Good Morning! Jasprit Bumrah's injury might damper India's World Cup hopes, but Bit by Bit is not gonna leave you stranded this SIP week.

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MARKET DATA

• BSE SENSEX : ₹56,409.96 (-0.33%)

• NIFTY 50 : ₹16,818.10 (-0.24%)

• NIFTY BANK : ₹37,647.75 (-0.30%)

• USD/INR : ₹81.49 (+0.04%)

• BRENTOIL : $87.12 (-0.43%)

• MCXGOLD : ₹50,000.00 (+0.50%)

• FII Net Cashflow : - ₹3599 crores

• DII Net Cashflow : + ₹3162 crores

(Market Data as of 7:00 AM on 30/09/2022)

ECONOMY:

Government plans Import curbs to arrest Rupee fall.

The Story:

The government may target some "non-essential imports" through duty hikes to contain the elevated current account deficit (CAD) if the fall in the rupee against the greenback continues unabated.

Electronics imports, which have seen a substantial increase in recent months, are among the categories that the authorities have already increased monitoring of. When the US Federal Reserve turned to aggressive policy tightening to contain inflation, elevated CAD turned out to be a double blow for the rupee.

The significant merchandise deficit of $68.6 billion caused India's current account balance to post a deficit of 2.8% of its gross domestic product (GDP) in Q1FY23, up from 1.5% in Q4FY22.

A persistent increase in imports increased the trade imbalance even as merchandise exports hardly increased during the preceding two months, showing a decline in demand in important western markets. It reached a record $30 billion in July before declining slightly to $28 billion in August.

Electronics is the country's largest import segment after oil. Since the import duty on raw gold has already been extended to 15% from 10.75%, there is no scope for a further increase here. Official data showed that electronics imports jumped 35.3% in FY22 to a record $71.2 billion, making up almost 17% of the overall merchandise imports. In the first five months of this fiscal, such imports jumped 28.5% to $31.3 billion. Within this, consumer electronics imports climbed 74% annually to $3.4 billion until August this fiscal year. Similarly, imports of jewellery made of precious metals like gold spiked 151% between April and August from a year before to $437 million.

AUTOMOTIVE

Hero MotoCorp announces collaboration with California-based Zero Motorcycles

Key Facts:

• Hero MotoCorp is investing up to $60 million in the 16year old American OEM.

• Hero MotoCorp also has a partnership with Taiwanese battery sharing company Gogoro.

• The announcement comes just ahead of the launch of its first electric scooter under its new mobility brand Vida.

The Story:

Hero MotoCorp, the leading two-wheeler manufacturer in the nation, said that it is negotiating a collaboration arrangement with Zero Motorcycles, a premium electric motorcycle and powertrain manufacturer with headquarters in California (USA).

The market leader in electric motorcycles and powertrains is Zero Motorcycles. Zero Motorcycles is a California-based company that designs and builds traditional motorcycles with modern technologies to improve the riding experience for riders all over the world.

RETAIL

Reliance Retail launches premium fashion and lifestyle store AZORTE

Key Facts:

• The first AZORTE store spanning around 18,000 square feet opened in Bengaluru.

• The new store format was created with fashion-conscious customers in mind and incorporates a number of tech-enabled interventions including smart trial rooms, fashion discovery stations, limitless aisles, and self-checkout kiosks that would make shopping more fun.

The Story:

On September 29, Reliance Retail unveiled AZORTE, a chain of high-end fashion and leisure stores that will, according to India's largest retailer, carry the best in both international and modern Indian fashion.

The chain is the most recent addition to the portfolio of Reliance Retail's fashion and lifestyle brands.

According to Akhilesh Prasad, CEO of fashion and lifestyle at Reliance Retail, "Millennials and Gen-Z are increasingly seeking the newest in international and contemporary Indian fashion, making the midpremium fashion market one of the fastest growing customer groups. For the stylish clientele of the new India, AZORTE offers essentials for the wardrobe. The store includes top-notch technological innovations that will improve the consumer experience and make purchasing more enjoyable.

TECH

Durga Puja, this year on the metaverse

The Story:

The famous Durga Puja festival of Bengal will be seen in a completely new avatar this year, with the festival featuring on the metaverse. People will be able to virtually explore four big-ticket community pujas, communicate with other people on the platform and click pictures.

This is a joint project by the Indian start-up XP&D, it's group company Metaform and another form, Spatial. The platform will be launched on Thursday and it will be free to users this year

Two stalls from North and South Kolkata each will be featured on the platform this year. The company plans to introduce over a 100 stalls next year and eventually include all stalls in the platform. Users can create a virtual avatar and voice chat with each other on the platform which can be accessed through smartphones, tabs and VR headsets.

Metaform had also created a dugout experience for the IPL team, Guajarat titans.

Want More Bits?

History is made in aviation! "Alice," the first all-electric aircraft, makes its first flight.

The Story

Countries have been making significant efforts to lower carbon emissions from all transport-related sources. Countries are making every effort to reduce emissions, from expanding the use of electric vehicles such as cars and buses to more recently introducing electric aircraft. However, the inaugural flight of aviation Aircraft's zero-emission "Alice" aircraft marked a significant milestone for the aviation industry.

The historic moment occurred on September 28 at 7:10 a.m. when Alice was lifted off. Flying for eight minutes at a height of three thousand five hundred feet from Grant County International Airport (MWH). This new generation of aircraft has the power to transform communities by providing access to airports not currently used by commercial flights due to noise concerns or restricted operating hours. Gregory Davis, president and chief executive officer of Aviation, said, "Today we embark on the next era of aviation. With the amazing first flight of Alice, we have successfully electrified the skies." "This ground-breaking milestone will lead to innovation in sustainable air travel and shape both passenger and cargo travel in the future," says the company. "People now know what affordable, clean, and sustainable aviation looks and sounds like for the first time in a fixed-wing, all-electric aircraft." Compared to light jets or high-end turboprops, Alice emits no carbon dioxide, greatly reduces noise, and costs less to run every flight hour.

All-electric aircraft will revolutionise regional travel by enhancing its economic viability and environmental sustainability for both businesses and consumers. By allowing access to airports that are currently closed to commercial flights because to noise concerns or limited operation hours, this new breed of aircraft has the potential to drastically change communities. Electric flight will offer a clean, sustainable mode of transportation. Designed from the Ground Up to Transform Travel. The all-electric

Alice aircraft has three variants, including a nine-passenger commuter, a stylish and sophisticated six-passenger executive cabin, and a cargo version. Max operating speed for the all-electric Alice aircraft is 260 knots. The very effective and infinitely upgradeable sophisticated battery system in Alice enables range expansions as battery technology advances. The aircraft also features a fly-by-wire cockpit, which increases system redundancy and reliability