The trade to-and-from India so far is not affected. But if the situation continues to remain the same for the next two to three months, it could definitely hurt India trade, including essential cargo.
'Supplies should start moving to the Serum Institute without any impediments.'
Since April, India has seen multiple strains of the coronanavirus sweep the nation, upending life and businesses alike. Out-of-home retail and discretionary categories such as durables, auto, fashion, lifestyle, hospitality, food services, travel, and tourism have been the worst-hit as Covid cases remain high, leaving state governments with no option but to curtail mobility and economic activity.
Meanwhile, with China switching its trading partners due to geo-political issues, increased trade with South Africa for bauxite and with the US for coal is also auguring well for vessels with tonne miles going up.
Overall, Tata Steel becomes the seventh non-financial firm, including four oil PSUs to report quarterly revenues of Rs 50,000 crore.
With the government looking to divest loss-making steel assets, significant interest from secondary players is most likely this time apart from the anticipated list of large integrated primary steel producers, said industry experts. Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL), NMDC Integrated Steel Plant (NISP)-Nagarnar, Ferro Scrap Nigam Ltd and three units of Steel Authority of India (SAIL) - Alloy Steels Plant, Durgapur; Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant, Bhadravati; and Salem Steel Plant, Salem - constitute the divestment list. All the three units of SAIL have been loss-making for more than five years.
Recently, the finance ministry waived off basic customs duty and health cess on imported oxygen and related equipment for three years.
According to Ajai Sahai, director-general and CEO of Federation of Indian Export Organisations, rising cases are a cause for concern as it adds to the uncertainty and may impact exports.
With the O2C business outlook on the mend, the Street is also looking forward to news on RIL's proposal to sell up to 20 per cent of the O2C business to a strategic investor like Saudi Aramco.
The central government is devising a mechanism to step up screening imports to protect domestic manufacturers. The details of the online monitoring system may find mention in the foreign trade policy 2021-26, which will kick in next month. The online system will make the data available to the government as well as industry about the countries from where the goods are being imported, and their quantity and quality. The data can help domestic producers analyse the market potential for such goods, said a senior government official. In the past 16 months, the government had implemented a steel- and coal-import monitoring system.
Many industry executives have said the draft e-commerce policy is being perceived as nationalistic but not overly protectionist and it is providing preference to Indian players against foreign companies. This might have an impact on investment by large players such as Walmart and Amazon in the country, said the executives. They said e-commerce was a very small portion of the retail industry and at a nascent stage and did not require heavy hammer regulations. Though the policy talks about being equally applicable to foreign and domestic players, it mentions that foreign direct investment (FDI) takes precedence over the e-commerce policy in any area of overlap.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone and Adani Green Energy are the other two Adani Group firms to have crossed the Rs 1-trillion mark in m-cap.
'We are working in association with the state government and other transmission companies to make sure that the city never experiences blackouts'
About 50,000 truckers, most of whom are single-truck owners, could be thrown off their businesses due to the recent fuel price hike. "Already the vehicle supply on the road is higher than the requirement. "With the fuel price hike, fleet owners will look to cut down fleet size wherever needed and due to this, small single-truck owners could be at the receiving end," Ashok Goyal, managing director at BLR Logistiks (I) Ltd said. The company has a fleet of 500 vehicles of all types-small, medium and large with pan-India presence.
The combined net sales of 42 listed construction and capital goods companies that have declared their third-quarter results so far were down 2.3 per cent year-on-year in Q3FY21 while core operating profit was up just 4.9 per cent YoY during the quarter.
Companies are looking to combine risk management with strategy.
India's harsh lockdown has left companies grappling with temporary closure, chaotic supply chains and depressed demand. Consequently, business plans have been modified.
A bleak demand outlook for steel in the domestic as well as global market is also another reason Tata Steel may be looking to have additional liquidity as margins are expected to take a hit in the coming quarters.
According to sources, government officials have asked industry bodies and manufacturers to submit key concerns and requirements to begin manufacturing activity.
JNPT, the country's largest container port, would soon move into congestion if cargo does not get lifted by importers in the next few days.
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