TMS Ep421: Maruti Suzuki results, Vedanta debts, markets, predatory pricing

Maruti, it seems, is on a roll. It announced a sharp jump of 43% in its profit in the fourth quarter of FY23, despite tight competition and an increased tilt towards the SUV segment -- where it was a late comer. India's biggest carmaker has also announced plans to set up a new factory to expand its annual capacity by 1 million units. So, what is keeping the carmaker in the fast lane? And what lies in the details of its latest result? 

Like Maruti, Vedanta too owes its success to India’s economic liberalisation of the 1990s. The company -- then known as Sterlite Industries-- had acquired bankrupt Hindustan Zinc Limited and BALCO from the government during its journey to become a global oil-to-metals conglomerate. But, it appears, all is not well with the company for a while now. Questions are being raised about its debts. The group’s chairman Anil Agarwal, however, recently brushed aside the concerns, saying the group has a comfortable liquidity position. And that it will generate $9 billion profit in FY24. So is Vedanta out of the woods?  

The month of May has, traditionally, been negative for global markets where fund managers and investors, usually, sell and go away to enjoy their summer break. Indian markets, however, have proven this mostly wrong in the past 10 years. Will this year be any different? Find out from analysts what lies ahead for the markets.

Indian telecom companies, meanwhile, are likely to report moderation in Q4 earnings. Lack of a significant tariff hike is one of the reasons. Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea recently approached TRAI alleging that Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel were engaged in predatory pricing with their 5G offers. Well this is not the first time that such an accusation has been made in the sector. But what exactly is predatory pricing? We explain it in this episode of the podcast.