Top headlines: Losses for Indian airlines, Chris Wood rejigs India exposure

As regards India, Wood remains concerned that the lockdown in the economy continues, which in turn, will impact the consumer lending cycle

Chris Wood rejigs India exposure; says lockdown disastrous for economy

Christopher Wood, global head of equity strategy at Jefferies, believes lockdowns in countries like India and Indonesia will prove to be disastrous for human welfare and economy since neither help is being provided to small businesses, nor are there any unemployment benefits. As regards India, Wood remains concerned that if the lockdown continues, it will impact the consumer lending cycle. Read more here 

Indian airlines may suffer $11.2 bn revenue loss, 2.9 mn jobs at risk: IATA

Airlines in India are likely to suffer a revenue loss of $11.2 billion this year putting 2.9 million jobs at risk as passenger demand falls by 47 per cent due to Covid-19 crisis, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Friday. Read more

Before change in FDI rules, Chinese invested millions in Indian tech firms

The Narendra Modi-led central government has announced some foreign direct investment (FDI) restrictions apparently targeted at China, but it may have shut the stable door long after the horses bolted, shows an examination of recent investments in top Indian technology companies. Read more

From Ramayan to cricket: What India watched on TV during Covid-19 lockdown

If there is one thing that the lockdown imposed by the government due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic brought back to life was popular soaps aired on television during 1990s. From the mythological Ramayan and Mahabharat telecast back in 1990s, cricket matches between arch rivals India and Pakistan across formats – one-day and T20 – were a silver lining for many stuck at home. Read more

World economy faces steepest contraction; recovery U-shaped: Economists 

Pummeled into recession by the coronavirus pandemic, the global economy will suffer its steepest contraction on record this year, with a longer, U-shaped recovery more likely, according to Reuters polls of economists from around the world. More than 55 per cent or 87 of 155 economists said the global economic recovery would be U-shaped. Read more here

Biggest lesson Covid-19 taught India is to be self-reliant: PM Modi 

The biggest lesson the Covid-19 pandemic has taught India is to become self-reliant, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday while interacting with gram panchayat members. Modi said that while the coronavirus pandemic has thrown up new challenges, which the country never faced before, it has also made people learn new things. Read more here 
 

Covid impact: Domestic sugar consumption likely to dip 2 million tonnes 

Domestic sugar consumption, which has been witnessing near muted growth over the past few years, is estimated to dip by almost 2 million tonnes (MT) in the current sugar season (October-September) owing to the impact of lockdown. This is almost 7 per cent of total production of sugar in 19-20 season which ends in September. Read more here

International passenger capacity for India reduced by 89% in April: UN 

International passenger capacity for India has fallen by 89 per cent so far this month due to the Covid-19 pandemic as compared to a business-as-usual scenario, according to the latest projections from the United Nations specialised agency for international civil aviation. The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) said that by September, the world could have 1.2 billion fewer international air travellers, compared to regular originally planned or business-as-usual. Read more here