PremiumIndian stocks opened higher and gained as much as 0.5% in early trading but negative sentiments soon took over the Indian investors as it continued to slide in today's session. Asian markets in general rose on Wednesday with inflation figures giving Fed fewer reasons to remain hawkish.
The volatility persisted on Wednesday despite positive global cues as benchmark indices gave up on early gains and ended in the red for the 5th session in a row. Nifty 50 gave up on the 17,000 mark as Bank indices pulled the markets down.
Nifty closed below 17,000, at 16,972, as it lost 71 points. Sensex ended below 57,600 to close at 57,555 as it shed almost 350 pts.
Metal index jumped 1.5% and Consumer Durables around 0.7% but most other sectors ended in the red with Bank, Media, and Realty leading the sectoral laggards.
Among stocks, Adani Enterprises and Adani Ports climbed 5.7% and 4%, respectively. Asian Paints and Tata Steel also climbed by 3% and 2%, respectively. Bharti Airtel, IndusInd Bank and Reliance shed somewhere in between 1.5% to 2%.
Asian equities rose on Wednesday, tracking a relief rally on Wall Street after U.S. inflation data delivered no nasty surprises, reinforcing hopes the Federal Reserve will likely go for a smaller rate hike when it meets next week.
Japanese banking stocks closed higher on Wednesday, helping the Nikkei share average snap a three-day losing streak, as markets recovered some composure after investors tempered their fears of contagion from the Silicon Valley Bank meltdown.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange's banking index rose 3.3%, led by regional lenders including Suruga Bank and Shimane Bank, which climbed more than 5% each.
China and Hong Kong stocks were steady on Wednesday as investors assessed domestic economic data that signalled signs of improvement, while the US inflation print helped ease contagion fears.
China's blue-chip CSI 300 Index was flat, while the Shanghai Composite Index edged 0.55% higher. Hang Seng Index climbed 1.52% and Hang Seng China Enterprises Index jumped 1.88%.
European shares opened lower on Wednesday as declines in Inditex and H&M, two of the world's largest fashion retailers, weighed down the broader retailing sector index. The pan-European STOXX 600 index was lower in the morning with the retailers' index down 1.9%.
London stocks opened lower on Wednesday, with insurer Prudential hitting the bottom of the FTSE 100 index after full-year results, while investors awaited the UK spring budget due later in the day.
Paytm has continued to sustain growth in terms of payments and lending in February. In the first two months of Q4FY23, Paytm posted triple-digit growth of 286% YoY to ₹8,086 crore in loan disbursements, while its total merchant GMV came in at ₹2.34 lakh crore. The fintech giant has touched a new milestone in offline payments leadership, while its overall market share across digital payments to merchants has been steady. On an average basis, Paytm has also continued to expand its customer base. This has made American financial services provider, Citi optimistic about Paytm's share price going forward. It believes the steep correction in Paytm since its IPO has made the stock attractive and it has priced most of its downside risks.
On Wednesday, Paytm's share price traded at ₹577.55 apiece down marginally from the previous day's closing of ₹579.25 apiece on BSE. The company's market cap is around ₹37,502.31 crore. (Read More)
Antu Thomas, Research analyst at Geojit Financial Services: The green shoots in demand on account of a pick-up in real estate is adding colours to the sector. Brent crude is currently trading at a three-month low and the deflationary trend in other raw material prices will get reflected in margins in the coming quarters. Currently, the paint stocks are trading below their long-term valuation, which provides a bargain opportunity to the investors as the story remains intact. The sustenance of this rally will depend on a prolonged demand recovery in discretionary spending and a drop in inflation.
European Central Bank policymakers are still leaning towards a half-percentage-point rate hike on Thursday, despite turmoil in the banking sector, as they expect inflation will remain too high in coming years, a source told Reuters.
Investors had begun to doubt the ECB's commitment to another big rate hike this week after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) in the United States sent ripples through global financial markets.
But the source close to the Governing Council said the ECB was unlikely to ditch its plan to raise rates by 50 basis points on March 16 - announced at its last meeting and repeated several times by President Christine Lagarde and her colleagues - because that would damage its credibility.
The source added that formal proposals for the meeting have not yet been distributed but policymakers have seen the new quarterly projections. (Reuters)
On Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), Gold April Futures quoted at ₹57,149 per 10 grams at 1:49 pm and were down by 0.58 per cent from Tuesday's closing price of ₹57,483. Likewise, Silver May Futures traded lower at ₹66,305 per kg on MCX.
"Gold is likely to trade with a negative bias for the day amid higher US treasury yields. However, sharp downside may be cushioned as demand for gold may increase as a hedge against economic uncertainties. MCX gold is expected to break the key support level of 57,250 to continue its downward trend towards the level of 57,000," said brokerage house and research firm ICICI Direct. (Read More)
Vedanta Ltd on Wednesday said that it has repaid USD 100 million to Standard Chartered Bank through release of encumbrance on March 10.
Vedanta Resources Ltd has earlier said it has enough means to meet debt repayment liabilities in the coming quarters as it looked to assuage investor concerns around its financial position.
Vedanta Resources is the majority owner of Mumbai-listed mining and oil & gas company Vedanta Ltd.
"The earlier disclosure was made pursuant to facility agreement dated 8 September 2022 entered into between Twin Star Holding Limited (as borrower), Vedanta Resources Limited and Welter Trading Limited (as original guarantors), and Standard Chartered Bank (Singapore) Limited (as original lender)... for the purposes of availing a facility of an aggregate amount of USD 100,000,000.
"However, the said facility has been repaid and the encumbrance has been released," Vedanta said in a filing to BSE. (PTI)
The initial public offering (IPO) of Quality Foils (India) Limited opened for public subscription earlier this week on Tuesday, March 14, 2023 and will conclude on March 16, 2023. The price of the initial share sale is fixed at ₹60 per share.
As of 1:30 pm on day 2, Quality Foils (India) IPO is oversubscribed 16.99 times with retail investors' category 18.66 times, and 13.32 times in the non-institutional investors (NII) category, as per the exchange data. (Read More)
The government may launch nearly a dozen public infrastructure investment trusts (InvITs) for road projects to offer retail businesses a regular investment opportunity with assured high returns as part of its efforts to monetize the key infrastructure assets, two people aware of the plan said.
According to the people, the first in the series is expected to be launched in the next couple of months. InvITs are expected to raise money from the public and make them part of India’s highway development programme. (Read More)
The spectacular collapse of Silicon Valley Bank might increase trouble for other US lenders, and bring SoftBank Group Corp. investments under tightened scrutiny. The shaken confidence of the investors might even bring down SoftBank Group Corp's share below CEO Masayoshi Son’s pain point, reported Bloomberg.
The US tech lender's failure has raised the investor concern over the exposure to start-up firms in the SoftBank Vision Funds. Notably, SoftBank shares have plunged 13% in four sessions to below 5,000 yen and are nearing a level that some see as Son’s threshold for announcing a buyback. (Read More)
Apple Inc supplier Foxconn said on Wednesday it expected smart consumer electronics demand would decline slightly this year, as it reported a 10% fall in fourth-quarter net profit from a year earlier, in line with analysts estimates.
The world's largest contract electronics maker, which gets more than half of its revenue from consumer electronics, forecast significant growth this year in other areas such as computing, cloud and networking and component products.
Overall, revenues for the first quarter and full year should be flat, the Taiwanese company said.
"We maintain a relatively conservative view towards the smart consumer electronics and think they might decline slightly," Foxconn Chairman Liu Young-way said on an earnings call, pointing to factors including last year's high base as well as inflation and the slowing global economy.
Foxconn grabbed headlines in November when curbs to control COVID-19 prompted thousands of workers to leave its massive factory in China's Zhengzhou city, also the world's largest iPhone plant. This disrupted production ahead of Christmas and January's Lunar New Year holidays. (Reuters)
IT services provider LTIMindree Ltd (LTIM) at its first investor day meet after the merger outlined its growth strategies under the LTIM One plan. Among the key highlights was the management’s endeavour to consistently deliver industry-leading profitable growth. LTIM eyes $1 billion in revenue synergies over the next four–five years.
Secondly, LTIM expects Ebit margin to reach 19–20% by FY27. Ebit is earnings before interest and tax. Better utilisation, improved operating efficiencies and SG&A leverage would aid margin expansion. Remember in Q3FY23, the company’s Ebit margin took a knock due to furloughs and one-off integration costs. In Q4, margins are expected to see a sharp sequential uptick of 200 basis points and the management expects to revert to normalised Ebit margin range of 17-18% in the next few quarters. One basis point is 0.01%. (Read More)
Two subsidiaries of Indian game-developing firm, Nazara Tech, have received unrestricted access of ₹64 crore that was held at the troubled Silicon Valley Bank, the tech firm informed in its stock filing on Wednesday.
Kiddopia and Mediawrkz, the two step-down subsidiaries of the company cumulatively accounted for $7.75 million ( ₹64 crore) at the SVB. However, the company said, ₹60 crore of the total amount held in the bank has been transferred to bank accounts outside of SVB. Whereas, the remaining ₹4 crore was still deposited in SVB accounts for unrestricted operational use. (Read More)
Nirman Agri Genetics Ltd's initial public offering (IPO) has opened for public subscription on Wednesday, March 15, 2023 and the issue will be open for bidding till Monday, March 20. The price of the initial share sale has been fixed at ₹99 per share. The SME company aims to raise 20.30 crore from its initial offer through issuance of 2,050,800 fresh shares.
According to market observers, shares of Nirman Agri Genetics Ltd are available in the grey market at a discount of ₹3 today, down from premium in previous sessions. (Read More)
On industry interaction and channel checks, we expect Asian Paints’ demand to rise, vs. weak Q3 volumes. Lower input prices would help margins expand from Q4. While we lower our FY23e/24e/FY25e 8%/6%/6% to factor in weak Q3 volumes and higher capex, we are optimistic of its earnings (~17% CAGR) over FY23-25. The recent stock-price fall provides an entry, driving our upgrade to a Buy at TP of Rs3,260 (55xFY25e EPS) vs. Rs3,570 (60x Sep’24e EPS) earlier.
The Indian rupee edged higher against the U.S. currency on Wednesday, tracking recovery in wider Asian markets, but gave up opening gains on importer-led dollar buying.
The rupee traded at 82.45 per dollar by 10:50 a.m. IST after opening at 82.31, compared with 82.49 in the previous session.
The currency gave up initial gains as state-run banks were seen buying dollars, likely on behalf of oil marketing companies and importers, two traders said, adding they were closely watching the 82.50 level. There was also fixing-related dollar demand in the market, a trader said.
"A breakout above 82.50 amid speculative buying can drive the USD/INR pair towards 83.00 levels," said Amit Pabari, managing director at CR Forex Advisors, adding that their overall bias remained for an upwards move.
The concerns over the demise of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) eased, with the Wall Street rallying overnight to snap a three-day losing run. Asian shares and currencies also rose. (Reuters)
Neelkanth Mishra, co-head of Asia Pacific strategy at Credit Suisse Group AG, has resigned from the company and is set to join Mumbai-based Axis Bank Ltd., according to people familiar with the matter.
A veteran of two decades at the Swiss bank, Mishra has agreed to helm Axis Bank’s research department, the people said, asking not to be named as the information is private. He is part of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Economic Advisory Council and head of research at Credit Suisse’s local unit, according to the bank’s website.
The hiring is part of Axis Bank Chief Executive Officer Amitabh Chaudhry’s plans to bolster various businesses including wealth management and investment banking business of the lender, whose share price touched a record high earlier this year. The financier had also completed the acquisition of Citigroup Inc.’s India retail banking business for $1.4 billion earlier this month.
A spokesperson for Axis Bank declined to comment, while Credit Suisse spokespersons didn’t respond to emails and phone calls seeking comment on Mishra’s resignation. Mishra didn’t respond to an email and text messages seeking comments. (Bloomberg)
Global brokerage Jefferies likes Sona BLW Precision Forgings' strategy of expanding its component portfolio to address the intensifying electrification and autonomous trends in global autos.
“A large order book provides growth visibility; we expect 31%/40% revenue/EPS CAGR over FY23-26E with ~45% of revenues from BEVs by FY26E. Valuations appear rich at 38x FY24E PE, but should sustain, given the strong outlook. Any PLI benefits pose upside risk to our estimates," said the brokerage while initiating coverage on Sona BLW shares with a Buy tag and a target price of ₹575 apiece. (Read More)
Jinesh Joshi – Research Analyst, Prabhudas Lilladher Pvt Ltd on PVR (PVRL IN)
Rating: BUY | CMP: Rs1,530 | TP: Rs2,096
Event Update - Multiplex behemoth arrives
Quick Pointers:
§ Synergy benefits of Rs2.25bn to accrue over next 12-24 months at EBITDA level.
§ Merged entity plans to open 180-200 screens per annum over next 2 years.
We increase our pre-IND AS EBITDA estimates for merged entity by 7.0%/7.5% for FY24E/FY25E, as we expect synergy benefits of ~Rs2bn to accrue over next 2 years. The PVR-INOX merger is expected to 1) lend invincible size advantage to combined entity (18%/30% screen/BO share respectively) 2) enhance BS strength (Inox had net cash BS as of Jan end) enabling rapid expansion into new markets and 3) improve bargaining power with various stakeholders in the value chain like film distributors, real estate developers, ad-networks and ticket aggregators resulting in material revenue/cost synergies. Though there are concerns over Bollywood underperformance, we believe it is not a structural issue (NBOC of Pathaan stood at ~Rs5.4bn despite high decibel negative campaigns); but a problem of content, as OTT proliferation has raised the bar of audience expectations from big screen. We expect merged entity to report footfalls of 170mn/185mn and pre-IND AS EBITDA margin of 19.7%/21.0% in FY24E/FY25E respectively. Retain ‘BUY’ on the stock with a TP of Rs2,096 after assigning EV/EBITDA multiple of 15.5x (no change) to merged entity.
Indian government bond yields held steady in early session on Wednesday, while elevated inflation readings renewed focus on upcoming policy meetings.
The 10-year benchmark 7.26% 2032 bond yield was at 7.3796% as of 10:00 a.m. IST, after closing higher at 7.3841% on Tuesday.
"As expected, the benchmark bond yield is facing stiff resistance around the 7.38% level and the rally may have been over for the time being," a trader with a state-run bank said.
U.S. Treasury yields recovered to end higher on Tuesday and sustained momentum on Wednesday after a stubbornly high inflation reading in February ahead of the Federal Reserve's policy decision due next week.
The two-year U.S. yield, which is a closer indicator of interest rate expectations, has jumped over 25 basis points (bps) since Monday's close and was at 4.30%. (Reuters)
Shares of Adani Enterprises, Adani Green Energy, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) rose on the BSE in Wednesday's early trading session whereas that of Adani Power, Adani Transmission and Adani Total Gas fell to hit the lower circuit level of 5% each for the second straight session.
Stocks of all the ten listed Adani group firms ended lower on Tuesday, with flagship firm Adani Enterprises tanking over 7 per cent amid a weak trend in the equity markets. (Read More)
Oil prices rebounded more than 1% on Wednesday, recovering from the previous day's plunge, as a stronger OPEC outlook on China's demand helped offset bearish global investor sentiment in the wake of the recent U.S. bank failures.
Brent crude futures climbed 93 cents, or 1.2%, to $78.38 a barrel by 0324 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures (WTI) gained 96 cents, or 1.4%, to $72.29 a barrel. On Tuesday, the benchmarks fell more than 4% to a three-month low.
"The oil market has bounced back on its own after the recent sharp losses," said Toshitaka Tazawa, an analyst at Fujitomi Securities Co Ltd, adding some investors had taken advantage of the slide to hunt for bargains.
"The OPEC upgrade in Chinese oil demand outlook also lent support, though investors were still concerned over a cascading financial crisis after the recent collapse of U.S. banks," he said, noting that whether WTI can stay above $70 a barrel is being closely watched. (Reuters)
China’s economy strengthened in the first two months of the year following the end of Covid restrictions, although the recovery remains unbalanced as industrial output lagged.
Retail sales rose 3.5% from the same period last year, the National Bureau of Statistics said Wednesday, in line with forecasts and reversing from a 1.8% drop in December.
Industrial output rose at a slower-than-expected pace of 2.4%, while the jobless rate increased following the Lunar New Year holidays. Fixed-asset investment grew strongly, a sign the government is boosting infrastructure spending to spur the recovery.
“This probably reinforces the view that even if we have a sequential upswing on China rebound on the back of the reopening, it’s not going to be like a big boom," Johanna Chua, chief Asia Pacific economist at Citigroup Global Markets, said in an interview on Bloomberg TV. (Bloomberg)
Shares of automotive component maker Divgi TorqTransfer Systems made their debut on Tuesday with the stock listing at ₹620, premium from the issue price of ₹590 on the NSE. On the day of its shares listing, Quant Mutual Fund (MF) and Sageone Investment Managers picked up stake in the company whereas Morgan Stanley Asia (Singapore) sold, as per the block deals data.
Divgi TorqTransfer Systems shares rose for the second consecutive day on Wednesday by rising more than 3% to ₹633 apiece on the BSE in opening trading session today. The company is commanding a market valuation of ₹1,880 crore on the BSE. (Read More)
As businesses grapple with how artificial intelligence tools like ChatGPT will affect working practices, one Japanese fintech firm is making it compulsory for new recruits to use the technology and even testing them on it.
With concerns growing about its ability to make jobs obsolete and data protection, Tokyo-based LayerX Inc., is bucking the trend, with a recent job ad for new graduates making it mandatory for recruits to be tested on their use of the chatbot made by OpenAI Inc., and another called Notion AI.
The startup, which focuses on promoting digitizing business transactions, is confident it’s on the right side of a growing divide over the use of the technology. (Read More)
Dr V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services: The US inflation print for February which came at 6% year-on-year is indicative of disinflation but the decline is at a pace much lower than what the Fed would like. So it would be realistic to expect a 25 bp hike in rate in the March 22 Fed meeting. This will restrain equity markets from staging a rally. The US bank crisis will be on back burner for now since the crisis news was overdone. For FIIs, the current negative sentiments in the market is favourable for sustained selling, which they have been doing for the last four sessions. Since the Indian economy is strong and the banking system is robust, long-term investors can utilise the weakness in the market to accumulate high-quality stocks, particularly large-caps. Capital goods is a strong segment.
STOCK IN FOCUS
Blue Star (CMP 1,501): With the higher earnings growth, better margin profile and improved business visibility over the medium term, we have our BUY rating on BLSTR, with a Target Price of Rs1,685.
Intraday Picks
TORNTPHARM (PREVIOUS CLOSE: RS1,525) BUY
For today’s trade, long position can be initiated in the range of Rs1,506-
1,494 for the target of Rs1,560 with a strict stop loss of Rs1,474.
SIEMENS (PREVIOUS CLOSE: RS3,253) BUY
For today’s trade, long position can be initiated in the range of Rs3,237-
3,222 for the target of Rs3,320 with a strict stop loss of Rs3,203.
SRF (PREVIOUS CLOSE: 2,305) BUY
For today’s trade, long position can be initiated in the range of Rs2,292-
2,277 for the target of Rs2,365 with a strict stop loss of Rs2,254.
Hiring intentions will remain marginally lower during the second quarter (April-June) this year as employers continue to have difficulty in finding people with the right skills, according to a survey.
Employers in India continue to anticipate hiring workers in the second quarter, reporting a seasonally adjusted Net Employment Outlook of 30 per cent, which is marginally lower from the January-March quarter, according to ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey.
Hiring intentions remain marginally lower by 2 per cent quarter-on-quarter, while employers continue to have difficulty finding the right talent, it added.
The ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey is based on an analysis of nearly 3,020 employers.
The survey further revealed that the talent supply with the requisite skills depicted in the sliding shift of employers, experiencing a talent shortage by 3 per cent.
"While the skill gap continues to be concerning, in spite of the global economic pressures, India's innate ability to sustain such pressures has been proven time and again. (PTI)
BSE Sensex closed at 57,900 down by 337 points, and Nifty closed at 17,043 down by 111 points yesterday. On Tuesday, After a flat opening, Nifty traded below 17,090 in the morning trade & after making a day high of 17,224.65 Nifty closed below 200 DMA for the third consecutive day. Intraday traders can look for long opportunities only above the resistance level of 17,130 and if it sustains for 15 minutes. Traders can look for fresh shorts only if nifty breaks the 16,940 level & remains below for 15 min to ensure short.
Post the 4-day slide, the total market valuation of BSE-listed companies stood at ₹256.39 lakh crore at the end of Tuesday, leaving investors poorer by ₹9.85 lakh crore compared to March 8.
GNFC and India Bulls Housing Finance are the two stocks in the F&O ban list for Wednesday trading. (Read More)
Drug major Cipla on Tuesday said it has inked a pact with Africa Capitalworks to sell a 51.18 per cent stake in Uganda-based Cipla Quality Chemical Industries Ltd.
The company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Cipla (EU) Ltd and Mauritius-based Meditab Holdings Ltd, have entered into a share purchase agreement with Africa Capitalworks on March 14, Cipla said in a regulatory filing.
Subsequent to the sale, Cipla Quality Chemical Industries (CQCIL) will cease to be a subsidiary of the company, it added.
Consideration to be received by Cipla (EU) Ltd and Meditab Holdings Limited shall be in the range of USD 25-30 million, Cipla noted. (PTI)
The government on Tuesday said that 559 foreign companies ceased operations in the country since 2018.
Meanwhile, as many as 469 foreign companies started operations in the country, according to a written reply by Minister of State for Corporate Affairs Rao Inderjit Singh in the Rajya Sabha.
These figures are from 2018 till March 9 this year.
So far this year, two foreign companies have stopped operations. The number stood at 78 in 2022, 115 (in 2021) and 120 (in 2020). In 2019 and 2018, the number of such companies that stopped operations was 133 and 111, respectively.
A total of 469 foreign companies started operating in India during the given period. (PTI)
Apple Inc. is delaying bonuses for some corporate divisions and expanding a cost-cutting effort, joining Silicon Valley peers in trying to streamline operations during uncertain times, according to people with knowledge of the situation.
The shift will reduce the frequency of bonuses for a portion of Apple’s corporate workforce, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plan hasn’t been announced publicly. Separately, the company is freezing hiring for more jobs and leaving additional positions open when employees depart.
In the past, Apple typically doled out bonuses and promotions once or twice per year depending on the division. The twice-a-year teams usually saw that happen in April and October. Under the new plan, that group won’t see bonuses or promotions next month, and all divisions will move to an annual schedule — with the payments occurring only in October. (Read More)
Mahindra & Mahindra on Tuesday said its wholly-owned unit Mahindra Bangladesh Pvt Ltd has ceased to exist.
Mahindra Bangladesh Pvt Ltd (MBPL) convened the final extraordinary general meeting of its shareholders on March 14, 2023 and approved the final voluntary winding up, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) said in a statement.
Hence, MBPL has been liquidated and has ceased to be in existence with effect from March 14, 2023, it added.
MBPL had zero income from operations as on March 31, 2022.
The net worth of MBPL, as on March 31, 2022 stood at ₹3.18 crore, constituting 0.01 per cent of the consolidated net worth of the Mumbai-based auto major, M&M noted.
Equity and other assets, commodity markets settled on Wednesday as investors around the globe digested the US banking turmoil. Shares in the US and Europe climbed back on Tuesday on softening US inflation data as it offset fears over banking crisis. Bonds and interest rate futures cooled off some of the gains in past few days. Interest rate futures pricing now implies an 80% chance of a 25 basis point U.S. rate hike next week, said a Reuters report. With the latest inflation data and the dust settling on the SVB, Signature Bank closure, experts now foresee slower US Fed hikes.
Here are all the global factors that will drive the Indian market today: (Read More)
Companies defaulting on the regulatory requirement to have at least one woman on their boards are attracting the attention of authorities, two persons aware about the development said. The Companies Act mandates every listed company and every public limited company with paid-up capital of ₹100 crore or more, or sales of ₹300 crore or more, to have at least one woman director. They also have to fill up intermittent vacancy of the woman director diligently.
Several companies, including state-owned ones under the jurisdictions of Registrars of Companies (RoCs) in Delhi, Kanpur and Bihar, have been found to be in default, one of the two people cited above said on the condition of anonymity. Authorities have already taken up the matter with several companies, and in some cases, notices are about to be issued. (Read More)
State-run energy firms, including ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), Bharat Petro Resources Ltd, Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) and Oil India Ltd (OIL), are unable to access around $400 million in dividend payments stuck in Russia as Western sanctions have made it harder to transfer money out of the country, three people aware of the development said.
This stuck dividend income is on account of the Indian firms’ stakes in Russia’s CSJC Vankorneft and LLC Taas-Yuryakh.
India has leveraged its “special and privileged strategic partnership" with Russia to acquire stakes in Russian oil and gas projects. OVL, for instance, holds a 26% stake in CSJC Vankorneft, the owner of the Vankor Field and North Vankor license. An Indian consortium comprising Indian Oil Corp., OIL, and Bharat Petro Resources also holds a 23.9% stake in the same venture, with Rosneft’s affiliate RN Vankor operating the field with a 50.1% stake. In addition, a consortium of Indian Oil Corp., OIL, and Bharat Petro Resources holds a 29.9% stake in LLC Taas-Yuryakh. (Read More)
Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) plans to move the insolvency appellate tribunal NCLAT against NCLT's decision to reject its claims while approving the resolution plan of Suraksha Group to acquire Jaypee Infratech Ltd (JIL).
YEIDA will contest the rejection of its claims for additional compensation payable to the farmers and others, which was rejected by the Principal bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) last week while approving the bid of Suraksha Group. (Read More)
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Tuesday said that it has approved Reliance Industries Ltd's ₹2,850 crore acquisition of German firm Metro AG's wholesale operations in India.
Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL), a subsidiary of the oil-to-telecom conglomerate, signed definitive agreements to acquire a 100 per cent equity stake in Metro Cash & Carry India Pvt Ltd for a total cash consideration of ₹2,850 crore as the conglomerate run by billionaire Mukesh Ambani seeks to strengthen its dominant position in India's mammoth retail sector. (Read More)
Stocks ended broadly higher on Wall Street Tuesday, as some of the most breathtaking moves from a manic Monday reversed course.
The S&P 500 rose 1.7% after a report showed inflation is still high but heading lower. Stocks of smaller and mid-sized banks recovered some of their prior plunges caused by worries that customers could yank out all their cash. Treasury yields soared to trim their historic drops.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.1%, while the Nasdaq composite added 2.1%. Gains in technology stocks, banks and communications services companies powered much of the rally.
A week ago, Wall Street was expecting Tuesday’s report on inflation to be the most important data of the week, if not month. The worry at the time was that inflation is staying stubbornly high, which could force the Federal Reserve to pick up the pace again on its hikes to interest rates.
Tuesday’s report showed that inflation at the consumer level was 6% in February, versus a year before. That matched economists’ expectations and was a slowdown from January’s 6.4% inflation rate, but it’s still way above the Fed's target.
In normal times, that could indeed call for an increase in the size of rate hikes. The trouble for the Fed is that it’s also facing a banking system that may already be cracking due to all of its rate increases from the last year, which came at the fastest pace in decades. The second- and third-largest bank failures in U.S. history have both come since Friday. (AP)
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