Govt can\'t bail out pvt airlines says Praful Patel

Aviation Minister Praful Patel has said that the government was not ion position to help private airlines financially. “Tax on ATF has been a problem for many years.” He added that the government would reiterate its advice to private airline.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 1 Aug 2009 | 8:36 am

Maruti July sales total sales up 33.4% at 78,074 units

Maruti Suzuki has announced its sales numbers for the month of July 2009. Its July total sales surged 33.36% to 78,074 units as against 58,543 units in the same period of last year, reports CNBCTV18 quoting NewsWire18.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 1 Aug 2009 | 7:22 am

TVS Motor July total 2wheeler sales at 1.21 lakh units

TVS Motor has announced its sales numbers for the month of July 2009. The company\'s total 2wheeler sales stood at 1.21 lakh units versus 1.2 lakh units (YoY).
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 1 Aug 2009 | 7:16 am

US House votes to clamp limits on Wall Street bonuses!

Bowing to populist anger, the House voted Friday to prohibit pay and bonus packages that encourage bankers and traders to take risks so big they could bring down the entire economy.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

Maruti sales jump 33.36% in July!

The country`s largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, on Saturday reported a 33.36 percent jump in sales at 78,074 units in July.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

TVS motorcyles sales dip 20% in July!

TVS Motor Company on Saturday reported a 20.44 percent fall to 42,998 units in motorcycle sales in July compared to 54,042 units in the same month last year.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

Profit reports push Dow to best July in 20 years!

The Dow surged 725 points or 8.6 percent in July making it the best month for the blue chips since October 2002 and the best July since 1989.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

Now PIN must for online credit card transactions!

Beginning August 1, online shopaholics using credit cards will have to provide an additional PIN number as an additional security before making any purchase.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

Orion plans to expand operations to South East Asia, Australia!

Orion India Systems, a subsidiary of the US-based Orion Systems Integrators, plans to scale up workforce at its centre here to about 400 from the present 100 in the next three years.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

Softpro Systems acquires CURA, South Africa!

Softpro Systems, an ERM business solutions provider, on Saturday said it has acquired 100 percent stake in Cura Risk Management Software Proprietary Ltd (CURA) after a definitive agreement with shareholders.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

GMR Infrastructure Q1 net profit dips 70 percent to Rs 22 cr!

Infrastructure company GMR Infrastructure on Saturday said its consolidated net profit declined by 69.92 percent to Rs 22.53 crore for the first quarter ended June 2009, over the same period last year.
Source: Zee News : Business | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:48 am

No bailout for pvt airlines, Govt warns of punitive action

The government on Saturday denied any bailout for private airlines and reiterated its stand of keeping the passengers interest in mind. The DGCA will take appropriate actions if required, said Union Avaition Minister Praful Patel.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:47 am

Suzlon posts net loss of Rs 160 crore in first quarter

Wind power major Suzlon posted a net loss of Rs 160.47 crore for the quarter ended June 30, compared to a net profit of Rs 88.04 crore in the same period the previous fiscal.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 1 Aug 2009 | 6:03 am

Gold surges on strong global cues, festive demand

Gold prices on Friday surged by Rs 140 to Rs 15,090 per ten gram registering a significant gain in the national capital, triggered by firming global trend.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Aug 2009 | 5:09 am

US recession may be easing, but job market weak

The American economy may be heading out of the woods with new government numbers showing signs of easing recession laying the groundwork for growth in the months ahead.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 1 Aug 2009 | 4:57 am

GMR Infra Q1 net profit dips 70% to Rs22 cr

Mumbai: Infrastructure company GMR Infrastructure on Saturday said its consolidated net profit declined by 69.92% to Rs22.53 crore for the first quarter ended June 2009, over the same period last year.
Its net sales rose to Rs1,177.52 crore in the latest quarter, against Rs885.47 crore in the same quarter a year ago, GMR Infrastructure said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
On a standalone basis, the company has posted a decline of 91.50% in net profit of Rs3.56 crore for the quarter ended June, over the same period last year.
Total income declined to Rs17.48 crore in the latest quarter against Rs55.44 crore in the same period last year.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 1 Aug 2009 | 4:45 am

Government not to bailout private airlines - Economic Times


Indian Express
Government not to bailout private airlines
Economic Times
NEW DELHI: Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel on Saturday said that the government would not bailout private airlines. Private airlines ganged up and decided to suspend operations on August 18 if the government did not help them cut costs "The ...
Govt can't bail out pvt airlines says Praful PatelMoneycontrol.com
Government asks airlines to talk, not stop serviceTimes of India
Airlines threaten stir: Praful rejects bailoutIBNLive.com
Press Trust of India -Wall Street Journal -Hindu Business Line
all 197 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 1 Aug 2009 | 4:40 am

Obama says many months before U.S. exits recession

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama warned on Saturday it would take "many more months" for the United States to get out of recession even after GDP figures showed the economy shrank only modestly in the second quarter.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 1 Aug 2009 | 4:04 am

Suzlon posts Rs 452 cr. Q1 loss - Hindu


Business Standard
Suzlon posts Rs 452 cr. Q1 loss
Hindu
Mumbai (PTI): Wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy on Saturday reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 452.67 crore for the first quarter ended June 30 due to lower sales volumes. The company had a profit of Rs 9.3 crore in the same period last fiscal. ...
Suzlon Energy Q1 net loss at Rs 453crMoneycontrol.com
Suzlon posts net loss of Rs.160 crore in first quarterSify
India Suzlon April-June net loss 4.53 bln rupeesReuters
Bloomberg -India Infoline.com
all 36 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 1 Aug 2009 | 4:01 am

Unitech first quarter profit dips 63%

Realty major Unitech Ltd's first quarter profit fell 63 percent from Rs.4.23 billion to Rs.1.58 billion due to the sluggish demand for housing.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Aug 2009 | 3:45 am

Bonds fall sharply, Re gains 40 paisa

Government bond prices fell dramatically on Friday, with the 10-year benchmark bond yield touching the 7% mark, amidst confusion over the Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) plan to buy back bonds from the market.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Aug 2009 | 3:44 am

TVS motorcyles sales dip 20 pc in July

TVS Motor Company on Saturday reported a 20.44 per cent fall to 42,998 units in motorcycle sales in July compared to 54,042 units in the same month last year.


Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 1 Aug 2009 | 3:42 am

Government not to bailout private airlines

As private airlines gang up to suspend operations on August 18, civil aviation minister Praful Patel refused to bail them out.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Aug 2009 | 3:41 am

Maruti sales jump 33.36 pc in July

The country's largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, on Friday reported a 33.36 per cent jump in sales at 78,074 units in July.


Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 1 Aug 2009 | 3:39 am

Government warns private airlines against suspending operations

Civil aviation minister Praful Patel said the DGCA can take action if flight schedules are disrupted.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 1 Aug 2009 | 3:15 am

Airbus jets to get US speed probes after AF crash

Airlines were ordered to replace the speed probes on Airbus A330 and A340 jets with models made by US firm Goodrich, after earlier versions were linked to the loss of an Air France flight.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 1 Aug 2009 | 3:03 am

MindTree to build ‘white label’ products

MindTree Ltd has forayed into the readytomanufacture segment by building softwareintensive products in areas such as security and telemedicine, as part of its diversification strategy for its RD services business.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 1 Aug 2009 | 2:33 am

Government asks airlines to talk, not stop service

Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel Saturday asked private airlines withdraw their proposal to suspend operations Aug 18 and asked them come to the table for discussions rather than inconvenience passengers.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Aug 2009 | 2:31 am

Softpro Systems buys CURA

Hyderabad: Softpro Systems, an ERM business solutions provider, on Saturday said it has acquired 100% stake in Cura Risk Management Software Proprietary Ltd (CURA) after a definitive agreement with shareholders.
The payment of purchase consideration for acquiring CURA, South Africa was made on 30 July to its outgoing shareholders, thereby taking over its management, a Softpro release said without revealing the size of the deal.
CURA, South Africa, is a leading provider of integrated software solutions addressing the Governance Risk & Compliance (GRC) requirements globally, having offices in South Africa, USA, UK, Australia and operates through exclusive distributors in 16 countries in Asia and South America.
With subsidiaries in UK and Australia, CURA has global sales revenues of around $7 million, expecting to touch $12 million this year.
“With acquisition of CURA, Softpro will enter into the Governance, Risk & Compliance (GRC) industry which is quite nascent in global markets including India.
“We will thus become one of the first movers in GRC domain in India as there are not many players in this GRC space and it is going to be very big in coming years,” SoftPro Systems chairman & managing director G Bala Reddy said in the release.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 1 Aug 2009 | 2:01 am

Corporate India, global cues push Sensex to 13-month high

Corporate India provided a much needed boost to investors this week and buying interest at Indian equities markets resurfaced in the wake of a good set of earnings reports, pushing a key index to a 13-month high.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Aug 2009 | 2:00 am

Sensex closes at 13-month high; surges 8% in July - Moneycontrol.com


Sify
Sensex closes at 13-month high; surges 8% in July
Moneycontrol.com
The Sensex witnessed huge buying interest on the first day of the August series and closed July month on a strong note, up 8% during the month. It closed at 13-month high on the back of strong earnings and global cues. The Nifty closed above the 4600 ...
Corporate India, global cues push Sensex to 13-month highSify
Weekly review: Sensex gains 2% on good earnings, global cuesBusiness Standard
Robust earnings outlook, global cues lift SensexLivemint
Economic Times -Times of India -Myiris.com
all 587 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 1 Aug 2009 | 1:58 am

Suzlon posts net loss of Rs.160 crore in first quarter

Wind power major Suzlon posted a net loss of Rs.160.47 crore for the quarter ended June 30, compared to a net profit of Rs.88.04 crore in the same period the previous fiscal.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Aug 2009 | 1:30 am

Maruti sales up 33 percent in July

India's largest car maker Maruti Suzuki Saturday reported a 33.4 percent increase in sales for July to 78,074 units compared to 58,543 units in the same month last year. Of these 10,546 cars were exported.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Aug 2009 | 1:30 am

Robust earnings outlook, global cues lift Sensex

Mumbai: Encouraging global picture and robust corporate earnings outlook for the fiscal year 2010, propelled Indian bourses aiding the Bombay Stock Exchange 30-share benchmark, Sensex, to hit a 13-month high of 15,670.31 amid end of quarterly earnings season.
The BSE barometer gained 1,176 points or 8.0% in July quarterly earning season.
The major trigger was the better-than-expected financial results by majority of companies.
Extending weekly gains to third straight week to 1 August, the BSE bellwether concluded at levels not seen since 17 June 2008, netting a rise of 291.35 points or 1.89% over its last weekend’s close.
Similarly, the National Stock Exchange broader 50-share Nifty jumped 67.90 points or 1.49% to end the week at 4,636.45 from its previous weekend’s close.
Even as the market was influence by a flow of encouraging corporate earnings, the Reserve Bank of India’s quarterly monetary policy review announced on 28 July also impacted the market.
The RBI left the key rates unchanged and increased the inflation forecast to 5% in this fiscal. It also raised the growth projections at 6.0% in 2009-10.
Meantime, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on the same day announced tax breaks, mainly beneficial to infrastructure sector in a bid to stimulate the economy.
FII activity during the month too was encouraging with a total capital inflow of over Rs11,000 crore in July.
Analysts also are optimistic about corporate earnings in the current fiscal year.
However, the monsoon remained a main cause of concern as the total rainfall since the beginning of June was below average according to the Meteorological Department.
During the week, the trading volume on the BSE was almost steady at Rs33,007 crore against last week’s turnover of Rs34,005 crore but it crossed 1 lakh mark on the NSE to Rs1,07,707 crore from Rs99,330 crore in the previous week.
The midcap and smallcap indices again outperformed the Sensex with a rise of 3.52% and 2.57% over the week.
The BSE FMCG Index was the week’s top gainer with a jump of 6.14% followed by the BSE IT Index (4.85%) and BSE Realty Index (3.12%).
The domestic bourses were well supported by global markets, which hit a multi-month high on revival in economy across the world as well as encouraging corporate earnings.
Among the major gainers, Tata Motors soared by 12.86%, Tata Power by 11.02%, TCS Ltd by 9.25%, ITC by 7.97%, SBI and Wipro by 6.80% each and Tata Steel by 5.18%.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 1 Aug 2009 | 1:16 am

Maruti sales jump 33.36% in July

The country's largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, today reported a 33.36% jump in sales at 78,074 units in July.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 1 Aug 2009 | 1:11 am

Huge govt borrowing detrimental to lowering rates: RBI - Moneycontrol.com


Rediff
Huge govt borrowing detrimental to lowering rates: RBI
Moneycontrol.com
D Subbarao, Governor, Reserve Bank of India , on Friday took the government to task for going in for a huge borrowing program. He said this will go against their intention of lowering interest rates in the economy. The governor also indicated that ...
Rolling back expansionary policies on RBI agenda: SubbaraoHindu Business Line
RBI hints at rollback of monetary expansionBusiness Standard
RBI wants clear roadmapThe Statesman
Economic Times -Hindustan Times -Reuters India
all 35 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:55 am

Suzlon April-June net loss 4.53 bln rupees

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy said on Saturday it posted a consolidated net loss of 4.53 billion rupees ($94.6 million) in the April-June quarter.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:51 am

TVS motorcyles sales dip 20 pc in July - Hindu


Stock Watch
TVS motorcyles sales dip 20 pc in July
Hindu
New Delhi (PTI): TVS Motor Company today reported a 20.44 per cent fall to 42998 units in motorcycle sales in July compared to 54042 units in the same month last year. Total two-wheeler sales, however, stood at 1,20994 units in July against 1,18545 ...
Strong sales drive up TVS net 157% to Rs 18 cr in Q1Economic Times
TVS Motor Q1 net doubles to Rs 20 croreTimes of India
Unitech, TVS Motor & Aurobindo Q1 resultBusiness Standard
Myiris.com -Institute of International Trade -Sify
all 32 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:48 am

Suzlon posts June quarter net loss of Rs4.53 bn

Mumbai: The wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy said on Saturday it posted a consolidated net loss of Rs4.53 billion ($94.6 million) in the April-June quarter.
The company posted a net profit of Rs93 million in the same quarter a year ago.
Total income in the June quarter was Rs41.71 billion, 33.3% up from Rs31.29 billion a year ago.
On Friday, Suzlon shares closed 0.55% higher at Rs99.75 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:47 am

US, Saudi Arabia working together against terrorism

Washington: The US and Saudi Arabia are working together to deny terrorists “safe haven and access to funding,” particularly in Pakistan and Afghanistan, US secretary of state Hillary Clinton has said.
Clinton, who met Saudi foreign minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal here on Friday, said the two countries, which are close allies, were cooperating in dealing with the menace.
“We are working together to deny terrorists safe haven and access to funding, particularly in Afghanistan and Pakistan,” she said at a joint press conference with Prince Saud.
Pakistani security forces have launched a major offensive against Taliban militants in the country’s restive northwest while Afghanistan supported by the US-led coalition forces is battling the insurgents in parts of the war-ravaged nation.
Asserting that the US commitment to Saudi Arabia’s security is unwavering, Clinton said Washington shares concerns about the destabilizing role that Iran has played throughout the region and the continued expansion of Tehran’s nuclear programme and its support for terrorism.
Turning to the Middle East conflict, she said the US is working very closely and intensely with the Israelis on the issues of settlements and easing of living conditions for the Palestinians, and with the Palestinian Authority on improving security and ending incitement on the West Bank and in Gaza.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:33 am

Rains elude Uttar Pradesh again, farming hit further

After raising hopes of widespread rainfall in parts of Uttar Pradesh, the monsoon has once again disappointed the people of the state where 47 out of 71 districts have already been declared drought-hit.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:31 am

Maruti sales jump 33.36 pct in July - Indian Express


Indian Express
Maruti sales jump 33.36 pct in July
Indian Express
The country's largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, reported a 33.36 per cent jump in sales at 78074 units in July. It had sold 58543 vehicles in the same month last year. Sales in the domestic market grew by 27.63 per cent to 67528 units in July ...
A bit GranderBusiness Standard
Maruti Suzuki sales climb 33.4% in July 2009Myiris.com
Maruti to up R&D expenseCalcutta Telegraph
Thaindian.com
all 28 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:14 am

Maruti sales jump 33.36% in July

New Delhi: The country’s largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, on Saturday reported a 33.36% jump in sales at 78,074 units in July.
It had sold 58,543 vehicles in the same month last year.
Sales in the domestic market grew by 27.63% to 67,528 units in July from 52,911 units in the same month last year. Exports rose by 87.25% to 10,546 units compared to 5,632 units in the year-ago period, Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) said in a statement.
During the month the company crossed the 50,000 units export mark for its A-Star which was introduced internationally in January this year, it added.
Sales of the company’s oldest and once bread-and-butter model M800 declined by 43.55% at 2,796 units compared to 4,953 units last year, while A2 segment (comprising Alto, Wagon R, Zen Estillo, Swift, A-Star and Ritz) witnessed a growth of 38.28% at 48,115 units compared to 34,795 units in the same month last year.
Sales in the A3 segment (consisting of SX4 and DZiRE) increased by 51.47% to 9,101 units compared to 6,009 units in the corresponding period last year, the company said.
MSI’s passenger car sales rose by 29.43% at 67,314 units against 52,010 units in the same month in 2008, the statement said.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:11 am

Kharif area under pulses, maize, soyabean increases

The 19-per cent rainfall deficit during the first half of the current monsoon season (June-September) has badly affected paddy plantings, which are down by over a quarter compared with the coverage during this time last
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Lower prices pull Hindalco net down 31%

Mumbai, July 31 Hindalco Industries, an Aditya Birla Group company, has reported a 31 per cent drop in net profit at Rs 481 crore in the first quarter ended June 30, against Rs 697 crore logged in the same period of last year. Sales were down 16
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Turbulence in air as pvt airlines plan to suspend services on Aug 18

Mumbai/New Delhi, July 31 August 18 could end up being a nightmare for people flying private carriers within India as none of them plan to be operational that day.
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Foreign pilots replacement deadline looms over airlines

Mumbai, July 31 With barely a year left for the DGCA (Director-General of Civil Aviation) deadline on replacing foreign pilots with Indian, domestic airlines are in a quandary, especially for international routes.
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

DoT suggests WiMax base price at 25% of 3G reserve

New Delhi, July 31 The Ministry of Communications on Friday told the Empowered Group of Ministers (eGoM) that the base price for WiMax spectrum may be pegged at 25 per cent of the reserve price fixed for 3G
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Despite strong Q1, LPG losses a worry for refiners

Mumbai, July 31 While the public sector refining trio of IndianOil, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation and Bharat Petroleum Corporation have cause for cheer with their first quarter results, there is a mounting concern on LPG (liquefied petroleum
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

AI may seek $700 m reparation from Boeing for delivery delay

New Delhi, July 31 With Air India considering seeking a compensation of over $700 million from Boeing for delay in delivery of 787s and also planning to cancel delivery of six Boeing 777s, the President of Boeing India, Dr Dinesh Keskar, met with
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Markets this week

The benchmark Sensex got off to a flat opening on Monday owing to a dismal show by petro major Reliance industries. The Sensex finished the day at 15,375, marginally down 4 points and the Nifty too ended almost flat at 4,572, shedding 4
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Indian equities lag behind other benchmarks in July

Chennai, July 31 Indian equities took a back seat in the stock market rally in July. After the stellar performance in May and June, the Indian benchmark index, Sensex, closed behind other Asian, European and US indices, in
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Sensex hits year-high on strong Q1 results

Mumbai, July 31 Buoyed by good first quarter corporate earnings, the benchmark stock index Sensex hit a 52-week high on Friday.
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 1 Aug 2009 | 12:00 am

Govt to launch fertilizer subsidy scheme

Madurai: Union minister for chemicals and fertilizers M K Azhagiri said the Centre would launch a scheme that would enable farmers get fertilizer subsidy directly.
Distributing welfare assistance to agricultural workers under the Tamil Nadu Agricultural Labourers Social Safety and Welfare Scheme here on Friday night, he said “the direct fertilizer subsidy scheme” would be introduced initially in two districts in Tamil Nadu including one in Madurai.
He said the Tamil Nadu government’s Social Safety Scheme for Farmers had benefitted 4.08 lakh farm workers and financial assistance to the tune of Rs299.21 crore had been distributed so far. Besides Rs83.6 crore had been given to those belonging to Adidravida and backward class under the scheme, he said.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:37 pm

Yahoo Labs sees real-time search opportunity

San rancisco: Yahoo Inc is considering developing new real-time search capabilities, even as it outsources its existing Internet search technology to Microsoft Corp.
Yahoo’s Prabhakar Raghavan, head of Yahoo Labs, said that the company could potentially “mine” messages from Twitter, the popular microblogging service, to offer Web surfers search results beyond those offered by Microsoft’s Bing.
Bing is the Microsoft search engine that is to provide Yahoo’s standard search results, under the terms of a long-awaited partnership announced this week.
“I’ve always held that the interesting thing of Tweets is not necessarily searching them but mining them. So we could real-time mine them, then assemble what we mine into the search engine,” said Raghavan in an interview with Reuters on Friday.
By “mining” the data, Yahoo could offer search results far beyond a simple list of comments on Web sites, for instance, but instead could analyze data and group results by criteria ranging from topic to geography.
While Raghavan stressed that he was not “pre-announcing” any product plans, he said his comments were intended to paint a picture of some of the things that Yahoo is considering in its new form.
On Wednesday, Yahoo and Microsoft announced a 10-year partnership in which Yahoo will use Microsoft’s search and search advertising technology. The move will allow Yahoo to save some $425 million in operating expenses, the company said.
Raghavan said much of the savings will come from back-end infrastructure technology, now that Yahoo no longer invests in the resources to crawl and index the world’s vast number of Web sites.
But he said that Yahoo will continue to develop innovative search and communications products.
“In terms of satisfying user intent, the hard work and in some sense the bigger growth opportunities for differentiation are not the back-end of crawling and indexing, but really surfacing and assembling content the right way to satisfy user intent,” he said.
Real Time search is an increasingly popular online activity where Yahoo’s approach to search could provide a compelling user experience, Raghavan said.
Unlike traditional Internet search, which allows Web surfers to find Web pages on various topics, real-time search focuses on the flood of constantly updated messages posted by people using social networking services like Twitter.
A number of smaller private companies like Collecta and OneRiot have developed real time search products, as has Twitter itself, which offers its own search engine to cull through its Tweets.
Raghavan said that Yahoo sees value not only in the individual Twitter messages, but in the information that Yahoo could provide by analyzing the broader stream of Tweets and other real time data traveling across the Internet.
As an example, Raghavan said that a search on “LA Earthquake”, following a hypothetical temblor in Southern California, could return a map showing the concentration of Twitter messages from a certain neighborhood.
Raghavan also said that real-time data could increasingly be incorporated into future versions of Yahoo communications products, like Yahoo Mail, and that making deals to get access to feeds from companies like Twitter and Facebook could be worthwhile.
“Does it make sense to consider such deals? Absolutely. When you say do you need to, it depends on the business reality and the current market,” said Raghavan.
“It absolutely makes sense to think creatively on everything from getting the right feeds to crafting a different communications interface that combines the best elements of mail and some of these newer, emerging genres,” he said.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:10 pm

Yahoo Labs sees real-time search opportunity

San rancisco: Yahoo Inc is considering developing new real-time search capabilities, even as it outsources its existing Internet search technology to Microsoft Corp.
Yahoo’s Prabhakar Raghavan, head of Yahoo Labs, said that the company could potentially “mine” messages from Twitter, the popular microblogging service, to offer Web surfers search results beyond those offered by Microsoft’s Bing.
Bing is the Microsoft search engine that is to provide Yahoo’s standard search results, under the terms of a long-awaited partnership announced this week.
“I’ve always held that the interesting thing of Tweets is not necessarily searching them but mining them. So we could real-time mine them, then assemble what we mine into the search engine,” said Raghavan in an interview with Reuters on Friday.
By “mining” the data, Yahoo could offer search results far beyond a simple list of comments on Web sites, for instance, but instead could analyze data and group results by criteria ranging from topic to geography.
While Raghavan stressed that he was not “pre-announcing” any product plans, he said his comments were intended to paint a picture of some of the things that Yahoo is considering in its new form.
On Wednesday, Yahoo and Microsoft announced a 10-year partnership in which Yahoo will use Microsoft’s search and search advertising technology. The move will allow Yahoo to save some $425 million in operating expenses, the company said.
Raghavan said much of the savings will come from back-end infrastructure technology, now that Yahoo no longer invests in the resources to crawl and index the world’s vast number of Web sites.
But he said that Yahoo will continue to develop innovative search and communications products.
“In terms of satisfying user intent, the hard work and in some sense the bigger growth opportunities for differentiation are not the back-end of crawling and indexing, but really surfacing and assembling content the right way to satisfy user intent,” he said.
Real Time search is an increasingly popular online activity where Yahoo’s approach to search could provide a compelling user experience, Raghavan said.
Unlike traditional Internet search, which allows Web surfers to find Web pages on various topics, real-time search focuses on the flood of constantly updated messages posted by people using social networking services like Twitter.
A number of smaller private companies like Collecta and OneRiot have developed real time search products, as has Twitter itself, which offers its own search engine to cull through its Tweets.
Raghavan said that Yahoo sees value not only in the individual Twitter messages, but in the information that Yahoo could provide by analyzing the broader stream of Tweets and other real time data traveling across the Internet.
As an example, Raghavan said that a search on “LA Earthquake”, following a hypothetical temblor in Southern California, could return a map showing the concentration of Twitter messages from a certain neighborhood.
Raghavan also said that real-time data could increasingly be incorporated into future versions of Yahoo communications products, like Yahoo Mail, and that making deals to get access to feeds from companies like Twitter and Facebook could be worthwhile.
“Does it make sense to consider such deals? Absolutely. When you say do you need to, it depends on the business reality and the current market,” said Raghavan.
“It absolutely makes sense to think creatively on everything from getting the right feeds to crafting a different communications interface that combines the best elements of mail and some of these newer, emerging genres,” he said.

Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:10 pm

Singapore Airlines says no job cuts for now: report

Singapore Airlines, the world's second largest airline by market value, has no plans to cut jobs or further reduce flights, its chief executive said, according to a Straits Times newspaper report on Saturday.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:08 pm

Adani IPO collects Rs60,000 cr; public issue subscribed 21 times

The public issue of Adani Power Ltd (APL), which closed on Friday, got tremendous response from investors.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 8:53 pm

U.S. House panel backs 12-year biotech drug shelter

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Biotech drugs would be protected from competition from cheaper rivals for 12 years under a proposal adopted by a key House committee on Friday.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 8:16 pm

Yahoo Labs chief sees real-time search opportunity - Reuters


BBC News
Yahoo Labs chief sees real-time search opportunity
Reuters
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc is considering developing new real-time search capabilities, even as it outsources its existing Internet search technology to Microsoft Corp. Yahoo's Prabhakar Raghavan, head of Yahoo Labs, said that the company ...
Devangshu Datta: Search for market shareBusiness Standard
Ballmer Defends Yahoo DealWall Street Journal
Ballmer Says He's Surprised by Reaction to Yahoo DealBloomberg
Barron's -New York Times -Washington Post
all 4,853 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 31 Jul 2009 | 6:15 pm

Essar Energy acquires 50% in Kenyan firm - Times of India


Daily Nation
Essar Energy acquires 50% in Kenyan firm
Times of India
MUMBAI: Essar Energy's acquisition of a 50% stake in Kenya Petroleum Refineries signals Corporate India's ravenous appetite for Africa. The move adds to a series of other developments where Indian companies have actively sought a footprint in that ...
Essar buys 50% stake in Kenyan refineryEconomic Times
Essar Oil picks up 50% stake in Kenyan refineryHindu Business Line
Essar buys 50% in Kenya refineryThe Statesman
Reuters India -Daily News & Analysis -Wall Street Journal
all 35 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:43 pm

Essar Energy acquires 50% in Kenyan firm

Essar Energy's acquisition of a 50% stake in Kenya Petroleum Refineries signals Corporate India's ravenous appetite for Africa
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:37 pm

Sensex soars to 13-month high

The BSE sensex surged to its 13-month high on Friday on revival hopes backed by a series of healthy corporate results.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:37 pm

Bharti, MTN likely to extend deal talks, decision on Monday

Bharti Airtel and South Africa's MTN are likely to announce the fate of their negotiation on Monday. However, sources said that the period for exclusive talks is likely to be extended.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:36 pm

Hindalco plans to raise $500 million via GDRs - Times of India


Stock Watch
Hindalco plans to raise $500 million via GDRs
Times of India
MUMBAI: AV Birla group company, Hindalco Industries, which has reported a 31% drop in net profit at Rs 481 crore in the first quarter ended June 30, 2009, is exploring the Global Depository Receipts (GDR) option to raise up to $500 million in addition ...
Hindalco Industries plans GDR issueBusiness Standard
Fall in metal prices drags Hindalco Q1 net down by 31%Economic Times
Lower prices pull Hindalco net down 31%Hindu Business Line
Sify -Stock Watch -India Infoline.com
all 45 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:32 pm

RCOM profit up 8% at Rs 1637cr

Telecom major RCom has posted an 8% jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 1,637 crore for Q1 ended June 30, 2009, compared with the Rs 1,512 crore in the previous corresponding period.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:32 pm

Tech-focused MFs gain in market rally

Technology MFs have emerged as the best performing category and have grown 12% in the past month (up to July 21).
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:30 pm

Buyout by Sanofi is a good turn for Shantha Biotechnics

The introduction of Shantha's vaccine to fight the dreaded liver disease forced SmithKline Beecham to slash prices of its vaccine brand Engerix-B, after enjoying a monopoly market in India.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:22 pm

BSNL targets Rs 1,000 crore as tower rent

State-owned telecom firm BSNL is looking to mop up Rs 1,000 crore by sharing infrastructure -- mostly towers -- with other telecom firms.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:20 pm

Less rains won't hurt, says Jain Irrigation

Jalgaon-based Jain Irrigation Systems expects its micro irrigation systems (MIS) to grow by 40-50% and food processing vertical by 30-40% this fiscal despite deficient rains, MD Anil Jain said.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:19 pm

CIL tender for abandoned mines by August-end

Coal India Limited (CIL) will invite tenders for proposed joint ventures to extract coal from abandoned mines by the end of August. It has shortlisted 10 parties for participating in the tenders.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:17 pm

GE Ship to cancel vessel orders

Great Eastern Shipping is looking to cancel more vessel orders, to reduce the load on its order book. The company has placed orders worth around $1 billion.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:16 pm

Coffee chains brew Udupi/dhaba menu

The menu for these 10,000-square-feet Barista Lavazza joints will sport a fusion of desi and western items including paratha, idli and vada, along with cappuccinos and doughnuts.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:14 pm

DLF Assets may let DE Shaw stay

DLF Assets (DAL), fully owned by the promoters of DLF, may allow one of its investors, D E Shaw, to stay on as the situation in the real estate market has improved.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:13 pm

Corp downgrades are still many times the upgrades

The markets may have stabilised somewhat, but companies are still struggling to recover from the financial market meltdown last year that took down many a boat.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 4:09 pm

It\'s about a levelplaying field not bailout: Airlines

In an exclusive interview to CNBCTV18, Ajay Singh, Director, SpiceJet; and Saroj Datta, Executive Director, Jet Airways; spoke on what the airline industry\'s grievances are and why the industry has decided it cannot take losses anymore.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 3:58 pm

Power player

The night before I was supposed to slip behind the wheels of the all-new Audi Q5 (petrol), I read a rather unflattering report from Australia about the sports utility vehicle.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 31 Jul 2009 | 3:12 pm

2°C threshold fact of life: Ramesh - Economic Times


AFP
2°C threshold fact of life: Ramesh
Economic Times
NEW DELHI: Barely 48 hours after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh underplayed the consequences of accepting a global temperature threshold of 2 degrees centigrade, his minister of state for environment Jairam Ramesh conceded that it would present a ...
Jairam takes a swipe at UK expert's climate viewsTimes of India
Developed nations must spend 1% of GDP for clean tech: IndiaFinancial Express
US keeps changing goalpost on climate change:IndiaPress Trust of India
Reuters India -Business Standard -Calcutta Telegraph
all 85 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 31 Jul 2009 | 3:04 pm

Moily defends Deora on Ambani gas dispute

Hitting back at industrialist Anil Ambani for his criticism of Petroleum Ministry, Law Minister Veerappa Moily today said the Government is fully behind Oil Minister Murli Deora and will not make any compromise on its right over national resources.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 31 Jul 2009 | 3:00 pm

Power talk: Bhanshali, Uday Kotak on NHPC IPO

The NHPC initial public offer is a very large IPO from the government’s stable, which is being flagged off in the next few days’ time. NHPC will go on to raise up to Rs 4,000 crore. Rs 2,000 crore is an offer of sale from the government and the rest is being raised by the company
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 2:45 pm

Bharti, MTN yet to finalise merger deal

Indian telecom major Bharti Airtel and South African telecom giant MTN are yet to finalise their much-awaited merger deal, a senior official said in New Delhi.
Source: Hindustan Times News Feeds 'Business' | 31 Jul 2009 | 2:37 pm

Week in review

New Delhi: The RBI unveiled its macroeconomic review and its quarterly monetary policy this week. It said business sentiment is reviving and that the economic growth was likely to pick up. But the bank also warned that inflation could be a problem by the end of the year. Experts say the RBI has signaled the end of its loose monetary policy by not changing two crucial rates- the repo-rate and the reverse-repo rate. The repo rate, which is the rate at which the RBI lends cash to banks, remains 4.75%. And the reverse repo rate, which is the rate at which the RBI borrows from banks, is still 3.25%.
Click here to watch video
Several major companies unveiled their first quarter results this week. And it was an especially good week for public sector banks. Profits of State Bank of India rose 42% in the first quarter to Rs2,330 crore. Punjab National Bank also did well, reporting a net profit of Rs832 crore, a 62% increase over the same period last year.
Steel makers continued to feel the pressure of low commodity prices in the first quarter. Net profits for Tata Steel fell 47% in quarter ending June to Rs790 crore. Steel Authority of India was also hit. Its net profits fell 28% to Rs1,326 crore.
Some automakers have had a better first quarter. Tata Motors reported a 58% increase in net profits to Rs514 crore. The company was helped by better sales and cheaper raw materials. Hero Honda also posted impressive earnings. Net profits for India’s largest two-wheeler maker rose by 83% to Rs500 crore. About 40% of Hero Honda’s sales in the first quarter came from rural areas.
The service tax department says Jet Airways still owes it money. It has completed an audit report that says Jet still has to pay the government Rs260 crore in taxes and interest.
India and Pakistan may have signed their controversial joint statement on the 16 July, but the political row over it got more intense this week. On Tuesday members of the opposition went to the President with their complaints. They said the mention of the Pakistani province of Balochistan was a grave error and that India had effectively agreed to talk to Pakistan even if it does not crack down on terrorists
On Wednesday Prime Minister Manmohan Singh defended his foreign policy, saying he had not compromised on India’s security. But the opposition wasn’t satisfied. The next day, after a statement from Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna, the opposition, led by Bharatiya Janata Party leader L.K. Advani walked out of the Lok Sabha.
Earlier that day, Congress chief Sonia Gandhi defended the Prime Minister’s response in Parliament. She said Pakistan would have to clamp down on terrorists for meaningful dialogue to take place, but made no mention of the joint statement or Balochistan.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 1:18 pm

RCom June quarter earnings leave analysts perplexed

When Reliance Communications Ltd’s investor relations team threw open its earnings conference call for questions, it requested analysts to restrict their queries to broad strategic ones rather than nitty-gritty about the June quarter results.
But there were too many pressing, unanswered questions about the firm’s results statement and so it turned out that the majority of the questions were related to finances.
First up: “How is it that the company has reported a net interest income of Rs620.5 crore despite having a net debt of Rs22,163 crore?” Thanks to the rupee appreciation, the liability related to the firm’s overseas loans has come down in rupee terms.
These notional gains—the amount of which was not disclosed—have been offset against actual interest costs in the profit and loss account statement, resulting in a net interest income. For the year ended 31 March, when the rupee had depreciated sharply, notional losses related to the firm’s overseas loans had been adjusted in the balance sheet.
The firm also continues to have a CWIP on its balance sheet. Ahmed Raza Khan
The firm also continues to have a CWIP on its balance sheet. Ahmed Raza Khan
The change in accounting policy and the high net interest income resulted in a net profit of Rs1,637 crore, much higher than the consensus profit estimate of Rs1,190 crore, based on a poll of 18 analysts by Bloomberg news agency.
With a net debt of at least Rs20,000 crore, few analysts had factored in interest income. Lack of clarity on accounting policy—especially on finance income—has been cited as one of the reasons for Citigroup Inc.’s decision to value the firm at a 15% discount compared with rival Bharti Airtel Ltd.
But for the surprise interest income, the firm wouldn’t have exceeded profit expectations. To be sure, at the operating profit level, the reported profit of Rs2,453 crore is almost exactly in line with the consensus estimate by analysts.
Even the reported depreciation seems to be relatively low. Although the capitalized fixed assets on the balance sheet have been rising in the past two quarters, depreciation has hardly risen commensurately. In the June quarter, depreciation fell marginally compared with the March quarter.
The firm also continues to have a high capital work-in-progress (CWIP) on its balance sheet of at least Rs10,000 crore. According to an analyst with a foreign brokerage, who declined to be named, almost all of the company’s projects have been commissioned and it’s surprising that CWIP continues to be as high.
Needless to say, once this amount is capitalized on the balance sheet, depreciation charges would rise and reported profit decline.
The firm also has rather high current liabilities of at least Rs22,400 crore—almost the same size as its debt.
There were some surprises on the business front, too, with minutes carried on the company’s wireless network rising by at least 11% quarter-on-quarter, on the back of a mere 3.7% growth in the March quarter. Bharti, despite adding more customers last quarter, reported a 7.7% increase in minutes carried on its mobile network.
Perhaps Reliance Communications has been more aggressive, offering customers attractive tariffs and free minutes in order to gain market share, having recently launched its nationwide operations on the global system for mobile communications technology platform.
But then, that doesn’t tie in with the fact that the average revenue per minute of traffic rose last quarter, after adjusting for the drop in revenues owing to the withdrawal of mobile termination charges by the government. Termination charges are what one cellphone firm charges another for completing a call between networks.
All told, there are few reasons to upgrade the stock, though the positive surprise in the growth in wireless business could lead to better sentiment for the stock. The fact that the firm has recently been able to find a tenant for its passive infrastructure services in Etisalat DB Telecom Pvt. Ltd is also a positive.
But considering that the stock has more than doubled from its lows in March, the upside may be limited unless there are some fresh triggers.
Write to us at marktomarket@livemint.com

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 1:17 pm

The hilsa makeover

Grilled Hilsa with Jerusalem Artichoke
Serves 4
Ingredients
800g hilsa fillets, cut into 4 pieces (get a Darne cut—a thick fillet from the centre of a fish)
Click here to watch video
250g Jerusalem artichokes (arbi)
20g anchovy fillets
40g parsley (do not chop finely)
15ml lemon juice
25g yellow butter
10g garlic, chopped
5 garlic cloves, whole
30ml olive oil
Lemon wedges
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
For garnish (optional)
Caper berries
Salad leaves
Method
Heat a pan. Put the fish in the pan with a little olive oil, sea salt and pepper and cook on a low flame. Flip the fish over a few times to seal it on both sides. Put some whole garlic cloves, and butter in the pan after flipping the fillets a few times. The fish can also be cooked in the oven at 180 degrees Celsius for 5-7 minutes.
Peel the Jerusalem artichokes and blanch in salted water. Be sure not to overcook. Sauté with some olive oil until crisp and golden brown.
Melt some butter in a pan and sauté chopped garlic in it. Take off the flame. Add the lemon juice, anchovy fillets and parsley. The butter should emulsify with the lemon juice.
To serve, first place the Jerusalem artichokes on a plate. Set the grilled hilsa fillets on the artichokes and pour over the emulsion. Garnish with lemon wedges, salad leaves, capers and a sprig of parsley.
Courtesy Shaun Kenworthy, a Kolkata-based food consultant
Polasa (Hilsa) Chapa Pulusu
Serves 1
Ingredients
175g Godavari hilsa fillet (get a Darne cut)
50g onions, chopped
150g tomatoes, chopped
¼ cup curry leaves
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
4 red chillies, whole
6 garlic cloves, skinned
25g tamarind (a lime-sized ball)
1tbsp jaggery
A pinch of asafoetida (hing)
2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
1tsp cumin powder
1½ tsp coriander powder
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp red chilli powder
25ml refined oil
Fresh coriander, chopped
Method
Soak the tamarind in hot water for a while and extract the pulp. Fry the hilsa in hot oil for about 2 minutes on each side. Heat oil in a pan, add the mustard and cumin seeds and wait till the spices crackle. Add the whole garlic cloves and whole red chillies and sauté for 4-5 minutes. Add the asafoetida and curry leaves. Put in the onions and fry till golden brown. Add the tomato, turmeric and the rest of the masalas and cook for 15-20 minutes. Add the tamarind pulp and cook till the aroma of raw tamarind is gone. Add jaggery to the gravy, put in the fried fish and simmer for another 3-5 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander. Serve after 1 hour, allowing the flavours to develop. The dish tastes best with steamed rice.
Courtesy Srinath Sambandan, executive chef, The Park, Visakhapatnam
Hilsa Vino Bianco (Hilsa with White Wine)
Serves 2
Ingredients
500g hilsa fillet
100g butter
200ml white wine
2 garlic cloves, chopped
½ tsp lemon juice
½ tsp mustard paste
1 dessert spoon fresh cream
Salt and pepper to taste
Method
Marinate the hilsa with chopped garlic, lemon juice, mustard paste, salt and pepper. Leave the marinated fillet in the fridge for 1 hour. To prepare the white wine sauce, heat butter in a pan, add white wine and the cream. Stir quickly on a low flame till the ingredients have mixed well, and take it off the flame.
Heat a grilling pan, and grill the fillet on both sides on a low flame for about 5-7 minutes. Serve with the white wine sauce.
Courtesy Cibo restaurant, Hotel Janpath, New Delhi
Hilsa Mussallam
Serves 4
Ingredients
1,300g hilsa fillet
For marinade
4¼ tsp ginger paste
2½ tsp garlic paste
1½ tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp cinnamon powder
60ml lemon juice
Salt
For masala
2 green chillies, chopped
½ inch piece ginger, finely chopped
¼ cup desiccated coconut
Salt to taste
3 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp honey
150g clarified butter (desi ghee)
1 cup yogurt
100g fried onion paste
45g fried garlic paste
2½ tsp ginger paste
1 tsp garlic paste
1 tsp red chilli powder
45g flour of roasted gram (bhunna channa)
1 tsp green cardamom powder
½ tsp black pepper (freshly roasted and coarsely ground)
Butter to baste
Method
Clean the fish, wash, remove the head and tail, slit through the centre and side. Mix the marinade ingredients, evenly rub the fish with it and set aside for 15 minutes. Then steam in a steamer for 5 minutes. Pre-heat the oven to 135 degrees Celsius. Make a coarse paste of the green chillies, chopped ginger, coconut and honey in a blender. In a separate bowl, whisk the yogurt, fried onion, fried garlic, ginger and garlic pastes. Add red chilli powder and salt, and whisk again to homogenize.
Melt clarified butter in a wok, add the yogurt paste and roast until specks of fat begin to appear on the surface. Then add flour of roasted gram and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Remove from flame, cool and add the remaining ingredients, along with the coarse coconut and honey paste and stir. Adjust the seasoning.
Arrange the steamed hilsa in a large greased roasting tray, smear half the masala on top, turn the fish over and smear the remaining masala on the other side. Roast in the pre-heated oven and roast for 10-12 minutes, basting with butter at regular intervals.
Courtesy Marut Sikka, a Delhi-based food consultant and restaurateur
As told to Seema Chowdhry

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 1:15 pm

Print only what you want

New Delhi: Love that Wikipedia entry on the Second World War? Or the Surrealist movement? But what to do when the articles are so long? You could either read them in agonizing pieces or just take a printout. Which could run for dozens of unnecessary pages thank to that long list of references and links at the end.
Click here to watch video
What if you could print only those portions of a webpage that you really want? With an online service called PrintFriendly yo ucan do just that. PrintFriendly available on the www.printfriendly.com website or as a convenient java bookmarklet, lets you cut, chop and prune a webpage till you are left with only the text you want to print. With a single checkbox you can throw away all those images as well.
(And if you don’t have a printer, no matter, PrintFriendly lets you export the trimmed webpage as a PDF for future access.)
Check the PlayStream video above to see a live demo of this cool and rather useful service. And never waste printer paper again. Even if it is the company’s after all.

Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 1:05 pm

India's drug discovery efforts suffer failing health

The next two or three weeks will be crucial for Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, and Indias, dreams of developing an original blockbuster pharmaceutical drug.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 1:04 pm

Auction 3G spectrum to only 4 operators, DoT tells EGoM

In a new twist to the controversy over spectrum auctions for 3G or third-generation telecom services, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has offered another alternative to the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) at its first meeting today: auction all the spectrum available in one go but limit the number of operators to four.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 1:03 pm

Sensex touches 13-month high

Good corporate earnings and the positive mood in international markets continued to improve market sentiments, with the Sensitive Index, or Sensex, hitting a 13-month high.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 1:01 pm

Pvt airlines to halt flights on Aug 18

Demand bailout for mounting losses, say ATF, other charges too steep.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:59 pm

Auto | Toyota expects sales to remain flat this year

Bangalore: Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt. Ltd, the Indian arm of the world’s largest car maker, has raised its production numbers month-on-month since February, and expects sales to be flat this year. This is despite a fall in sales registered in the first six months of this year.
“In the last quarter of last year, there was a fear psychosis. Now, market sentiment is better, finance rates have gone down and the GDP (gross domestic product) is growing,” said Sandeep Singh, deputy managing director (marketing), Toyota Kirloskar, at the launch of an upgraded version of its flagship sedan Camry in Bangalore on Friday. The company aims to sell 52,000 vehicles in this year. It will introduce in India its sports utility vehicle Fortuner in August.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:37 pm

In advanced talks to raise Rs 3,000cr via asset sale: DLF

Rajiv Singh, Vice chairman of DLF said, real estate is showing signs of recovery. DLF remains committed to deleveraging company’s balance sheet.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:36 pm

Daiichi posts losses for third straight quarter

New Delhi: Japan’s third largest drug maker, Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd, posted its third straight quarterly loss on Friday dragged by its Indian subsidiary Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd’s performance in the first three months of 2009.
But Daiichi raised its forecast for the first half of fiscal 2010 following the Indian drug maker’s foreign exchange gains announced last week.
Daiichi incurred a net loss of 6.4 billion yen (Rs326.4 crore) in its first quarter ended 30 June, compared with a net profit of 25 billion yen in the same period last year. The company’s ordinary income was down 82.5% year-on-year as a result of lower valuation of derivatives and foreign exchange losses at Ranbaxy. Income other than capital gains is known as ordinary income.
Ranbaxy Laboratories, however, posted a net profit of Rs675.45 crore for the three months to June—its second quarter, as it follows the calendar year—after incurring losses for three straight quarters. A year ago, the drug maker had a profit of Rs23.73 crore.
Ranbaxy’s recovery will be seen in Daiichi’s second quarter results.
“Daiichi’s earnings incorporate Ranbaxy’s first quarter result, while in its second quarter, Ranbaxy has already recovered. Daiichi’s stance is very clear—whenever Ranbaxy’s result is announced, it will be incorporated in the earnings three months later. So, if we forget about Ranbaxy’s foreign exchange, Daiichi’s result is in line,” said Hidemaru Yamaguchi, an analyst with investment bank Nikko Citigroup Ltd in Japan.
“Ranbaxy is in trouble in the US, that is known. But they have recovered in their second quarter and, so, Daiichi has revised its earnings forecast,” Yamaguchi said.
Daiichi raised its first-half forecast for ordinary income to 37 billion yen from its earlier projection of 20 billion yen.
“With respect to non-operating revenues, the disarray on the foreign exchange market is winding down and foreign exchange losses/gains related to Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, our consolidated subsidiary, have become more favourable,” Daiichi said in a statement.
Ranbaxy has been facing trouble in the US after the country’s drug regulator, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), issued warning letters to the firm’s factories at Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh and Dewas in Madhya Pradesh, as well as an import alert on 30 drugs.
On 28 June, Mint reported that Ranbaxy had appointed a third-party consultant to assess and review issues raised by FDA at its Paonta Sahib plant after the regulator invoked its application integrity policy, which means FDA will stop reviewing all pending and new applications filed from that plant.
Ranbaxy, along with the consultant Quintiles Transnational Corp., has submitted a corrective action plan to FDA for its Paonta Sahib facility.
As for its Dewas plant, Atul Sobti, Ranbaxy’s chief operating officer, told Bloomberg news agency on Thursday: “We were told that they (FDA) have gone through the corrective action plan and are ready to get back to us. That could be any time now.”
Ranbaxy shares rose 2.58% to close at Rs280.10 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on a day the benchmark Sensex index rose 1.83%.
radhieka.p@livemint.com

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:32 pm

Sensex at 1-year high

Mumbai: Indian share prices rose to their highest levels in a year, propelled by a rush of global liquidity. But analysts asked whether prices have run ahead of economic fundamentals such as earnings, prospects of higher interest rates and the erratic monsoon.
The BSE closed at 15,670.31 points on Friday, its highest in 2009. Ahmed Raza Khan/Mint
The BSE closed at 15,670.31 points on Friday, its highest in 2009. Ahmed Raza Khan/Mint
The Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex, India’s bellwether equity index, closed at 15,670.31 points on Friday, its highest in 2009.
This is also the highest value for the Sensex in 13 months, since it closed at 15,696.90 points on 17 June 2008.
While the benchmark index rose 1.83%, or 282.35 points, the broader 50-stock Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange climbed 1.42%, or 65 points, to close at 4,636.45.
“It’s clearly a liquidity-driven rally,” said Anoop Bhaskar, head of equity at UTI Asset Management Co. Ltd, which manages Rs68,000 crore worth of assets. “World over, people are becoming less risk-averse and are taking a bet that India and China will grow faster than the rest of the world.”
According to a Friday note of international fund tracker EPFR Global, funds investing in Bric (Brazil, Russia, India and China) markets “continue to be money magnets”.
The Reserve Bank of India, in its latest quarterly review of monetary policy, has raised its growth forecast to “6%, with an upward bias” and foreign institutional investors (FIIs) seem to be buying into this. So far this year, they have purchased at least $7 billion (Rs33,740 crore) worth of Indian equities, net of selling. In 2008, they had withdrawn $13 billion from the country.
Since the start of the current rally in early March, which till recently many analysts were describing as a “bear market rally”, the Sensex has gained the most among major emerging markets.
India’s most widely tracked index has climbed 92% since the beginning of the calendar year. Singapore and Hong Kong are the closest rivals, with gains of around 81% each.
The Sensex is now trading at a multiple of 18.5 times estimated earnings for fiscal 2010. The price-earnings (P-E) multiple is arrived at by dividing the current market price by estimated earnings. A higher P-E multiple indicates that stocks could be expensive.
Analysts aren’t sure whether the current prices truly reflect future earnings.
“They (stock prices) are probably running ahead of fundamentals,” said Ullal Ravindra Bhat, managing director of Dalton Strategic Partnership Llp., an FII.
Bhat said that if liquidity continues to flow like this, valuations would be ignored for some time, but he raised concerns on issues such as corporate earnings, the monsoon and interest rates.
On the face of it, companies have reported excellent earnings for the three months ended June. Of the 30 Sensex stocks, 27 companies have beaten Street estimates.
A Mint study of 1,890 companies shows their collective first quarter profits are up 23% over a year ago, the fastest in the last four quarters. But analysts point out that sales have not grown so well, and a major contributing factor to profit growth has been cost cutting.
The collective sales of these 1,890 companies slipped 6% for the quarter.
“There has been an improvement in margins as companies have cut cost and extracted efficiencies,” said Bhat. “They can’t do this every quarter.”
Some analysts also said the effects of the government’s fiscal stimulus are wearing off. The government had announced stimulus packages in phases last fiscal year, amounting to 3% of the country’s economic output.
The Indian central bank, too, infused Rs5.62 trillion liquidity since September 2008 through a series of measures and cut its policy rate sharply from 9% to 3.25%.
But the central bank hinted earlier this week that interest rates are set to rise, a development that will likely depress demand and be a drag on growth. The government plans to borrow Rs4.51 trillion this year against an earlier estimate of Rs3.62 trillion as it needs to bridge an estimated 6.8% fiscal deficit.
The massive borrowing programme will likely crowd out private investments and banks will use bulk of their resources to buy government bonds, and under supply pressure interest rates will rise. Already, the benchmark 10-year bond yield is hovering around 7%, sharply higher than 4.86% in early January.
A recent Reuters poll of at least 100 fund managers, strategists and economists in the Asia-Pacific region, showed that China, South Korea and India were likely to be the first Asian countries to raise interest rates, but that would not be until next year.
Vinod Kumar Sharma, head of research at Anagram Stock Broking Ltd, said the macro “data is poorer than what it seems”.
According to Sharma, the threat of poor monsoon is not being taken seriously. Rains in June and July are 19% below the seasonal average and the worst in six years. It has led to a delay in sowing in several areas and many parts of India are facing the prospects of drought.
Economists said that low rains would affect factors ranging from hydropower production in the country to rural demand, which could dampen the pace of economic growth.
While the worst could be behind the markets, these factors would determine the trading levels in the coming months if the liquidity surge stops.
Ashwin Ramarathinam and Anup Roy contributed to this story.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:20 pm

Private airlines may suspend services on 18 August

Mumbai/ New Delhi: In an attempt to force the government to cut fuel taxes and airport charges, private airlines that collectively lost $2 billion (Rs9,640 crore today) in the last fiscal year threatened to suspend operations for a day on 18 August. Critics see this as an attempt to hold the government to ransom and lead to similar demands from other loss-making industries.
“If the government is not willing to listen to our demands, we might go for an indefinite suspension of operations,” said Vijay Mallya, chairman of the India’s largest private carrier Kingfisher Airlines.
Private airlines Jet Airways (India) Ltd, Kingfisher Airlines Ltd, InterGlobe Aviation Pvt. Ltd-run Indigo, SpiceJet Ltd and GoAir India Pvt. Ltd met in Jet Airways’ Mumbai headquarters on Friday to announce the strike, the first by airlines in the country. Chennai-based Paramount Airways Pvt. Ltd did not participate in the meeting.
National carrier Air India will not ground its planes, though its chairman and managing director Arvind Jadhav participated in the Friday parleys of the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), a lobbying group. It also promised to increase flights on 18 August and deploy more aircraft in case the strike is not resolved.
“We were compelled to take this decision. Though it is a member, Air India was not part of this decision to suspend operations on 18 August,” said FIA secretary general Anil Baijal.
An Air India spokesperson said, “There was no decision taken by FIA on strike as long as our chairman was there.” He did not say whether Jadhav was consulted on this decision to go for a strike.
M. Thiagarajan, managing director of Paramount Airways, could not be reached and a spokesperson for the airline offered no comment.
“We need help to stay in the business,” said Naresh Goyal, founder chairman of Jet Airways, the country’s second largest private carrier.
International services of these carriers will not be affected since jet fuel is comparatively cheaper overseas. The private carriers said they will refund the tickets for domestic travel on 18 August.
“We waited, waited and waited...but nothing happened,” said Hitesh Patel, executive director of Kingfisher Airlines.
The collective action comes at a time when the government is close to unveiling a bailout plan for Air India.
“A Web banner will go up on our website in support of our other private partners and we do hope to see a positive response from the ministry. All the bookings (for 18 August) will be done subject to cancellation,” said a GoAir spokesperson, hinting that the strike may not happen.
Critics slammed the decision of the private airlines, saying that the strike should be dealt with in the same way as the truckers’ strike was. “It’s another transport business. There is a thing called the Essential Services Act. In early 1999, ATC (air traffic controllers) went on strike and had to go back to work,” said Sanat Kaul, former representative of India to the International Civil Aviation Organization, and a former civil servant in the aviation ministry, adding the government can take strict action after examining the legalities.
“The point is, it will hit the economy badly for that one day. Many passengers will stay home, take the trains or a long-distance bus to commute. Airports will lose out on landing/parking charges, their taxi drivers will not get the day’s wages, hotels will not have guests, airline caterers will have to serve lesser meals,” said Robey Lal, former country head for the International Air Transport Association, a lobbying group. “And that’s what they are trying to do. They have a key role in the economy, that’s what they are trying to prove.”
“The government understands the problem being faced by the aviation sector. However, the government does not support any move that will inconvenience the travelling public...we advise the airlines to engage with the government,” civil aviation minister Praful Patel said in a statement from Mauritius.
pr.sanjai@livemint.com
PTI contributed to this story.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:13 pm

Bill proposed to convene at least 100 days of Parliament

New Delhi: If a proposed legislation eventually sees light of the day, then Parliament will meet for a minimum of 100 days every year, something that has not happened in the Lok Sabha for the last 21 years and in the Rajya Sabha for 35 years.
Interestingly, the proposal, first moved in the Rajya Sabha in December was a private member’s Bill and not tabled by the government. A private member Bill is one that is introduced by an individual member rather than the government and a Bill introduced in the Rajya Sabha survives the government since it is a perennial House.
Though a discussion—the second since 3 July—on the proposal remained inconclusive, all the leading political parties have lined up behind the proposal made by Mahendra Mohan, a Samajwadi Party member of Parliament (MP) in the Rajya Sabha. Since the proposed Bill seeks to make constitutional amendments—to Articles 85 and 174 of the Constitution—it will require a two-thirds majority.
Mohan said the Bill was necessary for the “healthy functioning” of the democracy as year after year the number of days of Parliament were on the decline.
According to data compiled by PRS Legislative Research, a Delhi-based research unit, the last time the Lok Sabha met for even 100 days in a year was nearly two decades back in 1988, when it met for 102 days. The Rajya Sabha’s record is even less impressive. It met for 109 days in 1974, the last time it touched the 100-sitting figure. In 2008, the last year of the 14th Lok Sabha, both Houses of Parliament met for just 46 days each—the lowest ever.
“I am happy that members rising above party lines have supported this Constitution (amendment) Bill introduced by me. Members of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Communist Party of India (Marxist), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, apart from the ruling Congress and all other parties have pledged support for the Bill, which will make 120 days sitting mandatory for Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha and 60 days of sitting mandatory for the state legislatures,” Mohan said.
The main Opposition party in the Rajya Sabha, the BJP, pledged its support to the Bill if it was put to vote. “Majority of the Parliament time is consumed for government business. We need more time to discuss issues concerning the masses and our constituencies. We are in total support of the Bill,” said S.S. Ahluwalia, deputy leader of the BJP in the Rajya Sabha.
Taking part in the discussion on the Bill in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, Congress member E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan favoured a government Bill in place of the private member to make a constitutional amendment.
“I am not averse to a government Bill, but I will press for a vote on the Bill if government fails to give clear assurance in the next session when the discussion is resumed. I am sure the Bill will be passed with almost all members supporting it,” said Mohan.
From 1952 till 2008, the Lok Sabha has met for 100 or more sittings a year only 28 times, while the corresponding figure for the Rajya Sabha is just 11 times. The Lok Sabha kept a consistent record of over 100 days sitting a year for 12 years from 1952 to 1974, and the highest number of sittings in a year was 151 in 1956, while for the Rajya Sabha it was 113 in the same year.
According to PRS, the number of sittings in the Rajya Sabha has come down from an annual average of 90.5 in the first decade 1952-61 to 71.3 in the decade 1992-2001, declining by one-fifth. The comparative figures for the Lok Sabha are 124.2 and 81, a decline by one-third.
Meanwhile, the record of state assemblies is worse, with the average at 20-50 sittings every year.
Some state assemblies have provisions that specify the number of sittings the assembly would have in a year. These provisions could either be binding or non-binding in nature. For instance, Uttar Pradesh has a no-binding provision for an assembly sitting of 90 days while Orissa has a binding provision of 60 days.
Till date, 14 private member Bill have been passed in Parliament and the last one was in 1970, according to PRS Legislative Research. Another private member Bill, introduced in the Rajya Sabha in 2002, on the subject of sitting of state assemblies is still pending.
Analysts say apart from fixing minimum days, Parliament should also have the right to convene on its own for its effective functioning.
“It is good that MPs are thinking about meeting for a minimum number of days every year. The dates of Parliament are effectively decided by the government of the day. This is ironic considering that the Constitution views Parliament as the body overseeing the work of the government. For the oversight function to work well, Parliament should have the authority to convene even if that is not convenient for the government,” said M.R. Madhavan, head of research at PRS Legislative Research.
santosh.j@livemint.com

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:13 pm

NTPC gets ministry approval to intervene

New Delhi: The Union power ministry has given the go-ahead to state-owned power utility NTPC Ltd to intervene in the gas dispute between Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL) pending before the Supreme Court (SC).
Awaiting feedback: NTPC’s R.S. Sharma says the firm has sought the attorney general’s opinion on the government’s petition in the case.
Awaiting feedback: NTPC’s R.S. Sharma says the firm has sought the attorney general’s opinion on the government’s petition in the case.
It could further complicate the case, especially if NTPC does follow through and its intervention contradicts the government petition filed by the petroleum and natural gas ministry in the apex court on 18 July, demanding scrapping a private gas supply agreement between Mukesh Ambani, who controls RIL, and brother Anil Ambani, who heads RNRL.
“NTPC can intervene in the Supreme Court in the RIL-RNRL case to safeguard its interests. It is up to them to decide a course of action,” said Hari Shankar Brahma, Union power secretary.
NTPC has already sought legal opinion from India’s attorney general on the government’s petition in the case. Based on the feedback, it may intervene in the case between the firms promoted by the estranged Ambani brothers, as reported by Mint on 22 July.
“We are awaiting the attorney general’s opinion,” said R.S. Sharma, chairman and managing director of NTPC.
Questions emailed to the external spokesperson of RIL remained unanswered at the time of writing this story, while the Reliance-Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, which controls RNRL, declined comment.
In June, the Bombay high court ruled in favour of RNRL in a case involving the supply of 28 million standard cu. m a day (mscmd) of gas from the Krishna-Godavari basin’s D6 block to Dadri for 17 years at a price of $2.34 (around Rs113) per million British thermal unit (mBtu). Both RIL and RNRL then appealed the case in SC—RNRL asking for immediate execution of its agreement and RIL asking for the setting aside of the high court’s order. SC has set 1 September as the date for the next hearing.
The power ministry’s go- ahead comes at a point when Anil Ambani has criticized the petroleum ministry’s role in the gas dispute and termed its intervention in the dispute, “unnecessary”, “partisan and biased”.
The petroleum ministry’s petition referred to a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the Ambanis at the time they divided the Reliance Group’s assets between themselves, and which outlines the supply of 28 mscmd of gas from RIL’s D6 block to Reliance Power Ltd’s Dadri power plant.
NTPC has reason to be concerned by the petroleum ministry’s petition because its 12 mscmd supply is also mentioned in the same MoU signed between the two brothers.
“If NTPC wants to intervene, they can. Everyone has a right to give his opinion,” said a top petroleum ministry official, who did not want to be identified since the case is sub judice.
The case between NTPC and RIL in the high court dates to December 2005 over the supply of gas about whether “there is a valid and concluded contract with RIL”. RIL had secured the bid to supply 12 mscmd of gas for the expansion of NTPC’s Kawas and Gandhar plants for 17 years at a price of $2.34 per mBtu in 2004 and had beaten Petronas-Petronet, which had quoted $4.23 per mBtu. Shell and Yemen LNG were among the other losing bidders.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:13 pm

Quick Edit | India loves its businessmen

Economic upheavals almost inevitably have political consequences. The Wall Street crash of 1929 and the global economic collapse that came in its wake pushed the world towards anti-capitalist and totalitarian ideologies such as communism and fascism.
But when the noxious combination of high inflation and low growth in the 1970s destroyed the post-War social democratic consensus, most countries chose free markets over state intervention. This was the era of Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher and Deng Xiaoping.
We are now in the midst of another economic disruption. Should businessmen get ready for an anti-business backlash?
A global survey by PR firm Edelman had reported in January that there had been a “devastating” loss of public trust in business. An update released on Thursday reports that such trust has recovered “significantly”.
India topped the charts, with the highest levels of public trust in business. China came next. That’s good news, because we need private enterprise to power economic growth in the years ahead.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 12:13 pm

Air India may cancel orders for six planes

New Delhi: India’s flagship carrier Air India, struggling with massive losses, is in talks to cancel orders for six Boeing 777 planes, an airline spokesman said on Friday.
“Air India is in dialogue with Boeing for cancellation of six B-777 aircraft deliveries...in view of the current global aviation scenario,” he said.
State-run Air India in 2006 signed a formal agreement to buy 68 Boeing aircraft in a deal that was estimated to be worth around $8 billion (Rs38,560 crore now). The carrier said it would buy 23 Boeing 777s, 27 787-8 Dreamliners and 18 next-generation 737-800s.
The list price for a single aircraft varies between $165 million and $200 million, but Air India was believed to have negotiated a lower price because of its large order.
The airline faces financial turmoil after posting an estimated $1 billion loss for the fiscal year ended 31 March and is hoping for a big government rescue package.
“Considering that Air India has a long-standing relationship with Boeing, we are confident the dialogue will be able to move forward to face the current crisis afflicting the global aviation industry,” said the Air India spokesman.
A spokesman for Boeing declined comment.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:50 am

UK wary as Eurofighter nations clinch deal

MUNICH (Reuters) - Britain placed itself on a potential new collision course over European arms spending on Friday as it joined a 9.1 billion euro ($12.9 billion) four-nation deal to buy more Eurofighter Typhoon warplanes.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:30 am

U.S., UBS announce breakthrough deal in tax dispute

MIAMI (Reuters) - The United States and Swiss bank UBS AG have struck a deal to settle their dispute over tax evasion and bank secrecy, backing off from an escalating standoff that had threatened to damage ties between the two countries.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:22 am

DLF prunes dues from DAL to Rs2,600 cr; net plunges 79%

New Delhi: India’s largest developer by market value, DLF Ltd, has reduced its dues from DLF Assets Ltd (DAL) to Rs2,600 crore in the three months to June, compared with Rs4,906 crore in the preceding quarter.
Fairly good: DLF’s Gurgaon office. Ramesh Pathania / Mint
Fairly good: DLF’s Gurgaon office. Ramesh Pathania / Mint
Between April and June, DLF received Rs2,500 crore from DAL towards payment for commercial properties it had sold to DAL, exceeding a target of Rs2,000 crore, the realtor said in a statement released late evening on Thursday. DAL is owned by the promoter family of DLF and buys and holds completed commercial assets of the builder.
In May, promoters of DLF sold a 9.9% stake in the company for Rs3,860 crore to raise money to buy out hedge fund DE Shaw and Co. Lp’s investment in DAL and infuse capital into DAL.
“It was expected that DLF would have received funds from DAL,” said Adhidev Chattopadhyay, a research analyst at Centrum Broking Ltd. However, clarity is still needed on whether DLF will buy out DE Shaw’s stake in DAL, Chattopadhyay said.
Rajiv Singh, vice-chairman, DLF, told analysts during a conference call after posting the firm’s June quarter results that DE Shaw will soon exit DAL, but added that the hedge fund is “demonstrating a commitment” to the firm and a decision will be taken keeping this in mind.
DLF has also brought down its net debt to Rs11,686 crore at the end of the June quarter, against an opening debt of Rs13,958 crore through the sale of non-core assets and funds received from DAL.
By March, DLF plans to halve its debt to Rs6,186 crore. It plans to raise Rs5,000 crore through the sale of non-core assets and expects an additional Rs500 crore from DAL during the fiscal year to 31 March, the company said in a presentation on its website.
The firm, which reported its first quarter results on 30 July, saw net profit plunge by 78.74% to Rs396 crore from Rs1,863.97 crore in the year-ago quarter. Revenue fell 54.60% to Rs1,746 crore from Rs3,810.62 crore a year ago.
The margin of earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (Ebitda) margin, however, was higher at 47% against 28% in the March quarter and 62% during the year-ago quarter. Ebitda margin is essentially operating income before depreciation and amortization expressed as a percentage of net sales.
“After a few difficult quarters last fiscal, we have seen a fairly good first quarter of the current fiscal,” Singh said in the statement. “Construction activity has gained momentum and response to new launches has been encouraging.”
DLF saw a marked improvement in bookings in the June to 2.67 million sq. ft of home and commercial space, compared with just 0.77 million sq. ft in the preceding three months. DLF shares closed down 1.48% to Rs396.15 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on a day the benchmark Sensex index rose 1.83%.
shabana.h@livemint.com

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:17 am

India CDM project pipeline slows on recession

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Indian carbon offset projects seeking initial approval under a U.N.-backed scheme have fallen 30 percent because of the global recession, a top project developer and consultant said on Friday.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 11:09 am

INTERVIEW - Starent calls on India, China to diversify

BANGALORE (Reuters) - Starent Networks Corp sees a large market opportunity in China and India due to robust wireless services growth and increased demand for broadband Internet on mobile devices in the two countries.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 10:36 am

Delhi switches off lights to save power

Historical monuments, several government buildings and many households turned dark Friday evening as Delhi voluntarily switched off the lights for an hour to save power and become environment friendly.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 31 Jul 2009 | 10:31 am

Bharti, MTN yet to finalise merger deal

Indian telecom major Bharti Airtel and South African telecom giant MTN are yet to finalise their much-awaited merger deal, a senior official said here Friday.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 31 Jul 2009 | 9:32 am

Uttar Pradesh government pushes forward divestment process

Aiming to expedite the disinvestment of public sector undertakings under its policy of infrastructure development and divestment through public private partnership (PPP), the Uttar Pradesh government Friday decided to invoke the Swiss Challenge Method for bidding, in which the proposer has the first right of refusal, officials said.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 31 Jul 2009 | 9:32 am

India's private carriers threaten not to fly from Aug 18

India's private airlines Friday threatened not to fly from Aug 18 if the government fails to announce a bailout package to help them tide over the ongoing crisis which they claim has escalated their collective losses to over $2 billion.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 31 Jul 2009 | 9:32 am

Jaiprakash Associates to set up cement plant in Assam

Infrastructure major Jaiprakash Associates Ltd Friday signed an agreement with Assam Mineral Development Corp (AMDC) for setting up a cement plant in the northeastern state.
Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 31 Jul 2009 | 9:31 am

Bharti, MTN may give update on talks on Monday - sources

NEW DELHI/JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Telecoms firms Bharti Airtel and MTN Group are likely to update the market on Monday on talks aimed at merging their operations, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 9:22 am

Adani IPO subscribed over 20 times

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Utility Adani Power Ltd's initial public offering (IPO) worth up to about $625 million, which closed on Friday, has been subscribed over 20 times, according to data on the National Stock Exchange.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 8:04 am

Earnings surprise market, but headwinds seen ahead

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Indian companies reported better profits than expected in the June quarter, but revenue remained subdued amid weak demand and analysts cautioned that inflationary pressures in the coming quarters could erode cost benefits that have aided earnings.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 31 Jul 2009 | 7:09 am

Eventual plan to take mgmt control of Great Offshore: ABG

D Datar, CFO of ABG Shipyard, said that their stake in Great Offshore has gone up to 8%. He said that the open offer price for great offshore has been revised to Rs 450 per share. However, he refused to comment if Punj Lloyd was a seller in the block deal.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 31 Jul 2009 | 5:07 am