The week in charts: Rupee, Q1 earnings, Mpox scare

Every Friday, Plain Facts publishes a compilation of data-based insights, complete with easy-to-read charts, to help you delve deeper into the stories reported by Mint in the week gone by. The Indian rupee is showing signs of weakness mainly due to demand for the dollar by importers, while India Inc’s profits grew at the slowest pace in five quarters.

Rupee’s fall

The Indian rupee has been on a downward trend, sparking concerns as it slipped to ₹83.9550 against the US dollar by 2 pm on Thursday, down from ₹83.7794 the previous day, according to Yahoo Finance. The decline was primarily the result of high demand for dollars among importers along with outflow of foreign portfolio investments in equities. In August so far, the rupee has averaged 83.89 against the dollar, down from 83.59 the previous month.

Lacklustre quarter

As the first quarter earnings season wrapped up earlier this week, it turned out to be a lacklustre quarter for corporate India. Profits grew 7.3% year-on-year, recording the slowest pace in five quarters, a Mint analysis of standalone data for 3,224 BSE-listed companies showed. Revenue growth also slowed down to 9.4% in April-June from 10.6% from the previous quarter. While a high base dragged profit down, higher costs and softening demand also contributed.

Mpox scare

32: That is the number of laboratories in India equipped to test for the viral disease Mpox. India has stepped up surveillance of the virus since the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the recent Mpox outbreak a ‘global public health emergency’ due to a new variant. Although no recent cases have been reported in India, the first case surfaced in July 2022. Most cases have been recorded in the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa.

PC sales

As Indian companies upgrade outdated hardware due to AI advancements and the end of support for Windows 10, sales of laptops, desktops, and tablets surged 7.1% year-on-year to 3.39 million in April-June, according to data released by the International Data Corp on Monday. This marks a sharp improvement from the 2.6% growth recorded in the previous quarter, driven by demand from the increasing number of global captive centres in India and signs of a potential IT sector recovery.

Sebi probes

Despite the controversy surrounding Madhabi Puri Buch over her alleged linkages to Adani offshore funds, a Mint analysis showed that under her leadership, India’s market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), launched a record 342 investigations in the 2023-24 fiscal year—the highest in a single year. This surpasses the 245 investigations initiated in 2016-17 under then-chairman UK Sinha. Of the total probes launched in FY24, 277 focused on alleged insider trading. A growing equity market backed by higher retail participation have been attributed to the concurrent rise in investigations.

Expansion plans

€100 million: Is the amount French sports goods retailer Decathlon will invest in India over the next five years. The funds will be used to expand its store footprint to 190 stores from 127 currently, increase its digital engagement and sourcing of make-in-India goods. Globally the retailer operates over 1,700 stores. The company entered the Indian market in 2009, opening its first store Bengaluru. Decathlon plans to increase the share of good made locally from 68% to 85% by 2026.

Coaching fines

Consumer rights protection regulator Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has fined 15 coaching institutes, with penalties amounting to ₹38.6 lakh for misleading advertisements and unethical tactics. The coaching institutes that have been penalized include big names such as Rau’s IAS Study Circle, IQRA IAS, and Unacademy. CCPA chief commissioner Nidhi Khare pointed out that the most IAS coaching institutes do not disclose the specific courses that were taken by successful candidates, thereby leading to candidates opting for expensive courses at these places.

Chart of the week: High crime

As women’s safety once again takes centre stage in public discourse in India, a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms reveals that West Bengal has the highest number of MPs and MLAs facing cases related to crimes against women, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.

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