Business News at 05:30 pm on 11th April, 2024

Let’s begin – It’s been a week of milestones for the Dalal Street thus far. Not only did the markets hit new all-time highs but also the Sensex closed above the psychologically important 75,000 level for the first time ever. Interestingly this 1000 point journey from 74,000 was undertaken in 24 sessions flat after the Sensex breached the 74,000-mark on March 6. The journey from 70,000 to 75,000 points took the Sensex approximately 80 sessions or less than four months, underlining the market’s robust performance and resilience. This is significantly less compared to the Index’s journey in covering the previous 5000 points from 65,000 to 70,000 which took 80 days. In April so far, the Sensex has surged 1.85%, following a 1.6% increase in March, 1% in February.

Up next – French advertising group Publicis reported better-than-expected organic revenue growth in the first quarter, helped by its Epsilon and Publicis Media businesses. The advertising group also attributed its quarterly performance to the recent acquisitions of AKA Asia in Singapore and Spinnaker in the US, and a recent rebound in the tech sector. Net revenue came in at 3.23 billion euros in Q1, a 5.3% organic growth, above the 4% to 5% guidance range announced in February. Publicis kept its guidance for 2024, also expecting organic net revenue to grow by 4% to 5%, highlighting that “the +4% is rock solid” as it takes into account delays in business transformation, more cuts in advertising spend and a conservative approach to budget adjustments.

In another development – When it comes to India’s FY25 growth projection, ADB‘s estimates are in line with RBI’s projections. The Asian Development Bank has revised India’s GDP growth forecast for the current fiscal to 7% from 6.7% earlier. According to them robust private and public sector investment and consumer demand is driving this upward revision. The April edition of the Asian Development Outlook which was released on Thursday highlighted that inflation may continue its downward movement in line with global trends. Last week, RBI in its Monetary Policy Meet had stated that GDP growth in the current fiscal is estimated at 7%.

Moving on – Apple has issued fresh alert to its users in India and 91 other countries, warning them against potential exposure to a Pegasus-type “mercenary spyware.” The spyware can potentially infiltrate iPhones remotely, like Pegasus. Describing the nature of such spyware attacks, including those orchestrated by entities like NSO Group’s Pegasus, Apple has emphasised that these attacks are highly sophisticated and entail substantial financial investments, costing millions of dollars, which makes the target group exceptionally small, compared to typical cybercriminal activities or consumer malware. Apple, per usual, advises users to turn on lockdown mode in their iPhones and refrain from opening links or attachments from unknown senders.

Meanwhile – Larsen & Toubro has announced the completion of divestment of L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Limited, a joint venture between Larsen & Toubro Limited and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. In a regulatory filing, it stated that L&T’s 51 per cent and CPP Investments’ 49 per cent shares have been acquired by Epic Concesiones Private Limited, an investee company of Edelweiss Infrastructure Yield Plus Strategy, managed by Edelweiss Alternative Asset Advisors Limited. This deal is in line with L&T’s strategy to exit non-core businesses for reducing its exposure to the asset heavy developmental projects portfolio thereby enhancing its return on equity.

In other news – Malabar Gold & Diamonds announced that it has achieved an annual global turnover of Rs 1,218 crore in the last financial year. The company also said that its retail expansion plan spans India and overseas markets with plans to open 100 new stores within the next one year. The brand currently operates 345 stores across 13 countries, with plans to open new stores in New Zealand, Egypt, Bangladesh, and more locations in Europe. The company will strengthen its presence in existing markets such as the US, Canada, UK, and Australia. Malabar Gold & Diamonds is also planning to hire an additional 7,000 employees increasing the workforce to 28,000. It currently employs 21,000 people representing 26 countries.

Lastly – Stocks in the US market fell on April 10 after March CPI data came in higher than expected. This further dampened investor hopes for a rate cut by the Fed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average tanked 422.16 points or 1.09% to close the day’s trading at 38,461.51. The S&P 500 slipped 0.95% to finish at 5,160.64. While the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 0.84% to settle at 16,170.36. The core inflation index for all items excluding food and energy rose 0.4% in March, as it did in each of the 2 preceding months. The core inflation index excluding the food and energy index rose 3.8% on year. The inflation rate in the US has risen for a second straight month to 3.5% in March.