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German car-maker Mercedes Benz will make an investment of Rs 3,000 crore in Maharashtra, state Industries Minister Uday Samant said on Thursday. In a post on X, Samant said while on a tour of Germany, he met top executives of Mercedes Benz on Thursday and discussed investment opportunities in the state. "Mercedes Benz will invest Rs 3,000 crore in Maharashtra this year. This will help create employment opportunities in the state," he said. The development could give a shot in the arm, ahead of assembly elections, to the Shiv Sena-BJP-NCP government which has been battling charges from the opposition that Maharashtra is losing big-ticket industrial projects to other states including Gujarat.

Morgan Stanley bought 3,13,29,540 equity shares in L&T Finance for over Rs 534 crore via a block deal on Thursday. Its Asian arm Morgan Stanley Asia Singapore PTE bought shares at a price of Rs 170.60 apiece, which was Wednesday's closing price on the BSE.L&T Finance shares on Thursday ended at Rs 175.85, up Rs 5.25 or 3.08%.Bain Capital offloaded 8.82 crore shares of the company via a block deal. According to reports, the private equity major, through its affiliates BC Asia Investment VI and BC Asia Growth Investment, has been planning a complete exit from L&T Finance by selling its existing stake via the block deal route.However, the bulk deal data available on the BSE showed BC Asia Growth Investments selling 20,026,502 equity shares at a price of Rs 170.60.Meanwhile, BNP Paribas Financial Markets sold 57,869,992 shares while buying 8,324,050 units.Promoter Group Larsen & Toubro (L&T) also purchased 1.25 crore shares. It held 65.86% stake or 1,63,92,30,125 shares as per the March shareholding data.As of March 2024, the company’s 34.14% equity rests in the hands of the public.L&T Finance shares have surged 61% last year, while the stock gained 15% in two weeks alone. In the past 3 months, the stock has increased by 19.6% on charts.Technically, the stock is performing well above all its significant moving averages and is standing at a mid-range level of around 61 on the RSI, as per the Trendlyne data.In a late filing on Thursday, L&T Finance said, "The investment agreement dated September 21, 2015 entered into between BC Asia Growth Investments, BC Investments VI Limited (collectively referred to as “Bain Capital”) and the Company in relation to the acquisition of shares (directly or indirectly) by Bain Capital and the rights of Bain Capital in the Company, stands terminated effective today in accordance with the terms of the Investment Agreement".Also Read: Ambuja Cements to acquire 100% stake in Penna Cement for Rs 10,422 crore(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Nifty-500 companies have reported a robust performance in the fourth quarter of FY24 primarily driven by domestic cyclicals like BFSI and auto sectors, stated a report by domestic brokerage firm Motilal Oswal.However, global cyclicals such as Oil & Gas (O&G) and metals dragged down the index, the report said.Nifty-500 companies recorded a 7% increase in sales, a 13% rise in EBITDA, and a 13% jump in adjusted PAT, reaching approximately Rs 35 lakh crore, Rs 6.7 lakh crore, and Rs 3.9 lakh crore respectively.“The earnings performance of Nifty-500 companies in FY24 was more broad based than in FY23. The top 100 companies by market cap accounted for 65% of incremental profit (with 75% of profit pool) vs. 91% of incremental profit (with 82% of profit pool) in FY23,” says Gautam Duggad, analyst at Motilal Oswal.Also read: Motilal Oswal initiates coverage on Mankind Pharma with target price of Rs 2,650Sectorally, remarkable earnings growth were displayed with auto at 83% YoY growth and BFSI at 24% YoY. Banks within BFSI saw a 26% YoY growth, making up 64% of the sector's earnings.On the other hand, declines were observed, with earnings down 51%, 21%, and 12% YoY for chemicals, metals and oil & gas respectively while capital goods and cement sectors grew by 31% and 18% YoY, respectively.The FY23 earnings were much more skewed in favor of the Nifty-50, but in FY24 the distribution was relatively symmetric. Among them, BFSI, Oil & Gas, and Auto drove a majority of the incremental earnings in FY24 as the top 10 companies by market capitalization contributed only 18% to the incremental YoY earnings in FY24 vs 68% in FY23, the report added.The 3.3% CPI reading in May was the kind of positive reading that the Federal Reserve was pinning its hope on after a disappointing first quarter this year. The reading goes on to add more grist to Chair Jerome Powell’s belief that inflation is moving gradually towards the 2% target, even if it might be doing so on a somewhat bumpy path.As far as the economic projections are concerned, I would be cautious about putting too much weight on the expectation of just one rate cut this year. Chair Jerome Powell has pointed out that these projections come with “a slight element of conservatism” and are data-dependent, which is another way of saying that there could be more than one rate cut in the year, provided we have a string of positive, confidence-inducing inflation results."(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first foreign visit in his third term in office will be to Borgo Egnazia, an exclusive resort in Apuglia, Italy, for the G -7 Summit from June 13 to 15. While he will be one among a dozen non-G-7 foreign dignitaries invited to the Summit, the visit will bring forth the high priority Italy has assumed in India’s foreign policy.The Summit will also provide Modi a platform to elaborate on global issues of pertinence which were the focus of the successful Indian Presidency of the G-20. There will be several opportunities to do so, given the comprehensive agenda of the G-7 Summit, which is expected to focus on challenges and disruptions on the global economic horizon, including international trade and threats posed by China’s industrial “overcapacity”, as also the impacts of the continuing Russia-Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflicts.There will also be separate sessions on artificial intelligence (AI) addressed by none less than Pope Francis, the looming climate change crisis, global energy scenario, and issues related to the African continent and the Mediterranean which all invited leaders are expected to join, and where India would be a credible voice of the Global South. The Summit will also provide opportunities for meaningful bilateral interactions between Modi and other world leaders.A key engagement for Modi will be the meeting with Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni. The last few years have seen a significant deepening of Indo-Italian relations, marked by a flurry of high-level visits from both sides, culminating in important agreements, which have reframed the contours of bilateral ties.This new phase in the relationship was enabled by the judgement of the Permanent Court of Arbitration on July 2, 2020, which helped both sides to bring closure to the issue of the Italian marines which had dogged relations between 2012 and 2016. Following immediately thereafter, in November 2020, a virtual bilateral Summit was held between Modi and Prime Minister Guiseppe Conte, during which a Plan of Action to prioritise areas of cooperation for the period 2020-25 was agreed upon and as many as 15 MoUs were signed.Modi had undertaken his first visit to Italy in 2021 for the G-20 Summit. This provided the opportunity for his bilateral interaction with Prime Minister Mario Draghi and the signing of a strategic partnership in energy transition, as well as a statement of intent on cooperation in textiles, where India as a leading producer of textiles and Italy as a world leader in fashion designing and a producer of textile machinery identified mutual benefits of collaboration.After the Italian elections in October 2022, the Centre-right coalition government of Meloni prioritised close relations with India. Her visit in March 2023 marked the elevation of ties to a strategic partnership, opening up cooperation in sensitive areas such as defence, outer space, and cybersecurity. Renewal of the agreement for military systems, including co-development, co-production and joint ventures related to defence products and services followed in October 2023.Equal focus has also been given to the bilateral economic relationship. Italy is now India’s 4th largest trading partner in the EU, with bilateral trade reaching Euro 14.34 billion in 2023 and a presence of more than 700 companies with cumulative investments US$3.53 billion for the period January 2000 to December 2023.Italy hosts one of the largest Indian diaspora communities in Europe numbering around 200,000. Significantly, in November 2023, India and Italy were able to finalise a milestone Migration and Mobility Partnership Agreement, ensuring safe and legal migration, which is the first of its kind signed by Italy with any country. This will serve to protect the interests of legal migrants, including seasonal and non-seasonal workers engaged in dairy farming and agriculture, as well as professionals and academics. This should also facilitate educational exchanges.There are also increasing convergences on global issues. Both nations desire a free and open Indo-Pacific based on the rule of law and freedom of navigation. Italy has joined several India–led initiatives, such as the International Solar Alliance, Global Bio-Fuels Alliance and the Indo Pacific Oceans Initiative. It is also a key partner in the India Middle East Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and will bring its expertise in ports, railways and maritime sectors to the project.Given that a select number of leaders will be attending the G-7 Summit, the visit by Modi will provide an opportunity to renew contact and review bilateral ties with a number of them, providing a sound start to his foreign policy priorities for the new term in office.(Anil Wadhwa has served as Secretary (East) in the external affairs ministry, and as Ambassador to Italy, Oman, Thailand, Poland and Lithuania. He is currently a Distinguished Fellow with New Delhi-based Vivekananda International Foundation. The views expressed are his own)

After making a new all-time high of 23,481, Nifty ended the Thursday expiry day 76 points higher to form a small negative candle with a minor lower shadow.The short-term trend of Nifty continues to be a range bound with positive bias. Previously, such sideways range movements at the higher tops have eventually resulted in a downward correction in the market from the highs. The Nifty continued to face stiff resistance around 23,400-23,500 levels and immediate support was at 23,280 levels, said Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities.Open Interest (OI) data showed that on the call side, the highest OI was observed at 23,500 and 23,700 strike prices. On the put side, the highest OI was at 22,800 strike price.What should traders do? Here’s what analysts said:Jatin Gedia, SharekhanOn the daily charts, we can observe that Nifty has been consolidating in the broad range of 23,200-23,500. A decisive close beyond the boundaries can lead to a trending move. The hourly momentum indicator still has a negative crossover, which is a sell signal and hence the rallies are fizzling out at higher levels.The ideal strategy would be to take a contrarian bet at the extremes of the range and square off when prices are around the other extreme.Ruchit Jain, 5paisa.comNifty consolidated in a range as it traded around the resistance of 23,500 and the lower time frame reading hinted at a time wise correction. However, the stock specific momentum was robust as the market breadth was positive and the midcap index outperformed to mark new record high. The broader trend for Nifty remains positive, but it just seems possible for a timewise correction (consolidation) to relieve the overbought set ups on the lower time frame charts. The immediate supports are placed around 23,200 and 23,000 and any dips towards the support should be seen as a buying opportunity. On the higher side, the call writers position at 23,500 strike makes it an immediate hurdle, which if surpassed then we could see a continuation of the trend towards 23,900-24,000 in the short term.Rupak De, LKP SecuritiesNifty has been range-bound flat for the last four days, indicating a pause before a sharp move. The direction of this move is not yet known, at least not before any directional breakout. From here, a decisive move above 23,500 might lead to the covering of call writing, which could take the index higher towards 23,800. On the lower end, support is placed at 23,300, below which the index might weaken.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)