Listen: India's solar market faces export hurdles, pivots to domestic power

India's solar market has grown significantly over the past decade, with continuous investment in domestic module and cell manufacturing capabilities. However, India's recent export opportunities have been curtailed by additional duties from the US, its largest export destination. In response, the Indian solar industry is pivoting toward the domestic market and new international markets.

In this episode of the "Commodities Focus" podcast, S&P Global Energy's Lena Dias Martins, Srija Basu Roy, Aditya Saroha and Jessica Jin discussed the evolving Indian solar market.

Global private equity exit volume declines in Q1 2026

Global private equity exits declined 6.25% year over year in the first quarter to 720 deals from 768. Trade sale transactions were particularly affected, falling to 566 from 603, while secondary buyouts dropped to 141 from 153. In contrast, IPO exits rose slightly to 13 from 12.

Despite the decline in deal volume, aggregate transaction value surged to $311.18 billion, largely driven by a single transaction: the $250 billion sale of X.AI to Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX).

Persistent macroeconomic headwinds, changing tariffs and supply chain risks have complicated company valuations and slowed exit activity, according to Brenden Gobell, managing director for client strategy and data insights at With Intelligence, a part of S&P Global Market Intelligence.

On the buy side, investors are struggling to identify enough high-quality investment opportunities. On the sell side, private equity firms have been forced to extend their holding periods, with median durations now exceeding five years — up from a range of 4-4.6 years during 2017–19. To achieve promised returns and facilitate fundraising for subsequent funds, sellers are requiring even higher exit prices than originally anticipated. This dynamic leaves sellers reluctant to accept lower valuations despite the need to return capital to investors.