General Affairs
PM Narendra Modi Reviews Currency Ban Exercise
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NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today reviewed the status of the demonetisation exercise at a meeting with top officials of the government.
Officials of the PMO and the Finance Ministry were present in the meeting where stock was taken about the availability of cash in banks and ATMs and other measures taken to ease the difficulties of the people, sources said.
Earlier in the day, the government announced a number of new measures to ease difficulties of the people, which included relaxing of restrictions on cash withdrawals by farmers and families with upcoming weddings.
Now families preparing for a wedding can withdraw up to Rs. 2.50 lakh from bank account giving PAN details and self-declaration.
Besides, farmers who have taken crop loan or have kisan credit card can withdraw Rs. 25,000 per week. Also those who have got payments through RTGS or cheque deposit in KYC compliant bank account can withdraw an additional Rs. 25,000 a week. This takes the total cash withdrawal limit for farmers from KYC complaint bank accounts to Rs. 50,000 per week.
The Prime Minister had on November 8 announced scrapping of Rs. 500 and 1000 notes.
Officials of the PMO and the Finance Ministry were present in the meeting where stock was taken about the availability of cash in banks and ATMs and other measures taken to ease the difficulties of the people, sources said.
Besides, farmers who have taken crop loan or have kisan credit card can withdraw Rs. 25,000 per week. Also those who have got payments through RTGS or cheque deposit in KYC compliant bank account can withdraw an additional Rs. 25,000 a week. This takes the total cash withdrawal limit for farmers from KYC complaint bank accounts to Rs. 50,000 per week.
The Prime Minister had on November 8 announced scrapping of Rs. 500 and 1000 notes.
Enforcement Directorate Report Sought On Money Laundering Case Against Chhagan Bhujbal
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MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court today directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to submit a report regarding its probe against former Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal and his family members on money laundering charges.
A division bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice M S Sonak was hearing a PIL filed by activist Anjali Damania levelling allegations of money laundering and misappropriation of funds against Mr Bhujbal and his family members.
The high court had earlier directed the Maharashtra Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) and ED to look into the allegations and take appropriate action.
Based on this, the ACB registered three FIRs against Bhujbal and the ED also registered case of money laundering and arrested Mr Bhujbal on March 14 this year.
Mr Bhujbal's nephew Sameer was also arrested later.
Ms Damania's lawyer Vijay Hiremath argued that the ED is yet to arrest several other accused in the money laundering case.
"We are concerned about this money laundering case. You (ED) file a report giving all details about this case. Who have been arrested, who are on the run, who have been accused and so on," Chief Justice Chellur said.
The ED will have to submit its report in three weeks.
Meanwhile, another bench of the high court posted for hearing on November 22 a petition filed by Bhujbal claiming that he has been illegally detained by the ED.
Mr Bhujbal, who is presently in judicial custody, earlier this week withdrew his petition challenging the constitutional validity of provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The senior NCP leader today filed a fresh petition seeking bail and challenging his detention.
A division bench headed by Justice R V More asked the ED to respond to this petition on November 22.
A division bench of Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice M S Sonak was hearing a PIL filed by activist Anjali Damania levelling allegations of money laundering and misappropriation of funds against Mr Bhujbal and his family members.
The high court had earlier directed the Maharashtra Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) and ED to look into the allegations and take appropriate action.
Based on this, the ACB registered three FIRs against Bhujbal and the ED also registered case of money laundering and arrested Mr Bhujbal on March 14 this year.
Mr Bhujbal's nephew Sameer was also arrested later.
Ms Damania's lawyer Vijay Hiremath argued that the ED is yet to arrest several other accused in the money laundering case.
The ED will have to submit its report in three weeks.
Meanwhile, another bench of the high court posted for hearing on November 22 a petition filed by Bhujbal claiming that he has been illegally detained by the ED.
Mr Bhujbal, who is presently in judicial custody, earlier this week withdrew his petition challenging the constitutional validity of provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The senior NCP leader today filed a fresh petition seeking bail and challenging his detention.
A division bench headed by Justice R V More asked the ED to respond to this petition on November 22.
Ghulam Nabi's Azad's Controversial Remarks On Notes Ban Expunged
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NEW DELHI: Controversial comments made by senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad in Parliament today on the currency ban have been expunged or deleted from records.
Mr Azad's comments, made shortly before the Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day on Thursday amid slogan shouting by opposition lawmakers, can now not be reported.
Senior union minister Venkaiah Naidu had severely criticised the Congress leader's comments as "atrocious, anti-national" and parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar demanded an unconditional apology from Mr Azad, who is Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha or Upper House of Parliament.
The Rajya Sabha had yesterday begun a debate on the government's decision to withdraw 500 and 1000 rupee notes to combat the menace of black or untaxed money, but the opposition did not allow it to continue today, demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi be present in the upper house and answer their questions.
The government has been equally adamant that it will not give in to that demand. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will reply to the debate in the Rajya Sabha.
Opposition parties have criticised the manner in which the notes ban was implemented causing problems for common people who have had to queue up for hours at banks for new notes, which are in short supply.
The government has said it was done in national interest and that the problems of the people will ease soon. No honest taxpayer will lose a single rupee, while those with unaccounted wealth will suffer, as will terror organisations that have been choked by the currency ban, the government has said.
Mr Azad's comments, made shortly before the Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day on Thursday amid slogan shouting by opposition lawmakers, can now not be reported.
Senior union minister Venkaiah Naidu had severely criticised the Congress leader's comments as "atrocious, anti-national" and parliamentary affairs minister Ananth Kumar demanded an unconditional apology from Mr Azad, who is Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha or Upper House of Parliament.
The Rajya Sabha had yesterday begun a debate on the government's decision to withdraw 500 and 1000 rupee notes to combat the menace of black or untaxed money, but the opposition did not allow it to continue today, demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi be present in the upper house and answer their questions.
The government has been equally adamant that it will not give in to that demand. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will reply to the debate in the Rajya Sabha.
Opposition parties have criticised the manner in which the notes ban was implemented causing problems for common people who have had to queue up for hours at banks for new notes, which are in short supply.
The government has said it was done in national interest and that the problems of the people will ease soon. No honest taxpayer will lose a single rupee, while those with unaccounted wealth will suffer, as will terror organisations that have been choked by the currency ban, the government has said.
In Joint Warning, Mamata Banerjee And Arvind Kejriwal Set 3-Day Deadline On Notes Ban
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NEW DELHI: Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal made a double bore attack on the government today, warning that there will be intense protests and unrest if it does not withdraw its ban on 500 and 1000 rupee notes. They also visited the Reserve Bank of India to check on the progress of printing new notes, Mr Kejriwal said.
"Take back this decision in three days... Don't test people's patience. Otherwise, there will be a 'bhagawat' (revolt) by people," said Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at Delhi's Azadpur Mandi, the country's biggest wholesale hub.
He called the demonitisation the country's "biggest scam since 1947."
"Prime Minister Modi has broken constitutional rules...Why did not you (Modi) make a proper plan before the implementation (of demonetisation). The common man is suffering due to it. We are giving you three days. If you do not fix all problems, we will not leave you. We are still alive," vowed Mamata Banerjee, who is West Bengal Chief Minister.
Together the leaders also visited the office of the Reserve Bank of India in the capital. "How much currency needed? How much printed? What is capacity? How many more days will it take? Me n Mamtadi at RBI to get this info," Mr Kejriwal tweeted.
Ms Banerjee had led a march on Wednesday to petition the President against the notes ban, but Mr Kejriwal had not joined her protest because, said sources, he did not wish to share space with the Shiv Sena, which is an ally of the ruling BJP, but threw in its lot with Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress on this issue.
Mamata Banerjee's party, the fourth largest in the Lok Sabha, is trying to also move an adjournment motion in the house on demonetisation, which entails a debate followed by a vote.
Both houses of parliament were adjourned today as opposition members raised slogans against the government on the notes ban. In the Rajya Sabha or upper house, they demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi respond to questions they have raised in a debate on the issue.
The government has refused to give in to that demand. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley this evening said "there is no question of a roll back" of the decision to abolish 500 and 1000 rupee notes, aimed at ending black or untaxed money. He also ruled out the formation of a Joint Parliamentary Committee as demanded by the opposition.
At the public rally Mr Kejriwal asked who was responsible for the death of 40 people who have reportedly died in incidents linked to the notes ban.
The sudden move to scrap high value notes has caused huge disruption to daily life with people standing in long queues for hours outside banks and ATM.
"Take back this decision in three days... Don't test people's patience. Otherwise, there will be a 'bhagawat' (revolt) by people," said Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal at Delhi's Azadpur Mandi, the country's biggest wholesale hub.
He called the demonitisation the country's "biggest scam since 1947."
Together the leaders also visited the office of the Reserve Bank of India in the capital. "How much currency needed? How much printed? What is capacity? How many more days will it take? Me n Mamtadi at RBI to get this info," Mr Kejriwal tweeted.
Ms Banerjee had led a march on Wednesday to petition the President against the notes ban, but Mr Kejriwal had not joined her protest because, said sources, he did not wish to share space with the Shiv Sena, which is an ally of the ruling BJP, but threw in its lot with Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress on this issue.
Mamata Banerjee's party, the fourth largest in the Lok Sabha, is trying to also move an adjournment motion in the house on demonetisation, which entails a debate followed by a vote.
Both houses of parliament were adjourned today as opposition members raised slogans against the government on the notes ban. In the Rajya Sabha or upper house, they demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi respond to questions they have raised in a debate on the issue.
The government has refused to give in to that demand. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley this evening said "there is no question of a roll back" of the decision to abolish 500 and 1000 rupee notes, aimed at ending black or untaxed money. He also ruled out the formation of a Joint Parliamentary Committee as demanded by the opposition.
At the public rally Mr Kejriwal asked who was responsible for the death of 40 people who have reportedly died in incidents linked to the notes ban.
The sudden move to scrap high value notes has caused huge disruption to daily life with people standing in long queues for hours outside banks and ATM.
How Ban On 500 And 1,000 Rupee Notes Could Hit Uttar Pradesh Election
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi's shock ban on high-value bank-notes will give his party, the BJP, the advantage in the election in Uttar Pradesh next year, according to some opposition leaders and analysts.
"We will have to plan the entire election strategy all over again," said Pradeep Mathur, a senior Uttar Pradesh leader of the Congress, alleging that with 500 and 1,000 rupee notes banned, the party will have to hold smaller rallies and there will be fewer "freebies" for voters.
His comments reflect a view that the BJP, with more members than its rivals and allegedly close ties to big corporate donors, can survive the cash crunch better, helping it win Uttar Pradesh, which is crucial to PM Modi's plan for re-election in 2019.
According to the Delhi-based Centre for Media Studies (CMS), which tracks campaign financing, the BJP relies on cash for less than two-thirds of its funding in a state like Uttar Pradesh. Regional parties, on the other hand, like the Samajwadi Party or Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party are believed to use cash to cover 80 to 95 percent of campaign spending.
"Their calculation is that this is going to hurt everybody, but in relative terms the BJP is going to come out stronger," said Milan Vaishnav, a South Asia expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.
With no state election funding, illicit cash is the unacknowledged lifeblood for political parties that collect money from candidates and businessmen, and then spend it to stage rallies, hire helicopters and hand out "gifts" to win votes.
PM Modi's demonetisation drive, introduced suddenly last week, has so far proven popular among increasingly aspirational voters who are tired of corruption, although views among the broader population and economists are divided over the efficacy and fairness of the move.
Opposition politicians have united to attack the government over the long lines that have formed at banks to change small amounts of old money for new notes. They also alleged in parliament yesterday that big businessmen and some BJP officials were given notice of the ban, a charge the government emphatically dismissed as baseless.
Mayawati, the powerful former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh says the demonetisation timing appeared highly political. For decades, other parties have accused her of hoarding "black" money garnered from selling tickets to candidates to fund her campaign. One senior official and a close aide to Mayawati told Reuters that some of her party's rallies would be axed and replaced by more door-to-door campaigning." Last month ... we had to bring over 300,000 villagers from across UP to Lucknow city for a day ... It's not just us, but every political party spends money at grassroots level to win votes," the official said.
Ashok Agarwal, a politician with the incumbent Samajwadi Party in the city of Mathura, said he will have to rely more on his team of 1,000 volunteers to connect with voters. In a bid to limit the squeeze, parties are paying workers to queue at banks and swap old notes for new ones and evade scrutiny from tax inspectors, said workers from different parties in the city, according to Reuters.
Event managers, whose businesses usually boom at election time, are worried.
"No political party except the BJP wants to organise big rallies before January. All of them depend on cash," said Rajesh Pratap, who has provided loudspeakers, outdoor air conditioners and security to party rallies for over a decade.
PM Modi has not explicitly linked demonetisation to a clean-up of electoral funding, but officials in his party, unnamed by Reuters, say rivals should have heeded his warnings earlier this year that he was serious about clamping down on "black" cash.
In the 2014 election, parties spent a record 37 thousand crore rupees, CMS estimated.
They have also long circumvented rules and learned to avoid using cash - parties get donors to acquire equipment for rallies directly, or local traders to buy gifts for would-be voters, such as mobile phone credits.
"We will have to plan the entire election strategy all over again," said Pradeep Mathur, a senior Uttar Pradesh leader of the Congress, alleging that with 500 and 1,000 rupee notes banned, the party will have to hold smaller rallies and there will be fewer "freebies" for voters.
His comments reflect a view that the BJP, with more members than its rivals and allegedly close ties to big corporate donors, can survive the cash crunch better, helping it win Uttar Pradesh, which is crucial to PM Modi's plan for re-election in 2019.
"Their calculation is that this is going to hurt everybody, but in relative terms the BJP is going to come out stronger," said Milan Vaishnav, a South Asia expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington.
With no state election funding, illicit cash is the unacknowledged lifeblood for political parties that collect money from candidates and businessmen, and then spend it to stage rallies, hire helicopters and hand out "gifts" to win votes.
PM Modi's demonetisation drive, introduced suddenly last week, has so far proven popular among increasingly aspirational voters who are tired of corruption, although views among the broader population and economists are divided over the efficacy and fairness of the move.
Opposition politicians have united to attack the government over the long lines that have formed at banks to change small amounts of old money for new notes. They also alleged in parliament yesterday that big businessmen and some BJP officials were given notice of the ban, a charge the government emphatically dismissed as baseless.
Mayawati, the powerful former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh says the demonetisation timing appeared highly political. For decades, other parties have accused her of hoarding "black" money garnered from selling tickets to candidates to fund her campaign. One senior official and a close aide to Mayawati told Reuters that some of her party's rallies would be axed and replaced by more door-to-door campaigning." Last month ... we had to bring over 300,000 villagers from across UP to Lucknow city for a day ... It's not just us, but every political party spends money at grassroots level to win votes," the official said.
Ashok Agarwal, a politician with the incumbent Samajwadi Party in the city of Mathura, said he will have to rely more on his team of 1,000 volunteers to connect with voters. In a bid to limit the squeeze, parties are paying workers to queue at banks and swap old notes for new ones and evade scrutiny from tax inspectors, said workers from different parties in the city, according to Reuters.
Event managers, whose businesses usually boom at election time, are worried.
"No political party except the BJP wants to organise big rallies before January. All of them depend on cash," said Rajesh Pratap, who has provided loudspeakers, outdoor air conditioners and security to party rallies for over a decade.
PM Modi has not explicitly linked demonetisation to a clean-up of electoral funding, but officials in his party, unnamed by Reuters, say rivals should have heeded his warnings earlier this year that he was serious about clamping down on "black" cash.
In the 2014 election, parties spent a record 37 thousand crore rupees, CMS estimated.
They have also long circumvented rules and learned to avoid using cash - parties get donors to acquire equipment for rallies directly, or local traders to buy gifts for would-be voters, such as mobile phone credits.
Business Affairs
First case of bribe using new Rs 2000 notes reported
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Barely a week into circulation, the new Rs 2000 notes were reportedly used to pay bribe to two port trust officials in Gujarat. This was the first case of bribe where newly launched currency was used after the Prime Minister's demonetisation drive to root out black money.
Superintending Engineer P Srivivasu and Sub Divisional officer K Komtekar of the Kandla Port Trust had sought a bribe of Rs 4.4 lakh for clearing the pending bills of a private electrical firm, NDTV reported.
Following the demand, a middleman of the two officials, Rudreshar, accepted Rs 2.5 lakh from the firm on November 15. Both the port officials were arrested.
NDTV reported that the officials were stunned by the fact that all Rs 2.5 lakh was in new Rs 2,000 notes. Another Rs. 40,000 was recovered from the home of one of arrested officials.
The Rs 2000 currency was launched on November 11.
According to latest RBI guidelines, one can withdraw only Rs 2,500 at ATMs and Rs 2000 over-the-counter exchange.
Barely a week into circulation, the new Rs 2000 notes were reportedly used to pay bribe to two port trust officials in Gujarat. This was the first case of bribe where newly launched currency was used after the Prime Minister's demonetisation drive to root out black money.
Superintending Engineer P Srivivasu and Sub Divisional officer K Komtekar of the Kandla Port Trust had sought a bribe of Rs 4.4 lakh for clearing the pending bills of a private electrical firm, NDTV reported.
Following the demand, a middleman of the two officials, Rudreshar, accepted Rs 2.5 lakh from the firm on November 15. Both the port officials were arrested.
NDTV reported that the officials were stunned by the fact that all Rs 2.5 lakh was in new Rs 2,000 notes. Another Rs. 40,000 was recovered from the home of one of arrested officials.
The Rs 2000 currency was launched on November 11.
According to latest RBI guidelines, one can withdraw only Rs 2,500 at ATMs and Rs 2000 over-the-counter exchange.
Corporate India's net profits show healthy growth in Q2 FY17
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Out of BSE 500 companies, 291 companies-- excluding BFSI and Oil & Gas companies -- showed clear signs of improvement in bottom line in the second quarter of FY17. Net profit for this group showed a healthy growth of 9 per cent over the corresponding quarter last year. The y-o-y percentage growth in the same period last year was 2.61 per cent.
Automobile & ancillaries, capital goods, FMCG, steel, media & entertainment contributed to the growth in bottom line while consumer durables, pharma & healthcare, power and telecom were laggards.
Operating profit also improved, registering a y-o-y growth of 10 per cent compared to 6.67 per cent growth in the year-ago period. Operating profit is a measure of the company's ongoing business conditions and shows how efficiently the business is being run. 145 of these 291 companies reported double digit profit margins as compared to 130 companies a year ago.
Growth in gross sales however slipped -- from 8.15 per cent last year to 5.25 per cent in Q2 FY17. Net sales grew at 5 per cent, largely, in line with Q2 FY16.
Automobiles and ancillaries sector has slowed down with 19.32 per cent growth in profit after tax as compared to 97.74 per cent growth in the same period last year. Tata Motors is the cause with net losses to the tune of Rs 630 crore as against a loss of Rs 288 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Eicher Motors has topped the sector with 19.92 per cent profit margin. Maruti Suzuki has increased its revenues by 30 per cent and profits have grown by 60 per cent y-o-y. "Festive season resulted in volume growth in sales of cars. Also, payout of 7th Pay Commission increased consumption demand," points out CARE Ratings in its Corporate Performance Q2-FY17 report.
Revenues for the capital goods sector have shown a good jump y-o-y, from 1.5 per cent last year to 10.8 per cent this year. Net profits have grown at 52 per cent - bottom line for these 291 companies had almost doubled in the same period last year. Operating profits have shown a robust growth of 41 per cent.
Steel and iron revenues rose by 16.6 per cent, driven by JSW Steel's 22 per cent y-o-y rise. "Steel sector's performance was supported by the government through imposition of anti-dumping duty on flat products and extended MIP (minimum import price) on long products till December," says Prasad Koparkar, Senior Director, CRISIL Research. The sector saw a great shift from losses of Rs 128 crore in September 2015 to net profit of Rs 946 crore Q2 this year.
Consumer durables have disappointed the markets with bottom line dropping by 293 per cent y-o-y. Net profit for Videocon Industries has fallen from Rs 8 crore in September last year to a net loss of Rs 382 crore rupees this year. Profit margins took a hit too.
Healthcare and pharma sector saw a meagre top line growth of 3 per cent. Prominent players such as Cadila Healthcare, Cipla, Dr Reddy's Labs, Torrent Pharmaceuticals and Alembic Pharmaceuticals saw fall in revenues over last year. Even IT sector saw a deterioration in top line growth -- 7.34 per cent against 12.5 per cent last year. Operating profits slowed from 9.71 per cent last year to 2.67 per cent this year.
Power saw a y-o-y fall in net profit by 10.38 per cent while in the same period last year it had witnessed a growth of 47 per cent. While profits for 7 out of 9 power companies declined, JSW Energy led with a fall of 103 per cent over last year.
Construction material, including cement, saw a boost in profit after tax with y-o-y growth of 36 per cent in the quarter ended September against a negligible growth of 0.9 per cent in the same quarter last year. Sequentially, profits have however fallen by 24 per cent while revenues are down 10 per cent (over the April to June quarter).
Among the top companies in terms of revenue, Indian Oil Corporation has reported a profit after tax of Rs 3122 crore in the September quarter against a loss of Rs 450 crore in the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the central government's demonetisation move has undoubtedly created chaos and it could hurt corporate performance in the December quarter. It will affect the sectors where most activity is done through cash. Realty and construction material are expected to take a big hit.
Out of BSE 500 companies, 291 companies-- excluding BFSI and Oil & Gas companies -- showed clear signs of improvement in bottom line in the second quarter of FY17. Net profit for this group showed a healthy growth of 9 per cent over the corresponding quarter last year. The y-o-y percentage growth in the same period last year was 2.61 per cent.
Automobile & ancillaries, capital goods, FMCG, steel, media & entertainment contributed to the growth in bottom line while consumer durables, pharma & healthcare, power and telecom were laggards.
Operating profit also improved, registering a y-o-y growth of 10 per cent compared to 6.67 per cent growth in the year-ago period. Operating profit is a measure of the company's ongoing business conditions and shows how efficiently the business is being run. 145 of these 291 companies reported double digit profit margins as compared to 130 companies a year ago.
Growth in gross sales however slipped -- from 8.15 per cent last year to 5.25 per cent in Q2 FY17. Net sales grew at 5 per cent, largely, in line with Q2 FY16.
Automobiles and ancillaries sector has slowed down with 19.32 per cent growth in profit after tax as compared to 97.74 per cent growth in the same period last year. Tata Motors is the cause with net losses to the tune of Rs 630 crore as against a loss of Rs 288 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Eicher Motors has topped the sector with 19.92 per cent profit margin. Maruti Suzuki has increased its revenues by 30 per cent and profits have grown by 60 per cent y-o-y. "Festive season resulted in volume growth in sales of cars. Also, payout of 7th Pay Commission increased consumption demand," points out CARE Ratings in its Corporate Performance Q2-FY17 report.
Revenues for the capital goods sector have shown a good jump y-o-y, from 1.5 per cent last year to 10.8 per cent this year. Net profits have grown at 52 per cent - bottom line for these 291 companies had almost doubled in the same period last year. Operating profits have shown a robust growth of 41 per cent.
Steel and iron revenues rose by 16.6 per cent, driven by JSW Steel's 22 per cent y-o-y rise. "Steel sector's performance was supported by the government through imposition of anti-dumping duty on flat products and extended MIP (minimum import price) on long products till December," says Prasad Koparkar, Senior Director, CRISIL Research. The sector saw a great shift from losses of Rs 128 crore in September 2015 to net profit of Rs 946 crore Q2 this year.
Consumer durables have disappointed the markets with bottom line dropping by 293 per cent y-o-y. Net profit for Videocon Industries has fallen from Rs 8 crore in September last year to a net loss of Rs 382 crore rupees this year. Profit margins took a hit too.
Healthcare and pharma sector saw a meagre top line growth of 3 per cent. Prominent players such as Cadila Healthcare, Cipla, Dr Reddy's Labs, Torrent Pharmaceuticals and Alembic Pharmaceuticals saw fall in revenues over last year. Even IT sector saw a deterioration in top line growth -- 7.34 per cent against 12.5 per cent last year. Operating profits slowed from 9.71 per cent last year to 2.67 per cent this year.
Power saw a y-o-y fall in net profit by 10.38 per cent while in the same period last year it had witnessed a growth of 47 per cent. While profits for 7 out of 9 power companies declined, JSW Energy led with a fall of 103 per cent over last year.
Construction material, including cement, saw a boost in profit after tax with y-o-y growth of 36 per cent in the quarter ended September against a negligible growth of 0.9 per cent in the same quarter last year. Sequentially, profits have however fallen by 24 per cent while revenues are down 10 per cent (over the April to June quarter).
Among the top companies in terms of revenue, Indian Oil Corporation has reported a profit after tax of Rs 3122 crore in the September quarter against a loss of Rs 450 crore in the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the central government's demonetisation move has undoubtedly created chaos and it could hurt corporate performance in the December quarter. It will affect the sectors where most activity is done through cash. Realty and construction material are expected to take a big hit.
Demonetisation fallout: ICICI, HDFC Bank cut FD rates by 0.25 per cent
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Faced with liquidity comfort, major lenders, including ICICI and HDFC Bank on Thursday lowered FD rates by up to 0.25 per cent in view of surge in deposits following the demonetisation.
The lowering in fixed deposit rates may herald reduction in lending rate as well in the next few days.
For fixed deposit between 390 days to 2 years, the banks has lowered the interest rate by 0.15 per cent effective yesterday, ICICI Bank website showed.
ICICI Bank will pay 7.10 per cent as against 7.25 per cent earlier.
Meanwhile, HDFC Bank has reduced interest rate by 0.25 per cent across all tenures on bulk deposits ranging between Rs 1-5 crore.
The new rates are effective today, as per HDFC Bank website.
With the revised interest rates, the one-year fixed deposit will attract an interest rate of 6.75 per cent as against the 7 per cent earlier.
For fixed deposits between '3 years 1 day-5 years', the rate has been lowered to 6.5 per cent from 6.75 per cent.
Yesterday, the country's largest lender SBI slashed fixed deposit rates on select maturities by up to 0.15 per cent.
Private lender Axis Bank has cut marginal cost of fund-based lending rate (MCLR) by 0.15-0.20 per cent.
Till yesterday, SBI collected Rs 1,14,139 crore in deposits over the last seven days after the government announced to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.
According to estimates, banks have collected cash deposit of over Rs 4 lakh crore following the demonetisation decision announced on November 8 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Faced with liquidity comfort, major lenders, including ICICI and HDFC Bank on Thursday lowered FD rates by up to 0.25 per cent in view of surge in deposits following the demonetisation.
The lowering in fixed deposit rates may herald reduction in lending rate as well in the next few days.
For fixed deposit between 390 days to 2 years, the banks has lowered the interest rate by 0.15 per cent effective yesterday, ICICI Bank website showed.
ICICI Bank will pay 7.10 per cent as against 7.25 per cent earlier.
Meanwhile, HDFC Bank has reduced interest rate by 0.25 per cent across all tenures on bulk deposits ranging between Rs 1-5 crore.
The new rates are effective today, as per HDFC Bank website.
With the revised interest rates, the one-year fixed deposit will attract an interest rate of 6.75 per cent as against the 7 per cent earlier.
For fixed deposits between '3 years 1 day-5 years', the rate has been lowered to 6.5 per cent from 6.75 per cent.
Yesterday, the country's largest lender SBI slashed fixed deposit rates on select maturities by up to 0.15 per cent.
Private lender Axis Bank has cut marginal cost of fund-based lending rate (MCLR) by 0.15-0.20 per cent.
Till yesterday, SBI collected Rs 1,14,139 crore in deposits over the last seven days after the government announced to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.
According to estimates, banks have collected cash deposit of over Rs 4 lakh crore following the demonetisation decision announced on November 8 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Sensex closes lower for fourth day, Nifty gives up 8,100 level
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The Indian market closed lower for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday.
Sensex and Nifty are reeling under the effects of demonetisation and the resulting uncertainty from PM Narendra Modi's government's latest strike against black money.
Negative sentiment and selling pressure have impacted the market during the last 4-5 trading days as companies and analysts struggle to gauge the effects of the move on spending in various sectors of the economy.
The severe cash crunch has reduced the spending power of a majority of Indian population, impacting demand-led and consumption stocks in the market.
On Thursday too, the Sensex and Nifty gave up early gains and closed lower by 71 points and 31 points at 26,227 and 8,079 level, respectively.
The NSE volatility index VIX rose 4.06 per cent to 18.71 level, amid the market trading in a narrow range on Thursday.
The markets are in a volatile session and buying on dips may not be the best strategy now. Instead, investors should be in a wait-and-watch mode, analysts said.
The BSE IT index fell 130 points, losing most among the BSE sector indexes, amid Indian rupee trimming losses and trading at 67.83 levels. The IT stocks fell as rupee gained ground against Wednesday's closing level of 67.94 against dollar.
Bank Nifty pared gains in early trade and closed 20 points lower at 19,087 level as nervous investors shed positions in lacklustre trade.
The BSE bankex too fell in afternoon trade to 21859, a gain of 18 points. In early trade, the BSE bankex rose 96 points amid reports that banks had received Rs 4 lakh crore deposits since November 9 and some of them had cut lending and deposit rates.
The Voltas stock fell 7.80 percent to Rs 302 level on the BSE a day after Tata Group firm reported its Q2 earnings. Total income on consolidated basis was down 6.23 per cent to Rs 981.46 crore during the quarter under the review as against Rs 1,046.68 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal due to lower revenues in international projects.
The firm reported 7.21 per cent increase in consolidated net profit at Rs 72.11 crore for the quarter ended on September 30, 2016.
Shipping Corporation of India too fell 8.01 percent to Rs 58 on the BSE.
PowerGrid (2.66 per cent) and Tata Motors (3.21 percent) were the highest gainers on the 30-stock Sensex. Bharti Airtel and Bajaj Auto fell 4.26 per cent and 2.55 percent, respectively losing most on the Sensex.
On the BSE, PC Jeweller and DeltaCorp were the top gainers rising 8.59 per cent and 7.93 percent.
On Wednesday, FIIs sold Rs 9,298 crore worth stocks and bought Rs 7,341 crore in stocks amid choppy trade.
Macquarie said in a note that it would take another fortnight to measure quantitative hit of demonetisation on firms' Q3 earnings.
Market breadth was negative with 1,670 stocks falling against 944 advancing on the BSE.
Global markets
Japan's Nikkei was flat at 17,862.63 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index eased 0.1 percent to 22,298.58. China's Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.2 percent to 3,199.27 and South Korea's Kospi shed 0.1 percent to 1,982.31. Australia's S&P/ASX rose 0.2 percent to 5,338.50, while benchmarks in Taiwan, Singapore and Southeast Asia gained.
U.S. stocks were mixed Wednesday as banks returned some of the huge gains made since the presidential election last week but technology and consumer stocks climbed. The Dow Jones industrial average dipped 0.3 percent to 18,868.14. The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 0.2 percent to 2,176.94 but the Nasdaq composite added 0.4 percent to 5,294.58.
The dollar rose to 109.24 yen from 109.15 yen late Wednesday. The euro rose to $1.0695 from $1.0681.
The Indian market closed lower for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday.
Sensex and Nifty are reeling under the effects of demonetisation and the resulting uncertainty from PM Narendra Modi's government's latest strike against black money.
Negative sentiment and selling pressure have impacted the market during the last 4-5 trading days as companies and analysts struggle to gauge the effects of the move on spending in various sectors of the economy.
The severe cash crunch has reduced the spending power of a majority of Indian population, impacting demand-led and consumption stocks in the market.
On Thursday too, the Sensex and Nifty gave up early gains and closed lower by 71 points and 31 points at 26,227 and 8,079 level, respectively.
The NSE volatility index VIX rose 4.06 per cent to 18.71 level, amid the market trading in a narrow range on Thursday.
The markets are in a volatile session and buying on dips may not be the best strategy now. Instead, investors should be in a wait-and-watch mode, analysts said.
The BSE IT index fell 130 points, losing most among the BSE sector indexes, amid Indian rupee trimming losses and trading at 67.83 levels. The IT stocks fell as rupee gained ground against Wednesday's closing level of 67.94 against dollar.
Bank Nifty pared gains in early trade and closed 20 points lower at 19,087 level as nervous investors shed positions in lacklustre trade.
The BSE bankex too fell in afternoon trade to 21859, a gain of 18 points. In early trade, the BSE bankex rose 96 points amid reports that banks had received Rs 4 lakh crore deposits since November 9 and some of them had cut lending and deposit rates.
The Voltas stock fell 7.80 percent to Rs 302 level on the BSE a day after Tata Group firm reported its Q2 earnings. Total income on consolidated basis was down 6.23 per cent to Rs 981.46 crore during the quarter under the review as against Rs 1,046.68 crore in the corresponding quarter last fiscal due to lower revenues in international projects.
The firm reported 7.21 per cent increase in consolidated net profit at Rs 72.11 crore for the quarter ended on September 30, 2016.
Shipping Corporation of India too fell 8.01 percent to Rs 58 on the BSE.
PowerGrid (2.66 per cent) and Tata Motors (3.21 percent) were the highest gainers on the 30-stock Sensex. Bharti Airtel and Bajaj Auto fell 4.26 per cent and 2.55 percent, respectively losing most on the Sensex.
On the BSE, PC Jeweller and DeltaCorp were the top gainers rising 8.59 per cent and 7.93 percent.
On Wednesday, FIIs sold Rs 9,298 crore worth stocks and bought Rs 7,341 crore in stocks amid choppy trade.
Macquarie said in a note that it would take another fortnight to measure quantitative hit of demonetisation on firms' Q3 earnings.
Market breadth was negative with 1,670 stocks falling against 944 advancing on the BSE.
Global markets
Global markets
Japan's Nikkei was flat at 17,862.63 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index eased 0.1 percent to 22,298.58. China's Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.2 percent to 3,199.27 and South Korea's Kospi shed 0.1 percent to 1,982.31. Australia's S&P/ASX rose 0.2 percent to 5,338.50, while benchmarks in Taiwan, Singapore and Southeast Asia gained.
U.S. stocks were mixed Wednesday as banks returned some of the huge gains made since the presidential election last week but technology and consumer stocks climbed. The Dow Jones industrial average dipped 0.3 percent to 18,868.14. The Standard & Poor's 500 index lost 0.2 percent to 2,176.94 but the Nasdaq composite added 0.4 percent to 5,294.58.
The dollar rose to 109.24 yen from 109.15 yen late Wednesday. The euro rose to $1.0695 from $1.0681.
Mistry selectively leaking information to suit his needs: Arun Nanda
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Joining the boardroom feud at Tata Group, Arun Nanda, who heads the agency handling public relations for India's largest conglomerate, has asked ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry not to selectively leak information.
Responding to Mistry's office in a statement detailing the contract signed with his agency Rediffusion Y&R, Nanda asked why Mistry did not exercise option to sack the agency two years back and in fact extended the contract.
"Please do not place selective facts about us to suit your narrative before the media and public," Nanda said in an open letter to Mistry that was published in major newspapers.
Nanda's firm replaced Niira Radia's Vaishnavi Corporate Communications in 2011 as the PR agency for the Tata Group.
"Our reputation has been built over 43 years and I will not allow it to be tarnished in any manner whatsoever," he wrote.
Nanda said Rediffusion was appointed to handle the Tata Group public affairs/public relations mandate from November 1, 2011 after the contract with Vaishnavi Communications expired on October 31, 2011.
"The 5-year contract ending on October 31, 2016, with a 3-year 'No Exit Clause' from either side, was signed," he said, adding that Rediffusion tied up with Edelman, the world's largest PR firm, to service this mandate.
This contract covers the public relations/public affairs mandate for 33 companies of the Tata Group, including Tata Sons. The agency employed 165 people across 11 cities in India for the purpose.
"You (Mistry) have worked with us now since November, 2011, when you were appointed by Tata Sons as Executive Deputy Chairman... In May 2016, you had agreed to extend this contract beyond the current 5 year term and communicated this both to me and your EC Member, Dr. Mukund Rajan," he wrote.
Besides Tata Sons, the mandate for Tata Trusts was also added to the agency's contract and it was "paid for by Tata Sons as per your specific instructions to Dr. Mukund Rajan and myself," he said.
"You (Mistry) had over 2 years to decide whether to continue with us or exit the contract, with a notice period.
Why did you not exercise this option and instead continued with us after November, 2014," he asked.
Asking why he asked Tata Sons for the contract to be extended for a further period beyond October, 2016, Nanda said, "Please do not place selective facts about us to suit your narrative before the media and public."
The statement by Mistry's office on Sunday had stated that the replacement of Vaishnavi Communications with Arun Nanda's Rediffusion Edelman just prior to his taking over also resulted in a jump in costs from Rs 40 crore to Rs 60 crore.
"She (Radia) had been replaced by Arun Nanda (Rediffusion Edelman) who had been brought in by Ratan Tata at a cost of Rs 60 crore per year for PR support just prior to Mistry taking charge," the statement said.
It added that part of the public relations infrastructure paid for by Tata Sons was also provided to Ratan Tata-headed Tata Trusts.
Joining the boardroom feud at Tata Group, Arun Nanda, who heads the agency handling public relations for India's largest conglomerate, has asked ousted chairman Cyrus Mistry not to selectively leak information.
Responding to Mistry's office in a statement detailing the contract signed with his agency Rediffusion Y&R, Nanda asked why Mistry did not exercise option to sack the agency two years back and in fact extended the contract.
"Please do not place selective facts about us to suit your narrative before the media and public," Nanda said in an open letter to Mistry that was published in major newspapers.
Nanda's firm replaced Niira Radia's Vaishnavi Corporate Communications in 2011 as the PR agency for the Tata Group.
"Our reputation has been built over 43 years and I will not allow it to be tarnished in any manner whatsoever," he wrote.
Nanda said Rediffusion was appointed to handle the Tata Group public affairs/public relations mandate from November 1, 2011 after the contract with Vaishnavi Communications expired on October 31, 2011.
"The 5-year contract ending on October 31, 2016, with a 3-year 'No Exit Clause' from either side, was signed," he said, adding that Rediffusion tied up with Edelman, the world's largest PR firm, to service this mandate.
This contract covers the public relations/public affairs mandate for 33 companies of the Tata Group, including Tata Sons. The agency employed 165 people across 11 cities in India for the purpose.
"You (Mistry) have worked with us now since November, 2011, when you were appointed by Tata Sons as Executive Deputy Chairman... In May 2016, you had agreed to extend this contract beyond the current 5 year term and communicated this both to me and your EC Member, Dr. Mukund Rajan," he wrote.
Besides Tata Sons, the mandate for Tata Trusts was also added to the agency's contract and it was "paid for by Tata Sons as per your specific instructions to Dr. Mukund Rajan and myself," he said.
"You (Mistry) had over 2 years to decide whether to continue with us or exit the contract, with a notice period.
Why did you not exercise this option and instead continued with us after November, 2014," he asked.
Asking why he asked Tata Sons for the contract to be extended for a further period beyond October, 2016, Nanda said, "Please do not place selective facts about us to suit your narrative before the media and public."
The statement by Mistry's office on Sunday had stated that the replacement of Vaishnavi Communications with Arun Nanda's Rediffusion Edelman just prior to his taking over also resulted in a jump in costs from Rs 40 crore to Rs 60 crore.
"She (Radia) had been replaced by Arun Nanda (Rediffusion Edelman) who had been brought in by Ratan Tata at a cost of Rs 60 crore per year for PR support just prior to Mistry taking charge," the statement said.
It added that part of the public relations infrastructure paid for by Tata Sons was also provided to Ratan Tata-headed Tata Trusts.
General Awareness
Framework agreement of International Solar Alliance signed by 20 nations
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The framework agreement of International Solar Alliance (ISA) was opened for signatures on November 15, 2016, at the 22nd Conference of the Parties (COP 22) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), at Marrakech, in Morocco.
- Over 20 countries became the signatories to it soon after the process started, including India, France and Brazil.The signing of the framework agreement required official authorization by countries. The agreement required at-least 15 countries to ratify it to become operational.
- The Framework Agreement will be kept open as many more countries are expected to join the ISA in the coming weeks.
International Solar Alliance(ISA)
ISA was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi jointly with French President Francois Hollande at CoP21 in Paris in November 2015.
- It is India’s first international and inter-governmental organization comprising 121 solar resource-rich tropical countries lying fully or partially between two tropics and who are also the members of UN.
- The ISA institutional structure will consists of an Assembly, a Council and a Secretariat. The secretariat of the ISA is to be located in India.
- Its members will take coordinated actions through programmes and activities that will aggregate demands for solar finance, solar technologies, innovation, R&D and capacity building.
Why is ISA formed?
Nearly 120 countries are geographically located in the tropics i.e. between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, either fully or partially.
- These places get ample sunlight throughout the year, which makes solar energy an easily available resource in these places.
- As a result these countries may become one of those countries where maximum growth in energy is possible, but unfortunately their current production is short as per requirement.
- Thus, the ISA will ensure that as these countries rapidly increase their electricity production, primarily by using clean solar energy and avoid fossil fuels.
- It is also an attempt to increase the global demand for solar energy.
Benefits of ISA
ISA will enable to meet the global demands of energy which will result in further reduction in prices of solar energy deployment.
- Boost R&D, particularly in areas of efficient storage systems.
- Promote standardisation in the use of equipments and processes for generating electricity.
- Standardisation will make the manufacturing of equipments and other hardware cheaper.
The framework agreement of International Solar Alliance (ISA) was opened for signatures on November 15, 2016, at the 22nd Conference of the Parties (COP 22) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), at Marrakech, in Morocco.
- Over 20 countries became the signatories to it soon after the process started, including India, France and Brazil.The signing of the framework agreement required official authorization by countries. The agreement required at-least 15 countries to ratify it to become operational.
- The Framework Agreement will be kept open as many more countries are expected to join the ISA in the coming weeks.
International Solar Alliance(ISA)
ISA was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi jointly with French President Francois Hollande at CoP21 in Paris in November 2015.
- It is India’s first international and inter-governmental organization comprising 121 solar resource-rich tropical countries lying fully or partially between two tropics and who are also the members of UN.
- The ISA institutional structure will consists of an Assembly, a Council and a Secretariat. The secretariat of the ISA is to be located in India.
- Its members will take coordinated actions through programmes and activities that will aggregate demands for solar finance, solar technologies, innovation, R&D and capacity building.
Why is ISA formed?
Nearly 120 countries are geographically located in the tropics i.e. between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, either fully or partially.
- These places get ample sunlight throughout the year, which makes solar energy an easily available resource in these places.
- As a result these countries may become one of those countries where maximum growth in energy is possible, but unfortunately their current production is short as per requirement.
- Thus, the ISA will ensure that as these countries rapidly increase their electricity production, primarily by using clean solar energy and avoid fossil fuels.
- It is also an attempt to increase the global demand for solar energy.
Benefits of ISA
ISA will enable to meet the global demands of energy which will result in further reduction in prices of solar energy deployment.
- Boost R&D, particularly in areas of efficient storage systems.
- Promote standardisation in the use of equipments and processes for generating electricity.
- Standardisation will make the manufacturing of equipments and other hardware cheaper.
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