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Oil Min sees no case for fuel price cut at retail levelThe Oil Ministry said there is no case yet for a fuel price cut at the retail level, reports CNBCTV18, quoting sources. The underrecoveries for oil marketing companies will breakeven at around USD 57 per barrel for the Indian crude basket.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:44 pm GM denies seeking Toyota`s help to revive its business!Struggling US auto giant General Motors dismissed as "pure speculation" a report that it had asked Japanese rival Toyota Motor Corp for help to revive its business.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 11:49 am Brown in Gulf to seek world bailout plan support!British Prime Minister Gordon Brown embarks on a mini-tour of oil-rich Gulf states on Saturday, but could struggle to win support for his plan to boost funds available to nations hit by global economic chaos.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 11:49 am IMF offers $100 bn loan to countries facing financial crisis!The International Monetary Fund will offer as much as USD 100 billion in a new kind of loan to countries that are battered by the financial crisis, making available new cash to help ease the world credit crisis.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 11:49 am Asian Stocks up for 3rd day, yen dips on risk appetite!Asian stocks rose for a third day on Thursday, boosted by the prospect of more growth-supportive policies globally following interest rate cuts by China and the United States that pushed up commodity prices and knocked down the JPY.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 11:49 am Oil rises above $69 on weak dollar!Oil prices climbed above USD 69 a barrel in Asia on Thursday, steadily extending gains as the dollar tumbled and stock markets in the region rallied after the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates to boost the world`s largest economy.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 11:49 am Delta buys Northwest to create world`s biggest airline!Delta Air Lines swallowed rival Northwest Airlines Inc in a USD 2.6 billion merger that created the world`s biggest airline and prompted new speculation about further industry consolidation.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 11:49 am US, China cut rate; others may follow!The United States and China kicked off what is likely to be a global round of interest rate cuts, part of a barrage of measures deployed around the world to fight a deep economic slowdown.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 11:49 am Sun TV board decides to defer share buybackMUMBAI (Reuters) - Sun TV Network Ltd said on Thursday its board has decided to defer a decision to buy back its shares due to volatile conditions in the stock market.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 10:51 am Amrutanjan Q2 net up 29-fold - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 10:49 am Inflation not a serious concern - AhluwaliaBANGALORE (Reuters) - India's inflation is not as serious a concern as it was two months back, the deputy head of the government's economic plan panel said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 10:38 am V-Mart to invest Rs40 cr in expansionsPTI New Delhi: Retail chain V-Mart plans to pump in Rs40 crore in the next five months to add eight more stores to its existing 54 stores across the country. The company, which has a retail space of around 3,75,000 square feet plans to add another 80,000 square feet with the opening of these stores. “We are planning to open 8 more stores and increase our retail space by adding another 80,000 square feet area by March 2009. We have earmarked around Rs40 crore for the purpose, out of which Rs25 crore have already been invested,” V-Mart Managing Director Lalit Agarwal told PTI. The company would be opening these stores in Tier II and III cities. “We are looking at smaller towns like Bhatinda, Muradabad, Azamgarh and Saharanpur,” Agrawal said. The company owns 13 private labels in its apparel category, which includes both formal and casual wears and accounts for about 70% of its total business. “We are more focused on the apparel sections. It accounts for about 70% of our business and the rest comes from FMGC and other accessories. At present we are happy with our current portfolio. We have no plans to expand it,” he said. When asked about the source of funding this expansion, Agarwal said, “Recently we have raised some amount by divesting 25% stake to a private equity arm of Aditya Birla Group. We will utilise Rs 40crore from there.” He, however, declined to divulge how much the company had raised from Aditya Birla Group to fund its expansion plans. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 10:28 am Indiabulls Retail Services Q2 net loss at Rs22 crMumbai: Indiabulls Retail Services today said its net loss stood at Rs22.43 crore for the second quarter ended 30 September, while it had a net loss of Rs24.67 crore for the same quarter last fiscal. Net sales declined to Rs42.14 crore for the quarter under review, from Rs50.07 crore for the same period last year. For the half-year ended 30 September, Indiabulls Retail Services posted a net loss of Rs46.76 crore, however, it had a net loss of Rs45.91 crore for the same quarter last fiscal. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 10:09 am Japan, Germany to spend billions to ease recessionLONDON (Reuters) - Japan and Germany said on Thursday they would plough billions of dollars into their economies, hoping to provide a cushion against a deep recession and complement a series of expected interest rates cuts.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 10:08 am CESC July-Sept net up 33% on volume growthKolkata: Private sector power utility CESC Ltd posted 33.3% rise in July-September net profit on higher volumes, it said in a statement. Net profit for the quarter rose to Rs1.24 billion, up from Rs930 million in the same period a year ago, while sales rose to Rs7.55 billion from Rs7.51 billion. Volume growth of 3.8% was a significant contributor to rise in profits, the company said in a statement. During the quarter, the company was allowed to charge an average tariff of Rs3.91 for a unit of power in FY09, up from Rs3.86 a unit a year ago. However, higher fuel and power import costs to meet rising sales was a concern, it said. CESC supplies electricity to 2.2 million subscribers in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata, and has a generating capacity of 1,000 megawatts. In FY08, the company sold 6,948 million units of power and revenue from sale of electricity and other income stood at Rs29.30 billion. CESC shares ended 1.61% down at Rs176.90 in the Mumbai market on Wednesday. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 10:07 am NTPC to form Joint Venture Company with NPCIL - TopNews
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:56 am Dabur India Q2 net up 12% at Rs108 crPTI Mumbai: Homegrown FMCG major Dabur India today said its consolidated net profit after minority interest grew by 11.64% at Rs107.82 crore for the second quarter ended 30 September over the same period a year ago. The company had a net profit of Rs96.57 crore in the second quarter of FY 2008, Dabur India said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. Total consolidated income rose to Rs705.66 crore in the quarter under review from Rs591.77 crore in the same period last fiscal. On standalone basis, the FMCG firm reported a net profit of Rs106.96 crore in the July-September quarter, a 18.12% growth over the corresponding year-ago period. The company had a net profit of Rs90.55 crore in the same period last year. Total income of the company rose to Rs 594.12 crore for the second quarter from Rs515.06 crore in the same period previous year. For six months ended 30 September, Dabur India reported a consolidated net profit of Rs178.46 crore, while its total income stood at Rs1310.45 crore. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:55 am BPCL Q2 net loss at Rs 2625 cr - NDTV.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:46 am Climate-warming methane levels rose fast in 2007Reuters Washington: Levels of climate-warming methane - a greenhouse gas 25 times as potent as carbon dioxide - rose abruptly in Earth’s atmosphere last year, and scientists who reported the change don’t know why it occurred. Methane, the primary component of natural gas, has more than doubled in the atmosphere since pre-industrial times, but stayed largely stable over the last decade or so before rising in 2007, researchers said on Wednesday. This stability led scientists to believe that the emissions of methane, from natural sources like cows, sheep and wetlands, as well as from human activities like coal and gas production, were balanced by the destruction of methane in the atmosphere. But that balance was upset starting early last year, releasing millions of metric tonnes more methane into the air, the scientists wrote in the Geophysical Research Letters. “The thing that’s really surprising is that it’s coming after this period of very level emissions,” said Matthew Rigby of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “The worry is that we just don’t understand the methane cycle very well.” Another surprise was that the rise in methane levels happened simultaneously at all the places scientists measured around the globe, instead of being centered near known sources of methane emissions in the Northern Hemisphere, said Rigby, one of the study’s lead authors along with Ronald Prinn, also of MIT. A rise in methane in the Northern Hemisphere might be due to a year-long warm spell in Siberia, where wetlands harbor methane-producing bacteria, the scientists said, but had no immediate answer on why emissions also rose in the Southern Hemisphere at the same time. There is considerably less methane than carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Pre-industrial concentrations of methane were about 700 parts per billion - that is, for every billion molecules of air, there were only 700 of methane - but that level rose gradually to 1773 parts per billion by the late 20th century, Rigby said in a telephone interview. The rise in 2007 was about 10 parts per billion over the course of a year, a real jump for such a short period of time. By contrast, there are about 385 parts per million of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. However, methane is much better at locking in the solar radiation that heats up the planet. Methane is destroyed by reaction with an atmospheric “cleanser” called the hydroxyl free radical, or OH. The researchers theorized that the rise in methane might be due in part to a decline in OH. The researchers said it is too soon to tell whether the one-year rise in the amount of atmospheric methane is the start of an upward trend or a short-lived anomaly. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:46 am Climate-warming methane levels rose fast in 2007Reuters Washington: Levels of climate-warming methane - a greenhouse gas 25 times as potent as carbon dioxide - rose abruptly in Earth’s atmosphere last year, and scientists who reported the change don’t know why it occurred. Methane, the primary component of natural gas, has more than doubled in the atmosphere since pre-industrial times, but stayed largely stable over the last decade or so before rising in 2007, researchers said on Wednesday. This stability led scientists to believe that the emissions of methane, from natural sources like cows, sheep and wetlands, as well as from human activities like coal and gas production, were balanced by the destruction of methane in the atmosphere. But that balance was upset starting early last year, releasing millions of metric tonnes more methane into the air, the scientists wrote in the Geophysical Research Letters. “The thing that’s really surprising is that it’s coming after this period of very level emissions,” said Matthew Rigby of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “The worry is that we just don’t understand the methane cycle very well.” Another surprise was that the rise in methane levels happened simultaneously at all the places scientists measured around the globe, instead of being centered near known sources of methane emissions in the Northern Hemisphere, said Rigby, one of the study’s lead authors along with Ronald Prinn, also of MIT. A rise in methane in the Northern Hemisphere might be due to a year-long warm spell in Siberia, where wetlands harbor methane-producing bacteria, the scientists said, but had no immediate answer on why emissions also rose in the Southern Hemisphere at the same time. There is considerably less methane than carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Pre-industrial concentrations of methane were about 700 parts per billion - that is, for every billion molecules of air, there were only 700 of methane - but that level rose gradually to 1773 parts per billion by the late 20th century, Rigby said in a telephone interview. The rise in 2007 was about 10 parts per billion over the course of a year, a real jump for such a short period of time. By contrast, there are about 385 parts per million of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. However, methane is much better at locking in the solar radiation that heats up the planet. Methane is destroyed by reaction with an atmospheric “cleanser” called the hydroxyl free radical, or OH. The researchers theorized that the rise in methane might be due in part to a decline in OH. The researchers said it is too soon to tell whether the one-year rise in the amount of atmospheric methane is the start of an upward trend or a short-lived anomaly. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:46 am Inflation seen giving RBI room to cut ratesNEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's annual inflation rate eased to a 4-½ month low in mid-October and could be in single digits before the end of 2008, giving the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) room to cut rates further to shore up growth, analysts said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:44 am Annual Inflation seen giving RBI room to cut rates - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:44 am Fed cuts key interest rate by 50 bps to 1% - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:43 am Shell beats forecasts with $10.9 bln Q3 profitLONDON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell Plc beat all forecasts with third-quarter current cost of supply (CCS) net profit up 71 percent at $10.9 billion, as high oil prices and asset sales outweighed a 7 percent drop in oil and gas production.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:40 am Aban Offshore Q2 net jumps 30 fold at Rs268 crMumbai: Drilling and oil field services provider Aban Offshore said that it has posted a 30-fold jump in its net profit at Rs267.62 crore for the quarter ended 30 September, over the corresponding period a year ago. The company had a net profit of Rs8.99 crore for the second quarter last fiscal, Aban Offshore said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Total income rose to Rs984.12 for the quarter under review, from Rs515.96 crore for the same quarter last fiscal. On the standalone basis, the company has posted a net profit of Rs81.34 crore for the quarter ended 30 September, from Rs47.21 crore for the corresponding period year ago. Total income of Aban Offshore rose to Rs290.15 crore for the second quarter latest fiscal, against Rs187.38 crore for the same quarter previous fiscal. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:39 am BPCL Q2 net loss at Rs2,625 crPTI Mumbai: State run oil major Bharat Petroleum Corporation today said its net loss for the second quarter ended 30 September stood at Rs2,625.27 crore. The firm had a net profit of Rs1,038.16 crore in the September quarter of last fiscal, BPCL said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. The total income rose 49.32% to Rs38,148.73 crore for the quarter under review, from Rs25,548.14 crore in the year-ago period. Financial results of the quarter have been adversely affected due to impact on account of high crude oil and product prices which could not be fully passed on to the consumers, the company said. For the six-month ended 30 September BPCL had a net loss of Rs3,691.96 crore, while it had a net profit of Rs1,230.88 crore in the corresponding period last year. In the first half of the current fiscal BPCL’s income from operations stood at Rs82,074.63 crore, against Rs54,370.83 crore in the year-ago period. During the six-month period, the refiner had a forex loss of Rs1,141.87 crore, against a forex gain of Rs332.06 crore in the year-ago period. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:32 am Reliance may supply LNG to Dabhol power plantNew Delhi: Reliance Industries may supply natural gas from its eastern offshore KG-D6 fields to the beleaguered Dabhol power plant in Maharashtra as imported LNG was proving costlier for the nation’s biggest gas-fired plant. Dabhol at present gets about 5.4 million standard cubic meters of imported gas for two of its three units at $4.98 per million British thermal unit. Petronet LNG imports 1.5 million tonne a year of liquefied natural gas from RasGas of Qatar at $8.5 per mmBtu but since this price is too high, the rates are averaged with cheaper long-term LNG imports to arrive at $4.98 per mmBtu. “The $8.5 mmBtu price is valid till December and is bound to increase by at least 50% from January. Also the rates of long-term LNG will rise by 25% to $3.12 per mmBtu in 2009. So even after averaging out these two prices, the rates will be too high,” an official said. “As an alternate, it is being considered that KG-D6 gas be sold to Dabhol,” he said. But NTPC, part owner of the company that now runs the Dabhol power plant, had previously opposed buying gas from Reliance as it was fighting a court case against the Mukesh Ambani-led firm on non-performance of a 2004 contract. “Even before the latest consideration came up, Reliance had last year offered to meet the entire 8.33 mmscmd demand of the three units of Dabhol at $4.2 per mmBtu but NTPC had refused the offer,” the official said. NTPC had stated that it cannot buy any gas from Mukesh Ambani firm untill the issue of non-supply of 12 mmscmd gas by Reliance against a 2004 tender is settled. Interestingly, Power Ministry has proposed that of the 18 mmscmd gas allocated for the power sector from KG-D6, 7 mmscmd should go to NTPC, throwing NTPC’s argument in its face. The official said the Power Ministry’s list of consumers of 18 mmscmd gas from KG-D6 did not include Dabhol in the first place. “If Dabhol is to be included now, the entire allocation will have to be reworked,” he said. Besides NTPC, the ministry had identified Essar Power and Torrent as the likely consumers of the fuel in line with the Gas Utilisation Policy approved by the government in June. The policy made it mandatory for Reliance to first supply gas to existing gas-based urea plants and then give three million standard cubic meters per day to LPG plants. Thereafter, up to 18 mmscmd of gas was to be given to gas-based power plants that were lying idle/under-utilised or likely to be commissioned during 2008-09. The allocation was done for initial 40 mmscmd gas output from KG-D6. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:31 am Dr Reddys in race for $3.5b German tenderDr Reddys Laboratories Ltd is pinning hopes on winning an over$3.5billion sick fund tender in Germany next month to increase its revenue and profitability in the market there.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:30 am Malaysia Airlines adds a tenth flight to DelhiMalaysia Airlines Thursday announced it will start yet another flight on the Delhi-Kuala Lumpur route as New Delhi was a 'very important business gateway' for the flagship carrier.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:30 am Bharat Biotech bags IT project worth Rs 100 crore from Orissa ... - TopNews
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:30 am SBI wants collaterals from airlines seeking creditState Bank of India has insisted that airline companies provide corporate guarantees as a precondition for credit lines.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:28 am Ispat Energy plans to produce bioCNGIspat Energy Ltd, a subsidiary of Ispat Industries Ltd, has plans to invest about Rs 1,000 crore in the current fiscal for producing bioCNG from pressmud, a byproduct of sugarcane processing.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:27 am India inflation not a serious concern - policymaker - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:25 am Bombs tear through Assam state, leave numbness and shockPTI Guwahati: Numbness and shock gave way to violent protests as 13 blasts ripped through Assam, killing 40 people and injuring 200 others. Within minutes of the serial blasts, unruly mobs took to the streets in the city and attacked fire-tenders, police and official vehicles. Policemen who were busy evacuating the injured were finding it tough as the unruly mob was posing hindrance by pelting stones. They even targeted ambulances which were on the way to blast site and tried to set some of these vehicles on fire. The Chief Judicial Magistrate Court, one of the blast site, which opened after Diwali holidays and saw presence of large number of lawyers and litigants was silenced by a loud bang which reverberated the court premises. The area was engulfed with dense black smoke and pieces of broken window-panes of cars, mangled remains of two-wheelers, and blood laden bodies were scattered all over the premises. People were crying for help and some were too stunned to say anything. The railings around the parking area of the court were left completely damaged and one could see hundreds of splinter marks on nearby cars, walls and trees . Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:25 am Tata Chemicals Q2 net up 33% at Rs278 crMumbai: Tata Chemicals said that its net profit for the group grew by 33.36% for the second quarter ended 30 September to Rs277.70 crore over the corresponding period year ago. The company had a net profit of Rs208.22 crore in the Q2 of FY 2008, the fertiliser and inorganic chemical manufacturer said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The company’s consolidated net sales rose to Rs4,654.06 crore in the quarter under review from Rs1723.36 crore in the same period last fiscal. On a standalone basis, Tata Chemicals reported a net profit of Rs215.80 crore, a 51.38% growth over the corresponding period year ago. The company had a net profit of Rs142.55 crore in the same period last year. Net sales of the company rose to Rs3600.26 on a standalone basis, from Rs1254.83 crore in the same period previous year, the statement said. For the six month ended 30 September, Tata Chemicals’s consolidated net profit stood at Rs384.74 crore, against a net profit of Rs345.60 crore in the previous fiscal. The company’s consolidated net sales rose to Rs6,840.11 crore for six-month period, from Rs2,848.88 crore in the year-ago period, it added. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:23 am The lustre is back during DiwaliGold seems to have regained its lustre this Diwali with jewellers witnessing some brisk business during the festive seasonSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:14 am Wyeth latest drugmaker to narrow focus of researchBy AP New Jersey: Like many of the top pharmaceutical companies, Wyeth is narrowing its research focus to far fewer diseases as it tries to produce more successful new drugs, particularly for conditions lacking good treatments. Wyeth is even ending research in its signature areas in women’s health, contraceptives and menopause treatments and switching to other female health problems with an unmet need, such as ovarian cancer and lupus. The Madison, New Jersey-based company is scaling back from doing research in its current 14 therapeutic areas to just six, Dr. Evan Loh, a Wyeth vice president, said Wednesday. Instead of doing research on a total of 55 diseases, it now will work on 27. The changes, announced to the staff are to be effective immediately and are part of the “Project Impact” that Wyeth announced in January, a restructuring meant to cut about 10% of its then-50,000 jobs. The shift won’t entail eliminating even more jobs, but will mean some research scientists will have to move to new areas geographically or in research specialty or leave Wyeth. The six areas of focus now are vaccines; cancer; inflammatory disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and severe asthma; metabolic conditions including diabetes and obesity; musculoskeletal disorders such as arthritis and spinal fractures; and neuroscience, including treatments for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, depression, schizophrenia and chronic pain. New research in women’s health, though, will now focus on breast and ovarian cancer, biotech treatments for fractured bones and the inflammatory autoimmune disorder lupus, which strikes nine women for every male patient. “Women’s health, we believe, is actually broader than just contraception and menopause treatments,” said Loh. Wyeth was a groundbreaker in those areas, developing the first birth control pill meant to be taking continuously, Lybrel; a now-discontinued implantable rod contraceptive called Norplant, and the hormone replacement drugs Premarin and Prempro, which dominated the market for menopause symptom treatments until a huge federal study linked long-term use to a slight increase in breast cancer and other health problems. Norplant, Premarin and Prempro all triggered numerous lawsuits against the company. Other top 20 drugmakers have already taken such steps, including Pfizer Inc., Merck & Co. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:10 am Wyeth latest drugmaker to narrow focus of researchBy AP New Jersey: Like many of the top pharmaceutical companies, Wyeth is narrowing its research focus to far fewer diseases as it tries to produce more successful new drugs, particularly for conditions lacking good treatments. Wyeth is even ending research in its signature areas in women’s health, contraceptives and menopause treatments and switching to other female health problems with an unmet need, such as ovarian cancer and lupus. The Madison, New Jersey-based company is scaling back from doing research in its current 14 therapeutic areas to just six, Dr. Evan Loh, a Wyeth vice president, said Wednesday. Instead of doing research on a total of 55 diseases, it now will work on 27. The changes, announced to the staff are to be effective immediately and are part of the “Project Impact” that Wyeth announced in January, a restructuring meant to cut about 10% of its then-50,000 jobs. The shift won’t entail eliminating even more jobs, but will mean some research scientists will have to move to new areas geographically or in research specialty or leave Wyeth. The six areas of focus now are vaccines; cancer; inflammatory disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and severe asthma; metabolic conditions including diabetes and obesity; musculoskeletal disorders such as arthritis and spinal fractures; and neuroscience, including treatments for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, depression, schizophrenia and chronic pain. New research in women’s health, though, will now focus on breast and ovarian cancer, biotech treatments for fractured bones and the inflammatory autoimmune disorder lupus, which strikes nine women for every male patient. “Women’s health, we believe, is actually broader than just contraception and menopause treatments,” said Loh. Wyeth was a groundbreaker in those areas, developing the first birth control pill meant to be taking continuously, Lybrel; a now-discontinued implantable rod contraceptive called Norplant, and the hormone replacement drugs Premarin and Prempro, which dominated the market for menopause symptom treatments until a huge federal study linked long-term use to a slight increase in breast cancer and other health problems. Norplant, Premarin and Prempro all triggered numerous lawsuits against the company. Other top 20 drugmakers have already taken such steps, including Pfizer Inc., Merck & Co. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:10 am Killed pilot was unhappy with plane: sisterThe sister of one of the pilots who died Wednesday in a plane crash in Punjab said Thursday that her brother had told her the plane was in poor condition and could crash any day.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Oct 2008 | 9:00 am Inflation eases to 10.68 %Lower prices of industrial fuel and manufactured items helped push inflation below the 11 per cent mark after over four months to 10.68 per centSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 8:53 am Peninsula Land Ltd net profit up by 62%Mumbai: Ashok Piramal group’s real estate arm Peninsula Land Limited has reported a 62% increase in the net profit for the quarter ended 30 September at Rs55 crore compared to the corresponding quarter last year. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, PLL has reported a 75% growth in its net profit for the September quarter as against the June quarter this year. Commenting on the results, Rajeev Piramal, executive vice chairman, Peninsula Land Limited said, ‘The Company has posted healthy result in an otherwise depressed market because of its business strategy’. He added, ‘As a company our strategy has always been to mitigate risk as far as possible and we have been able to do so by pre-selling large portions of our existing projects”. PLL currently has about 35 mn sq ft. under development. Piramal said that funds for the existing projects have already been tied up and hence there would not be any delay in execution of these projects. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 8:47 am Sterlite renews interest in Asarco, lowers bid to $2.1 bnPTI New Delhi: Speculations are rife that Sterlite Industries has shown renewed interest in buying America’s copper major Asarco for $2.1 billion, which is $500 million lower than the original offer. Vedanta Group firm Sterlite Industries’ had called off its earlier bid to buyout Asarco last week, saying its original offer of $2.6 billion was over-valued given the global financial meltdown and falling copper prices. Sterlite Industries spokesperson declined to comment on lowering of the offer price by the company for buying Asarco. During an investors conference last week, however, company’s Vice Chairman Navin Agarwal had said that Sterlite was “not willing to pay $2.6 billion for the deal”. The Indian arm of London-listed mining major Vedanta Resources, had asked Asarco to review the purchase price amid the global economic crisis and over 40% dip in copper prices. Despite terminating the potential deal, Sterlite is said to be working out the possibility of a new purchase agreement. “We are in discussion with them (Asarco) for a new plan of lower valuation and new terms,” Vedanta Group CFO Tarun Jain had said. The $50 million, which the company had paid at the time of entering into the definitive agreement, might be at risk if a new deal does not materialise, he added. Sterlite Industries had inked a definitive agreement in May to buy Asarco for $2.6 billion. The company was to fund the acquisition through a combination of debt and existing cash reserves. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 8:45 am 25% job cuts after Diwali: Assocham - The Statesman
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 8:39 am Fed US slashes interest rates to 1%Washington: The Federal Reserve cut US interest rates by a half-percentage point on Wednesday to try to stave off a prolonged recession, and left the door open to further reductions if needed. The Fed’s unanimous decision takes its target for overnight bank lending to 1%, the lowest since June 2004. Wall Street was united believing the Fed would lower rates, although views were split on the likely size of the move. “The pace of economic activity appears to have slowed markedly, owing importantly to a decline in consumer expenditures,” the Fed said. “Moreover, the intensification of financial market turmoil is likely to exert additional restraint on spending.” The Fed has fought the credit crisis with a series of measures aimed at pumping liquid funds into markets that had become largely frozen and risk averse. Policy-makers highlighted those steps in their statement and said they should help “over time.” Nonetheless, they concluded that “downside risks to growth remain,” keeping in play the option of further rate cuts. The Fed also toned down its language on inflation, saying only that it expected it to moderate in coming quarters. After an emergency interest rate cut earlier this month the Fed had suggested it still saw some risk inflation could flare. “The Fed appears to have buried its upside inflation risks,” Michael Gregory, an economist with BMO Capital Markets in Toronto, wrote to clients. “Bottom line: No upside inflation risk + persistent downside growth risk = a policy bias to ease further.” Fears of an acute recession pushed US stock prices down to five year lows this month. Stocks see-sawed after the Fed’s move but ended lower as a news report raised questions about General Electric’s earnings outlook, taking the wind out of a late rally. The US dollar posted its biggest one-day drop in 23 years, while prices for US government bonds were little changed. Agressive Moves The US central bank has cut benchmark overnight rates from 5.25% in nine steps over the past 13 months to counter a financial crisis that started with the collapse of the US. mortgage market and spread around the world. China also lowered interest rates on Wednesday, and the Bank of Japan, European Central Bank and Bank of England are all expected to follow suit in coming days. Shortly after announcing its decision, the Fed said it had approved currency swap lines with central banks in Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Singapore to help those countries combat the credit crunch by ensuring they had access to US dollars. It now has swap lines with 13 central banks. In addition to cutting the overnight federal funds rate, the US central bank trimmed the discount rate it charges banks for overnight loans to 1.25% from 1.75%. US banks began to lower the prime rate they charge their best customers to 4.0% from 4.5% after the Fed’s announcement. While the Fed’s steps to alleviate credit market strains have begun to bear some fruit, US businesses and consumers looking ahead see an increasingly gloomy outlook. The US labor market has shed jobs for nine consecutive months, industrial production has tumbled and consumer confidence has hit a record low. Economists expect a report on gross domestic product on Thursday to show the US economy contracted at an annualized 0.5% rate in the third quarter, and many expect GDP to continue to shrink into next year. “The expectation is (for) a long and deep recession in the US that will extend through most of 2009,” Allen Sinai, chief economist for Decision Economics, told a conference on Monday. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 8:27 am Inflation eases to 10.68% from previous 11%New Delhi: Inflation eased below the 11% mark after four months to 10.68%, thanks to lower prices of fuel and manufactured goods, which might goad the Reserve Bank to cut key rates further. The wholesale prices-based inflation slipped 0.39% in the week ended October 18, while it stood at 3.11% in the year-ago period. Inflation, which was 8.75% as of June first week, suddenly jumped to two-digits after the government hiked the administered prices of petrol, diesel and LPG. The fall in the rate of rising prices might prompt RBI to further cut cash reserve ratio or repo rate, which might result in lower borrowing costs in the economy and spur spending. During the week, prices of food articles like pulses fruits and wheat declined. However, prices of vegetables rose by 2.3% and spices by half per cent. Declining prices of crude oil in the international markets led to fall in prices of furnace oil, which was cheaper by six per cent while prices of light diesel oil declined by three per cent. Besides, in the manufactured product category, prices of iron and steel declined by half per cent and zinc prices slipped by 11%. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:54 am Air Deccan to pay Rs.400,000 for cancelling flightA Delhi consumer court has asked Air Deccan to pay compensation of Rs.100,000 each to a family of four for cancelling a Pune-Delhi flight at the last minute in January 2007.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:41 am LeasePlan ties up with Mondial for 24-hr roadside assistancePTI New Delhi: Vehicle leasing and fleet management firm LeasePlan India today said it has joined hands with Mondial Assistance to provide round-the-clock roadside assistance to its customers. “The objective of this partnership is to deliver better customer experience and strengthen LeasePlan India’s after- sales services and customer support... We are happy to set benchmarks for the fleet management industry in India,” LeasePlan India Managing Director Sanjeev Prasad said in a statement. The new roadside assistance service - ‘LeasePlan Assist´- would initially be available in 19 cities. “We plan to reach over 100 cities by the end of 2008,” Prasad said. Mondial, a roadside assistance, travel insurance and customer service provider, would offer its services to LeasePlan customers in Bangalore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi NCR, Greater Mumbai, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kochi, Kolkata, Ludhiana, Pune and Surat. The LeasePlan Assist service would cover mechanical faults, electrical breakdown, driver errors such as fuel, key and tyre problems, the statement said. LeasePlan India is a joint venture between LeasePlan Corporation and UK Paints, where the former holds 51% stake and the rest is with the latter. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:41 am IMF creates loan programme for developing nationsWashington: The International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday it is creating a new program to get money quickly to developing countries with strong economies that are facing cash crunches in the global financial crisis. The IMF’s executive board approved a new short-term loan program, called a liquidity facility, to speed funds to the countries. The so-called Group of 24 poorer countries, including nations from Latin America, Asia and Africa, had asked for such a program early this month. IMF officials said a maximum of around $100 billion would be available under the emergency loan program. Countries would have to repay the money, at interest rates around 4% within a year. Each eligible country would be allowed to borrow an amount equal to as much as five times its quota, the amount it has contributed to the fund, and would be able to roll over the loan after three months, up to three times in a 12-month period. There are no other specific conditions on the loans, except that the countries receiving them maintain strong economic and interest-rate policies, low or stable inflation and manageable debt loads, IMF officials said. That makes them different from the IMF’s existing loan programs, which usually go to countries with weaker economies and require them to adjust their policies in return. One possible use of the new loans could be for countries to inject capital into their banking systems, a senior IMF official said. The immediate beneficiaries could be countries with strong economic records such as Turkey, Brazil and South Korea that normally have no difficulty borrowing but have seen access to cash dry up as Western banks have stopped lending. The IMF already has been discussing loan packages with around a dozen countries. The response to the financial crisis by the 185-nation organization, which includes the United States, came because “exceptional times call for an exceptional response,” IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn said. Separately on Wednesday, the Fed said it will supply new lines of credit to the central banks of Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and Singapore to help those countries deal with the global credit crisis. The Fed will provide up to $30 billion to each of the central banks, the latest in a series of “swap” arrangements where the Fed provides dollars in exchange for reserves of the other nations’ currencies. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson praised the moves by the IMF and the Fed. “The Federal Reserve and IMF actions show international resolve to support strong performing emerging-market economies adversely impacted by the current financial market turbulence,” he said in a statement. In the first loan made in the current global economic turmoil, Iceland and the IMF recently reached tentative agreement on a $2 billion loan over two years in response to the collapse of the country’s banking system. The deal, which still must be approved by the IMF’s board, also will give Iceland immediate access to $830 million to head off the financial threat to its entire economy. “I think there won’t be any kind of problem” that might prevent the board’s approving the loan, Strauss-Kahn said Wednesday. “We think that (Iceland’s government) will be able to fix the problems.” Iceland became the first Western country to borrow from the IMF since Britain in 1976. Other countries thought to be close to reaching loan agreements with the IMF include Hungary, Ukraine and Pakistan. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:40 am Vishal Retail H1 net up by 22%PTI Mumbai: Vishal Retail has posted a 22% increase in its net profit at Rs18.08 crore for the six months ended 30 September. The company had a net profit of Rs14.72 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago, the city-based firm said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. Total income rose by two-fold at Rs739.18 crore during the six-month period, from Rs367.78 crore last year. The company is planning to give big push to small format stores and plans to set up 2,000 such outlets across the country by 2009-10. Vishal Retail is expecting a turnover of around Rs180-200 crore from the new small format stores this fiscal, Vishal Retail Group President Ambeek Khemka had said. Shares of the company closed at Rs104.15, down 7.09% on the BSE on Wednesday. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:32 am Pune to become 7th metro city in India : AssochamNew Delhi: Pune will soon acquire the status of being a metropolitan city in India. According to an Assocham report on ‘The 7th emerging metro city in India’ it owes its upgradation to a fast development pace in the area of infrastructural facilities, friendly business environment, education avenues and employment opportunities. Contributing factors include the high real estate prices and a large population base as compared to other upcoming cities. The study was carried out in four tier II cities including Pune, Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Chandigarh ranking them on eight parameters necessary for a metro city. They included social infrastructure, infrastructure availability, real estate cost and availability, transportation facility (connectivity), presence of quality educational institutes, employment opportunity, facility of financial services and business environment. Pune occupied first position overall though it needs to improve on transportation, social infrastructure and financial services. Ahmedabad was the second most potential city providing good infrastructure and facilities and connectivity. Lucknow was placed with third rank as it needs to pick up on infrastructure, business environment and social infrastructure. Chandigarh, the smallest city among the four in terms of area size and population was ranked at the fourth position though it was ranked foremost in financial services and business environment. Among the four cities, Ahmedabad occupied first rank on the parameter of social infrastructure. The city with literacy rate of 79.89% has high-grade institutes like IIM, NID, NIFT, EDII etc. The city of Nawabs, Lucknow with a literacy rate of 83.5% and presence of quality educational institutes including IIM, SGPGIMS etc was placed at second position. Both Pune and Chandigarh were assigned 3rd positions respectively on the social infrastructure parameter. Pune has a literacy rate of 80.73% and skilled population, the city is a place of high grade institutes including NIBM, NIC etc. However, 81.9 per cent is the literacy rate in Chandigarh with prominent institutes being Institute of Microbial Technology (IMTECH), Centre for Defence and National Strategic Studies (CDNSS) etc. The infrastructure parameter rank cities on the basis of sub parameters including number of entertainment avenues, malls and multiplexes along with the presence of star category hotels. The Queen of Deccan, Pune with maximum number of malls and multiplexes (26) and star category hotels (25) notched the top position. The second rank was occupied by Ahmedabad, with the city having 25 malls & multiplexes and 17 star category hotels. Chandigarh and Lucknow was placed at 3rd and 4th position respectively. The favourable location and smoothen process of acquiring land along with the high property prices are few sub parameters of real estate cost and availability that attracts corporate sector to expand their business. Pune has outpaced the other three cities on the parameter of real estate prices and availability. After Pune, Chandigarh is considered to be the next emerging real estate market. Ahmedabad occupied 3rd rank while Lucknow at the bottom position was considered as most time consuming city in terms of process for acquiring land. On the employment parameter, among the four upcoming tier II cities, Pune carved the maximum share of 32.74% in the total jobs tracked for the period January-June 2008. The prominent sectors attracting large number of aspirants include IT, manufacturing, engineering and academics among others. The four cities are ranked on the parameter of financial services, taking into account the sub parameters including number of offices of scheduled commercial banks (as on march 2007), density of offices of scheduled commercial banks per population, number of accounts of the scheduled commercial banks per population, presence of brokerage firms, presence of stock exchange, transparency in trading system. In terms of providing financial services facility to the natives of the city in respect of above parameters, Lucknow occupied first position. The second rank was grabbed by Chandigarh. However, both Pune and Ahmedabad occupied third rank. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:26 am GLOBAL MARKETS - Asia stocks surge 10 pct after rate cutsHONG KONG (Reuters) - Asian stocks were set for a record rise and a third straight day of gains on Thursday as lower borrowing costs and international efforts to provide liquidity to emerging markets coaxed investors from safe havens like the yen.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:07 am Inflation climbs down to 10.68 percentIndia's annual rate of inflation moderated further to 10.68 percent for the week ended of Oct 18, from 11.07 percent the week before.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Orissa seeks time to respond to national mining policy proposalOrissa Thursday said it has sought two months to give its opinion on the new mining policy the central government plans to put in place, officials said.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am Bharat Biotech sells over 150 mn Hepatitis B vaccinesBharat Biotech International Limited Thursday announced that it has crossed production and delivery of more than 150 million doses of REVAC-B+TM, a recombinant Hepatitis B vaccine, since its launch in October 1998.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Oct 2008 | 7:00 am GMR Infra net declines 6% in Sept quarter - Sify
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 5:33 am Financial crunch hurting British NRIsThe global financial crisis in Britain is hurting most NRIs but helping the super rich. The rise in inflation following the oil price rise of the last few months has increased grocery bills of most working and middle class Indians, as for everyone else. Coupled with the rise in fuel costs, resulting in higher prices for most goods with a high transportation element, the effect has been devastating.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Oct 2008 | 5:30 am Telenor makes bold India move, buys Unitech telco stake - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Oct 2008 | 5:23 am Top Indian policymakers brainstorm on economyNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Top Indian policymakers including the finance minister and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor met on Wednesday and discussed several issues including New Delhi's position at the forthcoming G20 meeting, officials said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 5:01 am Bharti Q2 net seen up a third, Reliance seen mutedNEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's top mobile operator, Bharti Airtel, should report on Friday that quarterly profit rose almost a third on record subscriber additions, but No. 2 Reliance Communications will see muted growth as its borrowing costs climbed.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 5:00 am Asia stocks up for 3rd day, yen dips on riskHong Kong: Asian stocks rose for a third day on Thursday, boosted by the prospect of more growth-supportive policies globally following interest rate cuts by China and the United States that pushed up commodity prices and knocked down the yen. The Federal Reserve cut its benchmark rate to 1% on Wednesday to the lowest since June 2004, to soften the blow of a potentially deep recession. Norway and China had cuts of their own and pressure mounted on the Bank of Japan for a rate reduction after it meets on Friday. For now, the avalanche of government measures taken to increase bank liquidity, including $120 billion of currency swap lines opened between the Fed and four emerging markets, have prompted investors to take on risks. This has boosted currencies such as the Australian dollar and the South Korean won. Credit availability and risk taking are essential to the functioning of the financial system. “The bounce in risk appetite is set to continue into the Asian session especially in light of the action from the Fed both in terms of interest rates and in terms of liquidity provision,” Calyon currency strategists in Hong Kong said in a note. “Although we remain hesitant to believe that this is anything more than a short-lived improvement in sentiment especially given the likely worsening in economic news over coming months, we would not buck the trend in the short term.” Asia-Pacific stocks traded outside Japan climbed for a third day, up 7.2%, according to an MSCI index The last time the index rose for three straight days was in mid June, reflecting the relentless selling that has battered shares. The index is still down 55% so far this year. Investors have snapped up global equities this week on the first sign of improving sentiment, with valuations in some markets at extreme levels. For example, the ratio of prices to book value on Japan’s Nikkei share average dropped on Monday to 0.87, the lowest in more than a decade. On Tuesday, the Nikkei rose 3.9%, recovering from a 26-year low hit on Tuesday. The weaker yen emboldened investors to buy shares of exporters such as Honda Motor Co and Canon Inc South Korea’s KOSPI surged 8.4%, leading the region higher, after the government established a $30 billion currency swap line with the US central bank. The measure would likely relieve pressure on banks to refinance foreign debt. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 6.1%, with shares sensitive to fluctuations in commodity prices among the top gainers. CNOOC, China’s biggest offshore oil refiner, leapt 12.2%. US stocks fell on Wednesday as a big rally faltered in the last minutes of trading on worry about the weakening corporate profit picture after a news report raised questions about General Electric’s earnings outlook. Yen falls, won surges The yen weakened on the combination of increasing risk appetite as well as expectations of the first rate cut by the Bank of Japan since the financial crisis broke out more than a year ago. The euro jumped 2.9% against the yen to 129.86 yen The euro hit a 6-1/2-year low below 114 yen last on Friday. The US dollar rose 1.6% to 99.00 yen, staying well above a 13-year trough of 90.87 yen hit on trading platform EBS late last week. Analysts at Morgan Stanley however said they still expected the yen to strengthen further. In addition to foreign exchange swaps established between the Fed and central banks in Brazil, Mexico, Singapore and South Korea, the International Monetary Fund in a separate action set up a short-term fund for countries with good track records but in need of capital. The two measures improved sentiment on emerging markets and helped to propel the Korean won 10% higher against the US dollar. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Oct 2008 | 4:49 am U.S., China kick off global round of rate cutsNEW YORK (Reuters) - The United States and China kicked off what is likely to be a global round of interest rate cuts, part of a barrage of measures deployed around the world to fight a deep economic slowdown.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Oct 2008 | 2:48 am Delhi gets its first apartment hotel in a mallFinding a home away from home is difficult but with the hotel business foraying into innovative territories to keep afloat, the Indian capital has just got its first all-suite hotel.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Oct 2008 | 2:30 am Other income boosts Cairn India Q3 profitCairn India Ltd and its subsidiaries (consolidated) clocked a 12-fold increase in net profit for the third quarter ended September 30. The net profit stood at Rs 293.32 crore for the quarter (Rs 23.24 crore in same quarter last fiscal).Source: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Windfall gains for new playersThe Government’s decision to give out fresh telecom licences on first-come, first-served basis has resulted in windfall gains to some Indian promoters of new telecom companies. Unitech, which has sold its 60 per cent stake to Telenor, hasSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am SBI wants collaterals from airlines seeking creditBangalore, Oct. 28 State Bank of India has insisted that airline companies provide corporate guarantees as a precondition for creditSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am HCL Tech bags National Insurance contractSoftware exporter HCL Technologies Ltd has pipped larger rivals, TCS and Wipro, to clinch a large CIS (core insurance solution) implementation deal from the public sector National Insurance Company LtdSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Do retail investors indulge in cherry picking?Mumbai, Oct. 29 Though the highly volatile markets scare the retail investors away, they do seem to be picking up shares at low levels.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Service providers improve collection of paymentsChennai/Mumbai Oct. 29 Collection of receivables from clients by top Indian IT services companies has improved for the quarter ended September 2008 compared to the year-agoSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Short-term rupee negativeThe ferocious declines in stock prices yanked the rupee past the 50-threshold briefly, but the central bank intervention has thus far ensured that the rupee does not stay below that mark for long. Meanwhile pandemonium continues in otherSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Portal glitch puts companies in a quandaryChennai, Oct. 29 A snag in the system for e-filing of company documents with the Registrar of Companies (ROC) has put thousands of companies into difficulty, as they race to meet the October 30 deadline.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Unitech offloads 60% stake in telecom biz to TelenorNew Delhi, Oct. 29 Telenor of Norway has entered the Indian telecom market. It has signed an agreement to acquire 60 per cent stake in Unitech Ltd’s telecom venture, Unitech Wireless, for Rs 6,120 crore.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Forex losses drag M&M profits down 21%Mumbai, Oct. 29 Notwithstanding the increase in sales, tractor and utility vehicle major Mahindra & Mahindra posted a 21 per cent drop in net profits at Rs 227 crore for the quarter ended September 30.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Oct 2008 | 12:00 am Hyderabad firm helps Obama-McCain trade punches, kicks online7Seas develops virtual Big Fight involving presidential hopefuls.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 7:32 pm Suzlon in talks to divest 5-8% stake to PE firmsAfter deferring a Rs 1,800 crore rights issue last week, Suzlon Energy Ltd, the wind energy major, has started talks with international private equity firms to sell a 5 to 8 per cent shareholding forSource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 7:31 pm Sterlite lowers bid for AsarcoSterlite Industries, the flagship firm of Anil Agarwal promoted Vedanta Resources, has submitted a revised proposal to acquire Asarco, which is $500 million lower than its previous offer, sourcesSource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 7:30 pm State banks to get deposit largesse from govt firmsState-owned commercial banks are expected to garner at least Rs 20,000 crore of additional bulk-deposits from public sector enterprises following an advisory from the finance ministry thatSource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 7:29 pm The CapitalistWill the oil production cut help Opec again? Last Friday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) decided to cut production by 1.5 million barrels daily— or 75 million tonnes (mt) a year— in the hope that it could arrest the fall in oil prices. It may be recalled that crude oil prices plummeted from a peak of $140 (Rs6,972) a barrel in July this year to just $64.34 last Friday. Despite the announcement, prices kept climbing down to $63 at the time of writing this column. Opec likes to believe that it can arrest the fall in oil prices. It realized its clout four decades ago, when it suddenly increased the price of oil, giving the world its first oil shock. Then it did so again in 1996-97 when it hiked the price of oil by $6-10 a barrel. This continued periodically, and prices went up in 2007 as well. But the increase in prices during October 2007 and July this year was dizzyingly steep (see chart). Till the decline began. Also Read R.N. Bhaskar’s earlier columns Also See Yearly Production and Historical Oil Prices (Graphic) Opec wants prices to stay above $80 a barrel—almost at the level they were at in October 2007. Venezuela wants them at $95. Iran, which subsidizes oil prices at home, wants them high, because they fund its military plans. But the markets have currently kept them at the same levels they were in March-April 2007. So will the production cutback work? There are two views. Opec believes it will. But many market watchers say they won’t. The primary reason is the declining clout of Opec. Over the past four decades, the organization’s share in the world’s oil production has declined from three-fourths to just 40%. Moreover, thanks to the attractiveness of oil prices, even at $40 a barrel, the prices are attractive enough for many more countries to keep investing huge amounts for discovering and producing more oil and gas. And this investment trend continues with increasing ferocity, especially in Russia, Kazakhstan, the Arctic regions, India, Indonesia, Malaysia (where many Indian companies have taken up exploration and drilling rights) and offshore regions of both North and South America. This is likely to push down Opec’s share even further. It is the classic Achilles heel of producer monopolies. When prices become attractive, other producers emerge, creating more supply and more competition, thus further weakening a monopoly. Many market watchers agree. “We expect oil prices to remain around $70 a barrel,” says Yudhishthir Khatau, managing director, Varun Shipping Co. Ltd, whose ships are largely in the oil and gas transportation business. He, like many market watchers and economists, says that three factors will not allow oil prices to climb much higher in the near future. First, oil stocks in most countries are healthy. Second, because this is the lean season for oil consumption, though prices could strengthen during the winter months. Third, recession in Europe, China, and the US may force reduced offtake of oil. Also See Opec Production (Graphic) Even Opec sources confirm that they did not expect consumption to fall so drastically during the past two months. The first factor is worsened by the jettisoning of oil by most tankers which were floating with oil cargo during March-June, confident that soaring oil price would generate more profits than what they would earn as freight charges. When the slide in oil prices began towards end July, tankers began jettisoning their cargo, adding to oil reserves. This caused tanker freight charges to fall though, as Khatau clarifies, oil tanker charges did not fall as steeply as did the Baltic freight indices (which reflect dry cargo shipping, not oil and gas tankers). There is another reason why the production cutback may not work this time. Contrary to popular perception that Opec did everything to maintain supply during the oil price climb of 2007 and 2008 (when oil prices were soaring every week), freshly available data shows that Opec did try and reduce production even then (see table). That did help inflame speculators and flare up prices for some time. But that strategy did not work for too long. Almost every Opec member country reduced production in 2007 (over 2006) and in 2008 (annualized). Add to this the reduction in production by countries such as Mexico (which is not part of Opec) and this number is likely to swell further. A notable exception was Iraq, where pumping stations were under the supervision of the US Army. Iraq increased production by 7mt in 2007 and is expected to register an additional increase of another 13.5mt in 2008 (over 2007 on an annualized basis). High oil prices encouraged many countries to increase their own output and make more oil profit. A big beneficiary was Russia, which not only seized control of oil fields from its oligarchs (and private investors) but also pushed up production from around 480.5mt in 2006 to 491.3mt in 2007—a whopping addition of 10.8mt. (no figures for 2008 are available yet). In fact, oil profits allowed Russia to pay off most of the debts from its 1998 financial crisis. And, as the BusinessWeek points out, “It also built up a $560 billion in reserves and an additional $160 billion in two sovereign wealth funds financed from oil taxes.” Moreover, given the acute global recessionary trends visible all over the world, marketmen wonder if many countries will be bold enough to cut back on oil production in the coming months. If not, Opec’s decision could remain ineffectual. Deficit financing defies logic Deficit financing in India has begun to worry many economists. While finance minister P. Chidambaram tries to glibly explain this away as being due to a global downturn, the fact remains that the government has been profligate in its spending.  Losing out: An oil platform being constructed for ONGC. Some of its most lucrative oilfields were given away almost 15 years ago to favoured firms under the first phase of the New Exploration Licensing Policy. Santosh Verma / Bloomberg Oil bonds have been kept out of this deficit figure. Add this figure and the picture becomes even more alarming. According to Fitch estimates, if all off-budget subsidies were accounted for on-budget, the general government deficit would approach 9% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2008-2009 (FY2009). Meanwhile, the (largely government-owned) oil companies continue to bleed for the want of cash-flow, though the reduction in oil prices will help reduce this pain. However, a weakening rupee will offset some of this benefit. The even bigger fear is that once oil companies become weaker, the government may find an excuse to give them away to the private sector players, in much the same way as the government gave away some of the most lucrative oil fields belonging to Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd almost 15 years ago to a clutch of favoured companies under the first phase of the New Exploration Licensing Policy— no tenders, no independent valuation; just the plain transfer of public assets. Some call it another instance of the privatization of profits and the socialization of losses. But more about this later, as it warrants a more detailed analysis. Sovereign anxieties on shifting investments Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) are shifting investments away from the US and Europe and into West Asia and other Asian economies. Moreover, they have also shifted their investments from finance companies to (surprise! surprise!!) real estate, but in emerging economies. These are the finding announced by the Massachusetts-headquartered Monitor Group last fortnight, as part of its update to its June 2008 report Assessing the Risks: The Behaviors of Sovereign Wealth Funds in the Global Economy. Some of the findings: # SWFs continued to invest actively in emerging markets. In the second quarter (Q2) of 2008, more than half the deals and funds invested were in emerging markets. SWFs carried out 26 deals and invested $15 billion (Rs74,700 crore) in Bric (Brazil, Russia, India and China) and non-OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries. # In Q2 2008, funds in the Monitor SWF transaction database executed 43 deals totalling $26.5 billion. In contrast, those funds executed 42 deals totalling $58.3 billion during the previous quarter. # Investment in North America dropped dramatically. In Q2 2008, four deals totalling less than $1 billion were received by North America. In contract, this region received seven deals totalling $23 billion during the previous quarter (Q1 2008). # Half of the deals by value in Q2 were in real estate. Real estate had the largest number of deals (12) and the highest investment ($13.7 billion) in Q2 2008. # During Q2 2008, investment has shifted away from financial services. SWFs carried out 10 deals and invested $4 billion in the financial services sector during Q2 2008. In the previous quarter (Q1 2008), funds carried out 13 deals totalling $43.4 billion. With the disenchantment with the US, does this suggest that the dollar will weaken in the near future? R.N. Bhaskar runs a company with significant interests in distance learning and examination certification and writes on corporate and business policy issues. Comments on this column are welcome at capitalist@livemint.com. Graphics by Paras Jain / Mint and Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 29 Oct 2008 | 7:09 pm Why did Nalco, GAIL go scoot free for violating Clause 49?National Aluminium Company, Nalco, and GAIL have been letoff by the Securities and Exchange Board of India, or Sebi, for violating Clause 49 but only after they threw up their hands on appointing independent directors. The reason being that repeated requests to respective ministries were not enough to get approvals.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 6:49 pm Haj terminal at Delhi airport gets new lookThe Haj terminal at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here has got a major facelift as it prepares to welcome pilgrims from Thursday, said an airport official.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 29 Oct 2008 | 3:33 pm India offers to set up fertiliser plant in KazakhstanIndia is willing to help set up a fertiliser plant in Kazakhstan, a government statement Wednesday said.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 29 Oct 2008 | 3:32 pm Punjab crosses 10 mn tonnes paddy procurementHaving crossed the 10-million-tonne mark of paddy procurement in just 28 days this year, Punjab is targeting to better the record paddy procurement of 14 million tonnes, food and supplies officials said here Wednesday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 29 Oct 2008 | 3:03 pm Realty cos meet banks, FIs to ease credit crunch: SourcesLeading developers have met banks and housing finance comapanies (HFCs) to tide over the credit squeeze, reports CNBCTV18, quoting sources. The developers have asked for more loans because of the ongoing credit crunch. Real estate developers will also meet government officials regarding this issue, they added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 2:44 pm Unitech to hold 40% in telecom arm post Telenor dealSanjay Chandra, Managing Director, Unitech, said the company will hold 40% after the Telenor deal. \"There will be no selldown of equity by the company. Unitech Wireless would repay about Rs 2,000 crore loan back to Unitech,\"Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 2:14 pm Unitech Telenor deal: An analysisUnitech said it will sell 60% stake in its telecom arm, Unitech Wireless, to Telenor for Rs 6,120 crore via a fresh issue. Unitech Wireless will invest USD 3 billion over next three years, Unitech added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 29 Oct 2008 | 12:17 pm No fuel price cut for now: Oil MinistryGovernment is not considering reduction in prices of petrol, diesel and domestic LPG despite crude falling to its lowest-level in 15 monthsSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Oct 2008 | 11:44 am Microsoft unveils Windows 7, a fix for disappointing VistaMicrosoft released key details on Tuesday of the next generation of software that it hopes will run the world's computers.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Oct 2008 | 11:44 am Telenor makes bold India move, buys stake in Unitech telco armOSLO/NEW DEHLI (Reuters) - Norwegian telecoms group Telenor announced a bold move to enter the Indian mobile market through a $1.1 billion deal financed by a rights issue, sending its shares down sharply on Wednesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 29 Oct 2008 | 11:40 am LittleBigPlanet players help build video gameReuters Raleigh: Sony Computer Entertainment America’s “LittleBigPlanet” game, released in North America on Tuesday, lets players create characters and scenarios for the PlayStation 3, taking the Internet’s embrace of community-created sites to video games. The new game has 50 levels of play in a universe of castles and mountains where customizable sackcloth puppets must navigate obstacles and puzzles to proceed. What separates it from the pack is a suite of tools, which allows players to create their own game challenges and share them with others online via Sony Corp’s PlayStation Network. Kareem Ettouney, art director for “LittleBigPlanet,” said recently in an interview in New York the whole idea behind the game is that one person can create everything from characters to worlds within the game. “The three pillars of the game are equal: play, create, and share,” said Ettouney, who co-founded the game’s development studio, Media Molecule. Electronic Arts Inc has proven that empowering gamers is a good business decision these days. Gamers have populated the new “Spore” universe with over 25 million creatures, vehicles and buildings of their own creation. “Spore” PC and Nintendo DS games sold over 1 million copies worldwide in the first three weeks. Billy Pidgeon, video game analyst for IDC, believes “LittleBigPlanet” will help Sony drive sales of its PS3. The PS3 lags Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Nintendo’s Wii in total sales, but new games made by Sony exclusively for its machine may help it gain ground. It’s a mass market game that will appeal to non-gamers, new gamers and also to gaming enthusiasts,“ said Pidgeon. “Sony can use ‘LittleBigPlanet´ to build a larger online PlayStation Network audience, which will give the PlayStation Store more customers.” The game will be sold both through traditional retail channels on a $60 Blu-ray disc and also will be available as a digital download through the PlayStation Store. Sony has said it has big plans for this new game franchise with “LittleBigPlanet” spin-offs like comics, cartoons, and action figures in the works. Pidgeon believes the online-focused game could open up sponsorship opportunities for Sony, as well as new revenue streams. “Global online downloadable game-related content is expected to grow from $493 million in 2007 to $7.2 billion in 2011,” said Pidgeon. “Game-related downloadable content revenue from online consoles has already surpassed online console subscription revenue.” Players are going beyond the game itself. Scott Rohde, vice president of product development at Sony Computer Entertainment America, said that during the current private test of the game, gamers have created in-game blogs and photo slide shows. According to Sony Computer Entertainment Europe Chief Executive Officer David Reeves, who spoke to gaming website PS3 Fanboy, gamers may be able to sell their creations in the near future. “What we’re trying to do with ‘LittleBigPlanet´ is almost iTunes meets eBay in the sense that once an individual or a developer has qualified by producing certain levels or certain add-ons, they will then be able in the future to exchange these and make money out of them,” Reeves told the site recently. Sony, which trails both Nintendo and Microsoft in the current global console battle, has a lot riding on “LittleBigPlanet,” but the game has already received numerous awards at big trade shows like E3. The company says the game ships in North America on Tuesday, Japan on 30 October, and in the UK, Europe, Middle East, Australia and New Zealand the week of 3 November. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 29 Oct 2008 | 11:18 am Maxsoft inks MoU with IIT Madras for establishment of COEBy PTI Bangalore: Bangalore-based MAXrad SOFTware (India) Private Limited has inked a Memorandum of Understanding with IIT Madras for establishment of IITM-Maxsoft Centre of Excellence (COE) for system simulation and smart structures. The centre will provide exposure to the multi-domain system modeling and simulation methodologies using the tool ‘Amesim’ in the curriculum and courseware for students and also corporate groups. The smart structure analyses software and hardware for articulating the scope of active material analysis and applications to the students and industries. Amesim is the simulation software for modelling and analysis of various multi-domain systems in the automotive and aerospace sectors. The colllaboration will allow Maxsoft to install 11 licenses of Amesim with all modules for two years free of cost to IITM and provide faculty training and course material for training purpose. IIT Madras will provide adequate space and basic infrastructure in support of the software. The MoU will be signed between both the parties on 31October. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 29 Oct 2008 | 10:07 am HP launches $400 mini-notebook as it plays catch-upSan Francisco: Hewlett-Packard Co on Wednesday will unveil a new mini-notebook in a move to gain ground in the fastest-growing PC category, which until now has been dominated by its smaller rivals. Netbooks - ultraportable, inexpensive laptops designed for Web browsing and light tasks - have taken the PC market by storm this year, with smaller computer firms such as Acer Inc and Asustek Computer Inc leading the charge. HP’s sleek new Mini 1000, costing about $400, is significantly different from the company’s first netbook release, launched last spring. It uses Intel Corp’s Atom processor, and is also substantially less expensive, signaling that the price war in netbooks that some analysts have been predicting may have begun. Although still a fraction of the overall PC market, netbooks’ popularity could lead to changes in the pecking order of PC makers and cut into margins and profitability as average selling prices come down. In the third quarter, Acer gained ground on HP and Dell Inc, with a big assist from mini-notebooks. According to industry tracker IDC, Acer’s total shipments leaped more than 50 percent, and the company’s share of the overall PC market climbed more than 3 percentage points to 12.5%. HP, although still the top-selling PC maker, saw its overall market share dip slightly to 18.8%, and was outsold in Europe by Acer. Analysts said the company was impacted by its delayed entry into the mini-notebook market. Bob O’Donnell, vice president at IDC, estimates 10.8 million netbooks will ship in 2008, out of the more than 300 million overall PC shipments forecast for the year. He expects netbook shipments to jump to 20.8 million in 2009. Carlos Montalvo, vice president of marketing in HP’s managed home business, said the Mini 1000 is a superior product to the “second- and third-tier” offerings from competitors, which he said have been “over-optimized” for size and price, and lack HP’s consistency and quality. Without releasing specific numbers, Montalvo said HP’s first netbook, which was targeted at the education market, was “phenomenally successful.” However, he said the Mini 1000 is aiming for a broader audience. The new netbook will start at $399 for a version running Microsoft Corp’s Windows XP, jumping to $549 for a fully loaded model. The company’s first netbook, the 2133, starts at $599 and tops out at $749, features a Via chip and runs Windows Vista. HP will also offer a Mini 1000 that runs Linux for $379, as well as a special edition designed by fashion designer Vivienne Tam for $699. The netbooks will all feature a keyboard that is 92% the size of a standard keyboard, and will weigh less than three pounds. Netbooks role debatable Although Montalvo views HP’s netbooks as complementary products, which a consumer would own in addition to their desktop or full-sized laptop, analysts don’t necessarily see it the same way. Jayson Noland, an analyst with Robert Baird, said last week that netbooks’ place in the PC universe is still undefined. “I don’t think any of us knows yet whether it’s a substitute product or a complementary one,” said Noland. “In some markets in a mature economy like the US or Western Europe it could be complementary, and in an emerging market it could be substitute.” Also uncertain is netbooks’ impact on the balance sheet. IDC’s O’Donnell fully expects to see a price war in netbooks, as companies try to boost sales to make up for the low price points. “If you’re down to $300, then your profit margin goes away, so you have to make it up in volume. Their goal is all about high volume, low margin, and I think that’s going to be a challenge.” Noland said both HP and Dell have been a little late to catch on to the appeal of netbooks, but he expects them to regroup without much trouble. Dell introduced its first netbook in September. However, Apple has been openly dismissive of the product. Apple Inc Chief Executive Steve Jobs, on a conference call after the company’s earnings, said the iPhone does many of the things that netbooks do, and said there were markets that the company was just not interested in. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 29 Oct 2008 | 9:56 am
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