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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing bank loan frauds cumulatively worth ₹73,000 crore in seven cases registered against the Reliance Anil Ambani Group, according to a status report filed in the Supreme Court in February, The Hindu reported. The CBI informed the court that it is actively investigating seven cases, and is probing the roles of certain public servants as well. After reviewing the status report filed by the CBI and its financial investigations counterpart, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the apex court issued an order on March 23.
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Five European ​Union countries are calling for a windfall tax on energy companies' profits in reaction to rising fuel prices due ‌to the Iran war, according to a letter from finance ministers to the EU Commission seen by Reuters on Saturday. The finance ministers of Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Austria made the joint call for an EU-wide tax in a letter dated Friday. Such a measure could help fund relief for consumers in the ​face of high energy prices and be a signal that "we stand united and are able to take action", they said.
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The energy shock caused by the war in the Middle East caught China, the world’s top buyer of oil, by surprise. But Beijing has been preparing for a crisis like this for years, the New York Times reported. China has stockpiled increasingly large amounts of oil. It has pursued renewable sources of energy like solar, wind and hydropower so aggressively that its demand for refined oil, diesel and gasoline is falling. And it has harnessed technology to reduce its reliance on the foreign-sourced raw materials that go into the massive output of its factories.
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The International Monetary Fund urged the ‌Bank of Japan to continue raising interest rates, even as the Middle East war posed "significant new risks" to the country's economic outlook, Reuters reported. The proposal comes amid market expectations the BOJ will raise interest rates as soon as April in the face of ​mounting inflationary pressure from the conflict-induced spike in oil prices, and higher import costs blamed on ​the weak yen.
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Egypt's non-oil private sector deteriorated at its sharpest pace in almost two years in March, as the Middle East wardrove ​up costs and dampened client demand, a closely watched ‌business survey showed on Sunday, Reuters reported. The headline S&P Global Egypt Purchasing Managers' Index fell for a fourth consecutive month, dropping to 48.0 in March from ​48.9 in February — its lowest reading since April 2024. The ​figure remained below the 50.0 threshold that separates growth ⁠from contraction, though it was broadly in line with the ​survey's long-run average of 48.2.
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The International Monetary Fund has warned that stablecoins resemble money market funds more than actual money and could face confidence-driven runs as tokenized finance scales, Decrypt.com reported. Tokenization “constitutes a structural reallocation of trust within the financial system,” Tobias Adrian, financial counsellor and director of the monetary and capital markets unit of the IMF, wrote in the report. Traditional financial systems rely on delays like end-of-day settlement and batch processing that give regulators time to intervene before problems spread, Adrian explained.
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The oil shock set off by the war in Iran is already rippling through Asia, where factories are curbing production to save energy and some gas stations are telling drivers they can fill up only partway. Economists say it is a sign of things to come for countries in Europe and Africa that also rely on imports from the Middle East, the Wall Street Journal reported. Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has left the global oil supply 10% below what was needed before the war, according to Oxford Economics.
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Despite European funds, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Spain fell to €30.76 billion in 2025 — down 21.8% on the previous year and the lowest figure since 2021, according to Spain's Ministry of Economy, EuroNews.com reported. The drop contrasts sharply with the peak reached in 2024, when FDI reached €39.35 billion. In net terms — after deducting disinvestments — the decline was 10%.
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Vast development sites around Riyadh trumpet images of a shiny new future for Saudi Arabia—part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s grandiose Vision 2030 agenda to turn the petrostate into an international hub of trade, technology and culture. Appeals for investment are sprinkled on ubiquitous construction fencing, along with English-language catchphrases such as “redefining livability” and “an extraordinary new normal.” Mohammed’s vision extended to a pledge to invest up to $1 trillion in the U.S.
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Canada’s services economy contracted for a fifth straight month in March as uncertainty related to the war in the Middle East contributed to a decline in new business and after higher fuel costs raised operating expenses, S&P Global’s Canada services PMI data showed on Monday, BNNBloomberg reported. The headline Business Activity Index rose to 47.2 last month from 46.5 in February. That marked the index’s highest reading in five months but it remained below the 50 no-change mark - a reading below 50 shows deterioration in activity.
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