Newsletter
India-US trade deal, L&T’s robust orderbook, and Hero Moto to hit Italian streets.
🗓 Morning, folks!
Markets ended on a mixed note on Monday, but not before pulling off a sharp recovery from early losses. After a choppy session, both Sensex and Nifty closed marginally lower, helped by late buying in select heavyweights and upbeat global cues.
Auto stocks stayed in the fast lane on the back of strong vehicle registration data, while exchange majors BSE and MCX jumped about 4% each.
Torrent Power also climbed 3% on optimism around the Power Ministry’s draft electricity bill.
On the flip side, Vodafone Idea fell 4% after the Supreme Court pushed the AGR hearing to October 27.
💡 Spotlight: India, US trade talks get a fall deadline 🇮🇳🇺🇸
An Indian trade delegation is heading to the US this week as both nations race to clinch a deal before the fall deadline.
The talks aim to ease tensions after Trump’s tariff hike, which raised duties on Indian goods to 50%. India is reportedly offering market access for US farm and defense products, while also seeking to buy more American natural gas to balance trade.
This comes as the new US tariffs are set to take effect on October 14, adding urgency to the ongoing trade talks.
Let’s hit it!
1 Big thing: Inflation cools to 8-year low as food prices plunge 📉
Retail inflation dropped to just 1.54% in September, its lowest level since June 2017, helped by a sharp fall in food prices.
Breaking it down: the figure was slightly above expectations of 1.50% but a big drop from 5.49% a year ago. This is a sign that price pressures are easing faster than anyone thought.
- Food inflation stayed negative for the fourth straight month.
- Vegetables were the biggest drag, with prices plunging 21.38% YoY, while pulses also fell 15.32%.
- Rural inflation eased to 1.07%, and urban to 2.04%, showing broad-based relief across regions.
The fall in inflation has been powered by better monsoon progress, higher kharif sowing, and healthy foodgrain stocks. While food prices are cooling, core inflation, which excludes food and fuel, inched up to 4.5%, hinting that services and housing costs still need watching.
Why it matters: for consumers, this means cheaper grocery bills and more spending power elsewhere. For the RBI, it’s a validation of its steady-hand approach; the central bank recently cut its inflation forecast for FY26 to 2.6%, signaling comfort with the current price trend.
For now, though, India’s inflation story finally looks like one worth smiling about.
2. Tamil Nadu becomes Foxconn’s next big growth hub 👨💻
Foxconn Group is set to invest around ₹15,000 crore in Tamil Nadu, creating 14,000 jobs, one of the largest commitments by the company in India.
The group, best known for manufacturing iPhones, also serves major clients such as Apple, Google, Sony, Amazon, Dell, Microsoft, Cisco, and Intel.
What’s happening: the new investments will primarily focus on artificial intelligence-led advanced tech operations, value-added manufacturing, and research and development integration.
The company has announced the launch of India’s first-ever ‘Foxconn Desk’, designed to streamline coordination between the company, investors, and government agencies. This initiative will make it easier to fast-track projects and ensure smooth, efficient execution.
What this means: for India as a whole, these investments signal that global technology giants see India as a reliable destination for advanced manufacturing and innovation. It will encourage more foreign direct investment, promote adoption of AI, battery technologies, and cutting-edge manufacturing.
3. NTPC Green partners with Japan’s ENEOS for green hydrogen 🚀
NTPC Green Energy has signed a deal with Japan’s ENEOS to jointly explore supply of green methanol and hydrogen derivatives.
ENEOS is Japan’s largest energy company, operating across oil refining, petrochemicals, and now expanding into renewable and hydrogen energy solutions.
A quick backdrop: NGEL is building a 1,200-acre Green Hydrogen centre in Andhra Pradesh for India’s clean chemical exports hub.
What’s going on: NTPC Green Energy brings large-scale renewable power generation and upcoming green hydrogen production capacity. ENEOS will offer expertise in energy distribution, refining, and a ready demand base for clean fuels in Japan.
The partnership covers collaboration on technology, production, and supply logistics, all in line with NGEL’s plan to reach a 60 GW renewable energy portfolio by 2032.
What it means: think of green methanol and hydrogen derivatives as clean versions of traditional fuels. Instead of coming from oil or coal, they’re made using renewable energy like solar or wind, so they don’t add extra carbon to the atmosphere.
4. Dezerv raises ₹350 crore to expand its offerings 🔥
Dezerv has raised ₹350 crore in an all primary funding round co-led by Premji Invest and Accel’s Global Growth fund.
Dezerv provides portfolio management for high-income and business individuals, using expert insights.
What’s brewing: the company has a presence in over 200 cities and plans to leverage India’s account aggregator system to offer more personalized investment options. It also aims to expand its platform to include assets such as real estate funds, infrastructure funds, and gold.
Big picture: India’s wealthtech sector is at an inflection point, valued at over $60 billion and having grown 110% in the past five years.
The mid-affluent segment, households earning ₹10-50 lakh annually, has been a major growth driver. With over 30 million such households in urban India and growing at 10% annually, the industry is poised for further expansion.
5. ACME earmarks ₹5,000 crore for green steel facility 🏭
Gurugram-based ACME Group has invested ₹5,000 crore to set up a Direct Reduced Iron (DRI) facility in either India or Oman.
The renewable energy company develops, builds, and operates solar, wind, hybrid, and dispatchable projects.
Context: a direct iron facility produces iron by reducing oxygen from iron ore in a solid state or below melting point. This method is a lot more sustainable than regular iron production as it requires lesser energy and emits fewer greenhouse gases.
Why it matters: globally, the green steel market is growing at the rate of 55.6% and is projected to reach a valuation of $129 billion. Investments like these would help India cash in on this growth and help it achieve its net zero emissions target by 2070.
6. Stocks that kept us interested 🚀
1. HCC powers Hindalco’s aluminium expansion project
Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) secured a contract worth approximately ₹204 crore from Hindalco Industries.
The deets: the order is for making, delivering, and installing pot shell and superstructure parts for the Aditya Aluminium Smelter Expansion Project in Odisha. The project plans to boost Hindalco’s aluminium production by 200,000 tonnes.
HCC’s experience in building large industrial structures will also play an important role in completing this project to global quality standards.
2. Zen Tech bags anti-drone systems order from government
Zen Technologies secured a ₹37 crore order from the Ministry of Defence to supply anti-drone systems with hard-kill capabilities.
The deets: the order includes designed systems that can track and neutralise hostile drones. These systems can physically destroy aerial threats.
The why: after Operation Sindoor, when multiple Pakistan-origin drones were spotted crossing the border, India began prioritising anti-drone defence systems. These systems use radar, radio frequency sensors, and cameras to detect drones and then destroy them using lasers or projectiles.
For India, this move is a big step toward securing its borders and military bases from low-cost, high-risk drone attacks.
3. L&T bags major order worth ₹2,500-5,000 crore in Middle East
Larsen and Toubro recently announced that its Power Transmission and Distribution arm has received a series of orders worth ₹2,500- ₹5,000 crore in the Middle East.
The deets: under the contract, the company will construct:
- A 400kV substation linking Oman and Gulf Cooperation Council’s super grid
- A turnkey project of 380kV overhead transmission lines in Saudi Arabia
- A series of 132kV substations in the Middle East to meet rising demands
This means that they are building high-voltage power stations and transmission lines across the Middle East to build a strong cross-border network & boost renewable energy.
Big picture: the power EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) market is steadily growing at the rate of 6.37% and is expected to be valued at $994.3 billion by 2030.
These series of orders reaffirm L&T’s reliability in being a trustworthy player in the energy-infrastructure segment while strengthening their presence in the Middle East.
What else are we snackin’ 🍿
🏍️ Eyeing expansion: Hero MotoCorp enters Italy, its 49th market, leveraging R&D in India and Germany to deliver sustainable, smart mobility solutions globally.
🛣️ Jio toll: Jio Payments Bank announced winning a contract to deploy its FASTag-based electronic toll system between Gurugram and Jaipur.
That’s a wrap! Don’t let the weekday blues get to you.
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