Expresso Business and Finance News Highlights of the Week on 22 June 2024 Transcription
The week of June 22, 2024, brought significant developments in the business and finance sector. The government announced a revamp of the production linked incentives, aiming to relax norms for fund release and extend benefits to MSMEs in labor-intensive sectors. Despite the scheme being launched three years ago, only 5% of the earmarked funds have been disbursed so far.
Customers of mid-sized universal banks experienced higher Unified Payments Interface transaction failure rates, with banks like RBL Bank and India Post Payments Bank topping the list. Bharti Airtel acquired a 1% stake in Indus Towers, raising its ownership to 48.95% following Vodafone Plc’s sale of an 18% stake in the tower firm.
Fitch Ratings raised India’s GDP growth projection to 7.2% for the current financial year, citing a recovery in consumer spending. Fast-moving consumer goods companies are hopeful for a rural consumption-friendly Budget to boost market recovery, as rural growth outpaced urban growth in the first quarter of the year.
In the beauty and personal care market, Nykaa faces increased competition from players like Reliance Retail’s Tira and Tata Cliq Palette. The BPC market in India is expected to reach $30 billion by 2027, reflecting the growing demand for organized beauty products.
Lastly, India has expressed its intention to retaliate against the EU’s extension of safeguard duties on steel exports by imposing extra duties on imports from the bloc. The EU extended the safeguard duties for another two years, marking the second extension since their imposition in 2018.
