Benchmark indices end mixed
Market benchmarks Sensex and Nifty ended on a mixed note after a volatile session on Friday, with gains in Reliance Industries offsetting losses in other heavyweights HDFC, ICICI Bank and TCS.
After hitting a record intra-day high of 42,063.93, the 30-share BSE Sensex settled 12.81 points, or 0.03%, higher at 41,945.37.
The broader NSE Nifty, however, ended 3.15 points, or 0.03%, down at 12,352.35.
TCS Q3 net profit marginally up at ₹8,118 cr.
The country’s largest software services major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Friday reported a muted 0.2% growth in consolidated net profit at ₹8,118 crore for the third quarter ended December 2019.
This is against a net profit of ₹8,105 crore in the year-ago period, TCS said in a BSE filing.
Revenue of the city-based firm grew 6.7% in the quarter under review to ₹39,854 crore from ₹37,338 crore in the corresponding period of the last fiscal, it added.
“We saw the sectoral trends of the first half of the year continue to play out in the third quarter. Our robust order book during the quarter reflects our ability to pitch innovative technology solutions to address the business needs of different stakeholders in the enterprise, and participate in our customers’ enterprise-wide transformation initiatives,” TCS CEO and managing director Rajesh Gopinathan said in a statement.
This is helping deepen and broaden the company’s customer relationships and make the business more resilient, he added.
The TCS board has declared a third interim dividend of ₹5 per equity Share of Re 1 each of the company.- PTI
China's Great Wall agrees to buy General Motors' India plant
Chinese made Great Wall cars are displayed at a car dealership in Sydney, Australia, Thursday, Aug. 16, 2012. An Australian importer, which imports the cars made by Great Wall Motor Co. and Chery Automobile, recalled 23,000 Chinese-made cars after asbestos was found inside engine and exhaust gaskets, the nation's consumer watchdog said Wednesday. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)
Chinese automaker Great Wall Motor has agreed to buy General Motors' (GM) car plant in the western Indian state of Maharashtra, two sources aware of the matter said, setting in motion its plan to build cars in the country.
Great Wall, one of the biggest sellers of sports-utility vehicles (SUV) in China, is expected to pay about $250 million to $300 million to acquire the plant, one of the sources said.
The deal, which the sources said could be announced as early as Friday, will give a jumpstart to Great Wall's plans to build and sell cars in India and is likely to pave the way for GM's exit from manufacturing cars in the country. Reuters
Renault reports 3.4% fall in 2019 global sales as China weighs
French automaker Renault on Friday reported a 3.4% fall in 2019 worldwide sales to 3.75 million vehicles despite growth in Europe.
Sales grew by 1.3% to 1.94 million units in Europe but fell 17.2% in China, the automaker said in a statement.
Sales fell by 19.3% in Africa, Middle East, India and the Pacific region.
French rival PSA on Thursday reported a 10% fall in 2019 global sales to 3.49 million units, down from a record 3.88 million, hurt by falls in China, the Middle East and Africa. Reuters
Piramal Enterprises unit to divest its healthcare analytics business
Piramal Enterprises' Dutch unit has agreed to divest its stake in the healthcare insights and analytics business Decision Resources Group to U.S.-based Clarivate Analytics plc for $950 million, according to an exchange filing.
The deal is expected to be completed by next month. The revenue from the healthcare insights and analytics business was Rs. 1,330.74 crores for the financial year ended March 31, 2019, it said.
Adani, Azure top bidders for manufacturing-linked solar tender
Adani Green Energy and Azure Power have emerged as successful bidders in Solar Energy Corporation of India’s first manufacturing-linked solar tender, a top government official said on Friday.
Adani has bid for 1.5 GW solar cell manufacturing capacity and 6 GW generation capacity, MNRE Secretary Anand Kumar said on the sidelines of India Energy Forum-Renewable Energy Summit here.
He also said that Azure Power bid for 500 MW solar cell manufacturing capacity and 2 GW generation capacity. PTI
Amazon promises 1 mln new jobs in India amid tensions with govt
Amazon.com Inc said on Friday it planned to create 1 million jobs in India by 2025, a day after the country's trade minister said the e-commerce giant's recently unveiled $1 billion investment in the country was no big favour.
Amazon said it would create new jobs in India through investments in infrastructure, technology and logistics.
“We are investing to create a million new jobs here in India over the next five years,” Amazon Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos said in a statement. Reuters
Alphabet becomes 4th U.S. company to hit $1 trillion mark
Sundar Pichai-led Alphabet, Google’s parent company, has joined the elitist club of U.S. companies with $1 trillion valuation , which includes Apple, Microsoft and Amazon.
The stock of the company closed at $1,451.70 on Thursday, taking the value to $1 trillion.
iPhone maker Apple was the first U.S. company to hit the $1 trillion threshold in 2018.
According to CNBC, analysts are bullish on the company’s newly appointed CEO Pichai. IANS
Moody’s places Yes Bank’s ratings under review; direction uncertain
Moody's investors service has placed Yes Bank's long-term foreign currency issuer rating of B2 under review as the bank's viability is increasingly challenged by its slowness in raising capital, it said.
The rating agency has also placed the bank's long-term foreign and local currency bank deposit ratings of B2, and its foreign currency senior unsecured MTN program rating of (P)B2, under review, with the direction uncertain.
Yes Bank is in discussions with a number of investors to raise new equity capital, which would be credit positive if executed successfully. If the bank successfully recapitalizes and repairs and cleans its balance sheet, its ratings could stabilize or face upward pressure, it said in a statement.
Vodafone Idea tanks 39%, Bharti Airtel gains 4% as investors anticipate two players market
Shares of Vodafone Idea tanked over 39% on Friday to Rs 3.66 while shares of Sunil Bharti Mittal led Bharti Airtel gained over 4% to touch its 52-week high of Rs 498.65 in a firm Mumbai market on Friday as investors anticipate a two players market in the India telco market. This comes after India's Supreme Court on Thursday rejected telcos review plea to reconsider its decision on the adjusted gross revenue (AGR), that may force telcos to cough upto Rs 1.3 lakh crore. Vodafone Idea has AGR dues of about Rs 44,000 crore while Bharti Airtel has AGR dues of about Rs 34,000 crore. Telcos can still file a curative petition in the apex court though it is done only to cure gross miscarriage of justice and analysts see very low chance of success. With no relief on dues from SC, Jefferies Equity Research expect either SC or government to provide relief in terms of payment options. "We expect a moratorium on AGR dues for two years and staggered payments post that over a period of time, aiding cash flows. This will be similar to the spectrum dues. We build this in our base case," said Jefferies in a research note. According to Jeffries, even with the reliefs, AGR dues are a drag on Vodafone and will affect operations. "The price increases are positive, but given high leverage, we expect the 4G rollout to be lower than peers, with VodaIdea losing market share. We retain U/P," said the Jefferies report.
- Piyush Pandey
Jet Airways to sell Netherlands biz to KLM
Jet Airways plans to sell its Netherlands business to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, according to a regulatory filing.
The bankrupt airline, which closed its operations last April, is under insolvency resolution process.
The insolvency resolution professional overseeing the affairs of the airline said, "the Company and Dutch Trustee have entered into a conditional sale & purchase agreement with Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V., on January 13, 2020 (“Conditional Agreement”) for the proposed resolution of business activities of the Company in the Netherlands as approved by the Committee of Creditors."
"The proposed resolution is subject to the completion of several conditions including statutory and regulatory clearances, both under Indian law and Dutch laws," the filing said.
Sensex, Nifty off to choppy start; RIL up 2 pc ahead of Q2 results
Market benchmarks Sensex and Nifty started on a tepid note on Friday ahead of quarterly results of index heavyweights Reliance Industries, TCS and HCL Tech.
The 30-share BSE index was trading 3.68 points or 0.01 per cent lower at 41,928.88. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty slipped 1.85 points or 0.01% to 12,353.65.
IndusInd Bank, SBI, HDFC twins, Kotak Bank, Power Grid and Ultratech Cement were among the top losers in the Sensex pack, shedding up to 2.5%.
Bharti Airtel was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying up to 4%. PTI
