Economy & Business

New Delhi: Equity indices frittered away a good start to close with modest losses on Monday, pressured by heavy selling in metal stocks after the government imposed export duties on steel-making raw materials to curb soaring prices. The 30-share BSE Sensex opened strong and gained momentum as the session progressed, but came under severe selling pressure in afternoon trade to close 37.78 points or 0.07 per cent lower at 54,288.61.On similar lines, the broader NSE Nifty slipped 51.45 points or 0.32 per cent to end at 16,214.70. Metal stocks took a knock after the government on Saturday hiked the tax on export of iron ores and concentrates to 50 per cent, and imposed a duty of 45 per cent on iron pellets in a bid to increase their domestic availability and curb soaring steel prices. Tata Steel was the biggest loser in the Sensex pack, plummeting 12.53 per cent, followed by UltraTech Cement, ITC, PowerGrid, HDFC, HDFC Bank, HCL Tech and Reliance Industries.In contrast, M&amp;M, Maruti, HUL, Larsen &amp; Toubro, Asian Paints, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Wipro were among the gainers, climbing as much as 4.14 per cent."Nifty once again gave up the intra day gains and ended in the negative."Metals stocks sold off post the levy of export duties over the weekend on iron ore and some steel intermediates," said Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities."After a firm start, markets failed to hold on to their early upsurge and simply lost track to end marginally lower. Metal stocks bore the brunt...," said Shrikant Chouhan, head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities Ltd.Among BSE sectoral indices, metal plunged 8.33 per cent, followed by basic materials (4.08 per cent), oil and gas (1.74 per cent) and energy (1.47 per cent).In contrast, auto jumped 1.90 per cent, capital goods 0.91 per cent, IT 0.79 per cent and consumer discretionary goods and services 0.78 per cent.In the broader market, the BSE smallcap declined 0.64 per cent and midcap slipped 0.26 per cent.Global stocks were mixed, with Asian markets in Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo ending higher, while Hong Kong settled in the red.Equity exchanges in Europe were trading mostly higher in the afternoon session.International oil benchmark Brent crude gained 1.15 per cent to $113.8 per barrel. Rupee recovered from record lows and settled 15 paise higher at 77.55 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, supported by a weak greenback overseas.Continuing their selling spree, foreign institutional investors offloaded shares worth Rs 1,265.41 crore on Friday, as per stock exchange data.—PTI

Equity indices frittered away a good start to close with modest losses on Monday, pressured by heavy selling in metal stocks after the government imposed export duties on steel-making raw materials to curb soaring prices.

Markets surrender early gains as metal stocks crack

Market

Mumbai: Equity benchmark indices opened in the green on Tuesday with Sensex up by 41.07 points and Nifty by 6.80 points. At 9:28 AM, the BSE Sensex was up by 41.07 points or 0.08 per cent at 54,329.68. BSE Limited, also known as the Bombay Stock Exchange, is the oldest stock exchange in Asia, and also the 10th oldest in the world.The 50-scrip NSE Nifty was trading at 16,221.50, at 9:28 AM, up by 6.80 points or 0.04 per cent. NIFTY 50 is a benchmark Indian stock market index, representing the weighted average of 50 of the largest Indian companies listed on the National Stock Exchange. It is one of the two main stock indices used in India.—ANI

 Equity benchmark indices opened in the green on Tuesday with Sensex up by 41.07 points and Nifty by 6.80 points.

Equity indices open in green, Sensex up by 41 points

Mumbai:&nbsp;The rupee started the session on a flat note against the US dollar on Tuesday amid a lacklustre trend in the domestic equity markets and persistent foreign capital outflows.At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weak at 77.56 against the American dollar, then turned volatile to trade in a tight range of 77.56 to 77.51. The domestic unit was trading at 77.56 against the greenback, registering a fall of just 1 paisa over the last close. In the previous session, the rupee had settled at 77.55 against the American currency. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.19 per cent higher at 102.27. On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share Sensex was trading 59.07 points or 0.11 per cent lower at 54,229.54 points while the broader NSE Nifty slipped 28.15 points or 0.17 per cent to 16,186.55 points. Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures slipped 0.61 per cent to USD 112.73 per barrel. Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers in the capital market on Monday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,951.17 crore, as per stock exchange data.On Monday, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das hinted at another interest rate hike in early June to bring down the stubbornly high inflation rate. The next meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is scheduled for June 6-8.—PTI

The rupee started the session on a flat note against the US dollar on Tuesday amid a lacklustre trend in the domestic equity markets and persistent foreign capital outflows.

Rupee almost flat against US dollar in early trade

The rupee started the session on a flat note against the US dollar on Tuesday amid a lacklustre trend in the domestic equity markets and persistent foreign capital outflows.



New Delhi: Industrialist Gautam Adani, Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nundy and Kashmiri rights activist Khurram Parvez are amongst the TIME Magazine’s list of 100 Most Influential People of 2022, according to the announcement made on Monday.The list also includes an Indian American businessperson, Bela Bajaria, who is currently the head of the Global TV at Netflix. Adani is an industrialist, who had just last month, edged past Warren Buffet to become the 5th richest man in the world, is owner of multiple top-brands across sectors. “Adani’s once regional business now spans airports, private ports, solar and thermal power and consumer goods,” read his profile by TIME. Karuna Nundy, Supreme Court lawyer, known for several landmark cases vis-A-vis gender and women’s rights, was described by TIME as “not just a lawyer but also a public activist who ably and bravely uses her voice both inside and outside the courtroom to bring about change.”The profile for Khurram Parvez, chairperson of the Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances, was authored by journalist Rana Ayyub. “Startled and most deeply honoured to be on #ime100, with and for the multitudes of people, the court systems, the lawyers, the movements, and the rights I represent. Thank you each of you who has offered support along the way, you know who you are (sic),” Nundy tweeted as the news broke late on Monday evening. “Bajaria is helping create the future of television. The shows she has shepherded have become global phenomena,” the TIME profile of Bajaria said.The 100 people in categories such as Icons, Pioneers, Titans, Artists, Leaders and Innovators. Top global leaders include US President Joe Biden, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Some of the Titans include Apple CEO, Tim Cook, US television show host Oprah Winfrey and Indonesian Michelle Yeoh; Icons included tennis pro Rafael Nadal, while Artists included actors Mila Kunis and Sarah Jessica Parker of the Sex and the City fame.—IANS

Industrialist Gautam Adani, Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nundy and Kashmiri rights activist Khurram Parvez are amongst the TIME Magazine’s list of 100 Most Influential People of 2022, according to the announcement made on Monday.

Adani, Karuna Nundy, Khurram Parvez Among TIME’s ‘100 Most Influential People Of 2022’

Business

San Francisco: Tesla CEO Elon Musk is highly active on Twitter these days, also it seems that he is fond of replying regularly to a Pune-based Indian Software developer, Pranay Pathole who is working for Tata Consultancy Services.On Monday, in a tweet Musk said that he is not running Pranay's Twitter account. Pranay tweeted, "Many people think that @elonmusk runs my Twitter account. And it's TRUE. He's a super busy guy, building rockets, making life multiplanetary, building futuristic electric vehicles, digging tunnels. And somehow he finds time to run multiple Twitter account. YES ".In response to the tweet, Elon replied, "Haha I don't even have a burner Twitter account! I do have a cheesy secret Instagram account, so I can click on links that friends send me."Pranay has more than 1.6 lakh followers on Twitter. Elon and Pranay are friends on Twitter and Elon are pretty often spotted replying to Pranay's tweets.—ANI

Tesla CEO Elon Musk is highly active on Twitter these days, also it seems that he is fond of replying regularly to a Pune-based Indian Software developer, Pranay Pathole who is working for Tata Consultancy Services.

'I'm not running your Twitter account' Musk tells Indian techie

New Delhi:&nbsp;Gold jumped Rs 170 to Rs 50,926 per 10 gram in the national capital on Monday in line with firm global precious metal prices, according to HDFC Securities. In the previous trade, the precious metal finished at Rs 50,756 per 10 gram. Silver also rallied Rs 458 to Rs 61,792 per kg from Rs 61,334 per kg in the previous trade. In the international market, gold was trading higher at USD 1,857 per ounce and silver was flat at USD 21.99 per ounce. "Gold prices traded higher with spot prices at COMEX trading 0.56 per cent up at USD 1,857 per ounce on Monday. Gold prices traded higher extending weekly gains supported by weaker dollar," said Tapan Patel, Senior Analyst (Commodities), HDFC Securities.—PTI

 Gold jumped Rs 170 to Rs 50,926 per 10 gram in the national capital on Monday in line with firm global precious metal prices, according to HDFC Securities.

Gold jumps Rs 170; silver rallies Rs 458

Energy

Davos: &nbsp;India must establish rules on cryptocurrencies to resolve regulatory uncertainty, protect investors and boost its crypto sector, CoinSwitch CEO Ashish Singhal said on Sunday.Although India's central bank has backed a ban on cryptocurrencies over risks to financial stability, a federal government move to tax income from them has been interpreted by the industry as a sign of acceptance by New Delhi. "Users don't know what will happen with their holdings - is government going to ban, not ban, how is it going to be regulated?," Singhal, a former Amazon engineer who co-founded CoinSwitch, told Reuters at the World Economic Forum in Davos.CoinSwitch, which is valued at $1.9 billion, says it is the largest crypto company in India with more than 18 million users. The firm, based in India's main tech hub of Bengaluru, is backed by Andreessen Horowitz, Tiger Global and Coinbase Ventures. "Regulations will bring peace ... more certainty," he added. Blockchain and cryptocurrency companies have a large presence at this year's Davos meeting, which coincides with a period of crypto prices plummeting around the world. India's central bank has voiced "serious concerns" around private cryptocurrencies, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi in December said such emerging technologies should be used to empower democracy, not undermine it.Exchanges often struggle in India to partner with banks to allow transfer of funds and in April, CoinSwitch and some others disabled rupee deposits through a widely-used state-backed network, alarming investors. 'CLARITY' While moves on taxation and certain advertising regulation had brought some relief, a lot more needed to be done, Singhal said, adding that India should develop a set of laws. These should include norms for identity verification and transferring crypto assets, while for exchanges, India should put in place a mechanism for them to track transactions and report them to any authority if need be.While no official data is available on the size of India's crypto market, CoinSwitch estimates the number of investors at up to 20 million, with total holdings of about $6 billion. Regulatory uncertainty has been widely felt. In April, Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, launched in India, but within days paused use of a state-backed inter-bank fund transfer service.Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong later said in May the move was triggered due to "informal pressure" from India's central bank. CoinSwitch too has paused so-called UPI transfers to hold talks with banking partners and make them comfortable, Singhal said in the interview. He added CoinSwitch was is in talks with regulators to try and restart the transfer service. "We are pushing for regulations. With the right regulation, we can get the clarity," he said.—REUTERS

India must establish rules on cryptocurrencies to resolve regulatory uncertainty, protect investors and boost its crypto sector, CoinSwitch CEO Ashish Singhal said on Sunday.

India's top crypto app CoinSwitch calls for regulatory 'peace, certainty'

Bengaluru: &nbsp;Infosys Limited, India's second-largest IT services company, on Sunday said it has reappointed Salil Parekh as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) for a five-year term ending March 2027. The decision was taken in the meeting of the company's Board of Directors held on May 21, 2022. The board took the decision based on the recommendations of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee (NRC) of the company, Infosys Limited said in a regulatory filing to the stock exchanges.Salil Parekh has been the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Infosys since January 2018. His reappointment is subject to the approval of shareholders. "It may be noted that Salil Parekh has no relationship with any member of the Board of directors and meets all the criteria to be reappointed as Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director under applicable laws including circulars issued by stock exchanges from time to time," Infosys said.Mr Parekh has more than thirty years of global experience in the IT services industry with a strong track record of driving digital transformation for enterprises, executing business turnarounds, and managing successful acquisitions, it said. Before his appointment to Infosys, Mr Parekh was a member of the Group Executive Board at Capgemini, where he held several leadership positions for 25 years. He also served as a Partner at Ernst &amp; Young and is widely credited for bringing scale and value to the Indian operations of the consultancy firm.Infosys board of directors has also approved a grant of 104,000 shares to six key management personnel and another 375,760 shares to 88 other senior executives. These Performance Stock Units will be granted under the Infosys Expanded Stock Ownership Plan 2019, and will vest over 3 years on the achievement of certain milestones, in line with the plan approved by shareholders. The date of the grant for these stock units shall be June 1, 2022, Infosys informed the stock exchanges.—PTI

Infosys Limited, India's second-largest IT services company, on Sunday said it has reappointed Salil Parekh as its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD) for a five-year term ending March 2027.

Salil Parekh reappointed as CEO of Infosys for 5 years

Kolkata:&nbsp;Private lender Bandhan Bank will gradually increase its exposure to secured loans by enhancing advances to the housing and MSME sectors, its Managing Director and CEO Chandra Shekhar Ghosh said. Presently, the bank's exposure to MFI loans, which are unsecured, is 47 per cent, and the share of its advances to the housing segment is at 24 per cent, retail at two per cent and the micro, small and medium enterprises sector at 27 per cent, he said. Ghosh told PTI that "the lender will increase its exposure to secured loans and has set a target to increase disbursements to housing and medium-size MSME loans. Advances to MFIs and small-ticket MSME loans are unsecured". He said that 25 per cent of its MFI loans will be converted to formal MSME advances as the interest rates in the segment are similar to micro-credit or the loans given to self-help groups (SHGs). There will be "no impact on the profitability" of the bank as there is no difference in the interest rates, he said. In the last quarter of the previous fiscal, the bank clocked a net profit of Rs 1,902 crore and there had been no provisioning for bad loans, he said.By 2025, the bank will convert "26 per cent of group loans to joint liability group (JLG) advances, which are micro-credit given to batch of small borrowers". Responding to a query on the expansion of branches in the current fiscal, Ghosh said around 530 banking outlets will be opened across the country, taking the total number to more than 6,000. Recently, the private lender's holding company Bandhan Financial Holdings Ltd diluted 21 per cent of its stake in the banking entity to raise Rs 10,600 crore, out of which Rs 4,500 crore had been utilised to acquire a majority shareholding in IDFC Mutual Fund. Presently, the shareholding of the holding company has decreased to 40 per cent, which is in "conformity" to the regulatory norms, Ghosh said.Earlier, Bandhan Financial Holdings' stake was 82 per cent at the time of the listing of the bank on the stock exchanges, which subsequently decreased to 61 per cent with the acquisition of Gruh Finance. Ghosh said there is no need for a follow-on public offer as the bank is adequately capitalised.—PTI

Private lender Bandhan Bank will gradually increase its exposure to secured loans by enhancing advances to the housing and MSME sectors, its Managing Director and CEO Chandra Shekhar Ghosh said.

Bandhan Bank to increase exposure to secured loans

Banking

New Delhi: Riding on intense retail investors' interest and a sharp rally in equity markets, asset management companies (AMCs) launched 176 new fund offerings (NFOs) in 2021-22, garnering a whopping Rs 1.08 lakh crore. With liquidity tightening, interest rates on the rise, stock market consolidation in progress, return to work from office, there could be subdued interest in NFOs going forward. While fixed maturity plans (FMPs) category could see considerable launches, the same cannot be expected from other categories, Gopal Kavalireddi, Head of Research at FYERS, said.Also, almost all AMCs have launched new schemes across most categories, thereby fillings the earlier existing product gaps that was created post-recategorization, he said.''Gaps in investment objectives, interest of investor in specific themes, availability of funds for deployment, credibility and reputation of fund managers, and performance of stock markets could dictate the quantum of new launches,'' he added. According to the data compiled by Morningstar India, there were 176 new fund offers (including closed-end funds and ETFs) in 2021-22. These managed to collect a staggering Rs 1,07,896 crore during their inception stage.This was way higher than 84 NFOs floated in 2020-21 and cumulatively, these funds were able to mobilize Rs 42,038 crore. Usually, NFOs come during a surging market when investor sentiment is high and optimistic. The stock market along with the positive investor sentiments kept surging post-March 2020, leading to the launch of higher number of NFOs. The NFOs were floated to capitalise on the mood of investors and attract their investment as they were willing to invest at that time. Coincidentally, over the same period, the Indian capital markets Sebi along with Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI) brought in considerable investor-friendly changes which included exit-load removal, entry-load capping, categorization and reorganization of mutual fund schemes, direct plans, risk-o-meter, addition of new category, Flexicap, and other policies, thus ensuing investor awareness and bringing about clarity and transparency in investments.With the need to improve income levels, and also with a view of long-term investing, along with measures taken by Sebi and Amfi resulted in a flurry of NFOs across many categories of mutual funds-- equity and debt alike, Kavalireddi said. Most of the schemes were launched in the index and ETF category, to support both - passive and active investors. The maximum number of funds (49) were launched in the index fund segment, which amassed Rs 10,629 crore, followed by other ETFs (34), which collected Rs 7,619 crore and fixed-term plans (32), which mobilised Rs 5,751 crore.In addition, investors were attracted to international funds and sectoral or thematic funds. The AMCs launched overseas funds of funds, which mopped up Rs 5,218 crore and 11 sectoral or thematic funds, which raised Rs 9,127 crore. Experts believe that the dominance of index funds and ETFs (exchange-traded funds) within NFOs is not surprising, owing to a couple of factors.The ongoing financial year 2022-23 saw the launch of only four NFOs, garnering a total of Rs 3,307 crore, with ICICI Prudential Housing Opportunities Fund taking in the lion's share of Rs 3,159 crore. Further the latest ban by Sebi on NFOs will delay the launch of around 15 schemes, as the market regulator is focused on streamlining the issue of pool accounts, upgrading technology at AMCs, two-factor authentication among others to avoid potential frauds besides minimising operational risk, Kavalireddi said. Also, the latest issue of front running of stocks in Axis Mutual Fund has given rise to issues of trust and credibility of fund houses and their respective fund managers, he added. In April, Sebi had barred the launch of new mutual fund schemes till July 1.—PTI

Riding on intense retail investors' interest and a sharp rally in equity markets, asset management companies (AMCs) launched 176 new fund offerings (NFOs) in 2021-22, garnering a whopping Rs 1.08 lakh crore.

MFs collect Rs 1.08 lakh cr via 176 NFOs on retail investors' interest

Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh government has launched a Rs 8.5 crore community-based structured breeding programme for the genetic improvement of indigenous sheep and to double the production of wool, Animal Husbandry Minister Virender Kanwar said on Sunday. The state government has imported 240 Merino sheep, 40 males and 200 females, with an outlay of Rs 6 crore under the National Livestock Mission (NLM) so that superior exotic germplasm could be infused to achieve the target of 3,000 tons quality wool production by next five years.The state has recorded wool production of around 1,482 tons in 2020-21. Chamba is the top wool producing district with annual production of around 425 tons, followed by Kullu and Shimla, which recorded 249 tons and 196 tons, respectively. The average wool production in the state is about 1,599 grams per sheep every year. State-run State Cooperative Wool Procurement and Marketing Federation Ltd (Woolfed) has a modernised plant for wool scouring in Banuri in Palampur where around 11,500 kg wool was processed in 2020-2021, said Kanwar. The state has two popular breeds of sheep -- the Rampur Bushairi and Gaddi -- popular for producing high-quality carpet wool.The Rampur Bushairi breed is reared in Shimla district, while Gaddi is reared in Chamba, Kangra, Kullu, Shimla, Kinnaur and Lahaul-Spiti districts. The state has 7,91,345 sheep that produce coarse carpet quality wool.The minister said the breeding programme would help improve the wool quality. Also wool of 21-22 microns, suitable for apparel production, would be produced. It will be on a par with world's premium quality fabrics produced in Australia and New Zealand. Himachal Pradesh is the sixth largest producer of wool in the country, contributing four per cent to the country's total wool production.The Merino sheep, a Spanish breed prized for its soft, fine, and lustrous fiber, is being reared at government breeding farms in Nagwain in Mandi district where facilities have been strengthened with a cost of Rs 2 crore to meet requirements of the imported livestock. The sheep have well acclimated to the climate of the state and have produced 800 healthy lambs through artificial insemination. ICAR-Central Sheep &amp; Wool Research Institute has set up a wool testing laboratory in Kullu to confirm its quality and for facilitating wool producers, added Kanwar.—IANS

The Himachal Pradesh government has launched a Rs 8.5 crore community-based structured breeding programme for the genetic improvement of indigenous sheep and to double the production of wool, Animal Husbandry Minister Virender Kanwar said on Sunday.

Himachal aims to double wool production

Delhi: Under pressure, the government on Saturday cut excise duty on petrol by a record Rs 8 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 6 per litre to give relief to consumers battering under high fuel prices that has also pushed inflation to a multi-year high. The excise duty cut will translate into a reduction of Rs 9.5 a litre on petrol and Rs 7 a litre in diesel after taking into account its impact on other levies. Petrol price in Delhi will from Sunday cost Rs 95.91 a litre as against Rs 105.41 a litre currently while diesel will cost Rs 89.67 a litre as opposed to Rs 96.67 a litre now. Announcing the duty cut through tweets, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also said the government will give Rs 200 per cylinder subsidy to Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries for 12 cylinders in a year to help ease some of the burden arising from cooking gas rates rising to record levels. A 14.2-kg LPG cylinder costs Rs 1,003 in the national capital. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries, the poor women who got free connections, will get Rs 200 subsidy directly in their bank accounts and the effective price for them would be Rs 803 per 14.2-kg cylinder. This excise duty cuts along with Rs 5 cut on petrol and Rs 10 reduction on diesel effected from November 4, 2021, rolls back the Rs 13 per litre and Rs 16 per litre increase in taxes on petrol and diesel effected between March 2020 and May 2020 to avoid passing on to consumers the sharp fall in international oil prices at that time. The excise duty hikes of 2020 had taken central taxes on petrol to their highest level of Rs 32.9 per ltire and that on diesel to Rs 31.8 a litre. After the latest excise cut, the incidence of central tax on petrol will come down to Rs 19.9 a litre and that on diesel to Rs 15.8 per litre.'We are reducing the Central excise duty on Petrol by Rs 8 per litre and on Diesel by Rs 6 per litre. This will reduce the price of petrol by Rs 9.5 per litre and of Diesel by Rs 7 per litre,' Sitharaman tweeted. 'It will have a revenue implication of around Rs 1 lakh crore/year for the government.' She exhorted all state governments to also cut local sales tax or value added tax (VAT).'I wish to exhort all state governments, especially the states where reduction wasn't done during the last round (November 2021), to also implement a similar cut and give relief to the common man,' she said. Post November 2021 reduction in excise duty on petrol by Rs 5 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 10 a litre, 25 states and UTs had cut VAT to give further reprieve to consumers battered by record-high retail prices. However, states ruled by non-National Democratic Alliance parties like Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu had not reduced VAT.Post that reduction, state-owned oil firms kept petrol and diesel prices unchanged for a record 137-day period during which international oil prices rose from $84 per barrel to a nearly 14-year high of $140. They finally broke the hiatus with a Rs 10 per litre increase on both petrol and diesel in 16 days starting March 22 but again hit the freeze button after the last revision on April 6.This despite the fact that oil prices ruled above $100 per barrel and the gap between cost and selling price was as high as Rs 13 a litre on petrol and Rs 24 on diesel. Holding of prices despite rise in cost had led to lower earnings of fuel retailers in the January-March quarter. 'Today, the world is passing through difficult times. Even as the world is recovering from Covid-19 pandemic, the Ukraine conflict has brought in supply chain problems and shortages of various goods. This is resulting in inflation &amp; economic distress in a lot of countries,' Sitharaman said. WPI or wholesale price inflation touched a record high of 15.08 per cent in April on price rise across all items. Retail inflation too rose to a near eight-year high of 7.79 per cent in that month, remaining above the RBI's inflation target for the fourth straight month. 'Even during the pandemic, our government set a paradigm of welfare, especially with PM Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana. This is now acknowledged and appreciated the world over,' she said, referring to a scheme to provide free foodgrains to poor to help them tide over difficulties caused by a nationwide pandemic related lockdown.'Despite the challenging international situation, we've ensured that there are no shortages/scarcity of essential goods. Even a few developed countries couldn't escape some shortages/disruptions. We are committed to ensure that prices of essential items are kept under control,' she said. The finance minister said despite rising fertilizer prices globally, the government has protected farmers from such price hikes. 'In addition to the fertilizer subsidy of Rs 1.05 lakh crore in the budget (for current fiscal), an additional amount of Rs 1.10 lakh crore is being provided to further cushion our farmers.' She said the prime minister 'has specifically asked all arms of the government to work with sensitivity and give relief to the common man', she said, adding the steps announced on Saturday were in line with that. 'We are also reducing the customs duty on raw materials &amp; intermediaries for plastic products where our import dependence is high. This will result in reduction of cost of final products,' she said. 'Similarly we are calibrating customs duty on raw materials &amp; intermediaries for iron &amp; steel to reduce their prices. Import duty on some raw materials of steel will be reduced. Export duty on some steel products will be levied.' 'Measures are being taken up to improve the availability of #Cement and through better logistics to reduce the cost of cement,' she added.—PTI

Under pressure, the government on Saturday cut excise duty on petrol by a record Rs 8 per litre and that on diesel by Rs 6 per litre to give relief to consumers battering under high fuel prices that has also pushed inflation to a multi-year high.

Petrol, diesel prices drop as govt cuts excise duty

Mumbai: The community consisting of promoters and their merchant bankers being ingenious have found new ways and have started creaming the system. This if not checked would be extremely detrimental to the capital market fund raising system in the medium to long term. In the mother of all IPO from LIC one saw that the total number of applications as per the exchanges on the last day of bidding was 73.37 lakh applications. The final number which was sent for banking or received by the registrar was down to 61.33 lakhs. Roughly one in six applications was not banked for various reasons. This is a high number and a cause for worry. However, what happened in the case of Prudent Corporate Advisory Services Limited was a shocker and needs to be studied as a test case for all capital market enthusiasts, intermediaries, regulators and above all investors.Prudent Corporate Advisory Services Limited or Prudent had tapped the capital markets with its offer for sale of 85,49,340 equity shares in a price band of Rs 595-630. The issue was open between May 10 and 12. The primary business of the company is a distributor of mutual fund products. It also has a large base of ARN's or authorised representatives or simply explained sub-brokers. This makes Prudent a B2B and a B2C player. The company is the 3rd highest in terms of retail AUM. It has 23,262 channel partners and 13.51 lac clients. The issue was considered expensive by most analysts and the company was expected to have a tepid response. On day one of bidding the retail portion was subscribed over 72 per cent and moved on more or less equally to end day three at 1.29 times. The issue garnered 1,53,381 applications and the retail portion saw bids of 38.01 lac shares. The overall issue was subscribed post the anchor allotment at 1.22 times and received bids for 73,20,969 shares. So far so good. The basis of allotment advertisement which was issued on the day of listing on May 20 had very interesting data. The number of applications received by the registrar had dropped dramatically to 42,868 and the number of shares bid to 71,34,30 shares. This number includes anchor investors. If one were to reconcile with the bidding on the exchanges, the corresponding number would be 42,844 applications for 43,56,476 shares. The discrepancy, a massive 1,10,537 applications or 72.06 per cent of the applications bid on the system for 19,64,493 shares. This is illogical and needs to be examined. Was the system being creamed to give a feeling that there was great demand for the issue and it was oversubscribed when reality was that the issue was yet to get subscribed?The reality. Retail investors applications received by the registrar were just 41,753 for a mere 11,68,584 shares. Of these, 2,203 applications for 63,342 shares were rejected by the system. There is nothing that could alarm in this rejection, this is quite normal. The final outcome is the startling point. The issue for 85.49 lac shares which was oversubscribed 1.22 times, remained undersubscribed. The company finally allotted 68,08,820 shares. The shortfall was a massive 17,40,520 shares or 20.35 per cent of the issue size. For the records, the share lost Rs 67.30 or 10.68 per cent to close at Rs 562.70 on the BSE at end of trading on day one. The high and low of the stock was Rs 660 and Rs 541.15. The three merchant bankers to the issue were ICICI Securities Limited, Axis Capital Limited and Equirus Capital Limited. If the information of subscription of just about 80 per cent would be publicly known, the response could have been even poorer and the issue have to be extended with a change in the price band. This is a very serious issue as the entire planning has been done with an intention to create a false atmosphere about the demand in the mind of retail investors and make the issue go through. Who benefited is clear? The modus operandi of systematically bidding for shares on the system on all three days so that the mirage is created should be checked and the guilty brought to book. While no one is guilty until proven, a matter as serious as this, warrants urgent action from the stock exchanges and the regulator.The persons whose applications have been bid for and then willingly or unwillingly not banked cannot be random in nature. This is concentrated in nature and a genuine database has been used to create over 1.1 lac applications. Detecting this would be a piece of cake for the exchanges. Once the guilty are identified, an option should be given to retail investors who have lost money in the IPO that their shares be bought back at the IPO price by the selling shareholder provided they have not sold as yet. Further, till this system is streamlined the association of investment bankers must work closely with the exchanges and SEBI to plug the gap, and as per their suggestion ensure that no further IPOs be allowed to be launched until the above issue is resolved. Finally, the Finance ministry must take action on a 'ASAP' basis as the credibility of the entire capital markets is now at stake. No one must be spared come what may.—IANS

The community consisting of promoters and their merchant bankers being ingenious have found new ways and have started creaming the system. This if not checked would be extremely detrimental to the capital market fund raising system in the medium to long term.

Creaming the system - The Prudent way

New Delhi: Infrastructure investment trust IndiGrid has posted over 45 per cent rise in its consolidated net profit at Rs 99.80 crore in the March quarter, mainly on the back of higher revenues. The consolidated net profit of India Grid Trust (IndiGrid) was Rs 68.69 crore in the quarter ended March 31, 2021, a regulatory filing showed. Total income in the quarter under review rose to Rs 568.50 crore, from Rs 514.09 crore a year ago. The consolidated net profit in the fiscal 2021-22 also rose to Rs 343.27 crore, from Rs 334.40 crore in 2020-21. Total income in the fiscal surged to Rs 2,274.44 crore, from Rs 1,714.15 crore in the 2020-21.In a separate statement, the company stated that for the full year FY 2021-22, the consolidated net distributable cash flow was up 3 per cent at Rs 944.2 crore. The Board of the Investment Manager (of IndiGrid) also approved a Distribution Per Unit (DPU) of Rs 3.19 for Q4 FY22 ( January-March quarter) to unitholders in line with the distribution guidance. The record date for the distribution is May 26, 2022 and shall be paid as Rs 2.55 per unit in the form of interest and Rs 0.64 per unit as capital repayment. With this, IndiGrid has distributed Rs 58.5 per unit to its investors over the last five years since its listing, a total return of 108 per cent on the issue price. Total return is the sum of all distributions since listing till Q3 FY22 and change in price till March 31, 2022.The consolidated net debt/AUM (asset under management) stood at 56 per cent as of March 31, 2022, leaving significant debt headroom for future growth, it stated. The board of IIML (IndiGrid Investment Managers Ltd) also noted and approved proposal of raising of debt up to Rs 700 crore through various sources including term loans, non-convertible debentures and/or any other mode as may be permitted under applicable law. The board also approved the appointment of Divya Bedi Verma as the Chief Financial Officer of IIML with effect from July 1, 2022 in place of Jyoti Kumar Agarwal. Further, as per the stock exchange filing dated May 7, 2022, Jyoti Kumar Agarwal will take over as the new Chief Executive Officer and whole-time director of Investment Manager of India Grid Trust from Harsh Shah effective July 1, 2022. Agarwal has been with IndiGrid since September 2020 as the CFO. IndiGrid has assets under management (AUM) of over Rs 21,100 crore (USD 2.72 billion). The investment manager of IndiGrid is wholly-owned by KKR—PTI

Infrastructure investment trust IndiGrid has posted over 45 per cent rise in its consolidated net profit at Rs 99.80 crore in the March quarter, mainly on the back of higher revenues.

IndiGrid March qtr net jumps 45 pc to Rs 99.80 cr

New Delhi (The Hawk): The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued notices to Ola and Uber, the two online ride hailing platforms for unfair trade practices and violation of consumer rights.&nbsp;&nbsp;As per the data from the National Consumer Helpline (NCH), from 01.04.2021 to 01.05.2022, 2,482 grievances were registered by consumers against Ola and 770 grievances were registered against Uber.Last week, the Department in a meeting with ride-hailing companies Ola, Uber, Rapido, Meru Cabs and Jugnoo directed them to become convergence partner in the National Consumer Helpline, to enable better grievance redressal for consumers and also compliance with Consumer Protection Act, 2019 and E-commerce Rules.Deficiency in service which includes lack of proper response from customer support, driver refusing to take payment by online mode and insisting for cash only, higher amount charged despite going on the same route previously at a lesser charge, unprofessional driver behaviour and driver refusing to switch on AC when the consumer is promised AC ride on the app.Inadequate consumer grievance redressal mechanism in absence of both customer care number and details of grievance officer as required to be mentioned on the platform.Unreasonable levy of cancellation charge wherein users are not shown the amount of time within which cancelling a ride is permitted. The amount of cancellation charge is not displayed prominently on the platform before booking the ride. Undue cancellation charges are borne by users when they are forced to cancel the ride due to unwillingness of the driver to accept the ride or come at the pick-up locationLack of any information on the algorithm or method used by the company to to charge different fares for the same route from two individuals.Inclusion of charges for add-on services by pre-ticked boxes for including add-on services without obtaining consent by explicit and affirmative action before each ride. It may be mentioned that a significant number of complaints have been lodged by consumers across the country on multiple issues which affect their rides booked through both the ride hailing platforms.CCPA is regularly monitoring the consumer protection landscape in the country. Recently, CCPA issued Advisory against illegal sale and facilitation of wireless jammers on online platforms. CCPA has also issued an Advisory to all marketplace e-commerce entities to ensure that details of sellers as mandated under sub-rule (5) of rule 6 of the Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules, 2020 including name and contact number of the grievance officer are provided in a clear and accessible manner, displayed prominently to users on the platform.Furthermore, CCPA has also issued Safety Notices under Section 18(2)(j) of the Act to alert and caution consumers against buying goods which do not hold valid ISI Mark and violate compulsory BIS standards. The first Safety Notice was issued on 06.12.2021 with regard to Helmets, Pressure Cookers and Cooking gas cylinders and the second Safety Notice, issued on 16.12.2021 was with regard to household goods including electric immersion water heaters, sewing machines, microwave ovens, domestic gas stoves with LPG etc.

 The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued notices to Ola and Uber, the two online ride hailing platforms for unfair trade practices and violation of consumer rights.  

 CCPA Issues Notices To Ola And Uber On Violation Of Consumer Rights & Unfair Trade Practices	

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the Goods and Service Tax (GST) Council's recommendations are not binding on Union and State but have a persuasive value as the country has a cooperative federal structure. A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud, Surya Kant, and Vikram Nath also held that the Centre and state governments have simultaneous powers to legislate on GST but the council must work in a harmonious manner to achieve a workable solution. The bench said that as per Article 246A, both Parliament and the state legislature have equal power to legislate on matters of taxation. ”Article 246A treats Centre and state as equal and Article 279 of the Constitution says that Centre and state cannot act independent of each other,” it said.The top court said that recommendations of the GST Council are a product of collaborative discussions between the Centre and states and it is not imperative that one of the federal units must possess a higher share.It said that Indian federalism is a dialogue between cooperative and non-cooperative federalism and the Centre and states always engage in dialogue.The bench pointed out that there are no provisions in the GST Act of 2017 that deal with repugnancy between the laws drawn up by the Centre and state and it is for the council to advise them suitably whenever such occasions come to fore.The top court ruling came on a batch of pleas as it upheld a Gujarat high court verdict to quash the levy of Integrated GST (IGST) on the importers on ocean freight under reverse charge. The high court had held that no tax can be levied under the IGST on the ocean freight for the services provided by a person located in non-taxable territory by way of transportation of goods by a vessel from a place outside India up to the customs station in India.&nbsp;It had quashed the 2017 notification of the Centre by which IGST of 5 per cent would be levied on the services of transport of goods in a vessel.—PTI

The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the Goods and Service Tax (GST) Council's recommendations are not binding on Union and State but have a persuasive value as the country has a cooperative federal structure.

GST Council's recommendations not binding on Centre and states, rules SC

New Delhi: India has recorded the "highest ever" annual FDI (foreign direct investment) inflow of USD 83.57 billion in 2021-22, the commerce and industry ministry said on Friday. In 2020-21, the inflow stood at USD 81.97 billion, it added. "India is rapidly emerging as a preferred country for foreign investments in the manufacturing sector," the ministry said. "India has recorded highest ever annual FDI inflow of USD 83.57 billion in the Financial Year 2021-22," it noted.FDI equity inflow in manufacturing sectors has increased by 76 per cent in 2021-22 (USD 21.34 billion) compared to 2020-21 (USD 12.09 billion). In terms of top investor countries, Singapore is at the top with 27 per cent followed by the US (18 per cent) and Mauritius (16 per cent) during the last fiscal.Among sectors, computer software and hardware attracted maximum inflows. It was followed by the services sector and automobile industry, the ministry said. To further liberalise and simplify FDI policy for providing ease of doing business and attract investments, reforms have been undertaken recently across sectors, such as coal mining, contract manufacturing, digital media, single-brand retail trading, civil aviation, defence, insurance and telecom.—PTI

India has recorded the "highest ever" annual FDI (foreign direct investment) inflow of USD 83.57 billion in 2021-22, the commerce and industry ministry said on Friday.

FDI inflow hits all-time high of USD 83.57 bn in 2021-22

Delhi: Equity benchmarks bounced back sharply on Friday after facing a heavy drubbing in the previous trade, with the Sensex and Nifty jumping nearly 3 per cent, aided by positive trends from global markets and across-the-board buying. Index majors Reliance Industries and HDFC twins saw robust buying, helping the benchmarks. The 30-share BSE Sensex rallied 1,534.16 points or 2.91 per cent to settle at 54,326.39. During the day, it zoomed 1,604.2 points or 3.03 per cent to 54,396.43. The broader NSE Nifty jumped 456.75 points or 2.89 per cent to finish at 16,266.15.All the Sensex firms ended in the green, with Dr Reddy's, Reliance Industries, Tata Steel, Nestle, Larsen &amp; Toubro, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank, Sun Pharma, State Bank of India and HDFC emerging as the biggest gainers. The BSE benchmark had dived 1,416.30 points or 2.61 per cent to settle at 52,792.23 on Thursday. The NSE Nifty had tanked 430.90 points or 2.65 per cent to end at 15,809.40. Meanwhile, Asian markets in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo finished in the green. Equity exchanges in Europe were also trading with significant gains in the afternoon session.Stock markets in the US had ended lower on Thursday. International oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.11 per cent to $111.9 per barrel. Foreign institutional investors offloaded shares worth a net Rs 4,899.92 crore on Thursday, as per stock exchange data.—PTI

Equity benchmarks bounced back sharply on Friday after facing a heavy drubbing in the previous trade, with the Sensex and Nifty jumping nearly 3 per cent, aided by positive trends from global markets and across-the-board buying. Index majors Reliance Industries and HDFC twins saw robust buying, helping the benchmarks.

Markets rebound; Sensex, Nifty rally almost 3%

Mumbai: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday said its board has approved a dividend payment of Rs 30,307 crore to the government for the financial ended March 2022. The board approved the transfer of Rs 30,307 crore as surplus to the central government for the accounting year 2021-22 while deciding to maintain the Contingency Risk Buffer at 5.50 per cent, RBI said in a statement. The decision on the dividend payment was made in the 596th meeting of the Central Board of Directors of RBI, headed by Governor Shaktikanta Das, held on Friday.Last year in May, RBI declared a dividend of Rs 99,122 crore for the nine-month period (July 2020 to March 2021). The dividend was paid for that period as RBI aligned its financial year with the government's financial year. Earlier, RBI used to follow July-June period earlier as against government's April-March financial year.During its meeting, the board reviewed the current economic situation, global and domestic challenges and the impact of recent geopolitical developments. The board also discussed the working of RBI during the year April 2021 March 2022 and approved the annual report and accounts for the accounting year 2021-22, the statement said.—PTI

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday said its board has approved a dividend payment of Rs 30,307 crore to the government for the financial ended March 2022.

RBI to pay Rs 30,307 crore dividend to govt for FY22

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday said its board has approved a dividend payment of Rs 30,307 crore to the government for the financial ended March 2022.



San Francisco: After Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that he will now vote for Republicans, the tech billionaire on Friday shared a cryptic tweet and said the attacks against him "should be viewed through a political lens". The tweet comes after the Tesla CEO wrote on the platform that he will now vote for Republicans, as conservatives return to the micro-blogging platform. "The attacks against me should be viewed through a political lens -- this is their standard (despicable) playbook -- but nothing will deter me from fighting for a good future and your right to free speech," Musk wrote on Twitter.On Thursday, Musk, who has gained nearly 11 million followers since he first announced the Twitter takeover last month, said that the political attacks on him will escalate dramatically in the coming months."In the past, I voted Democrat, because they were (mostly) the kindness party. But they have become the party of division and hate, so I can no longer support them and will vote Republican," Musk tweeted earlier. "Now, watch their dirty tricks campaign against me unfold," he added. Musk earlier said that for Twitter to deserve public trust, it must be politically neutral, which effectively means upsetting the far right and the far left equally.—IANS

After Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that he will now vote for Republicans, the tech billionaire on Friday shared a cryptic tweet and said the attacks against him "should be viewed through a political lens".