India Stocks: Summary of Top Articles

Adani New Industries, the renewable energy components manufacturing division of Adani Enterprises, which is 25% owned by France's TotalEnergies, is reported by Business Standard to be establishing a facility in Mundra, Gujarat to manufacture solar glass, aluminum frames, and back sheets. This plan will focus on developing its own supply chain to support the manufacturing lines of solar cell and modules.

This is part of Adani Group's long-term strategy to build a robust supply chain for renewable energy business. The lack of domestic components has been a deterrent for local solar cell component manufacturers, a situation Adani is looking to address.

According to a report by the Economic Times, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is scheduled to hold a significant board meeting on Monday.

Although not on the official agenda, board members are likely to discuss issues arising from accusations of conflicting interests and the retraction of press releases regarding employee grievances.

Indian exporters of electricity to Bangladesh are exploring the option of utilizing government guarantees provided by the Bangladesh Power Development Board in power purchase agreements, as reported by the Hindu Businessline. Among the five companies selling electricity to Bangladesh, Adani Power has received some payments recently, while suppliers like SEIL Energy India and PTC Inc are still facing challenges.

If payments from Bangladesh accumulate, financial strains on Indian electricity supply companies may lead to the activation of sovereign guarantees as the only option.

Smartphones represented by Apple's iPhone have surpassed non-industrial diamonds in the past three quarters, becoming India's largest export to the United States in terms of value, as reported by the Business Standard. According to the data from the Ministry of Commerce, smartphone exports in the June quarter were $2 billion, exceeding the $1.44 billion worth of non-industrial diamond exports.

Just a year ago, smart phones were only the fourth largest export from India to the USA, so this is quite a dramatic change. Government incentives in this sector seem to be working rather well.

The central government is planning to introduce stricter localization standards for electric vehicles and public charging station manufacturers from April, as reported by Mint quoting a draft of the criteria. The new program for the PM e-Drive mandates that even small sub-components should be locally sourced and assembled on-site across 8 crucial EV components and assemblies spanning electric tricycles, electric two-wheelers categories, and 11 components for electric buses.

The government aims for the early adoption of electric vehicles, with a requirement that they must be as locally rooted as possible. Additionally, the new standards strengthen rules to prevent fraudulent subsidy claims that have plagued previous incentive schemes.

Under the government's Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, the promotion of consumer finance and the opening of new bank accounts have accelerated, driving consumer demand in the hinterlands through credit as reported by the Economic Times. For example, the rate of two-wheeler purchases on credit in rural India is at 62%, surpassing urban areas this fiscal year. Financing's share of purchases in electronic equipment and smart phones in rural areas has surged from around 20% two years ago to 30-40%.

In small towns and rural areas of traditionally cash-dominated India, due to financial inclusion, the penetration of financial companies, large retail chains, and e-commerce marketplaces has increased, leading to a rise in credit-led consumption.

According to Mint, while IBM's GenAI-related business books were over 2 billion dollars as of July, Accenture reported their GenAI books for the years 2023 to 2024 at 3 billion dollars last week. The common feature between both companies is the strong growth of their consulting business, which is still outpacing software service companies.

In recent years, information technology companies in India have been troubled by decreasing customer spending on software services.

From attractive EMI options to guaranteed buybacks, luxury car manufacturers are preparing numerous offers to attract customers during this festive season, as reported by Business Standard. For example, Audi India is offering discounts on service plans, accessories, and numerous benefits. Mercedes-Benz India mentions that the Dream Days campaign has received an enthusiastic response.

As sales figures decline and inventory increases, the latest enticing activities are being launched. Although the luxury car market in India accounts for less than 2% of the passenger vehicle market, the profit margins are substantial.