Tag: Reliance

Isha Ambani Piramal launches book curated by Dr. Vijay Haribhakti on breast cancer

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

At the inaugural India Breast Meeting 2024, a global convention focused on breast cancer organised by Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital, a book titled “Being Breast-Aware: What Every Woman Must Know” curated by Dr. Vijay Haribhakti, Chair of Onco Sciences at Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital, was unveiled.

Isha Ambani Piramal, Director of Reliance Industries Limited, graced the launch of the book aimed at promoting breast health awareness.

She emphasised the importance of raising awareness about breast health, stating, “The fight against breast cancer is a journey of compassion and resilience, where every act of awareness and every gesture of support becomes a beacon of hope and healing for patients and their families.”

Breast cancer has emerged as a significant health concern globally, with India being no exception. In 2022, 2.3 million women were diagnosed with breast cancer, resulting in 670,000 deaths worldwide. It is the most diagnosed cancer in women globally, accounting for 1 in 4 cancer cases. Additionally, it is the second most common cancer across all genders and the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in women.

The book “Being Breast-Aware: What Every Woman Must Know” aims to provide precise information by medical experts to aid in the prevention, early detection, and optimal care of breast cancer. Early detection and timely intervention are crucial for improving survival rates and enhancing the quality of life for patients.

Isha Ambani Piramal commended the initiative of organising the India Breast Meeting 2024, which aimed to bring together knowledge and experience from experts worldwide to enhance the scope and quality of care for breast cancer patients. She expressed gratitude to the team at Sir H.N. Reliance Foundation Hospital for spearheading this initiative and continually striving for top-quality patient care and support.

Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital offers the “One Stop Breast Clinic,” designed to provide comprehensive evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment pathways for women with possible or confirmed breast diseases within two hours.

Disclosure: Network18, the parent company of CNBCTV18.com, is controlled by Independent Media Trust, of which Reliance Industries is the sole beneficiary.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US-bound ship from Reliance’s Sikka port hits BPCL crude import facility, sources say

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Oil tanker Hafnia Seine bound for the United States from Sikka port in Western India hit Bharat Petroleum Corp’s (BPCL) crude import facility in an accident late on Sunday, two sources with the knowledge of the matter said on Monday.

The tanker was carrying gasoline-blending fuel known as alkylate for Reliance Industries’ US unit from a refinery in Jamnagar in Gujarat state, according to the sources, who added the extent of damage was not yet known.

“It appears to have hit the peripheral structure of the single point mooring (SPM),” one of the sources said, adding that no vessel is scheduled to discharge at its SPM currently.

BPCL has a single point mooring at Sikka to import crude for its landlocked Bina refinery in central India.

RIL and BPCL did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment. The sources declined to be identified because they were not authorised to speak publicly about the matter.

Also Read: Titagarh Rail shares gain over 7% after company bags order worth ₹1,909 crore from Railway Board

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Bharti Airtel’s Sunil Mittal upbeat on content collaboration amidst Disney-Reliance deal

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

In a recent interview with CNBC-TV18, Sunil Bharti Mittal, the Founder and Chairman of Bharti Airtel, shared his views on the recent developments in the entertainment industry, particularly the collaboration between Disney, Viacom, and Reliance. The conversation delved into the impact of this partnership and how Bharti Airtel positions itself in this evolving landscape.

When questioned about the impact of the Disney-Viacom-Reliance partnership and the move towards bundled services, Mittal responded positively, stating, “We’ve always said we will partner with content providers; we have never been in content. Therefore, we will reach out to the new combination of Viacom-Disney; they will be one of our providers on a non-discriminatory basis.”

Mittal highlighted that Bharti Airtel already has relationships with major content providers such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Zee, and Sony. He expressed optimism about the industry consolidation, stating, “I think this consolidation is good for the industry. And I only hope that everything will be provided to all the networks on a non-discriminatory basis. So we welcome this move and look forward to a healthy relationship with the providers.”

Sunil Mittal optimistic about India-UK free trade agreement

In the same interview, Mittal also shared insights into the potential signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the UK. Expressing optimism, he mentioned that both countries are very close to finalising the agreement, emphasising the need for understanding each other’s demands and positions to move forward with the talks.

Mittal highlighted the complementarities between India and the UK, stating, “It’s a much smaller market compared to India, but it’s got strength in biotech, defense, and various technologies.” He acknowledged the collaboration between Oxford University and the Serum Institute in producing the COVID-19 vaccine in a quick timeframe, showcasing the potential for fruitful partnerships between the two nations.

Watch the accompannying video for the full interview

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Reliance Consumer Products teams up with Sri Lanka’s Elephant House for beverage expansion

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Reliance Industries becomes India’s first ₹20 lakh cr company; stock at record high

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

The market capitalisation of oil-to-telecom conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd crossed the ₹20 lakh crore mark on Tuesday, after shares of the flagship company RIL hit a record high in trade today. At 11:28 am, the scrip was trading 1.55% higher at ₹2,947.95 per share.

With this, the Mukesh Ambani-owned conglomerate also became the first Indian company to hit a market capitalisation of ₹20 lakh crore.

Following Reliance Industries comes the Tata Group giant Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) with a market capitalisation of ₹15.07 lakh crore, while HDFC Bank comes third with ₹10.56 lakh crore.

Reliance Industries had first crossed the mark of ₹10 lakh crore in market capitalisation for the first time on November 28, 2019.

The most recent listing, Jio Financial Services, is currently trading at a market capitalisation of ₹1.70 lakh crore. One must remember that Reliance’s share price is trading at the ex-demerger price.

For the December quarter, the oil-to-retail conglomerate reported a net profit of ₹17,265 crore.

Brokerage firm Bernstein has raised its price target on Reliance Industries to ₹3,160 from ₹3,000 earlier. It is expecting Reliance’s Earnings per Share (EPS) to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 20% through the financial year 2026 with retail and telecom being the key drivers.

While it expects the oil-to-chemicals earnings growth to be flat, retail will show strong growth momentum.

Bernstein has cited several catalysts for investors of Reliance Industries, including additional spin-offs of businesses post the General Election, an increase in telecom tariff rates, new announcements in the new energy business and improvement in the company’s free cash flow.

Out of the 35 analysts that track Reliance Industries, 28 or 80% of them have a “buy” recommendation, five say “hold”, while the other two have a “sell” recommendation.

On the charts, the 14-day relative strength index (RSI) stood at 64.9, indicating the stock is neither oversold nor overbought. The counter has a one-year beta of 0.5, suggesting very low volatility.

Shares of RIL gained nearly 14% this year and have rallied nearly 40% in the last one-year period.

The stock has delivered positive returns every single year on an annual basis since 2015. In fact, the only year in which it delivered negative returns since 2012 was in 2014, during which it fell a paltry 0.5%.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Reliance wins IFR Asia’s ‘Issuer of the Year’ award for a record fourth time

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Reliance Industries Ltd has been conferred on IFR Asia’s ‘Issuer of the Year’ Award for 2023 for achieving most optimal pricing for super-sized funding deals while overcoming multiple market challenges. International Financing Review (IFR) is the pre-eminent financial publication globally for fixed income, capital markets, and investment banking news, analysis and commentary.

In a two-page commentary on Reliance that was titled ‘Blockbuster Producer’, IFR said “the Indian blue chip firm balanced onshore and offshore funding to achieve optimal pricing results from supersized deals”. In a tumultuous year for debt markets, it found increased demand from lenders as it reshaped its business to seize future opportunities. Reliance is now the only entity in Asia to have won this prestigious award four times — 2006, 2015, 2018, and 2023. The financing deals in 2023 that enabled Reliance win the award were raising of USD 7.5 billion in syndicated loans — this was the largest amount raised by any corporate in Asia Pacific and the syndication was achieved with largest-ever group of 55 banks.

This also happened to be the most-widely syndicated Indian deal ever. Reliance Jio Infocomm raised its first-ever syndicated loan on the strength of its standalone financials without a guarantee from parent Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). And even then, the pricing differential between RIL and Jio on the syndicated loans was only 10 bps, indicating the coming of age for Jio in the international financial markets.

USD 5 billion was raised from some of the world’s largest export credit agencies (ECAs), including from Sweden, Finland, Canada, and Korea. RIL’s Rs 20,000 crore 10-year rupee bond issue was the largest ever by a non-financial corporate and was significantly oversubscribed. It achieved RIL’s lowest coupon, and the tightest spread for a rupee bond — just 40 bp over the Indian government 10-year security, and better than many state government bonds. In June, RIL signed a USD 2.45 billion refinancing comprising a USD 2.105 billion 4.25-year tranche and a Yen 49.682 bilion (USD 351 million) 5.25-year tranche.

As well as finding demand from a diverse group of 34 lenders, Reliance also managed to reduce its all-in cost. The IFR Asia article explains the challenging scenario for corporate fundraising in 2023 that Reliance navigated successfully. “2023 was not an easy year to raise financing. High US dollar rates had finally fed through to Asia’s offshore loan market, causing the primary market to freeze up. Meanwhile, the US dollar bond market was volatile and the cost of funding was far higher than onshore.” Additionally, India raised the withholding tax on external commercial borrowings from 5 per cent to 20 per cent in July 2023, effectively raising the cost of borrowing for corporates.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Vibrant Gujarat Summit Day 1: Reliance, Adani, Tata Group and others make big investment proposals

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

On a day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi guaranteed that India would be among the world’s top three economies, India Inc followed through with that assurance by committing to big investments in Gujarat.

The country’s three big business houses — Reliance Industries, the Adani Group and the Tata Group — made big-ticket investment proposals for various projects in Gujarat. Reliance, which has a significant footprint in Gujarat, will build its much-awaited Dhirubhai Ambani Green Complex in Jamnagar, said Chairman Mukesh Ambani, who announced that the complex would be ready by the second half of this year.

“Reliance was, is and will always remain a Gujarati company,” Ambani said, adding, “We have invested over ₹12 lakh crore to create world-class assets all over India; over a third of these assets are invested in Gujarat alone.”

The Adani Group is expected to invest ₹2 lakh crore in the state over five years according to chairman, Gautam Adani. “We have already surpassed ₹50,000 crore of the ₹55,000 crore that we last committed,” he said, “We will also create over 100,000 direct and indirect jobs in Gujarat.”

The Tata Group chairman N Chandrasekaran said the Group was in the process of closing negotiations over setting up a semiconductor fab plant in Dholera. “We are planning to begin production of semiconductors from Gujarat this year.  We see Gujarat as an important destination for business growth and future advanced technology industries,” he said. Construction for the group’s 20 GW battery project is expected to begin in the next few months too, Chandrasekaran added.

Later, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India would become one of the world’s top three economies soon, irrespective of what rating agencies believed. “Every rating agency believes India will be in the top three economies over the next few years. The world can analyse whatever it wants, but I guarantee that India will be among the world’s top three economies.”

Several names from India Inc, including the likes of Tata Power, Arcelor Mittal, Welspun World, Zydus Life and Arvind Ltd among many others, also made investment proposals. Welspun, for one, has committed close to ₹40,000 crore towards setting up a green ammonia plant in Kutch.

“We will be producing green ammonia on one of our land banks in Kutch even as we bid for port land. We have signed an MoU with Gujarat which is taking big steps to promote green energy; we hope to produce green ammonia over the next three to five years,” said BK Goenka, Chairman at Welspun World.

Arcelor Mittal has announced that it will build the world’s largest steel manufacturing site in Hazira by 2029. “We will continue to expand our business in steel and mining,” said chairman Lakshmi Mittal, while speaking to the media, “We are also entering into renewable energy — so, investing in steel and renewables will be part of our plan.”

Mittal added that there are big plans for future investments. “We have signed big MOUs but they aren’t as important as when we start executing these projects,” he said.

Arvind Limited has announced the signing of MoUs in textiles and real estate; the company’s executive director Kulin Lalbhai told CNBC-TV18 that it would invest these sums in the group’s combined businesses in Ahmedabad. “Our investments are expected to be executed over the next four years,” he said, “We will scale up the technical textiles segment in Arvind Ltd, and focus on real estate development in Ahmedabad.”

Lalbhai said that while manufacturing was India’s strength, the country needed to do more to capitalise on the world’s China + 1 approach. “We need to step up as the world moves away from China,” he said, “We have 5% of the world’s textile and apparel trade — doubling this will mean $50 billion in exports. India also needs to scale up garmenting, and FTAs are expected to play a role here. The main challenge for us is to get people out of agriculture and into manufacturing.”

Earlier, Suzuki Motor Corp committed ₹30,000 crore towards expanding its existing plant in Sanand and opening a new plant in Gujarat. “We have grown 1.7 times in production and 2.6 times in vehicle exports from India, this year,” said Toshihiro Suzuki, President of Suzuki Motor Corporation, “Suzuki will invest ₹30,000 crore in Gujarat to scale production up to 1 million units from the state.”

He added: “We are also investing in our second plant with an annual capacity of one million; our total annual production in Gujarat will be two million units per year.”

Meanwhile, Ed Knight, Global Board Chair of the US-India Business Council
(USIBC) and Executive Vice Chairman of Nasdaq, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the summit to discuss policy reforms to boost financial inclusion at an industry roundtable focused on growing India’s FinTech ecosystem.

While Day 1 of Vibrant Gujarat saw traditional sectors like manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and automobiles in focus, the second day is expected to see new-age ones like electric mobility and renewables make their investment commitments to the state.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Disney, Reliance start antitrust diligence on India media merger

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries and Walt Disney have appointed law firms and started antitrust due diligence of their planned Indian media and entertainment merger, four people familiar with the matter said.

Reliance has appointed Indian law firm Khaitan & Co and Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas, while Disney has roped in AZB & Partners, the people said.

The appointments are the latest sign of progress as Reliance and Disney, which each have a major streaming service as well as 120 television channels between them, look at merging into an entity to create an entertainment superpower in the world’s most populous nation. Ambani’s group is expected to have a majority stake in the entity.

A fifth source said senior Disney executives from Burbank headquarters and top Reliance officials from Mumbai travelled to London in late December and signed a non-binding term sheet on the deal.

Reliance said it had “no comments to offer”, calling the story “speculative”, without elaborating. Disney declined to comment. Khaitan and Shardul also declined to comment, while AZB did not immediately respond to Reuters queries.

Any possible merger between Reliance and Disney is likely to face antitrust challenges and could draw intense scrutiny, with assets such as TV channels likely to be shed to assuage concerns of their combined market power, Reuters has reported.

Three of the sources familiar with the Reliance-Disney merger due diligence said the work for antitrust review was in initial stages.

If a deal was struck between Reliance and Disney, it would be the second to reshape India’s TV and streaming landscape as Japan’s Sony also plans to merge its India business with India’s Zee Entertainment.

Disney’s India business has been struggling, with Ambani locked in fierce battle with the U.S. company by offering free streaming of Indian Premier League cricket (IPL) tournament, whose digital rights were once with Disney in India.

A key area of antitrust scrutiny for a Disney-Reliance merger would be their streaming businesses and their power over advertising during cricket, antitrust experts have told Reuters.

Disney Hotstar app still owns the rights for International Cricket Council’s matches in India until 2027, while Reliance’s JioCinema app has the rights for IPL.

In early-stage talks, company executives disagreed over whether Disney or Reliance’s entertainment unit is more highly valued, Reuters has reported.

Also Read:Reliance Industries and Walt Disney sign non-binding term sheet to merge Indian media operations: Report

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Reliance Industries and Walt Disney sign non-binding term sheet to merge Indian media operations: Report

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Reliance Industries and Walt Disney signed a non-binding term sheet to merge their Indian media operations, The Economic Times reported on Monday, citing sources it did not name.

Reliance Industries has not commented on CNBC-TV18’s query on Disney India merger reports.

As per The Economic Times report, Reliance-owned Viacom18 will establish a step-down subsidiary absorbing a significant portion of Star India’s stock, resulting in a 51%:49% share holding pattern. . Reliance will own 51% & Disney 49% in the merged Indian media company, the report said.

Jio Cinema will also be included in the merger, with Reliance anticipated to retain a major stake and pay cash for controlling stock in the merged entity.

After sealing the term sheet in the UK last week, Reliance and Disney are expected to finalise the significant entertainment and media merger in India by February 2024,  impacting the country’s viewing and streaming landscape.

Despite Reliance’s push to conclude the deal by January, the mega-merger is slated to undergo all commercial ratifications and regulatory approvals by February, as per the report by The Economic Times.

As per the sources quoted by the daily, months of negotiations resulted in the non-binding agreement signed in London, attended by Kevin Mayer, a former Disney executive, and Manoj Modi, a trusted aide to Mukesh Ambani.

A possible merger would create one of India’s biggest entertainment empires, setting it in competition with TV players like Zee Entertainment and Sony and streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon Prime.

The acquisition could be announced as early as next month. Under the proposal, Disney will likely continue to hold onto a minority stake in the Indian company after any cash and stock swap transaction is completed.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Disney, Reliance plan London meeting for India media merger talks: Reuters

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

Listen to the Article (6 Minutes)

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries and U.S. giant Walt Disney are discussing a plan to hold next-stage talks about their India media business merger in London next week, two people familiar with the matter said.

Disney and Reliance have held talks to merge their India businesses by forming a joint venture company in which Ambani’s media unit would hold a majority stake, though finer details of business structures and valuations are yet to be discussed.

Next week, senior Disney executives and Reliance officials from its headquarters in Mumbai are likely to fly to London for the proposed meeting, said the two sources, declining to be named as the talks are private.

Reliance and Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A possible merger would create one of India’s biggest entertainment empires, setting it in competition with TV players like Zee Entertainment and Sony and streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon Prime.

The meeting being planned is for agreeing on a “broad roadmap” going ahead and “not for signing” a deal, said the first source.

The second source said the meeting would aim to discuss the contours of the transaction and it was not yet certain if any documents between the two sides would be signed. The person added the final plan for the meeting was still being worked out.

Ambani’s Reliance runs many TV channels and the JioCinema streaming app through its media and entertainment unit Viacom18. Ambani has been locked in a fierce battle with Disney by offering free streaming of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, whose digital rights were once with Disney in India.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow