Fconomic growth, for the third year running, of more than 6%; a stockmarket that, until this week at least, was testing new highs and had risen by more than 50% in a year; buoyant exports, a credit boom and bulging reserves of foreign exchange. India is, once again, enjoying a burst of economic optimism. Sadly, it is also suffering a stalling of the economic reforms that laid the foundations for recent successes. Oddly enough, they were launched in 1991 under Manmohan Singh, now prime minister, as minister of finance. The summer monsoon can still make or break India's economic forecasts. Agriculture accounts for less than a quarter of GDP. But more than 70% of Indians live in the countryside. This year's rains have so far been patchy, but overall about 5% heavier than the long-term average. This has encouraged most economists to nudge their predictions upwards, to an annual GDP growth rate of about 7%.
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