August 21, 2026

TOP NEWS

War update: US says they will impose "the toughest sanctions in history" on Iran. Oil prices rose to more than a three-week high on Thursday following those U.S. threats of financial penalties. Iran's foreign ministry said it condemned U.S. economic and trade sanctions, calling them "economic terrorism". Oil prices climbed to $94/barrel. Asian markets are trading marginally positive and Gift Nifty indicates a 30 points positivity on the bourses.

 

Welspun Corp: The company has secured its largest-ever single order worth ~USD 1.8 billion (Rs. 17,200 crore) for the supply of pipes from its US manufacturing facility. The order will be executed across FY28–FY29 and significantly improves the company’s multi-year revenue visibility. Following this win, Welspun Corp’s global order book has reached a record ~USD 4.4 billion (Rs. 42,100 crore), strengthening its position in the North American energy infrastructure market.

 

JBM Auto: Bain Capital is reportedly in talks to invest up to Rs. 2,850 crore ($300 million) for a significant minority stake in JBM Auto’s electric vehicle manufacturing business, with the final stake and deal structure still under discussion. The investment would provide growth capital to accelerate JBM’s expansion into clean mobility. JBM has a 79% share of India’s electric tarmac bus market and over 50% share in intercity electric luxury coaches. The group is targeting Rs. 7,000–7,500 crore revenue in FY27, with the EV business expected to contribute ~45%.

Gold financers: The price of gold reached a high of $4,557.60 on Friday, up more than 3% to hit its highest level since June 4. Positive for gold financing companies such as Mannapuram Finance, Muthoot Finance.

 

Niva Bupa warned by IRDAI over FY25 expense limits, barred from opening new offices for 6 month. Negative

 

Ratnaveer Precision: Approved the launch of a Rights Issue to raise up to ₹329.99 Crore. Total shares offered are 1,24,99,669 Equity Shares for a issue price of Rs 264 / share. 7 Rights Equity Shares for every 40 fully paid-up Equity Shares held as of the record date.

 

CG power: Guides a 13-14% revenue CAGR till FY29 with exit EBIDTA margins 11-12% by 2029. Revenue expected to double by FY31, margins exceed 12%. New businesses targeted to contribute at least 20% turnover.

 

Sugar stocks: After a gap of almost 10 years, India is set to import around 1 million tonnes (mt) of raw sugar at nil duty to cool down domestic prices, with the benchmark ex-mill price in Maharashtra reaching a high of Rs 5,400-5,560 per quintal. Negative read through for Sugar stocks.

 

Anant Raj: The company has received Haryana Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) registration for its new luxury residential project, The Estate One, located on Golf Course Extension Road, Sector 63A, Gurugram. The project has a built-up area potential of ~1.22 million sq. ft. and was registered/launched on August 20, 2026.

India Infrastructure Output: India’s infrastructure output grew 5.4% YoY in July 2026, moderating from 6% growth in June, while cumulative growth for April–July improved to 4.3% from 1.5% in the same period last year. Cement was a key positive, with production growth accelerating to 13.1% YoY from 9.9% in June, indicating healthy construction and infrastructure demand. Coal output rose 7.6%, electricity 9%, steel 2.9% and iron ore 29.5%, while crude oil, natural gas and fertiliser production declined during the month.

 

Macro Wrap

  • Iranian adviser Rezaei said the best response to Trump’s economic pressure would be for Tehran to quit the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Trump reportedly told his team a deal with Iran is unlikely and ordered talks frozen for several weeks. Houthis are preparing a new phase of escalation against Saudi Arabia. With Brent near $93/bbl, any credible strike on Yanbu or Fujairah could be seen by traders as a supply shock larger than prior disruptions.
  • Japan’s annual inflation rose to 1.9% in July 2026 from 1.6% in June, the highest since December 2025, driven by smaller declines in electricity prices after subsidy cuts and higher costs for food and other services. Core inflation increased to 1.8%, its highest since March, but remained below the Bank of Japan’s 2% target for the sixth straight month.
  • Germany’s producer prices rose 3.0% year-on-year in July 2026, up from 1.8% and above forecasts, the fastest increase since April 2023. Gains were led by intermediate goods and energy, while non-durable consumer goods fell 2.3%. Excluding energy, prices climbed 2.7%. Month-on-month, producer prices increased 1.1% after a 0.3% decline. Negative for Euro.
  • US initial jobless claims edged lower last week to 206k, implying that firing remains at historically low levels. The US Philadelphia Fed business outlook surprised to the upside in August, strengthening from 41.4 to 47.4 against a consensus expectation of a drop to 24.8. The US leading index edged higher in July, rising 0.2%mth and continuing to suggest that the economy is growing around trend in aggregate.
  • On Data watch: Germany August manufacturing PMI preliminary, Eurozone August manufacturing PMI preliminary, UK August manufacturing PMI preliminary, UK August services PMI preliminary, Canada June month-on-month retail sales, US August S&P Global manufacturing PMI preliminary, Global services PMI preliminary, Eurozone August consumer confidence index preliminary, China July total social electricity consumption YoY, and China's year-to-date July national installed power generation capacity.

OTHER NEWS

Manipal Health Enterprises Q1 (Consolidated YoY): Profit falls 7.5% to Rs 231.65 crore Vs Rs 250.37 crore. Revenue grows 38.1% to Rs 3,090.6 crore Vs Rs 2,237.6 crore.

 

Amagi Media Labs: Trudy Holdings, AVP I Fund and Accel are likely to sell a combined 5% stake in Amagi Media Labs through a block deal worth around Rs 600 crore, with a floor price of Rs 550 per share, CNBC-TV18 reported, quoting sources

 

RailTel Corporation of India: RailTel Corporation has received a work order worth Rs 164.78 crore from Western Coalfields for the establishment of an MPLS VPN network on a rental basis for a period of 60 months

 

Lemon Tree Hotels: Lemon Tree Hotels has announced the opening of a new 85-room hotel property, Lemon Tree Hotel in Bharuch, marking the group's 12th operational hotel in Gujarat. The hotel is managed by its subsidiary, Carnation Hotels.

 

Vedanta Aluminium: The company has launched two advanced automotive alloy Copper-Doped Alloy and Vedanta Foundry Alloy (VFA) under its PFA range. The newly introduced products comprise a Copper-Doped Alloy and the Vedanta Foundry Alloy (VFA), the latter developed in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. The Copper-Doped Alloy utilises copper to improve high-temperature performance, wear resistance, and durability across engine, transmission, and powertrain casting

 

Adani's Kutch Copper anticipates stable quarterly operating profit between Rs 750-800 crore this fiscal year. Higher utilization and revenue will offset expected moderation in profit margins for the company. The copper smelter reported Rs 749 crore EBITDA on Rs 10.922 crore revenue in the June quarter. India's copper imports are expected to decrease as Kutch Copper ramps up its production capacity.