Tata Motors' 2022-23 (FY23) January-March quarter (fourth quarter, or Q4) results were better than Street estimates, with strong showing across Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), as well as commercial and passenger vehicle businesses in the domestic market. The company posted its highest consolidated top line and operating profit, with growth of 35 per cent and 46.5 per cent, respectively, over the year-ago quarter. While the top line was aided by a 49 per cent growth in the JLR unit, all key segments reported margin expansion.
Compact sedans (Maruti Dzire, Hyundai Aura, Tata Tigor)' share in the overall sedan category grew from 68% in 2021 to 74.6% in 2024. Mid-sedans' (Honda City, Maruti Ciaz, Volkswagen Virtus) share declined from 26.2% in 2021 to 20.2%.
Fresher hiring, which has been subdued as Indian information technology (IT) services firms scaled back their recruitment, is set for a turnaround. The IT sector's fresher hiring is expected to rise by 20-25 per cent for 2024-25 (FY25). Additionally, the global capability centres are projected to boost their fresher hiring by 40 per cent compared to last year, according to a TeamLease Digital analysis.
More than 50 per cent of SIP accounts come from semi-urban and rural areas.
'With Prime, TCS is making sure that we are able to secure the right high talent...' 'Colleges will make sure that students who are offered jobs in this category do not go for another company's hiring process.'
Digital, new energy, supply chain resilience and health will be the themes of the over $100-billion Tata group's strategy going forward, according to its chairman N Chandrasekaran even as he asserted that all ambitions are contingent on learning to live with the coronavirus. In his New Year address to the over 8 lakh employees of salt-to-software conglomerate, Chandrasekaran said businesses and society must adapt to the virus by preparing as "best we can for new outbreaks and variants. We are seeing this now with the spread of Omicron". Reflecting on the year gone by, he said the group is becoming "simpler and financially stronger than we have been in a long time".
Global engineering and product development digital services firm Tata Technologies on Monday said it has been selected by European aerospace major Airbus as a strategic supplier. The company will become an engineering, manufacturing engineering and services strategic supplier (EMES3), Tata Technologies said in a statement. "This is an outcome of an extensive seven month long multi-phased procurement assessment process that covered all Airbus divisions, subsidiaries, and affiliates across engineering, manufacturing engineering, and customer services engineering functions," it added.
After clocking losses for seven straight quarters, Tata Motors on Wednesday posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 3,043 crore in the third quarter (Q3) of 2022-23. This came on the back of a strong order book, better semiconductor chip supply, tempered commodity prices, and a better product mix. "We remain cautiously optimistic about the demand situation, notwithstanding the global uncertainty.
TCS's mcap crossed $100 billion in 2018, 13.5 years after the IPO. It took only four more years to double its mcap to $200 billion.
In the two-wheeler segment, Bajaj Auto reported 31 per cent jump in total sales at 357,883 units in February against 273,513 units in the same month last year.
The IT sector's fresher hiring is expected to rise by 20% to 25% for 2024-2025. The increase in hiring is driven by a focus on specialised skills catering to segments like AI, machine learning and data analytics.
India is trying hard to erase Indonesia's wariness about New Delhi, building security cooperation in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean. If Indonesia decides to buy the Brahmos missile, it would further strengthen relations between the world's most populous nation and the most populous Islamic country.
Tata Communications has seen analyst upgrades after reporting Q3FY24 results. The biggest factor is the visible signs of a turnaround in its new acquisition, Kaleyra. The consolidated revenue grew 16 per cent Q-o-Q to Rs 5,630 crore led by 15 per cent Q-o-Q improvement in the data segment.
In about a fortnight, Vistara - known for its premium service - will take off on its final flight before merging into the legacy of Air India. Set for November 12, the merger has sparked discussions on how these two distinct brands will blend.
'The competition between the two is definitely going to be of great interest to the Indian market.'
Leading FMCG companies in the country are expecting their sales growth numbers in high double digit in the April-June quarter, a period when the broader market was severely impacted by the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. FMCG companies such as Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) and Marico, in their quarterly updates to bourses, informed about double-digit sales growth. While Tata Consumer Products Ltd (TCPL) MD and CEO Sunil D'Souza in an interview had told PTI, the Tata Group FMCG firm expects higher growth in the Q1/FY'22 over Q4/FY'21.
Tata-owned Air India has launched a Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) for its employees- in the airline's first drive to reduce headcount. The salt-to-steel conglomerate acquired the carrier last year. As of November 2019, the airline had 9,426 permanent employees.
Framing the next chapter in Swiggy's journey as a responsible corporate citizen, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Sriharsha Majety unveiled the company's eagerly awaited public listing. Majety, who has largely shunned the spotlight, shared reflections on his entrepreneurial path and the strategic pivots he and his co-founders navigated in building Swiggy. "We started with code aggregation, then pivoted to logistics, and that became Swiggy.
Manish Tiwary plans to take up a new role at another firm.
TCS is confident of achieving a double-digit revenue growth in the current fiscal and will be targeting a similar performance in FY24 as well, a senior executive said on Tuesday. The largest IT services exporter's ability to achieve the number in FY24 will hinge on how the macroeconomic situation, including geopolitical tensions, commodity price pressures, inflation and financial tightening worries, play out, chief operating officer N Ganapathy Subramaniam told PTI. "(For) this year (FY23), probably we are there (double-digit growth).
N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Tata Sons, believes that the Digital India Act is a necessity. "The Digital India Act is a necessity because so much has changed over the decades since the original Information Technology (IT) Act was put in place. I am glad the government is developing a participative approach to developing the Digital Act," he said, while answering shareholders at TCS' 27th annual general meeting. Minister of State for Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar a few months ago had said that the government would shortly roll out the Digital India Act - a renewed policy for the digital ecosystem and cyberspace in the country.
Tata, who attended the annual gala event at the National Centre of Performing Arts after five years, was alluding to Chandra's presentation on the performance of the Tata group of companies.
Research and development (R&D) spending by BSE 100 companies has grown steadily, rising from 0.89 per cent of revenue in FY20 to 1.32 per cent in FY24, averaging around 1 per cent over the period in-between, according to data compiled from Bloomberg and company annual reports. Also, these companies more than doubled their R&D spending in absolute terms over these five years: From Rs 25,041 crore to Rs 63,072 crore. While this reflects a prioritisation of innovation, corporate R&D investment remains relatively conservative.
'The race is now on for Indian IT firms to develop their AI prowess and focus on a software-first approach to services as the people element becomes more complicated with Trump's expected new regulations.'
Wedding planner WedMeGood estimates that the average wedding budget has surged to Rs 36.5 lakh this year, with destination weddings averaging Rs 51 lakh.
The National Informatics Centre uses AI to automate document analysis and detect fraud in government departments.
'The combination of star power, compelling storytelling, and action-packed drama promises to set the box office ablaze and kickstart the new quarter on a spectacular high note.'
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.
'What's sad today is that there are so many people who cannot find work, not because the country is devoid of that opportunity, but because we are not doing enough in the country.'
Tata Motors on Monday launched the country's first CNG truck in the medium and heavy commercial (M&HCV) vehicle segment in the 28- and 19-tonne nodes. Most truck makers, including Tata Motors, currently offer CNG only in the small and light commercial vehicle segments. The company also launched a fleet of seven trucks in the intermediary and light commercial vehicle (I&LCV) segment, meant for varied applications.
With a revival in demand and consumption, FMCG companies are looking forward to 2022 with positivity and hopes of sustaining a healthy growth trend across both rural and urban markets while gearing up to cater to the ever-increasing digitally active consumers and tackle the challenge of higher commodity prices. Health and wellness and convenience are going to remain key trends and FMCG companies are strengthening their core brands, driving premiumisation across their portfolios with targeted innovations as consumers are gravitating towards trusted brands looking for quality, purity and hygiene, in continuation of the trend that started since the pandemic last year. FMCG makers are accelerating digitalisation and are investing in building capability in e-commerce and Direct-to-Consumer channels, identifying it as a key vector of their growth as the threat of a possible third wave is still not away.
Leading FMCG companies reported a decline in margins in the September quarter on account of higher input costs and food inflation, which ultimately slowed down the pace of urban consumption. Rising prices of commodity inputs such as palm oil, coffee and cocoa were also accentuated and some FMCG firms have hinted at a price hike. HUL, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL), Marico, ITC, and Tata Consumer Products Ltd (TCPL) have expressed concerns over squeezing urban consumption, which according to industry experts forms 65-68 per cent of FMCG total sales.
'After Om's untimely demise, he would call us every Sunday for the next two years to ask, "How are you doing my dear? How's the young fella?"'
Trumponomics, poor growth, and high valuation certainly don't make a bullish recipe for Indian markets, warns Debashis Basu.
With theatres remaining shut, new releases are making a beeline for OTT platforms, and companies are forging tie-ups to reach out to the target audience.
India Inc is gearing up for a slugfest this year and from tech to paints, new battlegrounds are emerging, observes Indrajit Gupta, co-founder, Founding Fuel.
Maruti is not an online outlier, of course; other heavyweights have rolled out similar services. But as an analyst pointed out, Maruti's all-India roll-out has significant impact given that it accounts for over half of all cars sold, reports, reports Pavan Lall.
This is not the first EV that Mercedes would be making in India though. It has been making the EQS sedan here for the last 18 months, and has sold 500 units of the car.
The group began to outperform the broader market only with the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 while earlier it was largely keeping pace with the Sensex. The group's market cap is up 164.4 per cent since the end of March 2020 against a 105 per cent rally in the Sensex.
As the job markets open up, top IT services firms may look at a tiered strategy in which they hire entry-level talents at higher salaries, amid a major technological shift, say HR analysts.