News digest for Wednesday, April 8, 2026

🇮🇳 India Highlights
Monetary Policy Watch:

• The Reserve Bank of India, led by Governor Sanjay Malhotra is likely to keep the repo rate at 5.25% but take a neutral position. The central bank is walking an economic fine line with stability in domestic growth and inflationary pressures all over the world, and especially with regard to geopolitical tensions.

jagannath Temple Treasury Opening:

• The Jagannath Temple in Puri has reopened its Ratna Bhandar to view its outer room. These are very few and far between, and past experiences have shown that they have found large quantities of gold, silver and historical ornaments.

Currency Movement:

• Increasing oil prices have put the Indian rupee under pressure. Nevertheless, the geopolitical tensions in West Asia have been deescalated and hence have led to a temporary stability in Asian financial markets.

🌍 Global Affairs
West Asia Ceasefire:

• The United States and Iran have also entered into a temporary two-week ceasefire in a bid to have diplomatic talks. The deal encompasses the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, which is vital in the transportation of oil in the world.

Hajj Preparations:

• Indonesia has almost finalized its preparations to the 2026 Hajj pilgrimage, and the first group of pilgrims will soon leave the country.

US Economic Update:

• The US has been experiencing a positive trend in the labour market with over 178,000 new jobs created in March, and inflation remains at about 4% and energy prices are so high.

🧪 Science & Technology
High-Temperature Computing Breakthrough:

• The engineers at the University of Southern California have come up with a memory chip that can work within a temperature of 700 C. This innovation may be invaluable in the extreme environment applications such as the aerospace and industrial systems.

Quantum Energy Storage:

• A prototype quantum battery has been proposed by researchers that utilizes quantum concepts rather than chemical reactions and can be used in the future to charge at extremely fast speeds.

Overall concepts of deep space exploration:

• SpaceX is investigating mission concepts with its Starship system that would drastically cut down the travel time to far-off planets like Uranus with orbital refuelling methods.

📈 Business & Economy
Energy Security Measures:

• A number of countries are holding strategic oil reserves of approximately 50 days of consumption as a reserve against possible discontinuities in supply in case of global uncertainties.

Trade Trends: