Newsletter
Energy deals, Venture town hot, and Gold's new high.
š Morning, folks!
Markets were a mixed bag on Thursday. Both Sensex and Nifty slipped 0.4%, but strength in financials and pharma helped broader indices stay afloat. Nifty Bank and Midcap Index ended in the green.
Letās hit it!
1 Big Thing: Tariffying Thursday šØ
If thereās one thing markets hate, itās uncertainty.
Trumpās arbitrary tariff plan sent shockwaves through U.S. markets. By mid-day, the S&P 500 had fallen over 4%, while the Nasdaq was down nearly 5%.
Country-specific indices took an even bigger hit. Markets like Vietnam were hammered, as investors priced in the impact of the proposed 46% tariff rate.
Single stocks were hit pretty bad too. Apple was down over 6%. Nike, which employs 4.5L people in factories in Vietnam, lost nearly 15%.
Whatās next: while itās debatable whether Trump will maintain such high rates in the long run, heās set a lofty benchmarkāone he can now use as leverage in negotiations. Rumors suggest that countries like South Korea, Vietnam, and others are already at the table.
China and the EU, meanwhile, struck a different tone. China announced plans to prepare a comprehensive response, and Europe is already working on countermeasures.
India, surprisingly, may be relatively better positioned. With tariffs at 26%, Indiaās rate structure appears more favorable compared to its Asian peers ā a nod to the GOIās tactful handling of the Trump challenge. While this still impacts Indian exporters, we might be in a position to absorb some of the business lost by Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, China, and even Vietnam in the short term.
The Nifty and Sensex holding relatively steady could be a sign that the markets agree with us.
Meanwhile, pharma in India was crushing it. The US tariff regime will exempt pharmaceutical products, triggering a sharp relief rally. Nifty Pharma jumped, with Gland Pharma, Aurobindo, Dr. Reddyās, and Sun Pharma gaining as much as 15%.
2. Lupinās London dose š
Lupin, a leading manufacturer of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) in India, is acquiring UK-based Renascience Pharma for ā¹135 crore in a strategic push into specialty medicines.
Context: Renascience makes niche treatments like injectable antibiotics, ear drops, and oral therapies for heart and kidney issues. These drugs target chronic, hard-to-treat conditions and already have UK regulatory approvals.
Big picture: this deal gives Lupin an express entry into the UKās high-margin specialty drug market, skipping years of R&D and regulatory hurdles.
As Indian pharma pivots from generics to value-driven innovation, this acquisition helps Lupin boost margins and expand globally.
3. Who got the bag š³
Scapia, the travel-focused fintech platform, raised $40 million in a Series B round led by Peak XV Partners.
Founded just last year, Scapia offers a no-forex-fee credit card and a rewards-driven platform for flight and hotel bookings, targeted squarely at Indiaās travel-hungry millennials.
By the numbers: in FY24, Scapia earned ā¹17 crore in revenue. Itās still in its early days, and competes with players like OneCard and Zolve.
The big picture: as Indian millennials shift toward experience-first spending, Scapia sits at the intersection of travel, credit, and digital perks.
While weāre on fundraisesā¦
Pratilipi raised $20 million in Series E funding, led by Jungle Ventures.
Pratilipi is a digital storytelling platform that hosts audiobooks, podcasts, comics, web series, and more, primarily in regional languages like Hindi, Bengali, Marathi, and Gujarati.
The company plans to use the capital to expand into new formats like animation and vertical drama, and scale up internationally.
4. BHEL and Adani team up for mega power push ā”
BHEL-Hitachi Energy India bagged a major transmission project from Adani Energy Solutions to help move more green power across Indiaās grid.
The deets: the system will move green power from BhadlaāIndiaās solar powerhouseāto Fatehpur, spanning 950 km.
BHEL will supply the critical hardware like converter transformers, shunt reactors, and thyristor valves to convert AC to DC for efficient long-distance transfer.
Why it matters: India is targeting 500 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. But generation is only half the battle. You need to move the power. This project helps solve that.
Big picture: this is BHELās fourth big HVDC play after the North-East Agra, Raigarh-Pugalur, and Khavda-Nagpur links.
5. Stocks that kept us interested š
1. Kirloskar powers up defence āļø
Kirloskar Oil bagged a project worth ā¹300 crore from the Defence Ministry to supply marine diesel engines for Indian Navy ships.
The deets: Kirloskar Oil Engines, one of Indiaās oldest engineering firms, is known for making industrial engines, generators, and diesel power systems.
The new order is for developing and supplying 6 MW Medium Speed Marine Diesel Engines, massive power units used to propel Navy warships and large vessels. These engines are crucial for keeping ships moving steadily and efficiently over long missions at sea.
Why it matters: until now, the Indian Navy relied heavily on foreign-made engines for such heavy-duty applications. This project marks a big shift towards domestic defence manufacturing, aligning with Indiaās āAatmanirbhar Bharatā push.
The stock rose more than 3% following the news.
2. Shaktiās Solar Splash š
Shakti Pumps climbed 3% after bagging a ā¹12.4 crore order to install solar-powered water pumps across Maharashtra.
The deets: Shakti Pumps is a homegrown engineering company known for making solar-powered pumps and motors that bring water to farms.
The company received order from Maharashtra Energy Development Agency (MEDA) to supply and install 445 off-grid solar water pumping systems.
These systems help farmers draw groundwater using solar energy, especially in remote areas where electricity is unreliable or unavailable.
The move also aligns with Shaktiās bigger solar ambitions. Just last month, it was allotted 113 acres in MP to build a new solar cell and PV module factory.
6. Story in data: Submarine swag š
Only six countries operate nuclear-powered submarines, and India is the only one from the Global South.
While the US and Russia dominate the undersea fleet with 66 and 31 vessels respectively, India operates twoāmarking a significant milestone in its naval modernization.
What else are we snackinā šæ
š„ Tariff sparkle: Gold soared to $3,160/oz, a fresh global record, after Trumpās new 10% import tariffs spooked markets. In India, it touched a lifetime high of ā¹76,000/10 grams.
š Musk drag: Teslaās latest quarterly deliveries fell 13%, marking a three-year low.
š§ Tariff tension buy: Chinese tech giants like ByteDance, Alibaba, and Tencent placed $16 billion+ worth of orders for Nvidia AI chips in just the first three months of 2025.
š Power play: Hindustan Power bagged a 425 MW solar project from Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation, as it eyes a 5 GW green energy portfolio by 2028.
And thatās a wrap. Pour yourself an extra one this weekend.
Weāll be back like clockwork on Monday!
Hit that š if you liked this issue.
