Friday 9 June 2017

UK Elections 2017 end in hung parliament, but Indian markets will weather the storm

pound, UK, election, Brexit

MARKET NEWS - Indian markets edged lower on Friday, in line with their Asian peers as the polls in the United Kingdom (UK) hinted a loss for the British Prime Minister Theresa May's ruling Conservative party that could result in a hung Parliament and delay Brexit talks.

Asian markets were trading mixed on Friday, with Nikkei, Straits Times and KOSPI marginally in the green, while Hang Seng, Taiwan Weighted and Jakarta Composite slipped 0.1% - 0.3% in intra-day deals. Back home, the S&P BSE Sensex and the Nifty50 indices were trading around 0.2% lower each at 31,153 and 9,618 levels, respectively.

Going ahead, the reaction by financial markets will be seen as an important gauge of how investors look at the United Kingdom’s prospects, the impact on Indian markets, however, is likely to be limited.

Though the fall seen on Friday was warranted given the global linkages, analysts say, Indian markets are expected to perform better than most other emerging and developed markets over the long run. On the contrary, the UK poll outcome that could delay Brexit talks could work in favour of global financial markets, including India.

“Brexit is a fact and the new government will have to negotiate accordingly. However, I expect these negotiations to be weaker in case May loses the election. The markets were never in favour of Brexit and to that extent, incrementally weaker Brexit negotiations and a possible delay will be appreciated by the markets. The Indian markets will weather this storm as there is not much at stake as far as India is concerned. As best, trade negotiations with the UK will have to be reworked,” explains U R Bhat, managing director, Dalton Capital Advisors.

The Indian economy with a stable macro environment and government pushing through reforms, favourable monsoon forecasts and with a banking sector undergoing an overhaul, Indian markets have enough buffers to withstand the poll outcome in the short-term, analysts say. They expect the impact to be transitory in nature with the markets likely to recover soon from any knee-jerk reaction.
READ MORE

Thursday 8 June 2017

Home loan norms, interest rates: Brokerage views on RBI's policy review

RBI, reserve bank of India

LATEST MARKET NEWS - The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept key rates – repo and reverse repo – unchanged while reviewing the monetary Policy on Wednesday.

The central bank also sharply lowered its inflation projection for H1 FY18 (year ending March 2018) to 2.0-3.5 per cent (from 4.5 per cent earlier) and H2 FY18 to 3.5-4.5 per cent (from 5 per cent), with risks evenly balanced. It also lowered its GVA growth projection to 7.3 per cent from 7.4 per cent for FY18.

Here’s how leading brokerages and research houses interpret the RBI’s move.

NOMURA

In our view, the RBI has rightly looked through the current period of low inflation. Our longer-term models are still predicting a return of inflation to pre-demonetisation levels next year and household inflation expectations have barely budged.

We expect near-term inflation to continue to moderate. However, we expect a cyclical recovery in H2 2017, which in turn will gradually slow current disinflationary pressures on core inflation, albeit with a lag. Taking into account the recent downside surprise on food price inflation, but accounting for the house rent allowance increase, we are revising our 2017 average CPI inflation forecast to 3.6 per cent (from 4.4 per cent) and to 5 per cent in 2018 (from 5.4 per cent).

We expect the RBI to stay on hold through 2017 with an eye on the medium-term target of 4 per cent. Because of lower expected headline inflation in the next two months, we would assign a 40 per cent chance to a rate cut in August, but our base case is on hold. We are pushing out our call of a cumulative 50 basis points rate hikes to H2 2018 (vs Q2 and Q3 earlier).

BANK OF AMERICA MERRILL LYNCH

We believe that time is running out for the RBI to cut rates. If the RBI MPC cuts on August 2, it will signal a lending rate cut to banks before the busy industrial season sets in October. After all, real lending rates are running at a 20-year high at a time when the global recession is threatening to stretch beyond the Great Depression.

As 2015 showed, unduly delaying RBI rate cuts into the busy season only delay the transmission to bank lending rates into the next slack season beginning April. Should easy liquidity not drive lending rate cuts? Not really. Although banks are flush with temporary liquidity from demonetisation, M3 growth has slipped to 9.5 per cent from 10.7 per cent last year.

Markets trade flat as investors on edge ahead of major global events

Image via Shutterstock

LATEST MARKET NEWS - Benchmark indices were trading flat as investors stayed on edge tracking global peers ahead of a slew of global events including the UK elections, European Central Bank's policy meet and testimony from ex-FBI director James Comey.

Losses were however capped after RBI in its bimonthly policy review yesterday cut its inflation projections and delivered a less hawkish stance. The central bank yesterday kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.25%, in line with Street expectations.

In global markets, Asian shares wobbled as investors braced for any surprises from the UK election and other global events lined up for the week. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was little changed, through China edged up on unexpectedly solid trade data, while Japan's Nikkei dropped 0.4%.

At 1:21 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,231, down 39 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,661, down 2 points.

The broader market outperformed with the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices adding 0.3% and 0.4% respectively.

Dr Reddy's, Sun Pharma, Tata Steel, Cipla and GDFC gained the most on the index while TCSm GAIL, M&M and Asian Paints fell the most.

Financial stocks edged higher, with Kotak Mahindra Bank and Federal Bank leading after RBI made it easier for India's stressed banks to lend, cutting their statutory liquidity ratio by 50 basis points to 20 percent of total deposits from June 24.

BSE IT index was the biggest sectoral loser, down 1.5% dragged by TCS and Infosys. TCS fell over 3.5% becoming the top loser on BSE Sensex while Infosys was down 1.5% .

Reliance Communications continued their slide, after the embattled mobile carrier pushed back against Moody's and Fitch, disagreeing with their rating downgrades earlier on Wednesday. Shares fell as much as 2.8% to their lowest in over a week.

Petronet LNG fell as much as 4.3% to their lowest in over two weeks amid reports that GDF International sold its entire 10% stake of 75 million shares.

Sensex slips in red, Nifty tests 9,650; broader markets outperform

Image via Shutterstock

LATEST MARKET NEWS - The benchmark indices pared entire initial gains to slip in red as investors braced for any surprises from former FBI director James Comey's congressional appearance, the European Central Bank's policy meeting and the UK general elections.

At 12:16 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,236, down 34 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,653, down 10 points.

The broader market outperformed with the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices adding 0.2% each.

"Opening moves could possibly aim for the 9727-50 but there are not enough signs that the next push higher could unfold right away. Such constructs puts 9,640 in focus, until above which the near term uptrend prospects will be intact. Direct fall below may not unsettle the overall uptrend prospects though, but break of 9530-9500 might do that. That, though is less expected now," said brokerage Geojit Financial Services in a technical note.

Buzzing stocks

Tata Steel (up 3.6%), Dr Reddy's (up 2%) and HDFC (up 2%) were the leading gainers on the Sensex, while TCS (2.3%), Adani Ports (1.8%) and GAIL (1.7%) shed the most.

Petronet LNG slipped 3% to Rs 421 after GDF International said will sell its entire 10% stake in Petronet LNG in block trades on Thursday for up to $512 million.

UK goes to voting today

The British will vote today in a 'snap election' that Prime Minister Theresa May had called seven weeks ago. Polls had initially suggested a landslide win for her Conservative party, but now are suggesting a narrowing lead for May, with some pointing to the chance that the Tories may not win an outright majority. This will impact the negotiations on Britain leaving the European Union.

ECB to stick to stimulus

The European Central Bank is likely to stick to its aggressive stimulus policy at its meeting later today because inflation remains below its target, despite brisker economic growth in the euro zone.

The ECB is now forecasting inflation at 1.7 percent and growth at 1.8 percent this year. Its mandate is to keep inflation close to but below 2 percent, but inflation slowed to 1.4 percent in May.

Global markets

Asian shares wobbled in early Thursday trade. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.27% while Japan's Nikkei rose 0.3% thanks to the dollar's rebound against the yen.

Wall Street shares ticked up on Wednesday, despite sharp decline in energy prices, after written testimony from former FBI director James Comey did not add major revelations about an investigation into Russian meddling with last year's US presidential election.  

Wednesday 7 June 2017

Markets turn choppy after RBI maintains status quo on policy rate

Nifty, Sensex, BSE, NSE, markets

MARKET NEWS - The benchmark indices continued to trade flat after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept the repurchase (repo) rate unchanged and reduced the Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR)  to 20% in its second bi-monthly monetary policy for financial year 2017-18.  

At 2:57 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,259, up 69 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,655, up 18 points.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices added 0.2% and 0.5%, respectively.

Stocks of the rate-sensitive sectors such as banking, realty and auto extended gains after policy outcome.

The Nifty Realty index (up 0.7%) was the leading sectoral gainer. Indiabulls Real Estate, Sobha and HDIL gained the most on the index.

The Nifty Bank rose 0.4%, led by gains in ICICI Bank, Bank of Baroda, PNB and State Bank of India, which gained in the range of 3-5%.

The Nifty Auto index was trading 0.5% higher, with Bharat Forge, M&M and Eicher Motors gaining up to 2%.

IT stocks hogged the limelight. The Nifty IT index (down 2.5%) was the lone sectoral loser. TCS, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech and Wipro were the top losers on Nifty and shed up to 3% on the NSE.

Overseas, European stocks were trading mixed as investors remained cautious ahead of Thursday's UK election and the European Central Bank's policy decision.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 was 0.12 percent lower, while Britain's FTSE 100 and France's CAC 40 added 0.2% each.
READ MORE

5 Nifty companies announce bonus shares in 2017; highest in 11 years

Bonuses jump in FY17 as firms dole out surplus

MARKET NEWS - Engineering & construction giant Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and state-owned oil marketing company, Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) from the Nifty50 index in last week declared bonus shares in the ratio of 1:2 i.e. 1 new bonus equity share for every existing 2 equity shares.

Besides these two, total five companies including ICICI Bank, Wipro and Gail (India) from the index announced bonus shares thus far in the current calendar year 2017 (CY17). The number of companies from the Nifty50 index rewarding bonus shares to their shareholders is the highest in past 11 years.

Earlier, during the entire calendar year 2006, total seven companies – Cipla, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories, L&T, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and HCL Technologies – from the benchmark index had issued bonus shares.

In 2015 and 2010, five companies from the Nifty 50 issued bonus shares, but Aurobindo Pharma in 2015 and Bajaj Auto and Zee Entertainment in 2010, were not part of the index in that particular year.

In last calendar year 2016, three companies – ONGC, BPCL and ITC – issued bonus shares, while in CY2015, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Infosys and Kotak Mahindra Bank had declared bonus shares, according to data compiled from CapitalinePlus.

Thus far in 2017, the equity markets have recorded its best ever start during past eight years, with the Nifty 50 index gaining 17.5% between January and May, 2017. In 2009, the benchmark index had rallied 50% during the same period.

Meanwhile, in first five months of CY17, as many as 36 companies announced bonus to their equity shareholders, against 25 firms declared bonus shares in the same period of CY16. In CY13, total 114 companies announced bonus shares, followed by 49 in CY14, 59 in CY15 and 69 in CY16.

BPCL had issued bonus shares for the past two consecutive years and third time in five years. In May 2016 and in May 2014, the state-owned oil marketing companies declared bonus shares in the ratio of 1:1 i.e. one bonus shares for every one share held.

Market observers say bonus shares are being given to improve liquidity, besides rewarding the shareholders. After the issue, the stock price gets adjusted according to the bonus ratio. The total market value of the company, however, remains the same.

A bonus share issue also indicates that the company is confident about the business’s capacity to generate value for a larger number of investors. That apart, it also helps in boosting the trading volume at the bourses, as more number of shares are traded.

Markets erase morning gains to turn flat ahead of RBI policy decision

Image via Shutterstock

MARKET NEWS - Benchmark indices erased morning gains to turn flat as investors stay cautious ahead of the EBI policy Decision due later today. According to analysts, the central bank may opt for a less hawkish tone and will leave interest rates unchanged as inflation is running well below forecasts, and the economy has slowed more than expected. Better than expected monsoon forecast by IMD added to the gains.

Focus was also on Britain's general election as it maps its exit from the European Union. British Prime Minister Theresa May looks on course to increase her parliamentary majority in Thursday's poll. While the European Central Bank's policy meeting and former FBI Director James Comey's testimony before a Senate panel, kept the global stocks mixed.

At 12:44 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,192, up 2 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,638, up 2 points.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices gained  0.3% each.

"The indecisiveness near 9,700 has not caused any sharp loss in confidence so far, and the slippages so far have been held above last week’s peaks. While this suggests that bullish intent is still dominant, volatility could still dominate. If Nifty remians unsettled at 9,640, then 9,530/9,500 levels might come back in the reckoning," said Geojit Financial Services in a note.

Buzzing Stocks

GAIL, ICICI Bank, M&M, ITC and Bharti Airtel gained the most on BSE Sensex while Wipro, TCS, Dr Reddy's and Asian Paints lost the most on the index.

Bharti Airtel gained 1%, after the company received statutory approval on Tuesday from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for its proposed merger with the Indian unit of Norway's Telenor.

RCom fell 3% after reports that Rating agencies Moody’s and Fitch on Tuesday cut its rating for the second time in a week, even as the telco received a seven-month respite from bankers on debt repayment. Moody’s cut its rating to ‘Ca’, which suggests the debt is highly speculative and likely in, or very near, default. Fitch lowered RCom’s rating to ‘RD’ from ‘CCC’.
READ MORE

Tuesday 6 June 2017

IT shares gain; TCS, HCL Tech near 52-week high

IT shares gain; TCS, HCL Tech near 52-week high

MARKET NEWS - http://www.business-standard.com/marketsShares of information technology (IT) companies were in focus with the Nifty IT and S&P BSE IT index gaining more than 2% in an otherwise range-bound market.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, HCL Technologies, Tata Elxsi, Hexaware Technologies and Tech Mahindra were up in the range of 2% to 6%.

At 09:59 am; Nifty IT (10,895) and S&P BSE IT index (10,510) were up 2.2%, as compared to a marginal 0.08% decline in the benchmark indices.

In the past one month, the IT indices have outperformed the market by gaining 8% against 5% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex and 4.2% gain in Nifty 50 index.

TCS has rallied 4% to Rs 2,707 on the BSE in intra-day trade, quoting close to its 52-week high of Rs 2,740 touched on August 12, 2016. HCL Technologies was also up 3.3% at Rs 887, trading closer to its 52-week high of Rs 890 hit on March this year.

TCS’ buyback offer of about 56 million equity shares, which ended on May 31, received an overwhelming response. The offer was subscribed by 221% or 124 million shares. The company had fixed the buyback at price of Rs 2,850 a share.

HCL Tech buyback offer will commence from June 12 and will close on June 23, 2017. The company intends to buy back 35 million equity shares at Rs 1,000 a piece.

“The Buyback is being proposed by the Company to return surplus funds to the equity shareholders, which are over and above its ordinary capital requirements and in excess of any current investment plans. It expected to contribute to the overall enhancement of the equity shareholders’ value, and result in an increase in the return on equity of the Company,” HCL Tech said in a statement.

Tata Elxsi has surged 7% to Rs 1,598, extending its Monday’s 10% rally on the BSE, after the company announced the licensing of its advanced autonomous vehicle middleware platform “Autonomai” to one of the world’s top 5 automotive OEMs (original equipment manufacturer) for their driverless car R&D.

"The Autonomai platform provides carmakers and Tier 1 automotive suppliers with a comprehensive and modular solution covering perception, GNC and drive-by-wire systems, to quickly build, test and deploy autonomous vehicles,” Tata Elxsi, a Tata Group company said in a press release.

RBI expected to be less hawkish, may leave interest rates unchanged

RBI expected to be less hawkish, may leave interest rates unchanged

MARKET NEWS- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will likely strike a less hawkish tone while leaving interest rates unchanged at a policy meeting on Wednesday, according to analysts, as inflation is running well below forecasts, and the economy has slowed more than expected.

A Reuters poll showed 56 of 60 analysts expected the RBI's monetary policy committee to keep its repo rate unchanged at a 6-1/2 year low of 6.25 per cent for the fourth meeting in a row. They also expected the reverse repo rate to be left at 6.00 per cent.

What analysts and investors are looking for this time is a less hawkish policy statement to reflect reduced fears of inflationary pressures.

Until a few weeks ago, bond market investors were on guard for possible future increases in interest rates after the RBI warned of "upside risks" to inflation at its last policy meeting in April.

"We don't expect any change in the official neutral stance in June but we do expect RBI to tone down its hawkishness compared to the April and February policy statements," said Siddhartha Sanyal, chief India economist at Barclays.

Investors have begun pricing in a softer tone from the RBI, with benchmark 10-year bond yields down about 35 basis points since hitting an over 7-month high on May 2. Some bolder investors are even betting on possible future rate cuts.

Consumer price inflation data for May will be released next week, but going by the April figures inflation is trending well below the RBI's target of 4.5 per cent in the six months to September, and 5.0 per cent for the six months through to March next year.

Notching its lowest annual rate in at least five years, consumer price inflation slowed to 2.99 per cent in April from 3.89 percent in March, just below the RBI's target of 4.0 per cent.

Meantime, the economy suffered a sharper setback than many economists had expected from the government's shock move last November to take high denomination currency bills out of circulation in a bid to curb tax avoidance.

Gross domestic product (GDP) grew 6.1 per cent in January-March, down from 7 per cent the previous quarter, to post it slowest growth rate in more than two years.

Investors' uncertainty over the RBI's stance was heightened by the release of minutes from the April meeting of the monetary policy committee which showed two of its six members had proposed rate hikes, before the committee ultimately voted 6-0 to leave rates unchanged.

Monday 5 June 2017

Alibaba Group acquires majority stake in Chennai-based TicketNew

Filmy Connection-1: Under-screened and over-filmed

Alibaba Group’s flagship entertainment arm, Alibaba Pictures Group Limited, has acquired a majority stake in India’s second-largest online ticketing platform, TicketNew.

Marking Alibaba Pictures’ first big acquisition in the burgeoning online ticketing industry outside of China, this strategic partnership will strengthen TicketNew’s operations and service portfolio.

Founded in 2007 by Ramkumar Nammalvar, TicketNew is a Chennai-based ticketing website that has a presence in over 300-plus cities in India.

In the past few years, Alibaba Pictures has expanded its business beyond its home market. It has an office in Los Angeles, USA, and has been looking to expand its footprint in the Asia-Pacific region. In India, online movie ticketing is becoming increasingly popular with increasing penetrations in Tier-2 and Tier-3 regions.

The strategic partnership between Alibaba Pictures and TicketNew can be mutually beneficial. Given Alibaba Pictures’ operational know-how and financial resources, the partnership can potentially help strengthen the leadership and market share of TicketNew in the e-commerce ticketing space and enable the company to capitalise on the burgeoning consumer market in India.

Nammalvar, founder and chief executive officer of TicketNew, who will continue to spearhead the firm's business, said: "Alibaba plans to invest to the tune of Rs 120 crore over a period of time. We are delighted to work with Alibaba Pictures. This secures the future of our staff and the company for generations to come."

"Online ticketing is increasingly becoming popular in the Tier-2 and Tier-3 regions of India as well," he added.

For this season's blockbuster, Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, TicketNew witnessed over 50 per cent of its ticket sales from Tier-2 and Tier-3 markets. Overall, the movie netted TicketNew its best ticket sales ever.
READ MORE

Oil prices jump after Saudi Arabia and Arab allies cut ties with Qatar

Oil, Market, US, Brent Crude, WTi

Saudi Arabia and key allies on Monday cut ties with Qatar, accusing it of supporting extremism, sending shockwaves through the energy industry as the countries involved include the world's top oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporters.

Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest crude oil exporter, along with the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Bahrain said they would sever all ties including transport links with Qatar, the top LNG exporter in the world. The three Gulf countries said they will give Qatari visitors and residents two weeks to leave.

"(Qatar) embraces multiple terrorist and sectarian groups aimed at disturbing stability in the region, including the Muslim Brotherhood, ISIS (Islamic State) and al-Qaeda, and promotes the message and schemes of these groups through their media constantly," Saudi state news agency SPA said .

While the announcements did not immediately affect oil shipments, benchmark Brent crude futures prices rose over 1 percent to well over $50 per barrel following the news.

Meanwhile, Petronet LNG said on Monday it did not expect any impact on gas supplies from Qatar after Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain severed ties with the Gulf Arab state accusing it of supporting terrorism.

"I don't think there will be any impact on it. We get gas directly from Qatar by sea," R.K. Garg, head of finance at Petronet, told Reuters when asked to comment on the coordinated move to cut relations.Petronet LNG, India's biggest gas importer, buys 8.5 million tonnes a year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar under a long-term contract. It also buys additional volumes from Qatar under spot deals.

The coordinated move dramatically escalates a dispute over Qatar's support of the Muslim Brotherhood, the world's oldest Islamist movement, and adds accusations that Doha even backs the agenda of regional arch-rival Iran.The three Gulf states announced the closure of transport ties with Qatar and gave Qatari visitors and residents two weeks to leave their countries. Qatar was also expelled from a Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen.
READ MORE

GST on gold: Buying and making jewellery to get expensive for customers

Bhargava Vaidya

The Goods and Service Tax (GST) Council has been kind enough to provide a special 3 per cent  GST to gems and jewellery sector ( the exception being rough diamonds at 0.25 per cent).

Going by the economic survey of India and the hype which was created in the run-up to this meeting, a much higher rate was feared. However, the rate of GST for jewellery is in line with what it was under the old tax regime.

GST has increased paperwork and lot of compliance. Only time will tell if we as a country or an industry are ready for it.

The immediate impact would be on the investment buying of gold by consumers as the resale value will be down by three per cent. Here' an example:

Mr A bought gold worth   Rs 100

Paid GST                                Rs     3
                                                —————
Total cost                                Rs 103

Now, after 6 months he wants to sell this gold and presuming that the gold price remains constant, he will get Rs 100 and the GST amount would be lost at the consumer level.

The transaction impact cost has increased from about one per cent to three per cent.

From the government's point of view, this is in line with their thinking/ planning — don’t invest in physical gold, rather invest in gold sovereign bonds. The consumer will also be better of as there is an interest coupon attached to bonds and it tracks local gold prices.

The exchange business of old jewellery for new ones will also be affected as the cost of 3 per cent will affect the transaction.

Another area which will affect the industry and the consumer is making of gold jewellery out of gold/scrap supplied by the customer. At present, there was no tax impact on the making of jewellery. Labour or making charges of jewellery were exempt from service tax (similar exemption was also under excise rules ). Under GST no such exemptions exist and making charges will be subject to 18 per cent GST.  This is an undesired result.

Export from domestic tariff area (other than SEZ ) will be hit on two counts:

One, there is no exemption from GST for gold procured for export purposes. This would mean a higher blockage of working capital.

Second, the export business will also be harmed. It depends on raw material (gold ) being supplied by oversea buyers and the Indian party makes the jewellery and exports i.e. value addition in the form of design and labour.

Under GST regime, the overseas customer will have to register as a non-resident business person and undertake the required paperwork. This will deter many customers.

Bullion imports system may be disturbed/altered as most international suppliers (including bullion banks)  sending goods on consignment to India will have to register as a non-resident business. This requirement may deter many players operating in India.

The diamond segment, particularly in the home state of Gujarat, had a total exemption from indirect tax. Value-added tax was zero in Gujarat and there is no excise on diamonds.
READ MORE

Friday 2 June 2017

Airtel, Telenor file joint application for merger approval before NCLT

airtel, bharti airtel,

Bharti Airtel and Telenor India today filed a joint application before National Company Law Tribunal for approval of their merger following nod from the market regulator SEBI and stock exchanges -- BSE and NSE.

"Telenor India and Airtel have today filed the joint company application before the New Delhi Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal for approval of the proposed Scheme of merger. The merger is inter alia subject to other statutory approvals including from the Competition Commission of India," Bharti Airtel said in a statement.

The company said that it has received the approval of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), BSE Limited (BSE) and National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE) for the proposed scheme of merger.

Airtel and Telenor signed the agreement for merger on February 2017 under which Airtel will acquire Telenor India's running operations in seven circles -- Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, UP (East), UP (West) and Assam.

"These circles represent a high population concentration and therefore, offer a high potential for growth. The proposed acquisition will include transfer of all of Telenor India's assets and customers, further augmenting Airtel's overall customer base and network," the statement said.

It will also enable Airtel to further bolster its strong spectrum footprint in these seven circles, with the addition of 43.4 MHz spectrum in the 1800 MHz band -- widely known as 2G spectrum but it is now being used for 4G services as well.
READ MORE

Truecaller beats Facebook, becomes 4th most downloaded app in India: Report

Truecaller in talks with start-ups, eyes 200 mn users by end-2016

Surpassing Facebook, leading communication app Truecaller has become the fourth most downloaded application in India on Google Play Store and is delivering over 1 lakh clicks in a day to in-app advertisers.

According to the "Mary Meeker Internet Trends 2017" report, WhatsApp leads the list of the most downloaded app, followed by Messenger and ShareIt.

"Our biggest strength is the engagement and undivided attention we can provide to advertisers," Tejinder Gill, Vice President, Sales and Head of India Operations at Truecaller, said in a statement.

"We can deliver a brand's message and enable them to stay on top of the consumer's mind simply by the fact that we are not an 'appointment viewing' app. This is proven by the fact that over 70 per cent of our advertisers is repeat customers, which assures us of the efficacy of our platform," Gill added.

Homegrown entertainment app JioTV jumped maximum points from 301 last to ninth this year -- and surpassed Facebook Lite (lighter version of Facebook for low connection speeds).

The report said India's internet users now stands at 355 million putting the country number two in the market just behind China.
READ MORE

Trump has a very honest view of things, I like such people: Vladimir Putin

Vladimir Putin

The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, on Thursday praised the US President Donald Trump and said he was exactly the kind of person he liked most.

Putin said he had never met Trump but that he agreed relations between their countries had to improve and he was willing to talk with the US leader.

"I have to recognize that I love that kind of person. They are simple, direct, they have a very honest view of things and that can be very advantageous," Efe quoted him as saying.

He said he had a lot in common with the US leader as he considered that neither were professional politicians and highlighted that he himself had never been a member of a party.

Nonetheless, records show that Putin entered the Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1970 while attending St. Petersburg State University, and remained a member until December 1991.

Putin insisted that whether he liked Trump or not was irrelevant, as the important thing was to establish a good personal and political relationship regardless.

"I don't know if this will be possible, but we are patient and we will wait to see what happens," he said.

In response to a question on what advice he would give to the White House's new occupant, Putin said a person like Trump did not need tips and especially not from a counterpart such as himself, as the advice was always misinterpreted and thus counter-productive.

The Russian leader said that what Moscow perceived to be growing global Russophobic sentiments were caused by the country's defense of its legitimate interests in the international arena.

Putin said some countries had started to try to hold Russia back using actions that went against international rights, including economic restrictions.

"The fight that Russia leads is for legitimate interests and I emphasize that," said the Russian president, insisting that several nations were trying to create reasons to aggravate the situation with Moscow and, in order to achieve that endeavor, were pulling excuses from thin air.

Putin also acknowledged that there may be Russian hackers "who consider themselves patriots" and decide to "make their contribution, as they see fit, to fight against those who speak ill of Russia."

"Theoretically, that's possible," said Putin, who also dismissed as "fictional" accusations that Russian computer attacks influenced the results of France's election of its new president, Emmanuel Macron.
READ MORE

Thursday 1 June 2017

Samsung Galaxy S8+ with 6GB RAM launched in India; priced at Rs 74,990

Samsung Galaxy S8, Samsung Galaxy S8 plus, Samsung Galaxy S8 plus price, galaxy 8 plus, galaxy 8 plus price, Samsung Galaxy S8 features

After receiving a good response to its flagship smartphones Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+Samsung India on Thursday launched a new variant of Galaxy S8+ with 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage.

Priced at Rs 74,990, the device can be pre-booked on Samsung Shop and Flipkart starting June 2. The delivery will begin from June 9.

"The new Galaxy S8+ variant with its best in class 6GB RAM and 128GB internal memory is the ultimate device for users who aspire to explore new possibilities, are always on top of their game, and for whom, multi-tasking is a way of life," Asim Warsi, Senior Vice President, Mobile Business, Samsung India, said in a statement.

Available in Midnight Black colour, the new variant has a bezel-less dual-edge Infinity Display.

It also has Samsung Pay, a mobile payment service with defence-grade security platform Samsung Knox, and a personal assistant called Bixby.

The device has a 12MP rear camera with multi-frame processing and optical image stabilisation. It has an 8MP auto-focus front shooter.

It runs on Android 7.0 Nougat and boasts a 3,500 mAh battery.

As an introductory offer, the customers will be eligible for a free wireless charger.
READ MORE

28 hours a week: Indians spend 7X more time on smartphones than on TV

mobile, phone, smartphones

Indian  consumers spend as much as 28 hours a week on their smartphones, seven fold more than the time they end up spending in watching programmes on television as more users access internet on their mobile phone.

According to the Mary Meeker report, released on Wednesday night, the delivery of  entertainment, education, healthcare and marketplaces is being reimagined in India with the mobile phone emerging as the primary device for access to consumers.

In education sector, the report said education technology firm Byju’s has shown 15 per cent improvement in the quality of learning by accessing content on smartphones. In the healthcare sector, prices of laboratory tests have dropped by 50 per cent due to the aggregate inventory maintained by startups such as 1Mg and Portea. Customers made savings of around 20-30 per cent due to drug comparison on these platforms.

As far as payments are concerned, the unified payment interface (UPI) and use of Aadhaar is yielding results in areas such as the direct benefit transfer and instant money transfer schemes.

Users spend nearly half their time in watching entertainment content, while around 4 per cent of the time is invested on social networks and search engine sites such as Facebook and Google. News and media content remained low on priority at 2 per cent.

Around 4 per cent of the time is spent on online shopping from marketplaces such as Amazon and Flipkart.

This could potentially help Indian consumers take a gaint leap away from traditional formats as users stream content on their smartphones, aided by the massive rollout of 4G services by Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio.

Launch of Jio in India has accelerated internet adoption by bringing down data prices to 17 cents per GB of data in March, from $2.7 in September last year.

People spend just two hours on print, a primary vehicle for consumption across India for decades, as multimedia content on smartphones account for a majority of their lives. Most of the content they consume is shared on platforms such as ShareIt and WhatsApp.

According to the report, there are around 355 million internet users in India, which is second only to China. Nearly 80 per cent of the useer access internet through their phones.
READ MORE

Don't like Aadhaar? Watch out for Twitter trolls like these

Online Trolls Attack Critics of India's Aadhaar State ID System

India's biometric state ID system has been leaking citizens’ data for months. When this information surfaced in April 2017, it stoked fears that the system could be used as an instrument of surveillance against Indian residents.

The Unique Identity Authority of India (UIDAI), which administrates the system known as Aadhaar (meaning foundation in Hindi) maintains that it only collects minimal personal data and stores it securely. But critics have firmly expressed doubts about these claims.

Repeat after me: Aadhaar is surveillance technology masquerading as secure authentication technology.

— Sunil Abraham (@sunil_abraham) February 24, 2017

The implications of these leaks, and of any system flaw in Aadhaar technology, are substantial, especially for Indians who depend on the Aadhaar system in order to authenticate their identities when they use any number of government services. The Aadhaar system has become the gatekeeper of state systems and services ranging from voting to financial savings to food subsidies.

The digital sphere is now starting to see a pushback against Aadhaar critics through articles and blogposts that describe concerned citizens and privacy experts as the ‘anti-Aadhaar brigade‘ and accuse them of publishing “half-truths” and “spread[ing] confusion to advance their own interests.” One such article was even featured on the UIDAI website.

Some of the most well-researched critiques of the system have come from the Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), an inter-disciplinary research organisation in Bangalore that has now become a target of the pro-Aadhaar lobby. Shortly after CIS released a report that pointed out security flaws in the Aadhaar ecosystem, the UIDAI accused the organization of hacking into the Aadhaar system themselves.

In fact, CIS had investigated databases of four specific government websites. Three were available publicly, the fourth one was accessible by simply changing one of the URL parameters. Following the accusation from UIDAI, CIS clarified that the Aadhaar numbers along with other sensitive personal financial information like bank account details were made available by government websites themselves, putting a sizeable portion of Indian citizens at risk of financial fraud.
READ MORE

Down under, ‘King’ Kohli is thunder: Why Aussies are going gaga over Virat

The Indian skipper’s exploits apart, the broadcasters may have little choice: With local stars Smith and Warner banned, they might grab so...