Weekly News Roundup at 10:00 am on 28th April, 2024

Let’s begin. Adani Group will invest about Rs 2.3 lakh crore through 2030 in India’s most ambitious renewable energy expansion and solar and wind manufacturing capacity addition ever as it shrugs off a short-seller attack to pursue its trademark rapid growth plans. Additionally, Adani Green Energy will invest about Rs 1.5 lakh crore in expanding capacity to generate electricity from solar energy and wind power at Khavda in Gujarat’s Kutch to 30 gigawatts from 2 GW currently and another Rs 50,000 crore in 6-7 GW of similar projects elsewhere in the country, a top company official said. Adani New Industries Ltd will invest close to Rs 30,000 crore in expanding solar cell and wind turbine manufacturing capacity at Mundra in Gujarat.
Meanwhile, India’s coal imports increased by 13% to 21.64 million tonnes in February. This is as per online marketplace mjunction. In the corresponding month in FY23, the nation imported 19.15 MT. Of the total imports in February, non-coking coal imports increased to 13.77 MT compared to 11.68 MT imported in the year-ago period. The country’s coal import also went up to 244.27 MT in the April-February period of FY24 over 227.93 MT in the year-ago period, the online marketplace said. mjunction added that coking coal volume was 4.56 MT, against 4.40 MT imported in February 2023. During the April-February period of FY24, non-coking coal import was at 160.63 MT, higher than 148.58 MT imported in the same period of FY23.
Moving on. Debt-ridden Vodafone Idea had said that its board has approved raising of Rs 2,075 crore from one of its promoters, Aditya Birla Group, and increasing its authorised share capital to Rs 1 trillion. The approvals are part of the company’s plans to raise Rs 20,000 crore of capital to fund its operations and lower its debt burden. The company will seek shareholders’ approval at an extraordinary general meeting on May 8 on the proposals, it said in a regulatory filing. The promoter’s infusion is part of Vodafone Idea’s broader two-part fundraising plan totaling Rs 45,000 crore through a mix of equity and debt. It plans to raise Rs 20,000 crore via equity by June-end.
Over to market. The National Stock Exchange of India is looking into alleged manipulations in SME market following the comments by the Securities and Exchange Board of India chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch a few weeks ago, a senior official said. In March, Buch had flagged signs of manipulation in the initial public offering and share trading in the SME segment of capital markets. The official said, quote, “We are looking into SME manipulation claims by SEBI. We’ll the complete the process as per the requirement,” unquote. Earlier in September, NSE had announced that it was bringing in stocks in SME market under the framework of Additional Surveillance Measure and Trade-to-Trade settlement, noting alleged manipulation and high speculation in the market.
In some more market news, the National Stock Exchange of India this week cautioned investors against deepfake videos of its chief executive office giving stock recommendations. In a release, the NSE said that it has identified deepfake investment and stock advisory videos that have used the face and voice of CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan and also the NSE logo. The exchange said, quote, “Such videos seem to have been created using sophisticated technologies to imitate the voice and facial expressions of Shri Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD & CEO of NSE,” unquote. NSE said that its officials are not authorised to recommend or deal in any stocks. The video contained false statements intended to mislead investors while also manipulating the stock market.
Over to technology. 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 in a notification said, quote,” Although it’s never possible to achieve absolute certainty when detecting such attacks, Apple has high confidence in this warning — please take it seriously,” unqoute.
Lastly, the auto sector. Fashion Brand Huem and motorcycle brand Royal Enfield have collaborated for a fusion of the motorcycling culture and high-street fashion to introduce ‘A Shot of Mumbai’- a collection of apparel and helmets inspired by Royal Enfield Hunter 350. This collaboration was launched on April 10, 2024. The Huem aesthetics inspire the design with bold graphics and colors like electric blues and fiery reds to an array of peppy hues, each design echoes the soul of Mumbai and the kaleidoscope of art. It symbolizes the spirit of exploration and a venture into unchartered territories, whether personal style or the pursuit of life on two wheels.