Biz Updates: Growth rate will be seven percent in the current financial year; Airtel will ban fake call messages from AI
New Delhi| The Asian Development Bank (ADB) maintained India’s growth rate forecast for the current fiscal year at 7 percent. Better agricultural production and higher government spending are expected to boost the economy in the coming quarters, ADB said on Wednesday. Exports will be higher in the current financial year.
Bharti Airtel will implement artificial intelligence (AI) based technology on its network to curb fake calls and messages. Gopal Vittal, MD-CEO of the company, said on Wednesday, this technology will be introduced from midnight of September 26. Vittal said, this spam detection alerts users on the dialer by analyzing calls in two milliseconds. The facility will be free for all Airtel users.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) of 70-80 billion dollars is coming into India every year. It is expected to reach $100 billion in the coming years. Amardeep Singh Bhatia, secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, said on Wednesday that the department is also streamlining the approval processes for FDI applications. The government has eased the norms in many areas to attract investment, the secretary said. Himani Pandey, additional secretary of the department, said, FDI worth $22.49 billion came into the country in the June quarter.
Vehicle manufacturer Hyundai Motor India and online delivery platform Swiggy have received approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch an initial public offering (IPO). Hyundai plans to raise around 25,000 crore through IPO. If the IPO is successful then it will be the biggest issue in the country. Earlier, Life Insurance Corporation of India had brought the biggest IPO of 21,000 crore. Swiggy could bring an issue of 10,414 crore.
In line with international markets, gold prices continue to rise in the domestic bullion market also. In the coming time, gold may become expensive in foreign markets and reach the level of $ 3,200 per ounce, which is currently $ 2,681.10 per ounce. Pranab Mer, vice president of research (commodities and currencies), Blinkx and JM Financial, said gold prices are being supported by a weak dollar, expectations of further interest rate cuts from global central banks, secure investment demand and inflow of ETF funds. At the same time, bullion traders say that gold prices rose due to continuous buying by jewelers and strong trend in international markets. Gold is trading 0.15 per cent higher at $2,681.10 an ounce on Comex. At one point it reached a new high of 2,694.89.
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Chairman RC Lahoti on Wednesday said the regulator will expedite the process of satellite spectrum pricing before raising the issue of regulation of over-the-top (OTT) apps like WhatsApp, Telegram and Google Meet. Will issue consultation paper on pricing in a few days.
RBI Deputy Governor Swaminathan J told bank officials on Wednesday that after success in improving access to banking services, there is a need to improve the utilization of facilities. To achieve this goal, bank officials need to understand their districts well.
