New Delhi, September 26
In a boost to the Modi government, global rating agency, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) today raised the outlook on India’s sovereign rating from negative to stable and said the new government has the willingness and capacity to deliver on reforms and restore high growth.

The S&P upgrade comes at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on a visit to the US. In 2012, S&P had lowered India’s credit outlook from stable to negative. In less than 4 months of the Modi government taking over, S&P has revised the outlook. There has been a considerable improvement in sentiment and macro indicators with the new government taking over.

S&P said the stable outlook for the next 24 months reflects its view that the new government has both the willingness and capacity to implement reforms necessary to restore some of India’s lost growth potential, consolidate its fiscal accounts, and permit the RBI to carry out effective monetary policy.

The agency has indicated that it could raise the rating if high growth is restored. “We could raise the rating if the economy reverts to a real per capita GDP trend growth of 5.5% per year and fiscal, external, or inflation metrics improve. Conversely, we may lower the rating if the government’s structural reform agenda stalls such that economic growth does not accelerate, or fiscal and debt ratios fail to improve”, it said.

The agency emphasised the new political dispensation and its impact on the economy. “Our outlook revision reflects our view that India’s improved political setting offers a conducive environment for reforms, which could boost growth prospects and improve fiscal management”, it said.

The ratings on India reflect the country’s strong external profile, combined with its democratic institutions and free press, both of which underpin policy stability and predictability. These strengths are balanced against the vulnerabilities stemming from the country’s low per capita income and weak public finances, S&P said.

Commenting on the new outlook, Finance Secretary Arvind Mayaram said, “We are satisfied that the credit rating agency has acknowledged the steps that government has taken to improve the economy and specially bring the investment climate back and therefore the growth cycle back”.

Industry body CII said the S&P upgrade will improve investor confidence and companies’ access to international funds. The outlook revision was based on the strong mandate received by the new government, which has enabled it to implement policies that will revive growth and boost investments, it said.

Assocham president Rana Kapoor said the rating agencies seem to be behind the curve when it comes to reposing faith in the Indian economy. “What S&P has recognised today has already been acknowledged by the global investors who have been pouring money into the Indian debt and stock markets for the past several months,” he added.

New Delhi, September 26
In a bid to give a fillip to the Prime Minister’s ‘Make in India’ campaign, Invest India has set up a dedicated investor facilitation cell to act as primary support for all investment queries and for providing handholding and liaisoning services to investors.

Invest India is a not-for-profit joint venture between the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce & Industry, state governments; and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

Operationalised in early 2010, the company has been set up as the dedicated investment promotion agency (IPA) for attracting investments into the country in a structured, focused and comprehensive manner. It is the first point of reference for foreign investors, and investment promotion and facilitation constitute the core mandate of the company.

The investor facilitation cell will provide handholding and facilitation services for attracting investments into the critical sectors of the economy.

It will provide all information and data analysis to investors across all sectors and follow up information and approvals from all departments of the government on behalf of the investor and the investing community.

It will help investors in interacting with all states in a hub & spoke model and feeding the investors with state policies relating to land, labour and capital and investment.

The government has already set up nodal officers in economic ministries and state governments to support the investor facilitation cell. 

New Delhi, September 26“Government policies for affordable housing will be the key for reviving growth in real estate in National Capital Region” said Karan Bir Singh Sidhu, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation.

He was speaking at the inaugural session of a conference on ‘Reviving growth for real estate in the National Capital Region’, organised jointly by CII and CREDAI (NCR).

Despite the visible benefits, the housing sector is facing challenges in terms of regulatory and policy challenges. The real estate sector is the growth engine of the Indian economy and also the economic contribution is projected to increase by double in 2025, said Zubin Irani, chairman, CII Northern Region & president, Building & Industrial Systems, United Technologies Corporation India Pvt Ltd.

Mumbai, September 26
SEBI today notified norms for listing of business trust structures, REITs and InvITs that would help attract more funds in a transparent manner into realty and infrastructure sectors.

For Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) and Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvITs), minimum initial offer size should be Rs 250 crore with a public float of at least 25%. — PTI

BRIEFLY

Gold glitters on festive demand, up Rs 590
New Delhi: Gold regained its glitter to trade Rs 590 higher at Rs 27,550 per 10 grams in the national capital on Friday on the back of increased demand from jewellers and retailers, driven by ongoing festive and wedding season. Silver also recorded a significant rise of Rs 550 to Rs 39,900 per kg on increased offtake by industrial units and coin makers. — PTI

Zicom ties up with Vijay Sales for retail distribution
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Skoda Auto launches new Rapid at Rs 7.22 lakh
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