Newspaper Summary 030326

 

SECURITY IN FOCUS

Physical security of data centres in the spotlight amid rising geopolitical risks

Sindhu Hariharan Chennai

The reports of an incident and the resulting downtime at Amazon’s Data Centre (DC) in the UAE due to the US-Iran war has highlighted the critical nature of DCs, and has moved security and resiliency up the agenda of the sector globally, including in India. Analysts and DC operators told businessline that India’s geopolitical stability is relatively better today but stress that preparedness is critical and the sector should build its physical and cyber resiliency.

Consulting firms that help operators set up DCs note that in addition to hard and physically resilient exteriors, one should also consider measures to combat electronic warfare.

“Most big DCs have hardened shells, blast-resistant or windowless facades, perimeter stand-offs, access controls, fire suppression, and multiple power and fibre paths. Operators are now going to seriously consider radar and radio frequency jammers and hardening the centres’ roofs to be able to withstand aerial attacks,” said Prashant Thakur, Executive Director & Head — Research & Advisory, ANAROCK Group.

As for post-incident protection, Thakur notes there is now a specialised war-risk coverage insurance product for companies, and recent events may lead large enterprise tenants to urge DC players to look at dedicated war-risk and related coverage. “Most standard property and business-interruption policies for data centres don’t cover war, and they often limit coverage for political violence unless specific riders have been added,” he said.

Sunil Gupta, Founder, Yotta, stresses that while the Indian DC industry is safe, it is important to ensure redundancies are in place and tested continuously. Redundancies should include diversifying network capacity across different directions, such as westward sub-sea fibres (towards West Asia and Europe) and eastward fibres (towards Singapore/Malaysia).

Roopesh Kumar, Head of Data Centre Projects at Sify Technologies, notes that "acts of god and acts of war are both substantially covered" by the company. All their locations are complemented with live 24x7 disaster recovery (DR) locations in different geographies and multi-mode redundant networks to ensure uptime regardless of the threat.

Rachit Mohan of JLL adds that most players practice a three-site architecture for network redundancies, and Indian regulators like the RBI place a strong emphasis on high-resilient DCs, often requiring Tier 4 ratings.

Analysts estimate that West Asia has around 170-270 third-party data centres, primarily in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, with another 100 under development. Equinix, a major regional player, stated that its UAE data centres remain fully operational and all employees are safe.

ORDERS BOOST

Manufacturing PMI rose to 4-month high in Feb

Our Bureau New Delhi

With strong domestic demand, the manufacturing sector in India recorded its highest upturn in production volumes for four months in February, S&P Global reported on Monday. The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to a four-month high of 56.9 in the said month.

While manufacturing is considered an important source of job multiplier, job creation in the month was at a slower pace. “India’s final manufacturing PMI reflected an acceleration in manufacturing activity in February. Output expanded at a faster rate for a second month, supported by stronger domestic orders,” said Pranjul Bhandari, Chief India Economist at HSBC. However, new export orders continued the slowing trend that began in mid-2025, somewhat restricting employment creation in the manufacturing sector.

PMI Manufacturing is derived based on responses from purchasing managers of 400 companies. An index above 50 represents expansion, while below 50 means contraction. According to the survey report, goods producers indicated that demand buoyancy, marketing initiatives, and rising client requirements underpinned another expansion in new business intakes. Moreover, the pace of growth was historically elevated and the strongest since last October. Output also rose at the fastest pace in four months, one that was above its long-run average.

According to panel members, efficiency improvements, healthy underlying demand, rising intake of new work, and tech investment collectively boosted production volumes. “One area where growth took a step back was new export orders. February’s increase was the slowest in 17 months, with the rate of expansion broadly converging towards its long-run average. Where external sales rose, monitored companies cited gains from Asia, Europe, West Asia and the US,” the report said.

On job creation, the report said that factory employment expanded only slightly, nevertheless at the quickest pace in four months. “One factor that supported additional hiring was a further increase in outstanding business volumes at manufacturers in India. Although marginal, the rate of backlog accumulation strengthened to a seven-month high,” it said.

Looking ahead, the report highlighted that year-ahead assessments of output volumes remained positive as 16 per cent of companies forecast growth and fewer than 1 per cent anticipate a reduction. “Boding well for the outlook were marketing efforts and favourable demand conditions, qualitative survey data showed,” it added.

Amaravati gearing to receive its elite residents

From a ghost town to a power centre, the new AP capital is readying to fulfil its dream

G Naga Sridhar Vijayawada

Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh, is all set to welcome a set of influential residents. MLAs, senior bureaucrats, and judges, who are currently living in rented premises in Vijayawada, will soon move into their official homes in the new capital. From a near-deserted stretch of scrubland just two years ago, Amaravati has transformed into a bustling hive of activity as it races towards its dream of becoming a power centre.

The tree-lined avenues look welcoming. There are smart signs indicating new buildings coming up and connecting roads to the highways. Thirty-six villas, two residential apartment towers, and individual bungalows for senior bureaucrats and ministers are nearing completion. The units are expected to be handed over to the government officials in a phased manner in the coming months. At present, many officials commute weekly between Hyderabad and Vijayawada, returning to work on Monday mornings.

Relaunch of Works

Amaravati already houses a functional Secretariat, Assembly, and the Andhra Pradesh High Court, built during the 2014-19 tenure of the Telugu Desam Party government led by N. Chandrababu Naidu. Construction of other works had stalled when the previous government under Mohan Reddy proposed shifting the executive capital away from Amaravati.

Following its return to power, the NDA government resumed the stalled works. Coming up rapidly is the General Administration Department Tower, a 49-storey structure (excluding the basement and ground floor), while the Heads of Departments Tower will rise 39 storeys high.

According to a senior official of the Amaravati Growth and Infrastructure Corporation, work is advancing on schedule to meet the Chief Minister’s deadline of finishing the infrastructure of the new capital by 2029. The State government has awarded contracts worth ₹50,000 crore to various companies for projects.

China denies supersonic missiles deal with Iran

Beijing

China on Monday denied reports of finalising a deal with Iran to sell CM-302 supersonic anti-ship missiles before the joint US-Israeli airstrikes on the country. If delivered, the missiles would be among the most advanced military hardware to be transferred to Iran by China in recent years, according to media reports.

Oil stocks shield China’s refiners from Iran war

A hoard of Iranian oil on tankers at sea, and swelling onshore inventories in China, will provide an initial cushion for the world’s biggest importer from the fallout of the conflict in West Asia. There’s over 46 million barrels of Iranian crude in Asia, with close to 80 per cent of the ships anchored in the Singapore Strait and off the Chinese coast, per Kpler Ltd. China also stockpiled crude at onshore sites over the past year. — BLOOMBERG

QatarEnergy halting LNG production may impact India’s gas consumption

Rishi Ranjan Kala New Delhi

The decision to stop liquefied natural gas (LNG) production by QatarEnergy — which accounts for roughly one-fifth of global trade — could lead to a decline in demand for the commodity by price-sensitive Indian buyers. The world’s fourth-largest LNG importer bought 35.72 billion standard cubic meters (BSCM) of the super chilled commodity in FY25 for $14.9 billion, of which 40-42 per cent was from Qatar.

On Monday, QatarEnergy stated that due to military attacks on its operating facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City and Mesaieed Industrial City, it has ceased production of LNG and associated products. QatarEnergy’s 77 million tonne per annum (mtpa) export facility at Ras Laffan is among the world’s largest, and the news has already rattled markets, with European benchmark gas futures surging to multi-year highs.

ASIA HEAVY

This development is significant because the majority of QatarEnergy’s clients are Asian economies, including India. Global LNG supplies are already under pressure due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and expected retaliation by Iran following the killing of its supreme leader in a joint US-Israel offensive.

Sehul Bhatt, Director at Crisil Intelligence, noted that developments in West Asia could increase pricing and procurement risks for crude oil and LNG, posing substantial challenges for India, which has import dependencies of more than 85 per cent and 50 per cent for those items, respectively. He added that sustained disruptions would keep prices elevated and tighten availability, necessitating strategic planning for energy security.

TRADE-OFF

India typically reduces its consumption of LNG if prices rise. A price range of $6-8 per million British thermal units (mBtu) is generally considered a safe bet for domestic buyers. As global supply expands, India has been positioning itself as a benchmark-driven swing buyer, selectively accessing spot and short-term cargoes when international prices align with domestic alternatives.

Kenneth Foo of S&P Global Energy noted in January 2026 that India is increasingly stepping into spot markets during price dislocations between markers like the West India Marker (WIM), Henry Hub, and Brent-linked pricing. While India imported just under 26 mtpa of LNG in 2025, an additional 3.5–4 mtpa of long-term contracted volumes is set for delivery starting in 2026. This higher term supply may leave limited scope for spot LNG in 2026, particularly if prices become uncompetitive compared to alternatives like propane, naphtha, and fuel oil.

It is déjà vu for the cashew industry

V Sajeev Kumar Kochi

Escalating tensions in West Asia have pushed India’s cashew industry into a state of déjà vu, causing significant disruptions to logistics, payments, and key export markets. J Rajmohan Pillai, Chairman and Managing Director of Beta Group (owner of the NutKing brand), noted that Iran had become a vital growth market for Indian cashews, with trade frequently routed through Dubai.

However, as hostilities intensified in early 2026, shipments worth hundreds of crores of rupees were left stranded. Iranian buyers have largely halted fresh orders following the closure of major ports like Bandar Abbas and the freezing of critical banking channels.

Market Impact and Competition

Iran was a major purchaser of premium grades such as W180 and W210, and its sudden withdrawal from the market has created a temporary glut of high-quality kernels within India. This has led to sharp wholesale price volatility, with domestic prices softening as exporters attempt to liquidate stocks originally destined for Tehran. The industry's heavy reliance on UAE-based payment routes has now become a significant liability.

With military strikes occurring near regional hubs, the financial bridge for these transactions has effectively collapsed. Meanwhile, competitors in Vietnam are aggressively targeting the US and Chinese markets, putting further pressure on India’s market share during this period of uncertainty.

Logistics and Quality Risks

The crisis is expected to drive up war-risk insurance premiums, making shipments to Gulf destinations more expensive. Furthermore, the diversion of vessels via the Cape of Good Hope to avoid Red Sea risks for US and European routes could add 15-20 days to transit times and increase freight costs by $200-400 per container.

Pillai warned that for a seasonal product like cashews, such delays can lead to quality deterioration and result in missing critical holiday demand windows. On the raw material side, imports from West Africa are likely to become more expensive, raising landed prices in Kollam due to surging global crude oil prices. Additionally, a weaker rupee against the US dollar has squeezed margins for Indian processors who are already struggling against intense Vietnamese competition.

‘98.44% of withdrawn ₹2,000 banknotes returned’

Mumbai

The Reserve Bank of India on Monday said 98.44 per cent of the ₹2,000 banknotes previously in circulation have been returned. It announced the withdrawal of ₹2,000 banknotes from circulation on May 19, 2023. The total value of ₹2,000 banknotes in circulation has declined to ₹5,551 crore on February 28, 2026, from ₹3.56 lakh crore on May 19, 2023, the release said. — PTI

What the smoke signals from Dubai portend

By Chocko Valliappa

For the past 24 hours, the author has been confined indoors in Dubai, watching smoke hang near the horizon from a 63rd-floor apartment overlooking the Burj Khalifa. The distant sounds are described as unsettling, marking a point where geopolitics moves from headlines to the skyline and theory becomes personal. Drawing on four decades of experience working with global CEOs and building businesses across seven countries, the author observes that wars rarely begin because of a single event; instead, they start when multiple strategic clocks strike at once.

The Four Strategic Clocks

1. The Political Clock: In the US, election cycles shape foreign policy narratives, and projecting strength toward Iran—an unresolved strategic chapter since 1979—gains domestic credibility. In Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced sustained political pressure, and the October 7 attacks shifted national security from a policy debate to existential urgency. Leaders under such strain rarely choose passivity.
2. The Nuclear Clock: Israel’s doctrine focuses on preventing adversaries from crossing irreversible nuclear thresholds. If decision-makers believe the window toward weaponization is closing, pre-emption begins to look more decisive than slow, uncertain diplomacy. Military action during negotiations is often utilized for leverage rather than as an abandonment of talks.
3. The Clock of Regional Instability: Iran sits within a volatile arc involving Pakistan-Afghanistan tensions, unrest in Balochistan, and various proxy alignments. The author notes that risk is rarely linear; instability in one node amplifies vulnerability in others, especially as Chinese and Russian strategic presence increases.
4. The Energy and Currency Clock: Since the mid-1970s, the global oil trade has been largely denominated in US dollars, creating the petrodollar system that underpins American monetary primacy. Recently, this architecture has shown stress as India and China expand purchases of Russian oil through alternative arrangements and Iran trades outside traditional dollar channels. If oil flows migrate away from dollar settlement, it impacts foreign exchange reserves and long-term monetary influence.

Conclusion: The Cost of Miscalculation

The current conflict is not about a single provocation but the convergence of these layered power structures. Watching the Dubai skyline serves as a reminder of the fragility of global integration, particularly for the nine million Indians affected in the region.

A recurring lesson from global business leadership is that predictability is stability; markets function when red lines and hierarchies are clear. Uncertainty is ultimately more dangerous than hostility. History suggests wars begin when leaders conclude that time itself is working against them. Geopolitics, like business, is about timing, but the cost of miscalculation is measured in stability itself rather than just capital.

The writer is Founder and MD, Vee Technologies, and Vice-Chairman, The Sona Group.

QUICK EDIT: India’s manufacturing sector is doing better than we thought

India’s manufacturing sector is doing better than we thought, as the Union statistics ministry’s revised GDP estimates showed last week. The purchasing managers index (PMI) could have a told-you-so moment, given how it has been showing robust readings now for an extended period. The HSBC India Manufacturing PMI, compiled by S&P Global, rose to a four-month high of 56.9 in February. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in activity while one below points to contraction.

While China’s index has been in a long slump, India’s has been in expansion zone by several points for a comfortable stretch. Our rejig of GDP estimation now takes the informal sector into account better and has also sorted out potential price-linked distortions. The sector seems well-placed to expand its share of the economy, as we have long aimed for.

To be sure, our exports have been flagging and the war in West Asia has upped uncertainty over world trade and currency movements. Input costs could also escalate if energy gets costlier as a result of an oil choke. Domestic impulses of growth are crucial. In this context, a factory sector boom is reassuring. This momentum must see no let-up.

Manufacturing activity surges at fastest pace in four months

Manufacturing activity in India surged at its fastest pace in four months in February, driven by domestic demand for goods amid a mild uptick in international orders, according to the seasonally adjusted manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) released by S&P Global.

The seasonally adjusted HSBC India PMI—a gauge derived from measures of new orders, output, jobs, supplier delivery times, and stocks of purchases—rose from 55.4 in January to a four-month high of 56.9 in February. A reading above 50 indicates an overall increase in activity, while a reading below 50 shows contraction.

According to S&P Global, a major improvement in domestic demand for goods fuelled new order intakes and spurred the greatest upturn in production volumes in four months. Efficiency improvements, healthy underlying demand, and tech investment collectively boosted production volume.

While domestic demand was buoyant, international sales expanded at a comparatively mild pace. Growth in new export orders was the slowest in 17 months, with the rate of expansion broadly converging toward its long-run average.

“India’s final manufacturing PMI reflected an acceleration in manufacturing activity in February. Output expanded at a faster rate for a second month, supported by stronger domestic orders. However, growth in new export orders continued its slowing trend that began in mid-2025, somewhat restricting employment creation in the manufacturing sector,” said Pranjul Bhandari, chief India economist at HSBC.

Despite the slowing export trend, goods producers indicated that demand buoyancy and marketing initiatives underpinned another expansion in new business intakes, the strongest pace since last October. Manufacturing output also rose at a rate above its long-run average.

Donald Trump spent years denouncing U.S. intervention. Now he’s toppling foreign leaders.

In May of last year, while addressing a chamber of Arab leaders in Riyadh, President Trump declared that the era of American-led regime change had come to an end. He criticized "Western interventionalists" for lecturing others on governance and stated that "nation builders wrecked far more nations than they built". However, just nine months later, he reversed this position by launching Operation Epic Fury, the largest U.S. military operation in the region in twenty years, aimed at urging Iranians to "take over" their government with the support of U.S. force.

This jarring shift contrasts with the "America First" movement that fueled his political rise, which was built on denouncing "forever wars" and opposing the toppling of foreign regimes by force. Administration officials indicate that the decision to launch the operation was driven by frustration over Iran's refusal to cut a nuclear deal, personal grievances, and a new belief following a January operation in Venezuela that regime change could be achieved without the long-term commitment seen in Iraq.

A New Playbook

Trump was emboldened by the success of the U.S. operation that deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. He believes he has found a new playbook to bring down hostile leaders and extract concessions while leaving the transition to the local population, avoiding open-ended U.S. involvement. This blueprint is also being discussed for use in Cuba, which the administration recently designated as an "unusual and extraordinary threat".

Despite the intended "one and done" approach, critics and experts warn of significant risks. In Iran, the joint military mission with Israel resulted in the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and many top officials on Saturday. This decapitation of a government for a nation of 92 million people risks triggering a wider regional conflict that could mire the U.S. in another prolonged Middle Eastern war. Furthermore, the U.S. military is reportedly burning through scarce air-defense interceptors faster than it can replace them.

Domestic and International Fallout

The operation has sparked a test of Trump’s grip on a Republican Party that remains fractured over foreign involvement. Cabinet members like JD Vance, Pete Hegseth, and Tulsi Gabbard built their political brands on skepticism of such interventions. Senator Rand Paul expressed his opposition on social media, stating, "I must oppose another Presidential war".

Public opinion also appears to be souring; a recent Wall Street Journal poll showed that 53% of voters disapprove of Trump’s priorities, believing he is engaging in unnecessary foreign affairs instead of focusing on the economy.

Personal Motivations

Trump’s more aggressive stance in his second term is also viewed as personal. His worldview has been long shaped by the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, and he has recently faced assassination plots and death threats from Tehran. He has also accused both Maduro and the Iranian government of meddling in U.S. elections.

While Trump has previously cast himself as the "president of peace," he now frames the Iran operation as the culmination of that identity, claiming it will eradicate a "murderous regime" that has threatened Americans for decades. He has indicated that "heavy and pinpoint bombing" will continue "as long as necessary" to achieve peace in the Middle East, with officials suggesting the operation could take several weeks.

The heavy cost of being comfortably numb

In the weeks after a breakup, 32-year-old Shubhika Joshi, a Mumbai-based product manager, found herself scrolling instinctively rather than sitting with her own thoughts. Clinicians identify this as a growing psychological pattern known as a "discomfort deficit"—a reduced capacity to stay with psychological, emotional, and interpersonal difficulty long enough for it to be integrated or resolved.

A Life Without Friction

Modern life has become highly efficient at eliminating friction, allowing people to "ghost" difficult conversations and return to a state of calm without letting the nervous system complete its natural cycle of activation and recovery. This is often called "experiential avoidance," where discomfort is treated as the problem itself rather than the information it carries. Behaviors like infinite scrolling, overworking, or oversleeping serve to short-circuit emotional experiences.

Relief is Not the Same as Recovery

Modern self-care culture frequently confuses immediate relief with genuine restoration. While healthy self-care expands your "window of tolerance," avoidance disguised as self-care leaves problems unresolved and can generate anxiety and stagnation. Emotional intelligence coach Taylor Elizabeth suggests evaluating choices by asking: "Does this choice help me face my life with more confidence tomorrow, or am I using it to escape what I don’t want to feel today?".

Effects of Unprocessed Distress

A significant effect of low discomfort tolerance is the inability to hold contradictory truths or ambivalence, such as "This hurts and I can survive it". When tolerance is low, the psyche seeks simplification—someone must be wrong, or the feeling must disappear immediately—which causes modern conflicts to escalate quickly. Furthermore, unprocessed distress begins to infect other areas, leading to dropped motivation and strained relationships.

The Adaptive Nature of Avoidance

Our nervous systems are neuroplastic and adapt to what we do repeatedly; if we constantly meet discomfort with distraction, the brain learns that discomfort is dangerous and must be escaped. While younger generations are often blamed for this, therapists note that instant relief is available to all age groups and that very few modern systems allow people to experience discomfort without risking stability or status.

Small Steps to Better Tolerance

Rebuilding tolerance requires intentional, small-scale exposure, much like rebuilding physical strength. Recommended steps include:

• Staying in a difficult conversation slightly longer.
• Delaying distraction by a few minutes.
• Allowing uncertainty without seeking an immediate resolution.
• Noticing the urge to escape and pausing before acting on it.

The goal is to teach the nervous system that while a situation is uncomfortable, it is survivable. In a culture designed to eliminate friction, learning to stay with oneself may be a radical psychological act.

The Iran war puts more than oil on India’s radar

A flare-up in crude prices will worsen if lose-lose dynamics set in. Yet, that may be the milder fallout of the US-Israeli war on Iran. Uncertainty hangs thicker over its hard global impact.

The American-Israeli attack on Iran raises a number of vital questions for India and the rest of the world, delving into which is necessary to make the best of a bad situation. The prices of oil and liquefied natural gas have begun to rise as Iran attempts to choke the Strait of Hormuz, through which about one in every fourth barrel of all seaborne crude oil moves. If this grip lasts, it will make energy imports dearer, weaken the rupee and give inflation a cost-push. India’s central bank would need to keep knock-on effects under watch; likewise, at another level, the volume and direction of capital flows.

For now, stockpiles of oil are in focus. If tankers that carry almost a fifth of the world’s daily usage cannot exit the Gulf, import-reliant countries could soon run acutely short. The US and China have large reserves. India’s strategic storage would easily help tide over more than a week, and oil companies have stocks as well. Still, India may need to resume shipments from Black Sea ports if US and Venezuelan supplies cannot fill the gaps. Since high fuel costs would not suit US President Donald Trump as mid-term polls approach, his political interest lies in shrugging off the use of Russian oil to plug shortfalls. But then, Iran would need to ship oil out of the Gulf too, so its retaliatory blockade may be short-lived. As with any war, however, lose-lose dynamics risk setting in.

The war has already spread around the Gulf and Levant, with Saudi oil facilities targeted too; if Iran-aligned Houthi forces in Yemen try to clamp the Suez Canal as well, already volatile freight and insurance costs could rise further. With China in the same boat as India, perhaps Asia’s big two could exercise some diplomatic clout to minimize sealane disruption. How any scenario pans out depends on how long hostilities last. Reports suggest that Iran’s battered regime is prepared to draw out the conflict and make it as costly for the US and Israel as possible.

Whether the US-Israeli attack rallies Iranians in favour of the regime or against it is a matter of conjecture for now. Internally, what began as a rebellion born of economic hardship may turn into a test of the Islamic Republic’s institutional frame and its ideological appeal. Given how Iran’s alleged push for nuclear weapons led the geopolitical narrative in the war’s run-up, it is unfortunately certain that other middle powers will take away the lesson that they are safer with an arsenal of nukes of their own than without one.

When Trump began his presidency with rhetoric of ending wars and focusing on America, the world had no inkling that the US would turn violator-in-chief of Pax Americana—the US-set world order based on a consensus of rules. Regime change in Venezuela has swiftly been followed by the same aim in Iran, with fist-waves over Greenland as an interlude. ‘Might is right’ has been spelt out as the new maxim. This makes an arms race all but inevitable, with nuclear options back on the table. If Germany cannot count on the US defence umbrella, nor can Japan or South Korea.

The world has grown fraught with geopolitical dangers we had hoped to leave behind. As the interest of countries in US power declines, so might their stake in its economic dominance. This could impact not just the US economy, which borrows heavily from abroad, but the world of capital as we know it. Uncertainty doesn’t just hover over an oil bill; it foreshadows the future, and India must prepare appropriately.

Author: OUR VIEW