For the sixth consecutive month, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee remained the Indian most often cited by both global and local media as the economy stays at the top of the nation’s concerns. In the global media, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor D. Subbarao was the second biggest newsmaker last month from among Mint’s 20-member group of influencers.

Also See Influence of individuals over the last months (click here)

In the last week of October, Subbarao signalled that the central bank was exiting its loose monetary policy regime and turning its sights to fighting inflation. The focus of policymakers is turning steadily from spurring economic growth to withdrawing the fiscal and monetary stimulus they have provided to shield the economy from the fallout of the global financial crisis.

Feuding billionaire brothers Anil and Mukesh Ambani ranked three and four, respectively, for the number of citations they received in the global media last month as their companies Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL) battle it out over gas supplies from RIL’s D6 fields in the Krishna-Godavari basin. They were also among the top five most cited voices in the Indian media.

The Mint influencers index is a monthly objective measure based on media analysis by Dow Jones Insight, which tracks these leaders, looking at the volume of media citings for each of them as a proxy for their rising or waning influence. The assumption is that visibility and share of voice is good for them and their companies, and in the case of global media, collectively the index is a good surrogate for the growing or waning interest in India.

Your comments are welcome at influencersindex@livemint.com

For previous indices, go to www.livemint.com/influence

Graphics by Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint