Prices of various car models -- ranging from entry-level hatchbacks to high-end luxury offerings -- are set to rise as automakers have announced price hikes with effect from January. Carmakers cite an increase in input costs and operational expenses as the main reason to implement price increases from the next month. Industry experts, however, note that the exercise is also undertaken by automakers every year in December to shore up sales volume in the last month of the year, as customers postpone buyouts to later months to get the new year manufactured units.
Equity market investors would track global trends, foreign fund movement and quarterly earnings in a holiday-shortened week ahead, analysts said. Stock exchanges BSE and NSE will conduct a special Muhurat trading session on Tuesday, October 21.
India's macroeconomic health is in a "relative goldilocks situation", and although the risk of higher landed oil prices, due to insurance cost surges and closure of choke points due to the brief Israel-Iran war, has receded, it is "too soon to sound the 'all clear' for the rest of the year", the Finance Ministry said on Friday.
Owing to uncertainties on higher inflation and muted growth in the United States (US), coupled with concerns around America's rising debt and tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, the world's largest economy has become the epicentre of an unabated record rally in prices of precious metals.
If they act now, they can reshape the strategic map of Asia without firing a shot. If they wait, the next opportunity will come only after a serious Taiwan Strait incident -- by which time the price will be far higher, and the room for boldness far smaller -- the opportunity may well be lost by then. The question is no longer whether this can or should be done, points out Varun Arya.
'If gold's recent surge has increased its allocation beyond 15 per cent in your portfolio, now may be a good time to rebalance.'
Rising for the sixth consecutive session, gold prices rallied Rs 1,000 to hit yet another record high of Rs 105,670 per 10 grams in the national capital on Monday, lifted by expectations of a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve this month and robust demand in overseas markets.
As the rally in precious metals takes centre stage in 2025, most analysts recommend a larger allocation to gold over silver despite the latter's outperformance this year. In the current calendar year (CY25), spot gold prices in dollar terms rallied
After four failed reform drives, a new plan aims to rescue India's debt-laden power discoms through privatisation, accountability and long-term financial fixes.
Amid the impending rejig in the goods and services tax (GST) rates, an association representing the country's beverages industry has appealed to the Centre to not classify aerated beverages as sin/demerit good and bring it under the 18 per cent slab while citing their "mass consumption" as a reason.
Passive funds appeal to investors seeking to avoid the risk of underperformance by the fund manager and minimise the need for frequent chopping and changing of funds.
Among Sensex firms, Tata Steel, HCL Tech, UltraTech Cement, Bharat Electronics, Sun Pharma and Tata Consultancy Services were the major gainers. However, Axis Bank, Titan, Maruti and Tata Motors were among the laggards.
Tata Motors is looking to increase passenger vehicle prices from next month in order to make its model range compliant with stricter emission norms which kick in from April 1 next year, according to a top company official. In an interaction with PTI, Tata Motors Managing Director - Passenger Vehicle and Electric Vehicles Shailesh Chandra said the price revision would also offset the impact of commodity prices, which have remained high for the most part of the year. "The regulatory change will have its impact on the cost. Even the real impact of softening of commodity prices is only going to come from next quarter and we still have the residual impact of the commodity escalation that we have seen during the year," Chandra said.
Gold prices are likely to remain under pressure in the coming week as investors await key US macroeconomic data for cues on the Federal Reserve's potential direction on interest rates, which in turn will influence the trajectory for the precious metal, according to analysts. Market sentiment has tilted away from safe-haven assets like gold amid fading geopolitical tensions and improving risk appetite towards riskier assets such as equities, they said.
IMD data shows in the 24 hours between September 1 and 2, Haryana received 806 per cent more rainfall than normal, Punjab 759 per cent, Himachal Pradesh 510 per cent, Delhi 740 per cent, Chandigarh a staggering 1,638 per cent, and Rajasthan 193 per cent.
'A possible post-election growth momentum may be lost.'
A lower risk appetite among investors has driven gold, traditionally a safe-haven asset, to record highs so far this year. Fuelled by geopolitical tensions in West Asia, robust demand from central banks - particularly in Asia - and US President Donald Trump's tariff volleys, spot gold touched an all-time high of $2,956 per ounce on February 24 in the international markets.
: Build lasting wealth via disciplined, long-term mutual fund investing in India's compounding marathon, Shanaihi, Shanaihi, says Ramalingam Kalirajan
'The primary market's rhythm mirrors investor confidence. While sentiment may appear cautious, it reflects maturity, not weakness.'
Shares of Oil marketing companies (OMCs) extended their gains for the fourth consecutive session on Thursday after crude oil prices plunged to six-month lows in the international markets, which boosted investor sentiments. Traders said the OMC stocks gained with crude oil prices hovering below $70 per barrel after OPEC-plus decision to increase output from April, a move which is expected to favour Indian refiners with added marketing margins on retail fuel.
HUL managing director Rohit Jawa's total remuneration in FY25 has witnessed an increase of 3.75 per cent to Rs 23.23 crore, according to the latest annual report of the FMCG major. Jawa's annual package included a salary of Rs 3.65 crore, allowances of Rs 11.45 crore, a bonus of Rs 3.78 crore and a perquisite long-term incentives of Rs 2.76 crore.
Larsen & Toubro's (L&T) Q1FY26 revenue and net profit came in slightly ahead of estimates. There was strong core engineering and construction (E&C) order inflows at Rs 76,600 crore, with order wins in energy and infrastructure in domestic and international markets.
Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies are expected to witness pressure on volumes in the October-December quarter. However, price hikes will help push up revenues, said brokerages.For India's largest engineering firm, Larsen and Toubro (L&T), the analysts expect a 20 per cent growth in consolidated revenue, and an 8.1 per cent core business Ebitda margin, up 40 bps from a year ago.
'Deposit and lending rates have started to fall considerably. It is likely to spur investment and consumption of durables.'
Dalal Street investors were a poorer lot on Monday as their wealth eroded sharply by Rs 14 lakh crore following a sharp decline in benchmark indices amid a global market meltdown due to recession fears. The 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 2,226.79 points or 2.95 per cent to settle at 73,137.90. Intra-day, the benchmark slumped 3,939.68 points or 5.22 per cent to 71,425.01.
The October-December quarter (Q3FY25) results of fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) major Hindustan Unilever (HUL) indicated weak demand, with urban growth muted and rural showing recovery. Consolidated revenue grew by 1.6 per cent (volume was flat) to Rs 15,818 crore, due to price hikes. Prices of key raw materials such as palm oil and tea remained elevated, leading to compression of gross margin.
German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz on Friday said it will hike prices of its vehicles in India by up to 3 per cent on its entire model range in the portfolio from January 1, 2025, citing a rise in input costs, inflationary pressures and higher operational expenses. Prices of Mercedes-Benz cars in India will be revised by Rs 2 lakh for the GLC to Rs 9 lakh for the top-end Mercedes-Maybach S 680 luxury limousine, Mercedes-Benz India said in a statement.
'If nominal growth improves and earnings pick up, Indian stock markets could see a rally next year.'
The dollar has fallen not just against commodity-linked assets but against other asset prices.
Since items in the 12% category account for only about 5% of total GST, the additional boost to consumption may not be significant, points out M Govinda Rao.
The re-opening of the Chinese economy, as it moves away from its zero-Covid policy, could help stabilise commodity prices, according to some of the country's top metal companies. They view this as a positive for demand, at a time when markets such as the US and Europe have been largely weighed down by slowdown concern now. "Most of us in the metals business are hoping the Chinese economy picks up because half of any metal demand, including demand for aluminium, comes from China.
Generally, it has been seen that commodity prices are driven higher by surging demand throughout the world. But the irony is that the latest surge comes amid concerns about a weaker global economy. At present, commodities prices are rising because the U.S. interest rates are falling below the rate of inflation.
India's economy is projected to grow between 6.3 per cent and 6.8 per cent in FY26, according to the Economic Survey 2024-25, tabled in Parliament on Friday. The survey highlights that the country's economic fundamentals remain strong, supported by a stable external account, fiscal consolidation, and private consumption. It noted that the government plans to strengthen long-term industrial growth by focusing on research and development (R&D), micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and capital goods.
Before investing in commodity stocks, investors need to consider companies' cost efficiency, diversification and valuations.
Gold prices tumbled by Rs 3,350 to Rs 72,300 per 10 grams in the local market in New Delhi on Tuesday amid subdued demand by jewellers after the government announced the customs duty cut on the yellow metal and silver to 6 per cent.
'What the US appears to be doing is to force India to be "the buyer of last resort", on whom their products can be dumped, 1.4 billion people have to eat something, so why not eat American corn?' 'What is exercising the Trump lot is the fact that most of the farms are in solidly Republican Midwestern states: Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin,' points out Rajeev Srinivasan.
Automobile manufacturers are likely to report strong numbers for the September quarter of Financial Year 2023-24 (Q2 FY24), riding on growth across segments and offset by a marginal drop in overall two-wheeler (2W) volumes. Higher average selling price (ASP) year-on-year (YoY), which was necessitated by price hikes taken by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and an improved product mix will also aid revenues and margins. Moreover, commodity prices are down on a YoY basis, leading to higher margins in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda).
The restructuring of tariffs by the US has led to a shift in the list of key product suppliers to the American market, with India emerging as one of the beneficiaries at the expense of China and Canada, an official said on Monday. As per an analysis, India's share in the USA's electronics exports has increased to 7.2 per cent to 3.5 per cent year-on-year in May, while China's share dipped to 11 per cent from 22 per cent during the same period.
The wholesale inflation rose to a 13-month high of 1.26 per cent in April fuelled by rising prices of food articles, especially vegetables, amid expectations of RBI holding interest rates in the policy review next month. The wholesale price index (WPI) based inflation has been rising for two months in a row.
The Adani Group reported its highest-ever trailing twelve-month EBITDA of Rs 90,572 crore, driven by strong performance in its core infrastructure and clean energy businesses, along with contributions from its emerging airports segment, the conglomerate said on Thursday. The group reported an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of Rs 90,572 crore for the period from July 2024 to June 2025, up from Rs 85,502 crore pre-tax profit in the trailing twelve months ending June 2024, it said in a statement.
