Top Headlines: Relief for pharma cos, ban to hit Chinese firms, and more

After representations from industry bodies, the government on Tuesday cleared imports of active pharma ingredients (APIs) from China. The Kishore Biyani-led Future group has zeroed in on SBI General to sell its majority stake in the general insurance joint venture, and on Premji Invest for its life insurance venture stake. Here are the top headlines on Wednesday morning.

Relief for pharma firms

Easing restrictions on imports from China, the Customs department has decided to clear pharma raw material shipments from that country. Consignments of 11 top importers, including LG, Samsung, Toyota, Honda, and Siemens, will also be allowed entry, relieving them of the 100 per cent inspection rule. Read More

Future group eyes insurance biz sale to SBI General, Premji Invest

The Kishore Biyani-led Future group has zeroed in on SBI General to sell its majority stake in the general insurance joint venture, and on Premji Invest for its life insurance venture stake, bankers in the know said. “The lenders are asking the promoters to expedite the sale of insurance JVs and use the proceeds to repay loans, considering that they have defaulted,” said a banker. Read More

Core sector output shrinks for third straight month in May

The output of the eight core sectors of the economy shrank 23.4 per cent in May, against 37 per cent in the previous month, as factories remained hamstrung by a lack of labour and cash shortages owing to the nationwide lockdown. Read More

Ban to hit Chinese companies

Half the companies that figured in the list of the top 10 downloaded apps in May were Chinese. Data from App Annie based on Google Play shows Bytedance, which owns both TikTok and Helo, hit the number three slot in May in terms of downloads — just behind Google and Facebook. Read More

Markets log best quarterly gain in 11 years

The benchmark Nifty ended the June quarter with gains of nearly 20 per cent — the best quarterly showing in 11 years — helped by a surge in foreign flows. Supportive action taken by global central banks boosted investors’ appetite for risk even as coronavirus infections continued to climb at a steady pace. The mid- and small-cap indices logged their best quarterly gains in six years. Read More

 

Modi extends free foodgrains scheme for poor till Nov-end

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday extended until the end of November his government’s scheme to provide free food grains to 800 million poor in the country. Read More

Xiaomi to bear the biggest brunt of Chinese mobile apps ban

The ban on Mi Community could not have come at a worse time for Xiaomi. Just when the Chinese smartphone giant was recovering from poor sales and supply chain issues, the ban has hit right at the core of its India business model. Read More

Patanjali takes a u-turn

Patanjali Ayurved on Tuesday said that it never claimed to have made medicine for coronavirus. The Haridwar-based organisation has withdrawn from its earlier claim, in reply to the notice given by Uttarakhand Ayush Ministry. Read More

April-May fiscal deficit at 58.6% of fiscal year target

The Centre’s fiscal deficit for the first two months of financial year 2020-21 (FY21) came in at Rs 4.66 trillion, or 58.6 per cent of the full year target of Rs 7.96 trillion. Read More