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The Union Budget will boost the order pipeline for the infrastructure sector, but the pace of implementation and execution of the big-bang capital expenditure plan announced by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1 will be key to success, said R Shankar Raman, chief financial officer of Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T). Some ongoing issues in the infrastructure sector, like dispute resolution and pace of ordering, need to be addressed to help the industry accelerate growth, Raman told Moneycontrol’s Rachita Prasad. Raman also spoke about the opportunities and risks and how L&T is preparing for 2022-23. Pushing project execution, managing people and closing the divestment of its non-core assets is on the top of the agenda for the engineering giant. Edited excerpts: The Union Budget made a big commitment to capex . What is your key takeaway for the infrastructure sector? The Rs 7.5 lakh crore is generous. The good part of the allocation is … [Read more...] about Interview | Budget plan implementation, faster dispute mechanism key to infrastructure growth: L&T CFO

The Union Budget for 2022-23 (FY23) announced on February 1 is clearly prepared within tough fiscal constraints. The backdrop for the Budget is defined by a steeply elevated public debt hovering near 90 percent for the general government (i.e., central and states together) and a significant shortfall of the order of 55.4 percent in the expected privatisation receipts during FY22. Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for achieving Aatmanirbhar Bharat has received an excellent response, with the potential to create 60 lakh new jobs and additional production of 30 lakh crore during the next Keycap digit five years. Moreover, additional spending on subsidies over the budgeted estimates — especially food (up 18 percent) and fertiliser (up 76.2 percent) subsidies — has gone up significantly during FY22 on account of elevated commodity prices and shortages. Allocation for MGNREGA scheme too had to be increased by 34.2 percent during FY22 from the budgeted Rs 730 billion to Rs … [Read more...] about Budget 2022 | Government strikes a fine balance between growth and fiscal consolidation

Adani group's stocks have nosedived after the Hindenburg report's release The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is looking into the details of banks' exposure to Adani group companies and has sought the present status of these loans, people familiar with the matter told Moneycontrol . The RBI has already reached out to some of the major banks which are the lenders to the group and is engaging with lenders to verify the exposure details, one of the persons quoted above said. The Adani group companies have seen shares plummeting following a recent research report by a short-seller which followed the cancellation of group's Rs 20000 crore follow on share sale. An email sent to Adani group seeking a response to this story remained unanswered till the press time. A separate email sent to the RBI too seeking official comment didn't elicit any response. According to a report by CLSA, bank debt that include term loans, working capital and other facilities form just 38 percent of … [Read more...] about RBI looking at banks’ exposure to Adani group companies, seeks present status: Sources

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Elon Musk, co-founder and CEO of Tesla, speaks during an event at the Hornsdale wind farm, operated ... [+] by Neoen SAS, near Jamestown, South Australia, on Friday, Sept. 29, 2017. (Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg In late January , I noted that Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk’s executive compensation plan raised significant red flags. Since then, proxy advisor Glass Lewis recommended investors vote against the proposal , which could grant Musk performance-based options worth over $2.6 billion. The red flags haven’t stopped there. More executive departures, more missed production projections, and competitors taking market share have left Tesla’s sky-high valuation with even more downside risk. Recent Departures Fail to Stoke Confidence The launch of the Model 3 marks a critical period for Tesla. As the company struggles to hit production targets on its first mass-market vehicle, one would hope the executive team … [Read more...] about Time To Follow Tesla Executives And Run For The Hills?

The Union Budget 2023 strikes the right balance between growth and fiscal prudence. It has given consumption a big boost, putting more cash in the hands of individuals and shows commitment to clean energy and manufacturing while continuing its focus on agriculture, MSMEs, urban infrastructure and tourism. Stock gainers Beneficiaries of capex push Banks stands to benefit from Budget 2023 -24. Capex spend has been increased steeply and is almost double of pre-pandemic level which will boost credit growth. At the same time, adherence to medium-term fiscal consolidation (5.9% fiscal deficit target for FY24) and gross and net borrowing numbers in line with Street expectations will not exert pressure on yields/interest rates. ICICI Bank and SBI will be clear beneficiaries of capex driven credit growth. Larsen & Toubro which derives majority revenues from core engineering and construction business would benefit from in capex which was increased for third year in a … [Read more...] about Meet the key winners and losers from Budget 2023

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin A few weeks back, bond giant PIMCO trimmed a bunch of payouts from its closed-end funds (CEFs). Which was no bueno for income investors, who buy CEFs solely for their dividends. We don’t own any PIMCO funds in our premium portfolios currently. But readers, who rightfully recognize me as a PIMCO fanboy, have written in to ask what’s up. “Any thoughts on PIMCO recent slashing of dividends? Do you think they will also cut PDI’s dividend?” — John S John, you know me well. Maybe too well! My nightstand currently boasts a copy of The Bond King: How One Man Made a Market, Built an Empire, and Lost It All . (I’m 128 pages in… and would enthusiastically recommend it to fellow fixed-income geeks.) Bond nerd or not, most of us dividend investors do know the “Bond King” Bill Gross. He was Morningstar’s Fixed Income Manager of the Decade from 2000 to 2009. Gross netted 7.7% yearly returns for his investors—a big … [Read more...] about We Dumped This 13% Dividend—Time To Reconsider?

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Internet advertising was born of the idea that a host of services and information would be available free in return for the ability to collect data from consumers in order to serve them better ads or search results. Yet that ideal “contract” with consumers has, in many cases, turned into a “faustian bargain” at the cost of personal privacy. Data, provided by consumers most often without their informed consent, is at the heart of the staggering rise in Internet Advertising. Digital advertising spending worldwide amounted to $521.02 billion in 2021 and is projected to reach $876 billion by 2026, according to Statista, with marketers spending more on digital platforms than any other media format. Privacy legislation like Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) have attempted to even the playing field to provide consumers more control over their personal information. … [Read more...] about Can John Roa’s Caden Solve The Internet Advertising Privacy Problem?

This has been a pragmatic budget which, on one hand, strikes a delicate balance by focusing on inclusive development, supporting small businesses, boosting income for the middle class, reducing compliances and promoting entrepreneurship. The endeavour of the Union Budget presented by the finance minister on February 1 is to create opportunities for citizens in an inclusive manner, with emphasis on growth and job creation, along with strengthening the macroeconomic stability. It aims to provide a further impetus to India’s growth story by introducing new tax measures which will, certainly, uplift the entrepreneurial spirit and will provide relief to the citizens. Decoding Tax Sops For Individuals Battered by rising inflation, India had high expectations from this Budget, especially when it comes to tax payments and reforms. Currently, those with income up to Rs 5 lakh do not pay any income tax. This rebate has been increased to Rs 7 lakh in the new tax regime, which means … [Read more...] about How Budget 2023 benefits the middle class, startups and MSMEs

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin My grandmother Estelle Craig was a remarkable woman. She was a journalist in the 1940s; a letter to her from J. Edgar Hoover hangs on my office wall. In the 1950s she founded a travel business – World Adventure Tours – that marketed tours via celebrity talks on exotic locales; a signed photo of Sir Edmund Hillary hangs right above J. Edgar. When the Duke of Bedford came to town – presumably to sell tours of Bedford and environs – she got media attention by starting a rumor that he was planning to buy Toronto’s only castle . She loved travel, hobnobbing, and making trouble, in that order. She was also generous. Before she passed away at the age of 103, my kids would send her thank you cards for birthday gifts. Even at that remarkable age she was as sharp as a tack, but had trouble seeing and hearing. My son Leo liked to type his on an electric typewriter, leading to this exchange: Leo: Dad, should I type her thank you … [Read more...] about When The College Of Last Resort Is A Resort