Top headlines: Govt asks CPSEs for larger share, economy on revival path

From Centre asking CPSEs to pay dividends on quarterly basis to RBI policymakers sparring over high inflation forecast, Business Standard brings you the top headlines of the day

Govt asks CPSEs for quarterly dividend payouts, higher share of profits

Staring at a revenue crunch, the government has asked rich state-owned firms to start paying dividends on a quarterly basis, even as it has demanded higher share from profits of all its companies. Aiming for a ‘predictable and staggered’ dividend regime, the government has further told state-owned firms not to go by the rule book and pay the bare minimum dividend, but to work on increasing payouts. Read More...

India's economy is reviving and festive season's online sales show it

India’s main holiday season -- culminating Saturday with Diwali, the festival of lights -- appears to be giving a much needed boost to demand, with online retail sales to business activity indicators signaling Asia’s third-largest economy is recovering. In the run-up to the festival, retailers including Amazon.com Inc. and Walmart Inc.’s Flipkart saw a 55% jump in online sales from a year ago to $4.1 billion, according to estimates from consultant RedSeer for the period Oct. 15-21. Read More...

RBI policymakers spar over high inflation forecasts, steep yield curve

A debate is raging among India’s monetary panel members on the credibility of the central bank’s inflation forecasts, raising questions over its price-growth targeting regime. The argument between Michael Patra, the deputy governor for monetary policy, and J.R. Varma, a new member of the rate-setting panel, centers around whether the nation’s steep yield curve reveals a lack of market confidence in the Reserve Bank of India’s inflation estimates or is a reflection of excessive focus on old data. Read More...

Rahul Gandhi has nervous unformed quality about him: Obama in his new book

Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh both come across as having a kind of impassive integrity. Gen. Stanley McChrystal has the manner of “someone who’s burned away frivolity and distractions from his life.” Rahul Gandhi has “a nervous, unformed quality about him, as if he were a student who’d done the coursework and was eager to impress the teacher but deep down lacked either the aptitude or the passion to master the subject.” Read More...

Chinese President Xi Jinping decided to halt Ant's $37-billion IPO: Report

China's President Xi Jinping personally decided to pull the plug on Ant Group's $37-billion (£28 billion) initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing Chinese officials with the knowledge of the matter. The decision to stop what would have been the world's largest ever IPO, came days after the fintech giant's billionaire founder Jack Ma launched a public attack on the country's financial watchdogs and banks. Read More...