On Episode 687 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Poorva Chothani, Founder and Managing Partner - U.S. and Indian Immigration Law at LawQuest as well as Deepak Ballani, Director General at Indian Sugar Bio-energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA). SHOW NOTES (00:00) The Take (06:07) Why is HSBC overweight on India? (09:33) Indian refiners are boosting oil and gas exports to highest levels in recent years (10:49) In all the ethanol blending controversy, we forgot t...
Sep 24, 2025•32 min•Ep. 687
On Episode 686 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Garima Kapoor, Economist & Executive Vice President at Elara Securities (India) as well as Ajay Kedia, Director at Kedia Advisory. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (00:50) Why markets are directionless again (08:20) Silver has already risen 50% this year and why it could go further? (14:12) Automakers are reporting big sales numbers on first day of new prices (16:20) Why a look at India’s remittance econo...
Sep 23, 2025•25 min•Ep. 686
On Episode 685 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Ajay Bagga, Veteran Market Expert, Dhairyashil Patil as well as President at the All India Consumer Products Distributors Federation (AICPDF). We all feature an excerpt from our series ‘Eye on Retail’. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:00) Markets mostly fend off H-1B shock, IT stocks have mixed response (02:24) Gold hits fresh high, will dampen festive season purchases further (17:10) New GST rates kick o...
Sep 22, 2025•32 min•Ep. 685
India is now the world’s number two online shopping nation with over 270 million digital shoppers and a $60 billion e-commerce market that is only getting started. But what makes India’s digital retail story unique, and how will it reshape global business? We’re kicking off a brand-new series, Eye on Retail, supported by Flipkart, with a power-packed conversation featuring Manan Bhasin (Bain & Company) and Sangeeta Gupta (NASSCOM). Discover how: a) Quick commerce and fashion are redefining s...
Sep 22, 2025•39 min
On Episode 684 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to S. Ramesh, former chairman of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Sandip Agarwal, Fund manager at Sowilo Investment Managers LLP as well as Nikhil Varma, Technical Lead, India at Algorand. SHOW NOTES (00:00) The Take (04:12) Markets will brace for IT stock hit (07:56) The prime minister welcomes a new GST regime, have concerns of business been addressed (19:42) Is the organic food that you are buying ...
Sep 21, 2025•37 min•Ep. 684
#watchnow | Is the AI stock rally unstoppable or already running on borrowed time? Since the launch of ChatGPT, markets have added trillions in value, fueled by tech giants like NVIDIA, Amazon, Tesla, Meta, and Oracle. But can this AI boom really last, or is it the next bubble investors should beware of?In this episode of The Core Report Special Edition, Govindraj Ethiraj speaks with Aoifinn Devitt, Senior Investment Advisor at Moneta, about the truth behind AI hype, market cycles, and what inve...
Sep 21, 2025•30 min•Ep. 683
#watchnow | India wants reliable power without price shocks. In this conversation on The Core Report Weekend Edition, Govindraj Ethiraj talks with Atanu Mukherjee of Dastur Energy about a practical four step path to real energy security. Clear choices. Real trade offs. Actionable ideas for policy makers, industry leaders, and investors.What you will learn• How ethanol blending helps and where it hits limits• Why coal to chemicals and coal gasification can cut costly imports• How India’s heavy re...
Sep 20, 2025•59 min•Ep. 682
On Episode 681 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Amit Prothi, Director General at Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure as well as Ambareesh Baliga, Veteran Market Expert. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (00:50) The markets rise on tariff developments and rate cuts (04:26) How far can domestic flows support markets? (12:36) How Mumbai is India’s millionaire capital (14:24) Building more disaster resilience is critical if we are to learn from the ...
Sep 18, 2025•33 min•Ep. 681
On Episode 680 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Karan Taurani, Executive Vice President (Media, Retail, Consumer Discretionary & Internet) at Elara Capital. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:00) Markets rise again on tariff talks (02:22) How it’s been a year and the markets have not gone anywhere (05:02) Where are GST savings in households really likely to go? (14:45) Rolls Royce expands in India, sets up largest GCC in India (15:36) Chip wars break...
Sep 17, 2025•22 min•Ep. 680
On Episode 679 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Priyanka Kishore, Director and Principal Economist at Asia Decoded as well as Ashwin Mehta, Head of Research at Ambit Institutional Equities. SHOW NOTES (00:00) The Take (03:53) Markets are buoyant as indices hit two month highs, should we thank trade optimism. (08:46) Analysing the once hot IT sector, what lies within and what lies ahead? (24:08) Indonesia is seeing street protests, the finance minister has resig...
Sep 16, 2025•35 min•Ep. 679
On Episode 678 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Ajay Kedia is the Founder and Director of Kedia Capital Services as well as Rajiv Mitra, Food and Dairy industry expert. We also feature excerpts from a recent panel discussion on AI and Agentic AI with several business leaders at Season 9 of the Accenture B School Challenge. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (00:50) Run it hot, the Wall Street theme playing out here too. (05:36) Gold prices hit fresh highs. H...
Sep 15, 2025•36 min•Ep. 678
On Episode 677 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Nikhil Varma, Technical Lead, India at Algorand. SHOW NOTES (00:00) The Take (04:12) The tariff overhang continues but markets have forgotten them (09:05) How real world enterprises are building on blockchain (18:21) The rains are leaving early https://www.investing-referral.com/aff303 ...
Sep 14, 2025•20 min•Ep. 677
From zero to a powerhouse again, this is the inside story of Maggi noodles in India. Former Nestlé India chief Suresh Narayanan shares how a beloved brand fell, rebuilt trust, and scaled to about 400,000 tonnes a year. We explore GST rate cuts, inflation pressure on middle India, premiumization, digital first marketing, e commerce distribution, and what it takes to spark consumer love in a crowded market. If you care about brand turnarounds, manufacturing scale, and the future of FMCG in India, ...
Sep 13, 2025•41 min•Ep. 676
On Episode 675 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Ajay Srivastava, Founder at Global Trade Research Initiative as well as Gulam Zia, Executive Director at Knight Frank. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the day (01:00) Is India riding a global market boom or trailing it? (06:17) Welcome to a decade of dust as over 910 societies sign up for redeveloping their properties in Mumbai city. (17:06) India’s non tariff barriers are almost machiavelian in design and implement...
Sep 11, 2025•32 min•Ep. 675
On Episode 674 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Tarun Pathak, Research Director at Counterpoint Research as well as Pushan Sharma, Director at Crisil Intelligence. SHOW NOTES (00:00) The Take (04:31) Markets jump again as Trump appears to smoke a peace pipe. (07:04) No GST rate cuts on mobile phones but sales are expected to be strong, picking up on Apple’s latest iPhone 17 (16:50) This year’s monsoons have been excessive and hurt crop production. What should p...
Sep 10, 2025•27 min•Ep. 674
On Episode 673 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Anuj Gupta, Commodity Expert, Suresh Narayanan, former Chairman and Managing Director of Nestle India as well as Apoorva Bajaj, Founder of Edubuk. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:00) The markets return to pre 50% tariff levels as economy appears to absorb shocks. (03:14) Another $20 billion of IPOs could come this year (05:52) How Indian consumers are satiating their appetite for gold despite prices risi...
Sep 09, 2025•22 min•Ep. 673
On Episode 672 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to C S Vigneshwar, President, FADA as well as Adam Wolfe, Emerging Markets Economist at Absolute Strategy Research (ASR). SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:00) Markets fail to hold onto gains, steel, auto stocks shine (02:52) India is set to outstrip China in oil demand (03:38) Gold hits a fresh high, quick reminder, bullion is up 38% this year (05:10) How auto dealers are happy tax rates are down but they wa...
Sep 08, 2025•30 min•Ep. 672
On Episode 671 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Nikhil Varma, Technical Lead, India at Algorand, Sheetal Sapale, Vice President–Commercial at Pharmarack as well as Ganesan Ramachandran, Managing Director and Lead - Industry Groups at Accenture. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:00) Markets are losing steam but other assets are volatile. (06:31) What the GST rate cut on life saving drugs really means. (11:10) India’s new digital personal data protection ...
Sep 07, 2025•32 min•Ep. 671
In this Weekend Edition of The Core Report , Govindraj Ethiraj sits down with S Ramesh, former CBIC Chairman, and Krishan Arora, Head of Indirect Tax at Grant Thornton Bharat, to decode India’s bold new GST reforms. From slashed rates on food, cars, medicines, and apparel to a tough new 40% slab on luxury goods, GST 2.0 is rewriting the rules of consumption and business. But what does it mean for FMCG, pharma, auto, airlines, and insurance? And how will India tackle the ₹48,000 crore revenue hit...
Sep 05, 2025•33 min•Ep. 670
On Episode 669 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Ajay Rotti, Founder and CEO of Tax Compaas, Madhavi Arora, Lead Economist at Emkay Global Financial Services as well as Kaushik Sanyal, Managing Director for Data & AI, India at Accenture. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:00) Stocks jump on GST rate cuts, clothing industry gets a shock. (03:13) The big question, will demand and consumption rise because of lower consumption tax? (10:42) The unfinished ...
Sep 04, 2025•32 min•Ep. 669
On Episode 668 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Prashant Agarwal, Co-Founder and JMD at Wazir Advisors as well as Paul Hickin, Chief Economist and Editor-in-Chief at Petroleum Economist. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:09) Global bond markets are wobbling again, India gains in anticipation of GST rate cuts (04:13) Why gold prices are set to rise further (06:28) India’s services sector continued its strong run, hitting a 15-year high in August on new o...
Sep 03, 2025•23 min•Ep. 668
On Episode 667 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Indrani Bagchi, CEO, Ananta Aspen Centre as well as Cameron Johnson, partner at Tidalwave Solutions and a global supply chain strategist. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (00:41) Market pause (04:33) Bonhomie and camaraderie in Tianjin, now what? (13:05) The new global supply chain dynamics (27:19) Tesla has received only 600 orders since launch in mid July https://www.investing-referral.com/aff303...
Sep 02, 2025•30 min•Ep. 667
On Episode 666 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Dr Deborah Elms, Head of Trade Policy, Hinrich as well as Rajesh Cheruvu, Managing Director & Chief Investment Officer at LGT Wealth India. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (00:50) Markets start September on a strong note. Will they hold? (02:12) September rains last longer and higher than average as well (03:35) Have the markets absorbed the tariff shocks, where is the bottom? (11:47) How is Asia navigat...
Sep 01, 2025•28 min•Ep. 666
On Episode 665 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Dr Richard Baldwin, Editor in Chief, VOXEU. SHOW NOTES (00:31) A Quick Wrap (09:44) Why Trump’s Tariffs Are Unlike Anything Since World War II (13:48) The Myth of Bringing Back Manufacturing Jobs (15:26) Ripple Effects: Cascading Protectionism and Domino Liberalisation (19:46) From Obama to Trump: How America Turned Against Globalisation (27:44) Strategic Tariffs, Supply Chains, and the Weaponisation of Trade (29:...
Aug 31, 2025•33 min•Ep. 665
On Episode 664 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Ajay Bagga, Market Expert. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (00:41) The markets can get it wrong as they did with Trump tariffs. (02:19) Why investors should temper their expectations. (03:20) How much did India really gain from Russian oil imports? (06:18) The markets are digesting tariff tensions. https://www.investing-referral.com/aff303 ...
Aug 28, 2025•22 min•Ep. 664
On Episode 663 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Prabhakar Kudva, Director and Principal Officer - Portfolio Management Services at Samvitti Capital. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (00:50) India braces for tariff bomb. RBI Governor assures support. (07:00) India’s oil imports fall year on year and month on month. (09:16) India’s hotting surfing destination also hosts a rising fund manager who is pulling in money from the rest of the country. ...
Aug 25, 2025•20 min•Ep. 663
On Episode 662 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Rama Bijapurkar, Author of ‘Lilliput Land: How Small is Driving India’s Mega Consumption Story.’ SHOW NOTES (00:00) The Take (05:57) Markets hold up last week..stability ahead. (11:52) India’s aspirational middle class is exhausted. https://www.investing-referral.com/aff303 ...
Aug 24, 2025•29 min•Ep. 662
This weekend on The Core Report: Govindraj Ethiraj sits down with Girish Tanti , Co-Founder & Vice Chairman of Suzlon Group, to trace the unlikely origins of one of India’s most iconic renewable energy companies. What began as Girish’s unfinished MBA thesis — the bold idea of setting up a wind energy company in India — became Suzlon Energy, a venture that transformed a family textile business into a global green energy pioneer. In this exclusive conversation, Girish opens up about: Early str...
Aug 23, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 661
On Episode 660 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to K Ramakrishnan, Managing Director - South Asia at Worldpanel by Numerator as well as Ashok Malik, Partner at The Asia Group, and former Policy Advisor, MEA. SHOW NOTES (00:00) Stories of the Day (01:19) The markets rise for the 6th straight day (03:30) India is largest underweight market in emerging market investor holdings: Nomura (06:58) How India’s rural consumer is buying differently and aspirationally. Exclus...
Aug 21, 2025•36 min•Ep. 660
On Episode 659 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Anand Kulkarni, Director at Crisil Ratings as well as Ananay Jain, Partner at Grant Thornton Bharat. SHOW NOTES (00:00) The Take (04:31) Markets rise for the 5th day on easing tariff fears. (07:29) Government initiates laws to ban real money gaming (16:07) Why are telecom companies raising prices? https://www.investing-referral.com/aff303...
Aug 20, 2025•27 min•Ep. 659
