India's current account deficit narrowed to $1.3 billion or 0.2 per cent of GDP in the January-March quarter of FY23, mainly due to moderation in the trade deficit and a robust increase in services exports, RBI data showed on Tuesday. However, for the 2022-23 fiscal, the current account balance recorded a deficit of 2 per cent of GDP compared to 1.2 per cent in 2021-22. "India's current account deficit (CAD) decreased to $1.3 billion (0.2 per cent of GDP) in Q4:2022-23 from $16.8 billion (2.0 per cent of GDP) in Q3:2022-231, and $13.4 billion (1.6 per cent of GDP) a year ago [Q4:2021-22]," as per the RBI's 'Developments in India's Balance of Payments during the Fourth Quarter (January-March) of 2022-23'.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) in India grew 40 per cent to USD 51.47 billion during April-December 2020-21, according to government data released on Thursday.
Talks gain ground of strategic stake sale to foreign investor.
Domestic customers will get access to high-quality Swiss products such as watches, chocolates, biscuits, and clocks at lower prices as India will phase out customs duties under its trade pact with the EFTA bloc on these goods over a period of time. India and the four-European nation bloc EFTA signed a trade and economic partnership agreement (TEPA) on Sunday to boost trade and investments between the two regions. The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.
Bigger companies are signing equity JVs with global investors.
In 2016, (till April 22), 64 proposals have been received.
Says allow companies with up to 49% FDI to invest in restricted sectors.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Monday approved the introduction of a new asset class, designed to offer greater flexibility to fund managers and target investors with a higher risk appetite. The markets regulator also cleared the liberalised Mutual Funds Lite (MF Lite) framework, aimed at fund houses that solely launch passively managed schemes. In another significant move, the board reduced the timeframe for rights issues from the current 317 working days to just 23.
Intermediaries, TPAs will also benefit, but investments will be under 26% FDI cap
FIPB has deferred 18 proposals.
She said that she had apprised BJP president Nitin Gadkari of her plan of action.
The Foreign Investment Promotion Board has made it clear that Press Notes 2 and 4 issued in February 2009, which changed the way indirect foreign equity would be treated in calculating foreign investment levels in Indian corporations, cannot take effect retrospectively for proposals before the board.
Defending the new foreign investment guidelines released this week, commerce and industry minister Kamal Nath said on Friday the norms would not distinguish between different forms of foreign capital.
The RBI has changed the way it approached supervision in the past. Having seen a couple of collapses in the NBFC sector and the near-collapse of a few banks, it is focusing on regular drills to prevent a fire from breaking out, explains Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Gadkari said, infrastructure sector including highways, airports, inland waterways, railways, logistic parks, broad gauge and metro, apart from MSMEs can attract large scale foreign investment.
India Inc has expressed strong displeasure over the Delhi government's decision to withdraw approval to FDI in multi-brand retail, saying the move was likely to hinder foreign investments flowing into the country.
Do you have financial planning or income tax queries? Ask rediffGURU Anil Rego.
If it continues to do well economically, develops a large manufacturing sector, gains in technological heft, builds a more capable defence industry, improves its human development indicators, becomes more of a trading nation, and has greater internal cohesion. In short, it is a work in progress, suggests T N Ninan.
CPI leader D Raja also attacked govt for going back on its assurance to hold consultations with all stakeholders.
In a major relaxation of foreign investment rules in the pharma sector, a special group set up under the finance ministry has suggested it could consider permitting up to 49 per cent FDI (foreign direct investment) in the automatic route for brownfield investments in case the company's control remained in Indian hands.
Domestic traders body CAIT on Thursday claimed that e-commerce major Amazon's plan to acquire Prione Business Services - its joint venture firm with Catamaran - will be a violation of foreign direct investment policy. Amazon has said it will acquire Prione Business Services, subject to requisite regulatory approvals. In August, Amazon and NR Narayana Murthy's Catamaran had announced that they will not continue their joint venture Prione Business Services beyond May 2022.
The data will be released in coordination with the Reserve Bank, which has so far been the sole agency for compiling information on the outward FDI.
A bench of Chief Justice N V Ramana and Justice Manmohan issued notice to Civil Aviation Ministry, DGCA and others and sought their response by October 30.
The investment limit for news and current affairs TV channels has been retained at 26 per cent.
Startup founders need to sit up and think about how not to take stardom for granted and how not to disappoint their fans who have stood in long queues for those precious selfies with popular entrepreneurs, notes Nivedita Mookerji.
Hinduja Brothers are keen to invest in Indian Infra projects.
During November, FDI flows into China, the largest recipient of foreign investment through this route, fell for the 10th time in 11 months, as labour costs rose and an economic slowdown dragged growth down for seven quarters in a row.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented the Budget in the Parliament on Thursday.
Fuelled by the $57.8-billion merger of HDFC twins (HDFC Ltd and HDFC Bank), M&A (merger and acquisition) transactions in India touched a record high of $124.2 billion in the first half of 2022-23. Bankers said with several transactions, including the government's stake sale in IDBI Bank and Hindustan Zinc in the pipeline, the ongoing financial year will end up as the best year for M&A activity in the country. Apart from the HDFC transaction, the $6.5-billion acquisition of Holcim stake by the Adani family and L&T's $3.2-billion acquisition of Mindtree added to the record transactions in the first half of FY23.
'Assess the property in terms of type, size, location and price point, and whether it fits into your budget.' 'If it checks out on these fronts, one may consider the accompanying offers.'
Currently, 100 per cent FDI is permitted in brownfield pharma firms through clearance from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board.
During Abe's tenure, Japan had announced support for a number of major projects. These included the bullet train project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, besides allocations for a freight corridor between Mumbai and New Delhi.
The new government's challenge would be to reverse the tide in FDI, boost manufacturing and come up with an e-commerce policy that is fair to all investors.
Minister of State for Commerce and Finance Nirmala Sitaraman, in Mumbai to address election rallies, took time out to talk about the economy, foreign investment and trade facilitation.
'If their allocation to certain segments have become high due to strong returns over the past three-four years, they should rebalance their portfolios and bring them in line with their long-term asset allocation.'
Chaturvedi said the highest ever FDI flows received by the country were in FY12 at $35.12 billion while in four months of this fiscal alone we have crossed $10.75 billion.
'By his words, actions, and body language during their joint press appearance wanted to convey his personal respect and, more broadly, his desire to work closely with India.'
After declining for three consecutive quarters, the value of FPI investment in Indian equities rose 8 per cent quarter-on-quarter to $566 billion in the July-September period, according to a Morningstar report on Wednesday. A fast-changing global macroeconomic landscape, sentiments and opportunities that the Indian equity markets have to offer impacted the direction of flows by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs). Through the quarter, the value of the FPI holdings in domestic equities surged by 8 per cent to $566 billion from $523 billion recorded in the previous quarter.
As funding from foreign private equity and venture capital firms is the lifeline for most online retailers, the restriction on foreign direct investment is threatening to block any fresh investment into the sector.
Tightening the norms, the government has done away with automatic approval of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the existing pharmaceutical companies.
