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Telecom company Vodafone Idea (Vi) has surrendered fractional spectrum in the 900MHz and 1800MHz bands in select circles as the airwaves were incompatible with its latest network technology."VIL has opted for extension of required spectrum in both Uttar Pradesh (West) and West Bengal circles, releasing only the fractional spectrum that cannot be used with the newer technology and as such not currently required," a Vi spokesperson said.The spectrum was up for renewal this year.Separately, in an investor presentation, VIL said it has completed the minimum roll out requirement for 5G services in 4 telecom circles, and the company has a target to cover 40 per cent of revenues population coverage with 5G in the first 24-30 months.Vodafone Idea (Vi) plans to launch 5G services within 6-7 months, post-funding, by when it also expects to have more clarity around monetisation of the next-gen mobile broadband service, company chief executive Akshaya Moondra had said.The cash-strapped telco plans to fully switch off its 3G network in FY25 and refarm its airwaves in the 2100 MHz band for 4G, which would boost overall network capacity, Moondra said at Vi’s fiscal third quarter earnings call on Tuesday.The company has already shut down 3G services in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Mumbai and Kolkata in the fiscal third quarter, and will phase out the service in other circles amid falling 3G devices on its network.

Some factors behind India's now 'fastest among advanced nations' economy bear stark resemblance to indicators last seen in the nation between 2003-07, a report by Morgan Stanley said.The report authored by Chetan Ahya, Derrick Y Kam and Jonathan Cheung noted that much like the mid-2000s' boom, India's current cycle would likely be investment-driven.The Indian economy registered an average growth of around 8.6 per cent between 2003-07 while the inflation averaged 4.8 per cent. India's current account balance was within the Reserve Bank of India's comfort zone, between 2.8 to -1.4 per cent of GDP.Morgan Stanley noted that 'defining' characteristic of the Indian economy presently is the high investment to GDP ratio. Investment ratios in India have picked up recently after a 11-year decline. From 27 per cent in FY03, the ratio rose to 39 per cent in FY08 and stayed around those levels till fiscal 2011. Between 2011-2021, the ratio declined but has since picked up to 34 per cent of GDP.Morgan Stanley expects it to rise further to 36 per cent of GDP in FY27.India's tryst with investment & consumption in the 21st CenturyThe gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) in India rose from 8.2 per cent in 2002 to 17.5 per cent 2004, with the pace of growth staying 16.2 per cent between 2005 and 2007. A sustained capex cycle led to stronger employment and income growth which in turn drove private consumption higher."In that cycle, the fiscal deficit was already consolidated, the banking system’s non-performing loan issues were cleaned up and the economy was poised for a capex upswing," Morgan Stanley said.Today, while the public capex has driven India's economy to enviable high growth rates, the private consumption remains relatively weak. It was tracking 3.5 per cent in Q4FY23, below the pre-Covid 2017-18 average of 6.5 per cent YoY. Inversely, the private sector drove the broader capex cycle in 2003-07."In our view, the public capex-led nature of the present cycle in India plays an even more important role for the sustainability of the overall capex cycle," the report said.ALSO READ: Digging deeper: Do India’s stunning 8.4% Q3 GDP numbers have more to it than what meets the eyeUrban demand tops ruralIndia of 2023 is seeing urban demand topping rural demand, a trend previously seen in 2003-07 cycle as well. This is expected to pick up as the cycle progresses."This was the case in the 2003-07 cycle when rural demand (proxied by two-wheeler sales) lagged that of urban demand (proxied by passenger vehicle sales) in the initial two years of the recovery. However, rural demand caught up thereafter and tracked above urban demand the following year," the report said.Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing high inflation rates delayed the recovery of rural areas in India. However, data shows things are picking up in recent quarters and demand in rural areas is improving gradually.One sector servicing export dreamsIndia's combined market share in goods and services world-wide picked up from 0.8 per cent in Q4FY02 to 1.4 per cent in Q4FY07, with services sector emerging as a prominent player in India's exports' performance.Similarly, India's market share in goods and services exports have picked up from 2.2 per cent during pre-Covid years to 2.5 per cent now, yet again led by services sector. In fact, India's market share in global services picked up from 3.7 per cent in December 2019 to 4.8 per cent currently.Morgan Stanley's Chief India Economist Upasana Chachra has estimated India's market share in goods segment will rise to 4.5 per cent in 2031 from 2.5 per cent currently.ALSO READ: Sab changa si? RBI MPC minutes suggest India is in a 'Goldilocks' scenarioMorgan Stanley is 'constructive' on India's macroeconomic outlook owing to Indian economy's capex-driven expansion which lends sustainability to the growth cycle and is likely keep macro stability concerns in check.However, it has warned that constraints to the growth cycle may potentially emerge in the next 18-24 months if the growth cycle remains strong in the form of labour and logistical bottlenecks emerging.

Auto components manufacturers Schaeffler India, Timken India and SKF India have been upgraded to 'Add' from an earlier 'Sell' rating by Kotak Institutional Equities, which sees good entry points in these midcap stocks following a 17-22% correction over the past 6 months. While Schaeffler has fallen by 17%, Timken and SKF's declines stand at 20% and 22%, respectively. This is despite the headline index Nifty gaining over 10% during this period. The bearing companies’ recent stock price corrections was on account of weakness in the export market and temporary slowdown in select domestic industrial segments due to the looming election, Kotak said as it sees the medium-term growth drivers remaining in place with the railway (Timken and SKF), export (Timken and Schaeffler) and aftermarket segments (SKF and Schaeffler) driving growth. These stocks were trading in the red amid weakness in the overall market, falling up to 3%.Kotak expects recovery in exports, domestic railways and aftermarket segments from 2HCY24E. "We remain constructive on medium term growth prospects, arising from the e-mobility segment for Schaeffler and Timken’s entry into the roller bearing segment. Recovery in export will also drive margin expansion for Schaeffler and Timken, in our view," the brokerage said in a note. Schaeffler India: Target: Rs 3,000Kotak increased its CY2025-26E EPS by 1-2% on higher revenue growth assumptions. Government’s focus on enhancing railway infrastructure, coupled with constant addition of new products and expansion of distribution reach, to drive its strong growth. In its view, export segment demand is expected to recover from 2HCY24E, which will support profitability. Timken: Target: Rs 2,800 Kotak fine-tuned its FY2025-26 EPS estimates expect demand trends to improve from 2QFY25E, especially driven by the railways and off-highway segments. It expects the company to deliver a strong EPS CAGR of 16% over FY2023-27E.SKF India: Target: Rs 4,400Kotak has maintained its FY2024-25E EPS estimates and increased our FY2026E EPS estimates by 3%. It has revised its fair value of Rs 4,400 from Rs 4,150 mainly on roll-over to June 2026E, implying a multiple of 30X FY2026E EPS. "We are ascribing lower multiples to SKF as compared with Schaeffler and Timken, given the lack of focus on the export segment and its localization mix lagging peers," this brokerage said.Also Read: Multibagger Tata Investment shares drop 14% in 3 days. Here’s what is triggering the downfall(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

Foreign inflows into India’s sovereign bond market are closing in on the $10 billion mark ahead of the country’s inclusion in the JPMorgan Chase & Co’s emerging markets debt index.Investments into index-eligible Fully Accessible Route bonds have risen by 812.18 billion rupees ($9.8 billion) since the announcement in September, data from the Clearing Corp. of India show. Inclusion starts in phases from June.The biggest purchases are in the shorter bonds maturing between 2026 and 2030, the data show. The highest foreign holding is in the 7.37% 2028 note, accounting for 20.8% of the outstanding.“Rupee sovereign bonds are poised for further gains on strong foreign inflows, largely front-running the upcoming bond index inclusion,” analysts at DBS Bank led by Radhika Rao wrote in a note.108456163Bloomberg Index Services Ltd. will also include some India bonds in its emerging market local currency index starting next year. Bloomberg LP is the parent company of Bloomberg Index Services Ltd., which administers indexes that compete with those from other service providers.The yield on the benchmark 10-year bond slipped to 7.01% on Monday, the lowest since June.

The Sword of Damocles hanging over the head of ITC shareholders has finally fallen down but no one is hurt. The key event of London's British American Tobacco (BAT) stake sale, which was initially perceived to be a key supply hangover for ITC, ended up pushing the Nifty stock 8.6% higher leading to a windfall gain of about Rs 43,000 crore on day's high.When BAT went out on Dalal Street to sell a 3.5% stake, 43.68 crore shares of ITC were absorbed by institutional investors who shelled out about Rs 17,500 crore in no time.The stake sale is good news also because BAT is now unlikely to sell more shares in near future for it doesn't want its shareholding in ITC to fall below 25%. BAT's ownership in ITC has now fallen to 25.5% from 29% earlier.Last year, BAT management had noted that a 25% stake in ITC should be sufficient to retain strategic influence, including veto rights.Also read | BAT sells 3.5% stake in ITC via Rs 17,500-crore block dealWith BAT's stake sale behind us, brokerages have once again started to scream buy. HSBC upgraded ITC to buy with a target price of Rs 480 saying the cigarette business is at an attractive valuation and BAT's stake sale is a buying opportunity.While CLSA upgraded ITC to buy, Morgan Stanley gave overweight rating with a target price of Rs 491. Goldman Sachs has also maintained its buy rating on ITC with a target price of Rs 480 on the back of improving FMCG profitability and steady recovery in cigarette profit.Dalal Street veteran Sanjiv Bhasin said if ITC decides to demerge its cigarette business as well, it would be the real unbundling for investors."We also like the quality of their FMCG business, which is expanding. A demerger talk could actually lift the stock. But at Rs 400 or Rs 385-400, wherever you get an opportunity in the short-term, I think you could see at least a 10% upside," Bhasin said.ITC shares had formed a near-term top around Rs 500 which happened just before the announcement of the demerger of the hotel business into a new entity in August 2023.Sharekhan's Kaustubh Pawaskar said non-cigarette FMCG business will be one of the key drivers for ITC."If you look at the non-cigarette FMCG business in the last 3 years, we have seen consistent improvement in the margin which is now above 10%. The company is targeting margins to improve to around mid-teens over the next four to five years. They have also entered into many high margin categories. So we expect margins to consistently improve in the coming years," he said.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)