Good Morning! The new IOS 16 has reported a lot of bugs, but we at Bit by Bit are here to satiate your bug for knowledge.

So, here are:

Happy reading!

MARKET DATA

• BSE SENSEX : ₹59,456.78 (-0.44%)

• NIFTY 50 : ₹17,718.35 (-0.55%)

• NIFTY BANK : ₹41,203.45 (-0.64%)

• USD/INR : ₹80.052 (+0.36%)

• BRENTOIL : $90.06 (-0.61%)

• MCXGOLD : ₹49,404 (+0.47%)

• FII Net Cashflow : - ₹461 crores

• DII Net Cashflow : + ₹539 crores

(Market data as of 11:00 PM on 21th September 2022)

ECONOMY

US Federal Reserve delivers big rate hike, sees another large move higher this year

The Story:

The US Federal Reserve raised its target interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point to a range of 3.00%-3.25% on Wednesday. According to new projections, the policy rate will increase to 4.40% by the end of this year before peaking at 4.60% in 2023 to combat the country's persistently high inflation. The surge also hinted at future increases of even greater magnitude.

Stocks rose in volatile trading Wednesday after the Federal Reserve raised rates by three-quarters of a point and forecast more sizable rate hikes in its fight against inflation, actions widely expected by traders.

RETAIL

Reliance Retail is looking to acquire exclusive rights for Sephora in India

The Story :

Reliance Retail is in advanced talks to acquire the rights to Sephora in India. The change could result in Reliance Retail taking over operations from Sephora's present partner, Arvind Fashions Ltd. Sephora's master franchise rights for India are held by Arvind Fashions.

The largest retailer of luxury goods in the world, LVMH Mot Hennessy Louis Vuitton, owns the French multi-brand beauty products store Sephora. In India, brands like USPA, Tommy Hilfiger, Flying Machine, Arrow, Calvin Klein, and Sephora are run by Arvind Fashions Ltd.

According to the FY21 annual report from Arvind Fashions Ltd, Sephora has 24 locations across 12 cities in India. The beauty retailer with more than 2,700 outlets around the world is recognized for selling high-end cosmetics and fragrances from brands like Bobbi Brown, Benefit Cosmetics, Lancome, and others.

After dominating the country's clothes retail sector, Reliance Retail is now focusing on the beauty and personal care market. According to a 2021 report from Motilal Oswal Financial Services Limited (MOFSL), the Indian beauty retail market is anticipated to reach $2 trillion by 2025, driven by a higher propensity to shop online due to increased internet penetration as well as a sizable millennial and gen-Z population with aspirations and rising disposable incomes.

For more mainstream brands that will compete with companies like omnichannel beauty retailer Nykaa, Reliance Store is also leaning toward a multi-brand beauty retail approach.

INDUSTRY

Non-dealing pact signed by Adani group with foreign banks on cement stakes

Key Facts:

• Ambuja market cap was worth Rs. 1.13 trillion as of Tuesday while Adani’s stake was valued at Rs. 71,998 crores

• NDU’s stake of 57% is valued at Rs. 29,175 crores.

• The $6.4-billion acquisition was India’s largest ever inbound merger and acquisition transaction in the infrastructure and materials space and was closed in four months, a record.

The Story:

In order to raise money to buy two cement firms, the Adani Group signed a non-dealing undertaking with foreign banks on its full shares in Ambuja Cement and ACC. The group now owns 63.15% of Ambuja cement and 56.69% of ACC following the transaction. For the stakes, the Adani company paid Swiss cement giant Holcim $6.4 billion.

14 multinational institutions, including Barclays Bank, DBS Bank, and Deutsche Bank, provided the financing for the acquisition. Gautam Adani expressed his excitement on the acquisition, calling it a historic moment for the company. It is now the second-largest cement producer in the nation. By 2025, analysts project that Ambuja and ACC would be able to produce 100 million tonnes annually. Reduction in costs, power costs, lower fly ash sourcing costs, lower freight costs, increase in rakes, and no royalty payment are some of the benefits that the group will enjoy.

TECH

 Wipro dumping 300 employees for moonlighting

Key Facts:

•  According to Gartner, more than 30 percent of Indian workers will be working remotely by the end of 2022.

• Other than Wipro, IBM and Infosys have also warned their employees about the situation.

Story :

Moonlighting is the big buzzword currently in the IT sector, what exactly is moonlighting?

Moonlighting is referred to a condition where people are working on more than one job at a time. It is been stated in USLegal, “as a person holds a second job outside the normal working hours.” The term is inferred as a person working under moonlight (i.e., night-time)..

Recently in an interview, Rashid Premji (Executive Chairman of Wipro) with Economic Times said, “It is very simple. It is an act of integrity violation. We terminated the services of those people.” Executive Chairman and the firm have been very vocal about the situation and identified 300 people, who have been working for Wipro as well as its competitors.

Others too working in the IT sector have found it a violation of integrity and warned the employees of the same. Though in various other sectors, moonlighting is not identified as violating factor of integrity, would identify its advantage as cohesive growth of organizations. It is not possible to compare all the sectors in this situation because some would impart in partial favor and others would identify it as a violation.

Want More Bits?

PM CARES

The government said on Wednesday that eminent figures, including industrialist and former chairman of TATA Sons Ratan Tata, former Supreme Court justice KT Thomas, and former deputy Lok Sabha speaker Kariya Munda, have been nominated to serve as trustees of the PM CARES Fund.

The declaration was made the day after the newly appointed members, together with Union home minister Amit Shah and finance minister Nirmala Sitharman, attended the board of trustees meeting that was presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The formation of the advisory council was on the agenda for the meeting, and the PMO itself came up with some names.

Anand Shah and Rajiv Mehrishi, both previous chairs of the Infosys Foundation, as well as Sudha Murthy, a co-founder of Teach for India, have been proposed for the advisory board of the Fund.

It was mentioned that PM CARES has a bigger vision for efficiently responding to emergencies and distress situations, not just by providing relief help but also by taking precautions and creating capacity.