For FY24, the government met its tax collection target of Rs34.37 trillion on the back of robust economic activity and better compliance. For FY24, the direct tax collection was revised upwards to Rs 19.45 trillion, while indirect tax target was lowered to Rs14.84 trillion in the revised estimates (RE) in FY25 budget. Net direct tax collections touched Rs18.90 trillion. India GDP is expected to grow at 7.6% for FY24 and likely to maintain the growth momentum in FY25 also. The market is pegging FY24 GDP growth at above 8%.
India, the third biggest oil consumer and importer in the world after the US and China, will build its first commercial crude oil strategic storage to create a reserve as an insurance against supply disruptions. The
Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Ltd (ISPRL) is an SPV created for this purpose. In Phase-1, the ISPRL had built underground strategic petroleum reserves of 5.33 million tonnes of crude across 3 locations. Another 2.5 million tonnes will be added at Padur in Phase-II at a cost of Rs5,514 crore via the PPP model.
Blackstone Group, one of the world’s leading private equity player, will invest $2 billion annually in India. The CEO of Blackstone has called for the government to take measures to improve ease of doing business for such investors. He called for quick approvals on M&A, easier privatisation of listed companies, and improvements in dispute resolution. Blackstone has been operational in India for the last 20 years, and India has been one of the most lucrative markets for them. It is already the largest landlord in India now.
The NSE has announced the launch of 4 new indices effective from April 8, 2024 in CM and F&O segments. The 4 new indices are likely to be Nifty Tata Group 25% Cap, Nifty 500 Multicap India Manufacturing 50:30:20, Nifty 500 Multicap Infrastructure 50:30:20, and Nifty Mid-Small Healthcare. Incidentally, the Nifty Mid-Small Healthcare index tracks midcap and small cap healthcare stocks like Max Healthcare, Lupin, and Aurobindo. The index generated 21.33% return since inception. It is likely to broaden choice.
RBI’s latest norms on currency derivatives trades, effective from April 05, 2024; is expected to impact the liquidity on the currency futures exchanges. It is feared that most users would not be able to meet the underlying exposure requirement stipulated by RBI. As per the new central bank rule, the participant must be able to evidence the existence of a valid underlying unhedged exposure. The premiums on the USDINR derivatives shot up sharply risking huge capital losses. The onus is on brokers to ensure RBI compliance.
Cement stocks saw significant gains on Wednesday after it was reported that major cement companies had initiated price hikes of Rs10-15 per bag on a pan-India basis. This led to gains across leading cement companies like UltraTech Cement, Shree Cements, Adani Cements, and Dalmia Bharat. The price hike has been the highest in central and eastern India. Since cement is not freely transportable across India, due to costs, the pricing of cement is largely based on regional demand and supply drivers for cement players.
Adani Green Energy created a record of sorts as it surpassed 10,000 MW of operational power portfolio. The AGEL mix comprises of 7,393 MW solar, 1,401 MW wind and 2,140 MW wind-solar hybrid capacity. The current portfolio of 10,934 MW will power more than 58 lakh homes and save about 21 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually. Meanwhile, ReNew Energy promoted by Sumant Sinha also crossed 10,000 MW of operational renewable energy capacity this year. Tata Power has renewable capacity of 4,471 MW.
Aster DM Healthcare announced the separation of its India and GCC businesses. A consortium of investors led by Fajr Capital acquired 65% in Aster GCC, while the Moopen family retained the balance 35%. The Moopen family also owns 41.88% stake in the India operations. The company received cash consideration of $907.6 million against this sale. The company intends to distribute nearly 70-80% of the transaction proceeds as shareholder dividends. The Indian entity will be headed by Dr Nitish Shetty who will be CEO.