Mini Feature HISTORT OF BATA

By: Dr K C Gupta, YBB Personal Finance

CONTRARIAN INDICATORS

AAII Bull-Bear Spread -24.5% (very low)
CNN Fear & Greed Index 29 (fear-high)
NYSE %Above 50-dMA 31.12% (negative)
SP500 %Above 50-dMA 28.80% (oversold)

ICI Fund Allocations (Cumulative), 7/31/26
OEFs & ETFs: Stocks 62.92%, Hybrids 3.89%, Bonds 17.00%, M-Mkt 16.19%

INTEREST RATES

CME FedWatch
Cycle peak 5.25-5.50%
Current 3.50-3.75%
FOMC 10/28/26+ hike
FOMC 12/9/26+ hold

Treasury

T-Bills 3-mo yield 4.14%, 1-yr 4.44%; T-Notes 2-yr 4.76%, 5-yr 4.86%, 10-yr 5.01%; T-Bonds 30-yr 5.34% (normal yield-curve);
TIPS/Real yields 5-yr 2.55%, 10-yr 2.68%, 30-yr 3.09%
FRNs Index 4.010%

Bank Rates www.depositaccounts.com/



Stable-Value (SV) Rates, 9/1/26
TIAA Traditional Annuity (Accumulation) Rates
Restricted RC 5.50%, RA 5.25%
Flexible RCP 4.75%, SRA 4.50%, IRA-101110+ 4.20%
TIAA MYGA 4.75% (3-yr), 4.95% (5-yr), 5.05% (7-yr)
TSP G Fund 4.875% (previous 4.875%)

India Fear & Greed MMI 13.47 (extreme fear)
Weekly ETFs: INDA -1.13%, EPI -1.49%, INDH -0.99%, SMIN -1.57% | SPY -0.09%

The data above are as of Sunday preceding the publication date.

CONSUMERS

Hisense-India (parent Chinese Hisense Group) has expanded its product line to washing machines with small & large capacities for home use. It already offers TVs & air-conditioners.

FINANCIALS

Indian insurance regulator IRDAI has warned of severe reinsurance underpricing by new foreign entrants to the Indian market – up to 99% discounts just don’t make sense. Relaxed rules of entry now allow 100% foreign ownership of insurers but that doesn’t mean unfair competition to quickly pickup market share. 24 reinsurers have been licensed in GIFT City alone & that includes 10 foreign reinsurers.
India’s biggest reinsurer is government controlled (77.4% stake) GIC Re whose reinsurance market share is 67% but its guaranteed reinsurance market share (of each reinsurance written) has been reduced to 4% in stages. Its international reinsurance business is also growing. It’s catastrophic coverage losses from floods are high & it had to add reserves. A.M. Best rates GIC Re at A- (Excellent). From 1972 – 2016, GIC Re was the only reinsurer in India.

HEALTHCARE

Hearzap has bought Italian healthcare company Amplifon’s Indian hearing business that will almost double its hearing centers. Hearzap is backed by private-equity firm 360 ONE Asset Management.

INDUSTRIALS

S Korean machine tool company DN Solutions opened its 1st Indian factory in Bengaluru with related facilities (including R&D, service center) still under construction. Some production may also be exported globally in future. It’s also planning another facility in India soon.

INFRASTRUCTURE

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has partnered with French FAYAT on specialized road construction equipment. The actual unit involved will be the French subsidiary in Germany, BOMAG.

SPECIAL TOPIC – HISTORY OF BATA

Bata started out as a Czech company founded by Thomas BATA & family in 1894 in Zlin, formerly in Austro-Hungarian Empire, but now in Czech Republic. Zlin has 75,000 population & now has Bata facilities, Bata Hospital & Bata University. “Bata Corporation” remains a private multinational that moved its headquarters several times during WW I & II due to political & business disruptions & family dislocations. Many of its European properties were confiscated or nationalized. Family members temporarily lived in US, Brazil, UK, Canada (there is Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto). It’s current headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland (2004).

Its primary business is various types of shoes but it also has several other businesses including e-commerce web portals. It was an early adopter of automation, mass-marketing, profit-sharing & community development. It’s focus has been on affordable low-cost shoes with highly localized identifications. It established Bata-towns around the world where it had major manufacturing facilities. This local autonomous branch model was developed out of necessity of the Family that couldn’t remain anchored for long anywhere. Bata’s approach is different from that of well-known & expensive global shoe brands (Adidas, Nike, On, Puma, Sketchers, etc).

BATA-INDIA started in Batanagar in 1931 under a license from British East India Co. The town Batanagar is now part of Kolkata-metro-area. There is also Bataganj (1942) in Patna-metro-area. Bata-India became a public company in 1973. Most Indians think of it as an indigenous company, but it has Czech roots & it’s 50.16% owned by Swiss parent Bata. The Bata-India operations are the largest of Bata’s global operations & account for 20% of its global revenues.

Parent Bata (Swiss) & many of its global operations are private. But there are 5 global listing of Bata, 4 in Asia: Bangladesh (1985), India (1973), Indonesia (1982), Pakistan (1985); 1 in Africa: Zambia (2009) & none in Europe. Bata-Indonesia no longer manufactures shoes & is a broad e-commerce web portal.

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