New Delhi: The Income Tax Department announced that over 6 crore income tax returns (ITRs) have already been filed for Assessment Year (AY) 2025-26, thanking taxpayers and professionals for helping cross the milestone.

“Thank you taxpayers & tax professionals for helping us reach the milestone of 6 crore Income Tax Returns (ITRs) as of now and still counting,” the department posted on X.

With the September 15 deadline to file ITRs without penalty approaching, the department has urged those yet to file to do so promptly to avoid last-minute congestion. To facilitate smooth filing, its 24×7 helpdesk is offering support via calls, live chat, WebEx sessions and social media.

Earlier this year, the government extended the due date for individuals, Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs) and other non-audit cases from July 31 to September 15 to accommodate major revisions in ITR forms and back-end systems introduced in April–May.

The steady growth in filings underscores India’s expanding tax base. For AY 2024-25, a record 7.28 crore returns were filed by July 31, 2024, up from 6.77 crore the previous year—a 7.5 percent rise.

This season, the department has also launched new online filing utilities. ITR-1 and ITR-4 (for small and medium taxpayers) went live in June, followed by ITR-2 in July for individuals and HUFs with capital gains but no business income.

New Delhi: Infosys has announced a massive Rs 18,000 crore share buyback, the largest in its history. This move aims to support the company’s stock performance amid weak growth in the IT sector. The announcement has sparked speculation that other tech giants, such as TCS, might follow with their own buybacks.

Expert Cautions on TCS Buyback Speculation

Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Research at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, noted that while Infosys’ buyback positively impacts the IT sector, it doesn’t guarantee that TCS will announce a buyback. Market expectations exist, but a TCS buyback is not certain.

CLSA Weighs in on TCS Buyback Prospects

Following Infosys’ announcement, brokerage CLSA suggested that TCS may consider a buyback, possibly a tender offer worth around Rs 20,000 crore, rather than a large dividend payout, possibly in Q3.

TCS Buyback History

TCS has completed five buybacks since 2017:

2017, 2018, and 2020: Rs 16,000 crore each (shares bought at Rs 2,850-3,000)

Post-COVID buybacks in 2022 (Rs 18,000 crore) and 2023 (Rs 17,000 crore)

In total, TCS has spent about Rs 83,000 crore on share buybacks so far.

Management’s Motive for Buybacks

Buybacks typically signal management confidence in the business fundamentals and help boost investor trust. Khemka remarked that while TCS has a strong history of buybacks and dividends, the company might announce a new buyback following Infosys’ lead, but this remains uncertain.

TCS Growth Outlook for FY26

TCS revenue is expected to slow down in FY26 compared to FY25. The company reported a 3.3 percent quarter-on-quarter revenue decline in Q1 and a year-on-year decline as well. North America and Europe, key markets for TCS, showed reduced revenue, though there was some sequential recovery due to currency factors. Challenges in discretionary spending and sector-specific impacts from new tariffs and geopolitical tensions have pressured revenues, especially in BFSI and energy sectors. Brokerages anticipate recovery only from FY27 onwards, factoring in margin pressures from new deals such as BSNL.

Strong Order Pipeline and AI Focus

Despite near-term revenue challenges, TCS started FY26 with a robust order pipeline worth USD 9.4 billion, up 13.2 percent year-on-year. The company highlights “Agentic AI” as a key theme in client interactions and expects international revenue in FY26 to surpass FY25 levels.

TCS Share Performance

TCS shares have gained nearly 3 percent in the past week, rebounding from a steep 9 percent decline over the last three months. However, the stock remains down 30 percent in the past year and 23 percent year-to-date in 2025, reflecting broader sector pressures.

UK interest rates are set to be held at 4% until 2026 as lingering concerns about the economy prompt policymakers to act cautiously, economists have said.

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will announce its latest decision on Thursday.

The central bank is widely expected to keep rates at 4% after cutting them from 4.25% in August.

Economists believe the MPC may avoid cutting rates at meetings in November and December, meaning the figure could be kept on hold until February.

This would be a setback for mortgage holders with millions still expected to refinance on to higher rates in the coming years.

Thomas Pugh, chief economist for auditing firm RSM UK, said: “It’s all but guaranteed that the Bank of England will hold interest rates at 4% at its meeting on Thursday.

“The committee will stick to its gradual and cautious guidance, as it continues to try to balance rising inflation with a weakening labour market.”

UK Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation rose to 3.8% in July, from 3.6% in June, meaning it remained at the highest level since January 2024.

This was largely driven by food and drink prices rising, while overall wage inflation has remained at 5%, according to the latest data from the Office for National Statistics.

Interest rates are used by the MPC to control inflation and bring it down to the 2% target.

The UK labour market has been stagnating with the unemployment rate remaining at a four-year high and job vacancies continuing to decline.

Philip Shaw, an economist for Investec, said he was expecting rates to be held at 4% until the end of the year, with the next cut in February.

He said recent economic data will be “unlikely to disperse the committee’s collective doubts over whether the inflationary coast is clear to resume easing” monetary policy by November.

Rob Wood and Elliott Jordan-Doak, economists for Pantheon Macroeconomics, said recent remarks from the Bank’s governor Andrew Bailey indicated he was happy with the financial markets pricing in only a 40% chance of another rate cut this year.

“The late Budget will likely also encourage the MPC to wait until December at least before considering another cut,” they said.

“We expect little change to the MPC’s guidance from August, given the hawkish dataflow and MPC members’ comments suggest little reason or desire to change their position from early August.”

In August, policymakers emphasised future rate cuts will need to be made “gradually and carefully” amid uncertainty about the economic outlook.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves is due to deliver her autumn Budget on November 26, and is widely expected to raise taxes to balance the books.