The Signal (weekly highlights)

1.       Coal Ministry CPSEs clock 28.33% growth in capex at Rs 12,605.75 crore

Ministry of Coal, through its CPSEs, has registered a 28.33 per cent year-on-year growth in capex achievement at Rs 12,605.75 crore for the period ending December, 2021.

This capex achievement is also 75 per cent of the Ministry of Coal’s annual target. Coal India (CIL) is one of the CPSEs under the coal ministry. CIL had earlier said that its capital expenditure jumped more than two-fold to Rs 1,840 crore in the first quarter of 2021-22

2.       Gems and jewellery exports up 71% during Apr-Dec to $28.9 billion

Gems and jewellery exports rose by 71 per cent during April-December 2021 to USD 28.9 billion as compared to USD 16.9 billion in the same period of the previous year

The sector accounted for 9.6 per cent share of India’s entire exports basket during the period under review. Top five export destinations for the sector included the US, Hong Kong, the UAE, Belgium and Israel.

3.       IMF cuts India’s GDP forecast for FY22 to 9% from 9.5%

 The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday cut its FY22 gross domestic growth product (GDP) forecast for India to 9 per cent from 9.5 per cent predicted in October, citing disruptions due to the Omicron wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The multilateral agency, however, raised the country’s GDP projection for FY23 to 9 per cent from 8.5 per cent earlier and to 7.1 per cent from 6.6 per cent for FY24

4.       Indian digital infra needs investment of up to $23 bn by 2025

Digital infrastructure sector needs investment of up to USD 23 billion by 2025, to support the growing demand of digital services and rising online traffic.

According to the EY-DIPA joint report, as many as 330 million people will be using 5G and sectors like e-commerce, education, healthcare will grow their presence online. EY estimates investments in the range of USD 17-23 billion will be required in the segment by 2025.

5.       Brent Breaks $90 On Strong Fundamentals, Russia-Ukraine Crisis

Brent crude oil prices rose on Wednesday to $90 a barrel, as low Cushing and distillate inventories combine with supply jitters in Europe, Russia-Ukraine tensions, and falling Russian seaborne crude imports from the Baltics.

Brent crude hit the highest level since 2014 as inventories at the Cushing hub in Oklahoma—the delivery point for WTI—sunk by another million barrels on Tuesday, according to API data, to the lowest point since 2012—more than 30% below the five-year average.