WASHINGTON, Mar 17: Tesla, the US-based electric vehicle manufacturer, has initiated the homologation process for two of its electric cars in India. This is an imperative development as it is an essential requirement for any vehicle before being sold in the country.

It comes at a time when the first showroom of the automaker has been finalised in the initial phase of the establishment of the brand in the world's third largest car market.

Additionally, the brand has already started hiring for various roles in the country, making homologation the final step before the launch of a new model.

Registered in India as Tesla India Motor & Energy Pvt. Ltd., the brand has submitted two applications for the homologation of Model Y and the Model 3 cars in India.

It is to be noted that Homologation is the process of certifying the roadworthiness of a vehicle and ensuring that it meets all the norms necessary for all the vehicles manufactured or imported in the country. Specifically, it ensures that the vehicle meets the requirements of safety and emission and is fit to be operated on the road in accordance with the Central Motor Vehicle Rules.

The timing of the application is also important because it comes amid the talks on a free trade agreement between India and the US. Under this agreement, tariffs might be lowered by both nations to increase bilateral trade.

Tesla's entry in India has been in the works for over three years now. However, it has been continually delayed because of disagreements of the manufacturer on the terms of trade.

While the brand had plans of manufacturing in India earlier, both the Model 3 and Model Y will likely be brought via the CBU route. This will give the EV manufacturer time to analyze the market and its response to the new vehicles.
Taking into account the development, the brand might consider manufacturing in India. The brand currently manufactures vehicles in the United States, Germany, and China. While a manufacturing facility in Mexico is under development.

Massive Sell-Off In US Markets, $4 Trillion Wiped Out Since Last Month Peak

NEW YORK, Mar 11: Share markets across the globe witnessed sharp losses after a selloff in America, triggered by US President Donald Trump on Monday refusing to rule out the suggestion that his tariffs could trigger a recession in the world's biggest economy.

US bond yields also dropped as investor worries about the potential economic slowdown were exacerbated by Trump's remarks saying the US economy was in a "period of transition", amid his fluctuating trade policies on Mexico, Canada, and China, which could dampen consumer demand and corporate investment.

In New York, tech-heavy Nasdaq saw the worst day since 2022. The benchmark S&P 500, which tracks the biggest American companies, has also fallen over 8 per cent from its February high. The sell-off has wiped out $4 trillion from the S&P 500's peak last month, when Wall Street was cheering much of Trump's agenda.

The US President has not commented directly on the economy since the troubling remarks, but his top officials and advisers have sought to calm investor fears.

On Monday, the S&P 500 ended the trading day 2.7 per cent lower--its lowest closing level since September and its biggest daily percentage decline since December. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, dropped 2 per cent, for its lowest close since November 4, the day before Trump's election as President. The Nasdaq Composite plunged 4 per cent to a near six-month low.

The Nasdaq confirmed a correction last week, having tumbled more than 10 per cent from its December all-time high. MSCI's global stock index also fell more than 2 per cent for its biggest one-day drop, touching its lowest level since January 13.

Shares of Trump's aid Elon Musk's Tesla saw a decline of about 15.4 per cent, while artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant Nvidia was down more than 5 per cent. Other major tech stocks including Meta, Amazon and Alphabet also saw a steep plunge.

In early trade on Tuesday, Japan's Nikkei 225 was down 2.5 per cent, South Korea's Kospi was 2.3 per cent lower and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was off by 1.8 per cent. Indian equities opened lower on Tuesday, tracking a broad sell-off across Asian markets after Wall Street tumbled overnight.

The Nifty 50 fell 0.51 per cent to 22,345.95 as of 9:15 a.m. IST while the Sensex lost 0.5 per cent to 73,743.88. Nifty 50 is trading about 14.5% below the all-time high hit in September 2024, hurt by slowing earnings growth, US tariff uncertainty and relentless foreign selling.

Earlier, the pan-European STOXX 600 index had ended down 1.29 per cent.

In fixed income, yields fell with US government bonds in demand after the Trump interview cut into investor confidence. The 2-year note yield, which typically moves in step with interest rate expectations for the Federal Reserve, fell 10.4 basis points to 3.898 per cent, from 4.002 per cent late on Friday, on track for their largest daily drop since September.

The yield on benchmark US 10-year notes fell 9.3 basis points to 4.225 per cent while the 30-year bond yield fell 6.9 basis points to 4.548 per cent.

In currencies, investors looked for safety. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar weakened 0.5 per cent to 147.29. However, the euro was down 0.06 per cent at $1.0826 and Sterling weakened 0.45 per cent to $1.2862.

Oil prices also sank as tariff uncertainty kept investors on edge along with rising output from OPEC+ producers, although potential sanctions on Iranian oil exports limited losses. American crude settled down 1.51 per cent or $1.01 at $66.03 a barrel while Brent settled at $69.28 per barrel, down $1.08 or 1.53 per cent.

Gold prices also plunged as profit-taking countered support from safe-haven demand fueled by geopolitical uncertainty, with focus on the US inflation data later this week. Spot gold fell 0.86 per cent to $2,885.63 an ounce. US gold futures fell 0.76 per cent to $2,882.70 an ounce. Copper declined 1.25 per cent to $9,493.00 a tonne.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin fell 4.88 per cent to $79,028.58 after touching its lowest level since November.

Speaking to Fox News on Sunday, President Trump appeared to acknowledge the recession concerns. When asked about it, he said, "I hate to predict things like that."

"There is a period of transition because what we're doing is very big. We're bringing wealth back to America. That's a big thing," he added.

After trading at Wall Street closed on Monday, a White House official said, "We're seeing a strong divergence between [the] animal spirits of the stock market and what we're actually seeing unfold from businesses and business leaders."

"The latter is obviously more meaningful than the former on what's in store for the economy in the medium to long term," the official added.

But Trump did not appear on camera on Monday — a rarity for the commander in chief — as the US stock market plunged in the wake of his comments.

Investors had started seeking safety following President Trump's remarks, with market strategists pointing to the comments as a key reason for Monday's cautious mood among investors.

Elon Musk's Tesla Signs Lease Deal To Open First Showroom In Mumbai

MUMBAI, Mar 5: US electric carmaker Tesla has signed a lease deal to open its first showroom in Mumbai, as it moves towards a goal to sell imported cars in India, registration papers show, after it dropped similar plans last year.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The papers show the company has signed a five-year lease from February 16, 2025 and will pay rent of about $446,000 for the first year for a 4,003 square feet (372 square meter) space, almost the size of a basketball court.

The rent will increase by 5% every year reaching about $542,000 for the fifth year, according to the registered lease document provided to Reuters by analytics firm CRE Matrix.

The showroom will be situated in the Maker Maxity building in the business and retail hub of Bandra Kurla Complex near the city's airport, according to the papers.

It was reported last month that Tesla has selected locations for two showrooms in the Indian cities of New Delhi and Mumbai, days after the carmaker's chief Elon Musk met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the US.