Around the market.

Negotiations on FTA with Oman progressed

Negotiations on the proposed Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and Oman are progressing rapidly. According to sources familiar with the matter, the Commerce Ministry is believed to have set a deadline of the end of this month to conclude the talks. The talks have become more significant as talks between India and the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council have not started for over a year. Talks with the UAE have not started, particularly due to disagreements over terms. The council includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). If this agreement is implemented, Oman will be the second country after the UAE to do so from India in the Gulf Cooperation Council. Apart from this, the proposed agreement is expected to further strengthen India's ties with West Asia. India and UAE signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement in February 2022. An India-UAE-like agreement is also expected with Oman. Oman is India's 29th largest trading partner.

Use of 6 GHz band will be beneficial for India

Designating 6 GHz for 5G and 6G use will benefit India and should not conflict with other countries' efforts to build consensus on the use of this band globally. A senior GSMA official has said this in a letter to Telecom Minister Ashwini Vaishnav. GSMA is the global association of mobile operators. The letter emphasizes that global negotiations at the World Radiocommunication Conference 2023 (WRC-23) are in their final stages and there is a strong need to meet capacity requirements for 5G and beyond. A consensus is emerging on the use of the 6 GHz band. The mentioned band is the last significant continuous block of mid-band spectrum still accessible. It mentions that various countries in Europe, West Asia, Africa as well as Russia, Brazil, Mexico and important countries in the Asia-Pacific region are demanding this additional mid-band spectrum. India has much to gain from this additional capacity, especially with its rapidly growing use of digital technologies and leading position in the digital world, including 5G.

Indian start-ups have $20 billion in cash

Indian start-ups currently have $20 billion (roughly Rs. 1.6 lakh crore) in cash, awaiting investment. This cash refers to unallocated capital that has been raised by private equity and venture capital and is ready for investment, informed circles said during the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence. The news comes at a time when Indian start-ups are facing a slowdown in securing funding. Investors want to allocate capital to promising sectors such as artificial intelligence companies offering AI-based products and services.

Ethical use of AI requires a global framework

India will soon launch a mission to build artificial intelligence (AI) computing capacity across the country. Addressing the Global Conference on Artificial Intelligence, the Prime Minister said that the campaign aims to increase AI computing capacity in India and provide better opportunities to startups and innovators in the country. The campaign will promote the use of AI technology in sectors like agriculture, healthcare and education. The existing network of industrial training institutes across the country will be used to promote learning of AI skills in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. About the negative impact of AI and its potential for misuse, said that there is a need to create a global framework for this.

More time for AIF to transfer units to demat account

In an effort to reduce the compliance burden on alternative investment funds (AIFs), the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has given them more time to transfer units to investors' demat accounts. SEBI has also clarified the procedure to be followed in cases where the investors have not yet provided the demat account details to the AIF. As per the new circular Rs. AIFs with an investment of Rs 500 crore will have to transfer units to existing investors by January 31. Initially, the last date for transferring units to demat account for such schemes was October 31. But new units can now be issued only in demat form. Meanwhile, Rs. Schemes with funds below Rs 500 crore have got time till May 10 to demat their existing units. For such a scheme, units issued after April 30 have to be held in demat form. Sebi has said that existing investors (who have not provided their demat account details) should keep the units already issued by the AIF schemes in a separate demat account called 'aggregate escrow demat account'.

Depositories preparing for ASBA

Central Depository Services (CDSL) has said that it will release the UPI block facility on December 29 and it will be effective from the next day. This step is being taken ahead of the implementation of ASBA (Application Supported by Blocked Amount) for the secondary market. The market regulator plans to open the Asba facility on an optional basis from January 1. This facility will initially be available in the Equity Cash segment. This step will help prevent misappropriation of customer funds by brokerages. The brokerage has also issued operational guidelines for communication. As per the CDSL circular, this facility will be optional for both stock brokers and investors.

If the federal rate is reduced, the bullishness in silver will last longer

Silver exchange traded funds (ETFs) have returned an average of 16.4 percent over the past year, while gold ETFs have returned just 15.1 percent over the same period. Growing industrial demand for silver has played a big role in its recent bull run. There are two main reasons for the rise in silver prices over the past one year - geopolitical uncertainty and less supply than demand for silver. The demand-supply gap has widened due to emphasis on eco-friendly technologies like electric vehicles and solar panels, and greater use of 5G technology as silver is a key component in all of them. The demand for silver jewelery is also increasing. According to the report, global demand for silver rose 18 percent in the last calendar year to a record high. Demand was seen from all categories including jewellery, industrial and silver bars and coins. In 2022, there was a shortage of 237.7 million ounces of silver against demand, a shortage never seen before.