Professional

2011-03-06T03:07:00.000-08:00

1. Tell me about yourself:
The most often asked question in interviews. You need to have a short
statement prepared in your mind. Be careful that it does not sound
rehearsed. Limit it to work-related items unless instructed otherwise.
Talk about things you have done and jobs you have held that relate to
the position you are interviewing for. Start with the item farthest
back and work up to the present.
2. Why did you leave your last job?
Stay positive regardless of the circumstances. Never refer to a major
problem with management and never speak ill of supervisors, co-workers
or the organization. If you do, you will be the one looking bad. Keep
smiling and talk about leaving for a positive reason such as an
opportunity, a chance to do something special or other forward-looking
reasons.
3. What experience do you have in this field?
Speak about specifics that relate to the position you are applying for.
If you do not have specific experience, get as close as you can.
4. Do you consider yourself successful?
You should always answer yes and briefly explain why. A good
explanation is that you have set goals, and you have met some and are
on track to achieve the others.
5. What do co-workers say about you?
Be prepared with a quote or two from co-workers. Either a specific
statement or a paraphrase will work. Jill Clark, a co-worker at Smith
Company, always said I was the hardest workers she had ever known. It
is as powerful as Jill having said it at the interview herself.
6. What do you know about this organization?
This question is one reason to do some research on the organization
before the interview. Find out where they have been and where they are
going. What are the current issues and who are the major players?
7. What have you done to improve your knowledge in the last year?
Try to include improvement activities that relate to the job. A wide
variety of activities can be mentioned as positive self-improvement.
Have some good ones handy to mention.
8. Are you applying for other jobs?
Be honest but do not spend a lot of time in this area. Keep the focus
on this job and what you can do for this organization. Anything else is
a distraction.
9. Why do you want to work for this organization?
This may take some thought and certainly, should be based on the
research you have done on the organization. Sincerity is extremely
important here and will easily be sensed. Relate it to your long-term
career goals.
10. Do you know anyone who works for us?
Be aware of the policy on relatives working for the organization. This
can affect your answer even though they asked about friends not
relatives. Be careful to mention a friend only if they are well thought
of.
11. What kind of salary do you need?
A loaded question. A nasty little game that you will probably lose if
you answer first. So, do not answer it. Instead, say something like,
That’s a tough question. Can you tell me the range for this position?
In most cases, the interviewer, taken off guard, will tell you. If not,
say that it can depend on the details of the job. Then give a wide
range.
12. Are you a team player?
You are, of course, a team player. Be sure to have examples ready.
Specifics that show you often perform for the good of the team rather
than for yourself are good evidence of your team attitude. Do not brag,
just say it in a matter-of-fact tone. This is a key point.
13. How long would you expect to work for us if hired?
Specifics here are not good. Something like this should work: I’d like
it to be a long time. Or As long as we both feel I’m doing a good job.
14. Have you ever had to fire anyone? How did you feel about that?
This is serious. Do not make light of it or in any way seem like you
like to fire people. At the same time, you will do it when it is the
right thing to do. When it comes to the organization versus the
individual who has created a harmful situation, you will protect the
organization. Remember firing is not the same as layoff or reduction in
force.
15. What is your philosophy towards work?
The interviewer is not looking for a long or flowery dissertation here.
Do you have strong feelings that the job gets done? Yes. That’s the
type of answer that works best here. Short and positive, showing a
benefit to the organization.
16. If you had enough money to retire right now, would you?
Answer yes if you would. But since you need to work, this is the type
of work you prefer. Do not say yes if you do not mean it.
17. Have you ever been asked to leave a position?
If you have not, say no. If you have, be honest, brief and avoid saying
negative things about the people or organization involved.
18. Explain how you would be an asset to this organization
You should be anxious for this question. It gives you a chance to
highlight your best points as they relate to the position being
discussed. Give a little advance thought to this relationship.
19. Why should we hire you?
Point out how your assets meet what the organization needs. Do not
mention any other candidates to make a comparison.
20. Tell me about a suggestion you have made
Have a good one ready. Be sure and use a suggestion that was accepted
and was then considered successful. One related to the type of work
applied for is a real plus.
21. What irritates you about co-workers?
This is a trap question. Think real hard but fail to come up with
anything that irritates you. A short statement that you seem to get
along with folks is great.
22. What is your greatest strength?
Numerous answers are good, just stay positive. A few good examples:
Your ability to prioritize, Your problem-solving skills, Your ability
to work under pressure, Your ability to focus on projects, Your
professional expertise, Your leadership skills, Your positive attitude
23. Tell me about your dream job.
Stay away from a specific job. You cannot win. If you say the job you
are contending for is it, you strain credibility. If you say another
job is it, you plant the suspicion that you will be dissatisfied with
this position if hired. The best is to stay genetic and say something
like: A job where I love the work, like the people, can contribute and
can’t wait to get to work.
24. Why do you think you would do well at this job?
Give several reasons and include skills, experience and interest.
25. What are you looking for in a job?
See answer # 23
26. What kind of person would you refuse to work with?
Do not be trivial. It would take disloyalty to the organization,
violence or lawbreaking to get you to object. Minor objections will
label you as a whiner.
27. What is more important to you: the money or the work?
Money is always important, but the work is the most important. There is
no better answer.
28. What would your previous supervisor say your strongest point is?
There are numerous good possibilities:
Loyalty, Energy, Positive attitude, Leadership, Team player, Expertise,
Initiative, Patience, Hard work, Creativity, Problem solver
29. Tell me about a problem you had with a supervisor
Biggest trap of all. This is a test to see if you will speak ill of
your boss. If you fall for it and tell about a problem with a former
boss, you may well below the interview right there. Stay positive and
develop a poor memory about any trouble with a supervisor.
30. What has disappointed you about a job?
Don’t get trivial or negative. Safe areas are few but can include:
Not enough of a challenge. You were laid off in a reduction Company did
not win a contract, which would have given you more responsibility.
31. Tell me about your ability to work under pressure.
You may say that you thrive under certain types of pressure. Give an
example that relates to the type of position applied for.
32. Do your skills match this job or another job more closely?
Probably this one. Do not give fuel to the suspicion that you may want
another job more than this one.
33. What motivates you to do your best on the job?
This is a personal trait that only you can say, but good examples are:
Challenge, Achievement, Recognition
34. Are you willing to work overtime? Nights? Weekends?
This is up to you. Be totally honest.
35. How would you know you were successful on this job?
Several ways are good measures:
You set high standards for yourself and meet them. Your outcomes are a
success.Your boss tell you that you are successful
36. Would you be willing to relocate if required?
You should be clear on this with your family prior to the interview if
you think there is a chance it may come up. Do not say yes just to get
the job if the real answer is no. This can create a lot of problems
later on in your career. Be honest at this point and save yourself
future grief.
37. Are you willing to put the interests of the organization ahead ofyour own?
This is a straight loyalty and dedication question. Do not worry about
the deep ethical and philosophical implications. Just say yes.
38. Describe your management style.
Try to avoid labels. Some of the more common labels, like progressive,
salesman or consensus, can have several meanings or descriptions
depending on which management expert you listen to. The situational
style is safe, because it says you will manage according to the
situation, instead of one size fits all.
39. What have you learned from mistakes on the job?
Here you have to come up with something or you strain credibility. Make
it small, well intentioned mistake with a positive lesson learned. An
example would be working too far ahead of colleagues on a project and
thus throwing coordination off.
40. Do you have any blind spots?
Trick question. If you know about blind spots, they are no longer blind
spots. Do not reveal any personal areas of concern here. Let them do
their own discovery on your bad points. Do not hand it to them.
41. If you were hiring a person for this job, what would you look for?
Be careful to mention traits that are needed and that you have.
42. Do you think you are overqualified for this position?
Regardless of your qualifications, state that you are very well
qualified for the position.
43. How do you propose to compensate for your lack of experience?
First, if you have experience that the interviewer does not know about,
bring that up: Then, point out (if true) that you are a hard working
quick learner.
44. What qualities do you look for in a boss?
Be generic and positive. Safe qualities are knowledgeable, a sense of
humor, fair, loyal to subordinates and holder of high standards. All
bosses think they have these traits.
45. Tell me about a time when you helped resolve a dispute betweenothers.
Pick a specific incident. Concentrate on your problem solving technique
and not the dispute you settled.
46. What position do you prefer on a team working on a project?
Be honest. If you are comfortable in different roles, point that out.
47. Describe your work ethic.
Emphasize benefits to the organization. Things like, determination to
get the job done and work hard but enjoy your work are good.
48. What has been your biggest professional disappointment?
Be sure that you refer to something that was beyond your control. Show
acceptance and no negative feelings.
49. Tell me about the most fun you have had on the job.
Talk about having fun by accomplishing something for the organization.
50. Do you have any questions for me?
Always have some questions prepared. Questions prepared where you will be an asset to the organization are good. How soon will I be able to be productive? and What type of projects will I be able to assist on? are
examples.

Mahindra forays into aerospace, to make planes, acquires 2 Oz cos

2009-12-15T04:39:00.000-08:00

Marking its foray into the aerospace segment, Mahindra group on Tuesday said it plans to manufacture aircraft in the two-to-twenty-seater range and also announced acquiring majority stake in two Australian companies.
Mahindra Aerospace Pvt Ltd (MAPL), belonging to Mahindra group, plans to invest Rs 175-crore over the next 4-5-years to manufacture 475 aircraft in the two-to-twenty-seater range and expects a peak turnover of Rs 650 crore from the segment.
The Anand Mahindra-led conglomerate also announced the acquisition of two Australian companies--Aerostaff Australia and Gippsland Aeronautics.
Mahindra will hold a 75.1 per cent stake in each company, Systech Sector and Member of the Group Management Board, M&M, Hemant Luthra, told reporters here.
A plant is being set up in Bangalore to complement these acquisitions and provide dual shoring and benefits to customers, he added.

Tata launches Sumo Grande Mark II

2009-12-14T06:17:00.000-08:00

Tata Motors has launched an updated version of the Sumo called the Grande MKII. Based on feedback coming in from various channels, a number of changes have been made. Aspects like the suspension, steering and brakes have been worked upon to iron out some of the problems that were present on the earlier Grande. Also, Tata says that the final drive ratio has been worked upon to provide better acceleration.

The interiors receive a significant update with a new duo-tone trim, new steering wheel, grab handle for the third row passengers and various little changes along with improved ergonomics.

As for the exteriors, the Grande MKII get a new chrome grill, indicators on the wing mirrors, new steel rims and three new colours.

Volkswagen working on car ‘below Polo' for India

2009-12-13T06:58:00.000-08:00

German auto major Volkswagen (VW) has said that it needs a car below the soon-to-be launched Polo for the Indian market, and is looking at different options.

Dr Jochem Heizmann, member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG, with responsibility of group production, said, “It is clear we need a car below the Polo and are looking at different options and working on it. That maybe the Up, or another car.”

He was speaking after the Maharashtra Chief Minister, Mr Ashok Chavan, formally started production at VW's Chakan facility, and the first locally made Polo rolled off the assembly line.

Referring to VW acquiring a stake in Suzuki, Dr Heizmann said, “This is a long-term strategic partnership. Suzuki is strong in India and Japan and strong in very small cars in the lower priced segment.”

VW is strong in Europe and South America where Suzuki is weak, and one of the areas of co-operation will be developing hybrid and electric cars, he added.

Currently, around 40 units per day of the Skoda Fabia are manufactured at the Chakan unit. VW also plans to launch a saloon car on a platform different from the Polo by the second half of 2010. With current local content at 50 per cent, The company has chalked out a plan to increase the local content to 80 per cent over the next two-three years from 50 per cent now.

Mr Jorg Mueller, President and Managing Director, VW India Pvt Ltd, said VW products will be sold through 35-40 independent dealerships.

The vehicle will be launched commercially at the Auto Expo at New Delhi in January.

With the other two group brands, Skoda and Audi, the company is targeting 8-10 per cent market share in the next four-six years.

Speaking about the positioning, Dr Heizmann said VW is the Group's premium brand while Audi caters to the luxury segment.

Volkswagen aims for a tenth of India market in 4-6 years

2009-12-12T09:14:00.000-08:00

Volkswagen AG, which recently took a stake in Suzuki Motor Corp to step up its presence in India, said it aims to grab 8-10 percent of

The German automaker on Saturday launched production of its Polo hatchback, which had its European debut earlier this year, in its plant in western India. It said it sees the need for a smaller car in the Indian market.

"We know that we need a car below the level of the Polo," said Jochem Heizmann, a member of the board of Volkswagen. "We are working towards this but no decision has been made yet."

Volkswagen and Suzuki Motor plan to develop a new small car that would cost between $4,300 and $5,400 for the Indian market, following their recent tie-up, a newspaper reported this week.

Volkswagen will buy a one-fifth stake in Suzuki Motor for $2.5 billion, tapping the Japanese firm's expertise in small cars and dominance in India as VW seeks to become the No.1 automaker, the companies said earlier in the week.

Volkswagen is looking at various opportunities for synergies with Suzuki, Heizmann said, declining to give details. He added the firm could consider bringing to India the cheapest car on its table, Up, which is priced at about $8,800.

Jindal Steel & Power Bids for Zimbabwe Iron & Steel

2009-12-11T03:58:00.000-08:00

Jindal Steel & Power Ltd., India’s second-biggest steelmaker by value, has bid for a majority stake in Zimbabwe Iron & Steel Co. as part of an overseas expansion program, Jindal Steel Director Sushil Maroo said.

The company is also looking for coal mines in the African nation and aims to tap steel demand in the region, Maroo said today in an interview in New Delhi, without giving more details. A group led by Jindal Steel has been short-listed as one of two bidders for state-owned Ziscosteel, Dow Jones had reported on Nov. 10, citing an unidentified person familiar with the matter.

Zimbabwe’s government said in its national budget in June it plans to seek a partner for Ziscosteel to help expand the company, improve plant efficiency and pay debts. The company, the largest integrated steelmaker in sub-Saharan Africa after ArcelorMittal South Africa Ltd., stopped operations last year following the global recession, the report said.

Zimbabwe, which owns 89 percent of Ziscosteel, aims to sell a 60 percent stake in the company, the report said. The South African unit of ArcleorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker, is the other bidder, it said.

Shares of Jindal Steel, which plans to raise as much as 100 billion rupees ($2.1 billion) in its power-generation unit Jindal Power, rose 2.1 percent to 744.85 rupees at the close of trading in Mumbai. The stock has gained almost five-fold this year, compared with a 77 percent gain the Bombay Stock Exchange’s benchmark Sensitive Index.

Kerala to invest Rs 2000 cr for developing facilities at IT parks

2009-12-10T05:38:00.001-08:00

Kerala Government proposes to invest Rs 2000 crore in the next two years for development of infrastructure at IT parks being

Stating that Kerala government has an investor friendly approach, Achutanandan said IT industry, which experienced a slowdown in the last 12 to 18 months, has started showing signs of recovery.

He was speaking after inaugurating the India IT Summit-2009, organised by CII-Southern region. CII-Southern Region Chairman C R Swaminathan said the summit was an initiative to support Kerala government to promote the state as one of the most favourable destinations for IT in India.

"Kerala has a very conducive environment for the growth of IT," he said.

Kerala to invest Rs 2000 cr for developing facilities at IT parks

2009-12-10T05:38:00.000-08:00

Bajaj Auto launches new Pulsar 135LS

2009-12-09T05:07:00.000-08:00

Bajaj Auto has launched the new Pulsar 135LS bike. The Pulsar 135LS is powered with a state of the art 4-valve DTS-i engine delivering 13.5 Ps power. With its chiseled lines and aggressive stance, a sporty split-seat, aluminum clip-on handlebars and a host of other features this power packed 135cc Pulsar delivers performance comparable to other 150-cc. The light kerb weight of only 122 kg gives it a great Power-to-weight ratio of 110.6 Ps/tonne to make it optimum balance of agility and comfort to maneuver hustle-and-bustle of urban traffic.
Nothing takes away more from the pleasure of biking, than the biggest bane of urban life – traffic! Unending jams, errant drivers and potholed roads turn every ride into a battle, leaving the rider hassled and exhausted. Wouldn’t it be great to have a light, yet zippy set of wheels, something that would let you carve up traffic like a hot knife through butter? The all new Pulsar 135 LS (Light Sport), the first of its kind in India, is designed to do just that. This bike is designed to add a whole new dimension to the motorcycle market by creating a new Light Sports segment.

Equipped with a light-weight yet rigid frame, aided by gas-charged Nitrox shock absorbers at the rear, the Pulsar 135LS is well up to the challenges thrown by the urban jungle. It delivers class-leading top-end power, due to its 2-inlet and 2-outlet valves and ample pulling power in the low and mid-range. This is possible due to the light-weight character of the four smaller valves (as opposed to two heavier valves), which allow the engine to effortlessly rev to an eye-popping 10,500 rpm (electronically limited). And since safety is paramount on any Pulsar, DC lighting and a 240mm disc brake up front comes as standard.
According to Mr. S Sridhar, CEO 2-Wheeler, Bajaj Auto, “The Pulsar brand has been strongly associated with creating the sports segment in this country and our vision is to make India a country of bikers from a country of commuters. The new Pulsar 135LS leads the charge in democratizing the thrill of biking and accelerating the growth of sports segment in this country, in line with the overall Pulsar strategy of broad basing performance.”
The bike will be manufactured from the Chakan Plant and will have a capacity of 35000 bikes per month. Pulsar 135LS is attractively priced at 51,000 ex showroom (Delhi).
About superior 4 -valve DTS-i engine in Pulsar 135LS
A 4-Valve engine is designed for better performance than regular a 2-Valve engine. Combined with the revolutionary DTS-i (Digital Twin Spark-ignition) technology which maximizes combustion to deliver enhanced power and superior mileage with low emissions, the Pulsar 135 LS has one of the most efficient production engines ever.
1.More power: The 4 valve provides for a greater intake and exhaust area resulting in more power, almost equivalent a 2 valve 150cc engine.
2.Sustained top end power: The light-weight character of the four smaller valves (as opposed to two heavier valves), which allow the engine to effortlessly rev to an eye-popping 10,500 rpm (electronically limited)!
3.Sporty ride: Given the wider rpm band, the engine can be revved hard and high in each gear resulting in a genuine sporty ride.
4.More Mileage: Established superiority of DTS-i blended with 4 valve not only enhances the performance but also returns a very good fuel economy (68.1 km/l certified by ARAI)
5.More green: Comfortably meets BSIII regulations.

DoT wants telcos to share info with auditors on time

2009-12-08T08:01:00.000-08:00

DoT wants telcos to share info with auditors on time
Press Trust of India / New Delhi December 08, 2009, 19:31 IST
The government has written to telecom operators, Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular, Vodafone and Tata Teleservices, asking them to be punctual in sharing information with special auditors looking into revenue leakage.

The DoT said in its communication that it has been keeping a watch on the progress of the assignment through monthly reports from the auditors. However, as per the latest progress report, "it seems that there have been delays on your (operators) part in providing the information."

DoT had ordered special audit for checking revenue leakages in five companies, including Reliance Communications (RCom). The report on RCom was submitted to the government last month.

In its communication to Bharti, the DoT said that it has been pointed out by the auditor that despite considerable lapse of time, complete information has not been provided for any of the requisitions till date.

According to DoT sources, the auditors have sent five communications to the company but no information was received.

The DoT has also written letters to all the four special auditors, saying considerable time has elapsed since the original deadline set for the audit.

The DoT has asked the auditors that the report should contain a "statement of recovery of dues" wherein the demand by the department may have to raise on the companies concerned.

GMR raising Rs 13,000 cr for power, road projects

2009-12-07T05:42:00.000-08:00

Bangalore-based GMR Infrastructure, controlled by billionaire G M Rao, is close to raising about Rs 13,000 crore from domestic banks for funding its four power projects and two road projects. The company will invest about Rs 4,000 crore towards equity in these projects.

The infrastructure giant is in advanced discussions with a slew of domestic lenders, including State Bank of India (SBI), Axis Bank and IDFC for raising the debt, said banking sources.

Towards finding funds for its power projects, GMR has just got financing commitments from Axis Bank for the debt portion of recently acquired Emco’s 600 Mw project in Maharashtra, that costs Rs 3,360 crore, said A Subba Rao, group chief financial officer, GMR. “The projects, including the 768-Mw Vemagiri expansion (Andhra Pradesh), a 1,200-Mw coal-fired project in Raipur (Chhattisgarh) and a 300-Mw hydel project at Alaknanda (Uttarakhand) are waiting for financial closure to commence construction, in addition to the Emco project. We expect this to happen by February 2010,” Rao told Business Standard.

GMR is also raising funds for two build-operate-transfer (BOT) road projects by February, worth Rs 3,300 crore. The funds are for a 181-km national highway stretch between Hyderabad and Vijayawada worth Rs 2,200 crore and a 29-km Chennai Outer Ring Road worth Rs 1,100 crore. The debt-equity ratio would be in the range of 75:25.

The Hyderabad-Vijayawada road, which GMR bagged in May, is a toll project with a concession period of 25 years. The Chennai road, an annuity project with a concession period of 20 years, was awarded in June. The company had signed the concession agreement for the Hyderabad project in October and would soon do so for the Chennai one.

GMR is one of the largest highway developers in the country and currently operates six BOT projects, totalling a length of 421 km. It currently operates three power plants, a 380 Mw plant at Vemagiri in Andhra Pradesh, a 200 Mw plant in Chennai and a 235 Mw plant at Mangalore in Karnataka. Over half of its revenue comes from power projects.

The company’s special purpose vehicle, GMR Kamalanga Energy, had in May concluded financial closure for its 1,050-Mw coal-based power station coming up at Dhenkanal in Orissa. The Rs 4,540 crore required for the project was raised through a combination of debt and equity in a 75:25 ratio, with a debt component of Rs 3,405 crore tied up with 13 banks, including State Bank of India. IDFC was the sole debt arranger and syndicator of the debt. The loan tenure is 16 years.

The group’s subsidiary GMR Energy’s projects coming up in Orissa, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh will be completed by 2012. Its Chhattisgarh plant is slated for commissioning by early 2013 and the Uttarakhand hydel project by 2014.

The Vemagiri expansion requires Rs 2,800 crore, while the Raipur project needs Rs 6,000 crore. The hydel project will be completed at an estimated cost of Rs 2,000 crore. GMR Energy is developing five hydro power projects — three in India and two in Nepal.

Other power projects of GMR in the pipeline include a 2,000-Mw coastal plant in Andhra Pradesh at an estimated cost of Rs 9,600 crore, a 800-Mw project in Singapore under the recently acquired Island Power and a 428-Mw project in the Netherlands under InterGen, in which GMR holds 50 per cent stake. The Singapore project will tie-up for funds in the next six to nine months. As on March 2009, the company’s net debt-equity stood at 1.5:1.

Apple Acquires Music Service Lala

2009-12-06T07:52:00.000-08:00

Apple Inc has acquired digital music service Lala, as the dominant online music retailer explores new models for selling songs.

Terms of the deal weren't disclosed by Apple, which confirmed the purchase on Friday.

ITunes is the leading music service in the United States with more than 70 per cent of all digital music sales and it is the leading music retailer overall.

But newer music streaming services from the likes of News Corp's MySpace Music and Spotify have begun to win over music fans in the last year.

"Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time and we generally do not comment on our purpose or plans," Apple spokesman Steve Dowling said.

A source familiar with the matter said the iPod, iPhone and Mac maker is seeking new ways to expand iTunes to move it beyond being a predominantly download service for songs. The source asked not to be named.

"Apple recognizes that the model is going to evolve into a streaming one and this could probably propel iTunes to the next level," said the person.

The iTunes store offers more than 11 million songs. Apple has sold billions of tracks through iTunes since its launch in 2003.

The Lala service allows users to stream from the Internet any tune in its catalog of more than 8 million songs once for free, and then sells unlimited streams for 10 cents per track and MP3 downloads starting at 79 cents.

The Palo Alto, California-based company's investors include Bain Capital Ventures, Ignition Partners and Warner Music.

Lala founder Bill Nguyen said in October his company's revenues total less than $10 million. He said the company had about 100,000 customers.

Internet search giant Google Inc recently partnered with Lala to provide users song samples along with links to purchase the music.

Lala has also partnered with Facebook to offer music through the social networking site.

Acer India Unveils Multi-touch Laptop

2009-12-05T01:53:00.000-08:00

Acer recently introduced a laptop with multi-touch display. This technology follows a slew of other new technology products introduced by Acer into the mainstream Indian PC market.

The Acer Aspire 5738PzG series includes a 15.6-inch screen with advanced multi-touch technology with fingertip precision.

The company also launched an All-In-One PC featuring the multi-touch technology. The Aspire 5600 series All-In-One PC has a minimalist design scheme and comes with Microsoft's Touch Pack for Windows 7.

Commenting on the newly launched products, S Rajendran, CMO, Acer India, said, "The intuitive features of Aspire 5738PzG make computing fun and easy. Multi-touch input brings a new dimension to laptop functionality as it offers a natural way for users to interact with PCs."

This laptop will come preloaded with Windows 7, which has native touchscreen support and enables ease of everyday tasks like document or printer sharing, photo editing/sharing, emailing. The Aspire 5738PzG, powered with the all-new Windows 7, facilitates new ways to engage with Windows Touch and Windows Media Center, apart from ensuring easier wireless networking.

The Aspire 5738PzG laptop is priced at Rs. 43,500 including taxes and the Aspire 5600 series AIO is priced starting at an end-user price of Rs. 60,000, inclusive of taxes. The Touch Notebook would be available at leading LFRs and Acer Malls

Godrej Properties sets IPO price band at Rs 490-530 a share

2009-12-04T05:14:00.000-08:00

Godrej Properties Ltd today set the price band of its Rs 500-crore initial public offer (IPO) at between Rs 490 and Rs 530 per equity share.

Bids for the public issue will open between December 9 and 11, which will see the company offload 13.5 per cent stake. Each equity share has a face value of Rs 10.

Godrej Properties, promoted by Godrej Industries and Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Company, plans to use proceeds from the issue mainly to acquire land and to repay debt.

The company would raise between Rs 462 crore to Rs 499.8 crore through the IPO, Godrej Properties Vice President, -Finance & Accounts, Rajendra Khetawat, said.

"We plan to spend Rs 203 crore to acquire land and land development rights, Rs 172 crore will be used to repay loans, Rs 75 crore will be spent on construction financing while the balance would would be utilised for the Group's corporate purposes," he told reporters here.

Godrej Properties is jointly developing multiple residential and commercial projects across ten Indian cities.

It is executing work on 2.78-million sq ft land at Vikhroli in suburban Mumbai.

The realty firm is also developing a mid-income residential project in Kolkata spread over 3.20-million sq ft and a garden city project in Ahmedabad spread over 40-million sq ft.

Dell accused of flaw coverup

2009-12-03T08:27:00.000-08:00

Reports are circulating the web about performance and heat issues with a selection of Dell laptops - and the company appears to be doing its best to prevent anyone from finding out about the problem.

As reported over on DailyTech, users are complaining in droves about a bug in the BIOS of Dell E6400 and E6500 laptops which sees a thermal throttle kick in and drop the processor speed by a whopping 95 percent as soon as the processor gets even a little warm.

While the company is almost certainly working on an updated BIOS that will fix the issue, it clearly doesn't want to harm laptop sales in the lucrative run up to Christmas. As a result, posts from the official Dell Support forum documenting the issue have started to go missing. Users who insist on re-creating threads in order to further chase the problem find themselves banned from the site completely - and all their posts filed in the bit bucket.

One such user, who goes under the name "Tinkerdude," has become so enraged with both the issue and Dell's Big Brother-esque denials that he has released an analysis of the issue - titled "Performance loss during normal operating in a Dell Latitude E6500 laptop due to processor and bus clock throttling" - which almost hits sixty pages, was temporarily available in PDF form on a separate site but which also seems to have disappeared.

Although the performance throttling issue surrounding the E6400 and E6500 ranges is the most talked about issue currently facing the company, Dell is also facing more flak after it transpired that it had shipped inadequate power supplies with its top-end XPS 1645 laptops. The 90W supplies - which were provided instead of the 130W PSUs required - were inadequate to both power and charge the laptop at the same time, and although the company is replacing PSUs for those who complain many are clamoring for a widely publicised recall campaign.

Responding to the concerns about censorship on the Dell customer forums, representative Bill B from Dell's Social Media and Community department stated that the company is "aware of concerns raised" in the DailyTech article, and claimed that "teams are looking into the details." Beyond that, the company has not offered an explanation - nor an indication of when the issues with the laptops will be fixed.

Are you shocked to see Dell censoring comments in the manner, or is it their right to police their forums as they see fit? Are you affected by either of the issues currently doing the rounds in the Dell forums? Share your thoughts over in the forums.

Microsoft promises 'open' Bing strategy

2009-12-02T23:44:00.000-08:00

Microsoft is committed to an open online strategy to include partners and developers and build market share, while unveiling updates to Bing with a decidedly Microsoft flavor.

Satya Nadella, senior vice president of Microsoft's online services division, said Wednesday that the company's goal is for a "third-party scale model." That means bringing in content providers and application developers.

It wouldn't be practical given Bing's current 9.9 per-cent US market share and third-position behind Google and Yahoo!, to push a Microsoft-online stack.

Nadella was speaking after Microsoft had unveiled new features in Bing search that draw on Microsoft's reading of algorithms and traffic and rely on its data-center computing and storage architecture. Also unveiled was a Bing Maps beta using its Silverlight media player and some labs technology to knit photos and maps together to provide an hyper 3D feel to city maps.

"Are we trying somehow to reinforce just a Microsoft stack and tools message? That's not our intent," Nadella told press Wednesday in San Francisco, California.

"We do want to be able to get to an open strategy that allows us to tap into the ecosystem and give the ecosystem and economic return added value for doing so," he said.

Jaypee group to invest Rs 6K cr for cement plan

2009-12-02T06:35:00.000-08:00

Diversified Jaypee group today said it will invest around Rs 6,000 crore by 2012 to develop a cement plant, even as it inaugurated a 2.4 million tonne- facility to manufacture the construction material. "Jaypee group has plans to invest in the cement manufacturing sector with investment at around Rs 6,000 crore in Gujarat in the coming three years," group founder Jaiprakash Gaur told PTI. Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi today dedicated Jaiprakash Associates'' 2.4 million tonnes per annum capacity cement plant in Sewagram in Kutch, Gujarat.

Jaiprakash Associates Ltd (JAL), the flagship company of the industrial conglomerate Jaypee Group having interests in civil engineering, cement, power, real estate and hospitality, has invested Rs 1,500 crore in the first phase of Gujarat cement project and commissioned 2.4 MTPA cement plant at Sewagram in Kutch region. Apart from having state-of-the-art technology, cement plant will also have an emergency backup of 35 MW DG power and has a 100 per cent captive thermal power generation plant that will generate 22 MW in the first phase and 50 MW in the second phase.

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Murthy says VC fund for life after retirement

2009-12-01T05:33:00.000-08:00

Narayana Murthy, chairman and chief mentor of India’s second-largest information technology services provider Infosys Technologies, has asserted that he has set up the Catamaran Venture Fund to occupy himself once he retires from Infosys in 2011.

Asked whether he is setting up the fund as a business option once he retires from the company, Murthy said: “Yes .. very much .. very much ... I feel this is the best way to help youngsters and create jobs for the country.”

Murthy is set to retire in August 2011 from the Infosys board when he turns 65 and is expected to abdicate the chief mentorship of the company. After 2011, he will continue to be the largest shareholder in the company in his personal capacity.

Murthy, who till date has raised around Rs 600 crore by selling part of his as well as his wife Sudha Murthy’s stake in the company to support his venture capital interest, qualified his remarks by saying he will not invest in companies which compete with Infosys. Murthy said the fund will start investing from March next year, not only in early-stage companies which require angel funding, but also in late-stage companies.

He has hired an ‘anchor’ person from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to help him in this initiative and is setting up a team for this fund.

“We will announce the name of the ‘anchor’ at the right time, but he is an extremely bright young man,” he said. The fund will also invest in companies outside India.

To a query whether Sudha Murthy will be active in this fund, Murthy said he could not comment on that.

On being asked if the current Infosys management perceives any threat from Murthy once he retires, Infosys CEO and MD S Gopalakrishnan said: “All of us take our responsibilities very, very seriously, and of all the people, we can rest assured that Murthy will take his responsibilities very, very seriously. We all owe all that we have today to Infosys, and we will make sure that Infosys’ interests are protected always.

Toyota to unveil concept compact car in India next month

2009-11-30T23:24:00.000-08:00

Japanese car maker Toyota Motor Corporation would unveil the concept model of its compact car for the Indian market next month.
Toyota's Indian unit, Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt Ltd (TKM) plans to start production of its much awaited compact car in December next year at its second plant being built here.
The compact car project is Toyota's most ambitious venture in India in its 11-year existence and the company is betting big on this initiative to become a volume player.
"Both hatchback and sedan version of concept vehicle of the compact car will be showcased at Auto Expo (to be held at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi from January 5 to 11)", TKM Deputy Managing Director Sandeep Singh told PTI. "It's a concept vehicle coming from Japan."
"Production will start by December of 2010. First year production plan is 70,000", he said.
TKM is also showcasing its Toyota Prius hybrid car in the biennial event in the national capital and is looking for its launch in the Indian market.
He said Prius is not a volume product and the company is just looking to sell just a few numbers.

Exclusive: Russia to start Iran nuclear plant in 2010

2009-11-30T08:45:00.000-08:00

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia plans to start up Iran's first nuclear power station in March 2010 to coincide with the Iranian New Year, two sources closely involved with the project told Reuters.

The sources, who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the situation, both said that Russia had ordered that the plant be ready for operation by the holiday which falls in the second half of March.

"We have been given the task of launching the plant by Iranian New Year," said one of the sources. "There is still a lot of work to do."

The second source added that testing at the plant was going well.

Diplomats say Russia uses Bushehr -- and major arms contracts -- as a lever in relations with Tehran, which is suspected by the United States and other Western powers of seeking to build a nuclear weapon.

The United States previously criticized Russia's involvement in the project but has dropped its opposition and now says the station removes any need for Iran to have its own enrichment program.

Russia says the plant is purely civilian and cannot be used for any weapons program as it will come under International Atomic Energy Agency supervision. Iran will have to return all spent fuel rods to Russia.

Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko was due to visit the Bushehr plant on Monday.

Russia in November said technical issues would prevent its engineers from starting up the Bushehr reactor by the year-end. Moscow had previously said the plant, which is being built by a Russian state-owned company, would be started up in 2009.

India-US reprocessing pact in a week: MK Narayanan

2009-11-29T03:49:00.001-08:00

India and the US will conclude a crucial pact on reprocessing spent
fuel in a week or so, with negotiators trying to sort out
the right language to
accommodate each other's concerns, India's National Security Adviser MK Narayanan said in Port of Spain.

"We have arrived at the final stage. It's all a matter of legalese now," Narayanan said Saturday when asked why the reprocessing pact could not be signed during the four-day visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Washington that ended on Thursday.

"It will take a week or a little more to wrap it up," Narayanan told Indian reporters at Port-of-Spain, where Manmohan Singh attended the Commonwealth summit after his Washington visit, while adding that the issue figured in discussions between Manmohan Singh and US President Barack Obama.

A day after the talks, Manmohan Singh said that the reprocessing deal will be wrapped up in two weeks.

Informed sources said that the gap between the two sides has narrowed down to just one issue of suspension of the right to reprocess in case India conducts a nuclear test or indulge in activities that may jeopardise the nuclear deal.

There were three issues that were holding up the reprocessing pact. Out of these, two issues have been resolved. The Americans have accepted India's proposal for multiple dedicated national facilities for reprocessing spent fuel, sources said.

The second issue related to security of reprocessing facilities. The issue was resolved after India agreed to security levels followed by nuclear powers like the US.

The only issue waiting to be resolved is that of the suspension of the supply of reprocessing technologies in the event of India conducting a nuclear test.

Indian officials have made it clear to their American interlocutors that India was not ready to move away from what is outlined in the 123 civil nuclear cooperation agreement.

After labyrinthine negotiations, the US had agreed to India's right to reprocess spent fuel. The conclusion of the reprocessing pact will effectively conclude the landmark nuclear deal that was inked by India and the US last year.

US, China emission cut promises are a smokescreen: CSE

2009-11-28T20:48:00.000-08:00

The announcements made by the US and China, ahead of the Copenhagen conference on Climate Change to be held in December, are “sheer hype and hyperbole”, according to the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). The US spoke of an absolute emission reduction target of 17 per cent below 2005 levels by 2020, while China said it would reduce its energy intensity per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 40-45 per cent by 2020.
For the US, this translates into a mere 3 per cent reduction below the 1990 levels, while science demands that developed countries cut their emissions by 40 per cent below 1990 levels, notes Kushal Yadav, co-ordinator of the climate change programme at the CSE.
“In fact, the US proposal, if accepted, will sound the death knell for the Kyoto Protocol, which in its first commitment period (ending 2012) had asked for more — 5.2 per cent reduction over 1990 levels by all industrialised countries. The US is offering to do less than this in the next commitment, and this proposal, if accepted, will mean that the world cannot avoid catastrophic changes and climate change disasters,” adds Yadav.

Under the new proposal, the US will increase emissions, not reduce these as required by international agreements. The original Waxman-Markey Bill allows up to 1 billion tonnes of offset credits every year, meaning that the US, by using this huge amount of international offset, does not have to reduce emissions till 2026.
On China announcing a reduction in its energy intensity per unit of GDP by 40-45 per cent by 2020, the CSE says that China’s emissions will continue to grow but at a slower rate. But how much is actually achieved will depend on the rate at which the Chinese economy grows. In other words, if the economy grows at 7 per cent per annum, then the emissions of China, after accounting for the 40-45 per cent energy intensity reduction target, will grow by 50 per cent over 2005 levels.
If the economy grows at 10 per cent per annum, then the emissions will increase by 150 per cent over 2005 levels. “Both the US emission reduction target and the Chinese energy intensity targets are, therefore, not a significant departure from business as usual. Worse, in the case of the US, this weak and meaningless proposal shows that it has reneged on its commitment, as the country has legally binding obligations under the multilateral agreement. This cannot be accepted,” states Yadav. “India must definitely be a deal-maker. But the deal must be to demand substantial reductions from the industrial countries, so that the world stays below the 2 degree target for temperature increase. India must make it clear that it is already doing its best through the National Action Plan on Climate Change and is prepared to do much more provided the world creates the framework, which will pay for the costly transition to a low carbon economy,” concludes Yadav.

Pranab plays down Dubai crisis, says nothing to worry

2009-11-28T20:42:00.000-08:00

Asserting that there is no need to press the panic button, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said the Dubai debt crisis will not have "earth shaking" impact on the country's economy.
The full impact of the Dubai debt crisis is yet to be assessed, but there is no need to press the panic button," Mukherjee told reporters on the sidelines of a function here.
To draw his point, he pointed out that "first of all, the amount is small and secondly, the exposure of our banking systems to the Dubai financial systems is limited".
He, however, said that "some adverse effect" will be there initially on the stock markets, as was felt yesterday.
The finance minister has also opined that the crisis will not have much impact on the country's exports to the region.
Mukherjee, however, said that the debacle will impact the repatriation of foreign exchange from there and joblessness in the Gulf city-state.
On the issue of the large number of Indians working in that city, he said, "It will have to be seen how this will affect Indians working in Dubai." He, however, sounded confident saying "I don't think it will have much effect on Indian workers in that country."
The Indians constitute as high as 42.3 per cent of the population of Dubai, he added.
"I don't visualise that the Dubai debt crisis will have earth shaking impact," he stressed.
The minster said the situation after the Dubai debt crisis is "manageable" and added that the government would keep a watch on the situation.

IDBI Bank Scraps Plan To Sell Home Finance Unit

2009-11-27T01:13:00.002-08:00

State-owned IDBI Bank has scrapped plans to sell its wholly-owned unit IDBI Home Finance, its top official said on Wednesday.

"It (IDBI Home Finance) will continue to be a 100 per cent subsidiary at present. We have scrapped plans to sell the unit," Yogesh Agarwal, chairman and managing director of IDBI Bank said on the sidelines of a banking conference.

The federal government did not approve the plan to sell the unit, he said, without providing details.

The bank started the sell off process a year back as it was leading to duplication of operations, an analyst at a Mumbai-based brokerage who did not want to be named.

The bank had also invited bids for the unit, he said.

Agarwal also said the bank was looking at acquisition opportunities and is in the process of identifying targets.

"We have enough capital to fund acquisitions," he said.

The lender also expects credit offtake to pick by end-December.

"We are hopeful of maintaining the loan growth target of 18 percent by the end of the financial year," said Agarwal.

Indian bank loans were hovering around 9.8 percent till the first week of November on low credit pick up by industry following economic downturn.

Loan growth fell from an average level of 30 percent a year ago.

"The sanctions pipeline is robust. We expect demand (loan) to pick up as demand picks up from industry," he said.

He also added he expected to see interest rates rising "anytime now."

Shares in IDBI Bank ended 0.59 percent down at Rs 125.35 in a Mumbai market that ended up 0.4 per cent.

IDBI Bank Scraps Plan To Sell Home Finance Unit

2009-11-27T01:13:00.001-08:00

UK Bank Review Recommends Greater Pay Disclosure

2009-11-27T01:11:00.000-08:00

Banks must disclose how much they pay top employees, a UK government sponsored report recommended on Thursday in a bid to quell public anger over "bonuses as usual" in a sector shored up by taxpayer bailouts.

The report published on Thursday from David Walker, former chairman of Morgan Stanley bank's international unit, lays down 39 steps to improve how banks are run.

Although touted as the toughest set of pay rules in the world, they stop short of actual caps or naming individuals, representing some respite for banks who on Wednesday were also cheered by a UK court victory over fees.

Board members should spend more time on the job and pay be closely monitored. Shareholders also have a duty to scrutinise how their companies are run, the report says.

Britain had to shore up its financial sector hit by the credit crunch. It nationalised or took major stakes in several banks such as Northern Rock, Lloyds and RBS.

Walker published his recommendations in draft form in July but has toughened up sections on pay as policymakers warn banks there can be no return to "business as usual" of unjustifiably large bonuses.

He also wants the recommendations to be implemented in law, rather than on a "comply or explain" basis outlined in July.

"There will still be public anger over bank pay and bonuses and that's understandable," Walker told Reuters on Wednesday.

"But this disclosure is not designed to appease the great British public. It is designed to deal with the problem that these high end people are capable of influencing the risk profile of banks and it is unsatisfactory that shareholders and remuneration committees have so far focused almost exclusively on executive board remuneration."

The government said it will introduce all of Walker's recommendations as soon as possible. Last week it published a draft financial services bill with provisions to implement the review.

"Sir David's proposals are the blueprint for how banks must be run in the future," Britain's Finance Minister, Alistair Darling, said.

"We will issue draft regulations for consultation in the new year and bring them into force as soon as practicable after enactment of the bill. This will force disclosure for the 2010 performance year," Darling said.

There could be changes, however, as the opposition Conservative Party is tipped in the polls to win the election due by June when the draft law may not have been adopted yet.

Walker said he has "no reason to believe" the Conservative Party will take a different view.

"Whether this government continues or a new government takes charge, they are going to have to face this question next year and I am not for trimming my sails," he said.

Brain Gain: PM Invites Indians To Return Home

2009-11-27T01:10:00.000-08:00

Noting that he prefers the term "brain gain" to "reverse brain drain", Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday thanked the Indian-American community for their contribution in building bridges between India and the United States and invited Indians worldwide to return home.

Prime Minister Singh highlighted the Five Es - economy, energy, environment, education and empowerment - that form a critical part of the "next phase" of the relationship between the two countries.

"In the past few years we have already experienced what has been called a 'reverse brain-drain'. I would prefer to call this 'brain gain' or, indeed, a meeting of minds," he said during his interaction with prominent members of the Indian-American community.

"Let me take this opportunity to extend an invitation to all Indian Americans and non-resident Indians who wish to return home to India in one capacity or another," Singh said at the event on the evening before he leaves Washington after being hosted by US President Barack Obama in the First State Visit of his administration.

The Prime Minister further noted that Indian-Americans no longer had to make a choice about whether to work in India or America. "Modern technology and our flexible policies have opened possibilities of working in both places," he noted.

Singh noted that both nations could be described with metaphors like 'salad bowl', 'melting pot', 'rainbow' and shared values and interests would make it easier for Indians and Americans to work together.

"This is what makes it easy for Indians to adapt themselves to the US and, dare I say, for Americans to adapt themselves to India," he said. "I hope you will be the bridge that will continue to connect our two nations and societies."

Singh described his visit as "stimulating" and "fruitful" while laying out the five Es that would take their relations forward over and above the existing agenda of defence, security and counter-terrorism.

"We are establishing new directions in the next phase of our relationship that will enable us to meet the challenges of the 21st century," Singh said. "Our relationship will see a new emphasis on five Es - economy, energy, environment, education and empowerment."

Food Inflation Rises To 15.58%

2009-11-27T01:07:00.001-08:00

Food inflation rose to 15.58 per cent for the second week of November from 14.55 per cent in the previous week as potatoes and pulses turned costlier.

The fuel index was, however, down 1.51 per cent, the government said on Thursday.

The worst dry spell in nearly four decades and floods in parts of the country have hurt farm output and pushed up food prices.

On an annual basis, potato prices more than doubled, pulses became expensive by over 35 per cent, while onions rose by 27 per cent.

Price rise was significant on weekly basis with urad and poultry chicken rising by 15 per cent each, eggs by 8 per cent, moong by 6 per cent, arhar by 5 per cent and fruits & vegetables by 3 per cent.

Among the non-food articles, raw silk turned expensive by 3 per cent, while fodder and groundnut seed by 2 per cent each.

On Tuesday, C. Rangarajan, Chairman of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's Economic Advisory Council, told Reuters food price inflation was the biggest worry for the economy in near term and a strong rise in food prices could prompt monetary action.

India's annual wholesale inflation rose 1.34 percent in October from a year earlier, compared with 0.5 per cent in September and 11.06 per cent a year ago.

Food Inflation Rises To 15.58%

2009-11-27T01:07:00.000-08:00

ICICI Bank raises $750 million abroad

2009-11-26T04:24:00.001-08:00

The country’s largest private bank ICICI Bank on Saturday said it has mopped up $750 million through a five-year bond issue at its

Bahrain branch. The issue had an order book of over $3 billion and was participated by over 250 investors, an ICICI Bank press release said here. The notes were sold under the Rule 144A/Reg S format. ( Watch )

This comes on heels of the country’s largest lender State Bank of India mopping up a similar amount abroad last month. The bonds, which have a maturity of 5.33 years, carry a coupon rate of 5.5%, which translates to 292.6 basis points spread over equivalent Libor, the bank said.

Despite a fall in the total income, ICICI Bank had reported a 2.5% rise in its net profit for the second quarter ended September 30 at Rs 1,040.13 crore, against Rs 1,014.21 crore in the same period last year.

ICICI Bank has paid a higher price compared to State Bank of India which raised $750 million last month through the issue of medium term notes. SBI had issued fixed rate senior notes having a maturity of 5 years at a coupon rate of 4.5% under the Medium Term Notes (MTN) programme. There are two reasons for the increase in cost of borrowing.

SBI always manages to get a better pricing thanks to the government backing , secondly international credit markets had turned choppy weeks after SBI raised funds. This had led to other issuers such as Axis Bank delaying their issue. According to sources, ICICI Bank has some of its foreign borrowing coming up for redemption.

Bharti Airtel share can double in 18 months, ICICI & SBI overvalued: Sharekhan

2009-11-26T04:20:00.000-08:00

Suhas Samant, Fund Manager, Fundamental PMS, Sharekhan believes that markets will be range-bound in December 2009. He is positive on Bharti.
What is your sense, just seeing the activity and the kind of turnover and participation that we have seen plus the fund flows that are coming in, how do you feel December would be?
We feel December will be also a range bound market, otherwise we do not expect much action over December but stock specific we see that there will be a good action in mid-cap pharma and mid-cap IT where valuations are still very strong and attractive.
You are trimming exposure in ICICI as well as State Bank of India?
ICICI and State Bank both are with respect to the valuations are little bit overvalued and apart from the worries with respect to NPAs in case of ICICI are still a overhang. So, at this time we are not able to focus on these biggies rather we will be more comfortable in the sector with PSUs which are at very low valuations - like Vijaya Bank or Dena Bank.
Coming on your stock recommendations, I see you are probably bullish on the auto and the auto component pack, Ashok Leyland, Apollo Tyres, what are the kind of upsides you are targeting on these?

From these levels also we expect 25 to 30% upside in Apollo Tyres as well as Ashok Leyland because we are seeing a gradual increase in demand from the auto sectors which is not directly related as such from the overall perspective but in general demand is picking up in auto sector. Apollo is doing extremely well, the last two quarters have been fantastic, already care has been taken with respect to increasing prices for the tyres, seeing the raw material prices will go up and margins are extremely good.
I am seeing that you were saying that the OMC rally may actually taper off, stocks like BPCL, HPCL have had a fantastic last two sessions, how soon before this happens and would you book profits at current levels as well?
No, in fact we will like to play the rally little bit for another three to four trading sessions in oil marketing companies because basically otherwise also oil rates are not expected to go up like that. So some steam is left and HPCL somewhere around 375-380 we can book the profits.
What is your own sense, what are you doing with telecom, would you be buying them at current levels or do you believe that more downsides are seen?
In fact we have been very bullish at these levels on Bharti, RComm and because of the sentiment this might have happened but really a cash generating company like Bharti at 280 levels is extremely good and we expect a double rate from here within 1-1.5 year for Bharti. Even RComm is extremely good at 170 levels.

Tata's Singur land can be acquired for BHEL: Bengal minister

2009-11-26T04:19:00.001-08:00

West Bengal Commerce and Industry Minister Nirupam Sen on Thursday said that if state-run Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) selected

the land abandoned by Tata Motors in Singur, the state government would acquire it from the auto major.

"If BHEL selects the land, we will begin the process to get it released," Sen told reporters in Kolkata.

"We don't foresee any problem in getting the land back from Tata Motors," he said on the sidelines of Eastern Print Pack 2009, a trade show relating to the print and packaging sectors.

Senior BHEL officials had on November 12 inspected the land at Singur in Hooghly district, 40 km from here, to consider setting up a power generation plant.

Global auto major Tata Motors had planned to roll out the world's cheapest car Nano from the plant it was setting up at Singur.

However, it abandoned the 997.11-acre site following strident opposition by farmers, who were led by the state's principal opposition party Trinamool Congress. Protestors demanded the return of 400 acres taken from "farmers unwilling to part with the land".

Tata Motors has since then shifted the Nano project to Sanand in Gujarat, though it still possesses the Singur plot.

Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata has said that if the state government compensated the auto maker, the company was ready to return the land.

Talking about the proposed JSW Steel project in Salboni in West Midnapore district, Sen said the government expected the company to start work by next April.

JSW Bengal Steel is constructing a 10-million-tonne steel plant in Salboni on an investment of Rs 35,000 crore (Rs 350 billion/$7 billion) -- the largest single investment in the state.

Tata Steel consolidated Q2 net loss at Rs 2,707 crore

2009-11-26T04:13:00.000-08:00

Tata Steel Ltd, the world's No. 8 steelmaker by output, reported a consolidated quarterly net loss on Thursday, hurt by the weak
Tata Steel, which bought No. 2 European steelmaker Corus in 2007, said its consolidated July-September net loss was Rs 2,707 crore ($584.7 million), after minority interest and share of profit of associates, compared with a profit of 47.72 billion rupees a year earlier.
Consolidated net sales fell to Rs 25,270 crore from Rs 44,199 crore a year earlier.
Last month, the firm said its Indian operations' net profit fell 49.5 percent.
Shares in Tata Steel, valued at $10.7 billion, extended losses to 5.2 percent at Rs 533.10 after the results, while the main index was down 1.8 percent.
The firm's shares have leapt 150 percent this year, better than a 77 percent jump in the main index.

Wipro Expects To Sustain Operating Margins

2009-11-25T01:43:00.001-08:00

Wipro Ltd, India's third-largest software services exporter, will be able to sustain its operating margins in the near term as the business environment improves, a top executive said.

"We don't expect margins to go down, we don't expect margins to go drastically up," Suresh Vaswani, joint CEO of the company's IT business, said at the Reuters India Investment Summit held in Bangalore.

Wipro's operating margins have risen over the last couple of quarters. Its IT services division posted operating margins of 23.8 per cent for the second quarter ended 30 September, up from 22.3 per cent for the prior quarter.

Analysts say the worst seems to be over for India's $60 billion outsourcing sector, as bigger firms win large deals and pricing pressures ease.

"The pipeline certainly looks better. It has looked better and better over the last couple of quarters," Vaswani said.

Manish Dugar, CFO of Wipro Technologies, said while the market looked very competitive, pricing seemed to be stable.

Wipro recently said clients were coming back to the table with new projects, which, coupled with easing pricing pressure, could help improve margins.

PINC Research analyst Rohit Kumar Anand said fiscal 2010 margins for Wipro, majority owned by billionaire Azim Premji, might be higher than fiscal 2009, mainly because of extreme cost reductions over the last three or four quarters,

Kumar, however, expects fiscal 2011 margins to come under pressure because of salary increments.

Wipro shares were trading up about half a percent at Rs 649.55 on Wednesday morning on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Wipro's shares have almost tripled in the last 12 months. The Indian IT index has almost doubled in the same period, slightly outperforming the broader Mumbai index, which is up 93 per cent.

Financial Segment Improving
Wipro is seeing an uptick in demand at its key financial services segment and expects to sustain overall operating margins in the near term as the business environment improves.

The global banking sector has seen a slew of mergers and acquisitions in the recent past, and firms such as Wipro, the country's No. 3 software services exporter, are cashing in on the growing need for technology services.

"The recovery is taking place slowly ... Customers have decided to move on and make things happen," Suresh Vaswani, joint CEO of Wipro's IT business, said at the Reuters India Investment Summit in Bangalore.

The company's banking, financial services and insurance segment (BFSI), which accounts for about a quarter of its revenue, has been pressured by project delays and tightened customer spending amid the global slowdown.

"Some of the uptick is driven by the consolidation activities we are doing for our clients," Wipro Technologies Chief Financial Officer Manish Dugar said.

IT spending by banks and financial institutions has increased in the last two quarters, driven by consolidation-related work, said Rohit Kumar Anand, an analyst with PINC Research.

New Market Push
Emerging markets, which account for about 20 per cent of Wipro's total revenue, are expected to be the "big thrust areas" for the company going forward.

"When I say emerging markets, predominantly it's India and the Middle East, but Australia is becoming a big part of the business now," Wipro's Vaswani said.

"While some markets may get challenged, some other markets somehow compensate."

The United States accounts for half of the company's revenue, while Europe contributes about 30 percent. New York-listed Wipro also runs consumer products and lighting businesses.

Wipro shares were up 0.4 per cent at Rs 649.50 on Wednesday in the main Mumbai market, which was up 0.67 per cent.

Twitter Eyes Acquisitions, Sees Making Money In 2010

2009-11-25T01:43:00.000-08:00

Micro-blogging site Twitter is interested in making more acquisitions as it continues to grow in popularity, co-founder Biz Stone said on Tuesday.

"That is something we are definitely interested in," Stone told a news conference in Tel Aviv. "We made an acquisition last year that turned out to be an outstandingly good decision."

He said there was nothing specific on the horizon.

"As our attention is grabbed by some of these developers, we will take a hard look at them," Stone said.

Twitter bought search engine Summize in 2008.

Stone said Twitter will "start making money" in 2010 as it unveils a plan early next year on how it will produce revenue through advertising. He declined to give details but said advertising will be "non-traditional".

"There are no dates when we need to break even. We have plenty of money in the bank," he said.

In September, Twitter received a new round of funding from investors including mutual fund giant T. Rowe Price and private equity firm Insight Venture Partners, which analysts said set the stage for an eventual initial public offering or sale.

According to a person familiar with the matter, the new funds totalled $100 million, theoretically valuing the company at $1 billion.

Stone on Monday said Twitter may eventually go to the stock market for funding if necessary.

Twitter, which lets people send, or tweet, 140-character text messages to groups of "followers", is one of the world's fastest-growing social Internet companies.

Worldwide visitors to its site hit 44.5 million in June, up 15-fold from a year earlier, according to tracker comScore.

Twitter last month forged deals with Microsoft and Google to allow access for its real-time content. It also linked up with professional social network site LinkedIn earlier in November.

Stone said Twitter was looking to "partner with as many websites" as possible and that Twitter would keep its platform open for developers.

Stone noted that for now, Twitter will be in English with a next wave into French, German, Italian and Spanish.

"If that works out well, you will see more languages," he said.

HP Triples Stock Buyback Plan, Profit Up 14%

2009-11-24T06:24:00.003-08:00

Hewlett-Packard Co tripled the size of its share repurchase programme to $12 billion as China sales and better profit margins on its services boosted quarterly earnings.

The fiscal fourth-quarter results released on Monday were in line with preliminary figures that HP gave two weeks ago, which had topped Wall Street's estimates at the time. Shares of HP fell slightly in after-hours trading.

HP, a hardware and technology services company that is a bellwether for IT spending, has been more cautious than some of its peers in predicting an economic turnaround.

But Chief Executive Mark Hurd sounded somewhat more optimistic, noting pockets of returning demand, including in its closely watched printer business, which has struggled this year.

HP Triples Stock Buyback Plan, Profit Up 14%

2009-11-24T06:24:00.002-08:00

CBI Files Second Satyam Chargesheet

2009-11-24T06:24:00.001-08:00

The CBI on Tuesday filed second chargesheet in the multi-crore rupee Satyam scam against the founder chairman of the company, B Ramalinga Raju, and others, including recently arrested internal auditor of the company V S Prabhakar Gupta.

The chargesheet was filed in the designated court in Hyderabad accusing Raju and Gupta under various sections of the Indian Penal Code for allegedly indulging in siphoning off money to tax-haven countries, including Mauritius.

As per the chargesheet, "the accused forged board resolutions and unauthorisedly obtained loans to the tune of Rs 1,220 crore for Satyam Computer.

"They also prepared fake invoices worth Rs 430 crore," the chargesheet said.

The chargesheet comes within days of the CBI team going to other countries to probe the alleged diversion of funds by Raju and re-routing back to India, official sources said.

The funds were routed back to India via European nations as "investments" in nearly 300 alleged fictitious companies floated in the name of his relatives, they said.

The CBI, which is probing the Rs 10,000-crore accounting fraud at Satyam Computer Services, has found during investigations that Raju had diverted big amounts to Mauritius from where the money was brought back to India via several European countries, they added.

Tata Motors Eyes Actis Stake In Swaraj Mazda

2009-11-24T06:24:00.000-08:00

Tata Motors, India's largest commercial vehicles maker, is looking at buying private equity firm Actis' stake in truck and bus maker Swaraj Mazda.

UK-based Actis, which owns 7.74 percent in Swaraj and another 9.28 percent through its unit CDC, is considering exit options, the , the Economic Times reported on Tuesday, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.

Other auto makers, including an engineering firm, are also looking at the Actis stake in Swaraj Mazda, which is majority owned by Sumitomo Corp <8053.T>, the paper said.

"This is speculative," a Tata Motors spokesman told Reuters and declined further comment on the report.

Actis India head J.M. Trivedi refused to comment on the issue, the paper said.

ICICI, Infosys among world's best for leaders

2009-11-23T18:55:00.000-08:00

Research has confirmed that some companies are just much better at grooming their future leaders than others. A survey shows that companies like ICICI Bank, HUL and Infosys are now among the top companies in the world focused on grooming not just professionals but leaders.

ICICI Bank tops the Asia pacific list while the Indian arm of global FMCG major Unilever, Hindustan Unilever, was ranked at the fourth spot, followed by Aditya Birla Group at the sixth spot. IT major Wipro held the 10th slot.

“These companies stretch their leaders with assignments, rotation and prepare them in all aspects,” said Hewitt Associates talent and organisation consulting (business leader) Ajay Soni.

Globally, IBM tops the list, followed P&G, General Mills, McKinsey. ICICI comes in at a respectable fifth followed by McDonald’s and General Electric. HUL is the next Indian company which stands at tenth position while Infosys comes in at 24th spot.

So, how does a company ensure that those with potential don't go unnoticed and start grooming early?

According to Ram Kumar, executive director of ICICI Bank: “We have scouts looking for talent and there's no point if all the data that we collect isn't actually used.”

It may be a tough job market, but companies, which avoided knee-jerk reactions, have got returns through better performance. So, the message for all employers out there is: sow your own and reap.

Suzuki Quadruples Guidance As India Sales Soar

2009-11-23T01:11:00.000-08:00

Suzuki Motor Corp quadrupled its annual operating profit forecast on Monday as sales soared in its main Indian market, setting it apart from other Japanese automakers that have depended heavily on the sinking US market.

Suzuki, like South Korean rival Hyundai Motor Co, has been a major beneficiary of a global shift in consumer preference towards smaller cars, partly fanned by government incentives on purchases of less polluting vehicles.

Both carmakers' huge presence in India, where the economy's resilience and tax incentives have jumpstarted demand for cars, has helped them weather the storm better than most in the industry.

Suzuki, Japan's fourth-biggest automaker, raised its operating profit outlook to 40 billion yen ($445 million) for the year to March, from an initial forecast of 10 billion yen.

It now expects a net profit of 15 billion yen instead of 5 billion yen.

ICICI, Infosys among best firms for nurturing talent

2009-11-22T06:37:00.000-08:00

As many as five Indian firms, including ICICI Bank and Infosys Technologies, have made it to the list of top 12 companies in the Asia Pacific region for being instrumental in building leadership capability within their organisation.

According to the list compiled by HR consulting firm Hewitt in partnership with RBL Group and US magazine Fortune, ICICI Bank emerged at the top, followed by China Mobile Communications Corp and TCL Corp, a China-based electronics goods maker.

Meanwhile, the Indian arm of global FMCG major Unilever, Hindustan Unilever, was ranked at the fourth spot, Aditya Birla Group was at the sixth spot, Infosys Tech was ranked eighth and another IT major Wipro cornered the 10th slot.

Among others on the list, agricultural products firm Olam International was positioned in the fifth place, beer and wine products producer Lion Nathan was at the seventh position. The New Zealand Refining Company was ranked ninth and TrustPower Ltd and British American Tobacco Berhad stood at the 11th and 12th positions, respectively.

Meanwhile, in the global top 25 firms list, there were as many as three Indian companies -- ICICI Bank, Hindustan Unilever and Infosys Technologies.

Regarding the decent presence of Indian firms, Hewitt Associates Talent and Organisation Consulting (Business Leader) Ajay Soni said: "It comes as no surprise that Indian firms have a good presence in these lists. These companies are well-positioned for growth despite the economic challenges."

Nokia Cuts R&D Jobs, Focuses On Fewer Models

2009-11-21T03:58:00.000-08:00

Nokia is to cut 330 research and development (R&D) jobs in Finland and Denmark as it focuses on launching fewer, but more iconic, phones.

The world's top cellphone maker has launched around 50 models per year, but aims to focus on fewer, more popular models, a spokesman said on Friday.

Nokia has cut jobs and costs across its organisation this year -- aiming to cut costs at its key handset unit alone by more than 700 million euros ($1.04 billion) to counter plunging demand.

Reliance Ups Fuel Sales To Africa, Cuts Europe

2009-11-20T04:38:00.000-08:00

Giant refiner Reliance exported a third more fuel during July to September versus the second quarter, with Africa racing past Europe as its No. 2 market while sales to the United States are set to rise further.

Reliance's 1.24 million barrels per day (bpd) refining complex -- the world's largest -- exported 6.08 million tonnes of gasoline and diesel in the third quarter from 4.5 million tonnes in the previous quarter and 3.76 million tonnes a year ago, shipping data obtained by Reuters show.

In the third quarter, when all units at its new 580,000-bpd refinery were commissioned, Reliance Industries nearly doubled sales to South America, followed by an 88 per cent jump in exports to the US, where it aims to directly sell diesel and gasoline.

Reliance's gasoline shipments in its own account to the US and Bahamas rose 60 per cent to 197,600 tonnes in the third quarter versus the second. US refiner Hess Corp, with whom the privately run Indian refiner has a term deal, received 145 per cent more gasoline at 148,100 tonnes.

Traders expect fuel supplies to the US to rise further as the onset of new carbon emission limits may offer Reliance an opportunity to fill the demand-supply gap.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) in its latest monthly report has forecast US oil product demand to grow by 0.4 per cent in 2010 from its previous estimate, compared to an expected 3.7 per cent decline this year.

Reliance's supply data largely confirms forecasts by analysts and traders on the likely flow of its fuel output, the world's biggest one-off incremental refinery expansion since the company fired up its first plant a decade ago.

Sahara Says No Compromise With Jet

2009-11-19T08:59:00.000-08:00

The Sahara group on Thursday ruled out an out-of-the-court settlement with Jet Airways over their dispute on the multi-crore Sahara airlines take over deal even as Bombay High Court granted two months time to both the parties for filing affidavits.

Justice D Y Chandrachud adjourned the case till January 19 after Jet and Sahara India Commercial Corporation Ltd pleaded for time to file additional affidavits.

Sahara's lawyer Pradeep Sancheti told PTI outside the court that at the moment they were not looking at an out-of-the-court settlement and that the airline was expecting a ruling from the court after the January 19 hearing.

The Bombay High Court had earlier suggested to both the litigants to settle their dispute amicably. On July 15, Jet and Sahara informed the court that efforts to arrive at an out-of-the-court had failed.

UltraTech-Samruddhi To form No.1 Cement Firm

2009-11-17T00:50:00.000-08:00

UltraTech Cement, a unit of conglomerate Aditya Birla Group, is absorbing sister unit Samruddhi Cement, to form India's biggest cement firm, both companies said.

The move, flagged in October, was approved by the boards of both companies on Sunday. The combined entity will be better placed to take on Swiss firm Holcim, which controls about a fifth of India's 200-million tonne cement market through ACC and Ambuja Cements.

"The merger will achieve the group's objective of consolidating its cement business into a single entity, thereby creating a platform that will help in pursuing aggressive growth going forward," Kumar Mangalam Birla, chairman of Aditya Birla Group, said in a statement on Sunday.

In October, the group said it will hive off the cement business of flagship firm Grasim Industries into unit Samruddhi in a cashless transaction and later merge it with group firm UltraTech.

India's cement market has seen demand revive in the last few months on resilience in rural consumption and higher spending on roads and infrastructure projects.

Aditya Birla Group's enlarged cement unit said it will have a production capacity of 48.8 million tonnes and become the world's 10th largest cement firm.

Michelin To Invest $870 Mn In India Tyre Unit

2009-11-16T08:20:00.000-08:00

French tyre maker Michelin said on Monday it would invest Rs 40 billion ($870 million) to build a tyre manufacturing unit in Tamil Nadu.

The company said it had signed a preliminary agreement with the Tamil Nadu government for the project, its first tyre manufacturing unit in India, and aimed to start operations by 2012.

The plant will employ about 1,500 local workers and will make radial truck and bus tyres, the company said in a statement.

Kolkata facing brutal future in warmer world

2009-11-14T01:27:00.000-08:00

Dhaka, Manila, Jakarta and Kolkata are topping a new list of major Asian cities vulnerable to the

effects of climate change.
Kolkata is the fourth most vulnerable Asian city but number three among those least
prepared to adapt.

According to Mega-Stress For Mega-Cities, a new report by World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), many of these cities are highly exposed to threats such as storms and flooding while lacking the capacity to protect themselves at a time when their severity and frequency are rising due to global warming.

"Climate change is already shattering cities across developing Asia and will be even more brutal in the future," said Kim Carstensen, leader of the WWF Global Climate Initiative.

"These cities are vulnerable and need urgent help to adapt, in order to protect the lives of millions of citizens, a massive amount of assets, and their large contributions to the national GDP."

The WWF report covers 11 large cities across Asia, all located in coastal areas or river deltas. Following Dhaka (9 out of 10 possible vulnerability points), other cities at high risk are Manila and Jakarta (8 each), Kolkata and Phnom Penh (7 each), Ho Chi Minh City and Shanghai (6 each), Bangkok (5), and Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong and Singapore (4 each).

"Kolkata is within the Ganga delta and thus only metres above current sea level, making it prone to salt-water intrusion and sea-level rise effects. Being eastern India's main centre for business and commerce, it has expanded to accommodate the swelling population by reclaiming significant amounts of surrounding wetland, compounding the problem of flooding," says Anurag Danda, head of the Climate Adaptation and Sundarbans Programme, WWF-India.

Allowing climate change to go unchecked will cost more lives and more money in the future, but damage can be averted if action is taken now.

Air India Posts Rs 5,548 Cr Loss For FY'09

2009-11-13T00:59:00.001-08:00

Burdened by high fuel and labour costs, cash-strapped Air India suffered a net loss of Rs 5,548 crore in 2008-09, as its total revenue declined by around Rs 2,000 crore compared to the previous fiscal.

The losses came down from Rs 7,200 crore the airline suffered in 2007-08 to Rs 5,548.26 crore in 2008-09. Total revenue fell to Rs 13,479 crore in FY'09 from Rs 15,252 crore during the previous fiscal.

The Air India board, which met in Chennai on Wednesday, approved the annual accounts for the last fiscal, with the losses and fall in revenue resulting out of the global financial meltdown, low passenger load factors and falling yields.

The airline is facing a strike threat by pilots from November 24 after it proposed to slash incentives and allowances for them and other sections of employees as part of the cost-cutting measures.

A Group of Ministers (GoM), headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, would be meeting on Thursday to discuss the financial state of affairs and its restructuring and turnaround plan to take a call on government assistance to the ailing national carrier by way of equity infusion and soft loan.

Infosys BPO Buys US Firm

2009-11-12T03:57:00.000-08:00

The back-office services unit of Infosys Technologies Ltd, India's No. 2 software exporter, will acquire US-based McCamish Systems for an upfront payment of $38 million to boost its service offerings.

Infosys BPO will pay an additional $20 million to the sellers on meeting certain financial targets, its chief executive Amitabh Chaudhry said, but declined to disclose the targets that have been set.

McCamish Systems, which posted $38.2 million in revenue in 2008, provides business process outsourcing solutions to the insurance and financial services companies in the United States. It counts 10 of the 20 top insurers among its clients.

"This acquisition gives us the ability to pitch for bigger deals in the insurance sector," Chaudhry told Reuters in a phone interview. He said the deal would be completed later this year and revenue would start flowing from January.

Shares in Infosys, which the market values at $29 billion, were up 0.5 per cent at Rs 2,319.95 by 0655 GMT in a flat market. The stock had risen 1.7 per cent in opening deals.

McCamish has 260 staff, and Chaudhry said the employees would become part of Bangalore-headquartered Infosys BPO, whose offerings include finance and accounting, human resource and legal services outsourcing.

Indian outsourcing firms have thrived by providing Western firms with services such as processing insurance claims, managing payrolls and customer support.

The boom in business process outsourcing, or BPO, is built on a large, skilled and cheap English-speaking workforce, but a global economic slowdown has crimped spending by companies.

Orissa Orders 69 Mines To Stop Operations

2009-11-11T03:22:00.000-08:00

The Orissa government has ordered a halt to work at 69 mines of iron ore, manganese ore and limestone because operators had not submitted proof they were licenced, a senior official said on Tuesday.

The mines were asked last month to submit their approvals from the Indian Bureau of Mines and forest and environment clearances.

"Since they did not submit the documents, we ordered them to suspend operations," Orissa's director of mines, Jyoti Ranjan Patnaik told Reuters, adding some orders were made over the weekend and some on Monday.

The state has approximately 600 mines, all of which would be inspected in phases, Patnaik said.

Orissa started a crackdown on mines in July following allegations some were operating without licenses.

Orissa produced about 70 million tonnes of iron ore in 2008/09, around one-third of total Indian production of 222 million tonnes, data from Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI) shows.

Paradip, the state's major port, exported 13.67 million tonnes of iron ore in 2008/09, FIMI data shows.

Iron ore exporters said the inspections had made mine owners cautious, and many had scaled down operations which had seen supplies shrink just as demand from China was picking up.

Chrysler Dumps Electric Car Plans Under Fiat

2009-11-10T01:01:00.000-08:00

Chrysler has disbanded a team of engineers dedicated to rushing a range of electric vehicles to showrooms and dropped ambitious sales targets for battery-powered cars set as it was sliding toward bankruptcy and seeking government aid.

The move by Fiat SpA marks a major reversal for Chrysler, which had used its electric car programme as part of the case for a $12.5 billion federal aid package.

As late as August, Chrysler took $70 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop a test fleet of 220 hybrid pickup trucks and minivans, vehicles now scrapped in the sweeping turnaround plan for Chrysler announced this week by Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne.

Chrysler spokesman Nick Cappa said on Friday that an in-house team of electric car development engineers had been disbanded in favor of a more traditional organization.

The automaker's former owner, Cerberus Capital Management, had set up a special division called "Envi" -- derived from Environment -- to spearhead development of hybrid technology where Chrysler badly trailed competitors.

"Envi is absorbed into the normal vehicle development programme," Cappa told Reuters.

Under mounting pressure to improve the fuel-efficiency of its line-up, Chrysler announced in September last year that it was developing three electric vehicles and would sell the first of the models by 2010.

In January at the Detroit Auto Show, Chrysler upped the ante on its electric car bet by pledging to have 500,000 battery-powered vehicles on the road by 2013, including sports cars and trucks.

But a presentation of Chrysler's five-year strategy by Marchionne on Wednesday made no mention of Chrysler's earlier electric car development plans.

Dr Reddy's Files For Marketing Lipitor Generic

2009-11-09T05:07:00.000-08:00

Dr Reddy's Laboratories has filed for marketing a generic version of Pfizer's cholesterol-lowering drug Lipitor in the US, the company said on Saturday.

"We have filed an ANDA (abbreviated new drug filing) for atrovastatin and notified Pfizer accordingly," Dr Reddy's told Reuters in response to an email query.

Earlier on Saturday, the Business Standard newspaper reported that Dr Reddy's had developed a generic version for Lipitor, and along with its U.S. subsidiary, had informed Pfizer about applying to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for marketing the drug.

Lipitor is the world's largest selling drug, with global sales of $8.3 billion in the last nine months. So far, Ranbaxy is the only other Indian drugmaker to develop a generic for the drug, whose U.S. patent expires in 2010.

Under a settlement with Pfizer, Ranbaxy has agreed to launch its generic by November 2011.

Sun Micro Sales Fall, Oracle Deal Delay Stings

2009-11-08T02:54:00.000-08:00

Lower operating expenses helped Sun Microsystems curb its fiscal first quarter loss to $120 million, or 16 cents a share compared with $1.68 billion, or $2.24 a share, a year earlier, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.

But revenue fell to $2.24 billion from $2.99 billion in the same quarter a year earlier, and was lower than the average analyst estimate of $2.34 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

The 25 per cent drop was also steeper than the sales slump at other technology companies. Oracle's total revenue last quarter fell 5 per cent from a year earlier, while chipmaker Intel Corp's revenue fell 7.8 percent.

"Our first quarter of fiscal year 2010 results continued to be affected by the economic downturn, the uncertainty associated with our proposed acquisition by Oracle, increased competition and delays in customer purchasing decisions," Sun said in a statement on Friday.

Oracle Chief Executive Larry Ellison recently said that Sun is losing about $100 million a month because of uncertainty about its future, as European antitrust regulators pursue an in-depth probe of the deal.

Sun sold itself to Oracle after several years of failed attempts to devise a strategy to turn itself around. A sale to Oracle was seen as a way to transform Sun into a diversified technology company selling computers alongside Oracle's software.

But European Union regulators said last month that Oracle has not presented evidence to placate anti-competition concerns. The European Commission faces a Jan. 19 deadline on whether to approve the deal.

Rivals IBM and Hewlett-Packard Co, in the meantime, are taking advantage of the uncertainty by luring Sun's customers with steep discounts.

Sun Microsystems has said recently it is cutting 3,000, or around 10 per cent, of its jobs worldwide. The cuts were in addition to its plans last year to cut 5,000 to 6,000 jobs.

Inflation Down 0.1%, Monthly Index Next Week

2009-11-07T01:25:00.000-08:00

The government on Thursday introduced a new mechanism for monitoring the wholesale price movement under which the inflation for primary articles, including foodgrain, pulses and vegetables, declined 0.11 per cent during the week ending October 24.

As per the new system, the weekly wholesale price index data would cover only primary articles and commodities in the broad group -- fuel, power, light and lubricants, an official statement said here.

Besides, the monthly price index covering all commodities for October would be released on November 12, in accordance the decision taken by the Cabinet Committee of Economic Affairs, it said.

As per the data, the inflation for fuel, power, light and lubricants remained unchanged at 6.2 per cent.

PM To Unveil With Obama Vision For Future

2009-11-06T05:08:00.000-08:00

Ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to the US, the Obama Administration has said the two sides would unveil a common vision of the future and their desire to work together on challenges like climate change and food security.

President Barack Obama's invitation to Singh for the first state visit of his administration on November 24 is not a mere coincidence and reflects deepening bilateral ties, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Robert Blake said.

It also shows the importance being given by the Obama Administration to the future of Indo-US relationship, he said.

"I think it's no accident that President Obama decided that the very first state visitor of his administration would be Prime Minister Manmohan Singh," Blake said on Thursday at an 'India Day' event organised to celebrate the decades of partnership between India and American company Honeywell.

For Honeywell, India is an important centre for Research and Development, engineering, manufacturing and exports.

Giving a glimpse of the things to come during the forthcoming State visit of the Prime Minister, Blake said the two leaders would unveil a common vision of the future and the desire of the two countries to work together on all the big challenges that face the world including food security, agriculture, climate change, green technology, clean energy, education, science and technology.

He said the US considers India as one of its most important partners for the 21st century.

Obama's invitation to Singh for his first State Dinner at the White House on November 24 "not only shows the deep respect that the President has for the Prime Minister, but also the respect... the optimism that he has for the future of our relationship," Blake said at the event.

Obama has been a great admirer of the Prime Minister because of the leadership he has provided to India with his economic reforms in 1990s and for leading India to emerge as a major global economic power, he noted.

Microsoft CEO Eyes Yahoo Partnership Outside US

2009-11-05T18:35:00.000-08:00

Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said on Thursday the company could look to extend its search engine partnership with Yahoo outside the United States, if it gets regulatory approval.

Earlier this year Microsoft and Yahoo signed a 10-year Web search partnership to challenge Google Inc, a pact that US and European antitrust regulators are evaluating.

"It's possible that we will extend that partnership (with Yahoo) outside the U.S.," Ballmer told reporters at a news conference. "We will have to wait and see if we can get approval and consummate that partnership inside the U.S. first."

Microsoft has said it believes the deal will close in early 2010, and that they can make significant progress on integration in one or two major markets next year.

Why is India Buying IMF Gold?

2009-11-04T02:00:00.000-08:00

The International Monetary Fund has sold 200 tonnes of gold to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for $6.7 billion, quietly executing half of a long-planned bullion sale that has threatened to slow gold's ascent.

The deal will increase India's gold holdings to the tenth largest among central banks.

Why Is RBI Buying IMF Gold?

Analysts say one of the reasons why the RBI was buying gold from the IMF was to shore up its gold holdings.

The latest purchase will lift its share of gold holdings from near 4 per cent to about 6 per cent, much less than most of the developed world but four times China's share.

India's foreign exchange reserves held at the central bank totalled $285.5 billion on Oct. 23, of which gold comprised just over $10 billion. India held 357.8 tonnes of gold reserves as of March 31, 2009, according to the latest data.

India built up its gold reserves to over 20 per cent of its foreign reserves in 1994 after a balance of payments crisis in 1991. But the proportion of gold has since fallen significantly as total reserves swelled.

Another reason behind the buying may be India's push for a larger voting share in the IMF.

India, with other emerging economies, has pressed for greater influence in world economic affairs as it has grown rapidly into a $1.2 trillion economy.

India, along with China, has been pressing for a larger representation in the IMF and had promised to augment its resources for lending to developing countries. By buying gold from the IMF, New Delhi may be trying to assert its authority in the global economic stage.

Lakshmi Mittal Richest Tycoon In South Africa

2009-11-03T03:31:00.000-08:00

India-born steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal remains the richest business tycoon in South Africa despite his fortune having halved in the past year due to the global recession.

Mittal heads the Rich List, a ranking of the 150 wealthiest businessmen in South Africa released here by the weekly Sunday Times, for the fifth consecutive year, even though he is not living in South Africa.

He has been included in the list because of his shareholding in Arcelor Mittal SA, the steel company born out of Mittal's takeover of former state-owned monopoly Iscor.

According to the Rich List, Mittal remains at the top of the list despite the value of his stake in Arcelor Mittal SA having come down to more than half in the past year, from 45.7 billion rand to 16.95 billion rand owing to weak global markets.

Retail Brokers Fear New Law Could Bring Sea Change

2009-11-02T05:49:00.000-08:00

US brokers and financial advisers fear the business they have known for decades could be irrevocably changed by regulations currently under debate in Congress.

The US House Financial Services Committee is discussing a bill aimed at holding brokers and advisers to a single standard of fiduciary responsibility to clients, amid a public and political backlash at an industry seen as preying upon investors.

A single fiduciary standard would represent the biggest overhaul of the industry's client responsibilities in decades, affecting roughly 645,000 US investment advisers, according the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority data.

The pending legislation, the Investor Protection Act of 2009, dominated discussions at this week's annual meeting of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, a leading industry lobbying group.

John Taft, head of RBC Wealth Management's US operation, who is spearheading SIFMA's lobbying efforts, called the bill the most important industry issue in the coming year.

"Like it or not, the old model was viewed as conflicted, and in the mind of the public the industry is still commissioned sales people," Taft said, during a panel discussion.

Securities and Exchange Commissioner Chairwoman Mary Schapiro, the former head of FINRA, said she supported the bill's proposed fiduciary standard for both advisers and brokers.

SAIL Q2 Net Drops, Outlook Positive

2009-11-01T02:50:00.000-08:00

Steel Authority of India Ltd, the largest producer of the metal in the country, posted a smaller-than-expected 17 per cent fall in quarterly net profit as high volumes helped offset the impact of lower prices.

The state-run firm was optimistic that government-backed infrastructure spending would spur double-digit demand growth.

"There are encouraging signs from autos, appliances, capital goods sector is also coming up. But for large-scale growth, infrastructure sector is key," SAIL Chairman S.K. Roongta told reporters at a news conference on Friday.

Global steel production has tumbled this year as demand from key industries such as construction and automotive shrank. But as macroeconomic data improves and inventories deplete, demand is gradually coming back.

Earlier this month, the World Steel Association forecast steel demand would fall 8.6 per cent this year, a much smaller fall than the 15 per cent it predicted in April.

"We agree with the forecast made by the World Steel Association as regards to India," Roongta added. The association had forecast Indian demand would rise 12 per cent rise in 2009/10.

Earlier this week, rival Tata Steel reported a drop in profit for its India business but gave an upbeat forecast for the second half of the 2009/10 fiscal year saying it expected demand to pick up in Asia's No. 3 economy.

Indian Oil: Rs 1.5 Bn Products Burnt In Fire

2009-10-31T02:42:00.001-07:00

An official at state-run refiner and oil marketing firm Indian Oil said initial estimates indicate products valued at Rs 1.4-1.5 billion were burnt in a fire that broke out at its terminal in north-western India.

The company has made alternate arrangements to supply products to areas that were receiving products from its terminal in Jaipur in Rajasthan, Indian Oil's business development director BM Bansal said.

A major fire erupted in a fuel storage facility at Jaipur late Thursday, killing up to six people at the depot.

Indian Oil: Rs 1.5 Bn Products Burnt In Fire

2009-10-31T02:42:00.000-07:00

Realty, Metal, Bank indices plunge 9-15% this week

2009-10-30T07:25:00.000-07:00

The Sensex was down 5.4% and Nifty down 5.7% this week on the back of heavy sell-off in realty, metal, banking, power and oil & gas stocks.
All BSE sectoral indices ended in the red. In the telecom space, Reliance Communication was down 23.5%, Tata Communication down 16.5% and Bharti Airtel down 11%.
In the largecaps, Suzlon Energy was down 21%, DLF Down 18.5% and Unitech down 16.5% while Tata Motors was up 7.5%, Ranbaxy up 4.5% and Wipro up 4%.
The BSE Metal Index declined 10%, as Hindalco tumbled 13.5%. Tata Steel, Jindal Steel and SAIL were down 10% each.
The BSE Bank Index plunged 8.5%, as ICICI Bank crashed 12.3%. Axis Bank was down 8.5% and SBI down 7%.
Among the broader indices, CNX Midcap Index declined 5.7% and BSE Small Cap Index was down 8%.
In the midcap space, Aptech and Everest Kanto tanked 31%. RNRL fell 25% and Nagarjuna Fertilisers slipped 21%. IOB, Mercator Lines and Bank Of India were down 24%.
Reliance Media and Punj Lloyd declined 23%. However, Zee News was up 15%, Crompton Greaves up 11% and Balrampur Chini up 8%.

RIL Q2 net profit down 6.41% to Rs 3,852 crore

2009-10-29T08:55:00.000-07:00

Country's most valued company Reliance Industries on Thursday reported 6.41% drop in its stand-alone profit at Rs 3,852 crore for the

second quarter of the current fiscal.

The total income rose 5.88% to Rs 47,476 crore during the quarter from Rs 44,839 crore in the corresponding period a year ago, RIL said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

"The timely completion of the new SEZ refinery and the deep water, oil and gas K-G D6 block and their safe and stable ramp-up are noteworthy accomplishment for the company. These projects have contributed meaningfully in RIL achieving a record level of profits despite the challenging business and economic environment," RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani said in statement.

The company's revenue from refining business grew nearly 9% to Rs 39,564 crore.

On other hand, income from petrochemical business stood at Rs 13,340 crore, down by 14.20%.

Revenues from the oil and gas segment, which includes exploration, development and production, more than tripled to Rs 2,937 crore during the period under review.

Company's expenditure on its employees stood at Rs 596 crore in the reviewed quarter, against Rs 605 crore in the corresponding period a year ago.

Sensex Goes Down By 70 Points In Choppy Trade

2009-10-28T22:49:00.000-07:00

In choppy trade, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex fell by nearly 70 points on Wednesday to extend losses for third straight session with investor sentiment remaining dampened.

The 30-share Sensex declined by 69.91 points to close at 16,283.49. The key index has lost over 450 points in the last two sessions.

The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty also fell by 20.55 points to 4,826.15.

Traders said market extended its losses on concerns that the government might halt stimulus spending as the central bank tightens monetary policy.

Banking stocks got another thrashing today and sectoral index closed down by 1.50 per cent.

Brokers said four per cent rise in September in key infrastructure industries compared to healthy 7.1 per cent in August have raised doubts if industrial recovery is sustainable or not.

Shares of ICICI Bank, the second-biggest lender in the country, declined by 3.12 per cent to Rs 810.20, HDFC Bank by 3.11 per cent to Rs 1,618.90 and HDFC Ltd. by 3.23 per cent to Rs 2,667.

Had there not been a smart rise in Bharti Airtel, Wipro, Tata Motors, L&T and RIL, the fall in the Sensex would have been much more pronounced.

The wide-based 50-issue Nifty of the National Stock Exchange too ended at more-than 6-week low at 4,826.15, a fall of 20.55 points or 0.42 per cent over its last close.

Besides Shanghai Composite index which ended in the green, other Asian indices closed lower by about 1.4 per cent and 2.4 per cent. European markets were also trading down by over one per cent in their morning deals.

Among Sensex-based shares, Maruti Suzuki dipped by 4.47 per cent, Tata Steel by 3.73 per cent, HDFC by 3.23 per cent, ICICI Bank by 3.12 per cent, HDFC Bank by 3.11 per cent, RCom by 2.50 per cent, ONGC by 2.29 per cent, Sterlite Ind by 2.20 per cent and REL Infra by 2.08 per cent.

Sensex choppy; Grasim, ITC, NTPC

2009-10-26T00:43:00.000-07:00

Equities were moving in a narrow ranged with a positive bias on Monday as buying emerged at lower levels. IT, healthcare and FMCG sectors led the upmove while stocks from metals and oil&gas space restricted the index rise.
“The coming week, markets will be keenly watching RBI's midyear credit policy on Friday as well as Expiry of the October derivative series. However, as mentioned earlier, higher levels of Nifty (around 5100-5200) will continue to see unwinding of long position or profit booking. On lower levels 4850-4900 will remain a key support with strong hurdle first placed at 5050 and then around levels of 5200 on higher end,” said Reliance Money report.
At 12:10 pm, Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex was at 16851.93, up 41.12 points or 0.24 per cent. The index touched a low of 16708.66 and high of 16867.57.
National Stock Exchange’s Nifty was at 5006.05, up 9 points or 0.18 per cent. It touched a high of 5016.10 and low of 4962.90.
BSE Midcap Index was down 0.45 per cent and BSE Smallcap Index edged 0.09 per cent lower.
Amongst the sectoral indices, BSE IT Index was up 1.33 per cent, BSE Healthcare Index gained 1.03 per cent and BSE FMCG Index moved 1 per cent higher.
BSE Metal Index was down 0.66 per cent and BSE Oil&gas Index fell 0.55 per cent.
Grasim Industries (2.49%), ITC (1.87%), NTPC (1.49%), TCS (1.46%) and Tata Steel (1.34%) were amongst the Sensex gainers.
Jaiprakash Associates (-2.42%), Hindalco Industries (-2.23%), State Bank of India (-2.03%), BHEL (-1.54%) and Reliance Infrastructure (-1.41%) were amongst the losers.
Market breadth was negative on the BSE with 1339 declines and 1129 advances.

Four-stage auction for 3G spectrum

2009-10-25T04:08:00.000-07:00

The Department of Telecom has said 3G spectrum will be auctioned in four stages: invitation stage, pre-qualification, auction and grant of spectrum. It will hold a pre-bid conference on November 16. A mock auction will be conducted on January 11 and 12. “The auction will start on January 14, 2010,” DoT said.
“Interested foreign entities are allowed to participate in the auctions directly and apply for licences subsequently,” says the revised information memorandum, which sets forth eligibility criteria and time schedule.
Compared with the original plan announced by the Empowered Group of Ministers, there is a slippage of more than two weeks.
The memorandum also gives details of the spectrum charges the successful bidders will have to shell out over the spectrum acquisition fee. An annual spectrum charge will be levied on the total adjusted gross revenue of 2G and 3G services taken together.
However, there will be a moratorium of one year on the payment of annual spectrum charges for standalone 3G operators. However, the existing operators with 2G as well as 3G spectrum will not enjoy any moratorium.
As for the roll-out obligation, the memorandum says that in the metros, the licensee should provide service in at least 90 per cent of the area within five years.
The memorandum also gives details of the number of blocks available in each circle for auction. The Empowered Group of Ministers had earlier said five blocks of spectrum would be auctioned in each circle, with one block reserved for the BSNL and the MTNL. However, there is no block available for auction in Rajasthan and North East.

Maruti Suzuki sees quarterly profit jump 93 pc

2009-10-24T07:07:00.001-07:00

Boosted by good festive season sales and robust exports, the country's largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki India, on Saturday reported a nearly two-fold jump in its net profit at Rs 570 crore for the second quarter of FY'10.

The company had a net profit of Rs 296.12 crore in the same period a year ago.

It is investing Rs 150 crore to hike production capacity at its Gurgaon facility by up to 90,000 units through de-bottlenecking and modernisation.

"During the quarter, we had good festival season sales and response to our new models were good. Moreover, we also saw robust exports," Maruti Suzuki India Managing Director and CEO S Nakanishi told reporters in New Delhi.

MSI's net sales grew by 46.67 per cent during the quarter ended September 30, 2009, at Rs 7,049.58 crore, against Rs 4,806.26 crore in the same period last year.

Favourable conditions like stimulus packages of the government, low interest rates, improved financing by government banks were some other factors that contributed to good sales.

The company's domestic sales grew by 21.9 per cent at 2,09,083 units led by new models such Estilo, A-Star, Ritz.

Nakanishi said exports during the period under review jumped by 109 per cent at 37,105 units as against 17,745 units in the year-ago period.

"The A-Star had good sales in Europe as we benefited from the scrappage scheme (incentives given on purchase of new cars for exchange of old cars)," he said

Maruti Suzuki sees quarterly profit jump 93 pc

2009-10-24T07:07:00.000-07:00

Windows 7 may push PC market revival

2009-10-23T04:28:00.000-07:00

With Microsoft commercially rolling out its latest bet - the much-awaited Windows 7 operating system - leading vendors feel this will
trigger a huge revival of the PC market.
Small wonder, Hewlett-Packard (HP), HCL, Samsung, Dell and Acer are getting their act together for this latest platform. For starters, vendors have decided that all forthcoming launches will either be bundled with Windows 7 or be Windows 7 compliant. Microsoft also believes that more than 100 different Windows 7 PCs will be launched in India over the next one month.
“The Indian market is already seeing early signs of revival and the launch of Windows 7 will create more excitement among consumers. By the end of the year, we will have eight netbook and notebook models on this platform,” Samsung India director (IT and telecom) Ranjit Yadav said.
According to last published data compiled by IDC, the Indian PC market grew by 5.2% during April-June quarter, a degrowth of 15% compared to last year. PC vendors, however, claim the market has significantly improved. Windows 7 is expected to lend a bigger push to sales.
Samsung has drawn a two-pronged strategy — while for netbooks it will continue with both Windows XP and Windows 7, in case of notebooks, it will completely migrate to Windows 7. Dell, too, has outlined a pipeline of 80 models that will be powered with Windows 7. HP, however, will continue with all the versions of Windows.
“Windows 7, due to its inherent features will help bring touch-based PCs into the mainstream. We already have a few touch products and will now expand this portfolio. HP believes that touch PCs will become a critical factor for the growth of the market,” HP India president (personal systems group) Ravi Swaminathan told ET.
Domestic PC maker HCL timed the launch of its ‘ME series’ of laptops with that of Windows 7. “There is huge synergy since both Windows 7 and our new laptop range has been designed to appeal to GenNext,” said HCL Infosystems executive VP (marketing) George Paul.
Mr Paul feels since Windows 7 will be able to support programmes originally designed for the Windows XP platform, it will trigger faster enterprise adoption. “Windows Vista enterprise users will also be able to upgrade their PCs to Windows 7 at no additional cost,” he said.
Analysts, however, feel the pace of enterprise adoption will be relatively slower. Said IDC India lead PC analyst Sumanta Mukherjee: “While adoption of Windows 7 among consumers is expected to be reasonably quicker, enterprises may wait a little longer before going for a complete Windows overhaul. However, Windows 7 is expected to be much better received by the market, as compared to its predecessor Windows Vista.”
Microsoft, on its part, confirmed that more than 1,000 enterprises in India are currently deploying Windows 7, including Infosys, Maruti, Wipro, Big Cinemas, Biocon, MindTree, NIIT, L&T ECC and GMR Infrastructure, among others. Some companies like Dell have also unveiled consulting, management and support services designed to help organisations migrate to the Windows 7 operating system.

Inflation rate rises to 1.21%

2009-10-22T02:47:00.000-07:00

India's annual rate of inflation, based on wholesale prices, rose to 1.21 per cent for the week ended Oct 10 from 0.92 per cent the week before, data released Thursday showed.The official Wholesale Price Index (WPI) rose 0.1 per cent during the week following a rise in the index for primary articles and manufactured products by 0.3 per cent and 0.1 per cent respectively.
The index for fuel, power, light and lubricants, however, remained unchanged.
Among primary articles, prices of fruits and vegetables fell 2 per cent, and that of jowar and bajra by 1 per cent.
Prices of fish and other marine products rose 14 per cent, moong 5 per cent, rice 3 per cent and urad, arhar and wheat 1 per cent, according to the data released by the industry ministry.
Over the 52-week period ended Oct 10, wholesale prices of onions went up by over 26 per cent, while it rose by 20.39 per cent for potatoes, 20.84 per cent for vegetables, 15.62 per cent for rice and 16.02 per cent for pulses.
While the WPI is currently released on a weekly basis, the government had Oct 19 approved a proposal to release it every month instead.
The base year for the new monthly inflation data will be 2004 instead of 1993 as followed now for the weekly inflation data.
The monthly WPI is expected to start Nov 14.
The government has said that the response to week-to-week inflation data was poor, particularly from the manufacturing sector, but hoped the monthly data would reflect the position better.
However, the WPI for primary articles would continue to be released every week.

Web browser Google Chrome tapping the Indian market

2009-10-21T00:53:00.000-07:00

Google’s web browser Google Chrome is targeting the Indian users to cash in. Initially after lot of print advertising and also promoting it through television, Google now is promoting Chrome through social networking site – Facebook.

According to sources, the advertisement claims that Google Chrome is the fastest growing web browser in India. No official statistics have been provided to prove the statement.

It also claims that Facebook is a fast growing social network in India and hence promoting the browser through Facebook will get them new and more users from India.

Indian rupee to rise on dlr fall; higher regional stx

2009-10-20T02:49:00.000-07:00

The Indian rupee is expected to rise on Tuesday boosted by gains in regional stocks which could prompt more inflows into the sharemarket and on the back of the dollar's broad drop against other major currencies.
* The partially convertible rupee INR=IN ended at 46.29/30 per dollar on Friday, off its intraday high 46.06 and weaker than its previous close of 46.225/235. The market was closed on Monday for a holiday.
* Last Thursday, the rupee had risen to 45.80, its highest since Sept. 24, 2008.
* The dollar fell to its lowest level in 14 months against a basket of currencies on Tuesday on persisting views that the United States will stick to a low interest rate policy. [USD/]
* The dollar index .DXY, a gauge of the U.S. units performance versus six majors, was down 0.5 percent.
* The Morgan Stanley index of Asian stocks .MIAPJ0000PUS ex-Japan was up 1.1 percent and the Nifty India stock futures SINc1 traded in Singapore were up 0.7 percent, both pointing to a firm start to the local market.

* Most regional stock markets were in the green at 0245 GMT. The Hang Seng .HSI was up 0.6 percent, the Kospi .KS11 rose 0.2 percent, the Nikkei .N225 gained 1.1 percent while the Shanghai Composite index .SSEC rose 1.1 percent. (Reporting by Swati Bhat; Editing by Jarshad Kakkrakandy)

Voith in talks with Tatas for JV, to expand India ops

2009-10-19T01:24:00.000-07:00

Voith, the e5-billion German manufacturer of paper machines, hydropower equipment and diesel locomotives, is in talks with the Tata group to form a joint venture company intended to manufacture diesel engine in India for the German group’s locomotives.
The company is looking at expanding in India by tie-ups or by acquiring local manufacturers in certain industrial equipment segments and enhance its R&D capabilities.
India’s largest automobile manufacturer Tata Motors has a 50:50 joint venture with Cummins Engine Company of the USA to manufacture diesel engines at Jamshedpur for Indian company’s commercial vehicles.
Voith, the 142-year old company held by the Voith family, is also in talks with the Tata group to manufacture hydrodynamic retarders, used to slow down high-speed vehicles, in India, Voith AG president and CEO Hubert Lienhard said.
Heidenheim, Germany-based Voith, which claims its equipment is used to manufacture around one-third of the world’s paper and generate 30% of the world’s total hydro-electric energy, has long served Indian paper and hydropower companies.
It has a paper machine manufacturing facility in West Bengal, industrial equipment making facility in Hyderabad, and a soon-to-be commissioned turbine wheel making facility in Baroda. The company now wants to go big on India. “India is not big enough for us. We want to change that,” said Mr Lienhard.
Voith, which boasts of 11,000 active patents and files on average 400 patents annually, plans to increase its R&D capability in India. Its one-and-a-half years old R&D facility in Noida that has over a hundred staff will be its main research centre for its global small hydro business.
The company is also in the process of tying up with IIT Roorkee to rope in students and faculty for hydropower project research and also to regularly hire talent from campus.

Mukesh Ambani gets it right

2009-10-18T01:46:00.000-07:00

When corporate affairs minister Salman Khurshid had called for austere corporate salaries, we had said the matter should be left to company boards. Now, the biggest shareholder in India’s biggest company by market capitalisation has decided that the chairman of his company should take a 66% salary cut.
Mukesh Ambani has brought down his own salary for 2008-09 to Rs 15 crore from Rs 44.2 crore the year before, following the RIL compensation committee’s decision to cap the chairman’s salary at Rs 15 crore.
One can crib that Rs 15 crore is not particularly austere. But the elder Ambani sends out the right signal that, at a time of widespread misery following slowdown, drought, epidemic and now floods, the richest of the land will, if not quite share the sorrow, shed a part of their pleasure. Earlier, Anil Ambani, too, had forgone his salary and commissions for 2008-09.
These symbols matter when it comes to holding society together. In terms of pure cash in hand, when promoter CEOs cut their salaries, they don’t really lose much. On the foregone salary of Rs 29.2 crore, Mr Ambani would have paid a tax of 33% or Rs 9.64 crore, net of which the salary cut would be Rs 18.56 crore.
For promoters who hold a large proportion of their company’s equity, it makes far more sense to take profits out in the form of dividends, which are tax-free in the hands of the recipient. The promoters of RIL own 46.3% of the company’s equity.
If, instead of incurring an expenditure of Rs 29.2 crore by way of the promoter chairman’s salary, RIL were to choose to pay that entire amount as dividend, after paying a 15% dividend distribution tax, Rs 11.5 crore would still accrue to the promoter, reducing the post-tax salary foregone to Rs 7.5 crore.
But this is to quibble. RIL promoters received dividends worth Rs 873 crore last fiscal. A few crore of salary is neither here nor there.

ITC moves HC against Marlboro over trademark row

2009-10-16T03:16:00.000-07:00

Diversified conglomerate ITC has moved the Delhi High Court seeking a restraint on global cigarette brand Marlboro's festive pack logo, which the firm alleged, resembles and hence dilutes its WelcomeGroup's Namaste trademark.
ITC counsel Rajiv Nayyar and Pratibha Maninder Singh contended before the court that the new logo of Marlboro, a brand owned by global tobacco major Phillip Morris SA and marketed in India by Godfrey Phillips, closely resembled with the WelcomeGroup's trademark and could mislead customers.
"This mark (WelcomeGroup logo) is very distinctive in nature. It is associated with the group with 30 years. We have a number of copyrights for that," ITC's counsel said adding that the redesigned Marlboro logo was a pure case of dilution of WelcomeGroup's trademark.
Senior Advocate C A Sundaram, appearing for the Phillip Morris SA, refuted the allegations. "We have registered our trademark in 1956, 20 years prior to ITC. It is much bigger brand than ITC. We are among world's top ten brands. How can it be diluted."
Along with the new logo, the word Marlboro has been clearly written on the pack, he added.
In its petition, ITC also requested the court to pass an order restraining Phillip Morris SA along with its director, chairman and promoters among others from using that festive logo.

Inflation close to 1 pct, RBI may hold rates

2009-10-15T03:18:00.000-07:00

India's headline inflation rose at a slower-than-expected pace at the start of October, easing pressure on the Reserve Bank to tighten its monetary stance at its policy review later this month.

The widely watched wholesale price index rose by 0.92 percent in the 12 months to Oct 3, well below market forecasts but above the previous week's 0.7 percent annual rise.

"Over the last couple of weeks this data has been coming in below consensus, and this reassures us that inflationary expectations, which were building up, may now be assuaged," said Atsi Sheth, chief economist at Reliance Equities in Mumbai.

"We still expect inflation to continue rising, however we don't believe the rise will be worrying enough for the RBI to tighten aggressively over the next 12-month period," she said.

Gold surges by Rs 191 in a day to Rs 16,120

2009-10-14T04:16:00.000-07:00

Gold prices are expectedly touching new heights after Dussehra. Gold prices sky-rocketed to Rs 16,120 per 10 gm in Mumbai today. This new record is Rs 191 higher than yesterday's price.
On September 16 this year the bullion had recorded an ever high of Rs 15980 per 10 grams. The weakening dollar along with the festive demand has made gold reach this level. The dollar weakened to 46.32 on Tuesday.
A sudden rise in demand of gold was witnessed on 12 October on the occasion of Pushya Nakshatra which is considered an apt occasion to buy precious metals. It is celebrated with great fervor especially among the Maharashtrians and Gujaratis.
If compared to last corresponding year the sale of gold this year has soared by 20 – 40 %.
Apart from the weakening dollar and surge in demand the other reasons for the sharp continuous rise in gold prices are speculated to be the steady oil prices. The sale is likely to rise further in the wake of the arriving Danteras, on October 15 despite of the shoot up in prices.
Gold holdings in the SPDR Gold Trust, the biggest exchange-traded fund backed by bullion delivery, perked up to a record 1,109.31 tones as of October 12.
In the race of price hikes , silver is not left behind. Silver rose from 22000 a kg to 27000 a kg over the past fortnight.
Many jewellers are making “special offers” to woo not only the Dhanteras crowd but the wedding shopper, too.

Gmail Overtakes YahooMail in India

2009-10-13T07:23:00.000-07:00

According to ViziSense, an online audience measurement and analytics provider platform, Gmail, Google's free e-mail service is now India's largest free e-mail service provider with more than 18 million users. Yahoo Mail, which held the top spot until the previous month has now been relegated to the second spot.

Yahoo Mail boasts of 16.8 million unique users and has seen its usage dip 8 percent since August this year. This, coupled with Gmail's continued growth which averaged 3 percent since August, has ensured that Gmail surpassed the number of Yahoo users in early October. Microsoft's Windows Live Mail too is seeing a surge in its userbase with it managing a very impressive 8 percent growth in India since August. Rediff Mail is at number three with 6.25 million users.

However, on the global scale, it might be a while till Gmail usurps the throne from Yahoo to be the world's largest e-mail provider. Besides, it also has another adversary to counter, Windows Live Mail from Microsoft which is right up there at number 2. As seen in a recent ComScore report, Gmail has been growing pretty fast in U.S. as well-- and unless Yahoo and Windows Mail don't do something drastic, Gmail, in its current form, will eclipse the "traditional" webmail providers in the years to come.

Incidentally, it was just last week that Yahoo carried a full front page ad across leading national dailies in India. Was this an attempt to woo its once loyal users who have started migrating to Gmail?

IRDA to allow banks to tie up with 2-3 insurance cos

2009-10-12T20:36:00.000-07:00

Insurance sector regulator, IRDA, is considering whether to allow banks to tie-up with two-to-three insurance companies to sell their insurance products, a senior IRDA official said. Presently, banks cannot have agency tie-ups with more than one insurer.
"Initially, we will be a little cautious...It (tie-ups of banks with insurance companies) can be two or three. We will then revisit the experience and come back," Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA), Member (Actuary), R Kannan, told reporters here.
Various life and general insurance companies have been asking IRDA to relax this (banks tie-up with one insurer) requirement.The regulator is currently reviewing the existing architecture of the Banacassurance model and has set-up a seven-member committee to study the subject.
The agency distribution arrangements through banks is generally known as the 'Bancassurance' model. The regulator is definitely going to introduce an open architecture, Kannan said, adding that, "the question is how many tie-ups the banks can have with insurance companies."
"It (banks' tie-up with two-to-three insurance companies) should be operationally feasible, administratively possible and at the same time take care of policyholders' interests," he said.

MMTC to import 10,000 t of tur, urad

2009-10-11T23:32:00.000-07:00

MMTC has floated bids for import of 10,000 tonnes of pigeon peas (tur)and black mapte (urad) to be delivered between November and December.

Bids will close on October 20 and the decision on the tender will be taken by October 27, the company said on its Web site. MMTC said bidders should source 8,000 tonnes of tur and 2,000 tonnes of urad from Africa and Myanmar. The imported pulses should be from the 2009 crop season, while bids should be made for a minimum quantity of 2,000 tonnes, it said, adding that shipments should reach Mumbai, Chennai and Kakinada ports between November and December.

Free access to ATMs of other banks closes on October 15

2009-10-11T23:08:00.000-07:00

There would be limits to one's freedom to walk into any bank's automated teller machine from Thursday as third-party ATM usage would
carry a cap on the withdrawal amount and the number of transactions each month.
From October 15, a customer can take out a maximum of Rs 10,000 per withdrawal from ATMs not owned by the bank in which he has an account, and the number of such transactions would be limited to five a month.
In August, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had asked banks to impose the restrictions on third-party ATM usage from mid-October. The step followed recommendations by Indian Banks' Association (IBA), an industry lobby.
IBA had submitted its recommendations to the central bank last July citing financial burden on banks due to a large number of third party usage and small-ticket withdrawals, resulting in high interchange expenses for banks.

Centre to strengthen PSUs: Pranab

2009-10-10T21:49:00.000-07:00

Describing reports that government was trying to privatise the public sector as a "malicious propaganda", Union Finance Minister Pranab

Mukherjee on Saturday said the Centre's policy was to strengthen PSUs and not weaken them.

Such propaganda is "far from truth", Mukherjee said in his inaugural address at the 29th national conference of the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), the trade union wing of the Congress, here.

The government's policy was clearly spelt out in the Congress manifesto and reiterated by President Pratibha Patil in her address to the 15th session of the Lok Sabha, the Minister said.

"Where is the question of weakening the public sector. The policy of the government is quite clear. The policy of the government is to strengthen the public sector units," he said.

Citing examples, he said Indian Oil Corporation had divested five per cent of its shares recently after which its market value had gone up by 124 per cent. t has not been diluted. The shares have been bought by ONGC and other public sector enterprises.

After divestment of 10 per cent shares which had been heavily oversubscribed, the value of the company, National Hydel Power Corporation, went up by 96 per cent.

Referring to CPI-M criticism that government was selling stake in PSUs to meet the revenue expenditure, Mukherjee said the earnings have been judiciously invested.

"We are investing in National Investment Fund, which is taken out of the Consolidated Fund of India. It was being separately managed. Only the corpus remains intact. Only the earnings were being utilised for specific public utility services like education, old age pension, social security," he said.

"What is wrong in it. This policy has been worked out by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and by me. There is no question of dilution," he said.

He said the government has introduced many changes. People have been given their rights, jobs to unemployed, education has been universalised up to the age of 14. By the end of the 11th plan, each and every hamlet would be brought under integrated child development scheme to provide nutrition to children up to the age of 16 and pregnant women.

On the suggestion made by INTUC President G Sanjiva Reddy for setting up a Workers Capital Trust fund, Mukherjee said he was prepared to hold a discussion with the INTUC leadership. INTUC should also discuss whether the fund could be utilised for revival of sick industries, he said.

Tata Motors raises $750 million

2009-10-10T05:20:00.000-07:00

India’s largest commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors has raised $750 million (about Rs 3,600 crore) through global depository issues
(GDRs) and convertible bonds to pay off rest of the debt it incurred for acquiring UK’s iconic brands Jaguar and Land Rover. ( Watch )
The issue comprised GDRs for $375 million and an equal amount in convertible bonds. The size of the offering was increased by 25%, as the initial fund-raising target closed in less than an hour following robust
investor demand.
“The offering will augment our long-term resources, help us de-leverage and provide us with financial flexibility to pursue our strategic goals,” said CFO CR Ramakrishnan.
Tata Motors had taken a bridge loan of $3 billion in 2008 to acquire the two brands. It had repaid the rest of the loan through a debt issue and stake sale so far.

IBM Wins $200 Mn Telco Services Deal In India

2009-10-07T19:37:00.000-07:00

IBM said on Wednesday it has won a $200 million deal with India's Datacom Solutions, part of Videocon Industries, to provide IT infrastructure and services.
Datacom is rolling out GSM services across India starting this year.
On Tuesday IBM unveiled a seven-year deal with India's IDEA Cellular to provide and operate a service delivery platform for content services to its more than 50 million clients.
"Communication service providers in India ... are choosing IBM to help deliver differentiating services to keep pace with market shifts, customer demand and competitive pressures," Scott Stainken, general manager for IBM's telecoms business, said on the sidelines of a telecoms conference in Geneva.

Civil-military rift in Pakistan over US aid with conditions

2009-10-06T22:23:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON: In a time-honored legislative practice, the US Congress on Monday transmitted the so-called Kerry-Lugar bill granting Pakistan $ 1.5 billion annually for five years to a White House clerk for assent by President Obama -- just as Pakistani powerful military has begun having second thoughts about it. Pakistan's foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi met secretary of state Hillary Clinton on Tuesday to convey, among other things, Islamabad's concerns on some of the language and provisions in the bill, even as it sits on President Obama's table for signature. The President has ten working days to sign it (failing which it becomes law), or to veto it. Indications from the Clinton-Qureshi meeting was that the Obama administration has no intention of re-working the bill despite the enormous friction it has caused in Pakistan between the civilian dispensation, and the military and its sympathisers. "Those who have questions and doubts should read the legislation, which is very clear in its intent. There has rarely been such a multi-year commitment by the United States," Clinton said in a brief media presser, with an acquiescent Qureishi by her side. The legislation has pitted the pro-US civilian dispensation in the country against its powerful military and its proxies. Aside from several clauses in the bill that bluntly implicate Pakistan in the use of terrorism, the legislation clearly seeks to establish civilian control over the military, which the pro-military constituency sees as "provocative" and an interference in Pakistan's internal affairs. The clause that has caused the most tumult in Islamabad and Rawalpindi (the military HQ) is one which calls on the US secretary of state to give a regular assessment of the "extent to which the government of Pakistan exercises effective civilian control of the military, including a description of the extent to which civilian executive leaders and parliament exercise oversight and approval of military budgets, the chain of command, the process of promotion for senior military leaders, civilian involvement in strategic guidance and planning, and military involvement in civil administration." "I think this is mischief to create a huge civil-military conflict but this will not happen. The prime minister fully understands the game," an unnamed Pakistani minister told the News daily.

Failure Of Bharti-MTN Talks Pleases Investors

2009-10-05T03:37:00.000-07:00

Bharti Airtel and MTN Group's shares surged on Thursday after the two telecoms groups failed to seal a $24 billion tie-up, and any future attempts are likely to be viewed sceptically, analysts said.
Talks between India's Bharti and South Africa-based MTN collapsed for the second time in just over a year over South Africa's reluctance to allow a flagship company to lose its national character.
Bharti on Wednesday held out the prospect of talks being revived and analysts said the two groups may decide to restart negotiations.
"I wouldn't rule it out. There definitely appears an intent from the current management to do a deal. They tried twelve months ago, and they've tried again," said Chris Wood, fund manager at Prudential Portfolio Managers, who owns MTN shares.
The tie-up, which faced close scrutiny from regulators and politicians, could have led to a full-blown merger.
Shares in MTN jumped as much as 5.53 per cent on the Johannesburg bourse while Bharti shares gained as much as 11.58 per cent in Mumbai the day after the talks collapsed.

IMF, World Bank Warn Global Cooperation Could Falter

2009-10-04T23:39:00.001-07:00

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank warned on Friday that the global economic recovery might falter as complacent policymakers lost their will to cooperate.
"The danger today is no longer, fortunately, one of a collapsing world economy," World Bank President Robert Zoellick told a news conference. "The danger today is one of complacency.
"There will be a natural tendency to return to business as usual, and it will become harder to convince countries to cooperate in order to address many of the problems that led to this crisis, that put millions of livelihoods of people at risk."
IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn, speaking as top financial officials from across the globe arrived in Istanbul for semiannual IMF and World Bank meetings, also used the word "complacency" in describing the risk of policy errors.
He said governments might be tempted too early to unwind expensive rescue measures for their economies, such as fiscal stimulus programmes and injections of huge amounts of money into their banking systems.
"My worry is governments say, 'That's it, we're out of the crisis, it's time to go back to normal' -- that would be the real error and it's one of the risks we must be sure to ward off."

IMF, World Bank Warn Global Cooperation Could Falter

2009-10-04T23:39:00.000-07:00

WB Govt Offers 45 Acre To Wipro, Infosys

2009-10-03T18:09:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to retain Wipro and Infosys in West Bengal, the state government on Thursday offered 45 acre each to the two IT giants for setting up their units.
"We are ready to give 45 acre each to Wipro and Infosys. They can construct new units at Rajarhat," Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee told a press conference at the CPI(M) headquarters in Kolkata.
"The two IT firms will be contacted by tomorrow," Bhattacharjee said, 10 days after scrapping of the IT township project at Rajarhat following an alleged land scam.
Asked whether the two companies would accept the offer, the chief minister said, "Definitely. There have been preliminary talks with them."
"This is the only alternative for us to bring the two IT majors in our state," he said, adding that the two companies could together create 16,000 job opportunities in two to three years.
On whether the land being offered was leased, the Left leader said, "All land is leased land."
Bhattacharjee said the two companies could take possession of the land at Rajarhat which has all the required infrastructure.
The land price, he said, would be determined after discussing it with the IT majors.
On the scrapped IT township project, he said the government had identified plots near the Vedic Village resort at Rajarhat.
"We had negotiated with a company that they will take over land and we will buy it from them. But something unfortunate happened. Criminal groups and muscle men operated there and we thought it was not morally correct to take such land," the chief minister said.
"These criminals created serious problems for the poor people and we dropped the idea of the IT township project for the time-being," Bhattacharjee said in reference to the violence in Vedic village on August 23 and the alleged land scam that surfaced thereafter.
The two IT majors had earlier rejected the proposal mooted by state Housing Minister Gautam Deb of providing alternative 10 acre each to set up their shop at Rajarhat.

India owes $82.5 billion to foreigners: RBI

2009-10-02T19:59:00.000-07:00

India owed USD 82.5 billion to foreigners as on June-end this year, 39 percent higher than USD 59.4 billion three months back, in terms of the country's assets and liabilities to the international community.
"Net claim of non-residents on India as reflected by the net IIP (international assets minus international liabilities) as at June-end 2009, increased by USD 23.1 billion to USD 82.5 billion from USD 59.4 billion as at March-end 2009," RBI said.
The total external financial assets increased by USD 10.2 billion to USD 360.2 billion as at June-end 2009 over the previous quarter, the central bank said in a statement.
Among the external financial assets, reserve assets, including foreign currency assets, IMF reserve position, Special Drawing Rights and gold, improved by USD 13.2 billion over the March-end and stood at USD 265.1 billion at June-end.
Direct investment abroad moved up by USD 2.6 billion over the previous quarter to USD 69.9 billion as at end-June 2009.
Meanwhile, the total external financial liabilities increased significantly by USD 33.3 billion to USD 442.7 billion as at June-end over the previous quarter.

"This considerable rise in liabilities was mainly due to inflow on account of direct investment and portfolio equity investment in India during April-June 2009 and also due to effect of valuation changes," RBI said.

Failure of Bharti-MTN merger deal part of game: Pranab

2009-10-01T19:29:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today described the failure of talks between India's telecom giant Bharti Airtel and South Africa's MTN on the USD-23 billion merger deal as "part of the game".

"You know sometimes amidst the big companies ... these deals become successful, sometimes these deals fail. This is part of the game," Mukherjee told reporters.

The proposed mega deal, which would have been the world's largest in the telecom sector, fell through for the second time in just over a year after the end of the exclusivity period yesterday.

Sunil Mittal-led Bharti called off discussions with MTN citing the South African government's rejection of the proposed merger structure, which would have created the world's third largest telecom company with combined revenues of over USD 20 billion annually and a subscriber base of over 200 million.

The deal failed as the Indian laws did not provide for dual listing of shares, which was being insisted by the South African government.

When asked if the deal termination had political reasons more than legal issues, Mukherjee said, "I am not making any comment on this. I have stated you the fact."

Meanwhile, Corporate Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid wished Bharti Enterprises all the best for its future ventures and said situations like these are part of the growing process and need to be handled as and when it comes.

On being asked what might have gone wrong with the merger talks between Bharti and MTN, Khurshid said, "I know nothing about it, except it is obviously something the two parties were talking but could not come to a satisfactory arrangement, but I saw them leave as friends which is a good thing, which leaves occasions and opportunities for something in future."

Dabhol Shifts To Local Gas From LNG Imports

2009-10-01T00:36:00.001-07:00

India's biggest power plant, built by US energy firm Enron Corp that collapsed in 2001, on Wednesday switched to using local gas from costlier imported liquefied natural gas (LNG), a senior company official said.

"From today we have started getting 4.5 mmscmd (million cubic metres a day) gas from Reliance," said A.K. Ahuja, managing director of Ratnagiri Gas and Power Pvt Ltd, which owns the facility at Dabhol in the western state of Maharashtra.

The union government has allocated Dabhol 5.67 mmscmd of gas, produced from Reliance Industries Ltd's giant gas field in Krishna Godavari basin off India's east coast.

Ahuja said Reliance's gas would cost about $6.2 per million British thermal units (mBtu) against $7.5/mBtu, it was paying for imported LNG.

The plant, which initially used costly naphtha, shifted to LNG in 2007 when the government mandated Petronet to meet the plant's gas requirements until September 2009.

Ahuja said the plant should be fully commissioned by the end of March when it would need about 8.5 mmscmd gas. The facility is now operating at an annual rate of 950 MW.

"Only three gas turbines are operating ... by end-March all six will be operational and we should be able to produce 1,950 MW," he said.

The power ministry has assured the company that more gas will be arranged for the full-scale operations, which will help narrow India's electricity deficit, he said.

India's power shortfall is expected to widen to 12.6 per cent in the current fiscal year ending in March from 11.9 per cent last year.

Ahuja said the LNG terminal near the plant will be commissioned by December. "We have to do silting and dredging," he said.

The terminal with an annual capacity of 5 million tonnes will initially run at 20-30 per cent rate until a breakwater is built.

Pricing Pressure Unlikely To Ease: MphasiS

2009-10-01T00:36:00.000-07:00

MphasiS is winning large outsourcing deals due to its association with Hewlett-Packard Co but pricing pressure is unlikely to ease in the near term, top officials said on Wednesday.

MphasiS, a mid-sized IT services firm in which HP owns a majority stake, is also not seeing an increase in the IT budget of its clients despite some improvement in the global economic environment.

"The sentiment has improved but whether the IT budgets have been lifted, the answer is no because there will be clearly a lag between sentiment and increase of IT budgets," Chief Executive Ganesh Ayyar told Reuters in an interview.

"If the IT budgets have not gone up, I don't see suddenly any sense of euphoria," he said. "Pricing pressure I don't think will ease."

Microsoft CEO Takes Pay Cut After Rough Year

2009-09-30T05:10:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Corp paid its chief executive Steve Ballmer 5.5 per cent less for the last fiscal year as the world's biggest software company suffered its first ever drop in annual sales.

Ballmer, CEO since 2000, earned a total of $1,276,627 for fiscal year 2009, which ended June 30, according to a filing with securities regulators on Tuesday. That is slightly below the previous fiscal year's total of $1,350,834.

Ballmer's salary of $665,833 was up slightly from last year, but his bonus was slashed by $100,000 to $600,000. At his own request, Ballmer receives no compensation in the form of Microsoft shares.

Microsoft lowered compensation for most of its highest-level executives in the last fiscal year. It said in January that it had frozen salaries for fiscal 2010 which started July 1, in response to the difficult economic climate.

The company suffered its first-ever drop in annual revenue in fiscal 2009 and operating profit fell 9 per cent to $20.4 billion. Its shares fell 13.6 per cent over the 12-month period.

Even in good times, Microsoft has never made a splash with huge pay packages, although many of its employees and executives have become millionaires by owning Microsoft shares.

Ballmer himself owns about 408 million Microsoft shares, according to Tuesday's filing, worth more than $10 billion.

TCS Sees Recovery In Global Banking Sector

2009-09-29T21:37:00.000-07:00

T
ata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS), India's top IT services firm by sales, expects a recovery in the global banking sector to boost its revenues this year, its chief executive said on Tuesday.

S. Ramadorai said the company was seeing some signs of a recovery in the demand for outsourcing, especially from the banking, financial services and insurance sectors that account for 43 percent of its business.

"We see some signs of activity where businesses have reinvented themselves to reach out to customers, so that will definitely force a lot of IT options," Ramadorai told Reuters on the sidelines of an investment conference in the Malaysian capital.

"The (global banking and finance) industry is beginning to look at discretionary spend which was frozen completely after the crisis."

To meet the recovery in demand and tap future business growth in Asia-Pacific countries, Latin America and back home, TCS would be looking to hire 18,000 workers in the financial year ending March 2010, Ramadorai said.

China seeks major stake in Nigerian oil: Report

2009-09-29T00:14:00.000-07:00

London: A Chinese state-owned oil company is in talks with Nigeria to acquire stakes in some of the world's richest oil blocks, in potentially one of Beijing's biggest overseas oil deals, a daily said on Tuesday.

China's largest listed offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC is seeking to buy six billion barrels of oil, the equivalent to one in every six barrels of the proven reserves in Nigeria, the Financial Times said.

The bids could pitch China into competition with Western oil groups including Shell, Chevron, Total and ExxonMobil which partially or wholly control and operate the 23 blocks under discussion.

Sixteen licences are up for renewal, according to the FT.

Details of the talks are contained in a letter from the office of Nigeria's President Umaru Yar Adua to Sunrise, CNOOC's representative, a copy of which was obtained by the FT.

The overall value of the Chinese offer is not disclosed, although some details suggest a figure of about USD 30 billion.

"Negotiations are ongoing not only with Sunrise/CNOOC but also with all other stakeholders in the industry," a spokesman for Yar Adua said.

'Sensex to touch 19K-mark in 2010'

2009-09-29T00:05:00.000-07:00

gs:Sensex, 19000, PL research, 2010, BSE
Updated on Tuesday, September 29, 2009, 12:28 IST
Tags:Sensex, 19000, PL research, 2010, BSE
Kolkata: The BSE Sensex is poised to touch the 19000-mark in 2010 fuelled by global equities' rising growth premium, favourable demographics, diminished policy risks and inexpensive valuations of Indian stocks.

Prabhudas Lilladher(PL), a leading equity research and brokerage firm for FIIs, said in its 'India Equity Strategy' report that Indian equities were on a long-term bull phase.

It said the Indian equity market was amongst the few markets around the world, which was poised to advance on a long-term bull phase over the next several years.

Besides the Sensex, the PL research report said the NSE Nifty would touch 5600 next year.

The report said one of the most important factors behind the bullish outlook was the huge proportion of Indian youth which had placed the country in a favourable demographic position vis-a-vis other countries.

This would result in a strong earnings growth outlook, the report said.

The real GDP growth would be in the vicinity of six to eight percent over the next five years, with the prospective nominal GDP growth around 10 percent, according to PL research estimates.

Banks to block all credit cards for payment default on one

2009-09-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

Customers having multiple credit cards will now not be allowed the luxury of using either in case they default on making payments for even one, thanks to stringent measures being adopted by the banks.

As per the prevalent practice, banks are blocking only that card on which there is a payment default and the other cards held by the customer are not touched.

However, the banks have now revised their credit card terms and conditions, pursuant to which all the cards would be blocked if there is a payment default on even one.

The country's largest private sector lender, ICICI Bank, has already informed its customers about the change, coming into effect from October 5, while other banks will soon follow the suit.

As per the new terms, if a customer holds two or more cards and defaults in making payments in one of the card accounts, "ICICI Bank is authorised to block the credit limit as made available to the card member under all other ICICI Bank's card accounts as well as withdraw such privileges/ benefits as made available under all such card accounts, till such time the defaulting card account is regularised by the card member."

"The card member also agrees and acknowledges that ICICI Bank shall not be required to provide any additional notice for the above," as per the revised terms. In their constant pursuit of recovering dues from credit card customers, banks recently also empowered themselves with a tool that allows them to ask employers to deduct the outstanding amount from the salary.

Employees who may have defaulted on payment, however, cannot object to this deduction of dues at source, according to the new clause introduced in the 'terms and conditions' adopted by many of the banks.

Such deductions will be remitted to the bank and will continue till the entire dues are recovered.

The amended 'terms and conditions' say that "no law or contract" governing either the card holder or employers prevents the bank from seeking such deduction and subsequent payment by the employer to the bank.

However, the new clause is applicable only for customers who default on their credit card payments. Prior notice has already been sent to all out customers to make them aware of this clause.

"Only the defaulters in repayment need to be concerned and it is not of concern to regular customers," an ICICI Bank official had said.