Household consumption is poised to grow faster in the second quarter of the current fiscal (FY25) as headline inflation eases, with a revival of rural demand already taking hold, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Friday.

Private consumption and gross fixed investment were robust in India and net exports remained sequentially positive in their support to gross domestic product (GDP) growth in Q1 of FY25, the central bank said in its monthly bulletin.

"The underperformance of agriculture was compensated for by a buoyant manufacturing sector and resilient services," said the RBI.

Bucking the trend amid persisting global challenges, the ready-made garment (RMG) exports from the country clocked 11.9 per cent growth in August, compared to the same period last year. The cumulative RMG exports for the April-August period stood at $6,395 million (about $6.4 billion).

The apparel exports kept its growth momentum despite the global headwinds and persisting red sea crisis and other challenges such as logistic cost and global inflation, according to the Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC).

Sudhir Sekhri, Chairman of AEPC, said that growing at an average of 7.12 per cent in the last five months (April to August 2024-25), RMG exports have bucked the trends of falling merchandise exports which has touched 13 months’ low in August.

“It is very encouraging to see the resilience of the industry. With focus on product quality as well as environmental and social compliance the industry is poised to take a leap into high growth trajectory and be a major global player of garment exports,” he mentioned.

The number of digital payment transactions volume in India surged from 2,071 crore in fiscal 2017-18 to 18,737 crore in fiscal 2023-24 at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 44 per cent, the government said on Friday.

Furthermore, during the last five months (April-August) of the current financial year 2024-25, the transaction volume has reached 8,659 crore, according to the Ministry of Finance data.

The value of transactions has grown from Rs 1,962 lakh crore to Rs 3,659 lakh crore in FY24, at a CAGR of 11 per cent. Additionally, in the last 5 months of FY25, the total transaction value has surged to an impressive Rs 1,669 lakh crore, according to the Department of Financial Services (DFS) under the ministry.

Meanwhile, UPI transactions volume grew to 13,116 crore in FY 2023-24 from 92 crore in FY 2017-18 at a CAGR of 129 per cent. The value of UPI transactions reached Rs 200 lakh crore in FY23-24 from Rs 1 lakh crore in FY17-18, a CAGR growth of 138 per cent.

The retail inflation rate for farm and rural workers fell to 5.96 per cent and 6.08 per cent, respectively, in August compared to 6.17 per cent and 6.20 per cent registered in July, the government said on Friday.

The All-India Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers (CPI-AL) and Rural Labourers (CPI-RL) registered an increase of 7 points each in August 2024, reaching levels of 1,297 and 1,309, respectively.

The CPI-AL and CPI-RL were 1,290 points and 1,302 points, respectively, in July, according to the Labour Ministry statement.

"The year-on-year inflation rates based on CPI-AL and CPI–RL for this month were recorded at 5.96 per cent and 6.08 per cent, compared to 7.37 per cent and 7.12 per cent in August 2023. The corresponding figures for July 2024 were 6.17 per cent for CPI-AL and 6.20 per cent for CPI-RL," as per the statement.

As the unified payments interface (UPI) goes global, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has urged the banks to explore creating deeper digital opportunities and utilise UPI as a transformative innovation to empower millions.

According to FM Sitharaman, India’s UPI currently drives 45 per cent of global digital payments.

Speaking at an event in Pune, the Finance Minister said a robust banking system can help achieve economic growth, social progress and environmental sustainability, and as UPI spreads its wings, the banks can thrive along with it too.

The mobility sector in the emerging markets of South and Southeast Asia could absorb up to $1.3 trillion in green capital by 2030 and India holds the future, a new report said on Friday.

In India, electric scooters and three-wheelers are currently around $40- $112 cheaper per year to own than petrol alternatives based on the total cost of ownership.

The report, prepared by LeapFrog Investments, Temasek, Mahindra Last Mile Mobility Limited and Battery Smart, mentioned that 70 per cent of electric three-wheeler buyers in India are low-income, first-time buyers.

Blasting the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for fining SpaceX “for trivia”, CEO and founder Elon Musk on Friday said, “enough is enough”.

Taking to his social media platform X, Musk lashed out at the FAA for “attacking SpaceX for petty matters” while not taking any action against Boeing "for putting astronauts at risk".

The FAA had on Tuesday, proposed $633,009 in civil penalties against SpaceX for allegedly failing to follow its licence requirements during two launches in 2023, by statutorily-set civil penalty guidelines, a statement read.

The FAA stated that SpaceX used the unapproved launch control room for the PSN SATRIA mission and did not conduct the required T-2 hour poll on June 18, 2023. The agency also offered SpaceX a 30-day time to respond.

Wagon makers in the country are on track to achieve 20 per cent growth in revenue this fiscal, riding on healthy order book, a report showed on Friday.

Logistics cost accounts for 14 per cent of India’s gross domestic product, significantly higher than 8-10 per cent in the US and some European countries.

To bridge the gap and improve efficiencies, the central government plans to increase the share of railways in transport. The cost of rail transport is half that of roads and increasing wagon availability is a step in that direction, according to the report by Crisil Ratings.

Additionally, improved scale of operations will propel operating margin 100 basis points (bps) leading to higher cash accrual. That, along with modest capital expenditure (capex) plans, will keep the credit profiles of these companies stable.

Apple unveiled the iPhone 16 series on September 9. Now, the tech giant has started selling the new-generation iPhones in India, and people are enthusiastic about purchasing them. Different outlets in the country are witnessing long queues. A visual from the company's store in Mumbai's BKC shows a large number of people gathered to buy the iPhone 16.

A huge crowd gathered outside the Apple store at Mumbai's BKC. They looked excited to buy the new iPhone 16, which has some advanced features that make it user-friendly. iPhone 16 Pro and its larger counterpart, the iPhone 16 Pro Max. Both models boast Apple's largest-ever displays, with sizes extending to 6.3 inches for the Pro and an impressive 6.9 inches for the Pro Max.

In an effort to bolster India’s position in the sphere of quantum and 6G technologies, the Telecom Centre of Excellence (TCOE) India and Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) in Karnataka have joined hands to establish a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in quantum technology and related areas.

The centre, headquartered at VTU-Visvesvaraya Research and Innovation Foundation (VRIF) Bangalore, aims to accelerate India’s progress across these key sectors and is part of the 100-day programme, according to the Ministry of Communications.

The CoE is designed on a hub-and-spoke model for innovation with VTU-VRIF and TCOE India serving as the central hub.

According to the government, leveraging the intellectual and infrastructural strengths of VTU’s 228 affiliated colleges, the CoE will act as a key facilitator in research and development.