As per reports coming from the Geological Survey of India (GSI) offic9ials, there have been huge reserves of lithium found in the state of Rajasthan. It is also claimed that these reserves could meet nearly 80% of India’s demand for lithium. In fact, lithium is a key input that goes into batteries for EVs and today India largely depends on China for the same. Lithium reserves have been found in the Degana region, which was once famous for tungsten reserves. Lithium is the world’s lightest metal, for battery-powered devices.
Go First Airlines, which recently filed for bankruptcy, has asked the NCLT to urgently pass an order on its insolvency plea. Lessors had already moved an application to repossess aircraft during legal proceedings.
It may be recollected that Go Air had filed for bankruptcy protection last week, blaming faulty Pratt & Whitney engines for the grounding of about half its A320neo fleet. The airline has already suspended all flights and bookings. Go First wants to be able to run its 26 aircraft till the plea was disposed by NCLT.
Pidilite Industries posted 11.4% growth in net profits at Rs283 crore in Q4FY23. Its revenues were also slightly higher at Rs2,689 crore. for the March quarter. Pidilite is a leading manufacturer of adhesives, sealants, and construction chemicals. The board has recommended a dividend of Rs11 per share. For the full fiscal year FY23, the net sales were up 19% at Rs11,752 crore. While domestic C&B business revenues grew 10%, the B2B businesses faced headwinds due to lower demand from export dependent businesses.
Nexus Select Trust REIT, sponsored by Blackstone, raised Rs1,440 crore from anchor investors, a day ahead of its IPO opening. The total IPO is worth Rs3,200 crore and this amount would be deducted from the QIB allocation, which is 75%. The Rs3,200 crore REIT issue comprises of a fresh issue of Rs1,400 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of Rs1,800 crore. REIT is like a mutual fund of income earning commercial properties and Nexus has nearly 9.8 million SFT of leasable area, spread across 14 cities, as hotels and office space.
Birla Estates acquired 28.6-acre land parcel in Bengaluru to develop a housing project with estimated sales potential of Rs3,000 crore. This is in the fast-developing micro-market of Sarjapur Road, Bengaluru. The total deal value was not disclosed. The development will comprise of residential housing along with convenience retail options. Birla expects this region to have immense potential to emerge as the next IT hub and is likely to attract top class professionals. Birla Estates, is the 100% subsidiary of Century Textiles.
Canara Bank reported 64.2% higher net profits at Rs3,233 crore for Q4FY22 on higher NII and a 14 bps wider NPM. The Board also recommended a dividend of Rs12 per share. Canara Bank made provisions of Rs3,098 crore in Q4FY23. Net interest income (NII) grew 23% yoy to Rs8,616 crore in Q4FY23. It posted revenue growth in retail and corporate banking while treasury earnings came under pressure. The bank improved its asset quality as gross NPAs fell to 5.35% and net NPA reduced to 1.73% as of March 2023.
Moody’s expects Oyo to become EBITDA positive for the full fiscal year FY24. It also affirmed its corporate family rating (CFR). It also assumes that OYO will maintain adequate liquidity buffers to support operations and turn cash flow positive in 12-18 months. This forecast is based on further demand recovery in the hospitality business. OYO is expected to generated about $55 million EBITDA in FY24 in a base case, but Moody’s has warned that the ratings could be reduce if OYO did not control its cash burn on priority basis.
US based fund manager, Invesco, slashed Swiggy’s valuation from $8.2 billion to $5.5 billion for its internal valuation purposes. Earlier in the year, Invesco marked down the valuation of Swiggy from $10.7 billion to $8.2 billion. Overall, in the last one year, Invesco has downgraded the valuation by nearly half, although this is more for internal purposes of Invesco and does not reflect any change in valuations. This is lower than the valuation of Zomato, which currently stands at $6.9 billion. Swiggy has been retrenching staff.
