Weekly News Roundup at 10:00 am on 29th June, 2024

Let’s begin with the major update, The government is developing a “Labour Welfare and Employment Index” (LWEI), which would rank states/UTs on parameters of employment, labour welfare, social security coverage, and productivity. Through the index, it aims to encourage “healthy competition” between the states, and enhance ease of doing business, official sources told FE. The labour ministry is likely to unveil the LWEI in a few weeks, after consultations with the states, NITI Aayog, the International Labour Organisation (ILO), and other union ministries, the sources added. An official said the index would ensure uniformity in labour laws’ implementation across states, and will have the broader objective of improving labour welfare. The plan may be announced by the finance minister Nirmala Sitharman in her Budget speech.

Next up, Wipro saw a sharp decline in its female workforce, shrinking to 68,231 employees in fiscal year 2024 from 90,721 the previous year — a drop of 22,490 employees, according to the company’s annual report. This decline coincides with Wipro’s overall workforce reduction, which saw a year-on-year decrease of 24,516 employees, bringing their total headcount to 234,054 as of March 31. This downturn reflects broader industry trends, where Wipro experienced a consecutive quarterly decline over the past five quarters, marking a significant departure from previous years of steady growth. Wipro is not alone in facing a reduction in workforce diversity. Industry peers such as Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) also reported declines in their female employee numbers and their overall headcount.

Furthermore, The shares of CarTrade Tech dropped over 3% as 71 lakh shares, representing 15.1% of the company’s equity and valued at Rs 588.3 crore, changed hands in block deals at Rs 828 per share on the NSE. The stock reached an intraday low of Rs 826.05, marking a decline of 3.70%. Media reports on Sunday revealed that Highdell Investment and MacRitchie Investments Pte had initiated a block trade in CarTrade Tech. Reports indicated that the block deal was valued at Rs 400 crore, with an option to increase by an additional Rs 100 crore. The transaction included a lock-up period of 75 days. The block deal’s total base size was set at 10.4% of CarTrade Tech’s total equity.

Additionally, After a moderate sales growth in the first quarter of 2024, infotech hubs of Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru are seeing decline or even flat growth in residential property sales during the current quarter. While Hyderabad and Pune have seen the highest decline among the top cities at 20% and 15%, respectively, sales remained flat in Bengaluru, according to data by PropEquity. In the January-March quarter, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune saw growth of 6%, 18% and 1%, respectively. Samir Jasuja, CEO & MD, PropEquity, attributed the fall to election, huge amount of launches in previous quarters and a sluggish Q2. Some experts believe that there could be other factors at play too.

Moving on, India’s digital currency, the e-rupee, has seen a significant decline in usage, dropping to just one-tenth of its peak in December, Reuters reported, citing four sources. The Reserve Bank of India initiated a pilot for the e-rupee in December 2022, positioning it as a digital substitute for physical currency. By December 2023, the pilot had achieved its target of 1 million retail transactions per day. However, sources directly involved in the pilot project now report a sharp decline, with daily transactions plummeting to around 100,000. The ongoing transactions are partly sustained by banks disbursing benefits to their employees via the e-rupee.

Furthermore, The Adani Group plans to invest Rs 1.3 trillion in FY25 across its businesses, said Jugeshinder ‘Robbie’ Singh, group chief financial officer, on Tuesday. Bulk of the investments will be made in the airport and green energy sector, added Singh. The funding plan for these projects includes raising equity capital of up to $3 billion (Rs 25,000 crore) across Adani Enterprises and other group portfolio companies, he said. Adani Enterprises and Adani Transmission have already taken shareholders’ clearances to sell shares to investors. The group is planning to refinance debt worth $3 billion in the ongoing year. The CFO also said some of the notices sent by the Sebi last month to group firms, citing alleged regulatory lapses, as “trivial” in nature.

Lastly, UltraTech Cement announced that the company board has approved the acquisition of approximately 23 per cent equity stake in India Cements. In a regulatory filing, the company stated that it intends to acquire 7.06 crore shares of India Cements at Rs 267 per share. This takes the total cost of acquisition to Rs 1885 crore. Quote The Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held today approved making a financial investment to purchase upto 7.06 crores equity shares of The India Cements Limited, a company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act, 1913, having its registered office at Dhun Building, 827, Anna Salai, Chennai 600 002, at a price of upto Rs 267 per share unquote it said in the exchange filing.