Author: Abizar Attari
News Editor

New Delhi: Expanding its international footprint, managed workspaces major Smartworks Coworking Spaces Limited has acquired Singapore-based flexible workspace operator Workstudio Spaces, adding another location to its Singapore portfolio. With this, it now has four centers in the country, with over 76,000 sq ft with a seating capacity of over 1,500 seats. This acquisition strengthens Smartworks overseas enterprise workspace portfolio, as the company makes its mark in one of Asia’s leading business hubs. With this, it also gains access to over 45 clients through Workstudio Spaces’ operations. “This acquisition marks an important step in our Singapore journey. Singapore remains a strategic…

The World Bank released its updated list of income classifications, grouping 218 economies based on per capita income. Though the list remains more or less the same, a few countries have moved up the ladder, from lower-middle-income to upper-middle-income. The most prominent amongst them is Sri Lanka, which, until two years ago, was facing a severe economic crisis due to its sovereign debt default in 2022.  The country has seen its GDP grow by 5% in 2025, while its Gross National Income (GNI) has increased by 11.2% during the year, promoting it to upper middle income status. Besides Sri Lanka,…

New Delhi: Indian defence stocks saw a robust, sector-wide rally on July 6 as the markets reacted to the Defence Acqusition Council’s (DAC) approvals for fresh military procurement. Chaired by Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the DAC greenlit ₹52,000 crore of equipment for the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force.  This includes anti-UAV electronic warfare systems , man-portable anti-tank guided missile systems, medium-range surface-to-air missile systems and various air defence and protection ssyems for the Army. The Air Force secured clearnace for a fixed-wing high-altitude platform for surveillance, telecommunications and remote sensing. The Navy received multi-influence ground mines, ship-bound unmanned…

There is a reason why the SEBI insists on every Mutual Fund advertisement to carry the disclaimer- Mutual Fund investments are subject to market risks. Please read all offer documents carefully before investing.  For many novice investors, a Mutual Fund represents an opportunity to earn returns on their surplus funds, with most choosing where to invest based on inputs from friends, family, distributors or simply from their own research. Though there is nothing wrong in this, blindly trusting your family to make your investment decisions could backfire, if the fund doesn’t perform as expected for a long period. Before setting…

Noida, UP: Recruitment platform Naukri.com has announced the rollout of its AI-powered recruitment solutions as it looks to enhance its hiring platform to stay ahead of the curve. Its AI-driven recruitment suite, consisting of PremiumX, AI-Rex, and Talent Pulse, has been developed based on over two decades of proprietary hiring data, with the company looking to expand into premium hiring solutions, talent intelligence and recruiter productivity verticals as well.  One of the oldest jobseeking portals out there, Naukri has a rich history in the recruitment industry, built over 25 years in the industry. Despite the competition, it holds over 118…

New Delhi: Following the nationwide rollout of E20 (20% ethanol blended) petrol, the government is officially aiming to expand on this by blending biofuels with diesel. Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari is now aiming to introduce a 15% blend of isobutanol in diesel. While petrol remains a highly important fuel for two wheelers and cars, diesel accounts for almost 40% of India’s petroleum consumption, with heavy commercial vehicles and cars in hilly regions preferring the fuel for its higher horsepower.  Ethanol-blended petrol has been widely used in India, and most consumers have no idea that their fuel…

New Delhi: At a high-level meeting held on July 3, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal laid out an aggressive roadmap to industry and government representatives to achieve $1 trillion in exports. For this, the Goyal unveiled a seven point action agenda for states, Export Promotion Councils (EPCs), industry bodies and exporters as they look to accelerate India’s growth through closer Centre-State coordination. On its part, the central government aims to support MSME-led exporters through the Export Promotion Mission (EPM), where it aims to assist businesses in obtaining international certifications, meeting regulatory requirements, and accessing overseas markets.  He has also…

Mumbai: Public lender Bank of Baroda (BoB) has agreed to an out of court settlement of $600 million (about ₹5,700 crore), settling two parallel litigations by the administrators of NMC Health in the UAE and UK. The payout, made through the bank’s Abu Dhabi branch, closes a cross border fraud where the UK-listed company raised funds from the international markets using forged invoices and inflated assets. The fraud unraveled after short seller Muddy Waters published a report in December 2019 which showed how the company raised funds fraudulently. A subsequent investigation by the administrators revealed that the company had a…

New Delhi: Even as the updated Employees’ Provident Funds Scheme, 2026 comes into effect, a Right to Information (RTI) query to the Employees’ Provident Fund Organization (EPFO) has shown that almost 30.91 lakh accounts remain inoperative, holding almost ₹9,330 crore in unclaimed funds. Even though the new PF rules are aimed at easing rules, the unclaimed deposits show how much the government still has to do to boost income security. The response shared by the EPFO hasn’t been forthcoming about the problem, as the data shared was only for 2025 and 2026. The organization had set up its Inoperative Accounts…

Noida, UP: India’s leading IT major HCL Technologies’ shares have jumped more than 5% in early morning trades on July 3 following reports of a $1.14 billion AI transformation deal signed with an unnamed Fortune Global 50 enterprise. For HCL Tech, this remains a strong comeback as its shares have fallen almost 33% in the last one year, with the markets responding positively to the news. The deal involves constructing, deploying, and maintaining an enterprise-wide AI framework for the client, with the contract commencing in July 2026 and running until December 2031, with an option to extend for an additional…