BACK PAGE, P14 BACK PAGE, P14 INTERNATIONAL, P13 Nobel for South Korean novelist Han Kang Rafa Nadal to retire after Davis Cup Finals in Nov Tesla gambles on 'black box'AI tech for robotaxis CHENNAI/KOCHI, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 2024 FOLLOW US ON TWITTER & FACEBOOK. APP AVAILABLE ON APP STORE & PLAYSTORE WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM READ TO LEAD VOL NO. XLV 135, 22 PAGES, `12.00 P U B L I S H E D F R O M : A H M E D A B A D , B E N G A L U R U , C H A N D I G A R H , C H E N N A I , H Y D E R A B A D , K O C H I , K O L K ATA , L U C K N O W, M U M B A I , N E W D E L H I , P U N E SENSEX: 81,611.41 ▲ 144.31 NIFTY: 24,998.45 ▲ 16.50 NIKKEI 225: 39,380.89 ▲ 102.93 HANG SENG: 21,251.98 ▲ 614.74 `/$: 83.98 ▲ 0.01 `/€: 91.81 ▲ 0.27 BRENT: $77.58 ▲ $1.00 GOLD: `74,534 ▼ `56 TCS misses Q2 profit estimates Falls 1% to `11,909 cr; DEAL WINS AT $8.6 BN Q1FY25 Q2FY25 % change, q-o-q (` cr) revenue rises 2.6% People pay their last respects to Ratan Tata at the NCPA lawns in Mumbai on Thursday PTI 2.6 0.4 11,909 Net profit 12,040 16,731 Ebitda 16,662 THE COUNTRY'S LARGEST information technologyservices firm,Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Thursday reported a net profit of `11,909 INSIDE crore during the July-September HEADCOUNT quarter,whichwas RISES, ATTRITION down 1.1% on UP 20 BPS IN Q2 sequential basis. ■ PAGE 4 The company missed Bloomberg consensusestimateof`12,547crore,onthe backofhigherexpenses. Consolidatedrevenuesduringtheperiod wasup2.6%sequentiallyto`64,259crore, beatingestimatesof`64,178crore. KKrithivasan,chiefexecutiveofficerand managing director,said in the analysts call 64,259 PADMINI DHRUVARAJ Bengaluru, October 10 62,613 Revenue Ebitda margin (%) 26 26.6 1.1 TCS consolidated financials thatthecautioustrendsofthelastfewquarters continued to play out in this quarter also.Thisunderlinesthatclientscontinueto holdbacklargeinvestments. Krithivasan said that globally, clients continue to prioritise efficiency through cost transformation programmes, and demand for discretionary deals with low immediate ROI (return on investment) ■ The total contract value rose to $8.6 bn from $8.3 bn in the previous quarter ■ Operating margin fell 60 basis points quarter-onquarter to 24.1% remains relatively subdued. Operating margin fell 60 basis points quarter-onquarter to 24.1% with the total expenditure rising over 3% sequentially to `48,956 crore due to third-party expenses on account of a large transformational project. Continued on Page 10 THE FINAL GOODBYE URVI MALVANIA Mumbai, October 10 THE FINAL RITES of Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus of Tata Sons, were performed with full state honours on Thursday evening. The industry titan’s family members, including half-brother Noel Tata and top executives from the Tata Group like N Chandrasekaran were present at the crematorium in Worli. Among those who paid final respects to the business tycoon were Union home minister Amit Shah, Union minister Piyush Goyal, Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde & his deputy Devendra Fadnavis,Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel and industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Kumar Mangalam Birla. “He institutionalised the House of Tata and made it an international enterprise, growing the Tata Group over 70 times since the time he took over as Chairman in 1991," Ambani said in his condolence message. Tata took over as chairman of Tata Sons in1991 and was at the helm for two decades until he retired in 2012. During his tenure,the Group’s revenue grew 46 times to `4.75 lakh crore and net profit grew 51 times to `33, 500 crore. The group’s market cap grew 33 times during this period. The body of the Tata scion, who breathed his last Wednesday night at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital was first taken to his residence in Colaba. From there, the body, cased in a glass coffin and dressed according to Parsi traditions, was taken to the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) lawns where it was kept for public viewing from 10:30 am to 3:55 pm. His long-time aide Shantanu Naidu led the cavalcade from Tata's Colaba residence to NCPA lawns. Naidu, who got to knowTata and forge a friendship over their shared love for canines, also penned a tribute to the late octogenarian calling him his “lighthouse”. Continued on Page 10 INSIDE AN ‘ANGEL’ INVESTOR IN THE TRUEST SENSE ■ PAGE 8 INDIA’S TALLEST BUSINESSMAN ■ PAGES 6, 7 & 8 EDIT: THE TATAWAY ■ PAGE 9 Succession plan in focus atTataTrusts VIVEAT SUSAN PINTO Mumbai, October 10 TATA TRUSTS, WHICH owns 66% of Tata Group holding company Tata Sons, is expected to act quickly on deciding a successor to Ratan Tata, who passed away in Mumbai onWednesday. Thespotlightisnowonthe individual who will take over as the chairman of Tata Trusts. While the personal wishes of Ratan Tata are said to be sealed in an envelope, Ratan Tata's the boards ofTataTrusts have half-brother Noel (top) and two potential candidates on the table. One is 67-year-old Mehli Mistry, Noel Tata, half-brother of cousin of Ratan Tata, who has been Cyrus Mistry associated with the Tata group for over four decades. The other candidate is 64-year-old Mehli Mistry, businessman and close friend of Ratan Tata,cousinofCyrusMistry,whopassedawayin 2022 in a road accident. Continued on Page 10 AIR INDIA BEHIND 85-JETAIRBUS ORDER IN SEPT AIR INDIA HAS continued a dramatic bid to recapture a place among top carriers by placing a new order for 85 Airbus jets and now eyes more Boeing planes on top of an historic purchase of almost 500 jets from the two planemakers, industry sources said, reports Reuters. ■ PAGE 4 CPI INFLATION LIKELY ROSE TO 5.1% LAST MONTH INDIA’S RETAIL INFLATION likely rose to 5.1% in September from 3.65% in August, primarily due to an unfavourable base effect, according to the median of a poll of 18 economists by FE, reports Priyansh Verma. In September 2023, CPI inflation was at 5.02%. ■ PAGE 2 CHENNAI/KOCHI