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Tag: India

  • RBI imposes monetary penalty of Rs 1 crore on State Bank of India

    The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) by an order dated November 16 has imposed a monetary penalty of Rs 1 crore on the State Bank of India for contravention of section 19 (2) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 (the Act), informed RBI.

    As per the press note, the irregularities were identified after a Statutory Inspections for Supervisory Evaluation (ISE) of the bank was conducted by RBI with reference to its financial positions as on March 31, 2018, and March 31, 2019, and the examination of the Risk Assessment Reports, Inspection Report and all related correspondence pertaining to the same, revealed, inter-alia, contravention of section 19 of the Act.

    Section 19 (2) of the Act says that “no banking company shall hold shares in any company, whether as pledgee, mortgagee or absolute owner, of an amount exceeding thirty per cent of the paid-up share capital of that company or thirty per cent of its own paid-up share capital and reserves, whichever is less.

  • Rupee sinks to record low with stocks as Ukraine crisis boosts oil

    The Indian rupee tumbled to a record low along with stocks and bonds as a spike in oil prices spurred by the war in Ukraine threatened to inflate the nation’s oil-import bill and fan inflationary pressures.

    The rupee declined as much as 1% to 76.9625 per dollar, past its previous low of 76.9088. Benchmark government bond yields rose six basis poaints to 6.87%, while the S&P BSE SENSEX Index fell as much as 3.3% to 52,542.64, the lowest since July.

    Today’s move has turned the rupee into Asia’s worst performer this year as surging crude prices fueled worries about the country’s balance of payments. India imports nearly three-fourth of its oil, making it one of the most vulnerable in Asia to higher prices.

    India’s benchmark equity index dropped to its lowest level in more than seven months with most of the 30 stocks of the S&P BSE Sensex trading in the red.

    “Geopolitical risks will likely stay elevated, especially on the terms of trade shock and current-account deficit implications,” Barclays Plc. analysts including Ashish Agrawal wrote in a note. “The INR is more sensitive to supply side oil shocks,” he said, adding that the Reserve Bank of India “is likely to continue selling USD passively, but is unlikely to defend any particular level.”

    Foreign funds have taken out about $16 billion from India’s equity markets since September. The initial share sale of Life Insurance Corp., widely referred to as India’s Aramco moment, is also increasingly likely to be deferred given the volatile geopolitical conditions.

  • Union Bank of India raises Rs 1,500 cr through Basel-III compliant bonds

    Union Bank has raised Rs 1,500 crore by issuing Basel III compliant bonds to investors.

    The bank has allotted unsecured, subordinated, non-convertible, taxable, perpetual, fully paid-up Basel III compliant additional tier-I bonds in the nature of debentures, aggregating to Rs 1,500 crore.

    The bonds are eligible for inclusion in the tier-I capital of the bank.

    To comply with Basel-III capital regulations, banks globally need to improve and strengthen their capital planning processes.

    These norms are being implemented to mitigate concerns on potential stresses on asset quality and consequential impact on performance and profitability of banks.

    Tier-I capital is the core capital of a bank’s reserves and it is primarily used to fund business activities. Banks are required to hold certain levels of tier 1 and tier 2 capital as reserves so that they can absorb large losses without threatening their stability.

    Shares of Union Bank of India closed at Rs 41 apiece on BSE, up 1.99 per cent from the previous close.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • 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.

  • India, Australia vow to work together for inclusive growth in Indo-Pacific: EAM S Jaishankar

    India and Australia have pledged to work together for building more trusted and resilient supply chains and ensuring broad and inclusive growth in the strategic Indo-Pacific region, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said in Melbourne on February 12. Speaking at a joint press conference with his Australian counterpart Marise Payne after their bilateral meeting and attending a crucial meeting of Quad foreign ministers on February 11, Jaishankar said he spoke at length with Payne about regional, multilateral and global issues, besides discussing developments in South Asia, Southeast Asia and in the strategically vital Indo-Pacific region.

    “We shared our experiences responding to the COVID challenge itself, but also in assisting other friendly countries in particular with vaccines, and we have committed ourselves today to building more trusted and resilient supply chains and ensuring broad, inclusive growth in the Indo-Pacific, he said.

    Jaishankar said that as liberal democracies, India and Australia would continue to work towards a rule-based international order, freedom of navigation in international waters, promoting connectivity, growth and security for all while respecting the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all states, in an apparent reference to China, which has been behaving aggressively in the region.

    The ministers also talked about the progression in defence and security cooperation, reflecting the two countries’ growing strategic convergence.

    “Minister Payne and I also have shared concerns about terrorism and extremism. We have serious concerns about continuing cross-border terrorism, and it’s our shared endeavour to deepen counterterrorism cooperation, including in the multilateral forum, he said.

    “I think we’ve had very productive, very useful and very wide-ranging discussions and discussions, in fact, reflect the real profound transformation in our ties, which has happened in this very difficult period, he said.Jaishankar thanked the Australian government for enhancing engagement in the North East Indian Ocean region and on the Maitri scholarship, fellowship and cultural partnership programmes.

  • Zomato to invest $400 million more in quick commerce; will set up a lending biz for restaurants

    Online food delivery firm Zomato Ltd on Thursday said its revenue from operations for the December quarter rose from both a year earlier and sequentially, even as its loss shrank.

    Revenue from operations for the fiscal third quarter rose to Rs 1,112 crore from Rs 1,024.2 crore in the July-September period and Rs 609.4 crore a year earlier. Loss narrowed dramatically to Rs 67.2 crore, compared with Rs 434.9 crore a quarter earlier and Rs 351.3 crore in the previous-year period.

     

    Online food delivery firm Zomato Ltd on Thursday said its revenue from operations for the December quarter rose from both a year earlier and sequentially, even as its loss shrank.

    Revenue from operations for the fiscal third quarter rose to Rs 1,112 crore from Rs 1,024.2 crore in the July-September period and Rs 609.4 crore a year earlier. Loss narrowed dramatically to Rs 67.2 crore, compared with Rs 434.9 crore a quarter earlier and Rs 351.3 crore in the previous-year period.

     

    Zomato said it saw 9% growth in revenue from operations on a quarterly basis, while its customer delivery charges shrank 22%.

    “This was driven by a Rs 7.50 per order reduction in customer delivery charges in Q3 FY22 as compared to Q2 FY22,” Zomato said, explaining that it re-distributed its growth investments more in favour of discounts on customer delivery charges compared with food coupons.

    “We are seeing higher return on investment with discounted delivery charges as compared to coupons. As a result, discounts per order reduced by Rs 5 per order in the last quarter as compared to Q2 FY22,” it said.

    Zomato reiterated its focus on the quick-commerce segment and added that it will invest an additional $400 million in the space in the next two years.

    The Gurgaon-based company also expanded to 180 new cities, taking its presence in India to more than 700 cities.
    Zomato’s adjusted revenue — a combination of revenue from operations and customer delivery charges — increased 78% on year to Rs 1,420 crore. As reported by ET earlier, the company saw a massive increase in food order volumes on New Year’s Eve, resulting in gross order value (GOV) of $18 million, 78% higher than the same day last year.
    Zomato’s GOV grew by 84.5% Y-o-Y and 1.7% Q-o-Q to Rs 5,500 crore in the December quarter.

    Zomato said over the years, unit economics in its food delivery business has improved with scale. Contribution margin (as a percentage of GOV) has improved steadily from a negative 15% in 2019 to 1% today, it said. “A 5% contribution margin in our food delivery business (at the current scale) should get us to Ebitda break-even as a company (covering all common corporate costs as well).”

  • Dalal Street cheers Union Budget as Sensex climbs 848 points, Nifty settles at 17,577

    The benchmark equity indices on the BSE and National Stock Exchange (NSE) ended nearly 1.5 per cent higher following a volatile session of trade on the Budget day as market participants reacted positively to the big infrastructure boost in the Budget 2022 delivered by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

    The S&P BSE Sensex rose 848.40 points (1.46 per cent) to settle at 58,862.57 while the Nifty 50 climbed 237.00 points (1.37 per cent) to end at 17,576.85. Earlier in the day both the indices opened over 0.8 per cent higher and rose around 1.7 per cent with the Sensex hitting a high of 59,032.20 and Nifty touching 17,622.40 during the FM’s budget speech.

  • Power consumption grows 2.6% in January

    India’s power consumption grew marginally at 2.6 per cent year-on-year in January to 112.67 billion units (BU), showing the impact of local restrictions imposed by states amid the third wave of COVID-19.

    Power consumption in the entire January last year was 109.76 BU, which was 4.4 per cent higher than 105.15 BU in January 2020, as per the power ministry data.According to the data, peak power demand met or highest supply in a day rose to 192.07GW in the month under review compared to 189.39 GW in January 2021, and 170.97 GW in January 2020.

    Experts are of the view that the slowdown in power consumption growth in the fortnight of January has shown the impact of local restrictions imposed by states amid the third wave of COVID-19.

    They opined that the local restriction had affected industrial and commercial demand. The third wave of the pandemic hit the country in January 2022, which has forced many states to impose local restrictions like night and weekend curfews.

    They have also taken measures like banning dining in bars and restaurants. The experts opined that the power demand and consumption would improve in the coming months as many states are now lifting local restrictions after a decline in the number of positive cases.

    Power consumption had grown by 3.3 per cent in December 2021 to 109.17 BU from 105.62 BU in the year-ago period. In November 2021, power consumption grew by 2.5 per cent to 99.32 BU from 96.88 BU a year ago.

    In November 2021, power consumption grew by 2.5 per cent to 99.32 BU from 96.88 BU a year ago. Many states had imposed lockdown restrictions after the second wave of the pandemic in April 2021, which affected the recovery in commercial and industrial power demand.

    Curbs were gradually lifted as the number of COVID cases fell. Curbs were gradually lifted as the number of COVID cases fell. Power consumption witnessed a 6.6 per cent year-on-year growth in May 2021 at 108.80 BU, from 102.08 BU in the same month of 2020.

    In June 2021, it grew nearly 9 per cent to 114.48 BU, compared to 105.08 BU in the same month in 2020. In June 2021, it grew nearly 9 per cent to 114.48 BU, compared to 105.08 BU in the same month in 2020.

    In July 2021, it rose to 123.72 BU from 112.14 BU year-on-year, while in August, power consumption surged by over 17 per cent to 127.88 BU compared to 109.21 BU in the same month a year back.Power consumption in September 2021 witnessed flat growth at 112.43 BU, mainly due to the delayed monsoon. In October 2021, power consumption grew at 3.3 per cent to 112.79 BU from 109.17 BU in the same month in 2020.