QBiz: Non-subsidised LPG Price Reduced by Over Rs 100 & More

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(Photo: Reuters)

1. Non-Subsidised LPG Price Reduced by Over Rs 100 Per Cylinder

The price of non-subsidised LPG on Sunday, 30 June, was cut by over Rs 100 per cylinder on the back of softening international rates, Indian Oil Corp (IOC) said.

The cooking gas in Delhi will be priced at Rs 637 per cylinder from midnight tonight as against Rs 737.50 currently, IOC said in a statement.

Subsidised cooking gas price will be Rs 494.35 per cylinder.

(Source: PTI)

2. Government to Introduce Further Reforms in GST on 1 July to Mark 2 Years of Rollout

Kicking off celebration to mark two years of the GST implementation, the finance ministry will on Monday, 1 July, come up with further reforms in the indirect tax system with introduction of new return system, rationalisation of cash ledger system and a single refund-disbursing mechanism, among others.

Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur will preside over the event alongside key secretaries and officials of various departments, the finance ministry said in a release on Sunday, 30 June.

The introduction of GST was a game changer for the Indian economy as it has replaced multi-layered, complex indirect tax structure with a simple, transparent and technology-driven tax regime, it said. The ministry said it will introduce the new return system on a trial basis from 1 July and on mandatory basis from 1 October.

(Source: PTI)

3. Finance Ministry to Monitor Rate-Cut Transmission by Public Sector Banks

The finance ministry is closely monitoring the transmission of monetary policy rates at public sector banks (PSBs) and is collating data on the lending rate cuts effected by banks, following a series of rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), a finance ministry official said.

Sources said the concerns related to slower monetary rate transmission were raised in the 20th meeting of the Financial Stability and Development Council, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, on 19 June, where all the financial regulators were present.

(Source: Business Standard)

4. India Slips to 74th Rank in Terms of Money Parked With Swiss Banks, UK Retains Top Slot

An analysis of the latest annual banking statistics released by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) shows that India remains ranked very low when it comes to money parked by Indian individuals and enterprises in Swiss banks, including through their India-based branches, while accounting for just about 0.07 percent of the aggregate funds parked by all foreign clients of Switzerland-based banks.

In comparison, the top-ranked UK accounted for more than 26 per cent of the total foreign funds parked with Swiss banks at the end of 2018.

Among the top-ranked jurisdictions, the UK is followed by the US, West Indies, France and Hong Kong in the top five.

The top-five countries alone account for more than 50 percent of the aggregate foreign funds parked with the Swiss banks, while the top-10 account for nearly two-thirds.

(Source: PTI)

5. FII Inflows in First Half of 2019 at Highest in 5 Years

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have been aggressive on Indian equities in the first six months of 2019 despite increased volatility and uncertainty around the elections.

FIIs were net buyers of local equities worth $11.41 billion between January and June, the most since the corresponding period of 2014, when they had invested forex worth $9.91 billion. In the six months ended December 2018, FIIs saw an outflow of $3.78 billion. The outflow in January to June 2018 was $681 million.

The inflows, however, did not kick-start on a strong note. FIIs were net sellers in Indian equities worth $75.35 million in January. The pace of foreign money inflows started picking from February and, over the following five months, FIIs invested $11.5 billion. In June alone, FIIs were net buyers of $231.45 million in equities.

(Source: Hindustan Times)

6. Labour Ministry, EPFO May Stick With 8.65 Percent Rate for FY19

India’s retirement fund manager and the Union labour ministry will defend the interest rate that was promised to 60 million subscribers earlier this year despite the finance ministry’s concern that the rate is too high, at least three officials familiar with the development said.

The Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and the ministry will convince and communicate the decision to retain the 8.65 percent rate to “higher ups", the officials cited above said on condition of anonymity.

(Source: Livemint)

7. Air India to Raise Rs 22,000 Cr From Bond Market, Restructure Balance Sheet

State-owned carrier Air India will hit the bond market to raise Rs 22,000 crore as it looks to restructure its balance sheet before being put up for sale. The fundraising, to be backed partly by a sovereign guarantee, will be done in two tranches of Rs 7,000 crore and Rs 15,000 crore, and used to repay a group of Indian and foreign lenders to whom the airline owes almost Rs 58,000 crore.

SBI Caps, the investment bank subsidiary of State Bank of India, has been roped in as advisor to the process, which is the highest fundraising by the company.

(Source: Business Standard)

8. Indian Startups Raise a Record $3.9 Billion so Far in 2019

Startups in India have raised a record $3.9 billion from venture capitalists in the six months ended 30 June, as the world’s biggest investors doubled down on their bets in the country buoyed by the Flipkart-Walmart deal last year.

The investments this year across 292 deals is a 44.4 percent jump from the $2.7 billion received by domestic startups in the first half of 2018, showed data from Venture Intelligence, a startup data tracker.

The investments in 2019 are also comparable to the full-year investments of $4.2 billion and $4.3 billion in 2016 and 2017, respectively, indicating the surge of capital allocation in the past six months.

(Source: Livemint)

9. Bank of Baroda Buys ₹3,000 Crore DHFL Loans

Bank of Baroda (BoB) has entered into a transaction with Dewan Housing Finance Corp. Ltd (DHFL) to acquire loans worth ₹3,000 crore against its exposure to the non-bank lender, even as a lenders’ consortium to the stressed non-bank lender considers a resolution plan, two people aware of the development said.

BoB acquired the pool of loans made by DHFL and adjusted it against its loans to the non-bank lender, the people said, requesting anonymity. Since the acquired loans are higher-rated assets, the quality of BoB’s loanbook will improve.

(Source: Livemint)