Economy / Market Snapshot June, 2022

General News

• President Election 2022: BJP picks former Jharkhand Governor Draupadi Murmu; Opposition picks
  Yashwant Sinha; Voting to be held on July 18.
• Rajya Sabha polls: BJP registers win in Haryana, Karnataka, and Maharashtra. Congress retains Rajasthan.
• Agnipath: Centre to hire youth on a 4-year contractual basis for tri-services.
• Protests erupt against ‘Agnipath’ scheme in many states; highways blocked; rail traffic disrupted.
• G7 and its 5 partner countries, including India, pledge to protect free speech; PM Modi attends summit.
• PM Modi meets UAE President Sheikh Mohamed; leaders reaffirm commitment to deepen partnership.
• Vice President Venkaiah Naidu holds delegation level talks with top leadership of Gabon, Senegal & Qatar
• Israel Defence Minister Benjamin Gantz reviews defence cooperation with PM Modi, Rajnath.
• India, Vietnam ink military logistics support pact and vision document to expand defence ties.
• Iranian Foreign Minister meets PM Modi, Jaishankar; talks focus on bilateral ties, connectivity.
• India hosts 2-day special ASEAN-foreign ministers meet in Delhi.
• 16th ASEAN defence ministers meet: Defence ministers agree to strengthen regional cooperation.
• BRICS leaders show commitment to respect sovereignty, territorial integrity.
• S Jaishankar holds discussion with Austrian and Spanish counterparts and Mauritius PM.
• PM Modi chairs first National Conference of Chief Secretaries.
• PM inaugurates projects worth over ₹3,000 crore in Gujarat.
• India’s total COVID – 19 cases at 4.35 crore, death toll at 5.25 lakh; 67.2% fully vaccinated.
• Health Ministry launches 2-month long COVID-19 vaccination drive Har Ghar Dastak 2.0 campaign.
• Govt issues guidelines on monkeypox stress on surveillance, rapid identification, isolation.
• Govt issues notification to link voter list with Aadhaar, makes electoral law gender neutral.
• Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Dhami wins crucial Champawat bypoll, remains CM.
• Eknath Shinde takes oath as Maharashtra CM as Uddhav Thackeray resigns ahead of floor test.
• CM Patnaik shares Odisha’s achievements on food security at World Food Programme HQ in Rome.
• Hardik Patel joins BJP after quitting Congress months ahead of Gujarat elections.
• UP CM Yogi Adityanath lays foundation stone for second stage of Ram temple construction.
• Bihar Cabinet gives nod for caste survey at cost of ₹500 crore; sets February 23 deadline.
• West Bengal Assembly passes Bill to replace Governor with CM as Chancellor of State universities.
• ED questions Rahul Gandhi on National Herald case; to depose Sonia Gandhi late July.
• India successfully tests nuclear-capable Agni-4 and Prithvi-II ballistic missiles.
• India’s latest communication satellite ISRO’s GSAT-24 successfully launched.
• Northeast rains: Toll in Assam rises to over 150, more than 40 lakh residents adversely affected.
• Jammu and Kashmir to host G-20 meetings in 2023, form 5-member coordination panel.
• India grants e-visas to Sikhs, Hindus in Afghanistan in wake of Kabul gurudwara attack.
• India-Bangladesh bus service resumes on four routes after 2-year hiatus due to COVID.
• Global COVID caseload rises to 54.64 crore, fatalities at 63.34 lakh.
• At least 1,000 dead as massive earthquake hits Afghanistan, Pakistan.
• India, Israel, UAE and US form new I2U2 grouping, 1st summit next month.
• US lifts Cuba flight restrictions imposed under former President Donald Trump.
• US, Chinese defence ministers meet face-to-face, seeking to avoid misunderstandings.
• US President Joe Biden signs first significant gun control law in decades.
• European Parliament votes overwhelmingly to grant EU candidate status to Ukraine and Moldova.
• France’s Macron, Germany’s Scholz and Italy’s Draghi discuss Ukraine’s EU integration prospects in Kyiv.
• UK PM Boris Johnson discusses defense and security issues with Ukrainian President Zelensky in Kyiv.
• US, Germany agree to supply advanced weapons to Ukraine as Russia closes in.
• Russian missile attacks intensify across Ukraine after landmark NATO summit.
• India delivers consignments of life-saving drugs, medical equipment and relief material to Sri Lanka.
• Sri Lankan cabinet passes 21st Amendment to curtail powers of President.
• Iran, EU agree to resume stalled 2015 nuclear deal talks with US.
• FATF retains Pakistan on ‘grey list’, says will verify country’s compliance with ‘on site visit’.
• China lifts two-year COVID visa ban on Indians, barring tourism and private trips.
• Britain celebrates Queen Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne.
• British Prime Minister Boris Johnson survives Conservative confidence vote.
• Japan, NATO officials agree to step up military cooperation and joint exercises.
• South Korea, US fire 8 ballistic missiles in response to North Korea tests.
• French President Emmanuel Macron loses absolute majority in parliament in ‘democratic shock’.
• PM launches 1st ever Chess Olympiad Torch Relay, India to host 44th Chess Olympiad.
• Jyotiraditya Scindia announces first ever National Air Sports Policy 2022.
• Olympic champion Neeraj Chopra wins gold at Kuortane Games in Finland.
• Para Shooting World Cup: India wins 6 golds, 5 silvers and 1 bronze.
• India’s R Praggnanandhaa wins Norway Chess Group A open chess tournament.
• Deepak Punia wins bronze in U23 Asian wrestling championships 2022.
• India vs Ireland: India wins 2-match series 2-0.
• Bhuvneshwar Kumar recorded the most wickets in the powerplay in the history of the T20I format.
• Ind vs SA, T20: India, South Africa draw T20 series.
• Mithali Raj, Eoin Morgan announces retirement from all forms of international cricket.
• ICC ODI Rankings: Babar Azam on top, Imam-ul-Haq surpasses Kohli; NZ pacer Boult remains on top.
• French Open: Rafael Nadal his 14th title, 22nd Grand Slam; World No. 1 Iga Swiatek wins Women’s title.

Business News

• 47th GST Council meet: Council clears proposal to remove tax exemptions on some items.
• Finance Ministry releases third instalment of revenue deficit grant of ₹7,183 crore to 14 states.
• Govt announces extension of GST compensation cess levy till March 2026.
• Govt hikes MSP for kharif crops by 4-9% for 2022-23; paddy up by ₹100/qtl.
• Cabinet approves 5G auctions by July-end, gives nod to private networks.
• Govt launches design-linked incentive scheme, extends telecom PLI by 1 year.
• PM Modi launches ₹6,000 crore scheme for MSMEs, CBFTE scheme for first-time exporters.
• PM Modi inaugurates 3rd UP Investors Summit, lays foundation stone for projects worth ₹80,000 crore.
• PM unveils rail and roadways projects worth ₹27,000 crore in Bengaluru.
• Nitin Gadkari unveils NH projects worth ₹13,000 crore in Bihar and ₹1,300 crore in Rajasthan.
• Nitin Gadkari approves Bharat NCAP draft; cars in India to get safety rating based on crash tests.
• Centre asks states to scrap old diesel buses, replace them with EVs.
• Telangana CM KCR inaugurates T-Hub 2.0, the world’s largest innovation campus in Hyderabad.
• Govt receives ₹497 crore from GAIL buyback of 5.7 crore shares for ₹1,083 crore.
• Govt approves 8.1% interest  on  FY22  EPF deposits, lowest in 4 decades.
• Indian Railways flags off first train under Bharat Gaurav scheme from Coimbatore to Shirdi.
• Jet fuel price hiked by 16.3%, up 91% in the last six months.
• Prices of branded palm oil, sunflower and soybean oil have been reduced by up to ₹15 per litre.
• Nirmala Sitharaman launches EASE 5.0 ‘Common reforms agenda’ for Public Sector Banks.
• RBI raises repo rate by 50 bps to 4.90%; forecasts 6.7% inflation for 2023; pegs GDP growth rate at 7.2%.
• RBI hikes limit on OTP approval for auto-debits to ₹15,000; proposes to link credit cards to UPI.
• RBI extends tokenisation deadline to Sep 30 and compliance with new card rules to October 1, 2022.
• Govt designates ICICI Bank’s IT resources as critical information infrastructure.
• World Bank approves $245 million loan to modernise India’s railway logistics infrastructure.
• India, EU re-launch Free Trade Agreement negotiations after 9-year lull.
• WTO agrees partial patent waiver for COVID-19 vaccines, reach deal in digital products and fishing.
• India, Egypt partner for pharma trade, research, regulatory cooperation.
• G7 touts $600 billion global infrastructure plan to rival China’s formidable Belt and Road Initiative.
• Inflations in US and UK hit new 40-year high of 8.6% and 9.1% in May respectively.
• US Fed hikes interest rate by 75 bps to 1.75%, the biggest increase in 28 years.
• Sri Lanka struggles to secure new fuel shipments as supply runs dry
• EXIM Bank extends short-term LoC of $55 million to Sri Lanka for fertiliser imports.
• Sri Lanka grants 40-year tax relief for China-backed Port City investments.
• Pakistan secures deal with IMF to restore stalled $6 billion aid.
• Pakistan signs $2.3 billion loan facility agreement with Chinese consortium of banks.
• UK announces new tranche of trade sanctions against Russia.
• World Bank board approves $1.49 billion additional funds for crisis-hit Ukraine.
• Russia’s oil export revenue soars to $98 billion as war in Ukraine rages on.
• EU imposes partial ban on Russian oil; signs gas deal with Israel, Egypt.
• G7 announces ban on import of Russian gold amid war with Ukraine.
• Jio-bp partners with MG Motor and Castrol to set up charging and service infrastructure for EVs.
• Maruti Suzuki sets up Asia’s largest carport type solar plant at Manesar facility.
• Ford India extends production at Chennai facility till end-July 2022 amid protests by workers.
• Sony, Honda sign JV to sell electric cars by 2025.
• Valeo, Atul Auto arm & Honda Powerpack Energy join hands for three-wheelers electrification in India.
• Adani, Ambani make ₹1.68 trillion investment pledge under the ‘Invest Rajasthan’ outreach program.
• Vedanta puts Sterlite Copper’s smelter in Tuticorin for sale.
• DCGI approves Biological E’s COVID-19 vaccine Corbevax as heterologous booster dose.
• FDA authorizes Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccines for Children down to 6 months of age.
• Biological-E gets WHO nod to be additional facility for making Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccine.
• US announces $122 million for India to address challenges posed by infectious diseases.
• Microsoft shuts down its oldest browser, Internet Explorer after 27 years from June 15.
• TCS partners with QIAGEN in driving its Cloud transformation strategy.
• Meta, Microsoft, other tech giants form metaverse standards body, except Apple.
• Vodafone Idea defers ₹8,837 crore AGR dues payment, gets option to pay interest via equity.
• VPN provider Surfshark to shut down servers in India over govt’s new CERT-In rules.
• IPL TV rights sold for ₹23,575 crore for 2023-27 cycle, digital for ₹20,500 crore to 2 separate broadcasters.
• Tencent buys stake worth ₹2,060 crore in Flipkart from its co-founder Binny Bansal.
• Bitcoin plunges below $20,000 for first time since Dec 2020; Ether breaches $1,000.
• WhatsApp Partners With RazorpayX to Power Seamless Cashback Transactions via UPI.
• Zomato acquires Blinkit for ₹4,447 crore in all-stock deal.
• Ant Group launches digital wholesale bank in Singapore to serve regional SMEs.
• Government appoints Alok Kumar Choudhary as SBI Managing Director.
• RBI approves appointment of R Subramaniakumar as MD and CEO of RBL Bank.
• Govt appoints Anand Mahindra, Pankaj R Patel, Venu Srinivasan and Dholakia on RBI central board.
• Bajaj Chairman and MD Shekhar Bajaj steps down.
• IRS officer Nitin Gupta appointed new CBDT chairman.
• Mukesh Ambani steps down as director of Reliance Jio, son Akash Ambani takes over as chairman.
• Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg steps down after 14-year tenure at Facebook.
• Parameswaran Iyer, ex-bureaucrat who ran Swachh Bharat Mission appointed as CEO of NITI Aayog.