Bloomberg India’s annual oil imports from Iran surged to a record high in 2016 as some refiners resumed purchases after the lifting of sanctions against Tehran, according to ship tracking data and a report compiled by Thomson Reuters Oil Research and Forecasts. The sharp increase propelled Iran into fourth place among India’s suppliers in 2016, up from seventh position …

  Bloomberg Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered tax cuts and boosted spending on some of India’s poorest citizens hurt by his cash ban as he seeks to shore up support before pivotal state elections. The budget shortfall is forecast to be 3.2 percent of gross domestic product in the year starting April 1, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley told lawmakers in …

  Bloomberg Japan’s biggest electricity wholesaler knows it’ll take more than cutting-edge coal technology to save the environment. Electric Power Development Co., known as J-Power, is looking to build its first major power plant that burns natural gas near cities such as Tokyo as well as use more woody biomass instead of fossil fuels, Executive Officer Hitoshi Kanno said. That’s …