Business highlights

Following are the top business stories at 1900 hours: DCM49 BIZ-FINMIN-STATES FinMin sanctions Rs 92,077 cr to states as devolution of central taxes New Delhi: The government on Thursday said it has released Rs 92,077 crore towards devolution of central taxes to states for April and May. DCM43 BIZ-VIRUS-UJJWALA PLAN-LPG Ujjwala beneficiaries get 6.8 crore free cylinders New Delhi: Half-way through the free gas cylinder scheme, over 8 crore Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries have got 6.8 crore free LPG cylinders during April to mid-May, the oil ministry said on Thursday.

DEL92 BIZ-LD STOCKS Markets score a hat-trick as eco reopening fuels recovery hopes; FMCG, auto stocks spurt Mumbai: Equity indices ticked higher for the third session on the trot on Thursday as investors accumulated FMCG, auto and IT stocks amid gradual reopening of the economy. DEL116 BIZ-LD-RUPEE Rupee gains 19 paise on hopes of forex inflow as economic activities resume Mumbai: The rupee rose by 19 paise to close at 75.61 against the US currency on Thursday on dollar selling by banks following gains in equities and weakness in the greenback.

DCM26 BIZ-NOVALEAD PHARMA-DRUG NovaLead Pharma to conduct clinical trials for repurposed drug for COVID-19 New DelhiDrug repurposing firm NovaLead Pharma on Thursday said it has received approval from the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) to conduct phase III clinical trials for its repurposed drug discovery to treat moderate COVID-19. DCM35 BIZ-AMAZON-FOOD DELIVERY Amazon enters Indian food delivery market New Delhi: Amazon India on Thursday said it is launching its food delivery operations in select parts of Bengaluru, a move that will see the e-commerce giant compete against major players like Zomato and Swiggy in the country.

DCM37 BIZ-GFR-PROCUREMENT Govt notifies changes in rules disallowing global tender for procurement up to Rs 200 cr New Delhi: The government has notified amendments to General Financial Rules (GFR) to ensure that goods and services valued less than Rs 200 crore are being procured from domestic firms, a move which will benefit MSMEs. DCM41 BIZ-VIRUS-FM-BANKS FM to meet PSU bank chiefs on Friday, to review credit flow New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will hold a review meeting with CEOs of public sector banks (PSBs) on Friday to discuss various issues, including loan disbursement, as part of efforts to revive the economy reeling under the COVID-19 impact, sources said.

DCM24 BIZ-SAMSUNG-FACEBOOK Samsung India partners Facebook to enable offline retailers go digital New Delhi: Samsung India on Thursday said it has partnered with social media giant Facebook to train offline retailers to go digital..