OPINION, P10 FE LINES WELL BEING Fasten your seat belt PERILS OF PANIC ATTACKS Get password savvy Panic attacks are generally non-life threatening, but sustained or frequent episodes can affect both physical and mental well-being Page 9 ACROSS THE AISLE, P CHIDAMBARAM VOL. XXI, NO. 10 Know some of the best practices to secure and manage multiple passwords Page 6 WORDS WORTH Follow us on Twitter & Facebook. App available on App Store & Play Store WWW.FINANCIALEXPRESS.COM PLAYING GATE-KEEPER FINANCIAL EXPRESS ON SUNDAY KOLKATA READ TO LEAD SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2024, 14 Pages, `12 (NE States `13, Andaman `17) 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 A T A , L U C K N O W , M U M B A I , ASSOCIATED PRESS Dubai, November 2 IRAN'S SUPREME LEADER on Satur- day threatened Israel and the US with “a crushing response” over attacks on Iran and its allies.Ayatollah Ali Khamenei spoke as Iranian officialsareincreasinglythreatening to launch yet another strike against Israel after its October 26 attack on the Islamic Republic that targeted military bases and other locations and killed at least five people. Any further attacks from either side could engulf the wider Middle East, already teetering over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip and Israel’s ground invasion of P U N E Iranian state media. The supreme leader did not elaborate on the timing of the threatened attack, nor the scope, but said hostile actions against the Islamic Republic Lebanon,into a wider regional conflict just ahead of the US presidential election this Tuesday. “Theenemies,whethertheZionist regime or the United States of America, will definitely receive a crushing response to what they are doingtoIranandtheIraniannation and to the resistance front,” Khamenei said in video released by AYATOLLAH ALI KHAMENEI, IRAN'S SUPREME LEADER HOSTILE ACTIONS AGAINST IRAN WOULDN’T BE FORGOTTEN “wouldn’tbeforgotten.”TheUSmilitaryoperates on bases throughout the Middle East, with some troops now manning a Terminal High Altitude Area Defence, or THAAD, battery in Israel. TheUSSAbrahamLincoln aircraft carrier likely is in the Arabian Sea, while Pentagon press secretary Maj Gen Pat Ryder said Friday that more destroyers, fighter squadrons, tankers and B-52 longrange bombers would be coming to the region to deter Iran and its militantallies. The 85-year-old Khamenei had struck a more cautious approach in earlier remarks, saying officials wouldweighIran’sresponseandthat Israel’s attack “should not be exaggerated nor downplayed”. Iran has launchedtwomajordirectattackson Israel,inApril and October. But efforts by Iran to downplay the Israeli attack faltered as satellite photos analysed by The Associated Press showed damage to military basesnearTehranlinkedtothecountry’s ballistic missile programme,as wellasataRevolutionaryGuardbase used in satellite launches. Continued on Page 2 Hot wheels in demand, E-comm carts get premium-heavy over 1k luxury cars sold A city for you & me As India battles population and lack of space, there is a small movement prioritising people over infrastructure in transforming public spaces as social and cultural hubs ■ LEISURE, P7 VIKRAM CHAUDHARY New Delhi, November 2 Beyond shopping How brands are redefining traditional retail by engaging customers on a deeper level and creating personalised, immersive and memorable experiences Benchmark indices record worst returns in 55 months BENCHMARK INDICES Sensex and Nifty recorded theirworst monthly returns since Covid19 (March 2020). In October, the indices fell by about 6.22% amid a sell-offin the Indian equity markets, primarily driven by FPIs. FPIs offloaded a Monthly return (in %) record $11.1 billion in equity 20 Sensex shares in October. Oil and gas, 10 energy, automobiles, 0 consumer durables and -10 consumer discretionarywere -20 -23.1 the top sectoral losers, falling -30 by up to 13.8% during the Mar 2020 month.Among the 30-stock 20 Nifty Sensex pack, IndusInd Bank, Maruti Suzuki, Nestle India, HUL 10 0 andTitan Companywere the -10 top laggards, declining between 14.5% and 27.1%. -20 -23.2 — Compiled by -30 Mar 2020 Kishor Kadam TOP SECTORAL LOSERS (Oct 2024), % fall -5.8 Oct 2024 -6.2 Oct 2024 TOP SENSEX LOSERS (Oct 2024), % fall -13.8 Oil and gas -27.1 IndusInd Bank -12.6 Energy -12.3 Auto -16.2 Maruti Suzuki -10.4 Consumer durables -14.6 HUL -10.1 Consumer -14.5 Titan Company -15.8 Nestle India THE LUXURYCAR market is likelyto have effected transactions worth over`1,000croreduringthesix-day auspicious period from Dhanteras (October 29) to Bhai Dooj (November 3), according to estimates from carmakers and analysts. “Rough estimates suggest that more than 1,000 luxury cars have been delivered during this period, andwiththeaveragepriceofthecars inthe`1-crorerange,itimpliestransactions of more than `1,000 crore,” an automotive analyst told FE. Cars sold by Mercedes-Benz, BMW,Audi,JaguarLandRover,Volvo, Porsche and Lexus are considered luxuryin India.Ex-showroom prices startat`44.25lakh(AudiQ3)andgo up to `2.6 crore (Range Rover Petrol LWBAutobiography).On-roadprices add another 20% to the cost. The market size is 47,000 unitsperyear. Then there is high-end luxury (Bentley and Rolls-Royce; upwards of `5 crore) and performance luxury (Aston Martin; `3-5 crore). A RAGHAVAGGARWAL New Delhi, November 2 IN TOP GEAR cross 50,000-unit sales mark for the first time this year ■ Mercedes-Benz India records 10% sales growth this Dhanteras compared to last year ■ BMW Group India launched nine products in the months preceding the festive season; demand currently exceeding supply ■ Driven by continued demand for its popular models, Audi India’s bookings surge 40% in festive season compared to Sept 2024 niche segment is sports luxury (Lamborghini,FerrariandMcLaren; `4 crore and above). While none of the luxury carmakers FE spoke with disclosed exact sales numbers,theysaid sales are at record levels. Santosh Iyer,MD and CEO,Mercedes-BenzIndia,toldFEthatthecar- India slams Canada charge against Shah ● Canada names India in list of cyberthreat adversarial nations SHUBHAJIT ROY New Delhi, November 2 DAYSAFTERSENIOR membersofthe Trudeauadministrationallegedthat homeministerAmitShahwasbehind acampaigntotargetKhalistanseparatists based in Canada, India has lodged a protest “in the strongest terms”throughdiplomaticchannels, calling the allegations “absurd and baseless”.And in remarks suggesting IN ITS RECENTLY concluded Great ■ India's luxury car market set to makerhasrecordeditsbest-eversales this Dhanteras. “Backed by new launches like the LWB E-Class and stronglydrivenbySUVsliketheGLC, GLE and GLS, there has been a sales growth of 10% this Dhanteras compared to lastyear,” he said. Continued on Page 2 Indian Festival 2024,Amazon India witnessed a high demand for premium products thatwas not limited to just metro cities, Saurabh Srivastava, vice-president—categories, Amazon India,said on Saturday.“We sawitacrosscities,”hesaidinaninteractionwith FE. As per data shared by the company, tier-2 and beyond cities contributed more than 70% of the premiumsmartphonesalesonAmazon. The demand for large appliances from tier-2 cities grew by 25%, with customers preferring air conditioners and refrigerators. More than 50% of TV purchases came from tier-2 and -3. Srivastava said there has been a shift in customer preference, with more interest towards costlier and bigger items. For instance, demand for large-screen TVs saw 10x growth thisyear.Forpremiumtablets,mainly from Apple and Samsung, demand increased10x and 5x,respectively. The company said premium smartphones, priced over `30,000, ● Hair care booming; RISE AND SHINE range of products, $5.85 bn treatments on offer India’s hair care market size in 2024, as per Mordor Intelligence $0.39 bn Market size of beauty devices in India in 2022, as per TechSci Research Indiawasestimatedat$5.85billion in 2024. In the next five years, it’s expected to grow at a rate of 8.80% and reach $8.93 billion by 2029. $0.91 bn Indian beauty device market size by 2028 McKinsey & Company, in a recent report,noted that the“global beauty market is expected to grow 6% annually through 2028,” and ■ Tier-2, -3 cities contributed 70% of premium mobile sales ■ Large appliances from tier-2 cities grew by 25% ■ Over 50% TV purchases came from tier-2, -3 cities ■ Large-screen TVs demand 10x ■ Premium tablets' demand 10x 400% increase in demand for premium beauty saw their highest y-o-y growth. In fashion and beauty, the premium portfoliosawa400%riseindemand ascomparedtolastyear’sDiwalisale. Continued on Page 2 MEASPEAK ■ Warns of ‘serious consequences’ for ties ■ Consular officials under radar, comms intercepted further strain in ties, New Delhi has warned Ottawa that“such irresponsible actionswill have serious consequences forbilateral ties”. “We had summoned the representativeoftheCanadianHighCommission yesterday,” MEA spokesperson RandhirJaiswal said. Participants wearing historical costumes ride their high-wheel bicycles during the annual penny farthing race in Prague, Czech Republic, on Saturday. Enthusiasts gather from time to time to resurrect the spirit of these early bicycles REUTERS Continued on Page 2 $8.93 bn Estimated size of India’s hair care market by 2029, growing at 8.80% NON-METROS ALSO SOLD ON QUALITY ● THROWBACK TO VICTORIAN AGE For Indian beauty market, growth is in the roots FOR AGES, HAIR care meant oiling your scalp with discipline, particularly in India and south Asia, and shampooing it properly. Not anymore.The haircare market has now moved beyond all that—capturing within it serums,gels,conditioners, masks, a host of electronic devices, beautytreatments and much more. As per Mordor Intelligence, a market research and analysis firm, the size of the hair care market in D E L H I , IT WAS A LUXE DIWALI THIS YEAR ■ SPOTLIGHT, P5 GARIMA SADHWANI New Delhi, November 2 N E W Khameneiwarns Israel,US of‘crushing response’ WHAT'S INSIDE discretionary There are two sides to every billionaire’s story, viewing only one can be misleading Page 4 35% Indians dedicating more time to hair care routines 44% Interest in personalised items tailored to individual hair types that the haircare segmentwill see a global increase of 8% annual growth till 2028. Butwhat has been the reason for this?Andwhydid it not happen earlier? Nikita Khanna, the founder of Moxie, which specialises in products forwavyand frizzyIndian hair, told FE, “The reason we’re seeing this growth in the hair care space is because, over the past few years, we’ve seen skin care and hair care move from grocery to beauty.” ShankarPrasad,thefounderand CEO of Plum, laughed that the ‘skinification of hair’is happening, a term used in the McKinsey report as well. He smiled as he told FE, “SCMS—Shampoo Conditioner Mask Serum; we should not be surprised if we start seeing this abbreviation everywhere soon.” Even brands like Dyson, that enteredthebeautyindustrywithits SuperSonic Hair Dryer in 2016, launchedalineofhaircareproducts in August this year when they entered the formulations market with a pre-style cream and a post-style serum. What has also seen a boom are hair care and hair tech products. A Global Market Insights report from September 2024 said the global hair straightener market in 2023 was worth $6.37 billion, and is expected to grow to $10.48 billion in 2032. A report by Future Market Insights had on similar lines showed that the global curling iron market was worth $2.47 billion in 2023,and expected to growbeyond $4.91 billion by 2033. If you only look at India though, the numbers are not too farbehind. Continued on Page 2 BERKSHIRE'S CASH SOARS TO $325 BN WARREN BUFFETT and Berkshire Hathaway extended their retreat from stocks in the third quarter, slashing their holdings in Apple and boosting cash to a record $325.2 billion. Berkshire also reported a 6% decline in quarterly operating profit. ■ PAGE 14 BADENOCH IS UK’S NEW OPPN LEADER KEMI BADENOCH became the first Black woman to lead Britain's Conservative Party as she succeeded Rishi Sunak in the House of Commons as the leader of Opposition. The 44-year-old parliamentarian defeated former cabinet minister Robert Jenrick after a threemonth-long election. ■ PAGE 14 Kolkata