BQuick On Jan. 1: Top 10 Stories In Under 5 Minutes
BQuick | Top news, must-read stories and columns – all served up in less than 5 minutes.
5. Here’s a roundup of the day’s top stories in brief.
1. Few Takers For One-Time Loan Restructuring Scheme
With the deadline for a one-time loan restructuring scheme ending, the banking system estimates that Covid-led restructuring requests to amount to less than Rs 2 lakh crore. Read this BQ Blue exclusive.
2. GST Collections Hit Record High
The government’s goods and services tax collection surged to an all-time high as economic activities picked up. GST revenue for November, collected in December, rose to Rs 1.15 lakh crore, a 10% sequential increase.
3. Mahindra Looks To Sell Majority Ssanyong Stake
Days after Ssanyong Motor Co. went bankrupt, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. is in talks with an investor for selling a majority stake in its South Korean subsidiary as it reassesses investments amid the pandemic.
4. Sensex's Longest Weekly Winning Streak In 10 Years
Indian equities recorded modest gains on the first day of 2021 with the S&P BSE Sensex capping its longest run of weekly gains since 2010. The Sensex rose 0.25% while the NSE Nifty 50 closed above the 14,000-mark.
Related Coverage
Anthony Waste lists at 36% premium on stock market debut.
Stocks that have created the most value over the last 15 years.
What the world’s top investment advisors are saying about markets in 2021.
5. Shankar Sharma Places His Bets On Small Caps
The best category of stocks to be in 2021 are small caps as the current macroeconomic situation suggests risker assets will perform better than less risky ones, according to First Global’s Shankar Sharma.
6. Low Base Props Up Auto Sales In December
Automakers in India saw sales growth in December due to a low base from inventory destocking last year. Tata Motors Ltd.'s domestic sales rose 21% to 53,430 vehicles , while Eicher Motors Ltd.'s total motorcycle sales soared 37% to 68,995 units.
7. Data Breach At IndiGo Airlines
India’s largest airline reported that segments of its data server were breached in a hacking incident in December. The carrier said there is a possibility that some internal documents were compromised.
8. New Index To Map Digital Payments’ Growth In India
The Reserve Bank of India has released a new digital payments index to measure the growth in cashless transactions in the country. The index will measure five key parameters.
9. Astra-Oxford Vaccine Likely To Be Recommended For Use In India
An expert panel set up by India’s drug regulator is expected to recommend granting emergency use authorisation for the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine, to be manufactured by Serum Institute as Covishield, in the country. The health ministry, however, has said that the panel’s meeting is still on and a final decision is pending.
10. A Traffic-Less New Year’s Eve
The New Year’s Eve means a rush to wrap up work, dress up for a party and a night of revelry in groups. This year, that was replaced by Netflix movie marathons and ordering in as people stayed indoors amid the pandemic and night curfews.
That meant hardly any traffic congestion on roads.