Business

Bengaluru: In a break from a decades-old system, Karnataka will stop fixing retail prices of alcoholic beverages from April 2026, allowing beer and liquor makers greater freedom to set prices in one of India’s largest alcohol markets.Announcing the move in the 2026-27 state budget on Friday, chief minister Siddaramaiah said the government will also introduce…

India’s foreign exchange reserves surged $4.885 billion to an all-time high of $728.494 billion during the week ended February 27, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday.In the previous reporting week, the country’s reserves had declined by $2.119 billion to $723.608 billion, PTI reported. The earlier record high stood…

Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said that the government will deploy all available policy tools and support mechanisms to help Indian exporters cope with disruptions arising from the ongoing West Asia conflict.Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the IIFT vice chancellors’ conclave in New Delhi, Goyal said an inter-ministerial group has…

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty fell sharply on Friday, retreating by more than 1 per cent after a brief recovery in the previous session as escalating tensions in West Asia and surging crude oil prices weighed on investor sentiment.The 30-share BSE Sensex declined 1,097 points, or 1.37 per cent, to close at 78,918.90. During…

The Australian government sharply increased the application fee for the Temporary Graduate Visa (Subclass 485) from March 1, effective immediately. The non-refundable fee has risen to AU$4,600 (US$3,000), up from AU$2,300, marking more than a doubling over three years. The visa allows eligible foreign graduates to work in Australia from 18 months to three years…

The head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) has cautioned Europe against returning to Russian gas supplies, warning that doing so would be both economically and politically misguided despite the current turmoil in global energy markets, according to a Reuters report.IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said the ongoing Middle East crisis has prompted fresh debate…

The US waiver allowing additional purchases of Russian crude over baseload offers short-term relief. (AI image) US-Israel-Iran war impact on India: The Donald Trump administration’s move ‘granting’ waiver to purchase Russian crude in lieu of the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz has important implications for India’s energy security. Around 90% of India’s…

Gold prices traded largely steady in futures markets on Friday, while retail bullion rates across major Indian cities remained almost unchanged with marginal declines.As of 15:02 pm, gold futures on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) showed limited movement across key contracts. The April 2026 contract was trading at Rs 1,60,008 per 10 grams, up Rs…

Rupee strengthened 2 paise to 91.62 against the US dollar on Friday after the United States announced a 30-day waiver allowing Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil. This move comes amid the ongoing war in West Asia and aims to ease pressure on global energy supplies.“This stop-gap measure will alleviate pressure caused by Iran’s attempt…

China now has more billionaires than any other country, according to the latest Hurun Global Rich List, released Thursday by the Shanghai-based Hurun Group. The country is home to 1,110 billionaires out of 4,020 globally, overtaking the United States. China added 287 new billionaires since last year, more than recovering losses from the past three…