⚡ Delhi Goes Full Electric

🌤️ Monday Mood: Short Week, Big News!

If the past week’s market felt like a sugar crash after a gulab jamun binge, here’s your relief—stock exchanges (NSE & BSE) are taking a chai break on April 14 for Ambedkar Jayanti. With only three trading sessions lined up (markets are closed for Good Friday on Friday), it's a mellow week for market watchers.

Time to refill your cup and catch up on everything that matters. Let’s get pouring ☕

🫖 Chai Shots

• 📱 iPhones Made in India Now Come with a 20% Advantage in the US: A major shift in US tariff policy has eliminated additional duties on electronics imported from India, making Indian iPhones, laptops, and tablets 20% cheaper than Chinese-made ones for American buyers. This puts India and Vietnam on an even playing field, while China continues to face hefty levies—boosting India’s position as a global manufacturing hub.

• 💸 RBI’s Dividend Could Break Records at ₹2.5-3.5 Lakh Crore: Thanks to massive dollar sales and high interest income from liquidity operations, the RBI is expected to transfer an extra-large surplus to the government. This payout is not only set to beat last year’s ₹2.1 lakh crore, but also comfortably cover budget expectations and ease borrowing pressure.

• 🏥 India’s Healthcare Spending Set to Touch 5% of GDP by 2030: A new report by CareEdge shows that government and private investments are transforming India’s healthcare system, which currently spends 3.3% of GDP. The plan includes more medical colleges, better insurance access, hospital expansion, and digital healthcare.

• ⚡ Delhi's EV Push May Offer ₹36K Subsidy for Women Buying E-Scooters: Under the proposed EV Policy 2.0, the Delhi government plans to offer up to ₹36,000 in subsidies to the first 10,000 women buyers of electric two-wheelers. This is part of a broader incentive package to phase out petrol/CNG vehicles and build a cleaner city with battery swapping stations, scrappage benefits, and public EV targets. More in the Big Brew!

📉 Market Masala

• 🌀 Markets See-Sawed on Global Volatility and Tariff Headlines: Last week saw sharp swings across sectors as global markets reacted to the evolving US-China tariff battle. Indian indices mirrored this mood, with tech and metals fluctuating heavily.

• 📆 Trading Holidays Alert: Indian stock markets (NSE and BSE) will remain shut on April 14 for Ambedkar Jayanti and on April 18 for Good Friday. That leaves just three days of trading this week—giving traders a breather from all the recent market turbulence.

• 💵 Rupee Stability Brings Fiscal Gifts: The RBI’s aggressive dollar-selling to support the rupee is now paying off. Higher foreign exchange earnings are pushing up the central bank’s surplus—and a higher dividend means the government can keep its fiscal deficit in check without borrowing more.

• 🏡 HDFC Capital x Eldeco Go Big on Tier II & III Homes: ₹1,500 crore is being invested into building 18 residential projects across towns like Ludhiana, Panipat, Rishikesh, and Rudrapur. The joint venture aims to tap into rising demand from India’s expanding middle class.

• ❄️ AC Sales on Ice—for Now: Thanks to surprise showers in the South and North India’s stormy spells, April sales for room ACs have slowed. But brands like Blue Star, Haier, and Samsung are still betting big on a May-June comeback, forecasting 20–25% growth in Q1.

• 🛫 IndiGo Flying High Despite Global Headwinds: India’s largest airline isn’t letting trade tensions clip its wings. The carrier is charging full speed ahead with expansion plans, gearing up to launch operations from Navi Mumbai’s new airport and scale capacity across metros and Tier-2 routes. The duopoly with Tata-backed Air India is about to get spicy.

🌍 Global Masala

• 💻 Tech IPOs Put on Ice as Tariffs Scare Off Investors: Klarna and StubHub, both set to go public, have shelved IPO plans due to market chaos caused by Trump’s tariff hikes. With no clear exit paths, VCs are nervous, especially for late-stage startups now stuck in valuation limbo.

• 🇩🇰 Danish Shoppers Boycott US Brands Over Tariffs and Greenland Row: Consumers in Denmark are ditching American products like McDonald's, Tesla, and Starbucks after Trump revived his push to acquire Greenland. Supermarkets are even tagging European brands with stars to help customers avoid US goods.

• 🇨🇳 EU-China Relations Stay Complicated Despite Shared Frustrations with US: While the US’s aggressive trade policy is ruffling feathers, don’t expect Europe and China to suddenly become besties. Deep economic competition, geopolitical mistrust, and concerns over subsidies and surveillance tech are still keeping them apart.

• 📆 Earnings Season + Tariff Whiplash = A Big Week Ahead: Global markets are bracing for a high-stakes week. On one hand, quarterly results are due from giants like Netflix, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, and Taiwan Semiconductor. On the other, confusion continues to swirl over US tariff exemptions—after mixed signals from the White House about levies on electronics like phones and chips.

☕ The Big Brew: Delhi’s EV Policy Is All Set to Recharge the Capital

The draft of Delhi’s EV Policy 2.0 is out, and it’s everything but basic.

💨 Why now? Because Delhi isn’t just India’s capital—it’s also frequently crowned the pollution capital of the world. Toxic air, traffic fumes, and smoggy winters have turned clean mobility from a nice-to-have into a public health emergency.

🚨 Here’s the full battery of benefits:

• 💃 Women Power on Wheels: First 10,000 eligible women buyers (with a valid license) get ₹12,000 per kWh—up to ₹36,000—as a direct purchase subsidy for two-wheeler EVs.

• 🛵 All Buyers Get Paid to Go Green: Others still get ₹10,000 per kWh (capped at ₹30,000) for e-scooters. Scrapping your old petrol two-wheeler? That nets you another ₹10,000, as long as the vehicle is under 12 years old.

• 🛺 Bye-Bye CNG Autos: From August 15, 2025, no new CNG auto registrations will be allowed. Existing permits? Not getting renewed either. Expect an electric-only rickshaw fleet soon.

• 🏭 Goods Carriers Also Get Perks: E-cargo 3-wheelers (L5N) may get up to ₹45,000, while 4-wheelers (N1) can get up to ₹75,000 in incentives.

• 📈 95% of New Vehicles to Be Electric by 2027: The draft targets a complete transition, starting with buses, autos, waste collectors, and delivery fleets. If it runs on fossil fuel—it’s getting phased out.

• 🔌 Massive Infra Push: Expect charging hubs across the city, battery collection centres, and a growing network of swap stations to keep things moving.

• 👷 20,000 Green Jobs Incoming: The plan also includes skill centres and public education drives to create an EV-ready workforce and drive consumer adoption.

🧠 What does this mean?

Delhi is going full throttle to clean its air, reduce emissions, and dominate the EV adoption charts. It’s also one of the most aggressive citywide EV transitions globally—and if done right, could be a blueprint for the rest of India.

🚀 Startup Scoop

• 🧠 OpenAI Co-Founder’s New Startup Now Valued at $32B: Ilya Sutskever’s Safe Superintelligence has raised another $2 billion. Their goal? Build a single product—a superintelligent AI system that’s safe, ethical, and doesn’t turn into Skynet.

• 📦 MoEngage May Move HQ Back to India: The customer engagement SaaS company is reportedly prepping for a domicile shift from the US. Backed by Goldman Sachs and having raised over $200 million, this would mark another big name coming home.

🤯 Chai Break Trivia

🍎 Did you know India now produces 20% of the world’s iPhones?

That’s right! Apple ramped up production in India to $22 billion worth of iPhones in FY25, a nearly 60% increase from the previous year. That's some serious desi tech power.

🔮 What’s Brewing Next?

• 📉 Short week for Indian markets with holidays on April 14 (Ambedkar Jayanti) and April 18 (Good Friday)—just three trading days ahead.

• 🇺🇸 US markets brace for earnings + tariff drama, with big names reporting and policy uncertainty keeping traders alert.

Whether you’re navigating electric rickshaws or global tariff tangles, remember—the markets are closed todaaay. Take the day, recharge (yourself and your devices), and enjoy the pause.

Till then, stay spicy, stay sharp, and stay sippin’ that Masala Chai ☕🔥