Honda's US sales rise, but tariff eats into profit
The Japanese automaker reported Wednesday that its April-June profit totaled $1.3 billion, about half of what it earned during the same period the previous year. Quarterly sales edged 1.2 per cent lower to $36 billion.
The Tokyo-based maker of the Accord sedan and Asimo robot revised upward its profit forecast for the full fiscal year through March 2026 to 420 billion yen ($2.9 billion), better than its earlier estimate of 250 billion yen. The improved projection still marks a 50 per cent drop from the previous year's results.
Honda stuck to its forecast to sell 3.62 million vehicles worldwide in this fiscal year.
It said its motorcycle business in Brazil and Vietnam was solid, while
North American car sales
also remained strong despite headwinds from the tariffs. The negative impact of the tariffs was estimated at about 450 billion yen ($3 billion), based on "a detailed review," according to Honda.
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The Hindu
2 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Russia is not Iran, India can't cancel oil imports on U.S. demand: experts
India cannot cancel oil imports from Russia as it did six years ago with Iran and Venezuela, given the difference in the scale and importance of the relationship, said experts, warning that the U.S.'s actions against India were damaging the relationship built over decades. In 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump had in his first term, demanded that India 'zero out' its oil imports from Iran and Venezuela. India had eventually complied with the demand before the deadline in May 2019. On Wednesday, Mr. Trump signed an executive order levying a 25% penalty on top of 25% tariffs on Indian goods, unless India cut energy purchases from Russia, which currently make up more than 35% of its oil imports. The penalty would kick in by August 27 unless Russia stops the war in Ukraine. The threat is expected to add pressure on both India and Russia ahead of a meeting between Mr. Trump and President Vladimir Putin next week, and the upcoming visit by Mr. Putin to India for the annual summit with Mr. Modi. 'At the global level, Russia is not Iran,' former Indian Ambassador to the U.S. Arun Singh told The Hindu in an interview. 'We want Russia, as one of the major powers in the international context, to be an important partner of India, and there's a memory in India of Russia in the past having provided political support [and] ...defence technology that nobody else was willing to provide,' he added, also warning that if India were to cave in to Mr. Trump's demands, this would only increase the U.S.'s appetite to demand more concessions from India. According to scholar Brahma Chellaney, the U.S. move on Russian oil is a cover to strong-arm India into accepting trading terms the U.S. wants, including market access for agricultural products. '[Mr.] Trump is weaponising Russian oil purchases to force a largely one-sided trade deal on India,' said Mr. Chellaney, who is a Professor of Strategic Studies at the New Delhi-based Center for Policy Research and Fellow at the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin. He pointed out that technically, the U.S. has not sanctioned Russian oil, nor has it subscribed to the European Union's latest price cap on it. Mr. Trump had also not penalised China, which is the world's largest importer of Russian oil. 'Cutting Indian purchases of Russian oil is unlikely to make him back off. He wants a trade deal on his terms,' Mr. Chellaney added. Until recently, India imported about 2 million barrels a day, and is the second largest importer of Russian oil. Mr. Singh pointed to the past 25 years as a period of building trust between the two countries, and a steady improvement in relations after the previous era, where India had seen the U.S. as a 'coercive and an unreliable partner' for its backing of Pakistan, the 1971 Bangladesh War intervention, and the 1998 sanctions on India for its nuclear tests. Since 2008, after the U.S. helped India win exemptions at the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Suppliers Group for doing nuclear trade, he said this perception seriously changed. He also said that the U.S. had supplied drones and winter clothing to support Indian forces during the India-China stand-off at the Line of Actual Control at 'short notice'. 'But because of what President Trump has done in India, there's a resurrection of the old and bitter memories of the U.S.,' Mr. Singh who is a Senior Fellow at Delhi-based Carnegie India and a Professor at Ashoka University. 'So President Trump and the U.S. may feel that they are putting some penalties on India, high tariffs, I would say that they are putting high tariffs and penalties, less on India, and more on the U.S.-India relationship. It will take some time for the relationship to come out from this shock that has been generated', he added.
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Business Standard
2 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Wall Street and AI startups are fighting over entry-level quants
At a rooftop bar on Manhattan's Lower East Side, roughly 150 quant researchers met with employees at the artificial-intelligence startup Anthropic who implored them to consider a life away from Wall Street. Over plates of potstickers and popcorn chicken, they rubbed shoulders at the June mixer with former hedge fund quants-turned-Silicon Valley evangelists who encouraged them to apply for jobs at Anthropic, according to the company. This month, the San Francisco-based firm is going global with another quant 'social hour' in London. The recruiting campaign mirrors similar efforts by rivals OpenAI and Perplexity AI. And a number of leading figures in the AI industry already come with quant backgrounds, including OpenAI Chief Research Officer Mark Chen and Perplexity co-founder Johnny Ho. But quants lured by dreams of building AI models and tools instead of profit-seeking algorithms for traders — often for lofty pay and benefits comparable to the world of finance — also face the risk of disappointment. 'The pitch is 'come and build the machine god,'' said Agustin Lebron, a former Jane Street trader who now works at a systematic trading startup. 'But I suspect that, for a lot of those people, it'll end up being 'come and figure out how to make people buy things from ads.'' Still, the AI industry's competition with finance is noticeably heating up. For Wall Street, it's an unwelcome wrinkle in an already-brutal war for quant talent. Unlike financial firms, AI companies aren't covered by the non-competition agreements that keep many of these researchers from easily switching jobs. 'I'd estimate we've seen a 40–50% increase over the past 12–18 months in AI-native and software companies specifically asking for talent with quantitative finance backgrounds,' tech recruiter Mike Doonan said. Entry-level quants are eligible for base salaries of as much as $300,000, based on external job listings, but that doesn't include what can be considerable bonus targets. AI firms today can offer comparable base salaries, with compensation packages bolstered with equity rather than bonuses. Next Big Thing According to an analysis of LinkedIn announcements, social media posts and company news sites conducted by employment tracking company Live Data Technologies, firms including Jane Street and Citadel Securities have lost quants to AI firms over the past year. Aron Thomas and Charles Guo both left Jane Street earlier this year to join Anthropic. In an interview, they praised their former firm as a great place to work but said they were drawn to the excitement of being part of the next big thing. 'It became very clear quite quickly that AI is going to change a lot of things and drive many changes in the world, and it seemed pretty important to be involved,' said Guo. Jane Street declined to comment for this story. Citadel also declined to comment on personnel matters, but pointed to growing interest in the firm's own internship program, which saw 108,000 applicants for this summer, up 20% from last year. While OpenAI also declined to comment, its chief executive officer Sam Altman touted quant-focused recruitment events in an April post on X. Noam Brown, an ex-quant and top researcher at the company, weighed in, noting that recruits don't need to take a pay cut anymore. Perplexity's Ho said the company pays $200,000 base salaries but makes up the difference somewhat with equity. He stressed that the firm's pitch to quants isn't mainly financial, though. Instead, it was the opportunity to take on 'new and more exciting challenges,' said Ho, who previously worked at Tower Research Capital. Quant Skills Quants are uniquely adept at minimizing latency in algorithms, which makes them desirable to AI developers competing to ensure users get responses as quickly as possible from the large language models that power generative AI tools such as ChatGPT. And much like AI research, quantitative trading involves sifting through vast amounts of unstructured data. What's more, firms like Anthropic and Perplexity are pushing more into financial services offerings. For its part, Anthropic said in a statement that it's after 'the rigorous analytical thinking and empirical research methods' that quants possess. Such skills have 'substantial overlap with the technical challenges of developing safer and more capable AI systems,' the company said, adding that it's going to keep hiring people with specialized backgrounds as it scales. Quant firms have occasionally sued employees departing for rivals. But litigation is unlikely for quants moving to AI labs, which don't directly compete with financial firms. Moreover, California — where most big AI companies are based — largely prohibits non-competition agreements. Ho said Wall Street has hurt itself with non-competes. 'They are becoming more and more secretive,' he said. There are signs that Wall Street is attempting to hit back against the poaching attempts of AI companies. For example, Iain Dunning, who oversees AI at Hudson River Trading, posted on X in May: 'Are you a researcher at OAI/Anthropic/etc and tired of overhiring, the orgchart chaos, the lowered talent bar, want to move to NYC, or just want to do something different?'
Time of India
17 minutes ago
- Time of India
Govt issues guidelines for ‘Maharashtra Made Liquor'
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: The state home department on Thursday issued a resolution detailing operational guidelines for producing 'Maharashtra Made Liquor' (MML), a new category of grain-based liquor. The move comes nearly a month after the state cabinet approved adding MML to the Bombay Foreign Liquor Rules, 1953. State govt recently increased the excise duty on IMFL from 300% of the manufacturing cost to 450%. An official of the state excise department said, "In contrast, MML will have 270% excise duty. This will not only help Maharashtra-based existing local manufacturers, but is also expected to revive sick units, generate employment and even make quality liquor available at cheaper prices for the consumers." In simple terms, an industry insider explained, the estimated price difference between a litre of IMFL (Indian-made Foreign Liquor) and MML would be around Rs 700. Assuming a manufacturing cost of Rs 400 per litre, the total cost for IMFL would be Rs 2,200, including an excise duty of Rs 1,800 (450% of the manufacturing cost). In contrast, the total cost for MML would be Rs 1,480, with an excise duty of Rs 1,080 (270% of the manufacturing cost). You Can Also Check: Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai The govt resolution (GR) stated that MML would be treated as a distinct type of IMFL, and its manufacture will be permitted only using rectified spirit produced within the state. The eligibility criteria for licence holders include having the registered head office in Maharashtra, ensuring at least 25% shareholding by state residents. The decision, cleared in the cabinet meeting on June 10, aims to boost state excise revenue, encourage investment, and create employment by enabling under-utilised and closed foreign liquor manufacturing units (PLL) in Maharashtra to operate at full capacity. Another official from the excise department told TOI that there are 48 IMFL manufacturers in Maharashtra and 10 of them control 90% of the market. "The remaining 35-38 units barely manufacture or pay govt charges and levies to ensure their licence is not revoked. The MML category aims to help these units enter the market," the official said. License holders seeking to manufacture MML must fulfill certain conditions. Their registered office must be in Maharashtra, at least 25% of the shareholding should be held by state residents, and they shouldn't produce Maharashtra-branded IMFL in other states. Additional requirements apply to units operating on lease or tie-up arrangements. Stay updated with the latest local news from your city on Times of India (TOI). Check upcoming bank holidays , public holidays , and current gold rates and silver prices in your area. Get the latest lifestyle updates on Times of India, along with Raksha Bandhan wishes , messages and quotes !
