Top Headlines: Govt alerts states on Omicron; MFs' foreign holdings balloon

Business Standard brings you the top headlines at this hour.

Omicron scare: Amid sudden Covid-19 surge, Centre flags eight states

India's R naught value, which indicates the spread of Covid-19, is 1.22, the Union government said on Thursday, warning that cases are increasing, not shrinking. It asked Delhi, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, and Jharkhand to remain vigilant following a significant rise in weekly infections and positivity rate there. Read more
 

Domestic mutual funds' foreign holdings balloon 229%, shows data

Mutual funds’ investment in shares of companies listed abroad surged this year, increasing to Rs 33,078 crore as of November from Rs 10,042 crore in December 2020. Read more
 

India's technology start-ups set to continue IPO rush into 2022

Year 2021 belonged to India’s technology startups. And that's not just because they raised more than $36 billion from the private market or that 43 of them became unicorns. And the IPO rush for startups is set to continue in 2022, according to industry watchers and tech entrepreneurs. Read more
 

At EGM, IndiGo shareholders back resolution to scrap RoFR clause

Shareholders of InterGlobe Aviation, the parent company of IndiGo, have voted to scrap a clause in the articles of association (AoA) that gives the airline’s two promoters a right of first refusal (RoFR) over the acquisition of each other’s shares. Read more
 

2021, the year that was: Firms may no longer share higher cost burden

At a broad and rough level, wholesale mandis were selling goods at prices 2.5 per cent higher at the beginning of 2021 than those a year earlier. On the other hand, consumers were getting goods and services at 4.06 per cent higher prices over this period. By November, the situation took a dramatic turn and wholesale mandis sold goods at 14.23 per cent higher prices year-on-year, while consumers shelled out 4.91 per more in the month on a yearly basis. Read more
 

Fairy dust year for fund-raising: Rs 1.8 trillion raised via equities

Year 2021 was another great year for fund-raising through equities. A total of Rs 1.8 trillion was raised through initial public offerings (IPOs), qualified institutional placements (QIPs), and rights issues, against the Rs 1.7 trillion raised in the previous year. Read more