Small Business
Power Secretary H S Brahma today said the Ministry would soon approach the Finance Ministry for abolition of service tax on power transmission that could benefit end consumers by way of lower tariff.
Stimulus packages and economic slowdown have hit the exchequer hard as indirect tax collections shrunk by 21.6 per cent to Rs 1.27 lakh crore in the first seven months of this fiscal, against Rs 1.62 lakh crore a year ago.
As the takeover battle between Bharati Shipyard and ABG Shipyard for Great Offshore heats up, analysts feel it is the right time for retail investors to book profits as the fundamentals of the target firm"s stock do not support sustainability of its current price.
Dealers bank on small NBFCs as big players opt out.
Freebies are no longer catching the fancy of prospective home buyers; instead they are seeking cash discount, as the real estate market shows signs of revival.
Ministry moves to cut subjectivity in decision making, delegates more powers to Registrar of Companies.
Sudhakar Ram, chairman, Mastek, is putting together a collaborative book.
The market generates 40-45 per cent of the overseas collections for Bollywood films
Against the backdrop of some provocative steps by China, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said there was "certain amount of assertiveness" by China lately, which had to be taken note of.
As many as five Indian companies, including ICICI Bank and Infosys Technologies, rank among the top 12 companies in the Asia Pacific region for being instrumental in building leadership capability within their organisation.
Lawyers defending seven suspects, including LeT operations commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, in Mumbai attacks today filed an application in an anti-terror court in Pakistan seeking their acquittal on the ground that there is no probability of their being convicted.
Suspected terrorist David Coleman Headley travelled to five cities during his stay in India between 2006-09, investigators have found.
It is "too premature" to talk about the extradition of US national David Coleman Headly to India for his alleged role in Mumbai terror attacks, a top Obama Administration official has said.
Even as swine flu is threatening the hospitality industry, travellers are taking advantage of the Independence Day holiday to pack their bags for a weekend trip. Most hotels at travel destinations, domestic and international, are packed for the weekend.
In a new disclosure, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has said that the famous Somnath temple in Gujarat, Bollywood stars and Shiv Sena leaders in Mumbai were also the targets of Lashkar-e-Taiba, which was planning to carry out strikes with the help of two Chicago-based residents of Pakistani origin.
Government today said that in the next four to six weeks, investigations into David Headley and Tahawwur Rana"s links with 26/11 attacks will be completed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA).
Fiat India Automobile Ltd (FIAL) is developing a new compact car for the domestic market, which will be unveiled in 2012. The car, being developed for the Indian market in Fiat’s facilities in Turin, Italy, will incorporate inputs from Tata Motors. FIAL is a 50:50 joint venture between Fiat Group of Italy and Tata Motors.
Pakistani-origin American David Coleman Headley, charged by FBI of being involved in the Mumbai terror attacks, was using US as a base to plan future attacks outside the country, a top Senator said today.
Business Standard / New Delhi January 07, 2010, 0:24 IST
A V Rajwade / New Delhi November 7, 2009, 0:40 IST
A meeting of the Union Cabinet scheduled today was cancelled in view of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh"s visit to Kolkata to see the ailing CPI(M) leader Jyoti Basu.
The government will invite bids by this year-end for three mega projects worth around Rs 14,500 crore in the road sector, Road Transport and Highways Minister Kamal Nath said today.
Hinting at a buoyant economy in 2010, Uday Kotak, vice chairman and managing director, Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd said that the total inflow of funds in India, comprising of insurance, FIIs and mutual funds may touch $ 40 billion.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Rs 92.21 crore (provisional) today, according to data released by BSE.
The Indian Industries Association (IIA), an apex body of SMEs, has joined hands with Germany-based Confederation of Skilled Crafts to work for a development project for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) in Uttar Pradesh.
Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Amar Singh has asked the Congress to explain its position on the issue of Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG)–initiated Dadri power project. It claimed there was a contradiction in the stand of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh.
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited’s Visakha refinery is all set to supply Euro-IV-compliant petrol from April 2010. HPCL has invested Rs 2,600 crore in Visakha Refinery to meet Euro norms.
Indian IT companies will have to be content with the existing visa options for the United States as the US Congress, the country’s highest lawmaking body, is unlikely to take up the issue of immigration reform in the short-term.
Asia MotorWorks Limited (AMW), an Ahmedabad-based company specialising in design and manufacture of tractors, tippers and high-tonnage trucks, is contemplating foraying into bus manufacturing in the next two to three years.
Marxist patriarch Jyoti Basu, who is battling for his life, today had Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visiting him and offering help in bringing experts from other parts of the country for his treatment.
Bilcare ended at Rs 512, lower by Rs 2 or 0.3%, on the BSE.
Strides Arcolab announced a collaboration with Pfizer, USA on Thursday where Pfizer will commercialise the later"s off-patent sterile injectables and oral products in the US.
Glenmark Pharmaceuticals today announced two significant agreements with US-based Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation.
Yuvraj bats for Ranbaxy’s healthcare brand
The condition of Marxist patriarch Jyoti Basu, who is battling pneumonia, remained critical today with doctors putting him back on full ventilation.
Delhi-based Indraprastha Gas has objected to oil regulator Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board"s (PNGRB) decision to open price bids for giving gas licence for Ghaziabad, saying the Delhi High Court had given it permission to begin CNG retailing in the town.
Government today said it will not compromise on India"s interests at the Copenhagen climate change summit, but a dissatisfied opposition walked out in the Rajya Sabha.
Five more persons, including an AIDS patient, died of swine flu in the city, taking the countrywide death toll in the pandemic to 23.
Zandu Pharmaceutical today said it has received shareholders" approval for its merger with Emami and Emami Infrastructure.
Cipla, the country’s second-largest drug company, will foray into the production of biotechnology medicines soon. The company is planning to set up a 50:50 joint venture partnership with a Chinese firm. The JV will be based in India and will manufacture and market bio-similar products (off patent biotechnology medicines) for domestic and overseas markets.
The Supreme Court today issued notice to state-run telecom major Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) on a petition by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), which had objected the PSU"s charging higher tariff from subscribers by way of reducing the pulse rate of each call.
The recent resolution regarding bauxite mining in Gujarat, passed by the state"s Industries and Mining Department on November 19, has put two major alumina refinery projects worth about Rs 4400 crore, on a fast track.
Software companies continued to constitute the fastest growing firms in the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 India 2009 programme. This year, the composition of software companies amounted to as much as 80 per cent.
IT giant Wipro Limited, as part of its energy efficiency initiatives, is planning to reduce the carbon footprints from the present 3.96 tonne per employee to 2.5 tonne in the next five to seven years, said Laxman K Badiga, chief information officer of the company.
Reliance Industries (RIL) may make a firm bid to acquire bankrupt chemicals and fuel maker LyondellBasell Industries AF in February 2010 after $20 billion of debt owned by the troubled firm is restructured.
Take Solutions, an international business technology firm, today said it has entered into an agreement with South Korea-based IL-Yang Pharma Company Ltd for providing investigational new drug (IND) submission services to the company.
India"s top two law officers have advised NTPC to move Supreme Court at once to secure gas at a contracted price from Reliance Industries (RIL), a position in variance with Oil Ministry"s plea on the Ambani borthers" gas dispute.
Golf continues to grow from strength to strength in the country
While imports continue to be the order of the day in acquiring metal forming machines, SMEs in India are slowly moving away from the pre-used machinery market for low and mid-range-priced machines. They are now looking at new products from the domestic market as well as those from countries like China, Taiwan, Korea, Brazil and Turkey.
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) is expecting its revenues from traffic operations to increase by 25 per cent this financial year due to the increase in average daily ridership after the inauguration of various new routes, including the Yamuna Bank-Noida Sector 32 stretch which will be commissioned tomorrow.
While 2009 was an exceptional year for investors in equities and gold, 2010 could be much subdued. Returns from debt instruments, though, are likely to improve.
These days, you will see few fund houses promoting their monthly income plans (MIPs). With returns improving due to the stock market rally, MIPs have started looking more promising.
FMCG and healthcare company GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare (GSKCH) is planning to undertake a special campaign this summer to drive growth in the health food drinks category, consisting of the "Boost" and "Chocolate Horlicks" brands.
The annual plan ceiling of the water resources department (WRD) for 2010-11 has been fixed at Rs 2222.64 crore. It is the highest among all the departments.
Essar Steel’s $2.5 billion (about Rs 12,500 crore) capacity expansion project at its Hazira plant in Gujarat will be completed by the end of this calendar year.
Rahul Bajaj, Chairman, Bajaj Auto, says there are only demand-side problems for corporate India. The only supply-side problem is power. Excerpts:
The Centre is planning to set model markets in every state across the country to preserve perishable commodities, said minister of state for agriculture K V Thomas.
It wasn’t just ordinary passengers who suffered the brunt of the recent Air India strike. West Bengal Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta came to Delhi to attend a meeting on Goods and Service Tax (GST) with finance ministry officials. After which, he met Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. While Mukherjee’s office had kept an hour for the meeting, Dasgupta was in a hurry and spent just half the time since, with the Air India flight cancelled, he had no option but to leave on the earlier flight of a private airline.
Plans majority stake in JV; to offer NLD, ILD, ISP services.
L&T Infotech, the infomation technology arm of Larsen and Toubro, the engineering and construction major, is sharpening focus on its consulting business. The company set up a separate consulting business unit this March and already has close to 20 clients, representing 2 per cent of the overall revenue.
The process is expected to begin next summer.
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said Rajya Sabha member Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan will be appointed as a member of the commission.
On August 13, the National Remote Sensing Agency — a part of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) — put India on the global cyberspace map. It launched Bhuvan — a geoportal which allows users to explore the virtual earth on the internet for free in a 3D environment with specific emphasis on India.
The industry minister Raghunath Mohanty today urged the Central Public Sector Undertakings (CPSUs) in the state to register at least 100 vendors under their wing within a year to facilitate growth of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
Business Standard / New Delhi August 24, 2009, 0:08 IST
Private sector lender ICICI Bank today reported a 26.36 per cent drop in consolidated net profit at Rs 1,148.66 crore for the third quarter (Q3) ended December 31, 2009.
Jitendra Gupta / Mumbai January 21, 2010, 0:27 IST
The Sensex witnessed a volatile week with important announcements by the government and global cues. The government"s decision to auction three slots in the 3G spectrum helped telecom stocks gain.
Higher crude price realisation, coupled with lower fuel subsidy, has helped Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) post a 23 per cent jump in net profit for the quarter ended December 31. Net profit was Rs 3,054 crore, compared to Rs 2,475 crore in the same quarter last year. Net sales for the quarter rose 23 per cent, to Rs 15,314.5 crore.
The land cost at the proposed Kashipur estate is likely to be 40 to 50 per cent cheaper than the other industrial areas in Uttarakhand.
Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services has reported a 111 per cent increase in its consolidated net profit to Rs 97 crore for the quarter ended December 2009 compared with Rs 46 crore in the same period last year. Total income of the non-banking financial company grew by 13 per cent to Rs 409 crore during the reporting period.
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today said monetary measures are not required to contain food inflation, amid speculations that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may squeeze money supply to rein in surging food prices.
Zooming inflation, a build-up of inflationary pressures and cues from global markets could impel the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to further tighten its monetary policy stance by hiking the cash reserve ratio (CRR) and policy rates, bankers said.
A K Bhattacharya / New Delhi December 2, 2009, 0:09 IST
The government is setting up a high-level Task Force to address the problems of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) which have been demanding adequate financing and other incentives to tide over the economic slowdown.
After losing customer accounts to public sector banks at the height of the downturn, private sector banks seem to be on their way back.
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi today said his government is ready to draft a separate policy for stainless steel manufacturers, provided they are willing to foray in gymnasium equipment and toys manufacturing as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Exuding confidence that India"s space programme will soar fresh heights under new ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan, its outgoing chairman G Madhavan Nair today said his successor will be able to carry forward the agency"s plans, including the most challenging manned moon mission to space.
The shuttle Atlantis has blasted off carrying vital supplies and spare parts for the International Space Station to push its life past the 2010 retirement of the aging shuttle fleet.
Telecom service provider Aircel today entered into a partnership with software exporter Infosys Technologies to launch the first mobile application store in the country.
Apollo Hospitals today reported a 48.6 per cent increase in its net profit at Rs 43.91 crore for the quarter ended on December 31, 2009, as compared to the similar period last fiscal.
A dispute between Jammu & Kashmir Bank (J&K Bank) and its majority shareholder, the government of J&K, over a demand of Rs 111 crore raised by the state government, has apparently led to the return of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) nominee on the bank’s board a few weeks ago.
Hyundai Motor"s net profit nearly quadrupled in the fourth quarter on higher sales following a strong performance during 2009 in the fast-growing Chinese and Indian auto markets.
Between 2005 and 2008, Jharkhand govt signed MoUs for various mega projects.
Britannia ended at Rs 1578, lower by Rs 22 or 1.4%, on the BSE.
The US markets ended in the negative. The Dow Jones closed at 10,120, weaker by 115 points or 1.1%, Nasdaq ended at 2179, lower by 42 points or 1.9% and the S&P shut at 1084, down 12 points or 1.1%.
President Barack Obama is proposing a tax package aimed at appealing to middle-income Americans, including an increased tax credit for child care and an expansion of tax credits to match retirement savings.
VE Commercial Vehicles (VECV), a subsidiary company of Delhi-based Eicher Motors (EML) has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Vinn Group of Sweden to explore business opportunities in the field of engineering design services.
This refers to “Reverse swing at Kotla”, December 29. The Kotla pitch was declared unfit because of uneven bounce. Nothing could be more shameful than this for India as far as cricket is concerned, and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) — the world’s richest cricket board — should be ashamed of the incident. Just the resignation of Daljeet Singh, Sunil Dev and Chetan Chauhan will not serve the purpose.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) is considering allowing life insurers to invest part of policy holders" money in equity derivatives, a move that would allow these firms to hedge the risks emanating from cash markets.
Google Inc, seeking to wrest consumers from Apple Inc and Research In Motion Inc, is poised to unveil a mobile phone that uses its Android software at a press event today, analysts said.
What you need to flaunt this season are touchscreen phones that are smart and sassy.
Nokia, the world"s biggest mobile phone maker, said today it would cut around 220 jobs in Japan as part of its plans to streamline its vast research and development operations.
Bikram Dasgupta, chairman and CEO, Globsyn Technologies, traces his love for gadgets back to 1995, when he bought a Nokia 1011, loaded with games and polyphonic ringtones. Little did Dasgupta know that within 14 years, his so-called premium model phone would pale against his Mercedes E Class and custom-fitted laptops.
Big bull Rakesh Jhunjhunwala today said the current bull run might “go bust” in the next one or two months. “If you see the formation of the indices, all stocks are going up, all indices are going up. There are minor corrections at every point. You cannot have this kind of rise — a peak without a burst. I think the burst will come within one or two months,” said Jhunjhunwala, partner, Rare Enterprises.
Hyderabad-based drug maker Natco Pharma Limited will be releasing into the market over 1 million doses (10 million tablets) of Natflu, its medicine for treatment of swine flu, by the end of next month.
The decade that’s just passed saw a lot that we took for granted pass into the realm of obsolescence
The Department of Telecom (DoT) has sought legal opinion from the Law Ministry on the schedule and guidelines for auction of 3G spectrum.
Whether it is the blunder over the glaciers or the linking of natural disasters to global warming, the IPCC’s credibility has been badly hit. If this encourages laxity over global warming, that will be tragic.
The Asian markets ended on a mixed note. The Hang Seng advanced 218 points or 1% to 21,678. The Nikkei declined 91 points or 1% to 10,764.
Kerala has emerged as the number one market for exterior emulsion paint companies like Asian Paints, Nerolac, Dulux and Jotun.
Cadila Healthcare ended at Rs 695, higher by Rs 46 or 7%, on the BSE.
Glenmark"s novel molecule for diabetes- Melogliptin will now enter phase III trials. The phase II B trials have been successfully completed with the molecule achieving glycemic control with low incidence of hypoglycemia and neutral effect on body weight.
Things went from bad to worse since December 2008 for people who purchased bungalows, villas and apartments at Maytas Hill County, promoted by Maytas Properties Limited (MPL) -- the company run by B Rama Raju (Jr), the younger son of Satyam Computer Services founder and former chairman B Ramalinga Raju.
India"s exports surged by 39 per cent in value terms to Rs 1,366 crore during the first four months of this fiscal on better price realisation and higher demand, the Tobacco Board said.
Jaiprakash Power Ventures today said it has appointed Sunil Kumar Sharma as Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the company.
Jaiprakash Power Ventures, part of the Jaypee group and L&T-MHI ((a JV between L&T and Mitsubishi heavy industries) have signed an agreement for the supply and erection of the boiler and steam turbine and generator for the Jaypee Nigrie super thermal power project. The contract is valued at Rs 4,000 crore.
UltraTech Cement, part of the Aditya Birla group, suffered a hit in its net profit for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, due to its large exposure to the southern market, which performed the worst in terms of demand during the quarter.
The Mukesh Ambani Group firm Reliance Industrial Infrastructure (RIIL) today said its net profit rose by 3.52 per cent to Rs 5.87 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, over the same period previous financial year.
India’s largest IT services provider, Tata Consultancy Services, beat market expectations to post a 33.9 per cent jump in its net profit at Rs 1,824 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2009 as compared to the same period a year ago. Its revenue, too, jumped 5.1 per cent on strong volumes of 6.6 per cent to touch Rs 7,649 crore year-on-year.
Rating agency Fitch in a report today said that Indian banks would remain resilient to face stressful conditions in the current and next financial years.
Following the increase in the long term loans of Videocon Industries (VIL), Fitch Ratings has today affirmed Videocon Industries Limited"s (VIL) National Long-term rating at "A-(ind)" with Negative Outlook.
The affordable housing segment will offer business opportunities worth over Rs 500,000 crore as India requires more than 10 million houses to be built by 2013-14.
Assam, which produces three types of indigenous wild silks – Muga, Pat and Eri, today got a composite silk unit at Chaygaon Industrial Growth Centre, near Guwahati. The composite unit, or Eri Spun Silk Mill, came up with an investment of Rs. 5.5 crore, which includes infrastructure for spun silk mill, machineries, looms etc. The unit is expected to go a long way in adding value to the silk industry of Assam. The unit was inaugurated by union minister of textiles, Dayanidhi Maran. For the establishment of the unit, along with additional facilities like weaving processing and dyeing etc., the Central Silk Board (CSB), under the ministry of textiles, and the state government of Assam had provided a subsidy of Rs. 155.30 lakh and Rs. 48.10 lakh respectively to the promoter of the unit, Fabric Plus Pvt. Ltd., for installation of machineries, equipments etc. The promoter also contributed an amount of Rs. 22.60 lakh.
While H1N1 scare is keeping tourists away, the Rs 6 crore state-sponsored Dasara celebrations are taking off here today. Works are hurriedly being completed at several places to dress up the old royal city for the 10-day celebrations. Unprecedented number of programmes is chalked out and programme rehearsals and publicity campaign are in full swing.
Arvind Subramanian / New Delhi November 25, 2009, 0:54 IST
Continuing with its soft monetary stance, Bank of England (BoE) today retained the benchmark interest rate at 0.50 per cent for the eight straight month and will inject another 25 billion pounds to boost the economy.
The country’s largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), has said that there will be no hike in lending rates in the next six months as there is surplus liquidity in the market.
Billionaire Gautam Thapar plans to buy companies to expand India’s third-largest equipment maker and add capacity in the nation’s biggest paper maker as demand in the world’s fastest growing major economy after China surges.
Two-wheeler maker BSA Motors today said it will invest Rs 50 crore in next fiscal, besides launching three new models, as part of its strategy to capture over 20 per cent share in the Indian electric scooter market by 2010-11.
State-run aluminium major National Aluminiun Company (Nalco) today posted a decline of 29.29 per cent in its net profit at Rs 155.18 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2009, over the same period a year ago.
‘The country loses crops worth Rs 1,40,000 crore annually to pests & diseases’
A 20-member delegation from Karnataka today met Union mome minister P Chidambaram and demanded special incentives for its five districts.
Oil refining and marketing major Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) today reported a net profit of Rs 31 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2009.
With more IPO listings on horizon, NYSE Euronext for the fifth consecutive year led the US IPO market, with over $19 billion in proceeds compared with $8 billion on Nasdaq.
The global slowdown has delayed the breakeven of Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Hyderabad, operated by GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd (GHIAL).
Country"s largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) today said it is not looking at acquisition of any other bank outside SBI-fold, even as speculations are rife that consolidation in the banking sector may gather pace.
The stock extended gains to touch a high of Rs 55 - up 10% from the day"s low of Rs 50. It finally ended up 3.2% at Rs 52.
Market regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) today confirmed its earlier order barring proprietors and directors of 75 companies from trading in stock markets for allegedly helping Pyramid Saimira Theatre Promoter Nirmal Kotecha carry out suspicious banking transactions.
Country"s largest power producer NTPC today filed the draft prospectus for its follow-on public offer with market regulator Sebi.
Inter-regulatory committee set up to fix norms.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Rs 259.17 crore (provisional) today, according to data released by BSE.
Advance tax payments by several automobile, power, cement and banking majors in the third quarter have been stronger compared to the year-ago pay-outs.
We all have a variety of multimedia content on our computers. From the photos you have clicked on your digital camera to your ever-expanding collection of MP3 songs to movies and television shows, wouldn’t it be nice if there was an easy way to send all this to your TV for easy viewing in your living rooms?
There was at least one whole century when Western art was collected in India. But do you know how much it’s worth?.
Gujarat NRE Coke ended at Rs 81, stronger by Rs 2 or 2.6%, on the BSE.
The finance ministry is keen on selling stakes in Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), but follow-on public offers (FPOs) in the two bluechip public sector units (PSUs) are unlikely, as unresolved issues are affecting valuations. Disinvestment Secretary Sunil Mitra last month wrote to his counterpart in the petroleum ministry, R S Pandey, seeking comments on “public offerings from the government’s shareholding” in ONGC and IOC. The petroleum ministry is of the view that raising funds from the capital market was not prudent till issues like fuel pricing and subsidies were resolved, which were affecting share prices of ONGC and IOC, sources in the know said.
Financial services provider Religare Enterprises today said its consolidated net profit declined by 51.80 per cent to Rs 21.4 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2009, over the same period last year.
Civil and core infrastructure development company Tantia Constructions is looking at diluting 10 per cent of its total equity to raise money for upcoming projects, according to market sources. The company is considering fund raising through secondary market transactions, though the exact quantum of cash to be realised through the stake offloading could not be ascertained.
Leading auto parts maker Bharat Forge today said its board has approved raising $150 million through equity-cum-debt issue for expansion into non-automotive areas like power and oil and gas.
The improving global economic environment and an ability to sustain margins augur well for Infosys
Indian conglomerate Tata group-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has appointed David Betteley as director for financial services.
A day after senior Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh announced his resignation from key posts, party supremo and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav today said Amar Singh continued to be in the party fold and his quitting key posts was “nothing big”.
Within the first three months of its launch in 2007, the Maruti Suzuki SX4 had overtaken the then Honda City to become the market leader in its segment. Two years hence, the situation is rather different. Today, the Honda City has recovered lost volumes. And Maruti Suzuki’s very own Swift Dzire is the leader in the segment. And all of this has been at the cost of the SX4, once the darling of its segment. So what went wrong, and why has Maruti Suzuki re-launched the SX4?
Japanese auto maker Nissan, which plans to launch its global small car in the Indian market next year, will start the first trial production of the product from its Chennai plant in November.
The world’s biggest carmaker by sales, Toyota Motor Corp, is developing 10 per cent more fuel-efficient small car for launch in India by early 2011 to beat market leaders Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai.
Tata Motors, India’s biggest auto company, will look to strengthen its presence in the sedan segment with the launch of an all-new mid range sedan, Manza, next week. It will be priced in the range of Rs 5-7 lakh. The Manza is basically the sedan version of the indigenous hatchback, Indica Vista, launched by the company in August last year. The car is aimed at arresting the company’s dwindling performance in the sedan category.
State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp"s Rs 13,000 crore Dahej complex will be the anchor tenant at the proposed special area for chemical and petrochemicals industry in the Gujarat city that may attract a total of Rs 50,000 crore of investment.
Ford Motor Co agreed with China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co on most terms about a sale of its Volvo Car Corp unit and the automakers aim to complete the transaction in the second quarter.
The chief executives of Italian auto maker Fiat and oil major Royal Dutch Shell will not be seeking re-election to the board of Swiss banking entity UBS.
Robust festive demand and new launches helped the country’s largest automotive company, Tata Motors, to swing to a third-quarter net profit of Rs 400 crore. The company had made a net loss of Rs 263 crore in the three months ending December 2008.
Mahindra First Choice, an arm of Mahindra and Mahindra Group (M&M) which sells second hand car, today said it would set up sales and service outlets in rural areas across the country to sell one lakh vehicles by 2015.
The stock gained 2.4 per cent to Rs 1,178.15, a lifetime high, after the company announced more than 100 per cent growth in its domestic auto sales for the month of December 2009. The domestic auto sales stood at 22,754 units, as against 10,253 units in December 2008, up 2.22 times.
Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) ended at Rs 220, higher by Rs 3 or 1.6%, on the BSE.
Overseas borrowings by India Inc fell by nearly half to $1.08 billion in August against $2 billion during the previous month.
Indian food delicacies with flavour and taste of spices are becoming a big hit in China, Spices Board sources said here.
The Board of Directors of Jet Airways has given its in-principle approval to acquire 26 per cent stake in MAS GMR Aerospace Engineering Company for an unspecified amount.
Monsanto India posted 19.4 per cent increase in net profit at Rs 14.76 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2009 as against Rs 12.36 crore in the corresponding period last year.
Lower raw material costs helped Maruti post better-than-expected margins, which analysts believe is unlikely to be sustained.
LIC Housing Finance (LICHF) reported a 14 per cent rise in net profit to Rs 153.58 crore for the quarter ended December 2009 compared with Rs 134.33 crore in the year-ago quarter.
HDFC Bank, India"s second largest private sector bank today reported a surge of 32 per cent in net profit at Rs 818.50 crore during the third quarter ended December 31, 2009.
Amid projection that inflation could touch the double-digit mark, the Prime Minister"s advisory panel today said it could fall to 7 per cent by fiscal-end.
Hardware and systems integrator company HCL Infosystems posted a 1.5 per cent increase in net profit for the second quarter ended December 31, 2009. Net profit stood at Rs 56.09 crore compared with Rs 55.25 crore in the year-ago period.
Merger and acquisition (M&A) activities globally declined in 2009 with deals worth $3.6 trillion being announced during the year, down by 15 per cent over the year-ago period.
Business Standard / New Delhi January 20, 2010, 0:47 IST
The stock could not hold gains and slipped to a low of Rs 117. It finally ended with a loss of 3% at Rs 119. Over 1.6 million shares were traded at the counter today.
The stock ended flat at Rs 712. Around 86,350 shares were traded on the BSE today as compared to the two-week daily average traded volumes of 98,591 shares.
With virtually no rain in Himachal Pradesh for the past four months, farmers are deeply worried over the drought-like conditions in the hill state.
State-run Coal India (CIL) today said the government may divest only 10 per cent stake in the PSU in the next fiscal, against the desired 15 per cent, as regulatory provisions bars it from reserving some shares for employees.
The government has decided to go ahead with the auction of three slots of third generation (3G) spectrum for all 22 telecom circles on February 25. It will be completed by March 3-5.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) seems to be in a state of confusion on deciding the number of slots of 3G spectrum to be auctioned. It is now in favour of auctioning only two blocks and immediately assigning the spectrum to the successful winners.
Stung by the Centre’s indication to compensate half of what was promised as full compensation against phasing out of Central Sales Tax (CST), the Madhya Pradesh government may increase the upper slab of value added tax to 15 per cent from the existing 12.5 per cent before goods and service tax (GST) comes into effect.
GTL Infrastructure, which today agreed to buy the tower business of Aircel, plans to have a footprint of 50,000 towers over the next three years, company"s Chairman Manoj Tirodkar said here today.
Tata Communications has reached an agreement to acquire BT Group"s Mosaic business, which offers on-demand digital media management platforms, that manage content and workflow from production to distribution across collaborative market ecosystems.
Tata Communications today said it has appointed David Wirt as global head of managed services.
Sunil Jain / New Delhi January 18, 2010, 2:42 IST
Telecom service provider Bharti Airtel today reported a low net profit growth of 2.3 per cent at Rs 2,209.80 crore for the quarter ending December 31, 2009, weighed down heavily by low tariff and severe competition.
The Supreme Court (SC) has set aside the order of the Orissa high court appointing an arbitrator in the dispute between BSNL and a works contractor. According to the terms of the contract, if a dispute arose, the chief engineer, telecommunications, was to be the sole arbitrator. The contractor, Dhanurdhar, repeatedly asked the authorities to appoint an arbitrator, but they did not. Therefore, he moved the high court. It appointed an arbitrator other than the Chief Engineer or his nominee. BSNL therefore appealed to the Supreme Court arguing that the appointment of a person other than the Chief Engineer was against the arbitration clause. The Supreme Court accepted the BSNL contention.
Mumbai-based Aptech, a retail and corporate training solutions major, has signed a joint venture with New Life Group Inc a Philippines-based company, to expand its retail presence in the country.
State owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has achieved a subscriber base of over 20 lakh for its mobile services in the Orissa circle.
Most observers gag at the thought of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) auditing Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects since, they argue, the very things that bedevilled public sector projects will now apply to PPPs as well. The argument is that public sector projects take forever since, apart from the fear of Central Vigilance Commission and CBI probes, managers also live in mortal dread of the audit objections raised by the CAG (the dreaded 3Cs!) — so, public sector managers concentrate on going by the book, even when it comes to buying a pin, never mind if there are greater losses due to project delays. A good example of this is the ongoing furore over the latest BSNL tender — even though BSNL has managed to reduce Ericsson’s quote by a third, it is being accused of violating the CVC rule of not negotiating with suppliers after a bid has been received!
State-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has finalised Teracom, Take Solutions, Adishwar and Ampules as partners for rolling out Wimax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access)-based broadband services, on a franchisee model. The company will offer these services in 16 circles on this model.
Tata Teleservices has added 3.3 million subscribers in December 2009, becoming the number one operator in terms of subscriber addition for the fifth consecutive time.
The farmers of Dadri in Ghaziabad district, where Anil Ambani-controlled Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) has proposed a gas- based power plant, today urged the Uttar Pradesh government to grant more time for returning the land acquisition compensation paid by the company.
The Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL), the special purpose vehicle set up to implement the metro rail project in the city, had postponed the sale of Request for Qualification (RFQ) applications for global bids to July 24.
PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has suggested strengthening of connectivity framework in North-East to provide an impetus for economic development of the region. In its survey report, PwC has suggested that North-East empowers people through inclusive governance. Grassroots plans that are prepared and implemented at the grassroots levels and are consolidated at the district level, could help in the provision of public services according to the needs of people.
Godrej Properties, promoted by Godrej group, posted a 16-fold growth in its net profit for the December quarter of fiscal 2010 on the back of strong bookings.
Auto component maker Sona Koyo Steering Systems today reported a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 6.89 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, on account of improved efficiencies and stable foreign exchange rates.