NDA's course correction: Sitharaman announces multiple changes to boost growth

• Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presents Budget Lite in 57 minutes
• The intent clearly is not only to revive economic momentum, but also address the growing sense of gloom and doom

Relief for markets as super-rich surcharge on FPIs is withdrawn

• Analysts said it could reverse the outflows seen after the budget and may also aid in the appreciation of the rupee
• The higher tax surcharge on super-rich tax payers sent foreign portfolio investors into a selling spree

Tax harassment will end, assures Sitharaman

• The FM’s assurances indicate direct tax administration will be closely monitored by the government
• Sitharaman’s assurances seems to be a direct fallout of industry leaders speaking out about tax officials harassing businesses

Trump ‘orders’ US companies to close China operations in latest salvo

• 'Our great American companies are hereby ordered to immediately start looking for an alternative to China,' Trump tweeted
• Trump’s comments came on a day Beijing announced $75 billion of new tariffs on US goods, including soybeans, cars and oil

IndiGo's board approves new related party transaction policy: Gangwal

• The board also agreed to increase the board size to ten directors
• 'In light of this positive and important development, I'll be supporting the proposed changes to the Articles on 27 August AGM,' stated Gangwal

Cheer for the startup sector as FM relaxes angel tax rules

• Angel tax has been seen as an unfair tax burden that has an adverse effect on startups and their financial backers
• However, some are waiting for clarity on what this move means for those startups that are not registered with the commerce ministry

SC grants interim protection to Chidambaram in ED case; no relief in CBI matter

• P Chidambaram will continue to be in custody as the Supreme Court did not intervene in the CBI case
• On Thursday, Chidambaram was sent for custodial interrogation of the CBI till 26 August

Jerome Powell says Fed will aid economy, but Trump escalates attack

• The Fed cut rates last month for the first time in a decade, and financial markets have baked in the likelihood of more rate cuts this year
• In his speech in Jackson Hole, Powell said Trump's trade wars have complicated the Fed's ability to set interest rates

Opposition leaders to visit Srinagar on Saturday

• The decision was taken during a meeting on Friday evening
• Uncertainty looms over whether they will be allowed to enter Srinagar or not

Oyo buys Las Vegas Hooters Hotel in its first US purchase

• Founded in 2013, OYO Hotels & Homes is the world’s third-largest chain of hotels, homes, managed living and workspaces
• Valued at about $10 billion, Oyo now caters to an increasing number of corporate travellers

Liquidity taps opened for banks and NBFCs

• Banks will also issue an improved policy for one-time settlements to benefit MSMEs and retail borrowers
• PSBs to ensure mandated return of loan documents within 15 days of loan closure

Higher depreciation, govt purchases to boost vehicle sales

• Sales of automobiles have been on a decline for the past year, leading to thousands of job losses
• Consumption demand in the economy nosedived after the bankruptcy of IL&FS

Government gets civil about CSR activities

• CSR-related violations will be now considered a ‘civil liability’, instead of being treated as a ‘criminal offence’
• Any changes in the provisions will require further amendments to the Companies (Amendment) Act

Tariffs on US goods may top agenda at Donald Trump-Narendra Modi meet

• Proposal on WTO reforms also likely to figure in Sunday meeting between the two leaders
• G7 leaders will hold a special meeting on Sunday at Biarritz on global economy and US’s trade initiative

Steps to increase liquidity and boost growth to revive consumption cycle

• Sitharaman’s announcements come amid sluggish consumer demand across sectors, from biscuits to auto
• Nirmala Sitharaman said public sector banks will get an immediate recapitalization of ₹70,000 crore to ease the liquidity crisis, which is hurting big and small traders

Centre set to deepen bond market with special focus on infrastructure, housing

• The Credit Guarantee Enhancement Corp will now be available for infrastructure and housing projects to enable debt flow
• The government will work with the RBI and Sebi to enable stock exchanges to allow AA-rated bonds as collateral

Finance ministry moves to boost spending, loosens purse strings

• Nirmala Sitharaman said this was only the start and that she would announce more reform measures over the next week
• Sitharaman said the ban on the purchase of new vehicles by government departments will be lifted

Move to clear dues a boost for infrastructure

• Separate financial institution for credit enhancement for infra, housing projects is also on the cards
• The finance minister also reiterated the government’s five-year commitment of investing ₹100 trillion for infrastructure

After Article 370, Congress faces varying views

• A few party leaders have now come out to say that ‘demonising’ Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not help the opposition’s cause
• Shashi Tharoor said PM should be praised whenever he does the right thing to lend credence to the opposition’s criticism of the government

CBI sends LRs to five countries to unearth money trail in INX Media case

• The letter rogatory, a judicial request for information from an Indian court to a court abroad, was sent recently to the UK, Singapore, Mauritius, Bermuda and Switzerland
• INX Media had proposed to receive foreign funds from three entities

OMCs not to extend Air India's fuel restriction to other airports

• Air India owes around ₹5,000 crore to public sector OMCs, including IOCL, BPCL and HPCL
• OMCs had earlier suspended fuel supplies to the national carrier at six tier two airports — Cochin, Pune, Patna, Ranchi, Mohali, and Visakhapatnam — due to non payment of dues

Maruti Suzuki voluntarily recalls over 40,000 units of WagonR

• Starting 24 August, 2019, owners of the suspected WagonR models will be contacted by Maruti Suzuki dealers for inspection and replacement of the faulty parts, free of cost
• 40,618 WagonR vehicles (1 litre) will be inspected for a possible issue of 'fuel hose fouling with metal clamp'

Dow falls 2% as Trump escalates trade dispute with China

• Trump ordered US companies 'to immediately start looking for an alternative to China' in response to Beijing's threat to impose retaliatory tariffs on US goods
• The broad-based S&P 500 also slid 2% to 2,863.47

Higher surcharge on gains from equity withdrawn for foreign, domestic investors

• FPIS withdrew over $3 billion from Indian stock markets in July and August
• No angel tax on startups registered with DPIIT

India to achieve most of COP 21 climate change goals in next 18 months: Modi

• In his address to the Indian community at the UNESCO headquarters here, Modi said there was a lot of talk about dangers of climate change but action was not evident
• He said it was India and France that took the decisive step of forming the International Solar Alliance

Chidambaram asked Peter, Indrani to 'take care' of Karti: ED tells SC

• Supreme Court protected the Congress leader from arrest till 26 August in the money laundering case lodged by ED
• ED told the apex court that during the investigation it found Chidambaram had 11 'immovable properties' and 17 bank accounts abroad

Opposition leaders to visit J&K on Saturday, Rahul Gandhi likely to join

• According to sources, some of the parties that will be part of the opposition all-party delegation are Congress, CPI-M, CPI, RJD, NCP, TMC and DMK
• Top Congress leaders who will visit Srinagar are Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma; Rahul may join them

IndiGo, GoAir likely to get A320 neo planes fitted with new P&W engines

• P&W engine-powered A320 neo planes in the two airline's fleet have been facing glitches both mid-air and on-ground
• The two budget carriers have been facing glitches in P&W engines powering many of their A320 planes

Donald Trump asks who is bigger enemy, Fed Chair Powell or China's Xi?

• China said it would impose retaliatory tariffs against about $75 billion worth of US goods
• Donald Trump indicated he was planning to take an action that would affect the dollar and the Fed

China hits back at US with tariffs on $75 billion of imports

• An extra 5% tariff will be put on American soybeans starting next month, and a 25% duty on US cars will resume 15 Dec
• China announced that it will impose additional tariffs on a total of $75 billion of US goods

Opinion | Super-rich tax on FPIs axed

The depth of unease among FPIs over the enhanced surcharge could be gauged from the fact that about ₹23,000 crore was pulled out from Indian financial markets in July and August

Reliance Mutual Fund introduces side pocketing in its debt and hybrid schemes

• The schemes in which a side pocketing provision has been introduced are 17 in number
• Side pocketing is the creation of segregated portfolios in lieu of bad debt when there is a downgrade in paper held by a scheme below investment grade or when there is a default

Jet Airways founder Naresh Goyal not cooperating in probe: Centre to Delhi HC

• The hearing took place amidst the news that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches at the premises of Naresh Goyal
• Denying him permission to fly aborad, the court had sought the Centre's reply to his plea

Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman resumes flying operations on MiG-21

• Abhinandan had been grounded due to ejection from his MiG-21 which had been shot down in aerial conflict with Pakistan Air Force F-16s
• Abhinandan Varthaman was awarded the Vir Chakra for his role in the 27 February operations

Deep discounting averse NRAI hits back at Zomato CEO with #ZoGoisNoGo campaign

• On Thursday, the Zomato CEO took to Twitter attacking NRAI president in a series of tweets
• NRAI, which has been in the forefront of the protest against deep discounts, said it was not yet satisfied with the latest Zomato changes

Union Bank too links home, auto loans to repo rates

• State Bank and seven other state-run banks have announced that their new loans and deposits will be priced to the repo-rate
• Vehicle loans will be offered at 8.60% to borrowers with good credit score

Opinion | Sitharaman’s credit nudge

Nirmala Sitharaman's message is clear: Lenders need not hold back on advancing loans to deserving borrowers

FM has undone most of the damages caused by her maiden budget: Market analysts

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters the government had decided to withdraw the surcharge on FPIs

Ramdev's aide Balkrishna admitted to AIIMS

• Balkrishna, who heads Patanjali Yogpeeth, was first taken to a hospital in Haridwar
• Balkrishna was admitted in a state of 'altered consciousness'

Microsoft and ISB partner to advance AI skilling in India

• The two will collaborate in research which will use AI and Machine Learning to study issues relevant for business and public policy
• The partnership will also jointly introduce a new executive programme

Income tax changes to 'cheaper' home, auto loans explained in 10 points

• The government will withdraw enhanced surcharge on long-term/short-term capital gains arising from transfer of equity shares/units
• Banks have agreed to effect timely rate cuts to pass on the benefits of RBI's repo rate cuts to borrowers: Nirmala Sitharaman

JD(S), Congress spar over coalition collapse; Yediyurappa fights dissent

• Siddaramaiah said that it was Deve Gowda, HD Kumaraswamy and HD Revanna who had caused the Congress-JD(S) alliance to collapse by not taking everyone into confidence
• Yediyurappa, meanwhile, is looking to contain the growing dissent that threatens to rock the one-month-old government

RFID tags mandatory for commercial vehicles after three weeks: SDMC

• Non-RFID vehicles will have to pay penalties in order to enter the city from Friday midnight
• The SDMC has also come up with a mobile application, "MCD TOLL", to make recharge of RFID tags hassle-free

Sitharaman pushes car sales by lifting ban on govt purchases

• The Centre will continue to encourage electric vehicles, but without banning conventional ICE-fitted automobiles
• It will also lift the ban on purchase of new vehicles by government departments

Government unveils measures to support auto sector, boost demand

• The revision of one-time registration fees has been deferred till June 2020
• BS-IV vehicles purchased up to March 2020 will remain operational for the entire period of registration, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said

Why the Future Retail-Amazon deal brought little joy for investors

• After Future Retail announcing Amazon will buy 49% in Future Coupons, the Future Retail stock declined by 4.6% on NSE
• Notwithstanding the benefits from the Amazon deal, the consumption slowdown in the economy should keep valuations in check from a near-term perspective

Govt to release ₹70,000 crore immediately to state-run banks

• Surcharge on domestic investors in equity markets also withdrawn
• Public sector banks to get ₹70,000 crore recapitalisation immediately