Business News

New Delhi: The Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) is seeking to declare state oil companies' jet fuel (ATF) pipelines to some of the biggest airports in the country as common carriers in a bid to give private players equitable access and turn the jet fuel market more competitive.PNGRB has sought to declare Indian Oil's ATF pipelines to Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Lucknow airports and Bharat Petroleum's pipeline to Kochi airport as common or contract carriers. These pipelines mostly connect airports with refineries and are far more economical to use than alternative road transport.A common carrier status will permit the use of these pipelines by private sector players such as Reliance Industries, bringing down their transport costs and making them more competitive in the ATF market.Most major airports have open access fuel farm infrastructure or fuel supply mechanisms through browsers operated by various oil companies. However, access to pipelines is crucial to keep ATF suppliers competitive."Without a common carrier or contract carrier pipeline, it becomes challenging to fully realise the benefits of an open fuel market because new and smaller fuel marketers cannot easily access the existing infrastructure," the PNGRB said, defending its move. The regulator is seeking wider consultation on the subject."It is crucial that the existing pipelines, which have historically been controlled by a limited number of oil marketing companies, be designated as common carriers or contract carriers," it said. "This designation would ensure that all marketers have equal opportunity to utilise these pipelines, fostering a more competitive and fair market environment."This would potentially lower prices and improve "service quality for end consumers, including airlines and, indirectly, passengers," the regulator said.

Mumbai: Businessman Harindarpal Singh Banga and wife Indra Banga are likely to sell a 1.4% stake worth Rs 809 crore on Friday through block deals. According to the term sheet issued by the bankers, the Bangas plan to sell 4.09 crore shares at a floor price of Rs 198 apiece, which represents a 5.9% discount to Thursday’s closing price of Rs 210.Harindarpal was an early investor in Indian billionaire Falguni Nayar’s fashion giant Nykaa and held a 6.4% stake. He founded The Caravel Group, a global conglomerate primarily engaged in resources trading, maritime services, and asset management.Shares of Nykaa have rallied 56% so far this year, compared to a 24% rise in the benchmark Sensex.

Formal job creation under the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) went up by 6.9% to 2.16 million in June this year compared to 2.02 million in June 2023 while month-on-month the formal jobs created under ESIC were 6% lower when compared to 2.30 million formal jobs created in May 2024, the ministry of labour and employment said. As per the provisional payroll data, released on Thursday, around 13,483 new establishments have been brought under the social security ambit of the ESI scheme in June compared to 20,110 establishments added in May, 2024 thus ensuring social security to more workers. “Out of the total 2.16 million employees added during the month, 1.05 million employees or 49% of the total registrations belong to the age group of up to 25 years,” it said. Also, the gender-wise analysis of the payroll data indicates that net enrolment of female members has been 0.43 million in June, 2024 while 55 transgender employees got registered under ESI scheme in the month under consideration which attests to the commitment of ESIC to deliver its benefits to every section of the society. The payroll data is provisional since the data generation is a continuous exercise, it added. Employees’ State Insurance Corporation is one of the two main statutory social security organisations under the ministry of labour and the employment, the other being the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation. The fund is managed by ESIC according to rules and regulations stipulated in the ESI Act 1948. All employees earning up to Rs 21,000 per month as wages contribute 0.75% of their wages while the employer contributes 3.25%, taking the total contribution to 4%, which is used to provide medical and cash benefits to the employees and their family. The employees registered under the scheme are entitled to medical treatment for themselves and their dependents, unemployment cash benefit in certain contingencies and maternity benefit in case of women employees.In case of employment-related disablement or death, there is provision for a disablement benefit and a family pension respectively.

A gauge showing the Indian rupee’s value against its key trading partners rose to the highest in more than six years in July, even as the currency hit a new lifetime low against the dollar.The index measuring the rupee’s value against a weighted basket of the country’s 40 trading partners, adjusted for inflation, rose to 107.33 — the highest since December 2017, according to the Reserve Bank of India data. 112714873The real-effective-exchange rate is a popular metric of how a currency is valued in relation to its trading partners. A reading above 100 indicates overvaluation. The rupee has mostly stayed above that level in the past decade. It has underperformed Asian peers this month amid a yen trade unwinding and outflows from stocks. The central bank’s strategy to allow a weaker rupee may be aimed at correcting some REER overvaluation to boost the country’s trade competitiveness.RBI’s intervention in the foreign exchange market has helped limit rupee overvaluation, said Gaura Sen Gupta, chief economist at IDFC FIRST Bank. “The extent of rupee overvaluation on REER metric has moderated in August.”The rupee is hovering near 84 to a dollar, and is down 0.9% so far this year, but on a REER basis, it’s up 3.6% in seven months to July. Higher inflation in India compared to key trading partners such as China may also be causing the REER to remain elevated, according to Australia and New Zealand Banking Group India economist Dhiraj Nim.

Nifty ended Thursday’s weekly expiry 41 points higher and formed a higher high-higher low formation for the fifth consecutive session. The daily charts saw the formation of a bearish candle as the index closed lower than its opening level.Now, Nifty has to continue to hold above the 24,700 zone to extend the move towards 25,000 and 25,100 zones whereas supports are placed at 24,700 then 24,550 zones, said Chandan Taparia of Motilal Oswal.“We have seen a decline in volatility with a surge in Put Call Ratio, which indicates that overall bullish bias could continue in the market. VIX has recently declined from 23 to 13 zones and lower volatility suggests overall bullish stance in the market,” he said.The RSI is trending upward near the 60.46 level, further indicating bullish momentum in the market.What should traders do? Here’s what analysts said:Tejas Shah, JM Financial & BlinkXThe short-term moving averages are just below the price action and should continue to support the indices on every decline. Support for the index is now seen at 24,775 and 24,600-650 levels. On the higher side, immediate resistance for Nifty is at 24,850 level and the next resistance is at 25,000 mark.Hrishikesh Yedve, AVP Technical and Derivatives Research at Asit C. Mehta Investment InterrmediatesTechnically, the index entered the gap zone of 24,852-24,956 but faced profit booking, leading to the formation of a red candle on the daily scale. For a fresh bullish trigger, the index needs to cross the hurdle of the 24,950-24,960 zone. On the downside, the 21-Day Exponential Moving Average (DEMA), positioned near 24,480, will act as strong support. As long as the index holds above this level, a "buy on dips" strategy should be employed.Rupak De, LKP SecuritiesOn the daily chart, Nifty continues to move towards the upper Bollinger band. Additionally, the index has been sustaining above the critical near-term moving average. Sentiment may continue to favour the bulls as long as it remains above 24,650. On the other hand, the current rise might extend towards 25,000 in the near term.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)