India

Q 1. In which country have 7 Indian IL&FS employees held as hostage by the local employees for non payment of salaries ?

Ans. Ethiopia

Q 2. What business is the startup EV Motors India in ?

Ans. Network of charging stations

Q 3. Who is behind the newly launched digital entertainment company Dharmatic Entertainment ?

Ans. Karan Johar

Q 4. What does Dabur call its Chyawanprash that is Sugar Free ?

Ans. Dabur Chyawanprakash sugar free

Q 5. SBI Mutual Fund is launching its first Smart Beta Fund. What are Smart Beta Funds ?

Ans. A smart Beta ETF is a type of exchange-traded fund that uses alternative index construction rules instead of the typical cap-weighted index strategy, in a transparent way. It takes into account factors such as size, value and volatility.

Q 6 Which Maruti model that was launched in 2005 has hit sales of 2 Million cars since its launch recently ?

Ans. Maruti Swift

Q 7. Where is India’s largest floating solar energy project of 150 MW being implemented by Solar Energy Corporation of India coming up ?

Ans. Rihand Dam on the UP-MP border

Q8. Revv, the car rental company has come up with a unique offer called OPEN not offered in India before. What is unique about it ?

Ans. New cars, over 25 different models ,  are available on rentals with no down payment and road tax upfront payment

Q9. As air pollution news occupies headlines, consumer durable marketers are pushing air purifiers. Most air purifiers use HEPA filters. Expand HEPA

Ans, High efficiency Particulate Air

Q 10. Which model of Bajaj Auto has Rajiv Bajaj accepted as his  biggest failure ?

Ans. Bajaj Discover 100

Q 11. Which state in India receives the largest amount by way of remittances from abroad ?

Ans. Kerala

Q 12. Why is there a threat of over 1,00,000 ATMs closing down by next year in India ?

Ans. The new safety regulations for ATMs will increase the costs so much that ATMs will become unremunerative

 

Global

Q 12. In which country chess has become so popular and fashionable that there are chess bars, chess art , chess fashion etc thanks to a world champion ?

Ans. Norway -because of Magnus Carlssen

Q 13. The day after Thanksgiving is called Black Friday. It is the official start of the holiday season , then why is it called Black Friday ?

Ans. Black friday in the shopping sense dates from the 1960s and was originally used with reference to congestion created by shoppers; it was later explained as a day when retailers’ accounts went from being ‘in the red’ to ‘in the black’.

Q 14. Name this Chevrolet car model that was launched in 1950s and it peaked in 1960s. It was a big status symbol among filmstars that it was mentioned in a Kishore Kumar song. Now it is being withdrawn by GM

Ans. Chevrolet Impala

Q 15. What is unique about the CEO Beth Ford of Land O’Lakes a Fortune 500 company ?

Ans. First CEO who had openly announced her LGBT status

Q 16. In the US cities, Bird , Scoot, Skip and Lime are becoming a rage in the various cities. What are they ?

Ans. e-scooters on rent

Q17. 5G phones and networks are.expected to be launched commercially worldwide in early 2019. One of its key feature is eMBB. What is eMBB ?

Ans. Enhanced  mobile broadband

Q 18. WPP the advertising group,.has announced the merger of two of its advertising arms worldwide to create an integrated agency . Which two arms are being merged and what would be its new name ?

Ans. Wunderman and JWT will merge to form Wunderman Thomson

Q 19. Which is the biggest online travel agency in China ?

Ans. CTrip

Q 20. Name this US based fast food chain founded by Truett S. Cathy. It runs in his strong Christian beliefs so remains closed on Sundays, Thanksgiving and Christmas. He has instructed that his family can sell it but not take it public.

Ans. Chick Fil- A

Q 21 Force India will no longer be seen in the 2019 F1 season. In what name will that team appear after the change of owners ?

Ans. Racing Point

Q 22. What is the name of the late stage venture capital fund of Alphabet Inc with HQ is San Francisco ?

Ans. CapitalG

Q 23. By announcing that they have launched their last satellite , which communications major has announced the end of Satellite TV as we know it ?

Ans. AT & T ‘s DirectTV division

Q 24. Who is the producer of a small film called ROMA in a few theatres in US, UK , Canada with little publicity ? Yet, it is making news

Ans. Roma has been produced by Netflix which does not release it in theatres. The film has got a theatre release to make it eligible for Oscar

Q 25. In India Sony has Sony Liv OTT streaming service. What is the OTT service from Sony in US called ?

Ans. Playstation Vue

• Compiled by G.Mohan Twitter @go_mohan

India

Q1 Which technology/ industry will be regulated in India by the Digital Sky platform from December 1, 2018 ?

Ans. Drones

Q2 Alyque Padamsee , who passed away last week  was an advtg legend. He is known for his campaigns for Liril, Surf, Bajaj etc. Which newspaper was launched with a memorable ad campaign with the tagline ‘unputdownable’ by him

Ans. The Telegraph

Q3. Which Indian automobile group is part of the venture that has relaunched the vintage motorcycle brand JAWA ?

Ans. Mahindra

Q4. Former IndiGo head Aditya Ghosh has joined as CEO of which organisation ?

Ans. OYO

Q5. What technique used by freight trains in Indian Railways will make the Mumbai-Delhi Rajdhani faster ?

Ans. Push and pull technique where there are engines at both ends

Q6. Which state in India receives the largest amount by way of remittances from abroad ?

Ans Kerala

Q7. Why is there a threat of over 1,00,000 ATMs closing down by next year in India ?

Ans. Nearly 50% ATMs are likely to shut due to unviability of operations caused by recent regulatory guidelines for ATMs hardware and software upgrades, new mandates on cash management standards and cassette method of loading cash.All new compliances have an additional cost element.

Q8. Name this brand that has nearly 54 % share globally in the chocolate spreads market. Its nearest rival has a mere 2 % share 

Ans. Nutella

Q9. In which country chess has become so popular and fashionable that there are chess bars, chess art , chess fashion etc thanks to a world champion ?

Ans. Norway because of Magnus Carlssen

Q10. After a rather fierce competition among cities to get Amazon’s HQ2 which two cities were finally chosen as the second headquarters ?

Ans. New York City and Northern Virginia

• Compiled by G.Mohan Twitter @go_mohan

India

Q 1. What is RBI setting up for lenders to get 360 degree view of the borrowers on a real time basis ?

Ans. Public Credit Registry

Q 2. What electricals brand was bought by Qimat Rai Gupta from Haveli Ram Gandhi in 1971 ?

Ans. Havells got its name from Haveli

Q 3. What is short for Dhanvantri Trayodashi, an important day for jewellery and durable marketers ?

Ans. Dhan Teras

Q 4. Under what brand names is Patanjali’s apparel division Paridhan launching various apparels ?

Ans. Aastha, Sanskar and Livfit

Q5. Who has released this emotional short video commercial on the occasion of Diwali ?

Ans. HP Printers

Q6. In which European country has Mukesh Ambani taken e-residency and has formed a JV for e-governance ?

Ans. Estonia

Q7. What unique capability does the launch of INS Arihant add to the Indian defence ?

Ans. INS Arihant is a nuclear submarine. It provides nuclear launch capabilities from water, giving India the capability to launch from air , land and water.

Q8. Raghuram Rajan said that the board of RBI should be like X, but not like Y. X and Y are ?

Ans. X- Rahul Dravid, Y- Sidhu

Q9. In a move to improve availability of credit to MSMEs , an online mode of securing loans has been announced by government from public sector banks. This loans will be given within what time limit ?

Ans. 59 minutes

Q 10. Amazon has recently launched Amazon Audible service in India. What is this service ?

Ans. Audio books subscription service

Q 11. What innovation by the likes of L’Oreal and Godrej, later followed by others has expanded the market for ‘creme based hair dyes in India ?

Ans. Marketing of creme based hair dyes in sachets

Q 12. Country Delight, O’leche, iOrganic, Binsar are niche startups retailing what product ?

Ans. Milk from farm to home

Q 13, Which iconic building is owned by the company Associated Buildings Company Ltd ?

Ans. Bombay House

Q14. Lulu International is a chain of hypermarkets that operates in many countries. In India they have a huge mall in Kochi. Where is the HQ of Lulu ?

Ans. Abu Dhabi

Q 15. The Union cabinet has approved strategic disinvestment of the PSU Dredging Corporation of India. Who will be the acquirer of the govt’s 73 % stake ?

Ans. Consortium of four ports namely Vizag, Kandla, Paradeep and  JNPT

Q 16. Who is the newly appointed Chairman of Competition Commission of India ?

Ans. Ashok Kumar Gupta

Q 17. Name this startup founded by Sridhar Gundiah which is a network distribution platform that helps the small retailers in rural India , Karnataka to start with, to procure over 50000 products , many not available through the traditional channel

Ans. StoreKing

Q 18. Name this renowned Indian Economist who was a Professor at Yale University. He was recognised by Indian govt with a Padma Bhushan .He passed away today. RIP,

Ans. Dr T.N.Srinivasan

Global

Q 19. Which leading phone maker has released an ad for enrolling in an upgrade programme by saying ‘ Get the phones we can’t show you yet ‘ ?

Ans. Samsung

Q 20. SAP has acquired Qualtrics a 300 Mn $ revenue generating company for 8 billion $. What capability does this acquisition bring to SAP ?

Ans. Survey software capability

Q 21. Akihiko Kondo of Japan married Hatsune Miku this month attended by around 40 guests. What was unusual about the bride ?

Ans. Hatsune Miku is a 3D Hologram of a virtual reality singer

Q 22. On 11th November  , the e-commerce sites in China like Alibaba group did record sales, far exceeding Black Friday in US or Diwali in India. What is the day called ?

Ans. Singles Day

Q 23. As the cities are getting crowded and polluted , many city dwellers are looking at moving away or atleast joining farm collectives where they can live closer to nature. This movement started in UK and such places slightly away from cities have a name. What are they called ?

Ans. Transition towns

Q 24. With which other Icelandic airline is Iceland Air announced a merger ?

Ans. WoW Air

Q 25. In this picture is Tom Stuker with the crew of United Airlines. What achievement of his is being honoured by United Airlines ?

Ans. 20 Million Miles clocked by Tom Stuker on United Airlines

Q 26. Which news agency has developed ‘AI Synthetic Anchors’ using Artificial Intelligence to read news similar to real news readers ? Availability 24×7 for reading Breaking News is one big advantage

Ans. Xinhua

Q 27. Which international magazine has changed hands from Meredith to Thai businessman Chatchaval Jiaravanon ?

Ans. Fortune

Q 28. Which country ranks No 1 in the Ease of Doing Business as per the recent World Bank Report ? India is 77.

Ans. New Zealand

Q 29. “Our own information, from the everyday to the deeply personal, is being weaponized against us with military efficiency” Who said this recently about the biggest risk of technology ?

Ans. Tim Cook of Apple

• Compiled by G.Mohan Twitter @go_mohan 

India

Q 1. Identify this businessperson and her company

Ans. Devita Saraf of Vu television..VU is now one of the largest selling TV being sold through e-commerce channels

Q 2. Name this co-operative bank with operations in Maharashtra mainly and HQed in Mumbai that celebrated its centenary this September

Ans. Saraswat Bank

Q 3. Between which two locations is Pepsi moving containers containing foods and snacks on inland waterways in India for the first time by MV R N Tagore ?

Ans. Kolkata and Varanasi on National Waterway No 1

Q4. Supreme Court has asked Delhi govt to implement withdrawal of vehicles beyond a certain age to fight pollution better . What upper age limit has been prescribed ?

Ans. 10 years for diesel vehicles and 15 years for petrol vehicles

Q5. India is largely a market for commuter bikes. Of late, a few ‘Super bikes’ are getting launched by companies like Motoroyale Kinetic . What is a super bike ?

Ans. More than 600 cc approx

Q6. With which country has India signed a 75 Bn $ currency swap agreement that will help India manage the foreign exchange volatility better ?

Ans. Japan during PM Modi’s recent visit

Q7. Deloitte India Technology Fast 50 companies 2018 was brought out recently, a list of fastest growing startups in India. Which city has the largest number i.e 11 in this list ?

Ans. Bengaluru

Q8. Who will be soon launching an SUV named KICKS ?

Ans. Nissan

Q9. ITC has entered the pouch milk market , first in Bihar and later Kolkata. It has been launched as an extension of their existing brand with Svasti tagged to it. Which existing brand is being extended ?

Ans. Aashirvaad

Q 10. Which Indian corporate major was involved in the construction of the Statue of Unity, i.e Sardar Patel’s statue at Kevadia, Gujarat ?

Ans. Larsen and Toubro

Q 11. Which section of the RBI Act empowers the government to consult and give instructions to the governor to act on certain issues that the government considers serious and in public interest ?

Ans. Section 7

Q 12 . Most technology companies are big consumers of energy. They try to be socially conscious by using green and clean energy as much as possible or totally. Which tech co is the largest buyer of renewable energy in the world

Ans. Google

Q 13. After Nexa, Maruti Suzuki has launched a new showroom channel with Varun Dhawan as a brand ambassador, what is this channel called ?

Ans. Maruti Suzuki Arena

Q 14. India has shown a significant improvement in the Ease of Doing Business rankings published recently from 100 to 77  Who publishes it ?

Ans. World Bank

Q 15. Which is the brand being endorsed by Dhoni here ? The TVC also has Watson and Bravo

Ans. Peter England

Global

Q 16. It is seen as an example of a product that did not live upto it’s hype and original promise. This plane was introduced by Airbus as a double decker plane that could carry large number of passengers in 2007. Even it’s original buyer Emirates is going slow in adding this plane now ?

Ans. Airbus A380

Q 17. Microsoft is betting on three technologies for the future, artificial intelligence, quantum computing  and mixed reality. What is mixed reality and how is it different from augmented reality ?

Ans. From the Intel site 

Augmented Reality
AR overlays digital information on real-world elements. Pokémon GO* is among the best-known examples. Augmented reality keeps the real world central but enhances it with other digital details, layering new strata of perception, and supplementing your reality or environment.

Mixed Reality
MR brings together real world and digital elements. In mixed reality, you interact with and manipulate both physical and virtual items and environments, using next-generation sensing and imaging technologies. Mixed Reality allows you to see and immerse yourself in the world around you even as you interact with a virtual environment using your own hands—all without ever removing your headset. It provides the ability to have one foot (or hand) in the real world, and the other in an imaginary place, breaking down basic concepts between real and imaginary, offering an experience that can change the way you game and work today.

Q 18. World over airlines are an industry where the governments often run them for prestige as a flag carrier. Which airline is ‘should be shut down’ as per the country’s Finance Minister because it has been loss making since 2011 ?

Ans. South African Airways

Q 19. If Apple is into computers and devices, what is the brand OPPLE in ?

Ans. Lighting

Q 20. As a method of monetisation, where would WhatsApp be putting advertisements to start with ?

Ans. Advertisements in the “status” of the members

Q 21. Why are restaurants in US cutting down their size and replacing some of their tables and chairs with shelves, even as their business is growing ?

Ans. Food delivery is growing faster and less guests are visiting restaurants

Q 22. With which company would you associate Pablo Isla who has been voted once again as the best performing CEO in the world by HBR  ?

Ans. Inditex , the company behind Zara

Q 23. Nearly 60% of crude oil trade globally is done with Brent crude price as the reference. What or where is Brent ?

Ans. The Brent oil field is in the North Sea off Scotland

Q 24. Who are the 2 CEOs in this picture and which major deal has been announced by them ?

Ans. James M Whitehurst (Red Hat) and Ginni Rometty ( IBM) – Acquisition of Red Hat by IBM for 34 Bn $

Q 25. Name this cartoon character that celebrates its 90th birthday today. The company behind it is putting all its might behind it . This character despite its age is still the most popular cartoon character .

Ans. Mickey Mouse

• Compiled by G.Mohan Twitter @go_mohan 

India

Q 1. The Saif Ali Khan – Radhika Apte Hindi film BAAZAAR released this week is a film based on which market ?

Ans. Stock Markets

Q 2 . In a rare occurrence in Indian corporate history, which Chairman Emeritus has been unceremoniously removed from which board of directors by a letter ?

Ans. Vijaypat Singhania of Raymonds

Q 3. Which chocolate co is launching its KISSES product in India recently ?

Ans. Hershey’s

Q  4. Allahabad has been renamed as Prayagraj, hence an Allahabad Bank question. Which foreign bank once owned a majority stake in Allahabad Bank, but used to operate it separately ?

Ans. Chartered Bank

Q5. After what recent events is Mukesh Ambani being labelled as the new cable king of India ?

Ans. Acquisition of controlling stakes in Hathaway Cable and DEN Networks by Reliance Industries which are in the cable TV business

Q6. This fruit got a GI tag recently. Name the fruit and the place

Ans. Muzaffarpur Shahi Litchi

Q7. Why has Maruti Suzuki decided to withdraw their model Omni from the market ?

Ans. Unable to meet the latest safety norms , particularly the crash safety norms

Q8. What CSR initiative has the Indian govt started with the IT industry for the employees to volunteer ?

Ans. Self4society

Q9. In order to bid and perhaps acquire Essar Steel, Arcelor Mittal was forced to repay debt of which other Steel co by the Hon’ble Supreme Court ?

Ans. Uttam Galva Steel and KSS Petron

Q 10. Which lady banker has joined Reliance Industries as an independent Director ?

Ans. Arundhati Bhattacharya , former Chairman of SBI

Q 11. Nowhera Shaik was arrested recently in Hyderabad for running a Ponzi scheme that duped small investors to the extent of Rs 900 crores . What was the name of this group?

Ans. Heera Group

Q 12. Where has the first kiosk for transacting in cryptocurrencies come up in India ? The entrepreneurs were arrested subsequently

Ans. Bengaluru is where Unocoin set up its kiosk

Q 13. Out of the approx 419,000 H-1 B visa holders currently in USA, what % are Indians ?

Ans. Approx 74 %

Q 14. Which Indian coffee recently won the Gold Medal for the best coffee pod in the Prix Epicures OR 2018 Award in Paris, France ?

Ans. Araku valley coffee

Q 15. Name the pioneering video news agency in India that is now a leader in this category. 49 % of its stake is owned by Reuters

Ans. Asian News International, popularly known as ANI

Q 16. In which state has for the first time in India, the retail prices of diesel are higher than that of petrol ?

Ans. Odisha

Q 17. Which Indian company  has struck a deal to buy brands Complan, Nycil and Glucon D from Kraft Heinz which earlier belonged to Heinz ?

Ans. Zydus Wellness

Q 18. Kerala has amended the Shops and Establishments act through an ordinance. What rights does this give the employees ?

Ans. The right to sit

Q 19. Which Indian marketing veteran has written the book ‘The 2 Minute Revolution ‘ ?

Ans. Sangeeta Talwar who was associated with the launch Maggi noodles, hence the name

Q 20. Why a recent bid for Essar Steel has sent shock waves and created controversy in the IBC resolution ?

Ans. The bid came from Ruias for the full amount of dues to the creditors . As Ruias are the original promoters of Essar Steel this created shock waves. The committee of Creditors had identified Arcelor Mittal as the succesful bidder

Global

Q 21. Identify this logo/ flag .

Ans. Dutch East India Company. The biggest company globally of its times.  VOC stood for Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie

Q 22. Google this morning announced it’s bringing its A.I.-powered _____ technology to Google Image Search. The idea is to allow web searchers to learn more about what’s in a photo. Fill in the blanks.

Ans. Lens

Q 23. Which Indian American has been appointed by Trump as the Chairman of his energy panel, federal Energy regulatory Commission (FERC) ?

Ans. Neil Chatterjee

Q 24. Who owns the appliance brand Kenmore and why it was not sold through Amazon until 2017 ?

Ans. It is a private label of Sears. Sears has filed for brankruptcy protection. Kenmore appliances were sold exclusively through Sears outlets only. In 2017, it decided to sell through Amazon also .

Q 25. World Bank has said in a recent report that nearly 10 % of population in the world lives in extreme poverty. What is the extreme poverty line used by World Bank ?

Ans. US 1.9 $ per day

Q 26. What connects AirBnB, Dropbox, Stripe , Reddit , Coinbase and many more such startups ?

Ans. All received seed funding and were incubated by  Y Combinator

Q 27. Which is the first AI powered ETF launched in US that uses IBM.Watson to pick and trade stocks ?

Ans. AIEQ short for AI Power Equity ETF by Equbot, San Francisco USA

Q 28. 10 years ago Android was launched . It has proven to be one of the best acquisitions for Google. At what price did they buy Android then ?

Ans. Approx 50 Mn $, though the exact price is undisclosed.

• Compiled by G.Mohan Twitter @go_mohan

India

Q 1. Which Indian news channel has launched India’s first mobile live TV channel that works in portrait mode only ?

Ans. NDTV HOP is the new mobile TV channel

Q 2. October 15th was the birth anniversary of Former President APJ Abdul Kalam. In which IIM did he deliver a lecture after which he collapsed and passed away ?

Ans. IIM Shillong

Q 3. Why did the advertiser withdraw this advertisement and the TVC released in Bengal during Durga Puja ?

Ans. Advertisement depicts consumption of non veg during Durga Puja/ Navratri .

Q 4. ITC has launched Charmis cream in Indian market. It is an old brand owned by another FMCG co earlier. Which one ?

Ans. Colgate Palmolive

Q 5. The Big Reverse by Meera Sanyal is a book chronicling which event in India’s recent economic history ?

Ans. Demonetisation

Q 6. Which unit of SAIL had an unfortunate accident of pipe blast yesterday leading to loss of lives and injuries ?

Ans. Bhilai Steel Plant

Q 7. Which gadget has a new campaign that says how pets are afraid of crackers and prefer music this festive season #shoryasangeet ?

Ans. Saregama Carvaan

Q 8. Which foods company is test marketing a mobile ” All Day Breakfast ” vans in Delhi ?

Ans. Nestle with  their Nesplus cereals , Maggi etc

Q 9. On October 11th Amitabh Bachchan celebrated his 74th birthday, the news came that the Govt has approved the closure of the company he worked for in Kolkata. Which company did he work for ?

Ans. Bird & Co.

Q 11. The company that manages Prithvi Shaw has accused Swiggy, FreeCharge of ‘Ambush marketing’ after his century in his debut test. What is ‘ambush marketing’ ?

Ans. Rival Co. trying to link itself to an event which already has an official / approved sponsor. A brand trying to show association with an event, without officially sponsoring it. It was coined by Jerry Welsh in the 1980s.

Global

Q 12. Which country has been ranked No 1 as per the recently released World Bank’s Human Capital Index report ?

Ans. Singapore

Q 14. Between which two airports has Singapore airlines started the world’s longest haul flight of 10,400 miles  & 18 hour 40 mins long ?

Ans. Singapore Changi and Newark International

Q 15. Which is the world’s biggest car market in terms of volumes ?

Ans. China

Q 16. Why are several businessmen from the west boycotting the investment conference in Saudi Arabia dubbed as ‘Davos in the desert’ ?

Ans. In protest against the killing of Jamal Khashwoggi by Saudi Arabia at its consulate in Turkey

Q 17. Which publication came up with the Big Mac index in 1986 to use the purchasing power parity theory to determine whether a currency is overvalued or undervalued based on the prices of Big Mac in the two countries ?

Ans. The Economist

Q 18. For their work in which area has Romer and Nordhaus been awarded the Nobel prize in Economics for 2018 ?

Ans. Climate change and technological innovation

Q 19. In all Apple product advertisements, the time shown is 9:41 AM. Only in one product the time shown is different , which one ?

Ans. Apple Watch because they follow the anlaog watch advt norms of showing hands at 10 and 2.

• Compiled by G.Mohan Twitter @go_mohan