Trump Trumped 🏛
Jack Ma blocked, Dabur wins, and hydro power moves.
Hi 👋, Tanvi here.
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Market summary: 📊
India continued its climb up with major indices gaining some. US markets made a resounding comeback, with tech particularly rising high.
US:
S&P 500 - up 1.78%
Nasdaq 100 - up 1.76%
India:
Nifty 50 - up 0.80%
Sensex - up 0.88%
Two things to begin with
1️⃣ The Americans are still figuring out who is going to be their President. Both sides have claimed victory, as mail-in ballots are being counted. Trump, as it appears with the latest numbers, will likely have to vacate the White House, but won’t give in without challenging the verdict in court.
Meanwhile back home, the Bihar elections are looking a lot more civilized in comparison. 53% of citizens have casted their ballots here and polls will run until Nov 7.
2️⃣ India’s service PMI index showed further expansion for the month of October, touching 54.1, the highest levels seen since Feb 2020. Services sector makes up nearly 55% of India’s GDP and the data highlights good signs of job additions, new contracts, revenue growth etc.
Hydropower greenlit in Himachal 🌊
The Cabinet has approved ₹1,810 crore for a 210 MW hydropower project on river Satluj in Himachal Pradesh, following through on an MoU was signed back in 2019 during 'Rising Himachal, Global Investor Meet'.
This Hydropower plant is expected to generate 758.20 million units of electricity annually and will be commissioned over the next 5 years. It will help reduce about 6 lakh tonnes of carbon dioxide from the environment annually, provide about 100 free units of monthly electricity to locals, and will add nearly 2,000 jobs directly and indirectly.
Run by the Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam, the project will be part of other initiatives in the region helping the corporation scale up to 12,000 MW of production capacity by 2030.
What matters: these small moves all tie into India’s effort to diversify away from coal-based energy production and towards clean energy. We have a long way to go but the establishment has shown considerable enthusiasm in making progress which is admirable.
What’s up with Ant 🤔
Ant Group’s IPO (the largest IPO in the world), was apparently blocked by the Chinese at the last moment because the company failed to meet capital adequacy requirements outlined by the regulators in China at the beginning of this year.
In layman’s terms, Ant will be asked to prove that it has the money at all times at its disposal to cover for any loans that go bad if consumers don’t pay back. Also, China is demanding the company reapply for licences for each of its units, nationwide.
Some color—for decades, traditional banks and financial institutions have held control of China’s financial system. But as technology platforms started disrupting the status quo, not everyone jumped aboard to appreciate the shifting power dynamic. Moreover, the tech companies would not allow regulators the same levels of visibility and transparency that banks would generally be okay with.
To make matters worse, Jack Ma, considerably outspoken, would often criticize the Chinese regulators which even led to the state owned media to censure him. Nobody can say if this “coup” of hitting Ant at its biggest moment ever was premeditated but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out this had been brewing for a while.
Anyway, global investors have shown tremendous patience with Chinese companies, despite little visibility, and often allegations of fraud (look at Luckin’ Coffee) or unwarranted government meddling. But if Jack Ma can’t steer Ant out through this mess, this event could become a big turn off for investors in the future.
Boosting a nation’s immunity 💪
As the pandemic drove everyone to be more cautious about their health, the brands selling medicinal and ayurvedic products blossomed big time. Just look at Dabur, which grew its revenues and profits by record levels, selling more immunity boosters and hygiene products than ever before!
Quick look at their latest quarter:
Revenues up 13.7%, the highest levels of growth seen in the last few years.
Profits up nearly 20%
FMCG business grew 20%, as rural demand bounced back stronger than urban says management
Chyawanprash sales nearly doubled, Health supplements jumped 71%, while over the counter Ayurvedic products revenues spiked 56%!
Finally, the company reported that its eCommerce business grew nearly 200%, contributing to over 6% to its total revenue base, underlining how old companies are aggressively making a pivot to digital-first models.
BTW—Dabur also suggested that raw material costs have spiked and that it may want to hike prices of goods to keep up. Don’t think that would be a problem for them in this environment. Baba Ramdev is smiling in some corner.
What else are we snackin’ 🍿
🙄 No green for the US - The US will officially exit the Paris climate agreement in a few days, regardless of who wins the elections. Trump had first announced his decision to withdraw from the agreement in 2017 and notified the UN last year.
🚨 Kanoon ke haath - Senior Journalist and Entertainer, Arnab Goswami of the Republic TV was arrested by the Mumbai police for allegedly abetting a suicide. Citizens claim this is less about justice and more about political vendetta. Irrespective of which side you are on, think we all can agree that Indian citizens deserve better media!
📱 Won’t give up - Even as Chinese brands shy away from doubling down in India anymore, One Plus has just unveiled its largest experience store in Hyderabad. The location will take 16,000 sq. ft., including an Apple style customer service center for customers to meet and consult service executives.
Hit that 💚 if you liked today’s issue.
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Surely need a better Media who is more focussed to cover a news rather create a political issues.
*fixed error with Dabur