Business News Live: UBS chair warns against big increase in capital requirements

Taiwanese tech giant ASUS aims to become India's top PC (personal computer) brand having 25-30 per cent market share in two years, with aggressive retail expansion as one of its key strategies.

ASUS has already tripled its market share in India from 6.3 per cent in 2017 to 17.8 per cent in 2023, making it the number two consumer notebook brand in the country, said Arnold Su, Vice President, Consumer & Gaming PC, System Business Group, ASUS India.

India leads on world AI stage in talent and domain skills, placing it on a strong footing in transformative era of Artificial Intelligence, Nasscom's new chairperson Sindhu Gangadharan has said, asserting this is "the best time to be in India" particularly for those in the technology sector.

In a wide-ranging interview to PTI, Gangadharan touched upon several key issues -- from the importance of mental and social well-being at workplace to economic impact of AI and GenAI -- and sought to assuage concerns around artificial intelligence (AI) displacing jobs.

India and the US are negotiating a pact to enhance collaboration in essential critical minerals, and the issue will figure during the visit of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to Washington this week.

At the invitation of the US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, Goyal will undertake a visit from September 30-October 3.

The commerce ministry said, in a statement on Sunday, that Goyal and Raimondo will also discuss steps to expand and diversify critical minerals supply chains between India and the US.

Fabless chip company L&T Semiconductor Technologies expects manufacturing of semiconductor products designed by it to start in the next two years, a top company official said.

While speaking to PTI, L&T Semiconductor Technologies CEO Sandeep Kumar said the company will set up its chip manufacturing plants after achieving a threshold revenue in the range of USD 50 million to USD 1 billion for different semiconductor technologies.
 

Indian Biogas Association (IBA) is expecting around Rs 1,600 crore investment in the sector during Renewable Energy India Expo (REI) 2024, beginning on Thursday.

IBA, the country's leading body representing biogas operators, manufacturers, and plant planners, is optimistic about the opportunities the high-profile event will bring.

Talking to PTI, IBA Chairman Gaurav Kedia said, "REI 2024 is expected to see investment announcements of around Rs 1,600 crore in the biogas sector".
 

Housing prices in Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru appreciated 29 per cent year-on-year in the July-September quarter on strong demand, high input cost and an increase in the supply of luxury homes, according to Anarock.

Real estate consultant Anarock's data showed that the average prices of residential properties in Delhi-NCR increased 29 per cent to Rs 7,200 per square feet in the July-September quarter from Rs 5,570 per square feet in the year-ago period.
 

The combined market valuation of eight of the top-10 most valued firms surged Rs 1,21,270.83 crore last week, with Reliance Industries becoming the biggest gainer, in line with an outstanding rally in benchmark equity indices.

Supermajor BP is looking to grow its business in India as it scouts for more opportunities in the world's fastest growing energy market, its top official said.

BP board, after more than a decade, held its meetings in India during a five-day visit starting September 23 and went charmed.
 

State-owned NLC India has said it is in the process of participating in the upcoming auctions of critical mineral resources and aims to achieve the annual capacity of mining one million tonnes of such materials by 2029-30.

NLC India's core business include mining of coal and lignite as well as power generation.

Global trends, trading activity of foreign investors and domestic macroeconomic data announcements would dictate terms in the equity market in a holiday-shortened week ahead, analysts said.

Equity markets would remain closed on Wednesday for Mahatma Gandhi Jayanti.

"Looking ahead, it will be interesting to monitor Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) and their flow into India. September saw the highest FII inflows into Indian equities this year. Movements in commodity prices, the US dollar index, and key macroeconomic data from the US will also be pivotal in shaping the market's direction.

E-commerce company Flipkart on Saturday said it saw a multi-fold jump in customers' purchases using credit facilities during the first two days of its annual festive season sale 'The Big Billion Days'.

The Walmart group firm recorded 27 times jump in the third-party easy monthly instalment (EMI) usage during The Big Billion Days' compared to usual business days.

Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Saturday called for increased usage of made-in-India goods in order to promote domestic manufacturing and cut the country's imports.

Speaking at the UP International Trade Show at Greater Noida, Goyal also said that out of the 20 approved industrial townships, one is coming up at Greater Noida and in that, the first phase is already sold out.

The government has approved the transfer of licence relating to non-news and current affairs TV channels held by the media entities of billionaire Mukesh Ambani -led Reliance Industries to Star India.

According to regulatory filings by Reliance Industries and TV18 Broadcast, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting granted the approval in an order dated September 27.

Japan's incoming prime minister,Shigeru Ishiba, said on Sunday the country's monetary policy must remain accommodative as a trend, signalling the need to keep borrowing costs low to underpin a fragile economic recovery.

It was not immediately clear whether Ishiba, who had been a vocal critic of the Bank of Japan's past aggressive monetary easing, was taking a more dovish line with his remarks.

Buyout firm TPG has emerged as the frontrunner to pick up a minority stake worth $2 billion in Creative Planning, in a deal that could value the wealth management firm at more than $15 billion, people familiar with the matter said on Saturday.

The deal would mark TPG's second such bet on a wealth manager within a week and underscores the burgeoning demand for dealmaking in the sector that generates lucrative fee income for managers. On Thursday, TPG clinched a deal to buy a minority stake in Homrich Berg.

Thrive Capital is investing more than $1 billion of OpenAI's current $6.5 billion fundraising round, and it has a sweetener no other investors are getting: the potential to invest another $1 billion next year at the same valuation if the AI firm hits a revenue goal, people familiar with the matter said on Friday.

OpenAI is predicting its revenue will skyrocket to $11.6 billion next year from an estimated $3.7 billion in 2024, the sources said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Losses are expected to be as much as $5 billion this year, depending largely on their spending for computing power that could change, one of the sources added.

India is seeking bids to supply 6,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity from renewable energy power projects for assured peak-hour supply with storage, according to a tender issued by state-run SJVN. 

India is looking to connect a record 35 gigawatts (GW) of solar and wind energy capacity to its grid during the year ending March 2025, with a target of increasing its non-fossil power capacity to 500 GW.

 Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk once again made waves on social media by sharing an image on his official X (formerly Twitter) account, linking Dogecoin (DOGE) with the Presidential candidate Donald Trump. The image, titled "D.O.G.E." with the subtext "Department of Government Efficiency," features both Musk and Trump wearing dark sunglasses, posing in front of the US flag and the White House. A Shiba Inu, the breed associated with the Dogecoin meme, is also featured in the graphic.

Three online sellers operating on Walmart-owned Flipkart have sued the Indian antitrust watchdog over an investigation which found they, Flipkart and rival Amazon breached competition laws, according to court filings seen by Reuters.

The filings come after antitrust investigations concluded in August found Amazon and Flipkart, some of their sellers and smartphone brands, violated local competition laws by giving undue preference to select online sellers and prioritizing certain listings, Reuters has reported.

Drug firm Lupin on Saturday said the US health regulator has issued six observations after inspecting its Madhya Pradesh-based manufacturing facility.

The US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) inspected the company's Pithampur Unit-1 API and finished product manufacturing facility from September 16 to September 27, 2024, Lupin said in a regulatory filing.
 

India’s quick commerce sector has seen explosive growth over the past two years, with sales surging by an impressive 280 per cent, according to a recent report by financial services firm Chryseum. The report highlights the rapid expansion of the industry, with the Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) of quick commerce rising from $0.5 billion in FY22 to $3.3 billion in FY24.

Quick commerce, which involves rapid delivery of small orders within a short time frame, is gaining popularity at a pace far exceeding that of traditional e-commerce. While the broader e-commerce market in India is growing at an annual rate of 14 per cent, quick commerce has soared at a remarkable 73 per cent growth rate during FY 2023-24, signaling a significant shift in consumer preference toward faster delivery options.

The report forecasts continued strong growth in the sector, projecting that the quick commerce market will reach a valuation of $9.95 billion by 2029. This would represent a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 4.5 per cent from its current value of $3.34 billion in 2024.

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Kumar Arch Tech, which is into PVC blend-based building material products manufacturing, has filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator Sebi to garner Rs 740 crore through an initial public offering.

The proposed IPO is a mix of fresh issuance of shares valued Rs 240 crore, and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of shares worth Rs 500 crore by promoters, according to the draft papers filed on Friday.

Also, the company may mop up Rs 48 crore in pre-IPO placement round. If such placement is carried out, fresh issue size will be reduced.

Proceeds from the fresh issue to the tune of Rs 182.09 crore will be used for investment in its subsidiary Taylias Industry Private Limited for financing its capital expenditure requirements for the greenfield project in relation to the manufacturing of PVC-based products.

Kumar Arch Tech offers a wide range of products, classified into three categories -- board/sheets and their derivatives such as trimboards, doors, and wall ceiling panels and columns; profiles which comprise mouldings and door frames; and signage solutions.

According to Wazir report, US imports of PVC blend-based building materials grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6 per cent to $6.2 billion on March 31, 2024 from $4.9 billion on March 31, 2020.

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Chief Minister M K Stalin laid the foundation stone for Tata Motors' new manufacturing facility in Panapakkam on Saturday. The plant, which represents an investment of Rs 9,000 crore, will manufacture next-generation vehicles for Tata Motors and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), the British subsidiary of Tata.

The facility will come on stream in phased steps and is expected to be ramped up into an annual capacity of 250,000 units over five to seven years with an addition of nearly 5,000 jobs in the region. The proposed plant will service the local and international markets, and it will derive renewable energy to power the plant.

Speaking at the ceremony in the presence of senior DMK ministers and Tata Sons Ltd Chairman N Chandrasekaran, Stalin said he was proud of Tamil Nadu's reputation as an investment destination, both for Indian and multinational corporations alike. He mentioned that Chandrasekaran hails from the state.

We are delighted to make Panapakkam the home for our next generation of cars and SUVs, including electric and luxury vehicles," Chandrasekaran said. "For all the progressive policies of the state, it is also an established automotive hub that boasts of a skilled workforce."

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Assets in actively managed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) worldwide hit a record $1 trillion at the end of August, according to data provider ETFGI, boosted by easier regulations and a wave of product innovation.

Active ETFs seek to outperform the indexes they are benchmarked to, including the S&P 500, the Nasdaq 100 and the Russell 1000 Growth Index. Bear Stearns launched the first active ETF in 2008.

While they make up just 7 per cent of all global ETFs, active ETFs have accounted for 30 per cent of all inflows into the funds as a whole for the last several years, Matthew Bartolini, head of SPDR Americas Research at State Street Research, told Reuters in the latest episode of Inside ETFs.

A key growth catalyst, analysts said, was the 2019 regulation popularly known as the “ETF rule,” which streamlined the complex process of winning approval for active ETFs from the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Assets in the active ETF category have grown about 10-fold since 2019, according to data from ETF.com.

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The equity markets have been witnessing a high gear of trajectory for the third week on the trot as the Nifty and Sensex touched fresh all-time highs on all five days of the past week. The benchmarks have gone up on global factors such as China's economic stimulus and US Federal Reserve's call on rates. The Nifty closed above the crucial mark of 26,000; the Sensex is inching close to the 86,000 levels. However, broader market indices underperformed due to the BSE Midcap that gained only 0.7 per cent; it was flat for the Smallcap index.

India on Friday reduced export duty on parboiled rice to 10% from 20% earlier, the government said in a notification, as inventories in the world's biggest exporter of the grain surged and farmers are set to harvest a new crop in the coming weeks.

The reduction in export duty will lower India's export prices, boost shipments, and force competing countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, and Myanmar to reduce their prices as well.

The United Auto Workers union asked the workers at Stellantis to authorise a strike, accusing the French-Italian car maker of breaking its contract promises, UAW President Shawn Fain said in a letter to the union's US chapters on Friday.

"We unanimously recommend to the membership that every UAW worker at Stellantis prepare for a fight, and we all get ready to vote YES to authorise a strike at Stellantis," Fain wrote in the letter that the UAW shared in a post on Facebook.

The union's grievances center around Stellantis' product and investment commitments made during contract negotiations last autumn.

"We reviewed the serious violations of our contract and patterns of illegal behavior by Stellantis. The evidence is clear that CEO Carlos Tavares is steering Stellantis on a crash course that will cause our members tremendous harm," the letter on Friday added.

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The sales of new fully electric or hybrid cars in Brazil are expected to surpass sales of vehicles run on combustion engines in 2030, a study released on Friday by the automakers association Anfavea showed.

Why it is important?

Brazil is the world's eighth-largest car producer, and the sixth-largest domestic market by sales, according to data released by Anfavea earlier this year using 2022 numbers collected locally and by the International Organisation of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers.

By the numbers

The study by the Boston Consulting Group, which Anfavea commissioned, also showed that new fully electric or hybrid car sales could reach over 90 per cent of Brazil's domestic market in 2040, from the current 7 per cent.

Additional context

Chinese automakers BYD and GWM, which now import electric cars for sale in Brazil, are among the main players in the local electrified car market and have already announced plans to start manufacturing in the country.

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Mumbai Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) summoned Big Tree Entertainment's Chief Executive Officer Ashish Hemrajani, the parent company of BookMyShow, on Saturday in connection with an alleged black market sale of tickets for the British band Coldplay. The technical head of the company has also been asked to appear before investigators.

The probe has been initiated following a complaint filed by Advocate Amit Vyas accusing BookMyShow of allowing ticket scalping for the much-awaited three-day Coldplay concert scheduled at DY Patil Stadium from January 19-21, 2025.

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Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes has added conditions for Elon Musk's X to have its service reestablished in the country, one day after the social media platform said it had complied with all the judge's demands, including naming a legal representative.

De Moraes said in a ruling on Friday that X may only be reinstated in Brazil after another company linked to the billionaire, satellite-based internet service provider Starlink, withdraws its appeals related to the case. X has been blocked in Brazil for nearly a month. De Moraes ordered the shutdown after sparring with Musk for months over free speech, far-right accounts and misinformation.

Earlier this month, de Moraes ordered Starlink's assets be used to cover X's fines that already exceeded USD3 million. The Brazilian justice argued the two companies are part of the same economic group — a justification that has been questioned by some legal experts.

His new ruling also established a fine of 10 million Brazilian reais (USD1.84 million). Experts examining X's IP addresses — numeric designations that identifies sites' location on the internet — said the company temporarily routed users through the servers of Cloudflare, a content delivery network.

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Banks struggled to mobilise large deposits to meet the increasing credit demand in the last two financial years, a report said.

Outstanding credit disbursed by Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) was at the highest level in 2023-24 amounting to Rs 1,64,98,006 crore, whereas in percentage terms, the growth of Credit-to-Deposit(C-D) ratio rose from 75.8 per cent to 80.3 per cent, Infomerics Ratings said in a report.

Zomato ’s Co-founder and Chief People Officer, Akriti Chopra, has resigned with immediate effect after a 13-year tenure at the food delivery giant, the company informed the stock exchange on September 27.

At Tie Delhi NCR's India Internet Day 2024, Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma expressed his regret over the selection of bankers for the company’s initial public offering ( IPO ) in November 2021. "I have been an entrepreneur long enough now. My biggest regret is not choosing the correct bankers for the IPO," Sharma stated.

Using a metaphor to describe his experience, Sharma said, "To enter the temple of God, you need the right priest... perhaps we didn’t choose the right one." 

Meta was slapped with a fine worth more than $100 million (EUR 91 million) from the lead European Union privacy regulator on Friday for inadvertently storing some users' passwords without protection or encryption. The inquiry was opened five years ago after Meta notified Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC) that it had stored some passwords in 'plaintext'. 

The government of India is setting up telecommunication equipment manufacturing zones in the country, as the sector is expected to go through a revolution in attracting foreign direct investments, Union Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia said on Friday.

The Union Minister for Communications and Development of North Eastern region, said the country during the last 10 years exported mobile phones worth Rs 1.28 lakh crore under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi .

India's foreign exchange reserves continued to rise for a sixth straight week to a record high of $692.3 billion as of Sept. 20, data from the central bank showed on Friday.

The reserves rose by $2.84 billion in the reporting week, after having risen by a total of $19.3 billion in the prior five weeks.

Alembic Pharmaceuticals Ltd on Friday said it has received final approval from the US health regulator for its generic version of Paliperidone extended-release tablets indicated for the treatment of schizophrenia.

The approval by the US Food & Drug Administration (USFDA) for the Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) Paliperidone extended-release tablets of strengths 1.5 mg, 3 mg, 6 mg, and 9 mg, Alembic Pharmaceuticals said in a regulatory filing. 

The rupee declined 4 paise to settle at 83.70 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday amid subdued domestic equity markets and increased month-end demand for the American currency.

However, sliding crude prices in the international market and renewed foreign fund inflows supported the local unit and restricted the fall, forex dealers said.

Online travel company MakeMyTrip on Friday said it has partnered with leading airlines to boost international business class travel.

Under the collaboration, international airlines include Air Astana, Air India, Air India Express, Malaysia Airlines, Oman Air, Qantas, Singapore Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, and Vistara offer up to 20 per cent discount on business class fares on MakeMyTrip platform from September 27 to October 2, the company said in a statement.

India and Uzbekistan on Friday signed the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) aimed at boosting the confidence of investors of both the countries.

The BIT between the Indian government and the government of Republic of Uzbekistan was signed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Khodjayev Jamshid Abdukhakimovich, Deputy Prime Minister of Uzbekistan, at Tashkent.

The domestic bourses have snapped their winning streak amid positive moves in global markets as investors booked profit on the last trading session of the week. 

The Bombay Stock Exchange’s 30-share index fell 225 points or 0.28 per cent to settle at 85,597.39 whereas the NSE’s Nifty 50 ended 33 points or 0.13 lower at 26,181.00 on Friday. 

The market was buoyed by a strong selloff in banking, financial, and realty stocks whereas oil and gas, IT, pharma, and healthcare stocks tried to pull the market up. 

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The life of Rajiv Kumar, a labourer from Bihar who lives in the Kotwali Police Station Area in Bihar’s Gaya turned upside down when he received a tax notice of over Rs 2 crore with a monthly income of Rs 10,000 only. The case of negligence from the Income Tax Department has deeply worried Kumar's family, according to the reports. 

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Ola Electric said on Friday that its electric scooter S1 X 2kWh received a compliance certificate as per the eligibility requirements under the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme.

With this, the company now has 5 products in both premium and mass-market two-wheeler products that are certified under the PLI scheme, Ola Electric said in a statement.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) of Parliament has called for a comprehensive review of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi)'s accounts for the financial years 2022-23 and 2023-24.

This marks the first time the PAC, chaired by Congress leader KC Venugopal and consisting of members from both the ruling NDA and the opposition INDIA bloc, has sought to scrutinise Sebi’s financial performance, according to a government official.

South Korea looks forward to working together with Japan's new cabinet to forge positive ties with its closest neighbour and partner, its foreign ministry said, in comments made after the election of Shigeru Ishiba as leader of Japan's ruling party.

President Yoon Suk Yeol has made it a diplomatic priority to improve ties with Tokyo and build trilateral security cooperation together with the United States by putting years of animosity stemming from Japan's wartime history behind.

Japan's Nikkei share average rallied more than 2 per cent on Friday, buoyed by further softening of the yen as markets closed just before results of theruling Liberal Democratic Party's leadership electionwere out.

The Nikkei .N225ended 2.32 per cent higher at 39,829.56, its highest close since July 19, before the final results showed former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba overtaking right-wing economic security minister Sanae Takaichi in a runoff vote.

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), through its international subsidiary, NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), has secured a deal to develop a digital payments system for Trinidad and Tobago. This system will be modeled after India's highly successful United Payments Interface (UPI), according to a statement released on Friday.

The partnership with Trinidad and Tobago's Ministry of Digital Transformation will focus on creating a platform that supports both person-to-person and person-to-merchant transactions, further boosting the Caribbean nation's move towards a cashless economy.

NPCI, a public non-profit organisation under the regulatory umbrella of the Reserve Bank of India, manages India’s retail payment systems, with UPI being the most widely used digital payment method in the country. The UPI system has revolutionised the Indian payments landscape, handling billions of transactions monthly and setting a global benchmark for digital payments infrastructure.

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The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council has set up a 10-member GoM, chaired by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, to decide on the taxation of luxury, sin and demerit goods once the compensation cess ends in March 2026.

The Group of Ministers (GoM), which includes members from Assam, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, will submit its report to the Council by December 31.

In the GST regime, compensation cess at varied rates is levied on luxury, sin and demerit goods over and above the 28 per cent tax. The proceeds from the cess, which was originally planned for five years after GST roll-out or till June 2022, were used to compensate states for revenue loss incurred by them post the introduction of GST.

In 2022, the Council decided to extend the levy till March 2026 to repay the interest and the principal amount of the Rs 2.69 lakh crore worth loan taken in the 2021 and 2022 fiscal years to make good states' revenue loss during Covid years.
 

The rupee weakened slightly on Friday, pressured by month-end dollar demand from local oil companies, while dollar-rupee far forward premiums retreated as investors pared back bets of another outsized US rate cut.

The rupee was at 83.6850 against the US dollar as of 11:20 am, compared to its previous close of 83.6425.

A pickup in the dollar index also weighed on the local currency, while its regional peers were mixed with the offshore Chinese yuan down 0.4 per cent after touching a 16-month high of 6.96.

Consistent dollar demand from local oil companies has contributed to keeping the rupee on the weaker side, a foreign exchange trader at a state-run bank said.
 

Intel and the US government will likely finalise $8.5 billion in direct funding for the chipmaker before the end of the year, the Financial Times reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the discussions.

The discussions were at an advanced stage, but there was no guarantee it will be finalised before 2024 end, the report said, adding that any takeover of all or part of Intel's business could risk disrupting the talks.

Intel and the US Department of Commerce did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
 

Spicejet clears all GST dues, news agency Rueters reported.

India has recorded 227 Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in the first eight months of 2024, raising a total of $12.2 billion, according to a report by GlobalData. This marks a nearly threefold increase from the $4.3 billion raised during the same period in 2023, positioning India as a standout performer in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.

The APAC region as a whole experienced a notable rise in IPO activity, with a total of 575 listings, raising $23.7 billion. This represents a 15.6 per cent increase in IPO proceeds compared to the same period in 2023, demonstrating the resilience of the region’s capital markets despite global challenges such as inflationary pressures and geopolitical tensions.

India’s strong IPO market performance has been a major contributor to the overall success of the APAC region. Murthy Grandhi, Company Profiles Analyst at GlobalData, stressed the growth, stating, “The Indian IPO market saw exceptional growth in the first eight months of 2024, with proceeds nearly tripling to $12.2 billion, compared to $4.3 billion during the same period in 2023. This significant increase highlights India’s strong capital market activity.”

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Indian IT stocks rallied today, driven by strong earnings reported by US-based IT services giant Accenture, which exceeded market expectations. Accenture’s better-than-expected quarterly results, especially its forecast of a 3 per cent to 6 per cent revenue growth in fiscal 2025, ignited optimism for the performance of Indian IT firms.

At the market's opening, Indian benchmark indices—Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex—traded flat, with the Nifty 50 hovering around 26,248.25 points and the Sensex inching to a record high of 85,935.31. However, while financial stocks dragged the broader indices due to a 0.4 per cent decline, the IT sector surged nearly 3 per cent in morning trade. Market leaders such as Tata Consultancy Services ( TCS ), Infosys , Wipro , and HCLTech saw gains between 1.7 per cent and 3.5 per cent.

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Shares of Prataap Snacks fell as much as 2.76 per cent to hit an intraday low of Rs 1,024.70 after the company informed exchanges that Authum Investment and Mahi Madhusudan Kela acquired 46.85 per cent stake in the company thereby triggering mandatory open offer. The shares came under selling pressure because the open offer price of Rs 864 is at a discount of 18 per cent to its previous close of 1,053.75.

As part of the open offer, Authum Investment and Mahi Madhusudan Kela will be acquiring up to 62,98,351 shares representing 26 per cent stake in the company at Rs 864 per share aggregating to a total consideration of Rs 544 crore, JM Financial, the manager to the open offer said.

The share purchase agreement was signed at Rs 746 per share at a discount of 30 per cent to its Thursday's closing price. 

Prataap Snacks disclosed the deal to the exchanges on September 26, which will result in the company becoming an associate of Authum Investment (AIIL).

The Indian equity benchmarks were trading on a flat note after hitting record highs in opening deals as gains in IT and metal heavyweights like Wipro, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services and Tata Steel were offset with losses in Larsen & Toubro, HDFC Bank, Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank and Power Grid. The Sensex was trading in a range of 168 points and Nifty 50 index touched record high of 26,250.55 and low of 26,208.90.

As of 9:27 am, the Sensex was up 27 points at 85,865 and Nifty 50 index advanced 12 points to 26,227.

Most of the Asian markets were trading higher as sentiment was boosted by China's latest stimulus measures. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.26 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 2.23 per cent, China's Shanghai Composite rose 1 per cent while South Korea's KOSPI declined 0.3 per cent.
 

Japan's Nikkei share average edged up on Friday, led by a rally in semiconductor-related shares after overnight gains on Wall Street boosted trader sentiment. Gains were limited, however, ahead of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party leadership election to decide who will replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

The Nikkei was up 0.1% at 38,964.65 by the midday break after briefly breaking above 39,000 points for the first time since Sept. 2. The broader Topix was down 0.73% at 2,701.2. Advertisement The S&P 500 scored a record closing high and the Dow and Nasdaq rose on Thursday. Most U.S. chip stocks rallied with shares of Micron Technology after the memory chip maker projected first-quarter revenue above expectations, highlighting strong demand for memory chips used in artificial intelligence computing. The positive sentiment continued into Asian trading hours, spurring Japanese chip-related shares to climb higher.

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The Indian equity benchmarks are set to open on a flat note as indicated by Nifty futures traded at Gift City in Gandhinagar. Nifty futures at Gift City fell 0.05 per cent or 7 points to 26,343 amid stable global cues.

Most of the Asian markets were trading higher as sentiment was boosted by China's latest stimulus measures. Japan's Nikkei rose 0.26 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 2.23 per cent, China's Shanghai Composite rose 1 per cent while South Korea's KOSPI declined 0.3 per cent.

Overnight, S&P 500 scored a record closing high and the Dow and Nasdaq rose on Thursday, as Micron Technology shares rallied and a strong US jobless claims report eased labor market concerns.

A string of robust US economic data eased concerns that the Federal Reserve may be cutting rates aggressively to curb any slowdown.
 

Amazon has exceeded its goal of attracting $1.8 billion in ad-spending commitments on its video-streaming services for next year, The Information reported on Thursday citing a person with direct knowledge of the company's ad sales efforts.

Advertisers negotiate large TV and streaming ad commitments for the coming 12 months in the upfront ad market, which recently concluded for 2024.

The spending commitments include ads on Prime Video and Amazon's live sports telecasts, such as the National Football League's Thursday Night Football games, the report said.

The e-commerce giant is betting it can keep its ad revenue growth going by investing in streaming TV and capturing a meaningful share of ad budgets, especially as they increasingly shift toward streaming-video services.

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China's central bank said on Friday it would cut the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves by 50 basis points, the second reduction this year aimed at bolstering faltering economic growth.

The move takes effect Friday and was flagged on Tuesday by PBOC Governor Pan Gongsheng at a press conference, alongside cuts in several key interest rates and measures supporting capital markets aimed at stimulating economic activity amid persistent deflationary pressures.

The People's Bank of China (PBOC) said it would cut the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) for all banks, except those that have implemented a 5% reserve ratio.

Pan had said such a move would free up about 1 trillion yuan ($142.44 billion) for new lending and left the door open to another reduction later this year.

The dollar wobbled on Friday, poised for a fourth straight week of declines as investors weighed US data to gauge the pace of interest rate cuts, while China's spree of stimulus measures kept risk-sensitive currencies aloft.

Data on Thursday suggested the US labour market remained fairly healthy, while other reports showed corporate profits increased at a more robust pace than initially thought in the second quarter, highlighting an upbeat economic outlook.

The dollar, however, remained on the back foot as traders priced in 73 basis points of easing for the rest of the year, with a 51 per cent chance for another outsized half-percentage-point cut, according to CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

The Federal Reserve has recently signalled a shift in focus away from inflation and towards keeping the labour market healthy, delivering a larger-than-usual 50 basis point interest rate cut last week.

The dollar index =USD, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, was last at 100.67, not far from the 14-month low of 100.21 it touched on Wednesday. The index is down 0.06 per cent this week, its fourth straight week of declines.

China's industrial profits swung back to a sharp contraction in August, official data showed on Friday, adding to a recent spate of bleak readings that point to mounting pressure on the economy.

Profits plunged 17.8 per cent in August from a year earlier following a 4.1 per cent increase in July, while earnings rose slower at 0.5 per cent in the first eight months compared with 3.6 per cent in the January-July period, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

Sluggish data published earlier this month has exacerbated worries about an anaemic recovery, prompting global brokerages to revise down their 2024 China growth forecasts to below the official target of around 5 per cent.

Highlighting weak domestic demand, a key bottleneck for the economy amid job security anxiety and worsening slumps in property sales and investment, domestic dairy giant Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co posted a 40 per cent fall in second-quarter net profit.

China's central bank said on Friday it was lowering the borrowing cost of its seven-day reverse repurchase agreements, as part of the biggest stimulus package since the pandemic unveiled by Beijing this week to support the economy.

The People's Bank of China said the rate would be lowered by 20 basis points to 1.50% from 1.70% earlier, according to an online statement, taking effect from Friday.

The rate cut decision aims to "further strengthen counter-cyclical adjustment of monetary policy and support stable growth of the economy", the PBOC said.

Borrowing costs of 14-day reverse repos, temporary repos and reverse repos would be adjusted by the same margin, it added.