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☆ Instant View: Here’s what experts think of India's surprise rate decision
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +16 min

The monetary policy committee (MPC) retained the key lending rate or the repo rate (INREPO=ECI) at 6.50% in a unanimous decision. With the likely softening of CPI to the low- to mid-5% levels in the coming month, the current repo rate of 6.5% implies that India’s real policy rate will hover around 1% during 2023-24, while maintaining a policy rate differential of about 1.5% with the US. Room for additional rate hikes has been retained with MPC’s policy stance continuing to remain unchanged at ‘withdrawal of accommodation’. We believe the bar for future rate hikes has increased, especially since near-term prints of CPI will be sub 6%. Scope for further hikes is limited given our growth-inflation outlook and impact of the past rate hikes on the same.

REUTERS/Thomas White/IllustrationMUMBAI/NEW DELHI, April 3 (Reuters) - A surge in India's services exports, which hit a record high in the October-December quarter, is expected to shield the economy from external risks as a slowing global economy will likely weigh on the country's merchandise exports. Services exports will likely surpass goods exports by March 2025, he said. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsIT services still accounted for 45% of India's total services exports in April-December. EXTERNAL SHIELDThe continued rise in services exports is likely to help rein in India's current account deficit. There is room for further growth with India's share in world commercial services exports currently just at around 4%."

☆ INDIA RUPEE Rupee to weaken as oil prices jump on unexpected OPEC+ output cut
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Nimesh Vora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, April 3 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee is expected to open lower versus the U.S. dollar on Monday after a surprise production cut by OPEC+ fuelled a jump in oil prices. The non-deliverable forwards indicate the rupee will open at around 82.35-82.40 to the U.S. dollar compared with 82.1650 in the previous session. A rise in oil prices directly affects the Indian economy and the rupee as the country imports about 83% of its oil requirements, said Anil Bhansali, head treasury at Finrex Treasury Advisors. According to estimates by some economists, a 10% hike in oil prices leads to an increase in India’s current account deficit by 0.3% to 0.5% of the GDP. Apart from oil prices, the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) policy decision on Thursday and the U.S. jobs report on Friday will be key for the rupee this week.

☆ Indian shares rise on easing global banking concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Bharath Rajeswaran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGALURU, March 17 (Reuters) - Indian shares advanced on Friday, aided by financials, tracking a rebound in global equities after a slew of measures to support the global banking system eased worries about a crisis in the financial sector. While the developments eased immediate concerns of a crisis in the global banking system, some analysts remained cautious. "The Fed needs to manage a delicate balancing act between price stability (inflation) and financial stability (growth) in next week's meeting." Information technology stocks (.NIFTYIT) rose over 1% with all 10 constituents logging gains. ($1 = 82.5870 Indian rupees)Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann Thoppil and Janane VenkatramanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Jefferies sees softer impact of Credit Suisse crisis on India
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 16 (Reuters) - India's banking sector will likely have a softer impact from the troubles at Credit Suisse (CSGN.S), given the Swiss lender's relatively small presence in the country, equity analysts at Jefferies said on Thursday. Credit Suisse has a 1.5% share among foreign banks' assets in India and a 'small' 0.1% share of overall banking assets in the country, Jefferies estimated. It has only 1 branch in India and total assets of over 200 billion rupees ($2.42 billion), it said. "Given the relevance of Credit Suisse to India's banking sector, we see softer adjustments in assessment of counter-party risks, especially in the derivative market," analysts Prakhar Sharma and Vinayak Agarwal said in a note. This may also lead to institutional deposits moving more towards larger or quality banks, Jefferies said.

☆ JPMorgan, other big U.S. banks flooded with new clients post SVB collapse-FT
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Even the U.S. government's emergency measures to stop the collapse of more banks have not stopped depositors from trying to move their accounts to larger banks or to shift to money market funds, FT reported. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation stepped in on Friday to protect the deposits of up to $250,000, but deposits over that amount - which accounted for 85% of SVB accounts - are at risk. Citi declined to comment on the report, while JPMorgan and Bank of America did not respond to Reuters requests for comment. Shares of U.S. regional banks such as First Republic Bank (FRC.N), Western Alliance (WAL.N) and KeyCorp (KEY.N) have slumped on fears of possible bank contagion following the collapse of SVB and Signature Bank (SBNY.O). Reporting by Lavanya Ahire in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Janane VenkatramanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ INDIA RUPEE Rupee resumes uptrend on likely dollar inflows, Fed risks linger
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Nimesh Vora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, March 9 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee rose against the U.S. currency on Thursday, supported by dollar inflows and the underlying positive momentum, traders said. The rupee was at 81.8575 to the U.S. dollar by 10:22 a.m. IST compared with 82.0550 in the previous session. The rupee has not been impacted by the change in the repricing of what the Federal Reserve is likely to do at this month's meeting. The local currency is marginally higher than what it was before Fed Chair Jerome Powell's hawkish comments. Dollar inflows are helping negotiate the renewed Fed concerns, they added.

☆ Reliance Jio to buy U.S.-based Mimosa Networks for $60 mln
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, March 9 (Reuters) - Jio Platforms, owned by Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd (RELI.NS), will buy communications equipment maker Mimosa Networks for $60 million to bolster its expanding 5G and broadband services, the companies said on Thursday. The deal is between Radisys Corp, a unit of Jio Platforms, and US-based Airspan Networks Holdings (MIMO.A), which owns Mimosa. Reliance Jio Infocomm USA, a unit of Jio, is a shareholder in Airspan and has a seat on its board, according to the statement. The Mimosa deal also comes at a time when some governments, including India, have either banned or discouraged the use of China's Huawei in national networks. Reporting by Yagnoseni Das in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza and Janane VenkatramanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Boeing close to finalizing 737 MAX deal with Japan Airlines - Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] The Boeing logo is seen on the side of a Boeing 737 MAX at the Farnborough International Airshow, in Farnborough, Britain, July 20, 2022. REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/File PhotoMarch 8 (Reuters) - Boeing Co (BA.N) is close to sealing an order from Japan Airlines Co (JAL) <9201.T> for at least 20 of its 737 MAX planes, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing sources. The order will likely be a combination of smaller MAX 8 jets and some of Boeing's larger MAX 10 planes, the report said. JAL was also in talks with Airbus SE (AIR.PA), but is considering going with Boeing, the report said, adding that the deal may close by the end of March. A JAL spokesperson said they were still negotiating the deal and refused to provide more details.

☆ Boeing close to finalising 737 Max deal with Japan Airlines- Bloomberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

[1/2] The Boeing logo is seen on the side of a Boeing 737 MAX at the Farnborough International Airshow, in Farnborough, Britain, July 20, 2022. REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/File PhotoMarch 8 (Reuters) - Boeing Co (BA.N) is close to sealing an order from Japan Airlines Co (9201.T) for at least 20 of its 737 Max planes, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing sources. The order will likely be a combination of smaller Max 8 jets along with some of Boeing's larger Max 10 planes, the report said. Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane VenkatramanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Indian open lower on rate fears after Powell's testimony
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Bharath Rajeswaran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Nifty 50 index (.NSEI) fell 0.49% to 17,625.95, while the S&P BSE Sensex (.BSESN) lost 0.48% to 59,931.07 as of 9:31 a.m. IST. The slide comes after Powell's testimony before the U.S. Congress on Tuesday, in which he said strong economic data in the United States raised the possibility of prolonged and higher-than-expected interest rate hikes. Global markets fell after Powell's testimony, with the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) losing 1.82%. Thirty-seven of the Nifty 50 constituents logged losses with Hindalco (HALC.NS) and IT stocks falling the most. The group's flagship firm Adani Enterprises (ADEL.NS) rose over 1% and was the top Nifty 50 gainer.

☆ INDIA RUPEE Rupee declines as Fed's Powell stokes fears of large rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Anushka Trivedi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, March 8 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee weakened on Wednesday, as a hawkish tone by Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell stoked concerns about interest rates being hiked by 50 basis points (bps) again as soon as this month. Resuming trade after a one-day holiday, the rupee fell to 82.1275 per dollar by 10:34 a.m. IST compared with its previous close of 81.91. Powell, in a speech to lawmakers overnight, said recent stronger-than-expected economic data in the United States suggests that the ultimate level of interest rates could be higher than previously anticipated. "If the totality of the data were to indicate that faster tightening is warranted, we would be prepared to increase the pace of rate hikes." These were Powell's first comments following the higher-than-expected U.S. January jobs and inflation data that had led markets to expect around three more 25-bps hikes.

The non-deliverable forwards indicate the rupee will open at around 82.05-82.10 to the U.S. dollar compared with 81.91 in the previous session. These were Powell's first comments following the higher-than-expected U.S. January inflation data. He seemed to acknowledge that "disinflationary process" he spoke of repeatedly in a Feb. 1 news conference was not unfolding smoothly. Powell's comments pushed up the probability of a half a percentage point hike at the upcoming March meeting to 72%. 3** NSDL data shows foreign investors sold a net $122.4 mln worth of Indian bonds on Mar.

☆ Indian shares struggle for direction ahead of GDP data
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Bharath Rajeswaran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGALURU, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Indian shares swung between gains and losses on Tuesday, as gains in auto and media stocks were mostly offset by a slide in metals, ahead of the domestic GDP data for the December quarter. Eight of the 13 sectoral indexes advanced with auto stocks (.NIFTYAUTO) adding nearly 1% ahead of the monthly sales numbers, due on Wednesday. Foreign portfolio investors have so far offloaded 325.18 billion rupees ($3.93 billion) worth of Indian equities in 2023, according to official data. Investors now await domestic GDP data for the December quarter, due later in the day, which is expected to show year-on-year growth slowing to 4.6%. ($1 = 82.7150 Indian rupees)Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman and Dhanya Ann ThoppilOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Fabindia shelves $482 mln IPO due to rough market conditions
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGALURU, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Apparel retailer Fabindia on Monday said it has withdrawn its 40 billion rupee ($482.4 million) initial public offering amid rough market conditions, becoming the latest company to scrap listing plans as interest rate worries pressure stock markets. "The decision to withdraw was taken as the current market conditions were not seen to be conducive for listing," a Fabindia spokesperson said in a statement. Fabindia had planned a fresh issue of shares worth 5 billion rupees and a sale of up to 25.1 million in existing shareholders' stock. The company may reconsider filing an IPO in the future, depending on its need for growth capital and the market conditions," the company said. Jewellery retailer Joyalukkas, e-commerce firm Snapdeal and wearable electronics company boAt have all pulled their IPOs due to uncertain market conditions.

☆ INDIA RUPEE Rupee down on Fed policy bets, falls less than peers on likely RBI help
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Anushka Trivedi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The rupee finished at 82.8350 per dollar, against its previous close of 82.75. The currency weakened up to 82.9475 during the session, its lowest level since Oct. 20, 2022 when the rupee hit a record low. Further declines on Monday were capped by a likely Reserve Bank of India (RBI) intervention via state-run banks, traders said. The Fed tracks the PCE price indexes for monetary policy. "Heading into the week, the rupee could come under pressure if the dollar index continues to gain," wrote HDFC Bank economists in a note.

☆ India's Bajaj Auto falls after report on planned production cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Bajaj Auto did not respond immediately to Reuters' request for comment on the Economic Times (ET) report, which said that the cut would reflect pressure in Nigeria, its largest export market. Bajaj Auto is likely to produce 250,000-270,000 units in March, ET reported, citing multiple people aware of the production plans. That's lower than its average monthly production of 338,000 units in the first nine months of FY 2023, the report added. The report did not specify how many units each of the two- and three-wheelers Bajaj Auto was likely to produce. They had risen 11.3% in 2022, against a 15.31% rise in the Nifty auto index (.NIFTYAUTO).

☆ India's Tata Motors in talks to raise $1 bln via stake sale in EV business - Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The company plans to sell a significant minority stake, the newspaper report added, eyeing a valuation of about $10.5 billion. The funds and investors include the UAE-based Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Mubadala Investment Company, the Saudi Arabia-headquartered Public Investment Fund, Singapore's Temasek Holdings, and KKR and General Atlantic. Tata Motors and some of the companies did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Tata Motors plans to use the bulk of the proceeds to retire a part of its outstanding debt and infuse a small portion as primary equity in the EV business, the report said. Tata Motors has outlined plans to expand its electric car portfolio with new models and higher price points.

☆ Indian shares fall on rate-hike worries ahead of Fed, RBI minutes
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Bharath Rajeswaran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Nifty 50 index (.NSEI) was down 0.86% at 17,674.50, while the S&P BSE Sensex (.BSESN) fell 0.85% at 60,150.93 as of 10:34 a.m. IST. Both the Fed and the Reserve Bank of India were due to release minutes of their latest policy meetings, giving investors a glimpse of their thinking on future rate-hike trajectories. "Fear of a hawkish Fed has gripped markets and kept investors on tenterhooks." Global markets fell after an unexpectedly strong reading of S&P Global's composite purchasing managers' index (PMI) showed that the U.S. economy was not cooling. ($1 = 82.8330 Indian rupees)Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman, Nivedita BhattacharjeeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Indian cenbank onshore, offshore intervention helps rupee outperform-traders
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Nimesh Vora | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] A security guard stands next to the logo of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) inside its headquarters in Mumbai, India, February 8, 2023. "Without the RBI, there is little doubt that the rupee would be significantly lower," a currency and rates trader at a Singapore-based hedge fund said. This trader and two others that Reuters spoke to did not want to be identified on account of their internal policies. "The RBI's offshore presence, alongside what it is doing onshore, is making speculators stay away from the rupee," a trader at a Mumbai-based private sector bank said. A trader at a second private sector bank said one of the largest public sector banks has been "on both sides" in the onshore market, making the rupee "fairly unresponsive".

☆ Indian jeweller Joyalukkas withdraws $278 mln IPO
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Indian jeweller Joyalukkas has withdrawn its 23 billion rupee ($277.95 million) initial public offering (IPO), a document on the market regulator's website showed on Tuesday. Joyalukkas did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. The jeweller, based in the southern Indian state of Kerala, operates showrooms across roughly 68 cities and is one of the biggest jewellery retailers in the country. The IPO's book runners Edelweiss Financial Services Ltd, Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors Ltd, Haitong Securities India, and SBI Capital Markets Ltd also did not immediately respond to a request for comment. ($1 = 82.7620 Indian rupees)Reporting by Varun Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane VenkatramanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ WeWork turns core profit in Dec for the first time since listing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 16 (Reuters) - WeWork Inc (WE.N) on Thursday said it turned a core profit in December for the first time since it went public, helped by cost cuts. The office-sharing firm, which went public in 2021, said for the "first time in WeWork’s history", the company achieved an adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) profitability for December 2022. The New York-based company also announced its exit from 40 U.S. locations. WeWork said it expects current-quarter revenue to be between $830 million and $855 million and adjusted EBITDA to be in the range of a $25 million loss to breakeven. Its adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter was negative $26 million, compared to negative $283 million a year ago.

☆ India's HDFC raises $3 bln in largest-ever local bond issue-bankers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Dharamraj Lalit Dhutia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MUMBAI, Feb 16 (Reuters) - India's Housing Development Finance Corp (HDFC.NS) raised its target of 250 billion rupees ($3.03 billion) in the country's largest privately placed corporate bond issue on Thursday, merchant bankers said. The country's largest housing financier, soon to be merged with private lender HDFC Bank, sold 10-year bonds at a coupon of 7.97% coupon. The issue received 92 bids worth 278.63 billion rupees, of which the company retained 55 bids worth 250 billion rupees, HDFC said in an exchange notice. The NBFC has now raised an aggregate of 784.14 billion rupees through bond issuance in this financial year, the highest by any company. Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and ICICI Securities Primary Dealership are the arrangers.

☆ India's Amrutanjan Health Care sinks on whistleblower allegations
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, Feb 15 (Reuters) - Shares of India's Amrutanjan Health Care Ltd (AJAN.NS) plunged as much as nearly 10% on Wednesday, a day after it said an anonymous whistleblower complaint alleged some senior management of "undue enrichment" and "conflict of interest." Amrutanjan's shares closed 1.4% lower on Tuesday after the company disclosed the allegations, and were down 8.7% as of 12.14 p.m. IST on Wednesday. The complaint alleged "lapses by certain senior management employees including undue enrichment through marketing, advertising and procurement activities, ethical concerns and conflict of interest etc," Amrutanjan said on Tuesday. Amrutanjan did not immediately respond to a Reuters' email seeking further details on the complaint, including if the company has conducted its own probe or if the managers were still employed with the company. ($1 = 82.8600 Indian rupees)Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane VenkatramanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Indian lender HDFC's biggest-ever bond issue to see strong demand - bankers
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Dharamraj Lalit Dhutia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

HDFC aims to raise at least 50 billion rupees ($603.4 million) through the sale of 10-year bonds on Thursday, with an option to retain an additional 200 billion rupees. If the company garners full the quantum, this would also be the biggest-ever privately placed debt issue by an Indian company. Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and ICICI Securities Primary Dealership are the arrangers for the bond issue. The company's fundraising via private placement stood below 250 billion rupees in 2013-14. HDFC is raising funds as it would help them meet capital requirements after the upcoming merger with HDFC Bank, bankers said.

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