Current Affairs - Economy

The Ministry of Coal has taken the lead as the top procurer on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) Portal in the current financial year. As of September 20, 2023, the Ministry of Coal has procured goods and services worth Rs. 23,798 crore through GeM, which is more than its annual target for FY 2023-24 of Rs. 21,325 crore.

According to the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) Handbook of Statistics on the Indian Economy for FY23, Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) or e-rupee worth ₹16.39 crore was in circulation as of March 2023. Of the total e-rupee circulation, ₹10.69 crore was wholesale CBDC whereas ₹5.70 crore was retail CBDC.

India's trade deficit in August 2023 narrowed to $24.16 billion. This is a 2.8% improvement from the $24.86 billion deficit in the same month last year. The narrowing of the trade deficit is attributed to a decline in imports, which fell by 5.23% to $58.64 billion in August 2023. This was offset by a decline in exports, which fell by 6.86% to $34.48 billion.

The FI Index in March 2023 was 60.1, which is a significant increase from 56.4 in March 2022. This improvement is attributed to growth across all sub-indices, including the access sub-index, the usage sub-index, and the depth sub-index.

The RBI imposed monetary penalties on four cooperative banks on September 14, 2023, for rule violations. The banks were: 1. The Maharashtra State Cooperative Bank (MSCB), 2. The Gujarat State Cooperative Bank (GSCB), 3. The Karnataka State Cooperative Apex Bank (KSCAB), 4. The Tamil Nadu State Cooperative Bank (TNSCB).