NEWS POINT | PAGE 18 COMPANIES | PAGE 4 New chairman of EAC-PM: Balanced view of public policy INTERNATIONAL | PAGE 7 Tata Motors plans `35K-cr push for PVs Warner Bros Discovery to split into two firms MUMBAI, TUESDAY, JUNE 10, 2025 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL LXV NO. 136, 28 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: 82,445.21 ▲ 256.22 NIFTY: 25,103.20 ▲ 100.15 NIKKEI 225: 38,088.57 ▲ 346.96 HANG SENG: 24,181.43 ▲ 388.89 `/$: 85.63 ▲ 0.01 `/€: 97.86 ▼ 0.06 BRENT: $66.38 ▼ $0.09 GOLD: `95,677 ▼ `971 RBI to discontinue daily VRR auction from tomorrow RBI HAS DECIDED to discontinue the daily variable rate repo (VRR) auction from Wednesday after a review of the current and evolving liquidity conditions, reports Christina Titus. It will conduct its last auction on Tuesday, amounting to `25,000 crore. ■ PAGE 6 FE S P EC I A L S RBI may wait for US Fed Before any further easing ■ INVESTOR, P9 Understanding the surge in Covid cases The Indian Medical Association has advised the public to be cautious, but not panic ■ EXPLAINER, P9 2020-21 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 Total mop-up so far since 2018-19 `1,39,165 crore DEBT DIARIES FPIs net investments in debt ($ bn) IN NOVEMBER 2023, India started auction of critical minerals, and in March this year, the country also saw the first-ever auction of exploration licences for rare earth, zinc, diamond, copper, and platinum-group elements. Also, the first-ever auction of undersea mineral reserves took place in November 2024. The auction of critical mineral (CM) assets was,however, interrupted at times, largely because of lack of sufficient investor interest. In December 2024,for instance, the fourth round had to be cancelled before reauctioning. In fact, the problems extend to all non-fuel minerals, despite key “investorfriendly reforms” like composite licensing and tenure 200 3.0 -2.0 -1.5 -13.9 3.5 250 150 100 50 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025* 0 June 1, 2024 in stance.With terminal rates already at the bottom of the cycle, this has triggered a repositioning in the 10-year G-Sec, which is expected to move within a narrow range of 6.10-6.30% in the near term, with a possible high of around 6.30%,” said VRC Reddy, head of treasury at June 9, 2025 Source: Investing.com *up to June 5; Source: NSDL Karur Vysya Bank. Markets were initially expecting two to four rate cuts in FY26, but with a pause now in play,yields have begun to climb. Typically, yields move 80100 basis points higher than the terminal rate, which would place the 10-year yield in the range of 6.306.50%, aligning with current market expectations. Meanwhile, the India-US benchmark bond yield differential widened to 178179 bps from 173-175 bps last week. Continued on Page 7 ● FIRE ON SINGAPORE VESSEL: 18 RESCUED, 4 MISSING In the private sector, however, there are already roadsector InvITs launched by developers that have raised money by issuing units through public offers. WithitsprivateInvIT,NHAI will be able to do two rounds of monetisationinayearthrough this route.At present,only one issue of InvIT is done in a financial year. Through four rounds of InvIT so far, NHAI hasraised`43,638crore by monetisation of 2,345 km of highways. According to a strategy paper released by the authority, with the changes in ToT monetisation, NHAI aims to offer three ToT bundles every quarter instead of two. Continued on Page 7 THE GOVERNMENT HAS approved Micron Semiconductor’s `13,000-crore proposal to set up a special economic zone (SEZ) facility at Sanand,Gujarat. The Board of Approval for SEZs also approved a `100crore proposal of Hubballi Durable Goods Cluster (Aequs Group) to set up an SEZ for electronic components in Dharwad,Karnataka. MicronwillestablishitsSEZ facility over 37.64 hectare, while Aequs will establish its SEZover11.55hectare,astatement by the ministry of commerce and industry said. The approval for both the proposals followed changes in SEZ rules on June 3,which provided a special dispensation to address the specialised needs of semiconductor and electronics component manufacturingsectorswhich arehighly GREEN SIGNAL ■ Micron will establish its SEZ facility over an area of 37.64 hectare at Sanand in Gujarat ■ The approval ■ Aequs has also got nod to establish its SEZ over 11.55 hectare in Dharwad, Karnataka capital-intensive, importdependent and involve longer gestation periods. After amendments in the rules,an SEZ set up exclusively for the manufacturing of semiconductors or electronic components will require a minimum contiguous land area of only 10 hectare, reduced from the earlier for both the proposals followed changes in SEZ rules on June 3 Thick black smoke billows from Singapore-flagged container vessel MVWAN HAI 1503 after an explosion, about 130 nautical miles northwest of Kerala coast. An Indian Coast Guard (ICG) aircraft assessed the scene and dropped air-droppable pumps. Four ICG ships were also diverted for assistance. Of the 22 crew members, 18 have been rescued, while four are missing PTI ■ Amendments expected to boost high-tech manufacturing in the country, spur growth of semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem requirement of 50 hectare. Otheramendmentsallowed the Board of Approval for SEZs torelaxtheconditionrequiring SEZ land to be encumbrancefree in cases where it is mortgagedorleasedtotheCentralor state government or their authorised agencies. Continued on Page 7 Shukla'sspace Kotak Fund’s trippostponed Iyer set to join totomorrow Bajaj Finserv THE LAUNCH OFAxiom-4 mission carrying Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shuklaandthree others to the International Space Station has been postponed to June 11 due to weather conditions, ISRO said on Monday,reports PTI. ■ PAGE 18 LAKSHMI IYER, A veteran fund manager at Kotak Mahindra Group, has quit after over 20 years at the firm, people told Bloomberg. Iyer, who was CEO of investments and strategy at Kotak Alternate Asset Managers, will be joining Bajaj Finserv,they said. Rethinkauction,fast-trackexploration:Industrytogovt ARUNIMA BHARADWAJ & NITIN KUMAR New Delhi, June 9 177 300 16.8 BOND MARKETS HAVE entered a phase of profit-taking as investors reassess their positions amid concerns about a prolonged pause in policy rates by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). On Monday, the 10-year G-Sec closed higher at 6.28%, up 5 basis points (bps) from its Friday’s close of 6.23%. In two consecutive sessions,the 10-year G-Sec has gained nearly 10 bps. Last Friday,a policy stance reversal from ‘accommodative’ to ‘neutral’ triggered selling pressure in G-Secs as players scrambled to adjust to the shifting monetary landscape. “The monetary policy committee outcome carried multiple surprises that unsettled the market, particularly the unexpected change India-US 10-year yield difference (bps) 330 350 8.4 MAHESH NAYAK Mumbai, June 9 -6.7 17,738 4,325 8,646 6,661 15,968 15,700 9,824 10,662 14,006 2021-22 Foreign flows staymuted as bond yields rise aftermonetarypolicy Micron’s `13K-crproposal forchip SEZ gets govt nod FE BUREAU New Delhi, June 9 Rate cut: Policy transmission is key Toll Operate Transfer (` crore) Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) ` crore Project-based financing (` crore) 2,850 THE MADRAS HIGH Court has reportedly allowed the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to proceed with a public tender seeking a replacement for Turkish ground and cargo handling firm Celebi’s Indian arm. FOR THE FIRST time, retail investors will become equity holders in highway assets owned by the National HighwaysAuthorityofIndia(NHAI), as it seeks to tap the monetisation route more aggressively. The principal state-run highway construction agency is planning to launch a “public” infrastructure investment trust (InvIT), and revamp the toll operate transfer (TOT) mechanism, which, too, is designed to raise resources from its brownfield assets. The public InvIT will increase the investor base and run parallel to the extant private InvIT—National Highways Infra Trust (NHIT)— where the sponsor is NHAI with only institutional investors as unit holders. Apart from NHAI, other investorsinNHITareCanadian funds Ontario and CPPInvestment, with 25% units each, while pension funds and mutual funds are other investors.The Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) joined as an investor in the last round of monetisation through NHIT in March. NHIT had raised funds from the public only once in 2022, but through debt instruments. ASSET MONETISATION 7,350 HC allows AAI to float tender to replace Celebi MUKESH JAGOTA New Delhi, June 9 1,011 DIGITAL PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE for agriculture, efficiency in financial management, urban planning and landrelated reforms are among the conditions for states to qualify for tied component of 50-year interest-free capex loans from the Centre, reports Prasanta Sahu. ■ PAGE 2 NHAI plans retail investors in InvIT 9,731 Capex loans: Land, other reforms by states required `16,000-CRMOP-UPIN EACH QUARTERVIATOT 5,011 IN THE NEWS RARE EARTHS SHORTAGE PA RT- I I The second and concluding part of a series on the need to reformulate India’s critical minerals strategy certainty unleashed a decade ago. It has also been difficult to start production at the auctioned mines. A key question is whether auction is the pragmatic method to attract investors, especiallyinthecriticalminerals sector, where India's resources are scattered, difficulttoextract,andcommercial viability of the ventures is ratheruncertain.Of the 55 CM LACK OF INTEREST 55 Mineral-wise auction summary Lithium & REE 1 Graphite and Vanadium 24 Nickle, chromium, Cobalt and associated PGE Niobium 6 0 Coal India Total blocks put under auction in five rounds 34 channel sampling data, said an expert on condition of anonymity.“There is no additional reference data like shallow drill holes, adjacent mining, old workings, or geophysical surveyswhich are necessary for investors to be confident of,” he added. There is a growing demand for shifting from the incipient auction regime to other concession methods employed in NLC Oil India R K Mineral Development pvt ltd Hindustan Zinc Total blocks sold in five rounds Note: Auction summary as on December 2024 blocksofferedthisfar,34found takers,but industryplayers are concernedabout“lackofinformation about the blocks, low resource quantities, and absence of assured market or downstreamvalue-addition”. The CM blocks offered lack reassuring (advanced) “G1 or G2 level” geological data. These assets are just at the“G4 level”,which is based solely on surface exposure or limited Some companies who won critical mineral blocks: Vedanta Sunflag Iron and Steel Company ltd Orissa Metaliks pvt Mamco Mining mineral-rich parts of the world. BK Bhatia, additional secretary general at Federation of Indian Mineral Industries, said first-come-firstserved model could be more investor-friendly. Suvendu Bose, partner at Grant Thornton Bharat, also believes there is a need to try alternative mechanisms for allocation of CM blocks. He suggested that exploration companies may be granted the right to mine and produce. Also, exploration costs may be reimbursed to avoid sunk costs from encountering negative areas. Experts caution against using the same methods for allocations of both critical and bulk minerals. “We should create the climate for India’s best metals and CM companies to be at the forefront to explore CM blocks. Once the exploration efforts bear fruit,the authorities could opt for a price discovery model,” Arun Misra,CEO at Hindustan Zinc and executive director at Vedanta, said. According to him, from investors’standpoint,such an approach would mitigate the risks associatedwith“limited” geological exploration data. Continued on Page 7 Hobson’s choice forBajajAuto on lifeline forKTM SWARAJ BAGGONKAR Mumbai, June 9 TWOWEEKSAGO, BajajAuto announced an infusion of €800 million (`7,765 crore) to bail out its ailing partner KTM, which has been on the brink of bankruptcy. What is interesting is that the investment is around eight times the return Bajaj has got from theAustrian bike maker in the last 17 years. The move will make Bajaj Auto a majorityowner in KTM from being a dormant minority investor. But not everybodyis impressed.“The acquisition of a controlling stake in Pierer Mobility (holding company of KTM) demands caution, given the company’s financial distress and the complexity of turning around a struggling premium brand in a shifting global market,” said a report by Kotak Institutional Equities. But the fact is that the deal happened not because Bajaj wanted to buy but because it had to. The threat of KTM being shut down for good left too much at stake, and the takeover appears to have been Bajaj’s only course of action. Why so? The short answer is that despite its problems, KTM is an important piece of the puzzle for Bajaj Auto’s motorcycle ambition. Over the past severalyears, the two companies have ROUGH RIDE ■ Bajaj Auto has announced a `7,765-cr infusion to bail out ailing partner KTM ■ Investment around 8 times the return Bajaj has got from the Austrian bike maker in 17 years ■ Move to make Bajaj Auto a majority owner in KTM ■ The two have jointly developed bikes and engines for India & over 80 overseas markets jointly developed several mid-capacity bikes and engines for India and for over 80 overseas markets. “Even in this extremely stressful period,the customer franchise (of KTM) has not eroded due to its deep and niche positioning and is ready to be restored. We have a strong belief in the opportunity in KTM,”Rakesh Sharma, executive director,Bajaj Auto, said in an earnings call late last month. Continued on Page 5