bas! Bas!” is surely a familiar cry in the Reserve Bank of India right now as India’s rupee continues to plummet. So far, it has dropped 15 per cent against the US dollar since the start of February, hitting multiple new record lows on its way.

The central bank has attempted to get inventive in response but nothing seems to be stopping the slide (metaphorically speaking, in the chart, the higher it gets the weaker the rupee):

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India’s economic monsoon

Izabella Kaminska — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 13:43:23 +0000

Here’s an eye-opening chart if ever there was one (H/T Sean Corrigan at Diapason):

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Ban on Indian cotton exports

Joseph Cotterill — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 21:01:15 +0000

India, the world’s second-largest cotton producer, has banned exports of the commodity with immediate effect, boosting global prices, Reuters reports. The government cited an excess of exports beyond their quota for the move, which analysts said was also aimed at ensuring sufficient supply of cotton for domestic textile companies which have been under pressure as prices have risen, the FT adds. The ban is likely to throw the cotton market – already dubbed the ‘widow-maker’ for its volatility – into further turmoil. Major cotton-producing states in India have attacked the central government’s ban and warned it will hurt farmers, according to the Times of India.

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India growth cut to 6.9 per cent

Lisa Pollack — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 21:23:42 +0000

The government of India cut its growth forecast for the fiscal year ending March 31st to 6.9 per cent, which would make it the slowest rate of growth in three years, the WSJ reports. The previous year saw growth of 8.4 per cent and the initial projection for this year had been for a rate of 9.0 per cent. Subsequent revisions to that figure had brought it within a range of 7.25 to 7.75 per cent. Economic uncertainty globally has negatively impacted exports and the Reserve Bank of India has engaged in 13 rounds of monetary tightening in the last two years, curbing demand in domestic markets too. Only recently, in January, has the central bank taken a move to ease by cutting reserve requirements.

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Google & Facebook pull content in India

Lisa Pollack — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:12:49 +0000

Reuters reports that Google and Facebook have reacted to a court directive in India on Monday warning them of a potential crackdown by authorities if they do not take steps to protect religious sensibilities. The two companies are among 21 that have been asked to block potentially offensive material. The move, off the back of private petitions to the court, have stoked fears over censorship. Last year, a law was passed in India that made companies like Google responsible for user-generated content on their sites, giving them 36-hours to take down content deemed offensive once there has been a complaint. The WSJ reports that the content in question in this case involved images of religious figures. These have since been taken down by Google but only on its localised India domain, making the content still available elsewhere.

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India boost for Dassault as jet is frontrunner

Kate Mackenzie — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 04:20:33 +0000

France’s Dassault has been awarded frontrunner status in the hotly contested $20bn race to supply 126 fighter jets to India, reports the FT. The Indian government said the French Rafale fighter jet had beaten the four-nation Eurofighter Typhoon to become preferred bidder to equip India with the multi-role fighter jets in one of the world’s largest military contracts. Dassault now enters exclusive talks with the Indian government.

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Dassault wins Indian fighter jet contract

Lisa Pollack — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 20:31:08 +0000

France’s Dassault has been awarded frontrunner status in the hotly contested $20bn race to supply 126 fighter jets to India, providing a much-needed boost for French economic and industrial prestige, the FT reports. The Indian government said the French Rafale fighter jet had beaten the four-nation Eurofighter Typhoon to become preferred bidder to equip India with the multi-role fighter jets in one of the world’s largest military contracts. Dassault now enters exclusive talks with the Indian government. The contract, estimated to be worth $15bn-$20bn, will help shape India’s air power for the next three decades and serve as the bedrock of a strategic partnership.

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