Beyond Financial News

student suicides, 23 to date this year in the country's biggest coaching hub of Kota alone, has the study centres on the defensive. The heads of coaching institutes in Kota, where about 200,000 students from all over the country are currently preparing for various entrance exams including JEE and NEET, said they are taking steps aimed at mitigation. Some are putting sports on the daily activity menu, while others are tracking psychological wellbeing and daily attendance, apart from having psychiatrists and psychologists on hand to keep depression at bay. Academic and industry experts told ET the problem goes beyond just the coaching factories.

Silver Lake is evaluating a potential debt deal to pay itself a dividend out of Ticketek owner TEG, its entertainment portfolio company that has been the subject of an estimated $2 billion sale campaign for at least three months.

Climate change has sharply boosted the risk of fast-spreading wildfires, according to a Californian study published Wednesday that offers lessons for prevention after recent disasters in Canada, Greece and Hawaii. Scientists at the Breakthrough Institute, a non-profit research centre, found that human-caused warming increased the frequency of «extreme» wildfires by 25 percent on average compared to the pre-industrial era, in a study in the journal Nature. Examining a series of blazes from 2003 to 2020, they used machine learning to analyse the link between higher average temperatures, dryer conditions and the fastest-spreading blazes — ones that burn more than 10,000 acres (4,000 hectares) a day. The impact of climate change varied from fire to fire. In certain partly dry conditions, global warming pushed the area beyond key thresholds, making extreme fires much more likely. In very dry conditions, the impact was less. «This means that we should pay the closest attention to the places and times that historically have experienced conditions just on the moist side of these thresholds, but which are being pushed over these thresholds onto the dry side by background warming,» lead author Patrick Brown told AFP. The researchers calculated that the risk could increase on average by 59 percent by the end of the century under a «low-emissions» scenario where global warming is limited to 1.8 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels, and up to 172 percent in an unbridled high-emissions scenario. Earth's surface has already warmed 1.2C. Using data from recorded fires, the researchers measured the probability of a given blaze turning into an «extreme» one.

Extending the life of Origin Energy’s 2800-megawatt Eraring coal-fired power station in NSW by two years would significantly ease pressure on the electricity grid, according to modelling done by the Australian Energy Market Operator.

Mint explains: A transit hub is an airport that provides smooth connectivity from one foreign destination to another. Ideally, a transit hub should enable a seamless transfer experience to someone flying from country A to country C via country B. A transit hub often requires a stronghold of a large carrier with a widespread network so that the airline can offer one-stop connectivity to passengers with a wait time of no more than 2 to 3 hours between flights.

Blockchain tech company Paxos published a blog post on Tuesday illustrating how Web3 can empower enterprises in the financial sector, and kickstart a “new era” of digital sovereignty.

Zomato, which posted its first ever quarterly profit earlier this month, said it currently has no plans to pay dividends to shareholders but will look into doing so in future, chief financial officer Akshant Goyal said at the company’s annual general meeting on Wednesday. “We’ll continue evaluating that as we go along. At this point there is nothing that we’ve decided.

startups," he said in an interview to a news channel. Singh underscored India's stellar track record in space commerce, citing the successful launch of over 380 foreign satellites, generating substantial revenues exceeding 250 million euros and $170 million from launching US satellites.

For almost a decade, I’ve been listening to digital prophets predict a future where banks save billions of dollars, customers can trace their mangoes back to the organic farm where they were grown, and financial intermediaries are a thing of the past, all thanks to the blockchain. I’ve been waiting for that future to arrive, but I’ve never come across it in my daily life.

Rajeev Radhakrishnan, Head-Fixed Income, SBI Mutual Fund, says “the bigger comfort from a fixed income perspective today is that a significant amount of tightening has already been done. Secondly, even when you look at a one-year ahead estimate basis on inflation, even if you assume the expected average inflation to be about 5.5%, fixed income yields today are anywhere between 7% and 8% depending on tenors. So a one-year T-bill today is trading north of 7%. We still have real returns available in fixed income instruments in India today. That, apart from the diversification angle that you did mention initially, would be the key investment points from the Indian fixed income angle. ”A lot of data is coming in where investors are looking very keen on investing in fixed deposits and looking at the interest rate trajectory so far, where debt looks very attractive for all those investors who want to maybe rebalance their portfolio or have a debt exposure. But going ahead, what is the story that you see brewing because in India, if we talk about domestic triggers, inflation still remains a concern, monsoon is predicted to be a dampener in September also. Seeing the kind of situation that is emerging, what is likely on the interest rate front?Coming to some of the factors you mentioned in terms of potential risk factors from a fixed income market perspective, we still have inflation which is fairly elevated and above the upper end of the policy target.

Meta said on Tuesday it had uncovered links between people associated with Chinese law enforcement and a long-running but largely ineffectual operation to positively influence people on social media about China. The social media giant removed around 7,700 Facebook accounts and hundreds of other pages, groups and Instagram accounts connected to the so-called «Spamouflage» campaign, elements of which have been active since 2018, it said in a quarterly security report. The «Spamouflage» network has engaged in spurts of activity over the last several years pushing positive narratives about China and negative commentary about the United States, Western foreign policies and critics of the Chinese government. With the latest activity detected, Meta executives said they believed that «Spamouflage» had become the largest known cross-platform influence operation to date, with a presence on at least 50 services. Clusters of the campaign's fake accounts were run from different parts of China, but shared digital infrastructure and appeared to operate with clear shift patterns, including breaks for lunch and dinner on Beijing time, Meta said. China's foreign ministry said it was not aware of the findings, but added that individuals and institutions have often launched campaigns against China on social media platforms. «We hope that the relevant company adheres to the principle of objectivity and impartiality, and avoids double standards.

₹358 crore. Shakti Pumps share price opened at intraday low of ₹717.50 apiece on BSE, Shakti Pumps stock price hit an intraday high of ₹861.90. According to the company's exchange filing, the Haryana Renewable Energy Department (HAREDA) awarded Shakti Pumps its first work order under the KUSUM-3 scheme for 7,781 pumps.

Bhaderwah Rajmash and Sulai honey of Doda and Ramban districts of Jammu and Kashmir have been granted Geographical Indication (GI) tags. Officials said the development signifies a great leap in promoting these exceptionally popular items of the region at the international level. Jammu-based organisations had applied for a GI tag for eight different traditional items from various districts of the Jammu region last year. «Doda and Ramban districts have got two GI tags today.

income tax laws or any other law. Likewise, there is also no limit to which a person can give a gift in cash.

Lingaraj Temple, dating back to the 11th century, has become the center of unrest since Monday evening. As per a TOI report, a clash between two factions of priests over a crucial annual ritual, the offering of sacred threads known as 'paitalagi,' has led to a regrettable suspension of all services.

weather forecast for the day of the match, September 2, predicts heavy thunderstorms in Kandy. As fans and cricket aficionados brace for this monumental encounter, they anxiously monitor the weather updates, hoping for a rain-free spectacle. The significance of an India-Pakistan match is undeniable, resonating beyond the cricketing realm.

Neeraj Chopra has etched his name in history as the first Indian athlete to clinch a gold medal in javelin throw at the World Athletics Championships. With an astonishing throw covering a distance of 88.17 meters, Chopra seized the gold medal, marking an epochal moment in the annals of Indian athletics.

Indians are now considering gold loans as smart loans due to their faster processing and flexible repayment options, says George Alexander Muthoot, MD, Muthoot Finance. The NBFC, which has received permission from the RBI to open 114 new branches, is optimistic about growing its gold loan book by 10-15% in FY24. Edited excerpts from an interview:Your loan AUM rose 21% YoY to Rs 76,799 crore in Q1. What is the guidance ahead of the festive season?We are delighted to report strong growth in an otherwise challenging macro environment. In Q1FY24, we reported the highest-ever quarterly gold loan disbursement of Rs 53,612 crore and achieved an all-time high gold loan portfolio growth for any Q1. Our consolidated loan AUM grew 21% YoY to Rs 76,799 crore and consolidated profit after tax grew 27% YoY at Rs 1,045 crore. Over the past several years, we have observed a paradigm shift in the perception of gold loans. More customers now consider gold loans as smart loans due to their faster processing and flexible repayment options.

flights more convinient, Google Flights has unveiled a new feature known as "Insights," designed to assist travelers in making informed decisions about when to book their flight tickets for the best prices. Building upon its existing offerings such as price tracking and comparison tools, this feature utilizes historical flight data to recommend the optimal time to secure flight bookings at the most affordable rates.Google Insights Functionality: The newly launched Insights feature serves as a guide for users, leveraging historical flight data to identify patterns in ticket pricing.

international students and reducing the likelihood of immediate job-seeking upon arrival, the Australian government has announced an increase in the minimum savings requirement for obtaining a student visa. As of October 1, international students will be required to demonstrate savings amounting to $24,505, a 17% surge from the previous threshold. This adjustment marks the first indexation of the savings benchmark since 2019, signifying a necessary catch-up to align with current economic conditions. The government's decision also includes the closure of a previously exploited loophole that enabled educational institutions to transition international students, who had spent less than six months in Australia, into a specialized arrangement granting them work access. The employment-focused initiative, known as the concurrent study function, witnessed a significant uptick in the initial half of 2023, reaching a total of 17,000 participants. This figure notably surpasses the combined count of approximately 10,500 from the analogous period encompassing both 2019 and 2022. Concurrent enrolments, which permit students to simultaneously register for multiple courses, have become increasingly popular among international students. These modifications to student visa requirements and work access regulations underscore the government's commitment to maintaining a balanced and sustainable educational environment for international students in Australia.

emerging-market assets eased on Tuesday as China continued to drip-feed its stimulus measures. The month-end optimism echoed in everything from a tech-stock rally in Hong Kong to firmer iron ore prices in Singapore and a stronger South African rand. Beyond the China-themed assets however, markets were muted with currencies trading within a range and stocks paring gains.