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Showing posts from September, 2019

Market News - Coal India workers strike hit production,Retail onion prices hit

Protests by workers at Coal India Ltd on September 24 hit output by about 56%, a senior company official told Reuters. The workers' strike over implementation of reforms including allowing 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) in coal mining - which India approved last month to attract global miners to India - paralyzed operations. The company, which accounts for over four-fifths of India's coal output and employs about 300,000 people, registered a 30% attendance due to the strike. India depends on coal-based utilities for three-quarters of its electricity generation. Coal India produced a total of 466,000 tonnes of coal on September 24, which compared to a business-as-usual production estimate of 1.05 million tonnes, the official said. Petrol and diesel prices today: The oil marketing companies (OMCs) on Tuesday raised the prices of petrol and diesel for the eighth straight day following a drone attack on the Saudi oil plants. In the last eight days, petrol prices

Market News - Oil prices rise, Auto stocks rally on hopes of GST rate cut

Oil prices rise after data shows big drop in US inventories  -Prices had ended lower on Tuesday, squeezed by speculation of a return of sanctions-hit Iranian crude exports to the market following United States President Donald Trump's move to fire national security adviser John Bolton, a noted Iran policy hawk. Oil prices rose on Wednesday after an industry report showed that crude stockpiles in the U.S. fell last week by more than twice the amount that analysts had forecast. Brent crude futures rose 43 cents, or 0.7%, to $62.81 a barrel by 0053 GMT, while WTI futures were up 47 cents, or 0.8%, to $57.87 a barrel. Prices had ended lower on Tuesday, squeezed by speculation of a return of sanctions-hit Iranian crude exports to the market following United States President Donald Trump’s move to fire national security adviser John Bolton, a noted Iran policy hawk. But they rebounded after American Petroleum Institute (API) data released late on Tuesday showed U.S. crude a

Commodity Update - Gold prices fell; Oil futures hit

Gold prices fell for a fourth straight session on Tuesday as risk appetite remained buoyed by better-than-expected economic data, which suggested that the global economy was perhaps not doing as badly as previously assumed. Spot gold was down 0.6% at $1,490.48 per ounce, as of 0421 GMT, after hitting its lowest since Aug. 13 at $1,486 earlier in the session. Bullion prices have shed nearly 5% since hitting a more than 6-year peak of $1,557 on Sept. 4.U.S. gold futures fell 0.8% to $1,498.50 per ounce. Oil futures hit a six-week high on Tuesday, rising for a fifth day on optimism that OPEC and other countries may agree to extend production cuts in a bid to support prices. Brent was up 26 cents, or 0.4%, at $62.85 a barrel by 0349 GMT, while U.S. crude was 27 cents, or 0.5%, higher at $58.12 a barrel. Brent touched its highest since Aug. 1, while U.S. crude rose to the highest since July 31. U.S. oil gained more than 2% on Monday, while Brent finished the day 1.7% hig

SBI cuts MCLR by 10 basis points, slashes term deposit rates.

The country’s largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), has cut its key lending rate by 10 basis points across all tenures from Tuesday and has also reduced interest rates on term deposits. SBI cuts MCLR by 10 basis points, slashes term deposit rates by 20-25 bps - Bank official hints at another round of rate cuts following low credit offtake The one-year Marginal Cost of Funds based Lending Rate (MCLR) will come down to 8.15 percent from 8.25 percent, effective September 10. This is the fifth straight cut in MCLR in the current financial year (FY 2019-20), SBI said in a statement. A senior SBI executive said that while the bank is passing on the benefit of cost, the demand for credit is also low. There could be another round of reduction in lending rates. The Reserve Bank of India's data on year-to-date credit offtake indicates that the outstanding loans of the Indian banking system as of mid-August have shrunk by about 0.9 percent from the March-end positio

Market News - Silver opens above Rs 50,000 a kg in Mumbai, gold at Rs 39,000-plus

Standard gold opened at Rs 39,091 for 10 grams, trading for the first time above Rs 39,000. It closed at Rs 39,031. Including a three percent goods and services tax, the price is above Rs 40,000. After six years, silver is trading above Rs 50,000 a kilo in the physical market here. Its global prices at $19.4 an ounce is a three-year high. The global high comes amidst the uncertainties of Brexit, a trade war and slowing growth, with traders increasing their silver bets. At Zaveri Bazar, the spot market price opened at Rs 50,125 a kilo and closed a little lower at Rs 49,950 — still up four percent from Tuesday’s close. Gold prices fell by Rs 372 to Rs 39,278 per 10 gram in the national capital on Friday due to weak demand and strong rupee, according to HDFC Securities. In tandem with gold prices, silver also dropped by Rs 1,273 to Rs 49,187 per kilogram here. “Gold declined on weak investment demand and stronger rupee. The spot rupee gained by 21 paise against the dollar du

Reliance Jio Fiber pricing non-disruptive; execution, service key

After billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio announced the much-awaited commercial roll-out of Jio GigaFiber, global firm CLSA noted that it may have limited impact on Bharti Airtel’s estimates. Analysts say that Bharti Airtel’s offerings can effectively counter Jio’s disruptive plans. On Thursday, Mukesh Ambani–controlled Reliance Industries (RIL), commercially rolled out its fiber-optic network – Reliance JioFiber – offering six plans for the consumers to choose from. Monthly prices vary from Rs 699 (plus GST) to Rs 8,499 (plus GST) with speed ranging from 100Mbps to 1Gbps and data limit from 100 GB to 5,000 GB. There is an upfront payment of Rs 2,500 (of which Rs 1,000 installation charge). Service providers Speed Period Data Price Post FUP speed Additional benefits JioFiber 100 Mbps 1 month Unlimited (100 GB + 50 GB extra) Rs 699 1 Mbps JioFiber set-top-box, along with additional freebies on an annual subscription JioFiber offers several monthly and annua

Market News - Auto stocks in the fast lane after Gadkari backs GST cut

The Indian auto sector revved higher on September 5 after Union Road Transport and Highway Minister Nitin Gadkari said the government was looking at steps to revive the ailing sector. Speaking at the 59th annual Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) convention, Gadkari said he would recommend the finance ministry to reduce GST on internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, adding that the government did "not intend to ban petrol and diesel vehicles." "Considering the slump in the sector and expected an increase in cost due to the implementation of BS-VI emission norms, I will give my recommendation to the Finance Minister," said the minister. Shares of Tata Motors rose more than 5 percent intraday on September 5, though the company reported weak sales in the US and the UK. The company's August JLR UK sales dropped 20.8 percent at 2,726 units against 3,444 units in the same period last year. Jaguar UK sales were down 15.5 percent at 1,049

Market News - Maruti Will Halt Production At Its Gurgaon Plant, gold imports hit 3-year low

Maruti To Halt Production At Manesar, Gurugram Plants For Two Days - Maruti Suzuki on Wednesday said the company has decided to shut down operations for two days at its Haryana plants. The company will observe "no production day" on September 7 and 9 at Gurugram and Manesar plants, the company said in a statement. The auto industry in India has been reeling under a severe slowdown in the last few months. Along with other automakers in India, Maruti has been cutting output in recent months. In August, the company reduced its production by 33.99 percent, making it the seventh straight month that the country's largest carmaker reduced its output. Canara Bank ends at a 52-week low; board to mull Rs 9,000 cr capital infusion next week - The company produced a total of 1,11,370 units in August as against 1,68,725 in the year-ago month. Production of passenger vehicles last month stood at 1,10,214 units as against 1,66,161 in August 2018, a decline of 33.67 per

Market News - Nifty ends at 10,798, Gold, silver prices today record highs

Gold, silver prices today back near record highs as rupee tumbles - Gold prices in India remain near record highs and a sharp surge this year has hurt demand. Global slowdown fears and US-China trade war has pushed gold prices up 20% so far this year. The yellow metal hit an all-time high, breaching the crucial Rs 40,000 per 10-gram level in the domestic bullion market, thus indicating the increased consumers' demand for safe-haven assets.  Rupee hits fresh 2019 low; likely to trade around 71-73.25 per dollar in coming weeks -  The state of affairs continues to be a little jittery at the moment and one should look to hedge against a weaker INR in the coming weeks.  The Rupee continued to spiral down despite a 35 bps rate cut from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last month. The measures taken by RBI to revive the economy failed as the Rupee continued to fall beyond the 72 marks against the US dollar, clocking a fresh low of this year. IDBI Bank surges 10% afte