1. The Worrying Sign in Auto Sale Figure: Passenger Vehicle Registration Dips
Retail car sales seem to be declining this financial year in spite of a six percent expansion in wholesale numbers reported by manufacturers. Data from Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (FADA) shows that total registration of passenger vehicles (cars, vans and utility vehicles) has declined by more than a per cent to 1.62 million units during April 1-November 20 this year, becoming the only segment of automobile industry to see a dip in registrations.
The registration of commercial vehicles jumped by 30.6 per cent to 688,367 units. However, registration of passenger vehicles (PVs) declined over 1.4 percent to 1.62 million units. In all these cases the growth in registration is lower than the growth in wholesale dispatches (sales from manufacturers to dealers).
(Source: Business Standard)
2. Rising Costs, Stagnant Revenue Prompts Revolt From India’s ATM Operators
On Wednesday, an industry association of ATM operators put out a dire warning. “Nearly 50 percent of ATMs across the country may down their shutters by March 2019,” the Confederation of ATM Industry said in a press release. The association argued that recent regulatory changes have led to a surge in costs, making it unviable for these operators to run as many ATMs as they presently are.
Behind the warning lies a confluence of factors. “There have been a couple of guidelines that have come from the RBI and Ministry of Home Affairs regarding physical security of cash operations and cyber security measures. All this costs money and operators who need to make all these changes need to be compensated,” said K Srinivas, director at the industry association CATMi.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
3. Nissan Pushes for More Power in Post-Ghosn Alliance
Nissan Motor Co. will seek a review of the shareholding structure of its alliance with Renault SA, moving to create a more equitable partnership between the two carmakers just days after Carlos Ghosn’s shock arrest, according people familiar with the plans.
The review will cover the issue of voting rights, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information isn’t public.
The plan signals Nissan is moving swiftly to gain a stronger position in the alliance, with Ghosn out of the picture. The French-Brazilian executive, who steered both Renault and Nissan for years and had worked toward a merger of the companies, was removed as Nissan’s chairman Thursday after his arrest in Japan for suspected financial offenses.
(Source: Bloomberg)
4. Crisil Cites ‘HAM In A Jam’ To Lower Road Project Execution Target
Road projects awarded under the National Highway Authority of India’s hybrid annuity model, where the government and private developers share the costs, are stuck in a jam, Crisil said, prompting it to mark down the execution forecast for the current fiscal.
The research agency, in a report named "HAM in a jam", claimed successful bidders are yet to receive contract letters from the NHAI. A road builder begins work on any project only after the letter is received.
We estimate around 800 km of execution is at risk this fiscal because many hybrid annuity model (HAM) projects are still awaiting appointed dates seven months after they were awarded.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
5. Finance Ministry to Infuse Rs 54,000 Crore in PSBs
The Finance Ministry is likely to infuse Rs 54,000 crore in public sector banks (PSBs) soon as part of its ambitious recapitalisation plan to improve the financial health of lenders. Last October, the government had announced Rs 2.11 lakh crore bank recapitalisation plan, of which Rs 1.35 lakh crore was capital infusion from the government while the rest was through recap bonds and market raising.
The ministry would not cut its capital infusion plan even as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended the deadline for meeting the Basel III norms by a year, news agency PTI reported. As the deadline has been pushed, the capital requirement of banks is likely to come down to around Rs 15,000-20,000 crore, PTI reported quoting anonymous sources.
(Souce: Financial Express)
6. What Crackdown? Bank Frauds Up 20% in 2 Years
Banking frauds have continued to rise over the past two years despite a recent crackdown, according to Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India LLP. Instances of fraud have increased 20% in the past two years, Deloitte said in its annual banking fraud survey to be released on Monday, 19 November.
“While there has been a growing awareness among banks to enhance their fraud risk management framework in response to regulatory directives and/or rising incidents of fraud, there is a clear need for banks to integrate a larger financial crime compliance agenda that will work across the compliance, legal, credit and operations department,” Deloitte said.
(Source: Live Mint)
7. 59-Minute MSME Loan Scheme a Gimmick, Says Amit Mitra
West Bengal finance minister Amit Mitra on Friday accused the union government of failing to manage institutions like the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and said the 59-minute loan sanction for small businesses announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this month was a gimmick.
In recent months, the RBI and the central government have clashed on key policies relating to the level of the central bank’s reserves, lending to small businesses and liquidity of non-banking finance companies.
(Source: Live Mint)
8. Yamuna Expressway Industrial Authority Allots Land to Vivo For Rs 3,500cr Unit
Smartphone maker Vivo India has been allotted a 169-acre land parcel by the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Authority (YEIDA) to set up a unit in Gautam Buddh Nagar with an estimated investment of Rs 3,500 crore, an official said.
Vivo, headquartered in southern China’s Dongguan city, already operates from a 50-acre rented set up in Greater Noida where it manufactures 24 lakh mobile phones annually, the Chief Executive Officer of YEIDA, Arunvir Singh, said.
(Source: PTI)
9. BMS Slams Govt Bid to Merge Labour Laws
India’s largest trade union body the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh, a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) affiliate, on Friday criticised an attempt by the Union government to merge 13 labour laws into a single code on occupational safety and working conditions.
The move comes two days after 10 other trade unions refused to meet the labour ministry saying they are not ready to deliberate on an important reform with just two days notice.
The BMS said the government’s draft bill is not inclusive and does not cater to a large part of the over-470 million workers community.
(Source: Live Mint)
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