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By EquityPandit

EquityPandit

EquityPandit
ECONOMY

Govt Plans To Setup 75 Digital Banks in 2021: FM Sitharaman

India is planning to set up ‘digital-only’ banks and non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) to ensure that business continuity in the lending system is not affected even in exceptional times.

In her first public appearance before the Atlantic Council think tank, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told a select Washington audience that the government had achieved macroeconomic stability by recapitalising banks and increasing foreign exchange reserves.

“Bad loans and provisioning were taxing. We have to keep infusing money into banks … We have amalgamated several of them … The Reserve Bank of India has also been very nimble about setting up ‘digital only’ NBFCs. Now we are setting up digital banks as well, not one but 75 of them this year,” she said.

Sitharaman is in Washington DC to attend the annual spring meeting of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

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ECONOMYINDIA

Piyush Goyal Confident of US Tariff Relief, Highlights India’s Early Engagement

Dhruva Kulkarni
Piyush Goyal

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said India is likely to get better tariff terms from the US than other exporting nations. This advantage is due to India’s early engagement and strong trade ties. He pointed out that India started negotiations early, giving it an edge over peers like Japan and Vietnam. These countries currently face tariffs of 15–20%.

India and the US aim to double their trade to $500 billion. They are working to sign the first part of a broader trade deal by October 2025.

In a separate interview, Goyal spoke of his strong personal ties with US trade officials. He said these relationships have helped build momentum in the talks.

According to sources, the US trade team may visit India in the second half of August for the sixth round of negotiations. While the US is expected to announce new tariffs for its trading partners by 2nd August, discussions with India will continue beyond that date. India is treating this as a continuous process. They are not drawing lines between interim and first-phase agreements.

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ECONOMYINDIA

FTA Set to Boost India’s Share in UK’s Food & Marine Imports Beyond 2%

Dhruva Kulkarni
Shrimp

Under the India-UK Free Trade Agreement (CETA), Indian exports of agricultural, marine, and processed foods will receive zero-duty access. This applies to 95% of tariff lines.

India currently accounts for just over 2% of the UK’s food and marine imports. However, it aims to increase this share significantly.

The deal covers duty-free access for Indian fruits, vegetables, pulses, cereals, spice mixes, ready-to-eat meals, mango pulp, and pickles. This is expected to raise agricultural exports by 20% in three years.

Shrimp and marine product exports are set to rise, as earlier UK tariffs of 4.2% to 8.5% will now be removed. India’s marine export share in the UK is currently 2.25%.

The UK’s $37.5 billion agriculture market opens up for Indian farmers. Sensitive sectors like dairy, apples, and cooking oils are protected.

UK tariffs on Indian processed foods, earlier as high as 70%, will now drop to zero. This change benefits food exporters and rural India.

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ECONOMYINDIA

Dairy Body Says High GST on Ghee Hurting Farmers, Boosting Unorganised Sector

Dhruva Kulkarni
GST.

The Indian dairy industry is urging the government to reduce the GST on ghee from 12% to 5%, arguing that the high tax is hurting farmers and allowing unorganised players to sell adulterated products without regulation.

RS Sodhi, President of the Indian Dairy Association, stated that ghee is a pure farmers’ product. Yet, it’s taxed at a higher rate than imported edible oils, which attract just a 5% GST. “This higher tax directly affects farmer income,” he said.

He added that only 15% of India’s Rs 3.2 lakh crore ghee market is organised and falls under the GST system. The rest operate in the unorganised segment, where local brands often sell without bills or quality checks. “Walk into a store in any tier-2 or tier-3 city and you’ll find numerous unlabelled ghee packs,” he said.

Before GST, ghee was taxed at a rate of just 4–5% VAT in most states. Following the rollout of GST, the rate increased to 12%, targeting the formal sector. But this may be backfiring. “We are losing out on GST revenue as most of the market remains outside the system,” Sodhi explained.

Despite these issues, demand for ghee is growing at an annual rate of 8–9%. He said ghee is wrongly seen as a luxury item. “It’s part of everyday meals for all—from delivery boys to Mercedes owners,” he noted.

The Dairy Association has raised this concern in four GST Council meetings, but it says there has been no progress. The problem is that lower taxes could result in reduced revenue. But Sodhi believes otherwise. “If GST is cut to 5%, the full market can come under the tax net—generating Rs 15,000 crore annually, far more than the current Rs 5,000–6,000 crore,” he claimed.

He also said the cut could directly benefit farmers. “On every kilo of ghee, farmers pay Rs 70–80 as GST. A 7% cut could raise milk prices by Rs 2–2.5 per litre—giving a much-needed boost to farmer earnings,” he added.

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ECONOMYINDIA

Public Sector Banks Name 1,629 Wilful Defaulters Owing Over Rs 1.62 Lakh Crore: FinMin

Dhruva Kulkarni
Bank

India’s public sector banks have named 1,629 corporate borrowers as wilful defaulters, with unpaid loans totalling Rs 1.62 lakh crore as of 31st March, 2025, the Finance Ministry told Parliament on 22nd July.

Responding in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary cited data from the Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC). He stated that the list of defaulters—excluding foreign borrowers—is updated every month and is available on the websites of credit information companies, such as CIBIL, Experian, Equifax, and CRIF High Mark.

To tackle wilful default and help recover bad loans, the government has implemented several measures. These include:

  • A one-year bar on fresh loans even after a defaulter is removed from the list
  • A five-year ban on starting new businesses or raising money from the markets
  • Ineligibility for loan restructuring unless certain rules are followed
  • Possibility of criminal charges under RBI guidelines

Wilful defaulters are also covered under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018, which allows authorities to seize their properties and block them from pursuing civil cases in Indian courts.

The government added that steps are being taken against high-profile defaulters who have fled abroad. According to the Enforcement Directorate, nine individuals have been declared Fugitive Economic Offenders. Assets worth Rs 15,298 crore have been seized under the PMLA and Rs 750 crore under the FEO Act.

So far, around Rs 25,806 crore has been returned to affected banks and rightful claimants in bank fraud cases.

While foreign branch defaulters are subject to local laws, banks must still report such cases to Indian credit bureaus wherever possible.

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ECONOMYWORLD

Japan Inflation Remains High Despite Cooling from Two-Year Peak

Dhruva Kulkarni
The opposition has promised to increase fiscal spending to ease the burden on households.

Japan’s inflation eased slightly in June but remained above the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) target, keeping pressure on Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba ahead of Sunday’s national election.

Core consumer prices (excluding fresh food) rose 3.3% year-on-year, down from May’s 3.7%—a two-year high. Economists had expected a 3.4% rise, with slower energy prices and subsidies helping to cool inflation. However, a deeper inflation measure that also excludes energy climbed 3.4%, the highest since January last year.

Despite the moderation, inflation remains strong, posing challenges for Ishiba’s coalition, which may lose its majority in the upcoming vote. The opposition has promised to increase fiscal spending to ease the burden on households.

Economists say the underlying inflation trend remains firm, and the BOJ may revise its inflation forecast upward. While the central bank is expected to hold rates steady on 31st July, rising prices could keep rate hikes on the table.

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