Net direct tax collection grew 18.3 per cent to about Rs 11.25 lakh crore as of October 10 this fiscal, government data showed on Friday.The mop-up includes personal income tax collection of Rs 5.98 lakh crore and corporate tax collection of Rs 4.94 lakh crore. Securities Transaction Tax (STT) stood at Rs 30,630 crore, while other taxes (including equalisation levy and gift tax) earned Rs 2,150 crore.The income tax department had collected Rs 9.51 lakh crore during the same period a year ago.Refunds worth Rs 2.31 lakh crore were issued between April 1 and October 10, a growth of 46 per cent.On a gross basis, direct tax collection grew 22.3 per cent to Rs 13.57 lakh crore. The collection includes PIT (personal income tax) of Rs 7.13 lakh crore and corporate tax of Rs 6.11 lakh crore.The government has budgeted to collect Rs 22.07 lakh crore in the current fiscal from direct taxes.  The United States continues to be the biggest source of foreign direct investment for India, followed by Mauritius, Singapore, and the UK, as per the Reserve Bank of India's latest annual census.A total of 41,653 entities responded to the census, which targeted foreign liabilities and assets of Indian direct investment entities for fiscal year 2023-24. Out of them, 37,407 reported FDI and/or overseas direct investment (ODI) in their balance sheets for March 2024. Out of these, 29,926 had participated in the previous census, whereas 7,481 were newly reported. After a gap of nearly two years, India's industrial production turned negative as it contracted by 0.1 per cent in August, mainly due to a decline in the mining and power generation sectors' output, in addition to an almost flat expansion in the manufacturing sector.According to the data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), factory output growth based on the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) has also been revised downwards for July to 4.7 per cent from the earlier estimate of 4.8 per cent."The IIP growth rate for August 2024 is (-) 0.1 per cent, which was 4.7 per cent in July 2024," NSO said in a release.The IIP growth in August 2023 was 10.9 per cent.   India's industrial production contracted 0.1 per cent in August, mainly due to poor showing by the mining and power generation sectors, according to official data released on Friday.The factory output, measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) witnessed a growth of 10.9 per cent in August 2023."The IIP growth rate for the month of August 2024 is (-) 0.1 per cent, which was 4.7 per cent in the month of July 2024," an official statement said.The data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) showed that the growth in mining, manufacturing and electricity for August 2024 stood at (-) 4.3 per cent, 01 per cent and (-) 3.7 per cent, respectively.The decline in growth of the mining sector is likely due to heavy rainfall in August 2024, NSO said.In April-August this fiscal, the IIP grew 4.2 per cent against 6.2 per cent in the year-ago period.  "Honoured and Humbled": Noel Tata said after becoming Chairman of Tata TrustsTata Trusts today announced the appointment of Noel Tata as its new chairman following a unanimous vote by the trustees of the different Trusts that make up Tata Trusts at a joint meeting in Mumbai today. Expressing his gratitude, Noel Tata said, "I am deeply honoured and humbled by the call to this position. I am committed to pursuing the great legacy of Mr. Ratan N. Tata and the founding members of the Tata Group. "We rededicate ourselves to carry on our developmental and philanthropic initiatives and continue to play our part in nation-building," he said." JPMorgan Chase's JPM.N profit dropped in the third quarter as a bigger provision for potential loan defaults offset gains from investment banking, the bank said on Friday.Banks are building up stockpiles - which act as a safeguard when borrowers default on their loans - to typical levels as consumers deplete the savings they built up during the pandemic.Consumers' financial health remains solid despite elevated interest rates and fears over unemployment.  The Indian rupee fell below 84 per dollar for the first time on Friday, pressured by concerns about the recent spike in oil prices and the exodus of foreign money from the equity market.The rupee INR=IN closed at 84.06, down 0.1% on the day, after hitting a record low of 84.07 earlier in the session.The decline past the 84 level is significant as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had defended that level for more than two months. On Monday, it informally instructed banks to avoid heavy bets against the rupee.The RBI intervened on Friday as well. Traders said large state-run banks sold dollars, likely to prevent a sharp fall in the rupee. The biggest shareholder in Sainsbury's SBRY.L, the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), is selling 306 million pounds ($399 million) worth of shares in the British supermarket group, reducing its holding by about 5%.Shares in Sainsbury's, which has an over 15% share of Britain's grocery market, trailing only Tesco TSCO.L, were down nearly 5% on Friday.  Britain's economy grew in August after two consecutive months of stagnation, providing some relief to finance minister Rachel Reeves ahead of the new Labour government's first budget later this month.Economic output rose by 0.2 per cent in monthly terms in August, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics that were in line with expectations in a Reuters poll of economists. IPO-bound OYO on Friday announced five additions to its leadership team, with Sonal Sinha being appointed as Chief Operating Officer (COO)? International and Rachit Srivastava as the COO of OYO Vacation Homes in Europe.Besides, Shashank Jain will take over as Head of Technology & Online Revenue; Pankhuri Sakhuja will lead German home listings business Traum & flex-space business Innov8 and Ashish Bajpai has been promoted to Head of Revenue & Global OTA (online travel agency).OYO Founder & Group CEO Ritesh Agarwal said, "As we pursue our growth objectives, agility and decisive action remain at the core of our strategy."Our leaders are continuously adapting and expanding their roles to stay ahead of evolving market dynamics and drive our business forward. I congratulate Sonal, Rachit, Shashank, Pankhuri and Ashish on their new roles. Having been with OYO for a significant period, they understand OYO and its values and have been critical to our success."OYO's Global COO and Chief Product Officer Abhinav Sinha will be moving into an advisory role from January 2025, the company said.    Gold prices on Friday increased Rs 507 to Rs 75,804 per 10 grams in futures trade as speculators created fresh positions on a firm spot demand.On the Multi Commodity Exchange, gold contracts for December delivery traded higher by Rs 507 or 0.67 per cent at Rs 75,804 per 10 grams in a business turnover of 14,256 lots. Chinese stocks fell on Friday and ended the week in negative territory as investors' previous enthusiasm about economic stimulus gave way to concerns about whether the policy support would be big enough to revive growth.The blue-chip CSI300 Index closed down 2.8 per cent, while the Shanghai Composite Index dropped 2.6 per cent. For the week, the CSI300 index fell by 3.3 per cent. Hong Kong markets were closed for a holiday. German sports car maker Porsche on Friday posted a 29 per cent nine-month sales drop in China, joining peers BMW and Mercedes in reporting weaker results in the country.The slump in China, the world's biggest car market, and the ongoing model revamp weighed on the overall result, with global sales falling by 7 per cent to 226,026 units in January-September.  BP said a drop in refining margins would reduce its third-quarter profit by $400 million to $600 million from the previous three months.The British group's oil trading result is also expected to be weak, it said in a statement. The rupee dropped to a lifetime low against the US dollar on Friday, pressured by concerns over the recent jump in oil prices and the exodus of foreign money from the nation's equity markets.The rupee dropped to 83.9900 to the dollar, inching past the previous lifetime low of 83.9850 hit on Sept. 12 and down from 83.9675 in the previous session.The local currency had recovered to near 83.50 little over two weeks ago. South Koreans flocked to book stores on Friday and crashed websites in a frenzy to snap up copies of the work of novelist Han Kang in her home country, after her unexpected win of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature.However, the author herself was keeping out of the limelight.The country's largest bookstore chain, Kyobo Book Centre, said sales of her books had rocketed on Friday, with stocks almost immediately selling out and set to be in short supply for the near future. Bangladesh is likely to set aside pricing concerns and retain a power purchase pact with Adani Power, in the face of supply worries and gloomy prospects for a legal challenge, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.The new government has set up a panel to gauge whether its predecessor's contracts adequately protected the nation's interests, particularly projects faulted for lack of transparency that were initiated under a special expediting law. The Reserve Bank of India was likely selling US dollars on Friday to support the rupee as the currency was pinned near its record low amid worries about elevated oil prices and outflows from local equities, four traders told Reuters.The rupee was quoting at 83.9750 per US dollar compared with its close at 83.9675 in the previous session. The currency had declined to its all-time low of 83.9850 last month. TCS share price: The shares of the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) opened 2.12 per cent lower on Friday after the company reported its earnings for the second quarter of the current fiscal. The shares of the company opened at Rs 4140.00 apiece, down by 2.12 per cent from its previous close. The stock has reacted as the company’s earnings missed the street estimates.   The Indian equity benchmarks edged lower on Friday dragged down by losses in index heavyweights like ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services, Bharti Airtel and Larsen & Toubro. The Sensex fell as much as 193 points and Nifty 50 index dropped below its important psychological level of 25,000.Meanwhile, most of the Asian markets were trading higher with Japan's Nikkei rising 0.3 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advancing 3 per cent, South Korea's KOSPI up 0.33 per cent and Taiwan Weighted up 0.21 per cent.Overnight, Wall Street's main indexes closed lower on Thursday as investors looked to higher-than-expected inflation and unemployment claims for indications on the health of the U.S. economy and the path for interest rates.  European luxury shares have slid on investor concerns that Hermes handbags and Dior slingbacks may be Beijing's next targets for retaliation, following the EU's decision to slap tariffs on China EVs, but analysts say such a move is unlikely."It’s a question of how Beijing will respond to the EV tariffs. Is there going to be an escalation? I think yes. Is it going to go after luxury goods? I don’t think so," said Patrice Nordey, CEO of Shanghai-based innovation consultancy Trajectry. Tesla CEO Elon Musk showcased a long-promised robotaxi with two gull-wing doors and without a steering wheel or pedals at a much-hyped event on Thursday, paving the path for what he has bet will drive long-term growth for the electric vehicle maker.Musk, who arrived at the stage in one of the robotaxis - called Cybercab - said production will start in 2026 and the vehicles will be available for customers to buy for less than $30,000. They will cost 20 cents a mile to operate, he said. Tesla kicked off its much-hyped event late Thursday to unveil its long-promised robotaxi and update investors on artificial intelligence projects, efforts CEO Elon Musk has bet will drive the electric vehicle maker's long-term growth.Enthusiasm around the event has been on display across social media, with screenshots of invites and speculation on what might be disclosed. But investors and analysts have flagged challenges with the technology and reined in expectations. Tata Consultancy Services: The India's largest IT services company on Thursday kicked off the earnings season for Indian IT majors on a glum note after it reported a lower-than-expected quarterly profit on weakness in its key North American market. Net profit at the Tata Group company rose 5 per cent to Rs 11,909 crore, but missed the analysts' average estimate of Rs 12,502 crore, according to LSEG data.IREDA: The renewable energy financial assistance firm on Thursday reported net profit of Rs 388 crore, marking an increase of 36 per cent from Rs 285 crore in the same period last year. Its revenue from operations rose 33 per cent to Rs 242 crore from Rs 183 crore.Maruti Suzuki: SES ESG Research now lifts the ESG score of Maruti Suzuki to 74 for the year 2024 from 68.5 or Grade B in 2023, reflecting improvements in the group's environmental, social, and governance performance.Mazagon Dock: Mazagon Dock has won a Rs 121.7 crore deal from Maharashtra State Power Generation Company. The order includes an AI-based, all-in infrasecure system supply, installation, and commissioning at GTPS-Uran and KGSC-Pophali.Dr. Reddy's Labs: Dr. Reddy's Laboratories shareholders have approved the voluntary liquidation of its wholly-owned subsidiary, Imperial Owners and Land Possessions. Pending regulatory approvals, liquidation will not significantly impact consolidated financials.  The Indian equity benchmarks are set to open higher as indicated by Nifty Futures traded at Gift City in Gandhinagar. Nifty Futures at Gift City rose 0.10 per cent or 26 points to 25,088 amid stable cues from other Asian markets.Most of the Asian markets were trading higher with Japan's Nikkei rising 0.3 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advancing 3 per cent, South Korea's KOSPI up 0.33 per cent and Taiwan Weighted up 0.21 per cent.Wall Street's main indexes closed lower on Thursday as investors looked to higher-than-expected inflation and unemployment claims for indications on the health of the U.S. economy and the path for interest rates. The US-owned Haas Formula One team and Toyota announced a multi-year technical partnership on Friday in a move bringing Japan's biggest carmaker back to grand prix racing for the first time since 2009.Haas will continue to use Ferrari power units after agreeing in July a contract extension to the end of 2028.  Chrysler parent Stellantis STLAM.MI confirmed on Thursday that CEO Carlos Tavares would retire at the end of his contract in early 2026 and announced major senior management changes as it struggles to turn around its lagging North American operations. South Korea's central bank cut policy interest rates for the first time in four and a half years, making a shift away from quashing inflation, currently below its 2 per cent target, to focus on reviving growth.The Bank of Korea (BOK) lowered its benchmark interest rate KROCRT=ECI by a quarter percentage point to 3.25 per cent at its monetary policy review, an outcome expected by 34 of 37 economists polled by Reuters. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway BRKa.N has raised 281.8 billion yen ($1.9 billion) in a yen-denominated bond offer, a move analysts say lays the ground for the US investment company to increase its exposure to Japanese assets.
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