Top headlines: RIL announces pay cuts; Rishi Kapoor passes away, and more

From the US coordinating with India on restoring supply chains to death of veteran actor Rishi Kapoor, here are top headlines of the day

RIL announces salary cuts; Mukesh Ambani to forgo entire compensation

Reliance Industries Ltd has announced that it will reduce the salaries of some of its employees in the hydrocarbon division by 10 per cent in view of the "adverse impact" of the coronavirus pandemic on fuel demand. The company’s board of directors would forgo 30 per cent to 50 per cent of their salary, and Chairman Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, his entire compensation, according to a letter signed by Reliance Industries Executive Director Hital R Meswani. Read More

India's jewellery demand dips 41% to 11-year low in March quarter: WGC

India’s demand for gold jewellery slumped 41 per cent in the quarter ended March 2020 to 73.9 tonnes – a 11-year low – as coronavirus pandemic triggered a rally in gold prices, said World Gold Council (WGC) in its latest report on gold demand trends released Thursday. The fall is sharper than the 39 per cent drop seen world over, which is estimated at 325.8 tonnes. On the other hand, demand for gold jewellery in China – the largest consumer of the yellow metal – dropped a massive 65 per cent during the period under review to a 13-year low of 64 tonnes, WGC’s findings suggest. Read More

HUL Q4 consolidated net profit slips 3.56% YoY to Rs 1,515 crore

Hindustan Unilever (HUL) on Thursday posted a 3.56 per cent year-on-year (YoY) decline in its consolidated net profit at
Rs 1,515 crore for the quarter ended March 2020. The company had posted profit of Rs 1,571 crore in the year-ago period. Read more

India needs Rs 65,000 cr to save the poorest and their livelihoods: Rajan

India would need approximately Rs 65,000 crore to help the poor and save their livelihoods during the coronavirus lockdown, former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan said on Thursday. In a video-conference call with Rahul Gandhi, Rajan said India's gross domestic product (GDP) was Rs 200 trillion, so if the government wanted to save the poor, it could afford to do that. "Most immediately, keep people well and alive. Food is extremely important. (There are) places where the public distribution system doesn’t go. Amartya Sen, Abhijeet Banerjee and I have talked about temporary ration cards... you have to treat this pandemic as a situation that is unprecedented," said Rajan. Read More

US in talks with India, other 'friends' to restructure global supply chains: Pompeo

The US is in talks with its "friends", including India, for restructuring the global supply chains, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said, as he praised New Delhi for lifting the export ban on critical medical supplies to combat the coronavirus pandemic. The pandemic has infected over 3,193,960 people and claimed more than 227,640 lives across the globe. The US is the worst-hit with 1,039,909 cases and 60,967 deaths -- the highest in the world. The virus has impacted global supply chains with countries forced to impose strict travel and movement restrictions. Read More
 

Covid-19 lockdown: Power demand may fall in FY21, first in 15 years

The country’s power demand is likely to decline by about 1 per cent in the current financial year, the first fall in 15 years, even if the nationwide lockdown is completely lifted in July. It could fall further if industrial and commercial operations don’t resume fully in July. The stress in the power sector is likely to impact 25 Gw of capacity tied up in short-term sales. Before the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown, about 50 Gw of power capacity was already under stress. Read More
 

Covid-19: Zuckerberg endorses Silicon Valley lockdown, Musk sees 'fascism'

Silicon Valley billionaires Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg offered differing views on lockdown measures designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus on Wednesday, with Facebook's Zuckerberg endorsing the measures and Tesla's Musk condemning them as anti-democratic. Musk, who has often been outspoken and has even made inflammatory comments on conference calls and on Twitter, said in comments to analysts on Tesla Inc's earnings call that it was "fascist" to say people cannot leave their homes. Read More

DoT pulls up BSNL over terms and conditions of 4G telecom equipment tender

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has pulled up Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) for the terms and conditions of its contentious tender floated on March 23 for 4G telecom equipment. Domestic manufacturers say the terms disqualify them from making a bid while favouring global players. In a letter to BSNL on April 28, the DoT said it might take disciplinary action against erring officers where “restrictive conditions have been imposed against domestic manufacturers” in a “mala-fide” fashion. It directed the CMD of BSNL to respond within 15 days. Read More

Veteran actor Rishi Kapoor, 67, dies of cancer in Mumbai

Hindi film veteran Rishi Kapoor, 67, died at a Mumbai hospital on Thursday after he complained of not feeling well yesterday. According to reports, the actor was admitted to Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai. In 2018, Rishi Kapoor was diagnosed with cancer for the first time, following which the actor was in New York for nearly a year for treatment. Read More