Top 10 business headlines: India's coronavirus plan, manufacturing numbers

From Centre considering to issue G-secs with no limit for FPIs to more allotment for pensions that salaries in defence budget, here are top business headlines of the day

Centre looks to issue G-secs without foreign limits in first half of FY21

The Centre is looking to issue in the first half of 2020-21 a special series of government securities (G-secs) that will not have any limit for foreign portfolio investors (FPIs). Global bond indices may include Indian G-secs after such issuances, which will bring in more foreign capital. “We should be able to do it reasonably fast, possibly within the first half of the coming fiscal year,” Principal Economic Advisor Sanjeev Sanyal told Business Standard. Read More

Coronavirus outbreak may impact India Inc's fund-raising via IPOs, QIPs

The outbreak of coronavirus is likely to impact fund-raising activity this financial year, with Indian firms cancelling or postponing roadshows in the Asia-Pacific region, specifically financial hubs of Singapore and Hong Kong, said three people familiar with the matter. Roadshows are integral to fund-raising — foreign investors get to meet the promoters and query them face-to-face on company prospects. Read More

Budget 2020: In a first, defence gets more for pension, less for salaries

For the first time ever, the defence budget for 2020-21 allocates more money towards pensions for retired Army soldiers than for salaries for soldiers still in the standing Army. Scrutiny of the defence budget reveals that Rs 111,294 crore has been allocated for Army salaries, including civilian employees. The Rs 113,278-crore allocated for Army pensions surpasses that. Read More

Manufacturing PMI hits 8-year high of 55.3 in Jan on demand revival

The manufacturing sector, which is blamed for dragging down the economic growth for the current fiscal year, rose to an eight-year high in January, according to the widely-tracked purchasing managers’ index (PMI) survey. The IHS Markit India Manufacturing PMI rose from 52.7 in December to 55.3 in January, its highest level in just under eight years. Read More

M&M doesn't want to be patriarchal, wants to buck the trend: Anand Mahindra

Anand Mahindra, chairman of the $21-billion Mahindra group, tells Pavan Lall why it’s okay to have less than 51% shareholding and the reason he pays more attention to smaller businesses in the group. Edited excerpts: Why have you been stepping away from the group’s affairs? That might be one view; another could be ‘he should have left sooner’. Read More

Post-Budget, growth option becomes more attractive for MF investors

Mutual fund investors, who have selected the growth option, can finally heave a sigh of relief after the Union Budget. With Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman deciding to move the tax incidence of dividend distribution tax (DDT) from companies to individuals, the liability for this category of investors would fall dramatically. Read More

FM's Budget 2020 speech: Employment outlook remains bleak for FY21

Nothing speaks better than money on the table. The government just reduced its intention to spend on jobs on 2020-21, writes Mahesh Vyas. Read More

Monetary policy review: RBI likely to maintain its pause on rates

In a move that had surprised the markets, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) had unanimously chosen to keep the repo rate unchanged at 5.15 per cent in the December 2019 policy review, given the lack of clarity on the evolving growth-inflation outlook, incomplete transmission of past monetary actions, and the growth-supportive measures that may be introduced in the Union Budget for FY21. Read More

The battle to save India’s statistical system

Current draft bill that aims to clean up the statistical mess will not empower the National Statistical Commission. If NSC is really allowed to function as the apex authority on official statistics, it could shake up the statistical system. But the current bill falls short on many counts, reports LiveMint. 

Growth, not blind adherence to fiscal rules, is the best antidote to an ailing economy 

Be careful what you wish for. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget on Saturday ticked almost all the boxes on the market’s wish list. Yet, the Sensex tanked, ending the day close to 1,000 points lower, the highest post-budget fall in almost five years, reports The Economic Times.