Daily News - Thursday, 13 November 2025
Andhra, Tillman Global sign deal for ₹15,000 cr Visakhapatnam data centre (Business Standard)
Andhra Pradesh has signed a memorandum of understanding with Tillman Global Holdings to establish a 300 MW hyperscale data centre campus in Visakhapatnam with an investment of Rs 15,000 crore, aiming to position the city as a major digital infrastructure hub in the Indo-Pacific. The project, to be completed within 12 months under the facilitation of the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board, will cover 40 acres and generate up to 1,300 jobs directly and indirectly by 2028 through growth in cloud services, logistics, and allied industries. This initiative, following Google’s $15 billion AI data centre announcement in the state, reinforces Andhra Pradesh’s strategy to attract large-scale technology investments and strengthen its digital economy through transparent, policy-driven facilitation.
India to be 3rd-largest economy by 2028; equities remain pricey: UBS (Business Standard)
UBS projects that India will sustain real GDP growth of around 6.5 percent between FY28 and FY30, making it the world’s third-largest consumer market by 2026 and the third-largest economy by 2028, driven by strong domestic demand and supportive policies. Despite this robust outlook, UBS remains cautious on Indian equities due to high valuations, lack of direct AI-linked stocks, and ongoing foreign investor selling, contrasting with more optimistic forecasts from Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. While India’s growth prospects are solid, UBS highlights downside risks from potential US trade tariffs and outsourcing taxes that could shave up to 90 basis points off growth, though inflation is expected to remain moderate and the RBI may ease rates slightly before pausing.
Cabinet nod to royalty cut for critical minerals (Financial Express)
The Cabinet has approved a major downward revision of royalty rates for critical minerals like caesium, graphite, rubidium, and zirconium, reducing them from about 12% to a range of 2–4% to encourage mining auctions and boost domestic production in the green energy and high-tech sectors. This policy change aims to unlock not only these key resources but also associated minerals such as lithium, tungsten, rare earth elements, and niobium, supporting India’s push for self-reliance in energy transition and advanced manufacturing. By switching graphite’s royalty structure from a fixed tonnage rate to an ad valorem basis, the government ensures fairer pricing across grades while promoting investment in exploration and extraction of minerals vital for electric vehicles, nuclear energy, aerospace, and high-precision instruments.
Rs 45,000-cr package for export push gets Cabinet nod (Financial Express)
The government has launched a Rs 45,060 crore package to support exporters facing tariff challenges, primarily through a six-year Export Promotion Mission (EPM) that includes interest subvention, collateral support, and credit enhancement to lower credit costs and diversify markets. The mission, divided into Niryat Protsahan and Niryat Disha components, will offer credit subsidies up to 3.5%, promote export factoring, provide credit cards to e-commerce exporters, and fund certification, audits, and international trade participation for small and medium exporters. Additionally, a Credit Guarantee Scheme for Exporters with 100% coverage by NCGTC will ensure collateral-free loans of up to Rs 20,000 crore, improving liquidity, reducing logistics costs, enhancing market access, and strengthening India’s push toward a $1 trillion export goal.
