Page 27 - Industry Report

YES, RBL Bank foreign deals put mid-cap bank stocks in focus; time to buy?

Foreign investors are making strategic bets on mid-cap private banks like YES Bank, RBL Bank, and Federal Bank. Should you invest?

Motilal Oswal sector of the week: Cement; check top stock picks, targets

In the cement sector, near-term weakness persists due to subdued demand, muted pricing trends and high petcoke prices.

Equal work, unequal pay: Wage gap persists among gig workers, says report

Even as festive hiring for the year surged, wage parity between gig and permanent employees remained unresolved, with 47 per cent of respondents believing there is a pay gap, a report has revealed. When asked how the hourly pay of gig or freelance workers compares to that of permanent employees for the same role, 11 per cent respondents said earnings were up to 10 per cent less, 23 per cent said wages were 10-25 per cent lower and 13 per cent revealed the gap exceeds 25 per cent, according to the report by Genius HRTech (formerly Genius Consultants). Collectively, the report found that nearly half of the workforce -- 47 per cent -- believe gig workers are paid less than their permanent counterparts, revealing a persistent disparity that continues to shadow India's festive hiring landscape. The report by workforce staffing services and HR Solutions provider is based on a Digipoll survey among 1,550 professionals across industries during September 1-30, 2025. "The festive economy ...

Antique sees 'tremendous' scope in ₹2.5-trn worth FY26 defence proposals

On Thursday, the MoD said the Defence Acquisition Council approved procurement proposals worth ₹79,000 crore

Maruti, M&M top Motilal Oswal picks; auto ancillaries see split sentiments

Tariff uncertainty, analysts believe, continues to cloud the outlook for auto ancillaries, affecting CV components and non-auto exports.

Digital payments made up 99.7% of transaction volume in 2024: RBI report

Digital payment transactions accounted for 99.7 per cent in terms of volume and 97.5 per cent in value in the payments system during calendar year 2024, and the trend continued in the first half of 2025, according to a Reserve Bank report released on Thursday. The payments ecosystem in India has witnessed remarkable growth in recent years, said the RBI's half-yearly Payment System Report, June 2025. The payments landscape in India consists of a bouquet of payment systems designed to cater to the diverse needs of users, which include paper-based instruments (cheques) as well as digital payment systems. Digital payment systems include NEFT, IMPS, RTGS, NACH, debit and credit cards, prepaid payment instruments, and UPI. The report also showed an increasing trend across all categories, except for paper-based instruments. Cheques account for 2.3 per cent of the total transactions in terms of value. In terms of volume, the payment transactions grew from 3,248 crore in CY 2019 to 20,849

AI talent demand accelerates; job postings rise 11.7% in Sep: Report

With demand for AI skills continuing to grow across India, a report on Wednesday showed that AI-related job postings increased to 11.7 per cent this September from 8.2 per cent in the same month a year ago. In September, 11.7 per cent of Indian job postings explicitly mentioned AI in their job descriptions, up from 10.6 per cent three months earlier and 8.2 per cent a year ago, global hiring platform Indeed said in a report. "India ranks highly against other Indeed markets. Apart from India, only Singapore has a higher share of postings mentioning artificial intelligence. It's clear that many employers across India have gone all-in on artificial intelligence," Indeed's APAC Senior Economist Callam Pickering said. The findings in this report are based on job posting data on the Indeed platform, which tracks real-time hiring activity across India's formal economy. Job posting trends were measured as of September 2025, with comparisons made against both the previous months and ...

Industrial, warehousing space leasing hits record high 37 mn sq ft: Report

Leasing of industrial and warehousing spaces across eight major cities rose 28 per cent to a record 37 million sq ft during the January-September period of this year, driven by high demand in Delhi-NCR, according to CBRE. The total leasing across the top 8 Indian cities - Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad - stood at 28.8 million sq ft in the corresponding period of the 2024 calendar year. Real estate consulting firm CBRE, in its latest 'India Market Monitor Q3 2025 Industrial & Logistics' report, highlighted that the Delhi-NCR accounted for the largest share of total leasing activity at 11.7 million sq ft, followed by Bengaluru at 5.7 million sq ft and Hyderabad at 4.6 million sq ft. The three cities accounted for a cumulative share of 59 per cent. Mumbai and Kolkata registered space take-up of 4.2 million sq ft and 3.8 million sq ft, respectively. Anshuman Magazine, Chairman & CEO - India, South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa

Nifty Bank outlook: Goldman Sachs expects index to outrun Nifty near-term

Goldman Sachs expects Nifty Bank to outperform Nifty50 in the near-term, aided by easing regulatory norms and better liquidity

GCC hiring in India rose 5-7% in July-September quarter: Report

India's Global Capability Centres witnessed a sequential hiring growth of 5-7 per cent during the July-September quarter, with most demand stemming from AI and data, platform engineering, cloud and FinOps and cybersecurity roles, says a report. According to the Quess Corp's India's GCC Tech Talent Landscape: Q2 FY26 report, sectors like BFSI, Manufacturing, Automotive, Energy, Technology and Hardware have become the main pillars of GCC growth. "India's GCC evolution is entering its most strategic phase yet, one defined by precision, not proliferation. The second quarter reflected a measured 5-7 per cent quarter-on-quarter hiring growth, highlighting a shift from scale to capability-led maturity, with AI, FinOps, and platform reliability emerging as core priorities," Quess Corp CEO - IT Staffing Kapil Joshi said. Hiring budgets are now focused around revenue-critical and resilience-focused functions, creating steady demand for platform engineering, data management, and FinOps roles .

India's unemployment rate rises to 5.2% in September, shows govt data

The unemployment rate for those aged 15 and above increased marginally to 5.2 per cent in September, according to a government survey released on Wednesday. The unemployment rate (UR) was 5.1 per cent in August, 5.2 per cent in July and 5.6 per cent in May and June, as per the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). The UR was 5.1 per cent in April as per the first PLFS bulletin released in May 2025. "The UR among persons of age 15 years and above increased marginally to 5.2 per cent in September 2025 from 5.1 per cent recorded in August 2025 after declining during the past two successive months," an official statement said. The latest data collected in the current weekly status (CWS) showed that the unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years and above stood at 5.2 per cent in September. The rise in UR in rural areas (from 4.3 per cent in August 2025 to 4.6 per cent in September 2025) and a marginal increase

Indian banking sector sees wave of foreign investments, say experts

Experts attribute the trend to country's growth potential, regulatory stance

Equity investments in Indian real estate rise 48% to $3.8 bn in Q3FY26

Equity investments in Indian real estate rose 48 per cent to USD 3.8 billion during July-September as builders and investors pumped in funds mainly for land acquisition and construction of projects, according to CBRE. Real estate consultant CBRE on Friday released its latest report, 'Market Monitor Q3 2025 Investments', highlighting that the total equity investments rose to USD 3.8 billion in the third quarter of this calendar year from USD 2.6 billion in the year-ago period. During the latest September quarter, the inflows were primarily fuelled by capital deployment into land/development sites and built-up office and retail assets. In the first nine months of 2025, the equity investments increased 14 per cent annually to USD 10.2 billion from USD 8.9 billion in the same period last year. During the full 2024 calendar year, the equity investments in Indian real estate stood at USD 11.4 billion. Anshuman Magazine, Chairman & CEO - India, South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa,

Why are brokerages betting on SBI Life and HDFC Life among life insurers?

Private life insurers' individual annualised premium equivalent (APE) increased at a moderate 7.7 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y), whereas LIC's individual APE fell 31.8 per cent Y-o-Y

Cement sector set for H2FY26 upswing; JK Cement tops Nuvama's picks

While monsoons and consumption deferrals following the GST rationalisation impacted demand in Sep'25, prices largely held firm, signalling resilience in the sector, Nuvama analysts said

Life insurers' new business premium rises 14.8% in September 2025

Robust group segment performance led by LIC and private players drives 14.8 per cent year-on-year growth in new business premium for life insurers

Complex fertiliser volumes likely to grow 2-4% amid geopolitical risks

Volume growth of complex fertilisers is expected to slow down to 2-4 per cent in this financial year from 9 per cent last year amid import constraints, geopolitical headwinds and a high-base effect, a report said on Thursday. Crisil Ratings in the report stated that supply disruptions have also led to a rise in raw material prices, which in turn may increase the subsidy requirement. However, credit profiles are seen stable because of steady profitability, expected additional subsidy allocation and its timely disbursement, said the report. "Volume growth of complex fertilisers is seen slowing to 2-4 per cent this fiscal after a strong 9 per cent print last fiscal because of availability issues with imported fertilisers, ongoing geopolitical disruptions and high-base effect," the report said. Complex fertilisers account for a third of the overall domestic fertiliser consumption of which nitrogen phosphorus potassium (NPK) grades comprise 55 per cent and di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) ..

Tariff relief buzz lifts Nifty Pharma Index; Lupin, Aurobindo lead gains

Pharma stocks were rising in trade today as export concerns eased on US tariff report. Check out the top stocks that may benefit from US tariff relief

Will Apollo, Max, Metropolis outshine peers in Q2? Here's what analysts say

Domestic brokerage firm Nuvama analysts forecast a modest sequential slowdown but a healthy ~17 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) Ebitda growth, led by hospitals and diagnostics.

IGL vs MGL: Which stock to buy amid tax cut buzz in Gujarat? Analysts weigh

City gas distributors Indraprastha Gas and Mahanagar Gas may see a major earnings lift as Gujarat slashes VAT on gas to 2%. Analysts expect improved margins, profitability, and strong stock upside