Business News

Mumbai: Nearly one-fourth of stocks with a market capitalisation of over ₹1,000 crore in March have recouped all their losses posted between October 1 and February 28. According to an ET study, 331 out of the 1,415 stocks, have recovered their losses or are even trading above their levels on October 1- around the time the sell-off in the Indian market started. Since March 1, 127 stocks in this list have surged over 15%. Out of them, 59 are projected to deliver returns between 10% and 80% over the next year, according to median analyst price targets compiled from LSEG. Nifty has gained 7% so far this month after declining 14% between October and February. The Nifty Midcap 150 and Smallcap 250 are up 9.5% and 11%, respectively, in March after falling 20.5% and 25% in the the period under review.ET has compiled a list of 15 stocks which can give returns between 10% and 33% in a year.119448054For instance, Sharda Cropchem, which declined 12% between October and February, has run up 18% in March so far. Analysts' consensus estimates suggest the stock could gain another 33% over the next year.Transport Corporation which declined 16% in five months till February gained 22% in March. The stock is expected to give returns over 15% in a year. JK Lakshmi Cement gained 15% in March after declining over 13% between October and February. The stock has an upside of 15% as per the analysts consensus estimates.

New Delhi: Bangladesh Army chief General Waqar-Uz-Zaman has cautioned against terrorist attacks in the country within the next month and called for increased vigilance against potential attacks.General Waqar, speaking to senior Army commanders in Dhaka over the weekend, hinted that he has received intelligence that a terror strike could be orchestrated over the next week and urged caution, it has been learnt. He also mentioned that during a meeting with US senators, concerns were expressed over rising extremism in Bangladesh.The Army chief's comments are significant in the backdrop of growing acts of vandalism and attacks on minorities by Islamists since the ousting of the Sheikh Hasina government in August last year.General Waqar also made references to the deteriorating law and order situation in Bangladesh. "While the crime rate remains similar to previous years, visible crimes are causing fear among the people. We need to address and prevent these crimes. When taking action, we must do so decisively," he emphasised. Meanwhile, a consignment of 11,500 tonnes of parboiled rice arrived at Chattogram port under package-2 from India. The Bangladesh government has inked a contract with India to import 450,000 tonnes of parboiled rice under nine packages. Of the total, at least 285,769 tonnes of parboiled rice have already landed in the country with the rest slated to be delivered in phases.

The Indian financial system has become more resilient and diverse, driven by rapid economic growth and withstood the pandemic well, according to an IMF report. The Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP), a joint programme of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank (WB), undertakes a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of a country's financial sector. IMF has released the latest India-FSSA report, based on the assessment carried out during 2024, while WB's Financial Sector Assessment (FSA) report is due for publication. "India welcomes assessment of the Indian financial system undertaken by the joint IMF-World Bank team conforming to the highest international standards," the Reserve Bank said in a release on Monday. The IMF report said that since the last FSAP in 2017, India's financial system has become more resilient and diverse, driven by rapid economic growth. "The system recovered from the distress episodes of the 2010s and withstood the pandemic well. NBFIs and market financing have grown, making the financial system more diverse and interconnected. State-owned financial institutions' share remains significant," it said. It further said that stress tests show that the main lending sectors are broadly resilient to macrofinancial shocks, despite some weak tails. Banks and NBFCs have sufficient aggregate capital to support moderate lending even in severe macro-financial scenarios. "But several banks, particularly PSBs, may need to strengthen their capital base to support lending in such situations. Weak tails comprise a few non-systemic NBFCs and urban cooperative banks (UCBs) that report below minimum or negative capital even in the baseline. Vulnerability to short-term liquidity stress is generally contained," the report said. On regulation and supervision of NBFCs, the IMF acknowledged India's systematic approach to prudential requirements of NBFCs with the scale-based regulatory framework. IMF appreciated India's approach to the introduction of a bank-like Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) for large NBFCs. IMF also acknowledged that the regulatory framework in securities markets has been enhanced in line with international practice to manage and prevent emerging risks. Notable improvements include establishing the Corporate Debt Market Development Fund (CDMDF). The report observed that India's insurance sector is strong and growing, with a significant presence in both life and general insurance. The sector has remained stable, supported by better regulations and digital innovations. IMF also analysed cyber security frameworks in the banking sector, financial market infrastructure (FMI), critical information systems, and other relevant players in the securities market. It found that Indian authorities have advanced cybersecurity risk oversight, especially for banks. However, it stated that extensive cybersecurity crisis simulations and stress tests for banks could be expanded for cross-sectoral and market-wide events to further strengthen cybersecurity resilience. The recommendations in the case of India FSAP are mainly focussed on bringing about further improvements in the structure and functioning of the financial system and many of the detailed recommendations are in conformity with the concerned authorities'/ regulators' own developmental plans.