Infosys Tax Demand, Telecom Subscribers, and Automotive Sales in March 2024

Opening Bell: 

Gift Nifty is up by 62.5 points in the early morning trade, indicating a positive opening for Indian stock market

On Tuesday, Asian stock markets showed mixed results as traders evaluated crucial economic indicators within the region. Japan’s Nikkei 225 saw a slight increase of 0.25%, accompanied by a 0.19% rise in the Topix index. In contrast, South Korea’s Kospi dropped by 0.34%, and the Kosdaq experienced a more significant decline of 1.11%. Futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index suggested a subdued start. Meanwhile, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.12%, reaching new record highs.

On Monday, concerns among investors about when the Federal Reserve might start reducing interest rates, amplified by unexpectedly robust manufacturing data that led to an increase in Treasury yields, pulled the Dow and S&P 500 downward. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped by 240.52 points, or 0.60%, closing at 39,566.85, while the S&P 500 shed 10.58 points, or 0.20%, to finish at 5,243.77. Conversely, the Nasdaq Composite managed a slight gain, adding 17.37 points, or 0.11%, to end at 16,396.83.

Stocks News:

👉 Infosys is currently facing a tax demand of Rs 341 crore for the assessment year 2020–21, including interest charges, issued by the Income Tax Department. The company is assessing the impact of this demand on its financial results for the quarter and fiscal year ending in March 2024 and is considering an appeal against the demand.

👉 In the telecom sector, Reliance Jio, a key player under Reliance Industries, has seen its subscriber base expand by 41.78 lakh in January 2024, reaching a total of 46.39 crore users. Bharti Airtel, led by Sunil Mittal, also experienced growth, adding 7.52 lakh mobile subscribers to reach a total of 38.24 crore in the same period. Conversely, Vodafone Idea witnessed a decline, losing 15.2 lakh subscribers, which brought its total mobile user base down to 22.15 crore, according to the latest TRAI figures.

👉 In the automotive industry, Ashok Leyland reported a 4% year-on-year decrease in its total vehicle sales, totaling 22,866 units in March 2024, with domestic sales dropping by 7% to 21,317 units. Sales of medium and heavy commercial vehicles also fell by 7% year-on-year to 15,562 units.

👉 TVS Motor Company has shown impressive growth, with a 12% increase in total sales, reaching 3.54 lakh units in March 2024. The company’s two-wheeler sales rose by 12% year-on-year to 3.44 lakh units, with domestic sales up by 8% to 2.6 lakh units and exports experiencing a significant 23% jump to 91,972 units during the same timeframe.

👉 Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 522.30 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased Rs 1,208.42 crore worth of stocks on April 1, provisional data from the NSE showed.

Domestic and International Events

• The Finance Ministry announced that India’s revenue from goods and services tax (GST) in March 2024 reached Rs 1.78 lakh crore, marking the second highest collection on record and an 11.5 percent increase from the previous year. Throughout the fiscal year 2023-24, the total GST collections amounted to Rs. 20.14 lakh crore, witnessing an 11.7 percent rise over the past year.

• For the first time in 18 months, the US manufacturing sector expanded in March. According to the Institute for Supply Management (ISM), its manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) rose to 50.3, representing the first expansionary reading above 50 since September 2022, up from February’s 47.8. This surpassed the predictions of economists surveyed by Reuters, who had expected the PMI to reach 48.4.

• Despite gold prices reaching new all-time highs on Monday, Wall Street’s stocks pulled back from their near-record levels. The fading hope that the Federal Reserve might lower interest rates soon is attributed to a robust US economy, which lessens the immediate need for rate cuts.

• Crude oil prices saw an approximate 1 percent increase to hit a five-month peak on Monday, driven by anticipations that demand for oil would surge following optimistic economic updates from the US and China. Additionally, cuts by OPEC+ and attacks on Russian refineries are contributing to tighter global oil supplies.