Morning Buzz: Ford shelves plan to sell abandoned factory, Indian IT firms accept tougher contract norms, and more

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Ford Motor shelves plan to sell abandoned factory to the JSW Group

Ford Motor company has shelved its plans to sell its factory in Tamil Nadu—the sole one in India—to the JSW Group. This fuels speculation that it may be considering a re-entry into this large auto market after exiting over two years ago. The Ford plant, shut since July 2022, had an annual capacity of 150,000 cars and almost 340,000 engines.
(Economic Times, The Times of India)

Indian IT firms accepting tougher contract terms, as orders slow down

India’s top IT firms are accepting tougher contract terms in an effort to grab large deals from clients, in a scenario where orders are starting to slow down in a still-uncertain global economy. IT firms have little option but to accept contract conditions such as guaranteeing minimum cost savings, thus billing the client only if certain goals are achieved and reviewing cost overruns. The IT spends from clients across the United States and Europe continues to remain weak, which will impact FY24 revenues of most Indian IT firms.
(Reuters India)

RBI clamps down on evergreening of stressed loans through the AIF route

The Reserve Bank of India has tightened norms for lenders in making investments in units of Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), to address concerns of evergreening of stressed loans. The bank now says lenders cannot make investments in any scheme of AIFs, which has downstream investments either directly or indirectly in a company that has borrowed from them during the previous one year.
(The Hindu Businessline, Economic Times)

IndusInd Bank may sell a near 3 percent stake through block deal

Private lender IndusInd Bank is expected to sell up to 1.79 crore shares, equivalent to a 2.86 percent equity stake (for approximately Rs 760 crore), in Nippon AMC through a block deal, CNBC-TV 18 reported. The floor price for the block deal has been set at Rs 426.60 per share, representing a five percent discount to the current market price. IndusInd Bank has been posting steady earnings growth in FY24, reporting a year-on-year 22 percent rise in net profit to Rs 2,202 crore in the September-ended quarter.
(CNBC TV18, Moneycontrol)