Business
Rumors Point to Warriors, Cavaliers or Heat as Decision Nears at NBA Event
LeBron James’s search for a new NBA home is entering its final stretch, with league insiders reporting that every team still in the running has now made its formal pitch to the four-time champion and his camp is simply waiting for him to make up his mind.
James informed the Los Angeles Lakers last month that he intends to play his 24th NBA season with a different franchise, ending an eight-year run in Los Angeles that included a championship in the pandemic-shortened 2020 bubble season. Lakers governor Jeanie Buss addressed the departure in a statement, calling James “one of the greatest athletes in history” and adding, “We will always be thankful for his eight years with the Lakers — including the title he led us to in 2020 under the toughest imaginable circumstances and the countless records he broke in purple and gold. We wish him all the best in the future, both on the court and off. He will always be a cherished part of the Lakers family.”
James responded on social media, writing that it was “truly a honor to wear” the Lakers’ colors and adding, “I hope I made a few proud during my stint.”
Since then, the 41-year-old has become the biggest remaining piece on the free agent board, with his decision expected to set off a chain reaction across the league. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported this week that the presentation process has wrapped for every interested team. “The voice notes have all been listened to, the rosters are set, the decks are all laid out,” Charania said. “We’ll see when he’s ready to make his decision.”
The Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers and Minnesota Timberwolves have emerged as the group of finalists most frequently cited by league insiders, according to multiple reports. James’s agent, Rich Paul, told reporters last week that he had spoken with 27 teams on his client’s behalf, including Golden State, Cleveland and Miami — the three organizations James has played for at some point in his career.
A source familiar with James’s thinking told ESPN’s Dave McMenamin that the star wants to play “meaningful, competitive basketball” wherever he lands next, suggesting he remains focused on contending for a fifth championship rather than simply picking the highest bidder or the most comfortable situation.
Golden State’s pursuit has been complicated by roster mechanics and, according to some reports, internal uncertainty about its odds. Andscape’s Marc J. Spears said on ESPN’s “NBA Today” that Warriors decision-makers have grown less confident in their chances. “I’m kind of hearing today that the Warriors internally kind of feel like they’re a dark horse at this point, that LeBron James is probably going out East,” Spears said. Still, Golden State has kept its books open, and Draymond Green declined his $27.6 million player option earlier this month in part to preserve the team’s financial flexibility to pursue James and a possible trade for Washington Wizards forward Anthony Davis, James’s former Lakers teammate. “Personally, I’m always willing to work with the team on whatever is best, especially at this point in my career,” Green said on his podcast, explaining his decision to opt out. “I’ve always taken the approach of working with the organization. I’ve been in one place for 14 years. It’s more of a family to me than anything.”
Warriors star Stephen Curry, who played alongside James on the gold medal-winning U.S. Olympic team in 2024, has also made his case publicly. “The pitch is: Do you want to play good basketball and be around people who know how to play the game?” Curry said. “Hopefully raise our floor, our competitiveness this year. There’s good golf in the Bay.”
The Cavaliers, meanwhile, are widely viewed as offering James a storybook homecoming to the franchise where he began his career and later delivered Cleveland its first NBA title in 2016. James has played 1,001 regular-season and playoff games for the organization across two stints, and his offseason home outside Akron sits an easy drive from the team’s practice facility. Cleveland bolstered its case for contention this offseason by locking up guard Donovan Mitchell to a four-year, $273 million maximum extension.
Miami, James’s other former team, presents a different kind of pitch: pairing him with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Bam Adebayo in what would be one of the most physically imposing frontcourts in league history, backed by the coaching staff of Erik Spoelstra, Pat Riley and Andy Elisburg.
Attention has increasingly turned to timing. James is scheduled to appear at the 2026 Fanatics Fest at the Javits Center in New York City, running from Thursday, July 16, through Sunday, July 19, alongside a roster of major sports figures including Tom Brady, Serena Williams and David Beckham. James is also set to host a live episode of his “Mind the Game” podcast at the event on July 16 and 17 with special co-host Tyrese Haliburton, fueling speculation among insiders that the podcast could double as the venue for his announcement — a format that would fit James’s history of controlling the rollout of his major career decisions, from his 2010 television special to a 2014 first-person essay and a 2018 social media post.
Not everyone expects a straightforward outcome. Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks predicted during an appearance on the “NBA 2K League” broadcast that James would ultimately land with Golden State, offering one of several public guesses that have circulated as the decision drags into the middle of July. Meanwhile, questions remain about how the move could affect James’s son, Bronny, a member of the Lakers’ roster, with reports suggesting his situation may not necessarily be tied to his father’s choice.
For now, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer remains the league’s biggest domino still standing in an offseason that has already reshaped several rosters, with teams like the Timberwolves, Cavaliers, Heat, 76ers and Warriors left waiting to see whether their pitches were enough to convince James to keep chasing championships somewhere new.
The new additions were Billionbrains Garage Ventures, Aditya Vision, Page Industries, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Heavy Electricals. Among them, the fund bought 18.10 lakh shares of Billionbrains Garage Ventures, valued at Rs 26.57 crore.
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It added 7.80 lakh shares of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, 3.99 lakh shares of Bharat Heavy Electricals, 1.89 lakh shares of Aditya Vision and 7,128 shares of Page Industries in the portfolio in June.
The fund added 81,157 shares of Paytm in the portfolio and had 4.45 lakh shares in June portfolio compared to 3.64 lakh shares in July portfolio. The fund added 6.28 lakh shares of NBCC (India) taking the total number of shares to 24.62 lakh in June.
The fund added nearly 4.74 lakh shares of PhysicsWallah, taking its total holding to 24.90 lakh shares in June. It also bought 3.80 lakh shares of GMR Airports, 2.12 lakh shares of IDFC First Bank and 1.93 lakh shares of Honasa Consumer.
Among the other 25 stocks where the fund increased its portfolio were some names such as Glaxosmithkline Pharmaceuticals, Piramal Finance, Apar Industries, Gokaldas Export, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, Sunadaram Finance, BSE, MCX, Dixon Technologies (India), Aditya Birla Capital, CarTrade Tech, Delhivery, Vishal Mega Mart, Endurance Technologies and K.P.R. Mill.A complete exit was made from five stocks — Hero MotoCorp, Escorts Kubota, ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company, PB Fintech, and Jain Resource Recycling. Further, 4.01 lakh shares of Jain Resource Recycling and 1.55 lakh shares of PB Fintech were sold from the portfolio.
The fund sold 95,792 shares of Escorts Kubota, 42,721 shares of ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company and 29,057 shares of Hero MotoCorp from its portfolio.
The fund trimmed its exposure to Black Box by selling 45,361 shares, taking its holding down to 2.37 lakh shares in June.
Its holdings remained unchanged in 32 stocks, including ITC Hotels, Swiggy, Ather Energy, Hitachi Energy India, PNB Housing Finance, Lemon Tree Hotels, CAMS, Nippon Life India AMC, Bharti Hexacom, Edelweiss Financial Services and Radico Khaitan.
In June, the fund had 68 stocks compared to the same number of stocks in the previous month. The portfolio of the fund was spread across 23 sectors, with the highest allocation in finance of around 21.70%.
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The fund had an AUM of Rs 1,793 crore. Since its inception, it delivered a CAGR of 25.75%. In the last one year, the fund delivered a 11.92% return against 5.04% by the benchmark.
Helios Mid Cap Fund’s performance is benchmarked against Nifty Midcap 150 – TRI. The fund holds 9.28% in large caps, 55.31% in mid caps, 34.1% in small caps and 1.31% in others.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)
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Anna Price, the community lead at St Mary Magdalene, says its work to build community resilience and break down isolation is hugely important.
“Many people get into a crisis partly because they’re on their own and they’ve got no-one around them to help them make sense of things and help them move forward in life,” she says.
“The cycles that I see of families, the kind of generational dependence on benefits, has meant that for some, they no longer have the skills or the upbringing to know how to hold down a job.”
St Mary Magdalene sits within an estate with high levels of unemployment and “economically inactive” people who are neither in work nor looking for it.
Mental health issues, neurodivergent conditions, physical ill health and disabilities are also prevalent.
“You realise when you hear their stories and what their lives are like, that the idea of employment is very, very, very challenging,” says Price.
“It is really heartbreaking, because it’s a cycle that you feel like we’re trapped in and can’t easily see a way out of that.”
But there is hope. Introducing a person in crisis to Tennant is “like picking somebody off the floor,” she says.
“I’ve always found it very emotional; that they see there is a possibility to get out of debt and get on the right benefits.
“It’s incredible.”
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions said its Connect to Work programme was expected to support 4,000 people in Norfolk by 2029.
“We’re committed to moving from a welfare state to a working state, giving people in Norfolk and beyond the support they need to move out of poverty and into work,” they added.
“We will always work with anyone with an outstanding debt to find an affordable way to repay, which could include pointing individuals towards free debt advice and support services.”
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Business
Agentic AI, alternative data and SIFs take centre stage at Indian Institutional Quant Conference 2026
The day-long conference, held on July 17 at the Taj City Centre in Gurugram, brought together global academics, institutional practitioners, regulators and technologists to discuss emerging trends in quantitative and systematic investing. This marked the second time the conference was held in the National Capital Region.
The conference featured panel discussions, fireside chats and technical presentations, with participation from asset management companies, family offices, policymakers, global research firms and academia.
The event began with a welcome address by LAQSA co-founders Rishi Kohli of JioBlackRock AMC, Pankaj Mani of RealWorldRisk and Arvind Mathur of Private Equity Pro.
Among the other speakers were Prof. Chetan Ghate, Member of the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council; Sunil Ramrakhiani, Chief Business Officer at BSE; Prof. Sandeep Juneja, Founding Director of the Safexpress Centre for Data, Learning and Decision Sciences at Ashoka University; Lalit Taneja, Director of the GARP Delhi (India) Chapter; and Prof. Miquel Noguer I Alonso.
Agentic AI and alternative data in focus
One of the key sessions focused on “Agentic AI in Quant: Practical Applications”, led by Prof. Miquel Noguer I Alonso. The discussion examined how autonomous AI agents and multi-agent systems could reshape areas such as portfolio management and systematic trading.
Another session, titled “Practical Uses of AI/ML and Alternative Data for India vs. Global Experience”, featured Balakrishnan Ilango of LSEG and Aditya Sharma of S&P Global Market Intelligence.
The discussion highlighted differences between the adoption of AI globally and in India, particularly in the context of data availability and regulatory constraints in domestic markets.
SIFs gain prominence among wealthy investors
The growing relevance of Specialised Investment Funds was another major theme at the conference. A dedicated panel featuring Rishi Kohli of JioBlackRock AMC, Amit Goel of PACE 360, Vinayak Magotra of Centricity WealthTech and Puneet Jain of Karan Thapar Family Office discussed the rising appetite among ultra-high-net-worth individuals and family offices for systematic allocations through SIFs.The conference also examined the regulatory outlook for quantitative strategies from a global comparative perspective, while Prof. Chetan Ghate provided a macroeconomic perspective on the structural challenges involved in economic policymaking at scale.
Commenting on the event, Pankaj Mani, Co-Founder of LAQSA, said the conference reflected how India’s institutional quant ecosystem was progressing from strategy design towards implementation and greater technical rigour.
“The sessions on Regulating the Quant Ecosystem, Agentic AI in Quant, and Forex Strategies sparked exactly the kind of candid, practitioner-led dialogue we want to build across the ecosystem,” Mani said.
Rishi Kohli, Co-Founder of LAQSA, said the sixth edition reinforced that India’s quant community is expanding in both depth and maturity — linking global experience with India-specific market realities and strengthening the network of professionals building systematic capabilities.
As quantitative tools become more deeply embedded in investment processes, the boundaries between traditional and systematic investing are also becoming less distinct. Discussions at the conference indicated that developments ranging from Agentic AI and alternative data to the emergence of SIFs could play an increasingly important role in shaping India’s institutional investment ecosystem.
(Note: The journalist was invited to the conference)
The NSE’s Nifty 50 rose 261.55 points, or 1.1%, to close at 24,334.3, while the BSE Sensex gained 964.58 points, or 1.25%, to end at 78,151.45.
“Our markets were insulated from the Asian selling due to the lack of AI play,” said Sham Chandak, head of institutional equities at Elios Financial Services.
The Nifty IT index rose 1.75%, while Bank Nifty gained 1.6% and the Auto index climbed 1.2%.
“With the shaky AI trend trading globally, Indian IT services stocks have taken a breather and are partially aided by better-than-expected earnings,” said Chandak. “Major banking stocks like HDFC, ICICI, Kotak and Axis are set to announce their earnings on Saturday, and the market is going in with an expectation of good numbers.”
Elsewhere in Asia, Japan fell 4.03%, Hong Kong declined 1.8%, China lost 3.05%, and Taiwan dropped 6.5%. South Korean markets were closed on Friday but had fallen 6.4% at Thursday’s close.
The Nifty advanced 0.5%, and the Sensex gained nearly 0.8% during the rollercoaster trading week, with fresh tensions in West Asia triggering a rebound in oil prices.Brent crude futures traded at $86 a barrel on Friday evening, up from $76 last week amid renewed tensions involving the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil transit route, between the US and Iran.
Technical and derivative indicators are pointing to continued gains next week.
Ashish Katwa, technical analyst at Stoxbox, said the Nifty had resumed its uptrend after three sessions of consolidation, forming its strongest bullish candle since June 12.
“Options data continues to support the bullish outlook, with fresh put writing at the 24,200 and 24,000 strikes establishing a strong support base,” he said. “Meanwhile, call unwinding at the 24,500 strike signals scope for further upside, while fresh call writing at the 24,600 and 24,700 strikes is expected to act as the immediate resistance zone.”
He said the bias remains positive for next week, with any dip towards 24,200-24,250 presenting a buying opportunity as long as the Nifty holds above 23,970. Immediate upside targets are seen at 24,500 and 24,700.
The India VIX, the market’s fear gauge, rose 2.1% to 13.15.
Broader markets underperformed the benchmarks. The Nifty Midcap 150 fell 0.4%, and the Nifty Smallcap 250 declined 0.6% on Friday. For the week, the indices lost 0.9% and 0.6%, respectively. Of the 4,412 stocks traded on the BSE, 1,635 advanced while 2,588 declined.
Foreign portfolio investors were net sellers of shares worth 376 crore, while domestic institutional investors were net buyers of shares worth 1,018 crore.
Cited by Barron’s as one of the top financial websites to visit on the weekend, Financial Sense (www.financialsense.com) provides educational resources to the broad public audience through a daily podcast, editorials, current news and resource links on salient financial market issues. Begun in 1985 as a local talk radio program, Financial Sense Newshour (www.financialsense.com/financial-sense-newshour) is a weekly webcast with host Jim Puplava and top financial thinkers. Writing staff of Financial Sense includes: Jim Puplava, Chris Puplava, Ryan Puplava, and Cris Sheridan.
The country’s largest producer of steel reported its earnings during market hours on Friday, and its shares climbed 1.4% on the BSE at 1,238.35. While higher compared to the previous year, the bottomline was 75% lower sequentially as the March quarter benefited from one-time gains of 17,888 crore.
Consolidated revenue from operations for the June quarter rose around 10% on year to 47,364 crore; the year-on-year revenue growth stood at 19% on a proforma basis after adjusting the sales of Bhushan Power in the comparable quarter. The entity was de-consolidated from JSW Steel from March earlier this year.
Revenue growth for the steelmaker was boosted by a combination of higher steel prices and a 4% growth in consolidated sales volumes to 6.25 million tonne for the quarter.
Total expenses for the quarter rose less than 4% on year to 41,830 crore—relatively lower than the revenue growth for the period—helped by a near 23% drop in finance costs to 1,712 crore. JSW Steel’s consolidated net debt is down to 46,157 crore at the end of June from 53,870 crore a quarter ago.
Net debt to equity ratio at the end of the quarter stood at 0.42 times, down from 0.51 times at the end of the March quarter, while the net debt to Ebitda ratio stood at 1.46 times, down from 1.81 times.
The revenue growth and relatively lower growth in expenses boosted the consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation for the company, which rose 38% on year to 9,383 crore. The Ebitda made on each tonne of steel rose 23% on year to 14,990 during the quarter.
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Business
IPO calendar: 5 IPOs opening for subscription to keep investors busy; SBI Funds among 4 listings scheduled
The week comes after strong demand in the IPO market in the week gone by, led by SBI Funds Management. The Rs 9,813 crore IPO of India’s largest mutual fund house was subscribed over 40 times and drew demand of nearly Rs 2.98 lakh crore. Its grey market premium hovered around 16%, suggesting a positive listing expectation.
Xtranet Technologies IPO
Xtranet Technologies will open its Rs 166.8 crore mainboard IPO for subscription on July 23. The issue will close on July 27. The company has fixed a price band of Rs 120-127 per share. The IPO is entirely a fresh issue of 1.31 crore shares. There is no offer for sale. The shares are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE, with a tentative listing date of July 30.
The lot size is 110 shares. At the upper price band, retail investors will need to invest Rs 13,970 for one lot.
Share India Capital Services is the book-running lead manager, while KFin Technologies is the registrar.
Incorporated in 2002, Xtranet Technologies is an integrated IT solutions provider. The company offers enterprise applications, digital transformation, managed services, proprietary platforms and strategic technology partnerships.
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The company plans to use IPO proceeds for debt repayment, purchase and installation of systems and hardware, working capital requirements and general corporate purposes. It has earmarked Rs 21.99 crore for repayment or prepayment of borrowings, Rs 7.30 crore for capital expenditure and Rs 102 crore for working capital.
Cube Highways Trust InvIT IPO
Cube Highways Trust InvIT will also open next week. The mainboard issue will open on July 22 and close on July 24. The IPO size is Rs 5,000 crore. The issue is a book-building offer and will list on BSE and NSE. Kotak Mahindra Capital is the lead manager to the issue.
The Cube Highways Trust InvIT issue will be watched closely because infrastructure investment trusts give investors exposure to operating infrastructure assets. InvITs are generally tracked by long-term investors looking for cash-flow visibility, yield and exposure to roads and infrastructure.
SME IPOs next week
Apart from the two mainboard issues, the SME market will also see activity. Shree Balaji Mala Textiles will open its BSE SME IPO on July 22 and close on July 24. The price band is Rs 66-70 per share and the issue size is Rs 18.90 crore.
Metalic Technoforge will open its NSE SME issue on July 21 and close on July 23. The price band is Rs 72-77 and the issue size is Rs 49.96 crore.
Gulf Lloyds India will open its BSE SME fixed-price issue on July 20 and close on July 22. The issue price is Rs 100 per share and the issue size is Rs 18.19 crore.
Four listings to watch
The listing calendar will also be busy next week. SBI Funds Management will be the biggest listing to track after its public issue saw strong institutional and retail demand. The IPO was subscribed over 40 times, with QIB demand crossing 140 times. Its GMP is around 16%.
Millworks Technologies will also be watched closely because of its grey market premium of more than 100%, which signals strong listing expectations. However, grey market trends are unofficial and can change before listing.
Alpine Texworld is another scheduled listing, but its GMP is at 0%, suggesting muted listing expectations for now. The fourth listing of Sotefin Bharat will also be tracked by investors as the market tests appetite across mainboard and SME names after a strong run in recent offerings.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)
Lemon_tm/iStock via Getty Images
Originally published on July 16, 2026
By Jennifer Nash
The Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index showed activity expanded significantly in July, with the index jumping 31.1 points to 41.4. This marks the highest level for the index since
Renaissance Capital provides pre-IPO research to institutional investors and investment banks. The Firm manages two IPO-focused funds: The Renaissance IPO ETF (NYSE: IPO) and the Renaissance International IPO ETF (NYSE: IPOS). Individual investors can get a free overview of the IPO market on www.renaissancecapital.com, and try a free trial of our premium platform, IPO Pro (ipopro.renaissancecapital.com). Through Renaissance Capital’s pre-IPO research service, institutional investors get an independent opinion, in-depth fundamental analysis, and customizable financial models on all IPOs.
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