Newsletter
India's chance to make Rafale, AI-powered air taxi, and India enters car-chip race.
🗓️ Morning, folks and Happy Monday! ☀️
Defence stocks surged after French President Emmanuel Macron announced that India and France will jointly produce Rafale jets and helicopters.
The optimism lifted the Nifty India Defence index by over 1.3%, with buying seen across most counters.
Bharat Dynamics gained nearly 3%, Data Patterns rose more than 2%, while Paras Defence Bharat Electronics (BEL), HAL, and GRSE also traded firmly higher.
Let’s hit it!
1 Big thing: Tariff twist leaves world guessing 🤯
The US Supreme Court struck down a large part of Donald Trump’s earlier tariff regime, saying he wrongly used emergency powers to impose them.
Trump’s response? Fine. If those tariffs are invalid, here’s a new one. A blanket global tariff. It started at 10%. Then it became 15%. And it’s set to kick in this week.
But there is a catch: this new tariff is being imposed under a different law that allows only a temporary measure. It can stay for 150 days. After that, Congress must approve it or the administration must shift to another legal route.
Now comes the twist. Data analysis by Global Trade Alert shows that countries Trump had earlier targeted the hardest like Brazil and China may actually see their average tariff burden fall under the new 15% flat regime. Brazil sees the sharpest drop. China follows.
India’s angle: Trump said the US-India trade deal announced on February 2 remains unchanged.
But for now, the bigger issue is uncertainty. A flat 15% global tariff can change competitiveness across sectors overnight. Exporters in textiles, engineering goods, chemicals and auto components will need to reassess pricing.
2. India’s electric air taxi dream goes Nvidia-powered ✈️
India’s ePlane Company has partnered with Nvidia to build the country’s first electric air taxi, the e200x. The collaboration is focused on technology and knowledge sharing.
What is happening: ePlane will use Nvidia Omniverse to create a digital twin of the aircraft, basically a highly detailed virtual replica. This allows engineers to test flight physics, autonomy software, sensor systems and extreme scenarios in simulation instead of risking costly real-world trials.
The aircraft will also run on Nvidia’s IGX computing platform, which will act as its onboard brain. The first prototype is ready, ground tests begin in a few months, and DGCA certification is the next big milestone.
The startup, incubated at IIT Madras, plans to launch in congested metros like Bengaluru, Mumbai and Chennai once testing and approvals are complete.
Bigger perspective: companies like Joby, Archer and Volocopter are racing to commercialise air taxis. The market is expected to become a multi-billion-dollar opportunity over the next decade as cities search for alternatives to gridlocked roads.
US and European firms are already testing passenger flights. In India, the space is still early-stage, giving ePlane a potential first-mover advantage.
3. Novartis India jumps on ₹14.46B ChrysCapital deal ⚡
Swiss pharma major Novartis is selling its 70.6% stake in Novartis India to private equity giant ChrysCapital in a $159 million, deal.
The market liked what it saw, shares jumped nearly 20% on Friday.
And that may not be the end of it. ChrysCapital has also made an open offer to buy another 26% from public shareholders for about ₹552 crore. If that goes through, it could end up owning more than 96% of the company.
Breaking it down: for ChrysCapital, this marks the firm’s first majority takeover in Indian pharma. It already has skin in the game with investments in Intas Pharmaceuticals, Eris Lifesciences, Corona Remedies and La Renon Healthcare, including a $70 million bet on La Renon last year.
For Novartis, this deal is part of a larger effort to streamline its global footprint. For ChrysCapital, it’s a decisive move to deepen control in one of India’s most resilient and fast-growing sectors.
4. Qualcomm, Tata to make car chips 🚗
US chip giant Qualcomm is partnering with Tata Electronics to manufacture car-related electronic modules in Assam, India.
In simple terms, Tata will build important electronic parts that go inside modern cars.
Context: India is trying to become a serious player in semiconductor manufacturing. This partnership places Tata inside Qualcomm’s global supply chain, giving India a shot at becoming a trusted electronics manufacturing hub.
What’s going on: these modules power features like digital dashboards, infotainment screens, internet connectivity and smart driving systems. The manufacturing will take place at Tata’s upcoming semiconductor assembly plant in Jagiroad, Assam.
Qualcomm designs the advanced car chips, part of its Snapdragon Digital Chassis platform. Tata Electronics will assemble and package these into ready-to-use modules at its new facility. Instead of importing these parts from abroad, they will now be made in India.
5. India’s factories run on food and fabric 🏭
India’s manufacturing jobs are not dominated by high-tech electronics or advanced automation.
Instead, the largest share of factory employment comes from food products (11%), followed by textiles (9%), basic metals (8%), and wearing apparel (7%).
Sectors like motor vehicles, machinery, chemicals and non-metallic minerals each account for roughly 6–7% of employment.
The bigger takeaway is despite years of industrial push, nearly 4 in 10 factory jobs remain concentrated in labour-heavy, low-automation industries.
That means India’s manufacturing story is still driven more by everyday consumer goods and volume production than by cutting-edge, capital-intensive industries.
6. Stock that kept us interested 🚀
1. IPO star Exato wins UK-based export order 💸
Exato Technologies bagged a $2,40,000 export order from Diligenta Limited in Peterborough, England. The order is for supplying software licences.
For context, Exato is a digital engineering firm that builds tech products and offers AI, data and cloud solutions to clients around the world. Its clients include MakeMyTrip, RBL Bank, IGT Solutions, IKS and WNS.
Diligenta, on the other hand, is a UK based, FCA regulated subsidiary of Tata Consultancy Services that provides outsourcing and customer support to life and pensions companies.
What makes this more interesting: Exato’s stock market debut was a showstopper.
The company listed on the SME platform of BSE at a 90% premium to its IPO price after its issue was oversubscribed a staggering 881 times between November 28 and December 3.
What else are we snackin’ 🍿
⚡️ EV boost: India will start producing permanent magnets domestically this year, reducing its 95% reliance on imports for EVs, renewables, electronics and defence.
🌍 Global coalition: India joined the US led Pax Silica alliance, strengthening semiconductor and critical mineral cooperation shaping future technology leadership.
🚀 Defence pact: Ahead of PM Modi’s Israel visit, India and Israel signed an MoU to deepen defence cooperation and expand joint initiatives.
💪🏻 D-street ready: Edtech startup Klassroom has filed its DRHP with SEBI to launch an SME IPO on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
🔻 Growth dips: India’s core infrastructure output slowed to 4% in January, with crude oil and natural gas recording negative growth.
That’s a wrap! Don’t let the Monday blues get to you.
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