The Group of Ministers (GoM) on Saturday more or less decided to exempt the goods and services tax (GST) on term life insurance premiums and premiums paid by senior citizens for health cover.

The GST exemption/reduction on life and health insurance is a long-pending demand of the industry as the move would alleviate the tax burden on both insurers and policyholders.

While most of the panel members of the GoM, led by Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary, pitched for "full exemption" on health and life policy premiums, a few panel members suggested reducing the rate to 5 per cent from the current 18 per cent.

As the nation gears up to celebrate Karva Chauth, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said on Saturday that the festival is projected to see business worth Rs 22,000 crore for traders across the country, a 46 per cent growth from last year’s sales.

Last year, the sales on the occasion of Karva Chauth were more than Rs 15,000 crore. The festival will be celebrated in the country on October 20.

According to CAIT General Secretary and Chandni Chowk MP Praveen Khandelwal, the Karva Chauth festival is projected to see business worth Rs 22,000 crore nationwide, and Delhi alone is set to witness sales worth around Rs 4,000 crore, breaking all previous records.

DigiLocker, the flagship e-governance platform, is empowering millions of citizens with digital tools to simplify their lives, the IT Ministry said on Saturday.

Thousands of citizens tuned in live from across the country for ‘Ask Our Experts’, a unique weekly live programme by the National e-Governance Division (NeGD), part of the IT Ministry, streamed on Digital India’s YouTube channel.

Viewers eagerly posed questions directly to the experts, seeking clarification on various aspects of the DigiLocker platform.

According to the ministry, the experts delivered a comprehensive presentation and led an insightful discussion about the functionalities and benefits of DigiLocker.

Leading private sector lender HDFC Bank on Saturday reported a net profit of Rs 16,820 crore in the July-September quarter, a growth of 5 per cent from the corresponding quarter last year.

Adjusted for trading and mark-to-market gains and tax credits in the prior year, profit after tax (PAT) for the quarter grew by 17 per cent over the quarter ended September 30, 2023, the bank said in its regulatory filing with the BSE.

The net interest income in Q2 FY25 was Rs 30,114 crore, 10 per cent up from last year.

Kotak Mahindra Bank on Saturday reported net profit of Rs 3,344 crore in the July-September period (Q2 FY25), up 5 per cent from Rs 3,191 crore in the same quarter last fiscal.

Consolidated profit after tax (PAT) for Q2 FY25 was Rs 5,044 crore, up 13 per cent (year-on-year) from Rs 4,461 crore in the same quarter last year, the bank said in its regulatory filing.

The bank reported net interest income for the quarter to Rs 7,020 crore, from Rs 6,297 crore in Q2 FY24, up 11 per cent YoY.

The total assets under management (AUM) were Rs 680,838 crore -- up 37 per cent YoY over Rs 498,342 crore (as on September 30). Kotak Asset Management, the fifth largest AMC, saw its domestic mutual fund equity AUM increase by 60 per cent YoY to Rs 319,161 crore.

India’s primary market is on a remarkable growth trajectory, fuelled by a wave of investor interest and a surge in initial public offering (IPO) activity, experts said on Saturday.

The month of September was quite busy, with 15 draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) filings submitted on just one day — the final day of last month — making it one of the most active periods for IPOs in over 14 years.

“So far in 2024, we’ve seen 63 initial public offerings, most of which have performed well after listing. Despite the challenges of a volatile market and global uncertainties, investor confidence in these offerings remains strong,” said an IPO commentary from Pantomath Capital Advisors.

Elon Musk-run SpaceX has won a $733 million, eight-launch contract from the US Space Force.

The US Space Force’s Space Systems Command issued Launch Service Task Orders (LSTOs) totalling $733,566,001 to SpaceX under the “National Security Space Launch Phase 3 Lane 1.”

“In this era of Great Power Competition, it is imperative to not leave capability on the ground,” said Brigadier Gen Kristin Panzenhagen, programme executive officer for Assured Access to Space.

IT and digital solutions provider Tech Mahindra on Saturday reported consolidated profit after tax (PAT) at Rs 1,250 crore in the quarter ended September 30, up 153.1 per cent year-on-year and 46.8 per cent (on-quarter).

The company posted a revenue of Rs 13,313 crore in the second quarter this fiscal (FY25), up 2.4 per cent on-quarter and 3.5 per cent YoY.

Tech Mahindra reported total headcount at the end of the quarter at 154,273, up 6,653 on-quarter and 3,669 YoY

Cash and cash equivalent at the end of the quarter was Rs 6,566 crore and the company declared interim dividend at Rs 15 per share.

South Korea will expand its private-led cloud computing industry to strengthen its competitiveness in the global artificial intelligence (AI) era, the science ministry said on Friday.

The Ministry of Science and ICT announced the vision to boost local cloud companies by forming strategic partnerships with global entities, aiming to double the domestic cloud market's size to 10 trillion won (US$7.3 billion) by 2027 from 2022.

South Korea's cloud technology is more than a year behind global leaders, and AI cloud infrastructure remains underdeveloped, according to the ministry, reports

To better foster the industry, the government plans to devise measures to adopt private cloud systems across education, finance, defense and other public sectors, including easing network separation regulations and expanding tax benefits for AI and cloud companies.

The market size of the Indian chemicals and petrochemicals sector is expected to grow to approximately $300 billion by 2025, up from its current market size of $220 billion, Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Friday.

Addressing the ‘Roundtable on Petrochemical’ during the ‘India Chem 2024’, the minister said the demand for chemicals is predicted to nearly triple and the petrochemicals industry in India may reach $1 trillion by 2040.

The chemical industry plays a crucial role in India's economy, contributing around 6 per cent to the GDP and generating employment for over 5 million people.

"The petrochemical sector in India is projected to attract investments exceeding $87 billion in the next decade, representing over 10 per cent of global petrochemical growth. Under the new PCPIR Policy 2020-35, a combined investment of Rs 10 lakh crore (approximately $142 billion) is targeted by 2025, underscoring the government's long-term vision for the industry," the minister emphasised.