INDIA CHINA Connect

India’s travel habits are shifting from annual holidays to frequent, short trips, driven by better connectivity, rewards, and wider participation from women and Tier-2/Tier-3 cities. Scapia’s 2025 data shows sharp growth in flights, stays, and global spending. Travellers now prioritise experiences, flexible itineraries, and repeatable 48–72 hour getaways over long, infrequent vacations.

India’s retail sector is thriving as Western malls decline. While the US has seen widespread store closures since 2020, India is witnessing strong consumer demand, near-full mall occupancy, and rising rents. Limited organised retail space, low e-commerce penetration, and growing global brand interest are driving investments, with malls evolving into lifestyle hubs.

China leads the global race in humanoid robotics, filing about five times more related patents than the United States over the past five years, according to Morgan Stanley. The report also highlights China’s major cost advantages, noting that excluding China from supply chains could nearly triple production costs for robots like Tesla’s Optimus Gen 2.

As 2025 ends, Isro marks a year of steady progress through routine launches, advancing research and stronger commercial ties via NSIL. Building on decades of frugal, high‑impact robotic missions, focus now shifts to Gaganyaan. Uncrewed tests, safety systems, Vyommitra flights and re‑entry trials in 2026 aim to place India among elite human spaceflight nations.

NITI Aayog has proposed a roadmap to internationalise India’s higher education by allowing foreign universities to operate within Indian campuses, easing visa and regulatory norms, and boosting academic mobility. The plan addresses rising outbound student numbers, seeks to attract learners, funds research through a $10 billion Bharat Vidya Kosh, and introduces scholarships to position India as an education hub globally.

NRI deposits rose to $168.1 billion in October 2025, up from $162.6 billion a year earlier, driven by a 7.9% rise in dollar deposits to $34.39 billion. Rupee deposits remained stable at $100 billion, indicating a shift toward foreign currency holdings as NRIs sought higher returns and hedged against currency volatility amid global rate differentials.

China has launched an online visa system for Indian applicants, cutting paperwork and consulate visits. The portal supports tourist, business, student, and work visas, enables digital submissions, biometric scheduling, application tracking, and INR payments. The move aligns with gradual India–China normalisation, alongside resumed flights, eased visas, and renewed people-to-people exchanges.

Indian doctors are increasingly leaving the UK as rising taxes, high living costs, tighter immigration rules and limited job security outweigh the NHS’s traditional appeal. Visa numbers have dropped sharply, while better pay and clearer career paths abroad attract talent. Policy pressures, workforce competition and reduced entry routes are further shrinking opportunities for overseas healthcare professionals.

Tencent is accessing advanced Nvidia chips by renting overseas computing power through Japan‑based Datasection, bypassing U.S. export restrictions. The $12 billion arrangement relies on Datasection’s large AI data centers using Blackwell processors. The deal highlights policy loopholes, the rise of “neocloud” providers, and how Chinese tech firms are shifting AI workloads abroad.

China surged ahead of India by reforming earlier, backing manufacturing, new private entrants, local governments, and R&D investment. Manufacturing scale drove incomes higher. India liberalised later, favoured incumbents, centralised policy, and underinvested in innovation, tilting growth to services. The lessons: empower states and cities, support startups, expand manufacturing, boost R&D and education, and cut red tape—without copying China’s authoritarian model.