businessline's State of the Economy Podcast

There has been a surprising drop in the valuation of multiple unicorns by private investors so far in FY23. Funding activity declined in both volume and deal sizes in May this year compared to the previous year. The investments in the venture side were dominated by B2B space, specifically enterprise software, AI/ML, climate tech, and EV. This trend is not new, data shows that the numbers still don't compare well to previous years.  Why is this happening? That's the big question and the start-up ecosystem in India is figuring out the reasons for these markdowns and their implications.

In the M&A activity, there is a trend of stronger hands taking over and consolidation in the market. Some notable deals include sovereign wealth funds acquiring equity from existing investors and private equity firms buying out companies from venture and growth equity funds. This indicates the maturing of the startup VC ecosystem. Several VC firms have closed new funds, and there is a disconnect between the money raised and the number of investments happening. This can be attributed to a timing issue, as investors take a long-term view and wait for the right opportunities. Additionally, the increased turnaround time for deals and the scrutiny of existing portfolio companies have also contributed to fewer investments. 

In this State of the Economy podcast, businessline’s Yatti Soni talks to Arun Natarajan, Founder, Venture Intelligence, and Siddharth Pai, Founding Partner at 3one4 Capital, to understand the impact of the new exemptions in angel tax provisions and how it has brought relief to foreign investors.  

Host: Yatti Soni, Producers: Anjana PV, Nabodita Ganguly)

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About the State of the Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as a bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several sectors continue to stutter even as others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

The latest economic indicators released on May 31 present a promising picture of the economy, with GDP showing improvements and GST collections reaching a new normal of 1.5 lakh crore rupees. However, the recovery remains uneven across sectors, raising concerns about the sustainability of the post-pandemic rebound.

Aditi Nayar, Chief Economist, ICRA discusses the current state of the economy, highlighting that while macro-level numbers like GST collections indicate healthy growth, not all sectors are contributing equally.

The recovery is described as "multispeed," with different sectors moving at different speeds at various times. While the services sector is expected to experience strong growth, manufacturing, and other industrial sectors face challenges due to the commodity price cycle and margin pressures. Furthermore, agriculture, which showed upward movement in FY 23, faces uncertainty due to changes in the monsoon cycle and the possibility of an El Nino in the second half of the year.

Host: Shishir Sinha; Producers: Nabodita Ganguly, Siddharth MC

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About the State of the Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as a bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several sectors continue to stutter even as others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

The open network for digital commerce (ONDC) has captured the nation’s imagination. Many feel that this is the next UPI, and will revolutionise e-commerce in the country.

Yet, there is a lot of confusion about the functioning of ONDC, which is bringing in interoperability and allowing many participants to build on the infrastructure it is creating. How exactly is this going to work?

Also, ONDC has just entered the B2B space, which many believe will unlock more growth. In this episode of the State of the Economy podcast, Chitra Narayanan talks to Shireesh Joshi, Chief Business Officer of ONDC, and Shiv Shivakumar, operating partner of Advent International, to understand how the network can be a game-changer in both B2C and B2B e-commerce. Listen in. 

(Host: Chitra Narayanan, Producers: Anjana PV, Jayapriyanka J)

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About the State of the Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as a bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several sectors continue to stutter even as others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

Copper plays a crucial role in powering the economic growth and development of any country, as it is an essential component in various sectors, ranging from electrical appliances and construction to vehicles and wiring.

Understanding the prospects for copper and the dynamics of its demand-supply scenario becomes paramount in gauging the overall health of the Indian economy.

In the latest episode of the State of the Economy podcast, businessline's Editorial Consultant MR Subramani talks to Mayur Karmakar, MD, International Copper Association India, to understand the prospects for copper in the current year and the demand-supply scenario.

Karmakar notes that the total demand for copper in India for FY2022 was over 1.2 million tonnes, and the demand is set to grow in FY2023. He also noted that the imports of copper products have increased significantly over the years, and he stressed the need to develop local fabrication capacity to meet the rising demand and reduce import dependency.

In the podcast, he noted that India needs to focus on creating value-added opportunities within the country and promoting the domestic fabrication capacity. However, he warned that if the country is slow in establishing local industries, import dependency will continue.

Karmakar emphasized that copper will play a key role in India's transportation sector, especially as the government looks to encourage electric vehicles in a bid to decarbonise the economy. He suggested that focusing on the manufacturing and fabrication of copper products in India could help capture this demand and even create export opportunities.

(Host: MR Subramani, Producer: Siddharth MC)

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About the State Of The Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as the bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several of its sectors still stutter about even while others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is,   businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

The S&P Dow Jones Indices’ SPIVA (S&P Indices Versus Active) report has been leading the debate about the underperformance of active mutual fund managers and how passive investing through index funds or exchange-traded funds delivers superior returns. 

In this Business Line’s State of Economy podcast, Benedek Vörös, Director, Index Investment Strategy, S&P Dow Jones Indices, explains the reasons behind this underperformance and delves into the performance of active fund managers across geographies and cycles. 

He says that the key learnings of the SPIVA report, which includes the United States, Australia, Canada, Europe, India, Japan, South Africa, and the Middle East and North Africa is that over the past 20 years, most active managers had underperformed their appropriate benchmarks over the full market cycle. There are however variations across shorter periods. 

However, a higher percentage of fixed-income managers outperform the benchmark compared to equities. That's a large part due to the use of two popular strategies, one, taking duration risk and the second, betting on the credit quality. 

Listen in!

Host: Lokeshwarri SK, Producers: Nabodita Ganguly, Siddharth Mathew Cherian.

_______________________

About the State Of The Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as the bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several of its sectors still stutter about even while others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

Buoyed by rich orders of civilian and military aircraft, Airbus Defence and Aerospace said that it’s looking to increase its sourcing from India, taking it beyond the existing worth $700 million per year.

Airbus also has plans to generate 2,000 more jobs in the next two years which would add to 10,000 direct and indirect placements the company is already supporting through the supply chain activities. 

In this State of Economy podcast, Venkat Katkuri, Head of Airbus Defence and Space, India and South Asia, spoke to Dalip Singh about the contribution of foreign OEMS towards the Centre’s Aatmanir Bharat initiatives to reduce defence imports, working with start-ups and his company’s plans for the country. He also gave an update on the C295 military aircraft, which Airbus is co-producing with Tata Advanced Systems Ltd.

The Airbus India and South Asia head appreciated the reforms brought in greater transparency to the procurement processes but suggested the government could still do more to help the sector grow. 

He was also of the view that the next stage push the defence sector needed is scaling up of Indian industrial ecosystem and that, as per him, would make India competitive in the global defence market. “The government of India could act as an anchor customer to really scale up the industrial ecosystem and to mature these state-of-the-art technologies to take it to a global level,” he observed. 

(Host: Dalip Singh, Producer: Nabodita Ganguly, V Nivedita)

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About the State Of The Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as the bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several of its sectors still stutter about even while others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is,   businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), enacted in 2016, aimed to streamline and expedite the insolvency resolution process in India. While the IBC has undoubtedly brought significant reforms to the insolvency landscape, its implementation has not been without challenges. 

BL State of the Economy podcast focuses on IBC 2.0 and highlights what areas need the attention of policymakers. One of the major challenges has been the legal interpretations and precedents. This is besides the primary challenge of the lack of adequate operational infrastructure. 

The IBC introduced a comprehensive legal framework for insolvency and bankruptcy proceedings. However, the interpretation of the code's provisions and the absence of clear precedents have posed challenges. Different interpretations by various stakeholders, including NCLTs, appellate tribunals, and higher courts, have created ambiguity and inconsistency, leading to prolonged litigation and delays in resolving cases.

The successful implementation of the code requires addressing various challenges. Improving operational infrastructure, providing clarity in legal interpretation, streamlining procedures, developing a robust insolvency ecosystem, and enhancing mechanisms for cross-border insolvency are crucial steps in ensuring the effective implementation of the IBC. 

Continuous evaluation, stakeholder consultations, and timely amendments are necessary to overcome these challenges and make the IBC a more efficient and responsive framework for insolvency resolution in India. The time has come for IBC 2.0. 

Sumit Khanna, Partner at Deloitte India talks about the next version of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code. He leads the IBC practice for Deloitte in India.

Listen to the podcast here

Host: KR Srivats; Producers: Nabodita Ganguly; Siddharth MC)

______________________

About the State Of The Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as the bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several of its sectors still stutter about even while others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

The Ukraine war has brought India and Russia closer in terms of increased bilateral trade, especially with India purchasing large amounts of discounted oil from the country from the last fiscal year on. However, India's exports to Russia are not rising. Neither has the rupee trade mechanism picked up.

In this State of the Economy podcast, businessline's Amiti Sen speaks to Dr Biswajit Dhar, an economist and former professor at JNU, about the historic bond between the two countries and the Soviet Union's role in developing India's economy. While discussing the dynamics of India-Russia relations, they also delve into the vital aspect of their sustainability amidst the mounting pressure exerted by Western powers on New Delhi, urging a retraction from its current position.

(Host: Amiti Sen; Producer: Anjana PV)

______________________

About the State Of The Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as the bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several of its sectors still stutter about even while others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

A key to India achieving its COP 26 pledge of 500 gigawatts (GW) of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030 is energy storage. Considering the importance of battery energy storage systems (BESS) in India’s electricity mix, businessline in a podcast with Rahul Walawalkar, the President & MD of Customized Energy Solutions India, went down the memory lane on how BESS gained prominence.

Walawalkar is a noted authority on BESS. More than a decade back, he founded the India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA), an industry body dealing with storage solutions and technologies. He pointed out that India started working on energy storage technologies around 2012-13, which gathered significant acceleration after the formation of the International Solar Alliance (ISA). Besides, in 2014, after the Narendra Modi government came to power, India’s solar manufacturing aspirations firmed up even more.

Walawalkar explained that a drastic change in this landscape happed roughly in the last five years, where there is awareness now that India has an opportunity to become a global hub for energy storage. And with that, now almost 10 ministries are involved in looking after various aspects. “So, it’s quite an interesting development how various government agencies are looking at storage as an enable. And it is very clear to almost all the people who know the system, that without energy storage, the 500 GW target is just not possible,” he added.

He emphasised that there is a realisation in the government now that India needs to start deploying storage at a mass scale. Walawalkar also talked about the economies of scale in energy storage. He pointed out that in the past decade the interest in electricity storage solution has increased exponentially. He elaborated on how the new generation energy storage technologies can utilise structures to capture multiple value streams in the electricity markets.

For instance, what has changed drastically, Walawalkar said, is that back in 2008, when the first grid scale energy storage projects started getting deployed, the capital cost was anywhere from $600-1,200 per kilowatt hour for different technologies. Lithium-ion batteries at that time incurred a cost of more than $1,000 per kilowatt hour, and some of the alternate technologies like flow batteries, or sodium sulphur batteries were at around $500.

At that time, markets were looking at lithium-ion batteries primarily for providing ancillary services—where you need maybe one hour or less duration of storage—and looking at sodium sulphur or flow batteries for longer duration for six hour or longer. As a result, Lithium-ion batteries due to application in consumer electronics, and E-mobility have scaled up manufacturing tremendously. It went from less than 10-gigawatt hour (GWh) of manufacturing to now more than 1,000 GWh within a span of 15 years. This led to an exponential price reduction similar to what has happened in solar.

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(Host: Rishi Ranjan Kala, Producer: Anjana PV)

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About the State Of The Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as the bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several of its sectors still stutter about even while others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is, businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups. 

The auto sector in India is a significant industry worth over 100 billion dollars, contributing around 8 per cent of the country's total exports and accounting for 7.1 per cent of India's GDP.

The Covid-19 pandemic affected the sector in the past few years, but it is now recovering and is coming back to normalcy. In this State of the Economy podcast, S Ronendra Singh talks to RC Bhargava, an auto industry veteran and chairman of Maruti Suzuki, India's largest passenger vehicle manufacturer, to discuss the industry's recovery and current challenges.

According to Bhargava, the growth of the auto industry in India has slowed down in the past decade, but it has now reached a level similar to four years ago. He expects the industry to grow at a rate of 5-6 per cent per year.

The conversation also touches on the issue of semiconductor shortages, which have affected the industry, the slowdown in the demand for small cars and the rise of the electric vehicle segment.

Bhargava believes that overtaking China in terms of the number of cars sold is unlikely, given the difference in population and economy. However, he acknowledged that India is a significant manufacturer of all kinds of vehicles, be it two-wheelers, passenger cars or commercial vehicles.

Bhargava is optimistic about the future of the sector and sees immense opportunities for growth in the Indian market, not only in the auto sector but across various segments.

(Host: S Ronendra Singh, Producer: V Nivedita)

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About the State Of The Economy podcast

India’s economy has been hailed as the bright spot amid the general gloom that seems to have enveloped the rest of the world. But several of its sectors still stutter about even while others seem set to fire on all cylinders. To help you make sense of the bundle of contradictions that the country is,   businessline brings you podcasts with experts ranging from finance and marketing to technology and start-ups.