Shadow of sanctions: How Trump’s Iran ultimatum hits China, India, and global energy
From Middle East brinkmanship and $40 trillion in US debt to Imran Khan’s medical transfer, geopolitical tension and economic friction take center stage this week.
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Voice is the interface of the AI era
Next, AI has us talking to our documents, calendars, photos and apps. There’s even less need to trouble yourself.
Dr. Prathap Reddy: the healthcare visionary who refuses to retire
At 93, Dr. Prathap Reddy still runs the healthcare empire he built from a 150-bed Chennai hospital, transforming private healthcare in India and inspiring a new generation to “think bigger”.
Rich-world central banks need to shrink their bond holdings, sure, but they must do it cautiously
The US Fed and Bank of England are planning to reverse their asset pile-ups that came with crisis-time quantitative easing. They must not go overboard. That policy has its critics, but it did serve a useful purpose—and disorderly reversals could be dangerous.
Are election polls being exploited to turn a profit on prediction markets? It’s a danger to democracy
Prediction markets like Kalshi and Polymarket let bettors on future outcomes use fake polling results in the US to tilt the game in their favour. This has serious implications for the integrity of electoral democracy.
The US Treasury Department seems spooked by rising T-bond yields—but can it hope to cap them?
The US Treasury’s plan to double buybacks of its long-dated bonds has made investors sit up across the world. Capital costs held down this way could face resistance from market forces—especially from investors who value policy reliability.
Mint Quick Edit | Low sugar: why India’s ethanol blending programme calls for a review
Sugar prices are rising and policy curbs are in place for bulk stocks. To what extent is sugarcane diversion to ethanol production for blending with fuels to blame? Policymakers need a big-picture review of how policies and markets interact.
India’s Shanti Act opened up the field of nuclear energy but the cost arithmetic looks unfavourable
India is aiming for 100GW of nuclear capacity by 2047 but the electricity tariffs of these plants are unlikely to be competitive in the face of cheap renewable energy options. The Centre may need to offer a fiscal support package for project viability.
Strategy muddle: how America's wishy-washy geopolitical stance could prove self-defeating
The US seems to be throwing away years of work on global security by shifting its focus back from the Indo-Pacific to West Asia. Its big rivalry is with China, but under Trump, America appears to be mixing up friends and foes. Think of Korea.
Big picture: India's plan to link troves of government data could offer useful policymaking insights
Vast stores of data sit siloed across government bodies, but if harmonized, it could bring disparate information together for better policymaking. AI could aid data analysis, but we also need privacy and other safeguards.
India's employment guarantee scheme has weakened—that's a cause for worry
Work generated under India’s rural job creation programme was falling for years before it was redesigned, but this July’s number, the first since its rejig, has been particularly low. This year’s weak monsoon should have led India to strengthen the scheme.
Smaller jet planes can raise IndiGo's capacity for new routes—but it could prove costly
Embraer’s small jet planes could enable the airline to air-link small domestic destinations and improve Indian connectivity. But IndiGo is also looking to expand into long-haul routes with wide-bodied aircraft. Fleet diversity can prove quite costly. The airline must get its cost calculations right.
India’s panel on banking reforms has an unenviable task: ensuring that our banks are fit for the future
As finance evolves, India’s expert committee on banking must work out a blueprint to equip Indian lenders—especially public sector banks—with what it would take to meet challenges of the AI age. In many ways, the future is already upon us.
Mint Quick Edit | Trump held off a Canada tariff for three days: this is policy instability at its worst
Another day, another threat US President Donald Trump seems to have 'chickened out' of. This time, over his trade run-in with Canada. What are we to make of these flip-flops? And is Mark Carney’s game working?
Women suffer collateral damage from the political battles of men—when will public discourse mature?
It's a tale as old as patriarchy—women being deployed as weapons in warfare among men. Think of successful professionals such as Giorgia Meloni and Trisha Krishnan. The agency of women and quality of discourse are the first casualties of toxic political sniping.