Let us dive into some news from past week 

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Cabinet gives green signal for 3 semiconductor manufacturing projects worth ₹1.3 lakh Cr  

The Union Cabinet approved the proposals for 3 semiconductor manufacturing plants in Gujarat and Assam.   

India’s first fab: Tata Electronics in partnership with world’s leading semiconductor manufacturing company Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (PSMC) will set up India’s first semiconductor fabrication plant (fab) in Dholera, Gujarat. The ₹91,000 Cr facility would produce 50,000 wafers monthly and can manufacture 3 billion chips annually for various sectors like high-performance computing, electric vehicles, and more. 

The two other projects approved were:  

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• ₹27,000 Cr project in Assam for semiconductor assembly, testing, marking and packaging unit by Tata Semiconductor Assembly and Test.  

• ₹7,600 Cr project in Sanand in Gujarat by Renesas Electronics and Thailand's Stars Microelectronics  

Additionally, the Govt will be giving approval for a Rs 90,000 crore proposal of Israel's chipmaker Tower Semiconductors.  

With the projects, India will be poised to take on the semiconductor market which is estimated to reach $1.8 trillion by 2032. At present, the major countries in the semiconductor manufacturing segment are Japan, Taiwan, US, China and Germany. 

Bitcoin hits $60,000 mark and rises 40% in 2024

Since November, 2021 bitcoin reached the coveted $60,000 mark. The cryptocurrency gained positive sentiment with the crypto ETFs which has attracted $6 billion since the launch on Jan 11, 2024. The approaching Bitcoin halving, which reduces its new coin supply, is fueling optimism and extending a recent rally. This positive sentiment has also boosted demand for smaller cryptocurrencies like Ether and Dogecoin, attracting speculative interest.  

Bitcoin is also poised for a significant shift in late April as the halving event cuts the daily supply of new coins from 900 to 450. This supply reduction coincides with Bitcoin's value exceeding $2 trillion this month for the first time in two years, according to CoinGecko.

India's GDP Surges in Q3, Defying Expectations

India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by 8.4% in the October-December period, marking a six-quarter high and boosting the overall growth rate for the 2023-24 fiscal year to 7.6%, up from the earlier estimate of 7.3%. While agricultural growth is expected to remain low at 0.7%, the GDP for the fiscal year benefits from a low base effect and strong growth in manufacturing, mining, and financial services, all surpassing 8%. Manufacturing saw the highest growth at 11.6%, followed by the construction sector at 9.5%. Consumer spending increased by 3.5% year-on-year, while government spending decreased by 3.2%. Investment, indicated by gross fixed capital formation, grew by 10.6% during the third quarter. The Q3 GDP growth of over 8% was unexpected, as many economists had predicted a slowdown to around 6.5% from previous quarters.