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Indian Express
6 days ago
- Business
- Indian Express
Iran–Israel war could push freight, insurance costs, disrupt Red Sea trade; govt to meet traders this week
An escalating Iran–Israel war could push up freight and insurance costs on shipping routes and hinder efforts to normalise trade through the Red Sea, affecting Indian exports to West Asia and Europe, exporters and government officials said on Monday as the Commerce and Industry Ministry is set to meet traders this week to take stock of the situation. This comes as the deadly conflict between Iran and Israel entered its fourth day, fuelling fresh concerns over global trade, especially oil flows, amid fears that Iran could block the Strait of Hormuz—through which 20–30 per cent of global oil trade passes—in retaliation for Israeli attacks. 'Freight and insurance costs could go up due to the ongoing war, but the route for Indian goods is away from the conflict zone. There has not been an immediate impact on Indian shipments,' a government official said. 'The Commerce and Industry Ministry will assess the situation and meet exporters and shipping representatives this week,' another official added. 'The impact of the war is likely to derail efforts to normalise Red Sea trade. Shipping on the route had shrunk dramatically due to Houthi attacks last year, but recently, around 30 per cent of vessels had resumed using it. The renewed tensions will also raise insurance premiums, hitting Indian exports to West Asia and Europe,' an exporter said. The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), in a report, said India has significant trade exposure to both warring nations. In FY25, India exported goods worth $1.24 billion to Iran and imported $441.9 million. Trade with Israel was even higher, with $2.15 billion in exports and $1.61 billion in imports, the report noted. 'But more critical than these bilateral flows is India's dependence on the region for energy: nearly two-thirds of its crude oil and half of its LNG imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has now threatened to close. This narrow waterway, only 21 miles wide at its narrowest point, handles nearly a fifth of global oil trade and is indispensable to India, which relies on imports for over 80 per cent of its energy needs,' GTRI Founder Ajay Srivastava said. Srivastava warned that any closure or military disruption in the Strait of Hormuz would sharply raise oil prices, shipping costs, and insurance premiums—triggering inflation, pressuring the rupee, and complicating India's fiscal management. 'Israel's 14–15 June strike on Houthi military leadership in Yemen has heightened tensions in the Red Sea, where Houthi forces have already attacked commercial shipping. For India, this poses another serious risk. Nearly 30 per cent of its westbound exports to Europe, North Africa, and the US pass through the region,' GTRI said. The renewed instability could pose deeper macroeconomic challenges for India, extending beyond trade, especially given its growing reliance on oil imports. While India was forced to halt oil imports from Iran following US sanctions in 2019, Goldman Sachs estimates that Iranian supply could fall by 1.75 million barrels per day (b/d) for six months before gradually recovering. 'Assuming OPEC+ compensates for half the peak shortfall from spare capacity, Brent could rise above $90 per barrel before retreating to the $60s by 2026 as supply recovers,' the investment bank said. A fall in prices of fruits, pulses, and cereals helped ease India's headline retail inflation to a 75-month low of 2.82 per cent in May 2025. This trend prompted the Reserve Bank of India's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to cut the policy repo rate by a larger-than-expected 50 basis points. However, the RBI cautioned that 'monetary policy is left with very limited space to support growth'. The Directorate General of Shipping had issued an advisory on Friday for all the Indian seafarers and Indian-flagged ships in Iranian ports or crossing through the Strait of Hormuz to be cautious, after Israel attacked Iran. It also advised seafarers to remain vigilant and avoid unnecessary movement, and adhere to local safety protocols and other regulations for their own safety. Ravi Dutta Mishra is a Principal Correspondent with The Indian Express, covering policy issues related to trade, commerce, and banking. He has over five years of experience and has previously worked with Mint, CNBC-TV18, and other news outlets. ... Read More
Pink Villa
05-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Pink Villa
HYBE accused of delaying SEVENTEEN's HAPPY BURSTDAY album's shipment to promote other groups
SEVENTEEN marked a significant milestone by releasing their new album, HAPPY BURSTDAY, on their 10th anniversary. Despite the excitement surrounding the album's release, some fans who pre-ordered their copies are still awaiting delivery. This delay has led to frustration among them. Fans have now accused the management company HYBE of poor distribution management, which they believe may impact the group's promotional activities and engagement. SEVENTEEN's HAPPY BURSTDAY album faces shipment delay SEVENTEEN 's May 26 comeback generated great buzz on social media. However, the excitement was marred by the long period of wait for fans to get their hands on the physical album. That's due to HYBE Labels abruptly delaying the shipping of the album and closing off pre-orders earlier than expected. As per their latest Weverse notice, "the shipping start date has been changed for some orders" due to "insufficient" production quantity which was available for pre-order starting Mon, April 28, 2025 (KST). According to them, the demand for the albums exceeds their availability for supply. This disappointed the fans, who took to online platforms to express their concerns about the issue. Check out fan reactions to HAPPY BURSTDAY shipment delay Fans accused HYBE of intentionally withholding stock of SEVENTEEN's HAPPY BURSTDAY album to sabotage the group's promotions, allegedly to favor other HYBE groups. They pointed out that SEVENTEEN, being part of Pledis Entertainment, which was acquired by HYBE, might not be receiving the same level of support as groups formed by HYBE themselves. Fans expressed concerns that the limited album availability would negatively impact SEVENTEEN's music show wins and chart rankings. The reason for this was that many of the shows prioritize physical album sales over online streams. With fewer album sales in the second and third weeks potentially affecting their rankings, fans worry that this could hinder the group's overall success. Comments like "I was wondering why their sales only 2.4 million and not more" reflected fans' surprise, considering SEVENTEEN's usual success with album sales. Fans encouraged each other to "Keep emailing and commenting under their (SEVENTEEN/HYBE's) page" to express their dissatisfaction with the delay, highlighting the importance of the second and third weeks for maximizing album purchases.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
US home prices to rise 3.5% this year but tariffs will hinder new construction :Reuters poll
By Sarupya Ganguly BENGALURU (Reuters) - U.S. home prices will rise steadily over coming years on an expected further decline in mortgage rates, according to property experts in a Reuters survey who expressed a near-unanimous view President Donald Trump's tariffs would hinder affordable home construction. The same analysts had said three months ago that affordability and turnover in the market would improve, an upbeat outlook hinging on expectations the Federal Reserve will resume cutting interest rates after staying on the sidelines all year. That optimism has since been tempered with Congress passing a sweeping tax-cut and spending bill estimated to add roughly $3.3 trillion by 2034 to an already-enormous $36.2 trillion debt pile, according to nonpartisan think tank the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. Long-term bond yields have spiked higher, limiting scope for a decline in mortgage rates. "Looking ahead through the rest of this year and into 2026, we don't expect mortgage rates to come down much — at least not through the third quarter of 2025 — so affordability will remain pressured," said James Egan, housing strategist at Morgan Stanley. U.S. home prices based on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas are forecast to rise 3.5% each year through 2027, according to a May 19-June 3 Reuters survey of 27 property analysts. If realised, that would be the slowest pace of home price rises since 2011. Average home prices are more than 50% above where they were in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic. "The housing market remains in a cooler phase as sellers continue to adjust to looser conditions after the red-hot pandemic years," said Thomas Ryan, an economist at Capital Economics. Even with two more Fed interest rate cuts expected later this year according to rate futures, 30-year mortgage rates are only set to ease to an average 6.73% this year from 6.98% currently. They are forecast to fall to average 6.33% next year and 6.29% in 2027, survey medians showed, still over double some of the lowest rates of around 3% buyers took out during pandemic years that few are willing to relinquish. "If mortgage rates were to drop meaningfully — say by 50 to 100 basis points — we could see a surge in buying activity. But rates really need to come down first,' said Lawrence Yun, chief economist at the National Association of Realtors. TARIFFS TO LIMIT CONSTRUCTION OF AFFORDABLE HOMES Construction spending fell unexpectedly in April and has been constrained by a decline in outlays on single-family housing projects and a rising inventory of unsold homes. It faces additional challenges from Trump's tariffs, most respondents said. "While there's still a lot of uncertainty about what level of tariffs are ultimately going to be implemented, they're going to make it more expensive to build. You'll see either fewer homes built, smaller homes built, or a combination of both," said Morgan Stanley's Egan. Asked how U.S. tariffs on major trading partners announced earlier this year would affect affordable home construction, a near-90% majority, 21 of 24, said fewer homes would be built, including two who said far fewer. Three said there would be no impact. "President Trump's inflationary trade and immigration policies leave no clear path to the lower borrowing costs the housing market desperately needs," said Capital Economics' Ryan, who expects no more Fed rate cuts this year and mortgage rates near 7%. Only half of respondents, 12 of 24, said purchasing affordability for first-time homebuyers would improve over the coming year, down from 62% in a February poll. Existing home sales, which make up over 90% of total sales, were expected to remain around the current level of an annualized 4 million units next quarter and rise slightly to an average 4.1 million by year-end, well below a near-15 year high of 6.6 million in early 2021. (Other stories from the Q2 global Reuters housing poll) Sign in to access your portfolio
Time of India
01-06-2025
- General
- Time of India
Seat matrix delay derails CET 2024 counselling across Karnataka
Karnataka Examinations Authority Departments consistently delay seat matrix approval. Full data is still missing, inevitably delaying the CET process –KEA Executive Director H Prasanna The delay in submission of seat matrix by engineering, medical, and nursing colleges to the(KEA) has raised serious concerns about the smooth conduct of the seat allotment process for CET 2024 aspirants. Despite the official deadline of May 23, over 650 institutions have failed to provide details of available seats, leading to fears of potential delays and confusion during the counselling phase. KEA had issued two reminders after the deadline, but many institutions continue to remain year, 3.11 lakh students appeared for the Common Entrance Test (CET), of which 2.75 lakh have qualified. The centralized allotment process depends on timely and accurate seat matrix data, without which the schedule could be severely per the seat matrix data received so far, only 85,259 out of the total 1,11,294 seats across various professional courses have been submitted to KEA. This shortfall is causing widespread anxiety among students and parents who fear delays in counselling may hinder deserving candidates from securing seats in their preferred official from KEA said that engineering accounts for the largest intake with 79,907 seats, but only 66,254 have been reported so far. Pharmacy colleges have submitted 2,826 out of 3,227 seats. In Food Science, 329 out of 365 seats have been reported. Nursing colleges have reported just 12,970 out of 24,642 seats, and Yoga institutions have submitted 283 out of 408 seats. Agriculture has fared slightly better, with 2,168 out of 2,302 seats reported. Veterinary Sciences stands out as the only discipline with 100% submission—316 seats reported in full—while Sericulture has reported only 55 out of 72 Executive Director H. Prasanna acknowledged the delay and pointed out that multiple departments are yet to submit their respective seat matrices. 'Every year, some departments delay approval. This year too, despite repeated appeals, we have not received complete data. This will inevitably affect the CET process,' he has a vast network of institutions—224 engineering colleges, 26 architecture colleges, 97 AYUSH institutions, 65 medical colleges, 38 dental colleges, 16 homeopathy colleges, 5 naturopathy colleges, 126 colleges, 38 Pharm D colleges, and 14 yoga education institutions. Each must submit caste-wise seat data to KEA to ensure a fair and efficient allotment urge all departments to submit seat matrix promptly to prevent student losses.
Fibre2Fashion
27-05-2025
- Business
- Fibre2Fashion
India's loom QCO faces industry pushback ahead of deadline
India is set to implement the Quality Control Order (QCO) for weaving machines (looms), their assemblies, sub-assemblies, components, and all types of embroidery machinery from August 28, 2025, following the expiry of a one-year gestation period. Just three months ahead of implementation, the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI) has demanded the removal of the QCO. It is worth noting that a notification was issued on August 28, 2024, regarding the implementation of the QCO on textile and embroidery machines and their components. The government had provided a one-year period for the industry to make the necessary preparations. India plans to enforce QCO on weaving and embroidery machines from August 28, 2025. The SGCCI has urged the government to withdraw the QCO, citing heavy reliance on imported machinery and potential financial losses. SGCCI argues that the regulation could hinder the textile sector's growth and technological advancement, particularly as India targets a $350 billion market by 2030. Recently, SGCCI vice president Ashok Jirawala and former president Ashish Gujarati presented the matter in a meeting with India's Minister for Heavy Industries, H D Kumaraswamy, and joint secretary Vijay Mittal in New Delhi. They pleaded for the removal of the QCO. The meeting was convened by the Ministry of Heavy Industries and attended by various industry organisations. SGCCI has formally urged the central government to remove the QCO from textile machinery, citing concerns about its potential impact on the sector's growth and technological progress. SGCCI representatives argued that India's current textile market is valued at $165 billion and is projected to reach $350 billion by 2030. To achieve this target, the industry will need approximately 4.5 lakh high-speed weaving machines, requiring an estimated investment of $15 billion. As several of these machines are not manufactured in India, imports are essential. SGCCI also noted that embroidery technology evolves rapidly, with machinery often needing upgrades every two to three years. Since many advanced machines are not produced domestically, Indian entrepreneurs rely heavily on imports. They, therefore, emphasised the need to exclude embroidery machinery from QCO regulations. Gujarati told Fibre2Fashion , 'Such textile machinery imports are essential as several types of machines are not manufactured locally. We are heavily dependent on imported machines. A large number of textile units have opened Letters of Credit (LCs) and booked machines from abroad. If the QCO is not removed and comes into effect on August 28, 2025, the imported machinery will be held at ports, resulting in significant financial losses. Furthermore, banks may hesitate to finance such ventures, potentially slowing industrial growth.' Gujarati further informed that following the presentation, Kumaraswamy and the joint secretary of the ministry responded positively and assured that the concerns of the user industry would be considered. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)
