Surajeet Das Gupta &Amp; Sanjeeb Mukherjee

Stories by Surajeet Das Gupta &Amp; Sanjeeb Mukherjee

Jeera prices up 73% since January 2023 amid rising demand, supply shortage

Jeera prices up 73% since January 2023 amid rising demand, supply shortage

Rediff.com   28 Jun 2023

Jeera July futures in NCDEX touched a record high of Rs. 58,085 per quintal on Monday, before coming down to around Rs. 55,500 on Tuesday. This was due to profit booking and extension of additional surveillance margin of 2.5 per cent till July 18, including on all contracts to be launched in the future. The softening, according to some reports, is also because of fears of regulatory action on jeera traders over allegations of excessive speculation.

DoT to make room for 'powerful' regulator

DoT to make room for 'powerful' regulator

Rediff.com   26 Jun 2023

The government plans to remove the definition of broadcasting services altogether from the bill to help reduce confusion among stakeholders.

Don't panic! Bad June doesn't mean bad monsoon

Don't panic! Bad June doesn't mean bad monsoon

Rediff.com   22 Jun 2023

The southwest monsoon has started on a weak note and this has delayed the sowing of kharif crops. Though a cause for concern, the situation hasn't reached a stage where it warrants any panic response. Moreover, according to meteorologists and industry players, monsoon rains will witness a revival in the coming few weeks.

How India Plans To Become A Semiconductor Giant

How India Plans To Become A Semiconductor Giant

Rediff.com   22 Jun 2023

Micron plans an assembly testing, marking and packaging project of $1 billion, and talks are on to set up a memory chip plant for captive requirements.

NCDEX all set to relaunch groundnut futures after more than 13 years

NCDEX all set to relaunch groundnut futures after more than 13 years

Rediff.com   19 Jun 2023

After a gap of more than 13 years, the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX) is all set to launch a futures contract in groundnut (in shell) to fill a void in oilseeds complex futures because of a ban in several high-volume commodities.

Uber India gears up for electric future but...

Uber India gears up for electric future but...

Rediff.com   19 Jun 2023

By 2025, Uber projects that 25,000-30,000 cars -- or 12 to 16 per cent of vehicle additions -- would be EVs, reports Surajeet Das Gupta.

Swedish furnishing major IKEA to bring in funding arm, expand retail biz

Swedish furnishing major IKEA to bring in funding arm, expand retail biz

Rediff.com   19 Jun 2023

Swedish furnishing major IKEA, part of the Ingka Group, is inviting its investment arm - Ingka Investments - to India, a senior company executive said during an interaction in New Delhi. The move suggests that the group is looking at India as a priority market. The areas of investments being considered by Ingka Investments could range from taking stake in companies across sectors such as renewables, recycling, real estate, and software which synergise with IKEA's broader retail requirements.

War Over Amul's Plans For South India

War Over Amul's Plans For South India

Rediff.com   14 Jun 2023

'As long as Amul was coming in with products it was not a problem because it was something value added and with a shelf life.' 'When it gets into the local market by procuring locally, it cuts into the market-share of local cooperatives.'

How Jio plans to auction spectrum required by NGSO

How Jio plans to auction spectrum required by NGSO

Rediff.com   14 Jun 2023

Reliance Jio has suggested an alternative plan to the The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) under which spectrum required by non-geostationary orbit satellite (NGSO) operators to run their gateway terminals should be auctioned geographically, based on districts, rather than circles as done for mobile services. For spectrum which would be required to connect user terminals (like individual homes), Jio has suggested it should be auctioned frequency-wise and exclusively to an operator at a pan-India level. The move is significant as the auctioning of satellite space spectrum has been vehemently opposed by low earth orbit satellite operators (satellites which circle at low altitudes of 200-2000 km).

India tops airfare spike in APAC, West Asia

India tops airfare spike in APAC, West Asia

Rediff.com   13 Jun 2023

India witnessed the highest increase in airfares among the 10 top aviation markets in the Asia-Pacific and West Asia collectively across both domestic and international flights Q4 2019 and Q4 2022 in nominal terms, according to research by Hong Kong-based Airports Council International (ACI). India, where fares went up by 41 per cent, was followed by the UAE (34 per cent), Singapore (30 (per cent) and Australia (23 per cent). The study, which was undertaken in collaboration with Flare Aviation Consulting, examined around 36,000 routes in the top 10 aviation markets in Asia-Pacific and West Asia.

Will 2023 Be A Repeat Of 2015?

Will 2023 Be A Repeat Of 2015?

Rediff.com   5 Jun 2023

States have been told to prepare in advance to counter any impact of an adverse southwest monsoon.

E-com firm Meesho hints at IPO in 2025; focus shifts to generating profits

E-com firm Meesho hints at IPO in 2025; focus shifts to generating profits

Rediff.com   4 Jun 2023

E-commerce player Meesho, backed by marquee investors like SoftBank Group and Meta Platforms, will look at an initial public offering (IPO) only in 2025, and till then, its focus will be on generating profits after tax and not just on being Ebitda (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation)-positive, top sources in the company told Business Standard in New Delhi. In a clear shift of strategy, the company, which has reduced its cash burn by 85 per cent, is now looking to trim its annual revenue growth target to 40 per cent from the 100-plus per cent earlier. The sources, however, said even this level of growth was far higher than that of most e-commerce companies.

Global subsidy race puts a spanner in India's chip manufacturing hopes

Global subsidy race puts a spanner in India's chip manufacturing hopes

Rediff.com   1 Jun 2023

The Indian government is keen to woo major semiconductor players, but a global race to attract them to countries where there is already an ecosystem is making it difficult for India to attract the biggies in the business. On Wednesday the government decided to throw open the doors to more players to participate in its semiconductor scheme. It is now looking at not only 28 nanometre (nm) chips and below, but higher nodes like 40 nm.

Will Apple Do in India What Samsung Did In Vietnam?

Will Apple Do in India What Samsung Did In Vietnam?

Rediff.com   31 May 2023

Apple is hoping to assemble in India 25 per cent of all iPhones produced globally to reduce its heavy dependence on China.

India asks for $55-million funding in first call with Pandemic Fund

India asks for $55-million funding in first call with Pandemic Fund

Rediff.com   30 May 2023

In a significant development, India is believed to have placed a funding request of around $55 million in its first call with the Pandemic Fund of the World Bank, sources said. The fund has been set up to finance critical investments in a bid to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response capacities at national, regional, and global levels, with a focus on low- and middle-income countries. It was created in the aftermath of the Covid-19 global pandemic.

From electronics to semiconductor, MNCs in search of policy stability

From electronics to semiconductor, MNCs in search of policy stability

Rediff.com   29 May 2023

Their favourite alternatives: Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines. Note, India is missing from that list. And this is despite an attractive financial incentive scheme for OSAT players. The reason, said a senior executive of a US chip company who had a meeting in Taiwan just a few weeks ago, is that "they want more predictability in government policy because they plan to put in big money."

'Our aim is to encourage global companies to shift to India from China'

'Our aim is to encourage global companies to shift to India from China'

Rediff.com   29 May 2023

'I was in the US, where I met top executives of HP and Dell, and they are very keen to come to India.' 'Acer and ASUS have also evinced interest.'

PC shipments fell by 30% in Q1, notebooks fared the worst

PC shipments fell by 30% in Q1, notebooks fared the worst

Rediff.com   24 May 2023

The India personal computer (PC) market shipment, inclusive of desktops, notebooks, and workstations, dropped by an overall 30.1 per cent in the first quarter of CY2023 over the previous year, to only 2.99 million units, according to the latest data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Device Tracker released on Tuesday. In Q1CY23, while the demand for desktops was positive, the notebook category witnessed another weak quarter as it declined by 40.8 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y). The consumer segment declined by 36.1 per cent y-o-y primarily due to slowing demand and weak market sentiment.

Govt holds meetings to prepare for adverse monsoon, works on action plans

Govt holds meetings to prepare for adverse monsoon, works on action plans

Rediff.com   19 May 2023

With different agencies showing divergent predictions regarding the southwest monsoon, the central government and states are gearing up to face adversity with various line ministries reportedly being directed to undertake mock drills and hold preparatory meetings. Around 56 per cent of the net cultivable area of the country is rain-fed, accounting for 44 per cent of foodgrain production. The June-September rains contribute around 73 per cent of the annual precipitation.

Tesla may be revving up interest in India, again

Tesla may be revving up interest in India, again

Rediff.com   17 May 2023

Senior Tesla executives including those from its supply chain are planning to come to India on Wednesday and Thursday for meetings with government officials, including those in the Prime Minister's Office, according to sources. Prashant R Menon, director of Tesla India, did not respond to a specific query on the meetings. Sources say that the executives are coming to see how they can expand and develop local sourcing of components from India for the Tesla car.