|
|
|
|
IRDA mulls insurance products in vernacularsThe Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) on Tuesday said it is mulling developing insurance products in vernaculars.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:21 pm Indian duo to take on GoogleTwo Indian engineers, who missed chances twice to buy Google nearly 10 years ago, have now raked in funds for their own site to rival the search engine giant.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:11 pm Oil steadies around $44 ahead of U.S. demand dataLONDON (Reuters) - Oil steadied below $44 on Tuesday as the market awaited a report from the U.S. Energy Department for clues on the state of demand in the world's biggest consumer and looked ahead to next week's OPEC meeting.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:09 pm Hiring plans to slow globallyThe pace of hiring is likely to slow across the world and there will be significant decline in employment outlook in countries like IndiaSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:06 pm Britain releases guide to treat Hindu patientsLondon: Britain has drawn up the first guide to help health professionals provide care to Hindu patients according to their values and practices. The guide, to be launched at the House of Commons on Tuesday, 9 December, by health secretary Alan Johnson and the Hindu Forum of Britain, is titled Caring for Hindu Patients. The guide seeks to enhance practitioners’ awareness of issues pertinent to the care of Hindus and to provide insight into how services may be provided sensitively, with respect for Hindu values, practices and world views. The publication is edited by doctors Diviash Thakrar, Rasamandala Das and Aziz Sheikh and has been endorsed by national Hindu organizations, including the Hindu Forum of Britain. With a brief and cohesive overview of Hinduism and a short examination of the populations demographic diversity, the book explores issues such as language, dress, diet and festivals with emphasis on their practical relevance to health care professionals. Considering the health needs of Hindu patients at various life stages, the book focuses on birth and childhood, and adult issues related to marriage, family structure, contraception, abortion, infertility and adoption. It also enhances the readers understanding of Hindu approaches to death, to help medical and nursing staff offer care while being sensitive to the needs of Hindu patients. Arjan Vekaria, treasurer of the Hindu Forum of Britain, said, “Hindus form a significant proportion of society today, and health care professionals in all settings and locations need an awareness of their beliefs and cultural expectations, to communicate effectively and provide care in an appropriate manner.” This book provided such information in a concise and practical form, he added. Sam Everington, former deputy chair, British Medical Association, said: “This book will help us diagnose and care for Hindu patients but goes beyond this on a journey that makes us far better health carers. It teaches us to speak the language of all our patients.” Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:06 pm India gives ONGC go ahead for Imperial offer-reportMUMBAI (Reuters) - India has allowed state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp to go ahead with a $2.6 billion bid for Russia-focused Imperial Energy, the Press Trust of India reported on Tuesday citing unnamed sources.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:01 pm Sony to cut 8,000 jobs, to save $1.1 bnJapanese electronics giant Sony Corporation will cut 8,000 jobs, representing five per cent of its workforce worldwideSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:01 pm Japanese economy slips deeper into recessionThe Japanese economy further slipped into recession after the country's gross domestic product shrank 0.5 per cent in the third quarterSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:59 am Titan launches 'Orion' collectionTitan Industries launched its 'Orion' collection of watches in the region on Tuesday.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:58 am Sony Will Cut 16000 Jobs as Recession Curbs Demand (Update2) - Bloomberg
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:57 am Transporters threaten strike from Dec 20Transporters threatened to go on an indefinite nation-wide strike if their demands for lower diesel prices and abolition of service and toll taxes are not met.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:56 am Vodafone to buy Swedish firm for $30 mnVodafone said on Tuesday that it will acquire Swedish firm Wayfinder Systems AB for 239 million Swedish Kroner (about USD 30 million) in an all cash deal.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:55 am Further production cuts, layoffs expected: SurveySeveral manufacturing sectors could see production cuts up to 50 per cent and downsizing of employment up to 30 per cent in the coming monthsSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:53 am Indian duo’s ‘Kosmix’ to take on GoogleLondon: Two Indian engineers, who missed chances twice to buy Google nearly 10 years ago, have now raked in funds for their own site to rival the search engine giant. The Indian duo have received funds worth $20 million from media and entertainment conglomerate Time Warner for their search site ‘Kosmix’. “Anand Rajarman and Venky Harinarayan, the Indian internet entrepreneurs, have received $20 million of funding from Time Warner for their site,” The Telegraph reported. Way back in 1998, Google founder Sergey Brin offered fellow Stanford University PhD students Anand Rajarman and Venky Harinarayan the chance to buy the now search engine giant for about one billion dollars (675,000 pounds). “They said no,” the report published online said. The very next year, the Indian pair with Amazon backing offered £300 million (about $443 million). But Brin and Google co-founder Larry Page had refused to accept less than $1 billion dollar, the publication noted. Now Kosmix has also got the backing of Motorola Chairman and Chief Executive Ed Zander and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. “Google works if you know exactly what you’re looking. But if you have only got a vague idea, it can be quite hard to find the answer,” Rajarman was quoted as saying. “Kosmix allows you to browse a whole topic and suggests areas that it thinks you might be interested in,” he added. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:41 am Indian duo’s ‘Kosmix’ to take on GoogleLondon: Two Indian engineers, who missed chances twice to buy Google nearly 10 years ago, have now raked in funds for their own site to rival the search engine giant. The Indian duo have received funds worth $20 million from media and entertainment conglomerate Time Warner for their search site ‘Kosmix’. “Anand Rajarman and Venky Harinarayan, the Indian internet entrepreneurs, have received $20 million of funding from Time Warner for their site,” The Telegraph reported. Way back in 1998, Google founder Sergey Brin offered fellow Stanford University PhD students Anand Rajarman and Venky Harinarayan the chance to buy the now search engine giant for about one billion dollars (675,000 pounds). “They said no,” the report published online said. The very next year, the Indian pair with Amazon backing offered £300 million (about $443 million). But Brin and Google co-founder Larry Page had refused to accept less than $1 billion dollar, the publication noted. Now Kosmix has also got the backing of Motorola Chairman and Chief Executive Ed Zander and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. “Google works if you know exactly what you’re looking. But if you have only got a vague idea, it can be quite hard to find the answer,” Rajarman was quoted as saying. “Kosmix allows you to browse a whole topic and suggests areas that it thinks you might be interested in,” he added. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:41 am ACS to invest $15 mn in Noida facility over 12-18 mnthsNew Delhi: In line with its expansion plans, world’s largest business process outsourcing firm Affiliated Computer Services will invest up to $15 million in the next 12-18 months in its upcoming facility in Noida. ACS, which recently announced its plans to recruit 1,000 people in the next 6-8 months in the country, is aiming to make its Noida facility a hub for providing Human Capital Management Solutions (HCMS) to its clients. “ACS will invest about $10-15 million over the next 12-18 months in the Noida facility which would start operations from January 2009,” ACS executive MD Human Capital Management Solutions Rohail Khan said. The economic crisis is sending companies scrambling to cut costs and manage their employee base, which is providing ACS opportunity to offer its services for managing the situation. “Financial meltdown has actually provided us with opportunities to offer our human capital management solutions, BPO services among others to the troubled companies which are looking to contain their costs,” Khan said. ACS India is in the process of setting up a new facility in Noida, while it already has offices in Bangalore, Kochi and Chennai and the total employee strength of the company is around 5,000 in the country. Bangalore operation has a capacity of about 2,800 people and around 1,800 people are stationed in Kochi. The company had said recently that it would ramp up its headcount by 1,000 employees in India in next 6-8 months, out of which about 500 would be employed at Noida facility. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:36 am ACS to invest $15 mn in Noida facility over 12-18 mnthsNew Delhi: In line with its expansion plans, world’s largest business process outsourcing firm Affiliated Computer Services will invest up to $15 million in the next 12-18 months in its upcoming facility in Noida. ACS, which recently announced its plans to recruit 1,000 people in the next 6-8 months in the country, is aiming to make its Noida facility a hub for providing Human Capital Management Solutions (HCMS) to its clients. “ACS will invest about $10-15 million over the next 12-18 months in the Noida facility which would start operations from January 2009,” ACS executive MD Human Capital Management Solutions Rohail Khan said. The economic crisis is sending companies scrambling to cut costs and manage their employee base, which is providing ACS opportunity to offer its services for managing the situation. “Financial meltdown has actually provided us with opportunities to offer our human capital management solutions, BPO services among others to the troubled companies which are looking to contain their costs,” Khan said. ACS India is in the process of setting up a new facility in Noida, while it already has offices in Bangalore, Kochi and Chennai and the total employee strength of the company is around 5,000 in the country. Bangalore operation has a capacity of about 2,800 people and around 1,800 people are stationed in Kochi. The company had said recently that it would ramp up its headcount by 1,000 employees in India in next 6-8 months, out of which about 500 would be employed at Noida facility. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:36 am UTV sole distributor for Disney movies in IndiaUTV Motion Pictures has entered into an exclusive pact with Hollywood production house Walt Disney for sale and distribution of all Disney movies in India from January next year, the companies announced Tuesday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:33 am Shyam Group's steel project in West Bengal on scheduleThe City-based Shyam Group of Industries Tuesday said its 1.1-million-tonne per annum integrated steel plant project in Jamuria near Asansol in West Bengal was on schedule, and the company had already acquired 400 acres for the project.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:32 am Demand for private guards increases in Uttar Pradesh capitalThe requirement for private, armed security guards has increased manifold in the Uttar Pradesh capital in wake of the Nov 26 Mumbai terror attacks.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:31 am Goa police unaware of beach meeting of Yemeni studentsAmid reports of increased surveillance on the 150-odd Yemeni students in Goa, the state police were caught on the wrong foot when a local newspaper report carried a photograph of a group of Yemeni students on a beach, being addressed apparently by an Islamic preacher.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:30 am Macmillan to popularise audio-video educationMacmillan Publishers India Ltd Tuesday announced here a tie-up with Edurite Technologies, the Indian arm of the UK-based online education services company TutorVista, to introduce audio-video education in 18,000 schools across India.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:30 am US Rescue May Give Government Stakes in GM, Ford and Chrysler - Bloomberg
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:29 am IRDA mulls insurance products in vernacularsMumbai: The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) has said that it is mulling developing insurance products in vernaculars. “It is a suggestion. Languages of the products and mechanics of the whole thing evolve through a process of interaction between the regulatory body, counsel and individual companies,” IRDA Chairman J. Hari Narayan said at the CII Health Insurance Summit. At present, insurance products are sold in English. On claim settlements, the regulator said that 70-75% of the claims are settled in the year they have been filed. “The regulator has asked third-party administrators and insurance companies to build up IT-based systems to process data quickly and efficiently,” Narayan said. “We want companies to establish their own internal systems for grievances and complaint redress and make them very robust,” he said. “If the policyholder is not getting good service from insurance companies, he can approach the ombudsmen in different parts of the country and seek redress,” he said. There are 12 ombudsmen in the country. The chairman expects the terror pool of insurance products to widen as they go along. “So far no claims have been filed. I expect certain claims would be (made). And we will know whether the current pool is sufficient or not only after those claims are filed,” he said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:27 am Job prospects less optimistic in Asia-Pacific: surveyNew York: The pace of hiring is likely to slow across the world and there will be significant decline in employment outlook in countries such as India, Singapore and Taiwan in the coming three months, according to a global staffing services firm Manpower. The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey states that employers in 25 of the 33 countries and territories still expect positive hiring activity in the coming quarter; however, those in 30 say they would slow the pace of hiring from three months ago. “The global employment picture for the first quarter of the new year is noticeably weaker and the vast majority of employers are telling us that they will take a ‘wait and see’ approach before hiring or further reducing staff,” Manpower chairman and CEO Jeffrey A. Joerres said. Year-over-year hiring forecasts are also weaker in 25 countries and territories; and employers in 21 countries and territories are reporting the weakest hiring plans, Manpower said. “Unless they see more positive economic signals they will not add employees and, until then, it will be a rougher road for job seekers,” Joerres added. The Manpower survey of over 71,000 employers showed that employers with the most active first-quarter hiring plans globally “despite generally weaker hiring patterns” are reported in Peru, India, Costa Rica, Canada, Romania, Colombia, South Africa, Australia, Poland, the US and China. On the other hand, employers in Singapore, Ireland, Spain and Italy reported the least optimistic hiring forecasts. Only employers in Canada, the US and Switzerland are reporting improved employment outlooks from three months ago. Job prospects are decidedly less optimistic in Asia-Pacific region, with employers in all eight countries and territories, surveyed reporting weaker hiring plans compared to the previous quarter and a year ago. “Employers in the Asia Pacific region, who last quarter were only starting to feel the impact of the downturn in the West, appear to be preparing themselves for a very difficult year,” Joerres added. Although they are weaker quarter-over-quarter, the most favourable job prospects in the region are still found in India, Australia and China. The slowest hiring activity is expected in Singapore and Taiwan, where negative hiring expectations are reported. The survey data reveals varying degrees of positive hiring activity throughout the Americas region, though at a slower pace than three months ago. Hiring is expected to be strongest in Peru, Costa Rica, Canada and the US with Canadian and American employers reporting slight improvements over the last quarter. Meanwhile, first-quarter hiring sentiments are weakest in Argentina, Guatemala and Mexico. “The strong forecast from Canadian employers is being bolstered by continued demand in the services, transportation and construction sectors. In the US, 67% of employers are saying they will make no change to their workforces which is contributing to the relatively stable outlook there. Of the 17 countries surveyed in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, employers in 11 are expecting positive hiring activity. Employers in Romania, South Africa, Poland, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Belgium are reporting the most bullish hiring plans while Irish, Italian and Spanish employers have least optimistic hiring outlook. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:24 am Tractor makers blame PSU banks for falling salesNew Delhi: Tractor manufacturers have blamed public sector banks’ reluctance to provide credit for drastic slowdown in sales and warned that farm productivity could be hit if the issue is not addressed. “Tractor sales are affected due to conservative approach of PSU banks while offering credit to farmers,” Tractor Manufacturers Association President L.D. Mittal said. “Tractor sales declined by 20% in November though the demand was high due to a good monsoon this year,” he added. During April-November, tractor sales grew by 2%. Rohtash Mal, the Executive Director and CEO of Agriculture Machinery Group, Escorts Ltd, said that there is still demand for tractor, which has grown by 15-20% but it could not be converted into sales because of decline in flow of credit at the ground levels. “About 96% of tractors sold in the country is financed,” Mal said. “Since tractor is an important component in mechanisation of Indian agriculture, the non-availability of credit to farmers could impact farm productivity,” he added. Quoting Nabard figures, Mal said farm credit during April-September 2008 stood at Rs90,000 crore whereas the target for the period was Rs1,40,000 crore. “TMA would ask the government to reserve eight per cent of agricultural credit for tractor and other farm implements so that mechanisation process could grow faster,” Mittal said. Asked if the recent announcement on excise duty cut would have any impact on tractor prices, Mal replied in the negative as tractor does not attract excise duty. “I do not think so. But cost pressure is there as volume has been affected.” On an average a tractor costs Rs4.5 lakh to a farmer. Auto major Mahindra and Mahindra, which is the leading player in tractor segment, has witnessed a growth of 2.7% in July-September quarter in sales of the agri machinery input. Some agricultural experts pointed out that banks are reluctant as they do not want to risk their money by lending to farmers. Tractor manufacturers, however, counter this by saying it is the banks’ fault not to recover loan as farmers’ income have increased in last 3-4 years due to higher production and good remunerative prices. “The issue is retail liquidity. The offtake (sales) of tractor will increase only through retail liquidity,” Mal said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:15 am Google gobbling up $7 bn of taxpayers’ money every year: studyWashington: Online search giant Google, known for promoting free web-based alternatives to costly software products, has been charged with using 21 times more bandwidth than what it pays for, thus making the internet costlier for others and costing taxpayers about $7 billion a year. On its part, Google has challenged the study labelling charges against it, saying that the report has been authored by someone being paid by phone and cable companies like AT&T, Verizon and Time Warner to be a full time Google critic. The study, by Scott Cleland of the Precurser Group, a research and consulting firm specialising in the converging telecom sector, claimed that Google was by far the largest user of Internet bandwidth in the US and its bandwidth usage, which was rising rapidly, was greater than its payment for its cost. The study estimated that Google has used 16.5% of all US consumer internet traffic this year and it is estimated to grow to 25% in 2009 and 37% in 2010. However, the company’s payment to fund the US consumer broadband internet segment is estimated at $344 million for 2008, which is just 0.8% of the US consumer’s flat-rate monthly internet access costs of $44 billion. “Thus, Google’s 16.5% share of all 2008 US consumer bandwidth usage is about 21 times greater than Google’s 0.8% share of US consumer bandwidth costs — on an implicit about $6.9 billion subsidy of Google by US consumers,” Cleland wrote in the study. Cleland said that the findings of the study were important in the wake of Google being the driving force behind InternetForEveryone.org, which is pushing to adopt a national plan to bring open, high-speed internet connections into every home, at a price all of us can afford. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:05 am Google gobbling up $7 bn of taxpayers’ money every year: studyWashington: Online search giant Google, known for promoting free web-based alternatives to costly software products, has been charged with using 21 times more bandwidth than what it pays for, thus making the internet costlier for others and costing taxpayers about $7 billion a year. On its part, Google has challenged the study labelling charges against it, saying that the report has been authored by someone being paid by phone and cable companies like AT&T, Verizon and Time Warner to be a full time Google critic. The study, by Scott Cleland of the Precurser Group, a research and consulting firm specialising in the converging telecom sector, claimed that Google was by far the largest user of Internet bandwidth in the US and its bandwidth usage, which was rising rapidly, was greater than its payment for its cost. The study estimated that Google has used 16.5% of all US consumer internet traffic this year and it is estimated to grow to 25% in 2009 and 37% in 2010. However, the company’s payment to fund the US consumer broadband internet segment is estimated at $344 million for 2008, which is just 0.8% of the US consumer’s flat-rate monthly internet access costs of $44 billion. “Thus, Google’s 16.5% share of all 2008 US consumer bandwidth usage is about 21 times greater than Google’s 0.8% share of US consumer bandwidth costs — on an implicit about $6.9 billion subsidy of Google by US consumers,” Cleland wrote in the study. Cleland said that the findings of the study were important in the wake of Google being the driving force behind InternetForEveryone.org, which is pushing to adopt a national plan to bring open, high-speed internet connections into every home, at a price all of us can afford. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:05 am OVL gets govt nod for Imperial buyout - Business Standard
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 11:04 am Tokyo stocks gain despite economy slumpJapanese stocks rose on Tuesday despite a revised Government estimate outlining an annualised third-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) decline of 1.8 percentSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:58 am Small debt funds face concentration riskMumbai: Nearly a third of India’s small fixed income funds have parked more than a fourth of their assets in one company, posing a concentration risk to their portfolio, a study of 860 funds by rating agency CRISIL have showed. Almost all debt schemes have significant exposure to at least one sector. However, 82% of the portfolios were invested in highest quality papers, the agency said in a note. “Most debt funds have not compromised on credit quality in search of returns, and investors therefore have little reason to fear defaults eroding the value of their investments,” said Roopa Kudva, managing director and chief executive, CRISIL. “Nevertheless, lack of adequate portfolio diversification does remain an issue,” Kudva added. Half of the schemes under study have invested more than a fourth of their assets in the banking sector and 38% have similar exposure to the non-bank financial company sector. “However, only 5% of debt funds assets were parked in the real estate sector. Also, not more than 3% of debt mutual funds have significant exposure to the sector,” said Tarun Bhatia, head of financial sector ratings at CRISIL. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:49 am Private banks’ loss is PNB’s gainNew Delhi: Downturn in the economy and the credit squeeze faced even by major corporate, including MNCs, is turning out to be a blessing in disguise for Punjab National Bank (PNB), whose chief K.C. Chakrabarty said that those who never wanted to deal with PSU banks are now walking in. “Yes,” said Chakrabarty when asked if he was witnessing some flow of business from private sector competitors like ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank. “People who have never come to me have started coming to me. My people say that they have never allowed us to enter their buildings. They earlier said that we don’t deal with public sector banks because they are inefficient, and only deal with foreign banks. They are also coming,” he said. On growth in corporate business, Chakrabarty said: “It cannot be disclosed. It is my business secret. You see my credit growth is 30%. Corporate credit growth is strong.” Commenting on the loss in business confidence, he said that there will be some downturn but that does not mean credit will go down. He said that corporates will need more funds as their credit requirement will go up because they will have to keep more inventory and also business cycle may become longer. “So, businesswise I see no problem. But yes, profit margins will be under pressure, spread will be under pressure,” he said, adding that those who have the ability to take risk in a stress situation will do better. Pointing out at this juncture corporate who are battling slowdown need funds, he said: “Banks have to take risk to support the customers at this difficult time. The real test of a banker is to support a customer when in difficulty.” Asked about treasury operations of PNB, he said: “Interest rates are coming down. My bond price is going up. Say something good about banks, you say only negative about banks.” “The impact of downturn on the banking sector is not much as of now but pressure has started. Banks are still showing 30-40% growth in the profit,” he added. “The credit in the current financial year is likely to grow by about 22% while deposits are expected to grow between 19-20%,” he said. Commenting on rise in NPA level, Chakrabarty said: “It is still not evident. It has not started. Only for few banks it has started going up.” The PNB chief also expressed optimism that bad assets would not increase during the year despite industry showing signs of weaknesses. “NPAs are under control as far as PNB is concerned,” he said. Chakarbarty further said: “As compared to first half last year, it (NPAs) has come down. It will remain low till March. What will happen after that I don’t know.” On the impact of downturn on banks, he said: “So far, there is no problem. What will happen after six months, I don’t know.” During the financial year ended 31 March, 2008, the bank recorded a net profit growth of 33% at Rs2,049 crore against Rs1,540 crore in the previous year. For the first six months in the current fiscal, PNB reported a net profit of Rs1,219.50 crore, a growth of 27% over the year-ago period. The bank had a net profit of Rs963.55 crore in the July-September period last fiscal. The bank’s gross NPA declined by 220 basis points to 2.37% as of September 2008 from 4.57% a year ago. Net NPA Ratio has correspondingly declined by 144 basis points to 0.42% from 1.86% on a year-on-year basis. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:48 am PCs, laptops set to become cheaper - Sify
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:31 am Arun Sarin being considered for top job at Yahoo: Report - Press Trust of India
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:21 am Airlines group forecasts $2.5 billion loss in 2009Geneva: The global airline industry can expect a bleak 2009, with sector-wide losses of about $2.5 billion despite deep cost cuts by US carriers last year, the International Air Transport Association said Tuesday. IATA chief executive Giovanni Bisignani told reporters in Geneva that next year would be the worst revenue environment in 50 years, but that US carriers, many of which have already slashed capacity and cut staff as high oil prices sapped revenue during 2008 could still turn a modest profit next year. “North America will be the only region in the black, but the expected $300 million profit is less than 1 percent of their revenue,” Bisignani said. “2009 will be another tough year for everyone.” IATA forecasts that passenger traffic will drop 3 % in 2009, the first decline since 2001 when the terrorist attacks on the United States abruptly slowed global air traffic by 2.7 %. Lower oil prices will help cushion the blow, with the average cost per barrel next year predicted to hover around $60, translating into an industrywide fuel bill of $142 billion. “This is $32 billion lower than in 2008 when oil averaged $100 per barrel,” Bisignani said. In fact, lower oil prices will help overall industry losses to narrow from 2008, when IATA now expects a loss of $5 billion. That is slightly lower than the $5.2 billion it had predicted in September and is due to the rapid decline in fuel prices. Cargo traffic will drop 5 % in 2009 following a decline of 1.5 % in 2008. This compares with a 6 % drop in 2001. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:16 am Sony to cut 8,000 jobs amid global downturnTokyo: Sony is slashing 8,000 jobs, or 5% of its global electronics work force, aiming to cut costs by $1.1 billion a year as a global downturn batters profits. Sony Corp. has said that it will cut the jobs from its electronics operations, which employ about 160,000 workers, by the end of March, 2010. It did not give a country breakdown for the layoffs. Sony has already cut production and lowered inventories, but tough times demand more drastic efforts, the company said in a statement. The electronics industry has been hurt by plunging prices, currency fluctuations, intense competition and a global slowdown in consumer spending. Sony will end production at some plants, including one in France that makes tape and other recording media, and will continue moving electronics production to lower-cost areas. Manufacturing sites will be reduced by about 10% from 57%, it said. These initiatives are in response to the sudden and rapid changes in the global economic environment, Sony said. The new business plan will deliver more than ¥100 billion ($1.1. billion) in cost savings a year by March 2010, according to Sony. The company will also postpone a planned investment to boost production of liquid crystal display TVs in Slovakia because of a plunge in European demand for flat-panel TVs. The company will trim spending in semiconductors, and will outsource a portion of the production it had planned for image sensors for mobile phones. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:12 am Sony to cut 8,000 jobs amid global downturnTokyo: Sony is slashing 8,000 jobs, or 5% of its global electronics work force, aiming to cut costs by $1.1 billion a year as a global downturn batters profits. Sony Corp. has said that it will cut the jobs from its electronics operations, which employ about 160,000 workers, by the end of March, 2010. It did not give a country breakdown for the layoffs. Sony has already cut production and lowered inventories, but tough times demand more drastic efforts, the company said in a statement. The electronics industry has been hurt by plunging prices, currency fluctuations, intense competition and a global slowdown in consumer spending. Sony will end production at some plants, including one in France that makes tape and other recording media, and will continue moving electronics production to lower-cost areas. Manufacturing sites will be reduced by about 10% from 57%, it said. These initiatives are in response to the sudden and rapid changes in the global economic environment, Sony said. The new business plan will deliver more than ¥100 billion ($1.1. billion) in cost savings a year by March 2010, according to Sony. The company will also postpone a planned investment to boost production of liquid crystal display TVs in Slovakia because of a plunge in European demand for flat-panel TVs. The company will trim spending in semiconductors, and will outsource a portion of the production it had planned for image sensors for mobile phones. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:12 am US media giant Tribune files for bankruptcyChicago: The Tribune Co., owner of the Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune and other dailies, filed for bankruptcy on Monday, in the latest blow to a newspaper industry reeling from a drop in advertising and the rise of online media. The Chicago-based company said it was forced to seek bankruptcy protection because of a sharp drop in revenue and a $13 billion debt load but has enough cash to sustain operations while it restructures. It said the Chicago Cubs baseball franchise and its iconic stadium, Wrigley Field, were not included in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, which protects the company from its creditors while it restructures, and the Tribune would continue to try to find a buyer for the team. The Tribune’s eight newspapers, 23 television stations and interactive properties will continue to operate during the reorganization, the company stressed, adding that it “has sufficient cash to do so.” “This restructuring focuses on our debt, not on our operations,” said Tribune chairman and chief executive Sam Zell, the Chicago real-estate titan who led the 2007 private equity buyout of the Tribune Co. Tribune is the second-largest US newspaper publisher in terms of revenue and the third in terms of circulation. Besides the Los Angeles Times, which has slashed its editorial staff from 1,200 in 2001 to 660 today, it owns the Chicago Tribune, Baltimore Sun, Orlando Sentinel, Hartford Courant and several other papers. According to US media reports, its cash flow is not enough to cover one billion dollars in interest payments due this year and a $512 million debt payment due in June. The Tribune said that in the year since it went private it has repaid approximately $1 billion of its senior credit facility and has been “rewriting the business model for its media assets.” Like many US newspapers, the Tribune has been grappling with declining circulation, a loss of readership to online media, and a steep drop in print advertising revenue. Many advertisers have been shifting their dollars to the Web but gains in online advertising revenue have failed to keep pace with losses on the print side. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, circulation for 507 daily US newspapers fell 4.64% in the six months to September. US media company EW Scripps Co., which owns newspapers in 15 US markets and 10 television stations, announced 400 job cuts last month and has put one of its flagship papers, the Rocky Mountain News, up for sale. Another debt-ridden major newspaper chain, McClatchy Co., has carried out a series of layoffs this year and, according to the New York Times, is seeking to sell one of its flagship newspapers, The Miami Herald. Gannett Co., the largest US newspaper chain, publishing USA Today and 84 other newspapers, announced 1,000 job cuts in August and is currently laying off another 10% of its workforce. The prestigious New York Times itself has not been immune to the crisis gripping the newspaper industry. The paper reported Monday that the New York Times Co. plans to borrow up to $225 million against its mid-Manhattan headquarters building to ease a potential cash flow squeeze. Tribune Co. reported a loss of $124 million in the third quarter, compared with a net profit of 84 million dollars a year earlier. The company has undertaken a series of moves in a bid to ease its debt burden in addition to seeking a buyer for the Chicago Cubs. In May, it sold its stake in the New York newspaper Newsday for $650 million and in October it said it had informed the Associated Press it plans to terminate its contract with the US news agency in two years. The Chicago firm traces its history to 1847 with the birth of the Chicago Tribune. It became a publicly traded company only in 1983. In 2000, the Tribune bought the Times-Mirror group, including the flagship Los Angeles Times, for $8.3 billion in what was then the largest acquisition ever in the US newspaper industry. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 10:09 am Sony layoffs could portend wave of Asia tech job cutsTAIPEI (Reuters) - Massive job cuts at Sony Corp and a bleak outlook from Samsung Electronics mark what may be the beginning of a long winter for one Asia's key sectors, with more bad news likely to follow in coming weeks.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 9:35 am Universal Sompo’s Insurance Products To Be Marketed By Indian ... - TopNews
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 9:33 am Unitech to invest Rs2,500 cr to develop 35 hotelsNew Delhi: Realty major Unitech Ltd plans to invest about Rs2,500 crore to develop 35 hotels across the country over the next seven years. “We will be developing 35 hotels in the next 6-7 years. We already have land in many cities at prime locations,” Unitech managing director Sanjay Chandra said. The hotels would come up in the national capital region (NCR), Kolkata, Chennai, Goa, Mysore, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Siliguri and Assam. Of the total planned hotels, about 50% would be located in Kolkata and NCR. The company would construct over 5,000 rooms in 3-5 star categories in 35 hotels, Chandra said. He also highlighted that the company would sell these hotels after developing them. Currently, Unitech is constructing six hotels comprising about 1,000 rooms, of which the one in Gurgaon is scheduled to be operational early next year. It has tied up with international hospitality chain Mariott for management contract for four of its properties. It is in advanced stage of talks to sell the Gurgaon hotel and the deal is likely to be finalised this month. Unitech is expecting to raise over Rs300 crore, though market observers are valuing the hotel at Rs200-250 crore. Earlier this week, Unitech Chairman Ramesh Chandra had said the company would raise up to Rs 2,500 crore through sale of some assets and equity to retire part of Rs8,000 crore debt by March, 2009. The chairman had said that only completed or nearing completion hotels and office buildings would be sold. He had also noted that the company had always planned to exit from hotel business after developing it. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 9:31 am Railways Increase Freight Rates By 8% - TopNews
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 9:28 am GLOBAL MARKETS - World stocks slip, refocus on economic malaiseLONDON (Reuters) - World stocks slipped from the previous day's three-week high on Tuesday after dire corporate news and economic data prompted investors to shift their focus back to the worsening state of the global economy.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 9:14 am Gold steady after biggest daily gain in 2 wksSINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold trimmed early gains on Tuesday as speculators booked profits after bullion posted its biggest daily gain in two weeks the previous day, but firm oil and optimism about U.S. economic plans underpinned sentiment.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 9:05 am UTV in pact with Disney for sales, distributiionMUMBAI (Reuters) - Television content provider UTV Software Communications Ltd said on Tuesday it will be the exclusive sales and distribution partner for all Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Hollywood releases in India.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 8:58 am Catch the 2093 to space: It's the flight of futureBook: Departure 2093 - Five Visions of Future Flying; Editor: Christer Haglund; Publisher: Finnair; Price: Select Distribution onlySource: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Dec 2008 | 8:31 am Bengaluru International airport to have country's first cargo village - Business Standard
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 8:19 am MySpace-Google team up to connect more usersSan Francisco: MySpace.com is teaming up with Internet search leader Google Inc. in a campaign to extend MySpace’s reach and counter the expansion of their common rival Facebook Inc. The alliance, unveiled late on Monday in Paris, builds upon MySpace’s seven-month-old effort to make it easier for the 127 million worldwide users of its online hangout to connect with their social circles while they’re at other Internet destinations. MySpace is trying to pull it off by making its login system, called “MySpaceID,” compatible with any Web site that wants to embrace it. By working with a similar service offered by Google, MySpace is betting more sites will welcome its audience. Blogs and other small sites with limited technical help probably will find it easier to use Google’s system, known as “Friend Connect,” said Max Engel, who oversees MySpaceID. The collaboration between News Corp.’s MySpace and Google represents their latest shot across Facebook’s bow. MySpace and Google previously joined forces a year ago to promote a service, called “OpenSocial,” that competes against Facebook’s warehouse of online software programs. Facebook also is peddling its own universal login service to create more ways for its roughly 130 million worldwide users to share their personal profiles and favourite applications wherever and whenever they want on the Web. The privately held company expanded “Facebook Connect” last week after seven months of testing. By loosening their grip on the personal information stored on their own sites, both MySpace and Facebook are vying to shape and steer even more social interaction than they already do. In the process, they hope to become the command centers of their users’ online activities. By extending their networks on to other sites, Facebook and MySpace also could emerge as more alluring marketing vehicles, particularly as they glean more information about the interests of individual users. Google is keenly interested in tapping into the advertising potential of social networks, but the Mountain View-based company has had little success with its own online hangout, called Orkut. MySpace already relies on Google to sell some of its ads, so the companies are natural allies. Palo Alto-based Facebook, in contrast, has aligned itself with Microsoft, perhaps Google’s biggest antagonist. Besides relying on Microsoft to sell some of its ads, Facebook also sold a 1.6% stake to the software maker for $240 million last year. Facebook also has rankled Google by hiring some of its top employees. The defectors include Facebook’s current chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, who oversaw global online sales. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 7:53 am Sony to cut 8,000 jobs, slash $1.1 bln in costsTOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Sony Corp said it will slash about 4 percent of its workforce, scale back investments and pull out of businesses as it aims to cut $1.1 billion in costs out of its ailing electronics operations.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 7:49 am Arun Sarin being considered for Yahoo top job - WSJReuters - The former chief executive of Vodafone Group Plc, Arun Sarin, is among those being considered by board members at Yahoo Inc to take the top job at the internet firm, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 7:01 am ONGC to go ahead with Imperial offer: reportMumbai: India’s Oil & Natural Gas Corp will go ahead with its $2.6 billion takeover of Imperial Energy after a British regulator denied its request for an extension, the Economic Times reported on Tuesday, citing an unidentified person involved in the deal. The state-run Indian firm will meet the deadline for making an open offer to the shareholders of the Russia-focussed oil explorer, the paper said. The Indian cabinet is expected to meet on Tuesday morning to authorise ONGC to go ahead with deal, the paper said. ONGC officials could not be reached for comment immediately. British regulator The Takeover Panel said ONGV Videsh, the overseas unit of ONGC, had applied for extension in the time by which it must post its offer document to shareholders. The panel said it denied this request and an appeal. ONGC on Monday said it was aware of its obligation to post the offer document by midnight on 9 December and sources close to the matter said advisors were working hard to finalise the paperwork. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 6:53 am Japan sinks deeper into recession in 3QTokyo: Japan fell into a deeper recession in the third quarter than first thought, the government said on Tuesday, as exports weakened, domestic demand fell and companies bracing for a prolonged downturn pared inventories. The Cabinet Office said that Japan’s economy shrank at an annual pace of 1.8% in the July-September period, compared with its original estimate of a 0.4% contraction. The figure was much worse than market expectations for a 0.9% decline in gross domestic product, underscoring the severity of the slump that the world’s second largest economy is mired in. The data also confirms that Japan slipped into recession in the third quarter after GDP contracted an annualized 3.7 percent in the April-June period. A recession is commonly defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth, though many economists using other parameters say that the current downturn actually began in late 2007. “The revision was large, but the implication is limited, as there is no need to change our assessment of the economy, which has been in recession since (the) end of last year,” said Masamichi Adachi, senior economist at JP Morgan Securities in Tokyo, in a report Tuesday. With business conditions deteriorating, companies likely reduced their inventories to cut running costs, the Cabinet Office said, according to Kyodo news agency. Overall weakness in the third quarter stemmed largely from a sharp pullback in corporate investment amid the unfolding global financial crisis. For export-reliant Japan, the deep slump in global demand for its cars and gadgets has taken a particularly heavy toll A growing number of exporters big and small also hurt by a stronger yen are slashing their expectations for profit, sales and spending. Toyota Motor Corp. has cut its full-year net profit forecast to $5.5 billion about a third of last year’s earnings. Indeed, the worst may be yet to come, since the third-quarter data do not fully reflect the global reverberations from the collapse of US investment bank Lehman Brothers in mid-September. The Bank of Japan recently slashed its projection for economic growth to just 0.1% for the year through March, compared with the 1.2% growth projected in July. Economists expect the central bank’s closely watched “tankan” survey, due out Monday, to show a dramatic plunge in corporate confidence. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 6:45 am US job cuts mount as economy worsensNew York: The United States suffered a grim roll call of job losses on Monday as a number of major manufacturing and service companies said they would slash costs to cope with the deepening economic crisis. The cuts come three days after government figures showed that US employers axed 533,000 jobs from payrolls in November, the most in 34 years, and that the nation’s unemployment rate hit 6.7%, the highest since 1993. Economists expect the unemployment rate to rise to as much as 8% by late next year. Jobs data for December looks to be bleak as Dow Chemical Co , the largest US chemical maker, said it would close 20 facilities, divest several businesses, and cut 5,000 jobs. Dow said it was planning to drop the number of outside contractors by 6,000 and temporarily idle 180 plants. Hotels and timeshare company Wyndham Worldwide Corp said it would cut 4,000 jobs as it shrinks its timeshare business. Others taking the scythe to their workforces included diversified manufacturer 3M Co, which said it would cut a total of 2,300 jobs in the fourth quarter. The company said it had already cut 1,800 of those positions and that it would cut another 500 in the fourth quarter. The job losses will occur mainly in the United States, Western Europe and Japan. The world’s largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch InBev, said it was cutting 1,400 jobs, or 6% of its workforce in the United States. InBev acquired Anheuser-Busch earlier this year. In the telecom sector, Level 3 Communications Inc said it would cut about 450 jobs, or 8% of its workforce, in North America and Sprint Nextel Corp said it planned to cut costs and warned that could include layoffs. Danaher Corp, a US conglomerate whose products include Craftsmen tools and dental equipment, said it was eliminating 1,700 jobs, shuttering 13 facilities and freezing salaries. Tribune Co, the privately held publisher of newspapers including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as it struggles with its debt load and large losses, including a $124 million third quarter loss posted in November. The move is expected to lead to job cuts at the media company. Job losses in November were the steepest since December 1974, when 602,000 jobs were shed, and much worse than the consensus on Wall Street for a 340,000 reduction. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 6:04 am Experience farm stay in Punjab, with kinnows thrown inThe sight of hundreds of orange-coloured kinnows hanging on small trees is tempting enough for anyone to get up - close and personal. And that is exactly what a young farmer and his wife in Punjab are offering to tourists from cities as part of experiencing village life.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Dec 2008 | 5:30 am Oil steady near $44 as investors eye Opec cutsSingapore: Oil prices were steady near $44 a barrel Tuesday in Asia as investors anticipated that Opec will announce a big production cut next week to stabilize crude prices that have fallen about 70% in five months. Light, sweet crude for January delivery was up 19 cents to $43.90 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange by midday in Singapore. The contract fell overnight $2.90 to settle at $43.71. Prices fell last week to an intraday low of $40.50, the lowest since December 2004. “Oil should find support around $40 a barrel and should form a bottom there,” said Aaron Smith, who helps manage about $1.7 billion as managing director at Superfund Financial in Singapore. Smith, who uses technical analysis to help guide his investment decisions, has recently reduced bets that the price of oil will go down, known as shorting. Investors are watching for signs of how much the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries may reduce output quotas at the group’s meeting next week in Algeria. Opec President Chakib Khelil said on Saturday the group could announce a “severe” production cut and suggested the cartel could seek to surprise the market with the size of the reduction in a bid to bolster prices. Opec, which controls about 40% of world crude supplies, announced a production cut of 1.5 million barrels a day in October and 500,000 barrels in September, moves investors brushed off as a global economic slowdown worsened. Opec will have to adhere to any promised output cut if it hopes to help reverse the fall in oil prices, said Victor Shum, an energy analyst with Purvin & Gertz in Singapore. Investors were also encouraged by news that President-elect Barack Obama plans to implement a major infrastructure program to help boost employment in the weakening US economy. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 5:27 am Morgan Stanley, Merrill chiefs give up bonusesNew York: The chief executives of Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch & Co. are going without bonuses for a year that has seen Wall Street ravaged by staggering losses, mass layoffs and the collapse of storied firms. Morgan Stanley’s CEO John J Mack is giving up a bonus for the second straight year, while Merrill Lynch & Co. said its CEO John Thain also asked to go without the extra compensation for 2008 after reports surfaced he had sought as much as $10 million. Mack told employees Monday in a memo that he and the firm’s two presidents, James Gorman and Walid Chammah, informed the board’s compensation committee of their decision to forgo 2008 bonuses, and the committee accepted. Mack who did not receive a bonus for 2007, either said the company is changing year-end compensation for other employees, too. The executives, however, are still being paid. Last year, Mack earned a salary of $800,000 as well as nearly $400,000 in other compensation, including personal use of a corporate jet. Compensation for the 14 members of the firm’s operating committee will be down an average of 75%, and down 65% for the 35 members of the management committee. Morgan Stanley plans to tie compensation for all employees eligible for bonuses more closely to performance. It will also allow for “clawbacks” where the company could reclaim any bonus paid to an employee if his or her actions led to “the need for a restatement of results, a significant financial loss or other reputational harm,” the memo said. The CEO compensation debate comes as global banks have lost billions of dollars amid a credit crisis that still has yet to be contained. In the last few months, major US banks have taken advantage of a $700 billion government bailout program to help them avoid fates similar to that of investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., which declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October. Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein _ and six of his top lieutenants _ announced last month that they won’t take cash or stock bonuses for 2008. Merrill Lynch said Thain and four other top executives President and COO Greg Fleming, Chief Financial Officer Nelson Chai, President of Global Wealth Management Robert McCann, and General Counsel Rosemary Berkery have all requested that they do not receive bonuses for 2008. According to a statement by the bank, the executives cited “current economic and market conditions” for their request. Directors at the regularly scheduled board meeting Monday accepted the offer. The Wall Street Journal reported that Thain previously sought a multimillion dollar bonus, which raised the ire of some regulators. New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who is conducting an ongoing inquiry into executive compensation at Wall Street firms, has been asking firms to scrap their bonuses this year. Merrill Lynch shareholders on Friday approved the brokerage’s acquisition by Bank of America Corp., creating the largest US financial services company. Thain ushered through the combination in September at fire sale prices to avoid a collapse similar to that of Lehman Brothers. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 5:23 am India May Name Krishna as New Finance Minister, Express Reports - Bloomberg
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Dec 2008 | 4:53 am Nissan, Renault delay India projects as sales slumpTOKYO (Reuters) - Alliance partners Nissan Motor Co and Renault SA are delaying vehicle production projects in India, where a slowing economy has taken a toll on sales of cars and trucks.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Dec 2008 | 4:35 am Democrats propose $15 bn automakers bailoutWashington: Democrats proposed a $15 billion bailout package for the troubled US auto industry Monday in a compromise that sources say may still not gain approval from the White House. The proposal offers less than half of the $34 billion General Motors, Chrysler and Ford said they would need to stave off a “catastrophic collapse” of the nation’s automotive industry. The low-cost, government-backed loans are intended to sustain them through March, which will give president-elect Barack Obama time to address the problem after he takes office on 20 January. “Fifteen billion is the maximum that’s available, given the president’s threat to veto anything else,” said US Representative Barney Frank, one of the lawmakers spearheading talks on the rescue plan. Officials close to the talks said earlier Monday that the US legislature could authorize the rescue package, which calls for massive restructuring and tough government oversight, by mid-week. But a senior Bush administration official who requested anonymity said a deal on Monday was unlikely because the White House and the Democrats who control the US Congress were at odds on the issue of the long-term viability of the Big Three US automakers. US President George W. Bush said that “the definition of viability is open to discussion,” and that “viability means that all aspects of the companies need to be re-examined to make sure that they can survive in the long term.” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino, who earlier had said a deal was “likely” on Monday, responded to the proposed bill by saying the administration was “reviewing draft legislation we received this afternoon and are continuing our discussions with Congress.” The proposal calls for a presidential designee, or “car czar” to oversee the restructuring of the Big Three US automakers, distribute the funds and report to Congress on their progress in achieving “long-term viability,” according to a copy of the bill obtained by AFP. Automakers will have to continue to improve the fuel-efficiency of their fleets and also look into using their excess capacity to build bus and rail cars for public transit. The bill also requires the automakers to sell their private jets and places strict limits on executive compensation. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said the blueprint aimed to “give the automakers the chance to clean house and return to a responsible path toward profitability.” “The jobs of millions of American workers are at stake, along with the financial security of millions of families. So while we take no satisfaction in loaning taxpayer money to these companies, we know it must be done,” he said. General Motors, which had warned it could run out of cash as early as January, urged swift passage of the bill and vowed it will “abide by the conditions proposed in the bill and will continue our restructuring with great urgency.” Chrysler said it was “pleased that progress is being made” and that it looked forward to working with lawmakers and “to completing our restructuring in an orderly fashion.” Ford, which has said it has enough cash on hand to weather the current downturn but requested a $9 billion line of credit to hedge against worsening conditions or the bankruptcy of one of its competitors, said it would not “not be seeking a short term bridge loan” under the bill. Obama has called a collapse of the auto industry “unacceptable,” and said Sunday he wanted a supervisory process that would keep the companies’ “feet to the fire.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 3:56 am Asia stocks gain, yen up as caution lingersHong Kong: Asian stocks edged up on Tuesday to a one-month high, but gains were kept in check as hopes for big government spending to revive growth were offset by investors shying away from risk in wrapping up a brutal 2008. US crude oil prices were little changed near $43.80 a barrel after rebounding from a four-year low last week, while safe-haven government bonds dipped slightly. “Reports about additional government support and economic stimulus plans do help sentiment, but the economy is still in a deep slowdown, and we will probably see more grim economic data,” said Kwak Joong-bo, a market analyst at Hana Daetoo Securities in Seoul. Global stocks bolted higher on Monday as US authorities thrashed out a rescue plan for struggling automakers and US President-elect Barack Obama said he would undertake the biggest infrastructure spending since the 1950s. The White House reviewed a Democratic plan to bail out the automakers with $15 billion of loans. Investors are still debating whether the sharp sell-off this year has run its course or there is worse to come as the global economy slides into a deep recession that has already claimed the three major regions: the United States, Japan and the euro zone. Data on Tuesday showed Japan’s economy contracted at an even faster pace than originally estimated during the third quarter, showing the recession deepening and raising worries the world’s second largest economy faces its longest period of contraction ever. Economists at Deutsche Bank forecast that global growth next year will be barely above zero. The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan rose 0.3% and touched its highest in about a month, a day after jumping 7%. Hopes that Chinese economic leaders meeting this week in Beijing would unveil more measures to prop up growth helped fuel the rebound. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Dec 2008 | 3:33 am No change in price of gas from Reliance’s KG basin blockNew Delhi, Dec. 8 The Government determined price for the sale of natural gas by Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) from the D6 Block in the Krishna Godavari Basin will remain unchanged despite the steep fall in global crude oil prices.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Oil marketing companies fare better than indicesMumbai, Dec. 8 The stocks of oil marketing companies have declined much less than the benchmark indices over the last one-year period. Although the companies were not able to pass on the entire burden of rising crude prices to customers when oilSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Late sell-off pares Sensex gainsMumbai, Dec. 8 A late sell off on Monday pared the gains of more than 5 per cent in the benchmark indices earlier in theSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Union Bank, HDFC Bank cut lending ratesMumbai, Dec. 8 The 100 basis points cut in short-term rates announced by the Reserve Bank of India, as part of its ‘Growth stimulus’ package, last week is beginning to have the desired ‘transmission’ effect. Banks haveSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Retail deposits continue to pour into banksBangalore, Dec 8 Public sector banks have begun losing their appetite for bulk deposits as flow of retail deposits gainSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am LIC to invest Rs 31,000 cr in equities, corporate bondsMumbai, Dec. 8 Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) would invest Rs 31,000 crore in equities and corporate bonds in the next four months.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Thumbs-up for the discerning voterAs in the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, this time around too, the Congress leadership will be most surprised at the party’s impressive performance in the Assembly elections in five States. Winning decisively in Delhi and Mizoram and emerging theSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Cenvat rate cut not to cover tobacco products: Finance MinistryNew Delhi, Dec. 8 There is no relief on the wallet for smokers and users of tobacco products.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Terror on high seas, now a major worry for ship ownersPlummeting freight rates and shrinking cargo as a result of the global financial meltdown are not the only issues presently gnawing at shipping companies. The recent flare-up of terror on high seas, off the coast of Somalia, has become a sharperSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Railway freight hike may dilute excise relief for cement cosThe much-hyped Government stimulus package for the cement industry was partly nullified by a one percentage point hike in freight rates effected by the Railways onSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Jeevan saathi LIC to pump in Rs 12K cr in equities - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 10:48 pm Banks to delay rate cuts on higher deposit raising costsA day after the RBI signaled lower rates, Union Bank announced a 75 bps cut in its PLR, but a majority of the banks are not going to follow the RBI immediately. They say they will wait for a couple of weeks. CNBCTV18\'s Nupur Acharya and Vivin Mathew report that deposits raised at a higher cost is postponing the rate cut decision.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 8:54 pm DLF asks Commerce Min to denotify Delhi IT SEZDLF has asked the Commerce Ministry for denotification of its SEZ near Delhi. Commerce Secretary GK Pillai said that DLF might actually set the trend and a lot more might follow.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 8:33 pm UP sugar mills case: judgment good for cos, says TulsianSP Tulsian of sptulsian.com feels even as the court fixed the price of cane at Rs 140 per quintal, it is good for the sugar mills themselves and also for the economy. Any relief that the companies wouldve got [had the price been set lower] would have been temporary. Ultimately, farmers would have migrated from sugarcane to the other crops.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 7:13 pm Robbers loot Uco Bank of Rs.250,000Unidentified armed robbers Monday looted Rs.250,000 in cash from a Delhi bank that had no security system or a guard for protection, the police said.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 Dec 2008 | 7:01 pm Cenvat cut drives down prices of used carsMany models now available below Rs 1 lakh.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 7:01 pm Jet backs down, offers agents 3% commissionOver 2,500 travel agents and online travel portals started selling Jet Airways tickets again from this morning after the airline, the countrys largest by market share, succumbed to pressure andSource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 7:00 pm 'Semi-final' polls check anti-incumbency waveCongress unwilling to advance Lok Sabha poll date; Terror, inflation campaign did not work, admits BJP.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 6:59 pm HDFC Bank, Union Bank cut ratesTwo days after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced 100-basis point cuts in key lending rates, the countrys second largest private sector lender HDFC Bank today lowered prime lending rateSource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 6:58 pm Govt may restrict home loan rates to 7-8%The government is pushing state-owned banks to offer interest rates on housing loans up to Rs 20 lakh at pre-2004 levels.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 6:57 pm As autos cut prices, clearing existing inventory a worryThe government\'s decision to slash Cenvat rates and excise duty made auto manufacturers immediately announce their united decision to pass on the benefit to customers. But now the industry is grappling with the problem of big losses that will come upon it while liquidating the existing inventory.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 5:46 pm Auto cos see cheaper cars post cenvat cutAll auto manufacturers welcomed the announcement and will pass on the benefits to the consumers. MM will cut prices by 4% whereas high end models may see more than 4% cut. Tata Motors said it wiill pass on Cenvat cut to customers across products.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 5:23 pm PM assures small and medium industry of continued supportPrime Minister Manmohan Singh Monday assured micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) of the government's support to weather the global financial crisis.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 Dec 2008 | 4:01 pm Japanese firm to set up industrial park in HaryanaJapan-based trading firm Mitsui and Co. Ltd Monday signed an agreement with two Indian infrastructure development companies to jointly set up an integrated industrial, transportation and logistic park in Haryana.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 Dec 2008 | 4:00 pm Max India Grp buys 3% in EIH, may increase stake aheadMax India Group Investment Companies has acquired nearly 3% in EIH today. Max India\'s EIH stake buy is a part of investment programme and the company may acquire further stake going forward, sources added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 3:58 pm Have ample liquidity to buy FCCBs: Jain IrrigationThe Jain Irrigation stock has declined 15% over the past seven days. The company has outstanding foreign currency convertible bonds, or FCCBs worth USD 11 million. Anil Jain, MD, said,\"It\'s a positive news and would allow us to get some benefits on our balance sheet when we buy the bonds at discount. We have ample liquidity to buy these bonds.\"Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 3:35 pm Great Offshore pledges 13% equity with Bharti ShipyardGreat Offshore promoters have pledged 13% equity with rival Bharti Shipyard to raise money to pay off creditors. The creditors had asked for margin money following plunge in shares pledged.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 3:17 pm GE stake buy to help transformer biz ahead: Indo TechGE has bought 54% from the promoters of Indo Tech Transformers. PS Jagdish, Director, Indo Tech Transformers, said post the GE stake buy, the issues with regard to larger transformers will get resolved.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 2:59 pm RBI FCCB move +ve for cos with surplus cash: 3i InfotechThe Reserve Bk has made it easier for cos to use their forex reserves to buyback their old FCCBs. Amar Chintopanth, 3i Infotech, said its definitely useful for companies having surplus cash, which is other than operating cash, to use that cash in buying back their FCCBs by which they will cancel some of the debt.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Dec 2008 | 2:24 pm Unitech, Idea get spectrum in KolkataNew Delhi: The Government has awarded start-up spectrum to two telecom operators Unitech and Idea Cellular in Kolkata to enable them start operations. In a statement to the BSE, Unitech Wireless said it had been allocated 4.4 MHz of spectrum in 1800 MHz GSM band in respect of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh (HP) and Kolkata service areas, while the Aditay Birla company said it had got radio waves for Kolkata circle. Earlier, the government had released spectrum in circles of Tamil Nadu (TN), Andhra Pradesh (AP), Kerala, Karnataka, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh (MP), Mumbai, Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh (East) and Delhi. With this, Unitech Wireless has been allotted initial spectrum in 16 service areas out of the total 22 service circles. Tata Teleservices had earlier been given frequency under the dual technology option. Spectrum refers to the radio frequency that enables wireless communications. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 8 Dec 2008 | 1:19 pm Service sector job losses to rise in coming months: SurveyLondon: Job losses in the service sector are expected to increase significantly in the coming months as firms predict steep fall in their volumes and profitability in the next quarter, the Confederation of British Industry said. Summarising the latest service sector survey by CBI, Chief Economic Adviser Ian McCafferty said, “So far, job losses have been relatively small across the whole of the service sector, but with firms predicting faster falls in volumes, values and profitability in the next quarter, we can expect to see significant job losses in the coming months.” Firms providing services to businesses saw their volume, profitability and people employed fall at record rates, the sharpest declines since the survey began in 1998, CBI said. Companies are also cutting investment plans sharply as worries about future demand intensified, it added. Besides, firms operating in consumer services saw profitability fall sharply for a third successive quarter, while the workforce grew slightly for the first time in a year, businesses are predicting much larger cuts to their head counts in next quarter. Meanwhile, the volume of business at hotels, bars and restaurants was almost flat in the three months to November. It, however, saw a strong growth in staffing numbers for the first time in a year, which is predicted to worsen significantly in the next three months, the CBI survey said. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:50 pm Economy to get worse before it improves: Obama!President-elect Barack Obama said on Sunday that the economy will get worse before it gets better, pledged a recovery plan "equal to the task" and warned lawmakers that the days of pork barrel spending are over.Source: Zee News : Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:12 pm Asian stocks rise on hopes of fresh policy action!Asian stocks rose in early trade on Monday as hopes grew for fresh action by the US authorities to fight a deepening recession in the wake of massive job losses.Source: Zee News : Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:12 pm Speculation rife over next FM!Hunt is on for a new FM with the names of SM Krishna, C Rangarajan and Kapil Sibal doing the rounds.Source: Zee News : Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:12 pm HSBC unveils new $5 bn global fund for SMEs!Global banking giant HSBC has set up a 5 billion US dollar fund to help small and medium sized businesses get access to credit during the global financial crisis, the bank said.Source: Zee News : Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:12 pm Brown, Sarkozy, Barroso meet for credit crunch mini-summit!The leaders of Britain, France and the European Union meet in London Monday for a mini-summit on the world financial crisis which will also involve around 50 leading businessmen and economists.Source: Zee News : Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:12 pm Oil jumps 5% after hitting 4-year low under $41!Oil jumped five percent to USD 43 a barrel on Monday, clawing back a share of the near-record decline last week when negative economic data heightened fears about the impact of a global recession on fuel demand.Source: Zee News : Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:12 pm Rupee opens 35 paise higher against dollar!The rupee opened higher by 35 paise against the US currency on Monday on selling of dollar by banks and fresh inflow of funds as market sentiment was up after the government`s announcement for the stimulus package.Source: Zee News : Business | 8 Dec 2008 | 12:12 pm
|
.jpg)