Morning Buzz: India plans gas reserve, Softbank's Paytm stake falls below 10%, and more

As of now, there is no gas reserve even though gas consumption is rising. Image: Shutterstock

India mulls building strategic gas storage

India is mulling plans to build a strategic gas reserve to hedge against price volatility. The idea is still at a preliminary stage and the government has reached out to a few global companies. Plans would be similar to the strategic oil reserve that the government has built. It had 5.33 million tonnes of oil in underground caverns enough to meet 9.5 days of demand in the country. As of now, there is no gas reserve even though gas consumption is rising.
(Indian Express)
 

Indians join Big Tech Party

Indians are using both direct trades as well as exchange traded funds to invest in US tech stocks. Trading platforms saw a 40 percent rise in trading volume in the first half of 2023 compared to 2022. Stocks traded include Tesla, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Google and Facebook. The rise comes as the tech heavy Nasdaq index has surged 43 percent in 2023.
(Economic Times)
 

Softbank’s Paytm stake falls below 10 percent

Softbank has sold a 2 percent stake in Paytm bringing its total stake to below 10 percent. The sales, which took place across multiple transactions, generated $180-200 million. Softbank had earlier indicated plans to sell its stake completely. Paytm’s stock has almost doubled from its 52-week low of Rs 439 to close on July 18 at Rs 843 per share.
(Economic Times)
 

Online phone sales remain muted

Smartphone sales have remained muted in the first half of 2023 as brands push to move more sales offline. This shift has been most prominent in online brands Xiaomi, Realme and OnePlus. At OnePlus, the share of online sales has reduced from 85-90 percent to 55-60 percent. Offline discounts are now similar to online and customers prefer to touch and feel the phone before they buy.   
(Mint)