Economy

The remarks came after the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on March 11 launched a fresh round of Section 301 trade investigations targeting policies and industrial practices of 16 economies, including India and China.

The supply of PNG (Piped Natural Gas) to domestic consumers and CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) is being ensured without any interruptions or cuts, the ministry said.

Fitch ratings saw India's GDP growth at 7.5% for FY26, but expects it slowing down to 6.7% in FY27.

Through the second batch of supplementary demands, the government sought Lok Sabha approval for spending a gross Rs 2.81 lakh crore extra in the current fiscal year.

The petitioners have sought directions to ensure adequate supply of domestic LPG cylinders, contending that despite policy mandates prioritising household consumption, supplies to the domestic market have remained constrained.

American workers and firms have been forced to compete against foreign producers who may have an artificial cost advantage due to forced labour, said US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

The "forced labour" probe comes a day after the USTR said it has evidence of "structural excess capacity and production" in India and started probe under Section 301 for alleged unfair practices.

Bessent has previously suggested the US could "unsanction" additional Russian oil to ease price pressure in the oil market.

Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, also fell to 1.85 million in the previous week.

The fund, which will provide subsidies for chip design projects, manufacturing equipment and supply chain development, may be launched in two to three months.

Notably, this is the second month that the inflation was recorded under the new series, and before the on-going war in the Middle East began.

Puri's announcement came amid a global energy disruption caused by the Iran war and attacks on the Strait of Hormuz.

Ethanol is an emerging alternative to LPG and is being cited by studies, governance policies and global bodies across the world as a viable source of energy.

The company's pipeline is the healthiest it's been in quite a while, said CEO Anantharaju.

Amid the Iran-US conflict and Middle East tensions, India says petrol and diesel prices will remain stable. The government has increased sourcing from non-Hormuz regions and ensured adequate LPG stock while tightening action against black-marketing.

The Strait of Hormuz is considered one of the most critical maritime trade routes in the world, with nearly one-fifth of the global crude oil supply passing through it.

Food and beverage inflation is seen bottoming out at 2.88% in Feb-26 vs 2.12% in Jan-26.

The USTR said it has evidence of "structural excess capacity and production" in India, while highlighting the $58 billion bilateral trade surplus it had with the world's largest economy last year.

The BOE held a public consultation on refreshing its money last year and found nature emerged as the 44,000 responses' most popular theme.

India bought about 1.5 million barrels of Russian oil this month, up from 1.04 million bpd in February, ship tracking data showed.