Monday, June 5

Month: August 2021

US in final phase of evacuations from Kabul; Taliban seize 3 airport gates
30Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
International

US in final phase of evacuations from Kabul; Taliban seize 3 airport gates

By Administrator_ India Capital Sands US forces are in the final phase of leaving Kabul, ending two decades of involvement in Afghanistan, and just over 1,000 civilians at the airport remain to be flown out before troops withdraw, a Western security official said on Sunday. The country's new Taliban rulers are prepared to take control of the airport, said an official from the hardline Islamist movement that has swept across Afghanistan, crushing the US-backed government. The Taliban have already taken over control of three gates at Kabul’s airport from US forces and will be in charge of the rest soon, an official from the group said. “The whole airport is slowly coming under the control of the Taliban,” Enhamullah Samangani, a member of the group’s Cultural Commission, sai...
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Paytm staff converts ESOPs to shares worth Rs 182 crore
26Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
Business

Paytm staff converts ESOPs to shares worth Rs 182 crore

By Administrator_India Capital Sands IPO bound Paytm that granted new employee stock options (ESOPs) to its current and former staff were converted to shares worth Rs 182 crore, The Economic Times reported citing a regulatory filing. Over a million ESOPs were granted mostly to senior staff members at the price of Rs 9. Based on Paytm’s last valuation of $16 billion (about Rs 1.2 lakh crore), the ESOPs converted were worth Rs 182 crores, the report added. Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report. The platform offers payment instruments such as wallet, sub wallets and prepaid card, savings account, current account, debit cards, FASTag, National Common Mobility Card, and UPI, which are issued or opened by Paytm Payments Bank, and Paytm Postpaid (BNPL), credit card...
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Exclusive: Byju’s in talks to raise $500 million via Term Loan B
25Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
Business

Exclusive: Byju’s in talks to raise $500 million via Term Loan B

By Administrator_India Capital Sands India’s most valued startup Byju’s is in talks to raise $500 million in a debt round through the TLB or Term Loan B route from global investors as it gears up for an initial public offering (IPO), as per a source. The deal is at an early stage and the company has started working with Morgan Stanley for the same. “It is at a term sheet stage,” said the source quoted above. TLB refers to a tranche of senior secured syndicated credit facility from global institutional investors. OYO was the first company to have raised this debt in India. Moneycontrol reported about it on July 16. Conventionally, TLB proceeds are used either to refinance the existing debts by a company or to make overseas acquisitions with an aim to enhance their offering...
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Oil Up, Fuel Demand Outlook Clears Over Full Vaccine Approval
24Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
Oil

Oil Up, Fuel Demand Outlook Clears Over Full Vaccine Approval

By Administrator_India Capital Sands Oil was up Tuesday morning in Asia, with the U.S. granting the first global full approval for a COVID-19 vaccine, and the expected boost in vaccination rates to follow, increasing hopes for higher fuel demand. Brent oil futures edged up 0.12% to $68.45 by 11:32 PM ET and WTI futures edged up 0.12% to $65.72. Both Brent and WTI futures jumped more than 5% on Monday after recording their biggest week of losses in more than nine months during the past week. The FDA followed up the emergency use authorization it gave the Pfizer  Inc/ BioNtech SE two-dose vaccine in December 2020 with a full approval for use in those 16 and up. Hopes are rising that the regulator’s approval will boost the U.S. vaccination drive by convincing unvaccinated Ameri...
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India brings back close to 400 people from Afghanistan in three flights
23Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
WORLD NEWS

India brings back close to 400 people from Afghanistan in three flights

By Administrator_India Capital Sands India on Sunday brought back nearly 400 people, including 329 of its nationals and two Afghan lawmakers, in three different flights as part of its efforts to evacuate its citizens from Kabul in the backdrop of the deteriorating situation in the city after its takeover by the Taliban. A total of 168 people including 107 Indians and 23 Afghan Sikhs and Hindus, were flown from Kabul to the Hindon airbase near Delhi in a C-17 heavy-lift military transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force (IAF). Another group of 87 Indians and two Nepalese nationals were brought back in a special Air India flight from Dushanbe, a day after they were evacuated to the Tajikistan capital in an IAF aircraft, officials said. Separately, a group of 135 Indians, who ...
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Air fares between India and UAE remain high as strong demand continues
20Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
Business

Air fares between India and UAE remain high as strong demand continues

By Administrator_India Capital Sands With the United Arab Emirates lifting a ban on transit flights from India soon after opening its borders to Indian customers, prices of flight tickets between the two countries have risen by about 70 percent and even tripled on some routes. Starting fares for one-way flights to Dubai from New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Kochi have shot up to Rs 40,000 to Rs 70,000 in the past week from Rs 13,000-30,000, according to data from airlines and websites of travel agencies collected by Moneycontrol. Prices of flights from New Delhi, Mumbai, Kochi and Kolkata to destinations such as Abu Dhabi and Dubai have risen by an average of 70 percent in the past month. The cheapest air fare between New Delhi and the UAE is about Rs 40,000. Air India Express...
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Explained | What are oil bonds and are they to blame for high fuel prices?
19Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
Oil

Explained | What are oil bonds and are they to blame for high fuel prices?

By Administrator_India Capital Sands The oil bonds issued by the UPA government to insulate consumers from crude price shocks have snowballed into a political rallying point. The Modi-led NDA government has blamed these oil bonds that are hitting payback time now for the Centre’s inability to cut taxes and enable cheaper petrol and diesel. Here’s a lowdown on the issues. What are oil bonds? Oil bonds are issued by the government to compensate oil marketing companies (OMCs) to offset losses that they suffer to shield consumers from rising crude oil prices. The government issued these bonds mainly during 2005 to 2010. Why were these bonds issued? These bonds were issued to OMCs in lieu of cash at a time when the central government used to administer or fix petrol and die...
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US-India flights to take longer after Afghanistan’s airspace shuts
17Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
U.S

US-India flights to take longer after Afghanistan’s airspace shuts

By Administrator_India Capital Sands Flights on the India-US and Europe routes could take up to 30 minutes more than usual as airlines have been asked to avoid Afghanistan’s airspace after the Taliban took control of the country’s capital Kabul. Afghanistan’s Civil Aviation Authority on Monday issued a notice to air carriers stating that the airspace had been released to the military and advised transit flights to reroute, saying there would be no air traffic control (ATC). Sources said the airspace was shut as there were no staff to man the ATC after the Taliban took power. As a result of this sudden decision, state-owned Air India cancelled its Delhi-Kabul-Delhi flight that was scheduled to operate on Monday to avoid Afghanistan’s airspace after it was declared “uncontrolled”...
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Oil falls a second day after IEA warns of slowdown in demand
13Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
Oil

Oil falls a second day after IEA warns of slowdown in demand

By Administrator_India Capital Sands Oil prices fell for a second day on Friday after the IEA warned that demand growth for crude and its products had slowed sharply as surging cases of COVID-19 worldwide has forced governments to revive restrictions on movement. Brent crude was down 31 cents, or 0.4%, at $71.00 a barrel by 0046 GMT, after dropping 13 cents in the previous session. U.S. crude was off by 33 cents, or 0.5%, at $68.76 a barrel, having fallen 0.2% on Thursday. The benchmarks are still heading for a slight gain this week. ”We now see the global demand recovery stalling this month with oil demand only reaching 98.3 million barrels per day (mbd) in August and averaging 97.9 mbd in September, on par with the nearly 98 mbd average in July,” JPM Commodities Research said...
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Users under 18 years will soon be able to seek removal of pictures from image search result
12Aug By Administrator_IndiaNo Comments
Business

Users under 18 years will soon be able to seek removal of pictures from image search result

By Administrator_India Capital Sands Tech giant Google on Wednesday said it will introduce a new policy in the coming weeks that will enable those under 18 years or their parents to request for removal of their images from Google Image search results. Among a number of new measures, Google will also ensure that Location History remains off (without the option to turn it on) for accounts of users aged below 18 years. "We're committed to building products that are secure by default, private by design, and that put people in control. "And, while our policies don't allow kids under 13 to create a standard Google account, we've worked hard to design enriching product experiences specifically for them, teens, and families," Google said in a blogpost. During the pandemic, techno...
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