Global brokerage Jefferies on Wednesday said it remains optimistic about the two-wheeler industry in India, especially with recent income tax cuts in the Union Budget to boost consumption.

According to the firm, two-wheeler registrations in India grew at 4-5 per cent in January and the first half of February, following a strong performance during fiscal years 2022-24.

Jefferies projects a 13 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for the two-wheeler industry from fiscal 2024 to 2027, which translates to a modest 3 per cent CAGR over the longer period from fiscal 2019 to 2027.

“The domestic industry is seeing divergent growth among companies, with TVS Motor Co. outperforming with double-digit growth and registration market share rise”, Jefferies said in a note.

"Hero MotoCorp Limited and Bajaj Auto Limited, conversely, are lagging in domestic two-wheeler growth," it added.

While the high capital intensity of the life insurance sector necessitates substantial investments to sustain growth, the increase in FDI limits will provide the much-needed capital boost to the sector, enabling insurers to expand their mortality coverage and increase penetration, according to a report released by rating agency ICRA on Wednesday.

ICRA expects growth in sum assured in the retail segment for insurers to continue to outpace the growth in retail new business premiums (NBP).

Private insurers saw a surge in retail sum assured by 41 per cent YoY in 9M FY2025 (30 per cent in FY2024), higher than the retail NBP growth of 17 per cent (7 per cent in FY2024).

Given the shift in product mix from the high value of new business (VNB) margin non-participating (non-par) products to low VNB margin unit-linked investment plan (ULIP) products, the pressure on the VNB margins is likely to continue, resulting in increased sum assured and rider attachments in a bid to offset the negative impact of the product shift, the report states

With Tesla finally gearing up to enter India later this year, the Elon Musk-run electric vehicle (EV) major is set to take a "top-down approach" - launch expensive models in the country first and then follow it up with the cheaper vehicles.

The electric car maker is reportedly set to import its fully-built Model Y from its Berlin Gigafactory, as the electric SUV is manufactured in right-hand drive configuration in the European facility.

The Tesla Model Y would cost Rs 60-70 lakh, considering the revised import duty structure recently announced by the government.

The country has reduced basic customs duty on high-end cars priced above $40,000 from 110 per cent to 70 per cent.

The right-hand-drive Model 3 is also made in Shanghai but that’s unlikely to arrive first owing to constraints on Chinese car imports.

According to industry experts aware of the development on the Tesla front, there are currently no plans for local assembly of Tesla vehicles.

Mobile phone exports from India are projected to exceed approximately Rs 1,80,000 crore this fiscal (FY25), representing approximately 40 per cent growth over the previous fiscal year, industry data showed on Tuesday.

In the 10 months this fiscal (April-January), India reached Rs 1,50,000 crore in mobile exports, with January alone surging past Rs. 25,000 crore in exports, according to data shared by the India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA).

There has been estimated over 680 per cent growth since the inception of the PLI scheme in FY20-21.

Mobile phones export is the largest growth driver within electronics, with the U.S. standing out as a key market for India’s smartphones.

Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) in India’s urban areas among persons of age 15 years and above has risen to 50.4 per cent in the October–December quarter in 2024 -- from 49.9 per cent in the same quarter of the previous year, reflecting an increase in employment in the country, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics on Tuesday.

LFPR for males of age 15 years and above in urban areas increased to 75.4 per cent during October-December period, from 74.1 per cent during the same quarter in 2023, reflecting overall increasing trend in male LFPR.

LFPR among females of age 15 years and above for urban areas increased to 25.2 per cent during the quarter from 25 per cent in the same period of the preceding year.

The Worker Population Ratio (WPR), which is another indicator of employment, also went up in urban areas among persons of age 15 years to 47.2 per cent in Oct-Dec, 2024 from 46.6 period in the same quarter of 2023, according to the government data.

The Indian stock market on Tuesday traded in a narrow range amid mixed signals from global markets.

Despite fluctuations, the benchmark indices ended the day with only marginal losses.

The Sensex touched a low of 75,531 during intra-day trade but managed to recover slightly, closing 29 points lower at 75,967.

Similarly, the Nifty 50 fluctuated between 22,801 and 22,992 before settling at 22,945, down just 14 points from its previous close.

India's most valuable private sector companies in the 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500 have a cumulative value of $3.8 trillion (Rs 324 lakh crore, up 40 per cent), which is higher than the GDP of India and the combined GDPs of the UAE, Indonesia, and Spain, according to the report released on Tuesday.

These 500 companies recorded a 20 per cent increase in their workforce during 2024, adding nearly 1.4 million new jobs and expanding to a total of 8.4 million employees. They now employ around 16 per cent of India's total workforce, highlighting their significant role in national employment, the report states.

In terms of market dominance, the Tata Group holds the crown while the Adani Group has strengthened its grip. Tata Group has retained its leading position with 15 companies, contributing 10 per cent of the total cumulative value in the 2024 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500. Adani Group expanded its presence by adding one more company, bringing its total to 9 companies this year, the report states.

Samsung Electronics said on Tuesday it has decided to cancel 3 trillion won ($2.01 billion) worth of treasury stocks as part of its buyback plan to enhance shareholder value.

Around 50.1 million common stocks and 6.9 million preferred shares will be retired, according to the company in a regulatory filing.

Samsung Electronics said the cancellation follows the decision made at a board meeting in November to repurchase its own shares worth a combined 10 trillion won over the ensuing year, reports Yonhap news agency.

As a first step, it said it was planning to buy back 3 trillion won of shares within three months and cancel all of them.

B2B e-commerce platform Udaan is facing serious financial challenges despite securing fresh funds as the company’s revenue remained almost flat in FY24.

Its valuation also dropped sharply by 59.3 per cent to $1.3 billion, down from its peak of $3.2 billion, according to its financials.

This decline comes even as Udaan managed to cut its losses by 19.4 per cent over the year.

Udaan’s gross merchandise value (GMV) in FY24 saw only a 1.7 per cent growth, at Rs 5,706.6 crore from Rs 5,609.3 crore in the previous fiscal. This is a major setback for the company, as its GMV was much higher at Rs 9,900 crore in FY22.

As shares of Bhavish Aggarwal-led Ola Electric continue to slide, investors have been impacted heavily as approximately Rs 40,000 crore has been wiped out since the company stock's peak valuation.

Once valued at Rs 66,000 crore after its initial surge post-listing, the company’s market capitalisation has now shrunk to Rs 26,187.81 crore.

The stock, which made its debut at Rs 76 per share in August last year, has been under constant selling pressure and on Tuesday, it fell over 3 per cent to touch an all-time low of Rs 58.84 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Concerns over mounting losses, declining revenue, ongoing service-related issues and the broader correction in the Indian stock market have contributed to the stock’s downturn.

Last week, the electric two-wheeler (e2W) electric firm reported a 50 per cent spike in its consolidated net loss, which widened to Rs 564 crore in Q3 FY25 from Rs 376 crore in Q3 FY24.