PNB may acquire majority stake in Kazakh bank

Punjab National Bank plans to acquire a majority stake in a Kazakhstan-based bank to expand its presence in Central Asia, its Chairman and Managing Director K R Kamath said here today.
We are trying to pick up 74 per cent stake in a bank called Dana bank in Kazakhstan, subject to RBI approval," Kamath told PTI.
The bank has completed due diligence, which is now being whetted. "Once that is complete, we will look at pricing," he said.
Outlining the bank's plans for overseas expansion, Kamath said, PNB would set up a bank in Bhutan with a local partner.
For Canada, PNB has received the Reserve Bank's approval to set up a subsidiary in Vancouver.
"We recently made a presentation to monetary authorities of Canada and they are positive. The process of submitting a business case is on. The whole process of starting operations is likely to take one year," he said.
Kamath said PNB would upgrade its representative office in Shanghai, China to a branch.We are trying to pick up 74 per cent stake in a bank called Dana bank in Kazakhstan, subject to RBI approval," Kamath told PTI.
The bank has completed due diligence, which is now being whetted. "Once that is complete, we will look at pricing," he said.
Outlining the bank's plans for overseas expansion, Kamath said, PNB would set up a bank in Bhutan with a local partner.
For Canada, PNB has received the Reserve Bank's approval to set up a subsidiary in Vancouver.
"We recently made a presentation to monetary authorities of Canada and they are positive. The process of submitting a business case is on. The whole process of starting operations is likely to take one year," he said.
Kamath said PNB would upgrade its representative office in Shanghai, China to a branch.

Hyundai mulls new diesel engine manufacturing unit

The Indian arm of Korea’s Hyundai Motors is doing a study on the viability of a diesel engine unit in the country, which could help it reduce its dependence on Korea and gain a pricing advantage with increased localisation.
At present, the company imports the engines directly from Korea after paying a hefty duty.
Han-Woo Park, newly appointed managing director and chief executive officer at Hyundai Motor India, said: “The minimum (sales) requirement for a diesel engine plant to be feasible is 100,000 units (per annum). We are doing the required field study and will take a decision on it at the appropriate time.”
The plant, if given a green signal, will come up close to the company’s existing vehicle manufacturing unit near Chennai where it also makes petrol engines, including the heavily promoted Kappa range.
Park, who replaced his senior, H S Lheem, in the company earlier this month, was non-committal on whether there would actually be a diesel engine unit. He also wouldn’t comment on the investment the project would entail if given a go-ahead.
Although Hyundai was one of the first companies to introduce the common-rail diesel technology (known for its high efficiency, refinement and frugal nature) in India, it failed to capitalise on the lead.
Currently, only a handful of its models, such as the i20, Verna, Sonata Transform and Tucson sport a diesel option, with only the i20 selling in high numbers. Car market leader Maruti Suzuki has installed a diesel engine it had developed in a number of top-selling models such as Ritz, Swift and Swift DZire. Most of these models have high waiting periods.
The company will be relaunching the i10 hatchback next year, strapped with a diesel engine. The company’s famed CRDi technology (which once powered its Accent sedan) will drive the i10 next year, one of the smallest diesel engines in the country available on a car.The Indian arm of Korea’s Hyundai Motors is doing a study on the viability of a diesel engine unit in the country, which could help it reduce its dependence on Korea and gain a pricing advantage with increased localisation.
At present, the company imports the engines directly from Korea after paying a hefty duty.
Han-Woo Park, newly appointed managing director and chief executive officer at Hyundai Motor India, said: “The minimum (sales) requirement for a diesel engine plant to be feasible is 100,000 units (per annum). We are doing the required field study and will take a decision on it at the appropriate time.”
The plant, if given a green signal, will come up close to the company’s existing vehicle manufacturing unit near Chennai where it also makes petrol engines, including the heavily promoted Kappa range.
Park, who replaced his senior, H S Lheem, in the company earlier this month, was non-committal on whether there would actually be a diesel engine unit. He also wouldn’t comment on the investment the project would entail if given a go-ahead.
Although Hyundai was one of the first companies to introduce the common-rail diesel technology (known for its high efficiency, refinement and frugal nature) in India, it failed to capitalise on the lead.
Currently, only a handful of its models, such as the i20, Verna, Sonata Transform and Tucson sport a diesel option, with only the i20 selling in high numbers. Car market leader Maruti Suzuki has installed a diesel engine it had developed in a number of top-selling models such as Ritz, Swift and Swift DZire. Most of these models have high waiting periods.
The company will be relaunching the i10 hatchback next year, strapped with a diesel engine. The company’s famed CRDi technology (which once powered its Accent sedan) will drive the i10 next year, one of the smallest diesel engines in the country available on a car.

Ratan Tata says search underway for successor: WSJ

Tata conglomerate is looking around the world for a successor to Ratan Tata, the 71-year-old chairman of the sprawling salt-to-steel group said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal published on Wednesday.

Local and foreign candidates were being looked at to head the group, which includes Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Tata Consultancy Services and Tata Power among its 27 listed companies

"We are in the process of formalising a successor to me. We have some outside consultants and a formal search process is on. There are no constraints," Tata, who has steered the group for nearly two decades, said in the interview.

The successor could be from within the group or outside, Tata said, adding he hoped the person would carry on the growth path that had been set. All but one of the group's past chairmans have been Tatas, although at the moment no family candidate has been publicly identified to take over the role.

"It would certainly be easier if that candidate were an Indian national. But now that 65 per cent of our revenues come from overseas, it could also be an expatriate sitting in that position with justification now," Tata said.

M&M in final stages for auto facility in Tamil Nadu

Mumbai-based Mahindra & Mahindra, India’s largest manufacturer of sports utility vehicles, is believed to be in advanced talks with the Tamil Nadu government for establishing an integrated auto facility in the state.

Sources in the state government said a memorandum of understanding was expected to be formally signed between the government and the company in the next two to three months.

M&M will invest about Rs 1,800 crore in the new facility, to be located in Tiruvannamalai district (195 km from Chennai), over 450 acres. This plant will have the capacity to churn out 150,000 units annually.

Tata Motors to expand Pantnagar plant

Tata Motors, which is producing the Nano car, apart from other commercial vehicles, at its Pantnagar plant in Uttarakhand, said on Monday it was planning to expand the manufacturing facility and called for strengthening rail, road and air connectivity in the region to boost production.

Company officials called on Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank in Dehra Dun and held talks on the company’s expansion plans at the plant, an official statement said. The plant produces nearly 950 vehicles daily, including 150 Nano cars. The company is planning to raise the production to 500,000 vehicles a year from the Pantnagar plant, the statement added.

Oil falls in Asia after overnight gains

Oil fell slightly in Asian trade today after overnight gains spurred by a weak dollar and hopes of improved energy demand amid a global recovery, analysts saidNew York's main contract, light sweet crude for December delivery eased 20 cents to $78.70 a barrel. Brent North Sea crude for January delivery fell 32 cents to $78.44 a barrel.

The two contracts had closed yesterday higher as the US currency continued to weaken despite rare comments from Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke that the central bank strove for a strong dollar.

A lower greenback makes dollar-denominated commodities - like gold and crude oil - cheaper for buyers using stronger currencies. In turn, that tends to lift demand and prices.

Crude futures also received a boost from evidence of growth in Japan after data released Monday showed the world's second biggest economy expanded 1.2 per cent in the July-September period.

It was the second straight quarter of expansion.

OPEC president Jose Maria Botelho de Vasconcelos repeated yesterday the cartel's view that $75-80 oil was an adequate level to allow for a global economic recovery.

"Seventy-five to $80 a barrel is a good price... for the recovery of the world economy," de Vasconcelos, who is also Angola's oil minister, said at a Gulf energy security conference in Abu Dhabi.

CBI files memo in Satyam case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a memo in a local court seeking its permission to hear the charges against the accused in the multi-crore accounting fraud case in Satyam Computer, on the basis of material it provided in the first charge sheet.
 
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The filing of the memo was necessitated following Andhra Pradesh High Court's direction to the investigating agency to hasten the process and start trial in the case, the CBI prosecutor said.

"We filed the memo in the XIV Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court yesterday to seek its permission to hear the charges against Satyam accused," CBI Deputy Legal Advisor B Ravindranath told PTI today.

While seven accused including Satyam's former MD Rama Raju and ex-CFO V Srinivas, two former auditors of Price Waterhouse S Gopalkrishnan and T Srinivas are lodged in Chanchalguda prison here, Ramalinga Raju is undergoing treatment for his heart-related ailment and hepatitis 'C' in Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS).

Cipla launches generic drug to treat H1N1

Indian drug major Cipla has launched generic versions of anti-flu drugs oseltamivir and zanamivir in the local market to treat the H1N1 influenza, which is spreading across the globe and in India.
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Cipla will brand oseltamivir in the local market as Antiflu and zanamivir as Virenza. Antiflu will cost Rs 475 for 10 capsules, in line with the price of competing products in the market. Virenza — an inhaled drug — will cost Rs 800, which includes the price for an inhalation device.

Cipla’s Antiflu is a copycat version of Swiss multi-national Hoffmann-La Roche’s Tamiflu and Virenza is the copy of GlaxoSmithKline’s Relenza. Both drugs, used globally to treat the ongoing H1N1 pandemic, lack patent protection in India as these are pre-1995 innovations. Such innovations are not granted patents in India, according to the product patent regime introduced in the country since 2005.

Dr Y K Hamied, chairman and managing director of Cipla, said his company was equipped to make 2 million doses of oseltamivir a month, in case of any eventuality. Already 450 people have died of H1N1 in India and the winter season may cause further spread of the virus, he said.

“Now the US is facing a shortage of oseltamivir and we have informed our readiness to supply the drug if needed. We make about 20 drugs in the anti-viral segment and are among the global leaders in this category,” said the Cipla chief, who revolutionised HIV/AIDS treatment globally by selling generic drug cocktails at less than a $1 per day.

Both drugs have patent protection in many developed countries, including the US and Europe. Hyderabad-based Hetero is the only supplier licensed by Roche to market oseltamivir in India under the brand name Fluvir.

On August 28, the Indian government had allowed restricted retail sale of the drug under Schedules X category of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, similar to the sale of narcotics drugs. Six Indian companies — Ranbaxy, Cipla, Strides Acrolab, Hetero, Hetco and Roche — were allowed to manufacture and sell the drug. The government has also stockpiled the drug from these manufacturers for supply through government channels.

Two months ago, Natco Pharma had launched its version Natflu in the Indian market at a price of Rs 475 for a bottle of 10 capsules.

“In 2005, we had stockpiled about 2.5 tonnes of oseltamivir but there was no demand and about $15-20 million worth products had just piled up as inventory,” said Hamied.

Cipla has so far exported about $10 million worth of Antiflu to countries in Latin America, Africa, South-East Asia and West Asia, where the drug lacks patent protection.

Countries with patent protection for these drugs can also allow generic players to manufacture and market it, invoking compulsory licence provisions of the patent rules, which allow breaking of patent rules during emergency.

Wipro sees strong deal pipeline

Wipro, India's No. 3 software services exporter, sees robust deal pipeline on the back of improving IT demand worldwide, a senior off

"The deal pipeline is good ... the demand environment is building up. The IT demand situation is improving," Suresh Vaswani, joint chief executive of the company's IT business, told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum.

The company last month reported a 18.76 per cent increase in its consolidated net profit at Rs 1,161.7 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 2009.

The IT exporter had a net profit of Rs 978.2 crore in the September quarter of last fiscal.

Total income of the company rose to Rs 7,057.4 crore during the July-September quarter of the current fiscal, from Rs 6,664.8 crore in the year-ago period, as per the Indian accounting norms.

"We see more stability in volumes and pricing as well as an improving demand environment. Our broad portfolio of services and strong delivery excellence continues to position us as a partner of choice with customers, as they focus on capital conservation and cost transformation," Wipro Chairman Azim Premji said.

Subsidy for fertiliser firms declines with use of K-G gas

Fertiliser companies’ revenues have suffered as their costs have gone down with the substitution of cheaper K-G Basin gas for naphtha, since the government subsidy is based on the cost of production.SC resumes gas hearing with RIL's recap of stand so far
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Companies using the low-cost K-G gas since April have reported lower revenues in the first two quarters of the current financial year. The revenues for fertiliser companies comprise the price realisation from sales and the subsidy it receives from the government.

A lower revenue, in this case, points to a decreasing subsidy burden for the government. The Union government is expected to cut its fertiliser subsidy by Rs 3,000 crore in the current year solely due to this shift to use of K-G gas.

Nagarjuna Fertilisers saw its net sales dip 33 per cent to Rs 862 crore in the six-month period ended September 30. R S Nanda, chief operating officer and director, said the energy cost in gas-based fertiliser production is just one-third compared to the usage of naphtha.

The fertiliser companies are purchasing gas from Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) at the government-fixed price of $4.20 per million British thermal unit (mBtu) as against $13-14 a unit they paid for naphtha last year. The impact of shift to natural gas at one of its plants has had an impact of Rs 240 crore on turnover during the first six months, he said.

Similarly, net sales of National Fertilisers in the first half of the year declined over 21 per cent to Rs 2,311 crore. A number of fertiliser companies, including the likes of Nagarjuna Fertilisers, National Fertilisers, Chambal Fertilisers and Shriram Fertilisers, shifted from naphtha to natural gas as feedstock due to availability from the KG-D6 block operated by Reliance Industries from April. The shift to natural gas from naphtha has cut energy cost by more than 65 per cent for these fertiliser plants.

Retailers extract higher margins from FMCG firms

The terms of trade are slowly tilting in favour of modern retail. Despite going through a correction phase, which saw many retailers shutting stores, modern trade is beginning to cash in on its scale and clout by seeking higher payouts from suppliers.
Consumer product companies have increased aggregate payouts by 200-300 basis points over last year, say retailers. These include incentives for timely payment, meeting certain volume targets, and marketing inputs.
Source: Business Standard RBI may stick to loan-loss norms
Adding to the provisioning woes of a host of banks, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has indicated it would not allow them to include loan write-offs while calculating the loan-loss coverage ratio.
During a meeting with select bank chiefs on Wednesday, in response to a demand from banks, senior RBI officials had said the move was against good accounting practices, something the central bank had stood for even at the peak of the financial crisis,

Mahindra Satyam ties up with defence firm Saab

Mahindra Satyam today announced its plans to collaborate with defence and security company Saab to develop its operations in India for the global defence and homeland security market.
While the company did not give any official figure, the “ongoing-MoU” deal is reportedly worth $400 million (around Rs 1,850 crore) over a five-year period.
“It is difficult to put a number to this collaboration with Saab. The only thing we can say is that this is a first of its kind and has a huge market opportunity,” a company spokesperson said when asked to comment on the deal’s size.
By far, this is the biggest deal that Satyam has secured after it was acquired by Tech Mahindra about six months ago. Mahindra Satyam had 500-odd customers, of which close to 100 dropped their contracts with the then fourth-largest IT outsourcer after the confession by its founder, B Ramalinga Raju, that he had cooked the company’s books for several years.
After the acquisition by Tech Mahindra, Satyam won 30 new logos, most of them single-digit million-dollar contracts, besides a five-year SAP contract with global pharmaceutical major GlaxoSmithKline and a three-year extension of a contract from General Electric.
The collaboration with Saab would require Mahindra Satyam and Saab to jointly address the Battlefield Management System (BMS) for the Indian Army. The solution for BMS, proposed by Saab, is field-proven and deployed in many countries. Both parties intend to work together for the Indian BMS programme and would explore globalisation of co-developed artefacts.
Both the companies have already set up a Centre of Excellence for Network Centric Warfare (CoE-NCW) to offer comprehensive skills and a repository of tools, systems, middleware, integration platforms and system showcases in the NCW field.
This would be a development centre for mission critical applications and Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence (C4I) solutions for global opportunities accessible to either of the partners.

Maharashtra governor fails to break Congress-NCP deadlock

Maharashtra Governor S C Jamir's efforts to resolve the deadlock in government formation failed on Tuesday, with both constituents of the ruling front -- Congress and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) -- sticking to their positions on power-sharing.
NCP leader and deputy chief minister -designate Chhagan Bhujbal reiterated his party's stance and accused the Congress of adopting "delaying tactics" in forming the new government.
"Congress is delaying the government formation, not the NCP," Bhujbal told reporters after meeting the governor at the Raj Bhawan here.
He said that if the Congress does not agree to the power-sharing formula decided in 1999, then the NCP would offer "outside support" instead of joining the ministry.
"I informed the governor that our letter of support is ready, it is up to the Congress to take the initiative in forming the government," said Bhujbal.
Earlier, the governor also met chief minister-designate Ashok Chavan for half-an-hour in an effort to break the impasse that continues 13 days after the assembly results were declared.

Wednesday is the last day of the outgoing assembly's tenure.

In a surprise development on Tuesday, the governor had summoned both the Chavan and Bhujbal to Raj Bhavan to sort out the issue.

While Chavan met Jamir around 11am., Bhujbal called on him around 11.30am.

The two parties - Congress with 82 seats and Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) with 62 seats in the 288-member assembly - are locked in a bitter squabble over the sharing of portfolios in the new government.

Both the parties have adopted an uncompromising stand on the issue of certain key portfolios like home, finance, power, agriculture, urban development and public works ministries.

Last week, NCP leader Ajit Pawar had said that in the 2004 elections, even though NCP had 71 seats compared to 59 of Congress, it agreed to accept the post of deputy chief minister and give the chief minister's post to the latter.

"At that time, to keep the CM's (chief minister) post, the Congress offered us (NCP) four extra ministries and three departments," he pointed out.

India ready to face WTO over wines, spirits duties

India is ready to face any action on the issue of high duty on wines and spirits imported from the European Union (EU) even as the two sides meet on November 6 for discussing trade and investment.
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Maharashtra is the only state that has not complied with the Union government advice to lower levies on imported wines and spirits. The issue has already been sorted out with the Goa and Tamil Nadu governments, which have agreed to give ‘national treatment’ to the imported liquor, which stipulates that they be treated on par as domestic items.

Goa, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu are among the biggest markets for imported wine and spirits.

“The commerce minister (Anand Sharma) has written a letter to the Maharashtra chief minister urging it to fall in line. The matter has already been settled with Goa and Tamil Nadu. EU knows very well that nothing can be done beyond this as it is a state subject. However, if it still take us to the World Trade Organization (WTO), we are ready,” a senior commerce department official told Business Standard.

The process of dragging a member country to WTO incurs heavy expense on the complainant and takes anywhere between two and four years. On a recent visit to India, Foreign Trade Minister of France Anne Marie Idrac said the country hoped the issue would be sorted out amicably soon without having to move WTO.

Marginal decline in RIL’s net profit

MUMBAI: Reliance Industries’ (RIL) net profit is down by 6.4 per cent in the second quarter of 2009-10 at Rs. 3,852 crore against Rs. 4,116 crore in the same period of the previous fiscal. For the half-year ended September 30, 2009, it was Rs. 7,518 crore against Rs. 8,220 crore in the year-ago period, a drop of 8.5 per cent.

The turnover for the half-year declined by 8.7 per cent to Rs. 81,284 crore and exports by 26 per cent to Rs. 43,035 crore while the profit before depreciation, interest and tax, increased by 15 per cent to Rs. 14,939 crore. The profit before tax declined marginally by 1.2 per cent to Rs. 9,706 crore. Cash profit increased by 7.3 per cent to Rs. 12,425 crore.

“The timely completion of the new SEZ refinery and the deep-water, oil and gas KG-D6 block and their safe and stable ramp up are noteworthy accomplishment for the company.

These projects have contributed meaningfully in RIL achieving a record level of profits despite the challenging business and economic environment. These projects will make a significant contribution in shaping the earnings of RIL and also play a vital role in changing the energy landscape in India,” said Mukesh D. Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, while commenting on the results.

“Decline in prices accounted for 45.2 per cent reduction in revenue partially offset by higher volumes which accounted for 36.5 per cent growth in revenue,” RIL said in a release.

The operating profit before other income and depreciation increased by 7.9 per cent from Rs. 12,608 crore to Rs. 13,601 crore.

Net operating margin was higher at 17.4 per cent as compared to 14.6 per cent in the corresponding period of the previous year due to incremental share of oil and gas business, stronger petrochemical margins, base effect of lower turnover partially offset by softer margin environment in refining.

Other income was Rs. 1,337 crore against Rs. 377 crore due to higher interest income on account of higher cash and cash equivalents. Depreciation was higher by 77.7 per cent at Rs. 4,310 crore against Rs. 2,426 crore primarily on account of higher depreciation in oil and gas and refining and marketing business segments.

US to pay Taliban members to switch sides

US President Barack Obama has signed a $680 billion defence appropriations bill with one provision giving commanders the ability to pay
Taliban members to switch sides, but some experts feel the programme may buy only temporary loyalty.
The payments to Taliban would be made under a Taliban reintegration provision under the Commander's Emergency Response Programme (CERP), which is now receiving $1.3 billion in the bill pay for military operations in the 2010 fiscal year, signed by Obama on Wednesday.
CERP funding is also intended for humanitarian relief and reconstruction projects at commanders' discretion.
The buyout idea, according to Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, is to separate local Taliban from their leaders, replicating a programme used to neutralise the insurgency against Americans in Iraq.

HCL Technologies says profit falls on forex loss

Indian software services firm HCL Technologies Ltd. said quarterly profit fell 12.3 per cent as foreign exchange losses dented rebounding revenues from the U.S. and from media and financial services clients.

"Though there are signs of an early recovery in sectors like financial services, we continue to be cautious," chairman Shiv Nadar said in a statement on Wednesday. "We continue to see sustained recovery only by next year."

HCL's profit, however, beat expectations with earnings of 3.2 billion rupees ($66.5 million)in the July-September quarter under U.S. accounting standards _ $9.3 million, or 12.3 per cent, less in dollar terms than the same period last year. Revenue was 30.31 billion rupees ($630.1 million) a 25.8 per cent increase in dollar terms over the year-earlier period.

The company said its foreign exchange losses were $31 million for the quarter, up from $17 million the same quarter last year. Revenue from infrastructure services, and from media, retail, and financial services clients showed the most sequential growth. Revenue from manufacturers slid 8.3 per cent in constant currency terms from the prior quarter, while revenue from public sector energy and utility companies slumped 7.3 per cent in constant currency from the prior quarter.

Sun TV ties up with Endemol

Sun TV Network Ltd (Sun TV), owned by Kalanithi Maran, is looking at foreign partners to produce non-fiction contents. The company on Tuesday joined hands with Dutch firm Endemol to launch a television game show.
This tie-up would be the first step towards more international joint ventures. The international partner will bring his production expertise and will work on licensing model,” said Sun TV chief operating officer Ajay Vidyasagar.

Sun has a market share of 30-32 per cent in the weekend viewership category and is planning to increase it by 12-15 per cent over the next six months by offering new contents.

U'khand power privatisation on cards

The government-run Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL), the sole power distributor in the state, has proposed privatisation of distribution at Roorkee in Haridwar district and Rudrapur in Udham Singh Nagar district where transmission and distribution (T and D) losses and power thefts are heavy. The move is being seen as part of the power reforms programme in the state.
Under the proposal, the process of distribution of power in the two towns would be handed over to private players, an official said. “Yes, we have received a proposal and it is under consideration,” the official added.
The government wants to make a detailed study of some of the cities like Agra and Kanpur where the UP government had recently handed over the power distribution to Torrent Power company, which is also modernising the power distribution system there.
“We are not in hurry and we will study all the implications before taking a final decision,” the official added.
According to the government statistics, AT&C losses in Uttarakhand are at 30-33 per cent, mainly in the plains.
These losses are mostly in Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar districts where the two towns are located.

Sandero rings a Santro bell in Hyundai

Hyundai Motor India has taken Mahindra Renault to the Delhi High Court, objecting to the latter's plan to launch a compact car in the country with the name ‘Sandero’, alleging the rival was trying to cash in on its popular Santro brand with a similar sounding product.
They (Mahindra Renault) are planning to launch Sandero, which is very similar sounding to our Santro. Both are hatchbacks and Santro is an established trademark and they are trying to get mileage out of it,” a senior Hyundai Motor India (HMIL) official said. HMIL's plea requests the court not to allow Mahindra Renault to launch the car under the name Sandero, he added.
In a press release, Mahindra Renault CEO Nalin Mehta said, “We have filed a reply requesting the honourable court for removal of Mahindra Renault’s name as the defendant. Mahindra Renault does not have any ownership of the Sandero brand. Mahindra Renault has never used or promoted the brand. The Sandero brand belongs to Renault and we have no locus standi on the brand. Our appeal with request stated above is filed with the court and awaits hearing.
Renault has other alliances with Bajaj Auto for a small car project and Ashok Leyland through Nissan for light commercial vehicles in India.

Mahindra Satyam working on merger proposal

Mahindra Satyam is working on proposals to position itself as an information and communication technology (ICT) company as against its present profile as an IT company to pave for its merger with Tech Mahindra.
C. P. Gurnani, Chief Executive Officer, Mahindra Satyam, explained to journalists in an informal interaction here on Monday that the Mahindras were likely to go ahead with the plan after restatement of the financials. “We need a change of positioning as an ICT company because of our strong linkage with Tech Mahindra by bringing in connectivity and communication”, Mr. Gurnani said with the rider that approvals had to be obtained from the annual meetings and other statutory bodies.
Describing Mahindra Satyam’s journey so far as a mix of ‘good and bad’, he said the top priority was to restore the confidence of employees, clients and the shareholders. He said more than 100 out of 500 customers left Satyam after the scam broke out in January this year but the company did not lose any money on account of the desertion.

Fake currency recovered from RBI office

Counterfeit currency with a face value of around Rs.1 lakh was recovered from the Reserve Bank of India office here, police sources said on Wednesday.
A case was registered recently after a senior official of the RBI approached police complaining that 296 fake notes of various denominations were detected last month, the sources said.
It is suspected that some banks have “unknowingly” submitted the notes to the RBI, the sources said, adding that the notes have been sent for examination to the Bank Note Press in Madhya Pradesh.

China spinning out Indian tyre exports

Mumbai, Oct. 13 Tyre exports this year are heading towards negative territory largely due to the increasing competition from Chinese manufacturers in the traditional markets of Indian tyre makers.

Tyre exports, which clocked a total turnover of Rs 3,000 crore last fiscal, are set to fall by 10-12 per cent, according to Mr Rajiv Budhraja, Director-General, Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association (ATMA).
“What is happening is the traditional export markets for Indian companies have been overcrowded by Chinese tyres. The international market is becoming increasingly challenging for Indian tyre companies,” he told Business Line.

Late last month, the US imposed a 35 per cent tariff on Chinese tyres to protect the American tyre industry. With the US markets (China’s third largest export destination) turning unfavourable, Chinese manufacturers would be more aggressive targeting other markets.

Well before the US’ impost, Chinese tyre exporters unleashed a price offensive against Indian companies in their traditional markets such as West Asia, Latin America and South-East Asia, according to industry representatives. As a result, from April to July, India exported 15.88 lakh tyres against 20.42 lakh previously, a decline of 22 per cent.
Another reason attributed to the fall is the slowdown in the global automotive industry.
“Since the industry is going through a downturn, the size of the pie for tyre makers remains the same or is shrinking,” Mr Budhraja said.
Tyre importers and distributors cut down their volume of business in many markets as the cost of finance has gone up, he said. More importantly, each country is trying to help domestic manufacturers. For example, the import restriction on Chinese tyres by the US has not been seen by the Indian companies as an advantage for them. “Exports cannot be ramped up all of a sudden as they are governed by long-term contracts. In addition, the first advantage goes to US domestic tyre companies,” he said.
The Government, under the new Foreign Trade Policy, has granted additional concessions for tyre exports to countries included in the ‘Focussed Market Scheme’. As many as 26 markets are added in the list. “We welcome it, but it is a bit late and it would take time to reflect in the market,” Mr Budhraja said.

Aditya Birla Groupl: Cementing business

The Aditya Birla Group has initiated a restructuring exercise for its cement business; it plans to demerge the cement business of Grasim and merge it in two phases with the Rs 6,383-crore UltraTech. The merger will create India’s biggest cement producer with a capacity of close to 50 million tonnes and a pan-India presence. Cement accounted for 63 per cent of Grasim’s revenues of Rs 18,400 crore last year and analysts estimate the combined entity should generate an operating profit of Rs 4,500-5,000 crore in 2009-10. At the end of the two-stage transaction, Grasim is expected to have a stake of 60 per cent in the new entity.
The size of the new company, in itself, would allow it to tap the capital market more effectively to be able to add capacity as also pursue acquisitions. The merger would, therefore, help the Aditya Birla Group gain market share quickly; the idea is to add 25 million tonnes to capacity over five years. Analysts point out that there would be scope to leverage the equity or even raise equity to fund acquisitions, whether in India or overseas.
A pure cement company, they point out, would command better valuations from investors, especially a company of such a large size. Moreover, with all of the group’s cement assets now housed in one company, concerns that one company would grow at the expense of the other are done away with. So far, it’s mainly the cash flows of Grasim’s VSF business that have funded the build out in cement but now the cement business can grow independently.

Freedom of expression and religion important for US

Washington (PTI): The Obama Administration on Friday said freedom of expression and religion is important for the United States, but refrained from making any comment on the a US body putting India on "watch list" for religious intolerance.
"You know, freedom of expression and religious freedom we think are hallmarks of stable, progressive societies in the 21st century. It is obviously important to us," Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs P J Crowley said at the daily State Department press briefing.
Early this week, the US Commission for International Religious Freedom, an independent US body, put India under "watch list" for religious intolerance. India, a thriving secular democracy, has termed it as regrettable.
When asked what impression Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had during her visit to India last month, Crowley said: "I can't say to what degree it came up during the Secretary's conversations last month, but clearly this is an area which we think it obviously is across the globe a source of potential stability."

South Indian Bank raises Rs 200 cr through bonds

Mumbai (PTI): Private sector lender South Indian Bank on Friday said it has raised Rs 200 crore from bonds to meet capital requirements.
The bank has raised Rs 200 crore by issuing unsecured redeemable non-convertible subordinated Tier-II bonds through private placement route, South Indian Bank said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.
The bonds have a maturity period of 128 months offering coupon rate of 9.75 per cent per annum, payable semi-annually and the bonds would be allotted on August 20, the filing added.

Japan’s TV makers see the future in 3D

The technology works by rapidly alternating between left and right frames of the video. The right frame is seen only with the right eye and the left frame with the left eye, creating the illusion of depth.
Flat-panel television screens cannot get much flatter and consumers do not want the screens to get much wider, so Japanese television makers are banking on a whole new dimension to buttress their line-ups.

High-definition three-dimensional TV is the future, or so Panasonic and Sony hope, as they seek to stem a slide in prices and re-energise a market slowed by the global recession. The biggest problem the companies face, however, is staring them right in the face. Viewers will need to wear those goofy, ill-fitting glasses, just as they have to when watching 3-D movies in a theatre. Without them, the screen looks nauseatingly blurry.

Govt may release 45 lakh tonnes of foodgrains in open market

New Delhi (PTI): The Centre may offload about 30 lakh tonnes of wheat and 15 lakh tonnes of rice out of its reserves in the open market to contain the rise in prices of foodgrains at a time when about one-fourth of the country is reeling under a ... More
India's lower rice production to dent world's output
New Delhi (PTI): The US has downsized world's rice production by 15 million tonnes following an estimated decline in output of an equal quantity of the grain in India possibly due to drought.In July the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) had ... More
Coffee consumption may grow by half million bags
New Delhi (PTI): The global slowdown has had no impact on the world's coffee drinking habit and consumption of the beverage is poised to grow by about half a million bags this year to 129 million bags compared to last year, according to a ... More...

LIC Housing Finance slashes home loan rates

Mumbai (PTI): Leading home loans provider, LIC Housing Finance, today cut interest rates for new loans by 0.5 per cent effective from August 1.With this, for customers opting for floating rate loans between Rs 30 lakhs and Rs 75 lakhs, the new ... More
Borrowing impedes monetary policy objective: RBI
Hyderabad (PTI): Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao said on Friday making monetary policy independent of fiscal policy is an important reform measure for the country.Saying that coordination between monetary and fiscal policies has become a ... More
South Indian Bank raises Rs 200 cr through bonds
Mumbai (PTI): Private sector lender South Indian Bank on Friday said it has raised Rs 200 crore from bonds to meet capital requirements.The bank has raised Rs 200 crore by issuing unsecured redeemable non-convertible subordinated Tier-II bonds ...

GAIL to study uniform gas pricing proposal

Amidst call for an uniform pricing of natural gas prevalent in the country.GAIL india has begun hiring consultants for conducting a study on the topic.The fertiliser sector which will move to a new nutrient - based subsidy system has asked for uniform pricing of natural gas.The current gas prices in the country range from $1.8 to cover $6 per mBtu,which means cost of production for gas consumers varies according to the source of gas. 

BSA Motars unveils 5 models

Murugappa group company tube investment of india's strategic business unit bsa motars on tuesday unviled five models of its electric scooter in new delhi priced at Rs.19,450-27,200.The model engine capacity is between 250 watts and 800 watts. The initial market responce for our product has been posative in the southern region and by the extending sales and services network into Delhi we hope to grow rapidly.

Samsung introduces Android smart- phone

Samsung mobile joined hands with Tata DoCoMo, the GSM brands of Tata teleservices, to launch Android-powered smart phone with in-built Google mobile services. Prices at Rs.28,990,. The launch of Samsung android is a part of our Endeavour to provide subscribers a world class product that lets them experience the vast range of applications of the Android market.
“Applications from the Android market can be downloaded and installed on to this mobile over the air , without the use of a PC thereby opening up an entire new world to the user,” said Samsung India General Manager (Marketing )Asim Warsi. 

Bharti-MTN dual listing linked to full convertibility, says Pranab

Dual listing of Bharti Airtel and MTN of South Africa is linked with the “Full convertibility of the rupee” and this aspect is being looked in to before taking such a step, Union Finance Minister pranab Mukherjee. “Dual listing is linked with the full convertibility. When I met the South Africa minister, I said that we welcome you. In the context of the law of the land, there are legal implications. In the proposed tie-up between Bharti Airtel and MTN, Bharti will acquire 49 per cent share in MTN while the latter will hold 25 per cent in the newly created combine if the deals goes through.

TITLE - Ford Showcases Compact Car Figo

The new vehicle will be launched in the first quarter of next year
U-S- based ford motor company showcased its newly developed small car figo that would be launched early next year. Ford motor company president and CEO Alan Mulally. 
Our plan for India involves accelerating development of fuel efficient small cars. The small car market in India will double in the next ten years; and we are focusing on this segment. Ford’s small car platform architecture, sharing underlying technology with the seden Fiesta.
It features a fresh, contemporary shape that would be a distinctive alternative brands in this segment. It starting price could be below Rs.4 lakh.
 

Auto cos rev up in advance tax payment

t has been a strong show by the corporate sector on the advance tax front for the September 15 instalment, with total payout increasing by 14.71 per cent to Rs 44,010 crore (Rs 38,367.20 crore). 
The banking sector has clearly bucked the slowdown with healthy growth in advance tax payouts, especially the top public sector banks. SBI continues to retain its position as the leading advance taxpayer, ahead of ONGC, which paid Rs 1,796 crore advance tax for September 2009 instalment. SBI’s advance tax payout for September 15 instalment stood at Rs 1,832 crore. 

The auto pack has come back strongly in the September 15 instalment. The advance tax payout be the auto sector for the June 15 instalment was flat. For the September 15 instalment, Maruti Suzuki forked out Rs 265 crore (Rs 134 crore). Bajaj Auto paid Rs 170 crore (Rs 90 crore) as advance tax and Hero Honda Rs 137 crore (Rs 128 crore). While Tata Motors’ payout for the September 15 instalment stood at Rs 100 crore (Rs 19 crore), Mahindra & Mahindra paid advance tax of Rs 112 crore (Rs 16 crore). 

Among the new entrants, Indian Oil paid Rs 1,100 crore for the September 15 instalment. This oil marketing company did not pay any advance tax for the September 2008 instalment. Its total advance tax payout for 2008-09 was at Rs 150 crore.

While Standard Chartered Bank paid for the September 15 instalment advance tax of Rs 725 crore (Rs 640 crore), NMDC’s payout stood at Rs 600 crore (Rs 800 crore).

The corporate sector’s growth in advance tax payout of 14.71 per cent on a year-on-year basis was lower than the 61.7 per cent recorded increase in September 2008. However, the latest performance was “not bad” given that it came on a higher base of Rs 38,367 crore (September 2008), official sources said. 
The advance tax payout of the corporate sector in September 2007 stood at Rs 23,731 crore. The impact of the global financial meltdown was felt only in the second half of 2008-09, that is, post-September, after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in the US.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is confident of surpassing the budget estimates for 2009-10 going by the current advance tax collection trend. “We are well on course to meet the budget estimate and may even comfortably meet the revised target of Rs 4 lakh crore as advised by the Finance Minister”, sources said.
On the personal income-tax front, advance tax collection up to September 15, 2009 stood at Rs 6,216.70 crore, 7.1 per cent lower than Rs 6,694.80 crore collected in same period last year.

Nalco gains 2% on NPCIL order

The stock opened at Rs 348. It is now at the day's high of Rs 348 - up 2%. Around 26,587 shares were traded so far on the BSE.

The company is in talks with Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL) to jointly set up a Rs 12,000 crore nuclear power plant in South Orissa. Power accounts for nearly half of the input for aluminium making.

The proposed nuclear power plant would be the first nuclear plant in the country after the signing of the Indo-US nuclear deal. Prior to the signing of the nuclear deal, NPCIL had proposed to set up a mega nuclear power plant at Gopalpur, a beach resort town in south Orissa.

Stocks to watch: Bharti Airtel, Wockhardt, Tata Motors

MUMBAI: South Africa’s communications regulator may not grant approval for the 

proposed tie-up between MTN and Bharti Airtel this year, 
according to media reports. 
Paris Mashile, chairman of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), has said it would not talk to MTN about any deal until “all the documentation and facts and everything” were ready. The Bharti-MTN deal is subject to a September deadline set by the companies. It would create the world’s third largest mobile group by subscribers. South Africa is pressing India for an agreement on the dual listing of companies. 

Foreign lenders, upset over Wockhardt's corporate debt restructuring package, have threatened to block the pharma company's $130 million deal to sell its nutrition business to US-based Abbott Laboratories. This may take a toll on the company’s shares which ended 0.64 per cent higher at Rs 164.45 on the BSE. 

Tata Motors is planning to sell about 10-15 per cent in subsidiary Tata Motors Finance to raise funds to 
reduce debt. Shares of the auto major ended 1.33 per cent higher at Rs 569.25 on the BSE. 

Asian Paints, has started selling its near-10 percent stake in rival ICI India and has reduced it to 7.49 percent, citing favourable market conditions. Asian Paints had acquired ICI India shares in 2003, following disinvestment by the federal governm

for dalda , health & taste go together

health & taste - do they go together as far as edible oil is concerned .Dalda the image 75years old brand is going off the beaten track. the launching dalda from HUL IN 2003 is the brand to position it as something that stand for health without compromising on taste.It is only a relaunch update product with vitamins A, D, & E  and higher level of anti-oxidants and rebranding with a new logo and packing .after two month dalda will introduce new variants like rice brand & coconut oil in the edible oil category. there is also a latent perception that they are compromising on taste while trying to consume healtheir food .Dalda operates in vanaspati as well as edible oil segment in dalda vanaspati is the market leader 12% share.