UltraTech Leads cements stocks rally with 2.7 percent rise on price hike

UltraTech Cement led a rally in cement stocks on Wednesday, with its shares rising 2.7% to Rs 12,057.50 on BSE, following price hikes implemented by cement dealers after months of stagnant margins. The price hikes, which signal a recovery in demand, sparked gains across the sector, with Adani Group’s ACC and Ambuja Cements up 2% and 1.8%, respectively, and Dalmia Bharat climbing 3.4%. The price hikes—ranging from Rs 10-30 per bag—reflect a 3.5% quarterly increase, according to Hong Kong-based brokerage CLSA. However, prices remain 5% lower than the same period last year. Dealers attributed the increase to improved labor availability post-festive season and a surge in orders from real estate and infrastructure projects, buoying optimism for a sustained recovery. Cement volumes, which were weak in October, began to recover in late November, with brokerage CLSA anticipating a 4% price hike in H2FY25, driven by stronger demand and cost efficiencies. The brokerage named UltraTech Cement as its top pick. With the recent price hikes boosting sentiment, the cement industry’s recovery trajectory appears promising, with demand expected to strengthen further into FY26, CSLA noted. 
 

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Blackstone acquires LOGOS Indias 5 million sqft warehosuing assests for rs 1725 crore

US-based private equity firm Blackstone Group has acquired nearly 5 million sq ft operational and leased warehousing assets from logistics company LOGOS India for more than Rs 1,725 crore, said people with direct knowledge of the development. The deal indicates Blackstone’s continued focus on strengthening its presence in India’s rapidly expanding logistics and supply chain infrastructure sector. LOGOS had put on sale three operational assets in Chennai and Haryana’s Luhari, with an occupancy level of over 95% and generating around Rs 125 crore in annual rent. The Chennai logistics parks are located in the Irungattukottai-Poonamallee-Sriperumbudur (IPS) area e-Sriperumbudur (IPS) area (OMM). On August 26, ET was the first to report that Blackstone and other global institutional investors including Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC and Japanese shipping major Mitsui OSK Lines were in the race to acquire this portfolio. Robust demand for these warehousing assets underscores the attractiveness of India's logistics sector, especially Grade-A assets developed and managed by institutional owners. LOGOS India has a presence in key Indian cities through an operational portfolio spread over 5.5 million sq ft and is now monetised around 5 million sq ft of that. The company is also in the process of developing 5 million sqft. Blackstone declined to comment, while ET’s email query to LOGOS remained unanswered at the time of going to press Monday. Investments in industrial and logistics segments have remained robust, driven by growing demand for this asset class and the decentralisation of manufacturing capacity from China. This trend is supported by government initiatives like ‘Make in India,’ production-linked incentive schemes and increasing emphasis on strengthening domestic manufacturing and supply chain networks.
 

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Gurugram All Towers of Chintels Paradiso declared unsafe set for demolition

The last of Chintels Paradiso's towers to be assessed for structural defects was declared unsafe for habitation on Monday, closing a 34-month loop that has seen all nine residential towers of the condominium where flats sold for at a range of Rs 75 lakh to Rs 1 crore when it went to the market in 2012. Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) has found that Tower B has severe structural flaws, including widespread cracks, corroded reinforcement bars and substandard concrete, findings similar to those in the other towers. What this means is that Tower B will also have to be evacuated and Paradiso will become perhaps the first modern condominium in the country – Paradiso was completed in 2011 – that will be brought to the ground, another dubious first for NCR, which has already seen the razing of the Supertech twin towers in Noida. The structural assessments of Paradiso's towers began after a vertical collapse of living rooms of flats across five floors in Tower D on Feb 10, 2022 led to the death of two residents, which was followed by days of protests on the compound, with residents accusing the developer of not reacting on time to concerns like sagging balconies that they had raised. The company, which has given a buyout option to residents who sought a refund, said owners of flats in Tower B would be entitled to the same, based on current market value of their flats and interior costs at rates determined in collaboration with the administration. In Feb 2022, the administration had called IIT-Delhi to assess the structural safety of the towers. Subsequently, towers E and F were declared unsafe in March 2023, G in June 2023, H in July 2023, J in Jan 2024, C in Aug 2024 (done by CBRI), A in Oct 2024 (CBRI), and finally B (also CBRI). 
 

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RWAs demand freehold property rights and separate authority for new Noida

Members of the Confedrations of NCR Resident Welfare Association (CONRWA) demanded converting residential land property of Noida Authority from leasehold to freehold, no increase in FAR post-freehold, and establishment of a separate authority for upcoming New Noida, during a meeting with Noida MLA Pankaj Singh over the weekend. Currently, all plots and flats in Noida are sold on a 99-year lease. Residents have been long demanding freehold rights of their properties under the UP Industrial Act 1976. In 2018, the Noida Authority in its 195th (CEO), Alok Tandon, gave in-principle approval for converting Noida properties from leasehold to freehold. A committee was formed under the chairmanship of then ACEO on Oct 10, 2018, based on which, Tandon sent the recommendation to the state govt on Nov 26, 2018. The committee recommended setting up a short-term corpus fund on converting the assets of the residential plot from leasehold to freehold, which will be invested or can be a source of recurring income by receiving interest on it. New Noida, the NCR body maintained that a separate authority should be formed for this area. "The current area of Noida is about 200 square kilometres and the population is about 15 lakhs with a total of 163 sectors. At present, there is a huge shortage of staff within the Authority to manage this area. A new CEO, an ACEO, and an OSD should be appointed for New Noida," said Lokesh Kashyap, another member of the delegation. 
 

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CCI sends notice to Ultra Tech Cement for its proposed acquistion of India Cements

The Competition Commission of India has sent a notice to UltraTech Cement for its proposed acquisition of Chennai- based India Cements, the company said in an exchange filing on Friday. The notice is under the Section 29 (1) of the Competition Act, and is generally sent if the Commission is of the opinion that the proposed merger is likely to have or has had an adverse impact on competition. UltraTech Cement has received the notice on Thursday, December 5. As per the competition act, the company will have 30 days to respond on why an investigation should not be conducted on the proposed merger. UltraTech is the largest producer of cement in the country, and first acquired a 23% “non-controlling financial stake” in India Cements in June this year. It then acquired another 32.72% stake from its promoters and associates in July. UltraTech will also make an open offer for another 26% in the company. The commission, though, can also go ahead with Phase 2 of the investigation, if it is not satisfied with the responses, he shared, requesting not to be named. India Cements, in a separate filing, also said that it has received a notice from the Competition Commission on Thursday, and is in the process of furnishing a response to the regulatory body. Before the acquisition of India Cements, UltraTech had also acquired the cement division of Kesoram Industries, which has a capacity of 10.75 million tonne in Karnataka, Telangana and Maharashtra. The deal was approved by the anti-trust body in March this year.
 

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WeWork India Leases two buildings from DLF in Gurugram and Chennai

WeWork India, a flexible workspace provider, has leased a two-floor workspace with over 1,400 desks spread across approximately 1.17 lakh sq ft in DLF Cybercity, Gurugram. The company has also rented two floors with over 1,900 desks spread across approximately 1.26 lakh sq ft in DLF Cybercity, Manapakkam, Chennai. Both WeWork Building 6 in Gurugram and WeWork Building 10 in Chennai are set to open in Q1 2025. The company recently opened its IWF campus in Whitefield, Bengaluru spread across approximately 1.10 lakh sq ft of space with three floors. The first floor hosts the main management floor, whereas the second and third floor are the designated flexible co-working space. It is currently operational across eight cities, with over one lakh desks.
 

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Sale of Apartments seen at 3.05 lakh units worth rs 5.01 crore in 2024

India's seven major primary housing markets are estimated to see sales of 3.05 lakh apartments worth Rs 5.10 lakh crore during the current calendar year, according to JLL India. These seven cities are Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune and Hyderabad. At the end of 2024, over 300,000 homes worth Rs 510,000 crore of homes across 485 million sq ft are expected to be sold," real estate consultant JLL India said in a statement on Wednesday. Housing sales have remained healthy and hit a new nine-month (January-September) peak in 2024 with close to 230,000 homes sold across the top seven cities worth Rs 380,000 crore sold during this period. With the festive season coinciding with the fourth quarter and housing demand expected to remain strong, JLL India said it expects sales for the Oct-Dec 2024 quarter to potentially match or exceed the trailing three-quarter average of over 75,000 units, taking the full-year sales to about 305,000 units. With this, the sales realization value is expected to touch around Rs 510,000 crore for 485 million sq ft of area likely to be sold for full year 2024.
 

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ED seizes luxury cars bank deposits in raids aganist Orris Infrastrusture and Three C Shelters

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has seized several documents from secret lockers located in the office premises of Orris Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, along with luxury cars and various Fixed Deposits (FDs) and Bank Guarantees (BGs) worth Rs 31.22 crore, in connection with an alleged real estate fraud exceeding Rs 500 crore, the agency announced on Tuesday. The FDs and BGs, totalling Rs 31.22 crore, held in the name of the Orris group of companies, have been frozen and seized. Additionally, bank accounts and lockers belonging to the company's promoters were frozen, and four luxury cars -- Mercedes, Porsche, and BMW models -- were seized from the residence of one of the group's directors and promoters. The seizure followed a search operation conducted under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, on November 25 at 14 locations across Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). The operation targeted Orris Infrastructure Private Limited, its directors and promoters Vijay Gupta and Amit Gupta, as well as Three C Shelters Private Limited and its promoter-directors Nirmal Singh Uppal and Vidhur Bhardwaj. The ED said it recovered and seized several incriminating documents related to fund diversion, layering of funds, property ownership, and asset details of the companies. These included sale deeds, registration deeds, and various digital devices such as laptops and hard drives. 
 

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Godrej Poperties raises rs 6000 crore through QIP

Godrej Properties has raised Rs 6,000 crore by selling shares to institutional investors on qualified institutional placement (QIP) basis as it looks to expand business amid strong demand for residential plots and apartments. Last week, the company launched its QIP issue to raise up to Rs 6,000 crore. In a regulatory filing on Monday, Godrej Properties informed that the board's QIP Placement Committee approved the closure of the issue on Monday. The panel approved the issue price of Rs 2,595 per equity share, which is at a discount of Rs 132.44 (4.86 per cent of the floor price) to the floor price of Rs 2,727.44 per equity share. The Committee also approved the allocation of 2,31,21,387 equity shares to be allotted to the eligible qualified institutional buyers. Godrej Properties is one of the leading developers in the country. It has a fiscal, the company's sale bookings jumped 84 per cent to a record Rs 22,527 crore, the highest among listed realty firms in 2023-24. Godrej Properties has set a target of achieving Rs 27,000 crore worth of sale bookings. Godrej Properties has added 8 new land parcels in the first six months of this fiscal with a total estimated saleable area of about 11 million square feet and a total estimated booking value potential of around Rs 12,650 crore. 
 

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Noida YEIDA launches 20 plots in new housing scheme across three sectors 

To boost residential development, the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) has launched a new group housing scheme, offering 20 plots across Sectors 17, 18, and 22D. The scheme features six plots in Sector 17, five in Sector 18, and nine in Sector 22D, with sizes ranging from 11,513.72 sqm to 89,034 sqm. In Sector 17, plots range between 11,513.72 sqm and 24,282 sqm, with a base price of Rs 32,375 per sqm. Sector 18 includes uniformly sized plots of 16,188 sqm, while Sector 22D offers the widest range, with plot sizes starting from 20,235 sqm and going up to the largest plot in the scheme, which spans 89,034 sqm. Meanwhile, developers are required to pay a registration fee or an earnest money deposit (EMD) ranging from Rs 3.73 crore to Rs 30.27 crore to participate in the scheme. The application process began Thursday and will remain open until Dec 18. An e-auction to allocate the plots is scheduled for Jan 20, and incremental bid values are set at 1% of the base price. 
 

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Chennai civic bodys commercial complexes remain vacant and struggle with low revenue

The Greater Chennai Corporation rents out 3,727 shops in commercial complexes in 150 prime locations, which should ideally thrive in a city known for its love of malls and shopping. Despite being located in prime areas like T Nagar, Central, Anna Nagar, Ashok Nagar, and Alwarpet, these complexes struggle to attract customers, generating less than half of the ?20 crore annual revenue targets. Many shops remain vacant, while vendors in occupied spaces owe nearly ?9 crore in dues but continue to operate. 
Most of the GCC's commercial shops, ranging from 70 to 1 sqft are rented at a subsidized rate of ?10 per square foot. The largest complex, Moore Market near MGR Central, is in disrepair, with over 200 of its 400 shops shuttered. The unpopularity stems from GCC's failure to modernize its complexes with global brands and diverse shopping options. They also lack basic amenities such as parking, lifts, digital signage, toilets, and proper maintenanance. "GCC should demolish and rebuild these complexes with modern amenities like glass windows, air-conditioning, and varied shop sizes to attract businesses like hotels, merchandise stores, and gaming zones for Kids. 
 

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Tamil Nadu Government identifies land bank of office space development in Chennai

Tamil Nadu govt is taking steps to avoid office space crunch in the state and tapping its own land bank in Chennai to build office facilities with private partnerships, a senior govt official said. It has identified 30 locations in Chennai for grade A office space development, said state industries secretary. “The incremental office space absorption in the city is higher than supply and govt is unlocking its own land and plans to develop office spaces. Given the current demand scenario, there is a need for ramping up supply, Estimates by analysts put Chennai’s gross office space absorption in 2023 at 10.8 million sq ft. They expect a similar momentum this year but a slowdown in 2025 due to shortage of office space. The state is witnessing a lot of traction in GCC operations due to incentives and subsidies being offered by the state, he said, adding that the state is open to tweaking the incentive package based on industry inputs. Tamil Nadu tops rankings in most economic parameters, it is behind in global capability centres compared to other cities like Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad and Pune. A report released at the event by CBRE states that Chennai ranked 3rd in GCC leasing after Bengaluru and Hyderabad from 2022 to September 2024, with 33% of the activity by engineering and manufacturing firms. GCCs are expected to absorb up to 3.2 million sq ft in 2025, slightly higher than current year. 
 

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