RBI may hike rates again

New Delhi: India’s agricultural and processed food exports increased by 13% to $19.69 bn from April through December of this fiscal year, according to data released by the commerce ministry.

“For 2022-23, an export target of $23.6 billion has been fixed by the APEDA that works under the ministry,” it said. From April to December, basmati rice exports climbed by 40.26% to $3.33 bn. Shipments of non-Basmati rice increased by 3.35% to $4.66 bn during that time. —PTI

GOLD

SILVER DOWN BY `5

Mumbai (PTI): Analysts are of the view that after delivering the seventh hawkish policy on Wednesday the central bank may pause after delivering a likely 25 basis points increase in the April review.

For Abheek Barua, the chief economist at HDFC Bank, the 25 bps repo hike and keeping its withdrawal of accommodation stance unchanged are on expected lines, the policy tone was hawkish as the RBI-MPC has recognised that they are still away from achieving their objective of durable disinflation, which still looks distant as the core inflation continues to remain sticky.

“Even as headline inflation is likely to moderate over the coming months, core inflation could remain sticky, and if the RBI chooses to continue seeing signs of durable moderation in core inflation as a yardstick for policy tightening, another 25 bps rate hike in April is likely. But we see a change in stance to neutral is unlikely until the RBI pauses its rate hike cycle,” Barua said. He said that the morethan-expected hawkish stance was clear from how the market reacted--- the 10year bond yield rose to 7.34% post-policy from the last closing level of 7.31%. He expects the 10-year paper to trade 7.30-7.35% in the near term and the rupee to trade 82-83 levels in the near term as global risks continue to remain elevated.

India’s sugar exports at 27.83 lakh tonnes in 2022-23 so far

New Delhi (PTI): India has exported 27.83 lakh tonnes of sugar till February 9 of the ongoing 2022-23 marketing year, with Bangladesh and Indonesia being the top markets, trade body AISTA said on Thursday.

RATE HIKES WILL NOT IMPACT NBFCS' COLLECTIONS: ICRA

Mumbai (PTI): A day after the Reserve Bank delivered another rate hike, a domestic ratings agency on Thursday said the increases will not impact collection efficiencies for non-bank lenders. This is so primarily because of the collaterals given by borrowers and the priority they accord to repayments, Icra Ratings said. The agency said typically housing loans and loans against property pools carry interest rate risks. "... The continuation of rate hikes will not have a significant bearing on the collection efficiencies given the association of the borrower with the underlying collateral (residential properties) and the priority given by borrowers to repay such loans," it said. The agency added that the collection efficiency is expected to remain robust on the back of strong outlook for majority of the sectors though impact of the uncertain global environment is difficult to ascertain at present.

Among other nations, India has exported 2.47 lakh tonnes of the sweetener to Djibouti, 2.46 lakh tonnes to Somalia and 2.06 lakh tonnes to the UAE during October-February 9 of the current marketing year, the All India Sugar Trade Association (AISTA) said.

Mills have exported a total of 27,83,536 tonnes of sugar from October 1, 2022 to February 9 this year.

About 4.24 lakh tonne is under loading, while 3.79 lakh tonne of sugar has been delivered to refineries, considered to be deemed export in the said period, it added.

Sugar exports from India, the world’s major sugar producing nation, stood at 112 lakh tonnes in the

According To Aista Data

z India has exported 27.83 lakh tonnes of sugar till Feb 9 of the ongoing 202223 marketing year, with Bangladesh and Indonesia being the top markets z Among other nations, India has exported 2.47 lakh tonnes of the sweetener to Djibouti and 2.46 lakh tonnes to Somalia

2021-22 marketing year. As per AISTA’s initial projections, sugar output will be lower at 35.8 million tonnes during the 2022-23 marketing year.

New Delhi: Gold price rose `35 to `57,410 per 10 grams in the national capital on Thursday, according to HDFC Securities. Silver, however, fell `5 to `67,941 per kilogram. “Spot gold prices in the Delhi markets traded at `57,410/10 grams, up `5 per 10 grams,” Saumil Gandhi, Senior Analyst - Commodities at HDFC Securities, said. In the overseas market, both gold and silver were trading flat at $1,880 per ounce and $22.50 per ounce, respectively. —PTI

Ongc Videsh Eyes Assets In Africa And Latin America

IN 2020-21

Unemployment rate in youth falls to 12.9%

Mumbai (PTI): The unemployment rate for the youth in the country has reduced to 12.9% in 2020-21, from 17.8% in 2017-18, Parliament was informed.

New Delhi: ONGC Videsh Ltd, the overseas investment arm of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), is eying exploration and production assets in Africa and Latin America. OVL signed a memorandum of understanding with YPF SA of Argentia on the sidelines of the India Energy Week in Bengaluru, a company statement said.

OVL is India’s flagship overseas oil firm. It currently has a stake in 32 oil and gas projects in 15 countries, spanning from Venezuela to Vietnam.

OVL’s biggest investment is in Russia where it has 4 projects. —PTI

DISNEY TO CUT 7,000 JOBS IN MAJOR REVAMP, SAYS CEO

As Per Annual Plfs Reports

Jio-bp rolls out E20 petrol with 20% ethanol

New Delhi (PTI): Jio-bp, the fuel and mobility joint venture of Reliance Industries Ltd and UK's bp, has launched petrol blended with 20% ethanol, aligning with the government programme to cut oil imports and reduce carbon emissions.

"In line with the roadmap set by the Government, Jio-bp has become one of the first fuel retailers in India to make E20 blended petrol available," the company said in a statement.

The official data on employment and unemployment is collected through Periodic Labour Force Survey which is conducted by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation since 2017-18, Minister of State for Labour and Employment Rameswar Teli said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha.

The survey period is July to June of next year.

As per the latest available annual PLFS reports, the estimated unemployment rate on usual status for per- z Estimated unemployment rate on usual status for persons aged 15 years and above was 6%, 5.8%, 4.8%, and 4.2% during 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 and 202021, respectively z Estimated unemployment rate on usual status for youth ages 15-29 years was 12.9 per cent in 2020-21 sons aged 15 years and above was 6%, 5.8%, 4.8%, and 4.2% during 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21, respectively, he said.

“This shows that unemployment rate in the country has declined,” Teli said.

DURING APRIL-DECEMBER 2022

Sensex, Nifty clock gains for 2nd day

Mumbai (PTI): Rising for the second straight session, equity benchmark Sensex climbed 142 points on Thursday following buying in IT and finance stocks amid a higher opening in European markets.

After a see-saw session, the 30-share BSE Sensex ended 142.43 points or 0.23% higher at 60,806.22. During the day, the index witnessed a high of 60,863.63 and a low of 60,472.81. The broader NSE Nifty advanced 21.75 points or 0.12% to finish at 17,893.45.

Bajaj Finserv topped the

Equity mutual funds inflow hits 4-month high in January

New Delhi (PTI): Driven by buoyant SIP flows, equity mutual funds have attracted `12,546 crore in January, making it the highest net infusion in four months, despite volatility in stock markets.

This was way higher than `7,303 crore inflow seen in December, `2,258 crore in November and `9,390 crore in October. Prior to that, equity mutual funds witnessed flow to the tune of `14,100 crore in September. This was also the 23rd straight month of inflows into equity-oriented mutual fund schemes, data with the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi) showed on Thursday.

India-Pakistan trade stood at $1.35 billion

New Delhi: Walt Disney Co announced a sweeping restructuring under recently reinstated CEO Bob Iger, cutting 7,000 jobs as part of an effort to save $5.5 billion in costs and make its streaming business profitable. The layoffs represent an estimated 3.6% of Disney’s global workforce. The steps, including a promise to reinstate a dividend for shareholders, addressed some of the criticism from activist investor Nelson Peltz. —FIB

New Delhi (PTI): The bilateral trade between India and Pakistan has increased to $1.35 billion during April-December 2022 as against $516.36 million in the whole 2021-22, Parliament was informed.

Similarly, the country’s trade with China has aggregated at about $87 billion during the nine-month period of this fiscal, according to the data provided by Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.

In 2019, Pakistan suspended bilateral trade with

India after New Delhi revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. The trade with Pakistan

Data In Numbers

z The bilateral trade between India and Pakistan has increased to $1.35 billion during April-Dec 2022 as against $516.36 million in the whole 2021-22 z According to the data, the trade with Pakistan stood at $329.26 million in 202021 and $830.58 million in 2019-20

Sensex gainers' chart, rising 2.30%, followed by Asian Paints, IndusInd

Bank, Infosys, Bajaj Finance, L&T and TCS.

In contrast, Bharti Airtel, UltraTech Cement, Tata Motors and Sun Pharma were among the laggards, shedding up to 1.03%. In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge slipped 0.01% and the smallcap index dipped 0.15%.

` SETTLES FLAT AT 82.54 AGAINST US DOLLAR

New Delhi (PTI): The rupee pared initial losses and settled on a flat note at 82.54 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, supported by a rebound in domestic equities. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.59 against the American currency and touched a low of 82.66 and a high of 82.48 intra-day. It finally settled at 82.54 against the greenback, unchanged from its previous close.

Other Stories

STATES TO INTEGRATE WITH NATIONAL SINGLE WINDOW SYSTEM BY DEC: DPIIT SECRETARY

New Delhi: All the states, union territories and 32 central government departments will integrate with the National Single Window System (NSWS) by December this year, through which companies can seek all approvals and clearances for their businesses, a top official said on Thursday. So far 19 states/UTs and 27 central government departments are already onboarded, including Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, and Karnataka, the Secretary in the DPIIT Anurag Jain said. —PTI

Ola Electric To Open 500 Experience

CENTRES BY MARCH

New Delhi: Ola Electric will open 500 experience centres across India by March this year as it seeks to be closer to consumers, company founder and CEO said. The company, which currently has 200 experience centres across the country, is also planning to bring an electric bike to the market. Ola’s experience centres help consumers explore and buy its vehicles and also get servicing. —PTI stood at $329.26 million in 2020-21 and $830.58 million in 2019-20, the data showed.

“The government con- tinues to engage pro-actively with SAARC countries to strengthen trade and economic relations.

Hiring Activity In

E-RECRUITMENT

Space

DIPS BY 2%: REPORT

Mumbai: Hiring activity in the e-recruitment white-collar space in January witnessed 2% year-onyear decline mainly due to slowdown in sectors including IT, telecom, manufacturing and healthcare, a report said. E-recruitment refers to the process of employing talents using various online sources. Demand for jobs in production and manufacturing declined by 8% as did in healthcare (7%), telecom (5%). —PTI

Nokia Extends Production Of Fibre Broadband Equipment To India

New Delhi: Telecom equipment maker Nokia on Thursday said it will extend manufacturing of PON optical line terminals (OLTs) to its factory in Sriperimbudur near Chennai to cater to rising demand from local customers in India and global markets. PON stands for Passive Optical Network. In a statement, Nokia said shifts in consumer behaviour, from home working to data-rich entertainment services, are driving demand for broadband. —PTI