Pandemic Financial News

Read here: Tata Steel, Bharti Airtel & others hit 52 week high today ; Do you own any? Meanwhile, Nifty50 also hit its new record high of 22,523.65, up 49.6 points, in intra-day deals. It also hit new highs in the previous as well as today's session. The rise comes after data showing India’s GDP during the three months ending in December grew at 8.4 percent.

By David Milliken

MediaTek is now turning its focus to the fast-growing premium segment with its latest breed of 5G chipsets, having attained a dominant 50% market share, outpacing rival Qualcomm in the highly competitive India smartphone market, company executives and market trackers said. The chipmaker is now working with every Android phone brand with the exception of Google, with over 15 design wins in the first quarter of 2024 itself, far outpacing that of rival Qualcomm, carrying on the momentum from 2023. "Samsung and Nothing were the only two brands left who were not using MediaTek chipsets. With the recent launches this week, those gaps in the portfolio have also been plugged," said Anku Jain, managing director, MediaTek India.

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways says it saw a $143 million in profit last year, citing an increase in passengers as fueling the gains

It’s been four years since the world went into lockdown amid Covid, and although restrictions and mandatory remote work are over, people still want to meet remotely with financial advisors.

By Siddharth Cavale

By Michael Erman

Alberta’s budget had lots of good news — unless you own an electric car, which will now be taxed at $200 a year. The provincial surplus is expected to be $5.6 billion this fiscal year, followed by a wafer-thin $0.4 billion next. Even though resource revenues are down, program spending isn’t being cut. It rises 3.7 per cent in fiscal year 2024-25.

The Montreal company that operates the Just for Laughs comedy festival has cancelled this year’s edition as it seeks to avoid bankruptcy.

By Promit Mukherjee

The ‘bigger is better’ mantra continues to drive the Indian housing market. The FICCI-ANAROCK Consumer Sentiment Survey (H2 2023), unveiled at the FICCI Real Estate Summit in Delhi today, finds that the highest homebuyer demand is now for 3BHKs, with at least 50% respondents picking this size. 38% respondent favour 2BHKs. The demand for 3BHKs stood at 42% in the H2 2022 edition of the survey.

Elon Musk is no longer the world’s richest person. Musk lost his position atop the Bloomberg Billionaires Index to Jeff Bezos after shares in Tesla Inc. tumbled 7.2% on Monday. Musk now has a net worth of $197.7 billion; Bezos’ fortune is $200.3 billion.

Li Qiang has announced that China's economic growth target for this year is around 5%, in line with last year's performance despite forecasts for a slowdown. The ruling Communist Party has said it is prioritizing efforts to encourage consumer spending to help drive the economy. Last year, the economy grew at a 5.2% pace, but that was after a very slow 3% annual growth rate in 2022, when the country was enduring the worst disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Investing.com-- China’s services sector grew less than expected in February, a private survey showed on Tuesday, as the Lunar New Year holiday provided only a limited boost to activity amid a broader downturn in the economy.

By Georgina McCartney

consumer landscape is shifting in various ways which keeps retailers on toes. Recently released Household Consumption Expenditure Survey data showed Indians are spending less on food, particularly staples like rice and wheat, and more on discretionary items such as processed food, as well as durables like televisions and fridges. Already a premiumisation trend is sweeping across categories for the past few years. Charting out shifts in India's retail sector, a joint study by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Retailers Association of India (RAI) brings good news as well as bad news for Indian retailers. The good news is Indian retailers have a vast business growth opportunity to capture. India continues to be a bright spot among top global economies with a robust GDP growth of 7% in 2023. It is projected to overtake Germany & Japan to claim the 3rd spot by 2030. Private consumption at the same time remains strong. India retail is expected to reach $2 trillion in the next 10 years and presents a large opportunity for retailers, says the report titled 'Unlocking the $2Tn retail opportunity in the next decade'.

FMCG) companies exceeded pre-Covid levels for the first time in the December quarter, reflecting a push to spur demand amid a booming economy. Dabur, Colgate-Palmolive, Emami, Godrej Consumer Products, United Spirits, and Jyothy Labs have gone past levels of FY19, an ET study showed. Advertising and promotion (A&P) spending has been rising at Hindustan Unilever (HUL), India’s biggest consumer goods company, and Marico, but hasn’t crossed pre-COVID levels. The study covered the eight companies, which have consistently reported A&P data since FY18.

Singapore is set to raise the salary criteria for foreign executives and professionals that companies can hire starting next year, the government announced on Monday. Starting in January of next year, foreigners seeking employment passes, typically reserved for well-paid professionals, will need to earn at least S$5,600 ($4,170) per month, an increase from the current requirement of S$5,000. Those in the financial sector will have the qualifying salary hiked to S$6,200 from S$5,500.

Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, addressed a gathering at the inauguration of India's first green hydrogen plant within the stainless steel sector in a landmark moment for India's industrial landscape. The inauguration ceremony marked a milestone in India's journey towards sustainable industrial practices, with the Jindal Stainless' Green Hydrogen project paving the way for a greener, eco-friendlier future. Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Minister Scindia expressed his immense pleasure at inaugurating the first green hydrogen plant, which symbolizes the collaborative efforts of two innovative powerhouses, Jindal Stainless and Hygiene Co.

The economy is looking up, and that’s a challenge for the Federal Reserve. The pandemic shock prompted excessive monetary and fiscal responses, generating inflation. The Fed responded with aggressive rate hikes that reduced inflation within reach of its 2% longer-run target.

₹10,000 crore and, by its estimates, add about 40% to industry capacity. Even as stocks of major paint companies took a hit in recent days, their long-term trajectory explains this beeline to get into the business. Since March 2015, an index of paint stocks has delivered a compounded annual return of 16%, against 11% delivered by the Sensex.