Natura & Co. confirmed it is in exclusive talks the sale of UK-based cosmetics chain The Body Shop to Aurelius Investment Advisory for a "substantially lower" price than reported. The move is part of the Sao Paulo-based company's shift back to core Latin America markets after facing challenges due to the pandemic, and comes as a result of the boards green light to explore its sale in August.

In the period between September 15 and October 29, Stubble-burning incidents in Punjab and Haryana have reduced by around 56% and 40% respectively compared to corresponding period last year. The Centre's Crop Residue Management Scheme has allotted Rs. 3,333 crore to the said states to procure machines that support farming for in-situ and ex-situ paddy straw management.

On October 30, onion prices were high in the national capital, around 78 INR/kg, while the all-India average was at 50.35 INR/kg. To boost availability of the vegetable and moderate prices, India imposed a Minimum Export Price of 67 INR/kg on Saturday and is continuing to procure & dispose of 1.7lakh MT of onions from buffer at 25 INR/kg.

Broadcom and VMware's $61 billion merger is on track to close before a November deadline, but China is still yet to approve it, the last hurdle before the deal can be completed. Despite US and other major regulators having given the nod, receiving legal clearance from China could prove difficult due to the ongoing tech tussle between the US-China.

Union Power and New & Renewable Energy Minister R K Singh has said that by 2030, up to 65% of the world's total electricity needs can be supplied by renewable energy sources, and up to 90% by 2050. Investment in clean energy has seen a 12% annual growth rate since 2020, driven largely by solar and wind power projects - however, this is mostly concentrated in a few countries.

Shares of BSE have rallied nearly 30%, reaching an all-time high of Rs 1,912.80. This multibagger stock has outperformed Nifty's 5.32% gains in the last 6 months with its 220% returns over 12 months and a whopping 370% since its 52-week low in March 2023. With strong volumes supporting the uptrend, the increase in transaction fees for key exchange services expected to boost profits.

Midcap stocks with lower free float (10-25%) have outdone their peers in the past six months, with State-run Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders and Indian Railway Finance Corporation topping the list of best performers. As per Kotak research, these trends are similar to that seen in 2017, although it is too early to draw conclusions from this. Stocks with higher free float (47-100%) have underperformed.

The Indian markets shed opening gains and dropped into the red amid Asian market weakness, weighed down by IT stocks ahead of US policy decisions. SBI Life Insurance gained 3.2%, HDFC was up 1.5%, Asian Paints rose close to 1.4 %, Dr Reddy’s saw a 1.1% rise, Bajaj Auto increased 0.4%, Sun Pharma fell 3.5%.

Indian indices opened higher but dropped in the red due to weakness in Asian markets. Ahead of US Federal Reserve's policy decision, IT stocks dragged Sensex and Nifty down. Investors should be cautious as intrigue remains high in a time of war. Financials are fairly valued, and high-quality largecap stocks should be slowly accumulated for safety.

LTTS is leveraging Amazon Web Services to help global automotive manufacturers transition towards Software Defined Vehicles (SDVs) using generative AI. LTTS has reduced time to launch new products by 25%, building virtual work benches on AWS for ECU software development & testing. Generative AI is a key driver of the future of smart, connected vehicles, and LTTS is committed to training.

Shares of Pidilite Industries surged 6.3% after Goldman Sachs upgraded the stock to 'buy' from 'sell' with a target price of Rs 2,725/share. The S&P BSE Sensex was down 1%. Analysts noted that new growth levers are emerging for the adhesive manufacturer and expected Ebitda margins to expand by 515bps due to lower input costs. Promoters, mutual funds and FIIs changed their holdings in Q2.

Nippon Life India Asset Management achieved an 18.6% year-on-year increase in net profit to Rs 244.41 crore for the September quarter, along with a 12.23% sequential increase in revenues to Rs 397.48 crore and Assets Under Management (AUM) reaching Rs 4,35,000 crore. The company's other income went down on a quarterly level but was made up for by unique mutual fund investors.

MNCs can struggle in the Indian market due to its complex landscape and changing business environment. Policy makers should focus on creating a sustainable basis for foreign investments with efforts such as easing regulatory issues or increasing capital, while businesses must learn to be patient by adapting to diverse cultures, exhibiting trust, and understanding customer value systems.

GMR Airports Infrastructure's stock rose 2% on October 31 following the company's Q2FY24 results. The consolidated net loss reduced to Rs 190cr, and their total income surged 25%. Traffic in Delhi & Hyderabad both saw 18-24% growth as passenger traffic increased 25% yoy. With GMR Airports' focus on debt reduction & demerger process to unlock value, analysts at ICICI Securities.

Mamaearth’s parent Honasa Consumer IPO opened for subscription on October 31. The Rs 1,701 crore offer consists of a fresh issue worth Rs 365 crore and an offer-for-sale of 4.13 crore shares. Several analysts have advised investors to ‘Avoid’ subscribing to the issue owing to its high valuation, over Rs 150 crore loss in FY23, high spending on marketing and dependence on third-party manufacture.