Oyo sends thousands on leave without pay abroad
Maruti Suzuki India has cut production by 32.05 per cent in March, the company said in a regulatory filing. It produced
92,540 units in March against
1,36,201 units a year ago. Passenger vehicle production stood at 91,602 units against
1,35,236 units, a dip of 32.26 per cent YoY. Production of mini and compact segment cars stood at 67,708 units against
98,602 units, down 31.33 per cent.
The Sebi has eased rules for offshore funds seeking to get registered under the properly regulated foreign portfolio investor (FPI) category. At present, funds from jurisdictions that are Financial Action Task Forcecomplaint are permitted to get a licence under properly regulated category or Category I. Sebi said now funds coming from non-FATF-complaint nations can also obtain FPI licence if the Centre allows.
India has sought consultations with the US, under the WTO's safeguard agreement, against its decision to increase import duties on derivatives of steel and aluminium products. In January this year, the US issued a presidential proclamation stating that steel and aluminium derivatives would be subject to tariff increase. A WTO communication said India considers this measure of the US to be a safeguard measure.
Oyo Hotels & Homes, the Indian budget lodgings service backed by SoftBank Group Corp, is placing thousands of its employees globally on indefinite furlough as it tries to survive through the coronavirus pandemic, according to people familiar with the matter.
Oyo said in a statement it’s furloughing employees in countries excluding India without specifying numbers, adding that it’s not considering job cuts at this time.
The startup, one of the largest in SoftBank’s portfolio, has more than $1 billion of cash in the bank and is exploring options to remain viable over at least the next 36 months, one of the people said. It hasn’t yet determined the precise number of workers to be furloughed because it is sorting through local labour laws in various countries, said the person, who didn’t want to be named disclosing internal discussions.
Founder Ritesh Agarwal told employees in a video message and a note that tough decisions are necessary for the health of the business, and assured workers Oyo would not make any job cuts anywhere in the globe “despite significant economic pressures.”
Oyo’s move—tantamount to going into hibernation—is the latest setback for Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank, whose portfolio has been buffeted by WeWork’s implosion and volatile share prices at once high-flying Slack Technologies Inc. and Uber Technologies Inc.
Son has been a keen supporter of founder Agarwal, helping fund the hotel company’s international expansion. Oyo had been growing at a rapid clip, but, as with other travel businesses, the outbreak of Covid-19 has side-swiped the company. Its reputation also suffered due to customer complaints about bad experiences.