Retail inflation rises to a 14-month high, hopes of rate cut next month recede

Retail inflation rate surged to a 14-month high of 6.21 per cent in October with a sharp rise in prices of food items, especially fruits, vegetables, meat and fish, and oils and fats, data released Tuesday by the National Statistical Office (NSO) showed. 

Food inflation, based on the Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI), shot up to a double-digit level of 10.87 per cent in October - a 15-month high – from 9.24 per cent in September and 6.61 per cent in the year-ago period.

Separately released data by the NSO showed India's factory output, as measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), improved to 3.1 per cent in September from a contraction of 0.1 per cent in August, mainly due to a pickup in manufacturing, mining and electricity sectors.-

Aless global world 

Multilateralism-economic, political, and institutional- that reached its peak at the turn of the 21st century is now in trouble. 

While globalists will bemoan the passing of an era, India's policymakers will have no choice but to adapt to the new dynamics shaping international order. 

Unilateral development of new technologies, bilateralism in trade and economic cooperation, and like-minded coalitions in finding solutions to regional challenges are likely to gain ground in the next few years. -

PM Modi to embark on 3-nation tour, attend G20 Leaders Summit in Brazil next week

Amid Growing geopolitical differences in the wake of raging conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, and West Asia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to Brazil to participate in the G20 Leaders Summit and put forth India's views on such issues.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that the Prime Minister will travel to Rio De Janeiro on November 18- 19 to attend the G20 Summit hosted by the Brazilian President, Luis Inacio Lula Da Silva.

India is part of the G20 Troika along with Brazil and South Africa and has been actively contributing to the ongoing G20 Summit discussions. "During the Summit, the PM will put forward India's positions on various issues of global importance and build on the outcomes from the G20 New Delhi Leaders' Declaration and Voice of the Global South Summits which were hosted by India in the past two years," the MEA statement said. -

Small victory as nations approve new carbon market rules, standards 

A small step forward towards the operationalisation of carbon markets was hailed as an early victory at COP29, even as major persisting differences between developed and developing nations continue to dampen the prospects of a strong and comprehensive finance agreement, the main outcome expected from this conference.

The participating nations approved a couple of new standards and rules relating to carbon markets that had been pending for at least two years. 

Carbon markets allow trade in carbon credits with the overall objective of bringing down emissions. 

An entity that emits less than what is expected of it, earns carbon credits, which can be traded for money with another entity that is unable to achieve its emissions standards. 

A mechanism like this is meant to accelerate emissions reductions by offering monetary incentives to do so. -

Study: India's fossil-based CO2 emissions to spike 4.6% in 2024

India's Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from burning fossil fuels are expected to rise 4.6% in 2024, the highest among major economies, according to a Global Carbon Project study.

Globally, fossil-based CO2 emissions are set to touch a record high of 37.4 billion tonnes this year, a rise of 0.8% from 2023, the study said, adding that at this rate there was "a 50% chance global warming will exceed 1.5 degree Celsius (°C) consistently in about six years". 

"The impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly dramatic, yet we still see no sign that burning of fossil fuels has peaked," said Professor Pierre Friedlingstein, of Exteter's Global Systems Institute, who led the study. -

AN ANCIENT OCEAN ON MARS: NEW STUDY PROVIDES FURTHER EVIDENCE

With the assistance of China's Zhurong rover, scientists have gathered fresh evidence that Mars was home to an ocean billions of years ago - a far cry from the dry and desolate world it is today.

Scientists said that data obtained by Zhurong, which landed on the northern lowlands of Mars in 2021, and by orbiting spacecraft, indicated the presence of geological features indicative of an ancient coastline. 

The rover analysed rock on the Martian surface in a location called Utopia Planitia, a large plain in the planet's northern hemisphere. -

COP29 is underway, here's what is on the table in the annual climate conference

The 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) began in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. 

Delegates from about 200 countries, business leaders, climate scientists, Indigenous Peoples, journalists, and various other experts and stakeholders are expected to attend the summit, which will continue until November 22. 

The primary goal of COP29 is to bring together countries to develop a shared plan to curb further global warming. The conference will also focus on ways to scale up climate finance to help developing nations tackle the adverse effects of climate change. -

Open to lift import tariffs if local industry is not hurt: FM

India is willing to lift or ease import tariffs on certain goods if it does not hurt local manufacturing capacities, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said. 

The statement signalled the government's thinking on how to deal with the threat of US President-elect Donald Trump to impede market access for Indian merchandise to the world's largest economy by imposing tariffs of up to 20 per cent. -