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Bharti, CISCO ink pact to supply products, servicesBharti Airtel has entered into a strategic alliance with CISCO o provide products and services to their clients. In a joint press conference, Bharti said CISCO\'s technology would be incorporated with Airtel\'s network to provide services.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 8:36 am See 16.5% dip in Q3 profits of Sensex cos YoY: MOSTAutos, cement, FMCG, media and IT would be the top five contributors to profit this quarter, says Manish Sonthalia, Fund Manager, Motilal Oswal Securities.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 8:00 am AlcatelLucent may sell India RD centers: SourcesGlobal telecom giant AlcatelLucent is likely to sell its research and development (RD) centers in India. CNBCTV18 learns that it has approached three IT firms for a possible buy. These include Wipro, Infosys and Cognizant.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 8:00 am Tamil Nadu Newsprint to raise Rs 1000cr for capexThiru A Velliangiri said that Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers (TNPL) will raise Rs 1,000 crore via accruals, debt and invest it to expand capacity.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 5:18 am Telecom earnings may dip by 25% in FY11: AnandRathiSanjay Chawla of Anand Rathi feels that telecom industrys revenue is unlikely to grow in the next two quarters. He added that an increase in the minute of usage will be offset by the fall in revenues per minute. Chawla further said that there is a risk of 2025% lower telecom earnings in FY11.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 5:12 am Radico Khaitan enables resolution to raise Rs 375crLiquor manufacturer, Radico Khaitan is enabling a resolution to raise Rs 375 crore, says Lalit Khaitan. On the companys growth, he says that quarter one overall volume growth of 20% will continue in FY10.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 5:00 am Nifty closes above 5000; Hindalco, Reliance Infra up - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:17 am BSE Sensex provisionally closes up 0.5 pctMUMBAI (Reuters) – The BSE Sensex erased losses of 1.45 percent and provisionally climbed 0.47 percent on Tuesday after a rise in European shares boosted hopes for a global economic recovery.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:07 am Hindustan Dorr bags 1.3-bln-rupee order - Reuters India
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:06 am Indian rupee extends gains on dlr fall; stx trim drop - Reuters India
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:06 am Turkish markets rally on IMF deal expectations - Reuters
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:03 am Rupee rises past 47/dlr to 4-month highMUMBAI (Reuters) - The rupee rose to its highest in more than four months on Tuesday, helped by the dollar's losses versus other majors and some gains in local share prices.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:01 am Suzlon to supply wind turbines to Turkish firmMumbai: Wind turbine manufacturer Suzlon Energy today said it has bagged an order from Turkey-based Ayen Enerji to supply and install 27 units of turbines to generate 57 MW of energy, in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. The turbines would be installed at the Seferihisar and Mordogan projects in east Turkey, the filing added. In 2007, Suzlon had forayed into the Turkish wind energy market with an order from Ayen Enerji for supplying turbines. Shares of Suzlon Energy were trading at Rs86.50 on the BSE, down 0.69% from previous close. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:01 am Suzlon to supply wind turbines to Turkish firmMumbai: Wind turbine manufacturer Suzlon Energy today said it has bagged an order from Turkey-based Ayen Enerji to supply and install 27 units of turbines to generate 57 MW of energy, in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. The turbines would be installed at the Seferihisar and Mordogan projects in east Turkey, the filing added. In 2007, Suzlon had forayed into the Turkish wind energy market with an order from Ayen Enerji for supplying turbines. Shares of Suzlon Energy were trading at Rs86.50 on the BSE, down 0.69% from previous close. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 4:01 am India gold demand edges up on strong rupeeMUMBAI (Reuters) - India physical gold offtake edged up on Tuesday as a strong rupee weighed on prices, with traders continuing to stock up for festivals due later in the month, dealers said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:57 am Mobile subscriptions at 4.6 bn by year-end: ITUGeneva: Mobile subscriptions will rise to 4.6 billion by the end of this year, boosted by a continuing mobile phone boom in emerging economies, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) said on Tuesday. That represents about two mobile subscriptions for every three people in the world, although in developed economies many people have more than one subscription. Mobile broadband subscriptions would top 600 million in 2009, with fixed broadband subscribers at 500 million, the United Nations telecoms body said. ITU said its latest statistics highlighted major regional discrepancies, with mobile broadband penetration rates still low in many African countries and other developing nations. There is one fixed broadband subscriber for every 1,000 inhabitants in Africa, compared with Europe where there are some 200 subscribers per 1,000 people. The relative price for communications services, especially for broadband, is highest in Africa. “Rapid high-speed internet growth in the developed world contrasts starkly with the state of play in the developing world,” ITU said in a statement. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:54 am New Glaxo orders point to big flu vaccine windfallLondon: GlaxoSmithKline Plc won a further 22 government orders for its H1N1 swine flu vaccine in the last two months, taking the total number of doses ordered to 440 million worth some $3.5 billion. The Britain-based drugmaker said on Tuesday first supplies were being shipped to governments this week and deliveries would continue through both the fourth quarter of 2009 and the first half of 2010. The addition of a further 149 million orders since 4 August, when Glaxo last gave an update, points to a substantial sales and profit windfall as a result of the swine flu pandemic. Governments around the world are preparing to start mass immunisation programmes ahead of a feared second wave of infection as the northern hemisphere heads into winter. Glaxo previously said it expects to sell its H1N1 vaccine for around the same price as seasonal flu shots, which fetch about five pounds ($7.96) a dose, implying its total booked orders are now worth some £2.2 billion ($3.5 billion). It also has a variety of agreements in place with the US government to supply pandemic products worth an additional $250 million and discussions are continuing with various other governments for further vaccine supplies. “The market may look through GSK’s pandemic sales as being a one-off,” Citigroup analyst Kevin Wilson said in a note. “However, we believe that pandemic sales will lead to potential earnings surprises through the fourth quarter of 2009 to the second quarter of 2010 when overlaid on the rest of the business, which is now set to recover from US generic washouts.” Shipments of H1N1 vaccine will be delivered in both the fourth quarter of 2009 and the first half of 2010, Glaxo said. Rivals in flu vaccines include Sanofi-Aventis, Novartis, Baxter, AstraZeneca and CSL. But Glaxo believes it has an edge because its vaccine uses a special adjuvant -- a substance designed to boost the immune response -- which means only a fraction of the normal amount of antigen, or active ingredient, is needed in each shot. In addition to bumper vaccine revenue, Glaxo also stands to book extra sales of flu drug Relenza, a rival to Roche’s Tamiflu. Shares in Glaxo were flat in a slightly weaker market for European drug stocks by 0845 GMT. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:36 am IMF, World Bank map road to recoveryIstanbul: Finance chiefs from around the world focused on mapping out recovery from the global economic crisis at the annual meetings of the IMF and World Bank here on Tuesday, with a plea to include the poor. With emerging markets playing a leading role in the return to growth, finance ministers and central bank governors from 186 nations hammered out a strategy for sustainable growth and reform of the global financial system at the heart of the crisis. International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn called for global economic cooperation that would build on efforts by the Group of 20 (G20) over the past year and which have averted the collapse of the world economy. “We seem to have pulled back from the brink, and even if as we all know it is much too early to declare victory, we have at least stepped onto the road of recovery,” the IMF managing director said. Strauss Kahn said that cooperation must extend beyond the G20 biggest rich and emerging countries to the forum of the IMF, urging the 186 countries to “seize this opportunity to shape the post-crisis world.” The membership includes “low-income countries, home to billions who still live in poverty, who remain economically marginalised. Their voices too must be heard,” he said. The finance chiefs were also to tackle reform of the voting power in the two institutions to better reflect the growing weight of the emerging market and developing countries in the global economy. The delegates are to consider a shift of power of at least 5% from over-represented countries to under-represented countries in the IMF, and a similar transfer of at least 3% at the World Bank. “This will enhance our legitimacy,” Strauss-Kahn said. World Bank president Robert Zoellick urged members to go beyond the reform already supported to give developing countries at least 47% of the voting shares of the institution, and raise it to 50%. “The international system needs a World Bank Group that represents the international economic realities of the 21st century, recognizes the role and responsibility of growing stakeholders, and provides a larger voice for Africa.” The IMF has given out tens of billions of dollars (euros) of credit in recent months to prop up faltering economies around the world and the World Bank has stepped up its lending for 2009 to record levels. Many are now looking to the Washington-based sibling institutions to help bolster a tentative recovery and mitigate the painful social effects of the crisis, including rising unemployment and poverty. Some 13,000 people attended the two-day meetings of finance ministers, central bankers and academics from the member states. A major protest against the institutions was also expected to be held on Tuesday and extra police and security guards have been deployed around Istanbul, Turkey’s biggest city and commercial capital. Conferences leading up to the meetings began last Thursday with a Turkish journalist throwing a shoe at Strauss-Kahn in protest against IMF policies. Reflecting economic fears, finance chiefs have sounded a cautious note. “There are many risks out there. These include growing unemployment lines, rising protectionism and still-large output gaps,” Zoellick said on the eve of the talks. “The global economy could still suffer a setback, not least in 2010 when governments plan to withdraw much of their economic stimulus and debt rollovers could be combined with a rise in interest rates,” he said. Strauss-Kahn said: “There is no way to say the crisis is over when we still have this big rise in unemployment in front of us.” Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:34 am ArcelorMittal will not quit India: LN MittalAmidst reports of ArcelorMittal dropping its projects in India, LN Mittal clarified that the the world\'s largest steel maker, will not quit India. He has planned a greenfield project each in Jharkhand and Orissa.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:33 am Gail to buy spot LNG from end OctNew Delhi: Gas transporter Gail will start importing liquefied natural gas every month from end-October or November to meet growing local demand for the cleaner fuel, chairman BC Tripathi said on Tuesday. India is emerging as a key LNG market in Asia when traditional buyers like Japan and China are cutting purchases. Spot buying by Japan was dwindling with nuclear reactors back in action, while China’s August LNG imports fell 30% as peak summer demand drew to an end. “We need gas,” Tripathi told Reuters in an interview. “All depends on availability and who gives at what price.” He said Gail, which had previously imported two LNG cargoes in 2006 from Algeria on its own, could again either directly buy the gas or purchase from Petronet LNG Ltd and Hazira LNG Ltd that have LNG terminals in the western state of Gujarat. Petronet has a 10 million tonne terminal at Dahej while Hazira, in which Royal Dutch Shell and Total hold stakes, has a capacity for 3.6 million tonnes a year. Gail supplies 11 million cubic metres a day (mmscmd) of LNG from Dahej to Indian firms. It along with state firms Indian Oil Corp and Bharat Petroleum Corp have the marketing right for LNG regassified at Petronet’s terminal. Gas supplies from Reliance Industries-operated fields in Krishna Godavari basin, off India’s east coast, were expected to curb LNG demand but gas flows are not in full swing. Reliance executive director PMS Prasad said last month his firm was producing about 60 percent of its 60 mmscmd capacity as the government has selected customers for only 40 mmscmd. “There is still demand in market,” said Tripathi, who took over as head in August. “Currently it is 140 mmscmd and market can easily absorb another 10-15 mmscmd gas.” He said many industries such as steel plants were waiting for allocation. Revenue source “With our imports going up I will earn some marketing margins too,” Tripathi said. Gail currently transports a total of 85 mmscmd of gas but it is not allowed to earn marketing margins on 50 mmscmd that is produced from fields awarded to state firms on nomination basis. For the 35 mmscmd Gail charges marketing margin varying from 12-17 cents per million British thermal units. The transporter has sought government permission for charging marketing margins to cover some of its debt and investment on market development, Tripathi said last week. Gail is currently executing projects worth Rs300 billion ($6.2 billion) to almost double its transmission capacity to 300 mmscmd from current 155 mmscmd. “Some of our pipelines will be completed in December and then the demand for gas will further rise,” he said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:29 am Company update: Grasim IndustriesGrasim Industries has announced plans to demerge its cement division (25.6mt capacity) into a separate company called Samruddhi Cement. The appointed date of merger will be 1 October. Samruddhi will eventually be merged into UltraTech Cement post listing. This move is likely to have a marginal tax impact of Rs120 crore– 140 crore on Grasim in terms of stamp duty. Through this demerger process, Grasim intends to create a pure play cement company. The move is likely to offer greater access to capital for capacity expansion and inorganic acquisitions. Further, the group shall have a single cement company with a pan-India presence, functioning under one brand. Also Read | Grasim update by Angel Broking However, we see no benefits in terms of operating efficiencies as both companies were already integrated operationally and were selling under one brand, i.e., UltraTech Cement. As per the scheme of merger, Grasim shareholders will receive one equity share of Rs5 each in Samruddhi for each share held in Grasim. This will give Grasim a 65% stake in Samruddhi and Grasim shareholders a 35% stake. The desired next step will be to merge Samruddhi with UltraTech, giving Grasim a 55–65% stake in the merged entity. Grasim’s cement business has been funded by the VSF division over the last few years. With the proposed demerger, Grasim will now be left only with its VSF business and a liquid investment in cement. From an investor’s perspective, we believe greater benefits would be derived from investing in the subsidiary than in Grasim, as the latter shall attract a holding company discount. Outlook and valuation We have assumed a share swap ratio of 1:2 for the UltraTech–Samruddhi merger and EV/Tonne of $ 110, which will lead to a 12% stock price upside for UltraTech. So far, the company has been trading at a discount of 20–25% to ACC and Ambuja Cement. We believe the proposed merger would narrow UltraTech’s valuation discount to larger players, since it would give the company a pan-India presence as opposed to its current footprint in the capacity-heavy southern and western markets. Since Grasim would continue to hold an economic interest in the cement business, the only impact on its valuation would arise from the imposition of a holding company discount. We have assigned a 15% discount to our cement valuation while keeping the other business valuations intact. This gives us an SOTP target price of Rs2,546 from our earlier target of Rs 2,777. We maintain a Hold rating on Grasim. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:26 am Midsession: Sensex recovers losses on blue-chip buyingMumbai: The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex recovered from the day’s low on the back of positive sentiments across most of the European markets. Further, strong buying in several blue-chip stocks at lower levels also helped the market to regain a significant portion of lost ground in mid afternoon on Tuesday. The technology and realty indices are leading losses as both the index declined by 2.60% and 2.34% respectively. On the other hand, FMCG, metal and banking stocks are witnessing some buying interest. At 2:54pm, the 30-share BSE Sensex was up 105.12 points at 16,971.53 and NSE Nifty was 27.30 points higher at 5,030.50. Bharti Airtel is the top loser from the BSE pack, trading lower by 11.63% at Rs353.75, while Hindustan Unilever is the top gainer trading higher by 5.27% at Rs280.9. The most active shares on NSE are Bharti Airtel at Rs353.50 with a total traded quantity of 5,49,92,353 shares followed by Reliance Communication trading at Rs267.55 with a total traded quantity of 2,60,52,251 shares. Reliance Communication on 5 October 2009 announced that it will offer a flat rate for all calls on its network at 50 paise a minute. The scheme, which will replace all existing schemes, has raised concerns of a fresh tariff war. Bahrti Airtel is down on reports the auction of 3G telecom services by the government could be delayed. Besides, concern that lower call charges will cut earnings, also contributed to downturn. “The policies that are coming may be good for the consumers, but are bad for operators. Competition will only intensify further,” said V.K. Sharma, head of research at Anagram Stock Broking. Meanwhile, L&T Ltd stocks are up by 0.01% to Rs1,655 as the company bagged new orders totaling Rs1,513 crore during the second quarter of FY10. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:15 am Midsession: Sensex recovers losses on blue-chip buyingMumbai: The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex recovered from the day’s low on the back of positive sentiments across most of the European markets. Further, strong buying in several blue-chip stocks at lower levels also helped the market to regain a significant portion of lost ground in mid afternoon on Tuesday. The technology and realty indices are leading losses as both the index declined by 2.60% and 2.34% respectively. On the other hand, FMCG, metal and banking stocks are witnessing some buying interest. At 2:54pm, the 30-share BSE Sensex was up 105.12 points at 16,971.53 and NSE Nifty was 27.30 points higher at 5,030.50. Bharti Airtel is the top loser from the BSE pack, trading lower by 11.63% at Rs353.75, while Hindustan Unilever is the top gainer trading higher by 5.27% at Rs280.9. The most active shares on NSE are Bharti Airtel at Rs353.50 with a total traded quantity of 5,49,92,353 shares followed by Reliance Communication trading at Rs267.55 with a total traded quantity of 2,60,52,251 shares. Reliance Communication on 5 October 2009 announced that it will offer a flat rate for all calls on its network at 50 paise a minute. The scheme, which will replace all existing schemes, has raised concerns of a fresh tariff war. Bahrti Airtel is down on reports the auction of 3G telecom services by the government could be delayed. Besides, concern that lower call charges will cut earnings, also contributed to downturn. “The policies that are coming may be good for the consumers, but are bad for operators. Competition will only intensify further,” said V.K. Sharma, head of research at Anagram Stock Broking. Meanwhile, L&T Ltd stocks are up by 0.01% to Rs1,655 as the company bagged new orders totaling Rs1,513 crore during the second quarter of FY10. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:15 am Gammon Infra hikes stake in Vizag Seaport - Business Standard
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:14 am TCS to pursue larger deals - CEOMUMBAI (Reuters) - Tata Consultancy Services, India's top software exporter, will pursue larger deals and leverage its full service offerings, its newly appointed chief executive and managing director said on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:06 am India can be leader of global food processing industry: PMCalling for the formulation of a new National Food Processing Policy, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday said India had the potential to emerge as a leader in the global food processing industry.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:01 am ACC raises Rs 300cr via NCDs through private placementACC Ltd has informed the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) that the company has successfully completed the issue of 3,000 secured nonconvertible debentures (NCDs) of the face value of Rs 10,00,000 each, aggregating to Rs 300 crore through private placement.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:01 am Policies for food processing sector bearing results: PMA slew of policies introduced by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government for the food processing industry in the country has started bearing results, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said here Tuesday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:00 am Argentine president to visit India Nov 13-15With India and Latin American nations warming up to each other like never before, Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner will pay a three-day visit to India this month with a 50-member business delegation.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:00 am Aviva India ties up with India PostPrivate sector insurer Aviva Life Insurance can now collect its premium through the country's post offices.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 3:00 am MindTree enters mobile handsets productionMindTree Ltd has entered the mobile products business with the recent acquisition of Kyoceras captive unit in Bangalore, where it would design and build readytobrand 3G handsets for telecom service providers and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:54 am Ranbaxy to market Daiichi Sankyos products in MexicoRanbaxy Laboratories Ltd has said that it would start marketing Daiichi Sankyos products in Mexico through a recently created marketing division. This is the first time in Latin America that Daiichi Sankyo and Ranbaxy are leveraging mutual synergies post the acquisition of the Indian drug maker.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:50 am Telcom stocks drop sharply on tariff warNew Delhi: Shares in top Indian telecoms Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications fell more than 10% on Tuesday on worries that lower tariffs and increasing competition could hurt profitability. Second-ranked Reliance Communications on Monday cut all call charges across all networks to a flat 50paise (1 US cent) per minute, which is likely to further fuel a tariff war in the world’s fastest-growing telecoms market. As well, the telecoms regulator (Trai) on Monday said it may make it mandatory for all telecoms to offer a per-second tariff billing option. “This is what you call hyper-competition,” said a telecoms analyst at brokerage MF Global, who expects tariff cuts to hit firms’ operating profit by at least 10 percent starting from the fiscal year that ends in March 2010. He also saw a 13% fall in telecoms’ 2010/11 earnings. At 12:15pm, market leader Bharti Airtel’s shares were down 11.5% at Rs354.40 rupees in a Mumbai market down 1.4%. Bharti shares fell to their lowest since late April and were on course for their biggest daily fall since October last year. Reliance Communications fell 12.4% to Rs263 and fifth-ranked Idea Cellular was down 11.5% at Rs63.90. “Any carpet reaction by the incumbents remains a risk for sector earnings,” Citigroup analysts wrote in a research note. On the Bombay and National Stock Exchanges, more than 48 million Bharti shares had changed hands, around 2.5 times the average daily volume of the past 30 days, and Reliance Communication’s volumes of 29 million shares were about three times normal. “There will be pressure on the telecom sector,” said R K Gupta, managing director at Taurus Asset Management. “Trai has spoken about per-second billing; this will bring down revenues and future profit margins will also be under pressure.” Per-second billing Last month, Bharti Airtel cut call rates to 50paisa per minute but only for calls made to phones on its own network. The present round of tariff cuts started when sixth-ranked telecoms operator Tata Teleservices, introduced a new per-second billing plan, while most other operators charge on a 60 second pulse rate. HSBC analysts estimated per-second billing could hit the sector’s revenue by 10-15 percent. Such a billing plan would be the most “disruptive” for the sector, they said. Indian mobile operators are adding more than 10 million subscribers a month, but margins and key metrics such as average revenue per user (ARPU) have been diminishing due to moves to lure subscribers by slashing call charges. Indian telecom tariffs have fallen sharply to average at 2 US cents (Rupee 1) a minute for local calls, from levels of about 30 cents a minute seen earlier in this decade. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:41 am Rupee extends gains on dollar fallMumbai: The Indian rupee further extended gains in afternoon session on Tuesday helped by the dollar’s losses versus other majors and regional currencies while some paring of losses in local shares also helped. At 2:20pm, the partially convertible rupee was at Rs47.06/07 per dollar, its highest since 5 June 1% above its pervious close of Rs47.525/535. The dollar fell on Tuesday, hurt by a media report, later denied, that Gulf Arab states were in talks to abandon the dollar in oil trade, while the Australian dollar rose after its central bank raised interest rates. Dealers said there was a lot of dollar selling due to the prevailing arbitrage opportunity between the non-deliverable forwards and the spot market. Traders sold dollars in the spot and bought them back in the NDFs where they were cheaper. The one-month NDF was quoted at Rs47.00/10 per dollar, stronger than the onshore spot rate. Local shares which fell more than 1% earlier in the day, were trading marginally higher. In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month contracts on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX were both quoting at 47.13 each, with the total traded volume on the two exchanges at about $2 billion. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:40 am Indian Bonds Fall After RBI's Subbarao Points to Rate Increase - Bloomberg
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:38 am Coffee fest to focus on market opportunities in IndiaThe India International Coffee Festival (ICCF 2009) that kicks off here Wednesday will focus on the domestic opportunities for international players and global trends in the plantation commodity.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:33 am Bharti CEO: monthly adds of 3 mln to continueBANGALORE (Reuters) - Bharti Airtel Ltd, India's leading mobile phone operator, expects its monthly subscriber additions of 3 million to be unaffected by rising competition, the firm's CEO Manoj Kohli said on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:33 am Kolkata firm to buy stake in Pyramid Saimira ProductionsKolkata-based Regent Finance Corp, part of the diversified RDB group, will acquire 40 percent stake in the cash-starved film and television serial production arm of Pyramid Saimira Productions International (PSPI) for Rs.40 crore.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:32 am Markets volatile, Sensex 1.3 percent downA key index of Indian equities markets was ruling 1.3 percent below its previous closing figure Tuesday afternoon even as trading continued to be volatile.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:31 am Fresh oil from sunken ship blackening Orissa coastline: expertsA fresh oil spill, probably from a Mongolian ship that sank last month, has blackened part of the Orissa coastline in an area close to the nesting site of rare Olive Ridley sea turtles, say experts.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:31 am Pyramid Saimira plans to raise funds through stake saleCity-based entertainment group Pyramid Saimira has said it will raise funds by divesting equity up to 40 percent in its group firms.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:30 am Larsen and Toubro bags orders worth Rs.1,513 croreEngineering and construction major Larsen and Toubro (L and amp;T) has bagged orders worth Rs.1,513 crore during the second quarter this fiscal, the company said Tuesday.Source: IndiaeNews.com: Business News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:30 am PM pitches for simpler tax regime for processed food sectorPrime minister Manmohan Singh said there is an urgent need to rationalise tax structure to replicate the success of the information technology (IT) industry globally.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:22 am Gulf region to stay with dollar for oil - UAE cbank sourceABU DHABI (Reuters) - Gulf Arab oil exporters will stay with the dollar as the currency for trading crude, a source in the United Arab Emirates central bank said on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:09 am Bharti Airtel has support at Rs 350-370: H Kapadia - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:08 am Tax changes, investment needed in food processing - PMNEW DELHI (Reuters) - The government needs to review the taxes on processed food, improve rural infrastructure and aim at increasing private investments in the sector, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 2:07 am Telecom stocks drop sharply on tariff warNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Shares in top Indian telecoms Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications fell more than 10 percent on Tuesday on worries that lower tariffs and increasing competition could hurt profitability.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 1:47 am UP chief secretary to explain why SC order floutedNew Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed initiation of contempt proceedings against the chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh for “flagrant” violation of its orders on stoppage of work at the construction sites for the statues and memorials in Lucknow. “Having heard the counsel for the parties perusing the affidavit filed by the chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh and others and having given anxious considerations to all of them, a strong prima facie case is made out for initiating contempt proceeding,” a bench comprising Justices BN Agrawal and Aftab Alam said. “Issue notice to chief secretary to showcause why proceedings of contempt be not proceeded (with) and (the guilty) punished for flagrant violation of the orders of this court,” the bench said. The court asked the chief secretary to appear in person on 4 November when the contempt proceeding will be taken up. The bench directed the apex court registry to register the contempt petition in the matter. The apex court initiated the contempt proceedings for the violation of the 8 September undertaking given by the chief secretary and 11 September order of the apex court on stoppage of construction activities at the various sites in Lucknow. The apex court while making its 11 September interim order on stoppage of construction “absolute” also indicated that it would direct deployment of central forces if state continue to violate its orders. “We have come to the conclusion that there is a flagrant violation of our orders. If you still violate the ball will be in the hands of the central government,” the apex court observed. The apex court made the observation in the context of sustained pleas made by the petitioner Mithilesh Kumar that central paramilitary forces like CRPF or CISF should be deployed at the sites as the local police could not act in an impartial manner. At one stage, the court also asked the senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for the petitioner, as to whether it should send the chief secretary to the jail. “We can send the chief secretary to the jail if repeatedly our orders are violated. What do we do. Can we send him to jail?” the apex court queried. Later, the bench passed an order that its 11 September interim order restraining further constructions was absolute. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 1:44 am GIC Housing Finance to disburse Rs750crore housing financeWith demand for real estate picking up, General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC) Housing Finance Ltd is targeting disbursal of Rs750crore housing loans this year.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 1:37 am Oil rises toward $71, eyes dollar-switch talksPerth: Oil prices rose toward $71 a barrel on Tuesday, helped by a fall in the dollar after a newspaper report that Gulf Arab states were in secret talks to replace the US dollar with a basket of currencies in oil trading. A bounce in the Asian stock markets, spurred by a positive US services sector report, also helped to improve investors’ mood and rekindled hopes the recovery in the world’s largest economy was gaining traction. US crude for November delivery rose 36 cents to $70.77 a barrel by 12:24pm, after gaining 46 cents to settle at $70.41 on Monday. London Brent was up 26 cents to $68.30. “Oil is taking directions from the US dollar. But prices are still trading sideways and it may be hard for prices to break out of the $75 mark until there are convincing signs of a sustained demand recovery,” said David Moore, a commodities analyst at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Traders have been looking to macroeconomic data and equities markets for signs of a potential end of the recession that could boost consumption and draw down high oil inventories. US crude and product inventories likely rose last week, according to a preliminary Reuters poll of analysts. The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventory report on Tuesday at 2:00am, while the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) will issue its own supply data on Wednesday. The dollar fell against against the euro and the yen on Tuesday after Britain’s Independent newspaper reported that Arab states were in talks to end the use of the dollar for oil trading. Quoting unnamed sources, including Gulf Arab and Chinese banking sources, it said Gulf Arab states were in secret talks with Russia, China, Japan and France “to end dollar dealings for oil, moving instead to a basket of currencies including the Japanese yen and Chinese yuan, the euro, gold and a new, unified currency planned for nations in the Gulf.” However, Saudi Arabia’s central bank chief said on Tuesday that the report was “absolutely incorrect”, while Algeria’s finance minister said there was no need for a new currency in oil trade. Analysts said ending the use of the dollar as the currency used to settle oil trades between countries would be an easy task, but a move to replace the currency in which oil is priced would require a massive effort. “First they will need to select a basket of currencies and issues surrounding that are: which are the currencies to be included in the basket and what ratios to use,” said Victor Shum, an energy analyst at Purvin & Gertz Consultancy. “It’s already a big hurdle just to move oil from one currency to another, let alone a basket of currencies. If there was already a significant proportion of global oil trade being priced in non-US dollar now, than perhaps there would be more pressure to price crude in another currency. But we’re still far from that.” For a snap analysis on replacing the use of the dollar for oil deals, click on Investors will keep a close watch on the U.S. weekly retail sales data, the EIA energy outlook for October and the US API weekly crude stocks report to uncover more clues on the pace of recovery in the world’s largest energy consumer. Oil gained nearly 6% last week, largely bolstered by a US government report mid-week showing a surprise drop in gasoline inventories as well as tensions between key oil exporter Iran and the West over Tehran’s nuclear programme. But some analysts said that crude prices, which have been trading in the $65-$75 range seen over the past two months, are unlikely to break beyond the $75 mark until energy demand worldwide starts to show more convincing signs of a rebound. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 1:35 am Oil rises toward $71, eyes dollar-switch talksPerth: Oil prices rose toward $71 a barrel on Tuesday, helped by a fall in the dollar after a newspaper report that Gulf Arab states were in secret talks to replace the US dollar with a basket of currencies in oil trading. A bounce in the Asian stock markets, spurred by a positive US services sector report, also helped to improve investors’ mood and rekindled hopes the recovery in the world’s largest economy was gaining traction. US crude for November delivery rose 36 cents to $70.77 a barrel by 12:24pm, after gaining 46 cents to settle at $70.41 on Monday. London Brent was up 26 cents to $68.30. “Oil is taking directions from the US dollar. But prices are still trading sideways and it may be hard for prices to break out of the $75 mark until there are convincing signs of a sustained demand recovery,” said David Moore, a commodities analyst at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. Traders have been looking to macroeconomic data and equities markets for signs of a potential end of the recession that could boost consumption and draw down high oil inventories. US crude and product inventories likely rose last week, according to a preliminary Reuters poll of analysts. The American Petroleum Institute will release its inventory report on Tuesday at 2:00am, while the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) will issue its own supply data on Wednesday. The dollar fell against against the euro and the yen on Tuesday after Britain’s Independent newspaper reported that Arab states were in talks to end the use of the dollar for oil trading. Quoting unnamed sources, including Gulf Arab and Chinese banking sources, it said Gulf Arab states were in secret talks with Russia, China, Japan and France “to end dollar dealings for oil, moving instead to a basket of currencies including the Japanese yen and Chinese yuan, the euro, gold and a new, unified currency planned for nations in the Gulf.” However, Saudi Arabia’s central bank chief said on Tuesday that the report was “absolutely incorrect”, while Algeria’s finance minister said there was no need for a new currency in oil trade. Analysts said ending the use of the dollar as the currency used to settle oil trades between countries would be an easy task, but a move to replace the currency in which oil is priced would require a massive effort. “First they will need to select a basket of currencies and issues surrounding that are: which are the currencies to be included in the basket and what ratios to use,” said Victor Shum, an energy analyst at Purvin & Gertz Consultancy. “It’s already a big hurdle just to move oil from one currency to another, let alone a basket of currencies. If there was already a significant proportion of global oil trade being priced in non-US dollar now, than perhaps there would be more pressure to price crude in another currency. But we’re still far from that.” For a snap analysis on replacing the use of the dollar for oil deals, click on Investors will keep a close watch on the U.S. weekly retail sales data, the EIA energy outlook for October and the US API weekly crude stocks report to uncover more clues on the pace of recovery in the world’s largest energy consumer. Oil gained nearly 6% last week, largely bolstered by a US government report mid-week showing a surprise drop in gasoline inventories as well as tensions between key oil exporter Iran and the West over Tehran’s nuclear programme. But some analysts said that crude prices, which have been trading in the $65-$75 range seen over the past two months, are unlikely to break beyond the $75 mark until energy demand worldwide starts to show more convincing signs of a rebound. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 1:35 am Bharti CEO sees users doubling in less than 3 yrsBANGALORE (Reuters) - Bharti Airtel Ltd, India's leading mobile phone operator with about 110 million customers, expects to reach a total of 200 million in less than three years, Chief Executive Manoj Kohli said on Tuesday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 1:21 am Watch/listen: Mint in Multimedia - 6 OctoberVideo story: Playing with fire Watch a video on the Lakhani factory fire and its after effects Audio story: Audio bytes with Joseph Stiglitz Stiglitz on Asia and the economic crisis - download audio byte Stiglitz on the growing importance of the G-20 - download audio byte Stiglitz on why GDP can be an inadequate measurement of economic growth - download audio byte Video story: The Mint report Air India’s losses could reach Rs5000 crore this fiscal; Indian telecom firms start negotiations for stake in Kuwait’s Zain telecom. Audio story: For a new Noah’s Ark P.G. Dhar Chakrabarti, Executive director of Disaster Management executive says that preventing floods is no longer an option Video story: A healthy market Hindustan Unilever is preparing to launch a health drink in India. Mint’s Vijaya Rathore talks about the firm’s strategy for the drink and its likely competitors. Audio story: Investors back social initiatives, fund ventures Vineet Rai, founder and CEO of Aavishkar, talks abut why social venture funds are so active despite the slowdown Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 1:14 am Samsung sees strong Q3; profits may have peakedSeoul: Samsung Electronics’, stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings forecast failed to wow investors, who are worried a fast recovering won and competition are already starting to cut into profits. Analysts were looking ahead to the South Korean company’s fourth-quarter results, which could signal a slowdown linked to increased spending and heightened competition from the likes of Japan’s Sony and home rival LG Electronics. Samsung, the world’s top maker of memory chips and flat screen TVs, made a spectacular turnaround this year, riding a sector recovery and wrestling market share from global rivals, sending its stock to a record high last month. But analysts said the best might be over. “Samsung seems to have reached a peak,” said Shinhan Investment analyst Sung Hye-jin. “Earnings will likely fall in the fourth quarter as LCD prices have turned lower, the handset division will spend more on marketing as usual, and its rivals have quickly caught up in the LED TV sector.” Samsung shares have fallen 9% from a record struck on 22 September versus a 6% fall in the broader market. The stock is up 67% so far this year, beating a 42% rise in the market. On Tuesday, Samsung forecast third-quarter consolidated earnings to come at median 4.1 trillion won ($3.5 billion), higher than market estimates and up sharply from 2.42 trillion won in the second quarter. If earnings come in as indicated, Samsung could post one of its strongest quarters in July-September. The recovery is likely to be most evident in its flagship memory chip business, which is expected to post a parent-basis operating profit margin of about 16%, up from 3% in the second quarter and an abysmal 17% loss margin in the hard-hit-first quarter. Robust sales of flat screen TVs have been another key driver for Samsung, the world’s biggest maker of liquid crystal display (LCD) panels and TV sets. Shortage of raw materials kept LCD prices high while Samsung established itself as a leader in the premium LCD TV segment which uses light emitting diode (LED). In mobile phones, where Samsung competes with Finland’s Nokia and LG, Samsung is expected to have fared better than rivals. The company releases third quarter results on 30 October. “Numbers were great but shares are weighed by growing concerns over the fourth quarter,” said Choi Jong-hyeok, a fund manager at Midas Asset Management. “Analysts are lowering expectations for fourth-quarter earnings due to the recent recovery in the won.” Beyond the fourth quarter, traditionally a weak period for the technology sector, the South Korean powerhouse is set to post solid earnings well into 2010, analysts said. “Earnings will slightly weaken in the fourth quarter, but it’s likely that the momentum will continue in the next few quarters,” said Jay Kim, an analyst at Hyundai Securities. “The outlook depends on the foreign exchange rate and how aggressively Samsung spends on marketing for mobile phones and TVs.” In Tuesday’s filing, Samsung said consolidated operating profit would come in a range between 3.9 trillion won and 4.3 trillion won, a median of 4.1 trillion won, while consolidated sales would come in between 35 and 37 trillion won, or a median of 36 trillion won. Samsung’s operating profit median was higher than a consensus forecast of 3.8 trillion won from 10 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. On a parent basis, which excludes Samsung’s numerous foreign subsidiaries, Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S forecasts Samsung to post an operating profit of 2.35 trillion won and sales of 23 trillion won for the third quarter. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:56 am L&T pares losses after order win - India Infoline.com
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:51 am Sector update: PharmaceuticalsDespite the recent outperformance by pharmaceutical (pharma) sector in general and mid-cap pharma stocks in particular, we believe, there is still scope for substantial upside in mid-cap pharma stocks. Our basket of six mid-cap pharma stocks still trades at almost 50% discount to the basket of four front-line pharma stocks. We believe, such steep discount is unjustified since the average compounded estimated earnings growth of the basket of our six mid-cap pharma stock stands at 28% over FY2009-2011, which is almost four times that of the basket of front-line pharma stocks. We remain bullish on mid-cap pharma space and also on mid-cap pharma stocks under our coverage. Among the mid-cap pharma space, our preferred picks are Ipca Laboratories (Ipca Labs) and Torrent Pharmaceuticals (Torrent Pharma) in the shortto- medium term. Front-line pharma stocks (Sun Pharmaceutical Industries [Sun], Ranbaxy Laboratories, Cipla, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories) trading at about 20x its FY2011 estimates are set to give an earnings per share (EPS) compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7% (FY2009-11E), whereas the mid-cap pharma stocks (Sharekhan Universe) trading at 12x its FY2011 estimates are expected to give an EPS CAGR of 28%. This clearly depicts the huge valuation gap in the earnings and the steep discount at which mid-cap pharma stocks are trading currently. Thus, we are of the view that the valuation gap is unjustified and should narrow in the near-to-medium term providing sufficient headroom for the Sharekhan mid-cap pharma universe. Outlook  We see strong earnings cycle for mid-cap pharma companies in FY2009-11E on following counts. Strong growth in domestic markets (for Sun, Lupin, Piramal Healthcare and Cadila Pharmaceuticals). Rising contribution and penetration in emerging markets (for Glenmark Pharmaceuticals [Glenmark], Torrent Pharma and Ipca). Increasing foray into drug discovery and research (Glenmark and Piramal Healthcare). Global alliances, strategic tie-ups and increasing mergers & alliances (Piramal Healthcare, Orchid Pharmaceuticals and Glenmark). Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:32 am Watch/Listen: Mint in multimedia, 6 OctoberVideo Story: The Mint Report Air India’s losses could reach Rs5,000 crore this fiscal; Indian telecom firms start negotiations for stake in Zain ******* Video story: HUL likely to introduce AdeZ by next year The firm may tweak the fruit drink to suit Indian tastes, say people familiar with the development ******** Video story: India’s work sites unsafe, accident-prone At India’s factories, accidents are just waiting to happen. Hazardous chemicals are not stored away safely; workers who use them are not given adequate training about their handling, let alone proper safety gear. In the second part of a series on industrial safety, Mint examines the absence of norms that turn factory floors into death traps ********* Podcast: The world needs a new Noah’s ark PG Dhar Chakrabarti, executive director of India’s National Institute of Disaster Management, says that preventing floods is no longer an option Source: Home - Livemint.com | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:23 am Trai move, price war pull down telecom stocks - Business Standard
Source: Business - Google News | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:18 am Onion prices higher at Lasalgaon APMCWith heavy rains for the last couple of days in the neighbouring Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka states, onion prices have escalated three fold.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:18 am RCom launches 50 paise tariff across-the-boardMumbai, Oct. 5 Reliance Communications has launched a new tariff plan for its GSM and CDMA customers where all calls will cost 50 paise a minute. The ‘Simply Reliance Plan’ will be available from Tuesday for prepaid and post-paidSource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am Rains may squeeze sugar suppliesUnseasonal rains, both current as well as forecast, are likely to delay the start of crushing operations by sugar mills in the 2009-10 season (October-September).Source: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am BEML bets big on components bizChennai, Oct. 5 BEML Ltd, the public sector heavy equipment major, which is putting up a greenfield plant at Palakkad, Kerala, expects the upcoming unit to give the company a leg-up in the lucrative spare parts business. At Palakkad, the companySource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am Ranbaxy to market Daiichi Sankyo’s products in MexicoNew Delhi, Oct. 5 Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd has said that it would start marketing Daiichi Sankyo’s products in Mexico through a recently created marketing division. This is the first time in Latin America that Daiichi Sankyo and Ranbaxy areSource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am Savings accounts yield more than FDs for NRIsMumbai, Oct. 5 Banks are seeing more inflows into Non-Resident (External) rupee (NRE) savings bank accounts than NRE rupee term deposit accounts as non-resident Indians have realised that parking money in the former earns moreSource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am When advertisers get ‘personal’Chennai, Oct. 5 A cooking gas bill carrying the fragrance of jasmine is probably surreal, but it’s only one of the several uses it has in the world of advertising.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am Idea Cellular (Rs 70.6) : SellWe recommend a sell in Idea Cellular from a short-term perspective. It is evident from the charts of the stock that it has been on medium-term downtrend from its June high of Rs 91.7. In early September, the stock penetrated its intermediate-termSource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am Day trading guideNote: In a buy recommendation, the resistances would be the targets and the nearest support would be the stop loss; In a sell recommendation, the supports would be the targets and the nearest resistance would be theSource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am Exposure ceilings for banks may be raisedBangalore, Oct. 5 The Reserve Bank of India is expected to revise the exposure ceilings for banks to provide an impetus to infrastructureSource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am Single authority for auditing, accounting standards soonThe Government is planning to strengthen the National Advisory Committee on Accounting Standards (NACAS), a move that will make the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) report to NACAS. For this, it will hand over the supervisorySource: Business Line - Home Page | 6 Oct 2009 | 12:00 am IMF sees strong medium-term outlook for IndiaIstanbul: The outlook for India’s economy in the medium term is quite strong and the IMF may even raise its 6.8% growth forecast for the 2010-2011 fiscal year as domestic demand and exports pick up, a senior IMF official said on Monday. But the International Monetary Fund’s deputy director for Asia and Pacific, Kalpana Kochhar, told Reuters at the IMF-World Bank conference in Istanbul that India should keep monetary stimulus measures in place until it saw clearer signs of a recovery. “In 2010-2011 we see it picking up to 6.8% and I see some upside potential to that forecast,” Kochhar said. The IMF expects economic growth of 5.8% for 2009-10 (April-March). India’s growth slowed to 6.7% in 2008-09 as the global downturn hit harder than expected, after growing at 9% or more in the previous three years. India’s outlook was quite strong because unlike some other Asian countries, it had two engines of growth -- a very strong domestic demand base and exports, Kochhar said. She said domestic demand would be spurred by infrastructure investments and demographic changes. Infrastructure investment “has been a problem for a while but I do get a sense that this is now taking policymakers’ attention front and centre,” she said. “It is something people want to work on and there seems to be a lot of single-minded focus to get infrastructure investment done, and the private sector also sees the need. “That is why I believe the medium-term, three- to five-year outlook for India is quite strong.” Deficit Kochhar also said the Indian banking system was “in pretty good shape”. “There is going to be some pick-up in NPL (non-performing loans) just because the cycle has turned, but that is in the normal course of events.” However, the government’s fiscal deficit has widened because of higher spending and cuts in taxes and duties to support industry and keep the economy growing. The 2009-10 deficit is forecast at a 16-year high of 6.8% of gross domestic demand. Kochhar said she saw the deficit being reduced next year. “I think we will see action on trying to get the deficit, I mean fiscal balances, on a declining path,” she said. Kochhar also expects India’s financing committee, a constitutional body that meets every five years, to present recommendations on tackling the deficit. “When the finance commission reports, which is expected in December this year, I think the path for fiscal policy will be specified or suggested by them and adopted in some shape or form by the authorities,” she said. Reserve Bank of India governor said on Monday that India needed to exit from excessively accommodative monetary and fiscal policies, but there was no consensus on when or how, given competing concerns about growth and inflation. “We don’t believe they should do it now...exports are pretty weak and credit growth is pretty weak,” Kochhar said. “We would like to see more signs that everything is pointing in the same direction before we judge there would be a recovery. So, that would be when we think they would need to start taking out some of the stimulus.” Kochhar also said she would like to see India tackle inflation sooner rather than later. Rupee Convertibility India’s rupee currency is not fully convertible, which is one reason that a proposed merger between Indian telecommunications firm Bharti Airtel and South Africa’s MTN collapsed last week. South Africa wanted a dual listing structure for the shares to protect the national character of MTN, but Indian capital controls prevented that by restricting fund flows between the countries. “I think in practical terms the constraints imposed by the relative closed nature of capital accounts will become more and more apparent, but again it is a balancing act,” Kochhar said. “We (the IMF) are, I think, okay with that in large part because they (the authorities) have been very pragmatic about that. I think when the constraints become binding they have tended to do things to lift them. “I am actually quite hopeful things will happen when they need to happen.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 11:59 pm Oil prices lower in Asian tradeOil eased in Asian trade today as traders continued to evaluate the pace of recovery in the US economy, the world's biggest energy user.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 11:54 pm Bharti eyes emerging markets opportunitiesGeneva: Bharti Airtel will continue to scan emerging markets for acquisitions or partnerships after the Indian company ended talks over a cross-shareholding deal with South Africa’s MTN last week, its chairman said. “It’s my job to move forward and not look back,” Sunil Mittal said on Monday on the sidelines of a telecoms industry event in Geneva. “We will keep on looking at opportunities... and will look at all the emerging markets,” Mittal said, adding that he was open to partnerships as well as acquisitions. Also Read Telecom stocks slide on falling tariffs Bharti and MTN called off talks to seal a $24 billion tie-up last Wednesday, the second time the a proposed deal between the two had collapsed in just over a year. Asked if there was a chance for a revival, Mittal said: “For this round, it’s over.” He added: “I still talk to them. We are in the same industry.” One of the main sticking points was the South African government’s demand that MTN, Africa’s number-one operator by subscribers, retain its South African management and a Johannesburg listing after the deal -- a structure at odds with current Indian regulations. Mittal declined to comment on speculation that Bharti was now eyeing a stake in Kuwait’s Zain. Mittal is known to forgo meat before a big venture and he said he had been following a vegetarian diet up until 30 September, the deadline for talks between MTN and Bharti. His current eating habits, he said, were non-vegetarian. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 11:44 pm Sensex falls 164 points in late morning tradeThe benchmark Sensex pared its early gains and fell by over 160 points in late morning tradeSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 11:21 pm Samsung sees strong Q3; profits may have peakedSEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics', stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings forecast failed to wow investors, who are worried a fast recovering won and competition are already starting to cut into profits.Source: Reuters: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 11:16 pm Rupee at four-month high, rises by 26 paise to 47.25 a dollarThe Indian rupee strengthened by 26 paise to hit a four-month high of 47.25 against the US currency in opening trade today on increased dollar selling by exporters.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 10:57 pm Dollar skids on Gulf oil reportHong Kong: The dollar skidded against the euro and the yen on Tuesday after a British newspaper reported that Arab states were in talks to end using the dollar for oil trading, but Asian shares rose as US services sector data lifted investors’ mood. The dollar slid to about $1.4709 against the euro, from $1.4664, and to as low as ¥88.97, from ¥89.40, after the report in Britain’s Independent newspaper. Citing unidentified sources, the paper said Gulf Arab states were in secret talks with Russia, China, Japan and France to replace the dollar with a basket of currencies and gold for trading in oil within nine years. “This is US dollar negative news which is moving markets and shows that central banks not just in Asia are looking to diversify away from the dollar,” said Jonathan Cavenagh, currency analyst at Westpac. Gold edged up to $1,018.85 an ounce from just above $1,015. Shares across Asia gained as upbeat US services data buoyed investors, offsetting disappointment over US payrolls last Friday. All eyes were on Australia amid mounting speculation the central bank could announce a surprise rate rise at 9:00am. That kept the Aussie dollar on a strong footing. It was quoted at $0.8780, up from $0.8727 on Monday. A rise would make Australia the first G-20 nation to raise rates since the crisis worsened with Lehman’s collapse last year. Analysts said the Aussie, up 24% against the dollar this year, was likely to remain relatively firm even if the Reserve Bank of Australia keeps rates unchanged. “The Aussie may dip slightly against the dollar if the RBA holds rates, as an immediate reaction. But it will keep its firm trend,” said Hideki Hayashi, global economist at Mizuho Securities in Tokyo. Australian shares trimmed early gains ahead of the rate decision, but investor sentiment across the region was boosted by data showing the US service sector expanded last month for the first time in a year. The data came as a relief after Friday’s payrolls data showing US employers unexpectedly cut more jobs in September than in August and helped the Dow Jones to a 1.2% gain. The MSCI index of Asia Pacific stocks traded outside Japan and the Thomson Reuters index of regional shares were both up 1%. China’s markets are closed until Friday for public holidays. Japanese shares were more subdued, with the Nikkei index flat, as the yen’s recent strength has raised concern about exporters’ earnings. In Korea, equities rose 0.1% as Samsung Electronics, the world’s top maker of memory chips and flat-screen TVs, announced a higher-than-expected third-quarter earnings forecast. Samsung’s share price rose 1.2% and has rallied 68% this year as tech stocks outperformed the market. Asian currencies were generally firmer as the dollar came under pressure. The New Zealand dollar, up nearly 50% since early March, touched a 14-month high after data showed a rebound in business confidence. The South Korean won hit a one-year high against the US dollar. It and then retreated on suspected intervention by the authorities while a finance ministry told Reuters the authorities were ready to intervene if the won overshoots fundamentals. US crude oil futures stayed above $70 a barrel, inching up to $70.47 and helped by the US services data. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 9:51 pm Air India fast-tracks flight into StarNational Aviation Company of India Ltd, the debt-ridden, state-owned manager of Air India, has fast tracked plans to be a working member of Star Alliance.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 4:58 pm 'More will become the second largest retail chain this year'With the retail sector showing signs of revival, Aditya Birla Retail, which runs Rs1,130-crore chain of stores under the More brand, is targeting to emerge the second largest retail operator in the country.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 4:51 pm Nobody messes with HunkThe Hero Honda TV ad aims to cash in on the machismo factor.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 4:46 pm Sid vs Varun on BindaasThe well-known international television format Kenny vs Spenny has made its debut on the Indian television in a desi avatar -- Sid vs Varun.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 5 Oct 2009 | 4:41 pm 'India will be fifth-largest auto market by 2015' - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 5 Oct 2009 | 2:25 pm MindTree to design 3G mobile phonesBangalore: Information technology services firm MindTree Ltd on Monday said it would design mobile phones equipped for fast speed Internet access using third generation (3G) technology for overseas vendors, through the India unit of Kyocera Wireless Corp. MindTree acquired Kyocera’s India unit last week for $6 million, taking in its fold nearly 600 people who were building handsets for the American phone maker. The mid-tier IT firm aims to earn at least $100 million in revenue by 2014 from its Next in mobility division, a unit it created following the acquisition. “This will be our seventh growth engine, which should contribute at least 10% of our target of $1 billion revenue by 2014,” said Ashok Soota, chairman of MindTree. The firm expects $9 million in revenue from October to March from this unit, he said. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 1:45 pm Big B fails to boost Bigg Boss 3 inaugural ratingsThis is not only less than what media agencies had anticipated, but also lower than the opening ratings of other popular reality shows, those that are running or have just concluded.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 5 Oct 2009 | 12:48 pm It's the festive season for initial offers, tooThe mad rush of 2006 may still be a distant memory, but India Inc is trying hard to make up for lost time as far as raising money from the capital market is concerned.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 5 Oct 2009 | 12:46 pm Per-second tariff to be compulsory: TraiThe Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) is planning to make the one-second pulse a mandatory tariff option for all operators, a move that will benefit consumers by potentially reducing call charges and adding transparency to their tariff plans.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 5 Oct 2009 | 12:44 pm IT spending to jump 21% by 2013, says IDCLondon: Spending on information technology (IT) will rise around 3.3% a year to 2013 as emerging markets increase investments in software, consulting firm IDC said. Total spending on IT in a sample of 52 countries will reach about $1.7 trillion (Rs80.75 trillion)in that year, from $1.41 trillion in 2009, with more than half the net increase coming from emerging markets, according to an IDC report published on Monday. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 12:41 pm ArcelorMittal may exit Orissa, JharkhandAfter a long wait of four years for land in Jharkhand and Orissa, the worlds largest steel-maker ArcelorMittal has decided to begin a search for alternate sites for its $20 billion (about Rs 95,000 crore) green-field steel projects in India.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 5 Oct 2009 | 12:41 pm South Africa acquisition price soars for NTPCNew Delhi: State-run NTPC Ltd, India’s largest power utility, will need to spend an additional close to half a billion dollars as part of plans to acquire a South African coal mining firm aimed at securing coal supplies for domestic fuel-starved power projects. While the cost of acquiring the South African company is estimated at $1 billion (Rs4,750 crore), NTPC will need to invest the extra cash to setting up washeries to process the fuel. “There are some technical issues regarding the high sulphur content of the coal from the mines which have led to environmental concerns. A large portion of the South African coal goes to the European markets after desulphurization at the washeries, which is an expensive process,” said a person who’s part of the process but did not want to be identified as NTPC is still examining the feasibility of acquiring the target company. “An assessment is presently being done about the cost of setting up a washery there.” Fresh coal supplies are critical for NTPC as at least 80% of its installed capacity of 30,644MW is powered by the fuel. With around 67% of the total power generation currently based on coal, the power sector is the largest consumer, absorbing nearly 78% of India’s coal production. NTPC requires 122.94 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of coal and it expects this to grow further as a substantial portion of the capacity it is adding will be based on coal. The firm plans to add 22,430MW of capacity by 2012. A top NTPC executive confirmed the additional cost due to the need for setting up a washery. “We are conducting studies to examine the feasibility of this acquisition. We will have to take care of this high sulphur content in the coal before getting it to India,” he said. The person familiar with the proposal cited first detailed the additional cost that may be involved. “With a reserve base of 1 billion tonnes and assuming a 30 mtpa production, an investment of Rs2,100 crore is estimated for the washing of the coal, assuming a project lifespan of 30 years.” Mint reported NTPC’s plan to acquire the South African company, which has an exploration licence for 1 billion tonnes of coal reserves, on 15 September. Once NTPC buys the firm, it will get the licence to mine the coal, sparking possible competition with leading Chinese government-run coal miners such as China Shenhua Energy Co. Ltd and Yanzhou Coal Mining Co. Ltd, which are actively engaged in acquiring mining concessions overseas. “Apart from competition from Chinese players, there is also the factor of quick decision-making. However, with global markets being slightly down, NTPC has a little bit of flexibility with reference to the duration for placing an offer,” said the first person familiar with the negotiations. As the largest power producer in the country, NTPC is the biggest consumer of coal in India but will need to balance the country’s hunger for the fuel with environmental concerns. The Washington-based Center for Global Development, a policy and research organization, had identified NTPC in 2008 as the third largest polluter among the world’s power producers. Still, Indian consumers will need to pay the price whatever the cost of getting the coal into the country. “NTPC has an immediate need for coal and this looks like a viable acquisition because whatever fuel cost it has to bear is a pass-through for it,” said Hitul Gutka, an analyst at Mumbai-based India Infoline Ltd. While NTPC’s projects are facing an acute coal shortage, it has not succeeded in any of its overseas plans for sourcing either coal or gas. At the same time, the company has a sizeable war chest, with cash reserves of Rs44,393 crore. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 10:49 am RBS still in talks with bidders for Asian bizLondon/Hong Kong: The UK’s biggest government-controlled bank, Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc (RBS) said it was still talking to possible buyers for some of its units in Asia after negotiations with Standard Chartered Plc (StanChart) broke down. “We are in discussions with a number of potential bidders for the remaining assets we are selling in Asia and expect to make further announcements in due course,” RBS said in an emailed statement on Monday. A spokesman declined to identify the other parties. Talks to sell RBS’ assets in Malaysia, China and India broke down last week, three people familiar with the discussions said. StanChart, the UK bank that earns almost all its income in emerging markets, valued the assets at $250 million (Rs1,188 crore), less than RBS’ asking price, said two of the people, who declined to be identified because the talks were private. RBS is selling or shutting businesses in two-thirds of the 54 countries in which it operates after posting the biggest loss in British corporate history last year. Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd had agreed to pay $550 million for the RBS businesses in Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, the Philippines and Vietnam in August. A spokesman for StanChart declined to comment. The Wall Street Journal had reported the breakdown in the talks with StanChart earlier. feedback@livemint.com Ambereen Choudhury in London contributed to this story. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 10:10 am Growth will be double-digit this fiscal, we will outperform mostMumbai: Jean-Christophe Babin, president and chief executive officer of luxury sports watch maker TAG Heuer SA, said in an interview that the firm is growing at double digits in India despite the slowdown as it focused more on smaller cities. And with the economy recovering, the firm, part of Paris-based LVMH Moet Hennessy-Louis Vuitton SA, or LVMH, the maker of Dior watches and Krug champagne, will increase its marketing budget by around 30%. Edited excerpts: Globally, within the LVMH group, wines and spirits, and watches and jewellery are two divisions that have performed very badly. Where does TAG Heuer feature in the scheme of things?  Time check: President and CEO Tag Heuer Jean-Christophe Babin. Abhijit Bhatlekar / Mint This doesn’t mean TAG Heuer is at minus 25%; we are doing better than that! We are declining in the US, in Japan, because the crisis in those markets has been so bad at the consumer level with the credit crunch and unemployment. But there are countries where we are growing and India is one of them. In India, TAG Heuer reported a significant drop in sales, with practically no sale in metro cities, which accounts for 60% of all your sales. Mumbai is the heart of the financial community in India. Obviously, with what happened in banking, the first half of the year has been pretty hard. Delhi reacted differently; you can’t really compare metros. So just by shifting efforts, or by adding more to secondary cities when things were tough in Mumbai, we were able to develop these secondary cities. Our growth this year is still double-digit; it is indeed less than last year because of the first half of the year. So we probably won’t grow as much as 2008 in 2009 but we will still grow double-digit and outperform most of the industry. We didn’t slow down our investment base, and as a result, have continued to gain market share in India. And because the economy is coming back, we will be putting more resources this year, close to 30% over what we spent last year. Having worked with P&G (Procter and Gamble Co.), do you think it’s time for luxury brands to adopt a similar strategy that focuses on factors such as cost and value for money? Your point is very valid for many luxury brands…they have to rethink their price. It’s a question that TAG Heuer has answered since ages. The company has always been price conscious in a way where value for money has been built into our DNA. And by this, I don’t mean being cheap; it means that for Rs40,000, for Rs1 lakh or Rs4 lakh, to deliver the best product or service versus any competitors in that price range. Are you worried about the potential loss of the aspiring middle class, which is saving more than ever today? In India today, probably 10 million people can afford luxury watches, which is really the upper, upper-middle class. We are targeting 5-10 million people in India, who are not necessarily rich but are wealthy enough, and usually top business executives. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 10:07 am Altimo, Telenor end dispute with joint ventureMoscow: Norwegian telecom firm Telenor and Russia’s Altimo are to create a mobile operator to end a long-running feud over control of one of Russia’s main mobile service providers, the companies said on Monday. Telenor and Altimo will combine their common assets in VimpelCom and Kyivstar to create a new mobile operator, in a deal that means “resolution of all outstanding disputes” between the two firms, the companies said in a joint statement. “We have turned a five-year struggle into an exciting venture for the future,” Jon Fredrik Baksaas, president and chief executive of Telenor Group, said in the statement. Altimo is the telecoms arm of Alfa Group, one of Russia’s largest financial-industrial conglomerates, whose main shareholder is billionaire Mikhail Fridman. Telenor had been involved in a half-decade-long dispute with Alfa Group over control of Vimpelcom, Russia’s second largest mobile operator. Altimo and Telenor have now agreed to suspend all their ongoing legal proceedings and will move to withdraw or settle them before the deal is completed by mid-2010, the companies said. Under the deal, Telenor would receive 35.42% of voting shares in the new firm, while Altimo would get 43.89%. The new company will be called VimpelCom Ltd, listed on the New York Stock Exchange and incorporated in Bermuda. “The governance structure agreed for VimpelCom Ltd is designed to significantly reduce the potential for new disputes between the shareholders,” the companies said. The five-year battle saw numerous proceedings in the Russian court system which raised concerns about the business climate for foreign firms working in Russia. In June, Russian authorities ordered the sale of almost all of the 30 percent stake owned by Telenor in Vimpelcom, after seizing the Norwegian firm’s stake in a legal row. Alfa owns 44% of Vimpelcom. In a separate statement, Vimpelcom welcomed the deal, saying it would strength its global position. Kyivstar is the biggest mobile operator in Ukraine, in which Telenor has 56.52% and Altimo 43.5%. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 3:01 am IBM unveils technology to help telcos analyse usage patternsNew Delhi: Technology giant IBM said on Monday it has launched two technologies that will enable telecom operators analyse usage patterns of their subscribers and accordingly design subscription plans. Social network analysis (SNA) technology, which has been developed at IBM’s India centre, will enable telecom operators analyse the calling patterns of its users and develop more attractive and useful subscriber plans. With more customer-friendly plans, telcos can reduce customer turnover and increase customer satisfaction, IBM said. “Mobile telephony is growing tremendously all over the world, especially in developing nations. The market is immensely competitive and companies are looking for tailored products to retain and attract customers and therefore, business intelligence through customer behaviour analysis is critical,” IBM India Research Lab director and chief technologist (IBM India/South Asia) Guruduth Banavar said. IBM Research (India), which leads IBM Research’s global mobile web initiatives, has been working on this technology for about two years now, he added. The other technology -- IBM Customer Analyst -- is under development by IBM’s lab in Israel. The technology focuses on understanding Internet users, particularly mobile telephone subscribers. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 5 Oct 2009 | 2:50 am
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