Hitting the $500 billion trade target will be difficult with over-reliance on a handful of sectors for the bulk of our trade. India must roll back tariff increases, reduce local manufacturing mandates, and ease price controls that hinder trade, while the US must re-authorise the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme and review tariffs on Indian steel and alumnium imports.

Vijaya Diagnostics has reported a 58% increase in net profit and 17.3% increase in revenue in the December quarter compared to the same period last year. EBITDA margin also saw an improvement. The company entered Karnataka with a new hub and is seeing positive market response and performance. Non-Covid revenue growth was driven by increased volume in both radiology and pathology segments.

The rupee depreciated slightly against the US dollar due to a strengthening of the American currency and negative sentiment in the domestic equity markets. However, lower global crude oil prices helped offset some of the decline. The rupee settled at 83.06 against the dollar on Monday, down 8 paise from its previous close. The dollar gained strength after positive economic data.

DB Realty plans corporate restructuring, including demerger of hotel/hospitality business to unlock growth and value. The real estate firm has faced challenges due to promoter involvement in 2G scandal, but is now partnering with big names like Adani and Godrej for development projects. It also acquired hospitality assets and raised Rs 1,544 crore through convertible warrants.

Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels' IPO worth Rs. 920 crore was highly subscribed on the first day of bidding, February 5. It received positive ratings from analysts due to its focus on reducing debt and potential for growth in the post-pandemic era. The company operates under various brands in the hospitality industry and is the eighth-largest group in terms of hotel room inventory.

Nippon India Mutual Fund NFOs: Nippon India, one of the most established fund houses in India, launched two new funds on Monday (February 5, 2024)- Nippon India Nifty Bank Index Fund, Nippon India Nifty IT Index Fund. The subscription for the new mutual funds opened on Monday and will be available till February 16. The minimum investment for these opened ended schemes is Rs 1,000.

Vanguard, a US-based Asset Management Company, has reduced the fair value of Ola's parent company, ANI Technologies, for the third time in a row. This brings Ola's estimated valuation to $1.9 billion, which is significantly lower than its previous valuation of $7.3 billion in 2021. Despite narrowing losses and increasing revenue, ANI Technologies' valuation has been decreasing due to readjustment.

Brian Kelly is The Points Guy, a pioneer in the cottage industry that helps credit card users get the most out of air miles and other rewards. He got into it when young out of a determination to always fly business class. His motivation? “I’m six-foot-seven!” he says. Unfortunately for points obsessives like Kelly, rewards programs are under threat. This is a multibillion-dollar business in US.

Microfinance company Satin Creditcare Networks is likely to see a reduction of up to 20 bps in the cost of funds in the January-March quarter due to improvements in the long-term debt ratings in December, CMD HP Singh said in an interview with Moneycontrol. In December, rating agency ICRA upgraded the company’s long-term debt ratings to ‘A’ from ‘A-‘ earlier due to profitability metrics.

📌Bank of India | CMP Rs 138.9 | fell 8.35% 📌Indigo | CMP Rs 3,171 | rose over 5% 📌LIC | CMP Rs 995.75 | rose 5% 📌Tata Motors | CMP Rs 929.75 | up 5.8% 📌Cochin Shipyard | CMP Rs 894 | 1.24% down 📌KPI Green Energy | CMP Rs 2,193 | rose 5% 📌Titagarh Rail Systems | CMP Rs 1,019 | fell 1.93% 📌VA Tech Wabag | CMP Rs 699 | rose 5.62% 📌Aurobindo Pharma | CMP Rs 1,021.65 | rose 4.23%

LIC Housing Finance is aiming to increase the share of affordable housing loans in its portfolio from 8-10% to 20-25% in the next two years. The company witnessed slower loan growth of 5% in the December quarter due to internal restructuring and management changes. However, they believe the demand for affordable housing loans will offer growth opportunities and wider margins.

Indian benchmark equity indices closed lower on Monday, with financial and IT stocks leading the decline. This was due to a drop in Asian peers and fading hopes of an early US rate cut. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries also dragged the market down. Among individual stocks, Paytm fell 10% and Nifty Consumer Durables and FMCG saw a decrease in value.

Transport consultancy RITES, which has outperformed the Nifty, may fall by over 30% according to analysts. The recent note is based on Q3FY24 results showing a flat net sales growth and decrease in net profit. Their sell call and target price of Rs 515 is due to margin compression and stock's high performance compared to Nifty. Railway stocks also fell.

Bharti Airtel on February 5 reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 2,442.2 crore for the October-December quarter, growing 54 percent from the same quarter a year ago. Its revenue came in at Rs 38,339 crore, up 6.3 percent from Rs 36,062 crore in the year-ago period, Bharti Airtel said in an exchange filing. The revenue met expectations, and net profit was above the Street estimates.

Indian equity benchmarks ended lower in a volatile session on February 5 as investors awaited the RBI meet outcome for rate cute cues and inflation trajectory. The market opened in the green but Sensex and Nifty closed near the day's low. Top gainers included Tata Motors, Coal India, BPCL, Sun Pharma and Cipla, while top losers were UPL, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance and Grasim Industries.