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Counting of ballot for RIL-RPL merger today!The result of the RIL-RPL merger vote is expected to declared Friday after the voting which was held Thursday.Source: Zee News : Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 11:34 am India for regional approach to meltdown!Ahead of ASEAN and East Asia summit, India has underlined need for developing regional synergies to deal with global crisis of "unprecedented dimensions".Source: Zee News : Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 11:34 am Obama to meet top financial regulators !US Treasury Dept is asking banks not to mention regulatory "stress tests" as part of their Q1 earnings results, as per a source familiar with govt discussions.Source: Zee News : Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 11:34 am Boeing to cut 777 output to five planes per month!Boeing says it would slash production of its twin-aisle 777 aircraft to 5 planes per month from 7, citing "significant deterioration" in airline industry.Source: Zee News : Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 11:34 am SBI cuts deposit rates by 0.25-0.5% from Monday!A day after bankers met the Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao, country`s largest lender, State Bank of India on Thursday cut its deposit rates by 0.25-0.5 percent across different tenures from April 13.Source: Zee News : Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 11:34 am US trade deficit in surprise drop to nine-year low!The US trade deficit fell more than expected in February to a nine-year low as a prolonged recession sliced imports, the Commerce Department said on Thursday.Source: Zee News : Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 11:34 am Gold recovers on seasonal buyingGold prices on Friday recovered by Rs 65 to close at Rs 14,450 per ten gram in the bullion market on emergence of buying by jewellers and local parties for the ongoing marriage season.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 10 Apr 2009 | 10:41 am Fuel use in 2009 to dive by 2.4 million bpd: IEALondon: World oil demand will drop by a hefty 2.4 million barrels per day in 2009, the International Energy Agency said on Friday, citing a growing consensus any recovery in the economy would not take place until next year. As the rate of oil demand contraction reached levels last seen in the early 1980s, it said outright demand for this year was expected to be 83.4 million bpd, around one million bpd less than in its previous monthly report. “This is a pretty exceptional period of demand collapsing,” said David Fyfe, head of the oil industry and markets division at the IEA, the Paris-based advisor to oil-consuming countries. He could not say whether there would be further downward revisions as a shrinking world economy chokes off energy use. “I think everyone out there is trying to gauge when the recession is going to bottom out. We can’t say definitively that global GDP is not going to worsen,” he said. The expectations of a collapse in fuel consumption were not “solely conjecture”, the IEA’s report said and referred to early indications for the first quarter of this year, which suggested “much lower” demand in developed and non-developed countries than previously thought. As demand has disappeared, stocks have swollen in developed countries and stood at 61.6 days of forward demand cover in February, a measure closely watched by producer group Opec, which considers around 52 days comfortable. The IEA said current forward cover was the highest since 1993, although it added “absolute stock levels” arguably provided a more representative view of the market because the demand figure has been cut so deeply. Could Take Longer To Balance Market The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries has agreed to reduce supply by 4.2 million bpd since September. In last month’s report, the IEA had said strict adherence with Opec supply cuts already in place would shrink oil stocks in developed nations by around the middle of the year, even though demand was already expected to contract further. But Fyfe said the “reality check” of the first quarter, with signs of much lower actual demand than previously expected meant it would now take longer for Opec to balance the market, assuming strict compliance. “We would probably (now) say it would take them until the end of the year,” he said. Opec crude supply in March had averaged 27.8 million bpd, down 235,000 bpd from February, and output from the 11 members of the group bound by production targets had dropped to 25.57 million bpd -- down 245,000 bpd month on month, but still 720,000 bpd above target output. The IEA assessed Opec’s compliance rate with agreed supply curbs at 83% in March, compared with the historical average of around 60%. Analysts have said discipline is unlikely to increase much more as members of the group have said current oil prices of roughly $50 a barrel are a good compromise given the weakness of the economy. The latest allocations from top oil exporter Saudi Arabia issued on Thursday and Friday showed it would keep supplies steady to some of its customers in May, but cut them to others. Another limitation on production is underinvestment as lower oil prices erode profits and companies struggle to get credit lines. The IEA repeated earlier warnings of a possible supply crunch once the economy recovers and energy use picks up and reported a fall in non-Opec supplies. It said non-Opec supply had fallen by 170,000 bpd in March and year-on-year it expected non-Opec production to fall by 320,000 bpd. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 10:19 am Jubilant and Orion for joint manufacture of drugs - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 10:17 am Tourism sector hit by global slowdownNew Delhi: Tourism industry has started feeling the pinch of global slowdown with the number of foreign tourists arriving in India showing a significant decline this year. The number of tourists visiting the country touched 4,71,627 in March this year as against 5,41,478 in March 2008, which is 69,851 less than the corresponding period last year. The decrease in March this year is due to the global slowdown, a senior tourism ministry official. However, the official said, there is no let up on our part to showcase our tourist destinations abroad to attract visitors. Tourism ministry has launched a series of road shows abroad in association with tour operators to woo tourists. “While roadshows are already being held in Singapore, Australia, Ireland, Malyasia and the UK, more such shows are being planned in Japan, Korea, Mexico,” said Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) president Vijay Thakur. “We will launch a month-long Incredible India campaign in different cities of the US and Canada including Boston, Los Angeles, California, San Francisco and Toronto in May,” added Thakur. Despite the concerted efforts put in by the government to woo tourists, the number of foreign tourist arrival has further dipped in the month of March. While 4,87,262 tourists had come to India in January, there were 5,91,337 foreign visitors in the corresponding month last year. Their number increased to 5,01,885 in February as against 5,61,393 in February 2008. The fall in tourist arrival has affected the foreign exchange earnings also. While the forex earnings stood at Rs4,437 crores in March this year, it was Rs5,035 crores in March 2008, a decrease of 11.9%. Tourism ministry has offered a series of incentives to attract foreign visitors as part of Visit India 2009 scheme. According to the scheme, one additional or complimentary service is offered for every service paid by the tourist in collaboration with airlines, hotels and tour operators. The offer include complimentary air passage for travelling companion, one night free stay in the hotel booked by the tourist and one complimentary local sight seeing tour among others. There is also on the offer of one complimentary stay at any of the 15 rural holiday sites selected across the country as part of the promotion of rural tourism, said the official. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 10:03 am Teacher hurls shoe at Naveen Jindal during poll rallyKurukshetra, Haryana: A retired school teacher on Friday hurled a shoe at Congress MP Naveen Jindal here in what appears to be a fast-catching trend inspired by the episodes involving George Bush and later Home Minister P Chidambaram. Ram Kumar, however, missed his target during an election rally in Kurukshetra constituency from where Jindal, an industrialist, is contesting the Lok Sabha polls. While throwing the shoe at Jindal, the retired teacher said he is doing so in protest of the policies of the Congress. Police immediately took Kumar in custody and whisked him away from the rally. Meanwhile, Jindal alleged that Kumar was under the influence of liquor. Apparently taking cue from the episode involving the US President George Bush in Baghdad last year, a Sikh journalist had on Tuesday hurled a shoe at Chidambaram at a press conference in Delhi protesting against the CBI clean chit to Congress candidate Jagdish Tytler in 1984 anti-Sikh riots case. Two days after the Sikh journalist incident, a Delhi college lecturer had attempted to target a colleague with his shoe at a staff council meeting but it was thwarted by other teachers. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:57 am Russia delivers first batch of nuclear fuel to IndiaMoscow: Under a multi-million dollar long-term nuclear fuel supply deal between Moscow and New Delhi, Russia has delivered the first batch of 30 metric tonnes of uranium pellets to India. “Thirty metric tonnes of pellets have been delivered to Hyderabad-based Nuclear Fuel Complex for the production of fuel for ‘Rajasthan’ NPP,” Russia’s ‘Atomenergoprom’ said in a statement. Under the $700 million contract inked between Russia’s TVEL Corporation and India’s Department of Atomic Energy in February, this is the first batch of Uranium Dioxide pellets delivered to Nuclear Fuel Complex. One of the largest nuclear fuel producers in the world, TVEL is a wholly owned subsidiary of ‘Atomenergoprom’. Under the deal, it would supply the uranium pellets to fuel pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWR) in India. TVEL would also ensure life-cycle supply of fuel for the light-water VVER reactors of the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu. Russia is currently completing the assembly of first two VVER-1000 reactors with total two Megawatt capacity at Kudankulam. Under the deal inked in December 2008 during President Dmitry Medvedev’s maiden India visit, Russia will build four more reactors to meet India’s growing energy requirements. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:47 am 9 out of 10 Indian employees lack social security: OECDNew Delhi: At a time when political parties are coming up with poll promises like job guarantees, OECD, a group of rich nations, has found that nine in 10 employees in India do not have a formal labour contract and social security benefits such as advance dismissal notices. As per a study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), nearly 370 million people in India do not have “formal social security”, which translates into nine out of ten employees in the country working without such benefits. “The financial crisis is throwing many people out of work, and in developing countries with no unemployment insurance, they are forced to take informal jobs with low pay, no protection and high risk exposure,” OECD said in the report, titled “Is Informal Normal?” The study found that informal employment has reached record levels worldwide and this has severe consequences for poverty in poor countries. Elaborating on the report, one of its authors Johannes Jutting said in an emailed statement that going by rough estimates for India, out of nearly 450 million workers, almost 200 million are employed informally in the non-agricultural sector. “Approximately another 210 million workers are employed in agriculture, which if we were to assume is mostly informal, then we can say that roughly 410 million workers in India are informally employed. “This what accounts for our 9 out of 10 figure,” Johannes Jutting noted. In their manifestos for the coming general elections, various political parties, including Congress and BJP, have promised sops aimed at addressing the minimising the impact of global economic crisis on job market. Congress has promised a minimum income of Rs10,000 a year under its job guarantee scheme and has promised to address the issues of economic slowdown through job-oriented growth, among other schemes. According to OECD study, globally 1.8 billion people, which accounts for more than half of the worldwide workforce, are working working without a formal labour contract and social security. The number is projected to grow to two thirds of the workforce by 2020 and could go higher if more jobs are lost due to the economic crisis and more migrants return home to informal sector jobs, the report said. The OECD noted that about 1.2 billion people presently benefit from formal contracts and social security protection. Lack of “formal social security” can be defined as not having full social protection nor entitlement to certain employment benefits such advance notice of dismissal and severance pay, among others. In the Indian case, the absence of “formal social security” generally corresponds to workers employed in the un-organised sector, Jutting pointed out. They are “mainly composed of workers in firms employing less than ten individuals who are therefore not subject to much of India’s labour legislation, as well as self-employed, own-account workers, contributing family workers and agricultural workers,” he said. Pointing out that informal employment is a “question of survival for millions of Indians”, Jutting noted that due to the economic turmoil, it is these informally employed people “who will likely lose their jobs first...” The author added that such people also do not have recourse to the social protections they need in order to help them while they look for a new job. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:41 am Russia delivers first batch of nuclear fuel to IndiaUnder a multi-million dollar long-term nuclear fuel supply deal between, Russia has delivered the first batch of 30 metric tonnes of uranium pellets to India.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:21 am FIR lodged against Sushma Swaraj, Arjun MundaJamshedpur: An FIR has been lodged against BJP leaders Sushma Swaraj, Arjun Munda and Ramtahal Choudhury for allegedly using a modified vehicle in the shape of a ‘rath’ without prior official permission. The FIR was lodged at Chandil police station in Saraikela-Kharswan district on Thursday by the Block Agriculture Officer of Chandil, Deputy Commissioner Rajesh Kumar Sharma said on Friday. Sharma said Swaraj, Munda, who is the party candidate from Jamshedpur, and Choudhury, BJP candidate from Ranchi, had allegedly violated the model code of conduct by using a modified vehicle in the shape of a rath without prior official permission. Apart from the three BJP leaders, the district administration also included the names of Saraikela-Kharswan district BJP committee president and election in-charge Shailendra Singh and Chandra Mohan Das respectively. Swaraj had addressed a public meeting in Chandil under Ranchi parliamentary constituency in support of party candidates on Wednesday last. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:16 am 9 out of 10 Indian employees lack social security: OECDOECD, a group of rich nations, has found that nine in 10 employees in India do not have a formal labour contract and social security benefits such as advance dismissal notices.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:04 am Global wine sales may not slump; US to gain even in crisisAs the global financial crisis deepens, people are opting for low-cost brands of wine instead of giving up drinking altogether, preventing a slump in demand.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:02 am Northeast India's biggest steel plant begins productionThe biggest gas-based steel plant in northeast India started commercial production in Tripura Friday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 10 Apr 2009 | 9:01 am Microsoft ties up with HCL to outsource jobs to IndiaHouston: Computer giant Microsoft has signed a $170 million five-year contract with India’s HCL for outsourcing work for its online business productivity suite. HCL will provide 600 employees to support the contract and nearly 250 workers have already begun work on the project. Microsoft has not said whether this contract is to replace any existing agreement it has in India, or if this deal is an expansion of its current outsourcing scope. Despite the recent job cuts, Microsoft has been expanding its online services business and has recently announced plans to make its Business Productivity Online Suite, a software-as-a-service offering, available for trial and purchase in 19 countries. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 8:47 am Kerala IT firm gets two more foreign airline clientsLater this year, Air New Zealand and Austrian Airlines will start using iCargo CRA, a revenue accounting solution for cargo carrying airlines developed by the city-based IBS Software Services.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 10 Apr 2009 | 8:30 am Recession anxieties driving youngsters to psychiatrists, smokingMahavir Singh, 27, had everything going for him. A high-paying job with a BPO company and engaged to be married to his sweetheart. Then, suddenly, the pink slip thunderbolt struck.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 10 Apr 2009 | 8:30 am India to hold biggest auction of oil, gas sitesIndia has announced the launch of its biggest-ever auction of oil and gas areas, brushing aside worries about a drop in spending by firms on energy exploration.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 10 Apr 2009 | 8:12 am Terror alert in Islamabad: US embassy suspends work for a dayIslamabad: The United States’ Embassy here suspended visa and routine consular services on Friday due to ‘heightened security’, a spokesman said. The embassy will provide emergency consular services for Americans and the routine operations will resume on Monday. The US consulates in Lahore, Karachi and Peshawar would be open today, the spokesman said. The spokesman did not give details about the security concerns but the move appeared to be linked to heightened security across Pakistan on the occasion of Good Friday. The Pakistani capital has also been targeted in a recent series of terrorist attacks, with a suicide bomber killing eight security personnel at a paramilitary camp in the heart of the city on 4 April. A statement issued by the US embassy said staff should be careful while travelling to public places, restaurants and hotels due to “serious security threats” to American citizens. Offices of several international donor organisations in Islamabad would also remain closed Friday due to security threats, reports said. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 8:12 am Nestle plans to invest Rs.400 crore in HimachalFood products major Nestle India wants to set up a food and beverage manufacturing unit in Himachal Pradesh, according to a senior government official.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 10 Apr 2009 | 8:01 am Is it the right time to buy gold? - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 8:01 am India govt moves to open door for white sugar imports - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 7:41 am GLOBAL MARKETS - Asia stocks push towards 6-mth highsTOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares rose on Friday, with South Korean stocks hitting a 6-month high after the country averted recession in the first quarter, as a Wall Street rally boosted risk demand around the region and dented the yen.Source: Reuters: Money News | 10 Apr 2009 | 7:33 am Italian two-wheeler parts maker Verlicchi enters India with Hema GroupThe 50:50 joint venture, Verlicchi-Hema Automotive Co, will set up its first manufacturing facility at Hosur near Bangalore at an investment of Rs 17 crore.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 10 Apr 2009 | 7:23 am Obama seeks $83.4 billion for fight against Al-Qaeda, TalibanWashington: President Barack Obama has pitched for $83.4 billion for military operations to “disrupt, dismantle and defeat” Al-Qaeda and Taliban threatening the US from their safe havens along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, asking lawmakers to urgently approve his “last” supplemental funds to fight terrorism. “We face a security situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan that demands urgent attention. The Taliban is resurgent and Al-Qaeda threatens America from its safe haven along the Afghan-Pakistan border,” Obama wrote in a letter to Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House of Representatives, seeking early approval for his war supplemental request of $83.4 billion. “Nearly 95% of these funds will be used to support our men and women in uniform as they help the people of Iraq to take responsibility for their own future -- and work to disrupt, dismantle and defeat Al-Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan,” Obama said in his letter on Thursday. He assured the Congress that his funding request will ensure that the full force of the US -- military, intelligence, diplomatic, and economic power -- is engaged in an overall effort to defeat Al-Qaeda and uproot the safe haven from which it plans and trains for attacks on the US and its allies. In a statement, Pelosi said Obama’s request would be looked into carefully and Congress would “engage in a dialogue with the administration on appropriate benchmarks to measure the success of our investments.” “... We are increasing our troop commitment, we will employ the necessary civilian resources to build Afghan governance capacity and self-sufficiency,” Obama said in the letter. Though the US Congress since September 2001 has approved 17 separate emergency funding amounting to $822.1 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama said this would be the last supplemental request coming from the White House. “After seven years of war, the American people deserve an honest accounting of the cost of our involvement in our ongoing military operations. We must break that recent tradition and include future military costs in the regular budget so that we have an honest, more accurate and fiscally responsible estimate of Federal spending,” he argued. “We should not label military costs as emergency funds so as to avoid our responsibility to abide by the spending limitations set forth by the Congress,” he said, adding that after years of budget gimmicks and wasteful spending, it is time to end the era of irresponsibility in Washington. In June last year, Congress approved $66 billion in advance 2009 funding for military operations. The Pentagon would receive $142 billion in war funding for the fiscal ending on 30 September. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 6:55 am DLF customers take to Gandhigiri to get money back - Business Standard
Source: Google News India - Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 6:26 am This restaurant serves food on the rocks, literally!If you think hot food comes out of a five-star hotel kitchens and only drinks are served 'on the rocks', it is time for a re-think.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 10 Apr 2009 | 6:00 am China-fuelled Asia equity rally may run out of steamHong Kong: Asian equity markets are likely to run out of steam after leading a one-month rally in global stocks, with the full brunt of the deep global recession yet to be fully felt on corporate earnings and balance sheets. The 26% jump has been driven by cyclical plays such technology and consumer discretionary shares, mainly on hopes that the worst of the global economic recession was over and that China’s growth was cranking up again. But the road to recovery will be long. The global economy could take longer than expected to recover, banking systems may suffer fresh setbacks and credit markets are still strained. Companies needing to refinance debt also continue to face steep costs in credit markets, even as their cash flow shrinks as consumer demand sputters. “There are a number of ways it can come a cropper. The risks are innumerable,” said Tim Rocks, Asia equity strategist at Macquarie Securities in Hong Kong. Analysts recommend looking for companies with relatively robust balance sheets which may outperform their peers once doubts about a global recovery are finally wiped away, likely late this year or in 2010. Other investors said they prefer to invest in high-grade bonds in the United States or elsewhere rather than Asian equities, thanks to the steep returns available due to a blow-out in credit spreads. China effect Markets more closely hitched to China’s economic engine have benefitted the most in the recent rally, as investors hope Beijing’s nearly $600 billion of fiscal stimulus will filter through to regional economies, partly offsetting a collapse in exports to recession-hit Western markets. Chinese stocks have climbed 32% this year. Outside of China, Taiwan’s TAIEX index and South Korea’s KOSPI have been the next best performing markets in the world, gaining 24% and 17% respectively. Rush orders from China to bring technology to rural households has been a boon to companies such as Taiwan chip maker UMC. Asia’s relatively healthier fundamentals have been another factor behind the rally. While hurting from its extreme export dependency, Asia has avoided the crippled banks and high household debt levels plaguing the United States and Europe. Plus, Asian countries have hefty reserves. “Asia is in the beneficial position of actually being to afford stimulus without having to go into significant debt. That’s a positive for the majority of Asian countries and a positive for production and growth going forward,” said Al Clark, head of Asia-Pacific multi-asset investment at Schroders in Singapore, which manages $158.4 billion of assets. Clark was among the investors preferring high-grade bonds. Profits under pressure Foreign portfolio managers are slowly reallocating funds to the region and away from safe-haven cash, but confidence remains fragile. While analysts and portfolio managers believe the worst is over for Asian stocks after last year’s 53 percent plunge, the worst in the 20-year history of the MSCI index, they warn the path to a sustained equity recovery will likely be a bumpy one. Taiwan’s export data, a leading indicator for the region, show the double-digit drop only slowing to 35.7% in March from a year earlier. Also missing from the rally has been a strong improvement in credit markets, which usually tend to jump ahead of equities. Even as the MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan struck a six-month peak, the iTraxx index of AXJ investment-grade credit derivatives is near 330 basis points and has lagged equities. “Asian credit spreads are still so high. Liquidity that has been pumped into the system hasn’t really filtered down as much as we would like to see in terms of people reducing credit risk,” said Colin Ng, who oversees $410 million as head of Asia-Pacific equities at MFC Global Investment Management in Hong Kong. The outlook for earnings and potential for severe cash flow erosion also remain big risks. Company earnings growth is expected to fall 11.4% this year before recovering 23.3% next year. Stock valuations are generally seen as attractive in Asia, but have already recovered from their lowest levels. The 12-month forward price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) is 12.7 and falls to 9.4 for the year ending in 2011, according to data from I/B/E/S. Until the slide accelerated last October, forward P/Es for the MSCI Asia Pacific index ex-Japan had not been in single digits on data going back to 2001. The P/E ratio on Hong Kong’s Hang Seng has improved to 12.25 from a low of 6.7 in October, compared with an average 15.0 over the past 13 years. The surprisingly big gains in stocks, which have been accompanied by numerous reports citing “green shoots” in economic activity, have made waves across markets, pushing up bond yields and sparked a sharp steepening in interest rate swap curves. In some cases the jump in yields and swap rates has caused an unwanted tightening of monetary conditions in some markets. Balance sheets and leading indicators Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts said companies with low balance sheet leverage and larger market capitalisations looked attractive. Their recommendations include Singapore oil rig builder Sembcorp Marine and Taiwan’s UMC. But Rocks at Macquarie warned that falling revenue and a hefty burn through cash means some Asian companies could run into trouble if economies do not accelerate later this year. After exports collapsed at the end of 2008, analysts are also keeping a close eye on how quickly companies burn off excess inventories and on any signs that restocking is taking place. A combination of inventory restocking along with a turn up in leading indicators, such as the US ISM report’s gauge of new export orders and the Oecd’s leading indicator, may set the stage for a more pronounced rally, analysts said. So far those gauges are not quite giving the green light: at 39 in March, the ISM export orders index was still the third worst on record -- only surpassed by the extremely depressed levels in January and February. Equity analysts at Credit Suisse have an outperform rating on Asia outside Japan due to its economic flexibility, low financial and household leverage, lower commodity prices and undervalued currencies. Credit Suisse said Asia tends to outperform 90% of the time when leading indicators turn up, and that seven of the nine leading indicators it tracks have done so. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 10 Apr 2009 | 5:44 am Nokia to overhaul its India strategy - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 5:04 am Industry poised to make a comeback - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 2:04 am Factory output falls, but recovery signs seenNEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's factory output fell for the third time in five months in February as the global slowdown hit hard, but analysts said they could see some signs of revival after a dismal March quarter.Source: Reuters: Money News | 10 Apr 2009 | 1:53 am Nikkei hits 3-mth high, SMFG hit by sell ordersTOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average touched a three-month high above the key 9,000 level on Friday after U.S. shares rallied sharply on better-than-expected preliminary results from Wells Fargo, while a softer yen boosted exporters such as Sony Corp.Source: Reuters: Money News | 10 Apr 2009 | 1:52 am People make beeline for Nano bookings - Times of India
Source: Google News India - Business | 10 Apr 2009 | 1:47 am Wall St Week Ahead: Bank results to dictate rally's fateNEW YORK (Reuters) - If Wells Fargo's upbeat first-quarter performance is any sign, Wall Street could rally further next week on any reassuring news from three other big banks due to post quarterly results.Source: Reuters: Money News | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:30 am SBI, IDBI Bank cut deposit rates by 25-50 bpsMumbai, April 9 Signalling a downward trend in deposit rates, the country’s largest bank, State Bank of India, today said it is cutting deposit rates by 25 basis points to 50 basis points across maturities. The revised rates will beSource: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Unitech may go for $250-m qualified institutional placementNew Delhi, April 9 Real estate company Unitech Ltd is said to be holding discussions with various financial institutions to gauge investor interest for a possible $250-million Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP).Source: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Nano booking counters bustle with activity on Day 1New Delhi\ Mumbai\ Bangalore It was business unusual at the designated outlets across the country as the bookings for the Tata Nano opened on Thursday morning. Undoubtedly the Nano effect was taking place with hordes of enquiries in Delhi andSource: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am BSP chances — ‘all media hype’Lucknow: Is the growing clout of the Bahujan Samaj Party in Uttar Pradesh and the possibility of its chief, Ms Mayawati, emerging a possible prime ministerial candidate only media hype? A quick round of interviews in LucknowSource: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Govt discusses proposal on duty-free refined sugar importNew Delhi, April 9 The Union Cabinet on Thursday discussed a proposal for allowing duty-free imports of refined sugar. The outcome of the late evening meeting is not immediately known, and a decision could be announced on Friday.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Industrial output contracts 1.2% in FebruaryNew Delhi, April 9 Industrial output declined by 1.2 per cent year-on-year in February, largely due to high base effect and subdued external demand. Industrial output had recorded growth of 9.5 per cent in FebruarySource: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Mutual funds: Need for reformsMutual funds (MFs) have been in existence for 45 years in India and it is time they take their rightful place as a major pillar of the financial system. There have been a number of reports on MFs but undesirable deep-rooted practicesSource: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am US downturn dents demand for H-1B visasNew Delhi, April 9 The US economic downturn has hit the demand for H-1B work visas. The US has announced that it is yet to receive enough H-1B petitions to reach the cap of 65,000, stipulated for fiscal 2010.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Some pharma, FMCG stocks miss current rallyBL Research Bureau The Sensex is up nearly 34 per cent from its low on March 9 and analysts are puzzled over the kind of momentum seen in the market. But did you know there have been a few stocks that haven’t participated even in thisSource: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am U.P. farmers selling wheat in Haryana, PunjabThe wheat scenario in the country is witnessing interesting twists and turns. Heavy rains that lashed Punjab and western Uttar Pradesh early this week have affected the crop.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 10 Apr 2009 | 12:00 am Govt sees no impact of slowdown on NELP VIII response - Times of India
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Apr 2009 | 11:43 pm Boeing warns on first-qtr profit, to cut plane outputSEATTLE (Reuters) - Boeing Co warned on Thursday first-quarter profit would be slashed by lower-than-expected airplane prices and production cuts on its lucrative widebody planes as cash-strapped airlines defer purchases, sending its shares down 3.6 percent in after-hours trading.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 11:18 pm Sharp swings leave investors nervous; Sensex up 62 pts - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:06 pm Inflation slips to 0.26% - Calcutta Telegraph
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:06 pm Just no light in sight for industryAccording to the latest index of industrial production data, February saw yet another contraction in output to the tune of 1.2%.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:06 pm Aircel launches in Mumbai, says no to pricing warMumbai saw its seventh telecom operator, Aircel, launch GSM services today in a cutthroat market. But Aircel says its done its math and will stay away from undercutting competition in a market where local calls are charged not more than 50 paisa a minute.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:04 pm Nelp VIII puts 70 blocks on the blockThe Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas launched the eighth round of auctions for land and water blocks under the New Exploration Licensing Policy.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:04 pm Airport drags Nokia's rapid India ramp-upNokia took a chance in 2006, when it ignored concerns about infrastructure bottlenecks and red tape in India.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:02 pm Inflation 8.44% last year. Did someone say 0.26%?Inflation rate at a three-decade low in 2008-09? Take it with a generous pinch of salt.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:00 pm Unitech to QIP it for Rs 2,000 crRamesh Chandra promoted Unitech appears set to raise Rs 2,000 crore through a qualified institutional placement (QIP) of shares.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:59 pm Corporates must demonstrate a commitment to ethical conductManaging reputation risk in today's business environment cannot but be a first-order priority.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:57 pm Bharti wins 4P awardsOf the 23 award categories, Bharti Group's Airtel won three, viz the most trusted brand, most influential brand and best strategy award.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:55 pm Investors beware, 'tis a sucker's rallyA dead cat bounce is a term used to describe rallies in a bear market. It comes from the notion that even a dead cat bounces if its falls from a great height.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:55 pm K\'taka govt to release 50000 acre of land to boost infraAfter facing repeated delays in completing road projects, it is looking at releasing 50,000 acres of land to address the state\'s infrastructure issues.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:44 pm Satyam bid process: What lies aheadAs the bidding for Satyam enters the last lap, bidders have a few more hurdles to clear before the bids are admitted. The successful bidders will have to subscribe to the equity on an \"as is, where is basis\", Satyam will not provide any warranties except to title of the shares issued.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:21 pm Hope an IT co buys Satyam: ExNASSCOM ChairmanGanesh Natarajan, former chairman of National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) and CEO of Zensar Technologies, said he hopes an IT company takes over crisisridden tech company Satyam Computer Services.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:10 pm FDI investments in realty cos under RBI scannerForeign direct investments (FDI) worth USD 6 billion to the real estate sector have come under the scanner of the Reserve Bank of India.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 8:07 pm Mint Election Coverage | A model Hindu in modern IndiaRohit Chahal, 19, New Delhi New Delhi: There’s something incongruous about model-turned-movie actor John Abraham being spoken of in the same breath as Hindutva champions Guru Golwalkar and Veer Savarkar, whose portraits loom over the spacious living room.  Rohit Chahal. Madhu Kapparath / Mint “People used to tell me that I could easily be a model, given my height and build. I had seen John Abraham and, like a million others, decided to try my hand at modelling,” says Rohit, who is in the final year of a bachelor’s degree programme in human resources and management at the College of Vocational Studies in New Delhi. His dalliance with modelling was the cause of the first—and last—major disagreement he had with his conservative family, which associated the profession with a freewheeling sex-and-drugs culture. “But this was one thing I just had to do. So I fought at home and walked the ramp,” he says. The flirtation with modelling proved short-lived and Rohit returned to his family ideology, which is rooted in a long association with the Swadeshi Jagran Manch, an arm of the so-called Sangh Parivar, or family, of Hindu nationalist groups. After enrolling in college, he joined the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the student wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), whose lotus-embossed flag flutters from atop his family house in Preet Vihar, a middle-class neighbourhood in east Delhi. Rohit was born in a Jat family the day after independence day in 1989, about two years before India wholeheartedly embraced economic reforms by dismantling government controls that had fettered its economy for four decades, and opening itself up for foreign investment and technology. He was the second of three sons born to Naresh Chaudhary, 47, a builder, and homemaker Manju. The couple named their eldest son Shekhar after Chandrasekhar Azad, the freedom fighter and revolutionary who shot himself to death in 1931 to avoid being taken prisoner by British police. The second son was named after Rajguru, who together with Bhagat Singh and Sukhdev was hanged in 1931 after the three were convicted of killing a British police officer. “Rohit was to be named Bhagat Singh, but a relative by the same name had passed away around the time our son was born. So we dropped the idea,” says Chaudhary. ACCESS TO TECHNOLOGY The three sons were encouraged to be religious in a household that strictly forbade partying. “This Western culture has led to our boys becoming weak. They have lost the courage to deal with life and are taking to drugs. I will not let that happen to my children,” says Chaudhary. But the Chahal family’s ultra-conservative attitude didn’t bar access to technology, one of the gifts of liberalization that the young take so much for granted. According to the ministry of information technology, India has the bragging rights for the world’s lowest mobile phone call rates (2-3 cents, or Rs1-1.5), the fastest growth in the number of subscribers (15.31 million in four months), the fastest sales of a million mobile phones (one week), the world’s cheapest mobile handset ($17.2) and the world’s most affordable colour phone ($27.42). India also has an installed base of at least 22 million personal computers, 100 million television sets and 65 million cable television connections. Rohit was in class III when he first handled a computer, in class VI when he logged into the Internet. His father was one of the early buyers of a mobile phone when it came to India in the early 1990s. “I have grown with all these gadgets and credit cards. They are a part of my life and life would be difficult without them,” Rohit says. That’s at odds with his association with the Swadeshi Jagran Manch, known for its staunch opposition to foreign investment and technology, and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, and the causes they espouse. Rohit, raised in an era of economic openness and a beneficiary of the growth it fostered, says India should focus on “self-sustainability instead of giving space to multinational companies to exploit India.” STINT IN PRISON Last year, he was among a group of students who attacked a history department professor at Delhi University. The students were protesting alleged vilification of Hindu gods in a college textbook when the professor, S.Z.H. Jafri, tried to intervene. The students said an essay titled Three Hundred Ramayanas by A.K. Ramanujan had made derogatory references about Hindu gods. According to media reports, the students were offended by passages in the essay including one in which Hanuman, the monkey-god, was described as Ram’s “trusty henchman”. The students, who also vandalized college property, were rounded up and arrested by the police. Rohit spent 10 days in custody, and doesn’t rue the experience. “I was only defending my faith,” he says. Rohit’s father agrees and defends his son. “He did nothing wrong. Youngsters have to stand up for the Hindu faith,” says Chaudhary. The father’s attitude is not surprising. Chaudhary, 47, was one of the hordes of kar sevaks (volunteers) who took part in the December 1992 demolition of the 16th century Babri mosque in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. “That was one of the most memorable days of my life,” says Chaudhary, who recalls that from Ayodhya he took an autorickshaw to the neighbouring town of Faizabad to call his father from a public phone booth and gave him the news that the mosque had been toppled. BACK TO THE ROOTS Minutes after he hung up the phone, the Chahals’ ancestral house in Daryaganj, in Delhi’s Old City, was attacked by a rock-throwing mob. Relations between Hindus and Muslims in the area deteriorated to a stage where who you did business with or even shared a cup of tea with was being reassessed on communal lines. In 1999, the Chahals moved from Daryaganj to Preet Vihar. For Rohit, after the brief dalliance with modelling, it has been a back-to-the-roots journey. He will vote the BJP in the coming general election and intends to get himself a personality makeover by switching from jeans and shirt to ethnic wear. He has no love interest and will marry a woman chosen by his family. (“If any of my boys get into an affair, then they will be out on the streets,” threatens Rohit’s mother.) He is interested in an army stint, but his long-term goal is to join politics. Abraham having been forgotten, his role model is the vigilante-like character played by actor Naseeruddin Shah in the Hindi movie A Wednesday. Shah plays the role of a man who secures the release of four jailed terrorists by threatening to set off a series of bomb explosions in Mumbai. He kills them when they are freed. Terrorism is the biggest concern facing the country today, says Rohit. “I identify with the character played by Naseeruddin Shah,” he says. “A common man has to think of how he can battle terror himself.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 7:54 pm IT earnings to decline in Q4, say analystsHyderabad: The January-March quarter may well have been the toughest three months ever for the country’s software industry, and the cracks could run deeper than previously estimated. Fourth quarter (Q4) profits for the country’s biggest software firms—Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS), Infosys Technologies Ltd and Wipro Ltd—are expected to decline over the preceding three months, based on a Mint poll of six analysts. And their revenue is seen either flat or slightly lower. Also See Losing The Edge (Graphic) Profits for bellwether Infosys and Wipro, the country’s second and third biggest software firms, respectively, are seen declining 3.6% on average over the December quarter, while earnings for TCS, the country’s biggest information technology (IT) firm, is expected to stay nearly flat at -0.85%. Infosys will announce its results on 15 April. The three months to 31 March have seen lower technology spending by firms, especially in the US and Europe, project cancellations, pressure on prices, volatile currencies and India’s biggest corporate fraud in Satyam Computer Services Ltd , till recently the country’s fourth largest software firm. Also See Hedge Positions (Graphic) Analysts Surendra Goyal and Vishal Agarwal of Citigroup Global Markets Inc., referring to the three months as the “most challenging quarter for Indian IT till date”, write: “4Q (the fourth quarter) will be the first quarter of revenue declines (even in constant currency terms) across the board. Pricing should come under further pressure—a trend likely to continue over the next few quarters.” Brokerage CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets expects TCS to report a 4.3% dip in net profit over the October-December quarter, while Angel Broking Ltd and Sharekhan Ltd see its earnings contract by 2.7% and 1.9%, respectively. And its revenue is expected to increase by an average of 0.7%. As for Infosys, at least six brokerages expect a decline in net profit for the March quarter over the preceding three-month period. While Edelweiss Securities Ltd sees a 7.7% fall in earnings, Sharekhan sees a mere 0.9% slip. Revenue on average is seen declining 1.6%. Citigroup sees Wipro’s Q4 profit rising 10% over the October-December period, while Motilal Oswal Securities Ltd sees it declining by 14% and CLSA by 9.6%. Sales are seen rising 0.5% on average. “There have been occasional dips in the sequential growth of profit for top Indian IT firms in the past. However, none of those instances saw a comparative dip in sales revenue or business volume,” said an analyst with a Mumbai-based equity research firm on condition of anonymity. “The dips seen in the past were almost always on account of extreme currency movements or once-off exceptional events.” Angel Broking said in a recent report that it “expect(s) the top-tier (IT) companies to report a 2-3% sequential decline in volumes along with a 1-3% sequential fall in pricing”. “Our industry checks reveal that on-the-ground scenario remains unchanged. New projects are still hard to come by, while existing ones are being reorganized and moved offshore as far as possible,” BNP Paribas analysts Abhiram Eleswarapu and Avinash Singh say in their Q4 earnings preview titled What Price for No Growth. Adding to the sector’s woes is the adverse movement of the British pound against the US dollar, which hit revenue reported in dollars. The depreciating Indian rupee had some positive impact, but losses from the hedging positions of firms such as Wipro and HCL Technologies Ltd, which has replaced Satyam as India’s fourth biggest IT firm, dented these gains. Between 40% and 65% of the revenue of India’s top four IT firms is billed in dollars. Infosys, which had a forward hedge position of $270 million (Rs1,350 crore today) as at end-December, was best placed to benefit from a depreciating rupee, while HCL, with a forward hedge position of $1.4 billion, would be the worst hit. Analysts on average see HCL’s quarterly profit falling 33% from the preceding three months, but revenue rising 15% on the back of some recent global deals. Meanwhile, the Bombay Stock Exchange’s IT index has gone up nearly 13% since January, beating the bellwether Sensex’s 12% rise. Infosys’ share price has risen nearly 28% and TCS’ 26%. The Wipro stock has gained some 17% and HCL about 6%. “The gains have been mostly in keeping with the general rally in Indian equities (in the past few days), rather than any sector-specific or company- specific reasons,” said Kunal Sangoi of Edelweiss. However, “commentary at the time of Q4 FY09 results of companies will continue to be laced with caution and thus should serve to roll back some of the impressive stock price gains”. Graphics by Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 7:51 pm Oil tracks Wall Street higher, breaks $52NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil prices rose nearly 5.8 percent on Thursday, fueled by a rally on Wall Street and data showing that the number of workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 7:49 pm Bids invited for biggest auction of oil, gas blocksNew Delhi: The global economic downturn notwithstanding, the Union government has gone ahead and announced India’s biggest auction ever of 70 oil and gas blocks, setting a 10 August deadline for explorers to submit bids. It also invited bids from firms for 10 blocks of coal bed methane (CBM), a form of natural gas extracted from coalbeds and used as a fuel in several industries such as power generation, fertilizers and ceramics.  Unfazed: On the timing of the bids, petroleum secretary R.S. Pandey says the question was whether to go ahead or sit tight. Madhu Kapparath / Mint The government has so far awarded 203 exploration blocks, besides 26 blocks of CBM. It attracted bids for 45 of the 57 areas offered in the previous auction last year, when the price of crude oil climbed to a record. “There might not be as much enthusiasm this time as in previous rounds,” Tony Regan, an independent analyst based in Singapore, said before the auction announcement. “The biggest concern for companies is that India doesn’t allow export of oil or gas and, of course, pricing.” Worldwide spending on oil and gas exploration may drop 12% in 2009 to $400 billion, Barclays Capital Research said, with crude prices having dropped to around a third of the record they reached in July last year. “The question was whether to go ahead or sit tight,” said R.S. Pandey, secretary in the petroleum and natural gas ministry, explaining the timing of the auction when global economies are struggling with recession. “We know the problems...” he added. “Exploration and production is a time-taking activity. It takes several years before the investment phase takes off. By the time the bids are finalized the world will enter a better phase.” The government did not provide initial estimated investment for the blocks. It may launch another sale in September by offering an additional 40 blocks if the initial response is positive. “If there is no adequate interest, blocks will not be allocated... We can also have a next phase depending upon the response,” Pandey said. Director general of hydrocarbons V.K. Sibal said the government would organize roadshows overseas to drum up interest among international oil companies. The overseas promotional road shows will be held in Washington and Houston in the US, Perth and Brisbane in Australia, London in the UK and Calgary in Canada. Bloomberg contributed to this story. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 7:45 pm Asia may emerge from the crisis faster, says ADBTokyo: Asian economies may be the first to emerge from the global crisis because the region’s banks hold fewer toxic assets than lenders elsewhere, said Zhao Xiaoyu, vice-president of the Asian Development Bank (ADB). “Asia will eventually emerge out of this crisis earlier than others” also because cooperation in the region has improved since the 1997 Asian financial crisis, Zhao said in Tokyo on Wednesday. “I’m pretty confident of that.” Financial institutions worldwide have incurred $1.3 trillion (about Rs65 trillion) in losses and writedowns in the wake of the worst financial meltdown since the Great Depression. The Group of Twenty nations met in London in April promising to take “all necessary actions” to restore global credit. Losses and writedowns on bad debts held by banks and insurers could swell to $4 trillion, the International Monetary Fund will say in new forecasts, the London-based Times newspaper reported on 6 April, without saying where it got the information. Most of those are from US institutions, according to the report. Zhao said European and American financial institutions are selling valuable Asian assets to get hold of cash and improve their balance sheets. “In the long run, that’s the wrong strategy,” Zhao said. “But in the short run, that’s something they must do.” ADB predicts that economies in Asia excluding Japan will grow 3.4% in 2009 and 6% in 2010. Zhao said improving trade finance is one of the keys to an early recovery in the region. The financial crisis has prompted banks around the world to reduce lending to emerging markets and cut credit lines to importers and exporters. “The idea is to jumpstart the economy to provide comfort to the private sector,” Zhao said. “This is wartime. It’s not peace. During times of war there should be special arrangements and vehicles for tackling the problems.” ADB this month said that it expanded its trade finance facilitation programme to $1 billion from $150 million. Japan’s Prime Minister Taro Aso pledged $22 billion in trade assistance in London this month. feedback@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 7:45 pm Race hots up for Trai top job, 13 in frayAccording to sources, four new candidates will appear for interviews here on 9 April taking the total number of candidates in the fray to roughly 13.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:59 pm Samsung files appeal with board against dual-SIM patentMumbai: In a new twist to the impasse over dual-SIM mobile phones, the Indian arm of South Korean electronics firm Samsung on Thursday filed a petition with the Intellectual Property Appellate Board, or IPAB, asking it to revoke an existing patent for such phones issued to an Indian inventor. Indian phone maker Spice Mobiles Ltd last month filed a similar appeal. These appeals question the seizures of such cellphones by customs officials Members of the Indian Cellular Association, or ICA, also plan to file petitions challenging the validity of the patent, a spokesperson for the organization said. At least 50 phone makers and importers, including Spice are members of ICA. They have been at loggerheads with the Madurai-based patent holder Somasundaram Ramkumar after he registered his patent with Indian customs authorities earlier this year, enabling them to seize import consignments of dual-SIM phones. IPAB is the country’s patent disputes redressal forum. SIM stands for subscriber identification module, the technology that activates and identifies a unique wireless phone connection. Dual-SIM phones can hold more than one SIM card, and thus have two numbers working on it. Ramkumar, an electronics engineer, was granted the patent by the Chennai patent office in 2008. He registered the patent with Indian customs under the Intellectual Property Rights (imported goods) Enforcement Rules earlier this year. “The ground for the appeal is that the technology claimed by Ramkumar for the patent lacks novelty, (and) thus (is) not patentable,” said a person familiar with the case who didn’t want to be identified. Samsung’s appeal and other appeals in the pipeline are a reaction to recent seizures by customs officials in India of several consignments of imported mobile phones. Samsung India Electronics Pvt. Ltd, currently the largest importer of such phones, last month moved a petition in the Delhi high court challenging these seizures. A patent lawyer for a mobile phone importer said, “The dual SIM technology used in mobile phones has been in the public domain internationally. Since it has been referred in the prior art (documents previously available in the public domain), it should not have been granted a patent in India.” For his part, Ramkumar argues that the idea of one phone that can carry two SIM cards of different telcos is a novel one when compared with prior art references. “All imported mobile phones related to dual SIM sockets for accepting dual SIM cards are infringing my patented technology with circuit diagram as claimed in my Indian patent number 214388,” Ramkumar said in a telephone interview. “I have a valid patent and also have enough evidence to prove that my patent has been infringed by imported dual SIM socket mobile phones. I can surely win cases against mobile phone manufacturing companies and mobile phone importers,” he added. Mint had reported in March that Samsung’s petition had questioned the linking of patent and customs laws. Customs officials at various airports had earlier confirmed to Mint that imports of dual SIM card mobile phones have been under watch since Ramkumar registered his exclusivity right with them. Patent experts, however, say that since the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) rule doesn’t cover patents, the customs department cannot decide such actions on its own. The Madras high court had last month ordered the customs department to detain imports that infringe Ramkumar’s patent following his petition. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:59 pm Industrial growth in negative zoneGovernment's stimulus measures are yet to show any positive impact. Industrial output declined by 1.2% in February 2009 compared to a growth of 9.5% a year ago.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:56 pm Times Now tops viewershipAccording to TAM, the share of audience of Times Now is 38% compared with the share of 20% for NDTV and 17% of CNN-IBN.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:56 pm Govt starts auction of oil, gas blocksThe government does not see the present global economic slowdown affecting response to its eighth round of exploration acreage auction.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:54 pm 'Telcos should pay fees for phone Nos'In a bid to encourage efficient use of numbering resources, DoT has been asked to charge a special levy for numbers allocated to telecom operators.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:53 pm Sony likely to post movies on YouTubeLos Angeles/ San Francisco: Sony Corp.’s entertainment division said it is in talks to post movies on Google Inc.’s YouTube video-sharing website. “We are having conversations with YouTube,” Paula Askanas, a spokeswoman for Sony Pictures Television Inc. in Los Angeles, said on Wednesday. She declined to provide details. No major US movie studio posts full-length films on YouTube. Sony Pictures offers 60 older films, including Stripes and Groundhog Day, as well as vintage television shows, at its Crackle.com website. Hulu.com, whose owners include NBC Universal Inc. and News Corp., shows advertising-supported full-length movies. Hollywood studios, under attack from film piracy, are trying out older movies on the Internet as they search for ways to accommodate viewers’ changing demands without cutting into revenue from DVDs and pay-television. By putting content on YouTube, studios gain access to a larger audience. “YouTube can help promote their videos,” Jeremiah Owyang, an analyst at Massachusetts-based Forrester Research Inc., said. YouTube wants “more high-quality content”, Owyang said. “They really want to up their game.” Chris Dale, a spokesman at California-based YouTube, declined to comment on Wednesday on talks with Sony or any other studios for feature films. feedback@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:51 pm Asian markets rise on Japan’s $154 bn stimulus proposalHong Kong: Asian stocks pushed back towards a six-month high on Thursday as technology shares resumed their rally, while Japan’s surprisingly big stimulus spending and signs of stabilising economic activity drove up government bond yields. Japan’s Nikkei share average jumped 3.7% after the government announced a bigger-than-expected stimulus package of $154 billion (around Rs7.7 trillion), or about 3% of gross domestic product (GDP). The news hurt Japanese government bonds on worries about big supply to pay for the spending. The Japanese spending package will target eco-friendly electronics, giving a boost to shares of companies such as Sony Corp. and Panasonic Corp. The package will add to spending of 12 trillion yen already planned under previously announced stimulus measures, taking Japan’s total stimulus spending to combat the global financial crisis to around 5.5% of GDP. But the rally in shares, worries about bond supply and signs that some central banks may have finished cutting interest rates kept pushing up bond yields and swap rates across the region—complicating the efforts of central banks to keep credit cheap. The Japanese spending package will target eco-friendly electronics Some economic data around the region also provided hope for a recovery. Japanese core machinery orders posted a surprising increase of 1.4% in February from the previous month, while business surveys in China suggested the economy is steadying. China remains the economic engine helping offset the collapse in exports across Asia thanks to its nearly $600 billion stimulus spending, which has spurred orders for technology goods across Asia. “Recent data from China has been positive relative to expectations,” said Patrick Bennett, Asia foreign exchange and rates strategist at Societe Generale SA in Hong Kong. “The positive surprises in recent Australian, Korean, Taiwanese and Brazilian trade data have been underpinned by improving shipments to China.” Shares in tech-heavy Taiwan—one of the best performing stock markets in the world this year—helped lead the rise in Asia as companies such as contract chip maker United Microelectronics Corp. jumped on signs of improving demand. Regional indexes painted a positive picture with Taiwan soaring 4.1%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 3%. Singapore climbed 2.5%, while China rose 1.4% and India gained 0.6%. The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan rose about 3%, snapping a two-day fall and back near a six-month peak. Showing greater investor confidence, volumes rose on the hefty gains. The regional benchmark has now rebounded more than 30% from lows hit in early March. Investors in many financial centres are now taking a break for Easter holidays. Markets in Australia, Hong Kong, India and Singapore are closed on Friday. Bond markets around the world have suffered from the massive supply looming ahead, even as central banks such as the Federal Reserve have taken the extraordinary step of buying government bonds outright to keep long-term yields low. Japanese government bonds (JGB) were spooked as the government said it would issue 10-11 trillion yen to pay for the new stimulus spending, about twice what analysts had expected. The 10-year JGB yield edged up 2 basis points to 1.475% and hit a five-month high of 1.480%, extending a rise despite the Bank of Japan having increased its monthly purchases of debt. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:51 pm Investors richer by $150bn in a monthInvestors' wealth, as measured by market capitalisation of listed companies, in the country has increased by nearly $150 billion to nearly $680 billion, CMIE data for over 2,500 companies shows.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:48 pm An offer customers can’t refuse? Sistema hopes strategy connectsNew Delhi: Telecom firm Sistema Shyam Teleservices Ltd created something of a flutter in Chennai some weeks ago when it launched a scheme that offered one million minutes calling time with a Rs499 prepaid lifetime card. The surprise element waned when customers realized that the minutes could be used only on calls on the Sistema (branded MTS) network and calls to other networks would be charged.  Opportunity calls: Rozanov says the million minutes calling plan is what differentiates his firm from others. Madhu Kapparath / Mint On Sistema’s strategy in new markets such as Tamil Nadu and Kerala: It’s tough to invent something totally new. It’s more about execution. Basically, everyone knows what to do, and the question is whether you have a team in place. It becomes about how well you are able to execute what you know and how to do. And there is definitely a lot of experience transfer from our partners in Moscow (MTS), specifically for marketing and branding. Otherwise, distribution is the key, creating awareness in terms of the brand and making sure that the product is available. On what differentiates Sistema: It is the offer (of one million minutes calling plan). This is a very good offer and one of the reasons that we expect to go above expectations. Being a greenfield player, there is a necessity to give an offer like this. On how sticky the offer will be with customers: Our overall market research shows that a lot of subscribers never change their operators...around 50% customers never change their operator in their life in almost all geographic and cultural regions of India. So, if you are able to attract the subscriber, then there is a very good chance that if the subscriber stays for a few years, he will stay for a longer time. Arpus (average revenue per user) in Rajasthan, where we have more or less the same offer, are growing every month, which is extremely important. When a customer takes our connection, he or she is mostly interested in this on-net offer. And as they use the connection more and more, they start to make off-net calls and they start to receive more incoming calls. Which generates additional revenue. Also, additions are growing by around 10% or 15% per month. From 60,000 additions a month, we are now adding around 80,000 a month. On Arpu numbers: It is well below the industry average, but what you should look into is the incremental industry average. Industry average is for subscribers that have been there since the beginning of the industry—more than seven years. (Incremental Arpu) is around Rs150. Our Arpus are not above this but around this. Not very different. On funding, break-even: That depends on the speed of launch. If we launch everything within one year, then we can be cash-positive in the next three-and-half years. At this stage, it is tough to forecast as we expect up to five players to appear soon. That might significantly deteriorate the margins and business fundamentals for the whole industry. If a bloodbath starts, then it can get even further delayed. At this stage, we are being financed as per plan—basically from equity and loans. We have loans from Russian and Indian banks...(later) we may need to increase our debt. On listing: We will see how the international capital markets behave. Sooner or later, we will use this as a source of funding as well. At this stage, I cannot say anything with certainty. We will definitely do a listing, but definitely not this year and not in the first half of next year. At this stage, we see that the debt market in India is open. So, in terms of financing, I would not say that listing is critical for our success of our business. On roll-out plan: We are already present in Chennai. We will be present in Kolkata in the second quarter (April-June). In Delhi and Mumbai, we will be present by the end of the year. Besides these, we will be present in some other (telecom) circles also. To be on the safe side, we should be in minimum six or eight more circles by the end of this calendar year. The rest of the circles within the first two or three quarters of the (next) calendar year. On network technology: We do not believe there is that much of a difference between GSM (global system for mobile communications) and CDMA (code division multiple access). Customers using CDMA technology are approximately one quarter of all. Given the size of the Indian market, this is not small at all. We have been looking into whether we should wait until we are fully ready with CDMA data offerings or we should start building our customer base and deliver our data offers a bit later. We decided to go in for the second option. We will be coming out with the data offering closer to the end of May or June. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:48 pm Project delays, price cuts set back Mastek; revenue falls by 5.6% But the major worry is the 15% drop in the company orders to Rs387 crore. According to the company, the drop in revenue as well as the order book is due to delays in the initiation of certain projects. These projects, originally estimated to start in January, are now expected to commence only in the July-September quarter. As a result, even the April-June quarter is expected to be weak. Also See Low Expectations (Graphic) Analysts point out smaller firms, such as Mastek, face greater risks in a slowdown Interestingly, the company’s shares rose by over 10% soon after the company declared results. Reported numbers looked healthy thanks to a Rs2 crore gain on the forex front, thanks to translation gains on receivables. But even after excluding that, the profit numbers weren’t as bad as the street had anticipated. After all, at about 2.5 times trailing earnings, street expectations were running rather low. Graphics by Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint Write to us at marktomarket@livemint.com Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:47 pm High-end versions drive early Nano bookingsBookings of Tata Motors Nano began today with nearly 80 per cent of the buyers opting for the more expensive variants instead of the base-level car which is priced at Rs 1.23 lakh (ex showroom, Delhi). The trend is based on responses from dealers and banks that took bookings in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Chandigarh and Kolkata today. The Nano CX cost Rs 1.48 lakh and the top-end LX Rs 1.72 lakh.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:43 pm Unitech plans $250mn QIP issue to part-pay debtUnitech Ltd, the countrys second-biggest real estate developer, plans to raise as much as $250 million (Rs 1,250 crore) through private placement of shares to qualified institutions, company officials said, to repay part of its debt of over Rs 8,000 crore.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:42 pm Fed's Hoenig: bank plan key to economic recoveryTULSA, Oklahoma (Reuters) - The U.S. economy is "under significant stress" and will not recover until the financial system is stabilized and credit flows improve, Thomas Hoenig, President of the Kansas City Federal Reserve, said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:40 pm RIL set to enter fuel retailing in US, EuropeAnticipates better margins from direct sales.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:40 pm India for regional approach to meltdown at ASEAN meetAhead of the ASEAN and an East Asia summit, India Thursday underlined the need for developing regional synergies to deal with the global financial crisis of 'unprecedented dimensions'.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:30 pm Bookings for Nano startMumbai: Bookings for Tata Motors’ much-waited small car ‘Nano´ started across the country today and will continue till April 25. “Bookings (for the Nano) began today morning and we hope the response will be encouraging,” a Tata Motors spokesperson told PTI here. The sale of application forms for the Nano started on April 1 and the resonse has been “very encouraging”, the company said in a statement. Click here to watch video The Tata Nano website has recorded over five crore hits, including over two crore hits in the fortnight since the Nano’s launch on March 23, the statement said. The application forms were sold through over 30,000 locations in about 1,000 cities pan-India through Tata Motors’ passenger-car dealerships, State Bank of India branches as also through those of its subsidiaries and associates and other preferred financiers. The forms were also sold through Tata group companies such as Westside, Croma, World of Titan and Tata Indicom.Within 60 days of closure of bookings on April 25, Tata Motors will process and announce the allotment of 1,00,000 cars in the first phase of deliveries, through a computerised random selection procedure. Video by Rahul Sharma Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:11 pm Vedanta shares up 31% on higher production in Q4London: India-focused mining group Vedanta Resources Plc. posted higher fourth quarter output on Thursday of its two most profitable products, zinc and iron ore, but shut down some aluminium and copper operations to cut costs. Analysts were mostly upbeat, saying the output figures were largely in line with expectations, and the shares in the London-listed group rose. Vedanta shares, which have gained 31% so far this year, climbed 10.8% to 856.5 pence by 8.10pm IST, the biggest gainer among the FTSE 100.  Expansion benefits: Despite the shutdowns, Vedanta said fourth quarter aluminium production increased 31.4% to a record 134,000 tonnes. Adeel Halim / Bloomberg “This is very impressive that Vedanta is able to maintain volume ramp up targets in most divisions, while most peers are suffering from volume fallout,” said analyst Tim Huff at Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc. Vedanta reports annual results on 7 May. Weak metals prices have forced many mining groups to close down unprofitable operations and Vedanta said it had taken action recently. “As part of our focus on improving profitability and cash flow, we completely ramped down the Malco (Madras Aluminium Co.) smelter in mid December 2008 and shut down a part of the Balco (Bharat Aluminium Co. Ltd) Plant I smelter in Q4 2009 due to higher operational costs,” a statement said. “Consequently, we are selling surplus power to maximise returns.” Weak metals prices have forced many mining groups to close down unprofitable operations Vedanta said expansions such as Jharsuguda were on schedule and budget. The first phase of Jharsuguda, which has lower operational costs, is due to hit its 250,000 tonnes annual run rate during the current quarter, the first in the 2010 fiscal year. The second phase, which will add another 250,000 tonnes of annual capacity, is due to be fully operational by the end of the current fiscal year, Vedanta said. Refined zinc output for the three months to end March rose 11.9% to a record 151,000 tonnes, while iron ore production gained 4.1% to 4.9 million tonnes. Zinc and iron ore are Vedanta’s most important minerals, accounting for 39% and 32% of core profit for the first nine months of the fiscal year. Copper cathode output in India fell 2.2% to 88,000 tonnes while copper cathode production in Zambia rose 2.9% to 35,000 tonnes. Vedanta announced on 19 February that its Zambian unit Konkola Copper Mines had shut down its Nkana copper smelter to cut costs. On Thursday, Vedanta said a furnace leak at its new Nchanga smelter in Zambia had caused a disruption earlier this month. “Based on our initial assessment, production is expected to be resumed in a three-four week time frame,” it said. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 6:05 pm Wells Fargo shocks market with record Q1 profitNEW YORK (Reuters) - Wells Fargo & Co said it expects to post a record $3 billion first-quarter profit, causing its shares to soar and providing a welcome jolt to the broader stock market and a still-troubled banking sector.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 4:22 pm Himachal signs power project agreement with BrakelEnding months of uncertainty, the Himachal Pradesh government Thursday signed a pre-implementation agreement with Holland's Brakel Corp NV to set up the 960-MW Thopan-Powari-Jangi hydropower project.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Apr 2009 | 4:01 pm Regulator's report on valuation of insurance firms next monthThe country's insurance regulator will introduce fresh guidelines for valuation of insurance companies, a top official said here Thursday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Apr 2009 | 4:01 pm Tackling the economic crisisThe government can play a significant role to ameliorate the situation in India. Or can it? It is not a surprise that the overwhelming expectation from the government is cheaper capital (see graph). Will this expectation be met? Will the policymakers be able to avoid the distraction of the elections to focus on the economic agenda? Answers to these questions are unlikely to be affirmative.  Structured approach: Team members of Stern Stewart India Pvt. Ltd—(from left) Prakhar Rastogi,Vikram Devare, Rahul Somani, Ashish Srivastava, Vishal Mehta, Ashwini Bobhate and Santosh Rangnekar with Sanjay Kulkarni (centre)—at their Mumbai office. Ashesh Shah / Mint We are possibly the only country living in the luxury of not having a full time finance minister in such unprecedented times. Today, there are enough spin doctors working hard to paint a rosy picture to suit political and not necessarily the economic objectives. The government should ideally utilize this opportunity to drive the much-needed change and discipline to cut out inefficiencies ingrained in our system. Is there a will, and is there a clear agenda? Similarly, while around 60% of respondents expect a fiscal stimulus, we find that our government has done little. The stimulus provided so far is insignificant in comparison with what we observe in some other economies. On the other hand, we find that the government’s profligacy has increased and the fiscal deficit which was 2.7% of the gross domestic product (GDP) according to the interim budget, has risen to around 6% of GDP. Can India afford this? Also See Priority List (Graphic) Given the uncertainty of election outcomes and political situation thereafter, it is quite likely that India may lose out on one full quarter before the new government is in any shape to drive policy changes—it may well be too late and may reflect in India not meeting its long-term expectations. The ‘so what’ of the exercise We must appreciate that the recent downturn has and will affect different businesses to a different extent and in a unique manner. The force and speed of the global downturn have sent companies reeling, and many senior managers have not yet figured out exactly how to respond. Even fewer have identified specific ways to address the problem. Similarly, different businesses are likely to get out of this tunnel at different points in time with refined or depleted set of capabilities. The landscapes and rules of the game in different industries are likely to change, albeit to different extents. So what are businesses expected to do? We propose a three-pronged approach: One, diagnose the situation—identify the exact problem or opportunity, and where and how large is the problem or opportunity. Ideally, evaluate the full range of downturn scenarios—including the most damaging set of circumstances. But do not ignore the best case scenario. In essence, get an accurate read on the environment and the businesses’ position in it. This will not only provide clarity and confidence, but will also prevent inappropriate decisions from being made. Better outcomes are possible if this is applied at a micro level within the organization—say across business units, across products, across key customers, or geographies as may be required to provide a clearer assessment of the situation. For example, the IT sector may need to evaluate the situation across its key customers, where ongoing business from the customer and in some instances survival of the customer itself could be a question. Two, armed with reasonable clarity and confidence, evaluate the potential actions—understand where, when and how to address the problem or tap the opportunity. Simply prioritize the potential actions and focus on limited ones that have maximum potential to make an impact and can consume management “bandwidth” appropriately—simply put, “reap the low hanging fruits”. Include actions to protect financial fundamentals—protect cash, manage credit risk. At the same time, evaluate the near-term and long-term trade-offs and hunt for opportunistic bargains in acquisition of businesses, assets and resources. Winners are already making moves to grab the rare opportunities—IBM targeting Sun Microsystems Inc. in the IT sector or Nomura Holdings Inc. acquiring Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.’s Asian operations in the much-suffering financial sector are good examples. Three, execute with alacrity and confidence. Superior execution is arguably most critical and early outcomes can help gain the confidence of all stakeholders. Put together a crack team to monitor early warning signals and push initiatives as the scenarios unfold. Evaluate the ease of implementation, financial impact and timing to prioritize actions that provide the balance between near-term and long-term implications. Remember, businesses that adopt a structured and thought-through approach are likely to get out of the tunnel faster and in better shape than others. Graphics by Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint Sanjay Kulkarni is head of management consultant Stern Stewart’s Indian operations. Your comments are welcome at feedback@livemint.com Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 3:59 pm Inorganic expansion to end in June: Vishal Info TechExplaining the rationale for listing in Luxembourg, Dilip Parekh, Managing Director of Vishal Information Technologies, said if the company is EU based, it can take part in a government tender thus, increasing its sales there. He said the process of inorganic expansion will end in June.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 3:36 pm See about 1315% growth in two years: NasscomPramod Bhasin, Chairman, Nasscom, said the growth rate for IT industry would be about 16% for 200809. \"For the next two years, it might be around 1315%. We will come out with our annual numbers for 200910, for which we will do our estimates in May. It will be lower that what I believe but it will still be a growth number,\" he added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 3:26 pm NDA will bring back money stashed abroad: AdvaniThe Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), if voted to power, would make all efforts to bring back the money Indians have stashed in tax havens abroad, BJP prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani said Thursday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Apr 2009 | 2:30 pm Omnitech signs Rs 25 crore contractsOmnitech InfoSolutions Ltd, Indias leading business availability and business continuity provider has signed a multiyear contract with companies from Europe and US to offer Remote Infrastructure management services and Virtual CIO offerings respectively. The consolidated and accumulative deal size would be at Rs. 25 crore.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 2:04 pm Satyam annual revenue seen at $1.5-$1.7 bln - sourcesMUMBAI (Reuters) - Fraud-hit Satyam Computer Services Ltd's annual revenues appear to be about $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion, three sources who have analysed data provided by the outsourcing firm to bidders said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 2:04 pm Lupin in alliance with NatcoLupin Ltd. and Natco announced an alliance to jointly commercialize generic equivalents of Shire plc\'s FOSRENOL® (lanthanum carbonate) tablets.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 1:57 pm Capex will be back in one year: Venu SrinivasanVenu Srinivasan, Chairman, Confederation of Indian Industry, said, \"Exporters are seeing a huge contraction both in demand and inventories that went on till February. That is now bottoming out and is slowly becoming zero growth or slightly positive. But to see capex (capital expenditure) come back, it will be one year down the line.\"Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Apr 2009 | 1:30 pm India's industrial output falls 1.2 percent in FebruaryIndia's industrial output fell 1.2 percent in February against a growth of 9.5 percent in the like month of last fiscal, while the provisional drop reported for January has been revised now to a marginal growth of 0.39 percent.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 Apr 2009 | 1:03 pm Brisk start as Tata Motors opens Nano bookingsMUMBAI (Reuters) - Bookings for Tata Motors' Nano got off to a brisk start in Mumbai on Thursday, with a steady stream of prospective customers queuing up to be one of the first to own what is billed as the world's cheapest car.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Apr 2009 | 11:05 am McCartney website dances to hacking tuneLondon: Former Beatles star Paul McCartney has become the latest celebrity victim to cyber criminals as the star’s website has been hacked. McCartney’s online page was infected by the LuckySploit Toolkit, a programme which allows digital thieves to access the personal details of anyone using the site by tracking their keystrokes. Experts at SafeScan, the company which first spotted the problem with McCartney’s website, claimed the hack began minutes after the musician appeared on stage at a benefit concert in New York with his former band-mate, Ringo Starr, the Independent reported. “They obviously chose that time because they knew the site would be busy. We’ve seen this before with Paris Hilton and it can cause all sorts of problems. One of our clients was actually using (McCartney’s) site and reported it. Hackers like these do around one site a week and obviously the more high-profile it is, the better,” a spokesman for the firm said. A representative for McCartney confirmed that all the problems with the website have now been resolved and fans are safe to get back online. “Once we discovered what was going on, we sorted it out immediately.” Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 10:59 am ING to sell off more operationsAmsterdam: ING NV, the Dutch bank and insurer, said Thursday it plans to sell operations it says could raise up to €8 billion ($10.6 billion). The move, unveiled alongside a reshuffling of business units to simplify the company structure, is an increase from a previous target announced in January to raise €3 billion. So far, ING has sold its Canadian operations for €1.4 billion. “Next to a number of leading positions in key markets, a group of smaller businesses with no clear outlook for market leadership consumes a disproportionate amount of capital,” the company said in a statement. Shares rose 9.9% to €5.775. They have had a wild ride, falling from above €25 a year ago and trading as low as €2.30 in March. The company’s statement Thursday didn’t specify which business it would definitely sell or set any time frame for achieving the target. It also didn’t say whether there was any interest from buyers. ING said it now plans to focus mostly on European banking, with extra focus on Belgium and the Netherlands. However, it intends to continue offering both banking and insurance in Europe, Asia and the United States. It said it doesn’t plan to sell its online banking service, ING Direct, and that its life insurance businesses in China and Japan were “under review.” Incoming Chief Executive Jan Hommen was to address investors at a meeting later Thursday. His predecessor, Michel Tilmant, resigned in January after saying ING expected to post a large loss in the fourth quarter, which turned out to be a loss of €3.1 billion. ING has received significant aid from the Dutch government since the financial crisis began. Last year it received a €10 billion investment lifeline to shore up its equity base. And in January the state assumed most of the risk for €27.7 billion in troubled U.S. mortgage-backed securities ING owns. ING said Thursday it has cut 3,500 jobs so far since announcing plans to cut 7,000 in January, around 5% of its work force. As of Thursday, ING said it employs 25,000. Hommen, a former chief financial officer of both Philips Electronics and Alcoa, said that ING’s tier 1 capital ratio _ the most widely used measure of a bank’s solvency _ was 9.3% at year end. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:57 am Vedanta posts higher Q4 output, shares riseLondon: Indian-focused mining group Vedanta posted higher fourth-quarter output on Thursday of its two most profitable products, zinc and iron ore, but shut down some aluminium and copper operations to cut costs. Analysts were mostly upbeat, saying the output figures were largely in line with expectations, and the shares in the London-listed group rose. Vedanta shares, which have gained 31% so far this year, climbed 4.8% to 810.0 pence by 0833 GMT, the biggest gainer among the FTSE 100. They outperformed a 2.4% increase in the UK mining index, which was lifted by copper hitting a five-month peak. “This is very impressive that Vedanta is able to maintain volume ramp up targets in most divisions, while most peers are suffering from volume fallout,” said analyst Tim Huff at Royal Bank of Scotland. “We would find ourselves upgrading EPS for FY09 by 7% as a result of these data, but this has to be considered provisional in the absence of any cost data,” Cazenove said in a note. Vedanta reports annual results on 7 May. Weak metals prices have forced many mining groups to close down unprofitable operations and Vedanta said it had taken action recently. “As part of our focus on improving profitability and cash flow, we completely ramped down the MALCO smelter in mid December 2008 and shut down a part of the BALCO Plant I smelter in Q4 2009 due to higher operational costs,” a statement said. “Consequently, we are selling surplus power to maximise returns.” Record aluminium output Despite the shutdowns, London-listed Vedanta said fourth quarter aluminium production increased 31.4% to a record 134,000 tonnes, mainly due to the ramp-up of its new Jharsuguda smelter in India. Vedanta said expansions such as Jharsuguda were on schedule and budget. The first phase of Jharsuguda, which has lower operational costs, is due to hit its 250,000 tonne annual run rate during the current quarter, the first in the 2010 fiscal year. The second phase, which will add another 250,000 tonnes of annual capacity, is due to be fully operational by the end of the current fiscal year, Vedanta said. Refined zinc output for the three months to end March rose 11.9% to a record 151,000 tonnes, while iron ore production gained 4.1% to 4.9 million tonnes. Zinc and iron ore are Vedanta’s most important minerals, accounting for 39% and 32% of core profit for the first nine months of the fiscal year. Copper cathode output in India fell 2.2% to 88,000 tonnes while copper cathode production in Zambia rose 2.9% to 35,000 tonnes. Vedanta announced on 19 February that its Zambian unit Konkola Copper Mines had shut down its Nkana copper smelter to cut costs. On Thursday, Vedanta said a furnace leak at its new Nchanga smelter in Zambia had caused a disruption earlier this month. “Based on our initial assessment, production is expected to be resumed in a three-four week timeframe,” it said. The global downturn has hammered metals prices, sending copper down 50% and aluminium 55% from their peaks last year. On 28 January, Vedanta Resources posted a 98.5% fall in third-quarter core profit due to weak metals prices, inventory writedowns and currency losses. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 9 Apr 2009 | 9:23 am
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