The tranquility in India’s $3.7 trillion stock market is set to be broken as the world’s most populous nation heads to polls in about six months, according to Morgan Stanley.

While the Wall Street bank expects stocks to rise leading to the vote in keeping with recent history, any outcome outside of investors’ expectations could spark a slump of as much as 30% in India’s equity benchmarks.

Following the widespread violation of the firecracker ban across the National Capital Region (NCR), the air quality in Delhi and nearby cities worsened on Tuesday. On Monday morning, toxic haze had returned to Delhi, Noida, Gurugram and surrounding places following the Diwali celebration.

According to Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) data, the air quality index (AQI) in ITO was registered at 430 at 6 AM, and the AQI in Jahangirpuri was recorded at 428. At 9 AM, AQI.CN pegged the air quality index (AQI) in the national capital 417.

State-owned insurer LIC on Friday reported a 50 per cent fall in net profit at Rs 7,925 crore for the quarter ended September 30, on lower income.

The country's biggest insurer had a net profit of Rs 15,952 crore in the year-ago period, LIC said in a regulatory filing.

In an alarming development, experts have revealed that there has been a 50 per cent jump in prevalence of diabetes among young individuals under 40 years of age in recent years in India, which is home to 74.2 mn diabetics. India is often dubbed as the diabetic capital of the world where nearly 11 per cent of the population is grappling with the disease.

Speaking at a recent health forum hosted by Practo, Hema Venkataraman, a consultant Endocrinologist from NHS, UK, and Medical Advisor at Practo Transform, said, “The prevalence of diabetes is 11 per cent all across India and diabetes is no longer confined to just older demographics.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has “provisionally attached” assets worth about Rs 50 crore belonging to Hero MotoCorp Executive Chairman Pawan Munjal in connection with a money-laundering investigation against him. These include three immovable properties (in the form of land) in Delhi, the central agency said in a statement on Friday.

The ED alleged that Munjal misused the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI’s) liberalised remittance scheme (LRS) by illegally moving foreign currency and valuable items worth Rs 54 crore abroad and later using them for his personal expenses.

The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Amit Katyal, an alleged associate of RJD chief Lalu Prasad and his son Tejashwi Yadav, in connection with a money laundering investigation into the alleged land-for-jobs scam case, official sources said on Saturday.

Katyal was detained by the agency on Friday and was arrested after questioning, they said. He is expected to be produced before a local court where the ED will seek his custody for interrogation.

Reliance Industries Ltd’s (RIL’s) oil and gas vertical reported its record quarterly profit in the latest quarter (July-September), when the business reported an Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortisation) of Rs 4,766 crore.

In the quarter, a little over 10 per cent of RIL’s consolidated Ebitda came from its oil and gas business.

The Indian rupee hit a lifetime low of 83.48 (intraday) against the US dollar on Friday after hawkish comments by US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

But the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) intervened in the foreign exchange market by selling dollars, which helped the currency cut losses to end the day at 83.34, which is a record closing low. The local currency settled at 83.29 against the dollar on Thursday.

ESAF Small Finance Bank (SFB) made a strong stock market debut on Friday with its shares getting listed at Rs 71.90 on the BSE, a 20 per cent premium over its issue price of Rs 60 per share. On the National Stock Exhcnage (NSE), the stock opened at Rs 71, 18 per cent higher against its issue price.

Post listing, the stock moved higher to Rs 74.15 on the BSE, and to Rs 74.30 on the NSE. At 10:01 AM, ESAF SFB was quoting at Rs 73.65, 23 per cent higher over its issue price.

The price of 24-carat gold dipped Rs 440 in early trade on Friday, with ten grams of the precious metal selling for Rs 60,760, according to the GoodReturns website. The price of silver fell Rs 300, with one kilogram of the precious metal selling at Rs 73,200.

The price of 22-carat gold slid Rs 400, with the yellow metal selling at Rs 55,700.

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