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Fortis may be eyeing 2640% stake in Wockhardt: SourcesAccording to sources, Fortis Healthcare would be happy even if it is offered a minority stake in Wockhardt Hospitals. However, the conversations between both the companies are stuck over structure and valuations. Fortis and Wockhardt have discussed stake sale of 26% to 40%, sources said.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 3:44 pm Piramal Healthcare to end operations at Huddersfield plantIn Wednesdays conference call, Piramal Healthcare\'s management said the company will discontinue its operations at Huddersfield plant in United Kingdom (UK). Huddersfield is one of the three UK plants. The company will incur onetime cost of Rs 70 crore for closing the UK plant. FY09 revenues from Huddersfield plant was 19 million pounds.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 2:43 pm Foster Wheeler deal to bring in Rs 7500cr to co: BGRBG Raghupathy Chairman and Managing Director of BGR Energy Systems said that the companys deal with Foster Wheeler would add, at the full capacities, Rs 7,500 crore at todays boilers price. BHEL and LT, according to him, will be the companys biggest competitors.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:46 pm Govt to get $14 bn revenue from RIL\'s KG D6 block: Oil SecyOil Secretary RS Pandey stated that Reliance Industries Ltds (RIL) D6 block started its gas output on Wednesday. Pandey expects D6 Gas to generate USD 42 billion revenue in 11 years, while the government is likely to get USD 14 billion revenue from the block.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:15 pm Protectionism remains high on G20 summit agendaProtectionism remains high on the agenda for the G20 summit and perhaps at best there might be another commitment to oppose it and that is something that India would like to see as well.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 11:26 am Global unemployment could surge more than 5cr in '09: ILOThe ILO has forecast that global unemployment could increase by more than five crore this year unless policies are implemented which balance social and economic dimensions.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 2 Apr 2009 | 11:07 am Sensex rises to three-month high, ends 447pts upThe Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex rose to a three-month high on Thursday, adding nearly 447 points ahead of a gathering of world leaders in London to consider an agenda aimed at tackling the global economic slump.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 2 Apr 2009 | 11:07 am India sells 2014 bond at cut-off price of 103.47 rupees - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 11:05 am G20 heads craft crisis response, markets riseLONDON (Reuters) - World leaders will impose new financial rules on Thursday and triple the war chest of the International Monetary Fund to fight the worst economic crisis since the 1930s, sources at the G20 summit said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:52 am G20 source: leaders nearing $250 bln trade dealLONDON (Reuters) - Group of 20 leaders are close to agreeing a package of $250 billion in financing to support global trade flows, a source at the summit in London told Reuters on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:50 am Nifty closes above 3200; DLF, Tata Motors surge - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:43 am Reliance fire-hit coker may revive in a week-tradeNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Reliance Petroleum will take at least a week to repair its fire-hit coker plant in its new 580,000 barrels per day refinery, traders said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:42 am FACTBOX-Reliance Jamnagar refinery configuration, output - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:41 am PNB sees 20 pct loan growth in FY10 - chairmanNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Punjab National Bank expects loan growth of 20 percent in the year to March 2010, slower than the estimated 28 percent in the previous year, Chairman K.C. Chakrabarty said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:39 am Wireless user base grows 10% in Oct-Dec; touches 347 millionNew Delhi: India, the world’s fastest growing wireless market, added 31.58 million subscribers in the wireless segment in the third quarter ended December last fiscal, a growth of 10% over the previous quarter. During the quarter, the subscriber base for wireless services has increased to 346.89 million from 315.31 million in the previous quarter, telecom regulator Trai said today. Telecom operators earned Rs39,408 crore revenue in the quarter, posting an increase of 6% over the Q2. The Adjusted Gross Revenue, or AGR, for Q3 was also up 6% at Rs28,940 crore, it said. Operators have earned less average income per user in both GSM and CDMA segments. The all-India blended ARPU per month has dropped by 45% to Rs220 in the quarter over preceding quarter. CDMA operators’ ARPU is down to Rs111 from Rs122 for the quarter ended December 2008. ARPU for post-paid service has shown a decline of 4.2% to 559 in December 2008 while that of prepaid service has gone up by 1.6% to Rs 190. The total subscriber base of the wireline and wireless services reached 384.79 million in the said period, a growth of 8.80% over the previous quarter, Trai said. The tele-density (number of phones per 100 people) is 33.23 as on December 2008. The subscriber base of wireline service decreased to 37.90 million in the third quarter from 38.35 million in the preceding quarter last fiscal. Rural wireline user base decreased by 2.46% to 10.68 million in the quarter, whereas the rural subscriber base rose by 2.38% to 93.15 million. The number of PCOs has also decreased by 4.32% to 5.98 million. Internet subscriber base in the quarter reached 12.85 million, registering a growth of 12.24%. BSNL was the top Internet service provider in the country, with more than 50% of the total subscriber base. Broadband subscriber base surged by 12.65% to 5.52 million in the third quarter, Trai said. The AGR of PSU telecom units is Rs8,321 crore while that of the private sector is Rs20,619 crore, it added. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:38 am Wireless user base grows 10% in Oct-Dec; touches 347 millionNew Delhi: India, the world’s fastest growing wireless market, added 31.58 million subscribers in the wireless segment in the third quarter ended December last fiscal, a growth of 10% over the previous quarter. During the quarter, the subscriber base for wireless services has increased to 346.89 million from 315.31 million in the previous quarter, telecom regulator Trai said today. Telecom operators earned Rs39,408 crore revenue in the quarter, posting an increase of 6% over the Q2. The Adjusted Gross Revenue, or AGR, for Q3 was also up 6% at Rs28,940 crore, it said. Operators have earned less average income per user in both GSM and CDMA segments. The all-India blended ARPU per month has dropped by 45% to Rs220 in the quarter over preceding quarter. CDMA operators’ ARPU is down to Rs111 from Rs122 for the quarter ended December 2008. ARPU for post-paid service has shown a decline of 4.2% to 559 in December 2008 while that of prepaid service has gone up by 1.6% to Rs 190. The total subscriber base of the wireline and wireless services reached 384.79 million in the said period, a growth of 8.80% over the previous quarter, Trai said. The tele-density (number of phones per 100 people) is 33.23 as on December 2008. The subscriber base of wireline service decreased to 37.90 million in the third quarter from 38.35 million in the preceding quarter last fiscal. Rural wireline user base decreased by 2.46% to 10.68 million in the quarter, whereas the rural subscriber base rose by 2.38% to 93.15 million. The number of PCOs has also decreased by 4.32% to 5.98 million. Internet subscriber base in the quarter reached 12.85 million, registering a growth of 12.24%. BSNL was the top Internet service provider in the country, with more than 50% of the total subscriber base. Broadband subscriber base surged by 12.65% to 5.52 million in the third quarter, Trai said. The AGR of PSU telecom units is Rs8,321 crore while that of the private sector is Rs20,619 crore, it added. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:38 am Nasscom names Genpact's Pramod Bhasin as chairmanMUMBAI (Reuters) - Pramod Bhasin, chief executive officer of Genpact Ltd, has been appointed chairman of the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) for 2009/10, the IT trade body said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:37 am Fortis may be eyeing 26-40% stake in Wockhardt: Sources - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:35 am Inflation breaks 9 week downward streak to touch 0.31% - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:34 am 'Entry of low-cost cars won't affect three-wheeler sales'The economic slowdown and the launch of low-cost cars would not affect the three-wheeler market, says a top official of the city-based TVS Motor Co who expects a 'quantum jump' in the company's three-wheeler sales and exports this fiscal.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:33 am Yale seminar to focus on business scope in IndiaIvy League business school Yale School of Management will Friday organise a seminar on emerging business opportunities in India during the current economic crisis.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:32 am Bulls prop markets, Sensex up 455 pointsBulls stormed the Indian equities markets Thursday lapping up stocks across sectors and pushing a key index up 455 points or 4.6 percent from its previous close.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:31 am Auditor KPMG hit with billion-dollar US lawsuitMiami: Accounting giant KPMG was hit with a billion-dollar lawsuit on Wednesday over claims its “grossly negligent audits” helped trigger the collapse of a top subprime mortgage lender at the start of the US housing crisis. New Century Financial Corp, the largest independent provider of home loans to people with poor credit, filed for bankruptcy two years ago amid mounting customer defaults. Its failure rippled across the US mortgage lending industry, sparking a string of other bankruptcies that roiled financial markets as banks booked losses on billions of dollars in mortgage-linked securities at the heart of the current global financial crisis. The lawsuit, on behalf of a liquidating trust formed by New Century debtors, was filed against both KPMG International and its US arm, KPMG LLP. It accuses KPMG of helping cover up “catastrophic” problems at New Century - including accounting and financial errors -- that led to its collapse. “As New Century’s auditor, KPMG failed its public watchdog duty,” the suit says. KPMG spokesman Dan Ginsburg said he had not seen the suit but issued a statement saying the company had acted “in accordance with professional standards” in its dealings with New Century. “We will vigorously defend our audit work. Any implication that the collapse of New Century was related to accounting issues ignores the reality of the global credit crisis. This was a business failure, not an accounting issue,” the statement said. The suit demands at least $1 billion in damages. At one point, KPMG “did the unthinkable for a public auditor,” the lawsuit alleges. It issued an audit report on New Century’s 2005 financial results before its audit was complete, “falsely enabling” New Century to file its annual report with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Many of the problems at New Century stemmed from aggressive business practices that saw the company grow from originating $357 million in mortgage loans in its first year of operation in 1996 to about $60 billion in 2006. Despite a denial of wrongdoing, a report by a court-appointed bankruptcy examiner found last year that KPMG contributed to New Century’s questionable financial reporting practices through “troubling and puzzling conduct” including its alleged negligence. “Despite KPMGI’s promise that it would ensure that KPMG LLP audit services would comply with professional standards and regulatory requirements, KPMG LLP conducted grossly negligent audits and reviews of New Century that violated both professional standards and regulatory requirements,” the complaint says. The suit was filed by Venice, California law firm Thomas Alexander & Forrester LLP. Different, but overlapping versions of the complaint, targeting the Netherlands-based parent company (KPMGI) and US arm of KPMG, were filed in federal courts in New York and Los Angeles, respectively. The New York suit could mark the first time a Big Four auditing firm is held legally liable for the actions of its US subsidiary, said Steven Thomas, the lead attorney for the plaintiff. “This wasn’t an audit failure that affected a small company, it wasn’t an audit failure that just affected their creditors, or even just affected the US financial system. This had a worldwide impact,” Thomas told Reuters. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:21 am Auditor KPMG hit with billion-dollar US lawsuitMiami: Accounting giant KPMG was hit with a billion-dollar lawsuit on Wednesday over claims its “grossly negligent audits” helped trigger the collapse of a top subprime mortgage lender at the start of the US housing crisis. New Century Financial Corp, the largest independent provider of home loans to people with poor credit, filed for bankruptcy two years ago amid mounting customer defaults. Its failure rippled across the US mortgage lending industry, sparking a string of other bankruptcies that roiled financial markets as banks booked losses on billions of dollars in mortgage-linked securities at the heart of the current global financial crisis. The lawsuit, on behalf of a liquidating trust formed by New Century debtors, was filed against both KPMG International and its US arm, KPMG LLP. It accuses KPMG of helping cover up “catastrophic” problems at New Century - including accounting and financial errors -- that led to its collapse. “As New Century’s auditor, KPMG failed its public watchdog duty,” the suit says. KPMG spokesman Dan Ginsburg said he had not seen the suit but issued a statement saying the company had acted “in accordance with professional standards” in its dealings with New Century. “We will vigorously defend our audit work. Any implication that the collapse of New Century was related to accounting issues ignores the reality of the global credit crisis. This was a business failure, not an accounting issue,” the statement said. The suit demands at least $1 billion in damages. At one point, KPMG “did the unthinkable for a public auditor,” the lawsuit alleges. It issued an audit report on New Century’s 2005 financial results before its audit was complete, “falsely enabling” New Century to file its annual report with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Many of the problems at New Century stemmed from aggressive business practices that saw the company grow from originating $357 million in mortgage loans in its first year of operation in 1996 to about $60 billion in 2006. Despite a denial of wrongdoing, a report by a court-appointed bankruptcy examiner found last year that KPMG contributed to New Century’s questionable financial reporting practices through “troubling and puzzling conduct” including its alleged negligence. “Despite KPMGI’s promise that it would ensure that KPMG LLP audit services would comply with professional standards and regulatory requirements, KPMG LLP conducted grossly negligent audits and reviews of New Century that violated both professional standards and regulatory requirements,” the complaint says. The suit was filed by Venice, California law firm Thomas Alexander & Forrester LLP. Different, but overlapping versions of the complaint, targeting the Netherlands-based parent company (KPMGI) and US arm of KPMG, were filed in federal courts in New York and Los Angeles, respectively. The New York suit could mark the first time a Big Four auditing firm is held legally liable for the actions of its US subsidiary, said Steven Thomas, the lead attorney for the plaintiff. “This wasn’t an audit failure that affected a small company, it wasn’t an audit failure that just affected their creditors, or even just affected the US financial system. This had a worldwide impact,” Thomas told Reuters. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:21 am BEL achieves turnover of Rs 4618 crore - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:14 am Close: Markets retain 10k level; Realty up 9%New Delhi: Markets were trading its highest near closing on Thursday as buying continued across the board. Further boosted by strong European markets the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex gained more than 4%. Domestic indices were upbeat today after US markets rallied on better than expected economic data of the past month. Investors also latched hopes on possible global solution by the G-20 leaders at a summit beginning in London on Thursday, to deal with the financial crisis. Realty outperformed other segments making gains of 10.07%. Other stocks pursued today were metal, oil and gas, capital goods and banking. The BSE Sensex is now trading above the 10,350 mark and the NSE Nifty is trading above the 3,200 mark. The 30-share index regained its 10,000 level early during the day and ended session at 10,348.83 or 446.84 points and the 50-share NSE Nifty closed 150.70 points higher at 3,211.05. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:12 am CRISIL downgrades surge on slowing economy - domain-B
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:09 am BSE Sensex provisionally rises 4.6 pctMUMBAI (Reuters) – The BSE Sensex provisionally rose 4.6 percent on Thursday to its best close in five months, tracking a broad rally across Asia and Europe on increased hopes that the world economy was on the mend.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:09 am India's Satyam sale expected by mid-April - source - Reuters
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:09 am Reliance begins pumping gas from KG basin field - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:08 am G-20 leaders begin work to solve the global crisisLondon: Leaders of the world’s rich and major developing countries began talks aimed at agreeing a new deal on the global economy at a crisis summit in London on Thursday, hoping to clear up divisions over how far to go with tougher financial regulation. US President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister Brown have expressed confidence that world leaders will come up with a strong agreement to address financial regulation, growth, and troubled banks. But French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have refused calls for more government spending, and said the meeting must take concrete steps on tougher financial regulation. Sarkozy has toned down his earlier threat to walk out of the conference, and Obama could be seen chatting informally with Merkel at a leaders’ dinner Wednesday evening. British Business Minister Peter Mandelson said the Group of 20 countries were in broad agreement to put more resources into the international economy through the International Monetary Fund and other international financial institutions. “I’m not saying that everything is sewn up. It isn’t,” Mandelson told BBC radio. “I mean there are arguments, or some tensions over precisely what resources we’re talking about.” Obama has acknowledged that US regulatory failures contributed to the crisis in the financial system, but urged a focus on solutions, saying “We can only meet this challenge together.” European leaders have balked at moving beyond spending measures already announced, arguing that their more generous welfare systems mean their spending level will rise as more people get benefits such as unemployment insurance. Sarkozy and Merkel have tried to push regulation to the fore, calling for new scrutiny of ratings agencies and lightly regulated hedge funds. The summit will also examine ways to get so-called toxic assets unsellable securities such as mortgage-backed bonds off banks’ balance sheet where they are impeding lending to consumers and businesses. World leaders will also come up with more funds for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to temper the worst economic crisis since the 1930s. A communique drafted for the meeting, obtained by Reuters, said leaders would submit large hedge funds to supervision for the first time and enhance regulation through a new agency and a beefed-up International Monetary Fund. However, there was still debate over enhanced funding for the IMF to tackle crises in emerging economies, precisely how to police tax havens and the amount of money to boost trade. G-20 leaders were preparing a major expansion in resources available through the IMF, possibly including a tripling of its war chest to $750 billion, officials familiar with negotiation of the issue said. The draft included a pledge to deliver “the scale of sustained effort necessary to restore growth” without making any commitments beyond the trillions being spent to stabilise banks, shore up demand and limit job losses. Keen to secure a confidence-boosting message as the world succumbs to recession, Obama said there were no substantive differences with Europe, despite a hardball stance taken by the French and German leaders over new financial rules. Summit hopes boost stocks World stock prices, battered by the crisis for months, have recovered some lost ground in the last month and shot higher on Thursday on hopes for a strong agreement by the G-20 leaders. The index of top European shares jumped 3% after Japan’s Nikkei gained 4.4%. “A good rally is coming through, particularly from Asian markets overnight on hopes for a decent stimulus package from the G-20 to lift confidence, especially with regards to emerging economies and a boost to the International Monetary Fund,” said Henk Potts, strategist at Barclays Wealth. Those gains will vanish if the summit does not deliver. The global economy is expected to shrink more in 2009 than any year since World War Two, dropping between 0.5 and 1.0% according to the IMF, whose head, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, is calling it a “Great Recession”. “They are not yet moving quickly enough in doing the cleaning up of the financial system,” the Financial Times’ front page quoted Strauss-Kahn as saying on Thursday. The draft communique contained a pledge by the G-20 nations to allow “candid, even-handed and independent” surveillance of their economies and financial sectors by the IMF, which will take an increasingly central role in global oversight. It also unveiled a new Financial Stability Board to work with the IMF to identify economic and financial risks and measures needed to address them, revamping an existing body called the Financial Stability Forum. Differences remain As leaders met in the Docklands, a former shiploading area on the Thames that was redeveloped for business use by the government in the 1980s and 1990s, protesters began a second day of demonstrations. Dozens were arrested in clashes on Wednesday. Security was tight at the summit venue; hundreds of police manned barriers and checkpoints around the security perimeter. About a hundred more police officers guarded the London Stock Exchange near St. Paul’s Cathedral in the financial district, watching a group of protesters playing a giant Monopoly game. Some 4,000 anarchists, anti-capitalists, environmentalists and others clogged the area near the Bank of England on Wednesday for what demonstrators had called “Financial Fool’s Day.” In sometimes violent clashes, one man collapsed and died and police made 86 arrests. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:06 am Kingfisher commences flights on five new domestic routesKingfisher Airlines announced it has commenced flights on five new domestic routes as part of its Summer 2009 schedule.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:02 am RIL fires up Sensex - NDTV.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:01 am Tata Nano bookings open with a bangTata Motors small car, Nano, went on display at Tata outlets across the country amidst much excitement from prospective buyers. Offers on the car are being sent to Westside club members via text messages. CNBCTV19s Tanvi Shukla and Shruti Rajkumar report.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 10:01 am MFs witness 1.54% drop in assets in March, HDFC gainsNew Delhi: The mutual fund industry witnessed a fall of over Rs7,000 crore in its assets in March dropping below the Rs5 lakh crore mark, while HDFC Mutual Fund added over Rs1,000 crore to its assets under management during the month. The combined average assets under management (AUM) of the 34 fund houses in the country saw an erosion of Rs7,709.10 crore, or 1.54%, and dropped to Rs4,93,264.28 crore at the end of March, according to the data released by the Association of Mutual Funds in India. At the end of February, the average AUM had been Rs5,00,973.38 crore. However, HDFC MF registered an increase of Rs1,092.05 crore in its AUM. While other top four fund houses - Reliance MF, ICICI Prudential, UTI MF and LIC MF lost a combined over Rs4,308.53 crore from their assets in the month. “Bank which invest mostly in liquid funds have withdrawn significantly as March was a financial year closing. This has led to a plunge in the assets of the fund houses,” Taurus Mutual Fund managing director R K Gupta said. Reliance MF maintained its top position as the largest fund house in the country with an AUM of Rs80,962.94 crore at the end of March. Its AUM dipped by Rs664.14 crore in March. HDFC MF, the second-largest, added Rs1,092.05 crore to its AUM at Rs57,956.45 crore in March. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:55 am Reliance begins pumping gas from KG basin fieldNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Reliance Industries has started pumping natural gas from its massive deep-sea field in the Bay of Bengal, which at full throttle will nearly double India's gas output, the company said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:51 am Associate Banks of SBI to go on two-day strikeThe officers of Five Associate Banks of SBI will go on a two-day strike on April 11 and 13.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:51 am Mumbai, Delhi among world’s most expensive cities for expatsNew Delhi: The country’s financial hub, Mumbai, and New Delhi are among the world’s 10 most expensive cities for expatriates to live in, says a survey by global HR consultancy Mercer. According to the survey on housing costs and practices for employees sent on overseas assignments, Mumbai has emerged even more expensive than New York City in the United States and China’s Capital Beijing. Mumbai has been ranked as the world’s fourth most expensive city in terms of rental property for expatriates, while New Delhi is eighth, the survey for February 2009 said. Mumbai has moved up by one notch from its fifth position in the September 2008 survey, while New Delhi has fallen two places from its sixth place in the previous ranking. Russia’s Moscow has topped the list of world’s most expensive cities and is followed by Tokyo (second), Hong Kong (third), Mumbai (fourth)and New York City (fifth) as the five most expensive cities across the globe for expats to live in. The survey highlighted that Asian cities have dominated the list of the world’s costliest locations for expats living there, with as many as six locations from the region being among the world’s top 10. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:44 am European shares rise for third day; G-20, ECB in focusLondon: European shares rose sharply early on Thursday on hopes that the economic downturn is moderating, with investors training their sights on the G-20 summit meeting in London and a European Central Bank (ECB) rate decision. At 0817 GMT (1:47pm), the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was up 3.5% at 771.34 points, on track for its third straight day of gains. Banks, commodity and auto stocks were the top gainers, boosted by better than feared US home sales, factory and auto data. Barclays, BNP Paribas, HSBC, Societe Generale, UBS and UniCredit rose between 4.4 and 8.3%. Deutsche Bank rose 7.6% after its chief executive said in a newspaper interview that the bank had solid results in March and did not need additional capital. G-20 leaders have gathered in London to tackle the global financial crisis and France and Germany have demanded they act fast on promises to prevent a repeat of the worst economic crisis since the 1930s. A draft communique obtained by Reuters included a pledge to deliver “the scale of sustained effort necessary to restore growth” without making any commitments beyond the trillions already being spent to stabilize banks, shore up demand and limit job losses. “We think the policy effort will work,” said Bernard McAlinden, strategist at NCB Stockbrokers in London. “But there will continue to be volatility in markets.” Other analysts said they had few expectations for the meeting. “I would expect a bland statement of the least common denominator and expectations shouldn’t be set too high. They can’t agree details of a banking regulatory system -- that would take years to work out,” said Justin Urquhart Stewart, investment director at Seven Investment Management. “There will be greater focus on hedge funds - they are the easiest targets, but controlling offshore centres is like nailing down floorboards - hit one and the other comes up.” Across Europe Britain’s FTSE 100, Germany’s DAX and France’s CAC-40 were up between 3.2 and 3.9%. Analysts expect the ECB to take euro zone interest rates down to an all-time low of 1.0% when the bank announces its decision at 1145 GMT (5:15pm). While this could be the ECB’s last rate cut for some time, it looks likely to tweak its overnight deposit rate - the rate currently setting the bar in money markets - to avoid driving interbank rates too low. Miners rose as copper prices hit five-month highs, buoyed by hopes of economic recovery. Anglo American, BHP Billiton, Lonmin, Rio Tinto, Vedanta Resources and Xstrata rose between 4.1 and 5.8%. Oils gained as crude prices rose more than 3% to more than $49 a barrel. Total, ENI, BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Repsol rose between 1.7 and 2.6%. Automakers rose after a report said US auto sales fell 37% in March, a smaller than expected drop that encouraged hope that the world’s largest car market is nearing a bottom after a freefall that has pulled the industry into a deepening crisis. Daimler, Peugeot, Porsche, Renault and BMW rose between 6.4 and 10.3%. Swiss Re, the world’s second-larger reinsurer, rose 5.4% after saying it plans to cut 10% of its workforce over the next 12 months in a bid to cut costs by 400 million Swiss francs ($349.6 million) by 2010. Allianz, Aviva, AXA, Legal & General were up between 5.3 and 9.8%. The FTSEurofirst 300 has risen 19.5% since hitting a lifetime low on 9 March, but is still down 7.3% in 2009, hurt by a banking crisis and several major economies in recession. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:38 am Inflation rises to 0.31% from previous 0.27%New Delhi: India’s annual inflation rate hovered above zero in mid-March and analysts said they expect it to turn negative in the next couple of weeks, providing enough room to the central bank to further ease monetary policy. The wholesale price index, India’s most widely watched inflation measure, rose 0.31% in the 12 months to 21 March, basically steady with the previous week’s 0.27% and slightly above a forecast of 0.18% in a Reuters poll. “Inflation will go into the negative territory in mid-April and we are looking at a 5-6 month period of negative inflation,” said Abheek Barua, chief economist at HDFC Bank. “It will bottom out in July and turn positive in November or December. This gives RBI more room to ease up monetary policy.” The bond market and rupee showed little reaction to the data, while an already strong stock market extended gains of 4% to more than 5%. Atsi Sheth, chief economist at Reliance Equities, said the the slowing in the rapid decline in the inflation rate was good news for growth, showing that while demand was declining it was not plummeting. Room for cuts? Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said plenty of liquidity and low inflation offered room for further interest rate cuts. Growth in Asia’s third-largest economy is expected to have slowed to about 7% in 2008-09 from rates of 9% or more in the three previous years, as the global slowdown hit. The central bank has cut its main short-term lending rate by 400 basis points in five moves since October, and the central bank has called on banks to pass the lower rates on to customers. Manufacturing activity contracted for a fifth straight month in March and exports fell sharply in February, and Reserve Bank of India governor Duvvuri Subbarao last week said that stemming the slowdown was the current policy challenge. Subbarao also said there was no concern about India falling into a deflationary cycle. The consumer price index, which is released monthly, rose an annual 9.63% in February. And with food prices high and liquidity in money markets improving, not all economists saw a rate cut as imminent. “The central bank is not likely to touch key rates in the next policy (review) as liquidity has improved significantly and also banks’ lending rates to consumers and corporates have softened to the extent possible,” said Rupa Rege Nitsure, chief economist at Bank of Baroda in Mumbai. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:35 am SAIL sets high production, sets sales targets for 09-10Rourkela: Despite current economic slowdown, Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL) has set its production target of saleable steel to around 12 million tonnes during the 2009-10 financial year. The target, said to be higher despite the economic recession, was set up in a memorandum between the Ministry of Steel and SAIL Board Chairman on 31 March 2009. The memorandum mainly focusses on production of higher volume of value-added steel products of over three million tonnes during the year to meet the growing requirement of high-and user segment. The PSU steel major also set up a competitive target of a sales turnover of over Rs40,000 crores during 2009-10 fiscal, the sources said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:35 am Satyam sale expected by mid-April - sourceBANGALORE (Reuters) - Financial bids for Satyam Computer will be submitted by next week, three banking sources involved in the deal said on Thursday, and the sale of the fraud-hit Indian outsourcer is likely to be completed by mid-April, another source with knowledge of the proceedings said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:32 am Inflation near zero leaves room for rate cutNEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's annual inflation rate hovered above zero in mid-March and analysts said they expect it to turn negative in the next couple of weeks, providing enough room to the central bank to further ease monetary policy.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:27 am Sebi mulls routing OTC settlements through clearing entitiesMumbai: Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is considering regulations to bring transactions of products which are not traded on an exchange or over-the-counter products through clearing entities. Bringing over-the-counter (OTC) products, which comprise a majority of corporate bonds issued by private and public corporations, will ensure timely settlement of the transactions, Sebi chairman C B Bhave told reporters on the sidelines of a seminar organized by industry body Ficci here. “Sebi is looking at the issue of bringing OTC products into the fold of clearing entities. This would help to ensure timely settlement of such transactions,” Bhave said. Sebi has also approached the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to request whether the facility of clearing OTC products could be done with the central banks participation, Bhave said, adding that participation of the apex bank in the clearing operations of OTC products will make market participants feel more secure. Noting that over-leveraging of institutions in developed economies had caused chaos in the financial systems, Bhave said that the regulator was also looking at measures to ensure how leveraging will not go out of hand (in the Indian financial system).“ Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 9:19 am Oil climbs above $49 on Opec cuts, equities gainsTokyo: Oil rose above $49 a barrel on Thursday, after falling 2.6% the previous day, as further supply cuts by Opec and gains in stock markets superceded worries about the global economy. Opec oil supply fell in March for a seventh consecutive month, but remained above its target as some members of the group pumped more than agreed levels, a Reuters survey showed. Asian stocks outside Japan and Tokyo’s Nikkei both rose more than 3% on Thursday after US homes sales and manufacturing data gave glimmers of hope that the deep recession was moderating. Oil’s losses on Wednesday were sparked by US government data showing crude stocks had risen more than expected to a 16-year high. Gasoline and distillate supplies also unexpectedly rose. Crude for May delivery rose 63 cents to $49.02 a barrel by 0320 GMT, after settling down $1.27 a day earlier. London Brent crude was up 76 cents at $49.20 a barrel. Oil has fallen nearly $100 from a record high above $147 in July 2008 as the economic downturn dents global energy demand. “We are swinging back and forth. The real economy is still too weak. US gasoline demand is not doing very well,” said Tony Nunan, risk manager at Mitsubishi Corp in Tokyo. “So that will keep the market from rising too far, but I think the Opec’s cuts will keep the market from falling too far.” Investors remain sensitive to the raft of economic developments due later in the day, which include an expected rate cut by the European Central Bank and US non-farm payrolls data, both of which are likely to put downward pressure on oil prices, he said. Forecasters polled by Reuters expect nonfarm payrolls to register a decline of 650,000 for March, similar to the 651,000 shed in February. Adding a bullish note to sentiment was a draft G-20 communique containing a pledge by world leaders to regulate major hedge funds for the first time and set up a new oversight board to monitor the global financial system. Traders said oil prices could also be affected by news that North Korea had begun fuelling a long-range rocket and could launch it by the weekend, CNN said, with the United States and others promising punishment for a move they say violates UN resolutions. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:49 am Maruti Suzuki sales jump 22% in March; up 4% in FY09New Delhi: The country’s largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India today reported a 21.87% jump in its total sales during March at 85,669 units as compared to 70,296 units in the same month last year. The company also recorded its highest-ever annual sales in 2008-09 at 7,92,167 units as against 7,64,842 units in the previous fiscal, a rise of 3.57%. The previous highest annual sales were in 2007-08. “2008-09 marked Maruti Suzuki’s Silver Jubilee year in India. Over these 25 years, the company sold over 70 lakh cars in the domestic market. Additionally, over five lakh cars have been exported world-over,” Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) said in a statement. For March, the domestic sales of MSI stood at 73,855 units compared with 64,421 units in the same month a year ago, up by 14.64%, it said. MSI registered an over two-fold increase in its exports last month at 11,814 units as against 5,875 units in the corresponding month last year. After September last year, MSI’s sales in October, November and December had declined drastically by 7.1%, 27.4% and 10%, respectively. In January and February, the company’s sales, however, rose by 5.39% and 24.08%, respectively. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:47 am Global IT spend to drop 3.8%, says GartnerHurt by the unprecedented decline in the global economy, the drop in IT spending in 2009 could be worse than 2001, and a recovery in 2010 could be slow and prolonged, a report by research firm Gartner Inc said.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:40 am \'Lending rates may drop by another 50 bps\'Lending rates are likely to drop by another 50 basis points in the coming weeks, according to the Indian Bank Chairman and Managing Director, Mr M.S. Sundara Rajan.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:37 am DoT to audit accounts of all major telecom cosThe Department of Telecom has accepted suggestions made by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to audit the accounts of all the major integrated telecom players in the country to check if the companies are paying revenue share due to the Government.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:33 am Maruti Suzuki sales jump 22% in March; up 4% in FY'09The country's largest carmaker Maruti Suzuki India on Thursday reported a 21.87% jump in its total sales during March at 85,669 units as compared to 70,296 units in the same month last year.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:30 am SpiceJet mulls launching international servicesSpiceJet Ltd, a lowcost airline company, has denied talks with GoAir for either a merger or to acquire a controlling stake, terming the reports as speculation. It, however, said that it would look at acquisition when the environment turns ripe for consolidation.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:29 am Facebook, YouTube at work make better employees: studyMelbourne: Caught Twittering or on Facebook at work? It’ll make you a better employee, according to an Australian study that shows surfing the Internet for fun during office hours increases productivity. The University of Melbourne study showed that people who use the Internet for personal reasons at work are about 9% more productive that those who do not. Study author Brent Coker, from the department of management and marketing, “workplace Internet leisure browsing”, or WILB, helped to sharpened workers’ concentration. “People need to zone out for a bit to get back their concentration,” Coker said on the university’s website (www.unimelb.edu.au/). “Short and unobtrusive breaks, such as a quick surf of the Internet, enables the mind to rest itself, leading to a higher total net concentration for a days’ work, and as a result, increased productivity,” he said. According to the study of 300 workers, 70% of people who use the Internet at work engage in WILB. Among the most popular WILB activities are searching for information about products, reading online news sites, playing online games and watching videos on YouTube. ”Firms spend millions on software to block their employees from watching videos, using social networking sites or shopping online under the pretence that it costs millions in lost productivity,” said Coker. ”That’s not always the case.” However, Coker said the study looked at people who browsed in moderation, or were on the Internet for less than 20% of their total time in the office. “Those who behave with Internet addiction tendencies will have a lower productivity than those without,” he said. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:28 am Facebook, YouTube at work make better employees: studyMelbourne: Caught Twittering or on Facebook at work? It’ll make you a better employee, according to an Australian study that shows surfing the Internet for fun during office hours increases productivity. The University of Melbourne study showed that people who use the Internet for personal reasons at work are about 9% more productive that those who do not. Study author Brent Coker, from the department of management and marketing, “workplace Internet leisure browsing”, or WILB, helped to sharpened workers’ concentration. “People need to zone out for a bit to get back their concentration,” Coker said on the university’s website (www.unimelb.edu.au/). “Short and unobtrusive breaks, such as a quick surf of the Internet, enables the mind to rest itself, leading to a higher total net concentration for a days’ work, and as a result, increased productivity,” he said. According to the study of 300 workers, 70% of people who use the Internet at work engage in WILB. Among the most popular WILB activities are searching for information about products, reading online news sites, playing online games and watching videos on YouTube. ”Firms spend millions on software to block their employees from watching videos, using social networking sites or shopping online under the pretence that it costs millions in lost productivity,” said Coker. ”That’s not always the case.” However, Coker said the study looked at people who browsed in moderation, or were on the Internet for less than 20% of their total time in the office. “Those who behave with Internet addiction tendencies will have a lower productivity than those without,” he said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:28 am Satyam sale expected by mid-April: sourceBangalore: Financial bids for Satyam Computer will be put in by next week, three banking sources involved in the deal said on Thursday, and the sale of the fraud-hit Indian outsourcer is likely to be completed by mid-April, another source with knowledge of the proceedings said. “By 9 April we have to put in the final and financial bids,” one banker directly involved in the deal told Reuters. The company’s government-appointed board had said last month it hoped to finalise a buyer by 30 April. “It is expected to be completed much earlier than that,” said another source, who is not allowed to speak to the media about the bidding process. “It should be completed in the next couple of weeks.” Indian engineering conglomerate Larsen and Toubro and mid-sized outsourcer Tech Mahindra are among the suitors, and local media have said US private equity WL Ross & Co was also in the race. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:24 am Gold buyers trickle into shops as prices fallMumbai: India’s gold buyers trickled into shops on Thursday to pick up bargains after prices fell below the keenly watched Rs15,000 level, dealers said. “Today there are good volumes and enquiries are pouring in as well,” said a dealer with a private bank in Mumbai. The benchmark June gold contract was 0.91% lower at Rs14,950 per 10 grams at 1:41pm, about 6.7% down from its record 20 February high of Rs16,040. “Some deals are going on at the moment, and even the strong rupee is helping gold demand,” said a dealer with IndusInd Bank. A strong rupee makes the dollar-quoted asset cheaper. The Indian rupee rose to its highest in more than a month on Thursday after a surge in local stocks boosted hopes for foreign portfolio inflows, while the dollar’s weakness abroad also helped. A further correction, coupled with a strong rupee, may boost demand in the wedding season that starts from mid-April, dealers said. “Big orders are there in the range of $901-908 (an ounce),” said the dealer with IndusInd Bank, referring to levels seen in mid-March. “We expect wedding buying to come in if prices fall further.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:17 am Asia stocks at 3-month high as autos rallyHong Kong: Asian stocks shot to a three-month high on Thursday, building a three-day rally on hopes the US economy has bottomed, while the euro was firm before a European Central Bank meeting at which rates may be cut for the last time in a while. European stock markets were expected to open as much as 2.9% higher, according to financial bookrunners, with investors looking for action from G-20 leaders who are meeting in London. The financial and materials sectors were the biggest boosts to Asian stocks outside Japan. While in Japan, Honda Motor Co shares surged 11% and Toyota Motor Corp rose 5.5% as investors bet General Motors could avoid a messy failure. That combined with a pickup in new orders according to a US survey of manufacturing activity and the highest volume of home loan applications since mid January supported a view that the worst for the global economy may have passed. However, reports showing the world’s biggest economy continued to bleed jobs heavily in the last few months tempered optimism about when consumer demand for Asia’s exports would recover, containing gains in commodities. Furthermore, leaders at a G-20 summit were divided on the need for more stimulus to support efforts underway already. “US data continues to come in better than anticipated. On the other hand, uncertainty continues over the fate of US automakers, and signs of discord between G20 leaders are deepening,” Dariusz Kowalczyk, chief investment strategist with SJS Markets in Hong Kong, said in a note. Japan’s Nikkei share average rose 44 percent. Honda shares rose to their highest level in over five months and Toyota stock hit a four-month peak. Reflecting a bullish tone in financial stocks, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Japan’s top bank, jumped 6.7% to provide one of the strongest supports to the Nikkei. Bank stocks were underpinned ahead of expected approval later on Thursday of a relaxation in some US accounting standards, which could lead to a bump in banks’ bottom lines. HSBC stock climbed nearly 9.5% to lead Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index up 5.3%. The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks outside Japan firmed by 4.4% gaining for a third day and up near the highest level since early January. The biggest boosts for the index were financials and materials stocks. The Nikkei has been an outperformer. A 15% gain in the Nikkei since March has outpaced the 11% rise in the MSCI all-country world index. Waiting for the ECB The euro inched up in quiet trade with dealers waiting for the outcome of a European Central Bank meeting. The central bank is widely expected to cut its policy rate to a record low of 1% from 1.5%. Investors are also looking for hints that show to what extent ECB policymakers are willing to dive into quantitative easing - vast expansion of a central bank’s balance sheet to support growth. Both the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve are already well down that road. “The markets are pretty much in limbo ahead of the G-20 and the ECB. So I wouldn’t expect much in the way of volatile moves ahead of them,” said Sue Trinh, senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets in Sydney. The euro was at $1.3276, up around 0.2% from late New York, though near Monday’s two-week low of $1.3113. The euro was up 0.4% at ¥131.11, but sellers have prevented it from advancing above ¥132 for the last few days. The Australian dollar continued to draw support from rallying global equity markets and hopes demand for raw materials will slowly return. The currency was up 0.6% at $0.7035, closing in on last week’s two-month high above $0.7090. US crude futures rose 1.2% to near $49 a barrel as further supply cuts by Opec in March offset US data showing a higher-than-expected rise in crude stocks. Government bond markets continued to be ruled by supply concerns. The yield on the 10-year Japanese government bond briefly touched a 3-1/2-month high after the Ministry of Finance disappointed some investors by setting a lower-than-anticipated coupon for an upcoming auction. US Treasuries were under modest pressure as stock markets climbed, after longer-maturity bonds rose overnight on the Fed’s bond buyback schedule. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 8:16 am Rupee holds on to gains as stocks riseMumbai: The Indian rupee held on to its gains on Thursday afternoon as a sharp rally in domestic shares boosted hopes for foreign capital inflows while higher Asian currencies underpinned sentiment. At 1:15pm, the partially convertible rupee was at Rs50.25/26 per dollar, 0.9% stronger than Tuesday’s close of Rs50.71/72. The currency market was shut on Wednesday for annual book closure of banks. The rupee rose as much as 50 in early deals, its highest since 25 February. The main stock index rose more than 5% early, extending gains for a third day, after positive US data fuelled hopes the global economy was on the mend. The South Korean won posted its biggest daily gain in nearly four months on Thursday, leading an Asia-wide rally supported by hopes that the world’s largest economy has hit its bottom. In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month contract on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX were quoting at Rs50.43 and Rs50.425 respectively, with the total traded volume on both exchanges at about $433 million. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 7:57 am Noon: Markets jump 5% on global rallyMumbai: Indian shares rose more than 5% on Thursday afternoon, tracking a broad rally across Asia and Europe after positive US data fueled hopes the worst was behind for the world economy. By 1:14pm, the 30-share BSE index was up 5.02% at 10,398.70 points. The 50-share NSE Nifty was up 4.97% at 3,212.45. Late morning, shares jumped more than 4% led by financials such as ICICI Bank and State Bank of India, after positive US data boosted optimism the global economy had turned a corner. Reliance Industries, the country’s most valuable company, rallied as much as 4.4% after the energy firm began pumping natural gas from its giant field off India’s east coast. By 11:45am, the 30-share BSE index was up 4.4% at 10,341.24 points, with all stocks advancing. The 50-share NSE index was up 4.5% at 3,195.50. Traders said the rise was spurred by gains across the region following Wall Street’s rally on Wednesday after data showed US factory activity in March fell at a slower rate than the month before, while pending home sales rose more than expected in February. “The market is seeing the glass as half-full. Things have become less worse, even though they may not have become better. A lot of people who were left out of the rally are joining the party a little late,” VK Sharma, head of research at Anagram Stock Broking, said. The BSE index, which has leapt about 28% since hitting a 2009 low in early March, could see a five-month high if it breaks above 10,469.72 reached on 7 January before Satyam Computer unveiled the country’s biggest corporate fraud and sparked a market slide. “We may have seen the worst and only a catastrophic event globally can affect us now,” Madhusudan Kela, head of equity at Reliance Mutual Fund, told an investment seminar at the Bombay Stock Exchange late on Wednesday. Private-sector lender ICICI Bank rose 7.2% to Rs374.75, while government-run State Bank of India gained 6.5% to Rs1,144. Reliance Industries, which has the biggest weight on the main index, was up 4.1% at Rs1,643.70. In the broader section, gainers led losers in the ratio of 4:1 on moderate volume of 180.1 million. Asian shares were higher with Japan’s Nikkei up 4.4% and MSCI’s measure of other Asian markets rising 4.7%. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 7:48 am Launch of Nano to bring down price of used cars: DealersDue to its low price tag, many customers opting to buy a used car may plump for a new Nano, though it comes comparatively with lesser cubic capacity.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 7:28 am RIL gas flows from KG-D6; India to save $9 bn in oil importNew Delhi: Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-run Reliance Industries has begun natural gas production from its deep-sea Krishna Godavari basin fields, a history-making feat that will help India save $9 billion in oil imports a year. RIL took just six-and-half years from discovery to begin gas production from the deep-sea KG-D6 block as against the global practice of 9-10 years, the firm said in a statement. Dhirubhai-1 and 3, the first two of the 18 gas finds in KG-D6 that have been put to production, will transform the energy landscape by boosting power supply from idle generators starved of fuel and produce cheaper urea for agriculture. “Natural gas production from wells started at 5pm yesterday and it reached the onland receiving facility at Gadimoga near Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh this morning,” a source in the know of the development said. It took 13-14 hours for the gas to travel from the sea bed to the onshore facility. “The flare (at Gadimoga) lit up at 9:20am,” the source said. The 15 million cubic metres per day of KG-D6 gas allocation to urea-making plants will help save the country about Rs3,000 crore per annum in fertiliser subsidy. Another 18 mmcmd of gas will go to power plants, with one mmcmd capable of producing 250 megawatt of electricity. Petroleum Secretary R S Pandey said the output will rise to 40 mmcmd by July and to peak 80 mmcmd in a year, doubling domestic gas production. “Gas sales will generate USD 42 billion in revenues over the 11-year life of the field... the government’s share is likely to be a minimum $14 billion,“ Pandey said. Output at the beginning of production at 2.5 million cubic metres and will gradually increase. “Tomorrow it will become five mmcmd,” he said. The first, of the 15 fertiliser plants, that will get all of the initial output, is expected to get the gas in 3-4 days time, he said, adding, “The most distant plant will get the gas in about 15 days.” “It will reduce oil import bill by 10% or about $9 billion annually, during peak production, at current prices,” he said. RIL will earn $2 billion in revenues from gas sales in 2009-10. The company said gas from offshore is being received at its world-class onshore facility at Gadimoga, a small village in the East Godavari district, and delivered to the East West pipeline of Reliance Gas Transportation Infrastructure Ltd. “Reliance has created history and has once again demonstrated its ability to implement complex projects at par with the best performance benchmarks in the world,” company Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani said. “The clean energy from the Dhirubhai 1 and 3 discoveries of the KG-D6 block will be a boost for energy security and growth of India,” he added. The gas would boost power supply from idle electricity generators starved of fuel and produce cheaper urea for agriculture. “It is a landmark in the history of oil and gas production. (The) world over, this has created a new benchmark for deep-sea developers,” said director-general of directorate general of Hydrocarbons V K Sibal. The $8.835-billion (Rs44,175 crore) project will double domestic natural gas production when the field hits its peak output of 80 million cubic metres per day in 2010. It will wipe out the fuel deficit at urea-making fertiliser plants and meet half of the 36 mmcmd gas shortfall in power plants. Reliance will produce enough gas to meet about a third of the UK demand. “Whenever I have interacted with officials from global oil majors like Chevron and BP, they have been highly appreciative of the project management skills of Reliance,” Sibal said. The gas output will start at 10 mmcmd and rise by the same volume every month to reach 40 mmcmd by July-end. “Each well is capable of producing 5-6 mmcmd gas,” Sibal said. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 7:20 am Inflation up marginally to 0.31%Inflation rose marginally to 0.31% for the week ended March 21 as prices of certain food items such as tea, gur, aerated water and imported edible oil went up.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 2 Apr 2009 | 7:01 am RIL gas flows from KG-D6; India to save $9 bn in oil importRIL took just six-and-half years from discovery to begin gas production from the deep-sea KG-D6 block as against the global practice of 9-10 years.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 6:16 am Tata Motors March sales fall 13pct y/y, up 24% mo/moMUMBAI (Reuters) - Tata Motors Ltd, India's largest vehicles maker, said its domestic sales fell 13 percent in March from a year earlier, but rose 24 percent from February as stimulus measures kicked in.Source: Reuters: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 6:10 am Realty stocks lead market rally, DLF surges 10%Mumbai: Shares of real estate firms, led by DLF, steered the rally in morning trade today by surging as much as 10% on the BSE on heavy buying at lower levels. The 14-share BSE realty index surged 6.71% to a high of 1,755.73 points. It was later quoting at 1,751.63 points, up 6.46% from its previous close on the BSE. Marketmen said the surge in the sector stocks shows that the broader market is in bull momentum. Real estate major DLF surged 9.90% to a high of Rs194.20 on the BSE. It was later trading at Rs194, up 9.79% over its last close. “Realty stocks are trying to bottom out at this level. They are gradually moving from weak to strong hands,” SMC Global Vice President Rajesh Jain said. Housing Development Infrastructure Ltd gained 7.34% to touch a high of Rs96.50. Besides, Unitech rose 5.07% to Rs39.40 on the BSE. Indiabulls Real Estate jumped 6.33% to a high of Rs107.45. Other major gainers on the BSE realty index include Ansal Infrastructure (3.41%), Omaxe (3.80%), Sobha Developers (4.35%) and Pasrvnath Developers (4.5%). Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 2 Apr 2009 | 5:59 am Sensex regains 10k level, climbs 370 pts on firm global cuesMaintaining its winning-streak for the third straight session, the BSE benchmark Sensex regained 10k level by rising over 370 points in early trade.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 2 Apr 2009 | 5:33 am Natural gas flows from RIL's Krishna-Godavari basinReliance Industries created history when natural gas from its deep-sea Krishna Godavari basin fields flowed to surface on Thursday, a fleet achieved in flat seven years that will transform India's energy landscape.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 2 Apr 2009 | 4:47 am Sensex, Nifty soar; banks, metals leadSensex surged by 353.33 points to 10,255.32. National Stock Exchanges Nifty convincingly climbed above the 3100 mark in the first few minutes of trade and was trading at 3,166.05, up 105.70 points.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 2 Apr 2009 | 4:47 am Rupee rises 38 paise against dollarThe Indian rupee appreciated by another 38 paise to 50.32 against the US currency in opening trade today on hopes of increased capital inflows by foreign funds as domestic bourses are expected to open notably higher.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 2 Apr 2009 | 4:39 am Markets open higher, Sensex crosses 10,000-markIndian equities markets opened in the green Thursday, with a key index trading about 3.44 percent higher its last closing figure to go past the psychologically important 10,000-mark.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 2 Apr 2009 | 4:30 am ICICI Bank repurchases bonds worth USD 90.88mn!Private sector lender ICICI Bank Wednesday said it has bought back bonds worth 90.88 mn dollars (Rs 460cr) at face value from its Baharain branch.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am Samsung partners BSNL, MTNL for 3G services!Samsung Wednesday said it has partnered state-run telecos BSNL and MTNL to provide high-end handsets for their 3G services.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am New CII chief to promote political donations by cheque!As campaigning picks up, the new CII President, Srinivasan, has said he`ll promote a transparent way of donations to pol parties by business houses.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am India says Doha deal of strategic interest!Ahead of the G-20 Summit, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that a positive outcome of the Doha Round of WTO talks for a global trade deal is of strategic interest to India.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am Maruti to phase out M800, Omni by 2015-16!Maruti 800 - the small car that revolutionised personal transport in modern India will take a bow starting next year.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am NRI remittances decline by 20%: Plan panel!With global crisis deepening and migrant workers losing jobs, remittances from NRIs could decline by 20% this fiscal, said a Planning Commission report.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am Tata will make Nano in Singur: W Bengal official!W Bengal on Wednesday claimed that world`s cheapest wheels, Nano, will be made in Singur, although Tata Motors had stomped out in a huff last year.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am G-20 protestors plan to fool cops on April 1st!On the sidelines of the G-20 meet are innovative protests that`ll attract just about as much attention as the photo opportunity of world leaders shaking hands.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am Remittances from NRIs may decline by 20%: Plan panel!With the global financial crisis deepening and migrant workers losing jobs, remittances from Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) could decline by 20 per cent this fiscal, said a Planning Commission report.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am 300 Satyam staff join Bank of America: Report!About 250-300 employees at Satyam Computer Services are joining Bank of America, a newspaper said on Wednesday.Source: Zee News : Business | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:43 am Bartronics India (Rs 86.15): BuyWe recommend a buy on Bartronics India from a short-term trading horizon. It is apparent from the charts of Bartronics that it was a medium-term downtrend as it declined from Rs 100 to Rs 61 between early January and early March. However, itSource: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Crisil downgraded ratings on 84 cos in 2008-09Mumbai, April 1 Crisil downgraded ratings on 84 entities in the 2008-09 fiscal, while upgrading those on only two.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am US tech spend to fall 3.1% this yearNew Delhi, April 1 Forrester Research on Wednesday lowered its outlook on US tech purchases for 2009. It said that the purchase of IT goods and services by American businesses and Government is expected to drop 3.1 per cent in 2009.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Vehicles sales rise in March, but ‘no turnaround in sight’Chennai, April 1 Vehicle sales during March increased over that in February 2009, but as Hyundai Motor India’s Senior Vice-President – Marketing and Sales, said “the industry is far from seeing a turnaround at thisSource: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Software receipts in Q3 fell 10% sequentiallyMumbai/ Bangalore/ New Delhi, April 1 It’s official. The Indian IT sector, the pride of Indian exports, is generating fewer dollars, predominantly due to the global credit crunch and the cross currencySource: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am ZTE to offer over $1 billion credit to Indian telcosNew Delhi, April 1 ZTE Corporation has entered into a strategic partnership with China Development Bank to make available a significant portion of a $15-billion global credit line for Indian telecom service providers for buying equipment andSource: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Day Trading GuideInitiate Fresh long-position if DLF surpasses Rs 184, with stiff stop-loss. We recommend a buy on ICICI Bank and SBI for the session. Fresh long-position can be initiated ifSource: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Shipbuilding subsidy: ABG can claim Rs 1,700 cr, Bharati Rs 1,000 crNew Delhi, April 1 ABG Shipyard can claim Rs 1,700 crore as shipbuilding subsidy from the Government, followed by Pipavav Shipyard (Rs 1,050 crore) and Bharati Shipyard (Rs 1,000 crore) over the next four-five years.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am GTB case: Audit firm takes ICAI to courtNew Delhi, April 1 Audit firm Price Waterhouse has taken the audit profession regulator, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), to court. A writ petition has been filed by Price Waterhouse in the Bombay High Court challenging aSource: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Wheat prices crash on weight of record crop, higher stocksChennai, April 1 As the official rabi arrival season began on Wednesday, wheat prices crashed on the weight of a record crop in the offing and higher bufferSource: Business Line - Home Page | 2 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Gauge market psyche through technicalsUnfortunately, in the real world, man seldom behaves rationally while making financial decisions; more so when it comes to investing in financial markets.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 1 Apr 2009 | 9:25 pm 'China no more a threat to us'Still, Mohammed Saqib, founder and secretary-general of the India-China Economic and Cultural Council, says Indian businessmen have no reason to fear the dragon.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 1 Apr 2009 | 9:11 pm FCCB issues return to haunt cosIndia Inc borrowed large sums during the sunshine days of the bullrun, but it forgot to save for the rainy day.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 1 Apr 2009 | 9:10 pm Needed: More investors for giltsFailure by the market to absorb incremental govt debt may force RBI to use quick-fix methods.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 1 Apr 2009 | 9:09 pm Retail majors sold on private labelsWith slowdown biting, retailers are now looking at private labels to boost their sagging bottomlines.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 1 Apr 2009 | 9:07 pm Car makers see fading hopes of turnaroundMarch sales slump for most, Maruti, M&M buck trend.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 1 Apr 2009 | 7:24 pm Maruti 800, Omni to drive out of 11 cities next yearNew emission norms prompt India's largest car maker to phase out 25-year-old models.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 1 Apr 2009 | 7:19 pm Projects pick-up spells recoveryNaresh Thakkar, MD at rating agency ICRA, said he was surprised by the rising project investment numbers.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Apr 2009 | 7:12 pm Cos need not report forex losses till 11Government is believed to have accepted the recommendations of NACAS to defer the mandatory implementation of accounting standard 11 (AS-11).Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Apr 2009 | 7:09 pm FIIs take home Rs 48k cr in 08-09Fiscal 2008-09 saw FIIs taking out a whopping Rs 47,706 crore from the Indian stock market - that's around 90% of the Rs 53,000 plus crore invested by them in 2007-08.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Apr 2009 | 7:09 pm For cost reduction, streamline support servicesWhen cost reduction becomes a priority, one of the first places executives look for savings is general and administrative (G&A) expenses—the cost centres that provide front-line support and back-office functions such as finance, information technology and human resources. Cutting general, administrative expenses can improve performance quickly in a downturn There are good reasons why G&A represents such an attractive target. When business is growing, companies tend to add support services. But in a downturn, it becomes painfully apparent that some incremental support services don’t contribute enough to sales or earnings, and many executives react with across-the-board cuts in G&A. This slash-and-burn approach may remove some unnecessary expense. But it often also destroys value—eliminating G&A activities that drive sales and profits. There is a better approach that is almost as quick as the slash-and-burn method and, in our experience, produces sustainable cost savings, typically in the 10-30% range. It also improves the productivity and effectiveness of support functions, helping improve a company’s front-line performance—a powerful advantage in a downturn. Let’s look at the steps involved. Also Read Turbocharge your sales, margins Invert the pyramid. The first step in streamlining G&A is to follow the customer. The usual organizational pyramid shows customer-facing front-line staff close to the base. Support functions are somewhere in the middle and senior management at the top. Turning the pyramid upside down emphasizes those people who provide the products and services that customers value. Below them are the support and back-office functions that help the front line deliver the goods or services. At the bottom is senior management, whose fundamental job is to help the organization work effectively. The inverted pyramid provides an acid test for support services by helping executives determine which services are essential to the front line. Reduce, redesign, and restructure. There are three ways to maximize front-line benefits while eliminating unnecessary support expense. The key is to understand which services should be reduced, redesigned or restructured. To reduce, companies clarify what support functions are expected to deliver and eliminate non-essential activities. They start with internal customers and their demand for services, rather than service providers and what they currently supply. Best practice is to triage—spend more money on critical services while eliminating those which do not increase value. Redesign requires companies to scrutinize the processes that deliver support services. They can streamline some—often by automating certain steps—and purchase better or lower-cost inputs for others. They design processes that are different depending on the value implications. Restructuring usually involves consolidation or outsourcing. The goal is to ensure that support services are performed effectively at lowest cost. What can you expect from this approach? A combination of reduction, redesign, and restructuring can save about 10-30% of G&A costs. In our experience, reduction of use usually accounts for about 25% of total savings, redesign 35% and restructuring about 40%. By focusing on effectiveness and efficiency together, these savings can be sustained. To see how this approach works in practice, consider the case of an office products company that faced fierce competition from overseas suppliers and retailers selling private-label goods. Part of the answer lay in slashing costs for more competitive pricing. So the company centralized support functions, eliminating duplication across business units. The company also saw a big opportunity to improve performance through more effective marketing and research and development (R&D). Some of its customers bought primarily on price. So in certain product categories the company slashed support spending to compete with ultra low cost private-label goods. But other customers preferred brand-name products. In these categories, the company had to keep investing in innovation and marketing support. Finance staff needed to analyze which features would enable market share gains and high profit margins. Most cost-cutting campaigns target R&D, marketing support and finance staff. But, for this company, an across-the-board cut would have been a mistake. By cutting costs judiciously, it generated greater productivity and sales in core product lines. Speed is paramount in turbulent times. But ineffective support services slow organizations. A global entertainment company wanted to grow audiences by adding shows. But it found costs were rising faster than revenues. Adding shows threatened to flatten margins instead of boosting profits. The problem was twofold. First, the company had a tangle of back-office services, such as finance and human resources, which were duplicated for each show. Second, many crucial support services, from costume making to casting, were world-class and were treated as such—quality first. This was hardly surprising: the company’s core asset was its ability to put on unique, high-quality events that commanded a premium ticket price. The company’s challenge was to rework its processes without disrupting the artistry that appealed to customers. Some solutions were obvious, like centralizing and streamlining finance and HR. Originally, transactions for as little as $20 had to be centrally approved. Processing a transaction could cost more than the amount processed. The company resolved this by providing credit cards to staff for small purchases. Other solutions were less obvious. HR, for instance, had invested heavily in a candidate database for the most skilled positions. It spent less time collecting names of less-skilled players. When the company scrutinized absentee rates and back up depth, it realized the greatest need for replacements due to injuries or illness was among rank-and-file performers—the most-skilled roles had extra back ups. That meant it could invest less in recruiting starring-role understudies. HR could focus on what was needed most, while spending less overall. Sometimes, back-office processes interfere with mission-critical customer-facing activities. It is one reason why inverting the pyramid and listening closely to the front line are key. Consider the approach taken by state-run Union Bank of India. It streamlined back-office functions last year by outsourcing operations like advanced due diligence, valuation and document verification for loans. As part of this process, the bank is setting up an outsourced call centre this year. Now the front-line staff spends more time marketing products to customers while speeding up the loan-approval process. Revamping its back-office has helped the lender’s profits; its net profit rose 84% in October-December 2008 to Rs670 crore. G&A opens opportunities for lowering costs and improving performance quickly in a downturn. But the current downturn won’t last forever. When it ends, companies will need to take their foot off the brake and step on the gas. Wholesale G&A cuts are likely to slow results now and hinder acceleration later, but smart, strategic measures will help a company both survive the turbulence and accelerate out of it. David Mountain is a partner with Bain & Co. in India and leads the financial services practice. Hernan Saenz is managing partner of Bain’s Dallas and Mexico City offices and a leader of Bain’s performance improvement practice. This is the third in a Bain series on managing turbulence that is being published by Mint. feedback@livemint.com Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 1 Apr 2009 | 4:38 pm India gets first consignment of uranium post-NSG clearanceIndia has started benefiting from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) clearance for supply of nuclear fuel with the first consignment of 60 tonnes of uranium from France landing at the Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC) here.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Apr 2009 | 4:31 pm Be transparent on casino sealing, poll official tells GoaThe chief electoral officer in Goa Wednesday asked the state government to behave in a transparent manner over the controversial and much publicised sealing and de-sealing of offshore casino vessels and avoid 'undue haste' in its actions.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Apr 2009 | 4:30 pm India in better shape than any other country: SibalIndia is in a better situation than any other country in the world when it comes to fiscal deficits and beating the slowdown, Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal said here Wednesday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Apr 2009 | 3:31 pm Nano can come back to Singur if Tatas want: officialWest Bengal may have lost a chance to nurture world's least expensive car but there is a possibility of the project coming back to its original site Singrur if the makers Tata Motors decide so, a top official said here Wednesday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Apr 2009 | 2:33 pm Phoenix Group Global expands brand ZuriPhoenix Group Global, the owners and promoters of luxury resorts and business hotels, Wednesday announced that all its existing properties will be brought under the Zuri Hotels and Resorts banner - the Group's flagship brand of luxury hotels launched in October 2008.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Apr 2009 | 2:32 pm Hero Honda, TVS Motor and Honda Motorcycle post higher salesEven as the Indian two-wheeler industry faces a dip in its sales, companies like Hero Honda, TVS motors and Honda Motorcycles have managed to post growth for the fiscal year 2009 (FY-09).Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Apr 2009 | 2:30 pm
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