Business

The finance ministry has directed public sector banks (PSBs) to ramp up lending to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and the agriculture sector while maintaining healthy growth in low-cost deposits and ensuring strong risk management, according to an official statement issued on Wednesday.Chairing a performance review meeting with bank chiefs, Department of Financial Services…

Artificial intelligence firm Anthropic on Wednesday unveiled an ambitious $50 billion plan to build a new network of data centres in collaboration with UK-based Fluidstack, signalling its intent to expand rapidly as global demand for AI infrastructure surges, AFP reported.The facilities — to be built initially in Texas and New York –will form the foundation…

India’s fast-growing Global Capability Centre (GCC) ecosystem — which already employs 1.9 million professionals — is set to create an additional 2.8 to 4 million jobs by FY30, according to a new report by TeamLease. But as expansion accelerates, the study warns, operators will face an increasingly complex regulatory and compliance environment, PTI reported.The report,…

The Export Promotion Mission will consolidate multiple schemes into a single mechanism. (AI image) Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved an Export Promotion Mission (EPM) with an outlook of Rs 25,060 crore. The move assumes significance at a time when India’s exports to the US face a penal 50% tariff. Additionally, the…

Nooruddin Azizi (File photo) Afghanistan’s Taliban government on Wednesday said that it is seeking alternative trade routes through Central Asia as border closures with Pakistan continue to cripple commerce and worsen economic losses.Acting commerce minister Nooruddin Azizi said that the country is losing nearly $200 million every month due to the shutdown of key crossings…

American aerospace giant Boeing has downplayed concerns that India–US trade frictions could hit its operations, saying that tariff disputes have no bearing on its commercial or defence business in the country, ET reported.Salil Gupte, President of Boeing India, said the company continues to see India as a key market for growth and industrial partnership, even…

General Motors (GM) has asked thousands of its suppliers to eliminate parts sourced from China by 2027, in one of the auto industry’s most aggressive moves yet to insulate its operations from deepening US-China trade tensions, Reuters reported, citing four people familiar with the matter.According to the report, GM has directed suppliers to find alternative…

IT stocks rallied sharply on Wednesday, buoyed by investor optimism after US President Donald Trump said the United States “needed skilled workers from abroad,” a comment seen as a potential softening of his administration’s hardline immigration tone.The upbeat sentiment lifted Tech Mahindra, which surged 3.24%, followed by Mphasis (up 2.83%), LTIMindtree (up 2.63%), TCS (up…

The central government is set to overhaul the PM Gati Shakti governance structure by winding up the existing Network Planning Group (NPG) and replacing it with a new, centralised institution to coordinate India’s transport infrastructure strategy.The proposed body, tentatively named the GatiShakti Transport Planning and Research Organisation (GTPRO), will operate under the Cabinet Secretariat and…

Nasscom highlighted concerns about geographical and sector-based disparities in the new system proposed for H-1B visa issuance. (AI image) H-1B visa overhaul: Donald Trump administration’s proposed move to replace the lottery-based system for H-1B visas with a ‘wage-weighted’ system will be disruptive, Nasscom has warned. Nasscom, the IT industry body, has sharply criticised the US…