In a bid to reduce dependence on Asian countries for lithium-ion batteries and other basic requirements, 

Building materials and equipment company Astral Ltd's share price fell by nearly 8 per cent during the early trade on Tuesday after the firm reported a decline of over 30 per cent in its net profit for the first quarter of the current financial year (Q1 FY26).

At around 11:43 a.m., the company's shares were trading at Rs 1,282.70, down 7.16 per cent. The stock opened at Rs 1,310.10, falling significantly against last session's closing of Rs 1,381.60. The scrip further extended its loss following selling pressure to touch an intra-day low at Rs 1,275.0 (as of the above-mentioned time).

The stock fell 22.41 per cent so far this year and 33.79 per cent over the previous 12 months. Meanwhile, its 52-week high and low were, respectively, Rs 2,037.95 and Rs 1,232.30.

India is the country with the second-highest share of employees (34 per cent) strongly feeling that AI would positively impact their jobs, a report said on Monday. Egypt led the global optimism chart with 36 per cent of employees feeling the same.

Only 17 per cent of Indians thought AI would replace their jobs. Japan and Sweden had the lowest optimism at 4 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively, according to a report from ADP research.

In Europe, 11 per cent of respondents thought AI would improve their job next year, while 13 per cent in North America, 16 per cent in APAC, 19 per cent in Latin America, and 27 per cent in the Middle East and Africa reported the same. ADP Research surveyed 38,000 working adults on six continents.

India’s smartphone market grew 0.9 per cent year-over-year (YoY) as 70 million smartphones were shipped to the country in the first half this year, a report said on Monday.

The second quarter (Q2) saw a 7.3 per cent YoY growth, with 37 million smartphones shipped to India. The market has recovered from a two-quarter decline, but subdued consumer demand and rising average selling prices (ASPs) are likely to slow the annual recovery, according to a report from International Data Corporation (IDC).

Apple's shipments increased 21.5 per cent YoY to 5.9 million units in the first half of 2025. The iPhone 16 was the highest-shipped model across India in 1H25, making up 4 per cent of overall India shipments during that period.

Elon Musk-run Tesla on Monday inaugurated its first showroom in the National Capital Region (NCR) at the Worldmark 3 complex in Aerocity, marking the electric carmaker’s second retail location in India within a month of entering the country.

Situated in one of Delhi's busiest business districts, close to Indira Gandhi International Airport, the Aerocity outlet serves as an experience centre where guests can examine the Model Y electric SUV, understand the purchasing process, and discover charging options.

Customers from Delhi, Gurugram, Noida and the surrounding areas are anticipated to be served by the location.

Direct Spectrum allocation to enterprises is not tenable in India because of various reasons pertaining to India’s telecom ecosystem, the national revenue, as well as security architecture, according to a statement on Monday.

"While some industry bodies have, in their interests, drawn parallels with countries such as the US, Finland, Germany, UK, etc. where private networks have been deployed, this comparison ignores a crucial contextual difference of such industries being located in remote or geographically secluded areas with limited public network coverage," said Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) in its statement.

According to COAI, in India, however, most industrial corridors and enterprise zones are already well-served by telecom operators, thereby leaving no coverage deficit.

South Korean individuals investing in overseas stocks have increasingly turned to virtual asset-related shares, such as those tied to stablecoins, instead of US big tech shares, a report showed on Monday.

The proportion of virtual asset-related stocks among the top 50 net-bought stocks by local individual investors rose from 8.5 percent in January to 36.5 percent in June before slightly declining to 31.4 percent in July, according to a report by the Korean Center for International Finance (KCIF).

Net purchases of the top seven U.S. big tech stocks, however, dropped from a monthly average of $1.68 billion between January and April to $440 million in May, $670 million in June and further to $260 million in July, reports news agency.

Customs authorities here said on Monday they have uncovered 19 companies accused of evading anti-dumping duties worth a combined 42.8 billion won ($30.8 million) while importing low-priced hot-rolled steel plates.

The companies allegedly avoided paying duties by declaring their goods under product codes not subject to anti-dumping duties, according to the Korea Customs Service.

Some also reportedly used the names of suppliers eligible for lower tariff rates without authorisation. The agency said it plans to recover the evaded taxes and even pursue criminal investigations in case of serious violations, reports news agency.

Anti-dumping duties are imposed when imported goods are priced below fair market value, deemed to cause harm to domestic industries. The duties are levied to bridge the price gap and protect local businesses from unfair competition.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has proposed a distinct alternative investment fund (AIF) scheme that would admit only "accredited investors".

Tata Motors Limited's (TML) net profit for the first quarter of the first financial year (Q1 FY26) stood at Rs 4,003 crore, down 62 per cent year-on-year (YoY), as per an exchange filing on Friday.