The quarterly projections showed 13 of 18 officials favoured at least one rate increase by the end of 2023, versus seven in March. Eleven officials saw at least two hikes by the end of that year. In addition, seven of them saw a move as early as 2022, up from four. The dollar rose, stocks declined and yields on 10-year Treasuries jumped. The US economic recovery is gathering strength as restrictions lift and social activity increases. Robust demand from consumers and business alike has outstripped capacity, leading to bottlenecks in the supply chain, longer lead times and higher prices. At the same time, employment growth has disappointed over the past couple of months. Experts said the numbers point to healthy GDP growth in the first quarter. "The jump in the direct tax collections in the first quarter of FY22 relative to the first quarter of FY21 reflects healthy exports and a continuation of various industrial and construction activities given the lower stringency of the staggered regional lockdowns in 2021 versus the nation wide lockdown in 2020. One Communications, the parent company of Paytm has finalised bankers for its proposed IPO. The company is understood to have taken on board JP Morgan, ICICI Securities and Goldman Sachs to lead the issue, which is likely to be the largest IPO in the financial sector. Paytm refused to comment on the appointment of the investment bankers. Sources said that Paytm was looking at filing its draft red herring prospectus as early as next month, indicating that a lot of preparation has gone into the ipo. The company had said that the issue could be a combination of an OFS by existing investors as well as new shares. According to a Bloomberg report, Paytm is aiming at a valuation of 25-30 billion.
