BACK PAGE | PAGE 20 COMPANIES | PAGE 4 No coercive steps against old car owners in Delhi-NCR: SC INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 7 South hotel buy to take Ginger count to 250+: Chhatwal CHENNAI/KOCHI, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 13, 2025 China urges firms not to use Nvidia's H20 chips FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL NO. XLVI 84, 44 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: 80,235.59 ▼ 368.49 NIFTY: 24,487.40 ▼ 97.65 NIKKEI 225: 42,718.17 ▲ 897.69 HANG SENG: 24,969.68 ▲ 62.87 `/$: 87.71 ▼ 0.05 `/€: 101.81 ▲ 0.24 BRENT: $66.28 ▼ $0.35 GOLD: `99,371 ▼ `298 IN THE NEWS RBI allows 'vostro' accounts to invest surpluses in G-secs THE RESERVE BANK of India on Tuesday said nonresidents maintaining special rupee vostro accounts (SRVAs) can invest surplus balances in central government securities (G-secs), reports fe Bureau. ■ PAGE 10 Cabinet clears four chip plants worth `4,594 cr THE UNION CABINET on Tuesday cleared four semiconductor projects with a combined investment of `4,594 crore, electronics and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said, reports Ojasvi Gupta. The projects will come up in Odisha, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh. ■ PAGE 2 Sebi rejects plea of Anil Ambani in Yes Bank case SEBI HAS REJECTED a plea by industrialist Anil Ambani to settle charges related to investments in lender Yes Bank, potentially exposing him to at least a `1,828crore penalty, reports Reuters. ■ PAGE 11 Pixxel-led group to build first private satellite network A CONSORTIUM LED by Bengalurubased PixxelSpace has won the bid to build and operate the first fully-indigenous commercial earth observation satellite constellation, IN-SPACe) said on Tuesday, reports Ojasvi Gupta. ■ PAGE 4 »RESULTS CORNER« HINDALCO BEATS STREET ESTIMATES P4 NYKAA PROFIT UP 79% IN JUNE QUARTER P6 CHANCES OFFURTHER RATE CUTS DIM Inflation eases to 8-year low of1.6% ● Fall comes on high base,steeper deflation in food prices DOWNTREND 12 8.70 8 6 CPI Core 4.83 10 FE BUREAU New Delhi, August 12 CPI Consumer Food Price index 4 4.2 2 RETAIL INFLATION, MEASURED by the consumer price index(CPI),fellsharplyto1.55% in July, the lowest level since June 2017, thanks to a rather generalisedeasingofpricepressures,a further decline or lower increaseinmostfoodprices,and a high statisticalbase. Headlineinflationhasfallen below the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) target band of 26% for the first time since the pandemic. Inflation had stood at2.1%inJune,2025and3.6% in July2024. The decline in inflation was even sharper than analysts’ expectations,butlargelyinsync withtheRBI’sassessmentinthe monetary policy review on August6.Thecentralbankinits reviewhadloweredtheinflation forecastforthecurrentfinancial year to 3.1% from 3.7% projected in June. 3.20 0 -2 -4 1.55 -1.76 (% change, y-o-y) Apr 2024 Jul 2025 ■ Headline inflation has ■ July was the ninth straight month when both overall CPI and Consumer Food Price Index declined fallen below RBI’s target band of 2-6% for the first time since the pandemic Direct tax receipts fall 4% THE CENTRE'S DIRECT tax collections, net of refunds, fell nearly 4% till August 11 of the current financial year, weighed down by the liberal income tax relief unveiled in Budget FY26 and extended time for individuals to file tax returns, reports Prasanta Sahu. A slower growth in advance tax, reflecting subdued businessconfidence,also hit the collections. Continued on Page 7 ■ Food inflation in negative zone, Page 3 Latest official data showed that direct tax collections till date fell by 3.95%on-yearto`6.64lakh crore against the required rate of 13.2% to meet the FY26 target of `25.2 lakh crore. Receipts so far amount to 26.3% of the FY26 target compared with 31.3% of annual target achieved in the yearago period. ■ PAGE 2 Youngest leaders on Barclays-Hurun India most-valuable family biz list Age & value (in fig) Bahirji A Ghorpade | 30 Manan P Shah | 32 Divya Nandwana | 33 Sudarshan Venu | 36 Rishi C Sanghvi | 36 Sandur Manganese & Iron Ore Man Infraconstruction Vakrangee TVS Motor Company Sanghvi Movers `1,200 cr `7,800 cr `1.26L cr `2,500 cr Top 3 most-valuable family businesses Rank 1 2 3 Family name Value change (%) Value (` lakh cr) Ambani 28.23 10 Birla 6.48 20 Jindal 5.70 21 Reliance Industries Aditya Birla Group JSW Steel 1 2 3 12% of GDP accounted for by Ambani family's wealth Adani Family name Founder Adani Enterprises Gautam Adani Poonawalla Cyrus Poonawalla 14.01 2.28 Divi Murali K Divi 1.80 Serum Institute of India Divi's Laboratories Value (` lakh cr) `1 lakh cr `2.6 lakh cr `7,100 cr gains saw the Jindal family break into the top 3 US PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP’S tariff bombshell has prompted Mahindra & Mahindra-promoted Classic Legends, which makes Jawa andYezdi bikes,to shelve plans to launch its motorcycles in the US.The launch was scheduled forAugust 17. “The USwas supposed to be our one big market,” Anupam Thareja, co-founder, Classic Legends, told FE on the sidelines of launching the 335cc Yezdi Roadster at an event in Mumbai, at `2.1 lakh (exshowroom). “Nobody knows what the dutyon myproductswould be (in the US). We had no option but to cancel the launch. The bikes are in the customs and on high seas at the moment,” Thareja added. M&M Group chairman Anand Mahindra with Boman Irani, co-founder, Classic Legends, at the launch of the 335cc Yezdi Roadster BRAKES ON ■ Classic Legends makes the Jawa and Yezdi bikes ■ The plan to drop the launch comes after Trump’s latest additional levy of 25% on Indian goods ■ He had earlier put a 25% duty on auto products as well ■ The M&M-backed company is accelerating plans to push volumes in other global markets After slapping a 25% duty on auto products on May 3, Trump had imposed an additional levy of 25% to penalise India for buying oil from Russia. This has made it eco- nomicallyunviable forcompanies like Classic Legends to sell in the US. “With the new duty, it would be unviable (to sell in the US). And remember, I am TRADE, TIES & TARIFFS India,Chinawarm up as Trumpwages tariffwar ● Direct flights may resumein Sept; urea exports eased AS INDIAAND China battle US PresidentDonaldTrump’strade tariff onslaught,the two neighbours seem to be working on resetting theirpolitical ties.In a fresh signal of a thaw in tensions, the two countries are likely to resume direct flight connections as soon as next month,peoplefamiliarwiththe negotiations told Bloomberg. China has also eased curbs on urea shipments to India, according to Bloomberg. The Chinese commerce ministry also decided to terminate an anti-dumping probe into Indian halogenated butyl rubberduetolowimportvolumes, SIGNS OF THAW ■ Airlines in India have been asked by the govt to prepare flights to China at short notice Continued on Page 7 US, China extend truce by 90 days REUTERS August 12 ■ India may take as much as 300,000 tonne of urea after easing of shipments ■ A resumption is likely to see both Air India and IndiGo restarting flights to China while announcing security deposits of up to 40.5% on imports from Canada and Japan, effective from August 14,Reuters reported. Prime Minister Narendra ModiissettoattendtheShanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)summitinTianjinstarting going to compete with people who have huge inventory, available at lower price,” Thareja added. ■ PM Modi is set to attend the SCO summit in Tianjin starting Aug 31, where he may meet Chinese President Xi Jinping August 31,where he may meet ChinesePresidentXiJinping.An official announcement of resumption of direct flights between the two countries is likelytobemadeatthesummit, said the Bloomberg report. Continued on Page 12 THE US AND China on Monday extended a tariff truce for another 90 days, staving off triple-digit duties on each other's goods as US retailers get ready to ramp up inventories ahead of the critical endof-year holiday season. US President Donald Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that he had signed an executive order suspending the imposition of higher tariffs until November 10, with all other elements of the truce to remain in place. China’scommerceministry issueda parallelpause onextra tariffs early on Tuesday, also postponing for 90 days the addition of US firms it had targeted in April to trade and investment restriction lists. ■ PAGE 7 InsolvencyBill tabled in Lok Sabha Top 5 most-valuable first-gen family businesses with active next-generation Rank SWARAJ BAGGONKAR Mumbai, August 12 AGENCIES August 12 THEYOUNG &THE RICH `7,000 cr M&M-backed Classic Legends shelves US launch onAug 17 value ofAnilAgarwal & family'swealth, up 6 spots to enter top 10 daily earnings of the top 300 family businesses in 2024 FE BUREAU New Delhi, August 12 FINANCE MINISTER NIRMALA SITHARAMAN on Tuesday introduced the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2025, in the Lok Sabha, by including provisions related to group insolvency, cross-border cases, and a creditor-led process to expediteresolutionofbankrupt companies. The Bill was later referredtotheselectcommittee. The much-awaited changes to the 2016-born Code are expected to facilitate faster admission of bankruptcy cases and their speedier resolution. The additional provisions are also aimed at maximising asset value and improving governance, government sources said. Thecreditor-initiatedinsolvencyresolution process (CIIRP) will provide an out-of-court initiation mechanism for genuine business failures to facilitate faster and more cost-effective insolvencyresolution,withmin- imal business disruption.Once implemented,thiswillhelpease the burden on judicial systems, promote ease of doing business andimprove access to credit, the sources added. The latest set of amendments to the IBC, according to experts, will provide the economy a powerful shield in the wake of the geopolitical turmoil, besides infusing more life into the whole insolvencyecosystem. As for the CIRP,the amend- mentswouldseektoexpandthe definitionofresolutionplansto includesaleofassets.Thepriority of government dues will be clarified. The Bill would also restrict withdrawal of CIRP applications before the constitutionofthecommitteeofcreditorsandafterthefirstinvitation of the resolutionplans.Itwould enable continuation of avoidance transaction proceedings post-CIRP. Continued on Page 12 Parliament passes new I-T Bill, Page 2 ■ Energyimportssoar;freegaspricing,policyboostersgivehope 7.9 FY22 13.5 FY23 17.1 FY24 13.4 FY25 14.9 (in $ billion) n) imports rose from 2.4% in FY21 to 37% in FY25—has reducedtheoilimportbillbyas much as $17.2 billion (May 2022-2025).But inflated LNG prices continued to jack up the FY25 FY24 FY23 FY22 FY21 88.2 FY20 (% of consumption) 80 88 86 84 82 77.6 80 78 76 74 72 70 FY19 PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI'S renewed call for “Swadeshi” goods may have got a lot of traction,but it may be a long shot before India’s energy sector can even be remotely self-reliant. Various policy measures over decades to raise domestic hydrocarbon (oil and gas) production have metwithverylittle success, and the country continues to face high—and rising—import dependency (seechart).Currently,over88% FY21 FY18 ARUNIMA BHARADWAJ New Delhi, August 12 India's crude oil import dependency FY17 PART-II LNG import bill FY16 FACTOR KEY NUMBERS FY15 SWADESHI of the crude oil processed in the country is imported, up from 77.6% in 2013-14. Indeed, net imports could be much less, given that anywhere between 18-20% of the key refinery products—auto and aviation fuels—are exported. Almost half the natural gas consumed in the country is imported too. The oil import bill has risen at a compounded annual growthrate(CAGR)of6%inthe six years to FY25—from $101 billion in FY20, these imports surged to $137 billion in FY25. As per Rubix Data Sciences, India remained the world’s third-largest importer of crude involume terms in FY25. A sudden increase in imports of Russian barrels since 2022—share of Urals in FY14 THE energy import bill. “In the medium term,India mayfeelthepressuretobroaden itsenergybasketandaccelerate domestic exploration and production (E&P),” Kapil Garg, Source: PPAC founder & managing director, Oilmax Energy,said. The heavy imports of both crude oil and gas are the direct fallout of stagnant domestic output. India’s oil production has declined at a CAGR of 2%, dropping from 32.2 MT in FY20 to 28.7 MT in FY25. While no new stunning oil recovery has been made in India’s onshore and offshore territories for years, gas producers were apparently waiting for market-determined pricing, before stepping up their capex. Recovery of the capitalsunkin the geologically difficult fields has long remained their priority, so potential investors like the Reliance-bp combine and ONGC merelychose to stayput for long years. Things maynowchange for the better. Gas produced from difficultfields,suchasassetsin the50,000square-kmKrishna Godavari (KG) basins off the Andhra Pradesh coast, is currently being sold at highly remunerative prices. Also, come January2026,according totherecommendationsmade by the Kirit Parikh committee in late 2022, free pricing of such gas would be set in. This CHENNAI/KOCHI could result in more production volumes. Reliance-bp is seen to ramp up KG-D6 gas production, with the MJ field contributing too. “While our vast domestic economy provides a significant cushion,trueresiliencerequires a deliberate policy shift. Both government and industry shouldmovebeyondprice-only procurement models to create assured offtake for ‘Made in India’ products,” said Rishabh Jain, senior programme lead at Council On Energy, Environment andWater. According to analysts,pricing freedom will doubtless encourage existingplayers like RIL-bp and ONGC to fast-track deep-water gas production schedules. Continued on Page 7