1. Credit Growth Doubles in July 2018 at 10.6 Percent
Non-food credit growth in the system accelerated to 10.6 percent for July as compared to the previous year, driven by loans to the services sector growing at a faster clip, the Reserve Bank said on Friday, 31 August.
The system had notched a credit growth of 5.3 percent for the same period in the year-ago period. Credit to the services sector grew 23 percent for the reporting period, up from the year-ago period’s 4.9 percent, it said, adding that the data has been collected from 41 scheduled commercial banks in the system accounting for 90 percent of credit.
Agri-loans saw a marginal dip in growth at 6.6 percent for July 2018 as against 6.8 percent in the year-ago period, it said.
(Source: Financial Express)
2. Fiscal Deficit Crosses 86% of Budget Estimate in Four Months
The macro-economic data released on Friday, 31 August showed that fiscal deficit has reached 86.5 percent of the Budget Estimate. Fiscal deficit is the differences between income and the expenditure of the Central Government.
The data, as reported by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) under the Finance Ministry, revealed that while the income grew by 19 percent, the expenditure was higher by over 36 percent during the first four months (April-July) of the current fiscal. Higher expenditure resulted in fiscal deficit of more than 86 percent.
However, this number is still less than 92.4 percent reported last fiscal.
(Source: The Hindu Business Line)
3. Diesel Price Crosses Rs 70/ltr Mark for First Time Ever; LPG Rates up by Rs 1.49
Domestic cooking gas (LPG) price was on Friday, 31 August, hiked by Rs 1.49 per cylinder while diesel rates crossed Rs 70 a litre mark for the first time ever on drop in rupee value. Subsidised LPG with effect from midnight tonight will cost Rs 499.51 per cylinder in Delhi as against Rs 498.02 currently, mainly due to the tax incidence on base price, a statement issued by Indian Oil Corp (IOCNSE 0.84 %), the nation's largest fuel retailer, said.
Diesel rates were hiked by 28 paisa a litre, the steepest increase since the daily revision in fuel rates was effected in mid-June last year.
A litre of diesel now costs Rs 70.21 in Delhi, where the rates are the cheapest in all metros and most state capitals due to lower sales tax or VAT.
(Source: Economic Times)
4. Vodafone Idea Dials in With 408 Million Customers, ₹19,300 Crore in Bank
Idea Cellular and Vodafone India started to function as one entity on Friday, 31 August, a day after the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) approved the merger of the two telecom companies into a new entity called Vodafone Idea Ltd.
The merger has created India’s largest telecom service provider and displaced Bharti Airtel Ltd from the top spot after about two decades. The merged entity has more than 408 million subscribers, a broadband network of 340,000 sites and a distribution reach with 1.7 million retail outlets, according to a joint statement by the companies on Friday.
The new entity will have a market share of 32.2% and leadership position in nine out of 22 circles. The merger is expected to generate ₹14,000 crore in synergies annually.
(Source: Livemint)
5. Boost to Modinomics: FY19 Begins with a Bang as Q1 GDP Growth at 8.2% Beats the World
The last year of the Narendra Modi’s 5-year term has begun with a bang as the GDP for the first quarter of the financial year 2018-19 has hit a two-year high of 8.2% growth rate, beating all expectations. India had missed the 8% mark earlier in the fourth quarter of FY16 when it recorded 7.9%.
“GDP at constant (2011-12) prices in Q1 of 2018-19 is estimated at Rs 33.74 lakh crore, as against Rs 31.18 lakh crore in Q1 of 2017-18, showing a growth rate of 8.2 percent,” Central Statistics Office (CSO) said. The Gross Value Addition (GVA) growth has been 8% in the April-June quarter of FY19.
(Source: Financial Express)
7. Coca-Cola Expands into Coffee with $5.1 Billion Deal for Britain's Costa
Coca-Cola Co has agreed to buy the world's second largest coffee chain Costa from Britain's Whitbread PLC for an enterprise value of 3.9 billion pounds ($5.1 billion), opening a new front in its push away from traditional sodas.
Whitbread said in a statement on Friday that the deal, which will give Coke almost 4,000 coffee outlets in the UK and across Europe, had been agreed unanimously by the Whitbread board as in the best interests of shareholders. Whitbread, which had been in the process of demerging its coffee business from its hotel chain, acquired Costa in 1995 for 19 million pounds when it had only 39 shops.
(Source: Economic Times)
8. Basmati Exporters on Boil as Iran Importer Defaults
Indian rice exporters have a sum of nearly ₹1,000 crore stuck mainly because an Iranian importer has defaulted on payments due for aromatic rice exported to the Gulf country, an exporter has said.
The All India Rice Exporters’ Association (AIREA) admitted that there was a fraud by an Iranian company, but said the things are being sorted out with the both governments seized of the matter.
“The industry has around ₹ 1,000 crore outstanding from Iran,” said Gurnam Arora, Joint Managing Director of Kohinoor Foods Ltd. According to Vijay Setia, President of the AIREA, one particular Iranian importer owes a lot of money to Indian exporters. It seems that the Iranian firm has siphoned off the funds, he said.
(Source: The Hindu Business Line)
9. India's Core Industries' Growth Slows Down in July
The growth of eight core industries slowed down to 6.6 percent in July against 7.6 percent the previous month. However year-on-year, the figures are much better. The eight core sector -- coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity -- had registered a growth of 2.9 percent in July last year.
The eight infrastructure sectors of coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity, constitute 40.27 percent of the total industrial production.
(Source: Economic Times)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)