Data recap: MSP hike, LIC property sale, IPO boom
Mint in the week gone by. The government has announced hikes in minimum support prices of kharif crops, while the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) plans to raise money from the sale of its plots and commercial buildings. As many as 55 companies are expected to go public in the coming months.
After a challenging year for the agriculture industry due to below-normal monsoon and climate change last year, the newly formed Cabinet has announced hikes in minimum support prices of 14 kharif crops for the current year. Among the major crops, MSP for arhar was increased by 7.9% to ₹7,550, followed by urad and maize. However, the increases in paddy, bajra, and moong were less than those of last year.
The expected margin to farmers over their cost of production are estimated to be highest in case of bajra (77%) followed by tur (59%), maize (54%) and urad (52%). The government recently pledged to more than double India's annual military exports to ₹50,000 crore by 2028-29. In the last few years, military exports have consistently experienced a 20-30% annual growth due to rising defence budgets and focus on indigenisation, according to a Mint analysis.
This development also bodes well for companies operating in this space. The private sector has played a significant role in this growth, contributing a substantial share. In FY24, private sector’s share stood at 62% in the country’s total defence exports of ₹21,083 crore.
Read more on livemint.com
