· Inflation :
– The CPI inflation moderated to a five-month low 4.3% in Mar 2018 (+3.9% in Mar 2017) from 4.4% in Feb 2018 (+3.7% in Feb 2017, as vegetable prices eased further on fresh supplies. However core inflation, that strips out the impact of food and fuel prices, continued to rise hitting a 43-month high at 5.4%
– Inflation based on wholesale prices eased marginally to 2.47% in March (2.48% in Feb 2018) on cheaper food articles, especially pulses and vegetables. WPI was 5.11% in March last year.
· Trade Data :
– India's merchandise exports fell 0.7% to US$ 29.11 billion in March 2018 over a year ago,
– imports moved up 7.1% to US$ 42.80 billion.
– The trade deficit jumped 28.6% to US$ 13.69 billion in March 2018 from US$ 10.65 billion in March 2017.
· Monsoon 2018: The India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecast says that there will be 97% normal monsoon for the year 2018-19, which could be a good news for the rural economy that suffered due to the twin impact of drought years and demonetisation.
· GST Collection :First time since the rollout of the new tax regime in July 2017, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection crossed ?1 trillion in the month of April this year.
· Monetary Policy: The RBI left its key policy rate unchanged at 6% for the 4th meeting on Apr 5, 2018. Policymakers said the decision is consistent with the neutral stance of monetary policy.
· Manufacturing sector activity improved marginally in April, rose from 51.0 in March to 51.6 in April, indicating faster improvement in the health of the country’s manufacturing economy than in the prior month.
· India’s industrial output grew 7.1 percent in February from a year earlier, government data showed.
· Rating agency Fitch kept India’s sovereign rating unchanged at BBB-, the lowest investment grade for the 12th year with stable outlook even as it praised the implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
· The World Bank noted that the Indian economy has recovered from the effects of demonetisation and the GST and predicted a growth rate of 7.3% for the country in 2018.
· India will again emerge as the world’s fastest-growing major economy at least for the next two years, the IMF said. India’s growth will rise steadily to 7.4 % for 2018-19 and 7.8 % for 2019-20, against 6.7 % in 2017-18.
· North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed to finally end a seven-decade war this year, and pursue the “complete denuclearization” of the Korean Peninsula.
· RBI provided roadmap wherein the FPI limits would increase by 0.5% each year to 5.5% of outstanding stock of securities in 2018-19 and 6% of outstanding stock of securities in 2019-20.