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Fast Retailing eyes Russia, India in overseas pushTOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Fast Retailing Co Ltd said it plans to open Uniqlo casual clothing stores in Russia and India and acquire rivals as it aims to boost sales by 70 percent over the next two years.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:44 am Telenor says evaluating possible India investmentOSLO (Reuters) - Norwegian phone group Telenor said on Wednesday that it was open to possible entry into India's growing mobile market.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:38 am Singur standoff: Mamata slams CPM - Times of India
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:27 am Policy roadblocks test car makers in China, IndiaMUMBAI (Reuters) - Foreign car makers chasing a larger share of fast-growing China and India are often hamstrung by patchy policy measures and overt protectionism, but the size and potential of the markets make such hurdles worthwhile.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:16 am Dr RK Pachauri re-elected as Chairman, IPCCNew Delhi: Dr R.K Pachauri, Director General, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) was elected by acclamation to a second term as the Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) at its plenary session in Geneva Tuesday. The IPCC received the Nobel Peace Prize last year, while under the Chairmanship of Dr Pachauri, soon after the panel released its Fourth Assessment Report on climate change. This report made the case for urgent action and actively partnered with media organisations worldwide to greatly enhance awareness of the challeneges posed by climate change. A pioneer in researching and acting on climate change issues, The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) has greatly contributed to the global cause of climate change. This year Dr Pachauri was also conferred the Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India in recognition of his remarkable work in the field of Environment Science and Research globally. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:16 am Minda buys German auto parts firm - Sify
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:05 am Dell set to unveil mini-notebook computer: SourceSan Francisco: Dell Inc is poised to announce a new mini-laptop computer later this week, a source familiar with the company’s plan said on Tuesday, confirming a Wall Street Journal story. The source said the Dell “mini” would be a low-priced computer that is two-thirds the size of full-featured laptops, which will put it into competition with the Eee PC from Asustek Computer and other rivals in Taiwan and Japan. The Journal cited “people familiar with the device” as saying the Dell mini notebook is likely to sell for under $400, have a screen size under nine inches, and run either Microsoft Windows or Linux operating system software. A Dell spokeswoman was not immediately available to comment. The source confirmed that the new Dell model would be revealed on Thursday as part of an announcement with partner Box.net, which supplies online data storage services to Dell. Mini-notebooks have caught on with heavy computer users who want full-access not just to e-mail but to Web pages and business documents while on the go outside of their offices. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:03 am Dell set to unveil mini-notebook computer: SourceSan Francisco: Dell Inc is poised to announce a new mini-laptop computer later this week, a source familiar with the company’s plan said on Tuesday, confirming a Wall Street Journal story. The source said the Dell “mini” would be a low-priced computer that is two-thirds the size of full-featured laptops, which will put it into competition with the Eee PC from Asustek Computer and other rivals in Taiwan and Japan. The Journal cited “people familiar with the device” as saying the Dell mini notebook is likely to sell for under $400, have a screen size under nine inches, and run either Microsoft Windows or Linux operating system software. A Dell spokeswoman was not immediately available to comment. The source confirmed that the new Dell model would be revealed on Thursday as part of an announcement with partner Box.net, which supplies online data storage services to Dell. Mini-notebooks have caught on with heavy computer users who want full-access not just to e-mail but to Web pages and business documents while on the go outside of their offices. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 7:03 am Policy roadblocks test car makers in China, IndiaReuters Mumbai: Foreign car makers chasing a larger share of fast-growing China and India are often hamstrung by patchy policy measures and overt protectionism, but the size and potential of the markets make such hurdles worthwhile. China has long protected its local car makers, forcing foreign firms into joint ventures, while India is notorious for delays in implementing policy as well back-tracking on proposals. But for auto makers seeking to rev up sales as Western markets shrink, the two Asian giants are vital. “China and India are big markets, you can’t ignore either of them,” said Thomas Kaestelle, managing director and head of the automotive practice at investment bank Rothschild. “Yes, their policies affect car makers’ decisions on investments, product lineup, joint ventures, R&D and technology transfer, but it hasn’t stopped anyone from coming in.” China is already the world’s second-biggest auto market, while annual passenger vehicle sales in India are forecast to nearly double to more than 2 million units by 2010. But the path to profits is rough: new tax rates in China aimed at encouraging sales of smaller cars may dent sales of Toyota Motor, Honda Motor and Nissan, while India is dragging its feet on planned emission and fuel norms, and has also recently raised taxes on larger vehicles. “The industry is already passing through a tough time and this (tax) hike will adversely affect sales and hamper the growth of the entire industry,” said P. Balendran, vice president of corporate affairs at General Motors India When India began opening its economy in the early 1990s, it moved quickly to liberalise the automotive industry, where restrictions on foreign investment were among the first to go. But the government failed to draw up a comprehensive policy. It took a public interest petition in the highest court to ban overloading of trucks in 2005, while the policy on automotive fuels has struggled because of a slow rollout, heavy subsidies for diesel and poor availability of alternatives such as LPG and ethanol. “No one can doubt the good intentions of our policymakers, but what ails us is poor implementation and politics,” said Arvind Saxena, vice president of research firm TNS Automotive. Cutting the excise duty on small cars was one such example, he said. India cut the tax to 16% from 24% in 2006 and in February this year reduced it further to 12%. The move, aimed at making the country a small car hub, was cheered by consumers and some producers, but slammed by firms that did not make small cars, which make up more than two-thirds of sales. Nearly every car maker has since announced plans to build a small car for India and other markets and take on Tata Motors’ upcoming Nano, priced at about Rs100,000 rupees ($2,250). But where the government has failed is in going far enough. “You can’t have a policy for small cars without also providing tax breaks for exports and incentives for export zones,” said Ashvin Chotai, an independent auto consultant based in London, pointing to Thailand’s example in making the country a hub for pickup trucks and now for eco-cars. India is also guilty of withdrawing an export incentive, angering Hyundai Motor, the country’s top car exporter. Trade agreements with Thailand and Southeast Asia have also enabled imports of components cheaply, upsetting Hyundai and Maruti Suzuki, who have invested in parts manufacture. “What if you were to commit resources and then have the government do a U-turn?,” Chotai said. “The lack of clarity and transparency raises the risk premium for investors and changes can undermine investor confidence.” But analysts are divided over what is a bigger hurdle: China’s protectionist policies or India’s poor implementation. “In India the rule of law applies, so investors may feel it’s a safer investment bet,” said Rothschild’s Kaestelle. China’s policy gives the government enormous power over foreign car makers that have ventures with local firms such as SAIC Motor Corp, Dongfeng Motor Grop and Chongqing Changan Automobile Co, Chotai said. Foreign firms also are vulnerable to the Beijing’s plans, including an aim to consolidate the fragmented auto industry and create a few national champions to rival global producers. “But it’s a consistent policy and everyone knows what they’re signing up for ... everyone knows the endgame,” Chotai said. Companies are trying to balancing the risks and potential, such as Hyundai which has a big manufacturing operation in China, but uses India as its export hub, Chotai said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:56 am Nasscom plans to prepare ‘career guide’ - Sify
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:53 am Google Chrome lacks polish under the hood: ReviewNew York: Google Inc.’s new Web browser, called Chrome, does much of what a browser needs to do these days. It presents a sleek appearance, groups pages into easy-to-manage ‘tabs’ and offers several ways for people to control their Internet privacy settings. Yet my initial tests reveal that this “beta,” or preliminary release, falls short of Google’s goals, and is outdone in an important measure by the latest version of Microsoft Corp.’s Internet Explorer. Chrome is a challenge to Microsoft’s browser, used by about three-quarters of Web surfers. But it could equally be called a challenge to Microsoft’s Office software suite, because what Google really wants to do is to make the browser a stable and flexible platform that can do practically everything we want to do with a computer, from word processing and e-mail to photo editing. To strengthen that effort, Chrome was designed to improve on the way other browsers handle JavaScript, one of the technologies used to make Web pages more interactive and more like desktop software applications. Google’s online word processing and spreadsheet programs use this technology, but it’s also very widely deployed on Web pages to do less sophisticated things, like drop-down menus. At first blush, Google’s focus on JavaScript makes sense. JavaScript can eat up computer processor power, and if poorly used by a Web site, can bring down the browser. One of the things Chrome promises is that if one browser tab crashes, it won’t take down the whole program. Chrome also has some cosmetic differences from Internet Explorer and Firefox, like putting the tabs at the very top of the window. That’s a nice move, but it’s the browser’s performance that really matters to me. And this is where Chrome’s attention to JavaScript might miss the point. At work, I often have 40 or 50 tabs open in Firefox, grouped in different windows depending on which topic they pertain to. Frequently, Firefox would slow down all the other applications on my computer, then seize up completely. At first I thought JavaScript was to blame, and blocked it from running. But that made many sites unusable, and it didn’t help: The browser still froze. It turns out the culprit is not JavaScript but another technology used to make Web pages more interactive: Adobe Systems Inc.’s Flash plug-in. It’s the program-within-a-program that plays YouTube videos and those annoying “splash” pages that some sites employ to dazzle you with animations before letting you do anything useful on the site. Flash is a tremendous resource hog in Firefox, eating up processor time to the point where there is nothing left for other programs. It does this even if you’re not actively doing anything. Merely having a YouTube page open on your screen will suck power from your computer’s central processing unit, or CPU. This is outrageous behavior for a browser. It’s my CPU and I want it back. Luckily, there’s a small add-on program for Firefox that lets the user prevent Flash files from running automatically when a page loads, and it turns Firefox into a stable, efficient browser. What does this mean on Chrome? Well, it has the same problem. It lets sites running Flash take over your computer’s resources. It doesn’t hog the CPU quite as bad as with Firefox, but in a way, it’s more serious, because unlike with Firefox, there’s no way to stop Flash from running. Chrome’s controls are quite bare-bones, perhaps because it’s still in ‘beta’. On the plus side, Chrome allows you to diagnose problems with runaway plug-ins easily, because it tells you exactly which pages are consuming which resources. Had I been able to do this with Firefox, it would have saved me from months of browser troubles. So which one comes out smelling like roses? The beta of Internet Explorer 8, released just last week. When playing a YouTube video, Firefox 3 took up 95% of the CPU time on a three-year old laptop running Windows XP. Chrome came in at 60% still too much. Especially since Google owns YouTube! You’d think it could make its browser work well with that site in particular. Internet Explorer barely broke a sweat, taking up just a few percent. When I told each browser to load eight pages, some of which were heavy with Flash and graphics, Firefox took 17 seconds and ended with a continuous CPU load of 50%. That means it took up half of my available processing power, even if I wasn’t looking at any of the pages. Chrome loaded them the fastest, at 12 seconds, and ended with a CPU load of about 40 percent. Internet Explorer 8 took 13 seconds to load, but ended with no CPU load at all. So while Chrome’s performance is a little better than that of Firefox, in practical terms, it is far less useful, because it lacks the broad array of third-party add-ons programs like Flashblock that make Firefox so customizable. With time, it might catch up, but in the meantime, I’d recommend giving the new Internet Explorer a spin. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:53 am Google Chrome lacks polish under the hood: ReviewNew York: Google Inc.’s new Web browser, called Chrome, does much of what a browser needs to do these days. It presents a sleek appearance, groups pages into easy-to-manage ‘tabs’ and offers several ways for people to control their Internet privacy settings. Yet my initial tests reveal that this “beta,” or preliminary release, falls short of Google’s goals, and is outdone in an important measure by the latest version of Microsoft Corp.’s Internet Explorer. Chrome is a challenge to Microsoft’s browser, used by about three-quarters of Web surfers. But it could equally be called a challenge to Microsoft’s Office software suite, because what Google really wants to do is to make the browser a stable and flexible platform that can do practically everything we want to do with a computer, from word processing and e-mail to photo editing. To strengthen that effort, Chrome was designed to improve on the way other browsers handle JavaScript, one of the technologies used to make Web pages more interactive and more like desktop software applications. Google’s online word processing and spreadsheet programs use this technology, but it’s also very widely deployed on Web pages to do less sophisticated things, like drop-down menus. At first blush, Google’s focus on JavaScript makes sense. JavaScript can eat up computer processor power, and if poorly used by a Web site, can bring down the browser. One of the things Chrome promises is that if one browser tab crashes, it won’t take down the whole program. Chrome also has some cosmetic differences from Internet Explorer and Firefox, like putting the tabs at the very top of the window. That’s a nice move, but it’s the browser’s performance that really matters to me. And this is where Chrome’s attention to JavaScript might miss the point. At work, I often have 40 or 50 tabs open in Firefox, grouped in different windows depending on which topic they pertain to. Frequently, Firefox would slow down all the other applications on my computer, then seize up completely. At first I thought JavaScript was to blame, and blocked it from running. But that made many sites unusable, and it didn’t help: The browser still froze. It turns out the culprit is not JavaScript but another technology used to make Web pages more interactive: Adobe Systems Inc.’s Flash plug-in. It’s the program-within-a-program that plays YouTube videos and those annoying “splash” pages that some sites employ to dazzle you with animations before letting you do anything useful on the site. Flash is a tremendous resource hog in Firefox, eating up processor time to the point where there is nothing left for other programs. It does this even if you’re not actively doing anything. Merely having a YouTube page open on your screen will suck power from your computer’s central processing unit, or CPU. This is outrageous behavior for a browser. It’s my CPU and I want it back. Luckily, there’s a small add-on program for Firefox that lets the user prevent Flash files from running automatically when a page loads, and it turns Firefox into a stable, efficient browser. What does this mean on Chrome? Well, it has the same problem. It lets sites running Flash take over your computer’s resources. It doesn’t hog the CPU quite as bad as with Firefox, but in a way, it’s more serious, because unlike with Firefox, there’s no way to stop Flash from running. Chrome’s controls are quite bare-bones, perhaps because it’s still in ‘beta’. On the plus side, Chrome allows you to diagnose problems with runaway plug-ins easily, because it tells you exactly which pages are consuming which resources. Had I been able to do this with Firefox, it would have saved me from months of browser troubles. So which one comes out smelling like roses? The beta of Internet Explorer 8, released just last week. When playing a YouTube video, Firefox 3 took up 95% of the CPU time on a three-year old laptop running Windows XP. Chrome came in at 60% still too much. Especially since Google owns YouTube! You’d think it could make its browser work well with that site in particular. Internet Explorer barely broke a sweat, taking up just a few percent. When I told each browser to load eight pages, some of which were heavy with Flash and graphics, Firefox took 17 seconds and ended with a continuous CPU load of 50%. That means it took up half of my available processing power, even if I wasn’t looking at any of the pages. Chrome loaded them the fastest, at 12 seconds, and ended with a CPU load of about 40 percent. Internet Explorer 8 took 13 seconds to load, but ended with no CPU load at all. So while Chrome’s performance is a little better than that of Firefox, in practical terms, it is far less useful, because it lacks the broad array of third-party add-ons programs like Flashblock that make Firefox so customizable. With time, it might catch up, but in the meantime, I’d recommend giving the new Internet Explorer a spin. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:53 am Wipro sets up centre for Harman - Sify
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:51 am Centre rules out to intervene in Singur stalemate unless askedPTI New Delhi: Centre today ruled out to intervene in resolving the Singur stalemate on its own, but said it would do so if approached by any of the parties involved. “We won’t intervene. It is none of our business to intervene,” Heavy Industries Minister Santosh Mohan Dev told reporters here on the sidelines of ACMA annual convention. Asked if the Centre has chosen to ignore the issue he said, “If they come to us, we will intervene. The state government has to decide.” He said, the matter should not be made a prestige issue. Mamata Banerjee and Ratan Tata must try resolve their differences. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:30 am Nikkei edges up after oil falls, but gains limitedTOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei stock average snapped a two-day losing streak on Wednesday, edging up 0.6 percent after a sharp fall in oil eased fears about inflation and helped Honda Motor Co and other exporters rise. But gains were based mainly on bargain-hunting and ran out of steam in late trade, with resource shares such as oil and gas field developer Inpex Holdings Inc taking a beating and keeping overall rises limited. The benchmark Nikkei gained 80.12 points to 12,689.59, while theSource: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:23 am Oil cos lift bank loan growth amid high ratesMUMBAI (Reuters) - Demand for funds from companies, including oil refiners, pushed up loan growth at banks by a quarter on year in August despite high interest rates as wobbly stock markets made raising equity capital unattractive.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:13 am Japanese shares end up 0.64%AFP Tokyo: Japanese share prices closed up 0.64% Wednesday as investors cheered a drop in oil prices and a weaker yen, which is good for exporters, dealers said. The market made up some lost ground after a fall the previous day triggered by political uncertainty in the world’s second largest economy after Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda’s sudden resignation. The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s benchmark Nikkei-225 index rose 80.12 points to close at 12,689.59. The broader Topix index of all first-section shares gained 8.18 points or 0.67% to close at 1,220.55. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:13 am U.S. crude oil falls $1 as demand worries weighSINGAPORE (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil futures fell more than a dollar on Wednesday to below $109 a barrel, as demand worries weighed.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:07 am Murdoch yearns to buy New York Times: Vanity FairLos Angeles: Rupert Murdoch yearns to buy the New York Times and toyed with acquiring a sizable minority stake in Bloomberg News, Vanity Fair’s Michael Wolff reports in an October 2008 article. The News Corp chairman and chief executive has bought the Wall Street Journal and loves to gossip about news and even report stories himself, Wolff reports. He also sees his own family facing the same kind of internal division as the Bancrofts, who eventually sold him the Journal. How could he avoid that fate, Wolff asked. “Oh, simple, I can’t. All I can do is delay it,” Murdoch responded. Wolff, who is writing a biography of the Australian-born media tycoon, reports that before sewing up the deal to buy the Journal, Murdoch “for an hour or so” decided that Merrill Lynch & Co Inc, heading for financial trouble, would be ready to sell its 20% stake in Bloomberg, and that he would buy it. That deal never happened, but Murdoch did buy one of the best-known newspapers in the United States and now wants another - the New York Times. “It’s obviously irresistible to him. I’ve watched him go through the numbers, plot out a merger with the Journal’s backroom operations, and fantasize about the staff’s quitting en masse as soon as he entered the sacred temple,” Wolff wrote. News Corp was not immediately available to comment on the article. Wolff also tells of a meeting early this summer between Murdoch, the head of News Corp’s Fox News TV channel, Roger Ailes, and Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama. Obama questioned why he should even talk to Ailes because Fox had portrayed him as “suspicious, foreign, fearsome,” and Ailes shot back that the news channel might not have treated Obama that way if the politician had appeared on the channel. “A tentative truce, which may or may not have vast historical significance, was at that moment agreed upon,” Wolff writes. Wolff added that before the Democratic primary in New York, he asked Murdoch whom Wolff should vote for and Murdoch’s answer was: “Obama - he’ll sell more papers.” Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:01 am Murdoch yearns to buy New York Times: Vanity FairLos Angeles: Rupert Murdoch yearns to buy the New York Times and toyed with acquiring a sizable minority stake in Bloomberg News, Vanity Fair’s Michael Wolff reports in an October 2008 article. The News Corp chairman and chief executive has bought the Wall Street Journal and loves to gossip about news and even report stories himself, Wolff reports. He also sees his own family facing the same kind of internal division as the Bancrofts, who eventually sold him the Journal. How could he avoid that fate, Wolff asked. “Oh, simple, I can’t. All I can do is delay it,” Murdoch responded. Wolff, who is writing a biography of the Australian-born media tycoon, reports that before sewing up the deal to buy the Journal, Murdoch “for an hour or so” decided that Merrill Lynch & Co Inc, heading for financial trouble, would be ready to sell its 20% stake in Bloomberg, and that he would buy it. That deal never happened, but Murdoch did buy one of the best-known newspapers in the United States and now wants another - the New York Times. “It’s obviously irresistible to him. I’ve watched him go through the numbers, plot out a merger with the Journal’s backroom operations, and fantasize about the staff’s quitting en masse as soon as he entered the sacred temple,” Wolff wrote. News Corp was not immediately available to comment on the article. Wolff also tells of a meeting early this summer between Murdoch, the head of News Corp’s Fox News TV channel, Roger Ailes, and Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama. Obama questioned why he should even talk to Ailes because Fox had portrayed him as “suspicious, foreign, fearsome,” and Ailes shot back that the news channel might not have treated Obama that way if the politician had appeared on the channel. “A tentative truce, which may or may not have vast historical significance, was at that moment agreed upon,” Wolff writes. Wolff added that before the Democratic primary in New York, he asked Murdoch whom Wolff should vote for and Murdoch’s answer was: “Obama - he’ll sell more papers.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 6:01 am Tata Motors stops work indefinitely at Nano plantMumbai: Tata Motors has suspended work indefinitely at a factory building the world’s cheapest car following increasingly violent protests by farmers demanding the return of their land. No one has reported to work at the West Bengal Nano factory since Friday, at the company’s request, and some international staffers have gone home, the company said on Tuesday. The conflict pits several thousand of the world’s poor against one of India’s richest man, Ratan Tata, who wants to build them cars. At $2,500, the Nano has knocked the bottom out of the mini-car market in India, with other automotive players pushing to enter the super-economy market. But several hundred local farmers have dogged Tata with protests for nearly two years, complaining they didn’t receive sufficient compensation for part of the land where the Nano factory was built. They, along with West Bengal’s leading opposition politicians and thousands of their supporters, have blockaded the highway running past the factory. The demonstrations have escalated, and the protesters trapped workers inside the factory last week. “The situation around the Nano plant continues to be hostile and intimidating. There is no way this plant could operate efficiently unless the environment became congenial and supportive of the project. We came to West Bengal hoping we could add value, prosperity and create job opportunities in the communities in the State,” a company spokesman said in a statement late Tuesday. Tata has poured $350 million into its plant in Singur. About 60 key suppliers have invested millions of dollars more for plants and equipment in the area. “It’s unfortunate and ominous for the state. There is no doubt about that. It is a sad day for West Bengal,” the state’s Industry Minister Nirupam Sen said. Suresh Rangarajan, a Tata Motors spokesman, said on Tuesday that the company was exploring whether it could relocate Nano production to its other six factories scattered across India in an effort to meet production deadlines. The company has trained over 762 workers in West Bengal and says it is considering relocating those employees to its other plants. Tata has pledged to launch the Nano by the end of the year. “Mr. Tata is a business man. He has a deadline,” Rangarajan said. But he added that a “small window” remained open for Tata’s continued presence in Singur. “If normalcy is restored, Tata Motors will come back,” he said. Mamata Banerjee, chief of the opposition Trinamool Congress party in West Bengal, said her party had not pushed Tata out. “The decision to suspend work at the plant was Tata’s own. We have not obstructed anyone,” PTI news agency quoted Banerjee as saying. Indian business leaders have lined up behind Ratan Tata in recent days, warning that a pullout would have a chilling effect on investment. The Indian government is eager to transform the country into a hub for small car manufacturing. Two-thirds of Indians still live off the land, and as the nation lurches toward industrialization, land conflicts have become increasingly common. India is also a nation of stark regional variation, and even as West Bengal boils, leaders in Maharashtra state, home to the nation’s business capital of Mumbai, boasted on Tuesday of their pro-business credentials. Speaking at the opening of a new $300 million General Motors Corp factory in Pune, a fast-growing manufacturing hub about two hours outside Mumbai, the state’s chief minister reiterated his invitation to the Tata Group, saying he would roll out the red carpet for a Nano plant. Vilasrao Deshmukh also thanked local farmers for giving their land and their livelihood to bring the GM project to life. “More than 80% of the 1,000—plus employees at GM’s new factory are from the local area,” company and government officials said. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 5:59 am M&M supports Tata on Singur issuePTI New Delhi: Mahindra and Mahindra has came out in support of Tata Motors which has almost decided to pull out its Nano project at Singur. “It is unfortunate that a project of such nature has been forced to consider to exit the location,” M&M President (Automotive) Pawan Goenka told PTI on the sidelines of ACMA convention. “It doesn’t augar well for industrialisation,” he said. Asked if this could have an impact on global investments in India, Goenka said, “I am not sure if one project could have such an implication.” Tatas have suspended work at the Singur facility and are planning to move the world’s cheapest car project — Nano — out of West Bengal that may deal a major blow to investments in the Marxist-ruled state. The Tata statement came even as Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee met Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi who he said may mediate to break the logjam. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 5:32 am HDFC Bank ATMs now fully functional - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 5:23 am Tata Motors looking for alternative Nano siteMUMBAI/KOLKATA (Reuters) - Tata Motors said violent protests had forced it to suspend all work at the Singur plant, where it planned to make the Nano -- billed as the world's cheapest car -- and consider alternative sites.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 5:17 am Food crisis, silent famine to continue: World BankCANBERRA (Reuters) - There is no end in sight to global food shortages and multiple crises from climate change and energy and water scarcity will soon intensify what is already a silent famine, the World Bank said on Wednesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 5:04 am Curious shoppers flock to site of fire - Times of India
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 4:45 am Coca-Cola to buy China juice maker for $2.4bnShanghai: US soft drinks giant Coca-Cola said on Wednesday it planned to buy Chinese juice maker Huiyuan Juice Group in a $2.4-billion deal that would be its biggest acquisition in China. Coca-Cola will offer $1.6 US dollars per share in Hong Kong-listed Huiyuan, it said in a statement, adding that three shareholders holding a total of 66% in the company had accepted the offer. “It is the largest proposed transaction in China and the second largest for the Coca-Cola Co.,” the company said. Coca-Cola said it intended for Huiyuan, one of China’s best-known juice brands, to carry on its business, but that it would later review its operations. “Huiyuan is a long-established and successful juice brand in China and is highly complementary to the Coca-Cola China business,” said Muhtar Kent, CEO of Coca-Cola Co., in a statement. He said the deal was “a unique opportunity to strengthen our business in China, especially since the juice segment is so dynamic and fast-growing in China.” According to Coca-Cola’s Chinese website, its investment in China since 1979 totals $1.25 billion. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 4:36 am Subbarao's agenda: Managing rupee and pushing reforms - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 4:29 am Oil prices ease as US taps strategic reservesSingapore: Oil prices fell in Asian trade on Wednesday as the US government announced the release of oil from its strategic reserve to help with recovery efforts after Hurricane Gustav. New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for October delivery, dropped 34 cents to $109.37 a barrel, while Brent North Sea crude for October delivery eased 29 cents to $108.05. The United States announced on Tuesday it was releasing 250,000 barrels from its emergency supplies, known as the strategic reserve. “The release of the oil will prevent any shortage and that will, of course, help calm the market,” said Victor Shum, a Singapore-based analyst with energy consultancy Purvin and Gertz. The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve is a complex of underground storage caverns that hold emergency supplies of crude oil. According to the US Department of Energy, the inventory exceeded 700 million barrels on April 2. The US Department of the Interior said there was no oil production on Tuesday in the hurricane-affected region, where a quarter of US oil is normally produced. Ninety-five percent of natural gas production was offline. The threat from Gustav raised grim memories of the 2005 hurricanes Katrina and Rita that damaged or destroyed about 165 of around 4,000 oil platforms in the Gulf. But damage this time appeared to be less severe. Crude prices have eased about 25% since reaching record levels above $147 in July, pulled down by worries about slowing global growth affecting energy demand. As oil prices fell, Iran called for the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), which produces 40 percent of world output, to discuss excess supply at its meeting in Vienna on September 9. “Some OPEC members are providing the market with excess supply and producing more than their OPEC quota. Therefore, at the next meeting the members will request a stop to the excess supply,” Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari said. One hundred dollars a barrel is a minimum for oil prices, said the Iranian minister, whose country, an OPEC member, is the world’s fourth-largest crude producer. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 3 Sep 2008 | 4:24 am In poll time, everybody loves a good flood - Expressindia.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 3:53 am Google sees new browser displacing desktop softwareMOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (Reuters) - Google Inc is challenging Microsoft Corp with its own Web browser that lets users run many applications that once worked only when installed on local PCs, executives said on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 3 Sep 2008 | 3:45 am British Airways fuels fare war on India-London route - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 3 Sep 2008 | 1:09 am Westerly system seen driving rains into north-westThiruvananthapuram, Sept 2 Monsoon has been active over interior Karnataka and south Maharashtra during the 24 hours ending Tuesday morning as an active rain belt over East India seemed to have moved south-southeast from flood-ravaged Bihar. ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Gas row: RNRL willing to place family MoU in courtMumbai, Sept. 2 Senior Counsel for RNRL, Mr Ram Jethmalani, told the Bombay High Court on Tuesday that the Anil Ambani Group company was willing to place before the court the relevant portions of the family Memorandum of Understanding between ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Ranbaxy shares plunge 10% intra-dayDaiichi Sankyo’s open offer ends on September 4. Mumbai, Sept. 2 Ranbaxy shares plunged 10 per cent on Tuesday after it witnessed huge amounts of selling as last minute traders were unable to surrender their shares before the close of ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Tata Motors’ ‘A’ rights priced Rs 305 a shareTo have lesser voting rights but higher dividend. Mumbai Sept. 2 Tata Motors on Tuesday said it will issue shares with lower voting rights (‘A’ ordinary shares) on a rights basis at Rs 305 for a share, which is at a discount of 10 ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am General Electric concerned over time constraints for nuke dealClock ticking for US companies as Congressional window closes. New Delhi, Sept. 2 A delayed Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) approval for the Indo-US nuke deal could be bad news for US reactor manufacturers eyeing the Indian atomic power space. ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Troubled rideSource: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Exchange traded interest rate futures likely by DecNew Delhi, Sept. 2 Exchange-traded interest rate futures (ETIRF) will be a reality in the Indian market by December 2008 or latest by January next year, a top SEBI official said here today. ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Households shift more money into shares, MFsInvestments into small savings, provident funds come down. Chennai, Sept. 2 You and I have preferred to put more of our money in shares, mutual funds, insurance policies and bank deposits as compared to what we did four years ago. ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Tata Motors gearing up to pull out from SingurWorking out detailed plan to relocate plant, machinery. Chennai/Kolkata, Sept. 2 Tata Motors is all set to pull out of Singur in West Bengal, from where it was to roll out its low-cost car ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Srei Infra Finance (Rs 109.1): BuyShort-term traders as well as investors with a medium-term perspective can consider buying Srei Infrastructure Finance at current levels. Despite the harrowing decline from the January peak at Rs 292, the long-term view for the stock stays ...Source: Business Line - Home Page | 3 Sep 2008 | 12:00 am Insurers see retail health plans as next big thingManaged healthcare may still be a far cry, although health insurance premium has swelled to around Rs 5,000 crore.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:15 pm Subbarao will bring RBI, finmin in syncAfter Duvvuri Subbarao was given the reins of the RBI, the view in the banking community is that the coordination between the central bank and Ministry of Finance will certainly improve.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:12 pm NTPC Bhel sees Rs 10k cr toplineNTPC Bhel Power Projects Pvt Ltd, a power equipment manufacturing joint venture between NTPC Ltd and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd, expects to earn Rs 10,000 crore per annum.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:11 pm Bom Dyeing to rake in Rs 900 crBombay Dyeing and Manufacturing Ltd is expecting to rake in Rs 900 crore by next year by selling a small part of the 8 lakh square feet commercial property it is developing.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:10 pm HC asks Ambanis for Reliance demerger MoUThe Bombay High Court on Tuesday asked the Ambani brothers if they were willing to produce in court the memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by them and their mother.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:09 pm Minda buys German auto parts firmAshok Minda Group, a Noida-based auto component manufacturer, announced on Tuesday its acquisition of Germany-based Schenk Plastic Solutions GmbH for an undisclosed amount.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:08 pm Great Offshore buys 2 cos, enters portsGreat Offshore Ltd has acquired two companies in an all-cash deal for Rs 160 crore, to extend its offerings in the offshore space and foray into port management.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:07 pm FM's advisor says jobs scheme is fuelling inflationShubhashis Gangopadhyay, advisor to finance minister, says the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme is not producing food.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:05 pm Arun Ramanathan may be new Fin SecyArun Ramanathan, a senior bureaucrat in the finance ministry, is likely to be named the next finance secretary of India.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 11:01 pm B-school offers tilting towards variable payVariable pay is seen assuming gigantic proportions in the cost-to-company (CTC) packages handed out in pre-placement offers at business schools this season.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 10:59 pm Maruti plans to focus on fuel-efficient cars in future - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 9:16 pm Apollo Hospitals shift focus to rural areasApollo Hospitals is now reaching out to the rural and urban areas. It has launched Apollo Reach. Through this, it plans to open 25 hospitals by 2010.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 9:05 pm Tata Motors pulls plug on Singur; will Nano takeoff?Tata Motors suspends its work on Nano Plant at Singur. It will now start evaluating alternate options for Nano at other company facilities. Work on a detailed plan to relocate the plant and machinery to alternate site has been started. Also, Tata Motors is exploring options to absorb people who have been recruited and trained in Singur.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:42 pm NTPC plans for more business unit leadersNew Delhi: The country’s largest power generation utility, NTPC Ltd plans to raise the number of business unit, or BU, leaders—typically those who play a pivotal role in running its power projects—by seven-fold to 300 shortly, and pay them more as it attempts to hire and retain engineering talent. The state-owned company, which plans to step up training its managers as part of the goal, has some 45 BU leaders, including regional executive directors, who manage its regional operations. The company is trying to stem employee desertions for higher paying private sector jobs. NTPC defines a BU leader as one who runs its power projects and has cross-functional skills in business development, project execution and strategic sourcing, among other things. “The growth is so fast that we require (more of) these BU leaders. In order to do so, we have to create a pipeline of a few thousand managers...we recruit around 1,000 employees every year at the entry level (in engineering and related professions),” said R.C. Shrivastav, director, human resources, at NTPC. The firm has a power generation capacity of 29,394MW across its 26 power projects. It posted a net profit of Rs7,129.30 crore on revenue of Rs37,004.60 crore in the fiscal year to March. The company now has a staff strength of 24,000, of which around 11,000 are executives. Of these, some 5,000 people are at a managerial level. Some human resource expoerts are sceptical about the efficacy of the company’s move. “Any employee retention strategy has to be holistic in looking at true role enrichment and empowerment. Notional title changes...will have very limited returns,” said Bangalore-based human resources adviser Hema Ravichandar. While NTPC recruited 500 engineers to entry-level executive positions in 2007-08, it increased the intake by 40% to 700 engineers in the current year. The numbers are expected to go up by 100 engineers and 300 engineers in 2009-10 and 2010-11, respectively. NTPC is putting an aggressive human resources strategy in place as it lost 400 engineers in the past one year to private sector firms such as Tata Power Co. Ltd, Reliance Infrastructure Ltd (earlier known as Reliance Energy Ltd) and Lanco Infratech Ltd. Currently, the private sector companies are recruiting only for construction and project management roles for power projects. NTPC expects that once the projects become fully operational, the companies will lure away its operations and maintenance engineers as well. The salary offered by NTPC is marginally higher than the private sector’s for entry-level engineering positions. But engineers employed in senior manager-level positions in private sector firms earn salaries four times that of their public sector counterparts. A senior manager-level employee at NTPC typically earns around Rs8-10 lakh per annum. NTPC also has plans to offer hydroelectric power project and coal-mining engineers additional allowances—as much as 60% more than what its other employees currently get, as reported by Mint on 19 July. The newly created NTPC Bhel Power Projects Pvt. Ltd aims to offer pay packages similar to those offered by the private sector, as reported by Mint on 26 August. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:37 pm Powered upCar inverters If you spend long hours on the road, you can harness your vehicle’s 12V cigarette lighter socket as a virtually endless power resource for your laptop and other gadgets by using a car inverter. This diminutive (sub-200g) contraption features a conventional three-pin socket into which you can plug in any gadget. What’s more, some car inverters even come with separate USB ports. With its 45-degree-swivel capabilities, the inverter’s head often offers easier accommodation for plugs. But don’t forget to look for safety features such as low voltage shutdown, auto overload, overheating and reverse polarity by fuse protection. An LED indicator display for power and fault conditions and a replaceable fuse are some other nifty features that should be there in inverters. And always keep in mind the voltage requirements—220 volts in India. Freeloader Freeloader is a convenient, 185g solar-powered charging station that can be used to power up most hand-held devices. With its twin small and extendable solar panels, this portable impact-resistant energy bank can hold its charge for three months and power an iPod for 18 hours, a PSP for 2.5 hours and a mobile for 44 hours, according to its manufacturers. Apart from attachments for digital cameras, PDAs, two-way radios, GPS devices and others, Freeloader comes with adapters for several popular phone handsets such as Nokia, LG, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson and BlackBerry. No sun in sight? Never mind. Freeloader can suck in power via USB, too. Sadly, it doesn’t have a battery-level indicator. www.amazon.co.uk/Freeloader-SC8088-Solar-Charger-Silver/dp/B000ODRNDA Powermonkey-eXplorer and Powergorilla Powermonkey-eXplorer is gaining popularity all over the world as a very good solar solution for recharging mobiles, iPods, MP3/MP4, PDAs and portable games consoles (Sony PSP and Nintendo DS and DS-Lite). It boasts of providing 96 hours of standby on your mobile, 40 hours on your iPod, 5 hours on your games console, 48 hours on your PDA and 6 hours on MP3/MP4 players. It can even be recharged directly in the sun. Scheduled to be launched towards the end of this month, the tiffin-sized Powergorilla claims to be capable of keeping your laptop charged for two-and-a-half times before the gorilla itself needs recharging. You can also check out some other on-the-go power solutions available with the company. www.powertraveller.com USBcell You can use this revolutionary NiMH AA cell like any standard alkaline battery. But to recharge it, you only need to plug it into any available USB port. This means that you don’t need to carry separate charger/cable paraphernalia while travelling and can still recharge on the go. The AA size, 1300mAH USBcell needs about 5 hours to top up, and provides a 500mA current at 5 volts. More inexpensive Chinese adaptations of USBcell are also available. Instead of wasting resources, increasing carbon dioxide levels and contributing to toxic landfills, it’s high time we did a wee bit for the Earth with recyclable energy sources such as this. www.usbcell.com HYmini The path-breaking HYmini is a hand-held, universal charger/adapter that can harness renewable wind, solar or USB and conventional 100~240V AC mains power to store power and then recharge various digital devices. The energy hoarded in its internal battery—a 1200mAh built-in lithium ion polymer rechargeable power bank—can be used to recharge cellphones, MP3 players, iPods, PDAs, digital cameras and other 5V devices. You need 4 hours for a full charge. A 20-minute charge, however, gives approximately 40 minutes of hum to an MP3 player or PDA, breathes 4 minutes of life into a mobile, and 20 clicks for a digital camera. The hand-held 100g micro wind power generator (which can work as you drive) can also extend its energy collection capacity with miniSOLAR panels. www.hymini.com/html/HYmini.html Philips Power2Go Forget modest appliances, the Philips SCE7640 Power2Go can even juice up 13-inch laptops. Its 8,000 mA Li-polymer battery offers output voltages of 5.6V DC, max 350mA, 16-19V DC, max 2000mA. It is equipped with an LED status indicator to tell you the amount of residual power left in it. To replenish its stock, the Power2Go can be recharged via USB or the regular mains electricity. Power2Go comes with 12 interchangeable connector tips, tips holder, travel bag, retractable cable and built-in overcharge protection. NoPoPo (Non-Pollution Power) Aqua Batteries Rechargable and available in AA and AAA sizes, these run off water and other liquids—cola, saliva, juice, even urine. Free of mercury, hexavalent chrome, lead or cadmium, NoPoPo batteries can retain their charge for 10 years and can be recharged five times. Medis 24-7 Power Pack A portable and disposable auxiliary power source for several hand-held devices, the 255gm, 1.3 watt Power Pack employs oxygen and sodium borohydride to create electricity. It can deliver five full recharges to digital cameras, cellphones and other small gadgets. www.medistechnologies.com Solio Magnesium Edition Weighing 527g, Solio Magnesium is a set of tough, scratch-proof unfolding solar panels that functions as a versatile hybrid charger for cellphones, iPods and other portable devices. It comes with several connector tips, a hemp pouch and universal wall adapter. www.solio.com/charger M2E Power Charger M2E Power’s superlattice electrolyte fuel cell is powered by human motion. Walking around with it helps replenish power in cellphones as well as other gadgets such as GPS devices. Six hours of cumulative motion is said to tote up 30-60 minutes of talk time. Recharging from it is comparable in speed to a mains outlet according to M2E. www.m2epower.com Write to us at businessoflife@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:23 pm Centre deploys 3,000 soldiers as death toll continues to climbSydney / Bangalore: The Centre has sent 3,000 soldiers to help rescue thousands of people stranded in Bihar by flood waters that have killed at least 117. “Six critical areas have been identified and there are about 60,000 people in these areas waiting to be evacuated,” disaster management additional commissioner Pratayaya Amrit said over the phone from the state capital, Patna, on Tuesday. “The Indian Army and Navy have moved into these areas and it may take two to three days for the evacuation to be completed.”  Troubled slumber: Bobita Devi, 26, sleeps with her children at a relief camp in Jankinagar village of Purnia district on Monday. Rupak De Chowdhuri / Reuters The army is evacuating about 25,000 people daily and has set up 37 medical camps, the ministry of defence said on Tuesday in an emailed statement. About 450 boats are being deployed in addition to six helicopters for rescue and relief operations. The navy has deployed 145 divers and another 24 boats for rescue operations, the ministry said. Army and navy boats are patrolling flood-hit districts in eastern and northern Bihar to deter thieves and prevent looting. Cabinet secretary K.M. Chandrasekhar led a government team to inspect flood-hit areas on Tuesday, the home ministry said. The government sent 10,000 tonnes of kerosene and liquefied petroleum gas cylinders to provide fuel and 500,000 bottles of water to deal with an “acute crisis” with clean drinking water, state-run broadcaster Doordarshan reported on its website. About 225,000 people have taken shelter in more than 100 relief camps set up by the state government and more are being housed in camps established by non-government organizations, Amrit said. “The issue in relief camps is not about food and water alone. It is also about safety and security for women, which are lacking,” P.V. Unnikrishnan, emergency adviser to charity ActionAid, said over the phone on Tuesday from Saupal district. “Health and sanitation is a big challenge and there are cases of diarrhoea being reported. This is the worst flooding I have seen, as the land’s topography is changing by the day due to rising waters.” There is a “lack of coordination” between government agencies, he added. The Central Water Commission said in a report that the Ganga, Ghagra, Burhigandak, Bagmati, Kamalabalan, Kosi, Mahananda and Adhwara group of rivers are flowing above danger levels and are likely to cross the “red mark” at points along their courses, according to Doordarshan. feedback@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:21 pm SpiceJet may break even next yearMumbai: India’s second biggest budget carrier, SpiceJet Ltd, may post a profit next year as it raises fares and jet fuel prices fall. Increases in ticket prices and lower costs will also help SpiceJet narrow losses this year, Ajay Singh, a company director, said on Monday in New Delhi, where the airline is based. Indian Oil Corp. Ltd, the nation’s largest refiner, on Monday cut the price of jet fuel by 16%, the biggest decrease this year, reducing the carrier’s largest expense. SpiceJet, which last month won as much as $100 million (Rs443 crore today) in investment from US billionaire Wilbur Ross and Goldman Sachs, has raised fares by about 45% in the past six months to offset higher fuel costs. “It is difficult to say whether this 16% drop in fuel prices is sufficient,” said Ashutosh Goel, a Mumbai-based analyst at Edelweiss Capital Ltd. “One needs to see where crude oil prices are going and what is the kind of slowdown in demand because of the higher fares.” SpiceJet rose 6.63% to close at Rs29.75 in Mumbai trading on Tuesday. The stock has declined 68% so far this year. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:21 pm Oil at 5-month low as Gustav storms outDeora rules out cut in auto, cooking fuel prices.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:12 pm Left sweetens Singur packageThe Left Front has worked out a special compensation package to accommodate farmers who had not accepted compensation for land acquired for the 997-acre factory complex to build Tata MotorsSource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:11 pm Big companies run chemical tanks without green nod for 18 yearsOver 100 chemical storage tanks built at the Pirpav jetty near Chembur have been operating without approvals from the ministry of environment and forests for over 18 years.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:10 pm Tatas prepare to pull out of SingurThe opposition has gone too far, says Nirupam Sen.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:09 pm Airbus looks to meet sourcing target earlyNew Delhi: European plane maker Airbus SAS will buy nearly Rs4,000 crore worth of products and services from India to meet what are called offset obligations as part of an aircraft contract with National Aviation Co. of India Ltd (Nacil)-run Air India, eight years before its deadline, a top company executive said. Airbus expects the slowdown in Indian aviation to continue for next two years, although it hopes to win orders for its so-called superjumbo A380 aircraft from Indian carriers this year or next, the company’s executive vice-president of marketing and contracts, Kiran Rao, told Mint here on Tuesday. “I can tell you our offset target, which we were supposed to complete by 2020, will be completed by 2010 or 2012,” he said. The Indian government’s offset obligations require defence and civilian suppliers to source up to 50% of the deal value from local vendors. The Rs4,000 crore worth of such sourcing comes under a 2005 deal with Nacil for the supply of 43 A320 planes, with sticker prices estimated at Rs9,888 crore. “We will exceed that obligation, or there will be another order and it (offsets) will be used towards it,” Rao said. The offset requirements so far are limited to state-run carriers.  Flying high: Kiran Rao, an executive vice-president for Airbus, says that the European manufacturer’s delayed aircraft maintenance and repair facility will be set up in New Delhi and be operational by early next year. Harikrishna Katragadda/Mint Airbus said its local sourcing in the Nacil deal would cover software, hardware and materials, and had the potential to scale up to global levels. Bangalore-based Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), for example, produces 40 doors a month, up from an initial 20, for the Airbus A320 aircraft. Sourcing from HAL “would be used to cover the offset partially, but the day we finish the offset obligation, it doesn’t mean you stop building doors,” Rao pointed out. “Because now, what we have set up is a commercially viable operation which was initiated by offsets but because it was based on sound commercial principles, it then becomes something that goes beyond the offsets.” Airbus’ engineering centre in Bangalore, functional since last year, will be scaled up further and contracts in software and design-related areas are underway with Infosys Technologies Ltd and Tata Consultancy Services Ltd. “We are in talks with several companies for sourcing materials like titanium and aero-structure components,” Rao said, declining company names. Fresh demand for planes is likely to be slow in the next two years, the Airbus executive said, although its existing orders will see it delivering 40 planes a year until 2012. “I think we will see the sort of instability now through 2009 and 2010... (Then) we will start seeing some improvement in 2011, and 2012 we will start seeing another wave of orders coming,” he said. Airbus says it expects to seal sizeable A380s orders between “this year and next” from Indian carriers. Kingfisher Airlines is the only Indian carrier to have bought five of the A380 planes, deliveries for which start only from fiscal 2013. “Once all the other airlines start flying A380s into India, the comfort level is so different that the competitive airlines (in India) will have to order it as well,” he said. Instances such as Hyderabad-based Flyington Freighters Ltd increasing orders to a dozen A330-200F aircraft from six earlier compensate deferred deliveries from customers such as Kingfisher Airlines that has postponed taking possession of 32 of A320 planes by as much as three years of a total 105 A320 aircraft on order. The European manufacturer’s delayed aircraft maintenance and repair facility will be set up in New Delhi and be operational by early next year, Rao said. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:06 pm A great opportunity for asset reconstruction funds in real estateMumbai: Among Indian financial intermediaries, Housing Development Finance Corp. Ltd (HDFC) has been the least affected by the stock market meltdown that started in January. Since the beginning of the year, the stock of the mortgage firm has lost some 14% in value, while the Sensex, the benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange, has lost close to 26% and Bankex, an index of the banking sector, at least 34%. For the quarter ended June, HDFC’s business growth had been around 30% in loan approvals and 28% in disbursements, but Deepak S. Parekh, 63, chairman of the country’s oldest mortgage firm, sees a slowdown in loan growth in August and says the growth will come down in the next few quarters.  Long-term player: Deepak Parekh of HDFC Ltd, the country’s biggest mortgage lender, said his firm aimed at being around even 100 years later and, therefore, he was building a long-term business with a solid base. Ashesh Shah / Mint He also says that there is a great opportunity for an asset reconstruction fund in real estate sector as many projects will get stuck and companies will need to be bailed out. In a free-wheeling interview on Monday, Parekh touched upon a range of issues: interest rates; taking the insurance and asset management arms of HDFC to market; reforms in the insurance sector; and missed opportunities for the country. Edited excerpts: You have been warning that the real estate sector has been over-heated. Is the correction over? I personally feel that the developers have gone totally haywire. They were buying land as if there is no tomorrow. That was a big mistake. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) prohibited all of us from lending money to buy land. In fact, the RBI directive was repeated – first, it was meant for banks but later (it was) extended to housing finance firms too. It expected the asset bubble. RBI had said that banks can only fund the developers after the projects get the commencement certificate. We followed the RBI norms and most of us are safe today. When we stopped lending, foreign equity flowed in. A host of private equity funds and venture capital funds came to invest in land and they all were promised the moon… phenomenal rates of interest. Most of the transactions were debt transactions from overseas in the garb of equity. They came through the automatic approval route under FDI (foreign direct investment) and money came in quickly as equity deals do not need prior approvals. They are mostly convertible debentures and preference shares, with conditions that before three years they will be redeemed. The developers borrowed money from overseas to fund their land deals at 18-20% interest. The land prices have crashed but they have committed to pay high phenomenal interest rates. Overall, 60% of such deals could be debt and the rest equity, and my estimate is that between $12 billion and $15 billion (Rs53,160-66,450 crore today) has come through the FDI route. Is there some more pain coming? Yes. How will they (developers) pay back? Where is the liquidity? Sales have stopped. The developers have bought land when prices were at their peak. So, there will be some pain in the real estate sector. Even those financial institutions, who have disbursed money carelessly, will find themselves in trouble as a large number of builders will face difficulty. We need to categorize developers’ investments in various segments — malls, shopping centres, commercial and residential complexes. The malls have been worst-hit and the residential units the least-hit. The advantage with the residential segment is even if the prices come down, there is some demand because of the shortages, but the malls are going abegging and people are converting malls into offices. The maximum pain left is in the retail segment; followed by IT, commercial; and the residential segment. Isn’t this essentially a rescue operation? Obviously. I don’t know how the Maharashtra government acted so fast but it’s a rescue operation. (But) I think it’s done in good spirit. So, the correction phase is not yet over. I don’t think it’s over as yet. How much pain is left depends on the locality. For instance, in south Mumbai, there is a shortage and hence prices will not come down drastically as you are not reclaiming more land, increasing FSI and redevelopment is not happening. Where are the new buildings? So, prices cannot go down. But in the suburbs, they can… What about other cities? I worry about Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad because supply was ten times last year. Even in West Bengal, Kolkata was developing well and they were trying to create an extension of Salt Lake by building Rajar Hat, a new town, but I don’t think it will be fully utilized. This is because IT has slowed down and the West Bengal government has not supported the IT sector. When Wipro Ltd first went to West Bengal, it was assured that it would be a 24X7 operation but there have been many stoppages. The maximum pain left is in the retail segment; followed by IT and commercial segments; and finally residential segment. I’d think that Mumbai will be relatively less affected because of lack of land here. How do you make housing affordable? I am pretty hopeful on slum development, particularly in Mumbai. We have taken up a massive programme for slum development. I don’t have the figures ready with me but I know Unitech Ltd has hundred acres of slums and Lehman Brothers has taken equity in the project. There are 50 such projects across Mumbai. It may take five years for all these projects to complete but the work has started and contracts have been given to different developers. I only hope that the implementation of these projects is well done. First, the developers build the housing for slum-dewellers, move the people there and then exploit the space. Two key things in slum development are governance and transparency. I am hopeful… The land prices have gone very high and the only way to get cheap land is to do rehabilitate a slum and you can really move fast if there is political support. If a developer gets cheap land, it can make significantly higher profits but it helps the city, it helps the poor people… Some realty stocks have seen huge correction. Do you see them going down further? Yes, their prices have come down significantly. Look at some of the companies that are listed at AIM (alternative investment market) in London. Unitech is quoting there at 50% of its issue price, Hiranandani (Construction Pvt Ltd) at about 52% of its issue price and Raheja (Ishaan Real Estate Plc of K. Raheja group) is quoting at 80% of its issue price. All of them have lost money and transactions are few and far between. Five or six real estate firms got listed at AIM but the party is over. They all went there to raise money to buy land as it was not available here. Banks are going slow in disbursing home loans. Isn’t that an opportunity for HDFC? The slowdown is not good for the country and for HDFC. We have always grown at about 30% and our first quarter growth has been good but we do see a little bit of slowdown in August to around 24%. We will have to wait as August has traditionally been a difficult month because of monsoon. There is a great opportunity for an asset reconstruction fund in real estate sector today. Some projects will get stuck and they need to be bailed out. Developers who have bought land need to make payments in phases and if they cannot do so, they will face litigation. It’s a great opportunity for rehabilitation and asset reconstruction funds or venture capital funds and take advantage of the situation. What about HDFC’s property funds? We have two property funds – one is a $800 million foreign fund and another Rs4000 crore domestic retail fund which is managed by our asset management company. We have not invested more than 5-10% of that. What about the foreign fund? We have invested about $150 million of the foreign fund. We have taken a stake a very large project of Shapoorji Pallonji (and Company Ltd), spread over cities. Aren’t you slow in your investments? Yes. But we are not getting attractive deals. The pain is there but it’s not unbearable. When it becomes unbearable, prices will be more realistic. Today, every developer hopes that things will pick up. When I ask builders why aren’t they getting rid of their stocks, they say they don’t want to bring down the prices when the market is slow. I think they will give some incentives during the festivals – Dussehra and Diwali. For the time being, they are holding on… Is it a bad time for HDFC? We have always worked on four principles. First, our non-performing loans must be below 1% and we always maintain that. Second, our return on equity must increase by more than 1 percentage point every year. Third, the cost income ratio should always be below 15%. Last year, it was 9.2%. Finally, we must maintain a growth between 20% and 30% and we have always maintained that. I think the next two-three quarters will be bad but we will still end up growing above 20%. What’s your take on interest rate and liquidity? Liquidity today is not so much of a problem but the cost (of money) is. One can borrow (money) as market has not tightened to that extent and a triple-A rated borrower like us can get 1-year to 15-year loan easily but the cost (of borrowing) has gone up. RBI wants to bring down the inflation rate to around 7% by March next year and I think there is still pain left in interest rates… RBI may increase interest rates in next one month or so by another 100 basis points in order to contain inflation if it does not see food prices coming down after the monsoon Will you also hike rates? Yes, if interest rates go up, we will have to. I hope it doesn’t (happen). Is Citigroup Inc. selling its stake in HDFC? The Citi chief executive officer (CEO) has publicly said that non-core assets will be sold across the world and they have started selling them. They have sold real estate in Mumbai. They have put expensive flats on the block and more such deals are on the cards. But I can’t say at what stage the HDFC stake will be put on the block. I have been told by Citi that it’s strategic investment. As far as we are concerned, we have been doing businesses together. We used Citibank as our fund manager when we raised the international property fund. We want to give business to Citi and we want to work closely with the bank. We hope to do the initial public offers (IPOs) of our life insurance firm and the asset management company (AMC) sometime in 2009 and we will invite Citi to make a bid for the mandate and give them a little preference (over others) because Citi is a fairly large shareholder (in HDFC). Currently Citi is saying HDFC stake sale is not on the agenda but since I don’t own the stock, I really don’t know what will happen in future. People who do not have an exposure to India, and those who already have exposure but want to increase it, keep on calling us and telling us to keep them in mind if Citi actually sells its stake. They are Spanish, Italian and big Japanese banks. Your life insurance business is growing at a very slow pace. Yes. That’s because we do not want to have too many policies and let them lapse. We give special training to our agents and we don’t want them to go out in the market and start selling a product, which they don’t understand. There are other insurance firms who don’t even want 100 hours of training (for their agents). They stamp a certificate and send the agents for business. We have a different approach. Standard Life (Insurance Company Ltd), our overseas partner, says it is a long-term game and we shouldn’t worry where we are… Where are you (in the business)? On some ratios, we are third; on some other we are fourth and fifth. We don’t look at these as we need to be around 100 years later and build a long-term business and the base must be solid. All our actuaries are from Scotland; they are extremely conservative and cautious… But Deepak Satwalekar, its CEO, is not from Scotland … He has the HDFC culture. Deepak had grown up here in an atmosphere and environment of conservatism. We don’t worry about. We like it. You plan to take the life insurance firm to market in 2009. Is it correct to say that IPO market will remain bad till that time? We are not really concerned about the market conditions. We will raise a small amount and I believe that if you have a good track record, even in the worst phase of bear market you can raise money. We may raise Rs500- Rs1000 crore and that’s not difficult with out track record. We may get a little lower price but we always leave money on the table for the investors. That’s our philosophy. What about your general insurance firm? We have got new partner, new team and new CEO. We are very active in the market in the last two months and you need to give us one more year and we will become No 3. We had a couple of bad years and did not do anything. Chubb (Global Financial Services Corporation), wanted to buy us out but they could not find a partner and IRDA (Insurance Regulator Development Authority) did not give them permission. We lost one year this way and another year was lost fighting on valuation… Will the government raise the ceiling on FDI in insurance to 49%? It could work out. The government made this commitment many years ago and its credibility is at stake. The government was blaming the Left (Front, a former ally) for not being able to do this but now the Left parties are not there anymore, (so) we expect the government to go ahead. What about your asset management business? This will go to market before the life insurance company. We are now No. 2 in terms of assets under management but the most profitable AMC in India. We have a good track record and will get good value. We hope to do about 10% dilution in first phase and our stake will come down from 60% to 50% but it will maintain at that level. Any plan to go for a holding company structure at HDFC group? The biggest stumbling block for a holding company was dividend distribution tax at two levels. The government has removed the dual taxation in the Union Budget. Now a holding company concept can work. We could look at the holding company concept. We have various options before us but first we want to take the AMC to the market in September-October next year and then the life insurance firm. So, have you put the discussions on holding company on the back burner or are they fairly active? I’d say, fairly active. There were talks about an intermediate holding company concept and ICICI (Bank Ltd) was planning to do that but the government was not encouraging this because of the lack of clarity on who will regulate the intermediate holding company. If we go for a financial holding company, then RBI can be the regulator and the different constituents can be looked after by different regulators. This kind of model can work under RBI, the super regulator — also the holding company of the regulators. Worldwide you have this — Citicorp and HSBC have hundreds of subsidiaries under them in different countries. We really need to see how it plans out in India. It’s taking fair amount of our time and attention as we will have to go for model, which works well for us. It could be next year or after the IPO but we are thinking about different models. The Indian economy has had a phenomenal growth till recently. Do you see any missed opportunities? We didn’t do many things. Particularly, we did not start any large project. There are six steel mills under planning but not even one of them got the (required) approvals. There are problems of land allocation, environment, iron ore, lack of infrastructure…. The Mittals, the Tatas, the Essar group, the Jindals (JSW Group) and Posco, all have big plans but none of them has started construction as yet. All these projects have been on the drawing board for four, or five years. We are shooting ourselves because there will be short supply of steel and the prices are going to escalate. Similarly, I know plans of a dozen-odd greenfield and brownfield cement plants are. For instance, LafargeSA has plans for four states – Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan and Meghalaya, but not a single project has started. They all have been on the drawing board for last three years because the company is not getting mines, limestone, environment clearance or people want favours. But multinationals are not allowed to pay money (bribes). If we don’t increase our domestic supply of cement and steel, it’s going to kill us in the long run. In every sector, I see the same thing. Similarly, we will have to increase farm productivity and improve our distribution system. We have to reform Food Corporation of India (FCI), the biggest public sector body with maximum number of warehouses. We have been hearing horrendous stories about FCI. Food is rotting there. Has anybody looked at reforms at FCI? Shouldn’t there be a public debate on it? These are all adding to our inflation. We have killed our fertilizer industry by giving them unremunerative prices. The government subsidy comes after 18 months and banks do not give working capital to the fertilizer companies. I was a director on the board of fertilizer company but I left as the company was turning a defaulter. I could see this coming and resigned very quickly as otherwise RBI would have blacklisted me (for being a director of a defaulting company). I can give you hundreds of such examples in every sector where things are in our hands and we are to be blamed for not doing anything. You are setting up an office in Singapore. Our international ambition is very limited and only time will tell whether we are right. When all those building societies were crumbling abroad, we were getting calls for making equity investments but we do not have the resources and have enough work to do in India. Our international operation is very modest. We have set up housing finance companies in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Egypt with local partners. We have made small investments and getting dividends from them. We are interested in increasing the housing stock in India — the home ownership rate. So, we are opening small representative offices and source housing loans wherever there is a large Indian population. We have such offices in London and Dubai where we offer information on housing — price, availability etc. The applications are processed in India and the loans are disbursed in India as the houses are in India, but the repayments come from overseas. We want to set up a similar office in Singapore. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:04 pm Tata prepares to quit Singur; Bengal in a fixKolkata: Tata Motors Ltd has stopped work on its small car factory at Singur because it finds the situation around the plant “intimidating” and is evaluating alternative options to make this car at its other facilities, the company said in a statement late Tuesday evening. Apart from denting the image of the Communist-ruled state of West Bengal, where Singur is located, the move could also delay the launch of the so-called people’s car, the Tata Nano. Several Indian states, including Haryana, and Sri Lanka have invited Tata Motors to set up the factory to make the Nano, one model of which will be priced at Rs1 lakh when it rolls off the company’s assembly lines. The statement from Tata Motors, which also said that the company is preparing a detailed plan to move the plant and equipment to another site and that the company’s suppliers were also stopping work on their factories in Singur came even as West Bengal was scrambling to find a solution to the issue. West Bengal acquired land from farmers for the Tata Motors project and the state government’s political opponent, the Trinamool Congress has alleged that this land was acquired forcibly in some cases. Although the issue dates back to September 2006, it has flared up again in recent weeks with both Tata Motors and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee raising the pitch of their statements. Tata Motors’ managing director Ravi Kant and chairman Ratan Tata have both previously said that the company would, notwithstanding an investment of Rs1,500 crore, move the location of the plant if it couldn’t guarantee the safety of its employees. Banerjee’s response has ranged from indifference over the fate of the car plant to a suggestion about halving the amount of land given to the company by Singur by moving the plants of its suppliers elsewhere. Ten days ago, the Trinamool Congress started a sit-in at Singur demanding the return of 400 acres of the total 1,000 acres that had been given to Tata Motors. Tata Motors’ Tuesday statement came even as the state government, especially chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee tried to arrive at a settlement concerning the most significant investment West Bengal has attracted in the past few decades. On Tuesday, after the company released its statement, the chief minister responded with one of his own that said the state’s governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi could mediate in the dispute. The Trinamool Congress has been asking for the governor’s involvement in settling the issue. “It’s not my headache whether they leave or stay. I still maintain they are welcome to set up the plant here if the government returns 400 acres to farmers,” said Banerjee. “It’s a sad day for the state. We hadn’t thought the opposition could be so irresponsible,” said West Bengal’s commerce and industry minister Nirupam Sen. If Tata Motors pulls out of Singur, the launch of the Nano may be delayed by at least a few months as the company moves the almost-ready assembly line to its factories in Pune in Maharashtra or Pantnagar in Uttarakhand. “Losing an iconic brand would not be good for the state’s pro-investment image,” said Biswadip Gupta, managing director of JSW Bengal Ltd. “We wish that the Singur dispute between Tata’s and farmers had not reached this point and I believe it need not have if there had been better and more open dialogue between the investors/govt and the local community earlier on,” said Rajeev Chandrasekhar, president of industry lobby Ficci. The acquisition of farmland for industrial projects including economic enclaves has become a contentious issue over the past few years. On Tuesday, thousands of people demonstrated in Bhubaneswar, the capital of Orissa against South Korean firm Posco’s plans to build a steel plant in the state. Villagers in Orissa claim the Posco plant will force them off their farmland and could displace around 20,000 people. Posco and the government say the plant will create jobs. Aveek Datta and Reuters contributed to this story. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:00 pm CERC proposes price controls on short-term power saleNew Delhi: In a move that could force private power producers to put new projects on hold and crimp nascent power trading exchanges, the electricity regulator has proposed price controls on short-term sales of energy generated by hydroelectric and coal-fired plants. The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, or CERC, has suggested a cap of Rs6 per unit on sales of power between the peak hours of 6pm and 10pm, and Rs5 for power drawn in off-peak hours. The proposal comes against the background of several state governments, such as Punjab and Haryana, being forced to pay as much as Rs8 per unit to bridge supply shortfalls. The proposal exempts gas-based power projects from its purview because prices of natural gas have been volatile and supply scarce. ALSO READ CERC proposes rationalization of tariff terms (PDF) Industry as well as power trading companies responded sharply to the proposal, which the CERC posted in a staff paper, “Measures for restraining the prices of electricity in short term sale/trading,” on its website on Tuesday, inviting public comments on it until 22 September. These comments will then be incorporated in a final proposal, which a senior CERC official, who did not wish to be identified, said would be “soon”. Since the proposal is related to the short-term sale and purchase of power, it will apply to private power projects, merchant power projects, or MPPs that generate electricity to sell on the open market, captive power projects and power trading exchanges. Existing norms allow companies setting up captive power units for their exclusive use to sell surplus electricity. “This will kill the market,” the head of a power trading firm who did not want to be named said about the proposal. “The Electricity Act 2003 states that CERC’s jurisdiction does not apply to MPPs. MPP investments will dry up. This will be a retrograde step and the power exchanges will close down.” India has an installed capacity of 6,000MW for short-term power. That makes up about 4.2% of the total installed capacity of 143,000MW. A senior CERC official, who did not wish to be named, defended the proposal. “Promoting MPPs does not mean encouraging profiteering,” this official said. “How can an MPP developer sell power at Rs8 per unit while it is only costing him Rs2 to generate. This proposal will be discussed further with the stakeholders.” As an incentive to power trading, CERC has proposed that once the price cap is in place, it would withdraw the ceiling on the trading margin at 4 paisa per unit. This, it says, would encourage more firms to enter power trading. If implemented, analysts believe the proposal could affect plans by Reliance Industries Ltd, or RIL, and Anil Agarwal-owned Vedanta Resources Plc.’s Sterlite Industries (India) Ltd that are setting up large captive power units. Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Power Ltd has plans to set up merchant power plants. An RIL spokesperson declined to comment while a Sterlite spokesperson didn’t respond to emailed questions. “CERC has put up the information recently and will be open for comments till the 22nd of this month. We would not like to comment on this at this stage,” said a spokesperson for Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, Jayant Deo, managing director and chief executive of Indian Energy Exchange Ltd, said, “We are studying the implications of this capping. And it is a bit early to comment.” Though India’s existing merchant power capacity is negligible, firms such as Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, or JSPL, and JSW Group have MPPs. While JSW could not be immediately contacted, phone calls made to JSPL executives were not answered. The proposal won’t apply to companies generating power from renewable sources such as wind, and small hydro, solar, bio-gas and gas or liquid fuel such as regasified liquified natural gas, diesel, or naphtha-based plants. “Trading activities may suffer and margins may shrink due to the cap on merchant power sale,” said Rupesh Sankhe, an equity research analyst at Centrum Broking Pvt. Ltd. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:00 pm Cooling crude raises demand for domestic price cutsNew Delhi: The drop in world crude oil prices to a five-month low of $105 (Rs4,652) per barrel will lessen the subsidy burden on state-run oil firms, but political pressure could mount on the government to reduce domestic prices, against the backdrop of inflation at a 16-year high and expectations of a further drop in crude. Stock market investors celebrated the decline, with the Bombay Stock Exchange’s benchmark Sensex gaining 3.8% to 15,049.86 points. Bond yields, which move in a direction opposite to prices, declined, with yield on the benchmark 10-year paper at its lowest level since 27 June. The government raised domestic fuel prices by about 10% on 4 June, when the international crude oil price was $123 per barrel. Crude oil fell below $106 a barrel as energy companies prepared to resume production at platforms in the Gulf of Mexico closed by hurricane Gustav. Oil is down more than $40 from its July record. “The absence of serious structural damage from Gustav when the market was braced for the worst has caused prices to turn decisively downwards,” said Christopher Bellew, a senior broker at Bache Commodities Ltd in London. “As technical selling takes hold, it looks likely we’ll breach $100.”  Reduced prices? A worker cleans a petrol tanker. Crude oil fell below $106 a barrel as energy companies prepared to resume production. Soumitra Ghosh /HT “A cut in the fuel prices will give great mileage to the party. We have not yet thought about it and the petroleum minister has already ruled it out,” said a senior Congress leader, who asked not to be named. “However, we will have to think in that direction as the party is going to face crucial state elections. We will take it up with the Congress president. Even if we do not raise it, others will demand it.” Opposition parties were quick to seize the initiative, with the Left parties, which parted ways with the ruling United Progressive Alliance, or UPA, in July over the government’s decision to push ahead with the Indo-US nuclear deal, leading the charge. “In the light of the fall in the international prices, the government should commiserate and there should be a reduction in the prices,” said Prakash Karat, general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). Communist Party of India national secretary D. Raja said, “Whenever they (the government) increased the fuel prices, they cited international price hike as an excuse. Now with the international prices falling, the government is silent over a possible reduction in the prices.” The Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP, the largest opposition party, is proposing to include the demand in the agenda of a three-day national executive meeting scheduled to begin from 12 September. “The government is duty-bound to do that,” said BJP vice-president M. Venkaiah Naidu. “The high fuel prices have triggered the price rise of essential commodities. They will have to unburden the common man.” Some UPA allies voiced a similar demand. Mohan Singh, a Lok Sabha member belonging to the Samajwadi Party, whose support helped the government win a 22 July confidence vote in Parliament after the Left withdrew support, said the government should “definitely” lower the prices of petrol and diesel. “The government should not fall into the trap of oil companies, who are out to make profits,” he said. “A government should always stand for ordinary people, not for the companies.” Some analysts say that the move to reduce domestic prices in tandem with the drop in crude price would be premature. “At present oil companies are struggling with under-recoveries. While politically it would be a smart move, it is bad economics,” said one expert who did not wish to be identified. A New Delhi-based analyst, who also asked not to be named, said given the volatility in crude oil prices, the government should adopt a “wait-and-watch” stance. “In case crude prices continue to fall and crude stabilizes at levels below $100, the government can consider reducing the prices,” this analyst said. Inflation, as measured by the wholesale price index, was still at a 16-year high of 12.4% for the week ended 16 August although it edged down from the previous week. National Institute of Public Finance and Policy director M. Govinda Rao said crude oil price had risen 250% since the UPA came to power in 2004 while the government had increased prices by only 50%. “There is no case for decreasing domestic oil prices. If at all, there is a case for increasing the prices,” Rao said. “Even at the current level of crude price, the government will incur a huge deficit burden. The government should at least keep oil price where it is, if it does not want to increase prices.” liz.m@livemint.com Asit Ranjan Mishra and Bloomberg contributed to this story. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:00 pm HC asks RNRL to produce part of MoU with RILHigh Court has asked RNRL to produce a portion of the MoU relating to GSMA as it is difficult to produce the entire copy of the MoU. RNRL has agreed to produce the specific portion of the MoU relating to GSMA.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 4:58 pm Emco eyes 3035% margin growth over next 23 yrsRajesh Jain, Chairman Managing Director of Emco sees his companys topline growth in excess of 35% for FY09, over what it did last year. The companys EBDITA margins would be anywhere close to about 13% or about that point, he said. In the next 23 years, we have plans of growing at a rate of 30% to 35%, Jain said.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 4:36 pm UCO Bk floats arm; NIMs to rise by 2.20%UCO Bank has floated a subsidiary. SK Goel, Chairman of UCO Bank said that this is going to be a financial services company where the bank is likely to pick up about 49% stake. He expects net interest margin to go up to 2.20% in the second half and a fee income of almost Rs 80 crore this year.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 3:32 pm Wipro US Co JV to set up development centres in IndiaWipro has tiedup with the USbased Harman International for Development Centres in India. Wipro will start the Development Centre in Bangalore and Chennai which would staff 250 people.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 3:19 pm Deccan\'s first int\'l flight to take off on WednesdayDeccan Aviation is buzzing on the back of cooling crude and its launch of international flights. The stock was up on crude cooling off, ATF, or aviaton turbine fuel price and its launch of international flights. It has been rebranded to Kingfisher Red. The cooling ATF prices saw a cut down on operating losses for the company.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 3:13 pm Reliance Life Sciences looks for acquisition!Reliance Life Sciences has said it is looking for acquisitions in the clinical research space, but high-valuations are hindering its plans.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 12:11 pm Expect further RBI tightening, high inflation in FY 09: Barclays!High inflation and continuing disturbances in the domestic economy might prompt the Reserve Bank of India to hike its key rates by another 0.5 percent in the near future, a top banker said.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 12:11 pm Bata Shoe owner Thomas Bata passes away at 93!Thomas Bata, owner of the family-owned world-famous shoe company, died here Monday. A great friend of India, Bata was 93.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 12:11 pm LIC may launch credit card next month!Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), may launch its much awaited credit card in October, according to its senior divisional manager Bhausaheb Gujar.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 12:11 pm UAE firm signs agreement with India`s TERI!The United Arab Emirates (UAE)-based power company ETA Star International, a member of the ETA Ascon Star Group, has entered into an agreement with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) of India to explore areas of cooperation in sustainable development.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 12:11 pm Sensex opens at 14,642, up 143 pts!The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex gained 143 points in early trade today on fresh buying by funds in heavy-weight stocks, sparked by fall in global crude oil prices.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 12:11 pm Tata honoured for contribution to Indo-British partnership!Ratan Tata, Chairman of one of largest business conglomerates, the Tata Group, has been awarded by the UK India Business Council for his significant contribution to Indo-British business partnership.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Sep 2008 | 12:11 pm POLL - Annual inflation seen at 12.44 pct on Aug 23MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's annual inflation rate is expected to have inched up in the third week of August, driven by higher prices of some commodities and demand pressures in Asia's third-biggest economy, a Reuters poll showed on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Sep 2008 | 10:17 am Ranbaxy open offer to close on Sept 4The Ranbaxy open offer will close on September 4. The Ranbaxy stock was down as Monday was the last day for the cash delivery to tender in the open offer.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 10:16 am Bosch board to consider buyback todayThe Bosh board will consider a buyback today. This would be the fourth attempt by the parent company to hike its stake in the Indian company. The buyback offer is likely to be for 32 lakh shares, that is 10% of the equity. The base price for the buyback at a sixmonth average works out to Rs 3850 per share.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 9:14 am Attrition rate in BPOs highest in the country: ReportThe attrition in the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry is roughly 7.8 percentage points higher than other sectors, a report by global management consulting firm Hay Group said on Monday.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Sep 2008 | 8:52 am Carriers look to cargo services to increase revenuesTo counter heavy losses, cash-strapped Indian carriers are now looking at increasing cargo operations to augment revenues.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Sep 2008 | 8:33 am Chennai firm to service Alcatel-Lucent's European clientsThe city-based offshore technology operations management company Cybernet SlashSupport (CSS) has bagged a multi-million dollar support services contract from global communications solutions provider Alcatel-Lucent.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Sep 2008 | 8:32 am No work at Nano plant, highway closed once againWork at the Tata Motors Nano factory at Singur in West Bengal's Hoogly district remained suspended for the fourth consecutive working day Tuesday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Sep 2008 | 8:31 am Indian pharma firm gets US approval for two drugsThe Bangalore-based pharmaceutical firm Strides Arcolab Tuesday said two more of its drugs have been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Sep 2008 | 7:00 am
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