The Signal - India can’t afford a power nap
India can’t afford a power napAlso in today’s edition: Capital goods rut; Throuples therapy for OpenAI, Microsoft, and AppleGood morning! Netflix is cooking up brand new music competition shows. One of them is all about songwriters battling it out to pen tunes for pro artists. And the other? Musicians doing blind auditions to jam together in bands. According to The Wall Street Journal, the motive is to attract advertisers with such super-safe, family-friendly shows that have mass appeal. Also, now that Kapil Sharma is on Netflix, we're hyped for them to cook up some desi versions as well. Anup Semwal and Soumya Gupta also contributed to today’s edition. The Market Signal*Stocks & Economy: Asian stocks were up on Friday due to the probability of the Fed cutting interest rates after the US reported weaker than expected economic data. China’s PMI figures also missed estimates. Manufacturing activity fell from 50.4 in April to 49.5 in May, signalling weakening demand. Indian indices fell for the fifth day in a row on Thursday because of a selloff primarily in consumer durables, IT, and metals stocks amid a monthly expiry in derivatives contracts. Foreign direct investment inflows into the country declined 3% to $44.42 billion in the financial year-ended March 2024. The GIFT Nifty indicates a positive start for Indian markets. MANUFACTURINGNot Quite A Capital PositionThere’s money and demand, but no machines. India’s biggest manufacturers are struggling to add capacity because imports of capital goods and machinery for their factories are heavily delayed. Reliance Industries and Varun Beverages are struggling to expand bottling plants for their colas while electronic goods makers are waiting for key components such as heat exchangers for ACs. Losing fight: India is competing with bigger Asian manufacturing hubs. But it isn’t quite in the lead yet, meaning capital goods suppliers prioritise deliveries to clients in China, Vietnam and other rivals. Besides, the Red Sea crisis will likely continue for the rest of 2024, disrupting imports and spiking shipping rates. Too much demand: While they wait for the machines, manufacturers are losing business. This year’s heatwave has led to unprecedented demand for (and shortage of) ACs in India and for beverages, including bottled water and colas. PODCASTTune in every Monday to Friday as financial journalist and host Govindraj Ethiraj gives you the most important take on the latest in business and economy. In today’s episode, he speaks to veteran economic journalist and author Shankkar Aiyar and Deepti Saletore, principal economist at Crisil. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCETricky ThroupleApple was in talks with both Google and OpenAI to license their AI models. The latter took home the trophy. This new deal now sandwiches OpenAI between new bae Apple and partner Microsoft. What's in it for these companies? 🍎: Siri may get a dose of AI magic, and iPhone and Mac may get a chatbot. As for Apple’s privacy USP, The Information reports that the company could process AI data in a virtual black box. 🤖🧠: If the deal works out, there’s a chance that OpenAI’s chatbot may eventually replace Google search on the Safari browser. Or so chief Sam Altman would hope. 💻: The Apple deal may hurt Microsoft’s bets on AI-puters, but it'd also be a windfall for Microsoft's cloud revenue. Tangent: Vox Media and The Atlantic are the latest to sign deals with OpenAI, but licensing content to AI firms is arguably counterintuitive in the long run. ENERGYWill To PowerIndia logged a record peak electricity demand of 250 GW on Thursday. That in itself isn’t surprising. In the latest edition of its World Energy Outlook report, the International Energy Agency had projected that India would have the highest energy demand of all countries by 2050, a significant driver being the surge in household ACs. Only a quarter of Indian households own cooling equipment, but this number will go up as heat spells become deadlier and more frequent. What does this bode for a country that may suffer its biggest power deficit in 14 years this June? Electricity supply has already been disrupted in the National Capital Region, Mumbai, Belagavi and Dehradun.
FYITwist: Donald Trump has been found guilty on all 34 counts in his hush money trial, becoming the first former US President convicted of felony crimes. His sentencing is set for July 11. Bill of health: The Emami Group is weighing strategic options, including a potential sale, of its pharmacy retail chain Frank Ross, Moneycontrol reports. The conglomerate has, however, denied plans for a sale. Tragedy: At least 22 people died and more than 50 suffered injuries after a bus ferrying pilgrims from Kurukshetra to Shiv Khori fell into a gorge in Akhnoor, Jammu. Going oil in: Saudi Arabia is poised for a major secondary share sale in oil giant Aramco to possibly raise around $10 billion, Reuters reports. Pay for the damage: Bloomberg reports that China may impose a record fine of at least 1 billion yuan or $138 million on PwC for its auditing work on developer Evergrande, which has been accused of financial fraud. THE DAILY DIGIT9%The rate at which India’s biggest retailers and quick service restaurant chains expanded their store network in FY24. This is the slowest growth rate in five years. (The Economic Times) FWIWSmart bandages?: Yep, they're in the pipeline. Picture this: bandages that chat with doctors. How cool is that? Researchers worldwide are hustling to whip up prototypes with tiny electronics that can monitor wound healing and shoot the data straight to the doc. Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Rutgers University are even experimenting with electrotherapy bandages. Shocking, right? But hey, it's believed that a jolt of electricity can turbocharge the healing process. While these high-tech bandages sound like the future, we'll have to stick with our trusty old-school ones for a while. Most prototypes are still in the animal testing phase, after all. The Signal is free today. But if you enjoyed this post, you can tell The Signal that their writing is valuable by pledging a future subscription. You won't be charged unless they enable payments. |
Older messages
Red Bull is heading to England
Monday, June 3, 2024
Also in this edition: A collection of the best weekend long reads on the sports business ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
The most important continent on Earth
Monday, June 3, 2024
What does the future of Antarctica look like in a changing world and geopolitical climate? ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Exit stage right
Monday, June 3, 2024
Also in today's edition: Not enough liquidity for infra loans; China basks in the moonlight ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
The dukes of hazard
Friday, May 24, 2024
Also in today's edition: Can marketing save De Beers (again)?; Home truths ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Can Google fix its mega Pixel flub?
Thursday, May 23, 2024
Also in today's edition: How climate change is making air travel riskier; China's tit-for-tat tariffs ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
You Might Also Like
When WordPress Goes To War
Saturday, September 28, 2024
This is coming out of cycle because of the timeliness of what's going on. If you're not sure what I'm talking about don't feel bad. Just read on. I wasn't going to write about this
How to sign your first client this week
Saturday, September 28, 2024
The Ultimate Formula
You’re using AI wrong
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Most businesses still aren't taking advantage of AI technology. They're either using it wrong, or not at all. Let's fix that. Join me and my team for a brand-new webinar on Tuesday, October
The Death of Feedback
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Does It Even Work Anymore For All But the Best? To view this email as a web page, click here saastr daily newsletter Feedback: Does It Even Work Anymore For All But the Best? By Jason Lemkin Friday,
ESG perception vs. reality
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Also: The world's top startup hubs; All-new research on evergreen funds and middle market consumer retail; Private debt funds are gaining traction... Don't want to receive these emails? Manage
‘We Really Need To Think of Ourselves as Performers’
Saturday, September 28, 2024
We spoke to author and consultant Cody Royle about his four craft areas for coaches, training our concentration levels and treating coaching as performance.
How we got +300% people to read our content
Saturday, September 28, 2024
Every business - big or small - needs an e-sign tool in their stack. But they cost so much. Get this lifetime deal on the best Docusign / PandaDoc Alternative (https://www.rockethub.com/deal/flexisign/
Chinese AI Expeditions over the West Ocean
Friday, September 27, 2024
A Short Summary of Chinese AI Global Expansion (March - September 2024)
🔍 I’ll Find Untapped Revenue On Your Website.
Friday, September 27, 2024
There's $100K+ sitting on your site….
Mat’s Top 16 Companies In The YC S24 Batch
Friday, September 27, 2024
Out of 250+ Companies, Here Are My Favorites (And Why They Still May Fail)