Morning Buzz: Housing sales and hybrid jobs surge, real rural wages shrink
Here are the top business headlines this morning to get your day started
Housing sales came in at the second highest in a given half-year on account of stable mortgage rates.
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H1 housing sales at second highest in a decade
Housing sales came in at the second highest in a given half-year on account of stable mortgage rates. The data released by Knight Frank showed that housing markets in the top eight cities recorded sales of 156,640 units in the first half of 2023. New launches stood at 173,364 units up eight percent from a year ago. Affordable housing, which is more rate sensitive, showed a loss in momentum.(Economic Times)
Hybrid job roles surge 60 percent
Solely onsite job roles have declined by 10 percent this year, according to a study of jobs posted on LinkedIn. The study, which looked at entry-level positions, also saw that hybrid roles recorded a rise of 60 percent. This gives fresh graduates more flexibility while looking for a job. The fastest-growing job functions included product management, human resources, consulting and social services.(Business Standard)
Private banks writing off NPAs more aggressively than PSBs
According to the Reserve Bank of India’s financial stability report private banks across the country have been more proactive in writing off bad loans. The write offs to gross non performing assets ratio at private banks stood at 47.9 percent versus 22.2 percent for PSBs. The write offs help to improve market sentiment for their stocks as there could potentially be less surprised coming on the profit front. This is also important for private banks as they raise capital in the form of equity or debt more than PSBs.(Hindu BusinessLine)
Real rural wages shrink for 16th month in March
Rural wages contracted for 16 straight months and unemployment hit a two-year high in rural India. According to data from the Center for Monitoring of the Indian Economy, there was a 2.3 percent increase in people opting for employment under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, at 44.23 million. Here Motocorp, which sends half its dispatches to rural markets, saw a 9 percent year-on-year decline in June.(Financial Express)
