According to ANAROCK, a property services consultant, over 16.6 million square feet of Grade-A mall space is expected to be added in Tier-I cities throughout this year and next. This projection arises from a notable scarcity of new shopping malls in India’s leading urban centers. Hyderabad and the Delhi-NCR region are anticipated to comprise a substantial 65% of this new supply, driven by a rising trend in consumer spending.

As the demand-supply imbalance from previous years begins to stabilize, mall vacancy rates in the top seven cities are projected to hold steady at the current level of 8.2% over the next two years. These cities include Delhi-NCR, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, and Pune. It is noteworthy that in 2021, the vacancy rate in these areas reached as high as 15.5%.

Anuj Kejriwal, CEO and MD of ANAROCK Retail, highlighted that data over the last three years shows that new mall supply in the top seven cities has not kept pace with overall leasing. In 2022, around 2.6 million square feet of new Grade-A retail space came to market, while leasing reached approximately 3.2 million square feet. Similarly, in 2023, 5.3 million square feet of new Grade-A mall space was introduced, with 6.5 million square feet leased. In 2024, new Grade-A mall supply dropped to just 1.1 million square feet, yet leasing remained strong at 6.5 million square feet.

The report indicates that both mall developers and retailers are exhibiting strong confidence, driven by robust leasing activity and positive consumer sentiment.

The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation for April 2025 is provisionally estimated at 0.85 percent, reflecting a decrease largely attributed to falling food prices, according to the Commerce and Industry Ministry’s announcement on Wednesday.

“The positive inflation rate in April 2025 is chiefly due to rising costs in the manufacturing sectors of food products, other manufacturing, chemicals and chemical products, transport equipment, and machinery,” the ministry noted.

The month-over-month WPI change for April registered at -0.19 percent compared to March.

The Food Index, which includes ‘food articles’ from the primary articles group and ‘food products’ from the manufactured products group, rose from 188.8 in March to 189.3 in April.

Annually, the WPI Food Index inflation rate fell from 4.66 percent in March to 2.55 percent in April. Meanwhile, the index for manufactured products increased by 0.35 percent, reaching 144.9 (provisional) in April, up from 144.4 (provisional) in March.

The Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation (MoSPI) also released retail inflation figures on Tuesday, indicating that CPI-based retail inflation year-over-year for April 2025 stands at a provisional 3.16 percent, marking the lowest rate since July 2019.

The Food Price Index inflation for April was recorded at 1.78 percent (provisional), with corresponding inflation rates of 1.85 percent in rural areas and 1.64 percent in urban areas. Food inflation in April 2025 is the lowest observed since October 2021.

India’s coal imports from April 2024 to February 2025 saw a significant decrease of 9.2%, totaling 220.3 million tonnes (MT), down from 242.6 MT in the same period last year, according to data released by the Ministry of Coal on Tuesday. This decline translates to foreign exchange savings of around $6.93 billion (₹53,137.82 crore), reflecting a major step towards reducing reliance on imported coal.

Notably, coal imports from the non-regulated sector, which excludes power generation, dropped sharply by 15.3%, highlighting a trend towards increased self-sufficiency. Despite a 2.87% rise in overall coal-based power generation during this timeframe, imports for blending in thermal power plants plummeted by 38.8%, indicating the effectiveness of India’s initiatives to rely more on domestic coal sources.

The Coal Ministry reported that the government has implemented various measures to enhance domestic coal production, including the introduction of Commercial Coal Mining and the Mission Coking Coal initiative. These initiatives have led to a 5.45% increase in coal output from April 2024 to February 2025 compared to the same period in the previous fiscal year.

Despite these advancements, India still encounters challenges in fulfilling the demand for certain coal types, particularly coking coal and high-grade thermal coal, which are limited in domestic supplies. Consequently, coal imports remain vital for supporting key sectors such as steel, cement, and power generation.

The Ministry of Coal emphasized its commitment to bolstering domestic production and ensuring a stable coal supply to enhance energy security and foster long-term economic growth. As India’s coal sector undergoes transformation, the focus remains on reducing dependence on imports while ramping up domestic production capabilities.