Energy and trade security risks may disrupt exports and rural employment, prompting calls for contingency fiscal measures.
Parliamentary debate on the Appropriation Bill warned that the West Asia conflict and strained ties could disrupt Gulf trade routes, reduce exports, and displace millions of rural and semi urban workers, urging contingency plans for returning workers and protection of dependent families. The discussion flagged supply risks to LPG and fertilisers due to import dependence, noted a supplementary demand for additional nutrient based subsidy allocation, and criticised replacement livelihood frameworks for weakening existing employment guarantees, calling for targeted fiscal measures and timely notification of support schemes.

Trade investigations risk harming bilateral economic relations as tariff measures prompt diplomatic concern ahead of planned visit.
China warned that US trade investigations into foreign manufacturing, launched after the US Supreme Court struck down earlier tariffs, could interfere with or damage bilateral economic and trade relations, and conveyed serious concern that investigation outcomes and subsequent tariff actions might undermine recently stabilised China-US economic ties reached after a prior tariff war and truce.

War risk insurance denial halts rice exports, prompting calls for emergency relief to sustain mills and protect workers.
The West Asia conflict has caused export holds and storage backlogs for Bundi-Kota Basmati rice, with shipping companies denied war risk insurance and imposing steep surcharges, depressing local prices and creating storage and employment risks; millers request special government concessions and a targeted relief package to sustain production and protect workers.

Free Trade Agreement implementation advances, coupled with Security and Defence Partnership to prioritise efficient delivery and regional stability.
The EU and India are concentrating on operationalising the recently concluded Free Trade Agreement and the signed Security and Defence Partnership, prioritising efficient implementation to deliver benefits to both populations; discussions also identified de escalation, stability and energy security as shared objectives while advancing practical trade measures and defence cooperation.

Safe passage of Indian-flagged vessels ensured amid Strait of Hormuz disruptions through coordinated maritime measures and port relief.
Indian-flagged vessels faced disruption after an attack on the Fujairah oil terminal; the tanker Jag Laadki sailed safely from Fujairah and is due at Mundra. A DG Shipping Control Room and an inter-ministerial group are coordinating with ports and Customs to monitor movements, repatriate crew, and ensure seafarer welfare. Ports have offered operational and commercial relief-priority discharge, concessions on anchorage, berth hire and storage, temporary transshipment storage, and rebates on reefer plug-in charges-to maintain continuity of crude, gas and LPG supply chains and maritime trade.

Digital payments governance reinforces technical safeguards and reporting avenues, enhancing adoption while addressing fraud and inclusion challenges.
Unified Payments Interface drives the majority of retail digital transactions, underpinned by incentives, interoperability and inclusion measures, while technical and procedural safeguards - including device binding, two factor authentication, transaction limits and AI/ML fraud monitoring - together with awareness campaigns and national reporting platforms, form the framework for fraud mitigation and secure adoption across urban and rural users.

Financial inclusion expanded through flagship schemes broadening access to banking, insurance, pensions and credit for underserved groups.
The central effort advances financial inclusion via flagship schemes that expand access to banking, insurance, pensions and collateral free credit for underserved households and micro enterprises, leveraging the JAM (Jan Dhan Aadhaar Mobile) digital pipeline to deliver welfare benefits through Direct Benefit Transfer.

Dearness allowance increase raises state allowance level effective April for government employees and pensioners with fiscal implications.
Tripura raised state dearness allowance to 41 per cent for government employees and pensioners, effective April 1, covering 1,02,563 regular employees and 81,019 pensioners, with an estimated additional recurring annual cost of about Rs 500 crore; the move aims to narrow the gap with central DA levels and was announced by the Chief Minister immediately after the finance minister's budget speech.

Tariff measures on Indian goods altered bilateral flows, reducing exports to the US while imports and trade deficits expanded.
India's merchandise exports to the United States contracted in February amid elevated US tariff measures on Indian goods, while US imports into India rose; a subsequent change in US duties is expected to affect future monthly data. Over the 11-month fiscal period, imports from China surged faster than exports, driving a substantial bilateral trade deficit. The notice also records country-specific import and export movements, including a marked increase in imports from Switzerland driven by gold.

Promotion of piped natural gas to relieve LPG supply pressure, with regulatory guidance and incentives to switch.
City gas distributors and the petroleum ministry are promoting conversion from LPG to piped natural gas through incentives and regulator guidance; CGD companies are to deploy additional resources and expedite connections via customer portals, call centres or other channels where pipelines exist, while the ministry urges online bookings, voluntary surrender of LPG where consumers have PNG, and state enforcement against hoarding and black marketing to manage LPG supply pressure.

Trade Balance narrows as merchandise exports dip amid geopolitical disruptions and surge in gold imports, now affecting shipments.
Merchandise exports declined 0.81% to USD 36.61 billion in February while the trade deficit narrowed to USD 27.1 billion month on month. Imports rose sharply-led by gold, silver, and oil-contributing to a wider year on year gap. Geopolitical conflict in West Asia has disrupted maritime and air logistics, raising freight and insurance costs and expected to suppress March exports. The government is consulting exporters to mitigate impacts, and a prospective bilateral trade pact awaits a new tariff architecture.

Tax Liability Breakup confirmation required in GSTR 3B: confirm or edit auto populated breakup to proceed with filing.
From February 2026 the portal auto populates the Tax Liability Breakup in GSTR 3B for supplies dated to previous tax periods when tax is paid in the current period; taxpayers must open the payment page tab, confirm or edit and save that breakup after offsetting liability, and only then proceed with filing using EVC or DSC, with the current confirmation requirement being applied in all cases pending portal resolution.

Wholesale price inflation set to rise as crude oil surge pushes wholesale costs higher, affecting manufacturing and non-food goods.
Wholesale price inflation rose to 2.13% in February 2026, led by higher prices in food and non-food articles and an uptick in manufactured goods; fuel and power deflation narrowed as global oil prices increased. Analysts warn that persistent crude oil price rises from geopolitical conflict will transmit more to WPI than retail CPI, likely pushing wholesale inflation higher in subsequent months. The report identifies basic metals, textiles and other manufacturing segments as contributors and stresses supply-chain, logistics and domestic manufacturing measures to contain cost-push pressures.

Tariff architecture uncertainty delays signing of interim trade agreement until US restores a stable global tariff framework.
The interim India-US trade framework remains unsigned pending establishment of a new US global tariff architecture; the previously agreed preferential tariff of 18 per cent for India is contingent on how the US restructures tariffs after a Supreme Court decision altered the prior emergency tariff regime. Negotiators have postponed final legalisation to ensure India's comparative advantage is preserved and to resolve outstanding non tariff and national security tariff issues before signing.

Base year revision of industrial production index to update methodology and weights, release planned soon.
Revision of the Index of Industrial Production base year involves updating the item basket, item weights, data sources, and factory list, and proposes adoption of a chain-linked approach to better capture emerging sectors and changes in industrial composition. A Technical Advisory Committee (TAC-IIP) will advise on methodological improvements, and the Ministry plans to release the revised IIP series under the new methodology in the near term.

Cooperative sector survey to estimate GVA and employment, collecting financial and labour data across cooperatives.
The National Statistics Office will use the National Cooperative Database to survey primary cooperatives, their federations and multistate societies across major sectors to estimate GVA/GVO and employment, collecting financial, tax, subsidy, distributive expense, depreciation and labour cost data for FY 2020 21 and FY 2023 24, while banking cooperatives will supply only employment data.

Project monitoring threshold revised; mandated projects are monitored via integrated portals with automated API data flows.
The Ministry released updated CPI and GDP series and will release a revised IIP series; NIC-2025 aligns with ISIC Revision 5. Under the Allocation of Business Rules, 1961, the Ministry monitors projects above the prescribed cost threshold using the PAIMANA portal, integrated with IPMP; line ministries and implementing agencies must update IPMP, and data are fetched into PAIMANA via APIs for online monitoring.

Base year revision of GDP and statistical modernisation enables nowcasting and real-time economic monitoring for policy guidance.
Revision of the GDP base year to 2022-23 integrates new data sources, NIC-2025 classification, and methodological improvements to improve national accounts measurement; the IIP series and price indices have been modernized (CAPI for CPI and secure online WPI transmission) and a nowcasting framework using high-frequency indicators and data dashboards provides near real-time assessments of economic activity for policy support.

Statistical data accountability strengthened through digital collection platforms and harmonised standards for reliable public dissemination.
MoSPI strengthened statistical data accountability by deploying digital collection tools-CAPI integrated with e SIGMA, AI enabled chatbots and multilingual interfaces-with in built validation for real time submission and automated checks. Measures include physical scrutiny by senior officers, regular training, state/UT capacity building under the Support for Statistical Strengthening sub scheme, and improved dissemination via an Advance Release Calendar, revamped portals and API exchange. Alignment with international and national standards is reflected in adoption of the United Nations Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics, the Statistical Quality Assessment Framework, harmonised classifications, and circulation of a National MetaData Structure to enhance clarity and discoverability.

Digital data dissemination: GoIStats app provides selected socio economic indicators on the go with standalone platform policy and feedback.
The GoIStats mobile application serves as a digital data dissemination channel providing selected socio economic indicators and visualisations from nine statistical products and 178 infographics, with ongoing dataset onboarding, active user engagement metrics and an inbuilt feedback mechanism; there is no proposal to integrate the app with other national data platforms at this stage.