Govt to consider easing FDI norms in single brand retail, digital media today. Toyota and Suzuki enter capital alliance to jointly develop futuristic technology.
“Relaxi Taxi”: In a bid to attract more foreign players, the Union Cabinet is considering relaxing foreign direct investment (FDI) norms in several sectors, including single-brand retail, digital media, coal mining and contract manufacturing.
The government may approve proposal to allow 100% FDI in contract manufacturing. It may also come out with a clarification on applicability of the FDI policy on the digital media sector.
As part of the agreement, Toyota will purchase 4.94% shares of Suzuki worth 96 billion Japanese yen, while Suzuki will buy shares worth 48 billion yen in Toyota.
Apart from manufacturing electric and hybrid models, both companies will jointly develop autonomous driving technology.
STREAMING
Hotstar is the most preferred streaming platform in India, followed by Amazon Prime Video and Netflix. 55% of Indians prefer OTT to DTH.
The Hottest Star: Among Indians who stream, Hotstar is reportedly the most-preferred platform, followed by Amazon Prime and Netflix.
According to a recent survey by app distribution platform MoMagic,
41% of respondents said Hotstar was their most-preferred OTT platform while 26% voted for Amazon Prime Video and 9% for Netflix.
The numbers shouldn’t be surprising given that Hotstar boasts over 300mn subscribers - much higher than Prime and Netflix’s 13mn and 11mn.
Out With the Old, In With the New: In the same survey,
85% respondents said they had watched at least one of the major OTTs in the last six months and 55% said they preferred OTT to DTH services. Only 41% said they still prefer DTH.
As more and more Indians come online, streaming platforms are increasing in popularity – at the expense of traditional cable networks.
US
Purdue Pharma, the company blamed for fueling US opioid crisis, offers to settle lawsuits for $10bn-$12bn. US is about to flood the market with even more oil.
Crisis Update: Purdue Pharma, the company blamed for fueling the opioid crisis in the US, has offered to
settle 2,000+ lawsuits for $10bn-$12bn. The company, owned by the multi-billionaire Sackler family, has been blamed for enabling the opioid crisis, which has cost 400,000+ lives in the US in the last two decades.
Well, Oil Be Damned: The global oil market is more than saturated. And the
US is about to flood it with a lot more oil. The US is already the world’s largest oil producer, having doubled its production in the last decade to 12.3mn barrels per day. Now, improved infrastructure and new pipelines are expected to carry more oil to the coast to be exported to the world at large.
But the world is already over-supplied with oil and prices are already low. More US exports could further curb prices, which are already affected by low demand.
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