Country Financial News

NGOs) have received an amount of Rs 55,742 crore in foreign contributions in the last three financial years from 2019 to 2021, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) told the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. Union Minister Nityanand Rai replied in writing to a query raised by a parliamentarian. Asked over the number of NGOs in the country that were registered under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) from abroad along with, the number of NGOs that applied for registration under FCRA during the last two years, the Minister said «a total of 1,615 applications for registration under FCRA, 2010 were received in last two years i.e. 2021 and 2022.» «Out of these, 722 applications have been granted and 225 applications have been rejected as on December 14, 2023,» said Minister Rai. «The refusal of these applications was due to not fulfilling the eligibility criteria in accordance with the provisions of the FCRA, 2010 and rules made thereunder,» clarified the Minister in the reply. He further said «A total of 13,520 associations/NGOs have received total Rs.

Sandeep Raina, Executive Vice President- Research at Nuvama Professional Clients Group believes there will be no significant changes in the upcoming Budget before the General Election. However, after the elections, the government may announce a pro-investment Budget. In an interview with Mint, Raina shared his views on markets and the Indian economy.

satcom, a new way to access the internet as opposed to the traditional telecom networks. The differences over how companies get spectrum has divided the industry. Many want the government to allocate spectrum while others want it to auction it.

WTI Cabs IPO: The Wise Travel India Limited or WTI Cabs has filed Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) to launch its initial public offering (IPO). The company aims to raise around ₹85 crore from its initial offer. However, the company is yet to get market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for launching the public offer.

INDIA alliance meet gave indications that his faction of the Shiv Sena would be pushing for a coordinator of the alliance to be appointed as soon as possible and would also like a PM candidate from the INDIA opposition bloc̣. “ Before Modi whether a face needs to be given is that is there, (we first) need to have a coordinator or a convenor and if possible we have to decide this in the shortest possible time whether there could be a face in front of Modi (PM candidate)” Sources within the Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray (UBT) said that the party would be pushing for a coordinator to be appointed during the INDIA alliance meet and also looking for a discussion within the Opposition for a face to be decided to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi prior to the Lok Sabha polls. Uddhav’s take on a coordinator to be appointed during the INDIA bloc meeting is interesting as well as talk of having a face to take on Modi is interesting as there has been no agreement on who should be the co-ordinator or who should be the PM candidate to take on the BJP.

₹1.45 crores in a single day with Maharashtra leading the top five donor states list. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Kapil Sibal said that Maharashtra donated ₹30.605 lakh, followed by Rajasthan with ₹12.981 lakh, Uttar Pradesh with ₹10.898 lakh, Delhi ₹10.589 lakh, and Karnataka ₹10.513 lakh. The Rajya Sabha MP wrote, "9 AM today Morning! Total raised: ₹1.45 Crores! A heartfelt thanks to all the donors.

H-1B workers to renew their visas without leaving the United States has successfully passed review by the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). The State Department announced last month that the pilot program is scheduled to launch in January with an initial participation cap of 20,000 individuals. However, comprehensive details regarding eligibility and the operational aspects of the pilot will be shared when the notice is published in the Federal Register. Having cleared the OIRA review on December 15, this milestone represents the final regulatory hurdle before the official publication of the program. This initiative is part of a broader strategy by the government to reduce wait times for consular services. Currently, individuals on H-1B specialty occupation visas, commonly used in the tech industry and valid for three years, need to get an appointment at a US embassy or consular office for a visa stamp after traveling abroad. The extended wait times for visa services, particularly in countries like India, the principal source of H-1B workers, have introduced uncertainties into travel plans for both these workers and their employers. The new pilot program addresses this challenge by allowing eligible H-1B workers to renew their visas within the United States, eliminating the need for international travel solely for visa renewal purposes. This move is particularly significant given that H-1B visa holders, a substantial number of whom come from India, often face prolonged wait times for visa appointments, causing disruptions to their professional and personal plans.

sugarcane to produce ethanol could increase the closing stocks of sugar from the multi-year low of the previous season, leading to some moderation in the soaring sugar prices, say experts and industry stakeholders. Industry observers say as the government has a focus on the ethanol blending programme, more relaxation is likely if sugar surplus is in line with the estimates after the crushing season ends in the first quarter of FY25. Khushbu Lakhotia, Director, India Ratings & Research, says: “While the government has now allowed ethanol production through both cane juice and B- heavy (a category based on sucrose content) molasses, the sugar diversion has been capped at 1.7 million tonnes (MT), which is around 60% lower than the last season and similar to the diversion without cane juice under the order passed on December 7. Even under the revised order, India’s sugar production could increase by 2-2.5 MT to around 31 MT.

When asked directly what would drive them to take a new job, employees’ answers are focused on functional factors, with pay the overwhelming top choice, followed by benefits and perks, work/life balance, work they enjoy and care about, and better career learning opportunities, finds a survey of 11,000 employees from eight countries (US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Australia, Japan, and India) conducted by Boston Consulting Group (BCG).

Sales of construction equipment — a barometer of economic activity — is expected to grow in strong double-digits for the second straight year to a record this financial year spurred by increased government spending on infrastructure development, ahead of general elections next year, said three of the country's leading construction equipment makers. Sales of construction equipment have risen by nearly a fifth since April and are likely to close the year at 125,000-130,000 units, breaching the previous peak of 107,779 units in FY23, said Dimitrov Krishnan, head of Volvo CE India. Prior to this, construction equipment makers had reported record sales of 98,000 units in the pre-pandemic year of FY19. «Among major markets (for construction equipment), while North America is still growing, China is a big problem with sales declining 50% this year.

Kapture CX, a customer support platform for enterprises, has raised $4 million from India Alternatives, a private equity fund. The Bengaluru-based startup has been expanding on-ground operations in five countries: the US, the UAE, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia and India.

Paycraft has partnered with NSDL Payments Bank and the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) for the launch of One Nation Corporate Card. This card serves as an employee tax benefit instrument and also comes with a corporate expense management platform for the employer to manage their expenses digitally. The card is built on an indigenously developed multi-wallet platform with transit issuance and processing capability.

Zee Entertainment Enterprises lost nearly 5 percent in intraday trading on Tuesday following a report by Mint indicating that Sony Pictures is unlikely to extend the timeline for the $10 billion merger of its India Business with Zee. The development puts the country's largest-ever entertainment deal on the brink of collapse after enduring months of discussions, particularly concerning the appointment of a CEO for the combined entity. The uncertainty surrounding the merger's fate has added to the ongoing challenges and debates within the companies involved.

The leaders of Italy and the U.K. have agreed to tackle irregular migration to Europe

Brazil’s lower house has approved a major reform of the nation’s notoriously complicated tax system

Chilean voters have rejected a conservative constitution to replace the country’s dictatorship-era charter, a little over a year after turning down a proposed leftist charter

German farmers are gathering in Berlin to protest against planned cuts to tax breaks for diesel used in agriculture, part of a deal reached by the government to plug a hole in the country’s budget

An explosion and inferno at Guinea’s main fuel depot in the capital of Conakry has left at least 13 people dead and 178 injured

Today, the industry comprises only 4 crore unique investors who have around 15 crore folios. MF AUM as a percent of GDP stands currently at 14%. In comparison, countries like China (23%), South Africa (45%) and Brazil (72%) are significantly ahead. Developed markets like the US, France and Australia stand north of 100% on this metric. Clearly more than 4 crore people in India can invest in mutual funds. Over 50 crore people have an OTT subscription, over 25 crore ordered food online last year and over 20 crore have shopped online. I would argue that all these people can certainly start a Rs 500 monthly SIP in mutual funds. At a very conservative estimate, at least 20 crore people in India can be mutual fund investors. Affordability is not the issue. So why are more people not investing in one of the most transparent, well-regulated investment opportunities in the country? I am certain that everyone who is ordering food online is aware of mutual funds and can invest, but for some reason many do not take the next step of considering it as an investment avenue. Why?

Iran’s state TV says nearly 70% of the nation’s gas pumps are out of service after possible sabotage — a reference to cyberattacks

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi has won reelection to a third, six-year term in office