General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - February 2017

Feb 2017

Jan 14, 2019

Amazon has the Highest Number of Job Openings in India

Amazon remains bullish on India, despite recent government policies that might adversely affect its ecommerce business here.
In Asia-Pacific, the company has the highest number of job openings in India, according to data on its website.
There are almost three times as many openings here compared to that in China.
Even outside Asia-Pacific and excluding homeground US, only Germany appears to have about as many openings as India.
Across different businesses and various roles, including technology, Amazon has almost 1,300 openings in India.
China has 467 job openings and Japan 381. Australia and Singapore follow with 250 and 174, respectively.

Spike in Mudra NPAs

The RBI has raised a red flag on the spike in NPAs under the government's flagship scheme to support micro enterprises in the country - the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY).
The RBI has cautioned that the scheme might turn out to be the next big source of NPAs, which have plagued the banking system. The central bank has warned that bad loans under the PMMY scheme have risen to Rs 11,000 crore.
According to PMMY's annual report, 2017-18, the total disbursements under the scheme stood at Rs 2.46-lakhcrore in FY18, benefiting 4.8 crore micro borrowers.
Out of this, about 40% were disbursed to women entrepreneurs.

Govt may Sell Part of SUUTI Holding in Axis Bank

The finance ministry may consider selling part of its stake in Axis Bank and ITC, held through SUUTI, in next few months.
As on September 30, 2018, Specified Undertaking of Unit Trust of India (SUUTI) held around 9.63% stake in Axis Bank, 7.97% in ITC and 1.80% in L&T.
While the government is waiting for L&T to launch a buyback offer to tender its shares; for holding in Axis Bank and ITC, it would consider off-market deals.
SUUTI holdings in ITC, Axis Bank and L&T are also part of Bharat 22 exchange-traded fund (ETF).

Saudi to set up $10 bn Oil Refinery in Pak

Saudi Arabia plans to set up a $10 billion oil refinery in Pakistan's deep-water port of Gwadar, thus becoming a partner in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
Falih, Saudi energy minister, met the Pakistani petroleum minister and maritime affairs minister Ali Zaidi in Gwadar to discuss cooperation in refining, petrochemicals, mining and renewable energy.
Falih would finalise arrangements ahead of signing memoranda of understanding.

Jan 13, 2019

China to ease curbs on foreign investment

China will reduce restrictions on foreign investment and address difficulties facing foreign companies investing in the country.
Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said China would allow full foreign ownership of companies in more areas of the economy and would reduce the number of industries in which foreign investment was restricted or barred.
Commerce Ministry would push for a foreign investment law, improve the handling of complaints from foreign firms, and encourage foreign investment in manufacturing and high tech.
The ministry would also encourage foreigners to invest in central and western China.
China will work to tackle trade friction with US this year.
The ministry of commerce will push talks forward and boost cooperation with US cities, business communities and non-governmental groups in order to promote a stable bilateral trade relationship.

Indonesia woos Indian airlines to boost bilateral trade

Indonesia is keen on Indian carriers starting flights to the country and renewing their air services agreement as part of efforts to boost bilateral trade and commercial relations.
The leaders of India and Indonesia had directed civil aviation authorities of both sides to discuss enhancing of traffic rights through bilateral air services consultations during PM Narendra Modi's visit to Jakarta in May 2018.
They had also emphasised the urgency of establishing more flight connectivity.
Indonesia has invited Indian businesses to help develop the port on Sabang island, close to Malacca Strait and efforts are on to convince Indian businesses of the advantages of investing there.

IDFC Bank Renamed

Private sector lender IDFC Bank said its name has been changed to IDFC First Bank Ltd with effect from January 12, 2019, by virtue of 'Certificate of Incorporation pursuant to change of name' issued by the Registrar of Companies, Chennai.
IDFC Bank and non-banking financial company Capital First had announced completion of their merger on December 18, creating a combined loan asset book of Rs 1.03 lakh crore for the merged entity.

Zimbabwe Plans New Currency

Zimbabwe will introduce a new currency in the next 12 months, as a shortage of US dollars plunges the financial system into disarray, forcing businesses to close and threatening unrest.
The southern African nation abandoned its own hyperinflation-wrecked currency in 2009 at the height of an economic recession, adopting the greenback and other currencies including sterling and the South African rand.
But without enough hard currency to back up the $10 billion of electronic funds trapped in local bank accounts, businesses and civil servants are demanding payment in cash which can be deposited and used to make payments both inside and outside the country.

Jan 12, 2019

NHPC signs MOU with NTNU Norway

NHPC signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) to facilitate cooperation in research and education of hydropower during India-Norway Business Summit 2019 in New Delhi.
The objective of the MoU is to facilitate cooperation in research and education of hydropower that are of mutual interest and to undertake studies and research in the areas of dam construction and safety, sediment handling, variable speed operation, pump turbines in existing power plants, future market structures, etc.

China Opens its Market To Foreign Companies Manufacturing Cancer Drugs

In a move that might open up opportunities for Indian pharmaceutical firms, China has opened its vast market of government hospitals to foreign companies manufacturing cancer drugs.
The government has included 17 cancer drugs manufactured by foreign companies in its national basic insurance programme.
Half of the thousands of government-run hospitals have been asked to use these imported drugs for treating cancer of the lungs, rectum and kidney.
This is a major opportunity for the Indian pharmaceutical sector, which has been seeking access to the Chinese market.
India-made drugs are relatively cheap compared to those made in the West, giving Indian companies a clear edge.

IIP growth slows down

India's factory output growth crashed to its lowest in 17 months at 0.5% in November, the outcome of an unfavourable base effect as well as contraction in manufacturing.
The index of industrial production (IIP), announced by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) is the last set of key economic data to be released before the interim budget is presented on February 1.
During November, manufacturing production shrank 0.4%, while electricity and mining output grew 5.1% and 2.7%, respectively.
Items that recorded the highest negative growth included television sets; bodies of trucks, lorries and trailers; and active pharmaceutical ingredients.

RBI Imposes Rs. 3-crore Penalty on Citibank

The Reserve Bank of India has imposed penalty of Rs.3 crore on US-based Citibank's Indian operation for deficiencies in compliance with the RBI instructions on 'Fit and Proper' criteria for directors of the bank.
However, this action is based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered by the bank with its customers.

GST Exemption Limit Doubles

In a "massive relief" to small businesses, the GST Council doubled the limit for exemption from payment of goods and services tax (GST) to Rs 40 lakh and announced that the higher turnover cap of Rs 1.5 crore for availing composition scheme of paying 1 per cent tax will be effective from April 1.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the taxpayers with an aggregate turnover of Rs 40 lakh would now be exempted from GST.
The earlier limit was Rs 20 lakh. For the north-eastern states, the exemption limit has been hiked to Rs 20 lakh from earlier Rs 10 lakh.
Jaitley said the GST Composition Scheme, under which small traders and businesses pay 1 per cent tax based on turnover, can be availed by businesses with a turnover of Rs 1.5 crore, against the earlier Rs 1 crore, with effect from April 1.
Businesses opting for the scheme would have to file just one return annually and pay taxes once every quarter.
Free accounting and billing software will be made available to small assessees up to Rs 1.5 crore turnover.

TCS Appoints Callahan as Independent Director

Tata Consultancy Services has appointed former Citigroup executive Daniel Hughes Callahan as an additional and independent director for a period of five years with effect from January 10.
The appointment is based on the recommendations of the nomination and remuneration committee and is subject to the approval of shareholders.

Jan 11, 2019

Jaguar Land Rover Plans to Cut Jobs

Tata Motors-owned Jaguar Land Rover has announced plans to cut 4,500 jobs in the U.K. as part of its strategy to achieve cost reduction and cash flow improvements of £2.5 billion in 18 months.
The workforce would be reduced through a "Voluntary Redundancy Programme,"
The carmaker has a workforce of about 40,000 in the U.K.
The company has been making losses following a massive drop in demand in China, its biggest market, and concerns on diesel vehicles.

TCS Q3 Net Profit Up

IT services major Tata Consultancy Services' (TCS) net profit grew 24.1 per cent to Rs. 8,105 crore as compared to Rs. 6,531 a year earlier a year ago for the period ending December 31, 2018.
The company's income from operations grew 20.8 per cent while revenue from the BFSI segment surged 23 per cent.
Sequential revenue growth was led by the U.K. and Europe, which rose 25.1 per cent and 17.6 per cent, respectively.

GST Burden on Small Businesses Eased

The GST Council in its 32nd meeting, the last before the Budget, took a slew of decisions aimed at reducing the tax and compliance burden on small and medium enterprises, including increasing the threshold limit below which companies are exempted from GST, extending the Composition Scheme to small service providers, and allowing small companies to file annual returns.
The Council also raised the annual turnover limit under which companies would be exempted from GST to Rs. 40 lakh for most States and Rs. 20 lakh for the North Eastern and hill states, from the earlier limit of Rs. 20 lakh and Rs. 10 lakh, respectively.

Glenmark Arm and Yuhan Ink Pact

Glenmark Specialty S.A., the Suisse subsidiary of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd., has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Yuhan Corporation for commercialising its novel nasal spray Ryaltris in South Korea.
The agreement with Yuhan is Glenmark's second regional licensing deal for Ryaltris. In July 2018, it entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Seqirus Pty. Ltd. to commercialise Ryaltris in Australia and New Zealand.

Implementation of Capital Conservation Buffer Deferred

The Reserve Bank deferred the implementation of the last tranche of Capital Conservation Buffer (CCB) by a year, a move that would leave about an estimated Rs. 37,000 crore capital in the hands of banks.
This would help banks increase lending by over Rs. 3.5 lakh crore by leveraging ten times the capital.
The CCB is the capital buffer that banks have to accumulate in normal times to be used for offsetting losses during periods of stress. It was introduced after the 2008 global financial crisis to improve the ability of banks to withstand adverse economic conditions.

Jan 10, 2019

IndusInd Q3 Profit Increased

IndusInd Bank posted a 5.21% increase in net profit to Rs. 985.03 crore for the quarter ended December 31.
The overall provisions for the October-December period was Rs. 607 crore compared with Rs. 237 crore in the year-earlier period.

Shell Bought Stake in Hazira from Total

Shell Gas B.V. has completed the acquisition of 26% equity interest in the Hazira LNG and Port venture in India from Total Gaz Electricité Holdings France (Total).
This brings Shell's equity interest in the venture to 100%.
The move allows Shell to build an integrated gas value chain — supply from its global LNG portfolio, regasification at the Hazira facility and downstream customer sales.
Shell Gas B.V. is a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell Plc. (Shell).

Black Box Corporation Buy-out Completed

AGC Networks Limited, an Essar Group technology firm, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, has completed the acquisition of Black Box Corporation, a leading digital solutions provider in the U.S. to strengthen AGC's presence and offerings to 25 countries across six continents.
The acquisition will also help add $600 million to AGC's revenue, taking the company's combined revenue to over $750 million, and global headcount to more than 4,000 people serving clients worldwide.

Interim Budget

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will present the interim Budget for 2019-20 fiscal on February 1, 2019.
This will be the sixth consecutive Budget to be presented by Jaitley.
The budget session of the Parliament will be held from January 31 to February 13.

Pfizer Plans to Shut Two Units

U.S.-based pharma major Pfizer plans to shut down its manufacturing units in Chennai and Aurangabad in the current fiscal due to very significant long-term loss of product demand.
The closure is expected to impact nearly 1,700 workers.
The company's Irungattukottai unit in Tamil Nadu currently employs approximately 1,000 workers and Maharashtra's Aurangabad site employs approximately 700.

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