New Delhi, Aug 7: Billionaire investor Mark Mobius said on Thursday that upcoming 50 per cent tariffs on India, imposed by US President Donald Trump, will have less impact on the country as it has a massive domestic market to cushion itself, and does not fully depend on exports like China.

Speaking to IANS, the global investor who runs the Mobius EM Opportunities Fund for emerging markets (EMs), said India is in a good position to navigate these tariffs than other nations. “India has a huge domestic market and does not depend on exports like China. Also, Indian software exports are great and escape tariffs,” he noted.

“Conclusion: no big problem for India,” Mobius told IANS. Shipments worth more than $30 billion involving pharmaceuticals and certain electronic items such as smartphones, semiconductors, and energy are so far secure from higher duties as these are still under an exemption list. Trump has not yet included these key industries in the new tariffs that are slated to come into effect in the next 21 days.

Moreover, India exported drugs and pharmaceuticals as well as electronics products (mostly smartphones) to the tune of $10.5 billion and $14.6 billion in FY25, constituting 29 per cent of its overall outbound shipments to the US. Petroleum exports, worth $4.09 billion in FY25, are also currently secure from Trump’s fresh tariffs thanks to energy being on the exemption list as well.

Indian exports to the US stood at $86.51 billion in FY25. According to Mobius, the kind of GDP growth India is witnessing will help it on the road to become the third-largest economy in the world.

“The country is witnessing 6-7 per cent growth despite global uncertainties which shows the resilience in its economy. It will help India continue to move up the ladder,” said Mobius. In just a few years, India has risen from being the world’s 11th-largest economy to the fourth largest. As of 2025, India trails behind the US, China and Germany in terms of total GDP.

IANS

Dehradun, Aug 7:  Two days after the cloudbursts-triggered flashfloods wreaked havoc in Uttarkashi region of Uttarakhand, the relief operations are in full swing, and people are being airlifted to higher locations while those having sustained injuries are being attended to swiftly.

Till today morning, more than 50 individuals were airlifted to safety and evacuated from the Dharali, the flashfloods-hit zone to upper reaches in Matli by helicopter. From there, the people were being transported to their respective destinations.

The officials also released a list of 55 stranded individuals, along with their phone numbers, who were airlifted to safety on Thursday – two days after raging waters swallowed villages in Dharali.

During the day, many more are expected to be lifted out via helicopters. The rescue work is being spearheaded by teams of the Indian Army, ITBP, NDRF, SDRF in coordination with Uttarakhand police and the local administration.

Meanwhile, the Indian Army has also intensified its relief operations in the cloudburst-hit region of Dharali near Harsil. Over 225 troops, including specialised engineer and medical teams, are on the ground conducting rescue and relief tasks. Drones have also been deployed for aerial reconnaissance and locating stranded individuals in inaccessible areas.

With multiple road breaches reported at Bartwari, Linchigad, Gangrani and near Dharali, Chinook and Mi-17 helicopters are positioned at Dehradun for airlift operations, while an ad-hoc aviation base is being established at Matli Helipad.

Recco radar teams, search-and-rescue dogs, and five civil helicopters have been pressed into service to augment relief and rescue efforts. “Lt Gen Sengupta, Army Commander Central Command and GOC UB Area present at Dharali, and seamless coordination underway with HQ Central Air Command, every possible effort is being made to ensure the safe evacuation and care of all affected.

The Indian Army stands firm with the people of Uttarakhand in this hour of need,” it said in a statement this morning. Meanwhile, the Met Department has issued a Red Alert for multiple areas of the hilly state including Pauri Garhwal, Tehri, Uttarkashi, Dehradun, Champawat, Udham Singh Nagar, Bageshwar, and Nainital, till August 12. Schools and educational institutions have been shut as part of precautionary measure and people are advised to stay indoors.

IANS

New Delhi, Aug 7: The sixth round of India-US negotiations to reach an interim trade deal, currently slated for August 25, will be important as US President Donald Trump announced an additional 25 per cent tariffs on India, raising the total tariffs to 50 per cent effective from August 27, a Morgan Stanley report said on Thursday.

The report stated that it will “closely monitor export growth and domestic demand data for spillover impact, along with any incremental policy response”. In FY25, India’s total exports to the US stood at $86.5 billion (2.2 per cent of GDP).

The original 25 per cent tariff and the additional penalty are both applicable on 67 per cent of India’s exports to the US, which translates to $58 billion (1.5 per cent of GDP) (the remaining are sectors under section 232).

To assess the impact of tariffs on India’s GDP, we use inferences from the input-output table modelled by our global team. Assuming all goods exports are subject to a 50 per cent tariff rate, the direct impact on growth is likely to be 60bps while the indirect impact could be of a similar magnitude, over a period of 12 months.

A similar sensitivity analysis for the 67 per cent of non-exempted goods suggests that the direct impact could be 40bps while the indirect impact could be of a same magnitude, taking the total impact to 80bbps, said the report.

The sensitivity analysis refers to linear impact basis shock from external demand and does not take into account mitigating factors such as domestic policy response and or export market diversification.

“On the monetary policy front, we expect RBI to undertake further rate easing, with potentially two additional rate cuts (25bps each), over and above the 25bps rate cut pencilled in our base case. Moreover, the central government is likely to pause the fiscal consolidation and potentially allow capital spending to increase to support domestic demand,” the report mentioned.

“We will closely monitor geopolitical developments and high frequency growth data. On the trade side, the sixth round of negotiations between India and the US, currently slated for Aug 25, will be important to track. We will closely monitor export growth and domestic demand data for spillover impact, along with any incremental policy response,” it added.

IANS

New Delhi, Aug 7: Leaders across India’s political spectrum on Thursday strongly reacted to US President Donald Trump’s announcement of imposing a punitive 25 per cent tariff on India for continuing to buy oil from Russia — a move that would raise total tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent.

In a sharp rebuke, Indian leaders questioned Washington’s authority to “punish” sovereign countries for pursuing independent foreign policy and warned that retaliatory measures would be considered if the tariffs were not rolled back.

Trump was singling out India, even though countries like China and Turkey continue to import oil from Russia. India officially described the move as “extremely unfortunate”, saying it was being penalised for actions that “several other countries are also taking in their own national interest.”

Reacting to the developments, BJP MP Shashank Mani Tripathi told IANS, “I believe it is wrong for any country to impose tariffs on another simply because it maintains good relations with a third country.

The US itself continues to buy a significant amount from Russia. The US cannot punish other countries — it doesn’t have the authority. I believe that Trump would be forced to take back all the tariffs imposed on our democratic nation.” Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi slammed the US for “double-standards and told IANS, “The way Donald Trump is selectively targeting India while ignoring other countries that deal with Russia suggests a certain political bias. It seems like an attempt to isolate or bully India into signing trade deals on their terms.”

“India is under no compulsion to compromise its national interest or sovereignty. If tariffs have been imposed, we must also consider retaliatory measures. The Trade Minister should inform the people about our stance. Trading with us and then donating to Pakistan just shows the hypocrisy of the US. America should roll back the tariffs,” Chaturvedi added.

AAP MP Ashok Kumar Mittal questioned the inconsistency in US policy. Speaking to IANS, he said, “When the US itself imports uranium, chemicals, fertilisers, and metals from Russia, where do those go? Your European allies traded $68 billion with Russia last year — why didn’t you impose similar actions on them? Why this double standard?”

“I would like to say that the US should follow one consistent policy — the same one it follows with Europe and other nations. They should stop issuing such threats to India. Neither will India bow down to their pressure, nor will it accept their unreasonable demands,” he added.

Samajwadi Party MP Akhilesh Yadav, however, said that since the relations between Washington and New Delhi go way back, the focus should be on further strengthening the bilateral ties. “We must maintain our relationship with the United States, a powerful nation with which we’ve had ties not just recently, but for a long time. The focus should be on how to strengthen and improve those relations further,” he told reporters.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress President H Sapkal criticised the government’s handling of foreign affairs. Speaking to IANS, he said, “Our foreign policy is unfortunately weak, and its effects have been visible for quite some time. To please a select handful of people, whatever India is doing is resulting in consequences that every common citizen has to bear. The nation should be put first, and rational thinking is necessary on this matter.”

IANS