'It is quite clear that the agitation against the farm laws is against the Centre and they will try to create all hurdles they can in that. They are using all tactics as their sole purpose is to defeat the agitation'
'Investors need to be stock specific and should not rush to buy stocks at the current levels.'
rediffGURU Samkit Maniar answers readers' personal income tax queries
Fundraising via the initial public offering (IPO) route by companies may touch Rs 1 trillion in financial year 2024-25 (FY25), according to a recent note by Pantomath Group - a mid-market investment bank. During the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), 76 companies tapped the markets through mainboard IPOs, Pantomath said, raising nearly Rs 62,862 crore. This is a 21 per cent rise compared to FY23, the note added.
In India, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) majors continue to hold sway, with incumbent brands cornering 65 per cent of the market share, shows a Bain & Company report. While identifying the continued preference of Indians for incumbent brands, the report says that the dominance of general trade in the country has allowed national brands to maintain their supremacy. The low penetration of e-commerce in the country has also helped large brands.
The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board's (FRTIB), one of the US government's main retirement funds, decision to change the benchmark index for gaining international exposure will channel $3.6 billion (Rs 30,000 crore) inflows into domestic equities. India has a weightage of 5.3 per cent, seventh-most in the new MSCI ACWI IMI ex USA ex China ex Hong Index, which FRTIB now plans to use. India isn't part of the current developed markets-dominated MSCI EAFE index that the pension fund uses.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is considering segregation of settlement for proprietary trades and retail trades to avoid misuse and circumvention by certain brokers, its chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch said recently. Proprietary trading refers to trades done by brokers and other financial institutions using their own capital. "There are some people who are permitting access to their clients through prop accounts for a variety of reasons, including wanting to fund their margins.
Is it is necessary to play divisive politics to succeed in the next general elections? asks Dr Sudhir Bisht.
The share of non-resident Indians (NRIs) and overseas investors in Indian mutual funds has been declining over time, despite adding half-a-trillion rupees to holdings over the last five years. Mutual fund holdings for the segment went up from Rs 0.95 trillion as of December 2018 to Rs 1.54 trillion as of December 2022, shows Business Standard analysis of data from the industry body Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi). Their share in overall mutual fund assets has fallen from 4.2 per cent to 3.9 per cent during the same period.
'While Indian markets are indeed not inexpensive, the valuations of largecap stocks are still a considerable distance from being overstretched.'
Health insurance coverage should be hiked periodically to keep pace with medical inflation, or increase in healthcare costs.
The Union finance ministry on Thursday issued a clarification on the changes in FEMA rules which brings overseas international credit card spending under the RBI's liberalised remittance scheme (LRS). Here's how it affects you.
Recently, the government relaxed foreign direct investment (FDI) norms for the space sector by allowing 100 per cent FDI in manufacture of components, systems or sub-systems for satellites, ground segments, and user segments. It also permitted 74 per cent FDI in satellite manufacturing and operation as well as satellite data products and 49 per cent in development of launch vehicles and spaceports. Following this, stocks of related companies saw an uptick on the bourses.
India's current account deficit narrowed to $1.3 billion or 0.2 per cent of GDP in the January-March quarter of FY23, mainly due to moderation in the trade deficit and a robust increase in services exports, RBI data showed on Tuesday. However, for the 2022-23 fiscal, the current account balance recorded a deficit of 2 per cent of GDP compared to 1.2 per cent in 2021-22. "India's current account deficit (CAD) decreased to $1.3 billion (0.2 per cent of GDP) in Q4:2022-23 from $16.8 billion (2.0 per cent of GDP) in Q3:2022-231, and $13.4 billion (1.6 per cent of GDP) a year ago [Q4:2021-22]," as per the RBI's 'Developments in India's Balance of Payments during the Fourth Quarter (January-March) of 2022-23'.
The government has been in discussions to promote such international financial services centres within India as alternatives to places like Singapore.
Urals and Sokol accounted for every 4 out of 5 barrels of Russian supplies to India last year.
We have millions of newbie investors who are clueless about how to handle sudden and severe adverse market reactions, which arrive from time to time, observes Debashis Basu.
Mahua asserted that despite all efforts by the Bharatiya Janata Party to "sound the death knell" for constitutional democracy, India is too great a country to be destroyed by the fascists.
The CAD is a critical indicator of the macroeconomic health and represents the gap between the overall foreign exchange expended and received in the economy.
rediffGURU Sushil Sukhwani underlines the factors you need to consider before you make the decision to study outside India.
'Higher valuation remains the only spoiler for equities.'
Mihir Tanna, Associate Director, S K Patodia & Associates, answers your tax queries.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has updated Know Your Customer (KYC) norms for politically exposed persons (PEPs) who transact with regulated entities (REs), seeking to comply with the recommendations of intergovernmental organisation Financial Action Task Force (FATF). PEPs are individuals entrusted with prominent public functions by a foreign country, including the heads of states/governments, senior politicians, senior government or judicial or military officers, senior executives of state-owned corporations and important political party officials, said the RBI. This change is expected to provide more clarity to undertake Customer Due Diligence (CDD), said the RBI in a communication to REs.
If left unchecked, the 2024 elections may be infamously remembered as the election of deepfakes. The ECI has a tough task ahead, but, more importantly, it has an opportunity to become a global model for scores of countries going to polls this year, notes Ajay Kumar.
Move can also bring a huge change in the way business is done in India, where firms use multiple current accounts, often for even individual projects, making them difficult to monitor.
Foreign nationals who are single parents of minor children holding Indian passports or OCI cards, students who are foreign nationals where at least one of their parents is an Indian citizen or an OCI cardholder were allowed to visit India.
'From a risk-return perspective, large-cap funds may generate lower-than-historical average returns in 2024, whereas mid-, and small-cap funds hardly have any upside left.'
The organisation said it had been compelled to let go of staff in India and pause all its ongoing campaign and research work.
To understand Modi, listen to what he does not say -- vide NRC, suggests Prem Panicker.
'Indians are basically liked because they are educated, they are intelligent.'
In a circular, the ministry said all NGOs which were registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act should receive donations from abroad in a single designated bank account.
Among Sensex shares, Bajaj Finserve, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance, Sun Pharma, Maruti Suzuki, ITC, and Nestle were the lead gainers. On the other hand, L&T Wipro, IndusInd Bank and TCS and Tata Motors were the lead losers.
Market participants attribute the stability to the Reserve Bank of India's timely intervention in the foreign exchange market, both in terms of selling and buying dollars.
It is expected that FBI chief Wray will hold talks with senior Indian security officials.
The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday alleged that bribe money generated from corruption in a Delhi Jal Board (DJB) contract was 'passed on' as election funds to the Aam Aadmi Party that rules the national capital.
A retired Indian colonel working with the United Nations was killed in Gaza when the vehicle he was travelling in came under attack in strife-torn Rafah, the 'first international' casualty for the world body since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
P V Narasimha Rao strongly felt that the reforms would have to be mindful of Indian concerns and would have to protect the interests of our poor and our working people, he said.
"In our statement, we have said that we have told them that we want them to be cognisant of the fact that there should be no terrorism that emanates from their territory directed against us, or other countries; that we want them to be mindful of the status of women, minorities and so on so forth. And, and I think they have, also, you know, made reassuring... from their side," foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said.
In its chargesheet filed before a special court in New Delhi, the CBI has named Raghuvanshi and Pathak as accused in the alleged violation of the Official Secrets Act and related offences, they said.
Byju's is set to go the way of Housing.com and Zilingo. It is only a matter of time. Indeed, the coup attempted by investors will ensure that, says Debashis Basu.