Corporate
Consumer durable maker Panasonic India today said it will invest around Rs 1,400 crore in the next three years to gain about 17 per cent share in 27 lakh domestic air conditioner market.
Minutes after the National Stock Exchange (NSE) announced that it would start equity trading from 9 am from Friday (December 18), rival Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) followed suit.
Analysts say the company has not focused enough on the scooter segment as it saw bigger opportunity in motorcycles.
Ranju Sarkar / December 4, 2009, 0:36 IST
Says IITs will decide the eligibility criteria.
Business Standard / New Delhi October 09, 2009, 0:10 IST
Hershey Co’s controlling trust wants the candy company to make a $17 billion bid for British confectioner Cadbury Plc, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.
Infrastructure firm IL&FS"s open offer for acquiring an additional 20 per cent stake in crisis hit Maytas Infra will open tomorrow.
Calls it ‘unappealing prospect’ from a ‘low-growth’ conglomerate.
The National Consumer Commission has held that commercial users cannot move against service providers for any deficiency in service under the Consumer Protection Act.
After ensuring successful implementation of basic Basel II norms by banks, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today unveiled a timeframe to adopt advanced approaches to manage credit, market and operational risks.
Opposition members expressed concern in the Lok Sabha today over the server crash during the CAT examinations that affected hundreds of students all over the country.
Asian markets ended on a positive note.
Business Standard / New Delhi November 15, 2009, 0:02 IST
Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher Airlines is understood to have come down heavily on non-performing employees, even as a large number of its pilots are leaving the airline to join low-cost carrier Indigo and other rivals.
The markets lost ground on Tuesday, after touching a one-month high, due to subdued global cues and nervousness surrounding the derivatives expiry.
A Kingfisher Airlines ATR aircraft with 42 passengers and four crew onboard overshot the runway after it landed at Mumbai Airport today.
Vijay Mallya-owned Kingfisher Airlines owes over Rs 950 crore to state-run oil companies in unpaid jet fuel bills, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said today.
The NSE Nifty is now down 30 points at 4,472.
Operational cost of Kingfisher Airlines is among the lowest in the country and is comparable to that of budget airlines like SpiceJet, airline"s chief Vijay Mallya has said.
Kolkata-based Jai Balaji Industries has raised Rs 198.50 crore through a qualified institutional placement (QIP) issue.
Come 2010 and the small-car market is likely to witness intense competition with at least four new players set to launch their products in the market.
Shikha Sharma
Vinayak Chatterjee / New Delhi December 21, 2009, 0:46 IST
Business Standard / New Delhi November 23, 2009, 0:54 IST
The Railways" ambitious plan to raise Rs 1,00,000 crore in the Eleventh Plan (2007-12) to develop rail infrastructure projects through public private partnerships (PPP) appears to have gone badly off track. Most key projects are still to get started, mainly because of the inability to get a fix on a viable PPP policy.
India Inc"s hiring activity, which has been on the path of revival, slowed down a bit in August and dropped 3.6 per cent as compared to the previous month, a report by job portal Naukri.com said.
Should I buy the Maruti Suzuki Swift or the Ritz? I’d like to go for the petrol VXi model of either of these two. My daily travel is not more than 30 km maximum. Do you think I should go for a diesel instead?
The 26/11 terror trial is not only against Pakistani gunman Ajmal Kasab, who was caught alive, but also against terror organisation Lashkar-e-Taiba, which masterminded the Mumbai attacks, Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam said here today.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is planning to set up a separate body called the Civil Aviation Authority of India to lay down the administrative guidelines for the industry.
IT services company Solutions Enterprise Pvt Ltd’s offices in Mumbai and Ahmedabad used to be connected with its partner companies in Britain over the Internet and a virtual private network (VPN). However, the quality of communication had always been poor.
Trying to resolve sticking points on the India-US civil nuclear cooperation agreement on the one hand, and narrow differences on their approach to climate change on the other, India and the US are likely to sign a joint Memorandum on Energy Security, Clean Energy and Climate Change during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to the United States this week.
United Spirits Ltd (USL), the flagship spirits arm of the UB Group, is looking at a bond offering within the next six months in an effort to refinance Rs 3,000 crore of debt.
Tata Motors today said it has sorted out differences with vendors regarding the compensation issues arising out of its decision to shift the Nano plant from Singur.
Swaraj Baggonkar / Mumbai November 10, 2009, 1:10 IST
Guess what were the advertisements you saw most on television in November. Not sure? Well, personal care products, primarily toilet soaps, were the most advertised products on TV last month, data from TAM Adex, a unit of TAM Media Research, which tracks advertising across media show. The share of toilet soaps was 5 per cent, similar to that of October.
A day after paceman S Sreesanth was diagnosed with swine flu, comprehensive preventive measures were today put in place to ensure that other members of the Indian cricket team were not affected by the dreaded virus.
A consortium of Indian and Abu Dhabi investors, which is believed to include steel czar Lakshmi Mittal, is planning to bid for UK property company British Land, says a media report.
The metamorphosis of cricket from sport to business in the last decade lands on a relatively flat pitch.
Noted economist Suman Bery is both passionate and learned about this art form.
With an average internet connection speed of 1,100 Kbps for the second quarter of 2009, Karnataka has been ranked second in a study of the top 10 Indian states for their average connection speeds. The state has recorded a 32 per cent increase in the average connection speed over last year.
Thinksoft Global Services, an IT solutions provider, closed with the highest premium among the new listings so far in the current financial year with its stocks closing at Rs 164.30 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on Monday, up 31.44 per cent against the issue price of Rs 125.
The government will impose a hefty penalty of 15 per cent of sale proceeds if farmers produce more export quality tobacco than the quota allotted to them by the Tobacco Board for the current year.
India may soon ban import of "Made in China" mobile phones that lack the unique IMEI identification number, which helps authorities track people carrying these devices.
Bajaj Auto is betting big on its Pulsar bike and plans to ramp up production to 90,000 units per month in the next six months with a sales target of 1 million units per annum by the end of next financial year.
A new sports bar in NCR is a nice hangout place but not meant for genuine fans
World"s top forging company Bharat Forge reported a sharp decline of 68.03 per cent in consolidated net profit to Rs 20.33 crore during the fourth quarter of the financial year 2008-09 as against Rs 63.6 crore posted over the same quarter a year ago.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) has asked insurance companies to be more cautious while concluding contracts with “high risk customers”, particularly the “proposals of Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs)”.
The committee set up to look into the issue of regulating investment advice would submit its report to the government by the month end.
The Indo-US nuclear deal and India"s subsequent entry into the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), ending 34 years of nuclear isolation, has thrown open business opportunities worth an estimated $100 billion by the year 2032. The country is planning to increase its nuclear power generation by about 60,000 mega watts (Mw) within the next 25 years. This planned capacity addition is being executed by the state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL). Its head, Chairman and Managing Director SK JAIN, tells P B JAYAKUMAR about his plans and expectations. Excerpts:
Adidas, which launched its premium lifestyle product – Originals — in India two years ago, is still in the process of educating customers about the different story that the collections, represented by the Trefoil logo, has to tell vis-à-vis its regular "performance’ brands. Timo Pape, adidas’ Director Sport Style, Asia Pacific, spoke to Suvi Dogra about the German sports wear company’s strategy to increase the share of Originals to one-fifth of its business in India. Excerpts:
Fortis advanced 1.5% to Rs 102. The stock touched an intra-day high of Rs 105 and a low of Rs 101. Around 275,716 shares were traded as against its two-week average traded quantity of 338,454 shares.
Shriram Life Insurance (SLIC) today launched a unit linked premium plan - Shriram Pension Plan which gives clients varied options to invest their money and receive maximum returns post-retirement.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today expressed optimism that it would be possible to clock over six per cent growth rate in the current fiscal and said there is no scope for anxiety in pursuing reforms in financial sector and disinvestment.
Auto major Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) today signed two MoUs with State Bank of Hyderabad (SBH) for vehicle finance.
The Sensex has slipped once again into the red and is now down 70 points at 16,780. The Nifty is down 33 points at 4,971.
The Sensex has opened down 22 points at 16,826. The index is now down 25 points at 16,825.
While sugar prices are likely to stay at high levels, stock valuations reflect most of the positives.
Japanese two-wheeler firm Yamaha today said it will introduce a new version of its super-bike YZF-R1 in the country next year, and a range of other models and variants from its stable to strengthen its position in India.
The Wipro scrip rose two per cent amid falling market to Rs 604.15 after the net profit of the company rose 19 per cent to Rs 1,162 crore in the second quarter of the current financial year, as compared to the same quarter a year ago.
Zensar Technologies today reported an over two-fold jump in net profit at Rs 27.74 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2009.
Tata Steel"s net profit dipped 49.4 per cent to Rs 902.94 crore in the second quarter of 2009 compared to Rs 1787.81 crore in the quarter ended September 30, 2008. Its total income plunged 18.23 per cent from Rs 7054.33 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2008 to Rs 5768.16 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2009.
The country"s largest private sugar producer, Bajaj Hindusthan, today said it has raised Rs 723.18 crore through the issue of shares.
Siemens closed at Rs 571, down by 2.5% or Rs 14 on the BSE. The stock opened at Rs 590 and touched a high of Rs 605 and a low of Rs 565 during the day. A total of 272,659 shares were traded on the BSE as against the 2-week average of 109,271 shares.
Simbhaoli Sugar reported profit of Rs 71.9 crore in the second quarter of financial year 2010. The company has made a loss of Rs 29.1 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.
The Supreme Court today rejected Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati"s plea for quashing a PIL filed against her in the Taj corridor scandal which had involved construction of a massive shopping mall and recreational centres near the world famous monument.
Will help state government breathe easy.
Most US companies are not planning to reverse the pay cuts made in executive salaries during the economic crisis in the next six months despite the improving economic climate, a survey by HR consultancy Watson Wyatt says.
Sunil Jain / New Delhi October 30, 2009, 0:38 IST
As a precautionary step against swine flu, Aditya Birla Retail has provided its employees with masks to be worn in stores and is making sure they get treated even for a mild disorder.
IDBI Bank has taken an initiative to strengthen its base in the mid-corporate, SME and retail sectors without compromising its pre-eminent position in the corporate banking business.
India is back on the radar of global investors even in the midst of the global financial crisis, with 56 per cent year-on-year rise in inflows of foreign direct investment in July this year, an official said.
Indiabulls Power Ltd, partly owned by billionaire Lakshmi Mittal, got more than Rs 6,480 crore ($1.4 billion) of bids, or 5.8 times the shares being sold in its initial public offering (IPO).
Stalemate over portfolios between Congress and NCP continues to delay the process of government formation in Maharashtra, more than ten days after the ruling coalition stormed back to power in the Assembly elections.
Trouble in BJP deepened today with Yashwant Sinha quitting as Vice President even as party President Rajnath Singh threatened action against leaders violating party discipline and airing their views in public.
Ispat Industries today said its board has approved its plans to raise Rs 500 crore by selling shares to investors.
Joe C Mathew / Mumbai November 6, 2009, 0:48 IST
I have been a regular investor in mutual funds for the past 3-4 years. I have accumulated many funds in my portfolio which were at some time or the other very good funds, but not all are rated 4- or 5-stars today. Should I exit funds as soon as they go below the top ratings? I think this will mean too much of churning in my portfolio.
Significant inflows into income plans and liquid funds boosted net assets of domestic mutual funds in July, according to data posted by Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on its website.
Business Standard / New Delhi November 06, 2009, 0:34 IST
Financial services major Nomura Holdings has posted a profit of 27.72 billion yen in the second quarter, buoyed by strong growth in retail and asset management segments and expansion of its business overseas.
Buoyed over 22-month high industrial growth of 10.4 per cent in August, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said it is a recovery process from the earlier slowdown caused by the global financial crisis and possibly there could be some higher growth projection.
While growth signs are visible in the economy, robust earnings growth across sectors is a couple of quarters away
Subir Gokarn / New Delhi November 16, 2009, 0:04 IST
Business Standard / New Delhi October 13, 2009, 0:04 IST
HSBC InvestDirect today said its Singapore-based wholly owned subsidiary IL&FS Investmart Asia Pacific will surrender the capital markets services license granted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today signalled that the government’s economic reform strategy would focus on fiscal consolidation, debt management and mobilising additional resources through disinvestment proceeds. The emphasis would be on curbing subsidies and promoting private sector investment by continuing stimulus measures.
The government is planning to import up to two million tonnes of rice to augment domestic supply, as production of the foodgrain is projected to decline due to the twin impact of drought and floods. The Centre, which had scrapped import duty on rice last month, may also consider incentivising imports, sources said.
After a gap of almost a year, the government may resume releasing monthly figures on indirect tax collections this month onwards. The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC), working under the Ministry of Finance, is planning to release next week the excise, customs and service tax collection data for October.
India"s fiscal deficit touched 45.5 per cent of the full-year estimate in the first five months of the current fiscal.
Viveat Susan Pinto / Mumbai January 2, 2010, 0:59 IST
Contrarians, depending on their risk appetite, can enter aviation or maritime stocks
At last, there is an official admission that there is double-digit inflation in food articles, even according to the Wholesale Price Index. Till about a few weeks ago, this was downplayed on the ground that the total index showed a low inflation level; there was even a fear about deflation setting in! There was a standard, perhaps funny, explanation that the high inflation rate was due to the low base effect. One hears this nonsensical explanation only in India. One would not find it in any article on the subject in an internationally-recognised professional journal. This is an arithmetical and not an economic or technical explanation of the problem.
Price may be raised to Rs 4,250 per mBtu.
With the Indian economy regaining its robustness, the Income Tax Department has collected an additional Rs 2,477 crore from the top 90 advance taxpayers in the third quarter (October- December) this financial year.
Polling for by-elections to two Tamil Nadu Assembly constituencies began this morning amidst tight security.
US markets moved up marginally on Wednesday. The Dow dded three points to 10,549. The Nasdaq was up three points at 2,291.
Oil and Natural Gas Corp plans to raise a term loan of about Rs 4,000 crore to refinance the debt its overseas investment arm had taken to buy UK-based Imperial Energy Corp.
ONGC Videsh (OVL), the overseas arm of ONGC, has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Sistema, a diversified industrial group of Russia having investment in India’s telecom sector, to jointly acquire and develop oil and gas fields in Russia and other CIS countries.
The Dubai government today said it fully expected the fallout from its massive debt problem and promised to pump in all necessary resources to ensure long-term success of Dubai World.
The Union Cabinet today approved additional fund for the expeditious completion of capital"s infrastructure for the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
In a bid to remove "fly-by-night" players who import electric two wheelers unlike the domestic ones, members of the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) are seeking stringent norms to be levied for low speed two wheeler electric vehicles from Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI).
Electronic bike makers want countervailing duty (CVD) on the import of e-bike components to be rolled back and 30 per cent subsidy on e-bikes under New and Renewable Energy Policy in the upcoming Budget in order to provide impetus to the industry.
The Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab Sukhbir Singh Badal today urged Farooq Abdullah, Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy to enhance the central subsidy for solar water pumping systems for irrigation and allied purposes from Rs 30 per watt to Rs 100 per watt to make the system viable for small and marginal farmers.
Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and its partners will invest about $10 billion in two giant gas fields and an LNG project in Iran, Iranian Deputy Oil Minister Seifollah Jashnsaz said.
Shareholders will get 4 shares of UltraTech for every 7 shares of Samruddhi
Samruddhi Cement, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Grasim Industries, is all set to merge with UltraTech Cement – Grasim’s another subsidiary, on July 1, 2010. The merger, to be completed by September 2010, will result into world’s tenth-largest cement maker.
Balbir Singh (50) of village Rampura Phool near Bhatinda is a happy man these days. He is getting queries from buyers for his patch of land, on which he has been growing cotton for over 30 years. He found it less remunerative for the past few years and wanted to relocate to some fertile belt of Punjab from the semi-arid belt of Malwa in the state.
Sports Minister M S Gill had to face some tough questioning by his cabinet colleagues today as he sought additional funds for Commonwealth Games (CWG) preparation.
State-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) has proposed to double its investments on its Research and Development in order to develop newer technologies, a top company official said today.
In a fresh initiative, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today expressed the Centre’s willingness to “talk to anyone” having “meaningful ideas” to promote peace in Jammu and Kashmir and offered to resume dialogue with Pakistan provided it curbed activities of those engaged in terrorism in India.
Industrial output, as measured by the index of industrial production (IIP), grew by 9.12 per cent in September, up from 6 per cent in September 2008. It was mariginally lower than the 10.4 per cent in August this year.
The Chartered Institute of Financial Analysts (CFA) of USA, which represents financial analysts worldwide, published "The Comprehensive Reporting Model" in 2007. According to the model, ‘fair value information is the most relevant information for financial decision making’. It argues that fair value measures reflect the most current and complete estimations of the value of the asset or obligation, including the amounts, timing, and riskiness of the future cash flows attributable to the asset or obligation. Such expectations lie at the heart of all asset exchanges.
Maruti Suzuki, the country’s largest manufacturer of cars, is also quite cash-healthy, markedly so in comparison to many of its competitors.
With retailers downsizing operations, many senior executives from fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and telecom who had jumped on the retail bandwagon a couple of years ago are making a quiet comeback.
The Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Rs 647.45 crore in futures and options segments on Friday.
The government today said that more companies should go for listing as it would help a large number of investors to become partners in the development of the corporate sector.
With the government increasing expenditure on payments to contractors for projects, its balances with RBI fell by Rs 16,346 crore in the week ended January 1.
There is a need to include ethics and morals in the curriculum of engineering and management education, M C Bhandare, the Orissa governor said here at the Fifth Annual Convocation of KIIT University.
As part of strengthening e-governance initiative, Karnataka government today launched the Karnataka State Wide Area Network (KSWAN) that seeks to establish a state information highway connecting its 2300 offices across the state.
Resolving the issue of fuel supply guarantee to upcoming gas-based power projects, Oil Ministry has asked state-run GAIL India to extend "comfort letters" assuring gas supplies so that the developers can raise finances.
The government could be among the least active investors in the stock markets, but it appears to have come out the winner in terms of returns--its equity portfolio appreciated by about Rs 10 crore in every minute of trade in 2009 resulting in a total gain of Rs 6,50,000 crore.
The government today ordered a safety audit of all oil and gas installations across the country after the massive fire at the Indian Oil Corp"s fuel depot in Jaipur which is raging even five days after breaking out.
A high-level committee of the Petroleum Ministry will probe the causes behind the fire at the IOC fuel facility on the outskirts of the city and suggest future safety measures at oil and gas depots.
The Bombay High Court today directed Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL) to carry out amendments in its petition against PSU NTPC on a gas supply deal within two weeks.
Business Standard / New Delhi December 29, 2009, 0:11 IST
Imagine walking into a washroom at one of the multiplexes and being welcomed with a message that terms you “the Fourth Idiot”. Don’t feel offended as you are just watching the promotion of 3Idiots, an Aamir Kan-starrer to be released this Friday.
With the PE ratio up three times since November last year, valuations are far from cheap.
Shobhana Subramanian & Shyamal Majumdar / Mumbai November 24, 2009, 0:00 IST
Refraining from making any comment on the Shahrukh Khan detention episode, the Obama Administration today said it wants to build better relationship with the Muslim world.
Videocon thinks integrating set-top boxes with consumer appliances will prove disruptive in the crowded DTH market.
India’s largest private sector telecom player Bharti Airtel has launched a triple-play arcade puzzle game Getris on all three services of Airtel — mobile, Internet and direct to home (DTH).
Mukesh Ambani, who heads India"s most valuable company Reliance Industries (RIL), has been ranked among top five best performing CEOs in the world by the prestigious Harvard Business Review.
Videocon Industries today said it will consider selling equity shares on right basis and has called a board meeting on October 31 to discuss the issue.
In an all-cash deal, a consortium of India Power Corporation Ltd (IPCL) and Srei Infrastructure Finance Ltd has won the bid for a controlling stake of 57.17 per cent in DPSC Ltd (formerly Dishergarh Power Supply Company), which was previously held by public sector units Andrew Yule, Life Insurance Corp and United India Insurance.
Taking a leaf from positive signals emanating from the stock markets in the last few sessions, companies in Uttar Pradesh hope to see further boost to the state’s industrialisation in 2010.
The aluminium major National Aluminium Company Limited (Nalco) and the state owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for collaboration with each other for setting up nuclear power plants in the country.
Analysts say the crisis may discourage realty firms from venturing into that market
Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) and National Aluminium Company (Nalco) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for setting up nuclear plants in the country.
Prices are Rs 35 a kg more than last year.
Jamal Mecklai / New Delhi January 8, 2010, 0:00 IST
All-weather roads in the villages of the country has doubled the income of rural households, raised literacy rate by 10 per cent, and appreciated land prices by up to 80 per cent, says the World Bank. “In 2000, about 40 per cent of India’s 825,000 villages lacked all-weather roads ...with access to roads, incomes have soared.
Uncertainty surrounds the proposed IT investment region in Orissa with the state government not showing any resolve to expedite the project.
The rupee today appreciated by 8 paise to hit a month"s high of 46.22 against the US currency in early trade, in line with other firming Asian currencies.
Bloomberg / January 5, 2010, 0:16 IST
Infosys Technologies intends to ramp up business in the domestic market. It recently set up an India-dedicated unit within Infosys BPO — its business process outsourcing arm. The order book has already begun to see action, inform company executives. The domestic BPO arm has won a Rs 250-crore BPO contract from the income-tax department and is soon going to sign a letter of intent for another government deal, says Infosys BPO CEO and Managing Director Amitabh Chaudhry.
Kishore Biyani-led Pantaloon Retail India has booked a total of 22-million sq ft of retail space and plans to make 3-million sq ft operational every year over the next 3-4 years.
The US financial services major Goldman Sachs is reviewing whether to move some of the company"s operations out of London, following the introduction of 50 per cent bonus tax in the UK, says a media report.
HCL Technologies today said it has bagged a five-year deal from US-based flavoured beverage producer Dr Pepper Snapple Group.
Financial services major Citigroup Inc"s chief of investment banking John Havens received over $9 million in compensation last year, making him the highest paid employee in the firm, a media report said.
The transaction values XTO at $51.69 a share, 25 per cent higher than its last closing - MCL decision on coal transport to help land oustees - UBI likely to float IPO by early February - 25 suspended workers reinstated at Dunlop"s Sahaganj unit - Elder gets bolder - Ruia Group acquires 60% stake in Henniges Automotive Grefrath - "Declare oil palm a plantation crop"
Vandana / Mumbai December 9, 2009, 0:28 IST
India"s first multinational in water treatment business VA Tech WABAG today said it will aggressively pursue global acquisitions to grow faster and has the capability to muster over Rs 2,000 crore for the purpose.
Insulin prices are likely to fall by up to 70 per cent as drug price regulator the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has brought some more diabetes drugs under its purview.