The Gulf Time Newspaper One of the finest business newspapers in the UAE brought to you by our professional writers and editors.
Bloomberg
India’s monsoon, which irrigates more than half of the country’s farmland and is critical for economic growth, is likely to be normal this year, according to private forecaster Skymet Weather Services Pvt.
This could mark a fourth straight year of normal monsoon, and is important because the June-September rainy season delivers as much as 90% of India’s annual rainfall and could determine yields of key crops such as wheat, rice and sugarcane.
India is already feeling the strain of higher food prices at a time when global food inflation is at a decade high. A normal monsoon would help to boost crop output in the country where about 60% of the population is dependent on agriculture.