In an important development, the income tax department came out to say that it had issued income tax refunds of over Rs 1.48 lakh crore to more than 1.02 crore taxpayers. These refunds have been made till December 14, 2020.

The total amount issued of Rs 1.48 lakh crore includes personal income tax refunds of about Rs 45,264 crore and corporate tax refunds of Rs 1.03 lakh crore, the department said.

Before his departure, US President Donald Trump has given another blow to China. The US Ministry of Commerce has announced a ban on 59 Chinese scientific and industrial manufacturing units, including Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC). The US has called these companies a threat to national security and contrary to foreign policy. Earlier as well, the Donald Trump administration has taken many big steps against China.

The United States Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) on Friday (local time) has authorised Moderna coronavirus vaccine for emergency use for people aged 18 years and above.

According to an official statement issued by Moderna, Moderna, Inc., (Nasdaq: MRNA) a biotechnology company pioneering messenger RNA (mRNA) therapeutics and vaccines today announced that the US Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) has authorized the emergency use of mRNA-1273, Moderna's vaccine against Covid-19 in individuals 18 years of age or older.

India's total COVID-19 caseload on Saturday crossed the 1 crore-mark as it reported 25,153 new cases in the last 24 hours, according to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

The country crossed the grim milestone almost eleven months after the first case was reported on January 30 in Thrissur district of Kerala. Since then, the country has recorded 1,00,04,599 coronavirus cases and 1,45,136 deaths.

Gold price today jumped to Rs 52,960 from Rs 52,750 per 10 gm, while silver was trending at Rs 67,000 per kg, according to the Good Returns website.

Gold jewellery price vary across India, the second-largest consumer of the metal, due to excise duty, state taxes, and making changes.

India's Covid-19 caseload rose to more than 9.9 million with 22,890 new infections being reported in a day, while total recoveries crossed the 9.5 million-mark, according to the Union Health Ministry's data updated on Friday.

With 338 more fatalities, the death toll reached 1,44,789, while the total Covid-19 cases mounted to 99,79,447, the data updated at 8 am showed.

Shares of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) traded 1 per cent higher at Rs 1,296 on the BSE on Friday in an otherwise subdued market on report that the company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, L&T Hydrocarbon (LTHE), is the lowest bidder for HPCL Rajasthan Refinery.
The stock of the construction & engineering company was trading close to its 52-week high level of Rs 1,384, touched on February 1, 2020. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 0.25 per cent at 46,767 points, at 12:20 pm.

Shares of information technology (IT) companies rallied at the bourses on Friday with sector giants Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys hitting their respective record highs, after Accenture reported better-than-expected results for the quarter ending November 30. For all of fiscal 2021, Accenture now sees revenue growth of between 4 per cent and 6 per cent, up from a previous forecast range of up 2 per cent to 5 per cent all in local currency.

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Oil climbed on Thursday and touched a nine-month high, with traders optimistic about progress toward a U.S. fiscal stimulus deal and record-breaking refining demand in China and India.

U.S. lawmakers edged closer to agreement on a $900 billion virus-relief spending package on Wednesday.

Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said the use of GPS-based (Global Positioning System) toll collection will ensure India becomes “toll plaza free” in the next two years. He also said this would help the exchequer earn Rs 1.34 trillion in the next five years.

The central government has finalised GPS-based toll collection to ensure seamless movement of vehicles across the country.

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