This is a roundup of the day’s top stories in brief.
1. Nifty Plunges Most In Four Months
India's benchmark indices recorded their worst single-day drop in more than over four months as expiry jitters and weak global cues weighed on investors.
The S&P BSE Sensex ended 2.9%, or 1,114 points, lower at 36,553.
The NSE Nifty 50 Index, too, dropped 2.9%, but managed to close above the 10,800-mark.
Both indices have now posted losses for six consecutive sessions.
Reliance Industries Ltd., Infosys Ltd., and Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. were the biggest draggers.
What'll happen next? Here's what experts have to say.
U.S. Markets Rebound
Stocks climbed as a solid housing report tempered concern over a slow economic recovery without further stimulus.
The S&P 500 erased losses after data showed sales of new homes in the U.S. unexpectedly advanced for a fourth month in August to the highest level in almost 14 years.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said that an orderly transition of power will follow the Nov. 3 election.
Earlier Thursday, the benchmark gauge tumbled, wiping out its 2020 gain and slumping into a correction as data showed applications for U.S. unemployment benefits were little changed last week, contrasting with estimates for a decline.
Get your daily fix of global markets.
2. Valuing Tata Sons
India’s largest conglomerate by revenue is in the midst of a legal separation from its partner of 70 years, the Shapoorji Pallonji Group. As the proceedings move forward, the focus will come on the worth of Tata Sons and subsequently the Mistrys’ stake.
One part of Tata Sons is linked to the market of its investments or stakes in group companies.
All listed Tata Group firms had a combined market capitalisation of Rs 7.9 lakh crore as on Sept. 22.
That's close to Rs 7.13 lakh crore estimate by Crisil in its August report.
In addition, Tata Sons d its investments in unlisted and joint ventures at more than Rs 27,000 crore, according to its balance sheet for 2018-19.
Tata Sons is also the owner of the Tata brand and the associated Tata trademark.
Going by these assumptions, Tata Sons is d at more than...
3. Five States Allowed To Borrow More
The central government has allowed five states to collectively borrow an additional Rs 9,913 crore from the market.
Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Goa, Karnataka and Tripura have been allowed to borrow more after they met the condition to implement ‘One Nation One Ration Card’ system, which will allow migrants to procure foodgrains from anywhere across the country, according to a statement by the Ministry of Finance.
Of the five states, Karnataka can borrow the most and Tripura the least.
The additional borrowing will help states to tide over the financial stress stemmed from the Covid-19 pandemic.
4. IBC Suspension Extended By Three More Months
The government has issued a fresh notification extending the suspension of Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code by another three months.
The suspension was due to expire on Sept. 25.
The government, through an ordinance, had suspended initiation of fresh insolvency proceedings for defaults arising on or after March 25, 2020, for a period of six months.
Suspension of sections 7, 9 and 10 meant no fresh insolvency filings could be made by financial creditors, operational creditors and the corporate debtor itself.
This effectively shut down all insolvency filings against any company that defaults on a debt or payment post March 25.
The ordinance also gave the government power to extend the suspension up to one year.
5. PSU Lenders Follow Private Banks' Lead
India’s top private lenders have always had success in raising money from the markets. This year has been no different. Despite the pandemic-induced uncertainty, lenders including ICICI Bank Ltd., Axis Bank Ltd. and Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd., among others have tapped the market for equity capital.
In contrast, most state-run banks have received lukewarm interest from private investors and have had to rely on government fund infusion.
Still, these lenders are tip-toeing back into the market this year to raise funds they will need for provisioning against an anticipated rise in bad loans.
The investor response to these issues remains uncertain.
6. The MSP Debate: Much Ado About Little?
The government’s attempt to bring changes to the agricultural market is mired in debate with questions being raised on the impact of proposed changes on the farm community.
The revised legislations, intended to liberalise the agricultural sector, have left unanswered questions over the permanency and role of minimum support prices.
For now, the government had promised that procurement from mandis would continue at MSP.
How important is the MSP mechanism to the broader economy?
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7. Tata Eyes Coffee Day’s Vending Machine Business
Tata Consumer Products Ltd. is weighing a non-binding bid for the vending machine business of Coffee Day Enterprises Ltd., people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News.
The board of Tata Consumer Products has approved a proposal to explore an acquisition of the operation from Coffee Day, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private.
Coffee Day is seeking a valuation of about Rs 2,000 crore ($271 million) for the vending machine business, another person said.
Tata Consumer is seeking to expand its presence in India.
8. Goodbye Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson Inc. is pulling out of India, another major setback to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts to lure or retain foreign manufacturers in the midst of the nation’s worst economic downturn in decades.
The motorcycle manufacturer will discontinue sales and manufacturing operations in India as part of broader additional cutbacks announced to employees Thursday, according to a regulatory filing.
Harley said it will dismiss roughly 70 employees as part of its exit.
9. National Digital Health Management = Health Data Nationalisation
The prime purpose of the policy seems to be to bless the existing structure of nationalisation of personal data and then allow private players to use it without any compensation to the data principal, writes Murali Neelakantan.
Touted as one of the key benefits of the NDHM for patients, data portability is a myth.
There is a risk that health data together with financial data, both linked to Aadhaar and a phone number, will increase vulnerability to infringement of privacy.
If the data fiduciary is not liable for the accuracy of the records, and errors, there is a risk of fatal consequences.
10. Recoveries Continue To Outpace New Covid Cases In India
India’s total Covid-19 tally crossed 57 lakh even as the pace of the pandemic’s spread slowed.
The country added over 86,000 new cases in a matter of 24 hours taking the total tally above 57.3 lakh, according to health ministry data.
This is the sixth straight day that recoveries have been more than fresh cases leading to a drop in active cases to 9.66 lakh -- just 17% of the total case load.
Track developments around the outbreak here.
Globally, cases crossed 3.19 crore leaving over 9.77 lakh dead.
European Union health regulators sounded the alarm about a resurgence of coronavirus cases in the bloc and urged governments to step up testing and contact tracing.
AstraZeneca Plc said it is still waiting for a decision from U.S. regulators on whether it can resume tests in the country after halting global trials.
Follow the global spread of the virus here.
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