📉 RBI Just Made Your EMIs Cheaper

🌞 Saturday Sips

Don't know what's hotter—India’s repo rate cut or the spice level in the magic masala we’re dreaming of 🌶️. Either way, today’s brew is bursting with flavor. RBI just poured the biggest cup of rate cut relief we’ve seen in years, Elon’s xAI is thinking in billions, and PhysicsWallah’s UPSC dreams are taking a solo turn. Brew it all below 👇

☕ Chai Shots

• 💸 RBI drops a double shot: India’s central bank cut interest rates and released more cash into the system—making loans cheaper and money easier to borrow. More in the Big Brew below! ☕👇

• 📚 PhysicsWallah & Drishti IAS call off merger: The blockbuster UPSC coaching merger is off—PhysicsWallah won’t be acquiring Drishti IAS after all. Strategic and financial clashes ended talks on the ₹3,000 crore deal. Drishti, strong in Hindi-medium prep, is staying solo with ₹90 crore FY24 profits, while PW shifts focus back to its IPO prep.

• 🚀 Starlink clears takeoff for India: Elon Musk’s Starlink has bagged a crucial GMPCS license from India’s telecom department, giving it the official green light to launch services in the country. With rivals Jio and OneWeb already in play, Starlink is expected to begin trials in the coming weeks.

• 📈 RBI vouches for IndusInd, market reacts: After a rough patch involving derivative missteps, IndusInd Bank got a vote of confidence from RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra. With regulatory fixes in place and management reshuffled, the stock soared 5% in a single session.

• 🎨 Birla Paints calls foul on Asian Paints: Aditya Birla Group’s Birla Opus has filed an antitrust complaint against Asian Paints, alleging anti-competitive dealer pressure. Asian Paints has denied the claims, while India’s competition regulator digs in.

📈 Market Masala

• 📊 Markets cheer RBI’s double bonanza: Sensex surged 747 points and Nifty climbed 252 points to close just above 25,000 after the RBI surprised with a hefty 50 bps repo rate cut and a 1% CRR cut. Investors gained a collective ₹3.6 lakh crore in a single day as mid- and small-caps outperformed.

• 🏠 Real estate rides liquidity wave: Nifty Realty jumped 4.7% as developers welcomed cheaper loans and enhanced liquidity. Demand for housing loans is expected to rise, especially in Tier 2 and 3 cities, where property sales have picked up pace.

• 📊 Big board action: Over 119 stocks hit 52-week highs, including HDFC Bank and SBI Cards. Meanwhile, 95 stocks hit upper circuit limits and trading volumes exploded in names like Rama Steel and IDFC First Bank.

• ⚙️ India’s EV dreams hit supply snag: China’s restriction on rare-earth magnet exports is creating panic among Indian EV makers. With domestic production still lagging, the industry is lobbying for quick policy support to build local supply chains.

• 🏨 Oyo plots hotel spree across 300+ cities: Oyo’s pushing hard into company-run hotels, aiming to double their revenue share to 44% by FY26. With 500 new properties in places like Port Blair, Darjeeling, and Jalandhar, the platform is betting on higher occupancy, better reviews, and IPO-friendly metrics.

• 🛵 Zomato shifts gears with EV rentals: Zomato’s going green—starting a rental-based EV pilot for delivery riders in Delhi-NCR. Over 37K partners already use EVs, and the goal is a 100% electric fleet by 2030. Lower costs, safety-first designs, and subsidies make this a smart pivot for the food delivery giant.

🌍 Global Masala

• 📉 Lululemon limps on earnings outlook: Lululemon's shares dropped nearly 20% after trimming its profit forecast due to weak consumer spending and tariffs on China imports. The yoga apparel giant expects Q2 earnings to fall short of expectations.

• 📉 Russia cuts interest rates to 20%: For the first time in three years, the Bank of Russia has lowered its benchmark rate, signaling cautious optimism despite war-induced inflation and sanctions.

• 💰 UK eyes crypto ETNs comeback: The UK’s financial watchdog is considering lifting its ban on crypto exchange-traded notes (ETNs) for retail investors. The move would bring it in line with US and EU markets, aiming to turn the UK into a fintech hub again.

🫖 The Big Brew ☕ RBI hits the economy with a double espresso 💸

India’s central bank just brewed up a bold combo: it cut interest rates and freed up more money for banks to lend. Here’s what that means:

• 📉 Interest rates drop: The RBI slashed the repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.5%—its third cut this year. That’s code for “loans just got cheaper.”

• 💧 More cash for banks: It also lowered the CRR (Cash Reserve Ratio) by 1%, releasing ₹2.5 lakh crore into the system to boost lending.

• 📊 No more easy-money mood: After cutting rates three times, the RBI has shifted its stance from “let’s boost growth” to “let’s wait and see.”

• 🛍️ Loan EMIs to drop: Expect lower monthly payments on home, car, and personal loans. Savers might see FDs dip, though.

• 📉 Inflation’s behaving: Prices are under control—CPI is at a 5-year low of 3.2%—giving RBI room to take bold action.

• 📈 Growth still solid: GDP forecast stays at 6.5%, with strong domestic demand keeping India on track.

• 💸 Bond investors rejoice: Lower rates push up bond prices. Debt funds and long-term bonds may now look more attractive.

🎯 What does this mean?
The RBI wants us to borrow, spend, and invest more to keep the economy buzzing. But with global drama still unfolding—think US elections, oil swings, and trade spats—this might be a well-caffeinated jumpstart, not a long-distance run.

🔍 Startup Scoop

• 💳 Decentro locks ₹30 crore, returns to India: Fintech infra player Decentro raised ₹30 crore in a round led by InfoEdge Ventures, joining the reverse flip trend by shifting its base from Singapore to India. Now profitable, Decentro plans to ramp up enterprise adoption and expand tools like its AI-powered multilingual collections bot, Neobot.

• 🧪 HealthKois aims for $300M healthtech fund: Health-focused VC HealthKois is raising a $300M fund to back 13–16 startups in AI-led medtech, biopharma, and climate health. Ticket sizes will range from $7–25M, targeting scale-up stage ventures solving affordability and access issues in Indian healthcare.

• 💻 Scaler trims valuation, raises $40M: Edtech startup Scaler is raising $40 million at nearly half its 2022 valuation. While FY24 revenue hit ₹384.5 crore, losses narrowed to ₹139 crore. Amid layoffs and tighter capital, Scaler is tightening the belt while still gunning for growth against Newton and Masai.

🧠 Chai Break Trivia

Did you know a day on Venus is longer than a year on Venus? ⏳🪐

It takes Venus 243 Earth days to rotate once, but only 225 Earth days to orbit the Sun.

🔮 What’s Brewing Next

• 🏦 US Fed policy meeting on June 17–18: Markets are watching closely for interest rate signals amid mixed inflation and jobs data.

🫖 That’s a Wrap!

Whether it’s repo rates or called off mergers, India never stops serving up drama with a side of economics. Go enjoy your Saturday—maybe with a little retail therapy before those FD rates drop. We'll be back with more masala than your local chaat stall. Until then, sip safely! 🍵