'During the scorching summer months of election season, largescale outdoor gatherings create a prime opportunity for increased consumption in the packaged drinking water category.'
Tata Motors will soon submit a detailed report on the upcoming manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu's Ranipet district and a decision, on whether the facility will churn out passenger or commercial vehicles, will be taken by the company on the basis of market trends, state's industries minister TRB Rajaa said on Thursday. "They are keeping the options open, and market trends will determine it (the type of vehicles the plant will make). "They will quickly come up with a detailed report on that," Rajaa said.
Political pundits unanimously suggest that the state is not experiencing a discernible Gandhi wave this time around.
More than half a dozen private-sector banks are awaiting regulatory approval for the appointment of a second whole-time director on their boards.
It is 10 years since Bandhan Financial Services became the first microfinance institution (MFI) to receive the universal bank licence. A year later, in 2015, it started operations. Bandhan's entry into banking was seen as a vote of confidence by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the country's microfinance sector. Subsequently, the RBI awarded small finance bank licences to nine MFIs.
HDFC Bank has been conscious in not accepting high-cost deposits, which have resulted in slower growth in October-December, said Sashidhar Jagdishan, managing director and chief executive officer, during an interaction with Goldman Sachs recently. He said during times of tight liquidity, short terms hardened, as was the case in October-December. "Not only did we participate, but we also gave up which came up for maturity," he said.
Standard Chartered's India strategy will focus on wealth management while credit card will remain core to its business though will avoid competition with the country's private banks, said a senior executive of the British lender. "Our focus on wealth management and affluent clients are central to our existence. "We are strong in these areas and we want to grow in these areas.
Vietnam-based electric vehicle maker VinFast, a rival of Tesla in the global market, has set foot in India and began work on building its Rs 16,000 crore EV manufacturing facility at Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu. The company has already sought a reduction in import duties on its cars for about two years until customers get familiar with the brand and its unit in the state. The global major kicked off the construction of the first phase of its integrated EV hub, which may see Rs 4,000 crore of investment initially and will create more than 10,000 jobs.
It has been seven months since the iconic motorcycle manufacturers, Harley-Davidson and Triumph, embarked on their journey in India with the backing of partners Hero MotoCorp and Bajaj Auto. According to data shared by the Indian majors, both brands are already creating ripples in the above 350cc category. The increase in sales has prompted a ramp-up in production and even the doubling of retail touchpoints for one of them.
'Our unsecured loan is not exactly unsecured. It is backed by cash flow of customers.'
The income-tax department is set to launch a screen-based automated reconciliation system for plugging mismatches between returns filed by taxpayers and information processed by the department.
Preparations are in the final stages by the Chennai-headquartered space-tech startup Agnikul Cosmos for the maiden launch of India's first-ever private launchpad and the second rocket launch by a private sector player.
The push given to rooftop solar installation in the Interim Budget ties in with its high rate of adoption in Tier-II and -III cities of India. If original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the automobile industry, government, and the solar sector are to be believed, in cities of Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Kerala, 45-50 per cent of electric-vehicle (EV) users are employing rooftop power to charge their vehicles. This is compared to the national average of 25 per cent, say industry sources.
'For the first time ever it has come below 1 per cent, at 0.97 per cent.'
'Investment creates capacity and reduces inflation. Income, employment, and savings rise.'
The new scheme may be announced before the Lok Sabha elections.
'If businessmen should be included in the political process -- which is essential in my opinion -- they need to have the freedom to express themselves and to take stands against the government of the day, without fear of reprisals and attacks on their business.'
'From data on enquiries, we can build what we call a data lake or a data warehouse where data is classified into various cohorts and then we use AI and ML tools to predict demand down the line.'
The bottom lines of several private sector banks have taken a hit following the recent guidelines released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on alternate investment fund (AIF) investments. Last month, the RBI announced that regulated entities, such as banks, non-bank lenders, and home financiers, cannot invest in AIFs that have directly or indirectly invested in companies that have borrowed money from the lenders. In case an entity had already made such an investment, they must liquidate the investment or make 100 per cent provision, RBI had said.
Funds raised by India Inc. through offshore loan syndication hit a 15-year high in 2023 with companies and banks raising $21.4 billion, the highest since 2007. The momentum is expected to continue in 2024 as well with over $4 billion fund raising expected in the first three months of this year. Companies raise funds, both onshore and offshore, depending on interest rates and activities. Funds raised offshore can be deployed in overseas activities.