India, Japan discuss Strait of Hormuz security

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 10, 2026 | Business

As the world grappled with the cascading fallout of the West Asian conflict, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday spoke to his Japanese counterpart Toshimitsu Motegi largely focusing on passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

Motegi also conveyed Japan’s condolences on the killing of a number of Indians in the conflict. Since the hostilities began on February 28, eight Indian nationals have been killed and several others injured in the region.

“Good to speak with FM Toshimitsu Motegi of Japan. Discussed developments in West Asia, including international shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Appreciate his condolences for the Indian lives lost in the conflict,” Jaishankar said on social media.

Safe Navigation

Motegi said he and Jaishankar discussed the current situation in West Asia including ensuring the safety of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

The Japanese foreign minister welcomed the recent announcement by the US and Iran on a two-week ceasefire.

“He also stated that what matters most is that de-escalation, including the safety of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, is steadily achieved, and expressed his hopes that a final agreement will be reached promptly through the negotiations between the United States and Iran,” according to a Japanese readout.

Motegi further stated that he would like to closely coordinate with the international community, including India on the issue.

“In response, Minister Jaishankar stated that India will continue to work closely with Japan so that de-escalation of the situation would be realised, including the safety of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz,” the Japanese readout noted.

“Both Ministers concurred that Japan and India will continue to communicate closely with each other. Furthermore, both ministers concurred on promoting multilateral cooperation, including Japan and India, to enhance the resiliency of energy and resource supply,” it said.

Global oil and gas prices had surged after Iran virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz. The move severely impacted energy supplies to countries around the world including India.

West Asia has been a major source of India’s energy procurement.

Published on April 10, 2026

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In Bengal, will the Left’s vote shift to the Right?

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 10, 2026 | Business

CPI(M) candidates raise their hands and march with party flags and balloons during a joint nomination procession for various Assembly constituencies in Kolkata
| Photo Credit:
ANI

Veteran Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Ashok Bhattacharya recently said that in a bid to counter the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, a section of Left voters was indirectly helping the BJP, but this trend should stop in the Assembly elections this month. Following the statement by Bhattacharya, a former CPI(M) MLA from north Bengal, Trinamool Congress’ national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee said it was a “delayed” realisation for the Left leader.

Left’s vote share

Addressing an election rally in Kolkata, Banerjee said he was glad to hear such an admission from a senior CPI(M) leader, and added that the Trinamool Congress had long been maintaining that Left voters were shifting towards the BJP. Notably, even at a time when the Left front lost miserably in the Assembly elections in 2011, its vote share was high at 39.68 per cent, while it was just 4.06 per cent for the saffron party. Since then, the Left front has seen a drastic depletion of vote share, while the BJP has witnessed a massive increase.

“If you look at the 2016 Assembly election results for West Bengal, the Left front had recorded around 26 per cent vote share, which was 29 per cent in 2014 Lok Sabha, while for BJP it was 17 per cent in 2014. The Left came down drastically to around 6-7 per cent in the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 Assembly polls. In the same period, the BJP increased its vote share from around 10 per cent in 2016 to 40 per cent in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. That means a large chunk of voters have shifted from the Left to the BJP,” Maidul Islam, Professor, Political Science, Centre for Studies in Social Sciences, told businessline.

“After 2019, Left vote share is hovering between 5-7 per cent, while that of the BJP remains between 38-40 per cent in the State. Since 2019, we have seen a few Left leaders joining the saffron party in their attempt to fight the ruling Trinamool Congress. These leaders thought that the Left is currently not in a position to challenge Trinamool’s might,” Islam observed.

In a politically significant development just before the elections, Soumya Basu, son of former CPI(M) leader Anil Basu, was seen at a BJP meeting in Chinsurah in Hooghly district, publicly aligning himself with the saffron party and criticising the present state of Left politics in Bengal. The meeting was attended by State BJP President Samik Bhattacharya.

Islam pointed out that West Bengal has always witnessed periods of long bipolarity and short transition periods of multipolarity. “From 2019, we are witnessing a bipolar political system in Bengal, where the ruling Trinamool and Opposition BJP are the two main parties, and strength of the Left and the Congress has evaporated. Before 2019, we saw the Trinamool and the Left as the two major parties. Several decades ago, Congress and the Left had been ruling the roost in the State,” he added.

‘Will comeback’

Senior CPI(M) leaders, however, remain hopeful that there is a chance for the Left’s resurgence in the upcoming elections. “The ground reality suggests that there is a chance for resurgence. Leftists will resurge. People do not believe that the BJP is an alternative to Trinamool,” said Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, outgoing Rajya Sabha MP of CPI(M). The Left parties had failed to register victory in a single seat in the 2021 Assembly elections in 2021.

“A massive terror took place in our State after the Trinamool Congress came to power in 2011. As a result, a section of voters felt that they might get shelter from the BJP as the party is in power at the Centre. That perception was created. But now this illusion has vanished,” added Bhattacharya, who is contesting from the Jadavpur constituency in the southern outskirts of Kolkata.

In West Bengal, voting will be conducted in two phases on April 23 and April 29. The first phase in the State will cover 152 Assembly constituencies, and 142 constituencies in the second phase.

Published on April 10, 2026

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Invoices financed on RXIL’s platform jumps 51% to ₹1,21,105 cr in FY26

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 10, 2026 | Business

Receivables Exchange of India Ltd (RXIL) on Friday said it achieved a total throughput (invoices financed) of ₹1,21,105 crore in FY26, registering a 51 per cent growth.

In the process, the cumulative value of invoices financed on RXIL’s Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS) platform since inception (January 2017) has crossed the ₹3 lakh crore milestone, a company statement said.

RXIL has onboarded 72,000+ MSMEs and 3,400+ corporate buyers since inception, and facilitated the financing of over 1.2 crore invoices, it added.

The TreDS platform enables MSME suppliers to convert their approved receivables into cash without collateral in under 24 hours, through a transparent multi-financier bidding mechanism. RXIL’s promoter institutions are: SIDBI, NSE, State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, and YES Bank.

Manoj Mittal, CMD, SIDBI, and RXIL Chairman, said: “The growing relevance of the TReDS ecosystem underscores its role in addressing MSME working capital needs in a more efficient and transparent manner….As the ecosystem evolves, wider participation from buyers and financiers will be key to unlocking its full potential.”

Published on April 10, 2026

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India to continue buying Russian crude oil

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 10, 2026 | Business

Indian refiners intend to persist with Russian crude purchases despite the expiration of the sanctions waiver
| Photo Credit:
KSL

Indian refiners will continue to purchase Russian crude oil as the ongoing conflict in West Asia keeps the global market on tenterhooks regarding supply certainty.

Furthermore, concerns persist over the extensive time required to rebuild the region’s damaged oil and gas infrastructure, indicating that it may take months to return to pre-war supply levels.

Sources indicate that Indian refiners intend to persist with Russian crude purchases despite the expiration of the sanctions waiver. The 30-day US sanctions exemption, which facilitated these oil imports from Moscow, is set to conclude on April 11.

This is because of the uncertainty over supply from key suppliers in West Asia, especially considering the lack of clarity on when normal traffic will resume in the Strait of Hormuz (SoH). Also, there is no clear estimation of the time it will take to rebuild the damaged infrastructure, said one of the sources.

“The supplies of crude oil, LNG and LPG from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the UAE, and Qatar are adversely impacted, and so far there is no clear window of certainty on when full supplies can resume,” said another trading source.

Before February 28, 2026, West Asia accounted for around 50-52 per cent of India’s total crude oil imports, compared to roughly 40-45 per cent before the US sanctions on Russian firms Rosneft and Lukoil. At present, around 70 per cent of India’s crude oil imports are non-SoH.

Asked whether India will continue procuring Russian crude oil post the end of the US-sanctions waiver, Oil Ministry Joint Secretary Sujata Sharma said that crude imports are based on commercial decisions, keeping in mind the country’s “huge” demand.

“We are a very big country with a lot of energy needs. If you look at last year’s consumption, it is around 24-25 crore tonnes of petroleum products. Our priority is to source energy so that we can meet our domestic demand. The crude we purchase is driven by technical feasibility and the commercial sense it makes to our refiners,” she said at the inter-ministerial briefing on West Asia on Friday.

Published on April 10, 2026

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Sun Pharma shares down 4 per cent on reports of overtures for US-based Organon

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 10, 2026 | Business

A pharma analyst told businessline that Sun Pharma had a good record of buying companies and integrating it – be it Israel’s Taro Pharma or India’s Ranbaxy, for example

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries’ shares closed down almost 4 percent at ₹1,654.70 on BSE, following reports that the drugmaker was close to sealing a deal for US-based Organon, in a $12 billion deal, its biggest transaction yet.

Known to be conservative in its approach, Sun Pharma Founder and Executive Chairman Dilip Shanghvi had told analysts in January, the company was looking for acquisitions – but they would be “disciplined” in their approach, and not shy away from raising debt. He was speaking to analysts following the company’s financial performance for the third quarter ended December 31, 2025.

On reports of making a bid for Organon, Sun Pharma told BSE on Friday: “the information set out in the article is speculative in nature and there is no material event/information that requires disclosure under Regulation 30 of the Listing Regulations.”

A pharma analyst told businessline that Sun Pharma had a good record of buying companies and integrating it – be it Israel’s Taro Pharma or India’s Ranbaxy, for example. However, this time around, the market was wary, as it was a large acquisition to digest, and Organon had a $9 billion debt.

Organon is a women’s healthcare company and a pharma industry insider said, the company was looking to strengthen its position in the US, given the demands by the present administration for a local foot-print. Besides women’s health products, Organon also had a biosimilar portfolio that could bolster Sun Pharma’s plans to bulk-up its innovation pipeline, he said.

Organon did not comment on the report of a Sun Pharma overture, so far. In 2025, Organon delivered $6.2 billion in revenue and $1.9 billion of adjusted EBITDA, the company said. The company’s shares surged over 28 percent to $8.85 (at 8.30 pm IST) in NYSE.

Published on April 10, 2026

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Iran War: युद्ध की आग में झुलसा कारोबार! वैश्विक तनाव ने रोकी ड्राईफ्रूट्स की रफ्तार

by Hansraj Agrawal | Apr 10, 2026 | Business

Dry Fruit Import Export: ईरान और अमेरिका के बीच बढ़ते सैन्य तनाव और युद्ध जैसी स्थितियों ने वैश्विक व्यापार की कमर तोड़ दी है. इस अंतरराष्ट्रीय संघर्ष का सबसे सीधा और घातक असर अब भारतीय व्यापारियों पर देखने को मिल रहा है. ड्राईफ्रूट के आयात-निर्यात से जुड़े बड़े कारोबारी इस समय दोहरी मार झेल रहे हैं एक तरफ करोड़ों रुपये का माल समुद्र के बीच फंसा है तो दूसरी तरफ बैंक और कर्जदारों का दबाव बढ़ता जा रहा है.

पशुपति इंडस्ट्रीज के मैनेजिंग डायरेक्टर अशोक तिवारी ने ‘ABP न्यूज़’ से बातचीत में अपनी आपबीती साझा की. तिवारी ने बताया कि उनका संस्थान हर महीने लगभग 15 से 20 करोड़ रुपये मूल्य के ड्राईफ्रूट्स का कारोबार करता है. इसमें मुख्य रूप से ईरान और खाड़ी देशों से आने वाले उच्च गुणवत्ता के खजूर, अंजीर, पिस्ता, बादाम और सूखे खजूर (छुआरे) शामिल हैं. युद्ध शुरू होने से ठीक पहले उन्होंने बड़ी खेप का ऑर्डर दिया था, जो अब अधर में लटक गया है.

व्यापारिक रूट में बाधा और कंटेनर संकट की स्थिति

व्यापारिक रूट की जानकारी देते हुए अशोक तिवारी ने बताया कि गल्फ देशों से सारा माल कंटेनर के जरिए भारत आता है. लेकिन युद्ध की स्थिति के कारण सामरिक रूप से महत्वपूर्ण स्ट्रेट ऑफ होर्मुज’ (Strait of Hormuz) को बंद कर दिया गया है. इस रुकावट की वजह से उनके ड्रायफ्रूट से भरे 40-45 कंटेनर इस वक्त ईरान के ‘बंदर अब्बास’ पोर्ट और यूएई (UAE) के ‘जबल अली’ पोर्ट पर फंसे हुए हैं. स्थिति यह है कि न तो माल आगे बढ़ पा रहा है और कब बढ़ेगा इसके संकेत मिल पा रहे हैं.

ड्राईफ्रूट व्यापार की आर्थिक चक्र प्रणाली पर असर

ड्राईफ्रूट व्यापार की जटिलताओं पर बात करते हुए उन्होंने कहा, “हम करोड़ों का ऑर्डर देने के लिए अपनी जमापूंजी, साथी व्यापारियों से लिया गया उधार और बैंक लोन का इस्तेमाल करते हैं. यह एक रोलिंग साइकिल (चक्र) होता है जो हर महीने चलता है. लेकिन माल न पहुंचने की वजह से यह चक्र पूरी तरह टूट गया है. अब हालत यह है कि जिन व्यापारियों से पैसा लिया था, वे तगादा कर रहे हैं और बैंक भी अपनी किश्त मांग रहे हैं.”

व्यापारियों की अपील और बाजार में कीमतों में उछाल की आशंका

अशोक तिवारी दुबई, सऊदी अरब, ईरान और अफगानिस्तान जैसे देशों से माल मंगाकर न केवल नवी मुंबई की APMC मार्केट में बेचते हैं, बल्कि पूरे भारत में इसकी सप्लाई करते हैं. उन्होंने सरकार से मार्मिक अपील करते हुए कहा “मार्केट में मेरी तरह कई व्यापारियों की हालत खराब है. हमारा पैसा माल में फंसा है और ऊपर से ब्याज बढ़ रहा है. मेरी सरकार से विनती है कि इस संकट की घड़ी में हमें बैंक के कर्ज चुकाने के लिए अतिरिक्त समय दिया जाए, ताकि हमे कुछ मदद मिल सके.”

वर्तमान में ड्राईफ्रूट मार्केट में इस अनिश्चितता की वजह से आने वाले दिनों में कीमतों में भारी उछाल आने की भी आशंका जताई जा रही है, जिसका सीधा असर आम जनता की जेब पर पड़ेगा.

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