Namaste! Aaj ka news roundup, Newswala style!

MARKETS

Markets: The market was closed on account of Gandhi Jayanti.

TOP STORIES

India’s Exports Face a Rocky Road to Recovery

What Happened

India’s trade with West Asia is feeling the heat as conflicts in the region escalated sharply.

• Exports to Israel have nosedived by a jaw-dropping 63.5%, while Jordan isn’t faring much better with a 38.5% drop. 
  

Even Lebanon is feeling the pinch with a 6.8% decline. On the brighter side, India’s overall exports to the European Union rose by 6.8%, but industries like machinery, steel, and gems are struggling.

Meanwhile, countries like Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, who are sitting on the sidelines of the conflict, have helped India boost trade by 17.8%. Not to be outdone, exports to Iran are up by 15.2%!

Why It Matters

This drop in exports highlights how vulnerable India's trade can be to global tensions. Shipping routes are getting trickier, with costs skyrocketing by 15-20% due to longer paths around the Horn of Africa. This hits businesses hard, especially those dealing with textiles and low-end engineering products where profit margins are already tight. 

Plus, the fall in crude oil and petroleum imports by 32.38% in August due to reduced demand adds to the challenges. High-volume, low-value export industries may have to tighten their belts as rising shipping costs continue to squeeze their margins.

Zoom out

Anyway, there’s hope on the horizon—if Israel can sort out the Houthi situation, we might see a smoother flow of goods through the Red Sea. For now, India needs to stay sharp and flexible in this fast-changing trade environment. After all, the last thing we want is our goods sailing around the globe when they could be making their way to eager customers!

PAISON KA KHEL

Dhan’s epic comeback with a 689% revenue growth

Dhan, the stock trading app, has flipped its fortune, reporting a net profit of ₹177 crore in FY24, bouncing back from a ₹26 crore loss last year. How did they do it? Well, their revenue shot up by a whopping 689% to ₹379 crore, thanks to a surge in active users, which jumped from 1.07 lakh in FY23 to 4.69 lakh in FY24. 

Led by ex-Paytm exec Pravin Jadhav, Dhan is now one of the top 10 stock broking apps. Not bad for a 3-year-old!

THDCIL pumps ₹8,800 crore into Rajasthan’s energy 

THDC India Ltd. is taking a massive plunge, committing ₹8,800 crore to develop two pumped storage projects in Rajasthan. These 800 MW projects, located in Bundi and Tonk, will rely on water from the Gudha Dam and Bisalpur reservoir, creating a powerful energy backup system. With a total capacity of 1,600 MW, this move is set to enhance grid stability and push India’s renewable energy game up a notch.

TOP STORIES

Tata Motors to Hit the Brakes on Production 

What happened?

Tata Motors is tapping the brakes on its production as unsold cars pile up, advancing its annual maintenance shutdown. With over two months of stock sitting idle, the automaker has decided to trim its output by 15,000 units across petrol, CNG, and electric vehicle (EV) segments. 

The production slowdown will occur at Tata’s Pimpri-Chinchwad and Sanand plants, reducing production by around 7 to 10 days in phases through November, coinciding with the Diwali holidays. 

Why it matters

Tata Motors has been knocked down from its third spot in the market, overtaken by rival Mahindra & Mahindra. What’s more concerning is that the slowdown comes right before India’s festive season, which is traditionally a time for increased demand. The first leg of the festive period, beginning with Onam and Ganesh Chaturthi, failed to deliver the expected sales boost. 

• Tata sold 41,063 vehicles in September, a significant drop compared to its rivals, despite efforts like slashing up to ₹3 lakh off the EV variants of Nexon and Punch. 
  
  

• The quarterly figures show the pain clearly: sales fell 6%, with only 129,930 units sold between July and September.
  
  

The backstory

As Tata Motors faces this downturn, the situation has turned quite critical. The company is grappling with an 8% year-on-year drop in passenger vehicle sales in September, marking the lowest figures in 2.5 years. EV sales didn’t escape the slowdown either, plunging 23% last month. With high hopes for a festive sales recovery now dashed, Tata Motors is left recalibrating its production strategy.

GLOBAL NAZARA

U.S. chips in with $100 million for AI-powered semiconductor research

The U.S. Commerce Department is about to make it rain—$100 million to be exact—on universities, labs, and private companies to boost AI's role in semiconductor development. As part of the $52.7 billion chips manufacturing initiative, this cash will help create AI-powered, self-operating systems to discover eco-friendly semiconductor materials. 

Reliance Group to develop solar and hydropower projects in Bhutan

Reliance Group is set to jointly develop solar and hydropower projects in Bhutan in collaboration with the government’s investment arm, Druk Holding and Investments. The initiative aims to generate 500 megawatts from solar projects and 770 megawatts from hydropower.

Reliance plans to establish a new subsidiary equally owned by Reliance Power and Reliance Infrastructure for this venture. While the exact investment amount has not been disclosed, Reliance Power recently raised $183 million to support its expansion in the renewable energy sector.

TOP STORIES

SBI Plans 600 New Branches Coming in FY25

What Happened

State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest lender, has announced an ambitious plan to open 600 new branches in the current financial year. This expansion aims to tap into business opportunities in emerging areas and large residential townships that are currently underserved. 

Chairman C.S. Setty shared that while SBI opened 137 branches last year, this year’s target reflects a keen focus on reaching more customers. 

Why It Matters

This branch expansion comes at a time when customers are becoming more financially savvy and seeking innovative products. SBI is not just focusing on physical reach; they’re also planning to launch a combo product that merges recurring deposits with systematic investment plans (SIPs). 

• With a total of 22,542 branches across India, SBI is making strides to become even more accessible.
  
  

•  Plus, they have got  65,000 ATMs and 85,000 business correspondents.
  
  

The bigger picture

These initiatives are critical for SBI and the broader Indian economy. With a strong corporate credit pipeline of ₹4 trillion, SBI is ready to capitalise on the rising demand for loans, particularly in sectors like infrastructure and renewable energy. 

Setty noted that both private capital expenditure and government spending are expected to rise in the second half of the fiscal year, especially with the government's 11.1% increase in capital expenditure, which targets ₹11.11 trillion—equivalent to 3.4% of GDP.

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