|
|
|
|
See 8% GDP over the next 23 years: Uday KotakUday Kotak, VC and MD, Kotak Mahindra Bank, said India should get back to 8% over the next twothree years provided the global GDP (Gross Domestic Product) does not slip dramatically from where it is.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 6:13 pm Strides expects WHO nod for supply of Swine Flu medicineArun Kumar, Group CEO VC, Strides Arcolab said that the company had no selling or divestment plans. Our idea of recent business reorganisation Stride is to articulate our strategy in specialties and stay put in the pharma business. He further said that Strides was expecting to get an approval from the WHO for supply of Swine Flu medicine soon.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 5:00 pm Total order book stands at Rs 4000cr: PSL HoldingsAshok Punj, MD, PSL Holdings said, the companys total order book stood at Rs 4,000 crore. The order book at US plant was at Rs 1600 crore to be executed by Q2 CY10.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 3:44 pm Kiri Dyes Chemicals to raise Rs 150cr via QIP issueThe board of Kiri Dyes Chemicals has approved the raising of Rs 150 crore via a qualified instituiional placement. Commenting on the same, Manish Kiri, MD, Kiri Dyes Chemicals, said the proceeds will be used for the company\'s ethanol and its derivatives complex in GujaratSource: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 3:40 pm Is a fuel price hike on anvil? - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:36 pm Air India to examine wage agreements - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:32 pm Vineet Nayyar tipped to be Vice Chairman of Satyam - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:31 pm NALCO commissions 9th Unit of Captive Power Plant - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:24 pm World Bank, OECD grim; glimmers from Germany, JapanLONDON/TOKYO (Reuters) - Corporate sentiment surveys from Germany and Japan showed glimmers of hope on Monday, contrasting with grim global outlooks from the World Bank and Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:20 pm Mahindra Satyam to get new CFO soonNew Delhi: Satyam Computer, which has been acquired by Tech Mahindra and rebranded as Mahindra Satyam, is likely to get a new chief financial officer (CFO) by the first week of July. “Various names are under consideration ... Mahindra Satyam is likely to have a CFO early next month,” a source privy to the development said. The candidate is likely to be from within the Mahindra group, although she/he may not be from Tech Mahindra, he added. However, when contacted, the Tech Mahindra spokesperson said, “We don’t comment on speculation.” Earlier, Tech Mahindra was reported to be considering candidates outside the Mahindra Group. Satyam plunged into a crisis after its founder B Ramalinga Raju admitted in January to fudging books. The CFO’s post has been lying vacant since Srinivas Vadlamani, allegedly involved in the scam, was taken behind bars. The government-appointed board was given the mandate to appoint both CEO and CFO for Satyam. AS Murthy, who was from Satyam itself, was named CEO. However, the post of CFO is vacant. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:13 pm Govt plans iron ore royalties linked to priceNEW DELHI (Reuters) - The government plans to link royalties paid on iron ore to market prices rather than a fixed rate, the mines minister said on Monday, a move likely to increase the cost of the commodity.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:09 pm RIL signs gas sale purchase agreement with Essar Steel, IspatNew Delhi: Reliance Industries on Monday signed gas sale agreements with steel makers including Essar Steel and Ispat Industries for supplying 3.75 mmcmd of natural gas from its offshore Krishna Godavari-D6 basin. The agreement, which will be reviewed at the end of five years, will boost profitability of the steel firms who had been buying expensive LNG or naphtha to meet feedstock shortage at their plants, a senior official said. The ministry of petroleum and natural gas had last week asked Reliance to sell natural gas to steel firms like Essar, Ispat and Vikarm Ispat to help the nation’s most prolific gas field to produce at optimum level. As per the Gas Sales and Purchase Agreements (GSPA), Essar will get 2.86 million standard cubic meters per day (mmcmd) of gas, Ispat 0.53 mmcmd and Vikram Ispat the remaining 0.36 mmcmd at government-approved rate of $4.20 per mmBtu. “We had identified sectors that would consume the initial 40 mmcmd output from KG-D6. But some of them like CNG supply projects in cities are unable to take their entire allocation and that is now being reallocated to steel firms,” a senior official said. Reliance is currently restricting output from KG-D6 to 28 mmcmd as not all of the power and fertilizer customers identified by the Government are taking their full quota of allocation. The official said after power and fertiliser, 5 mmcmd gas from KG-D6 was allocated for city gas projects but only 1.1 mmcmd can immediately be taken. The rest is now being distributed among steel firms. The official said that the allocation has been made in accordance with the empowered group of ministers’ decision on 9 April to give any unutilised KG-D6 gas to steel plants, which are currently not being supplied their full share of administered price fuel. Currently, Reliance can produce close to 40 mmcmd but is restricting output to 28 mmcmd in absence of offtakers. Out of the 14.97 mmcmd allocated to fertilizer sector, only 13 mmcmd is being drawn because of shutdown at some urea making plants. Similarly, of the 17.99 mmcmd earmarked for power, only 15 mmcmd is being sold while two big customers NTPC and Dabhol are yet to begin drawing the fuel. After gas-based steel plants, allocations would also be made to existing gas-fired power plants and to other power plants, including captive power plants, depending upon the availability of the unutilised gas, he said. Essar Steel’s Hazira plant in Gujarat was allocated 3.11 million cubic meters per day of gas from Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) fields that is sold at regulated rates of around $2 per million British thermal unit. But it currently gets only 0.66 mmcmd due to declining output of regulated gas. Sources said that plants like Hazira would get gas that fertiliser, power, LPG extraction plants or city gas projects, who have been given priority of usage of KG-D6 gas in that order, are unable to use. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 1:57 pm Rupee ends at one-month low at 48.60/61 per dollar - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 1:45 pm Will raise Rs 2,500cr via different routes: ParsvnathCommenting on the companys QIP issue, Pradeep Jain, Chairman of Parsvnath Developers, said they have passed the enabling resolution for Rs 2,500 crore fund raising through different structure and the shareholders have also approved it. However, he said that they have not yet decided on the QIP.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 1:44 pm Rupee ends at one-month low at 48.60/61 per dollarThe Indian rupee ended at more than a one-month low because of persistent capital outflows on the back of weak equity markets coupled with a stronger US currency in overseas markets.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 1:40 pm IBM launches Wimbledon smartphone applicationLondon: Tennis fans at Wimbledon will be able to keep up with the action using a smartphone application developed by IBM, which it said could transform the way spectators access information at sporting events. The application, which runs on Google’s Android operating system, superimposes real-time statistics and updates from social networking site Twitter, including comments from players, onto a video feed from a handset’s camera. “It’s about visualising data in a different way,” said Alan Flack, IBM’s client executive for the All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), in an interview. “The trial needs to be fun to improve the experience people have at the tournament. “By exploring new technologies, we can bring information to life by making it useful, engaging and accessible.” Rob McCowen, marketing director at the AELTC, said the application could change the way people engage with sporting events. “These smart applications were designed with tennis fans in mind and add a whole new dimension to the event,” he said in a statement. The service, called Seer Android, is being trialled on T-Mobile’s G1 mobile phone at the tournament, which started on Monday. Pointing a G1 phone at a court, for example, would tell the user the court number, details of the current and previous matches and Twitter comments from experts and players, such as Andy Murray and Roger Federer. IBM, which has been Wimbledon’s IT partner since 1990, has also developed a Twitter aggregator, which combines all Wimbledon-based content into one channel, and a data application for Apple’s iPhone for the tournament. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 1:38 pm Govt still considering freeing fuel prices - DeoraNEW DELHI (Reuters) - The government is looking at ending subsidies on petrol and diesel retail prices but has no immediate plans to raise pump prices after the rise in global oil prices, Oil Minister Murli Deora said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 1:20 pm India's growth will be slowest in six years: World BankThe developing nations are projected to grow 1.2 per cent this year and without China and India, these economies would contract 1.6 per cent in 2009.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 1:06 pm Indian bond yields flat; borrowing clarity awaitedMumbai: Federal bonds yields ended little changed on Monday, with concerns about the lack of clarity on the government’s borrowing plans and worries about when the central bank could start tightening policy offset by ample cash. The yield on the most traded 6.07% 2014 bond closed at 6.65%, up one point from Friday’s closing of 6.64%. There were no trades in the benchmark 10-year bond on the day. Volumes were a moderate Rs4,975 crore ($1 billion) on the central bank’s trading platform. “There are no positives for the bond market right now except that the liquidity in the system is quite high,” said a senior trader at a state-run bank. “This is the reason the play is at the shorter end of the curve, but the longer end may see a further sell-off,” he said. High levels of cash in the banking system are capping yields despite the supply worries. Banks parked Rs125, 000 crore rupees in the central bank’s reverse repo window on Monday, indicating the extent of surplus in the system. The government will sell Rs15, 000 crore of bonds this Friday, the sixth successive auction it has increased the size from a scheduled size of Rs12, 000 crore. The increases have raised market fears the government may overshoot planned record gross market borrowing of Rs360 crore 2009/10. It is scheduled to outline its final borrowing programme on 6 July at the final budget. The government is also due to sell Rs5950 crore of state loans on Tuesday and Rs5500 crore of treasury bills on Wednesday. India should eventually look at reversign its expansionary monetary polcy, the central bank governor said on Saturday. He did not say how or when the policy will be reversed, but said he would not do it right now or in the near future. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:56 pm Indian rupee falls to 1 mth low on weaker stocksMumbai: The rupee fell to its lowest in a month on Monday, weakened by a fall in share prices and demand for dollars from importers as the US currency strengthened ahead of a policy meeting of the Federal Reserve. The partially convertible rupee ended at Rs48.62/63 per dollar, off an intraday trough of Rs48.75, its lowest since 18 May, according to Thomson Reuters data. The rupee ended about 1.1% lower than Friday’s close of Rs48.09/10. The local unit has shed more than 3% so far in June. The main stock index fell 1.35% on Monday as investors continued to take gains after a three-month rally, with a weak start in European markets adding to the sell-off. “Equities were the key trigger for the rupee to fall today,” a trader with a foreign bank said. Foreign portfolio flows into stocks of of about $7.5 billion since mid-March have been a key driver for the rupee, but the fall in the stock market since 10 June has weakened support. “Import demand was more than other days this month. I guess they are covering ahead of the usual jump in dollar buying by refiners towards the month-end,” the trader said. The dollar’s gains overseas also hit sentiment, traders said. The dollar index, a gauge of the US unit’s performance versus majors, was up about 0.6% at 1120 GMT, ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s policy-setting meeting on Tuesday and Wednesday. Markets expect the Fed to provide a slightly brighter economic view, and will be watching to see whether it will address a recent rise in Treasury bond yields. One-month offshore non-deliverable forward contracts were quoting at Rs48.72/82, slightly weaker than the spot rate. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:43 pm Apple sells more than 1mn iPhone 3GSNew York: Apple Inc sold more than 1 million units of its newest iPhone, the 3GS, in the first three days of launch, the company said on Monday. The news sent Apple shares up nearly 1%, after the stock had been trading down about 1% following a Wall Street Journal report over the weekend that said Apple chief executive Steve Jobs had undergone a liver transplant two months ago. Apple has declined to comment on the report, saying only that it expects Jobs to return to work by the end of the month as planned. Six million customers have downloaded the new iPhone 3.0 software in the first five days since its release, Apple said in its statement on Monday. The iPhone 3GS, which offers faster speeds, longer battery life and the ability to take videos, hit stores last Friday, drawing plenty of fans but not the crowds that had swarmed previous iPhone releases. Shares of Apple were quoted at $140.28 in pre-market trading, compared with their Nasdaq close on Friday of $139.48. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:42 pm Apple sells more than 1mn iPhone 3GSNew York: Apple Inc sold more than 1 million units of its newest iPhone, the 3GS, in the first three days of launch, the company said on Monday. The news sent Apple shares up nearly 1%, after the stock had been trading down about 1% following a Wall Street Journal report over the weekend that said Apple chief executive Steve Jobs had undergone a liver transplant two months ago. Apple has declined to comment on the report, saying only that it expects Jobs to return to work by the end of the month as planned. Six million customers have downloaded the new iPhone 3.0 software in the first five days since its release, Apple said in its statement on Monday. The iPhone 3GS, which offers faster speeds, longer battery life and the ability to take videos, hit stores last Friday, drawing plenty of fans but not the crowds that had swarmed previous iPhone releases. Shares of Apple were quoted at $140.28 in pre-market trading, compared with their Nasdaq close on Friday of $139.48. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:42 pm Sensex ends below 14350; RIL, global cues hurt - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:39 pm Rupee falls to 1-mth low on weaker stocksMUMBAI (Reuters) - The rupee fell to its lowest in a month on Monday, weakened by a fall in share prices and demand for dollars from importers as the U.S. currency strengthened ahead of a policy meeting of the Federal Reserve.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:27 pm Sensex rises 140 points in opening trade!Extending its rising streak for the second session, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex on Monday rose over 140 points in opening trade.Source: Zee News : Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:17 pm Developing countries` GDP to slow to 1.2%: World Bank!The World Bank on Monday estimated economic growth in developing countries of 1.2 percent this year, and said that without China and India, output would shrink 1.6 percent.Source: Zee News : Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:17 pm Parsvnath to raise Rs 2,500 cr; increase FII limit!Real estate firm Parsvnath Developers on Monday said its shareholders have approved raising up to Rs 2,500 crore through issue of securities and to increase the foreign investment limit in the company.Source: Zee News : Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:17 pm Rupee drops by 30 paise against $ in morning trade!The Indian rupee fell by 30 paise to 48.38 against the US currency in morning trade on fresh dollar demand from importers, coupled with a strong American unit in the overseas markets.Source: Zee News : Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:17 pm Maruti to launch CNG cars in 2010; may start with ‘Alto’New Delhi: The country’s largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki, on Monday said it has stopped working on LPG models as it will roll out CNG variants of the entire range of its cars from early 2010, the first of which could be its highest selling model Alto. “We have stopped working on LPG models, because customers prefer CNG cars. We will launch the first CNG variant next year,” Maruti Suzuki India chairman R.C. Bhargava said. The company would start introducing ‘cleaner-fuel’ cars once the distribution network of CNG improves across the country, at first in the main cities, he added. “We do not want our customers to wait in long queues and suffer because of lack of distribution network. We hope that the distribution network will strengthen by 2010 and at that time we will roll out the CNG cars,” Bhargava said. Bhargava, however, declined to name the model which would hit the roads on the CNG mode first. Meanwhile, sources said MSI is looking at launching the CNG version of Alto in 2010, followed by other cars. “Alto is Maruti Suzuki’s highest selling model. It will make sense to roll out that model at first and the company is likely to do so,” a source said. The company’s Maruti 800, Omni and WagonR models come with dual fuel (LPG-cum-petrol) variants. Earlier, MSI had also offered CNG fitted cars for some period, but later withdrew them. It has so far sold over two lakh vehicles fitted with alternative fuel technology. MSI Managing Executive Officer (Engineering) I V Rao said the company would roll out one model in every segment, to begin with, by the end of this fiscal, but declined to give details. “We will start launching the CNG models simultaneously with BS-IV compliant versions,” he added. MSI’s hatchback Ritz, launched in May, was the first car in India to conform to the Bharat Stage-IV emission norms. The company is now working to make other cars BS-IV compliant. India would implement BS-IV emission norms in 11 cities from the next year. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:16 pm CPI(M) admits shortcomings in party functioningNew Delhi: The CPI (M) on Monday perhaps for the first time admitted to differences in the party over withdrawal of support to the UPA government on the Indo-US nuclear deal, though the central committee said it was “correct”. The party also felt that calling for building a non-Congress, non-BJP alternative government at the Centre was “unrealistic” for which general secretary Prakash Karat took personal responsibility along with the central committee members. Several leaders, mainly those from West Bengal as well as CPI general secretary A B Bardhan, had said that the withdrawal of support on the nuclear deal could have backfired and cost them in the elections. “There is near unanimity on the withdrawal of support in our party. On the question of timing, earlier also there was a discussion that we should have done it (support withdrawal) earlier,” Karat told a press conference in the capital. Karat, who was seen as mainly responsible for pushing the line on withdrawal of support, used the words “near unanimity” when he was asked whether the central committee approved the withdrawal decision and its timing. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:12 pm Poor monsoon may dampen UPA’s food security plan: CitiNew Delhi: Falling water reservoir levels coupled with poor monsoon will not only impact India’s economic growth adversely but UPA’s ambitious plan to guarantee food security to poor families will also be hit, global financial major Citi said. While news on the monsoon front remains bleak (rainfall during 1-17 June was 45% below normal), water levels in reservoirs across the country are dwindling, Citi economist Rohini Malkani said in a note today. “This has implications not only for GDP and inflation but also on the proposed Food Security Act (i.e. providing 25 kg of wheat or rice per month at Rs 3 to every family below the poverty line),” Malkani said. Earlier this month, Citi revised its FY’10 GDP forecast for India to 6.8% from 5.5% and it raised its view to 7.8% from 6.6% for FY’11 on the back of election results and higher investment growth. “While reservoir levels are typically lower at the onset of the monsoon, they are lower this year even in comparison to the past due to average rainfall last year and the absence of pre-monsoon showers this year,” she said. Water stock in 81 key reservoirs across the country that account for 72% of India’s total reservoir stock indicate that the current storage is just 10% of full reservoir capacity and 20% of last year’s storage. Further delay in the monsoons could result in states reducing the supply of water for irrigation and conserving it for drinking purposes instead, as the individual states manage the water levels in their respective reservoirs. “Thus while 58% of India’s net sown area is dependent on the monsoons, dwindling water reservoir levels could impact even the balance 42% of the area not dependent on the monsoons,” Malkani said. Over the last month, incremental news on the agricultural front mainly rising El Nino threat, Cyclone Aila, and water reservoir levels have been worrying in the backdrop of delayed and weakened monsoon, she said. An El Nino event is the warming of the ocean surface off the western coast of South America that occurs every 4 to 12 years creating unusual weather patterns globally including possible suppression of the Indian monsoon. However, she said even as plunging reservoir levels could exacerbate monsoon woes leaving little cushion for comfort, the build-up in stocks of rice and wheat does provide cushion and would help avert an outright food crisis. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:12 pm Larceny deepens Meghalaya power crisis, loss in croresShillong: Meghalaya, already in the grip of a severe power crisis, is losing Rs1.2 crore every month due to power theft, an official said on Monday. To nab illegal power consumers, the Meghalaya State Electricity Board (MeSEB) has started raiding areas where power thefts have been reported, an official of the vigilance wing of the board said. “So far we have registered 40 cases of such thefts. They have been fined Rs10,000 each for the violation,” he said. A fine of Rs35 lakh were imposed on commercial consumers who have not declared their actual power loads, the official said. “We have been assessing the load required by the consumers. Some consumers, mostly in commercial places, were found to have not declared their actual load. This has put an extra burden on the genuine consumers,” the official pointed out. Power demand in the state is 600 MW, while it produces 185.2 MW of hydel power, which is now hit by deficit rainfall. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:05 pm ONGC strikes oil & gas in three basins - Economic Times
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:02 pm ICAI organises event for women CAsWomen\'s Conference on WOMEN TAKING THE LEAD is a fullday program, is going to be held on 29th June in Delhi.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:55 am Telecom lobby seeks tax rationalisation from BudgetMumbai: India should rationalise the multiple taxes and duties levied on the telecoms sector in the federal budget this year to help reduce the cost of services, an industry body said on Monday. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee will present the federal Budget on 6 July. Taxes, including annual licence fees, usage charges for spectrum, microwave access, and service tax, ate up almost 24-30% of the operators’ adjusted gross revenue, the Cellular Operators’ Association of India (COAI) said. As a first step towards rationalisation, COAI has sought a uniform license fee of 1% of adjusted gross revenue, excluding universal service obligation fees, across all segments of telecom. COAI has also sought tax break extensions for the telecom industry, at par with other infrastructure sectors, to aid further expansion of affordable services. It said telecom operators should be be able to claim tax breaks for 20 years. Out of this, COAI said, operators should be eligible to claim a 100% exemption on taxable profits for 10 successive years. Currently, a telecom operator is entitled to a 100% tax break for 5 years, followed by a 30% relief on profit for the next 5 years during the initial 15 years when commercial operations start. It has also sought doing away with the current rule that requires subscribers to quote PAN, or personal account number, at the time of acquiring a mobile connection, as several low-end rural subscribers do not have a PAN number. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:47 am “Spend more on urban infrastructure” - Amit Tandon, CEO Fitch RatingsIf you had three wishes as the FM, what would they be?  The second is infrastructure. I know the government has committed itself to spend on infrastructure, but I would like to emphasize the fact that we need to start spending a lot more on urban infrastructure. It credible that there’s the JNNURM i.e. the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission that is in place. However, if we look at the number of people who now live in the cities vis-à-vis the rural areas, and the amount that is invested in urban infrastructure, it leaves a lot wanting. Finally rationalization of tax. All finance ministers have spoken about it, but often they tweak things about, give some kind of concessions and bring in taxes that lead to anomalies in the system. I would like to see a road map to GST, which we are committed to moving in the next two years. If you could end something that currently exists within the budget what would it be? Very clearly the fringe benefit tax, it’s an unnecessary complication in corporate life. It makes our task difficult. Name one thing that you would want changed outside your industry? Again infrastructure. My firm belief is that money is available but we need well-planned projects, whether it is highway or a road, an irrigation project or an airport, I would like to ensure a clear and coherent policy for all sectors. Also, drilling down a little bit, if one were to look at the concession agreements that the government has been signing, I think they are open to interpretation so you have different people interpreting them in different ways and the irony is all these interpretations can be right. So you want greater clarity. Apart from infrastructure, the two other areas of concern are health and education - education at the school level but also the crying need is higher education. What is the one thing you would leave unchanged? Instead of saying that a particular tax is good or something is bad, I would actually step back and say this whole budget making process- bottoms up approach where it talks to different people, brings in a variety of views and then trying to balance each of these is a good thing. So I would not turn around and say lower a tax, I would like to preserve the whole budget making process. Lastly, what is your idea of inclusive growth? To me growth is inclusive when it embraces more and more people. So if we hear about more people being pulled out of the depths of poverty that’s inclusive growth. Often there is confusion between redistribution and inclusiveness. So reservation in educational institutes for instance is clearly not inclusive growth because by doing that you are excluding someone else. If however, say you increase the capacity of the IITs, for instance, from 100 to 500, or from 500 to 5000, that is inclusive growth. So it includes expanding the size of the services that are available. I guess it’s a tautology - including more people has to be inclusive rather than redistributing whatever little we have. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:41 am Advertisers meet in Cannes amid global downturn - Reuters
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:38 am United Bank of India plans 3-4 bln rupee IPO in DecKOLKATA (Reuters) United Bank of India is planning to raise 3-4 billion rupees through an initial public offer (IPO) in December, its Chairman and Managing Director said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:37 am India spot sugar edges up on monsoon delay - Reuters India
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:35 am Markets pare gains; Sensex ends 195 pts downMumbai: Indian shares fell 1.35% on Monday as investors continued to take profits after a three-month rally, with a weak start in European markets adding to the sell-off. Trading was choppy through the day as long-term investors, who had missed an 80% rally since early March, bought at dips and lifted the market up as much as 1% at one stage. Investors are cautious ahead of a flurry of economic data and a US Federal Reserve meeting this week, which they hope will provide surer signs a global recovery is strong enough to justify recent gains across world stock markets, analysts said. “Global markets have become weak, and what we are seeing today is typical profit-booking,” R K Gupta, managing director of Taurus Mutual Funds, said from New Delhi. The World Bank raised its growth forecast for India, but warned prospects for the global economy remained “unusually uncertain” and lowered its 2009 growth forecasts for most economies. Energy giant Reliance Industries and state-run explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corp fell after the Economic Times said the oil ministry was examining a proposal to charge royalties on sale prices instead of wellhead value that mainly excluded processing, storage and transport costs. “There has been a lack of clarity about the issue in the past few weeks. If the government is going to do this, it is definitely going to hurt profits,” Gupta said. Reliance Infrastructure dropped 4.3% to Rs1,207.60 as investors cashed in profits after the stock tripled in value since early March. State-run NTPC Ltd, the country’s top power producer, and private sector Tata Power were among the major losers. ICICI Bank bucked the trend and rose 1.8% to Rs726.90 after the Mint newspaper said the bank aimed to save up to $270 million in the current year that began in April by trimming sales agents and other costs. The 30-share BSE index ended down 195.67 points at 14,326.22 with 22 stocks declining. It climbed to as far as 14,668.40 and fell as much as 1.7% at one stage. The 50-share NSE index fell 1.8% to 4,235.25. “Investors are undecided, and at the same time there is a lot of liquidity chasing stocks,” Gajendra Nagpal, chief executive of Unicon Financial Intermediaries, said from New Delhi. “But the market has run up quite a bit already, and there is no trigger for it to rise significantly to the next level,” he said. The index dropped 4.7% last week, after rallying 83% over 14 consecutive weeks in its best run in four years. Renewed jitters about the global economy and worries about pricey stocks have dented investor confidence, while foreign portfolio inflows have slowed in the past week after they pumped in about $8 billion since early March. But expectations for investor-friendly reforms from the government when it announces its annual budget on 6 July have provided support. “July is going to be a critical month. Not only will the budget be presented, but companies will come out with their earnings figures as well,” Taurus’ Gupta said. Reliance Industries, which has the most weight in the main index, fell 4.3% to Rs1,952.45. The stock has faced headwinds since last Monday, when the firm received an unfavourable court ruling related to gas supplies. ONGC slid 1.6% to Rs993.70. Tata Power dropped 4.9% to Rs1,107.40, while NTPC lost 3.6% to Rs191. In the broader market, losers led gainers 1,512 to 1,116 on relatively lower-than-average volume of 388.5 million shares. By 4:00pm, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares was down 1.2%. US stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street, as shares were poised to trim recent gains ahead of the release this week of euro zone purchasing managers’ surveys and US housing sector data, which is key for consumer spending. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:35 am Decision on Future Ventures\' IPO in 30 days: Kishore BiyaniKishore Biyani, Managing Director of Pantaloon Retail (India) Limited, said the company was mulling an initial public offer for Future Ventures, and that a decison on the same would be taken in 30 days.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:33 am Retail sector seeks Budget initiatives to boost consumptionNew Delhi: Retail companies in the organised sector want the government to take a series of initiatives in the forthcoming Budget that would boost consumption, and have sought ‘industry status’ as well as abolition of the service tax to beat back the slowdown. Vishal Retail Group president Ambeek Khemka said that besides granting industry status to the sector, the government should allow FDI into multi-brand retailing and announce some special sops for the sector. “There should be less restrictions on the retail sector and the government should grant it industry status. It is a very big sector and a major employer,” he said. “Liquidity is a big issue and some special sops would be welcome. Besides, there should be a standard policy for the retail sector,” Khemka added. Only a small portion of the retail sector is organised and falls under the purview of local laws. Khemka also said the central service tax should be abolished as it is having a negative impact on the sector’s profitability. Future Group CEO Kishore Biyani said, however, that the industry was not expecting any big packages or tax concessions from the Budget but wanted the government to provide a big boost in consumption. “We believe increasing consumption should be a priority for the government rather than focusing just on investments,” Biyani said. However, he is not much optimistic about gaining industry status for the sector. “We are not expecting declaration of industry status, at least in this year’s budget,” Biyani said, and added that any decision on FDI in the sector is also unlikely to figure. Koutons Retail India Ltd chairman D P S Kohli emphasised on the need for measures to boost consumer confidence. “The government needs to put in place measures that will increase the consumption level in the country and thus help the retail business,” Kohli said. Terming the grant of industry status to the retail sector as a first basic step towards reforming Indian retailing, he said: “The move will help develop the sector, encourage fiscal incentives, make available organised financing and ensure insurance norms.” Koutons also expects some softening of the tax regime. “The local taxes, which range from 4-6%, are a deterrent in identifying the optimum cost of the garments,” Kohli said, adding that service tax from property should also be scrapped. RPG Group subsidiary Spencer’s Retail has asked the government to come up with “growth conductive policies, ensure availability of easy credit, grant of corporate tax holiday and real estate benefits.” Regarding FDI, a company official said, “In fact, liberalisation will foster competition, expose Indian retailers to better industry know-how and ensure flow of funds for the domestic players as well.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:26 am BSE Sensex falls 1.35 pct; Reliance, ONGC dropMUMBAI (Reuters) – The BSE Sensex fell 1.35 percent on Monday as investors continued to take profits after a three-month rally, with a weak start in European markets adding to the sell-off.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:23 am CPI-Maoist now a terror outfit, bannedNew Delhi: The Centre on Monday banned the CPI-Maoist under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, calling it a terrorist organization. An official with the home ministry said the decision was taken at a high-level meeting. “The decision has been taken to ban CPI-Maoist under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act as a terrorist organization,” the official said. CPI-Maoist, which is the main Naxal group in the country, has been bracketed with 34 other organizations including LeT and Simi who are in the list of banned outfits. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:17 am Kodak to discontinue Kodachrome filmRochester, New York: Eastman Kodak Co. is retiring its most senior film, the iconic Kodachrome, because of declining demand in this digital age. Kodachrome was introduced in 1935 and became the world’s first commercially successful color film. It had its heyday in the 1950s and ’60s and Paul Simon immortalized it in a song when he crooned “Mama don’t take my Kodachrome away” in 1973. But sales of the unique film are now just a fraction of 1% of Kodak’s still-picture film sales, and only Dwayne’s Photo in Parsons, Kansas, still processes it. Kodak says the decision to discontinue Kodachrome was difficult but necessary. The company says it plans to stay in the film business as long as it can and has introduced several new films in the last few years. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:16 am Kodak to discontinue Kodachrome filmRochester, New York: Eastman Kodak Co. is retiring its most senior film, the iconic Kodachrome, because of declining demand in this digital age. Kodachrome was introduced in 1935 and became the world’s first commercially successful color film. It had its heyday in the 1950s and ’60s and Paul Simon immortalized it in a song when he crooned “Mama don’t take my Kodachrome away” in 1973. But sales of the unique film are now just a fraction of 1% of Kodak’s still-picture film sales, and only Dwayne’s Photo in Parsons, Kansas, still processes it. Kodak says the decision to discontinue Kodachrome was difficult but necessary. The company says it plans to stay in the film business as long as it can and has introduced several new films in the last few years. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:16 am Need separate act for SFIO with whistle blower norm: panelNew Delhi: A government-appointed committee has recommended a separate Act for the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) incorporating a provision for ‘whistle blower’ to check financial frauds, like the one happened in Satyam Computer Services, at early stage. A whistle blower is a person who indicates misconduct in a company. The Vepa Kamesam Committee, set up in 2006 to review the functioning of the investigating agency, has recommended to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs that there should be a whistle blower policy in the Companies Act in the short run and in the SFIO Act in the long run to detect corporate frauds at early stage. The panel has recommended “separate statute for the SFIO should be considered in the long run” apart from its recognition in the Companies Act. The eight-member committee, headed by former deputy governor of RBI Vepa Kamesam, submitted its report recently to the ministry and has suggested the future course of action for the investigating agency. The report, according to the sources in the Committee, took into account the multi-crore rupee Satyam scam, which shook the corporate world. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:15 am Virgin Atlantic orders 10 Airbus A330-300s for $2.1 blnLondon: British airline Virgin Atlantic said on Monday that it had placed an order for ten mid-sized and fuel-efficient A330-300 passenger aircraft worth $2.1 billion (€1.5 billion). “Virgin Atlantic, one of the world’s leading long-haul airlines, on Monday announced a $2.1billion order for 10 new Airbus A330-300 aircraft which will be delivered from early 2011,” Richard Branson’s carrier said in a statement, adding that five aircraft will arrive in 2011 and five in 2012. “The new aircraft, which can seat up to 270 passengers, will operate on many of Virgin Atlantic’s existing business and leisure routes worldwide. “They will also assist future growth, helping Virgin Atlantic to fly to new destinations from London such as Beijing, Cancun and Vancouver,” added the airline Virgin Atlantic also celebrated its 25th anniversary on Monday. The carrier launched its first flight, from London to New York, on June 22, 1984. The airline enjoyed soaring profits last year despite a vicious recession in Britain, the eurozone, the US and elsewhere. “Despite the worst economic conditions in decades, we are focusing on sustainable growth in the years ahead using the most fuel-efficient aircraft possible,” Virgin Atlantic’s chief executive Steve Ridgway said on Monday. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:11 am Maruti to launch CNG cars in 2010; may start with AltoMaruti Suzuki on Monday said it has stopped working on LPG models as it will roll out CNG variants of the entire range of its cars from early 2010, the first of which could be its highest selling model Alto.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:07 am No entry load for mutual funds: Distributors spooked - Rediff
Source: Google News India - Business | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:06 am Govt may hike petrol price by Rs 2 a litre, diesel by Re 1Indian Oil, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum are losing Rs 135 crore every day and their annual revenue loss for the fiscal is estimated to be Rs 38700 crore.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 11:04 am See topline under pressure in FY10: IFCIAtul Kumar Rai, CEO and MD, IFCI, said the company created Rs 3000 crore worth of fresh assets in 200809. \"We may face pressure on our topline once existing assets reach maturity,\' he added.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:42 am Budget will be popular, let the mystery remain: Montek"Populist has negative overtones but I am sure FM will present a popular Budget. We should maintain the mystery," Planning Commission deputy chairman has said.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:39 am European stocks fall amid US economic uncertaintyLondon: European stock markets fell on Monday despite gains in Asia as investors remained cautious about the US economic outlook ahead of a key policy decision and statement from the US Federal Reserve later in the week. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 49.51 points, or 1.1%, at 4,296.42 even though shares of mining company Anglo American PLC surged more than 6% after Xstrata PLC’s merger approach, which at current market prices would value a merged company at just over £40 billion. The biggest loser in London was British Airways PLC, which fell more than 7%, after Richard Branson, the boss of bitter rival Virgin Atlantic, suggested that the flag carrier was worthless. Germany’s DAX fell 63.67 points, or 1.3%, to 4,775.79 while the CAC-40 in France was 19.51 points, or 0.6%, lower at 3,201.76. Investors have been in a cautious mood for most of June amid mounting concerns that the recent economic news has not been quite good enough to justify the share rally in stock markets since the middle of March. The FTSE ended last week down 2%, while the CAC closed 3% lower and the DAX 4% down. In the US, the Dow Jones industrial average lost 3%, while the broader Standard & Poor’s 500 index sank 2.6%. The stock market rally around the world since March had been fueled by hopes that the US economy will recover from recession sooner than anticipated. As equities usually start rising 6 to 9 months before actual recovery emerges in the official data, this suggests investors believed the massive sell-off in markets during the most acute phase of the financial crisis was overdone. Some of the world’s major equity indexes are now in positive territory for 2009. That optimism has dissipated somewhat despite some encouraging data at the end of last week. Analysts say investors need clearer evidence that the world economy and company earnings are recovering to make sense of stock valuations. In March, many investors saw valuations around the world as particularly cheap and started buying into the market. Interest rates, particularly on US government bonds have been rising steadily over recent weeks on expectations that the US Federal Reserve will raise borrowing costs sooner than previously anticipated. Meanwhile, oil prices have more than doubled over the past couple of months on hopes that a global economic rebound will boost demand for crude. “Until now markets have been able to find support from the fact that the global economy was not about to fall off a cliff and financial markets were not going to implode. Now markets need more,” said Mitul Kotecha, an analyst at Calyon Credit Agricole. The highlight this week will be the US Federal Reserve’s rate-setting meeting on Wednesday. Though the benchmark rate is widely expected to be kept in the range of 0 to 0.25%, investors will be interested to see what the Fed says about current economic prospects and how long it expects to keep monetary policy as accommodating as it is. Most analysts think the Fed has a difficult balancing act, expressing the view that the worst of the recession is over at the same time as not spooking investors into thinking that interest rates will rise any time soon. “I think that with the real economy stabilizing at best and with the consumer still cautious, the best line for the Fed to take this week is simply to say that it will keep interest rates low for as long as it takes,” said Neil Mackinnon, chief economist at ECU Group. The unsettled tone was expected to continue at the US open later, with Dow futures down 47 points, or 0.6%, at 8,429 and the S&P 500 futures 6.2 points, or 0.7%, lower at 909.50. Earlier in Asia, optimism about China’s economic outlook helped shares advance, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 stock average closing up 40.01 points, or 0.4%, to 9,826.27, and Hong Kong’s ending 138.62 points, or 0.8%, higher at 18,059.55. Chinese premier Wen Jiabao was quoted by state media over the weekend as saying China’s economy was beginning to recover steadily and that Beijing will maintain an easy credit policy to support growth. Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea’s Kospi climbed 1.2% to 1,399.71 and Australia’s benchmark added 0.5% to 3,918.2. Oil slipped further below $70 a barrel, with benchmark crude for July delivery down $1.37 at $69.18 a barrel. On Friday, it fell $1.82 to $69.55. In currencies, the dollar fell 0.4% to 95.92 yen while the euro declined 0.7% to $1.3844. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:38 am Sensex ends over 195 points down on profit-bookingThe Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex failed to sustain initial gains and ended over 195 points down on selling by foreign funds and retail investors at higher levels.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:33 am BNP Paribas announces high-level appointmentsBNP Paribas announced six senior appointments in research, sales and trading.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:32 am Video games headed for a sporting journeyNew Delhi: Video games, the picture that these words conjure up in the mind is that of treasure hunts, guns fights and car chases but all that is likely to change as sport based games are fast catching up with other genres. “It is true that more Indians are getting into gaming every day especially sports based one which are gaining huge popularity. In Zapak out of the top 10 games six are sports oriented, with India-Pak cricket leading the pack,” says Rohit Sharma, COO, Zapak, an online gaming site. A study by the National Association of Software and Services Companies has revealed huge growth potential for animation and gaming industry in India, with revenues expected to reach $1.25 billion by the year 2009. “Sport based games are doing well and it will only get better. One of the major reasons is that earlier the graphics of sport games were inferior but now they are as good as the other games and hence the popularity,” says Bishwajyoti Roy, a self-confessed gaming freak. This growth of the sport games sector has been boosted by active participation of the youth. Most youngsters prefer games that require more involvement and less strain. “One of the main reasons for popularity of such games is that they are easier to play than strategy games, “says Sharma. Although, the new breed of gamers are drifting towards sports-oriented games, vintage games like Age of Empires still rule the roost among purists. “New users prefer games like cricket, football etc but traditional gamers still go for strategy games,” Sharma says. The popularity has not been merely confined to the increase of gamers but has also translated into rise in sales. Most of the companies who manufacture such games are making handsome profits. “Two or three years ago the gaming market was dominated by strategy and combat games but now the sport based games are doing really well. Games like cricket from EA sports and FIFA football have enjoyed record sales,” says Mukul Mallik, manager of a gaming store in New Delhi. A boost for such games has been provided by the advent of interactive games pioneered by the Nintendo’s Wii that allow users to control the game using physical gestures as well as traditional button presses. Other major players like Microsoft and Sony are also planning to launch their own versions. As Suvina Rai, a college student and self confessed gameholic says, “There is more involvement in an interactive game than in other videogames. It is more demanding physically as playing games like tennis in such consoles require some physical activity.” Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:27 am IBM announces new software platform and related servicesannounced a new software platform and related services to "help product manufacturers and designers create innovative products that help people work and live smarter".Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:11 am Govt may hike petrol price by Rs 2 a litre, diesel by Re 1Government may increase petrol and diesel prices unless excise duty on the two fuels are cut to neutralise the impact of firming international oil rates.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:01 am Air India to cut employee costs by Rs500 cr a yearNew Delhi: Air India is working on plans to reduce its expenditure on employees by Rs500 crore per annum, with a newly formed committee re-examining wage and other agreements in consultation with the Unions. The cash-strapped airline’s employee cost currently is over Rs3,000 crore annually, a company spokesperson said, adding that the airline was now targetting a reduction in employee cost to the tune of Rs500 crore per annum. At present, the merged carrier has around 31,000 employees. One of the six panels set up recently is the cost rationalisation committee, comprising officials of human resource and finance departments. The committee has been directed to discuss cost rationalisation and reduction of wasteful expenditure with employees’ unions and submit its report by 15 July. The spokesperson said that the committee would examine the wage agreements, including those relating to flying allowances and productivity-linked incentives. The five other committees that have been formed are the committee on integration, committee on green initiatives, committee on safety, committee on customer feedback and route rationalisation committee. The management has held at least two rounds of talks with various Air India employees unions in this regard, with the union leaders coming up with several suggestions to cut costs. The spokesperson said the company was looking at improving productivity of employees, eliminating restrictive work practices and reducing wasteful expenditure. He said the airline would maintain its normal schedule of flights and appealed to passengers to continue to book for their travel “as usual”. The unions are, however, sticking to their agitation plan that began today with employees on duty wearing black badges to protest the decision to delay the payment of this month’s salary by a fortnight. The management has also asked the airline top brass not to take their July salary. At his meeting with them here yesterday, AI CMD Arvind Jadhav sought the employees’ cooperation in reviving the airline which was reeling under a loss of about Rs5,000 crore. Assuring their cooperation with the management to cut costs, leaders of Air Corporation Employees’ Union (ACEU), Aviation Industry Employees’ Guild (AIEG) and Indian Aviation Technicians Association (IATA) suggested that many staffers wanted to be transferred to the ow-cost subsidiary, Air India Express, with lower salaries, while others were ready to accept leave without pay for two years. The national carrier has approached the government for infusion of funds by way of equity, soft loans and a grant. The airline has started making payments on aircraft deliveries which are part of its orders for 111 planes worth about Rs50,000 crore. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 10:00 am Arcelor Mittal, Vale agree cut in iron ore priceParis: ArcelorMittal, the biggest steelmaker in the world, and Brazilian mining group Vale have agreed a huge cut in the price of iron ore for a new supply contract, Vale said on Monday. In a statement in Rio de Janeiro, Vale provided figures showing that the negotiated price of iron ore had fallen by 28.2-48.3%, depending on the category, compared with 2008. A spokesman for ArcelorMittal told AFP that the agreement was “of the greatest importance” for the company because Vale was a big supplier. Steel groups negotiate at about this time of year each year the prices which they will pay for iron ore, the main raw material for the production of steel. The price of steel boomed in the last few years but the global economic crisis has reduced demand sharply and makers have pushed for big cuts in the prices they pay for ore. The British-Australian mining group Rio Tinto earlier agreed cuts of 33-44 % in the price of the ore it sells to Nippon Steel and to its main customers in South Korea and Taiwan. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 9:52 am Arcelor Mittal, Vale agree cut in iron ore priceParis: ArcelorMittal, the biggest steelmaker in the world, and Brazilian mining group Vale have agreed a huge cut in the price of iron ore for a new supply contract, Vale said on Monday. In a statement in Rio de Janeiro, Vale provided figures showing that the negotiated price of iron ore had fallen by 28.2-48.3%, depending on the category, compared with 2008. A spokesman for ArcelorMittal told AFP that the agreement was “of the greatest importance” for the company because Vale was a big supplier. Steel groups negotiate at about this time of year each year the prices which they will pay for iron ore, the main raw material for the production of steel. The price of steel boomed in the last few years but the global economic crisis has reduced demand sharply and makers have pushed for big cuts in the prices they pay for ore. The British-Australian mining group Rio Tinto earlier agreed cuts of 33-44 % in the price of the ore it sells to Nippon Steel and to its main customers in South Korea and Taiwan. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 9:52 am Telecom lobby seeks tax rationalisationMUMBAI (Reuters) - India should rationalise the multiple taxes and duties levied on the telecoms sector in the federal budget this year to help reduce the cost of services, an industry body said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 9:46 am Air India looks to cut employee costs by 5 bln rupeesMUMBAI (Reuters) - State-run Air India, which is grappling with a liquidity crunch, is looking to cut employee costs by 5 billion rupees annually, it said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 9:31 am High Court defers ruling on Jet-Sahara case till July 2Bombay High Court asked Jet Airways and Sahara India Commercial Corporation Ltd to settle their dispute over the takeover of Sahara Airlines by July 2 or else it would pass an order.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 9:27 am Rebranded: Satyam is now Mahindra SatyamTech Mahindra, which bought a controlling stake in Satyam after the latter was crippled by a Rs 7,000crore fraud committed by its founder and erstwhile chairman Ramalinga Raju in January this year, has rebranded the company Mahindra Satyam.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 8:59 am Sensex down 126 points as Europe markets opens weakSelling pressure in benchmarks intensified on Monday with poor opening of the European markets. The worst hit were oil & gas, power and metals stocks while banks and FMCG bucked the trend.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 8:55 am Banks credit to realty sector expands in 200809Real estate developers may have just got out of a severe liquidity crunch; but data from the Reserve Bank of India suggest that bank credit to the realty sector has actually expanded.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 22 Jun 2009 | 8:48 am Air India to cut employee costs by up to Rs 500cr a yearAt present, cash-strapped Air India's employee cost is over Rs 3000cr annually and the merged carrier has around 31,000 employees.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 8:42 am Budget will be popular; let the mystery remain: MontekThe first Budget to be unveiled by the new UPA government on July 6 will be "popular", planning commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Alhuwalia said.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 8:13 am 'BJP favoured offshore casino lobby in Goa'After training its guns on the Congress-led coalition in Goa for allowing both offshore and onshore casinos to run amok, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) now finds itself in the crosshair of an onshore casino operator.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 8:01 am Air India seeks employees' help in 'fight for survival'A day after Air India asked its top executives to forgo their salary for July, the chairman and managing director of the state-run carrier, Arvind Jadhav, saturday appealed to all staff to 'rise up to the challenge' and help the airline in its 'fight for survival'.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 7:33 am Govt likely to keep provident fund rate steadyNEW DELHI (Reuters) - India is likely to retain 8.5 percent interest for subscribers of the country's largest pension fund, Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), for the year to March 2010, the Labour Secretary said on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 7:23 am Consolidation puts a halt to 14-week bull runA 14-week ride of the bulls was brought to a halt at the Indian equities markets as investors booked profits amid concerns that the recent rise was not backed by strong fundamentals. A key index lost 716 points over its previous weekly close.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 7:03 am Maoist attack makes NALCO miss bauxite targetBauxite production by the state-owned National Aluminium Co (NALCO) has fallen short of its target by 20 percent because of a Maoist attack on its mines two months ago.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 7:02 am Sensex manages to hold onto gains, up 67 pointsA key index of the Indian equities markets managed to hold on to morning gains and was ruling 67 points in the green around Monday noon, dipping from the 115 points rise it saw earlier.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 7:00 am Sensex kick off week's trade in the greenA key index of the Indian equities markets started the week on a positive note Monday, rising more than 93 points within five minutes of the opening bell.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 6:02 am Assocham submits 20-point agenda for railwaysSpeedy execution of pending projects, modernisation of stations and improvement of passenger amenities are among the suggestions the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) has made to the railways ministry.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 5:30 am Rupee down 6 paise at 48.14 against USD in early tradeThe Indian rupee today plunged by six paise at 48.14 against the US currency in early trade.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 5:27 am First South Asian trade show in US this weekWashington: A trade show exclusively for the companies catering to the need of the growing ethnic South Asian communities in the United States would be held on 25-26 June, organizers said on Monday. Major players in South Asian marketplace - leading manufacturers, distributors, retailers, restaurant owners, jewelers, airlines and travel agents are expected to attend the two-day trade show being held at the spacious garden State Exposition center in the Edison city of New Jersey, which of late is known as Little India. “The South Asian population in North America has increased, and is increasing, at an astonishing pace. As a consequence, a large share of the South Asian market is under-developed, and unexploited,” said Bharat K Joshi, of the Market Samachar, which is organizing the two day trade show. Claiming this to be the first of its kind in the United States, Joshi hoped it would enable South Asian businessman to harness the untapped potential of the promising market; and thus, help it in attaining the next level of development and maturity. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 22 Jun 2009 | 5:18 am 'Service sector contributed 56 percent to GDP'Despite the global economic slowdown, the service sector in India contributed 56 percent to the GDP during 2008-09, according to an expert.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 5:03 am Nalco reduces explosive storage amid Maoist violenceState-owned National Aluminium Company Limited (Nalco) has reduced the storage of explosives at its bauxite mine in Orissa due to rising Maoist activities in the region, the company said Friday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 22 Jun 2009 | 5:02 am Obama's healthcare push on rocky road in CongressWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Growing worries over budget deficits and government intervention could jeopardize President Barack Obama's proposed healthcare overhaul in Congress as lawmakers bicker over costs and strategies for covering the uninsured.Source: Reuters: Money News | 22 Jun 2009 | 4:51 am Rupee down 6 paise at 48.14 against USD in early tradeRupee plunged by six paise against the US currency in early trade on increased dollar demand from importers and a strong American unit in the overseas market.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 4:00 am Insurance regulator set to define pre-existing illnessInsurance companies agree that there needs to be more clarity on the term, but add that they have enough evidence to back their findings when they reject a claim.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 22 Jun 2009 | 2:21 am Banks’ credit to realty sector expands in 2008-09BL Research Bureau Real estate developers may have just got out of a severe liquidity crunch; but data from the Reserve Bank of India suggest that bank credit to the realty sector has actually expanded.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am Highway developers up in arms against new threshold limit clauseNew Delhi, June 21 The highway developers’ lobby body – National Highways Builders Federation (NHBF) – has written to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Road Transport Ministry against a clause on technicalSource: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am The politics of educationA couple of medical colleges in Tamil Nadu have been caught red-handed taking unauthorised money from applicants for admission. There is nothing really new about their story which is known to happen in many (if not in most) private institutions.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am Day Trading GuideSource: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am Duty cuts sought on cancer, AIDS medicinesMumbai, June 21 An across-the-board duty slash on medicines in critical segments such as cancer and HIV/AIDS is part of the pre-budget recommendation made by the Department of Pharmaceuticals to the Union Finance Ministry.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am Gold futures likely to riseGold futures ended marginally higher on Friday prompted by dollar weakness ahead of the federal reserve meeting in the coming week. Lower-than-expected inflation data have prompted investment funds to unwind some of the long positions. InflationSource: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am Orchid Chem & Pharma (Rs 105.9): SellWe recommend a sell in the stock Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals from a short-term trading perspective. It is evident from the charts of Orchid Chemicals that it was on a medium-term uptrend between March low and early June peak (from Rs 56Source: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am India files request with Swiss Govt on tax pactNew Delhi, June 21 India has filed a request with the Swiss Government to revise the double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA) that has been in force between the two countries since 1995.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am It’s Mahindra Satyam nowHyderabad, June 21 In its journey of recovery, Satyam Computer Services has reached a new milestone. Its new brand identity, ‘Mahindra Satyam’, was unveiledSource: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am Strong price performance due to demand, supply, currency factorsCommodities across the board have demonstrated strong price performance in recent weeks thanks to a combination of demand side, supply side and currency factors. Yet, in the last few days, the pace of price rise has slowed. One of the principalSource: Business Line - Home Page | 22 Jun 2009 | 12:00 am Markets drop as FII interest cools offThe Sensex dropped 195.67 points, or 1.35%, to close at 14,326.22. The Nifty dipped by 1.82% to close at 4,235.25 - down 78.35 points from its previous close of 4,313.60.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 21 Jun 2009 | 11:29 pm Marker may turn kerosene into killer fuelNearly 6.5 million BPL families who use kerosene could soon be exposed to cancer-causing fumes from markers that will be laced with the poor man's fuel to check diversion.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 21 Jun 2009 | 10:48 pm Is Nath's 7K-km roads plan but sound & fury?The government plans to build 7,000 km of roads in a year, or over 19 km a day, Union road transport and highways minister Kamal Nath said.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 21 Jun 2009 | 10:25 pm Intel rejigs research structure with eyes on futureIntel Corporation has rejigged its overall research structure. It has also rechristened its main R&D arm which boasts of some 1,000-plus R&D experts.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 21 Jun 2009 | 10:22 pm Sebi wants mutual fund allocations in anchor investor quotaThe Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has recommended reservation for domestic mutual funds within the quota allocated for anchor investors in initial public offers (IPOs).Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 21 Jun 2009 | 6:58 pm TDS rates may be recastIncome tax department pitches for three slabs.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 21 Jun 2009 | 6:55 pm
|
