Business Opportunities
As expected, the S&P CNX Nifty closed at 5,201 levels on long rollovers in index futures and key stocks futures. The index is expected to consolidate above 5,200 in the new series before moving above the short-term target of 5,350. The rollovers in the Nifty January futures, at 22 million, were at a five-month low, which indicates that bears are waiting in the wings. At similar point in July 2009, the Nifty had gained over 500 points in a couple months to move above 5,000 in September 2009. A similar trend may see the Nifty moving above 5,500 in the near future.
The Sensex is trading at 17,398 - up 38 points.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today met the members of the Planning Commission to take stock of the economy and directed them to complete the mid-term appraisal (MTA) of the 11th Plan (2007-12) by March.
With demand for real estate picking up, General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC) Housing Finance is targetting disbursal of Rs 750 crore housing loans this year, a top official of the institution has said.
Soon banks such as ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and State Bank of India with a private equity (PE) arms may have to keep enhanced capital base to mitigate risks arising from such exposures.
The stock ended flat at Rs 127 with trades of over 50,700 shares on the BSE today.
After being awarded two exploratory coal blocks in Mozambique in March this year, state run Coal India Limited (CIL) has now stepped up its efforts to acquire overseas coal assets in Australia.
Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIM-K), the first of the IIMs to conclude summer placements this year, saw a little over Rs 1 lakh as the highest stipend offered.
Copper manufacturer Hindustan Copper Ltd has said the unaudited financial results for the first quarter of 2009-10 would be delayed, and is likely to be published by August end because of technical problems in the newly installed software for enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee is not the only minister in the UPA cabinet who prefers a four-bedroom flat to a bungalow in Lutyens’ Delhi. Bijoy Krishna Handique, minister of mines, hasn’t shifted to a bungalow either and is quite happy to stay at his existing flat.
The Sensex is now stable and is now at 15,677, up 49 points.
The Sensex has mangaed to erase all of its losses and has rebounded into the positive zone. The index is now at 15,646, up 17 points.
Saab’s future will be decided at December 1 GM board meeting.
With thousands of jobs across Europe at stake and the spectre of an internal subsidy race that would threaten the hard-fought internal market of the European Union (EU), the General Motors–Opel saga saw another twist in the tale this week, with Brussels stepping in to play referee.
Barely a week ahead of the UN meet on climate change in Copenhagen, India today made it clear that there will be no compromise on its position on carbon emission cuts and will preserve its economic interest at all cost.
With global aviation bodies like International Air Transport Association pressing for reduction of carbon emissions in the sector, some major airlines have carried out test flights using biofuel and alternative fuel, which are cleaner.
A former Silicon Valley serial entrepreneur sets up India’s first commercial solar power plant
Farmax Retail (India) today said its board has approved to raise funds up to Rs 500 crore through various routes including issue of foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) and global depository receipts (GDRs).
Bhupesh Bhandari / New Delhi September 29, 2009, 0:28 IST
The cost at which home loan major HDFC is borrowing Rs 4,000 crore — 7.15 per cent for two years and 7.85 per cent for three years — is very reasonable. The money will come in handy for the company to subscribe to warrants of HDFC Bank for an estimated amount of Rs 3,600 crore. The qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) who have bought the non-convertible debentures (NCDs) are also entitled to warrants, which can be converted into shares within three years at Rs 3,265 per share.
Opto Circuits (India) Ltd. (OCI), a manufacturer of invasive and non-invasive medical devices, today announced that Criticare Systems Inc, its wholly owned subsidiary, has signed a long-term development agreement with an OEM customer. The agreement provides for a joint development programme focused on a new modular and MRI-compatible patient monitoring system.
Drug manufacturer Dr Reddy"s Laboratories today said it has received US regulatory approval for anti-heartburn capsules.
Sixty seven per cent of domestic companies have chosen non-government organisations (NGOs) as partners to undertake their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects, while 58 per cent prefer government departments for the spread of CSR obligations, Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) says. The chamber, in its assessment, ‘CSR: Quantitative Analysis’, said 21 domestic companies were working with multilateral or bilateral organisations for CSR activities. The study added 37 per cent of the firms had a well-structured foundation for implementing their CSR, while 58 per cent domestic companies had formed a separate department to implement CSR.
The Japanese and Indian industry are keen to take the Japanese investment in India beyond automobiles and into sectors like infrastructure, manufacturing, trade and education. The view emerged at a meeting between the Indian industry and a Japanese delegation, led by Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama. Both the countries found that much more work had to be done for a comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) to fructify.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday said the government would pass the Right to Food Act to promote inclusive growth, a concept that has been pursued by the Congress since Independence. “We are going to pass the Right to Food Act,” Mukherjee said while speaking at the Economic Times Award-2009 function in the national capital.
Asian markets pared gains and ended almost flat today. The Hang Seng added 61 points to 22,268. The Nikkei was up 62 points at 9,871.
Sunil Jain / New Delhi October 26, 2009, 0:22 IST
Trades between FIIs generated a volume of Rs 30 crore on the BSE Friday-an decrease of 33.27% from Rs 44 crore clocked on Thursday. As many as seven stocks witnessed trades of 3.15 lakh shares on Friday.
Jump 44% over September; experts attribute it to a strengthening rupee.
Ahead of the meeting between the prime ministers of India and Japan, the two countries today signed two agreements for developing the Rs 3,60,000-crore Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project.
Pollution control equipment maker Thermax today said it has bagged an order worth Rs 477.77 crore from an Orissa-based company for construction of a captive power plant.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will hold a pre-Budget discussion with state governments on January 13. Recommendations of the 13th Finance Commission on devolution of funds, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime, continuation of stimulus packages and allocation for the Centre’s flagship schemes such as National Rural Health Mission and Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan are expected to dominate the deliberations. A government official told Business Standard today that the states will make a strong pitch to continue the fiscal stimulus package.
Anil Ambani-led Reliance Natural Resources (RNRL) today alleged in the Supreme Court that Mukesh Ambani Group Reliance Industries (RIL) played a "fraud" by coming out with a complex formula on gas pricing to artificially enhance its rate.
The government today said India is more prepared to deal with a Satyam-like fraud that hit the corporate world with the disclosure of about Rs 10,000 crore fudging of accounts by the founder of the IT firm B Ramalinga Raju a year ago.
The Orissa government today said it was not prepared to implement Goods and Services Tax (GST) from April 1 this year and has sought permission from the Centre to re-introduce Purchase Tax on foodgrain.
Kingfisher Airlines is planning to raise around $600 million worth of funds in the current financial year to pay off its debt and strengthen its bottom line, in the backdrop of a turbulent time for the country’s aviation industry.
But general insurance industry sees deterioration
Surging sugar prices today became more bitter for consumers as they rose to an all-time high of Rs 4,150 a quintal at the wholesale market on increased buying for the current festival and marriage season amid widening demand-supply gap.
The markets have held on to their gains in the past one hour. The Sensex is quoting at 17,239, up 108 points, and the Nifty is at 5,122, up 32 points.
Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB) is targeting a business of Rs 50,000 crore by 2012-13 for which it would require around Rs 1,000 crore capital.
French multinational drug major sanofi-aventis has joined the list of drug majors eyeing the generic or copycat drug sales opportunity in the Indian market. It has officially launched a new marketing initiative named ‘Prayas’ to market these generics in small towns and in rural India.
Tatas-owned European steel major Corus has appointed Karl-Ulrich Kohler as the new Chief Operating Officer with effect from February 1, 2010.
The financial institutions in the state have identified 1690 sick industries for revival as per the guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). While 667 units have already been revived, seven such proposals are under consideration. The rest 1016 sick units were later found to be not in a position to be revived and hence, have been left out of the process, said industry minister Raghunath Mohanty.
IBM has established Centres of Excellence (CoEs) in 10 colleges in Karnataka to create a platform for the development of software skills among students. The CoEs will teach students skillsets on DB2, WebSphere, Lotus, Rational and Tivoli - as well as help them develop tech business solutions.
The Maharashtra government today said it has sought around Rs 1,170 crore Central relief aid for Phyan cyclone affected victims.
Faced with the threat of closure, metal scrap traders have appealed the government to reshuffle taxation structure to volume-based from value-based.
Ahead of its upcoming annual general meeting on December 31, 2009, Israeli drug company Taro Pharmaceutical has asked its shareholders to reject a takeover bid by Sun Pharmaceuticals.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), the Bangalore-based firm which operates under the Ministry of Defence, has signed an agreement with Boeing to work together with the US plane maker for the production of flaperons for the Boeing’s 777 series commercial jetliner.
Shobhana Subramanian / Mumbai November 6, 2009, 0:43 IST
The disinvestment department today said it is in talks with administrative ministries of 60 Central Public Sector Undertakings (CPSUs), including SAIL, BSNL, Coal India, for selling government stake.
A court here hearing the alleged multi-crore Satyam accounting scam, today posted the hearing on framing of charges against B Ramalinaga Raju, former chairman of Satyam Computer and nine others accused in the matter to December 9.
The West Bengal government today said it was in touch with the Tatas for return of the lease land at its abandoned Nano project site in Singur.
GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare is leveraging on Horlicks" brand equity to get into new categories. Will the move pay off?
State gas utility GAIL India Ltd plans to raise around Rs 2,000 crore during the current fiscal to part fund its expansion plans.
The government is examining the economic climate for divesting its stake in state-run Shipping Corporation of India (SCI).
Government’s security concerns about Chinese equipment makers not a deterrent.
Sun Pharma touched a high of Rs 1,459 and finally ended at Rs 1,436, up 2% from the previous close. The counter clocked volumes of 234,664 shares on the NSE today.
Pharma firm Unichem Laboratories today said it has received US regulatory approval for Clonidine Hydrochloride tablets USP used in the treatment of hypertension.
Swiss drug maker Novartis today said its newly developed vaccine "Celtura" against Influenza A HINI (Swine Flu) has shown effective result during a pilot test conducted by it.
Infosys has not named anybody who would fill Nandan Nilekani"s shoes but expressed confidence that leadership transition would be a smooth affair as was in the past.
In a major setback to Sun Pharmaceutical Industries - the largest Indian drug maker in terms of market capitalisation, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has seized all medicines produced by Sun’s US arm Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories, for repeated violations of manufacturing standards.
The Dow Jones industrial average advanced to its highest close in 14 months on Tuesday as a weak dollar boosted natural resource companies" shares and economic data reinforced hopes for a sustainable recovery.
The sugar industry is all set to challenge the recent amendment to the Essential Commodities Act, which seeks to introduce a fair and remunerative price (FRP) for sugarcane, besides absolving the government of a Rs 14,000-crore levy price obligation arising out of several court rulings.
Hyderabad-based animation, gaming and entertainment company DQ Entertainment (International) Limited has filed the draft red herring prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India to enter the capital markets with an IPO of 19.8 million equity shares of Rs 10 each.
Bharti Airtel has a launched new offer, "Airtel Advantage" scheme, under which the GSM service provider will levy around 50 paise per minute for both national long distance call (STD) and local calls. Airtel has the largest telecom subscriber base with over 110 million people.
Till late last year, zonal tax collectors at Chennai Corporation carted documents while assessing arrears related to property tax and collecting arrears from customers. The data were updated in a ledger book, after they collected the arrears.
Improving demand from the US financial sector helps shore up numbers.
Infosys BPO Ltd, the business process outsourcing (BPO) operation of Infosys Technologies, is looking at raising its headcount in the Americas through inorganic growth. The company is understood to be scouting for a strategic acquisition in the $40-60 million range either in Canada or the US, according to industry sources.
The Reserve Bank of India"s (RBI"s) panel on revamping the existing benchmark prime lending rate (BPLR) will meet tomorrow for further deliberation with bankers.
Steps down on health grounds, according to a press communique.
Confusion seems to shroud the groundnut industry as production estimates by two of the leading associations in Gujarat show a huge difference of about four lakh tonnes for 2009-10.
Ahmedabad-based Prudent Corporate Advisory and Brokering Services is targetting 100,000 Systematic Investment Plans (SIPs) by March 2011.
Groundnut oil prices may touch Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 1,700 per 15 kg
Volkswagen AG’s supervisory board signed off on contracts for its takeover of Porsche SE in stages, clearing the way for Europe’s largest automaker to add the 911 sports car to its model line up.
The government today deferred the implementation of the ground handling policy at airports by a year, allowing private airlines to continue their ground handling services, along with airport operators, Air India and other air carriers, inside the airport terminal during that period.
Facing allegations of approving Reliance Industries’ inflated gas field costs that could hurt government revenue, oil regulator, the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), today launched an advertisement campaign, saying the exchequer would get $16.57 billion, compared to $9.5 billion for the company.
The government has not let Reliance Industries off the hook for signing a private MoU with a firm run by the Anil Ambani Group to divide entire gas volumes from KG basin fields, thus holding industrial development to ransom, the petroleum ministry said today.
Much ink has been spilt and will continue to be on who is to get the supply of natural gas from Reliance Industries’ (RIL’s) stupendous D6 find in the Krishna-Godavari basin.
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGc), the country"s largest public sector undertaking, has posted a decline of 26.95 per cent in its net profit for the quarter ended 30 June, 2009 at Rs 4,847.92 crore as compared to Rs 6,636.33 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. The company"s net sales from operations during the quarter, too, dipped to Rs 14,879.27 crore from Rs 20,052 crore, down 25.8 per cent.
Mukesh Ambani-promoted Reliance Petroleum (RPL) today reported a net profit of Rs 105 crore for the first quarter ended June 30, 2009.
Amid a continuing legal battle between the Ambani brothers over gas supply, the elder of the two, Mukesh Ambani, is believed to have met Law Minister Veerappa Moily.
India"s leading private carrier Jet Airways today entered into a code-sharing pact with Malaysian Airlines (MAS) enabling passengers to book tickets on each others flights between here and different destinations in India from next month.
The Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) is planning to carry out projects worth Rs 1,459 crore in 2009-10. The state-run agency, which is promoting affordable housing and commercial properties, is also looking at developing some of its properties through public private partnership.
The Indian economy would grow at least 7 per cent in the current financial year, according to Suresh Tendulkar, former chairman of the Prime Minister"s Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC).
Over eight years ago, engineering and construction major Larsen and Toubro (L&T) decided to join hands with the Shailesh J Mehta School of Management at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay. The purpose was designing a programme in project management to bridge the human resource (HR) gap in the industry.
If the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha can have their own dedicated television channels, why shouldn’t the Indian Railways have its own channel? A Railways Advisory Committee, packed with supporters of the Trinamool Congress, has recommended the Railways start its own television channel to both inform as well as educate the travelling public. Watch this space for news of Air India TV!
Twitter Inc will make about $25 million from Internet-search deals with Google Inc and Microsoft Corp announced in October, enough to push the site into profitability, people familiar with the matter said.
Former Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde was today made Deputy Leader of the BJP in Lok Sabha in place of Sushma Swaraj who has been elevated as Leader of the Opposition.
Textile manufacturer Mafatlal Industries today said Bombay High Court has dismissed a writ petition filed by an non-government organisation (NGO) against the de-reservation of its mill land by the government.
Weighed down by a whopping 3.5 crore pending cases in courts nationwide, the Government today proposed a National Arrears Grid to compile accurate data and appoint high court and lower court judges temporarily to bring down 15-year delays in justice delivery to three years.
Subir Roy / New Delhi January 6, 2010, 0:11 IST
The Bengaluru International Airport today reported that passenger traffic would top 9.3 million during the calendar year 2009 which was a growth of 22 per cent over the previous year. Meanwhile, the cargo handled during the 12 months was estimated at 161,896 tonnes.
Armed forces today intensified search and rescue operations using 13 helicopters and over 100 boats in flood-hit states of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, reeling under one of the heaviest floods in the last century.
On the tenth anniversary of the Kargil conflict, the gun that did so much to facilitate that victory — the 155 mm Bofors FH-77B — could be staring at a major setback. With India’s artillery modernisation programme already stalled, the plan to refurbish and upgrade India’s old 155 mm FH-77B Bofors guns also seems headed for failure.
Trades between FIIs generated a volume of Rs 75 crore on the BSE Friday-an increase of 33.49% from Rs 56 crore clocked on Thursday. As many as eight stocks witnessed trades of 13 lakh shares on Friday.
The Nifty closed above the crucial resistance level of 5,080 on strong buying in index stocks such as Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, Tata steel and Cipla. Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications, Jaiprakash Associates and State Bank of India closed in the red on shorts build-up on the F&O segment. The Nifty November and December futures closed at a premium to the spot on intraday short-covering and fresh long build-up.
Three standalone GE healthcare subsidiaries will be integrated with Wipro GE Healthcare.
K Rajani Kanth / September 18, 2009, 0:18 IST
Mahindra Satyam, the rebranded Satyam Computer Services, on Thursday announced the appointment of Vijayanand Vadrevu as the senior vice president – strategic initiatives.
Union Minister for Corporate Affairs Salman Khurshid has asked the industry to propose a corporate social responsibility (CSR) system that rewards the industry.
Moving away from the shadow of Satyam scam, software exporter Mahindra Satyam today said the company would be repositioned as a complete Information and Communications Technology (ICT) firm from just an IT outsourcing player.
With the industry gradually emerging from recession, business hotels are hoping to ring in the good times with more travellers demanding "smart hotels" with prompt service and good communication systems sans the luxury frills.
Seema Sindhu / October 31, 2009, 1:17 IST
The Sensex is gyrating between zones and is now flat at 17,066, up 15 points.The Nifty is now at 5,067, up three points.
Country’s largest direct selling FMCG company Amway India is eyeing revenues of Rs 1,400 crore in this fiscal, up from Rs 1,130 crore last year.
A K Purwar, former chairman of the State Bank of India has been appointed as the chairman of India Infoline Investment Services, the NBFC arm and a material subsidiary of India Infoline.
I would like to invest in gold via Systematic Invest Plan (SIP ). Please name some schemes.
The Nifty opened gap-down on Friday and broke many crucial supports in the process, indicating that its further decline will be quite intense. Technical analysts are cautious about its upside, as the index is trading around 20 of its daily moving average (DMA). For any upside, benchmark indices need to cross the immediate resistances of 16,720/ 5,000 convincingly, else we could see selling pressure emerge once again, which could take the main indices towards the Friday low of 16,210/ 4,800.
Demand slowdown hits revenues.
Shivani Shinde / Mumbai October 16, 2009, 0:39 IST
India has sent a proposal to the World Bank seeking a loan up to one billion dollar to fund its urban development projects here, Lok Sabha was informed today.
Dalal Street ended virtually unchanged for the second day in a row after paring early morning gains. The Sensex added 16 points to close at 17,186 and the Nifty ended eight points up at 5,132. The BSE mid-cap ended 25 points higher at 6,613 and the small-cap strengthened by 71 points to 7,822.
The World Bank has agreed to look at newer ways to raise its funding commitment for the highways projects, Road Transport and Highways Minister Kamal Nath after meeting the Bank chief Robert Zoellick said here today.
The Planning Commission today expressed optimism that economic growth during the current year will exceed 7 per cent, up from 6.7 per cent recorded during 2008-09.
A bill to give legal cover for construction, operation and maintenance of the metro rail system in the National Capital Region and other metro cities was introduced in the Lok Sabha today.
The collapse of a Delhi Metro bridge stretch on Sunday morning and three recovery cranes toppling over today crushed the contractor — Gammon India’s — scrip in initial trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange today, but the stock recovered dramatically in a falling market to close 2.73 per cent higher.
Tata Steel, the world’s sixth largest steelmaker, said on Friday steel sales at its Indian operations jumped 38 per cent in October to 462,000 tonnes, compared to same period last year. The Indian operations contribute about a quarter of the group’s total annual global capacity of 30 million tonne, which includes Corus, Europe’s second-largest steel maker. Saleable steel production in October rose by 27 per cent from a year earlier to 570,000 tonne and crude steel production gained 22 per cent to 599,000 tonne, the company said.
While the jury is out on this, Onida says its products are the real heroes of the new campaign.
The stock slipped to a low of Rs 429 and finally ended down 1.5% at Rs 434. The counter witnessed trades of 272,562 shares on the BSE today.
The country’s third largest public sector lender, Bank of Baroda (BoB), today said it is open to overseas acquisition if a good opportunity comes across.
Abhineet Kumar / Mumbai December 24, 2009, 0:03 IST
IDBI Bank, which has been mandated to raise Rs 13,000 crore syndicated loan for Reliance Power"s Krishnapatanam Ultra Mega Power Project (UMPP) has put the process on hold.
IDBI Bank today announced the repayment of its 11.5 per cent SLR bonds, 2009 on September 26, 2009.
Global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are projected to fall 56 per cent in 2009 compared to last year, mainly on account of sharp declines in such activities in rich and emerging markets including India.
Many index funds charge less than equity-diversified funds. Select a fund that has a low tracking error.
About 50 employees are being interrogated.
Hang Seng is quoting at 21,624, stronger by 325 points or 1.5% and Nikkei is placed at 10,085, higher by 68 points or 0.6%. Straits Times is at 2,685, up 4 points or 0.1%.
The ongoing debt crisis in Dubai offered a great opportunity for India to become the global gold trading hub, said Vinod Hayagriv, chairman, All India Gem & Jewellery Trade Federation.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) wants operators to make their network accessible to Lawful Interception and Monitoring (LIM) for the security agencies after they switch to mobile number portability (MNP) mechanism next month-end. DoT is likely to issue directives soon to all the telecom licencees on putting the subscribers under the LIM even before MNP is activated in the system.
Bank employees owing allegiance to four Left-leaning unions today went on a strike protesting the proposed merger of the State Bank of Indore with parent SBI, disrupting normal banking operations in the country, a top union official said.
The Lok Sabha today passed three bills in 15 minutes without any discussion as opposition members protested vociferously against price rise and carving out Telangana from Andhra Pradesh.
The Left and the BJP today tried to corner the government on the issue of spiralling prices and lent support to trade unions which have gathered here to protest against economic policies including disinvestment.
Credit growth of banks remained quite low at just over 10 per cent for the fortnight ended December 4 on an yearly basis compared to over 20 per cent in the corresponding period last year.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the Satyam Computer Sciences Limited (SCSL) accounting fraud case, has so far examined 733 witnesses and gathered 3,081 documents as part of its effort to unfold the biggest corporate fraud in the country.
Business Standard / New Delhi December 17, 2009, 0:56 IST
Soft drinks and snacks major PepsiCo India today said it may use Stevia as an alternative sweetener if the Government permits it do so.
Bajaj Group promoted sugar major, Bajaj Hindusthan, has informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that it would raise long-term funds up to Rs 2,000 crore from the domestic or international market in one or more tranches.
Companies take a number of steps to ensure that investors continue to find value in their stocks.
State Bank of Mysore (SBM) will restructure agriculture loans to the tune of Rs 1,200 crore in the flood affected districts of North Karnataka. The bank is predominant in four of the 14 districts affected by the floods.
Private carrier Kingfisher Airlines plans to raise up to 175 million dollars (about Rs 840 crore) before March next year through rights issue and global depository receipts (GDR).