Business highlights

Following are the top business stories at 2110 hours: DEL26 BIZ-FM-BUDGET Budget this year to follow spirit of earlier ones: FM Sitharaman New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sithataman on Friday indicated that her forthcoming Budget will continue to push growth on the back of public spending as she said it will ''follow the spirit'' of earlier Budgets.

DCM34 BIZ-LD WINDFALL-TAX Windfall profit tax on crude slashed; tax on diesel, ATF export cut New Delhi: The government has slashed the windfall profit tax levied on domestically-produced crude oil as well as on export of diesel and ATF following a decline in global oil prices, according to an official order.

DEL90 BIZ-2NDLD STOCKS Markets skid for 2nd day as global rate hikes dampen sentiment; post weekly losses Mumbai: The BSE Sensex spiralled lower for the second straight session on Friday, in lockstep with other global markets after a host of central banks hiked interest rates and indicated more policy tightening to cool inflation even at the cost of economic growth.

DEL75 BIZ-RBI-FOREX Forex reserves swell by USD 2.91 bn to USD 564.06 bn as of Dec 9 Mumbai: India's forex reserves rose by USD 2.908 billion to USD 564.06 billion for the week ended on December 9, according to the Reserve Bank data released on Friday.

DEL101 BIZ-LD-RUPEE Rupee closes flat at 82.75 against US dollar amid forex inflows Mumbai: The rupee pared its early losses to close almost flat at 82.75 against the US currency on Friday supported by falling crude oil prices and forex inflows amid concerns over rising interest rates and inflation.

DCM30 BIZ-LD VEHICLE-BHARAT SERIES Vehicle registrations: Govt tweaks BH series rules New Delhi: The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has allowed the conversion of regular vehicle registrations into Bharat Series (BH) numbers as part of measures to widen the scope of the BH series ecosystem.

DEL72 BIZ-RBI-RAZORPAY RBI asks Razorpay, Cashfree to pause onboarding of new customers New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India has asked Razorpay and Cashfree to temporarily stop the onboarding of new customers for their payment processing business, according to a source.

DCM60 BIZ-WOMEN-RESERVATION Morparia, Kidwai pitch for reservation for women in legislature, company boards New Delhi: Reservation for women in legislature and boards of companies is needed in order to have a fair representation of them in top decision making bodies, top women industry leaders Kalpana Morparia and Naina Lal Kidwai said on Friday.

DCM63 BIZ-OIL IMPORTS Crude oil imports up 52.58 pc to USD 146.57 bn in Apr-Nov: Comm min data New Delhi: The country's imports of Crude oil rose by 52.58 per cent to USD 146.57 billion during April-November period this fiscal, according to the data of the commerce ministry.

DEL65 BIZ-ACID ATTACK-FLIPKART Consumer interest watchdog CCPA issues notices to Flipkart, Meesho for sale of acid on their platforms New Delhi: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has sent notices to e-commerce players Flipkart and meesho.com for gross violations of norms relating to sale of acid on their platforms.

DCM57 BIZ-STOCKS-WEALTH Investors become poorer by Rs 5.78 lakh cr in two days of market fall New Delhi: Investors wealth tumbled over Rs 5.78 lakh crore in two days of market fall amid a weak trend in global markets after a host of central banks hiked interest rates and gave hawkish commentary.

DEL92 BIZ-LD GOLD-PRICE Gold gains Rs 107; silver declines Rs 120 New Delhi: Gold prices rose Rs 107 to Rs 54,222 per 10 grams in the national capital on Friday amid gains in prices of precious metal in overseas markets, according to HDFC Securities.