India's quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry is showing early signs of demand recovery, but Macquarie highlights rising costs and intensifying competition from food-delivery aggregators as reasons for its cautiousness. According to Macquarie, post-fourth-quarter trends indicate a gradual improvement in dine-in demand across restaurant chains. Within the sector, Macquarie remains most constructive on franchise operators Devyani International, Sapphire Foods and Westlife Foodworld. However, the recovery remains uneven and is being overshadowed by inflationary pressures and the growing dominance of delivery platforms such as Zomato and Swiggy. The brokerage said same-store sales growth across the listed QSR universe is tracking broadly in line with or slightly ahead of fourth-quarter levels. However, restaurant brands continue to trail delivery aggregators in growth, highlighting a structural shift in consumer behaviour. To counter this trend, restaurant operators have increa...
The Indian Air Force is expected to get deliveries of upgraded Light Combat Aircraft Tejas MK-1A from February next year, and the new variant of the indigenously-built jet will be capable of firing a plethora of weapons, including beyond visual range missiles, the Ministry of Defence said today. As the jet completes seven years in service in the IAF, the ministry said the aircraft and its future variants will form the mainstay of the Indian Air Force (IAF). In February 2021, the ministry sealed a Rs 48,000 crore deal with state-run aerospace major Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd for procurement of 83 Tejas MK-1A jets for the IAF. Tejas is a single-engine multi-role fighter aircraft capable of operating in high-threat air environments. Egypt, Argentina, the US, Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines are among the countries showing keen interest in procuring Tejas aircraft. On Saturday, the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) will complete seven years of service in the IAF. ...