RBI Takes a Pause
Good Evening,
Indian equity markets ended the volatile session with modest losses on Thursday. The domestic markets got clapped after the RBI monetary policy announcement.
As widely expected, RBI kept the repo rate unchanged and revised the inflation forecast to 5.4% from 5.1%. In a surprise move, RBI has asked Banks to maintain an additional cash reserve ratio (CRR) of 4.5% from 4%.
Let's dive in.

Markets:
Bank, FMCG stocks drag Sensex 308 points lower; Nifty below 19,550
No impact on financial markets if international banks open special vostro accounts: RBI
Tata Sons Invested $2 Billion Into Airline, Digital In FY23; Energy Transition Next Focus
Most Adani Stocks Rise, Add Over Rs 17,000 Crore To Group Market Cap
Two-Wheeler Sales Slide 7% In July After Growing For Three Straight Months
Nifty struggling to hold 20-DM
Earnings:
Ola Electric Posts Loss Of Rs 784 Crore In FY22
Samvardhana Motherson Q1 Results: Cons PAT soars 4-fold YoY to Rs 601 crore
Page Industries Q1 Results: Profit falls 25% on sluggish demand
Thomas Cook India Q1 Results: Firm reports multifold jump in profit to Rs 71 crore
India's Pidilite Industries posts Q1 profit rise on strong demand, easing costs
Bajaj Electricals Q1 Results: Profit falls as unseasonal rains, inflation hit demand
Arvind Fashions Q1 Results: Loss deepens on demand slump
3M India Q1 Results: 'Post-it' maker's profit rises on robust demand
Grasim Q1 Results: Consolidated PAT drops 18% YoY to Rs 1,576 crore on jump in expenses
Trent Shares Hit Record High After Q1 Profit Surges 45%
Headline Roundup:
RBI Keeps Repo Rate Unchanged, Stays Vigilant On Inflation
RBI Brings Temporary ICRR At 10% For Banks To Absorb Surplus Liquidity
Higher Rates Expected For Longer, Say Economists
Nirmala Sitharaman Says India Will Import Tomatoes From Nepal
RBI relaxes infrastructure debt funds guidelines
RBI's lending innovation: Can't prove creditworthiness? Now you will still get a loan
Don't camouflage stress, extend loans for reasonable period: Shaktikanta Das to banks
Deal Flow:
- M&A / Investments:
NCLT approves merger of Sony unit, Zee Entertainment
Axis Bank to raise stake in Max Life via $195 mn investment
Paytm's Sharma to acquire Ant Financial's 10.3% stake
- IPO:
TVS Supply Chain Solutions IPO: Retail quota fully subscribed
Sebi halves listing timeline to 3 days post-IPO closure
TVS Supply Chain Solutions raises Rs 396 crore from anchor investors ahead of IPO
Sebi changes IPO rules, listing timeline reduced to T+3 days
Pyramid Technoplast IPO to open on August 18
Concord Biotech IPO subscribed 25 times
- VC:
Picus Capital hires MPL exec as India head, plans Asia expansion
Bluwheelz and Metashot raise early-stage funding
Krafton earmarks $150 mn more to invest in Indian gaming startups
Springwel eyes majority stake in VC-backed D2C mattress startup
Tech / Startup:
Zerodha's Nithin Kamath commits Rs 1,000 crore to fund startups via Rainmatter
Early-stage VC firm Antler launches ONDC-focused platform for founders
D2C consolidation: Value creation for FMCG majors, wealth creation for founders
SoftBank sitting on $550 million of gains on listed Indian bets so far in 2023
No new SaaS unicorns so far in 2023 as funding winter lingers, says Bessemer report
Japan's Mixi debuts $50 million fund to back India's early-stage entertainment startups
Vijay Shekhar Sharma goes all in, is now the largest shareholder in Paytm
Macro:
US stocks rise post inflation data
July consumer prices gained 3.2% on an annual basis, less than the 3.3% consensus from economists polled by Dow Jones
On a month-to-month basis, inflation increased 0.2%, in-line with estimates
The report also said real average weekly earnings were unchanged last month in another positive sign.
Shanghai’s SSE and Hong Kong’s HSI closed mixed after China reported economic data approaching deflation
UPS drivers are getting paid like investment bankers
Citadel boosted its fixed-income presence
Brookfield expects record inflows in 2023
WeWork’s struggles paint a dim picture for the NYC office market
Top Reads:
This Financial Times piece gives an excellent breakdown of how Carl Icahn tried to turn his company’s dividend into a perpetual motion machine before Hindenburg Research’s short report.
This WSJ piece explains how hiring difficulties in Asian factories are threatening the era of ultra-cheap goods in the west.