The government is all set to open its Rs.21,000 crore IPO of LIC early next month. The price band is likely to be fixed in the range of Rs.902 to Rs.949 with policyholders getting Rs.60 discount. In addition, retail investors will also get a Rs.45 discount. Government plans to sell a total of 22.13 crore shares (3.5% stake in LIC) with 10% reserved for policyholders. Employees get reservation of 15 lakh shares. LIC plans to allot about 60% of the QIB quota to anchor investors. The LIC IPO will remain open from 04th May to 09th May.
Wipro has deepened its inorganic growth strategy with the acquisition of Rizing Intermediate Holdings for $540 million. Rizing is a global SAP consulting firm and will help Wipro expand its capability matrix for intelligent enterprises. It may be recollected that last year, Wipro acquired Capco in a $1.5 billion deal. Rizing has 1,300 employees spread across 20 offices in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. Rizing had reported revenues of $193.8 million for CY21. This expands Wipro leadership in oil & gas and utilities.
Reliance Industries signed a formal shareholder agreement for the $2 billion TA’ZIZ chemical joint venture in UAE. Reliance will also cooperate with ADNOC for conventional and unconventional resources. TA’ZIZ is joint venture between Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) and the sovereign wealth fund ADQ. RIL will
build capacity for 940,000 TPA Chlor-alkali, 1.1 million TPA of ethylene dichloride and 360,000 TPA of polyvinyl chloride at the TA’ZIZ Industrial Chemicals Zone. These chemicals will be produced in the UAE.
Bajaj Finance posted 80% yoy growth in net profit at a record level of Rs.2,420 crore for Mar-22 quarter. FY22 net profits were up 59% at Rs.7,028 crore. Board has recommended dividend of Rs.20 per share. NII was up 30% at Rs.6,068 crore in the fourth quarter. AUM rose 29% at Rs.197,452 crore as of Mar-22 end. The loan loss provisions were down by over 40% yoy at Rs.702 crore in Q4. Bajaj Finance has provision coverage ratio of 58% with gross NPAs falling by 19 bps to 1.60%, while net NPAs tapered 7 bps to 0.68%.
A day after Adani Power crossed the Rs.1 trillion market cap landmark, the seventh listed Adani group company, Adani Wilmar Ltd, also joined the club. Adani Wilmar touched a new high of Rs.80-2.80 as it has already gained 250% since its recent IPO. Among all the Adani group companies, Adani Green Energy is the market cap leader at Rs.4.52 trillion. The 7 listed companies of the Adani Group account for total market cap of $221 billion, and has largely helped Gautam Adani cross Warren Buffett in personal wealth.
According to the IMF, high oil prices due to the Ukraine war will weigh heavily on India’s growth. The higher current account deficit will also push up inflation, according to the IMF. India currently finds itself in a policy quandary as it is likely to face irrespective problems irrespective of whether there is monetary policy tightening or status quo. IMF has already India’s GDP for FY23 by 80 bps to 8.2%. IMF has also scaled down GDP growth projection for FY24 by 30 bps to 6.9%. CPI and WPI inflation have been at new highs.
It was reported by the Steel Ministry that India exported 13.5 MT of finished steel worth Rs.1 trillion in FY22. During this period, India had imported steel worth Rs.46,000 crore. This was a key factor in boosting India’s total exports to $420 billion in FY22. For FY22, India’s steel output stood at a record 120 MT. Indian steel sector is currently growing at a CAGR of 6% annually. However, there are risks too. In sectors like automobiles and white goods, lighter and cheaper alternatives are replacing steel, due to its heaviness.
Macrotech Developers (formerly Lodha Developers) reported 72% higher profits in Q4 at Rs.538.02 crore. Total income for the quarter was up 36% at Rs.3516.41 crore. Macrotech has substantially reduced its net debt to Rs.9,300 crore in FY22. This was the best ever quarterly pre-sales performance in FY22 at pre-sales of Rs.9,024 crore in FY22. In FY22, Macrotech signed 11 joint development agreements with gross value of Rs.15,000 crore. The sales in London projects enabled Macrotech to pre-pay $170 million dollar bonds.
