Top headlines: BSE-listed firms' m-cap hits new high, RBI holds key rates

From BSE-listed firms' m-cap hitting record high to Goyal getting additional charge after Paswan's death, Business Standard brings you the top headlines of the day

BSE listed companies' market-cap hits record high at Rs 160.68 trillion

The total market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies touched a new high of Rs 160.68 trillion on Friday, led by Reliance Industries (RIL), information technology (IT), and pharmaceutical stocks. Investor wealth of BSE-listed firms, measured by market capitalisation (m-cap), saw a previous record high of Rs 160.57 trillion, scaled on January 17, 2020, the BSE data shows. Read More...

RBI keeps policy rates unchanged, says the worst is over for the economy

The monetary policy committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept policy rates unchanged, and the governor assured that the worst was possibly over for the economy and it can now hope for steady recovery towards pre-pandemic growth rates. The newly-appointed six member MPC voted unanimously to keep the policy repo rate at 4 per cent, and said the real gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate in 2020-21 could be a negative 9.5 per cent, with “risks tilted to the downside.” Read More...

Madras HC orders formation of panel to ensure self-reliance in cancer drugs

The Madras High Court's Justice N Kirubakaran has said that India has emerged as a pioneer in pharmaceuticals. Yet, for the basic ingredients of medicine making, it is heavily dependent on imports from China. This dependency handicaps us. It also makes our patients vulnerable if tensions escalate between the two countries. He also ordered formation of a 5-member committee to help bring foreign exchange for the country and to ensure India's self-reliance when it comes to cancer drugs. Read More...

Goyal gets additional charge of Consumer Affairs Min after Paswan's death

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal was on Friday given additional charge of the Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution ministry, a portfolio held by the late Lok Janshakti Party leader Ram Vilas Paswan. A Rashtrapati Bhavan communique on Friday said President Ram Nath Kovind, on the advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, directed that Goyal be assigned the ministry in addition to his existing portfolios. Read More...

UN's World Food Programme wins 2020 Nobel Peace prize for combating hunger

The World Food Program on Friday won the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to combat hunger and food insecurity around the globe. The announcement was made in Oslo by Berit Reiss-Andersen, the chair of the Nobel Committee. The Nobel Committee said that the coronavirus pandemic has added to the hunger faced by millions of people around the world and called on governments to ensure that WFP and other aid organizations receive the financial support necessary to feed them. Read More...