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Centre may give rewards up to Rs 1 cr to benami property secret informers

China’s attempts to reduce risks from its rapid build-up in debt are not working as quickly as expected and credit growth is still too fast, S&P Global Ratings said, a day after it downgraded the country’s sovereign credit rating.

September 22, 2017 / 10:10 pm IST

21:41 The Centre is planning to give out cash rewards to the tune of Rs one crore to secret informers who provide tip-offs to investigative agencies in connection with Benami Properties, news agency ANI reported.

The initiative is likely to be announced by next month. A senior Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) official who is part of the policy-making said on condition of anonymity, "An informer will get minimum Rs 15 lakh and maximum Rs 1 crore."

21:26 The Delhi Metro today started full signaling trials of its new 'driverless trains' along a 20-km-long stretch on the upcoming Pink Line, taking a major leap towards the eventual commissioning of the corridor.

21:25 President Trump’s ban on travelers from six majority-Muslim countries is set to be replaced as soon as this weekend with more targeted restrictions on visits to the United States that would vary by country, officials familiar with the plans told The New York Times.

21:11 Oil prices were steady on Friday, as investors waited to see whether major producers meeting in Vienna would back an extension to output cuts beyond March next year, Reuters reported.

Brent crude futures were up 28 cents at $56.71 a barrel at 1351 GMT, their highest since March. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 2 cents, at $50.53 per barrel.

20:52 Prime Minister Theresa May called on Friday for Britain to stay in the European Union's single market during a roughly two-year transition out of the EU while offering concessions on a divorce deal as she appealed for a revival of Brexit negotiations, Reuters reported.

20:46 Masala bonds or rupee-denominated bonds issued overseas would now be part of only external commercial borrowings and not be part of the overall limit of corporate bonds to allow about Rs 44,000 crore more funds under corporate debt, RBI said in a notification today.

20:20 Investor wealth saw an erosion of Rs 2.68 lakh crore on Friday dragged down by massive selling in the stock market where the BSE benchmark index tumbled 448 points.

20:19 Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh used to organise a 'Bigg Boss'-like show in his secret cave involving couples, Honeypreet Insan's former husband today claimed as he also dismissed as a sham that she was the Dera Sacha Sauda chief's adopted daughter.

20:16 Karnataka BJP chief BS Yeddyurappa today welcomed the High Court's decision to grant an interim stay on FIRs filed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) against him for alleged illegal denotification of land by him as chief minister.

Alleging that the case was filed against him out of "political malice", he accused Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and others of "conspiring" to "fix" him.

20:14 In the wake of some fake I-T raid incidents, the revenue department today said taxpayers should seek and inspect the warrant of authorisation before allowing income tax officials to search their premises.

20:11 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said the process for Air India disinvestment is moving "quite well" and transaction advisors would be appointed soon.

19:23 OPEC and other oil producers will not take a decision until January on whether to extend their pact to curb oil production, Russia's Energy Minister Alexander Novak said today.

19:08 Capital-depleting bad assets are the "core area of concern" and government "stands one" with the banking system in difficult times, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said today, promising expeditious help to strengthen it.

"The government certainly stands one with the banking system. Whatever steps that are required to be taken to find a resolution to this problem (of stressed assets), we will expeditiously work with India's banking system in order to strengthen it," he said.

The FM's comments were made at the Indian Banks Association's annual general meeting.

19:06 The CBI has issued fresh summonses to RJD supremo Lalu Prasad and his son Tejashwi Yadav for questioning in connection with alleged graft in giving maintenance contracts of two IRCTC hotels to a private firm, officials said today.

19:05 Corporates can have only two layers of subsidiaries under the companies law, with the government putting in place stricter norms as it continues with the clampdown on illicit fund flows.

While the rules would be applicable prospectively, companies that already have more than two layers of subsidiaries have to furnish details about them to the government.

Banking and non-banking financial companies as well as insurance firms and government companies have been exempted from the restrictions, according to a notification issued by the corporate affairs ministry.

19:03 Markets regulator SEBI has ordered attachment of bank and demat accounts as well as mutual fund folios of 10 firms to recover dues amounting to Rs 1.23 crore.

19:01 Expressing anguish over the death of a newborn girl child at a city government hospital, the Delhi High Court today suggested putting online the details of medical facilities available at the medical centres.

18:58 Explosives have been found in a passenger's bag at Bagdogra airport in the West Bengal, India Today reported.

18:40 British police said today that they had charged an 18-year-old man with attempted murder in connection with last week’s bomb attack at Parsons Green station in London, Reuters reported.

18:38 Justifying the issuance of a lookout notice against Karti Chidambaram, the CBI today claimed before a bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra that "shocking" details have emerged during his foreign visits which were directly connected to the FIR lodged in the corruption case.

18:36 The Supreme Court today asked the Chief Secretaries of 22 states to file compliance reports in pursuance of its order on laying down a mechanism to sternly deal with cow vigilante groups, saying "nobody can wash off their hands".

18:35 OPEC and other oil producers are evaluating all options in their efforts to reduce a supply glut, including extending their pact to cut supplies that is due to expire in March, Venezuelan Oil Minister Eulogio Del Pino said today.

18:07 The CBI today claimed in the Supreme Court that a lookout notice was issued against Karti Chidambaram, son of former Union Minister P Chidambaram, to prevent him from travelling abroad as he was closing several of his foreign bank accounts.

The apex court, which was hearing the matter relating to a corruption case against Karti, was informed by the agency that several issues have come out during the investigation and many others were expected to be revealed.

17:55 The United States wants Myanmar to take urgent action to end violence in Rakhine state, where a military offensive has created a crisis that could jeopardise its economic and political transition, a US official told Reuters today.
Bangladesh and aid organisations are struggling to help 422,000 Rohingya Muslims who have arrived since August 25, when attacks by Rohingya militants triggered a Myanmar crackdown that the United Nations has branded ethnic cleansing.

17:53 Slain Pakistan prime minister Benazir Bhutto's daughters today hit out at Pervez Musharraf for accusing their father Asif Ali Zardari of being
responsible for her assassination, calling the former dictator a "murderer" and "coward".

17:35 A meeting on Friday of several ministers from OPEC and other oil producers is not likely to make a specific recommendation on extending a deal to cut output beyond the March 2018 expiry, two OPEC sources told Reuters.

17:34 The Election Commission will hear the dispute over the ‘two leaves’ symbol of the AIADMK on October 5, six months after it was frozen when the two warring factions of the party had staked claim to it. The EC has given the rival factions time till September 29 to file fresh submissions.

17:20 A Delhi court has awarded life term to a former soldier for shooting dead a doctor of a reputed private hospital here in 2012, saying he had been "showing criminal bent of mind" even earlier.

16:54 The central government today announced that the benefit of interest subsidy of about Rs 2.6 lakh on home loans under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Urban will now be available for beneficiaries belonging to Middle Income Groups for 15 more months beyond December this year.

16:44 Industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has called on the RBI to cut interest rates by as much as 100 basis points. President Shobhana Kamineni, in an interview with CNBC TV18, also called for a depreciation of the rupee.

16:36 SBI Life Insurance Company's initial public offer received good response from institutional investors today, the last day for subscription.

The Rs 8,400-crore public issue was oversubscribed 3.52 times, according to latest data available on exchanges.

The company has received bids for 31.01 crore shares against the total IPO size of 8.82 crore shares, excluding anchor investors' portion.

16:29 Uber said it would challenge a decision by London’s transport regulator on Friday to strip it of its licence to operate from the end of the month, Reuters reported.
Transport for London said Uber, whose licence expires on September 30, would be allowed to continue to operate while the appeals process was exhausted.

16:23 Days after his arrest in Mumbai, Dawood Ibrahim’s brother Iqbal Kaskar revealed during his interrogation by Thane police commissioner Parambir Singh that he was in regular touch with Dawood's wife Mehjabeen and also made a sensational revelation that she was in the city last year, India Today reported.

16:16 Japanese two-wheeler manufacturer Yamaha will invest more than Rs 200 crore for its expansion plans that would take the total investment in the Chennai factory to Rs 1,500 crore, Deputy Managing Director – Business Expansion Group, India Yamaha Motor, Riuji Kawashima, told Financial Express.

15:54 London's transport regulator on Friday stripped Uber of its licence to operate in the city from the end of the month, affecting over 40,000 drivers in a huge blow to the taxi app.

"Uber's approach and conduct demonstrate a lack of corporate responsibility in relation to a number of issues which have potential public safety and security implications," Transport for London said.

The final day of Uber's licence will be on September 30.

In London, Uber has faced criticism from unions, lawmakers and traditional black cab drivers over working conditions.

Globally, Uber has endured a tumultuous few months after a string of scandals involving allegations of sexism and bullying at the company, leading to investor pressure which forced out former CEO and co-founder Travis Kalanick.

15:44 In a temporary relief for state BJP chief BS Yeddyurappa, the Karnataka High Court granted an interim stay on FIRs filed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau against him for alleged illegal denotification of land by him as chief minister. Justice Aravind Kumar granted the interim stay on the grounds of lack of sufficient material to prove cognisable offences of Yeddyurappa under the Prevention of Corruption Act or IPC, both in the complaint and preliminary probe conducted by ACB.

15:40 Homegrown FMCG major Dabur India has tied up with e-commerce major Amazon for an online ayurveda marketplace which will house all ayurvedic brands and products available in the country, reports PTI. The company, which will also offer consumers an insight into various ayurvedic medicines for treating a variety of ailments, said the idea is to service all health and personal care related needs of patients.

15:37 China’s attempts to reduce risks from its rapid build-up in debt are not working as quickly as expected and credit growth is still too fast, S&P Global Ratings said, a day after it downgraded the country’s sovereign credit rating, reports Reuters. While S&P warned months ago that a cut may be on the cards, it said it decided to make the call after concluding that China’s “de-risking” drive that started early this year was having less of an impact on credit growth than initially expected.

15:34 European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said Europe needs to tackle high youth unemployment to safeguard democracy, public trust and growth, reports Reuters. With almost a fifth of young people out of work, Europe’s ability to innovate may suffer, its cohesion is put at risk and the trust in public institutions could be undermined, Draghi said.

15:33 Nepal will measure Mount Everest afresh to settle a controversy over height of the world’s tallest peak, especially after some estimates suggested it became a little shorter in the wake of an earthquake two years ago, reports Reuters. Nepal, home to Mount Everest and half of the world’s 14 highest mountains, has never measured the peak on its own and uses its snow height of 8,848 meters (29,028 feet) that was measured by the Survey of India in 1954. Many Western climbers use the height of 8,850 meters (29,035 feet) determined in 1999 by the National Geographic Society and Boston’s Museum of Science, in a survey that used satellite-based technology to measure the peak.

15:30 Japanese two-wheeler manufacturer Yamaha will invest more than Rs 200 crore for its expansion plans that would take the total investment in the Chennai factory to Rs 1,500 crore, reports PTI. "Investments will be about Rs 200 crore.. This will be for new Assembly line in the factory.. That will take the production to nine lakh units..," India Yamaha Motor, Deputy Managing Director - Business Expansion Group, Riuji Kawashima, said.

15:25 The Supreme Court dismissed a plea of Bollywood film producer Karim Morani challenging the Hyderabad High Court verdict cancelling his bail in a rape case, reports PTI. A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud asked the producer to surrender before the Telangana Police in connection with the case. The Hyderabad High Court on September 5 had upheld the decision of the sessions court cancelling bail of Morani in the rape case.

15:24 The Income Tax Department has asked taxpayers, who file ITRs and conduct other I-T businesses online, to update their profiles and vital details on the official e-filing portal to ensure an "effective communication" between the two, reports PTI. The department issued an advisory asking taxpayers to furnish their latest information such as personal and secondary email and mobile phone numbers, address and bank account details. These details will be verified and processed after the taxpayer is sent a One Time Password (OTP) over the email and through SMS over the phone.

15:21 Fashion designer Rohit Bal was arrested allegedly after quarrelling with his neighbour in south Delhi's Defence Colony in the early hours today, reports PTI. The police were informed by Bal's neighbour. It is suspected that the designer was under the influence of alcohol when the incident took place around 1 am, they said. He was arrested and later granted bail, said a senior police officer.

14:45 Power giant NTPC said it has received shareholders' approval to raise Rs 15,000 crore via non-convertible bonds on private placement basis for capex, working capital and other corporate purposes, reports PTI. According to the proposal, the company will raise Rs 15,000 crore through non-convertible debentures (bonds) up to Rs 15,000 crore in one or more tranches or series not exceeding 30, through private placement, in the domestic market for capital expenditure, working capital and other general requirements.

14:37 Dawood Ibrahim is in Pakistan, but scared to call his kin in India for the last three years, his brother Iqbal Kaskar has told interrogators from the Intelligence Bureau and the Thane police’s crime branch, reports PTI. Kaskar was arrested by Thane police this week in Mumbai in a case of extortion.

14:30 China said the Kashmir issue should be resolved bilaterally by India and Pakistan through talks, while dismissing calls by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation for the implementation of the UN resolution on the dispute, reports PTI.

14:24 State-owned power equipment maker BHEL said it will create a diversified portfolio for its next wave of growth that will include areas like solar energy, transportation and water business, reports PTI. Going beyond thermal power, other areas for capitalising on emerging opportunities include defence and aerospace "to increase the share of business from non-coal areas", BHEL CMD Atul Sobti said at the 53rd Annual General Meeting here.

14:08 As many as 727 border dwellers caught in shelling and firing by Pakistani troops along the International Border in Jammu and Samba districts have been evacuated to safer places by the police, reports PTI. Six civilians were injured on Thursday as Pakistani troops targeted Indian border outposts and villages along the International Border (IB) in Jammu and Samba districts.

14:02 Lending rate cuts are the only viable way to economic recovery as they would perk up demand and push investments, reports PTI, quoting Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The report said structural reforms take long time of 5-10 years to reflect in the growth rate or revive stranded projects. “Lending rate cuts hold key to recovery. They would push up demand, put idle factories to work and spark off investment when capacity is exhausted," BofA-ML said. With 2017-18 likely to see sufficient USD 35 billion of reserve money, lending rates should come off 25bps before the October-March busy season sets in (and 50bps by September 2018), the report added.

13:54 The Rs 8,400-crore public issue of SBI Life Insurance Company has been oversubscribed 1.47 times, as per latest data available on the exchanges. The initial public offer has received bids for 13 crore shares as against its issue size of 8.82 crore shares, excluding the anchor investors' portion. The reserved category of qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) has seen oversubscription of 4.83 times, while the portion set aside for non-institutional and retail investors have been subscribed 13% and 63%, respectively.

13:29 Amit Masurkar’s acclaimed political satire Newton has been selected as India’s official submission for the Best Foreign Film language category at the Oscars. Rajkummar Rao plays Newton Kumar, a presiding officer who is determined to hold a free and fair election in a Chhattisgarh village despite the threat of Naxalite violence and all-round cynicism. The movie, produced by Drishyam Films and distributed by Eros Entertainment, also stars Pankaj Tripathi, Anjali Patil and Raghubir Yadav, and was released on September 22.

13:26 Metals stocks extended Thursday's losses on Friday as the Nifty Metal index dropped over 2% on correction in global metals prices post North Korea tensions and after S&P downgraded China's credit rating. Jindal Steel, Hindalco Industries, SAIL, NALCO, Vedanta, Tata Steel and Hindustan Zinc are trading with cuts of 2-5%.

13:22 Euro zone banks have not done enough to wind down their excessively large pile of soured loans and need to take action now instead of waiting for government help, reports Reuters. European Central Bank supervisor Pentti Hakkarainen said, “The relative slow pace of progress may partially reflect the lower incentives that banks have to fix things whilst interest rates remain low.”

13:19 China’s small banks are struggling to raise funds through short-term instruments as a regulatory squeeze combines with tight liquidity ahead of the quarter-end and Golden Week holiday, reports Reuters. With few options for funding, some banks have returned to issuing negotiable certificates of deposit (NCDs), a form of non-collateralised short-term funding that regulators have tried to discourage in their battle against speculative financing.

The premium paid by lower-rated Chinese banks over higher-rated ones for NCDs spiked last week, highlighting risks to the country’s smaller lenders. The spread between three-month AAA- and AA-rated NCDs hit 51 basis points, the highest on record. While the spread has narrowed, analysts say it points to a trend of higher financing costs for weaker lenders.

13:17 European shares fell in early deals on Friday on fresh tension on the North Korean front, while L‘Oreal rallied in Paris on talk about possible ownership changes at the cosmetics giant, reports Reuters. L‘Oreal rose more than 4% after billionaire Liliane Bettencourt, whose family founded the firm and still owns the largest stake in it, died.

13:15 Punjab National Bank plans to raise up to Rs 5,000 crore to meet its Basel-III needs, reports CNBC-TV18. The board will decide on the fund raising at its September 27 meet.

13:08 Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has slammed the RSS, accusing it of trying to impose a unitary structure of "Hindu, Hindi, Hindusthan", reports PTI. Addressing the "State Autonomy Conference", organised by Viduthalai Chiruthagal Katchi (VCK), Vijayan alleged that the RSS and "its directed BJP" were trying to "break" the concept of federalism. "The RSS wants to weaken states. As part of that, they are encroaching on federalism and trying to create a unitary structure of Hindi, Hindu and Hindusthan. The BJP is (also) doing that but such efforts must be foiled," he alleged.

13:00 Superstar Rajinikanth said he extended “full support” to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Swachhata Hi Seva’ mission. Cleanliness was godliness, the 66-year-old said on Twitter, backing the initiative under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. “I extend my full support to our hon Prime Minister @narendramodi ji’s #SwachhataHiSeva mission. Cleanliness is godliness,” Rajinikanth tweeted. The “Kabali” actor has been hinting for some time that he might take the political plunge.

12:58 Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said stressed assets are the biggest area of concern for the banking sector. He was addressing bankers at an event organised by the Indian Banks' Association. On demonetisation, Jaitley gave banks a pat on their back saying banks had a major role in moving India to digitisation and a cashless economy.

12:41 Hewlett Packard Enterprise Co is planning to cut about 10% of its staff, or at least 5,000 workers, part of a broader effort to pare expenses as competition mounts, reports Bloomberg. The reductions are expected to start before the end of the year and is likely to affect workers in the US and abroad, including managers.

12:29 Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has raked up the cattle class remark by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor way back in 2009, The Times of India reports. Parrikar said he has started travelling in economy class only after joining politics. He then took a dig at Tharoor over his infamous ‘cattle class’ remark. Parrikar then went on to say that the economy class was not cattle class as it was quite comfortable. Tharoor had said that he would travel “in cattle class in solidarity with all our holy cows”.

12:27 Iran will strengthen its missile capabilities and will not seek permission from any country to do so, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said. “We will increase our military power as a deterrent. We will strengthen our missile capabilities ... We will not seek permission from anyone to defend our country,” Rouhani said in a speech broadcast on state television.

12:24 Thousands of residents were evacuated from villages near an active volcano on the Indonesian island of Bali as seismic tremors rattled some areas and smoke rose above one of the world’s most popular tourist spots, reports Reuters. The alert status for Mount Agung in eastern Bali was at 3, one level below the highest, and authorities warned tourists and residents to avoid camping or hiking within a 6 km radius of the crater. “Volcanic activity remains high and there are indications of magma rising to the surface and causing tremors,” said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho of the National Disaster Management Agency.

12:21 The Centre is open to cut gold import tax further after slashing it to 5-6%, reports NewsRise. It expects the Watal-led panel to submit a report on gold policy by December 31.

12:20 Pakistan said that National Security Advisor Ajit Doval's "offensive defence and double squeeze" strategy to make India a regional hegemon will never succeed, reports PTI. "The strategy offensive defence and double squeeze floated blatantly by NSA Doval which India believes can make it a regional hegemon can never succeed," Tipu Usman, Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Pakistan to the United Nations, said.

12:15 Mercator's promoter has created a pledge on their 28 lakh shares. The stock is trading 2.2% lower in a weak market.

12:06 India’s most wanted man Dawood Ibrahim lives in Pakistan, his brother Iqbal Kaskar has told investigators, reports CNN-News18Kaskar revealed the terror don’s four addresses in Karachi. He also said that Dawood is wary of calling his relatives or his men in India on phone for fear of tapping. Kaskar also told the interrogators that he has spoken with his other brother, Anees Ibrahim, who lives with Dawood only four or five times in the recent past.

12:04 AIADMK MP Vasanthi Murugesan has joined the Edappadi Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam camp. He alleges that TTV Dhinakaran is trying to merge with the DMK, reports CNN-News18.

11:56 Jamie Dimon, Chairman, JPMorgan Chase, feels it would be a mistake to allow North Korea to have nuclear weapons. In an exclusive interaction with CNBC-TV18, Dimon said he doesn’t expect a nuclear war from North Korea but was quick to caution that markets have not priced in any nuclear attack.

11:44 Apple’s launch of iPhone 8 kicked off in a less lively mood in Asia, versus previous debuts, as fans held out for the premium iPhone X due out in early November, reports Reuters. Hundreds of people usually gather at Apple’s Sydney city store with queues winding down the town’s main street, George Street, when there is a new product release. But there were fewer than 30 people lining up before the store opened on Friday. While the number of people queuing up outside Apple stores have dropped over the years with many opting for online purchases, the weak turnout for the latest iPhone has partly been due to poor reviews.

11:32 The rupee dived to a six-and-a half-month low on news reports that government is planning a Rs 40,000 crore fiscal stimulus to the economy to boost exports, support MSMEs, and expand bank credit, even at the cost of letting the fiscal deficit widen a little. The rupee dropped 34 paise to a six-and-a-half month low level of 65.15 against the dollar on frenetic dollar demand from importers and banks. The early losses in domestic equity markets and unabated foreign fund outflows also weighed on the rupee.

11:28 China lashed out at the decision by Standard & Poor's to downgrade the country's credit rating, calling the warning against ballooning debt "mistaken" and based on "cliches" about its economy, reports AFP. The agency slashed China from AA-minus to A-plus on Thursday, a move that followed a similar decision in May by Moody's stemming from concerns that the world's second largest economy is increasingly overleveraged. "Standard & Poor's downgrade of China's sovereign credit rating is a mistaken decision," the finance ministry said, adding that the move was "perplexing."

11:20 The Bank of Japan should maintain its massive monetary stimulus and enhance its communication of how it expects to achieve its 2% inflation target, a senior IMF official told Reuters. Odd Per Brekk, the International Monetary Fund’s mission chief for Japan, said the BoJ will likely lag behind the US Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank in normalising monetary policy. “But we think this is appropriate, as monetary policy is focused on domestic conditions and domestic conditions are different among countries and regions,” he said.

11:12 The Income Tax department, which began search operations at Coffee Day Group companies and the other premises owned by founder VG Siddhartha on Thursday, will continue with its operations today, officials told The Economic Times. “We don’t finish our searches normally on a single day,” an IT official said, adding that it would continue on Friday. The IT officials, who began their operations in the morning, continued them till after midnight, and are questioning a senior executive.

11:02 SBI Life Insurance Company's initial public offering has been fully subscribed on its final day. The 8,400-crore public issue has been oversubscribed 1.15 times, as per data available on the exchanges. The IPO received bids for 10.18 crore shares against its IPO size of 8.82 crore shares, excluding the anchor investors' portion.

10:56 Market volatility as gauged by the India VIX is up 6% at 12.35%. The benchmark indices have broken their key supports, with market participants not turning bearish. Given the holidays on the weekend, investors may not want to rollover bullish positions to Monday.

10:45 China is about to get its first new central bank chief in 15 years, and the ultimate selection for the hot seat could demonstrate what Beijing is planning for the world's second-largest economy, reports CNBC. Zhou Xiaochuan, the head of the People's Bank of China, is expected to retire soon. He's had the job since 2002, making him China's and the G-20's longest-serving central bank head, working under three Chinese presidents and alongside three US Federal Reserve governors. One of his greatest accomplishments was to end a direct peg of China's yuan to the dollar, allowing market forces to play a greater role in setting the value of the currency.

10:41 The Reliance Home Finance scrip made a stellar debut in trade today. Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Ravindra Sudhalkar, CEO, Reliance Home Finance, said the company is looking to grow is loan book at 50% CAGR over the next three-to-four years. It is looking to maintain its net interest margin (NIM) at 3.5% and grow its housing finance business to 60% by FY20. The housing finance company is targeting return of assets (RoA) of 1.5% by FY20.

10:26 Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin unveiled a new round of US sanctions against North Korea, this time targeting banks that, he said, "enable this regime's economic activity," reports CNBC. "This new executive order will authorise Treasury to impose a range of sanctions such as suspending US corresponding account access to any foreign bank that knowingly conducts or facilitates significant transactions tied to trade with North Korea," Mnuchin said, but will only apply only to future behaviour. The Treasury Department also intends to freeze the assets of "anyone conducting significant trade in goods, services or technology with North Korea," Mnuchin said.

10:21 The rupee dropped 31 paise to a four-month low level of 65.12 against the dollar on frenetic dollar demand from importers and banks. Dealers said early losses in domestic equity markets and unabated foreign fund outflows weighed on the rupee. On Thursday, the rupee plummeted by a whopping 54 paise to end at 64.81 a dollar, its weakest level in over two-and-half-months after the US Federal Reserve left the door open for a rate hike in December.

10:13 The Reliance Home Finance, the subsidiary of Reliance Capital, is locked at its 5% upper circuit on debut. The stock opened at Rs 107.20, with traded volumes of 6.24 lakh shares on the National Stock Exchange. However, the Reliance Capital scrip was trading 3% lower at Rs 696 in a weak market.

10:10 New Delhi Television (NDTV) share hit its 5% upper circuit after a media report said that founder and owner of SpiceJet Ajay Singh has picked up majority stake in the news channel. The report stated that Ajay Singh will hold around 40% stake in NDTV while promoters Prannoy and Radhika Roy will hold around 20% in the company.

09:58 Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in his Lok Sabha constituency Varanasi today for a two-day visit during which he will inaugurate several projects covering sectors like infrastructure, railways, financial inclusion and sanitation. Follow live updates here

09:26 Which stocks are on the wish-list of foreign and domestic brokerages today, click here to find out

08:48 Over 500 meat and chicken shops in Gurugram were allegedly shut down by Shiv Sena workers for Navratri festival, reports PTI. "We have served notices to every meat and chicken shop. This time we have not served notices to restaurants, such as KFC and other food chains which serve chicken in their restaurants as it is not seen openly. One will have to face consequences in case he does not follow instructions," general secretary and spokesperson of Shiv Sena Gurugram wing Ritu Raj said.

08:47 India on Friday gave a fitting response to Pakistan’s rhetoric at the United Nations, saying the neighbour has now become synonymous with terrorism, reports CNN-News18. “In its short history, Pakistan has become a geography synonymous with terror. The quest for a land of pure has actually produced “the land of pure terror”. Pakistan is now ‘Terroristan’, with a flourishing industry producing and exporting global terrorism,” Eenam Gambhir, India’s First Secretary to the United Nations, said at the world body.

08:35 To read about all the stocks that will be in news today, click here

08:32 Yoga guru Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved has hired two investment banks to raise structured credit worth Rs 1,000 crore, reports The Mint.

08:27 Standard and Poor’s lowered Hong Kong’s long-term rating from AAA to AA+ following its earlier downgrade of China’s sovereign rating, reports Reuters. “We see very strong institutional and political linkages between China and the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong. Following the earlier downgrade of the sovereign credit rating on China, we are lowering the rating on Hong Kong to reflect potential spillover risks to the SAR should deleveraging in China prove to be more disruptive than we currently expect,” S&P said. The rating agency changed Hong Kong’s outlook to stable from negative, and said it expected Hong Kong to “maintain its strong credit metrics across the board in the next two to three years”.

08:24 India’s standing as a labour arbitrage market could survive for the next three decades, IT consultancy Everest Group said, and that it was unlikely that previously offshored work would return to its home market, reports The Economic Times.

08:17 European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said monetary policy is not the right instrument to address financial imbalances in the euro zone and macro prudential tools must be used to tackle local issues, reports Reuters. “Financial and business cycles can potentially become de-synchronised, meaning that financial imbalances can grow in an environment characterised by relatively muted inflation,” Draghi said.

08:13 Britain is willing to pay EUR 20 billion (USD 24 billion) to the European Union during a post-Brexit transition period, but only if it has access to the bloc's single market, the BBC reports. Prime Minister Theresa May, who is weakened after losing her party's majority in a June election, is due to make a speech in Italy setting out her vision for future ties.

08:07 The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has trimmed India’s growth forecast for the current financial year, citing the temporary impact of the rollout of the goods and services tax and demonetisation, expecting the economy to expand at a slower pace than China. OECD said India’s economy will likely grow 6.7% in FY18, lower than its estimate of 7.3% in June.

07:57 Reliance Capital will be in focus today as its demerged home finance business - Reliance Home Finance - will list on the bourses.

07:54 The Goods & Services Tax (GST) has had some impact in the economic slowdown. September 20 was the last date to file returns for August. Total returns that have been filed stands at 49 lakh. Speaking exclusively to CNBC-TV18, Prakash Kumar, the CEO of the GST Network, said only 31 lakh people have filed their return for August, but he is hopeful that more people will file their returns with a penalty for the month of July. He admitted that a software bug did hamper the return filing process.

07:44 The Centre is considering a plan to loosen its fiscal deficit target to enable it to spend up to Rs 500 billion ($7.7 billion) more to halt an economic slowdown, reports Reuters. Growth in Asia’s third-largest economy slowed to a three-year low of 5.7% in the quarter that ended in June, and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Wednesday that the government was looking for ways to speed it up. The officials said the extra spending was estimated to widen the federal fiscal deficit for the financial year ending next March to 3.7% of GDP from a budgeted target of 3.2%.

07:36 French businesswoman and billionaire Liliane Bettencourt, whose family founded L‘Oreal and still owns the largest stake in the cosmetics giant, has died aged 94, her daughter told Reuters. Bettencourt, listed by Forbes as the world’s richest woman, was the heiress to the beauty and cosmetics company her father founded just over a century ago as a maker of hair dye. Her death opens a new phase for L‘Oreal, France’s fourth-largest listed company, altering the relationship it has with key shareholder Nestle, the Swiss food company.

07:33 S&P Global Ratings downgraded China’s long-term sovereign credit rating on Thursday, less than a month ahead of one of the country’s most sensitive political gatherings, citing increasing risks from its rapid build-up of debt, reports Reuters. The rating agency’s one-notch downgrade to A+ from AA- comes as Beijing grapples with the challenges of containing financial risks stemming from years of credit-fuelled stimulus to meet ambitious government economic growth targets. “The downgrade reflects our assessment that a prolonged period of strong credit growth has increased China’s economic and financial risks,” S&P said, adding that the ratings outlook was stable.

07:30 Gold edged up from a four-week low on Friday as the latest twist in tensions between the United States and North Korea prompted investors to seek out the safe-haven asset. Holdings of SPDR Gold Trust (GLD) rose 0.73% to 852.24 tonne on Thursday from 846.03 tonne on Wednesday.

07:27 Oil prices held steady in early Asian trade on Friday as the market waited to see whether major oil producers would extend supply cuts beyond March at a meeting in Vienna later in the day. The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and other producers are set to meet in Vienna on Friday to discuss a possible extension of an oil supply cut deal to prop up prices.

07:25 Wall Street’s top regulator came under fire on Thursday over its cyber security and disclosure practices after admitting hackers had breached its database of corporate announcements in 2016 and may have used it for insider trading, reports Reuters. The breach involved the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s EDGAR filing system, which houses market-moving information with millions of filings ranging from quarterly earnings to statements on acquisitions.

07:24 The S&P 500 lost 0.3%, snapping a four-day winning streak, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.25% and Nasdaq dropped 0.5% on Thursday as the US equity market braced for a third interest rate hike this year. The United States ordering new sanctions against North Korea was also seen to have weighed on Wall Street, reports Reuters.

07:20 North Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs Ri Yong Ho said his country may consider a test of a hydrogen bomb in the Pacific Ocean, South Korea's official news agency Yonhap reports. Ri said the potential test of "the most powerful detonation of an H-bomb" would be one possible "highest-level" action against the US. Ri's threat is significant because such a detonation would move North Korea's nuclear weapons activities beyond its borders for the first time. Japan, for example, lies between North Korea and the Pacific Ocean.

07:12 The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, but the near-term outlook for the labour market was muddied by the continuing impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, reports Reuters.

Other data on Thursday showed manufacturing activity in the mid-Atlantic region accelerated in September amid a surge in new orders. But hiring by factories slowed and employees worked fewer hours this month compared to August.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 23,000 to a seasonally adjusted 259,000 for the week ended September 16, the Labor Department said. A Labor Department official said Harvey and Irma affected claims for Texas and Florida.

07:06 Asian stocks slipped on Friday but showed signs of steadying as the dust began to settle after the Federal Reserve’s hawkish policy statement, while investors looked to see how Chinese financial markets would react to a downgrade on the nation’s credit rating. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.15%, Australian stocks advanced 0.1% and South Korea's KOSPI fell 0.7%.

06:57 US President Donald Trump ordered new sanctions against North Korea on Thursday and Pyongyang’s leader defiantly vowed to persist with its nuclear and missile programs and said it would consider measures against the United States, reports Reuters. Tensions have risen as Pyongyang has resisted intense international pressure and the rhetoric between Trump and Kim Jong Un has also escalated.

The US president on Tuesday called him a ‘rocket man’ on a suicide mission and Kim described Trump early on Friday in Asia as “mentally deranged”. The escalating rhetoric came as even the UN Secretary General called for statesmanship to avoid “sleepwalking” into a war. South Korea, Russia and China all urged calm.

06:50 Good Morning Moneycontrol users. This blog will keep track of key global and local developments impacting business and markets through the day. Important local and global political developments will also find resonance here.

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