UPSC Economy current affairs: budget, RBI policies, inflation, fiscal policy, banking and financial sector updates.
Part of: UPSC Current Affairs 2026 Hub
The 2026‑27 Union Budget raises AYUSH funding to ₹4,408 crore and announces three new All‑India Institutes of Ayurveda, while the India‑EU FTA enables Indian AYUSH practitioners to set up clinics across Europe. For UPSC aspirants, this illustrates the intersection of health policy, trade agreements, and the need for evidence‑based validation of traditional systems.
India’s FY 2025‑26 exports reached a record US$ 863.1 billion, driven by expanded market access under multiple FTAs, especially with the UAE, UK and Australia. The surge underscores the importance of preferential trade agreements, digital facilitation tools, and the focus on labour‑intensive sectors for employment generation, a key theme for UPSC economics and governance studies.
In FY 2025‑26, India's public sector banks achieved a record low GNPA of 1.9% and a historic net profit of ₹1.98 lakh crore, while total business crossed ₹283 lakh crore. Concurrently, the government launched ECLGS 5.0, offering 100% guarantee for MSMEs and 90% for airlines, to address liquidity stress from the West Asia crisis, underscoring the importance of banking health and targeted credit guarantees for UPSC aspirants.
Regional Rural Banks posted a record net profit of Rs 10,177 crore in FY 2025‑26, reflecting strong growth in deposits, loans and capital adequacy. Regular government reviews and monitoring of inclusion schemes like PMJDY and PMMY ensure RRBs deepen rural credit and support the UPSC‑relevant agenda of financial inclusion and banking stability.
On 23 July 2026, the USTR announced final Section 301 measures, imposing a 10% ad valorem duty on many Indian exports while placing India in a lower tariff tier. About 45% of India’s U.S. exports remain duty‑free, and ongoing negotiations aim to finalize the India‑U.S. Bilateral Trade Agreement and resolve pending textile provisions.
India’s services exports reached $421.3 bn in FY 2025‑26, driven by telecom, IT and business services. The growth is backed by new FTAs, MRAs, Social Security Agreements and active promotion by SEPC, highlighting the government’s multi‑pronged strategy to expand market access and facilitate skilled‑personnel mobility.
President Donald Trump announced a two‑year zero‑tariff period for generic drug imports ending in August 2028, after which tariffs rise to 100% and then 200%. The move aims to reshoring U.S. pharma manufacturing and could raise medicine prices, posing challenges for Indian exporters who supply 37.7% of U.S. generic drug imports.
In July 2026, the RBI’s currency printing subsidiary issued a global Expressions of Interest for polymer substrates with embedded security features, marking India's first concrete step toward adopting plastic currency. The move aims to enhance note durability, curb counterfeiting, and align India with the 60+ nations already using polymer banknotes, a development of direct relevance to GS‑3 topics on monetary policy and public procurement.
The Ministry of Home Affairs has launched the VINIMAY Land Port Management System at ten Integrated Check Posts across eight states, linking it with ULIP, ICEGATE, MoRTH and GST. This digital integration aims to streamline border trade, improve transparency, and is a key example of inter‑ministerial cooperation relevant for UPSC GS 2 and GS 3.