ICICI launches branch-free banking

India's largest private sector bank ICICI on Monday became the first bank in the country to launch 'B-2 Branch-free Banking'. ICICI Bank Executive Director V Vaidyanathan said in Mumbai: "B2- Branch-free Banking is a unique way of direct banking, which will allow customers to manage all their finances online." "We have implemented this system abroad and it has become very successful. In the UK we have more than 123,000 customers, in Canada 67,000 customers and in Germany 9,000 customers," he added. Through branch-free banking, one can obtain all information in single interface to facilitate banking transactions over the internet, Vaidyanathan said. In the future, the bank will add asset products schemes using this facility. "We will add personal loans, auto loans and credit cards in branch-free banking," he said. Customers opting for branch-free banking can benefit from zero charges, and no minimum balance is required. Moreover, if the balance exceeds Rs 5,000, money will be automatically transferred, in multiples of Rs.5,000, to a linked fixed deposit that will earn ICICI Bank fixed deposit rates. "B2 Branch-free Banking is a new way of banking. India has over 49 million internet connections and this number is growing at around 20 percent. So this innovation of banking 'only' on the net will gather momentum," Vaidyanathan said. He added that the bank would soon launch a new initiative called SMS in cash. Through, this, the customers can transfer money to a non- ICICI account holder through ATM using cell phone.

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Tata Motors launches fuel-efficient buses

Tata Motors, the world's second-largest bus and fourth-largest truck manufacturer, is introducing a new range of fuel-efficient Super Milo buses with a starting price of Rs.850,000. Available in two variants, City and Highway, they will have customized parameters, are powered with superior fuel efficient and eco-friendly engines which will result in better pick-up and mileage, the company's executive director for commercial vehicles business unit P.M. Telang said here Tuesday. Tata Motors notched revenues of $8.8 billion in 2007-08. With over four million vehicles plying on the Indian roads, its commercial vehicles are also marketed in Europe, Africa, Middle East, South and Southeast Asia and South America. The new Super Milo will offer radial tyres, organic clutch with booster assist and better air intake that will help achieve 8-10 percent fuel efficiency.

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Marked-to-market value of 75% PIPE deals giving negative returns

Tuesday, Jul 8    NEW DELHI - A whopping 75% of private investments in public equity (PIPE) deals of 2007 have gone sour for their investors, according to a study by Delhi-based NEXGEN Capitals Ltd.     An analysis of 63 PIPE deals stuck last year shows that infrastructure sector has been the worst performer.     In 2007, the infrastructure sector saw PIPE deals worth 59.12 bln rupees but the marked-to-market value of these transactions has eroded nearly 50% to 29.67 bln rupees as on Jul 7.     NEXGEN Capitals, which is the merchant-banking arm of Delhi-based brokerage SMC Global Securities, said total investment of 218.57 bln rupees in PIPE deals last year stood at 192.23 bln rupees, down 16.7%.     The 63 PIPE deals cover information technology and information technology enabled services, infrastructure, healthcare, telecom, retail, media, manufacturing, real estate and banking, financial services and insurance sectors.     Since the middle of the January, the benchmark indices have lost nearly 37%.     From a life-time high of 21206 on Jan 10, the 30-share Sensex closed at 13349.65 Tuesday.     Similarly, the 50-share Nifty, which scaled a life-time high of 6357.10 on Jan 8, closed at 3988.55.     WORST DEAL       In December 2007, around 10 private equity investors including Eton Fund LP, T Rowe Price, Deutsche Asset Management and Citigroup had invested 39.65 bln rupees in GMR Infrastructure at 240 rupees per share in a qualified institutional placement.     The current mark-to-market value of the investment had plummeted 63% to 14.63 bln rupees.     Share of GMR Infrastructure closed at 86.10 rupees on the National Stock Exchange, down 2.8% from its Monday close.     Another PIPE deal which shows the impact of volatile market conditions is that of Great Offshore Ltd.      U.S.-based private equity company The Carlyle Group had bought a 4.99% stake in Great Offshore for 1.63 bln rupees at 860 rupees per share.      The current marked-to-market value of the investment in Great Offshore has fallen 45% to 901.6 mln rupees.      However, there is a silver lining to the PIPE deals story in India.      Banking, financial services and insurance, telecom, and retail are the sectors which seemed to have survived the market meltdown.      Retail was the top performer with returns of 41%.      The PIPE deals in the retail sector witnessed a total investment of 2.15 bln rupees with the current value of the transactions of 3.03 bln rupees.      Industry officials are also buoyant about the potential of PIPE deals in the near future     "Going forward, we are likely to see more of PIPE deals across sectors rather than just private equity. The valuations have become more attractive," said Ajay Relan, managing director, Citigroup Venture Capital International.     "Despite the turmoil in stock markets, a lot of activity is expected on the PIPE deals front, especially in the infrastructure space," said Axis Private Equity Ltd Chief Executive Officer Alok Gupta.     Following are the PIPE deals in the infrastructure sector:   No Investor                         Investee           Total investment  Current     Returns                                                                    (in rupees)        MTM         (%)                                                                                        (in rupees)   1.  Aventic Partners      GMR Infrastructure      39.65 bln      14.63 bln      -63.10    Citigroup    Canara Bank    Credit Agricole,    Deutshe Asset,    Eton Park,    Kotak Pvt Equity,    SBI, UBS,    T.Rowe Price Group 2. Carlyle Group           Great Offshore          1.63 bln      901.6 mln       -44.88% 3. Blackstone Group    Nagarjuna                   6.15 bln      4.01 bln        -34.79%                                  Construction   4. Citigroup Venture   Subhash Projects        1.74 bln      1.32 bln         -24.08%    Capital                     and Marketing 5. Warburg Pincus,     Punj Lloyd                 8.14 bln      6.83 bln         -15.98%    Avenue Capital,    Moore Capital,    Blackstone,    DKR Oasis,    Kingdom Capital 6. IFC                     Gujrat State                  1.07 bln            1.09 bln      2.46%                                Petroleum 7. CLSA Capital       Sanghvi Movers             726 mln           866 mln     19.39%   Following were the PIPE deals in the retail sector:   No.    Investor                       Investee       Total investment     Current     Returns                                                             (in rupees)            MTM          (%)                                                                                     (in rupees)   1. New Vernon, Fidelity,  Provogue India      1.46 bln       2.88 bln       97.07%    Genesis Capital,    India fund Inc,    Nailsfield Ltd,    Artis Capital 2. Nalanda Capital         Vaibhav Gems        500 mln        97.6 mln    -80.52% 3. Fidelity Intl               House of Pearl          153.1 mln        33 mln       -78.46%                                      Fashions 4. Bennett Coleman & Co    Archies           39.9 mln       25.9 mln     -35.11%

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Samajwadi Party to vote for N-deal; claims support of all 39 MPs

Tuesday, Jul 8     NEW DELHI - The Samajwadi Party today said it will support the United Progressive Alliance government on Indo-U.S. civilian nuclear deal.     The party's comments come close on the heels of Left parties' announcement that they have decided to withdraw support to the government on the deal issue.     "We met today to discuss the current political situation and the nuclear deal," Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh told reporters.     "I have convinced my (Lok Sabha) members on the India-US nuclear deal," he said, claiming that all the 39 party lawmakers would back the government if it seeks a trust vote in Parliament.     The Samajwadi Party's announcement comes amid reports that some of the party's Muslim members of Parliament were opposed to the nuclear deal.     Singh, however, said, "The nuclear deal has been welcomed by Muslims across the state, including in Deoband, Saharanpur, Varanasi, Kanpur and Bareilly."     General Secretary Amar Singh said the party will issue a whip asking all its MPs to vote in support of the nuclear deal.

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Larsen and Toubro bags Rs.10.47 bn from Indian Railways

Mumbai, July 8: Construction and engineering major Larsen and Toubro (L&T) has bagged a Rs.10.47-billion order from the Indian Railways to set up a wheel manufacturing plant in Bihar, the company said Tuesday. In a regulatory statement, the company said the plant, with a capacity to manufacture 100,000 wheels annually, will be set up at Saran in Chhapra district in two years. The turnkey project will have no foreign collaboration, the statement added. The contract involves engineering, procurement and construction of the entire plant, apart from electrical installation along with designing, setting up and commissioning of machinery. Last year, L&T launched an autonomous rail business unit to explore opportunities such as dedicated freight corridor, railway station modernisation, rail-based urban mass transportation and other similar projects. The company is also studying various upcoming public-private participation (PPP) railway projects.

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Reliance Retail to open optical chain stores

July 08, 2008 16:47 IST Reliance [Get Quote] Retail on Tuesday said it will launch the first outlet of its optical chain stores Vision Express, under a joint venture with Pearle Europe, by September this year in Bangalore. "We have already got the necessary approval from FIPB. The first outlet will be opened by September," Reliance Retail President and Chief Executive (Lifestyle) Bijou Kurien told reporters on the sidelines of the Ficci symposium on retail in New Delhi. The first store would be launched in Bangalore, he added. On the sizes of the outlets Kurien said: "It will be smaller than our jewellery stores." Earlier, Reliance Retail had announced the optical chain would comprise independent stores and stores within Reliance Retail's other formats such as Hypermart, Super and Wellness. The new entity would bring world class retail optical stores to India, with a range of private label frames, lenses, sunglasses, contact lenses and solutions. Pearle Europe is a subsidiary of HAL Investments, the European investment subsidiary of HAL Holding NV, an international investment company based in the Netherlands Antilles. It operates 2,200 optical retail stores in 21 countries across Europe and the Middle East. HAL Investments also owns a number of optical retail chains in emerging markets, such as China, Russia, Turkey and Brazil..

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Referral fees paid to foreign cos to be tax free

Giving a relief to companies who procure clients on referral basis, the Authority for Advance Ruling has held that 'referral fees' paid to overseas clients will not be subject to taxes in India. "The receipt on account of the referral fee arising to the applicant would not be taxable in India...," the AAR said while giving a ruling in a reference made by Singapore-based real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield Pte. "Although the AAR ruling is binding only between the foreign company and the tax department, it will create a persuasive precedent and benefit companies in several sectors like engineering and management consultancy, advertisement and real estate," senior partner of the corporate law firm Titus and Co., Diljeet Titus, said. Describing the AAR ruling as a positive one, he said, it will encourage companies to declare referral fees and become more transparent in their dealings with foreign entities. The AAR ruling comes in wake of the questions raised by Singapore- based Cushman & Wakefield whether the referral fees paid to it by the Indian arm would be taxed in India. While giving the ruling in favour of the Singapore company, the authority held that under the Double Tax Avoidance Agreement between the two countries, the referral fees will not be taxed in India and also the domestic company will 'not be required to withhold any tax under the Section 195 of I-T Act while making remittances'. The AAR ruling, Titus said, 'will prompt others to seek similar exemption as lot of consultancy business comes to India on referral basis.' Giving the ruling the AAR has also clarified that domestic entity Cushman & Wakefield will not have to withhold tax while making payments to the overseas company. Under the Income Tax Law, the domestic companies making payment to foreign entities are required to withhold part of the payment, to be later deposited with the exchequer as tax. Justifying its ruling, the AAR said that referral fees paid to foreign companies cannot be taxed in India as such payments do not fall within the purview of business income, royalty income or fees for technical services. Rejecting the contention of the I-T department, referral fee was being paid by the Indian company to avoid payment of taxes in India, the AAR said as the authenticity of the referral service was not in question, the authority could not give any decision on it. Under the provisions of the I-T Act, foreign companies can seek advance rulings on the matters related with future tax obligations. The ruling, once given, remains binding on the foreign company as well as the I-T department.

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G-8 leaders share PM's concerns on soaring oil prices

SAPPORO : Sharing concerns of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over rising energy prices and the risks they pose to the global economy, G-8 leaders on Tuesday asked oil producing countries to step up output to meet the growing energy demand. "We have strong concerns about sharp rise in oil prices, which pose risks to global economy... On the supply side, production and refinery capacities should be increased in the short term. "Efforts are also necessary to expand upstream and downstream investment in the medium term," the draft declaration of the G-8, to be adopted tomorrow, said. India's Prime Minister had yesterday lashed out at the international financial institutions and others for their "lethargy" in dealing with the current global crisis fed by oil and food prices. He mooted a forum where producers and consumers can sit together to work out modalities to introduce a greater element of stability. Crude oil prices have shot up to over USD 140 a barrel from USD 70 dollars in August 2007. Prices of several items, including wheat, rice, corn, pulses and edible oil have risen between 50 to 100 per cent in the last one year. The G-8 proposed holding an energy forum to focus on efficiencies and new technologies, which could allow for a dialogue between the producers and the consumers. The draft declaration said further analysis of the real and financial factors behind the recent surge in oil and commodity prices should be carried out. However, it welcomed the efforts of the national authorities "to increase transparencies in the commodity futures market and encourage further cooperation between them".

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SKIL Infra to develop Rs 13,000 cr SEZ in Oman

SKIL Infrastructure has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Oman government to develop a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) there at an investment of Rs 13,000 crore. SKIL plans to set up a multi-product SEZ in Sohar port in Oman. SKIL would have 49 per cent stake in the SEZ while Sohar port and Rotterdam port would have the rest. "We are setting up a multi-product SEZ in Sohar port in Oman at an investment of Rs 13,000 crore-Rs 14,000 crore," Horizon Countrywide Logistics Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Khera told PTI. Horizon Countrywide Logistics is a subsidiary of SKIL and Khera is looking after the multi-product SEZ. Sohar Port is located 240 km northwest of the Omani capital Muscat. The multi-product SEZ, which would be launched by the end of this year, would be spread over 11,000 acres. This is the second SEZ coming up in Oman, Khera said.

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Siemens cutting 16,750 jobs worldwide

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP)    Industrial conglomerate Siemens says it is cutting 16,750 jobs worldwide because of the slowing economy. The cuts amount to 4.2 percent of its global work force. Siemens builds products ranging from light bulbs and medical equipment to high-speed trains. The Munich-based maker of trams and wind turbines said Tuesday the cuts will include 12,600 mostly administrative jobs, along with another 4,150 positions in a restructuring in some of its units. Chief financial officer Siegfried Russwurm says Siemens will seek early retirements and possible buyouts to avoid forced layoffs and dismissals. Last week, chief executive Peter Loescher all but confirmed that massive cuts were in the offing. In a July 2 statement, he said: "We're seeing the first clouds in the business cycle sky, and are therefore making Siemens weather ready.."

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CLSA sees Sensex cos' Q1 exceptional-adjusted net up 14% on year

Monday, Jul 7       MUMBAI - CLSA Asia Pacific Markets expects 30 companies constituting Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensex to report 14% year-on-year growth in net profit in Apr-Jun after exceptional adjustments.     However, sans these exceptional adjustments, the growth is seen mere 6.1% against 34% a year ago, a CLSA report said today.     The international brokerage house cited high base as a key reason for the fall in earnings growth.       Among sectors, CLSA expects companies in capital goods sector, with 31% rise in net profit, to clock the highest growth in earnings in Apr-Jun.     Other top performers are likely to be real estate, with 26% growth, and telecom, with 24%, the report said.     Banks are likely to report 17% year-on-year growth in earnings this quarter, CLSA said adding they may witness an upside surprise in margins.     This has been attributed to re-pricing of wholesale deposits by banks in March, increase in lending rates, and a rise in bond yields.     CLSA sees growth of most companies, except consumer goods, capital goods, metals, and software, decelerating in Apr-Jun as against Jan-Mar.     Telecom companies' interest costs are seen surging significantly in the quarter.     For CLSA universe (excluding oil and gas), interest expense will rise 71% from a year ago skewed by telecom sector, the report said. Excluding telecom, interest expense will be up 36%.     "While high inflation, surging crude prices are challenges for the macro-environment in the near term, the steep 50-60% fall in many blue-chips suggests that these concerns are largely discounted," CLSA said.     It favours Bharti Airtel, Bharat Heavy Electricals, Cairn India, Reliance Industries, and Tata Power as its top-picks citing strong bottoms-up stories.     The report also added these top-picks are not far from 'stress' value.     With the fall in rupee against the U.S. dollar, the brokerage house sees other income falling 19% from a year ago for CLSA universe (excluding oil and gas), in contrast to the 20-40% growth witnessed over the past three quarters.

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Left parties to meet Tue; may withdraw support to UPA govt by Thu

Monday, Jul 7       NEW DELHI - The Left Front will meet Tuesday to decide on their support to the United Progressive Alliance government, amid reports they may pull the plug by Thursday.     "We are meeting tomorrow to decide on our future course of action," Revolutionary Socialist Party leader Abani Roy told NewsWire18 today.     He said the government has responded to the Left parties' letter to External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, which had set today's deadline for clarification on the ruling coalition's stance on the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal.     Meanwhile, Forward Bloc leader Debabrata Biswas has told CNN-IBN news channel the Left was likely to withdraw support by Thursday.        Apart from Forward Bloc and the RSP, the other two constituents of the Left Front are the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and CPI.

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PM leaves for G-8 summit - all eyes on sideline meet with Bush Wed

Monday, Jul 7     NEW DELHI - Though the prime agenda of the Group of Eight summit in Hokkaido, Japan, is the spiral in food and fuel prices, what India awaits is news on an entirely different issue - the much touted sideline meet of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with U.S. President George W.. Bush.     The two leaders are scheduled to meet Wednesday, with the crux of their powwow likely to be the Indo-U.S. civilian nuclear cooperation agreement, which has triggered a major realignment of political forces at home.     The four-party Left Front, key ally of the United Progressive Alliance government, has threatened to pull out if the government proceeds with the nuclear deal. However, Samajwadi Party of former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh had pledged to support the coalition government.     The Singh-Bush meet is expected to be the last one during their respective tenures in office. Both have been trying to ensure the historical, but controversial deal is sealed before their respective terms end.     While U.S. presidential polls are due in November and the new president will assume office in January, the UPA will complete its term in May.     Singh has maintained the deal would end India's isolation in international nuclear trade, and would help India boost its energy security.     The Left allies of the government, however, claim the nuclear deal would bring India into the U.S. strategic orbit and compromise the nation's sovereignty.

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TRP Watch: Sony Entertainment back in 3rd spot for wk ended Jun 28

Monday, Jul 7     MUMBAI - Buoyed by a strong line-up of movies, Sony Entertainment Television returned to its third position in the general entertainment segment for the week to Jun 28, as per Television Audience Measurement Media Research data.     Among Hindi movie channels, Zee Cinema held top spot.     During the week under review, Asia Cup cricket tournament had sports viewers flocking to Star Cricket.     Despite losing significant market share, NDTV 24X7 continued to hold top position in the English national news segment.     In the business news segment, NDTV Profit gained market share in the English category, while Zee Business took the top slot in Hindi segment.       GENERAL ENTERTAINMENT       In Hindi general entertainment, the wager is for the third spot, as pre-established channels Star Plus and Zee TV continue to hold on to first and second spots, respectively.     In the week to Jun 28, Star Plus held 29.0% relative market share, while Zee TV had 18.8%, as per Television Audience Measurement Media Research data.     For now, Sony Entertainment seems to have settled in third position, while Doordarshan 1 with 550 basis points surge in market share took the fourth spot.     Analysts said both the channels' performance was based on movie content they broadcast.     Star One was at fifth spot, while NDTV Imagine slipped to sixth.     Peter Mukerjea-promoted 9X was at seventh place.     Zee Next, which would soon be demerged from Zee Entertainment, continues at the bottom of the Hindi entertainment charts with around 1% market share.     In the Hindi movie segment, Zee Cinema held its own, making good for the time it lagged Sony Max during the Indian Premier League cricket tournament that the latter broadcast.     Zee Cinema held 36.9% market share in the week ended Jun 28, while Max had 29.7%.     Television viewing behaviour is monitored by TAM, a joint venture between global  consultancy major AC Nielsen and IMRB International. It installs a monitoring device in select homes across the country as part of the sample audience.     TOP SHOWS       Balaji Telefilm's version of the epic, Mahabharat, would be broadcast on 9X from today.     An increasing number of shows made by Balaji Telefilm's are likely to come on 9X,  because of Mukerjea, who was the ex-chief executive officer of Star India.     With Star seen divesting its stake in Balaji Telefilms, the company would try to diversify its client base, analysts said.     Currently, Star Plus continues to host the highest number of Balaji Telefilm shows.     One of the longest running soaps on Indian television is 'Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi', and it garners top ratings till date.     However, the show was in second place for the week to Jun 28, behind another Star Plus show, 'Bidayi'.     NEWS CHANNELS       In spite of losing 310 bps market share to 30.9%, NDTV 24X7 held top spot in the English national news channel segment.     Network18's Global Broadcast News-owned CNN-IBN followed it with 27.0%.  NewsWire18 is a subsidiary of TV18 and a part of Network18.     Bennet and Coleman-promoted Times Now and INX Media's News X gained over 200 bps each during the week to Jun 28.     In the Hindi news segment, India TV held its top position, with 20.2% market share in the week ended Jun 28.     Former leader Aaj Tak settled for second place with 18.5% share.     IBN 7, Zee News, and NDTV India were fourth, fifth, and sixth, respectively.     CNBC-TV18 and UTVi both lost market share to NDTV Profit among English business news channels, during the week.     CNBC-TV18 lost 270 bps and had 55.0% market share.. UTVi held 4.8%, and the remaining 40.2% was with NDTV Profit.     Hindi business news channel Zee Business scored over CNBC Awaaz, as the former gained 890 bps to capture 35.5% market share.     SPORTS       Star Cricket was a key gainer as it broadcast Asia Cup matches during the week to Jun 28.     The channel held 69.6% market share during the week.     More viewers were attracted to the sports segment, as the relative share of this segment among all genres rose 280 bps.     All other channels in the segment dramatically lost market share.        Analysts said loyalty in the segment is to the event, not the channel, resulting in sharp variation in viewing pattern.       OUTLOOK       Sony Entertainment is seen getting some mileage for a special episode of "Dus Ka Dum" featuring actors Aamir Khan and Imran Khan, alongside host Salmaan Khan.     In sports, the India-Sri Lanka series comprising three test matches and five one-day matches, to be played in Sri Lanka, from Jul 18 to Aug 29, will be eyed.     In the news channels' segment, analysts remain uncertain of outlook, as viewing patterns and programming are harder to plan.     In Hindi general entertainment segment, all eyes are on Viacom18's Colors. It is set to make its official broadcast from Jul 21, with four hours of original content programming per day. The channel is likely to debut at fourth or fifth place in the segment, analysts said. "The channel has been able to create the appropriate hype to get attention, but there is a stickiness to existing soaps which may be hard to beat," an analyst said.

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Banks to get 250-bln-rupee part payout for farm loan waiver in Aug

NEW DELHI - India's liquidity-constrained money markets, keenly hoping for banks to get the first instalment of 250 bln rupees from the government under the farm loan waiver scheme, will have to wait at least till early August.     The government needs Parliament approval for the payout, and the monsoon session is likely to be convened only in August first week, a senior finance ministry official told NewsWire18 today.     "The instalment, which will be part of the supplementary demand for grants, will be tabled in monsoon session of Parliament for its nod," the official said.     The government concluded its ambitious 716.80-bln-rupee farm loan wavier scheme on Jun 30. Under the plan, the government has completely waived off all loans of marginal and small farmers that were overdue on Dec 31 and remained unpaid till Feb 29.     The scheme, which benefited 40 mln farmers, covered all farm loans disbursed by commercial banks, regional rural banks, and cooperative banks.     In respect of other farmers, there was a one-time settlement scheme for all loans that were overdue on Dec 31. Under this scheme, a rebate of 25% has been given against payment of balance 75%.

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Labour rules: Govt plans 'flying check' on garment firms

NEW DELHI: Garment manufacturing units, including vendors who supply to marque international brands like Gap, Armani and Diesel, face stringent scrutiny on labour law violations. The government plans to form a 'flying squad' to keep a check on such entities by conducting surprise raids. The flying squad will clamp down on such manufacturing units if they are found guilty of flouting labour norms. Instances pertaining to child labour, discomfort to women labourers and chinks in overall working conditions would be reported to the government, which plans to blacklist such units. Officials from ministries of textiles, labour and women and child welfare would be part of the squad which is expected to be in place within a month. The main purpose of the squad is to stop the practice of child labour. Officials in respective ministries feel that the controversy relating to use of children as labour by Indian suppliers of international brands results in spoiling relations with the companies concerned. Besides, the country's reputation is also spoilt. "There have been instances when foreign companies have refused to accept consignment from the Indian suppliers, accusing them of using child labour and flouting several other labour norms. Government is contemplating concrete steps to ward of any such shame in future," a government official said. The flying squad would also include a couple of industry experts to strike a balance. Members of the flying squad would be rotated so that there are less chances of them being influenced by factory owners or dealers who, in most cases, have got strong political linkages. "In some cases, international companies hire subcontractors and then forget about it. There is lack of efficient monitoring. The biggest responsibility here lies with the government," an official said. Last year, a reported discovery of children as young as 10 sewing clothes for clothing retailer Gap in a New Delhi factory had fanned concerns about child labour in India. The textile ministry is playing a proactive role in setting up the committee as it does not want to falter on its export targets year after year. The target for 2012 is $50 billion. In 2007-08, textile exports stood a little over $20 billion against the target of $25 billion.

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R-Comm ends down 3.5% ahead of MTN talk period expiry

MUMBAI--3:35PM--Shares of Reliance Communications provisionally ended down 3.5% at 421 rupees ahead of expiry of the 45-day exclusive period for merger talks Tuesday, with South Africa's telecom major MTN.     MTN is considering walking away from a tie-up with the company on fears the spat between Anil and Mukesh Ambani could leave the deal open to legal action, a report in the Financial Times said.     MTN and Reliance Communications are likely to extend their exclusive talks for another two to three weeks, but there is no indication that extra time alone would be sufficient to resolve the feud between the brothers, the report said.     Dealers said the stock has support around 380 rupees Tuesday.

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Ten mistakes equity investors generally make

People lose money in stock markets more because of their own mistakes,
than any market turmoil and other such things.

For instance, it has generally been observed that equity investments
are often guided by greed and investors seldom do their homework
before putting their hard-earned money in stock markets.

Besides, they often resort to speculation and keep 'timing the
market', which has not proven to be a great strategy.

Lots of investors also presume that the market will only go northwards
and the bull run will never end. But that never happens. Not in any
market of the world. But that's how it is.

1. Guided by greed

Many investors have been losing money in stock markets owing to their
inability to control greed and fear. The lure of quick wealth is
difficult to resist, particularly in a bull market. Greed augments
when investors hear stories of fabulous returns being made in the
stock market in a short period of time and, thus, lose their hard-
earned money in many cases.

2. Following herd mentality

Following herd mentality is another reason for the investors' losses.
"It has been witnessed that the typical buyer's decision is heavily
influenced by the actions of his acquaintances, neighbours or
relatives. So, if everybody around is investing in a particular stock,
the tendency for potential investors is to do the same. But this
strategy may backfire in the long run," says Ashish Kapur, CEO, Invest
Shoppe India Ltd.

3. Resorting to speculation

Investors also face losses because they speculate and buy shares of
unknown companies. They should, therefore, avoid relying on random
tips and go for long-term gains only.

4. Lack of research

Proper research should be undertaken before investing in stocks. But
this is rarely done. Investors generally go by the name of a company
or the industry they belong to. But this is not the right way of
putting one's money into the stock market. "Therefore, if one doesn't
have time or temperament for studying the markets, one should always
take the help of a suitable financial advisor," says Kapur.

5. Creating leveraged positions

Many investors suffer from creating heavy positions in the futures
segment without really understanding the risks involved. Instead of
creating wealth, however, these investors burn their fingers very
badly in case the sentiment in the market reverses.

6. Panic selling

In a bear market, investors panic and sell their shares at rock bottom
prices. Trading on the bourses was suspended on May 17, 2004, May 18,
2006 and recently on January 22, 2008. Investors who had taken
speculative positions lost heavily when blood was on the street. Even
investors who had the capacity to hold on to their investments, lost
faith in the markets and sold their investments in a hurry, thus
incurring heavy losses.

7. Timing the market

Many investors try to time the market. But this has not proven to be a
great strategy. Historically, in fact, it has been witnessed that even
great bull runs have shown bouts of panic moments. The volatility
witnessed in the markets has inevitably made investors lose money
despite the great bull run. Therefore, only prudent investors who put
in money systematically, in the right shares and hold on to their
investments patiently, have made outstanding returns. So it's not
'timing the market', but 'time in the market' which creates wealth.
Hence, it is prudent to have patience and always keep a long-term
broad picture in mind.

8. Putting all eggs in one basket

Another mistake which investors generally make is non-diversification
of their portfolio. They generally put all their money in limited and
favourite stocks which are in momentum. So, investors should diversify
their portfolio across industries and size of the companies. Also, it
is important to diversify across asset classes – equities, real
estate, bonds, commodities, cash etc.

9. Avoiding financial planning

Investors also do not apply financial planning practices in their
investment approach. They should follow an asset allocation model and
invest only in long-term funds in the equity markets. They should also
keep rebalancing their overall portfolio from time to time to keep
their exposure to equity markets at the desired ratio of the total
portfolio.

10. No monitoring of portfolio

We are living in a global village. Any important event happening in
any part of the world has an impact on our financial markets. Hence,
we need to constantly monitor our portfolio and keep affecting the
desired changes in it. If one can't review one's portfolio due to time-
constraint or lack of knowledge, they should take the help of a
financial advisor.

 

 

 

L&T to raise Rs 17,000-cr deb

Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T), which
recently forayed into power equipment manufacturing, is in talks with
a consortium of banks to raise over Rs 17,000 crore as debt to fund
its plans of entering the power generation segment.


The company was discussing with a consortium of international banks,
including home grown ICICI Bank and State Bank of India (SBI) to fund
four power projects, each with a capacity of over 1000 mega watt,
banking sources said.

L&T, which recently formed two subsidiaries - L&T Power Projects as
the investment vehicle for power projects and L&T Power Development
Ltd to set up power plants, is planning to invest over Rs 25,000 crore
in the next five years in setting up power projects.

Reportedly, L&T is in talks with consumer electronics major Videocon
Industries to set up a 1000 mw coal fired power project in Gujarat,
with an investment of over Rs 4500 crore.

Sources said L&T would fund the projects in 70:30 per cent debt-equity
ratio and plans to bank on its strong balance sheet and order book
position to raise the remaining equity portion.

The coal fired projects, ranging with a capacity of above1000 MW, are
likely to come up mainly in coal abundant states such as Jharkhand,
Orissa, Gujarat and other northern states.

A few months ago, A.M. Naik, L&T Chairman and Managing Director, had
revealed the company would set up over 5000 mw (nega watt) of power
projects within the next five years.

L&T has two joint ventures with Mitsubishi for building supercritical
turbines, boilers and is in the process of setting up a Rs 1,200-crore
manufacturing facility at Hazira in Gujarat.

Two days ago, the joint venture bagged Rs 1,557-crore order from
Andhra Pradesh Power Development Co (APPDCL) to build two
supercritical turbines of 800 mw capacity, becoming the country's
first company to win orders in this category.

India is planning to add 78,577 megawatts of power generation capacity
by 2012, mainly from coal-fired units, to overcome shortages in
electricity.

Punj Lloyd bags GVK Power order

Engineering major Punj Lloyd Ltd on Thursday announced it has bagged a
Rs 1,005-crore contract from GVK Power Ltd.

Under the contract, Punj Lloyd would execute the balance of plant work
(BOP) and the civil work for the 540 MW Govindwal Sahib coal-fired
thermal power project in Punjab, the company said in a filing to the
Bombay Stock Exchange. Punj Lloyd bags Rs 649 cr contract from IOC

"Continuing our expansion in high growth areas, we believe that this
project will play a vital role in strengthening our exper tise," Punj
Lloyd Managing Director, V K Kaushik, said. The project would be
completed by mid 2011, the filing added. With this, the order book
position of Punj Lloyd stands at Rs 21,249.63 crore.

Earlier, Punj Lloyd had bagged a Rs 823-crore project from Rajasthan
Vidhyut Utpadan Nigam for civil works in 2x250 MW Chhabra Thermal
Power station on EPC basis.

 

 

 

Congress govt in J&K falls after CM Azad fails to seek trust vote

Monday, Jul 7

   NEW DELHI - The Congress-led Jammu and Kashmir government today fell after Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad failed to seek a trust vote on the floor of the state assembly, television channel CNN-IBN reported.

   The crisis was precipitated after Mufti Mohammad Sayeed-led People's Democratic Party, an ally of the Congress government in the state, pulled support on the Amarnath shrine land controversy.

   The chief minister is expected to resign soon, the channel said. 

   The six-year term of the assembly was to end in November even though Azad had hinted the government may seek elections in September.  

 

 

 

Executives 'afraid to take holidays in case they lose jobs'

LONDON: It may not be true in your office, thanks to a broad-minded
boss, but a new study has revealed that a large number of executives
in Britain are afraid to go on holidays fearing they could lose their
job.

In their study, researchers have found that at least one in four
employees would not use their full entitlement of earned leave every
year as they are too worried about their job security.

According to them, the "holiday paranoia" of many executives has been
fuelled by redundancy rates doubling over the past year, the 'Daily
Mail' reported.

"There is clearly a fear that 'out of sight means out of mind'. But,
without taking a proper break, individual performance can suffer and
employers will notice mistakes more than they will absence through
holiday.

"Individuals actually need time off to recharge their batteries," Jo
Causon, the Director of Corporate Affairs at the Chartered Management
Institute which commissioned the research, was quoted as saying.

The researchers came to the conclusion after carrying out a survey of
junior and senior managers mostly in private firms across Britain --
37 per cent of the respondents said they had tried to encash their
unused holidays.

However, few employers have insisted that it is very important for
staff to take a break.

Source: Economic Times
 

 

 

Hindustan Zinc cuts lead price by 2,700 rupees/tn, zinc by 1,600

Monday, Jul 7
 

    NEW DELHI - Hindustan Zinc Ltd. cut lead product prices by 2,700 rupees per tn to 84,300 rupees, while zinc product prices were reduced by 1,600 rupees a tn to 88,700 rupees Saturday, according to information on the company's Web site.

   The Vedanta group company reviews product prices every Thursday and Saturday to keep them in line with prices on the London Metal Exchange.

   At 10:02AM today, shares of Hindustan Zinc were at 514.8 rupees on the National Stock Exchange, up 1.72% from the previous close.  

 

 

 

 

War-chest of Big 4 crosses $5.2 billion

Top IT services companies - TCS, Infosys Technologies, Wipro and
Satyam Computer Services - together have seen their 'liquid assets'
surpass $5.2 billion during FY08.

The financial kitty assumes significance as it not only places these
service providers in a strong position to pursue strategic overseas
buy-outs this year, but also offers comfort at a time when the
industry's largest market – the US - is facing slowdown headwinds.

The liquid assets (including cash and bank balances, as well as
investment in liquid and short term mutual funds) of the four Indian
IT giants was pegged at almost $4.2 billion in FY07, according to
Angel Broking Ltd.

"Most of the Indian IT firms are looking at inorganic route to fill
the gaps and fuel growth, and they may go for smaller acquisitions.
However, although the valuations are looking attractive, the
expectations of target companies have not come down. Also, the dollar
appreciation could take some sheen off from buy-outs in the short
term," said a top official of a Bangalore-based IT company.

Satyam Computer Services has announced a slew of acquisitions over the
last six months. In April, the company acquired Belgium-based S&V
Management Consultants for $35.5 million in an all-cash deal. Satyam
also announced the acquisition of the construction equipment maker
Caterpillar Inc.'s market research and customer analytics operations
for $60 million.

According to sources, Satyam is currently on the prowl for
acquisitions in business process outsourcing (BPO), engineering
services and infrastructure management services (IMS) space.

Similarly, Wipro Technologies, in August last year, had announced the
acquisition of Nasdaq-listed outsourcing firm Infocrossing, provider
of IT infrastructure management, enterprise application and business
process outsourcing services, for about $600 million in an all-cash
deal.

Wipro is learnt to be looking at strengthening its foothold in France
and Germany through acquisitions.

Industry observers also point out that besides strategic acquisitions,
IT firms are likely to utilise cash to maintain a high dividend payout
ratio.

"In the past, companies have followed diverse strategies on
utilisation of cash. While some have aggressively gone after
acquisitions, others have announced special dividend as pay-out," Mr
Harit Shah, Analyst IT and Telecom, Angel Broking Ltd, said.

Source: Business Line
 

 

 

L&T splits ECC division into fou

Larsen & Toubro will split its Engineering Construction and Contract
(ECC) division into four separate companies soon, according to Mr J.
Ganguly, Executive Vice-President, L&T Ltd.

The four functional areas within ECC – Buildings & Factories,
Infrastructure, Power Transmission & Distribution and Mineral Metal &
Water – have already started operating as independent divisions with
effect from July 1, he said, adding that the formal split would take a
couple of years to be completed.

Listing plans


There are also plans to list them on the stock exchanges, once they
acquire "a critical mass" for getting registered as separate entities,
Mr Ganguly said.

"We are in the process of a major restructuring of ECC. The break-up
was inevitable because we had grown substantially over the last two
years," Mr Ganguly said.

Mr Ganguly said the four new divisions would operate as subsidiaries
or associate companies, ECC being the holding company for all the four
initially.

However, once the restructuring was complete, L&T would take over as
the holding company. The brand of L&T could thus be attached with each
division for nomenclature, he clarified.

In 2008-09, ECC has a target of achieving a turnover of Rs 18,000
crore, which is nearly double its turnover of Rs 9,500 crore in
2006-07.

"Each of the four divisions now contributes Rs 3,000-4,000 crore to
the company's exchequer and we would go for separate registration once
they grow to at least Rs 5,000 crore each," he said.

Last year, the construction major registered a turnover of Rs 13,000
crore, growing at 37 per cent over the previous fiscal.

According to industry sources, the ground for the restructuring
process, being conducted by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), was
laid way back in 2003 when India's largest construction organization
ECC had regrouped its erstwhile complex model of 18 Strategic Business
Units (SBUs) into a four-business sector model that exists today.

L&T schedules first of 3 IPOs for 2009-10
L&T beats rising prices to take net up 38%; bonus set at 1:1

Source: Business Line
 

 

 

L&T gets JSW Energy arm's 4.46-bln-rupee transmission line order

   Monday, Jul 7
 

   MUMBAI - Larsen & Toubro Ltd today said it has won an order worth 4.46 bln rupees from JSW Power Transco Ltd, a transmission business division of JSW Energy Ltd.

   The order entails setting up of transmission lines for evacuation of power from JSW Energy's 1,200 MW power plant coming up at Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, the engineering major said in a release to the exchanges.

   L&T plans to complete the construction of Jaigad-Karad and Jaigad-New Koyna transmission lines, totalling 169 km, in 18 months. 

   L&T shares were off their earlier highs, despite the order win.

   At 12:53PM, L&T shares were trading at 2,413 rupees a share on the National Stock Exchange, up 1.32% from close Friday. 

 

 

 

 

Apollo Sindhoori Capital Investments : Stake Sale

Even when the stock broking firms are reeling under low trading turnover, the Aditya Birla group seems to be going ahead with its plans of acquiring the Reddy family's 66.32 per cent stake in Chennai-based Apollo Sindhoori Capital Investments (ASCIL). Business Standard reports that deal will value the broking firm at Rs 390 crore. This translates into Rs 703 per share. The shares of ASCIL were trading at Rs 494, up 5 per cent, at noon today.

Others in the race included US-based JP Morgan and Anil Ambani-promoted Reliance Capital, but Aditya Birla group has emerged as the frontrunner, according to the report. Aditya Birla group will also make an open offer after acquiring Reddy family's stake according to the Sebi takeover guidelines.

The Reddy family, who are also promoters of Apollo Hospitals, are exiting from ASCIL as a part of its strategy to divest its interests in non-core businesses. ASCIL has a pan-India presence with over 700 offices across the country and a clientele of over 1,40,000 customers.

The Reddy family is planning expansion of its flagship company Apollo Hospitals. It is planning to invest Rs 1,400 crore over the next two years to expand its healthcare delivery capacity by 2300 beds adding to its current capacity of own beds of 4000. The Reddy family also plans to increase its stake in the in Apollo Hospitals from present level of 27.47 per cent to 31.15 per cent. Money from the stake sale could be deployed for these purposes.

This deal will mark the re-entry of the Aditya Birla group into the broking business. Birlas had exited the stockbroking business by selling their stake in Birla Sun Life Securities, a joint venture between the Aditya Birla group and the Sun Life Group of Canada to the JV Gokal Group. This company was renamed as Brics Securities, which was sold to Lehman Brothers in 2007.

 

--

courtesy: Allies Financial Services