In this podcast recorded on 5 June 2026, we discuss why the sense of foreboding on India’s economy – that something really bad is about to happen – is misplaced.
We discuss:
- Growth & Resilience: India’s underlying economic momentum remains strong: robust data in auto sales, cement sales, credit growth, and FMCG volume growth (8:53, 13:58, 136:06).
- Energy: India is vulnerable to energy price shocks, but this is no longer an insurmountable problem – India has significant untapped potential in renewable and domestic energy sources if tough policy decisions are made.
- Innovation: India is currently not yet in the game when it comes to generation of intelligence. But its strength lies in the deployment of intelligence to solve local problems in healthcare, education, urban design and banking. Activity levels on deep tech are encouraging, but need to rise 100x.
- Currency & Capital: When we discussed this, the measures had not been announced – now that they have, the INR should stabilize.
- Policy Recommendations: For India’s next phase of expansion, we must engage directly with global firms to become part of their value-chains, and accelerate urban infrastructure development to aid the construction of good quality housing – India must rely on domestic sources of demand, even as it improves export competitiveness.