State-run Indian Oil Corporation on Wednesday reported a net profit of Rs 7,264.85 crore for the January-March quarter of 2024-25, which represents a 50 per cent year-on-year increase over the corresponding figure of Rs 4,837.69 crore in the same period of the previous year.

The oil giant’s net profit more than doubled on quarter-on-quarter basis to Rs 7,265 crore, compared to Rs 2,874 crore in Q3FY25. The strong rebound was supported by improved refining margins, inventory gains, and better operational efficiencies.

Indian Oil’s Board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 3 per equity share of face value Rs 10 each for the financial year 2024-25.

The oil giant’s Gross Refining Margins (GRMs) or the difference between the total value of petroleum products coming out of a refinery and the price of raw materials, stood at $8 per barrel. Indian Oil had reported GRMs of $2.9 per barrel in the previous quarter.

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank (SFB) on Wednesday reported a 74.7 per cent sharp decline in its net profit at Rs 83.4 crore for the fourth quarter (Q4) of FY25, compared to Rs 329.6 crore in the same quarter last fiscal.

This decline in earnings was mainly due to increased provisioning and a slowdown in interest income, caused by changes in the bank’s business mix.

In the fourth quarter, Ujjivan SFB’s Net Interest Income (NII) came in at Rs 864.4 crore, down 7.4 per cent from Rs 933.5 crore in the same period a year ago.

However, the bank's asset quality showed improvement on a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis, as per its stock exchange filing.

Occupier and investor demand for commercial real estate remains solid, with office space absorption continuing across key markets such as India, Indonesia, and the Philippines, according to a Cushman & Wakefield report on the Asia-Pacific region, released on Wednesday.

Net absorption of office space across Asia-Pacific (APAC) in the first quarter of 2025 recorded a robust 20 per cent increase to 26 million square feet (msf) from 22 msf in the same quarter last year, the report states.

U.S. dollar strength and relatively attractive yields are driving increased global capital inflows into APAC real estate, particularly into stable sectors like logistics, data centres, and multifamily.

The downward trajectory in interest rates will also boost investments into the commercial real estate sector, according to the report.

Government incentives and infrastructure investments are boosting local electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing and a range of policy measures and infrastructure developments are underway to help bridge the gap and push the market closer to the 2030 goal, a report showed on Wednesday.

India’s passenger vehicle (PV) sales grew 4.6 per cent in 2024 (year-on-year), surpassing 4.3 million units. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accounted for 2.5 per cent of total PV sales, marking a 16 per cent YoY increase, according to Counterpoint’s latest ‘India Passenger Vehicle Model Sales Tracker’.

The increase in passenger BEV sales can be attributed to the launch of several new models, including the Tata Curvv.ev, MG Windsor, BYD Seal, BYD eMax 7 and the Tata Punch.ev refresh, among others.

India’s government has set ambitious targets for EV adoption. It aims to achieve 30 per cent EV penetration in the passenger vehicle segment, 80 per cent in the combined two-wheeler and three-wheeler segment and 70 per cent in the commercial vehicle segment by 2030.

Samsung Electronics said on Wednesday its first-quarter net profit rose more than 20 percent from a year earlier, driven by strong sales of its new Galaxy S series smartphones, but its flagship semiconductor business remained sluggish.

In a regulatory filing, the company posted a net income of 8.22 trillion won ($5.7 billion) for the January-March period, up 21.7 percent from 6.75 trillion won a year earlier.

The earnings exceeded market expectations. The average estimate of net profit by analysts stood at 5.17 trillion won, according to a survey by News Agency.

Operating profit stood at 6.68 trillion won, up 1.2 percent from a year ago, while revenue rose 10 percent to 79.14 trillion won, marking an all-time quarterly high.

Left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc picked 3-42, while Vipraj Nigam and captain Axar Patel took two wickets each as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) posted 204/9 in their 20 overs against Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium here on Tuesday.

On a pitch that didn’t offer much grip and was good to bat on, KKR had their batters producing quick knocks at a great strike rate and were also aided by DC conceding 15 extras. But they lost their way in the middle overs against DC’s spin troika and then made only 45 in the last five overs.

It would be interesting to see if DC, after pulling things back in the post-powerplay phase, chase down the total, especially if dew comes into the picture. They also need to see if Axar can bat after hurting his left hand while fielding.

KKR began with a bang as Rahmanullah Gurbaz drilled Starc for boundaries through mid-off and cover-point. Sunil Narine took a liking to Dushmantha Chameera dishing out fuller balls and on pads to take him for two sixes and a four, with the one-handed maximum being the standout, as 25 runs came off the second over

Tata Group’s retail arm Trent Limited on Tuesday reported a sharp 47 per cent drop in its net profit for the March quarter (Q4 FY25), which fell to Rs 350 crore from Rs 654 crore in the same period last fiscal.

The steep fall was largely due to a one-off gain of Rs 543 crore in the base quarter, which had inflated last year’s numbers, the company said in its stock exchange filing.

Chairman Noel Tata acknowledged the quarter’s weakness, noting that full-year figures offered a better picture of the company’s performance, especially given the seasonal nature of retail and real estate-related challenges.

"In FY25, we built on the agenda of strongly growing our reach and becoming more accessible to our customers. Given the seasonality of the business, nature of the real estate market and our approach to inventory management, the full year performance is more representative with respect to revenues, operating profitability and network expansion vis-a-vis any individual quarter," he said.

The Department of Posts on Tuesday partnered SBI Funds Management Limited (SBIFM), a prominent asset management company, to simplify the customer on-boarding process for mutual fund (MF) investors.

The collaboration will leverage India Post’s extensive network to provide doorstep KYC verification services for investors of SBI Mutual Fund.

The initiative aims to streamline the KYC process, ensuring convenience, security, and regulatory compliance for investors across India, said the Ministry of Communications.

As part of the MoU, India Post will facilitate the completion of KYC formalities for SBI Mutual Fund investors by collecting the necessary forms and documents from investors across the country.

The KYC documents will be collected by India Post’s trained personnel, ensuring a high level of security, accuracy, and privacy in the process.

Mumbai-based real estate firm Oberoi Realty saw its share price decline by Rs 46.80 or 2.82 per cent to Rs 1,610 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Tuesday.

The fall came after the company reported a 45 per cent drop in its consolidated net profit for the fourth quarter (Q4) of FY25.

According to its filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), Oberoi Realty’s net profit for the January-March quarter stood at Rs 433.17 crore, compared to Rs 788.03 crore in the same period last fiscal.

The sharp fall in profit was mainly due to a steep rise in land acquisition costs and a drop in operational revenue.

Ambuja Cements, the cement and building material company of the diversified Adani Group, on Tuesday reported the highest 9 per cent annual PAT growth at Rs 5,158 crore in FY25, while crossing 100 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) capacity last fiscal.

With this feat, Ambuja is now the ninth-largest cement company in the world.

The company, which also reported the highest-ever annual revenue at Rs 35,045 crore, up 6 per cent (year-on-year). It delivered the highest-ever annual volume at 65.2 million tonnes in FY25, up 10 per cent (on-year)

Moreover, it recorded its highest EBITDA in a quarter at Rs 1,868 crore, up 10 per cent YoY, and PAT on a standalone basis went up by 75 per cent at Rs 929 crore.