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WiMAX auction to rake in Rs 15000cr: A RajaThe government is set to reap another bonanza from the auction of wireless broadband (BWA) spectrum, which is necessary for rolling out worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) services and enable handheld devices and laptops access the Internet, reports CNBCTV18 quoting NewsWire18.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 7:02 am Acer clicks refresh button on its projector rangeAcer has announced the availability of a new lineup of Projectors for the Indian market.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 6:59 am Godrej Consumer appoints A. Mahendran as new MDGodrej Consumer Products Ltd said on Monday A Mahendran has been appointed as the the firm\'s new Managing Director from July 1, 2010.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 5:48 am Generic pharma market getting tougher: Brian TempestMany Indian promoters are seen exiting in favour of MNCs as seen from the Ranbaxy Daichhi deal, OrchidHospira deal and the most recent PiramalAbbott deal. So is the environment getting tougher for Indian promoters?Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 5:28 am GSPC plans overseas exploration armStaterun Gujarat State Petroleum Corp (GSPC) plans to form an overseas exploration arm in the next two to three years, a Press Trust of India report in the Economic Times newspaper said on Monday.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 5:14 am Mangalore crash to spur runway safety systemsThe air crash in Mangalore that killed 158 people at the weekend when an airliner plunged into a ravine may speed up calls for airports to invest in technology to save lives when planes overshoot the runwaySource: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 4:44 am BSNL telco gear tender excludes ChineseState telecoms Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has invited bids for Rs 550 crore GSM line equipmentSource: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 4:42 am Experts see Ambani patchup bringing new prospects for RILAshvin Parekh of Ernst Young said this was a very good opportunity for Reliance Industries, especially in telecom. \"The company would certainly explore entering the financial services sector.\" He further went on to say that insurance and asset management could be easy options for RIL.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 4:41 am GCPL buys Argentina co, sees gains from 1st yr itselfMaking its entry into Latin Americas hair colourant market, GCPL announced the buyout of Argentinabased Issue Group for an undisclosed amount. The company has entered into an agreement to acquire a 100% stake in Laboratoria Cuenca, Consell SA, Issue Uruguay and Issue Brazil, which are collectively referred to as the Issue Group.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 4:36 am Standard Chartered sets IDR price band at Rs 100115Standard Chartered PLC has fixed the price band for its proposed issue of 240,000,000 Indian Depository Receipts (IDRs) at between Rs 100 and Rs 115 per IDRSource: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 4:21 am Sensex ends down 17pts - Business Standard
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 4:03 am ICICI Bank eyes No.1 Indian bank positionICICI Bank, which will see its presence in western India grow with the acquisition of Bank of Rajasthan, has said no to foreign takeovers as it wants to focus on becoming India's top bank in terms of profitability and productivity.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 3:48 am Manmohan Singh's Press meet: blow by blow - IBNLive.com
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 3:39 am Bharat Forge - India Infoline.com
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 3:36 am Ready to face probe over 2G spectrum scandal: Telecom minister RajaUnion communications minister A Raja has said he was ready to face any investigation into the alleged scandal in allocation of 2G spectrum.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 24 May 2010 | 3:30 am Pressure piles on BP as Gulf spill widensVENICE, La (Reuters) - BP sharply reduced its estimate on Monday of how much oil it is siphoning off each day from a ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico that has been spewing oil for a month and threatening ecological disaster.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 3:25 am India gold buying continues into a second weekMUMBAI (Reuters) - India gold buying continued for a second week on Monday as traders expected a rebound in prices, dealers said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 3:25 am PM defends against leadership criticismsNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Monday he failed to do enough in his first year, but defended himself against criticisms of weak leadership and said progress would soon be made on concerns like high inflation.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 3:17 am ANALYSIS - Politics redraws the investment map in S.E.AsiaSINGAPORE (Reuters) - The investment landscape of Southeast Asia is being transformed. And one key factor above all is driving the tectonic shifts in market perceptions -- politics.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 3:16 am Revised DTC draft in first week of June: Revenue Secretary - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 3:14 am Nissan says to sell Micra cars in India from JulyThe India unit of Nissan Motor on Monday said it has started producing Micra hatchback, for which the domestic sales would commence from July and exports from September.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 3:12 am Whirlpool India to hike prices, spread reachMUMBAI (Reuters) - Consumer durables maker Whirlpool of India, the Indian unit of global appliances maker Whirlpool Corp, plans to hike product prices by 2-3 percent in the next 2 months, a top official said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 3:02 am Difficult for April-September borrowing to be cut: RBIPossibility of lower borrowing has surfaced because of a sharply higher proceeds from the third-generation mobile spectrum auction.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 3:01 am Nissan says to sell Micra cars in India from JulyThe cars will be put on display across showrooms in India from May 25, when bookings will also be taken.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 3:00 am 3G inflows to lower FY11 govt borrowing - secyNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Fund inflows towards the third-generation (3G) spectrum auction, which concluded last Wednesday, will bring down fiscal deficit and cut the government's borrowing plans, Cabinet Secretary K.M. Chandrasekhar told reporters on Monday.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 2:44 am Broadband auction begins, govt expects Rs 15K cr - NDTV.com
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 2:38 am Most Indian CEOs, top exec bloggers linked to IT sector: StudyMost of the Indian-origin CEOs and top executives, who have taken up blogging, are associated with Information Technology and internet sectors, a study conducted by the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A) has said. Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 24 May 2010 | 2:32 am How to play Reliance pack after RIL-ADAG agreement - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 2:18 am Samsung, Sony chiefs may discuss 3D TV deals, LCD suppliesSeoul/Tokyo: Just days after unveiling a Sony-branded Internet TV with Google, Sony’s chief executive is set to meet rival Samsung Electronics, for possible alliances, as the Japanese consumer electronics maker aims to turn its TV business profitable with aggressive sales targets. Monday’s closed-door meeting between Sony CEO Howard Stringer and Samsung’s Lee Kun-hee, is the first since Lee returned as chairman of the South Korean technology powerhouse in March. Sony has described this one of its regular and traditional discussions with flat-screen partner Samsung. The meeting is widely seen by analysts as a move by Sony to address tight LCD supplies for TVs, but Samsung may also seek alliances with Sony to set up a common standard in 3D technology, the next big thing that many electronics firms are betting on. “It’s mainly aimed at Sony rebuilding and consolidating its relationship with Samsung because its strategy of diversifying panel suppliers to the likes of Sharp has failed to ensure smooth supplies,” said Ricky Seo, an analyst at KB Investment & Securities. “So, it’s like Sony coming back for more cooperation as it needs Samsung to meet its aggressive promotion of TV business, especially to get advanced panels for 3D TV production.” Since returning to the helm of Samsung Group’s crown jewel in March, Lee, 68, has unveiled a record $16 billion investment plan including $4.2 billion in LCD, and Samsung’s first chip line construction in five years. Lee had stepped down nearly two years ago after being convicted for tax evasion but was later pardoned by the South Korean president. Sony has had a LCD joint venture with the Korean firm since 2004. Last year, it however announced a separate venture with Japan’s Sharp with 68 billion yen ($756 million) investment plans to take a one third stake by next year. This reflected Sony’s growing need to secure stable panel supplies to tap a booming flat-screen TV market set to growing 24 percent this year to 180 million units, according to research firm DisplaySearch. “Sony and Samsung could talk about setting up another LCD production line. But there is an outside chance they could be reviewing the strategic value of their panel ties,” said Koichi Hariya, an analyst at Ichiyoshi Research Institute in Tokyo. Samsung, the No.1 maker of memory chips and LCD panels, said said Lee and Stringer’s meeting was personal and declined further comment. South Korean media said Sony Executive Deputy President Hiroshi Yoshioka, Samsung CEO Choi Geesung and its chairman’s son and COO Jay Y. Lee would also attend the meeting to discuss smooth panel supplies for Sony as well as cooperation in 3D TVs. Shares of Samsung, which boast a market value of around $110 billion, more than three times Sony’s market capitalisation, ended up 0.3 percent and Sony closed 0.4 percent lower. TRADITION WITH A PAL Sony and Samsung compete in many areas such as TVs, cellphones, laptops and digital music players but the Japanese firm is also the biggest buyer of Samsung’s LCD displays for TVs. “We meet all the time because we have a joint venture. We are pals. So we get to negotiate or discuss the joint venture a lot, and it was one of those meetings,” Stringer told Reuters in a sideline last week in San Francisco. “It’s a traditional meeting... But it was not a big meeting, it’s a regular meeting.” Ensuring smooth supplies of LCD panels is key for Sony to turn its TV business profitable for the first time in seven years this year and to boost its Bravia flat TV sales by 60 percent to 25 million units in the year to March 2011. Global shipments of LCD TVs jumped 50 percent in the first quarter to 40.6 million units from a year ago, but Sony’s market share slipped to 9.2 percent, trailing Samsung with 18.3 percent and LG Electronics with 12.7 percent, according to DisplaySearch. ($1=90.00 Yen) (Additional reporting by Paul Thomasch and Franklin Paul in SAN FRANCISCO) REUTERS Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 2:18 am Samsung, Sony chiefs may discuss 3D TV deals, LCD suppliesSeoul/Tokyo: Just days after unveiling a Sony-branded Internet TV with Google, Sony’s chief executive is set to meet rival Samsung Electronics, for possible alliances, as the Japanese consumer electronics maker aims to turn its TV business profitable with aggressive sales targets. Monday’s closed-door meeting between Sony CEO Howard Stringer and Samsung’s Lee Kun-hee, is the first since Lee returned as chairman of the South Korean technology powerhouse in March. Sony has described this one of its regular and traditional discussions with flat-screen partner Samsung. The meeting is widely seen by analysts as a move by Sony to address tight LCD supplies for TVs, but Samsung may also seek alliances with Sony to set up a common standard in 3D technology, the next big thing that many electronics firms are betting on. “It’s mainly aimed at Sony rebuilding and consolidating its relationship with Samsung because its strategy of diversifying panel suppliers to the likes of Sharp has failed to ensure smooth supplies,” said Ricky Seo, an analyst at KB Investment & Securities. “So, it’s like Sony coming back for more cooperation as it needs Samsung to meet its aggressive promotion of TV business, especially to get advanced panels for 3D TV production.” Since returning to the helm of Samsung Group’s crown jewel in March, Lee, 68, has unveiled a record $16 billion investment plan including $4.2 billion in LCD, and Samsung’s first chip line construction in five years. Lee had stepped down nearly two years ago after being convicted for tax evasion but was later pardoned by the South Korean president. Sony has had a LCD joint venture with the Korean firm since 2004. Last year, it however announced a separate venture with Japan’s Sharp with 68 billion yen ($756 million) investment plans to take a one third stake by next year. This reflected Sony’s growing need to secure stable panel supplies to tap a booming flat-screen TV market set to growing 24 percent this year to 180 million units, according to research firm DisplaySearch. “Sony and Samsung could talk about setting up another LCD production line. But there is an outside chance they could be reviewing the strategic value of their panel ties,” said Koichi Hariya, an analyst at Ichiyoshi Research Institute in Tokyo. Samsung, the No.1 maker of memory chips and LCD panels, said said Lee and Stringer’s meeting was personal and declined further comment. South Korean media said Sony Executive Deputy President Hiroshi Yoshioka, Samsung CEO Choi Geesung and its chairman’s son and COO Jay Y. Lee would also attend the meeting to discuss smooth panel supplies for Sony as well as cooperation in 3D TVs. Shares of Samsung, which boast a market value of around $110 billion, more than three times Sony’s market capitalisation, ended up 0.3 percent and Sony closed 0.4 percent lower. TRADITION WITH A PAL Sony and Samsung compete in many areas such as TVs, cellphones, laptops and digital music players but the Japanese firm is also the biggest buyer of Samsung’s LCD displays for TVs. “We meet all the time because we have a joint venture. We are pals. So we get to negotiate or discuss the joint venture a lot, and it was one of those meetings,” Stringer told Reuters in a sideline last week in San Francisco. “It’s a traditional meeting... But it was not a big meeting, it’s a regular meeting.” Ensuring smooth supplies of LCD panels is key for Sony to turn its TV business profitable for the first time in seven years this year and to boost its Bravia flat TV sales by 60 percent to 25 million units in the year to March 2011. Global shipments of LCD TVs jumped 50 percent in the first quarter to 40.6 million units from a year ago, but Sony’s market share slipped to 9.2 percent, trailing Samsung with 18.3 percent and LG Electronics with 12.7 percent, according to DisplaySearch. ($1=90.00 Yen) (Additional reporting by Paul Thomasch and Franklin Paul in SAN FRANCISCO) REUTERS Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 2:18 am World stocks recover some composure after batteringLONDON (Reuters) - World stocks recovered some composure on Monday with emerging markets leading the way after a late Friday rally in banking shares on Wall Street ended what was otherwise a dismal week for equities investors.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 2:11 am Resurgent auto parts firms face valuation roadblocksMUMBAI (Reuters) - Valuations of Indian auto component firms have taken a beating, creating an environment where access to fresh capital is getting difficult, especially for new players waiting to tap the capital market.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 2:01 am PC sales rise 33% in Jan-March: IDCSales of desktop computers, which accounted for about two-thirds of the total PC sales of 2.2 million units in the quarter, rose 18% to 1.4 million units.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 1:57 am Whirlpool India plans hike in prices soon: OfficialThe firm has also revised its investment in India to Rs4 billion over three years, starting this fiscal. In November the firm had earmarked Rs3 billion for the same period.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 1:56 am 3G inflows to lower FY11 govt borrowing: Cabinet secretaryThe government borrowing could be lower by up to Rs350 billion in the 2010-11 fiscal year from estimates of Rs4.57 trillion on higher-than-expected 3G mobile spectrum sale inflows.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 1:55 am Nissan says to sell Micra cars in India from JulyMUMBAI (Reuters) - The India unit of Nissan Motor on Monday said it has started producing Micra hatchback, for which the domestic sales would commence from July and exports from September.Source: Reuters: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 1:50 am China to frame its first immigration law to attract foreignersBeijing: China has kick-started a key process to frame its first immigration law to better manage immigrants as the world’s fastest economy seeks to attract more foreigners to boost its development. Experts on migration have advised the government to learn from other countries in regulating immigration, said Zhang Jijiao, researcher with the Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology under the China Academy of Social Sciences (CASS). Zhang said in the era of globalisation, China needed to attract a variety of talents, investors, skilled workers, and in particular “seagulls” -- a Chinese term for foreign merchants who work with multinationals and must travel across the world -- to contribute to its development. A sounder migration policy would definitely enhance China’s appeal, Zhang said. The Ministry of Public Security, the Beijing Law Society, the Chinese People’s Public Security University and the CASS held a liaison meeting last year. But the discussions had yet to result in any concrete preparations, Zhang told state-run Xinhua news agency at a global forum on migration. Unlike Western countries, which have special laws to regulate the management of transnational migrants, there were few Chinese legal instruments to regulate immigration and foreign investment. “This reflects how China’s transnational migration management has long been focused on the legitimacy of entry and exit out of economic considerations,” said Zhang. He said in the long run it is not enough “as migrants also have other demands that need to be addressed, especially relating to ethnic culture and customs, employment and education.” The first and foremost Western experiences worth noting were the classification of transnational migrants into different categories, such as skilled or unskilled workers, skills migration or investor migration, and then to adopt management rules for each category. About 2.85 million or more than 10% of the 26.11 million foreigners who entered China in 2007 came for employment, according to the Bureau of Exit and Entry Administration of the Ministry of Public Security. Of the nearly 5.40 lakh foreigners who lived in China for more than six months in 2007, more than half were workers at joint ventures and solely foreign-owned companies or their families. Although the overall figures have yet to be updated, local statistics have projected a trend of more foreigners staying in China for longer periods, the report said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 1:47 am RIL-RNRL: Govt says OK, but not to cross the lineThe government has assured the Ambani brothers of support if their companies arrive at a gas-supply arrangement without challenging sovereign control over natural resources.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 24 May 2010 | 1:39 am Of nuclear numbers and members W. Pal Sidhu is vice-president of programmes at the EastWest Institute, New York. He writes on strategic affairs every fortnight Interestingly, these numbers are shockingly close to the latest estimate by US scholars Tom Cochran and Bill Arkin of 5,100 weapons. This estimate is based on unclassified information and reveals that, beyond a point, it is really not possible to keep these weapon numbers a secret, especially in a democracy. What the numbers do not directly reveal is that every US president since Richard Nixon (1969-74) has been terrified by the single integrated operational plan, or SIOP, briefing they received on how this arsenal would be used because it sombrely disclosed that any use of these weapons would effectively result in the destruction of the entire planet several times over. Even a suicidal mass-murderer would baulk at such a stark prospect. Almost as a corollary to the realization that any use of nuclear weapons is likely to unleash Armageddon is the revelation that every president since Nixon has more or less supported the steady decline in the number of US nuclear weapons. Indeed, even when presidents were contemplating the prospects of limited nuclear war and approving the development of new weapons, the overall numbers maintained their downward trend. The beginning of the process of reducing the size of the US nuclear arsenal also corresponded with the US signing of the nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, or NPT, on 1 July 1968. Although cynics might brush this off as a mere coincidence, it is possible that having joined the treaty, Washington was aware of its normative obligations and, at the very least, did not increase the size of its nuclear arsenal. Predictably, the biggest fall in US numbers came after the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and the collapse of the Soviet Union. Although the rate of the decline varied considerably, the maximum number of warheads dismantled in a single year was 1,393 in 1995. Between 1994 and 2009 the US department of energy dismantled 8,748 warheads at an average rate of about 582 warheads per year. At this rate it would take the US between eight and nine years to dismantle the 5,113 active nuclear weapons and between seven and eight years to dismantle the 4,600 weapons held in reserve. However, it is unlikely that this pace of disarmament will continue or that the US will become a non-nuclear weapon state in the next 20 years. Indeed, it will probably take longer to dismantle the last 1,000 US weapons than it did the last 10,000. The primary reason is that as the US nuclear arsenal continues to decline, it will, at some point, match up with the numbers of the other nuclear weapon states, particularly China, France and the UK, and also bump up against the growing Indian, Israeli and Pakistani nuclear arsenals. At that stage, it is highly unlikely that the US will continue to reduce its nuclear weapons unless the other nuclear weapon states also start reducing their nuclear weapons. For now, Washington should be commended for disclosing these once highly classified numbers and setting an example for the other nuclear weapon states; they would do well to emulate this effort at transparency. Comments are welcome at otherviews@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 1:21 am Subscribe to Standard Chartered IDR, says Emkay - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 1:02 am Mangalore crash: Search continues for plane's digital flight data recorder - Times of India
Source: Business - Google News | 24 May 2010 | 12:45 am Govt pushing for affirmative action in pvt sector: PMNew Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on 24 May the government is working towards creating an atmosphere where trade and industry come forward to reserve jobs for the socially underprivileged - a practice in vogue in the public sector. Reserving jobs in private sector or affirmative action was part of the national Common Minimum Programme of UPA-I and it had initiated a national dialogue with political parties and industry to see how this can be implemented. “To take forward the affirmative action, we need to create an atmosphere so that trade and industry participants help us on this issue. We are working hard towards that and we acknowledge it needs to be taken forward fast,” he said replying to a question on progress on affirmative action. The UPA-I had said in May 2004 that it “is very sensitive to the issue of affirmative action, including reservations, in the private sector. “It will immediately initiate a national dialogue with all political parties, industry and other organizations to see how best the private sector can fulfil the aspirations of scheduled caste and scheduled tribe youth.” At present, the law provides for reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, among others, in public sector jobs, besides quota in education. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 12:34 am Govt pushing for affirmative action in pvt sector: PMNew Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on 24 May the government is working towards creating an atmosphere where trade and industry come forward to reserve jobs for the socially underprivileged - a practice in vogue in the public sector. Reserving jobs in private sector or affirmative action was part of the national Common Minimum Programme of UPA-I and it had initiated a national dialogue with political parties and industry to see how this can be implemented. “To take forward the affirmative action, we need to create an atmosphere so that trade and industry participants help us on this issue. We are working hard towards that and we acknowledge it needs to be taken forward fast,” he said replying to a question on progress on affirmative action. The UPA-I had said in May 2004 that it “is very sensitive to the issue of affirmative action, including reservations, in the private sector. “It will immediately initiate a national dialogue with all political parties, industry and other organizations to see how best the private sector can fulfil the aspirations of scheduled caste and scheduled tribe youth.” At present, the law provides for reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, among others, in public sector jobs, besides quota in education. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 12:34 am Godrej Consumer appoints A Mahendran as new managing directorMahendran, who is currently the managing director of Godrej Sara Lee, will replace Dalip Sehgal who has moved to pursue opportunities outside the Godrej group, the firm said in a statement to the exchange.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 12:22 am China says Europe crisis to crimp demand for its goodsZhang Xiaoqiang, vice-chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission said that China had discussed the euro's exchange rate during talks with the United States, but neither side talked about the yuan.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 24 May 2010 | 12:20 am India's economy to grow by 8.5% in 2010/11: PMPrime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday said the economy is expected to grow by 8.5% this fiscal and the country was capable of achieving 10 per cent expansion in the medium term.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 24 May 2010 | 12:17 am PM hopes for fall in inflation, progress with PakistanNew Delhi: Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Monday that his coalition government could have done more in its first year, but added that progress would soon be made on key concerns like high inflation. Inflation would moderate to around 5 to 6% in December, he said. Inflation is nearly currently 10% and is a major worry for the government as it has raised prices of basic foods, and increased the chance of interest rate hikes. Despite inflation, Singh sees growth in 2010/11 rising to 8.5%, according to the prepared speech. “I would be the first person to admit that we could have done more,” Singh said in a prepared speech ahead of a rare news conference in New Delhi to mark the first year since the Congress-led coalition government was reelected to a second term. “We have given our country a government which works, which has delivered high rates of growth, which has accelerated the process towards inclusive growth and I have every reason to believe we will complete our term,” Singh added at the news conference. Singh, 77, has disappointed many investors with a slow pace of reforms that investors say are needed to ensure India can sustain fast economic growth and compete with the likes of China. Monday’s full press conference was one of only a handful he has given since first coming to power in 2004 and appeared an attempt by the government to show it was pushing ahead with policies rather than reacting to a series of crises and scandals. Despite being freed from the shackles of communist support in the second term, his government has floundered on inflation, struggled against a Maoist insurgency, and managed its political allies so badly its substantial parliamentary majority dwindled. Foreign Policy Outlying government policy, he said India was willing to discuss all outstanding issues with nuclear foe Pakistan, a sign of New Delhi softening its approach to Islamabad after the 2008 Mumbai attacks when Pakistan-based militants killed 166 people. “India cannot realise its full development potential unless we have the best possible relations with our neighbours, and Pakistan happens to be the largest neighbour of ours,” he said. “The trust gap is biggest problem.” Singh said he hoped political parties would pass a delayed nuclear liability bill needed to allow entry of US atomic energy firms into India. Singh said the government would take more steps to battle inflation which is currently nearly 10%, along with the help of state governments. Despite investor criticism, the government has won praise for a sound fiscal policy that has helped protect India from the worst of the global credit crisis. Growth is still one of the fastest in the world and there have been some tentative steps to reforms. Many investors remain optimistic India eventually will take steps to open the insurance, banking and retail sectors to overseas players, and India still attracts many foreign firms. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 12:16 am PC sales rise 33% in Jan-March: IDCMumbai: Sales of personal computers (PCs) in India rose 33% during the first three months of this year from a eyar ago, spurred by consumer confidence and a revival in IT spends, research firm IDC said on 24 May. Sales of desktop computers, which accounted for about two-thirds of the total PC sales of 2.2 million units in the quarter, rose 18% to 1.4 million units. Notebook computer sales surged 72% to 803,000 units. “This performance underscores a more broad-based recovery in the India PC market,” Anirban Banerjee, associate vice president, research, at IDC India said in a note. The consumer segment saw PC sales jump 42% in the quarter, while shipments to the commercial segment rose 28%, IDC said. For the fiscal year ended March, computer sales revived to record a 7.6% rise, from a 8.1% decline a year earlier, IDC added. Hewlett-Packard held on to its top slot in the overall PC market with a market share of 16.5%, followed by Dell Inc and Acer with 13.6% and 13% market share respectively. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 24 May 2010 | 12:13 am Will Mukesh re-enter telecom sector?After giving away his dream project under Reliance Infocomm to Anil Ambani in 2005, elder brother Mukesh Ambani now has a chance to get back into the booming telecom sector following the decision by the two brothers to dissolve the non-competeSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am Volatility may continueLike many other markets, the Indian equity market last week felt the aftershock of the European crisis. A sudden rise in global risk aversion caused liquidity contraction. According to Morgan Stanley, the trend in capital flows into India isSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am StanChart sets IDR price band at Rs 100-115Standard Chartered PLC has fixed the price band for its proposed issue of 24 crore Indian Depository Receipts (IDRs) at between Rs 100 and RsSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am GAIL: BuyInvestors with a medium-term perspective can consider buying the stock of GAIL (India) which closed at Rs 452.5. The stock has been on a steady long-term uptrend from its October 2008 low of Rs 165, forming higher peaks and higher troughs.Source: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am BPOs employ new retention tools to retain talentAs rebound in demand for back office services lifts the lid on hiring, the BPO industry – confronted yet again by rising attrition – is busy rolling-out new HR initiatives to retain staff. This year, BPO players are handing out plumSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am Ambani brothers end war but agree to competeIn a move that will change the competitive landscape between the Ambani scions Mukesh and Anil, the brothers have cancelled all existing non-compete agreements between their groups, drawn-up during the Reliance re-organisation inSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am Markets may peg up RIL, Reliance Power and RNRL the mostThe initial stock market reaction to the Ambani brothers' new pact is likely to beSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am Is retail investor interest waning? Not really…Retail investors have net sold Rs 20,000 crore worth of stocks on the exchanges in 2009-10 and the retail portions of initial public offers are struggling forSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am Day Trading GuideSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am Mundra Port could see technical reboundI have gone long on Mundra Port & SEZ futures June2010 at Rs 740. What strategy should I adopt? – RajeshSource: Business Line - Home Page | 24 May 2010 | 12:00 am BSNL telco gear tender excludes Chinese: ReportThe Economic Times said the tender was worth Rs20 billion ($427 million) and the equipment would be deployed in the northern and eastern part of India.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 23 May 2010 | 11:54 pm Rupee gains 20 paise against dollar in early tradeThe domestic currency had closed 15 paise lower at 46.96/97 after hitting a six-and-a-half-months low of 47.33 in the previous session.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 23 May 2010 | 11:51 pm Rupee rebounds after biggest weekly fall in 14 yrsMumbai: The Indian rupee rebounded on Monday after suffering its biggest weekly decline in 14 years last week, as a stronger stock market raised expectations of more inflows. At 10:30am, the partially convertible rupee was at Rs46.6350/6450 per dollar, about 0.7% stronger than Rs46.95/96 at close on Friday. Traders said the euro’s losses versus the dollar limited the rupee’s gains. The rupee fell 3.8% last week, its largest fall since mid-July 1996. “Clearly, the stock market’s gains are keeping the rupee stronger. But sentiment is still cautious given a stronger dollar,” said a trader with a foreign bank. The benchmark BSE share index rose more than 1%, with companies controlled by the billionaire Ambani brothers among the big gainers after they moved towards resolving a long-running strife over supply agreement. Foreigners are net sellers of nearly $1.5 billion of local equities so far this month, but are still net buyers of more than $5 billion so far in 2010. A stronger dollar limited the rupee’s rise. The euro fell as investors sold into its latest bounce, as investors cut risk in their portfolios and waited sentiment to recover from worries about the euro zone’s public finances. One-year offshore non-deliverable forwards was quoted at Rs47.76 per dollar. In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month dollar-rupee contracts on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX was at Rs46.6525 on both exchanges, with the total traded volume on the two exchanges at about $1.6 billion. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 11:51 pm Inflation to moderate to 5-6% by December: Manmohan SinghFood inflation, which had shot above 20% in December has since moderated but is still above 16%.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 23 May 2010 | 11:39 pm Inflation to moderate to 5-6% by December: PMPM Manmohan Singh on Monday said the government was confident of bringing down inflation to 5-6 per cent by December, while blaming high prices on the global developments such as the financial crisis.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 23 May 2010 | 11:38 pm Sensex up 228 points in morning trade - Sify
Source: Business - Google News | 23 May 2010 | 11:21 pm Petrol pumps down shutters, threaten indefinite strikeNew Delhi: All dealer-operated petrol pumps in Delhi closed their shutters on 24 May to protest the increase in VAT on diesel, which has made the fuel costlier in the national capital compared to neighbouring Haryana. “We are trying to make the Delhi Government see reason that the difference in rates in Delhi and Haryana was huge and needs to be eliminated,” Delhi NCR Petrol Dealers Association president Ajay Bansal said. Of the 410 petrol pumps in Delhi, only 14 outlets owned and operated by oil companies are functioning, he said. All dealer-operated pumps closed shop for 24 hours, starting 0600 hours on 24 May. Bansal said the pump dealers will down shutters every Monday and if their demands are still not met, they would go on an indefinite strike from 14 June. Earlier petrol pump dealers had on 14 May closed their shutters for 24 hours to press for their demand. “The pumps will remain shut on every Monday beginning 24 May,” he said. “If our demands are not met we will go an indefinite strike from 14 June.” Bansal said sales was drying up as differential in diesel price in Delhi and Haryana is almost Rs4 per litre. In June 2008, Haryana reduced VAT on diesel to 8.8% from 12%, thereby making the fuel cheaper in the state than in Delhi where VAT on fuel is 12.5%. “From 13.5 crore litres a month, diesel sales in Delhi came down to 8.5 crore litres a month (loss of 37%),” he said. Already “bleeding” dealers were further dealt a body blow when the Delhi Government from 1 April raised VAT on diesel to 20%. “This has resulted in a difference of almost Rs4 per litre in the price of diesel between Delhi and Haryana,” Bansal said. Delhi is bordered on all sides, but East, by Haryana. The increase in VAT has made diesel in Delhi more expensive than even Uttar Pradesh, which is east of Delhi. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 11:19 pm Air crash puts question on India’s infrastructure safetyNew Delhi: An air crash in India that killed 158 people has underlined fears about safety gaps in the country’s booming airline industry and raised doubts about whether infrastructure can keep pace with rapid economic growth. It was not clear what caused Saturday’s crash, but pilots and aviation experts say regulatory oversight of safety and quality control are often poor. Staff training standards are also falling, they say. Although India has had few major accidents in recent years, some half a dozen mid-air misses over the past year has underscored that safety issues exist. Last year an Indian Airlines plane with about 150 passengers on board barely avoided a collision with an army helicopter that was part of the Indian president’s entourage in Mumbai. Indian media regularly reports about routine checks finding pilots reporting drunk for duty and in one instance last year pilots and crew were involved in a mid-air scuffle, leaving the aircraft to fly on its own for sometime. “The Air India Express crash was waiting to happen,” said A. Ranganathan, an airline safety consultant and pilot instructor. “Safety standards in Indian aviation have been on the wane for the last six years. Efforts being made to correct the drift, but the systematic rot is so deep ... we are not likely to see any improvement in safety unless drastic changes are made.” Sustained robust growth has put more money in people’s pockets, spurring air travel and an exponential growth in the number of low cost airlines. Domestic passenger traffic has tripled and international traffic doubled in the past five years. But infrastructure may not have kept pace and a shortage of staff may be stretching both airlines and traffic control staff. Indian Commercial Pilot Association said in a statement 78 percent of crashes took place due to fatigue-related human error. “You also need to augment the strength of air traffic control which is stretched,” Kapil Kaul, head of the Centre for Asia-Pacific Aviation in South Asia, told Reuters. The hill-top airport at Mangalore, the site of Saturday’s crash, had other geographical challenges, and critics say the runway, though adequate for landing the Boeing 737 that crashed, was not long or wide enough to leave any room for error. “This was no accident, but the direct result of the deliberate failure of officials at the high levels,” said a statement of Environment Support Group which had sought to block the construction of the runway. While it was yet to be established if the accident was related to wider problems in India’s aviation industry, experts say a lack of training, overworked staff and inadequate infrastructure only compounds the situation. For instance, only seven radars serve Indian air space and only big airports have the latest low-visibility landing systems, a senior official of the Airports Authority of India told Reuters. “A disaster was waiting to happen and we have been very lucky to have had no major accidents in the past 10 years,” the official involved with aviation security said on condition of anonymity because of the issue’s sensitivity. In April 2008, then director general of civil aviation, Kanu Gohain, told the Mint newspaper that India had just three inspectors for 10 commercial airlines and 600 planes. That number has now gone up, but many remain under-trained and a backlog of lapsed inspections may take years to clear. A 2006 safety audit by the International Civil Aviation Organisation listed India as worst on “technical personnel qualification and training”. As the airline sector expanded, a shortage of pilots was met by hiring foreign pilots, some 565 of them flying now. But the government has ordered airlines to replace them with Indians by next summer, raising concerns about how the country will be able to produce enough qualified pilots so quickly. There are also calls to make inquiries into air accidents transparent. “To my knowledge in the last 50 years no inquiry report has been made public,” Kaul said. “There is also the need for an independent safety board.” Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 11:08 pm RIL soars 5 pc; RNRL jumps 27 pc on Ambani peace pactShares of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries on Monday jumped 5 per cent and ADAG firm RNRL climbed nearly 27 per cent on the BSE following efforts to settle the differences between the two Groups. Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 11:07 pm Ambani brothers reconciliation bid props up sharesNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Shares in firms controlled by billionaire Ambani brothers rallied on Monday after the brothers ended a non-compete agreement, taking a step towards reconciliation in their long-running feud.Source: Reuters: Money News | 23 May 2010 | 10:50 pm Air India plane crash unlikely to hit insurers badlyNew Delhi: The Reliance General-led consortium which insured Air India’s fleet, including the aircraft that crashed in Mangalore, may not be hit hard by the accident, as they had taken re-insurance. Generally, all large risk, including that of airlines, is re-insured. It helps general insurance companies mitigate financial risk in case of claims arising out of damage, said insurance experts. The bulk of the burden would be on the re-insurers as far as claim settlement in this case is concerned, said Optima Risk Management chief executive officer Rahul Aggarwal. According to insurance industry sources, the Air India fleet is insured by four private companies led by Reliance General. The other general insurers include Bajaj Allianz, HDFC Ergo and Iffco Tokio. This was reinsured by Japanese insurer Mitsui Sumitomo and General Insurance Corporation of India together, sources said. Airline insurance is specialised insurance because of its nature. It is low frequency but high impact, he said, adding, airline crashes does not happen frequently, but when they do, the claims are huge. Asked about the loss Reliance General would incur due to the crash, its spokesperson said as a policy, the company does not comment on individual policy details and claims. Meanwhile, Air India announced an interim compensation for the victims of the air crash, including Rs10 lakh for the families of those above 12 years of age. “They (Air India) were in talks with insurance companies, including Reliance Insurance and General Insurance Company, on payment of compensation,” said Air India chairman and managing director Arvind Jadhav. “We are announcing an interim compensation. We will give them money immediately,” he said. The kin of the deceased who are above 12 years of age will be given Rs10 lakh, while the families of those below this age will get Rs5 lakh. Air India will pay Rs2 lakh as interim compensation to the injured. He said 128 bodies have been identified and handed over to relatives. “Eighteen more bodies have been identified and the post mortems are in progress. Twelve bodies have not been identified as yet,” Jadhav said. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 10:46 pm Ambani brothers reconciliation bid props up sharesNew Delhi: Shares in firms controlled by India’s billionaire Ambani brothers rallied on 24 May after the brothers ended a non-compete agreement, taking a step towards reconciliation in their long-running feud. The brothers will now be free to compete on each other’s turf, with the exception of gas-fired power plants, removing a source of friction between the two conglomerates -- Reliance Industries (RIL) and Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG). “We believe the new agreement is positive for RIL, as it opens up opportunities for growth in new sectors within India,” Goldman sachs analysts wrote in a note. “But, given the competitive landscape in telecom, financial services etc., any potential entry by RIL could be in the form of co-operation with ADAG or via industry consolidation, in our view,” they wrote. Shares in energy major Reliance Industries, India’s most valuable firm at $73 billion and controlled by elder sibling Mukesh Ambani, were up 3.5% at Rs1,030.90 by 0415 GMT after rising as much as 5.3% in early deals. Anil Ambani-controlled Reliance Communications, India’s No. 2 mobile phone operator, rose 6.1% to Rs141.50, while Reliance Natural Resources jumped 20%. Reliance Natural had a gas dispute with Reliance Industries and India’s highest court on 7 May ordered the brothers to renegotiate within six weeks a private natural gas supply contract between the two companies. The two brothers are estimated to be worth a combined $43 billion and both live in Mumbai but had not been on speaking terms during their dispute. They split the business empire inherited from their father Dhirubhai Ambani in a 2005 deal brokered by their homemaker mother, Kokilaben. As part of their agreements announced on Sunday, Reliance Industries will not enter the gas-based electricity generation business before 1 April, 2022, with an exception made for its captive gas-based power plants, the groups said. Shares in financial services firm Reliance Capital, controlled by Anil Ambani were up 5.5% at Rs676.80 ($1=46.6 rupees). Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 10:35 pm Rupee rises tailing domestic share gainsAfter recording the biggest weekly decline in 14 years, the Indian rupee rose on Monday, but the dollar's strength overseas limited a further rise.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 23 May 2010 | 10:34 pm Sensex up 280 pts on Ambani brothers peace pactThe Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex today surged by almost 280 points in opening trade on Ambani brothers dumping their differences to take a step towards reconciliation in their long-running feud.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 10:20 pm Sensex up 280 points on Ambani brothers peace pactThe Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex on Monday surged by almost 280 points in opening trade on Ambani brothers dumping their differences to take a step towards reconciliation in their long-running feud.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 23 May 2010 | 10:16 pm Asian stocks higher on bargain hunting, Wall St rallyHong Kong: Investors in Asia shrugged off a rally on Wall Street last week and kept an eye on the debt crisis in Europe, with shares broadly higher in early trade Monday. Dealers were also spurred by bargain hunting after regional stocks suffered a broad sell-off in recent weeks on lingering fears that the eurozone problems will spill into the global economy. Tokyo was 0.28% lower by the break, with exporters feeling the pressure of a stronger yen as traders move into the safe-haven currency amid the crisis in Europe. Markets had been given a cue from Wall Street, where the Dow rose 1.25% on bargain hunting and relief that President Barack Obama’s finance bill had passed through the Senate. The euro, which hit four-year lows below 1.22 dollars last week as concerns over the European debt crisis hit sentiment, was at 1.2502 dollars in Asian trade. The single unit fell to 112.60 yen from 113.02. The dollar bought 90.06 yen, nearly unchanged from 89.93 Friday. The crisis in Europe is being driven by debt and public deficit levels which have soared way above EU rules as governments increased spending to get their economies through the worst recession in generations. Markets remain concerned despite a near trillion-dollar package to prevent the troubles of debt-ridden Greece spreading to the rest of Europe. “It would take about three to six months before investors feel comfortable that enough has been done to address the problems in the (European Union),” said NRA Capital Chairman Kevin Scully. However, Shanghai jumped three% and Hong Kong 0.57%, with property developers boosted by hopes of a short-term halt in domestic property market tightening policies on the mainland, dealers said. Sydney gained 0.91%, Singapore was up 1.39% and Seoul gained 0.36%. In Australia mining giant Rio Tinto hit out at government plans for a new tax on resource “super profits”, describing it as the company’s top regulatory headache globally. Chief executive Tom Albanese said the proposed levy had already damaged Australia’s reputation and would reverberate through the entire economy, adding that the country’s currency had also been hurt by it. Sam Walsh, head of Rio’s vital iron ore division, warned: “Whether it’s Japanese, Chinese, Taiwanese customers... it was the same refrain: they are very, very concerned about the ‘super tax´.” In Bangkok, shares opened 0.7% lower as dealers returned after the bourse was closed for two-and-a-half days due to deadly clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces in the Thai capital. The fall came as the government said the political crisis had clipped 1.5%age points off the country’s 2010 growth forecast. Data revealed the economy expanded 12% year on year in the March quarter. Oil was mixed. New York’s main contract, light sweet crude for July delivery, added 17 cents to $70.21 a barrel and Brent North Sea crude for July delivery fell 25 cents to $71.43. Gold opened at 1,181.00-1,182.00 US dollars an ounce in Hong Kong, up from Friday’s close of $1,175.00-1,176.00. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 9:59 pm Markets rise 1.5%; Ambanis’ cos rallyMumbai: Indian shares rose 1.5% early on Monday, with Reliance Industries leading the rise after the Ambani brothers made a reconciliation move over the weekend. Both groups said they aim to reach a conclusion soon for a gas supply agreement between Reliance Industries and Reliance Natural Resources that had been at the heart of their dispute. At 9:01am, the 30-share BSE index was up 1.5% at 16,685.33 points, with 25 components advancing. Shares in energy major Reliance Industries, controlled by Mukesh Ambani, rallied more than 5%. Anil Ambani led Reliance Infrastructure and Reliance Communications were up 5.3 and 7.4% respectively. The 50-share NSE index was up 1.4 % at 5,000.90. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 9:14 pm Oil snaps 3-day losing streak, but pessimism lingersPerth: Oil prices snapped three straight sessions of decline and rose slightly to hover above $70 a barrel on Monday, but analysts said sentiment remain fragile and prices could be again be hit by macroeconomic pessimism. US crude for July delivery rose 27 cents to $70.31 a barrel by 8:08am, London Brent crude fell 47 cents to $71.21. “Oil market sentiment remains weak and market confidence is still being rattled by the uncertain economic outlook,” said David Moore, a commodities analyst at the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. “Oil market inventories also remain high, so I suspect we will continue to see that pattern of sharp volatility for awhile.” Since striking a 2010 high just above $87 a barrel on 4 May, crude prices have fallen in eleven of the last fifteen trading days and touched a low of $64.24 on Thursday last week, its weakest since September last year. Germany’s parliament approved on Friday its portion of a $1 trillion safety net to stabilise the euro as fears swirled that Europe’s debt crisis and tougher financial regulation may choke economic recovery. However, worries persist that Greece’s debt troubles could spread to other indebted nations, dragging down Europe’s economy and curtailing trade to the United States and Asia. Calls for other European economies to cut spending and slash their budget deficits have also sparked worries that the region’s economy would slow, curtailing energy demand. Although oil prices will no doubt remain at the mercy of broader macroeconomic pessimism, analysts at Barclays Capital said recovering demand in the US and other non-industrialised economies, such as China, the Middle East and India, would lift prices. “With oil fundamentals improving fast, we expect prices to pick up once the phase of severe risk reduction abates,” Barclays capital oil analyst Amrita Sen said in a report. In the short-to-medium term, other potentially supportive factors include the start of the US summer driving season and the start of the hurricane season in the US, which lasts from June through November. Some meteorologists have predicted an unusually destructive hurricane season which could cause offshore oil production in the Gulf of Mexico to shut for extended periods. The US dollar index rose 0.42% against a basket of currencies on Monday, while Asian stocks remained on the backfoot on weak demand for risky assets and currencies. Volatility will be the name of the game on Wall Street this week as uncertainty over the euro-zone debt crisis remains a potent factor. On the geopolitical front, Iran said it would abandon an offer to ship some of its uranium stockpile abroad if the United States imposes new sanctions, adding that Washington’s continued determination to impose sanctions could even lead Tehran to review its cooperation with the UN nuclear agency. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 8:50 pm ICICI Bank, BoR boards clear merger proposal - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 23 May 2010 | 1:59 pm Mangalore crash: Insurers may have to shell out Rs 400 croreInsurance firms are already feeling the heat with Air India and relatives of the passengers who died in the ill-fated Mangalore air disaster set to claim compensation worth hundreds of crores of rupees in the coming days.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 23 May 2010 | 1:37 pm BPCL: From sick to successfulBharat Pumps and Compressors Ltd. (BPCL), the public sector corporate enterprise, was incorporated in 1970 with manufacturing facility at Naini, Allahabad. Its chairman and managing director A.K. Jain spoke to HT on a range of issues. ExcerptsSource: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 1:30 pm Ambanis scrap non-compete agreementsMumbai: New Delhi: In a move towards possible reconciliation, the two Reliance conglomerates controlled by warring brothers Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani said on Sunday that they had scrapped all existing “non-compete” agreements, allowing either group to enter sectors that had earlier been reserved for one of them. The boards of Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) and Reliance-Anil Dhirubhai Ambani (R-Adag) group firms approved and signed an agreement cancelling the non-compete arrangement they had entered in January 2006, they said. The two sides signed a simpler non-compete agreement that will restrain RIL from setting up gas-based power projects until 2022. This sector will remain the preserve of R-Adag.  RIL and R-Adag are “hopeful and confident that all these steps will create an overall environment of harmony, co-operation and collaboration between the two groups, thereby further enhancing overall shareholder value for shareholders of both groups,” the statements said. The statements followed India’s Supreme Court ruling two weeks ago in favour of RIL in a bitter dispute over gas pricing with Anil Ambani’s Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL). The apex court ruled that RIL can sell gas to RNRL at government-set prices that are higher than those agreed to in a 2005 family accord. It asked the parties to renegotiate their contract within six weeks after talks begin. The announcement on Sunday afternoon was seen as a clear positive for RIL by analysts who are now waiting to see which new sectors the two brothers choose to enter. “This is more positive for Reliance Industries than R-Adag, because this gives Reliance an opportunity to look into expansion in other areas,” said S.P. Tulsian, an independent investment consultant. “You can’t rule out the possibility of Reliance entering in sectors such as telecom.” By forsaking the non-compete agreement before its scheduled date of 31 December 2015, RIL can enter sectors such as telecommunications, thermal power generation and city gas distribution in New Delhi and Mumbai earlier than it otherwise could have.  The estranged bothers had, in June 2005, with the help of mother Kokilaben Ambani, family friend and banker K.V. Kamath and a battery of lawyers hammered out an agreement that divided the Ambani business empire, with energy going to older brother Mukesh and the fledgling businesses of telecommunications, infrastructure, financial services, power and fuel trading handed out to the younger Anil. Other analysts saw the scrapping of the non-compete agreements as beneficial to both brothers’ business interests. In 2008, the non-compete agreement had scuppered a merger and acquisition deal that may have redefined Anil Ambani’s Reliance Communications Ltd as a global telecom player. The deal envisaged a share swap with South Africa’s MTN Group Ltd, but the right of first refusal option with RIL saw the deal becoming a non-starter. “The end of non-compete agreement will free up Anil Ambani to consolidate his telecom business both in India and abroad,” said the chief executive of an investment bank who didn’t want to be named. “It is a good development. Whatever allows the management to focus on their businesses is good,’ said a Mumbai-based analyst with a foreign brokerage who did not want to be named, referring to the energy and time both groups spent in the feud over gas pricing and other disputes. The latest arrangement may include a way for R-Adag to access gas from RIL’s field in the Krishna-Godavari basin for its power projects, some analysts said. Gas is allotted to customers by the government in line with the gas utilization policy that prioritizes users: existing fertilizer units rank first, followed by existing power, petrochemical and city gas projects. New projects aren’t high up on the priority list. While Reliance Power Ltd has projects with a total capacity of 35,000MW in its portfolio, only projects totalling 941MW have been commissioned so far. “The contours of the arrangement would have a game plan to acquire access to the required gas for R-Adag. It is equally in interest of RIL to have a secure off-taker for its gas,” said Gokul Chaudhri, partner at audit and consulting firm BMR Advisors. “The groups are moving ahead from the stage of constraining each other to allowing themselves to cooperate and compete in the wider economic interest of the groups. The absence of non-compete (arrangements) will enable both groups to grow and expand, and deliver efficiency and value.” bhuma.s@livemint.com Reuters contributed to this story. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 1:29 pm Markets to eye trading cues from the WestFear and uncertainty have gripped stock markets around the globe, with investors fretful about the potential magnitude of the euro zone debt crisis. The confidence crisis among investors took a turn for the worse after Germany’s decision to ban so-called naked short-sales in a range of financial assets. In naked short-selling, a trader sells a financial instrument betting that its price will fall, without first borrowing the instrument or ensuring that it can be borrowed, as in a conventional short-sale. Also Read Vipul Verma’s earlier columns The German move came as a surprise not only to investors, but also to other countries in the euro zone. Adding to the fear was German chancellor Angela Merkel’s statement that the “euro was in danger” and her call for a process to ensure “orderly” insolvency of its members. Speculation that other euro zone countries may follow suit and ban short-sales sparked further concern in the markets, which took some comfort when that did not happen by the weekend. Meanwhile, weak economic data in the US, such as a spurt in jobless claims, also disappointed investors. Euro zone debt fears look set to cloud investor sentiment, although a relief rally is likely on Monday and Tuesday because the markets have been oversold. Investors would also keep a close eye on macroeconomic data scheduled for release this week for more cues on the US economy. The weekly jobless claims data and home sales numbers for April will be under scrutiny for signs of strength or frailty in the US economy. US treasury secretary Timothy Geithner will stop over briefly in Britain and Germany this week to discuss troubled economic conditions there. Geithner has downplayed the perceived magnitude of the euro zone crisis. Any positive comments or announcements would go a long way in boosting morale on equity markets. In India, no major economic events are due this week and the markets would look to the West for trading cues. A healthy progress report on the monsoon would serve to shore up investor sentiment. Technically, the markets are due for a rebound. The rebound is likely to last for two days initially, after which volumes would determine where the index is moving next. If the overall market volumes pick up, any gains could be extended. Waning volumes would be a sign of bearishness. In terms of the Nifty, the first resistance is seen at 4,980 points, which if crossed would boost sentiment. The next resistance is likely at 5,066, but would be a moderate resistance level only. The next resistance at 5,110 is an important level. If the Nifty closes above this level on good trading volumes, the trend would strengthen. A close above 5,212 could signal an end to bearish sentiment. On its way down, the Nifty has its first support at 4,841, which is a moderate level. It has strong support at 4,761. A decisive close below this level would mean more bearishness. Among individual stocks this week, Yes Bank Ltd, Lupin Ltd and Allahabad Bank look good on the charts. Yes Bank, at its last close of Rs265.40, has a target of Rs277 and a stop-loss of Rs254. Lupin, at its last close of Rs1,814, has a target of Rs1,844 and a stop-loss of Rs1,784. Allahabad Bank, at its last close of Rs156.75, has a target of Rs163 and a stop-loss of Rs148. Vipul Verma is chief executive officer, Moneyvistas.com. Comments, questions and reactions to this column are welcome at ticker@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 1:15 pm Sri Lanka, Pakistan lead mobile phone reach in South AsiaWe started the campaign of mBillionth Award for mobile content and applications with a simple message: “Mobiles have reached the masses, where are the meaningful content and services?” And we are talking about all of South Asia. Have a look at this: Sri Lanka leads the region with 16.27 million mobiles reaching 81.35% of its population; Pakistan follows with 97.58 million mobiles covering 59.6% of the country’s population; India is almost halfway through with 584.32 million mobiles; Bhutan—47.8% (327,000 mobiles), Maldives—46% (0.14 million mobiles); Afghanistan and Bangladesh are almost there with 35% (12.9 million mobiles) and 52.43 million (34%). The laggard is Nepal, which has covered just 23.22%, making it to only 5.77 million people. This high penetration of mobile phones has one common reason: We are an oral society, and our knowledge and capacity lie in communicating orally. We can be considered illiterate if you ask us to read and write, but we can not only consume a huge amount of content and services if you reach us orally, but we can also produce an abundance of content, information, knowledge and services if you ask us to contribute orally. Mobiles have reached almost 100% of the population if we discount the age group below 15. Since 3G is here, mobile penetration could well be considered reliable, long-term and serious infrastructure. But mobiles have so far been used by the industry merely as a talking tool and VAS (value-added service)-based entertainment content rider. The governments, on the other hand, are way behind in figuring out ways to take meaningful content and services to the masses through the mobile. The challenges of scalable model and services designed to reach the masses through the mobile phone are not easy, but we have no choice, and the sooner we do it, the better. At Digital Empowerment Foundation, we took this challenge to bring on one platform all kinds of mobile content and application providers, so that they get scale through bigger players in the industry, and through the government they get a chance to get integrated into bigger projects of state and national level. We immediately realized through the nominations process that there are tremendous efforts undertaken by small start-ups, individuals and innovators to design and develop content, services and applications that could benefit the general masses in remote areas. In the first leg, we got 100 nominations. More than 80% of them are companies that are unheard of, but their innovations are numbing. The surprise came from Pakistan—we have got five nominations so far, and at least 10 more have indicated they would send their nominations. I would like to share three of these nominations. The See ‘n’ Report project has enabled citizen journalism, allowing people to send reports, photos and videos directly from their mobile phones as and when they witness a breaking story. “Our news engine aggregates similar stories and presents a unified view on the Internet,” says Sharjeel Ahmad Qureshi, who is involved with the project. Asim Fayaz sends us the nomination of ChOpaal—a free group SMS service. ChOpaal lets users create groups which others can voluntarily join. Group members can exchange messages with each other just by sending one message to chOpaal, which forwards it to the other group members for free. Please also give attention to Gohar Sultan, who has developed Green, a platform different mobile applications can ride on. It works on even the cheapest mobile handset and makes a no-frills mobile look like a smartphone. At the moment, Green offers integration of WordPress, Twitter and Dictionary. Next week, we will discuss some nominations from Sri Lanka, and in the meanwhile, please help us in getting more nominations before 31 May. Osama Manzar is founder and director of Digital Empowerment Foundation and chairman of the mBillionth awards. Mint is a partner of the mBillionth awards. For more details on nominees, nominee profiles and the mBillionth awards, log on to http://blog.livemint.com/mobile-movement Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 1:14 pm Gujarat’s e-voting: a signal for change?Imagine a situation wherein Babloo, my handyman, in the middle of a routine chore at my home, whips out his mobile phone and punches out a text message to cast his vote for his favourite candidate, Rahul Gandhi, without being present in Amethi. Sounds like fiction? Not really. If all goes well, voting through SMS would be among the options of the alternative e-voting (or online voting) package being offered to the three million voters of the Ahmedabad Muncipal Corporation next October. At the moment, the urban development ministry has floated the idea for discussion and has marked 25 May as the deadline for public comments. In all likelihood, it will go through and will mark a very interesting reworking of the voting process in this country. First, it was the physical ballot and then it was the electronic voting machines (EVMs). Also Read | Anil Padmanabhan earlier columns And, now it will be e-voting, albeit for municipal- and panchayat-level elections. Unlike Internet connectivity, which is estimated at around 70 million connections, mobile phone penetration is substantially higher—nearly 600 million connections at the end of March. (E-voting can be undertaken either by voting over a home Internet connection, from a specially designated Internet kiosk or SMS over the mobile phone.) While e-voting would no doubt make it easier to vote and, hence, hopefully enhance voter participation, the bigger contribution could be disintermediation of a kind that we have never witnessed; think of what the automated teller machine (ATM) did to empower bank customers or how the posting of exam results on the Web brought down the burden of dissemination as well as access of information to eager students. Just like the Internet spelt the death of distance, it is also a champion of disintermediation, forcing companies to adapt or die. Now, politicians and political parties may be forced to face up to disintermediation of the voting process. Conventionally, the last mile is what determines voter turnout and the ability of the candidates to influence voter opinion at the penultimate moment—given the diminishing margin of victory and defeat, this is by no means unimportant. The voting booth is the last mass contact point to target the voter. Already, the traditional modes of mass contact such as rallies used in the run-up to voting day are on the wane—partly because of voter fatigue and also due to the fact that most parties have ceased to rely on cadres. If indeed e-voting does happen, then it will redefine the manner in which a candidate establishes contact with voters. It would require a lot more resources and energy to reach out to voters, especially the mobile segments of the population, improving accountability. The impact would vary with the territory and would be largely be difficult to forecast; suffice to say that it would be a harbinger of change. For instance, in a state like Gujarat, which is largely a two-party set-up, it could by bringing in new voters favour the party that normally does well with a higher voter turnout. Typically, this would be the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)—a higher turnout enables it to offset the disadvantage of block voting by alienated minorities. At the same time, by levelling the field as it were, it may make it easier for newer parties to emerge on the scene. Interestingly, the initiative was first proposed by the State Election Commission (SEC) and came about after a two-year exercise for electoral reforms at the local level; through a series of seminars held across the state, SEC engaged nearly all stakeholders. Following the 73rd and 74th amendments to the Indian Constitution, SEC is empowered to make the changes. However, to effect the changes, it requires the state government’s concurrence as well as effort to change the rules and legislation. Moves to introduce compulsory voting, negative voting (wherein a voter does not want to cast a vote for any of the candidates) and 50% reservation for women, too, emerged from this exercise; the legislation to clear this, championed by chief minister Narendra Modi, was approved by the Gujarat assembly, though it failed to become a law after governor Kamla Beniwal returned it to the assembly in December. Ignoring the politics, it is apparent that the third tier of government—local municipal and village bodies—are emerging as the crucible of very bold electoral initiatives. For instance, if indeed compulsory voting had gone through, it would have resolved the problem of plurality of an electoral verdict—at present the winner rarely has the majority of the votes and is just an instance of the first-past-the-post principle. The 13th Finance Commission has already initiated plans for fiscal empowerment of the third tier by setting aside for it a maximum of 2.5% of the annual resource devolution from the Centre to the states. Together with the proposed electoral changes, it is clear that the polity at this level of government is poised for change. It’s difficult to say how this would pan out and predict the attendant impact. But if technology can be used to improve the democratic process and thereby ensure better accountability of the elected, then it should be welcomed. Anil Padmanabhan is a deputy managing editor of Mint and writes every week on the intersection of politics and economics. Comments are welcome at capitalcalculus@livemint.com Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 1:13 pm India gains weight on MSCI Emerging Markets IndexWith effect from the close of trading on May 26, India will become weightier on the MSCI Emerging Markets (EM) Index, one of the most widely used benchmarks for institutional and retail funds worldwide.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 1:07 pm A positive for shareholdersThe calling of a truce by the brothers has come as good news for shareholders of the two groups.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 12:59 pm Warring Ambanis clinch peace pact, agree to competeAt 5 minutes to 2pm on Sunday, officials of both Reliance Industries Ltd and ADAG were stunned to receive notes stating that the Ambani brothers had decided to scrap their non-compete agreement and effectively bury the hatchet.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 23 May 2010 | 12:58 pm Ambani brothers break the iceRIL, ADAG cancel 2006 non-compete agreements, hope to work in harmony.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 12:58 pm Ambani settlement may boost marketsDalal Street is expected to remain volatile this week ahead of derivative settlement and on weak global sentiments, although the truce between the Ambani brothers may have overall positive fallout.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 23 May 2010 | 12:55 pm ICICI-BoR merger deal valued at Rs 3041 croreMerger with Bank of Rajasthan (BoR) is a win-win win situation for all stakeholders, said Chanda Kochhar, MD and CEO of ICICI Bank.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 23 May 2010 | 12:53 pm Hold of foreign firms on Indian pharma market gradually risingMumbai: As top Indian pharmaceutical companies sell themselves off, India’s Rs60,000 crore drug market seems harking back to the 1970s, when it was dominated by foreign multinationals. Just six of India’s top 10 drug makers by market share are controlled by domestic promoters today, down from nine in December 2008.  Graphic: Paras Jain / Mint “At least two more deals (of foreign firms acquiring Indian drug makers) are likely in the next 18 months,” said Tarun Shah, founder, MP Advisors. His firm advised Japan’s third larget drug maker, Daiichi Sankyo Co. Ltd in acquiring the stake owned by promoters in India’s largest drug maker, Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd. The $4.6 billion (Rs21,620 crore) acquisition was the first of the three deals that have changed the equations in the Indian drug industry since December 2008. It was followed by Hyderabad-based Shantha Biotechnics Pvt. Ltd’s acquisition by Sanofi-Aventis AG. Last week, US drugs and nutrition company Abbott Laboratories announced a Rs17,000 crore acquisition of the domestic formulation business of Mumbai-based drug maker Piramal Healthcare Ltd, the largest player in the local market with a market share of 7%. Global acquisitions have also changed the structure of the Indian market. The acquisition of US multinational Wyeth by the world’s largest drug maker Pfizer Inc. has led sales of their Indian subsidiary Pfizer Ltd to increase. The combine of Pfizer and Wyeth in India has now become the eighth largest player with a market share of 3.5%. And US drug maker Merck and Co. Inc.’s acquisition of Schering Plough worldwide has made the company the 10th largest in India, with a market share of 1.03%, according to retail market statistics of IMS Health until September 2009. The combined share of top 16 drug makers in the local market is 56%, or worth Rs33,600 crore, according to retail audit data compiled by IMS Health. Since new acquisitions and mergers have changed the ownership base in the industry, 23% of this market is now controlled by six multinational companies. Until December 2008, British drug maker GlaxoSmithKline Plc-promoted GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Ltd was the only foreign firm in the top 10, with about 4% market share in the Indian drug market till 2008. “Till the end of 2008, there were nine companies owned by Indian entrepreneurs out of top 10 with a combined market share of 32.67%. But the new constitution is that top 10 command 41.06% of total market , and four of the them are MNCs (multi-national companies),” said Shah of MP Advisors. Rajiv Dalal, partner, life sciences practice at audit and advisory firm Ernst and Young India, said the drug market in India will grow exponentially due to increased awareness and economic growth. “With multinationals’ interest to grow in this market and Indian entrepreneurs’ willingness to encash, there could be more acqusitions happening, which will lead to MNCs increasing their market share in the domestic market,” he said. ch.unni@livemint.com Source: Home - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 12:52 pm Rourkela university goes the youth wayNew Delhi: Campus life may be about to change. BPUT Alert, a text-based service, is making it possible for university students to receive information on examination timetables, results and even social events via SMS—for free. BPUT Alert was developed by iWebleaf Global Solutions, an Orissa-based information technology company, for students of Rourkela’s Biju Patnaik University of Technology (BPUT). The project has since been piloted on the campuses of some more universities in Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Delhi, said Chandrasekhar Panda, founder and chief operating officer of iWebleaf. “Today, youngsters are more interested in social networking through websites like Facebook, Orkut, Twitter etc...and do not visit university sites often,” he said. “Since cellular interaction plays a vital role in present time, we came up with the idea of sharing information, academic calendars, notices etc. with students through the same,” he added. Users get access to university notices, results, college news as well as career information. At BPUT, it is available to students of B Tech, B Pharm, B Arch, M Tech, MBA, MCA and M Pharm. And it is proving popular, with more than 62,000 students subscribing to it. Subscribers need to send an SMS to a particular number to activate it. Although the service is free, there is a one-time subscription charge of Rs1.50 for Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd users and Rs3 for users of other networks. “Apart from providing vital information via SMS completely free of charge, the service hold potential to create a higher growth rate in the field of m-education (mobile-based education). It is also much simpler than using the Internet, where you need to be logged in, or search the site,” said Panda. Although it has proved to be a hit among students, BPUT Alert is still struggling to catch the eye of major mobile phone companies. “We are in talks with Virgin Mobile and Uninor mobile service, but haven’t received any significant response from their side as yet,” said Chandrasekhar. pooja.c@livemint.com Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 12:39 pm Can fibre decide the fate of 3G players?It is time for some lateral thinking. Last week, the government announced winners of third generation telephony spectrum auctions, with a higher-than-expected revenue for the Finance Minister. N Madhavan writes. Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 11:44 am ICICI's balance clause may hit BoR customersOne's relationship with one's bank is one of the most difficult relationships to change. And now with automatic bill payments, EMIs on auto-pilot and systematic investment plans linked to bank accounts, a change in your bank means a fairly big change in your financial life. Bindisha Sarang and Kayezad E Adajania write. Banking on changesSource: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 11:39 am LOL! Smiles to go for TV ads this summer"The best ideas come as jokes. Make your thinking as funny as possible," said David Ogilvy once. A number of ad creatives have tried to beat the summer's heat this year with 'funny' on their minds, even as they have attempted to move away from forced slapsticks, overt spoofs, puns, tired clichés or the usual filmy farce. Rachit Vats writes. Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 11:29 am Urban legendWith aspirations and incomes rising in smaller urban centres, consumer products majors are training their sights and budgets on small-town India. Anita Sharan writes.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 23 May 2010 | 11:21 am Bumper to bumper with the world economy Thomas L. Friedman is a New York Times columnist I like that image. The US used its spare tyre to prevent a collapse of the banking system and to stimulate the economy after the subprime market crash. The European Union used its spare tyre on its own economic stimulus and then to prevent a run on European banks triggered by the meltdown in Greece. This all better work, because we’re not only living in a world without any more spares but also in a world without distance. Nations are more tightly integrated than ever before. We’re driving bumper to bumper with every other major economy today, so misbehaviour or mistakes anywhere can cause a global pile-up. And that leads to the real point of this column: In this kind of world, leadership at every level of government and business matters more than ever. We have no margin of error any more, no time for politics as usual or suboptimal legislation. But what does that mean, “leadership”? When El-Erian says we have no spare, he means we have a much diminished pool of resources, whether to moderate the impact of markets when they go haywire or to fund better healthcare, schools and infrastructure for growth. So leadership today is all about taking innovative actions that generate new capabilities and resources—and being smart and disciplined about every dime we spend and invest. We just emptied our treasury for a bailout. Did it merely provide a needed short-term jolt to the economy, or will it end up making us much fitter and more competitive so we can drive our economy farther and faster? I am still not sure. We just passed a healthcare Bill. Will that increase our leverage and resources as a society or just add another set of liabilities that will require new credit lines from China? I am still not sure. We’re passing a new financial regulation Bill. Are we just pretending to solve the problem or will this new law add to our capacity to generate the resources to cushion the next crisis and fund the next start-up? I am still not sure. A lot will depend on the execution. Similarly, in mother nature we are also losing our margins for error. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Monday that the planet's average temperature for April was 58.1 degrees Fahrenheit, the hottest for any April on record. The more we keep pumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, the more we expose ourselves to a sudden, unpredictable climate disruption. The more we blithely remain addicted to oil, and not face up to all its negative geopolitical and environmental consequences, the more we invite sudden catastrophes such as the Gulf spill. I think many Americans understand this at some intuitive level. In this economic climate, people know they need to be smarter, more frugal and make tougher choices in their private lives. They know they can’t fake it or fool themselves any more, so they have much less tolerance for politicians who want to do that in our public life. And I don't think they are alone. I was in the UK for the recent election there, and I was struck at how easily they put together a rare coalition government, bringing together Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, to generate the broad political base needed to make the sacrifices and hard choices they can't avoid. German lawmakers on Friday voted to fund the Greek bailout. Greeks are protesting the austerity being imposed on them, but they are also taking their fiscal medicine—for now. Writing about the recent US elections, the Politics Daily columnist Walter Shapiro noted: “The hopeful message buried in all these election returns is that voters are tired of being toyed with. The problems afflicting America are too grave to tolerate the cynical, cling-to-power-at-all-costs cynicism of Arlen Specter and other Capitol Hill Machiavellis. The choices voters make in their desperate quest for authenticity are not always wise or well grounded in reality. But politicians and pundits—obsessively calculating partisan advantage like Scrooge counted shillings—will ignore at their own peril the stirrings of idealism among voters in both parties.” I really hope he is right. Winston Churchill famously observed, “You can always trust the Americans. In the end, they will do the right thing, after they have eliminated all the other possibilities.” Is that still true for our generation? We’re going to find out. The time for bluffing ourselves is over. Are we going to do what it takes to fix our country, or are we going to be remembered as the generation that received more poker chips from their parents than any other and then had to turn around and toss a single chip to their kids and tell them to put it on “Lucky 21”—and hope for the best. feedback@livemint.com Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 11:18 am Regulators are watching Google over antitrust concernsIn the 1990s, Gary Reback, a Silicon Valley lawyer, almost single-handedly brought the antitrust weight of the federal government down on that era's high-tech heavyweight, Microsoft Corp. Now, Reback contends there is a dangerous new monopolist in the catbird seat: the search giant Google Inc. This month, Reback shepherded Adam and Shivaun Raff, the husband-and-wife entrepreneurs behind the London comparison shopping site Foundem, around Washington. The three held meetings with congressional staff members and antitrust enforcers at the department of justice and the federal trade commission. Their goal was to air the Foundem couple's complaint that in 2006, Google's supposedly objective algorithms suddenly dropped Foundem into the netherworld of Google search results. They say Google also raised the rates Foundem had to pay to advertise alongside search results. These moves, the couple say, pushed their comparison shopping site out of view, and Google later put the spotlight on its own shopping listings. Google is the “arbiter of every single thing on the Web, and it favours its properties over everyone else’s,” said Reback, sitting in a Washington cafe with the couple. “What it wants to do is control Internet traffic. Anything that undermines its ability to do that is threatening.” Google says its mission is to give users the information they're looking for even if that means giving its own content priority and de-emphasizing sites it believes offer poor experiences. “Telling a search engine that it cannot innovate and show results in a way that benefits users would undermine the very goals of our competition laws,” says Matthew Bye, a Google lawyer. But the search giant's decisions on such matters may soon be judged by higher authorities. Over the last several years, it has become the canonical way to search the Web, an information doorway that dictates what kind of knowledge is visible to the browsing public. Almost a decade after Google promised that the creed “don't be evil” would guide its activities, the federal government is examining Google's acquisitions and actions as never before, looking for indications that the company's market power may be anticompetitive in the worlds of Web search and online advertising. “They are not just on the radar screen. They are at the centre of it," said Tim Wu, a professor at Columbia University. “If you are in the federal government and are interested in antitrust, you are looking at Google.” Google has managed to squeak by most regulatory reviews. On Friday, the federal trade commission approved Google's $750 million (Rs3,525 crore) acquisition of AdMob, a mobile advertising start-up. Staff members had initially planned to oppose the purchase, even saying in a statement that the deal “raised serious antitrust issues”. But the agency ultimately endorsed the deal, assuming that Apple Inc.’s entry in the market would facilitate competition. Nevertheless, the search giant may get an indication this summer of just how uncomfortable Washington can get for such dominant firms. Federal judge Denny Chin is expected to rule in the next few months on Google's amended settlement with authors and book publishers and whether the agreement gives the search giant too much control over the millions of library books that it scanned. The department of justice has opposed the settlement on two occasions. At the same time, Google's own missteps have prompted a new round of scrutiny. This month, it admitted that its camera-equipped cars, which drive around photographing the world's neighbourhoods for Street View images within Google Maps, had inadvertently collected fragments of communications from people using unsecured Wi-Fi networks. Privacy advocates howled, while the federal trade commission and regulators in Europe said they were looking into the matter. Can monopolies exist online, when competition is only a click away? What constitutes anti-competitive behaviour in the complex networked economy, where the very size of big companies allows them to operate more efficiently, and thus grow even bigger? Google executives acknowledge the scrutiny. “We’re getting larger, and we have been very disruptive within some industries,” says Alan Davidson, head of US public policy at Google. “We know we have a giant bull’s-eye on our backs.” ©2010/The new York Times feedback@livemint.com Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 23 May 2010 | 9:19 am
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