Citi Financial News

By Joan Faus and Nell Mackenzie

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will launch the last of five Congress party’s guarantees on Friday: the Yuva Nidhi scheme offering a monthly dole to unemployed graduates and diploma holders. That is not news, though. It is the choice of the day and location for the launch that stand out. The Congress regime has chosen to launch the ambitious scheme on the birth anniversary of great Hindu monk Swami Vivekananda, celebrated across India as National Youth Day. And the place is Shivamogga, the city that hogged headlines in recent years for clashes between the two religious groups. Karnataka’s ruling party is clearly targeting two birds at a shot: the Congress leaders are out to prove they are no less Hindus as the party leaders have put forth Vivekananda’s portraits in all their social media campaigns, seeking to project the programme as a mark of respect to the Hindu religious scholar and philosopher.

Arabian Sea tomorrow, Mumbai will get a vital artery which can give a phenomenal boost to business and industry as well as make daily life easier for Mumbaikers. The Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL), or Atal Setu, as it will be called now, links Sewri in Mumbai to Nhava-Sheva on the mainland in Mumbai Metropolitan Region, establishing faster connectivity between the island city of Mumbai and the Navi Mumbai on the mainland, and decongesting the perennially choked metropolis as well as opening new vistas of development. Spanning 22 km, with a 16.5 km extension into the sea, Atal Setu will shorten travel time between Mumbai and Navi Mumbai to 20 minutes from two hours.

Hightower has announced the completion of a strategic investment in a New York wealth management and financial planning firm managing $3.3 billion in assets.

SpiceJet's cargo arm SpiceXpress on Thursday said it has partnered with Bengaluru-based Star Air to manage the belly space capacity for carrying cargo in Star Air's fleet. The Kolhapur-headquartered Sanjay Ghodawat Group-owned Star Air has a fleet of nine Embraer planes, operating across 20 domestic destinations. This collaboration underlines SpiceXpress's commitment to expanding its reach and strengthening the domestic air cargo infrastructure, SpiceJet said in a statement.

NEW DELHI : Visakhapatnam, Ghaziabad and Faridabad are emerging as India’s newest new e-commerce hotspots, according to a new report evaluating the potential of 100 major cities for digital commerce. Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi, as expected, top the list, according to the India Digital Commerce Index report by consulting firm Kearney and e-commerce marketplace Meesho. “The second cohort of cities includes the major tier 1 cities of Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, and Pune," the report stated, adding that India’s e-commerce market is expected to be valued at roughly $200 billion by 2026.

CGHS scheme? What are the facilities available under the CGHS scheme? In which cities you will get the benefits of the CGHS scheme? Here are all your questions answered.

In the wake of the United States’ approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs, a lawmaker in Hong Kong has called on the local government to swiftly follow suit and position the city as a leader in the cryptocurrency space. 

Ayodhya airport on 22nd January to attend the 'pran pratishtha' ceremony of the Ram Temple. This will also show us the path of checking the potential of the Ayodhya airport" the CM said. He further added, "I am grateful to PM Narendra Modi for giving the fourth international airport to Uttar Pradesh.

Gujarat Global Summit, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman provided a comprehensive overview of the current financial ecosystem within the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City). Emphasizing the city's strategic importance, the Minister highlighted the significant presence of various financial entities and the thriving derivatives market. Sitharaman said, «There are now three exchanges, twenty-six banks, and twenty-six aircraft lessors in the IFSC. The GIFT City is required to host the offices of aircraft firms.

Maharashtra is followed by Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh. Indore, Surat named cleanest cities in the annual survey. Notably, Indore bagged the title seventh time in a row.

Small enterprises big on new firm registrations Additionally, 75% of Wholesale and Trader segment MSMEs remained bullish on consumer demand in the current calendar year. Among the Indian cities, Delhi appeared most optimistic where 87% of the surveyed MSMEs anticipated a surge in consumer spending. The survey analysed responses from nearly 3,000 MSMEs from more than 25 cities in India.

Times of India report, tour operators have seen a noticeable decline in enquiries and a significant drop in prices for Maldives holiday packages despite multiple long weekends in January. The ToI report cited the example of Hyderabad, wherein a three-day package from Telangana's capital city to Maldives would cost between ₹55,000 and ₹70,000, now costs ₹45,000. Or even lower! The ToI report also said one-way flight tickets from here to Male are now going between ₹12,000 and ₹15,000, down from the previous average of ₹20,000.

SIDBI ET MSME Conclave is scheduled to be held in Bhubaneswar on January 12. The conclave is a series of events being held nationwide to empower MSMEs. It kick-started with a successful session in Indore on January 9.

Housing demand in India is projected to grow more than threefold and reach 93 million units by 2036 spurred by robust demand and supply in several tier-II and -III cities, according to Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI).

Israeli military said Wednesday it has found evidence that hostages were present in an underground tunnel in the Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, which has become the focus of Israel's ground offensive. The military showed the tunnel to journalists who were escorted into a neighborhood near the ruins of destroyed homes and streets. A corrugated tin hut covered the tunnel's entrance in a residential yard.

Some industry leaders have also been critical of the inability of corporates to groom in-house talent for top jobs, being forced to turn to external candidates. In the light of that, boards have been paying closer attention to ensure a second line of talent is ready and available for the leading roles.

Noboa said on Wednesday his country was «at war» with drug gangs who are holding prison guards hostage, amid a dramatic surge in violence that saw gunmen briefly take over a TV live broadcast and explosions in multiple cities. Noboa on Tuesday named 22 gangs as terrorist organizations, making them official military targets. The president took power in November pledging to tackle a growing security problem caused by a rise in drug-trafficking gangs transporting cocaine through Ecuador.

Upekkha, a startup accelerator focused on the software-as-a-service sector, has announced the first close of a $40 million fund at $15 million. The fund was created with leading investment from WestBridge Capital. The other limited partners, or investors in the fund, include Godard Abel, founder and CEO of G2 that ranks SaaS companies.

Wipro Consumer Care Ventures –the venture capital arm of Wipro Consumer Care & Lighting, Mirabilis Investment Trust, and She Capital, along with existing investor Fireside Ventures. The funds will be used to enhance distribution growth, expanding reach into non-metro cities and international markets. It will be also employed for brand-building and marketing initiatives.

By Saqib Iqbal Ahmed and David Randall