India's services sector witnessed one of the strongest growth rates in over 13-and-a-half years in March on the back of strong demand that spurred sales and business activity, a monthly survey said on Thursday. The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services Business Activity Index rose from 60.6 in February to 61.2 in March, one of the strongest expansions in total sales and business activity in close to 14 years. In the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) parlance, a print above 50 means expansion, while a score below 50 denotes contraction.
Even as the industrial cycle has ground to a halt during the 21-day lockdown, the industry has been hit hard by foreign orders from major clients in the US and Europe being cancelled. Also, a sudden lack of labour has crippled the sector because of a mass exodus of workers from industrial units to the hinterland.
'IT companies do not have a large presence there either in terms of market and team. So, the impact of the war will be minimal. But West Asia is an emerging economy.'
Exports had risen over 11 per cent in July, year-on-year.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday received Bhutan's highest civilian award, the 'Order of the Druk Gyalpo', making him the first foreign Head of the Government to receive the honour.
Neither the BJP, nor the Congress before it, made any manifesto commitments on defence spending, even though allocations have plummeted from 4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the late 1980s to less than 2 per cent today, points out Ajai Shukla.
China has started importing Indian rice after a gap of two years and placed orders for the shipment of about 5,000 tonnes of non-basmati rice due to competitive prices offered by India compared to other nations, the All India Rice Exporters Association said.
Blinken also underlined that diplomacy is the only way to definitively end the Russian conflict in Ukraine.
Even though Bharat Forge's performance in the July-September quarter broadly met Street estimates and defence orders are on the rise, the subdued outlook for its global business has prompted some brokerages to adopt a cautious stance on the company. Analysts have reduced the company's earnings per share (EPS) estimates to account for the slow recovery of its overseas subsidiaries. Valuations are also trading at long-term averages, which could limit potential upsides.
India's exports grew by 67.39 per cent to $32.21 billion in May driven by healthy growth in sectors such as engineering, pharmaceuticals, petroleum products and chemicals, according government data released on Wednesday. Exports in May last year stood at $19.24 billion and in May 2019 it was at $29.85 billion, the commerce ministry's preliminary data showed. Imports in May rose by 68.54 per cent to $38.53 billion, from $22.86 billion in May 2020. In May 2019, imports stood at $46.68 billion.
In order to help farmers, the government has increased minimum support price for the last several years. This has made Indian rice uncompetitive for exports.
Following a gap of several months, global brands like Walmart have started lifting orders from Tiruppur's garment makers, leading to growth in knitwear exports in January after five months. Knitwear exports from Tiruppur increased 1.5 per cent in dollar terms and 11.6 per cent in rupee terms in January. According to the Tiruppur Exporters' Association (TEA), global majors have started placing more orders from the region.
With the government asking the companies to operate with only 50 per cent staff strength, and exports dipping to almost zero, the truck and bus drivers idling at the petrol pump say they hardly have any work now. At a petrol pump on the deserted Bavla-Changodar highway near Ahmedabad in Gujarat, several trucks and buses are neatly parked in a row.
Imports also fell for the eighth consecutive months, down 0.75 per cent to $41.14 billion in January, widening the trade deficit to a seven-month high of $15.17 billion.
Good results for the January-March quarter (Q4) of FY24 and strong seasonal demand have led to strong investor interest in Crompton Greaves (CG) Consumer Electricals which is hitting new highs. While there's bullish consensus on the company's future performance, the stock has gained over 40 per cent in the last six months and valuations may become stretched. The Q4FY24 revenue rose 9.5 per cent YoY to Rs 1,960 crore.
President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday said the country's farm production and procurement increased during 2020-21 crop year despite the pandemic and agricultural exports reached a record level of Rs 3 lakh crore during the same period. In his address to the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament at the start of the Budget session, Kovind said the government is focusing on making the country self-sufficient in edible oils besides making special efforts to promote organic farming, natural farming and crop diversification. "My government is working continuously to empower the farmers and the rural economy of the country... I would like to give maximum credit to the small farmers of the country for this consistent success and strengthening of the agriculture sector," he said.
India's manufacturing sector growth fell to 18-month low in December amid softer increase in factory orders and output, despite minimal inflation, a monthly survey said on Wednesday. The HSBC India Manufacturing PMI survey, conducted by S&P Global, showed that there were softer, albeit sharp, increase in factory orders and output, while business confidence towards the year-ahead outlook strengthened. The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell from 56 in November to an 18-month low of 54.9 in December.
Officials hint the visit could finally see a formal defence industrial road map being adopted by both nations.
On the occasion of Chinese president Xi Jinping's two-day visit, Indian exporters are looking for a big boost in export of agricultural commodities, especially the ones that have been impacted by the ongoing trade war between the United States and China.
Severe skilled, unskilled shortage threatens to pull emergency brakes on India's industrial engine.
Imports too contracted by 28.72 per cent to $31.16 billion. Dip in exports and imports narrowed the trade deficit -- the difference between imports and exports -- in March to $9.76 billion, the lowest in the last 13 months.
The just-concluded plenary session of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC), headed by Xi, adopted his proposals for the formulation of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) for National Economic and Social Development and the Long-Range Objectives Through the Year 2035.
Ramoji Rao lived as the interface between business and politics and was an active participant in both for most of his remarkable life.
In the early part of 1800, a 30-acre plot next to Fort Gloster on the banks of river Hooghly in Howrah district of Bengal was the nerve centre of industrial activity; it housed India's first steam-powered cotton mill, Bowreah Mills, which was set up by a British merchant and went on to become a hub of factories - a rum distillery, foundry, cotton yarn factory, an oil mill and a paper mill, et al. Spearheaded by Dwarkanath Tagore, the industrialist grandfather of Rabindranath Tagore, the commercial complex was possibly the first of its kind in the country. Close to 200 years later, after much ebb and flow of history, the hub is set for a resurgence of sorts.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited on Wednesday handed over the first LCA Tejas twin-seater aircraft to the Indian Air Force.
Imports too tumbled by 58.65 per cent to $17.12 billion in April from $41.4 billion in the same month last year, according to the data by the commerce and industry ministry.
The government's target of hitting $52 billion to $58 billion in mobile phone exports in FY26 has been faltering; an Indian corporate group with financial muscle will help.
US-based retail giant Walmart is looking to source toys, shoes and bicycles from Indian suppliers as the company is targeting to increase its exports from India to USD 10 billion annually by 2027. The company also wants to develop new suppliers in categories such as food, pharmaceuticals, consumables, health and wellness, and apparel and home textiles, a company spokesperson told PTI. Officials from the Bentonville-headquartered firm recently held a virtual meeting with several domestic toy manufacturers in India.
The seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) slipped from 57.5 in September to 55.5 in October, the slowest rate of expansion since February. The October PMI data pointed to an improvement in overall operating conditions for the 28th straight month.
With sentiment for the automotive (auto) sector turning positive, stocks of two-wheeler auto majors have been hitting their 52-week highs. Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, TVS Motor Company, and Eicher Motors recently reached their yearly highs on strong sales in the festival season and the expectation of faster growth rates ahead. Since the start of this month, listed two-wheeler majors have delivered returns in the 12-17 per cent range, compared to the 7 per cent gains for the S&P BSE Auto Index and 3 per cent for the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex.
The Ministry of Heavy Industries announced on Tuesday that it has received bids from seven players for the re-bidding tender of the 10 gigawatt-hour (Gwh) tranche of the Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) manufacturing production-linked incentive (PLI). "The list of bidders (in alphabetical order) who have submitted bids in response to this tender are ACME Cleantech Solutions, Amara Raja Advanced Cell Technologies, Anvi Power Industries, JSW Neo Energy, Reliance Industries, Lucas TVS, and Waaree Energies for a cumulative capacity of 70 Gwh," the ministry said in a statement. After the re-auctioning for the manufacturing unit was announced in January, the pre-bid meeting was held on February 12, the ministry said.
Sectors with positive growth during the month include rice, iron ore, oil seeds, oil meals, meat, dairy and poultry products, pharmaceuticals, coffee, engineering goods, and plastic.
Indelible ink mark is normally expected to last for three days when applied on the skin but lasts for a few weeks on the fingernail till the nail grows out.
The US president said that he has sought help from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow the sale of Hydroxychloroquine tablets ordered by the US to treat the growing number of coronavirus patients in his country, hours after India banned the export of the anti-malarial drug.
If states have to fall in line with MSPs declared by political parties, they will have to do so in violation of central order or bear the full expense of the surplus procured at above MSP rates.
Capital goods companies in their Q2FY24 results are expected to report another steady quarter of earnings growth as order inflows and execution remain healthy, according to analysts. An upward revision in order inflow targets and a margin improvement due to lower raw material costs are also anticipated. "We expect the execution of all capital goods companies and most EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) companies to remain healthy Y-o-Y (year-on-year), led by strong order book accretion in the past 5-6 quarters," wrote analysts at Kotak Securities in a note, estimating revenue growth of 32 per cent for India's largest company in the capital goods space -- Larsen & Toubro.
Indian Railways has managed to improve its freight volumes each year since the pandemic. However, its inability to add new industries and goods will pose a challenge for the national transporter in the wake of it setting an ambitious target of 45 per cent share in the national logistics by 2030. According to officials, the ministry of railways achieved 114 million tonnes (mt) of miscellaneous goods (classified as balance and other goods) in 2023-24.
'Our factories are world-class and are becoming increasingly attractive for our global business leaders to use to serve other markets.'
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