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Ajit Gulabchand bags Essar Steel\'s infra leader of yr awardWith an aim to recognise and felicitate infrastructure companies for their contribution towards the Indian economic development, Essar Steel in association with CNBCTV 18 organised the Infrastructure Excellence Awards in New Delhi.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:12 pm Cabinet approves rejig of Union Bank\'s paidup capitalThe Cabinet has decided to restructure the paidup capital of United Bank of India. The move includes the reduction in paidup equity by over 80% to Rs 266.43 crore.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:02 pm Have not gained much from sugar price rise: Balrampur ChiniISMA says domestic sugar output this season is likely to be at a fouryear low of 15.5 million tonne. Retail sugar prices are up 30% to Rs 26 per kg owing to expected dip in output. Vivek Saraogi of Balrampur Chini Mills said the company has not benefited much from the sugar price rise.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 4:09 pm Rain Commodities puts expansion plans on holdT Srinivasa Rao, VicePresident Finance, Rain Commodities said, looking at the current economic slowdown worldwide, the companys expansion plans have been put on hold. We may be taking them up only when the market reverses and the demand for our end product increases, he added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 3:20 pm Tata Tea eyes 51% in Russian\'s GrandTata Tea intends joining forces with the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to acquire 51% of Grand, a branding, packing and distribution company in Russia.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 3:16 pm Cadila signs drug development deal with Eli LilyCadila Healthcare has entered into new drug development deal with Eli Lilly. The Indian pharmaceutical company will receive up to USD 300 million in milestone payments and royalties.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 2:47 pm Aurobindo Pharma gets final approval for Topiramate TabletsAurobindo Pharma Limited is pleased to announce that its tentatively approved ANDA for Topiramate Tablets 25mg, 50mg 100mg and 200mg has received the final approval from the US Food Drug Administration (USFDA).Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 2:31 pm Sun Pharma gets approval to market generic Topamax tabletsSun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd announced that USFDA has granted an approval for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) to market generic Topamax ®, topiramate tablets.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 2:22 pm Strides Arcolab gets approval for AzithromycinStrides Arcolab Limited (Strides) announced receipt of ANDA approval for Azithromycin for Injection 500 mg / vial with para IV certification . Launch of Azithromycin is anticipated in April 2009.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 2:12 pm Lupin acquires stake in Multicare PharmaceuticalsLupin Limited announced the acquisition of a 51% stake in Multicare Pharmaceuticals Philippines, Inc (MC) of Philippines. MC is a premium branded generics company with a strong position in the womens health and child care segment. The company reported revenues of Php 272 Mill (approx. USD 6mn) for the year ending December 2008.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 30 Mar 2009 | 2:05 pm Sensex dips below 10k level in early trade!The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex Monday slipped below 10,000 points level by losing 250.43 points in opening trade on emergence of profit-selling by funds amid weak trends on the global markets.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm Japan factory output dives 9.4% in February!Japan`s industrial output plunged 9.4 percent in February from the previous month as companies slashed production to cope with the recession in major world economies, official data showed Monday.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm Rupee depreciates by 33 paise against dollar!The Indian rupee depreciated by 33 paise to 50.91 against the US currency in early trade Monday on fears of weak opening on the domestic bourses, which could trigger capital outflows.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm Post-recession to see shift in hiring patterns!A post-recession scenario will see a shift in hiring patterns, with companies focussing on ensuring quality rather than quantity in recruitment and a pronounced thrust on the all-round ability of those recruited to deliver.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm GM chief to quit under Obama auto plan!US President Barack Obama has asked the head of General Motors to resign, US media reported, a day before the US leader spells out his plan for the future of the crippled auto sector.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm Oil prices slide in Asian trade, above USD 51!Oil prices fell in Asian trade Monday as global stocks turned lower following a recent run up, analysts said.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm RIL closes oil production at KG-D6 for 45 days!Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has once again shut down crude oil production at its predominantly gas-rich KG-D6 block to hook up more wells that will raise the output to a peak of 40,000 barrels per day.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm Rick Wagoner steps down as GM CEO!General Motors` Rick Wagoner Monday said he has stepped aside as the Chief Executive Officer of the company after US White House officials asked him to leave the ailing auto maker.Source: Zee News : Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:21 pm G20 must deliver message of unity, stresses Obama - Sify
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:19 pm RBI says growth above 8 pct sustainableMUMBAI (Reuters) - The Reserve Bank of India expects the economy's growth rate to bounce back above 8 percent once the current global economic and financial turmoil passes, Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:15 pm Areva T&D to start operations at 8 new factories - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:14 pm Vote bank politics not good for national security: AdvaniLohardaga (Jharkhand): Senior BJP leader L K Advani on Monday called for abolition of vote bank politics, saying it was not good for the nation’s security and development. Click here to watch video “There is no place for vote bank politics in India, which has different castes and religions, because decisions are affected by it. There are some who just don’t take decisions for fear of antagonizing certain sections. That is not good for the security and development of the country,” Advani said. Addressing an election meeting here in support of party candidate Sudarshan Bhagat, the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate once again criticised the Congress for not carrying out Supreme Court’s order of death sentence on Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. “The incident had happened in 2001, the order was pronounced in 2002. And now we are in 2009, but still the order has not been carried out against the conspirator. It would have been carried out had he been an Anand Singh or an Anand Mohan,” Advani said. He said the UPA government should respect the security personnel who laid their lives during the attack on Parliament and carry out the Supreme Court’s order. — PTI ******** Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:13 pm Vote bank politics not good for national security: AdvaniLohardaga (Jharkhand): Senior BJP leader L K Advani on Monday called for abolition of vote bank politics, saying it was not good for the nation’s security and development. Click here to watch video “There is no place for vote bank politics in India, which has different castes and religions, because decisions are affected by it. There are some who just don’t take decisions for fear of antagonizing certain sections. That is not good for the security and development of the country,” Advani said. Addressing an election meeting here in support of party candidate Sudarshan Bhagat, the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate once again criticised the Congress for not carrying out Supreme Court’s order of death sentence on Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru. “The incident had happened in 2001, the order was pronounced in 2002. And now we are in 2009, but still the order has not been carried out against the conspirator. It would have been carried out had he been an Anand Singh or an Anand Mohan,” Advani said. He said the UPA government should respect the security personnel who laid their lives during the attack on Parliament and carry out the Supreme Court’s order. — PTI ******** Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:13 pm Sensex plunges 500 pts as global cues disappoint - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:11 pm US auto rescues skid, Europe helps weak lenders - Reuters
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:09 pm Suzlon: no plan to reschedule Martifer paymentNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy will use accruals from operations and debt to pay Portugal's Martifer for a stake in Germany's REpower, Chairman Tulsi Tanti said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:09 pm RBI: should avoid placement of govt bondsMUMBAI (Reuters) - A private placement of government bonds with the Reserve Bank should be avoided at all costs, Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor Rakesh Mohan told a news conference on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:07 pm Finance reform delayed by crisis: RBI reportMUMBAI (Reuters) - Pressure to support India's economy and drive growth during the global economic and financial crisis could impede efforts to put its fiscal house in order, a report by the government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:07 pm Sensex down over 450 points; metals, banks plungeBombay Stock Exchange's Sensex ended at 9568.14, down 480.35 points after having jumped over 12% last week and over 23% in the past twelve trading sessions.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:56 am SC reserves order on Sanjay Dutt’s pleaNew Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday reserved its order on Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt’s plea seeking suspension of his conviction in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case to contest the Lok Sabha elections. A bench headed by chief justice K G Balakrishnan reserved the order after hearing contentions of Dutt’s counsel and the CBI, which opposed his plea. Senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for Dutt, contended that the actor was convicted under the Arms Act solely on his confessional statement and that he was absolved of serious charges under TADA. Pleading for suspension of conviction, he further said the TADA court had held that Dutt was not involved in any conspiracy in the blasts’ case. The CBI, however, opposed the plea, saying that the conviction was not only on the confessional statement but the court’s findings were based on recoveries, disclosures and corroborative evidences. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:55 am HIGHLIGHTS - Official report on Indian financial sectorMUMBAI (Reuters) - Pressure to support India's economy and drive growth during the global economic and financial crisis could impede efforts to put its fiscal house in order, a report by the government and Reserve Bank said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:49 am MTS forays into Kerala - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:49 am Tata Power's Mumbai unit commences operation - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:49 am Maytas Infra completes 110-km gas pipeline project - Hindu Business Line
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:48 am Gold surges as equities tumbleGold prices surged by Rs 140 to Rs 15,440 per 10 gram in the national capital on Monday on emergence of buying sparked by firming global trend and investors shifting funds from melting stocks to bullion.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:45 am Gold rises on global trend, lower stocksNew Delhi: Gold prices rose by Rs140 to Rs15,440 per 10 gram in the national capital on Monday on emergence of buying sparked by firming global trend and investors shifting funds from melting stocks to bullion. Silver followed the same trend and rose by Rs80 to Rs22,170 per kg. Buying activity in gold picked up after reports that the precious metal rose in overseas market, by adding $2.95 at $926.10 an ounce. Some investors sold equities, after the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex tumbled over 480.35 points during the day, and invested in the gold as a better option. Scattered small buying for the ongoing “Navratra” festival, considered to be an auspicious time in Hindu mythology for purchasing new gold, also supported the uptrend, they added. Standard gold and ornaments surged by Rs140 each to Rs15,440 and Rs15,290 per 10 gram, respectively. Sovereign remained flat at Rs12,400 per piece of eight gram. In a similar fashion, silver ready rose by Rs80 to Rs22,170 per kg and weekly-based delivery by Rs100 to Rs22,290 per kg. Its coins, however, continued to be asked around previous level of Rs28,300 for buying and Rs28,400 for selling of 100 pieces. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:40 am Close: Sensex plunges 4.8% on slipping global marketsNew Delhi: Markets dived into red to close with huge losses along with other global counterparts trading negative on Monday. The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex slipped from Friday’s 10,000 level close to settle around 5% lower. After three weeks of rallying, profit booking along with political worries ahead of general elections weighed on sentiments. European markets also opened weak on falling auto shares following US plan to rein in financially troubled automakers GM and Chrysler. After brief recovery in the past week, banking stocks dived again losing the as much as 8% along with other battered segments of metal, realty, IT and technology. The 30-share Sensex opened 2% lower and went on to dip lower by 480.35 points to close at 9,568.14 and the 50-share NSE Nifty also lost its 3,000 mark ending down by 130.50 points at 2,978.15. Losers from the BSE Sensex pack are Jaiprakash Associates by 12.34% to Rs78.50, ICICI Bank by 12.27% to Rs337.95, Tata Steel by 12.24% to Rs196.15, Reliance Infra by 11.43% to Rs502.45, DLF Ltd by 9.34% to Rs165.55, SBI by 9.18% to Rs1,022.00 and TCS Ltd by 9.12% to Rs522.75. The BSE bank stocks underperformed the most, dropped by 8.58% with major losers like ICICI Bank by 12.27%, Kotak Bank by 11.02%, Punjab National Bank by 9.97%, Yes Bank by 9.59% and SBI 9.18%. Larsen and Toubro also shed 4.27% to Rs650.95 despite winning an order worth Rs345 crore to manufacture steam generators for Nuclear Power Corporation of India. Gainers from the BSE Sensex pack are NTPC Ltd by 0.80% to Rs183.50 and Sun Pharma by 0.25% to Rs1,082.20. Among the global markets, Asian markets ended in deep red with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng 4.7% down and Japan’s Nikkei 4.5% lower. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:39 am Slowdown in India preceded global meltdown: ShourieKolkata: The economic slowdown in India preceded global meltdown due to stoppage of reforms by the UPA government, former union disinvestment minister Arun Shourie said on Monday. “The seeds of slowdown in the country were sown since April 2008 while the global meltdown started since September,” Shourie said at an interactive session organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce here on Monday. Shourie, who was the disinvestment minister during the BJP-led NDA regime, said the slowdown in India is seen in specific sectors like textiles where lakhs of jobs were lost. “This is because the UPA government did not continue with the reform process,” Shourie said. He added there was no fiscal headroom which was needed for great stimulus package to boost the economy. Shourie expressed fears that the fiscal deficit as a proportion to the GDP was likely to touch 13% to 14% in 2009-10. Soon India’s sovereign ratings would become negative, Shourie said. Asked what kind of stimuli was required for the economy, he said the companies and states should be rewarded for big infrastructure projects. Asked whether the global recession had bottomed out, Shourie said, “It had not yet hit the bottom. The light at the end of the tunnel has been switched off”. “Even the G-20 does not know where the bottom is,” Shourie said. He said the next fiscal is already mortgaged due to the Pay Commission Recommendations and Debt Waiver Schemes implemented by the UPA government. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:34 am Sensex slips almost 5 percent, global markets in redIndian equities markets turned southwards Monday, aping their global peers, and marked an end to last week's rally that saw a key index breach the psychologically important 10,000-mark and gain over 12 percent.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:30 am Tata Power begins commercial operations at Mumbai plantTata Power has commenced commercial operations of a 250 MW coal-based thermal unit at the Trombay Thermal Power Station, it said here Monday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:30 am NSA against Varun is ‘misuse of a serious law’: ManekaBareilly (UP): Terming invoking of stringent NSA against her son Varun as “misuse of a serious law”, BJP MP Maneka Gandhi on Monday said such a practice could be very dangerous for the country. “What has happened with Varun is injustice to him and injustice to the country because misuse of such a serious law is, I think, very dangerous for the country. Let us see what happens now,” Maneka said in Bareilly after meeting Varun who was sent to judicial custody on Saturday. Stating that she will take this battle to the courts and also to the masses, Maneka said, “There is a clamour for votes between the Congress and the BSP.” She was referring to the Congress government at the Centre and BSP rule in Uttar Pradesh. Maneka claimed Varun surrendered peacefully and accused the administration of invoking serious charges against him under pressure from higher-ups. “He surrendered at 1:25 pm but the case was filed only at 3 pm (on Saturday). Cases were filed not only against him but also those people who were not present there. I feel the administration was put under pressure,” she said. The Uttar Pradesh government slapped NSA against Varun for his alleged hate speech in Pilibhit early this month. CDs of these speeches, which BJP maintains are doctored, were submitted to the Election Commission. The poll panel found Varun guilty and advised BJP not to field him as its candidate. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:22 am Varun’s arrest an attempt to tarnish his image: VHPChennai: Condemning the arrest of BJP leader Varun Gandhi for his alleged hate speeches in Pilibhit, VHP on Monday said the act is an attempt to tarnish his political image. “The arrest is an attempt to tarnish his political image,” VHP International Working President S Vedantam said here. Endorsing Gandhi’s stand, he alleged the video clippings of the BJP candidate’s speech had been doctored and maintained that he would not have made such provocative remarks. “Gandhi is an educated person and he would not have indulged in such kind of speeches. I strongly believe he would not have made such provocative speeches at his level,” Vedantam said. On VHP’s stand on the coming Lok Sabha polls, he said his organisation would not extend support to any political party. Instead, it would ask the people to back a political party which protects the rights of Hindus. VHP would hold a conference in Tiruchirappalli next month to project various resolutions adopted by “Dhamma Raksha Manch”, a newly floated forum whose objectives include declaration of the country as a spiritual nation, he said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:13 am Oriental Bank of Commerce likely to cut deposit ratesPublic sector lender Oriental Bank of Commerce may cut interest rates for deposits of one year by 50 basis points on Tuesday.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:12 am GM, Chrysler rocked by Obama autos team hard lineWASHINGTON/PARIS (Reuters) - The Obama administration seized the wheel of the failing U.S. auto industry on Monday, forcing out General Motors Corp's CEO, pushing Chrysler LLC toward a merger and threatening bankruptcy for both.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:10 am Banks drag European shares down; autos, oils fallLondon: European shares were lower at midday on Monday, with banks falling after a Spanish bailout and automakers fell after Washington rejected restructuring plans for General Motors and Chrysler. At 1057 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was down 2.4% at 719.65 points. The index is down 13.5% in 2009, but has risen 11.5% since hitting a lifetime low on 9 March. Spanish banks fell after the first intervention in a Spanish bank since the start of the global crisis. On Sunday, the government said the Bank of Spain would take over the running of regional savings bank Caja Castilla la Mancha and would provide funds to help the bank backed by up to €9 billion in government guarantees. Banco Popular, Banco Santander and BBVA fell between 4.1 and 5.5%. Britain, too, suffered a financial setback at the weekend with the collapse of the Dunfermline Building Society, a lender. It looks set to be taken over by the Nationwide, after the government failed to bail it out. Barclays fell 8.3%, after surging 24.1% on Friday. The bank will not participate in Britain’s asset protection scheme, according to a Bloomberg report. Also, it was downgraded to “sell” from “hold” at SocGen. Other European banks to fall included BNP Paribas, HSBC, Societe Generale, UBS and UniCredit, all of which were down between 5.3 and 7.6%. “There’s a worry that the Spanish real estate bubble is going into meltdown,” said Bob Parker, vice chairman of asset management at Credit Suisse. “And if GM goes into Chapter 11, that could have implications for Europe, with Vauxhall. But let’s not forget we had a splendid rally, and the technical indicators showed that, short-term, the market was looking overstretched.” Wall Street is likely to extend Friday’s losses when trading begins at 1330 GMT. Futures for the Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq were down between 2.3 and 2.5%. The Barack Obama administration said it would only fund GM for the next 60 days, while it develops a more convincing restructuring plan, with GM chief executive Rick Wagoner forced out and being replaced by chief operating officer Fritz Henderson. In Europe, Daimler, BMW, Volkswagen and Fiat were down between 5.6 and 7.7%. General Motors shares in Frankfurt were down 11.8%. Peugeot fell 7.2% after replacing its chief executive Across Europe, the FTSE 100 index was down 2.1%, Germany’s DAX was 3.4% lower and France’s CAC 40 was down 2.8%. Oils were a major drag on the index, with crude prices sliding more than 3%, to $50.60 a barrel. Total, ENI, BP, Royal Dutch Shell, and Repsol fell between 2.4 and 3.1%. Credit Suisse’s Parker added that the markets were also hit by remarks from US Treasury secretary Tim Geithner that banks would still require “large amounts of assistance” and by worries over a potential lack of unity at the G-20 summit this week. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:09 am Ravi Chaturvedi quits Jet as Group CEO earlier than scheduledMumbai: Private carrier Jet Airways on Monday said Ravi Chaturvedi has quit the company as Group CEO in March, ahead of his scheduled departure in June. In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the airline said: “Ravi Chaturvedi has ceased to be the Group CEO of the company with effect from 25 March, 2009, instead of 1 June, 2009 as communicated earlier.” The company had earlier said Chaturvedi has resigned from the airline with effect from 1 June, 2009 due to personal reasons. The carrier also said Satyan G Pitroda has ceased to be a director of the company from 21 March, 2009. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:06 am BSE Sensex drops 4.8 pct after 3-week rallyMUMBAI (Reuters) - The BSE Sensex fell 4.8 percent on Monday in its biggest one-day drop in almost three months as investors took profits after the market had rallied more than a fifth over three weeks.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:02 am Allahabad Bank, UAE firm tie up for remittance facilityCity-based Allahabad Bank signed a pact Monday with the Gulf-based money transfer and exchange house UAE Exchange and Financial Services for promoting its own money transfer services, the company said here.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 11:01 am Corus chief Varin to head French car maker PeugeotNew Delhi/Paris: Chief executive of steel maker Corus Philippe Varin will take over as the chairman of the managing board of French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen from June this year. Varin is currently the chief of Indian conglomerate Tatas-owned Corus — the world’s sixth-largest steel maker. The supervisory board of Peugeot has appointed Varin as the chairman of the managing board with effect from 1 June, 2009, it said in a statement. Media reports said Varin would be taking over as CEO. In January, Corus said that Varin would step down as its chief executive on 6 April, 2009. Peugeot had shown the door to its managing board chairman Christian Streiff only weeks after the company posted huge losses and also came up with job cuts. “Given the extraordinary difficulties currently faced by the automotive industry, the supervisory board decided unanimously that a change in the senior leadership position was necessary,” Peugeot’s supervisory board chairman Thierry Peugeot said. In the meantime, Roland Vardanega, member of the managing board, would act as interim chairman till Varin takes over in June. Fifty-six-year-old Varin was at the helm of affairs when Corus was acquired by Tata Steel for more than $12 billion in 2007. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:58 am UK's LSE not eyeing MCX-SX stake - sourceLONDON/MUMBAI (Reuters) - The London Stock Exchange is not in talks to buy a stake in India's new stock exchange, MCX-SX, a source familiar with the matter said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:55 am Reliance halts India block output to help add wellsNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Reliance Industries Ltd has temporarily stopped crude oil production from its east coast block from March 22 to help start more wells and raise output, a company spokesman said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:47 am Ranbaxy gets US FDA nod for epilepsy drugNew Delhi: Pharma firm Ranbaxy on Monday said it has received US regulatory approval for Topiramate tablets, used in the treatment of epilepsy. The approval, for which the application was submitted by Ranbaxy from Ohm Laboratories’ manufacturing facility in New Jersey, has been given by US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA), the company said in a statement. The approvals pertain to Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for manufacturing and marketing of Topiramate tablets with strengths of 25 mg, 100 mg and 200 mg. Ohm Laboratories is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. Meanwhile, pharma player Aurobindo said it has got tentatively approval for Topiramate tablets from the US FDA. The tablets are indicated for the treatment of epilepsy in both adults and children, Aurobindo Pharma said in a separate statement. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:45 am Fertiliser stocks soar in falling market - Business Standard
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:44 am Oil falls below $51 on economic worriesLondon: Oil prices fell heavily on Monday in line with stock markets on renewed concerns for the global economy, traders said. New York’s main futures contract, light sweet crude for delivery in May, dropped $1.95 to $50.43 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for May shed $1.74 to $50.24 a barrel. “The market is probably a little concerned about the short-term performance of the equity markets,” said Mark Pervan, senior commodities analyst of ANZ bank. European and Asian stock markets dived on Monday as fresh woes for the global auto sector and extremely weak economic data triggered a rush to dump shares. Tokyo closed down 4.53% as bad industrial and auto production data fed the gloomy economic outlook and traders rushed to lock in profits made last week, they added. European indices fell between 2 and around 3% in morning trade. Meanwhile oil prices at about $50 a barrel will not support huge investments needed in the sector to meet demand, the secretary-general of the International Energy Forum, Noe van Hulst, said on Monday, addressing the opening of a two-day forum on cooperation between national and international oil companies in Kuwait. “Around $12 trillion of investments are needed in the oil and gas sector by 2030, or nearly $500 billion per annum, to maintain market balance,” Hulst of the Riyadh-based IEF said. He warned that a delay in investments and projects, which is already taking place, will affect future energy supplies and he called for the maintaining of investment plans, as much as possible, to avoid a “boom-bust cycle.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:39 am Q+A - Tata Motors to launch Nano - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:30 am ‘Some global trade may disappear forever’Geneva: Some exporters could lose their trade markets permanently as a result of the world’s economic contraction, an International Monetary Fund official said on Monday. “What we are seeing now is the sheer implosion of international trade. I think it’s transitory. However, we may also speculate that some of (the) international trade flows will disappear forever,” said Marek Belka, director of the IMF’s European department. He told diplomats at the United Nations offices in Geneva that if the economic crisis causes long-suppressed US savings rates to turn positive “there will be less trade everywhere”. “I think that domestic economy and intraregional integration will play a larger role than before. We should not count on global trade to such an extent as we are counting now,” he said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:27 am Indian navy launches patrol vesselPanaji: Indian Navy’s first ever of the new 105 meter class Naval off shore patrol vessel was on Monday launched in the port town of Vasco. Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Sureesh Mehta was the chief guest for the launch of the vessel christened as INS Saryu. Measuring 105 meters in length, 12.90 meters in breadth and with a displacement of about 2215 tonnes, the vessel has a top speed of 25 knots. Officials stated that the vessel is primarily aimed at meeting the increasing requirement of the Indian Navy for surveillance and accomplishing surface ware fare operation in order to prevent infiltration and transgression of maritime sovereignty. The officials said that NOVP is capable of the coastal and offshore patrolling thereby enhancing the security of the nation. This vessel is also used for ocean surveillance and monitoring of shipping line of controls, defense of offshore oil installation and other important offshore national assets, officials said. The naval officials added that the ship can also be deployed for escorting high value ships and fleet support operations. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:26 am Govt okays further revision in pay for PSU officersNew Delhi: About four lakh officers of central public sector enterprises will benefit from a government decision on Monday giving them a further increase in salary and allowances, over and above the hikes announced last year. The decision to improve the salary structure of officers at board level and below, along with supervisory staff, was taken at the Cabinet meeting presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The improved pay packages will also include increase in house rent allowance and retirement benefits. The decisions are based on the recommendations of the committee of ministers headed by Home Minister P Chidambaram, which went into the revised salary and allowances notified earlier in November last year by the government. PSU officers, particularly in the oil sector, forced the government to revisit their revised pay scales when they went on strike in January this year. Briefing reporters after the Cabinet meeting, Chidambaram said the revision in the pay structure would vary from company to company. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:18 am SBI MF aims to collect Rs1.5-2 bn from gold ETFMumbai: State Bank of India Mutual Fund aims to collect Rs1.5-2 billion from its new gold Exchange Traded Fund (ETF), a senior official said on Monday. “Based on the current market situation, our current expection is that in the initial stage we should probably do about Rs150-200 crores,” R.S. Srinivas Jain, chief marketing officer with SBI Mutual Fund, told reporters at the launch. “And over the period of time we should be a substantially large fund,” Jain added. The new fund offering will close on 28 April. SBI MF will join the five other gold ETFs traded on the National Stock Exchange. India’s gold collection under exchange-traded funds rose 32.8% to 5.172 tonnes in the year to February-end, data from the funds showed. Though gold collections under ETFs are growing, they remain miniscule against India’s imports of about 700 tonnes annually. Gold ETFs — instruments that can be traded like shares and are backed by physical gold holdings — are more than a year old and the segment may get crowded with some other funds planning to enter. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:08 am Cabinet approves capital infusion in United Bank of India - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:06 am Sensex closes almost 5 percent lowerIndian equities markets ended trade in the red Monday as global markets took a nose-dive, with a key index shutting shop 4.62 percent below its previous close.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 10:00 am Gujarat to get Rs.3,500-crore 'Education City'New Delhi-based infrastructure developer Anant Raj Industries will set up an 'Education City' at Mehsana, about 90 km from here, on an investment of Rs.3,500 crore, the company said Monday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 9:32 am Sensex falls over four percentIndian equities continued to be south-bound in afternoon trade Monday amid heavy selling. About 45 minutes before the closing bell, a key index was trading 4.45 percent lower than its previous close.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 9:31 am Google launches free, legal music downloads in ChinaBeijing: Google Inc on Monday launched free downloads of licenced songs in China, while sharing advertising revenue with major music labels in a market rife with online piracy. Lee Kai-Fu, president of Google in greater China, said one reason Google lagged in the mainland search market was because it did not offer music downloads, the missing piece to its strategy in a market where it trails leader Baidu.com Inc. “We are offering free, high quality and legal downloads,” Lee told reporters. “We were missing one piece ... we didn’t have music.” The service offers downloads of some 350,000 songs - from Chinese and foreign artists - a number that will rise to 1.1 million in the coming months, said Gary Chen, chief executive of Google’s partner www.Top100.cn, a Chinese music website co-founded by basketball star Yao Ming. Music from artists signed by Sony Music, Warner Music, EMI and Universal Music will be available on the service, which Google has no current plans to expand beyond China, said Lee. “This is the first serious attempt to start (monetizing) the online market in China. I can’t overestimate how important this is,” said Lachie Rutherford, president of Warner Music Asia Pacific and Asia chairman of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). Users will be able to search by musical measurements such as the level of “beat” in a song and “instrumentality”, as well as by artist and song name. IFPI said last year that more than 99% of all music files distributed in China are pirated, and the country’s total legitimate music market, at $76 million, accounts for less than 1% of global recorded music sales. The new service will attract users away from illegal download sites because the music and service will be of a higher quality, said Warner’s Rutherford. Downloads of unlicensed music and videos are rampant in China, the world’s biggest Internet market by number of users. While Google dominates the global web search market, in China Baidu holds more than 60% of the market, more than double Google’s share. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 9:29 am Air India launches flights to NY, Chicago via FrankfurtThe launch of the new services doubles the total number of Air India's flights operating from Frankfurt to 28.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 9:12 am Tata Motors ties up with UBI for car financeTata Motors said that it has entered into an agreement with public-sector lender Union Bank of India (UBI) for financing its range of passenger vehicles.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 9:11 am MySpace launches karaoke service in JapanSan Francisco: Online social-networking titan MySpace on Sunday launched a karaoke service in Japan, expanding its amateur crooner channel to a nation rich with lovers of the pastime. “If you had told me years ago we would launch an online karaoke site in Japan, I would have told you it is like selling ice to the Eskimos,” said MySpace Karaoke general manager Nimrod Lev. “Boy was I wrong. It seems like the land of karaoke has nothing even close to that. We met with all the leading companies there and they loved what they saw.” MySpace Karaoke lays claim to being the world’s “largest user-generated music service,” logging more than eight million visitors since it launched in May of last year in Canada and the United States. In October, the News Corp-owned social networking website overhauled its karaoke channel to let amateurs post online video of themselves in all their singing glory. MySpace has arranged licensing deals with music publishers to spare users of its karaoke channel from hassles regarding song copyrights. MySpace bills its online video recorder as innovative, custom-built technology that lets people record themselves singing by using computers equipped with microphones, Web-cameras and Internet connections. Users have submitted more than a million recordings of songs to the website, according to MySpace. Workers at MySpace offices in Japan spent months tailoring the karaoke service to the local language. “This was an extensive process,” Lev said. “We had to adapt it to the smallest nuances of the Japanese language.” An estimated 40% of Japan’s population, approximately 50 million people, do karaoke, according to statistics cited by MySpace. “What we do is a form of self-expression through music,” Lev said. “It definitely falls into the MySpace category of giving users more tools to express themselves.” Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 8:40 am Air India launches flights to NY, Chicago via FrankfurtAir India has expanded its international operations with the launch of two daily flights from Mumbai and Delhi to New York and Chicago via here and opened a European hub at the Frankfurt Airport.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 8:34 am L and amp;T bags Rs.345-crore order from Nuclear Power CorpEngineering and construction major Larsen and Toubro (L and amp;T) has bagged a Rs.345 crore ($67.5 million) order from the Nuclear Power Corp of India (NPCI) for supply of four steam generators, it was announced Monday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 8:31 am Ranbaxy posts Rs.1,045 crore net loss in 2008Leading drug maker Ranbaxy Laboratories Monday reported a net loss of Rs.1,044.8 crore ($204 million) for 2008 as against a net profit of Rs.617.7 crore in the previous year.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 8:30 am Delhi airport awards contracts for hotel developmentFive domestic and global hospitality companies have been selected to build deluxe and five-star hotels around the international airport here, with the target of completing the projects before the Commonwealth Games next year.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 8:30 am What recession? Indian political parties are flush with fundsIt may be recession time for the world, but Indian political parties appear to be awash with money as they plunge into the world's biggest electoral battle.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 30 Mar 2009 | 8:02 am Lenders, refiners lead Sensex tumbleThe Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex on Monday plunged over 480 points on profit-booking in heavy-weights led by banking, refining and metal stocks.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 7:44 am Facebook used to track down rapistLondon: In what is claimed to be the first known use of a social networking site to track down a criminal, the boyfriend of a rape victim in Britain has set up a Facebook page to try to catch her attacker. He has posted CCTV images of the suspect on a Facebook group, “Find the Sale rapist”, and even appealed to anyone who recognises the rapist, in his 40s or 50s, to get in touch with detectives immediately. The group, which has 5,000 members with more joining everyday, also contains details of the attack in Manchester last August. “This man needs to be caught ASAP he is a danger to the public,” the Facebook page reads. The boyfriend of the victim has said that he decided to turn to the social networking site “after a public appeal for information from the police proved unsuccessful”. “We just want her attacker caught and I thought starting a Facebook site which would be seen by thousands of people would increase the chances of that happening,” British tabloid the ‘Mirror’ quoted him as saying, without naming him. He added: “I thought, who logs on to a police website on the off-chance that there might be someone wanted that they might recognise? At least, with Facebook lots of people are leaning about what happened and getting to see the footage of the man.” The woman was raped as she walked less than a mile to her parents’ home from a pub in Manchester, late at night last August. Her boyfriend was to meet her half-way but she failed to turn up. He searched for some 45 minutes before finding her lying sobbing behind a hedge. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 7:40 am Rupee eases as shares drop; dlr strengthensMumbai: The Indian rupee extended losses in afternoon trade on Monday, weighed by heavy losses in the domestic sharemarket and the dollar’s strength against other major currencies overseas. At 12:45pm, the partially convertible rupee was at Rs51.11/12 per dollar, weaker than its Thursday’s close of Rs50.59/61. The currency market was shut on Friday for a holiday. Indian shares extended losses to more than 4% weighed down by losses in Asia and as investors took profits after the market had risen more than 20% over the past three weeks. The dollar rose against a basket of currencies with Asian shares and US stock futures slumping as recent investor confidence ebbed and the safe-haven greenback was favoured. Most Asian units other than the Japanese yen were lower versus the US unit. Dealers said there was some residual month-end demand from oil refiners and importers, which was also adding to the pressure on the local unit. In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month contract on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX were quoting at Rs51.3025 and Rs51.3000 respectively, with the total traded volume on both exchanges at about $437 million. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 7:36 am Skype announces service for iPhone, BlackBerryNew York: Skype, the Internet telephone unit of eBay Inc, is planning to launch its service for iPhone users on Tuesday and for BlackBerry in May as part of its effort to expand beyond desktop computers. Skype has been pushing to make its service work on the most popular advanced phones with an aim to expending its more than 400 million users who were mostly lured by the promise of cheap and sometimes free calls made using its computer application. Skype chief operating officer Scott Durchslag said he has high hopes for the application’s success on Apple Inc’s popular iPhone as he expects Skype’s most feature-rich mobile offering to appeal to new and existing customers. “The No. 1 request we get from customers is to make Skype available on iPhone. There’s a pent-up demand,” Durchslag said in an interview before the CTIA annual mobile showcase in Las Vegas, where Skype plans to launch the service on Tuesday. In May it will launch Skype for Research In Motion’s BlackBerry devices, which popularized mobile email. It has already announced Skype for Nokia phones and for phones based on Android, Google Inc’s mobile system, and Windows Mobile, from Microsoft Corp. CCS Insight analyst Ben Wood said the new applications give Skype a chance to boost its mobile phone position, which has been weaker than that of social sites such as Facebook, Twitter or News Corp’s MySpace. One of Skype’s unusual iPhone features is the fact that it allows subscribers use to the phone numbers in their existing iPhone address book so they do not need duplicate lists. “Whether you’re Twitter, MySpace or Facebook you want to be embedded in the address book,” said Wood. “This puts Skype firmly into the game.” Skype’s iPhone application will be free to download and will allow free calls between Skype users. As with Skype on the desktop, fees will be charged for calls to traditional phones. The service will also work on later versions of Apple’s latest iPod Touch device, which has Wi-Fi links but no cellular connection. The iPod Touch launched September 2008 has a microphone, unlike the first iPod Touch launched in 2007. While Skype video is very popular with desktop customers, Durchslag said that the company is still considering whether it will offer video for the iPhone or other phones. “We’re considering video carefully but we have a really high bar on the quality,” and how the user interaction will work with other applications on iPhone, he said. “If we do it we will have to do it incredibly well.” CCS’s Wood said that if Skype can replicate the popularity of its desktop video feature on the cellphone it would help a mobile category that has been slow to take off, as well as boost its own status in cellphones. “I’m firmly convinced that if Skype could find a way to bridge all those cellphone cameras and laptop cameras it might kick start a video telephony opportunity,” he said. While mobile Skype has has been available for some time in other countries such as the United Kingdom, it has been slow to catch on in the United States partly due to carrier concern that it would cannibalize their phone call revenue. In the United States for example, AT&T Inc has had a monopoly on calls made from iPhones, as it is the exclusive carrier here. But Wood said that Skype has actually shown that it can boost consumer spending on cellphones as it encourages use of the phones for other services such as data. For example he said that its success on networks such as 3 UK, owned by Hutchison Whampoa Ltd, suggests that carrier fears have been unfounded. “The only area where I think there are some question mark is that it could erode roaming revenues,” he said, noting that some consumers particularly in Europe hesitate to use their phones while outside of their carrier territory because of notoriously high roaming fees. “The carriers will be suspicious of this service but what we’ve learned from other markets is that (Skype) did not have the detrimental effect feared,” he said. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 7:30 am Downturn claims GM chief, G20 eyes 2010 growthWASHINGTON (Reuters) - A White House task force was expected to announce recommendations on Monday for restructuring the ailing U.S. automotive industry after the head of General Motors Corp, awaiting a second bailout, resigned under pressure.Source: Reuters: Money News | 30 Mar 2009 | 7:24 am Fritz Henderson appointed new GM chiefWashington: The Obama administration on Monday seized the wheel of the failing US auto industry, forcing the ouster of General Motors Corp’s chief executive, pushing Chrysler LLC toward a merger and threatening bankruptcy for both. The steps, outlined by the White House autos panel headed by former investment banker Steve Rattner, marked a stunning reversal for management at both automakers and took aim at GM creditors who had bet that the administration would rescue the top US automaker. Instead of granting GM’s request for up to a further $16 billion in loans, the administration pledged only to fund GM’s operations for the next 60 days while it develops a more sweeping restructuring plan under new leadership. GM CEO Rick Wagoner, who had presided over the company’s rapid decline in the past five years and had run the automaker since 2000, was forced out effective on Monday at the request of Rattner. A majority of GM’s board will also be replaced. GM President and chief operating officer Fritz Henderson, a Wagoner protege, was named as new CEO. “On Friday, I was in Washington for a meeting with administration officials,” Wagoner said in a statement. “They requested that I ‘step aside´as CEO of GM, and so I have.” The forced resignation came at a time when the Obama administration has come under fire for not blocking bonuses to executives at American International Group Inc.. It was only the second time that the US. government has forced the ouster of a CEO in a bailout since the financial crisis began last fall. Robert Willumstad lost his job at the helm of AIG in September in connection with the US government’s then-$85 billion rescue of the giant insurer. Most analysts had expected the administration to take a softer line with GM and Chrysler after it had signaled its intent to protect jobs for the 160,000 US workers employed by the companies. S&P 500 futures fell after the news, trading down 1.5% at 10:30am, while US Treasuries futures hit a session high. Shares in Japanese automakers such as Honda Motor Co and Mazda Motor fell around 7% on concerns about the broader industry impact of the failure of one of the major U.S. producers. “The fact that there’s still a chance of GM going bankrupt is shocking,” said Takashi Ushio, head of the investment strategy division at Marusan Securities in Japan. Republican Thaddeus McCotter, a Detroit-area Republican, said the Obama administration had applied a double-standard in ousting Wagoner after letting bank executives stay on in their jobs. “I want to know what the goal is for these companies,” he told Reuters. “We have families that are scared to death. In Michigan, with 12% unemployment, we’ve got to be worried.” Chrysler ultimatun: Partner or die Chrysler, which is controlled by Cerberus Capital Management, was given 30 days to complete an alliance with Italy’s Fiat SpA or face a cut-off of its government funding that could force its liquidation. The autos panel rejected the claim by Cerberus that Chrysler could be viable on its own, citing its smaller size, weaker product line-up and declining US market share. If Chrysler can complete a tie-up with Fiat and cost-saving deals with creditors and its major union, the Treasury would consider investing up to another $6 billion, officials said. US officials said there had been progress in recent negotiations involving the task force. Fiat has agreed to take less than the 35% stake in Chrysler the two companies had first negotiated, the senior official said. Meanwhile, Henderson, a key architect of GM’s now-rejected turnaround plan, was charged with working with US officials and advisers to develop a more aggressive restructuring. “We believe our approach to GM is starting with a clean sheet of paper,” the senior official said. GM bondholders, the official said, could have to take less than the 33-cent-on-the-dollar payout they have been offered and should abandon hope of seeing a government guarantee for their investment. The Obama administration has also not ruled out a quick bankruptcy process for either GM or Chrysler, he said. Such a process, he said, could shed debt quickly. “Think of it as a quick rinse,” the senior official said. Wagoner has been outspoken in his opposition to a Chapter 11 reorganization, saying it would drive away consumers and probably lead to GM’s liquidation. GM had asked for more than $16 billion in new government loans, while Chrysler wanted $5 billion to ride out the weakest market for new cars in almost 30 years. Obama last week cited mismanagement “over the years” for some of the auto industry’s severe financial problems, a barb aimed at Wagoner since his counterparts at Ford Motor Co, Alan Mulally, and Chrysler, Bob Nardelli, are relative newcomers brought in from outside the industry. GM has lost about $82 billion since 2005 when its problems began to mount in the US market. GM stock has also lost about 95 percent of its value since Wagoner took over as CEO. Wagoner inherited many of GM’s deeper problems but critics say he failed to move quickly enough, leaving the automaker vulnerable when auto sales tanked and credit dried up. “GM lost its footing in the late 1970s and the board didn’t seem to notice for another 20 years. Rick made a lot of decisions, but they came too late,” said John Casesa, a managing partner at consulting firm Casesa Shapiro Group. Wagoner was the second car executive to lose his job over the weekend. The board of France’s PSA Peugeot Citroen fired CEO Christian Streiff and replaced him with Philippe Varin, who will take up the position on 1 June. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 6:59 am Fritz Henderson appointed new GM chiefWashington: The Obama administration on Monday seized the wheel of the failing US auto industry, forcing the ouster of General Motors Corp’s chief executive, pushing Chrysler LLC toward a merger and threatening bankruptcy for both. The steps, outlined by the White House autos panel headed by former investment banker Steve Rattner, marked a stunning reversal for management at both automakers and took aim at GM creditors who had bet that the administration would rescue the top US automaker. Instead of granting GM’s request for up to a further $16 billion in loans, the administration pledged only to fund GM’s operations for the next 60 days while it develops a more sweeping restructuring plan under new leadership. GM CEO Rick Wagoner, who had presided over the company’s rapid decline in the past five years and had run the automaker since 2000, was forced out effective on Monday at the request of Rattner. A majority of GM’s board will also be replaced. GM President and chief operating officer Fritz Henderson, a Wagoner protege, was named as new CEO. “On Friday, I was in Washington for a meeting with administration officials,” Wagoner said in a statement. “They requested that I ‘step aside´as CEO of GM, and so I have.” The forced resignation came at a time when the Obama administration has come under fire for not blocking bonuses to executives at American International Group Inc.. It was only the second time that the US. government has forced the ouster of a CEO in a bailout since the financial crisis began last fall. Robert Willumstad lost his job at the helm of AIG in September in connection with the US government’s then-$85 billion rescue of the giant insurer. Most analysts had expected the administration to take a softer line with GM and Chrysler after it had signaled its intent to protect jobs for the 160,000 US workers employed by the companies. S&P 500 futures fell after the news, trading down 1.5% at 10:30am, while US Treasuries futures hit a session high. Shares in Japanese automakers such as Honda Motor Co and Mazda Motor fell around 7% on concerns about the broader industry impact of the failure of one of the major U.S. producers. “The fact that there’s still a chance of GM going bankrupt is shocking,” said Takashi Ushio, head of the investment strategy division at Marusan Securities in Japan. Republican Thaddeus McCotter, a Detroit-area Republican, said the Obama administration had applied a double-standard in ousting Wagoner after letting bank executives stay on in their jobs. “I want to know what the goal is for these companies,” he told Reuters. “We have families that are scared to death. In Michigan, with 12% unemployment, we’ve got to be worried.” Chrysler ultimatun: Partner or die Chrysler, which is controlled by Cerberus Capital Management, was given 30 days to complete an alliance with Italy’s Fiat SpA or face a cut-off of its government funding that could force its liquidation. The autos panel rejected the claim by Cerberus that Chrysler could be viable on its own, citing its smaller size, weaker product line-up and declining US market share. If Chrysler can complete a tie-up with Fiat and cost-saving deals with creditors and its major union, the Treasury would consider investing up to another $6 billion, officials said. US officials said there had been progress in recent negotiations involving the task force. Fiat has agreed to take less than the 35% stake in Chrysler the two companies had first negotiated, the senior official said. Meanwhile, Henderson, a key architect of GM’s now-rejected turnaround plan, was charged with working with US officials and advisers to develop a more aggressive restructuring. “We believe our approach to GM is starting with a clean sheet of paper,” the senior official said. GM bondholders, the official said, could have to take less than the 33-cent-on-the-dollar payout they have been offered and should abandon hope of seeing a government guarantee for their investment. The Obama administration has also not ruled out a quick bankruptcy process for either GM or Chrysler, he said. Such a process, he said, could shed debt quickly. “Think of it as a quick rinse,” the senior official said. Wagoner has been outspoken in his opposition to a Chapter 11 reorganization, saying it would drive away consumers and probably lead to GM’s liquidation. GM had asked for more than $16 billion in new government loans, while Chrysler wanted $5 billion to ride out the weakest market for new cars in almost 30 years. Obama last week cited mismanagement “over the years” for some of the auto industry’s severe financial problems, a barb aimed at Wagoner since his counterparts at Ford Motor Co, Alan Mulally, and Chrysler, Bob Nardelli, are relative newcomers brought in from outside the industry. GM has lost about $82 billion since 2005 when its problems began to mount in the US market. GM stock has also lost about 95 percent of its value since Wagoner took over as CEO. Wagoner inherited many of GM’s deeper problems but critics say he failed to move quickly enough, leaving the automaker vulnerable when auto sales tanked and credit dried up. “GM lost its footing in the late 1970s and the board didn’t seem to notice for another 20 years. Rick made a lot of decisions, but they came too late,” said John Casesa, a managing partner at consulting firm Casesa Shapiro Group. Wagoner was the second car executive to lose his job over the weekend. The board of France’s PSA Peugeot Citroen fired CEO Christian Streiff and replaced him with Philippe Varin, who will take up the position on 1 June. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 6:59 am Reliance's KG gas output to begin in 2 days: reportAt peak production, the gas from the D-6 block in the KG basin is expected to add nearly $2 billion to Reliance's profit.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 6:30 am Rupee breaches 51 mark, down 43 paiseThe rupee breached the 51 level in morning trade as oil refiners stepped up dollar buying at the month-end amid weak equity markets.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 6:07 am Gold climbs higher on weak rupeeIndia's gold futures edged higher on Monday taking support from a weak rupee, making the dollar-quoted asset expensive.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:18 am Debate | What should India choose: A muscular foreign policy or coercive diplomacy?This week’s question on Mint’s National Agenda Debates Series is “What should India choose: A muscular foreign policy or coercive diplomacy?” Click here to join the debate This week, we feature an opinion piece written by Sanjaya Baru based on which we have this week’s question. Also Read | Sanjaya Baru’s essay India in a changing world Source: Home - Livemint.com | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:07 am Sensex falls below 10k-level, sheds 251 pts in opening tradeSnapping a long winning-streak, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex slipped below 10,000 by losing 250.43 points in opening trade on emergence of profit-selling by funds.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 30 Mar 2009 | 5:06 am Bulls’ optimism soars on sustained buying activityLast week saw a significant bear market relief rally on Dalal Street. This week it may notSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am Bernanke’s bold initiativesThe US Federal Reserve has administered a pleasant shock to the markets by intervening in the market for Treasuries and buying long-term bonds with maturities of more than 10 years. This is a bold step aimed at reducing the interest costs forSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am Punj Lloyd (Rs 90.35): BuyWe recommend a buy in Punj Lloyd stock from a short-term trading perspective. It is apparent from the charts of Punj Lloyd that it was on an intermediate-term downtrend from a significant resistance level of Rs 310 encountered in late SeptemberSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am IIM-A hikes fees by Rs 1 lakhAhmedabad, March 29 Studying at the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad is going to be costlier by Rs 1 lakh this year, said Mr Sameer Barua, Director.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am IIT duo wins BL Club case study contestChennai, March 29 Basant Baweja and Mayur Gupta, first-year students of the Department of Management Studies, IIT Madras, won the top prize at the BL Club case study contest here onSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am Banks park only a third of fresh monies in commercial creditNew Delhi, March 29 Banks parked nearly two-thirds of the incremental deposits that flowed into the banking system in the last six months in investments (mostly Government securities) than lend it to the commercial sector, an analysis of RBISource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am Comex gold may test support levelsGold futures, ended lower, on the back of a recovering dollar and reduced safe-haven appeal due to the steps taken to stem the economic crisis in the US. Recent steps taken by the US government could once again attract investors back to riskierSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am Day Trading GuideSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am On a confidence drive, with NanoIt has been said that during a panic, confidence is almost as good as gold. The Tatas must be in panic over the enormous debts they have incurred in buying up Corus as well as Jaguar. Credit rating agencies might have lowered their rating.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am Indian IT majors lose premium valuation over global peersBL Research Bureau Stock market investors seem to expect that Indian IT majors will deliver lower growth than their global peers. PE multiples of Indian IT companies, which used to be much higher than their global rivals until last year, haveSource: Business Line - Home Page | 30 Mar 2009 | 12:00 am FMCG majors say cheers to fruit drinksA number of FMCG players are rushing to offer thirsty customers a plethora of coolers to choose from.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Mar 2009 | 10:24 pm Jet Airways may cut more capacityJet Airways, which had slashed 18-20% of its fleet capacity may look at reducing capacity if the current air traffic slips further.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Mar 2009 | 10:21 pm 'It has become a price game here of late'Murali Sivaraman, managing director and CEO spoke to DNA on the company's strategy to tap the mass marketSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Mar 2009 | 10:17 pm Watch US, China data keenly for cuesThe markets witnessed a lower turnover week as commodity prices consolidated.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Mar 2009 | 10:14 pm Mars-Saturn link a worrying signActually, the Sun and Mercury will exactly conjoin on Tuesday; so the early week may be more negative.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Mar 2009 | 10:12 pm Nifty likely to consolidate in 3000-3100 bandThe expected positive momentum continued in the expiry week as short covering gathered momentum and fresh long positions got initiated.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Mar 2009 | 10:06 pm Global aspirations will help achieve targetsCosmo Films Ltd is manufacturer of bi-axially oriented polypropylene films, besides being the largest manufacturer of thermal films in India.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 29 Mar 2009 | 10:05 pm New telcos must share profit if they sell stakeThe government has come up with additional measures to stop telecom operators from flipping their licences.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 29 Mar 2009 | 8:07 pm MFIs offer home loansWith the lending rates falling, it's not just the urban home buyers who are benefiting. MFIs are now rolling out home loan products to the poor in rural IndiaSource: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 29 Mar 2009 | 7:13 pm Group M, UFO Moviez lead race for IPL's multiplex rightsThe 59-match Twenty20 IPL tournament has been relocated to South Africa owing to security concerns after attacks on Sri Lankan cricketers in Pakistan.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 29 Mar 2009 | 6:51 pm LSE in talks with MCX-SX to pick up equity stakeThe London Stock Exchange (LSE), the worlds third largest exchange in terms of value of shares traded, is in talks with Financial Technologies (FT) to buy a stake in its stock exchange arm MCX-SX.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 29 Mar 2009 | 6:47 pm Govt asks S to clarify rating actionTo also hold consultations with Moody's and Fitch.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 29 Mar 2009 | 6:44 pm Revenge isn’t an option for this upheavalRemember the US presidential inauguration? It was just some two months ago. The economy was in trouble. People were scared. But for one brief and shining moment—and maybe even a bit longer—virtually everyone seemed to believe some sort of great and necessary reinvention lay ahead. People felt hope. Today they’re feeling rage.  But without a doubt, the recent imbroglio over bonuses at American International Group Inc. (AIG) was a tipping point. Suddenly a lot of people went from wanting change to wanting revenge. Understandable, perhaps. But the most profound economic and cultural upheaval of our time will not be righted if we give in to rage. Rage only begets rage. It often makes people do stupid, short-sighted things that invariably spawn unintended consequences. Rage isn’t healing. It’s polarizing. Which is why we all have to fight to keep hope alive and replace our rage with an increased and renewed focus on the good and absolutely certain things in life—the rage-busters, if you will. Click here to watch video Take, for instance, the fact that at this very moment there are hundreds, if not thousands, of geeky, brilliant engineering wonks at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford, and other campuses around the world who are sitting in their dorm rooms, subsisting on pizza, not caring about the nice weather outside as they pour their hearts into some cool new idea. Those geeky kids and their cool ideas are the future of business—just wait. Also See Jack and Suzy Welch’s earlier videos You can be sure, too, that there are legions of people out there who aren’t frightened by the downturn in the economy. They’re called entrepreneurs, and challenges don’t make them surrender. Challenges make them fierce. Or consider the fact that right now, at companies of every kind, large and small, new and old, teams of employees are huddled in meetings, working hard to figure out how to save jobs. You can be sure that as you read this, medical researchers in laboratories around the world are putting in 18-hour days as they work to unlock the secrets of the human genome and discover cures beyond imagining. You can be sure that most of them, maybe even all of them, are motivated by a compelling, heartfelt desire to save lives—perhaps, someday, the life of someone you love. You can be sure (OK, pretty sure) that in April, Tiger Woods will do something superhuman at the Masters golf tournament and the world will collectively gasp in wonder, overjoyed that he’s back. You can be sure that not long after the Masters, on a warm spring day, a mother and father will hold back tears as they watch the first member of their family graduate from college. You can be sure that they won’t be alone. You can be sure that for every jerk with compromised ethics who is undermining business, there are 98 or 99 decent, hard-working people determined to do the right thing. You can be sure that those people will prevail. You can be sure that a hero of non-partisanship leadership will emerge from the morass on Capitol Hill, and that person will show us what true public service looks like. You can be sure that there will be more than one hero at the end of this. You can be sure that this summer there will be a new song on the radio that is so terrific and fun you won’t be able to get it out of your head. You can be sure that music will never die. You can be sure that someday in the not-too-distant future, we will look back on this difficult time and say, “It was painful, but we pushed hard and learnt so much that we truly lowered the chances of its ever happening again.” You can be completely and absolutely sure that the first hot dog you eat while watching the first baseball game of the season at the ballpark will be as good as it gets, and the second one won’t be bad either. And finally, you can be sure that we’ve only come up with a few of the rage-busters that should be on this list. What’s on yours? Write to Jack & Suzy Jack and Suzy are eager to hear about your career dilemmas and challenges at work, and look forward to answering some of your questions in future columns. Jack and Suzy Welch are the authors of the international best-seller, Winning. Their latest book is Winning: The Answers: Confronting 74 of the Toughest Questions in Business Today. Mint readers can email them questions at winning@livemint.com Please include your name, occupation and city. Only select questions will be answered. ©2009/ By NYT SYNDICATE Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 29 Mar 2009 | 5:26 pm Spy ring hacks into computers in 103 countriesToronto: A vast electronic spying operation has infiltrated computers and stolen documents from hundreds of government and private offices around the world, including those of the Dalai Lama, Canadian researchers have concluded. In a report, they said that the system was being controlled from computers based almost exclusively in China, but that they could not say conclusively that the Chinese government was involved. The operation continues to invade and monitor at least a dozen new computers a week, the researchers said in their report, Tracking ‘GhostNet’: Investigating a Cyber Espionage Network. They said they had found no evidence that the US government offices had been infiltrated, although a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato) computer was monitored by the spies for half a day and computers of the Indian embassy in Washington were infiltrated. The researchers, based at the Munk Center for International Studies at the University of Toronto, had been asked by the office of the Dalai Lama to examine its computers for signs of malicious software, or malware. Their sleuthing opened a window into a broader operation that, in less than two years, has infiltrated at least 1,295 computers in 103 countries, including many belonging to embassies, foreign ministries and other government offices, as well as the Dalai Lama’s Tibetan exile centres in India, Brussels, London and New York. The researchers, who have a record of detecting computer espionage, said they believed that in addition to the spying on the Dalai Lama, the system, which they called GhostNet, was focused on the governments of South Asian and South-East Asian countries. The spying operation is by far the largest to come to light in terms of countries affected. This is also believed to be the first time researchers have been able to expose the workings of a computer system used in an intrusion of this magnitude. The Toronto researchers said they had notified international law enforcement agencies of the spying operation. ©2009/THE NEW YORK TIMES Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 29 Mar 2009 | 5:09 pm Rofo, Rofr? Decoding shareholder agreementsWe agree for a Rofo but not a Rofr.” “Calculate the percentage of equity on a fully diluted basis.” These are examples of statements often used in negotiating equity deals and later translated into agreements. Typical documents used for capturing terms of equity investments, that is, share-purchase agreements or shareholders’ agreements, are now complex and ridden with industry terminology such as these. This may be explained as a consequence of increased foreign equity participation in Indian companies, which has resulted in the import of internationally identified terms of negotiation. While parties represented by industry specialists are quite familiar with such concepts, and therefore adept at using such terminology to their advantage, these terms can nevertheless sometimes be misunderstood. A simple explanation of these terms and their contextual usage is provided here.  Illustration: Jayachandran / Mint For instance, if there are two shareholders in a private company, say, A and B, with a Rofo in favour of B granted by A, and A decides to sell his shares, then A must first offer his shares to B. Only if B refuses to purchase A’s shares, or if A can obtain a higher price for his shares from a third party than that offered by B, can A sell his share to a third party. On the other hand, if there is a Rofr in favour of B, then A is first required to offer his share to third parties and obtain a price from them for this. A is then required to approach B with the price offered by third parties. If B can match or better the price offered by third parties, A must sell his share to B. For an investor seeking to exit a company, a Rofo in favour of the promoters will be the preferred option. This is because a Rofo provides the investor a price with which to begin negotiations with third parties and the process of price discovery remains in the investor’s hands. However, if there is a Rofr in favour of the promoters, no third party would be interested in the investor’s shares as even after an extensive and expensive diligence process by the third party to discover the price for the investor’s shares, there remains a possibility that no sale will occur if the promoter trumps the price offered by the third party. Promoters would also vie for a Rofr as it will give them an opportunity to buy the investor shares by only matching or slightly bettering the price. Of course, depending on negotiations, there can be a number of add-ons to the basic concept; for example, the straitjacket Rofr concept may be softened by adding a requirement on the promoters to better the third party price by at least an agreed percentage/amount. This will ensure some incentive to third parties to be interested in the shares subject to a Rofr, and may also appease the promoters by letting them have some control over the sale. The other oft-used terms are “drag” and “tag”. Simply stated, “drag” means “if I sell, you will be required to sell with me” and “tag” means “if you sell, I will have the right to sell along with you”. Private equity investments usually have a horizon where the promoters agree to provide an exit for the investors on predetermined terms. Where the promoters have failed to provide the investor with the agreed exit from the company, “drag” provisions in favour of the investor are useful. In such cases, the investor will have the right to force the promoters to sell their shares along with it on the same terms and to the same person to whom the investor is selling for its exit from the company. A drag right becomes meaningful on the principle that there is greater marketability for a larger shareholding in the company (as the drag enables sale of the investor’s and the promoters’ shares together) than only of the investor’s shares. Tag rights may be used by an investor if the promoters decide to sell their shares in a good deal, in which case the investor entity can sell its share on terms similar to those offered to the promoters. Moreover, sometimes investments may be made in a company on the basis of the capabilities of its existing shareholders/promoters. Here again, a tag right is useful as it will provide the investor with the opportunity to exit if the very reason for investment—the existing shareholders/promoters—are exiting the company. Then there is the phrase “on a fully diluted basis”. This phrase essentially conveys that the equity base of the company is to be calculated assuming that all convertible instruments have been converted into equity. This gives a party an accurate picture of how much equity percentage it will eventually hold in the company. In conclusion, while the terms above are commonly used in documentation, these nevertheless remain subject to law. So a “drag” of Indian promoters by a foreign investor to another foreign party may not be possible in a foreign investment-regulated sector where there are requirements that majority control of a company remain with Indian promoters. Similarly, price discovery in a Rofo or Rofr process may be restricted by prescribed pricing guidelines for transfer of shares from non-resident entities to resident Indian entities. This column is contributed by Daksh Trivedi of AZB & Partners, Advocates & Solicitors. Send your comments to lawfullyyours@livemint.com Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 29 Mar 2009 | 4:05 pm
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