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Yogesh Patil, Chief Investment Officer -Equity at LIC Mutual Fund. In an interview with Mint, Patil talked about the market's performance in 2023 and the outlook. Edited excerpts: The government has already announced many measures such as production-linked incentives (PLI) to propel economic growth.

Hindalco Industries has seen its share price rise more than 20% during the period. Also Read- HFCL share price locked at over 7% upper circuit to hit 52-week high mark: What drove the rally? Nevertheless, on the Global front the demand growth has remained muted (around 2% in 2023 as per ICRA estimates). While the global copper demand was expected to get a boost by the opening up of China economy post easing of Covid-19 curbs at the start of 2023, the same however did not happen leading to disappointment.

BSE Sensex reached a historic high of 71,913 points last week, concluding at 71,106, with a decline of 376.79 points, or 0.53%. Also Read: 27 Nifty 50 stocks recorded new all-time highs this year; will the rally continue in 2024? In the sectoral domain, Nifty FMCG, Nifty Oil & Gas, and Nifty Pharma saw gains of over 1%. Conversely, Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Media, Nifty Auto, Nifty Metal, and Nifty Bank dropped between 1% and 3.08%.

Non-commercial traders — a group that includes hedge funds, asset managers and other speculative market players — boosted their bearish bets on the greenback in the week ended Tuesday, according to CFTC data compiled by Bloomberg. More than 39,000 contracts are now tied to expectations the US currency will fall, up more than 10,000 from a week ago when the Fed was preparing to meet, the data show. The currency has suffered a pronounced slump in the wake of that confab, when the Fed released updated economic projections forecasting additional monetary easing next year.

2023, year-to-date, yellow metal's gains are not its best in the last 10 years. The top returns were delivered by it amid the Covid virus break in 2020 at 28.23%, highlighting why it is the best hedge in uncertain times. Commenting on yellow metal's performance, Palka Arora Chopra, Director, Master Capital Services said that gold failed to beat other asset classes this year, despite outperforming initially and hitting lifetime highs.

RERA across 27 states and eight Union Territories have resolved up to 1,16,300 cases of homebuyers' disputes till November 28, 2023, according to ANAROCK Research report based on data from the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA). Out of this, 38% of cases, or approximately 44,602 complaints were resolved in Uttar Pradesh alone, ANAROCK said. Haryana came a distant second with 18% of cases or approximately 20,539 cases resolved in the state. Thirteen per cent of cases or around 15,423 cases were resolved in Maharashtra. The three states cumulatively accounted for nearly 69% of the total disposed cases under RERA in the country. «Resolving homebuyer concerns is one of the main functions of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, which it has been demonstrably fulfilling,» says Anuj Puri, Chairman — ANAROCK Group. “Uttar Pradesh has resolved the highest number of cases. Considering how severely Noida and Greater Noida in UP had been impacted by unscrupulous players, this is noteworthy.” RERA: State-wise list of total cases disposed

Nitin Raheja, ED, Julius Baer Wealth Advisors, says “OMCs are short-term tactical plays and that is how we look at them. If in the next couple of months, before the election code comes into play, crude remains benign, then they will be good, in fact, for a good part of the next year. But fundamentally, the fact that they do not really have complete freedom and there is interference from the government and the ministry, means they can’t be long-term strategic compounders.” This year has been marked by the comeback of the oil and gas PSUs. What is your take on this because there was always a regulatory overhang which challenged the institutional investors not to participate in these stocks in a big way. Do you think some of those worries are getting abated now? Nitin Raheja: I do not think so. I do not see anything which has significantly changed from a regulatory perspective. These are good short-term tactical plays. OMCs are benefitting from the fact that crude has remained relatively benign, so they have not faced those pressures. If in the next couple of months, before the election code comes into play, crude remains benign, then they will be good, in fact, for a good part of the next year. But fundamentally, the fact that they do not really have complete freedom and there is interference from time to time from the government and the ministry do not make them long-term strategic compounders. They are good short-term plays that is how we look at it.

Ukrainian Defence Ministry has been apprehended on charges of embezzling USD 40 million (1.5 billion Ukrainian hryvnia) related to a contract for artillery shells, CNN reported the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU). The SBU alleged that the official, in December of the previous year, entered into an agreement with a specialised export company for the procurement of a substantial batch of artillery shells. Subsequently, a more advantageous contract for the supply of these shells, excluding intermediaries, thereby reducing delivery time and costs, was later signed with the same manufacturer, CNN reported. According to the SBU, the defence official extended the original, costlier contract, resulting in the transfer of funds amounting to USD 40 million to the accounts of a connected foreign intermediary firm. The SBU claimed that it is in possession of documents substantiating these illicit activities, with the accused facing a potential prison sentence of up to 15 years if proven guilty. The Ukrainian Ministry of Defence has initiated efforts to recover the misappropriated funds.

The crypto market has become part of the global financial landscape, with investors looking to purchase digital assets on different exchanges. However, for investors who value their privacy, buying crypto without completing a form of identity verification process can be challenging, especially with global regulators tightening their oversight of the industry.

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Gujarat government's decision to allow liquor in GIFT City and called it a progressive and bold step that will attract major companies and quality workforce to the area. The state government on Friday lifted the ban on liquor in the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City with the aim of providing it with a «global ecosystem.» Jaxay Shah, CMD of Savvy Group, an Ahmedabad-based firm with a construction area of 4 million square feet in GIFT City, said, «It is a historical, progressive and bold step. GIFT City was competing in terms of infrastructure and was at par or even ahead of many international financial cities in the world.

₹34 crore on the second day of release, according to sacnilk.com, and the total global collections stands at ₹127.98 crore. Adding more, the site said that Salaar: Cease Fire - Part 1 had an overall 71.73 percent Telugu occupancy on Saturday, 36.26 percent Malayalam occupancy, 26.69 percent Tamil occupancy, 54.93 percent Kannada occupancy, and 25.07 percent Hindi occupancy.

Shah Rukh Khan's latest cinematic venture, 'Dunki,' directed by Rajkumar Hirani, hit the silver screens on December 21, adding another feather to SRK's cap after the successes of 'Pathaan' and 'Jawan' earlier this year. The film, a collaborative effort by JIO Studios, Red Chillies Entertainment, and Rajkumar Hirani Films, features a stellar ensemble cast including Vicky Kaushal, Taapsee Pannu, Boman Irani, Vikram Kochhar, and Anil Grover.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reversed its ban on dealing with companies involved in digital tokens.

OpenAI’s entrance marked a turning point, automating routine tasks and disrupting employment sectors like data entry and call centres. However, the AI wave also brought a surge of opportunities in data science, engineering, and machine learning, creating a new landscape of high-skilled jobs. Mint speaks with hiring experts to probe into AI’s impact on Indian jobs after its emergence.

₹57,313 crore worth of Indian equities and the total inflow stands at ₹77,388 crore as of December 22, taking into account debt, hybrid, debt-VRR, and equities, according to National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) data. FPIs heavily bought stocks in banking and IT segments, according to analysts. "FPI inflows which were negative in the previous 3 months have sharply turned positive in December.

war isn't just looming over Israel-Palestine and Russia-Ukraine. Nope, they're spreading like wildfire, hitting everywhere from Afghanistan to Yemen, Africa to Southeast Asia.

Azad Engineering IPO: Bidding for the initial public offering (IPO) ended on 22md December 2023 and now those who have applied for the public issue are eagerly waiting for announcement of Azad Engineering IPO allotment date, which is most likely on 26th December 2023. In three days of bidding, Azad Engineering IPO subscription status informs that the book build issue got subscribed 80.65 times. Meanwhile, despite record subscription status, grey market sentiment has gone down in regard to Azad Engineering IPO.

Gujarat government on Friday announced that in an attempt to provide "global business ecosystem" at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), the ban on liquor has been lifted in this area. Notably, Gujarat is a ‘dry state’. "GIFT City has emerged as a global financial and technological hub which is bustling with economic activities.

Stock market last week: After logging gains for seven straight weeks, key benchmark indices of the Indian stock market took a breather last week. Nifty 50 index ended 0.55 per cent or 113 points lower while BSE Sensex lost 257 points or 0.36 per cent in the previous week. Nifty Bank index lost 493 points or 1.03 per cent in last five sessions.

cashless hospital network that will include both empanelled and non-empanelled hospitals, two major industry players told ET Wealth Online. So, health insurance policyholders can soon avail of cashless treatment in hospitals, even if they are not empanelled with their insurance companies.