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Glenmark accused of destroying Tarka patent litigation docsSanofiAbbot has accused Mumbaibased drug maker Glenmark Pharmaceuticals of destroying patent litigation documents of its generic version of hypertension drug Tarka.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 8:25 am ENIL to turn to profit in FY11 after sale of outdoor bizEntertainment Network (India) Ltd expects to turn to profit in FY11 after selling its lossmaking outdoor business to Bennett, Coleman, a senior official told Reuters on Friday.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:49 am PTC plans to raise upto Rs 700cr via stake sale in armIn an interview with CNBCTV18, TN Thakur, CMD, PTC, speaks about the latest happenings in his company and sector.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 7:35 am Govt starts process for handing over stadiums to pvt cosThe government of India has begun the process for handing over stadiums to private companies, reports CNBCTV18. Five stadiums are to be handed over to private companies via the publicprivate partnership route.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 5:47 am RenaultNissan, Bajaj sign pact for new car to rival NanoRenaultNissan Alliance and Bajaj Auto on Thursday signed an agreement to manufacture an ultra lowcost car to be sold in India and other emerging markets.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:58 am 3i eyes investments in roads, airports, powerThe 3i Group is back on the acquisition trail. It currently has a USD 1.2 billion infrastructure fund and plans to launch a second infra fund of USD 1.82 billion.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:15 am Barclays hikes India inflation forecast to 8.25% for FY11 - Business Standard
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:01 am We are now comfortable about Orissa steel project: Posco-India - Rediff
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 4:01 am Gujarat NRE Coke Q1 net profit at Rs 20 cr - NDTV.com
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:52 am Bullish on telecom space, have initiated buys: Religare - Moneycontrol.com
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:49 am China June car sales growth slowest in 14 monthsThe outlook in the second half is expected to be challenging for industry players as rapid sales growth a year ago makes the base of comparison much higher.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:47 am India likely to harvest bumper crop this year: Pawar - The Hindu
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:37 am Russia, US swap 14 spies in Cold War-style exchangeMoscow/Vienna: The biggest spy swap since the end of the Cold War was underway on Friday as Russia and the United States prepared to exchange 14 agents, defusing an espionage scandal that threatened improving relations. The dramatic conclusion to the espionage scandal which has gripped America came after spymasters brokered a deal for 10 Russian spies to be deported from the US, in return for four agents being released from jail in Russia. In the first step of the carefully choreographed swap, the 10 Russian agents pleaded guilty on Thursday in a New York court to charges against them and were immediately deported. Then, around midnight local time, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree pardoning four spies serving jail terms in Russia on charges of spying for the West. Some of those accused in the US boarded a plane in New York on Thursday night and the same Vision Airlines jet landed in Vienna on Friday, a Reuters witness said. Some people were seen boarding a separate Russian aircraft at the airport and then others boarded the Vision Airlines jet. It was not immediately clear who the people were. “The United States has agreed to transfer these individuals to the custody of the Russian Federation,” the United States Justice Department said. “In exchange, the Russian Federation has agreed to release four individuals who are incarcerated in Russia for alleged contact with Western intelligence agencies,” it said. The spy scandal broke at an awkward time for US-Russia ties, just days after Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev met for a friendly Washington summit last month. The US and Russian legislatures are also considering ratification of a key treaty cutting nuclear weapons, something neither side wants to jeopardise. Russia’s foreign ministry said in a statement that the spy swap “gives reason to expect that the course agreed on by the leaders of Russia and the US will be consistently implemented in practice and that attempts to knock the parties off this course will not succeed”. But the swap itself — which one Russian internet site quipped was “Russia 10: USA 4” — may add fuel to Republican accusations that President Barack Obama is being too soft on Moscow. Spy swap Relatives of spies on both sides of the swap waited anxiously in Russia — all bar one of the 14 agents are Russian citizens -- for news of the swap. Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) declined all comment on details of the affair. Moscow has always prided itself on bringing trusted agents back home and Washington has agreed to swaps before, though rarely on this scale. The largest known Cold War spy swap was in 1985 when more than 20 spies were exchanged between East and West on the Glienicke Bridge in the then divided city of Berlin. Spymasters on both sides say that despite generally warmer relations, the two former Cold War foes still fund generous intelligence operations against each other. The current scandal broke when the United States said on 28 June it has uncovered a ring of suspected Russian secret agents who were using false identities to try to gather sensitive intelligence on the United States. FBI counter-intelligence agents explained that the Russian had communicated with Moscow by concealing invisible text messages in photographs posted on public internet sites and some had met Russian diplomats from the US mission in New York. Russian diplomats said the timing of the announcement, just days after Obama and Medvedev’s 24 June summit in Washington, could be an attempt by US hardliners to torpedo the so-called reset in ties that Obama has championed. A Kremlin source said Medvedev and Obama’s warm relations had allowed the swap deal to be reached so swiftly. “This was due to the new spirit set in Russian-American relations and the high level of mutual understanding and trust between the Russian and American presidents that no one will be able to shake,” the source said. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:33 am Oil set for 5 pct weekly gain on U.S. demandLONDON (Reuters) - Oil rose towards $76 a barrel on Friday, heading for its biggest weekly gain since May, after data showed falling U.S. inventories and positive economic indicators lifted sentiment across markets.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:29 am Peugeot signs Changan JV in push for ChinaShanghai: French car maker PSA Peugeot Citroen on Friday signed a deal to set up a 50-50 manufacturing venture with China Changan Automotive Group as it moves to ramp up capacity in the world’s largest auto market. The Peugeot-Changan tie-up on light commercial and passenger vehicles marks the latest foreign auto expansion in a market where General Motors, Volkswagen AG and others are competing for dominance. The joint venture would have an initial investment of 8.4 billion yuan ($1.24 billion), PSA said in a statement. The partners will focus initially on launching Citroen’s DS line of premium small cars in China, as well as introducing a dedicated new brand for the venture, PSA said. “The contract also allows for the joint venture to market, at a later date, further vehicles under the partners’ other brands, Peugeot and Changan,” it added. PSA said the first vehicle was scheduled to be launched in the second half of 2012. The Shenzhen plant, in southern China, will have an initial production capacity of 200,000 vehicles and engines, with two production lines and an R&D centre. A source close to the Chinese company had earlier told Reuters that under the agreement, PSA would team up with Harbin Hafei Automobile Industry Group, a subsidiary of Changan, to make light commercial vehicles and cars in south China. “Changan and PSA will use Hafei’s existing facilities in Shenzhen. PSA’s DS series models are included in the portfolio,” the source said before the announcement. EXPANDING SPREE “It’s a good move for PSA Peugeot as a new venture could expand its product line and hopefully help it win more market share here,” said Zhang Xin, an analyst with Guotai Junan Securities. A Peugeot tie is equally beneficial for Changan, the state parent of Chongqing Changan Automobile Co, which now operates a car venture with Ford Motor, other analysts said. China, which eclipsed the United States as the world’s top auto market last year, has been a major bright spot amid a global industry downturn and a safe heaven for foreign auto giants. PSA is already making Peugeot 408 and Citroen C5 sedans in partnership with Dongfeng Motor Group Co, but it lags most of its foreign rivals due in part to a limited portfolio. The venture sold only 175,190 cars in the first half, equivalent to a third of Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors’ combined tally and merely 15% of what GM sold in the country during the period. The French automaker, however, has been actively seeking to expand its footprint in the country. In November, as part of a plan to boost margins that relies heavily on emerging market growth, PSA unveiled a series of models designed to tap the booming Chinese market. Sources told Reuters in May that PSA and Dongfeng, with a combined annual auto production capacity of 450,000 units, aim to build their third plant by the end of this year. The greenfield facility, with annual capacity of between 150,000 and 200,000 units, is scheduled to be up and running by 2012. Other foreign auto makers are also expanding. GM, which already makes cars and light commercial vehicles with China’s major auto groups SAIC Motor Corp and FAW Group, is selecting a site for a greenfield China plant, executives had said. Volkswagen also pledged this year to add an additional 1.6 billion euros ($2.03 billion) to its previously announced 4.4 billion euro China investment scheme. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:29 am Peugeot signs Changan JV in push for ChinaShanghai: French car maker PSA Peugeot Citroen on Friday signed a deal to set up a 50-50 manufacturing venture with China Changan Automotive Group as it moves to ramp up capacity in the world’s largest auto market. The Peugeot-Changan tie-up on light commercial and passenger vehicles marks the latest foreign auto expansion in a market where General Motors, Volkswagen AG and others are competing for dominance. The joint venture would have an initial investment of 8.4 billion yuan ($1.24 billion), PSA said in a statement. The partners will focus initially on launching Citroen’s DS line of premium small cars in China, as well as introducing a dedicated new brand for the venture, PSA said. “The contract also allows for the joint venture to market, at a later date, further vehicles under the partners’ other brands, Peugeot and Changan,” it added. PSA said the first vehicle was scheduled to be launched in the second half of 2012. The Shenzhen plant, in southern China, will have an initial production capacity of 200,000 vehicles and engines, with two production lines and an R&D centre. A source close to the Chinese company had earlier told Reuters that under the agreement, PSA would team up with Harbin Hafei Automobile Industry Group, a subsidiary of Changan, to make light commercial vehicles and cars in south China. “Changan and PSA will use Hafei’s existing facilities in Shenzhen. PSA’s DS series models are included in the portfolio,” the source said before the announcement. EXPANDING SPREE “It’s a good move for PSA Peugeot as a new venture could expand its product line and hopefully help it win more market share here,” said Zhang Xin, an analyst with Guotai Junan Securities. A Peugeot tie is equally beneficial for Changan, the state parent of Chongqing Changan Automobile Co, which now operates a car venture with Ford Motor, other analysts said. China, which eclipsed the United States as the world’s top auto market last year, has been a major bright spot amid a global industry downturn and a safe heaven for foreign auto giants. PSA is already making Peugeot 408 and Citroen C5 sedans in partnership with Dongfeng Motor Group Co, but it lags most of its foreign rivals due in part to a limited portfolio. The venture sold only 175,190 cars in the first half, equivalent to a third of Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors’ combined tally and merely 15% of what GM sold in the country during the period. The French automaker, however, has been actively seeking to expand its footprint in the country. In November, as part of a plan to boost margins that relies heavily on emerging market growth, PSA unveiled a series of models designed to tap the booming Chinese market. Sources told Reuters in May that PSA and Dongfeng, with a combined annual auto production capacity of 450,000 units, aim to build their third plant by the end of this year. The greenfield facility, with annual capacity of between 150,000 and 200,000 units, is scheduled to be up and running by 2012. Other foreign auto makers are also expanding. GM, which already makes cars and light commercial vehicles with China’s major auto groups SAIC Motor Corp and FAW Group, is selecting a site for a greenfield China plant, executives had said. Volkswagen also pledged this year to add an additional 1.6 billion euros ($2.03 billion) to its previously announced 4.4 billion euro China investment scheme. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:29 am Govt sorting out China telco imports - officialNEW DELHI (Reuters) - India is working to sort out restrictions on Chinese telecommunications equipment imports, the country's top telecoms official said on Friday, without providing a timeframe for a decision.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:25 am Golden Ocean, Pipavav Shipyard end arbitration proceedingsGolden Ocean has withdrawn arbitration proceedings against Pipavav Shipyard.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:20 am June power output up 3.43 pct yr/yr - govtNEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's power output grew an annual 3.43 percent in June, the lowest increase since last November, with thermal generation constrained by limited availability of coal, the Central Electricity Authority said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:20 am ANALYSIS - Japan, S.Korea step up game in fight for resourcesTOKYO/SEOUL (Reuters) - Japanese and South Korean firms, backed increasingly by the state, are stepping up their game in the dash for global resources in which they face fierce competition from China.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:18 am Paris court allows Titagarh Wagons to buy French coTitagarh Wagons has announced that the Paris\' Commercial Court has declared it a winner to acquire a wagon company in France.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:15 am ECB's Trichet: budget cuts won't lead to new slumpFRANKFURT (Reuters) - European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet dismissed warnings that drastic and simultaneous spending cuts planned by euro zone governments could send the 16-country bloc back into recession.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:15 am Indirect tax collections up 43% to Rs56,930 cr in Apr-JunNew Delhi: Reflecting a marked recovery in industrial activity, indirect tax collections zoomed by 43% to Rs56,930 crore in the first quarter of this fiscal. The revenue from customs, excise and service tax, which make up the indirect taxes, during the April-June quarter of 2010-11 fiscal stood at Rs56,930.15 crore, up from Rs39,693.78 crore in the year-ago period, a finance ministry official told PTI. Out of the total indirect tax collections, realisation from customs zoomed by 60% to Rs28,135 crore and excise by 55% to Rs19,536 crore. Service tax collection, however, declined by 3% to Rs9,258 crore during the reporting quarter. The government has budgeted an overall tax mop-up of Rs7.46 lakh crore during this fiscal. While Rs3.16 lakh crore of this are expected to be realised from the indirect taxes front, Rs4.3 lakh are expected to be collected from direct taxes, which mainly consist of corporate tax and personal income tax. Sources attributed the higher indirect tax collection to partial withdrawal of the stimulus measures in the budget, besides economic recovery witnessed in the current fiscal. Rising prices of crude oil in the international market also contributed to higher realisation from customs. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee in the budget raised excise duty from 8 to 10 per cent and also increased duties on crude oil and petroleum products. The minister, however, did not raise the service tax rate retaining it at 10%. The overall economic growth in the current fiscal is estimated at 8.5%, up from 7.4% in the previous fiscal. As per the latest figures, industrial production in April, the first month of the fiscal, jumped to 17.6%. Reflecting the overall economic buoyancy, direct tax collection, which include corporate tax and personal income tax, rose by 15% to Rs68,675 crore. Corporate tax collection soared by 21.65% to Rs43,439 crore during the first quarter. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:08 am India gold buyers trickle in; price falls eyedMUMBAI (Reuters) - India gold buyers trickled in on Friday as traders anticipated a further fall in prices to stock for an upcoming festival season, even as a strong rupee acted in support, dealers said.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:03 am Nifty on firm foot; Idea, Bharti, DLF, Hindalco up - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:02 am Toyota chief: China labour trend both good and badNAGOYA, Japan (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp President Akio Toyoda said on Friday higher wages among Chinese factory workers would create a new class of consumers, and that the trend therefore had both "good and bad elements".Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:02 am EIH head says no plans to sell stake at the momentNEW DELHI (Reuters) - Hotel chain operator EIH Ltd Chairman PRS Oberoi said on Friday there were no immediate plans to sell stake in the firm.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 3:01 am U.S. data boost world shrs; euro near 2-mth highLONDON (Reuters) - European shares rose on Friday and the euro held near a two-month high against the dollar, bolstered by positive U.S. data and the European Central Bank's guarded optimism about euro zone recovery.Source: Reuters: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:59 am Govt needs to play greater role in checking inflation: Moody’sNew Delhi: The government needs to play greater role in taming inflation by reigning in spending, as the Reserve Bank’s tightening of its policy rates will have little impact on checking price rise, global research firm Moody’s said today. “India is facing its worst inflation problem in a decade, and since the central bank can do little in the short run, the government must play a greater role in addressing it, Moody’s Analytics said. “The problem cannot be tamed by simply raising interest rates to slow monetary growth,” it added. Moody’s said growth of bank credit and money supply were sluggish in May at 18.8% and 15.1%, year-on- year, but surging prices of food and imports saw consumer inflation reach 13.9% during the month. It said although the government has taken steps to divest stake in public sector undertakings (PSUs) and cut oil subsidies, it needs to reign in spending and borrowing because the combined central and state deficit is close to 10% of the GDP, total economic output. The research firm added that fiscal austerity would slow prices and boost the economy’s longer-term prospects. “With economic growth on a solid footing, inflation spiking, and liquidity in the banking system short, there is little excuse for not taking aggressive action to quickly reduce the budget deficit,” Moody’s said. It said that with key state elections coming up there was a major question over whether the government would have the political will to step up austerity measures. Moody’s added, however, that with business confidence revived and firms looking to expand, it should set aside concerns about upsetting coalition members and tighten its fiscal affairs. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:39 am Bajaj Ultra Low Cost car on track - Business Standard
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:29 am ICICI Bank raises $500 mn via bonds issue - NDTV.com
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:23 am Rupee trades stronger; stock gains boost - Economic Times
Source: Business - Google News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:16 am Food inflation to come down in coming weeks: Sharad PawarThe government on June 25 raised the prices of petrol and diesel by up to Rs3.50 a litre, while that of LPG and kerosene were hiked by 35 per cylinder and Rs3 a litre respectively.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 9 Jul 2010 | 2:07 am Fujitsu plans to beef up cloud computing businessTokyo: Fujitsu Ltd, Japan’s biggest IT services provider, said on Friday it plans to boost investment in cloud computing by 54% this year to beef up its operations in one of the IT sector’s hottest areas. It will also seek more global partnerships and acquisitions to expand its software and product offerings accessed online, and key targets will include software firms with strong technologies or client bases, president Masami Yamamoto told a news conference. Fujitsu, the world’s No. 3 IT services vendor after IBM and Hewlett-Packard, plans to spend $1.1 billion on its cloud computing business by March 2011 and aims to grow sales from the operations to ¥1.3-1.5 trillion by 2015-16. That would be a large increase from about ¥100 billion sales generated last financial year. “This field offers new challenges but it is also a business chance with big growth potential,” Yamamoto told a briefing. “We will make a groupwide effort to build up our cloud business this year.” For the current year to March, Fujitsu expects operating profit to double to ¥185 billion. The company kept its 2011-12 targets for ¥250 billion in operating profit and ¥130 billion in net profit. Yamamoto said the company can generate about ¥150 billion free cash flow annually, and acquisitions would be a possible use of this cash. Fujitsu has recently been making headlines over the ouster of former president Kuniaki Nozoe, but Yamamoto reiterated that the scandal has had little impact on its operations. Shinkin Asset Management fund manager Tomomi Yamashita said there have been market fears that Fujitsu would cut its earnings outlook, and the company’s decision not to change its forecast could be seen as a positive. He added that recovering IT demand has not been reflected in Fujitsu’s share price. “They can expect a boost from IT services ... I don’t think these expectations are fully factored into the share price, so it’s cheap.” Fujitsu shares closed up 2.3% at ¥579, outperforming a 0.5% rise in the benchmark Nikkei average. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:38 am Fujitsu plans to beef up cloud computing businessTokyo: Fujitsu Ltd, Japan’s biggest IT services provider, said on Friday it plans to boost investment in cloud computing by 54% this year to beef up its operations in one of the IT sector’s hottest areas. It will also seek more global partnerships and acquisitions to expand its software and product offerings accessed online, and key targets will include software firms with strong technologies or client bases, president Masami Yamamoto told a news conference. Fujitsu, the world’s No. 3 IT services vendor after IBM and Hewlett-Packard, plans to spend $1.1 billion on its cloud computing business by March 2011 and aims to grow sales from the operations to ¥1.3-1.5 trillion by 2015-16. That would be a large increase from about ¥100 billion sales generated last financial year. “This field offers new challenges but it is also a business chance with big growth potential,” Yamamoto told a briefing. “We will make a groupwide effort to build up our cloud business this year.” For the current year to March, Fujitsu expects operating profit to double to ¥185 billion. The company kept its 2011-12 targets for ¥250 billion in operating profit and ¥130 billion in net profit. Yamamoto said the company can generate about ¥150 billion free cash flow annually, and acquisitions would be a possible use of this cash. Fujitsu has recently been making headlines over the ouster of former president Kuniaki Nozoe, but Yamamoto reiterated that the scandal has had little impact on its operations. Shinkin Asset Management fund manager Tomomi Yamashita said there have been market fears that Fujitsu would cut its earnings outlook, and the company’s decision not to change its forecast could be seen as a positive. He added that recovering IT demand has not been reflected in Fujitsu’s share price. “They can expect a boost from IT services ... I don’t think these expectations are fully factored into the share price, so it’s cheap.” Fujitsu shares closed up 2.3% at ¥579, outperforming a 0.5% rise in the benchmark Nikkei average. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:38 am Food inflation to come down in coming weeks: PawarAgriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today said the decline in prices of most agricultural commodities in coming weeks will bring down the food inflation, which is 12.63 per cent.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 9 Jul 2010 | 1:03 am Facebook in deal to sell site credits in AsiaKuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Facebook is partnering with a Malaysian company to sell credits at retail outlets across Asia for the first time, aiming to make it easier for millions of people to purchase virtual goods and play games on the social networking site while boosting revenue for developers. Electronic payments company MOL, part of the business empire of tycoon Vincent Tan will offer the online currency from 1 August at more than 500,000 outlets including 7-Eleven stores and Internet cafes in five Southeast Asian countries, India, Australia and New Zealand, company spokesman Nor Badron said Friday. The move is targeting people who don’t have a credit card, particularly younger Facebook users, and those who don’t want to take the risk of making payments online. “Asia has a huge gaming community, and it’s typically young people,” Nor said. “The penetration for credit cards is very low... so the developers are not making money and missing this opportunity.” Nor said MOL already sells prepaid credits for other online games at its established network of stores, but it will be the first time that consumers can buy credits for Facebook’s applications, including such popular games as Mob Wars and FarmVille, without credit cards. MOL, which last year bought social networking site Friendster, announced the partnership with Facebook in a press release Thursday. “We view this agreement as a major opportunity to broaden the availability of a simple, unified currency that can be used in games and applications across Facebook,” said Vaughan Smith, director of business and corporate development at Facebook, in the press release. “Working with MOL means we can offer the benefits of Facebook Credits to millions of people in Asia using a payment system that is already widely used and trusted,” he said. In Southeast Asia, the credits will be sold in Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines. More than 70% of Facebook members use applications, and payment transactions and volume have seen a double-digit increase over the last quarters, according to MOL. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:50 am Facebook in deal to sell site credits in AsiaKuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Facebook is partnering with a Malaysian company to sell credits at retail outlets across Asia for the first time, aiming to make it easier for millions of people to purchase virtual goods and play games on the social networking site while boosting revenue for developers. Electronic payments company MOL, part of the business empire of tycoon Vincent Tan will offer the online currency from 1 August at more than 500,000 outlets including 7-Eleven stores and Internet cafes in five Southeast Asian countries, India, Australia and New Zealand, company spokesman Nor Badron said Friday. The move is targeting people who don’t have a credit card, particularly younger Facebook users, and those who don’t want to take the risk of making payments online. “Asia has a huge gaming community, and it’s typically young people,” Nor said. “The penetration for credit cards is very low... so the developers are not making money and missing this opportunity.” Nor said MOL already sells prepaid credits for other online games at its established network of stores, but it will be the first time that consumers can buy credits for Facebook’s applications, including such popular games as Mob Wars and FarmVille, without credit cards. MOL, which last year bought social networking site Friendster, announced the partnership with Facebook in a press release Thursday. “We view this agreement as a major opportunity to broaden the availability of a simple, unified currency that can be used in games and applications across Facebook,” said Vaughan Smith, director of business and corporate development at Facebook, in the press release. “Working with MOL means we can offer the benefits of Facebook Credits to millions of people in Asia using a payment system that is already widely used and trusted,” he said. In Southeast Asia, the credits will be sold in Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines. More than 70% of Facebook members use applications, and payment transactions and volume have seen a double-digit increase over the last quarters, according to MOL. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:50 am Markets rise as telcos soar on stocks upgradeMumbai: Indian shares rose 1.1% on Friday, with telecom stocks cheering an upgrade by Credit Suisse, and Infosys Technologies testing new high on better earnings expectations ahead of its quarterly results next week. Top mobile operator Bharti Airtel soared as much as 10.4%, while rivals Reliance Communications and Idea Cellular climbed as much as 3.9% and 14.7% respectively. Credit Suisse upgraded Bharti to “outperform” from “neutral”, Reliance Communications to “neutral” from “underperform”, and Idea Cellular to “outperform” from “underperform”. “We believe that concerns on competition, regulation, 3G auction fee and RIL’s entry have been overstated,” Credit Suisse said in a note on Thursday. By 11:59am, the 30-share BSE Index was trading up 1.05% at 17,836.50 points, with 25 of its components in the green. The 50-share NSE index was up 1% at 5,351.95 points. “There are expectations built that IT and telecom stocks may surprise market on the positive side at June-quarter results,” said Deven Choksey, managing director and CEO of KR Choksey Shares. “As far as telecom stocks are concerned, the valuations are cheap. All negatives are priced in, and prices cannot dip from here.” The benchmark is up 2.2% so far this week. It has gained 0.8% this month on the back of around 107 million inflows from foreign funds. IT bellwether Infosys, which unveils its quarterly earnings on 13 June, rose as much as 1.9% to a record high of Rs2,879.90. Its earnings are often dubbed as a trendsetter for the sectoral peers. “We expect robust results from Tier 1 IT vendors to demonstrate the underlying demand strength,” Macquarie said in a note. It expects Infosys to raise fiscal year 2011 US dollar revenue growth guidance to 17-19% from 16-18%. Its peers Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro rose 0.1% and 0.9% respectively. Lenders continued to rise on expectations that credit demand would pick up on the back of robust economic growth. The country’s top lender State Bank of India was up 0.8% while leading private-sector rivals ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank gained 0.8% and 1.6% respectively. Bajaj Auto rose 0.5% after the auto player signed an agreement with Renault-Nissan alliance to manufacture an ultra low-cost car to be sold in India and other emerging markets, which would be a rival to Tata Motors’ Nano. In the broader market, gainers were nearly double the losers in a volume of 191 million shares. STOCKS Pratibha Industries was up 1.1% at Rs415 as the construction firm said it has won a project from National Highways Authority of India for two-laning of a section of NH-86. KPIT Cummins Infosystems rose after the software firm said on Thursday it is considering buying a German automotive product company with revenue earnings below $5 million at its board meeting scheduled on 13 July. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:47 am ENIL to turnaround after outdoor biz saleMumbai: Entertainment Network (India) Ltd expects to swing to profit in FY11 after selling its loss-making out-of-home unit helping it strengthen its balance sheet and focus on core operations, a senior official said. ENIL, which operates the Radio Mirchi network of radio stations, said it was selling Times Innovative Media Ltd, in which its holds 83.4%, to parent Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd for Rs118 crore, including debt. The company, which had posted consolidated losses over the past two years, expects to register a net profit of Rs35-40 crore in FY11, said Dalpat Jain, assistant vice president, strategic finance and investor relations. “This out-of-home unit was incurring losses in traditional and airport terminal businesses. There were uncertainties about new orders and it needed additional capital. The overall dynamic was not looking attractive,” Jain said over the telephone. Its outdoor business has presence in all segments including street furniture, transit, large formats and digital screens. In 2009-10, the firm’s consolidated net loss narrowed to Rs15.3 crore from Rs60.3 crore in FY09 while net sales was mostly steady at Rs420 crore. Two of its large contracts - Delhi and Mumbai airports - are due to expire this month, Jain said adding that though it has won the bid for Delhi terminal, ENIL was not keen on investing fresh capital as it wanted to save cash for radio expansion. ENIL will now be left with the radio and event management businesses after the stake sale. It radio business posted a net profit of Rs18 crore on a standalone basis in FY10 while event management broke even during the year, Jain said. After the sell-off and debt repayment, the company expects to get cash of Rs75 crore, which it will use to boost expansion and growth in radio business, he added. Indian media and entertainment industry is heading for several such mid-sized deals in coming quarters as loss-making operators look to consolidate around core-segments while regional players try to expand. “Radio is a highly operating leverage business. Majority of the revenue flows to bottomline. For phase 3 expansion we will need capital. So we will conserve this cash for now,” he said. The firm plans to bid during the Indian government’s phase 3 roll-out of radio frequencies. Radio operators are expecting additional allocation of frequencies and opening up of current affairs and news content to private radio operators. Shares slump Investors, however, gave a thumbs down to the deal, saying ENIL sold its business, which was expected to grow at a faster pace and contribute meaningfully to the topline, cheap. Analysts said this is not a fair price for the business which was expected to be a significant growth area for the company. “It’s a value destruction for shareholders. Because the company created momentum for this business earlier and now are selling it at a dismal valuation,” said a Mumbai-based analyst who did not want to be named. Morgan Stanley India was the adviser to the deal. Shares of ENIL rose nearly 15% in the last 3 months helped by prospects of new contracts from major airports in the country, analysts said. At 12.35 p.m., shares of the firm were down 11.82% at Rs207 in a firm mumbai market. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:44 am Food inflation to come down in coming weeks: PawarNew Delhi: Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar said the decline in prices of most agricultural commodities in coming weeks will bring down the food inflation, which is 12.63% now. “Prices of most agricultural commodities are coming down. It is great relief to consumers. The trend of food inflation will continue to come down in the coming weeks,” Pawar told reporters on the sidelines of a sugar conference here. Food inflation declined for the second consecutive week to stand at 12.63% for the week ended 26 June. “Food inflation is coming down day by day,” Pawar said. However, economists believe that food inflation would continue to remain in double digits for sometime now as the impact of fuel price increase would be seen going ahead. The government on 25 June raised the prices of petrol and diesel by up to Rs3.50 a litre, while that of LPG and kerosene were hiked by 35 per cylinder and Rs3 a litre respectively. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee had said earlier this week that the decision would push up overall inflation by less than a percentage point. The overall inflation, which includes food and fuel inflation, was was 10.16% in May. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:43 am Why is China so important to Google?Shanghai: Google Inc surprised markets on Thursday when it expressed confidence its China Web licences would be renewed. In a bid to secure the licence, the world’s largest search engine said last week it would stop automatically redirecting users of its China search site, Google.cn, to its uncensored Hong Kong site. The saga began when Google said in January it may quit China over censorship concerns and after suffering a hacker attack it said came from within China. WHY IS GOOGLE FIGHTING SO HARD? Without the Internet Content Provider licence, Google’s search presence in China will revert back to when it did not have a localised search page. China users keen to access Google search had to turn to its offshore sites, meaning longer search times -- and a boost for Baidu, the top local player. Google’s current search business in China accounts for a tiny slice of its $24 billion in annual revenue, with analyst putting its annual China revenue at $300-$400 million. But the long-term growth prospects are key. As the world’s largest Internet market with nearly 400 million users, China has huge potential. Firms which got out of it early, such as eBay and Yahoo Inc, haven’t been able to regain a foothold. IF ALLOWED TO STAY, WHAT’S THE UPSIDE AND DOWNSIDE? Google’s hard-fought effort to stay in China may pay off if it successfully maintains access to the world’s largest Internet market by users. With an Internet penetration rate of 25 percent, China’s online sector is still in its infancy. Japan and South Korea, the two most Internet savvy Asian countries, have penetration rates between 70 to 80 percent. China holds not only huge market potential for search, but also from other Internet sectors including social-networking, e-commerce and online gaming. The downside of operating in such a market is the strict government controls -- a source of friction between Google and Beijing that was largely responsible for the original dispute. Allowing itself to be subjected to China’s censorship rules could undermine Google’s credibility after it won plaudits on the world stage earlier this year for its tough China stance. WITHOUT SEARCH, WHAT DOES GOOGLE HAVE LEFT? Without search, Google still has its Android platform, an open source operating system for mobile phones. Credit Suisse analyst Wallace Cheung expects Android to become the most popular mobile operating system in China in the long run, beating out Apple’s popular iPhone. China’s two main telecom firms China Mobile and China Unicom already offer smartphones running Google’s Android system. The non-renewal of Google’s ICP licence spells uncertainty for Android as China could also find a way to make it hard for Google to develop and market the platform in China. WHAT’S THE FATE OF GOOGLE’S PRODUCTS IN CHINA? Google is keen to provide non-search functions on the Google.cn site such as music search and text translation. Google Maps may face difficulties in the near future as China recently implemented new laws requiring firms wanting to provide online mapping services to apply for a licence. On Wednesday, China’s State Bureau for Surveying and Mapping released a preliminary list of 23 companies approved for online mapping. Baidu was on the list but Google was not. Other popular Google products such as Blogger and YouTube are blocked in China, which defends the move on the need to ensure public security and social harmony. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:28 am Why is China so important to Google?Shanghai: Google Inc surprised markets on Thursday when it expressed confidence its China Web licences would be renewed. In a bid to secure the licence, the world’s largest search engine said last week it would stop automatically redirecting users of its China search site, Google.cn, to its uncensored Hong Kong site. The saga began when Google said in January it may quit China over censorship concerns and after suffering a hacker attack it said came from within China. WHY IS GOOGLE FIGHTING SO HARD? Without the Internet Content Provider licence, Google’s search presence in China will revert back to when it did not have a localised search page. China users keen to access Google search had to turn to its offshore sites, meaning longer search times -- and a boost for Baidu, the top local player. Google’s current search business in China accounts for a tiny slice of its $24 billion in annual revenue, with analyst putting its annual China revenue at $300-$400 million. But the long-term growth prospects are key. As the world’s largest Internet market with nearly 400 million users, China has huge potential. Firms which got out of it early, such as eBay and Yahoo Inc, haven’t been able to regain a foothold. IF ALLOWED TO STAY, WHAT’S THE UPSIDE AND DOWNSIDE? Google’s hard-fought effort to stay in China may pay off if it successfully maintains access to the world’s largest Internet market by users. With an Internet penetration rate of 25 percent, China’s online sector is still in its infancy. Japan and South Korea, the two most Internet savvy Asian countries, have penetration rates between 70 to 80 percent. China holds not only huge market potential for search, but also from other Internet sectors including social-networking, e-commerce and online gaming. The downside of operating in such a market is the strict government controls -- a source of friction between Google and Beijing that was largely responsible for the original dispute. Allowing itself to be subjected to China’s censorship rules could undermine Google’s credibility after it won plaudits on the world stage earlier this year for its tough China stance. WITHOUT SEARCH, WHAT DOES GOOGLE HAVE LEFT? Without search, Google still has its Android platform, an open source operating system for mobile phones. Credit Suisse analyst Wallace Cheung expects Android to become the most popular mobile operating system in China in the long run, beating out Apple’s popular iPhone. China’s two main telecom firms China Mobile and China Unicom already offer smartphones running Google’s Android system. The non-renewal of Google’s ICP licence spells uncertainty for Android as China could also find a way to make it hard for Google to develop and market the platform in China. WHAT’S THE FATE OF GOOGLE’S PRODUCTS IN CHINA? Google is keen to provide non-search functions on the Google.cn site such as music search and text translation. Google Maps may face difficulties in the near future as China recently implemented new laws requiring firms wanting to provide online mapping services to apply for a licence. On Wednesday, China’s State Bureau for Surveying and Mapping released a preliminary list of 23 companies approved for online mapping. Baidu was on the list but Google was not. Other popular Google products such as Blogger and YouTube are blocked in China, which defends the move on the need to ensure public security and social harmony. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:28 am Rupee rises on stock gains, weak dollar overseasMumbai: The Indian rupee rose on Friday on weak dollar overseas and better local shares, but some dollar demand for a Muslim religious pilgrimage prevented a sharp rise in the Indian unit against the dollar, dealers said. At 10:44am, the partially convertible rupee was at Rs46.7650/7750 per dollar, stronger than Thursday’s close of Rs46.8525/8625. “There is some dollar demand in the market by the Haj pilgrimage committee. They buy two-three month forward contracts to hedge their exchange risk. This outward remittance will happen in September or October,” said R.K. Gurumurthy, head of treasury at ING Vysya Bank. He expects a demand of $50 million -$75 million from the Haj committee in the day. Dealers expect the rupee to move in the band of Rs46.65-46.85 per dollar in the day. “There may not be a sharp appreciation in the rupee as the market is sitting under net long dollar position,” a private bank dealer said. The rupee tracked other Asian currencies which also rose on a weak dollar overseas and strong equity markets. Most Asian currencies were strong versus the dollar. The index of the dollar against six majors was down 0.01%. The euro held near two-month highs on Friday, while the yen was under pressure as investors cut long positions and veered towards high-yielding currencies on improving risk appetite. Indian shares were trading 0.98% higher in early trade, tracking gains in the world markets. “The overall view on the rupee has changed. It is no longer expected to rise sharply given that eventually, rate hike won’t be positive for stocks,” Gurumurthy added. India’s fuel inflation accelerated in late June and a recent hike in fuel prices kept the case for the central bank to top its last Friday’s rate hike when it reviews policy on 27 July. One-month offshore non-deliverable forward contracts were quoted at Rs46.93, weaker than the onshore spot rate. In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month dollar-rupee contracts on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX were both at 46.8850, with the total traded volume on the two exchanges at about $841 million. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:16 am Crop output to rise; time for sugar reform: PawarNew Delhi: India expects a strong rebound in farm output, which will substantially reduce food price inflation that has soared since last year when the country’s worst drought in 37 years hit crops, the agriculture minister said. This year’s June-September monsoon was 16% below normal last month, but rainfall has revived significantly, calming fears of shortages and higher prices. India also needs to ease tight controls on the sugar sector, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar told a conference of sugar millers on Friday. “The sugar sector is heavily regulated. This is the time (millers) and government should sit together to decide on easing restrictions on sugar sector,” he told the conference. He said India may allow manufacturers of soft drinks, ice creams and biscuits to raise their sugar stocks following an improvement in supply in the world’s top consumer. Large consumers, which account for more than two-thirds of the sugar sold in India, are currently allowed to stock sugar equivalent to 10 days of consumption. The government is also considering a tax on sugar imports, Pawar said. Last year, India withdrew the import tax on sugar and asked big consumers to trim their stocks to ensure steady supplies in the country as local output fell as farmers reduced cane planting and a drought hit output. But sugar production is now expected to rise. “The government is actively considering imposition of duty on import of sugar and increasing stock-holding limits for bulk consumers,” Pawar said. On Monday, the minister told reporters the government was planning to tax white sugar imports in the new season that starts in October, but would wait until it gets a clear picture of the cane crop in the next two months. “Decisions will be taken at an appropriate time,” Pawar told millers at the conference. Monsoon rains are forecast to be normal this year, but heavy showers in recent days have reduced the seasonal deficit to 10% and flooded parts of Haryana and Punjab, the main grain producers. Pawar said the flood situation was not serious. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:09 am Exploration firms get three-year rig holidayOil and gas explorers such as Reliance Industries Ltd, ONGC, and ENI have got a three-year rig holiday to complete their exploration activities for blocks awarded under licensing rounds up toSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am IMF lifts India growth forecast to 9.4% in 2010The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday raised its India growth forecast for 2010 to 9.4 per cent from 8.8 per cent estimated inSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am Waka waka for South AfricaThe Bafana Bafana may have exited the football World Cup early but South Africans' interest in their most popular game sustains for reasons sporting and economic. From June 11, world attention has been riveted on South Africa, where thousandsSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am Godrej Industries (Rs 176.1): BuyWe recommend a buy in the stock of Godrej Industries from a short-term horizon. After recording a 52-week high of Rs 218 in December 2009, the stock was on a medium-term downtrend until it found support at Rs 140 in late March 2010, that is aSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am Fuel inflation hots up even as food inflation coolsFood inflation, measured by the Wholesale Price Index, rose 12.63 per cent in the week ended June 26, marginally below from the previous week's annual rise of 12.92 perSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am India's inflation highest among developing nationsIt would seem so, going by latest available official inflation data across major emergingSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am Day Trading GuideWe reiterate our buy recommendation in ICICI Bank with stiff stop-loss at Rs 850Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am China: Bent on a soft landing?With growth and experience should come wisdom. But it doesn't come toSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am OVL gets Cabinet nod to withdraw from Trinidad projectONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) has got the Government nod to withdraw from the exploration project in the North Coast Marine Area (NCMA) 2 Block in Trinidad &Source: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am SRK's ‘Ra.One' cracks the big bucks barrierKites and Raavan may have ended up being damp squibs at the box-office but as far as Bollywood is concerned, the show must goSource: Business Line - Home Page | 9 Jul 2010 | 12:00 am Honda China plant briefly halted over labour strifeThe Honda factory affected by the partial walkout this week is majority owned by Japan's No2 automaker, and currently builds about 160 Jazz subcompacts a day bound for Europe.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:52 pm Oil nears $76 on upbeat outlook for global economyIn morning Asian trade, New York's main contract, light sweet crude for delivery in August, was up 30 cents to $75.74 a barrel, and Brent North Sea crude gained 33 cents to $75.04.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:48 pm Rupee gains 12 paise in early trade on foreign capital inflowsThe rupee had closed 17 paise higher at 46.86/87 against the American currency in the previous session.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:46 pm Google confident of getting China web licenceSUN VALLEY, Idaho (Reuters) - Google Inc Chief Executive Eric Schmidt expressed confidence the company will secure a licence to operate a website in China, confounding speculation Beijing may shut down its flagship site there.Source: Reuters: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:46 pm Infosys shares hit record high ahead of earnings - Reuters
Source: Business - Google News | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:38 pm Gold regains strength but struggles below $1,200Singapore: Gold edged up to near $1,200 an ounce on Friday as bargain buying helped offset selling from speculators, who had shifted some of their money to equities on hopes of an economic recovery. Dealers saw purchases from jewellers and other physical buyers across Asia, keeping premiums for gold bars steady. The electronics sector in Japan was on the sidelines, but bargain hunters snapped up platinum. Asian stocks rallied for a second day, with the Nikkei poised for its best week in about four months as risk appetite got a boost from a fall in US jobless claims and an upbeat view on Europe’s economy from the European Central Bank. Spot gold added $1.12 to $1,197.60 an ounce by 11:03am, well below a lifetime high above $1,264 struck in late June on worries that the debt crisis in Europe could spread and the US economy was slowing. “We see a lot of people buying gold on dips, below $1,200. However, what we see in these past few days is a bit of indecision in the market,” said Ong Yi Ling, investment analyst at Phillip Futures in Singapore. “In the long run, I don’t think that the economic recovery is still entrenched yet. People are still waiting for more signs that the economic recovery is really on track.” US gold futures for August delivery rose $2.2 to $1,198.3 an ounce, having hit an intraday low around $1,187 on Thursday as investors dumped bullion to buy riskier assets. With spot gold down nearly 1 pct this week, and still hovering below its 50-day moving average, some consumers might wait for more declines. “It’s still a heavily bought market so it’s going to be vulnerable to profit taking,” said Mark Pervan, senior commodities analyst at ANZ in Melbourne. “I think $1,170 is still safe to be the next key support level. If it breaks through $1,170, then you are probably going to move down to $1,130 pretty quickly,” said Pervan, referring to levels seen in May and April. Lower prices attracted steady purchases from jewellers in Thailand and Indonesia as well as buying from bargain hunters in Hong Kong. “The physical demand is still very high. My orders go to up to next Friday at premiums of 80 cents,” said a dealer in Singapore, who was busy selling gold bars to top consumer India. The world’s largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, SPDR Gold Trust, said its holdings slipped to 1,316.036 tonnes by July 8 from 1,316.481 on 6 July. The holdings hit a record at 1,320.436 tonnes on 29 June. Source: LatestNews-Home - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:37 pm Bharti surges over 10% after stock upgradeMumbai: Bharti Airtel, India’s leading mobile operator, rose more than 10% on Friday to its highest level in nearly three months after Credit Suisse upgraded the stock citing stable call tariffs. India, the world’s fastest-growing mobile market, is signing up new mobile subscribers at a monthly average of 16 million, but call prices have fallen to as low as 0.4 US cents a minute amid stiff competition in the crowded 15-operator market. Credit Suisse, which upgraded Bharti to “outperform” from “neutral”, said tariffs had been stable in the last eight months and high cost for 3G mobile spectrum had crimped mobile operators’ ability to go for further price war. At 11:16 a.m., the stock was trading 8.7% higher at Rs305.25, after rising as much as 10.4% to their highest since 15 April. The stock is still down 5.7% so far this year. Rival Reliance Communications was up nearly 3% at Rs193.30, while the Mumbai market was trading 1% higher. Reliance Communications and the main index are up 13% and 2.2%, respectively, in 2010. India’s three biggest carriers -- Vodafone’s India unit, Bharti and Reliance — each won key licences in May to offer 3G services in Delhi and Mumbai — the biggest markets in the country. The auction yielded the Indian government $14.6 billion in revenues, nearly twice what it had expected. “Revenue market shares are steady, high auction prices could force most players to avoid competitive actions and regulatory risks could be exaggerated,” Credit Suisse analysts wrote in the research report. “Reasonable valuations could protect downside and lead to a favourable risk-reward profile. We are, therefore, turning positive on the sector.” Bharti, which completed its $9 billion acquisition of African operations from Kuwait’s Zain last month, trades at 13 times its one-year forward earnings compared to 14 times in Reliance Communications, according to Starmine data. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:35 pm Asian stocks lifted by US data; euro pausesHong Kong: Asian stocks rallied for a second day and the euro held near two-month highs on Friday, supported on positive US data and after the European Central Bank’s offered upbeat view of the euro zone’s recovery. The MSCI index of Asia Pacific ex-Japan stocks rose 0.9%, on track for its biggest weekly gain in seven months, with the consumer durables and energy sectors outpeforming. Tokyo’s Nikkei share average firmed 0.4% holding above a key support level and after pulling away from a seven-month low. It is now poised to book its best weekly performance in about four months. “The market has factored in worries about Europe and the possibility of a double dip in the US economy, and it’s now most likely found a floor,” said Kazuhiro Takahashi, general manager at Daiwa Securities Capital Markets. Overnight, Wall Street’s made a late-session rally after first-time US jobless claims dropped to their lowest level in two months and handful of large retailers reported solid sales. Interest rate increases by the South Korean and Malaysian central banks have underlined the growing confidence about Asia’s recovery after the International Monetary Fund said a double-dip world recession was unlikely. Taiwan’s main TAIEX share index is on track to record its biggest weekly gain in 10 months. The euro was flat at $1.2684 after it broke past resistance at $1.2673 on Thursday when it advanced nearly 0.5% against the US dollar to two-month highs and jumped over 1% against the low-yielding yen. ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said on Thursday he expects the euro area economy to grow “at a moderate and still uneven pace in an environment of high uncertainty.” The euro also received a boost from details about Europe’s bank stress tests which heartened investors who saw criteria for the checks were no worse than markets expected. The Australian dollar steadied after hitting a 2-week high on Thursday on solid Australian job data, which brought back the risk of near-term rate increases. The New Zealand dollar also held near its highest level since June 28. US crude for August rose 29 cents to $75.73 a barrel on Friday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after touching an intraday peak of $76 on Thursday, the highest price this month. ICE Brent gained 38 cents to $75.09. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:27 pm Militants strike at three places in Kashmir, curfew continuesSrinagar: Militants struck at three places in Sopore in North Kashmir, leaving two policemen injured as curfew remained in force in violence-hit areas of of the valley for the fourth day today. Army, which staged flag marches in Srinagar, did not repeat the exercise this morning. The district administration asked the force to remain on stand by for deployment in case of an emergency. The authorities were working on plans to give phased-relaxation in curfew to allow people to offer prayers. Chief minister Omar Abdullah held an early morning review of the situation with senior administration and police officials and discussed the plan of curfew relaxation keeping in mind Friday prayers and Shab-e-Mehraj, a religious function, tomorrow. Omar has also convened an all-party meeting in Srinagar on Monday to discuss present situation. Suspected Lashkar-e-Taiba Militants hurled three grenades at a police convoy in the outskirts of Sopore city, 54 kms from here at 0030 hours today, official sources said. The grenades were followed by heavy firing which was effectively retaliated by the security personnel, they said, adding no one was injured. The second incident took place at 0130 hours at main crossing of the city in Sopore, which left a jawan of Indian Reserve Police injured. The third incident took place on Sopore-Baramulla road on 0230 hours when terrorists fired upon police vehicles, leaving one of the police drivers injured, the sources said. Additional paramilitary forces comprising eight companies (800 personnel) sought by the state arrived last evening and were immediately deployed in troubled areas of Srinagar city. The curfew restrictions forced local media persons to stay indoors and newspapers did not hit the stands for the second day today. Curfew was also being enforced strictly in Srinagar, where three persons were killed in alleged firing by security forces on Tuesday. Amid intercepts suggesting involvement of hardline separatists in engineering some of the violence in the Valley, the state government carried out massive raids during the night and arrested a dozen people including Shabir Ahmed Wani, district president of Hurriyat Conference led by pro-Pakistan separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani. Home minister P Chidambaram had hoped yesterday that Army would not be required for too long in the valley and had appealed to the people to observe the restrictions. “Army was deployed at the request of government of Jammu and Kashmir. I am not at liberty to disclose where it has been deployed. But I can assure that most of the places affected are still being patrolled and curfew enforced by J and K Police and paramilitary forces,” he had said in New Delhi. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:18 pm India sorting out China telco import issue: OfficialIndia is working to sort out restrictions on Chinese telecom equipment imports, Telecom Secretary P J Thomas said on Friday, but did not provide a timeframe for a decision.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:17 pm Infosys shares hit record high ahead of earningsBangalore: Shares in Infosys Technologies, India’s second-largest outsourcer, rose almost 2% on Friday to a record high on optimism about quarterly earnings next week. “Infosys is expected to outperform its forecast and upgrade its full-year outlook; plus it is good fundamentally,” said Harit Shah, IT analyst with domestic brokerage Karvy Stock Broking. By 10:41 a.m., Infosys was up 1.5% at 2,869.40 after hitting 2,879.90, outpacing a 1% rise in the main stock index. Most analysts expect Infosys, which reports June quarter results on Tuesday, to raise its revenue growth guidance in dollar terms for 2010-11 to 17-19% from 16-18% given in April. “We expect robust results from Tier 1 IT vendors to demonstrate the underlying demand strength,” Macquarie said in a note. Analysts expect the rupee’s 3.3% fall against the US dollar in the June quarter to partially offset the impact of salary hikes and euro volatility for exporters such as Infosys, which generates more than half its sales from the United States. Shares in Infosys, which has a market value of about $35 billion, currently trade at a price to earnings multiple of 25-27, according to calculation by Reuters. “The valuation is expensive,” said Shah, who has a ‘market performer’ rating on the stock with a 12-month target of Rs3,025. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:11 pm BSE Sensex rises 0.8%; Infosys leadsThe BSE Sensex rose 0.8% in early trade on Friday, with Infosys Technologies and Reliance Industries leading the rise, tracking the gains in world equities.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:10 pm Bharti up about 9 per cent after stock upgradeShares in Bharti Airtel, India's leading mobile operator, rose nearly 9 per cent today after Credit Suisse upgraded the stock to outperform from neutral.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 11:02 pm Oil set for 5% weekly gain on US demandSingapore: Oil was headed for a five-percent weekly gain, the biggest since May, after government statistics showed robust US demand growth and falling inventories, while positive economic indicators lifted sentiment across markets. Asian equities inched higher on Friday, after solid earnings from key retail chains and a better than expected weekly US jobs report sent Wall Street higher on Thurday. US crude inventories fell 5 million barrels last week, more than twice as much as expected, while the nation’s demand for distillate fuels including heating oil and diesel soared 30 percent in the past four weeks from a year earlier, the Energy Information Administration said on Thursday. “Oil was probably sold too heavily to the downside,” said Peter McGuire, managing director at CWA Global Markets in Sydney. “Distillate usage is a wonderful indicator for tracking industrial production, it’s a great sign of a turnaround.” US crude for August rose 29 cents to $75.73 a barrel on Friday by 8:22am, on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after touching an intraday peak of $76 on Thursday, the highest price this month. ICE Brent gained 38 cents to $75.09. Oil was headed for its fourth-biggest weekly gain of the year. But front-month WTI was still well below a 19-month peak above $87 reached in early May, having rebounded sharply from a trough below $65 on 20 May. Wall Street staged a late-day surge on Thursday, extending a rally to three days on upbeat US jobs data that also boosted European shares to 10-day highs and the euro to a two-week peak. “With equity markets rebounding, there is a little bit more positive sentiment,” McGuire said. The International Monetary Fund raised its 2010 global growth forecast on Thursday, citing an expansion in Asia and in US private sector demand. The IMF raised its 2010 global output growth forecast to 4.6% from 4.2% after a fall of 0.6 percent in 2009. The IMF said a double-dip recession was unlikely, which helped boost the outlook for oil demand. Oil inventories at the key US Cushing, Oklahoma, crude oil hub fell more than 350,000 barrels in the week to 6 July to 38.9 million barrels, figures from energy industry data provider Genscape showed on Thursday. US gasoline inventories unexpectedly rose by 1.32 million barrels last week, EIA data showed, even after consumption increased by 2.4% over the past four weeks from a year earlier. Distillate stocks rose a smaller-than-expected 321,000 barrels. The Obama administration declined to label China a currency manipulator in a long-delayed report on Thursday, spurring fresh calls from US lawmakers for tough new steps to pressure Beijing. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 10:56 pm Committed to WTO talks, logjam must end: IndiaIndia remains committed to the long-delayed Doha round of global trade talks and does not believe that bilateral and regional trade deals will affect the multilateral process, its trade minister said.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 10:54 pm India committed to WTO talks, logjam must end: ministerSingapore: India remains committed to the long-delayed Doha round of global trade talks and does not believe that bilateral and regional trade deals will affect the multilateral process, its trade minister said. Anand Sharma told Reuters in an interview in Singapore on Thursday that an acceptable global trade regime was necessary for economic recovery, notwithstanding the decision by world leaders to drop a commitment to complete the Doha round by year-end. “As long as the negotiators are engaged, it is still a positive sign,” Sharma said. “You can see some light at the end of the tunnel, even if it is a long one.” “A multilateral trade regime which is acceptable to all countries has to be put in place. It will speed up the global recovery; not doing that will slow it down.” South African trade minister Pravin Gordhan told Reuters in an interview last month that Doha was “close to dead”. He said also that bilateral and regional trade deals were complicating the issue. Sharma, however, said the bilateral and regional deals were good for multilateral negotiations. “That eventually will feed into the multilateral process,” he said. “Doing this is not in conflict with the WTO (World Trade Organisation) negotiations. WTO director-general Pascal Lamy said last month he was monitoring the progress of regional deals to make sure there was political momentum left for Doha. The WTO launched the Doha round in 2001 and it has been dogged ever since by differences among member countries. They have accused one another of not putting enough on the table, and of seeking too much in return for their own offers. US President Barack Obama told Group of 20 leaders last month that he remained committed to the Doha round, but called for significant changes in the offers put forward. Sources said he told a private leaders’ lunch the big winners currently were emerging economic powers, apparently a reference to India and China. Sharma did not directly react to the comments but said: “There is a broad understanding on a large number of issues, maybe 80% of issues. The remainder gaps have to be closed and it has to be an ambitious and balanced closing.” He has previously ruled out re-negotiating portions of the talks that have already been decided. Source: Home - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 10:37 pm ‘Google confident that China will renew licence’Beijing: Google CEO Eric Schmidt is confident that the firm’s licence to operate in China, the world’s largest Internet market, will be renewed, a report said Friday. His comments came as the US web giant, which for months has been locked in a standoff with Beijing over state censorship, awaited word on the status of its Internet Content Provider licence, which is under annual review in China. “We would expect we would get the necessary operating licence,” Schmidt told reporters at an annual conference of media and technology moguls in the US state of Idaho, the Financial Times reported. Google said last week that it would stop automatically redirecting Chinese users to an unfiltered site in Hong Kong, a process it began in March in response to state censorship and cyberattacks it claims came from China. All mainland users are now directed to a new landing page on google.cn, which links to the Hong Kong site. Google has said it believes this approach complies with Chinese law. “It was clear we had to end the redirect,” Schmidt said. He told the newspaper that the company had not had new discussions with Chinese authorities since last week and did not know when Google would receive a response to its licence application. An official with the ministry of industry and informationtyechnology, the main regulator of China’s Internet industry, told AFP earlier this week that Google’s application was still under consideration. Last month, Google’s chief legal officer David Drummond said in a post on the company’s blog: “Without an ICP licence, we can’t operate a commercial website like google.cn — so Google would effectively go dark in China.” China has more than 400 million web users, according to official data. Source: Tech News - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 10:29 pm ‘Google confident that China will renew licence’Beijing: Google CEO Eric Schmidt is confident that the firm’s licence to operate in China, the world’s largest Internet market, will be renewed, a report said Friday. His comments came as the US web giant, which for months has been locked in a standoff with Beijing over state censorship, awaited word on the status of its Internet Content Provider licence, which is under annual review in China. “We would expect we would get the necessary operating licence,” Schmidt told reporters at an annual conference of media and technology moguls in the US state of Idaho, the Financial Times reported. Google said last week that it would stop automatically redirecting Chinese users to an unfiltered site in Hong Kong, a process it began in March in response to state censorship and cyberattacks it claims came from China. All mainland users are now directed to a new landing page on google.cn, which links to the Hong Kong site. Google has said it believes this approach complies with Chinese law. “It was clear we had to end the redirect,” Schmidt said. He told the newspaper that the company had not had new discussions with Chinese authorities since last week and did not know when Google would receive a response to its licence application. An official with the ministry of industry and informationtyechnology, the main regulator of China’s Internet industry, told AFP earlier this week that Google’s application was still under consideration. Last month, Google’s chief legal officer David Drummond said in a post on the company’s blog: “Without an ICP licence, we can’t operate a commercial website like google.cn — so Google would effectively go dark in China.” China has more than 400 million web users, according to official data. Source: World Business - Livemint.com | 8 Jul 2010 | 10:29 pm Infosys shares hit record high ahead of earningsShares in Infosys Technologies, India's second-largest outsourcer, rose almost 2 per cent today to a record high on optimism about quarterly earnings next week.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 10:27 pm Sensex rises 1%; telecoms, techs leadSensex extended gains to 1 per cent on Friday morning, with telecom stocks and IT firms leading the gains. Infosys Technologies rose as much as 1.9 per cent to a record high of 2,879 rupees ahead of its quarterly earnings on Tuesday.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 9:46 pm Oil nears 76 dollars on upbeat outlook for global economyOil traded near 76 dollars in Asia today, lifted by buoyant sentiment after the International Monetary Fund bumped up its projections for global growth.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 9:05 pm Trais proposal on spectrum allocation lopsided: BhartiBharti Airtel has called the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) report on spectrum charges as lopsided, reports CNBCTV18 quoting news agency.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 3:44 pm Norms for physical settlement of derivatives by month-endA decision on introducing currency options too is expected to be taken soon, says Sebi chief CB BhaveSource: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 2:46 pm Central Depository Services Ltd bolsters board in bid on National Securities Depository Ltd territoryOn Thursday, CDSL announced the appointment of two independent directors to its board -- T S Narayanasami, MD & CEO of the United Stock Exchange and N Rangachary, founding chairman of Irda.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 2:40 pm Getting a PAN is a simple processHave you been wanting to apply for a permanent account number (PAN), but postponed it thinking it would be time-consuming? Fear not, for the process is neither time-consuming nor complicated.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 2:30 pm Mahindra to decide on Ssangyong bid by July 20M&M is among six companies worldwide which qualified in June to conduct due diligence on the cash-strapped Ssangyong, which has been under court-led bankruptcy protection since early 2009.Source: Daily News & Analysis: Money News | 8 Jul 2010 | 2:30 pm India growing at 9.4%, says IMFIndia’s projection is second only to China’s 10.5 per cent. The Asian duo will lead the global recovery that has been battered by two years of economic crisis, the global lender said in its latest World Economic Outlook. HT reports. Bouncing back | Rebounding global economy battles shocksSource: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 1:25 pm Market thumbs down to Network18 biz recastShares of all Network18 group firms tumbled today, a day after the media group announced plans to restructure its business.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 1:08 pm Citi to sell USD 1 billion of Private Equity investments: ReportCitigroup is nearing a deal to sell about USD 1 billion of private-equity investments to Lexington Partners, a transaction that would be one of the biggest ever for so-called secondary private-equity interests, says a media report.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 1:07 pm SC reprieve for Daiichi SankyoDrug maker allowed to proceed with Zenotech open offer.Source: Business Standard | Front Page Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 1:06 pm RIL, ONGC, ENI get 3-year drilling breatherThe Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Thursday approved a three-year moratorium, or break, on drilling in deep waters by explorers.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 Jul 2010 | 1:04 pm What`s happening in troubled Kashmir?The government has deployed the army in Srinagar for the first time in nearly two decades to quell huge antiIndia protests that have killed 15 people and threaten to destabilise the region.Source: Moneycontrol Top Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 12:59 pm India to grow 9.5% in 2010: IMFThe International Monetary Fund on Thursday raised India's growth forecast for 2010 to 9.5%, stating that favourable financing conditions and robust corporate profits will accelerate economic expansion.Source: India Business News | Business News - Times of India | 8 Jul 2010 | 12:51 pm Escorts looks at African expansionTractor maker Escorts Ltd, which recently won a $40 million order to supply tractors to Tanzania, is looking to expand footprint in Africa, Nikhil Nanda, joint managing director, said on Thursday.Source: HindustanTimes.com - Top Business News Headlines | 8 Jul 2010 | 12:24 pm
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