General Awareness

BUSINESS AND ECONOMY - October 2018

Oct 2018

Jul 01, 2020

Asia's First Continuous Galvanised Rebar Production Facility in Punjab

Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister of Steel & Petroleum and Natural Gas virtually inaugurated Asia's first Continuous Galvanised Rebar (CGR) Production Facility near Gobindgarh, Punjab launched by Madhav KRD Group in association with International Zinc Association(IZA) with the support of Hindustan Zinc Limited.
The facility will produce the new Continuously Galvanised Rebar (CGR).
The annual capacity of the facility is over 30,000 tonnes.
Under the brand "Jyoti", the facility will manufacture ZNCOAT TEMPCORE TMT bars.
Jyoti is the first of its kind in Asia to apply CGR technology with enhanced life and low maintenance cost.

The Most Innovative Companies Of 2020

According to BCG's analysis of the 50 most innovative companies of 2020Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft and Samsung, are considered the five most innovative companies.
Companies who are strongest at innovation most value advanced analytics, digital design and technology platforms.
JD.com, Bosch, ABB, FCA, Novartis and Volvo join the list of the top 50 most innovative companies for the first time this year.
Fastest movers include Huawei, who jumped from 48th to 6th, Walmart, who jumped from 42nd to 13th, HP, who jumped from 44th to 15th and Dell, who jumped from 41st to 20th.
Only eight companies have made the list every year, and they include Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, HP, IBM, Microsoft, Samsung, and Toyota.

WTO Sets Up Dispute Panel on India's Import Duties on ICT Products

The World Trade Organization (WTO) agreed to a second request from the EU to establish an adjudication panel over India's customs duties on imports of certain information and communications technology (ICT) products, including mobile phones, taking the dispute up a notch.
However, New Delhi blocked the complaints by Japan and Chinese Taipei to setup panels.
While the EU asked India to agree to establish a single panel to review the three complaints, India was disappointed with the EU request. Since India had blocked the EU's request for a panel in February, it cannot do so a second time as per WTO rules.
China, the US, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Canada, Turkey, Korea, Brazil, Indonesia, Norway, Singapore, Thailand, Russia and Pakistan reserved their third party rights to participate in the proceedings.
Consultations on the issue took place last year (2019) but failed to settle the dispute prompting the EU's request for a panel.
The dispute is crucial for India as losing it will directly benefit China, from where India imported telecom equipment parts worth $3.4 billion and mobile phones worth $665.21 million in the April-February period of 2019-20. While China is involved in consultations on the issue with India, it has not asked for a panel.

GoI and World Bank Sign Agreement to Increase Access to Affordable Housing

The World Bank and the Government of India signed an agreement along with the Government of Tamil Nadu to help the low-income groups in the state of Tamil Nadu to get access to affordable housing.
Legal agreements of two projects were signed to strengthen the state's housing sector policies, institutions, and regulations.
First Tamil Nadu Housing Sector Strengthening Programme worth $200 million(Rs 1,510 crore),
Tamil Nadu Housing and Habitat Development Project worth $50 million (Rs 377 crore).
The loans from the IBRD (International Bank for Reconstruction and Development) have a maturity period of 20 years (including grace period: 3.5 years).

Jun 30, 2020

Swiggy Launches its Own Digital Wallet

Food delivery platform Swiggy launched its own digital wallet to enable single-click checkout experience on its platform.
Called 'Swiggy Money,' the full-fledged digital wallet in partnership with ICICI Bank will enable customers to store money and be used for all food orders.
Users choosing 'Swiggy Money' can avail instant refunds and use the money for easy checkouts and hassle-free payment processing on future food orders.
If the Swiggy customer is an existing ICICI Bank customer, he or she can instantly start using the wallet.

India and Bhutan Sign Kholongchhu Hydroelectric Project Agreement

India and Bhutan signed concession agreement on the 600 MW Kholongchhu hydroelectric project (KHEL). The hydroelectric project will be the first-ever joint venture project to be implemented in Bhutan. The joint venture partners of the project are India's Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVNL) and Bhutan's Druk Green Power Corporation Limited (DGPC).
Speaking at the signing ceremony via video conference, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said that commencement of the construction activities of the Project will create economic and employment opportunities in Bhutan in this critical time.
KHEL will be the first joint venture project to be implemented under an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) signed in 2014.

Jun 29, 2020

Amazon India to Hire 20,000 Employees

E-commerce major Amazon India said that it is offering close to 20,000 'seasonal' or temporary employment opportunities in its customer service (CS) organisation to help customers in India and globally with a seamless online shopping experience.
The new temporary positions -- being added to meet the anticipated demand in customer traffic in the next six months -- are open in Hyderabad, Pune, Coimbatore, Noida, Kolkata, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Mangaluru, Indore, Bhopal and Lucknow.
Most of the positions are part of Amazon's 'Virtual Customer Service' programme that provides flexible work-from-home options.
The new positions will see associates support customer services through e-mail, chat, social media and phone. The eligibility criteria for these positions include having minimum educational qualification of 12th standard pass and proficiency in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu or Kannada.

Government Extends Deadline to Bid for Air India

The government has again extended the deadline to bid for Air India by two months till August 31 as the COVID-19 fallout has disrupted economic activities globally.
The divestment process for the national carrier was initiated on January 27.
While issuing the EoI in January, the last date for bids was kept at March 17, which was later extended till April 30. This was further extended to June 30, and now till August 31.

Nokia Wins Taiwan Mobile 5G Contract

Finnish telecoms equipment maker Nokia Oyj won a 5G contract worth about €400 million ($449.48 million) from Taiwan Mobile to build out the telecom operator's next-generation network as the sole supplier.
Taiwan Mobile's earlier networks, Nokia will prepare for the deployment this month and complete the migration to 5G standalone within a three-year period.
Nokia, along with Nordic rival Ericsson, has picked up most of the 5G contracts in Taiwan.
While Nokia also won 5G contracts from Taiwan Star and Chunghwa Telecom, Ericsson picked up the deal with Far Eas Tone and a part of the contract from Chunghwa.

Jun 28, 2020

Carlyle to Buy Stake in Piramal Pharma

The Carlyle Group's CA Clover Intermediate II Investments has agreed to buy a 20% stake in Piramal Pharma Ltd. a wholly owned subsidiary of Piramal Enterprises Ltd. (PEL), for $490 million (Rs. 3,700 crore).
Based on milestone achievements, Piramal Pharma will be paid an additional $70 million. The transaction is expected to close in 2020.
The transaction values PEL's pharma business at an enterprise value of $2,775 million with an upside component of up to $360 million depending on the company's FY21 performance.

Microsoft to Permanently Close All Physical Stores

Microsoft is permanently closing nearly all of its physical stores around the world. Like other retailers, the software and computing giant had to temporarily close all of its stores in late March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to its website, Microsoft has 83 stores worldwide, including 72 stores in the US, and several others abroad where they showcase and sell laptops and other hardware. This announcement reflects what the company calls a strategic change for its retail business as sales increasingly shift online.
Microsoft said it would reimagine the physical spaces at its four high-profile Microsoft Experience Centers in New York City, London, Sydney, Australia and at the company's headquarters in Redmond, Washington.

Amazon Acquires Zoox

Amazon has just taken its boldest step yet into self-driving vehicles, acquiring six-year-old start-up Zoox.
The deal will help bring Zoox's vision of autonomous ride-hailing to reality. Zoox will continue to operate as a standalone business within Amazon, with CEO Aicha Evans and Jesse Levinson.

Hitachi and Microsoft Ink Multi-year Deal

Hitachi and Microsoft have announced a multi-year strategic alliance to accelerate the digital transformation of the manufacturing and logistics industries across Southeast Asia, North America and Japan.
Hitachi will integrate its industry-leading solutions such as Lumada, and its Internet of Things (IoT)-ready industrial controllers HX Series, with the Microsoft cloud platform, leveraging Azure, Dynamics 365 and Microsoft 365 to help businesses increase their workforce productivity and operational efficiency.
The first joint solutions will be available in Thailand in July 2020.
With this collaboration with Microsoft, Hitachio will be able to accelerate our customers' digital transformation and continue to deliver social, environmental and economic value.
Hitachi and Microsoft will also work together to support skilling initiatives that empower businesses to grow their digital capabilities and unlock new business opportunities.

Jun 27, 2020

Lt. Governor G. C. Murmu Launches Two Customised Loan Schemes of J&K Bank

Girish Chandra Murmu, the lieutenant governor of the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), rolled out 2 customised loan schemes of J&K Bank namely 'J&K Bank Business Support Loan Scheme 2019-20' and 'J&K Bank Business Support Loan Scheme 2019-20 for Hotels and Guest Houses' with the aim to overcome business challenges that have stemmed up due to the prevailing conditions.
This scheme is valid up to October 31, 2020, this loan scheme offers 10% enhancement in existing working capital limit in the form of a 3 year working capital term loan (including one year moratorium on principal) with a maximum limit of Rs. 5 crore for SMA2 (special mention accounts 2) borrowers and Rs. 20 crore for other standard loans including SMA1 (special mention accounts 1).

Yes Bank Launches Digital Wallet Solution 'Yuva Pay' in Partnership with UDMA Technologies

Yes Bank launches a digital wallet solution(app)'Yuva Pay' in partnership with UDMA Technologies Pvt Ltd to enable contactless payments for its customers. The wallet is issued under minimum Know Your Client (KYC) regulations.
The solution aims to help the low income group to access the digital and contactless transactions, which will enable broad access to secure electronic payment services.
Through this wallet utility bills like municipal, house, water tax, electricity, Liquefied Petroleum Gas(LPG), Direct to Home(DTH), mobile phone bill, licence fee, windmill and solar park fee, building sanction fees and billboard taxes can be paid through Bharat Bill Pay and Unified Payments Interface (UPI).

IOC Launches Battery Swapping Facility for Quick Recharge of Electric Vehicles

India's top oil firm IOC launched a battery swapping facility for electric vehicles (EVs) at its petrol pumps, offering to replace discharged batteries with fully charged ones in just couple of minutes.
Indian Oil Corp (IOC) will begin with a pilot of battery swapping at one of its outlets in Chandigarh and gradually scale it up to 20 stations.
Battery swapping technology offers the best alternative to slow charging and helps the drivers make optimum use of the operational hours, he said adding the battery swapping model is initially targeted at the commercial vehicles such as electric autos, rickshaws and electric two-wheelers and EVs that are either factory fitted or retrofitted.
IOC is the country's top fuel retailer, controlling close to half of the market. But, it is now making a foray into EV charging. It has partnered with Sun Mobility for setting up battery swapping facility, called Quick Interchange Station (QIS).

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