Wholesale Price Index shows a year on year inflation uptick in May driven by food and manufacturing price rises.
Wholesale Price Index for May 2024 records a provisional annual inflation rate of 2.61% (base 2011 12), driven mainly by increases in food articles and manufactured food products; Primary Articles rose month over month, Fuel & Power declined, and Manufactured Products showed a modest rise with mixed subgroup performance. May WPI is provisional (response rate 88.8%) and subject to revision; annexes present detailed indices and six month trends.

Public Private Partnership model urged to strengthen coordination, R&D and full use of PLI and SCALE to boost exports.
Minister directed strengthened interdepartmental coordination, prioritisation of Research & Development and a reinforced Public Private Partnership model, mandated follow-up meetings to finalise policies, and urged full utilisation of SCALE and PLI schemes to boost local value-add, exports and domestic production while stressing data transparency and quality as core administrative principles.

Assumption of charge signals renewed focus on commerce and industry policy and expanded opportunities for youth and citizens.
Assumption of charge of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry by Union Minister Piyush Goyal marks an administrative leadership transition with senior departmental officials present, identifying the leadership responsible for advancing commerce and industry agendas. The Minister emphasised priorities of creating opportunities for youth, promoting welfare objectives under a development oriented governance agenda during the Amrit Kaal, and pursuing rapid advancement in commerce and industry guided by a collective governance philosophy.

Ministerial appointment: Minister of State takes charge of commerce and industry with formal handover and welcome.
Ministerial appointment: Shri Jitin Prasada assumed office as Minister of State in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, with a formal handover and welcome attended by the Union Minister and senior departmental secretaries and officers.

Tax devolution instalment increases central fiscal transfers to States to accelerate development and capital spending.
An additional tax devolution instalment was released in June 2024, supplementing the regular monthly devolution to States for FY2024-25 to accelerate development and capital spending. The release is made pursuant to the Interim Budget provision for devolution and is distributed on a state-wise basis, with the press release disclosing individual state allocations and the cumulative amount devolved to States up to 10 June 2024.

Accreditation framework strengthened to promote quality and reinforce national third party accreditation systems across sectors.
The note stresses reinforcement of the national accreditation framework through nationwide events promoting accreditation's role in quality improvement. It identifies national laboratory and conformity assessment accreditation schemes as the backbone of third party accreditation, participating in international multilateral recognition arrangements and maintaining extensive accredited networks. QCI, established in 1997 by government and industry, is described as the apex organisation responsible for establishing and operating the third party national accreditation system and advising stakeholders on quality matters.

Investment friendly regulatory reforms drive capital into infrastructure, clean economy and digital projects under facilitated engagement.
India presented a predictable, pro market investment environment with legislative and regulatory reforms and improved Ease of Doing Business to attract capital for infrastructure, climate technology, renewable energy and digital economy projects, positioning these sectors for international investment and reshoring of startups under the IPEF Clean Economy engagement.

IPEF Clean Economy Agreement advances Cooperative Work Programmes and catalytic capital to boost clean energy and supply chain participation.
India participated in the IPEF ministerial where partners completed legal review and signing of the Clean Economy, Fair Economy, and Supply Chain cooperative instruments; India withheld formal signature pending domestic approval processes. The Clean Economy Agreement establishes Cooperative Work Programmes and the IPEF Catalytic Capital Fund to support energy transition, climate resilience, technology deployment, workforce development, and MSME integration into regional value chains. The Fair Economy Agreement focuses on transparency, anti corruption, tax information exchange, and technical assistance including capacity building contributions from India.

Combination approval: InvIT acquisition of MBEL via NCD subscription, trust unit issuance and subsequent equity and NCD transfer.
CCI approved a combination where IRB Infrastructure Trust will acquire interests in Meerut Budaun Expressway Limited through a sequence: (i) proposed NCD subscription of MBEL by IRB and Anahera with an alternate InvIT subscription, (ii) fresh issuance of InvIT units to existing unitholders (Trust Unit Issue), and (iii) acquisition by the InvIT of MBEL equity shares and NCDs. The InvIT is a SEBI-registered infrastructure investment trust holding concessioned toll-road assets; MBEL is the SPV for the Ganga Expressway Package I.

Combined Index of Eight Core Industries rises provisionally, signalling sectoral production growth in April year on year.
The Combined Index of Eight Core Industries increased by 6.2% in April 2024 year on year, driven by positive monthly growth in Electricity, Natural Gas, Coal, Steel, Refinery Products, Crude Oil and Cement while Fertilizers declined; ICI accounts for 40.27% of the IIP weight, the cumulative ICI growth for 2023 24 is provisionally 7.6%, and January 2024 final growth is revised to 4.1%. Data for Feb-Apr 2024 are provisional and methodological notes detail inclusion of renewable electricity and a new steel product.

Disclosure of origin obligations require patent applicants to identify genetic resource sources, strengthening transparency and protecting traditional knowledge.
The WIPO treaty requires states to adopt mandatory disclosure obligations in patent applications that rely on genetic resources or associated traditional knowledge, obliging disclosure of country of origin or source. It mandates domestic legal reforms to enforce disclosure of origin obligations with appropriate sanctions or remedies, aiming to increase patent-system transparency, prevent misappropriation of biodiversity-linked knowledge, and harmonise protections for provider countries within the global IP framework.

Competition regulation in digital markets: adapt enforcement and frameworks to preserve fair competition amid platform dynamics.
Competition regulation must adapt to preserve competitiveness in digital markets by balancing ex post investigations and sanctions with ex ante prohibitions, using market specific analysis, behavioural economics, and detailed domestic market studies to provide guidance on proscribed conduct. Regulatory tools such as settlements and commitments, merger notification thresholds, recognition of hub and spoke cartels, and leniency innovations are highlighted as mechanisms to address modern market complexities, improve transparency, empower smaller firms, and constrain anticompetitive practices while integrating privacy, data and sustainability considerations into competition policy.

Incubation centre fosters industry-academia startups, supporting commercialization and mentorship in cement sector for sustainable technology adoption.
Inauguration of the National Council for Cement and Building Materials Incubation Centre creates a facility providing mentor-led technical guidance, advanced laboratory access, and support for development of market-ready products to commercialize innovations in cement and building materials, with startup projects addressing AI for alternative fuels, pre-combustion technology, 3-D printing, and carbon capture aligned to sustainability objectives.

Digital logistics data gateway enables API access to government datasets, promoting interoperable applications and state integration.
ULIP operates as a digital gateway that provides authorised industry access to government logistics datasets via API integration, linking multiple central systems and extensive data fields to support private-sector application development. The platform enables interoperable applications for route optimisation, authentication and operational efficiencies, while encouraging state-level adoption to harmonise logistics frameworks and integrate with national mobility and infrastructure tools.

Digital commerce democratization: government-backed ONDC event drives startup onboarding and market access expansion for small businesses.
The release describes the ONDC Startup Mahotsav as a government initiative to integrate startups with the Open Network for Digital Commerce, highlighting Letters of Intent for onboarding, panel discussions and a masterclass to support startup onboarding and utilisation, and operational metrics showing substantial seller onboarding-predominantly small and medium enterprises-and large transaction volumes as indicators of the platform's maturity and potential to expand market access, foster competition, and lower digital-entry barriers for underserved businesses.

Regulatory cooperation in digital transformation and tele-medicine to be explored, aiming to deepen bilateral trade ties.
Both delegations committed to pursue enhanced trade and investment engagement and explore signing Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) for regulatory cooperation in digital transformation solutions, tele-medicine, rough diamonds, fast payments systems and traditional medicine, while identifying priority sectors for expanded cooperation and agreeing closer collaboration between Investment Promotion Agencies and Chambers of Commerce.

Wholesale Price Inflation rises as food, energy and select manufactured items push provisional WPI higher; figures subject to revision.
Provisional WPI for April 2024 records a year over year inflation of 1.26%, led by increases in food articles, electricity, crude petroleum & natural gas and certain manufactured products. The bulletin provides component and sub group month over month and year over year movements, distinguishes provisional and final figures, reports compilation response rates (April provisional 86.6%; February final 95.5%), and notes that provisional WPI figures are subject to revision under the WPI final revision policy; DPIIT issues monthly WPI releases with a specified schedule and online annexures.

Retail inflation eases in April, signaling lower year on year consumer price growth and moderating food price pressures.
All India CPI inflation eased to 4.83% year on year in April 2024 (provisional), with rural inflation at 5.43% and urban at 4.11%. The Consumer Food Price Index rose substantially (combined CFPI 8.70%). Monthly CPI and CFPI indices increased modestly from March to April 2024. The release disaggregates General, Group and Sub group indices for rural, urban and combined series, and provides state/UT level indices; April figures are provisional and data collection coverage and methodology are noted.

AITIGA review progresses as joint committee advances sub-committees to negotiate market access and rules of origin reforms.
Review of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement is progressing under a Joint Committee that established Terms of Reference and a Negotiating Structure and has convened multiple meetings to initiate formal negotiations. Eight specialised Sub-Committees were constituted to address distinct policy areas; five have begun deliberations and reported to the Joint Committee. The Joint Committee is guiding negotiations on National Treatment and Market Access, Rules of Origin, Standards and Conformity Assessment Procedures, and Legal and Institutional Issues, while sanitary and phytosanitary matters are being considered separately.

Index of Industrial Production reports annual growth led by manufacturing and electricity, with sectoral and use-based gains.
Index of Industrial Production Quick Estimates for March 2024 report a General IIP of 159.2 with year on year growth of 4.9 percent. Sectoral indices show mining, manufacturing and electricity with divergent growths and identify leading manufacturing contributors. Use based indices cover Primary, Capital, Intermediate, Infrastructure/Construction, Consumer Durables and Non Durables with corresponding monthly and cumulative growths. The estimates are released monthly with a six week lag, are subject to a formal revision policy, and recent months incorporate first and final revisions based on updated source data.