COST Financial News

Bandhan Bank fell more than 6% Monday after founder and chief executive, Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, announced a voluntary exit despite a board nod to continue in the top job. Brokerages Jefferies and Nomura have slashed their target prices for the stock of the Kolkata-based lender that emerged as a full-service bank after decades of operations as a microfinancier.

RBI) decision to revert to the multiple price method for auctions of sovereign bonds after three years signals confidence on the part of the Centre and its debt manager about New Delhi's fiscal management, with the first such debt sale validating that trust. The multiple price auction method was suspended by the RBI for most debt auctions in July 2021 amid severe market volatility due to sharp increases in government borrowing during the COVID crisis. While the method encourages deeper price discovery for bonds, it can result in higher cost of borrowing for the issuer — the government in this case — when market conditions are adverse.

Atlantic City’s casinos were less profitable in 2023 than they were a year earlier, even with help from the state’s booming online gambling market

HUDCO) is looking to tap East Asian countries such as Singapore and Taiwan to raise funds this fiscal year after a similar successful exercise in Japan, chairman and managing director Sanjay Kulshrestha told ET. «Japan was the maiden attempt to raise funds via external commercial borrowing, and we have been received very well. There is a good arbitrage; we are getting funds at 6.5%-80-100 bps lesser than the domestic funds,» said Kulshreshta, noting that the company's fundraising may surpass its original aim. HUDCO was planning to raise $100 million from Japan but is confident of landing nearly double that amount. Kulshreshta, who took charge of HUDCO last year, said the company may even tap the US market after the Fed initiates rate cuts.

Russia captured a larger share of India's crude imports in the just-ended fiscal year despite narrowing discounts on its oil and sanctions imposed by G7 nations due its invasion of Ukraine. The share of Russian oil in India's total imports rose to 35% in 2023-24 from 23% in the previous year, according to energy cargo tracker Vortexa. During the year, all other key suppliers, including Iraq, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and the US lost share in the Indian market. Iraq's share fell to 20% (from 21%). Similar drops were noted for Saudi Arabia (15% from 17.5%), UAE (6% from 9%), and the US (3.5% from 5.5%). Russia supplied 1.57 million barrels a day (mb/d) in FY24, up from 1mb/d in the previous year. Iraq's supply of 0.89 mb/d in 2023-24 was lower than 0.95 mb/d in the previous year. Saudi's supply fell to 0.69 mb/d from 0.78 mb/d.

Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, India's top two telecom operators, are set to report modest sequential growth in their fiscal fourth-quarter India mobile revenue, supported mainly by strong broadband user additions in the absence of tariff hikes, analysts said. Vodafone Idea (Vi) is likely to report a sequential dip in its March-quarter revenue, stung by continued heavy customer losses. Jio and Airtel, though, are likely to report flattish operating margins, weighed down by higher 5G-related costs, the analysts said.

Wells Fargo raised its year-end target for US benchmark S&P 500 index to 5,535 on Monday — the highest among Wall Street brokerages — citing optimism around artificial intelligence and a potential easing of borrowing costs. The index has gained 9% so far this year, broadly boosted by expectations of interest rate cuts and investor frenzy around the AI boom.

Mumbai will face double property tax if they fail to display signboards in Marathi or Devanagari script. This was announced by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) today. The BMC further stated that it will revoke the licenses of illuminated boards lacking Marathi or Devanagari lettering, with license renewal costs ranging from Rs 25,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh. This enforcement aligns with the Supreme Court's directive and the Maharashtra Shops and Establishments Rules. The BMC's decision was approved during a review meeting chaired by BMC commissioner-cum-administrator Bhushan Gagrani in view of the compliance deadline set by the Supreme Court earlier.

JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon on the Federal Reserve's rate trajectory, 2024 economy, looming bank regulations and artificial intelligence.

Former Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank President Thomas Hoenig reacts to Jerome Powell saying the Fed is not ready to start cutting rates on 'Cavuto: Coast to Coast.'

MUMBAI : Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, Bandhan Bank's founder and managing director and chief executive officer, has said he will not be part of the bank's board even in a non-executive role after he retires on 9 July. Speaking to analysts and investors in an early morning call on Monday, Ghosh clarified that the board will start the process of finding his successor and expects the names of candidates to be finalized by July. The board may even look at appointing an interim CEO post his tenure, if the Reserve Bank of India approval for the new CEO does not come in by then.

Arkansas lawmakers are meeting at the Capitol for a session that will focus on Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders' $6.3 billion proposed budget for the coming year

Ever since the Federal Reserve signaled last fall that it was likely done raising interest rates, Wall Street traders, economists, would-be homeowners — pretty much everyone — began obsessing over a single question: When will the Fed start cutting rates

The surge of Bitcoin (BTC/USD) past the $70,135 mark signifies a robust uptrend, igniting speculation about its trajectory towards $80,000. Amidst prevailing market optimism and pivotal movements, this ascent reflects a broader acceptance and growing confidence in Bitcoin’s potential as a leading digital asset. Let’s jump into Bitcoin price prediction. 

₹6,000 per farmer annually under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana. However, there is no data on how farmers are paid for the produce procured from them. This comes in the backdrop of tight global supplies and a dry spell induced by the El Niño weather phenomenon prompting the union government to restrict onion exports.

Warren Buffett made a fortune by investing in electric utilities in the western U.S. Now, the world’s best-known investor says wildfires might undermine that strategy. PacifiCorp, a utility company owned by Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, has incurred hundreds of millions of dollars in liability costs tied to a series of Oregon wildfires in 2020 and might owe hundreds of millions more.

The latest edition of the Royal Bank of Canada‘s housing affordability measures makes for some grim reading.

By Frank McKenna 

The cost of housing in the United States today is pressuring household budgets with many weakening their long-term financial security to keep a roof over their heads.

Gold set a fresh record above $2,350 an ounce before paring gains, as investors shifted focus to a key US inflation reading later this week. 

NEW DELHI : The coming together of Walt Disney and Reliance Industries is set to drive consolidation in India's streaming landscape as smaller, regional-language platforms explore merger and acquisition opportunities (M&A) to avoid getting crushed by a much larger entity that will potentially dominate the OTT ecosystem, experts said. The big challenge for M&As at the moment, however, remains arriving at a price point that parties can agree upon, given that even smaller players have hit a ceiling with paid subscriptions, but believe they have a valuable offering because of their targeted approach, a claim that may not always work for bigger entities that are themselves looking to expand their reach.