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The government succeeded in divesting 20 per cent stake in the railway ticketing firm, Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) in the recently concluded offer for sale (OFS). The retail investors lapped up all the shares up for sale and the institutional investor portion was subscribed 1.34 times. Following the share sale, the government’s stake in IRCTC will reduce to 67.4 per cent. The Centre had set floor price for the OFS, which was held on Thursday and Friday, at ₹ 1,367. But most bids came around ₹ 1,378, as per data provided by the stock exchanges. Prior to the offer for sale, the government held 87.4 per cent stake in the ₹ 2,275-crore public sector railway undertaking. IRCTC provides catering services, online railway tickets and packaged drinking water at railway stations and trains across India. IRCTC was listed on the stock exchanges in October 2019. The company had raised ₹ 645 crore through an initial public offering (IPO). Three other railway companies, i.

The Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will hold her 1st pre- budget consultations with top industrialists tomorrow i.e. December 14. The finance minister will start her pre-budget consultations with different stakeholder groups from tomorrow, December 14, 2020 in New Delhi and the meetings will be held virtually, the finance ministry said. The finance minister is likely to present her second budget of Modi 2.0 on February 1, 2021. It is a common practice for the finance minister to meet various stakeholders, including farmer’s organizations, economists, civil society and industry bodies as part of the pre-budget consultative exercise. The Finance Minister takes a final call on the tax proposals after completing the pre-budget consultations. The proposals are subsequently discussed with the Prime Minister before the budget is finalized.

The rupee ended flat at 73.64 against the US dollar on Friday, December 11, while trading in a narrow range and tracking recovery in domestic equities towards the end of the session. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 73.65 against the dollar and registered an intra-day high of 73.56. It witnessed a low of 73.71. The rupee finally closed at 73.64 against the greenback, registering a marginal rise of two paise over its previous close. In an early trade session today, the rupee opened on a flat note, up by one paisa at 73.65 against the dollar.  On Thursday, December 10, the domestic unit snapped its two-day winning streak to close nine paise lower at 73.66 against the dollar. During the week, the rupee witnessed a highly volatile trade session, recording marginal gains against the dollar, before logging its first loss on Thursday. It witnessed a surge of 30 paise against the dollar on Tuesday, December 8, amid market gains. The local unit then edged margi

The rupee strengthened by three paise against the US dollar on Wednesday, December 9, and settled at 73.57 (provisional), supported by heavy buying in domestic equities and foreign fund inflows. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 73.58 against the dollar and registered an intra-day high of 73.49. It witnessed a low of 73.61. In an early trade session, the local unit surged by 11 paise to 73.49 against the dollar. Closing at 73.57 against the American currency, the rupee recorded a rise of three paise over its previous close. On Tuesday, December 8, the domestic unit surged by 30 paise and closed at a one-and-a-half month high of 73.60 against the greenback. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 0.24 per cent down at 90.74. According to traders, the weakening of the American currency in the overseas market also supported the local unit. “Globally, market sentiments are improvi

Domestic stock markets started Wednesday’s session on a positive note, continuing a rally amid optimism on a fast recovery from the coronavirus pandemic-caused slowdown. The S&P BSE Sensex index jumped 290.51 points, or 0.64 per cent, to touch 45,899.02 at the strongest level recorded in early deals, and the broader NSE Nifty 50 benchmark climbed to as high as 13,475.05, up 82.1 points, or 0.61 per cent, from its previous close — both all-time highs. Gains across sectors, led by banking, financial services and IT shares, pushed the markets higher.

India’s economy, severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic, is gradually recovering, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday. The country’s economy recovered faster than expected in the September quarter, as a pickup in manufacturing helped GDP clock a lower contraction of 7.5 per cent and held out hopes for further improvement on better consumer demand. “India has indeed been severely affected by the pandemic but is gradually recovering,” IMF chief spokesperson Gerry Rice told reporters. Fiscal, monetary, and financial sector measures announced to date provided much-needed support to the economy, including businesses, agriculture, and vulnerable households, Mr Rice said in response to a question on the IMF’s assessment of the country’s economy during the coronavirus pandemic.

Ending its two-day losing streak, the rupee soared 13 paise higher against the US dollar on Friday, December 4, and settled at 73.80 (provisional) as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept the interest rates unchanged for the third time in a row. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 73.81 and registered an intra-day high of 73.70. It witnessed a low of 73.81. in early trade, the rupee surged 15 paise higher to 73.38 against the dollar. Closed at 73.80 per dollar, it recorded a rise of 13 paise. On Thursday, December 3, the domestic unit had settled at 73.93 against the American currency. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was down by 0.16 per cent to 90.56. According to traders, sustained foreign fund inflows, positive opening in domestic equities, and weakness of the American currency in the overseas market also supported the domestic unit.

The rupee edged lower by 12 paise against the US dollar on Thursday, December 3, settling at 73.93 (provisional) as investors remained cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) policy meet outcome. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit registered a highly volatile trading session. The rupee opened at 73.81 and witnessed an intra-day high of 73.68. It registered a low of 73.95. In an early trade session, the rupee slipped by eight paise to 73.89 against the American currency. It settled at 73.93 a dollar, for the day, with a decline of 12 paise. On Wednesday, the local unit slumped by 13 paise against the dollar and closed at 73.81. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell by 0.12 per cent to 91.00. According to analysts, the investor focus is on the Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee’s three-day interest rate-setting meeting that started on Wednesday, December 2, with the deci

Cryptocurrency Bitcoin jumped by more than $850 – or 5 per cent – to touch the $18,238.20 mark on Sunday, inching towards an all-time high of $19,666 registered this week. Recent gains in the virtual currency are part of a broader bull run that began last month after US-based online payments company PayPal allowed its customers to use Bitcoin on its network. It was last seen trading higher by over $800 to $18,173.70 on November 29, 2020.  Most other cryptocurrencies followed suit. Among major peers, Ethereum (ETH) traded 5.11 per cent higher at $556.16, XRP was up 6.83 per cent at $0.62688 and Cardano (ADA) up 0.24 per cent at $0.169106. Bitcoin has surged exponentially since entering a four-digit value for the first time in 2013. It has rallied more than 130 so far this year, fueled by demand for riskier assets. The cryptocurrency’s perceived quality as a hedge against inflation and expectations of mainstream acceptance lured institutional and retail demand.

India’s gross domestic product (GDP) contracted 7.5 per cent in the July-September period, as the economy rebounded from a record slump of 23.9 per cent in the previous quarter due to slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Friday’s data confirms the economy’s first technical recession – which is two consecutive quarters of GDP contraction – since 1996, when the country began quarterly records. The GDP reading for the second quarter of current financial year is much better than economists’ forecasts of 8.8 per cent in a poll by news agency Reuters. Yet, the economy is on track to register an overall contraction of 8.7 per cent over the full year, which, if that were to happen, would be its worst performance in more than four decades. However, annual growth of 3.4 per cent in the farm sector and 0.6 per cent in manufacturing raised hopes of an early recovery as the government gears up to distribute coronavirus vaccines to a country with about 140 crore people. The latest data bring

The S&P BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 indexes ended on a flat note in trade on Friday as investors awaited official release of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) data for second quarter of the current financial year due later today. The benchmarks for most part of the day traded in a range bound manner. The Sensex moved in a range of 412 points and Nifty touched an intraday high of 13,035.30 and low of 12,914.30. Gains in HDFC, HDFC Bank, Asian Paints and Bajaj Finance were offset with losses in Reliance Industries, Infosys, TCS, Axis Bank and HCL Technologies. The Sensex ended 110 points or 0.25 per cent lower at 44,150 and Nifty 50 index declined 18 points or 0.14 per cent to settle at 12,969. The country’s economic activity likely picked up in July-September after a record 23.9 per cent contraction the previous quarter. Economists in a Reuters poll forecast gross domestic product (GDP) to shrink 8.8 per cent, a contraction that would still amount to a technical recession. Fourteen of 19

The S&P BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 indexes resumed their upmove after a day’s pause in the previous session, led by gains in metal, banking and financial services shares. The benchmarks staged a gap-up opening, but turned volatile in late-morning deals owing to expiry of November future and option contracts. However, late buying in banking shares lifted the benchmarks to intraday highs towards the close of the session. HDFC Bank, HDFC, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the top movers in the Sensex. The Sensex rose 432 points or 0.98 per cent to close at 44,260 and Nifty 50 index surged 129 points or 1 per cent to settle at 12,987. In the November series, Sensex rose 11 per cent, Nifty climbed 10.71 per cent and Bank Nifty index surged 22 per cent. Rahul Sharma, Market Strategist & Research Head, Equity99 Advisors said, “In an extremely volatile trading session, the benchmark indices settled higher with more than 60-65 per cent roll-over of open positi

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a capital infusion of ₹ 6,000 crore by the government in the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), a sovereign wealth fund, over the next two years, Minister of Information And Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar said. The government would invest ₹ 2,400 crore in the NIIF during the current financial year ending in March that would help it raise up to ₹ 1.lakh crore for investments, Mr Javadekar, told reporters after the cabinet meeting. The cabinet also approved the merger of Lakshmi Vilas Bank (LVB) with DBS India, which is the wholly-owned subsidiary of DBS Bank.

The government is likely to report a current account surplus at the end of the current financial year ending in March 2021, mainly led by a fall in imports, the chief economic adviser at the ministry of finance said on Monday. India’s current account surplus rose to a record $19.8 billion in April-June as its trade deficit narrowed sharply, the Reserve Bank of India said earlier. Demand for imports has fallen amid the COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with recent economic reforms initiated by the government to boost manufacturing, Krishnamurthy Subramanian told a virtual conference organised by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

The S&P BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 indexes rose for second straight session on Monday led by gains in information technology, pharma and metal stocks. The benchmarks staged a gap up opening wherein the Sensex rose as much as 389 points and Nifty 50 index touched an intraday high of 12,969. However, due to weakness in banking stocks the benchmarks erased intraday gains briefly. However, buying in index heavyweights like Reliance Industries, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys helped benchmarks recover and close higher. The Sensex advanced 195 points to close at 44,077 and Nifty 50 index rose 67 points to settle at 12,926. The session was marked with high volatility as the India VIX, the gauge of expected volatility spiked 6.2 per cent as investors’ feared about government imposing lockdowns again to curb the spread of Covid-19 which has been spreading at a faster pace in cities like Delhi, analysts said. Seven of 11 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange ended high

The rupee appreciated 11 paise to settle at 74.16 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday (November 20) supported by a positive opening in the domestic equities and weakness in the American currency. At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened at 74.15 against the dollar, registering a rise of 12 paise over its previous close. It touched an intra-day high of 74.09 and a low of 74.21. On Thursday, November 19, the rupee settled at 74.27 against the dollar. According to traders, foreign fund inflows into the domestic equity markets also helped the local unit. “The rupee is currently drawing a lot of support from equity inflows and the fact that the dollar globally is on the back foot,” said Sugandha Sachdeva VP-Metals, Energy & Currency Research, Religare Broking. He added that going forward, the rupee has scope to furth  

Vodafone’s European towers unit, which is currently gearing up for a stock market listing, on Tuesday said it expects pro forma adjusted core earnings of up to 540 million euros ($640 million) in its 2021 financial year.The mobile operator on Tuesday will detail the prospects for Vantage Towers, which will IPO in Germany, Vodafone’s biggest market. Vantage will operate around 68,000 macro sites across nine European countries, with commitments to build 7,100 new sites by financial year 2027, Vodafone said. Vantage Towers CEO Vivek Badrinath said: “The growth potential in the towers sector is fuelled by the requirement for data as well as the roll-out of 5G technology and new and wider network coverage obligations across Europe. “These factors will increase the number of tenants renting space on our towers and we have also received firm commitments to build 7,100 new sites for our customers.

India’s top retail trade body said on Sunday that sales during the country’s Diwali festive period rose by more than 10 per cent year-on-year, indicating “good business prospects” for small businesses. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), which claims to represent tens of millions of firms across the country, said that sales of its members during the one-month festive season that ended on Saturday increased to more than ₹ 72,000 crore ($9.7 billion). “People didn’t purchase anything in the last eight months except essentials. Hence people had enough surplus money, and a portion was spent on Diwali festivities,” Praveen Khandelwal, CAIT’s secretary general, told news agency Reuters. CAIT members include retailers who sell everything from electrical items to furniture and footwear. The trade body said it gathered sales data from 20 cities. Despite the upbeat report, India’s economy, which grew at the slowest pace in over a decade during the year to the end of March, is likely t

The rupee depreciated 9 paise to 74.45 against the US dollar in opening trade on Thursday, tracking muted domestic equities. The local unit opened at 74.44 against the greenback at the interbank forex market, then lost further ground and touched 74.45, down 9 paise over its last close. On Wednesday, the rupee declined by 18 paise to close at 74.36 against the US dollar. “The euphoria around a Joe Biden victory (in the US presidential election) and a vaccine becoming available by the year-end seems to be slowly settling down, said Abhishek Goenka, Founder and CEO, IFA Global. The overall risk sentiment, however, continues to remain positive, he said, adding that the dollar though has made a comeback against majors and commodity currencies. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.02 per cent to 93.02. On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 202.76 points lower at 43,390.91, and the broad

The S&P BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 indexes rose for an eighth session in a row on Wednesday as benchmarks clocked new record highs during the day. The Sensex rose as much as 431 points to hit a new record high of 43,708.47 and Nifty 50 index made a new all-time high of 12,769.75. Infosys, HDFC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank, ITC, TCS and ICICIC Bank were among the top movers in the Sensex during the session. They collectively added over 350 points towards the Sensex. The Sensex ended 316 points or 0.73 per cent higher to close at record high of 43,594 and Nifty 50 index climbed 118 points to settle at an all-time high of 12,749. Analysts have indicated that after a sharp up move in the equities, a big correction is not on the cards. “The markets may not see big correction from here and in the medium to long term we see markets doing well,” said Santosh Kumar Singh, head of research at Motilal Oswal Asset Management Company. Nine of 11 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock