Job creation across India’s formal sector remained stable in June, with job postings rising modestly by 0.6 per cent, building on strong gains in May, a report said on Thursday.

Despite a 4.8 per cent decline year-on-year, job postings are still 80 per cent above pre-pandemic levels, underscoring the resilience of formal hiring activity, Indeed Hiring Lab said in a report.

According to the report, despite efforts by some employers to return to office routines, remote work continues to attract job seeker interest.

In June, 8.7 per cent of job postings included keywords like “work from home” or ‘hybrid work’ in their job descriptions.

This has increased by 1 percentage point over the past year but remains well below its peak of 11.3 per cent in 2020, the report stated.

Remote work remains appealing due to long commutes in urban areas, increased access to urban or global jobs from rural regions, and improved digital infrastructure, which was fast-tracked by the global pandemic.

Samsung Electronics said on Thursday that its net income plunged nearly 50 per cent in the second quarter (Q2), as its semiconductor division logged its lowest earnings in over a year due to sluggish demand for high bandwidth memory (HBM).

In a regulatory filing, the company reported a net income of 5.11 trillion won (US$3.7 billion) for the April-June period, down 48 percent from 9.84 trillion won a year earlier, reports news agency.

The earnings fell short of market expectations. The average estimate of net profit by analysts stood at 7.29 trillion won, according to a survey.

Operating profit stood at 4.67 trillion won, down 55.2 percent from a year ago, while revenue rose 0.7 percent to 74.56 trillion won.

The semiconductor division posted 400 billion won in operating profit, the lowest since the fourth quarter of 2023, when it recorded a 2 trillion-won operating loss.

Samsung India on Thursday said that its newly-launched, ‘Made in India’ Galaxy Z Fold7, is surprisingly gaining significant traction from not only tier 3 markets, but also tier 4 and beyond, amid a resilient economy and rising aspirations across the country.

“The unprecedented demand has made us allocate stocks of the Galaxy Z Fold7 across the deeper pockets of Bharat. We are immensely encouraged by the new demand surfacing from tier 4 and beyond and will continue to serve these markets in the best possible manner,” said Raju Pullan, Senior Vice President and Head at Samsung India.

Mahindra and Mahindra's net profit for the first quarter of the current financial year (Q1 FY26) stood at Rs 4,083 crore, up 24 per cent year-on-year, according to an exchange filing on Wednesday.

Hyundai Motor India on Wednesday reported an 8 per cent year-on-year (YoY) drop in its consolidated net profit for the first quarter ended June 30 (Q1 FY26).

Punjab National Bank's (PNB) net profit for the quarter ended June 30 stood at Rs 1,675 crore, down 49 per cent year-on-year, according to its stock exchange filing on Wednesday.

The public sector lender had posted a net profit of Rs 3,251 crore in the same quarter last year (Q1 FY25) and Rs 4,567 crore in the preceding quarter (Q4 FY25).

Meanwhile, PNB's total income for the quarter rose 15.7 per cent YoY to Rs 37,231 crore from Rs 32,165 crore in Q1 FY25. The bank had reported a net income of Rs 36,705 crore in the preceding quarter.

India’s smartphone market grew 8 per cent (year-on-year) in volume and 18 per cent in value in the April-June quarter (Q2 2025), marking a solid rebound following a muted Q1, a report said on Wednesday.

The iPhone 16 emerged as the most-shipped device in Q2 2025, driven by ongoing promotions, extended EMI options, and improved retail execution, helping Apple register its highest-ever Q2 shipments in India.

According to Counterpoint’s 'Monthly India Smartphone Tracker', the recovery was driven by a 33 per cent jump (on-year) in new launches, aggressive marketing, and strong performance during summer sales, with brands offering steeper discounts, easy EMIs, and bundled offers especially in the mid and premium segments.

As many as 4,625 EV charging stations are operational in the tier 2 cities in the country (as on April 1, 2025), according to the government.

In addition, Rs. 2,000 crore has been allocated under the Prime Minister Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-DRIVE) Scheme for the establishment of electric vehicle public-charging stations (EV PCS) across India, including tier 2 cities in Tamil Nadu, said Minister of State for Steel and Heavy Industries, Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

The PM E-DRIVE scheme was launched in October 2024 to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) through demand incentives and expand EV charging infrastructure nationwide. The Centre has allocated Rs 10,900 crore for subsidies to EVs under this scheme.

Logistics major Blue Dart Express Limited on Tuesday reported an 8.6 per cent decline in its net profit for the first quarter ended June 30 (Q1 FY26), as higher employee and finance costs weighed on earnings.

This came even as the company saw revenue growth on the back of steady demand for logistics and distribution services.

India’s demand for green steel is set for exponential growth, reaching approximately 179 million tons by FY50, a report said on Tuesday.

The surge will be driven by the country’s rapidly growing automotive, infrastructure, and construction sectors, as they pivot toward sustainable manufacturing practices, according to an EY Parthenon report.

According to the report, India targets 500 million tons per annum of steel capacity by 2047, aligned with its climate goals.