Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Monday highlighted the importance to explore cheaper alternatives to steel and cement to bring down their prices. The Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) said he has asked some people from Indian Institutes of Technology to carry out research on alternatives to cement and steel.

Gurugram-based personal care brand Mamaearth has successfully increased its revenue over 6x to Rs 112 crore in the financial year 2020. The company had reported a revenue of Rs 17.9 crore in the FY2019, but despite its strong performance in FY20, Mamaearth finished the year in the red. Overall, the company’s expenses grew at almost the same rate to Rs 117.9 crore.

Daimler AG, the German parent of Mercedes Benz India, infused Rs 1,750 crore into the unit last month to help the luxury carmaker negotiate disruptions caused due to pandemic. The funds would go into the expansion of the sales footprint and product range. The company will also use it for debt repayment at Mercedes’ local operations. The largest luxury car maker in India sold 7,893 units in 2020.

Navin Fluorine register 18.66% growth YoY in Q3 consolidated revenues at Rs309.10cr. While the pick-up in revenues has been smart through the COVID period, the revenues in the Dec-20 quarter were lower on a sequential basis. For the Dec-20 quarter, the consolidated operating profits were up 23.39% at Rs69.47cr. In Q3, the consolidated PAT was up 29.66% at Rs 58.89 crore.

ICICI Securities registered 46.9% growth YoY in Q3 consolidated revenues at Rs620.11cr. The sharp growth in revenues is attributed to a 50% growth in broking revenues and a 30% growth in issuer services. ICICI Securities has one of the strongest retail franchises in the Indian broking industry. For the Dec-20 quarter, the consolidated PAT for the Dec-20 quarter was up 94.58% at Rs267cr.

Indiabulls is forecasting a net surplus of nearly Rs 11,400 crore from its completed and ongoing real estate projects. The company informed that its new sales bookings stood at Rs 990 crore in the Q3 of this fiscal and Rs 1,359 crore during Apr-Dec period. The gross collection stood at Rs 1,003 crore during October-Dec period and Rs 1,288 crore in the first 9 months of 2020-21 fiscal.

Research firm Gartner stated that India's IT spending is projected to climb $88.8 billion in 2021, which is an increase of 6.8% from 2020. The report revealed that earlier in 2020, the nation's IT spending was down 2.7% as CIOs prioritised spending on services and technology. However, In 2021, CIOs have to fast-track their digital projects to get the necessary attention and funding from the board.

Google will spend $150 million on creating awareness and ensuring access to vaccines among underserved communities. It will also help to ward away the misinformation concerning covid-19 vaccines. The funds will be allocated in 2 parts. $100 million will be provided in ad grants to the CDC Foundation & WHO, and $50 million, to provide vaccine-related information to underprivileged communities.

After preliminary setback by the SEBI and stock exchanges, Amazon India has filed a petition in the Delhi high court in an attempt to block the Reliance Retail-Future Group deal. Amazon has applied to the court to enforce the decision of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre, which Amazon had procured soon after Reliance had announced the deal in mid 2020.

Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Ltd (MHRIL) on Monday announced a consolidated net loss of Rs 67.34 lakh for the Q3 2020. The company had posted a net profit of Rs2.03 crore for the same period of the previous fiscal. Consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs489.14 crore for the quarter under consideration. It was Rs588.26 crore a year ago.

TCS on Monday overtook Accenture Plc to become the world’s largest IT company by market cap. In the process, it also became India’s most valuable company, overtaking Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) after 11 months. TCS registered a market cap of $169.2 billion, or Rs 12.34 lakh crore, while Accenture is currently valued at $168.4 billion, or Rs 12.27 lakh crore, on the NYSE.

TCS on Monday revealed that it's AI-powered retail merchandising and supply chain optimization software suite, TCS Optumera, bagged the ‘Best Enterprise AI Solution’ honour at The AIconics Awards. TCS Optumera helps retailers make data-driven merchandising and supply chain decisions regarding rightsizing store space, shopper-centric omnichannel assortment, pricing strategies and compliance.

Omax Autos Limited commenced commercial production at its recently set-up industrial unit in Raebareli, Uttar Pradesh. The unit in Uttar Pradesh will help in the manufacture and supply of Long Member, and started to function from January 13, 2021. The company stock ended at Rs52 per piece up by Rs6.85 or 15.17% from its previous closing of Rs45.15 per piece on the BSE.

Uttam Sugar Mills Limited redeemed over 1 lakh or 6.50% Non-Cumulative Redeemable Preference Share of Rs100/- each. The company stated in a regulatory filing, “Preference Share Redemption Committee of the Board of Directors of the company at a meeting held on January 22, 2021, has redeemed 1,00,250, 6.50% Non-Cumulative Redeemable Preference Share of Rs100/- each”.

Wipro on Monday confirmed the appointment of industry veteran Douglas Silva as Country Head for Brazil. He will be based at Alphaville, Barueri, Brazil and will report to Mukund Seetharaman, Managing Director, Latin America. Prior to joining Wipro, Douglas was the Head of Financial Services Industry in Latin America and Enterprise Sales Director for Brazil for Amazon Web Services (AWS).