Good Morning! Queen of England passed away yesterday in the night. There is a heated debate on social media on we, as Indians, should be feeling about that. You can write how you feel as well as give feedback here.

We will feature the best arguments tomorrow on this newsletter.

Until then, here are:

Happy reading!

MARKET UPDATE

• BSE SENSEX : ₹59,688.22 (+1.12%)

• NIFTY 50 : ₹17,798.75 (+0.99%)

• NIFTY BANK : ₹40,208.95 (+1.91%)

• USD/INR : ₹79.705 (+0.11%)

• MCX GOLD : ₹50,365.00 (-0.28%)

• BRENT OIL : $88.85 (+0.97%)

• FII Net Cashflow : + ₹2913 crores

• DII Net Cashflow : - ₹213 crores

(As of 11:00 PM 8th September 2022)

ECONOMY

ECB raises rates by unprecedented 75 basis points

Key Facts:

• The European Central Bank (ECB) will raise three key interest rates by 75 basis points each, effective Sept. 14, 2022.

• The goal is to reduce inflation to a target of 2%.

• ECB forecasts of average inflation were increased to 8.1% in 2022, 5.5% in 2023, and 2.3% in 2024.

• The eurozone economy is expected to "stagnate" later in 2022 and through Q1 2023

The Story:

The Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB) voted to raise three key interest rates by 75 basis points (bp) each on Sept. 8, 2022, to take effect on Sept. 14. The ECB's Governing Council indicates that, during its next several meetings, it "expects to raise interest rates further to dampen demand and guard against the risk of a persistent upward shift in inflation expectations.

Policymakers had for weeks oscillated between a 50 and a 75 basis-point increase, but another jump in both headline and underlying inflation appears to have settled the debate as figures indicate that price growth is now seeping into the broader economy, making it even harder to root out. Indeed, the ECB raised its inflation projections once again, lifting the 2023 outlook to 5.5% from 3.5% and putting the 2024 rate at 2.3%, above its 2% target.

The ECB cites these factors as the main drivers of rising inflation right now in the eurozone: "soaring energy and food prices, demand pressures in some sectors owing to the reopening of the economy, and supply bottlenecks."

FMCG

More Onions for Guwahati

Key Facts:

• Government has procured 2.5 Lakh tonnes of onion

• .Onions are priced at Rs 18.13.

• Onion prices are at a 5 year low.

• Estimated onion production for 2021-22 is 31.70 million tonnes.

The Story:

Major onion producing states of India are Maharashtra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED), procured Rabi harvest: onion from farmers through Farmer Producer Organisations (FPO).

The production increased by 20% from 26.64 million tonnes to 31.70 million tonnes. 50,000 tonnes of onion from this production has been given to Guwhati, in order to control their prices of the vegetable.

Buffer stock: It is an inventory which the government creates in order to control the rising prices in open market for various cities.

Government procured 2.5 lakh of tonnes of onion from FPO in order to create buffer stock for the upcoming year 2022-23.

AUTOMOTIVE

Growth & Fall of Automotive Industry in August

Key Facts:

• Year on year (YOY) growth in August for the retail sale of automobiles is at 8.31%.

• Compared to pre-covid, the auto industry is observing a 7.45% fall in retail sales.

The Story:

Yesterday, FADA announced the retail sales of automotive's in India. The auto industry's overall growth is improving compared to the previous year. The shortage of semiconductor supply ragged up the waiting period for vehicles. Since then, Indian Automakers have managed to improve the supply chain since August 21, yet the delivery delay is tormenting the consumers. The 3-wheeler segment is the most appreciated market for Electric vehicles, & with the rise of fuel prices & introduction of a battery swapping policy, it is inferencing some potential in 2w, PV & CV.

Overall, automakers are optimistic about the festive season starting from September, starting with Onam & then Navratri. The promising approach will depend heavily on the price stability of vehicles. Although, the recent rise in safety concerns will impact the industry. This trend can cause a problem for the industry.

Extra bit to bite:

• Mahindra launches its XUV 400 EV, 400 kms range on a single charge, the first EV for Mahindra & Mahindra as a passenger vehicle.

tP.S: -Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA)

TECH

Fighting to survive, Tencent-backed Indian music app Gaana turns to subscriptions

The Story:

Tencent-backed Indian music streaming app Gaana has switched to a paid subscription model to avoid closing down after failing to secure fresh funds or find a buyer, according to an email sent to some music partners seen by Reuters.

Gaana competes with the likes of Spotify, Apple Music and Airtel's Wynk music app in an Indian streaming market estimated by data firm Statista to be worth $700 million this year.

In the email sent this week, Gaana's head of content and partnerships, Sachin Kamble, said the company had not been able to "bring in fresh investments" and sought support for a new paid model of the service.

Want More Bits?

Could Humans live forever?

Humans could become immortal after a breakthrough in jellyfish science. A group of scientists from a university in Spain has been studying the Immortal Jellyfish, more precisely known as the Turritopsis Dohrnii, which can switch from adult life back to larval stages. They have successfully identified the DNA part that allows it to age backward and found part of it to be similar to human DNA. The knowledge could one day be used to reverse aging in humans, the paper claimed.