victorybull

Author: victorybull

  • Indian investors can trade in select US stocks via NSE IFSC from March 3

    From March 3, investors in India will be able to trade in select US stocks through the NSE International Exchange (NSE IFSC), a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange (NSE). Investors can invest in NSE IFSC receipts on US stocks, which will be in the form of unsponsored depository receipts (DRs).

    For a start, this will include DRs of 50 US stocks such as Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Tesla, Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, Nike, P&G, Coca-Cola, and Exxon Mobil.

    Indian retail investors will be able to transact on the NSE IFSC platform under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) limits prescribed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which currently stand at $250,000 per year.

    Resident investors will have to open a demat account at the IFSC and the stock receipts will be considered foreign assets for filing income tax returns. Short-term capital gains will be taxed at the slab rate while long-term capital gains will be at 20 per cent with indexation.

    “The business model offered by NSE IFSC will not only provide an additional investment opportunity to the Indian investors but also make the entire process of investment easy and at a low cost. Investors will be provided an option to trade in fractional quantity/value when compared to the underlying shares traded in US markets. The proposed framework will make US stocks affordable to Indian retail investors,” said a note put out by the NSE last year.

    Investing in global stocks has gained currency in the past two years in the backdrop of a decades-long bull run enjoyed by US equities and the need to avoid a single-country risk.

    Currently, Indian investors buy US stocks through designated online brokers who have permission from Indian and US regulators to offer such services.

  • Canara Bank hikes fixed deposit rates by up to 25 basis points

    State-owned Canara Bank on Tuesday raised interest rates on fixed deposits across various maturities by up to 25 basis points.

    The revised rates are effective from March 1, 2022, Canara Bank said in a statement.

    Interest rate on fixed deposits for tenure 1 year has been increased to 5.1 per cent while for one-two years it is raised to 5.15 per cent from 5 per cent, it said.

    Fixed deposit between 2-3 years would invite interest rate of 5.20 per cent and 3-5 years 5.45 per cent from 5.25 per cent earlier, it said.

    Maximum 25 basis point hike has been done for the 5-10 years fixed deposit slab to 5.5 per cent, it added.

    Senior citizens would earn 50 basis point more across all the brackets.

  • Rupee slumps 49 paise to 75.82 against US dollar in early trade

    The rupee declined 49 paise to 75.82 against the US dollar in opening trade on Wednesday amid a weak risk appetite as tensions escalated in Eastern Europe.

    Forex traders said sustained foreign fund outflows, a lackluster trend in domestic equities and elevated crude oil prices weighed on investor sentiment.

    At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 75.78 against the US dollar, then slipped further to 75.82, registering a decline of 49 paise from the last close.

    On Monday, the rupee had settled at 75.33 against the US dollar.

    The forex market was closed on Tuesday on account of Mahashivratri.

    “The Rupee opened gap down against the US Dollar this Wednesday, tracking a rebound in the dollar index after ceasefire negotiations between Russian and Ukraine forces failed,” said Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities.

    Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.01 percent to 97.41.

    Stronger crude oil prices and weaker Asian currencies against the US Dollar could weigh on sentiments, Iyer said.

    Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude futures jumped 5.15 percent to USD 110.38 per barrel.

    Markets will continue to remain volatile, and trade will continue surrounding headlines in Eastern Europe. The RBI could be present to curb excess volatility, Iyer added.

    On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share Sensex was trading 748.79 points or 1.33 percent lower at 55,498.49, while the broader NSE Nifty slipped 177.20 points, or 1.06 percent, to 16,616.70.

    Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers in the capital market on Monday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 3,948.47 crore, as per stock exchange data.

  • Indices end strong after bleak opening session; Tata Steel rises over 6%

    Benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex recovered after a weak opening, as the 30-share barometer plunged more than 1,025 points to the day’s low of 54,833.50, before staging a recovery to close 388.76 pts or 0.70 per cent higher at 56,247.28, marking its second session of gains.

    On similar lines, the broader National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty climbed 135.50 points or 0.81 points to settle at 16,793.90. The Indian indices mirrored a rebound in Asian equities, even as the Ukraine crisis continued to roil western markets.

    Tata Steel emerged as the lead gainer among Sensex scrips, jumping by 6.61 per cent, followed by Power Grid, Reliance Industries, Titan, NTPC, L&T, Asian Paints and ICICI Bank.

    On the other hand, Dr Reddy’s, M&M, Axis Bank, HDFC twins and Kotak Bank were among the major laggards, shedding up to 2.81 per cent.

  • Rupee crashes 40 paise to 75.73 against US dollar in early trade

    The rupee tumbled 40 paise to 75.33 in early trade on Monday, tracking surge in crude prices amid escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine.

    At the interbank forex market, the local currency opened sharply lower against the dollar. It was moving in a tight range of 75.78 and 75.70. In early deals, it was trading at 75.73, registering a fall of 40 paise over its previous close.

    In the previous session, the rupee had gained 27 paise to settle at 75.33 against the US dollar.

    The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.78 percent higher at 97.37.

    Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures surged 4.24 percent to USD 102.08 per barrel.

    Meanwhile, in a dramatic escalation of tensions in eastern Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his nuclear forces to be on high alert in response to what he called “aggressive statements” by leading NATO powers over the Ukraine conflict.

    On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share Sensex was trading 709.15 points or 1.27 percent lower at 55,149.37, while the broader NSE Nifty fell 198.15 points or 1.19 percent to 16,460.25.

    Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market on Friday, as they offloaded shares worth Rs 4,470.70 crore, as per stock exchange data.

  • Airtel falls 3% as investors okay investment from Google, telco signs deal to up stake in Indus Towers

    Bharti Airtel’s share price shed 3 percent in early trade on February 28 after shareholders approved the issue of preferential shares to Google for its Rs 7,500 crore investment and the telecom company entered into an agreement with Vodafone Plc to buy equity interest in Indus Towers.

    Bharti Airtel will buy a 4.7 percent stake in Indus Towers from Vodafone Plc, the former said in an exchange filing on Friday.

    The transaction will be done on the condition that the amount paid shall be inducted as fresh equity in Vodafone Idea and simultaneously remitted to Indus Towers to clear Vodafone Idea’s outstanding dues.

    On Thursday, Vodafone Plc sold 2.4 percent stake in Indus Towers to Bharti Airtel as part of the 4.7 percent deal. Prior to the transaction, Vodafone Plc held 28 percent stake in the tower company while Bharti Airtel had 42 percent stake.

    “We believe this transaction allows Airtel to secure continued strong provision of services from Indus Towers, protects and enhances Airtel’s value in Indus Towers, enables it to receive rich dividends and paves the way for subsequent financial consolidation of Indus Towers in Airtel,” Bharti Airtel said.

    Also, on Saturday Bharti Airtel shareholders approved the issue of preferential shares to Google for its about Rs 7,500 crore investment in the company to buy 1.28 per cent stake.

    Internet giant Google had last month announced the proposed investment which includes equity investment as well as a corpus for potential commercial agreements, to be identified and agreed on mutually agreeable terms over the next five years.

  • Policybazaar falls 8%, hits new low; stock tanks 52% in three months

    Shares of PB Fintech, which operates online insurance broker Policybazaar and loan marketplace Paisabazaar, hit a new low at Rs 620.90, falling 8 per cent on the BSE in Thursday’s intra-day.

    In the past two weeks, the stock has slipped 28 per cent after Yashish Dahiya, executive director and CEO, and Alok Bansal, whole time director and CFO, of PB Fintech sold 6.09 million shares of the company via secondary market sale.

    On February 11, 2022, co-founder Alok Bansal divested 2.85 million shares of the company for Rs 236 crore through an open market transaction. According to the NSE bulk deal data, Bansal sold shares at an average price of Rs 825 apiece. However, buyer(s) of the shares could not be ascertained immediately.

    PB Fintech came out with its Rs 5,710-crore initial public offering (IPO) in November 2021. The company’s co-founders and other shareholders had reduced their stake in the public issue.

    In the past three months, the stock has underperformed the market by falling 52 per cent as compared to 5 per cent decline in the S&P BSE Sensex. It has corrected 58 per cent from its all-time high of Rs 1,470 hit on November 17, 2021. PB Fintech had made its stock market debut on November 15, 2021. The company issued shares at Rs 980 per share.

  • Bharti Airtel acquires strategic stake in Blockchain-tech startup Aqilliz

    Bharti Airtel on Thursday announced that it has acquired a strategic stake in Singapore-based Blockchain platform Aqilliz for an undisclosed sum.

    Airtel aims to deploy Aqilliz’s Blockchain technologies at scale across its fast-growing tech (Airtel Ads), digital entertainment (Wynk Music & Airtel Xstream) and digital marketplace (Airtel Thanks App) offerings.

    “Blockchain technology is maturing and we see its application across areas such as Adtech, Creator Economy, and Loyalty Programmes,” said Adarsh Nair, CEO, Airtel Digital.

    Aqilliz has developed a patented hybrid blockchain platform called ‘Atom’ that integrates differential privacy and federated learning on a distributed digital ledger.

    This allows brands to create secure and consent-based solutions to engage with customers in a rapidly-evolving digital economy that’s becoming increasingly decentralised.

    “Aqilliz’s patented technology will enable Airtel to capture and carry this value exchange in the form of consent and provenance across the digital supply chain,” said Gowthaman Ragothaman, Founding CEO, Aqilliz.

    The Airtel Startup Accelerator Programme invests in early-stage startups working on technologies that have adjacencies to Airtel’s business offerings.

    The programme allows startups to deploy their technologies and applications at a massive scale, which includes more than 340 million retail customers and over 1 million businesses.

  • Rupee rises by 22 paise to 74.44 against US dollar in early trade

    The rupee spurted by 22 paise to 74.44 in early trade on Monday on softer crude oil prices and revived hopes of a diplomatic solution to the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

    The rupee gained further ground to trade at 74.44 at 1030 hours, supported by benign crude oil prices.

    Reports suggested that the US and Russia have agreed to hold a summit on the Ukraine standoff, calming jittery investors. The reports also suggested that one of the preconditions for the summit is that Russia would not invade Ukraine, raising hopes of a diplomatic solution to the crisis.

    Of late, crude oil prices have spurted on fears of supply disruption due to a possible invasion of Ukraine by Russia.

    The Brent Crude on Monday dropped by 0.34 per cent to USD 93.22 per barrel. The US dollar index also edged lower by 0.21 per cent to 95.84.

    Meanwhile, on the domestic equity front, the BSE Sensex was trading lower by 398.17 points at 57,434.80 and the NSE Nifty dropped 93.20 points to 17,183.10 in late morning deals.

  • Market Highlights: Sensex rises 460 points, Nifty end above 17,600-mark after RBI keeps rates unchanged

    The benchmark equity indices on the BSE and National Stock Exchange (NSE) extended their gains for the third successive day, ending around 0.8 per cent higher on Thursday following the outcome of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) monetary policy meeting where the central bank kept its key lending rates unchanged for the tenth consecutive time while maintaining an ‘accommodative stance’.

    The S&P BSE Sensex climbed 460.06 points (0.79 per cent) to settle at 58,926.03 while the Nifty 50 rose 142.05 points (0.81 per cent) to end at 17,605.85. Both the indices had opened with marginal gains earlier in the day.

    On the Sensex pack, Tata Steel was the top gainer of the day rising over 2 per cent, followed by Infosys, HDFC Bank, Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC), Kotak Mahindra Bank and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M). On the other hand, Maruti Suzuki India, Nestle India, Ultratech Cement and Reliance Industries (RIL) were the laggards.