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Cos tie up with ISB for customised courses, better talentThe economic downturn may have forced job cuts but it is also forcing India Inc to invest in people. Companies are now funding initiatives that produce skilled manpower to meet their requirements. CNBCTV18s Pranshu Sikka reports.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 5:51 pm DoT may suggest penalty for tele cos who violate normsA Department of Telecom (DoT) committee is likely to recommend a penalty on telecom operators who violate licence conditions, reports CNBCTV18 quoting sources. The operators include Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar, BPL Mobile, BSNL, Spice, Tata Tele and Reliance Telecom, the sources added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 5:26 pm Fortis Healthcare to pick stake in Wockhardt HospitalFortis Healthcare is likely to pick stake in Wockhardt Hospital. FortisWockhardt Hospital deal is at over USD 100 million, reports CNBCTV18 quoting sources. Religare is likely to be the advisor for the deal and the deal is likely to be funded via internal accruals.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 5:10 pm Corporate governance was not compromised upon: SatyamM Rammohan Rao, Dean ISB and an Independent Director of Satyam said that the decision to acquire a realty company was discussed in only one board meeting and added that the board would have taken the shareholders approval, if it was required. \"There was no compromise on corporate governance.\"Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 4:52 pm India Inc lauds shareholder victory in Satyam dealA day after India Inc\'s most controversial corporate governance fiasco, the Confederation of Indian Industry\'s corporate governance meet saw doyens of the industry give a thumbs up to shareholder victory.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 4:08 pm Who created wealth? Who destroyed wealth?Who Created Wealth? Wealth destroyed wealth? Find out from the 13th Motilal Oswal Wealth Creation Study only on moneycontrol.com.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 3:35 pm Don\'t see marked decline in revenues ahead: Hotel LeelaOn how things are shaping up for the current quarter and the year ahead, Vivek Nair, VC and MD of Hotel Leela said Hotel Leela\'s occupancies are down by about 2530% and the average rates are also down post the terror attacks. He doesnt see marked decline in revenues going ahead.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 3:27 pm Satyam to consider buyback in board meet on Dec 29The Satyam board is likely to meet on December 29 to consider a buyback. People had been anticipating some sweetener from Satyam. From our calculation we understand that Satyam could use a total of around Rs 735 crore for this buyback.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 2:59 pm Satyam\'s buyback may be restricted to 10%: Majumdar CoAkhil Hirani of Majumdar Company said Satyam\'s buyback is restricted to 10% if the board approves it. \"The buyback could be via a tender offer or book building process. Buyback option via odd lot holders is also available.\" He feels considering the negative market sentiment for Satyam, it will not be wise to do a buyback through an open offer.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 2:48 pm Banks may cut deposit rates in January: IBAAccording to the Indian Banks Association (IBA) Head TS Narayanasami said that banks are likely to cut deposit rates in January. The extent of the interest rate cut may be decided in 12 days, he said. Banks cannot pay abnormal interest rates on deposits, he added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 18 Dec 2008 | 2:42 pm IT, banking, retail, healthcare to face massive talent crunchSectors like information technology, banking, retail and healthcare are likely to face a massive talent crunch over the next five years a study has shown.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:35 pm Imax Corp mulls tie-ups to open 10 more theatres by 2010Scouting for partners in India to open theaters, entertainment technology firm Imax Corporation is likely to open 10 more theaters in the country by 2010.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:35 pm Spicejet aircraft lands under emergency conditionsA SpiceJet plane, with 157 passengers and crew members onboard, had to land under emergency conditions after debris of tyres were found on the runway.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:34 pm No need to make CAT-IIIB training mandatory for pilots: PatelThe government said there was no need to make CAT-IIIB training mandatory for airline pilots operating across the country.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:33 pm Inflation slows, government ups spendingNEW DELHI (Reuters) - The government beefed up its plan for extra spending to stimulate the economy and counter the impact of the global slowdown, just as inflation fell more sharply than expected in a sign of faltering activity.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:26 pm Nano project: Third petition filed in Gujarat HCAhmedabad: A third petition demanding compensation for land sold by the state government to the Tata for the Nano car project was filed in the Gujarat High Court by the farmers of Bol Village in Sanand taluka here where the manufacturing unit is coming up. A division bench of Chief Justice K S Radhakrishnan and Justice Akil Qureshi on Thursday adjourned the hearing on the three similar cases which are being heard simultaneously till 19 January, 2009. The court also asked the government to file a reply to the petitions explaining under what circumstances and on what basis the land under question was acquired by the government in 1900. State government has recently given 1,100 acres of the land to Tata at Northcout farm in Sanand Taluka to relocate their Nano car project from Singur to Sanand. Two petition filed in the matter includes one by farmers of Khoda village demanding compensation for 865 acre of land and other a public interest litigation (PIL) by Gandhinagar-based Rashtriya Kisan Dal, asking for adequate compensation for the farmers. Eighteen farmers of Bol village have claimed that they are original owners of the 960 acre land which was taken on lease by the government for 99 years from their ancestors during the drought in 1900 for protection of cows of ‘Kankreji´ breed. The petitioners have also challenged the state government’s claim that the land was formally acquired by it and adequate compensation was given to respective farmers. They have further contended in the petition that the state government did not follow procedure while selling the land to Tata Motors Limited (TML), and has failed to produce any documentary proof showing that the land was acquired by them. In a similar petition filed earlier by 24 farmers of Khoda village, they have contended that the 865 acre of land, was never acquired by the government in 1900, as claimed by state government. Their petition said that the 865 acres of land was given on lease of 100 years to the British Government in 1900 for building of Northcout farm for animals after a severe drought. The farmers of Khoda village have also said that they are not opposed to the Nano Car Project, but have asked for compensation for the land which belonged to them. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:24 pm BNP suspends Fortis deal after legal challengeBRUSSELS/PARIS (Reuters) - The rescue of stricken bank Fortis ran into more trouble on Thursday when French bank BNP Paribas said it was suspending a key part of the deal due to a legal challenge over the transaction.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:16 pm Bill for Land Port Authority of India introduced in LSNew Delhi: A Bill to establish a Land Port Authority of India was introduced in Lok Sabha on Thursday to enable coordination among various agencies and service providers to facilitate cross-border movement of goods and passenger traffic while also addressing the security concerns. The proposed authority would undertake construction, management and maintenance of integrated check-posts on land borders, regulate the functions of various agencies and coordinate with several concerned ministries and departments. The Land Ports Authority of India Bill, 2008, introduced by Minister of State for Home Shakeel Ahmed, would regulate the entry and exit of passengers and goods and establish necessary service facilities, the statement of objects and reasons of the legislation said. The need for such an authority was felt in order to address the security concerns of the country. “It is important to put in place systems, which address security imperatives while also facilitating trade and commerce,” it said. Maintaining that the existing infrastructure available with Customs, Immigration and other agencies was “generally not sufficient”, the statement said “there is no single agency responsible for coordinated functioning of various government authorities and service providers.” The Bill proposed to establish Integrated Check Posts on the international land borders of the country through a plan scheme. These check-posts will be sanitised zones with dedicated passenger and cargo terminals and facilities like waiting areas, restaurants, banks, rest rooms, container yards and warehouses. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:13 pm Oil, ignoring record OPEC cut, hovers below $41 - Forbes
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:12 pm Chidambaram says liquidity ample nowNEW DELHI (Reuters) - There is ample liquidity in the banking system following a series of steps taken by the authorities, the former finance minister said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:10 pm Corporate governance was not compromised upon: Satyam - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:06 pm BSE Sensex rallies 3.7 pct on rate cut hopesMUMBAI (Reuters) – The BSE Sensex rose 3.7 percent on Thursday to its highest close in five weeks, after inflation dropped to a nine-month low and the government unveiled a bigger spending plan to stimulate the economy.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:04 pm Pamela Anderson will be the new face of WestwoodModel-actress Pamela Anderson will be the face of designer Vivienne Westwood's new campaign.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:03 pm Airports Authority of India granted Miniratna statusIndia's airport operator Airports Authority of India (AAI) was Thursday granted Miniratna status by the government.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:02 pm Stanford University reaches out to Indian academia, industryWorld-renowned US-based Stanford University plans to reach out to Indian students, universities and industry to share its domain expertise in science and technology.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:02 pm BNP Paribas deal for Fortis falls flatLondon: French banking major BNP Paribas on Thursday said it would not proceed with the acquisition of a stake in beleaguered Belgium-based Fortis Banque as the Brussels court has suspended the transaction. “Given the ruling by the Brussels Court of Appeal on 12 December, 2008, the acquisition of a stake by BNP Paribas in Fortis Banque cannot proceed as initially planned,” the company said in a statement. As a result, the shareholders’ meeting convened on 19 December, 2008, will no longer take place, it added. In a separate statement, Fortis said the ruling has suspended the 100% stake sale of Fortis Insurance Belgium to BNP Paribas, which was expected to generate 5.7 billion euro, subject to certain conditions. Following this, Fortis would fully re consolidate Fortis Insurance Belgium temporarily, it stated. The court ruling also suspends the transfer of assets to a structured credit portfolio entity, of which Fortis would hold 66%, the Belgian State 24% and BNP Paribas 10%. Earlier in October, the French banking major BNP Paribas had said that it would acquire beleaguered Fortis’ Belgium and Luxembourg operations as well as the international franchises for an estimated 14.5 billion euro. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:02 pm Economic growth won't be below 7 percent: GovernmentThe government Thursday said the overall economic growth this fiscal would not fall below 7 percent.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:01 pm India in talks with US firms for nuclear reactorsThe state-owned Nuclear Power Corp (NPCL) is in talks with US nuclear energy companies like GE Energy and Westinghouse Electric for supply of nuclear reactors, the government said Thursday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:01 pm Caterpillar to expand Indian operations, to invest Rs.8 bnWith investments in the infrastructure sector set to increase in India, earthmoving equipment major Caterpillar Inc has decided to expand its Indian operations on an outlay of Rs.8 billion (Rs.800 crore or about $17.78 million).Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:00 pm Kolkata firm to sponsor technology course studentsIn another instance of academics-industry tie-up, the Calcutta University Thursday signed an agreement with city-based software re-engineering services provider Metalogic Systems, under which the company would sponsor M. Tech students in the university.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:00 pm Inflation drops further to 6.84 percentIndia's annual rate of inflation dropped further to 6.84 percent for the week ended Dec 6 from 8 percent the week before, government data showed Thursday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 1:00 pm Qantas, British Airways merger talks groundedSYDNEY/LONDON (Reuters) - Australia's Qantas Airways and British Airways called off talks for a $6.4 billion merger, leaving the British carrier to consider other combinations with European peers as the sector grapples with falling demand and volatile fuel prices .Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:58 pm Kochhar expected to succeed Kamath as ICICI Bank CEOICICI Bank board will meet on Friday and is likely to decide on the successor of KV Kamath, its CEO and managing director.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:56 pm Rail revenues hit buffers as economy slowsNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Revenue of the Indian Railways has taken a hit in October because a slowdown in the economy led to a drop in freight income, the country's railways minister said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:55 pm Sensex closes above 10k as inflation eases - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:53 pm SC refuses to stay Madras HC verdict on Roche’s pleaNew Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to stay the Madras High Court ruling that set aside Swiss drug major F Hoffman-La Roche’s patent related to its anti-infection drug Valganciclovir. The High Court has set aside the patent as it wanted the Chennai patent office to hear the version of the Tamil Nadu Network of People with HIV/AIDS, a Tamil Nadu-based patent group, which had been opposing the patent before it was granted. A bench headed by Justice S H Kapadia, while refusing to stay the High Court order, modified it asking the patent office to dispose of the matter by 31 January. Besides, it said that the Madras High Court order should not affect another petition of Roche pending before the Bombay High Court, seeking injunction on Cipla’s decision to market a copy version of anti-infection drug Valganciclovir, patented by Roche under the brand name Valcept. It said: “It is made clear that pending further orders of (the) Assistant Controller of Patents, Design and Trademarks” the Bombay High Court shall not dismiss Roche’s injunction plea. The apex court also posted the matter for hearing on 10 February. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:42 pm General Motors Says It’s Not in Talks on a Chrysler Merger - Bloomberg
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:38 pm Aviation ministry seeks 2500 crore package to bail out Air India news - domain-B
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:24 pm Madoff under house arrest!Disgraced financier Bernard Madoff, accused of orchestrating a $50 billion fraud, was placed under house arrest on Wednesday as BNP Paribas become the latest European bank to be sideswiped by the scandal.Source: Zee News : Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:13 pm Sensex surges 83 points!The benchmark Sensex recovered by almost 83 points in the opening trade on Thursday.Source: Zee News : Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:13 pm Obama looking at $850 bn jolt to the economy!President-elect Barack Obama appears to be zeroing in on a stimulus package of about USD 850 billion, dwarfing last spring`s tax rebates and rivaling drastic government actions to fight the Great Depression.Source: Zee News : Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:13 pm Oil crashed to four-year low near USD 40 despite OPEC cut!Oil traded near USD 40 a barrel on Thursday, at its lowest levels in more than four years, despite OPEC`s announcement of a record production cut.Source: Zee News : Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:13 pm Rupee up 35 paise against dollar!The Indian rupee on Thursday appreciated further by 35 paise against the greenback in early trade.Source: Zee News : Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:13 pm Chrysler to halt manufacturing units !Chrysler is closing all its North American manufacturing plants for at least a month.Source: Zee News : Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:13 pm India rupee at near 1-½ mth high on rising stocks - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:01 pm Sugar futures gain on low output estimates - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 pm Markets surge as inflation falls, key index crosses 10,000Falling rate of inflation Thursday boosted investors' confidence in equities markets, pushing a key index up 3.72 percent to close above 10,000 points.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 pm Microsoft releases emergency patch for Internet ExplorerBy Glenn Chapman San Francisco: Microsoft on Wednesday released an emergency patch to fix a perilous software flaw allowing hackers to hijack Internet Explorer browsers and take over computers. The US software giant said security update MS08-078 addresses a vulnerability cyber-criminals can exploit to their advantage. “Microsoft encourages all IE customers to test and deploy this update as soon as possible,” said Microsoft security response communications head Christopher Budd. The threat led Microsoft to mobilize security engineering teams worldwide to deliver a software cure “in the unprecedented time of eight days.” According to researchers at software security firm Trend Micro, attacks based on the vulnerability in the world’s most popular Web browser were spreading “like wildfire” with millions of computers already compromised. Microsoft typically releases patches for its software on the second Tuesday of each month and rushing this fix to computer users out-of-cycle is testimony to the severe danger of the threat, according to Trend Micro. “People should run, not walk, to get it installed,” said Trend Micro advanced threat researcher Paul Ferguson. “This vulnerability is being actively exploited by cyber-criminals and getting worse every day.” The IE software patch will be automatically applied to hundreds of millions of personal computers due to standard update settings in the machines, according to Microsoft Security Response Alliance director Mike Reavey. Wednesday morning, business networks using IE began getting the critical fix through routine patching processes. Reavey said Microsoft went into “emergency response” mode on December 9 after it first learned of the attacks on IE browsers. A day later, Microsoft published a security advisory that “listed workarounds that blocked all known attacks.” “Over the course of the next eight days, this advisory was updated five times, adding newer workarounds and mitigations,” Reavey said. “We also continually monitored the threat environment, noting when the attacks began to change in nature and scope.” Trend Micro has identified about 10,000 websites that have been infected with malicious software that can be surreptitiously slipped into visitors’ unprotected IE browsers to take advantage of the flaw. A major Internet portal in Taiwan is among the legitimate websites unknowingly tainted with malicious software aimed at IE’s weak spot, according to Ferguson. Hackers can take control of infected computers, steal data, redirect browsers to dubious websites, and use machines for devious activities such as attacks on other networks, according to security specialists. “What makes this so insidious is it takes advantage of a big gaping hole of IE, which has the largest install base of any browser on the market,” Ferguson said. IE is used on nearly three-quarters of the world’s computers, according to industry statistics from November. Reavey said the patch consists of more than 300 distinct updates for more than half-a-dozen versions of IE in scores of languages. Analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group in Silicon Valley said it was “amazing” that Microsoft was able to turn out a complex critical fix in a week when such jobs typically can take a month or longer of intense work. “Even with that, the release Emergency Response process isn’t over,” Reavey said. “There is additional support to customers and additional refinement of our product development efforts.” Trend Micro urges IE users to heed precautionary advice from Microsoft, or avoid using the browsers, until the patches are applied. The “exploit” is similar to one used recently to steal user names, passwords and other information from people playing online games in China, according to Trend Micro. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:59 am Microsoft releases emergency patch for Internet ExplorerBy Glenn Chapman San Francisco: Microsoft on Wednesday released an emergency patch to fix a perilous software flaw allowing hackers to hijack Internet Explorer browsers and take over computers. The US software giant said security update MS08-078 addresses a vulnerability cyber-criminals can exploit to their advantage. “Microsoft encourages all IE customers to test and deploy this update as soon as possible,” said Microsoft security response communications head Christopher Budd. The threat led Microsoft to mobilize security engineering teams worldwide to deliver a software cure “in the unprecedented time of eight days.” According to researchers at software security firm Trend Micro, attacks based on the vulnerability in the world’s most popular Web browser were spreading “like wildfire” with millions of computers already compromised. Microsoft typically releases patches for its software on the second Tuesday of each month and rushing this fix to computer users out-of-cycle is testimony to the severe danger of the threat, according to Trend Micro. “People should run, not walk, to get it installed,” said Trend Micro advanced threat researcher Paul Ferguson. “This vulnerability is being actively exploited by cyber-criminals and getting worse every day.” The IE software patch will be automatically applied to hundreds of millions of personal computers due to standard update settings in the machines, according to Microsoft Security Response Alliance director Mike Reavey. Wednesday morning, business networks using IE began getting the critical fix through routine patching processes. Reavey said Microsoft went into “emergency response” mode on December 9 after it first learned of the attacks on IE browsers. A day later, Microsoft published a security advisory that “listed workarounds that blocked all known attacks.” “Over the course of the next eight days, this advisory was updated five times, adding newer workarounds and mitigations,” Reavey said. “We also continually monitored the threat environment, noting when the attacks began to change in nature and scope.” Trend Micro has identified about 10,000 websites that have been infected with malicious software that can be surreptitiously slipped into visitors’ unprotected IE browsers to take advantage of the flaw. A major Internet portal in Taiwan is among the legitimate websites unknowingly tainted with malicious software aimed at IE’s weak spot, according to Ferguson. Hackers can take control of infected computers, steal data, redirect browsers to dubious websites, and use machines for devious activities such as attacks on other networks, according to security specialists. “What makes this so insidious is it takes advantage of a big gaping hole of IE, which has the largest install base of any browser on the market,” Ferguson said. IE is used on nearly three-quarters of the world’s computers, according to industry statistics from November. Reavey said the patch consists of more than 300 distinct updates for more than half-a-dozen versions of IE in scores of languages. Analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group in Silicon Valley said it was “amazing” that Microsoft was able to turn out a complex critical fix in a week when such jobs typically can take a month or longer of intense work. “Even with that, the release Emergency Response process isn’t over,” Reavey said. “There is additional support to customers and additional refinement of our product development efforts.” Trend Micro urges IE users to heed precautionary advice from Microsoft, or avoid using the browsers, until the patches are applied. The “exploit” is similar to one used recently to steal user names, passwords and other information from people playing online games in China, according to Trend Micro. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:59 am Microsoft releases emergency patch for Internet ExplorerBy Glenn Chapman San Francisco: Microsoft on Wednesday released an emergency patch to fix a perilous software flaw allowing hackers to hijack Internet Explorer browsers and take over computers. The US software giant said security update MS08-078 addresses a vulnerability cyber-criminals can exploit to their advantage. “Microsoft encourages all IE customers to test and deploy this update as soon as possible,” said Microsoft security response communications head Christopher Budd. The threat led Microsoft to mobilize security engineering teams worldwide to deliver a software cure “in the unprecedented time of eight days.” According to researchers at software security firm Trend Micro, attacks based on the vulnerability in the world’s most popular Web browser were spreading “like wildfire” with millions of computers already compromised. Microsoft typically releases patches for its software on the second Tuesday of each month and rushing this fix to computer users out-of-cycle is testimony to the severe danger of the threat, according to Trend Micro. “People should run, not walk, to get it installed,” said Trend Micro advanced threat researcher Paul Ferguson. “This vulnerability is being actively exploited by cyber-criminals and getting worse every day.” The IE software patch will be automatically applied to hundreds of millions of personal computers due to standard update settings in the machines, according to Microsoft Security Response Alliance director Mike Reavey. Wednesday morning, business networks using IE began getting the critical fix through routine patching processes. Reavey said Microsoft went into “emergency response” mode on December 9 after it first learned of the attacks on IE browsers. A day later, Microsoft published a security advisory that “listed workarounds that blocked all known attacks.” “Over the course of the next eight days, this advisory was updated five times, adding newer workarounds and mitigations,” Reavey said. “We also continually monitored the threat environment, noting when the attacks began to change in nature and scope.” Trend Micro has identified about 10,000 websites that have been infected with malicious software that can be surreptitiously slipped into visitors’ unprotected IE browsers to take advantage of the flaw. A major Internet portal in Taiwan is among the legitimate websites unknowingly tainted with malicious software aimed at IE’s weak spot, according to Ferguson. Hackers can take control of infected computers, steal data, redirect browsers to dubious websites, and use machines for devious activities such as attacks on other networks, according to security specialists. “What makes this so insidious is it takes advantage of a big gaping hole of IE, which has the largest install base of any browser on the market,” Ferguson said. IE is used on nearly three-quarters of the world’s computers, according to industry statistics from November. Reavey said the patch consists of more than 300 distinct updates for more than half-a-dozen versions of IE in scores of languages. Analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group in Silicon Valley said it was “amazing” that Microsoft was able to turn out a complex critical fix in a week when such jobs typically can take a month or longer of intense work. “Even with that, the release Emergency Response process isn’t over,” Reavey said. “There is additional support to customers and additional refinement of our product development efforts.” Trend Micro urges IE users to heed precautionary advice from Microsoft, or avoid using the browsers, until the patches are applied. The “exploit” is similar to one used recently to steal user names, passwords and other information from people playing online games in China, according to Trend Micro. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:59 am Rail revenues hit buffers in October as economy dipsNew Delhi: The railways minister Lalu Prasad Yadav said on Thursday the revenue of the Indian railways has taken a hit in October because a slowdown in the economy led to a drop in freight income, “The decline in railways freight earnings is attributable to a slackening of market demand for transportation in the present environment of economic downturn,” the railway minister, told the Parliament. He also said revenue growth of the railways slowed to 6.52% in October from 19.31% in the same month last year. In a written reply, he said during October, earnings from freight which constitutes bulk of railway revenue earnings dipped to single digit at 4.91% compared to the corresponding month of last year. In April-October period, Indian Railways’ earnings mainly from passenger and goods traffic, however, rose by 15.76% year on year, and stood at Rs44,548 crores. Industrial output fell 0.4% in October from a year earlier, as firms cut production to prevent inventory build-up. Exports have also declined by 12%, the first monthly fall in nearly 3 years on falling overseas demand. Earnings of railways will be hurt in 2008-09 as economic growth is expected to slow to about 7% from 9% in previous year. The railway ministry on Thursday sought parliamentary approval to spend Rs1700 crores over the budgeted Rs29,939 crores in FY09 for completion of ongoing projects. The parliament in October had approved Rs527 crores of extra spending, taking the total surplus to Rs2,227 crores. To counter the effect of the slowdown on financial health of railways, the ministry has taken a number of steps to boost demand for transportation, said Prasad. “These include freight discounts of up to 40% on short lead cement traffic and distance-based freight concession of up to 50% on iron-ore traffic for export,” he added. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:42 am India inflation at nine-month low - BBC News
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:38 am BMW India plans to sell 2,800 units this yearLuxury car manufacturer BMW India is confident of closing this calendar year with a sales of 2,800 units, up from 1,338 units sold in 2007.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:30 am How will the Fed get off its Tiger? James Saft - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:23 am European data grisly, c.bankers eye zero ratesLONDON (Reuters) - Germany and Britain displayed fresh recessionary symptoms on Thursday and a central banker said UK interest rates could hit zero, a level Japan's are forecast to drop closer to this week.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:22 am Chanda Kochhar to succeed KV Kamath as ICICI Bank CEOMumbai: ICICI Bank board will meet here on Friday and is likely to decide on the successor of KV Kamath, its CEO and managing director. The bank’s joint managing director and group chief financial officer Chanda Kochhar is expected to take over the mantle from Kamath after he demits office on 30 April next year, sources said. Kamath would take over as non-executive chairman of the bank in place of N Vaghul, they added. A bank spokesperson declined to comment on the issue. Kamath had started his career in 1971 at erstwhile ICICI, a domestic financial institution that founded ICICI Bank and merged with it in 2002. After a stint with the Asian Development Bank, Kamath returned to ICICI as its CEO in 1996. This same year he was conferred with Padma Bhushan, one of the country’s top civilian honours. Kamath, now also the president of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), is a member of the boards of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, and the Manipal University. Kochhar had joined the erstwhile ICICI as a Management Trainee in 1984. When ICICI decided in 1993 to enter the commercial banking, she was deputed to ICICI Bank as a part of the core team to set up the bank. Kochhar was instrumental in setting up and scaling up the retail business for ICICI Bank. In April 2001, she took over as the executive director, heading the retail business in the ICICI Bank. In April 2006, she was appointed as deputy managing director. She has often featured in the Fortune magazine’s annual lists of most powerful business women across the world. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:20 am World headed for 'long and deep' recession: Canadian bankScotiabank, which is Canada's second largest bank with operations in about 50 countries said the developed world could see virtually no economic gain till 2012.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:02 am India Inc lauds shareholder victory in Satyam deal - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 18 Dec 2008 | 11:01 am GM, Chrysler reopens merger talksPTI New York: General Motors Corp (GM) and Chrysler LLC have restarted the merger talks, as Chrysler owner Cerberus Capital Management LP has signaled its willingness to give away part of its ownership in the auto maker, a media report said on Thursday, citing people familiar with the goings-on. With cash running low at both companies, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said Cerberus took the initiative to restart discussions that sputtered just weeks ago. At that time, both GM and Chrysler viewed a business combination as impractical. The renewal of talks could be a way for Cerberus to show Washington, weighing a US $14 billion rescue package for the auto industry, that it wants to cooperate in restructuring the industry, WSJ said. And it could offer the firm a way to protect its stakes in two distressed auto-finance companies, GMAC LLC and Chrysler Financial, which are crucial to the survival of the Detroit auto makers, it added. But the paper said that it is not clear what effect the renewed merger talks might have on the intricate political calculus hanging over a US government rescue of the auto makers. On Wednesday, Chrysler said it would suspend production at all 30 of its plants for a month starting Friday. Earlier in December, Congress pressed Cerberus to inject fresh capital into Chrysler as part of a rescue plan. So far, the firm has rejected the idea, saying shareholders of rivals GM and Ford Motors Co are not being asked to contribute more capital, and that its investment charter prohibits such move. One way in which Cerberus might make concessions, however, could be to give away some of its principals’ stakes in Chrysler as part of a broader restructuring, the WSJ said. That could mean giving a future government auto czar discretion to distribute Cerberus’ stake to the United Auto Workers union or even to GM. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 10:58 am Satyam stock rebounds, Maytas still fallingThe Satyam scrip recovered somewhat on Thursday after Wednesday's rout at the Indian stock markets.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 10:50 am Closing: Low inflation boosts Sensex above 10k levelThe Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex recovered from past months of choppy trade on Thursday, 18 December to end 3.72% higher, crossing the 10,000 mark. Buying was boosted after the inflation data was released indicating better than expected fall to 6.84% for week ended 6 December, lowest in nine months. The 30-share BSE index had commenced trading higher by 83 points up, after a brief slip in the late morning trade it gained 361.14 points to end at 10,076.43 as investors bought stocks in capital good, bank, realty, power and information technology sectors. The broad based 50-share National Stock Exchange index Nifty also shot up by 106.40 points to end at 3060.75, one of its highest. The Sensex had spurted over 300 points late afternoon to touch 10,000 level around 2pm. Trading sentiment was also urged by expectations of another fiscal stimulus by the government next week to lift India’s slowing economic growth. Satyam Computers stocks rebounded on Thursday after receiving a battering in Wednesday’s session by investors’ resentment over company’s decision to buy parts of Maytas companies. Satyam stocks gained 7.15% to Rs169.35 on overnight US markets rise. Leading the day’s rally was DLF, which rose by 9.56% to Rs277.40, followed by Jaiprakash Associates (9.36%, Rs84.15), Reliance Infrastructure (9.32%, Rs600.35), ICICI Bank Ltd (9.16%, Rs471.35) and State Bank of India (7.88%, Rs1295.85). Volume of trade was highest among Reliance industries, Suzlon Energy and Unitech Ltd. Meanwhile with the effect of Opec and US Fed cuts fading but hopes on Bank of Japan slashing rates Asian markets witnessed mixed trading. Japan’s Nikkei ended by 0.6% up and Hang Seng ended flat. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 10:47 am Satyam board to meet on December 29 to consider buyback of sharesIT major Satyam Computer Services said on Thursday its board will meet on December 29 to consider a share buyback proposal.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 10:45 am Siemens CEO says sees crisis as an opportunityBERLIN (Reuters) - The worldwide economic financial crisis represents an opportunity for Siemens AG to strengthen its position and make acquisitions, Siemens chief executive Peter Loescher said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 10:42 am Unitech to invest Rs2,500 crore to build homes for middle classNew Delhi: Country’s second biggest realty firm Unitech Ltd plans to invest Rs2,500 crore to launch 10,000 residential units in the Rs30-50 lakh category by the next fiscal. The company would launch affordable housing projects in Gurgaon, Noida, Greater Noida, Kolkata and Chennai, where it has land banks. “We have land at various places. We are in a position to launch a number of projects,” Unitech Chairman Ramesh Chandra told PTI. Asked how many housing units the company plans to launch, he said, “It could go up to 10,000 units by next fiscal. It will need an investment of Rs2,500 crore on construction. Land anyway I have it”. The housing units would be offered to customers in the range of Rs30-50 lakh, Chandra said, adding that the company would launch the housing projects taking into account the affordability of that particular city. Chandra noted that affordable housing is determined by two things - market conditions and location. “These two things will determine how much will be luxury housing and how much will be affordable. But naturally affordable housing has a far higher percentage,” he added. Chandra pointed out that the company would not launch any luxury housing project in the near future seeing the present market condition. “Luxury housing will continue, but that may form a much smaller percentage of the total offering. When it was more investor oriented, may be luxury housing was 30%. Now, it may be 7-8% ,” he said. Chandra said it was possible to offer houses in the “affordable range” if developers reduce the size of the units, focus on value engineering and are prepare to work on lesser margins. Besides, Chandra said the prices also come down, which would lead to reduction in construction costs. Asked whether Unitech was adopting the four strategies to bring down the prices, Chandra said, “Yes, we are working on few projects. Recently, 3-4 months back, we launched some apartments of Rs35-40 lakh in Gurgaon. “If the apartment size is reduced from 1,600 sq ft to 1,000 sq ft, you are straight away reducing the ticket size by 35-40%,” he said. By reducing overall ticket size by about 40%, construction cost could be brought down, he added. Earlier this month, the company had announced investing about Rs2,500 crore to develop 35 hotels across the country over the next seven years. Unitech also plans to raise up to Rs2,500 crore through sale of some assets and equity to retire part of Rs8,000 crore debt by March, 2009. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 10:39 am British retail sales up unexpectedly in NovemberAP London: In the run-up to Christmas the consumers are continuing to spend despite rising unemployment and mounting fears about the economy due to which the British retail sales has risen unexpectedly in November, official figures showed on Thursday. The Office for National Statistics revealed that retail sales during November increased by 0.3% from the October. Analysts were anticipating a 0.6% decline. The rise was driven by an increase in sales at household goods stores and non-store retail and repair shops, said the statistics office. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 10:24 am UK withdrawing from Iraq : BrownLondon: Prime Minister Gordon Brown was due to detail Britain’s withdrawal from Iraq today during an address lawmakers after a one-day visit with Iraqi leaders in Baghdad and UK troops in the country’s south. Following talks yesterday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, Brown said that his country’s troops will end a six-year mission by 31 May, 2009, and withdraw completely from their base in southern Iraq by July. Britain has around 4,000 troops stationed mainly at a camp close to an airport in the southern city of Basra, Iraq’s second largest urban center. The UK provided the second-largest military presence in Iraq after the US. “The role played by the UK combat forces is drawing to a close,” Brown said in Baghdad. “These forces will have completed their tasks in the first half of 2009 and will then leave Iraq,” US troops will take over Britain’s base once UK forces leave, sending soldiers to Basra to secure supply lines which pass through southern Iraq from Kuwait. Several hundred British soldiers are likely to remain in Iraq to continue work to train Iraqi army officers. Brown’s office said he would set out detailed plans to lawmakers in an address to the House of Commons today. Opposition lawmakers said they will now press Brown to hold a full public inquiry to examine mistakes made in the run up to the US-led 2003 invasion and errors in postwar planning. “Now that we know our troops are being withdrawn there is no excuse not to have the inquiry into the Iraq war that we have demanded,” said opposition Conservative Party lawmaker Liam Fox. “We need to learn the lessons from Iraq so that we do no repeat the mistakes in places such as Afghanistan”. Brown has said previously that his government would hold an inquiry but not until Britain’s troops had left Iraq. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 9:59 am Satyam to consider share buyback on Dec 29BANGALORE (Reuters) - The board of India's Satyam Computer Services will meet on Dec. 29 to consider a share buyback, the outsourcer said on Thursday, two days after it shocked investors with a proposed deal to buy two firms management had a stake in.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 9:26 am World Bank chief sees tough first half of 2009Singapore: The global economy is likely to worsen in the first half of next year with rising unemployment adding to the woes of governments, World Bank president Robert Zoellick said on Thursday. He said an upturn in 2009 would depend on how governments cooperated among themselves to implement monetary and fiscal policy and whether they refrained from protectionism. “I’m afraid that in the first six months of 2009, there are going to be problems worldwide, including in Asia,” he said when asked about the outlook for the world economy. “This financial, economic and unemployment crisis is serious enough. If we trigger a round of protectionism as we saw in the 1930s, it (the crisis) could deepen,” he said. The World Bank is trying to help Indonesia and Mexico tackle their budget deficits as a rush by governments in developed countries to guarantee bank debt made it harder for the developing countries to raise funds in global markets, he said. The World Bank is working with Australia, Japan and the Asian Development Bank to provide a funding package worth $5-$6 billion for Indonesia, he said. A similar package is also being considered Mexico. Indonesia, hard hit by the global financial turmoil, said last week that it would return to the global capital markets early next year, selling a landmark global sukuk bond that was previously set to raise $1 billion. He also said China’s leaders, whom he met while on a visit to the country earlier in the week, had “been struck by the depth and fallout in exports”. But China, armed with its huge foreign exchange reserves and government surpluses, was well positioned to cope with the crisis, he added. Zoellick said the financial and economic problems that emerged this year could turn into an employment crisis in 2009, and pledged that the World Bank would make funds available to help poorer countries cope with the economic downturn. He was in Singapore to sign an agreement for the city-state to help the World Bank train people in urban development. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 9:19 am Satyam to consider buyback of shares on 29 DecMumbai: IT major Satyam Computer Services on Thursday said its board will meet on 29 December to consider a share buyback proposal. “A meeting of the board of directors of the company will be held on December 29, 2008, to consider the proposal for buyback of shares of the company,” Satyam said in a regulatory filing to the stock exchanges. The company’s move to mollify shareholders comes after it raised investor ire on its proposed $1.6-billion acquisition deal, which had to be called off. After suffering a severe battering on Wednesday, Satyam shares surged 13.88% to an intra-day high of Rs180 on Thursday on the Bombay Stock Exchange. It was later trading at Rs172.75, up 9.30% on the BSE in the late afternoon trade. On Wednesday, the scrip had plunged as much as 30% to close at Rs158.05 after touching its 52-week low. The company on Tuesday had announced a $1.6-billion deal to acquire Maytas Properties and Maytas Infrastructure - companies run by Satyam chief Ramalinga Raju’s sons B Rama Raju and Teja Raju. However, investors’ opposition had forced Satyam to call off the deal just a day later. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 8:57 am Rates to fall on lower inflation - fin min officialNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Falling inflation in India will result in lower interest rates, a senior finance ministry official said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 8:33 am Inflation dives to nine-month low of 6.84%A cut in petrol and diesel prices pushed inflation down to 6.84 per cent, the lowest in nine months.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 8:11 am Adi Godrej 'bullish' on economy, says more liquidity neededGodrej Group chief Adi Godrej said on Thursday that the Indian economy needs a lot more liquidity to sustain its growth momentum.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 18 Dec 2008 | 8:10 am Posco to cut steel output by 10% till JanuaryReuters Seoul: South Korea’s Posco, the world’s No.4 steelmaker, said on Thursday it would cut steel output by around 10% during December and January, as inventory increased due to tumbling demand from auto and home appliance makers. The move, its first output reduction ever, is to respond to sharply deteriorating domestic market conditions, said the company. “We have delayed timing of a production cut as long as we can but Thursday’s move was made because end-users are planning to halt production during the year end and falling export prices are also likely to hit profitabilities,” Posco said in a statement. It produces around 2.75 million tonnes of crude steel a month and plans to reduce 200,000 tonnes of output in December and another 370,000 tonnes in January. Posco had been the sole steelmaker among the global majors refusing to reduce output partly because it has benefited from a weaker won currency. Steel inventories in South Korea, where Posco earns 70% of its sales, have risen by 1.2 million tonnes from the beginning of year 2008, as new housing starts tumbled and auto makers slashed production. Shares of Posco were up 2.2% to 400,000 won versus a 0.3% gain in the broader market. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 7:15 am Qantas says British Airways merger talks endMelbourne: Australian carrier Qantas Airways Ltd and British Airways Plc (BA) have called off their merger talks because they cannot agree key terms, Qantas said on Thursday. “Despite the potential longer-term benefits for Qantas and BA, the airlines have not been able to come to an agreement over the key terms of the merger, at this time,” Qantas said in a statement to the stock exchange. Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce had warned last week that the merger faced major hurdles and would only go ahead if Qantas could secure major revenue and cost benefits. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 6:32 am Qantas says British Airways merger talks endMelbourne: Australian carrier Qantas Airways Ltd and British Airways Plc (BA) have called off their merger talks because they cannot agree key terms, Qantas said on Thursday. “Despite the potential longer-term benefits for Qantas and BA, the airlines have not been able to come to an agreement over the key terms of the merger, at this time,” Qantas said in a statement to the stock exchange. Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce had warned last week that the merger faced major hurdles and would only go ahead if Qantas could secure major revenue and cost benefits. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 6:32 am Inflation at 9-month low of 6.84% on lower fuel pricesNew Delhi: Declining fuel prices pushed down inflation sharply for the sixth consecutive week to 6.84%, the lowest in nine months, a development that could prompt the Reserve Bank of India to take more bold steps to boost economic growth. Inflation dipped by 1.16 percentage points from 8% in the previous week, primarily on account of reduction in prices of petrol and diesel announced by the government in the first week of the month. It was 6.21% in the week ended 1 March 2008. The rate during the corresponding period last year was 3.84%. The government reduced the per litre prices of petrol and diesel by Rs5 and Rs2 respectively with effect from 6 December in the wake of falling prices of crude oil in the international market. Also Read: December 11 | Inflation further eases to 8% from 8.4% December 04 | Inflation eases to 8.4% as crude, commodities cool Also, the prices of those items which are not decided by the government came down during the week. The index of ‘fuel, power, light and lubricants´ fell by 3.7%, as prices of petrol, jet fuel (Aviation Turbine Fuel), naphtha and furnace oil declined by 10%, 7%, 23% and 15% respectively. In addition to fuel items, the prices of fruits and vegetables, various pulses steel, pig iron and certain metals too declined during the week. The central bank has taken a host of measures releasing as much as Rs3,00,000 crore to fuel growth and with the inflation coming down further, it might take more steps to boost industrial output. Apart from fruits and vegetables, prices of imported edible oil, rice bran oil and coconut oil also declined. The index for chemicals and chemical products group declined by 0.6% and transport equipment and parts declined by 0.5% during the week. However, the prices of non-food articles group rose by 0.1% due to higher prices of fodder, groundnut seed, gingelly seed and raw cotton. In the manufactured products category, atta (by 2%), groundnut oil and ghee (by 1%) and cotton seed oil became dearer during the week. The inflation data of the week does not capture the impact of 4% excise cut across the board announced last week on 7 December as a part of the stimulus package to revive the slowing Indian economy. The inflation for the week ended 11 October stood at 11.30%, up from the provisional estimates of 11.07%. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 5:46 am Rupee rose near 1-month high on weak dollarReuters Mumbai: The rupee climbed towards a fresh 1-month high on Thursday following the dollar’s weakness against some Asian currencies and a firmer stock market. Demand for dollars from oil refiners could limit the rupee’s rise, which has been underpinned by a revival in foreign investment in the stock market this month, said traders. At 10:15am the partially convertible rupee was at Rs47.34/35 per US dollar, 0.7% stronger than Wednesday’s close of Rs47.67/69. On Tuesday, it hit an intraday high of Rs47.22 highest since 10 November. “We should see another ranged day with gains likely to be capped by oil refiner dollar buying,” said a senior dealer at a foreign bank. In December, the rupee has gained 6%, on the back of about US $440 million ploughed into stocks by foreign portfolio investors. Sentiment was also bolstered by the dollar’s slide to a 2-month low against the euro on Thursday after the Federal Reserve’s interest rate cut further eroded the greenback’s relative yield appeal. Oil steadied around US $40 a barrel, near its lowest in more than 4 years, as further evidence of slowing demand trumped Opec’s biggest ever production cut. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 5:31 am December Season: A musical historyOver the last week, Mint has been running a series of features tied to the ongoing Carnatic music season in Chennai. As the season picks up steam now, and as the concerts begin to flow thick and fast, we wanted to revisit the genesis of this season on Just to Clarify, to see how and why this massive festival of the arts began.  Joining us today is V. Sriram, a popular music historian based in Chennai. Sriram has written a number of books on the history of the Carnatic music genre, including Carnatic Summer, a collection of profiles of musicians. He is on the editorial advisory committee of Sruti, the classical music and dance magazine. During the season, in fact, he conducts many lecture demonstrations on various aspects of musical history, and these are always just as well attended as the most popular concerts. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 4:59 am Mixed Asia stock trading on economic uncertaintyHong Kong: The US dollar hit 2-1/2-month lows against the euro on Thursday, with investors deterred by the world’s lowest interest rates, while weak energy demand due to the global downturn kept oil prices near 4-year lows below $40 a barrel. Expectations that deep recessions from Britain to the United States could lock their economies in a deflationary spiral of falling prices and profits kept investors reaching for longer-dated US government bonds seeking both safety and yield as a most difficult year winds down. Japanese stocks edged up, led by bank shares as the country’s central bank kicked off a two-day meeting that many economists say could produce a rate cut to follow the US Federal Reserve’s historic cut in base rates to near zero on Tuesday. The dollar’s uncertain prospects as the Fed engages in quantitative easing - when central banks overwhelm the financial system with money to promote lending has spooked dealers who had bets on further strength in the dollar. As a result, they have rapidly liquidated their positions. Against the yen, the dollar climbed 0.6% to 87.75 yen after plumbing a 13-year low overnight of 87.13 yen. The sustained drop below 90 yen, a psychologically important level for the market, has sparked concern Japanese officials could intervene to cap the yen’s gains. Japan’s Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa said he would not comment on whether the ministry would enter the market. The stance was different from just a week ago when Nakagawa said flatly he was not thinking about whether Japan should intervene. Asian stocks rose modestly, helped by property and bank shares, on hopes policymakers will follow the Fed’s lead and cut rates with abandon to spur growth. Japan’s Nikkei average rose 0.9% as shares of big banks and brokerages rallied on growing expectations the Bank of Japan will lower rates on Friday. Japan’s biggest bank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group rose 2.3%, while second-ranked Mizuho Financial Group climbed 2.8%. The MSCI index of stocks in Asia-Pacific outside Japan climbed 0.6% to a 1-month high, as some foreign investors scooped up cheap shares. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 0.3%, dragged lower by a 3.8% drop in HSBC on fears about dividend cuts and the potential need to raise capital to weather rough times ahead. Fund managers’ views on China remained quite optimistic because of its capacity for more rate cuts and fiscal stimulus and the world’s fourth largest economy was the preferred choice of Asian equity investors, according to a Merrill Lynch survey. However, the proportion of fund managers’ portfolios dedicated to emerging markets is at the lowest since 2001. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 4:32 am Chrysler shuts plants, Bush weighs bailout pleasDetrout: Embattled US automakers General Motors Corp and Chrysler LLC both announced steps to shore up their dwindling cash on Wednesday as they awaited word on whether the White House would grant them billions of dollars in emergency loans. GM said it was suspending work on construction of an engine plant in Flint, Michigan where it planned to build a new small engine vital to its effort to reinvent itself as a maker of fuel-efficient and all-electric cars. Chrysler said it would shut down all of its production for at least a month, effective from the last shift on Friday. The No. 3 US automaker, considered the weakest player in an embattled industry, also said its US dealers were losing up to a quarter of all potential sales because of the difficulty in securing consumer loans. In another move underscoring the deepening of the crisis, Chrysler said its financing arm might have to suspend loans to its dealers which they use to carry inventory of unsold vehicles. The move would potentially cut off trade credits that US auto retailers depend upon to stay in business. President George W. Bush said a decision on the emergency loan requests needed to be made “relatively soon,” but suggested he was still thinking through basic questions on how the aid should be structured. United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger said time was running out for the Bush administration to come to the aid of the struggling industry. “We’re just appealing to the administration to take action as quickly as possible to relieve the fears that exist out there. And then we’ve got to get the credit market loosened up to where consumers can take advantage of credit,” Gettelfinger said in a CNN interview. GM has said it could run short of cash by early January without a federal loan. Chrysler has said it has only slightly more time absent a bailout. Both automakers and Ford Motor Co, which is not seeking emergency funding, have warned that the failure of one of Detroit automaker could topple others by triggering a cascade of failures among the cash-strapped suppliers that provide components across the industry. Earlier, Honda Motor Co issued its third profit warning this year, slashing its operating forecast by two-thirds because of slowing sales and a soaring yen. The deeper-than-expected revision at Japan’s No.2 automaker could touch off similar moves at domestic rivals Toyota Motor Corp and Nissan Motor Co, also reeling from the dollar’s plunge to 13.5-year lows against the yen. Shares of Honda opened down almost 5% in Tokyo after its US-traded shares tumbled 7%. One analyst said he expected the Bush administration to provide the aid after showing that it understood the objections to a bailout raised by Republican lawmakers. Downturn hits Honda hard Just two months ago, Honda had been expected to weather the downturn better than its rivals with its fuel-efficient fleet, but demand has fallen across-the-board since Lehman Brothers collapsed in September and credit tightened. “The situation is worsening by the day and is showing no sign of recovery,” Honda Chief Executive Takeo Fukui told a news conference. Honda, also the world’s largest motorcycle maker, said it now expected an operating profit of just $2 billion in the year to March, down 67% its forecast in October. The new target is more than 80% below last year’s 953 billion yen operating profit. Investors said the brutal downgrade may still not go far enough because of the stronger yen. Toyota, the world’s largest automaker, is expected to cut its sales goal by at least 1 million vehicles at its year-end news conference on 22 December. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 18 Dec 2008 | 4:00 am Small savings collections rise 5.85% in April-OctNew Delhi, Dec. 17 The declining trend in gross small savings collections since 2006-07 appears to have been reversed going by the latest official data. During April-October 2008, gross small savings collections grew 5.85 per cent over the sameSource: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Day Trading GuideWe initiate our daily coverage in DLF stock by recommending buy in dips with tight stop-loss at RsSource: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am ACC (Rs 486.30): SellWe recommend a sell in ACC from a short-term trading perspective. It is evident from the charts of ACC that it has been on a long-term downtrend from its life-time high of Rs 1,314 recorded in October 2007. The stock halted at its long-termSource: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Hurrah for shareholder activism!Institutional investors’ interest in Indian stocks may be low but it is heartening to see that they remain interested enough in the businesses they hold, to turn activist if the situation demands. It is thanks to the loud protests bySource: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Essel Group enters formal school spaceNew Delhi, Dec. 17 Mr Subhash Chandra-owned Essel Group will invest Rs 350 crore over the next five years to establish 300 schoolsSource: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Satyam backtracks, says it misread the possible impactHyderabad, Dec. 17 Satyam Computer Services has called off the $1.6-billion twin deals to acquire Maytas Properties and Maytas Infra, controlled by the sons of the company’s Chairman, Mr B. Ramalinga Raju.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Maytas deal raises more questions: MinistryNew Delhi, Dec. 17 The promoters of Satyam Computer Services will have to answer more questions even after calling off the controversial $1.6-billion Maytas deal.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am RBI wants a rethink on ‘big, complex’ institutionsMumbai, Dec 17 In the context of the global economy entering into a phase of downturn on account of the global financial crisis, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in its latest Report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India, said that anSource: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Stamp duty on new apartments to be exempted in APHyderabad, Dec. 17 The Andhra Pradesh Government has decided to exempt stamp duty on new apartments up to 1,200 sq ft from January 1, 2009, to December 31, 2010, in efforts to encourage construction of affordableSource: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Auto cos near Pune set to halt work in DecemberPune, Dec. 17 With block closures the unfortunate flavour of the season, Pune could well become “ground zero-production” during and around Christmas week.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 18 Dec 2008 | 12:00 am Numonyx uses flash-tech to catch up with SamsungMilan, Italy: The STMicroelectronics NV and Intel Corp. venture, Numonyx BV, has unveiled a new flash memory technology as it seeks to narrow the gap with the world’s largest maker of such chips, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. Numonyx will offer NAND-memory chips based on its new 41-nanometre technology for use in devices such as mobile phones, set-top boxes and navigation systems, the company said in an emailed statement on Wednesday. 2009 will be a year to be managed with extreme caution and prudence. Numonyx was created in March, when STMicroelectronics and Intel combined their unprofitable flash memory units to create the third biggest maker of non-volatile memory, which stores information even when not powered up. Numonyx may seek to gain share after Samsung said this month that it will struggle to report a profit at its memory chip business this quarter. “Today’s announcement is a sign of confidence in the future,” Gualandris said. “We’re committed to continue developing and innovating in spite of the hard times.” Gartner Inc. forecast on Tuesday global semiconductor sales will drop 16% next year because of the deteriorating economy. The US researcher joins the Semiconductor Industry Association and WSTS Inc. in lowering its outlook amid slumping demand for electronic equipment. The global NAND segment will be worth around $13 billion (Rs62,140 crore) this year, a 10% decline from 2007 because of a drop in memory prices, Gualandris said. “2009 will be a year to be managed with extreme caution and prudence,” he said. “Analysts aren’t seeing any sign of a recovery in prices in the first half of next year.” NAND memory is one of the largest segments of the chip industry “driven primarily by the high levels of digital content found in everything from set-top boxes to mobile phones, to store pictures, videos, songs and operate popular multimedia applications”, the firm said. Prices of the benchmark NAND flash memory chip have fallen 70% this year after plummeting 63% in 2007, as per Taipei-based DRAMexchange Technology Inc., operator of Asia’s biggest spot market for chips. Japan’s Toshiba Corp.
said it’ll cut NAND flash memory production 30% from January because of falling demand. Numonyx is considering making memories for solid-state drives, as the market for the alternative to hard drives expands, Gualandris said. Solid-state drives, which store data on flash memory chip, are lighter, more resistant to shock and can read data faster than traditional hard drives. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 17 Dec 2008 | 7:45 pm Need to Know | PK Gopalakrishnan to head MindTree IndiaBangalore: City-based global information technology (IT) and research and development (R&D) services company MindTree Ltd on Wednesday announced the appointment of P.K. Gopalakrishnan as senior vice-president and head of its India operations. In this role, Gopalakrishnan would hold business responsibility for Indian enterprises, defence and government sectors across both IT services and R&D services businesses, the company said in a statement. He would also help in building MindTree’s system integration capability, which the organization is strongly intent on acquiring along with its existing base of services. Gopalakrishnan brings with him 23 years of experience in the industry. Prior to joining MindTree, he worked with Wipro Ltd, where he was responsible for the government and defence industry vertical in India, the statement said. —PTI ********* SBI MF appoints Navneet Munot as CIO Mumbai: SBI Funds Management on Wednesday announced the appointment of Navneet Munot as its chief investment officer (CIO) with effect from 12 December. In his earlier assignment, Munot was executive director with Morgan Stanley Investment Management, where he was also head, multi-strategy funds. He has also worked as CIO, fixed income and hybrid funds, with Birla Sun Life AMC. —PTI ********* Honda Siel postpones production at Tapukara New Delhi: Honda Siel Cars India Ltd said it would postpone plans to produce vehicles at its plant in Tapukara, Rajasthan, due to slowing car sales. The capacity had originally been scheduled to be added in the fourth quarter of 2009, the company said in a release. No new date has been announced. The company had planned to invest Rs1,000 crore at the plant out of which Rs600 crore has been spent in land acquisition, the press shop and the power train unit. For now, the Tapukara plant will supply components to Honda Siel’s plant in Greater Noida, a company spokesperson said. —Samar Srivastava ********* AAI says Air India owes Rs739.5 crore Mumbai: National air-carrier Air India “has to pay us Rs739.5 crore as landing and parking charges”, an Airports Authority of India (AAI) official said on condition of anonymity. The dues are till 31 October, the official said, adding that, “we have no security deposit of Air India with us against these dues unlike private air carriers”. On Tuesday, civil aviation minister Praful Patel had informed Parliament that private carriers owe Rs362 crore as landing and parking fees to AAI. While SpiceJet owes Rs15.76 crore against a security deposit of Rs30.50 crore, low-budget carrier IndiGo’s outstanding is Rs6 crore against Rs46.05 crore, the official said. The Wadia Group-promoted GoAir’s dues are Rs3.81 crore against Rs13 crore security money, he said. All business-class airline Paramount Airways has a higher outstanding compared with the guarantee money at Rs12.50 crore against Rs6.50 crore. —PTI ********* Poor demand: ACC shuts clinker plant for 15 days Mumbai: Indian cement producer ACC Ltd said on Wednesday it had temporarily shut a 4,800 tonnes a day clinker kiln in northern India due to rising stocks and poor cement demand in the region. ACC, the country’s single largest cement producer, said it had closed its Gagal-II kiln in Himachal Pradesh on 16 December and added it would remain shut for 15 days. The kiln contributes 2.4 million tonnes (mt) a year to ACC’s total capacity of 22.41 mt. “The poor demand scenario coupled with duty-free imports has resulted in the clinker stock at Gagal plant increasing from August onwards,” ACC said in a statement. Earlier this month, ACC cut cement prices by up to Rs5 per 50kg bag. Ambuja Cements also cut prices by Rs4-6 a bag. Swiss cement maker Holcim holds about 46% stake in both firms. —Reuters ********* Indian jewellers seek help to regain lost lustre Mumbai: India’s gem and jewellery sector has appealed for urgent government help to prevent substantial job losses, as the knock-on effects of the global economic slowdown bites. “The current economic situation has pushed the industry into a corner,” said Vasant Mehta, chairman of the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), an umbrella group of about 5,000 exporters and manufacturers. “We seek interim relief from the government to prevent the imminent crisis,” he told a news conference late on Tuesday. Gems and jewellery constitute up to 35% of India’s exports, with the US its largest market. The industry has already cut back manufacturing by more than 25% and recently announced a moratorium on the purchase of rough diamonds for processing and production, GJEPC said. Exports in the sector fell a little over 34% to $987 million (Rs4,668 crore) in November, down from $1.5 billion in the same period of 2007, according to provisional GJEPC figures. “December is likely to show a similar (downward) trend,” Mehta said. At the manufacturing level, cut and polished diamond exports have fallen at least 20%, against the same period last year. —AFP ********* Zee Learn to have 300 schools in India New Delhi: Zee Learn, a division of the Subhash Chandra-owned Etc Networks Ltd, has said it will expand its presence in the kindergarten to 12th grade, or K-12, schools in the country. The company, which has six such schools at present, will take that to 300 schools with an investment of Rs350 crore in the next five years. It already runs play schools branded as Kidzee. “We have 623 Kidzee’s today. The job will be half finished if we do not get into schools,” said Sumeet Mehta, chief executive of Zee Learn, at a press conference held on Wednesday. Zee will either open its own schools or get into partnerships with school managements or trusts. It plans to have two brands: Mount Litera schools will open in metros and tier I cities, with an annual tuition fee range of Rs50,000 to Rs4 lakh depending on the curriculum they offer which will include IB, or International Baccalaureate. Litera Valley schools in tier II cities such as Ranchi will have an annual tuition fee of Rs15,000-50,000 depending on the city and will offer a CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education), ICSE (Indian Schools Certificate Examination) or IGCSE (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) curriculum. —Aparna Kalra ********* Manipal Education in JV with TutorVista.com New Delhi: The Manipal Education and Medical Group International India Pvt. Ltd, whose chairman also runs Manipal University, has tied up with TutorVista.com, an online tutoring service in which it has a minority stake, to float a new venture called Manipal K-12 Education Pvt. Ltd. The venture will manage new and existing schools and will operate under the brand name Manipal Schools. It will also provide online lessons to schools. TutorVista operates a hybrid model in the Indian market through Edurite Technologies, which it took over in November 2007. Edurite offers a combination of offline classes with online tools such as Web-based content and e-learning products. Commenting on the partnership, Ranjan Pai, chief executive of Manipal Education and Medical Group, said, “We are happy to partner with TutorVista.com through their Indian arm Edurite Technologies. They complement our profile in education. They are leaders in the field of technology-enabled tutoring in the global market and are a well-recognized player in the school education domain in India. The Manipal Schools will be a logical extension of our core strength in education.” —Aparna Kalra ********* Reliance defaults on oil delivery to CPCL New Delhi: Reliance Industries Ltd has failed to deliver the second consignment of crude oil from its eastern offshore Krishna-Godavari basin D6 block to Chennai Petroleum Corp. Ltd (CPCL), as output from the field has been erratic. Reliance was to deliver a consignment of about 60,000 tonnes of oil from its MA-1 field in the predominantly gas-rich block in the Bay of Bengal to CPCL on 23-24 November, but failed to meet the deadline, people familiar with the matter said. Output from the field has been erratic with more than expected natural gas flowing out of the well along with crude oil. Production from the field varies on a daily basis, sometimes falling to as low as 8,000 barrels per day (bpd) and then suddenly rising to 12,000 bpd. Reliance has not been able to accumulate the requisite quantity of oil to be sold to CPCL and so it defaulted on the delivery plans. The field, which started crude oil production in September, last week suffered an equipment failure leading to the closure of the facility for three-four weeks. It was not clear when the second consignment would be delivered. —PTI ********* Tata Power, IOC form JV for coal-based plant New Delhi: Tata Power Co. Ltd and Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOC), the nation’s biggest refiner, formed a venture to set up a coal-based power plant in Orissa. Tata Power will own 74% of the venture, the company said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange on Wednesday. IOC will hold 26%, Tata Power said. The plant will supply power to IOC’s refinery and petrochemicals unit in the state, according to the statement. The venture will operate after IOC approves the investment in the refinery complex. —Bloomberg ********* IOC-Adani JV to pick stake in LNG terminal New Delhi: A joint venture of state refiner Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOC) and Adani Energy is likely to take a 50% stake in a Rs4,000 crore liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal planned by the Gujarat State Petroleum Corp. Ltd (GSPC) at Mundra in Gujarat. IOC and Adani Energy earlier this month signed an agreement to set up a 50:50 joint venture company for gas distribution. The joint venture company, which is likely to take shape by January, will set up city gas distribution projects in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh for supply of compressed natural gas (CNG) for automobiles and piped natural gas for domestic and industrial use, besides marketing LNG. GSPC will hold the remaining 50% stake in the terminal that is planned for commissioning in 2012, a company official said. —PTI ********* ’92 scam: StanChart to be taxed on interest paid New Delhi: The spectre of Harshad Mehta has returned to haunt the Indian arm of Standard Chartered Bank, with a tribunal ruling that the interest it paid to its headquarters on an amount borrowed to make payments to the National Housing Bank (NHB), in the aftermath of the infamous stock scam of 1992, is taxable. The case concerns UK-based Standard Chartered Bank, which had paid an interest of about Rs32 crore to its head office on the sum borrowed from its headquarters to pay to NHB in the assessment year 1996-97. Standard Chartered had been asked by the Reserve Bank of India at the time of the notorious Harshad Mehta stock scam to pay about Rs506.54 crore to NHB, which it borrowed from its head office, and also paid an interest of Rs32 crore on the borrowed sum. The Delhi bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal giving a ruling in the case said, “It (interest paid to Standard Chartered Bank’s head office) is not an expense in the hands of non-resident assessee and hence cannot be allowed.” The bank had shown the amount as an expense for itself. An amount shown as an expense by an entity is eventually deducted from the income of the company, and is thus not taxed. —PTI ********* IDBI aims to sell home finance unit by January Mumbai: State-run IDBI Bank Ltd hopes to sell its home finance unit by mid-January, its deputy managing director said on Wednesday. The bank has short-listed around seven buyers, O.V. Bundellu said without giving any other details. —Reuters ********* Tata Capital to raise up to $500 mn through PE Mumbai: Tata Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Sons Ltd, plans to raise $350-500 million (Rs1,655.5- 2,365 crore) through the private equity route for deployment in mid-size companies, a company executive said on Wednesday. “We are raising $350-500 million through private equity for deployment in mid-size companies. However, it would depend upon market conditions. We are looking at both domestic as well global markets to raise this fund,” Tata Capital managing director Praveen P. Kadle said while unveiling the company’s brand identity here. The proceeds would be deployed in the manufacturing and services segments, mid-size companies and growth areas, he said. Kadle said, “we are looking at various options like commercial paper, private placement and the ECB (external commercial borrowings) route for NBFCs (non-banking finance companies) to raise funds.” —PTI ********* Financial Technologies files suit against NSE Mumbai: Financial Technologies India Ltd, the promoter of the Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd (MCX), has filed a suit against the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd (NSE) for keeping it on a “watch list” and rejecting its application for providing a currency futures trading software without assigning any reason, a person familiar with the matter said. Financial Technologies filed the suit on 15 December at the Bombay high court. Spokespersons of both Financial Technologies and NSE refused to comment. Financial Technologies provides brokers access to most product segments on the Bombay Stock Exchange Ltd, MCX and the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Ltd, besides NSE. MCX is the country’s largest commodity exchange with at least an 80% share of the business. —Ravi Krishnan ********* TII cancels media awards due to slowdown New Delhi: Transparency International India (TII), the Indian unit of the global anti-corruption group, said it was cancelling the annual media awards this year, because their sponsors were unable to support the initiative due to the economic downturn. The Rai Bahadur M.S. Oberoi Media Awards 2007 for excellence in exposing corruption has been sponsored by hospitality major The Oberoi Group since its inception in 2006. “Our current sponsors have expressed their inability to support the Media award this year due to the recent economic downturn,” TII said in a statement. TII chairman Admiral (retd) R.H. Tahiliani said they were informed recently of the Oberoi group’s inability to support the awards and subsequent efforts to find another sponsor did not succeed. He said the annual budget for the initiative this year would have been Rs14 lakh. “In a time like this, most groups are not willing to spend anything more than what is absolutely necessary. But, without a doubt, whenever we can find a sponsor, we will reinstitute the award,” Tahiliani added. —Staff Writer ********* No plan to sell stake in Nalco, says government New Delhi: India has no plan to sell its stake in National Aluminium Co. Ltd (Nalco), junior finance minister S.S. Palanimanickam said in Parliament on Wednesday. The government owns 87% of the firm, according to data available on ‘Bloomberg’. The government also doesn’t propose to infuse fresh equity into the firm, he said. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in July 2006 put on hold a government proposal to sell 10% stake each in Nalco and Neyveli Lignite Corp. after opposition from coalition allies. —Bloomberg ********* 6-monthly credit growth for housing, realty slows New Delhi: Credit growth in India’s housing and real estate sectors posted a slowdown in the six months to September due to the global financial crisis, a minister said. There was a sharp deceleration in the half-yearly credit growth in the real estate and housing sector, junior finance minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said in Parliament on Wednesday, citing data from the central bank. This was partly on account of the liquidity crunch following the ongoing financial crisis, the minister said, without providing details. —Bloomberg ********* Nycomed files lawsuit against Glenmark Mumbai: Nycomed US has filed a patent infringement lawsuit in the US against Glenmark Generics Ltd, a unit of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd, the firm said in a statement on Wednesday. The lawsuit was filed on 12 December against Glenmark for its fluticasone propionate skin lotion, which is the generic version of Nycomed’s Cutivate. If Glenmark wins the patent challenge, it will win the right to market the product for 180 days after the patent expires, the firm said. —Reuters ********* Lupin can sell version of Clarinex from July 2012 New Delhi: Lupin Ltd, the Indian maker of tuberculosis medicines, said it has settled all lawsuits that tried to block it from selling a generic version of Schering- Plough Corp.’s Clarinex allergy medicine. The agreement allows Lupin to sell its version of the Clarinex medicine starting in July 2012, firm said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange on Wednesday. Clarinex, which first received US Food and Drug Administration approval in December 2001, is now available without a prescription. —Bloomberg ********* Two more vessels seized even as world watches Kuala Lumpur: Heavily armed Somali pirates have hijacked two more vessels in the African waters undeterred by a strong multi-nation flotilla of warships carrying out vigorous patrols and vigil. A tugboat heading to Malaysia, a Turkish and a Chinese vessel were the latest victims of the pirates, who have seized more than 40 freighters this year, including a giant Saudi super tanker and a luxury cruise ship against ransom. The seajackings took place even as China announced it was dispatching a naval task group to join an international effort by navies of more than a dozen countries to mount an aggressive sea-patrol of the Gulf of Aden. The seizures came as the UN was discussing ways to fight the menace and has given a green signal to nations to carry out air and sea operations against the pirates. A senior official of the Vienna-based UN Office on Drugs and Crime Antonio Maria Costa has called for regional cooperation to tackle the situation. He added that the pirates had to be brought to justice. —PTI ********* India can reduce hunger with political will: WFP New Delhi: India can make a significant contribution to the global fight against malnourishment and hunger if it shows political will and makes its food distribution system more effective, the United Nation’s (UN) World Food Programme (WFP) said. India is home to more than 230 million undernourished people, more than any other country. While the proportion of malnourished has fallen, the absolute numbers are rising with the population. “So one thing I have been saying to India’s many political parties is that, when it comes to malnourished children, there should only be one party and it’s got to be led from the top,” Josette Sheeran, WFP’s executive director,said. Sheeran said India had made progress in food production and breaking the cycle of famines, but still needed to make its state-run public distribution system (PDS) more effective to deliver food to the poor and end malnourishment. Indian authorities acknowledge there is corruption and inefficiency in the PDS. —Reuters ********* Cadila buys rest of stake in US venture Zydus Mumbai: Cadila Healthcare Ltd on Wednesday said it has acquired the remaining 30% in its US joint venture company, Zydus Pharmaceuticals USA Inc. It did not disclose the terms of the deal. As a result, Zydus Pharmaceuticals has become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Cadila, it said in a statement to the Bombay Stock Exchange. Cadila was holding 70% in the joint venture through an Irish subsidiary, it added. —Reuters ********* Shiela takes oath as CM for third term in a row New Delhi: Shiela Dikshit, who led the the Congress to victory, on Wednesday took oath as the chief minister of Delhi for the third consecutive term and inducted a woman in her cabinet, while retaining most of the ministers. Dikshit, 71, was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Delhi Lt governor Tejinder Khanna at the Raj Niwas here on Wednesday afternoon in the presence of a large number of politicians, including the Bharatiya Janata Party legislature party leader V.K. Malhotra and state party chief Harshavardhan. The grand old party romped home with 43 seats in the 70-member Assembly, leaving BJP behind with 23 seats. —PTI ********* Sonia may unveil party strategy for polls today New Delhi: Buoyed by the 3-2 victory over the Opposition Bharatiya Janata party, or BJP, in the recent Assembly elections, Congress president Sonia Gandhi is expected to unveil the party’s strategy for the Lok Sabha elections here on Thursday. Gandhi will be addressing a general body meeting of the Congress parliamentary party, the first such interaction after the assembly elections. The meeting takes place in the backdrop of introduction of two Bills in the Lok Sabha to fight terror and the attempts of the Congress to shrug off Opposition charges it was ‘soft’ on terror. Gandhi, who is also chairperson of the United Progressive Alliance, or UPA, has already announced the party would contest the Lok Sabha elections with its allies. Talks are on between Congress and the Mulayam Singh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party (SP) over seat-sharing in politically key Uttar Pradesh where Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party is posing a serious challenge to them. SP has become the key outside supporter of the Congress-led coalition after Left parties withdrew support early this year on the issue of the Indo-US nuclear deal. —PTI ********* Parsvnath says no scope for further price cuts New Delhi: Realtor Parsvnath Developers Ltd sees no further scope for lowering prices as they had already fallen 5-20% in some areas, chairman Pradeep Jain on Wednesday. “There is no further scope to cut prices,” Jain said after meeting the deputy chairman of the Planning Commission as part of a team of real estate developers. —Reuters ********* Over 85,000 sick units in India, minister says New Delhi: India has over 85,000 sick micro and small enterprises, with Uttar Pradesh at 16,280, accounting for the highest number of units, Mahabir Prasad, minister of micro, small and medium enterprises said. “As per the data compiled by the Reserve Bank of India from the scheduled commercial banks, the number of sick MSEs in the country as in March 2008 is 85,187,” Prasad said in a written reply to Lok Sabha. West Bengal is at the second place with 11,660 sick units out of a total of 9.21 lakh units. Bihar is third with over six lakh units, out of which 8,137 are sick. There were no sick units in Mizoram, Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar, Prasad said. As per official data, there were 1,28,46,365 MSEs in the country on March 31, 2007. On December 7, the government had announced several steps for the MSME sector including extending guarantee cover under Credit Guarantee Scheme on loans from Rs 50 lakh to Rs one crore. —PTI ********* Stem cell storage bank sets up India facility Bangalore:Cryo-Save Group NV, Europe’s largest adult stem cell storage bank, announced its India operations on Wednesday with the setting up of a banking facility in Bangalore at a cost of €1.8 million (Rs12 crore). This is the fourth such facility of the group which operates in 37 countries. Claiming to be the first company to provide fully automated processing, which allows 30% more stem cells to be harvested, Cryo-Save India will serve as the nodal point for the parent group’s Asia-Pacific market. Another differentiator, it says, is its dual-storage system, which allows a person to retrieve stem cells more than once. Globally, about one million samples are stored in public and private stem cell banks but India, where cord blood banking took off just about four years ago, has nearly 20,000 samples stored in private banks. Cryo-Save India will charge Rs75,000 for collection, processing, and storage of cord blood stem cells for a 21-year period. —Seema Singh Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 17 Dec 2008 | 6:53 pm FIPB sets aside L objections, clears former partner's plansThe Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) has cleared a proposal by German plastic moulding major Ralf Schneider to set up a wholly-owned subsidiary in India, setting aside objections raised bySource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 17 Dec 2008 | 6:47 pm States agree not to change GST unilaterallyThe Centre and the state governments have agreed not to unilaterally change the tax rate on goods and services, once the Goods and Services Tax (GST) is implemented from April 2010.??This is a majorSource: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 17 Dec 2008 | 6:46 pm The earth’s magnetic field’s got a big holeLos Angeles: Recent satellite observations have found the largest breach yet seen in the magnetic field that protects earth from most of the sun’s violent blasts, researchers reported on Tuesday. The discovery was made last summer by Themis, a fleet of five small satellites from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa). Scientists have long known that the earth’s magnetic field, which guards against severe space weather, is similar to a drafty old house that lets in violent eruptions of charged particles from the sun. Such a breach can cause brilliant auroras or disrupt satellite and ground communications. Results could impact scientific predictions on the severity of solar storms and their effects Last year, Themis calculated a layer of solar particles to be at least 6,400km thick in the outermost part of the earth’s magnetosphere, the largest tear of the protective shield found so far. “It was growing rather fast,” Themis scientist Marit Oieroset of the University of California, Berkeley, told an American Geophysical Union meeting in San Francisco. Such breaches are temporary, and the one observed last year lasted about an hour, Oieroset said. Solar flares are a potential danger to astronauts in orbit but generally are not a risk to people on the surface of the earth. The research was funded by Nasa and the National Science Foundation. Scientists initially believed the greatest solar breach occurred when the earth’s and sun’s magnetic fields are pointed in opposite directions. But data from Themis found that 20 times more solar wind passed into the earth’s protective shield when the magnetic fields were aligned. The Themis results could have bearing on how scientists predict the severity of solar storms and their effects on power grids, airline and military communications and satellite signals. The Themis satellites were launched to find the source of brief powerful geomagnetic disturbances in the earth’s atmosphere. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 17 Dec 2008 | 6:06 pm ‘One more thing’, Jobs won’t be at the Macworld this yearCupertino, California: Apple Inc. said on Tuesday that chief executive Steve Jobs won’t be delivering the highly anticipated presentation that usually marks the highlight of the annual Macworld computer trade show in January. Apple also said 2009 will be its last year exhibiting at the Macworld Expo, a multi-day gathering of fans and makers of software and accessories for Macs, iPods, iPhones and other Apple products. The expo is organized by the IDG technology media group.  Last statement: Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone at the 2007 trade show. Tony Avelar / AFP Last year, that “thing” was the ultra-thin MacBook Air laptop; in 2007, Jobs gave Macworld attendees the first glimpse of the iPhone. A decade earlier, as Apple was struggling financially and Jobs had just returned as CEO, he wrapped up his keynote, paused, and then added: “I almost forgot. We’re profitable.” Apple said Philip Schiller, a marketing executive, will deliver the keynote instead of Jobs. The switch indicates “a shift in power going on at Apple”, said Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster. Munster said Schiller is one of two contenders to succeed Jobs at the company’s helm; the other is chief operating officer Tim Cook. Apple said it was abandoning Macworld because the firm has other methods for getting in front of customers, including its growing chain of retail stores. Munster said it makes sense for Apple to back out because it can generate just as much buzz by hosting its own product launch events. But the analyst called that part of Apple’s announcement insignificant compared with the news that Jobs will not be delivering the keynote. “This is his baby. This is his presentation. It’s his flock,” he said. Munster said he believes Jobs’ absence could mean that Apple doesn’t have a big product to unveil this year, and that Jobs refused to give a newsless talk. Or, he said, it could mean Jobs, who recovered in 2004 from a rare but treatable form of pancreatic cancer, is having health problems. “I think that Apple could have done a lot to have made it so people wouldn’t speculate about Steve Jobs’ health,” he said. Jobs has appeared very thin but energetic at Apple events this fall.
Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 17 Dec 2008 | 5:34 pm The Capitalist | How big will the current US fiscal bailout be? The truth is that nobody knows. The one thing almost everyone is agreed on is that the amounts are likely to be staggering. And one of the best ways of putting the bailouts into perspective is by looking at two charts (above). Also See The Leviathan US Bailouts (Graphic) The first is the total of all expenses on major programmes undertaken by the US government in the past. This includes the Marshall Plan to revive Europe after the World War II, the Vietnam and Korean wars, Nasa’s expenses and the race to the moon, among others. This figure comes to around $1.37 trillion at current market costs. The other is the latest financial bailout. Current estimates put this number at $8.5 trillion. It must also be borne in mind that the numbers have still not been finalized. After 25 November, more items have been added to the bailout package, which could cause this figure to swell even further. And the Madoff swindle of some $50 billion against just $15 billion of assets under management is likely to have unintended and as yet unforeseen repercussions in other areas as well. Some analysts, including Bianco Research, expect the bailout figure to cross $10 trillion. But there are others, not willing to be quoted, who expect it go go even higher. More tears could follow soon! ********* Why is the dollar still strong?  Strong greenback: Despite the economic crisis in the US, since July the dollar has risen 19% against the euro and 24% against the pound. Alastair Miller / Bloomberg Latest forecasts by business economists, as reported by BusinessWeek magazine, estimate the US gross domestic product for the last quarter of 2008 to fall 2.6%. Job cuts are galore, causing most consumers to shrink away from shops. Under such circumstances, the dollar should have weakened against the euro and the British pound. Instead, since July, the dollar is 19% up against the euro and 24% against the pound. Why? According to BCA Research, “The dollar rally is attributable to portfolio adjustments globally and is more explainable by liquidation, hedging and other technical factors than by the fundamentals of the US economy.” The dollar weakened after the Fed cut rates to zero on Tuesday. Stanley Reed of BusinessWeek has a better explanation. Most consumers have clung to their money, he says, and in the face of everything else crumbling —stocks, commodities, etc.—people have stuck to the US dollar. That has helped increase its perceived value. BCA Research is convinced that quantitative easing in the US, and incentives for the country to devalue its currency to reduce its real debt burden will mean that the greenback is bound to depreciate. This view is shared by commodity traders and gold watchers. They say the dollar will soon begin to sag. BCA Research, incidentally, is also bullish on gold. But Reed points to how “in four of the past five recessions since the 1970s, the dollar finished higher than where it started”. And most international financial firms, which made London the biggest financial centre in the world, are relocating to the US. So does that help clarify matters? ********* Will law firms opt for fixed fees? The economic meltdown has turned up another unusual development. One of the most prestigious US law firms, Cravath, Swaine and Moore has decided to “make the billable hour irrelevant”. Hitherto, law firms have charged by the hour, sometime by the minute. Telephone calls, discussions, consultations, even reference time in the library, are billed to the client. BusinessWeek, quotes Evan Chesler, presiding partner Cravath, saying, “(we are) trying more and more to come to alternative fee arrangements”. Ultimately, it could be more profitable, if we are as good as we think we are,” he adds. Obviously, most Indian businesses will also be waiting for a similar response from Indian law firms. Asia markets see significant inflows Emerging markets in Asia saw the first significant inflows of foreign exchange in the week ended 12 December, reports Strategy Weekly Fund Flows, a research paper brought out by the BNP Paribas Group. Thailand and the Philippines, however, saw outflows. Taiwan topped the ranks in inflows accounting for $680 million after losing $542 million the previous week. India came next with net inflows of $441.7 million compared with net outgoes of $37 million the previous week. Of course, despite this net inflow, India’s outflow for the year to date stands at $13.1 billion. 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 Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 17 Dec 2008 | 4:34 pm Rediff to offer facility to communicate in 22 regional languagesAhmedabad: Nasdaq listed Rediff will offer its customers the facility to communicate in 22 different regional languages, from January 2009, company officials said. “After extensive study we found that regional languages are coming up on the internet in a big way. We will also be offering our customers the facility to communicate in 22 different regional languages soon,” Founder and CEO Rediff Ajit Balakrishnan told reporters on sidelines of 8th International Entrepreneurship Forum at MICA. “For traffic signals one uses English language as per the US convention, but to communicate with friends people use multiple languages,” Balakrishnan said, adding atleast two new portals of Rediff offering facility to communicate in Gujarati language are in the pipeline. Talking about paradigm shift of internet users towards mobile, Balakrishnan said “Out of the 2 million customers in the US 80% have moved to mobile phone version of Rediff.” Speaking on emerging challenges in digital enterpreneurship, Balakrishnan said “In this era, algorithim based voice to text conversion technology is a big challenge to understand.” “The voice to text conversion technology will be there all over in another 3 to 7 years. An accuracy level of 90% using algorithim based voice to text technology has been achieved for news readers, while 70% for other kinds of dialects,” Balakrishnan said. The call centre business will face stiff competition from this technology, he added. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 17 Dec 2008 | 1:30 pm
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