India Financial News

Donald Trump is not India’s No. 1 problem. At least not right now. His hawkish trade policy may well emerge as an outsize threat to supply chains and global growth. But a bigger, more immediate worry for the central bank in Mumbai is tomatoes. Or, to be more specific, a 161% jump last month in tomato prices — due to late and heavy rainfall — from a year ago. With potatoes and onions also becoming dearer, food expenses are out of control. The average cost of a homecooked meal in October — a standard fare of rice, roti, dal, veggies, salad and yoghurt — was the steepest in 14 months, according to CRISIL, an affiliate of S&P Global Inc. The chances of a December rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India were dimming even before the US election. But with inflation spiking above the upper end of the central bank’s tolerance range of 2%-6%, many analysts are ruling out monetary easing before the start of the next financial year in April. By which time, the next American president’s policies would have started to have an effect, particularly on the exchange rate.

The company initially raised 5-6% equity in private placements, setting a valuation benchmark that strengthened its IPO appeal.

Listed companies paid royalty to related parties in excess of 20% of their net profits on one out of four occasions, flagging the need for change in norms, a study published by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) Thursday showed. “The data suggests that though the royalty payments made by companies are reasonably within the stipulated threshold, such payments are unjustifiably high in terms of their profitability,” Sebi said.

Global capability centres (GCCs) of foreign companies expanding their base in India are increasingly tapping India’s IT services companies for talent, with such hirings climbing up to 10 percentage points in two years. The new headcount hired from IT services by the GCCs stood at 35-41% in fiscal year ending March 2024 (FY24) as compared with 24-30% in FY22, data sourced from mass recruitment firm Teamlease shows. In FY23, the number stood at 30-35%. Experts believe there is a consistent shift in tech talent hiring across engineering, research & development (ER&D), business process management (BPM), and IT services. And as GCCs rapidly scale, they will need to imbibe some of the better talent practices of IT services companies, which have historically been hirers of the best engineering talent in the country.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The first wave of claims for India's automobile production incentives scheme barely touched ₹500 crore, an amount that may grow exponentially in the years ahead as the electric revolution unfolds and more products secure certification. Just four companies—Tata Motors, Mahindra Last Mile Mobility, Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts (TKAP) and Ola Electric—submitted claims for FY24, two people aware of the matter said.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Every Friday, Plain Facts publishes a compilation of data-based insights with easy-to-read charts to help you delve deeper into the stories reported by Mint in the week gone by. The 29th UN Climate Change Conference-COP29 began earlier this week in Azerbaijan, focusing on global warming and other critical environmental issues.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Driven by global standards and practices, companies engaged in mergers and acquisitions (M&As) are increasingly placing strong emphasis on diversity and inclusion (D&I) policies when evaluating potential deals, especially when it comes to cross-border deals. “Today, deals are getting delayed if certain aspects are not in order.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Having learnt from videos, a da Vinci robot has been replicating surgical procedures like using a needle and suturing. Robots may be a step closer to performing complex surgeries independently—but will humans trust autonomous AI surgeons? Robotic surgeries, especially in the post-covid era, are being routinely done in urology, oncology, nephrology, gynaecology and laproscopy.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Law firms are advising Indian companies operating in the US or engaging in deals with American firms to expect closer scrutiny under the Trump administration, suggesting additional clauses in legal contracts to protect their interests. The election of Donald Trump has sparked concerns in India and across the world that the President-elect's America First policies will raise the heat for other countries and their companies.

Officials of the ministry of aviation and directorate general of civil aviation (DGCA) will meet airline and airport execs on Monday to discuss the matter, people familiar with the matter said.

Gentari Sdn Bhd, the clean energy arm of Malaysia's state-run Petronas Group, has agreed to acquire a part of the renewables portfolio of Brookfield Asset Management for $900 million, inclusive of debt, following months of talks, said people with knowledge of the matter. Last week, both parties signed a firm agreement that will see Gentari take control of a 2.2 GW portfolio of assets. This is the first time Brookfield will be monetising part of its green energy portfolio after building, acquiring and operating the assets for over five years. Gentari is expected to seek regulatory approvals in the next few days before any formal announcement. Its portfolio in India will double from the current 2 GW capacity. This will be its second acquisition in India this year. Gentari had bought the 185 MW solar power portfolio of Finnish firm Fortum Oyj in May.

Rajnath Singh is likely to meet his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun at an event in Laos next week. Following the border patrolling agreement with China that led to disengagement of troops in eastern Ladakh, Singh-Dong meeting would be the first high-level engagement between the two countries. Singh will visit Laos to attend ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus (ADMM Plus), where he is likely to meet his outgoing US counterpart as well. Sources said while the meeting with Dong has not been finalised yet, the interaction could take place on the sidelines of the two-day event.

Food services and hospitality company SKFS Group is acquiring 100% equity in Mirah Hospitality & Gourmet-which owns restaurant brands Rajdhani, Bayroute and Hitchki-for ₹80 crore. «We are looking to scale up the business nationally; we see this as a strategic acquisition to take forward our food services business, with fresh investments in upgradation of our existing outlets,» SKFS Group chairman Dinakara Shetty told ET. He said the group's existing business verticals «will align and synergise well» with the acquired restaurant brands.

frugal innovation and it can use the millennium-old Vedic wisdom to build the frugal economy that truly benefits people, society and the planet, Navi Radjou, management thinker and author of 'The Frugal Economy' said at the event. «Let's apply the three Dharmic principles of cooperation, distribution and regeneration to achieve both Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India) and Viksit Bharat (developed India),» he said. The Puducherry-born author said that Indians need to bravely stretch the limits of imagination to develop the country.

Indian audit standards with global norms is a «major reform towards corporate governance and making India a developed country» by 2047, National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) chairman Ajay Bhushan Prasad Pandey told ET, while allaying fears it would lead to audit work concentration or disruptions. Pandey added that 39 of the 40 new audit rules proposed by the NFRA board this week will be applicable to all companies without any special dispensation. The revised standard on auditing (SA) 600, which proposes to make the principal auditor responsible for the entire corporate group's financial statements, would apply only to listed companies, banks and insurers, barring the state-run ones, he said. «We can't afford to have any standards that will be at variance with the global ones and which don't inspire trust and confidence of investors, both global and Indian,» Pandey said. «A developed India can't afford to have inferior audit standards. The upgrade will help detect any deviation or irregularity (in the financial performance of companies) at a very early stage, thereby protecting the interests of shareholders.»

Viacom18's TV and digital businesses into Star India securing all necessary regulatory approvals in India and abroad. In February, Reliance Industries (RIL), Viacom18 Media and The Walt Disney Company had signed an agreement to combine Viacom18 and Star India's assets to create India's largest M&E company valued at ₹70,352 crore ($8.5 billion).

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Swaminathan J on Thursday stressed the need for urban cooperative banks to evolve digitally, addressing IT and cybersecurity gaps as he highlighted the importance of improving the liquidation process to protect depositors' interests. Speaking at the Second Conference of State Registrars of Cooperative Societies (RCSs) here, Swaminathan also stressed the importance of coordinated engagement between the RBI and registrars of co-operative societies, respecting each other's roles. While financial indicators for UCBs have improved, he noted room for growth in business, asset quality, and liquidity, he said.

Nykaa founder and CEO Falguni Nayar on Thursday said India is a big opportunity for Nykaa and it may look at venturing into the wellness segment in the future as it is a good sustainable business. Speaking at the CNBCTV18 Global Leadership Summit here, she said it is the culture and speaking to the customers that matters in her business more than the cost. «I think Nykaa would love to go into wellness, which is a good long-term sustainable business that we'd like to pursue beyond beauty and fashion,» Nayar said when asked about the five-year roadmap for Nykaa. Stating that she continues to remain «very excited» about India and bringing great research-driven products to the country that Indians love, she said, «Privately, building products is what current focus is but in the long- run it could also be services.

Mahindra Group CEO and Managing Director Anish Shah on Thursday pitched for a balance between tariff and non-tariff barriers for a stronger manufacturing sector in the country. «Indian industry needs no protection. We've had no protection for the last 20 years and if we had protection, we would not have the quality that we have today,» Shah said, while speaking at the CNBC TV18 Global leadership summit here. «With regard to duties, the questions are around non-tariff barriers along with tariff barriers… And frankly they should (be there) because that will put Indian manufacturing in a much stronger place,» he said. He was responding to a question on whether India needs to impose import tariffs on companies such as Tesla as they look at entering the Indian market.

Scindia had a review meeting with the Chief Minister of Mizoram Lalduhoma and his teams in the Conference Hall of Planning and Implementation Department. The meeting was held for reviewing of various schemes of Ministry of DoNER in the state of Mizoram. Scindia said, “The purpose of the meeting is to jointly look at the project of Mizoram growth and development” he said that under the leadership of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi there has been an immense transformation in the development of the Northeast region in the last ten years. He said that Northeast is the vantage point and the entry point for all of South East Asia countries into the Indian sub-continent and much play a very important role in the dynamics of the India’s growth.

GlobalBees, the house of brands subsidiary of baby and mother care products retailer FirstCry, has reported a 55% revenue growth of Rs 432.5 crore in the fiscal year ending March 2024, outperforming similar brands that have seen slower growth amid a consumption downturn. The adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) for GlobalBees also surged by 154% year-on-year (YoY). While this growth aligns with the overall business expansion of the Pune-based company, which operates in India and Saudi Arabia, the management noted that increased seasonal sales significantly boosted this subsidiary's growth.