🛒 Meta purchases

Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving to those celebrating 👨‍👩‍👦 

- Ruchirr Sharma & Shatakshi Sharmaa  

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• 🛒 Social media fuels e-commerce growth

• 🏦 India needs larger, resilient financial institutions for 2047 Goals

• 🗞️ Bite-sized summaries

  • ⚡️ Reskilling is the best way forward

  • 🇯🇵 Masayoshi Son’s India visit

• 🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

• 🍿 Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

MARKETS

🇮🇳 India

• Indian stock markets are expected to open quietly on Wednesday. NTPC Green Energy will be listed today, with analysts expecting muted gains. IT and Adani group stocks remain in focus. Asian markets show mixed trends, while US markets closed at record highs. FIIs were net buyers for the second day. The GIFT Nifty futures indicate a marginally positive start.

🌍️ International

• U.S. stock markets declined on Wednesday as investors processed October inflation data. The Personal Consumption Expenditures index showed minimal progress towards the Federal Reserve's 2% inflation target, impacting market sentiment ahead of Thanksgiving.

E-COMMERCE

🛒 Social media fuels e-commerce growth

According to a recent study by Meta, social media is revolutionising online shopping in India’s tier-II and tier-III markets. The report highlights that 70% of online shoppers in these regions discover products through social media, with 60% engaging with Reels and influencers for product discovery.

Quick commerce is also gaining momentum, with 50% of respondents using such services in the past week. Categories like groceries and personal care dominate, but niche segments such as sportswear, wellness, and pet supplies are seeing increased adoption, particularly among Gen Z.

Meta’s AI-powered discovery tools have been pivotal, with over half of Instagram content being algorithmically recommended. Businesses using AI tools for image generation have reported up to a 7% boost in conversions. Messaging platforms are another key driver, with 55% of respondents using them for purchases in the last year.

UPI remains the top payment method, preferred by 51% of online shoppers. Fashion, food, beauty, and mobile devices are the most popular categories, while online and offline purchases are nearly equal for high-value items like electronics and home furnishings.

Influencers play a significant role, with 46% of followers admitting their buying decisions are influenced by product promotions and comparisons made by creators.

“Quick commerce is expanding beyond essentials like milk and eggs,” said Arun Srinivas, Meta India’s Ads Business Head. “Online shopping is now a sustainable choice across categories, not just an entry point to urban trends.”

Overall: As personalised recommendations, creator-driven content, and convenient payment methods reshape e-commerce in smaller cities, Meta’s platforms are driving a new wave of digital shopping in India.

Read more: Economic Times

BANKING

🏦 India needs larger, resilient financial institutions for 2047 goals

India must significantly expand the scale and size of its financial institutions to achieve its goal of becoming a developed economy by 2047, according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor M Rajeshwar Rao. Speaking at the RBI's "High-Level Policy Conference of Central Banks in the Global South," Rao emphasized that while the country’s financial system has demonstrated resilience, achieving future aspirations will require a substantial transformation.

Rao highlighted that robust governance and effective risk management will be critical in navigating the increased risks associated with scaling financial institutions. Access to deep capital and financial markets will also be essential for banks and other entities to fund their growth and hedge associated risks.

He pointed to the need for innovative financial products, private credit, and new market players to meet India’s growing credit demands. To facilitate this, an enabling regulatory framework must balance fostering innovation with maintaining financial stability.

India’s financial sector has evolved significantly under the RBI's broad mandate, which spans monetary policy, currency management, regulation, supervision, payment systems, and financial inclusion. Over its 90-year history and 75 years as a regulator, the RBI has laid a strong foundation to support India’s developmental ambitions. However, Rao stressed that further strengthening and scaling of institutions are essential to compete in the global financial landscape.

As India aspires to transition from a developing to a developed economy, the focus will remain on building resilient financial institutions capable of navigating complexity while driving sustainable growth.

Read more: Economic Times

GENERAL OVERVIEW

🗞️ Bite-sized summaries

⚡️ Reskilling is the best way forward - The IT landscape is shifting fast, and a recent Quess Corp report sheds light on the trends driving this evolution. In Q2 FY25, analytics, cybersecurity, and DevOps took center stage, making up 79% of IT demand across areas like data science, ERP, networking, and testing. Emerging technologies such as generative AI and quantum computing are poised to create over a million jobs by 2030, adding even more momentum. Cybersecurity saw a staggering 58% growth, fueled by digital transformation, rising cyber threats, and tighter regulatory requirements. Meanwhile, DevOps engineers are in high demand, particularly in BFSI, where they drive digital banking innovation through CI/CD and containerization. IT services led hiring at 42%, with manufacturing and BFSI following close behind. The takeaway? Reskilling is no longer optional in today’s rapidly evolving tech ecosystem.

🇯🇵 Masayoshi Son’s India visit - SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son’s recent visit to India highlights the country’s growing importance as a key market for the Japanese investment giant. During his trip, Son met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mukesh Ambani, and leaders of SoftBank-backed companies to discuss transformative topics like AI and energy. The timing of the visit aligns with SoftBank’s impressive Q3 2024 earnings, which saw an $8B profit, largely fueled by successful Indian IPOs, including FirstCry, Ola Electric, and Swiggy. With OfBusiness set to debut in 2025, India has emerged as SoftBank’s top-performing market, outpacing global IPO trends. Amid booming market activity, leadership shifts at SoftBank hint at strategic pivots, marking this visit as a pivotal moment in its evolving India narrative.

HEADLINES

🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

What’s happening in India (and around the world 🌍️)

• Airlines received 994 hoax bomb threats till Nov 13 this year.

• India's commercial vehicle makers see sales back on road to recovery in 2nd half.

• Govt says 33 supercomputers deployed in India till Nov 21.

• Why Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire is good news for India.

CULTURE

🍿 Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

• I Want to Talk review: Abhishek Bachchan delivers a flawless and profoundly moving performance.

• The Agency review: Michael Fassbender leads a stellar cast in Paramount+ with Showtime’s promising but disjointed spy thriller.

• Badminton: Satwik-Chirag withdraw from Syed Modi International tourney.