Wednesday, November 27
On Wednesday, Sri Lanka announced that it has, in principle, finalized an agreement with a consortium of creditors, including India and Japan, for the restructuring of its debt. This development is a pivotal step forward in accessing the second tranche of a $2.9 billion bailout package from the International Monetary Fund. The agreement, facilitated by the Official Credit Committee, encompasses around $5.9 billion of the country's outstanding public debt.
Charles Munger, who died on Tuesday, went from working for Warren Buffett's grandfather for 20 cents an hour during the Great Depression to spending more than four decades as Buffett's second-in-command and foil atop Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Munger's family had advised that he died peacefully on Tuesday morning at a California hospital, said Berkshire. The union of Munger with Buffett is among the most successful in the history of business; they transformed Omaha, Nebraska-based Berkshire into a multi-billion dollar conglomerate with dozens of business units.
After gold prices rallied to a six-month high in the international market, analysts are looking at a similar run in the price of yellow metal here at home. On Tuesday, gold on the New York Commodity Exchange rallied nearly 1% to trade at $2,028/Oz as US government bond yield was showing a sliding trend and dollar was also weakening against most major currencies. In domestic market, however, price of yellow metal didn't go up as much and was trading in range of Rs 61,100 to Rs 61,200/10gm - barely changed from the level it was at late last week.
Tech investor Prosus NV values Indian education firm Byju's at under USD 3 billion, 86% less than its peak valuation of USD 22 billion last year due to governance and cash-flow problems. Interim CEO Ervin Tu disclosed the valuation cut during Prosus earnings call. Executives and board members quit, and Byju's delayed filing its 2021/22 financial results by a year. Shareholders including Prosus and Blackrock successively cut Byju's valuation to USD 11 billion in March, USD 8 billion in May, and USD 5 billion in June. General Atlantic and Silver Lake are investors.
The fate of the Sony-Zee merger will be known next week as the companies face a deadline to resolve their standoff. Sony may send a letter stating that the merger demands couldn't be met, potentially ending the deal. Zee is insistting that Punit Goenka will lead the merged entity, despite a regulatory probe against him. The ongoing probe is viewed as a corporate governance issue by Sony. The merger aims to create India's biggest entertainment company.
Raymond chairman and managing director Gautam Singhania has sought to allay concerns over the impact of his personal life on the company's businesses. Two weeks after parting ways with his wife of 24 years, the textile tycoon has told Raymond's board and employees that he is "fully committed towards the smooth functioning of the company and its businesses". In an internal statement, he said "it's business as usual" at the company despite "these (being) difficult times for me".
State government undertaking Sikkim Urja's Rs 11,400 crore claim for the destroyed 1,200MW Teesta III hydropower project may become a landmark in climate risk management. Reinsurers have capped their liability at Rs 500 crore for Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOF) as these climate change events are considered too significant for conventional covers. GLOFs occur when the dam or moraine holding a glacial lake back fails, releasing a substantial volume of water downstream.
Gold price climbed Rs 100 to Rs 62,750 per 10 grams in the national capital on Tuesday in line with gains in the precious metal's price in global markets, according to HDFC Securities. In the previous trade, the precious metal had ended at Rs 62,650 per 10 grams. Silver price remained unchanged at Rs 78,200 per kilogram. Spot gold at Comex was trading at USD 2,014 per ounce, up by USD 4 from the previous close, Gandhi added.
The government will launch the first round of auction of critical and strategic minerals on Wednesday putting 20 blocks under the hammer. The lack of availability of these minerals or concentration of their extraction in a few countries may lead to supply chain vulnerabilities. The future global economy will depend on minerals like lithium, graphite, cobalt, titanium, and rare earth elements. India's ambitious energy transition plan will drive the demand for these critical minerals.
Driven by robust demand, automobile retail sales in India rose to a record high this festive season with all segments, barring tractors, reporting year-on-year growth, dealers' body FADA said on Tuesday. Overall automobile sales rose 19 per cent to 37,93,584 units in the said period this year as compared with 31,95,213 units last year. Passenger vehicle retail sales also rose to 5,47,246 units, up 10 per cent from 4,96,047 units in the same period last year.
