ET NEWS

Mumbai: A rush to purchase stock market debutant LG Electronics India in opening trades on Tuesday seems to have led to an amusing twist.As investors scrambled to buy LG early to ride the listing pop, some ended up mistakenly scooping up shares of a similarly named company: LG Balakrishnan and Bros, a Coimbatore-based auto component maker founded in 1937.Brokers said some investors, in a hurry to execute 'buy' trades in LG Electronics, would have erroneously punched the orders in LG Balakrishnan, a relatively thinly-traded stock with a market value of ₹4,372 crore at the end of trading on Tuesday.The total traded volumes on BSE and NSE were 684,105 shares, compared with the two-week daily average of 31,400. The stock zoomed to a high of ₹1,600 on NSE in early trades on Tuesday, nearly 15% above its previous day's closing price of ₹1,390. It gave up the gains and ended 1.6% lower at ₹1,367.60, as investors probably realised the mistake and wound up their positions.Trade mix-ups caused by mistaken identities are not very uncommon in the stock market. Brokers said such instances happened often in Tata Motors and Tata Motors' Differential Voting Rights (DVR) shares, especially during news-heavy days when retail investors rushed to buy Tata Motors shares but ended up buying DVRs by mistake.The DVR shares saw outsized intra-day spikes in volume and price, often reversing later in the day once traders realised the error.One of the most striking global examples of mistaken identity in markets occurred during the early months of the Covid pandemic, when investors confused Zoom Technologies, a defunct Chinese mobile firm, with Zoom Video Communications, the popular video conferencing platform. As retail investors rushed to capitalise on the surge in videoconferencing demand, many inadvertently bought shares of Zoom Tech instead of Zoom Video. The frenzied purchases sent the wrong stock soaring nearly 1,800% in a matter of weeks, forcing US regulators to step in and temporarily suspend trading in Zoom Technologies.

Mumbai: LG Electronics India made a strong debut on the Indian bourses on Tuesday, with shares of the consumer durables manufacturer listing at a 50% premium - the best listing performance for a ₹10,000 crore-plus IPO in recent years.The sizzling opening also ensured that the company's market value exceeded that of its Korean parent.The company's market capitalisation on Tuesday was ₹1,14,223 crore, or $12.8 billion, compared with its Korean parent LG Electronics Inc's $9.3 billion.LG's Indian arm clocked a revenue of ₹24,367 crore in FY25, while the Korean giant reported a rupee equivalent revenue of around ₹82,500 crore in 2024, according to ETIG.Shares of LG India opened at ₹1,710 compared with its offer price of ₹1,140. The stock ended slightly lower at ₹1,682.8."The listing gains for LG Electronics India were better than expected, and the stock now trades close to our long-term price target of ₹1,850," said Vaqarjaved Khan, senior fundamental analyst at Angel One.124564976Khan said the company continues to deliver stronger margins, returns and earnings compared to domestic peers such as Blue Star and Voltas, but the valuation comfort seen before the IPO has now moderated.Three brokerages - Motilal Oswal Financial Services (₹1,800), PL Capital (₹1,780) and Emkay (₹2,050) - have initiated coverage on the stock with a 'Buy' rating, implying upsides of 6-22% from current levels."We believe LG Electronics India is fairly valued around ₹1,850 in the near term, with limited upside from current levels," said Aakash Fadia, vice-president - Consumer Durables, Institutional Equities Research, Yes Securities. "Investors who received IPO allotments may consider booking profits, while fresh investors could look to enter on dips, particularly around the second-quarter results, which may be impacted by softer primary sales," he said.Echoing Fadia, Khan too said investors, who received allotment in the IPO, could consider booking profits as the stock moves higher over the next few days, and look for re-entry opportunities after the second-quarter results. "For new investors, a correction toward the ₹1,600-1,630 range would offer a more attractive risk-reward setup," he said.

The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) will soon meet silver jewellery exporters and retailers to take stock of silver scarcity before raising the issue with the government, as the shortage could impact India's silver jewellery exports.Silver prices surged ₹6,000 to hit a lifetime high of ₹1,85,000 per kg (inclusive of taxes) Tuesday, in the run-up to the festive and wedding season.Silver prices have soared by ₹95,300 or 106.24% in the current calendar year."There is a tremendous shortage of supply, which will impact our exports of silver jewellery. We are speaking to stakeholders and will shortly call a meeting of silver jewellery exporters and retailers," said GJEPC chairman Kirit Bhansali.India's provisional export of silver jewellery was up 17.43% on-year at $596.41 million in the first six months of the current fiscal year.Silver's industrial use is in high-end tech, electronics, solar panels and batteries. In September, the US added silver to its list of essential minerals, leading to large shipments being diverted there, a move that further tightened global supplies."There is no supply at present. It is affecting our silver jewellery exports. Unnecessarily high premium is being charged on the metal," said an exporter.Due to a surge in silver imports from certain Asean countries, especially Thailand, the government last month restricted imports of silver and unstudded jewellery till March 31, 2026, which were free earlier.These restricted products include articles of jewellery and parts of precious metal of silver and unstudded and other jewellery.

London: The UK government on Tuesday tabled tougher new English language test requirements on visa applicants, including from India, in Parliament as part of a wider crackdown on soaring levels of immigration into the country.The new "Secure English Language Test" will be conducted by a Home Office-approved provider, with the results to be verified as part of a subsequent visa application process for all skilled workers from January 8, 2026.An applicant's standard of speaking, listening, reading and writing English must be equivalent to A-Level or Class 12, referred to as level B2, which the Home Office believes will ensure applicants are "better able to integrate into life in the UK"."This country has always welcomed those who come to this country and contribute, but it is unacceptable for migrants to come here without learning our language, unable to contribute to our national life," said UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood."If you come to this country, you must learn our language and play your part," she said.Laid out as part of a written ministerial statement (WMS) in the House of Commons this week, the measures form part of the British government's 'Immigration White Paper' from May, designed to tighten the visa regime.Among the other changes in law, the time for international students to find a graduate-level job after completing their studies under the Graduate Route visa, popular among Indian students, will be cut to 18 months from the current two years from January 1, 2027. However, PhD-level graduates will continue to be eligible for three years of permission as part of an announcement made earlier this year. "This change is informed by data showing that too many graduates are not progressing into graduate-level employment, which the Graduate Route was created to facilitate access to. It is intended to ensure that those who remain in the UK transition into graduate-level jobs and properly contribute to the UK economy," reads the parliamentary statement from Home Office Minister Mike Tapp.Finance requirements for student visas will also be increased for the 2025-2026 academic year, meaning foreign students will have to demonstrate they have sufficient funds to support themselves. The current requirement of having maintenance funds of 1,483 pounds per month will be raised to 1,529 pounds for London and to 1,171 pounds per month (up from 1,136 pounds) for the rest of the UK.The Immigration Skills Charge (ISC), effectively a tax paid by UK employers sponsoring skilled foreign workers and intended to be reinvested in training the domestic workforce, will be raised by 32 per cent. It means small or charitable organisations must pay 480 pounds per person, per year (up from 364 pounds) and medium and large organisations forking out 1,320 pounds (up from 1,000 pounds). "The ISC increase is the first since 2017 and will be used to boost investment in British workers and reduce reliance on overseas recruitment. The parliamentary process to increase the charge will begin later this week," the Home Office said.Other Home Office changes tabled this week cover doubling the number of universities whose graduates can use the High Potential Individual (HPI) route and capping the number of places that are available under this high-skilled visa route at 8,000 per year. The number of people coming to the UK through the HPI route is expected to double from 2,000 to 4,000, giving graduates from the world's best universities the chance to base their careers in the UK, the Home Office said. It said the aim was to double the number of highly skilled people coming to the UK on high-skilled routes, including the top researchers, designers, and creatives working in film and TV, with further changes planned for the Global Talent route next year. "The world's most talented entrepreneurs studying in the UK will also be able to seamlessly establish innovative business ventures in the UK after concluding their studies, while transitioning from a student visa to the Innovator Founder route," the Home Office said.Additionally, it was announced that all nationals of Botswana will now be required to obtain a visa before travelling to the UK, including for short visits. The move is in response to a high number of nationals from the southern African country arriving since 2022 as visitors and subsequently claiming asylum in a "misuse of the UK's immigration system".