MARKETS | PAGE 6 NEWSPOINT | PAGE 18 NSE tightens mainboard migration rules for SMEs INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 7 NewAI Express chairman is a low-key high-flyer LUCKNOW, FRIDAY, APRIL 25, 2025 China denies talkswith US to reach tariffs deal FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL 18 NO. 121, 24 PAGES, `12 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: 79,801.44 ▼ 315.05 NIFTY: 24,246.70 ▼ 82.25 NIKKEI 225: 35,039.15 ▲ 170.52 HANG SENG: 21,909.76 ▼ 162.86 `/$: 85.27 ▲ 0.15 `/€: 97.08 ▲ 0.46 BRENT: $66.73 ▲ $0.61 GOLD: `95,719 ▲ `78 EV policy to be tweaked based on BTA outcome THE CENTRE WILL tweak its new electric vehicle (EV) policy based on the outcome of ongoing bilateral trade agreement (BTA) and free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations, reports Nitin Kumar. ■ PAGE 3 Govt begins steps to monetise land assets of BSNL THE CENTRE HAS commenced a process to monetise large parcels of prime land owned by state-run BSNL, which it seeks to revive and has seen several rounds of fresh fund infusions, reports Prasanta Sahu. ■ PAGE 2 NaBFID plans $2-bn foray into offshore debt NABFID IS PLANNING to enter the overseas credit market for the first time and aims to raise as much as $2 billion through loans and bonds this financial year, reports Bloomberg. ■ PAGE 6 FE SPECIAL ● If govt agrees,its CALLING CENTRE stake in telco will be around 3-4% ■ Bharti’s request comes weeks after govt converted `36,950 crore ofVi’s dues into equity FE BUREAU New Delhi, April 24 will be win-win for both as Bharti will also be able to clear its full liability ■ Industry observers say the move is strategically timed, as moratorium on its dues is coming to an end fundamentalsandhealthystock performance.Infact,ifthedues are converted into equity, the share price is expected to rise further as the firm would have cleared its full liability,saved on interest cost,and would be able to deploy funds for network upgradationand expansion. Continued on Page 15 remain optimistic about improved growth prospects in FY26,driven bybettermacros, easing inflation, and strong volume performance. HUL’s standalone net profit increased 3.6%year-on-yearto `2,493croreinQ4,butits marginscontracted.Nestle reported a 6.5% decline in consolidated net profit to `873 crore. FMCG FIRMS HINDUSTAN Unilever and Nestle India on Thursday reported mixed fourth-quarter results that reflected the impact of ongoing subdued demand and commodity cost pressures on them. While both companies saw margin headwinds, they Q4FY25 (` cr) ■REPORTS, PAGE 4 % chg, y-o-y Standalone financials 5,268 0.9 1,350 1,389 2,406 2,493 3,466 3,435 2.4 Revenue Nestle India Consolidated financials 15,214 14,857 HUL ■ BRANDWAGON, P9 ■ Such a deal VIVEAT SUSAN PINTO Mumbai, April 24 Q4FY24 Focus on everyday wear to stay relevant, says Saumen Bhaumik, CEO, CaratLane PM leads India’s fightback WILLPURSUE PERPETRATORS OFPAHALGAM ATTACK 'TOTHE ENDS OFTHE EARTH': MODI PAKISTAN REACTS, CLOSES ITSAIRSPACETO INDIANAIRLINES, SUSPENDS SIMLAPACT FE BUREAU New Delhi, April 24 PROMISING RETRIBUTION FOR the Pahalgam terror attack, Prime Minister NarendraModisentPakistanatough message on Thursday, saying “India will identify, track and punisheveryterroristandtheir backers” and would “pursue them to the ends of the earth”. Addressing a rally in Madhubani in Bihar, the Prime Minister said,“Ab aatankiyon ki bachi kuchi zameen ko bhi mitti mein milane ka samay aa gaya hai (the time has come to raze whatever is left of the haven of terrorists).” Meanwhile,in response to India’s measures to suspend the Indus Water Treaty and downgrade diplomatic ties, Pakistan on Thursday put the Simla Agreement and other bilateral accords with India on hold, suspended all trade and closed its airspace for Indian airlines. After a meeting of its National Security Committee chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Islamabad, Pakistan said any attempt to divert the water meant for it under the Indus Water Treaty will be considered an act of war. Islamabad also closed the Wagah border post, cancelled visas given to Indians under the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) and asked military advisers at the Indian High Commission to leave — NARENDRA MODI, PRIME MINISTER India will identify, track & punish every terrorist and their backers... India’s spirit will never be broken by terrorism mirroring steps taken the previous evening byIndia overthe Pahalgam terror attack. Two days after the attack, the mortal remains of several victims reached their home The punishment will be significant & stringent, which the terrorists would have never even thought about states on Thursday. In New Delhi,the government held an all-party meeting and shared itsassessmentoftheemerging situationwith leaders of political parties, including key Opposition figures, in an attempt to forge a broad domestic political consensus on the matter. The wife and other family members of Madhusudan Rao, who was among the 26 people killed in the Pahalgam terror attack, break down after his mortal remains arrived at the Chennai airport on Thursday PTI »INSIDE« OPINION: INDIA’S WATER WEAPON P8 WHY SIMLAAGREEMENT WAS A BIG DEAL? P9 Continued on Page 15 Newquarter,same EDdetainsPuneet, raidsGensoloffices oldFMCG story MUTED OUTLOOK Tariff war a short-term challenge ■ If govt picks up Bharti shares, it can offload them in the market at a profit BHARTI AIRTEL HAS sprung a surprise by requesting the department of telecommunications(DoT)in writing toconvert its deferred adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues of around `40,000 crore into equity under the telecom reforms package of 2021, according to peoplefamiliarwiththematter. TheBhartimove comesafter the government converted `36,950 crore of Vodafone Idea’sspectrumduesintoequity late last month,raising its stake from 22.6% to 48.99%.Before this, the government had converted `16,133 crore of Vi’s interest dues into equity. BasedonBhartiAirtel’sclosing share price of `1,845.60 on theNationalStockExchangeon Thursday,an equity conversion would translate into a government stake of around 3-4%. Analysts said that such a stake would be relatively easy to offloadinthesecondarymarket at a profit,given Bharti’s stable 3.6 4.5 Ebitda Net profit Revenue 2.9 873 US TREASURY SECRETARY Scott Bessent has said that India is likely to become the first nation to finalise a bilateral trade agreement with the US — a development that would help New Delhi sidestep the 26% reciprocal tariffs that have been paused till July, reports fe Bureau. ■ PAGE 2 Airtel takes Voda route onAGR dues 934 US trade deal: Bessent says India may be first MITTALSWANTGOVTTOPICKSTAKE 5,504 IN THE NEWS 6.5 Ebitda Net profit not be immediately contacted for comments. The sources told PTI that THE ENFORCEMENT DIREC- Puneet Jaggi was detained by TORATE conducted searches the Enforcement Directorate against beleaguered Gensol fromahotelinthenationalcapEngineering and detained its ital, while his brother Anmol SinghJaggiwasstated co-promoter to be in Dubai. Puneet Singh Jaggi The wives of the from a Delhi hotel two brothers have Thursday, official been traced to Pune sources said. in Maharashtra even The raids were as the ED officials conducted at the visited their homes company’s in Gurugram apart premises in Delhi, Puneet Singh from a location in Gurugram and the Ahmedabad under Jaggi of Gensol Ahmedabad, sources said. the provisions of The federal probe agency the Foreign Exchange Manwill soon file a criminal case agement Act (FEMA). The promoter brothers of of money laundering against the company — Anmol Singh the promoters once the Delhi Jaggi and Puneet Singh Jaggi Police economic offences — are under the scanner of wing (EOW) files an FIR in the federal probe agency fol- this case based on a comlowing a Sebi report against plaint by the IREDA and them for alleged financial Power Finance Corporation misconduct, corporate mis- (PFC), they said. governance and diversion of funds. The company could Continued on Page 15 PRESS TRUST OF INDIA New Delhi, April 24 Manufacturing sector records 78% rise, information technology 43% White-collarhiringatfastclip,up38%inMarch MANU KAUSHIK New Delhi, April 24 WHITE-COLLAR HIRING IN India continues to be at a fast clip,with March figures being a solid 38% higher on year,with big support from the manufacturing sector (up 78% on year and 12% on month). In the six months to March, such hiring acrosssectorsrose23%,foundit InsightsTrackershowed. The growth has, however, slowedabitaftersteadyacceleration in the final months of 2024, with the last three monthsshowingalowergrowth of10%.Marchhiring,tobesure, was the same as in February. The jobs platform said India is“well-positioned to become a preferred hub for manufacturing and assembly,” as global firms adopt “China Plus One” strategywith heftytariffsbeing imposed bythe US on China. THE FACTORY FACTOR Sectoral hiring trend Y-o-Y growth (%) M-o-M growth (%) Manufacturing 78 12 Healthcare & pharma 62 1 BFSI 57 8 Logistics & transportation 46 9 Real estate 1 55 Source: foundit Inthemanufacturingsector, thesurveynotedkeydemandin engineering,qualitycontroland production roles.With the government incentives for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs),Tier-2citieslikeVadodara and Kochi witnessed brisk hiring in March,with a monthon-month growth of 4% and 3%, respectively. Among sec- tors, after manufacturing, the most job-creating sectors were healthcare and pharma (up 62%onyear),BFSI(57%),logistics and transportation (46%), and real estate (55%). “India’s manufacturing and export sectors are expanding workforce capacity to support newdemandpatterns.Withtariff re-alignments, global busi- nesses are expected to explore Indian manufacturing hubs, creatingdemandforproduction managers, quality assurance engineers, supply chain analysts,and robotics and automation specialists,” it said. As forthe information technology sector,the survey noted that MNCs are expanding their global capability centres in India.“The biggest beneficiary hasbeentheITsoftwareandservices sector, which (in March) grew43%year-on-yearand8% month-on-month.” Top skills driving demand are cloud computing (17%), AI/ML (15%), data science (13%),andcybersecurity(11%). “India is no longer just a talent hub, but a critical growth engine for global enterprises. The marked uptick in hiring across manufacturing, IT, and supply chain functions underscoresthecountry’sreadinessto lead in a realignedworld order,” saidVSuresh,CEO of foundit. Experts said that India’s importance in the globalvalue chain is going to grow as it is likely that Indian exporters may have to deal with lower reciprocal tariffs as compared to large manufacturing hubs like China,and even countries like Vietnam. Lucknow