KOCHI, THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2022 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL XLIV 170, 20 PAGES, `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: 61,510.58 ▲ 91.62 NIFTY: 18,267.25 ▲ 23.05 NIKKEI 225: 28,115.74 ▲ 170.95 HANG SENG: 17,523.81 ▲ 99.40 `/$: 81.85 ▼ 0.18 `/€: 84.50 ▲ 0.62 BRENT: $85.46 ▼ $2.91 GOLD: `52,159 ▼ `172 $6-BN VALUATION NOT A MARKDOWN, SAY ANALYSTS Prosus values 9.67% stake in Byju’s at $578 million SALMAN SH Bengaluru, November 23 ATATIME when valuations of tech firms are under pressure, Netherlands-based Prosus NV, aventure capital (VC) investor, has pegged the fair value of its 9.67% stake in Byju’s at $578 million at the end of September quarter. This technically puts the currentvaluationoftheedtech firm at $6 billion,but industry analysts say this is more of an accounting treatment than a markdown. The edtech major waslastvaluedat$22billionin a deal in October. “Prosus changed the accountingtreatmentforByju's IN THE NEWS Banks are better placed to sustain loan growth: Khara BANKS ARE BETTER placed to sustain the current levels of credit growth in this cycle as they are well-equipped to make accurate decisions compared to the last cycle, SBI chairman Dinesh Khara said on Wednesday, reports fe Bureau. ■ PAGE 9 Steel export duty rollback may not help local players THE CENTRE’S DECISION to roll back export duty on steel might not help in restoring volumes, is unlikely to provide support to domestic prices and benefits to local manufacturers would be marginal, reports Rajesh Kurup. ■ PAGE 2 DIFFERENT STROKES ■ DutchVC firm's shareholding in Byju’s dropped below 10% ■ Prosus says the In its Sept quarter results, Prosus has classified Byju’s as a non-controlling financial investment rather an associate 9.67% stake is now recognised as fair value investments via other comprehensive income accounting method for the first time, meaning it stopped equity accounting ofits stake and in subsequent reporting periods, the company will be accountedforasaninvestment. The provision of Byju’s audited financials did not align with timingofthecloseofourfinancialreportingperiods,sowedid nothavesufficientinformation to make fair assumptions for our Group’s financial statements,” Prosus said in a state- A SIP of ` ■ In its H1FY23 financial update, Prosus said it no longer exerts 'influence over the financial and operating policies of the entity' ment. “The fair value of the group’s Byju's investment was determined by a third-party firm,”Prosus added. In its September quarter results, Prosus has classified Byju’s as a non-controlling financial investment ratheran associate, as its shareholding has dropped below 10%. In its H1FY23 financial update, Pro- sus said that theVC firm lost no longer exerts “influence over the financial and operating policies of the entity”. Byju’s has recently been in the news formultiple rounds of layoffs and for its accounting practices,which received scrutinyfrom its own auditor. Continued on Page 14 Firms will have to fork out `1,500 cr for pvt spectrum Choose a better route. Adani weighs $5-billion fundraise JATIN GROVER New Delhi, November 23 NETWORK ACCESS BLOOMBERG November 23 THE COMPANIES THAT have applied for spectrum to build their private captive networks will have to shell out around `1,500 crore to buy it from the government, sources said.This is because direct allocation of spectrumtoenterprisesfortheir privatenetworkswillbedoneat auction-determined prices. Final decision to this effect will be taken once the government consults the Telecom RegulatoryAuthority of India. Infosys,Tata Communications, Larsen & Toubro, Tejas Networks and Capgemini are among20enterprisesthathave applied to the department of telecommunications (DoT) for direct allocation of spectrum forbuilding private networks. For private networks, spectrum in the 24.25-28.5 GHz band is required where the per MHz auction price was `6.99 crore. The quantum of spectrum required would vary on thenumberoflocations,which are spread across circles, the companies concerned would like to connect through such networks, but around 100400 MHz would definitely be needed,industryanalysts said. Sincetheenterpriseswould beallocatedspectrumatafixed price, they would be barred from using the same for retail purposes — building networks for other firms. However, like spectrum for private networks to be done at auction-determined prices Adani Group, had they participated in the auctions, they wouldhavebeenfreetousethe same forretail purposes. “The choice for enterprises isclear:Eithertakespectrumat the auction-determined price todayanduseitonlyforcaptive purposes or participate in the next round of auctions next year to buy it and be free from suchrestrictions,”sourcesinthe government said. BILLIONAIRE GAUTAM ADANI is courting sovereign wealth funds in a push to raise roughly $5 billion across his sprawling business empire after lenders asked the group to reduce leverage, people familiarwith the matter said. The network of companies ownedbyAdanihasreachedout to top officials at firms,including Mubadala Investment and Abu Dhabi InvestmentAuthority,about investments,the people said,asking not to be identified as the information is private.TheAdaniGroupislooking to other large investment funds in West Asia as well as in Canada to invest,theysaid. The group has even discussed raising as much as $10 billion,one of the people said. Flagship firm Adani Enterprises (AEL) is considering issuing about $1.8 billion to $2.4 billion in new shares as soon as next year, Bloomberg News reported onTuesday.The $5-10-billion target would include the funds raised in the potential AEL share issue, one of the people said. The AEL board will meet on November 25 to discuss raising funds, AEL said in a filing on Tuesday.Talks are ongoing and no final decisions have been made,the people said. Continued on Page 2 Continued on Page 14 ■ Direct allocation of ■ Infosys, Larsen &Toubro, Tata Communications, Tejas Networks and Capgemini among 20 firms have applied ■ For private networks, spectrum in 24.25-28.5 GHz band is required where per MHz auction price is `6.99 cr ■ Quantum ofspectrum tovary on number of locations, but around 100400 MHz definitely needed Aim to stay ahead with HDFC Business Cycle Fund (An open ended equity scheme following business cycle based investing theme) Real rural wage growth remains negative for 10 months in a row (%, y-o-y) 3 1 2 3 spendingonruraldevelopment has been somewhat tepid post Covid.“WhilethespendsonPM Kisan Yojana are direct transfers, the food scheme and the fertilisersubsidydon’treallyput cash in the hands of con- HDFC Business Cycle Fund This product is suitable for investors who are seeking*: Riskometer# To generate long-term capital appreciation/ income Moder oderate Highately to te M Hi w era Investment predominantly in equity & equity related instruments of business cycle based theme Low -2 Titan Other (utilities+ -0.3 not classified) -0.3 -8.3 Total change in employment -6.5 HDFC Business Cycle Fund aims to invest in businesses likely on the cusp / midst of a favourable business cycle. Name of Scheme 4.9 Pre-pandemic is difference between Oct 2019 and Oct 2022, pre-second wave is between March 2021 & Oct 2022. Source: CME, Kotak Institutional Equities Unemployment jumped by 1.3 percentage points to 7.8% in October led by an increase in rural unemployment.Sachchidanand Shukla, chief economist, Mahindra & Mahindra, pointsoutthatthegovernment 4 5 Marico* Pidilite* -7.9 5.7 6.6 HUL (FMCG) Services Q2FY23 *Domestic sumers,” Shukla observed. The numbers from FMCG players reflect the muted consumer demand in the hinterland. Continued on Page 2 Very High 2022 Real estate/ construction consumer firms (%) Dabur* Manufacturing 10.2 Volume growth of 0 -0.5 -3.5 -0.5 Colgate -0.2 Mining 2.3 -16.7 -6 Britannia* 1.6 1.3 Agriculture Nonagriculture 2021 SCAN TO KNOW MORE (million) RURAL Pre-pandemic Pre-second wave gh THE GROWTH IN real rural wages is now negative for the tenth straight month to September.Whilethecontractionis largelyduetoelevatedinflation, the sluggishness in the rural economy has left demand for labour subdued, thereby capping nominalwages. Worse, rural India is yet to restore the millions of jobs lost during the pandemic. On a net basis,ruralemploymentiseven now8.3 million less than itwas before pandemic, according to a study by Kotak Institutional Equities.The services industry itself is yet to regenerate 7.9 million of the jobs lost during the pandemic. Reflectingthebleakjobsscenario in the rural sector,households demanding work under the rural employment guaranteeschemecontinuetobeabove the October 2019 (pre-pandemic)level.Ofcourse,inrecent months, fewer people have sought these subsistence jobs. Contact your MFD /RIA. REAL RURAL WAGE GROWTH CHANGE IN EMPLOYMENT Oct Nov Dec Jan -1.1 Feb -1.1 Mar -1.5 Apr -1.7 May -1.9 Jun -1.4 Jul -1.4 Aug -1.7 Sep -2.4 FE BUREAU New Delhi, November 23 Mo Lo d Edtech major was valued at $22 bn in Oct RISKOMETER *Investors should consult their financial advisers, if in doubt about whether the product is suitable for them. Investors understand that their principal will be at very high risk #For latest riskometer, investors may refer to the Monthly Portfolios disclosed on the website of the Fund viz. www.hdfcfund.com Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks, read all scheme related documents carefully. KOCHI