Top 3 Stories
The cost of Trump's tariffs on Apple
US President Donald Trump’s tariffs have caused a real headache for Apple. So how bad is the hit? The numbers are in, and they’re not pretty.
Driving the news
Apple incurred around $800 million in tariff-related costs for the June quarter, and that number could jump to $1.1 billion in the September quarter, CEO Tim Cook said during the company's earnings call.
- Most iPhones sold in the US are now assembled in India. Macs, iPads, and Apple Watches still mainly come from Vietnam.
- Trump has warned of higher tariffs if Apple doesn't bring some production home, while the company has reiterated its $500 billion investment commitment.
Trump’s new 25% tariff on Indian exports could throw a wrench in Apple’s plans to make India a key iPhone export hub. Although it's still unclear whether high-value electronics such as iPhones will be directly impacted.
Apple's blockbuster quarter
With consumers rushing to buy iPhones ahead of potential tariff-related price hikes and a rebound in its China business, Apple saw a sharp surge in Q3 sales.
- iPhone revenue jumped nearly 13% to $44.6 billion while overall revenue grew 10%, the company's fastest quarterly revenue growth since 2021.
'AI-powered devices are complementary'
Cook also downplayed the potential impact of AI-powered devices on its products, saying they are more likely to complement existing devices than replace them.
"It's difficult to see a world where the iPhone’s not living in it," he said. (P.S. We wonder what Jony Ive thinks about this?)
Apple is however considering opening its gargantuan purse for potential acquisitions to accelerate its AI roadmap.
- The Cupertino tech giant is also stepping up its AI investments and reallocating employees to work on AI features, he said.
Apple faces growing pressure to stay competitive in the AI era, as rivals like Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI race ahead.
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SarvaGram's revenue soars, costs bite
Rural fintech lender SarvaGram Fincare is growing fast, but not without its challenges.
Driving the news
The company clocked a 74% jump in total income, reaching Rs 274 crore in FY25, as it expanded its lending operations across India’s underserved semi-urban and rural pockets.
Yet, profits told a different story: Standalone net profit dropped by over 35% to Rs 4.89 crore, dragged down by rising employee expenses and higher provisioning.
Key numbers
SarvaGram Solutions, the parent company that also offers farm mechanisation and insurance services through its ‘Sarvamitras’ network, reported a widened net loss of Rs 61 crore, even as consolidated income rose to Rs 309 crore.
- Despite the dip in profits, the firm’s total managed assets surged 60% to Rs 2,136 crore, a clear sign that SarvaGram is doubling down on rural India’s fintech opportunity.
Backed by investors like Peak XV, Temasek, and TVS Capital, the startup raised Rs 565 crore in late 2024, taking its total funding to Rs 950 crore.
Big Picture
SarvaGram's numbers come amid a broader slowdown in growth across the NBFC sector.
- Kinara booked a standalone loss of Rs 351 crore after selling stressed assets at a steep markdown, triggering audit concerns and signaling slowing loan-book expansion.
- Lendingkart Finance, backed by Temasek, swung to a Rs 288 crore net loss in FY25, down from a Rs 60 crore profit a year earlier, as operating revenues plunged over 24% and loan‑loss provisioning surged, underscoring the sector-wide slowdown in digital lending.
No cooldown in q-comm fight: Swiggy’s Amitesh Jha
India’s quick commerce game is still red hot, and Swiggy’s Instamart is sweating the competition.
New kids, same fire
Instamart CEO Amitesh Jha says the quick commerce battlefield isn’t cooling down — thanks to cautious but persistent new entrants.
“There are new players entering the market. Some of them are taking baby steps...We believe that (competitive intensity) will remain at a heightened level, and it is also something we are baking into our plans,” said Jha.
No names dropped, but Amazon and Flipkart are clearly crashing the q-comm party.
- Even as incumbents ease up on dark store expansion, fresh competition is keeping the heat on.
Fewer stores, sharper play
Swiggy isn’t chasing scale, it’s streamlining to stay in the fight.
- Instamart added just 41 dark stores in Q1 FY26, compared to 316 the previous quarter.
Jha says the focus now is on deepening operations in existing 127 cities, not rushing into new ones.
- Total store count stood at 1,062 in the June quarter, but expansion will now be “opportunity-based”
Depth over dash
As rivals pile on stores, Instamart is proving bigger isn’t always better — focusing on pulling more orders from each outlet.
- In comparison, Blinkit added 243 stores in Q1, pushing its count to 1,544, well ahead of Instamart.
Yet, Instamart’s gross order value grew 107% YoY during the quarter and it added 1.2 million monthly users, underscoring stronger customer traction per store.
- Swiggy’s top management says it is doubling down on existing markets to sharpen execution — aiming to outlast, not just outrun, the competition.
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