Kalpana Pathak
•Reliance Industries is reasonably bullish on global refining margins in the coming quarters due to structural capacity losses in Russia and the Middle East.
•The Strait of Hormuz situation has become uncertain again amid the escalation in the Iran war, affecting oil flows through the strait.
•Approximately 12 million barrels of global oil production were rendered unavailable due to the Strait of Hormuz closure, but crude oil prices did not spike due to released supplies from strategic reserves.
•China has been notably absent from the import market during the crisis, which helped keep prices in check.
•As countries replenish stocks and resume normal import volumes, crude prices could find renewed support.
•Broader oil demand has softened, with several countries scaling back imports in response to elevated prices, but a rebound is expected next year.
•EbixCash World Money Ltd has become the first non-bank entity in India to receive a perpetual Authorised Dealer Category-II (AD-II) licence from the Reserve Bank of India.
•The licence allows EbixCash to process trade remittances of up to ₹25 lakh per transaction following changes to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) framework introduced in May 2026.
•The company will be able to directly serve micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) engaged in exports and imports, reducing dependence on traditional banking channels for cross-border payments.
•EbixCash has RBI approval to maintain Nostro accounts, allowing it to settle international transactions directly without routing them through correspondent banks.
•The company facilitates more than 75% of India's cash-to-cash inward remittances and around 20% of outward remittances under the RBI's Liberalised Remittance Scheme through the AD-II channel.
•Indian refiners are buying record amounts of Russian crude, with over 2.3 million barrels a day offloaded at Indian ports last month.
•Deliveries in July are close to the same level, helping to keep a lid on Russian oil cargoes mounting up at sea.
•US sanctions on Russian oil exports are still in place, but Indian buyers are using middlemen to bypass the restrictions.
•Russian oil exports have surged due to the loss of supplies from the Persian Gulf and tumbling prices for Russian crude.
•Four-week average seaborne crude shipments from Russia remain close to an all-time high, with 4.16 million barrels a day shipped in the period to July 19.
Surajeet Das Gupta
•Premji Invest, a private investment firm owned by Azim Premji, has invested in 11 AI startups, predominantly in the US, with a combined valuation of $43 billion.
•The firm has participated in 19 funding rounds since January 2021, with a significant number of investments in 2024 and 2025, and has been more cautious with Indian AI startups.
•Five of the US-based startups backed by Premji Invest were founded by Indian entrepreneurs, including Hippocratic AI and Baseten, which saw valuations climb to $3.5 billion and $13 billion, respectively.
•Premji Invest has also invested in major US AI players like Runway (GenAI video) and Applied Intuition (autonomous driving AI systems), with valuations increasing to $5.3 billion and $15 billion, respectively.
•The firm's investments have been spread across the years, with the bulk coming in 2024 and 2025, and have included
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•Reliance Industries is reasonably bullish on global refining margins in the coming quarters due to structural capacity losses in Russia and the Middle East.
•The Strait of Hormuz situation has become uncertain again amid the escalation in the Iran war, affecting oil flows through the strait.
•Approximately 12 million barrels of global oil production were rendered unavailable due to the Strait of Hormuz closure, but crude oil prices did not spike due to released supplies from strategic reserves.
•China has been notably absent from the import market during the crisis, which helped keep prices in check.
•As countries replenish stocks and resume normal import volumes, crude prices could find renewed support.
•Broader oil demand has softened, with several countries scaling back imports in response to elevated prices, but a rebound is expected next year.
•EbixCash World Money Ltd has become the first non-bank entity in India to receive a perpetual Authorised Dealer Category-II (AD-II) licence from the Reserve Bank of India.
•The licence allows EbixCash to process trade remittances of up to ₹25 lakh per transaction following changes to the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) framework introduced in May 2026.
•The company will be able to directly serve micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) engaged in exports and imports, reducing dependence on traditional banking channels for cross-border payments.
•EbixCash has RBI approval to maintain Nostro accounts, allowing it to settle international transactions directly without routing them through correspondent banks.
•The company facilitates more than 75% of India's cash-to-cash inward remittances and around 20% of outward remittances under the RBI's Liberalised Remittance Scheme through the AD-II channel.
•Indian refiners are buying record amounts of Russian crude, with over 2.3 million barrels a day offloaded at Indian ports last month.
•Deliveries in July are close to the same level, helping to keep a lid on Russian oil cargoes mounting up at sea.
•US sanctions on Russian oil exports are still in place, but Indian buyers are using middlemen to bypass the restrictions.
•Russian oil exports have surged due to the loss of supplies from the Persian Gulf and tumbling prices for Russian crude.
•Four-week average seaborne crude shipments from Russia remain close to an all-time high, with 4.16 million barrels a day shipped in the period to July 19.
•Premji Invest, a private investment firm owned by Azim Premji, has invested in 11 AI startups, predominantly in the US, with a combined valuation of $43 billion.
•The firm has participated in 19 funding rounds since January 2021, with a significant number of investments in 2024 and 2025, and has been more cautious with Indian AI startups.
•Five of the US-based startups backed by Premji Invest were founded by Indian entrepreneurs, including Hippocratic AI and Baseten, which saw valuations climb to $3.5 billion and $13 billion, respectively.
•Premji Invest has also invested in major US AI players like Runway (GenAI video) and Applied Intuition (autonomous driving AI systems), with valuations increasing to $5.3 billion and $15 billion, respectively.
•The firm's investments have been spread across the years, with the bulk coming in 2024 and 2025, and have included
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