OPINION, P6 COMPANIES, P4 BIBEK DEBROY ‘Anti-hoarding’law doesn’t tackle seasonality of farm price spurts INTERNATIONAL, P8 SUNIL JAIN PERSONAL MOBILITY TAKING ACTION Farm laws setback marks the limits to reforms in Modi's 2nd term, like land Act fiasco did in the 1st BMW India lines up 25 new cars for 2021 to meet rising demand Twitter locks account of China's US embassy over Uighurs post KOLKATA, FRIDAY, JANUARY 22, 2021 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL. 30 NO. 71, 16 PAGES, `6.00 (NORTH EAST STATES & ANDAMAN `10.00) P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E SENSEX: 49,624.76 ▼ 167.36 NIFTY: 14,590.35 ▼ 54.35 NIKKEI 225: 28,756.86 ▲ 233.60 HANG SENG: 29,927.76 ▼ 34.71 `/$: 73.00 ▲ 0.03 `/€: 88.65 ▼ 0.09 BRENT: $55.86 ▼ $0.22 GOLD: `49,442 ▲ `356 DEFAULT STATUS STRONG EARNINGS Sensex breaches 50,000-mark SEBI ON Thursday imposed a penalty of `1 crore on HDFC Bank for invoking securities pledged by stock broker BRH Wealth Kreators in violation of the regulator's interim directions, reports PTI. The bank has also been told to transfer `158.68 crore along with 7% interest per annum into an escrow account. NSE arm acquires mkt data terminal firm Cogencis 49,950 Index Close Sensex 49,624.76 NASDAQ Composite 13,457.25 Nikkei 225 28,756.86 Dow Jones 31,188.38 CAC 40 5,619.15 FTSE 100 6,745 Shanghai Composite 3,621.26 Hang Seng 29,927.76 NSE DATA & Analytics, a subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), on Thursday said it has acquired Cogencis Information Services, provider of real-time market data terminals to institutional customers, reports PTI. But the financial details of the deal were not disclosed. 50,096.57 49,700 49,624.76 FE BUREAU Mumbai, January 21 49,450 Previous close : 49,200 Close Open Number of cos with a minimum Mcap of 778 `1,000 cr 950 800 650 49,792.12 715 Left-arm pacer T Natarajan gestures during a grand welcome ceremony, organised by people in his village, at Chinnappampatti in Tamil Nadu’s Salem district on Thursday 500 350 March 2017 Jan 2021* (Quarter ended) Source: Bloomberg As of Jan 21, 2021 than-expected revenues for the quarter. Meanwhile, Brent crude slipped 0.89% to $ 55.58 per barrel while the rupee added another 6 paise to settle at a nearfive-month high of 72.99 against the dollar. 99.7 96.2 83.2 67.8 62.1 60.5 49.4 38 Source: Bloomberg Verizon Media’s Nikhil Rungta on the definitive changes in consumer behaviour that brands need to take cognisance of, the trends in social commerce, and more ■ BrandWagon, P9 QuickPicks Govt may look to provide tax cuts for WFH employees: PwC THE GOVERNMENT could look at providing deductions for expenses incurred by salaried employees while working from home in the upcoming Budget as it looks to boost demand, consulting firm PwC India said on Thursday, reports PTI. Addressing a pre-Budget session, PwC India senior tax partner Rahul Garg said demand creation is particularly focussed on money being given or left in the hands of the individuals. Hero MotoCorp to roll out 10 products annually for next 5 yrs HERO MOTOCORP, the country’s largest motorcycle company, will introduce over 10 products, including variants, refreshes and upgrades, every year in the next five years, reports fe Bureau in Chennai. In this time frame, the company will aim to further consolidate its leadership position, expand its global footprint and work on innovative product concepts, the firm said. Unveiling the company’s 100th million vehicle on Thursday, Pawan Munjal, chairman & CEO, Hero MotoCorp, said: “We are going to continue to ride our growth journey.” PAGE 4 Govt not keen to roll over PLI milestones Under PLI, new production units need to be set up India very close to attaining positive growth: RBI PRESS TRUST OF INDIA Mumbai, January 21 INDIA'S GDPIS withinstriking distance of attaining positive growth, the Reserve Bank of India(RBI) said,observingthat the letter ‘V’ in the V-shaped recovery stands forvaccine. The government launched theworld’sbiggestvaccination drive on January 16 to protect people from Covid-19. “What will 2021 look like? The shape of the recovery will beV-shapedafterallandthe‘V’ stands for vaccine,” said an article on the ‘state of economy’in RBI’s January Bulletin. India has launched the biggestvaccinationdriveinthe world, backed by its comparative advantage of having the largestvaccinemanufacturing capacityin theworld and a rich experience of mass inoculation drives against polio and measles. “If successful,it will tilt the balance of risks upwards,”said the authorswho among others include RBI deputy governor Michael Debabrata Patra. Continued on Page 2 KIRAN RATHEE New Delhi, January 21 THE INITIALVIEW of the ministryofelectronicsandinformation technology (MeitY) is against rolling over first year’s production targets for companies which have been selected under the production-linked incentive(PLI)schemefordomesticmobile manufacturing. Officials said the ministry’s view is that rolling over the targetsmaynotbepossiblebecause These units need to meet investment targets & production targets over base year Firms have met investment targets but some may not be able to meet production targets to qualify for incentives * Since March 23 ● BOOSTER SHOT ‘Live streaming has taken off due to the pandemic’ HANDSET MAKERS Since firms like Samsung to meet production targets, it may not be proper to shift benchmarks only for some others $ return (%)* Special Features A HERO’S WELCOME ■ Different targets have been set for overseas manufacturers like Apple and Samsung and Indian players like Lava and Micromax the same was approved by the Cabinet, and any change may alsoneedtheCabinet’sapproval. Further,since some of the companies — for instance South Korean major Samsung — selected under the scheme wouldbeabletomeettheirpro- ■ The incentives range between 4% and 6% annually ■ ICEAhas urged govt that firms meeting investment targets but not production targets be given incentives on incremental production ■ The balance should be rolled over to next year ductiontargetsbyMarch2021, granting approval to some others which may miss the targets would be according a case-tocase treatment, and this would be against policyprinciples. Continued on Page 2 Mining LoI to be transferred to acquirer via insolvency route THEMINISTRYOFmineshasproposedtoallow transfer of letter of intent (LoI) handed out to a bidderevenbeforeprospectingorminingleases are granted,to the firm which acquires it later throughtheinsolvencyroute,reportsfeBureau inNewDelhi.TheMinerals(OtherthanAtomic andHydroCarbonsEnergyMineral)Concession Rules,2016,provides provision for transfer of mining lease orprospecting license-cum-mining lease granted through the auction route. However,the rule is silent on transferof LOI.To address this issue,the mines ministry has now comeoutwithadraftproposaltoamendtherelevantruleundertheAct. ■ Page 2 IN CONTROL IndiGo tightens grip in India and targets growth abroad ADITI SHAH & JAMIE FREED New Delhi/Sydney, Jan 21 INDIGO HAS EMERGED asone of the world’s biggest airlines by capacity, aided by a swift recovery in the domestic aviation market to nearly 80% of pre-pandemic levels and the financial strength to boost marketshareasrivalsstruggle. The airline is now the world’s seventh biggest by capacity and the largest outside the US and China,accord- By the end of 2021, I think we'll be totally back to normal. And I think 2022 will be a great year for us in terms of growth and profitability. —RONOJOY DUTTA, CEO, INDIGO ing to data firm OAG.It is a rare bright spot in a battered global aviation industry, providing a lifeline to squeezed lessors and aircraft manufacturers bypaying bills on time and in full. Continued on Page 2 WITH A HUGE spike in delinquent accounts after the pandemic, fin-techs have seen a sharp deterioration in their portfolios.At43%,fin-techshad eight times more delinquent accountsthanprivatebanksfor whom the comparable figure was 5% forAugust 2020,TransUnionCibilsaidinajointreport withtheDigitalLenders’Association of India (DLAI). There is a need for fin-techs to place greater focus on collections in the light of heightened delinquencies and a riskiercustomer base, the report said. “Compared to peer members, 0 10 20 30 7 Aug ‘19 Nov ‘19 Feb ‘20 May ‘20 Aug ‘20 5 9 18 22 43 Personal loan live accounts in+ DPD bucket Source: Fintech Collection Report 2021 the huge volumes sourced by fin-techs were largely smallticketloansandfromriskiersegments,” the report said. Continued on Page 2 Fire at SII: 5 dead, vaccine production not hit AFIREACCIDENTatthevaccine manufacturing facility of Serum Institute of India (SII) in Pune on Thursday claimed five lives, reports feBureauinPune.Thecompany, however, said the incident will not impact the pro- ductionoftheCovishieldvaccines. CEO Adar Poonawalla said therewould be no loss of Covishieldproductiondueto multiple production buildings kept in reserve to deal with such contingencies. ■ Report on Page 4 WANT ‘LEGAL’ MSP Farmers may accept proposal to defer laws FE BUREAU New Delhi, January 21 THE PROSPECT OF a resolution to the prolonged stand-off between farmers’ unions and the government over the contentious farm laws seemed bright for the first time on Thursday, with the unions reaching an informal understanding that they could ‘consider positively’ the government’s proposal to put the laws in abeyance for12-18 months. However,the decision,likely be conveyed to the government inthe11throundoftalksonFriday,wouldbecontingentonreinforcingtheminimumsupport price(MSP)systemwithexplicit legal guarantee, multiple sources from the farmers unions told FE on condition of anonymity. However, a statement issued by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha,anumbrellabodyofthe Farmers unions ready to accept government's offer to put the farm laws in abeyance, but to insist on legally guaranteed MSP ■ Decision not announced by unions for fear that it could derail Friday's talks with the government ■ Farmers reject government's offer to constitute committee on the issue ofMSP Farmers firm on taking out R-Day tractor march in Delhi agitating unions,was cautious. “In a full general bodymeet,the proposal put forth by the governmentyesterdaywasrejected.” Continued on Page 2 Future soars as RIL deal gets Sebi nod FUTURE RETAIL’S `24,713crore deal to sell its retail assetstoMukeshAmbani-led Reliance Industries has got approvals from stock exchanges with certain riders,reportsPTI.Theindebted groupwillhavetoseekshare- holders’ nod for the deal as well as get an approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT). Shares of Future Retail and Future Enterprises rose nearly 5% and hit upper circuit limits afterthe news. Not smooth-sailing for President Biden JOSH WINGROVE, JENNIFER EPSTEIN & JENNIFER JACOBS January 21 President Joe Biden, First Lady Jill, Vice-President Kamala Harris and her husband Douglas Emhoff at the steps of the US Capitol addressingthepandemic’sdamageto the economy. Representative Liz Cheney, the Wyoming Republican whovotedforTrump’simpeachment last week, faulted Biden’s first-day flurry of executive actions. More 50 3 POLICY CHANGES JOE BIDEN IS seeking to wipe away DonaldTrump’sfingerprintsfromUS policy,buthispredecessorleftlasting partisandivisionsinWashingtonthat pose a risk to getting the new president’s agenda through Congress. While Biden pleaded for unity in his inaugural address — “the most elusive of all things in a democracy,” he allowed — his top policy priorities, including coronavirus relief, were already running into headwinds. Several GOP senators led by Mitt Romney of Utah expressed misgivings about his $1.9-trillion plan for 40 8 PSU 50,200 % of accounts At 43%, fin-techs had 8 times more such accounts than private banks (Intra-day, Jan 21) PVT EQUITIES CONTINUEDTHEIR rallyonThursdaywiththeSensex crossing the 50,000-mark in intra-daytrades,forthe first time ever, but ending the session flat at 49,624.76. While the markets are expensive, expectations of earnings upgrades,following the fasterthan-anticipated recovery in the economy, have prompted investors to add to risk. Armed with liquidity, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs)continuetobetonIndian stocks having run up a bill of $2.7 billion in January alone, on the back of record purchases in the December quarter. Results reported by companies for the three months to December, 2020 quarter have largelybeaten Street estimates with IT companies turning in stellar numbers. A couple of consumer-orientedbusinesses too have turned in stronger- Sebi slaps `1-cr penalty on HDFC Bank Sensex Member type FE BUREAU Mumbai, January 21 NBFC COAL MINISTER Pralhad Joshi on Thursday assured Coal India of full support even as he said the PSU needs to learn "new things" for improvement in its future prospects, reports PTI. He was speaking at the launch of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) of Coal India. Fin-techs see spike in delinquent a/cs Fin-Tech IN THE NEWS Coal India needs to learn ‘new things’: Minister Republicans dismissed his proposed immigration overhaul as an “amnesty”forpeoplewho unlawfully entered the country. Continued on Page 2 Kolkata