1. Tata Sons Want Not Just Mistry, but Also Nusli Wadia to Be Shown the Door
Tata Sons Ltd. has moved resolutions to remove Cyrus Mistry and Nusli Wadia as directors of Tata Steel Ltd., Tata Chemicals Ltd. and Tata Motors Ltd., as the boardroom battle following Mistry’s ouster as chairman of the group turns more bitter.
Tata Sons, the principal shareholder of all three companies, sent separate notices asking them to to convene EGMs to remove Cyrus Mistry as chairman as well as Nusli Wadia as director. Wadia is an independent director on the board of all three companies, all three companies said in separate stock exchange filings.
The development followed Tata Chemicals’ board meeting on Thursday in which independent directors, including Nusli Wadia, expressed their “full confidence” in Cyrus Mistry as chairman of the company. Tata Chemicals thereby became the second Tata group company to back Mistry, after Indian Hotels.
(Source: Bloomberg Quint)
2. Government Allows Utility Payments with Old Currency Notes till 14 November
The government on Friday extended the deadline to use old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 banknotes for utility payments like hospitals bills, railway tickets, airline tickets etc for another 72 hours.
Citizens can now pay for these services with old currency notes till the midnight of 14 November, the finance ministry said in a statement.
The government has been closely monitoring the implementation of the decision. Considering various representations received from different quarters in the matter, it has now been decided that the existing exemptions may be extended until the expiry of 14 November 2016.Finance Ministry Statement
(Source: Bloomberg Quint)
3. IIP Rebounds in September After Two Months of Contraction
India’s factory output as measured by the index of industrial production (IIP) grew 0.7% in September after contracting for two consecutive months. In August, the index had contracted by 0.67% while in July it had shrunk by 2.4%.
Data released by the central statistics office showed that in September, while mining contracted in the month, manufacturing and electricity generation registered growth. While mining shrank by 3.1%, manufacturing rose 0.9% and electricity generation grew 2.4%.
4. Sensex, Nifty Slide to Lowest Close in 4-and-a-Half Months
The benchmark Sensex and Nifty slid to their lowest close in nearly four-and-a-half months, mirroring the weakness in Asian shares as concerns that Donald Trump taking over as US President, led to fears of higher interest rates, triggering capital outflows from riskier bets such as emerging markets.
Earlier in the day, BSE’s 30-share Sensex fell as much as 2.69% or 740.50 points to 26,777.18 points, while NSE’s Nifty 50-share dropped 2.82% or 240.80 points to 8,284.95 points. Sensex closed 2.54% or 698.86 points lower at 26,818.82 points, its lowest close since 29 June. Nifty shed 2.69% or 229.45 points to close at 8,296.30 points, its lowest close since 30 June.
(Source: Livemint)
5. Government to Keep Eye on Jan-Dhan Accounts for Large Deposits
The government plans to look into cash deposits in bank accounts opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana if it finds large inflows in them, a development that comes in the wake of reports that accounts opened under the financial inclusion scheme may be used to launder money. On Tuesday, the government demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in a crackdown on black money, forcing those holding illicit money to look for ways to launder their money.
(Source: The Economic Times)
6. Competition Regulator Clarifies Law on Joint Ventures
Corporates intending to enter into joint ventures involving transfer of assets will have to notify the Competition Commission of India (CCI), the competition regulator clarified in a frequently asked question (FAQ) document on its Combination Regulations.
The Competition Act, 2002 requires CCI approval if a combination i.e. an acquisition, merger or amalgamation crosses a certain asset and turnover threshold. However, it was unclear whether parties setting up a joint venture need to notify the regulator too. The CCI has answered this question in the affirmative for transactions where one or more parties to the joint venture transfers assets to the joint venture.
(Source: Bloomberg Quint)
7. New Feature on Tax Portal to Monitor Cash Deposits
Taxpayers will have to explain large cash deposits made in their bank accounts and state whether their income-tax returns reflect these deposits, as per a new feature introduced on the tax filing website www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in. Further, all bank accounts linked to an individual’s permanent account (PAN) number have been collated, indicating that the accounts are being monitored by the tax authorities.
The new feature assumes significance in light of this week’s demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. People have been given time until 30 December to deposit their existing cash in these denominations in their bank accounts. The tax department has clarified that cash deposits below Rs 2.5 lakh will not come under the scanner, but all those above this amount will be correlated with their income-tax returns (ITR) and a penalty imposed in case of tax evasion
(Source: Livemint)
8. Dish TV, Videocon D2H to Merge as Single DTH Company
Ending months of speculations, India's largest direct-to-home (DTH) player, Dish TVBSE -5.25 %, and NASDAQ- listed Videocon d2h (Vd2h) have decided to merge operations to form the single largest pay TV operator with 27.6 million net subscribers.
The Board of Directors of the two companies approved a scheme of arrangement for amalgamation on Friday. Post completion, the merged entity will be renamed as Dish TV Videocon Limited. Current Dish TV MD Jawahar Goel will head
(Source: The Economic Times)
9. SBI Q2 Profit Falls 34.6% to Rs 2,538.32 Crore Due to Doubling of Bad Loans
State Bank of India (SBI) on Friday reported a 34.6% slump in September quarter net profit as provisions against bad loans doubled from a year ago, showing the continuing pain from a pile-up of toxic assets at India’s largest lender.
The bank reported a net profit of Rs 2,538.32 crore in the three months, down from Rs 3,879.07 crore in the year-ago period. According to a Bloomberg poll of 17 analysts, the bank had been expected to post a net profit of Rs 2,585.40 crore.
(Source: Livemint)