Mumbai, November 5
The benchmark Sensex today conquered the 28,000 mark for the first time as markets hit new highs of the fourth day on expectations of more reforms by the Modi government and a rate cut by the RBI.

The BSE barometer, however, settled a tad lower, but still a new closing peak of 27,915.88, a gain of 55.5 points of 0.2%. The 30-share index resumed higher at 27,907.19 and rose further to a high of 28,010.39 before ending at 27,915.88.

Markets were enthused after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today promised reforms in labour, land acquisition and insurance laws and expressed readiness to look at privatisation of some loss-making public sector companies.

The index surpassed its previous record high of 27,969.82 hit on November 3. Its previous closing peak was 27,865.83 (October 31).

Similarly, the CNX 50-share Nifty firmed up by 14.15 points, or 0.17%, to all-time closing high of 8,338.30.

"Markets consolidated post the recent rally in the markets, which has come about on the back of renewed optimism on fiscal reforms, sharp correction in crude prices, improved growth in US, liquidity easing by Japan and diminished possibilities of an immediate increase in US interest rates," Dipen Shah, Head- Private Client Group Research, Kotak Securities.

Strong foreign capital inflows coupled with strong European cues mainly boosted the domestic market sentiment, even as the services sector activity in India stagnated during October amid weaker growth of new orders an per a HSBC survey.

Leading global crude oil producer Saudi Arabia yesterday slashed its export prices for the US market. "The fall in crude oil prices will have a positive impact on, among other things, inflation....it will embolden the RBI to cut rates," said HDFC Securities in a note.

The market sentiment got a fillip after data showed Foreign Portfolio Investors on Monday bought shares worth a net Rs 1,413.34 crore. Most Asian stocks ended mixed following weak economic data from — PTI

New York, November 5
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today made his debut among the world's most powerful people, ranked 15th on the Forbes list topped by Russian President Vladimir Putin who pipped his US counterpart Barack Obama for a second year in a row.

The list of 72 most powerful people in the world included the names of Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani at 36th, ArcelorMittal Chairman and CEO Lakshmi Mittal at 57th and Microsoft's Indian-born CEO Satya Nadella at 64th.

On Modi, Forbes said: "India's newest rock star doesn't hail from Bollywood. He is the newly elected Prime Minister who sailed into office in May with a landslide victory, ushering the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) into power after decades of control by the Gandhi dynasty."

Forbes described him as a "Hindu nationalist" and refereed to the 2002 Gujarat riots when he was the state's Chief Minister.

"Modi is credited with massive reconstruction projects in his home state of Gujarat. His administration promises to bring economic rejuvenation to other beleaguered parts of India" the magazine said.

Alibiba founder and China's richest man — Jack Ma — also makes a first appearance on the list after his record-breaking $25 billion initial public offering in September, as does terror group Islamic State's chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

A notable omission from the list is Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, who ranked 21 last year. — PTI

New Delhi, November 5
The economy is at a turning point was the consensus view of the panellists at the session on India's growth outlook at the India Economic Summit today.

Positive sentiment among investors is now clearly visible though more needs to be done to maintain a strong growth momentum.

Ajay Shriram, president, CII, said the government has seriously taken the challenge of improving the ease of doing business in India. He said several reforms could be undertaken by simply studying the best practices of various states. Shriram said one of the ways to fuel growth was to clear the backlog of mega-projects that were held up for various reasons.

Anand Mahindra, co-chair, India Economic Summit and CMD, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, said it would take some time to see the real impact of the reforms being undertaken. He said India does not need just the big bang reforms but steady and consistent reforms.

He said macroeconomic conditions in the country were now conducive for the RBI to consider reducing interest rates. He said core inflation had come down, oil prices were down and a stable government was in place at the Centre, creating ideal conditions to reduce interest rates. This would help fuel demand in the economy and spur growth.

Gita Gopinath, Professor of Economics, Harvard University, said while the measures being taken by the government are indeed encouraging, there is still need for some caution. She said the economy needed to exhibit two to three quarters of consistent growth before one could be more confident that the recovery has taken hold.

New Delhi, November 5
The services sector activity in India stagnated during October amid weaker growth of new business orders, an HSBC survey said today.

The HSBC India Services Business Activity Index, that tracks changes in activity at Indian services companies on a month-by-month basis, fell from 51.6 to exactly 50 in October.

A figure above 50 indicates the sector is expanding, while a figure below that level means contraction.

The stagnation in the services sector activity follows five successive months of growth amid fall in new business orders, the report said.

"The services sector activity was unchanged in October since growth in some sectors was offset by contraction in others such as in the hospitality sector," HSBC Co-Head of Asian Economic Research Frederic Neumann said.

Meanwhile, the headline HSBC Composite Output Index — that maps the manufacturing as well as the services sector output — stood at 51, down from 51.8 in September, indicating that growth of the private sector output in India eased to the weakest in five months.

However, services sector firms in India remained highly optimistic regarding prospects for activity growth in the coming year.

Business sentiment was the strongest in three months, with panelists commenting on anticipated improvements in demand and new marketing initiatives as key sources of optimism, the report said. — PTI

New Delhi, November 5
Bharti Airtel has called off its plans to acquire business and assets of Mumbai-based Loop Mobile, for about Rs 700 crore, as the Department of Telecom (DoT) is yet to clear the deal.

“Loop Mobile and Bharti applied to the DoT for approval of the business transfer in March 2014. The approval for the transaction is still awaited from the authorities concerned as a result of which Bharti Airtel has withdrawn from the proposed transaction causing huge loss to the firm,” a spokesperson for Loop Mobile said.

The DoT is yet to give a clearance to the deal as it estimates that Loop Mobile and its sister concern Loop Telecom owe about Rs 808 crore in spectrum and other charges to the government.

Loop Mobile's permit in Mumbai is expiring on November 29 and the firm did not purchase spectrum in the February auction which was mandatory for continuing its operations. — PTI

Mumbai, November 5
In an interim relief against the SEBI order, realty giant DLF was today allowed by the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) to redeem mutual funds worth Rs 1,806 crore till next month.

After the hearing an appeal for interim relief by DLF, the tribunal allowed the company to redeem mutual funds worth Rs 767 crore in the current month and further funds worth Rs 1,039 crore in December.

DLF had sought permission to redeem funds locked in mutual funds after being slapped with the market regulator's ban last month from accessing the capital market for three years.

The Delhi-based developer submitted an affidavit on Monday to the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), which is hearing DLF's appeal against the unprecedented ban imposed by the watchdog last month on the company and six of its top officials.

The affidavit was filed following a direction from the tribunal last Thursday.

The SAT, a quasi-judicial body, will begin its final hearing on December 10 on DLF's main plea against the SEBI order. — PTI

BRIEFLY

PM reviews infra sectors; civil aviation policy on anvil
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Ansari for creation of South Asian Economic Union
New Delhi: Vice-President Hamid Ansari on Wednesday pitched for the creation of South Asian Economic Union, saying it will be a milestone in regional cooperation efforts. Delivering the inaugural address at the Seventh South Asia Economic Summit, he said, “Most regions in the world are moving towards greater economic integration, as South Asia lags behind.” TNS

Anita Kapur is new CBDT chairperson
New Delhi: Senior IRS officer Anita Kapur has been appointed the chairperson of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the apex authority of the Income Tax Department. She took over the top charge after her appointment was made by the government as incumbent CBDT chairman KV Chowdary retired on October 31. pti

Jet Airways launches daily Kochi-Dubai direct flight
Kochi: Expanding its connectivity to the Gulf, Jet Airways on Wednesday launched direct flight service from Kochi to Dubai. This the first direct Jet flight from Kerela to that region and will complement such flights from other parts of the country to Abu Dhabi, Doha, Kuwait, Muscat and Sharjah. PTI