<ul><li>In our latest series, we talk to brands about how they have been marketing during these adverse times, the things they have learnt and how they are preparing for the somewhat uncertain future.</li><li><keyword id="9451504" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="ranjani-krishnaswamy">Ranjani Krishnaswamy</keyword>, General Manager - Marketing, Jewellery Division, <keyword id="2028078" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Titan-Company-Limited">Titan Company Limited</keyword> believes that the future of retail and jewellery industry is secure.</li><li>She shared with us a few consumer shopping trends that point towards an optimistic growth pattern, Titan Jewellery’s unlocking plan and larger marketing strategy. </li></ul>One would assume that the pandemic has pushed consumers to prioritise food, home and shelter. However, the kind of response Titan Jewellery has seen from its audience during the lockdown proves that they are becoming more organised and want to be prepared in every field. With the volatility caused by COVID-led lockdown in the share market, consumers are turning to buy and invest in the yellow metal. Audience from metro cities, Tier I and Tier II are open to planning their long-term investments and are buying <keyword id="6379337" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="gold-jewellery">gold jewellery</keyword> to secure their future. As a result, Titan Jewellery saw 1 million visitors on its website, hinting that the market is slowly picking up its tide. To meet this demand from consumers, Titan decided to open 90% of its stores in India. The jewellery giant also upped its digital game by introducing video calling features, providing live assistance to consumers, facilitating appointment-based purchases and launching digital campaigns to help its consumers adjust to the new normal and address their queries phygitally. We further caught up with Ranjani Krishnaswamy, General Manager - Marketing, Jewellery Division, <keyword id="1824765" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Titan-company">Titan Company</keyword> Limited, who is optimistic about retail and jewellery industry’s future, to understand what else the brand has in its stores for the unlocking period, a few lessons the team has learnt during the lockdown and future of retail shopping in India. Excerpts: Q. Tell us a bit about your latest campaign. What is the idea behind it? How difficult was it to execute it considering the restrictions? As a responsible brand, Tanishq believes that every little act of kindness and support is a blessing earned. This campaign brings to life the concept of blessed gold which is fondly called Dua Ka Sona. The thought of crafting a campaign relevant to the current pandemic is based on empathy as an emotion. We are not just in the business of selling jewellery but we believe in valuing the craft and craftsman equally. It’s only when our Karigars thrive, we as a business will be purposeful and wholesome in its true sense. Through this campaign, we have attempted to showcase how our efforts during this pandemic translated into blessings. Dua Ka Sona 2.0 showcases the ethical, responsible and sustainable business practices employed by the brand since its inception. With an honest attempt to give back to the society, the brand has taken sincere and proactive steps to uplift and support the lives of karigars and help them deal with the effects of covid. Understanding and quickly nurturing the needs of the Karigars and community at large, Tanishq walked the complete mile to help more than 20,000 families in every way possible. From supplying essentials and medicines to the elderly, from providing food to over 15000 karigars and migrants to arranging special financial aid, from virtual up-skilling and vocational training to enable karigars to further polish their skill sets and strict adherence to sanitize and follow safety norms is all a part of the deeper Karigar connect program which have been showcased in the campaign. As a part of the Tata group, the very fabric of goodness is ingrained in our ethos. We further extended kindness in more ways by providing essentials, PPE’s and medicines to covid warriors and communities in need, thus helping the entire value chain involved in standing together in these trying times. Given the current restrictions, it was challenging to bring together this campaign in a no travel and no shoot scenario. Having said that, we were able to achieve the right balance of emotions and acts of kindness done in the covid context by borrowing some footage from the earlier campaign. Q. How difficult was the lockdown period for Tanishq? How are your preparations for unlocking going? What are the various precautions you have taken? The lockdown was tough on all businesses but I think staying positive and keeping a focus on the changing times has helped Tanishq stay optimistic and ahead of the curve. We launched e-Akshaya Tritiya during the lockdown and received a great positive response. We had close to 1+ million visitors/browsers on our website, indicating a lot of customer interest. The ticket size online has jumped 2.5 to 3 times than our usual online average ticket size. Today almost 90% of our stores are open and Tanishq customers are at the heart of everything we do. To make jewellery shopping experience seamless for our customers we introduced new digital features like video calling, live assistance and appointment based shopping at our stores and at Tanishq.co.in. Customers have the option of getting the products delivered at their doorstep or they can choose to visit the store by booking an appointment and try out the shortlisted products. We rolled out a ‘Gold Standard’ safety ebook that reiterates company’s commitment to safety and well-being of customers and its employees at the store. It covers all staff and customer touch points, entailing numerous safety measures, including contactless shopping and strict social distancing at all times. Now that stores are open, to disinfect jewellery, Tanishq is using UV Type C Chambers, safe for all metals. Q. What has your marketing strategy been during the lockdown? Did you modify your media mix, with marketing investments getting shifted from one medium to another? The core, or sole, of the brand hasn’t changed. What obviously changed was the medium. With the changing market and consumer behaviour, largely our focus has been on enhancing our digital platforms and taking the Omni channel route for marketing. The whole strategy has been about intensifying and recognising cohorts, and to be able to talk to them through digital, through our loyalty programs, through our stores, and build a more virtual relationship with them. Q. The pandemic and the lockdown has brought with it a lot of learning. What would you say have been your major learnings from this experience so far? The current pandemic and journey that we are going through is teaching us to pause, reflect, connect and move forward with resilience and positivity. But times like these urge us to be more agile, adaptable and turn a crisis into opportunities. Being fitter, faster, and stronger will be the key to managing ourselves, our ecosystem of partners &amp; Karigars &amp; more importantly in our service to our customers. Q. The kind of communications a brand comes up with during a crisis can either help win consumer trust and endear them to the brand or work completely the other way around. How did you ensure during the last months that you stay connected with your consumers? All throughout the lockdown, we were in constant touch with our consumers to check on their well-being through empathy calls and help was mobilized with delivery of essentials and medicines to our elderly customers wherever needed! Empathy was the need of the hour and Tanishq jumped headlong into this battle with the intention of helping out wherever and however India and our extended Tanishq family needed help. A significant part of the consumer journey in jewellery has been digitised like – Video calling, Virtual try on, Live chat on our website and book an appointment. These improved our assortment on lower and middle karatage products available on the website as per consumer demand and left no stone unturned to aid our consumers make their purchases online. Q. We are sure the future of retail and jewellery industry will never be the same. How are you making sure you opt to digital media, online selling policies and physical distancing need to help your consumer? I don’t think the future looks very bleak. Shopping trends and consumer shopping trends point towards an optimistic growth pattern and it’s a positive growth. We have developed our plan based on the vision of “Fitter Faster Stronger”. Fitter means being agile and adapting to the new normal with flexibility. Faster means the speed of execution to adapt to rapidly changing consumer preferences &amp; behaviours. And stronger means to come together to reach out and help each other to build back the value chain for the jewellery industry. Digital media is one of our core platforms for consumer engagement and we have built a virtual relationship with the Tanishq community. Engagement campaigns like real golden moments, Mother's day and Jewellery cleaning posts in the last 2 months were highly engaging and gave us higher than targeted engagement percentages. Tech features like live chats and remote selling through video calls are working well for us. Our store attendants showcase the jewellery by wearing it so customers are sure of how it looks before buying it. Physical distancing has also been enabled at stores where we’ve changed layouts so not more than 1-2 customers are inside the store shopping at any given point. Safety will be key for consumers and as India’s leading only national jeweller we have created safe, tech-supported, and digitized dynamic innovative ways of shopping.

90% of Tanishq stores are now open: Ranjani Krishnaswamy, Titan Company

Gold and gold ornaments are something integral to Indian tradition. Gold is considered as a symbol of luck, prosperity, abundance and auspiciousness. In fact people see gold as embodying Goddess Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth in it. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Indians love gold" comment="subhead" text="Indians love gold">Indians love gold</cmsannotation> Indian households take a sentimental interest in buying gold. India has recently overtaken China in becoming the largest importer of gold on the earth. People consider it auspicious to <keyword id="2329317" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="buy-gold" source="Orion">buy gold</keyword> on festivals like Makar Sankranti, Dussehra, Navratri, Gudi Parva, <keyword id="188" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="20" keywordseo="Diwali" source="Orion">Diwali</keyword>, Akshaya Tritiya and <keyword id="4067" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Dhanteras" source="Orion">Dhanteras</keyword>. It is considered highly auspicious to <keyword id="8248136" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="buy-gold-on-dhanteras" source="Orion">buy gold on Dhanteras</keyword>. Some of the beliefs attesting this tradition are discussed here. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Shopping for gold on Dhanteras" comment="subhead" text="Shopping for gold on Dhanteras">Shopping for <keyword id="6994209" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gold-on-dhanteras" source="Orion">gold on Dhanteras</keyword></cmsannotation> On the day of Dhanteras, the sale of gold reaches one of its annual peaks in India. The term Dhanteras translates as dhan (wealth) teras (thirteenth day). People buy gold bars, gold ornaments, gold coins silver coins or silver ware on this day. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="The legend behind Dhanteras" comment="subhead" text="The legend behind Dhanteras">The legend behind Dhanteras</cmsannotation> Once upon a time, there was a king named Hima. He had a son of sixteen years. The king got him married to a girl. Astrologers predicted that the prince would die of snake bite on the fourth day of his marriage. This information made the king and the bride misery stricken. The bride was a clever and highly devoted girl. She hatched a plan to save the life of her husband. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Dhanteras is celebrated for the first time" comment="subhead" text="Dhanteras is celebrated for the first time">Dhanteras is celebrated for the first time</cmsannotation> On the day when the astrologers had predicted the death of the boy, the girl collected all the ornaments and gold in the palace and placed them in a heap in front of the main door. She advised the prince not to sleep and sat with him narrating some interesting stories and singing some melodious songs. The couple sat awake throughout the night. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Lord Yama arrives" comment="subhead" text="Lord Yama arrives">Lord Yama arrives</cmsannotation> During the scheduled time of taking the prince’s life, Lord Yama arrived near the palace. He took the form of a serpent which was supposed to bite the prince to death. As the serpent neared the main door of the palace, the heap of ornaments and valuables blocked its way, the dazzling brilliance of the items nearly blinded the vision of the snake. The snake could not enter the palace. Meanwhile, the snake was charmed by the melodious songs sung by the girl. Hence the snake laid there all night long listening to the songs. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="The time of death lapses" comment="subhead" text="The time of death lapses">The time of death lapses</cmsannotation> The time that the planets had scheduled for the prince’s death elapsed and the serpent lost its mood to bite the prince. Lord Yama in the disguise of the snake left the house without taking the life of the prince. Thus, with her clever strategies and devotion to God, the girl could successfully save the life of the prince. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Dhanteras tradition begins" comment="subhead" text="Dhanteras tradition begins">Dhanteras tradition begins</cmsannotation> The legend of how the prince was saved from death inspired the tradition of buying gold on the day of Dhanteras. Gold is kept in puja on the day and a lamp known as Yama Deep is lit in front of the main door seeking the blessings of Lord Yama and goddess Lakshmi.

Why Indian people purchase gold on Dhanteras festival

Mumbai, Apr 21 () The coronavirus outbreak and the lockdown ahead of Akshaya Tritiya is a credit negative for the gold jewellery retail industry in the short term, according to Icra. Gold jewellery buying is considered auspicious during Akshaya Tritiya, which falls in the last week of April this year. Over the last two years, the domestic gold jewellery retail industry has been affected by factors like weak consumer demand amid slowing economic growth, rapid rise in gold prices and faltering rural output, regulatory policy interventions and cautious lending environment, Icra said in a report."Given this background, the widened outbreak of COVID-19 and subsequent lockdown, ahead of the critical Akshaya Tritiya season is a credit negative for the gold jewellery retail industry in the short-term," it added.The lockdown has resulted in closure of retail stores across the country. Besides there has been supply chain disruption with restriction on movement of non-essential goods, Icra added."As the stores are currently non-operational and recovery in demand is likely to be slow and gradual given that jewellery is a non-essential product and consumers typically defer their discretionary spends, jewellery retailers shall witness sharp moderation in footfalls over the next few months. Especially, sales during Akshaya Tritiya, which falls in the last week of April 2020, shall witness considerable impact," Icra Vice President K Srikumar said.In addition to industry revenues being impacted, relatively stable fixed costs in the form of employee payouts and rentals shall affect the earning profile of the retailers, he pointed out."Any invocation of force majeure clauses given the above adverse impact in the rental agreements remains to be seen. Nevertheless, over the long term, gold jewellery demand shall continue to benefit from the cultural underpinnings, evolving lifestyle, growing disposable income, favourable demographic dividend and the growing penetration of organised sector," he added. SM SHW ANUANU

Gold jewellery retail industry to be credit negative in short term due to lockdown: Icra

<keyword id="6357120" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="PayTM">Paytm</keyword> has sold over 175 kg <keyword id="18712" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Gold">gold</keyword> on its platform since the launch of the service in April when it had launched the product during the occasion of Akshaye Tritiya. The precious metal processing facility MMTC-PAMP has partnered with the e-wallet company to allow consumers to buy gold for as low as Re 1, online. Consumers can purchase 24K 999.9 purity gold online and store it in vaults of MMTC-PAMP for no extra cost. India is the largest consumer of gold after China, with many using it for savings as a hedge against <keyword id="22195" type="COMPANY" weightage="40" keywordseo="Inflation">inflation</keyword> besides that, it is considered an auspicious gift during many festivals in the country. <div type="embedgroup"> <div type="Article" hostid="261" msid="59807093" title="Here’s how Tech Mahindra is using start-ups to ensure retention of their best IT employees" rank="1.0" kind="RELATED" publishDate="Jul 28, 2017, 3:02 PM" mstype="2" mssubtype="0"></div>&gt;</div>








Catching them young <keyword id="202300" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Krishna-Hegde">Krishna Hegde</keyword>, senior vice-president, Paytm, told Business Insider that people in the 25-35 age group are increasingly buying gold which is seen as an asset for an older demographic. The company is hoping to sell 5 tonnes in the current fiscal, worth over Rs 1,300 crore at current prices. Hedge also said that the higher tax implementation hasn’t deterred users and the company sees the service grow tremendously every month. Customers can buy as much gold as they want on the platform but Paytm has made it mandatory for users to provide KYC documents for transactions of Rs 20,000 and above and PAN card for over Rs 50,000 worth of Gold.

 

 

 

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Making jewelry out of a digital asset "The highest traction surprisingly hasn’t just come from the cities with the state of <keyword id="6357783" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="West-Bengal">West Bengal</keyword> accounting for more than 30% of the total sales. ," Hegde said. In the future, Paytm customers will be able to find jewellers near them where they can convert the digital gold into jewellery instantly by paying the making charge. While the company gives an option to get gold delivered to households after paying coin making charges and delivery charges, over 60% of the buyers currently have chosen to keep it online. 

 

 

 

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Monthly/Weekly/Daily savings Hegde says that the customers are slowly embracing this trend by buying more gold on the platform but one customer has been buying gold worth Rs. 11 everyday since the launch. While some customers chose to invest in gold by buying 1 gm. Every month, some customers have even bought gold worth Rs. 20 lakhs. Paytm also recently started rolling out optional cashback in gold which has been embraced by customers who previously tried out the app just for its cashback and convenience. Categories like movies, recharges and bill payments have already been activated with this feature. With disposable incomes increasing, and more people coming online the gold rush isn’t looking to stop anytime soon on Paytm.

A Paytm customer buys gold online everyday for Rs. 11 adding to the company’s gold streak

<ul><li>Benchmark indices <keyword id="6484188" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="sensex" source="Orion">Sensex</keyword> and <keyword id="2931774" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nifty50" source="Orion">Nifty50</keyword> edged up in morning trade on Thursday despite mixed cues in global markets. </li><li>The gains in morning trade were led by banking and metal stocks, while FMCG and IT stocks were flat. </li><li><keyword id="90570" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sgx-nifty" source="Orion">SGX Nifty</keyword>, an early indicator of how the markets may perform, was up 0.25% or 44 points early in the morning today. </li></ul>Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty50 edged up in morning trade on Thursday despite mixed cues in global markets. The gains in morning trade were led by banking and metal stocks, while FMCG and IT stocks were flat. While the 30-stock Sensex was up 0.14% or 84 points to 59,651, the 50-stock Nifty50 was up 0.07% or 13 points to 17,631. Adani Ports, L&amp;T and Titan Company were amongst the top gainers. Top gainers and losers on Nifty50 <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Top gainers </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Change </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Top losers </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Change </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Adani Ports &amp; SEZ </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">2.60% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Divi's Laboratories </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-3.68% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">L&amp;T </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.23% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Eicher Motors </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.05% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Titan Company </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.20% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Apollo Hospitals </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.98% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">NTPC </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.17% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Dr. Reddy's Laboratories </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.74% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Power Grid Corp. </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.96% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Cipla </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">0.68% </td></tr></tbody></table> Source: NSE, as on April 20, 2023 Earlier on Wednesday, markets extended their losing streak for the third consecutive day, with both Sensex and Nifty50 losing over 0.2% due to selling in IT and banking stocks. Gold and crude oil prices continued to simmer down – while gold prices fell 0.32% to ₹60,296 per 10 grams, Brent crude oil price fell 0.81% to $82.45 per barrel. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Global markets mixed" comment="subhead" text="Global markets mixed">Global markets mixed</cmsannotation> Investor sentiments in markets globally were mixed, reflecting in sideways movement in both the US as well as Asian markets. In the US, Dow Jones fell 0.23% while S&amp;P 500 and Nasdaq were flat. Asian markets showed similar trends on Thursday morning, with Nikkei 225 up 0.09% while Hang Seng was flat. Shanghai Composite fell 0.68%, while KOSPI fell 0.39% and Taiwan Weighted was down 0.19%. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Stocks to watch" comment="subhead" text="Stocks to watch"><keyword id="73648" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stocks-to-watch" source="Orion">Stocks to watch</keyword></cmsannotation> <keyword id="42747" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="tata-motors" source="Orion">Tata Motors</keyword>: The automaker’s subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover will invest 15 billion pounds over the next five years in electric vehicles. Tata Communications: The company has reported a 10.7% on year decline in consolidated profit at ₹326 crore for March quarter while revenue grew by 7.2% on year to ₹4,569 crore. <keyword id="6355596" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="ultratech-cement" source="Orion">UltraTech Cement</keyword>: The cement maker has announced it has commissioned 2.2 million tonnes per annum brownfield expansion at its grinding unit at Patliputra, Bihar. With this, the units grinding capacity has increased to 4.7 mtpa. Titan: With rising gold prices, Titan’s jewellery arm Tanishq has planned to reinstate its advanced booking option allowing buyers to lock in the price of the yellow metal ahead of Akshaya Tritiya on April 22. Adani Ports &amp; SEZ: The company’s board will meet on April 22 to consider a partial buyback of its certain debt securities effective this financial year. Earnings today: HCL Technologies, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, Cyient, Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy, Reliance Industrial Infrastructure, Oriental Hotels are among companies to release their March quarter earnings today. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/zomatos-cost-control-efforts-are-hurting-the-startup-strike-at-blinkit-to-hurt-revenues-by-1/articleshow/99609906.cms">Zomato's cost control efforts are hurting the startup: Strike at Blinkit to hurt revenues by 1%</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/condom-maker-mankind-pharmas-4326-crore-ipo-to-open-next-week-on-april-25/articleshow/99614288.cms">Condom maker Mankind Pharma’s ₹4,326 crore IPO to open next week on April 25</a>

Sensex, Nifty50 edge up in morning trade led by banking and metal stocks

Chaos prevailed on Twitter on Friday when Elon <keyword id="364027" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="musk" source="Orion">Musk</keyword> finally removed all legacy verified accounts with <keyword id="6380502" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="blue" source="Orion">Blue</keyword> check marks but allowed some celebrities to retain it. In India, one has to shell out Rs 900 a month (or Rs 9,400 a year) to get Blue Verified status. As more than 4 lakh legacy verified users bid goodbye to the Blue check marks, some celebrities have been offered a complimentary <keyword id="11265742" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="twitter-blue" source="Orion">Twitter Blue</keyword> subscription "on behalf of Musk". "I am paying for a few personally," said Musk. "Just William Shatner, LeBron James and Stephen King," he added. Stephen King tweeted: "My Twitter account says I've subscribed to Twitter Blue. I haven't. My Twitter account says I've given a phone number. I haven't". Musk replied: "You're welcome namaste." The Pope got downgraded along with Beyonce, Kim Kardashian and Oprah Winfrey. Rihanna and <keyword id="35866" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="taylor-swift" source="Orion">Taylor Swift</keyword> still had Blue ticks but it was not sure if they bought it or Musk allowed those to remain. "Me joining you all tomorrow unverified," tweeted actress Halle Berry, indicating she is not going to pay Musk for the Blue badge.Many other NBA players, like <keyword id="218063" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="stephen-curry" source="Orion">Stephen Curry</keyword>, Zion Williamson, and Ja Morant also lost their blue checks. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/hcl-tech-projects-its-revenue-to-grow-between-6-8-in-fy24/articleshow/99644337.cms">HCL Tech projects its revenue to grow between 6-8% in FY24</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/here-are-the-many-ways-you-can-invest-in-gold-this-akshaya-tritiya/articleshow/99635639.cms">Here are the many ways you can invest in gold this Akshaya Tritiya</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/sbi-icici-bank-ongc-tata-motors-bpcl-will-drive-niftys-earnings-in-q4-2022-23/slidelist/99632153.cms">5 companies that will drive Nifty’s earnings in Q4</a>

Pope, Beyonce lose Twitter Blue Ticks but Musk personally pays for William Shatner, Stephen King

<ul><li>India’s benchmark indices <keyword id="6484188" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="sensex" source="Orion">Sensex</keyword> and <keyword id="2931774" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nifty50" source="Orion">Nifty50</keyword> edged up in morning trade on Monday despite mixed cues in global markets. </li><li>The gains were led by banking and realty stocks, while pharma, IT and media stocks declined. </li><li><keyword id="6484187" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="ril" source="Orion">RIL</keyword>, <keyword id="6653" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="icici-bank" source="Orion">ICICI Bank</keyword>, <keyword id="44883" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="maruti-suzuki" source="Orion">Maruti Suzuki</keyword> and <keyword id="10862" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="wipro" source="Orion">Wipro</keyword> are amongst stocks in news today. </li></ul>India’s benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty50 edged up in morning trade on Monday despite mixed cues in global markets. The gains were led by banking and realty stocks, while pharma, IT and media stocks declined. SGX <keyword id="6354813" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="nifty" source="Orion">Nifty</keyword>, an early indicator of how the markets may perform, was up 0.35% or 62 points early in the morning today. Both the benchmark indices were up 0.04% in morning trade, with Sensex at 59,656 points and Nifty50 at 17,626 points. Top gainers and losers on Nifty50 <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Top gainers </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Change </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Top losers </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Change </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">HDFC Life </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">5.88% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Sun Pharma </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-2.10% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Tata Consumer </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">2.77% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Dr. Reddy's Laboratories </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-1.77% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Hero MotoCorp </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">2.38% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Cipla </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-1.03% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">ICICI Bank </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.59% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">ITC </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-0.94% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Wipro </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1.25% </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">TCS </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.6000000000000001pt;vertical-align:top;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-0.92% </td></tr></tbody></table> Source: NSE, as on April 24, 2023 Earlier last week, Sensex and Nifty50 closed on a mixed note – while Sensex gained 0.3% last week, NIfty50 closed on a flat note. Gold and crude oil prices continued to cool down. While gold fell below the INR 60,000 per 10 gram level after the Akshay Tritiya buying was over, Brent crude oil fell to $81 per barrel on Monday morning. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Global markets mixed" comment="subhead" text="Global markets mixed">Global markets mixed</cmsannotation> Markets globally were mixed on Monday morning. Markets in the US closed in the green on Friday, with Dow Jones gaining 0.07% and the S&amp;P 500 gaining 0.09%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq closed 0.11% higher. On the other hand, markets in Asia opened largely in the red on Monday morning, with Hang Seng declining 0.8%, followed by KOSPI which declined 0.75%. Shanghai Composite was down 0.5%, while Taiwan Weighted was flat. The Nikkei 225 index, on the other hand, gained 0.29%. <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Stocks to watch" comment="subhead" text="Stocks to watch"><keyword id="73648" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stocks-to-watch" source="Orion">Stocks to watch</keyword></cmsannotation> Reliance Industries: The Mukesh Ambani led company’s net profit increased 9.9% on year to ₹66,702 crore for FY23 while its revenue stood at ₹8.93 lakh crore, which grew 23.7% on year. Its Q4 net profit was highest ever at 19,299 crore beating analysts expectations. <keyword id="42456" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="icici" source="Orion">ICICI</keyword> Bank: The lender’s net profit for March quarter has jumped 30% on year to ₹9,121 crore beating analysts expectations. The bank’s net interest income surged 40.2% on year to ₹17,667 crore. Wipro: The company is considering a buyback of equity shares of the company this week. Maruti Suzuki: The automaker has recalled 7,213 units of its Baleno RS hatchback over a possible defect in the vacuum pump that assists its brake function. Hindustan Zinc: The company reported 11.78% fall in consolidated net profit at ₹2,583 crore for March quarter on higher expenses. Its expenses stood at ₹5,358 crore higher than ₹4,717 crore from a year ago Yes Bank: The lender has reported a huge 45% on year dip in its net profit at ₹202 crore in Q4 FY23. However, on a quarterly basis its profit rose 293% from ₹51 crore in the December quarter. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/reliance-industries-q4-net-profit-of-19299-crore-beats-analyst-expectations-driven-by-retail/articleshow/99673940.cms">RIL’s Q4 net profit of ₹19,299 crore beats analyst expectations, driven by retail</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/indias-it-sector-likely-to-face-macro-headwinds-until-end-2023-say-analysts/articleshow/99714439.cms">India’s IT sector likely to face macro headwinds until end 2023, say analysts</a>

Sensex, Nifty50 edge up in morning trade led by banking and realty stocks

Mumbai, Mar 30 () The gems and jewellery exports are expected to witness a sharp decline in March as well as in the first quarter of the next fiscal due to disruptions caused by the Coronavirus outbreak, according to a report.An industry that is largely trade-oriented and attracts over over 5,000 exhibitors and 1,00,000 buyers at various trade fairs has witnessed a continuous decline in exports in all of the 11 months of FY20, with February 2020 being a major disappointment, CARE Ratings said in a report.A 41 per cent annual decline in cut and polished diamond exports led to a cumulative exports fall of 19 per cent year-on-year for the overall gems and jewellery industry in February 2020, it added.The gems and jewellery industry continued to face hurdles in the form of high custom duty on key commodities, continuous fall in exports and restrictions on the availability of bank credit and to add to this, recent outbreak of Covid-19 in top consuming markets including USA, Europe, China, Hong Kong and other south-east Asian nations has worsened the situation further for players operating in this industry, the report said."This has temporarily disrupted operations of all members in the value chain. Due to this, the exports of gems and jewellery from India are expected to witness sharp decline not only in March 2020, but also in Q1-FY21," it added.There could be heavy loss for domestic jewellery retailers as well, who were already distressed with lax demand due to escalated gold prices in the last few months and have now temporarily shut their stores due to the lockdown imposed in the country.Domestic retailers will face loss of revenue, stress on profitability and lengthening of operating cycles, which could further dampen their borrowing abilities in future, it added.The upcoming festivities of 'Akshaya Tritiya' may not offer much cheerful signs, as jewellery demand is expected to remain muted in the short term, the rating agency said.Short-term outlook for the gems and jewellery industry is negative, while long term prospects remain positive, owing to growing consciousness of branded jewellery, increasing purchasing power in tier II and III cities, increasing working women population and rising preference towards diamond jewellery, it added. SM SHW MKJMKJ

Gems, jewellery exports stare at steep fall in Q1 next fiscal: Report

Mumbai, May 10 () With retailers starting to open their shops in green zones, the gems and jewellery industry is slowly inching back towards normalcy, but is witnessing just 20-25 per cent sales. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has allowed shops to open during the lockdown, which has been extended till May 18, for essential commodities and standalone business establishments of non-essential goods. All India Gems and Jewellery Domestic Council (GJF) Chairman Anantha Padmanabhan told that jewellers have opened shops in few states after taking permission from local authorities in the last one week. "These retailers are doing 20-25 per cent business as people are coming to buy wedding related jewellery as gold prices are going up and also those who had bought gold online during Akshaya Tritiya are also coming to redeem their purchases," he added. Gold prices in India are currently ruling at Rs 45,000 per 10 grams, he said. The jewellers' body is keeping an eye on how COVID-19 situation pans out till May 18 and what decisions are taken by the government, he added. In Tamil Nadu, Padmanabhan said jewellers have approached authorities to allow them to open shops. "We have sent representations to the authorities to allow us to open shops. We will take all precautionary measures under the government guidelines to curb the pandemic," he added. Meanwhile, Kalyan Jewellers has opened 10 stores in the last week, one each in Odisha, Assam, Puducherry and seven in Karnataka after getting clearance from state governments. "We have opened 10 stores in India since last one week and are taking all safety measures for curbing COVID-19 pandemic, including social distancing, store and hand sanitization among others. "These stores are opened after discussions with the local governments. Currently, we are witnessing wedding related purchases," Kalyan Jewellers Executive Director Ramesh Kalyanaraman said. He said the company has enough inventory to cater to its customers and is constantly in touch with local governments and taking stock of the situation. "We are inventory ready and will open the rest of our stores once the local government gives the go ahead. Once all our stores are open, we expect business to come back to normal momentum within a month," he said. The company, which has 34 stores in the Middle East, has opened 13 of them in the UAE and Qatar, he added. Senco Gold and Diamonds has also announced reopening of its stores across green and orange zones in four states -- West Bengal, Odisha, Assam and Karnataka. Headquartered in Kolkata, the company plans to start operations across all locations in a phased manner following clearance by the concerned government authorities. "We have started operating at selected stores in four states after getting approvals from local government authorities. To ensure safe hygienic shopping experience for our customers and for the well-being of our employees, we will be following all suggested safety measures," Senco Gold and Diamonds Executive Director Suvankar Sen said. "We are ensuring contact-less shopping experience by using new age technology and emphasizing on digital payments," he added. The company is also promoting its e-commerce platform for shopping and is suggesting customers to do first round of selection with the help of e-catalog, prior to visiting the store. Meanwhile, Tanishq, a jewellery brand from Tata Group, on Saturday announced plans to reopen its 328 stores across the country in a phased manner by opening first 50 stores by Sunday. It would continue to comply with all rules related to COVID-19 lockdown, while reopening and running operations, the company said a statement. "We are reopening our stores in a phased manner because each store has to pass an eligibility test prior to re-commencing operations. This is to ensure each store is 100 per cent prepared to manage the store, staff and customers," CEO of jewellery division at Titan Company Ajoy Chawla said. SM RVK

COVID-19: Jewellers start opening stores, sales down to 20-25 pc

New Delhi, Mar 25 () The nationwide lockdown for next 21 days amid spread of coronavirus will severely impact residential real estate as housing sales have almost come to a standstill, which could affect builders' cash flow and lead to default in repayment of bank loans, according to property developers and consultants. Market experts also fear that existing customers might delay payments of their instalments to developers, who in turn could default in repayment of principal and interest on bank loans. Developers may hold on to apartment rates, but prices in the secondary or resale market could fall, they said. To mitigate the impact, developers and brokers are adopting digital marketing tools to reach out to prospective home buyers. When contacted, realtors' apex body CREDAI President Satish Magar said the lockdown will greatly impact the sales transactions and new launches will be deferred. "There are chances of many customers defaulting on their instalments because of tough economic conditions. These will have a cascading effect on developers-who will be battling with servicing their debts as cash inflows will be strained," he added. NAREDCO President Niranjan Hiranandani said overall sales numbers have dropped. The lockdown has opened up opportunities for digital platforms for sales and marketing activities, as also payments, he said. Bengaluru-based Puravankara MD Ashish R. Puravankara said: "At this point, no property registrations are taking place and all new project launches are postponed". As all construction sites are under lockdown, there will be a delay in completion leading to an increase in the interest cost, he added. "Additionally the lockdown could hamper the cash flow cycle of the developers' balance sheets and could result in bank defaults", said Ashish. Anarock Chairman Anuj Puri said the lockdown will have a negative impact on housing sales and new launches during the auspicious festivals of Gudi Padwa, Akshaya Tritiya, Navratri and Ugadi. "This is a time when AV technology to enable virtual site visits and walk-throughs will gain increased relevance and use," he said. Anshuman Magazine, Chairman &amp; CEO (India, South East Asia, Middle East &amp; Africa), CBRE said: "It is too early to comment on the impact of Covid 19 given that the situation is still evolving ... We are confident that once the situation normalises, sales will resume". Dhruv Agarwala, Group CEO, Housing.com and PropTiger.com, said the lockdown will have an adverse impact on real estate. "We too have begun to see a dip in traffic on all our platforms," he said, adding that the company has come out with innovative schemes for builders and brokers to advertise on its websites. Siva Krishnan, MD (Residential Services and Developer Solutions), JLL India said the lockdown will definitely have an impact on housing sales, but briefly. Shalin Raina, MD- Residential Services, Cushman and Wakefield, said the complete lockdown means lesser sales since most of the transaction closures happen only after site visits. Housing prices have corrected by 15-20 per cent in the last few years and further decline is unlikely, Raina said. Savills India CEO Anurag Mathur said: "Housing sales may see a sharp dip for at least the next one quarter... Even if the situation settles down quickly, it may take time for homebuyers to come back to the market." "Price elasticity is not a concern under the circumstances since the transaction activity is at a standstill anyway. Depending upon the duration and depth of the current crisis, prices may or may not see a downward movement," he said. Omaxe CEO Mohit Goel said the recovery in the housing segment has been halted. "As for real estate prices, there will be no change as transactions are not taking place. The prices will resume at the level it has halted," he said. Gaurs' MD Manoj Gaur said, "The sales are impacted, but it is temporary." Supertech Chairman R K Arora said, "housing sales have completely gone". There are no buyers in the market. Pune-based Gera Developments MD Rohit Gera said, "Real estate sales are at a standstill. So far there has not been any reduction or crash in prices of homes." "In the absence of some relief from the government, more real estate developers with debt obligations will default on account of the stop in cash flows thereby impacting the economy and jobs," he added. M3M Director Pankaj Bansal said housing sales would get impacted during this period of crisis, but it would also create a pent up demand once things get back to normal. Experion Developers Senior ED Ananta Singh Raghuvanshi said, "Sales closures are temporarily getting pushed ahead. Prices won't change." Raheja Developers ED Nayan Raheja said the sales and construction are badly impacted and at standstill. ABA Corp Director Amit Modi said the sales velocity has definitely been slow. Gulshan Homz Director Deepak Kapoor said, "People are deferring property buying decisions." PropEquity MD Samir Jasuja said: "For the real estate sector, this is a tough situation as it was just finding green shoots of recovery. We believe for the next few weeks, we will not see any new transactions for housing sales". Ambience President (Sales &amp; Marketing) Ankush Kaul said: "Housing sales will be impacted for the next few weeks." Ekta World Chairman Ashok Mohanani said the lockdown has affected the business cycle deeply. Wadhwa group, Head - Sales, Marketing Bhasker Jain said the lockdown has impacted sales and the company is offering cashback on online bookings. Brokerage firm 360 Realtors Ankit Kansal said the activities have come to a standstill after lockdown. Sales were down by 30-40 per cent during the first three weeks of March. Investors Clinic Founder Honeyy Katiyal said sales would be impacted but not the price. Wealth Clinic CMD Amit Raheja said, "It will hamper sales to a large extent, but we expect a good turnaround once the situation returns to normalcy." MJH MRMR

Nationwide lockdown to impact housing sales, say realtors

<keyword id="637909" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Akshay-Tritya">Akshay Tritya</keyword> is around the corner and <keyword id="6354553" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="real-estate">real estate</keyword> developers betting big on this days to clock-in a good sale this time around. However, keeping in mind the current scenario, is it wise to invest in property across the country? 
	 
	“Akshaya Tritiya is one of those days in the year where one stands to benefit significantly from every new acquisition. And this day has been associated with the buying of gold and property since ancient times. Akshaya literally means ‘endless’,” said Kishore Pate, chairman and managing director of Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd. 
	 
	He added, “Akshaya Tritiya is a divine day for the start of any activities, most especially investments and business ventures. Property brought on this day brings with it the assurance of non-diminishing (‘akshaya’) good fortune.” 
	 According to the industry players, the beliefs of the people play an important role in the decision making process of the <keyword id="6371902" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="home-buyers">home buyers</keyword>, hence, developers offer their projects around this time. 
	 
	Besides, the consumer sentiment in the market has been low and hence builders are offering great discounts to woo more consumers. “Needless to say, the property market is kept quite busy during Akshaya Tritiya. This year, Akshaya Tritiya falls on 21st of April, both and Indian tradition and the many good deals available in this period indicate that there cannot be a better time to buy a home," he noted. 
	 
	Interestingly, the four day property expo by Maharashtra Chamber of Housing Industry (MCHI-Credai) that began on April 11, saw massive turnouts as developers offered great discounts and schemes on their projects for Akshay Tritya.

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