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Goldman to buy 9.4% in Max India for $116 mn: Report - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Business - Google News | 27 Dec 2009 | 3:10 am 3G mobile telephony not so next-generationNew Delhi: Over eight years after third generation (3G) mobile technology made its commercial debut in Japan, Indian phone users got only a taste of official flip-flop on roll-out of the service during 2009 that also saw CBI raiding telecom ministry over spectrum allocation. As for the mobile users, whose numbers swelled to more than 500 million for the first time, they got the option of paying for calls on per second usage basis instead of the fixed one minute call. As much as the falling tariffs delighted consumers, the CBI raid on telecom minister A Raja’s office dampened spirits at the Department of Telecom. The result is many crucial decisions like implementation of Mobile Number Portability, policy on spectrum allotment for expansion of services and even 3G mobile telephony were either relegated to the back-seat or delayed inordinately. Despite severe inter-ministerial (Ministry of Telecom and Ministry of Defence) differences over vacation of spectrum (airwaves used for transmitting voice and data), the government ended the year with the promise of auctioning 3G spectrum as per schedule on 14 January, next year. Although it appears to be a daunting task, the government’s determination, especially finance minister Pranab Mukherjee’s resolve to mop up funds to bridge fiscal deficit, looks to make this auction possible, although many other countries have moved to the next level of mobile technology. Addition of 10-15 million new mobile subscribers every month made India the fastest growing telecom market in the world and it also helped the country to achieve 500 million users much ahead of 2010 target. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 27 Dec 2009 | 3:07 am S.Korean consortium wins UAE nuclear deal - sourcesABU DHABI (Reuters) - A South Korean consortium has won a $40 billion contract to build several nuclear reactors for the United Arab Emirates, industry sources said on Sunday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 27 Dec 2009 | 2:55 am Economy to grow by little over 7%: Prime ministerSingh said opening up of the Indian economy has had no adverse effect on the poor and the percentage of population below the poverty line continued to decline.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 27 Dec 2009 | 2:43 am Value-added Tax hike will not affect common man: Sheila DikshitDikshit said Vat on luxury items, including high-end cellphones, watches and pens will be increased substantially in March.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 27 Dec 2009 | 2:19 am Wall Street's lost decade eclipses an upbeat 2009The benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 is down about 10% over the last 10 years, which puts Wall Street on course to register its first-ever negative decade on a total return basis.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 27 Dec 2009 | 1:26 am Indian cos gain $7.4 bn on US boursesNew York: The aggregate market valuation of the Indian companies trading on the American bourses zoomed by a hefty $7.4 billion last week, with IT major Wipro contributing to over half of the total gains. During the week, 16 Indian companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq together added $7.44 billion to their market capitalisation, erasing the losses posted by five of them earlier. Over the week, the scrip of these five firms trading in American Depository Receipts (ADRs) suffered a combined loss of $434 million. However, during the week ended 24 December, the software major Wipro led the pack of gainers, adding $3.95 billion to its valuation taking it to $33.18 billion, followed by IT giant Infosys that saw its valuation jump by $2 billion to $31.94 billion. However, five Indian companies saw their valuation shrink during the week. Mahindra Satyam led the list of loser with a loss of $188 million from its m-cap, followed by HDFC Bank shed $150 million from its m-cap to settle the week at $18.61 billion. Tata Communications’ valuation declined by $82 million to $2.1 billion during the said period. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 27 Dec 2009 | 1:21 am No Nano price hike Tata MotorsTata Motors has said all the existing bookings of the Nano will be delivered at the current prices, notwithstanding the rising input prices.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 27 Dec 2009 | 1:10 am Wall Street's lost decade eclipses an upbeat 2009NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street is on track to achieve its first annual advance in two years after staging a strong comeback from the March lows. But viewed in the context of the last decade, investors have little to cheer about.Source: Reuters: Money News | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:57 am Goldman to buy 9.4% of Max for $116 million: ReportMax India will issue compulsory convertible debentures that will be converted to shares after 15 months.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:18 am Delhi retail chains going all out to lure shoppers in holidaysNew Delhi: Encouraged by the increasing signs of economic recovery, city retail chains and big brands are trying hard to woo the shoppers this holiday season with aggressive promotional campaigns and attractive discount offers. While supermarkets, malls and showrooms are luring shoppers by engaging DJs, organising game shows and quizzes and intensifying ad campaigns after months of dull business, Delhiites also seem to be taking full advantage of the special schemes on offer as they are making a beeline around shops. “I think this is the best time for shopping as city markets are flooded with discount offers and almost every thing from edibles, small gadgets to LCD and cars are coming with useful gifts which we missed during last Dusshera and Diwali when no such schemes were on offer due to economic slowdown,” said shopper Anita Durrani. Gauging the festive mood of denizens, leading capital supermarkets like Lifestyle, Shoppers Stop, Vishal Mega Mart and Big Bazzar, megastores such as Croma and Home Town and international clothing chains like Cantabil, Pantaloons, Globus and Ebony have come up with attractive offers. “Although we are not providing any discount as such but there are a number of special schemes on offer for shoppers,” said Ameet Rege, senior marketing official at Shoppers Stop. “We are providing gift vouchers of Rs500 to 1000 on purchase of every Wrangler and Wills Lifestyle dress, while buy one get one offers are valid on Arrow, Givoni and Vettorio Fratini. Gifts like T-shirts, bags, shoes, pearl sets and shirts are also available on various items”. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:18 am Fortis to invest Rs250 cr towards expansion in 2011Mumbai: Healthcare major Fortis Hospitals said on 27 December it plans to invest Rs250 crore over the next financial year to expand its facilities in three metro cities. “We plan to invest Rs250 crore in Kolkata, Mumbai and Bangalore. This investment will be done over the next financial year,” Fortis Hospital chief executive officer Vishal Bali said. With this investment, Fortis plans to set up multi-specialty hospital projects each in Kolkata with 414 beds and Bangalore with 120 beds, besides expanding its existing facility in Mumbai, Bali said. The Mumbai project will have 300 beds, he said. Fortis also plans to set up a separate oncology division in Mumbai in 2010, Bali said, adding that this facility will have 120 beds. The company will also add 200 beds at its hospital in Bangalore. On completion of expansion, the total capacity in Bangalore, the city where Fortis is headquartered, will be 1,000 by 2011, which will include 120 intensive care unit beds, Bali said. Fortis, which acquired 10 Wockhardt hospitals in August this year for an estimated Rs909 crore, currently has a network of 39 hospitals with a total bed capacity of 5,180 across 12 cities. Post Wockhardt acquisition, Fortis strengthened its operations in cardiac surgery, neuro sciences, minimal access surgery, renal and liver transplants areas, Bali said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:06 am Telangana stir: UK issues travel advisoryAfter the United States, the United Kingdom has issued a travel alert to its citizens, asking them to be cautious when they travel in Andhra Pradesh that is witnessing violence over the demand for a separate Statehood forSource: Business Line - Home Page | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:00 am Needless controversy, says Governor's officeThe Andhra Pradesh Governor, Mr N.D. Tiwari, resigned on Saturday citing health grounds even as protests to recall him gathered momentum after a local television channel on Thursday showed him in a compromisingSource: Business Line - Home Page | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:00 am Equity funds struggle to beat Sensex in 2009After easily outpacing it in earlier years, equity funds seem to be losing the race to the bellwether Sensex inSource: Business Line - Home Page | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:00 am Govt hikes iron ore export dutyA pick-up in iron ore export volumes this fiscal and better export realisation have prompted the Finance Ministry to raise the export duty on iron lumps from the current 5 per cent to 10 perSource: Business Line - Home Page | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:00 am Union Bank charts out aggressive growth plansUnion Bank of India has aggressive plans charted out to become one of the country's top three public sector banks by 2012. “The ambitious plans,” as termed by Mr S.C. Kalia, Executive Director, Union Bank of India, includes setting upSource: Business Line - Home Page | 27 Dec 2009 | 12:00 am Oriental Bank looking to acquire a South-based bankNew Delhi: Five years after acquiring the Hyderabad-based Global Trust Bank, state-owned Oriental Bank of Commerce has begun the hunt for another lender to expand its footprint in South India. The bank has a strong presence in the Northern region. To strengthen its position in the South, OBC would go in for inorganic growth if some good opportunity come up, a senior bank official told PTI. “We are a strong bank. We can take over a South-based bank having synergies to expand business in the region,” the official said. In 2004, OBC acquired Global Trust Bank, which helped establish its footprint in South India. OBC merged about 100 branches of GTB as part of an amalgamation process along with non-performing assets of Rs1,362 crore at the end of March 2004. Asked how the bank would fund the acquisition if it happens, the official said the capital adequacy ratio (CAR) is close to 13%, and given the balance sheet size it could raise further capital through bonds. The CAR is the amount banks keep aside against various risks. In a bid to strengthen its CAR, OBC raised Rs300 crore from bonds during the month. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:43 pm Supertech to invest Rs2,500 cr to develop ongoing projectsNew Delhi: Realty firm Supertech said on 27 December it will invest about Rs2,500 crore over the next four years to develop its various ongoing projects in Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal. “We have more than ten projects in hand comprising group housing, integrated townships, hotels and shopping malls,” Supertech chairman and managing director R K Arora said. These projects are located in Noida, Greater Noida, Ghaziabad, Meerut, Rudrapur, Moradabad and Haridwar. Asked about the cost incurred on these projects, Arora said it would be about Rs 2,500 crore, including land, construction and other expenses. The Noida-based firm will fund 50% of investments through debt, he said, adding that the remaining would be managed through internal accruals and advances from customers. Supertech is also looking at raising funds from private equity for its 51-acre integrated township at Meerut. The company plans to develop about 3,000 apartments and 10 lakh sq ft of commercial area at an investment of about Rs500 crore. Elaborating on other projects, Arora said the company has recently launched a 12.5 acre housing project in Noida where it will develop 1,700 flats by 2012 at a cost of Rs600 crore. Supertech is constructing 1,500 apartments in Greater Noida at an investment of Rs500 crore. It is building another housing project, comprising 350 units, in the heart of Noida at an investment of Rs120 crore. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:32 pm Pharma, telecom, FMCG sectors may hike pay 12% in 2010New Delhi: Driven by scarcity of talent and increasing competition, Indian companies are expected to hike salaries in the new year with the pharma, telecom and consumer goods companies leading the space with up to 12% pay hike, global consultancy Ernst & Young says. The salary increments are likely to improve relatively, albeit conservatively in 2010, compared to the single-digit hikes seen across hierarchies, functions and performance levels last year. “In spite of all the excitements, actual salary increases will be somewhat conservative with salary increases in the IT and technology firms to be around eight per cent with pharma and consumer goods companies leading the space with forecast increments of around 10-12%,” E&Y partner and global leader-HR advisory NS Rajan told PTI. The telecom growth story would continue in 2010 with an above-average salary hike expected in the sector, Rajan added. Other sectors which would continue to battle the talent war owing to crunch include energy, power and real estate. India Inc’s overall salary increase for 2010 is forecast to be between 9-12%, according to the survey. Meanwhile, adversely hit by rupee-dollar fluctuations and the global slowdown, export-oriented sectors like IT/ IT-enabled services, textiles would tread cautiously. The IT sector is likely to give increments in single digits, which will perceived to be conservative as compared to hikes forecast for other sectors, Rajan said. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:15 pm Dr Reddy’s to strengthen domestic business, eyes top 10 spotNew Delhi: The Hyderabad-based Dr Reddy’s Labs is planning to launch new generic drugs in various therapeutic segments to give a push to its domestic operations and get back to among the top ten firms in the country. The firm, which is currently ranked 13th with a 2.7% share in the Rs55,000-crore domestic pharma market, is working to increase the domestic sales. “We were among the top 10 domestic pharma companies a few years ago and we expect to be back there,” Dr Reddy’s Laboratories chief operating officer Satish Reddy said. The company will launch new products in the domestic market particularly in therapeutic areas like cardiovascular, diabetes and dermatology that have a larger market share, he said without specifying details. He also said the company will be focusing on different region where it doesn’t have a strong presence. “Our position in the North and Eastern markets is not very good and going forward, we are looking at strengthening our business in these regions,” Reddy said. He said the strategy of focusing on export markets, that accounts for around 85% of its revenues of of $1.4 billion, had resulted in slipping market share in the domestic market. “The slip in ranking is due to the management’s lack of focus in the country’s operations and limited drug launches here,” he said. Dr Reddy’s reported a revenue of around $1.4 billion in the last financial year, out of which the domestic sales were only around $167 million. For the quarter ended on September, it reported sales of around $382 million with domestic sales accounting for just over $50 million. Dr Reddy’s currently has around 200 brands in its portfolio in 13 major therapeutic areas including gastro- intestinal, cardio vascular, pain management, cancer, anti- infectives and dermatology. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:03 pm Google reportedly planning to launch its own mobileGoogle reportedly hopes to strengthen its presence in the world of mobile telephony with plans to introduce its own high-tech phone sometime in 2010, according to press reports.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:02 pm Goldman to buy 9.4 pct of Max for $116 mln - papersMUMBAI (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs will pick up a 9.4 percent stake in Max India for 5.4 billion rupees ($116 million), the Economic Times and Business Standard newspapers reported on Sunday, citing the outcome of a board meeting held on Saturday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 10:55 pm China to seek bigger share of world exports - minBEIJING (Reuters) - Beijing will not relax its efforts to sell Chinese products overseas in 2010 and seek a bigger share in the global market, China's vice trade minister said on Sunday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 10:51 pm RPTL wins two power transmission projects worth Rs4,100 crNew Delhi: Reliance Power Transmission Limited, a subsidiary of Reliance Infrastructure, is believed to have bagged two transmission projects worth Rs4,100 crore connecting six states. “Reliance Power Transmission Limited (RPTL) has emerged as the winner for two independent transmission projects (ITPs),” a Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) official said. State-run REC is the nodal agency for these ITPs. RTPL North Karanpura Transmission project is worth around Rs2,700 crore, while Talcher-II is of Rs1,400 crore. The 1,045-km-long North Karanpura transmission line will be implemented in 30-42 months. It will serve Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. The Talcher-II is 592-km long and will be implemented in 30 months. It will cater to Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. Meanwhile, Sterlite Technologies has been declared winner for the first independent transmission project, the East-North Interconnection project, for which the nodal agency is PFC Consulting, the wholly-owned subsidiary of state-run Power Finance Corporation. The Rs950-crore East-North interconnection is 950-km long and will be implemented in 36 months (from the date of issuance of letter of intent) covering Assam, West Bengal and Bihar. These independent transmission projects are likely to end the monopoly of central transmission utility, PowerGrid Corporation. PFC Consulting has constituted two entities -- Jabalpur Transmission Company and Bhopal Dhule Transmission Company -- to set up the independent transmission projects. The transmission lines would serve Dharmajaygarh-Bhopal- Dhule-Jabalpur-Bina network, a source close to the development said, adding that PFC Consulting should be able to come out with a request for qualification for the transmission projects before March 2010. The two special purpose vehicles or SPVs would execute the projects. PFC Consulting is hopeful of securing more such assignments in the near future, once the states show their willingness to set up intra-state transmission links. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 10:43 pm Top-10 cos add Rs70k cr in m-cap; RIL gains mostMumbai: A strong market rally triggered by the government’s encouraging economic growth forecast helped the country’s top ten companies add over Rs 70,000 crore in the past week. The country’s most-valued firm Reliance Industries was the biggest gainer with its market capitalisation (m-cap) soaring by Rs21,314.7 crore, taking its total valuation to Rs3,53,373 crore for the week ended 26 December. Shares of RIL gained 6.40% to close at Rs1,075.20 at the end of the Thursday’s trade on the BSE. On Wednesday, finance minister Pranab Mukhrejee expressed hope that economy would grow by 7.5-8% during the current financial year. The stock market traded only for four days, Friday being a holiday on the occasion of Christmas. RIL is followed by oil major ONGC which saw its valuation surged by Rs2,609 crore to Rs2,56,172.46 crore. Power utility major NTPC inched up to third place by adding Rs18,840.79 crore to its valuation, while trading firm MMTC slipped to fourth place from third even after adding Rs3,702.75 crore to its m-cap. The total m-cap of NTPC stood at Rs1,89,563.13 crore and MMTC at Rs1,74,566.75 crore. The country’s largest iron ore producer NMDC valuation surged by Rs7,314.24 crore taking its total m-cap to Rs1,64,198.05 crore. IT firms-- Infosys Technologies and TCS-- together added Rs7,807.61 crore to their market valuation. At the end of the week, the m-cap of Infosys Technologies that retained its last week ranking at sixth, swelled to Rs1,48,507.08 crore while TCS seventh with Rs1,46,535.56 crore. The country’s largest public sector lender SBI which is at eighth position added Rs4,644.1 crore to its market capitalisation taking its total valuation to Rs1,40,822.73 crore. Private telecom services provider Bharti Airtel was at ninth position rising by Rs1,446.58 crore and power equipment maker Bhel at tenth spot added Rs2,420.67 crore to its m-cap. Bharti Airtel’s total valuation stood at Rs1,21,844.45 crore and Bhel m-cap stood at Rs1,15,972.18 crore. Meanwhile, the 30-share index Sensex during the past week surged nearly four per cent or 640.78 points to close at 17,360.61 points on the BSE. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 10:11 pm Amazon Christmas day e-book sales beat print salesWashington: On Christmas Day customers bought more electronic books than hard-copy books on Internet retail giant Amazon.com, the company said in a statement Saturday. Amazon also said that its e-book reader, the Kindle, “has become the most gifted item in Amazon’s history.” “On Christmas Day, for the first time ever, customers purchased more Kindle books than physical books,” Amazon said. Amazon e-books can also be read on Apple iPhone or iPod Touch devices. The Kindle online store boasts a library of 390,000 digitized books for sale. While Amazon has not released figures for Kindle sales, Forrester Research estimated in October that the Kindle has a nearly 60% share of the US market, followed by the Sony Reader with 35%. The Kindle also faces competition from the “Nook,” a new device sold by US bookstore giant Barnes & Noble. The company said it sold all of its Nooks one month before Christmas, and that the next shipment will not be available until early January. Forrester estimated that three million e-readers will be sold in the United States this year, up from a previous forecast of two million units, and forecast that e-reader sales will double to six million units next year. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 9:51 pm Aviation in 2009: of chopper mishaps, loss and strikesNew Delhi: After its spiral dive last year, the Indian aviation industry noticed slight signs of improvement at the fag end of 2009 that also saw a major helicopter crash in which Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S R Reddy perished and several near-miss incidents. The combined losses of all airlines in 2008-09 was over a massive Rs8,000 crore. Though no accidents involving scheduled carriers occurred, the year saw the Y S R tragedy. There were also several near-miss incidents, including one involving the IAF choppers carrying president Pratibha Patil and an Air India plane. The operations of Jet Airways and Air India remained paralysed for several days by separate strikes called by their pilots in September to press for their demands. The major dip in passenger traffic caused by the economic recession, low business traffic and high ticket prices through the year, started looking up in the last two- three months of 2009, but the yields continued to remain low. Barring only two carriers -- IndiGo and Paramount -- all scheduled airlines continued to post huge losses. Led by Air India which was estimated to suffer a loss of about Rs 5,000 crore in 2008-09, Kingfisher Airlines posted a loss of Rs1,602 crore, Jet Airways-JetLite combine Rs1,032 crore, SpiceJet Rs352.50 crore and GoAir Rs22.5 crore. Air India’s financial troubles saw the government coming to its aid and allocating Rs800 crore as the first tranche of equity infusion in the national carrier. It also approved a Jet Airways proposal to raise $400 million from foreign institutional investors. Modernisation work at metro and non-metro airports continued, but imposition of development charges and hiking of airport charges by private airport developers at some major airports coming under criticism. While a green signal was granted for construction of new greenfield airports at Navi Mumbai and Mopa in Goa, apart from an aerotropolis near Durgapur in West Bengal, work on these projects are likely to start in the next few months. The pace of work on upgrading and modernisation of 35 non-metro airports slowed down due to a decline in air traffic, with only nine expected to be completed by March. Work on another five airports is likely to be completed by 2010-end and the remaining 26 by 2012. The hiking of airport charges and imposition of development fees at major airports like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore, came in from criticism from various quarters, including the IATA which put Indian airports on a ‘wall of shame´. The Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA), set up this year, was plagued by delays in selection of its top officers and is yet to start full-fledged monitoring and regulation of these charges and other tariffs. The government had last year approved the FDI limits in civil aviation sector of upto 49% on automatic route and upto 100% for NRIs, besides up to 74% for non-scheduled operators and 100% for cargo, among other things. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 9:37 pm Japan can avoid double-dip recession - ministerTOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese National Strategy Minister Naoto Kan said on Sunday the country's economy can avoid a double-dip recession thanks to economic recovery abroad, fiscal stimulus by the government and better market conditions.Source: Reuters: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 8:00 pm Euro zone deficits must be cut from 2011 latest - TrichetBERLIN (Reuters) - Banks must provide sufficient credit and governments in the euro zone must reign in public finances to support a global economic recovery in 2010, the President of the European Central Bank (EBC) said on Sunday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 7:57 pm Congress, Centre mishandled Telangana issue: CPM - Times of India
Source: Business - Google News | 26 Dec 2009 | 5:32 pm Small drug firms cry foul over ethics codeA common ethical marketing practices code for drug makers in the country is unlikely in the near future despite the latest attempts of the governments department of pharmaceuticals to evolve such a code.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:43 am Govt hikes iron ore export duty - Hindu Business Line
Source: Business - Google News | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:42 am As projects falter, steel MNCs forge partnershipsAs mega greenfield steel projects announced by behemoths ArcelorMittal and Posco struggle to make progress, multinational companies are charting a new route into India: Through equity participation in existing companies or by forging joint ventures.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:42 am Japanese PM to meet Tata, AmbaniHatoyama is the first Japanese PM to visit India in 25 years.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:41 am Goldman Sachs takes 9.4% in Max India for $115 mnAnaljit to guard stake by pumping in money.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 11:39 am ONGC subsidiary to be merged with OIL AGPOpposition Asom Gana Parishad today demanded that the proposed ONGC subsidiary - Assam Assets - to be amalgamated with Oil India Ltd (OIL) to make it a viable company.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 10:15 am Zambia invites second round of oil exploration bidsThe government is looking for companies to explore in 23 demarcated blocks in the North-Western, Western, Southern, Eastern, Northern and Luapula provinces.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 9:45 am Al-Khafji oilfield projects bid deadline extendedA joint venture between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait has extended the bidding deadline for two projects at Al-Khafji oilfield to December 28, bidders said on Saturday.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 9:34 am Experts discuss road ahead for Indian infrastructureIndia survived the financial turmoil quite well. The Indian economy seems to be back on track. But a lot more needs to be done in terms of physical and the social and economic infrastructure.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 8:59 am Multiple choiceFrom small cars and big brands to the launch of the Prius, there’s a lot of action to look forward to Automobiles have perhaps been the greatest symbol of human emancipation. Here are a few vehicles that should pull at your heart (and wallet!) strings this year.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 8:38 am 'Youth Depression' hard on US retailersThose aged 16 to 19 have seen a 23% decline in jobs -- by far the sharpest decline of any age category.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 7:40 am Resurgent BRIC winning global race for investmentsBRIC account for about 20% of its gross domestic product, a share Goldman Sachs says will rise to equal that of the G7 industrialised countries as early as 2032.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 7:20 am Unitech to focus on Mumbai market, debt reductionIn an exclusive discussion with CNBCTV18, Unitech Managing Director Sanjay Chandra has said the companys core focus remains bringing down its debt and concentrate on Mumbai as a market.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 6:35 am "Youth Depression" hard on U.S. retailersDALLAS/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Jon Koehling has a job delivering pizzas in a Dallas suburb and that sets this 21-year-old apart from many of his American peers.Source: Reuters: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 6:22 am Resurgent BRICs winning global race for investmentsLONDON (Reuters) - The world's four biggest emerging economies are grabbing growing volumes of global capital flows, with firms and fund managers increasingly viewing BRIC consumer demand as a high-return, relatively safe investment bet.Source: Reuters: Money News | 26 Dec 2009 | 6:12 am Realty firms see ray of hope in 2010The $14 billion Indian realty industry faced a major crisis this year, not just because of a sharp fall in demand but due also to high cost of credit in executing ongoing projects.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 26 Dec 2009 | 6:07 am RIL ups LyondellBasell\'s nonbinding proposal to $56 bnSources indicate that Reliance Industries (RIL) has updated its nonbinding proposal for LyondellBasell. CNBCTV18 learns that the revised proposal has a significantly higher cash component of USD 56 billion from the earlier offer of USD 2 billion.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 5:58 am Gold regains Rs 17k level on fresh buyingGold prices regained the Rs 17,000-level in the national capital on Saturday on fresh buying by stockists and jewellery fabricators amid pick up in demand.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 26 Dec 2009 | 5:51 am Eicher Motors targets 15% mkt share in HCVs in next 3 yrsEicher Motors is betting on growth. It hopes to capture nearly 15% of the market in the next few years. The company has laid out an aggressive expansion plan. The company wants to have a foothold reach in every segment of the commercial vehicle market.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 5:09 am Gold regains Rs 17k level on fresh buyingGold prices regained the Rs 17,000-level in the national capital on Saturday on fresh buying by stockists and jewellery fabricators amid pick up in demand.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 4:26 am Govt should pay oil cos in cash: ExpertsFormer Petroleum Secretary, SC Tripathi and former Finance Secretary, S Narayan say the government should pay the oil companies in cash and not in bonds.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 4:23 am 45 people presumed dead in Chambal bridge collapseKota: The number of people presumed killed when a bridge collapsed in Chambal rose to at least 45 on Saturday, an official said, as rescue divers struggled to recover bodies pinned under water. Dozens of labourers fell into the water late Thursday when the bridge on which they were working gave way over the Chambal river on the outskirts of the city of Kota in Rajasthan. “At least 45 people are presumed to have died in the bridge collapse,” senior police official Rajeev Dasot told AFP, raising the estimated death toll from 17. “The total death tally should be between 45 and 50,” Dasot said, adding another four people were in hospital. Some of the victims were migrant workers. Police identified the two companies building the bridge as South Korea’s Hyundai Engineering and Gammon India. Two senior project managers, including a South Korean national, have been arrested on accusations of culpable homicide, Dasot said. Rescue workers were using cranes and gas cutters to slice through the wrecked bridge which was partially submerged. Two teams of naval divers were helping retrieve bodies from the deep waters and authorities were considering demolishing the remaining portion of the structure. Dasot said one of the men arrested was working as deputy project manager for Gammon while the South Korean was employed as chief project officer for Hyundai. “We have taken the most stringent action possible under Indian law,” said Dasot. There was no immediate statement by either company on the accident. National highway authority and the state government have launched an inquiry into the accident. The Press Trust of India quoted federal junior transport minister Mahadeo Singh Khandela as saying construction of the bridge was almost a year behind schedule. Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot told reporters the government was taking the accident “very seriously so that such accidents don’t happen in the future.” Deadly accidents on construction sites are relatively common in India, where health and safety rules are routinely flouted. India has no figures for the number of occupational accidents annually, but the UN’s International Labour Organisation has estimated that 50,000 people die here each year from work-related causes. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:40 am Oil price might rise \'reasonably\'Oil prices are stabilising and might even rise \"reasonably,\" Saudi Arabia\'s King Abdullah was quoted as saying by a Kuwaiti newspaper.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:27 am NMDC share sale may raise $4.9 billionThe government is hoping to raise over Rs 230 billion (USD4.9 billion) from the sale of a stake in iron ore miner National Mineral Development Corp.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:27 am Passengers help foil attack on Detroit-bound planeRomulus, Michigan: An attempted terrorist attack on a Christmas Day flight began with a pop and a puff of smoke — sending passengers scrambling to subdue a Nigerian man who claimed to be acting on orders from al-Qaida to blow up the airliner, officials and travelers said. The commotion began as Northwest Airlines Flight 253, carrying 278 passengers and 11 crew members from Amsterdam, prepared to land in Detroit just before noon Friday. “It sounded like a firecracker in a pillowcase,” said Peter Smith, a passenger from the Netherlands. “First there was a pop, and then (there) was smoke.” Smith said one passenger climbed over other people, went across the aisle and tried to restrain the man, who officials say was trying to ignite an explosive device. The heroic passenger appeared to have been burned. Afterward, the suspect was taken to a front-row seat with his pants cut off and his legs burned. Multiple law enforcement officials also said the man appeared badly burned on his legs, indicating the explosive was strapped there. The components were apparently mixed in-flight and included a powdery substance, multiple law enforcement and counterterrorism officials said. The White House said it believed it was an attempted act of terrorism and stricter security measures were quickly imposed on airline travel. The incident was reminiscent of Richard Reid, who tried to destroy a trans-Atlantic flight in 2001 with explosives hidden in his shoes, but was subdued by other passengers. Multiple law enforcement officials identified the suspect in Friday’s attempted attack as Nigerian citizen Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab. One law enforcement official said the man claimed to have been instructed by al-Qaida to detonate the plane over US soil, but other law enforcement officials cautioned that such claims could not be verified immediately, and said the man may have been acting independently — inspired but not specifically trained or ordered by terror groups. All the officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing. The man was being questioned Friday evening. An intelligence official said he was being held and treated in an Ann Arbor, Michigan, hospital. The hospital said one passenger from the flight was taken to the University of Michigan Medical Center in Ann Arbor, but referred all inquiries to the FBI. Melinda Dennis, who was seated in the front row of the plane, said the man involved was brought to the front row and seated near her. She said his legs appeared to be badly burned and his pants were cut off. She said he was taken off the plane handcuffed to a stretcher. One law enforcement official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said Mutallab’s name had surfaced earlier on at least one US intelligence database, but he was not on a watch list or a no-fly list. The flight began in Nigeria and went through Amsterdam en route to Detroit, said Peter King, the ranking Republican member of the House Homeland Security Committee. A spokeswoman for police at the Schiphol airport in Amsterdam declined comment about the case or about security procedures at the airport for Flight 253. Schiphol airport, one of Europe’s busiest with a heavy load of transit passengers from Africa and Asia to North America, strictly enforces European security regulations including only allowing small amounts of liquid in hand luggage that must be placed inside clear plastic bags. After the attempted attack, passengers to the U.S. were being frisked at the gate as an added security measure, said KLM spokeswoman Mirjam Snoerwang. A spokesman for the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Akin Olukunle, said all passengers and their luggage are screened before boarding international flights. He also said the airport in Lagos cleared a US Transportation Security Administration audit in November. “We had a pass mark,” Olukunle said. “We actually are up to standards in all senses.” Delta Air Lines Inc., which acquired Northwest last year, said a passenger caused a disturbance, was subdued, and the crew requested that law enforcement officials meet the flight. Passenger Syed Jafri, a US citizen who had flown from the United Arab Emirates, said the incident occurred during the plane’s descent. Jafri said he was seated three rows behind the passenger and said he saw a glow, and noticed a smoke smell. Then, he said, “a young man behind me jumped on him.” “Next thing you know, there was a lot of panic,” he said. Federal officials said there would be heightened security for both domestic and international flights at airports across the country, but the intensified levels would likely be “layered,” differing from location to location depending on alerts, security concerns and other factors. Passengers can expect to see heightened screening, more bomb-sniffing dog and officer units and behavioral-detection specialists at some airports, but there will also be unspecified less visible precautions as well, officials said. The FBI and the Homeland Security Department issued an intelligence note on 20 November about the threat picture for the holiday season, which was obtained by The Associated Press. At the time, officials said they had no specific information about attack plans by al-Qaida or other terrorist groups. President Barack Obama was notified of the incident and discussed it with security officials, the White House said. Officials said he is monitoring the situation and receiving regular updates from his vacation spot in Hawaii. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:27 am Union Bank to set up asset mgt co with Belgian firmBangalore: The Union Bank of India would set up an asset management company in partnership with a Belgian firm early next year, a top official of the Bank said on Saturday. “The process of establishing the asset management company is at an advance stage. The new company will soon be incorporated. We are working out the business plan. It might happen early next year”, bank executive director S C Kalia told reporters in Bangalore. Kalia said UBI would launch the second phase of its customer-centric Navnirman programme to become one of the top three public sector banks in the country by 2012. He said the bank was targeting to achieve Rs2,85,000 crore business by March 2010. As on 30 September, 2009, the operating profit of the bank stood at Rs810 crore and net profit at Rs505 crore. The bank has an ambitious plan to open 500 more branches across the country and enhance its global footprint, he said. At present, the bank has only one overseas branch in Hong Kong. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:24 am Inside story: How they saved SatyamMeet a league of extraordinary gentlemen, the 6 men who saved Satyam.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:09 am Prayers and silence mark 2004 tsunami anniversaryPhuket: Five years after a massive tsunami triggered deadly tidal waves across Asia, low-key ceremonies Saturday marked the solemn anniversary with prayers and moments of silence for the 230,000 people killed. The devastating 26 December 2004, tsunami struck a dozen countries around the Indian Ocean rim. It eradicated entire coastal communities, decimated families and crashed over tourist-filled beaches the morning after Christmas. Survivors waded through a horror show of corpse-filled waters. Survivors were among the hundreds of people who returned to the white-sand beaches in southern Thailand on Saturday to recall one of the worst natural disasters of modern times. A moment of silence was observed on Phuket’s Patong Beach, a popular strip of hotels and restaurants, to mark the moment the tsunami struck. Dozens of Buddhist monks in bright orange robes chanted prayers. Onlookers wept and embraced. Giorgio Capriccioli, an Italian who lives on Phuket, carried a bouquet of white flowers into the ocean. He waded knee-deep in water that five years ago was clogged with corpses and cast the flowers adrift to honor the memory of two friends. His wife owns several beach-front shops but decided not to go to work the morning the tsunami struck. “My wife would be dead if it weren’t for the fact that she were pregnant and didn’t go to work that day,” he said at a ceremony that also attracted sun-drenched tourists in skimpy swimsuits, as well as Thai residents. The ceremonies on Phuket were to culminate in the evening with candle-lighting ceremonies and the release of hundreds of light-filled lanterns into the sky. Memorial services were also planned elsewhere in Asia. In the Indonesian province of Aceh on Sumatra island, which was hardest-hit by the disaster, some mosques held prayer services Friday. The tsunami was sparked by an 9.2-magnitude underwater earthquake off Sumatra — the mightiest earthquake in 40 years. More than 8,000 Thais and foreign vacationers perished in Thailand. Coastal communities in Sri Lanka and India lost some 48,000 people between them. Indonesia’s loss of about 167,000 accounted for well more than half of the total death toll. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:09 am Saab deal hopes fade, GM presses on with wind downGeneral Motors Co is pressing ahead with plans to shut down Saab as chances of a deal to sell the Swedish brand to Dutch sports car builder Spyker Cars remain remote.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:04 am Russia MTS buys local network operator for $110 millionMTS, Russia\'s largest mobile phone operator, has bought telecoms network operator Eurotel for USD110 million, MTS said on Thursday.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 3:04 am Market makes merry in Christmas week Sensex at 19 month highThe market bounced back with a vengeance, moved up nearly 4 per cent, a 19-month high during the week due to hectic short-coverings amid positive development. Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 26 Dec 2009 | 2:25 am RIL ups LyondellBasell's non-binding proposal - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Business - Google News | 26 Dec 2009 | 2:05 am
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