Global factors, macro data to guide market, stimulus measures may lift sentiment

• Participants will also track WPI inflation data scheduled to be announced on Monday
• Factors such as movement of rupee against the US dollar and foreign capital flows will influence trading sentiment

Six of 10 most valued firms add ₹50,580 crore in m-cap; SBI, ICICI Bank lead

• ICICI Bank's valuation jumped ₹14,062.37 crore to ₹2,66,874.13 crore
• In contrast, the market cap of TCS dropped ₹21,125.9 crore to ₹8,03,516.90 crore

Drone strikes on world’s biggest oil producer worry Indian energy planners

• Saudi Arabia is a crucial source of energy for India and the second largest supplier of crude and cooking gas to India
• Any spike in global crude prices will impact India’s oil import bill and trade deficit

Modi govt seeks to lift housing market, exports to arrest economic downturn

• Sitharaman announced a host of steps to support housing and export sectors in a bid to create more jobs and to reverse an economic downturn
• The measures announced, include easing of foreign borrowing norms to facilitate low cost funds for affordable housing, overhaul of tax refund schemes for exporters, priority sector tag for export credit

Tata, Vedanta mining leases end in March; Govt to reject leases of many firms

• Mining industry had sought extension of leases of all operational non-captive mines for a period of 10 years beyond 2020
• The move will impact about 334 mines belonging to companies such as Tata Steel, Vedanta Limited and others

Attacks on Saudi facilities threaten spare oil capacity, price hikes

• The Iranian-backed Houthis group in Yemen claimed responsibility for attacks that shut two plants at the Abqaiq facility
• Crude prices could spike by several dollars per barrel when markets open Sunday night

IPO market sees a dry spell this year, only 11 companies hit bourses

• In 2018, 24 companies made a debut in the bourses raising ₹30,959 crore
• A total of 23 companies have approached Sebi for raising funds through IPOs in this year so far

Pakistan could lose conventional war with India: Imran Khan

• Khan ruled out the possibility of dialogue with India in the aftermath of the country's decision to abrogate Article 370, which gave special status to J&K
• He told Al Jazeera that a war could be consequential considering the two neighbouring countries are nuclear-armed

Rs20000 cr last mile affordable housing package to benefit 3.5 lakh house owners

• FM Sitharaman announced a last mile ₹20,000 cr affordable housing package to benefit around 3.5 lakh home owners
• The govt will contribute around ₹10,000 cr to this fund on the lines of NIIF, while investors like LIC, private capital, sovereign funds, DFI will contribute the remaining ₹10,000 cr

Inflation under control, clear signs of revival in factory output: FM Sitharaman

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said inflation is under control and there is a clear sign of revival of industrial production
• Sitharaman said the steps announced to increase credit flow to NBFCs, including the partial credit guarantee scheme, has started showing results

Government announces ₹50,000 crore overhaul of export tax refund scheme

• Scheme for remission of duties of taxes on export products will replace Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) scheme, said FM
• The new scheme which will benefit all products including textiles is more beneficial to the industry, the minister said at a briefing

How to make a boutique ‘paara’

• Hindustan Park in Kolkata has transitioned from a middle class neighborhood to a buzzy area full of hipster cafes and boutiques
• The transformation, though similar to that of Hauz Khas Village in Delhi, has its own charm and peculiarities

This new govt portal will find your lost or stolen mobile phone

• Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, on Friday, unveiled an portal where an user can report a complaint of lost or stolen phones
• If your mobile is stolen or lost, you have to lodge an FIR and inform Department of Telecom

Fund crunch likely for states as growth slows

• Low growth assumption by 15th Finance Commission may lead to smaller share of tax revenues
• India’s nominal Q1 GDP growth stood at a meagre 8% while the budget assumes nominal GDP growth at 11.5%

Ban Amazon and Flipkart's festival sales, traders body urges govt

• Traders body CAIT has written to the govt seeking a 'blanket ban' on festive season sales conducted by e-commerce giant Flipkart, its rival Amazon and others
• CAIT said the practice of deep discounts offered by various e-commerce platforms during the festive season goes against the FDI rules

Government set to digitally map India

• The project is being undertaken by the Survey of India, with support from Department of Science and Technology for a period of 2 years
• The work has already begun in three states — Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana

Amid slowdown concerns, FM Sitharaman announces annual mega shopping festivals

• Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced India’s plan to hold annual mega shopping festivals on the lines of Dubai shopping festival
• Such festivals will be held on distinctive themes such as gems and jewellery, yoga, tourism and textiles and leather

What the government’s funding boost means for the housing sector

• In choosing the 3 parameters for projects eligible to avail ₹20,000 cr special funding, the govt has cherry-picked the safest options among stressed projects, said experts
• Several delayed, stalled projects in NCR, the worst impacted property market, are under NCLT and NPA and will not get the benefit of this stressed fund, said NAREDCO president

Saudi oil output cut in half after drones strike Aramco site

• Saudi Aramco had to cut production by as much as 5 million barrels a day as a precautionary measure after the attack on the Abqaiq plant
• Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, who have launched several drone attacks on Saudi targets, claimed responsibility

Hamza bin Laden killed in a counter-terrorism operation, says Trump

• The loss of Hamza bin Laden not only deprives Al- Qaeda of important leadership skills but undermines important operational activities of the group, Trump said
• The announcement comes days after 18th anniversary of 9/11 attacks that was masterminded by Osama bin Laden from his hideout in Afghanistan

This is what the CBI’s crime manual entails

• CBI’s crime manual dictates the working of the investigative agency and lays down procedures
• The current crime manual of the CBI was updated in 2005, prior to which it was updated in 1991

Vistara plans complete revamp of its frequent-flyer programme

• Under the proposed system, a seat will always be available for member-passengers in exchange for points
• Vistara is also planning to increasing the number of partner firms across different segments and moving to a dynamic award-pricing system

FM Nirmala Sitharama announces ₹20,000 crore fund for stuck realty projects

• Sitharaman said external commercial borrowing (ECB) guidelines will be relaxed for builders under Prime Minister’s affordable housing scheme
• In major boost to stuck housing projects, the finance ministry announced a ₹10,000 crore special package to provide last-mile funding to such projects

How to use NPS to reduce your income tax this year

• The government has increased the income tax exemption limit on withdrawal from NPS
• An employee can deposit contribute towards NPS directly or route contribution through the employer

Govt employees to get house-building advance at lower interest rates

• The interest rate house-building loans will be linked to 10-year G Sec yields
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also announced a ₹10,000 crore funding window for incomplete projects

Saudi Aramco fire: Drones attack world's largest oil processing factory in Saudi

• Saudi Aramco describes its Abqaiq oil processing facility there as 'the largest crude oil stabilization plant in the world'
• The Dubai-based satellite channel Al-Arabiya first acknowledged the blaze, citing its own correspondent in the area

Merged entity of UBI, PNB, OBC to become operational from 1 April next year

• The lenders said that there will no retrenchment of staff in the merged entity, and also ruled out the possibility of bringing in VRS
• The merged unit, likely to have a new name, will be the second largest bank in the country after SBI with a total business volume of ₹18 trillion

Hyderabad cops helping to get documents, helmets instead of challans

• Instead of imposing fines, the traffic cops are facilitating the violators to buy the helmet or obtain necessary documents so that they don't repeat the next time
• Those who were not having documents like pollution, insurance were assisted to get the same from authorities concerned on the spot

Gold prices fall for seventh day in a row, down ₹2,400; silver rates crash

• An improvement in risk appetite led investors to shift away from safe-have assets like gold
• Silver has suffered higher losses than gold

ED slaps show cause penalty notice of over ₹229-cr FEMA violation against PwC

• The ED had taken over the probe against the firm on direction of the Supreme Court which asked it to look into the affairs of the company from the point of view of FEMA
• The notice was issued after completion of probe by the adjudicating authority which is the Special Director (Eastern Region) of ED

Osama bin Laden's son Hamza killed in US operation: Donald Trump

• Donald Trump confirmed that Hamza bin Laden was killed in a counter-terrorism operation along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border
• The 15th of Osama bin Laden's 20 children and a son of his 3rd wife, Hamza, thought to be about 30 years old, was 'emerging as a leader in the Al-Qaeda,' said the US

BJP to head 14 of 24 Parliament standing committees, Jayant Sinha gets finance

• The biggest setback has come for Congress which has lost the prestigious committees like finance and external affairs to BJP
• The only ally of the BJP to have got chairmanship of a parliamentary committee is the Shiv Sena

One Nation, One Language: Protests seen across non-Hindi speaking states

• Non-Hindi speaking states saw several leaders lead protests against the Amit Shah’s proposal made on the occasion of the ‘Hindi Diwas’, observed by the centre on Saturday
• Union home minister Amit Shah had proposed to promote Hindi as the country’s common language

Gurugram Rapid Metro is in trouble, here's why nobody wants to run it

• Rapid Metro Rail Gurgaon Ltd (RMGL) has already expressed its inability to run Gurugram Rapid Metro any further
• HUDA will have to study the modalities of reviving the ridership, which is in disrepair, and extending the line to areas which actually require such a Rapid Metro

Infosys plans to hire 1,000 locals for its Arizona Technology Innovation Center

• Infosys' Arizona center has a special focus on autonomous technologies, Internet of Things, full-stack engineering, data science, cybersecurity
• Infosys says it has surpassed its Spring 2017 commitment to hire 10,000 American workers as part of its ongoing efforts to accelerate the pace of innovation for US enterprises

Clear signs of revival in industrial production, fixed investment: FM Sitharaman

• FM Nirmala Sitharaman said there are clear signs of revival of industrial production, fixed investment after economic growth plunged to a 6-year low
• Sitharaman announce the 3rd part of the stimulus package for the economy, she said measures are being taken to improve credit outflow from banks

Increase in  flexi-staff hiring may eat into IT industry's margins

• The IT-ITeS sector tops flexi-staff adoption with 12 out of every 100 employees being contractual or flexi staff
• The sector’s flexi workforce is expected to grow to 720,000 by 2021 from half a million in 2018

BJP appoints Sanjay Jaiswal as Bihar chief, Satish Punia as Rajasthan unit head

• Sanjay Jaiswal will replace Nityanand Rai, a minister of state in the Union government, as head of the BJP's Bihar unit
• Satish Punia has been appointed chief of Rajasthan BJP, weeks after the death of state party chief Madan Lal Saini

Small finance banks need minimum ₹200 crore capital in on-tap licence regime

• SFBs should be listed within three years of reaching a net worth of ₹500 cr, say RBI draft guidelines
• Promoter holding must be brought down to 30% within 10 years and 15% within 15 years of commencement of business

Hong Kong exchange vows to press on with $39-bn LSE bid after rebuff

• The Hong Kong exchange said it would now hold more talks with LSE investors as it considers its next step
• LSE said earlier on Friday, as it rebuffed the Hong Kong approach, that it was sticking with its $27-bn acquisition of data and analytics company Refinitiv

Delhi-Lucknow new Tejas train starts next month: Ticket price, cancellation rule

• Passengers can book tickets in Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express via IRCTC website
• Delhi-Lucknow Tejas Express will have dynamic fare

CARE Ratings downgrades Altico Capital following default on interest payment

• The ratings remain constrained due to concentration risks in terms of clients, geography
• As on March 31, 2019, the company had a loan portfolio of Rs.6,906 crore

Schemes to remove discretion in tax matters implemented: Nirmala Sitharaman

• Government to stimulate the economic growth rate, says Nirmala Sitharaman
• 'Prosecution will only be sanctioned by a collegium of top level officials,' said the minister

Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train to have 12 stations: Details here

• The bullet train will run at a speed of 320 kmph and cover the Mumbai-Ahmedabad distance in an expected three hours
• Upon completion, the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train will make 70 trips, 35 on each side between 6 am till 12 am

When Kashmir speaks: The other side of a lockdown

Amidst conflicting reports and a breakdown in communication, Kashmiris outside the valley are raising their voices on social media, helping each other and letting the world know what it is being unable to access—their own truth

How much to save and how to invest for your child's education

• Considering the dynamic nature of the goal, it’s prudent to plan your kid’s education wisely
• According to NSSO - between 2008 and 2014, the average annual cost of education surged by 175%