Anchor Investors Commit Rs 18,000 Crore To LIC IPO

Top of the Morning

In this episode, find out about Holcim Group’s plans to exit the India cement business, also find out why auto output fell to levels seen 5 years ago

Business Term of the Day: Downtrading

Stock market holiday: In the next four days, Indian markets will be on a long break as trading in stock exchanges BSE and NSE will be shut starting from today till April 17. Meanwhile, investors moved cautiously in view of the Q4 earnings evaluating inflation turmoil just as hike in commodity prices added to the downside. Yesterday, the Indian equities scrapped their early gains and closed on a negative note for the third consecutive day.

 

he Holcim Group, the world’s largest cement maker, may exit India, seventeen years after it entered the country, putting its twin listed arms Ambuja Cement and ACC Ltd up for sale, as part of a global strategy to focus on core markets, Holcim is believed to have held early-stage negotiations with JSW and Adani Group, among others, to explore their interest levels. Both are recent entrants in the cement sector but have aggressive plans to ramp. Holcim controls 63.1% of Ambuja, which has a market value of about $9.6 billion.

he initial public offering of state-run Life Insurance Corp. of India has drawn significant interest from local and overseas investors, with at least 12 top fund managers committing to bring in around ₹18,000 crore as anchor investors, two people directly aware of the development said.

At least five Indian asset managers, no less than three sovereign funds, two global pension fund managers and two hedge funds have agreed to be anchor investors in the LIC IPO, the people said, requesting anonymity.

Retail payments umbrella entity National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on Wednesday said it has approved WhatsApp to add another 60 million users on unified payments interface (UPI), taking the total base to 100 million. India’s automakers shipped fewer passenger vehicles in March than a year earlier as supply-side disruptions persisted. The segment comprising passenger cars, utility vehicles and vans, sold 2.79 lakh units in March, a 3.93% fall year-on-year, according to data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers on Wednesday. Sales, however, rose 6.28% over the previous month.

Capital markets regulator SEBI has penalised stock exchanges — BSE and NSE — for ‘laxity’ on their part in detecting misuse of clients’ securities worth Rs 2,300 crore by Karvy Stock Broking Ltd. In two separate orders, the Securities and Exchange Board of India has imposed a fine of Rs 3 crore on BSE and Rs 2 crore on NSE.

Business Term of the day

Down trading refers to the practice of switching from expensive products/brands to cheaper alternatives in a bid to conserve cash. As customers turn price-sensitive, bells and whistles no longer appeal. Products which meet the basic requirements are preferred over those that are perceived to be value-adding. Scouting for value-for-money goods defines customer behaviour when they down trade. This trend is seen not only in small-ticket consumption items but also in vehicle or durable goods purchases.