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DLF\'s Bangalore project yet to receive civic clearanceDLF is now under the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palikes (BBPM) scanner. The city corporation has issued a public notice saying that DLF has not obtained its approval for the Westend Heights project in Bangalore but has gone ahead and started bookings.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 4:45 pm SAIL April sales at 8.5 lakh tonnesSteel companies has announced its April sales numbers. Steel Authority of India (SAIL) April sales were at 8.5 lakh tonnes versus 6.6 lakh tonnes on YoY basis. Tata Steel April sales were up 31% at 4.52 lakh tonne on YoY basis.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 3:36 pm Capex to be funded through FCCB, NCD funds: Tulip TelecomHardeep Singh Bedi, CMD, Tulip Telecom, said the company has raised Rs 200 crore via nonconvertible debentures. Capex, he said, will be funded through FCCB and NCD funds. According to him, networks in Delhi and Mumbai are near completion. \"The addressable market will increase substantially post expansion.\"Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 3:20 pm U.S. banks rally ahead of stress test resultsNEW YORK (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc and Bank of America Corp shares rallied in premarket trading ahead of the release of "stress test" results that will force them and other top banks to raise tens of billions of dollars in capital.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 1:08 pm US banks rally ahead of stress test results - Reuters
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 1:06 pm Wockhardt to hive off animal health care business - domain-B
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 1:00 pm Volvo auction moves ahead; decision possible soonNEW YORK (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co's sale of Volvo is moving ahead as it runs due diligence on the remaining bidders, and a buyer could be announced by the end of this month or next, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 12:44 pm Tata Steel sees India demand rising 4.5-6 pct - execMUMBAI (Reuters) - Tata Steel Ltd expects Indian steel demand to rise between 4.5 to 6 percent in the financial year to March 2010, and prices are likely to rise in the second half, a senior official said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 12:43 pm Tata Steel sees India demand rising 4.5-6 pct-exec - Reuters
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:41 pm GM concerned about sale losses in bankruptcy - CFODETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Corp is very concerned about potential lost sales if the automaker files for bankruptcy and wants a very quick process if it goes that route, Chief Financial Officer Ray Young said on ThursdaySource: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 12:41 pm BSE Sensex rises 1.4 pct; Reliance, HDFC gainMUMBAI (Reuters) – The BSE Sensex rose 1.4 percent on Thursday, joining a rally across Asian and European markets on receding concerns about the health of the financial sector and the global economy.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 12:39 pm NTPC opposes sale of RIL’s KG-D6 gas to Dabhol power plantNew Delhi: After vehemently seeking natural gas from Reliance Industries, state-run NTPC is now opposed to the fuel being sold to its joint venture Dabhol power plant. NTPC, which vehemently opposed RIL’s plea for not selling its Bay of Bengal field gas to the state-run firm due to the ongoing court case, is now pointing at the same dispute in opposing sale of KG-D6 gas to Ratnagiri Gas and Power Pvt Ltd (RGPPL). RGPPL board is split on sourcing gas from RIL, a company official said. “NTPC opposes the move while other promoter GAIL is in favour of it.” The government has allocated 2.7 million cubic meters per day of gas from RIL’s KG-D6 fields to RGPPL for the period till September 2009 and 8.5 mmcmd thereafter, to help the nation’s largest gas-fired power plant reduce its reliance on imported fuel. RGPPL was ready to sign the Gas Sales and Purchase Agreement contract to buy gas at $4.20 per million British thermal unit, 25% cheaper than the cost of imported fuel but NTPC objected to it and wanted the board to decide. “The Board meets on 8 May to consider the GSPA,” he said. NTPC too has been allocated 2.67 mmcmd gas from KG-D6 for its plants but it is not yet signing the GSPA and has sought legal opinion. It had fought RIL’s opposition saying its legal battle with Mukesh Ambani company was for future projects and its current plants were entitled to get gas from the nation’s largest gas field. Excepting NTPC and RGPPL, RIL has signed gas sale contracts with all of the buyers of 18 mmcmd gas from KG-D6 that the government has earmarked for power sector. “NTPC had in 2007 blocked RIL proposal to meet the entire gas requirement of Dabhol citing the court case,” the official said. RGPPL currently has a contract with Petronet LNG Ltd to buy 5.4 million cubic meters per day of imported LNG till September at $5.52 per mmBtu. The delivered price comes to $6.32 per mmBtu while that of KG-D6 gas would be $5.4. The Mumbai-based firm had in February opposed sale of gas to NTPC as the government-owned firm had cited a case on Bombay High Court for not only refusing to participate in the process of discovering the price of KG-D6 gas but to block moves to sell the fuel to the Dabhol power plant. The row between the two firms dates back of June 2004 when RIL had won a NTPC tender to supply gas to its Kawas and Gandhar units in Gujarat but the two firms did not sign the GSPA due to disputes over issues such as liability in the case of default. NTPC filed a case against Reliance Industries at the Bombay High Court in December 2005, a good one and half years after the private firm refused to sign the GSPA. The state-run firm claims that RIL’s acceptance of a Letter of Intent for supply was sufficient ground for the contract to be considered concluded. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 12:38 pm Equity inflows lift Indian rupee to 2-½ mth high - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:37 pm Poll violence kills two in 4th phaseKolkata /Jaipur: Moderate to brisk voting was recorded till early afternoon in Thursday’s fourth phase of Lok Sabha elections in eight states and union territories which was marred by sporadic violence in West Bengal and Rajasthan where two persons were killed. Click here to watch video While a high turnout of 35 to 40% was registered in Punjab, Haryana and West Bengal, voting percentages varied from nearly 30% each in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh to about 25% in Delhi and Rajasthan. Around 10% of electorate had exercised its franchise till midday for the Srinagar parliamentary seat. A 28-year-old CPI(M) worker, Kashinath Mondal was killed when unidentified persons hurled bombs at him while he was returning after casting his vote at Eroali village under the West Bengal’s Jangipur parliamentary constituency in Murshidabad district, superintendent of police BL Meena said. Also Read | Elections 2009 (Full Coverage) External affairs minister and Congress heavyweight, Pranab Mukherjee, is contesting from Jangipur. One person was killed when paramilitary personnel opened fire to prevent a mob from capturing a booth in Olwara village in Rajasthan’s Sawaimadhopur district, police said in Jaipur. As many as 9.46 crore people are eligible to vote in the 85 constituencies where polling is being held in the fourth phases. 1,315 candidates including 119 women are in the fray. DELHI Around 44.27 lakh of the 1.1 crore strong electorate exercised their franchise in the capital for the Lok Sabha elections on Thursday, registering a 40.25% turnout till late afternoon. Though starting with impressive numbers, the queues at polling stations started thinning across the city around noon as the mercury touched 36 degrees Celsius. President Pratibha Patil, Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, her son and Amethi MP Rahul and daughter Priyanka were among the early voters in the capital. The first four hours recorded a turnout of 18% but the figure climbed up to 40.25% by 3 pm. The chief electoral office said north-west Delhi seat was on top of the list with 47.11% polling till 3 pm followed by north-east Delhi seat at 43.40%. New Delhi and East Delhi constituencies also saw brisk polling, recording 42.6% and 42.5% voting respectively while in Chandni Chowk, 40.19% of the electorate exercised their franchise. South Delhi saw a 40.1% turnout. The least turnout 3 pm was recorded in west Delhi seat which witnessed 38% polling. Polling was also held for by-elections to the Rohtas Nagar Assembly constituency where the polling percentage was 36.33. BIHAR An estimated 18 to 20% of a little over 48.92 lakh voters exercised their franchise till noon in Pataliputra, Patna Saheb and Nalanda Lok Sabha seats where polling is in progress. The voting is so far peaceful with no violence reported from anywhere, sources at the state police headquarters said. RJD president and railway minister Lalu Prasad, his wife and former chief minister Rabri Devi, the high-profile couple’s son Tej Pratap and a daughter cast votes at a polling station on the Veterinary College campus, while chief minister Nitish Kumar left for his home town Bakhtiarpur in Patna Saheb constituency by local train to exercise his franchise. Lalu is said to have pushed aside some reporters and camerapersons, who had gathered at the polling station since early morning. A cameraman, who had managed to sneak into the room where the voting unit was placed, was allegedly scolded by the RJD supremo and the police personnel present. Lalu did not speak to the media after casting votes. There were reports of poll boycott at over a dozen polling stations over local issues. Polling was delayed at some booths due to defective EVMs, which were promptly replaced. WEST BENGAL Three persons died, one in poll violence, during the second phase of Lok Sabha elections in West Bengal which recorded a voter turnout of 35% till noon. In Murshidabad district, a 28-year-old CPI(M) worker identified as Kashinath Mondal was killed when some unidentified miscreants hurled a bomb at him while he was on his way to home after casting vote at Eroali village under Jangipur parliamentary constituency, SP BL Meena said. External affairs minister and Congress heavyweight Pranab Mukherjee is contesting from Jangipur. Two persons died of sunstroke while waiting in queues outside polling booths at Khejuri and Bhaktanagar under Tamluk and Kanthi constituencies respectively in east Midnapore district, DSP Pallab Kanti Ghosh said. A youth received splinter injuries during a clash between CPI(M) and Trinamool Congress workers at Aadhikaripara in Nandigram under Tamluk constituency, he added. Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress leader in Nandigram, Abu Taher claimed that CPI(M) supporters fired at his party workers at Gokulnagar. But, CPI(M)’s Gokulnagar zonal committee secretary Ashok Guria said that it was the TC workers who fired at their party members. However, police denied reports of any firing in the area. There were also reports of voters boycotting polls at one booth each in Bardhaman, Birbhum and Murshidabad districts on local issues, Joint CEO Sahana said, adding that 101 EVMs had been replaced because of technical snags. HARYANA About 39% of nearly 1.20 crore voters exercised their franchise in the first six hours of polling for the ten Lok Sabha seats in Haryana on Thursday. “Nearly 39% people have cast their vote by 1 PM. No report of any untoward incident was reported from anywhere in Haryana as polling was going on peacefully,” an official of the state election department said. Among those who cast their votes early included chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and former chief ministers Om Prakash Chautala and Bhajan Lal. Voting began at 7 am for the 10 seats for which 210 candidates are in the fray. However, a minor clash took place in Narnaul, which falls in Bhiwani-Mahendergarh constituency, from where Congress’ Shruti Choudhry is contesting against INLD’s Ajay Chautala. Votes are being cast across 12,894 polling stations, where ballots are being cast electronically, with over 23,000 Electronic Voting Machines being put to use. PUNJAB The fate of Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal’s daughter-in-law and wife and son of his predecessor Capt Amarinder Singh was sealed on Thursday as the polling to four Lok Sabha seats in the state ended on a by and large peaceful note. The polling was however marred by few incidents of violence at Barnala and Patiala in which six persons were injured. About 60% of the 52.75 lakh voters cast their votes, initial reports said. Five persons, including four Congress supporters were injured when they were attacked by activists of Students Organisation of India (SOI) owing allegiance to ruling Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) outside a polling booth at Barnala bus stand. An Akali worker Musa Khan received bullet injury in his arm when two unidentified persons shot at him at Arnabarna chowk in Patiala. Tampers ran high between SOI activists and Congress supporters outside a booth at Bathinda grain market forcing police to fire a shot in air to calm down the situation. RAJASTHAN An estimated 35% of the 3.69 crore electorate cast their votes till 1400 hrs in the 25 Lok Sabha constituencies of Rajasthan on Thursday. Dausa, Sawaimadhopur-Tonk, Karauli-Dholpur, Jaipur, Jhalawar and Jodhpur constituencies recorded a maximum of 35% each, an election department spokesman said. Others constituencies including Bharatpur, Alwar and Jaipur recorded 25 to 32% voter turnout, he said. Prominent candidates in the fray include Congress leader Sachin Pilot from Ajmer Lok Sabha seat, Union minister Sis Ram Ola (Jhunjhunu), Gujjar leader Kirori Singh Bainsla and Union minister Namo Narayan Meena (Sawai Madhopur-Tonk ), Girija Vyas (Chittorgarh) and Dushyant Singh, son of Vasundhara Raje, from Jhalawar-Baran. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 12:37 pm US VC investment halves globally; down 29 pc in IndiaAmerican venture capital investment globally halved in the March quarter of 2009Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 12:33 pm Markets rise on global cues, Sensex up 164 pointsIndian equities markets closed in the green Thursday amid renewed buying activity and a global rally. A key index closed 164 points higher than its previous close.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 12:32 pm JLR’s fate dwindling; talks with govt close to collapseLondon: The fate of Indian conglomerate Tata group-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is uncertain as talks with the UK government over a financial support package has virtually failed, media reports say. “The future of Jaguar Land Rover, the largest UK-based car maker, is under threat as talks with the Government about a financial support package were on the brink of collapse last night,” according to the Telegraph. Meanwhile, another daily the Financial Times (FT) said, “The government was last night accused of trying covertly to nationalise Jaguar Land Rover after it emerged that ministers had demanded the right to choose a chairman and veto redundancies at the troubled carmaker during bail-out negotiations.” FT further said that “the demands, which were part of a deal under which Jaguar would have received £175 million in government loan guarantees, were rejected by the group’s Indian owner, Tata”. Quoting Howard Wheeldon, an analyst at BGC Partners, FT said the proposals were “backdoor nationalisation”, while the Telegraph carried Wheeldon as saying: “This latest Government failure to support the future of the UK economy is an absolute disgrace tantamount to throwing the best of the highly valuable British luxury car industry and export potential into a den of wolves.” Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 12:30 pm AB InBev Q1 profit jumps, sells Korean brewery!Anheuser-Busch InBev (INTB.BR) reported a better-than-expected rise in first-quarter core profit on Thursday and announced the sale of a Korean brewery, but warned of tougher cost comparisons in the rest of the year.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Amex, JP Morgan, another bank pass `stress tests`!Leaked results of the government`s stress tests of 19 large banks are boosting investor confidence in the financial sector.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm India Inc for strengthening Sebi`s clause 49: Report!India Inc strongly feels that market regulator Sebi`s Clause 49, formulated for the improvement of corporate governance in all listed companies, needs to be strengthened, global audit and advisory firm KPMG said in its report.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Decline in US job cut announcements for 3rd straight month: Report!Job cut announcements by US employers fell for the third consecutive month in April to 1.3 lakh, the lowest in six months, signalling that recovery in the strained job market may be underway, a report said Thursday.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Entrepreneurs in small cities depend on money lenders:Assocham !Entrepreneurs in smaller cities, like Ludhiana and Coimbatore, have to depend on money lenders as they are not getting adequate credit from banks, industry body Assocham said.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Microsoft CEO still sees chance to work with Yahoo!Microsoft Corp CEO Steve Ballmer said he sees opportunities to work with Yahoo Inc to create a "better search product" but would not comment on discussions that the two may be engaged in.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Sensex jumps 173 pts in early trade!The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex jumped by over 173 points in early trade Thursday on emergence of buying by funds at existing low levels.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Fiat`s Marchionne says he will lead Chrysler: Report!Fiat SpA (FIA.MI) Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne plans to take the top spot at Chrysler LLC after the automaker emerges from bankruptcy, he has said in an interview.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm US economy recovery to `take a while`: Geithner!US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said "it is going to take a while" for the economy to recover from recession while noting "important signs of some stability."Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Oil rises to 6-month high near USD 57 in Asia!Oil prices rose toward USD 57 a barrel Thursday in Asia, extending gains to near six-month highs on investor expectations global economic growth may begin to rebound by the end of the year.Source: Zee News : Business | 7 May 2009 | 12:27 pm Sensex again above 12,000Sterlite and Hindustan Zinc were in the forefront of getting investor response on the back of favourable global cues, helping the benchmark Sensex to recover sharply by over 164 points to close at 12,116.94.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 7 May 2009 | 12:04 pm Gujarat Heavy Chemicals shareholders gather against promotersMinority shareholders of soda ash manufacturer Gujarat Heavy Chemicals Ltd (GHCL) Thursday said they would form a forum to protect their interests and 'avoid being cheated by the promoters'.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 12:01 pm Power plant workers go on rampage after co-worker's deathPolice lobbed tear-gas shells and fired several rounds in the air to quell a mob of about 500 workers who went on a rampage at a power plant in Kutch region of Gujarat following death of a worker after he slipped from a crane, police said Thursday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 12:01 pm It's raining discounts on poll day in DelhiRadhika Sharma, a 19-year-old student has two reasons to rejoice Thursday. One, she has cast her vote for the first time and second, her inked index finger is all she needs to avail 'democracy discounts' being offered by various retail chains, cinema halls and restaurants in the national capital.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 pm Wipro sees demand picking up in 2nd half FY10BANGALORE (Reuters) - Wipro Ltd sees demand picking up in the second half of 2009/10 and some stability is returning to the nervous business environment, the joint-CEO of its IT business said on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 11:59 am Close: Markets gain over 1% on global rallyNew Delhi: Markets rebounded from Wednesday’s losses to end the day with gain of more than 1% on Thursday on the back of favorable cues from global markets. The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex opened above 100 points today following strong trade in Asian markets. US stock markets on Wednesday closed higher after leaked results of bank ‘stress tests’ by the government indicated that major banks are better capitalized than expected. Market was also boosted by data that US April job cuts were not as bad as feared. Among sectors, all indices with the exception of FMCG ended in green. Most buying was seen among metal, consumer durable, realty, bank, pharma, oil & gas and capital goods stocks. The 30-share BSE index closed higher by 164.19 points at 12,116.94 and the 50-share NSE Nifty ended up by 58.85 points at 3,683.90. Leading gains in the BSE index were Sterlite Industries by 13.78% to Rs517.45, Hindalco by 11.25% to Rs70.20, Tata Steel by 8.76% to Rs294.35, Wipro Ltd by 5.80% to Rs380.05, Housing Development and Finance Corp by 3.86% to Rs1,816.00, Maruti Suzuki by 3.72% to Rs839.30, State Bank of India by 3.27% to Rs1,366.95, Tata Motors by 3.05% to Rs272.10 and Bharti Airtel by 2.92% to Rs778.20. There were also the losers in the BSE pack like Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd by 2.83% to Rs516.35, ACC Ltd by 2.44% to Rs624.70, Hindustan Unilever Ltd by 1.68% to Rs230.65, Grasim Industries by 1.47% to Rs1,774.70, NTPC by 1.34% to Rs191.90 and ITC Ltd by 1.25% to Rs189.90. In the global front, Asian markets also ended higher on better than expected US and Australian job reports. Japan’s Nikkei reopened after three-day holiday and surged by 4.55% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose by 2.28% as financial worries eased. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 11:56 am General Motors looking for stake in Fiat: reportNew York: Beleaguered General Motors is looking for a stake in Italian car maker Fiat in exchange for the auto giant’s Latin American and European operations, says a media report. “Four years after paying $2 billion to extricate itself from a partnership with Fiat, General Motors is seeking a stake in the Italian automaker in exchange for its Latin American and European operations,” The New York Times has reported. The daily said GM is eager to cede control of its money-losing Opel unit in Germany. “But Fiat has also expressed interest in GM’s other European operations as well as its historically profitable Latin American business, though the possible terms of such a deal have not been discussed publicly,” the report published online noted. According to the publication, despite the precarious financial situation, GM now feels that it has a bargaining chip with its Latin American unit, and is negotiating with Fiat over what it might get in return. Fiat’s chief executive Sergio Marchionne has indicated a willingness to give up less than 10% of Fiat to GM, it added. “But GM executives are holding out for at least 30% of the Fiat Auto Group,” the daily said quoting two people close to the negotiations. Further, attributing to the two people, the New York Times said they were not authorised to comment publicly because the discussions are fluid. “The discussions are the latest development in Fiat’s multi-pronged bid to grow, almost overnight, into a dominant global auto company, by acquiring Opel and a 20% stake in Chrysler,” the report noted. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 11:55 am Keeping distributed families together through technologyBuddibot, a web applications company, has developed a web-based communication tool to keep distributed families connected.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 11:32 am US VC investment halves globally; down 29% in IndiaNew Delhi: American venture capital investment globally halved in the March quarter of 2009, dipping to a five-year low of $1.87 billion, while in India it was down by 29%. In India, US venture capitalists invested $101 million in 13 deals in the first quarter, 29% less than the $142 million via 22 deals in the March quarter of 2008, as per data compiled by research firm Dow Jones VentureSource. Venture capitalists put $1.87 billion, the lowest quarterly total since 2004, via 250 deals for emerging companies in India, China, Europe and Israel in the first quarter as fund managers prefer assured returns from portfolio investment. VC investment in this region in the March quarter of 2008 stood at $3.65 billion through 430 transactions. In terms of average deal value, India ranked the second-most expensive destination, after China, in the emerging markets with the median deal size of over $4.2 million in the quarter. “VCs are faced with challenges on both ends of the investment lifecycle, as liquidity markets are virtually shut down in the face of the economic crisis and cash-strapped limited partners are reluctant to back new venture funds without a clear promise of returns,” Dow Jones VentureSource director (Global Research) Jessica Canning said. VC investment in China in March quarter dropped 58% to $426 million via 34 deals, while Europe saw 170 deals garner $1.18 billion, a 35% drop over the year-ago period. “This is the first time we have seen such a collective pullback in worldwide venture investment, and it points to a deeper trend within the industry for VCs to conserve fund capital, make very selective investments and focus on existing portfolio companies,” Canning added. According to the US deal tracking firm, during the March quarter, the cost of doing VC deals globally, except Europe, got cheaper as fund managers turned cautious to conserve their capital. The US saw its median deal size dropping to $5.5 million, down 18% from $6.7 million in the first quarter. China represents the most expensive destination for venture capital with a median deal size of $8 million, as per VentureSource data. Of the deals announced, including those in the previous quarter, 477 deals worth $3.89 billion were completed during the March quarter, a 50% decline over the year-ago period. “While none of this is good news for the industry as a whole, it is seed and early-stage companies that are likely to suffer the most,” Canning added. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 11:29 am Godrej Properties IPO to be announced soon: Adi GodrejAdi Godrej, Chairman and MD, Godrej Industries, announced that the company would come out with and IPO for Godrej Properties soon. Commenting on the FMCG space, Godrej said he does not see any price cuts. In fact, he said chances of a price hike are higher.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 11:21 am Sensex bounces back, ends up 164pts - Business Standard
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 11:21 am Singur witnesses large turnout, voting remained peacefulSingur: Singur, from where the factory of the world’s cheapest car Nano was shifted to Gujarat, witnessed a large turnout in the fourth phase of Lok Sabha election in West Bengal on Thursday. The voters, polarised over the acquisition of agricultural land for the Nano project, stood in long queues in the hot sun. Till afternoon, 50% electorate exercised their franchise in Singur segment of Hooghly Lok Sabha seat, Hooghly district magistrate Neelam Meena said. She said that voting remained peaceful amidst deployment of 33 companies of Central forces in the constituency. Some voters, like Bikash Pakhira and Krishna Barui, said many people were unhappy over the pullout by the Tatas as they were deprived of a decent means to earn a living. More than the pullout by the Tatas from Singur, they were surprised by the absence of campaigning by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, who had led an agitation for one and a half years against land acquisition here. “She campaigned in areas adjacent to Singur, but stopped short of visiting this place. Did she forget us?“ a middle-aged voter asked. But there were other voters who said that they did not regret the pullout as land was more precious to them than Nano. Some others said the Trinamool victory in the panchayat election last May might be reversed this time as many people resented Mamata’s staying away from Singur. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 11:18 am ICICI Bank hopes to get back to growth in profitMumbai: Top private sector lender ICICI Bank has exuded confidence that it will return to profitability growth this fiscal, for which it is banking on cost-control measures and improving credit quality. “They (profits) would be better than last fiscal’s. We are talking about improving net interest margin, controlling costs, controlling credit quality. So, I am hopeful and I am confident that they (profits) would be better than last year’s,” ICICI Bank managing director and CEO Chanda Kochhar said. Under the impact of the adverse economic conditions, ICICI Bank’s net profit fell by 10% in the fiscal ended 31 March, 2009. Since its incorporation in 1994, ICICI Bank’s full-year profit fell for the first time in 2008-09. It posted a net profit of Rs3,758 crore for the fiscal ended 31 March, 2009, down from Rs4,158 crore in the previous year. “Growth has many dimensions. The dimensions of this year’s growth are going to be low-cost deposits, net interest margin and profitability,” she noted. Kochhar said that its financial performance in the previous fiscal was marred by adverse economic environment, but she was confident that profitability would get a boost this year from an improving economic scenario and the strategies being implemented by the bank. “I am very clear that the strategies we are implementing will improve it...I am also confident that the economic environment is improving. I am confident about that also,“ Kochhar said. The bank has recorded an average profit growth of 15% in the last five years, she said. The return on equity (ROE) is about 8% or so over three years or so, she said, adding, “we want to take the ROE not to just to double digits but to even higher levels.” Speaking about the strategy to achieve high profit growth this year, Kochhar said, “What we are going to do is to concentrate on changing our deposit mix through which we can bring down cost of fund, improve our net interest margin and improve profitability.” So, the focus this year, therefore, is going to be, concentrating on improving NIM, concentrating more on stable income like transaction banking income and so on which does not move so drastically with the level of activity of projects and M&A, she added. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 11:14 am See transmission volumes at 3035 mmscmd by FY10 end: GSPLManish Sheth, CFO, Gujarat State Petronet (GSPL) said current transmission volumes are at about 25 million standard cubic meters per day (mmscmd). He sees transmission volumes rising to about 3035 mmscmd by the end of FY10. He expects profitability to rise significantly in FY10.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 11:11 am Indian wheat granaries bulge, exports may be allowed - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 11:06 am Tata AIG eyes 10% growth in motor insurance biz in FY’10Mumbai: With pick-up on auto sales and launch of small-car Nano, Tata AIG General Insurance is looking at around 10% growth in motor insurance business this fiscal. “Motor insurance is an important part of our business. We will be looking at more aggressively into this area in the current fiscal with the aim of growing by around 10%,” Tata AIG General Insurance’s managing director Gaurav Garg said here. Motor insurance had contributed around 25% of the company’s total premium income which stood at Rs950 crore in the last fiscal. The growth in motor insurance sector was flat last fiscal, he said. The auto industry had suffered badly last year due to lack of retail finance amidst high interest rates. The situation, however, started looking up after the Government announced two stimulus packages in December and Januray. Auto sales started picking up from January itself. The industry posted impressive growth in sales in April led by car market leader Maruti Suzuki and biggest two-wheeler maker Hero Honda. Garg said that Tata AIG General Insurance might soon come out with three more add-on covers in its motor insurance basket, Auto Secure,after securing approval from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authoirty (IRDA). “We had applied for 11 add-on covers this year for strengthening our motor insurance portfolio. IRDA has already cleared eight of them and sought for clarifications for the remaining three. We hope to get its approval in the next one month or so,” Garg said. Tata AIG General Insurance launched eight add-on covers recently in its motor protfolio. This includes daily allowance, depriciation reimbursement, retrun to invoice, key replacement, repair of glass, fibre, plastic & rubber parts, loss of personal belongings and emergency transport & hotel expenses among others. Garg believes that these products would redefine the dynamics of the motor insurance business. Tata AIG General Insurance is the seventh largest motor insurer among the private players. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 11:06 am Markets end in greenIndian equities markets closed in the green Thursday, with a key index shutting shop about 154 points higher on renewed buying activity.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 11:01 am Union Bank ends down on drop in Q4 net - Business Standard
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 10:58 am CEC encounters ‘clerical error’ in voters’ listNew Delhi: Clerical error did not spare even chief election commissioner Navin Chawla whose intervention did not stop his name from figuring in two voters’ lists. But when he went to vote Thursday, his name appeared in only in one place. Chawla had written on 6 February last to the Delhi’s chief electoral officer pointing out that his and his wife’s name appeared at two booths in the New Delhi Lok Sabha constituency. He wanted their names to be removed from booth no. 85 of the list and retained in booth no. 86, both in Nirman Bhawan which has the offices of Heath, Rural and Urban Development and other ministries. Following his request, the electoral registration officer (ERO) informed him that their names in booth no. 85 were deleted from the final rolls. However, still the names of Chawla and his wife Rupika appeared “inadvertently” in photo electoral roll showing their names in both booth no. 85 and booth no. 86, which was rectified later. “It was a clerical error,” Chawla told PTI after the CEC, his wife and daughter cast their votes at booth no. 86. Chawla, who took over the CEC on 21 April, appealed to voters to come out and vote as millions of people had put in their effort for many months to make the electoral process possible all over the country. “Voting is not only about a candidate or a party, it is also a vote for democracy. Just as ocean is made of drops of water, democracy is made of every vote. I hope every voter will come out and vote,” he said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 10:49 am INTERVIEW - Aviva may make comeback in Asia general insuranceSINGAPORE (Reuters) - Britain's Aviva Plc is considering a comeback in Asia's general insurance business, five years after it sold its regional operations to Japan's Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group (MSIG).Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 10:41 am No sacking of players or support staff: Knight RidersMumbai: Intending to set at rest media speculation, the beleaguered Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) franchise outfit on Thursday said neither the playing squad nor its support staff will be sacked. “Director cricket operations, John Buchanan continues to make all decisions in terms of cricket management and KKR does not intend changing squads or support staff,” said the media statement from the Shah Rukh Khan-owned team that’s all set to create a dubious record for the number of losses in the IPL. KKR have won just one match out of the nine they have played so far and are hugging the bottom of the eight-team table with only three points to their credit. The statement said the team’s management, owners as well as the players still “remain resolute in their commitment to the Kolkata Knight Riders and are working hard as a team to overcome challenges they presently face”. KKR were looking forward to do better in the remainder of the tournament in South Africa, it said. “We look forward to improved results in the tournament’s remaining matches. The recent slump in form is temporary and is experienced by all professionals at times. “The individuals involved are aware of this and are committed to persevering, because Kolkata Knight Riders is a great team and will continue to be that despite recent disappointing results,” the statement added. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 10:40 am JSW Steel posts Q4 net loss, sees FY10 output up 78 pct - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 10:37 am JSW Steel posts Q4 net loss, sees FY10 output up 78%Mumbai: JSW Steel Ltd, India’s No. 3 steel producer, on Thursday posted a consolidated net loss for the quarter ended March, but forecast a 78% rise in output for 2009/10, pushing the shares up more than 17%. For 2009/10, the company expects production to rise to 6.1 million tonnes on ‘strong’ signs of revival in demand. “The apparent consumption exceeding the crude steel production world wide establishes the fact that the de-stocking cycle is coming to an end,” the company said in a statement. The re-pricing of long-term coking coal and iron ore, key inputs to the steel industry, at significantly lower levels in fiscal 2009/10, will help the company improve its margins even in as steel prices remain stable, it added. For the quarter ended March, the company reported a net loss of Rs399.3 million, compared with a net profit of Rs3.57 billion last year. Sales for the period fell 16.2% to Rs35.68 billion. Analysts had estimated a 25% drop in sales to Rs31.4 billion. The company’s shares ended 12.8% higher at Rs429.35 in a firm Mumbai market. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 10:31 am Europe bank bad debts affect buoyant moodLondon: A trio of top European banks showed bad debts are ratcheting up as economies worsen and unemployment rises, although investor optimism ahead of US bank stress test results drove shares to year highs. Results from the stress tests due later on Thursday are expected to show Bank of America, Citigroup and others need to find billions of dollars. But the prospect that banks are building cushions to prepare for more bad times has helped drive bank stocks higher around the world. However, part-nationalised UK lender Lloyds Banking Group sent its shares plunging after warning that bad debts on corporate loans were rising significantly and reiterating it expected a loss in 2009. France’s Societe Generale slumped to a surprise loss in the first quarter as higher-than-expected writedowns and provisions hit the bank’s earnings. And Britain’s Barclays reported a 79% rise in first-quarter impairments, although that was offset by a record start to the year for its investment bank arm. By 2:45pm, Lloyds shares slumped over 13%, SocGen fell 6% and Barclays stood less than 1% firmer. The DJ Stoxx European bank sector index, which hit a 2009 high earlier, edged down to 184.58, a rise of 2.7%. A sharp surge by US bank stocks on Wednesday underpinned shares. After stress tests on the top 19 US banks, designed to ensure they will have enough capital to protect them from deep economic downturns, regulators have told Bank of America it needs $34 billion and Citigroup that it needs $5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. Those capital shortfalls are larger than analysts had expected, but bank shares soared as investors welcomed clarity over how well the industry will cope with a deepening recession. Corporate trouble Lloyds has suffered billions of pounds of losses from the portfolio of HBOS, the troubled lender it bought earlier this year. It said it expected further corporate defaults in 2009, notably in commercial real estate portfolios in Britain and Ireland. As a result, it expects corporate impairments in 2009 to be more than 50% higher than in 2008, when combined Lloyds/HBOS corporate loans were between £9 billion and £10 billion. The group also continues to expect retail impairment levels to rise significantly this year. Barclays said impairment charges and other credit provisions jumped to £2.3 billion from 1.3 billion. About half was due to a worsening economy and maturing loans. That took the shine off buoyant results from its investment bank arm, where profits more than trebled to £907 million and income excluding writedowns more than doubled to over £5 billion, driven by growth in the United States after last year’s acquisition of Lehman Brothers’ US operations. SocGen fell to a quarterly loss of €278 million ($370 million) from a profit of 1.1 billion last year. Non-recurring items, including the impact of writedowns at its investment banking unit, had a negative impact of €1.9 billion on its earnings. Its performance was in stark contrast to BNP Paribas, which posted strong results on Wednesday. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 10:27 am ECB rate cut looms, Geithner comments boost sharesFrankfurt/Washington: The European Central Bank was set to cut interest rates to a record low of 1% on Thursday, giving shares another reason to rise after the US treasury secretary indicated the downturn was bottoming out.Results of US government-inspired health checks or “stress tests” on 19 leading US banks due later in the day are set to show more than half in need of billions of dollars in extra capital. But treasury secretary Timothy Geithner said no US banks screened by regulators face the risk of insolvency. Geithner also said the pace of the US economic decline was slowing, even as the economy faced enormous uncertainty. “There are some places where we’re seeing things starting to improve, but the main thing is a sense of stability,” he said. The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares jumped to a four-month high, with banks leading the advance, following gains in Asia and on Wall Street. Signs of recovery in the bank sector continued as Britain’s Barclays Plc said first-quarter profit rose 15% as a strong performance in investment banking made up for a big jump in bad debts, boosting its shares to a seven-month high. Surprise loss Yet elsewhere there was more pain in the financial sector where the effects of the credit crunch are concentrated, as France’s Societe Generale made a surprise quarterly loss after higher-than-expected writedowns and provisions, sending its shares down over 7%. Swiss insurer Zurich Financial Services AG posted a 75% drop in first-quarter net profit, falling well short of expectations after the group suffered $1 billion of losses and impairments. With the European Central Bank rate decision due to be announced at 1145 GMT, markets were also focused on any alternative measures it takes to get the euro zone economy back on its feet. Analysts polled by Reuters were unanimous that the ECB would make a quarter-point rate cut, which is likely to be its final reduction in the current cycle. Attention is turning to additional steps, such as quantitative easing — the repurchase of government debt with new money created by the central bank — which the ECB could take to fight the recession. Another clue on the state of the Europe’s biggest economy will come in German industrial orders due at 1000 GMT, expected to show a drop of 0.6% in March, representing a slowing decline from a 3.5% drop the month before. The Bank of England also holds its regular policy meeting and looks set to leave interest rates at a record low of 0.5% — also shifting the focus to whether it will announce new plans to boost the supply of credit in the economy. “It looks highly probable that the Monetary Policy Committee will once again keep the overall stance of policy on hold and the target for asset purchases at £75 billion,” said Philip Shaw, economist at Investec. Bull market Bank shares soared on Wall Street on Wednesday and the momentum carried over to Europe and Asia as investors welcomed more clarity on the health of the sector at the heart of the financial crisis. In the United States, Geithner, speaking ahead of the release of bank stress tests at 2100 GMT, said the vast majority of screened banks would be able to raise capital on their own and none faced a threat of collapse. “None of those 19 banks are at risk for insolvency,” he said, according to a transcript of a television interview. Stocks, commodities, emerging market debt and high-yielding currencies have all rallied in recent weeks on hopes that the global economic slump might be reaching a bottom. “The market now holds the view that the worst may be over, at least for America. A very strong bull market appears to have begun,” said Fumiyuki Nakanishi, manager at SMBC Friend Securities in Japan. Asian stock markets climbed to a seven-month high, following Wall Street gains overnight. Tokyo led with a 4.6% rise to a six-month high, catching up after a three-day holiday. Evidence still abounds of the recession squeezing companies and Nintendo disappointed investors with its profit forecast for this year. But by and large markets have been shrugging off bad news and focusing on signs things are looking up. An Australian jobs report provided the latest of such signals, showing the economy created more than 27,000 new jobs last month rather than shedding 25,000 as expected. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 10:26 am Jaiprakash Hydro Power Q4 net loss at Rs 25.52 cr - Hindu Business Line
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 10:23 am Congress battles left as India votes in 4th roundKOLKATA (Reuters) - Millions of Indians voted in the penultimate stage of a general election on Thursday as violence marred the ballot in the possible swing state of West Bengal where the ruling Congress-led alliance hopes to win crucial seats.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 10:21 am GM could take stake in Fiat/Opel group - sourceMILAN (Reuters) - U.S. car maker General Motors Corp could take a stake in a group created by merging its European business and that of Fiat, a source close to the situation told Reuters on Thursday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 10:20 am GMR subsidiary to set up 250-acre aerospace park in HyderabadGMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL) is planning to set up an aerospace park in Hyderabad, which would be spread over 250 acres.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 10:17 am Hyundai looks to increase sourcing components from IndiaSeoul, South Korea: South Korean auto major Hyundai Motor Company is looking at increasing sourcing components from India for its global operations. Currently Hyundai sources only a negligible percentage of components from India for its global needs but wants to increase the level. “India can be a hub for the components industry. Hyundai will increase (sourcing) from India,” Hyundai Motor Company senior vice-president (Asia & Pacific Division) Young-Kil Chun said here. He, however, added that for India to emerge as a major outsourcing hub for components, it would need to improve and maintain the quality of products. “We do have our vendors based in India who have helped us localise, but if India is to become a global outsourcing hub then a very important issue needs to be addressed first, which is the need to maintain consistent quality,” Chun said. Hyundai already sources up to 85% of the components locally for the cars it makes in India, the company’s second-largest market in the world. Chun said the company has reduced production at the Indian plants in view of the worldwide slump. “In India, we are currently working two nine- plus nine-hour shifts. Earlier, we were working three eight-hour shifts everyday. So, we have cut down on the production and once the situation improves we will get back to the earlier three eight-hour shifts. We may recover our production sometime after 2010,” Chun said He added that production was reduced by 25% in the first quarter of the year at the company’s three plants located in South Korea. He termed the current market scenario as being in the state of ‘flux´. “This environment makes it very difficult to make any sales projections or anticipate scenarios. The market the world over has been depressed and we are in the midst of an economic slowdown but remain hopeful and optimistic,” Chun added. Regarding the downslide in the company’s sales, he said: “Hyundai is being very aggressive in domestic and overseas markets. (The) US market is doing well and the Chinese and Indian markets are also growing. Hopefully, markets will improve. Sales have suffered worldwide. Hopefully, (sales) will improve by the end of this year, from last year.” He said demand in South Korea is likely to rebound by the first quarter of 2010, while across the world it would take some more time. On whether Hyundai had plans to bring out a model to compete with the Tatas’ Nano, Chun replied in the negative. “We do not have plans to compete head-on with the Nano, although we will come up with a small car in the next two-three years, which will be placed below the existing Santro. But overall we feel that the launch of the Nano will expand the market and once that happens, it will be good for all manufacturers including Hyundai,” he said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 10:14 am 29% voting in Delhi till 1pmNew Delhi: Around 29% of the 1.1 crore electorate turned up on Thursday at polling booths across the national capital till 1pm to exercise their franchise in the Lok Sabha elections. Brisk polling was recorded in the morning soon after polling began at 7am at all the seven constituencies but some decline in voters’ enthusiasm was witnessed as the day progressed with the mercury touching 36 degree Celsius at noon. President Pratibha Patil, vice-president Hamid Ansari, Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, her son and Amethi MP Rahul and daughter Priyanka were among the early voters in the capital. The first four hours recorded a turnout of 18% but the figure climbed to only 28.96 % by 1pm. The Chief Electoral Office east Delhi constituency, where sitting MP Sandeep Dikshit is contesting, had the largest turnout of 35.7% so far followed by south Delhi at 32.44%. New Delhi constituency also saw brisk polling, recording 30% turnout. The voting percentage of other seats are: north-east -- 31.05, west -- 30, Chandni Chowk -- 26.52 and north-west -- 16.53. Polling was also held for by-elections to the Rohtas Nagar Assembly constituency which had been vacated due to the death of sitting MLA Rambabu Sharma. Polling percentage here was 36.33. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 10:13 am Markets steady as buying momentum continuesIndian equities markets were holding on to their gains Thursday afternoon, with a key index ruling about 139 points higher than its previous close about an hour before the closing bell.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 10:02 am Jet Airways to launch low-fare Jet KonnectLeading private carrier Jet Airways will launch a new economy service, 'Jet Airways Konnect', from Friday on select sectors, the airline announced Thursday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 10:00 am Oil rises towards $58, equities lend supportLondon: Oil rose towards $58 a barrel on Thursday as a surge in global stock markets raised expectations of economic recovery and of increased demand for oil products. US light crude for June delivery rose $1.54 cents a barrel to $57.88 by 3:00pm, adding to $2.50 gains on Wednesday when it settled at $56.34, its highest close since 14 November, 2008. London Brent crude rose $1.54 cents to $57.69. “I think oil is looking at the whole picture, stocks are doing well and economic signals are starting to look a bit better,” said Rob Montefusco, a trader at Sucden Financial. However, Montefusco said oil’s rally could be short-lived. “I think it has managed to break the $55 technical level and it is now jumping further but I don’t see any fundamental reasons for it to go higher.” Oil has tracked a recovery in the equity markets over the past month, with the US Standard & Poor’s 500 Index up some 36% from March lows and rising nearly 2% on Wednesday after better-than-expected jobs data. The market is now watching out for the results of the US government stress tests on the ability of banks to weather a deep recession, to be released later today. Expectations for rising oil demand as summer approaches were fuelled by leaks of the test results that suggested most banks were healthier than earlier thought. In equity markets, Japan’s Nikkei average surged 4.55% after a three-day holiday in the country. The buying continued in Europe as shares rose ahead of Bank of England and ECB interest rate and policy decisions. US crude inventories have gained again, but by a lower-than-expected 600,000 barrels against forecasts for a 2.2 million barrels build, while US gasoline stocks fell last week by 200,000 barrels to 212.4 million, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. A slowdown in US private sector job losses in April, as employers cut 491,000 from the salary rolls versus an expected loss of 650,000, was seen as a signal that the economy may be on its way to recovery, and helped oil higher. Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil supplier, said it would not raise supplies for the time being as it attempts to shore up prices. The kingdom is pumping below 8 million barrels per day (bpd) and is unlikely to increase that production as world supply continues to outpace demand, Saudi Aramco Chief Executive Khalid al-Falih said on Wednesday. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 9:47 am Vedanta profit falls, targets cost cutsLondon: India-focused mining group Vedanta Resources Plc posted a 75% drop in attributable profit after commodity prices slid, hitting its shares, but the London-listed firm said it saw more scope for cost cuts. Vedanta’s shares were down 0.8% at 1,220 pence by 0845 GMT on Thursday, lagging a 3.2% rise in the UK mining index. The shares have doubled this year and outperformed the mining index by 37%. “Overall the results were disappointing,” said analyst Subramaniam Varada at Credit Suisse, who said earnings per share came in 20% below its forecast. The weaker than expected performance was mainly due to an increase in minority interests to 76% of net earnings from 56%, he said in a note. But the company -- which has operations in India, Australia and Zambia -- said it was well placed to thrive amid the downturn with cash and liquid investments of $4.9 billion and net debt of $200 million. “With strong volume growth, high quality assets and continued progress in cost reduction, we are confident of delivering another year of profitable growth and strong free cash flows,” chairman Anil Agarwal said in a statement. Even though copper prices have rebounded by 57% this year after collapsing by 65% from a peak last July of $8,930 per tonne, chief executive MS Mehta was cautious about the future. “It is too early to say that we have come out of the meltdown we have seen over the last six months, but having said that, we are very well positioned to take care of the low price cycle,” he told a conference call. Costs declined in the second half of the fiscal year and at the Zambian copper operations they fell by more than half from 293 cents per pound in the first half to 140 cents in March. “Our desire is to move to 125 cents as we end the current financial year,” Mehta said. Profit Slides Vedanta posted an attributable profit of $219.4 million for the fiscal year to end-March, down from $879 million in the previous year and less than the average forecast of $294 million given by six analysts surveyed by Reuters Estimates. Its two most profitable divisions were zinc and iron ore, accounting for 38% and 35% of earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA). Vedanta, which also produces copper and aluminium, said overall EBITDA fell 46.5% to $1.61 billion, higher than the forecast of $1.55 billion, while revenue declined 20% to $6.58 billion. Despite the weaker bottom line, Vedanta proposed a final dividend of 25 cents a share, the same as the previous year, bringing the total dividend to 41.5 cents. Vedanta said its growth projects were on track, which will boost copper output to 1 million tonnes a year from 446,000 tonnes and aluminium to 2.5 million tonnes from 462,000 tonnes. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 9:42 am Asian carmakers falter; rivals hit the gas in IndiaMUMBAI (Reuters) - U.S. and European automakers should be better placed to meet pent-up demand for cars in India by the year-end, as they go ahead with expansion plans, while Asian rivals delay investments due to the crippling financial crisis.Source: Reuters: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 9:41 am Anil Ambani firm enters media outsourcing business - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 7 May 2009 | 9:29 am Twitter co-founder says company not for saleSan Francisco: The popular micro-blogging and social networking service Twitter is not for sale, one of the company’s founders said on TV on Wednesday. Biz Stone made the declaration in an appearance on the ABC show “The View.” When host Barbara Walters - mentioning rumors that Google Inc, Microsoft Corp and Apple Inc might be interested in acquiring the company - asked whether Twitter is for sale, Stone answered, “no.” “We’re just getting started as I’ve said. The company is two years old, we have so much to do, so much product stuff to fix, and so much growing to do.” Twitter has been the subject of takeover speculation since the company turned down a $500 million acquisition offer by social networking heavyweight Facebook. Twitter is a free service that allows people to send short, 140-character text messages to their network of friends. It has become something of a cultural phenomenon, with politicians, celebrities and athletes all signing up to send messages, or “tweets,” to a growing audience of followers. According to Nielsen Online, which measures Internet traffic, Twitter’s Web site had more than 7 million unique visitors in February, compared to 475,000 in February 2008. The company, based in San Francisco, California, is focusing on monetizing its service this year. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 9:24 am Tata Steel sales volume up 31 pc in AprilThe country's major steel producer, Tata Steel, said on Thursday that its sales volume surged by 31 per cent to 4.52 lakh tonnes in April.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 9:15 am Jet launches no-frills service, airfare cheaper by 15%In a bid to cash in on summer vacation rush, Jet Airways will launch new no-frills service from Friday.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 7 May 2009 | 9:12 am Rupee trims rise as stocks pare gainsMumbai: The Indian rupee dropped from fresh two-and-half month highs in afternoon trade on Thursday due to dollar demand from importers and hurt by the US currency’s gains versus other major currencies overseas. At 2:10pm, the partially convertible rupee was at Rs49.43/44 per dollar, off an early high of Rs49.2750, which was its strongest since 17 February. It had closed at Rs49.58/60 on Wednesday. Dealers said importers and oil refiners were buying dollars in the market, pressuring the rupee lower. Rupee strengthened to a 2-month peak during morning as a rise in the local share market buoyed hopes for capital inflows, with gains in other Asian currencies also underpinning sentiment. At 11:00am, the partially convertible rupee was at Rs49.40/41 per dollar, off an early high of Rs49.2750, which was its strongest since 17 February. It had closed at Rs49.58/60 on Wednesday. “Rise in shares and Asian units is helping the rupee, but there is dollar demand coming in from importers, which is why it has come off its early highs,” a senior dealer with a private bank said. Indian shares rose over 1% in early deals, buoyed by strong Asian peers, after positive US labour data and easing concerns about the health of the financial sector sparked a rally on Wall Street. Foreigners have bought $1.5 billion of local shares in April and nearly $500 million in the first two days this week, after heavy outflows in January and February. The South Korean won and Indonesian rupiah led a rally in Asian currencies on Thursday in tandem with regional equities as positive signs on the health of US banks and the global economy encouraged risk-taking. “We do not expect any sharp appreciation of the rupee in the immediate near term as the uncertainty related to sustained capital flows still remain. For the month of May we see the currency trading in a broad range of Rs48.50 - 50.50 with significant volatility,” Indranil Pan and Kaushik Das, economists at Kotak Mahindra Bank said in a note. “Going forward, for the rest of the year we could see rupee appreciating to around 46-47 if the “green shoots” of global recovery are sustained and if this in turn leads to higher capital inflows into India,” they said. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 9:05 am Stinking whale carcass drives tourists off Goa beachThe carcass of a 14-metre-long humpback whale, hastily buried by forest department officials in the popular Palolem beach in south Goa, is driving away tourists due to stench from the dead animal, much to the ire of local shopkeepers dependent on the tourists.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 9:00 am Amazon launches larger-screen Kindle for $489New York / San Francisco: Amazon.com Inc introduced a larger, souped-up Kindle electronic reader on Wednesday designed for students and newspaper readers, but a $489 price tag could make it too expensive for many consumers. The Kindle DX, which has a 9.7 inch black-and-white display, is designed to be a more friendly vehicle for textbooks and newspapers, which often need a larger space to display their content effectively. The DX has about 2.5 times the surface area of the normal Kindle and costs $130 more. Despite the popularity and buzz surrounding the Kindle brand, the DX faces challenges, analysts say. It debuts at a time when consumer spending is ebbing due to the recession. And while it has a less-cluttered layout than the average computer screen and is easier on the eyes than a monitor, the DX provides little of the interactivity that people get on other hand-held devices. It does not offer color or touch-screen. Super-sizing the Kindle also appears to ignore consumers’ fascination with pocket-size gadgets such as Apple Inc’s iPod and iPhone. “It seems like you’re fighting the impulse among consumers to go to smaller, more portable ways of acquiring media, such as an iPhone or a netbook,” said Alan Mutter, a technology venture capitalist and former newspaper editor who runs the newspaper business blog Reflections of a Newsosaur. Pilot programs The new Kindle comes as other companies including Sony Corp experiment with digital readers as ways to get people to use — and pay for — traditional media, even as they spend more time online and less time on the printed page. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos said The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Boston Globe will start pilot programs with the DX this summer. He said five universities will do pilot programs with the reader acting as an all-in-one textbook. The DX also allows people to read personal documents, and is touted as a way for businesspeople and others to avoid having to carry around an assortment of loose papers. Besides making highly formatted pages easier to read, the DX has more memory, 3.3 gigabytes, which can hold up to 3,500 books versus the normal Kindle’s 1,500. But at $489, analysts questioned how many economy-conscious consumers would open their wallets for the new gadget, which weighs nearly 19 ounces. “It is somewhat ironic in that the device is getting more expensive as the source content that is well-suited to it is becoming more mass-market such as newspapers and textbooks,” said Ross Rubin, consumer technology analyst at the NPD Group. Amazon is quick to tout its Kindle as the future of reading -- and a sales driver for the Seattle-based giant -- but does not disclose its sales and profit breakdown, leading some analysts to view the Kindle as an interesting niche device with minor mainstream appeal. No game-changer Amazon is hoping that newspaper publishers find the Kindle DX a better way to show off their daily editions. The New York Times and The Washington Post will offer the DX at a reduced price to readers where home delivery of those newspapers is not available. The announcement comes hours after The New York Times concluded a series of marathon talks with The Boston Globe’s biggest union to win millions of dollars in cost concessions that the Times says it needs to keep the paper alive. Newspapers are already available on the regular Kindle. A subscription to The New York Times costs $13.99 per month, and the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times cost $9.99. “It’s certainly not a game-changing move for the newspaper business at this point in time,” NPD’s Rubin said. “E-readers are just a piece of the puzzle,” he said. Textbook publishers Cengage Learning Inc, Pearson Plc and Wiley will offer books through the Kindle store starting this summer, with others to follow. Trials using the DX beginning this fall will be conducted at Arizona State University, Case Western Reserve University, Princeton University, Reed College and the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, the company said. Amazon did not disclose the price of e-textbooks, but they are likely to be at a discount to physical books. The hand-held Kindle, updated earlier this year and only available in the United States, allows users to read books, newspapers, magazines and blogs. Like the regular Kindle, DX users will be able to get access to books that can be downloaded through the Kindle store for $9.99 in most cases. Amazon shares ended 9 cents higher at $81.99 on the Nasdaq. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 8:53 am IHCL to acquire more stake in OrientExpress HotelsIndian Hotels Company Ltd has agreed to buy 2.25 million Class A shares of the USbased OrientExpress Hotel in which it had acquired a stake of 11.5 per cent for $247 million in late 2007.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 8:46 am ONGC adds 284.81 mt of oil and gas reservesONGC has added inplace reserves of 284.81 million tonnes (mt) of oil and oilequivalent gas during 200809. The highest addition by the company in the past 18 years, a company statement said.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 8:44 am Jet AirKFL operational synergies pact yet to take effectThe grand alliance between Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines on reducing costs through operational synergies is still stuck at the working group stage, nearly seven months after the two airlines signed a landmark agreement.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 8:40 am ATM transaction volumes rise post waiver of chargesBanks with a reasonably large ATM network witnessed 2530 per cent rise in transaction volumes and a corresponding increase in feebased income in the last one month.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 7 May 2009 | 8:35 am ECB set to trim rates, decide on alternative stepsFrankfurt: The European Central Bank is widely expected to cut interest rates on Thursday to 1.0% but markets are more focused on any alternative measures it reveals to get the euro zone economy back on its feet. Analysts polled by Reuters were unanimous that the ECB would cut rates by 25 basis points to a fresh record low, finishing a job they had expected it to do last month. The decision will be announced at 1145 GMT. There is a strong feeling that this will be the final cut in a cycle where the Governing Council has slashed the refi rate from 4.25% since last October. Several policymakers have said they are unwilling to go below 1% for practical and psychological reasons. Attention is now turning to the ECB’s stance on extra steps, such as the asset purchases adopted by other central banks. President Jean-Claude Trichet has promised to reveal after the meeting what, if any, further unconventional tactics it will use. Judging by recent public comments, policymakers went into the meeting at 0700 GMT still split on what to do. Comments from some, including Axel Weber and Juergen Stark, suggest that the ECB is likely to double the maximum period that commercial banks can borrow funds to 12 months. Economists had expected this announcement last month, just as they had predicted a 50 point rate cut to 1% at the Council’s April meeting, when it delivered only 25 points. Weber, who heads Germany’s Bundesbank, has also suggested that any move on extending loan maturities should come with a guarantee that interest rates will not be cut further. Other ECB members, including vice-president Lucas Papademos and Athanasios Orphanides, have floated a bolder approach of buying assets such as bank bonds or commercial paper. SPLIT Economists are equally divided on the ECB’s likely path. “The big focus will be on what measures Trichet announces as regards a possible step towards quantitative easing,” said Mark Miller, a senior economist at Bank of Scotland. “Extending the maturities (on borrowing) is one of the safer bets but I personally feel the ECB will take a route of buying private sector assets, for example higher quality corporate bonds.” Others think the bank will shy away from such a big step, at least for now. “Although some ECB board members have advocated the buying of corporate bonds or commercial paper, some national central banks are sceptical. The mixed experience of the Bank of England boosts the arguments of the latter group,” said Nomura analyst Laurent Bilke. Some analysts expect something in between, with the ECB extending its lending maturities but striking a compromise by building in the option to buy assets if the economy worsens. “Although the Governing Council will not rule out the option (of asset purchases), buying private sector debt securities seems to be regarded as a plan B,” said Fortis bank economist Nick Kounis. Bank of England policymakers are expected to leave UK rates unchanged at 0.5% on Thursday and interest is focused on the BoE’s progress report on its own programme of asset purchases. The euro was down in early trade from Tuesday’s month-high of $1.3439 against the US dollar. GREEN SHOOTS Economists will also be scour Trichet’s comments at his 1230 GMT news conference for hints that the ECB has spotted any green shoots of economic recovery. Policymakers in the US and Britain have tentatively flagged such signs. Better-than-expected euro zone business and consumer sentiment this month, alongside improvements in closely-watched forward-looking indicators such as PMI and business activity data have sparked hopes that the worst of the recession is over. But the European Commission this week predicted the euro zone economy would shrink 4% this year and 0.1% next year, well below the ECB’s current worst-case scenarios. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 8:15 am Small towns hold big promise for India's housing boomFor two years, Ratnesh Gupta, a software engineer with IT major Birla Soft, has been trying to fulfil his dream of buying a house of his own, either in the national capital or in Chandigarh. But his budget of Rs.2.5 million (Rs.25 lakh) was making it beyond reach.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 7 May 2009 | 8:01 am Ford moves ahead with Volvo auctionNew York: Ford Motor Co’s sale of Volvo is moving ahead as it runs due diligence on the remaining bidders, and a buyer could be announced by the end of this month or next, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Less than five bidders remain in the auction for the Swedish brand, and China’s Geely Automobile Holdings is one of them, the sources said. Both people declined to be identified because the details of the auction are confidential. Geely is also in the first round of bidders for General Motors Corp’s Saab brand, according to another source familiar with the Saab auction. One of the two sources familiar with the Volvo auction said the bidders were being given management presentations and tours of the Volvo facilities in Sweden. Ford, the only US automaker that did not seek emergency loans from the US government, put Volvo up for sale in December as it looked to cut costs and raise cash amid industry-wide record-low vehicle sales. Ford has already sold Aston Martin, Jaguar and Land Rover, disbanding the Premier Automotive Group, whose only remaining brand is Volvo. The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker lost $14.7 billion in 2008 and has reported losses of about $30 billion in the past three years. It also burned through $21 billion of cash last year. Ford bought Volvo for $6.45 billion in 1999 and wrote down the value of Volvo by $2.4 billion following a review of the brand’s prospects in January 2008. But with auto sales at record lows — Volvo’s US sales fell nearly 37% in April — any likely buyer is expected to buy the brand at a heavy discount. Volvo posted a loss of $736 million on a pre-tax basis in the fourth quarter of 2008, and lost $255 million in the first quarter of this year. Ford only began disclosing Volvo’s results last year, in an effort to make it a more independent unit. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 7:32 am BoA, Citi, Wells need capital under stress testsWashington/New York: Regulators are ordering some of the largest US banks to find tens of billions of dollars of capital to cushion themselves in the event of a deep economic downturn. About half of the 19 largest US banks are expected to need more capital once the results of government “stress tests” of their ability to weather a deep recession are released on Thursday at 5:00pm EDT (2100 GMT). While the reported capital shortfalls so far are much larger than analysts expected, bank shares soared as investors got more clarity over how well the industry will cope with perhaps the most severe recession since World War II. Among banks needing capital, Bank of America Corp shares closed up 17.1%, Citigroup Inc rose 16.6% and Wells Fargo & Co rose 15.6%. The Standard & Poor’s Financials Index gained 8.1%. “The market likes the certainty of putting numbers on the worst-case scenarios of how much capital these banks need,” said Chris Armbruster, an analyst at Al Frank Asset Management in Laguna Beach, California. Regulators have told Bank of America it needs $34 billion of capital, while Citigroup needs $5 billion and the auto and mortgage lender GMAC LLC needs $11.5 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. Citigroup’s amount reflects its previously announced plan to convert some preferred shares into common stock. The various sources were not authorized to speak because the official stress test results are not public. Wells Fargo needs $15 billion, Morgan Stanley needs $1.5 billion and Regions Financial Corp needs some capital, the Wall Street Journal said. Bank of New York Mellon Corp does not need capital, a person familiar with the matter said. American Express Co, Capital One Financial Corp, Goldman Sachs Group Inc, JPMorgan Chase & Co and MetLife Inc also do not need capital, the Journal said. All the companies declined to comment. In an interview on PBS’ “Charlie Rose Show,” US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said none of the 19 banks are at risk of insolvency. He also said the government does now want to get involved in day-to-day management at the banks. Banks may cover any capital shortfalls through a mixture of asset sales, share sales and perhaps the conversion of the preferred shares into common stock. The government is giving banks needing capital one month to develop a plan to raise it and until 9 November to finish the job. These banks must also review their managements and board of directors to ensure proper leadership. Banks needing capital may ask the government to issue more preferred shares, or to swap government preferred shares into convertible preferred shares. They cannot repay aid from the Troubled Asset Relief Program until they issue debt not backed by the federal government, and for more than a five-year term. Calling the new capital a “one-time buffer,” the government pledged “to stand firmly behind the banking system during this period of financial strain to ensure it can perform its key function of providing credit to households and businesses.” The tests are a key element of the Obama administration plan to stabilize lenders. The White House will await them before commenting on potential management changes at banks, spokesman Robert Gibbs said. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp chairman Sheila Bair said the results should be “confidence instilling.” If banks convert preferred shares issued under TARP, the government could become one of their biggest shareholders. Citigroup analyst Keith Horowitz wrote that banks, other than his own, may need to raise $75 billion after the tests. Analysts believe other banks that may need capital include Fifth Third Bancorp, KeyCorp, PNC Financial Services Group Inc and SunTrust Banks Inc. Pressure on Bank of America CEO Bank of America’s stress test results are certain to increase pressure on chief executive Kenneth Lewis, who was ousted as chairman last week in a shareholder vote. That ouster could also lay the groundwork for his departure from his employer of 40 years, including the last eight as CEO. The largest U.S. bank has already received $45 billion of government help. Lewis told analysts on 20 April that “we absolutely don’t think we need additional capital” but added: “Make no doubt about it, credit is bad, and we believe credit is going to get worse.” Critics fault Lewis for not backing away in December from the Merrill merger or disclosing Merrill’s failing health. The bank might raise capital by converting some of its $30 billion of privately held preferred shares into common stock, or by selling its stakes in China Construction Bank Corp and Brazil’s Itau Unibanco. It might also sell its Columbia asset management unit, and has said it may sell its First Republic Bank business. Wells Fargo opposed taking its initial $25 billion of government aid and did not get government help in buying Wachovia Corp for $12.5 billion at year-end. Chairman Dick Kovacevich in March called the government tests “asinine.” Billionaire investor Warren Buffett, whose Berkshire Hathaway Inc is the bank’s largest shareholder, said on Sunday Wells Fargo needs no more capital. But analysts have said Wells Fargo may need a greater cushion against loan losses, despite its having taken a big writedown when it bought Wachovia. Citigroup’s capital need would be at the low end of the $5 billion to $10 billion it had been expected to require. The bank is preparing an exchange offer that could leave the government with a 36% equity stake. GMAC, meanwhile, has been struggling with rising auto and mortgage losses, as well as falling vehicle sales at its former parent, General Motors Corp. It said on Tuesday that a GM bankruptcy would not automatically trigger a GMAC filing. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 6:49 am Nintendo shrugs off slowdown, annual profit rises 8.5%Tokyo: Nintendo Co. reported an 8.5% rise in annual profit as the video game maker shrugged off the global slowdown that has battered other Japanese manufacturers. Nintendo, which did not break down quarterly numbers, racked up a record ¥279.09 billion profit for the fiscal year ended 31 March, up from ¥257.34 billion the previous year. Fiscal year sales edged up 9.9% to ¥1.839 trillion from ¥1.672 trillion, with overseas sales accounting for 87.5%, the Kyoto-based maker of Pokemon and Super Mario games said in a statement on Thursday. Nintendo’s Wii home console and DS portable have been selling well around the world. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 7 May 2009 | 6:00 am Rupee strengthens by 24 paise against dollarThe Indian rupee appreciated by 24 paise against the US dollar in early trade today on increased capital inflows by foreign funds in the domestic bourses.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 7 May 2009 | 5:00 am Outsourcing benefits may override tax concerns for US cosNew Delhi, May 6 Employees of US firms in India need not have immediate worries about losing their jobs as a consequence of the impact of the tax changes being proposed by the US President, Mr Barack Obama. Just how the cookie crumbles later onSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am Jet-Sahara case: HC to give ruling on FridayMumbai, May 6 The Bombay High Court has reserved its judgment on the ongoing tax case between Jet Airways and Sahara India Commercial Corporation Ltd (SICCL) forSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am Day Trading GuideWe notice formation of dark cloud cover candlestick pattern in DLF signalling a reversal. We recommend a sell. Desist trading in ICICI Bank for the session. Fresh short position can be initiated ifSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am General insurers, MFs shifting focus to commercial papersBangalore, May 6 With bulk deposit rates plunging below the Reserve Bank of India’s new repurchase rates of 4.75 per cent, general insurers and mutual funds are beginning to chase high rated commercialSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am Shipping stocks better SensexFrom the market lows of March, shipping stocks have rebounded by an average 60 per cent, much higher than the Sensex’s 46 per cent gain over this period.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am SBI lends Rs 500 cr to Kingfisher AirlinesNew Delhi, May 6 The cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines has been loaned Rs 500 crore by State Bank of India. This is only a fourth of the Rs 2,000-crore which the airline is seeking from a consortium ofSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am The burden of entry loadThe new pension scheme has drawn flak on two counts — limiting investment in equity to 50 per cent of one’s contribution and levying annual account management fee of Rs 350, irrespective of its size, thus clearly being pro-wealthy in itsSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am Obama plan may hit Shanghai more than Bangalore, feels NasscomBangalore, May 6 Allaying concerns over the US President, Mr Barack Obama’s Bangalore-to-Buffalo remark, the National Association of Software and Services Companies (Nasscom) said it had nothing to do with outsourcing or India, but expectsSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am New method to grow sugarcane with less waterHyderabad, May 6 Now, the sugarcane industry can take to drip method for cultivating the water-intensive crop, reducing input costs and also get higherSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am Gammon India (Rs 82.7): BuyWe recommend a buy in Gammon India from a short-term trading perspective. It is evident from the charts that the stock’s decline from January peak of Rs 96 was arrested at Rs 50 in early March, which was just above the December 2008 low ofSource: Business Line - Home Page | 7 May 2009 | 12:00 am The lack of foreign funds is tellingSectors such as manufacturing, infrastructure and real estate show symptoms of asphyxiation by Fx.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 May 2009 | 10:07 pm Consumers don't give it up in a downturnAmid falling sales and a slowdown in consumer spend, a few categories such as watches and television sets are continuing to grow.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 May 2009 | 10:02 pm A layman's guide to the New Pension SchemeOn May 1, 2009, the PFRDA threw open the NPS to all Indian citizens. Till then, this pension scheme was available only to the central and state government employees.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 May 2009 | 10:01 pm Essar says holding in Loop not over 10%Loop Telecom on Wednesday told the government that it had not violated any licensing norms.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 May 2009 | 9:56 pm Essar Power, Jindal in REC shortlist for network dealThe network will be laid across Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat and the project will be carried out in 2-3.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 May 2009 | 9:55 pm Job portals find the going tough, one even shuts downA random call by yours truly to Vikramjit Singh Sahaye, who was a general manager with Yellowjobs.com, revealed that he had recently quit the recruitment industry.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 May 2009 | 9:54 pm RADAG in troubled waters for \'smuggled\' yachtCNBCTV18 learns that the Mumbai Customs department has written to the Bombay High Court alleging that the RADAG violated the Customs Act when it imported a yacht. The customs department is learnt to be seeking a Rs 15crore bank guarantee and Rs 3 crore in duties to release the yacht.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 May 2009 | 9:46 pm Airlines told to cite total payable fareThe director general of civil aviation has given airlines 30 days to correct their websites and databases so that passengers get a single all-inclusive fare figure.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 8:55 pm S&P puts Tata Steel UK's secured debt on watchGlobal rating agency, Standard and Poor's has kept its 'BB' issue rating on the pound 3.67-billion senior secured debt of Tata Steel UK (TSUK) on credit watch with negative implications.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 8:07 pm 'Obama's statement has nothing to do with outsourcing'The IT industry said that US President Obama's Bangalore-Buffalo reference had been misinterpreted and that it had nothing to do with 'outsourcing' or 'offshoring' or either with India.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 8:02 pm Obama's tax worries pharma tooThe pharma industry fears that it could be hit if US pharma biggies cut down on outsourcing to Indian companies focused on contract manufacturing and research services.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 7:52 pm Sahara fund for just Rs 10/dayIn a bid to take mutual fund investments to the masses, Sahara MF is proposing to launch a scheme that will accept investments on a daily basis, and for as little as Rs 10.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 7:51 pm Real estate stocks boomIn less than two months since the BSE sensex saw its 2009 bottom on March 9, price of six realty stocks on the BSE have more than doubled while price of 26 stocks have gained over 50% during the same period.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 7:48 pm Hyundai may shift i20 production on labour unrestProduction at Hyundai Motors' Sriperumbudur factory has been hit due to a recurring labour unrest, forcing the company to consider shifting the manufacturing of the export-focussed i20 premium compact to a European country, taking away the India-exclusivity tag from the brand.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 7:45 pm 'Wait & watch before investing in pension scheme'The New Pension Scheme (NPS), launched on May 1 amid much fanfare, hasn't found many takers among financial experts.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 6 May 2009 | 7:37 pm Slowdown, powercuts sting Tirupur's textile exportersAs the sun slowly sets behind the skyline of factory buildings, a group of women enters the Vasantham Textiles mill in this industrial town. They position themselves behind their respective sewing machines to stitch T-shirts. But many machines in another corner of the large hall remain unattended.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 6 May 2009 | 7:15 pm ICICI Bank scales down operations in US, Sri LankaICICI Bank, the countrys largest private sector bank, has scaled down its overseas operations, especially in the United States and Sri Lanka. It has also recalled some employees from its international offices now that the businesses of fund-raising and merger and acquisitions have shrunk.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 6 May 2009 | 7:12 pm Old whine in new battleCongress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi may have extended a hand of friendship to other parties, but when it comes to the main opposition, the Bharatiya Janata Party, there is no let-up in hostilities. And with judgment day, May 16, round the corner, the battle has entered cyberspace.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 6 May 2009 | 7:10 pm 800 arrested for strike at HyundaiAround 800 workers at Hyundai Motor Indias Sriperumbudur factory, who were on hunger strike, were arrested today.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 6 May 2009 | 7:09 pm Nashik strikes Rs 25cr daily dent to M&MUnion leader's suspension sparks workers' protest.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 6 May 2009 | 7:07 pm Hirco shareholders reject Laxey’s board revamp proposalBangalore: London-listed Hirco Plc.’s shareholders on Wednesday rejected a move by hedge fund Laxey Partners Ltd to remove its chairman and two board members at an extraordinary general meeting. Shares of Hirco, the investment vehicle for India’s residential builder Hiranandani Group, rose 8.5% after the news. “As a board, we considered the Laxey proposals ran directly against the interests of the company,” Douglas Gardner, Hirco’s independent non-executive director, said. Laxey, which holds about 10% of India-focused Hirco, had called for a shareholder meeting to remove Hirco’s chairman, Niranjan Hiranandani, and two other directors. It had also sought to appoint its nominees to Hirco’s board. Laxey, which had been opposing Hirco’s proposed merger with its holding companies Hirco Developments Pvt. Ltd and Hiranandani Investment Co., had also urged Hirco’s directors to consider naming a new chairman independent of the Hiranandani family. Last month, Hirco said 13.73% shareholder Standard Life Investments Ltd was not in favour of Laxey’s proposals to revamp Hirco’s board. Hirco had also said last month the replacement of its chairman would affect its property sales and urged its shareholders to reject Laxey’s move. Proxy advisory firm RiskMetrics Group Inc. had also recommended that Hirco shareholders vote against Laxey’s proposals. “Laxey has done a large damage to the company’s image. We have to work on that,” Hiranandani said, adding that the company would continue to work on the ongoing projects. Asked whether Laxey Partners would now exit from Hirco, Hiranandani said: “We are not worried about who are the shareholders. We have nothing against Laxey Partners as well. Our aim would be to create shareholders’ value.” PTI contributed to this story. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 6 May 2009 | 5:09 pm Cognizant shifts focus from Europe to emerging marketsDespite an economic slowdown, Nasdaq-listed software services firm Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. has provided a robust guidance for the current fiscal year. President and managing director, global delivery, Chandra Sekaran spoke about the optimistic prediction and other issues impacting the information technology (IT) sector. Edited excerpts:  Tech talk: Cognizant Technology Solutions’ Chandra Sekaran. There are three to four reasons why we feel optimistic about meeting our guidance. As an industry, we still feel the value proposition through off-shoring and outsourcing is quite compelling. So, customers would continue to utilize (these) services to control their own costs. Secondly, we enjoy a special place in the industry due to our unique operating model, which is characterized by very high-touch customer relationship, backed with a solid delivery excellence. Due to this... we have been able to make any solutions or services that can help our customers meet their short- and long-term cyclical challenges. The third reason is really the re-investment strategy that we have been following at Cognizant ever since we started. We invest more in our business, so even during a downturn, we actually re-invest our profits back into business, so that we can grow our business even faster. Investing in new geographies is getting us more traction. That’s why we are optimistic about our guidance We keep investing in newer geographies to globalize our business. The US has been our strongest market and in last three years, we have been focusing on European markets. Europe been a fantastic space for Cognizant. Two years ago, our revenue from Europe was about 10-11%. Today, it’s about 18%. We are now focusing on emerging markets. We will continue to invest in newer geographies. It’s helping us to get a lot more traction and that’s why we are very optimistic about meeting our guidance. Let me ask you to spilt up the year for us because most other Indian IT companies seem to be very cautious about the current quarter. They say if there is growth it will be in the last two quarters of the year, which is very back-ended. Is that how you map the year? We have given a guidance of about 2% growth. We will do at least $760 million (Rs3,762 crore) for our second quarter, which is the June quarter. We have also reaffirmed our guidance for 10% growth for the whole year. So, we are quite confident of meeting the guidance. We have seen customer budgets getting finalized in the last few months. We see some kind of firm statements coming from our customers. In a way we are able to work closely and identify projects that will start flowing in from second quarter onward. We definitely see some optimism in our revenue opportunity in subsequent quarters. How much lower do you think is the budget going to be for this year? Our interaction with some of the other IT companies indicates that budgets are becoming a bit irrelevant in the present economic scenario. I won’t say that. I believe budgets are really important. Even if you are going to spend less, you need to have certain budgets earmarked for how you want to spend your IT dollars. So, budgets are important and in most situations what we see is actually split. While some customers are marginally down, for most customers the situation is pretty flat. Everywhere, customers are really focused on reducing the cost. That’s why you see lots of discussions on reducing the total cost and ownership of the customer, optimizing IT services and meeting business goals at the same time. So, offshore and outsourcing comes in lightly to help customers. How much lower for budgets then—5-10% compared with last year, or more than that? It is very low. Single digits in case of half of our customers and for most others, it is pretty flat. Infosys indicated to us that they are expecting pricing cuts, as deep as 6%, on some clients. What are you factoring in? We haven’t noticed anything unusual on the pricing site, although we have seen a decline of 2-3% sequentially. But that’s more to do with the type of services we are winning. If you look at your application management, this is supporting the existing applications, that share of our business is increasing more than the discretionary applications development. The skills that are needed in delivering these services are slightly lower than a complex application development. So, you see some reduced price. Also, the type of deals we are chasing are large opportunities. Here customers do expect some economies of scale. That again leads to some downward movement in pricing, and if you really look at it, it is not really a price reduction, but more of scale efficiency and the type of services that you take to the customers. It is actually showing the 2-3% net reduction. At this point should Indian IT companies be worried about the noises that are coming out on protectionism and anti-outsourcing? I am referring to some of the statements made by US President Barack Obama. Do you think there is a reason to be concerned? Definitely these noises don’t offer well for the industries, so it is a concern. But we should not be reacting more than what is needed. So, even after the President’s speech... we are still getting expert opinions on what it really means. It’s very clear (that) the implications are going to be beyond IT industry. It is going to affect every US corporation. It is going to affect all overseas operations. So, I am sure it will be widely debated before it is taken to conclusion. cnbctv18@livemint.com Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 6 May 2009 | 4:55 pm
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