1. Oil Rises as ‘Alarm Bells’ Sound Over Unravelling Iran Nuke Deal
Crude rose after Israeli intelligence about Iranian nuclear ambitions heightened concern that an international accord may unravel.
Futures in New York rose 0.7 percent on Monday, 30 April to settle just pennies shy of a three-year high. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Iran had a secret plan to build nuclear weapons. The announcement comes less than two weeks before US President Donald Trump decides whether to scrap the Iranian nuclear deal and reimpose sanctions against OPEC’s third-biggest oil producer.
Brent crude, the international benchmark traded in London, closed at a level not see since late 2014.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
2. Google Ties up With CBSE for Results, Exam-Related Info
Tech giant Google said it has collaborated with Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to allow students to check their results on its platform.
"Starting today with the JEE Main exam results, the CBSE is enabling students to look up exam results directly on the Google Search page," Google said in a statement.
This will help students quickly, securely, and seamlessly locate their exam score on their smartphone or desktop, it added.
The statement said Google had worked closely with CBSE to "ensure that the data is handled securely and used solely for the purpose of showing the results on Google, and only for the duration that this feature is live".
Besides, Google has also introduced additional features making it easier for students to see information like test dates, registration dates, important links, and other key information right within Google Search when they search for exams like GATE, SSC CGL, CAT and others.
(Source: PTI)
3. HDFC Sees 39% Jump in Q4 Profit
Mortgage lender Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) on Thursday, 26 April reported a 39.2% year-on-year (y-o-y) rise in its standalone net profit for the March ended quarter to Rs 2,846.2 crore, reported Financial Express.
HDFC’s net interest income (NII) for the quarter came in at Rs 3,210.9 crore against Rs 2,852.37 crore in the same quarter last year, representing a growth of 12.6%. The lender’s total income for the March quarter stood at Rs 9,633.89 crore, 13.1% higher than the same quarter last year.
Its net interest margin (NIM) for the year stood at 4% which was a tad lower than the previous year.
(Source: Financial Express)
4. Govt To Procure 2,500 MW Power Without Power Purchase Agreements
Power generating firms can now sell power without binding pacts as the government looks to revive stressed power assets.
The Centre launched a pilot scheme for procurement of aggregate power of 2,500 megawatts on competitive basis for three years under medium term, that is from generators with commissioned projects but without power purchase agreements, the power ministry said in a notification today. The guidelines for the scheme were released earlier this month.
PFC Consulting Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of PFC Ltd, has been appointed as the nodal agency for the bidding process while PTC India Ltd is the aggregator, Power Finance Corporation said in a separate statement.
As part of the bidding process, PFC Consolting will invite quotations from power developers in the form of single lump-sum tariff. A single developer can bid for a minimum capacity of 100 MW and a maximum capacity of 600 MW, the ministry notification added. The scheme assures a minimum off-take of 55 percent of contracted capacity. The tariff will be fixed for three years without any escalation.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
4. HDFC's Board to Raise up to Rs 85,000 Cr Through Debt Securities
Mortgage lender HDFC's board has approved raising up to Rs 85,000 crore through issuance of debt securities.
"The Board approved issuance of redeemable non-convertible debentures (secured/unsecured) and/or hybrid instruments (not in the nature of equity shares) up to Rs 85,000 crore on a private placement basis," HDFC said in a BSE filing.
The Board also approved re-appointment of Keki Mistry as the Managing Director (designated as vice chairman and chief executive officer) of the Corporation for a period of 3 years.
HDFC has sought members approval for both the proposals in its annual general meeting scheduled on 30 July, 2018.
(Source: PTI)
5. Walmart Likely to Get Google on Its Side in Fight With Amazon India
Google’s parent Alphabet is likely to take a minority stake in Walmart’s acquisition plan for Flipkart, reported The Economic Times.
Alphabet is likely to invest $1-2 billion after the Walmart acquisition. Walmart products are sold on Google Express, the online mall, as a part of a 2017 partnership. Google also offers personalised voice shopping for Walmart products online, reported ET.
According to ET, Google has drawn up an India-focused strategy to roll out products including smart speakers, premium laptop Pixelbook, intelligent home automation products. The tech giant is even planning a midrange smartphone especially for markets such as India.
(Source: Economic Times)
6. Production at Tata Motors’ Pantnagar Plant Hit By Workers’ Agitation
Production at Tata Motors Ltd’s Pantnagar manufacturing facility was partially hit today, after a section of workers resorted to agitation following the death of one of their colleagues due to a cardiac arrest on Saturday.
The plant in Uttarakhand produces the sub one-tonne mini-truck Tata Ace.
Confirming the partial loss of production, Tata Motors said the company is extending necessary support to the family according to its policy and the management is looking into resolving the issue amicably.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
7. No Excise Duty Cut on Petrol, Diesel for Now
The government is not considering cutting excise duty on petrol and diesel yet as rates have not touched levels that could trigger such an action, said Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg.
The Economic Times reported that State oil firms have not revised petrol and diesel price for almost a week now. This after petrol price hit a 55-month high of Rs 74.63 a litre and diesel rates climbed to a record high of Rs 65.93.
Garg said oil prices can impact the government's fiscal maths if they result in a spike in rates of domestic cooking gas (LPG) – the only commodity that is subsidised now.
(Source: Economic Times)
8. Kotak Mahindra Bank Q4 Net Rises 15% on NII Boost
Kotak Mahindra Bank on Monday, 30 April reported a 15% year-on-year (y-o-y) rise in standalone net profit for the quarter ended 31 March , 2018 to Rs 1,124 crore on the back of a 19.4% y-o-y growth in net interest income (NII) to Rs 2,579.75 crore, reported Financial Express.
NII is the difference between interest earned and interest paid by a bank. Net interest margin (NIM) improved 15 basis points (bps) from the end of December to 4.35%.
Provisions at the bank rose 15% from the year-ago period to Rs 307 crore. Asset quality saw an improvement, with gross non-performing assets (NPAs) falling nine bps from the end of December to 2.22% of the loan book and net NPAs declining 11 bps sequentially to 0.98%.
(Source: Financial Express)
9. GST Revenue Target Set at Rs12 Trillion for FY19
The GST Council has set Rs12 trillion as the target for goods and services tax collections for the current financial year, buoyed by rising tax compliance in the first year of the new indirect tax regime, reported Livemint.
The federal indirect tax body noted that the average monthly receipts in the last fiscal year, despite several disruptions, were Rs 89,885 crore, marginally below the Rs 91,000 crore target.
“GST receipts in FY18 have not been bad. The revised monthly revenue target for FY19 takes into account a 14% increase in states’ revenue growth estimate for compensation,” a finance ministry official, requesting anonymity, told Livemint.
(Source: Livemint)
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