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Ashok Leyland April sales down 69% at 1750 unitsAutomobile companies have announced their April sales numbers. Commercial vehicle manufacturer, Ashok Leyland\'s April total sales declined 69.33% to 1,750 units from 5,705 units in the same period of last year. Its domestic sales plunged to 1,615 units versus 5,549 units and exports declined to 135 units from 156 units (YoY).Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 May 2009 | 10:04 pm Will Bharati Shipyard make an open offer to Great Offshore?Sandeep Parekh, Visiting Associate Faculty, IIMA said there is 49% chance to make an open offer. However, PC Kapoor, MD, Bharati Shipyard, said they have checked with regulators and have to only make an open offer if they acquire more than 15% stake in Great Offshore.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 May 2009 | 1:56 pm Boston Globe union meets over concessions!Members of The Boston Globe`s largest union met Thursday to debate a proposal for deep wage and benefit cuts that the newspaper`s parent company, The New York Times Co., said were necessary to keep the daily from closing.Source: Zee News : Business | 9 May 2009 | 12:45 pm Tatas, SBI, Infosys among world`s top 50 reputed firms !The Tata Group, State Bank of India (SBI) and Infosys Technologies are among 17 Indian firms that figure among the top 50 in a list of the world`s 200 most reputable companies.Source: Zee News : Business | 9 May 2009 | 12:45 pm SBI plans to raise Rs 20K cr from rights issue in FY`10!The country`s largest public sector lender State Bank of India plans to raise capital worth Rs 20,000 crore "preferably in the form of rights issue" in the current year (2009-10).Source: Zee News : Business | 9 May 2009 | 12:45 pm Wall St leaps on bank optimism, jobs data!US stocks rose on Friday, and the Nasdaq capped its longest stretch of weekly gains in a decade as stress test results and reassuring jobs data fueled hopes the worst is over for banks and the economy.Source: Zee News : Business | 9 May 2009 | 12:45 pm Warren Buffett`s Berkshire reports $1.5 bn 1Q loss!Warren Buffett`s company reported a USD 1.5 billion first-quarter loss as it wrote down its ConocoPhillips investment and mostly unrealized derivative losses helped drag Berkshire Hathaway`s results.Source: Zee News : Business | 9 May 2009 | 12:45 pm Automobile News, Mobile News & Other Product News: Infibeam - Infibeam
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 May 2009 | 12:36 pm SBI Q4 profit up 46%, declares 290% dividendBeating the economic slowdown, country's biggest lender SBI today posted 45.62% growth in net profit at Rs 2,742.31 crore for March quarter of FY 2009 on the back of higher interest earning and other incomes.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 May 2009 | 12:32 pm Captain Gopinath to sell 24% in logistics ventureThe pioneer of low cost flying in India, Captain Gopinath has launched the first Indianowned cargo freighter called Deccan Express Logistics. The initial investment in the venture is USD 25 million and Gopinath is looking to raise another USD 30 million. He says he is in talks with a few investors to offload 24% stake in the logistics venture.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 May 2009 | 12:21 pm Gunships strike Pakistan Taliban, residents stuckMingora (Pakistan) : Pakistani helicopter gunships blasted Taliban positions in the militants’ Swat valley bastion on Saturday, while a curfew blocked residents from joining hundreds of thousands who have already fled the fighting. The struggle in the scenic northwestern valley 130 km from Islamabad has become a test of Pakistan’s resolve to fight a growing Taliban insurgency that has alarmed the United States. Pakistan’s army went on a full-scale offensive on Friday after a government go-ahead to flush out violent militants from the Islamist stronghold, a former tourism centre. The military said late on Friday 143 militants had been killed over the previous 24 hours. Fighting had already picked up earlier in the week, triggering a mass civilian exodus from the battle zones in recent days, but concerns are growing about the fate of those still trapped and unable to move because of a curfew. “We are feeling so helpless, we want to go but can’t as there is a curfew,” said Sallahudin Khan by telephone from Mingora, Swat’s main town. “We tried to leave on Friday after authorities relaxed the curfew for a few hours, but couldn’t as the main road leading out of Mingora was literally jammed with the flood of fleeing people,” he said as gunship fire boomed in the background. Helicopters targeted militant hideouts in Mingora on Saturday after insurgents fired rockets at a military base in the town, military officials said, but there were no immediate reports of any casualties on either side. Swat’s top administrator, Khushal Khan, told Reuters the curfew would remain in force throughout the day, although he said there could be a break at some point later so those who wanted to go could leave. The UN refugee agency has said a “massive displacement” is underway. Citing provincial government estimates, it said on Friday up to 200,000 people had left their homes over recent days with another 300,000 on the move or about to move. They join 555,000 people displaced from other areas because of fighting since August, the agency said. Many of the displaced stay with relatives or friends or find shelter on their own, but aid agencies and officials fear if the situation is protracted they will join tens of thousands in camps, further straining resources. “If the conflict lasts longer, then we expect those living outside camps to come to the camps and that will be a huge problem,” Khalid Khan Umerzai, an official in North West Frontier Province, said this week, citing funds shortages for care. Pakistan’s private Express TV station reported looting at one camp on Saturday, showing scenes of scuffles over supplies, but said the situation had been brought under control. Pakistan Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani told a news conference on Saturday the government would work to mobilize support at home for the military action and seek international help to address the issue of displaced people. He also pledged the military would do its best to avoid hurting civilians. “This is not a normal war. This is a guerrilla war. But it is our resolve, it is the resolve of the army that there should be minimum collateral damage.” “This is our own war. This is war for the survival of the country,” Gilani said. The military’s top spokesman, Major-General Athar Abbas, said on Friday that while government forces were determined to eliminate militants in Swat, the operation was difficult. He declined to give a timeline for clearing the valley. Pakistan’s fight against militants sheltering near the border with Afghanistan is seen as vital to efforts to defeat the insurgency in that country. While Swat is not next to the border analysts fear it could also become a base for Afghanistan insurgents as well as for efforts to destabilize nuclear-armed Pakistan’s government. Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, in talks in Washington this week, assured US President Barack Obama of Islamabad’s commitment to defeating Al-Qaeda and its allies. Up to 15,000 troops have been pitched against between 4,000 to 5,000 battle-hardened militants in the valley, where residents say insurgents hold sway in most parts. “In my area, there is no government, it’s all Taliban,” said Ibrahim Khan, a farmer in the militant stronghold of Matta town. “They are in full control.” In an incident that could hurt government efforts to rally support for the offensive, suspected pilotless US drone aircraft fired missiles on Saturday at targets in South Waziristan, an Al-Qaeda and Taliban sanctuary on the Afghanistan border southwest of Islamabad, intelligence officials said. Pakistanis have been critical of such US attacks on militant targets because they sometimes kill civilians and are viewed as violating the country’s sovereignty. They have been a factor in past opposition to Islamabad’s cooperating with Washington in fighting militants. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 May 2009 | 12:09 pm Sports minister fears IPL contest amounts to gamblingChennai: Sports minister Manohar Singh Gill is concerned an Indian Premier League (IPL) mobile phone-based contest amounts to gambling and could give rise to a fresh bout of corruption in the game. Organisers of the Twenty-20 event have introduced an SMS contest aiming at keeping interest in India alive. The league has been moved to South Africa as the dates clash with the country’s general elections. Some experts have raised serious misgivings about the contest, in which participants have to predict the sequence of runs that will be scored in the subsequent over, saying that it amounts to gambling, which is illegal in India. “Cricket is part of the family of sports in our country. Its current riches do not set it apart from other games,” Gill said in a strongly worded statement on Saturday. Gill said the contest was viewed as ”openly encouraging gambling and betting”. “We have already had ....a match-fixing scandal in the game,” he said, referring to a scandal that broke in India and rocked the international game in 2000. “It seems the ICC (International Cricket Council) had expressed concerns about such possibilities in the IPL league.” The IPL, promoted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and featuring some of the top players from world cricket, has been a huge commercial success. Gill said it was the duty of the BCCI to protect the future of the game. “I would suggest to the BCCI to always bear in mind that as the richest and most powerful sports body today they have a larger responsibility to discharge,” Gill said. “They should bear in mind that today’s commercially successful venture may not be so in five years time and the game has to be protected for future generations. “Modify the structure by all means but after grave and serious consideration of the larger ethical and moral questions and the long-term interest of the game.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 May 2009 | 11:49 am BSE to name new CEO on MondayThe Board of the Bombay Stock Exchange met today to appoint a new CEO for the exchange but deferred the announcement till Monday.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 May 2009 | 11:45 am SBI Q4 net jumps 46%, beats forecastKolkata: State Bank of India, India’s largest lender, reported a 45.6% rise in quarterly profit beating forecasts on robust loan demand as borrowers sought to beat tight liquidity in a slowing economy. The bank, which along with its associates controls almost a quarter of Indian bank loans and deposits, said on Saturday January-March net profit was Rs27.42 billion ($556 million), up from Rs18.83 billion a year ago. That beat a Reuters poll forecast of a net profit Rs21.9 billion for the fiscal fourth quarter. State Bank, which has 11,000 branches across India and abroad, has the lowest cost of funds among the nation’s lenders. The bulk of its funds comes from savings bank deposits that pay annual interest of 3.5%, compared with 12.25% a year it charges on loans to its best customers. Shares in State Bank, which the market values at $17.1 billion, have risen 2.9% so far this year compared with a 23.1% rise in the main share index and a 10% increase in the bank index. The shares ended 3.1% lower at Rs1,325.15 on Friday in a Mumbai market that fell 2%. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 May 2009 | 11:43 am State Bank of India Q4 net jumps 46 pct, beats f'cast - Reuters
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 May 2009 | 11:07 am Weekly review: Sensex up 4 pc despite profit booking - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 May 2009 | 10:53 am ADAG confident over impounded yacht case - domain-B
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 May 2009 | 10:16 am Obama urges U.S. Congress to pass credit card reformWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Saying credit card industry abuses had worsened in the current recession, President Barack Obama urged Congress on Saturday to approve new regulations to halt sudden rate hikes, unfair penalties and hidden fees.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 May 2009 | 10:15 am State Bank of India Q4 net jumps 46 pct, beats f'castKOLKATA (Reuters) - State Bank of India, India's largest lender, reported a 45.6 percent rise in quarterly profit beating forecasts on robust loan demand as borrowers sought to beat tight liquidity in a slowing economy.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 May 2009 | 10:08 am Turkey will not accept IMF demands to curb spending - PMANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said he cannot accept an IMF demand to rein in spending, in comments that cast fresh doubts over a major loan deal to revive Turkey's ailing economy.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 May 2009 | 9:10 am Petronet ties up LNG imports from AustraliaPetronet LNG Ltd (PLL) has tied up 1.5 million tonnes a year of LNG imports from the Gorgon project in Australia for Kochi terminal. The terminal will be ready by end of 2011.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 May 2009 | 8:35 am Tata Steels Corus unit in UK on verge of closureEuropean steelmaker Corus, which was acquired by Tata Steel for $12.9 billion in 2007, may be forced to shut down its Teesside Cast Products (TCP) plant in northeast England if a consortium of buyers fails to honour its commitment to buy nearly 80 per cent of its output.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 May 2009 | 8:25 am Sensex up 4 percent despite profit bookingIndian equities markets rallied this week thanks to a handsome rise Monday, holding on to gains in spite of investors booking profits. However, analysts are keeping their fingers crossed for the election results due May 16.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 May 2009 | 8:01 am To mom with love: Lifestyle stores line up special Mother's Day hampers'Mother of mine you gave to me, all my life to do as I please...' As children gear up to pamper their mothers this Sunday, lifestyle and home decor stores are getting ready to cash in on the umbilical tie with an array of gifts.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 9 May 2009 | 7:02 am TV18 to consider rights share issueMUMBAI (Reuters) - India's Television Eighteen Ltd said on Saturday its board will meet on May 13 to consider a rights share issue.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 May 2009 | 6:32 am Congress sacks Moily as media head over Nitish remarkNew Delhi: M Veerappa Moily, who launched a surprise attack on Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar, has been abruptly removed as chairman of the Congress media department. He has been replaced by AICC general secretary Janardan Dwivedi, who had been holding the charge earlier, party sources said on Saturday. The removal of Moily is believed to be due to the displeasure of the party high command over his remarks against the Bihar chief minister, who was sought to be wooed by party leader Rahul Gandhi. Moily had on Friday said that Congress is not going to “make a hero” of Nitish Kumar. “I do not thing Congress is going to make a hero of Nitish Kumar, the manner in which he has aligned with Bharatiya Janata Party and is carrying on...that kind of pollution of his secular credentials with the communal,” Moily had said. When asked about the Congress decision to relieve him of his charge as AICC media head, Moily, who is in Bangalore, merely said that he had given the charge to Dwivedi as he would be away in Karnataka till 17 May. Moily is contesting elections from Chikkballapur in Karnataka. In a flip-flop on Friday, the AICC media head had first attacked railway minister Lalu Prasad and Lok Janshakti Party chief Ramvilas Paswan in the wake of reports that they were boycotting the meeting of the union cabinet but later softened to say that they were part of the United Progressive Alliance and would be back in a UPA government. The sources said Moily had exceeded his brief on earlier occasions too and had created an awkward situation for the party. Moily, who had been the party’s media department chief for quite some time, had handed over the charge to Dwivedi last month when he went to Karnataka and had resumed the responsibilities only last week. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 May 2009 | 6:28 am Tatas, SBI, Infosys among world's top 50 reputed firmsThe US-based Reputation Institute named the Tata Group, SBI and Infosys among 17 Indian firms that figure in the top 50 of the world's 200 most reputed companies.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 9 May 2009 | 5:23 am So will stress-tested banks boost lending now? - Business Standard
Source: Google News India - Business | 9 May 2009 | 5:19 am Court reinstates Yahoo lawsuit over fake profilesLOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Friday reinstated a breach of contract claim against Yahoo Inc by an Oregon woman who said the company failed to remove nude photos and fake profiles posted by her estranged boyfriend after promising to do so.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 May 2009 | 4:48 am Centre directs northern States to stop overdrawing powerNew Delhi, May 8 With grid indiscipline sharply on the rise, the Centre has issued an advisory to Northern States against overdrawal of electricity from the grid.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am Tata Steel’s Corus unit in UK on verge of closureMumbai, May 8 European steelmaker Corus, which was acquired by Tata Steel for $12.9 billion in 2007, may be forced to shut down its Teesside Cast Products (TCP) plant in northeast England if a consortium of buyers fails to honour its commitmentSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am Kingfisher Red to operate some routes of KingfisherNew Delhi, May 8 Kingfisher Airline is going the low-cost way, although senior management insists that it is only temporary. From May 15, the airlines will convert more than 20 flights from Kingfisher to Kingfisher Red, its low-cost cousin.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am No swine flu case tested positive so far: MinisterHyderabad, May 8 The Union Government has declared that the country is free of swine flu so far.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am Markets This WeekThe Indian equity markets began the week on an ebullient note. On Monday, the BSE Sensex spurted to 12,135, a whopping gain of 731 points and the wide-based Nifty surged by 180 points to end at 3654. This is one of the major gains realised in aSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am DoT panel against 3-year equity lock-in for existing playersNew Delhi, May 8 A committee under the Department of Telecom is likely to suggest that the proposed three-year lock-in period on the equity stake held by promoters of a telecom company should be imposed only on new licences issued in future andSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am Godrej Properties plans IPO this fiscalMumbai, May 8 Godrej Properties plans to go in for an IPO (initial public offering) thisSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am Sentiment boost gives some stocks more gains than SensexMumbai, May 8 Several stocks have registered extraordinary price movement during the past two weeks when the market has moved up at a briskSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am Inflation rate rises to 0.70% on costlier foodNew Delhi, May 8 The annual Wholesale Price Index-based inflation rose 0.70 per cent during the week ended April 25, above the previous week’s annual rise of 0.57 per cent, Government data showed on Friday.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am CDMA players against altering spectrum policyNew Delhi, May 8 The Association of Unified Telecom Service Providers of India has raised concern over the proposed changes in the spectrum allocation criteria being considered by a technical committee of the Department of Telecom.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 May 2009 | 12:00 am INTERVIEW - Geithner:time to review U.S. central bank governanceWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Friday it was time to review how regional Federal Reserve banks are governed to ensure the public feels confident no conflicts of interest are at play.Source: Reuters: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 11:48 pm U.S. banks raise capital; Europe peers' bad debts soarNEW YORK (Reuters) - Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo sold more than $15 billion of shares and bonds, as the two companies rushed to the head of the line of banks looking to raise funds following government stress tests.Source: Reuters: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 10:45 pm Wall St Week Ahead: Retail sales, Wal-Mart may extend rallyNEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks should rally next week, and push the Dow into positive territory for the year, with bank stress tests out of the way and investors hopeful retail sales will reinforce views the economy is on the mend.Source: Reuters: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 10:33 pm When central banks guide, risk gets underpriced: YV Reddy"Being a South Indian, I have no difficulty in talking fast," said Yaga Venugopal Reddy, the previous governor of the RBI, as soon as we sat to interview him.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 10:23 pm United Spirits-Diageo stake talks hobbleMore than six months after UK's Diageo Plc and Vijay Mallya-owned USL began talks on strategic investment, the two have still not been able to crystallise the terms of the deal.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 10:17 pm High Court nudges Jet, Sahara to resolve rowThe Bombay HC deferred its order on the Jet Airways and Sahara India Commercial Corporation case and suggested that the two parties try and amicably resolve the dispute.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 10:16 pm Corus may mothball Teesside Cast plantTatas said the decision became unavoidable after the consortium of four buyers decided last month to unilaterally terminate the contract.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 10:08 pm Traded power sees poll spikeThere has been a sharp rise in short-term power traded on exchanges, indicating that various state governments have made efforts to minimise power cuts during elections.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 9:59 pm Ratnagiri Gas seeks easier RIL gas termsRGPPL, which has rights over more than 10% of the production from Reliance Industries' KG D6 gas at full capacity, has decided to ask for easier conditions.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 9:55 pm GE Ship predicts revenue declineThe company, which has 57% of its total fleet on the spot market, also expects its revenue days to come down further.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 9:55 pm Emphasis on financial integration - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 8 May 2009 | 9:49 pm US housing crisis is far from overAlmost a quarter of US homes are already in negative equity and there's a second wave of EMI resets ahead.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 9:40 pm Inflation up, to stem rate cuts - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 8 May 2009 | 9:35 pm HPCL keen on acquiring oil blocksHindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd, India's third-largest downstream oil company, plans to invest Rs 750 crore in exploration and production in the next three years.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 9:28 pm GE shifts $8 billion goalIn 2006, GE India, the Indian arm of US' General Electric Co, had set an ambitious target of boosting domestic revenues to $8 billion by 2010, from $1.6 billion in that year.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 9:27 pm Seeing doubledigit growth across portfolio: LGV Ramachandran, Director Marketing Sales, LG Electronics India said this year for LG right through has been quite strong and particularly the summer has been quite good. Talking about the price rise expected in the consumer durable market, he said, \"At this point in timewe are expecting prices to be stable\".Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 9:01 pm U.S. sheds 539,000 jobs in April, fewest in 6 monthsWASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. employers cut 539,000 jobs last month, the fewest since October, according to government data on Friday that signaled the economy's steep decline might be easing and gave the stock market a boost.Source: Reuters: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 8:36 pm New gas deal may make Dabhol power a bit cheaper - Times of India
Source: Google News India - Business | 8 May 2009 | 8:22 pm Diageo-United Spirits deal talks under cloud - Times of India
Source: Google News India - Business | 8 May 2009 | 8:22 pm Petronet ties up gas from Exxon for Kochi projectPetronet LNG, a privately-registered firm promoted by state-run oil companies, has concluded the term sheet with ExxonMobil for shipping 1.5 million tonnes a year of gas for 20 years from Australia's Gorgon project being developed by the US energy major as part of a consortium led by Chevron.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 May 2009 | 8:01 pm After Jet, KF will push low-cost flyingWhile Naresh Goyal's Jet on Thursday announced the launch of a new low-cost brand Konnect, Kingfisher has decided to aggressively target budget travellers by offering more flights at very low fares.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 May 2009 | 8:00 pm Diageo-United Spirits deal talks under cloudThe Diageo-United Spirits talks remained clouded in uncertainty with both parties unable to find common grounds over a possible strategic stake sale in the Indian distiller.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 May 2009 | 7:56 pm Inflation rises to 0.7%The annual wholesale price index-based inflation for the week-ended April 25 rose up to 0.7%, a notch above the previous week's 0.57% but much lower than the 8.27% during the corresponding week ended April 26, 2008.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 May 2009 | 7:55 pm 'Export revival will lead to recovery'Reddy feels that India should emerge from the current downturn ahead of developed economies and its recovery would depend on an export revival as falling external demand was the main reason for the economic slowdown.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 May 2009 | 7:52 pm J S Sarma all set to become Trai chiefAppointment Committee of Cabinet has cleared the names of Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal member J S Sarma for chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and secretary, department of economic affairs, Ashok Chawla for finance secretary.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 May 2009 | 7:50 pm Bank, metal stocks pull Sensex down 241 pointsThe banking and metals sectors led the fall on the Bombay Stock Exchange as the benchmark sensex shed 241 points after starting on a bright note in the morning.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 May 2009 | 7:45 pm Delhi Daredevils back on top; beat Mumbai by seven wicketsEast London: The Delhi Daredevils surged to the top of the Indian Premier League (IPL) after crushing the Mumbai Indians by seven wickets on Friday. Delhi’s sixth win in eight matches moved them one point clear of the Chennai Super Kings and the Rajasthan Royals. Mumbai are second from bottom in the table and in danger of missing out on the semi-finals. Also Read IPL Team Analysis After skittling Mumbai for 116, the Daredevils scored 118 for three with seven balls to spare.
 Delhi’s road to the top spot was paved in the first over of Mumbai’s dismal innings. AP De Villiers hit an unbeaten 50 off 38 balls, the South African’s second half-century of the tournament standing alongside one century. Delhi also received a solid start thanks to a first-wicket partnership of 42 between David Warner (21) and Gautam Gambhir (19). Warner fell to off-spinner JP Duminy, who returned the economical figures of one for 15 off four overs. After winning the toss and electing to bat Mumbai slipped to 33 for four following two run-outs and a wicket apiece for left-arm swing bowler Dirk Nannes and seamer Rajat Bhatia. West Indies all rounder Dwayne Bravo and left-handed Indian batsman Abhishek Nayar (18) then shared a fifth-wicket stand of 57 before the former was caught behind off Nannes for 35. Bravo’s dismissal sparked a collapse as Mumbai lost six wickets for 26 runs. Bhatia returned career-best Twenty20 figures of three for 15. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 7:45 pm The irony of it all: growth led to lower job creationNew Delhi: Don’t blame the slowdown for the lack of jobs; blame rapid growth of the past decade. That’s the conclusion of a 391-page, yet-to-be-released report called The Challenge of Employment in India—An Informal Economy Perspective, prepared by the National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector (NCEUS), a government body which has been wound up since. The Indian economy’s rapid expansion has actually widened inequality, shrunk job opportunities and reduced wages, according to the report, which says “the benefits (of growth) seem to have bypassed the overwhelming majority of India’s population”. According to the report, the rate of growth in employment—a proxy for job creation—has actually fallen from 2.03% in 1993 to 1.85% in 2005. It also shows that the share of employment in the so-called formal or organized sector, too, fell to 5.8% in 2004-05 from 7.3% in 1993-94. Employment in the sector fell 1.9%, from 27.18 million in 1993 to 26.64 million in 2006. It had peaked in 1997 to 28.24 million. Analysts say this poses a tough challenge to policy planners looking to achieve inclusive growth (or growth for everyone) at a time when the global economic slowdown is taking a toll on firms, especially those in the business of exports. India’s exports fell 33%, to $11.5 billion (Rs56,695 crore today), in March against the same month a year ago. And according to the labour ministry, about half-a-million people lost their jobs between October and December last year—largely in export-oriented firms. Creating jobs will be a significant and critical challenge for the new government that will take charge of the country’s destiny in a fortnight. According to the report, 4.27% of India’s 457 million workers are severely underemployed (out of work for at least three-and-a-half days a week), and another 5.10% are underemployed (have a job for between half-a-day and three days a week). Around 1.78% have part-time jobs. The report highlights structural weaknesses in labour market The report, which was presented to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 30 April, is pending release due to Election Commission restrictions on government announcements before the completion of the polling process. On Thursday, at a seminar organized by the Institute for Human Development in New Delhi, several policy analysts got a preview of the report, but few conclusive plans emerged on how to tackle the issues. “In the organized sector, job creation has been zero and labour market inflexibility has hardly been a factor in determining employment growth in the formal sector,” Arjun Sengupta, former chairman of NCEUS and a member of Rajya Sabha, said. “If we are expecting the market economy to look after the problem, it won’t be correct. We need a well-designed policy to address this issue.” The report highlights structural weaknesses in India’s labour market, such as illiteracy and lack of skill development, suggesting that the country needs an employment strategy to meet “the twin challenges of quantity and quality” and enforcing a uniform national minium wage. As a strategy to expand employment, the commission stressed the importance of expanding the scope of employment programmes, such as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme to urban areas, and easing access to credit and raw materials for enterprises that employ less than 10 people. The commission also suggested amending the Industrial Disputes Act to allow an employer to retrench staff without seeking the mandatory government permission, if the employer chooses to hike its contribution towards compensation and unemployment insurance. It said the country needs a national labour code that specifies minimum wages, working hours and labour standards NCEUS has also said that the government has been more focused on creating a “special playing field”, such as promoting special economic zones for large corporates than offering a level playing field for all. It added that although the informal sector’s contribution to the rate of growth is twice that of the formal sector, it remains unprotected and vulnerable to job losses. “If inclusive growth is the objective, we need to shift focus from formal to informal sector given its size,” said K.P. Kannan, a former commission member. That won’t be an easy change, said an expert, because India looks at issues related to employment through the prism of manufacturing growth and its contribution towards gross domestic product (GDP). “Unfortunately, we tend to go where the GDP (is) than where the people are. Employment is not a focus, but a result of GDP growth,” said Abhijit Sen, a member of the Planning Commission. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 7:45 pm Unhappy times for Indiabulls’ retail chain Happy Store?New Delhi: Turning happy doesn’t seem to have worked for the retail business of the India-bulls Group, which also has interests in financial services, real estate and power. Click here to watch video The retail unit of Indiabulls recently repositioned its outlets as Happy Store with a new logo that comprised a smiley transposed on a cheerful yellow shopping bag, but according to a senior manager who recently quit the company and two senior company executives, Indiabulls Retail Services Ltd, the company that houses the retail business, has closed all but four of its 42 outlets. These outlets had been inherited from Piramyd Retail Ltd, the firm that the group acquired in 2007 for Rs208 crore. In the process, Indiabulls has completely exited some cities such as Ludhiana and Jaipur. The company, however, opened a new store in March in Destination Mall, situated in Faridabad in the National Capital Region. It also runs a multiplex and a food court in this mall. Indiabull’s website, however, still says the group is “one of the fastest growing retailers having broad national brand presence with 47 stores located in seven cities”. “Instead of opening five stores and firefighting on loss-making stores where the business deal is not making sense, it is better to do what we are doing,” said Anil Lepps, chief executive of Indiabulls Retail, in response to why the company has shut most of the stores. An executive, who recently quit, said the company has also retrenched employees from the stores that have been closed and laid off at least 60 more people in the buying and merchandising team in existing stores in the past three-four months. He did not want to be identified. One of the two company executives mentioned in the first instance confirmed that dozens of people across stores and divisions have either quit or been fired in the past three months. “We are working on a very limited team. We are short-staffed,” he said, asking not to be named. Lepps, however, said the company has only laid off around 10 people in the merchandising and buying team and is currently trying to rebuild the team with new hires. Meanwhile, the landlord of one of the closed stores in Jaipur has moved a winding up petition against Indiabulls Retail in the Delhi high court. According to Sanjay Jhanwar, the lawyer representing the landlord in the case, the landlord has sought recovery of Rs1.5 crore against unpaid rent for several months. In recent months, several retail firms here have either gone bust or have been closing down some stores, scaling back expansion plans, even laying off employees in an attempt to cut costs and to beat the acute downturn in the business that began with the slowdown in the economy. Subhiksha Trading Services Ltd, the country’s largest discount retail chain, for in stance, has completely halted its operations amid mounting debt and a severe cash crunch. Other retailers such as Pantaloon Retail (India) Ltd, Reliance Retail Ltd, Aditya Birla Retail Ltd and Spencer’s Retail Ltd have also closed stores and shelved expansion plans in the past year or so. Indiabulls Retail’s Lepps, however, said the firm was still in a better condition than many of its rivals. “While others are bleeding hundreds of crores, our bleed is over because we have shut down all unprofitable stores,” he said, adding that he is currently focusing on the revival strategy. “My idea is to get perfect with one store and once we get our model right...then we will plan to open a flagship property in Mumbai in one year and that’s when the new beginning of Indiabulls Retail happens,” Lepps said. “We are trying to figure out a differentiator...” A March report by audit and consulting firm KPMG International said the slowdown in the retail business is expected to last for another 12-18 months. The firm said the sales growth in modern retail stores in December slowed to 11%, from 35% a year ago. Indiabulls Retail has been plagued by problems, mainly financial, ever since it entered the business by acquiring Pyramid Retail from the Mumbai-based Ashok Piramal Group. Indiabulls officials privately say they inherited a “mess” from Piramal. Piramyd was making losses at the time of its acquisition. Many investors expected cash-rich Indiabulls to turn around the company, but it has not happened thus far. On the contrary, the company has had to close down a majority of the inherited stores. Indiabulls Retail’s stock sank nearly 90% to Rs14 on Thursday, from a peak of at least Rs200 in December 2007. It, however, rose 10% to end at Rs16.30 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on Friday. The firm has also been under fire from vendors in various cities who have accused it of not paying their dues for months together. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 7:45 pm Lounge Review | Birla Kerala Vaidyashala, MumbaiA girlfriend once gifted me a Kerala ayurvedic massage. It was a gap year—when there’s no office to go to, you go to the gym at noon and write at 3am. But an ayurvedic massage was apparently what I really needed, the girlfriend said. The first sight of the interiors of the Kerala Vaidyashala in Prabhadevi put me off. It was a crummy little place.  Photographs by Abhijit Bhatlekar / Mint The good stuff The massage room was cleaner, sparser and well-ventilated. The two masseuses were adroit with their hands. Once you know what a good Kerala ayurvedic massage is, you can’t be fooled. Unlike, say, a Thai massage, which leans towards reflexology, the effect of this massage depends a lot on the kind of oil used and how well your body is softened by it. After that the masseuse has to ensure the oil enters your pores. The one I got is called Sarvakaya Abhyingam, a full-body therapy, done with coconut oil heated on slow fire with the bark of the banyan tree, sesame seeds and aromatic herbs. The 45-minute session served its purpose: I was revitalized. The shower room was spacious and clean; the towels were laundered and spotless. The Birla Kerala Vaidyashala also houses a herbal café that serves soups and teas as well as coolers made with fresh fruits and herbs. I tried Summer Splash—a juice of watermelon, pomegranate, beetroot and mint leaves, sweetened with jaggery. Other drinks on the menu included Basil Licka (coffee with basil), Witty Vittea (Vrikshamal tea) and Ashwamedha, a herb drink for overall well-being. An in-house dietician helps you choose. The not-so-good I missed being asked what I was there for. The masseuses were almost in a hurry to finish the job, without paying enough attention to my specific needs. The space lacked sorely in ambience— too austere to live up to the luxury health spa it projects itself as. Take your own soap if you don’t quite think of Margo as a herbal soap. Talk plastic The massages are priced between Rs1,000 and Rs2,350. The café menu is in the range of Rs100-140. The group has plans to open 50 more centres across India in the next five years. For appointments, call 022-24302336. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 7:45 pm TR Baalu | Clouded by controversiesNew Delhi / Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu: If Sriperumbudur sends T.R. Baalu to Parliament, as looks likely, it will probably do so out of a simple quest for development. “He has the means and the money,” as one resident, Suhasini Frederick, put it—the two things he would need if he desires to improve his new constituency. The challenge, analysts say, may lie in getting him to desire it. Sriperumbudur has transformed rapidly into an industrial hub and while it is a success story, it isn’t an unblemished one.  Illustration: Jayachandran / Mint “Infrastructure is not totally lacking, but there were certain other things promised—like a rail link to the port, for instance—that have not happened to date,” said Rajiv Mitra, Hyundai Motor India Ltd’s deputy general manager for corporate communications. “So there’s a logistics problem, and delays in the transport of cars through the city. Then there’s the power situation. This is not just for Hyundai, but for the entire zone.” Baalu recognizes these needs himself. “There is a need for better water supply and better sanitation for the people in this constituency,” he said. “And even for the industries, the infrastructure is not sufficient. It has to be improved; the road system, for instance, has to be better.” As the Union minister for shipping, road transport and highways, Baalu, who was last elected from the Chennai South constituency, is familiar with the concerns of industry; Sriperumbudur, in a sense, is the ideal constituency for him. And he can be generous to his constituents: last March, Baalu’s minister of state, K.H. Muniyappa, revealed in Parliament that Tamil Nadu was the beneficiary of Rs10,000 crore worth of road projects—30 projects in all—in 2004-07. This was one-fifth of the money spent in developing national highways across the country, and the largest for any state. But in his four terms as a member of Parliament and 13 years as Union minister, Baalu has also trailed clouds of controversy, including a 2008 attempt to procure gas for two companies owned by his two wives and two sons. When the issue was raised in Parliament, his response was: “What is wrong with it?” These companies, desiring gas at a concession, had been denied it by GAIL (India) Ltd. But the public sector utility had to finally yield. Later, in Parliament, Baalu said: “I just put in a word…after the request of employees and shareholders of the two loss-making units.”  Then, there is Baalu’s rigid stance on the Sethusamudram project, which involves dredging a canal through a chain of coral islets between India and Sri Lanka. Baalu claimed that the canal would shorten shipping routes and boost commerce; a Mint investigation concluded that the Rs2,600 crore-project would, in fact, benefit no one. Several Hindu groups as well as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) oppose the project, saying it would destroy an undersea formation known as the Ram Sethu, a bridge believed by Hindus to have been built by Hindu god Ram to reach Sri Lanka. The Supreme Court has since stayed the project. Baalu’s record at road-building isn’t entirely free of potholes either. Mint reported in December that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government failed to finish any of the highway projects it had started in 2004 that had been targeted for completion by October. According to an internal report of the National Highways Authority of India, or NHAI, prepared after the deadline expired in October, the highways regulator could not complete any of the 47 projects in the second phase of the North-South-East-West, or NSEW, corridor. Baalu’s tenure has also seen five chairmen at NHAI in two years, says L.K. Advani, the prime ministerial candidate of the BJP—this despite an announcement by the outgoing UPA government that the minimum tenure of the chairman would be two years. Mint reported last May that Baalu had tried to change the work profiles of top NHAI board officials without consulting its then chairman, N. Gokulram. Baalu disputes both points. “I don’t have the official figures with me right now, but the rate of project completion is certainly higher than has been reported in the media,” he said. And on the changes in the chairmanship of the NHAI, he said: “If somebody doesn’t do his job, he has to go. Is anybody indispensable to a particular department?” Baalu, say political analysts, is uniquely a product of coalition politics, a man who wields inordinate power because of his high status within a vital regional partner—the DMK. It explains, they add, why Baalu has managed to ride his spells of turbulence and emerge, yet again, as a strong candidate for Parliament and possibly even for another ministership should the UPA return to power. At a glance • Born on 15 June 1941 • He graduated with a BSc from New College, Chennai, and with an LCE from Central Polytechnic, Chennai • He joined the DMK in 1957 and has remained with the party ever since • He changed his name from ‘Balu’ to ‘Baalu’ on the advice of a numerologist • He was jailed under Misa, for a year, for protesting the Emergency • Was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1996 Twenty20 is a series on 20 political leaders. Click here to read all the profiles. srinivasan.s@livemint.com Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 7:45 pm Cabinet decides to raise number of BBMP wards to 198 from 147 - Hindu
Source: Google News India - Business | 8 May 2009 | 7:42 pm 'We have offers to buy our Great Offshore stake but we have said no'It has been a hectic week for Bharati Shipyard Managing Director P C Kapoor. He returned to Mumbai this morning after taking delivery of a floating dock at the Dabhol Shipyard. While he was away, the company announced the acquisition of a 14.89 per cent in Great Offshore, which accounts for nearly a quarter of Bharati Shipyards Rs 5,093-crore order book. Kapoor spoke to Abhineet Kumar and Sidhartha about the Rs 174-crore stake acquisition and what it means for Bharati Shipyard.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 6:58 pm Whyte & Mackay likely thorn in USL-Diageo dealAnti-trust, monopoly issues could arise in US, UK markets.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 6:57 pm Hyundai to shift i20 production to EuropeHyundai Motors India Ltd (HMIL), the countrys second-largest car maker, said it was planning to shift the production of its premium hatchback i20 model for the export market from Chennai to Europe, following recent labour troubles that caused overseas sales to fall behind target.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 6:56 pm Inflationary pressure is very high in India, says ReddyMumbai: Y.V. Reddy, former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor, and widely seen as the saviour of the Indian financial system from the impact of the global meltdown, strongly feels that the Indian recovery should happen sooner than that in most other countries because of the country’s inherent strengths such as stable rural demand and relatively less dependence on exports. However, he added that the underlying inflationary pressure in India is very high. Click here to watch video In his opinion, one should take into account the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and not the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) while taking monetary and fiscal measures. In contrast to WPI, the country’s most widely tracked weekly inflation index, CPI reflects the price of goods at the retail level. For the week ended 25 April, WPI inflation was 0.70%, but CPI for industrial workers continued to be high at 9.63%, for February 2009 (the latest available number).  Warning note: Former RBI governor Reddy says the challenge before governments would be to see the implementation of stimulus packages. Abhijit Bhatlekar / Mint The monetary and fiscal packages announced by RBI and the government, according to him, are “on track”, but the challenge before the authorities is unwinding the packages in due course. “Otherwise, vested interests (will) develop in some stimulus packages” and that will add to the inflationary pressures, he said. “You pre-commit yourself to a reasonable exit than have an open-ended commitment to do whatever it is to get the recovery. You cannot do recovery at any cost. Your recovery has to be at an appropriate price.” Since mid-September 2008, after the collapse of Wall Street investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. that led to an unprecedented credit crunch, the Indian government has announced three fiscal stimulus packages worth 3% of the country’s Rs54 trillion gross domestic product (GDP). RBI has brought down its policy rate from 9% to 3.25% and released at least Rs3.9 trillion worth of liquidity into the system through various measures. As a result of all these measures, the combined fiscal deficit of India, including subsidies in oil and fertilizer sectors, will be at least 11% of GDP for fiscal 2009. But Reddy is not unduly worried about the widening fiscal deficit even though it will put pressure on the interest rates, because RBI can manage it. “Fiscal deficit is indeed in bit of a pressure and it could put pressure on the interest rates when the turnaround comes... But it will still be manageable because the Reserve Bank has quite an array of instruments,” he said. In a no-holds-barred interview, Reddy spoke on a range of subjects, including the fledgling signs of recovery, pressure points in the economy and times when the central bank and finance ministry did not see eye to eye during his five-year stint as governor that ended in September 2008. Edited excerpts: Your introduction to the speeches that the book carries sets the context and makes it abundantly clear that there were many issues on which the finance ministry and RBI did not see eye to eye. There was tremendous pressure on you. How did you cope with that? I think we should take a more balanced view. I don’t know whether I didn’t represent the truth in the book, but there are many areas where we have been able to bring about changes. We were able to eliminate virtually all weak banks and put some standards of governance. There are a lot of areas on the developmental side. There has been significant coordinated efforts for strengthening the institutional regulations. You are right that there are a couple of areas in which there has been difference in the pace—both in regard to external sector liberalization and the financial market liberalization. You cannot do recovery at any cost. Your recovery has to be at an appropriate price. This is the origin (of differences). There is no difference except in terms of the judgement about the veracity of any of the model and its appropriateness in India at this stage of institutional and fiscal developments. It has been a continuous dialogue. So, I won’t say it is a pressure as such. You can call it creative tension (laughs) and the outcome is good, I suppose, by and large. So, both can take credit. North Block vs RBI: creative tension Could you tell us the issues on which there was maximum “creative tension”? Basically, a major issue was on the capital account liberalization. But I think we arrived at reasonable balance. (The) second (issue) was the extent of the derivatives and other elements of financial market development. We (RBI) were more on the cautious side in these two areas. What about participatory notes? That’s one element. The basic issue was that the RBI, within its jurisdiction, took action to control overseas corporate bodies. It has banned overseas corporate bodies and, therefore, in some senses it is possible to do it and enhance the ‘know your investor’ norm. RBI believed that the same rule should apply to participatory notes also. And the use of foreign exchange reserves for infrastructure creation? Wasn’t that a huge issue? I won’t say it was a huge issue. The limited point is as long as it’s part of the forex reserves, its utilization should confirm to the letter and spirit of the law. I think basically the issue was, as I understand, the government wanted to use it, but then it would go to fiscal domain… So, in some ways, the Reserve Bank’s preference was to maintain the integrity of its balance sheet. Was there any occasion where you felt that the governor’s authority was being eroded? There is no question of authority. In general, of course, the central bank has to be accountable and in the Indian situation, the way the RBI Act is structured, there is no question of authority. It’s a question of harmonization and coordination at operational points. I believe there were occasions where you contemplated resigning and even actually offered to do so… There was no question of offering to resign as such. But, as you know, when you undergo some tensions, you almost contemplate...you almost spill out your contemplation. But there is no question of any offer of resignation. And I think if you just see that the number of things that we have done together in a close, coordinated fashion, that infinitely outweigh the few differences. If the central bank always agrees with the government, it is superfluous; and if it disagrees, it is obnoxious. How ministry forced RBI to hike rates There were differences on macro issues, too. For instance, the government has all been pushing for high growth and it refused to see the first sign of overheating in certain pockets of the economy. It was impatient with the first sign of rising inflation and at least on one occasion last June it forced RBI to hike rates even though you were not in favour of that. How do you defend the central bank’s credibility in such cases? I think we must make a distinction between the monetary policy issue and the communications issue. More generally, as far as the monetary policy issue is concerned, it is recognized globally also that the government has a slightly shorter-term perspective and the central banks have a medium-term perspective. And this difference in emphasis persists in all countries. But what is relevance is the issue of communication. If the government creates some expectations through communications, it necessarily constraints the freedom and the communication capabilities of the Reserve Bank. This is a general observation. In terms of monetary policy, the stance taken was typical of almost all central banks vis-a-vis all governments. You seemed to have fought the battle with the government single-handedly. Was there any support from any quarter? First, I should clarify that I have not approached my job with any pre-conceived notion. I don’t have pre-conceived ideologies. I am aware of theories, but I don’t have pre-conceived ideologies. Therefore, whatever policies that have been adopted by RBI, they have been adopted after intensive internal analysis of the global practices, internal understanding of the theory and internal assessment of Indian conditions. It represents the collective wisdom of RBI. It also represents the guidance that we got from the board of directors—a very very eminent board of directors. I will be very candid to say that there was no individual opinion. But, yes, I believe that we encouraged pretty much of independent analysis, independent thinking and a group discussion, which threw up this type of approaches. Whether it is credit or debit, I don’t want to monopolize anything. I would like to share it fully with my institution, including my board and all the professionals. There were occasions when the finance ministry wanted to divide the board… I don’t think that’s appropriate. I think our board is eminent, quite independent and they members are not subject to any influence. None of them. You have said the “light touch” regulations in global financial centres such as New York and London played a major role in the meltdown. What’s your view in building Mumbai as a global financial centre? I think now the whole idea of international financial centres, the tax havens, the model for regulation, etc. are all under review. So, in any case, not only what you are contemplating as a new centre, but also your existing centres are trying to review their own thinking. I don’t know what type of animal will arise after the review. After the crisis, nobody can envisage the new animal. We will have to see how it works out. But definitely there has to be new logic and new approach and we just can’t afford to fall back upon the wisdom of yesterday. Between financial stability and price stability, you seem to prefer financial stability. On the contrary, I would say the emphasis has been very much on the price stability. The difference is some other central banks in other countries felt that their only focus should be on price stability but in our case we took both price stability and financial stability into consideration. As our financial sector developed and as it was getting integrated with the global economy, the concerns about financial stability were flagged. Liquidity trap You are worried about the possible fallout of the monetary expansion and the fiscal stimulus packages as they have the potential to trigger inflationary pressures and create liquidity trap. What should be done to avoid that? It’s not a question of what is to be done. I was trying to be analytical. Analytically, there are two issues. Globally, there is something like saying that all countries should try to do some fiscal stimulus. But each country starts with a different base of fiscal stimulus. And the international financial market responds differently to the fiscal deficit of different countries. The fiscal deficit of England and America and couple of others are at a level where the financial markets are not uncomfortable. But in case of some other countries, they are more uncomfortable. So, the limited point is that while there is a global urge of taking fiscal stimulus, if everybody tries to take the same extent of fiscal stimulus, then some countries will suffer more. There should be appropriate fiscal stimulus packages for different countries. And, you have to look at the exits. If you are trying to do something only for the sake of stimulus, when the system does not need stimulus, then you should be able to withdraw it. The actions should be time-bound… The exit should be in a way that the intention is expressed in advance by the policymakers. So that they are buying themselves towards a respectable exit and the market knows that there is some exit. Otherwise, sometimes vested interests develop in some stimulus packages. And when the vested interests develop, it adds to inflationary pressures. I guess this is easier said than done It is. But you should be conscious, like a general who goes into the battle. The general always plans how he will withdraw before the battle is over. Otherwise, sometimes he will lose the battle. The idea is that when everybody is worried how to handle the crisis, I think a good and responsible policymaker simultaneously looks and says, “Okay this is the crisis, these are the steps I have taken…now when do I step back?” If you explain this to the system, then the system is more confident. You pre-commit yourself to a reasonable exit than have an open-ended commitment to do whatever it is to get the recovery. You cannot do recovery at any cost. Your recovery has to be at an appropriate price. State & market After the collapse of capitalism, what’s your view on markets vis-a-vis states? You were never market-friendly. Have you become more unfriendly now? I will invite your attention to what you wrote when I was a deputy governor… You wrote that I was very market-friendly. For about five-six years everybody gave me credit of being market-friendly… But that changed after you became the governor. No, the point is very simple. The markets are very happy when the regulator and the market happen to be on the same wavelength, which helps the market make profits. But if the regulator felt that the markets are taking excessive risks and tries to stop (the markets), then there’s a problem. Let me give you an example of Mr (Alan) Greenspan. When Mr Greenspan said that productivity increases (were behind the market’s rise), then the markets were very happy with the productivity increases explanation because of high liquidity. But when he said irrational exuberance (was behind the rise), the markets simply ignored (it). The market’s perception depends very much on the market’s interest and not the system’s interest. We should recognize that. That’s all. Let me (be) very frank. Whether a regulator is market-friendly or market-unfriendly are all contextual and the state of the mind of the market, rather than the appropriateness of the policy. In terms of the overall balance between the state and the markets, there are three things I would say. First, there is a feeling that there has been excessive faith put on the market to self-correct itself, without creating a problem. There is a doubt about that. Second, the financial sector is very important for development. It reached a stage where the financial sector development became an end in itself. Now, there is a better recognition that financial sector became a means to an end. Then, there is a third point—the banking system. Now there is a better appreciation that the banking system is almost like a public utility and it has to be publicly owned or significantly public sector-dominated or intensely regulated. In fact, if I can add the fourth factor it should be global finance—the financialization of the whole world. I think it is now recognized that the global financial integration is different from the global trade integration. So, there is a lot of rebalancing. Will you give a straight answer? I think that basically the fundamental of the market logic will continue to operate. But earlier the perception was that markets are always right. Now the perception will be that markets may be right, but you keep watching them. You blamed the dollar’s monopoly as one of the reasons behind the crisis. Would you recommend a currency for the Saarc (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) region, on the line of euro, to counterbalance this? No, no… There are risks in one country’s currency being the international reserve currency. Because the country itself has a problem of doing what is good for its domestic economy and that has serious impact on the rest of the world. Sometimes, the rest of the world will benefit when there is a convergence between the interest of the domestic economy and the global economy. But when there is divergence, there is a lot of price to be paid. In the last few years, because of global financial imbalances, there is a bit of a divergence. Is this a risk worth taking? It may be not worth taking is the consensus now. At the same time, it’s not easy to replace. This is a subject on which there has been a lot of debate, but there is no compulsion to act to find a solution. However, difficult it is, we will have to find a solution. Now many countries, particularly China, are flagging this issue. We have to see how it will resolve. I expect that there will be lot more on the table for discussion. The Indian recovery and concerns What’s your take on recovery of the Indian economy? You seem to be reasonably bullish on faster recovery. Sometimes positive sentiments may be backed by mutual consent to add to the confidence. I am not talking about that kind of thing. I am talking about the inherent strengths. Though the banking sector may be affected due to the impact of deteriorating asset quality, it is reasonably strong. Except for a few days or weeks, the financial market functioned pretty normally. This is one important strength that we have. Secondly, the rural demand is fairly stable by all indications. Your dependence on the export sector is very important and socially it is very important in terms of employment, but you don’t have the huge dependence on exports like some other Asian countries. So, all in all, the Indian recovery should be earlier than most other countries. Any particular concern? I think we have to revert back to our fundamental issue of improving the physical infrastructure. We will have to concentrate on that. As far as recovery package is concerned, I think by and large—one cannot go to the detail—both the fiscal and monetary sides are good and I expect that they have been thought out well. So once that is taken care of, things are reasonably on track. What about the rising fiscal deficit? Fiscal deficit is indeed in bit of a pressure and it could put pressure on the interest rates when the turnaround comes. It could put pressure on the external sector, but it will still be manageable, because RBI has quite an array of instruments. It has the skills and the capacity But I would still say that one should keep in view that the underlying inflationary pressure in India is very high. Whenever we are thinking of taking a coordinated action, we are talking of countries which are talking of fiscal stimulus and monetary stimulus at a time when there is a very low level of inflationary or deflationary situation. And you have to compare the Consumer Price Index. In our case, it happens to be WPI. But to asses the underlying inflationary pressure, and in order to compare the policy actions taken by other countries, we should recognize that the CPI of India is still on a high side and that should be an important input. Very often the financial markets may not give attention to that. Do you also see any scope for further downward movement of interest rates? I do not want to take any view on any contextual issue, because I am not a party to information. In the “creative tension” between the finance ministry and RBI, you always stood by the decisions that you took. Now, do you feel vindicated? Sometimes you get undeserved blame and sometime you get undeserved praise. That is part of life (laughs). Finally, when is your next book coming? I believe Columbia University wants you to write… No such thing at all. There is nothing actively on my mind, but, of course, people keep on saying why don’t you write a book? I don’t think there is much to write about. I have no serious thoughts about it. Maybe I should write a joke book so that we get out of ‘creative tension’ and we create some creative cheer and jokes. Is there anything else that I should have asked you? No. You have asked more than what you should have asked (laughs). Shall we end with a joke? There is one joke I used in the book itself. A cynic remarks—“Under socialism, the governments took over the banks and under capitalism, the banks took over the governments.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 6:34 pm Forever and ever, Twitter?Speculation is rife about the future prospects of Twitter, the social networking site that is the new craze of the Internet world. This week, co-founder Biz Stone put this speculation to rest, announcing that there were no plans to sell the company, at least for now. The tech market has started resembling an oligopoly in recent years, with new start-ups such as YouTube or Blogger immediately absorbed by big players such as Google and Microsoft. The average life span for a start-up before it gets acquired would be roughly around two or three years. By that standard, Twitter is already of age. So, will Twitter prove to be the start-up that stands on its own? That’s a possibility, considering the phenomenon it has become: According to Nielsen Research, the site grew 1,382% this February, with 7 million unique visitors that month. Alternatively, as it starts earning revenue, the start-up is entering a new stage, one that may well fail. At that point, the company may just become unattractive. So, are Twitter’s founders making the right choice now? Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 5:57 pm The weekly recap: 4th-8th MayFormer RBI governor Y.V. Reddy has said the fiscal deficit is under stress and it could put pressure on the interest rates when a turnaround comes. He was however confident that the RBI would be able to deal with this problem. Referring to the Consumer Price Index he said one should keep in mind the fact that the underlying inflationary pressure in India is very high. Moving on, the country’s largest maker of home and personal care products has been losing market share by value across key product categories. Mint reported that Hindustan Unilever’s market share fell, ranging from two to six percentage points in the last four quarters, mainly as price-sensitive consumers switched to cheaper products, while HUL has been hiking its prices in the last year and a half.  The overall market for soaps, detergents, shampoo and other products has grown in double digits over the last one year, But a DSP Merrill Lynch study shows HUL’s share has fallen in these categories. While the soap market grew 18%, HUL’s market share fell to 47.5% in the three months ended March from 53.4% in the January-March quarter of 2008. Similarly detergents grew 23.4% in 2008-09 but HUL’s share fell to 36.8% from 38.9%. The shampoos market grew 18% and again HUL’s share came down to 44.7% compared with 46.3% a year ago. While the trend may be worrisome for HUL, it’s still far ahead of all rivals and continues to be the market leader. On to political news now, just before phase four of elections which was considered crucial for the Congress, Rahul Gandhi caused a flutter in political circles by openly wooing NDA allies JD(U) and AIADMK. The young Gandhi was all praise for JDU leader and Bihar Chief Minister Niteesh Kumar and declared at the same time that the NDA existed no more. Rahul’s open overture ruffled BJP feathers. While targeting the BJP’s allies, Rahul made an attempt to cozy up to former Congress allies – the left parties. He went to the extent of saying that if the left parties did manage to get the numbers, he would be the first one to support them. The Left rebuffed Rahul’s overture and called it a sign of desperation and repeated its refrain that it was working to bring a non-Congress, non-BJP alternative to power at the Centre. With the world looking to save fuel and electric vehicles offering a viable option, countries in the west are supporting the idea. The US announced a 7500-dollar and the UK government a 5000-pound rebate. But for manufacturers in India, it’s been a different story. Manufacturers like Hero Electric, Electro therm India and Reva Electric Car Company have asked the government for a 25% subsidy and for Value Added Tax to be reduced to 4% from 12%. While there have been incentives at the state level, the center is yet to respond to the industry demand. However, sources at the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy say a policy may be announced after the general elections. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 5:57 pm Indian banks can tackle asset bubble burst: Former RBI GuvFormer Governor of the Reserve Bank of India YV Reddy was pleased with India\'s response to crisis. He said, the response was \'along predictable lines\' and India\'s banks are reasonably strong. They can tackle asset bubble burst, he said, adding, strong domestic demand makes India resilient.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 5:51 pm The week in reviewFormer RBI governor Y V Reddy has said fiscal deficit is under stress and it could put pressure on the interest rates when the turnaround comes. He was however confident that the RBI would be able to deal with this problem. Referring to Consumer Price Index he said one should keep in mind the fact that the underlying inflationary pressure in India is very high. Click here to watch video He said, “…to asses the underlying inflationary pressure, and in order to compare the policy actions taken by other countries, we should recognize that the CPI of India is still on a high side and that should be an important input. Very often the financial markets may not give attention to that.” The country’s largest maker of home and personal care products has been losing market share by value across key product categories. Mint reported that Hindustan Unilever’s market share fell ranging from two to six percentage points in the last four quarters mainly as price-sensitive consumers switched to cheaper products, while HUL has been hiking its prices in the last one and a half years. The company’s net sales and profit have gone up in the period to December, but that’s mainly because of the higher prices. The decline in market share is clearly a matter of concern for the company because its volumes are going down. An AC Nielsen report says the overall market for soaps, detergents, shampoo and other products has grown in double digits over the last one year, But a DSP Merrill Lynch study shows HUL’s share has fallen in these categories. While the soap market grew 18%, HUL’s market share fell to 47.5% in the three months ended March from 53.4% in the January-March quarter of 2008. Similarly detergents grew 23.4% in 2008-09 but HUL’s share fell to 36.8% from 38.9%. The shampoos market grew 18% and again HUL’s share came down to 44.7% compared with 46.3% a year ago. While the trend may be worrisome for HUL, it’s still far ahead of all rivals and continues to be the market leader Just before phase four of elections which was considered crucial for the Congress, Rahul Gandhi caused a flutter in political circles by openly wooing NDA allies JD(U) and AIADMK. The young Gandhi was all praise for JDU leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and declared at the same time that the NDA existed no more. Rahul’s open overture ruffled BJP feathers. Gandhi said, “All these parties were part of the NDA at one point of time. But now the NDA no longer exists.” While targeting the BJP’s allies, Rahul also made an attempt to cosy up to former Congress allies -- the left parties. He went to the extent of saying that if the Left parties did manage to get the numbers, he would be the first one to support them. ”The ideological differences between Congress and Left persist but there is lot of meeting ground and reasonable amount of common space,” he said. The Left rebuffed Rahul’s overture and called it a sign of desperation and repeated its refrain that it was working to bring a non-Congress, non-BJP alternative to power at the Centre. With the world looking to save fuel and electric vehicles offering a viable option, countries in the west are supporting the idea. The US announced a $7,500 rebate and the UK government 5000 pounds. In India, manufacturers like Hero Electric, Electrotherm India and Reva Electric Car Company have asked the government for a 25% subsidy and for Value Added Tax to be reduced to 4% from 12%. While there have been incentives at the state level, the center is yet to respond to the industry demand. However, sources at the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy say a policy may be announced after the general elections. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 5:46 pm Kingfisher to transfer at least 25 flights to no-frill segmentMumbai: Local carrier Kingfisher Airlines Ltd announced on Friday that it is moving at least 25 full-service flights to its low-fare segment Kingfisher Red beginning 15 May. These flights include routes connecting cities such as Pune, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Jammu, Lucknow and Chennai. Kingfisher has sent a communication to this effect—which was reviewed by Mint—to travel agents across the country. The move comes a day after Jet Airways (India) Ltd announced it was launching a new all-economy, no-frills service called Jet Konnect. Jet Airways has positioned Konnect along the same lines as JetLite, the airline’s existing no-frills service, and Kingfisher Red. Jet and Kingfisher’s moves to convert full-service flights to the low-fare segment aim to attract passengers at a time when the Indian aviation industry is facing losses of $2 billion (around Rs10,000 crore) for fiscal 2009. This also means that the larger full-service carriers such as Jet and Kingfisher are encroaching into territory that was until now the preserve of airlines such as SpiceJet Ltd, InterGlobel Aviation Pvt. Ltd that runs IndiGo and GoAirlines (India) Pvt. Ltd’s GoAir. “Passengers are moving towards low fare side with the economy witnessing slowdown. There low fares makes lot of sense as it will increase the seat occupancy factor, too. We will be introducing more Konnect flights based on the response,” said Sudheer Raghavan, chief commercial officer with Jet Airways. “Full-service carriers opting for the low-fare route will help in bringing down fares and increasing passenger load,” said Arup Sen, executive director at travel firm Cox and Kings India Ltd. “Finally, those who had migrated to low-fare carriers, will come back to the legacy carriers as they have better connectivity and schedules,” Sen added. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 5:34 pm GE plans to invest $6 bn in healthcareBangalore: As part of its global strategy for sustainable healthcare, GE Healthcare, the $17 billion (around Rs84,000 crore) unit of General Electric Co., said on Friday it will invest $6 billion over six years in a new initiative, “healthyimagination”, that will lower costs by at least 15% and improve quality and access to healthcare by 15%. Though the company did not provide any breakup for India, T.P. Chopra, president and chief executive of GE India, said the domestic healthcare industry “is in transition and needs substantial investment to build new models of healthcare systems”. Of $6 billion, half is earmarked for research and development, $2 billion for financing healthcare information technology and health in rural and underserved areas, and $1 billion for partnerships, content and services. At least 100 innovations, aimed at lowering the cost and improving accessibility, will be launched by 2015. That would mean developing new products across the technologies that GE Healthcare works in. Under the new initiative, GE unveiled two products—a baby warmer and a portable ultrasound. These were developed in Bangalore but will be sold in emerging markets at prices up to 70% lower than their imported counterparts, said V. Raja, president and chief executive, GE Healthcare South Asia. Globally, GE’s healthcare division saw a decline in the first quarter but the company doesn’t expect any pressure in India, where its busines has a revenue of around 500 million and continues to grow at double digit rate. To facilitate transparency and engagement with its partners, the company announced the formation of a global advisory board that includes Devi Shetty, a Bangalore-based cardiac surgeon and chairman of hospital chain Narayana Hrudalaya Pvt. Ltd. It said a similar panel of experts will be set up in India. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 5:22 pm Producers, multiplexes draw up individual survival plansThe standoff between multiplex owners and producers is still on. They met the last time on May 5 but were not able to arrive at any sort of solution and now both the communities have decided to look for alternative strategies for survival.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 5:00 pm Economic slowdown drags inflation near a three-decade lowNew Delhi: India’s inflation held near a three-decade low as the weakest economic growth in six years kept the cost of food and manufactured products under check. Also See Deflation Ahead? (Graphic) Wholesale prices rose 0.7% in the week ended 25 April from a year earlier after gaining 0.57% in the previous week, the government said in New Delhi on Friday. Economists expected a 0.63% gain. Wholesale prices could turn negative for a few weeks in the coming months, though that doesn’t mean the country is in the grip of deflation, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had said in April. RBI governor D. Subbarao may be near the end of his cycle of growth-supporting rate reductions as he expects inflation to climb to 4% over the next year. The central bank may take an extended pause on rates until the end of 2009, said Prasanna Ananthasubramaniam, a Mumbai-based analyst at ICICI Securities Ltd. The bank has cut rates significantly since October to spur consumer demand. The monetary easing combined with tax cuts and government spending provide a stimulus of at least $85 billion (around Rs4.2 trillion), or 7% of the gross domestic product, according to RBI estimates. That may help economic growth recover to 6% in the year that started on 1 April, from 5.3% in the quarter ended 31 December, Subbarao had said on 21 April. Consumer prices paid by industrial workers rose 9.63% in February from a year earlier, after gaining 10.45% in the previous month, according to government data. Consumer price inflation for farm workers was 10.79%. The government hasn’t yet released the data for March. The commerce ministry on Friday revised the wholesale inflation rate for the week ended 28 February to 2.47% from 2.43%. Graphic by Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint feedback@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 4:45 pm BPTP’s independent floors for Rs16-26 lakhNew Delhi: A couple of days after Tata Housing launched a low-cost realty project which offers houses at below Rs4 lakh, BPTP Ltd, the Delhi-based developer has launched independent floors called Park Elite Floors at very competitive rates of between Rs16.08-25.56 lakhs. The floors will be located within BPTP’s 1500 acre township, BPTP Parklands in Faridabad near Delhi. The company has launched 500 flats in the first phase of the project. BPTP is also offering its buyers an upfront discount of 5% on the installments of the basic sale price if paid on or before the due date. BPTP Parklands will have 30 million sq. ft. of residential, 4 million sq.ft. of commercial and 2.5 million sq. ft. of retail space. The construction cost for the Park Elite Floors has been budgeted at about Rs1,000 per sq. ft, Kabul Chawla, managing director, BPTP said. We have cut down on our margins as well and in most of our projects our margins are not more than 25%, he said. On the Noida land that BPTP had surrendered, Chawla said that the company has taken possession of 22 acres of land after paying 100 crore of stamp duty. The total cost of the land is Rs1400 crore. In March, 2008, BPTP had won the bid for a 95-acre commercial plot of land in Noida for Rs5,000 crore. The company, which was not able to make the complete payment surrendered the plot of land to the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority in February this year. Now, BPTP plans to develop 300,000 sq. ft. of office space and 600,000 sq.ft. of hotel property on the plot of land. The hotel will have around 550 rooms and the company is in talks with leading international hotel chains to manage the hotel property, Chawla said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 4:42 pm Earnings improve but upside for stocks limitedAny recovery in the March quarter has been largely limited to large companies. A Mint analysis of the quarterly results of 1,059 companies— excluding banks, financial firms and oil companies, the earnings of which are very volatile—shows that only those with quarterly sales in excess of Rs1,000 crore showed a growth year-on- year (y-o-y) in net profits in the three months to March. Also See The Bigger, The Better (Graphic) For the 800 firms in the sample that had quarterly sales of up to Rs100 crore, net profits plunged 86.37% in the period. As the accompanying table shows, for most companies, operating profits as well as sales in the March quarter showed a decline compared with the corresponding period in 2008. Also, the drop in sales for these companies has been more muted than the drop in operating profits, which means the pressure on margins continues. But those firms that had a turnover of at least Rs1,000 crore did see growth in operating profits, although even these showed pressure on operating margins despite a decline in most raw material prices during the quarter. The big question, however, is whether the performance has improved compared with the December quarter. All classes of companies showed a drop in their sales growth. For instance, while the y-o-y growth in net sales of companies with a turnover of at least Rs1,000 crore was 23.55% in the December quarter, the rate of growth slowed to 4.57% in the March quarter. But there has been an improvement in net profit growth for most companies. The largest companies had a fall in net profit of 11.83% in the December quarter, but this has been transformed into a 5.26% rise in net profits. The smaller companies saw only a small improvement at the net profit level, but companies with a turnover of between Rs500 crore and Rs1,000 crore saw a deterioration in their net profit position. For these companies, net profits, which had fallen 20.55% in the December quarter, plunged 44.42% in the March quarter. To sum up, while sales growth has deteriorated in the March quarter sequentially, operating net profit positions have improved for most firms. That means margins have increased, a result of lower input and interest costs. Will the improved performance mean higher stock prices? The latest numbers of fund flows indicate scope for the liquidity-driven rally to continue. Global fund flow tracker EPFR.com points out that “a pattern that started in late March, with cash coming off the sidelines and bypassing funds geared to developed markets in favour of emerging markets equity, high yield bond and some sector funds, carried into the first week of May”. Analysts say that valuations—with the benchmark Sensex index on the Bombay Stock Exchange at around 12,000 points—are no longer as compelling as they used to be. According to brokerage CLSA, “While we see India recovering ahead of export-led Asia, the growth momentum in domestic cyclicals in January-March 2009 partly reflects release of pent-up demand. For a meaningful upgrade to FY10 Sensex EPS (earnings per share), global cyclicals will need to recover quickly... With current valuations now near historical averages...earnings upgrades will be key for further market upside.” While CLSA analysts say that the outlook for earnings upgrades is mixed and that global recovery holds the key to any upside, the note also points to concerns about the outcome of the general election. Graphic by Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint Write to us at marktomarket@livemint.com Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 4:41 pm IRS 2009: top order remains the sameMumbai: Readership of most newspapers and magazines stayed the same or registered some decline over the past six months according to the latest data (Round I) of the Indian Readership Survey (IRS) 2009 released on Friday. The Top 5 English and Hindi dailies retained their ranks. Also See Indian Readership Survey 2009 (Graphics) The Top 5 English newspapers by total readership are: The Times of India, the Hindustan Times, The Hindu, The Telegraph and the Deccan Chronicle. The Top 5 Hindi dailies by total readership are: the Dainik Jagran, the Dainik Bhaskar, the Amar Ujala, Hindustan and the Rajasthan Patrika. The Hindustan Times and Hindustan are published by HT Media Ltd, which also publishes Mint. Mint had 251,000 readers, compared with 217,000 in the last edition of the survey. These numbers, however, are unlikely to make much difference to media buyers because they are so-called “total readership” numbers, or the number of respondents who claim to have read a publication recently. Media buyers typically make media buying decisions on the basis of average issue readership, which only counts the number of people the day before (or the week before, or fortnight before in the case of magazines). Average issue readership (AIR) numbers for all publications weren’t immediately available from the Media Research Users Council, or MRUC, that conducts the survey. While Mint was able to source this data from an advertising agency, the numbers couldn’t be verified. Janardan Pandey, business director of media specialist agency Radar of the Mudra Group explains that even though MRUC releases only total readership figures, the true currency for media buyers is AIR. Most publications have again seen a decline in average issue readership in this round, he says. Meanwhile, a sessions court in Delhi on Friday rejected Delhi Press Pvt. Ltd’s plea for a stay on IRS 2009 figures. Delhi Press had sent MRUC a legal notice over the fact that no all-India readership numbers were released for its Hindi women’s fortnightly magazine Grihshobha in Round II of IRS 2008, published in November. Round I of IRS 2008 had shown total readership figures of 7.5 million-plus for the magazine. Round II made no mention of the numbers for the magazine. “We are clear we are going to continue with this legal battle. They (MRUC) have released wrong figures in the last round and that doesn’t change. We are not happy with the figures this time either,” said Paresh Nath, publisher of Delhi Press. Graphics by Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint anushree.m@livemint.com Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 4:37 pm Dabhol ready to source RIL gas, NTPC says no for other projectsNew Delhi: The board of Ratnagiri Gas and Power Pvt. Ltd (RGPPL) agreed on Friday to buy gas from Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). However, state-owned NTPC Ltd, one of the lead promoters of RGPPL that had initially opposed the plan, said it is unlikely to sign the gas sales and purchase agreement (GSPA) with RIL for its own projects. “The RGPPL board has cleared the proposal. However, (RGPPL’s) GSPA with RIL will be signed only after (the company) inking the comprehensive service agreement with General Electric Co. (GE),” said a senior RGPPL executive, who didn’t want to be identified. Mint had reported on 7 May about divisions within the board of RGPPL over sourcing gas from RIL. While NTPC was not in favour of RGPPL signing GSPA at around $5.40 (Rs266) per mBtu (million British thermal units), including levies, GAIL (India) Ltd wanted to go ahead with the deal. RIL has signed GSPA with all domestic power project developers for the allocation of 18 million standard cu. m a day (mscmd) from its Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin gas finds, except NTPC and RGPPL. Meanwhile, a senior GAIL executive said: “There are certain provisions such as take or pay, which we are discussing. Commercial terms (for RGPPL’s GSPA with RIL) are to be decided. Overall, there is no problem and NTPC is not opposed to this decision.” He, too, declined to be named. NTPC and GAIL are the main stakeholders in RGPPL, each with a 28.33% stake. However, NTPC is reluctant to sign GSPA for 2.67 mscmd with RIL for its own projects. “RGPPL’s board is not NTPC’s board. We are getting the GSPA for our own supplies legally vetted. We will first protect our case in the Bombay high court and only then sign the GSPA,” a senior NTPC executive said on condition of anonymity. NTPC and RIL are engaged in a legal battle in the Bombay high court over the price at which gas will be supplied to fuel the expansion efforts at two NTPC plants—one each at Kawas and Gandhar. While NTPC wants gas to be supplied at $2.34 per mBtu for 17 years, RIL wants to sell at the $4.21 per mBtu price set by the government. While these expansion efforts have since been put on hold, the Bombay high court has temporarily allowed RIL to sell gas from its fields in the KG basin. An RIL external spokesperson reiterated the company’s earlier stand: “We have sent the final draft of GSPA to RGPPL on 23 February, but have been unable to sign the GSPA till date. The ministry has informed us that RGPPL may execute the GSPA.” The decision to allocate 18 mscmd of gas produced by RIL from its KG-D6 block to power generating firms, including NTPC, was done by a five-member empowered group of ministers, headed by stand-in finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, on 9 April. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 4:35 pm DLF shares drop on news of promoters selling stakeNew Delhi: Shares of DLF Ltd shed 1.84% to close at Rs240.40 each on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) after media reports said the company’s promoter family would dilute up to 7% stake in the company to foreign and domestic institutional investors to raise Rs2,000-3,000 crore. BSE’s benchmark Sensex index dropped by 1.98% and the BSE Realty index, comprising 14 realty stocks, declined by 1.13%.  Taking stock: DLF’s K.P. Singh. Ramesh Pathania / Mint Media reports have said that money raised through the stake sale will be infused into DLF Assets Ltd (DAL), a company that DLF promoters own together with private equity investors. DAL buys contructed properties from DLF and owes the realty firm some Rs4,900 crore from past deals. Two senior DLF executives, however, said that the media has reported on market speculation. “We do not comment on market rumours,” Ramesh Sanka, group chief financial officer, DLF, said in a text message. Another senior executive at the company, who asked not to be named, denied that the promoters were looking to dilute stake in the firm. “This is not true,” he said. “The promoters will not be diluting stake.” Until late evening on Friday, DLF had not made any statement to the BSE. Calls and text messages to a company spokesman went unanswered. In a separate development, a day after a public notice by Bangalore municipality that alleged that DLF was selling apartments in its Westend Heights project in the city without mandatory clearances, the firm sent emails on Friday to its 600-odd buyers saying that it would not violate the law. DLF said its has obtained various other approvals for the project and would acquire required sanctions from Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagar Palika, the municipal corporation, in time before beginning construction. The company says it expects to give out sale agreements from 20 May and will begin construction in September. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 May 2009 | 4:32 pm 'Aravalli: Poor implementation will lead to illegal mining'The Supreme Court order Friday to continue the ban on mining activities in the Aravalli foothills in Haryana can only materialise if proper implementation by the state machinery is undertaken, the Federation of Indian Mining Industry (FIMI) has said.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 May 2009 | 3:02 pm UCO Bank posts Rs.558 crore net profitCity-based public sector bank UCO Bank posted a net profit of Rs.558 crore for the fiscal 2008-09 compared to Rs.412 crore last fiscal, a growth of 35.44 percent, a top bank official said Friday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 May 2009 | 3:01 pm 'Poor awareness stalls fair trade practices in India'Poor awareness, mammoth size, diversity and insularity are challenges India must overcome to ensure fair trade practices in grassroots businesses, World Fair Trade Organisation (WFTO) president Paul Myers, himself a leading economist, said in the capital Friday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 May 2009 | 3:00 pm Obama\'s Buffalo remark creates ripples in India IT circlesIn an event on tax reforms, US President Barack Obama on Monday, May 7, called for an overhaul in the US tax system only to ruffle feathers here in India. In a dig at Bangalore, Obama signalled a likely move to end incentives for US companies, which outsource and create jobs abroad.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 2:39 pm Obama tax move won't impact Indian firms, Murthy to presidentIndian IT firms would not be impacted by the tax reform proposal of US President Barak Obama, Infosys Technologies chairman and chief mentor N.R. Narayana Murthy told President Pratibha Devisinh Patil Friday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 May 2009 | 2:01 pm State Bank plans to raise Rs.20,000 croreState Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest lender, wants to raise Rs.20,000 crore in the current fiscal, a top company official said here Friday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 May 2009 | 2:01 pm India can comfortably grow 7-8 pct - former RBI headMUMBAI (Reuters) - India should emerge from its downturn ahead of developed economies, with recovery depending on an export revival as falling external demand was the main reason for slowing growth, the former head of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 8 May 2009 | 1:07 pm Profit booking pulls Sensex below 12,000-markInvestors sought to book profits at the Indian equities markets Friday, pulling down a key index 240 points and below the 12,000-mark after touching an intra-day high of 12,180.07 points.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 8 May 2009 | 12:08 pm Investment to return to offshore biz in 1yr: Mercator LinesKaushik Kuchroo, Senior Vice President, Mercator Lines said the present situation of offshore sector is quite comfortable and he sees investment coming back to the offshore business in the next one year.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 May 2009 | 11:15 am
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