WORDS WORTH WELL BEING Electrolyte supplements are everywhere, with influencers, wellness gurus and gym-goers alike claiming they can help prevent dehydration and boost energy. But are they really necessary? Page 9 A malaised system FE LINES The interest in the multi-billion dollar industry is booming Page 8 Betting the odds on prediction markets THIRST MARKETING OR MEDICAL NEED? An argument and guide for healthcare to be a human right Page 4 LEISURE Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM VOL XXV NO. 37 SWIMWEAR SURGE FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY NEW DELHI SUNDAY, JULY 12, 2026 24 Pages, `12 (Patna `12, Raipur `12, Srinagar `15) 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 , Coordinated bikinis, sarongs, swim skirts are becoming wardrobe essentials Page 6 READ TO LEAD H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K A T A , L U C K N O W , $1.77 bn Projected revenue of LEVEL UP ● New revenue streams strong as bn mkt crosses $1 bn $1.04 game India’s video REAL-MONEY GAMING (RMG) mayhave been banned, but India’s gaming industry has not lost the game.From inapp purchases to premium passes, cosmetic spending to subscriptions and advertisingled monetisation,the industry is rapidly expanding its rev- ■ SPOTLIGHT, P5 Investing in myself From skill acquisition to personal styling, functional consumption to growth therapy, how India’s more intentional consumers are spending on themselves for performance, employability and identity ■ LIVING, P7 Art on the table Furniture can become a statement piece that tells its story as well as yours to elevate living spaces Indian gaming by 2030 market revenue in 2025 KUNAL DOLEY New Delhi, July 11 From in-app purchases to premium passes, cosmetic spending to subscriptions, industry rapidly expanding revenue streams enue streams to sustain growth momentum since the ban that became effective from May 1 this year. FOCUS ON MARKET ACCESS India pactwith New Zealand todoubletrade LongdependentonRMGas the primary driver of growth, the shift marks a significant milestone in the history of the PM Narendra Modi with his New Zealand counterpart Christopher Luxon in Auckland on Saturday ● 10 deals signed to raise trade to `35k cr by 2030 $793 million and $57 million, respectively, in July. In contrast, Taiwan and South Korea recorded net outflows of $9.8 billion and $7.7 billion, respectively. — Compiled by Kishor Kadam MUKESH JAGOTA New Delhi, July 11 INDIA AND NEW Zealand on Saturday announced a strategic partnership with an ambitious goal to double bilateral trade to `35,000 crore, or Projected no. of video game users in India by 2030 Source: NIKO Partners industryasIndiangamingrevenue breached the $1-billion barrier for the first time last year, as per the latest Asia & MENA Games Market Model Report released by Niko Partners, a market research firm covering games, e-sports, and USseeksIranianpledgeto free up Strait of Hormuz REUTERS Dubai/Washington, July 11 this week, while also declaring an end to the ceasefire reached between the two sides. IRAN’S FOREIGN MINISAraghchi and his TER Abbas Araghchi Omani counterpart arrived in Oman on Satexchanged views on urday to discuss arrange“appropriate mechaIran rejects US ments for the safe nisms” for the safe pastalks unless passage of ships through sage of ships through the conditions met the Strait of Hormuz, Strait of Hormuz in accorwith Washington seekdance with Article 5 of the ing a public pledge of Islamabad memorandum free, secure transit. US President of understanding, Araghchi said on Donald Trump said on Friday the US his Telegram channel on Saturday. and Iran had agreed to continue talks despite an escalation of hostilities Continued on Page 2 2,051 793 Thailand 57 Philippines Malaysia THE FSSAI on Saturday issued nine notices to Swiggy Instamart over complaints alleging delivery of spoiled and damaged packaged food, contaminated milk and eggs, among others. ■ PAGE 3 -138 Vietnam -179 -7,676 -9,808 South Korea Taiwan Continued on Page 2 SwiggyInstamartgetsFSSAInotices -118 Japan NZ$7 billion,by 2030. PM Narendra Modi and New Zealand PM Christopher Luxon agreed towork together to ensure early enforcement and effective implementation of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), signed on April 27 this year.“Thetradeagreementwill accelerate ourjourneytowards developed India and boost businessinbothIndiaandNew Zealand,”Modi said. A TOURIST boat returning from an island trip in southern Vietnam capsized on Saturday, killing 15 Indian visitors. The speedboat was carrying 32 Indian tourists and four crew members. ■ PAGE 16 -46 Indonesia PTI 15IndianskilledinVietnamboatmishap FPIs net equity inflows ($ million) in July so far ‘Atanu’sresignationachallengingevent’ HDFC Bank MD and chief executive officer Sashidhar Jagdishan described the resignation of former part-time chairman Atanu Chakraborty as a ‘challenging event’ for the lender. ■ PAGE 2 *including provisional data on July 10 New high for India-made car exports ● Shipments see record 30.59% value growth VIKRAM CHAUDHARY New Delhi, July 11 IF YOU SEE a Suzuki Swift in Cape Town, a Volkswagen Virtus in Mexico City, or a Nissan Sunny in Riyadh, it’s highly likely they are made in India. But if you see a Suzuki eVitara in London, a Honda WR-V (Elevate) in Tokyo, or a Suzuki Fronx in Kyoto, it’s 100% sure TOP IMPORTERS South Africa Saudi Arabia Mexico Japan 10,567 13,249 25.4 10,088 9.7 11,070 7,939 9,922 25.0 6,902 7,123 (Value in cr) 2024-25 2025-26 Growth (in %) 3.2 they have rolled out from Indian assembly lines. According to the latest export data released by the Department of Commerce under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, outbound shipments of passenger vehicles (PVs) scaled an all-time high of `79,967.35 crore in 511 mn No. of video game users in India in 2025 707 mn India is the fastest growing market in gaming in Asia and MENA region India records highest FPI inflows inAsia so far in July India* N E W D E L H I , P U N E Gamingindustrywinningdespiterealmoneyban WHAT'S INSIDE AFTER OFFLOADING MORE than $27 billion over the previous four months through June, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have turned net buyers of Indian equities in July so far, purchasing shares worth $2 billion. This marks the highest FPI inflows among Asian markets, according to data sourced from Bloomberg. Besides India, Thailand and the Philippines attracted FPI inflows of M U M B A I , FY26, marking a 30.59% growth over FY25 (`61,233.5 crore),and the top markets are South Africa (which imported Indian cars worth `13,249.46 crore, up 25.39%), Saudi Arabia (`11,070.47 crore, up 9.74%), Mexico (`9,922.13 crore, up 24.98%), and Japan (`7,123.29 crore,up 3.2%). This 30.59% value growth in PVexportswas six times that of India’s total commodity exports (5.41% growth), and boostedthepercentageshareof PVsinIndia’scommodityexport basket from 1.65% to 2.05%. Continued on Page 2 New Delhi streaming in Asia. Thereportfurtherforecasts thatthetotalrevenuewillgrow 14% by the end of this year to nearly $1.2 billion, and reach $1.77 billion by 2030 at a 5yearCAGRof 11.2%.As perthe firm,India is the fastest growing market in gaming in Asia and MENA region. As per Niko Partners, there were nearly 511 million players in India in 2025, and it expects the number to reach nearly 707 million by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 6.7% during the forecast period. Continued on Page 2 Meta scraps Muse days after launch AGENCIES July 11 META SAID IT is discontinuing an AI feature launched this week that allowed users to generate images using public Instagram accounts, afterdrawingwidespreadcriticismoverprivacy concerns,including from a Hollywood union. “Earlier this week, we announced that one way for people to generate images in Meta AI is by @-mentioning public Instagram accounts that theywant toreference.Weintended toprovide a useful creative tool and to give people control overwhethertheirpublic content could be referenced in thisway.We've heard the feedbackthatthis feature missed the mark,soit'sno longer available," the company said in an update. ■ FULLREPORTON PAGE 16