Top 10 biz headlines: Moody's cuts India outlook, telecom war, and more

From the tussle between traders and FMCG firms to Qatar Air's interest in buying stake in IndiGo, here are the top 10 business headlines for the day

Govt may tighten presumptive taxation norms, do away with some deductions

The government, given the grim revenue position and clamour for tax cuts for the salaried classes, is considering a tighter presumptive taxation scheme. This is among the measures being examined to make rationalising income-tax slabs a revenue-neutral exercise in the upcoming Budget. Read more.

Tussle between traders, FMCG firms worsens over differential pricing

An ongoing stir involving fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies and distributors in Gujarat over differential product pricing and low margins is threatening to go national. This comes as the Federation of All India Distributors Association (FAIDA), which comprises 24 member state bodies, steps in to lend support to the agitation, which has seen the Gujarat-based distributors boycott products of a few companies for the past few days. Read more.

Resolution of bad assets: RBI set to recast inter-creditor agreement

The inter-creditor agreement (ICA) is in for a makeover with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) weighing options to clear the logjam in the resolution of bad assets due to bottlenecks in its working. Read more.

Qatar Air interested in buying stake in IndiGo, not Air India, says CEO

Gulf major Qatar Airways is not interested in buying a stake in India's national carrier Air India, which will be up for sale soon. The airline neither sees any synergy with Air India’s operations, nor believes that acquiring the airline will help it to boost its operations in India. Read more.

Irdai directs Reliance Health Insurance to stop selling new policies

The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has directed the standalone health insurance arm of Reliance Capital — Reliance Health Insurance — to transfer its entire portfolio to Reliance General Insurance, and stopped it from selling new policies. Read more.

Moody's cuts India outlook to negative, predicts 'prolonged slower growth'

India’s credit ratings outlook was cut to negative by Moody’s Investors Service, the first step toward a downgrade, as concerns mount the economic slowdown will be prolonged and debt will rise. Moody’s projects a budget deficit of 3.7% of gross domestic product in the year through March 2020, a breach of the government’s target of 3.3%, as slower growth and a surprise corporate-tax cut curbs revenue. Read more.

IUC row: Trai schedules open house debate for Nov 15 as telco war erupts

Sector regulator Trai has scheduled for November 15 its open house discussion on the interconnect usage charges (IUC) issue that has seen old and new operators erupt in a war of words recently. Read more.

SBICAP Ventures spots 12 stuck housing projects in first funding round

SBICAP Ventures has shortlisted about 12 stalled housing projects with an investment of Rs 100-200 crore to provide last-mile funding under a special window. Work on forming and registering an Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has begun. Read more.

Mumbai Likely to Get Biggest Pie of Rs 25kcr Realty Bailout Package

Experts believe the maximum resolution through the government’s Rs 25,000-crore lifeline can be achieved in Mumbai, given that Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) is the second-largest market in terms of stuck housing projects. According to industry experts, with the help of stress fund, there is potential to attract price realisation and better demand pattern which are then expected to push revival of several unfinished residential projects in MMR, reports The Economic Times.

Tatas set for long-drawn-out battle over licence of trusts 

With trusts and tax officials differing over the end date of the registration, and whether it was a cancellation or a surrender, the dispute over the cancellation of registration of six Tata Trusts is set to be a protracted legal battle, reports LiveMint.