Ola Electric's reset; Copper chaos could hit home

Time of India

a day ago

Ola Electric's reset; Copper chaos could hit home
Also in the letter:
Ola Electric poor Q1 show prefaces profitability push, share rally
By the numbers:
Net loss: widened 23.3% YoY to Rs 428 crore (vs Rs 347 crore)
widened 23.3% YoY to Rs 428 crore (vs Rs 347 crore) Vehicle sales: dropped to 68,192 units (vs 1.25 lakh last year)
dropped to 68,192 units (vs 1.25 lakh last year) Gross margin: improved to 25.6% (vs 18.4% YoY)
improved to 25.6% (vs 18.4% YoY)
Total expenses: dropped 42.4% YoY to Rs 1,065 crore
Profit focus:
Supply chain strategy:
Shares in focus:
Market view:
Also Read:
US copper tariff may impact Indian electronics, chip plans
Driving the news:
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Indirect hit:
Fallout:
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What's next:
IT recruiters head to small towns of Bharat
Numberwise:
Tier-II and Tier-III cities saw a surge of more than 50% increase in IT hiring from January to June, according to Teamlease.
In contrast, Tier-I cities, which include Bengaluru and the National Capital Region, posted 12–15% growth.
Cities like Coimbatore, Nagpur and Nasik are clocking 20–25% annual growth, Indore and Jaipur are racing ahead at 30–40%.
Supporting roles are also rising faster in smaller cities, growing 24–31% in tier-II and -III cities, versus 8–15% in metros.
But why?
Improved digital infrastructure, friendly government policies, and the rise of remote (and hybrid) work have helped level the playing field.
Add to that the fierce startup competition in big cities, and companies are now tapping straight from local colleges.
The result? Operational costs are nearly 30% lower.
Tesla shareholders can invest in sister concern xAI
Tell me more:
War chest:
Synergies:
Bitcoin crosses $120,000 to record high
What's fuelling the rally?
Tell me more:
Ripple effect:
Ola Electric changed strategy after its revenue halved and profit slumped by almost a quarter in Q1 FY26. This and more in today's ETtech Top 5.■ New IT hiring hubs■ Tesla eyes xAI stake■Bitcoin shines brightBhavish Aggarwal, founder, Ola ElectricElectric two-wheeler manufacturer Ola Electric's operating revenue nearly halved in the June quarter to Rs 828 crore , as vehicle sales declined amid increasing competition in the EV sector. Once the clear category leader, the company is now struggling to keep up.CEO Bhavish Aggarwal said that the company is pivoting from aggressive expansion to profitability and operational stability. The industry, he added, is past its hyper-growth stage and entering a phase of consolidation.Ola Electric flagged rare earth magnet supply as a long-term concern for automakers. It's working on a two-pronged approach – sourcing from alternative suppliers and launching a rare-earth free motor, expected to reach customers next quarter. The company has also begun in-house battery cell production, with deliveries scheduled for Navratri.Ola Electric stock jumped 18.3% to close at Rs 47.1 on the BSE on Monday.For FY26, the company expects to sell 3.25–3.75 lakh vehicles and clock Rs 4,200–Rs 4,700 crore in revenue. It currently trails TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto in market share, according to Vahan data A 50% tariff on US copper imports has sent shockwaves through India's electronics and chipmaking ambitions. While US President Donald Trump may be playing to a domestic gallery, the ripple effects could unsettle global supply chains, and India risks getting caught in the crossfire India relies heavily on imported high-purity copper. Industry leaders say that's a vulnerability. Their remedy: Build local capacity to produce high-grade copper alloys and materials vital to the electronics and semiconductor value chain.At present, Indian producers—Hindustan Copper, Sterlite, and Hindalco—do not manufacture semiconductor-grade copper at scale. The few global producers that do—and offer competitive prices—are based in China, which is squarely in the firing line of Trump's tariff play.Copper sits at the heart of manufacturing. It's essential for printed circuit boards (PCBs), capacitors, resistors, connectors, relays, and the wiring used in semiconductor packaging and assembly.Higher input costs and global supply snarls could derail India's cost-sensitive semiconductor projects, warned India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) head Ashok Chandak.India's semiconductor and electronics manufacturing ecosystems are still finding their feet. Disruptions now could scare off investors and put a break on growth, just as momentum was building.ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees.Interested? Reach out to us at [e-mail] to explore sponsorship opportunities.India's smaller cities are fast catching up with established tech hubs as magnets for IT and software development talent. Staffing firms report a clear shift in hiring trends over the first half of 2025.Elon Musk, CEO, TeslaIf it were solely up to him, Tesla would have invested in xAI already, said Elon Musk, who owns both companies. But in true 2025 fashion, a casual post on X has snowballed into something bigger. After a user floated the idea online, Musk said he'll now put the question to Tesla shareholders 'It's not up to me,' he wrote. 'If it was up to me, Tesla would have invested in xAI long ago.'That backing could help xAI take on the heavyweights – Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI in the AI arms race. Musk is reportedly chasing a $170-200 billion valuation for xAI, with SpaceX expected to chip in $2 billion of a planned $5 billion fundraise, per the Wall Street Journal.Bloomberg says xAI is burning through over a billion dollars a month as it races to develop newer models, spending far more than it earns.Musk insists this won't lead to a merger , but says he wants more overlap between xAI and his other ventures, especially Tesla and SpaceX.Bitcoin has smashed through the $120,000 barrier for the first time, touching a new all-time high of $122,571.19 on Monday.Optimism is building ahead of a crucial debate in the US House of Representatives, where lawmakers are set to discuss a package of bills that could finally bring some regulatory clarity to the crypto space. The industry sees this as a potential tipping point.Bitcoin is now up nearly 29% this year, helped in no small part by US President Donald Trump's vocal backing for crypto. Unlike his predecessor, the Biden administration's somewhat cautious stance, Trump has embraced digital assets, declaring in March that he'd make the US 'the Crypto Capital of the World.'The broader market is on the move as well. The total crypto market has surged to around $3.78 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap. Ether, the second-largest cryptocurrency, hit a five-month high of $3,059.60. XRP and Solana gained roughly 3% each.The fresh milestone comes just days after Bitcoin's previous record of $116,781