BACK PAGE | PAGE 24 BRANDWAGON | PAGE 11 Air India hints at more Dreamliner orders INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 9 Snabbitneedstooffermore thanspeed,bargainpricing BENGALURU, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2026 Trumpvows to raise tariffs on South Korea to 25% FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL NO. XXXVIII 242, 24 PAGES, `12 P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E SENSEX: 81,857.48 ▲ 319.78 NIFTY: 25,175.40 ▼ 126.75 NIKKEI 225: 53,333.54 ▲ 448.29 HANG SENG: 27,126.95 ▲ 361.43 `/$: 91.72 ▲ 0.24 `/€: 109.04 ▼ 1.13 BRENT: $66.56 ▲ $0.97 GOLD: `1,58,885 ▲ `4,765 ECONOMY PAGE 2 STATES’ CAPEX LIKELY GROWS 16% TILL DEC AFTER A RELATIVELY flat phase last year, states’ capex showed a clear acceleration in April-December of the current financial year, reports Prasanta Sahu. In FY26, the aggregate capex of 19 states rose about 16% year-on-year. » INSIDE « AXIS BANK M-CAPPIPS KOTAK BANKAFTERAYEAR PAGE 8 INDIABLOCKS CHINA’SWTO MOVE ON EVSOPS Hindalco to invest `21K cr in Odisha smelter expansion HINDALCO INDUSTRIES ANNOUNCED a `21,000crore expansion of aluminium smelting capacity in Odisha, alongside the commissioning of new flatrolled products and batterygrade aluminium foil facilities, reports fe Bureau. ■ PAGE 4 Continued on Page 9 plastics, gems & jewellery, leather & footwear, base metals, furniture, toys to attract zero tariff from Day One, down from 4-26% now Bilateral services trade from 3.8% now to 0.1% finally EU wines, spirits, beer, olive oil, processed foods and some fruits Areas kept out/ not impacted by the deal $77 bn ■ EU's average tariff rate for india to fall ■ Sharp tariff cuts for ~$25 bn ■ No India-specific exemption from EU's carbon duties Overall trade surplus for ■ Commitments on student mobility and India post-study visas, concessions for 144 services ■ Duty-free steel imports for India on a par with EU policy ■ Beef, rice, sugar, dairy and poultry excluded for Indian sensitivities NARENDRA MODI ANTONIO COSTA URSULA VON DER LEYEN India-EU will provide stability to the world order. India-EU cooperation is for global good Trade pacts reinforce rulesbased economic orderand promote shared prosperity. Today’s FTAis historic We did it.We delivered the mother of all deals. We are creating a market of two billion people PRIME MINISTER EUROPEAN COUNCIL PRESIDENT EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT Limited gains for luxury cars NITIN KUMAR New Delhi, January 27 THE INDIA-EUROPEAN UNION free trade agreement (FTA)isunlikelytoimmediately bring down prices of most luxury cars,as the structure of the dealprotectsthedomesticauto industrywhile offering limited concessions to high-end imported models. While the agreement provides for a sharp reduction in »INSIDE« TEXTILES SEE $11-BN PUSH P6 import duties on Euroknocked down (CKD) »INSIDE« pean cars, the benefits kits, which already USED will largely accrue to a LUXURY CAR attract a relatively low narrow set of fully dutyof about 16.5%. MARKET imported luxury vehi- MAY BENEFIT Industry executives clesratherthanthebulk saidthemainbeneficiaPAGE 7 ofmodelssoldbybrands ries of the agreement such as Mercedes-Benz, would be niche superBMW, Audi and Jaguar Land luxury brands that rely entirely Rover,which are largely assem- on imports,such as Lamborghbled locally. Nearly 90% of the ini, Ferrari, Porsche and 51,000-52,000 luxuryvehicles Maserati. British marques like soldannuallyinIndiaarelocally Rolls-Royce,Bentley and Aston assembled using completely Martin could also benefit. BOOSTTO MOBILITY OF PROFESSIONALS P7 Under the agreement,India will lower import duties on European automobiles in a phased manner, subject to a quota system,while the EU will provide duty-free access to Indian auto exports. Indiacurrentlyleviesimport duties of 70% on cars priced below$40,000andaneffective duty of around 110% on vehiclespricedabovethatthreshold. Continued on Page 9 THE ‘MOTHER’ OFALL DEALS, WRITES AMITENDU PALIT P10 $500-bnopportunitiesinenergysector:PM SAURAVANAND Panaji, January 27 INDIA’S ENERGY SECTOR offers investment opportunities worth $500 billion, with plans to raise refining capacity beyond 300 million tonne per annum (MTPA),expand oil and gas exploration to 1 million square kilometre,and mobilise $100 billion in upstream investments by the end of this decade, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said onTuesday. Addressing the inaugural function of India Energy Week REFINING STRENGTH ■ India plans to raise its refining capacity from around 260 MTPA to over 300 MTPA 2026 virtually, the Prime Ministersaid the country’s expanding economy and rising energy demand are creating sustained opportunitiesacrosstheenergy value chain,including refining, ■ India among top 5 exporters of petroleum products, supplying to more than 150 countries exploration, liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure and downstream petrochemicals. Highlighting India’s refining strength, Modi said the country’s current refining ■ Govt aims to mobilise $100 bn in oil and gas investments by the end of this decade ■ Oil and gas explo- ration coverage set to expand to 1 million sq km capacity stands at around 260 MTPA,witheffortsunderwayto raise it beyond 300 MTPA.Noting that India is among the top five exporters of petroleum productswithexportsreaching »INSIDE« INDIA, CANADA REBOOT ENERGYTIES P2 EFFORTS ON TO RECOVER OVL’S VENEZUELA DUES P2 more than 150 countries, he saidthisscaleoffersadvantages to global partners.The PM said India aims to raise $100 billion in oil and gas investments by the end of this decade, while expanding exploration coverage to 1 million sq km. Continued on Page 9 BENGALURU REALTY CHECK City-wise housing sales (in units) % change (2024 vs 2025) RAGHAVENDRA KAMATH Mumbai, January 27 FACED WITH A slowdown in housing sales triggered by rising prices,residential developers are reworking their strategies—shrinking apartment sizes, pushing mid-income projects to city outskirts, and offering“all-inclusive”pricing to bring homes back within buyers’reach. Housing sales across the top seven cities fell 14% in 2025 amid higherprices,job losses in the IT sector and geopolitical uncertainty, according to AnarockResearch.Averageresidential prices rose 8% during the year,with the National Capital Region recording double-digit growth,the consultant said. As affordability weakens, developers are focusing on recalibratingticketsizes.“Apartment ticket sizes have gone up and designs have become more compact,” said Sarthak Seth, head of sales and marketing at Tata Realty & Infrastructure.In anupcomingphaseofoneofits Bengaluru projects, the company has reduced unit sizes by about 50 square feet.“The idea Total 14% -12 Two-way goods trade ■ On balance 6%, tariff cuts with quotas ■ Textiles, gradually rise; only cars priced above €15,000 covered apartment sizes as prices surge, sales slump Kolkata $136.5 bn 10% in next 5 years; fixed quotas to firms in financial and maritime services; stronger IPR protection ● Realtors trim 15 merchandise from Day One of FTA and 93% of goods over next 7 years ■ Higher access for EU Chennai CURRENT ENGAGEMENT Key gains for India ■ Zero tariffs on 90% of Indian at launch of deal and to 30–35%present) (from 66-110% at Hyderabad -23 to accelerate from 140% growth in last decade Benefits for EU -5 goods exports by 2032; 58% growth in last decade ■ EU imports from India of EU goods from Day One; 90% coverage finally -20 GOVT BOND YIELDS surged on Tuesday despite the RBI’s recent announcement on liquidity measures. The yield on the 10-year benchmark bond closed at 6.72%, the highest level since March, reports Christina Titus. ■ EU targets to double ■ Zero tariff on 30% to be cut to Goals MUKESH JAGOTA New Delhi, January 27 INDIA AND THE European Union onTuesday announced a landmark free trade agreement (FTA), after nearly two decades of on-off talks, allowing preferential access to each other’s markets through the elimination of tariffs on most goods. Both sides described the pact as “landmark” and “historic”,pitching it as a counterweight to rising global protectionism, particularly from the US.The agreement is expected to come into force only by late 2026 or early 2027, pending legal scrubbing and ratification by the European Parliament. Commerce Minister PiyushGoyalsaidhehopedthe dealwill be implemented“this calendaryear”itself. For India, the deal follows the FTA signed with the UK in July last year. For the EU, it comes after recent trade agreements with the UK and Canada. Once implemented, India will secure duty-free access for over 99% of its exports to the EU by value. The pact also delivers high-value commitments in services, supported by a mobility framework to facilitate the movement of skilled Indian professionals. India has offered tariff relief on 92.1% of its tariff lines, covering 97.5% of EU exports. ■ Tariffs on most cars Pune BOND YIELD RISES TO 11-MONTH HIGH OF 6.72% CHARTING THE PACT Bengaluru PAGE 8 for more than 99% of exports to EU byvalue -18 MARKETS ● Duty-free access MMR IN THE NEWS India, EU cross the Rubicon When homes shrink to stay within reach -8 A RED initiative appears in today’s edition of Financial Express. These pages are an initiative of the marketing solutions team of The Indian Express Group and contain content paid for by advertisers. These pages should be read as advertisement. MEGATRADE DEALMAYBE IMPLEMENTEDTHISYEAR: COMMERCE MINISTER NCR WINGS INDIA 2026 NCR: National Capital Region, MMR: Mumbai Metropolitan Region; Source: Anarock Research & Advisory is to ensure homes remain within buyers’reach,” he said. Seth added that prices in TataRealty’sprojectshaverisen about 15% over the past year and could edge higher over the next six months. Continued on Page 9 QUICK PICKS India targets 3-nanometre chips by 2032 THE GOVERNMENT IS aiming to make high-tech small chips of 3-nanometre nodes, used in smartphones and computers, by 2032, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, reports PTI. Focus will be on 6 categories: compute, radio frequency, networking, power, sensor, & memory. ■ PAGE 24 In a first, EV sales overtake petrol in EU SALES OF FULLY electric cars surpassed those of petrol vehicles in the European Union for the first time in December, even as policymakers proposed to loosen emissions regulations, data from the auto industry group ACEA showed on Tuesday, reports Reuters. ■ PAGE 9 Adani, Embraer sign pact to make aircraft in India ADANI GROUP ON Tuesday announced a strategic partnership with Brazil’s Embraer to set up a regional aircraft manufacturing facility in India, marking a significant expansion of the group’s presence in the fast-growing aviation sector, reports Nitin Kumar. The collaboration will see the two companies establish a final assembly line for regional transport aircraft in India. ■ PAGE 4