Chennai Petro to shut crude unit 2 wks endMay

Staterun Chennai Petroleum Corp plans to shut a 56,000 barrels per day (bpd) crude unit at it Manali refinery in Tamil Nadu from endMay for about two weeks, its technical director said on Tuesday.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 8:15 am

Reliance out of race for Canadian firm

Energy major Reliance Industries is out of the race for Value Creation after the Canadian firm sold a majority stake in an oil sands property to BP Plc, a source with direct knowledge told Reuters.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 8:00 am

HDFC looking to foray into education biz

At a recent CLSA conference, the housing finance major is said to have disclosed its intention to foray into education businessl, reports CNBC TV18.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 7:59 am

PBA Infra expects order book of Rs 2000cr in next 6 months

In an interview with CNBCTV18, Ramlal Wadhwan, Chairman and Managing Director of PBA Infrastructure, spoke about his outlook for the company.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 7:57 am

Bharti to announce Zain buyout completion on Apr 13

Kuwaiti telecom Zain and Bharti Airtel have faced no obstacles in due diligence and expect the USD 9 billion deal to close on time, a Kuwaiti newspaper said on Tuesday.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 7:11 am

No plan for SBI to take over state banks

There is no proposal for governmentrun State Bank of India to take over any other state bank, a minister of state for Finance said on Tuesday.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 6:57 am

NTPC seeks govt nod to sell power in open mkt

National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has submitted a proposal to Union power minister Sushil Kumar Shinde to sell 10% of its capacity in open markets, reports CNBCTV18 quoting sources.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 6:13 am

Kingfisher to launch 7 international routes this summer!

Kingfisher Airlines will launch seven international routes this summer, which include a daily non-stop flight between New Delhi and London starting March 28 and one between New Delhi and Hong Kong beginning April 7.
Source: Zee News : Business | 16 Mar 2010 | 6:13 am

February inflation surges to 9.89 percent !

India`s wholesale price index (WPI) inflation soared to 9.89 percent in February from 8.6 percent a month before, putting the government under pressure to take policy actions to check rising prices.
Source: Zee News : Business | 16 Mar 2010 | 6:13 am

Citi to boost proprietary trading unit: Bloomberg

Citigroup Inc plans to bolster its proprietary trading unit following the departure of eight employees owing to the U.S. government\'s proposal to ban banks from trading stocks with their own money, Bloomberg said, citing people with direct knowledge of the matter.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 5:40 am

IVRCL to be pure EPC player post restructuring: IVR Prime

IVR Prime has done the best this morning. It is up 7%. In an interview with CNBCTV18, Sudhir Reddy from the company spoke about the restructuring plans announced by the company.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 5:14 am

WalMart plans expansion of lowincome money services

WalMart said on Monday that it plans for more of its stores to offer banklike services for the company\'s lowerincome customers, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 5:07 am

Shell eyes return to growth as reserves jump

Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it is targeting output of 3.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in 2012, up from 3.15 million in 2009 -- equivalent to an annual growth rate of 3.5%.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:57 am

Deutsche Bank CEO tops German pay ranks

Deutsche Bank chief executive Josef Ackermann took home €9.55 million ($13 million) in total compensation for 2009, the fattest paycheck for 2009 among Germany's blue-chip companies so far.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:56 am

Daimler, Renault in talks over equity stakes: Report

Citing two unnamed people briefed on the talks, the FT said the possible alliance would take the relationship beyond the talks about cooperation in small cars which are already taking place.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:54 am

ArcelorMittal plans Iraq steel mill venture

The mini-mill, which will use locally sourced scrap metal to make steel reinforcing bars, is set to cost the two companies $100 million to $130 million in total, and could produce as much as 5,00,000 tonnes per year.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:53 am

Reliance out of race for Canada firm: Source

Reliance had made a $2 billion takeover bid for majority stake in Value Creation to rival BP's $1.2 billion bid in the privately held Canadian firm.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:51 am

No plan for SBI to take over state banks

State Bank has said it plans to absorb its six associate banks but has met with union and political opposition. It is in the process of absorbing unlisted State Bank of Indore.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:41 am

Intel unveils new server chips ahead of AMD

The new microprocessors, designed to power both servers and high-end desktop PCs, are the first of Intel's server chips featuring smaller transistors that have helped the company's laptop and desktop chips push stronger performance while eking out better energy efficiency.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:39 am

Shell eyes return to growth as reserves jump

London: Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it was planning a return to robust growth in oil and gas production after seven years of decline and unveiled strong reserves additions that should underpin longer-term growth aims. Europe’s largest oil company by market value said it was targeting output of 3.5 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in 2012, up from 3.15 million in 2009 -- equivalent to an annual growth rate of 3.5%.
Earlier on Tuesday, Australia’s Arrow Energy Ltd said it was in “active discussions” with Shell and PetroChina over their joint $3 billion takeover offer.
Shell’s London-listed “A” shares were up 1.4% at 0936 GMT, outperforming a 0.75% rise in the STOXX Europe 600 Oil and Gas index.
“It’s a very strong message,” one analyst said, adding the output target was above his forecast.
The company previously said it expected production to be flat in 2010 before new projects ramp up in 2011 and 2012.
“We are moving into a delivery window across the next five years, and beyond that, we have a tremendous opportunity set for the 2015-2020 timeframe,” chief executive Peter Voser said.
Italian rival Eni said on Friday it aimed to grow output by 2.5% per annum to 2013 while European number two BP Plc is targeting annual growth of 1-2%.
In its annual strategy statement, Shell also predicted rising production beyond 2012, underpinned by a new focus on exploration.
Voser said high-cost, infrastructure-led projects, such as Shell’s $18-19 billion gas-to-liquids plant in Qatar and multi-billion dollar oil sands projects in Canada, would in future only supplement the exploration effort.
Shell’s production strategy has been built around such large, technology-driven projects in recent years.
Nonetheless, Shell said it will have to spend $25-$30 billion/year out to 2014 to achieve its growth -- the largest capital investment or capex programme in the industry.
Reserves replacement success
The company said that last year it added new reserves equivalent to almost three times the amount of oil and gas it pumped.
Its reserves replacement rate of 288% compares with levels of 133% at industry leader Exxon Mobil and 129% at BP.
It is also a turnaround from the 98% Shell achieved in 2008 and the 17% recorded in 2007.
“This was the best year for exploration in a decade,” the company said.
Shell’s focus on building production will also see it reduce its downstream footprint.
The company said it planned to exit 35% of its retail markets, and repeated plans to sell 15% of its world-wide refining portfolio.

Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:26 am

China warns Google to obey rules even if it pulls out

Beijing: Google should obey Chinese government rules even if it decides to retreat from the country over hacking and censorship complaints, a Chinese government spokesman said on Tuesday.
Investors have sold off Google Inc shares after signs the company could soon shut its Web search site in China, Google.cn, two months after saying it would not abide by Beijing’s censorship rules and was alarmed by hacking from inside China.
Google has not unveiled any plans, leaving users to guess whether the company may seek to unilaterally do away with the Chinese-mandated filters that censor content on google.cn or announce it is shutting down the site.
In what appeared to be a reminder that China would not welcome any abrupt steps, a spokesman for the ministry of commerce said Google should follow rules even if it decides not to stay in the country.
“On entering the Chinese market in 2007, it clearly stated that it would respect Chinese law,” the spokesman, Yao Jian, told reporters in answer to a question about Google.
Google opened its Chinese search portal in 2006.
“We hope that whether Google Inc continues operating in China or makes other choices, it will respect Chinese legal regulations,” Yao told a regular news conference.
“Even if it pulls out, it should handle things according to the rules and appropriately handle remaining issues,” he said.
Uncensored Search Engine
Yao said those rules included one that a foreign company report to the commerce ministry about plans to pull out.
Google’s chief executive, Eric Schmidt, said last week he hoped to have an outcome soon from talks with Chinese officials on offering an uncensored search engine in that country of 384 million Internet users.
Many experts doubt China’s ruling Communist Party would compromise on censorship. The Financial Times reported at the weekend the talks had reached an impasse and Google was “99.9%” certain to shut Google.cn.
A Google spokesperson said on Monday that talks with Chinese authorities had not ended, but added that the company was adamant about not accepting self-censorship.
China requires Internet operators to block words and images the ruling Communist Party deems unacceptable.
Internationally popular websites Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are entirely blocked in China, which uses a filtering “firewall” to block Internet users from other overseas website content banned by authorities.

Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:25 am

Madoff family seek dismissal of cases against it

REUTERS - Andrew and Mark Madoff, sons of fraudster Bernard Madoff, have submitted a request with a U.S. court to dismiss all the complaints against them, with prejudice, court documents showed.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:24 am

INTERVIEW - Tata Power unit helping arrange overseas coal

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The power trading unit of Tata Power Co Ltd, India's largest private-sector utility, is looking to help arrange coal supplies from Australia, Indonesia and Africa for small power producers, an official said.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:18 am

HCC to buy 66 pct stake in Swiss Firm - Reuters India


The Hindu
HCC to buy 66 pct stake in Swiss Firm
Reuters India
By Team VCC (VCCircle.com) Hindustan Construction Company Ltd (HCC), a Mumbai-based construction firm, is acquiring a controlling stake in Karl Steiner AG (KSAG), a realty firm in Switzerland. The board of directors of the company has approved the ...
HCC acquires 66% stake in Karl Steiner for 35m swiss francsMoneycontrol.com
HCC buys acquires stake in Swiss realty firmThe Hindu
HCC to buy 66% stake in Karl Steiner for Rs 150 crNDTV.com
Livemint -Sify -Wall Street Journal
all 53 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:04 am

Godrej Consumer Products buys Nigerian brand Tura - Reuters India


Godrej Consumer Products buys Nigerian brand Tura
Reuters India
Tura is owned by the UK-based Lornamead Group, which last year sold Yardley for $45.5 million to Wipro. Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL), a leading player in FMCG space in India, is acquiring an African ...
Takeover won't pinch GCPL financesEconomic Times
Godrej-Tura deal looks promising, but price is keyHindu Business Line
Godrej Consumer buys Nigeria's TuraNDTV.com
Moneycontrol.com -Business Standard -Livemint
all 60 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 16 Mar 2010 | 3:02 am

Deutsche Bank chief tops Germany's pay chart

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank Chief Executive Josef Ackermann took home 9.55 million euros ($13 million) in total compensation for 2009, the fattest paycheck among Germany's blue-chip companies disclosed so far.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 2:51 am

China warns Google to obey rules even if it pulls out

BEIJING (Reuters) - Google should obey Chinese government rules even if it decides to retreat from the country over hacking and censorship complaints, a Chinese government spokesman said on Tuesday.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 2:50 am

Retail gold buying continues on Gudi Padwa

MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's retail gold buying continued on Tuesday afternoon as prices stayed in the vicinity of their recent lows, prompting consumers to buy for a local festival, traders said.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 2:43 am

ArcelorMittal to set up $130 million steel mill in Iraq

Global steel giant ArcelorMittal on Tuesday said it will set up a $130 million steel plant in war-torn Iraq in collaboration with Turkish firm Dayen.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 16 Mar 2010 | 2:37 am

TEXT - Fitch launches Money Market Fund ratings in India

(The following statement was released by the ratings agency)

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 2:36 am

Retail gold buying continues on festival day

Mumbai: India’s retail gold buying continued on Tuesday afternoon as prices stayed in the vicinity of their recent lows, prompting consumers to buy for a local festival, traders said.
“Yesterday we saw good showroom sales especially on the coins front, and there were some buyers in the morning as well, and expected to increase by evening, when the auspicious time starts,” said Ghanshyam Nichani, properietor of Mumbai-based Dhanraj Jewellers.
International spot gold, which guides the domestic market, was trading at $1,112.15/1,113.15 an ounce at 2:09pm, as against the previous close of $1,108.10/1,110.10.
Gold had struck a two-week low of $1,098.25 an ounce on Friday, but has since inched higher as concerns about European sovereign debt persisted, and trading was range-bound ahead of an interest rate verdict in the United States.
“Sales are good, but because of the hike in prices they prefer to buy light-weight casual wears or coins than heavy bridal sets,” said Narinder singh, partner of Neelkanth Jewellers, a retalier catering mostly to south Indian markets.
India, the world’s largest consumer of gold, celebrates Gudi Padwa in Maharastra and Ugadi in Karnataka, which marks the onset of a new year and considered auspicious for gold buying.
Wholesale demand was slack as banks, the primary dealers of bullion, were shut for the festival holiday in Mumbai.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 2:17 am

Silver rises by Rs 200 on strong global cues - NDTV.com


Silver rises by Rs 200 on strong global cues
NDTV.com
PTI, March 16, 2010 (New Delhi) Silver prices rose by Rs 206 to Rs 27235 per kg in futures market on Tuesday on emergence of buying influenced by firming global trend. Pick up in demand following beginning of 'Navratra' festival from today also ...
Gold futures upHindu Business Line
Gold futures gain on firm global cuesMyiris.com
Gold recuperates on positive global cues, buyingPress Trust of India
india-server.com
all 8 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 16 Mar 2010 | 2:15 am

Reliance out of race for Canada firm

Mumbai: Indian energy major Reliance Industries is out of the race for Value Creation after the Canadian firm sold a majority stake in an oil sands property to BP Plc, a source with direct knowledge told Reuters.
Earlier this year, Reliance, which operates the world’s biggest oil refining complex in India, had made a $2 billion takeover bid for majority stake in Value Creation to rival BP’s $1.2 billion bid in the privately held Canadian firm.
BP will develop and operate the 185,000-acre Terre de Grace block in northern Alberta.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 1:55 am

Reliance out of race for Canada firm

Mumbai: Indian energy major Reliance Industries is out of the race for Value Creation after the Canadian firm sold a majority stake in an oil sands property to BP Plc, a source with direct knowledge told Reuters.
Earlier this year, Reliance, which operates the world’s biggest oil refining complex in India, had made a $2 billion takeover bid for majority stake in Value Creation to rival BP’s $1.2 billion bid in the privately held Canadian firm.
BP will develop and operate the 185,000-acre Terre de Grace block in northern Alberta.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 1:55 am

Reliance out of race for Canada firm - source

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Energy major Reliance Industries is out of the race for Value Creation after the Canadian firm sold a majority stake in an oil sands property to BP Plc, a source with direct knowledge told Reuters.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 1:53 am

Sensex hovers around 17200 oil gas metals pharma up - Moneycontrol.com


The Hindu
Sensex hovers around 17200 oil gas metals pharma up
Moneycontrol.com
At 13:09 hours IST, the benchmark Sensex strengthened a bit. Reliance Industries was the leading counter, up 2.5%, along with entire oil & gas space. Metal, pharma, technology (barring Wipro), auto, select power and capital goods stocks were the other ...
Nifty little-changed; BPCL, Reliance, HCL Tech upEconomic Times
Sensex up 180 pts, looks set to end on buoyant note @ 15:07 hrsSify
Nifty inches closer to 5200 mark…RIL, L&T leadIndia Infoline.com
Business Standard -Myiris.com -NDTV.com
all 145 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 16 Mar 2010 | 1:50 am

No plan for SBI to take over state banks

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - There is no proposal for government-run State Bank of India to take over any other state bank, a minister of state for finance said on Tuesday.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 1:40 am

Subscribe to Persistent Systems IPO Hem Securities - Moneycontrol.com


Hindu Business Line
Subscribe to Persistent Systems IPO Hem Securities
Moneycontrol.com
Hem Securities has come out with a research report on Persistent Systems' IPO. The broking firm has recommended investor to apply for this issue. Pune based software product development company is entering capital market with an initial public offering ...
Persistent Systems IPO opens on March 17Siliconindia.com
Persistent Sys IPO price band at Rs 290-310/ shareNDTV.com
Investors may consider Persistent Systems for its growth prospectsEconomic Times
Myiris.com -Reuters India -BloombergUTV
all 17 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 16 Mar 2010 | 1:39 am

Inflationary pressure on food items coming down: Mukherjee - Economic Times


The Hindu
Inflationary pressure on food items coming down: Mukherjee
Economic Times
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has said that inflationary pressure on food items has started coming down. Talking to reporters here on the sidelines of a function on Monday, Mukherjee said: "I am afraid that we shall have to deal with it ...
High inflation to persist for some time: PranabHindu Business Line
'Pvt insurance firms have more death claims than LIC'Press Trust of India
Feb inflation near 10%: it's not only foodHindustan Times
Moneycontrol.com -SME Times -Blog of India (blog)
all 38 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 16 Mar 2010 | 1:14 am

Yahoo loses revenue chief to online content start-up Demand Media

Demand Media said Joanne Bradford will join the company as its first chief revenue officer to oversee advertising sales and the company's recently launched online content services business.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:58 am

Citigroup to boost proprietary trading unit: Report

Kevin Russell, head of Americas stock trading, told employees and securities firms supporting the unit that Citigroup may increase the group's trading limits and capital.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:57 am

Foreign exchange, bond markets in Mumbai closed for holiday

On Monday, the yield on the 10-year benchmark bond ended at the day's low of 7.99% after matching a 17-month-high of 8.02% touched last week. It had closed at 8.01% on Friday.
Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:56 am

No obstacles seen to Zain-Bharti deal close: report - Reuters


Indian Express
No obstacles seen to Zain-Bharti deal close: report
Reuters
KUWAIT (Reuters) - Kuwaiti telecom Zain (ZAIN.KW) and India's Bharti Airtel (BRTI.BO) have faced no obstacles in due diligence and expect the $9 billion deal to close on time, a Kuwaiti newspaper said on Tuesday. Daily al-Rai, quoting unnamed sources ...
No liability whatsoever on Bharti Airtel: Manoj KohliMoneycontrol.com
Bharti's low valuations reflect short-term uncertaintyEconomic Times
Spl audit of Airtel says it may owe Rs 174 cr to govtBusiness Standard
Wall Street Journal -Stock Watch -BloombergUTV
all 38 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:39 am

No plan for SBI to take over state banks

New Delhi: There is no proposal for government-run State Bank of India (SBI) to take over any other state bank, minister of state for finance Namo Narain Meena said on Tuesday.
“... at present there is no proposal before the government for merger of any nationalised bank with the SBI, Meena said in a written reply to a MP’s question in Parliament.
He said the government would not push for mergers between banks but would support any proposal from the boards of the banks.
State Bank, India’s largest lender, has said it plans to absorb its six associate banks but has met with union and political opposition. It is in the process of absorbing unlisted State Bank of Indore.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:34 am

No obstacles seen to Zain-Bharti deal close: report

Kuwait: Kuwaiti telecom Zain and India’s Bharti Airtel have faced no obstacles in due diligence and expect the $9 billion deal to close on time, a Kuwaiti newspaper said on Tuesday.
Daily al-Rai, quoting unnamed sources familiar with the deal, said both firms were keen on closing the sale of Zain’s African assets to Bharti on 25 March as scheduled.
“We are progressing with due diligence step by step and there are no obstacles so far. Each of Zain and Bharti are keen to finalize the transaction according to the preset timetable,” according to a person quoted by the newspaper.
The paper said due diligence had been done on the majority of Zain’s African assets in major countries and only procedural steps, which are unlikely to change the final report, remain.
The newspaper quoted sources as saying Bharti, India’s largest telecom firm, is expected to name the final bank consortium on the deal.
Bharti’s exclusive talks with Zain run until 25 March, and follow two failed attempts by the Indian firm to tie-up with South Africa’s MTN, Africa’s biggest telecom firm.
Bharti is looking at a mix of dollar and rupee funding to finance the Zain deal, sources told Reuters last month.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:27 am

Two men fire at ISRO security personnel in Bangalore, flee

Bangalore: Two persons moving around in a suspicious manner near a key Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) facility on the outskirts of the city fired at security personnel in the wee hours on Tuesday after which the guards retaliated but the duo escaped.
The home ministry sees Isro buildings as a high priority target for terrorists, and has beefed up security around them after warnings of possible attacks.
Police said it was “too early to speak of a terror link”.
“It’s a sensitive case, we are looking at all angles. We have launched a combing operation,” said Kamal Panth, inspector general of police, Bangalore rural.
India has raised security in the aftermath of a bombing that killed 16 people in Pune last month. Home secretary Gopal Pillai told Reuters on Monday that attack was carried out by home-grown militants with links to terrorists in Pakistan. [
New Delhi has repeatedly accused Pakistan of failing to stop terrorists from carrying out attacks inside India.
India and Pakistan held their first official level talks since the 2008 Mumbai attacks last month. Analysts say another major attack on India could make it politically difficult for New Delhi to engage Pakistan and impact regional security.
Earlier, a spokesman for the Isro said the shootout continued for some time.
“Two people were seen moving in a suspicious manner outside our centre,” Isro spokesman S. Satish said.
“The police immediately challenged them, and they opened fire in retaliation.”
Police said they had launched a search for the two men who fled after the shootout.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:23 am

Lehman plans to end bankruptcy create new company

Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc on Monday filed a plan with the US bankruptcy court in Manhattan to wind down its remaining assets and operations - and end the largest US bankruptcy case in history.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:21 am

Mahindra Lifespace to set up two more biz townships

Mumbai: Mahindra Lifespace Developers Ltd is in the process of acquiring around 4,000 acres in Chennai and Pune, where it intends to set up two more business parks, a top official said late on Monday.
The company is acquiring around 1,000 acres of land in Chennai and around 3,000 acres in Pune, its managing director and chief executive, Anita Arjundas, told Reuters in an interview.
Arjundas declined to comment on the cost for land acquisition.
A business park is a township with office spaces. The firm, part of the diversified Mahindra Group, specialises in both the residential housing and commercial development segments.
It already has two business parks of about 4,000 acres under its commercial segment. The parks are operated under the brand Mahindra World City, at Chennai and Jaipur.
“Land procurement is underway, so once we are done with a significant part of it, we will start development,” she said.
She did not provide a timeframe for completion of the business parks.
Mahindra Lifespace is also looking to tap the recovering residential housing market by launching new projects in two tier-1 cities, she said, but did not elaborate.
It focuses on the mid market and premium residential customer segments.
It already operates housing projects in Mumbai, National Capital Region (spanning New Delhi and adjoining areas), Pune and Chennai.
Mahindra Lifespace has about 8 million square feet of space for ongoing housing projects and new launches. It has already completed construction in 6 million square feet.
She said real estate prices in Mumbai, India’s financial capital, has recovered faster, while correction in other cities were much slower.
India’s real estate industry, like the sector globally, was hard hit by the 2008 credit crisis after years of booming demand.
Property prices doubled in the two years to 2007, fuelled by interest from foreign investors. But the sharp rise was followed by interest rate rises to calm inflation and the global financial turmoil, pulling down sales by more than half.
“Our understanding is that the market is back to the Jan 2008 levels, back to the peak level. General demand in Mumbai seems to be very good, while NCR seems to be a bit of a mixed bag...,” she said.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:16 am

Ranbaxy settles patent dispute with Takeda

Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd on Monday said that it has reached an agreement with Japanese pharma major Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd and Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America, resolving outstanding patent litigation related to generic version of
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

Costlier fuel drives up inflation rate to 9.89% in Feb

The headline inflation has come within touching distance of the double digits mark in February, increasing expectation of a rate hike by the Reserve Bank of India in its April policy
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

Day Trading Guide

Avoid trading in DLF for the session as the stock is trading sideways in a narrow
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

FII inflows fail to move market much

Why the stock market appears to be a bit comatose despite substantial FII inflows has become a matter of some debate among
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

Advance tax collection signals healthy growth

Signalling a healthy performance across sectors by India Inc, Mumbai corporate houses remitted higher advance tax for the quarter ended March 31, 2010.
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

Godrej-Tura deal looks promising, but price is key

The Godrej Consumer stock has gained about five per cent in a week and one per cent on Monday's trading session on the company's decision to acquire Tura - an African personal-care
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

Mahindra Ugine Steel Co (Rs 68.1): Buy

Investors with a short-term perspective can buy the stock of Mahindra Ugine Steel Company. It bucked the lackadaisical market trend on Monday to close almost 4.6 per cent higher accompanied by strong volumes. The stock is in a strong up-trend
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

Drug firms worried over Medical Council's ethics code

The efforts by the Medical Council of India (MCI) to weed out gifts and unethical practices in the medical profession could have some adverse impact, say drug
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

IL&FS Transportation, Pradip Overseas IPOs receive good response

IL&FS Transportation Network's (ITNL) initial public offering was subscribed 33.09 times on Monday. The issue which closed today received bids for 79.26 crore shares against the 2.37 crore shares on
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

IIP numbers lift cement stocks; fertiliser down

Continuing the post-budget gains, BSE Sensex rose by 5.7 per cent in the last 15 trading sessions helped by good FII flows and strong IIP numbers. Around 36 companies have touched their all-time high in last 15 trading sessions (beginning from 22
Source: Business Line - Home Page | 16 Mar 2010 | 12:00 am

Govt earmarks Rs 400 crore for family planning measures

In a boost to family planning measures and controlling AIDS, the Government has earmarked nearly Rs 400 crore for increasing the coverage of eligible couples under a programme, which includes free distribution of oral birth control pills and condoms.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 11:41 pm

Infosys denies reports of tax & duty evasion

The country's second largest software exporter Infosys on Monday said it has made a total advance tax payment of Rs 1,180 crore for the fiscal 2009-10.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 11:36 pm

India wants bar on firms lifted for high tech trade

Noting that the implementation of the landmark India-US civil nuclear deal presented a "win-win situation", India has sought more trade in high technology items with the removal of Indian firms from the barred Entity list.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 11:26 pm

Oil steadies below $80 as traders eye Fed, Opec

Singapore: Oil steadied below $80 a barrel on Tuesday after a fall of nearly 2% in the previous session, its biggest one-day fall in more than two weeks, as the market awaits the outcome of Opec and central bank meetings.
With the dollar also flat against the euro, after gains the previous day on worries about debt problems in Greece, there was little reason for oil prices to move.
US crude futures for April dropped 14 cents to $79.66 a barrel by 10:55am, while London April Brent dropped 15 cents to $77.74.
The slide in oil prices on Monday, which took front-month crude below $80 for the first time since 4 March, was triggered by dollar gains, and also fears that a 16-month high in consumer inflation in China might lead the country’s central bank to raise bank reserve requirements as early as this week.
China, the world’s second biggest oil consumer, has already tightened reserve requirements twice this year, with each move hitting commodity markets worried about slower demand from a major engine of demand growth for raw materials.
“I think China’s economy will undergo a phase of consolidation this year and we probably won’t see the boom it went through in 2009,” said Benson Wang, a crude oil trader at Commodity Broking Services in Sydney.
“Oil is seeing some range-trading at the moment and it will be hard for it to break out of the top end of this range.”
Asian shares rose modestly, with technology stocks nosing ahead, while the dollar held its ground ahead of a Federal Reserve policy meeting later on Tuesday expected to reiterate a pledge to keep rates low for a long time.
Given lingering labour market weakness and doubts on the strength of the economic recovery, most market participants expect no change in rates and a continued commitment to keep borrowing costs low.
The outcome of an Opec meeting that starts on Wednesday also seems a done deal, with Saudi Arabia’s oil minister saying on Monday that the producers’ group might not need to adjust output policy this year if markets remain stable.
“The market is in balance, the price is great, inventories are coming down, so why should we do anything?” he said ahead of the meeting, echoing comments made by other key Opec members Iran and Qatar.
US domestic crude stockpiles likely rose by 900,000 barrels last week, marking the seventh straight build, a Reuters poll ahead of weekly industry and government inventory reports showed on Monday.
Distillate and gasoline stocks fell, the poll showed.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 11:20 pm

Vedanta violating guidelines: Govt panel

Bhubaneswar: Plans by Vedanta Resources to begin bauxite mining in Orissa suffered a setback after a government team said the company was violating environmental guidelines, officials said on Monday.
“Displacement, loss of livelihood, pollution, non-payment of compensation of land and objections to the project and its effects are some of the causes for discontent and protest,” a report submitted to the Ministry of Environment and Forests last week, and seen by Reuters says.
“These are aspects that are integral to the lives of the Dongria Kondh (local tribespeople) and do not appear to have been considered while deciding to open up the mountain top for mining,” the report says.
Vedanta wants to mine bauxite for its alumina refinery in Orissa, but the project, bogged down since 2005, is opposed by tribes people who fear losing their homes and livelihood.
The Supreme Court approved the project in August 2008 after years of legal wrangling and Vedanta were waiting for an environmental clearance, the final hurdle of the project.
Its subsidiary company Sterlite Industries, co-owned by the Orissa government, plans to start mining once clearance is given by the central environment ministry.
A senior Vedanta official said the Orissa government had cleared their project and that the company has not violated environmental norms.
“We are hopeful that based on this (state government) report the environment ministry will give us approval for the project,” Mukesh Kumar, chief operating officer of the project in Orissa’s Lanjigarh area, told Reuters late on Monday.
AMR Daliwal, Orissa’s steel and mines secretary said he was still awaiting the central government report before taking any further decision.
“As far as our investigation is concerned there was no such violation,” he said in Bhubaneswar, capital of Orissa.
Vedanta has regularly denied allegations that its planned bauxite mine would violate the rights of thousands of poor indigenous tribes people, saying that all its projects are conducted within the law and using international best practices.
The company says it plans to mine less than one percent of the mountain range to produce one million tonnes of alumina annually and has already invested $22 million in development work.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 11:17 pm

Strides proposes to acquire minority stake in Ascent Pharma - The Hindu


The Hindu
Strides proposes to acquire minority stake in Ascent Pharma
The Hindu
PTI THE HINDU A view of global R&D centre - star Technology and Research (STAR) of Strides Arcolab in Bangalore. File Photo: Somashekar GRN Drug maker Strides Arcolab on Tuesday said it is in talks with Ascent Pharmahealth, listed on the Australian ...
UPDATE1-Strides eyes 100 pct stake in Ascent PharmaReuters India
Strides Arcolab to buy minority stake in Ascent PharmaMoneycontrol.com
Strides Acrolab Plans to Take Australia Unit PrivateWall Street Journal
VC Circle -Equity Bulls -Economic Times
all 19 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 15 Mar 2010 | 11:12 pm

Markets edge higher; Reliance, Larsen lead

Mumbai: Indian shares were trading 0.1% higher on Tuesday, supported by a small rise in its Asian peers, with Reliance Industries and Larsen & Toubro leading the charge.
Asian shares rose modestly ahead of a Federal Reserve policy meeting expected to reiterate a pledge to keep rates low for a long time.
By 10:08am, the 30-share BSE index was trading up 0.1% at 17,181.86, with 17 of its components gaining.
“We are just in a lacklustre mode after the rally post the (federal) budget. Also, some amount of investments are getting diverted in the primary market,” said Gajendra Nagpal, CEO of Unicon Financial.
Foreign funds have pumped in more than $2.5 billion in Indian equities in 10 sessions to March 14, latest data showed.
A portion of this has been absorbed by primary market offerings and Tata Motor’s stake sale by Daimler.
Last week, top iron ore miner NMDC concluded its $2.6 billion share sale while animation firm DQ Entertainment’s Rs128 crore initial public offering was more than 84 times covered.
Nagpal said the valuations were not cheap and he expects the market to trade in a narrow range until corporate earnings for the March quarter start trickling in next month.
“After the big event - the budget - there are no immediate domestic triggers. Besides, there is no good news flow internationally either,” he added.
Energy major Reliance Industries, which has the highest weight on the Sensex, rose 1.3% to Rs1,040.60.
“Refining margins and petchem margins have started looking up. Besides, Reliance had been an underperformer. So, it is catching up now,” Nagpal said.
The stock is down 4.5% so far in 2010, while the benchmark shed 1.6%.
Engineering and construction firm Larsen & Toubro climbed 0.7% to Rs1,565.80, after declining 3% over five previous sessions.
Financials continued to reel under pressure on fears that rising inflation strengthened the case for a rate hike by the central bank at its policy review next month.
On Monday, data showed annual wholesale price inflation accelerated to 9.89% in February, the highest since October 2008 and well above the Reserve Bank of India’s end-March projection of 8.5% and the 8.56% January reading.
Leading private lenders ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank dropped 0.8% and 1.4% respectively, while top lender State Bank of India was trading flat.
In the broader market, gainers outnumbered losers in a ratio of 1.5:1 in a volume of 71 million shares.
The 50-share NSE index was up 0.1% at 5,131.60.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 10:54 pm

Sensex rises by 48 points in opening trade on global cues

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex recovered by over 48 points in the opening trade today on fresh capital inflows from foreign funds amid moderate gains in global markets.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 10:23 pm

Sensex rises by 48 points in opening trade on global cues

The Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex recovered by over 48 points in the opening trade today on fresh capital inflows from foreign funds amid moderate gains in global markets.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 10:19 pm

Pradip Overseas IPO oversubscribed 14 times - Moneycontrol.com


Pradip Overseas IPO oversubscribed 14 times
Moneycontrol.com
The initial public offer (IPO) of Pradip Overseas, a textile manufacturer with a niche focus on home linen products, has received good response from investors. It oversubscribed 14.08 times, as per data available on the NSE website. ...
Pradip Overseas IPO subscribed 14 timesIndia Infoline.com
IL&FS Transportation, Pradip Overseas IPOs receive good responseHindu Business Line
Pradip Overseas IPO subscribed 14 timesEconomic Times
Business Standard -Equity Bulls -Sify
all 19 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 15 Mar 2010 | 10:15 pm

ITC raises cigarette prices again: report

New Delhi: ITC Ltd, India’s top cigarette maker, has increased prices by up to 20% following a duty hike in the federal budget, the DNA newspaper reported on Tuesday, without citing any source.
The paper said ITC, which had increased the prices of its flagship brand Gold Flake Kings by 7% prior to the budget, raised prices again by 8-20% across all brands.
A company spokesman could not be immediately reached for a comment.
The paper said ITC had expected a 5-8% increase in factory gate duty in the budget, but the actual increase was 10-18%.
Cigarette business generates more than half of ITC’s revenue and was the biggest contributor its profit during the December quarter.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 10:10 pm

Asian shares firm, dollar holds ground before Fed

Tokyo: Asian shares rose modestly on Tuesday, with technology stocks nosing ahead, while the dollar held its ground ahead of a Federal Reserve policy meeting expected to reiterate a pledge to keep rates low for a long time.
The MSCI index of Asian shares excluding Japan rose 0.3% after retreating almost 1% on Monday and backing off a seven-week high last week.
Sentiment was cautious as investors keep an eye on China for signs of potential policy tightening and wait to see if the Fed will repeat its regular pledge to keep rates low for an extended period.
The outcome of the Fed meeting is due to be announced at 9:45pm on Tuesday. No rate change is expected.
“We believe that the ‘low-for-long´ wording will be left unchanged,” JP Morgan said in a morning report. “Such an outcome could suppress the market expectation for the Fed’s early hikes and exert pressure on the US dollar.”
Tokyo’s benchmark Nikkei index rose 0.2% to inch back towards a seven-week intraday high set on Monday, although gains were limited by profit-taking in shares such as Honda Motor. The market is also waiting to see if the Bank of Japan eases policy on Wednesday, although analysts say the market has probably priced in such a move.
Seoul shares rose 0.1%. Hynix Semiconductor traded up 1.3% after news that leading shareholders of the world’s No.2 chipmaker raised more than $800 million in a block sale of a 6.7% stake.
Australian stocks edged up 0.2%, as miners proved resilient to concerns that China might tighten monetary policy further to prevent overheating following higher than forecast inflation figures last week.
Top miners such as BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto rose, underpinned by hopes that iron ore contract price negotiations would see prices rise in line with spot market prices and that demand outside of China would remain strong.
Hong Kong shares firmed 0.3% while Shanghai stocks gained 0.3% after ending at a five-week low on Monday on expectations of policy tightening.
Chinese oil company PetroChina advanced 0.3%, with financial stocks also leading.
The Dow Jones industrial average closed up 0.16% on Monday, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose just 0.05% and the Nasdaq Composite Index slipped 0.23%.
Snow storms restrained industrial production in the world’s largest economy in February but analysts said the data did not alter the view that the factory-led recovery remained on track.
On the Fed outcome, markets will watch how many officials dissent on the statement language after data showed consumers buying more and firms close to hiring again, and after one official dissented at the last meeting, saying conditions had improved sufficiently to warrant dropping the “extended period” phase.
The dollar index was steady at 80.17 after dipping to its lowest since mid-February on Friday, and the euro was steady holding just below $1.37.
The yen was the best performer, gaining on the euro, dollar and higher yielders, such as the Australian dollar, as investors locked in profits on positions built up against the Japanese currency ahead of possible easing steps by its central bank on Wednesday.
US crude futures held steady below $80 a barrel after falling 1.8% to the lowest close in two weeks on Monday as the dollar remained strong and ahead of US data expected to show another build in crude inventories.
Gold inched up, underpinned by concerns over Europe’s debt problems, but gains were capped with investors wary ahead of the Fed and cautious about tightening in China. Spot gold rose 0.1% to $1,109.35 an ounce.

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 10:03 pm

Lehman plans to end bankruptcy, create new company

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc on Monday filed a plan with the U.S. bankruptcy court in Manhattan to wind down its remaining assets and operations -- and end the largest U.S. bankruptcy case in history.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 15 Mar 2010 | 8:59 pm

Govt panel says Vedanta violating guidelines

BHUBANESWAR (Reuters) - Plans by Vedanta Resources to begin bauxite mining in Orissa suffered a setback after a government team said the company was violating environmental guidelines, officials said on Monday.

Source: Reuters: Money News | 15 Mar 2010 | 8:35 pm

Near double-digit inflation makes rate hike imminent - Economic Times


The Hindu
Near double-digit inflation makes rate hike imminent
Economic Times
MUMBAI: The Reserve Bank of India may not have yet moved on raising policy rates, but the stubbornly high inflation rate, steep government borrowings and markets running ahead, may hasten it to act well before the stated intention of not doing it ...
India's Inflation Now At 16-Month High, Nears To 10%india-server.com
Rajeev Malik: Time to press the policy rate buttonBusiness Standard
Inflation moving fast towards the double-digit markThe Hindu
Times of India -BusinessWeek -Calcutta Telegraph
all 199 news articles »

Source: Business - Google News | 15 Mar 2010 | 4:55 pm

Feb inflation near 10 it s not only food

Inflation accelerated to 9.9 per cent in February, led by higher fuel and manufactured products prices — a sign that the price rise may have moved beyond food articles. Full coverage


Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 2:03 pm

Cabinet clears Bill on foreign university campuses

New Delhi: The Union cabinet on Monday approved a Bill that seeks to allow foreign universities to set up campuses in India, a move that would potentially offer students headed overseas the choice of getting the same education at home and spur greater competition between institutions of higher learning.
The cabinet’s approval for the Foreign Educational Institution (Regulation of Entry and Operation) Bill, 2010, clears the path for its introduction in Parliament.
“This is a milestone which will enhance choices, increase competition and benchmark quality,” human resources development minister Kapil Sibal, who oversees education, said after the cabinet meeting presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Foreign institutions seeking to set up campuses in India and offer degrees would, however, have to meet stiff conditions prescribed by the Bill. A foreign university aspiring for a campus presence in India will have to deposit Rs50 crore as a corpus fund and would not be able to repatriate the surplus generated from education activities here, according to the Bill.
Allowing foreign institutes to set up campuses in India is a key element of the government’s educational reform agenda. The move received cabinet approval once before, in March 2007, but the earlier United Progressive Alliance government, with Arjun Singh as HRD minister, did not manage to bring the Bill before Parliament.
“It means better choice for students—that’s the bottom line,” said Anand Sudarshan, chief executive of Manipal Education, which oversees several institutions, including Manipal University in Dubai. “Students with dollars in their pockets, they will get a chance to study in India itself in those kinds of institutions. And these institutions could be set up by themselves or through collaborations.”
Manipal Education is a part of Manipal Education and Medical Group that owns India’s first private university, Manipal University.
Although 100% foreign direct investment has been permitted in the education sector since 2000, the present legal structure does not allow overseas educational institutions to offer degrees in the country.
The proposed law prescribes an eight-month, time-bound format for granting approval to foreign educational institutions to set up campuses, which will be registered with the University Grants Commission or any other regulatory body that’s in place.
The Bill has a provision under which the government can reject an application it judges will have an adverse impact on national security.
Sibal has said that quota laws will not be applicable to foreign universities.
India sends the largest number of graduate students to the US, apart from China. Other popular destinations are the UK, Australia and Singapore, all of which have actively wooed Indian students.
The demand for graduates over the next five years in India is likely to be 13.8 million, analysts have estimated. But with only 13.2 million students graduating over the same period, India will face a shortfall of 600,000 graduates. Any opening of higher education can be a two-way gain, say experts. Students might stay back and study in India and the quality of education will improve.
Some are sceptical if the Bill will indeed open up the floodgates to investment in higher education. A few reputed foreign universities have already set up campuses at competing locations and may not look towards India. New York University’s campus in Abu Dhabi will accept its inaugural class this year. Post-recession, endowments are down, especially in US universities, affecting their ability to open new campuses.
Still, family-run trusts that control private institutions have steadily expanded their operations and run huge campuses in India, and their owners have the financial muscle to offer partnerships to foreign universities.
For instance, the UK’s Leeds Metropolitan University in Yorkshire is responsible for teaching students at the Leeds Met India campus in Bhopal, set up with investment by an Indian trust last year. Student exchange programmes and twinning arrangements have also grown.
“Their motivations for seeking presence in India may differ, but in their quest for talent, institutions of higher learning all over the world compete as well as cooperate with each other,” Amit Jain, assistant director in the international relations office at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU), said in an email reply. “It is evident that the largest pool of such potential talent lies in vast and knowledge/skill seeking markets such as India.”
NTU this year launches a joint postgraduate programme with state-run Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.
“From our point of view, the Bill will, at the very least, allow us to consider the appropriate model or models of engagement that we can adopt when developing our strategy for India,” Jain wrote.
aparna.k@livemint.com
Reuters contributed to this story.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:45 pm

Investors again willing to bet on early stage deals

Mumbai/Bangalore: When Arvind Kumar, founder and CEO of the Chennai-based Attune Technologies Pvt. Ltd, approached venture capital (VC) firms for funds in the middle of last year, he was turned down many times.
He was spurned not because of the global downturn or a poor product or business plan. It was because the investment appetite of the firms he approached was too big for a start-up the size of Attune. “We met a couple of VCs and realized that their ticket sizes were large, so we stepped back,” he said.
Attune, founded in 2008 ,was looking for early stage funding. It is a healthcare information technology (IT)- and SAS (software-as-a-service)-based service provider targeting small and medium hospitals and diagnostic centres that can’t afford huge IT costs for electronic medical record (EMR) and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.
Creating a pipeline: Inventus managing director Kanwal Rekhi says early stage investment is risky but typically offers high returns. Ashesh Shah/Mint
Creating a pipeline: Inventus managing director Kanwal Rekhi says early stage investment is risky but typically offers high returns. Ashesh Shah/Mint
Attune wasn’t the only start-up to be turned down by VC funds that wanted to bet on bigger deals. Ajit Shelat, founder of Aviram Networks Inc., a Pune-based company providing products to secure LAN (local area network) space, was looking to raise money early last year. “My immediate priority was around $2-5 million (Rs9-22.8 crore), but then VCs were ready to write cheques of $10-16 million only,” said Shelat.
Both have received funding since. Attune received an undisclosed amount of funding from Mercatus Capital India in January. About the same time, Mumbai Angels invested in Aviram Networks, previously known as Nevis Networks (India) Pvt. Ltd. Shelat declined to disclose the amount he raised.
Early stage start-ups are again being able to attract investors and raise funds as the VC industry recovers from a slump last year when deal-making dropped by almost 50%—to 82 transactions worth $444 million, from 154 deals worth $841 million in 2008—in the aftermath of the global credit crunch. “Compared to last year, activity in the early stage space is definitely up by almost 40-50%,” said Harshal J. Shah, CEO, Reliance Venture Asset Management Ltd.
Early last year, investors turned risk-averse and wanted to invest only in blue-chip companies. As the markets improved, they focused on mid-sized firms. Now, their risk appetite has improved, Shah added.
Other deals done by Mumbai Angels over the past six months include investment in Screampoint, which provides 5D digital city and digital building systems, and Insta Health Solutions, a healthcare solutions company. Mercatus, which is a Singapore-based VC firm, operates as an angel fund in India, making early stage as well as seed investments. To tap the potential of the healthcare sector, apart from investing in Attune, it invested last year in Pellucid Networks Pte Ltd, a tele-diagnostic service provider.
“Today, even a VC, who looks at only series B or series C round of funding, needs to look at investing in early stage companies to create a good deal pipeline,” said Rajesh Sukumaran, investment manager, Mercatus Capital India.
VC firms such as Inventus Capital Partners, which have remained devoted to their strategy of backing early stage start-ups, say deal flow continues unabated. Serial entrepreneur and Inventus managing director Kanwal Rekhi said that while early stage is the riskiest stage of investment, the returns are also typically high. “Investors have made as much as 20% returns in these investments,” he said. The firm in India is seeing a 20% increase in its deal flow.
Many foreign players are also eyeing the early stage space in India. These include the likes of the Netherlands-based DSM Venturing, the corporate venture arm of Dutch chemical company Royal DSM, and France-based Aloe Private Equity. DSM Venturing is betting on the potential of promising sectors in India as it looks to invest in companies with interests such as nutrition and pharmaceuticals. DSM Venturing is looking to make investments in the range of €0.5-2.5 million (Rs3.14-15.7 crore).
Aloe wants to invest in areas such as clean energy and waste recycling. “We are already working on three investment opportunities in India. Unfortunately, it would not be fair to discuss these deals openly but it would be fair to say that two of these investments are early stage, i.e., no technology risk and no revenues yet,” said Vivek Tandon, founder, Aloe Private Equity.
While Aloe intends to invest €5-40 million, its investment range would depend on a company’s requirements. “For a start-up, we can start with €3 million, but over the lifetime, we can put as much money (as is) required for the company to realize its potential. The idea is to create a solid, strong asset and not quick return,” said Vikram Nagargoje, investment manager, Aloe.
shraddha.n@livemint.com

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:45 pm

Sehwag on song, Daredevils thump Rajasthan Royals

Ahmedabad: Virender Sehwag butchered Rajasthan Royals with a blistering 75 as Delhi Daredevils bulldozed their opponents from Jaipur by six wickets for their second successive win in the Indian Premier League on Monday night.
Sehwag’s swashbuckling 34-ball 75, bejewelled with eight brutal fours and five massive sixes, made it a lop-sided contest as the Daredevils cruised to 142 for four in 17.1 overs, inflicting on their opponents their second straight defeat of the tournament.
Also See | IPL 3 (Full Coverage)
Earlier put into bat, Rajasthan Royals found themselves in a hole before the 60-run stand between Abhishek Jhunjhunwala (53 not out) and Paras Dogra (29) lent some respectability to their total of 141 fos six which was never enough.
Chasing a modest target, the Daredevils got off to a rollicking start — cruising to 42 for no loss in just ogver three overs — with Virender Sehwag in the thick of things.
Sehwag hit Dmitri Mascarenhas for back-to-back fours, a treatment meted out to Shaun Tait as well.
Delhidare Devils Virender Sehwag celebrates his half century against Rajasthan Royals during their Indian Premier League 3 match in Ahmedabad on Monday. Shashank Parade/PTI
Delhidare Devils Virender Sehwag celebrates his half century against Rajasthan Royals during their Indian Premier League 3 match in Ahmedabad on Monday. Shashank Parade/PTI
Munaf Patel was welcomed with a six, followed by a four and even though Mascarenhas removed Gautam Gambhir (9) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (0) off successive deliveries, Sehwag was simply unstoppable.
To make it worse for the Royals, Shaun Tait dropped Sehwag off Mascarenhas when the batsman was on 41 and the Delhi power-hitter celebrated the respite hitting Amit Unyal’s first three deliveries for two sixes with a four sandwiched in between.
Munaf Patel eventually ended Sehwag’s blitzkrieg knock with Graeme Smith taking a blinder but the match was well in the Daredevils’ pocket by then.
Earlier, Abhishek Jhunjhunwala’s unbeaten 53 saved Rajasthan Royals the blushes as the 2008 champions fumbled and faltered their way to 141 for six.
Rajasthan Royals looked in a complete mess before Jhunjhunwala’s 60-run stand with Paras Dogra (29) sort of steadied the ship.
Jhunjhunwala’s unbeaten 53 came off 45 balls with five fours and a six in it but the Royals could never break free as most of the Daredevils bowlers maintained a stifling line and length.
The Rajasthan Royals began with Swapnil Asnodkar (5) putting away the first ball of the innings for a delectable four before his opening partner Graeme Smith (18) hit Farveez Maharoof for two boundaries in that high-yielding over.
Dirk Nannes, however, had other ideas and his very second delivery saw Asnodkar’s back with an agile Tillakaratne Dilshan taking a smart, low catch at backward point.
Next man in Nama Ojha (24) took the Daredevils attack by the scruff of its neck before his unbridled aggression brought his peril.
The stumper-batsman hit Maharoof for two fours in the third over before Daredevils captain Gautam Gambhir pressed leggie Amit Mishra in service.
Ojha gently patted back the first Mishra delivery before going berserk, hitting back-to-back boundaries and then following it with a clean hit that cleared the long on ropes.
Mishra settled the score with the next delivery as a clueless Ojha lost his stumps to a perfectly disguised googly.
Despite Maharoof going for runs, Gambhir persisted with the lanky Sri Lankan, who responded by removing the dangerous Yusuf Pathan for a duck, an anti-climactic innings by the towering swashbuckler whose 37-ball 100 against Mumbai Indians was the first century of this year’s IPL.
Pathan, foxed by Maharoof’s slower delivery, went for a swish and AB de Villiers took a well-judged catch in the deep.
Four runs later, Smith was on his way back to the pavilion when a fumbling Virender Sehwag pouched his mistimed pull off Pradeep Sangwan in his third attempt.
Smith’s dismissal meant the first 50 runs cost the Royals four top order batsmen in just over eight overs.
Jhunjhunwala and Dogra stemmed the rot, playing conventional cricket even though it meant nearly six overs without a boundary.
They had just started to open up when an almighty mix-up with Jhunjhunwala ended Dogra’s stay, ending their 60-run stand in just over eight overs and the Royals did not get the later burst that could have taken them past the 150-mark.
SCORES BOARD
Rajasthan Royals: 141 for 6 in 20 overs.
Rajasthan Royals: Swapnil Asnodkar c Dilshan b Nannes 5 Graeme Smith c Sehwag b Sangwan 18 Naman Ojha b Mishra 24 Yusuf Pathan c de Villiers b Maharoof 0 Abhishek Jhunjhunwala not out 53 Paras Dogra run out 29 Dmitry Mascarenhas run out 3 Amit Uniyal not out 4 Extras (W-5) 5 Total (For 6 wickets in 20 overs) 141 Fall of wickets: 1-14 2-45 3-46 4-50 5-110 6-115. Bowling: Maharoof 4-0-32-1; Nannes 4-0-27-1; Mishra 4-0-34-1; Sangwan 4-0-20-1; S Ladda 4-0-28-0.
Delhi Daredevils: 142 for 4 in 17.1 overs (Virender Sehwag 75, Dinesh Karthik 23 not out; Dmitri Mascarenhas 2/31).
Gautam Gambhir c Smith b Mascarenhas 9 Virender Sehwag c Smith b Munaf 75 Tillakaratna Dilshan c Ojha b Mascarenhas 0 AB de Villiers c sub b Warne 15 Dinesh Karthik not out 23 Mithun Manhas not out 11 Extras (B-1, LB-3, W-5) 9 Total (For 4 wickets in 17.1 overs) 142 Fall of wickets: 1-42 2-42 3-99 4-114. Bowling: Mascarenhas 4-0-31-2; Tait 4-0-26-0; Munaf 3-0-32-1; Uniyal 2-0-25-0; Warne 4-0-22-1; Jhunjhunwala 0.1-0-2-0.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:45 pm

Deccan 360 can be the FedEx of India in a year

Bangalore: Though she is the daughter of G.R. Gopinath, who pioneered low-fare air travel in India with Air Deccan, aviation wasn’t the first love of Pallavi Gopinath. After studying English literature, she went on to media studies and an internship at BBC, before her first stint in aviation as an intern at European plane maker Airbus SAS in Toulouse, France.
Pallavi Gopinath then went on to work with Avions De Transport Regionale (ATR) and pursued an MBA in aerospace, which, she says, prepared her for a role in her father’s latest start-up, Deccan Cargo Express and Logistics Pvt. Ltd, which operates the cargo airline Deccan 360.
New flight: Deccan Cargo’s Pallavi Gopinath.
New flight: Deccan Cargo’s Pallavi Gopinath.
She began as a management trainee and is currently associate manager for ground operations. Her role is to coordinate between the Deccan 360 hub in Nagpur and the spokes, which are the partner franchises across India. “I think she is very passionate. She has got a lot of aggression in her,” says her father.
In an interview, Pallavi Gopinath speaks about her role, ideas and the future. Edited excerpts:
So how did aviation happen?
It was really by chance because my dad was in London at that time meeting Mr. Kiran Rao of Airbus and I was doing my internship in BBC, so I met them over dinner. We were talking and he (Rao) said how would you like to pursue an internship, to begin with in the communication department. So I thought it sounded very exciting. (Rao is executive vice-president for sales and marketing at Airbus.)
Was your dad encouraging and supportive at that point?
He was quiet and did not say anything. After that he was pretty happy when I did go for it.
So what was it like because you actually worked with Airbus in France. How was that experience like for you?
To be honest.., I found that a little boring and so I moved to the marketing department. That is when I really got into it because they asked me to do a marketing study on the potential of civil aviation in India.
This was what period?
When Air Deccan started (in 2003).
Was it never a consideration for you to actually come back and start Air Deccan with your dad?
Not at that time, no. It did not even cross my mind.
And he didn’t offer it either?
No. Probably he said make your mistake somewhere else and then come back.
I remember having this conversation with your dad and he was really like giving a daughter away when he sold his stake in Air Deccan. What was it like as far as you are concerned?
To be honest, when all these things were happening, I was very upset myself because we were all very proud of what he began.
Did he discuss all this with you?
No. The day I saw it in the headlines and I called him up and he was really busy at that time going for his meetings and discussions with Mr. Mallya.. I was really upset and he was a bit annoyed with me because he was already stressed and I was stressing him out more with my questions and hysteria. (Vijay Mallya’s Kingfisher Airlines bought Air Deccan.)
But he is not a man who gives up. His friends call him the energizer bunny and he keeps at it and if one door closes, the next one opens up...
That’s what I really love about him because his energy motivates everyone around him, also the undying optimism that he has.
Like he said himself that if he has resources he can’t just sit back and do nothing because when he didn’t have the resources he created something.
So what was the turning point for you to actually give up ATR and move back to India and start Deccan Cargo?
One aspect is to have a more challenging job because I was working in a very structured environment and everything was just laid out and I had to do my basic research, my MBA, my thesis and that was it. There was nothing new or challenging in that job. So when he told me that we have started Deccan 360, I said it is the best place to go.
So this time did he make you the offer?
Yes, he said why don’t you come back and get involved in Deccan 360.
You are looking after ground operations and that is a crucial aspect of the cargo business, isn’t it? Has it been harder than what you had anticipated?
Totally. First of all, to set up the business or setting up the ground operations part of it, coordinating with the franchises, making it standardized, making sure everybody is on the same pace because time is the main factor in the logistics industry.
So to set up this from scratch is a huge challenge.
How have the first few months been like for Deccan 360?
It’s been quite a roller-coaster ride, like in any start-up.
Since your father has made very clear that he wants to position this company as the FedEx of India, is there a 12-month target... or a 24-month target?
Operationally speaking, I would say it’s already starting to happen and we are focused towards getting this right in a couple of months, maximum. But to say it would be the FedEx of India, I suppose a year would be okay.
One of the challenges is capital because it’s a capital-intensive business and when you were actually starting things we had the financial downturn and most of the capital was put in by your father. How much of a challenge does capital continue to be?
I think now it’s not so much of a problem any more.
Initially, of course it was, but even Air Deccan started when the economy wasn’t that great and now I do not think people—as far as I know and as far as I have understood—I do not think people have problem with investing in Deccan.
What has been the biggest lesson that you have learnt from your father?
That it is just not enough to be a consumer in the society, you have to contribute and also to respect people, of whichever strata they come from, and that’s the main thing. And you have to work hard...
Where would you like to see yourself in the next few years?
Within the same company but doing much more than what I am doing right now, with more responsibilities in terms of whether it is operations or sales or marketing.
Eventually take over from your father?
As long as my passion sustains, I would be here.
cnbctv18@livemint.com

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:45 pm

Sebi extends Asba to MFs, clamps restrictions

Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has extended the application supported by amount (Asba) facility to mutual fund investors. Investors subscribing to new fund offers (NFOs) of mutual fund schemes can now apply to these schemes without paying subscription money upfront.
Under the facility, the money invested will be held in the investor’s bank account and released only after the units are allotted.
The market regulator also shortened the subscription period for NFOs to 15 days from the current 30 days for so-called open-end funds, and 45 days for close-end funds. The new rule will apply to all new schemes launched after 1 July.
Sebi also provided for more disclosures on commissions paid to associates and related entities of asset management companies. It also imposed restrictions on dividend declarations, and banned commissions from underlying funds while running fund of funds.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:45 pm

Decks cleared for Mohali ISB campus

After legal glitches and a delay of nearly a year, the decks have been cleared for the Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad, to drive into its second campus at Mohali.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:38 pm

Apex Court denies bail to Raju

B Ramalinga Raju, who is the key accused in the Rs 7,100 crore Satyam financial scam, will have to cool his heels in Chanchalguda central prison in Hyderabad for some more time.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:32 pm

Manufacturing companies pick up tax slack as banks lag

Mumbai: Advance tax payments made by 86 of the top 100 companies in India’s financial capital Mumbai rose just 3% for the quarter ending 31 March, dragged down by banks and finance companies. Still, manufacturing companies, led by auto and drug firms, have paid more tax, indicating that earnings are set to rise in the fourth quarter and that the economic recovery is well on track.
“Overall numbers suggest good corporate earnings,” said Mohan K.R. Swamy, head of equity research at the Royal Bank of Scotland Plc’s Indian equity division. “Since the fourth quarter will have a lot of adjustments, these numbers cannot be extrapolated” for calculating profit figures.
He said banks and finance companies got hit by rising bond yields, which dented treasury profits and led to lower tax payouts. Bond prices fall when yields rise and banks are required to make good the difference between cost of acquisition and market price, known in accounting parlance as mark-to-market. The benchmark 10-year bond’s yield has risen from 7.58% in the beginning of January to 8%.
In the fourth quarter, State Bank of India—the country’s largest bank—was the highest advance tax payer in the Mumbai circle paying Rs1,857 crore, up 2.6% from a year ago.
Reliance Industries Ltd, India’s most valuable firm by market capitalization, paid Rs770 crore of advance tax, more than double what it paid a year ago.
Companies pay advance tax in four instalments before the end of each quarter, based on profit estimates. The figures are used as a proxy for financial performance estimates.
Graphic: Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint
Graphic: Ahmed Raza Khan / Mint
According to an income-tax official, who didn’t want to be quoted as he is not authorized to speak to the media, India’s total direct tax collections this year till 13 March stood at Rs3 trillion, up 9.3% from a year ago.
The government has a direct tax target of Rs3.86 trillion this fiscal year, and needs to get Rs86,000 crore to meet revised Budget estimates.
Companies based in Mumbai, which contributes one-third of India’s total direct tax kitty, paid 10.4% tax more this year.
Also See | Details of advance tax for various companies chart 1, chart 2, chart 3
Apart from corporate income tax, securities transaction tax (STT) revenue has also risen. Although it contributes only around 1.5% of direct taxes, this reflects increased interest in the securities market.
According to the tax official, STT has risen 35% to Rs7,112 crore from Rs5,261 crore.
Of the 19 Nifty index members whose advance tax figures are available, 14 have paid more tax, with auto companies in the lead. Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd paid Rs236 crore and Tata Motors Ltd paid Rs115 crore, having paid nothing in the year ago. Bajaj Auto Ltd’s tax outgo rose 195% to Rs177 crore.
Among others, engineering firm Larsen and Toubro Ltd has paid Rs270 crore, a rise of 10%. Tata Steel Ltd’s tax outgo is Rs513 crore, up 26%. India’s top software firm Tata Consultancy Services Ltd paid Rs178 crore, up 236%, signalling tech firms are on a firm growth path.
“Foreign banks have not performed well in this quarter, but the auto sector and pharmaceutical companies have done well,” the tax official said.
Citibank NA has seen the steepest decline in the absolute amount of advance tax paid. The bank paid Rs150 crore, compared with Rs1,010 crore a year ago. Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corp. Ltd and Deutsche Bank AG saw their tax payments nearly halve.
Among Indian lenders, Bank of India paid 83% less while Dena Bank paid 60% less.
Those bucking the trend included ICICI Bank Ltd, India’s largest private sector lender, which paid 40% higher tax—Rs350 crore. HDFC Bank Ltd and Bank of Baroda paid Rs300 crore, a rise of 7% and 9%, respectively. IndusInd Bank Ltd paid 148% higher tax, although on a relatively lower base. India’s largest mortgage player Housing Development Finance Corp. Ltd’s tax payment rose 17% to Rs 280 crore.
khushboo.n@livemint.com

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:28 pm

TVS plans to expand capacity

On the back of strong sales two wheeler sales in the past few months, TVS Motor Company is planning to expand the capacity by 5 lakh units.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:27 pm

Ranbaxy and Takeda settle patent row

Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd settled a patent dispute with Takeda Pharmaceutical Co allowing the Indian drugmaker to sell a generic version of Actos, the worlds biggest selling diabetes medicine, in the US.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:25 pm

The Mint report for 15 March 2010

Advance taxes for the fourth quarter are in, but the numbers are mixed. Out of the top 100 companies in Mumbai, 86 saw their advance tax payments rise by an average of just 3% in the quarter ending 31 March. While payments from manufacturing companies shot up, banks and financial companies dragged the numbers down. Advance tax payments by India’s largest company, RIL, rose 110% Rs770 crores in the fourth quarter. But payments from the country’s largest bank, SBI, went up just 2.6% to Rs1,857 crore. Analysts have told Mint banks and finance companies have been affected by rising bond yields that have cut into their treasury profits. Companies in India pay advance taxes four times a year, based on their own estimates of their profits.
It’s now more likely the RBI will increase key rates. India’s headline inflation accelerated last month to a 16-month high of 9.89% compared to a year ago. That’s higher than most analyst expectations. It’s also higher than the January figure of 8.56%. Monday’s figures indicate India’s food inflation has spilled over into manufactured products. While food inflation for February stood at 17.8%, inflation in manufacturing also shot up 7.4%. The new numbers are expected to push the RBI to revise policy rates when it meets on the 20 April.
Foreign universities are now one step closer to setting up campuses in India. On Monday the union cabinet gave the green signal to a bill that allows them to begin operations within the country. The bill will now have to be tabled in Parliament for approval.
Hindustan Construction Company wants to get into the business of building high-rise offices. The company says it will buy a 66% stake in Karl Steiner AG in a deal worth about Rs150.6 crore. It plans to buy the remaining 34% stake in Karl Steiner in 2014. Hindustan Construction says the acquisition to give it expertise in incorporating high-end technology in the skyscrapers it builds.

Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:23 pm

Bajaj may use warrants proceeds for buyout

Bajaj Holding and Investment Limited or BHIL, the holding company of the Bajaj group, could utilise the proceeds of the Rs 450 crore preferential warrants issue to build a cash mountain for a potential acquisition opportunity.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:21 pm

No applicants for 3G spectrum on first day

Not a single company - Indian or foreign - knocked on DoT's door on Monday, the first day that the department opened applications for 3G & BWA auctions.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:20 pm

Reliance Comm rings in 100 million subscribers

Reliance Communications (RCOM) has become India's second telecom operator to cross the 100 million mobile subscriber mark. This also makes the company the world's 4th largest single country mobile services operator.
Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:15 pm

World credit markets tread divergent paths

How have emerging markets performed relative to developed markets after the demise of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.? Hari Hariharan, chairman and chief executive of hedge fund NWI Management Lp, made some interesting observations in this regard at a recent research programme on capital flows hosted by the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy and the ministry of finance. NWI has $2 billion (Rs9,120 crore) under management and includes a global macro fund, an emerging market fixed income fund and a special credit situations fund.
In the credit markets, emerging markets more or less mirrored the performance of developed markets for over a year after the Lehman collapse. There was panic soon after the demise of Lehman, but almost all markets rallied sharply from March 2009. According to Hariharan, things have begun to change since news of the Greece debt crisis.
Spreads on credit default swaps of developed markets have widened since concerns about the debt crisis in southern Europe have emerged. At the same time the spread between US treasuries and JPMorgan’s benchmark Emerging Markets Bond Index Plus (EMBI+) fell to a 20-month low last week.
Graphic: Yogesh Kumar/Mint
Graphic: Yogesh Kumar/Mint
Hariharan pointed out that while developed markets had relatively large debt levels, emerging markets were far less leveraged. Even in terms of fiscal deficit, emerging markets scored much better compared with developed markets such as the US where the deficit is around 10% of gross domestic product. Besides, growth rates in emerging markets are far superior. Given these broad characteristics, the hedge fund manager says the decoupling of these two sets of markets should continue.
Interestingly, the divergence seen in the credit markets isn’t as starkly visible in the equities markets. MSCI’s world index, which represents developed markets, has risen by 1.3% since 1 December, around the time the Greece debt crisis surfaced. MSCI’s Emerging Markets Index has risen by 2% during the same period.
One reason for the lack of divergence could be the outperformance of emerging markets prior to that. One-year returns of emerging markets stand at 92.4%, substantially higher than the 59.3% returned by developed markets.
Also, there’s some bit of divergence in some regions. Among developed markets, for instance, the euro region index has dropped by 7.5% since December, while North America and the Pacific have risen by 4% each. In terms of one-year returns, the MSCI India Index is one of the top performers with a return of 148% in dollar terms.
Write to us at marktomarket@livemint.com

Source: Home - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 1:12 pm

Poor distribution, not hoarding, pushed up food prices

Much has been said about how activities like hoarding have caused rapidly rising food prices, but analysts studies of retail and wholesale inflationary trends suggest that its the governments distribution system rather than speculation by wholesalers that is pushing up food prices.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:57 pm

Multinationals have to redo the delisting math

Multinational companies (MNCs) wishing to delist are finding the going tough, due to a sharp rise in the share prices of their Indian subsidiaries.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:56 pm

Foreign Education Bill finally gets Cabinet nod

After several years of debate, the Union Cabinet today unanimously approved a Bill that would allow foreign education providers to set up campuses in India and offer degrees.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:53 pm

Advance tax grows 3.63% in Q4, falls below expectation

Advance tax collections from the top 100 companies in the Mumbai region for the crucial and last quarter of 2009-10 have grown just 3.63 per cent compared to 24 per cent in the corresponding period last year.
Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:52 pm

R ComM tops 100 mn mark aims 100 mn more in 3 yrs

Reliance Communications (R COMM) , which offers nationwide CDMA and GSM mobile services, has crossed the landmark 100 million wireless customers in seven years of existence, making it the fastest growing telecom player to achieve this landmark.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:30 pm

Jet Air continues to dominate skies

Jet Airways continued with its domination of the domestic market, while the state-owned National Aviation Company of India Ltd finished third, according to the latest air traffic data for February released by the civil aviation ministry.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:25 pm

NMDC issue price at Rs 300

State-run mining major NMDC on Monday said it has fixed the issue price of its follow-on public offer (FPO) of 33.22 crore equity shares at the lower end of the price band at Rs 300 a piece.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:21 pm

Pepsi to buy back 15 bn in shares

PepsiCo said on Monday that it will buy back up to $15 billion worth of its own common stock through
June 2013.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:19 pm

AIG may cut bonuses by about 30

The American International Group (AIG) will pay about $46 million in retention bonuses on Monday, or about 30 per cent less than previously scheduled, a person with direct knowledge of the arrangements said.
Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 15 Mar 2010 | 12:16 pm

Facebook to set up India office at Hyderabad

Hyderabad: US-based Facebook Inc. will open its first India office at Hyderabad to cater to the growing number of Indian users of its social networking website Facebook.com.
The office will support users, advertisers and developers in India and around the world, the company said in a statement on Monday. “By having multiple support centres in a variety of time zones, we can provide better round-the-clock, multilingual support,” said Don Faul, Facebook’s director of global online operations.
Social networking websites allow members to build a global network of friends with whom they share interests and activities.
“We are growing our operations and teams to support them around the world,” said Faul. “In India alone, we’ve seen rapid growth and now have more than eight million people there…”
The Hyderabad office won’t have product managers or engineers for now. The company said it will hire a small team initially, and anticipates further growth as the office expands.

Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 11:43 am

PepsiCo to buy back up to $15 billion in shares

New York: PepsiCo said Monday that it will buy back up to $15 billion worth of its own common stock through June 2013.
Shares rose nearly 2% in premarket trading.
“The board’s action reflects continued confidence in the growth of our business and our commitment to providing strong cash returns to our shareholders,” chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi said in a statement.
The world’s second-biggest soft drink seller — whose brands include Gatorade, Quaker and Pepsi-Cola — had said before that it was buying about $4.4 billion worth of its shares this year. Some of the buybacks will be made under a prior repurchase authorization from 2007, which had $6.4 billion remaining at the start of the year and expires in June.
The company also said Monday it will boost its annual dividend by 7% to $1.92, likely starting on 30 June when it expects to pay its next quarterly dividend. The dividend will be paid to shareholders of record 4 June.
Last month PepsiCo, based in Purchase, New York, cleared the final regulatory hurdle in a bid to buy its two biggest bottlers — Pepsi Bottling Group and PepsiAmericas — allowing it to close the $7.8 billion deal.
That came within days of an announcement by rival Coca-Cola that it would buy the North American operations of its largest bottler, Coca-Cola Enterprises. Both companies want more control of distribution as consumers shift from sugary carbonated drinks to other beverages.
Control over the distribution system will allow Coca-Cola and PepsiCo to rapidly swap out the drinks they’re putting on store shelves to accommodate shifting consumer tastes.
Both believe they can also slash costs by millions.

Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 8:14 am

Dell sues 5 Asia tech firms, alleging LCD cartel

Tokyo: Dell Inc, the world’s third-largest PC maker, has filed a lawsuit against Sharp Corp, Hitachi Ltd, Toshiba Corp and two other companies for alleged price fixing of LCD displays.
Dell filed the suit at a US district court in San Francisco on Friday against the group of five firms, which also includes Japan’s Seiko Epson and Taiwan’s HannStar, a spokesman at Dell’s Japan unit said on Monday.
Dell has not decided the level of damages it will seek in the lawsuit, the spokesman said.
Sharp and Hitachi said that they were aware of the suit filed by Dell but declined to comment further. Toshiba and Seiko Epson said they were still making checks on the issue, while no one at HannStar was immediately available for comment.

Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 15 Mar 2010 | 4:19 am