Economy / Market Snapshot – October, 2018

General News

• Assembly polls: Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram will vote on November 28, Rajasthan and Telangana on
  December 7; Chhattisgarh voting on Nov 12 and Nov 20. Counting for 5 states on December 11.
• PM Modi meets Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe; India, Japan ink six pacts, agree for 2+2 dialogue.
• India signs $5.4-billion deal to buy 5 S-400 missile systems from Russia during President Putin’s visit.
• Nirmala Sitharaman visits France for the first India-France Ministerial level annual defence dialogue.
• President Kovind visits Tajikistan; hold talks to strengthen India’s ties with the Central Asian country.
• Sushma Swaraj attends the Council of Heads of Govt Meeting of SCO in Tajikistan.
• Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s visits India; 17 MoUs inked for cooperation in various sectors.
• India and Croatia signs two agreements to facilitate cultural exchange & diplomatic cooperation.
• Cabinet approves MoU amongst BRICS nations regarding cooperation in the social and labour sphere.
• Statue of Unity: PM Modi unveils world’s tallest statue, credits Sardar Patel for united India.
• CBI Director Alok Verma, Special Director Rakesh Asthana divested of powers, sent on leave; MN Rao,
  Joint Director at CBI appointed as the new interim Director.
• SC gives CVC 2 weeks to complete inquiry against Verma, orders MN Rao not to take policy decisions.
• Sabarimala row: Devotees stop women from entering temple, SC agrees to review verdict on Nov 13.
• J&K municipal polls: Independents win 178 seats, BJP 100 and Congress 157 seats.
• Office-of-profit case: President Kovind dismisses plea to disqualify 27 AAP MLAs.
• Chief Secretary assault case: Delhi Court grants bail to Kejriwal, Sisodia and other 11 AAP MLAs.
• Farmers end 10-day Kisan Kranti Yatra march, claim victory after being allowed to enter Delhi.
• Madras HC upholds disqualification of 18 rebel AIADMK legislators.
• Jayalalithaa death probe: TN govt gives Justice Arumughaswamy Commission extension of 4 months.
• UP govt officially renames Allahabad to Prayagraj .
• Amritsar train accident: 61 dead as speeding train runs over crowd at Dussehra celebration.
• Justice Ranjan Gogoi sworn in as 46th Chief Justice of India.
• SC fixes 8pm – 10 pm for bursting crackers on Diwali, allows southern states to decide on 2-hour slot.
• SC allows deportation of seven suspected Rohingyas from Assam to Myanmar.
• Madras High Court orders CBI inquiry into corruption claims against Tamil Nadu CM Palaniswami.
• INX Media case: ED attaches Karti Chidambaram’s assets worth ₹54 crores in India, UK, Spain.
• ED files charge sheet against P Chidambaram in Aircel Maxis case.
• Bhima Koregaon violence: Bail plea of 3 activists rejected.
• Cyclone Titli wreaks havoc in Odisha, Andhra Pradesh; death toll touches 62.
• India witnesses biggest Zika virus outbreak as 105 test positive in Jaipur.
• India’s 2018 monsoon rainfall below average and forecast: IMD.
• Rafale Deal: Centre submits decision-making details in sealed cover to SC.
• BrahMos Aerospace engineer arrested for allegedly leaking information to Pakistan.
• Mike Pompeo visits China amid worsening ties over trade friction.
• North Korea agrees to allow inspectors into nuclear testing site: Mike Pompeo.
• South, North Korea agree to reconnect roads, rail amid US concern over easing sanctions.
• Brett Kavanaugh sworn in as US Supreme Court Justice after divisive fight.
• Nikki Haley resigns as US Ambassador to the UN.
• Explosive devices mailed to Obama, Hillary Clinton, others prompt security scare.
• Saudi confirms Jamal Khashoggi was killed in ‘brawl’ inside Istanbul consulate, King fires top officials.
• Interpol chief resigns amid detention in China.
• Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Japan’s Abe announce China-Japan deals, commit to stable relations.
• EU workers moving to UK post-Brexit need visas, skills: British PM Theresa May.
• Sri Lankan President Sirisena sacks Ranil Wickremesinghe, appoints Mahinda Rajapaksa as new PM.
• Malaysia charges former PM Najib Razak, ex-Treasury head in graft probe.
• South Korea jails former President Lee Myung-bak for 15 years on corruption charges.
• Afghanistan votes for a new Parliament, terror attacks leave 170 dead.
• Maldives Supreme Court upholds President Abdulla Yameen’s vote defeat.
• Indonesia tsunami and quake: Death toll reaches 2,256; inflicts $911 million in losses.
• Indonesia’s Lion Air flight carrying 189 passengers crashes off near Sumatra.
• World’s longest 55 km sea-crossing bridge opens in China, connects Hong Kong to the mainland.
• Earth has 10 years left to avoid ‘unthinkable damage: UN climate report.
• Congolese Doctor Denis Mukwege and Yazidi Activist Nadia Murad awarded Nobel Peace Prize.
• 2018 Asian Para Games: India record best-ever medal haul, placed at ninth with 72 medals.
• Youth Olympic Games: India ends at 16th spot with 13 medals.
• World Wrestling Championship: Bajrang Punia settles for Silver, Pooja Dhanda wins bronze.
• Asian Hockey Champions Trophy: India shares title with Pakistan as finals called off due to heavy rain.
• India vs West Indies: India lead the 5-match series 2-1.
• India tops ICC Test team rankings; Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma maintain top spots among ODI batsmen.
• Virat Kohli completes 10,000 ODI runs, beats Sachin Tendulkar to become fastest to reach milestone.
• FIFA rankings: Belgium overtakes France for the top spot, while Germany drops to 14th position.

Business News

• RBI maintains a status quo in October policy, keeps repo rate unchanged at 6.50%.
• Govt cuts excise duty on fuel by ₹1.50; oil marketing companies (OMCs) to absorb ₹1.
• Govt raises import duties up to 20% on 17 items, list includes smart watches, telecom equipment.
• Fiscal deficit touched 95.3% of 2018-’19 target in April-September: Govt.
• Manufacturing activity strengthens in September, PMI rises to 52.2 from 51.7 in August.
• Costlier food, fuel push September wholesale inflation to 2-month high of 5.13% vs 4.53% in August.
• India, Japan sign $75 billion currency swap agreement.
• SEBI empanels KPMG, Deloitte, 7 others to conduct forensic audit of listed companies.
• NSE enters commodity derivatives trading business with gold and silver contracts.
• NITI Aayog launches guidelines for Public-Private partnership in NCDs.
• International Finance Corporation launches $1 billion masala bonds to aid India investments.
• No mobile number will be disconnected, go for fresh KYC to delink Aadhaar: Telecom Dept.
• IDBI Bank allots 33.98 crore shares to LIC, stake increases to 14.89% post preferential allotment.
• Bank of Maharashtra shuts 51 branches for cost cutting.
• RBI sticks to Oct 15 deadline for data localisation.
• NCLT allows govt to take control of IL&FS; Uday Kotak, ICICI Bank’s GC Chaturvedi named on new board.
• RBI lays out rules to make seamless payments between different mobile wallets.
• FERA violation: Delhi court orders attachment of Mallya’s properties in Bengaluru.
• PNB case: ED attaches ₹637 crores worth of assets of Nirav Modi, over ₹218-crore assets of Mehul Choksi.
• India Mobile Congress 2018 discusses India’s road to 5G development.
• IBM acquires Red Hat in deal valued at $34 billion.
• Domestic passenger vehicle sales rose 6.88%, Domestic car sales grew by 6.8% in Apr-Sep: SIAM.
• Canada agrees to join US and Mexico on new trade deal to replace NAFTA.
• China’s Central Bank cuts reserve requirement ratio for fourth time this year.
• China, Japan sign bilateral currency swap deal of up to $30 billion.
• Reliance acquires 58.92% stake in Den Networks, 51.34% share in Hathway.
• IRDA makes long-term personal accident insurance optional.
• Ford sets up China business as a stand-alone unit.
• Govt unveils Digi Yatra, facial recognition system that allows entry into airports.
• India Energy Forum: Saudi Arabia commits to meeting India’s oil demand; keen to invest in downstream.
• Saudi Investment Summit: Saudi Arabia signs deals worth $56 billion.
• Qatar Petroleum signs 5-year LPG supply deal with China.
• Facebook shareholders back proposal to remove Mark Zuckerberg as Chairman.
• Alphabet shuts down Google+ after 5 lakh users’ data breached.
• WhatsApp builds system to comply with India’s payments data storage norms.
• Paytm launches ‘PayPay’ mobile wallet in Japan in JV with SoftBank, Yahoo Japan.
• Amazon in talks to buy 7-8% stake in Kishore Biyani’s Future Retail for ₹2,486 crores.
• US retail giant Sears files for bankruptcy.
• OYO expands international presence; forays into UAE and Indonesia.
• Govt allocates ₹144 crores to AYUSH ministry for alternative medicines.
• Dr Reddy’s sells US antibiotics manufacturing facility to UAE’s Neopharma.
• All patients fitted with Johnson & Johnson’s faulty hip implants can claim compensation: Panel.
• Zydus Wellness co jointly with Cadila Health propose to acquire Heinz India for ₹4,595 crores.
• IMF cuts world economic growth forecasts for 2018 and 2019 to 3.7% from 3.9%; projects India’s growth
  rate at 7.3% in 2018, 7.4% in 2019.
• US budget deficit hits $779 billion in Trump’s first full fiscal year.
• UK inflation drops more than expected in Sept, pulled down by food prices.
• India 58th most competitive economy in WEF index, rank up 5 places over 2017, US tops the list.
• Financial Action Task Force finalises report with recommendations for de-listing Pakistan from grey list.
• Chanda Kochhar quits ICICI Bank, board appoints Sandeep Bakhshi as MD, CEO for 5 years.
• Arundhati Bhattacharya join the boards of Reliance Industries and Wipro.
• IMF appoints Harvard professor Gita Gopinath its first woman Chief Economist.
• Sunil Bhaskaran appointed as AirAsia India head; Tony Fernandes & Bo Lingam step down.

Q2 Results

• HDFC Bank’s Q2 profit rises 20.6% to ₹5,005 crores, Provisions and contingencies up 23% to ₹1,820 crores.
• ICICI Bank Q2 profit tanks 55.84% to ₹908.88 crores, asset quality improves, GNPA lower at 8.54%.
• Yes Bank Q2 profit falls 3.8% to ₹964.7 crores, NII increased 28.2% to ₹2,417.55 crores.
• Canara Bank Q2 profit rises 5% to ₹299.5 crores as asset quality improves, GNPA down at 10.56%.
• IndusInd Bank Q2 profit rises 4.56% to ₹920.25 crores, GNPA fell to 1.09% and NNPA declined to 0.48%.
• Federal Bank Q2 profit grew by 0.9% YoY to ₹266 crores, GNPA increased to 3.11%, NNPA higher at 1.78%.
• Infosys Q2 profit up 13.8% to ₹4,110 crores, revenue up by 7.7%; announces dividend of ₹7/share.
• Tech Mahindra Q2 profit jumps 27% to ₹1,064 crores, revenue increased to ₹8,629.85 crores.
• Mindtree Q2 profit grows 30.4% to ₹206.3 crores, revenue grew by 7.07% to ₹1,755.4 crores.
• TCS profit up 22.57% to ₹7,901 crores; revenue up at ₹36,854 crores, announces dividend of ₹ 4/share.
• Tata Motors posts Q2 loss of ₹1,049 crores on lean JLR sales, revenue climbed to ₹71,293 crores.
• Maruti Suzuki Q2 profit falls 10% to ₹2,240 crores, revenue rises 3% to ₹22,433.2 crores.
• Bajaj Auto Q2 profit rises 4% YoY to ₹1,152 crores, revenue grew 21.63% to ₹7,986.79 crores.
• HUL Q2 profit jumps 23% YoY to ₹1,522 crores, revenue comes at ₹9,138 crores.
• ITC Q2 profit rises 11.92% YoY to ₹2,954.67 crores, revenue increased 7.3% to ₹11,069 crores.
• L&T Q2 profit rises 22.53% YoY to ₹2,230 crores, revenue grew 21% to ₹32,081 crores.
• RIL Q2 Profit soars 17.4% YoY to ₹9,516 crores, revenues increased by 54.5% YoY to ₹1,56,291 crores.
• BHEL Q2 profit jumps 60.43% to ₹185.17 crores; revenue grew by 6.34% YoY to ₹6,779.88 crores.
• Hindustan Zinc Q2 profit falls 29.5% at ₹1,815 crores; declares interim dividend at ₹20/share.
• Dr Reddy’s posts 77% rise in Q2 net profit at ₹503.8 crores, revenue rose 7% to ₹3,797.8 crores.