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[ad_1] Analysis-China's consumers keep their wallets in lockdown as COVID curbs ease [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Liquor industry body CIABC has requested the government to set up an export promotion council for alcoholic beverages under the aegis of the commerce ministry to promote the outbound shipments of the sector. The Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC) has sent a communication to the government in this regard. CIABC Director-General Vinod Giri said the sector needs support for improving the exports, especially in the context of free trade agreements, where alcoholic beverages are part of the wish lists of several countries like the UK and the European Union. Currently, India exports around 7 million cases only and bringing the sector under these agreements will open up opportunities for India also. “A concerted effort and mechanism are required to promote exports of alcohol from India. Therefore, I think it is time for the government to consider setting up a body like the Alcoholic Beverages Export Promotion Council,” Giri said. As per estimates, the global alcoholic beverage trade stood at over USD 200 billion and India’s share is less than half a per cent. The major global players in the sector include France, the Uk, US and Mexico. Giri said that India has large distillation capacity as well as several unique products such as Fenny and Mahua spirits, and exports of these can be promoted in a systematic manner. India’s major export destinations include Africa, the Middle East and Asia. “These are relatively low-value exports. Markets with high-value potential such as the EU, UK, and Australia are mostly outside Indian exports due to regulatory hurdles that the government is trying to address in FTAs. Once such issues are resolved, much bigger high-value opportunities will open up,” he added. Further, he said that a boost in exports will also support the sugarcane industry of the country.There are several export promotion councils for various sectors, such as plastics, pharma, chemicals, and textiles, which are coordinating India’s targeted efforts to increase exports in their respective sectors, Giri said. [ad_2] Source link

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[ad_1] U.S. official says will respond forcefully if N.Korea holds nuclear test [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] HDFC Bank has hiked its marginal cost of funds-based lending rates (MCLRs) by 35 basis points across tenures, even as the market awaits another imminent RBI policy rate hike later this week. The new rates will be effective from today (Tuesday, 7 June 2022). MCLRs on loans from India’s largest private lender will now range between 7.5% and 8.05%. The one-year MCLR at HDFC Bank stands at 7.85%, as against SBI’s 7.2% and PNB’s 7.4%. Punjab National Bank, ICICI Bank and Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) went for a fresh round of hikes in lending rates last week. Most lenders had raised rates after the monetary policy committee (MPC) hiked the repo rate by 40 bps on May 4. The MPC’s June meeting is being held this week, with the policy statement expected on Wednesday. Markets expect the repo rate to be hiked by another 25-50 bps in the ongoing policy meeting. A fresh repo rate hike will result in an immediate repricing of external benchmark-linked loans given to retail and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) borrowers, as well as some corporates. Some analysts are of the view that the regime of rising interest rates could affect some borrowers’ ability to pay. In a report dated June 1, India Ratings & Research said that the sensitivity of interest rate over aggregate demand has increased in a meaningful way. “Therefore, a faster and higher transmission of interest rate could become onerous for a section of the borrowers. The situation will aggravate if real income does not improve,” the report said. Banks have welcomed the policy rate hikes as it has boosted their pricing power, which had come under pressure during the last two years. [ad_2] Source link

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[ad_1] Apple dives deeper into autos with software for car dashboard [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] The Russia-Ukraine war and the stringent sanctions on Russia by the West have thrown up more opportunities for India’s businesses than earlier anticipated. Defence production and maintenance, shipbuilding and oil refining are three areas where Indian firms are already beneficiaries or have at least received enquiries from potential importers. India’s petroleum products exports, which surged 161% in FY22 to $67.5 billion, partly driven by a rise in prices, will get a further fillip in the current year with several European countries resorting to India to source refined products from Russia’s Urals crude, which is out of bounds for them. Currently, discounted Russian crude allows private Indian refiners Reliance and Nayara to realise over $15-$18 per barrel from the export of refined products to Europe and the US. This compares with $7-$9 per barrel in March-April when the majority of discounts were taken by traders. Given the possibility of a prolonged stand-off between Moscow and the West and the chances of a steady supply of Russian crude to India at relatively lower rates, India’s private oil refiners may go for capacity expansion in the short term to raise supplies to Europe. Eventually, the changed structure of crude sourcing could even let India realise its goal of becoming a refinery hub. Anish De, partner at KPMG India, said: “There is strong potential for India to emerge as a refinery and petrochemical hub for Europe as they look for an alternative to China. India has an advantage in terms of scale, location, skillsets and technology to play the part that China had played for Europe in the past.” De believes that the change will happen in the coming decade even with the transition to electric vehicles. However, analysts say the gains from oil exports to Europe may largely be limited to private refiners as state-run oil marketing companies have the obligation to cater to domestic demand first. Among the top importers of oil products products from India last fiscal, only Netherlands figured from Europe, while the bulk of the shipments were to Singapore, the US, Australia, South Korea and Indonesia. According to sources, hit by supply disruptions, Russia’s defence companies have approached Indian firms seeking to buy various components for naval shipbuilding and defence equipment. These firms are also looking to recruit Indians as the exit of skilled shipbuilding professionals, post the breakout of war, has created a manpower shortage. Some European companies, which purchased defence and shipbuilding articles from Russia, now want India to assemble these products and supply them. Further, firms from Africa and South East Asia, which have conventionally been reliant on Russian defence platforms, now want India to provide the maintenance repair and operations (MRO) services for such equipment. “We have been approached by original equipment manufacturers from Russia and Europe for joint venture participation. The firms have agreed to give the technology support needed for creating manufacturing and assembling facilities in India,” an industry source said. Russia-made naval ships may be repaired in India, with that country’s consent to share technology. According to people in the know, Russian collaborators are more than eager to join hands with India for the Atmanirbhar Bharat plan. They are also keen to participate in the civil mercantile marine area to build platforms and ships for the Inland Waterways Authority projects — National Waterways-I from Varanasi to Paradip and other infrastructure building activities, the sources added. In the decade between 2011 and 2021, India imported $22.8 billion worth of arms from Russia, its largest supplier. The purchases during the period were up 42.5% over the previous decade. Of course, as far as supplies to Europe are concerned, India refiners will have to face stiff competition from those in West Asia. “The options available to Indian firms would be to sell on the high seas as long as the discounts on Russian crude continues. India will also have to increase it refining capacity going ahead as the current capacity is good enough only up to 2030,” a consultant said. The government had a decade ago announced a plan to make India a regional refinery hub. Since then refining capacities have been enhanced both on the eastern and western coasts, but the rise in exportable surplus has been moderate due to a steep rise in domestic consumption. Indian crude oil refiners — IOCL, HPCL, BPCL, RIL and Nayara — are currently sourcing more than 0.8 million barrels per day of Russian Ural crude that is discounted at a huge $35 per barrel. India’s refinery throughput is roughly 89% of the installed capacity of 249.88 million metric tonne per annum (mtpa). This leaves significant capacity to serve new export markets, mostly in the private sector. Analysts say India will have around 1.5 to 2 times its current refinery capacity in the next 20-25 years. India’s consumption of petroleum products stood at 202.7 mtpa in FY22, up from 194.3 mtpa in FY21, but lower than the pre-pandemic level of 214.1 mtpa (FY20). The country exported 61.8 mtpa of petroleum products worth $42.3 billion in FY22, while imports touched 40.2 mtpa ($24.2 billion). [ad_2] Source link

[ad_1] Figure Technologies co-founder and CEO Mike Cagney Fintech lender Figure Technologies and multichannel originator Homebridge Financial Services last August announced a merger that they claimed would usher in monumental change to the mortgage industry. Figure, founded in 2018 by SoFi co-founder Mike Cagney, would bring a blockchain tech platform to the merged company, which would double the lender’s capacity to fulfill loans. Meanwhile, old school New-Jersey-based Homebridge, founded more than 30 years ago and led by Peter Norden, would add 150,000 customers, the companies announced.  “We are bringing together the most robust, powerful and efficient technology ever seen in lending and pairing that with a $25 billion a year loan originator,” Cagney, co-founder and CEO of Figure, said in a statement during the announcement.  But things did not happen as expected. The companies are canceling their proposed merger just 10 months after the announcement, as regulatory approval on the deal hasn’t occurred, and the demand for new technologies and products is too strong to wait.  “Due to the delays in closing coupled with continued momentum in other parts of our lending, payments, and marketplace businesses, we have concluded with the Homebridge team that the merger will not go forward,” Cagney said in a message sent late Friday to Figure’s team.  A spokesperson for Figure said the company had no additional comments beyond those posted on its website. Homebridge did not return a request for comment.  The companies will keep an ongoing strategic partnership, collaborating to drive the advancement of the Figure’s proprietary platform, called Provenance Blockchain, Cagney said in the message.  They will also work together to develop new products, such as a home equity line of credit (HELOC) and piggyback products. “We will work closely with Homebridge to identify and deploy new applications, including a version of the whitelabel HELOC product for the wholesale market,” Cagney said. “Homebridge will continue the integration plans with DART, our blockchain-based mortgage and eNote registry.”  HousingWire reported in March that the delay in the deal’s approval was changing Figure’s strategy. In early April, the company launched a cryptocurrency-backed 30-year fixed-rate mortgage product for borrowers to use bitcoin and/or ether as collateral.   The plan was to launch such a product only after completing the merger with Homebridge, but circumstances changed because of delays in completing the deal.  Also, two other companies have announced the product since December, including Miami-based digital lender Milo and Toronto-based cryptocurrency lending platform Ledn.  Cagney has said it is realistic to think Figure will reach between $500 million to $1 billion in origination volume in 2022. Figure will use its own cash to originate up to $100 million in loans. And while Figure has no plans to raise capital for the product, it can tap other sources of funding if needed. Per Crunchbase, Figure has raised $1.6 billion in venture capital, including a $200 million Series D round in May with 10T Holdings and Morgan Creek Digital, as well as a $100 million funding facility from JPMorgan Chase in January 2021.  In merging with Homebridge, Figure planned to partner with a lender that competes in multiple channels. According to Inside Mortgage Finance, Homebridge was the 36th-largest mortgage originator in 2021, originating about $23.5 billion in mortgages, a decrease of 11% compared to 2020. The post Figure and Homebridge cancel planned merger appeared first on HousingWire. [ad_2] Source link

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