National Stock Exchange

♦ The market capitalisation of NSE-listed companies reached Rs.410.87 lakh crore ($4.81 trillion) in FY25 (till March 31), from Rs.384.2 lakh crore ($4.61 trillion) in FY24 — a growth of 6.94 percent year-on-year, according to the data released by the National Stock Exchange on 31 March 2025. The total number of companies listed on the NSE stood at 2,720 (as on March 31, 2025).

♦ Total unique registered investors reached 11.3 crore (till March 28), with total unique accounts at 21.94 crore (till March 27). New investor registrations in FY25 were 2.09 crore (till March 28), according to the NSE data.

S& P Global Ratings said on 25 March 2025

♦ India’s GDP will grow at 6.5 percent in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, S&P Global Ratings said on 25 March 2025.

♦ In its Economic Outlook for Asia-Pacific (APAC), S&P said despite these external strains, it expects domestic demand momentum to remain solid in most emerging-market economies.

♦ On rate cuts, S&P Global Ratings projected that that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will cut interest rates by another 75 bps-100 bps in the current cycle.

Chopra was appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director

♦ Parminder Chopra was appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of REC Limited for a three-month tenure.  

♦ Currently she holds the position of CMD at Power Finance Corporation Ltd. (PFC).

♦ Chopra made history on August 14, 2023, when she became the first woman to lead India’s largest Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC), PFC.

♦ Her remarkable career also includes serving as Director (Finance) at PFC since 2020 and holding the additional charge of CMD from June 1, 2023.

Ajay Seth was appointed Finance Secretary

♦ Ajay Seth was appointed Finance Secretary in the Union Ministry of Finance on 24 March 2025.

♦ He is currently the secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs in the finance ministry and holds additional charge as revenue secretary.

♦ Ajay is a 1987-batch Indian Administrative Service officer from the Karnataka cadre. He was the officer-in-charge of the finance track of the Group of 20 (G20) under India’s presidency.

♦ The role of the finance secretary usually goes to the senior-most officer in the finance ministry. The post had fallen vacant after the previous finance secretary, Tuhin Kanta Pandey, was appointed chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

RBI research report

♦ According to the RBI research report, India’s energy efficiency improved by 1.9 percent between 2000 and 2023, which is faster than the global average of 1.4 percent.

♦ The report also stated that India was far ahead of the other BRICS countries which averaged 1.62 percent.

♦ However, India’s energy efficiency lagged developed markets, like the US and Germany, which witnessed an over 2 percent rise during this period.

♦ Between 2012 and 2022, India’s energy-related Carbon dioxode emissions rose by 706 million tonnes, primarily driven by economic growth.

♦ A lesser contribution came from changes in the fuel mix. 

♦ Had a small but significant impact on emission reduction over the past decade, with solar and wind accounting for 2.1 percent of total primary energy in 2022-23, the report stated.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

♦ The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was selected for the Digital Transformation Award 2025 by Central Banking at London in UK.

♦ The central bank was awarded for its digital initiatives named Pravaah and Sarthi, which were developed by its in-house developer team.

♦ The awards committee noted how these digital initiatives have reduced the use of paper-based submissions, thus transforming RBI’s internal and external processes.

♦ Sarthi, launched in January 2023, digitised RBI’s internal workflows, enabling its employees to store and share documents securely, improving record management, and increasing the options for data analysis through reports and dashboards.

♦ Sarthi has helped the RBI boost operational efficiency by automating processes.

♦ Launched in May 2024 as Pravaah, a digitised means was created for external users to submit regulatory applications to the RBI.

♦ Documents submitted and processed through the portal are plugged into the Sarthi database, where they can be handled digitally across RBI offices, with centralised cybersecurity systems and digital tracking.

Moodys Ratings has projected that Indias economic growth

♦ Moody’s Ratings has projected that India’s economic growth will surpass 6.5% in the fiscal year 2025-26, up from 6.3% in FY 2024-25.

♦ The agency attributed this growth to increased government capital expenditure, tax cuts, and interest rate reductions.

♦ Moody's expects India's average inflation rate to decline to 4.5 percent in fiscal 2025-26 from 4.8 percent in the previous year this is expected to provide adequate headroom a soft monetary policy to spur growth through lower interest rates more liquidity in the banking system for loans to consumers and businesses.

India will be the worlds third-largest economy by 2028

♦ According to Morgan Stanley, India will be the world's third-largest economy by 2028 as it becomes the world's most sought-after consumer market and gains share in global output.

♦ From a USD 3.5 trillion economy in 2023, the Indian economy is projected to expand to USD 4.7 trillion in 2026, which will make it the fourth largest in the world behind the US, China and Germany. In 2028, India will overtake Germany as its economy will expand to USD 5.7 trillion.

Highlights:

♦ According to Morgan Stanley, India was the 12th largest economy in the world in 1990, slipped to 13th position in 2000 before rising to 9th rank in 2020 and 5th in 2023.

♦ India's share in the world GDP is projected to rise from 3.5 per cent to 4.5 per cent in 2029.

♦ It projects three scenarios for India's growth - Bear - where the economy expands to USD 6.6 trillion by 2035 from USD 3.65 trillion in 2025, Base - where it grows to USD 8.8 trillion and Bull - where the size balloons to USD 10.3 trillion.

♦ It saw GDP per capita rising from USD 2,514 in 2025 to USD 4,247 in the Bear scenario in 2035, USD 5,683 under the Base scenario and USD 6,706 under the Bull scenario.

♦ Morgan Stanley expected inflation will be 4.3 per cent year-on-year in FY2026-27, lower than 4.9 per cent in FY2025.

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC)

♦ Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has been ranked third among the world's strongest insurance brands, as per the Brand Finance Insurance 100 2025 report.

♦ It achieved a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score of 88 out of 100.

♦ Poland-based PZU secured the top spot with a BSI score of 94.4, followed by China Life Insurance, which ranked second with a BSI score of 93.5. 

♦ As per the Brand Finance report, the top 100 insurance brands have grown 9 percent in brand value in 2025, driven by improved underwriting results, higher investment income, rising interest rates, and increased profitability.

Official Airline Guide (OAG)

♦ According to the latest data from the Official Airline Guide (OAG), IndiGo Airlines has emerged as the world’s second fastest-growing airline in terms of seat capacity, which increased by 10.1 percent year-on-year to over 134.9 million seats in 2024.  

♦ It is only behind Qatar Airways, which grew slightly faster at 10.4 percent in the same period. 

♦ IndiGo has also been ranked as the fastest-growing airline in the world in terms of flight frequency growth at 9.7 percent year-on-year in 2024.

♦ The airline recorded a flight frequency of 749,156 for the year.

♦ OAG has also recorded that IndiGo holds one of the world’s largest aircraft orders, with over 900 aircraft on order and has the largest recipient of 58 new Airbus aircraft during 2024.

Union Budget 2025-26

♦ CRISIL report said on 6 March 2025, India’s real GDP growth is expected to remain steady at 6.5 percent for the 2026 fiscal.

♦ The credit rating agency’s forecast depends on two major factors: a normal monsoon and stable commodity prices, both of which are expected to keep food inflation in check.

♦ The agency predicted that cooling food inflation, tax benefits from the Union Budget 2025-26, and lower borrowing costs will boost discretionary consumer spending.

♦ The report also noted that India’s economic growth would gradually return to pre-pandemic levels as the impact of fiscal stimulus will fade and the high-base effect subsides.

Goods and Services Tax (GST)

♦ India's gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections rose 9.1 percent to about Rs.1.84 lakh crore in February 2025.

♦ According to official data released on 1 March 2025, on a gross basis, mop-up from the central GST stood at Rs,35,204 crore, state GST at Rs.43,704 crore, integrated GST at Rs.90,870 crore, and compensation cess at Rs.13,868 crore in the month under review.

♦ GST revenues from domestic transactions jumped 10.2 percent to Rs.1.42 lakh crore, while those from imports grew 5.4 percent to Rs.41,702 crore during February 2025.

♦ India's gross and net GST revenues in February 2024 were Rs.1.68 lakh crore and Rs.1.50 lakh crore, respectively.

♦ However, the gross GST collections in February 2025, at Rs.1.84 lakh crore, are lower than the Rs.1.96 lakh crore collected in January 2025.