The Adani group, buoyed by a sharp recovery in its share prices over the past year, is set to embark on a series of roadshows this week to raise up to $4 billion (approximately Rs 33,254 crore) through equity and refinancing of older debt, according to banking sources. The roadshows, scheduled to take place in major cities, will inform investors about the group's investment plans across renewable energy, petrochemicals, and infrastructure development.
Global rating agency Moody's on Monday raised India's growth forecast for 2024 calendar year to 6.8 per cent, from 6.1 per cent estimated earlier, on the back of 'stronger-than-expected' economic data of 2023 and fading global economic headwinds. India's real GDP expanded 8.4 per cent year-over-year in the fourth quarter of calendar year 2023, resulting in a 7.7 per cent growth for full-year 2023. Capital spending by the government and strong manufacturing activity have meaningfully contributed to the robust growth outcomes in 2023, Moody's Investors Service said.
But the industry's chief executives remain confident of the long-term growth potential of NBFCs in India, given their specialised lending on the asset side, last-mile reach, and a well-capitalised balance sheet. "Over the years, NBFCs have faced many crises.
India on Sunday signed three agreements with the US for developing smart cities in Ajmer, Allahabad and Visakhapatnam, with the government saying that the agreements would make significant contribution to building such cities in the country.
Here is a list of items set to become cheaper and costlier.
MSIL, which currently has a subscription service that allows customers to lease its petrol-run and strong hybrid vehicles on a flexible, long-term basis without ownership commitments, will introduce a leasing service as well.
Budget 2025-26 delivers a carefully calibrated strategy-stimulating demand and investment while keeping fiscal discipline intact. In an environment marked by global trade disruptions, and a softening in urban consumption, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has taken a measured approach.
'It feels like Assam is good just as a tourist spot and not a place to earn and live.'
Tamil Nadu -- often dubbed as India's own Detroit due to its thriving automobile manufacturing ecosystem -- is in no mood to miss the EV bus either. Recent developments attest to it. Vietnamese electric vehicle (EV) maker VinFast has promised a $2 billion plant in the southern state. And as promised earlier, the work on Tata Motors-JLR plant will kick off next week, on September 28, after the foundation stone laying ceremony.
Indian troops are defending every inch of the border with China and not even a single inch of land has been taken over by the neighbouring country in recent years, Ladakh Lt Governor Brig (retd) B D Mishra said on Thursday.
'No one manufactures intelligence at the moment.' 'This is a concept that your IT industry understands.' 'What you need is infrastructure. Everything else can then be taken care of.'
Exporters on Thursday sought a fund of Rs 750 crore for three years to tap USD 25 billion export potential in the US, aiming to seize potential opportunities that may arise as the US President-elect, Donald Trump, has threatened to impose high tariffs on Chinese goods. In its pre-Budget meeting with the finance ministry, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President Ashwani Kumar has also demanded extension of the five per cent Interest Equalisation Scheme (IES).
Adani Enterprises Ltd, the flagship incubator of billionaire Gautam Adani's conglomerate, on Thursday reported a 37 per cent drop in March quarter net profit, bogged down by one-time past airport dues and commercial mining losses. Its consolidated net profit of Rs 450.58 crore in January-March - the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2023-24 - compares to Rs 722.48 crore net profit in the same period last year and Rs 1,888.45 crore earning in the preceding quarter, according to a stock exchange filing by the company.
The Galwan clash occurred six months after the Doklam disengagement and two high-profile meetings. India should not be caught by surprise once again, asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
'I am optimistic about the Budget because of the fiscal discipline the government has committed to.'
Why has the shift from ICE to electric slowed down despite initial enthusiasm?
American chip behemoth Nvidia Corp and India's retail-to-refining giant Reliance Industries on Thursday unveiled their goal to build a formidable AI computing infrastructure in the country. Highlighting the tie-up, Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of Nvidia, made a broader appeal: India should focus on "manufacturing" AI, rather than racing to build semiconductor fabs. As part of this collaboration, Nvidia will reportedly supply its Blackwell AI processors to power Reliance's one-gigawatt data center in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
Andhra Pradesh's IT and Electronics Minister Nara Lokesh has pitched port city of Vizag in his state for setting up a data centre to Google Cloud CEO, saying the new government in the state has taken various initiatives for supporting industry that will help it transform into a cloud infrastructure hub. The state is focused on setting up data centres in Visakhapatnam and the minister invited Google Cloud to establish its data centre in the port city.
With farm Acts out of the picture, the government may look at reforming the input side of the agriculture sector - regulations and rules that govern seeds, fertilisers and plant chemicals. Sources said such a blueprint, which is aimed at making the life of farmers easier, with quicker approvals but not compromising on quality, is in the works as part of the 100-day agenda of Modi 3.0. Also, ways to administer fertiliser subsidy more effectively and cutting down on leakages and diversions to build on the success of neem-coated urea are being thought of.
Around 72 per cent of employers in India intend to hire freshers in the second half of 2024, according to a report released by TeamLease EdTeach on Wednesday. The report titled 'Career Outlook Report HY2 (July-December 2024), based on a survey of over 603 companies across India conducted between April and June 2024, indicated a positive trend in the job market for new graduates.
And the apparel units in Kinfra Park are working hard to be in the good books of Wal-Mart
'There's a misconception that all Rs 1 lakh crore will be spent immediately, leading to higher consumption of FMCG goods, travel, and vehicle purchases.' 'While some of this money will go toward consumption, not all of it will.' 'The impact depends on where people deploy their savings.'
The billionaire Adani family, which is building an in-house construction and engineering ecosystem by acquiring ITD Cementation and PSP Projects, is actively seeking additional acquisition opportunities, according to bankers. As part of its $100 billion investment plan by 2030, the Ahmedabad-based group has undertaken several large-scale construction projects, including the Dharavi redevelopment, Ganga Expressway, a mega convention centre in Mumbai and airports.
With its age-old fascination for education, southern states have done better than the North. Start-ups, IT hubs, and industry majors setting up shop have changed the face of the South. Nearly 79% of global offices set up by international conglomerates in India are in the South. Almost 46% of tech unicorns are from the South. The GDP per person in the South is 4.2 times higher than the North. None of these indicators can be ignored by any central government, whatever the political compulsions, notes Ramesh Menon.
'Israel would make Iran and its proxies pay. They, along with Qatar, fund terror all over the world.'
Those who stay in other countries illegally do not have any legal right to be there, Modi said.
A sum of Rs 7060 crore is provided in the current fiscal for the project of developing one hundred Smart Cities.
The demand for buses largely remained robust in 2023, driven by the increasing need for public mobility and replacement. Ashok Leyland Limited (ALL) recorded a 64 per cent year-on-year increase in sales of medium and heavy commercial vehicle (MHCV) buses during the April-to-December period of 2023 to 11,216 units. Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicles (VECV) posted 24.7 per cent sales growth between April and December for light and medium-duty buses, and 36.9 per cent growth for heavy-duty buses.
The Congress on Monday claimed that the Tata-Airbus C-295 aircraft facility inaugurated in Vadodara was earlier supposed to be set up in Nagpur and alleged that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's instructions, the Centre and the Mahayuti dispensation have conspired to ensure the 'wholesale surrender' of Maharashtra's interests.
Facing protests from a section of the Rajput community over Union Minister Parshottam Rupala's remarks, the Bharatiya Janata Party in Rajasthan's Chittorgarh -- a Rajput-dominated seat -- is hoping that the 'Modi factor' and the development work undertaken by his government will help it retain the Lok Sabha constituency.
'The first and most basic responsibility of any government is to protect its people from external threats and internal harm.' 'Budget 2025-2026 has to focus on meeting this responsibility,' asserts R Jagannathan.
Terming investment in infrastructure "quintessential" to boost growth, the Economic Survey on Friday said post unlocking of the economy, infra sectors are poised for growth and construction of roads is expected to return to the high pace attained before COVID-19. The infrastructure sector will be the key to overall economic growth and macroeconomic stability, the Survey said emphasising that the year after the crisis (2021-22) will require sustained and calibrated measures to facilitate the process of economic recovery and enable the economy to get back on its long-term growth trajectory. "Basic infrastructure facilities in the country provide the foundation of growth. In the absence of adequate infrastructure, the economy operates at a suboptimal level and remains distant from its potential and frontier growth trajectory.
Tata Electronics on Saturday began the construction of its Rs 27,000-crore chip assembly plant in Assam, which is expected to become operational next year and create 27,000 jobs initially. The plant will produce 4.83 crore chips per day using indigenously-developed technologies. The plant's Bhumi Pujan (foundation stone laying) ceremony was held at the project site at Jagiroad in Morigaon district in the presence of Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran.
The FMCG industry hopes for a revival in consumption growth in 2025 with some 'green shoots' already visible, after having a challenging year amid escalating input costs and a double-digit rise in food inflation, which ultimately slowed down the pace of the urban market growth in the second half of 2024. Soaring prices of commodities such as palm oil, coffee, cocoa and wheat forced FMCG players to go for a hike of 3 to 5 per cent or resort to shrinkflation by reducing pack sizes and grammage to retain attractive price points, fearing a volume loss.
'The true measure of Project Tiger's success is not just rising tiger numbers, but our ability to ensure harmonious human-wildlife coexistence'
However, the company has not provided a timeline for the launch of the small electric car.
With infrastructure claiming a larger share, movement and distribution of cement is bound to change.
This will be the first full-year Budget of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government since it came to power for a third consecutive term in July last year.
Cement companies witnessed speculative support from investors through FY23 amid hopes of a rebound. After capex announcements in the FY24 Budget, there was further interest due to expectations that government expenditure would boost earnings, besides a generic macro-recovery. Cement earnings were under pressure in FY22 and FY23 due to high raw material and fuel costs; muted demand prevented them passing on the higher cost.
The United Kingdom extracted USD 64.82 trillion from India over a century of colonialism between 1765 and 1900 and USD 33.8 trillion of this went to the richest 10 per cent -- enough money to carpet London in notes of 50 British pound almost four times over.
