INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
This report was compiled from agency feeds.
Oil prices down before Opec meetOil prices fell on Thursday and trading was tepid ahead of a
meeting by producer group OPEC that is expected to result in a supply cut aimed at draining a glut that has pulled down crude prices by 30
US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were at $52.66 per barrel at 0140 GMT, down 23 cents, or 0.4%, from their last close
International Brent crude oil futures LCOc1 were down 7 cents, or 0.1%, at $61.49 per barrel
On Wednesday, OPEC and Russia moved closer to agreeing on cuts in oil production from next year
OPEC meets on Thursday in Vienna, followed by talks with allies such as Russia on Friday
RBI holds rates, slashes inflation forecastThe Reserve Bank of India left interest rates and monetary policy stance unchanged but lowered
retail price forecast, kindling hopes of a rate cut if inflation stays benign
It may be months before the monetary policy committee (MPC) actually cuts rates and RBI governor Urjit Patel said it is not changing the
RBI lowered inflation forecast for the second straight time on Wednesday, projecting a rate of 2.7-3.2% in the second half, from the
3.9-4.5% forecast during the previous policy meet.
Services PMI at four-month high in November Lifted by a significant rise in domestic
demand, service activity in India expanded in November at the quickest pace in four months, a private survey showed on Wednesday
The Nikkei India Services Business Activity Index rose from 52.2 in October to 53.7 in November, signalling a solid upturn in output that
was the strongest since July
A sister index on Monday had shown manufacturing activity gain momentum and PMI rising to 54 in November.
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RBI to cut SLR gradually to 18%
by mid-2019 The RBI has decided to reduce statutory liquidity ratio, the portion of funds which banks are required to park in treasury bills
and other instruments, by 0.25 per cent every quarter beginning January
The calibrated reduction in statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) will continue till it reaches 18 per cent
The current SLR is 19.5 per cent
Tax axe looms over back officesOne month after the Authority of Advance Ruling (AAR) ruled that back office support services qualify as
units of MNCs and Indian companies exporting offshore support services
Several back offices of multinationals and Indian companies providing offshore support services to foreign companies now face 18% GST
Govt to clear fertiliser subsidy arrears by March Fertiliser subsidy arrears to the industry have come down by 75 per cent to Rs 10,000
crore in the last four years and the outstanding amount is expected to be cleared by the end of this fiscal year, Chemicals and Fertilisers
Minister Sadananda Gowda said Wednesday
The government will also not raise the minimum retail price (MRP) of urea to protect farmers interest, he said
CBI looks for Agusta beneficiariesThe Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) wants to identify the beneficiaries of alleged kickbacks paid
These include officials of Indian Air Force and defence ministry, and bureaucrats and politicians of the UPA regime who were allegedly
helicopters.
POLICIES MOREA Delhi court on Wednesday sentenced former coal secretary HC Gupta and two other former officials of the coal
ministry to three-year imprisonment in a case relating to the coal block allocation scam, dealing a blow to bureaucrats who said punishing
the government officials would hurt governance.India is likely to maintain the "high growth rate" of 7-8% over the next decade, Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley has said, emphasising that landmark reforms like Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code offer conducive environment to foreign
investors.Income tax payers will soon get pre-filled ITR forms that will make the process of filing returns easier
The pre-filled income tax return (ITR) forms would be based on TDS details filed with the department by employer or any other entity
The slow pace of land reforms will continue to result in project delays and rising costs, posing a downside risk for the road and rail
sectors, Fitch Solutions said Wednesday
charges levelled against Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular.A top executive and daughter of the founder of the Chinese tech
giant Huawei was arrested on Saturday in Canada at the request of the United States, in a move likely to escalate tensions between the two
countries at a delicate moment.TOP VIDEOI am structurally bullish and in long-term investing, there is nothing wrong in that: Porinju
VeliyathTOP QUOTE'Protect your skin, don't get adventurous now'FUNDAMENTALSRupee up: The rupee ticked higher by 3 paise to 70.46 against the
US dollar Wednesday amid weakness in the greenback and easing crude oil prices
10-yr bond yields slump: India 10-year bonds yields fell 0.13% to 7.44% on Wednesday from 7.57% in the previous trading session, according
to RBI data.
Call rate: The overnight call money rate weighted average was 6.35% on Wednesday, according to RBI data
It moved in a range of 5.00-6.55%.
