QBiz: BK Birla Passes Away at 98; India’s Trade Deficit Widens
Catch up on the latest business round-up of the day.
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1. India's Trade Deficit Widened With 25 Major Countries in 3 Years
India's trade deficit, the difference between imports and exports, has widened during the past three years with as many as 25 major countries including South Korea, Japan, Germany, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, Parliament was informed on Wednesday, 3 July.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha that trade deficit depends upon relative fluctuations in the imports and exports of different commodities due to the global and domestic factors such as demand and supply, currency fluctuations, cost of credit, and logistics costs.
(Source: PTI)
2. BK Birla, Doyen of Indian Industry, Dies at 98
Basant Kumar Birla, chairman of the BK Birla Group and grandfather of industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla, died on Wednesday, 3 July, in Mumbai. He was 98.
BK Birla, or Basant babu as he was fondly called in business circles, was born on 12 January 1921. He was industrialist and philanthropist Ghanshyam Das Birla’s youngest son.
Soon after completing his matriculation exam from Kolkata’s legendary Hare School in 1936, BK Birla was inducted into the family business, specifically in Kesoram Industries Ltd. His father ensured that BK Birla got a feel for the business by starting out at the bottom and working his way up.
(Source: Hindustan Times)
3. Indian Entities Supplying US Technologies to Huawei May Face Penal Action: Govt
Indian entities that will supply US-origin technology components to Chinese telecom major Huawei may face penal action under American regulations, Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said in Parliament Wednesday, 3 July.
"Any Indian company which will act as a supplier of US-origin equipment, software, technology to Huawei and its affiliates in entity list could be subject to penal action/sanction under US regulations," Telecom Minister Prasad said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
(Source: PTI)
4. New Industrial Policy Set to Be Unveiled in Budget
India’s much-awaited new industrial policy is expected to be part of Friday’s Union budget, centering around the Make In India theme to re-industrialise the economy and create manufacturing jobs.
The industrial policy will include incentives to make India a manufacturing and exports hub at a time global manufacturers, troubled by the US-China trade war, are looking beyond Asia’s biggest economy, a government official aware of the development said on condition of anonymity.
(Source: Livemint)
5. India Urges Russia to Consider Energy Consuming Nations’ Interest
India on Wednesday, 3 July, urged its long time ally Russia to take into account the interest of energy consuming nations during its engagement with Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
This was articulated by India’s petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan during a telephone call with Russia’s energy minister Alexander Novak after the OPEC plus arrangement extended its compact for production cuts.
(Source: Livemint)
6. Dish TV Promoters May Cash out for Rs 5,000 Cr, Bharti Airtel to Pick Stake
The promoters of direct-to-home (DTH) service provider Dish TV will be exiting the business by selling their stake to Airtel Digital TV, the DTH arm of telecom giant Bharti Airtel. Sources in the know said Bharti Airtel was likely to partner with private equity major Warburg Pincus and pay Rs 45-50 a share to the Goel family, the promoters of Dish TV, who would receive between Rs 4,800 crore and Rs 5,300 crore.
The sources said Airtel wanted to merge Dish TV with itself, which it would do through a share swap after acquiring the promoters’ stake, and an open offer for 20 percent shareholding.
(Source: Business Standard)
7. FMCGs Say Q1 Growth to Remain Dull on Subdued Consumption, Liquidity Crunch
Some of the country’s leading consumer goods companies have indicated in the just-released quarterly updates that the demand environment remains sluggish in the April-June period. The statements come after the sector saw its worst slowdown in two years in the March quarter.
Many were hoping for a revival in sentiment following the general elections, but that isn’t the case as Godrej Consumer (GCPL) and Marico on Wednesday said demand conditions were challenging in Q1, impacted by a general consumption slowdown.
(Source: Business Standard)
8. Service Sector Shrinks for First Time in 13 Months, PMI Falls to 49.6
Service sector, the dominating area of the country’s economy, shrank for the first time in 13 months in June, due to weak sales and high taxation, showed the widely-tracked Nikkei purchasing managers’ index (PMI).
PMI fell to 49.6 points in June, down from 50.2 in May due to broadly stagnant sales, showed the data, which came ahead of Economic Survey for FY19 and Union Budget for FY20.
In PMI parlance, a print above 50 means expansion, while a score below that denotes contraction.
(Source: Business Standard)
9. Gold Discounts to Charm Consumers After Prices Hit All-Time High
Tepid demand for gold is weighing on the yellow metal prices as the retailers are selling gold at a discount after the gold prices hit an all-time high last week.
While the international factors are supporting the gold prices, the domestic factors don’t seem to help the gold prices on account of delayed monsoon, time for the arrival of the festive season and high prices.
Although the industry is demanding import duty cut, the experts don’t expect the government to cut import duty on gold prices as it doesn’t have enough leeway to go for a rate cut in view of revenue collection.
(Source: Financial Express)
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