Newsletter
Auto sector in sixth gear, K-food craze continues, and IPOs keep popping.
🗓️ Morning, folks and Happy Fridayyyyyy! ☀️
Markets maintained the smiles on investors’ faces as Nifty and Sensex were about ~0.7% up.
Investors should give some credit to the oil prices slipping to a four-month low after fresh progress in US-Iran talks in Qatar eased some supply worries.
The Nifty IT index also ended its three-session losing streak, with every IT stock closing in the green. Infosys, TCS, HCLTech and Tech Mahindra were among the biggest contributors to the Nifty’s gains.
Bank of Baroda and Punjab National Bank were top laggards.
💡 Spotlight: Auto sales had a treat in June ⛽
Passenger vehicles played quite strongly this month. Maruti grew ~24% YoY in June despite losing one full week of production to a maintenance shutdown.
Then, Tata Motors followed with a 67.4% YoY jump in sales. Buyers are gradually shifting from petrol and diesel cars. Tata said one in every three new bookings came for an electric model. Its EV sales also jumped 183% YoY.
Mahindra followed Tata closely with 60,393 units, up 28% YoY, keeping its SUV run alive.
The EV jump is also felt by TVS Motor. Its total sales jumped 47% YoY, while EV two-wheeler sales more than tripled.
Honda Cars also had a strong June, with total sales rising 71% YoY, while exports reportedly surged over 600%. Kia had its best June ever as sales got up 19% YoY in India.
Commercial vehicle sales were strong too, Tata Motors’ CV sales rose 35%. And that matters because CV sales are closely linked to goods movement and business activity.
Let’s hit it! 💪🏻
1 Big thing: Inside India and Japan’s latest AI push 🤖
Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi wrapped up her three-day India visit with a bunch of new deals covering AI, semiconductors, defence, energy and economic security, taking the India-Japan partnership up a notch.
What’s cookin’: the biggest announcement was the first-ever India-Japan defence co-development agreement, allowing both countries to jointly develop defence equipment instead of simply buying and selling military hardware.
The two countries also adopted three key roadmaps on:
- economic security
- energy resilience and
- artificial intelligence
They agreed to work together on strengthening semiconductor supply chains, developing critical technologies and securing key minerals used in industries like EVs and electronics.
Another major announcement was the India-Japan Bio-Gas Initiative, under which the two countries plan to set up 1,000 biogas and organic fertiliser plants across India.
Speaking after the talks, PM Modi said the combination of Japan’s precision manufacturing and India’s software capabilities could give global AI development a major boost.
Big picture: bilateral trade between India and Japan touched $27.5 billion in FY26, while Japanese companies invested $3.2 billion in India between April and December 2025 alone.
Last year, Japan also pledged to invest over $61 billion in India over the next decade, backing projects ranging from the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train to manufacturing, clean energy and semiconductors.
2. This deal could make Odisha an aluminium giant 🏭
Adani Enterprises is partnering with Abu Dhabi-based International Resources Holding (IRH) to develop a $11.5 billion aluminium project in Odisha.
If approved, it would become Odisha’s largest-ever foreign investment and India’s biggest foreign investment in the metals sector.
IRH is part of IHC, one of the world’s largest investment companies, with businesses across technology, infrastructure, finance, and consumer sectors. Odisha, meanwhile, has some of India’s largest bauxite reserves, the key raw material used to make aluminium.
What does the project involve: both companies will form a 50:50 joint venture. The project will include a large alumina refinery, an aluminium smelter, its own 4,000 MW power plant, and a manufacturing park that will turn aluminium into finished products.
Why does it matter: India’s demand for aluminium is expected to surge as the country builds more roads, factories, electric vehicles, and renewable energy projects.
The government estimates demand will grow from 5 million tonnes today to 8.5 million tonnes by 2030, and 28 million tonnes by 2047.
3. IPO brewing? 👀
Danish beer giant Carlsberg has reportedly confidentially filed for an IPO of its India business, looking to raise as much as ₹6,600 crore.
Why should you care: it is the country’s second-largest brewer, with around 22% market share. Since entering India in 2007, the company has built a network of 14 breweries across the country.
If the IPO goes ahead, it could become one of India’s biggest consumer-sector listings in recent years, giving investors another way to tap into the country’s growing alcoholic beverages market.
But here’s the bigger story: Carlsberg isn’t the only company lining up to go public. According to market data, 236 mainboard IPOs worth nearly ₹3.5 lakh crore are currently waiting in the wings.
So why haven’t we seen them yet: 2026 has been relatively slow. Weak market sentiment and uncertainty caused by the conflict in West Asia has made many companies hit the pause button on their fundraising plans.
Experts, however, believe the pipeline remains strong. In fact, just six mega IPOs, including Jio Platforms, NSE, Zepto, PhonePe, Flipkart and SBI Mutual Fund, could collectively raise over ₹1 lakh crore, making 2026 a potentially landmark year for India’s primary market.
While we are on fundraises 💰,
Early-stage venture capital firm Sparrow Capital has raised ₹475 crore for its third fund, giving it a much bigger war chest to invest in India’s next generation of startups.
The deets: Sparrow plans to invest in 25-30 seed-stage startups over the next three years. It will also write much larger first cheques of $1-2 million, up from $300,000-$500,000 earlier, giving founders more capital right from the start.
4. Could you own a piece of OpenAI? 🤖
OpenAI has reportedly proposed handing the U.S. government a 5% stake, valued at around $42.6 billion, after the company reached a $852 billion valuation in a record funding round this March.
What does it entail: the proposal would create a new way for the government to be involved in the AI industry.
If these companies become more valuable, the fund could grow too, allowing taxpayers to benefit from the AI boom. Sam Altman believes AI will create enormous wealth, and that those gains should be shared with the public, not just private investors.
Larger trend: Washington has increased oversight of companies like OpenAI and Anthropic over national security concerns and growing competition from Chinese AI firms.
5. K-fever catching up on food? 😋
K-food is no longer just a trend in India. It’s becoming a pantry staple.
From Shin Ramyun and Samyang noodles to kimchi, Korean hot sauces and BBQ marinades, Indian consumers are embracing Korean flavours like never before.
In 2024 alone, around 7.5 million packets of Korean ramen were sold every month in India. And with more FMCG and D2C brands making these products easily available, K-food is quickly finding a permanent place in Indian kitchens.
6. Why is Blackberry rising again? 👀
BlackBerry’s stock has surged over 250% in the last six months.
The surprising part? It has nothing to do with smartphones.
Its QNX software now powers 275+ million vehicles worldwide, and investors are betting it could become a critical layer for AI-powered robots and autonomous machines.
7. Stocks that kept us interested 🚀
What went up ⬆️
💸 TVS Motor rallied nearly 4% after June sales jumped 47% year-on-year to 5.9 lakh units.
⚡️ Vedanta Aluminium Metal shares rose 2% after brokerage firm Emkay initiated coverage with a ‘Buy’ rating, citing stronger aluminium demand, lower costs and a ₹550 target.
🤝 Tata Technologies shares jumped over 6% after expanding its partnership with Tenneco, which plans to invest $100 million over the next five years.
📈 Bharat Seats shares zoomed 8% and extended gains for the fifth straight session, rising 30% as it marked 40 years and welcomed Suzuki chief Toshihiro Suzuki.
What went down ⬇️
🔻 Bank of Baroda fell 4% after announcing a ₹5,700 crore out-of-court settlement with NMC Health and its affiliates.
What else are we snackin’ 🍿
🌱 Clean energy bet: Adar Poonawalla Family Office invested ₹700 crore in Inox Clean Energy, valuing the renewable energy platform at ₹70,000 crore and supporting its expansion plans.
🌍 FPI outflows: Foreign portfolio investors withdrew ₹49,340 crore from Indian markets in June, extending their selling streak despite measures to attract overseas capital.
And that’s a wrap! 🎬
Pour yourself an extra one this weekend 🥂
