Top 10 business headlines: Labour reforms, economic offenders list, & more

From mid, small-cap schemes riding on post-election euphoria to Anil Ambani to divest entire stake in BIG FM, Business Standard brings to you stories which made to the headlines on Monday

1. Centre to bite the bullet on labour reforms, wage code Bill first priority

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will expedite the process of labour law reforms in its second innings, senior government officials said on Monday.

“We will hasten the process of labour laws codification. At least three out of the four labour codes will be taken up immediately and pushed for approval of the Union Cabinet,” said a labour ministry official. Read on...

2. NBFCs show fresh interest in on-tap licences, initiate talks with RBI

Fresh interest for on-tap banking licences is building up from non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), a fallout of the ongoing crisis in the sector. A few leading NBFCs are in talks with the central bank on regulatory issues surrounding on-tap licences, the terms of which were spelt out in August 2016.

Senior officials from three NBFCs confirmed they have begun discussions with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), but did not want to go on record. Read on... 

3. Mid, small-cap funds ride on Modi wave; firms see scope for rally

Mid- and small-cap schemes, which had given tepid returns in recent years, have bounced back sharply in the last week following the euphoria surrounding election results. After the Bharatiya Janata Party’s stunning victory, market players now see scope for a broad-based market rally. Further, they expect quality mid- and small-cap companies to do well. Read on... 

4. MCA prepares a list of offenders to prevent them from fleeing country

Widening its probe against economic offenders, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has prepared a list of 20 individuals and requested the Intelligence Bureau (IB) to not allow them to flee the country.

The move comes in the wake of several such instances where offenders had fled the country soon after the investigation was launched. Read on...
 

5. HAL logs life high turnover of Rs 19,705 cr; PAT at Rs 2,282 cr in FY19

Public sector aerospace major Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) has achieved an all-time record turnover of Rs 19,705 crore, according to the company’s audited results that its Board of Directors approved on Monday.

HAL announced it registered a turnover growth of 7.8 per cent for financial year 2018-19 from Rs 18,284 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. Read on...

6. Anil Ambani to sell BIG FM for Rs 1,050 cr to Jagran's Music Broadcast

Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group’s Reliance Capital and Reliance Land will divest the entire equity stake in Reliance Broadcast Network (RBNL) to Jagaran Prakashan-owned Music Broadcast (MBL).

RBNL operates 58 radio stations across the county under the brand name BIG FM Radio, while MBL operates radio stations under Radio City (39 stations). Read on...

7. Fixing NBFCs, cleaning up bank balance sheets among govt's 100-day plan

The National Democratic Alli­ance government’s resounding return to power will signify policy continuity, and that’s a great relief for the investor community. Most of the important policies would be related to the financial sector, going by the tasks left undone by the previous government. Read on...

8. Lenders set two-week deadline to revive Jet Airways

Lenders to Jet Airways are expected to take a final decision on the fate of the grounded airline in the next two weeks as they hunt for a new domestic investor, before taking up the last option of a bankruptcy filing, said a report by the Livemint. With Etihad Airways willing to invest just enough to maintain its shareholding of 24% and the National Infrastructure Investment Fund (NIIF) ready to commit only if a new investor enters, the lenders have initiated the search for a third investor, two people familiar with the matter said.

9. Telangana priming for tech glory with first Blockchain district

With an eye on the emerging market opportunities in Blockchain, the Telangana government is going to set up the country’s first ‘Blockchain district’ to create an ecosystem for all the start-ups and institutes working in the space, said a report by The Hindu BusinessLine.

10. Digital battle for kiranas to get tough with Jio’s PoS 

The launch of Reliance Jio Infocomm’s point of sale (PoS) terminal is set to intensify competition among payment companies seeking to win over the kirana store, a key battleground in the digital economy wars, reported The Economic Times.