Shares of state-run Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) jumped 4% to Rs 874.95 in Friday’s session, supported by a 17% rise in Q3FY26 profit and a favourable brokerage note from Bernstein, which maintained a Market-Perform rating and set a target price of Rs 940.

The insurer reported a 17% year-on-year (YoY) rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 12,930 crore for the December quarter, compared with Rs 11,008 crore in the year-ago period.

Net premium income stood at Rs 1.26 lakh crore in Q3FY26, up 17% from Rs 1.07 lakh crore in the corresponding period last year. On a sequential basis, profit after tax rose 28% from Rs 10,098 crore reported in Q2FY26, even as net premium income declined marginally by 0.7% quarter-on-quarter.

During the nine months ended December 31, 2025, LIC sold 1,16,63,856 policies in the individual segment, slightly lower than 1,17,10,505 policies sold in the same period last fiscal year, reflecting a decline of 0.40%.

On an Annualised Premium Equivalent (APE) basis, total premium for 9MFY26 stood at Rs 44,007 crore. Of this, Individual Business contributed 62.61% or Rs 27,552 crore, while Group Business accounted for 37.39% or Rs 16,455 crore.

Within Individual Business, Par products made up 63.54% of APE at Rs 17,507 crore, while Non-Par products accounted for 36.46% or Rs 10,045 crore. Individual Non-Par APE increased to Rs 10,045 crore for the nine months ended December 31, 2025, compared with Rs 6,813 crore in the year-ago period, registering a growth of 47.44%.
The Value of New Business (VNB) for the nine-month period rose to Rs 8,288 crore from Rs 6,477 crore a year earlier, marking a growth of 27.96%. Net VNB margin expanded by 170 basis points to 18.8%, compared with 17.1% in the year-ago period.LIC’s solvency ratio improved to 2.19 as on December 31, 2025, from 2.02 a year earlier. Assets under management (AUM) increased to Rs 59,16,680 crore as of December 31, 2025, compared with Rs 54,77,651 crore on December 31, 2024, reflecting a rise of 8.01% YoY.

The overall expense ratio for the nine months ended December 31, 2025 declined by 132 basis points to 11.65%, compared with 12.97% in the corresponding period last year.

Brokerage view
Bernstein maintained a neutral stance on LIC, assigning a Market-Perform rating with a target price of Rs 940.

The brokerage said LIC delivered a strong topline performance in Q3FY26 despite ongoing GST-related pressures, while margins improved on the back of a healthier business mix and favourable yield curve movements.

It noted that new business margins rose to around 21%, aided by a better product mix and yield gains, with the GST impact largely offset through tight cost discipline.

On the strategic front, management indicated that the process for the government’s stake sale is likely to commence soon. Bernstein also expects greater clarity on LIC’s dividend policy following the transition to IFRS accounting standards, a key monitorable for investors.

(Disclaimer: The recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

Operator

Good day, and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Q3 2026 StepStone Group Inc. Earnings Conference Call. [Operator Instructions] Please be advised that today’s conference is being recorded.

I would now like to hand the conference over to your first speaker today, Seth Weiss, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

Seth Weiss
Managing Director of Corporate Investor Relations

Thank you. Joining me on today’s call are Scott Hart, Chief Executive Officer; Jason Ment, President and Co-Chief Operating Officer; Mike McCabe, Head of Strategy; and David Park, Chief Financial Officer.

During our prepared remarks, we will be referring to a presentation, which is available on our Investor Relations website at shareholders.stepstonegroup.com.

Before we begin, I’d like to remind everyone that this conference call as well as the presentation contains certain forward-looking statements regarding the company’s expected operating and financial performance for future periods.

Forward-looking statements reflect management’s current plans, estimates and expectations and are inherently uncertain and are subject to various risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Actual results for future periods may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements due to changes in circumstances or a number of risks or other factors that are described in the Risk Factors

As of Tuesday, the average price of software company loans was 91.27 cents on the dollar, down from 94.71 cents at the end of last year.

At the end of January, the extra yield, or spread, that investors demand to hold software loans over a benchmark short-term interest rate had jumped to 5.95 percentage points from 4.78 percentage points at the end of December.

Some $25 billion of software loans were trading at distressed levels–below 80 cents on the dollar–at the end of January, up from $11 billion a month earlier. That accounted for nearly a third of all distressed loans.

Q4: 2026-02-04 Earnings Summary

EPS of $1.53 beats by $0.32

 | Revenue of $113.28M (66.32% Y/Y) beats by $11.38M

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China’s five-year plan targets carbon peaking by 2030 and neutrality by 2060, but coal dominates energy. Challenges include inefficient renewable energy distribution and costly grid upgrades amid ongoing economic difficulties.

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Key Points

• China’s upcoming five-year plan (2026-2030) strives for carbon peaking by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, despite coal constituting over 51% of its energy supply.
• The nation faces significant challenges in renewable energy distribution and costly upgrades to its inefficient grid, which often leads to curtailing excess energy production.
• Investment in energy transport and storage is crucial, as the State Grid Corporation plans to allocate 650 billion yuan to modernize the power network.

China’s ambitious new five-year plan, which spans from 2026 to 2030, aims for significant climate targets: carbon peaking by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2060. Despite these goals, coal continues to play a dominant role in China’s energy landscape, supplying around 51% of the nation’s electricity as of mid-2025. This reliance on coal presents a persistent challenge for China as it attempts to transition toward a greener economy.

One considerable obstacle in this green transition lies in the inefficiencies of renewable energy distribution. For instance, in regions like Tibet, Xinjiang, and Qinghai, an abundance of solar and wind energy is generated on optimal days. However, the country’s power grid struggles to manage this load effectively. When renewable energy generation surges and threatens to overload the system, grid operators are forced to curtail output, leading to significant amounts of clean energy being wasted. This produced energy often fails to reach key economic centers in eastern China, where demand is significantly higher.

Addressing these distribution challenges requires substantial investments in infrastructure for energy transport and storage. The State Grid Corporation of China plans to allocate approximately 650 billion yuan (about £69 billion) by 2025 to upgrade the nation’s power network, with prospects for future investments thereafter. However, sustaining such capital-intensive projects poses a dilemma, especially as China’s broader economy grapples with the enduring repercussions of the 2021 property crisis.

As China solidifies its commitment to greening its economy, it faces a complex interplay of technological, economic, and infrastructural challenges. Successfully navigating these hurdles will be crucial for the fulfillment of its climate promises and for achieving a sustainable energy paradigm. The dual focus on short-term energy needs and long-term environmental goals exemplifies the difficulty of balancing economic resilience with climate responsibility.

Read the original article : China’s five green economy challenges in 2026

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American Express has launched a new Flexible Payment Option designed to give UK small businesses greater control over cashflow, allowing eligible cardholders to unlock an instant line of credit directly through their business charge card.

The new feature is available to new Business Platinum and Business Gold Cardmembers and enables them to choose how they repay their monthly statement balance. Cardholders can either pay in full, pay the minimum amount due, or repay any amount in between, with interest applied only to the portion carried forward.

Because the Flexible Payment Option is embedded within the card itself, businesses can manage repayments seamlessly through their online account or the American Express app. Importantly, no interest is charged if the full balance is paid by the statement due date.

Business Cardmembers also continue to benefit from up to 54 calendar days interest-free before payment is required, allowing cash to remain in the business for longer and improving short-term liquidity.

The move comes as cashflow management remains a pressing concern for UK SMEs. Research conducted by American Express last year found that nearly a third of small businesses consider cashflow a key operational priority, while more than a quarter said repayment flexibility is a critical factor when assessing financing options.

Ruchi Sharma, Vice President of UK Commercial at American Express, said the new feature was designed to remove friction at moments when businesses need flexibility most. “We know that cashflow is vital for small businesses, and Flexible Payment Option gives owners immediate access to credit when they need it,” she said. “This means they don’t have to dip into personal savings, take out a separate loan or miss out on growth opportunities when they arise.”

Alongside the new payment flexibility, American Express Business Platinum and Gold Cards continue to operate with no pre-set spending limit. Instead, spending power adjusts dynamically based on a business’s profile, usage patterns and payment history.

Cardmembers can also earn Membership Rewards points on everyday business spending, which can be redeemed against travel, experiences or purchases, offering additional value beyond day-to-day financing.

The launch positions American Express as targeting a growing segment of SMEs seeking flexible, embedded finance solutions that sit alongside existing payment tools, rather than relying on traditional overdrafts or standalone business loans.

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The share of Fortune 500 companies that publicly outlined their diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) commitments fell by nearly two-thirds from a year ago, new research shows.

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation released the latest version of its Corporate Equality Index on Tuesday, which showed a 65% decline in the number of Fortune 500 companies that chose to voluntarily submit their DEI policies for evaluation in the index. 

HRC noted that 131 companies in the Fortune 500 chose to participate in the CEI this year, down from 377 in 2025, and the group noted that many of the companies that opted against participating are federal contractors.

“What we’re seeing is the collapse of a corporate social credit system,” Robby Starbuck, host of “The Robby Starbuck Show” and visiting fellow for capital markets at the Heritage Foundation, told FOX Business. “The HRC’s CEI system turned boardrooms into political compliance offices, where companies were pressured to prove their ideological loyalty instead of focusing on their business, customers, employees, and shareholders.”

NIKE’S DIVERSITY INITIATIVES UNDER EEOC SCRUTINY FOR ALLEGED DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WHITE WORKERS

Starbuck, who emerged as a leading activist in spotlighting corporate DEI policies in recent years, added that the decline in participation in the index shows those policies were out of step with average Americans and that corporate leaders appreciated the risk they posed when shares declined amid DEI controversies.

“While I bask in this victory over a truly despicable, evil ideology, I still have 35% left to eliminate and mark my words, I will,” he added. “It turns out supporting sex changes for kids, racism against Whites via DEI and struggle sessions at work aren’t that popular in the real world!”

CHRISTIAN INVESTORS WITH $4B+ LAUNCH CAMPAIGN TO STRIP ‘WOKE’ AGENDAS FROM MAJOR CORPORATIONS

Last year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to “end illegal DEI discrimination and preferences” while directing federal agencies to take steps to encourage private sector companies to end illicit DEI policies through regulatory actions, investigations, litigation or other means.

HRC president Kelley Robinson said that while it remains illegal to discriminate against LGBTQ+ workers, she noted in the group’s report that “pressure from the federal government has been unprecedented, rolling back protections, publishing executive orders and threatening investigations for diversity and inclusion work.

“It’s in this context that some companies have pulled back from this work,” she added.

NEW ‘ANTI-DEI’ INDEX FUND LAUNCHES TO ONLY INVEST IN COMPANIES THAT HIRE BASED ON MERIT

The HRC noted that among companies that disclosed DEI policies and practices through the CEI in 2025 and 2026, they found the implementation of those policies and practices was sustained or increased with no drop off.

“Companies that communicate clearly and lead with transparency earn trust, retain talent, and strengthen their business. And they’re overwhelmingly backed by their shareholders who have rejected anti-DEI measures by nearly unanimous votes,” Robinson said. 

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“At a moment when fear and confusion are growing, providing clarity and confidence isn’t just good leadership – it’s essential.”