The United Nations (UN) Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) in its report titled ‘Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2026’ has said that India's economy is projected to grow at 6.4% in 2026 and 6.6% in 2027. It noted that economies in South and South-West Asia grew by 5.4% in 2025, compared to 5.2% in 2024, driven largely by strong growth in India. India's growth edged up to 7.4% in 2025, supported by robust consumption, especially from the rural economy along with goods and services tax rate cuts, and export front-loading ahead of the United States’ (US') tariffs. However, economic activities moderated in the second half of 2025 as exports to the US declined by 25% following the introduction of 50% tariffs in August 2025. The services sector remained a key growth driver. 

The report projected inflation for India at 4.4% in 2026 and 4.3% in 2027. It further said that Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows to developing Asian and Pacific economies declined amid trade tensions and geopolitical uncertainty. After an increase of 0.6% in 2024, FDI to the region declined by 2% in 2025, even as global flows increased by 14%. Within the Asia-Pacific region, the countries that attracted the largest share of greenfield FDI in the first three quarters were India, Australia, the Republic of Korea and Kazakhstan with $50 billion, $30 billion, $25 billion and $21 billion in announced investments, respectively.

Additionally, it said that personal remittances, sent by Asian and Pacific workers employed outside of their home countries, continued to rise, cushioning the impact of vulnerable domestic employment conditions. Remittances have helped sustain the consumption of many households, but are facing headwinds. In India and the Philippines, about 40% of the transfers are used for essential spending, including medical expenses, of recipient households. However, as the world's largest remittance recipient of $137 billion in 2024, India could face a sizeable loss as the US has levied a 1% tax on all remittances since January 2026.