1. Snapdeal Posts Rs 4,647 Crore Net Loss in 2016-17
E-commerce firm Snapdeal saw its losses mounting to Rs 4,647 crore for the fiscal ending March 2017, impacted by a provision for "impairment of goodwill" of Rs 1,797 crore.
According to regulatory filing, to the corporate affairs ministry, Jasper Infotech, which runs Snapdeal, had registered a net loss of Rs 3,340 crore in 2015-16.
The company's total income also declined by 12.6 percent to Rs 1,291.3 crore in FY2017 from Rs 1,478.2 crore in the previous year.
When contacted, Snapdeal spokesperson said the financial statement for the year 2016-17 "reflects the first stage of Snapdeal's focus on unit economics and business efficiencies".
(Source: PTI)
2. Shoppers Stop Aims 10% Sales From Its Omni Channel in Next 3 Years
Shoppers Stop hopes to corner 10 percent of its sales from its online channel in the next three years as the K Raheja group retail chain is betting big on its omni-channel system.
Shoppers Stop, in which US-based online retail giant Amazon picked up 5 percent stake last year, is expecting to be debt free this fiscal and has plans to add more stores in its network by going to tier II cities such as Guwahati, Pune, Bhubaneswar, Calicut and Nashik.
"This year, we would cross one percent of overall sales (online Omni) and then would continue to double every year for the next three years," Shoppers Stop Customer Care Associate and Managing Director Govind Shrikhande told PTI.
(Source: PTI)
3. Govt to Monetise 2 More Bundles of Highway Projects in May
After adding USD 1.6 billion to its kitty, the government is eyeing more than USD 2 billion by placing two more bundles of road projects under hammer next month, a top official has said.
"We will be bringing the next two tranches of highway projects for monetisation under TOT (toll, operate and transfer) in May," NHAI Chairman Deepak Kumar told PTI. Kumar said about 18 to 20 highway projects will be auctioned under TOT next month in two tranches that are expected to fetch over USD 2 billion. "For the entire year, we have fixed a target of about four tranches," he added.
The first bundle for monetisation, released by NHAI in October 2017 covered 9 stretches – five highways running across Andhra Pradesh and four in Gujarat. An official had earlier said detailed project reports (DPRs) are being formulated for about 25 more highway projects.
(Source: PTI)
4. Price Hikes Inevitable From June: Godrej Appliances
Rising input costs due to a strengthening of the dollar and increase in oil prices will make price hikes of consumer durable products inevitable from June, Godrej Appliances said.
“With the rise in US dollar and oil prices, inputs costs for the companies has gone up.. price hike (of consumer durables) is inevitable,” Godrej Appliances Business Head and Executive Vice President Kamal Nandi told PTI.
When asked about the quantum of the hike by Godrej Appliances, he said: “We are observing the price movements. The quantum of price hike will depend on how the US dollar and oil prices move. US dollar at over Rs 66 against rupee is already high. The price hike will happen after June when we have to order for new inventory.”
Nandi said the percentage of imported components in a finished product could range from 10-15 percent to as high as 50-60 percent.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
5. Govt Notifies Rules To Operationalise Fugitive Economic Offenders Law
Showing urgency in dealing with absconding loan defaulters, the government has come out with series of rules to operationalise the fugitive economic offenders law, for which an ordinance was promulgated by the President last week.
The Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance, 2018, is aimed at deterring economic offenders from evading the process of law by remaining outside the jurisdiction of Indian courts. The law seeks to expedite recovery of losses incurred by banks and other entities by confiscating their properties.
As per one of the notifications, only officers of the rank of Assistant Directors or above in the Enforcement Directorate could exercise power to search and seize record/property which may be useful for proceedings under the fugitive law.
Special Directors of Enforcement of ED's regional offices will function as administrator of confiscated properties, said another notification.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
6. Gems and Jewellery Exports Dip 8% in 2017-18
The country’s gems and jewellery exports contracted by 8 percent to about $32.72 billion in 2017-18 owing to demand slowdown in major markets, including the US.
According to the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) data, exports stood at $35.47 billion in 2016-17. The labour-intensive sector contributes about 14 percent to the country's overall export.
The drop in shipments is mainly due to negative growth in the export of silver jewellery; gold medallions and coins along with a sharp rise in the return of consignments. The industry has asked for support concerning increasing incentives under the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme to boost the shipments.
Exporters have also flagged concerns over blockage of working capital due to Goods and Services Tax, which is impacting exports. As per the data, silver jewellery shipments in 2017-18 dipped by 15.8 percent to $3.39 billion.Similarly, export of gold medallions and coins contracted by about 63.56 percent during the last financial year.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
7. Railways to Push 99-Year Lease Proposal for Station Redevelopment
Despite the Finance Ministry’s objections, Indian Railways is pushing ahead with a proposal to involve the private sector in redeveloping 600 stations on an extended 99-year lease – as opposed to the 45-year lease proposed earlier for 400 stations.
The Railways will seek Cabinet approval for its amended proposal at a time key initiatives of the national transporter, such as 100 percent electrification, installation of European train control systems and free Wi-Fi at all stations, among others, have not found favour with the Prime Minister's Office.
The initial proposal for redevelopment of 400 stations on a 45-year lease was made when Suresh Prabhu was Railway Minister. However, the proposal did not receive a good response in terms of bidders.
(Source: IANS)
8. 56% Indian Business Leaders Interested in Overseas Deals: Survey
Despite the 2019 general elections, almost 56 percent of Indian business leaders are more interested in overseas deal making in the coming 12 months than they were in the past year, a survey said.
According to Baker McKenzie's Doing Business Globally survey, while only 11 percent are less interested, almost 33 percent of business leaders have the same level of interest.
The survey said while Indian businesses are primarily looking for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) opportunities domestically (42 percent), a quarter of respondents said the wider Asia Pacific region is their top target, with 16 percent looking to North America.
"This is something of a shift, as North America has until recently been a firm favourite for Indian companies looking to buy abroad, less so Asia Pacific," it noted.
The views were gathered as part of the survey of Indian business leaders at events in Bengaluru and Mumbai where more than 200 of India's top business people were surveyed on their dealmaking sentiments as well as the impact technology was having on their decision making.
(Source: IANS)
9. RBI Moves To Ease Pressure On Short Term Yields
The Reserve Bank of India has eased rules for foreign investments in government and corporate bonds, reversing, in some cases, rules imposed in the aftermath of the global taper tantrum of 2013.
Most importantly, the central bank has allowed foreign investors to invest in shorter tenure bonds, which should allow short term rates to fall, said bond market participants. The move could also bring some relief to the Indian rupee, which has fallen more than 4 percent so far this year.
Rates in India have risen sharply due to pressures on government finances and concerns around inflation. In recent weeks, the increase in rates has been more evident in the case of shorter term borrowings, particularly for corporates. Local and global volatility in rates has also reduced foreign investor interest.
Foreign investors have been net sellers of Indian debt for two consecutive months now. This, in turn, has been partly responsible for the weakness in the Indian currency.
(Source: BloombergQuint)
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