New Delhi: India is officially Asia’s top market for company listings this year, racing ahead of China.
The Financial Times reports that buoyant stock prices have led to a boom in initial public offerings (IPO) in India, propelled by companies like Swiggy and Hyundai Motors.
India is now the world’s second-largest equity fundraising market, only behind the US. The National Stock Exchange is set to be the top venue for primary listings by value, ahead of NASDAQ and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
“The rankings herald a shift in 2024 in Asian finance, as a tightening of regulations leads to a relative listings drought in China,” the Financial Times reports. “Meanwhile, companies have rushed to take advantage of high valuations following a multiyear rally in Indian equities, despite concerns over whether the market can weather an economic slowdown.”
There’s been a significant “democratisation of investment” in India, with households pouring their money into local equity markets.
“India, which had a large volume of relatively smaller deals in 2024, has been buoyed by companies seeking to raise funds while valuations remain sky-high, including by spinning off Indian units of multinational companies such as Hyundai,” the report says.
However, global investment bankers remain bullish on India, which means not much will change in the first two quarters of 2025. In fact, its relative growth might even be eclipsed by larger market comebacks in the US, FT predicts.
Dawn reports that around 70 Hindu pilgrims who had crossed the border to Pakistan have safely returned to India on Christmas Day.
Pilgrims were allowed safe passage through the Wagah Border by the Pakistan’s Evacuee Trust Property Board to perform religious rites at the Katas Raj temples in Chakwal. They were presented with special gifts and bouquets while returning to India.
“Before departing, group leader Vijay Kumar Sharma told reporters that they received immense respect and love in Pakistan,” Dawn reports, quoting him as encouraging the “global Hindu community” to visit Pakistan and “witness these sacred sites.”
The BBC reports on the death of legendary Malayalam writer M.T. Vasudevan Nair — calling him the “doyen of Malayalam-language literature”. Famous actor Mohanlal once called MT “Kerala’s pride”.
Besides being a writer, Nair—popularly known as MT—was also a film director and screenwriter. His career took off after he began writing for and editing Mathrubhumi, and he has also been credited for discovering and publishing many young writers who later became prominent.
His award-winning novel, Naalukettu, was so popular that he adapted it into a television film for Doordarshan, which then also won a state award. His novel Randamoozham is “considered a classic of Indian literature,” writes the BBC, and one his screenplays Oru Vadakkan Veeragatha is now considered “a classic in Malayalam cinema”.
Meanwhile, The Guardian notes that the “spirit of Christmas has done nothing to improve Virat Kohli’s temper”.
Kohli had a slight run-in with Australian debutant Sam Konstas on the morning of the Boxing Day test match in Australia, in which he visibly bumped against the Australian teenager.
“Konstas was clearly riling the tourists in the midst of his astonishing Test debut. Moments before he and Kohli bumped shoulders, paceman Mohammed Siraj had given the teenager a mouthful,” the Guardian reports. “Immediately after the contact, Konstas turned in surprise and Kohli reacted, as if to suggest it was the Australian’s fault.”
Konstas told reporters after being dismissed that the incident caught him off-guard—and social media users were quick to point out that Konstas has been a longstanding Kohli fan.
Writing that Kohli might be facing sanctions, The Guardian report describes the 19-year-old Konstas as showing “nerves of steel” on his debut.
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