The Signal (weekly highlights)

1. US Consumer inflation rises most in 40 years

U.S. consumer prices rose solidly in January, leading to the biggest annual increase in inflation in 40 years, which could fuel financial markets speculation for a 50-basis points interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve next month.

In the 12 months through January, the CPI jumped 7.5%, the biggest year-on-year increase since February 1982.That followed a 7.0% advance in December and marked the fourth straight month of annual increases in excess of 6%.

2. Staying accommodative: Growth is RBI’s top priority

In a surprising move, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday left policy rates untouched and retained its accommodative stance to support the nascent and uneven recovery.

The central bank forecast inflation in 2022-23 at just 4.5% and projected the economy would grow at a subdued 7.8%, well below the 8-8.5% estimated in the Economic Survey.

3. Passenger vehicle wholesales dip 8% in Jan as semiconductor woes continue

Passenger vehicle dispatches from factories to dealers in India fell 8 per cent in January, mainly due to semiconductor shortage, auto industry body SIAM said on Friday.

The total passenger vehicle wholesales dropped to 2,54,287 units in January 2022 as compared to 2,76,554 units in the same month of last year.

4. India’s textile industry at near capacity, raising hopes for creating jobs

After being outpaced in recent years by neighboring Bangladesh and then hammered by the COVID-19 pandemic, India’s garment factories are now humming near full capacity

India’s jobless rate is above 7% and estimated to have exceeded the global average in five of the last six years 

5. India received total FDI of $54.1 bn during April-Nov 2021-22

India has received total foreign direct investment (FDI) of USD 54.1 billion during April-November 2021-22.

FDI inflows serve an important role in augmenting domestic capital and help to promote industrial development and employment generation across various sectors and industries