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India export ban shakes global wheat prices

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Wheat prices increased after India imposed a ban on exports, stoking pressure on food costs as tight global supplies roiled international markets.

Futures traded in Chicago rose as much as 5.9 per cent to $12.47 a bushel, their highest level in two months, Financial Times reported.

Wheat prices have risen more than 60 per cent this year, driven up by disruption from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The two European countries account for almost a third of the world’s wheat exports.

India, the world’s second-biggest wheat producer after China, had filled a gap in markets left by decreased output from Ukraine thanks in part to a bumper harvest of 7 million tonnes last year, even as inclement weather reduced the crops of other big exporters.

But after denying it would halt exports, India reversed course over the weekend after domestic inflation surged to the highest level in eight years on the back of rising food prices, the Financial Times reported.

New Delhi said it was introducing the ban, with some exceptions, “in order to manage the overall food security of the country and to support the needs of the neighbouring and other vulnerable countries”.

“It just exacerbates the food shortage risk, particularly for developing nations and those historically dependent on foodstuffs out of that region,” said Robert Rennie, global head of market strategy at Australian bank Westpac.

The sudden shift followed two months of searing heatwaves in India, with temperatures of up to 45 degrees Celsius across swaths of the wheat belt.

Relief from the annual monsoon season could still be weeks away. Soaring food and fuel prices also prompted the Reserve Bank of India to raise interest rates this month for the first time in four years.

Tobin Gorey, director of agricultural strategy at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, said the wheat export ban would be a “shape shifter” for global markets.

“The trade will likely need to replace at least some Indian wheat in the pipeline. We suspect that will create an initial flurry of trading but the market will take some time to assess the details,” the Financial Times quoted Gorey as saying.

The export ban was announced just days after the US Department of Agriculture forecast that global wheat production would drop for the first time in four years in 2022-23.

The World Food Programme said this month that the war in Ukraine had exposed the fragility of global supply chains to sudden shocks, with serious consequences for food security.

Westpac’s Rennie said the impact of the ban was likely to hit developing markets in Africa and the Middle East the hardest, as the developed world moved to shore up supply.

“It’s the humanitarian issues that are developing which, unfortunately, I think we should be more focused on,” he said.

Business

Job postings in India stay above pre-Covid pandemic levels: Report

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New Delhi, Nov 27: Formal job creation in India softened in the month of October but despite this, job postings remained above the pre-Covid pandemic level, a report said on Thursday.

“Amid slowdown, Indian job postings are still 60 per cent above pre-pandemic levels, but have fallen 25 per cent since their peak in January 2023,” Indeed, a leading hiring platform, said in its report.

Over the past three months, job postings declined in almost three-quarters of occupations. Yet in a softening job market, there will still be some strong performers, and the past three months have been no exception, said the report.

Job postings in cleaning and sanitation rose around 20 per cent over the past three months, ahead of community and social service (17.4 per cent), dental (13.1 per cent), nursing (11.2 per cent) and food preparation and service (10.3 per cent).

Another positive was the posting for human resources, which climbed 2.3 per cent.

However, these gains were more than offset by weakness in banking and finance, where postings fell 25.6 per cent, along with legal (-22.4 per cent), retail (-16.7 per cent) and loading and stocking (-15 per cent), the report noted.

Every month, the Indian workforce gradually transitions towards more formal work arrangements. As the nation transitions, job creation in the formal sector is expected to outpace overall employment growth nationwide, said Callam Pickering, Indeed’s APAC Senior Economist.

“This transition is also why job postings in India have been stronger than in other Indeed markets, both during the post-pandemic job boom and the subsequent slowdown,” he added.

Meanwhile, during the month, 9.1 per cent of Indian job postings explicitly mentioned phrases such as ‘work from home’ or ‘work remotely’ in their job descriptions. That’s up from 7.6 per cent a year ago.

Remote opportunities are most common in IT infrastructure, operations and support at 18.2 per cent of postings in the October quarter 2025, ahead of community & social service (15.1 per cent) and industrial engineering (14 per cent).

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Business

From Kachchhi Kharek to Kesar Mango: Over 10 treasures of Kutch and Saurashtra earn GI tag

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Gandhinagar, Nov 27: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has consistently championed India’s indigenous and heritage products, placing local strength at the heart of national growth. His call for Vocal for Local and Aatmanirbhar Bharat has given visibility to artisans and farmers across the country.

In line with this vision, the Prime Minister has also actively promoted Geographical Indication (GI) products, highlighting them in his radio address Mann Ki Baat and personally felicitating artisans who preserve traditional crafts.

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has set an ambitious goal of reaching 10,000 GI-tagged products across India by 2030 under the vision of “Vikas Bhi, Virasat Bhi.”

Gujarat has emerged as a strong contributor to this national mission by promoting its rich artisanal heritage, from Kutch’s celebrated crafts to Saurashtra’s premium agricultural produce on global platforms.

GI tagging reinforces the state’s commitment to “Viksit Gujarat to Viksit Bharat,” transforming local skills into global competitiveness. Kutch and Saurashtra together have secured GI recognition for over ten iconic products, including Ajrakh block printing, Bandhani tie-dye, Rogan art, Kutch shawls, the famed Kachchhi Kharek, and the globally loved Gir Kesar mango.

The upcoming Vibrant Gujarat Regional Conference (VGRC) in Rajkot will spotlight the region’s craft excellence and export capacity, offering artisans a robust platform to scale their businesses.

Renowned for its blend of tradition and artistry, Kutch boasts GI-tagged crafts such as embroidery, Ajrakh printing, Bandhani, Rogan painting and the Kutch shawl. In the agricultural category, Kachchhi Kharek — a celebrated variety of date known for its rich flavour and nutritional value has also earned GI status.

Saurashtra’s signature products include Gir Kesar mango, often hailed as the “Queen of Mangoes,” the famed Jamnagari Bandhani, and the exquisite Rajkot Patola silk weaving tradition, cherished by Bollywood celebrities.

Surendranagar’s Tangaliya shawl, with its intricate weaving technique, has also built a loyal international following. The upcoming VGRC for Saurashtra and Kutch aims to accelerate the region’s artisan economy.

The two-day conference will bring together entrepreneurs, artisans, interior designers and product designers, creating avenues of collaboration with the Government e-Marketplace, private enterprises, investors and leading e-commerce platforms. The event promises to enhance innovation, expand market access and drive sustainable growth for traditional craft clusters.

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Young innovators worldwide can find inspiration from confidence of India’s Gen Z: PM Modi

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New Delhi, Nov 27: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday lauded India’s Generation Z for their confidence and capacity building.

Speaking via video conferencing at the inauguration of the Infinity Campus of Indian space startup Skyroot and unveiling its first orbital rocket, Vikram-I, PM Modi praised the country’s Gen Z for their positive mindset and creativity.

“Our youth, our Gen Z, are developing solutions to challenges in every sector. Young innovators around the world can find inspiration from the confidence of India’s Gen Z,” PM Modi said.

“The capacity building, positive mindset, and creativity of India’s Gen Z can set a global benchmark for Gen Z across the world,” he said.

Emphasising that India’s youth always place national interest above all and make the best use of every opportunity, PM Modi remarked that when the government opened the space sector, the country’s youth, especially the Gen-Z generation, came forward to take full advantage of it.

He highlighted that today more than 300 space startups are giving new hope to India’s space future, and noted that most of these startups began with small teams — sometimes two people, sometimes five, sometimes in a small rented room — with limited resources but with determination to reach new heights.

“This spirit has given birth to the private space revolution in India,” said the Prime Minister. He noted that Gen-Z engineers, designers, coders, and scientists are creating new technologies, whether in propulsion systems, composite materials, rocket stages, or satellite platforms.

PM Modi stressed that India’s youth are working in areas that were unimaginable just a few years ago.

He remarked that India’s private space talent is establishing a distinct identity across the world and added that today, for global investors, India’s space sector is becoming an attractive destination.

The Prime Minister remarked that the changes being witnessed in the space sector are part of the broader startup revolution taking place in India.

“Over the past decade, a new wave of startups has emerged across diverse sectors such as fintech, agri tech, health tech, climate tech, edu tech, and defense tech, with India’s youth, particularly the Gen-Z generation, providing innovative solutions in every field,” PM Modi said.

PM Modi emphasised that “India has now become the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem”.

There was a time when startups were confined to a few big cities, but today they are emerging from small towns and villages as well, the Prime Minister said, underlining that the country now has more than 1.5 lakh registered startups, with many of them having achieved unicorn status.

“India is no longer confined to apps and services but is now advancing rapidly towards deep-tech, manufacturing, and hardware innovation,” said the Prime Minister, thanking Gen-Z.

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