QBiz: Reliance Calls off Aircel Deal; RBI Might Put Rates on Hold

The Quint brings some of the top business stories for the day.

The RBI headquarters in Mumbai. 

(Photo: Reuters)

1. Reliance Communications Calls Off Merger With Aircel

Reliance Communications Ltd on Sunday called off its merger with Aircel after the pact with the Maxis Group company lapsed, putting the focus back on its ability to repay loans as the telecom operator was banking on the deal to pare part of its debt.

“Legal and regulatory uncertainties, and various interventions by vested interests, have caused inordinate delays” in receiving approvals for the merger, the carrier said in a stock exchange filing. The company will consider an alternative plan to cut debt by sharing spectrum and selling real estate assets, it said.

(Source: BloombergQuint)

2. RBI Likely to Keep Rates on Hold

Despite slowing growth, the Reserve Bank of India may cite rising pressures on the retail inflation front to hold the repo rate at this week’s monetary policy review.

A majority of the six members of the rate-setting monetary policy committee (MPC) are likely to vote status quo to rein in inflation, which is expected to nudge up going forward, given the lower output of key summer (kharif) crops and rising global crude prices.

The RBI last reduced the repo rate (the interest rate at which banks borrow funds from the RBI to overcome short-term liquidity mismatches) from 6.25 per cent to 6 per cent in the third bi-monthly monetary policy review on 2 August.

(Source: The Hindu Business Line)

3. Saubhagya Scheme May Provide Base for India's Energy Shift

The recently launched Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya) will provide the architecture through which the government seeks to reduce import of fossil fuels, boost underutilized power plants and meet its climate change commitments.

By providing universal access to electricity under the scheme, the government plans to leverage the same to promote induction cooking, heating and charging electric vehicles, apart from the initial target of providing lighting.

This, in turn, will reduce India’s energy imports and generate fresh demand for electricity in the country.

(Source: Livemint)

4. August Data Points to Early Signs of Revival in Economic Growth

Several sectoral indicators for the month of August point to early signs of a revival in economic growth, which slowed to 5.7% in the June quarter, according to analysts.

The improvements suggest that the aftershocks of demonetisation and the roll out of the goods and services tax (GST) are wearing off.

Sales of two-wheelers, commercial vehicles and tractors, power generation, steel production, airport traffic and fund-raising from equity markets by businesses reported faster annual growth in August than in the previous month.

(Source: Livemint)

5. Jet Fuel Price up 6%; May Lead to Hike in Airfares

State-run oil marketing companies on Sunday increased aviation turbine fuel (ATF) price by 6 per cent, the third straight rise since August. The revision adds to the cost pressure of airlines and could lead to rise in fares.

Also, cooking gas price was hiked by Rs 1.50 a cylinder in line with the government’s decision to raise rates every month to eliminate subsidies by March. A subsidised 14.2-kg LPG cylinder will cost Rs 488.68 in Delhi from Sunday, as against Rs 487.18 previously.

(Source: Business Standard)

6. Damages Against TCS Halved to $420 Million in US Trade Secrets Case

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd said a US court has reduced damages imposed on India’s largest information technology services provider by more than half in a trade secrets case with American software firm Epic Systems Corp.

The US Western District Court in Wisconsin reduced the damages to $420 million from $940 million granted by a jury verdict in April last year, the company said in its stock exchange filing. The reduced damages awarded are not supported by evidence presented during the trial and a strong appeal can be made to superior court to fully set aside the jury verdict, it said.

(Source: BloombergQuint)

7. ASUS to Focus on High-End Phones

ASUSTek Computers, the Taiwanese company that sells handsets under the ASUS brand, is changing its strategy for the highly competitive smartphone market in India by narrowing its focus on Rs 10,000-30,000 price category, and exiting the sub-Rs 10,000 space to compete better with aggressive Chinese companies like Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo.

“We do see that the competition in the market is actually very tough with the aggressive approach by Chinese competitors in the last few months. They are much bigger. If we don’t focus, then we lose to them,” Peter Chang, regional director, South Asia and country manager India at ASUS, told ET.

(Source: Economic Times)

8. Hyundai's Sales Rise 17 Percent in September

Hyundai Motor India Ltd’s sales rose on the demand for its new Verna variant in September.

Domestic sales increased 17.4 percent to 50,028 units compared to the year-ago month, a company statement said on Sunday.

Sales were boosted by the success of the newly launched Verna, Rakesh Srivastava, director, sales and marketing, said. Over 6,000 units of the mid-sized sedan were sold during last month, he said.

(Source: PTI)

9. Festive Season Sales: Over 3k Flipkart Sellers Sold Goods Beyond Rs 10 Lakh

While e-commerce marketplace Flipkart might have outsold rival Amazon by a factor of two in the largest sale of this festival season, sellers embedded on the platform, too, witnessed their best-selling days this year.

Flipkart has claimed that, this year, over 3,000 sellers saw sales exceed the Rs 10-lakh-mark in the five-day sale period that ended last week. Moreover, its dominance in the market meant sellers saw 70 per cent of their e-commerce demand being driven by Flipkart alone.

(Source: Business Standard)