Venus Pipes IPO subscribed 2.37 times on first day of offer The initial public offer of Venus Pipes and Tubes got fully subscribed within the first few hours of opening on Wednesday. It closed with 2.37 times subscription on the first day. The category meant for Retail Individual Investors (RIIs) received 4.10 times subscription, while the portion for non-institutional investors got subscribed fully and Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs) 36 per cent. Proceeds from the issue will be used for financing the project cost towards capacity expansion and backward integration for manufacturing of hollow pipes, to meet working capital requirements and for general corporate purposes. The Gujarat-based company is a growing stainless-steel pipes and tubes manufacturer and exporter in India.The company, under the brand name Venus, supplies its products for applications in diverse sectors, including chemicals, engineering, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, power, food processing, paper and oil and gas. The equity shares of the company are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE.SMC Capitals is the manager to the offer.
Logistics, good or bad, are driven by the states and the commerce ministry has a LEADS (Logistics Ease Across Different States) report, based on perceptions. The 2023 version was released in December. Since states are heterogenous, in the reporting, they are divided into four groups—coastal, landlocked, north-east, and UTs. States that do well are called achievers. Nomenclature matters. Thus, states that are middling aren’t called average. They are called fast movers. States that are sub-par are called aspirers. Let me highlight coastal states, since 75% of export cargo is estimated to originate from them. Among coastal states, ones that do well are Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. The ones that lag are Goa, Odisha, and West Bengal. While India’s logistics performance may have improved over time, that’s not true of every state. Some have slipped. Most states have a state-level logistics policy, including Goa and Odisha. West Bengal, bottom of the pecking order in the coastal category, doesn’t have one. To quote from LEADS 2023, “Looking ahead, the State (West Bengal) could benefit from formulating a State Logistics Master Plan and State Logistics Policy to drive efficiency improvements and facilitate investments within the logistics sector and undertake consultation with the logistics stakeholders for educating and informing them about the initiatives State is undertaking for the development and improvement of logistics sector.”
Logistics has been talked about for a long time and India has also focused on improving performance. We are now getting some precise data on measurement and quantification. That helps.
Bibek Debroy, chairman, EAC-PM. Views are personal.