This is a roundup of the day’s top stories in brief.
1. India Considers Selling 25% Stake In LIC
India is planning to seek cabinet’s approval to sell 25% stake in the nation’s largest life insurer, people with knowledge of the matter told Bloomberg News.
- The Narendra Modi government plans to amend the act of parliament under which the state-run Life Insurance Corp. of India was set up to prepare for the sale, the people said, asking not to be identified as the discussions were private.
- The timing of the insurer’s initial public offering will be depend on market conditions, and the sale is likely to be done in tranches, they added.
A stake sale in LIC will help the government bolster its finances amid the pandemic.
2. SEBI Board Decisions
Securities and Exchange Board of India announced a series of approvals to debenture trustee, delisting and alternative investment funds regulations, late on Tuesday evening.
Here are the key highlights:
3. Nifty Flat; U.S. Stocks Fluctuate
Indian equity markets took a breather after strong gains over the last two days.
- The S&P BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty 50, ended 8 and 5 points lower at 37,973 and 11,222 respectively.
- Banks were the major laggards today, with the Nifty Bank index falling 1.2% and the PSU Bank index ending 2.2% lower.
- The outperformers of the day were metal stocks.
Follow the day’s trading action here.
IPO Adda
Initial public offerings of three companies launched today received mixed investor response.
- Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders: The Rs 444-crore offer was subscribed 2.09 times with most demand from retail investors.
- UTI Asset Management: The Rs 2,150-crore offer was subscribed 0.27 times with none of the categories being fully subscribed.
- Likhitha Infrastructure: The oil and gas infrastructure firm's IPO was subscribed 1.01 times on the first day.
Get full details here.
The end-of-month rebound in global equities faded as investors assessed prospects for a scaled-back fiscal stimulus proposal in the U.S. against the rising toll of the pandemic.
- The main U.S. equity gauges bounced between small losses and small gains as strength in tech companies blunted declines for energy producers and lenders.
- Oil fell below $40 in New York as traders looked to U.S. inventory data for clues on demand.
Get your daily fix of global markets.
4. Anil Agarwal Seeks $5 Billion For Turnaround Fund
Commodities tycoon Anil Agarwal is seeking at least $5 billion for a fund targeting companies being sold off by the Indian government, marking a return to the strategy that made him wealthy.
- Agarwal is targeting $1 billion or more in an initial round of fundraising for the proposed India Direct Investment fund, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News, asking not to be identified because the plans are private.
- He is already scouting for targets and could spend nearly $10 billion on the first few acquisitions, one of the people said.
- The billionaire is working with London-based Centricus Asset Management Ltd. on the fund, which will have a 10-year life span and use a private equity-type strategy, according to another person.
He plans to buy companies over a five-year period and then boost their profitability before seeking an exit.
5. The Vodafone Tax Redemption
It is critical that the government curates its response to the arbitral award, not as a purely legal issue, but as a heaven-sent opportunity, to signal its pro-investment stance to the international investor community, writes tax counsel Rohan Shah.
- The chances to succeed in any legal challenge—in Singapore or the Hague—are likely to be very slim.
- It would be ill-advised for India to file a challenge and fail.
- It would be even worse for India to challenge the award, while in the parallel, engaging with foreign investors, to assure them of India’s credibility as an investment destination.
India’s actions would speak louder than its words, writes Shah.
6. India’s New Covid Cases At Near One-Month Low
The coronavirus outbreak in India showed signs of slowing down as the country reported its lowest daily new case additions in nearly a month.
- The country added over 70,000 new cases taking the total tally over the 61-lakh-mark, according to the health ministry's data.
- After reaching nearly 98,000 fresh cases on Sept. 17, they have fallen below the 90,000 mark for nine straight days now.
- Deaths reported in a day also fell below the 1,000-mark for the first time in nearly a month and to its lowest in nearly two months.
Track the latest updates on the Covid-19 pandemic in India, here.
Hospitals in several Indian states are struggling for medical oxygen as the country’s pandemic surges at the fastest rate in the world and manufacturers scramble to plug the gaps in the supply and transportation.
- Most plants producing medical oxygen are concentrated in eastern and western India, leaving large areas of the densely populated north and center without quick access to the essential medical supply.
- The capital, New Delhi, and the states of Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, with a combined population of some 200 million don’t have a single unit manufacturing oxygen.
Apart from the pressure to produce more medical grade oxygen, manufacturers are also dealing with a storage problem.
7. Covid-19 And Insurance: Who Pays?
IndiaSpend spoke to families around India that struggled to get insurance claims paid for Covid-19 treatment and found that they had been turned away on multiple grounds -- the price charged by private hospitals, pre-existing ailments, or the ‘mildness’ of their Covid.
- Even patients covered by insurance are paying for their own Covid care as a three-way conflict rages between insurance companies, private hospitals and government regulators over the cost of treatment and the amount insurers must reimburse.
- These uncertainties affect patients who have bought, or want to buy, health insurance to protect themselves from high-priced Covid-19 treatment.
- Besides regulation by government agencies like the IRDAI, customers have approached various courts to seek regulation of Covid-19 treatment prices at private hospitals and complaining about non-reimbursement of claims by insurance companies.
Read the full story here.
8. Separating The Wheat From The Chaff In India’s Farm Policy
The recently enacted farm laws should have brought joy to the farming community. On the contrary, the farmer agitations against them are growing and gaining ground. Why? Shweta Saini offers some answers.
- A known devil is always better than an unknown angel.
- Agricultural Produce Market Committee markets—for all their inefficiencies and corruption—are functioning.
- Unless the new system is able to establish its benefits, the discomfort and uncertainty will prevail pushing farmers away from being subjected to these risks.
There are some gaps in the laws too, that need to be fixed. Read more.
9. Amnesty Shuts India Office Blaming ‘Witch Hunt’
Human rights watchdog Amnesty International said it has been forced to halt its India operations amid “constant harassment” from government agencies, including the freezing of its bank accounts in the country.
- “This is latest in the incessant witch-hunt of human rights organizations by the government of India over unfounded and motivated allegations,” Amnesty International India said in a statement on Tuesday.
- Amnesty International said its India unit’s bank accounts have been suspended earlier this month and it was compelled to let go of staff and halt its research and campaigning activities in the country.
The rights group has faced multiple investigations in India over the last few years.
10. India's Rich List: 77-Year-Old New Entrant
The personal net worth of Reliance Industries Ltd. Chairman Mukesh Ambani rose by 73% to Rs 6.58 lakh crore, helping him retain the title of being the richest Indian for the ninth consecutive year with a wider margin.
- Gujarat-based Gautam Adani, who is diversifying into many businesses, saw a 48% rise in his wealth to Rs 1.40 lakh crore and moved up two places in rankings to being the fourth richest Indian, the report prepared by Hurun in association with IIFL Wealth said.
- Cyrus Mistry and Shapoor Mistry of Shapoorji Pallonji group, which is seeking to sell its 18% stake in Tata Sons Pvt., saw a 1% decline in their wealth at Rs 76,000 crore each.
- On the back of a blockbuster IPO, 77-year-old Ashok Soota of Happiest Minds debuted on the list with a net worth of Rs 3,700 crore.
Find out more about how the pandemic hit India’s richest.
RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
POPULAR