Pradeep Banerjee

Why Indian IT Giants Put Their New York Offices in Midtown and the Financial District Walk through Midtown Manhattan or Lower Manhattan and you may notice something interesting: behind the glass façades and expensive office lobbies are some very familiar Indian names. TCS. Infosys. Wipro. HCLTech. For an Indian reader, there is something satisfying about seeing these companies occupying prime New York real estate. But why are Indian technology companies so heavily represented in Manhattan’s major business districts? The obvious answer is clients. The complete answer is considerably more interesting. It is not just about Wall Street New York is one of the world’s major financial centres. The city’s own economic-development authorities describe finance as one of its core industries, with more than 330,000 financial-services workers in the city. That matters enormously to technology-services companies. Large banks, insurers, investment firms and financial institutions require enormous amounts of technology: cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, data management, artificial intelligence, software engineering, digital transformation, risk systems and customer platforms. Indian IT companies are major providers of these kinds of services. Therefore, being physically close to the corporate ecosystem they serve has obvious advantages. But saying that these companies are in Manhattan only because of Wall

From Ore to AI: How India and Australia Are Building a New Economic Corridor For decades, the India–Australia economic relationship was easy to describe. Australia supplied resources. India supplied services, students, professionals and a rapidly expanding consumer market. That description is now becoming too small. A more complicated economic corridor is taking shape—one that connects Australian minerals and energy resources with Indian manufacturing, technology, clean-energy ambitions and research. The transformation is being supported by the Australia–India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA), which entered into force on 29 December 2022, while negotiations continue for a more comprehensive Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA). Australian government data puts two-way trade in goods and services at A$50.2 billion in calendar 2025, while DFAT’s FY2024–25 measure puts it at A$54.4 billion. The interesting part is not simply that trade is growing. It is what the two countries increasingly want to trade and build together. ECTA Was the Beginning, Not the Finish Line ECTA was designed as an initial step toward a broader trade relationship. Under the agreement, more than 90 per cent of Australian goods exports by value to India will have tariffs eliminated or reduced, while Australian government guidance says more than 85

What America’s Extended Visa Fee Means for Indian Professionals The extended US H-1B restriction is not a ban on Indian professionals. But it could reshape how American companies recruit global talent — and make India an even more important technology base. For Indian technology professionals, the latest US H-1B announcement comes with a number that is difficult to ignore: $100,000. The Trump administration has extended for another year a proclamation requiring a $100,000 payment for certain H-1B workers seeking entry to the United States. The extension runs until September 21, 2027. The policy was first introduced in September 2025 and has faced legal challenges in US courts. The headline can easily become dramatic. But the reality requires considerably more fine print. This is not an American ban on Indian professionals, nor does it mean every Indian holding an H-1B visa suddenly has to pay $100,000. The important question is much more practical: Who is actually affected, and what happens to India’s enormous technology workforce if US companies find it more expensive to bring new employees into America? First, What Does the $100,000 Requirement Actually Cover? Under the current proclamation, the restriction applies to certain H-1B specialty-occupation workers who are outside

India’s Jewellery Industry Goes Global: From Diamond Cutting Hub to Design Powerhouse India’s gems and jewellery industry exported about US$27.72 billion worth of products in FY2025–26. But the more interesting story is not the size of the number. It is what is happening underneath it: Indian companies are increasingly trying to move from being the world’s manufacturing workshop to becoming a design, branding and value-creation powerhouse. India has an unusual relationship with jewellery. For millions of families, it is tradition. For investors, it can be an asset. For artisans, it is a livelihood. For exporters, it is a global business. And for the international jewellery industry, India has long been one of the places where an enormous share of the world’s diamonds gets transformed from rough stones into finished gems. Now the industry wants to change the perception again. Not merely: “Made in India.” But increasingly: “Designed, crafted and created in India.” $27.72 billion—but not a simple boom India’s gross gems and jewellery exports reached approximately US$27.72 billion in FY2025–26, according to GJEPC and IBEF. That is an enormous number. But there is an important qualification. Dollar-denominated exports actually declined 3.32% from the previous year, while rupee-denominated exports increased modestly.

India’s Global Indians Just Gave the Rupee a $127 Billion Cushion In 2026, that power has taken a striking new form: more than $127 billion in foreign-currency deposits flowed into Indian banks under a special Reserve Bank of India facility, helping rebuild India’s foreign-exchange firepower. For years, the familiar story of Indians abroad was simple: work overseas, send money home, support parents and children, buy a house, invest in gold and perhaps return one day. That story is changing. The latest numbers suggest that India’s global community is increasingly becoming part of the country’s financial architecture, not merely its remittance economy. The $127-billion surprise In June 2026, the Reserve Bank of India introduced a special USD-INR foreign-exchange swap facility covering foreign-currency deposits by non-resident Indians, along with certain overseas borrowings. The response was extraordinary. By the end of August, the programme had attracted about $136.38 billion in total foreign-currency inflows. Of that, approximately $127.23 billion came through Foreign Currency Non-Resident (Bank), or FCNR(B), deposits. Another $3.89 billion came through external commercial borrowings and about $5.26 billion through overseas foreign-currency borrowings. In other words, the headline number is not simply “Indians abroad deposited $127 billion into Indian banks.” It represents a

What the Upgrade Really Says About the Indian Economy For decades, India wanted to join the club. Not the G7. Not the World Cup. Not even the rather mysterious club of countries whose citizens can discuss GDP over dinner without everyone changing the subject. This was the A-rated sovereign club—the group of economies considered to have relatively strong creditworthiness. On September 2, 2026, India moved closer to that club when the Japan Credit Rating Agency (JCR) upgraded India’s sovereign credit rating from BBB+ to A-, while maintaining a Stable outlook. It was not merely a symbolic change in an alphabetical table. A sovereign credit rating is ultimately a judgement about a country’s ability and willingness to meet its financial obligations. And JCR’s decision offers an interesting external assessment of India’s economic transformation. Why did JCR upgrade India? JCR pointed to several developments. The agency noted that India has maintained a high rate of economic growth, supported by robust private consumption and public investment. It also highlighted the government’s continued implementation of policies aimed at improving productivity and the foundations for long-term growth, including digital public infrastructure and the Goods and Services Tax (GST). The agency also saw improvement in the