Asus challenges iPhone X with all-screen, AI-powered Zenfone 5, Zenfone 5z

Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Asus on February 27 showcased the Zenfone 5z and Zenfone 5 at the Mobile World Congress. The smartphones are identical in looks and have similar features. However, these identical twins are powered by different breeds of processors and have different RAM configurations to differentiate.

The next-generation Zenfone-series boasts artificial intelligence capabilities, which, unlike some of the other phones, are not limited to just camera but have access to display, ringtone, battery and live videos as well.

Apart from the AI capabilities, the Zenfone 5z and Zenfone 5 have 90 per cent screen-to-body ratio, thanks to their 6.2-inch fullHD+ screen covering almost the entire front. The 19:9 aspect ratio leaves just a small notch on top to accommodate an 8-megapixel camera, earpiece and sensors – just like in Apple iPhone X but smaller.

 Asus Zenfone 5Asus Zenfone 5 - Back On the back, the smartphones sport a dual-camera set-up, which features 12MP and 8MP shooters.

Flipkart Apple Days: iPhone 7 for OnePlus 5T price, iPhone X at Rs 82,999

Home-grown e-commerce giant Flipkart has put up a promotional sale for Apple products, a second time in February. Dubbed as Apple Days, the promotional offer started on February 27 and will go on until March 2.
Under Apple Days, the e-commerce portal is offering iPhones, iPads and smartwatches at discounted prices, along with an extra cashback of 5 per cent to SBI customers.

The online shopping portal is also providing a no-cost equated monthly instalment (EMI) option, which removes the interest component from fixed monthly instalments on select products.
Here are some of the best offers under Apple Days:

iPhone X
The anniversary-edition iPhone X was launched in the 64GB and 256GB storage variants at Rs 89,000 and Rs 1,02,000, respectively. Under the offer, the e-commerce portal is selling the iPhone X at Rs 82,999 and Rs 98,999 for the 64GB and 256GB, respectively.

iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus
The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus base models with 64GB storage had been launched at Rs 64,000 and Rs 73,000, respectively.
Under Apple Days, Flipkart is offering the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus smartphones at Rs 54,999 and Rs 64,999, respectively.
The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus models with 256GB storage -- launched at Rs 77,000 and Rs 86,000, respectively -- are being offered at Rs 69,999 and Rs 79,999.

Sridevi funeral: State honour for actor, celebs pay respect, & more updates

Veteran actor Sridevi will be cremated with state honours. The Maharashtra government has made arrangements for the elaborate event and the Mumbai Police band has already reached Celebration Sports Club. The actor will be honoured with a gun salute and the body will be draped in the national flag.
Earlier, Bollywood celebrities lined up to pay their final respect to Sridevi at Mumbai's Celebration Sports Club, where her mortal remains had been kept for condoling fans and celebs to pay their final tributes to the veteran actor. Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Karan Johar were among the celebs to who paid their last respect.
Her mortal remains arrived in Mumbai on Tuesday night and the funeral will take place today at 3.30 pm. Her family announced that Sridevi's body would be kept at Celebration Sports Club in Lokhandwala for people to pay their last respect before it is taken for cremation.
"On behalf of Khushi, Jahnvi, Boney Kapoor, the entire Kapoor and Ayyappan families, a sincere thanks to the media for your continued sensitivity and support during this emotional moment," a statement released by the Kapoor family said.

Ashok Leyland hits fresh high ahead of February sales figures

Shares of Ashok Leyland hit a fresh high of Rs 142, up 3% on the BSE in intra-day trade in otherwise weak market ahead of February sales figures. The commercial vehicles (CV) maker will announce its monthly sales volumes data on Thursday, March 1, 2018.

The stock has outperformed the market by surging 13% thus far in February, after the company reported good sales numbers for the month of January and more-than-doubled net profit in October-December (Q3FY18) quarter. On comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex trading 0.42% lower at 12 pm; was down 5% during the month.

The CV manufacturer posted 22% year on year (YoY) growth in total sales of 18,101 units during January 2018, compared to sales of 14,872 vehicles in the same month last year. It posted nine months sales (April 2017-January 2018) with a nominal surge of 20%.
Ashok Leyland’s net profit grew by 142% YoY to Rs 4.5 billon on back of 60% YoY jump in sales at Rs 71.1 billion, led by volume growth of 42% YoY.

Morgan Stanley cuts its India overweight to 50 bps, citing weak earnings

Morgan Stanley has reduced its overweight stance on India in its portfolio to 50 basis points (bps) from 150 bps earlier, citing disappointment in earnings. Going ahead, it sees the impact of higher oil prices, the election calendar and the prospect of a higher deficit as obstacles for the market index.

“We cut our overweight in India to 50 bps, after disappointing earnings season and slowing revisions breadth.

Quantitatively, India ranks well on a fundamental basis (strategist and stock analyst views), but valuations are not particularly cheap (especially on a price-to-earnings basis); and earnings estimate revisions, while near record highs for India, are now lower relative to regional peers,” Morgan Stanley said in a note.

Besides India, it remains overweight on Thailand (increased by 50 bps to 150 bps now), China, Brazil, Singapore and New Zealand. At the global level, the research and brokerage firm has upgraded Singapore to overweight (from equal weight) and Peru to equal weight (from underweight).

PNB stock cracks 6% to hit 20-month low after Firestar files for bankruptcy

Shares of Punjab National Bank slumped over 6 per cent and fell to a 20-month low on the bourses after Nirav Modi's Firestar Diamond filed a bankruptcy plea in the United States (US) and a local court in Mumbai issued summons to the accused diamantaire.
Meanwhile, media reports have surfaced that Nirav Modi is not coming back to India anytime soon.
Reacting to the developments, the stock today fell to an intra-day low of Rs 92, down 6.45 per cent over its previous closing price on BSE.

The stock has fallen to a level last seen on June 20, 2016.
Since February 14, when the scam broke, the stock has fallen as much as 37 per cent on BSE.
On the NSE as well, the stock touched a fresh 52-week low of Rs 92.

Nirav Modi's international jewellery business Firestar Diamond filed a bankruptcy plea in the US.
Furthermore, a local court in Mumbai has issued summons to the diamantaire in connection with an income tax evasion probe against him and his companies.

PNB fraud: Nirav Modi may face non-bailable warrant; top 10 developments

Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi's overseas businesses and assets across more than a dozen countries are under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which will soon send judicial requests to countries like Belgium, Hong Kong, Switzerland, the United States, the United Kingdom, Dubai, Singapore, and South Africa for obtaining information about them as part of the widening of its probe into the Rs 114-billion Punjab National Bank (PNB fraud case.

Nirav Modi, his wife Ami, and uncle Mehul Choksi have been summoned by the ED to appear at its zonal office in Mumbai on Monday. According to sources, if they skip the summons, the agency could approach a special PMLA court to get non-bailable warrants issued against them.
Modi has already had his luxury cars, including a Rolls Royce Ghost, a Mercedes Benz, and a Porsche Panamera, and imported watches, seized in the past week. During the weekend, the Income-Tax department seized over 150 paintings by renowned artists from Nirav Modi's warehouse located at Wadala in Mumbai.

While probe agencies continue to put pressure on Modi and Choksi, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) assured of an "accelerated inquiry" into auditors' role in the PNB fraud.

Sridevi cremation delayed, not possible before sunset: Top 10 developments

The mortal remains of Sridevi, revered as Bollywood's first female superstar, will arrive India a few hours later than earlier expected. Her last rites, earlier expected to take place around 11.00 am, will, therefore, also have to be delayed.

The veteran actor, 54, had passed away following a cardiac arrest late on Saturday night in Dubai. Sridevi acted in over 300 films in her impressive career spanning five decades. She was in Dubai along with her younger daughter Khushi and husband Boney Kapoor for the wedding of her nephew Mohit Marwah.

Here are the top 10 developments since the death of the legendary actor:

1. Funeral to be delayed: Sridevi's funeral might not take place before sunset, according to Khaleej Times. Officials from the Indian consulate have told the daily that Sridevi's body will be ready for repatriation by 1 to 2 pm, Dubai time (3.30 pm IST). The process will take 3 to 4 hours after police clearance.

3. Autopsy certificate: The mortal remains of Sridevi will be handed over to the family only after her autopsy report is clear. The autopsy report could be received from the government by 8:30-9 am Dubai time (10-10:30 am IST), Major Habib from the Dubai police department had told India Today earlier.

4. How it happened: Sridevi was getting ready for a dinner with husband Boney Kapoor in Dubai when she suffered a cardiac arrest at their hotel room, according to Khaleej Times.
Describing the incident, the report claimed that the cardiac arrest took place when she was in the bath. Boney Kapoor, when she did not return for 15 minutes, knocked at the door and later forced open the door to discover Sridevi lying motionless in the bathtub filled with water. The actress was declared dead by the paramedics who visited the site soon after.

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Samsung Galaxy S9 vs Apple iPhone X: From price to design, how they compare

When Microsoft revealed a replacement to Windows 8, it skipped the number 9 and went straight to Windows 10. Apple’s iPhone 8 was followed by the iPhone X (pronounced “ten”). But Samsung refused to follow: The successor to its Galaxy S8 is the Galaxy S9 (and a larger S9 Plus), and it’s coming out in March.

The phone is critical for the company. Samsung needs to show it has the hardware and software chops to maintain its leadership in the Android market, while proving Apple isn’t king of smartphone design. Then there’s fending off rising Chinese competition from Huawei and reassuring investors that Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee has the company’s future under control since his legal woes commanded global headlines.

But above all, Samsung needs to be better than the iPhone X in the eyes of consumers. Here’s how they compare.

Photography and video
Great pictures are essential for any top-end phone. Samsung has equipped the S9 Plus with two cameras: a wide-angle, and a telephoto (like the iPhone X) and both capture at a resolution of 12 megapixels (also like the iPhone X). Samsung even mounts the two lenses of the S9 Plus vertically — something Apple also does with its flagship.

Sterlite Technologies surges 10% post Rs 35 billion advance purchase order

Sterlite Technologies has surged 10% to Rs 379 on the BSE in early morning trade after the company announced that it has been awarded a Rs 35 billion advance purchase order to design, build and manage the Indian Navy’s communications network.

“The company is to build Next Gen Communications Network for the Indian Navy. The Rs 35 billion system integration project will enable the Indian Navy with a digital communications network at par with the most advanced naval forces globally,” Sterlite Technologies said in a press release.
The scope requires Sterlite Tech to design, build and manage the communications network for over a decade through its system integration capabilities. Unparalleled in scope and size, the project includes the creation of a high-capacity IP-MPLS (Internet Protocol - Multi Protocol Label Switching) network.

Once completed, it will link multiple Indian naval sites and India-administered islands, it added.
At 09:54 am; the stock was trading 6% higher at Rs 365, as compared to 0.55% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. A combined 2.23 million shares changed hands on the counter on the BSE and NSE so far.

Oriental Bank of Commerce falls 9% on talks of Rs 3.9 billion scam

Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) has slipped 9% to Rs 96.20, also its fresh 52-week low on the BSE, after the media report suggested that the state-owned lender has alleged the firm, Dwarka Das Seth International, for fraudulent loan scam, involving Rs 3.90 billion.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a case against a Delhi-based jeweller on a complaint from government-owned OBC, the Business Standard reported.

The jewellery firm cheated the bank with the help of some of its officials, using Letters of Credit (LCs) — a banking instrument similar to those used by a group of companies belonging to Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi to allegedly defraud Punjab National Bank of Rs 114 billion, added report.

An LC is an obligation accepted by a bank to make a payment if specified criteria are met.
At 09:29 am; the stock was trading 8.8% lower at Rs 96.50 on the BSE as compared to 0.48% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex.

A combined 7.21 million shares changed hands on the counter on the BSE and NSE so far.

Bullish on Tata Motors, bearish on Tata Steel: Angel Broking

Stock market calls and outlook on Nifty by Sameet Chavan, Chief Analyst- Technical & Derivatives, Angel Broking:

Nifty Outlook:
It was a week of consolidation for our markets as we saw a fragile start on Monday followed by some consolidation for three days and then a good pull back move to conclude at the highest point of the week. The tail end rally was mainly propelled by the heavyweight banking conglomerates along with the beaten down Midcap index.

Stock recommendations:

1. Tata Motors - Bullish
Last Close – Rs. 360.20
This has been one of the underperformers over the past 18 months and is now trading around its 52-week low. However, if we look at the weekly chart we can see a strong support zone of multi-year lows along with the ’89-EMA’ on monthly chart. Considering the extreme oversold condition of momentum oscillators in all time frames, we expect a decent bounce back rally in this stock. Hence, we would like to advise a contradictory buy for a target of Rs.378 over the next few days. The stop loss now can be fixed at Rs. 350.

Cash still king as circulation at 99% of pre-demonetisation level: RBI data

Almost a year after the demonetisation drive, the currency in circulation, as on 16 February 2018, stood at Rs 17.78 trillion (Rs 17.78 lakh crore), according to a Live Mint report.
Before November 8, 2016, the total currency with the Indian public, according to RBI data, was Rs 17.97 trillion. The demonetisation drive sucked Rs 14.48 trillion out of the system.

This means that as of 16 February, 99.94 per cent of the currency is back in circulation.
During a short span from November 9 to December 31, 2016, the Reserve Bank pumped in 23.8 billion pieces of bank notes into circulation aggregating Rs 5,540 billion in value.
Nearly half the currency notes circulated by the Reserve Bank of India during the first nine months of 2017-18 were of smaller denomination, such as Rs 200, Rs 100 and below. This is in line with the government's move to push digitisation and encourage people to do digital banking for high-value transfers.
As on June 16, 2017, the currency in circulation stood at Rs 15.29 trillion (Rs 15.29 lakh crore), or 86.2 per cent of the pre-demonetisation level, according to a Business Standard report.

Waymo to Tesla: Silicon Valley is winning the race for first driverless car

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Henry Ford didn’t invent the motor car. The late 1800s saw a flurry of innovation by hundreds of companies battling to deliver on the promise of fast, efficient and reasonably-priced mechanical transportation. Ford later came to dominate the industry thanks to the development of the moving assembly line.

Today the sector is poised for another breakthrough with the advent of cars that drive themselves. But unlike the original wave of automobile innovation, the race for supremacy in autonomous vehicles is concentrated among a few corporate giants. So who is set to dominate this time?

I’ve analysed six companies we think are leading the race to build the first truly driverless car. Three of these – General Motors, Ford and Volkswagen – come from the existing car industry and need to integrate self-driving technology into their existing fleet of mass-produced vehicles. The other three – Tesla, Uber and Waymo (owned by the same company as Google) – are newcomers from the digital technology world of Silicon Valley and have to build a mass manufacturing capability.

Rs 114 bn PNB scam: ICAI begins probe to know whether any CA was involved

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), a state-controlled regulator for the sector, has said it is probing whether auditors played a role in perpetrating the alleged $1.77 billion fraud that Punjab National Bank unearthed last week.

The ICAI said on Thursday it has asked the Securities and Exchange Board of India, Punjab National Bank (PNB) and federal investigating agencies to share their findings of the alleged fraud, including anything related to the involvement of any chartered accountants.

The ICAI, which functions under the administrative control of India's Ministry of Corporate Affairs, said it has set up a committee to study the systemic lapses that contributed to the fraud and to suggest remedial measures and improvement.

Separately, the Economic Times newspaper reported that PNB has tapped PwC to conduct a probe into the alleged fraud that would help the bank build a case against jewellers Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi.

PNB officials were not immediately available for comment, while PwC declined to comment on the matter.

NSE warns index compilers to not involve themselves in offshore dispute

India’s biggest exchange operator, which cut ties with its international counterparts in an effort to rein in offshore derivatives, warned index compilers about involving themselves in the dispute.
Vikram Limaye, chief executive officer of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd., said in an interview that his company’s relationship with MSCI Inc. depends on the New York-based firm telling its clients to not use its data for futures and options contracts based on Indian stocks.

His comments come after the NSE and two other bourses said they would end licensing and market data agreements with foreign exchanges, a move that shocked investors and threatens India’s international financial standing. MSCI said last week the termination was an anti-competitive step and warned that the nation’s market classification could change as a result.

“We will continue to provide all prices and data to MSCI for indexes, provided that data is not used for trading Indian offshore derivatives,’’ Limaye said on Thursday. “We have had four conversations with MSCI and have explained our position.”

Siemens extends fall on board nod for sale of mobility, rail traction ops

Siemens dipped 3% to Rs 1,159 in intra-day trade on Friday, extending its 4% fall on Thusday, in otherwise firm market after the company said its board approved to sell its mobility division and rail traction drives business.
“The mobility division accounts for 10.46% of the turnover and 2.82% of the capital employed of the company for the year ended September 30, 2017,” Siemens said in a regulatory filing on February 21, after market hours.

Following a global announcement made by Siemens AG, Germany (parent company of Siemens) to set up a standalone company for the mechanical drives business, the board of directors of the company has agreed in-principle to terms and conditions to determined, to sell its mechanical drives business (included in Process Industries and Drives Division) to Siemens AG or its subsidiary, it added.
At 01:31 pm; the stock was trading 2.6% at Rs 1,170 on the BSE, as compared to 0.94% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex.

The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 1,123 on December 6, 2017 in intra-day trade. A combined 335,101 equity shares changed hands on the counter on the BSE and NSE.

D-Mart, Venky's, Cholamandalam Investment hit record highs

Shares of Avenue Supermarts, which runs the D-Mart supermarkets chain, poultry producer company Venky’s (India) and finance firm Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company have hit their respective record highs on the BSE in intra-day trade on Friday.

Venky’s (India) has surged 10% to Rs 3,230, extending its past two days 10% rally, on back of heavy volumes. The trading volumes on the counter jumped more than five-fold with a combined 377,910 shares changed hands on the BSE and NSE so far.

The company diversified its activities to include SPF eggs, chicken and eggs processing, broiler and layer breeding, genetic research and Poultry diseases diagnostic, Poultry vaccines and feed supplements, vaccine production, bio-security products, Poultry feed & equipments, nutritional health products, soya bean extract and many more. The company also supplies meat directly and indirectly to fast food chains in India such as KFC, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut and Dominos.
Analyst at Quantum Securities believes Venky’s is in a good spot with benign raw material prices and robust poultry prices.

Now you can add your Facebook friend during a live video or audio chat

Facebook has rolled out a new feature in both iOS and Android apps that can allow users to add more friends and family members to a live audio and video chats in Messenger.


With the update, users need not hang up and manually add people into a conversation before restarting the call.

"We're excited to share a small new feature that will hopefully have a big impact to make your video and audio chats easier and faster than ever," Sarah Morris, Product Manager of Messenger, wrote in a blog post on Wednesday.

Earlier, to turn a one-on-one video or audio chat into a group chat, users had to hang up, start a new conversation from your inbox -- either by creating an entirely new message or by searching for an old one -- and then turn that conversation into a call.

While in a video chat or on a voice call, tap the screen, select the "add person" icon and choose who you want to join.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5, Note 5 Pro sale begins today on Flipkart, Mi Store

Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi seems in no mood to slow down. Its latest phones, the Redmi Note 5 and Note 5 Pro, seem similar on the first look but are very different devices. While the Note 5 adds ultra-wide screen along with enhanced camera on the back when compared with the Note 4, the Note 5 Pro is a new package with substantial upgrades.

The Note 5 and Note 5 Pro, launched on February 14, would go on sale today, exclusively on home-grown e-commerce platform Flipkart and Xiaomi’s Mi Store. As for the price and variants, the Redmi Note 5 comes in two storage and RAM combinations – 32GB/3GB and 64GB/4GB – priced at Rs 9,999 and Rs 11,999, respectively. The Redmi Note 5 Pro comes with 64GB internal storage but in two RAM variants – 4GB and 6GB – priced at Rs 13,999 and Rs 16,999, respectively.

Here is a quick comparison review of Redmi Note 5 and Redmi Note 5 Pro:
On the front, the Note 5 and the Pro look similar: Both feature 18:9 screens. On the back, the Note 5 looks similar to the Note 4, but better. The Pro, on the other hand, looks like an iPhone X clone, without the all-glass build. But the vertical dual-camera set-up is a dead ringer.

Aircel services hit in Tamil Nadu, customers line up to port number

Crisis-hit telecom major Aircel is facing customers' fury in Tamil Nadu as its network was affected by the cessation of services by tower infrastructure provider owing to financial dispute.
With panic-stricken customers pushing for mobile number portability in large numbers, Aircel's server crashed, forcing customers to throng its limited number service centres across Tamil Nadu.
Aircel has around 15 million customers in Tamil Nadu, largest among states, out of the total 89 million customers across the country.

Aircel, promoted by Malaysian firm Maxis Communication, has been in financial crisis in the recent past due to severe competition and credit restrictions from banks. A proposed deal to merge the company with Reliance Communications also failed.

The latest issue started after one of the tower infrastructure provider, which operates 10,000 towers for Aircel in Tamil Nadu, allegedly switched off around 9,000 towers. The dispute is related to payment of a penalty to the infrastructure provider for around five to six circles closed down a few years back, said company sources.

PNB fraud: Nirav Modi's Rolls Royce, Porsche seized; top 10 developments

Nirav Modi's luxury cars, including a Rolls Royce Ghost, a Mercedes Benz, and a Porsche Panamera, have been seized by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Rs 114-billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case. Further, assets worth almost Rs 1 billion belonging to Modi and Choksi have been frozen by the probe agency.

The ED is also probing 120 shell companies allegedly linked to Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi. Further, the IT department has attached Rs 1.45 billion belonging to Nirav Modi.

Here are the top 10 developments in the banking scam that has gripped the country's financial sector:
1) ED seizes Nirav Modi's Rolls Royce Ghost and other luxury cars: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday said it had frozen mutual funds and shares worth Rs 945.2 million (Rs 94.52 crore) of the Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi groups in connection with the money laundering probe against them in the Rs 114-billion (Rs 11,400-crore) alleged PNB fraud at PNB.
It also seized nine high-end luxury cars of Modi as part of its investigation against him under the criminal provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Ipca Labs hits 52-week high; up 21% in 11 days post Q3 results

Ipca Laboratories hit a 52-week high of Rs 671, up 5% on the BSE in intra-day trade, extending its past 10 days gain, after the company reported more than doubled net profit for the quarter ended December (Q3FY18) on back of strong operational performance.
In past 11 trading days, the stock of pharmaceutical company surged 20% from Rs 556 on February 6, as compared to 1.3% decline in the S&P BSE Sensex.

Ipca Labs reported a standalone net profit of Rs 1,056 million in Q3FY18 against Rs 414 million in year ago quarter. Total income increased 15% to Rs 8.7 billion from Rs 7.56 billion in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal.
EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortised) margin improved 500 bps to 19.79% from 14.79%.

Analysts at local brokerage houses have bullish on the stock with 12 month target price in the range of Rs 715 and Rs 770. “The company has invited US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for inspection of Ratlam API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) unit along with prior requests for reinspection of formulations units. Our bullish stance is built on assumption company would clear the FDA audits which would drive the rerating,” analyst at IIFL Wealth Management said in result update.

Gitanjali tanks 61% in seven days, PC Jeweller plunges 42% in one month

Shares of gems and jewellery companies continued under pressure falling by up to 61% in past one month on concerns of tighter regulations after the fraud at the state-owned Punjab National Bank (PNB).

Gitanjali Gems is locked in lower circuit for the sixth straight trading sessions, down 5% at Rs 26.10, also its fresh low on the BSE. In past seven trading sessions, it tanked 58% from Rs 62.85 on February 12, following the PNB's declaration of unearthing a fraud of Rs 113 billion involving diamantaire Nirav Modi.

The exchanges has changed circuit filter of the stock from 10% to 5% with effect from today.
On February 14, the PNB revealed some rogue employees had issued letters of undertaking (LoUs) via the SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Inter-Bank Financial Telecommunication) system on behalf of companies belonging to diamantaire Nirav Modi and associate Mehul Choksi, the promoter of Gitanjali Gems.

In past one month, Gitanjali Gems plunged 62% from Rs 26.10 on the BSE against 5.7% decline in the S&P BSE Sensex.

PNB scam: Govt opposes PIL for Nirav Modi extradition; top 10 developments

The matter of absconding businessman Nirav Modi's possible extradition and a probe into the role of the bank's top management in the Rs 114-billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case reached the Supreme Court on Wednesday, with the Centre opposing a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking such an action.

Opposing the PIL, Attorney General K K Venugopal told a Bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice A M Khanwilkar, and Justice D Y Chandrachud that an FIR had already been filed in the multi-billion PNB fraud case and a probe was going on. As Venugopal rose to oppose the PIL, petitioner lawyer Vineet Dhanda urged the Bench to issue a notice to the Centre as the "kingpin of the scam Nirav Modi" had run away with the "common man's savings".

Further, carrying forward with the arrests it made on Tuesday, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday said that it has arrested a General Manager rank officer of the PNB in connection with the Nirav Modi fraud case. "Rajesh Jindal, who was holding the charge of Brady House Branch Head between August 2009 and May 2011 was arrested on Tuesday night from Mumbai," a CBI official said. It was during Jindal's tenure at the Brady House that the alleged fraud took place, the CBI officer said.

Hold HT Media; target of Rs 120: ICICI Direct

ICICI Direct recommended hold rating on HT Media stock market with a target price of Rs 120 in its research report dated January 15, 2018.

ICICI Direct's research report on HT Media stock price

Revenues at Rs 625.4 crore (fell 3.8% YoY) came in below our estimate of Rs 629.2 crore. Hindi ad revenue came in at Rs 177 crore, up 4.9% YoY vs. our estimate of ~3% YoY growth. English ad revenue declined 7.6% YoY (our estimate: ~7% decline). The performance of radio was disappointing at 4.8% YoY revenue growth. Digital business revenues were impacted by weak performance of shine.com The company’s continued effort on cost savings aided EBITDA margins, which came in at 21.5%. On the costs front, savings in administrative and other expenses aided the EBITDA beat Reported PAT came in higher at Rs 124.4 crore as there were certain one-offs in the quarter pertaining to (1) other income included one-time gain of Rs 31.2 crore on sale of land & building, (2) tax reversal of Rs 23.6 crore arising from finalisation of the return of the previous year, which was recognised during the quarter. Adjusted PAT came in lower at Rs 69.6 crore (vs. expectation of Rs 77 crore).

Market tailwinds help Tata Motors arrest decline in key CV segments

Tata Motors, the country’s biggest commercial vehicle maker, has largely arrested the declining market share in most segments of the business. In fact, the company has increased its Tata Motors Share Price  in light commercial vehicles (LCV) while maintaining the share in medium and heavy commercial vehicles (M&HCV) or trucks. This has helped its domestic business turn profitable during the October-December quarter after five successive loss-making quarters.

The company reported a standalone profit of Rs 1.83 billion in third quarter of FY18 against losses of Rs 10.46 billion in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. Standalone revenues (domestic business) for the quarter rose 59 per cent to Rs 161 billion. The Ebitda (earnings before interest, depreciation, taxation, and amortisation) of the standalone business margin improved 750 basis points to nine per cent during the quarter.

HT Media net income jumps over two-fold

HT Media today reported over two-fold jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 66.22 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2017, mainly on account of lower expenses.
The media firm had posted a net profit of Rs 30.93 crore during the same period previous fiscal, HT Media said in a regulatory filing.

The company's net sales during the quarter under review however decline 6.90 per cent to Rs 560.63 crore as against Rs 602.23 crore in the year-ago period.
Total expenses during the period stood at Rs 507.62 crore compared to Rs 606.67 crore in the July-September quarter of 2016-17.

Revenue from printing and publishing business was down at Rs 494.89 crore during the quarter as against Rs 525.95 crore in the year-ago period.

HT Media share price

Tata motors stocks gain on file JLR income in 2017; should you make investments?

Stocks of Tata Motors BSE 0.34 % advanced over 2 per cent in early exchange after the car main-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) on Monday published 6.five according to cent upward thrust in international sales to a record 6,21,109 gadgets in 2017.

sales of Jaguar emblem of vehicles all through the year had been at 1,78,601 gadgets, a boom of 20.1 consistent with cent, the corporation stated in a announcement. Land Rover range published income of 4,42,508 gadgets within the year, an increase of 1.8 in line with cent, it added.

For the month of December, JLR mentioned 0.6 consistent with cent increase in retail income to 55,697 cars in December 2017 over December 2016. The assertion became made after market hours on Monday, 8 January 2018.

Click here for Tata Motors Share Price

Tata motors cruises beyond Honda, becomes country's fourth-biggest vehicle player

Tata Motors’s sales increased 19 per cent this financial year, helping it to race ahead of Japanese carmaker Honda Cars and secure the fourth spot among peers in the domestic market. In the same period, Honda’s sales rose by 17 per cent.

Between April 2017 and January 2018, Tata Motors share price sold 149,284 units of passenger vehicles. Honda Cars sold 144,802 units in the period. In FY17, Tata Motors had sold 153,151 units, compared to Honda’s 157,313 units.

Honda, however, claimed to be unperturbed by the change in the pecking order.

“What we try to achieve is a higher market share. We require at least a 10 per cent share in the Indian market to have a sustainable position,” said Yoichiro Ueno, president and chief executive officer, Honda Cars India. 

HT Media tanks on fixing share buyback price

HT Media has tanked 13% to Rs 97, falling over 16% from intra-day high, after its board approved buyback of company’s equity shares at a maximum price of Rs 110 per share.

The buyback price is 1.8% discount than its previous day’s close of Rs 112 on BSE.
“The board proposed to buyback equity shares up to an aggregate amount not exceeding Rs 25 crore, from the open market through stock exchanges,” HT Media said in a statement.
Meanwhile, HT Media, publishers of the Hindustan Times newspaper, has reported a robust 82% year-on-year (yoy) jump in net profit at Rs 40 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 (Q4) due to lower raw material cost and other expenditure.
The board also recommended a dividend of 20% or Rs 0.40 per equity share of Rs 2 each for the financial year 2012-13.

The stock opened at Rs 113 and hit a high of Rs 116 on NSE. A combined 1.07 million shares changed hands on the counter so far on NSE and BSE.

Click here for HT Media share price

Priya Prakash beats Sunny Leone to become Google's most searched actress

Viral sensation Priya Prakash Varrier has taken down Sunny Leone to become Google's most searched actress.

The first song of Malayalam movie 'Oru Adaar Love' became viral on social media within few hours of its release because of Varrier's cute articulations and wink.

Since then, the 18-year-old has become the talk of the town.

In the past few days, 'Priya Prakash' has been searched way more than Sunny Leone, who is known to perpetually trend on the search engine.

With a follower count of over three million on Instagram, Priya has become a social media sensation overnight.

Google partners with Getty, kills 'view image' button from search results

In a move to curb the lifting of copyrighted images from its platform, Google has removed the "view image" button from its image search results.

"Today we're launching some changes on Google Images to help connect users and useful websites.

"This will include removing the View Image button.

The Visit button remains, so users can see images in the context of the webpages they're on," Google SearchLiaison tweeted on Friday.

The change is seen as part of Google's partnering with stock photo provider Getty Images.

Google last week signed a multi-year global licensing deal with Getty Images, allowing it to use Getty's content within its various products and services.

According to a report in The Verge, Google will make copyright attribution and disclaimers more prominent in image search results.

Now, users have to wait for a website to load and then scroll through it to find the image.

After Nirav Modi scam at PNB, fear of sweetheart deals at other banks too

These are early days in the Nirav Modi saga, but top financial sector officials are not ruling out more such sweetheart deals at other banks, given that the overseas bill discounting business that traders deal in is highly porous.

The present case has surfaced because an innocuous rule change by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in early January forced Punjab National Bank (PNB) to tap Nirav Modi and other importers for more margin money. Another trigger, it would seem, was an alleged query from RBI seeking the bank’s response over one of its officials allegedly demanding favours from Modi’s company in return for issuing the next Letter of Undertaking, or buyer’s credit.

The recent developments have also effectively nixed the bank’s plans to merge any other state-owned bank with itself until the scam fire is doused – and that will take quite some time.
Another associated issue is how two of the bank’s employees continued undisturbed in their perch for so many years.

PNB's FY17 fund-based exposure to jewellery sector at 0.6% of loan book

Punjab National Bank (PNB) that has been at the centre of the Rs 114 billion fraud perpetrated by Nirav Modi had a fund and non-fund based exposure (as a percentage of loan book) at 0.6% and 0.1% respectively in FY17, suggests a recent Edelweiss Securities report on the sector co-authored by Kunal Shah and Prakhar Agarwal.

Bank of India (BoI), State Bank of India (SBI), Canara Bank and IDBI Bank are among those that highest fund-based exposure to the sector as a percentage of total loan book among the public sector (PSU) during this period.

Among their private sector counterparts, IndusInd Bank with 6.1% fund-based exposure to the sector as a percentage of loan book tops the list.

Fund-based lending is where the lending bank commits the physical outflow of funds. The various forms in which fund based lending may be made by banks include loans, overdrafts, cash credit etc. Non-fund based facilities, on the other hand, are credit facilities given by the banks where actual bank funds are not involved.

8K Miles surges 10% on launch of Blockchain Platform - 8K Health Edge

8K Miles Software Services has surged 10% to Rs 867 on BSE in intra-day trade in otherwise subdued session after the company announced that it is launching 8K Health Edge, a proprietary Blockchain platform which, may translate into solutions for some of the most complex problems in global healthcare.
“With the launch of 8K Miles Health Edge our team intends to unleash the power of Blockchain. Blockchain allows organization of any chain of records or transactions without the need of intermediaries, and reducing the number of intermediaries in healthcare delivery, which will subsequently reduce costs and allow for real time solutions.

Ability to establish trust-based network between entities and inherent security that comes with it, makes Blockchain ideal for Health Information Management”, said Suresh Venkatachari, Chief Executive Officer of 8K Miles.
While announcing December quarter results on Wednesday, the company said 8K Miles was selected by a US based healthcare provider to assist with the selection of a remote hosted hospital information system solution which  has a potential to support multiple hospitals in the future.

Gitanjali tanks 20% for second straight day; PNB hits fresh 52-week low

Gitanjali Gems is locked in lower circuit for the second straight day, down 20% at Rs 37.55, its fresh 52-week low on BSE, after the media report suggested that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches and sealed some premises owned by the company and Nirav Modi in related to the Rs 114 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud.

The ED on Thursday conducted searches in 17 properties linked to billionaire jewellery designer Nirav Modi and his maternal uncle and business partner Mehul Chinubhai Choksi’s firm Gitanjali Gems across India in a case of fraud, and seized diamond, gold, and jewellery worth Rs 51 billion, the Business Standard reported.

The BSE said on Thursday that the Exchange has sought clarification from Gitanjali Gems. The reply is awaited.

PMO was aware of the PNB scam almost two years ago: Congress

PNB Scam - The Congress on Thursday said that a whistleblower had alerted the government in 2016 about the Rs 115 billion banking fraud by fugitive diamond merchant Nirav Modi but Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley ignored the tip.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said whistleblower Hari Prasad had written to the Prime Minister's Office as early as July 2016, alerting the government about the "biggest bank loot scam in 70 years" in independent India.

"What does the Prime Minister do? Nothing. What does the Finance Ministry do? Nothing.

What does the Corporate Affairs Ministry do? Nothing. What does the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Finance Ministry do? Nothing," Surjewala told reporters on Thursday.

"You are in power, a fraud is happening under your nose. What were you doing and how did they let the accused escape? Face the truth and answer questions."

He also asked Prime Minister Modi what the fugitive billionaire was doing with him at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January.

Move over iPhone X! Apple planning to unveil 3 new iPhones this year

Apple is reportedly gearing up to introduce three new iPhones this year and one of them will be more popular than the others, a top analyst with Taiwanese business group KGI Securities has said.

According to Ming-Chi Kuo, the most famous analyst with KGI Securities when it comes to Apple, the Cupertino-headquartered giant will aim to sell 100 million units of "a 6.1-inch iPhone it's planning to release this year".

"The 6.1-inch LCD iPhone will apparently resemble the iPhone X with a similar full-screen design, but at a more accessible price for customers.

The analyst expects this new iPhone to be priced to replace iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus, as cheap as $699," 9to5Mac reported late on Wednesday.

"The replacement for iPhone X is believed to consist of a three-SKU 2018 iPhone lineup. A new iPhone X style device with improved internals, a larger 'iPhone X Plus' with a 6.5-inch OLED display and the 6.1-inch LCD model," the report added.

Modi affect? The emerging India-US role reversal in world leadership

For the last half of the 20th century, the United States was the world's beacon for democracy and economic development and India was a laggard. These roles are reversing as the end of the second decade of the 21st century approaches.

India is becoming a beacon and the US is becoming a flashlight. In large part, this is a consequence of leadership.

India has a leader in Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is pursuing the future. The US has a leader in Donald Trump who is pursuing the past. President Trump is emphasising individualism and isolationism. Prime Minister Modi is stressing engagement and expansionism.

Freedom House, in its annual report titled "Freedom in the World 2018" released in January, noted that "A long list of troubling developments contributed to the global decline of democracy, but perhaps most striking was the accelerating withdrawal of the United States from its historical commitment to promoting and supporting democracy."

PNB extends fall post Rs 114-bn fraud detection; Gitanjali hits 52-week low

Punjab National Bank (PNB) was trading 6% lower in late noon deals at Rs 138, extending its previous day’s 10% decline on BSE, after the state-owned bank said on Wednesday it had been defrauded of about Rs 114 billion by jeweller Nirav Modi, his maternal uncle Mehul Chinubhai Choksi, and other relatives through a clutch of companies their own.

The stock of state-owned lender fell 9% to Rs 133 in early morning trade today. The trading volumes on the counter jumped more than three-fold with a combined around 75 million shares changed hands on BSE and NSE till 12:45 PM.

In a letter to the chiefs of several banks, a general manager of PNB said the letters of undertakings (LoUs) were opened in favour of branches of Indian banks for import of pearls for a period of one year, for which the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines stipulate a total time period of 90 days from the date of shipment, the Business Standard reported.

Nestle India gains 5% on healthy December quarter results

Nestle India has surged 5% to Rs 7,645 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) after the company reported 59.5% year-on-year (YoY) growth in net profit at Rs 3,118 million in December 2017 quarter (Q4CY17). The revenue from operations grew 10% at Rs 25.9 billion over the previous year.

Nestle India said total sales and domestic sales for the quarter increased by 10.9% and 10.8%, respectively on a base impacted by withdrawal of high denomination currency notes in circulation.
These growth rates are adversely impacted due to lower reported sales by the change in structure of indirect taxes and reduction in realisations to pass on the Goods and Services Tax (GST) benefits, it added.

On a comparable basis the domestic sales growth is 'estimated' at 18.1% due to increase in volumes including rebuild of MAGGI Noodles, supplemented by better underlying realisations coming from previous periods.

Top trading ideas for today's trade: Buy Bharti Airtel and BPCL Futures

Nifty Outlook: Nifty sheds its gains as Banks continue to drag it lower, largely lead by the PSU banks. The index is expected to oscillate within the broader range of 10700-10300 in the coming sessions. On the daily scale Nifty slipped below its previous day’s low of 10485 but managed to close above it. As the range gets narrower it’s better to remain a level based trader in case one wants to participate momentum.

A breach outside the said range of 10480- 10580 in the coming sessions could see some firm directional momentum towards the bounds of the broader range.

Stock: BHARTI AIRTEL Reco.: Buy CMP: Rs 281.45
After a sharp decline of more that 20% in the last couple of months the stock seems to be stabilising near its 200 DEMA. The occurrence of a bullish engulfing pattern alongwith developing positive divergence on the daily scale augurs well for a trend reversal soon. We recommend building positional longs with a stop below 412.30 on a closing basis for a rebound towards 485.
Stock: BPCL FUT. Reco.: SELL CMP: Rs 

PNB's Rs 110-bn fraud case isn't out-of-control, says FinMin official

The finance ministry today sought to allay worries over the Rs 113 billion fraud case at Punjab National Bank, saying the case not "out-of-control" and it is taking action in this respect.

"I dont think this is out of control or too big a worry at this point. That is my broad sense," Joint Secretary in Department of Financial Services Lok Rajan said on the sidelines of an event here.

Earlier in the morning Punjab National Bank (PNB) disclosed that it has detected some fraudulent transactions with financial implication of USD 1.171 billion (about Rs 11,334.4 crore) and the matter has been referred to law enforcement agencies for the recovery.

Based on these transactions, other banks appear to have advanced money to these customers abroad, it said.

JioPhone gets Facebook as its first third-party app; rollout begins today

Reliance JioPhone, India’s first 4G-enabled feature phone, is all set to receive the Facebook app officially on February 14. The app has been designed from scratch to work on KaiOS, the default operating system that comes loaded with the Reliance JioPhone.

"We are excited about our partnership with Jio and the opportunity to provide the best possible Facebook experience for millions of people using JioPhone. Working with partners like Jio, we want to make sure everyone, everywhere has the opportunity to enjoy the benefits of being connected," said Francisco Varela, vice-president of Mobile Partnerships, Facebook.

From today, the existing and new customers of JioPhone could download the Facebook app from JioAppStore. The app supports timeline view, push notifications and video playback capabilities.

For a non-touch device, the Facebook app on JioPhone supports cursor function to access News Feed and photos.

Bengal CM Mamata won't 'waste' funds on 'Modicare'; first state to opt out

Pointing out that West Bengal had already enrolled 5 million people under its own healthcare programme, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said that the state will not waste its resources on National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS), which was unveiled in the Union Budget this year.

This way, Bengal became the first state to opt out of the scheme, also known as Modicare, which Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced as world’s largest health insurance scheme covering 500 million people in the country.

Replacing the existing Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana, the government targets an annual premium of Rs 1,200 to cover a single family.

The states have to choose between a trust-based scheme or an insurance-based scheme and will have to scrap similar existing programme.

Basmati rice stocks rally; KRBL up 8% on fund buying

Shares of basmati rice producers rallied by up to 15% on the BSE on back of heavy volumes in otherwise subdued market after the Pabrai Investment Fund bought nearly three percentage point stake in KRBL through open market purchases.
Kohinoor Foods (up 15% at Rs 79.85), KRBL (8% at Rs 647) and LT Foods (8% at Rs 99.65) have rallied more than 7% on the BSE.

On comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading 0.1% higher at 34,336 at 10:20 am.
On Monday, February 12, 2018, The Pabrai Investment Fund II LP and The Pabrai Investment Fund IV LP had bought combined 6.41 million equity shares representing 2.73% stake of KRBL for Rs 3.81 billion.
The Pabrai Investment Fund II LP bought 2.4 million shares at Rs 594 and The Pabrai Investment Fund IV LP bought 4.02 million shares at Rs 594, the bulk deal data shows.
Abdullah Ali Balsharaf and Omar A

RBI's measures are good; be selective in buying PSU banks, say analysts

Banking stocks came under selling pressure on Wednesday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) unveiled new norms for dealing with non-performing assets (NPAs) on Monday. Nifty PSU Bank was the worst performing index, falling over 3% in intra-day deals with Punjab National Bank, Bank of India, Canara Bank, IDBI and Oriental Bank of Commerce slipping 4.3% to 7%.
Also Read: NPA levels of banks set to bloat with RBI's mega resolution framework
The fall comes on the back of a revised framework on resolution of stressed assets issued by the RBI, which is likely to increase the reported non-performing asset (NPA) levels of the banks in coming quarters. From a long-term perspective, however, analysts see the new rules helping early identification of stress and resolution of issues. Not only will the move promote better credit discipline, they see it as a precursor to implementation of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) going ahead.

"Corporate banks with higher quantum of stressed / restructured assets (Canara Bank, PNB, Bank of India, Union Bank, SBI and ICICI Bank) may see higher proportion of their bad loans drifting toward IBC process (failing any satisfactory resolution plan), as the upgrade / recovery chances of such tenured stressed loans remains low," say analysts at Motilal Oswal Research.

Top trading ideas for today's trade: Buy Bharat Forge, UPL ltd

Nifty View: Nifty has been trading in the upward sloping channel on the daily charts and recent bottom of 10276 is placed around the lower band of that channel. So, there are good chances of bounce back from current levels. Any close above 10638, without violating the support of 10276 would result in to higher bottom followed by higher top on daily charts, indicating short term bullish trend reversal. Stochastic oscillator has exited from the oversold zone, indicating probable bullish trend reversal on the daily charts. Resistances for Nifty are 10638, 10724 and 10830. Long terms support for the Nifty is around 10000, the 200 DMA.

Buy Bharat Forge CMP: 776 SL: 750 Tgt: 820
Stock price has recently surpassed the crucial resistance of double top placed at 750 odd levels. Stock price has also ended the consolidation range between 680 and 750 for last four months.
Stock has recently registered new all-time higher volumes. Primary trend has been bullish with higher tops and higher bottoms on the monthly charts. Considering the technical evidences discussed above, we recommend buying the stock between 776 and 760, for the target of 820, keeping a stop loss at 750 on closing basis.

Buy UPL ltd CMP: Rs 726.5 Stop Loss: Rs 695 Target: Rs 770
Last week, Stock price formed strong base around 680 odd levels and reversed the trend towards north. Triple bottom formation is observed on the weekly charts, indicating bullish trend reversal. Oscillators like RSI and Stochastics have come out from the oversold zone, indicating probable pullback. Stock price has also surpassed last 5 days high with fair volumes. Considering the technical evidences discussed above, we recommend buying the stock between 726.5 and 705, for the target of 770, keeping a stop loss at 695 on closing basis

Xiaomi Mi Mix 2S leak shows all-screen front, dual cameras on back

Xiaomi is one of the companies that were the first to venture into the untapped bezel-less screen segment. The first-generation bezel-less smartphone -- the Mi Mix – from the stable of the China-based smartphone manufacturer was a concept device. It had a huge screen of 6.4-inch covering the entire front…well, almost.

The second-generation device, however, sees some major improvements in terms of handling, design and aesthetics. And the phone – the Mi Mix 2 – was launched in more countries than its predecessor.

The second-generation device, with edge-to-edge screen on three sides and a limited chin at the bottom to accommodate front camera, also made it close to be actually called an all-screen mobile phone.