Reliance into Viacom18, Tata Motors’ Tamil Nadu Expansion, Vedanta Challenges Sebi Order, Cholamandalam’s Chennai Property Acquisition

Opening Bell:

Gift Nifty is down by 1.5 points in the early morning trade, indicating a negative opening for Indian stock market

Asian markets approached trading cautiously on Thursday after a mixed performance on Wall Street overnight. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slid by 0.45%, with the Topix also experiencing a decline of 0.21%. Conversely, South Korea’s Kospi saw a modest gain of 0.22%, while the Kosdaq index registered a slight uptick. Meanwhile, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures hinted at a stronger opening.

In the US, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq saw marginal decreases on Wednesday as investors opted to take profits in chipmaker stocks, while also preparing for producer price data and seeking further insights into the inflation trajectory ahead of the Federal Reserve meeting next week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average managed a slight uptick of 0.1%, but the S&P 500 dipped by 0.19% and the Nasdaq Composite dropped by 0.54%.

Stocks News:

👉 Reliance Industries: The company has consented to acquire the entire 13.01% stake in Viacom18 Media from Paramount Global. The deal, valued at approximately $517 million (₹42.86 billion), was disclosed in US regulatory filings. Viacom18, primarily owned by RIL, boasts a portfolio of 40 television channels, including Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, and MTV. After the deal concludes, Paramount has affirmed that it will continue its content licensing agreement with Viacom18, as reported by Reuters. The completion of this acquisition is dependent on the finalisation of the previously announced merger between Reliance and Disney concerning their TV and streaming media assets in India.

👉 Tata Motors: The commercial and passenger vehicle manufacturer, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Tamil Nadu to set up a vehicle manufacturing facility in the state. The MoU envisages an investment of around Rs 9,000 crore over 5 years and can potentially create up to 5,000 jobs.

👉 Vedanta: The company announced on Wednesday that it plans to challenge the order from Sebi, which requires them to pay a penalty of ₹77.6 crore to Cairn UK Holdings Ltd, a Scottish exploration company, for a delay in dividend payments to a former shareholder, as reported by PTI news agency. Vedanta stated that Cairn UK Holdings Ltd had relinquished its right to demand interest when it resolved a retrospective tax claim with the government. In a statement, the mining conglomerate affirmed, “Vedanta Ltd will contest the Sebi order at the suitable forum.”

👉 Cholamandalam Investment and Finance Company, DLF: Cholamandalam has acquired a 4.67-acre property in Chennai from DLF for ₹735 crore. In a regulatory disclosure on Wednesday, Cholamandalam announced the completion of the purchase of the real estate from DLF IT Offices Chennai Private Limited, situated in Guindy, Chennai, through the execution and registration of a sale deed. The transaction is valued at ₹735 crore. DLF has divested this land to liquidate its assets.

👉 Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 4,595.06 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased Rs 9,093.72 crore worth of stocks on March 13, provisional data from the NSE showed.

Domestic and International Events

• The Indian heavy industries ministry announced the EMPS 2024 scheme, with a budget of Rs 500 crore, to promote e-mobility. The scheme offers support for 2-wheelers and 3-wheelers, with subsidies up to Rs 10,000 for 2-wheelers, up to Rs 25,000 for small three-wheelers, and up to Rs 50,000 for large three-wheelers.

• US Treasury yields rose modestly as investors looked ahead to inflation and consumer health data for clues on the direction of Federal Reserve policy. The yield on the benchmark US 10-year notes rose 3.5 basis points (bps) to 4.19%, while the 2-year note yield was up 2.9 bps to 4.6282%. The dollar index fell 0.18% to 102.77.

• Gold prices rose on Wednesday, buoyed by a weaker dollar, as investors held on to hopes of a June rate cut by the Federal Reserve despite a hot US inflation print, while escalating geopolitical tensions kept bullion’s safe-haven demand intact.

• Oil prices rose about 3 percent to a four-month high on Wednesday on a surprise withdrawal in US crude inventories, a bigger-than-expected drop in U.S. gasoline stocks and potential supply disruptions after Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries. Brent futures rose $2.11, or 2.6 percent, to settle at $84.03 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $2.16, or 2.8 percent, to settle at $79.72.

EMERGING	LATEST	% 1D
Hang Seng	17,082	(0.1) %
Shanghai Composite	3,044	(0.4) %

DEVELOPED	LATEST	% 1D
Dow Jones	39,043	0.1 %
DAX	17,961	(0.0) %
FTSE 100	7,772	0.3 %
Nikkei	38,696	(0.3) %
Straits Times	3,161	0.6 %