More than 8 in 10 (83 per cent) of employees are more likely to stay with companies that adopt a skills-first approach, a report said on Thursday, as the ability to harness 'skills intelligence' has become a decisive factor in achieving sustainable growth for companies.

The report by EY and leading skills intelligence and skills assessment platform iMocha said that 63 per cent of HR leaders observed a positive impact on talent retention and 58 per cent saw improvements in employee performance due to the skills first transformation (SFT) initiatives.

However, 87 per cent of the employees believe their organisations do not fully use their skills.

According to the findings, typical accuracy rates for current hiring, training and attrition processes are at 70-80 per cent, which can be further improved by 10-20 per cent through skills intelligence.

“Companies should monitor their accuracy rates in hiring, training, and attrition to gauge their true costs and the improvements possible with SFT,” said Priyanka Gupta, Partner, People Advisory Services, EY India.

Led by iPhones, exports of mobile phones from India reached $6.5 billion in the April-July period (Q1 FY25) – an almost 40 per cent surge from the same period last fiscal (FY23), industry data showed on Thursday.

iPhone exports surpassed $1 billion in the month of July – almost similar month-on-month performance as seen in the first quarter of FY25 -- led by the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme.

Currently, iPhone exports constitute about 70 per cent of the total mobile exports from the country, the industry data showed.

According to experts, Apple's performance in the April-July period was marked by contrasting fortunes and the long-term growth outlook remains positive, with the company being well-positioned to capitalise on India's growth trajectory in the coming years with big local manufacturing plans.

Money management startup INDmoney on Thursday announced UPI-based instant withdrawals for investors from their stock trading accounts on its platform.

The feature enables users to withdraw their funds into their savings accounts instantly, even if they are trading on the same day, addressing a key problem for stock investors while boosting liquidity by ensuring real-time trade settlements.

The feature allows investors to withdraw money up to Rs 1 lakh on the same day. Investors will get instant withdrawals in their bank accounts regardless of their trading activity.

“Instant Withdrawals aligns with our commitment to simplifying financial management and ensuring our users have immediate access to their funds when they need it the most,” said Ashish Kashyap, Founder of INDmoney.

Driven by growing interest in the country’s thriving technology, engineering and digital services sectors amid overall economic growth, job searches from abroad to India have surged by nearly 60 per cent since June 2021, a report revealed on Thursday.

The country is rapidly becoming a top destination for talent, while blue-collar workers are adapting to new market demands, according to data from Indeed, a leading global hiring and matching platform.

The UAE, the US and the UK are at the helm of this exchange of talent pool. Between June 2021 and June 2024, searches from these countries to India increased by 13 per cent, 12 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively.

While India attracts more global attention, outbound job searches from India to the world have declined by 17 per cent between June 2021 - June 2024.

E-commerce and technology startups, engineering and infrastructure and retail are top three industries in the country showing intent to hire freshers in the second half this year, a report has said.

The 7 per cent rise compared to the July-December 2023 period in fresher hiring intent, coupled with growing demand across diverse sectors, signals a robust job market recovery.

Bengaluru leads with 74 per cent of employers aiming to hire freshers, followed by Mumbai at 60 per cent and Chennai at 54 per cent, according to a TeamLease EdTeach report.

According to the findings, 72 per cent of employers intend to hire freshers in the coming months. The report was based on a survey of over 603 companies across India, indicates a positive trend in the job market for new graduates.

Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO of TeamLease EdTech, said that the increase in hiring intent for freshers is an encouraging sign as it reflects growing confidence among employers and presents valuable opportunities for fresh talent entering the workforce.

Delhi-NCR has been rated among top 10 Asia-Pacific logistics markets for annual rental growth for the first half this year, a report said on Thursday.

At 3 per cent rental growth, the Delhi-NCR logistics rental market recorded better growth, while Mumbai (2.3 per cent) and Bengaluru (2.3 per cent) were marginally below the regional growth figure, according to the report by Knight Frank.

Delhi-NCR is positioned eighth in the APAC logistics market based on annual rental growth. At Rs 20.80 per square feet a month, the city’s rents grew at 3 per cent (year-on-year) and the vacancy level in the market now stands at 15.7 per cent.

The three key India markets noted a stable rental outlook for the next six months, owing to the continued demand for warehousing and logistics spaces across the country.

The thrust of local telecom manufacturing, driven by the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, will provide more job opportunities at entry level and help in building up skilled manpower resources, the Centre has said.

During a meeting with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the telecom sector, Union Minister of Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia said this is in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of fostering inclusive and collaborative policy decision-making.

The minister said that government is focused on resolving issues in time-bound manner and create industry-friendly process.

The meeting was part of the recently-constituted Stakeholders Advisory Committee (SAC) with telecom sector OEMs. The minister discussed ways to spur indigenous manufacturing, adopting pragmatic implementation approach, furthering ease of doing business and review of issues taken up in an earlier meeting.

The industry leaders presented the challenging yet feasible growth target set upon by themselves for the telecom sector. The SAC expressed confidence that developed telecom manufacturing will provide more job opportunities not only at entry level but also help in building up skilled manpower resources.

Digital payments major Paytm on Wednesday announced to sell its entertainment ticketing business to food aggregator Zomato for Rs 2,048 crore in cash, in a move to focus on core payments and financial services distribution.

The transfer will also include 280 existing employees from the entertainment ticketing business at the company.

One 97 Communications Limited (OCL), the parent company of Paytm, will transfer its entertainment ticketing business to Zomato by transfer of OCL’s entertainment ticketing business to it’s 100 per cent subsidiaries -- Orbgen Technologies Pvt Limited (OTPL) and Wasteland Entertainment.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday asked the officials of the Income Tax Department to simplify the language of notices and work towards being “fair and friendly” to the taxpayers.

Addressing an event to mark the 165th year of the Income Tax Department here, the Finance Minister said the officials should refrain from using “threatening language” in tax notices.

“Let the experience of filing tax return on the first day be as good as filing it on the last day. We have to ensure that threatening language in tax notices and messages is avoided,” FM Sitharaman said.

She also asked tax officials to be judicious in the use of power to ensure compliance, and not create fear among the taxpayers.

Emphasising the need to avoid “ham-handed ways” in dealing with the taxpayers, the Minister said that the action taken by the officials should be proportionate to the issue on hand.

Ahead of its Annual General Meeting on September 12, Paytm’s board of directors has opted for a significant salary revision, highlighting their commitment to the company's responsible financial discipline and good corporate governance.

The new proposed remuneration framework will be subject to shareholder approval, a company statement said.

Previously, the annual salaries of Non-Executive Independent Directors of Paytm’s board, including Ashit Ranjit Lilani, was set at Rs 1.65 crore, while that of Gopalasamudram Srinivasaraghavan Sundararajan was set at Rs 2.07 crore.