ETERNAL

** Eternal ETEA.NS rises ~4.4%, peer Swiggy SWIG.NS gains as much as 5% in broad market rally on hopes Iran war could end soon

** ETEA, SWIG lost 7.03% and 13.82%, respectively, in March on concerns over LPG shortages, elevated crude prices due to Iran war

** HDFC Securities upgrades ETEA to "buy" from "add", raises FY27, FY2028 profit estimates

** Says volume impact due to LPG shortages remains minimal

** Adds minimum orders for discounted sales raised, aiding profitability; says Blinkit's execution, market share gains likely to improve

** Reiterates "buy" on SWIG; calls it a steal after recent drop

** YTD, ETEA sheds 14%, SWIG slips 31%; Nifty 50 .NSEI falls 12.5%

(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru)

((bharath.rajeswaran@thomsonreuters.com; +91 9769003463;))

** Shares of Eternal ETEA.NS jump about 8% this week, snaps four-week losing streak

** Gains driven by a three-day rebound earlier in the week, supported by improving market sentiment and value buying

** Online delivery services firm's stock rose 1.51% to 232.19 rupees on Friday, Nifty 50 .NSEI up 0.34%

** Broader Indian markets rebound following a sharp selloff in the previous session when ETEA lost nearly 6%

** ETEA rose 5.7% on Tuesday, its biggest single-day pct gain since July 22, 2025, after JM Financial said recent correction may be overstated and quick delivery service unit Blinkit continues to drive growth

** YTD, stock down nearly 18% vs .NSEI drop of about 11%

(Reporting by Surbhi Misra in Bengaluru)

((Surbhi.Misra@thomsonreuters.com | X: https://twitter.com/SurbhiMisra_ |;))

** Shares of India's Eternal ETEA.NS jump 5.8% to 234.92 rupees

** Extend gains after snapping an 18-session losing streak on Monday, the longest such streak since listing in July 2021

** JM Financial maintains "buy" and says recent correction driven by competition and macro concerns may be overstated

** Brokerage says Eternal's quick commerce platform Blinkit is driving growth with improving margins, while food delivery remains resilient despite competitive intensity

** Stock rated "buy" on avg by 31 analysts, median PT at 380 rupees -- data compiled by LSEG

** YTD, stock down ~20%

(Reporting by Surbhi Misra in Bengaluru)

((Surbhi.Misra@thomsonreuters.com | X: https://twitter.com/SurbhiMisra_ |;))

By Praveen Paramasivam

CHENNAI, March 12 (Reuters) - Indian households are rushing to buy electric induction stoves, draining stocks online and in stores, amid fears of a potential cooking gas shortage tied to the Middle East conflict.

India, the world's ​second-largest importer of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), has invoked emergency powers to boost supplies for households even as availability tightens for commercial users including canteens, hostels and restaurants.

Meanwhile, consumers are buying electric cooking appliances as a precaution, with some households worried about refill delays and higher prices.

Checks by Reuters on Thursday showed several induction stove models were unavailable on Amazon AMZN.O, Walmart-backed WMT.O Flipkart, Eternal's ETEA.NS Blinkit and Zepto, while some offline chains said fresh supplies were still days away.

Induction stove sales on Amazon India have jumped more than 30-fold, while rice cookers and electric pressure cookers are up fourfold, a company spokesperson said.

Kitchen appliances maker TTK Prestige TTKL.NS said demand for induction stoves had surged far beyond supply.

"There is a threefold surge (in demand)," CEO Venkatesh Vijayaraghavan told Reuters.

The company has raised its production capacity to 100% from about 70% before the start of the war, and increased staffing by roughly 15%. It also plans to raise prices of induction stoves in the June quarter to offset any higher costs.

Induction stoves accounted for about a tenth of TTK's 25.30 billion rupees ($274.52 million) standalone revenue in 2024–25.

Online shopping platforms also showed models from Butterfly CROP.NS, Havells India HVEL.NS and Bajaj Electricals BJEL.NS marked as "currently unavailable".

Google Trends showed search interest for induction stoves hit a record high on March 12, while some restaurant chains, including Wow Momo and California Burrito, said they were exploring induction stoves as a contingency plan.

Anand Rathi analyst Manish Valecha said large kitchen appliance makers with domestic assembly and strong distribution, including TTK Prestige, Butterfly and Stove Kraft STOE.NS, are best placed to benefit from the surge in induction cooktop demand. But reliance on imported components could pose supply risks if the spike persists, he added.

TTK Prestige will switch from sea shipments to airlifting components sourced from China and Southeast Asia, absorbing higher costs to ensure supplies if disruptions persist, Vijayaraghavan said.

The Middle East conflict has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf, raising costs and tightening oil and gas supplies from the Middle East. O/R

On Thursday, the Suezmax tanker Shenlong reached Mumbai with Saudi crude, becoming the first crude carrier to arrive in India from the Middle East since the war between Iran and the United States and Israel erupted in late February, LSEG data showed.

($1 = 92.1625 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai; Editing by Dhanya Skariachan and Leroy Leo)

((Praveen.Paramasivam@thomsonreuters.com; +91 867-525-3569;))

Feb 17 (Reuters) - Eternal Ltd ETEA.NS:

• ETERNAL LIMITED AND OPENAI ANNOUNCES STRATEGIC COLLABORATION TO ADVANCE AI CAPABILITIES ACROSS ETERNAL'S BUSINESSES

Further company coverage: ETEA.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

By Chandini Monnappa and Praveen Paramasivam

MUMBAI, Feb 16 (Reuters) - India's Reliance Industries RELI.NS retail unit is piloting a search-and-discovery platform in a bid to more closely integrate its store and online shopping experiences, a top executive said on Monday.

Reliance Retail is the country's largest retailer, operating 19,340 stores nationwide and selling everything from electronics and apparel to groceries to more than 349 million customers.

The company is piloting the platform at its apparel stores such as Trends and Yousta, and plans to roll it out at its retail chain Smart Bazaar later this year, said Damodar Mall, chief executive officer of Grocery Retail at Reliance Retail.

Customers can scan a QR code at stores to use the platform, which then helps them discover and search for products tailored to their preferences, Mall said on the sidelines of the Retail Leadership Summit in Mumbai.

He did not disclose an investment amount or other operational details for the new platform.

India's retail sector faces intensifying competition from online shopping platforms such as Amazon's AMZN.O India unit and Walmart WMT.N-backed Flipkart, while quick commerce firms such as Swiggy's SWIG.NS Instamart, Eternal's ETEA.NS Blinkit and Zepto have been eating up market share rapidly.

Reliance's online grocery delivery service JioMart expanded to compete in the 10-minute delivery segment in 2025.

Festive discounting, investment in hyperlocal delivery and a one-off impact from India's new labour code trimmed core margins at the retail business to 8% in the third quarter from 8.6% a year earlier.

The pace of change in India's retail sector remains intense, Mall said, though it is unfolding against the backdrop of a still-expanding consumption market, which allows room for shifts in market share without constraining overall growth, he added.

(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa and Praveen Paramasivam in Mumbai; Writing by Surbhi Misra and Abinaya Vijayaraghavan in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

((Surbhi.Misra@thomsonreuters.com | X: https://twitter.com/SurbhiMisra_ |;))

Feb 6 (Reuters) - Eternal Ltd ETEA.NS:

• ETERNAL LTD - ZOMATO NETHERLANDS B.V HAS BEEN DISSOLVED

Source text: ID:nnAZN4SA5RA

Further company coverage: ETEA.NS

((reuters.briefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

Feb 5 (Reuters) - Eternal Ltd ETEA.NS:

• RECEIVES GST DEMAND INCLUDING INTEREST, PENALTY 17.5 MILLION RUPEES

Source text: ID:nNSE4VyCWh

Further company coverage: ETEA.NS

((Reutersbriefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

** Shares of India's Eternal ETEA.NS jump 4.6% to 285.15 rupees

** Jefferies adds Eternal to its model portfolio, citing a major boost to investor sentiment following the U.S.–India trade deal

** U.S. President Donald Trump announced a trade deal that cuts tariffs on Indian exports to the U.S. to 18% from an effective 50%

** Jefferies says deal addresses key overhang for foreign investors, with India underweight positioning among emerging-market funds and $34 bln in FPI outflows over the past 16 months

** Brokerage says improved trade visibility could support the rupee and act as a positive trigger for FPI flows

** Jefferies replaces Godrej Consumer Products GOCP.NS with Eternal, citing strong growth and margin improvement across quick commerce and food delivery

** ETEA closed flat in 2025, stock down ~2% so far in 2026

(Reporting by Surbhi Misra in Bengaluru)

((Surbhi.Misra@thomsonreuters.com | X: https://twitter.com/SurbhiMisra_ |;))

Corrects dateline

Jan 29 (Reuters) - India's Swiggy SWIG.NS reported a narrower third‑quarter loss sequentially, as strong demand in its quick‑commerce arm Instamart partly offset the drag from continued high investments.

The company reported a consolidated loss of 10.65 billion Indian rupees ($115.8 million) for the quarter ended December 31, compared to 10.92 billion rupees in the second quarter.

Losses, however, remained higher than the 7.99 billion rupees recorded a year earlier.

($1 = 91.9590 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru)

((Kashish.Tandon@thomsonreuters.com; 8800437922;))

** Shares of Eternal ETEA.NS, Indian online delivery firm, rise 5.1% to 266.90 rupees apiece; set to snap three-session losing streak

** Last week, Co posted sequential rise in Q3 profit and said founder Deepinder Goyal will step down as CEO and MD

** Jefferies says ETEA fell 10% post Q3 results on investors concerns over leadership change and Blinkit's profitability

** However, Blinkit has consistently delivered best‑in‑class unit economics (incl. in 3Q), and hence, we do not see any concern on this front, Jefferies says

** Jefferies maintains "buy" rating on stock; PT at 480 rupees- second highest among 31 analysts tracking ETEA

** Despite Goyal's transition, he remains closely engaged in strategy, culture, and governance at Eternal, ensuring continuity - Jefferies

** Avg rating on stock is "buy"; median PT of 390 rupees - data compiled by LSEG

(Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru)

((Brijesh.Patel1@thomsonreuters.com; Ph no. +91 9590227221;))

** Shares of Eternal ETEA.NS, Indian online delivery firm, fall 4.44% to a six-month low of 263.50 rupees apiece

** Stock down 8.4% for the week so far, its worst week since March 2025

** On Wednesday, Co said founder Deepinder Goyal will step down as chief executive officer and managing director, effective February 1; Blinkit head Albinder Dhindsa will take the helm

** Co also reported a 73% jump in quarterly profit

** More than 43 million shares exchange hands today vs 37.4 miliion 30-day avg vol

** Avg rating of 31 analysts is "buy"; median PT of 390 rupees - data compiled by LSEG

(Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru)

((Brijesh.Patel1@thomsonreuters.com; Ph no. +91 9590227221;))

Rewrites throughout; Adds analyst comments in paragraph 4,10, CFO comment in 7

By Komal Salecha

Jan 22 (Reuters) - Shares of India's Eternal ETEA.NS erased early gains on Thursday as concerns over the long-term profitability of its quick-commerce unit Blinkit amid intensifying competition outweighed strong results.

The stock lost as much as 2.6% and was down 0.8% as of 12:20 a.m. IST. It hit a high of 8% in premarket trading.

The company, formerly Zomato, reported a 73% rise in quarterly profit on Wednesday.

"While the results are good, there is fear whether it will be able to keep up with profitability," said Rahul Jain from Dolat Capital.

Analysts said risks remain around Blinkit's long-term profitability. Blinkit has become Eternal's biggest revenue engine in recent quarters, fuelled by a boom in India's $11.5 billion quick-commerce market, where rivals race to deliver everything from iPhones to milk in minutes.

Eternal said that growth could weigh on margins in the near-term. It also said founder Deepinder Goyal would step down as chief executive to be replaced by Blinkit head Albinder Dhindsa, while adding that the once cash-hungry unit had turned profitable.

"In the short term, we want to take the right decisions for the business, even if that means taking a hit to margins," Eternal CFO Akshant Goyal said in a post-earnings call, but added that the company was not signalling such an impact in the very next quarter.

Blinkit leads India's quick-commerce market with a 48% share, ahead of Swiggy's SWIG.NS Instamart at 24% and Zepto KIRK.NS at 22%, data for 2025 from Datum Intelligence showed.

The market is projected to more than triple to about $40 billion by 2030, underscoring the high-stakes race for scale and dominance.

"The risk is that the market leader could be drawn into a dogfight too, with lower minimum order values and higher discounts," Morgan Stanley said in a note.

(Reporting by Kashish Tandon and Komal Salecha in Bengaluru; Writing by Chandini Monnappa, Editing by Sonia Cheema and Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

((Komal@thomsonreuters.com;))

Updates

** Shares of India's online food and grocery delivery firm Eternal ETEA.NS rise nearly 5% to 282 rupees ahead of third-quarter results, snapping a three-day losing run

** ETEA on course for best day since July 22, 2025

** On avg, analysts expect co's Q3 revenue to rise almost three fold y/y to 162.12 billion rupees ($1.8 billion) for the quarter ended December 31 - data compiled by LSEG

** Analysts on avg expect co's Q3 net profit to more than double to 1.39 bln rupees - data compiled by LSEG

** Elara Capital says Blinkit’s losses may drop by 18% q/q

** Goldman Sachs expects net order value growth to stay strong despite moderation, and does not see structural issues in the business

** Eternal rated 'buy' on avg by 31 analysts with median PT at 400 rupees; rival Swiggy SWIG.NS rated 'buy' on avg by 25 analysts, PT at 490 rupees - data compiled by LSEG

** In 2025, ETEA was flat vs SWIG's 29% decline

($1 = 91.1000 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Surbhi Misra and Komal Salecha in Bengaluru)

((Surbhi.Misra@thomsonreuters.com | X: https://twitter.com/SurbhiMisra_ |;))

India File is published every Tuesday. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also subscribe here.

Jan 20 - By Ira Dugal, Editor Financial News, with global Reuters staff

Reliance Industries RELI.NS has had a rough start to the year, with a rare share-price slide in January and weaker-than-expected earnings, highlighting the pressures building across some of its key businesses.

What is the outlook for the stock of India's most valuable company? That's our focus this week. Write to us at ira.dugal@thomsonreuters.com

And, India plans to open up the defence sector to larger foreign investment. Scroll down for that Reuters exclusive report.

THIS WEEK IN ASIA

*Japan's snap election and tax pledge keep nation's finances in spotlight

*Indonesia's rupiah hits record low on central bank independence worries

*China curbs ‘flash boys’ access to exchange data, sources say

*As US orders fade, Chinese salespeople face tough grind in new markets

*Dozens missing after massive Karachi mall fire, 21 killed

TESTED BY GEOPOLITICS

Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance, which has a market value of 19.12 trillion rupees ($210.42 billion), has slumped about 10% so far in 2026, a rare early-year drop that has weighed on the benchmark Nifty 50 .NSEI, which is down roughly 2%. The last time the stock dropped more in any January was in 2011.

The fall, including a 3% decline after the company reported weaker-than-expected quarterly earnings, reflects complications in its refining business due to geopolitical tensions, intensifying competition in its retail operations, and investor caution ahead of the planned listing of its telecoms unit.

The company faces "headwinds" from loss of Russian crude in its export-focused refinery and higher freight costs in its core oil-to-chemicals business, Jefferies said in a January 16 note.

But it could potentially resume purchases of Venezuelan oil, defraying the loss of Russian barrels, the brokerage said.

Reliance cut imports of Russian oil by 32.4% in December, the lowest level since February 2024, under pressure from Western sanctions, data analysed by Reuters journalist Nidhi Verma showed. The company's Russian imports are likely to be low in January too. Click here for that story.

The company has said it is in talks with the U.S. to permit purchases of oil from Venezuela.

Despite these challenges, the business continues to report strong financials.

Factors working in its favour include strong volume growth and fuel cracks - the difference between the price of refined products and the crude used to produce them - Mumbai-based brokerage BOB Caps said.

Fuel retailing volumes via the Jio-BP joint venture are also expanding, it added.

RETAIL REVENUE GROWTH LAGS

Where the earnings disappointed most was in the retail business, Reliance Retail, which was dragged down by India's shifting consumer preferences.

Reliance Retail reported a 9% growth in net revenue, lower than the 13% for competitor Avenue Supermarts AVEU.NS, and blamed this partly on a shift in festival dates and a demerger of its consumer products division.

Its margins also declined due to discounts offered in the festival season and investments made in quick commerce.

India's fast-changing consumer market has seen attention shift from traditional stores to online shopping and now quick commerce where deliveries within minutes have sparked opportunity and risks.

The company told analysts this business is already margin- positive as Reliance leverages its extensive store network to deliver electronics, fashion, and groceries, creating a unique omnichannel advantage.

The quick-commerce business, where Zomato, run by Eternal ETEA.NS, Swiggy SWIG.NS and Walmart's WMT.O Flipkart are big players, recently came under fire for promoting 10-minute deliveries that critics have argued put delivery staff at risk.

Read here to catch up on the controversy.

Jefferies analysts also red-flagged Reliance's fast-moving consumer goods business where too many brands may mean it is spreading itself "too thin".

While the retail business seems to be some distance away from a listing, the public offering of the telecoms unit Jio Platforms appears imminent.

The government has given the green light for a minimum float of 2.5% for a public listing, clearing the way for large IPOs including Jio's.

Despite the pressures, analysts still see upside to the Reliance Industries stock in 2026, with only 2 of 34 analysts on LSEG listing it as a sell. The median price target on the stock is 1,700 rupees per share, a 20% upside from current levels.

MARKET MATTERS

A ruling by India's top court in a tax case related to U.S. investment firm Tiger Global's sale of shares in Flipkart to Walmart in 2018 has spooked global investors who have poured $180 billion into India via the tax haven of Mauritius.

Read details of the judgement here and don't miss this analysis on its implications for investors.

The ruling comes at a time when India has seen a sharp drop in portfolio and strategic investments from overseas, a decline that the market regulator is trying to reverse through a series of steps.

THIS WEEK'S MUST-READ

India plans to make it much easier for foreign firms to invest in defence companies, Reuters journalists Nikunj Ohri and Sarita Chaganti Singh reported.

Foreign firms may be permitted to pick up 74% in Indian firms with government approval, and tough conditions related to technology transfers may be lifted.

Read the details here.

($1 = 90.6663 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ira Dugal; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

((Ira.Dugal@thomsonreuters.com; +91-9833024892;))

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, Jan 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - India is piling into consumer giants’ basket of troubles. Unilever ULVR.L and Nestlé NESN.S are losing pricing power in the world’s fifth-largest economy amid growing competition from nimble upstarts. It’s an unwelcome headache for the groups that are trying to revive their more established markets in Europe and the U.S. With no easy fixes, the problem may require expensive remedies.

Consumer titans were once synonymous with boringly predictable earnings. But a recent bout of management churn and intense competition has made them about as predictable as the start-ups they are now battling for market share. Last February, $140 billion Unilever replaced its CEO Hein Schumacher with its finance chief Fernando Fernandez to accelerate its growth plans. It also grappled with rising commodity prices and spun out its ice cream unit at a disappointing valuation.

Nestlé is enduring an even trickier time. The $240 billion Kitkat maker is on its third CEO in less than three years and is dealing with a decline in sales in Europe and the U.S. These factors have weighed on the groups’ share prices which are flat versus the same period last year, underperforming Europe’s Stoxx 600 .STOXX which is up nearly 20% in the same period.

In ordinary times, these groups could rely on their Indian businesses to compensate. Indeed, historically they performed better than their parents’ businesses in developed markets. At its 2016 peak, sales at Nestlé India NEST.NS grew nearly 16%, eight times the pace of the Swiss group’s European business and four times that of its Americas unit. As recently as 2021, Hindustan Unilever HLL.NS was growing turnover at a punchy 18% as Europe and the Americas only managed under 5%.

But those dynamics are changing. During the year ended March 2025 sales at HUL grew just 2% , down from double digits two years earlier. Meanwhile, Nestlé ’s Indian business grew 1% in 2024. That run rate means India can barely contribute much more to these groups' top lines than it currently does - 2% and 11% for Nestlé and Unilever respectively.

More concerning for investors, however, is the effect this is having on these groups' profitability. EBITDA margins of Hindustan Unilever and Nestlé India are off pandemic-era peaks and could remain below those levels at least until 2027, according to forecasts compiled by Visible Alpha.

The bosses of these businesses blame the recent weakness on rising commodity prices and high inflation which, coupled with stagnating incomes in the aftermath of Covid, have diminished Indians’ purchasing power.

The danger for investors is the decline may intensify. Affluent urban Indians are increasingly shopping for essentials on e-commerce platforms Eternal ETEA.NS and Swiggy SWIG.NS, which use a network of mini warehouses to deliver everything from milk to umbrellas in 10 minutes. These apps enable challenger brands like Honasa Consumer’s Mamaearth and Investment Corporation of Dubai-backed snackmaker Slurrp Farm to display their brands alongside legacy names like Sunsilk and KitKat, robbing Unilever and Nestlé of their storied distribution edge.

Big groups also missed the boat on premiumisation. Indian consumers have become aspirational. That’s birthed whole categories from grooming products to pancake mixes that Unilever, Nestlé and their large rivals are struggling to compete in.

Amid these forces, consumer group boardrooms face two unpalatable choices. They can jack up prices to protect margins but are likely to lose market share in the hypercompetitive Indian market. Alternatively, they can sacrifice margins to boost growth but that means fewer spoils to share with investors.

The first option hardly seems feasible as smaller and more agile rivals are only likely to take more market share from larger groups. Meanwhile, demand for private labels is growing which will put even more pressure on pricing. For now, investors may have to accept lower margins as Unilever and Nestlé try to protect their businesses and invest more heavily in new products.

The risks are plain to see in these groups' valuations. HUL now trades at 47 times forward earnings, down from 65 times in 2021 and lagging supermarket chain Avenue Supermarts' AVEU.NS 69 times.

For now, there are no easy fixes. Launching their own quick commerce offerings makes little sense for consumer giants as users of the existing apps are proving increasingly sticky. A less immediate but more effective way to counter the loss of pricing power is to rejig their product mix. HUL and Nestlé will have to ensure their presence across categories and locations so that consumers rising up the value chain choose their brands over upstarts. A bigger investment in agile AI-enabled tracking of sales trends at mom-and-pop retailers could help with that.

Acquiring fast-growing brands is another option. HUL's 2025 purchase of personal care brand Minimalist valued its target at 9 times its trailing sales, on par with its own multiple. But buying one of India's top online platforms is out of the question: Eternal and Swiggy are delivery service-based companies that would be a clunky fit in these sprawling manufacturing businesses.

Businesses may also need to rethink marketing in a country where close to two-thirds of the population is under the age of 35 and shopping choices are increasingly based on influencer recommendations. HUL spent 10% of its revenue on sales and marketing in the year to March 2025, while its personal-care rival Honasa shelled out 57%. If the Unilever unit raised marketing spend by 10%, its EBITDA margin would go down 87 basis points, Breakingviews calculations based on Visible Alpha estimates show.

To be sure, all these options involve squeezing margins in the short term to ensure staying power in a crowded market. For now, consumer giants will have to add India to their growing list of fixer upper projects.

Follow Shritama Bose on LinkedIn and X

(Editing by Aimee Donnellan; Production by Aditya Srivastav)

((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on BOSE/shritama.bose@thomsonreuters.com))

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, Jan 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - India is piling into consumer giants’ basket of troubles. Unilever ULVR.L and Nestlé NESN.S are losing pricing power in the world’s fifth-largest economy amid growing competition from nimble upstarts. It’s an unwelcome headache for the groups that are trying to revive their more established markets in Europe and the U.S. With no easy fixes, the problem may require expensive remedies.

Consumer titans were once synonymous with boringly predictable earnings. But a recent bout of management churn and intense competition has made them about as predictable as the start-ups they are now battling for market share. Last February, $140 billion Unilever replaced its CEO Hein Schumacher with its finance chief Fernando Fernandez to accelerate its growth plans. It also grappled with rising commodity prices and spun out its ice cream unit at a disappointing valuation.

Nestlé is enduring an even trickier time. The $240 billion Kitkat maker is on its third CEO in less than three years and is dealing with a decline in sales in Europe and the U.S. These factors have weighed on the groups’ share prices which are flat versus the same period last year, underperforming Europe’s Stoxx 600 .STOXX which is up nearly 20% in the same period.

In ordinary times, these groups could rely on their Indian businesses to compensate. Indeed, historically they performed better than their parents’ businesses in developed markets. At its 2016 peak, sales at Nestlé India NEST.NS grew nearly 16%, eight times the pace of the Swiss group’s European business and four times that of its Americas unit. As recently as 2021, Hindustan Unilever HLL.NS was growing turnover at a punchy 18% as Europe and the Americas only managed under 5%.

But those dynamics are changing. During the year ended March 2025 sales at HUL grew just 2% , down from double digits two years earlier. Meanwhile, Nestlé ’s Indian business grew 1% in 2024. That run rate means India can barely contribute much more to these groups' top lines than it currently does - 2% and 11% for Nestlé and Unilever respectively.

More concerning for investors, however, is the effect this is having on these groups' profitability. EBITDA margins of Hindustan Unilever and Nestlé India are off pandemic-era peaks and could remain below those levels at least until 2027, according to forecasts compiled by Visible Alpha.

The bosses of these businesses blame the recent weakness on rising commodity prices and high inflation which, coupled with stagnating incomes in the aftermath of Covid, have diminished Indians’ purchasing power.

The danger for investors is the decline may intensify. Affluent urban Indians are increasingly shopping for essentials on e-commerce platforms Eternal ETEA.NS and Swiggy SWIG.NS, which use a network of mini warehouses to deliver everything from milk to umbrellas in 10 minutes. These apps enable challenger brands like Honasa Consumer’s Mamaearth and Investment Corporation of Dubai-backed snackmaker Slurrp Farm to display their brands alongside legacy names like Sunsilk and KitKat, robbing Unilever and Nestlé of their storied distribution edge.

Big groups also missed the boat on premiumisation. Indian consumers have become aspirational. That’s birthed whole categories from grooming products to pancake mixes that Unilever, Nestlé and their large rivals are struggling to compete in.

Amid these forces, consumer group boardrooms face two unpalatable choices. They can jack up prices to protect margins but are likely to lose market share in the hypercompetitive Indian market. Alternatively, they can sacrifice margins to boost growth but that means fewer spoils to share with investors.

The first option hardly seems feasible as smaller and more agile rivals are only likely to take more market share from larger groups. Meanwhile, demand for private labels is growing which will put even more pressure on pricing. For now, investors may have to accept lower margins as Unilever and Nestlé try to protect their businesses and invest more heavily in new products.

The risks are plain to see in these groups' valuations. HUL now trades at 47 times forward earnings, down from 65 times in 2021 and lagging supermarket chain Avenue Supermarts' AVEU.NS 69 times.

For now, there are no easy fixes. Launching their own quick commerce offerings makes little sense for consumer giants as users of the existing apps are proving increasingly sticky. A less immediate but more effective way to counter the loss of pricing power is to rejig their product mix. HUL and Nestlé will have to ensure their presence across categories and locations so that consumers rising up the value chain choose their brands over upstarts. A bigger investment in agile AI-enabled tracking of sales trends at mom-and-pop retailers could help with that.

Acquiring fast-growing brands is another option. HUL's 2025 purchase of personal care brand Minimalist valued its target at 9 times its trailing sales, on par with its own multiple. But buying one of India's top online platforms is out of the question: Eternal and Swiggy are delivery service-based companies that would be a clunky fit in these sprawling manufacturing businesses.

Businesses may also need to rethink marketing in a country where close to two-thirds of the population is under the age of 35 and shopping choices are increasingly based on influencer recommendations. HUL spent 10% of its revenue on sales and marketing in the year to March 2025, while its personal-care rival Honasa shelled out 57%. If the Unilever unit raised marketing spend by 10%, its EBITDA margin would go down 87 basis points, Breakingviews calculations based on Visible Alpha estimates show.

To be sure, all these options involve squeezing margins in the short term to ensure staying power in a crowded market. For now, consumer giants will have to add India to their growing list of fixer upper projects.

Follow Shritama Bose on LinkedIn and X

(Editing by Aimee Donnellan; Production by Aditya Srivastav)

((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on BOSE/shritama.bose@thomsonreuters.com))

** Shares of Eternal ETEA.NS jump 3% to 293 rupees, top pct gainer on largely flat benchmark Nifty 50 .NSEI index .BO

** Goldman Sachs keeps "buy" rating, trims PT to 375 rupees from 390 rupees on co, the parent of food delivery platform Zomato and quick-commerce Blinkit

** Says recent 14.6% Oct-Dec selloff vs 6.2% Nifty 50 gain reflects "elevated competition narratives, quick-commerce slowdown expectations"

** "We disagree with the extent of bearishness" being priced into ETEA - note

** Stock, on an avg, rated "buy" by 31 analysts; median PT 400 rupees - data compiled by LSEG

** ETEA unchanged in 2025 vs rival Swiggy's SWIG.NS 29% decline

(Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru)

((Hritam.Mukherjee@thomsonreuters.com;))

Jan 8 (Reuters) - Eternal Ltd ETEA.NS:

• ETERNAL LTD - COMPANY RECEIVES ORDERS CONFIRMING GST DEMAND OF 167.2 MILLION RUPEES

Source text: ID:nBSE6mhQhj

Further company coverage: ETEA.NS

((Reuters.Briefs@thomsonreuters.com;))

** Shares of Eternal ETEA.NS fall 2% to 277.10 rupees

** ETEA's quick commerce company Blinkit's chief financial officer Vipin Kapooria has resigned, Economic Times reports citing sources

** Kapooria joined Blinkit in September 2024

** YTD, ETEA down 0.3% vs 9.5% gains in Nifty 50 index .NSEI

(Reporting by Vijay Malkar)

((VijayDattaram.Malkar@thomsonreuters.com;))

Adds analyst comment in paragraphs 5 and 9, details throughout

By Vivek Kumar M and Kashish Tandon

Oct 14 (Reuters) - LG Electronics India LGEL.NS surged 50.4% in its trading debut on Tuesday and notched a valuation of $13.07 billion, eclipsing its South Korean parent's market capitalisation, as investors piled into the country's most bid-for IPO since 2008.

Shares of the Indian arm of LG Electronics 066570.KS made a strong debut on the National Stock Exchange of India, opening at 1,710.10 rupees and rising to 1,714.90 rupees, well above the issue price of 1,140 rupees.

The debut valued the company above its $8.73 billion target and its South Korean parent's roughly $9 billion market cap.

It also put the firm ahead of its India-listed peers such as Whirlpool WHIR.NS, Voltas VOLT.NS, and Havells HVEL.NS, which are valued between $1.7 billion and $10.4 billion.

The company's listing performance was the best for a billion-dollar IPO in India since 2021, and comes in the midst of what is India's second-busiest quarter on record for IPOs, with WeWork India WEWO.NS and Tata Capital TATC.NS posting lacklustre debuts in recent days.

"After a long time, we're seeing a genuinely strong IPO in the consumer space — solid fundamentals, reasonable valuations and sector-leading growth prospects," said Dhiraj Relli, managing director and CEO of HDFC Securities.

LG Electronics, India's second-biggest appliance maker, whipped up strong demand at the bidding stage. Investors snapped up its $1.3 billion IPO within hours of opening, with bids worth a staggering $50 billion.

The investor euphoria made it the most subscribed billion-dollar offering in nearly two decades, eclipsing interest seen in high-profile listings such as Life Insurance Corp of India’s LIFI.NS $2.7 billion issue in 2022, and Paytm's $2.5 billion debut and Zomato's ETEA.NS $1.3 billion flotation in 2021.

At the share sale, qualified institutional buyers bid 166.5-fold their allotted quota, while non-institutional and retail investors subscribed 22.4 times and 3.54 times, respectively, according to exchange data.

"Institutional investors are unlikely to be satisfied with the current 5 billion–6 billion rupee allocation and will be forced to participate aggressively in the listing and beyond to achieve reasonable sizing," Relli added.

($1 = 88.7680 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Kashish Tandon, Vivek Kumar, Chandini Monnappa and Mridula Kumar; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

((mridula.kumar@thomsonreuters.com))

** Goldman Sachs hikes Blinkit parent Eternal ETEA.NS PT to 360 rupees from 340 rupees; keeps "buy" rating

** Expects Blinkit store count to double over next 2-3 years, says meaningful market share expansion not reflected in current price

** Blinkit's FY27 Net Order Value (NOV) projections are higher than earlier estimates with EBITDA break-even anticipated by Dec 2025, signaling strong growth

** ETEA's quick commerce and food delivery segments are expected to accelerate Y/Y in 2Q FY26; food delivery NOV growth could reach 20% Y/Y by March 2026

** Follows J.P.Morgan PT hike to street-high 390 rupees last week

** ETEA rated "buy" on avg, median PT 329 rupees- data compiled by LSEG

** Stock up nearly 20% YTD

(Reporting by Urvi Dugar)

((UrviManoj.Dugar@thomsonreuters.com))

** Swiggy SWIG.NS, Zomato-parent Eternal ETEA.NS rise 2% each

** Motilal Oswal upgrades SWIG to "buy" from "neutral", raises PT to 560 rupees from 450 rupees

** Retains "buy" on ETEA, raises PT to 420 rupees from 330 rupees

** Says GST changes expected to accelerate adoption of quick commerce services in non-metro cities

** Expects food delivery growth to exceed 20% over the next two-four quarters, up from previously stunted 17%–18% growth, driven by upcoming festive demand, GST reforms

** Highlights easing expansion, discounts at Swiggy Instamart and Blinkit

** SWIG, ETEA rated "buy" on avg, with median PT of 450 rupees, 321 rupees, respectively, per data compiled by LSEG

** YTD, SWIG falls 20%, ETEA gains 20%

(Reporting by Rudra Pratap Singh in Bengaluru)

((rudrapratap.singh@thomsonreuters.com))

Updates shares in paragraph 2, adds new quotes

Sept 4 (Reuters) - India late on Wednesday announced tax cuts on hundreds of consumer items ranging from soaps to small cars to spur domestic demand, and simplified its complicated goods and services tax structure to two rate slabs from four, with some exceptions for luxury and "sin" goods.

The benchmark BSE Sensex .BSESN and Nifty 50 .NSEI rose as much 1.1% on Thursday. By 11:55 IST, they pared some gains and were up about 0.5% each.

Here is how the industry has reacted so far:

ANISH SHAH, GROUP CEO & MD, MAHINDRA GROUP

"The next-generation GST reforms... mark a defining moment in India's journey towards building a simpler, fairer, and more inclusive tax system.

"At Mahindra, we view these reforms as transformative. They simplify compliance, expand affordability, and energise consumption, while enabling industry to invest with greater confidence."

SAURABH AGARWAL, PARTNER & AUTOMOTIVE TAX LEADER, EY INDIA

"The rationalization of GST rates on automotive vehicles and parts is a truly welcome and significant development. By making vehicles more affordable across all segments, this move will not only boost consumer spending but also simplify complex classification disputes that have long burdened the industry."

SAMIR SHAH, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR & CFO, HDFC ERGO GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY

"The GST Council decision to exempt individual health insurance from GST is a welcome development. This move aligns perfectly with the broader ambition of the regulator of 'Insurance for All by 2047,' providing a tangible step forward in that direction.

"While it is anticipated that there will be lowering of the premiums due to lowering of the taxes, we are yet to understand the extent of this reduction as this will also depend upon availability of the input tax credit, which will become clearer over the coming days."

NILESH SHAH, MANAGING DIRECTOR, KOTAK MAHINDRA ASSET MANAGEMENT CO

"The GST announcement lowers inflation, increases growth, boosts consumer sentiment, doesn't disturb the path of fiscal consolidation, improves ease of doing business and partially offers adverse effects of tariffs."

SHAILESH CHANDRA, PRESIDENT, SOCIETY OF INDIAN AUTOMOBILE MANUFACTURES

"This timely move is set to bring renewed cheer to consumers and inject fresh momentum into the Indian automotive sector. Making vehicles more affordable, particularly in the entry-level segment, these announcements will significantly benefit first-time buyers and middle-income families, enabling broader access to personal mobility."

C S VIGNESHWAR, PRESIDENT, FEDERATION OF AUTOMOBILE DEALERS ASSOCIATIONS

"The 56th GST Council meeting marks a watershed moment for India's automobile retail industry. This is a decisive step that will boost affordability, spur demand, and make India's mobility ecosystem stronger and more inclusive.

"One area that may need earliest clarification is about levy and treatment of cess balances currently lying in dealers' books, so that there is no ambiguity during transition."

SANJEEV ASTHANA, CEO, PATANJALI FOODS LIMITED

"At Patanjali Foods, we are fully committed to passing on these benefits to our consumers. This initiative will not only enhance FMCG penetration across urban and rural India but also act as a catalyst for broader economic revival by lifting consumption and supporting allied sectors.

"Our categories such as ghee, soaps, biscuits, noodles, honey, and chyawanprash will benefit from this reduction."

RADHIKA RAO, SENIOR ECONOMIST AT DBS BANK

"Lower GST rates will be positive for growth in the second half of the year and FY27, besides improving operational efficiency and expanding the size of the formal economy."

SHRIPAL SHAH, MD & CEO, KOTAK SECURITIES

"The GST rate cuts come at the right time which is just ahead of the festive season and against the backdrop of U.S. tariff tiffs. Lower taxes on essentials, FMCG products, autos and cement will leave consumers with more money in hand.

"This should directly boost demand, help traders and businesses see higher volumes, and may even favourably impact next quarter's earnings. It also carries the potential to ease inflation. The key will be how quickly companies pass on the benefits to customers."

DEVARSH VAKIL, HEAD OF PRIME RESEARCH, HDFC SECURITIES

"The GST reforms represent a paradigm shift toward economic rationality, with rate reductions on essentials like dairy, medicines, and food directly benefiting consumers due to their inelastic nature.

"Combined with RBI rate cuts, FY26 income tax rebates, and moderating inflation, these reforms create multiple stimuli for consumption and economic growth."

SUDARSHAN VENU, CHAIRMAN, TVS MOTOR COMPANY

"The GST tax cuts are a major move by the government to further turbocharge growth. For our industry especially, it’s a welcome move as it will help two wheelers become more accessible and also help those looking to upgrade."

NEERAJ AKHOURY, PRESIDENT, CEMENT MANUFACTURERS' ASSOCIATION AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, SHREE CEMENT

"Bringing GST down to 18% corrects a long-standing anomaly, aligns cement with other core building materials, and enhances global competitiveness. As a key input for infrastructure and housing, fairer taxation is expected to boost consumption and support projects from affordable housing to large-scale infrastructure."

NITIN RAO, CEO, INCRED WEALTH

"History has shown that such measures add significantly to GDP growth and a repeat is expected.

"Positive this will play out, though a small concern remains wherein recent measures like the rate cuts + budgetary measures taken on reduced taxes have not created necessary consumption boosters. We will have to wait and see if this welcome third step reverses the consumption trend or there is a deeper problem around availability of money with consumers."

RAHUL SINGH, CIO-EQUITIES, TATA ASSET MANAGEMENT

"The GST rate rationalisation, following the income tax cuts and lower interest rates, is a serious effort to boost consumption and hence the overall economic growth outlook.

"This coupled with certain process reforms is also positive for SMEs (small and medium enterprises). While the direct beneficiaries include consumer, autos, cement, healthcare and insurance sectors, the second order beneficiaries in terms of growth will be retail banks & NBFCs (non-bank financial companies)."

RAJNEESH KUMAR, CHIEF CORPORATE AFFAIRS OFFICER, FLIPKART GROUP

"By lowering input costs for farmers, simplifying compliance for MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises), and enabling small sellers, artisans/weavers and smallholder farmers to seamlessly join e-commerce across states, these reforms will further strengthen India's growth engine.

"Timely implementation of these reforms ahead of the upcoming festival season will surely give a huge boost to consumption across categories, widen market access, and accelerate our collective journey towards a Viksit Bharat."

SHEETAL ARORA, CEO, MANKIND PHARMA

"The GST revisions go beyond tax rationalization, they represent a structural shift in how India is enabling healthcare access. By removing GST on lifesaving rare-disease and oncology therapies and reducing it on essential medicines and diagnostics, the government has signaled that affordability and innovation can go hand in hand."

AMIT PAITHANKAR, CEO OF WAAREE ENERGIES

"The recent GST rationalization reflects the government’s commitment to India’s clean energy transition. The reduction will lower project costs and accelerate the capacity addition needed to meet India’s clean energy targets. It also sends a strong signal to investors, improving the financial viability and attractiveness of the renewable energy sector."

(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa, Bharath Rajeswaran, Manvi Pant, Kashish Tandon, Meenakshi Maidas, Nandan Mandayam, Yagnoseni Das, Vivek Kumar M and Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

((Chandini.M@thomsonreuters.com; https://www.linkedin.com/in/chandini-monnappa-8a37b013b/;))

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, Aug 25 (Reuters Breakingviews) - A small paradox is gripping India's capital markets. The rise of institutional investors is pushing down overall shareholding levels of powerful private backers of companies, including tycoons. But other indicators point to this cohort's growing influence in the $4 trillion economy.

So-called promoter shareholdings in public firms fell to 40.58%, an eight-year low, per an analysis by PRIME Database of 2,086 companies listed on the main board of the National Stock Exchange. Over the past three years, promoters' share has fallen by 455 basis points, the research shows.

The quirky term is rooted in post-independence India's encouragement of entrepreneurs to promote local enterprise and describes owners that have large sway over the affairs of a company. These days, it assumes a mildly pejorative edge, making private banks and startups flaunt their lack of promoters as shorthand for good governance.

One reason for the rapid fall in their holdings from a peak of 45% in 2022 is an increase in listings of companies backed by financial sponsors like $32 billion food delivery firm Eternal ETEA.NS and its rival Swiggy SWIG.NS.

Older behemoths are warming up to external capital, too, though tycoons are hawking minority stakes in unlisted businesses. Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries RELI.NS sold shares in its retail and telecom units to investors from Meta META.O to KKR KKR.N in 2020 to cut debt, and Tata Motors TAMO.NS had TPG TPG.O jump in as a backer of its electric-vehicle unit in 2021.

Yet the reality on the ground suggests a tightening, not loosening, of their control. As global companies enter India, promoter-backed businesses are emerging as partners of choice. Fast fashion giant Shein has entered an alliance with Reliance Industries, and MG Motor has teamed up with Sajjan Jindal-backed JSW.

It's a result of New Delhi's protectionist policies and entrants' desire to scale up fast, but also a growing perception that it is not possible to win against the top domestic industrialists. M&A by large groups is reducing competition, too; Adani's Ambuja Cements ABUJ.NS and UltraTech ULTC.NS owner Kumar Mangalam Birla are rearranging the country's cement industry into a duopoly.

In fact, India Inc.'s shunning of leverage since the pandemic reduces the necessity of large owners to dilute their equity. Promoter entities own 50.07% of Reliance and up to 75% in each of the 10 listed Adani Group companies. The position of India's most powerful promoters is far from getting demoted.

Follow Shritama Bose on Linkedin and X.

CONTEXT NEWS

Stakes held by powerful private shareholders, known as promoters, in large Indian companies have fallen to an eight-year low in India.

Such shareholdings on the main board of the National Stock Exchange fell to 40.58% in June, per an analysis of 2,086 companies by PRIME Database.

Over the past three years, promoters' share has fallen by 455 basis points from 45.13% on March 31, 2022, the research shows.

(Editing by Una Galani; Production by Ujjaini Dutta)

((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on BOSE/shritama.bose@thomsonreuters.com))

Adds more details from the CNBC-Awaaz report

Aug 6 (Reuters) - China's Alibaba Group is likely to exit India's Eternal ETEA.NS in a block deal valued at 53.75 billion rupees ($613 million), CNBC-Awaaz reported on Wednesday, citing sources.

Alibaba's unit Antfin Singapore, which had a 2.08% stake in Eternal as of June-end, will offload all of it at a floor price of 285 rupees, the report said.

That implies a 4.6% discount to Eternal's closing price on Wednesday.

Antfin and Eternal, which houses food delivery business Zomato and quick commerce arm Blinkit, did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

($1 = 87.6900 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Anuran Sadhu and Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Shilpi Majumdar)

((Anuran.Sadhu@thomsonreuters.com; +91 8697274436;))

** Shares of Eternal ETEA.NS jump 21% this week, set for best weekly gain on record

** ETEA top weekly gainer on benchmark Nifty 50 .NSEI

** Stock also set to log first weekly gain in four

** Gains driven by Zomato and quick commerce platform Blinkit parent's robust Q1 revenue, which boosted hopes for continued growth in quick-commerce business

** Rival Instamart parent Swiggy SWIG.NS also up 5.4% this week, set for its third straight weekly gain; also top weekly gainer on Nifty Next 50 .NN50

** Avg rating on ETEA and SWIG at "buy" - LSEG data

** YTD, ETEA up 12% vs SWIG's 24% decline

(Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru)

((Kashish.tandon@thomsonreuters.com))

July 23 (Reuters) - Foreign companies operating in India's booming e-commerce sector face many regulatory and legal challenges from authorities investigating them for alleged non-compliance with Indian laws, moves largely aimed at protecting local businesses.

Below are some of the ongoing regulatory cases, which include global giants Amazon AMZN.O and Walmart WMT.N:

** Walmart's Indian fashion arm Myntra is being investigated for allegedly breaching rules that ban foreign-funded wholesale retailers from selling directly to consumers, India's federal crime fighting agency revealed on July 23, 2025.

** An Indian antitrust investigation in 2024 found Amazon and Flipkart, violated local competition laws by giving preference to select sellers on their shopping websites. The companies deny any wrongdoing.

** Samsung, Xiaomi and other smartphone companies also colluded with Amazon and Flipkart to exclusively launch products on their Indian websites in breach of antitrust laws, the investigation found last year.

** India's financial crime agency has been investigating Amazon and Flipkart separately for alleged breaches of investment rules. In 2024, it raided offices of some sellers operating on Amazon and Flipkart.

** The federal financial crime fighting agency has also privately sought sales data and other documents from smartphone players including Apple and Xiaomi as part of an investigation into Amazon and Flipkart.

** India's state-run product certification agency raided the Delhi warehouses of Amazon and Flipkart in March, seizing items that did not meet quality control standards, as it increased its scrutiny of the two firms.

** India's financial crime agency has asked Flipkart and its founders to explain why they should not face a penalty of $1.35 billion for the alleged violation of foreign investment laws, three sources and an agency official told Reuters in 2021.

** Meanwhile, Indian consumer products distributors have filed an antitrust case against big fast-delivery businesses Zomato, SoftBank-backed Swiggy SWIG.NS and Zepto, calling for an investigation into alleged deep discounting practices.

** An investigation by India's antitrust body found Zomato and Swiggy breached competition laws, with their business practices favouring select restaurants listed on their platforms, documents showed.

(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa and Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Kalra and Rachna Uppal)

((Chandini.M@thomsonreuters.com; https://www.linkedin.com/in/chandini-monnappa-8a37b013b/;))

July 22 (Reuters) - Indian online delivery firm Eternal ETEA.NS rose 10% early on Tuesday after the Zomato parent company reported strong quarterly revenue, boosting optimism over future growth in its quick commerce segment.

(Reporting by Manvi Pant; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)

((Manvi.Pant@thomsonreuters.com; +918447554364;))

July 21 (Reuters) - Indian online delivery firm Eternal ETEA.NS posted a 90% drop in first-quarter profit on Monday, weighed by higher costs at its quick-commerce arm Blinkit, which delivers everything from groceries to electronics in under 10 minutes.

Consolidated net profit fell to 250 million rupees ($2.90 million) for the three months ended June 30, the food and grocery delivery firm said.

($1 = 86.2775 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ananta Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy and Chandini Monnappa)

((Ananta.agarwal@thomsonreuters.com;))