Daily News Wrap | India will get 5G services by March 2023; US Fed hikes rates, markets suffer

National

India's COVID-19 cases cross 12,000 mark in over 3 months; Booster Dose recommended

The country recorded as many as 12,213 fresh COVID-19 infections on Wednesday. This is the first time in more than 3 months that the 12,000 mark has been breached. In February this year, the last highest spike was noted. There are now a total of 4,32,57,730 COVID-19 cases in India.

National Scenario: Worst affected states are Maharashtra, where cases rose to 4,024 and Kerala, which reported 1,950 cases. Karnataka reported 648 new cases, Tamil Nadu, 476 cases, Delhi, 1,375 cases, Haryana stood at 596 cases and Uttar Pradesh posted 318 fresh infections.

The recovery rate is currently at 98.65%. A daily positivity rate of 2.35% was observed.

On the COVID-19 vaccination front, 195.67 crore vaccine doses were administered. At the same time, booster doses are recommended.

Protocols in Place: The Health Ministry urged States and UTs to strictly maintain COVID-appropriate behaviour. States and UTs were directed to ramp up RT-PCR testing, surveillance, clinical management, COVID-19 protocols and take pre-emptive actions.

India successfully tests Short-Range Ballistic Missile Prithvi-II

A successful test launch of a Short-Range Ballistic Missile (SRBM), Prithvi-II was carried out on Wednesday, as informed by the Ministry of Defence.

The testing for the Short-Range Ballistic Missile, Prithvi-II was carried out on June 15, 2022. It was organized at the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, Odisha. "The missile is a proven system and is capable of striking targets with a very high degree of precision," the MoD said.

The launch successfully validated all operational and technical parameters of the missile.

Finance

Take advantage of the Bear Market: Here are the coins to invest in

Take a look at established cryptocurrencies like Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL). They have both fallen significantly through this bear market, but are expected to bounce back as a bull market materialises. Here's how you can turn the tables around on the bear market, and make a profit for yourself.

Invest in an unaffected coin

Mehracki (MKI) is a new meme coin currently in its first stage of pre-sale.

This coin has seen a dazzling pre-sale so far, with leading investors to add it to their portfolios. Instead of investing in the bear market, the option to invest in a coin that has not been affected by it- Mehracki (MKI), is always there.

Ethereum (ETH) shows signs of comeback

Ethereum (ETH) offers an entire financial ecosystem for its users.

The price of ETH dropped 32.77% in the past 7 days. This will give you an opportunity for a huge return on your investment if you buy before the bull market takes a leap.

Recover your Portfolio with Solana (SOL)

Solana (SOL) provides decentralized finance by utilizing blockchain technology's permissionless features.

Solana has dropped 25.18% in the past 7 days according to CoinMarketCap, yet it has increased by 7.01% in the past 24 hours. This shows that the bull market could well be underway for Solana (SOL).

The current bear market is unbearable. However, it is often followed by a bull market which will see a 20% hike in the value of cryptocurrency.

Sensex, Nifty volatile as US Fed raises interest rates to control 40-year high inflation

The Indian Sensex and Nifty witnessed volatile trading on Thursday, after the US Federal Reserve raised policy rates by 75 basis points.

India's benchmark indices started the day in the positive despite the rate hike. However, it fell sharply in the afternoon. The 30 stock S&P BSE Sensex was trading 498.02 points or 0.95% down at 52,043.37 points.

Sold Off: The Indian stock markets are under selling pressure for the fifth consecutive session. All 30 scrips are part of the Sensex traded in red.

The broader Nifty 50 of the National Stock Exchange was trading 174.85 points, down at 15,517.30 points against its previous close.

Only Losers: Tata Steel tumbled by 4.56% to ₹915.95. Wipro slumped 3.96%, Bharti Airtel dipped 3.74% to ₹656.50. Tech Mahindra fell 3.41% to ₹985.30.

Business

Jio-bp to power Zomato's all electric delivery fleet

A fuel and mobility joint venture between Reliance Industries and bp called Jio-bp, and food aggregator Zomato was announced. The entities entered an agreement supporting Zomato's 100% electronic delivery fleets by 2030.

Green Deliveries: Jio-bp will provide electric vehicle services to Zomato, as well as access to Jio-bp Pulse battery swapping stations. Seeing the ever increasing number of Zomato deliveries, it is a step in the right direction.

The joint venture is creating an ecosystem that will benefit all the stakeholders in the electric vehicle value chain. Last year, Jio-bp constructed and launched two of India's largest EV charging hubs.

International

US Federal Reserve makes biggest rate hike since 1994

The US Federal Reserve raised the interest rate by 75 basis points. This is the highest one-shot increase since 1994, and is an effort to tackle inflation which is at its highest in 40 years.

The Numbers: The rate hike was announced at the end of a two-day policy meeting. It ran adjacent to smaller rate hikes of 50 basis points that had been indicated by several members of the Federal Open Market Committee.

Fast Increasing Inflation: The path to a soft-landing when the Fed is able to slow down the economy without drastic cuts is increasingly improbable. The Fed is strongly committed to 2% inflation, which is currently at 8.6%, a massive 40 year record.

Repercussions: The hike will make mortgages, auto loans and credit cards expensive. Aimed at cooling a heated economy by reducing demand, the hikes could have a two-fold effect. Aggressive hikes could cool the economy too much and trigger a recession and layoffs.

Technology

India will get 5G services by March 2023

5G in India will empower tech companies, enterprises and ecosystem players to build private networks. They can bring next-generation digital transformation. 5G networks are expected to be available in India starting March 2023.

5G development will accelerate digitisation, boost capabilities, propel indigenous manufacturing and eventually garner greater economic gains for the country.

A Private Game: Private 5G networks are about the deployment of high speed, enhanced data capacity, and ultra-low latency applications. Factories, university campuses, cities, transportation, ports can now build their secure, closed private networks, cloud infrastructure and services and accelerate their digital transformation journeys.

With the Cabinet approval for 5G auctions, India is one step closer to realising a 5G-led future.

Sports

ICC ODI Rankings: Pakistan's Imam-ul-Haq surpasses Virat Kohli, Babar Azam remains on top

Pakistan opener Imam-ul-Haq has surpassed Virat Kohli to bag the second spot in the ICC One Day International Batter Rankings.

Imam-ul-Haq stood at third place in the rankings just below Babar Azam and the former India skipper Virat Kohli. A brilliant performance in the home series has brought him four points clear of Kohli at number two. The 26-year-old jumped a massive 20 rating points to move in front of Kohli and now has a career-best mark of 815 rating points.

Kohli, who was only second to Babar in the rankings now sits at the third spot with 811 points, just above India's current ODI captain, Rohit Sharma.