Honda Cars Registers "9,400 Units Of Domestic Sales" In October 2023

* New SUV Elevate strengthens its presence in mid-SUV segment  

Honda Cars India Ltd. (HCIL), leading manufacturer of premium cars in India, registered monthly domestic sales of 9,400 units in Oct’23 backed by strong demand for its new SUV Honda Elevate. The export numbers for HCIL stood at 3,683 units in Oct’23.  

Sharing thoughts on the monthly sales performance, Mr. Yuichi Murata, Director, Marketing and Sales, Honda Cars India Ltd said,"There is a strong demand during the festival period with incredible response for our new model Honda Elevate from our customers. We are actively working to meet the strong demand for Elevate. The Honda City and Amaze models have also maintained their good performance. As we near the auspicious celebrations of Dhanteras and Diwali, our dealerships are focusing on maximising deliveries to our esteemed customers and making them a part of the Honda family.” 

The company had registered 9,543 in domestic sales and exported 1,678 units in Oct’22.   

About Honda Cars India Ltd. 

Honda Cars India Ltd. (HCIL), a leading manufacturer of premium cars in India, was established in December 1995 with a commitment to provide Honda’s passenger car models and technologies, to the Indian customers. HCIL’s corporate office is based in Greater Noida, UP and its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility is located at Tapukara, District. Alwar, Rajasthan.  

Honda’s models are strongly associated with advanced design and technology, apart from their established qualities of durability, reliability, safety, and fuel-efficiency. The company has a strong sales and distribution network spread across the country.  

Besides the new car business, Honda offers one stop solution for buying and selling pre-owned cars through its business function Honda Auto Terrace. The Honda Certified Pre-owned cars come with an assurance of quality and peace of mind that caters to the diverse and burgeoning needs of pre-owned car buyers across the country. 

Home Credit Unveils Diwali Campaign #KhushiyonKaShubharambh

* The new AV released under the brand thought of #ZindagiHit showcases Home Credit India as an enabler of fulfilling aspirations, helping customers celebrate life without the need to worry about financial constraints. 

Home Credit India, a local arm of the leading global consumer finance provider, unveiled its festive campaign "#KhushiyonKaShubharambh" under the brand thought of #ZindagiHit today. This heartwarming campaign reaffirms Home Credit India's leadership in the low-to-mid ticket size finance for mobile handsets & consumer durables and showcases the brand's commitment to helping its customers achieve their financial aspirations by supporting them in making their loved ones' dreams a reality during this Diwali. The new AV is LIVE across digital platforms including Home Credit India’s social channels such as Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly known as Twitter), YouTube & LinkedIn.  

The AV opens with a voiceover saying, "Tyohar, inke rang hai anek aur khushiyon ke zariye hain hazaar," (festivals, countless colours and thousand ways to celebrate) accompanied by visuals of a house with name plate of – Mr & Mrs Sharma.. This sets the stage for a series of vignettes that capture the essence  of the Diwali spirit. In one vignette, a teenage daughter receives a new phone, which will give wings to her aspiration to become an influencer. In another vignette, a woman walks into the kitchen and sees a brand-new refrigerator, which ignites her long forgotten dream of becoming a caterer. The delivery of a LED TV at their doorstep further brightens the festive mood. Each gift comes with a Home Credit smile symbol card, bearing the inscription Happy Diwali. As the family gathers around to celebrate, they warmly embrace Sharmaji, the man who made all these dreams come true, with the help of Home Credit India. The video concludes with the narrator's voice, affirming, "Jab apno ki khwahishein hoti hai poori, toh ban jaate hain ye tyohaar aur bhi shaandaar." (When the wishes of your loved ones are fulfilled, the festival becomes more spectacular)  

Speaking on the new campaign, Ashish Tiwari, Chief Marketing Officer of Home Credit India, said, " Home Credit India is not just a financial services provider; we are a partner in fulfilling our customers' aspirations. As we unveil this campaign, we want to emphasise that it's not just about addressing financial needs; it's about adding joy to the festive season through our safe, trustworthy, easy and quick financing services. With our extensive presence, superlative consumer experience, state-of-the-art digital assets and financial literacy initiatives, we strive to be the beacon of responsible lending in India." 

In essence, the campaign is about Home Credit India sharing its bond with each of its customers as a financial catalyst, by making access to financial services easier and empowering customers for a brighter future. The tone and feel of the campaign embody essential values such as optimism, progress, trustworthiness, transparency, and the role of an enabler, making Home Credit India as the preferred choice for consumer durable loans. 

Over the past decade, Home Credit India has established a robust brand presence in the country, currently serving customers in more than 625 cities. With a vast network of 53,000 points of sale (PoS) and a steadily growing customer base of 16 million, Home Credit India has solidified its position as a responsible consumer lender. Furthermore, Home Credit India has actively engaged with over 3 million individuals through its financial literacy campaign, "Paise Ki Paathshala." This initiative is dedicated to fostering a culture of responsible borrowing in society, reinforcing Home Credit India's commitment to responsible lending practices. 

Working Professionals In Electronics Industry Can Now Pursue B.Tech. Electronics Engineering From BITS Pilani WILP

The Work Integrated Learning Programmes (WILP) division of Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS), Pilani has launched a new B.Tech. degree programme in Electronics Engineering, exclusively for working professionals. The programme aims to help professionals pursue exciting career paths, especially in the field of core electrical and electronics engineering (EEE). Notably, professionals (and their organizations) related to vital industries, such as telecommunications, semiconductor, IoT & Embedded systems, and allied domains, will be able to derive significant value from the programme.

The seven-semester degree programme is a blend of foundational sciences, core technologies, and execution management, and can be pursued by working professionals, without taking a career break. Professionals holding a diploma in electronics and communication engineering or in any equivalent specialization, such as electrical, instrumentation, and telecommunications, with a minimum of one-year work experience, would be eligible to enrol themselves for the programme.

High demand for skilled professionals in electronics and telecommunications industries

India with abundant silicon is investing significantly in electronics manufacturing cluster, especially in terms of creating a robust semiconductor ecosystem. As per ResearchAndMarkets, India’s semiconductor industry is at the growth stage and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19.7% from 2022F to 2026F. With the growing demand from end users, industries such as industrial machinery, automobiles, telecommunication equipment, and office automation, are accelerating the semiconductor market growth. 5G and 6G telecom networks, Lithium mining, and Lithium-ion battery manufacturing industries too will likely witness significant market penetration in the next few years and beyond.

Cumulatively, various EEE domain-related industries (especially in India), such as aerospace, defence, space technology, agriculture, semiconductor, automobile, and telecommunication, are currently in need of skilled working professionals and will be so in the foreseeable future as well.

About the need for the programme and its potential

Elaborating further about the value proposition of the B.Tech. Electronics Engineering programme, Prof. Satya Sudhakar Yedlapalli, who heads the EEE group of BITS Pilani WILP, says, “Electronics engineers are at the forefront of technological innovation that we all are witnessing in today’s world. … Be it about designing and developing cutting-edge processor architectures for high-performance computing systems or implementing innovative communication systems or technologies (such as AI and IoT), engineers have been playing extremely active and critical roles in their success. Now, considering the recent surge in overall growth in the EEE domain, which is largely being driven by semiconductor market, automotive, computation and data storage and wireless technologies, there is a relative and immediate need to upskill (and even reskill) our electronics engineers as well.”

“Accordingly, our B.Tech. Electronics Engineering programme has been designed in such a manner that it aims to further improve the professionals’ overall competencies in circuits and devices, communication technologies, processor architectures, edge computing, IoT, and signal processing, among several key aspects. And this is exactly the need of the hour, from industries’ standpoint as well,” concludes the professor.

How to apply for the B.Tech. Electronics Engineering programme?

To download the programme brochure or to learn more about the objectives, highlights, curriculum (including details about core courses and electives), eligibility criteria, learning methodology, featured faculty, and any other critical information, please visit the B.Tech. Electronics Engineering programme page on BITS Pilani’s WILP website.

The last date for applications for admissions for the programme is December 11, 2023.

About BITS Pilani:

BITS Pilani is an Institution of national repute, known for providing technical education of the highest standards and is well recognized for its innovations, and strong links with industry. It is consistently ranked as the best private engineering & technology institution by leading ranking agencies and publications. MHRD, Govt. of India, in August 2018 announced BITS Pilani as one of the first six Institutions of Eminence in the country. It is one of the few universities that has created an institutionalized framework for achieving a vibrant environment that successfully inculcates an ambience for experiential and cooperative learning and education. BITS Pilani views education as a continual engagement and experience, and ensures that the learning experience is integrated seamlessly not only across its classrooms and laboratories, but also in the industry, as exemplified by its Practice School, and Work Integrated Learning Programmes.

About BITS Pilani Work Integrated Learning Programmes (WILP):

India has a large and qualified professional workforce, which must and will continue to grow in size, complexity, and quality. Given the nature of modern professions, and the acquired reputation of Indian professionals in these roles, continual learning and higher educational qualifications are necessary tools for the nation to succeed within, and compete globally. Work Integrated Learning Programmes of BITS Pilani (WILP) are degree/diploma/certificate programmes, which are developed and conducted by BITS Pilani in association and jointly with organizations representing various industry sectors.

Housing.com To Invest In Fintech Start-Up Easiloan With The Ambition To Create India's Largest Home Loan Platform

Housing.com, India's preeminent digital real estate platform, has decided to make a strategic investment in EASILOAN, a fintech start-up focusing on digitizing the home loan journey. Although the specific investment sum remains undisclosed, this partnership aims to lay the foundation for Housing.com's plans to create India's largest digital home loan origination platform.

Owned by REA India, which also controls PropTiger.com and Makaan.com, Housing.com has emerged as the leader in the Indian digital real estate market. REA India is a subsidiary of the global conglomerate, REA Group Ltd. (ASX: REA).

Established in 2021 by Pramod Kathuria, Easiloan is a digital home loan marketplace offering personalized, end-to-end home loan solutions through collaborations with over 20 banks across India. The platform employs customer profile-based matchmaking, enabling users to compare, select, and process home loans seamlessly. Easiloan is strategically positioned for exponential customer acquisition through partnerships with brokers, developers, and other digital channels.

This partnership is designed to capitalize on Housing.com's market-leading digital presence, while simultaneously broadening the reach of mortgage products to its esteemed network of brokers and developers. "This symbiotic collaboration is not just a value addition to our seller customers but also augments user engagement on our platform and offers an avenue for enhanced revenue generation," said the company in a statement.

Mr. Dhruv Agarwala, Group CEO of Housing.com, PropTiger.com, and Makaan.com, said, "Housing.com  is committed to offering its customers and consumers an exhaustive suite of real estate services, and this partnership with Easiloan marks a seminal step in that direction. Mortgages are an organic expansion within the digital real estate sphere, driven by the large customer base that we have cultivated on our platform."

Mr. Agarwala further added, "Technological advancement and the Indian government's commitment to digitalization in the lending sector will profoundly transform the home loans landscape in the forthcoming years, and we are committed to pioneering this revolution."

With estimates showing a 16% growth in the overall home loan portfolio from December 2021 to December 2022, reaching a staggering $108.14 billion in disbursed loans in 2022 alone, housing credit in India is set for significant further growth in the coming years.

"We are delighted to partner strategically with Housing.com," remarked Mr. Pramod Kathuria, Founder & CEO of Easiloan.com. "With the Indian fintech industry projected to be worth $150 billion by 2025 and the real estate market projected to reach $1 trillion by 2030, we can collaboratively define new milestones in both areas."

Earlier, Easiloan has raised seed funding from Tomorrow Capital in Sept’21 and demonstrated strong traction in terms of customer acquisition, loan disbursement and expansion in Mumbai, Pune, and Bengaluru.

Ms. Rohini Prakash, CEO, Tomorrow Capital added, “We are proud to have backed Pramod in his journey to build Easiloan, and truly believe that it is a gamechanger for the mortgage space in India. The Easiloan brand uses a tech-first approach to deliver a superior home loan experience, from discovery to disbursement, for its customers. It continues to provide unparalleled benefits to multiple stakeholders including real estate developers and agents. We are glad to welcome Housing.com onboard in scaling the Easiloan platform further.” 

NOTE: Sources for industry numbers quoted in the release.

1. Overall portfolio outstanding of Homeloans grew by 16% from Dec'21 to Dec'22 - This is from Equifax report, Page -13 (Link)

2. Estimates shows a total of 3.4Mn housing loans worth $108.14 billion were disbursed by banks, HFCs and others in India in CY 2022. (Exchange rate used here 1 US$ = INR 83.22)"- Source Equifax report, Page-16  (Link)

3. Indian Fintech industry, poised to reach $150 billion by 2025- Statement by Ministry of State of Finance, (Link)

About Easiloan ( www.Easiloan.com )

Easiloan is India’s digital home loan marketplace. This is an end-to-end digital platform for real estate developers, brokers, home buyers and lenders, bringing the demand and supply together. Easiloan works as the front-end to Banks with a re-imagined approach for sourcing and processing of home-loans.

About Tomorrow Capital 

Tomorrow Capital is a $100 million operating investment fund investing in multiple sectors in the consumer space. Tomorrow Capital focuses on empowering stellar early-stage entrepreneurs with strong and differentiated models to build transformative and sustainable businesses around consumption themes of the future. With a deep understanding of business fundamentals, Tomorrow Capital aims to create iconic consumer brands out of its investee companies in India.

About Housing.com

Established in 2012 and later acquired by REA India in 2017, Housing.com has emerged as India's foremost comprehensive prop-tech platform for homeowners, home seekers, landlords, developers, and real estate brokers. With an extensive range of listings including new homes, resale homes, rentals, plots, commercial spaces, and co-living spaces throughout India, Housing.com offers unparalleled services in the real estate industry. Powered by robust research, data, and insights, our platform delivers a comprehensive suite of real estate solutions, encompassing advertising, marketing, sales solutions for developers and brokers, personalized search, virtual viewing, AR&VR content, home loans, a variety of DIY services for homeowners and seekers, as well as post-transaction services for consumers.

As a subsidiary of REA Group Ltd. (ASX: REA), REA India (formerly known as Elara Technologies Pte. Ltd.) stands as the preeminent real estate technology platform in the country, overseeing Housing.com, Makaan.com, and PropTiger.com. With 24 offices strategically located across India, including our corporate headquarters in Gurugram, Haryana, REA India maintains a national presence, delivering exceptional real estate services to clients.

To explore further information about our company and the wide range of services we offer, visit our website at http://www.housing.com/.

Motorola Offers Massive Discounts On Its Smartphones During The Flipkart Big Diwali Sale

The world’s slimmest 5G smartphone with an IP68 rating, and the world's first smartphone to be powered by the MediaTek™ Dimensity 8020 Processor, the motorola edge 40 is available on sale for Rs. 26,999. 

India’s most powerful~ 5G smartphone, moto g54 5G featuring the segment’s 1st in-built 12GB RAM + 256GB storage, and India’s 1st MediaTek™ Dimensity 7020 octa-core processor with 6000mAh battery, is available at just Rs. 13,999 and Rs. 15,999 for 8+128 GB and 12+256 GB variants respectively. 

India’s most affordable in-built 8GB RAM & 128GB storage smartphone the moto e13, is available on sale for just Rs. 7,499. 

Sale is live for the newly launched Motorola edge 40 neo, world's lightest IP68 rated 5G* smartphone and the world’s first smartphone powered by the MediaTek™ Dimensity 7030 Processor, available at Rs. 22,999 and Rs. 24,999 for its 8+128 GB and 12+256 GB variants respectively.   

The moto g84 5G, the first sub 20K segment smartphone ever to be offered in Pantone™ colour of the Year 2023- Viva Magenta, vegan leather finish & 120Hz billion colours pOLED display, is available for a standout price of Rs. 18,999. 

Additional platform offers may apply with effect from 2nd November to 11th November 2023. 

NUVOCO Vistas Announces Its Financial Results For Q2 FY24

* Consolidated revenue increased 7% YoY to Rs. 2,573 crores 

* Consolidated EBITDA increased 73% YoY to Rs. 336 crores 

Nuvoco Vistas Corp. Ltd., a leading building materials Company in India, announced its unaudited financial results for the quarter ended September 30, 2023. With 23.82 MMTPA of combined installed capacity, Nuvoco Vistas Corp. Ltd. is the fifth largest cement group in India and amongst the leading cement players in East India. 

The consolidated cement sales volume for the Company increased by 1.2% YoY to 4.5 MMT in Q2 FY24. Consolidated revenue from operations during the same period improved by 7% YoY to

Rs. 2,573 crores and consolidated EBITDA also improved by 73% YoY to Rs. 336 crores.  

The Company has completed its debottlenecking projects at the Risda and Nimbol plants, enhancing the clinker production capacity by 2,000 TPD. This will provide headroom for growth and cater to increasing demand.  

In addition, the Premium products continue to remain a key focus area for the Company. The Company secured patent for its revolutionary product 'Fibre Reinforced Cement Composition' branded in the market as 'Duraguard Microfiber Cement'. The patent, effective from the date of application - April 4, 2018, cites exclusive rights for the next 20 years. The Company also extended premium cement variants ‘Concreto UNO’ and ‘Duraguard F2F’ from Bihar and West Bengal to Jharkhand.  

The Company remains committed to its sustainability agenda – Protect Our Planet. The Company has amongst the lowest carbon emissions at 462 kg CO2 per ton of cementitious materials1. The Company achieved an alternate fuel rate (AFR) of 14.3% in Q2 FY24, amongst the best in the industry, a significant improvement of 5.2% YoY. 

Commenting on the performance of the Company, Mr. Jayakumar Krishnaswamy, Managing Director, Nuvoco Vistas Corp. Ltd. stated, “Our Value over Volume strategy has positively contributed to the Company’s performance. Our trade share has increased from 72% in Q2 FY23 to 74% in Q2 FY24. In addition, the results also demonstrate our commitment to managing the dynamic cost environment through an optimized power and fuel mix between conventional and clean energy sources.” 

Furthermore, he added, “The expansion at the Haryana Cement Plant is expected to be completed in FY24 which will enable us cater to the strong demand in the Northern region. On the RMX business, we have commissioned four new plants in the current fiscal, bringing our total to 55 plants pan-India.” 

Toyota Kirloskar Motor Reports Robust Performance: Sells 21,879 Units In October 2023

- Surge of 66% Y-O-Y growth spurred by the ongoing festive season with the demand trend continuing to grow.

- Reports 40% growth in the first 10 months of CY 2023

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) today reported yet another month of strong performance with the sales of 21,879 units indicating a sharp rise of 66% in comparison with October 2022, when the sales stood at 13,143 units. The company sold a total of 20,542 units in domestic market and exported 1337 units.

The healthy growth pace for TKM has continued through the year. The company recorded a significant increase in terms of Calendar Year performance for the period January–October by selling 1,92,661 units as compared to 1,38,190 units sold during the same period last year, thus demonstrating a substantial 40% increase in 2023. Similarly, in the first 7-months of the FY'23, TKM has accomplished an impressive sale of 1,45,818 units as compared to 1,04,986 units sold in FY’22 indicating a growth of 39% in 2023. Furthermore, the enhanced production capacity through three shift operations has strongly enabled TKM to meet the ever-growing market demand.

Commenting on the sales momentum, Mr. Atul Sood, Vice President of Sales, and Strategic Marketing at Toyota Kirloskar Motor, said, “This year, the offtake of festive season has been very strong for both TKM and well as the industry.  In the month of October’ 2023, we reported our sales of 21,879 units which is mainly driven by the festive season push along with the strong market acceptance of the entire product line-up, resulting in higher volumes. 

For us sustained growth has been coming from across every segment where Toyota has its presence. This upward pattern is resulting in TKM delivering consistent results with fresh bookings remaining strong. Further to models such as the Urban Cruiser Hyryder, Innova Hycross, Hilux, the recent additions of the All New Vellfire and the All New Rumion, have contributed to the positive booking trend. TKM has maintained its segment leadership with models like the New Innova Crysta, Fortuner, and Legender. The Camry Hybrid and Glanza also continue to be significant contributors to the company’s overall success.  To further offer greater value to customers this festive season, we also rolled-out several attractive service benefits and exciting offers across our dealerships to further enhance the customer delight.  

This year marks TKM’s 25 years of remarkable journey in India, our efforts continue to be strongly focused  towards providing greater customer convenience through enhancement of distribution network and improved accessibility to the entire product line-up thus reiterating our customer centric approach and our constant efforts to get closer to our customers.  Given strong market sentiments around Diwali, we remain confident of a very buoyant performance in the coming months as well.”

The month of October also witnessed another successful culmination of 'Great 4X4 Expedition by Toyota’, in the East region after having completed thrilling zonal 4X4 SUVs experiential drives in South, West and North regions. This event served as an exceptional platform to highlight the remarkable capabilities and performance of our 4X4 SUVs, increasing their visibility and appeal. 

In addition, the popularity of Toyota’s iconic Hilux also continues to soar as a tough, versatile, and reliable vehicle meant for varied travel requirements. Besides, already marking a significant milestone by joining the fleet at the Indian Army earlier this year, the Hilux was also a part of the Eastern Naval Fleet Drive 'The Eastern Arc,' organized by the Eastern Command of the Indian Navy covering 17 cities and spanning approximately 6000 kilometres over 12 days along the East Coast of India. Besides the Hilux, the formidable Fortuner was also a part of the rally that traverses the challenging terrains and rugged off-road routes across various remote locations through the diverse and vibrant landscapes of India's eastern region.