The benchmark stock indices have opened the day with significant gains this morning capitalizing on Friday's momentum.
The rally in stocks has been fueled by speculation that the government may recapitalize some troubled PSU banks.
Join us as we follow the top business news through the day.
Gold inches higher on tepid dollar; Trump-Biden debate in focus
An update on the gold market.
PTI reports: "Gold prices edged up on Monday as the dollar slipped off a two-month peak hit last week as political uncertainty accelerated ahead of the first presidential election debate between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden.
Spot gold was up 0.1% at $1,861.13 per ounce by 0503 GMT. U.S. gold futures were steady at $1,865.90.
“Gold is going to be driven by the tenor of the U.S. dollar,” said Stephen Innes, chief market strategist at AxiCorp.
“The big move is going to probably occur after the presidential debate when we have a better read on where the polls are going to be sitting.”
The dollar index was down 0.2% against rivals, slightly off a two-month peak hit last week.
A firmer dollar makes bullion more expensive for holders of other currencies.
Trump and Biden will have their first presidential election debate on Tuesday.
Investor focus will also be on a new fiscal support package after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday a deal could be reached with the White House on a coronavirus relief package and that talks were continuing.
“I don't think they are expecting a big deluge but some sort of middle ground,” Innes added.
Global central banks and governments have released massive stimulus to prop up their economies from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, pushing gold more than 20% higher this year. However, prices have retreated by about 10% since hitting a record peak in August.
On the technical front, spot gold may break support at $1,855 per ounce, said Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.
Meanwhile, speculators reduced their bullish positions in COMEX gold and silver contracts in the week to Sept. 22.
Elsewhere, silver was steady at $22.87 per ounce, platinum gained 0.6% to $852.21 and palladium rose 0.1% to $2,218.18."
The Hindu Explains | Where are the funds collected through cess parked?
The story so far: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India, in its latest audit report of government accounts, has observed that the Union government withheld in the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI) more than ₹1.1 lakh crore out of the almost ₹2.75 lakh crore collected through various cesses in 2018-19. The CAG found this objectionable since cess collections are supposed to be transferred to specified Reserve Funds that Parliament has approved for each of these levies. The nation’s highest auditor also found that over ₹1.24 lakh crore collected as Cess on Crude Oil over the last decade had not been transferred to the designated Reserve Fund — the Oil Industry Development Board — and had instead been retained in the Centre’s coffers. Similarly, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Compensation Cess was also “short-credited” to the relevant reserve fund to the extent of ₹47,272 crore in two years (₹40,806 crore in 2018-19 and ₹6,466 crore in 2017-18).
Voda Idea starts upgrading 3G users to 4G
Telecom operator Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) on Sunday said it has started upgrading its 3G users to 4G in key markets.
Further, the company said it is in the best position to upgrade 2G customers also to 4G, but it will continue with basic voice based services to its 2G subscribers.
“While the company will continue to offer basic voice services to its 2G users, 3G data users will gradually be upgraded to 4G in a phased manner across all markets. VIL has started informing its customers in the markets where re-farming is getting completed,” it said in a statement.
With the highest quantum of spectrum in the country and a large part of it already re-farmed for 4G, VIL is now best placed to upgrade 2G and 3G users to high speed 4G data services, Vodafone Idea managing director and CEO Ravinder Takkar said.
Biggest experiment in monetary history
Rupee rises 6 paise to 73.55 against US dollar in early trade
The Indian currency is marginally up on the positive sentiment in stocks.
PTI reports: "The Indian rupee advanced 6 paise to 73.55 against the US dollar in opening trade on Monday tracking weak American currency and positive domestic equities.
The local unit opened 3 paise lower at 73.64 at the interbank forex market, then gained ground and touched 73.55 against the greenback, up 6 paise over its previous close.
On Friday, the rupee had staged a smart rebound and close at 73.61 against the US dollar.
Forex traders said investors would look for cues from the first presidential debate between US President Donald Trump and Democratic candidate Joe Biden, set for Tuesday.
“The market would look forward to how Biden stands up to Trump. President Trump would want to consolidate his Republican base, touching upon issues which resonate most with them,” said Abhishek Goenka, Founder and CEO, IFA Global.
Goenka further said that “today (Monday) is the September Currency derivatives expiry. We could see some selling at RBI fix. Month-end exporter selling could limit up side in USD-INR. It is likely to trade 73.50-73.85 range intraday.”
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.16 per cent to 94.48.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 343.64 points higher at 37,732.30 and the broader NSE Nifty rose 103.90 points to 11,154.15.
Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 2,080.21 crore on a net basis on Friday, according to provisional exchange data.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.72 per cent to USD 41.62 per barrel."
Read, compare and decide
We are usually at an information disadvantage while buying financial products.
This asymmetry of information, as it is called, comes on top of our own disregard to seeking information. There is also hesitation that we may not understand it. There is also partial information and misinformation we often receive and then, there is poor application of mind when we do receive it.
The Internet is a great leveller with regard to information and just made for insurance, so to speak.
We are right in the middle of a public health crisis that has made us buy and pay for everything from vegetables to white goods online. Work, studies and entertainment have all embraced the digital way. Online banking is now quite mainstream and insurance need not be very far behind.
Indian shares rise as state-run banks gain on capital infusion hopes
The benchmark stock indices are carrying on their momentum from Friday's session.
Reuters reports: "Indian shares rose on Monday, boosted by state-owned banking stocks on hopes that the government may infuse some capital into the sector as early as the coming quarter, with gains in Asian markets aiding sentiment.
The broader NSE Nifty 50 index rose 0.5% to 11,105 and the S&P BSE Sensex climbed 0.6% to 37,610.34 by 0346 GMT. Both the indexes fell nearly 4% last week, marking their worst week since early-May.
The public sector bank index gained 1% after a report https://bit.ly/30fQcb0 said that the finance ministry may provide capital support to some public sector banks in the third quarter.
Shares of Lakshmi Vilas Bank Ltd fell 4.7% after the lender's shareholders on Friday rejected https://bit.ly/336xGDN the reappointment of seven directors, including the managing director and chief executive, and India's central bank appointed https://bit.ly/3cBw3B8 a committee to run the bank. (https://bit.ly/336xGDN) (https://bit.ly/3cBw3B8)
Meanwhile, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan advanced 0.5%."
Neutrality must for platforms, app stores and devices, says outgoing TRAI chief
Just as principles of net neutrality have been applied to telecom networks, neutrality of platforms, app stores, operating systems, and devices are crucial aspects that will need to be examined and ensured in the digital era, outgoing TRAI chief RS Sharma has said.
Mr Sharma termed this as a “new frontier” that merits attention, and emphasised that ‘neutrality’ is important to ensure that devices, operating systems and digital platforms don’t emerge as “new gatekeepers” or exercise arbitrary controls.
“Who will get into that area...I am not saying whether Trai should do it, or who someone else...I am saying neutrality of devices, operating systems and platforms is something that should be examined and ensured,” he told PTI.