📉 $10 Lakh Cr Gone. Oil Tanks. Tariffs Fly

🌞 Happy Saturday- atleast the stonk market won’t drop today 🫠!

It's Saturday, April 5, and if you’ve been wondering why the markets are throwing tantrums, oil is doing belly flops, and your favorite juice bar just got a cash infusion—don’t worry, we’ve steeped all the drama into one spicy cup of Masala Chai. Grab your cup, we’re pouring headlines hotter than your weekend chai ☕🔥

☕ Chai Shots

• 🧠 Truecaller Hits 450M Users & Gets a New CEO: Caller ID app Truecaller is ringing up milestones—crossing 450 million monthly active users globally, with 15.5 million new users just in 2025. India continues to be its crown jewel, and to reflect that, India MD Rishit Jhunjhunwala has been bumped up to CEO.

• 📉 Wall Street Panic Meter Hits an 8-Month High: Global markets threw a tantrum after China clapped back with 34% tariffs on all US imports, following Trump’s latest round of trade duties. The Cboe Volatility Index—aka the market’s “fear gauge”—spiked to a level not seen since August.

• ✈️ India Eases Aircraft Leasing Laws: In a win for airlines and lessors, Parliament passed a new aviation bill that aligns India with the Cape Town Convention. This means no more GoAir-style fiascos where lessors couldn’t reclaim grounded planes. With air travel booming—passenger numbers have doubled in a decade and India’s fleet is now 840 strong—the bill aims to reduce leasing costs and make India a global aviation hotspot.

• 🧁 Piyush Goyal Roasts the 'Startup Cosplayers': At Startup Mahakumbh 2025, the Union Minister didn't hold back. He called out luxury D2C brands—fancy cookies, premium juices, and posh labels by billionaire heirs—as business masquerading as innovation. He urged entrepreneurs to think bigger and bolder. More in the Big Brew!

📈 Market Masala

• 📉 Sensex & Nifty Dive as ₹10 Lakh Cr Vanishes: Indian equity markets took a nosedive on Friday, with the Sensex tumbling 931 points and the Nifty shedding 346. Blame it on the Trump-triggered global sell-off and looming recession fears. Sectoral bloodbath? Pharma (-6.2%), metals (-5.3%), and IT all took big hits.

• 📉 IT Stocks Hit Hard: Indian tech giants weren’t spared—TCS slipped 4%, Infosys 3.5%, while midcaps like Persistent and Coforge tanked over 7%. Analysts say indirect impacts from trade restrictions and macro gloom in the US could pull back overall tech budgets.

• 💸 RBI to Issue New Notes with Fresh Signature: The RBI is introducing new ₹10 and ₹500 notes bearing Governor Sanjay Malhotra’s signature. But don't worry—your old notes are still valid!

• 📉 IndusInd Bank in the Spotlight for Wrong Reasons: A decline in deposits, forex accounting troubles, and a stock drop of over 50% this year—IndusInd Bank is in damage-control mode. They’ve initiated an external audit while the RBI granted the CEO a one-year extension.

• 🛢️ Oil Crashes to 4-Year Low as Trade War Escalates: Oil prices are in free fall—Brent dropped below $65 while WTI sank to levels not seen since 2021. The double whammy? A surprise OPEC+ output hike and fears that the US-China tariff spat will dampen global demand. Traders are now scrambling to reassess, and Goldman Sachs cut its oil price forecast by $5 per barrel.

🌎 Global Masala

• 📉 US Tech Selloff Deepens: The Nasdaq 100 is officially in bear territory, falling 20% from its peak. Big tech names like Apple and Nvidia are getting battered, erasing trillions in market cap.

• 💥 Europe and Asia Markets in Chaos: European indices like the DAX (-4.7%) and CAC 40 (-4.3%) joined the red sea after China imposed tariffs on US goods. Even defense stocks like Rolls-Royce and Leonardo took double-digit losses, while the UK pound lost steam after its recent rally.

• 💼 Trump’s Tariffs Cause Corporate Fallout: Automakers like VW are raising sticker prices and halting shipments; Stellantis is pausing production and laying off workers. Pandora estimates a $176 million hit, and European banks are getting crushed on rate-cut fears.

• 💡 Trade War Hits Services Too: While Trump obsesses over goods, economists point out that the US actually runs a giant trade surplus in services—something now vulnerable to retaliation. Think restrictions on Hollywood films, US consulting firms, or revoking IP rights.

🧨 The Big Brew 🚀 From Fancy Labels to Real Innovation: Piyush Goyal’s Wake-Up Call

Union Minister Piyush Goyal lit a fire under India’s startup ecosystem at Startup Mahakumbh 2025—urging founders to ditch cosmetic branding and think scale, science, and substance.

• 🧁 “Healthy” ≠ Innovation: Goyal called out the rise of premium brands—like vegan cookies and artisanal juices—launched by billionaire kids and marketed as “startups.”

• 🛵 Gig Work Isn’t Global Power: He warned that turning India’s youth into delivery workers isn’t enough, especially when Chinese startups are leading in EVs, batteries, semiconductors, and AI.

• 🔬 Push for R&D Over Repackaging: Goyal pitched a "Design in India" and "Innovate in India" initiative, alongside a national R&D mission, to shift focus from contract manufacturing to IP creation and deep-tech.

• 🛠️ Don’t Ignore the Real Builders: He highlighted the unsung heroes—small manufacturing units working in casting, tooling, and forging—that are the real backbone of Indian industry.

• 📉 Only 1,000 Deep-Tech Startups: Out of 1.57 lakh recognised startups, just 1,000 are in deep-tech. Goyal sees this as a signal that we're playing it too safe.

🤔 What Does This Really Mean?

India’s startup scene needs a course correction. While D2C brands and gig economy platforms create jobs and value, the country can’t rely on food delivery apps alone to become a global tech leader.
Goyal’s message? We need to invent more than we import, build high-tech products, and create IP that can’t be outsourced. The real unicorns of tomorrow will come from chip design, EV infra, and clean tech—not just coconut water in sleek bottles.

🚀 Startup Scoop

• 🌾 Jai Kisan Bags ₹26.5 Cr: Rural fintech player Jai Kisan raised ₹26.5 crore in fresh funding from Mirae Asset, Unitary Fund, and Blume Ventures. The Mumbai-based startup serves India’s agri heartland with rural credit and financial services—online and offline.

• 🧃 Alienkind Juices Up with $1.2M: New-age juice bar Alienkind has raised seed funding at a $10M valuation, with backers like Super.money founder Prakash Sikaria. The quirky QSR brand is prepping to expand across major metros.

• 👕 Snitch Doubles Revenue to ₹520 Cr: Fast-growing men’s fashion brand Snitch closed FY25 with a whopping ₹520 crore in revenue—more than doubling from last year. They plan to open 50 more stores soon and are eyeing a Middle East expansion.

• ☀️ Aerem Bags $11.7M for Solar Expansion: Clean energy startup Aerem raised ₹100 crore in funding led by Japan’s UTEC and British International Investment. With 800+ projects under its belt, Aerem is gunning for nationwide growth.

🤓 Chai Break Trivia

☀️ Did you know? Kochi’s airport is the first in the world to run 100% on solar power! That’s right—Cochin International doesn’t just fly high, it shines bright too. 🌞

🔮 What’s Brewing Next?

• 🌾 India Eyes Manufacturing Wins: With the US tariffs reshuffling global supply chains, India might be positioned for a manufacturing boost, especially in garments and smartphones.

• 💬 Will India Retaliate?: Government insiders hint that India is weighing its response to Trump’s pharma-specific tariff threats. Countermeasures or negotiations? Stay tuned.

That’s your full Saturday brew, steeped in spice, froth, and just a dash of global drama. Go enjoy your filter coffee or cold brew—whatever your weekend vibe is—and we’ll be back on Monday with more masala. Until then, stay sharp and sip slowly. ☕✨