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Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

EPFO processing interest payment on provident funds for FY26; members can check updates by next week

Retirement fund body EPFO is processing the interest payment on provident funds for FY26, and members can check the updated amount online by July 15, Labour Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said on Wednesday. The online access of provident fund accounts has been enabled with the implementation of 2.01 CITES (centralised IT-enabled services) by the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), the minister told reporters here. CITES project is designed to enhance convenience, improve EPFO's operational efficiency, and deliver transparent and seamless services to members. "Annual interest for FY26 at the rate of 8.25 per cent to 34 crore member accounts, estimated at over ₹1.44 lakh crore, will be auto-processed and then verified by Field Authorities before being credited to the member account balances. Members will be able to view the interest credit in their passbook by July 15," the minister said. Last month, the government approved the 8.25 per cent interest payment on provident funds. According to the minister, interest payments were previously processed in October–November after government approval. He explained that before CITES, the EPFO had a decentralised architecture with separate databases at each field office. Now, the EPFO has migrated its entire database of member records to the new centralised database. With the updated systems, members will be able to avail services from any authorised location across the country, similar to banking services where customers do not have to visit a particular bank branch. Now, members will have access to a unified digital interface to view their details, PF balances, claim status, pensionable service records, and benefits availed, thereby ensuring transparency and access to information about their PF accounts and the submission of claims. Claim payments will be processed through the centralised architecture and routed through faster electronic payment channels, ensuring secure, efficient, and timely credit of settlement amounts directly into members' bank accounts. Under the revised system, interest in final PF settlements will now be calculated up to the date of payment authorisation. Earlier, interest was calculated only up to the last day of the previous month. Also, the 13 categories for partial withdrawals have been streamlined into three - essential needs (such as illness, education, and marriage), housing needs, and special circumstances, making the withdrawal process simpler and easier for members to understand.

EPFO processing interest payment on provident funds for FY26; members can check updates by next week
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

MAHE and Novo Nordisk GBS expand collaboration in pharmacometrics

Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) and Novo Nordisk Global Business Services (GBS) have expanded their collaboration in pharmacometrics, a specialised scientific discipline that applies data, modelling and simulation to support drug development and clinical decision-making. Under the collaboration, Novo Nordisk GBS will provide financial support of ₹1.75 crore over five years to enhance specialised talent development, research capacity and advanced infrastructure in quantitative drug development. As drug discovery and development become increasingly data-driven, pharmacometrics has emerged as a critical discipline for optimising clinical trial design, understanding treatment responses across patient populations and enabling informed decisions throughout the drug development lifecycle. A major component of the collaboration is the establishment of an advanced pharmacometrics computing facility at the Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences (MCOPS), Manipal. The facility will strengthen research, training and scientific collaboration in quantitative drug development while providing researchers with access to advanced computational resources. The initiative will also support one full-time PhD scholar and one post-doctoral fellow every year. In addition, MCOPS will introduce four to six specialised learning modules under the theme ‘Innovation for quantitative drug development’. The curriculum will include model-informed drug development, systems modelling approaches and translational frameworks for emerging therapeutic modalities, including cell and gene therapies and multi-specific therapies. Quoting John Dawber, Vice President and Managing Director of Novo Nordisk GBS, a media statement said: “India has become an increasingly important part of Novo Nordisk’s global value creation engine, and our GBS in Bengaluru continues to play an extensive role across our value chain. Through this collaboration with MAHE, we aim to build the next layer of specialised capability in pharmacometrics and quantitative sciences, which is not only essential for India but also connects with our global teams and strengthens our support for R&D across Novo Nordisk. This collaboration brings together exceptional talent, strong academic partnerships and real business challenges so that the work undertaken here delivers meaningful value for our colleagues, the wider Novo Nordisk GBS ecosystem and, ultimately, patients around the world.” Sharath K Rao, Vice-Chancellor of MAHE, said: “This collaboration marks an important milestone in advancing research and training in one of the fastest-growing areas of pharmaceutical sciences. By combining academic excellence with industry expertise, we will strengthen India’s capabilities in pharmacometrics, create opportunities for cutting-edge research and prepare the next generation of scientists to contribute to global drug development.” Through this expanded collaboration, MAHE and Novo Nordisk GBS aim to build a strong ecosystem for pharmacometrics research, accelerate innovation in quantitative drug development and contribute to improving healthcare outcomes globally, the statement added. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

MAHE and Novo Nordisk GBS expand collaboration in pharmacometrics
Asia-Pacific
The Straits Times

Prabowo touts Batam as Indonesia’s next global maritime, investment gateway

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto (centre) emphasised that Batam should serve as a national model for downstream industrialisation, investment acceleration, regulatory reform and logistics efficiency. JAKARTA – Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has placed the island of Batam at the centre of the next phase of Indonesia’s economic transformation, positioning the island as a future global maritime, logistics and investment hub. During a meeting with the Batam Development Authority (BP Batam) on July 7, the President emphasised that Batam should become a national model for downstream industrialisation, investment acceleration, regulatory reform and logistics efficiency, supported by world-class infrastructure and faster public services. A key priority is the modernisation of Batam’s port system, including the development of an international port integrated with industrial estates, advanced manufacturing, a hyperscale data centre and global shipping networks. The strategy aims to strengthen Batam’s role in regional supply chains by reducing logistics costs, improving export competitiveness and reinforcing its position as one of South-east Asia’s most strategic production and distribution hubs. BP Batam highlighted that the region’s investment ecosystem had strengthened following the implementation of a government regulation: Investment services have become faster and more predictable, while the digital Land Management System is improving transparency, accountability and ease of access for investors. Investment momentum has remained strong, with Batam recording 69.3 trillion rupiah (S$5 billion) in realised investment in 2025, followed by 17.48 trillion rupiah in the first quarter of 2026, a year-on-year increase of 102.85 per cent. Investment continues to concentrate in high-value sectors including electronics and machinery, digital infrastructure, energy and industrial estates. The meeting also reinforced Batam’s pilot role in the country’s investment reform agenda. By combining digital public services, risk-based regulation, integrated infrastructure and interministerial coordination, the government aims to transform Batam into a globally competitive gateway for manufacturing, maritime logistics and strategic investment.

Prabowo touts Batam as Indonesia’s next global maritime, investment gateway
Europe
BBC Business

From mouthwash to hair dye: How weight-loss jabs are changing shopping habits

ByDaniel Thomas, Phil Leake, Jess Carr, Katherine Gaynor and Zoe Bartholomew, BBC NewsWeight-loss medications have surged in popularity over the last few years, with more than two million people in the UK now using them. But while drugs like Wegovy and Mounjaro have helped people reduce their weight, they also seem to be reshaping some users' spending habits. Below, the BBC looks at some of the latest research on the trend, using graphics to illustrate the findings. Mounjaro and Wegovy - the UK's most popular weight-loss medications - work by mimicking a natural hormone, GLP-1, which regulates hunger, and those who use then say they find their appetite is reduced. In June, market research company Worldpanel by Numerator published a study looking at how this affects grocery spending among UK users. The research was based on survey responses and observed purchase data from more than 11,000 households in February. A key finding was that households with at least one GLP-1 user spent on average £418 less on groceries in the year after they began their medication, compared with non-users. It chimes with a peer-reviewed study from Cornell University, external published last year, which found that US households with at least one member using weight-loss drugs spent 5% less on groceries within six months of starting the medication, with that rising to 8% among higher income families. People also cut back on buying some items and started spending more on others when taking weight-loss medications, Worldpanel found. As the chart above shows, the control group reported spending less on chocolate and pastries and more on fruit and protein-rich foods like prawns - a likely result of feeling fuller for longer and being less prone to eat out of boredom. They also consumed less alcohol. But they bought more chewing gum, mouthwash and hair dyes - products that counter common GLP-1 side effects like thinning hair and bad breath. Nishita Pattni, a senior consultant at Worldpanel by Numerator, told the BBC that weight-loss jabs weren't "simply reducing spending" but "reshaping it". "This isn't simply a story of shrinking demand. It's also a story of shifting demand."

From mouthwash to hair dye: How weight-loss jabs are changing shopping habits
North America
CNBC Finance

Far more real estate agents now report seeing a balanced market, CNBC Housing Market Survey finds

After several years of a lean and pricey housing market that largely favored sellers, buyers are finally regaining leverage and pulling the market back into balance. In the second quarter of the year, 44% of real estate agents surveyed in CNBC's Housing Market Survey said they were seeing a balanced market between buyer and seller. That share is up from 30% in the third quarter of last year, when CNBC began its quarterly survey. "It certainly feels like, depending on the home, depending on the neighborhood, depending on the condition and the price point, that both the buyer and the seller do have a little bit of leverage," said Jeremy Kane, a real estate agent with EXP Realty in Denver. The CNBC Housing Market Survey is a national inquiry of real estate agents selected randomly across the United States. Responses for the second-quarter survey were collected between June 23 and June 30. This quarter, 53 agents shared their insights. Home sales in May were up slightly, 3% higher than the same month last year, according to the National Association of Realtors. That was the result of more supply on the market and easing prices. Sellers appear to be getting more realistic when pricing their homes, not expecting the huge jumps seen in the first two years of the pandemic. "No one really seems to be fighting me much on price like they used to," said Bruce Jones, an agent with Compass in Nashville, Tennessee. "We're not really seeing huge decreases in prices. We've kind of plateaued, but I don't see people arguing too much about that. If it's priced correctly, it is moving." Agents who reported at least one price cut to active listings dropped dramatically in CNBC's second-quarter survey, at 57% compared with 89% during the third quarter of 2025. Home prices are still slightly higher than they were a year ago, up just under 1%, according to the S&P Cotality Case-Shiller national home price index. Sellers, however, seem to be pricing more to the market, resulting in fewer cuts. Asking prices in June were down 2.5% year over year, according to Realtor.com. That is the largest annual drop since the company began tracking this in 2017 and the eighth straight month of declines. "I always tell sellers that I'm in the business of selling homes, not storing them, and so you really need to put a property at the right price in order to get it sold," said Martha Thorn, an agent with Coldwell Banker in Tampa, Florida. CNBC's Property Play with Diana Olick covers new and evolving opportunities for the real estate investor, delivered weekly to your inbox.

Far more real estate agents now report seeing a balanced market, CNBC Housing Market Survey finds
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

India begins work on strategic natural gas storage after West Asia crisis

The recent West Asia conflict has prompted the government to begin work on creating India's first strategic natural gas storage system, with public sector oil companies evaluating multiple options, including underground salt caverns and above-ground cryogenic LNG tanks. The move marks a significant expansion of India's strategic energy security planning. While the Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited (ISPRL) manages the country's strategic crude oil reserves, it does not have expertise in salt cavern-based natural gas storage. As a result, feasibility studies are underway to assess suitable storage technologies and geological structures. "PSU oil companies are already working on the feasibility of storing crude oil and gas in salt caverns. ISPRL does not have expertise in salt caverns so a feasibility study is being done by Engineers India. Besides, storing gas in cryogenic overground tanks is also being worked out," a source said. The push follows concerns over India's vulnerability to disruptions in LNG and LPG supplies after the West Asia conflict, with the Middle East Gulf accounting for more than half of India's imports of both fuels. Sources said a committee under the Petroleum Ministry, constituted after the conflict erupted, is evaluating storage options for LNG and LPG. One of the seven Empowered Groups of Secretaries set up by the government is also examining short-, medium- and long-term measures to address potential disruptions to trade, supply chains and logistics. "Some storage for gas has become important. The deliberations focus on what should be the storage volume keeping in view visibility over the next 4-5 years. Besides, another key issue to debate is that how much should be strategic and commercial considering storage buffers can also help monetise arbitrage opportunities like China does with its huge crude storage," another source said. The same source added: "The West Asia conflict has likely pushed ahead the schedule for these new production facilities with focus first on rebuilding damaged infrastructure like in Qatar's Ras Laffan facility. We need to factor all these issues." Officials are evaluating a range of storage options, including salt caverns, depleted gas fields and cryogenic tanks near LNG regasification terminals. A recent study by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) noted that India has no dedicated strategic natural gas storage despite importing nearly half of its gas requirement, leaving key sectors exposed to supply disruptions. Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments. We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.

India begins work on strategic natural gas storage after West Asia crisis
Europe
BBC Business

One million more UK homeowners set to face higher mortgages

Image source, Getty ImagesByKevin PeacheyCost of living correspondentPublished7 July 2026, 11:30 BSTUpdated 24 minutes agoA million more homeowners face higher mortgage bills than the Bank of England had previously expected due to the impact of the Iran war. Just over five million homeowners should expect their monthly mortgage repayments to increase by the end of 2028, according to Bank forecasts. However, the Bank's Financial Stability Report said the hit would not be as hard as seen in recent years. A typical owner-occupier rolling off a fixed rate in the next two years is likely to face an increase of £45 on their monthly mortgage bill, the Bank said, external. That compares to a typical rise of £120 for those getting a new deal between the end of 2022 and end of 2024. However, 750,000 homeowners who are paying less than 3% interest on their current deal would be rolling off these products this year and would see an average increase of £170 per month in repayments, the Bank said. The interest rate on this kind of mortgage does not change until the deal expires, usually after two or five years, and a new one is chosen to replace it. More than two million borrowers on a two-year fixed deal expiring by the end of 2028 were projected to remortgage close to their existing rate and see little change in repayments, the Bank said. However, these borrowers were now unlikely to see repayments fall over coming years, as had been forecast prior to the Iran conflict. A modern browser with JavaScript and a stable internet connection is required to view this interactive. The information you provided on your monthly payments would not be sufficient to pay off your mortgage within the number of years given. This calculator does not constitute financial advice. It is based on a standard mortgage repayment formula dependent on the mortgage size and length and a fixed interest rate. It should be used as a guide only and does not represent the suitability, eligibility or availability of mortgage offers for users. For exact figures, users will need to approach an official mortgage lender. The Iran war led to the closure of the key Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, typically responsible for around a fifth of global energy supplies.

One million more UK homeowners set to face higher mortgages
North America
Yahoo Finance

CRM Stock Has Bounced From This Price Before. Now What?

After a punishing slide, Salesforce stock has landed on a price floor that has launched major rallies before, forcing investors to decide if history is a guide or a trap. Salesforce (CRM), the application software giant, has seen its stock slide to trade around $165 a share, a level about 54% below its two-year high. The trailing twelve-month return of -37.9% stands in stark contrast to the S&P 500’s gain. But this particular price level carries historical weight. The stock now sits inside a support zone between $157 and $174, a neighborhood where buyers have mounted a defense five separate times before. History says buyers show up here. The question every investor must now answer is: Will they this time? The five previous times Salesforce’s stock fell to this level, the subsequent rallies were significant. In April 2020, buyers who stepped in saw a peak gain of 90.6%. More recently, a defense of this zone in February 2023 preceded a rally that eventually peaked with a 128.6% gain. Even the shorter-term bounces have been sharp, including a 26.4% gain over just 19 days in May 2026. Across all five episodes, the average peak gain after holding this level was 56.1%. A floor holds or breaks based on the health of the business arriving at it. On paper, Salesforce looks solid. Revenue over the last twelve months grew 11.0%, outpacing the S&P 500 median, and its operating margin is a healthy 21.9%. The company’s push into AI is showing explosive adoption, with management reporting it processed 28.6 trillion tokens in the last quarter, up 152% from the previous quarter. Its Agentforce product now has an ARR greater than $1 billion. Some wonder if the market is ignoring the real growth story in Salesforce stock. This AI momentum is the core of the bull case. Yet, this is where the honest catch comes in. While the AI story is strong, there are signs of drag elsewhere. The investor debate centers on whether this new growth can offset softness in other areas. As one analyst noted on the company’s latest earnings call, “bookings trends are lagging a little bit,” with specific weakness in its Tableau and Commerce cloud offerings. This is the business reason buyers might hesitate: the new AI engine is firing, but parts of the established business are sputtering, making the path to overall growth acceleration less certain. For investors who see potential in the broader software industry but are wary of single-stock risk, a software ETF like IGV offers a diversified alternative. A support level is a historical pattern, not a physical law. The floor will hold only if investors believe the company’s future growth can justify the price. For Salesforce, the entire debate hinges on one specific promise from management. The company has stated it expects to “drive organic revenue reacceleration in the second half of FY 27.” That is the test. If the AI-driven businesses can pull the entire company’s growth rate higher as promised, this floor will likely be defended again. If that reacceleration fails to materialize, history may not be enough to stop the slide. If pullbacks to defensible levels are your kind of setup, our Buy the Dip screen ranks the dips where the underlying business still holds up. Buying at defended levels works often enough to be tempting and fails often enough to hurt, and no chart can tell you in advance which visit to the floor is the last one. The Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio removes that guess: about 30 quality names held on the strength of their fundamentals rather than their chart levels, rebalanced with discipline. It has a track record of outpacing a benchmark that combines all major indices – the S&P 500, S&P Mid-cap, and Russell 2000. Keep an eye on the setups; let the system carry the conviction.

CRM Stock Has Bounced From This Price Before. Now What?
North America
Yahoo Finance

Is Google Cloud Officially Driving the Train?

Let’s be honest. When a stock you own doubles, you feel like a genius. When it’s a behemoth like Alphabet (GOOGL), and it returns +105% in a year, you might wonder if you’ve misread the chart. You haven’t. Over the past 12 months, while the S&P 500 gained a respectable 21%, Alphabet left it in the dust. It also trounced its mega-cap peers; Microsoft (MSFT) stock returned -21.9%, and Meta Platforms (META) returned -16.2% over the same period. So what on earth happened? The answer isn’t the one you’d expect. It’s a story about the division that for years looked like an expensive, third-place hobby. Yes, the core Search business is humming. Its revenue grew 19% in the latest quarter, and the company says user queries are at an all-time high. That’s a fantastic result for a business of its scale. But that’s not the headline. The real story, the one that re-rated the entire company, is what happened in the cloud. For the first time ever, management confirmed that its “enterprise AI solutions have become our primary growth driver for cloud.” The side project just took the wheel. The numbers are startling. Google Cloud revenue accelerated, growing 63% to exceed $20 billion in a single quarter. Even more surprising was the profitability. A year ago, the segment’s operating margin was 17.8%. This year, it hit 32.9%. What made the growth so remarkable was its profitability, powered by a nearly 800% year-over-year surge in revenue from products built on its advanced artificial intelligence models. The market has spent a decade wondering if Alphabet could build a second meaningful business. It turns out, it just did. This might be the single most important figure. Google Cloud’s backlog of contracted future revenue nearly doubled from the prior quarter to $462 billion. Think about that. This isn’t wishful thinking; it’s a mountain of committed sales from customers locking in capacity and AI services. It signals that the rapid demand isn’t a fluke. It’s a durable trend that the market can now see and value, stretching out for years. We’ve looked before at what it would take to get the stock moving, and this appears to be it. But this torrent of demand creates its own high-class problem. Management admits they are “compute constrained in the near term,” and that cloud revenue would have been even higher if they could have met all the demand. To catch up, they plan for 2027 capital expenditures to “significantly increase” over 2026’s already large $180 billion to $190 billion budget. Alphabet proved it can build a world-class second engine; now, can it actually afford the fuel? Knowing why a stock ran is one thing; knowing whether the run has legs is another. The most durable moves are the ones a rising forecast is actually backing, rather than a good week of sentiment. Our Guidance Momentum screen tracks the S&P 500 names where a raised outlook meets real price momentum, so you can judge which runs are built to last. If you would rather own the whole theme than ride this one winner, a communication services ETF like XLC holds the entire group. Catching the reason behind a run is a good skill; relying on catching the next one is a risky plan. Durable returns come from owning quality with discipline and letting the winners do the work over time, rather than betting the outcome on a single name and a single catalyst. That is exactly how the Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio is run. It weighs the full picture of quality across thousands of names, holds the 30 strongest, and sizes and rebalances them with rules. It has a track record of outpacing a benchmark that combines the three major indices – the S&P 500, S&P Mid-cap, and Russell 2000.

Is Google Cloud Officially Driving the Train?