Innholdsfortegnelse for 31-May-20 i Business Today

There are two deadly fears out there today. Coronavirus and failing economies. Where the former isn’t deadly enough, plummeting economies are. As governments flip between the tough choice of saving lives versus saving livelihoods, a few have moved at lightning speed to save their industries. In Germany, the stimulus of $600 billion was in bank accounts of recipients within the week of the announcement. In the US, companies can self-declare and receive funds instantly. But Italy stepped in gingerly and continues to struggle. Italian firms had to apply online to ask for government aid. When they did, the website crashed. In India, it’s been a waiting and guessing game. To many, the inordinate delay in announcing the second stimulus is worrying, intriguing – even frustrating. But the Centre seems in…

Think of a main battle tank coming at you. Firing a pistol won’t help. The right weapon is an anti-tank rocket.” USbased Alok Jagdhari, co-founder of angel investing platform 92angels LLC, cites the analogy to illustrate the need for a big and concerted financial package to revive economies held to ransom by the coronavirus pandemic across the world. Jagdhari has prepared a pandemic survival guide for clients to show the magnitude of the problem and macroeconomic response of various countries. India is missing from the list of countries that have earmarked between 5 per cent and 30 per cent of GDP for the purpose. “Go big or go bankrupt,” says Jagdhari. “Releasing things in dribs and drabs won’t work. Addressing MSMEs (small industries) but not other sectors won’t work.” He…

The Covid-2019 Pandemic has changed the world so much. Many nations globally in lockdown to protect their people and businesses on hold, the economic growth has come to a halt. “Our society has faced tremendous challenges for hundreds of years and each time it has found answers within. This Corona crisis too is no exception” says Aneel. A second generation Industrialist Aneel Murarka is the Managing Director of Mirachem Industriies a leading global supplier of high performance textile specialty chemicals with worldwide service and distribution network. As the founder of the social enterprise Ample Missiion, since the Covid-2019 nationwide lockdown was declared, he along with his son Sidhaant and Team Ample began relief activities across Mumbai, Maharashtra and other neighbouring states, by providing essential supplies both medical and food items…

Rajesh Raghavan, a medical representative with a mid-sized pharmaceutical company in Mumbai, no longer travels in local trains or visits crowded alleys to meet doctors. Locked down in his small flat in Navi Mumbai, Raghavan’s main job now is to convince doctors for a Zoom meeting with his company’s medical director and team. What’s more, doctors are also happy to listen to the director about the latest medical innovations, besides discussing the advantages of the blood pressure drug that Raghavan has to market. “I was struggling to meet a dozen doctors earlier, now I am able to get in touch with an average 20 doctors a day,” he says. According to industry leaders, fundamentals of the biopharmaceutical industry, built over decades, are changing post-coronavirus. Manufacturing, supply chain management, doctor-patient interactions,…

Leading hospital chains like Apollo, Narayana Health and Manipal doing teleconsultation for 200-300 patients daily Most leading hospitals also monitoring patients in ICUs, using in-house apps and robotics Diabetes and hypertension patients to be moved to online mode Patients will use basic health tracking monitors at home for blood pressure, sugar Hospitals to move all patient records to digital mode for better tracking. Fewer patients in new format OPD due to physical distancing…

Recently, a judge in the Rajasthan High Court adjourned proceedings on a bail plea after the petitioner’s lawyer appeared in a vest for the hearing conducted through video-conferencing. The lockdown has forced courts to take up urgent matters via video-conferencing. While the legal fraternity is slowly warming up to the idea, it may take some time before such hearings become common. Though there are problems which will take time to get resolved, many in the legal fraternity say virtual hearings could be a game changer in the long-term. Shedding Old Ways Shankh Sengupta, Partner, Dispute Resolution, Trilegal – a law firm, recently completed arguing a case for the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI) against IndiaBulls in the Delhi High Court. The hearing was conducted through video-conferencing. For Sengupta,…

Rajesh Rengasamy is learning farming from his father-in-law. They grow paddy, coconut and gram on their farm, a fourhour drive from Chennai. He is also a student of folk music. But that’s not what his ‘profession’ is. He is Director of Technology at digital business transformation company Publicis Sapient. For most, passion and career never meet. That was the case for Rengasamy also until he moved from Bangalore to his hometown in Chennai in 2014. “The two-three hours I save every day on commute is a gift. I can do a lot more work and still have time for things I love.” It’s evident. Rengasamy has got two promotions in the last five years and has delivered multi-milliondollar projects, all working from home. Such cases have been far and few…

IDEAS ON THE TABLE First-loan loss direct guarantee by government for Covid-impacted segments An SPV to house a government-sponsored fund Recapitalisation of PSBs with a condition that they support certain sectors Increasing the held to maturity bucket for banks Direct funding line for NBFCs and MFs Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das said in a recent interview that banks were not willing to take credit risk beyond a point. The reason: The ₹3.74 lakh crore surplus liquidity was not reaching those hit hardest by the current crisis — non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), microfinance institutions (MFIs), micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and mutual funds. In fact, there was no dearth of liquidity in the banking system even pre-Covid. Risk-averse bankers were happily depositing funds back with the RBI…

Exempted under Force Majeure Transportation or shipping of non-essential goods Delivering possession of flats Payment of lease rentals Non-continuance of retainership of a professional like lawyer, CA, etc Cancellation of air tickets, hotel rooms Not exempted under Force Majeure Supply of essential goods Taking live classes Supply of medical devices/medicines to hospitals Making payments when the seller has fulfilled its part of the contract…

ITC helped farmers create new milk producer groups and connected them with its milk procurement channels Amul is sourcing raw milk from non-members for Gujarat and Maharashtra; procurement up 15% With many mandis shut, start-ups like AgriBazaar and Ninjacart are connecting farmers directly with consumers IT-driven platforms such as INI Farms have introduced mobile apps, e-auctions and digital auctions across the supply chain National Collateral Management Services takes mandis digital; farmers get access to new markets and better returns…

The world’s greatest health emergency in over a century, the coronavirus pandemic, will in its wake cause widespread changes in India’s automotive landscape. As factories across the country look to resume operations after a shutdown of more than 40 days, the challenges are multifaceted. In over a month, the world has changed drastically. To avoid the virus from creeping into shop floors of factories, the corner room of offices and the mezzanine floors of showrooms are taking precedence over revenue, bottom line, productivity and market share. The most visible impact will be in dealerships, workshops and showrooms. Already, the trend of digital showrooms and online sales has taken off, and the industry believes it will only accelerate as consumers shy away from visiting dealerships. Doorstep delivery and service, along with…

CURRENT: Regulatory clearance for plants with even minor errors takes months and years NEW: The USFDA has cleared IPCA Labs’ two facilities, apart from that of Lupin (4), Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (2), Aurobindo (2) and Biocon (2) since March 2020 CURRENT: India’s global distribution based on quality, cheaper production from the country. NEW: Nations likely to demand production from own soil; companies like Lupin, Sun Pharma, Zydus Cadila and Dr. Reddy's already have manufacturing set-ups in key geographies CURRENT: Low level of automation in manufacturing and regulatory processes NEW: Companies are trying to use more high-end technology. Lupin is using robots in one of its advanced facilities and a chatboat for enhancing doctor-patient interaction CURRENT: India depends on China for 65-75 per cent of raw materials. NEW: Raw material sourcing…

The Bombay HC dismissed a plea by Standard Retail against Korea-based GS Global Corp. The former had approached the court asking it to restrain Wells Fargo Bank from encashing letters of credit The Bombay HC decided in favour of Future Corporate Resources and Rural Fairprice Wholesale Ltd, and restrained IDBI Trusteeship from selling shares of the two firms The Delhi HC allowed Halliburton Offshore Services’ plea, restraining Vedanta from invoking bank guarantees extended by the former in connection with a contract for development of Rajasthan blocks…

In Anjarakandy Medical College at Kannur in north Kerala, Nightingale-19 is set to deliver food and water to patients in Covid isolation wards. Painted in red and white, Nightingale is a robot designed by students of Vimal Jyothi Engineering College, Chemperi, in Kannur with support from Kerala’s health department. The robot helps medical staff and hospital workers minimise close contact with Covid patients and can carry food and water to six patients at one go. It helps patients communicate with doctors, nurses and family members through a tablet attached on top. The robot is thoroughly sanitised after each round of duty. Nightingale is inspired by robots used by the health department in Wuhan, China, according to the developers. More than 500 kilometres from Kannur, in Tamil Nadu’s Vellore, Arulalan, a…

Adena Friedman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the New York-based Nasdaq – world’s second-largest stock exchange, is a black belt in Korean martial art form taekwondo. The 51-year-old, who got the top job at Nasdaq in January 2017, took up the martial art form more than a decade ago after making her two sons sign up for taekwondo classes at a young age. She then decided to make it a family activity. It’s not just about being a black belt, taekwondo taught her valuable lessons in leadership as well. The lessons in self-reliance that taekwondo provides teaches you to use your strength for defence rather than offence, she believes. It also provides lessons that can be applied in business. Friedman, who started as an unpaid intern at Nasdaq in…

Q: What was the problem you were grappling with? A: This goes back to 2000, when I was part of a financial services start-up with five cofounders. We raised capital, built scale. Later, the business was acquired. This experience of being an entrepreneur is perhaps my biggest learning. All co-founders were passionate individuals, who gave up well established careers to pursue their dream of building a company. The senior-most was the CEO. We used to have divergent views on strategy and execution. So, we set two rules: One, all of us will state views, opinions and differences openly as we all were co-founders and equally concerned about outcomes. Two, after all the views are heard, the final call will be taken by the CEO. Q: Who did you approach for…

EQUITY FUNDS’ ASSETS PLUNGE AFTER SIX YEARS The Nifty plunged close to 26 per cent in FY20, the sharpest fall since the 2008/09 financial crisis This reflected in assets under equity mutual funds, which fell from ₹8.9 lakh crore at the end of FY19 to ₹6.6 lakh crore at the end of FY20 This is the lowest since October-end 2017 Since most of this fall came towards the end of the financial year, total mutual fund assets still managed to rise 10.7 per cent to ₹27.1 lakh crore in FY20 Source: Motilal Oswal Consumer, Healthcare Cushion Impact for Equity MFs Healthcare, consumer and oil & gas holdings of equity mutual funds fell the least MoM in March Holdings of real estate, infrastructure, metal and financial companies saw the steepest decline…

Tata Steel is focussing on the non-steel materials segment; recently came up with fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) and graphene. FRP is used for making light products for automotive, industrial, infrastructure and railways sectors. Graphene coating keeps steel corrosion-free. BHEL has called for EoIs from foreign firms to use its factories that are lying idle due to slump in power demand. This will help the state-run firm monetise assets L&T plans to build its business in Africa, less affected by the virus outbreak; resources deployed in ongoing projects will take a backseat JSW Steel plans to focus on exports for the first two quarters of 2020/21, and has already received orders from China, Japan, South Korea, France, West Asia and the EU. Tata Power will invest in growth areas such as renewables…

Lowering leverage: MSMEs are set to reduce fixed expenses. Many will rethink reliance on bank credit for expansion as they are feeling the pinch of high interest outgo Cutting flab: MSME sector, which accounts for one-third of India's GDP and employs nearly 11 crore, will see huge retrenchments as economic activities remain limited. A survey by industry body FISME and Skoch Group has found that almost 30 per cent MSMEs will prefer to cut staff strength by half Expanding product bouquet: Many MSME players are looking at getting into essential items to ensure cash cushion. For instance, some small auto component makers have set sights on medical equipment and hospital furniture. Some MSMEs in the apparel business have added an additional production line to make PPE kits and face masks…

Ford and Mahindra have tie up with Zoomcar, Hyundai with Revv to offer cars on subscription Every auto company from Maruti Suzuki to Honda, Tata to Bajaj to reduce workers on shop-floor to maintain social distancing norms, production will decline Jeep has created platform for buyers to book, order test drive, customise vehicle, make online payment and get vehicle delivered home. Hyundai, Honda, Toyota, Maruti are also doing the same Electric mobility to take a backseat as companies tend to conserve cash and prioritise resources Shared mobility and car-pooling may get hit. People will prefer personal vehicle over mass transit…

Starting like a start-up: Migration to zero-based budgeting; analysing revenue, cost and profit & loss statement in detail; setting new revenue and cost targets Lower staff-per-room ratio: Bringing it down to 0.5-1.5 against the current 1.69 in the next two-three years as fixed costs dip and profitability improves Change in F&B plans: Instead of multiple restaurants, there will be one all-day and one specialty restaurant. The space can be rented out for retail operations and banquets Tech to the rescue: Keyless entry set to be the new norm, so are app-based check-ins, check-outs; guest interactions via AI-based services to replace helpdesks…

Health Tech Start-ups AI-enabled biosensors allow hospitals to remotely monitor patients Cough-based Covid screening solution records Web-based Covid triage and pre-screening tools Cloud-based mobility healthcare platform shares patient health records with doctors, paramedics and pharmacists Tele-medicine solutions and home sample collections Chat bots to interact with patients in isolation wards Tech Start-ups Drones to disinfect public places Chat bots to answer Covid-related queries of citizens Help in issue of curfew vehicle passes Dashboards for state governments for data collection and tracking of patients in home quarantine 1,700 SQ. KMS., THE TOTAL AREA THAT HYDERABAD-BASED MARUT DRONES HAS DISINFECTED SO FAR IN EIGHT DISTRICTS OF TELANGANA…

During the physical trading days at the BSE when market hours lasted from noon to 2 pm, Shankar Sharma, Vice Chairman and Joint MD of First Global, had a daily ritual. Right after the closing, he would head to nearby restaurants and gorge on all sorts of food from crabs, prawns to neer dosa. “For us, stock market closing was like a holiday in the middle of a busy day. There were amazing Chinese restaurants at Fort. We would eat our fill and then reach office for back-end work,” he says. Sharma’s conversion into a foodie happened early on in life in Dhanbad, a mining town where he grew up. “My father was a great cook. We would often feast together with other families who were equally into it,” says…