Namaste! Aaj ka news roundup, Newswala style!

MARKETS

Markets: The Indian stock market ended flat and volatile on April 30, with the Sensex down 46 points and the Nifty slipping 2 points as profit booking and mixed sectoral trends kept indices range-bound.

TOP STORIES

JSW MG Motors Wants $350 Million 

What Happened

JSW MG Motor India is hunting for a cool $300-350 million (about ₹2500-2980 crore) from climate-focused private equity funds and sovereign wealth organisations.

This marks their first external fundraising effort since JSW and SAIC-owned MG Motor formed their $1.5 billion joint venture in March 2024. 

Why It Matters

The timing couldn't be better – the company just posted its first-ever gross profit of ₹2.91 crore in FY24, with sales reaching ₹7900 crore (up 4.64% year-over-year).

Their Windsor EV has been flying off the shelves, outselling the previous market leader Tata Nexon EV, with 20,000 units sold in just six months.

JSW MG has turbocharged its market share from 12.77% to 28.02% in just one year, mainly at Tata Motors' expense. The company expects EVs to make up 65% of its total sales by end-2025, up from 50% last year.  

Zoom Out

Despite impressive growth, JSW MG is still in the red with accumulated losses of ₹3000 crore over five years. However, they've dramatically improved their financials, slashing losses from ₹826 crore to ₹586 crore last year. 

Most impressively, they've flipped from losing ₹65,926 per vehicle to making ₹29,292 per vehicle – a remarkable achievement in India's competitive auto market.

TOP STORIES

Indian Oil Secures Massive LNG Deal  

What Happened

Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) has struck gold in the energy market! The state-run giant has inked a juicy $1.4 billion deal with trading powerhouse Trafigura to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) over the next five years. 

According to IOCL's Chairman Arvinder Singh Sahney, the arrangement will bring approximately 2.5 million tonnes of LNG to Indian shores through 27 separate cargo deliveries. 

Why It Matters

Let's talk numbers, folks! India currently imports a whopping 45% of its annual LNG needs, making this deal a crucial piece of the country's energy security puzzle.

The agreement arrives at a perfect time as India actively seeks to diversify its energy portfolio amid shifting global dynamics. 

Russian crude, which previously made up 30% of IOCL's purchases, has dropped to 22% - a move Sahney insists was "purely commercial" rather than sanctions-driven. Plus, the deal also represents growing India-US energy cooperation.

Zoom Out

This move comes as Indian Oil reported a healthy 52.47% jump in quarterly profits for March, reaching ₹8,367.63 crore, though its annual profits took a significant 68% dive to ₹13,788.83 crore.

For investors watching IOCL's performance, take note: the company's gross refining margin plummeted to $4.80 per barrel in FY25 from a much healthier $12.05 in FY24.

TOP STORIES

Vedanta Strikes Metal Jackpot  🪨

What Happened

Vedanta has hit 13.1 million tonnes in metal reserves — its biggest ever. Over the past five years, it’s added a chunky 9.0 million tonnes, despite digging out 1.2 million tonnes in the same period.

That’s like filling a treasure chest while someone keeps taking gold out! 

• Thanks to this, Vedanta now boasts over 25 years of mine life.

• In Q4 FY25, Vedanta flexed its financials( net profit zoomed 154% YoY to ₹3,483 crore).  

Why It Matters

Vedanta’s aluminium and zinc businesses are setting records. Aluminium production touched 604 kt, with value-added product (VAP) sales up 16%.

Zinc also smashed records — mined output hit 310 kt, refined at 270 kt, and the cost? Slashed to a 4-year low of $994/tonne.

Meanwhile, Vedanta’s Gamsberg mine (South Africa) is going full throttle. Production there jumped 52%, and costs dropped 25%!

Zoom Out

Vedanta is digging deep into strategy, efficiency, and growth. With metal reserves looking healthier than your New Year gym resolution and profits climbing like a goat on a mountain, FY26 could see Vedanta flex even harder.  

GROWTH GULLY

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PAISON KA KHEL

Varun Beverages Fizzes Up 35% 🍾

Varun Beverages just cracked open a refreshing quarter, posting a profit of ₹726.49 crore in Q1 CY2025—a 35.22% jump from last year’s ₹537.27 crore.

The PepsiCo bottler sold a whopping 312.4 million cases, up 30.1%, proving that when the economy sizzles, people still reach for a cold drink.

Revenue fizzed up 29.15% to ₹5,680 crore, while EBITDA sparkled at ₹1,264 crore. With these numbers, Varun’s performance is anything but flat—investors are likely raising a toast (or a cola).

Adani Hits Pause on $10B Semiconductor Saga ⏸️

Gautam Adani has pressed the pause button on his $10 billion chip romance with Israel’s Tower Semiconductor. Adani wanted Tower to cough up more cash, but Tower preferred to just bring the tech, not the cheque.

The now-stalled Maharashtra plant was set to dish out 80,000 wafers a month and 5,000 jobs. With Vedanta-Foxconn already ghosting the scene last year, this is another plot twist in Modi’s “Make in India” chip tale

GLOBAL NAZARA

Wall Street’s Bad Hair Day 🪮

Wall Street just tripped over its own shoelaces. The US economy shrank 0.3% in Q1—quite the plot twist after a 2.4% sprint last quarter. Imports spiked 41% (hello, tariff panic), and job growth crawled in at just 62,000 instead of the expected 120,000.

The Dow dropped 690 points, S&P fell 2%, and Nasdaq slid 2.6%.

Rakuten Spends Big in India 💰

Rakuten is betting ₹834 crore (that’s $100 million for the dollar lovers) on India this year. The Japanese giant plans to boost its Indian headcount by 8% (above 4,000 already!) while going all in on AI across fintech, e-commerce, and telecom.

From smarter tools to happier customers and more caffeinated employees, AI is their new office buddy. CEO Sunil Gopinath says they’re hunting for “power users” of AI. So if you talk to ChatGPT more than your family, congratulations.

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