Latest Indian Economy General Knowledge(GK) Questions and answers

1 .

India's forex reserves hit a new low, RBI forced to spend________billion to defend INR.

A)

$76 Billion

B)

$95 Billion

C)

$102 Billion

D)

$118 Billion

Correct Answer : $118 Billion

India's foreign exchange reserves further fell to an over two-year low for the week ended October 14, 2022, as the central bank continued to defend the rupee’s downslide while ignoring depleting forex reserves to be a major concern.

The foreign exchange reserves of Asia's third largest economy fell by $3.85 billion to $524.52 billion for the week ending Oct 21, 2022, according to data released today by the Reserve Bank of India.

The spot forex reserves have fallen from $607 billion in end-March and depleted by $117.93 billion from the record high of $642.45 billion seen on September 3 last year(2021).

The forex reserves have now depleted for 11 weeks out of 12. The one time it got lucky was for the week ended Oct 7, when gains in gold reserves had lifted the forex reserves by just $204 million.

The foreign exchange reserves had fallen to their lowest level since July 2020 to $528.37 billion for the week ending Oct 14.

The fall in the foreign exchange reserves can be attributed to a fall in the Foreign Currency Assets (FCA), which is a major component of the overall reserves..

Source : Economic Times

2 .

India has promising growth prospects for foreign direct investment (FDI) and how many billions of FDI inflows it has the potential to receive in the next five years?

A)

$400 billion

B)

$450 billion

C)

$475 billion

D)

$500 billion

Correct Answer : $475 billion

India may draw $475 billion in FDI : India has promising growth prospects for foreign direct investment (FDI) and has the potential to draw $475 billion in FDI flows over the next five years, according to a CII-EY report.

Despite the effects of the pandemic and geopolitical developments, foreign direct investment (FDI) in India has steadily increased over the past ten years, reaching $84.8 billion in FY 2021–22.

* 71% of multinational corporations (MNCs) with operations in India view it as a key market for their international expansion. Prospects for the long run and the short term are what are fueling the optimism.

* According to the report titled “Vision – Developed India : Opportunities and Expectations of MNCs,” the majority of MNCs believe that the Indian economy will perform significantly better in the next three to five years.

* With 96% of respondents being optimistic about the overall potential of the country.

* The robust momentum in India’s domestic consumption, services, digital economy, and infrastructure is dictating the country’s growth trajectory.

* Behind only the US and China, the forecasted actual growth in consumption is the third greatest, and by 2025, the rapidly growing digital economy is predicted to reach $1 trillion.

India’s Economic Growth: Important Factors

* India’s potential is fueled by a number of factors, including the country’s ranking as one of the largest and fastest-growing economies in the world, strong consumer patterns, digitization, and an expanding services industry.

* India is one of the world’s largest economies with one of the fastest rates of growth.

* The government’s strong emphasis on infrastructure and manufacturing, along with strong consumption trends, digitisation, and a growing services sector, have all contributed to the confidence in India’s potential.

* Significantly, more than 60% of MNCs reported that the business environment has improved during the previous three years.

* MNCs value the effects of the GST, the government’s push toward digitalization in many areas, and tax transparency, among other reforms.

* India is a big and stable democracy which is another factor that makes India a desirable investment destination for MNCs.

* India is likewise viewed as an option by the majority of respondents to their China+1 approach..

Source : The Hindu

3 .

RBI reported that India's foreign exchange reserves rose by how many million dollars to 532.868 billion dollars due to rise in gold assets?

A)

USD 204 million

B)

USD 218 million

C)

USD 236 million

D)

USD 264 million

Correct Answer : USD 204 million

India's forex reserves rose by 204 million to 532.868 billion US dollar for the week ended October 7, 2022 on an increase in the value of gold holdings.

Reserve Bank said that in the previous reporting week, the overall reserves had dropped by 4.854 billion to 532.664 billion US dollars.

The reserves had been falling for many weeks now as the central bank deploys the kitty to defend the rupee amid pressures caused majorly by global developments.

In October 2021, country's forex kitty had reached an all-time high of 645 billion US dollars..

Source : AIR

4 .

India's WPI inflation fell to what percentage in September 2022 from 12.41% in August 2022?

A)

10.7%

B)

10.9%

C)

11.3%

D)

11.6%

Correct Answer : 10.7%

India’s WPI inflation falls to 10.7% in September 2022 : Inflation based on the Wholesale Price Index(WPI) decreased to 10.70% in September 2022. According to official figures, the WPI-based inflation rate was 12.41% in August 2022.

High-speed diesel (HSD) saw the highest inflation rate at 65.96%. (YoY). It was followed by price increases of 44.72 percent for crude oil and natural gas and 49.79 percent for potatoes.

Key Points India’s WPI inflation falls to 10.7% in September :

* Only the category of fuel and power experienced an increase in inflation month over month (MoM). The prices fell in all the others.

* Inflation was also down in the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) Food Index.

* The index for this important group dropped from 178.6 (provisional) for the month of August 2022 to 176.2 (provisional) in September 2022, a (-1.34%) decrease.

* When compared to August 2022, food item prices rose by 0.28 percent in September 2022.

* In September 2022 compared to August 2022, prices for non-food items dropped by 3.60 percent, crude oil and natural gas prices dropped by 6.38 percent, and the price of minerals dropped by 6.45 percent.

India’s WPI inflation decreases Inflation Analysis : Food articles from the primary articles group and food products from the manufactured goods group together make up the food index, which fell from 176.0 in August 2022 to 175.2 in September 2022. Based on the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) food index, the inflation rate dropped from 9.93% in August 2022 to 8.08% in September 2022..

Source : Indian Express

5 .

Piyush Goyal expressed confidence that the country will reach the target of how many trillion dollars by 2030 on the growth of the economy and exports?

A)

$1 trillion

B)

$2 trillion

C)

$5 trillion

D)

$8 trillion

Correct Answer : $2 trillion

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Sunday(16th Oct 2022) expressed confidence that the country will achieve the export target for goods and services to $2 trillion by 2030. The minister was speaking at the Exporters Conclave held at Chennai.

* Goyal emphasised on sustaining the export momentum and said that he is confident that Indian exports will be able to wither the global headwinds and will surpass growth in exports by a big margin. H

* He also said that by 2047, the country will become a $30-trillion economy with 25 per cent share in exports.

* From India will be $2 trillion, he said. The industry participants were assured that the government is committed to addressing the issues raised by them.

* Speaking at the event, A Sakthivel, President, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said that Indian exporters have good opportunities for exports to Russia and the EU despite recessionary trends visible there.

* He said that there would be about $8-10 billion additional exports to Russia in the next 12 months and $15-20 billion to the EU..

Source : News18

6 .

India's forex reserves increased from 204 million to how many billion for the week ended 7 October 2022?

A)

USD 502.868

B)

USD 512.868

C)

USD 522.868

D)

USD 532.868

Correct Answer : USD 532.868

India's forex reserves rose by 204 million to 532.868 billion US dollar for the week ended 7th October 2022 on an increase in the value of gold holdings.

Reserve Bank said that in the previous reporting week, the overall reserves had dropped by 4.854 billion to 532.664 billion US dollars.

The reserves had been falling for many weeks now as the central bank deploys the kitty to defend the rupee amid pressures caused majorly by global developments.

In October 2021, country's forex kitty had reached an all-time high of 645 billion US dollars..

Source : AIR

7 .

According to data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), India's retail inflation increased to what percentage in September 2022?

A)

6.52%

B)

6.96%

C)

7.41%

D)

7.83%

Correct Answer : 7.41%

As per the data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the retail inflation of India has been increased to 7.41% in September 2022.

The number retains above the RBI upper tolerance band (2-6 per cent) for the ninth straight month.

The food inflation has been surged to a 22-month high of 8.6% while core inflation rose to a 4-month high of 6.3%.

Meanwhile, industrial growth has been contracted 0.8% in August as compared to 2.4% in July 2022.

Source : Business Standard

8 .

International Monetary Fund (IMF) has cut down India's GDP growth forecast to what percent in FY2022-2023?

A)

5.4%

B)

6.1%

C)

6.8%

D)

7.2%

Correct Answer : 6.8%

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Tuesday(11th Oct 2022) trimmed its FY23 growth forecast for India by 60 basis points from its July projection of "7.4 per cent" to "6.8 per cent", its steepest cut for any major economy barring the US.

IMF’s move follows the World Bank slashing its FY23 growth projection for India to 6.5 per cent last week, from 7.5 per cent predicted earlier.

Most other agencies, too, have been lowering their India forecast in recent weeks. The Reserve Bank of India also recently cut its projection modestly from 7.2 per cent to 7 per cent.

The IMF stated that the move reflects “a weaker-than-expected outturn” in the June quarter and “more subdued external demand”, indicating that exports will be hit. However, it retained its FY24 growth forecast at 6.1 per cent.

The IMF has kept unchanged its 2022 growth projection for the global economy at 3.2 per cent but scaled down the 2023 projection by 20 basis points from the July forecast to 2.7 per cent..

Source : Indian Express

9 .

What is the percentage increase in gross direct tax collection in the current financial year(2022-23) from Rs. 8,98,000 crores?

A)

23%

B)

25%

C)

27%

D)

31%

Correct Answer : 23%

The gross direct tax collections has increased by over 23 per cent to eight lakh ninety eight thousand crore rupees(Rs. 8,98,000) in the current financial year(2022-23) as compared to last year(2021).

Finance Ministry said, the provisional figures of direct tax collections till yesterday continue to register steady growth. Direct Tax collection, net of refunds, stands at seven lakh forty five thousand crore rupees(Rs. 7,45,000) which is 16.3 per cent higher than the net collections for the corresponding period of last year.

The Ministry said, this collection is over 52 per cent of the total budget estimates of direct taxes for the current fiscal.

The refunds amounting to one lakh 53 thousand crore rupees have been issued during 1st April to 8th October this year(2022), which are 81 per cent higher than refunds issued during the same period in the preceding year..

Source : AIR

10 .

By what percentage has the World Bank cut India's economic growth forecast for the financial year 2022-23?

A)

6.1%

B)

6.5%

C)

6.9%

D)

7.4%

Correct Answer : 6.5%

The World Bank on Thursday(6th Oct 2022) slashed its growth forecast for India to 6.5 per cent year-on-year for 2022-23, from an earlier estimate of 7.5 per cent, while warning that spillovers from the Russia-Ukraine war and global monetary tightening will weigh on the economic outlook.

"Private investment growth is likely to be dampened by heightened uncertainty and higher financing costs," the World Bank said in its twice-a-year report on South Asia, noting that slowing global demand will impact the country's exports..

Source : The Hindu Businessline