The benchmark stock indices are trading close to flat this morning after opening the day with slight gains.
Yes Bank shares opened down 20% this morning but have since recovered almost half the losses.
Join us as we follow the top business news through the day.
12:00 PM
Rupee rises 11 paise to 74.64 against US dollar in early trade
The rupee appreciated 11 paise to 74.64 against the U.S. dollar in opening trade on Thursday supported by weak American currency and foreign fund inflows.
At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened on a strong note at 74.65, gained further ground and touched 74.64 against the U.S. dollar, registering a rise of 11 paise over its previous close.
It had settled at 74.75 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday.
Forex traders said the uptick in the rupee was supported by weak greenback, but rising tensions between the U.S. and China could limit the gains for the domestic unit.
11:30 AM
Indian consumers cautious about spending amid COVID-19 crisis: KPMG
Lack of demand continues to be the Indian economy’s foremost challenge.
PTI reports: “Consumers in India are cautious about spending in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic with 78 per cent of respondents claiming to reduce discretionary spending, according to a survey by consultancy firm KPMG.
However, consumers in tier-II and tier-III cities were almost two-times more optimistic on their spending habits than those in tier-I, hence it could be the next focus area to monitor spending habits, as per KPMG in India’s report titled ‘Time to open my wallet or not? – The new spending patterns emerging from a consumer’s perspective’
Interestingly, the survey said “overall 51 per cent of respondents feel that the impact of COVID-19 will be short-lived and normalcy is not far“.
Commenting on the findings, KPMG India Partner and Head — Consumer Markets and Internet Business Harsha Razdan said, “our study indicates that 22 per cent consumers in tier-II and 30 per cent consumers in tier-III feel that their spending will either increase or remain the same as prior to COVID-19 and this could be the next focus area for retailers to expand their presence.”
“In the next three months, 49 per cent respondents intend to spend up to Rs 5,000, across categories which makes this the most popular basket value and indicates that consumers are cautious about spending,” he added.
Elaborating on consumer spending habits, the KPMG India survey said,”78 per cent of the respondents claim to reduce on discretionary spending…tier-II and -III cities are 1.9x more positive than the tier-I cities.”
Consumers in tier-III cities were 1.4 times more inclined towards spending on apparel than those in tier-I cities for spending more than Rs 5,000, it said.”
11:00 AM
Economic divergence in the Euro zone
10:40 AM
Axis Bank’s banking operations head Naveen Tahilyani quits within months
Naveen Tahilyani, group head in-charge of transformation at Axis Bank, has quit within seven months, joining a string of senior executives who have left the private sector lender in the recent past, according to sources.
The sources also said that Mr. Tahilyani, who had joined Axis Bank this year, might be headed back to Tata AIA as the head of country operations.
When contacted, a bank spokesperson confirmed the development, saying Mr. Tahilyani — group executive and head of banking operations and transformation — will be stepping down in November to pursue opportunities outside Axis Bank.
10:20 AM
State finances stressed, need greater room to incur additional costs due to COVID-19: N K Singh
States continue to seek fiscal relaxations as Covid-19 puts pressure on their finances.
PTI reports: “Finances of the states are stressed on account of the COVID-19 pandemic and some fiscal norms should be relaxed to allow them greater room for incurring additional expenditure, 15th Finance Commission Chairman N K Singh said on Wednesday.
He said there is a need to revisit the entire issue of macroeconomic stability in the current situation as the path of the pandemic is unknown and the consequences on the economy remain extremely problematic.
“Finances of the states are stressed, central government’s own revenues have fallen. There are issues of fiscal pressure. I do believe that this is the time of combination, this is the time when I believe some of the basic tenets of the fiscal norms need to be suitably relaxed.
“This is the time states need greater room to be able to meet the initial obligations on account of this pandemic,” Singh said in an address to the students of IIM Bangalore.
The central government has already increased the borrowing limit of states to 5 per cent of GSDP (Gross State Domestic Product) from 3 per cent that was already available. This would make available an additional Rs 4.28 lakh crore resources.
States so far had a net borrowing ceiling of Rs 6.41 lakh crore based on 3 per cent of GSDP.
However, part of the increased borrowing limit would be linked to specific reforms — universalisation of ‘one nation one ration card’, ease of doing business, power distribution and urban local body revenues.
Singh said in the longer run, the government should look at removing clutter in the Disaster Management Act and Epidemic Act. It also needs to have a relook at the demarcation of functions of the Centre and states which was done when the Constitution was framed in 1951, he said.”
10:00 AM
Sensex rises over 50 points in opening trade; Nifty tests 11,150
An opening with slight gains for the stock market.
PTI reports: “Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty opened with marginal gains on Thursday led by buying in index majors Reliance Industries, HDFC and ITC amid positive cues from global markets.
The 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 59.02 points, or 0.16 per cent, higher at 37,930.54.
Similarly, the NSE Nifty advanced 34.70 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 11,167.30.
Asian Paints was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 2 per cent, followed by L&T, Sun Pharma, ITC, Titan, HDFC, SBI and ONGC.
On the other hand, Axis Bank, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, M&M and PowerGrid were among the laggards.
In the previous session, the BSE barometer finished 58.81 points, or 0.16 per cent, lower at 37,871.52, and the Nifty slipped 29.65 points, or 0.27 per cent, to close at 11,132.60.
Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market on Wednesday, purchasing equities worth Rs 1,665.57 crore, provisional exchange data showed.
According to traders, movement in domestic benchmarks remained muted amid lack of strong directional cues.
Market bias remained positive on firm global trend and sustained foreign fund inflows, they said.”
9:30 AM
Bajaj Auto Q1 net halves on COVID-19 challenges
Bajaj Auto Ltd.’s first-quarter standalone net profit declined 53% to ₹528 crore for the period ending June 30, 2020, from ₹1,126 crore in the same period last year on account of challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company’s total income also declined 58% to ₹3,417 crore compared with the ₹8,197 crore in the same period last year.
“The first quarter of FY21 has been extremely challenging due to the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic. Lockdown and other containment and precautionary measures have resulted in disrupted supply lines and a sharp decline in overall demand,” Bajaj Auto said in a statement.
