Page 1227 - Business Finance

ECB's Draghi says economic risks tilt to downside

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - European Central Bank President Mario Draghi acknowledged on Thursday that risks to euro zone growth had shifted to the downside due to possible fall-out from factors ranging from China's slowdown to Brexit

Oil steady as economy concerns offset support from Venezuela turmoil

LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices were steady on Thursday as renewed concerns about the global economic outlook offset support from a U.S. threat of sanctions on OPEC member Venezuela.

WhatsApp Business crosses 5 mn-users mark

WhatsApp Thursday said over five million enterprises globally are using its 'Business' app to connect with their customers within a year of launch. "In January of last year, we launched the WhatsApp Business app, and now there are more than five million businesses using it to support customers, grow their businesses and serve their communities all over the world," WhatsApp said in a blogpost. It cited the example of Bengaluru-based eyewear brand Glassic which has seen 30 per cent of its new sales being generated through WhatsApp Business. India is home to over 200 million WhatsApp users. It has about 1.5 billion users globally. Using the business app, SMEs can help customers with useful information such as business description, e-mail, store addresses and website.

Biocon Q3 net profit zooms over twofold to Rs 217.2 cr

Biotechnology major Biocon Thursday reported over twofold jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 217.2 crore for the third quarter ended December 2018, mainly on account of strong performance of its biologics business. The company had posted a net profit of Rs 91.9 crore for the corresponding period 2017-18, Biocon said in a BSE filing. Its consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 1,540.8 crore, compared with Rs 1,057.9 crore a year ago, it added. The company has delivered the highest-ever revenue and profit growth in absolute terms in the third quarter, Biocon Chairperson and Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw said. "Our biologics segment more than doubled in revenue and recorded an Ebit (Earnings before interests and taxes) margin of 30 per cent driven by increased penetration of our Pegfilgrastim in the US. Small molecules, branded formulations and research services also registered a robust growth this quarter," she added. Mazumdar-Shaw said the company's biosimilars ...

ECB's Draghi says economic risks have shifted to downside

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank left its policy stance unchanged as expected on Thursday but its president Mario Draghi acknowledged risks to euro zone growth were now tilted to the downside.

Volvo says electric car unit Polestar could list one day

FRANKFURT/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Volvo Cars, owned by China's Geely, could in future seek external investors for its Polestar performance electric car brand and list the unit on the stock market but has no immediate plans to do so, the company said on Thursday.

Sensex advances on strong rupee, Yes Bank's last hour push (Roundup)

Amid mixed global cues and a strengthening rupee, the Sensex advanced 86 points on Thursday aided by a steep rise - 19 per cent at one point - in Yes Bank stocks after it announced the appointment of its new MD and CEO.

Sebi bans Reliable Multi Managerial Services, directors from mkts, orders refund of money

Markets watchdog Sebi Thursday directed Reliable Multi Managerial Services and its present and former directors to refund Rs 4.77 crore to investors within three months along with an interest of 15 per cent per annum. These entities have also been restrained from accessing the securities market for at least four years, Sebi said in an order. According to the regulator, the company, its directors and promoters had mobilised more than Rs 4.77 crore from over 4,000 investors through issuance of redeemable non-convertible debentures (RNCD). The issuance of RNCD was a "public issue" as the debentures were issued to more than 49 persons which requires registration from Registrar of Companies and mandatory listing on the exchanges, among others. However, the company failed to do so, thereby violating the Companies Act, Sebi said. After finding contravention of the Companies Act, Sebi in February 2018 had barred the entities from securities market and refrained them from diverting any funds ..

Experience private jet trip for free with PINKSTA app

PINKSTA, the app that gives best cashback offers on offline transactions and purchases, is coming up again with its unbelievable Fly High offer. Nobody except PINKSTA has ever given away a luxury prize to fly in a Private Jet.The first one that was held few months ago, witnessed the winners and promoters travelling in a private jet for free. This time, PINKSTA is giving this opportunity to all its loyal customers to experience world-class luxury.In the upcoming The Fairytale's exhibition scheduled to be held at Shangri-La's - Eros Hotel on 9th February, PINKSTA will organize a lucky draw wherein one of the regular customers of the app will get free tickets to fly in a private jet.According to Rajneesh Khattar and Vasu Dev, Co-founders, PINKSTA, "Our aim from the very starting was to come up with a unique proposition for the customers. Thus, the idea of cashback on offline purchases was introduced in contrast to the evolving online cashback industry. Since then, the concept has been ...

It's just a good beginning: Whistleblower on FIR against Chanda Kochhar in ICICI-Videocon loan case

Whistleblower Arvind Gupta, who exposed the alleged Videocon loan fraud, on Thursday expressed satisfaction over cases registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against former CEO and MD of ICICI Bank Chanda Kochhar and her husband Deepak Kochhar for criminal conspiracy."I think this is just a good beginning of the investigation. Its roots will go further deep and outside India also. I want the government to see how few companies in India are getting money from abroad. Whose money is this? Chanda Kochhar is just a tip of the iceberg. The situation is the same in all the banks. I feel all the corrupt bankers will now think 10 times before doing something wrong," Gupta told ANI here."The bad condition of banking today is because of favouritism and corruption. Not only Chanda Kochhar, but there are also many people in the organisation who should be looked into. I cannot give a clean chit to independent directors, the board of director and even the chairman. The entire ...

Decoding the Valentine's Day Trends

/ -- Giftease.com, India's leading online gifting portal shares insights on current trends in Valentine's Day It's that time of the year when love is in the air and people have started planning for the V-Day. With Valentine's Day around the corner, Giftease, a leading player in the online gifting space reveals some fascinating facts about V-Day celebrations in India. An online survey by Giftease, conducted pan India basis in the age group of 18 to 45 years, throws a light on the ideas, behavior and gifting patterns that are expected this Valentine's Day. Almost, 47% of respondents stated their intent to celebrate Valentine's Day is with their valentine, with 16% not planning to celebrate at all, 10% with their friends, and almost 6% looking forward to their first date this Valentine's Day. While V-Day is seemingly more popular amongst women, the survey reveals that on an average, people plan to spend between Rs.500 to Rs.1,500 this Valentine's. In recent times, personalized gifts ...

Nexstgo bets big on India mkt, eyes 10,000 units-monthly sales for AVITA laptops

Hong Kong-based Nexstgo Thursday unveiled its new brand of 'AVITA' laptops and said it aims to clock monthly sales of 10,000 units in the coming financial year. Nexstgo -- which ventured into the country last year -- is keen on tapping the niche Internet of Things (IoT) segment here and is also lining up products like 'smart' weighing scale and 'smart' mirror that displays health information like BMI, for Indian buyers. "Apart from good specifications, our devices are available in bright colours and designs that separates us from competition. The focus over the next few months will be to establish the brand," Nexstgo Company Ltd CEO and co-founder Alex Chung told reporters here. He added that the company will invest USD 2.5-3 million in various marketing activities, including digital campaigns and in-shop branding for the new brand. "The quirky aesthetics in colour and design options will definitely appeal to the young consumers...My target would be to sell 10,000 units monthly in the

RBI monetary policy meeting on February 7

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will decide on February 7 whether there are inflationary pressures in the economy and if interest rates need to be trimmed.Its Monetary Policy Committee will meet to take a decision if it must cut the repo rate, raise it or let it remain the same.Many experts say interest rates should be cut as there is no uptick in output growth and consumer price inflation is low.If the Union Budget on February 1 keeps the fiscal deficit within target, the case for a rate cut is strong. A populist budget will provide the RBI with a reason to not cut rates.Last week, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley expressed his unhappiness at high interest rates.However, new RBI governor Shaktikanta Das may be inclined to demonstrate his independence from the government by not voting for a rate cut. He could cite various risks such as core inflation, fiscal expansion and US rate hikes.The country has seen a low inflation environment for the past four years. Given low pressures on demand

U.S. weekly jobless claims fall to lowest level since 1969

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits fell to more than a 49-year low last week, but the drop likely overstates the health of the labor market as claims for several states including California were estimated.

ECB says assessment of growth risks moved to downside

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - The European Central Bank downgraded its growth risk assessment on Thursday, acknowledging multiplying headwinds and suggesting that it would take even longer to normalise its exceptionally easy policy stance.

Kamdhenu profit up on higher royalty income

The net profit of TMT bar manufacturer Kamdhenu Ltd for Q3-FY'19 was Rs 5.42 crore, up from Rs 4.12 crore over the corresponding period last year despite lower sales on account of higher royalty income. The company said revenue de-grew by 21 per cent to Rs 242 crore during the quarter under review as compared to Rs 305 crore in Q3-FY'18 on account of reduced B2B trading sales. "In the last few months, we have recouped our business strategy by reducing B2B trading sales and focused on improving efficiencies in own manufacturing and on franchisee based business," Kamdhenu Chairman & Managing Director Satish Kumar Agarwal said. "We are leveraging our strength of asset light business model, strong brand royalty and large distribution and marketing network. This will further lead to increased margins and better efficiencies with higher RoE and RoCE," he said.

TN GIM attracts over Rs 3 lakh crore investment proposals:CM

The two-day Tamil Nadu Global Investors' Meet (GIM) 2019 has attracted investment commitments of over Rs three lakh crore, Chief Minister K Palaniswami said Thursday. A total of 304 Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) were signed during the state government-promoted event, he said on the concluding day of the investors' conclave. The 304 MoUs, worth Rs 3.41 lakh crore, would provide job opportunities to around 10.50 lakh people, he said. "I am happy to state we have been able to attract both foreign and domestic investments. The MoUs include investment commitments from reputed companies from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Germany, France, Finland, USA and China," Palaniswami said. The commitments made at GIM 2019 included an investment of Rs 27,400 crore by state-run CPCL which will establish a major petroleum refinery in Nagapattinam, he said. Auto major Hyundai wll invest Rs 7,000 crore on expansion and will commence manufacturing electric cars from its plant in Tamil Nadu, he ...

RIL has true potential to evolve into India's Amazon or Alibaba: UBS

A week after Reliance Industries (RIL) reported a 8.82 per cent rise in consolidated net profit for its third quarter at Rs 10,251 crore, global financial services firm UBS on Thursday said the Mukesh Ambani-led RIL has the true potential to evolve from an integrated energy company into a consumer giant like Amazon or Alibaba.

Ford says a no-deal Brexit would cost it $800 million this year: Sky

LONDON (Reuters) - Ford faces an $800 million bill if Britain leave the European Union without a deal, comprising World Trade Organisation tariffs and the impact of a weaker pound, Sky News reported on Thursday, citing internal calculations from the auto company.

American Airlines profit and forecast beat on higher fares

(Reuters) - No. 1 U.S. carrier American Airlines posted on Thursday quarterly profit and 2019 guidance that beat Wall Street estimates thanks to higher fares and healthy passenger demand, sending its shares up nearly 6 percent.