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India Gazette
18 hours ago
- Business
- India Gazette
Tech-savvy construction firms attract global interest as India goes big on infrastructure
New Delhi [India], June 1 (ANI): As government-led infrastructure initiatives reshape India's urban and industrial landscape, tech-savvy Indian construction players are drawing the attention of global companies involved in the planning, designing, building and managing of infrastructure and real estate. The global players are increasingly deploying their capital and establishing Indian arms to cater to the needs of the infrastructure and construction sector. 'India is a market on today's date that cannot be ignored globally because, in a construction aspect, India is the third largest global construction market. So that is something huge,' said Nirmalya Chatterjee, India head of Nemetschek, a Germany-based company. 'Hopefully, in the next two years' time, we will be the third largest economy in the world too. So this is a scale of India as a market. Quite obviously, it has a huge, huge potential,' said Chatterjee. India has embarked on an ambitious journey to revolutionise the country's infrastructure landscape, aiming to bolster economic growth, enhance connectivity, and improve the quality of life for its citizens. With a focus on modernising transportation networks, upgrading urban amenities, and expanding digital infrastructure, the government has launched several transformative initiatives, with Capex Expenditure of Rs 11.21 lakh crore (3.1 per cent of GDP) earmarked in the financial year 2025-26. He further added that construction is the second-largest sector GDP contributor after agriculture, and that makes it a centre of attraction for global companies. 'So construction is a huge kind of potential. Technology companies, engineering companies, overseas companies - all are looking into this market and how they can be a part of this growth journey. And this momentum is going to continue in the coming day's,' he added. The total infrastructure investment in India has significantly increased, with public and private sector contributions shaping the growth trajectory. India's total infrastructure spending has grown exponentially, with budget allocations rising to Rs 10 lakh crore in 2023-24, as per the official figures. However, the fragmented nature of the construction markets is causing a challenge, despite huge potential. Another major challenge for global companies is the fear of escalating expenses tied to new technology; however, Chatterjee says that the conditions are the states and educational institutions are ramping up the infrastructure projects, the German compay official said that they have been able to secure projects from various states such as Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, IITs and other universities, demonstrating the wider adoption of global technology. As per the credit rating agency ICRA Indian construction industry is expected to report a year-on-year growth of 8-10 per cent in operating income (OI) for the FY 2026, supported by an adequate order book position, on the low base of FY2025. ICRA estimates the aggregate order book/OI for its sample set of entities1 at 3.5 times as of March 31, 2025, reflecting healthy growth prospects and revenue visibility. It forecasts the operating margin of the players to be steady at 10.5-11.0 per cent for FY2025 and FY2026. (ANI)
Mint
20 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
Tech-savvy construction firms attract global interest as India goes big on infrastructure
New Delhi [India], June 1 (ANI): As government-led infrastructure initiatives reshape India's urban and industrial landscape, tech-savvy Indian construction players are drawing the attention of global companies involved in the planning, designing, building and managing of infrastructure and real estate. The global players are increasingly deploying their capital and establishing Indian arms to cater to the needs of the infrastructure and construction sector. "India is a market on today's date that cannot be ignored globally because, in a construction aspect, India is the third largest global construction market. So that is something huge," said Nirmalya Chatterjee, India head of Nemetschek, a Germany-based company. "Hopefully, in the next two years' time, we will be the third largest economy in the world too. So this is a scale of India as a market. Quite obviously, it has a huge, huge potential," said Chatterjee. India has embarked on an ambitious journey to revolutionise the country's infrastructure landscape, aiming to bolster economic growth, enhance connectivity, and improve the quality of life for its citizens. With a focus on modernising transportation networks, upgrading urban amenities, and expanding digital infrastructure, the government has launched several transformative initiatives, with Capex Expenditure of ₹ 11.21 lakh crore (3.1 per cent of GDP) earmarked in the financial year 2025-26. He further added that construction is the second-largest sector GDP contributor after agriculture, and that makes it a centre of attraction for global companies. "So construction is a huge kind of potential. Technology companies, engineering companies, overseas companies - all are looking into this market and how they can be a part of this growth journey. And this momentum is going to continue in the coming day"s," he added. The total infrastructure investment in India has significantly increased, with public and private sector contributions shaping the growth trajectory. India's total infrastructure spending has grown exponentially, with budget allocations rising to ₹ 10 lakh crore in 2023-24, as per the official figures. However, the fragmented nature of the construction markets is causing a challenge, despite huge potential. Another major challenge for global companies is the fear of escalating expenses tied to new technology; however, Chatterjee says that the conditions are the states and educational institutions are ramping up the infrastructure projects, the German compay official said that they have been able to secure projects from various states such as Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu, IITs and other universities, demonstrating the wider adoption of global technology. As per the credit rating agency ICRA Indian construction industry is expected to report a year-on-year growth of 8-10 per cent in operating income (OI) for the FY 2026, supported by an adequate order book position, on the low base of FY2025. ICRA estimates the aggregate order book/OI for its sample set of entities1 at 3.5 times as of March 31, 2025, reflecting healthy growth prospects and revenue visibility. It forecasts the operating margin of the players to be steady at 10.5-11.0 per cent for FY2025 and FY2026. (ANI)
Entrepreneur
2 days ago
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Zerodha Capital Reports INR 12.5 Cr Profit in FY25
Operating with a lean team, Zerodha Capital leverages the scale and infrastructure of Zerodha's core broking business, which has 8.1 million active clients on the National Stock Exchange—accounting for nearly 16 per cent of the market You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. Zerodha Capital, the lending arm of brokerage major Zerodha, posted a net profit of INR 12.5 crore in the financial year ended March 2025, up from INR 7.2 crore the previous year, according to a report by The Economic Times. The profit surge comes as the company doubled its income year-on-year to INR 36 crore, driven largely by a sharp expansion in its loan book and operational leverage from its parent firm. Credit rating agency ICRA attributed the improved financial performance to a 3.2x increase in Zerodha Capital's loan portfolio, which touched INR 381 crore in the first nine months of FY25. The company lends against shares and mutual funds held by retail investors, offering up to INR 1 crore in loans with a lending value capped at 45 per cent of the securities pledged. Operating with a lean team, Zerodha Capital leverages the scale and infrastructure of Zerodha's core broking business, which has 8.1 million active clients on the National Stock Exchange—accounting for nearly 16 per cent of the market. The lending process is largely digital, allowing efficient disbursements and minimal overheads. ICRA maintained its credit rating for Zerodha Capital at AA- (Stable)/A1+, reaffirming confidence in the company's risk controls, despite noting its current small size and dependence on a limited group of lenders. The agency also assigned the same rating to the firm's new INR 100 crore short-term borrowing program. Zerodha Capital's net worth stood at INR 170 crore as of December 2024, with a gearing ratio of 1.4x—indicating moderate leverage. To fuel further growth, the promoter group has committed an additional INR 125 crore through compulsorily convertible preference shares. Importantly, the company has reported zero non-performing assets (NPAs) since its inception in 2021, underlining its conservative lending model. However, its future trajectory remains tied to broader market sentiment and evolving regulations. With increasing regulatory scrutiny over retail derivatives trading—one of Zerodha's core revenue drivers—Zerodha Capital's growth path could be tested. Zerodha Broking Ltd, the flagship business, posted a net profit of INR 5,496 crore in FY24 and delivered an impressive 56 per cent return on net worth. With these fundamentals in place, Zerodha Capital appears poised to scale its lending footprint cautiously but steadily within India's growing retail investing ecosystem.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Telecom revenues set to rise 12–14% this fiscal on tariff hikes: ICRA
Revenue s in the telecom industry are expected to grow steadily in the current fiscal, with analysts expecting a 12-14% growth in operating income at 3.5-3.7 lakh crore on the back of tariff hikes implemented in July 2024. According to a report by ICRA , the tariff hikes translated to a healthy growth in average revenue per user (ARPU), a key performance metric, which though remains the lowest globally. ARPU levels are projected to have increased to ₹200 in FY2025, from ₹184 the previous fiscal. Another tariff hike, expected by the end of FY2026, is expected to rally ARPU levels to ₹220. The ratings firm noted that steady increase in 4G/5G subscribers and traction in data usage led to a rise in industry AGR (adjusted gross revenue) over the last few quarters. Industry AGR improved to around ₹65,673 crore in the December quarter, translating to 11% growth on-year. However, growth in AGR is primarily being driven by the tariff hikes implemented in 2024. Data subscribers have been growing at a healthy pace on account of the proliferation of cheaper smartphones and availability of content, ICRA said, adding that the penetration of broadband subscribers reached 79% as of December 2024. Cheaper smartphones, coupled with low data tariffs, are driving the demand for data. Further, content availability and increased broadband speed have also helped increase the monthly data usage per subscriber to around 21.52 GB per month, ICRA said. It expects industry profitability to grow by 12-14% in FY2025 to cross ₹1.6 lakh crore, followed by a 10-12% expansion in FY2026. The brokerage said the industry has upfronted a significant capex for 5G rollouts in FY2024 and FY2025, adding that capex intensity is likely to have peaked, and is expected to subsequently moderate going forward. The industry capex is likely to be around ₹3 lakh crore over the next 3-4 years. However, the absence of retail-based use cases for 5G, and expensive customer equipment and low fiberisation levels (estimated to be around 38% of total towers) pose a threat to 5G expansion, ICRA said. This has also constrained ARPU growth to some extent. The total industry debt is estimated to increase to around ₹6.6 lakh crore as on March 31, 2025, and is expected to see a steady moderation going forward. This increase is partly attributable to the addition of deferred debt obligations, which stem from AGR liabilities and spectrum auctions of FY2022 and FY2023, and recently in FY2025. The industry's debt to operating income ratio is likely to remain at 3.9-4 times with interest coverage at 3.3 times for FY2025. This is expected to improve in the current fiscal.
Economic Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
On target: FY25 fiscal deficit at 4.8% of GDP
India's fiscal deficit met the 4.8% of GDP target in FY25, reaching ₹15.77 lakh crore due to higher nominal GDP. The government controlled revenue spending, offsetting lower tax revenue and increased capital expenditure. Analysts are optimistic about achieving the 4.4% deficit target for FY26, boosted by a record RBI dividend and strong April performance. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads New Delhi: The central government reined in its fiscal deficit at the targeted level of 4.8% of gross domestic product (GDP) in FY25, official data released Friday in absolute terms, the fiscal gap touched ₹15.77 lakh crore in FY25, a tad higher than the revised estimate of almost ₹15.70 lakh crore, the targeted ratio was realised due to a higher-than-expected nominal GDP, showed the data. Nominal GDP touched ₹330.68 lakh crore in FY25, against the projected ₹324.11 lakh government, too, kept a lid on revenue spending, which nearly offset a shortfall in resource mop-up and an increase in capital expenditure last expenditure in FY25 stood at ₹36.04 lakh crore, trailing the revised estimate of ₹36.98 lakh said the Centre's goal of containing its deficit at 4.4% of GDP in the current fiscal seems all the more realistic now, especially after a record ₹2.69 lakh crore dividend transfer by the central bank earlier this government had in 2021 set a target to bring down its fiscal deficit to 4.5% of GDP by FY26 (from 9.2% in the Covid year of FY21). In the budget for FY26, it aimed to lower that target to 4.4%.Capital spending, which had faltered in the early part of the last fiscal due to the general election and led to a cut in its initial target, hit Rs 10.52 lakh crore, exceeding the revised estimate of ₹10.18 lakh crore. Total expenditure in FY25 eased to ₹46.56 lakh crore from the revised estimate of ₹47.16 lakh crore, primarily due to lower revenue generous RBI dividend transfer will likely provide additional leeway of ₹60,000-70,000 crore to the government for enhanced expenditures, some analysts said. It may make up for any unaccounted for rise in defence expenditure on account of Operation Sindoor, they have said."The upward revision in the FY25 nominal GDP number also augurs well for meeting the deficit and debt-to-GDP targets for FY26," said ICRA chief economist Aditi receipts touched ₹ 30.78 lakh crore in FY25, down from the revised estimate of Rs 31.47 lakh crore, thanks to lower-than-expected tax tax receipts eased about 2.3% from the revised estimate to ₹24.99 lakh crore, while non-tax revenue mop-up overshot the target marginally to touch ₹5.38 lakh the fiscal deficit in the first month of the current fiscal hit 11.9% of the full-year target, against 13% a year before, primarily on account of higher revenue as well as capital absolute terms, the April deficit touched ₹1.86 lakh crore, against ₹2.10 lakh crore a year before. The pace of capital spending in April shot 61% on-year to ₹ 1.60 lakh crore, while revenue expenditure dropped 5.7% to ₹3.06 lakh crore.
