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Dubai, known for its towering skyscrapers and bustling highways, found itself in a state of chaos as unprecedented rainfall inundated the city, leaving its major thoroughfares flooded and its airport in disarray. The rainfall, described as the heaviest in 75 years, brought the desert city to a standstill, with highways resembling waterlogged canals and the bustling airport struggling to manage operations.Here all you need to know about Dubai's situation: Wettest day in 75 years: The state experienced rainfall totaling up to 259.5 millimeters (10.2 inches). The state-run WAM news agency called the rain Tuesday “a historic weather event” that surpassed “anything documented since the start of data collection in 1949.” That's before the discovery of crude oil in this energy-rich nation then part of a British protectorate known as the Trucial States.Massive traffic jams: The heavy downpour led to massive traffic jams along the six-lane expressways, as stranded motorists found themselves trapped in their vehicles amid the floodwaters.Life lost: Tragically, one person lost their life in Ras Al-Khaimah as the person was swept away by the powerful currents while driving, reported AFP.Power outage: Reports of power outages and flooded areas dotted Dubai, with some residential areas submerged and abandoned cars serving as eerie reminders of the havoc wreaked by the storm.Chaos at Dubai Airport: Even the airport, a crucial hub for international travel, was not spared, with flooded tunnels and suspended public transport exacerbating the chaos.Residents suffering: Residents shared harrowing tales of being stranded for hours, with one individual recounting a normally short commute turning into a 12-hour ordeal on submerged roads. The situation prompted President Sheikh Mohamed bin Nayan to intervene directly, urging swift action to assess and mitigate the damage to infrastructure and ensure the safety of affected families.Schools closed: As the skies cleared on Wednesday, revealing the extent of the devastation, authorities announced the closure of schools in Dubai until the following week to facilitate cleanup efforts. However, the impact on the airport lingered, with operations grinding to a halt and passengers facing extensive delays and cancellations.Impact of cloud seeding? : Amidst the turmoil, questions arose about the role of cloud seeding, a controversial practice of artificially inducing rainfall. However, meteorologists denied its use, emphasizing the intensity of the storm and its connection to broader climate patterns. Climatologists cautioned against focusing solely on cloud seeding, highlighting the broader implications of climate change on extreme weather events.Evacuation in-process: Authorities sent tanker trucks out into the streets and highways to pump away the water. Water poured into some homes, forcing people to bail out their houses.(With inputs from agencies)

Gold prices climbed on Thursday as concerns about the Middle East war extending to other regions boosted demand for the safe-haven metal. FUNDAMENTALS * Spot gold was up 0.4% at $2,369.93 per ounce, as of 0107 GMT. U.S. gold futures dipped 0.1% to $2,385.10 per ounce. * Israel will make its own decisions about how to defend itself, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, as Western countries pleaded for restraint in responding to a volley of attacks from Iran. * U.S. economic activity expanded slightly from late February through early April and there were fears among firms that progress in lowering inflation would stall, a Federal Reserve survey showed. * Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank President Loretta Mester said she expects price pressures to ease further this year, allowing the Fed to reduce borrowing costs, but only when it is "pretty confident" inflation is heading sustainably to its 2% goal. * Lower interest rates boost the appeal of holding non-yielding bullion. * The European Central Bank would be putting a dampener on the economy even after cutting interest rates twice, but there is no rush to slash borrowing costs, ECB policymaker Mario Centeno said. * The global silver deficit is expected to rise by 17% to 215.3 million troy ounces in 2024 due to a 2% growth in demand, led by a robust industrial consumption and a 1% fall in total supply, the Silver Institute Industry Association said. * Amid a flurry of commentary from global financial leaders at the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Spring meetings in Washington, and with many markets having undergone huge moves in recent weeks, investors are taking a bit of a time out. * Spot silver rose 0.2% to $28.28 per ounce, platinum edged 0.3% higher to $940.55 and palladium was listless at $1,026.25. DATA/EVENTS (GMT) 1230 US Initial Jobless Clm Weekly 1230 US Philly Fed Business Indx April 1400 US Existing Home Sales March

Equity indices continued to slump on Tuesday, dragged down by weak global trends and fears of escalating tensions in the middle east.Stocks that were in focus included names like SBI, which fell 0.62%, Lotus Chocolate, which rose 12%, and Exide Industries, whose shares rose 15% on Tuesday.Here's what Viral Chheda, Sr Technical Analyst, SSJ Finance & Securities, recommends investors should do with these stocks when the market resumes trading today.SBIAfter making low around 600 in Jan 2024, price has given a sharp upside move to make an alltime high of 793. Volumes were on rise as buyers were having the upper hand over bears.The high price has witnessed some profit booking to make a low of 720 odd levels. In the last one month the price is moving in the range of 720-793, breakout on either side will give 10-15% move. For long stock looks good and can be bought at every dip.The Stochastics Oscillator is moving in the downward trend indicating some correction from current level. Hence one can buy at dips of 730 and more at 720 with stop loss of 680 on weekly closing basis and upside can be seen till 850-950 in the 10-12 months.Lotus ChocolateAfter moving in the range of 300-367 for 3 months, price has given breakout on higher side to make an all time high of 470 odd levels.Volumes were on rise as bulls were having full control on price. As the stock has given almost 55% return from its lower level we can see some profit booking at current level. One should avoid buying at current levels and can buy at dips of 370-400.The Stochastics Oscillator is also moving in an overbought zone. Hence one should avoid buying at current level and buy at dips of 400 and more at 370 with SL of 340 on weekly closing basis and upside can be seen till 550-650 in the next 10-12 months.Exide IndustriesAfter making the low around 290 in Mar 2024, price has witnessed sharp upside move to make an all time high of 470 odd levels. Stock has given almost 62% return as buyers were having upper hand over price. From the current level we can see some profit booking as stock is trading at over price and can see correction till 350-375. For long term stock looks good but at current level one can avoid buying. The Stochastics Oscillator is moving in an overbought zone along with increase in volume indicating some downside with limited upside risk.Hence one can avoid buying at current level and can buy at dips of 375 and more at 350 with SL of 320 on weekly closing basis and upside can be seen till 500-650 in the next 10-12 months.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

Mumbai: A delay by the US Federal Reserve in reducing rates is likely to weigh on Mint Road's decision on starting its own policy rate-easing cycle. After Morgan Stanley and Kotak Bank, IDFC Bank now expects India's central bank to defer its rate easing call, perhaps to as late as the last quarter of this calendar year.Strong economic growth and escalated tensions in West Asia could add to inflation risks and delay rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell Tuesday did not provide any guidance on when interest rates may be cut, saying instead that monetary policy needs to be restrictive for a longer period.Economists are now factoring in a possible delay in policy rate cuts by the RBI, which has kept it unchanged since February 2023 at 6.5%. They were expecting the central bank to start lowering rates from the second half of FY25."The chair's comments confirmed that the Fed is likely to remain on a prolonged pause with US core inflation print coming higher than expected. The earliest the Fed rate cut cycle could begin would be September, as they would have five more CPI prints by then," said Gaura Sengupta, chief economist at IDFC Bank. "Against this backdrop, the start of the RBI rate cut cycle also gets delayed to October 2024. By October, there will be more clarity on Fed policy as well as domestic food inflation risks."109386459From India's monetary policy perspective, a sustained slowdown in inflation, which is now trending closer to the RBI target of 4%, had raised hopes of an interest rate cut. But India's real GDP has grown by over 8% for three quarters now. Even if there is some slowdown in the coming quarters, the country is expected to outperform other emerging market peers. Strong economic growth pushes up consumption and accelerates inflation, but also lessens the need for rate cuts to push up economic growth.Also, leverage pickup is accelerating, as reflected in higher credit growth at 16.3% in March 2024 compared with the pre-pandemic growth of 7.1% year-on-year. Moreover, escalated tension in West Asia is expected to push crude prices up and that could weigh on global inflation and the Fed's decision to cut rates."Strong growth in India has provided the RBI policy space to remain on hold, given the uncertainty on global factors," Sengupta said.Productivity growth, a rising investment rate and inflation tracking above the target of 4%, alongside a higher terminal Fed funds rate, warrant higher real rates, according to a report by Morgan Stanley. "As such, we now expect no easing in policy rates in 2024-2025 with policy rate steady at 6.5%, implying real rates to average 200 bps (basis points)," the report said.Some economists are factoring in a possibility of a delay in their expectation of a rate cut by the central bank. "While we maintain our call for a 50-bp rate cut starting in 3QFY25, we note increasing risks of further delays to the RBI's rate cuts from rising crude oil prices, a further push-back to the timing of the US Fed's rate easing cycle and volatile food inflation," said Upasna Bharadwaj, chief economist at Kotak Mahindra Bank.IDFC Bank expects any decision on the start of rate easing only by October."By October, there will be more clarity on Fed policy as well as domestic food inflation risks" Sengupta said. "Strong growth in India has provided RBI policy space to remain on hold, given the uncertainty on global factors such as Fed and crude oil prices."The progress of the monsoons will play a role in determining rate-reduction timelines. "Reserve Bank is not expected to take any rate action until August. By then a clear idea on the progress of the monsoon and its impact on food grains production and inflation would emerge," said Madan Sabnavis, chief economist Bank of Baroda. "It would like to see how inflation pans out before taking any rate action."

Mumbai: Investors could subscribe to the ₹18,000-crore Follow on Public Offering (FPO) of Vodafone Idea opening on April 18 as the telecom operator's prospects stand to improve with the fresh infusion of money after the share sale, said analysts.The public offering, which closes on April 22, has been priced in the band of ₹10-11 apiece, which is 17-29% below the stock's Tuesday closing price of ₹12.9. Financial markets were shut on Wednesday for Ram Navami.Analysts said the risk-reward for investing in the debt-laden Vodafone Idea at the FPO price is favourable."The FPO is a good opportunity to get attractive pricing for the brand name and customer base that Vodafone has. So, it's not a bad proposition," said Hemang Jani, director, Finazenn, an investment advisory.Jani said that retail investors can either choose to sell on listing day or hold the stock for 6 to 12 months and benefit from a possible upmove in the stock to ₹16.So far in 2024, the company's shares have plunged 24.12% while the BSE 200 index gained almost 5%. 109386441Analysts said a strong anchor investor participation bodes well for the FPO."The risk-to-reward ratio looks good for the FPO and the anchor list has some strong institutional names like GQG and domestic funds," said Abhilash Pagaria, head of alternative & quantitative research, Nuvama.Vodafone Idea's anchor book of ₹5,400 crore was the third-largest anchor book in India and was fully subscribed on Tuesday. Foreign institutions such as GQG Partners, UBS, Norges, and Morgan Stanley Investment Management along with domestic mutual fund investors including HDFC, Quant and Motilal Oswal subscribed to the company's anchor book."Investors with a moderate to high-risk appetite could subscribe to the FPO and play it from a turnaround story perspective," said Manish Chowdhury, head of research at StoxBox. "Once the proceeds of the FPO are realised, it will take a few quarters to reflect in the company's performance."Analysts said almost 70% of the ₹18,000 crore the company will likely raise through the FPO will be used to invest in capacity expansion. Investors still await clarity on the ₹2 lakh crore it owes the government as dues."The infusion of ₹18,000 crore indicates that the company aims to claim market share," said Chowdhury.“The proceeds of the FPO are likely to enhance the company’s Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) and reduce the differential between the company and its peers.”Vodafone Idea is jointly owned by the Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone. The government of India also holds a 32% stake in the company, making it the largest shareholder.Analysts said the fundraising through the FPO has paved the way for a rally in the stock, at least in the near term.“From a conservative perspective, an up move of 30% to 35% at these prices is likely in the next 3 months,” said Pagaria. “This can be a short, 3-4 months kind of trade opportunity and it can be evaluated later whether long term prospects make sense.”If the stock price moves up as anticipated, it could be included in the MSCI index in the August-November review, leading to passive flows of about $ 150 million, said Pagaria.Jani said debt concerns may cap upside for the stock.“While the upside may not be significant, due to the huge debt and network quality issues, 15-16 is the best target for the stock in the near term,” said Jani.

India is proposing to expand the ambit of a key capital goods promotion scheme to include more sectors such as pharmaceuticals and textiles.The current capital goods promotion scheme focuses heavily on electrical component and automobile manufacturing, and the government is now keen to extend support to others.Plans are afoot to also bring new-age technologies besides those used for electric vehicles, batteries and automobile manufacturing."Proposals to expand the ambit of the scheme are being considered. The aim is to better cover capital goods manufacturing across sectors," a senior official aware of the development told ET.109382504Work is also underway to better India's Industry 4.0 plans by including more robotics and semiconductor-related applications.The first phase of the capital goods scheme started in November 2014 with an outlay of ₹995.96 crore. Its second phase began in January 2022 with ₹975 crore budgetary support and industry contribution of ₹232 crore. The scheme is aimed at bridging the skill gap and addressing infrastructure development as well as technology needs of the capital goods sector.The capital goods sector contributes around 12% of India's GDP and provides 5.5 million jobs, according to official estimates. India's capital goods industry is segmented across electrical equipment, process plant equipment, earth moving, construction & mining machinery, machine tools and textiles machinery."There have been several representations from other sectors about inclusion in the capital goods scheme of the ministry of heavy industries," the official said, adding that, at present, sectors such as mining, textiles and pharmaceuticals approach their nodal ministries for support.According to the National Capital Goods Policy 2016, plastic machinery; process plant equipment; dies, moulds & press tools; printing machinery; metallurgical machinery and food processing machinery also command a significant share in India's capital goods output. The government could also consider tweaking this policy in line with the new scheme.