'Today, let us reaffirm our commitment to strive to realise Gandhiji's dreams. His watchwords, truth and nonviolence, will continue to remain relevant for the whole world. He also taught us that rights and duties are but the two sides of the coin - indeed, the true source of rights is duty. Today we recall his lessons in compassion too - compassion not only for our human neighbours but also for our other neighbours, namely, flora and fauna, rivers and mountains.'
'Binary fission will happen -- startups will lead to more startups.'
Growth in corporate profits needs to be commensurate with wages to boost the economy, Economic Survey 2024-25 said, noting that sharp disparities between the two pose risk to the economy by curbing demand. The document tabled in Parliament on Friday noted that while the labour share of GVA (gross value added) shows a slight uptick, the disproportionate rise in corporate profitsredominantly among large firmsaises concerns about income inequality.
India's e-commerce market alone is projected to reach $200 billion by 2026, making it a prime industry for ambitious entrepreneurs, explains rediffGURU Harsh Bharwani.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows into India have crossed the $1 trillion milestone in the April 2000-September 2024 period, firmly establishing the country's reputation as a safe and key investment destination globally. According to data from the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), the cumulative amount of FDI, including equity, reinvested earnings and other capital, stood at $1,033.40 billion during the said period.
'You think: Did I fail the people I had to let go? Did I promise something I couldn't deliver? That day (when we had to sack 70 people) will stay with me.'
The stocks are largely from sectors such as chemicals, finance and cement, which struggled earlier but the worse seems to be behind them.
All the three companies that made their stock market debut on Wednesday delivered huge day-one gains for investors. Shares of digital payment major One Mobikwik Systems surged 90 per cent, while that of fashion retailer Vishal Mega Mart and pharma firm Sai Life Sciences gained around 40 per cent each. These stellar debuts came despite the benchmark indices logging continuous declines since their initial public offerings (IPOs) closed on Friday.
the largest transactions of the year include the merger of Quality Care India and Aster DM Healthcare valued at $5.08 billion, followed by Bharti Enterprises' acquisition of a 24.5 per cent stake in the BT Group at $4.08 billion, and a family settlement transaction in the Godrej family at $3.5 billion.
The draft digital personal data protection (DPDP) rules, which require banks to obtain explicit consent from their customers before using their data for purposes beyond the original intent, although is being followed in spirit, leaves no room for regulatory arbitrage, experts said. They said that the potential business impact is difficult to assess at this stage, but the formalisation of these rules will mean banks now need to establish clear data processing agreements with third-party entities to ensure compliance.
'We condemn recent illicit missile launches in the region that violate UN Security Council resolutions. We express serious concern over recent dangerous and aggressive actions in the maritime domain. We seek a region where no country dominates and no country is dominated one where all countries are free from coercion, and can exercise their agency to determine their futures,' the declaration said.
'The scrapping of import duty would help Indian companies compete in international markets, thus paving the way for India becoming a space manufacturing hub for the world.'
Just when it seemed that Bollywood had recovered with multiple big hits in 2023, it all came down in 2024 with a flurry of flops, disasters and mega disasters.
'Unsurprisingly, Trump shared Modi's podcast with Fridman on his Truth account.' 'The intentions of Trump, a transactional president, are never easy to tell.' 'We will know in the next fortnight if and when he unfolds reciprocal tariffs on Indian goods, whether Modi's flattering words made any significant difference to Trump's compass,' notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The government-backed Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) is likely to start levying user charges in the current financial year.
'Unless a comedian is involved in something society deems unforgivable...'
'While investors need to be prepared for making some losses, they should not lose big money chasing euphoria amid fear of missing out.'
'Investors should consider small and midcaps only if they can handle volatility and have a longer investment horizon.'
The Centre has also listed 24 bills, including the Cantonment Bill, the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill.
The Delhi high court on Tuesday sought the Centre's response on a plea challenging the new Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, which seeks to regulate digital news media.
Eying benefits from digital banking, lenders are now looking at building Unified Recovery Interface (URI) for enhancing efficiency, reducing costs, and getting good prices for properties of defaulters. This would be managed by PSB Alliance Ltd, a company set up by all public sector banks in the country. M V Rao, chairman, Indian Banks' Association (IBA), said: "Till now we had Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a product developed by National Payments Corporation Ltd (NPCI).
Will allowing business correspondents to hawk insurance products help in reviving 5-lakh strong field agents as a viable channel?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that the Quad is not against anyone, but for a rules-based international order and respect for sovereignty, in a veiled reference to China.
Digital canvassing is expected to benefit from political money looking for alternative blow horns.
The National Informatics Centre uses AI to automate document analysis and detect fraud in government departments.
Do we have enough trained oncologists and medical professionals in India to man these over 4,500 beds in the public sector?
'The PAYD model adjusts the premium based on your driving habits. If you drive less, you pay less.'
Manish Tiwary plans to take up a new role at another firm.
Operating margins have been the primary driver of corporate earnings in India in recent quarters, despite revenue growth suffering from weak consumer demand. Companies across sectors have reported a sharp improvement in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) margins over the past two years, benefiting from lower commodity and energy prices. Higher margins more than compensated for slower revenue growth, resulting in double-digit growth in net profit for five consecutive quarters.
The international community counts a lot on India's leadership of the G-20 at a time when the world is faced with the continued economic slowdown and social distress, the chief of the International Monetary Fund Kristalina Georgieva has said. "India, which is the president of G-20 countries, remains among the countries that perform better than the global average and by a good percentage," IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva told reporters during a media roundtable on Thursday. India formally assumed the G20 (Group of 20) Presidency on December 1.
'The biggest near-term risk to Indian equities is the outflow of investments to China as tactical trades by foreign investors.'
The IPO filing-to-approval lapsing ratio this year is the best in three years, underscoring the improvement in the IPO market's buoyancy.
Fresh plans of privatisation or divestment in central public sector enterprises and public sector banks might take a back seat this financial year because these may require a large consensus among coalition partners.
'It's a debatable topic, and we will submit our comments to the RBI by June 15.'
Why is the government unwilling to disclose the winners of its DigiDhan Yojana?
India SME Forum, an organisation for small and medium businesses, has called for creating a dedicated fund of Rs 5000 crore for the export capacity development, promotion, and marketing of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in its Budget recommendation. The forum for MSMEs with over 98,000 members said that to enhance India's global competitiveness and increase its market share in global exports, it was "crucial to increase the number of active exporters and enable at least 3-4 lakh first-time micro, small, and medium exporters while supporting them in promoting Indian products globally."
Be always alert and watchful about what your kids are doing online. Instead of spying on them secretly, try to involve them in the process of keeping them safe from predators.
'While criticising India's high tariffs, Mr Trump stated he would impose reciprocal taxes on Indian products if re-elected.' 'However, since India's tariffs follow WTO rules, Mr Trump's actions would violate these rules,' Ajay Srivastava points out.
More companies are harbouring aspirations to go public, following a sharp market rebound after June's nadir. In August, seven companies expecting to raise a cumulative Rs 10,425 crore filed their draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The amount they are looking to mop up is the highest since March, when 13 companies filed their DRHPs to raise a combined Rs 19,494 crore, reveals data provided by PRIME Database - a source of comprehensive information on all capital market offerings.
The interim report highlights key competition issues in the e-commerce space like deep discounting, the imposition of unfair terms and conditions, the growing dependence of brick and mortar establishments on online platforms, and opaqueness in search rankings.
