Economic Indicators

What is Import and Export?

Imports and exports refer to the movement of goods and services across international borders, involving transactions between countries or regions. Imports are goods and services that are brought into a country from abroad. Importing goods allows countries to access products that are not available domestically. Exports are goods and services produced domestically and sold to foreign markets. Exporting allows countries to generate income, create jobs, utilize surplus production capacity and boost economic growth. It also helps to improve the balance of trade by earning foreign currency.

What is GST?

GST stands for Goods and Services Tax. It is a consumption tax levied on the sale of goods and services at each stage of the supply chain, from production to distribution to the final consumer. GST is a unified tax designed to replace multiple indirect taxes imposed by the central and state governments, streamlining the tax system and reducing complexities. GST was introduced in India on July 1, 2017.

What is Current Account Balance?

The Current Account Balance is a component of a country's balance of payments. It measures the net flow of goods, services, income and transfers into and out of a country over a specific period, usually a quarter or a year.

Current Account Balance = (Exports of Goods and Services + Income Receipts + Transfers) - (Imports of Goods and Services + Income Payments + Transfers)

A positive current account balance indicates that a country is a net creditor to the rest of the world whereas a negative current account balance indicates that a country is a net debtor to the rest of the world. The current account balance is a critical indicator of a country's external economic position and its ability to finance its international transactions.

What is Inflation Rate?

The inflation rate is a measure of the percentage change in the general price level of goods and services in an economy over a specific time period, typically a month, a quarter or a year. It reflects the rate at which the purchasing power of a currency is decreasing over time. Central banks and policymakers closely monitor the inflation rate because it has significant implications for economic stability and policymaking.

Wholesale Price Index: The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is a measure of the average change in the prices of goods and services sold by manufacturers and wholesalers. It is used to track inflation at the wholesale level, providing insights into price movements in the early stages of the supply chain.

Consumer Price Index: The Consumer Price Index (CPI) measures the average change in the prices of goods and services paid by final consumers. It is one of the most commonly used indicators for tracking inflation and assessing changes in the cost of living.

What is Net Foreign Investment

Net foreign investment (NFI) refers to the difference between the total amount of investment made by foreign entities in a country and the total amount of investment made by domestic entities in foreign countries over a specific period, typically a month, a quarter or a year. It represents the net inflow or outflow of investment capital between a country and the rest of the world.

FDI: FDI stands for Foreign Direct Investment. It refers to the investment made by a company or individual from one country (the investor) in business interests in another country (the host country).
Net FDI = FDI Inflows - FDI Outflows

FPI: FPI stands for Foreign Portfolio Investment. It refers to investments made by foreign investors in financial assets such as stocks, bonds, money market instruments and other securities of a country.
Net FPI = FPI Inflows - FPI Outflows

What is Industrial Production?

Industrial Production is represented by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP). It is an economic indicator that measures the growth of various sectors in an economy like mining, manufacturing and electricity. Typically, the IIP is expressed as a percentage change in production over a specified period in relation to a reference period. The base year is usually set to 100, and the index value for subsequent periods reflects the change in production relative to the base year.

What is a Consumer Confidence ?

Consumer confidence refers to the degree of optimism or pessimism that consumers feel about the overall state of the economy and their personal financial situation. It is a key indicator used to gauge the health of an economy and predict future consumer spending patterns.

Consumer Sentiments: Measured by Consumer Sentiment Index of CMIE (Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy), consumer sentiments reflect the collective sentiment of Indian consumers regarding their current financial condition, future expectations and willingness to spend.

Consumer Expectations: Measured by Consumer Expectation Index of CMIE (Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy), consumer expectations reflect the future outlook of consumers regarding economic conditions, personal finances and spending habits.

What is Unemployment rate?

The CMIE (Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy) unemployment rate provides insights into the percentage of the labor force, aged 15 years and above that is actively seeking employment but unable to find one. It is an essential indicator for assessing the health of the labor market and understanding the employment dynamics in India.

What is Purchasing Manager's Index?

The HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) is an economic indicator that measures the performance of the manufacturing and services sectors in an economy. The HSBC PMI surveys business executives in manufacturing and services sectors to gather data on various factors such as new orders, production output, employment levels, supplier deliveries and business expectations. Based on the responses, the PMI is calculated as a composite index, typically ranging from 0 to 100. A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion compared to the previous month whereas a PMI reading below 50 indicates contraction.

What are vehicle sales?

Vehicle sales refer to the number of automobiles sold by manufacturers or dealerships within a specific timeframe, typically on a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis. This metric encompasses sales of various types of vehicles, including cars, trucks, vans, SUVs, motorcycles, scooters etc. Vehicle sales data is an important indicator of consumer demand, economic activity and industry performance. It provides insights into trends in consumer preferences, purchasing power and overall market conditions.

What are Essential Items?

Four essential items are considered here namely rice wheat, tur/arhar dal and mustard oil. The chart shows the prices of these essential commodities. The average monthly/quarterly/yearly price of the commodities is shown in the chart.

What is tax revenue?

Tax revenue refers to the income earned by a government through the collection of taxes from individuals, businesses and other entities within its jurisdiction. It is a critical source of funding for a government.

Direct tax: A direct tax is a tax levied directly on individuals or entities by the government based on their income, wealth or property. Direct taxes are typically progressive, meaning that the tax rate increases as the taxpayer's income or wealth increases. Examples of direct taxes are income tax, corporate tax, capital gains tax, etc.

Indirect tax: An indirect tax is a type of tax that is imposed on goods and services. Here, taxes are levied on transactions involving the purchase or consumption of goods and services. Examples of indirect tax are goods and services tax (GST), customs duty etc.

What is investment in projects?

Investment in projects refers to the allocation of financial resources towards the development, implementation and completion of specific projects that create productive capacities in the future. The charts show the count of new projects announced, projects completed and projects dropped on a quarterly and yearly basis.

What is Crude Oil?

Crude oil is a naturally occurring, unrefined fossil fuel found beneath the earth's surface. Crude oil is a globally traded commodity. Its price is governed by various factors like supply and demand dynamics, geopolitical events, economic conditions, etc. It is one of the most widely consumed energy sources worldwide. The Indian basket of Crude Oil represents a derived basket comprising of Sour grade (Oman & Dubai average) and Sweet grade (Brent Dated) of Crude oil processed in Indian refineries in the ratio of 75.62 : 24.38

What are Lending and Deposit rates?

Marginal Cost of Funds Lending rate (MCLR) (Maximum rate) is used as a proxy for lending rate. The Marginal Cost of Funds Based Lending Rate (MCLR) is the minimum interest rate that a bank can lend at. MCLR is determined by the bank based on its marginal cost of funds which includes factors such as the repo rate set by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the bank's own cost of funds and the cost of maintaining statutory reserves.

Term deposit rate for Deposits > 1 year (Maximum rate) is used as a proxy for deposit rate. A term deposit, also known as a fixed deposit or time deposit, is a type of investment product where funds are deposited for a fixed period of time at a specified interest rate.