The government on Tuesday increased the windfall profit tax on crude oil produced in the country and reduced the levy on exports of diesel. The tax, levied in the form of Special Additional Excise Duty or SAED, on domestically produced crude oil was increased to Rs 9,800 per tonne from Rs 9,050 a tonne, according to an official notification. SAED on the export of diesel was reduced to Rs 2 per litre from Rs 4 a litre and on jet fuel or ATF to nil from Rs 1, the notification said.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies jumped to a lifetime peak of Rs 404.18 lakh crore on Thursday helped by a five-day rally in benchmark indices, making investors richer by Rs 11.29 lakh crore. Recovering after a sell-off in early trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 486.50 points or 0.66 per cent to settle at 74,339.44 on Thursday. During the day, it surged 718.31 points or 0.97 per cent to 74,571.25.
Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF), which markets milk and other dairy products under the Amul brand, will hike milk prices by Rs 2 per litre across India from July 1 due to an increase in input costs. The increase of Rs 2 per litre translates into a four per cent hike in MRP (Maximum Retail Price) which is much lower than average food inflation, GCMMF said in a statement on Wednesday. "We have increased Amul milk prices by Rs 2 per litre across all markets.
After a spike in crude oil and gas prices in October following the Hamas terror attack, prices eased down 9 per cent month-on-month in November. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) and Opec+ agreed to a further voluntary production cut in January-March 2024 to try and support global crude prices. The best guess here is that crude prices (currently at $75/barrel, or bbl) will not likely cross significantly above $80, and gas prices are also likely to remain subdued unless there's a further escalation in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Benchmark BSE Sensex and Nifty snapped their two-day losing streak to close nearly half a per cent higher on Tuesday following gains in banking, metal and auto stocks. The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 257.43 points or 0.44 per cent to settle at 59,031.30. During the day, it hit a high of 59,199.11 and a low of 58,172.48.
Nasdaq-listed Cognizant Technology Solutions has signed a definitive agreement to acquire global engineering company Belcan for about $1.3 billion (Rs 10,853.7 crore) in cash and stock. The transaction is expected to close in the September quarter. The total consideration includes $1.19 billion (Rs 9,935.31 crore) in cash and 1.47 million Cognizant shares, valued at $97 million (Rs 809.53 crore) based on the information technology services provider's closing share price on June 7, 2024.
A senior company executive said the company waited for seven years for the verdict and its shareholders needed to know when it would be concluded.
'Investors should not go for lump-sum investments in infrastructure funds at this point.' 'The SIP route is the best to avoid any major disappointment.'
The opposition party vowed to hit the streets against the "Modi-made inflation" and run a people's movement over price rise.
Once oil runs out - where are we going to be getting our energy in 50 years?
Mytrah generates a higher internal rate of return than most wind energy cos.
'Those movie stars are asking for Rs 35 crore and are opening to Rs 3.5 crore.' 'How's that math working?'
The headline for corporate profit growth has been very encouraging in the July-September quarter (Q2) of 2023-24 (FY24), with the combined net profit of listed companies up by 38 per cent year-on-year. However, the earnings distribution has been very lopsided, with most of the growth coming from public-sector oil-marketing companies (OMCs), banks, non-bank lenders, automobile (auto) companies, and cement producers. By comparison, companies from information technology services, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), retail, and consumer durables were disappointed, experiencing a sharp slowdown in net sales growth and a relatively muted increase in reported net profit.
The soaring prices of metals like lithium, nickel and cobalt, which are the primary constituents of the cell, as well as supply chain bottlenecks, are also pushing up the cost of batteries
The share of foreign loans in total Adani group debt portfolio dropped to 61 per cent by September 2023 from 63 per cent as of March 2023, as the group repaid part of its foreign loans and refinanced part of older loans. The share of Indian lenders, on the other hand, rose to 39 per cent in the total debt pie in September 2023 from 37 per cent in March after a report by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research in January last year, which led to volatility in the share prices of group companies. The group's total debt remained static at Rs 2.26 trillion in the same period.
The President said he made the decision in consultation with European allies but added they may not be in a position to join the US in banning Russian energy imports.
Equity benchmark Sensex tanked 372 points on Thursday, tracking losses in index majors L&T, Infosys and TCS amid a negative trend in global markets. The 30-share index ended 372.32 points or 0.62 per cent lower at 59,636.01. Similarly, the NSE Nifty fell 133.85 points or 0.75 per cent to 17,764.80.
'I think some of us, like Mukesh Ambani, myself and those of us who head industrial units, ought to really focus on what we can really do to make the world a safer place, maybe 50 or 100 years from now.' 'For instance, how can we deal with climate change and global warming, right now?' 'The effects of it may not be felt now; in fact, we may pay a price for it today, but it will help the generations to follow.'
India is the world's fourth-largest importer of natural gas, accounting for six per cent of the global market.
Pushing a barrel of oil back to around $100 would require a reduction of production of about two million barrels a day - a cut that would fall predominantly on Saudi Arabia.
'We are in a sweet spot.' 'Equity, on a standalone basis, will continue to remain the asset class to stay invested in.'
The government has to take a call on reducing or retaining the excise rate.
The Reserve Bank on Friday retained the inflation forecast for 2023-24 at 5.4 per cent, and vowed to take timely measures to prevent any spillovers of global food and fuel price shocks. Stressing that the Reserve Bank has identified high inflation as a major risk to macroeconomic stability and sustainable growth, Governor Shaktikanta Das said the September retail inflation number may be lower than August and July prints. The headline inflation based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) moderated to 4.6 per cent in first quarter of 2023-24 as compared to 7.3 per cent in the same period a year ago.
The oil crisis could not have come at a worse time for the Modi government as its tax collection has fallen short of its 2020-2021 target by Rs 5.2 lakh crore.