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Global economic growth is set for a transformative shift, driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and technological advancements, American economist Lawrence H Summers said while cautioning against leaving technology unchecked.Speaking at the diamond jubilee event of the Delhi School of Economics, Summers highlighted how technological changes are poised to dominate economic history in the coming decades."There's a chance we may be headed for another kind of transformative change with the spread of artificial general intelligence," Summers said, describing AI as "the first technology that is, in a profound sense, self-improving". Unlike previous innovations like electricity or fire, which required human input for improvements, AI has potential to enhance itself and lead to exponential advancements, he observed.Summers also praised India's economic evolution, highlighting its growing influence on the global stage. "The fact that instead of the World Bank working to reform India, India is working to reform the World Bank marks the kind of spectacular change that has taken place in India," he said.He pointed to India's success in energising its economy by allowing private sector initiatives to flourish. "The removal of excessive regulation, excessive need for permits of various kinds, can contribute to the more rapid diffusion of technology," he said.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has approached the government to allow tax breaks for subscribers of municipal bonds that are crucial for funding infrastructure development at the grass-root levels, a senior official said on Tuesday.The capital markets watchdog will also root for a tax break for municipal bonds during its meeting with the Finance Commission, Sebi whole-time member Ashwani Bhatia said.The regulator could soon take more steps to further bolster investor protection in the futures and options (F&O) segment, he added.Bhatia was speaking at an event organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) in the national capital.Municipalities in India have raised only Rs 2,700 crore through bonds for infrastructure projects, which represents just 0.6% of the country’s overall bond market, Bhatia said.This pales in comparison with the US municipal bond market of $4 trillion, representing 7% of the American bond market. Also, incomes from most municipal bonds in the US are exempt from tax.As for F&O, Bhatia said, "Sebi is very soon going to do something about F&O. Study has come (recently)."In a recent consultation paper, Sebi has proposed seven measures to tighten the rules for index derivatives. These include revision of the minimum contract size and requirement of upfront collection of option premiums.These steps, experts have said, would improve risk management in the derivatives market.

A strong net inflow by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) in September has turned their total secondary market investment in Indian equities positive for the calendar year so far to $4,140.3 million (Rs 34,554 crore) compared with a net outflow of $1,417 million (negative Rs 11,998 crore) at the end of August. According to the data from NSDL, FPIs net equity investment in September was $6,890.5 million including primary and secondary market transactions, their highest monthly investment since December 2023 when they had pumped $7,939 million in Indian equities. FPIs continued to invest even on the last day of September, fetching $43 million on a net basis despite selling pressure in the broader market which pulled down the benchmark indices by nearly 1.5% on Monday.113855367In addition, net inflow of FPIs in the secondary market at $5,557.3 million in September outpaced their primary market investment of $1,322.2 million unlike in the five out of the first nine months of 2024 when they had shown more interest in investing through IPO and QIB routes. In the first nine months of 2024, FPIs invested net $12,054 million in equities. Of this, $7,914 million was through the primary route. Unlike FPIs, domestic mutual funds showed moderation in equity investments in September with a net investment of Rs 26,072 crore compared with Rs 31,685 crore in the previous month. On September 27, local funds reported the second highest single day net equity investment of Rs 7,786.1 crore in the current calendar year, following Rs 8,547.6 crore of investment on June 28. Their net equity investment in the first nine months of the year reached Rs 2,73,535 crore compared with Rs 1,12571 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. 113855405In the remaining three months of 2024, the secondary market flow of FPIs is likely to stay volatile given escalating geopolitical tensions and increasing interest of global investors in Chinese equities. In the primary market, their flow may remain buoyant given the expected launch of some of the big ticket IPOs including that of Hyundai Motor India, Swiggy, NTPC Green, and Afcons Infrastructure which together will raise over R 60,000 crore over the next few weeks.