Latest Developments

Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

IDBI Bank Q2 results: Net profit falls 39% to ₹2,205 cr as non-interest income moderates

IDBI Bank on Saturday reported a 39 per cent fall in net profit to ₹2,205 crore for the second quarter ended September 2026, as non-interest income moderated. The LIC-controlled bank earned a profit of ₹3,627 crore in the year-ago period, including a one-off gain of ₹1,699 crore from the sale of its strategic investment in NSDL. The bank had offered over 2.22 crore equity shares, comprising an 11.11 per cent shareholding in National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL), in its IPO at an issue price of ₹799.87 per share and booked a net gain of ₹1,698.96 crore. This is the first quarterly numbers after the government earlier this week approved the sale of a 60.72 per cent stake in IDBI Bank to Canada's Fairfax Financial Holdings for about ₹53,000 crore ($5.5 billion), in what would be the largest foreign investment in an Indian bank and a major milestone in the country's long-delayed banking privatisation drive. Its total income rose to ₹9,865 crore in the second quarter from ₹9,594 crore a year ago, IDBI Bank said in a regulatory filing. Interest income rose to ₹8,512 crore in the September quarter of FY27 from ₹7,104 crore in the year-ago period. Net interest income rose 29 per cent to ₹4,228 crore from ₹3,285 crore in the second quarter of last financial year. However, non-interest income slipped 46 per cent to ₹1,353 crore from ₹2,489 crore a year ago. Therefore, operating profit also eased to ₹2,893 crore against ₹3,523 crore in the year-ago quarter. On the asset quality front, its gross non-performing assets (NPAs) moderated to 2.12 per cent of gross advances at the end of September 2026 compared to 2.65 per cent a year ago. Similarly, net NPAs or bad loans came down to 0.17 per cent at the end of September 2026 against 0.21 per cent a year ago. The Provision Coverage Ratio (PCR) remained flat at 99.24 per cent as on September 30, 2026.

IDBI Bank Q2 results: Net profit falls 39% to ₹2,205 cr as non-interest income moderates
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

IDBI Bank stake sale: FinMin cites High Court ruling, Budget speeches to reject irregularity claims

The Finance Ministry on Saturday clarified that there was no illegality in the approval process for the stake sale in IDBI Bank. “The legislative history of the IDBI (Repeal) Act, 2003, the judicial pronouncement of the Delhi High Court and successive Union Budget Speeches collectively demonstrate the evolution of the Government’s policy towards the strategic disinvestment of IDBI Bank,” the Ministry said in a statement. On Wednesday, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved 10955230 Canada Inc. as the Strategic Buyer for this Transaction for a purchase consideration of over Rs 52800 crore for the acquisition of a 60.72 per cent stake in IDBI Bank Ltd, comprising 30.48 per cent equity shareholding held by the GoI and 30.24 per cent equity shareholding held by the LIC. After the decision, there has been a lot of criticism and allegations of irregularities in the decision-making process. The Ministry said that the Delhi High Court, in its ruling dated December 17, 2018, clarified beyond doubt that “the doctrine of promissory estoppel cannot be invoked on the basis of statements made during parliamentary debates to restrict the Government’s power to dilute its shareholding in the IDBI Bank Ltd.” The doctrine of promissory estoppel implies that when a person, intending to create a lawful relationship, makes a promise to another person and that person acts on it, the promise becomes an obligation on the person making it. The Court said that it was of the view that the statements made before the House almost 15 years earlier, in a debate relating to a legislative activity, would not preclude the Central Government from diluting its stake in IDBI Ltd. Indisputably, the legislation enacted by the Parliament after the debate did not contain the amendment that was sought to be introduced. “The statements made before the House cannot substitute or override the statue so enacted by the Parliament. Surely, the Parliament was conscious of the import of not including the proviso as proposed,” the court said. Further, the Court held that the enacted legislation contained no prohibition against reducing the Government’s stake in the IDBI Bank Ltd. “There is no ambiguity in the language of the IDBI Repeal Act, 2003 and there is no scope to read any provision into the said enactment which proscribes the Government from reducing or divesting its stake in IDBI Ltd,” the Ministry quoted a paragraph from the ruling. The Ministry also said the Government’s policy on the transformation and strategic disinvestment of IDBI Bank was reiterated in successive Union Budget Speeches in Parliament. Then Finance Minister (now late) Arun Jaitley had said in his FY17 budget speech: “The process of transformation of IDBI Bank has already started. Government will take it forward and consider the option of reducing its stake to below 50 per cent.” Then, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her FY22 budget speech, highlighted that despite COVID-19, the government had kept working towards strategic disinvestment. “A number of transactions, namely BPCL, Air India, Shipping Corporation of India, Container Corporation of India, IDBI Bank, BEML, Pawan Hans, Neelachal Ispat Nigam limited among others, would be completed in 2021-22,” she said. 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.

IDBI Bank stake sale: FinMin cites High Court ruling, Budget speeches to reject irregularity claims
Europe
The Guardian

‘People are pissed’: union decries TSA’s removal of chairs for checkpoint staff

TSA workers at Albany airport in New York. Photograph: Lori Van Buren/Albany Times Union via Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenTSA workers at Albany airport in New York. Photograph: Lori Van Buren/Albany Times Union via Getty ImagesUS unions‘People are pissed’: union decries TSA’s removal of chairs for checkpoint staffOrder for workers to remain standing to ‘reinforce professionalism’ draws rebuke amid plunging morale Union officials have launched a campaign to allow airport security staff to sit once more after the Trump administration unilaterally removed all the chairs for Transportation Security Administration (TSA) staff at checkpoints. “People are pissed,” said Johnny Jones, secretary-treasurer of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) TSA council 100 and president of AFGE local 1040, which represents TSA workers in Dallas-Fort Worth. TSA officials ordered that chairs be removed from travel document check stations on September 25, arguing “maintaining a standing posture helps reinforce professionalism, attentiveness and active engagement with passengers” and that the policy change “reinforces both our security posture and our commitment to hospitality”. Jones said his members had been flooded with calls and messages about the agency removing chairs. “People are calling, members are mad, employees are upset because they literally started their day, everything was normal, and by halfway through their shift, they’re (TSA) taking all the chairs out and replacing them with inadequate mats,” said Jones. “The amount of phone calls I received is almost the same as if everybody got fired all at once, almost similar to when we have government shutdowns.” “Our officers screen millions of people a day and they do it right, sitting or standing,” said Hydrick Thomas, president of AFGE TSA council 100, in a statement. “Nobody who works a checkpoint asked for this. Nobody who flies asked for this.” Jones noted the TSA checkpoint podiums are one of two places where TSA officers can rest their legs while screening passengers. Chairs were not removed from x-ray machines because the manufacturers recommend sitting while operating the machines. Jones cited the union was not informed on the policy change and it was not negotiated, rather unilaterally implemented by the agency, and its unclear where it leaves TSA employees who require light duty accommodations. Following the policy change, TSA workers were also required to sign a pledge that promises to support “the well-being and morale of our colleagues,” according to the union. “They didn’t notify the union at all, obviously, nor the employees. They decided it would be a great idea to make their employees upset,” said Jones. He said he is unsure what is being done with the chairs in airports around the US.

‘People are pissed’: union decries TSA’s removal of chairs for checkpoint staff
Europe
BBC Business

Nvidia-backed AI data centre firm scraps mega stock market listing

Image source, FirmusByOsmond ChiaBusiness reporterPublished17 minutes agoArtificial intelligence (AI) data centre company Firmus has scrapped its plans for what would have been one of Australia's biggest-ever stock market listings. The Nvidia-backed firm said it had made the decision due to "recent market volatility and prevailing market conditions" and that going public would not be in the company or shareholders' best interests. Firmus had initially announced plans for a stock market debut that valued the company at more than $30bn (£22.65bn). One investment firm told the BBC that it had decided not take part in the initial public offering (IPO) over concerns about its valuation. "Firmus will now pursue capital from the private markets and consider alternative public and private market options. We will provide additional information to shareholders as those options progress," the company said. Firmus builds and operates liquid-cooled data centres, or what it calls "AI factories", for clients including OpenAI and Meta. It has operations in Australia, Singapore and other parts of the Asia-Pacific region. The company's backers include Nvidia and major investment firms Blackstone and Jane Street. The decision by Firmus to scrap its stock market listing comes as investors and industry analysts have raised concerns about the hundreds of billions of dollars being poured into AI as the prospects for long-term returns remain unclear. UniSuper, one of Australia's biggest pension funds, was among the institutional investors that decided not take part in the IPO. "We think that Firmus indeed has a compelling story. It just doesn't have a compelling valuation," UniSuper's chief investment officer John Pearce said in an update to investors. He also said UniSuper was concerned that Firmus would have to go further into debt to fund its growth plans.

Nvidia-backed AI data centre firm scraps mega stock market listing
Europe
The Guardian

Skepticism mires Trump’s Iowa steel plant project: ‘Promises are not the same as jobs’

Rewant Ruia, chairman of Mesabi Metallics, Ravi Ruia, board member of Mesabi Metallics and director of Essar Capital, and US secretary of energy, Chris Wright, listen as Donald Trump delivers remarks at the White House on 28 September 2026. Photograph: Kevin Dietsch/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenRewant Ruia, chairman of Mesabi Metallics, Ravi Ruia, board member of Mesabi Metallics and director of Essar Capital, and US secretary of energy, Chris Wright, listen as Donald Trump delivers remarks at the White House on 28 September 2026. Photograph: Kevin Dietsch/Getty ImagesSteel industrySkepticism mires Trump’s Iowa steel plant project: ‘Promises are not the same as jobs’The project has sparked doubts over whether the plant will be built and delivered as promised, given Trump’s record Donald Trump has long sought to portray himself as a man of steel, from the White House photoshopping Trump to look like Superman, to enacting tariffs on steel and approving the sale of US Steel to Japan’s Nippon Steel with a ”golden” share given to the US government. Most recently, the Trump administration announced plans to construct the largest steel plant in the US, a $15bn plant in Lee county, Iowa to be built by India-based Mesabi Metallics. But the project and claims surrounding it have incited skepticism over whether the plant will be built and delivered as promised, given Trump’s record and the financial history of Mesabi Metallics’ parent company, Essar Global. The plant had originally been scheduled to be built in Minnesota, a state that usually votes for Democrats. The shift to Iowa – where Republicans are struggling in the midterms – has also attracted attention. Doug May, who worked for 43 years as a steelworker at a mill in Granite City, Illinois, characterized the announcement as “political pandering” given the timing and how tariffs are hurting Iowa farmers. “He pulled the same thing in 2018, just before an election, when he announced that $10bn Foxconn project,” May said. That project, in swing state Wisconsin, failed to produce the jobs Trump and Foxconn had promised. May argued Trump is using the steel industry as a campaign strategy, while ignoring the work the United Steel Workers have done to push to save the steel industry, including filing over 150 trade cases over the past decades to combat unfair trade practices that harm US workers. Over 40 domestic steel producers in the US filed for bankruptcy in the late 1990s. “We, the steel workers in Granite City, served as the best foot soldiers lobbying Congress, holding rallies and campaigns, to raise awareness to the cheating of foreign steelmakers and the need for stronger trade enforcement during that era,” added May. “Arguably, we played a very important role in saving domestic steel.” Essar Global first proposed building a steel plant with a $1.65bn investment in the Mesabi iron range in north-east Minnesota when they purchased Minnesota Steel in 2007. By 2016, Essar Steel Minnesota had filed for bankruptcy, following construction delays and financing issues at its Nashwauk, Minnesota project, where its iron ore mine, which is supposed to fuel the Iowa steel plant, is located.

Skepticism mires Trump’s Iowa steel plant project: ‘Promises are not the same as jobs’
North America
CNBC Finance

British Airways plans record 106-seat business class on Airbus A380 jumbo jets

British Airways is building what it calls the "world's largest" business-class cabin and ripping out dozens of coach-class seats, the starkest example yet of how airlines are betting their future on high-spending travelers. The changes are part of a massive overhaul of the British Airways fleet and its ground services, including lounges at its London Heathrow hub. British Airways said the 106 business-class suites, with sliding doors, will take up the entirety of the A380's upper deck. Airlines have been spending years and hundreds of millions of dollars to expand their pricier seats, capitalizing on demand for roomier options and travelers' appetite for more luxurious trips. British Airways' joint-venture partner, American Airlines, last month debuted a 70-seat business class on its largest Boeing aircraft. Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson told CNBC in a recent interview that customers are seeking high-end options on long flights, like its Perth-London nonstop. "There is absolutely a customer who wants this and is prepared to pay a premium for it," she said. Those more expensive seats command a premium. Even extra legroom on trips across the Atlantic can go for more than $200 per leg, with surcharges of more than $1,000 for premium economy seats after purchase. The prices can be even higher if they're selected at booking. The top-end seats regularly run $5,000 and even well over $10,000 on lengthier flights. Deliveries of new aircraft have even been delayed because some of the new seats are so elaborate that carriers have been waiting for parts or federal certification. British Airways' overhaul of the cabins on its 12 A380s is also a bet on the jumbo jet, which many carriers have retired in recent years, opting for smaller, more fuel-efficient jets. Airbus delivered the last A380 to the plane's largest user, Emirates, in late 2021. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

British Airways plans record 106-seat business class on Airbus A380 jumbo jets
Europe
The Guardian

United Auto Workers president Shawn Fain easily wins re-election

Shawn Fein speaks at the the national conference of the UAW’s political arm in Washington DC on 9 February 2026. Photograph: Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersView image in fullscreenShawn Fein speaks at the the national conference of the UAW’s political arm in Washington DC on 9 February 2026. Photograph: Evelyn Hockstein/ReutersUS unionsUnited Auto Workers president Shawn Fain easily wins re-electionFain was dogged by investigation but still decisively beat challenger Rich Boyer, who received just 13% of vote The president of the United Auto Workers, Shawn Fain, has easily won his re-election bid after an campaign period marred by accusations of corruption and election interference. The union’s election of leadership for a four-year term began with mail-in ballots being sent out in late August 2026, with vote tabulating commencing on 6 October. Fain won with over 68% of the vote as of Friday evening, with additional 13 candidates on his slate, United UAW, winning their elections. The closest opponent to Fain, Rich Boyer, received just over 13% of the vote. “The membership has spoken. UAW members are united and want us to keep fighting and building on what we’ve done,” said Shawn Fain in a statement on his re-election win, citing upcoming contract negotiations at John Deere, Volvo and General Dynamics Land Systems in 2027, and the big three automaker contracts expiring on May Day in 2028. “These results are about taking on corporate America and reversing the worst out-of-control wealth inequality in America’s history,” added Fain. “We are fighting for the entire working class, whether that’s at the bargaining table, organizing new members or in the political arena.” In July 2026, the Department of Justice announced it was investigating Fain over allegations he pressured Boyer, another union official, to provide benefits to his fiancee and sister and then retaliated against him when Broyer refused to cooperate. Fain denied the allegations and characterized them as an attempt to interfere in the election. Fain won his first election to serve as the union’s president as a reform candidate in March 2023. He has clashed with the union’s independent monitor, Neil Barofsky, claiming the monitor was weaponized by his re-election opponent. The monitor was also accused of pressuring Fain over the UAW’s passing of a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. Fain led the union during a roughly six-week strike in September 2023 through October 2023 at the big three automakers, General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, highlighting corporate greed through the strike and citing the companies’ stock buy-backs and record profits. Joe Biden joined the union on the picket line, the first sitting president to ever join a strike picket line.

United Auto Workers president Shawn Fain easily wins re-election
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

Q2 Results Today Live: HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank report profit growth; IDBI Bank, YES Bank in focus

IDBI Bank posts a 39% Q2 profit drop to ₹2,205 crore as non-interest income weakens, despite higher total income and improving asset quality. ixigo (Le Travenues Technology Limited) on Saturday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 63.42 crore for September quarter, aided by partial sale of stake in Freshbus and strong growth in the hotel bookings segment. The travel and ticket booking platform had posted a net loss of Rs 3.46 crore in the corresponding July-September period of the last financial year, as per a regulatory filing. - PTI ICICI Bank on Saturday reported a 22.28 per cent jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 16,333.18 crore for the September quarter from Rs 13,357.06 crore a year ago. On a standalone basis, net profit of the country’s second-largest private sector lender grew 20.1 per cent to Rs 14,843 crore for July-September, according to an exchange filing. - PTI ICICI Bank reports 22% quarterly profit jump to ₹16,333 cr (consolidated) with strong loan growth, NII up, and improved asset quality. Private sector lender Axis Bank on Saturday reported a 39.4 per cent rise in its consolidated net profit to Rs 7,704.67 crore in the second quarter of 2026-27. On a standalone basis, the private sector lender reported a 37.6 per cent rise in net profit to Rs 7,003.28 crore in the September quarter from Rs 5,089.64 crore in the year-ago period, the lender said in a regulatory filing. - PTI HDFC Bank posts 5% Q2FY27 profit rise to ₹19,510 crore, driven by 10% NII growth amidst steady deposits and improving asset quality. HDFC Bank posts 5% Q2FY27 profit rise to ₹19,510 crore, driven by 10% NII growth amidst steady deposits and improving asset quality. Public sector banks hit a record ₹1.98 lakh crore profit in FY26, GNPA at a multi-decade low, as FinMin rebuts Akhilesh Yadav. 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.

Q2 Results Today Live: HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank report profit growth; IDBI Bank, YES Bank in focus
Asia
The Hindu BusinessLine

HDFC Bank Deputy MD Kaizad Bharucha quits ahead of Anup Bagchi’s takeover

HDFC Bank's Deputy Managing Director Kaizad Bharucha has quit, the country's largest private sector lender announced on Saturday. Bharucha, who has been with the bank since 1995, "requested cessation" from service from December 31, the bank informed exchanges. The HDFC Bank board accepted Bharucha's request to be forwarded to the RBI for approval, it added. The decision to quit comes days before rival ICICI Group veteran Anup Bagchi takes over as Managing Director and Chief Executive of HDFC Bank on October 27. He was reportedly in the race to be elevated as the MD and CEO. 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.

HDFC Bank Deputy MD Kaizad Bharucha quits ahead of Anup Bagchi’s takeover