Top headlines: HCL Tech Q2 profit rises, Remdesivir falls flat in WHO study

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JK Tyre, other companies face antitrust scrutiny in bid-rigging case

India's antitrust regulator is investigating JK Tyre & Industries Ltd after a state government accused the company of bid rigging, and the probe has been expanded to other firms, according to sources and legal filings seen by Reuters. The Competition Commission of India (CCI) last year ordered a probe after the northern state of Haryana said JK Tyre employed unfair trade practices while bidding to supply tyres for public transport vehicles, a court filing showed. Read More...

HCL Tech Q2 profit rises 18.5% to Rs 3,142 crore, outperforms projections

HCL Technologies posted a strong set of numbers as it outperformed the mid-quarter revenue growth update on account of performances driven by digital transformation and cloud businesses. In the quarter ended Q2FY21, the company, on Friday, reported a net profit of Rs 3,142 crore, up 18.5 per cent year on year (YoY) and up 7.4 per cent on a sequential basis. Dollar revenues stood at $2,507 million, a 4.5 per cent rise in constant currency terms over the previous quarter. Read More...

Remdesivir, HCQ don't aid much in recovery of Covid-19 patients: WHO trials

In an interesting finding, the World Health Organisation's (WHO) global clinical trial has found that the popular anti-viral drug remdesivir has no substantial impact on either mortality, initiation of ventilation or even duration of hospital stay. The results of the Solidarity Trial conducted on 11,266 hospitalised Covid-19 patients across 30 countries found that remdesivir along with other repurposed drug hydroxychloroquine (rheumatoid arthritis drug), lopinavir/ritonavir (used is leprosy) and interferon have little or no effect on overall mortality, initiation of ventilation and duration of hospital stay. Read More...

India's women entrepreneurs quickly changed business for survival: Survey

Most female entrepreneurs in Indian cities were quick to change their business model and predict their operations will survive after the coronavirus pandemic ravaged revenues, according to a new study. Bain & Co Google, and AWE Foundation surveyed almost 350 women entrepreneurs and small businesses and found that 54 per cent had already made business shifts -- including new products or services -- and another 24 per cent planned to change by December. Read More...

Global demand uncertainty to continue to weigh on Tata Motors: Moody's

An uncertain pace of recovery in global auto demand will continue to weigh on Tata Motors and its wholly-owned subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Plc over the next 12-18 months, Moody’s Investor Service said in a release on Friday. “We do not expect global auto shipments to recover to pre-pandemic levels until the middle of the decade, while further lockdowns, the transition to electric vehicles, emission compliance requirements and – for JLR –Brexit all pose further downside risk,” says Tobias Wagner, a Moody’s Vice President and Senior Credit Officer. Read More...