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MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises managing director and chief executive Punit Goenka said he has not discussed his reappointment with any shareholder, even as his five-year term is set to end in December."So, at the end of the day, it is the shareholders who will decide whether I am the right person or not, or whether somebody else needs to lead this company," Goenka told analysts during the company's Q4 earnings call on Friday.Domestic institutional investors own a 35.56% stake in the company as of March 2024. Some of the top investors include ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund and HDFC Mutual Fund.Goenka, who is part of the promoter family that holds a 4% stake, is the longest-serving CEO of Zee. In 2019, Goenka was reappointed as the MD and CEO of the entertainment giant, beginning January 2020.The Securities and Exchange Board of India is investigating Goenka and his father, Subhash Chandra, for allegedly diverting the entertainment company's funds to promoter-owned firms.In August 2023, the capital market regulator passed a confirmatory order against Goenka and Chandra, barring them from holding directorships or top managerial roles in Zee.The Securities Appellate Tribunal lifted Sebi's ban order against Goenka in October last year while allowing the regulator to continue its probe against the Zee promoters.The Sebi investigation against Goenka was a key reason for the failure of the merger deal between Zee and Sony Pictures Networks India. Sony was averse to having him as the CEO of the proposed merged entity and instead wanted its executive, NP Singh, to lead it.Sony terminated its merger agreement with Zee in January this year. Recently, Zee also withdrew its application from the National Company Law Tribunal that sought the implementation of the merger agreement."This decision (withdrawing the petition) will enable the company to sharply focus on growth and strategic opportunities in order to generate higher value for all shareholders," Goenka said, adding that the company will continue to contest Sony's $90 million termination fee demand before the Singapore International Arbitration Centre.Goenka said his single-minded focus is to ensure that the company achieves its 18-20% Ebitda target by FY26. Zee has terminated 15% of the staff and cut down investments in the technology centre and content, as part of efforts to reduce cost."We have been implementing a series of steps since the latter half of the quarter, the results of which will reflect on the bottom line in the financial year 2025," Goenka said.

MUMBAI: Spain's Inditex, the owner of fashion brand Zara, saw its slowest ever sales growth in India, excluding the pandemic year, in FY24 as the world's largest fashion group faced rising competition from global rivals in the clothing market that is increasingly getting cluttered.Inditex Trent, its joint venture with Tata that runs 23 of Zara stores in India, saw revenue rise 8% to Rs 2,775 crore last fiscal, significantly down from 40% growth a year ago, according to Trent's annual report. Net profit was down too at Rs 244 crore, an 8% drop.Zara has been a runaway success since its arrival in the country more than a decade ago but after initially doubling sales every two years, the brand's rate of expansion had come down in the past few years. "The market is very competitive, and the challenges are real. Nevertheless, the opportunity pool and the size of the market means that there is space for multiple successful players. Trent remains well placed to navigate this next phase of growth by leveraging our platform and growth engines," P Venkatesalu, chief executive officer at Trent, said in the report.Trent that runs Westside has shifted focus on its lower priced fast fashion brand Zudio, which opened about four new stores every week on average last fiscal to take the total store count at 545 doors. Trent also has a separate association with the Inditex group to operate Massimo Dutti stores in India. The entity saw revenues rise 14% to ?102 crore.110254856Experts said consumer demand has been affected in the past couple of years with brands having to work extra hard to get same-store growth and much of top-line growth has come for brands from store additions."Most international and premium Indian brands are competing for a relatively narrow slice of the population pie in the larger urban centres. While the Indian market is a bright spot amid the gloom in the world's major economies, global pressures are likely to play a part in the confidence among brands to invest in expansion," Devangshu Dutta, founder of retail consulting firm Third Eyesight, said, adding there is not necessarily "fatigue" for the brand."But if the contest for the consumer's attention is more intense and the consumer's choices are more fragmented across a wider choice of brands, that will definitely have an impact on any individual brand's performance." Being the world's second most-populous country, India is an attractive market for apparel brands, especially with youngsters increasingly embracing western-style clothing. Most of Zara's back-end and merchandise sourcing are handled by Inditex, while the Tata expertise is mainly for identifying real estate and locations.

The fifth phase of polling for Lok Sabha elections, taking place on Monday, will decide the fate of several important leaders, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, defence minister Rajnath Singh, commerce minister Piyush Goyal, women and child development minister Smriti Irani, National Conference leader Omar Abdullah, former Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Lalu Prasad's daughter Rohini Acharya, former public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam and Bahubali leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh's son Karan.Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Raebareli, his mother Sonia Gandhi's seat since 1999, and is facing UP minister Dinesh Pratap Singh. Congress has fielded the points-person of the Gandhis in the twin constituencies, Kishori Lal Sharma, as its candidate from Amethi against Smriti Irani who gave a shock defeat to Rahul in 2019.Former J&K CM and National Conference leader Omar Abdullah is in the fray from Baramulla. Independent candidate Abdul Rashid Sheikh, known popularly as Engineer Rashid, is said to be putting up a good fight against Abdullah and People's Conference leader Sajad Lone in this triangular contest. Rashid is in jail under UAPA. In Ladakh, BJP replaced sitting MP Jamyang Tsering Namgyal with Tashi Gyalson as its candidate this time.Some of the seats going to polls in Bihar are being keenly watched. After winning the Saran seat in 2014 and 2019, Rudy is in the fray again but the battle is tougher this time as he is pitted against Lalu Prasad's daughter Rohini Acharya, who had gained a lot of sympathy for donating her kidney to her ailing father. Chirag Paswan is contesting from Hajipur as LJP (RV) candidate under the NDA umbrella. Chirag has moved to his father Ram Vilas Paswan's erstwhile seat from Jamui which he won in 2014 and 2019. A win will establish Chirag's status as the inheritor of his father's legacy. RJD candidate Shiv Chandra Ram is putting up a good fight but Chirag is likely to sail through.Among the 13 seats of Maharashtra going to polls, Goyal is contesting from Mumbai North. Former public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam is BJP nominee from Mumbai North Central, replacing sitting MP Poonam Mahajan. Chief minister Eknath Shinde's son Srikant is contesting from Kalyan. Union minister Bharati Pawar is reportedly in a tough contest in Dindori (ST) seat.The five seats of Odisha going to polls include Bolangir. Former minister Jual Oram will try to retain the Sundargarh (ST) seat again.In Uttar Pradesh, Faizabad MP Lallu Singh will try to retain his seat with BJP banking on the consecration of Ram temple for his victory. In Kaiserganj, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who is embroiled in the sexual harassment case filed by top women wrestlers, managed to get BJP ticket for his son Karan as his replacement. In West Bengal, Locket Chatterjee (Hooghly) is fighting against CPM candidate Manadip Ghosh; AITC's Prasun Banerjee is contesting against Rathin Chakravarty of BJP in Howrah.

Delhi experienced scorching temperatures on Sunday, hitting a peak of 44.4 degrees Celsius, prompting the weather office to issue a 'red alert' due to severe heatwave conditions in the city. This marked the highest temperature recorded so far this summer, following a steady climb in temperatures over recent days.While Safdarjung recorded a high of 44.4 degrees Celsius, four degrees above normal, other areas of the city witnessed even more extreme conditions, with temperatures soaring above 47 degrees Celsius. Najafgarh recorded a high of 47.8 degrees Celsius, while Mungeshpur reached 47.7 degrees, Aya Nagar hit 46.4 degrees, Pusa saw 46.5 degrees, Pitampura recorded 47 degrees, and Palam registered 45.1 degrees.The India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasted mainly clear skies with heatwave conditions prevailing in many parts of Delhi and severe heatwave conditions in others, accompanied by strong surface winds at speeds of 25-35 kmph on Monday.In a seven-day forecast, the IMD emphasized the need for "extreme care for vulnerable people" due to the heatwave. Heat-related illnesses and heatstroke pose significant health risks for people of all ages, especially infants, the elderly, and those with chronic diseases.To combat the heat, the IMD advised staying hydrated, avoiding heat exposure, and keeping cool. It recommended drinking plenty of water and using ORS or homemade drinks like lassi, rice water, lemon water, and buttermilk.A heatwave is declared when the maximum temperature reaches at least 40 degrees Celsius in the plains, 37 degrees in coastal areas, and 30 degrees in hilly regions, with a departure from normal of at least 4.5 notches. A severe heatwave is declared if the departure from normal exceeds 6.4 notches.Throughout the day, Delhi's relative humidity fluctuated between 57% and 15%. (inputs from PTI)

The Federal Reserve and two other U.S. regulators are moving toward a new plan that would significantly reduce a nearly 20% mandated increase in capital for the country's biggest banks following lobbying efforts by industry CEOs like JPMorgan Chase's Jamie Dimon, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. Top officials from all three agencies involved in the pending capital rules-the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)-are still discussing substantive and technical revisions and there is no guarantee that an agreement will be reached, the WSJ reported. The Fed, the FDIC and the OCC did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. The three bank regulators, led by the Fed, in July last year unveiled a proposal to overhaul how banks with more than $100 billion in assets calculate the cash they must set aside to absorb potential losses.

From New York to London to Tokyo, if there’s one similarity among the world’s equity markets it’s this: record highs.Of the world’s 20 largest stock markets, 14 have hit all-time highs recently. The MSCI ACWI Index, which tracks developed and emerging markets, has been on a record-breaking run, setting another new high on Friday. In the US, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 indexes hit records this week, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed 40,000 for the first time ever. Meanwhile, the biggest bourses in Europe, Canada, Brazil, India, Japan and Australia are currently at or near their peaks. 110250745Looming interest rate cuts, healthy economies and corporate earnings are driving the activity. And what’s more, there are plenty of potential drivers to keep the rally rolling, such as the $6 trillion sitting in money market funds, while risks remain scarce. “From a macro perspective, there are no red signals,” said Salman Ahmed, global head of macro and strategic asset allocation at Fidelity International, who’s overweight global equities in his multi-asset portfolios. “The cyclical picture is staying strong, and the rally is broadening out.”The April pullback in global stocks didn’t last long, as dip buyers consistently showed up. That helps explain why the S&P 500 hasn’t seen a 2% drop in 311 days, its longest streak since 2017-2018. And even Chinese equities, which have been struggling since hitting a high in February 2021, are starting to come back.With all that in mind, here’s the state of play in major equity markets around the world:$12 Trillion RallyThe S&P 500 has set 24 new all-time highs in 2024 after going two years without one, as US stocks have been on a $12 trillion rally since late October. One part of that is hopes for a soft landing with the economy staying strong while inflation cools, which is spurring bets the Federal Reserve will ease monetary policy as soon as later this year. Another part is enthusiasm for artificial intelligence technology. AI chip giant Nvidia Corp. on its own is responsible for about one-fourth of the gains in S&P 500. And together with Microsoft Corp., Amazon.com Inc., Meta Platforms Inc. and Google-parent Alphabet Inc., roughly 53% of the benchmark’s rise is coming from just five stocks. 110250760So perhaps the Dow’s new milestone this week was the more significant development, since it’s less heavily weighted toward those big tech behemoths, according to Dave Mazza, chief executive officer of Roundhill Investments.“While the tech sector’s strength has been incredibly important to helping markets make high after high, it’s far from the only sector that’s doing well,” he said. “While some were pointing to the market being too concentrated last year, you can’t say the same in 2024.”Europe’s Earnings SurpriseEuropean equities are also on a record-hitting spree as economic data shows signs of bottoming amid positive surprises this year. That’s fueling corporate profits and driving expectations for markets to keep building on the rally.“The expected sluggish earnings season turned out to be better than feared,” BNP Paribas strategists led by Georges Debbas said, noting that three-quarters of European companies met or exceeded earnings expectations, with margins improving. That’s fueling analyst estimates for future profits, lifting stocks higher.The pan-European Stoxx 600 Index has risen in five of the last six months, with the divergence in monetary policy from the US likely to be a tailwind for the region’s equities. The European Central Bank has struck a more dovish tone than the Fed over the past few months, and bond markets are expecting the ECB to cut rates before its US counterpart for the first time ever. 110250776While the rally had been heavily concentrated in a handful of stocks, it’s been broadening out since February, with 16 stocks contributing 50% of the yearly gains in the Stoxx 600. Novo Nordisk A/S is the largest, making up 10% of the gauge’s returns this year, while ASML Holding NV and SAP SE account for 7.7% and 4.3%, respectively. Commodities Lift StocksThe UK’s FTSE 100 Index has beaten the Euro Stoxx 50 in dollar terms over the past three months, recovering much of its underperformance from the beginning of the year. Soaring commodity prices have been a key driver, helping one of the cheapest developed equity markets in the world start to catch up to its rivals. The economically sensitive commodities sector has also pushed to Canada’s main stocks benchmark, the S&P/TSX Composite Index, to an all-time high. Gold and copper have repeatedly set records this year, giving a boost to the country’s massive mining sector, which accounts for over 12% of the index’s weighting.“Precious metal prices are closing in on decade highs set just a few weeks ago, which could keep the Canadian index supported for now, though a reversal could spell trouble,” Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Gillian Wolff and Gina Martin Adams wrote in a note. Japan Is BackJapan’s Nikkei 225 is up 16% this year, adding to a 28% gain last year. The country lured investors and drove gains with a campaign to improve shareholder returns, a weak yen and the end of negative rates in Japan.BlackRock Inc. strategists said the sliding yen could put off foreign investors. But they also think the outlook is good over the long-term due to corporate reforms, domestic investments and wage growth.110250849India also has been on a strong run, with the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex setting records and outperforming China, thanks to the government’s investment pledges and an expanding economy. However, investors turned cautious in recent weeks over election uncertainties and high valuations.Meanwhile, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 Index hit a high on March 28 after inflation data bolstered bets that rates have peaked. Since then, expectations have shifted with a former central bank official predicting that cuts may only come in late 2025. Yet, Australian stocks are back to hovering near that record high.

Indian cricket team skipper Rohit Sharma on Sunday lashed out at Star Sports for recording and playing on air his private conversation. This comes after a video featuring Rohit Sharma and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) assistant coach Abhishek Nayar went viral on social media, where Sharma is seen contemplating his future with the Mumbai Indians (MI) team.The former Mumbai Indians skipper said, "The need to get exclusive content and focussed only on views and engagement will one day break the trust between the fans, cricketers and cricket."KKR initially posted the video of the conversation on their social media channels but later removed it. This has sparked speculation among fans about Rohit potentially leaving MI. If he does decide to depart, the question arises: where might he go next?Though the noise in the video is not clear due to constant cheering by fans for Rohit in the background, he can be heard saying, "Ek ek cheez change ho raha hai...Woh unke upar hai...Jo bhi hai woh mera ghar hai bhai, woh temple jo hai na maine banwaya hai." The last audible line in the chat is "Bhai mera kya mera to ye last hai".Though the rest of the conversation is not audible, fans were quick to react to it and speculated that Rohit was talking about the MI captaincy and some fans even alleged that KKR had deleted the video after uploading it on X.Sharma and Nayar go back a long way from their Mumbai domestic cricket days and are good friends. Nayar is also credited with playing a big role in Rohit's comeback into the Indian team after 2011 ODI World Cup snub.Rohit was unceremoniously removed by the MI management earlier this year bringing in Hardik Pandya at the helm, a move that had massively backfired with the team ending as wooden spooners with only four victories to its credit.

In the intricate world of investing, where fortunes are made and lost on a daily basis, astute investors understand that hidden gems often lie beneath the surface. These overlooked opportunities, often overshadowed by noise and chaos in the market. These opportunities have the potential to unlock substantial wealth for those who delve to explore this optionality. Historically there have been different special opportunities offered by the financial markets in the form of demergers and spinoffs, holding company discounts, and promoter buying.Spinoffs represent strategic moves by companies to restructure their operations, often with the aim of unlocking shareholder value. These actions involve separating a company into distinct entities, each with its own focus and potential for growth. One recent example of this is the demerger of Jio Financial Services from Reliance Industries Limited (RIL). Following this demerger, shareholders of Reliance Industries witnessed a surge in the cumulative stock price of (Reliance Industries Limited and Jio Financial Services Limited), outperforming the headline index by a significant margin. An investor who had invested in Reliance Limited just post the Jio Financial Services demerger announcement would have made an absolute return of around ~28.5%, outperforming the headline index by approximately thirteen percentage points in the same period. Similarly, despite initial skepticism surrounding Vedanta Limited due to solvency and debt repayment concerns around the parent entity Vedanta UK, a deeper analysis of management intent revealed the potential for value creation through demerger. Investors who saw through the noise and recognized the opportunity witnessed superior value creation as the cumulative estimated market value of all demerged entities was greater than the market capitalization of the conglomerate which led to superior price appreciation in a very short time frame.Similarly, holding companies, despite owning valuable assets across various sectors, often trade below their net asset value (NAV). This discount, primarily due to the complexity involved in valuing diverse holdings, presents an enticing opportunity for investors. By investing in holding companies, one can gain exposure to high-quality businesses. Typically, holding companies tend to not liquidate their assets, causing their valuations to reflect a persistently discounted rate relative to their underlying value of the businesses the own. In scenarios where the discount broadens significantly, these entities provide special opportunities with a strong investment potential. In India listed companies like Godrej Industries and Bajaj Holdings illustrate how investors can benefit from holding companies by allocating capital to these companies at steep discount to the net asset value and benefit on the narrowing down of the discount. Another interesting area in the special situations investing is the Insider Mirroring strategy which is characterized by focusing on significant purchases of a company's stock by its promoters or top executives serving as a valuable indicator of confidence in the company's future prospects. Tata Motors Limited and Poonawalla Fincorp provide compelling examples where significant promoter buying activity preceded strong price appreciation in the company's stock. An investor who had observed promoter buying activity in Tata Motors Limited during the June 2019-July 2020 period would have witnessed a strong price appreciation in the next three years which was an outcome of turnaround of JLR business and significant market share gains in the EV space. Similarly, the acquisition of Poonawalla Fincorp was followed by promoter buying in multiple tranches. The stock price saw significant appreciation during the same period and was paralleled with superior turnaround and growth in the financials and operations of the company. These instances indicate that promoter buying is one of the unconventional or soft market signals indicating confidence of promoters in the business with empirical evidence of generating superior returns for investors.Thus, in today’s evolving financial markets where market dynamics are ever-changing and information overload is the norm, retail investors often find themselves overwhelmed by the sheer volume of data and news. Amidst this chaos, however, lie hidden opportunities that have the potential to unlock substantial wealth for those who dare to explore beyond the surface. By understanding and capitalizing on special opportunities such as demergers or spinoffs, holding company discounts, and promoter buying, investors can generate superior returns as these strategies have a positive historical track record. As we reflect on these examples, one thing becomes clear: the path to wealth creation often diverges from the beaten track. By embracing a more nuanced approach to investing and staying vigilant for special situations, retail investors can position themselves to capitalize on opportunities that often get overlooked, ultimately unlocking hidden wealth in the process.(The author Umeshkumar Mehta is CIO, Samco Mutual Fund. Views are his own)

Equity markets will remain closed on Monday on account of the Mumbai elections, according to the market holiday calendar of BSE. Accordingly, all the segments including, the equity segment, derivative segment, and SLB segment will be closed tomorrow.The Multi-Commodity Exchange (MCX) will remain closed for the morning session but will be open for the evening session.Further, apart from Mumbai Elections (May 20), in 2024, the markets will be shut for Bakri Id (June 17), Muharram (July 17), Independence Day (August 15), Mahatma Gandhi (October 2), Diwali (November 1), Gurunanak Jayanti (November 15) and Christmas (December 25).The exchanges may alter any of the above holidays, for which a separate circular will be issued in advance.On Saturday, Indian equities traded in two special sessions from 9:15 a.m. to 10 a.m. (0345-0430 GMT) from a primary site, and then from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (0600-0700 GMT) from a so-called disaster recovery site as exchanges tested how their systems would respond in the case of unexpected events.India's markets regulator had scrutinised the stock exchanges - NSE and BSE, after a major trading outage in February 24, 2021 due to a technical glitch, when the bourses failed to migrate to the disaster recovery site.A similar special trading session was earlier held on March 2, 2024The benchmark NSE Nifty 50 settled 0.16% higher at 22,502, while the S&P BSE Sensex added 0.12% to 74,006. Both the benchmarks traded in a narrow range.The Nifty breadth was skewed in favour of bulls with 38 stocks trading in the green, 11 in the red, and one remaining unchanged. The top gainers were Nestle India, Power Grid, Tata Motors, Adani Ports, and Hindalco, while the top losers were JSW Steel, M&M, UltraTech Cement, LTIMindtree, and Maruti Suzuki.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)