Middle East tensions pose unprecedented economic threat to India beyond oil prices.

Middle East tensions pose unprecedented economic threat to India beyond oil prices. The conflict risks disrupting electronics exports to the UAE, India's second-largest destination after the US, while threatening remittances from nine million Gulf workers. Oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz face blockade, potentially widening India's current account deficit and fueling inflation. The rupee, already down nine percent against the dollar in two years, could approach the 100 mark if oil hits $100 per barrel, forcing the Reserve Bank to raise interest rates and delay private investment recovery. Shipping disruptions are already raising freight and insurance costs for Indian exporters. Additionally, surging gold prices create fiscal pressure as households seek safe havens, exposing the government's unhedged 124-ton gold bond liability worth $22 billion.