ECONOMY | PAGE 3 BACK PAGE | PAGE 20 Media rights pact with ICC in full force: JioStar INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 7 IBBI may assign higher priority to MSME dues CHENNAI/KOCHI, SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2025 China considers $70-bn chip incentive scheme FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL NO. XLVI 186, 20 PAGES, `12 P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E SENSEX: 85,267.66 ▲ 449.53 NIFTY: 26,046.95 ▲ 148.40 NIKKEI 225: 50,836.55 ▲ 687.73 HANG SENG: 25,976.79 ▲ 446.28 `/$: 90.42 ▼ 0.06 `/€: 106.09 ▼ 0.36 BRENT: $61.21 ▼ $0.07 GOLD: `1,31,684 ▲ `2,990 IN THE NEWS ECONOMY PAGE 2 INFLATION RISES SEQUENTIALLY, STILL BELOW 1% INFLATION, MEASURED BY the consumer price index (CPI), rose sequentially from a series low of 0.25% in October to 0.71% in November, under the twin impact of a waning favourable base and an easing of deflation in food prices, reports Mukesh Jagota. MARKETS PAGE 6 RUPEE ENDS AT FRESH LOW OF 90.42 VS DOLLAR THE RUPEE FELL to an all-time low for the second consecutive session on Friday, closing at 90.42 after hitting 90.56 intra-day. Persistent outflows and delay in the US trade deal continued to dampen the sentiment, reports fe Bureau. » INSIDE « CAR DISPATCHESATRECORD HIGH IN NOVEMBER PAGE 4 BROOKFIELD LINES UP $1 BN FOR MUMBAI PROJECTPAGE 4 Reforms engine gathers steam ● CABINETAPPROVES BILLTO HIKE INSURANCE FDI TO 100% FE BUREAU New Delhi, December 12 CLOSE ON THE heels of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assertion that the country is in a full-fledged “reform express” phase, the Union Cabinet on Friday approved a host of legislative and administrative measures to give a push to different sectors of the economy.The Cabinet decisions covered coal, civil nuclear energy and the insurance sector. A Bill to raise the foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in insurance companies from 74% to 100% got the nod, in ● NOD TO OPEN UP CIVIL NUCLEAR SECTORTO PRIVATE COMPANIES CABINET CALLS CoalSETU window for auction of coal linkages for diverse industrial uses and exports Minimum support price (MSP) for milling copra raised by up to `445 to `12,027 per quintal what could unlock the full potential of the sector,which is anticipated to grow at 7% annually over the next five years. The Bill, to be tabled in I&B Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at a press briefing on the Cabinet decisions Census 2027 approved with an outlay of `11,718 cr. The exercise will include caste count for first time Parliament next week, is expected to attract stable and sustained foreign investments,enhance competition, facilitate technology transfer, and significantly improve insurance penetration in the country. Continued on Page 7 Assuredruraljobdaystobehiked25% ● MGNREGAwill be renamed andwages raised to `240 a day FE BUREAU New Delhi, December 12 THE UNION CABINET has approved a proposal to rename the flagship rural job guarantee scheme, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), to Pujya Bapu Gramin Rozgar Guarantee Yojana and revamp JOB DIARY ■ The scheme, originally named National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, was launched in 2005 ■ It was renamed as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act in 2009 its operational parameters, sourcessaid.Asperthedecision, the number of guaranteed employment days in a year for OF COALALLOWED »INSIDE« EXPORTSFIRSTTIME P2 FOR THE FOREIGN INSURERS TO NOWTAP INDIAN MARKET SANS TIE-UPS P2 Credit growth at 1-year high Bank deposits (y-o-y % growth) 12 11 11.83 10.19 11 10 9 Nov 1, 2024 Nov 28, 2025 Bank credit (y-o-y % growth) 11 11.91 12 BANK CREDITGROWTH touched 11.53% for the fortnight ended November 28, 2025, marking the strongest lending momentum in 12 months, reports Mahesh Nayak.The previous high was 11.91% on November 1, 2024.The surge reflects banks’ aggressive deployment of credit, even as deposit growth declined marginally to 10.19% during the fortnight. 11.53 .53 11 10 9 8 Nov 1, 2024 Nov 28, 2025 Credit-deposit ratio 81.00 80.50 80.00 79.50 79.00 78.50 80.49 79.12 Nov 1, 2024 the scheme’s beneficiaries will be raised to 125 from 100 and theminimumwageto`240per day,the sources said. Nov 28, 2025 Source: RBI The scheme, currently fully fundedbytheCentre,wasoriginally named National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 (NREGA), when it was launched by the Congress-led UPA-I government. It was later expanded and renamed as MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) in 2009. The government will likely introduceaBillinParliamenttocarry out the proposed changes. Continued on Page 7 CABINETAPPROVES TEXT OF INDIA-OMAN TRADE PACT P2 NTPC to float global bids for mega nuclear reactors soon ARUNIMA BHARADWAJ New Delhi, December 12 STATE-RUN NTPC IS planning to float a global tender for large nuclear power plants with a combined capacity of 6-10 gigawatts (GW) soon, marking India’s largest power producer’s graduation to utility-scale production of nuclear energy. The company has sought the government’s nod for the same and aims to launch the tender once clearance is received,anofficialtoldFE.The units, six in number, will have pressurised water reactors. If substantial manufacturing of equipment is indigenised, the capital costs of these reactors may come down from `30 crore per MW to `22-25 crore per MW, sources said. The tender size could therefore be in the range of `1.3-2.2 lakh crore, assuming the cost efficiencies have been achieved. The tender will follow an expression of interest (EoI) issued by NTPC earlier this year.“We floated a global EoI to know the market and if global suppliers and OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) were interested in the Indian market,”the official said. Continued on Page 7 INDIGO CRISIS DGCAsacks 4 inspectors THE DGCA HAS removed four flight operations inspectors appointed by IndiGo, as the regulator widens its crackdown following massive disruptions at the country’s largest airline, reports FE Bureau. These executives were on IndiGo’s payroll while working with the DGCA under a long-permitted arrangement. ■ PAGE 4 Globalexperts toprobefiasco INDIGO HAS APPOINTED Chief Aviation Advisors to conduct an independent expert review of its recent operational disruption and the factors that triggered it, reports Nitin Kumar.The consultancy is led byCaptainJohnIllson,aveteran with more than fourdecades of aviation experience across the FAA, ICAO, IATA and major global carriers. ■ PAGE 4 Novo Nordisk launches medicine at starting price of `2,200 a week OzempicaddstoIndia’sgrowing appetiteforanti-obesitydrugs FE BUREAU New Delhi, December 12 MARKET BOOMING ELI LILLY’S MOUNJARO,which has taken an early lead since its March launch in India, now facesseriouscompetition.Novo Nordisk on Friday introduced Ozempic, pricing the 0.25 mg starterdoseat`2,200perweek. Forafour-weekcourse,theentry dose works out to `8,800,placing the drug firmly in the premium segment of India’s fastgrowing obesity and metabolic-health market. By comparison,Mounjaroispriced at `14,000 a month for the 2.5 mg initiating dose and rises to `27,500forthe15mgstrength. The Ozempic launch comes just weeks after the rollout of Wegovy, Novo Nordisk’s dedicated weight-loss injection, in theIndianmarketinJune.After a 37% price cut, Wegovy now 0.5 mg and 1 mg doses in India, priced between ■ Analysts ■ Ozempic is available in 0.25 mg, `8,800 and `11,175 for a month ■ Mounjaro of Eli Lilly is available in vials and multi-dose KwikPens — monthly cost ranges from (2.5mg) to `14,000 `27,500 (15mg) starts at `10,850 a month and goes up to `16,400.For Ozempic, the 0.5 mg step-up dose costs `10,170 for a four-week pack, while the 1 mg maintenancedoseispricedat`11,175. “Itwasaverytoughdecision to bring Ozempic at this price,” Novo Nordisk India Managing DirectorVikrant Shrotriya said ■ Wegovy — Novo Nordisk’s dedicated weightloss injection — now starts at `10,850 expect the global weight-loss and metabolic drugs segment to reach $150 bn annually by end of the decade a month and goes up to `16,400 at the launch, adding that the company wants more patients to access the medicine at “an affordable rate.” India, home to the world’s second-largest population of type-2 diabetes patients and a rapidly rising obesity baseline, has become a crucial battleground for weight-loss and metabolicdrugs.Analystsexpect the global segment to reach $150billionannuallybytheend of the decade. Ozempic, approvedintheUSin2017fortype2 diabetes, has since become a global bestseller and is widely used off-label forweight loss. Continued on Page 7 CHENNAI/KOCHI Govt speeds up visa for Chinese professionals ● Processing time less than 1 month now; China sees ‘positive action’ WARMING UP NIKUNJ OHRI & SHIVANGI ACHARYA New Delhi, December 12 INDIA HAS CUT red tape to speed business visas for Chineseprofessionals,twoofficials said, a major step to boost ties betweenthetwocountriesand end chronic delays that cost outputworthbillionsofdollars because of scarce technicians. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi cautiously rekindles ties with Beijing in the face of punishing US tariffs, the officials said New Delhi dropped a layer of bureaucratic scrutiny and shortened visa approval times to less than a month. India had blocked virtually allChinesevisitsaftertheEastern Ladakh clashes in mid2020, widening its vetting of business visas beyond the home and foreign ministries. The issues around securing visas have now been completelyresolved,said one of the officialswith knowledge of the matter,whobothspokeoncondition of anonymity.“We have removed the layer of administrativevettingandareprocessing the business visas within ■ Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited China in late August — his first in seven years — and met President Xi Jinping ■ India widened vetting of visas for Chinese nationals after border clashes in mid-2020 ■ Stricter scrutiny pegged to have led to production losses of $15 bnto over four years Indian electronics manufacturers fourweeks,”the official added. Followingthenews,China’s foreign ministry said it had noticed “positive action” from India to facilitate people-topeople exchanges in the common interest. Continued on Page 7