📱 No more spam?

Good morning. We missed yesterday’s newsletter—our bad! The news doesn’t stop, but wedding season has officially kicked off and we were caught up in the festivities. Not an excuse, but the late night was worth it!

Back at it today 🫡

- Ruchirr Sharma & Shatakshi Sharmaa  

TABLE OF CONTENTS

• 📱 No more spam?

• 🛍️ How big is the quick commerce impact?

• 🗞️ Bite-sized summaries

  • 🛵 Blinkit and Zepto have competition

  • 🌀 Cyclical slowdown

• 🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

• 🍿 Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

MARKETS

🇮🇳 India

• BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty 50 gained over 1% intra-day, closing Monday's session up 0.76% and 0.65%, respectively. Smallcap stocks outperformed, with Nifty Smallcap 100 rising 1.2%. Banking stocks led gains, as all sectoral indices closed positive. Shriram Finance and Adani Enterprises topped Nifty 50 gainers.

🌍️ International

• US stocks rose on Monday as Middle East tensions eased, with the Nasdaq gaining 0.5%, the S&P 500 0.4%, and the Dow up 0.7%. Tech earnings, including from Alphabet, Apple, and Amazon, dominate focus this week amid inflation and jobs data. Oil prices dropped nearly 6% as Israel limited its strikes.

GOVERNMENT POLICY

📱 No more spam?

The Indian telemarketing industry is rallying behind the government's initiative to regulate commercial SMS and voice services, a move aimed at tackling the pervasive issue of spam and the misuse of personal data.

Here’s what’s happening:

• Leading companies in the sector, including US-based Sinch and Tanla Platforms, have expressed their support for the proposed regulations, emphasising that stricter compliance could enhance business opportunities by curbing the activities of a few notorious entities responsible for most spam.

• The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has contacted the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) for recommendations on establishing an authorization framework for telemarketers.

• This regulatory push is seen as essential for improving transparency and accountability in communications, with companies like Reliance Jio suggesting that telemarketers should be licensed under this new regime.

• Nitin Singhal, managing director of Sinch India, highlighted the industry's commitment to aligning with regulatory requirements, asserting that responsible telemarketing should focus on creating value rather than engaging in spam.

• The industry currently comprises over 280,000 businesses sending commercial SMSes through a network of 16,000 aggregators and 15 delivery telemarketers, complicating efforts to control spam.

Despite concerns about potential cost burdens on small and medium enterprises due to compliance expenses, industry leaders argue that investing in adherence to regulations is necessary. Singhal pointed out that similar fears were voiced back in 2019 when a blockchain-based system was introduced to combat spam.

Overall: Contrary to predictions, the SMS volumes in India have surged from 30 billion to 55 billion monthly over the past two years. As the government moves forward with these regulatory changes, the telemarketing sector anticipates a transformation that could lead to a more secure and efficient communication landscape in India.

Read more: Economic Times

QUICK COMMERCE

🛍️ How big is the quick commerce impact?

Nykaa CEO Falguni Nayar recently discussed the impact of quick commerce on traditional retail, noting that fast delivery models, like those of Blinkit and Zepto, have started to shift demand away from neighbourhood stores, especially in personal care.

However, Nykaa has limited its foray into ultra-fast delivery, focusing instead on enhancing its existing distribution across India. The company recently piloted a 10-minute delivery option in Mumbai but remains cautious about quick commerce’s sustainability due to economic challenges.

• Nykaa has built a robust delivery network, offering same-day or next-day delivery in major cities, with over 85% of orders arriving the next day.

  The company is actively expanding its network, having grown to 44 warehouses serving 98% of Indian zip codes, and plans to increase its physical store count from 200 to 350 outlets.

• With a strong emphasis on regional warehouses, Nykaa aims to boost delivery speed across India.

The festive season has boosted sales, particularly in Nykaa’s fashion segment, which showed a slower growth earlier in the year. Nayar expects this trend to continue into the wedding season. Nykaa’s recent Nykaaland event, aimed at beauty and lifestyle enthusiasts, also marks the brand’s effort to deepen consumer engagement and increase awareness about beauty and fashion products in India.

Overall: Nykaa, founded in 2012, went public in 2021 and has continued to scale, driven by a commitment to “beauty education and discovery.” With India’s beauty market expanding, Nayar believes that aspirational shopping is driving consumption.

Through a mix of physical expansion and quick commerce pilots, Nykaa is poised to strengthen its position as a leading lifestyle platform in India.

Read more: Economic Times

GENERAL OVERVIEW

🗞️ Bite-sized summaries

🛵 Blinkit and Zepto have competition - Tata Group is set to enter India's competitive quick commerce sector with its platform, Neu Flash, offering rapid delivery of groceries, electronics, and fashion. Partnering with BigBasket, Croma, and Tata Cliq, Neu Flash initially targets select users in metro areas. As competition intensifies, Tata aims to capture market share without heavy spending on incentives, unlike rivals Blinkit and Zepto. With new investments and expansion plans, quick commerce is expected to grow substantially, addressing strong demand in major cities. The sector is thriving in India, where convenience-focused urban consumers are willing to pay for fast delivery.

🌀 Cyclical slowdown - Nomura has reported that India is experiencing a cyclical growth slowdown, marked by weakening urban consumption indicators such as lower passenger vehicle sales and reduced FMCG demand. The brokerage believes the Reserve Bank of India’s FY25 GDP growth forecast of 7.2% is overly optimistic, estimating a more conservative 6.7%. Nomura attributes the slowdown to factors including reduced personal loan growth, tighter monetary policy, and lower salary growth. It also highlights inflation-adjusted salary moderation among listed companies and a shift to leaner workforces as contributing factors, as well as RBI's efforts to manage unsecured credit and demand.

HEADLINES

🧑‍🍳 What else is cookin’?

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

• According to the Washington Post, Elon Musk, an enemy of ‘open borders,’ launched his career working illegally.

• Satellite images show damage from the Israeli attack at 2 secretive Iranian military bases.

• Google preps ‘Jarvis’ AI agent that works in Chrome.

• US develops a portable device that extracts water from air using 50% less energy.

CULTURE

🍿 Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

• Jimmy Fallon teases new Christmas song with Justin Timberlake, calls it "about kind of a bromance.”

• Jon Stewart extends ‘Daily Show’ run through 2025.

• ‘Venom’ Box Office: ‘Last Dance’ opens to solid $175M globally despite sluggish $51M U.S. bow.