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HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited (HMEL) announced a Rs 2,600 crore investment in Punjab's speciality and fine chemicals sector. Additionally, HMEL plans to launch 500 new retail fuel outlets nationwide, equipped with modern technology. This expansion follows HMEL's significant Rs 60,000 crore investment in its Bathinda refinery, Punjab's sole oil refinery. View More
Mohali: HPCL-Mittal Energy Limited (HMEL) will invest Rs 2,600 crore in the speciality and fine chemicals sector in Punjab, renowned industrialist Lakshmi Niwas Mittal said on Friday. HMEL will also enter the retail fuel sector and open 500 retail outlets across the country, he added. Mittal, who is also the executive chairman of ArcelorMittal, was addressing a gathering during the three-day Progressive Punjab Investors Summit 2026, which began here on Friday. On the occasion, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal and other dignitaries were present. The AAP government is holding the summit to showcase investment opportunities in Punjab. Live Events During his address, Mittal said HMEL is now moving forward with investments in the speciality and fine chemicals sector. "We are moving forward in the speciality and fine chemicals sector for which we are announcing a new investment of Rs 2,600 crore," Mittal said. Referring to HMEL's Guru Gobind Singh refinery in Bathinda, he said Rs 60,000 crore has been invested so far, making it the biggest investment in Punjab. The project, which began in 2008 with a capacity of 9 million metric tonnes, has been expanded to 13.50 million MT over time and stands as Punjab's only oil refinery, playing a crucial role in meeting the energy demand. The Bathinda refinery not only meets the energy requirement of Punjab but also caters to other states, including Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi-NCR, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand, he said. Considering the rising demand for LPG in the country, its production has been raised from 1,000 tonnes per day to 3,000 tonnes per day, he said. Mittal further stated that with the support of the Punjab government, a world-class petrochemical complex has been established here. This has significantly contributed to the social and economic development of the Bathinda region, he said. The company has also set up a bio-ethanol plant, which produces around 10 crore litres of ethanol annually and contributes to India's fuel blending programme, he added. The company is also investing in green energy in Bathinda and will further increase its participation in renewable and sustainable energy in the future. "We are entering the petrol pump sector. In the first phase, we will set up 500 new retail outlets across the country, equipped with modern technology and AI-enabled systems," he said. Mittal said a large downstream industrial ecosystem can be developed around the refinery and petrochemical industry in Punjab. This ecosystem would create extensive opportunities for plastic processing, speciality chemicals, packaging, auto components, textiles and other manufacturing units, he noted. Mittal said he spoke to Mann and Kejriwal on Friday in this regard. He said the government has assured that a downstream industry complex will be developed over 1,500 acres in Bathinda. Mittal also stressed skill development for the youth in the state. PTI .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
India's urea imports from China reached a three-year peak. Fertilizer imports from China and Russia saw a significant increase this fiscal year. Urea imports from China dramatically outpaced previous years. Russia also supplied substantial quantities of urea, DAP, MoP, and NPK fertilizers. Overall urea imports from these two nations are considerable. Domestic urea availability currently exceeds requirements. View More
India imported 21.24 lakh tonne of urea from China between April 2025 and February 2026, the highest in three years, even as total fertiliser imports from China and Russia rose sharply this fiscal year, as per the government data placed before Parliament on Friday. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Fertilisers Anupriya Patel said that India had sourced fertilisers from both countries, with Chinese urea imports dramatically outpacing the 0.99 lakh tonne recorded in the full fiscal year 2024-25 and also exceeding 18.65 lakh tonne in 2023-24 and 12.80 lakh tonne in 2022-23. Beyond urea, India imported 5.11 lakh tonne of Di Ammonium Phosphate (DAP), 0.28 lakh tonne of Muriate of Potash (MoP) and 9.61 lakh tonne of NPK fertiliser from China between April 2025 and February 2026, bringing total phosphatic and potassic imports to 15 lakh tonne. Urea imports from Moscow stood at 13.99 lakh tonne till February, already higher than the 9.23 lakh tonne imported in 2024-25. India also sourced 7.55 lakh tonne of DAP, 12.97 lakh tonne of MoP and 21 lakh tonne of NPK fertilisers from Russia this fiscal year. Total urea imports from China and Russia alone are about 35.23 lakh tonne till February of the current fiscal. Live Events Overall, urea imports from other countries were at 56.47 lakh tonne achieved in 2024-25. On domestic availability, the minister said approximately 432.44 lakh tonne of urea is currently available in the country against a requirement of 370.84 lakh tonne. Sales of urea through direct benefit transfer have reached 381.59 lakh tonne so far this year. Phosphatic and potassic fertilisers are covered under the Open General Licence, allowing companies to import or manufacture them based on their own commercial assessments. PTI .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
The consultancy arm of Coal India, Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI), will open its IPO on March 20. The offer for sale of 10.71 crore shares will list on BSE and NSE, with 50% reserved for QIBs and 35% for retail investors. As the issue is entirely an OFS, CMPDI will not receive any proceeds from the offer, and the funds raised will go to the selling shareholders. View More
Central Mine Planning and Design Institute Ltd (CMPDI), a consultancy arm of Coal India, will open its IPO for subscription on March 20, with the public issue set to close on March 24. The IPO comprises an offer for sale of 10.71 crore shares, with the government and Coal India diluting part of their stake in the company. As the issue is entirely an OFS, CMPDI will not receive any proceeds from the offer, and the funds raised will go to the selling shareholders. The company plans to list its shares on both the BSE and the NSE, with a tentative listing date of March 30. CMPDI IPO price band The price band, lot size and total issue size in rupee terms are yet to be announced. IDBI Capital Markets has been appointed as the book-running lead manager, while Kfin Technologies will act as the registrar to the issue. CMPDI IPO structure Under the proposed allocation structure, about 50% of the offer will be reserved for qualified institutional buyers (QIBs), 35% will be allocated to retail investors and a minimum of 15% to non-institutional investors. The IPO will also have shareholder and employee reservation categories, with eligibility for the shareholder quota extended to investors holding shares in Coal India. About CMPDI Incorporated in 1974, CMPDI provides consultancy and technical services across the entire value chain of coal and mineral exploration, mine planning and mine design. The company supports mining projects through services such as geological exploration, environmental planning, remote sensing, surveying and infrastructure engineering. Live Events Also read: Explained: Why traders aren’t holding on to gold since Middle East war despite safe haven appeal CMPDI is one of the largest coal and mineral consultancy companies in India, commanding a 61% market share in FY25, and serves as the preferred consulting partner to Coal India, the world’s largest coal producer. The company operates through multiple business verticals, including geological exploration and resource evaluation, mine planning and design, environmental monitoring, and geomatics and remote sensing services. CMPDI has significant technical infrastructure to support these activities. As of March 2025, the company operated one of the largest fleets of exploratory drilling equipment for coal and mineral exploration in India. Its operations are supported by seven regional institutes located in key coal-producing states such as Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and West Bengal, which help execute projects and coordinate closely with mining operations on the ground. The company has also demonstrated capabilities in planning large-scale mining projects. It has designed open-cast mines with production capacities of up to 85 million tonnes annually and mining depths reaching 420 metres. Also read: $100 crude gives Rs 20 lakh crore shock to Nifty bulls this week. Best time to buy the fear? In addition, CMPDI operates eight laboratories across major coalfields that specialise in coal testing and quality analysis. The company also participates in mineral exploration initiatives supported by the National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET). As of December 2025, it had submitted 11 exploration proposals for minerals such as bauxite, copper, magnetite and zinc, of which six projects were approved and four completed. Financials Financially, CMPDI has delivered consistent growth in recent years. The company reported revenue of Rs 2,177 crore in FY25, up from Rs 1,770 crore in FY24. Profit after tax rose to Rs 667 crore in FY25, compared with Rs 503 crore a year earlier. For the nine months ended December 2025, the company posted revenue of Rs 1,544 crore and profit after tax of Rs 425 crore. The government currently holds CMPDI through the President of India acting via the Ministry of Coal and Coal India, which together own 100% of the company prior to the IPO. (Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times) .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)
India has asked China to allow the sale of some urea cargoes as the war in the Middle East disrupts gas supplies needed for fertilizer production. Indian officials have urged Beijing to ease export restrictions as liquefied natural gas shortages force some domestic fertilizer plants to shut. View More
India has asked China to allow the sale of some urea cargoes as the war in the Middle East curtails the nation’s gas supplies, threatening fertilizer production in the agricultural powerhouse. Indian officials have asked their Chinese counterparts to consider easing export restrictions as the expanding conflict upends supplies of liquefied natural gas — a key feedstock — and forces some fertilizer makers in the South Asian nation to shut plants, according to people familiar with the matter. ALSO READ: India buys 30 million barrels of Russian oil after US waiver The move is a sign of the unusual measures countries are taking to secure key commodities as US-Israeli attacks in Iran snarl global trade and raise risks for food and energy supplies. Discussions are ongoing and a decision has yet to be made, said the people, who declined to be named as they were not authorized to talk to the media. Global benchmark prices of urea, the most commonly used nitrogen fertilizer that’s crucial to world food production, jumped 21% to the highest in more than three years in the first week of the war, according to the latest available data. Live Events ALSO READ | LPG shortage: PM Modi warns black marketers, unveils energy strategy China controls urea exports under a quota system. While some shipments were permitted last year — including to India — it has yet to allocate allowances for outbound shipments in 2026, one of the people said. The country is the world’s top urea producer and farmers are gearing up for spring planting, the peak period for fertilizer use. A spokesperson for India’s fertilizer ministry did not immediately reply to a request for comment. China’s commerce ministry did not immediately reply to a fax seeking comment. India’s request comes just as it eased investment rules for bordering countries to support local manufacturing, a step largely aimed at China that signals improving economic ties with its largest neighbor and geopolitical rival. Though India faces no immediate fertilizer shortage, the country is the world’s biggest urea importer and any prolonged gas disruption could force the nation to seek more supplies before the main planting period begins in June with the arrival of monsoon rains. Possible sources of urea to offset the shortfall from the Middle East include China, Russia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Egypt, one of the people said. India has imported 9.8 million tons of urea so far in the fiscal year ending March 31, with another 1.7 million tons scheduled to arrive over the next three months, according to the fertilizer ministry. The country is expected to issue a new urea import tender by the end of this month or early April, the people said. The world’s most populous nation is the largest grower and exporter of rice, as well as a major producer of wheat, sugar and cotton. Qatar, a major LNG supplier, cut fuel shipments to Indian buyers last week after hostilities erupted in the Middle East. Fertilizer makers, ranked second in priority for gas allocation in India, are receiving about 70% of their requirements, with some companies beginning to trim production last week, Bloomberg previously reported. .Pbanner{display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;background-color:#ec1c40;margin-top:20px;padding:5px 10px;border-radius:4px;color:#fff;line-height:10px;} .Pbannertext{display:flex;align-items:center;font-size:16px;font-weight:600;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannertext img{height:20px;margin:0 6px} .Pbannerbutton a{display:flex;align-items:center;background-color:#fff;color:#ec1c40;text-decoration:none;font-weight:600;padding:4px 8px;border-radius:6px;font-size:15px;font-family:'Montserrat';} .Pbannerbutton img{height:20px;margin-right:6px} .Pbannerbutton a:hover{background-color:#f7f7f7} Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel)
US Central Command acknowledged the loss of the aircraft in a statement on Thursday. It is currently unclear if the crash resulted in any casualties. Here's what we know so far. View More
Shantanu Narayen led Adobe through a transition to subscription software, and he's been positioning the company to grow in the artificial intelligence age. View More
In this articleADBEFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen appearas at a Diwali celebration in the White House in Washington on Oct. 21, 2025.Allison Robbert | Bloomberg | Getty Images Adobe said CEO Shantanu Narayen will step down after a successor has been appointed, and he will remain as the design software company's chair. Shares tumbled 7% in extended trading. Narayen joined Adobe in 1988 as a vice president and general manager, and he became CEO in 2007. Under Narayen, Adobe pushed from software licenses to subscriptions to its Creative Cloud application bundle, and the company is now working to expand through generative artificial intelligence. He sought to acquire fast-growing design software company Figma, but regulators pushed back, and the companies called off the deal, resulting in Adobe paying Figma a $1 billion breakup fee."On behalf of the Board, I want to recognize Shantanu's contributions as CEO and architect of Adobe's transformation over the past 18 years, and for positioning Adobe for success in the AI-driven era," Frank Calderoni, Adobe's lead independent director, was quoted as saying in a statement. "As we take the next step in succession planning, we are focused on selecting the right leader for this next exciting chapter of the company's growth and are grateful for Shantanu's continued leadership as CEO to ensure a smooth transition."Narayen, 62, is lead independent director of Pfizer in addition to his responsibilities at Adobe, where he received $51 million in total compensation for the 2025 fiscal year, according to a filing. He owns $118 million in Adobe shares, according to FactSet.In a memo to employees, Narayen wrote that he's staying on the board to support the next Adobe CEO, just as co-founders John Warnock and Charles "Chuck" Geschke did when he became chief."What attracted me to Adobe 28 years ago was our leadership in creating new market categories, world-class products, a relentless desire to innovate in every functional area of the company and the people I met during the interview process," Narayen wrote. "We have continued to create new markets, deliver world-class products, drive innovation in everything we do and attract and retain the best and brightest employees."On Narayen's watch, Adobe's stock jumped more than sixfold, while the S&P 500 is up about 350% over that stretch."Shantanu is a leader I've come to know and respect deeply," Dylan Field, Figma's co-founder and CEO, wrote in an X post. "He's thoughtful, kind and relentless in pursuit of Adobe's vision. Grateful for the time we spent together and wishing him all the best in the years ahead!"Satya Nadella, CEO of Adobe partner Microsoft, congratulated Narayen."You've built one of the most important software companies in the world, and expanded what's possible for creators, entrepreneurs, and brands everywhere," Nadella wrote on X. "What has always stood out to me is the empathy you've brought to the creative process and the example you've set as a leader."In addition to making the leadership announcement, Adobe reported strong quarterly results and guidance. Here's how the company did in comparison with LSEG consensus:Earnings per share: $6.06 adjusted vs. $5.87 expectedRevenue: $6.40 billion vs. $6.28 billion expectedAdobe's revenue grew about 12% year over year in the fiscal first quarter, which ended on Feb. 27, according to a statement. Net income of $1.89 billion, or $4.60 per share, increased from $1.81 billion, or $4.14 a share, in the same quarter a year ago. Adjusted income excludes stock-based and deferred compensation expense.Annualized revenue from AI-first products more than tripled, the company said."That should be our next billion dollar business," Narayen said on a conference call with analystsAdobe called for $5.80 to $5.85 in fiscal second-quarter adjusted earnings per share on $6.43 billion to $6.48 billion in revenue. Analysts polled by LSEG were looking for $5.68 per share and $6.42 billion in revenue.Investors have been punishing software stocks because of concerns about disruption from generative AI models. Adobe shares are down nearly 23% so far in 2026 as of Thursday's close, while the S&P 500 index is down about 3% in the same period. Adobe's stock is more than 60% off its record from 2021 after dropping more than 20% in each of the past two years.Revenue from subscriptions for creative and marketing professionals totaled $4.39 billion, up 12% and above the $4.31 billion consensus among analysts polled by StreetAccount.During the quarter, Adobe announced the availability of Acrobat, Express and Photoshop apps for OpenAI's ChatGPT assistant, along with an expanded partnership with advertising company WPP.Adobe had 850 million monthly users across Acrobat, Creative Cloud, Express and Firefly during the fiscal first quarter, up 17%, Narayen said. The adoption is "a clear indication that we have both strong usage and a foundation for monetization," he said.The Adobe Stock service that offers stock photos and other media, representing a book of business of around $450 billion, declined more sharply than management had predicted during the quarter."This shift is playing out more quickly than we had planned for, and our focus remains on giving customers meaningful choice between Stock and generative AI as they build their creative and marketing workflows," David Wadhwani, president of Adobe's creativity and productivity business, said on the call.Adobe's CEO search should take a few months, Narayen said.â CNBC's Ari Levy contributed to this report.WATCH: What Jim Cramer thinks of the move in enterprise software stocks watch nowVIDEO1:2501:25What Jim Cramer thinks of the move in enterprise software stocksMad Money with Jim Cramer Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
Palantir CEO Alex Karp sat down exclusively with CNBC to discuss the Iran war and how AI is being used in wartime. View More
In this articlePLTRFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT watch nowVIDEO4:1204:12Palantir CEO says AI is elevating US wartime capabilitiesSquawk on the Street Palantir CEO Alex Karp told CNBC on Thursday that artificial intelligence is giving the U.S. and its allies an edge in the escalating conflict in Iran and across the Middle East."What makes America special right now is our lethal capacities, our ability to fight war," Karp said at Palantir's AIPcon 9 in Maryland. He added that another major advantage is that "the AI revolution is uniquely American."Karp alluded to his company's ability to link combat data between the U.S. and Middle East partners that were hit by Iranian airstrikes."If you were attacked and you needed to coordinate, you would have to have a coordinating function. There's only one product that can actually do that for security," Karp said, referencing Palantir's platform.Palantir's Project Maven is a real-time AI surveillance capability that leverages satellite imagery. The platform was used with Anthropic's Claude in the capture of Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro, according to the Wall Street Journal. Karp declined to comment on whether Maven was used to kill Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a joint U.S.-Israel military operation two weeks ago."I have read that Palantir's Project Maven is the core backbone of that," he said, speaking generally about U.S. involvement in the Middle East. "And then I've also read that all the allies, Arab and non-Arab in the Middle East, may or may not be users of our platform as well, and that's expanding rapidly."Experts and executives in the industry say AI is pushing the conflict to a new frontier. That was evident when Iran bombed three Amazon data centers in the Middle East last week.U.S. data centers are increasingly seen as national security assets, hosting critical digital infrastructure used by governments and big companies."They're evil, they're not stupid," Karp said. "Look who's on the list, look who's not. We're in the middle of war. You would expect it to be a list of hardcore military companies. They are interested in the things they can't produce." While Palantir may be best known for its defense technology, the company's commercial business is booming. U.S. commercial revenue jumped 137% in the fourth quarter to $507 million. Palantir shares are up 12% so far this month, while the Nasdaq is down about 1.6%. WATCH: Palantir's Q4 earnings beat watch nowVIDEO4:0404:04Palantir earnings âabsolutely blew away expectations,â says Moor Insightsâ Patrick MoorheadSquawk on the Street Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
Private equity built the SaaS installed base. It may also be the one that rips it out. View More
In this articleBXFollow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT watch nowVIDEO1:4201:42Private equity firms in talks to form joint AI venture embedding ClaudeTechCheck Editor's note: The following article is a commentary on some of the top trends in technology and its broader impact.The technology to disrupt enterprise software already exists. What's been missing is the forcing function.A potential tie-up between artificial intelligence and private equity could be exactly that.The Information reported Wednesday that Anthropic is in talks with firms, including Blackstone, to form a joint venture, using a Palantir-style model to sell consulting services that would integrate Claude into their portfolio companies. The deal makes sense for Anthropic, which just lost its Pentagon distribution channel. But private equity firms risk cannibalizing their own businesses and accelerating the software-as-a-service, or SaaS, shakeout that's already underway. For a firm like Blackstone, the math is more forgiving. Its portfolio spans manufacturing, healthcare, real estate, financial services, and infrastructure. If Claude can cut costs across hundreds of companies in those industries, Blackstone has zero reason to hesitate. But many of the licenses those companies cancel may belong to software companies owned by a different set of PE firms, ones whose entire business depends on recurring software revenue holding up. Thoma Bravo and Vista Equity Partners both call themselves one of the largest software-focused asset managers. Their revenue is now in the crosshairs. Claude Code can approximate what many horizontal SaaS tools do: Project management, basic customer relationship management, analytics dashboards and even portions of human resources and finance workflows. When a Blackstone-owned manufacturer, for example, uses Claude to build a custom internal tool instead of renewing its Smartsheet license, Blackstone saves money while the software company, which Blackstone also happens to own, loses a customer. But they'll make that trade every time because PE optimizes for the fund as a whole, not a single at-risk software company. Private equity might be the accelerant the "SaaSpocalypse" has been waiting for. Read more CNBC tech newsHow the Iran war and rising energy prices are threatening semiconductor demandKevin Mandia sold his cybersecurity company to Google in 2022. He has a fresh $190 million for a new ventureMusk's xAI wants to build a power plant in Mississippi. Regulators planned a key meeting on Election Day, 200 miles awayOracle is building yesterday's data centers with tomorrow's debt PE firms have board control, internal rate of return targets and a ticking clock. If a joint venture with a top AI lab gives the biggest firms a turnkey way to cut software spending across their portfolios, they'll move.Private equity firms drove the last major wave of enterprise technology adoption when they pushed cloud software into their portfolio companies a decade ago. That migration replaced on-premises systems with SaaS, expanding the total software market.This time, the dynamic is inverting. Private equity is essentially pushing AI as a service that eliminates the need for certain categories of software entirely. A replacement cycle that might have taken five years through normal enterprise adoption could compress to 18 months inside a PE portfolio, since the firms have the authority to enact change and the incentive to move fast.PE firms should be able to see this far into the future, especially if we can. Thoma Bravo's Orlando Bravo has publicly argued that AI is a tailwind for enterprise software, making existing products more valuable by adding intelligent features. He told CNBC that his firm has roughly the same number of developers across its portfolio as a year ago that are actually producing more. But Thoma Bravo looks behind the curve if it doesn't push AI into its own portfolio companies and start implementing AI reductions. This week, Atlassian cut about 1,600 jobs, a tenth of its workforce, to fund AI investment. The stock rose. A few weeks earlier, Block shares jumped 17% after announcing 4,000 AI-related cuts. Wall Street has already made clear which side it's on. It will pay more for companies that shrink in the name of AI than for companies that defend the old model.It's an uncomfortable paradox: Thoma Bravo needs to deploy AI across its software companies to stay competitive and keep margins expanding. But the more AI gets deployed across the broader economy, the less enterprises need the horizontal software products Thoma Bravo sells. Push AI and you accelerate your own disruption. Don't push it and diversified firms like Blackrock will deploy it from the other side, potentially cutting your software out of their portfolio companies while you stand still. The horizontal SaaS companies most at risk are the ones whose customers sit inside the diversified PE portfolios that now have a vehicle, like a potential JV with Anthropic, and the incentive to replace them.Private equity built the SaaS installed base. It may also be the one that rips it out. watch nowVIDEO36:1636:16AIâs new power brokers: Rampâs chief economist and the 24-yr-old taking on Big AITechCheck Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.
As both energy prices and inflation fears pop higher, expectations for cuts are sliding lower. View More
U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reacts during a press conference following a two-day meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) on interest rate policy, in Washington, D.C., U.S., Jan. 28, 2026. Jonathan Ernst | Reuters As both energy prices and inflation fears pop, expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts are sliding.Traders in recent days have abandoned hopes of an early summer easing from the central bank, a change in thinking that coincided with the U.S.-Israel attacks on Iran and a burst in oil prices to around $100 a barrel.Prior to the conflict, the market anticipation had been for a quarter percentage point rate reduction in June, likely another one in September, and an outside chance of even three depending on how the economics played out, according to the CME Group's FedWatch calculations.Much of the thinking behind that approach was that a softening labor market, moderating inflation and a new dovish chair coming on board in May would push the Fed into an easing posture. But at least as long as the Iran drama plays out, the expectations now are that fighting inflation will remain paramount."A higher inflation path will make it harder for the Fed to start cutting soon," Goldman Sachs economists said in a Wednesday note. watch nowVIDEO4:1904:19Fed's next rate decision almost certainly a pause, says former Fed vice chair Roger FergusonClosing Bell The firm officially adjusted its rate forecast pushing back the next cut to September from June. However, Goldman's economists still think the Fed could lower once more before the end of 2026."If the labor market weakens sooner and more substantially than we expect, we do not think that concern about the impact of higher oil prices on inflation and inflation expectations would be an obstacle to earlier rate cuts," they wrote. An elusive second cut Other market players aren't so sure.Traders in the fed funds futures market have taken even a September cut off the table and now see only one coming, in December, according to the CME gauge. There are no additional cuts priced in until well into 2027 or even into the early part of 2028, despite the presence of presumptive new Chair Kevin Warsh, picked by President Donald Trump ostensibly for a willingness to ease aggressively. Current Chair Jerome Powell leaves the position in May.Whether that outlook holds up likely will depend on how things play out in the Middle East. Should the situation improve, it could reinstall a sense of normalcy to the markets and renew hopes for more easing.Even with Brent crude settling above $100, Trump again called on Powell to cut."Where is the Federal Reserve Chairman, Jerome "Too Late" Powell, today? He should be dropping Interest Rates, IMMEDIATELY, not waiting for the next meeting!" Trump posted on Truth Social.The Fed will get another look at inflation data Friday morning when the Commerce Department releases the personal consumption expenditures price index data for January. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones expect core PCE, a key focus for Fed officials, to show an increase to 3.1% on the annual inflation rate. A reading like that would represent a 0.1 percentage point gain from December as well as a step further away from the Fed's 2% goal. It also would indicate that inflation pressures were percolating well ahead of the Iran strike and might well give officials even further pause about the prospects for lower rates.Bank of America economist Stephen Juneau said in a note that while some important components â housing, in particular â are showing signs of stabilizing or receding, inflation otherwise "has been rangebound and remains above levels consistent with 2% core PCE.""The upshot is that the Fed should not be in a rush to ease rates further," Juneau said.The rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee issues its next rate decision March 18. Traders are assigning a nearly 100% probability to the committee staying on hold. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.