Vodafone Plc’s troubled India unit is in talks with the country’s largest lender about fresh loans, according to people familiar with the matter, in a deal that could pave the way for other banks to offer credit and boost survival chances of the cash-trapped wireless operator.

State Bank of India has asked Vodafone Idea Ltd., a joint venture between Vodafone and billionaire Kumar Mangalam Birla’s conglomerate, to first outline a turnaround strategy, the people said, asking not to be identified as the discussions are private.

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd recorded 540.3 billion yuan ($84.54) billion in orders, or "gross merchandise value" (GMV), over its 11-day Singles' Day sales event, marking a roughly 14% increase from the year prior.

The results come as overall consumption in China slows, and cap a relatively muted version of a sales festival that Alibaba once aggressively promoted.

Tata Steel, the country’s oldest steel producer, has reported a consolidated net profit at Rs 11,918 crore in the September quarter, up nearly eightfold or 661 per cent from the corresponding period last year.

The company is looking to deleverage around Rs 12,000 crore this year, depending on cash flows. It had deleveraged Rs 11,800 crore last year.

Employees of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) continued their strike for the 15th day on Thursday over the demand for merger of the cash-strapped corporation with the state government, despite an appeal from Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray to cooperate with the government in its effort to resolve their issues.

All 250 bus depots of the MSRTC remained shut for the second consecutive day, an official said.

Centre has provided 1,20,08,58,170 vaccine doses to states and union territories so far, through free of cost channel, and through the direct state procurement category, said Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Thursday.

According to an official release, 16,74,03,871 balance and unutilized COVID-19 vaccine doses are still available with the states and union territories to be administered.

Stating that growth impulses and the fast-moving economic indicators are strong, Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday exuded confidence in the economy clipping at the projected 9.5 per cent growth this fiscal.

Crediting the many measures taken by the government and the RBI for the faster-than-expected recovery so far, Das said the fiscal and taxation reforms especially have played key role in driving growth and reviving confidence.

Ten gram of 24-carat gold on Thursday is selling at Rs 48,250, increasing by Rs 260 since yesterday. Ten gram of 22-carat gold is selling at Rs 47,250, increasing by Rs 260, according to goodreturns.in.

The price of gold differs across the nation owing to excise duty, state taxes, and making charges. A kilogram of silver is selling unchanged at Rs 64,700, dropping by Rs 100.

Shares of Alembic Pharmaceuticals dipped 5 per cent to Rs 757 on the BSE in the intra-day trade on Thursday after the company's consolidated profit declined 49 per cent year on year (YoY) at Rs 169 crore in September quarter (Q2FY22), due to lower revenue. The pharmaceutical company had posted profit of Rs 333 crore in the year-ago quarter.

At 10:45 am, the stock was trading 3.4 per cent lower at Rs 766.20, as compared to a 0.87 per cent decline in the S&P BSE Sensex. It had hit a 52-week low of Rs 720.80 on August 23, 2020.

Shares of Bharat Bijlee hit an over 13-year high at Rs 1,950, on rallying 7 per cent on the BSE in Thursday’s intra-day trade in an otherwise weak market. The stock was trading at its highest level since June 2008. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 0.71 per cent at 59,922 points at 10:11 am.

In past two weeks, Bharat Bijlee has outperformed the market by zooming after its power systems business reported a robust performance for the quarter ended September 2021 (Q2FY22).

Shares of Narayana Hrudayalaya hit a new high of Rs 620, surging 13 per cent on the BSE in Thursday’s intra-day trade after the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 99.4 crore in September quarter (Q2FY22), on the back of healthy operational performance. The company, a leading healthcare service provider in India, had posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 3.4 crore in Q2FY21.

Indian operations staged a decent recovery during the quarter gone by, after the significant impact was observed in Q1FY22, as the effects of the second wave of the pandemic subsiding.

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