MARKETS | PAGE 6 ECONOMY | PAGE 2 INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 9 Sebiproposesoverhaul ofPMSregulations HurdleshamperIndia’sbig beton‘waterbatteries’ NEW DELHI, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2026 Highertariffsforcountries that'playgames':Trump FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM VOL. L1 NO. 306, 24 PAGES, `12 (PATNA & 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 , 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 READ TO LEAD SENSEX: 83,294.66 ▲ 479.95 NIFTY: 25,713.00 ▲ 141.75 NIKKEI 225: 56,825.70 ▼ 642.17 HANG SENG: 27,081.91 ▲ 668.56 `/$: 90.88 ▲ 0.10 `/€: 107.25 ▼ 0.10 BRENT: $71.86 ▲ $0.10 GOLD: `157,781 ▲ `3,318 IN THE NEWS ECONOMY PAGE 3 Q3 GDP GROWTH LIKELY AROUND 7.35%: FE POLL INDIA’S ECONOMY LIKELY recorded a growth rate of around 7.35% in the OctoberDecember quarter (Q3) of FY26, according to a Financial Express poll of economists, a substantial slowdown from the 8.2% GDP growth registered in the previous quarter, reports Kuldeep Singh. ECONOMY PAGE 2 NMP2.0: GOVT SEES `16.7 L CR IN ASSET MONETISATION THE CENTRE UNVEILED the National Monetisation Pipeline 2.0, setting an ambitious target of `16.7 lakh crore for public sector asset recycling between FY26 and FY30—about 67% higher than the initial estimate of `10 lakh crore in projected upfront revenues and private investment, reports fe Bureau. » INSIDE « INSOLVENCY RECOVERIES HIT 15-QUARTER LOW PAGE3 AU SFB DENIES WRONGDOING PAGE 7 India braces for Hormuz shock, oil costs may rise RISING TENSIONS BETWEEN Iran and the US are once again sending tremors through global oil markets, putting the Strait of Hormuz firmly back in focus -- and sharply raising India’s exposure to one of the world’s most fragile energy arteries, reports Saurav Anand. ■ PAGE 3 Rupee slide may be bottoming out, say economists THE RECENTSLIDE in the rupee may be nearing its bottom, according to economists, even as the currency’s real effective exchange rate fell to a 12-year low in January 2026, reports Mahesh Nayak. ■ PAGE 6 AUTOBODIESAGAINSTIMPORTOF105KTRUCKS TaMo,M&Mdealin Indonesiafalters ● Localthinktank projectsa$2.3-bn hittoJakarta’sGDP GEETA NAIR & AKBAR MERCHANT Pune/Mumbai, February 23 INDONESIA’S PLANTO import 105,000pickuptrucksandlight commercial vehicles from Tata MotorsandMahindra&Mahindra forits flagship rural cooperative programme has triggered a wave of domestic opposition, withindustrybodiesandeconomistsurgingPresidentPrabowo Subiantotoreconsiderthemove. The proposed procurement of Indonesian Rupiah (Rp) 25 trillion ($1.5 billion) — among the largest global supply contracts won by the two Indian automakers — is meant to bolsterthegovernment’sKoperasi Merah Putih initiative to strengthen rural logistics and food supply chains. Stateowned Agrinas Pangan Nusantara has placed orders for 35,000 four-wheel-drive pickups and 35,000 six-wheel trucks each from Tata and Mahindra, with deliveries scheduled through 2026. TataMotorsconfirmeditwill supply 70,000 vehicles — 35,000 Yodha pickups and 35,000 Ultra T.7 trucks — through its Indonesian subsidiarywhile Mahindra termed OBSTACLE COURSE ■ The proposal, among the largest global supply contract won by the two Indian automakers, was pegged at Indonesian Rupiah (Rp) 25 trn ($1.5 bn) ■ State-owned Agrinas Pangan Nusantara had placed orders for 35,000 four-wheel-drive pickups and an equal number of six-wheel trucks each from Tata and M&M ■ Indonesia’s automotive lobby has pushed back sharply, arguing that the largescale import of completely builtup vehicles could undercut local manufacturers ■ Economic think tank Celios has cautioned that the move could displace up to 330,000 workers POST-BUDGETMEETOFRBI’S CENTRALBOARD OFDIRECTORS FM:USdeal alonecan’tease globalturmoil Won’trevisit brokerfunding norms:RBIguv FINANCE MINISTER NIRMALA Sitharaman said on Monday that a bilateral trade deal with the United States alone cannot be the sole factor in easing global uncertainties. The statement came shortly afterIndiaandtheUSdecidedto postpone talks on an interim trade deal in the wake of the US SupremeCourtoutlawingreciprocaltariffsintroducedbyPresident Donald Trump. The two countries had, on February 7, issued a joint statement on the broadframeworkforthedeal. The minister said it was‘too soon’to assess the implications oftheUScourtrulingandsubsequent new tariff announcements by the Trump AdministrationunderSection122. THERESERVEBANKOFIndiais not considering revisiting its recently announced norms on bank financing for traders and brokers,GovernorSanjayMalhotrasaidonMonday.Healsoruled out any systemic risk arising fromtheIDFCFirstBankfraud. The RBI recently mandated that banks must secure 100% collateralwhen funding brokers and capped total exposure to 40%oftheirtier-1capital.Ithas alsobarredbankfundingforproprietarytradingbybrokers.Since proprietary trading accounted forabout30%ofparticipationin cash and futures markets and nearly50%intheequityoptions segment as of December 2025, the move is expected to affect overalltradingvolumes. Continued on Page 12 its 35,000-unit Scorpio Pik Up order as its biggest-ever export deal.However,Indonesia’sautomotive lobby has pushed back sharply,arguing that the largescaleimportofcompletelybuiltup (CBU) vehicles could undercutlocalmanufacturersalready battling a slowdown. Vehicle sales are expected to fall about 6.8% in 2025 from last year, with both passenger and commercial segments under pressure from cheaper, unofficial Chineseimports. Addingtothechorus,aneconomic think tank, Celios, has warned that the import plan couldshrinkIndonesia’sGDPby Rp 39 trillion ($2.3 billion) and will lead to mass layoffs.“Our study shows that the import plan can create Rp 39 trillion in economicloss,”saidBhimaYudhistira Adhinegara,who heads Celios. He cautioned that the move could displace up to 330,000workers. The Indonesian Chamber of CommerceandIndustry(Kadin) andtheIndonesianAutomotive IndustryAssociation (Gaikindo) have also opposed the proposal, insisting that local firms can meet the demand if given sufficientleadtime. Continued on Page 7 FE BUREAU New Delhi, February 23 FE BUREAU New Delhi, February 23 FM Nirmala Sitharaman and RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra during a meeting of the RBI Central Board in New Delhi on Monday Airtelearmarks`20Kcrfordigitallending FE BUREAU Mumbai, February 23 BHARTI AIRTEL PLANS to scale up its non-banking financial company (NBFC) subsidiaryAirtel Money with a capital infusion of `20,000 crore over the next few years, according to an announcement by the telecom major on Monday. Airtel will contribute 70% of the planned capital, while the promoter group,through GOPAL VITTAL, EXECUTIVE VICE CHAIRMAN, BHARTI AIRTEL Our NBFC expansion reflects our ambition to build a differentiated, future-ready digital lending business Bharti Enterprises,will bring in the remaining 30%. The move follows the Reserve Bank of India’s approval for an NBFC licence for Airtel Money on February 13, enabling the company to directly expand its lending operations. The company France maylose its sheen as P-notes base forIndian mkts KULDEEP SINGH New Delhi. February 23 MFN CLAUSE JUNKED FRANCE-BASED PORTFOLIO INVESTORS in Indian capital markets will lose their long-held tax advantage and will soon be required to pay capital gains tax in India.This follows the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) proposing an‘amending protocol’on Monday for the Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (DTAC) between the two countries. The move could yield significant revenue gains for India, given that several foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) started to invest in Indian markets from France after New Delhi modified the treaties with tax havens Mau- $21 France-based FPIs owned billion worth of equity investments in India, as of January 2026 ■ Some of these investments are routed through P-notes issued by FPIs registered with the Sebi ■ New Delhi had modified the treaties with tax havens Mauritius and Singapore in 2017 ■ The move could yield significant revenue gains for India ritius and Singapore in 2017. Some of these investments are routed through P-notes issued by FPIs registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), while many France-based FPIs also invest directly in India. Any FPI from Francewith less than a 10% stake in an Indian company (FPI investments in a firm are anyway capped at 10%) currentlypays no tax on capital gains, given the beneficial provisions under the 1992 bilateral tax convention. Continued on Page 12 Salesinthe`60-lakh-plussegmentsurgefivefoldsince2020 LuxuryMPVsenterthefastlane AKBAR MERCHANT Mumbai, February 23 INDIA’S LUXURY CAR market has a new growth engine — and it isn’t an SUV.Multi-Purpose Vehicles (MPVs) priced above `60 lakh are emerging as one of the fastest-growing niches in the premium segment, signalling a shift in how affluent buyers are redefining status, comfort and practicality. Still modest at roughly 1,050 units annually,the segment is expanding steadily, attracting fresh entrants and formalising what was once viewed as a fringe experiment.What began in 2019 as a tentative bet has evolved into a credible luxury mobility category. The broader premiumisation wave provides the backdrop. According to JATO Dynamics, industry sales of vehicles priced above `60 lakh have surged from 10,120 units in 2020 to 39,859 units in 2025.Market share has risen from 0.41% LUXE TAKES A BIG LEAP ■ Total industry sales of vehicles priced above `60 lakh have risen sharply from 10,120 units in 2020 to ■ The segment’s genesis can be traced to 2019 when Mercedes-Benz introduced the V-Class at `68 lakh 39,859 units in 2025 »INSIDE« GURGAON TOPS MUMBAI IN OVER `10-CR HOUSING MKT PAGE 24 to 0.87% over the same period — nearly doubling as the top end outpaces the mass market. Within that, luxury MPVs are scaling up even faster.Volumes have climbed from 493 units in 2020 to 2,485 units in 2025. Their share within the `60 lakh-plus band has more than ■ At the top end, the Lexus LM commands roughly `2.15 cr, pushing the ceiling of the segment significantly higher ■ Attheentrylevelaremodelssuchasthe KiaCarnivalandMG’sall-electricM9 whichdoofferplushseatingandfeatures doubled from 0.17% to 0.41%, highlighting accelerated premiumisation from a small base. The segment’s origins trace back to 2019 when MercedesBenz introduced theV-Class at `68 lakh, testing the viability of high-end luxury vans in India.Though discontinued in 2022, it demonstrated latent demand. Toyota followed with the Vellfire, steadily cultivating a clientele among business families, political leaders and film personalities, Continued on Page 12 effectively anchoring the category. Today, prices range from about `60 lakh to over `2 crore. At the entry level, Kia’s Carnival and MG Motor’s allelectric M9 offer plush cabins and advanced features. The Toyota Vellfire — now the benchmark — is priced around `1.2–1.25 crore.At the top end, Lexus’s LM commands roughly `2.15 crore, pushing the ceiling significantly higher. Continued on Page 7 New Delhi said the expansion will build on its existing digital lending infrastructure and data capabilities.Airtel has developed a credit engine over the past two years through its lending service provider (LSP) model, supported by integrated digital channels, analytics capabilities and a large team of data scientists. Continued on Page 7