1. Tata Sons Moves SC Against NCLAT Order
Tata Sons has urged the Supreme Court to set aside the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) order reinstating Cyrus Mistry, saying it had been made without “application of mind.” Its petition also said Mistry had declined a meeting with Ratan Tata that would have allowed for a graceful exit, forcing Tata Sons board to oust him in October 2016.
The tribunal had ruled on 19 December that Mistry should be restored as director of Tata Sons and three group companies – Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Industries Ltd and Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra). Mistry was succeeded by N Chandrasekaran as chairman of Tata Sons in the following year.
(Source: The Economic Times)
2. Rise in New Orders Boosts Manufacturing PMI to 7-Month High in December
A sudden boost in new orders helped the beleaguered manufacturing sector surge ahead in December even as business optimism fell to a three-year low, with firms remaining spooked by weak market conditions, said a monthly global survey released on Thursday.
The widely tracked Nikkei India manufacturing Purchase Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 52.7, a seven-month high, from November’s 51.2.
In PMI parlance, a print above 50 means expansion, while a score below that denotes contraction. The rebound in growth comes after October’s two-year low PMI performance at 50.6.
However, official data shows that contraction remained entrenched in the manufacturing sector till November. India’s overall industrial production fell 3.8 percent in October, after contracting 4.3 percent in September, lowest in eight years.
(Source: Business Standard)
3. Consumer Goods’ Festive Sales Hit a Four-Year High
Retailers and consumer goods companies said sales in the October-December festive quarter had been the best in past four years on account of ‘pent-up demand’, a buoyant stock market, wider availability of consumer credit at 0 percent interest, and the harsh winter in the North that triggered sales of heating products and winter wear.
While industry executives said some ‘green shoots’ were visible, they added that they would observe sales over the next one or two quarters before announcing a revival in consumption.
“Some green shoots can be seen, but the upcoming summer will tell us whether the momentum is sustained,” said Panasonic India CEO Manish Sharma.
(Source: The Economic Times)
4. Hinduja, Synergy, Dubai Fund May Bid for Jet Airways
London-based Hinduja Group, South America’s Synergy Group and a Dubai-based fund are the three potential bidders for bankrupt Jet Airways (India) Ltd, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said.
Lenders to Jet Airways, who have repeatedly extended the deadline to submit expressions of interest (EoI), are unwilling to give any more time and have set a final deadline of 15 January, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity.
None of the three entities have submitted EoIs, they said, adding that if the bids are not received by the deadline, proceedings for liquidation will begin.
(Source: Livemint)
5. New Year Cheer for Investors as Nifty Closes at a Lifetime High
A global stocks rally powered by an impending US-China trade deal and hopes of stable indirect tax collections on the home front drove Indian markets on Thursday, with the benchmark Nifty index closing at a new high.
The Nifty ended at 12,282.20, up 99.70 points or 0.82 percent while the BSE Sensex closed at 41,626.64, up 320.62 points or 0.78 percent.
(Source: Livemint)
6. Centre Gears up to Place Restrictions on Non-Essential Imports
India is set to finalize stricter quality standards for 371 items by March, a move primarily aimed at curbing imports of non-essential items such as toys, plastic goods, sports items and furniture, especially from China.
The proposed rules, to be framed by ministries in coordination with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), will also ensure stricter inspection of imports.
While the new rules, spearheaded by trade minister Piyush Goyal, are aimed at curbing imports from China and narrowing the trade deficit with India’s northern neighbour, the rules will also apply to Indian producers so as to make the regulations World Trade Organization-compliant.
Non-essential imports from China amount to Rs 4 trillion a year, according to a commerce ministry estimate.
(Source: Livemint)
7. Bad Loan Provisioning May Swell by Rs 30,000 Cr in Q3
Indian banks could be staring at bad-debt provisions of an estimated Rs 30,000 crore against loans to Dewan Housing Finance Corp (DHFL), the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Home Finance, KKR-backed Coffee Day Enterprises and CG Power. Resolution hasn’t been finalised in any of these accounts, which means the December quarter could possibly see a reversal in the brief fall in provisioning that occurred in the preceding three-month period.
The bulk of the provisions will be on account of DHFL, which entered the bankruptcy process in December.
(Source: The Economic Times)
8. Dutch Brewing Giant Heineken Likely to Raise Stake in United Breweries
Dutch brewing giant Heineken is likely to increase its stake in the United Breweries (UBL) in its bid to attain controlling stake of 51 percent or more from the current level of around 46 percent in the beer company.
Sources said after the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Mumbai on Wednesday allowed consortium of 15 banks led by State Bank of India (SBI) to utilise moveable assets of former liquor baron Vijay Mallya, Heineken is looking at approaching these banks to buy out the pledged shares that the creditors are planning to liquidate for recovering debt.
(Source: Business Standard)
9. ONGC Bags All 7 Oil and Gas Blocks in Fourth Round of OALP Auction
The government on Thursday awarded Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) all seven oil and gas blocks that were on offer in the fourth round of Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP), said Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The current round added 18,510 square kilometre (sq km) to India’s total exploration area. Pradhan said bids for another 20,000 sq km area will be finalised soon as part of the fifth round.
Of the seven blocks, five are located in Madhya Pradesh and one block each in Rajasthan and West Bengal. The blocks are spread over three sedimentary basins with resource potential of around 33 billion barrels of oil and oil equivalent gas. The first four rounds are expected to generate an investment of around $2.35 billion over the next three to four years in exploratory work alone.
(Source: Business Standard)
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