Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal for restraint continued to reverberate across India Inc and the markets, with companies, consumers and investors all trying to assess what a prolonged period of soaring energy prices and trade disruption could mean.
Moneycontrol Research examines how investors should rejig portfolios if austerity measures intensify, arguing that while sectors linked to discretionary spending, travel and traditional automobiles could face pressure, EV makers, value retailers and some domestic-facing businesses may be better placed. As crude prices climbed past $107 a barrel, Moneycontrol News shows how Modi’s appeal mirrors a broader global push towards demand restraint that several nations have embraced.
Indian Hotels Co. CEO Puneet Chhatwal told Akshara Srivastava that the Prime Minister’s call to avoid foreign travel could redirect spending towards domestic tourism. Multiplex operators are also hopeful. PVR INOX executive director Sanjeev Kumar Bijli told Maryam Farooqui that a “vocal for local” mindset could push consumers toward more affordable entertainment closer to home.
The jewellery industry, meanwhile, is bracing for a slowdown. Titan CFO Ajoy Chawla told Akshara that Modi’s suggestion to defer gold purchases could weigh on near-term demand. Even India’s fast-food chains are adapting to a more cautious consumer mood. Aishwarya Nair writes that Rs 99 meals are increasingly becoming the quick-service restaurant industry’s key growth lever.
For the second day, markets reflected that anxiety. Benchmark indices fell nearly 2%. The broader market fared even worse. Travel and hospitality stocks extended their losses, plunging as much as 5%, reports Paras Bisht. J. Jagannath writes that real estate companies and jewellery stocks also remained under heavy selling pressure. IT stocks also suffered another bruising session. The Nifty IT index declined 3.7% to its lowest level since May 2023, writes Paras Bisht. Crude-sensitive stocks such as Asian Paints and SpiceJet fell as oil prices rose.
Modi’s remarks also revived an old debate about India’s enduring obsession with gold. Ishaan Gera reports that the previous Gold Monetisation Scheme mobilised just 39 tonnes over nearly a decade, a minuscule 0.1% of the estimated 34,000 tonnes held by Indian households, even as the country’s gold import bill surged to $72 billion in FY26. Zoya Springwala reports that jewellery makers are urging the government to revamp the scheme, arguing that even monetising 5% of household gold could unlock as much as $90 billion in liquidity without hurting demand or the livelihoods of nearly 3.5 crore people.
Meanwhile, price pressures are building again. Retail inflation accelerated to a four-month high of 3.48% in April on higher food prices, writes Ishaan Gera. Economists are increasingly warning that the combination of elevated crude prices, trade disruptions and the risk of a Super El Niño could make the inflation outlook more challenging in the months ahead. Food, restaurants, education and pets drove inflation in April: Here’s inflation in five charts.
The AI and chips boom is reshaping markets. Ravindra Sonavane writes that Taiwan and South Korea’s indices are sharply higher, but the gains are heavily concentrated in a few giants such as TSMC (Taiwan), Samsung and SK Hynix (Korea). Taiwan’s benchmark index has jumped 92% while South Korea’s Kospi has more than tripled in dollar terms since 2025. As a result of these mega rallies across Asian markets, India’s share in global market cap has fallen below 3% for the first time in four years, from a high of 4.71% in September 2024.
Vodafone Idea’s fundraising efforts are entering a critical phase. Hamsini Karthik and Danish Khan report that banks are now seeking guarantees from promoter companies and a fresh viability assessment before extending loans to the telecom operator. Vodafone Idea has been in talks with a State Bank of India-led consortium to raise around Rs 25,000 crore, along with Rs 10,000 crore in letter of credit (LC) facilities.
Policy continues to favour local manufacturing. Imports of tempered glass screen protectors for phones could face curbs as the government moves to bring the category under mandatory quality certification norms, Meghna Mittal reports. Products covered by notified standards cannot be manufactured, imported, or sold in India without mandatory certification, thereby reducing imports.
Waaree Energies has begun hiring investment banks for its first-ever fundraising from qualified institutional investors following its 2024 public listing, reports Swaraj Singh Dhanjal. On April 29, Waaree’s board approved a fundraising plan to raise Rs 10,000 crore through one or more QIPs or other routes, although the company isn’t likely to raise that amount. Waaree plans to deploy roughly Rs 30,000 crore across the energy transition value chain over the next two years.
And finally, amid the economic anxiety, cinemas are finding reasons to celebrate. PVR Inox’s Sanjeev Kumar Bijli said that 2026 has been strong for the country’s largest multiplex chain, led by hits such as Dhurandhar 2 and Hollywood films with strong star casts. “Indian audiences are very star-driven, whether it’s Hindi cinema or international cinema,” Bijli said.