COST Financial News

road contractors, the ministry of road transport and highways have mandated 100% inspection check of quality tests undertaken by contractors in the engineering procurement and construction (EPC) mode of contract by authority engineer for all highway projects as well as for the request for proposal (RFP) document for consultancy services for such projects. This will apply to all road and bridge construction under EPC mode and will kick in for new projects. The EPC mode of contract gives the entire responsibility of design and construction to the contractor and therefore has a longer defect liability period cum maintenance period of 5-10 years. “Considering the current practices in highway projects and greater emphasis on meeting strength and serviceability requirements in respect of components of a highway project over respective design periods, modifications have been made to the model EPC agreement and RFP for consultancy services for authority’s engineer for supervision of EPC projects,” the ministry said in a notification on Thursday.

Harshit Sharma, 37, head of operations at a trading company for heavy machinery, learned firsthand just how expensive living in Singapore can be when faced with the need for nasal surgery

Microsoft Corp. said it is cutting 650 jobs in its Xbox unit, the third such layoffs this year as the company tries to rein in costs and integrate its massive $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard Inc. The roles to be eliminated are in “mostly corporate and supporting functions,” according to a memo sent to staff by Xbox chief Phil Spencer on Thursday. “No games, devices or experiences are being cancelled and no studios are being closed as part of these adjustments today.” Xbox employees had been bracing for further reductions after Microsoft cut 1,900 jobs, many from Activision units and studios, in January. In May, the company announced the shuttering of four studios acquired as part of its $7.5 billion purchase of ZeniMax — one of which was ultimately sold instead. These steps, along with the decision to release some Xbox games on rival consoles, have angered some of the platform’s fans and left them questioning Microsoft’s commitment to building compelling exclusive content.

How to buy a 3-bedroom apartment at 2 BHK prices: Secrets of stressed properties Chasing returns: Any classic book on investing would advise you to buy low and sell high, but that’s easier said than done. There’s a pitch for a ‘defence scheme’ that says the Nifty Defence Index delivered a 206% return in the past 12 months. The eye-popping return makes for good marketing material, but investing in a theme or sector that has done well over the past three to five years is risky, as it’s probably time for the cycle to turn.

General Motors and Hyundai Motor are exploring a partnership that could mean savings on items like steel and electric-vehicle battery materials or even result in the joint development and production of vehicles, the companies said Thursday. The American and Korean automakers are looking for additional scale as they navigate a costly transition from internal combustion engines to EVs.

India's top electric vehicle maker, Tata Motors, is luring consumers with free charging and steep discounts, while rival MG Motor has launched its first battery rental plan, in strategies aimed at propping up sales of the clean cars. Use of electric vehicles (EVs) has grown rapidly in recent years to account for 2% of India's annual sales of 4.2 million cars, but sales growth is now faltering, which analysts blame on high prices and lack of charging facilities. «We want to make electric vehicles affordable,» Satinder Singh Bajwa, chief commercial officer of MG Motor, said at an event to launch the firm's new EV with a battery rental service, the world's first of its kind.

₹750 crore, or 25% of Ather’s fresh issue, is earmarked for research and development (R&D), which is comparable to Hero’s FY24 R&D budget of ₹826 crore, or around 2% of its revenue. Read this | With Rizta, Ather looks to bond better with family scooter market The other objective of the issue is the capital expenditure of ₹927 crore for setting up a new plant in Maharashtra with initial capacity of 500,000 units. The existing capacity at the Tamil Nadu plant is about 400,000 units, though its capacity utilization is only around 30%.

Kevin Spacey, an American actor, is asking for $100,000 to vacate his Baltimore residence, even though the property has been sold to a new owner. Spacey's 9,000-square-foot, five-story condo, located in a gated community, was foreclosed on and sold at auction in July. The sale followed Spacey's financial difficulties due to limited work opportunities after #MeToo accusations. Real estate investor Sam Asgari purchased the property for $3.24 million. Asgari alleges Spacey’s demand for money to leave the property amounts to extortion. He stated, “He asked me for $100,000 to leave the property on November 17 and I said no but he said that was his final offer." Asgari is planning legal action, asserting that Spacey is overstaying and causing financial strain. Asgari claims the situation is costing him $40,000 monthly in fees, taxes, and utilities.

The software engineer currently earns 85,000 Canadian dollars (around Rs 52.5 lakh annually, including bonuses). However, the high cost of living in Halifax, where he lives, along with Canada’s strained healthcare system, is making life challenging. “Rent’s crazy, paying 2,300 Canadian dollars (Rs 1.42 lakh) for rent and utilities,” he noted, adding that long waiting times for non-urgent healthcare have been another significant issue. His company has offered him a managerial position in Bengaluru with a salary of Rs 36 lakh per annum, plus a Rs 5 lakh bonus. While the offer seems promising, the engineer is concerned about adjusting to the work culture in India, particularly with an Indian manager. “I’ve never worked in India, and I’ve heard horror stories about the demands of Indian bosses,” he mentioned in his post. He’s also unsure about the working environment, which he fears might change if his current managers leave.

Mint reader asked if he could pay municipal taxes for his son, who lives in the US and owns property in Pune. Bhuta responded: “Payments made by a resident on behalf of a non-resident are prohibited under FEMA unless specifically allowed. Therefore, such payment of taxes on behalf of your son would not be permitted under FEMA." The only legal option is to gift the funds to the son’s NRO account and use a PoA to make the payments.

Investors cast votes on a range of politically connected assets following last night's presidential debate, giving a lift to some alternative-energy shares and dragging on cryptocurrencies.

Dollarama beat second-quarter profit estimates on Wednesday, helped by lower costs and stable demand for low-priced essentials like groceries.

MAITRI interface on Tuesday will facilitate VTC under the framework agreement between India and the UAE on the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC). The Virtual Trade Corridor (VTC) will be an integral part of IMEEC. Benefits of VTC include reduction of administrative processes and time, reduction of logistics and transport costs, and enhancing ease of doing business . MAITRI is a Master Application for International Trade and Regulatory Interface that integrates multiple Indian operational portals to facilitate interfacing with UAE portals.

Former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin reacts to the former presidents address to the Economic Club of New York on Kudlow.

Married Newfoundland and Labrador-based couple Patrick, 54, and Sheila, 51, effectively retired in 2019 when he started winding down his small business and they’ve been living off its cash reserves, but that is coming to an end soon.

The U_S_ Treasury has sanctioned a man close to the leadership of Mexico’s hyper-violent Jalisco New Generation cartel and known as “the tank."

EPES, Ala.—When Enviva began construction here on the world’s largest wood-pellet plant, it had contracts worth more than $20 billion to supply overseas power plants with an alternative to coal. The company’s shares were near an all-time high. That was two years ago.

Tecno Pova 6 Neo 5G is priced competitively, starting at ₹12,999 for the 6GB RAM + 128GB storage variant, and ₹13,999 for the 8GB RAM + 256GB storage model. Buyers can take advantage of a ₹1,000 instant discount as well as an additional ₹1,000 exchange offer, further lowering the cost.

AI is about to make the cloud a lot heavier. Cloud services and private networks for years had to handle relatively limited amounts of data. Now that artificial intelligence and deep learning are driving vast quantities of photos, video, sound and natural language into the mix, however, data that was once counted in gigabytes and terabytes is measured in much larger units of petabytes and exabytes.

Employee wages are one of the biggest costs for small businesses