Business News at 05:30 pm on 24th November 2023

Reducing import duties on inputs and capital goods could help the government cut down the need for many of the existing export schemes, think tank GTRI said. This would be an important step as India continues to face challenges in managing these incentives within the framework of international trade laws, it said. The Global Trade Research Initiative said that many countries, including major trade partners of India like the European Union and the US continue to declare Indian schemes as subsidies and “punish” exporters by charging countervailing duties. America and the EU account for over 20 per cent of the country’s total outbound shipments. At present, India is implementing many schemes to facilitate exports ehich aim to enhance Indian products’ competitiveness in the global market.
Meanwhile, Jagatjit Industries Limited reported its Financial Year 24 second quarter’s profit from continuing operations at Rs 4.33 crore, up from Rs 42 lakh in September 2022. The total revenue reached Rs 368.23 crore, representing a substantial increase of 21.90 per cent compared to last year. On a standalone basis, Jagatjit Industries reported a profit of Rs 4.25 crore during the second quarter of FY24, up 272.8 per cent. It posted revenue from operations at Rs 179.02 crore, up 7.4 per cent as against Rs 166.69 crore during the same period last year. The company EBITDA for H1Y 23-24 reached Rs 25.04 crore, reflecting substantial growth of 58 per cent compared to Rs 15.85 crore in the year-to-date period ending September 2022.
Moving on. India may struggle to raise even half the proceeds it had targeted from planned sales of state-run firms this year. The government may fall short of its divestment goal by 300 billion rupees in 2023/24, two government sources told Reuters. New Delhi had targeted 510 billion rupees from divestment proceeds for the current fiscal year that ends March, 2024. In 2023/24, about 300 billion of the 510 billion rupees target was expected through stake sales in IDBI Bank and the privatisation of state-owned NMDC Steel. However, delays in vetting of interested buyers for IDBI by the RBI have stretched the sale timeline beyond the 2024 elections. The sale of NMDC Steel will not conclude this year due to elections next summer.
Over to economy. China exported more rice to the Ivory Coast in the three months through October than in the whole of 2022 after India restricted shipments of the grain, with those curbs likely to extend into next year. The Asian nation shipped 45,000 tons to the African country in October, matching the volume exported in August, customs data compiled by Bloomberg show. The Ivory Coast was the fourth-biggest buyer of non-basmati rice from India in the year 2022-23, according to Indian government data. Top shipper India ramped up its curbs on overseas sales from late July and is expected to maintain those restrictions into next year to contain local prices ahead of an election.
In other news, British investment managers have got the go-ahead to develop tokenised funds, in which assets are split into smaller tokens backed by blockchain technology, the industry’s trade body said on Friday. Tokenisation, or fractionalisation, of funds will enable a fund’s assets to trade more cheaply and transparently and investors to buy into a wider range of assets, industry proponents say. Funds authorised by Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority can take the first steps towards offering tokenised funds, provided the investments are in mainstream assets and valuation and settlement arrangements don’t change, the Investment Association said in a statement. Britain is looking to bolster liquidity in its asset management sector in a revamp of its rules following Brexit.
Now, some developments from infra sector. The National High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited, overseeing the development of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor, has reported the completion of 100 kilometers of viaducts and 230 kilometers of pier work for this ambitious project. The NHSRCL achieved the 100-kilometer viaduct construction milestone through the deployment of the ‘Full Span Launching technique’, utilizing 40-meter long ‘full span box girders’ and ‘segmental girders.’ For those unaware, this advanced method is ten times faster than the conventional span-by-span technique, which is typically used in metro viaduct construction. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw shared a video on platform X to share information about this significant achievement.
Lastly, let’s see how the share market performed today. The benchmark equity indices closed Friday’s trading session in negative territory. The NSE Nifty 50 ended down by 7.30 points or 0.04% to settle at 19,790.55, while the BSE Sensex ended down by 47.77 points or 0.07% to 65,970.04. The broader indices ended largely mixed, with gain led by Smallcap and Midcap stocks. Bank Nifty index gained over 191.60 points or 0.44% to settle at 43,769.10. Healthcare and Banking stocks gained among the other sectoral indices while IT and FMCG stocks shed.