Embassy Office Parks REIT on Friday said the proposal to tax income distributed by business trusts in the form of debt repayments at the hands of unitholders has created some uncertainties in the market, and the industry is considering making a presentation to the government on the success of this investment vehicle. The proposal impacts [...]

Equity benchmarks rallied over 1 per cent on Friday due to heavy buying in banking and financial counters amid mixed trend in the global markets. The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex zoomed 909.64 points or 1.52 per cent to settle at 60,841.88. During the day, it jumped 973.1 points or 1.62 per cent to 60,905.34. The [...]

NITI Aayog CEO Parameswaran Iyer on Friday described the Budget 2023-24 as 'very comprehensive and balanced' which will promote growth with inclusion. He also observed that the Budget continues all the reforms and other social welfare programmes undertaken by the government over the past few years. Iyer further said the Budget has something for all, [...]

Petrol, diesel and liquor are to cost more and motor vehicle tax and fair price value of land to go up in Kerala as the state government acted tough to mobilise additional revenue to carry forward their social security schemes and development programmes in the budget presented here on Friday. Despite wide expectations, the social [...]

The stock market turmoil created by rout in Adani group shares is a "storm in a tea cup" from a macroeconomic point of view, finance secretary T V Somanathan said on Friday, emphasing that India's public financial system is robust. The senior most bureaucrat in the finance ministry also said that movements in the stock [...]

Pakistan's central bank said on Friday that its foreign exchange reserves have dropped by 16.1 per cent to USD 3.09 billion at the end of the last fiscal week, the lowest in nearly 10 years. Financial analysts said that the foreign exchange reserves held by the State Bank of Pakistan would cover just around three [...]

The government has set up a task force under the aegis of Fertiliser Association of India to find out ways to improve the quality of Single Super Phosphate (SSP) fertiliser and promote its use as an alternative to Di-ammonium Phosphate (DAP), Parliament was informed on Friday. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Minister [...]

A powerful Republican Party Senator has urged the Biden administration to speak to the Indian government about the subsidies it gives to its wheat and rice growing farmers, which he claimed is against the norms of the World Trade Organization. “Rice and wheat farmers throughout the country are seriously impacted by India’s blatant WTO violations,” [...]

India is among the top three nations contributing active users growth for Facebook as of December 31, 2022, social media major Meta said in a regulatory filing. The company has reported a 4 per cent increase in worldwide daily active users (DAUs) to 2 billion on average during December 2022 from 1.93 billion during December [...]

America’s National Pecan Federation has welcomed the annual budgetary proposal of Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to reduce the import duty on pecan by 70 per cent, a move it said would benefit thousands of farmers in the country, especially in Georgia. “This is great news for the pecan industry,” Larry Don Womack, chairman of [...]

Apple CEO Tim Cook has said he is “very bullish on India” and described the country as a major focus and "hugely exciting market” where the technology giant is putting a “significant amount of energy” through investments, retail and online presence. Apple on Thursday reported revenue of USD 117.2 billion for the December quarter and [...]

Equity benchmarks climbed in initial trade on Friday amid a strong rally in the US markets and buying in banking counters. The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex rose by 481.94 points to 60,414.18. The broader NSE Nifty advanced 118.05 points to 17,728.45. From the Sensex pack, IndusInd Bank, Titan, Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finserv, ICICI [...]

With an aim to boost business activities in the international financial hub GIFT IFSC, the government in the Budget paved the way for IFSC units to issue participatory notes or offshore derivative instruments to foreign investors.       Participatory notes (P-notes) are issued by registered foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) to overseas investors who wish [...]

Equity markets witnessed mixed trends on Thursday, with the Sensex climbing over 224 points, while the NSE Nifty dipped almost 6 points in a see-saw session. The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex advanced 224.16 points or 0.38 per cent to settle at 59,932.24. During the day, it hit a high of 60,007.67 and a low of [...]

The increased capex allocation of Rs 10 lakh crore announced in the Union Budget will lead to the creation of the right talent pool for the engineering services industry, Axiscades Technologies said on Thursday. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Union Budget for 2023-24 in Parliament on Wednesday. "Enhancement in capital investment outlay to Rs [...]

As many as 39 hydro projects totalling 14,623.5 MW capacity are under implementation in the country while nine out of these are stalled, Parliament was informed on Thursday. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Power Minister R K Singh said steps are being taken by developers/government for revival of the stalled projects. "39 [...]

The country's Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry witnessed a consumption slowdown in the December quarter, with an overall "negative" volume growth, as consumers continue to reel under inflationary pressure, says a report. According to the report released by data analytics firm NielsenIQ on Thursday, in October-December, the FMCG industry grew 7.6 per cent in terms [...]

State-owned Food Corporation of India (FCI) has sold 8.88 lakh tonne of wheat to bulk consumers like flour millers on the first day of e-auction conducted in 22 states, the food ministry said on Thursday. FCI commenced e-auction of wheat on February 1 under Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) for bulk users in order to [...]

The announcements for tweaking customs duties in certain sectors and measures to support MSMEs will help in boosting domestic manufacturing and the country's outbound shipments, exporters said on Thursday. Increase in capital investment outlay by 33 per cent to Rs 10 lakh crore, 50 years interest free loan to states to incentivise infrastructure investment, highest-ever [...]

The first G-20 Employment Working Group meeting will begin in Jodhpur Thursday afternoon to address priority labour, employment and social issues for sustainable, inclusive and job-rich growth. The first day of the three-day meeting will explore strategies for global skills, qualification harmonization, and developing a framework for common skill taxonomies. The panel discussion will be [...]

Measures announced in the Budget such as extending the period of incorporation of eligible budding entrepreneurs for providing tax incentives, would provide a lot of support to further strengthen the country's startup ecosystem, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal has said. The government on Wednesday proposed to extend the period of incorporation of eligible startups [...]

Equity benchmarks fell in initial trade on Thursday, but later bounced back to trade in the positive territory, amid firm global market trends and foreign fund inflows. The 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex had fallen 492.46 points to 59,215.62 in early trade. The broader NSE Nifty declined 170.35 points to 17,445.95 in initial trade. However, later [...]

Industry body ICEA on Wednesday said removal of duty on imports of camera lens and some other inputs as proposed in the Budget are steps in the right direction but will have no significant impact on the final price of phones. The cost impact on mobile phone's Bill of Material (BoM) will be 0.16 per [...]

Industry bodies in Madhya Pradesh on Wednesday said the Budget 2023-24 provisions will boost the country's industrial development. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Union Budget in Parliament on Wednesday. "The government has proposed a capital fund of Rs 10 lakh crore for infrastructure development and Rs 2.40 lakh crore for railways, which will give [...]

Ports-to-energy tycoon Gautam Adani has tumbled on the world's top billionaire ranking and is no longer the richest Asian or Indian. Rival business magnate Mukesh Ambani, who was richest Indian before Adani's eye popping gains in company stock prices catapulted him to top spot in April last year, has regained that position. Adani, who ranked [...]

 The allocation for the civil aviation ministry in the Union Budget has more than halved to Rs 3,113.36 crore for next financial year, especially due to a sharp reduction in the amount set aside for Air India Asset Holding Ltd. For 2022-23, the revised allocation is Rs 9,363.70 crore which is lower than Rs 10,667 [...]

Equity benchmarks Sensex and Nifty ended on a mixed note on Wednesday after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman raised the personal income tax rebate limit, doled out sops on small savings and announced one of the biggest hikes in capital spending in the past decade in Budget 2023-24. Investors also awaited the US Federal Reserve's interest [...]

The budget proposals aimed at encouraging the production of lab-grown diamonds (LGD) including an import duty cut for the raw material will help create a self-reliant diamond industry, industry representatives said on Wednesday. The budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman addressed a major concern of the LGD industry regarding the 5 per cent import [...]

India's digital ecosystem for skilling will be further expanded with the launch of a unified Skill India Digital platform, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Wednesday, with the Budget laying the roadmap to train lakhs of youth in the next three years. Presenting the Union Budget for 2023-24, Sitharaman said stipend support will be provided [...]

The Union budget for 2023-24 has allocated Rs 1,258.68 crore for various heads of expenditure of the Union cabinet, including salaries, sumptuary and travel by ministers and entertainment of foreign state guests. The amount includes the expenditure for the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), the National Security Council Secretariat, the office of the Principal Scientific Advisor [...]

Kerala Finance Minister K N Balagopal on Wednesday criticised the Union Budget 2023-24 saying the long-pending demands of the southern state were completely ignored and that the proposals were not beneficial for people at the grassroots level. Addressing a press conference here, he pointed out that allocations in major schemes including Mahatma Gandhi National Rural [...]

Total investment by two public sector enterprises under Ministry of New & Renewable Energy is pegged 37 per cent higher at Rs 37,828.15 crore for 2023-24. This is compared with revised estimate (RE) of Rs 27,547.47 crore total investment by the two firms -- IREDA and SECI -- for 2022-23. The budget estimate was Rs [...]

A Urban Infrastructure Development Fund (UIDF) will be set up to ramp up infrastructure in tier-2 and tier-3 cities with an annual allocation of Rs 10,000 crore, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced Wednesday. Presenting the Union Budget 2023-24, Sitharaman said states will be encouraged to leverage resources from the grants of the 15th Finance [...]

To enhance business activities in GIFT IFSC, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced a host of measures, including establishing a subsidiary of EXIM Bank for trade re-financing and allowing acquisition financing by IFSC Banking Units of foreign banks. Besides, she proposed an amendment to International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) Act for statutory provisions [...]

The government expects 17 per cent higher dividend at Rs 48,000 crore from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), public sector banks and financial institutions in 2023-24. In current financial year ending March, it aims to garner Rs 40,953 crore from RBI and public sector financial institutions. This is much lower compared to Budget Estimate [...]

The government has raised non-tax revenue collection estimate from the telecom sector by 30 per cent to Rs 89,469.17 crore in 2023-24, according to the Union budget document. The government has revised the revenue estimate to Rs 68,784 crore for the current fiscal from earlier projection of Rs 52,806 crore in the previous budget. The [...]

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday announced hiking the capital expenditure by 33 per cent to Rs 10 lakh crore for infrastructure development for 2023-24 and will be at 3.3 per cent of the GDP. Presenting the Budget for 2023-24, she said the newly established infrastructure finance secretariat will assist in attracting more private investment. [...]

The capital outlay for the railways has been increased to the highest-ever Rs 2.40 lakh crore in the Union Budget for 2023-24, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Wednesday. Presenting the budget in Lok Sabha, Sitharaman said the outlay for the railways is nine times the amount provided in 2013-2014. She said 100 critical transport [...]

The IMF has expressed concern that Pakistan's opposition parties might create hurdles in the way of implementing the tough economic decisions of the cash-strapped Shehbaz Sharif-led government, media reports said on Wednesday. The views of the global lender came as a high-level delegation led by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Mission Chief Nathan Porter on [...]

The government on Wednesday said 50 additional airports, heliports, water aerodromes and advance landing grounds will be revived for improving regional air connectivity in the country. The announcement was made by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting the Union Budget for 2023-24. Over the past few years, the government has been taking various initiatives, especially [...]