Small Business
Budget 2009 contained important proposals in regard to exempting packaged software from customs duty, on importation, and on excise duty, with regard to domestic supplies, to the extent that such software is purportedly chargeable to the service tax. The proposals attempted to redress the problem of potential double taxation that arises in regard to such software. Earlier articles in this column had highlighted the problem of double taxation in relation to several transactions including the service taxation of packaged software post the changes announced in the Budget 2009.
India’s identity as a ‘Mercedes country’ will be under threat this year, as arch rival Bayerische Motoren Werke (better known as BMW) is on course to dethrone the Stuttgart-headquartered luxury car maker from the top slot for the first time ever in India.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today extended the transition period given to the banks to treat the advances to equity-oriented mutual funds as capital markets exposure by six more months.
The last date for sale and submission of request for qualification (RFQ) applications for the Rs 12, 132-crore Hyderabad Metro Rail project is extended till December 14, 2009, from the earlier November 27.
Gold futures prices fell by Rs 83 or 0.49 per cent at the Multi Commodity Exchange today as traders reduced their positions.
Indiabulls-MMTC promoted International Multi-Commodities Exchange is looking for another investor after the markets regulator FMC rejected the United Stock Exchange of India"s (USE"s) 10 per cent stake buy in the bourse, sources said.
Aluminum consumption in Asia may continue to grow next year as stimulus measures in China, the world’s biggest metals consumer, and rest of the region lift demand for the metal, an executive at Novelis Korea said.
In spite of foreign tourist inflow adversely hit in aftermath of 26/11 terror attack and economic slowdown, the foreign exchange earning from the sector has witnessed a three per cent increase this year, Union Minister of State for Tourism Sultan Ahmed has said.
Sudhakar Ram, chairman, Mastek, is putting together a collaborative book.
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.
Airline passengers now have the choice to upgrade from the economy class to a higher one at a fraction of the normal cost.
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).
Public sector steel firm Steel Authority of India (SAIL) today said the Jharkhand government had agreed to renew leases of Chiria iron ore mines to meet the current needs of the company.
Indian stocks rose, led by steel and car makers, after the government said sales of the alloy to auto manufacturers rose in the first seven months of the financial year.
Chennai-based software company Zylog Systems posted a 21 per cent dip in its net profit for the second quarter ended Septmeber 30, 2009 to Rs 20.91 crore as against Rs 26.48 crore in the same quarter last year.
Ailing Jyoti Basu is responding to treatment and there is a positive change in his health condition, CPI(M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury said today.
The day’s market proceedings were marked by choppiness and volatility, in the absence of any distinct cues from either the US or Asian markets.
Japanese drug maker Daiichi Sankyo, which holds 64 per cent stake in Ranbaxy Laboratories, today reported a 45 per cent drop in net income for April-September this year.
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.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is going to Kolkata tomorrow to see ailing former West Bengal CM Jyoti Basu. Singh would be leaving for the West Bengal capital in the morning and there was a possibility of the scheduled Union Cabinet meeting being postponed till the evening, official sources said.
Mixologist Max Warner makes us cocktails with Chivas Regal
While the finance ministry today admitted to Rs 20,000-22,000-crore shortfall in the indirect tax collections during the current year, it went on to assure the industry that the tax burden on people would come down by 25-30 per cent with the introduction of the proposed goods and services tax (GST).
While the run-up in prices have made metal stocks expensive, medium term prospects are unattractive due to weak demand and inventory pile-up.
World"s largest steel maker ArcelorMittal believes that India is not equipped to handle big-ticket investments, although the country needs over half a trillion dollars to shore up its infrastructure.
Stocks of 127 companies on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) have raced to touch their lifetime highs this month, even while the key domestic benchmark index, the 30-share Sensex, is still well below its all-time high of 21,000 that it had touched in January 2008.
Indian drug companies have cornered an overwhelming majority of drug approvals under the US President"s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (Pepfar).
Strong non-core income growth pushes revenues.
A higher generation of implantable hearing technology is slated to be soon released in India by Cochlear Limited, engaged in cochlear and bone conduction implant technology.
Eyes February roll-out with 10 mn capacity in phase one
German multinational drug major Merck KGaA has acquired Bangalore Genei (India) Pvt Ltd (BGIP), which specialises in new generation proteomic and genomic research technologies, the cutting-edge study of proteins and organisms. Merck, which acquired the company through its wholly-owned Indian subsidiary, Merck Specialities Private, did not disclose the deal’s size.
The central government’s decision to continue controlling supply of the swine flu drug, oseltamivir, will help the drug innovator, Swiss multinational Hoffmann-La Roche, and its Indian licencee, Hetero Drugs, maintain their effective monopoly in the country, even as the drug lacks patent protection in India, fear domestic industry circles.
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.
M J Antony / New Delhi June 3, 2009, 0:51 IST
India Inc"s hiring activity picked up by 1.3 per cent in July with improvement in recruitment in IT, real estate and retail sectors, says a survey by job portal Naukri.Com.
Reflecting the changed ground realties in the US in the wake of economic crisis, there has been a sharp drop in H-1B work visas being applied for and obtained by major IT companies from India.
As many as six among the top 10 firms added over Rs 28,415 crore to their market capitalisation in the past week, while companies like NTPC, NMDC and IT bellwether Infosys Technologies saw their valuations dipping.
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.
India and Russia have reached a broad agreement to break the logjam over the protracted price renegotiation over Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier and the two sides are expected to sign a landmark civil nuclear pact during summit talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Dmitry Medvedev tomorrow.
Criticising the ban imposed on his book by Gujarat government, expelled BJP leader Jaswant Singh today said it amounted to "banning thinking" and likened the step to the one taken against noted author Salman Rushdie for his controversial work "Satanic Verses".
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi today held an all-party meeting to discuss an action plan for tackling deadly swine flu, which has already claimed two lives in the state.
Golf continues to grow from strength to strength in the country
When director Roland Emerich was looking for a image that would sum up the apocalyptic tone of his blockbuster 2012, he could only conjure up one picture, the Himalayas being flooded.
C&C Constructions Ltd, a Gurgaon-based infrastructure development company, has bagged two orders worth Rs 375 crore from Jaiprakash Associates Ltd.
Police are on the lookout for Congress MP L Rajagopal, who escaped from a city hospital where he was admitted after being brought from a hunger strike site over the Telangana issue.
Chief minister K Rosaiah on Sunday directed civil supplies, vigilance and enforcement, and agriculture and marketing departments to step in immediately to keep the prices of essential commodities under control.
Reliance Industries (RIL), which raised Rs 2,675 crore through the sale of treasury shares on Monday, is looking to generate a similar amount over the next few weeks by selling more stock to institutional investors.
The Orissa government today approved proposals for setting up two medium scale steel plants, including one by Tata Sponge Iron Limited, official sources said.
Amidst protest from Opposition Congress, Orissa government on Saturday re-introduced in the Assembly a controversial bill on setting up a university by Vedanta Resource Corporation in Puri district.
It is towards Ireland that all eyes in Brussels, the headquarters of the European Union, are currently trained. On October 2 the Irish will hold a referendum for the second time to decide whether or not to approve the Lisbon Treaty. The island-nation will thus decide the fate of a much beleaguered set of proposed changes to the 27-member EU’s rule book that has its opponents frothing at the mouth even as its supporters tout its transformational potential.
Government hopes to surpass last year"s all-time high production of 80.58 million tonnes of wheat, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar told the Rajya Sabha today and described as manageable the current food security situation in the country.
The Centre may be eager to introduce the proposed Goods and Service Tax (GST) from April 1, 2010, but the Orissa government has cast doubts on the timely launch of the new tax regime.
Corporate India today felt let down by the failure of the $23-billion proposed merger deal between telecom giants Bharti Airtel and South Africa"s MTN but said the south-south co-operation was still alive.
Uncertainty looms large over the holding of the meeting of the Rehabilitation and Peripheral Development Advisory Committee (RPDAC) for the Posco’s mega steel project in Orissa as the government is likely to miss the November time line for this meeting.
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India"s maiden moon probe Chandrayaan-I has developed a malfunction that puts some experiments in jeopardy and raises questions on completion of the mission that was intended to last two years.
The process of granting the coveted Maharatna status that will give greater autonomy to blue-chip PSUs will be completed in the next six months, Heavy Industries and Enterprises Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said here today.
Private sector lender Yes Bank today said it raised $250 million (about Rs 1,140 crore) by private placement of shares to fund its expansion plans, which include opening up to 250 branches next year.
Bangalore-based ASM Technologies, dealing in enterprise applications and enterprise product development for manufacturing, retail, oil and gas verticals, has reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 94 lakh for quarter-ended December 31, 2009, up 23.43 per cent compared to the previous quarter of the current fiscal.
The Indian bourses opened on a positive note at 17,200, tracking strong global cues. The index soared to a high of 17,352 but changed course after a robust industrial production data was declared which raised fears that the central bank may need to control monetary policy. The IIP number increased to 10.3% Vs 9.6% (MoM).
Idea Cellular today said that its consolidated net profit dropped 22.5 per cent to Rs 170 crore during the quarter ended December 31, 2009, as against Rs 219 crore in the third quarter of the last financial year.
FMCG major Marico Ltd today said its net profit increased by 22.2 per cent to Rs 62.19 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2009.
DLF, the country’s largest real estate developer, posted a 30 per cent dip in its consolidated net profit for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, on account of losses arising from non-core businesses of the company as well as continuing stress in the business environment.
Professional forecasters have added to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Duvvurri Subbarao’s dilemma on timing the exit from an accommodative monetary policy stance.
Ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s credit policy review amid surging inflation, leading private bank ICICI Bank today foresaw no immediate increase in interest rates.
Tata Communications today said its net profit surged over three fold to Rs 281.80 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, over the same period previous fiscal.
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.
Life for Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governors can be tough. Being the government’s money manager is hectic enough, but what have added to their “permanent state of busy-ness” (as an RBI observer says) are quarterly statements, the latest of which will be announced tomorrow.
After losing customer accounts to public sector banks at the height of the downturn, private sector banks seem to be on their way back.
Tagging India as a country of "endless unrealised potential", a US-based strategic think-tank today said that the south Asian country"s growth would be "unpredictable and uneven" in the decade starting 2010.
Sequentially, the story changes track, with net profit down 2%.
Chennai-based Zylog Systems is planning to invest around Rs 400-500 crore to create infrastructures which would support its plan to bag government projects. The company is also in the final stage of acquiring a company in Singapore, which offers solutions for various e-governance and public utility services. Besides the company is also starting a pilot to give internet through towers.
To mark 10 years of its existence, Kurkure, FritoLay’s Indian innovation in the salted snack market, is changing tracks. It came out in December with a print campaign which told readers how Kurkure is made from what can be found in any Indian kitchen, underlining that the ingredients are as wholesome as what goes into home-made food. Kurkure now on will be less about flavours and more about ingredients. It will launch the first of its products towing this line, called Punjabi Kadai Masala, soon. The product contains rajma and ragi, staple Punjabi food, apart from the usual rice, corn, spices and lentil.
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.
The world"s cheapest car, Tata Nano, made a two-hour stop over near Chicago before heading off to Detroit, where it would be on display for the US audience for the first time this week.
Many entrepreneurs wanting to sell a stake have unrealistic valuations of their companies. This is a major block for private equity (PE) players to close a deal. Also, many do not have a second plan if talks fall apart, according to speakers at the Private Equity Conference at the Indian School of Business.
The markets slipped as a knee jerk reaction to the 75 basis points CRR hike announced by the RBI, but has soon recovered again. The CRR (Cash Reserve Ratio) hike was suprisingly higher than the 50 bps expected by the markets.
Britannia ended at Rs 1578, lower by Rs 22 or 1.4%, on the BSE.
Hinduja Group firm Defiance Tech today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Dassault Systemes to market the Euronext-listed company"s solutions across Indian automotive, industrial and aerospace and defence sectors.
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.
Contract for a year; players will play just for Season-3.
You hear the pop of blooming buds and the ruffle of unfurling petals, and spy insects feeding on nectar in this idyllic garden, bathed in the early morning sun. Just as you get drawn in by visuals that could rival footage on any nature channel, you notice the flowers are nestling fruit juice cartons — as if they too have blossomed in the heart of nature. This is the ad for Parle Agro’s 100 per cent fruit juice, Saint, being aired on English lifestyle and news channels. “Juice the way God meant it to be,” says the punch line.
What you need to flaunt this season are touchscreen phones that are smart and sassy.
Insiders, who have been chosen as CEOs of companies like Mukesh Ambani of Reliance Industries and Steve Jobs of Apple, have faired better than those who have been brought in from outside, says a survey.
Looking at fortifying its position in touch-screen phones category, Nokia launched two new touch interface devices, Nokia5230 and Nokia 5530 XpressMusic, in Chandigarh on Tuesday. Regional General Manager (North India ), Nokia India, Chandan Dang maintained the two new touch screen handsets of Nokia would help strengthen the market for Nokia in the ‘touch-screen phone’ category .
US markets slumped on Thursday.
US markets edged up on Monday. The Dow added 30 points to 10,501. The Nasdaq gained 22 points (1%) at 2,212.
With small investors once gain returning to the market, the small-cap index was the best performer in August even outperforming the benchmark index Sensex, gaining around 13 per cent.
I am a first time buyer of a four wheeler. I don’t change my vehicles often and plan on using my next acquisition for the next 12 to 15 years. I have shortlisted the Chevrolet Spark LT, Hyundai Santro Xing GLS, and Maruti Suzuki Zen Estilo LXI.
The Asian markets ended on a firm note. The Hang Seng soared 323 points to 20,356 and the Nikkei advanced 162 points to 10,414.
The Asian markets are trading weak.
The Sensex finally ended (provisional) at 16,242, down 538 points. The Nifty shed 171 points at 4,837.
Markets have dropped again. The Sensex is now down 213 points at 16,567. The Nifty is down 75 points at 4,933.
Air passengers denied entry in Indonesia found no respite from the Delhi Consumer Commission, which exonerated Malaysian Airlines of any deficiency in service, citing absence of any reason for disallowing their entry by the immigration authorities of that country.
Experts from the UN and Asian Development Bank (ADB) today asked developing nations to adopt low cost Sulabh toilet to streamline their sanitation system.
The stock erased all its gains and finally settled 4% lower at Rs 90. The counter witnessed trades of 14 lakh shares as compared to the two-week dialy average traded volumes of 10.41 shares on the BSE.
With the economy showing signs of recovery, industry would pick up further momentum with a growth of more than seven per cent in August and nearly nine per cent in October, economic think-tank Institute of Economic Growth (IEG) today projected.
South Korea"s economy is expected to grow at a faster clip than most other advanced nations in 2014, a report showed today, suggesting that the Asian country will stage a swift recovery from the worst downturn in more than a decade.
Jaiprakash Power Ventures today said it has appointed Sunil Kumar Sharma as Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the company.
The Copenhagen accord on climate change was a partial success for India but it has certain "inbuilt hazards" of which the developing countries have to be wary, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said here.
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.
Differences over number of private players to be allowed to offer 3G mobile services continue within the government as an empowered ministers" panel today failed to reach at any consensus.
India"s largest manufacturer of passenger cars, Maruti Suzuki launched Eeco, a multipurpose vehicle here.
The country"s largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki, today launched a multi-purpose vehicle, Eeco, at an introductory price between Rs 2.59 lakh and Rs 2.89 lakh.
Posco India has sought more time from the Centre for implementing Rs 54,000 crore SEZ project at Jagatsinghpur in Orissa, as the South Korean steel giant could not get land due to protests by tribals.
South Korean car manufacturer Hyundai Motor today said the development cost for its proposed small car for the Indian market was around Rs 800 crore.
Buffett: Kraft Foods and Cadbury may have agreed on the takeover of the UK chocolatier by the U.S. food conglomerate. But leading investors in both firms are still at loggerheads over the acquired company"s value.
The US markets on Friday ended on a negative note. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 2% to 10,173 and the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped around 3% to 2,205.
With government’s flagship Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA) scheme showing encouraging results in expansion of elementary education, the World Bank has come forward with an offer to provide additional funding of $ 500 million (Rs 2,325 cr approx) for the programme.
The government is taking no chances with its proposed divestment. The disinvestment department has hired a public relations firm to put out news of NTPC’s follow-on public issue. Clearly, the department feels NTPC’s own communications wing is not up to the job.
Environment and Forests minister Jairam Ramesh will start public consultations from January 13 in seven different cities in India before deciding whether to give the final nod to commercialisation of genetically modified (Bt) brinjal.
Cummins ended at Rs 444, higher by Rs 11 or 2.6%, on the BSE.
Crompton Greaves ended at Rs 419, stronger by Rs 7 or 1.7%, on the BSE.
After putting a cap on charges on unit- linked insurance plans (ULIPs) products, the insurance-sector regulator, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) is mulling a similar move for traditional insurance products, a top official said.
German auto components maker Bosch today said it has started manufacturing anti-lock braking system (ABS) and has tied up with carmaker Volkswagen to supply the component for its just launched "Polo".
‘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.
LIC Housing Finance has posted a rise of 14.32 per cent in its net profit after tax at Rs 153.57 crore for the quarter ended December, 2009 compared with Rs 134.33 crore in the corresponding previous quarter. Its net sales during the period stood at Rs 833.61 crore against Rs 734.33 crore last year, up 13.52 per cent.
Sequel to denial of special audit findings commissioned by DoT.
Foreign institutional investor T Rowe Price today said it has completed the acquisition of 26 per cent stake in UTI Asset Management Company and UTI Trustee company for Rs 650 crore.
Varun Energy Corporation, a group company of steel exporter Varun Industries Limited, has acquired uranium mines in Madagascar, an island nation in the Indian Ocean.
The Sensex finally ended (provisional) with a gain of 48 points at 17,147. The Nifty was up 17 points at 5,129.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is reported to have appealed a decision by the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) that over-ruled the Bombay Stock Exchange’s (BSE) refusal to issue an in-principle listing approval to a listed company.
Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) today said separate bourses can be set up for trading in shares of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), while existing exchanges can also have a separate platform for SMEs.
Six Indian drug makers have been pulled up for quality lapses by Sri Lanka’s ministry of health.
A Union finance ministry notification has extended the basic customs duty concession applicable on equipment for entirely new (‘greenfield’) power projects to expansion (‘brownfield’) of existing units, too.
Domestic brokerage house India Infoline today said it will acquire Singapore-based Orient Global"s stake in the former"s two unlisted subsidiaries for $80 million (nearly Rs 369 crore).
Gujarat NRE Coke ended at Rs 81, stronger by Rs 2 or 2.6%, on the BSE.
Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi), the industry body of fund houses, today hinted that it may drop the plan to launch its own mutual funds transaction platform, as others have already launched similar facilities.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers of Rs 361.67 crore (provisional) today, according to data released by BSE.
Diversified business conglomerate Godrej Industries today reported an eight-fold jump in its net profit at Rs 43.80 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2009, over the year-ago period.
The country"s largest two-wheeler maker Hero Honda today reported a huge 78.34 per cent jump in its third quarter net profit at Rs 535.77 crore on the back of a quarterly sales volume of over a million units, and said it may go in for a new facility soon.
Paint manufacturer Asian Paints today said its consolidated net profit surged over threefold to Rs 211.84 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, over the same period last fiscal.
Latha Jishnu / New Delhi January 21, 2010, 0:28 IST
General Motors Co agreed to sell its Saab unit to Dutch sports-car maker Spyker Cars NV in a deal that would save the 72-year-old Swedish brand that’s being wound down.
Bajaj Auto sold 2,20,429 two-wheelers in December 2009, registering an 85 per cent growth in sales over the same month last year, when it sold 1,19,215 units, a company release said.
Six days of meetings over two weeks between Tata Motors’ Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) and its workers’ union ended without agreement on terms of employment for new hires.
While the recovery in sales volume is positive for Tata Motors, the gains are priced in
Manufacturers report unexpected post-festival surge in demand.
US car manufacturer General Motors today hoped to get 20 per cent revenue from overseas markets by 2011 once it starts exporting to these countries, a top company official said.
Domestic auto major Mahindra & Mahindra today reported a net profit of Rs 413.7 crore for the third quarter ended December 2009, on the back of strong sales in both automotive and farm equipment sectors.
Aggressive selling in rate sensitive stocks, couple of days ahead of the RBI policy review, saw the markets tank heavily. The RBI is scheduled to review its monetary policy on January 29. Markets fear hike of Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR), which in turn could affect these sectors.
In the first three-and-a-half weeks of trading in the new year, the Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensitive Index, or the Sensex, has been range bound – a phase that many market experts would call a consolidation phase. And there are expectations that after the Union Budget, the market could enter a correction phase as well.
The foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers of Rs 14.90 crore in futures and options segments on Monday.
The Indian bourses opened marginally higher at 16,317.16 - up 28 points. points - mirroring positive cues from the global markets. The US markets ended on a positive note after the US Federal Reserve said that the conditions in the world"s largest economy are showing signs of improvement. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.4 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index was up 0.8 per cent, respectively. The Asian stocks too started on a strong note however pared some gains towards end of the day. The Hang Seng was up 1.61 percent and the Nikkei added 1.5 per cent, respectively.
The markets have recovered from the low and touched a high of 16,495 - up 178 points from the day"s low of 16,317. The Sensex is now up 190 points (1.16%) at 16,479.
The country"s largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), plans to hire more than 27,000 people this year to fill vacancies across different divisions, a top bank official said.
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.
If you think your money in savings bank account will be automatically converted into fixed deposits (FDs), think again. It may just happen that while you are thinking the idle cash may earn 6-6.5 per cent a year, the prevailing fixed-deposit rate for one-year funds, it may actually continue to fetch only 3.5 per cent.
Public and private sector banks in the Navi Mumbai municipal area which have done gold transactions, will have to pay 1 per cent account-based cess on the total turnover. The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) could be the first civic body in the country to recover such a cess on gold transaction.
The Delhi Stock Exchange (DSE) plans to start mock trading from Monday, making it the first regional stock exchange to become active after the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) announced demutualisation norms for stock exchanges. The exchange also planned to launch futures and options trading after six months, said a source.
The government has started the process of setting up a fund to promote scientific mining practices in India through levy of a cess on the royalty charged on certain minerals like iron ore, the Rajya Sabha was informed today.
Tractor and utility vehicle (UV) manufacturer, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), today posted a net profit of Rs 413 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2009. This was an increase of 849 per cent, aided by the low profit base of Rs 43 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year.
The Asia-Pacific region attracted as many as 89 billion-dollar deals — the highest total on record — worth over $292 billion so far this year, says a report. “Asia-Pacific deals over $1 billion reached $292.1 billion via 89 deals in 2009, up 44 per cent on 2008, making it the highest total on record,” global deal tracking firm Dealogic said.
A meeting of the board of directors will be held on January 21 to consider sub-dividing the equity shares and a second interim dividend for FY09-10, besides the unaudited financial results for the third quarter and nine months ended December 31, 2009, according to the company"s filing with the BSE.
The stock touched a high of Rs 174 and a low of Rs 165. It finally ended flat at Rs 167. The counter clocked a volume of 39,967 share on the BSE today.
Expressing confidence that the country will return to 9-10 per cent economic growth within a couple of years, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today invited the Indian diaspora to participate in the development of the country of their origin.
Spurred by growth in the number of policies renewed, commission expenses of the life insurance industry grew by 5.64 per cent in 2008-09 to Rs 15,533 crore as against Rs 14,704 crore in the corresponding period last year.
K Subrahmanyam / January 21, 2010, 0:30 IST
The decade began with the government doing the right thing and auctioning mobile phone licences, but ended with the scandal over its decision to start playing favourites and handing over licences to a chosen few firms at a price that was Rs 50,000 crore less than the market one. The decade began with the government privatising the Delhi Vidyut Board (DVB) in the midst of a huge scandal, since it offered several thousand crore of concessions to two firms, and ended with another scandal over how the winning bidders for the Bangalore airport awarded the major part of the contracts to themselves — and passed on the increased costs to the flying public.
The government should “revisit” its Special Economic Zone (SEZ) Act “comprehensively” and put a ban on transfer of common property and agricultural land for its implementation, a high-level panel has recommended in its report.
Disinvestment Secretary Sunil Mitra will be the new Revenue Secretary in place of P V Bhide, who retires on January 31.
Indian corporate houses have lined up investments worth $1 billion (around Rs 4,500 crore) in the Maldives, to fructify over the next two to three years. The houses include Tatas, Suzlon, GMR, Apollo Hospitals and Oberoi. “To attract more investment from India, the Maldivian government is planning to ease the procedures for India Inc and planning to offer various incentives,” said Ahmed Shaheed, the country’s foreign minister.
Business Standard / New Delhi December 24, 2009, 0:40 IST
Country"s largest private sector lender ICICI Bank has sold its points of sale terminals that accept the debit and credit card payment to First Data Corporation for $80 million (about Rs 400 crore).
Bharti Airtel chairman Sunil Mittal today said the company had not initiated any tariff war with the launch of per-second billing and was merely responding to the market needs.
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State-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has floated a tender for building an exclusive optical fibre cable network for the armed forces in lieu of their vacating radio waves. The network would be auctioned to mobile services’ operators for offering third-generation (3G) services. The tender, which was in the works for a long time, will set in motion the process of vacating spectrum by the defence forces.
India’s largest private telecom company, Bharti Airtel, wants to help international players deliver multimedia content to Indian players, while simultaneously helping local companies to deliver content to foreign ones. It has tied up with Limelight Networks to launch content delivery network (CDN) services in the country. Limelight is the second-largest CDN player globally in terms of revenues.
Tata Docomo, the GSM brand of Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL), today launched its "BuddyNet" community, as part of which locals calls to members would be offered at one paisa for six seconds.
Conglomerate Videocon, which has forayed into mobile handset space, has said that it plans to achieve a pan-Indian presence by end of February and roll out 15 more models of handsets in two months.
IT services provider, L&T Infotech, today announced a strategic partnership with Savvion to provide Business Process Management (BPM) solutions. These will be in the areas of business process modeling, implementation and integration solutions and services to its clientele, a press release issued here stated.
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.
The scrip ended 3.5% lower at Rs 1,472. The counter clocked volumes of 13.97 crore as compared tp the two-week daily average traded volumes of 3.78 crore shares on the BSE.
Vedanta Resource group firm Sesa Goa today said that it will spend about Rs 1,500 crore in its mining business during the next two years to reach the annual production capacity of about 50 million tonnes.
Engineering equipment maker Thermax Ltd today said its net profit declined by 21.84% to Rs 56.50 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, over the same period corresponding fiscal.