Page 8 - Icra

Thermal power plant load factor to remain healthy at 70% in FY25: ICRA

Thermal plant load factor or capacity utilisation is expected to remain healthy at 70 per cent in FY2025 on power demand growth of 6 per cent, ICRA said on Thursday. ICRA's outlook for the thermal power segment is "Stable", following the improvement in the thermal plant load factor (PLF) and healthy demand growth, thereby improving visibility on signing of new power purchase agreements (PPAs), an ICRA statement said. Also, it stated that the implementation of the Late Payment Surcharge (LPS) scheme enabled an improvement in payment discipline from state distribution utilities (discoms) to power generation companies from August 2022. However, it stated that ICRA's outlook for the power distribution segment remains "Negative" amid limited tariff hikes and continued loss-making operations. According to the statement, ICRA projects the all-India thermal PLF level to rise marginally to 70 per cent in FY2025, from 69 per cent in FY2024, led by the growth in electricity demand and limited

What will Indians do for jewellery amid high gold prices? Agency answers

Consumers are expected to remain watchful of price movements, says ICRA

Indian Inc faces Q1 revenue uncertainties due to slow govt spending: Icra

Corporates are bracing for revenue uncertainties in the April-June period due to a slowdown in government spending and the onset of the annual monsoon season, domestic rating agency Icra said on Monday. The sequential revenue growth will taper in the first quarter of the fiscal, the agency said in a note, adding that there was a 6.5 per cent growth in revenues in the March quarter compared to the preceding December quarter. "While signs of a revival in rural demand have emerged, headwinds, such as a slowdown in the Government of India's (GoI) spending during the Parliamentary elections and onset of the monsoon period, are likely to weigh on growth in H1FY25," the agency said. "India Inc braces for revenue uncertainties in Q1FY25," it added. Its co-group head for corporate ratings Kinjal Shah said the sequential revenue growth will slow down because of a relatively high base amid a perceived temporary pause in the infrastructural activities for a major part of the quarter due to the

Domestic commercial vehicle sales likely to dip 4-7% in FY25: ICRA

In February 2024, the industry saw a slight 0.7 per cent year-on-year decline in wholesale volumes, although it managed a 5.1 per cent sequential growth

Expect commercial vehicle volumes to witness 4-7% dip this fiscal: ICRA

Hit by a high base of last year and weakness in demand, the domestic commercial vehicle industry is expected to witness a dip of 4-7 per cent in wholesale volumes in the current fiscal as compared to FY23, rating agency Icra said on Friday. The medium and heavy commercial vehicle (trucks) volumes are expected to contract by 4-7 per cent year-on-year given the high base effect and the impact of the Lok Sabha polls on infrastructure activities in the first few months. Similarly, the volume of light commercial vehicles (trucks) wholesale volumes is likely to decline by 5-8 per cent in FY2025 due to factors such as a high base effect, sustained slowdown in e-commerce, and cannibalisation from electric three-wheelers, Icra said. The rating agency expects the domestic CV industry's uptrend to be arrested in FY2025, with a decline of 4-7 per cent in wholesale volumes, it stated. This follows a muted year-on-year growth of 1 per cent and 3 per cent for wholesale and retail sales, ...

Domestic air passenger traffic grows 5.1% to about 138.9 mn in May: ICRA

Domestic air passenger traffic grew 5.1 per cent year-on-year to an estimated 138.9 million in May and was significantly higher by around 14 per cent than pre-Covid levels, credit ratings agency Icra said on Thursday. Icra also said the outlook on the Indian aviation industry is stable amid the continued recovery in domestic and international air passenger traffic with a relatively stable cost environment and expectations of the trend continuing in FY2025. The airlines' capacity deployment in the previous month increased 6 per cent year-on-year and about 2 per cent higher than April 2024, it added. According to the agency, the domestic air passenger traffic for FY24 was around 154 million, with a year-on-year growth of around 13 per cent. It thus surpassed the pre-COVID levels of around 142 million in FY2020, the ratings agency said, adding that the international passenger traffic for Indian carriers stood at around 29.68 million last fiscal, registering a year-on-year growth of ..

ICRA revises domestic steel consumption growth upwards to 9-10% for FY25

Domestic steel consumption between February to April 2024 registered a growth of 11.3 per cent

MPC likely to maintain status quo for eighth time in a row: BS poll

Respondents cite moderate inflation data, outlook for food prices, high growth

Major private hospital chains see rise in revenues per bed in FY24

They are on an expansion spree and guided for more bed additions in FY25

Vedanta says ICRA has assigned top rating to its commercial paper

Vedanta on Thursday said ICRA has assigned A1+ rating to the company's Rs 2,500-crore commercial paper, citing multiple positives. ICRA highlighted Vedanta's diversified product portfolio and a healthy market share while assigning the rating, the company said. A1+ is the highest rating in a scale of ratings provided by the credit rating agency for such instruments. "ICRA Ltd...has assigned ICRA A1+ Rating on commercial paper," Vedanta said in a filing to the BSE. Similarly, the credit rating agency has also assigned an ICRA AA- rating to Vedanta's long-term bank loans, it said. The mining major has proposed a vertical split of the businesses and is expected to list five entities on the stock exchanges by the end of this year.

ICRA Q4 results: Net profit up 21.8% to Rs 47 cr, total revenue rises 13.7%

For financial year FY24, its consolidated net profit rose to Rs 152.24 crore up from Rs 136.72 crore in FY23

Dependency on minerals import risks India's green tech progress: ICRA

According to the report, there has been a gradual shift in global energy policy priorities from fuel and energy security to mineral security

Scramble for ERP licence even as doubts remain on the market size

About a dozen players dive into the fray

International traffic expected to grow faster than domestic in FY25: ICRA

While the domestic passenger traffic is expected to grow at 8-10 per cent Y-o-Y to 330-340 mn, the international passenger traffic is likely to increase by 10-14 per cent Y-o-Y to 80 mn, it mentioned

Slowdown in mining output drags IIP growth to 4.9% in March: Govt data

The IIP had grown by 1.9 per cent in March 2023

ICRA forecasts moderate growth for tyre sector in FY25 as input costs rises

The report cites healthy demand from OEMs in the passenger vehicle (PV) and two-wheeler (2W) segments, along with replacement demand, as the primary drivers of domestic growth

Credit flow to moderate, corporate bond issuances to rise in FY25: ICRA

The incremental credit flow was also supported by the all-time high corporate bond issuances of Rs 10.2 trillion during the previous financial year

53 mn sq ft office space eligible to be monetised via SM-REIT for Rs 70K cr

Rating agency ICRA has estimated that around 530 lakh square feet of office spaces are eligible for small and medium REITs (SM-REIT) listing, creating a monetisation opportunity of Rs 67,000-71,000 crore. In November last year, the Sebi board cleared the amendments to the REITs Regulations, 2014, in order to create a regulatory framework for the facilitation of SM REITs, with an asset value of at least Rs 50 crore vis-a-vis minimum asset value of Rs 500 crore for existing REITs. As per the notification, the minimum price of each unit of the scheme of SM-REIT shall be Rs 10 lakh or such other amount as may be specified by Sebi from time to time. The size of the asset proposed to be acquired in a scheme of the SM-REIT is at least Rs 50 crore and less than Rs 500 crore. "Small and Medium REITs will provide an opportunity for small Grade A and most of the Grade B office developers to monetise their investments. Also, Fractional Ownership Platforms (FOPs) are expected to be formalised, .

India's core sector growth slows to 5.2% in March from 7.1% in February

In March 2023, the core sector had recorded a growth of 4.2 per cent

India's oil import bill could swell to $101-104 billion in FY25: ICRA

India's net oil import bill could widen to USD 101-104 billion in current fiscal from USD 96.1 billion in 2023-24 and any escalation in the Iran-Israel conflict could impart an upward pressure on the value of imports, ICRA said on Tuesday. The domestic rating agency said based on its analysis, lower value of Russian oil imports is estimated to have led to savings of USD 7.9 billion in 11 months (April-February) of 2023-24, up from USD 5.1 billion in 2022-23. "With India's oil import dependency expected to remain high, if the discounts on purchases of Russian crude persist at the prevailing low levels, ICRA expects India's net oil import bill to widen to USD 101-104 billion in FY2025 from USD 96.1 billion in FY2024, assuming an average crude oil price of USD 85/bbl in the fiscal," ICRA said. Additionally, any escalation in the IranIsrael conflict and an associated rise in crude oil prices could impart an upward pressure on the value of net oil imports in the current fiscal year, it .