Business News at 05:30 pm on 22nd July, 2024

Let’s begin…Shares of Reliance Industries dipped 3% to an intraday low of Rs 3,017.95 per equity share after the company reported poor Q1 FY25 numbers due to weak refining margins and a decline in gas production. The company’s net profit declined 5.5% on year to Rs 15,138 crore in Q1 of FY25 and 20% sequentially. Also, its EBITDA margin, or operating margin, dropped to 16.7% from 18.4% a year ago. Further, the Reliance Group’s flagship company’s consolidated revenue fell 2% on quarter to Rs 2,31,780 crore. Its EBITDA saw a dip of 9% sequentially to Rs 38,770 crore. The company’s net debt declined by Rs 3,940 crore to Rs 1,12,300 crore at the end of Q1 FY25, which is also a tad positive, said JM Financial commenting on Reliance’s result.
Next up, The Economic Survey 2023-24 on July 22 said that India’s aviation sector stands at the threshold of unprecedented growth. The survey underscores the necessity to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of airlines while expanding airport capacity to support economic growth. The survey further emphasised on the importance of collaboration between the government, industry stakeholders, and international partners to strengthen Indian airlines and improve long-haul connectivity. In the services sector, the survey noted that the aviation industry experienced the highest influx of credit, showing a year-on-year growth of 56 per cent. This growth was credited to increased activities in aircraft leasing, recruitment, and a favorable medium to long-term growth perspective.
Moving on, Around eight IPOs will hit the pipeline in the current week. All of these are SME IPOs, meanwhile, there are no IPOs in the mainboard segment. However, one mainboard IPO will close and list on the secondary bourses for trading this week. Sanstar will close its issue for bidding on July 23. The company is raising Rs 510.15 crore through a combination of fresh issue and an offer for sale. SAR Televenture FPO will open its follow-on public offer on July 22 and close it on July 24. SAR Televenture is entirely a fresh issue of 7.14 million shares. RNFI Services will open its book-built issue of 6.74 million fresh shares to collect Rs 70.81 crore on July 22. The company will close the bidding on July 24.
In other news, The earnings season for the first quarter of FY25 is now in full swing with almost all major companies from the IT sector including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), HCL Technologies, Infosys, Wipro, having already released their Q1 results and Tech Mahindra will post its Q1 results on July 25. Others like Reliance Industries, Jio Financial Services, HDFC Bank, SpiceJet, Asian Paints, LTIMindtree, Patanjali Foods, BPCL, Paytm, Kotak Mahindra Bank, CEAT, and many more too have released their earnings for the quarter ended June 30, 2024. Following this, companies like Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, Jindal Steel & Power, Piramal Pharma, ICICI Bank, and many others will release their Q1 numbers this week.
In another development, HDFC Bank share price gained over 2% in early trade on Monday after the country’s largest private sector bank reported its earnings for the fiscal first quarter ended June 2024. The share price of HDFC Bank 2.71% to intra-day high of Rs 1651 on NSE. HDFC Bank reported a standalone net profit of Rs 16,175 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2024, marking a 35% increase from Rs 11,952 crore in the same period last year. However, this figure was down by 2% sequentially from Rs 16,512 crore reported in Q4FY24. The largest private lender’s interest income for the reported quarter stood at Rs 73,033 crore, up 50% year-on-year from Rs 48,587 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year.
Up next, Obesity is a growing public health concern globally. The Economic Survey 2024 tabled on Monday revealed that 54 percent of the total disease burden in India is due to unhealthy diets. It also revealed there is an increase in the consumption of highly processed foods laden with sugars and fat. The survey found that obesity presents a “concerning situation” and preventive measures must be taken to enable citizens to have a healthier lifestyle. If India needs to “reap the gains of its demographic dividend, it is critical that its population’s health parameters transition towards a balanced and diverse diet”, the Survey said.
Lastly, The benchmark equity indices closed the trading session on a lower note on July 22. The BSE Sensex fell 79.23 points or 0.10% to finish the day’s trading at 80,525.22, while the NSE Nifty 50 closed 15.25 points or 0.06% lower at 24,509.25. Bank Nifty closed in the green, 63 points or 0.12% higher at 52,328.60. Similarly, Nifty Midcap 100 closed 707.50 points or 1.27% higher at 56,615.80. Power stocks traded higher in the muted market. Power and Instrumentation(Gujarat) was up 5%, India Power Corporation was up 4.89%, Hitachi Energy India was up 3.84%, NTPC was up 2.68%, and other power companies were bucking the trend.