RAI Financial News

Jammu and Kashmir) [India], September 28 (ANI): National Conference Vice President Omar Abdullah lashed out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), stating that the party «doesn't know how to do politics without lying or cheating.» Speaking to the media while campaigning for the third phase of the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls on Friday, the candidate from the Budgam and Ganderbal constituencies said that the BJP had done nothing for the past 10 years for the union territory and alleged that they are trying to cheat people into voting them for them either in the name of religion, terror, or familism. «The BJP doesn't know how to do politics without lying and cheating. They have nothing to say about the last 10 years; therefore, they are trying to cheat people. In the name of either religion, terror, or familism. They are doing all this because they haven't done anything for Jammu and Kashmir,» he said.

Apple has left negotiations to participate in an OpenAI funding round expected to raise about $6.5 billion, the Wall Street Journal said on Friday. The tech giant recently fell out of the talks for the round, set to close next week, the newspaper said, citing a person familiar with the matter. Other firms, such as Microsoft and Nvidia, have also been in talks to participate, the report said, adding that Microsoft was expected to invest about $1 billion after having already poured $13 billion into the company.

Mohamed Muizzu claimed that he had not followed an ‘India Out’ policy, while asserting that the country had a “serious problem” with the presence of foreign military on its soil. Male is in talks with New Delhi for a proposed state visit by Muizzu in October. Maldives is seeking support from India to tackle a simmering financial crisis. “We have never been against any one country at any point. It’s not India Out. Maldives faced a serious problem with foreign military presence on this soil,” said Muizzu. The Maldives President was responding to a query at Princeton University’s “Dean’s Leadership Series” on Thursday.

Unilever will do «whatever it takes» to defend its market leadership in India and won't hesitate to invest «hundreds of millions» or make acquisitions as competition intensifies on several fronts-from regional rivals to new-age, digital-first brands. «We have established positions that we believe are very, very strong. We have an unblinking commitment to defend India,» Unilever chief financial officer Fernando Fernandez told investors at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference on Wednesday. «So, I will not blink before putting in hundreds of millions to defend a position in India if it has to be defended. We know investors would reward us because we defend positions, whatever it takes.» The dominance over most home and personal care categories by Hindustan Unilever (HUL), the local unit of the Anglo-Dutch consumer giant, has been coming under threat.

My Hero Academia Season 7 is heading towards its final episodes. In My Hero Academia, there is a huge destruction in Japan which is caused by Tomura Shigaraki, All For One and other criminals, who are roaming freely in the country. Dexerto reported that All For One is currently hiding with Spinner and is planning to steal Star’s Quirk which will result in fulfilling his aim of world domination.

anime drama, Oshi no Ko, will release Season 2 Episode 13 soon. Anime drama’s Season 2 premiered on July 3.

Lokayukta police registered an FIR against Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) site allotment case, official sources told news agency PTI on Friday. This development comes a day after Lokayukta police started seeking 'legal clarification' to register an FIR against the Karnataka CM, who has been under political fire over allegations connecting him to the MUDA 'scam'. On Wednesday, a special court ordered a Lokayukta police probe against Siddaramaiah in connection to the case.

Orionid meteor shower, caused by dust and debris from Halley's Comet, started on September 26 and will continue until November 22. The peak night is expected between October 20 and 21, offering sky watchers the best chance to see shooting stars. On clear nights, the Orionids can be visible from now until the end of November.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy cancelled his visit to the Tirupati temple on Friday. He was to visit the temple as a part of YSRCP’s statewide temple rituals to atone the “sins” committed by Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. Reddy's appeal comes days after Naidu alleged that the previous YSRCP government used substandard ingredients and animal fat for making the laddus at Sri Venkateswara temple in Tirupati. The allegations sparked a massive controversy across the country.

Court on Friday rapped the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) over its failure to curb air pollution due to stubble burning. A bench of Justice Abha S Oka and Justice Augustine George Masih said the air quality panel needs to be more active in its approach. The court further directed the panel to file a better compliance report.

Carlyle Group portfolio companies Sequent Scientific and Viyash Life Sciences are in advanced talks for a potential Rs 7,000-8,000 crore merger, according to people familiar with the matter. Boards of both companies are likely to discuss the possibility in the coming week, according to those cited. There is no certainty a transaction will materialise, they said. Sequent is listed and Viyash isn't. Viyash generated 1.5 times the operating profits of Sequent in FY24, said the people quoted above, adding that the two are exploring the merger due to possible back-end synergies. ET first reported the story online on Thursday.

Bandhan Life, formerly Aegon Life Insurance, has commenced business in its new avatar with two offerings — a guaranteed savings plan and a unit-linked plan, managing director Satishwar B announced on Thursday. Bandhan Financial Holdings, the promoter of Bandhan Bank, completed the acquisition of Aegon Life in February. «We are starting from scratch in terms of new business. We commenced earlier this month with these two products and will unveil three more in the next three months or so,» Satishwar told ET.

Adani Power's ₹27,000-crore offer for the KSK Mahanadi project, the Uttar Pradesh power utility has sought the consolidation of insolvency proceedings of the debt-laden thermal power company and its two subsidiaries to «protect the interests of multiple stakeholders», an industry source told ET. The Uttar Pradesh Power Corp (UPPCL) filed a writ petition in the Telangana High Court on clubbing the resolution processes of the 1,800-MW KSK Mahanadi and its two subsidiaries — KSK Water Infrastructure and Raigarh Champa Rail Infrastructure. «The high court has deferred the CIRP process on September 20,» said the source cited above.

BJP's Bhartruhari Mahtab has been named chair of the Finance Committee, while Congress' Shashi Tharoor will lead the External Affairs Committee. These department-related standing committees, which include representatives from various political parties, function as mini parliaments and oversee the operations of different ministries.

AM/NS India expects its operating profit and cash flows to grow by 2.5 times once the first phase of its expansion is completed by 2026, and four times from the current levels after the completion of its second phase of expansion, the company said at an investor meet on Wednesday. The company, a joint venture between global steel majors ArcelorMittal and Nippon Steel, is currently generating around $2.5 billion in operating profit and $1.7 billion in cash flows. Since its acquisition in 2019, the company has generated $5.8 billion of cash, which has been used for securing the supply chain and other strategic acquisitions. AM/NS India, whose operating profit per tonne has been lower than the average of its Indian peers since 2019, also has managed to close this gap and now has a higher operating profit per tonne than the average of its peers in the first half of 2024. This was done through a turnaround plan focusing on the operations, finance, sales, procurement efficiencies and debottlenecking capacities, the company said.

Wadhawan has approached the National Company Law Tribunal, demanding that the now-defunct realty firm's corporate insolvency resolution process (CIRP) be conducted all over again. Wadhawan has also sought to submit a resolution plan to revive the company. In his application, Wadhawan has claimed that the value of the company was huge, but its resolution professional (RP), committee of creditors (CoC) and valuer chose to overlook the assets, including intangible assets, and possible cash flow from joint venture deals.

Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a plea filed by the Gujarat government seeking a review of the court's verdict which contained certain observations against the state while quashing the remission granted to 11 men convicted of raping Bilkis Bano and murdering seven of her family members during the 2002 riots. A bench of Justices B V Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan also rejected the application for listing review petition in open court. «Having carefully gone through the Review Petition, the order under challenge and the papers annexed therewith, we are satisfied that there is no error apparent on the face of the record or any merit in the Review Petition, warranting reconsideration of the order impugned. The Review Petition is, accordingly, dismissed,» the bench said. The Gujarat government in its plea had said the apex court's observation in the January 8 judgment, holding the state guilty of «usurpation of power» and "abuse of discretion" for complying with an order of another top court bench, was an «error apparent on the face of the record» primarily on three grounds.

Indian Air Force will display its full defence prowess, especially air capability and also showcase its range of new aircraft including Rafale, in action at a breathtaking display over the Marina sky on October 6, as part of the 92nd IAF Day, Air Vice Marshal K Prem Kumar said here on Thursday. Prem Kumar, who is the Chief Coordinating Officer of IAF Day parade Chennai 2024 to be held at Marina and Tambaram, said 72 aircraft will participate in the air display over Marina, which is open to the public. «We have planned to create a unique record in the Limca Book of world records. We expect 15 lakh people for the event on October 6 from 11 am to 1 pm,» he told reporters here. There would be a full dress rehearsal on October 4 in coordination with the IAF Tambaram, he added.

HDFC Bank Ltd. has sold a housing loan portfolio of about Rs 60 billion ($717 million), seeking to further lighten its credit load amid regulatory pressures on the industry. The portfolio was sold to about half a dozen state-controlled banks through private deals, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified as the information is not yet public. The Mumbai-based bank also unloaded another pool of car loans worth about Rs 90.6 billion, securitized in a fixed income product called pass-through certificates, the people said. The lender had been engaged in talks — reported in late August by Bloomberg — to offload the pool to about a dozen local asset management companies.

Israel Defense Force (IDF) Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi has warned Hezbollah that a ground offensive is imminent, stating that Israeli soldiers' "military boots will enter enemy territory," Times of Israel reported. Halevi's remarks came after Hezbollah fired a missile at central Israel on early Wednesday and Israel responded with airstrikes, which have killed 569 people and wounded 1,835 others, Al Jazeera reported. During a drill simulating the invasion, Halevi addressed soldiers of the 7th Armored Brigade, as per Times of Israel.

Bihar, the state government said on Thursday. The incidents occurred in 15 districts of the state during the festival held on Wednesday. During the 'Jivitputrika' festival, women fast for the well-being of their children and both take holy dips.