- A + A KUALA LUMPUR (June 25): The Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) has hailed the government’s decision not to pass through a higher surcharge rate to consumers despite the recent sharp increase in fuel and other electricity generation costs. “The FMM is pleased that the government had positively considered its call for assistance to help curb one of the industries’ major operational input costs, i.e. energy cost,” said FMM president Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai on Saturday (June 25). On Friday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said Putrajaya had decided to maintain the electricity and water tariffs in Peninsular Malaysia in efforts to fight the rising cost of living. In a statement, Soh said: “The government’s decision to absorb the cost of the fuel price which amounts to RM5.8 billion and hence maintain the Imbalance Cost Pass-Through (ICPT) surcharge at the current rate as well as to maintain the current water tariffs would ease the cost … [Read more...] about FMM hails govt’s decision to absorb fuel price increase
Why demand is more elastic at higher prices
All our companies are equally important for us: Ramco Group’s Venketrama Raja
Trade Watchlist Portfolio Message Set Alert live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More × With his steadfast focus on R&D, PR Venketrama Raja has played a pivotal role in steering the Ramco Group, which has interests ranging from cement to IT services, and winning recognition for its products and services. PRV, as he is known in industry circles, established Ramco Systems with the goal of creating a world-class information technology company focused on enterprise applications and emerging technologies. For him, institution-building is far more important than playing the valuation game. Quiz him on his favourite company in the group and he says Ramco Cement , Ramco Systems and Rajapalayam Mills are equally important. In a free-wheeling interaction with Moneycontrol at the Ramco Systems office in Chennai, the Group Chairman opened up on a range of topics. Edited … [Read more...] about All our companies are equally important for us: Ramco Group’s Venketrama Raja
Ukrainian city falls to Russia in one of war’s bloodiest fights
Ukrainian service members walk in the industrial area of the city of Sievierodonetsk, as Russia’s attack on Ukraine continues, Ukraine June 20, 2022. (REUTERS/Oleksandr Ratushniak/File Photo) KYIV/POKROVSK, Ukraine — Russian forces have fully occupied Sievierodonetsk, the mayor of the eastern Ukrainian city said on Saturday, confirming Kyiv’s biggest battlefield setback for more than a month, after weeks of some of the war’s bloodiest fighting. Ukraine called its retreat from the city a “tactical withdrawal” to fight from higher ground in Lysychansk on the opposite bank of the Siverskyi Donets river. Pro-Russian separatists said Moscow’s forces were now attacking Lysychansk. The fall of Sievierodonetsk — once home to more than 100,000 people, now a wasteland — was Russia’s biggest victory since capturing the port of Mariupol last month. It transforms the battlefield in the east after weeks in which Moscow’s huge advantage in firepower had yielded only slow gains. Russia will … [Read more...] about Ukrainian city falls to Russia in one of war’s bloodiest fights
Seven reasons for Zomato’s Rs 4,447-crore Blinkit buyout deal
Deepinder Goyal. Zomato announced on June 24 that its board had approved the acquisition of quick commerce company Blinkit for Rs 4,447 crore. According to the terms of the agreement, Blinkit shareholders will get a cumulative stake of 6.88 percent in Zomato and the target company’s leadership team, including co-founder and CEO Albinder Dhindsa, will stay on to run the ship. But, questions still remain about how Zomato, a company that registered losses of Rs 1,223 crore in FY22, plans to derive value from acquiring another loss-making delivery startup. The food delivery major’s top executives put out a ready reckoner laying out the rationale behind the deal. From having a Blinkit tab on the Zomato app to sharing delivery fleets to cut costs, here are some of the important reasons that came through from what they said: Increased customer wallet share Close “Quick commerce will help us increase the customer wallet share spent on our platform and … [Read more...] about Seven reasons for Zomato’s Rs 4,447-crore Blinkit buyout deal
The Ultimate Guide To Traveling To Europe This Summer
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin You've probably seen the pictures of the mountains of luggage at London's Heathrow Airport. You've heard about the heat wave. And maybe you have friends who got Covid while they were in Europe. With all that's happening, maybe you need a better guide to traveling to Europe this summer. "Tourism is back," says David Corsun, director of the University of Denver's Fritz Knoebel School of Hospitality Management. "Hotels are full. Flights are full. Restaurants are full." Travel by Americans to Europe will soar 600 percent over last summer , according to new projections by Allianz Partners. ADVERTISEMENT Europeans are traveling more, too. A new survey by insurance company Europ Assistance Group found that 71% of Europeans intend to travel during the summer . That's a 14 percentage point increase compared to 2021. But you don't have to get stuck in a crowd and miss the best part of your European vacation. … [Read more...] about The Ultimate Guide To Traveling To Europe This Summer
Amid startup layoffs, larger job market remains buoyant across sectors
The larger job market in India remains buoyant across sectors – even amid layoffs by a clutch of startups in recent months – and employees will generally continue to call the shots through FY23. “We see FY23 to remain an employees’ market with some amount of adjustments. Employees still have the bargaining power, opportunities and enjoy the benefit of demand,” said RP Yadav, chairman of Genius Consultants, a staffing and human resource company. While information technology and IT-enabled services will continue recruiting, e-commerce, logistics and export-oriented sectors including textiles and leather goods are doing well in terms of hiring. The consumer goods sector will increasingly do well, as will the retail and hospitality segment, according to staffing firms, HR experts and talent managers. The near-normal level of economic activity in retail and hospitality is indicative of a revival in these sectors after a prolonged phase of weakness due to the pandemic and offers a … [Read more...] about Amid startup layoffs, larger job market remains buoyant across sectors
No money to be made in recycling glass in this age of plastic
PETALING JAYA: You buy a bottle of your favourite fruit juice, slurp it down and then throw it into the nearest bin. The whole process may just take 10 minutes – but that glass bottle could be here for 1,000,000 more years. Glass is not being recycled, at least not in a major way. ALSO READ: No market for recycled glass bottles Most recyclers are business-driven and only focus on materials that give them the most returns, like plastic and paper. Environment and waste management specialist Dr Theng Lee Chong said the reason plastic is favoured over glass is because it can fetch a better price in terms of reselling and production cost. “Other factors that turn recyclers off from glass are that it takes up more space, weighs more and is harder to handle in terms of transportation and logistics. “Not all types of glass can be recycled. Bulbs, sheet glass, windshields and car accessories as well as windows cannot be recycled because some may contain hazardous material like … [Read more...] about No money to be made in recycling glass in this age of plastic
Stop cutting trees
The Philippines’ summer capital, known for its cool air and pine trees, has been the favorite refuge of Filipinos wanting to escape the scorching heat in Metro Manila and other parts of the country. But while Baguio City remains the coolest place in the country, it has been feeling the heat of climate change, registering an unusually higher heat index of 27 degrees Celsius last month, exacerbated by the steady loss of its tree cover. Just as well that its city council has recently proposed a five-year moratorium on tree-cutting activities to protect its trees. The battle to preserve the beloved city’s trees has been ongoing for at least two decades now as locals saw more of these trees being felled to give way to progress and development—malls, subdivisions, and other infrastructure projects. In 2019, the Supreme Court stopped a mall giant from cutting more than a hundred trees for an expansion plan, but the temporary restraining order came only after about 60 trees have already been … [Read more...] about Stop cutting trees
Wall Street mints big gains to end a strong week
Wall Street, New York City (File image: Reuters) Wall Street's main indices soared on Friday in a broad rally as signs of slowing economic growth and a recent pullback in commodity prices tempered expectations for the Federal Reserve's rate-hike plans. The S&P 500 rose over 3% for its biggest one-day percentage rise since May 2020. All 11 of the benchmark index's sectors ended at least 1.5% higher. Stocks rebounded this week as financial markets have been roiled over worries that rapid rate hikes by the Fed to rein in 40-year-high inflation could cause a recession. Still, investors have been gauging when the market might hit its bottom after the benchmark S&P 500 earlier this month recorded a 20% drop from its January closing peak, confirming the common definition of a bear market. "Some of the moves, the sellers just get exhausted so you don’t have as much capital moving out," said Shawn Cruz, head trading strategist at TD Ameritrade. "This might be a … [Read more...] about Wall Street mints big gains to end a strong week
Tata Power falls 7% to hit two month low
Trade Watchlist Portfolio Message Set Alert live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More × Shares of Tata Power Co fell as much as 7% to hit a two month low tracking a fall in local equity markets. The stock touched a low of Rs 223 -- a level last seen on 8 March 2022. Since 6 April, Tata Power has declined 20% while Sensex and Nifty lost around 9% each. Tata Power's March quarter (Q4FY22) adjusted profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 653 crore (up 66.3% on year) came 4% above estimate of Rs 632 crore primarily on account of higher dividend income and tax benefit from Coastal Gujarat Power Ltd (CGPL) merger in standalone business (PAT at Rs 1770 crore versus net loss of Rs 159 crore a year ago) and good performance from renewable energy (RE) business. Coal mining performance was disappointing with 36% sequential decline in PAT at Rs 397 crore owing to lower volumes and lower … [Read more...] about Tata Power falls 7% to hit two month low