Business Today Podcast: Disney set to buy 21st Century Fox assets; WPI inflation at 8-month high

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WPI inflation at 8-month high

Inflation based on the wholesale price index (WPI) accelerated to an eight-month high of 3.93% in November, from 3.59% in October. Inflation rose mainly on account of a sharp increase in fuel and food prices, according to data released by the commerce ministry. While fuel price index rose by 8.8%, food prices index rose 6.06%. The increase in food prices was led by the sharp increase in vegetable prices that rose by 60% mainly due to soaring onion prices.

Infrastructure, bank clean-ups are priorities: Jaitley

Finance minister Arun Jaitley has stated that the government will boost spending on building infrastructure next year while continuing to strengthen state-run  banks, widen the tax base and rationalise taxes. The government will also continue to push through structural reforms.

Disney set to buy 21st Century Fox assets

In a $52.4 bn deal that is under way, Walt Disney Co. is set to acquire much of media baron Rupert Murdoch's global empire. Holders of Murdoch's 21st century Fox Inc will get 0.2745 Disney shares for each Fox share. The media mogul will continue to run Fox News channel, the FSI sports network and the Fox broadcast network in the US. Disney Chief Executive Officer Bob Iger will continue in his role through 2021.

India's record on inequality the worst

Income inequality in India has worsened over the past three-and-a-half decades and the top 10% of earners now corner more than half of the country's national income in 2016.
Their share was 30% of the national income in 1980, according to The World Inequality Report 2018 published by World Wealth & Income Database. Among major economic blocks, with the exception of West Asia, India's record on inequality is the worst. However, rise in income inequality has been more gradual in India since 1980 compared to Russia.

SC allows Vodafone to initiate second arbitration over $2 bn tax demand

The Supreme Court has allowed Britain's Vodafone to initiate a second arbitration process under an India-UK investment pact over New Delhi's tax demand for more than $2 billion arising out of a deal that was struck a decade ago.

Vodafone entered India in 2007 by acquiring Hutchison wireless assets. It is contesting a tax bill of more than $2 billion relating to that acquisition.

US FCC to do away with net neutrality rules

The US Federal Communications Commission swept aside rules barring broadband providers from favouring the internet traffic of websites willing to pay for speedier service, sending the future of net neutrality on to a likely court challenge. FCC voted 3-to-2 to remove Obama-era prohibitions barring broadband providers from blocking web traffic, slowing it or demanding payment for faster passage via their networks

GST: 'States facing revenue shortfall of Rs. 39,111 crore'

States are facing a revenue shortfall of Rs. 39,111 crore in the first four months of rollout of the goods and services tax, West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra said .Addressing the annual general meeting of FICCI, Mitra said that revenue collections under GST have become a source of concern.

Vijay Mallya faces assets freeze order in UK courts until April 2018

Vijay Mallya, who is undergoing an extradition trial in a UK court over Rs 9,000-crore fraud and money laundering charges, will face next year a parallel litigation brought by 13 Indian banks to freeze nearly $1.5 billion of his assets. According to court documents submitted at the UK High Court, the claim brought by the Indian banks against the 61-year-old embattled liquor baron will come up for a hearing in April next year. Meanwhile, Mallya remains on a 650,000-pound bail bond since his arrest on an extradition warrant by Scotland Yard in April this year.

Fares for premium trains may go down

Launched in September 2016, the railways flexi-fare system for premium trains has generated more revenue but overall footfall in popular trains like Shatabdi, Rajdhani and Duronto Express has reduced, thanks to competitive pricing by other similar modes of transportations and domestic airlines. But now prices for premium trains may go down as the railway board wants to review the dynamic pricing system that automatically increases ticket price by 10 per cent for every 10 per cent seats filled in a train, which can lead up to 50 per cent increase in the base fare.

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