The government's decision to permit in-flight calls gave Uttam Ghosh a shudder as he imagines what may ensue on domestic flights once Indians get talking on their cell phones.
'The committee has been constituted. Different government departments and FSDC members are part of it.'
A reading of the reports suggests that there is no standard practice for reporting political contributions and it is left to the company's discretion to report them as they find fit.
Reliance Industries closed more than half a per cent higher after the company announced a proposed merger of media and entertainment assets of Viacom18 with Star India. Hindustan Unilever, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, ITC, Tech Mahindra and Axis Bank were among the laggards.
India's real estate market is poised for growth across categories - residential, commercial, and rental. Currently valued at Rs 24 trillion, or about $300 billion, it is projected to surge to $1.3 trillion by 2034, and then grow further to $5.17 trillion by 2047, indicates a report by the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Associations of India (Credai).
Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in India have moved into the slow lane, dropping 43 per cent in terms of deal value to touch $13.37 billion since January this year to date, compared to the same period in the last year. According to data sourced from Bloomberg, Indian companies reported deal value worth $23.5 billion between January and March 22, 2023. Data Infrastructure Trust's acquisition of American Tower Corporation's India telecom towers business for $2.5 billion was the top deal for the ongoing quarter so far, followed by the Highway Infrastructure Trust's acquisition of PNC Infratech's road projects for $1.08 billion.
Stock exchanges are expanding the buffet of index derivatives even as the number of stocks permitted to trade in this space, generating an average daily turnover of Rs 450 trillion, is shrinking. This week, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) started issuing futures and options (F&O) contracts based on the Nifty Next 50 Index, bringing the total count of index derivatives to five.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on 50 days of demonetisation.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on the triple talaq issue.
With high credit growth and healthy asset quality, listed commercial banks are expected to report steady growth in earnings during the fourth quarter ended March 2024 (Q4 FY24). Profits are expected to grow at 9.6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) and net interest income (NII) by 8.7 per cent in Q4 FY24, according to Bloomberg analysts' estimates. According to Motilal Oswal Securities, while bank credit growth has been robust, deposit growth has also gathered pace.
Reserve Bank has directed banks to provide their eligible customers with an option to choose from multiple card networks at the time of issuing credit or debit cards, a move which will benefit card users. The central bank also asked issuers of credit cards not to enter into any arrangement or agreement with card networks that restrain customers from availing the services of other networks.
Most members of the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy committee (MPC) decided to stick to the course on bringing retail inflation to the target of 4 per cent while voting for maintaining status quo in the April review, except external member Jayanth Varma who voted for a 25 bps cut in the repo rate. "I believe that the extant monetary policy setting is well positioned," RBI governor Shaktikanta Das said in the minutes of the policy review, which came out on Friday. "Monetary policy transmission is continuing and inflation expectations of households are also getting further anchored.
The win propelled India to the second position in Pool C, enough to earn them a last eight berth.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on the arrests and Professor Guha's assertion of what the greatest Indian of our times would unquestionably have done had he been alive.
Indian pharma companies are focussing on flagship products or mother brands under which they launch various new combinations to ensure robust revenue growth as well as therapy leadership. An analysis by market research firm Pharmarack showed how such flagship brands have posted strong growth CAGR in the last five years, with some even doubling sales. Sheetal Sapale, vice-president, commercial at Pharmarack, said, "Mother brands are analogous to an aggressive player who has put in a lot of effort during the prime years of life but now continues to silently nurture the brand family to collectively cross newer benchmarks of success."
Uttam's Take: KCR's Telangana household survey
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led central government will use the unorganised workers database - e-Shram portal - to provide the benefits of various government programmes to the nearly 300 million workers over the next five years, if it is voted to power for the third consecutive term in the upcoming general elections. "We have registered unorganised workers on the e-Shram platform. "We will reach out to the e-Shram registered 'shramik bandhu' and help them avail the benefits of various government programmes that they are eligible for," the manifesto of the party read.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on the Aamir Khan controversy.
Despite all the noise around India's chance to leverage the China-plus one strategy, India's share of global foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows fell from 3.5 per cent in the first nine months of 2022 to 2.19 per cent in the same period in 2023, according to OECD data. The sharp drop of 54 per cent is much steeper than the overall global FDI inflow decline of 26 per cent in the first nine months. FDI inflows to China have fallen dramatically from a share of 12.5 per cent in the first nine months of 2022 to only 1.7 per cent in the same period in 2023.
The wholesale price index (WPI)-based inflation rose in December at 0.73 per cent mainly due to a sharp rise in food prices. The WPI inflation was in the negative zone from April to October and had turned positive in November at 0.26 per cent.
'Currently, our individual first premium would be in the Rs 3,000-Rs 3,200 crore range. We want to take that to about Rs 6,000 crore in three years.'
In addition to regulatory actions against small and midcaps, tighter liquidity conditions are another headwind that stocks are facing this month. Market observers say advance tax outflows and capital gains-related adjustments will weigh on the markets in the near term.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on the JNU ruckus.
Indian colts' victory was backed by a grand show of character to hold off pressure from the Dutch side, and the cynosure of India's defence was Rohit who was hard to breach -- he blocked away six successive penalty corners in the final quarter ensuring India emerge victorious. He was awarded player of the match for his efforts.
India Inc reported an uptick in revenue growth in the January-March quarter (Q4) of 2023-24 (FY24), but it came at the cost of a deceleration in earnings growth.
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.
The principal commissioner has been made responsible for developing and approving any intelligence, conducting search, and completing investigations and relevant subsequent actions, including at the lower field formations, points out T N C Rajagopalan.
Uttam Ghosh on the Pradhan Mantri's year :)))
Private equity (PE) investments in India have fallen to a 6-year low at $24.2 billion in the financial year ending March 2024. Investments via PE deals are down 47 per cent compared to FY23, when private equity deals worth $45.8 billion were signed. According to data sourced from Bloomberg, PE firms had signed record deals worth $80 billion in the financial year ending March 2022.
Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com offers his take on the battle for Delhi's assembly.
Bank account holders are no longer required to visit their bank branches to update 'know your customer' (KYC) details provided they have already submitted valid documents and not changed their address, the RBI has said. Instead, if there is no change in KYC information, they can submit a self-declaration through email-id, registered mobile number, ATMs, or any other digital channels. Following up on Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das stating that banks should not insist on branch visits for KYC updation, the central bank on Thursday issued guidelines for the same.
State Bank of India on Monday moved the Supreme Court seeking an extension of time till June 30 to disclose details of each electoral bond encashed by political parties.
Thrust on infrastructure and capital expenditure is expected to continue in the Union Budget for FY25.
Uttam Ghosh offers his take on the RBI's revelation that Rs 15.28 lakh crore, or 99 per cent of the junked 500 and 1,000 rupee notes, have returned to the banking system.
The Reserve Bank of India's interest rate decision, macroeconomic data and global trends will drive investors' sentiment this week, with markets hoping to continue the positive momentum after ending FY24 on a buoyant note, analysts said. In addition, the trading activity of foreign investors, the rupee-dollar trend and the movement of global oil benchmark Brent crude would also influence trading in equity markets. The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 14,659.83 points or 24.85 per cent in the 2023-24.
As per the Interim Budget 2024-25 document tabled in the Lok Sabha, the government is not expected to receive any money from monetisation of public assets in the current fiscal.
A higher-than-expected consumer price inflation (CPI) print for March in the US has dashed hopes of an interest rate cut by the US Federal Reserve (US Fed) in June. Analysts now expect the US central bank to start cutting rates in September, provided inflation remains in check and oil prices remain supportive. The markets, analysts believe, partially factored in this possibility.
Mobile wallet adoption is surging in India and swiftly becoming a primary payment option, surpassing traditional methods like cash and cards. Over the next few years, payments via mobile wallets in India are likely to surpass the Rs 531.8 trillion mark in 2028, witnessing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.3 per cent between 2024 and 2028, according to GlobalData - a London-based leading data and analytics company. The value of mobile wallet payments in India, as per a GlobalData report, grew at a CAGR of 72.1 per cent between 2019 and 2023 to reach Rs 202.8 trillion ($2.5 trillion) in 2023.