Justice Krishna Iyer advocates interest-free banking in India
By TCN News,
Kochi: “Islamic finance has proven successful in poverty alleviation and promoting sustainable growth in many countries, including the United States and it is very relevant in our country where 20 million people are starving” said Justice Krishna Iyer while addressing a program recently in Kochi.
Mr. lyer, who is former Supreme Court judge, strongly advocated Islamic banking system saying it is based on humane principles thus good for all of humanity. "Those who support humanism should welcome Islamic banking and finance in India wholeheartedly."
Canada to push for bilateral accords after WTO failure
By IANS,
Toronto : Expressing disappointment with the collapse of Doha Round negotiations on world trade in Geneva, Canada said Tuesday it will work for bilateral agreements to create new markets for its farm and manufacturing exports and services.
The Doha Round talks collapsed because of wide gaps between the positions of many countries, including India and the US, on farm subsidies.
Supreme Court adjourns Reliance gas dispute hearing to Sep 1
By IANS,
New Delhi : The Supreme Court Monday adjourned till Sep 1 its hearing on the dispute over natural gas supply from the Krishna-Godavari basin between Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries and his brother Anil's Reliance Natural Resources Ltd.
The court, which commenced hearing the petition by Reliance Industries challenging the verdict of the Bombay High Court last month, also declined to pass any interim order on the dispute.
Markets hold gains, trade range-bound
By IANS,
Mumbai : The Indian equities markets held on to the gains of Friday's earlier trading sessions in the afternoon with a key index ruling about 1.84 percent higher than its previous close, about 90 minutes before the day's close.
Trade remained range-bound on the sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which was up 1.84 percent or 166.51 points from its previous close and trading at 9,213.25 points mid-afternoon.
The Sensex opened at 9,125.65 points Friday, higher than Thursday's close of 9,046.74.
Day after truce, SEBI says order applies to new ULIPs
By IANS,
Mumbai: A day after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee brokered a ceasefire between the two warring financial regulators, capital markets watchdog Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Tuesday said its order banning sale of unit-linked insurance plans (ULIPs) would apply only to new products launched after April 9.
SEBI in its new order informed the 14 barred insurers that they can continue to sell ULIPs but will not be allowed to introduce any new product in this category without registering them with it.
Pakistan and India almost finalise list of goods to be traded across LOC
By NNN-APP
New Delhi : Pakistan and India have almost finalised the list of goods to be traded across the Line of Control.
The Indian Express reported on Friday India had proposed 14 items for export, out of which Pakistan had cancelled five — leather and leather products, juices and jams, copper and silver, tinned food and fabricated items like gold ornaments.
The items Pakistan has allowed to be imported include carpets, furniture, silk, Kashmiri fruits and spices, aromatic plants, dhania, moongi, Basmati rice and Kashmiri saffron.
Markets close in green
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equities markets closed in the green Wednesday, with a key index ending trade 1.27 percent higher than its previous close, but below the psychologically important 9,000-mark.
The 30-scrip Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) sensitive index (Sensex), which opened at 8,956.3 points, closed at 8,976.68 points, a rise of 112.86 points or 1.27 percent.
The Sensex had crossed 9,000 in the afternoon trade, but went below the important mark before the close.
India imposes tax on some exports to calm prices
By IANS,
New Delhi : Finance Minister P. Chidambaram Tuesday announced several measures to calm prices, imposing export duties on steel, cement and basmati rice and lowering tariff on some raw materials, even as he extended the fiscal sops for software firms by a year more.
Delivering the concluding speech on the Finance Bill, 2008 - which was later passed by the Lok Sabha - the finance minister made import of pig iron, mild steel products and semi finished products duty free against the current tariff of five percent.
Fuel price hike decision by May 31; PM reviews oil situation
By NNN-PTI,
New Delhi : A decision on raising retail fuel prices and partly compensating revenue losses of oil firms will be taken by Saturday, even as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today assessed the problems caused by the spike in crude prices.
"Hopefully, by day after tomorrow, we will have a solution," Petroleum Minister Murli Deora told reporters after a meeting with the Prime Minister and key ministers here.
A meeting of the Cabinet, which was to have taken up the matter today, has been postponed, he said.
Ushacomm to increase IT business headcount
By IANS
Kolkata : At a time when most IT majors are going for large scale lay-offs, Ushacomm India, a Rs.30 billion Usha Martin Group company, is all set to go on a recruitment spree to strengthen the manpower of its Kolkata-based Business Support Systems (BSS) and Operations Support System (OSS) services for 2008-09.
Bank turmoil windfall for fraudsters
By IANS,
London : The ongoing market carnage has given rise to a huge phishing boom, security experts say.
A British banking group has said that phishing attacks are up more than 180 percent in the wake of the ongoing financial crisis.
Phishing is a practice of deceiving a person, usually through an e-mail, into surrendering private information such as password, credit card and bank account numbers with the object of fraudulently using them.
Paswan says steel prices being monitored
By IANS
New Delhi : Union Steel Minister Ram Vilas Paswan Thursday said strong measures would be taken if steel producers were found to have increased prices more than the input costs.
"The government must first examine the ratio of pricerise between raw materials and steel," Paswan said. "If it is found that steel makers have increased prices more than the rise in input costs, then necessary steps would be taken."
Emirates airline offers special seasonal fares
By IANS,
Dubai : Delhi is among the list of destinations Emirates airline is offering special seasonal fares from Dubai over the coming few weeks, the carrier said here Thursday.
Apart from Delhi, the list of destinations includes New York, London, Paris and Manila, according to an Emirates statement.
"We are delighted to present these seasonal specials to our customers, enabling them to travel to some of the most popular destinations at reduced fares," said Majid Al Mualla, vice president for commercial sales at the national acrrier of the United Arab Emirates' (UAE).
Hindustan Motors to go to BIFR
By IANS,
Kolkata : After losing more than 50 percent of its net worth, automobile manufacturer Hindustan Motors has decided to report to the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) under the sick industrial companies act.
"We would also like to inform that the accumulated losses of the company at the end of financial year March 31, 2010, have resulted in erosion of more than 50 percent of its peak net worth during the immediately preceding four financial years," the company informed the National Stock Exchange.
India will grow at 6.5 percent: Manmohan Singh
By IANS,
New Delhi : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Sunday predicted India's economic growth for the current fiscal at 6.5 percent and said it can accelerate to 7 percent next year if monsoon were normal.
"I am happy to say that India has been able to face the global economic downturn better than most other countries in the world," the prime minister told the India Economic Summit of the World Economic Forum (WEF) here.
JB Group paves way for Indian BPOs in China
By IANS,
New Delhi : In a path-breaking move, Hong Kong-based globally diversified $3 billion JB Group is paving the way for Indian BPOs to set up shop in China to leverage the IT strengths of the two Asian giants and enable them to grab a larger share of the global pie.
The move has the full backing of the Chinese government that has offered subsidies, the Hong Kong Productivity Council and the Hong Kong Software Outsourcing Association (HKSOA), the JB Group, which traces its root to the Indian diamond city of Surat in Gujarat, said.
Governments urged to take steps to increase food production
By Xinhua,
Accra : The United Nations trade and development body has called on governments to take urgent action to increase food productions and not count on the market alone to adjust the food crisis.
Sony may suffer first operating loss in 14 years
By Xinhua,
Tokyo : Japanese electronics giant Sony is expected to suffer an operating loss of about 100 billion yen ($1.12 billion) in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2009, its first loss since 1995, media reports said Tuesday.
The projected loss, apparently because of a strong yen and sluggish sales of flat-screen televisions and other products, marks a major turnaround from a projection last October of an operating profit of 200 billion yen, Kyodo News reported citing sources.
India, China nowhere in top league of networked economies
By Dipankar De Sarkar, IANS
London : Despite its status as a world leader in information technology, India does not figure among the top 20 of the world's most networked economies.
In fact it has slipped four places to rank 50 in the Global Information Technology Report for 2007-2008 published by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum (WEF).
China, the hub of global IT manufacturing, lags a shocking seven places behind India in the overall ratings for 127 countries published Wednesday.
Bentley gets an expensive number in Punjab!
By IANS,
Jalandhar : If you buy a car as expensive as a Bentley costing anything between Rs.15-20 million, you may want to get a fancy registration number for it as well. A Delhi-based businessman has done just that, buying a '0001' series number for his luxury car for a whopping Rs.725,000 here.
The businessman, Pravin Chaudhary, bought the 'VIP registration number' for his Bentley car at an open auction of numbers held here Monday.
District transport officer Babita Kler confirmed that the number was sold for Rs.725,000.
Markets trading in tight range before noon
By IANS,
Mumbai : A key index of the Indian equities markets remained range-bound Wednesday morning after opening weak, as buying interest waned.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which had opened lower at 14,230.73 points, was trading in a tightly-bound range, moving intermittently between red and green terrains.
About an hour into trade, it was at 14,326.81 points, 24.78 points or 0.17 percent higher than its last closing figure Tuesday.
Bharti Walmart planning more wholesale stores, Punjab is focus
By Alkesh Sharma, IANS,
Jalandhar (Punjab) : Bharti Walmart is planning to open 10 to 15 cash-and-carry wholesale stores over the next three years and hoping that the government will open up multi-brand retail to foreign investment.
"We are committed to building a strong and efficient supply chain that would benefit consumers. This process can be strengthened if we are also allowed to invest in front-end retailing. Talks are on. We are very optimistic the government will open up FDI for multi-brand retailing," Chairman Rajan Bharti Mittal told IANS in an interview.
Nursery admissions for poor, disadvantaged kids to be done online
New Delhi : Applications for admission to entry level classes for the economically weaker sections (EWS) and disadvantaged group (DG) will be made online,...
Indian equities fall at opening bell
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equities markets started in the red Wednesday.
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensitive Index (Sensex) opened at 9,462.14 points, lower than its 9,647.47 point close Tuesday. About 10 minutes into trade, it was at 9,536.08 points, 1.24 percent or 119.38 points lower than its previous close.
At the same time, the S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) was at 2,908 points, 0.9 percent lower than its previous close of 2,934.5.
The BSE midcap index was one percent lower, while the BSE smallcap index was down 0.44 percent.
Satyam asks US court to enforce Upaid settlement
By IANS,
Mumbai : Satyam Computer Services has asked a county court in New York, US, to ensure that its $70 million settlement with the London-based online and mobile payment services firm Upaid Systems is validated and enforced.
In a regulatory filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), Satyam said it has already deposited the $70 million, based on the settlement agreement with Upaid, into an escrow account and said it owned nothing more to the London-based company.
Pawar launches subsidised edible oil scheme in Andhra
By IANS,
Hyderabad : Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar Monday launched a subsidised edible oil distribution scheme of the Andhra Pradesh government here.
Under the scheme, white ration cardholders will get one litre palmolein oil at Rs.45 against the market price of Rs.60 to Rs. 65.
Pawar handed over the oil packets to a few beneficiaries at the state secretariat to formally launch the scheme. He was to inaugurate the same at a public function at Tandur in Ranga Reddy district but his chopper could not take off due to bad weather.
Oberoi wins SATTE Lifetime Achievement Award
By IANS,
New Delhi : P.R.S. Oberoi, the 82-year-old chairman and CEO of the Oberoi Group of Hotels, was Saturday honoured with the SATTE Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the hotel industry.
Oberoi, who was earlier awarded with Padma Vibhushan by the Indian government, said the hotel industry still had a long way to go. "More constructive efforts need to be made in the hotel industry along with the airline industry and tour operators," Oberoi said after accepting the South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE) award.
G20 meeting can kickstart world economy: UN chief
By DPA,
New York : The meeting of the world's 20 leading economies in London April 2 has the potential of making profound changes in the global economy that is suffering a deep recession, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Monday.
"The stakes at the London summit are large," Ban told the UN General Assembly, which convened to discuss the world economic downturn, triggered initially by a US financial crisis and which threatens funding for UN programmes.
Honda to outsource non-critical processes at Gurgaon plant
By IANS,
Kolkata: Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) is planning to outsource some of its non-critical processes at its plant in Gurgaon, on the outskirts of Delhi, to increase its manufacturing capacity from the present 15 lakh units to 16.5 lakh annually, a senior official said Friday.
"Our existing plant is likely to reach full capacity by 2010-11. However, with outsourcing of non-critical processes we can stretch this capacity by about 10 percent to 16.5 lakh per annum," HMSI operating head - finance and accounts S.K. Kabra told reporters here.
‘Talent is a challenge in the auto service sector’
By IANS,
Chennai : The automobile industry is facing a huge shortage of skilled workers in the after-sales network field, industry leaders said here Saturday.
With the dramatic jump in vehicle population on Indian roads and the introduction of automobiles with high technology, it has become necessary to have an efficient after-sales service network, officials representing leading industrial houses said here while speaking at an exhibition organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
Iran proposes OPEC to consider another oil cut
By Xinhua,
Tehran : Iran Saturday proposed the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to again consider an output cut of one to 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) to help maintain a balance between oil supply and demand, the state television IRIB reported.
"It is better for a decision to be made for another cut of one million to 1.5 million barrels per day," Iran's OPEC representative Mohammad Ali Khatibi was quoted as saying.
"So that a balance between supply and demand is reached," he added.
Turkey to offer full stake to foreign companies
By IANS
Mumbai : Turkey is planning to introduce investment-friendly structural changes in its policies that will allow foreign companies to operate as local companies with full control.
"Presently, the television news industry is the only sector in which the limit has been capped at 25 percent for foreign holdings. However, in most sectors we will bring about a total change, permitting foreign companies to operate as local companies," Turkey's Foreign Minister Ali Babacan told IANS here late Wednesday night.
Revenue, job loss stare Karnataka in face
By IANS,
Bangalore : Karnataka will celebrate its 53rd Formation Day Saturday amid fear of revenue loss to government in the wake of global financial meltdown and warning of job loss because of non-friendly investment policies.
The meltdown has hit the real estate sector, which means lesser revenue to the government from stamps and registration, a top state official said. Every land and building deal has to be registered with the state government after paying a fee for the stamp paper.
Small industries hit by production slump, job generation dips
By IANS,
New Delhi : Hit by the economic slowdown in the first quarter of the current fiscal, the contribution of small scale industries (SSIs) to manufacturing and employment generation slipped by 10 percent and seven percent respectively, said a report by an industry lobby.
"The industry has faced a slowdown as domestic large and medium industries have commenced sourcing their inputs through cheaper imports," said the report by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham).
Corrections are part of market process: Manmohan Singh
By IANS
New Delhi : Ascribing the steep fall in Indian share market indices to a "correction", Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Monday said the value of shares in India will continue to grow as fundamentals of the economy remained strong.
"I am confident the markets will grow in an orderly fashion," the prime minister told reporters here, while addressing a joint press conference with his British counterpart Gordon Brown.
"From time to time, some corrections are part of market process. I am sure and confident we will sustain orderly growth," the prime minister added.
Tube Investments to supply car doors for Nano from Pune plant
By IANS,
Chennai : Tube Investments of India (TI), a Rs.17.82-billion multi-product firm, has announced it will supply door frames to Tata Motors' small car Nano from its Pune manufacturing facility.
With Tata Motors walking out of Singur in West Bengal following public protests against the project, vendors too have started shifting their production lines.
The car manufacturer moved its plant to produce the world's cheapest car, priced at Rs.100,000, from Singur to Sanand in Gujarat last month.
Air India employees go on two-hour strike
By IANS,
New Delhi : Employees of national carrier Air India went on a two-hour strike at airports across the country from 1 p.m. in protest against the delay in salary payments despite a warning from the management that this would entail a pay cut.
"We have gone on a two-hour strike. We will continue the agitation tomorrow as well," said Anand Prakash, the joint secretary of Air Corporation Employees Union (ACEU), the largest union of the Air India employees.
"We are holding demonstrations at all airports," Prakash said.
BRIC summit likely next year
By IANS,
New Delhi : With the G20 summit underlining the importance of emerging economies in resolving global financial slowdown, Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) are planning a summit that could give a push to the long-standing demands for reforms of international financial institutions.
“A summit among BRIC countries is being discussed. It could take place next year,” Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon told reporters here Monday.
Tata to invest $2 bn in Jaguar, Land Rover: report
By IANS
London : Tata is expected to invest up to 1 billion pounds ($2 billion) in Jaguar and Land Rover over the next four or five years, a newspaper reported Thursday, a day after the Indian industrial group bought the iconic British brands.
Tata paid $2.3 billion to acquire the prestigious marques from American carmaker Ford Motor. The new investment will honour Ford's business plans and lead to two new models for both brands, the Daily Telegraph said.
Videocon plans Rs.14,000 crore investment in mobile service
By IANS,
Gandhinagar : The Videocon group envisages investment of Rs.14,000 crore in its mobile services over the next three years and plans an investment of around Rs.1,000 crore for its 2.75G EDGE GSM venture in Gujarat.
This was announced by group chairman Venugopal Dhoot at the launch of Videocon's GSM mobile services in Ahmedabad Sunday.
Boost to agribusiness will benefit farmers: experts
By IANS
Lucknow : The boost to agribusiness with the entry of large business houses would eventually benefit the Indian farmer in a major way, participants at an international conference say.
The three-day conference on Agribusiness and Food Industry in Developing Countries that concluded Sunday was hosted by the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow (IIM-L) in collaboration with Tennessee State University and South Carolina University of the US.
IBM targets SMEs in tier-two cities
By IANS
Bangalore : IBM India Ltd Wednesday commenced its small-and-medium businesses (SMB) operations at Nashik in Maharashtra for providing innovative IT solutions to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in 14 tier-two cities across the country.
According to a statement issued here by the Indian subsidiary of the global IT major, the SMB operations will enable the company to provide better support to its SME clients in non-metros.
Budget will take healthcare to rural areas: industry
By IANS
Hyderabad : The healthcare industry has welcomed the union budget presented Friday, saying it provides an incentive to take quality healthcare to semi-urban and rural areas.
"Tax holiday for hospitals outside major cities is a revolutionary step towards making quality healthcare accessible to the common man," said Prathap C. Reddy, chairman of Apollo Group of Hospitals and chairman of Confederation of Indian Industry's National Committee on Health.
Malnutrition downplaying India’s economic growth: UN
By IANS,
New Delhi : India is progressing well in education and showing consistency in economic growth but its progress is getting downplayed due to poor child health conditions, a new UN report has said.
“In recent years, India has made impressive progress towards enrolment in primary schools. Progress in child health indicators is less impressive. Bangladesh and Nepal with lower levels of income and economic growth, have outperformed India on this indicator,” said the Education for All (EFA) Global Monitoring Report of the Unesco.
Chettinad Cement targets 13-mn tonne capacity by 2013
By IANS,
Chennai : The Rs.1,137-crore Chettinad Cement Corp plans to increase its annual production capacity to 13 million tonnes in two phases by 2013, the company said here Thursday.
In the first phase, the company will increase capacity at existing plants in Tamil Nadu and the second phase will involve setting up a three million tonne unit at Gulbarga in Karnataka.
Even dry lakebeds are grabbed in IT capital
By V.S. Karnic, IANS
Bangalore : Land grabbing has reached such scandalous proportions in India's IT capital that a dry lakebed was pledged to a bank to raise a loan of Rs.50 million. Since the person defaulted on loan repayment, the bank auctioned the lakebed and raised Rs.76 million!
Satyam fraud shocks investors, employees
By IANS,
Hyderabad : Satyam Computer founder-chairman B. Ramalinga Raju's disclosure of committing a Rs.40-billion ($823-million) fraud has shocked corporate India, especially the investors and over 50,000 employees of the country's fourth largest IT services company.
The corporate world was astonished when Ramalinga Raju quit after confessing to the fraud that had been going on for years.
Key Indian equities indices see steepest ever falls
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equities markets finished deep in the red Friday with key equity indices suffering arguably their steepest falls in recent times in percentage terms, analysts said.
The benchmark 30-share sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange closed at 8,701.07, down 1,070.63 percent or 10.96 percent from its previous close Thursday at 9,771.70 points.
Bangladesh to protest India’s oil exploration in Bay of Bengal
By IANS,
Dhaka : Bangladesh has said that it will lodge a formal complaint with India about three Indian oil and gas survey ships that allegedly crossed into its maritime boundary and continued working despite being told to leave.
A press statement issued here Friday by the Bangladesh foreign ministry said an Indian survey vessel and its two support ships had initially moved towards Indian waters but were spotted inside Bangladesh waters Thursday afternoon.
Mehrauli blast victim declared brain dead, family to donate organs
New Delhi, Oct 3 (IANS) Deepu had come to the national capital in January in search of a job. He now lies lifeless in hospital, declared brain dead by doctors, because of the injuries he suffered in the Sep 27 Mehrauli terror blast here. His grieving parents have agreed to donate his organs to save the lives of needy people.
Deepu, 22, a gardener, suffered grievous head injuries in the explosion at Mehrauli Serai Market, in south Delhi, that left one person dead and at least 24 injured.
Weak rupee, rate hike fears pull Sensex down in morning trade
By IANS,
Mumbai: The falling rupee and fears that the Reserve Bank of India will hike rates further because of high inflation, pulled down a benchmark index for Indian equities Thursday morning.
Indian equities register second biggest fall
By IANS
Mumbai : In its second biggest fall in history, the Indian stock market tumbled Monday and a benchmark index lost over 950 points or more than six percent with heavy selling in equities of key sectors in tune with global markets bloodbath.
The markets, which opened in the red following international cues, went flat and did not manage to pick up in the later half. The chief cause was said to be the sale of the ailing US bank, Bear Stearns, and the Federal Reserves' emergency cut in its discount rates.
Indian shares end firm after volatile trade
By IANS
Mumbai : Indian shares closed on a positive note Monday after a volatile session with a key index settling one percent higher on firming global markets.
The 30-share benchmark Sensitive Index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) moved in a broad range of 14,869-15,044 in intra-day trading before closing at 15,017.21 points, up 148.96 points or one percent with 20 of its components trading in green.
The broader 50-issue National Stock Exchange (NSE) index, Nifty, too firmed at 4,373.65 levels, up 40.30 points or 0.93 percent.
Nano set for commercial roll-out Monday
By IANS,
Mumbai : The Nano, touted as the world's cheapest car, will finally be launched from here Monday.
The Tata group, India's largest industrial house, is all set for the commercial roll-out of the small-car that hit the global headlines last year, both after its unveiling at the Auto Show in New Delhi and then becoming the centrepiece of a political controversy over the location of its plant at Singur in West Bengal.
Oil hits new high of over 83 dollars
By Xinhua
New York : Crude futures closed above 83 dollars a barrel Thursday on the New York Mercantile Exchange, marking another record high for a benchmark contract.
Crude oil for October delivery closed at 83.32 dollars a barrel, up 1.7 percent, or 1.39 dollars over the previous closing.
Markets in red, Sensex sheds 370 points
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equities were down in the dumps Tuesday, with a key index losing 370 points over its previous close as investors booked profits across sectors.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 11,371.34 points, fell 370 points or 3.25 percent from the previous close to end trade at 11,001.75 points.
However, the S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) shed 3.17 percent to close at 3,362.35 points.
Kuwaiti-Chinese business forum begins
By NNN-KUNA,
Kuwait : The First China-Kuwait Investment Forum got underway on Sunday with participation of more than 70 Chinese figures representing the Chinese private and public sectors.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Faisal Al-Hajji, in a statement inaugurating the event, affirmed that the holding of the two-day forum in the country was in line of desire of the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah of transforming Kuwait into a financial and commercial hub.
Northrop Grumman opens India office
By IANS
New Delhi : Eyeing India's burgeoning defence market, US aerospace major Northrop Grumman Corporation has opened its country office here to showcase its range of military hardware and software.
"India represents one of Northrop Grumman's largest potential growth markets for defence products in Asia," said John Brooks, vice president of business development for Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems and president of Northrop Grumman International Inc, at a media briefing here.
Traders, farmers protest entry of big retailers
By IANS
New Delhi : Traders, farmers and hawkers across the nation Thursday staged protests against the entry of global retail majors in India in the wake of a recent announcement by Wal-Mart, world's largest retailer, about its plans for India.
"The livelihoods of retail traders are at stake. If big retail giants like Wal-Mart come into the country, small traders would be finished," said Praveen Khandelwal, general secretary, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT).
Bush names Indian-American as Small Business Administrator
By IANS,
Washington : President George W. Bush has named Santanu "Sandy" K. Baruah, an Indian American, to be Administrator of the Small Business Administration (SBA), an independent agency of the federal government, to help small business concerns.
Baruah currently serves as Assistant Secretary for Economic Development at the Department of Commerce. He takes over from Steve Preston, who has been nominated Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Retail investors shying away from equity markets
By IANS,
Mumbai : The downslide trend of the Indian equity market for the last two months has forced retail investors in equity markets to look for alternative mode of investment.
The stock market which just a few months ago was considered as a most lucrative investment proposition has suddenly turned a monster for the common investors, many of whom put their hard-earned money and suffered losses.
US stocks surge ahead on earnings from Intel, JP Morgan
By DPA,
New York : US stock indices surged to their highest one-day gain in two weeks Wednesday after technology and financial companies both posted earnings that were stronger than expected.
Intel, the world's largest chip maker, reported a 12-percent drop in first-quarter profits but a nine-percent rise in revenue to $9.7 billion, suggesting the US economic downturn did not significantly hurt sales.
Probe nexus in writing off bad loans: Bank union
Chennai: Releasing a list of 406 huge bank loans amounting to Rs.70,300 crore that went bad, the All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) Tuesday...
Amway India’s first plant to be ready by 2015: CEO
By IANS,
Kolkata : Direct selling FMCG company Amway India Friday said that its first manufacturing plant, to be built at a cost of Rs.550 crore, would be ready in Tamil Nadu by early 2015.
Prices of essential commodities to come down
By IANS,
New Delhi : Prices of essential commodities will come down in two months owing to huge production this year, a government official said Thursday.
“This year has seen record production of wheat and other essential commodities and government reserve is also very high. As per our estimates, prices of essential commodities will come down in the next two months,” said Y.S. Bhave, secretary, department of consumer affairs, ministry of consumer affairs, food and public distribution.
Ranbaxy hires former NYC mayor Giuliani for advice
By IANS,
New Delhi : Ranbaxy Laboratories Thursday said it had retained the services of former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani to extend advice on the US regulator's decision to ban some 30 medicines produced at its two Indian plants.
Giuliani and his firm Giuliani Partners will advice and review the compliance issues related to the recent United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) letters and import advisory, the company said in a statement.
Economic cmte. holds meetings at Arab League
By KUNA,
CAIRO : The Arab League's Economic and Social Council committee held meetings on Sunday headed by Syrian Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade, Dr.Ghassan Habash with the participation of representatives of Arab ministries.
The meetings come within the framework of preparations for the 83rd Economic and Social Council ministerial meetings, scheduled next Thursday in Cairo.
Wipro projects $955 million from IT revenue in Q4
By IANS
Bangalore : Wipro Ltd. has projected $955 million revenue from its global IT services and products business for the fourth quarter (January-March) of this fiscal (2007-08) under the US accounting system (US GAAP).
In a notification to the stock exchanges here Friday, the IT bellwether said the guidance for Q4 was based on the robust performance of its flagship division during the third quarter (October-December 2007) when the projected revenue of $95 million was exceeded by $5.1 million to $910 million under the US GAAP.
Bharat Petroleum net down 91 percent
By IANS,
New Delhi : State run fuel marketing company Bharat Petroleum Tuesday reported a 91 percent drop in its net profits for the quarter ended March 31, as margins were hit by selling gasoline, diesel and cooking gas at below cost.
The company said its net profit after tax fell to Rs.584 million ($14.6 million) for the quarter ended March 31, from Rs.6.7 billion ($165.7 million) for the corresponding period of the last fiscal.
The board, nevertheless, recommended a 40 percent dividend, a statement issued to the Bombay Stock Exchange said.
Markets’ upward trajectory to continue through positive sentiment
By Rohit Vaid,
Mumbai : The positive sentiment in the Indian equities will continue as experts point to supportive factors like encouraging industrial growth data,...
Spanish economy contracts for first time in 15 years
By DPA,
Madrid : The Spanish economy contracted for the first time in 15 years in the third quarter, leaving the country on the verge of recession.
The gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 0.2 percent in its first quarterly contraction since 1993, the National Statistics Institute said.
Between July and September, the economy grew only 0.9 percent year-on-year.
Analysts attribute the slowdown mainly to the collapse of the key construction sector and the international financial crisis.
Sony’s net profit down 72 percent in second quarter
By IANS,
Tokyo : Sony Corp. saw its net profit plunge 71.8 percent in the second quarter as demand for consumer electronics slowed and the yen's value rose against other major currencies, the company said Wednesday.
The Japanese electronics company reported a net profit of 20.8 billion yen ($219.84 million) in the July-September quarter, compared to the second quarter profit of 73.7 billion yen last year.
Government prepares strategy to tackle job losses
By IANS,
New Delhi : Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Ashwini Kumar Wednesday said the government is chalking out a strategy to minimise job losses in sectors such as export and manufacturing in the next fiscal.
“In the next fiscal, our growth will anyway be between 6.5 and 7 percent, which is four times the world average. We are looking at all possible measures and giving high priority to minimise job losses in all employment generating sectors like export and manufacturing," Kumar said.
Inflation surge prompts India’s central bank to hike cash ratio
By IANS,
Mumbai : Shifting its stand from an accommodative monetary policy to managing inflation, pegged at a high 8.5 percent by end-March, India's central bank hiked a key policy rate Friday to suck Rs.36,000 crore ($7.2 billion) out of the system.
The cash reserve ratio, which is the minimum liquid assets commercial banks have to retain against deposits, will stand revised to 5.75 percent in two phases -- up 50 basis points from Feb 13 and another 25 basis points from Feb 27.
All other policy rates remain unchanged.
Indian IT firms lag in regulatory compliance
By IANS
Bangalore : A recent technology survey has found regulatory compliance by Indian IT firms is far behind their counterparts in the Asia-Pacific region despite a majority of them acknowledging the business benefits of such a initiative.
The survey, conducted by MarketShare for Serena Software Inc., a leading global IT firm engaged in application lifecycle management (ALM), has observed that though 68 percent of Indian firms favoured regulatory compliance, only 18 percent of them had implemented the programmes so far.
Thomson completes Reuters acquisition, shares begin trading
By Dipankar De Sarkar, IANS,
London : The Thomson Corporation Thursday announced the completion of its acquisition of Reuters Group PLC, forming Thomson Reuters (NYSE: TRI; TSX: TRI; LSE: TRIL: NASDAQ: TRIN), the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals in the financial, legal, tax and accounting, scientific, healthcare, and media markets.
Effective Thursday Thomson Reuters shares began trading on exchanges in Toronto, New York and London and are eligible for inclusion in S&P/TSX and FTSE 100 UK indices.
‘Make Mumbai a global financial hub’
By IANS,
New Delhi : To give India a competitive edge and improve its economic infrastructure, Mumbai should be turned into a global financial hub with reforms and pragmatic legislations, says an expert panel headed by a noted economist.
“India is at a turning point in its financial sector,” says the committee headed by former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Raghuram G. Rajan, which discussed its draft report on reforms with the Planning Commission top brass Tuesday.
Abu Dhabi Media Company established by UAE government
By IANS
Abu Dhabi : UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan passed a law for the establishment of Abu Dhabi Media Company (ADMC) - a public joint stock company fully owned by the government of Abu Dhabi with a capital of Dh 100 million, the WAM news agency reported.
Balmer Lawrie posts $16 million net profit
By IANS
Kolkata : State-owned Balmer Lawrie and Co Ltd Monday reported a net profit of Rs.661 million ($16.71 million) for nine months ending Dec 31, 2007 as compared with Rs.559 million ($14.14 million) for the corresponding period last year.
The profit before tax during the quarter was Rs.303 million as against Rs.286 million in the same period last year.
Profit before tax for the nine-month period ending Dec 31, 2007 was Rs.991 million as compared to Rs.839 million for the same period of 2006, a company release here said.
Chemicals used in synthetic drugs seized in Mexico
By IANS/EFE,
Mexico City : About 16,000 liters of chemicals used in making synthetic drugs have been seized in the port of Veracruz in Mexico, officials said.
The cargo arrived at the Gulf port from China, the authorities said in a joint statement Wednesday. The chemicals were transported in 80 drums of 200 liters each.
The chemical is used in making drugs such as methamphetamine.
Andhra Pradesh seeks ‘due share’ of Reliance gas
By IANS,
Hyderabad : Even as the two Ambani brothers are locked in a legal battle over supply and price of gas from the Krishna-Godavari basin, the Andhra Pradesh government has sought its "due share" of the hydrocarbon asset.
In a meeting here with members of 13th Finance Commission, Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy said they must intervene in the matter as the people of the state were also entitled to reap the benefits of the natural resource, found off the state's coast.
Markets open on strong note
Mumbai(IANS) : Indian markets opened on a strong note Wednesday on the back of strong cues from the global markets. Broad based buying was witnessed in early trade led by metal, capital good and power stocks.
At 9:56 a.m., the benchmark sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) was up 243 points at 19,640 and the broader S&P CNX Nifty was up 69 points at 5,855.
PM’s plea on petrol prices a ‘condolence speech’: Jaitely
By IANS,
Lucknow : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) general secretary Arun Jaitely Thursday described Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's explanation on the fuel price hike as a "condolence speech."
Jaitley was referring to the prime minister's address to the nation Wednesday evening where he said that the hike was inevitable but had been kept marginal.
Jaitely, who is also in charge of the party's Uttar Pradesh unit, told reporters that Manmohan Singh was now an economist without any ideas. This was reflected in the soaring prices of essential commodities.
Uttar Pradesh transporters to protest VAT implementation
By IANS
Agra : Transporters in Uttar Pradesh have decided to launch a state-wide protest from Dec 31 against inclusion of the transport sector under the Value Added Tax (VAT) system.
The transporters - along with the state traders' association - held a meeting in Agra Friday and declared their resolve to fight against VAT.
Ranbaxy posts Rs.1,045 crore net loss in 2008
By IANS,
Mumbai : Leading drug maker Ranbaxy Laboratories Monday reported a net loss of Rs.1,044.8 crore ($204 million) for 2008 as against a net profit of Rs.617.7 crore in the previous year.
However, the company's total income went up 9.85 percent to Rs.4,681.7 crore in 2008 from Rs.4,261.9 crore in 2007.
The group posted a consolidated net loss of Rs.951.2 crore during the period, compared to a net profit of Rs.774.5 crore in the previous calendar year.
The total consolidated income increased 11.2 percent to Rs.7,691 crore from Rs.6,917.2 crore, the company added.
China’s growth slows down to 10.6 percent
By Xinhua,
Beijing : China's growth rate slowed down marginally to 10.6 percent in the first quarter, compared to 11.7 percent in the same period last year, the government said Wednesday.
China maintained steady and fast growth since the beginning of the year, despite an unprecedented freak winter and the widespread subprime mortgage crisis, National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) spokesman Li Xiaochao said.
The world's fourth largest economy expanded at a rate of 11.9 percent for all of 2007, the fifth consecutive year its annual economic growth exceeded 10 percent.
US dollar down, gold up in European morning trading
By SPA
London : The U.S. dollar was lower against other major currencies in European trading Tuesday morning. Gold rose.
The euro traded at US$1.5570, up from US$1.5418 late Monday in New York.
Other dollar rates:
_100.47 Japanese yen, down from 101.01
_1.0118 Swiss francs, down from 1.0213
_1.0161 Canadian dollars, down from 1.0184
The British pound was quoted at US$1.9929, up from $1.9841
Gold traded in London at US$930.65 per troy ounce, up from US$918.30 late Monday in New York.
In Zurich, gold traded at US$931.60 bid per troy ounce.
India among five sharing half of world’s production
By Arun Kumar, IANS
Washington : Five countries - the US, China, Japan Germany and India - account for nearly half of the world's GDP as measured by buying power in US dollars, according to a new World Bank report.
The new data released Monday shows the world economy produced goods and services worth almost $55 trillion in 2005 and that almost 40 percent of the world's output came from developing economies.
China’s real estate sector booming
By Xinhua
Beijing : China's real estate sector is booming despite tighter monetary policy, at least in terms of total fund inflows, the latest government statistics shows.
Just over $435.4 billion (3,204 billion yuan) flowed into China's property sector during the first 11 months of the year, up 40.8 percent compared to that of corresponding period last year. This figure also includes the value of new contracts.
Markets end in green
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equities markets closed in the green Thursday, with a key index shutting shop about 154 points higher on renewed buying activity.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 12,064.51 points, rose 153.84 points or 1.29 percent from the previous close to end trade at 12,106.59 points (provisional).
Similarly, the S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) gained 1.51 percent to close at 3,679.65 points.
Help for distressed Indian globetrotter now a phone call away
By James Jose, IANS,
New Delhi : Whether it is a businessman who wants to know if it is safe to visit certain cities in Mexico or a tourist in Tokyo who suspects he has fractured his ankle, help is not far thanks to a service available to the Indian globe trotter.
The London and Singapore-based International SOS says its medical and security service promises corporates and tourists an emergency helpline service like the 911 in the US even in those parts of the globe where such assistance is tardy and hard to comy by.
Security advisories are part of the deal.
Britain faces recession, India, China can’t help: Deloitte
By Dipankar De Sarkar, IANS
London : The global financial crisis is set to affect the British economy, which is about to enter its weakest period of growth in 15 years without any prospect of a bailout by the US, China or India, Deloitte said Monday.
Britain also faces the risk of a recession in the next two years, the Deloitte Economic Review warns, adding that that the housing market would be at the heart of the downturn, with prices falling by about five percent this year and eight percent in 2009.
Food inflation eases a tad to 10.35 percent
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's food inflation eased to 10.35 percent for the week ended Aug 7 from 11.4 percent a week earlier, official data released Thursday showed.
The easing in prices of some pulses, and a sharp drop in prices of vegetables, potatoes, and onions helped temper the overall food index.
The fuel prices index, continued with its declining trend, dropping to 12.57 percent in the week under review as against 12.66 percent recorded in the previous week, data released by the commerce ministry showed.
SBI’s 209 of 225 branches operational in storm-hit AP
Mumbai : The State Bank of India announced here Monday that it has restored normal operations in almost all the 225 branches hit by...
3G trials in Delhi by September end
By IANS,
New Delhi : The state-owned telecom operator Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) will conduct trials of third generation (3G) services by the end of this month in Delhi and launch commercially in December, the government announced Thursday.
MTNL's 3G trials will be conducted in and around the capital's Connaught Place area.
“Indoor trial of 3G in Delhi has already been completed,” an official statement said.
“The launch will give people a feel of high speed data, video streaming etc which come as part of the 3G services,” the statement further added.
Service tax refund extended for exporters
By IANS
New Delhi : The union Finance Ministry Tuesday announced the extension of refund of service tax to exporters in three more services to help them fight appreciation of the rupee against the dollar.
This includes refund of service tax paid by exporters on goods transportation agency, transport of export goods in rail containers and also on courier services used by them to transport goods and documents.
ABB India’s net profit spurts 44 percent in 2007
By IANS
New Delhi : Leading private sector power equipment manufacturer ABB India has posted profit after tax (PAT) of about Rs.5 billion ($125 million) in the calendar year 2007, showing a 44 percent growth over the previous year.
The company has posted a PAT of Rs.1.8 billion in the fourth quarter (Oct-Dec), registering a 34 percent increase over the same period of the preceding year, ABB India's Managing Director Biplab Majumder told reporters here.
"The company's order book swelled 42 percent in the same period to Rs.20 billion," he said.
India’s textile export grows 8 percent in November
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's textile exports grew 8 percent in November following a surge in demand from Europe and new markets in Africa and Latin American countries, a textile ministry official said Sunday.
Exports grew by over 11 percent during first two quarters of last fiscal, but started falling during the third and the concluding quarter with a decline of 10 percent at $20 billion (Rs.100,000 crore) in wake of the global slowdown.
Singapore’s economy contracts 10.1 percent
By DPA,
Singapore : Singapore's export-reliant economy contracted 10.1 percent in the first quarter of 2009 compared to a year ago and could shrink by 6 to 9 percent for the whole year, the government said Thursday.
Amid the global economic downturn, the city-state is in its worst recession since independence from Malaysia in 1965.
"There are still no decisive indicators of economic recovery," the ministry of trade and industry said in a statement.
Indians are second largest group of skilled migrants in Australia
By Neena Bhandari, IANS,
Sydney : Indians have become the second largest group of skilled migrants arriving on Australian shores under the temporary skilled migration programme during 2007-2008, according to new data released Tuesday by Minister for Immigration and Citizenship Chris Evans.
While almost a quarter of the temporary workers came from the UK, India came second with 14 percent followed by the Philippines at nine percent and South Africa at six percent.
KFAED signs loan agreement with Sudan to finance traffic dam project
By NNN-KUNA
Kuwait : The Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) has announced it will soon sign a loan agreement worth 16 million Kuwaiti dinars (USD 59 million) to contribute in the financing of a traffic dam project in Sudan.
KFAED said in a statement Thursday the project aims to meet the demand for electric power and reducing the cost of electricity production through the establishment of a dam and a hydroelectric station on the Nile River.
India Inc gives thumbs up to Railway Budget
New Delhi: All the major political parties may have criticised the Railway Budget for 2016-17 presented by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on Thursday, but...
India Inc suffers Rs.70 bn loss due to Gujjar agitation
By IANS,
New Delhi : Rajasthan is back on track with the Gujjar leaders calling off their 25-day long agitation. The total loss incurred during this period is Rs.70 billion ($1.75 billion), according to an industry body.
"The 25-day-long agitation has led to losses of above Rs.70 billion to various industries and specifically railways," Sajjan Jindal, president of Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham), told IANS.
ONGC net falls 5.7 percent on subsidy burden
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's largest oil producer Oil and Natural Gas Corp recorded 5.7 percent fall in net profit in the second quarter this fiscal, due to a two-fold jump in its outgo on fuel subsidies.
“How could the subsidy burden behave so erratically,” ONGC chairman R.S. Sharma asked Thursday after the ONGC board met to discuss the company's financial performance.
ONGC posted a profit after tax of Rs.48.08 billion (about $1.07 billion) in the second quarter, down from Rs.50.98 billion in the corresponding quarter last fiscal.
Reliance Communications launches free calling offer schemes
By IANS,
New Delhi : Reliance Communications Tuesday launched two schemes offering free calling between 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. for its subscribers during this festival season.
Malaysia’s AirAsia chalks up 28,000 seats sold for new destination, Kolkata
By NNN-Bernama,
Kuala Lumpur : Malaysia's AirAsia, Asia's largest lbudget airlien, has to date sold 28,000 seats for its newly launched Kuala Lumpur-Kolkata route, says a senior company official.
Open for sale on Oct 15, AirAsia says the new route will unlock the potential of international air travel from Kuala Lumpur to eastern India and its surrounding areas.
Go to Himachal Pradesh; stay at home
By Vishal Gulati, IANS,
Shimla : Want to go to Himachal Pradesh for a vacation but bored with hotels and guesthouses? Well, there's good news for you, as the state government has taken the lead in promoting home stay in villages.
Residents of this Himalayan state in northern India are now being encouraged to throw open their doors to both domestic and foreign tourists for home stay in rustic settings, formalising a practice that has anyway been prevalent in the state's scenic Kullu valley for many years.
Mukherjee to clarify government stand on black money
By IANS,
New Delhi: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will Tuesday outline the government's strategy on how to bring back black money stashed in foreign banks, official sources said.
British Columbia seeks to expand trade with India
By IANS
New Delhi : The province of British Columbia in Canada is keen to expand business and trade with India, said its premier on a visit here.
"This visit is to develop trade and investment relationships and to discuss business opportunities, apart from sharing expertise in urban infrastructure projects," said Gordon Campbell, premier of the province of British Columbia.
Campbell is leading a delegation of business and trade leaders and senior representatives from educational institutes and life science companies of British Columbia.
Swedish packaging firm bullish on India
By Nayanima Basu, IANS
New Delhi : Billerud AB, a Swedish packaging paper firm, is bullish on introducing its packaging products for India's booming retail and medical sectors.
"We are targeting the niche segment of packaging. Currently, we are scouting for partnerships with local players here. We are targeting the medical sector where packaging is very important in terms of safety and hygiene. Hence, the quality with which the products are packed is very crucial," Per Lindberg, CEO, Billerud AB, told IANS.
Vadodra firm to plan Patna’s new capital area
By IANS,
Patna : A Vadodara-based firm will prepare the master plan for the new capital area to develop Patna as a metropolitan city, a senior official said here Wednesday.
According to Cabinet Co-ordination Principal Secretary Girish Shankar, the Bihar government has decided to appoint Vadodara's Karan Grover and Associates to prepare the master plan.
Shankar said the firm would prepare the detailed project report (DPR) of the new buildings of the state assembly, the secretariat and the proposed planning department office (Yojna Bhawan) in the first phase.
PIA increases feres on overseas flights
By NNN-APP
Islamabad : The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has increased fares on its flights for international routes and Umrahs.
According to sources, private airlines including the PIA have increased fares for their international routes and Umrahs due to rapidly increasing prices of oil, Geo Tv reported.
After the increase, the PIA’s two-way fare for London will be Rs 58,770, for New York Rs 97,800, for Dubai Rs 25,300 and for Canada Rs 98,500.
Pakistan taxes petrol 39 percent
By IANS,
Karachi : The Pakistani government taxes petrol at a whopping 39 percent, earning Rs.19.82 for every litre sold. On Sunday, it jacked up the petrol price by Rs.6.10 to take it to Rs.71.21 per litre.
The ex-refinery price of petrol is Rs.42.72 per litre, to which is added Rs.4.42 as transportation charges, Rs.2.36 as dealers' commission and Rs.1.89 as profit for the oil marketing company, for a total of Rs.51.39 per litre.
$40-mn IFC loan for West Coast Paper Mills
By IANS
Bangalore : The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank group, is lending $40 million (Rs.1.64 billion) to West Coast Paper Mills Ltd, an integrated printing and writing paper manufacturer based in north Karnataka.
Microsoft, Emirates Airline to set up innovation lab
By Xinhua
Abu Dhabi : Microsoft and the Dubai-based Emirates Airline will set up an innovation lab in Dubai to develop products and services for the travel industry, the Gulf News reported Wednesday.
The lab, the first for both the companies, will use Microsoft's technologies and tap Emirates' expertise and experience in developing IT solutions for the aviation and travel industry.
Left, TDP and JD-S call for protest day against oil prices
By IANS,
New Delhi : The Left parties, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) Monday called for a protest day on Dec 2 against increasing prices of petrol and diesel and the government's "callous stand" on the issue.
Condemning the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, the parties said in a joint statement: "The Manmohan Singh government is refusing to reduce the prices of petrol and diesel despite the steady fall in the international oil prices."
Hindustan Aeronautics sales cross $2 bn mark
By IANS
Bangalore : The Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) posted a sales turnover of Rs.83.5 billion ($2.08 billion) for 2007-08, registering a modest growth of 7.3 percent over the previous fiscal figure of Rs.77.84 billion, the defence behemoth said here Thursday.
The Bangalore-based state-run enterprise has doubled its turnover in three years when it crossed the $1 billion mark in 2004-05.
PTC India Ltd. plans to raise Rs.12 billion
By IANS
New Delhi : PTC India Ltd., formerly known as the Power Trading Corporation of India, is planning to raise Rs.12 billion from qualified institutional investors.
Announcing the plan here Wednesday, the public sector company said it was raising funds for expansion in tandem with the growth in India's power sector.
‘Kingfisher Airlines asked to pay Rs.60 crore service tax’
By IANS,
New Delhi : Cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines has been asked to pay Rs.60 crore which it owes as service tax, a senior fianance ministry official said Wednesday.
GCC conf.on petrochemicals starts Sunday
By KUNA
Doha : The 11th Gulf Cooperation Council conference of industrialists starts Sunday under the slogan "petrochemical sector .. futuristic vision for the year 2020" and under the auspices of the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Muhammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Industry, with the participation of GCC ministers of Industry.
Emaar plans new five star hotel brand
By IANS,
Dubai : Emaar Hospitality Group, the hospitality and leisure arm of UAE-based real estate giant Emaar Properties, has announced that it plans to roll out its own premium five star brand of world-class hotels and resorts.
To operate under the brand name The Address Hotels & Resorts, the new chain will roll out later this year with the opening of The Address flagship hotels in Downtown Burj Dubai and another property in Dubai Marina, the company said in a statement here.
Properties worth Rs.3,000 crore on show at Fairpro 2010
By IANS,
Chennai : Around Rs.3,000 crore worth of residential properties at a price ranging from Rs.10 lakh to Rs.8 crore will be on the offer at the third edition of a property fair to be held here from Feb 19.
"About 250 residential properties between 550 sq.ft and 5,600 sq.ft from 45 developers will be showcased at Fairpro 2010 that begins on Feb 19 at Chennai Trade Centre," Sandeep Mehta, chairman of Fairpro 2010, told reporters here Thursday.
Coal India Q2 net jumps 16 percent on higher sales
Kolkata: State miner Coal India Ltd (CIL) on Friday said it posted a 16 percent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs.2,543.80 crore for...
Xenitis to make lowest-price mobile phone handsets
By IANS,
Sugandha (Hooghly) : Xenitis Telecommunication, a newly floated venture of West Bengal-based conglomerate Xenitis Group, plans to invest Rs.2.5 billion for setting up a mobile handset manufacturing facility in West Bengal.
Tech Mahindra inks multi-million deal with British Telecom
By IANS
Mumbai : IT service company Tech Mahindra Ltd (TML) has signed a five-year deal worth $350 million (Rs.14 billion) with the UK-based British Telecom (BT) to provide application maintenance and support services.
These services will be delivered from TML's state-of-the-art Centres of Excellence (CoE) at facilities in India and a new facility being set up in Britain to monitor BT's core business processes.
‘Tata name helped clinch Jaguar deal’
By Quaid Najmi, IANS
Mumbai : The Tata group's awesome reputation for excellent human resources management was one of the critical factors that helped it clinch the deal with Ford Motor Co. for acquiring the Jaguar and Land Rover brands, says a business relations expert.
"The manner in which the Tata group handled the Corus Steel deal in late 2006 created a major positive impression among the unions and the employees at large. Finally, it was one of the key factors that led to a successful completion of the Jaguar and Land Rover deal," said Chandrika Shah.
Bhaji in the custard: witty passenger invited to select Virgin meals
By IANS,
London : A passenger who wrote a witty letter complaining about the Indian meal on a Virgin Atlantic flight to Mumbai has been invited by the airline's boss Richard Branson to help select food and wines for future Virgin flights.
“Look at this Richard. Just look at it…” Oliver Beale said in a 1,133-word letter illustrated with five photographs after his Dec 7 flight.
Pizza Hut, KFC, Costa Coffee franchisees get Delhi airport nod
By IANS,
New Delhi : Three companies that run popular food and beverage outlets like Copper Chimney, Costa Coffee and Pizza Hut have been awarded contracts to set up shop at the upcoming Terminal 3 at the international airport here.
"Following a tender process, the successful bidders with Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) will develop, operate, maintain and manage food and beverages outlets at Terminal 3," said GMR, which heads the consortium that is upgrading the airport.
Reliance not to transfer stake in gas block to subsidiary
By IANS,
New Delhi : Reliance Industries Ltd Monday announced it has discarded plans to transfer a majority stake in a deepwater gas block in the Krishna Godavari basin to a fully-owned subsidiary.
In a statement, RIL said it had earlier applied to assign part of its interest in the D6 block in the Krishna Godavari basin to a 100 percent owned subsidiary “in order to retain flexibility for raising finances for the project”.
But, RIL now says, it has withdrawn this plan as it has raised the necessary finances.
Federal Bank first quarter profit reaches Rs.681 mn
By IANS,
New Delhi : Federal Bank Ltd has posted a net profit of Rs.681.5 million for the quarter ended June 30, as compared to Rs.669.4 million in the corresponding quarter last year, the company announced Thursday.
The total income of the bank has increased from Rs.6.59 billion for the quarter ended June 30, 2007 to Rs.8.41 billion for the quarter ended June 30, 2008.
Kerala gets Rs.77 bn plan for current year
By IANS
New Delhi : Suggesting that Kerala focus on IT, public sector units and other job-creating sectors, the Planning Commission Wednesday approved a Rs.77-billion annual plan for the state for 2008-09, showing an increase of Rs.7.5 billion over the current fiscal.
"The state will be giving emphasis to IT, tourism and industrial sectors while giving special importance to the agriculture sector during the financial year," Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan told reporters after the discussions with the Planning Commission officials here.
160,000 taxi, autorickshaw drivers on strike in Mumbai
By IANS,
Mumbai : Nearly 55,000 cabs and 105,000 autorickshaws went off the roads in here Thursday to protest the Maharashtra government move to phase out old vehicles.
According to Bombay Autorickshawmen Union secretary Anil Sawant, the state government last month abruptly issued orders cancelling the licences of nearly 15,000 cabs, which were more than 25 years old to cut down pollution. The vehicles have to be phased out by Dec 4.
There is now a proposal to cancel licences of nearly 65,000 autorickshaws, which are more than eight years old, he said.
Equities market opens in positive zone
By IANS,
Mumbai : The Indian equities market opened with a positive gap Friday tracking strong global markets.
The 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange, the Sensex, opened at 17,560.15 points with a gain of 272.84.
The S&P Nifty of the National Stock Exchange opened at 5,265.30 points with a gain of 272.84.
Other Asian markets were trading higher Friday.
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