General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - December 2015

Dec 2015

Oct 16, 2019

RBI Issues Guidelines On 'On Tap' Authorisation On Payment Systems

Reserve Bank has issued guidelines on 'on tap' authorisation of payment systems, including minimum networth criteria for different players, with an aim to encourage innovation and competition.
In a circular, the RBI said it has been decided to offer on-tap authorisation for Bharat Bill Payment Operating Unit (BBPOU), Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS) and White Label ATMs (WLAs).
For entities desirous to function, operate, or provide platforms for BBPOU, the RBI said they should have a 100 crore rupees net worth and should be maintained at all times.
In case of TReDS, the minimum paid up equity capital should be 25 crore rupees. The minimum net worth for entities desirous of entering the WLA segement should be 100 crore rupees.

TCS Named India's Overall Most Outstanding Company In Asiamoney's 2019 Poll

Tata Consultancy Services has been voted as the overall most outstanding company in India and the most outstanding company in India's IT services sector in Asiamoney's 2019 Asia's outstanding companies poll.
Additionally, TCS was recognised as the most awarded company of the decade in India for topping Asiamoney's various investor surveys and awards like the best-managed companies award, the corporate governance poll and Asia's outstanding companies poll -- the most number of times over the last ten years.
Asiamoney's outstanding companies poll is designed to acknowledge listed companies in 12 countries in Asia, that have excelled in areas such as financial performance, management team excellence, investor relation activities, and CSR initiatives.
Over 800 fund managers, buy-side analysts, bankers, and research analysts participated in the 2019 poll, casting over 4,000 votes.

IMF Says Global Economy To Grow At Slowest Pace Since 2008 Financial Crisis

The International Monetary Fund is growing even more pessimistic about the global economy, as higher import tariffs are strangling manufacturing activity and international trade.
Global economic growth is expected to fall to 3% rate in 2019, the slowest pace since the 2008 financial crisis and down from a 3.8% pace seen in 2017.
If global growth slows below a 2.5% rate, that would mean a recession.
Growth was projected to be slower in 2019 in almost every major country except Brazil.
World trade volume growth in the first half of 2019 was 1%, the weakest level since 2012.
If all possible U.S. and China's trade tariffs are put in place, it will reduce global growth by 0.8% by 2020, the IMF said.

IMF Lowers Growth Estimate To 6.1%

The International Monetary Fund cut its estimate for India's growth in 2019 to 6.1% from 7% projected, calling on the country to use monetary policy and broad-based structural reforms to address cyclical weakness and strengthen confidence.
India suffered the sharpest cut, next only to Saudi Arabia, which saw a reduction of 1.7 percentage points to its growth forecast to 0.2% for 2019.
China's growth forecast was cut 0.1 percentage point to 6.1% for 2019. The world economy is expected to grow by 3%, marginally lower than 3.2% projected in July, 2019.
In India, growth has softened on the back of corporate and environmental regulatory uncertainty with concerns about the health of the nonbank financial sector further weighing in, the IMF said in World Economic Outlook: Global Manufacturing Downturn, Rising Trade Barriers, which was released in October 2019.

Oct 15, 2019

DPIIT Launches Website, Mobile App For IPR

Secretary Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Guruprasad Mohapatra launched the website and mobile application L2Pro India [Learn to Protect, Secure and Maximize Your Innovation] on Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs).
The website and app has been developed by Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM)-DPIIT in collaboration with Qualcomm and National Law University (NLU), Delhi.
The modules of this e-learning platform will aid and enable youth, innovators, entrepreneurs and small and medium industries (SMEs) in understanding IPRs for their ownership and protection, integrate IP into business models and obtain value for their R&D efforts.
The L2Pro has been successfully implemented in Germany, United Kingdom, Italy and France, benefiting immensely from close collaboration with respective IP organizations and public research institutions.

IHMCL, GSTN Inked Pact To Link FASTag with GST e-Way Bill System

The Indian Highways Management Company Ltd (IHMCL) and Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN) signed a memorandum of understanding for integration of FASTag with GST e-way bill system.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) will be inked at the 'One Nation, One FASTag' conference, which will be inaugurated by Road Transport and Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari.
FASTag is a simple to use, reloadable tag which enables automatic deduction of toll charges and lets vehicle pass through toll plaza without stopping for cash transaction.

RBI Enhances Withdrawal Limit Of PMC Bank's Customer To Rs 40,000

In further relief to customers of troubled Punjab & Maharashtra Cooperative (PMC) Bank, the Reserve Bank enhanced withdrawal limit to Rs 40,000 per account from Rs 25,000 per account earlier for six months.
This is the third time the regulator has increased the withdrawal limit since it clamped down on PMC Bank on September 23, 2019 capping withdrawals at Rs 1,000 per customer, which led to a lot of distress and criticism.

World Bank Says India Faces Severe Slowdown, Cuts GDP Forecast

The World Bank cut India's economic growth forecast by the most among South Asian nations, below the outlook pegged by the nation's central bank for 2019, mainly because of a deceleration in domestic demand.
India's gross domestic product growth is projected at 6% in the fiscal year started on April 1, 2019 compared with 7.5% forecast in April and 6.8% recorded a year earlier, the bank said in its latest South Asia Economic Focus report.
Growth is expected to gradually recover to 6.9% in 2020-21 and to 7.2% in the following year (2020).
India's cyclical slowdown is severe, the report said. The weakness is mostly due to a deceleration in local demand, according to the bank.
In such a weak economic environment, structural issues surface and the weak financial sector is becoming a drag on growth.

Oct 14, 2019

Bangladesh Becomes 2nd Fastest Growing Economy In South Asia: World Bank

Bangladesh has become the second-fastest growing economy in South Asia after Bhutan. World Bank in its report 'South Asia Economic Focus, Making (De) Centralization Work' says that GDP growth rate of the country is projected to moderate to 7.2 per cent this fiscal year and 7.3 per cent in 2020 in Bangladesh.
The report points out that despite slowdown in industrial growth rate, the industrial sector remains strong as the country's garment industry benefited from the trade tensions between the United States and China.
The World Bank said Bangladesh need to address key structural challenges such as reducing the infrastructure deficit, enhancing human capital, improving urban management and managing climate change risks

ADB, India Sign $190 Mn Loan For Improving Road Connectivity In Rajasthan

The Asian Development Bank and the Government of India signed a $190 million loan to upgrade 754 kilometres of state highways and major district roads (MDRs) to two-lane or intermediate-lane standards that will benefit about 26 million people in 14 districts of Rajasthan.
The signatories to the Tranche 2 loan agreement for the Rajasthan State Highway Investment Programme were Shri Sameer Kumar Khare, Additional Secretary (Fund Bank and ADB), Department of Economic Affairs in the Ministry of Finance, on behalf of the Government of India, and Mr Kenichi Yokoyama, Country Director of ADB's India Resident Mission, who signed for ADB.
The Tranche 1 loan of $220 million under the Programme, signed in July 2017, upgraded about 1,000 km of state roads.

GST Network To Launch New Version Of Return Filing Portal

The GST Network will launch an improved version of the GST return filing portal on October 22, 2019 to make the process easier.
"Many of the suggestions were incorporated in version 2 which is in place right now," said GST Network CEO Prakash Kumar.
GST Network provides IT infrastructure and services to taxpayers, government and other stakeholders for implementation of GST.

National Fertilizers Presents Dividend Of Over 28 Crore Rupees To Govt

National Fertilizers Limited presented dividend of over 28 Crore Rupees to the Government of India for the year 2018-19.
Chairman and Managing Director of National Fertilizers Limited Manoj Mishra presented Dividend Cheque of 28.22 crore rupees to the Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers D.V. Sadananda Gowda in the presence of Fertilizers Secretary Chhabilendra Roul.
National Fertilizers Limited has presented a cumulative dividend of around 1157 crore rupees to the Government till date against paid up equity of 490.58 crore rupees.

Oct 13, 2019

Indian Cooperatives Ink Pact With Sri Lanka For Milk Supply

India, the world's largest milk producer, signed a memorandum of interest (MoI) with Sri Lanka for supply of milk and milk products.
The MoI was signed at the inauguration of the country's first-ever India International Cooperatives Trade Fair being organised at Pragati Maidan.
Three MoIs have been signed with the Sri Lanka government which showed interest to buy milk from India. The quantity and price has not been quoted yet.
The Tamil Nadu Milk Cooperatiave Federation that owns 'Aavin' brand, Puducherry Milk Cooperative Federation that owns 'PonLait' brand and fertiliser company Indian Potash Ltd have signed a separate pact with the Sri Lanka government for supply of milk.

Oracle India Gets Over 100 Customers For 1st Cloud Data Centre In Mumbai

Oracle India has got more than 100 customers for its first cloud data centre it opened in the country in Mumbai. It will be opening another data centre in Hyderabad by the end of this financial year 2019.
The expansion is part of the American parent company's larger plan to open 20 new 'Gen 2 Cloud' data centres globally by the end of 2020.
The company will also be hiring more than 1,000 people for its autonomous cloud division.

Mumbai 12th Wealthiest City In The World, New York Number One

Mumbai is the 12th richest city in the world with a total wealth of $960 billion.
It is the only Indian city to feature in the top 20 list of wealthiest cities in the world.
Delhi is on 22nd position and second Indian city after Mumbai on the wealth intelligence firm's 'The Wealthiest Cities Worldwide in 2019' list.
Bangalore is on 26th spot while Hyderabad came last at 28.
Meanwhile, New York City (NYC) topped the list with a total wealth of $3.0 trillion. The city is home to the highest number of millionaires and billionaires than any other city in the world.
NYC has 65 billionaires and 3,80,000 millionaires, the report added. The city is also home to two largest stock exchanges in the world.
Tokyo came a close second with a total wealth amounting to $2.5 trillion. The city is home to the 3rd largest stock exchange in the world.

India jumps to 7th spot in Brand Finance Nation ranking

India jumped two levels to 7th position in the Brand Finance Nation ranking of 2019 despite the reduction in the overall economic growth due to slowdown in the manufacturing and construction sectors.
As per the latest report by independent brand valuation consultancy Brand Finance, India has jumped to seventh position from 9th in 2018, after recording a solid 19 per cent growth in brand value to USD 2.6 trillion.
In 2018, Canada was at the 7th position which has dropped to 8th position. South Korea, which was at the 10th position in 2018 has managed to jump a level up to reach the 9th position.
Italy, which was at 8th position in 2018, slipped to the 10th, while the US, China and Germany continued to be the top three nations, respectively even in 2019.

Govt May Restrict Palm Oil Import From Malaysia Over Kashmir Stand

India is considering restricting imports of some products from Malaysia including palm oil, in reaction to the Southeast Asian country's leader criticising New Delhi for its actions in Kashmir.
India is looking for ways to limit palm oil imports and may place restrictions on other goods from the country.
India's government was angered after Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said at the United Nations that India had "invaded and occupied" Jammu and Kashmir and asked New Delhi to work with Pakistan to resolve the issue.

Forex Reserves Surges By $4.24 Bn To Touch a Record High Of $437.83 Bn

The country's foreign exchange reserves surged by USD 4.24 billion to touch a record high of USD 437.83 billion in the week to October 4, 2019 according to the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India.
The increase in reserves in the reporting week was on account of rise in foreign currency assets (FCA), a major component of the overall reserves.
FCA increased by USD 3.99 billion to USD 405.61 billion in the week ended October 4, the RBI said.
Expressed in US dollar terms, the foreign currency assets include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units like the euro, pound and the yen held in the foreign exchange reserves.

SBI To Now Charge Processing Fees On Home Loans, Top-Ups

After reducing deposit rates for its customers, State Bank of India has now decided to charge processing fees for home loans, top-up plans and loans to corporates and real estate companies.
The full waiver of consolidated processing fee offered during the festival period for loan proposals sourced up to December 31, 2019, is withdrawn. The waiver will continue for proposals sourced up to October 15, 2019.
The SBI had recently linked lending rates to benchmark repo rates, resulting in a sharp fall in its interest income.
The bank will now charge around 0.4 per cent processing fee in the range of Rs 10,000-Rs 30,000 for individual borrowers and the bank would charge Rs 5,000 from builders.

Mastercard, Visa Quit Facebook's Libra As Global Regulators Air Concerns

Facebook Inc's ambitious efforts to establish a global digital currency called Libra suffered severe setbacks, as major payment companies including Mastercard and Visa Inc quit the group behind the project.
The two companies announced they would leave the association, as did EBay Inc, Stripe Inc. and Latin American payments company Mercado Pago. They join PayPal Holdings Inc which exited the group, as global regulators continue to air concerns about the project.
The remaining association members, including Lyft and Vodafone, consist mainly of venture capital, telecommunications, blockchain and technology companies, as well as nonprofit groups.

Oct 12, 2019

Govt Lifts Restrictions On Import Of Urea For Industrial Or Non-Agricultural Uses

The government said import of urea for industrial or non-agricultural use will be free from any restrictions.
Earlier, it was allowed only with the actual user condition.
Import policy for urea for industrial or non-agricultural use, besides technical grade urea and industrial urea shall be free with immediate effect.
Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizers Ltd is designated as a state trading enterprise for import of urea on government account.

GeM Signs Pact With Union Bank Of India To Avail Various Services

Government e-Marketplace (GeM) has signed a pact with Union Bank of India (UBI) under which the bank will offer several services to it including transfer of funds.
The commerce ministry launched the procurement portal GeM to increase transparency in public procurement of goods and services, which is estimated at about Rs 8 lakh crore per year.
UBI will be able to offer an array of services including transfer of funds through GeM pool accounts, advising of performance, bank guarantees and earnest money deposit to the registered users on the portal.
The memorandum of understanding (MoU) will facilitate a cashless, paperless and transparent payment system on the portal and will create an efficient procurement system for government entities.

India's Crorepati Club Continues To Swell, 97,689 Disclose Income Above Rs. 1 Crore

India's crorepati club has swelled, with as many as 97,689 showing incomes above Rs 1 crore in assessment year 2018-19, according to data from the Income Tax Department. This is 20% growth from the year before, when the number was 81,344.
This income reported for assessment year 2018-19 relates to fiscal 2017-18, the financial year immediately after demonetisation and when the economy began to slow.
In the salaried category, 49,128 people declared incomes above a crore in AY 2018-19, compared with 41,457 the previous year.
The income tax released time-series data updated up to fiscal year 2018-19 and income-distribution data for AY 2018-19, including income distribution information of corporates, Hindu Undivided Families and individuals.
The total number of tax payers declaring income above Rs 1 crore rose to 1.67 lakh in AY 2018-19 from 1.33 lakh in AY2017-18, a rise of 19%.

Bank of Maharashtra cuts MCLR by 10 bps

State-owned Bank of Maharashtra has reduced its benchmark lending rates i.e. marginal cost of funds based lending rates (MCLR) across various tenors.
The MCLRs have been reduced to 10 bps below the existing levels across all MCLR tenors w.e.f 8 October, 2019.
The Bank's one year MCLR will be 8.40 percent, which is competitive as per the current market scenario.
For all other tenors, overnight, one month, three months and six months rates are 8.05 per cent, 8.15 per cent, 8.20 per cent and 8.30 per cent respectively.
The Repo Linked Lending Rates (RLLR) for Retail & MSME borrowers have also been reduced by 25 bps in line with the reduction in Repo Rate by Reserve Bank of India. This will further benefit the Retail and MSME borrowers.

Share on

TCY Analytics (View Subscription Plans)

Subscribe to GK Updates

I want to receive

GK Tags

October GK, September GK, August GK, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS, ENVIRONMENT, BUSINESS AND ECONOMY, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY, SPORTS, NATIONAL AFFAIRS, DEFENCE, PERSONS IN NEWS, DAYS AND EVENTS, AWARDS AND HONOURS, GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES, GENDER/ HEALTH/ EDUCATION, ART AND CULTURE, BOOKS AND AUTHORS, TOURISM AND HOTEL INDUSTRY AWARENESS, ART AND CULTURE, LAW AND CONSTITUTIONAL AFFAIRS

Start Discussion

On any topic

Take Tests

Compiled from GK updates

Login

Sign Up

Forgot Password

Download TCY App

Unlock All Services and Enjoy The Premium Benefits

US$ 10

US$ 13

US$ 15

US$ 17

US$ 19

US$ 20

US$ 21

US$ 22

US$ 23

US$ 24

US$ 25

US$ 26