United States Government

The US Government, under President Trump, has become a central external actor in India’s macroeconomic outlook through aggressive use of tariffs. - Lowers India tariffs to 18% via trade deal, de-escalating 2025 tensions

In 2025, under Governor Sanjay Malhotra, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut its repo rate by a cumulative 125 basis points—from 6.50% in February to 5.25% on December 5—its sharpest easing since 2019, paired with $16 billion in liquidity injections via bond purchases and a dollar-rupee swap to support what Malhotra termed a rare Goldilocks period of sub-target inflation and strong growth. On February 6, 2026, the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee unanimously held the repo rate at 5.25%, marking a pause in the easing cycle as the central bank shifted its focus from rate cuts to liquidity management through open market operations, citing firm government bond yields and persistent currency volatility despite the trade deal relief.

Updated Feb 5

Washington views India as a crucial Indo‑Pacific partner but has repeatedly used sanctions and tariffs to pressure New Delhi over its energy and defense ties with U.S. adversaries like Iran and Russia. - Signaling tariff relief and critical minerals pacts to pull India from Russian energy dependence

On December 5, 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met in New Delhi for the 23rd India–Russia Annual Summit and unveiled a 'Programme for Economic Cooperation' through 2030 aiming to boost annual trade to about $100 billion and diversify beyond oil and arms, including joint weapons production, a urea plant, agriculture, health, shipping, labor mobility, and a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union despite looming US sanctions.

Updated Feb 5

The federal government became Intel's biggest shareholder through a $8.9 billion equity investment in August 2025. - Intel's largest shareholder with 5.5% stake worth $19 billion

Intel just shipped its first client processors built on 18A, the most advanced semiconductor process ever made in America. The Core Ultra Series 3 chips, unveiled January 5 at CES 2026, went on sale globally January 27 with over 200 PC designs promising 60% faster performance and 27-hour battery life. Early reviews praised the Arc B390 integrated graphics reaching 160-220fps in AAA games—performance rivaling discrete Nvidia GPUs in thin laptops. Dell revived its XPS laptop line with Panther Lake chips, HP committed to OMEN gaming laptops, and Asus called its new Zephyrus G14 'the future of gaming laptops.' Intel's stock initially surged 15% in early January on Panther Lake optimism, then spiked another 10% on January 9 when President Trump praised CEO Lip-Bu Tan at the White House, revealing the U.S. government's August 2025 investment had doubled in value to nearly $19 billion—making the federal government Intel's largest shareholder. But the euphoria collapsed January 23 when Intel reported Q4 2025 earnings: despite beating revenue estimates at $13.7 billion, Tan warned of supply shortages and below-target yields. The stock crashed 17% in its worst day since August 2024, erasing the January gains.

Updated Jan 30