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MOSL: Morning India (19/February/20): 1. EcoScope (The ‘Core’ of India’s Slowdown: Construction Investments); 2. Cement; 3. Hotel Industry

Morning India (19/February/20):

Today’s top research theme
EcoScope: The ‘Core’ of India’s Slowdown—Construction Investments
** Fixed investments in construction sector was 15.3% of GDP in FY19, lower than the peak of 19.7% in FY12. Residential investments have fallen faster from ~13% of GDP in FY12 to 7.8% in FY19. Fall in India's construction investments has been one of the worst among other major economies. At over 15% of GDP, investments in the construction sector in India are more than double of that in the US and Thailand.

** Notwithstanding weak residential construction, a comparison of residential property prices in other major countries suggests prices have grown at an average of 2.7% since 2014 in India. Although official data on construction investments in India is not yet available, proxies such as cement production, steel consumption, IIP for NMMP and collection of 'stamps' & registration fees' by states confirm weakness in FY20.

Piping hot news
Kumar Mangalam Birla meets telecom secretary amid Voda Idea troubles
Vodafone Idea Ltd chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla met telecom secretary Anshu Prakash on Tuesday amid fears that the government may invoke the company’s bank guarantees, a move that may threaten the very survival of India’s second-largest telecom operator. “Bank guarantees were discussed in the meeting," a person aware of the matter said, requesting anonymity. Birla, however, declined to disclose the issues that were discussed in the meeting with Prakash.