UPS Financial News

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. In a Peak Bengaluru moment this month, a walking tour group organized a 15-day ‘BLR Walkfest,’ getting people to find out if the city is ‘walkable.’ True to the city’s brand-it-and-we’ll-do-it culture, about a hundred people signed up for every walk, which included talks on historic landmarks and lots of filter-coffee drinking, to see if they could do what millions of Indians do daily—use pavements to get around the city on foot. Many Indians ride in cushy carriages all their lives without ever stepping on a footpath, but a vast majority, most of them poor, either walk to work or work on paved sidewalks.

Local startups raised $10.9 billion this calendar until December 13, slightly more than $9.6 billion raised during the same period of 2023, data from Venture Intelligence show. The number of deals closed so far this year fell to 809 from 829 a year back.

SWIGGY

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: The consumer affairs ministry is developing a Repairability Index for consumer durables on the lines of star-rating system used for evaluating the energy efficiency of electrical appliances, Union minister for consumer affairs, food and public distribution Pralhad Joshi said.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. India’s gold imports jumped fourfold to nearly $15 billion in November, powering a 27% surge in goods imports. At the same time, exports fell 4.9%.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Fino Payments Bank plans to use its network of merchants as the first set of customers to lend to, while also using them as loan collection points, if the regulator approves its proposal to convert into a small finance bank. It applied for a small finance bank licence in December 2023 and has about 1.8 million merchants who provide financial services as agents of the bank.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. As investors await global cues to settle, mixed signals are beginning to emerge. The bullish momentum is slowing and Q2 earnings numbers are not really driving up momentum.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Your next pack of cookies could be lighter than the one you got for the same price last time. Welcome back to shrinkflation, where manufacturers reduce pack sizes to make up for costlier ingredients.

Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Catalyst is awarding US$40 million to Montreal-based Deep Sky to help it test its carbon removal technology in Alberta.

A protracted downturn in natural gas prices has battered the balance sheets of some oil and gas producers in Western Canada, driving insolvencies in the sector to their highest level in three years.

The U.S. ambassador to Vietnam says U.S. arms manufacturers could help the southeast Asian country build up its armed forces

Spending time with your favourite animal is an experience of profound emotional fulfilment. Their playful antics — running after a lizard, or teasing a dangling string — evoke laughter and remind us to live in the moment. When we cuddle with them, their rhythmic breathing and gentle nuzzles create an oasis of calm, melting away the stresses of the day. For many, their non-human nature becomes a source of utter happiness — and insurance from any unhappiness.

Following the success of the first two films, Netflix is officially moving ahead with Enola Holmes 3, which promises more twists, mystery, and darker undertones, as mentioned in a report by What’s On Netflix. Here's everything we know about the highly anticipated sequel so far.

‘Kudlow’ panelists Steve Forbes, David Bahnsen and Jackie DeAngelis unpack the state of the U.S. economy heading into the new year.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Accenture Plc, the world’s largest software services company, secured $1.2 billion in generative AI (Gen AI) bookings in the quarter-ended November 2024, bringing its total orders in the segment to $4.2 billion since September 2023. This is its highest Gen AI bookings in any quarter, signalling that clients are increasing spending on the new technology.

Apple complained that requests from Meta platforms for access to its operating software threaten user privacy, in a spat fuelled by the European Union's intensifying efforts to get the iPhone maker to open up to products from tech rivals. The 27-nation EU's executive Commission is drawing up «interoperability» guidelines for Apple under its new digital competition rulebook. The interoperability measures would ensure that devices like smartwatches or features like wireless file transfers work as smoothly with iPhones as do Apple Watches or AirDrop. The EU's rulebook, known as the Digital Markets Act, aims to promote fair competition in digital markets and prevent Big Tech «gatekeeper» companies from cornering markets. The commission posted proposed measures late Wednesday on how Apple should make its iOS operating system work with other technology. In response, Apple said it's «concerned that some companies — with data practices that do not meet the high standards of data protection law held by the EU and supported by Apple — may attempt to abuse the DMA's interoperability provisions to access sensitive user data.»

Balaji Telefilms, a leading Indian television production company, has revealed plans to raise Rs 131 crore through a preferential issue of equity shares to eight selected investors, including its promoter, Ekta Kapoor. In a regulatory filing on Thursday, the company reported that its board of directors has approved the issuance of up to 1,78,59,776 equity shares at a price of Rs 73.17 per share.

Imagine it: You buy a house, and the bank offers you a single rate of interest that will keep your mortgage payments steady for the next 30 years.

The U.K.’s central bank warned Thursday of “heightened uncertainty” as it kept interest rates on hold after inflation moved further above target, even at a time when the British economy is flatlining at best.

Six MPC members, including BoE governor Andrew Bailey, voted in favour of maintaining the current interest rate, while three members voted to trim it down by 25 basis points to 4.5%. The decision followed a 2.6% rise in the annual inflation rate in November, up from 1.7% two months earlier in September. The data for November was slightly below FactSet's consensus, which expected that figure to stand at 2.7% last month. Rise in UK inflation 'unwelcome' ahead of BoE interest rate meeting According to BoE, the inflation came in slightly higher than previously expected, «owing in la...

Inventurus Knowledge Solutions (IKS) shares, which made debut on the exchanges today (Thursday, December 19), saw block deals where Norway-based Norges Bank bought over 34 lakh shares worth Rs 652 crore. Norges Bank bought shares via Norges Bank on Account of The Government Pension Fund Global in two tranches of 16.59 lakh and 17.50 lakh shares at a price of Rs 1,923.92 apiece and Rs 1,899.67 per share, respectively.