Business

NEW DELHI: Power giant NTPC on Saturday reported a 15% increase in consolidated profit, which rose from Rs 23,953 crore in 2024-25 to Rs 27,546 crore in 2025-26. It said the group’s strong performance was bolstered by a 29% increase in the share of joint venture profits, which reached Rs 2,864 crore, along with Rs…

NEW DELHI: Public sector oil companies increased petrol and diesel prices by nearly 90 paise per litre on Saturday, the third hike since May 15, as they sought to partly offset mounting losses from selling fuels below market rates amid a sharp rise in global crude prices due to supply concerns.But that still leaves them…

NEW DELHI: The US has emerged as the second largest source of foreign direct investment into India during the last financial year, overtaking Mauritius.Equity investments from the US more than doubled to over $11 billion in 2025-26 as companies chose to invest directly into India instead of routing funds through a tax-friendly jurisdiction as they…

As the Middle East conflict continues to strain global energy supplies, the government is pushing for faster expansion of piped natural gas (PNG) connections across the country. But the plan is facing a major hurdle. A shortage of certified gas plumbers has slowed the rollout, with city gas distribution (CGD) companies currently adding only 8,000-10,000…

What happens in the Strait of Hormuz does not stay in the Strait of Hormuz. The US-Iran war may be centred in the Middle East, but its economic tremors are now rattling wallets across America. As tensions escalated and the crucial oil route came under pressure, fuel prices began their wild ride, pushing inflation higher,…

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasised Washington’s intent to prevent geopolitical disruptions from distorting global energy markets, as tensions linked to the Iran conflict continue to affect oil supply routes and pricing dynamics.During discussions on energy security, Rubio’s office, quoted by Reuters, stressed that the US sees energy exports as a key instrument in…

IT stocks crash (AI image) Globally technology sector stocks are leading stock market rallies. In India, the picture is the opposite. The Nifty IT index has dropped around 23% since the start of the year, sharply underperforming the broader market decline of around 10%. In fact, ⁠IT has been the worst-performing major sector in the…

MUMBAI: RBI stepped up dollar sales in FY26 to manage exchange rate volatility. The central bank recorded a total net sale of $53.1 billion over the course of the fiscal year an increase of $12 billion compared to net sales of $41.1 billion in FY25. Despite temporary periods of dollar accumulation, the central bank maintained…

The Iran war is affecting money flows from overseas Indians, with NRIs withdrawing nearly $2 billion more than they deposited in Indian bank accounts in March, according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data. The total value of NRI deposits with Indian banks fell to $165.65 billion at the end of March from $167.58 billion…

NEW DELHI: Gross foreign direct investment (FDI) grew 16.7%, its fastest pace of expansion in six years, to a record $94.5 billion in 2025-26, helping reverse the four-year falling trend of net FDI.Net FDI was estimated at $7.7 billion during the last financial year, compared with under $1 billion in the previous year. After excluding…