# Taiwan

• India on Friday called for restraint over Taiwan and cautioned against any unilateral action to change the status quo.
• India had maintained a studied silence on the situation as China held military drills near Taiwan after US house Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan.
• China has halted the drills but announced that its war preparation would continue.
• China has stepped up global diplomacy and reached out to countries in South East and South Asia, seeking support for its ‘one china policy’.

# Retail inflation

• India’s retail inflation slipped below the 7% mark for the first time since April, easing to 6.71% in July, aided by a moderation in food prices inflation to 6.75%, the lowest in five months.
• This is the seventh month in a row that the pace of price rise has been over the upper tolerance limit of 6% pursued by the central bank’s monetary policy committee.
• While inflation in edible oils, meat and fish and vegetables relented in July, price rise in fruits and eggs accelerated and cereals inflation hit a multi year high of 6.9%.

# Elephant poaching

• In the past three days, 90 cases of seizure of elephant tusks/ivory have been reported in India along with 29 cases of poaching of elephants.
• The data were shared by the ministry of environment, forest and climate change in the lok sabha on August 8.
• The highest number of cases of elephant tusk seizure was reported in 2021 with 42 cases.

# Industrial output growth

• India’s industrial output grew 12.3% year on year in June, moderating from 19.6% this may.
• The index of industrial production (IIP) however grew only 0.14% over may 2022.