The micro-insurance premiums in the life insurance sector in the country has surpassed Rs 10,000 crore for the first time in FY24, according to industry data.

Micro insurance helps people in the low-income group via offering affordable products.

According to data by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), the new business premium (NBP) in life insurance’s micro-insurance segment reached Rs 10,860.39 crore in FY24, up 23.5 per cent from Rs 8,792.8 crore in FY23.

While individual NBP declined 23.78 per cent to Rs 152.57 crore, the group NBP went up 24.61 per cent to Rs 10,707.82 crore.

According to the IRDAI data, the number of micro-insurance agents stood at 102,000 in FY24. Nearly 19,166 of them belong to public-sector life insurers and the rest to private ones.

Global audit firm Deloitte has been fined about Rs 2 crore by the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) for alleged lapses in auditing Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL).

This is not the first time Deloitte has been fined for auditing lapses.

In the last five years, many other countries including the US, China, and Canada fined Deloitte for ignoring audit standards.

At least 157,066 startups have been recognised by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) to date and 759,303 users are registered on the portal (as on December 25), the government said on Wednesday.

The country now has more than 73,000 startups with at least one-woman director that have been recognised under the ‘Startup India Initiative’, representing nearly half of the 1,57,066 startups supported by the government, according to Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The country has emerged as one of the most vibrant startup ecosystems globally, earning its place as the third largest startup hub. With over 100 unicorns, the Indian startup landscape is shaping the future of innovation and entrepreneurship.

“The entrepreneurial spirit in India has undergone a paradigm shift in the last decade. Cities like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Delhi-NCR have become epicentres of innovation,” said the ministry.

India’s commercial airlines flew 1.42 crore passengers on domestic routes in November this year, which represents a robust 12 per cent increase compared to the same month in the previous year, according to figures compiled by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

IndiGo maintained its position as the market leader with a 63.6 per cent share of air traffic, followed by Air India (24.4 per cent), Akasa Air (4.7 per cent) and SpiceJet (3.1 per cent). The market share of Alliance Air stayed flat at 0.7 per cent during the month.

"Passengers carried by domestic airlines during January-November 2024 were 1,464.02 lakh as against 1,382.34 lakh during the corresponding period of the previous year thereby registering an annual growth of 5.91 per cent and monthly growth of 11.90 per cent," according to the DGCA report.

Domestic air passenger traffic was at 142.52 lakh in November compared to 127.36 lakh in the same period a year ago. The number of flyers that took to Indian skies in Nov was also higher than the corresponding figure of 1.36 crore for October.

Hyundai Motor’s mid-size SUV Santa Fe and Kia's EV3 entry-level electric vehicle (EV) were included among the safest cars in this year's government automobile safety evaluation, the transport ministry said on Wednesday.

The Hyundai and Kia models, along with Mercedes-Benz's E200 and Volvo's S60 sedans, received the highest safety rating of grade 1 in the annual Korean New Car Assessment Program evaluation conducted together by the ministry and the state-run Korea Transportation Safety Authority.

According to the ministry, the four models excelled in all three safety evaluation categories: collision safety, pedestrian safety and accident prevention, reports news agency.

This year's evaluation included a total of nine models across three categories of EV, hybrid and internal combustion engine types.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has clarified that the increase in GST from 12 per cent to 18 per cent on the sale of second-hand EVs will apply only to business entities involved in the resale of used electric vehicles. This increase in GST does not apply to individuals selling second-hand electric vehicles.

During the 55th GST Council meeting press conference on Saturday, the panel approved an increase in the GST rate on used EVs sold by businesses to 18 per cent from 12 per cent earlier.

While clarifying that the tax even for business entities would not be on the entire resale amount and only the margin value, Sitharaman said, "When the discussions happened, it was on that margin value. The 18 per cent GST will be levied only on the margin value between purchased product price and resale price.”

The stock of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), India's largest company by market capitalisation, has slipped by 23 per cent from its highest level in July this year.

If the stock fails to rise 5 per cent in the remaining five trading sessions this calendar year, the company will not only record its longest monthly losing streak since the Covid-19 markets' slump but also give negative returns for the first time in the last 10 years.

According to stock exchange data, RIL's market cap declined by about Rs 5 lakh crore from its peak of Rs 21.50 lakh crore in July to Rs 16.5 lakh crore.

In a significant year for the Indian startup ecosystem, 13 new-age companies launched their initial public offerings (IPOs), as startups cumulatively raised more than Rs 29,200 crore from the stock market.

When it comes to IPOs, the figure stood at 10 in 2021, six in 2022 and six in 2023.

This year, 13 startups cumulatively raised Rs 29,247 crore from the cash market. Out of this, the fresh issue was nearly Rs 14,672 crore and Rs 14,574 crore Offer for Sale (OFS).

In an IPO, the money raised under the fresh issue goes directly to the company. At the same time, the money raised under OFS goes directly to the investors and promoters of the company.

Among 13 startup IPOs, 10 were mainboard and 3 were SME IPOs.

At least 12 tin-shed shops were gutted in a fire at a local market in Amarkantak town in Madhya Pradesh's Anuppur district on Tuesday, after which a firefighting vehicle was vandalised for delayed arrival.

The fire broke out in a shop and quickly spread to other eateries in the queue. Shop owners, workers and locals tried to control the blaze by pouring water.

Meanwhile, the Fire Department was also alerted and the firefighters rushed to the spot to put out the blaze.

However, the owners of the gutted shops created a ruckus alleging that the firefighting team reached the spot late.

The shop owners misbehaved with the firefighting team who ran out for their safety.

A video of the incident surfaced on social media, showing the vandalised firefighting vehicle. Having learned about the incident, local area police reached the spot and initiated action against the miscreants.

The year 2024 has been a historic one for the Indian stock market. Corporates raised bumper funds from investors through initial public offerings (IPOs), follow-on public offers (FPOs), qualified institutional placements (QIPs) and rights issues, and set several new records.

In 2024, domestic companies raised Rs 1.64 lakh crore through 90 IPOs.

During this period, shares worth Rs 1.39 lakh crore were sold to institutional investors. This is the highest figure ever for raising capital through public issues.

In 2021, companies raised the highest amount of Rs 1.18 lakh crore through IPOs. During this period, shares worth Rs 41,997 crore were sold by the companies to institutional investors.