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revenue and profits due to demand concerns, a handful of companies across sectors reported net profits for the first half of FY25 that exceeded their respective profits for the entire previous fiscal year helped by various factors such as growing revenue, lower input costs, inventory benefit, lower tax outgo, and improved operating cash flows. There were eight such companies among the BSE 200 index components including Bharti Airtel, Zomato, Vedanta, Dixon Technologies (India), PB Fintech, Godrej Properties, Voltas, and Adani Wilmer arranged in the descending order of their current market capitalisations. Among these companies, food delivery provider Zomato, electronics manufacturer Dixon, online insurance solutions provider PB Fintech, Realty developer Godrej Properties, and air conditioning major Voltas reported robust revenue growth year-on-year in the six months to September 2024. For Dixon, revenue rose sharply by 120.5% to Rs8,214.7 crore while net profit jumped by 197.3% to Rs523.5 crore, surpassing the FY24 net profit of Rs367.8 crore.

NBC's Meet the Press, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump shared significant policy plans for his upcoming term, providing insight into his priorities. The wide-ranging conversation touched on immigration, foreign policy, social security, and tax reforms, among other issues. Trump’s remarks signal the ambitious and often controversial changes he intends to pursue from day one in office.

Indian Embassy in Damascus remains operational and is in constant communication with Indian nationals in Syria, sources confirmed. As the violence in Syria escalates, the embassy continues to provide support to the 90 Indian nationals in the country, ensuring their safety amidst the conflict.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. MUMBAI : The Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which allows bank account holders to have up to four nominees, marks a significant shift in how money invested in banking products can be managed and distributed after the account holder's demise. The bill, passed by the Lok Sabha on 3 December, says that nominees are only custodians and safekeepers representing the beneficiaries (if there is a testamentary document, e.g., Will/Trust deed) and heirs (in the absence of a testamentary document).

Wayanad landslide survivors and carrying out «fake propaganda» against the union government. The saffron party said that the Narendra Modi government has provided sufficient funds to Kerala through the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF) and the the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). «The Pinarayi government is sitting on available funds and blames the Centre,» senior BJP leader and Union Minister Prakash Javadekar alleged in a social media post. In a hard-hitting X post, he said the Centre has allocated over Rs 500 crore for this purpose through SDRF, which already has a balance of approximately Rs 700 crore.

Bhartiya Nagrik Surakhsha Sanhita 2023. The plea has been filed through advocate Vishal Tiwari, which oppose and challenge the constitutionality of some provisions in criminal laws passed in Lok Sabha on December 20, 2023. In the petition, advocate Vishal Tiwari has urged the Supreme Court to consider his representation and and declare the Provisions/Section 187(2) (3), 43(3), 173 (3) and 85 of the Bhartiya Nagrik Surakhsha Sanhita 2023 as Ultra vires/ Unconstitutional being Violative of Article 21 of the Constitution of India.

Insurance Amendment Bill, which proposes 100 per cent FDI in the insurance sector, may not be introduced in Parliament in the ongoing session, sources said. Some finetuning may be required in the draft Bill after receiving comments from stakeholders, sources said. Given the paucity of time, it is difficult to present the Bill in the ongoing session, sources said, adding it may, however, come in the Budget session. The finance ministry has proposed to amend various provisions of the Insurance Act, of 1938, including raising foreign direct investment (FDI) in the insurance sector to 100 per cent, reduction in paid-up capital, and provision for composite licence.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The margin trading facility (MTF) is a powerful financial instrument. It enables individuals to purchase stocks by paying only a portion of the total value while the broker funds the remaining amount.

Donald Trump takes office. Trump's November election victory has cast doubt on the future of American aid for Ukraine, providing a limited window for billions of dollars in already authorized assistance to be disbursed before he is sworn in next month. The package features drones, ammunition for precision HIMARS rocket launchers, and equipment and spare parts for artillery systems, tanks and armored vehicles, the Pentagon said in a statement.

Speaking to ANI, Kaur said, «All the demands of the farmers are related to the central government, not the state government.» Farmers from Punjab have launched a fresh wave of protests at Sambhu border demanding compensation and a legal guarantee for the Minimum Support Price (MSP).

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The average amount of caffeine in an espresso shot is between 50-65mg. It is recommended that the amount of caffeine for adults through a day should not exceed 400mg.

grievance redress system. Murugan said the mechanism, established under the Cable Television Networks (Amendment) Rules, includes self-regulation by broadcasters, self-regulation by self-regulating bodies of the broadcasters, and an oversight mechanism of the central government. The minister said appropriate action is taken wherever violation of the Advertising Code is found by issuance of «Advisories, Warnings, 'Apology Scroll' Orders and Off-air orders.»

Navodaya Vidyalayas (NVs) across India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the government is committed to providing school education to every section of the society in accordance with the National Education Policy. «We are committed to providing school education to every section of the society in accordance with the National Education Policy. In this regard, our government has approved 28 new Navodaya Vidyalayas across the country. This will expand residential and quality school education on a large scale,» PM Modi posted on X. On Friday, the Union Cabinet approved the establishment of 28 new Navodaya Vidyalayas (NVs) in districts that are currently not covered by the Navodaya Vidyalaya Scheme.

When some plants are dehydrated or under some other form of stress, they cry a mournful melody made of ultrasonic clicks. Some moths are able to hear those clicks, and researchers now say they have discovered that the insects may interpret the sounds as a cue to choose on which plant to lay their eggs. The finding was described in a paper that was published online last month and has been submitted to the journal eLife. «This is new,» said Rya Seltzer, an entomologist at Tel Aviv University in Israel and an author of the study. «Plants emit sounds, and insects are really listening to that. They're tuned to that specific sound, and they know the meaning, and they consider it.»

Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra is expected to be the next major flagship from the South Korean tech giant. The brand is likely to launch the device alongside the standard Galaxy S25 and S25 Plus in January next year. Ahead of the launch, we already know several details about the Galaxy S25 Ultra, including its design, specifications, and more, providing enough information to fuel speculation.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. ON December 5th a Long March 6a rocket blasted off from Taiyuan Satellite Centre, in Shanxi province in northern China. Aboard was the third batch of satellites for the Qianfan, or “SpaceSail" network, which aims to deploy a “mega-constellation" of thousands of satellites to beam fast internet access to users anywhere in the world.

While the senior living industry in the country is still in the nascent stage, companies that are currently providing such services are increasingly looking at the government to offer some relief at the policy level. Speaking on the sidelines of Association of Senior Living India's Ageing Fest in Bengaluru, association chairman Ranjit Mehta told ET: «There’s no single nodal agency — we currently deal with the Ministry of Social Justice, Urban Affairs and Housing, and Health. We’ve requested the government to streamline this.»

Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) first cut in the cash reserve ratio (CRR) since March 2020 is likely to provide much needed liquidity to the banking system, cooling off bulk deposit rates and lift core profitability of lenders by up to 5 basis points, bankers said. One basis point is a hundredth of a percentage point.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced the step saying it had determined services offered by Google Payment had posed a risk to consumers. The regulator's step and the subsequent lawsuit marked a government tussle with a Silicon Valley behemoth in the final weeks of President Joe Biden's administration. The regulator's move could be reversed after President-elect Donald Trump returns to the White House in January.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) allows individuals to only have one Universal Account Number (UAN). Think of UAN as an umbrella account that can house multiple member IDs.

Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland says she will deliver a fall economic statement sometime this year as the clock ticks down on the remaining days in the House of Commons for 2024.