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Industry experts expect wider adoption of algorithms from April 2016 when new rules come into effect Algorithms, the software programs that are increasingly replacing humans in many complex jobs where precision and speed decide the winner, are becoming an essential tool for auditors as well. Algorithms, or algos, help auditors identify unusual patterns in the books of account for further analysis.While algorithm-based auditing isn't new globally, audit firms have just started introducing these software systems to India, at a time when local regulations are becoming increasingly stringent. Starting April 2016, failing to raise red flags or mentioning the exact problems they found during auditing of companies could even land the auditors in jail. Auditors rely on technology mostly in risk-based auditing. These algorithms could pinpoint the problem ar eas. The Big Four auditors -Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, EY and KPMG -which have invested millions of dollars to build in-...

India’s economic growth is expected to exceed 7.3 per cent in the current financial year and the government would try to convince opposition parties to pass a blocked tax reform, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Monday. “The Indian economy is expected to grow better than 7.3 percent — the level achieved last fiscal year — and even at a higher level next year,” Jaitley told investors at an Arab- India Economic Forum meeting in Dubai. Economic growth, Jaitley said, would come despite weakness in rural demand due to poor rainfall in the last two years. A drought has also caused shortages that have led to a spike in prices of pulses and vegetables. India’s retail inflation surged to a four- month high in October and industrial production grew at a slower- thanexpected pace in September, latest government data shows. In a bid to speed up growth, India last week eased foreign direct investment norms in 15 major sectors, including mining, defence and civil aviation. But foreign...

Lukewarm retail participation in recent public floats of InterGlobe Aviation and Coffee Day Enterprises has caught the eye of the Securities and Exchange Board of India ( Sebi), the stock markets regulator. Retail investors are those who invest less than Rs.2 lakh each. According to sources, it plans to ask investment bankers of the two transactions why this had happened. The retail quotas in both were under- subscribed. The regulator is also likely to take up the issue at the annual conference of the Association of Investment Bankers in India (AIBI) next month. An e- mail to Sebi wasn’t answered. “The regulator wants to know if the issues were marketed properly,” said a source. Sources said Sebi will also raise other issues on primary markets at AIBI conference. Merchant bankers are likely to raise issue of the start- up listing platform. Theyre looking for clarity on how the proposed Institutional Trading Platform for start- ups will be different from the one available for ...

Indicates willingness to discuss opposition- sponsored motions on intolerance; Jaitley shows willingness to accommodate concerns on GST The coming winter session of Parliament would see an opposition bloc, emboldened after the ruling Bharatiya Janata Partys defeat in Bihar, more combative and united in raising the issue of “ intolerance”. The loss, however, has also strengthened the voice of reformers within the government. The session, starting November 26, could see a government more open to discussing contentious issues. And, more purposeful in pushing its reform agenda by reaching out to the principal opposition party, the Congress, to ensure passage of the goods and services tax ( GST) constitutional amendment. Recently, finance minister Arun Jaitley went to the residence of Congress leader and opposition head in the Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad, inviting him to a family wedding. The two also discussed the coming session, sources said. Earlier in the day, the finance mi...