Business Live: Indian shares fall ahead of GDP data; Vodafone jumps

Updates from the world of economy, markets, and finance

After impressive gains recorded over the last two days, stocks are down around one percent this morning.

Join us as we follow the top business news through the day.

10:00 AM

FDI rises 13% to $50 billion, highest flow into services

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in India grew by 13% to a record of $49.97 billion in the 2019-20 financial year, according to official data.

The country had received an FDI of $44.36 billion during April-March 2018-19. The sectors which attracted maximum foreign inflows during 2019-20 include services ($7.85 billion), computer software and hardware ($7.67 billion), telecommunications ($4.44 billion), trading ($4.57 billion), automobile ($2.82 billion), construction ($2 billion), and chemicals ($1 billion), the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) data showed.

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9:40 AM

Indian shares fall ahead of GDP data; Vodafone jumps

After a huge two-day rally, the benchmark indices opened in the red this morning.

Reuters reports: "Indian shares fell on Friday after two days of strong gains as markets awaited the release of March-quarter GDP figures later in the day, while U.S.-China tensions further dampened sentiment.

Gross domestic product (GDP) data is expected to show India's economy grew at its slowest pace in at least two years, as the COVID-19 pandemic hit already declining consumer demand and private investment.

The NSE Nifty 50 index was down 0.76% at 9,418.30 by 0350, while the S&P BSE Sensex fell 0.86% to 31,924.13. The Nifty 50 had gained 5.1% over the past sessions led by a rally in beaten-down banking stocks.

Shares in Vodafone Idea Ltd jumped 9.5% after a report that Google was eyeing a stake in the telecom firm.

IT services firm Wipro Ltd's shares were up about 1% after it named a new chief executive officer and managing director. The broader Nifty IT index was down 1.3%."