Tag: economy

US challenges Indian export subsidies at WTO

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

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The US has mounted a challenge against Indian export subsidies at the World Trade Organisation (WTO), saying they harm US companies by allowing Indian companies to sell their goods cheaply.

“These export subsidy programs harm American workers by creating an uneven playing field on which they must compete,” USTR spokesperson Robert Lighthizer said. He said the USTR will continue to hold their trading partners accountable and enforce US rights to ensure fair and reciprocal trade.

India helps its exporters of electronics and steel, among others, by exempting them from duties and taxes. India’s exports from Special Economic Zones, units created to promote trade, alone have increased by 6000 percent between 2000 and 2017. Exports from export-oriented units and electronic hardware units have increased by 160 percent in that past 16 years, with over 8000 products added to the export list.

India crossed its expiry date for exemption in exports subsidies and food security, among others, according to Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu.

But Prabhu had defended India’s exports subsidies at a WTO meet in Morocco in October 2017, saying the country should continue to receive exemption benefits because it still needs to support a full-fledged economic growth.

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

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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

World Bank shows green signals for India’s growth numbers in the near future

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

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The Indian economy is set to bounce back to its 7.5% growth rate trend in the near future as it seems to have bottomed out from the impact of its two major reforms in the past – Goods and Services Tax (GST) and demonetisation.

After seeing a continuous fall in the last three quarters due to these reforms, the India Development Update, a report by World Bank released every six months, points economic activity has begun to stabilize since August 2017.

The services will continue to remain the main driver of economic growth where industrial activity is poised to grow and manufacturing is expected to accelerate. Agriculture is also likely to grow at its long-term average growth rate, the report stated.

“Durable revival in private investments and exports would be crucial for India achieving a sustained high growth of 8% and above,” said Poonam Gupta, Lead Economist and the main author of the report.

“This will require continued impetus for structural reforms. Resorting to countercyclical policies will not help spur sustained growth and India should not compromise its hard-earned fiscal discipline in order to accelerate growth,” she added.

The reports have pointed a slow yet upward trend across all the sectors in the last 50 years, showing the economy to be stable. The upward trend has shown an increase in labour productivity and total factor productivity.

The report points to the positive impulse expected from India’s new tax regime and shows a thumbs up saying that it will likely improve the domestic flow of goods and services, help in formalising labour in the economy and in turn will enhance growth.

The report assesses that for India to sustain its growth path, the country will need to watch out for the changing landscape of open trade, reforms in the banking sector, strengthening financial institutions, among others.

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

BSNL Telephone Exchange Case: Special CBI Court discharges Maran Brothers

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

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In the ongoing BSNL telephone exchange case, special CBI Court has discharged former Union Minister Dayanidhi Maran and his brother, Sun Group Chairman Kalanithi Maran.

In February, the Maran Brothers had filed a discharge petition in the case. Towards the end of the month, the CBI Counsel had however opposed the petition stating that there was prima facie evidence to proceed with prosecution.

Along with the Maran brothers, four others had been accused in the case.

The case relates to alleged misuse of 764 high-speed data lines of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) at the residence of Dayanidhi Maran when he was the union telecom minister between 2004 and 2007.

The prosecution had stated that this caused a loss of Rs 1.78 crore to state-run telecom companies – BSNL and MTNL.

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

Union Budget: Lok Sabha passes Finance Bill with 21 amendments, 3 new clauses

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

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Lok Sabha passed the Finance Bill 2018-2019 with 21 amendments and three new clauses post which the House adjourned for the day.

The amended Bill has removed Provident Fund provision in case of default, CNBC-Tv18 has learnt.  The Bill was passed without discussion by applying the guillotine process as the opposition paralysed the functioning for the eighth day.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley moved the Finance Bill, 2018, which contains taxation proposals of his fifth and final budget, as well as the appropriation bill that details spending in various departments.

The bills were passed by voice vote. The appropriation bill was approved after a guillotine was applied which essentially means that all outstanding demands for grants from various departments are put to vote at once whether they are discussed or not. With the passage of the Finance Bill and the Appropriation Bill, the budget exercise is complete in the lower house.

Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia said that the capital gains on the unlisted entities accrued till January 31 will be grandfathered and its methodology for valuation is prescribed in the amendment.

The grandfathering clause on the assets of the unlisted entities will mean that assets accrued until January 31 will be exempt from the capital gains tax. Post which, the firms will be bound to pay the tax.

Amid the chaos in the Parliament over media gag in Gorakhpur, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said that the Finance Bill was tabled in the Parliament at 12 pm today.

The proceedings resumed after the Lok Sabha adjourned at 11:10 am. The Houses were adjourned for seven consecutive days and were unable to take up the Finance Bill 2018-2019.

The protests by the opposition parties led to such a decision where the Parliament was compelled to adjourn the House.

Along with the Finance Bill, the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill and the Chit Funds (Amendment) Bill had also not seen any developments. However, details are awaited if the Economic Offenders Bill will be taken up.

(With inputs from PTI)

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

Motilal Oswal Chief Raamdeo Agarwal says markets may fall 10% this year

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

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This will be a year of corrections and the market must be prepared for at least 10% fall as the  markets were overvalued, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Joint Managing Director Raamdeo Agarwal said.

Agarwal, however, said that “nothing has changed in the market” and though there is a possibility for correction, individual stocks will continue to do well.

In an interview with CNBCTV18, he said that markets were overvalued.

On the issue of public sector banks and Punjab National Bank fraud, he said, “We must give longer tenures to the current PSU bank chairmen.”

On the economy front, he said that a lot of sectors, like commercial vehicle sales, are firing away and the credit off-take has picked up.

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

Oil may inch up to $65 a barrel as global inventories decline, Moody’s cautions

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

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Credit ratings major Moody’s raised its medium-term price band for crude oil between $45 and $ 65 per barrel, taking into account prolonged production cuts by major oil producing countries and demand growth that have contributed to declining global inventories.

The ratings’ firm raised the price band from its earlier estimates of $40 to $60 per barrel, arguing that the production cuts and the demand growth are being offset by the rapid increases in US shale production.

The change in the market conditions has resulted in benchmark prices
to be averaged around $65/bbl this year. The firm further expects the price increase to be limited as the additional supply from the shale production and other non-OPEC production limits price growth.

Moody’s has, however, maintained its price band for North American natural gas between $2.50 and $ 3.50 per million British thermal units (MMBtu). The price band has been maintained at Henry Hub, the industry’s chief measure of natural gas prices.

Moody’s raises medium-term band to $45-65/bbl on crude. Get more details from @Manisha3005‘s conversation with Vikas Halan of Moody’s Investors Service pic.twitter.com/gNQ0SfwxRJ

— CNBC-TV18 News (@CNBCTV18News) March 14, 2018

The firm has raised the price band for natural gas liquids (NGLs) between $20 and $30/bbl, up from the earlier $19 to $27/bbl price band.

“Prices in the upper half of the oil price-band will encourage increased supply as US production grows and countries reduce compliance with their production quotas,” observed Moody’s Senior Vice President Terry Marshall.

“Nevertheless, even with crude prices at the higher end of the new $45-$65 range in early 2018, we expect prices to stay within this range over the medium term amid better balance between increased production and growth in demand.”

Moody’s analysts look to medium-term expectations as the most relevant price considerations when assessing financial performance and ratings for corporate issuers and oil-exporting countries.

According to the agency, the emphasis on a range of outcomes within the price band helps to assess the resiliency to price volatility, and thus durability of credit ratings, for entities.

Oil prices have firmed since OPEC’s November 2016 agreement to cut oil production by 1.2 million barrels per day (bpd), while non-OPEC members, led by Russia, agreed to cut production by 558,000 bpd.

The result, according to  Marshall, has been a decline in global crude inventories, which has contributed to higher oil prices.

Despite these various factors helping to boost commodity prices, Moody’s says that the prices will remain rangebound, and possibly volatile, amid increases in US shale production.

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

State Bank of India cuts ‘minimum balance charge’ to Rs 15

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

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Country’s largest bank — State Bank of India (SBI) has once again reduced its controversial penalty on non-maintenance of average monthly balance by up to 75 percent.

SBI, in a statement on Tuesday, said that the new rates will come in effect from April 1, 2018.

The bank said that revised charges for non-maintenance for average monthly balance in metros and urban centres have been reduced from a maximum of Rs 50 to Rs 15. Similarly, for semi-urban & rural centres, the charges have been reduced from Rs 40 every month to Rs 12.

It is important to note that Rs 10 as Goods and Services Tax (GST) charges would still be applied over and above these reduce penalties.

SBI received a lot of flak from its customers since the introduction of these charges. The bank has, since then, revised guidelines multiple times and reduced charges as well.

In October 2017, the bank has reduced service charges by 20-50 percent bringing down this penalty was to Rs 30-Rs 50 from Rs 40-Rs 100.

Between April to November 2017, the bank collected Rs 1,771 crore from its customers as part of these charges.

P K Gupta, MD-Retail & Digital Banking, SBI said, “We have reduced these charges taking into account the feedback and sentiments of our customers. Bank has always focused on keeping the interests of its customers first and this is one of our many efforts towards fulfilling customer expectations. Bank also offers its customers to shift from regular savings bank account to BSBD account on which no charges are levied.”

Currently, the minimum balance to maintained in urban areas is Rs 3,000, while semi-urban and rural areas it should be Rs 2,000 and Rs 1,000 respectively.

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

Come up with a better model to buy farm produce, Govt tells Niti Aayog

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

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The message from Centre is loud and clear: No private sector firms will be hired to procure produce from farmers at Minimum Support Price (MSP).

MSP is the base price that the government fixes for various crops that farmers in India produce. If prices of these crop drop below these prices, then the farmer has an option to sell it to the government instead of an open market.

In its last meeting with Niti Aayog, the government rejected the proposal of hiring private sector firms for the procurement of Minimum Support Price (MSP) to farmers for their produce. “The idea of getting private players would invite middlemen rather than improving the income of farmers,” said a member of Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC).

It is not that at the model is new. The government has tested it before and it came out a cropper.

The monetary factor also comes in play as the government has to either spend more money or cut benefits to farmer for the hiring of private players.

Moreover, getting private companies on-board to buy crops at MSPs can only work for paddy and wheat.

In Union Budget of 2018, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that Minimum Support Prices (MSP) will be at 50 per cent over the cost of production of crops incurred by the farmers.

Niti Aayog has been assigned with figuring out a procurement system which would further implement the government’s plan.

Niti Aayog has to now brainstorm again and come up with a new procurement model which can be practically implemented.

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

No one wants to get into a full blown trade war, opines BRICS Bank chief KV Kamath

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

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No country would be willing to risk everything by getting involved in a full blown trade war, opined KV Kamath.

Speaking in an interview to CNBCTV 18, the president of New Development Bank said that the entire issue should lead instead to negotiations.

Kamath made the statement when asked whether the US decision to impose tariffs could pave way for a trade war between the US, China and European Union.

“I would think that we need to watch the situation a few more days to understand what (will be) the next steps (by China and EU)… retaliation or no retaliation or negotiation. My own view is that this whole move has to lead to negotiation because I do not think anybody would be prepared to go down and start looking at a full blown trade war, which throws everything into chaos…it will be bilateral negotiations that will be held between various trade partners to sort out whatever are their current issues,” he said.

The former Chairman of Infosys also added that while markets across the globe initially reacted to the tariff decision nervously, they soon recovered.”If you see initially when there was this announcement, global markets went into a nervousness but then they recovered.”

When asked whether China will be forced now to cut down its production, Kamath said that the response could come through a variety of measures. “There could be tariffs on other side…each country will look at its own needs and priorities in taking decision. So we will see a very interesting new equation development.”

The statements comes after the US on Friday imposed tariffs on the import of steel and aluminium. While countries such as Canada and Mexico have been exempted from it, the tariff is expected to hit China and European Union most.

While there still exists fear that the decision may lead to similar response from other economies, the response till now has been not that severe. And with China’s Minister of Commerce stating that there will be no winners in a trade war, hopes are high that the issue could be solved amicably.

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

Capital injection and simultaneous clean-up will help the public sector banks, says Kamath-

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

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The chief of the New Development Bank, K.V. Kamath said the government needs to inject capital in public sector banks (PSUBs) simultaneously while the clean-up working is still ongoing.

In an exclusive interview with CNBCTV18, the banker provided a three-step prognosis for the public sector banks that are under stress in the market currently.

“I read about what the government wanted to do that is inject capital. I would think that is the first step that needs to be done for any bank if indeed that is the challenge that is being faced. So, capital needs to come in. Clean-up needs to be done simultaneously. Other than that the third element is get right people to run this structure,” Kamath said.

11 out of 21 public sector bank are under the scrutiny of the Reserve Bank’s prompt corrective action (PCA) for its non-performing assets (NPA) and five more are expected to be included.

Kamath concluded saying that if the government implements the given rectifications in the banking sector, it will be in a better position to take the call on how it wants its banking sector to function.

On Monday, during the trading hours, State Bank of India, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Union Bank, IDBI and Bank of India are at its day’s low.

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