1. Good Times for Market Continue, Sensex Rallies 205 Pts
Stocks stood their ground with a rally for the third straight session as the Sensex and the Nifty lapped up the positive overseas trend, buoyed by strong US payroll data. The benchmark Sensex finished over 205 points higher at 33,456 while the broader NSE Nifty closed above the 10,300- mark.
Participants are optimistic about a favourable result for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the ongoing Gujarat polls. However, the optimism surrounding blue-chip stocks was tempered by the fact that industrial production and retail inflation data are due later this week.
The Sensex opened strong at 33,317.72 and touched a high of 33,535.97. It could not go far and settled at 33,455.79, up 205.49 points, or 0.62 percent.
This is its highest closing since 29 November, when it had closed at 33,602.76.
(Source: PTI)
2. India's GDP Likely to Grow 7.2% in 2018, 7.4% in 2019: UN Report
India's economy is likely to expand by 7.2 percent in 2018 and go up further to 7.4 percent in the following year on the back of strong private consumption, public investment and the ongoing structural reforms, a United Nations (UN) report said on Monday.
Overall, economic outlook for South Asia is seen largely favourable and steady for the short term, notwithstanding significant medium-term challenges, said the 'World Economic Situation and Prospects 2018' report unveiled by United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA).
"The economic outlook remains steady and largely favourable in South Asia, driven by robust private consumption and sound macroeconomic policies.
"Monetary policy stances are moderately accommodative while fiscal policies in several economies maintain a strong emphasis on infrastructure investment. The recovery of external demand is also buttressing growth," said the report.
(Source: PTI)
3. Amazon Seller Base Spikes 80% in 2017
Online retailer Amazon India has seen its seller base in the country hit 2.7 lakh, a growth of 80 percent compared to the beginning of the year. Over 50 percent of the merchant base is from tier II cities and beyond, Amazon India Director and GM (Seller Services) Gopal Pillai told PTI.
"We have seen tremendous growth this year in terms of seller addition. The base has grown from 1.5 lakh in January to 2.7 lakh currently. We hope to continue the momentum next year as well," he added.
Amazon India is locked in an intense battle with home-grown firm, Flipkart, for leadership position in the burgeoning Indian e-commerce market. It has pumped in billions of dollars to expand infrastructure, ramp up seller base and customer experience.
About 2018, Pillai said the company will "double down" on its investment on its seller app, which has already seen over a million downloads.
(Source: PTI)
4. Govt Committed to Meeting Fiscal Deficit Target, Say Economists
Operational constraints to stick to the fiscal deficit target may vary, but there is “political commitment” by the government to not deviate from the target, Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council member Rathin Roy said on Monday.
“I’m sure they (the government) will (stick to fiscal deficit target). I think there is a political commitment... I reinforced that,” Roy, who is also a director at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, told reporters in New Delhi after a pre-Budget meeting with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.
The government has set the fiscal deficit target at 3.2 percent of the GDP for the current financial year. India exhausted 96.1 percent of its fiscal deficit target by October, suggesting that it might overshoot the target.
(Read the full story on Bloomberg Quint)
5. US Stocks Rise as Focus Turns to Interest Rates: Markets Wrap
US stocks finished higher and the S&P 500 Index rose to a record, as investors put off big bets before a series of key central bank meetings this week. Oil climbed to $58 a barrel.
Most major equity gauges advanced, led by more than 1 percent increases in media, telephone and technology hardware shares. Earlier, index futures briefly erased gains after an explosion rocked midtown Manhattan in what authorities have labeled a terrorist attack. Treasuries fell with gold, and the dollar was up slightly.
In Europe, stocks struggled for direction. Bonds rose and the euro climbed. The pound slipped, as some of the promises made to clinch a breakthrough Brexit deal last week started to fray. In Asia, the Nikkei 225 reclaimed a 26-year high.
(Read the full article on Bloomberg Quint)
6. Tata, Skoda, Toyota Cars to Get Costlier From January 2018
Tata Motors on Monday said it will increase prices of its passenger vehicles by up to Rs 25,000 from January to offset the impact of rising input costs.
The introductory prices of the recently launched compact SUV Nexon will be ending by 31 December and this entire range will also witness a price hike from January 2018 by up to Rs 25,000, the company said.
Various automakers like Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Honda Cars India, Skoda and Isuzu have already announced their decision to hike prices from January next year.
Toyota Kirloskar Motor had earlier said that it is planning to increase prices of its models by up to 3 percent from January. Honda Cars India has also said it will increase prices of its models by up to Rs 25,000 from January, as Business Today reported.
Skoda Auto India had earlier announced a price hike of 2-3 percent on all its models.
Read the full story on The Quint
7. IBC Ordinance: Govt Asks Panel to Review Amendment
After an amendment prohibiting defaulting promoters and related entities from bidding for their assets, the government has asked the panel it formed in November to review provisions of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
Industry experts had earlier expressed concerns that the ordinance may shut out even clean bidders, possibly those promoters who have blood relations with tainted promoters and private equity players who typically acquire stressed assets.
The ordinance bars not only wilful defaulters, but also several other categories of investors such as guarantors to the debtor, those with loans classified as non-performing assets for at least a year, those convicted for any offence with a prison term of more than two years, directors in companies that have been disqualified, entities barred by the capital markets regulator, those who have been found to have struck fraudulent transactions with the firm, and connected entities.
(Source: Livemint)
8. PNB to Raise up to Rs 5,000 Cr via QIP
Public lender Punjab National Bank on Monday said it has initiated the process of raising up to Rs 5,000 crore through qualified institutional placement (QIP).
The committee of directors for capital mop-up at a meeting approved opening of the QIP, Punjab National Bank (PNB) said in a regulatory filing on stock exchanges.
The bank has approved the floor price of Rs 176.35 per share of face value Rs 2, it said.
The board of the bank had already given approval a few weeks ago to mobilization of Rs 5,000 crore through various instruments, including rights issue and private placement, during 2017-18.
(Source: PTI)
9. 7 More J&K Districts to Get PoS at FPS by Mid-January
The government is going to introduce Point of Sale (PoS) machines at fair price shops in seven more districts with an aim to ensure more accountability and transparency.
Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs and Tribal Affairs Chowdhary Zulfkar Ali said this during a stock taking meeting today to review the progress on implementation of electronic Public Distribution System (e- PDS).
The new seven districts to be covered under e-PDS are Anantnag, Bandipora, Kulgam of Kashmir region while Reasi, Kathua, Poonch and Udhampur of Jammu region would be provided PoS machines by mid-January 2018, the minister said.
The endeavour is aimed at enabling the department to keep track on all kinds of financial transactions, he added.
(Source: PTI)
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