Cybernet to partner Dutch firm
Chennai, Nov 29 (IANS) Technology operations management company Cybernet Slash Support Corp is entering the European market, the company said Thursday.
Its first stop is in the Netherlands, where it is partnering $19.5-million Bergler ICT. It would offer infrastructure management services to the Bergler's clients.
As per the deal, Cybernet would manage the infrastructure of Bergler's European clients and also offer technology support from its Chennai operations, Shiva Ramani, co-founder and CEO, Cybernet, told reporters here.
Pakistan receives $13.2 billion Foreign Economic Assistance
By SPA
Islamabad : Pakistan received $13.2 billion foreign economic assistance -- $10.5 billion loans and $2.7 billion grants over the last five years.
An amount of $4.824 billion was disbursed for balance of payment; $ 1.085 billion for earthquake rehabilitation; $9.3 million for food; $ 3.114 billion for different projects, $689.8 million for short-term credit and $ 844.4 million was paid to the International Monitory Fund (IMF), Finance and Economic Affairs Minister Dr Salman Shah told the Senate (Upper House of Parliament).
Qatar Airways to fly to Kozhikode
By IANS,
Dubai : Qatar's national carrier Qatar Airways will be adding Kozhikode in Kerala to its list of Indian destinations from June 15.
“Our new route to Kozhikode further demonstrates our commitment to India and we are extremely pleased to see the route selling well with just a week to go for the launch,” Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al Baker said in a statement.
The new daily flights will depart the Qatari capital of Doha at 11:10 p.m. local time and reach Kozhikode at 6 a.m. The return flight will take off from Kozhikode at 7 a.m. and land in Doha at 8:45 a.m.
Tata Steel’s Q4 net profit rises 41 percent
Mumbai, May 17 (IANS) India's largest steel producer Tata Steel Thursday said its net profit for the January-March 2007 quarter had risen 41 percent Rs.11.04 billion ($270.50 million) on net sales of Rs.11.84 billion.
"Tata Steel's standalone net profit for the quarter rose 40.9 percent to Rs.11.04 billion from Rs.7.83 billion in the corresponding quarter last year," said Tata Steel CEO B. Muthuraman.
He said the company's net sales for the quarter rose 21.5 percent to Rs.49.80 billion from Rs.41 billion a year earlier.
HCL CEO is Dataquest’s IT person of the year
By IANS
New Delhi : Ajai Chowdhry, chairperson and CEO of HCL Infosystems, has been conferred the award for IT Person of the Year 2007 by Dataquest, the premier magazine of the IT industry published by the CyberMedia group.
Renault, Nissan and Daimler to swap shares, launch cars
By IANS,
Chennai : Renault-Nissan and Daimler Wednesday announced equity swap and a programme to jointly launch cars and light commercial vehicles.
The idea behind the three-way alliance of French Renault, Japanese Nissan and German Daimler is to increase volumes for all the players and thereby achieve economies of scale and lowering of costs.
Bank says it gave loan, man says no
By IANS,
Lucknow : A man has issued a legal notice to a private bank in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr district after the bank claimed that his uncle, who migrated to Pakistan in 1947, has been given a loan. However, the nephew says his uncle never received the loan.
Firoz has alleged that the bank employees have forged documents to sanction a loan to his uncle Hamid, who is a Pakistani national.
US service sector grows in June
By IANS,
Washington: The US non-manufacturing sector expanded for the 30th straight month in June, but at a slower pace, a survey revealed Thursday.
New Companies Bill in winter session: Minister
By IANS
New Delhi : Corporate India will have to wait for a few more months for the much-awaited new Companies Bill to become law, as the government has now decided to table it in the winter session of parliament.
"We would be introducing the bill in the winter session of the parliament," said Corporate Affairs Minister Prem Chand Gupta, on the sidelines of a conclave on corporate governance here Monday.
New Delhi : Corporate India will have to wait for a few more months for the much-awaited new Companies Bill to become law, as the government has now decided to table it in the winter session of parliament.
"We would be introducing the bill in the winter session of the parliament," said Corporate Affairs Minister Prem Chand Gupta, on the sidelines of a conclave on corporate governance here Monday.
India will come down heavily on hoarders: Kamal Nath
By IANS
Singapore : India will come down heavily on traders hoarding essential commodities and earning profits in the backdrop of soaring inflation, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said here Friday.
"We will not hesitate to take the strongest possible measures, including using some of the legal provisions that we have against hoarding, against profiteering, whether it's in food, in cement, in steel," Nath told reporters here.
Abu Dhabi to host healthcare investment meet
By IANS,
Abu Dhabi : To boost private sector investment and ownership of healthcare infrastructure in the emirate of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a new healthcare investor meet will be held here Monday.
The First Abu Dhabi Healthcare Investor Conference will bring together a diverse group of top decision makers from the local, regional and international investment community with healthcare business executives and regulators to discuss investment opportunities in the healthcare sector in Abu Dhabi, the official Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported.
Markets rebound after steep fall; minister assures investors
Mumbai/New Delhi, Jan 22 (IANS) India's battered stock markets made a sharp recovery Monday after Finance Minister P. Chidambaram reassured investors about the strength of the economy. But most bourses across the world remained deeply in the red on fears of US recession.
The recovery in India, however, came after a bloody morning when a benchmark index fell by 2,029.05 points, down 11.53 percent, minutes after trading began. The Sensex opened at 16,884.09 points and hit a low of 15,576.30, prompting an automatic halt in trading at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
States converge on roadmap for goods, services tax
By IANS
New Delhi : A committee of state finance ministers Tuesday were broadly agreed on the roadmap for adopting a nation-wide goods and services tax regime and also converged on the compensation for reducing the central sales tax rate.
"A point of convergence has been reached on the compensation package for cutting the central sales tax," West Bengal Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta, who heads the empowered group of state finance ministers, told reporters here.
Sensex closes 263 points higher
By IANS,
Mumbai : A benchmark index of the Indian equities markets Monday closed 263 points higher with blue chip firms RIL and ICICI Bank leading the gainers' pack.
Dabur posts Rs.1,069 mn net profit
By IANS,
New Delhi : Dabur India Ltd has posted a net profit of Rs.1,069.6 million for the quarter ended Sep 30, as compared to Rs.905.5 million in the corresponding quarter last year, the company said Thursday.
Dabur's total income has increased to Rs.5,941.2 million for the quarter under review from Rs.5,150.60 million in the same period last fiscal.
The group has posted a consolidated net profit after minority interest of Rs.1,078.2 million for the quarter, as compared to Rs.965.7 million the second quarter last fiscal.
Oil Spill oozes onto S. Korean coast
By SPA
Seoul, South Korea : Oil from a damaged supertanker has reached an ecologically sensitive shoreline on South Korea's western coast, a Coast Guard official said Saturday.
About four miles (6.5 kilometers) of coastline near Mallipo beach, approximately 95 miles (153 kilometers) southwest of Seoul, has been affected, said Jung Se-hi, a spokesman at the Coast Guard headquarters in Incheon.
US man charged over $23 quadrillion for pack of cigarettes
By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : A US man was charged more than $23 quadrillion for a pack of cigarettes that he bought at a filling station using his Visa card, a TV report said.
When he checked his online bank account, Josh Muszynski discovered that he was $23,148,855,308,184,500 ($23,148 trillion) in the red, the WMUR-TV said Wednesday.
"I thought my card had been compromised. I thought somebody had bought Europe with my credit card," he said.
Singapore to import fruits, vegetables from Andhra
By IANS,
Hyderabad: Singapore President S.R. Nathan Saturday agreed in principle to import fruits and vegetables from Andhra Pradesh, the chief minister's office said.
During the meeting with Chief Minister K. Rosaiah here, the visiting president assured him that he would convince the industrialists and investors in his country to invest in Andhra Pradesh. He also invited Rosaiah to visit Singapore.
"Mr. Nathan agreed in principle to import fruits and vegetables from Andhra Pradesh through societies in large scale," said a statement from the chief minister's office.
Jubilant FoodWorks plans to enter SriLanka, Bangladesh
By IANS,
New Delhi : Jubilant FoodWorks, which operates Pizza delivery major Domino's in India, Friday reported a net profit of Rs.15.3 for the quarter ended June 30, and said it is planning to open stores in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh next year.
The company's net sales for the quarter under review grew by 60 percent to Rs.135.6 crore.
"By the end of this financial year, we will start operations and open at least 2-3 company owned stores in Sri Lanka," said Ajay Kaul, Jubilant FoodWorks chief executive during a conference call to discuss the company's earnings results.
HAL choppers going places but unable to meet domestic demand
By Ritu Sharma, IANS,
New Delhi : The Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) is eyeing international markets for its Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) Dhruv but it is struggling to fulfil a surge in domestic demand following the Mumbai terror attack.
Currently the order book of the state-run HAL has swelled to 200 helicopters, the intended purchasers being the home ministry and police forces of various states.
Organic cotton farming more profitable, says report
By IANS,
Hyderabad : Organically grown cotton is more profitable for farmers than Bt cotton, a new Greenpeace report said here Tuesday.
"In the year 2009-10, farmers cultivating cotton through organic practices earned 200 percent more net income than farmers who grew genetically engineered cotton (Bt cotton)," the report said.
The report 'Picking Cotton - The choice between organic and genetically-engineered cotton for farmers in South India' is a comparative analysis of the two methods of agriculture among cotton farmers in Andhra Pradesh.
Arts and culture pump $84.6 billion into Canada’s economy
By Gurmukh Singh, IANS,
Toronto : Canada's thriving arts and culture contributed a record $84.6 billion to the nation's economy last year.
Highlighting the economic significance of the sector, a report by the private think-tank Conference Board of Canada released Tuesday said it accounted for as much as 7.4 percent of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP).
The report comes amid the government's decision to cut funding for various cultural and arts programmes by $45 million.
Airbus, Emirates ink 11.5b dollar deal for 32 more A380 jets
By IRNA,
Berlin : Emirates Airline, the biggest customer for the Airbus A380 super jumbo, is to order 32 more of the world’s largest passenger jets, worth around 11.5 billion US dollars, press reports said here Tuesday.
Set to expand Dubai as a global travel hub, Emirates was already the biggest customer for the 525-seat double-decker aircraft, with 58 orders so far.
Emirates has earlier received 10 A380s planes, one of which was showcased Tuesday at Berlin's ILA airshow.
Billions wiped off as Toronto market crashes
By IANS
Toronto : The Toronto stock market (TSX) followed the Asian and European markets Monday, crashing by 605 points and wiping billions off the shelf.
It was the biggest slump by the TSX in seven years. The market had crashed by 6.5 percent in February 2001 when the IT sector had gone bust. Compared to that day's plunge, the stock market went down by 4.75 percent Monday.
The TSX has been in a slump since October, going down by about 17 percent and wiping off over 300 billion Canadian dollars (US$ 290.1 billion) in the process.
India’s industrial output up 13.5 percent in March
By IANS,
New Delhi : India will review how to sustain its robust growth in factory output in recent months, Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said Wednesday after fresh data showed a 13.5 percent expansion in industrial production during March.
Data on industrial production showed that despite the withdrawal of fiscal stimuli packages and the tightening of monetary policy, manufacturing output rose 14.3 percent in March, mining by 11 percent and electricity by 7.7 percent.
Indian joint venture in Nepal wants recruitment order review
By Sudeshna Sarkar, IANS,
Kathmandu : Indian joint venture firm United Telecom Ltd (UTL), Nepal's first private telecom operator, has requested the Maoist-led government to review an order of the previous government directing it to absorb workers hired by a third-party contractor.
UTL, promoted by telecom operators Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd and Tata Communications Ltd along with state-owned consultancy Telecommunications Consultants India Ltd, has been held to ransom for nearly nine months by a trade union affiliated to the Nepali Congress party that led the previous government.
Text of PM’s address to nation after fuel price hike
By IANS,
New Delhi : Following is the text of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's televised address to the nation after his government Wednesday approved a hike in prices of transport and cooking gas prices:
This beer will keep you sober, and clear of cops
By IANS
New Delhi : If you must drink and drive, this beer is for you. It's non-alcoholic, tastes like the real thing, but doesn't give you a high.
The German Clausthaler beer has been introduced into the country by the diversified Dalmia Continental Pvt. Ltd (DCIL) that hopes to see sales rising to Rs.570 million ($14 million) in three years "from an entirely new market segment we are going to create", company chairman V.N. Dalmia said at the product's launch here Thursday.
Sensex down 213 points on credit policy fears
By IANS,
Mumbai : A benchmark index for Indian equities was 213 points down Friday morning as investors were worried that the Reserve Bak of India (RBI) may announce a more restrictive credit policy later in the day.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 16,253.82 points, was at 16,119.77 points, down 213.31 points or 1.31 percent from its previous close at 16,289.82 points.
Money for farmers will end up in party coffers: Lord Desai
By Dipankar De Sarkar, IANS
London : Much of the Rs.600 billion set aside to waive the public sector loans of small and marginal farmers will end up lining the coffers of political parties unless immediate steps are taken to address corruption at the state level, distinguished economist Lord Meghnad Desai warned Friday.
Petrol, diesel, cooking gas to cost less
By IANS,
New Delhi : The government late wednesday decided to further reduce prices of transport fuels and cooking gas.
"It has been decided to reduce the price of petrol by Rs.5 a litre, of diesel by Rs.2 a litre and LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) by Rs.25 per cylinder," External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told reporters after a meeting of the Cabinet Committee of Political Affairs (CCPA).
Health minister wants more taxes on tobacco products
By IANS
New Delhi : Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss Sunday urged Finance Minister P. Chidambaram to increase taxes on tobacco products in the budget to be presented to parliament Feb 29.
"We have requested the finance minister to increase the taxes on (tobacco) products so that the alarming figures of its consumption as compared to other countries can come down," Ramadoss told reporters on the sidelines of a conference on microbicides he inaugurated.
Wall Street tremors turn Toronto bearish
By IANS,
Toronto : The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) turned bearish as the Wall Street jitters caused ripples in North America's third largest bourse.
As major Canadian financial firms disclosed their exposure to the failed Lehman Brothers Wednesday, the S&P/TSX composite index lost 349.30 points, closing the day at 11,877.69 and pushing the bourse into a bear market.
It was the lowest end for the bourse in two years.
The composite index, which crossed the historic 15,000 mark for the first time in the 150-year TSX exactly three months ago, has slipped 21.19 percent since then.
Mayawati blames central government for price rise
By IANS,
Lucknow : Lashing out at Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar for the recent rise in food prices, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Thursday said wrong policies of the central government had helped "blackmarketeers and hoarders".
"The government is working under pressure of black-marketeers. Prices are rising due to the anti-poor policies of the central government," Mayawati told reporters here.
Sensex drops over 250 points in early trade
By IANS,
Mumbai : The Indian equities markets, which opened deep in the red Tuesday, kept falling in initial trade. Realty, capital goods and metal sectors were under heavy selling pressure.
The 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, opened with a loss of 211.43 points at 15,851.72. Ten minutes into trading, it had slid further to 15,813.10 with a loss of 250.08 points or 1.56 percent from its closing figure Monday.
McLeod Russel sees Rs.150 a kg price realisation
By IANS,
Kolkata : The world's largest tea producer McLeod Russel India sees average price realisation of tea in the current fiscal (2010-11) to be at Rs.150 per kg, up from Rs.137 a year ago, a top official said here Monday.
Managing Director Aditya Khaitan expects this price realisation is due to crop loss because of heavy rainfall in north India. The company has majority gardens in north India and Assam which contribute around 70 million kgs to its total production.
Microfinance firm Grama Vidiyal gets equity funding
By IANS,
Chennai : Tamil Nadu-based micro finance company Grama Vidiyal Microfinance Pvt Ltd (GVM) has got $3.7 million (Rs.147 million) funding from Unitus Equity Fund L.P. and Vinod Khosla, a venture capitalist.
Announcing this here Thursday, GVM chairman and managing director S. Devaraj said: "The funding is key to our transformation and an impetus to our plans to serve one million poor families by 2010."
He was referring to the growth of the company which started as a charitable trust in 1986 and grew as a major non banking finance company in the state.
Budget should be easy on common man: Sonia
By IANS
Rae Bareli (Uttar Pradesh) : Congress president Sonia Gandhi Wednesday asked Finance Minister P. Chidambaram to keep the common man, women and farmers in mind while preparing the union budget, which will be presented in parliament Feb 29.
Gandhi, addressing a function during her day-long visit to her constituency, indicated that the government should not be happy with the high growth rate alone.
Next generation buses impress at auto expo
By IANS
New Delhi : With killer Blueline buses being phased out, the Delhi government is desperately searching for a safer public transport option. The low-floor intra-city buses currently on display at Auto Expo 2008 could provide that alternative not just in the capital but elsewhere too.
Sample the iBUS at the Ashok Leyland stall. What makes this big but elegant public transport vehicle smarter than the average bus is an advertisement mounted on one of its side panels.
Breakup of the $78.5 mn Chandrayaan bill
By IANS,
Chennai : Break-up of the Rs.3.86 billion ($78.5 million) bill for India's maiden moon mission:
Deep Space Network: Rs.1 billion ($20 million)
Rocket: Rs.1 billion ($20 million)
Payload development: Rs.530 million ($11 million)
Spacecraft bus: Rs.830 million ($17 million)
Scientific data centre, external network support and project management expenses: Rs.500 million ($10 million)
GMR acquires 50 percent in Dutch firm for $1 bn
By IANS,
New Delhi : Infrastructure developer GMR Wednesday announced it has acquired a 50 percent stake in Dutch power utility InterGen NV for $1.1 billion.
Describing it as "the most competitive acquisition", GMR said it will pay $360,000 per megawatt to buy eight plants operated by InterGen located in five countries.
In a regulatory statement, the company said InterGen's total generating capacity is 12,766 megawatt in the UK, the Netherlands, Mexico, Australia, and the Philippines.
France’s sovereign wealth fund to boost economic security
By Xinhua,
Paris : France's plan to create a sovereign wealth fund is a part of the country's efforts to guarantee its economic security in the current world financial crisis.
The fund, announced by French President Nicolas Sarkozy last week, is designed to protect the strategically important French enterprises threatened by the global credit crunch and prevent those companies from foreign takeover, the latest manifestation of economic patriotism of the country.
Mukherjee set to present India’s Budget for next fiscal
By IANS,
New Delhi : Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee was all set Friday morning to table India's budget for the next fiscal with a renewed sense of optimism over the country's growth and clear signals from policymakers to bring deficits back to manageable levels.
Expectations were also high from the 74-year-old veteran politician, who has tabled four budgets in the past, that he will address the twin issue of bringing down prices while ensuring higher overall growth for the economy.
China enters Latin American mineral market with Canada deal
By IANS,
Toronto : After storming Africa, resource-hungry China Monday made a big opening into the Latin American mineral market by inking a $1-billion deal with Canadian copper major Quadra Mining Ltd for a stake in its copper operations in Chile.
Chile accounts for 35 percent of the world's copper output. China has a deep shortage of the metal needed for developing power grids to meet its growing energy demand. It is the biggest stake gained by the Chinese in a Canadian metal resource company.
China keen to set up tyre, steel units in West Bengal
By IANS,
Kolkata : China is keen to set up a tyre manufacturing unit and a steel plant in West Bengal, according to Chinese Consul General in Kolkata Mao Siwei.
Speaking at an interactive session organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce Friday, Siwei said: "We are keen to set up a tyre manufacturing unit and a steel plant in the state. The tyre manufacturing unit will be a joint-venture between a China-based company and a Dubai-based company."
He added: "Bilateral trade between India and China is likely to touch $60 billion much ahead of the target year of 2010."
IOC will build refinery, petrochemical complex in Orissa
By IANS
New Delhi : State-owned refiner Indian Oil Corp (IOC) will set up a 15-million tonne per annum capacity refinery and petrochemical complex at Paradip in Orissa, State Petroleum Minister Dinsha Patel said here Tuesday.
He was replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament.
"IOC expects to complete the project by Oct 2011," Patel said.
"The state government has agreed to provide key fiscal concessions to the project like deferment of state and central sales tax and entry tax exemption for sourcing crude."
Huge iron ore, coal, bauxite stocks found in Chhattisgarh
By IANS
Raipur : Mining officials Monday said they have found massive fresh stocks of iron ore, coal and bauxite in Chhattisgarh.
A survey conducted by the directorate of geology and mining found an estimated 40 million tonne coal reserves in Raigarh district and about 20 million iron ore reserves of the finest quality in the state's southern hilly region of Dantewada and Kanker districts.
India soon to have good agricultural practices document
By Rajeev Ranjan Roy, IANS,
New Delhi : India is set to have an agricultural testament called good agricultural practises (GAP) aimed at enhancing farm productivity marked by quality.
India's apex body to monitor export of processed foods and agricultural products - the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda) - has submitted a modified GAP document to the ministry of agriculture to adopt and implement.
Work stops at Dabur Nepal factory
By IANS
Kathmandu : Work stopped at Dabur Nepal's factory in southern Nepal Friday after the Maoist union started negotiating with the management over their six-point demands, including a pay hike.
The factory of Dabur Nepal, Dabur India's wholly-owned subsidiary and Nepal's biggest exporter, located in Birgunj town in southern Nepal, stopped production from the morning after the All Nepal Trade Union Federation (Revolutionary), the powerful trade union of the Maoists, gave a six-point demand to the management.
Indian economy performed best but concerns remain: PM
By IANS,
New Delhi : Even as high inflation remains a major concern, India's economic performance has been the best in the world and every effort will be made to step up growth and tame rising prices, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Tuesday.
"In the current financial year, the economy is expected to grow at 8.5 percent," he said, while releasing a 68-page report card on the first year of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government's second tenure.
Madhya Pradesh gives incentives to biotech industry
By IANS
Bhopal : The Madhya Pradesh government has amended its industrial policy Wednesday to offer special incentives to the biotechnology sector.
The amended policy offers a special package for the biotechnology industry, an official statement said. Now, district-level empowered committees would be authorised to clear projects involving investment of up to Rs.100 million.
“Corona has left us in trauma,” Bihar locals recount surviving a ‘devastating health crisis’
The past two months have left the residents of the north Indian state of Bihar reel under the impact of the second wave of...
Government, Tata Consultancy to start energy exchange
By IANS,
New Delhi : The government and information technology major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) have incorporated a joint venture company to set up an energy exchange.
The company, to be called National Power Exchange Ltd, will operate the power exchange at the national level. The government will be represented by three state-owned power sector companies - National Thermal Power Corp (NTPC), National Hydel POwer Corp (NHPC) and Power Finance Corp (PFC).
Air Canada posts $155 mn profit
By IANS,
Toronto : Air Canada, the world's ninth largest airline, Friday reported a second quarter profit of $155 million -- 27 percent up from the same period last year.
During this period, the airline also reported foreign exchange gains of $355 million as against $48 million during the same period last year.
However, the struggling national carrier, which was on the verge of seeking second bankruptcy protection in six years, still posted an operating loss of $113 million as against a profit of $7 million during the same period last year.
Indian power companies courted to ‘light up’ Africa
By IANS
New Delhi : With the African economy on a rising curve, Indian companies have been invited to plug the shortfall in power generation and distribution in the continent.
At the fourth India-Africa business conclave here Thursday, African countries were eager to showcase the potential for electricity generation, especially in the hydropower sector, and attract Indian capital and technology.
Aksh Optifibre launches IPTV ‘icontrol’ in rural Rajasthan
By IANS,
Jaipur : Optical fibre manufacturer Aksh Optifibre Ltd, in association with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), Thursday announced the launch of its IPTV brand 'icontrol' in Kukus of Jaipur district, making it the first IPTV service to be launched in rural India.
Simultaneously, Aksh also announced the commercial launch of icontrol in Jaipur, which will now enable BSNL broadband customers to avail IPTV (internet protocol television) service.
Unitech’s net profit down 28 percent
By IANS,
New Delhi : Realty major Unitech's net profit dipped 28 percent to about Rs.740 crore for 2008-09 from nearly Rs.1,031 crore posted the previous year, the company said Thursday.
Its total income in the year under review decreased to Rs.2,455 crore from Rs.2,970 crore earned in 2007-08, it said in a regulatory statement.
The group's consolidated profit was around Rs.1,198 crore, as compared to Rs.1,662 crore in the previous year, a fall of 27.92 percent.
The total income decreased from Rs.4,280 crore in 2007-08 to Rs.3,316 crore last fiscal.
Increasing steel output top priority: Virbhadra Singh
By IANS,
New Delhi : Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh Friday said ensuring the timely completion of the expansion projects drawn up by state-run steel units to increase the production of the commodity was among his top priorities.
"There is also the need restructure the small steel public sector undertakings and attempt to merge them to bring about more synergies among them," Singh told reporters here after taking charge his new portfolio.
Dubai realtors woo buyers with tempting finance schemes
By Aroonim Bhuyan, IANS,
Dubai : With banks curbing loans in the face of the global financial crisis and real estate agents finding it difficult to get customers, property developers in this West Asian metropolis are wooing potential home buyers with lucrative payment options.
Majors like Emaar, Union Properties (UP) and ETA Star are offering innovative payment schemes like rent-to-own to long-term payment plan after handover even as a new survey found that over 50 percent of real estate agents in Dubai could not conclude a single deal in the last one month.
Ethiopia wants India to develop its bamboo industry
By Nayanima Basu, IANS
New Delhi : With its expertise and entrepreneurship, India can help Ethiopia develop that country's bamboo industry, a visiting Ethiopian official has said.
"Ethiopia has huge potential in bamboo cultivation. We are eager to develop this as a small and medium industry for which we want India to come forward and help organise the sector," said Ahmed Nuru, deputy director, privatisation and public enterprises supervision agency, Ethiopia.
Sensex rebounds, yet ends 54 points down
By IANS,
Mumbai : A key index of Indian equities markets recouped most of the day's losses Wednesday to end 54 points below its previous close even as major Asian markets tumbled as much as 3 percent Wednesday.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened lower at 14,953.44 points, ended trade at 15,020.16 points, down 54.43 points or 0.36 percent.
The index plunged to a low of 14,701.05 points in intra-day trading, but recovered most of the losses in the afternoon.
ICICI Bank plans exclusive private equity fund for small & medium businesses
By IANS,
Kolkata : India's largest private lender ICICI Bank is planning to set up a $200 million (Rs.8 billion) private equity fund exclusively for the small and medium enterprises (SME) sector, a top company official said here Monday.
"We are planning to set up an approximately $200 million corpus private equity fund within the next five to six months exclusively for the SME sector," said Sanjiv Sherawat, head of business banking, ICICI Bank Ltd, on the sidelines of a seminar on Alternative Avenues to SME Financing organised by industry lobby Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
Reliance spending Rs.10 mn to help develop Gujarat village
By IANS,
Ahmedabad : As part of a Rs.10 million corporate social responsibility (CSR) project, India's largest private company, Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), has built a market and created a garden for commercial plants in a Gujarat village.
The market, set up by Reliance as part of a project to develop the village Moti Khavdi in the state's Jamnagar district, will accommodate shops for eatables, vegetables, spices, clothes and cutlery and shoes.
The shops will provide 46 hawkers a permanent place to sell their goods.
Pricol Travel plans two acquisitions
By IANS,
Hyderabad : Pricol Travel, part of the Coimbatore-based Rs.1,500-crore Pricol Group, is looking at acquiring two companies and hopes for a three-fold increase in its turnover.
Pest attacks in Assam plantations hit tea production
By IANS,
Guwahati : India's tea production has been hit with rampant pests eating away the crop, adding to the woes of the cash-strapped tea industry in the northeastern state of Assam, officials said Monday.
Planters and industry officials in separate statements said a tea mosquito called helopeltis has attacked nearly 200 of Assam's estimated 800 tea plantations during the past two months.
Haryana to invest over Rs.1,200 crore in industrial land
By IANS,
Chandigarh: The Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) proposes to invest over Rs.1,200 crore on land acquisition and development of industrial infrastructure during the next financial year of 2010-11, officials said here Sunday.
"The HSIIDC will invest over Rs.1,200 crore in 2010-11 in Haryana. A multi-modal logistic hub, an exhibition-cum-convention centre and a mass rapid transport system from Gurgaon to Bawal had been identified as the early bird projects which will be developed during 2010-11," a HSIIDC spokesman said.
PepsiCo to invest Rs.500 crore on new cracker
By IANS,
New Delhi : Frito-Lay, the food division of beverage major PepsiCo India, plans to spend about Rs.500 crore over the next three years to push Aliva, a new baked savoury cracker that it launched here Thursday.
"We want the new product to get as big as Kurkure (PepsiCo's popular snack)," Gautham Mukkavilli, Frito-Lay India chief executive and PepsiCo India president told reporters.
"We will be investing about Rs.500 crore on it over three years," Mukkavilli added.
Real estate shares lead resurgence of Gulf markets
By IANS,
Dubai : After a week of mayhem triggered by the global financial crisis and punctuated only by a brief respite last Thursday, major Gulf markets, led by real estate shares, posted gains Monday.
Except for the Kuwaiti bourse, which ended 0.26 percent in the red, all other stock markets of the region climbed in Monday’s trading, with the key Dubai Financial Market (DFM) posting the highest gain.
India Inc wasn’t expecting anything from interim budget
By IANS,
New Delhi : Following are the reactions from some prominent industrialists and economists to the interim budget presented by acting finance minister Pranab Mukherjee here Monday:
Deepak Parekh, chairman, HDFC Bank: Not a disappointment, I did not expect anything in the interim budget. It was never meant to be a giveaway. Interim budget is only an exercise of stating accounts.
Pradeep Jain, chairman of Parasvnath Developers: It's a non-event for the corporate world. The interim budget is merely a populist budget.
Nokia unveils bicycle charger for mobile phones
By DPA,
Helsinki : Finnish mobile telephone maker Nokia Thursday unveiled a bicyle charger unit aimed at offering "free and environmentally friendly electricity" for handset users.
The kit includes a charger, a dynamo, and a handset holder.
The dynamo - a small electrical generator - uses the movement of the wheels to charge the handset, Nokia said, adding that the dynamo was connected to a jack used in most of the group's mobile phones.
Indian equities down after strong opening
By IANS
New Delhi : Indian equities lost ground Thursday after opening on a strong note for the second successive day as investors sought to book profits on the gains made a day earlier following an impressive rally.
The sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) opened higher by 326.91 points at 17,920.98 points, against the previous day's close at 17,594.07 and rose higher to 18,096.31 points within minutes.
Phenix Varco Pruden eyes auto, IT projects in south India
By IANS
Chennai : Pre-engineered steel building firm Phenix Varco Pruden is focusing on upcoming industrial projects in south India for business, a company official said here Monday.
"We are looking at industrial, IT software park and warehouse projects for our pre-engineered steel structures," Malav Patel, managing director of the Ahmedabad-based firm, told reporters.
Promoted by the Rs.1.5 billion turnover Manibhai & Brothers group, Phenix Varco Pruden gets the technical know how from Varco Pruden, US, for a fee.
Titan Industries expects 25 percent growth in watches sales
By IANS,
Kolkata : Jewellery-to-watch maker Titan Industries expects a growth of 25 percent in watches sales in 2010-11 financial year, up from a 17 percent growth expected in 2009-10, a top company official said here Wednesday.
The company expects a revenue of Rs.3,300-3,500 crore from jewellery, Rs.1,100 crore from watches and Rs.150 crore from other operations, namely precision engineering in 2009-10, the company's managing director Bhaskar Bhat said here at a press conference.
Indian contemporary art market focus of Spanish art fair
By IANS,
New Delhi : The economy may be struggling to cope with the slump in the market, but Indian art has managed to hold its own, especially on the global stage as India will be the focus of an international art fair in Spain. India will be the guest country and the market highlight of ARCO-Madrid 2009, one of the most prestigious international contemporary art fairs in Europe, being held Feb 11-16 in Madrid, the Spanish capital.
CII welcomes RBI measures to improve liquidity
By IANS,
New Delhi : Leading industry lobby Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Sunday welcomed the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) measures to ease credit in the financial system.
“The CII had suggested that the interest rate cap on FCNR (foreign currency accounts) and NRE deposits be removed and the banks be allowed to decide these rates. Therefore, the raising of the interest rates by 75 basis points is very welcome,” CII president K.V. Kamath said in a statement.
Finland could import Nokia mobiles from India!
By Vishnu Makhijani
IANSHelsinki : Finland, the land of Nokia, could soon import mobile phones from India.
Bosch threatens second lockout as workers remain adamant
By IANS,
Bangalore : Automotive components major Bosch Ltd Thursday threatened to declare lockout at its main plant in the city as its agitated workers remained adamant over wage revision and healthcare benefits.
"We have served notice to the employees and their union to either restore normalcy or face lockout even at the Audugodi plant any time," Bosch vice-president Soumitra Bhattacharya told reporters here.
Prized organic farming estate in Kerala lies idle
By Sanu George
Thiruvananthapuram,(IANS) Some describe it as the goose that lays the golden eggs, yet an estate run by the Poabs Organic Group that has earned many awards for organic farming is now lying idle as the Kerala government has taken back the land.
With the state's organic farming policy set to be unveiled Nov 1, the plight of the 351-acre Thuthampara estate in Palakkad district has come into sharp focus.
Detergent ads more effective in Hindi: study by Indian Americans
By IANS,
Washington : Multinationals marketing luxury goods abroad should publicise them in English, and frame ads for necessities in the local language, for greater communicability and reach, according to a new study by two Indian Americans.
Aradhna Krishna and Rohini Ahluwalia of Universities of Michigan and Minnesota, respectively, examined the role of language in advertising in India.
WTO chief to visit China as trade talks enter crunch time
By Xinhua
Geneva : World Trade Organization (WTO) Director-General Pascal Lamy will be in China next week to discuss issues related to the Doha Round multilateral trade talks.
India will stick to July 18 understanding on n-pact: Pranab
By IANS
New Delhi : Allaying apprehensions of any compromise with its strategic autonomy, India Friday said that the bilateral civil nuclear cooperation pact it is negotiating with the US "will adhere as closely as possible" to the July 18, 2005 understanding and March 2, 2006 separation plan.
Need to take manufacturing growth rate to double digits: Chidambaram
By IANS
New Delhi : The growth rate of Indian manufacturing needs to be pushed to double digits though the sector has been affected by rupee appreciation and high interest rates, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said Friday.
Vodafone launches handset at Rs.809 in Delhi
By IANS,
New Delhi : Cellular services provider Vodafone Essar Monday said it has launched here a low-cost handset at Rs.809 to make mobile phones accessible to the rural millions.
The company said it would roll out the phone, Vodafone 150 (VF 150), in other parts of India over the next few days.
"The cost of the handset can be a significant barrier for people in accessing and benefiting from the mobile revolution. At the price point of VF 150, many more people will become part of the connected world," said Sanjay Warke, the company's chief executive officer.
Fifty percent Madhya Pradesh farmers in debt
By Sanjay Sharma, IANS
Bhopal : Half the farmers in Madhya Pradesh - where more than 75 percent of the population is dependent on agriculture - are in debt, says new data.
"Of the 6.4 million farmers in the state 3.2 million are in debt," says the latest survey of the National Sample Survey Organization on the indebtedness of farmers here. The report cites loss of trust in the government's financial institutions as the main reason for the high incidence of debt.
ED RDSO Inaugurates Customer Web Page at BHEL Bhopal Unit
By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,
Bhopal: M. C. Pant, Executive Director RDSO, in a simple function organized at Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, (BHEL), Bhopal unit inaugurated Customer web page which addresses the requirements the customer in terms of Maintenance manuals, Service bulletin, Fault tree, and status of major orders & other areas of customer interest.
Finnair Asian traffic grew 32.6 percent in 2007
By IANS
Helsinki : Finnair's total traffic measured in passenger kilometres grew 16.2 percent in 2007, with Asian traffic up by a staggering 32.6 percent, Finland's national carrier said Tuesday.
Finnair's Asian flights carried more than 1.1 million passengers, of the 8.6 million passengers transported by the airline during the year.
The passenger load factor was at 75.5 percent, with nine percent of all Finnair long-haul passengers travelling in business class, the airline said.
Singapore’s DBS bank posts 67 percent jump in quarterly profit
By DPA,
Singapore : Singapore's DBS Group Holdings Ltd, South-East Asia's biggest bank, Friday said its net profit in the last quarter 2009 jumped 67 percent compared to a year ago, as strong gains in fee income and loans offset a rise in bad debt charges.
In the three months through December last year, net profit including one-time items jumped to 493 million Singapore dollars ($346 million), up from 295 million Singapore dollars a year earlier, DBS said in a statement.
Bad debt charges in the fourth quarter 2009 soared 43 percent to 384 million Singapore dollars.
Focus on non-conventional energy: GAIL chief
By IANS,
Gandhinagar : India is witnessing a robust 5 percent growth in the oil and gas sector, yet it continues to be a major importer of energy, Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) Chairman and Managing Director U.D. Choubey said here Monday.
"When the world average is 2.5 percent ours is double at 5 percent," he said.
L & T bags contracts worth Rs.2.67 bn
By IANS
Mumbai : Leading engineering and construction firm Larsen and Toubro Ltd. (L & T) has bagged two contracts for capacity expansion projects worth Rs.2.67 billion from the Indian Oil Corp Ltd. (IOCL) and China's Liaoning Huajin Chemical Corp.
"While the IOCL contact is for a residual upgradation project, the Huajin Chemical Corp's contact is for design, manufacture and supply of two reactors for a Chinese petrochemical plant," the company said in a statement Tuesday.
Autorickshaws strike hits Mumbai hard
Mumbai: Over a million commuters, office-goers and students were hit badly as around 20,000 autorickshaws went off the roads Wednesday in Mumbai, Thane and...
Emami to launch babycare products, buy Egyptian healthcare unit
By Aparajita Gupta, IANS,
Kolkata : The $675-million diversified Emami Group has decided to acquire a healthcare unit in Egypt to tap the fast-growing African market. It will start growing jatropha there to export to India and launch babycare products in the domestic market in 2011.
"We have almost finalised the deal for a personal healthcare products manufacturing unit in Egypt. It will be an acquisition of around Rs.30 crore ($6.6 million). the talks have been on for the past three months," said Aditya V. Agarwal, director of the Emami Group.
Indian firm to supply critical refinery equipment to Kuwait
By IANS
New Delhi : The private Indian engineering and design company Larsen and Toubro (L&T) will supply critical petroleum refining equipment worth $421 million to Kuwait, which is globally the biggest ever contract awarded in this particular equipment category to a single supplier, the company said Monday.
India Inc relieved as government wins trust vote
By IANS,
New Delhi/Mumbai/Kolkata : India Inc heaved a sigh of relief Tuesday after the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government won the trust motion, hoping economic reforms would now get a push as pressures from Left parties would no longer carry the same weight.
"The worst for the Indian economy is still not over. But hopefully the political instability that was adding to the problems and the government's woes now stand hugely diluted," said a leading industrialist.
Jet Airways appoints new general manager in Canada
By IANS,
Toronto : Jet Airways has appointed B. Chandrashekar as its acting general manager for Canada.
Chandrashekar, who has been overseeing sales operations for the airline in mid-western America and Canada, replaces Justin Gosling.
According to a Jet Airways statement issued here, Gosling is leaving the airline to pursue a career outside the aviation industry.
Chandrashekar has been instrumental in launching the airline's North American operations, including its five weekly flights from Toronto to Delhi.
IFC to invest Rs.550 mn in Delhi hospital
By IANS,
New Delhi : The Washington-based International Financial Corp (IFC), a member of the World Bank group, announced Monday that it will invest Rs.550 million ($13.1 million) in a Delhi hospital to expand its facilities and help open a hospital in Haryana.
IFC said the financial aid to the Rockland Hospital would help broaden access to high quality healthcare and good administration.
Railways to use bio-diesel to cut fuel cost
New Delhi : Indian Railways will use alternative fuels like bio-diesel in a big way to power its vast fleet of over 4,000 diesel...
Stranded Air India passengers head for New York, London
By IANS
New Delhi : Nearly 300 Air India passengers stranded here for over 18 hours after their London-New York flight was grounded over the crew's failure to turn up finally left for their destinations early Thursday.
The flight had been scheduled to leave at 7.20 a.m. Wednesday from the Indira Gandhi International Airport but it did not take off after the crew from Mumbai did not report for work. There was also fuel leakage from the aircraft.
Microsoft will focus on product line: Ballmer
By IANS,
New Delhi : Software giant Microsoft Corp will focus on developing its product line and plans to release revamped operating system for mobile phones by the year-end, Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said Thursday.
"The focus is on everyday like what we should be doing to our product line, how do we make products more innovative... the Windows Phone 7 will be released by Christmas," Ballmer told reporters here.
Unilever washes its hands of Surf
By IANS,
New York : Consumer products giant Unilever has agreed to sell Surf, Snuggle and other detergent brands in North America to a private equity group, Vestar Capital, for $1.45 billion even as two Indian origin executives are seen as candidates for the top job in the company.
New York-based Vestar will merge the newly acquired business from Unilever with its existing Huish Detergents subsidiary to create a company called The Sun Products Corporation.
Oil prices approaches USD 100 barrel due to fears from Bhuttos
By KUNA
Washington : Fears from instability in Central Asia after the assassination of former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on Thursday pushed oil prices to near an all- time high level in the U.S markets.
U.S. crude for February delivery rose USD 1.35 to USD 97.32 a barrel due to fears among investors that any instability in Pakistan could spread to neighboring states in the oil-rich Central Asian region.
Please understand! PM tells Indians after fuel price hike
By IANS,
New Delhi : The fuel price hike was inevitable. The government has not forgotten the common man. And the state still bears 90 percent of the burden on account of the global oil shock. This was the message Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought to convey in his address to the nation Wednesday.
"It must be appreciated that what has been done is the bare minimum," the prime minister said in the 20-minute televised address, hours after a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs headed by him allowed a 9.5-11 percent hike in prices of petrol, diesel and cooking gas.
State-run banks can enter insurance business
By IANS,
New Delhi: The government will not prevent public sector banks from entering new businesses like insurance and mutual funds, a senior finance ministry official said Wednesday.
"There is no issue at all. We have never asked banks not to take up insurance or mutual funds businesses," Financial Services Secretary R. Gopalan said on the sidelines of a function organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci).
Euro-2008 overtakes IPL euphoria merchandise sales
By IANS,
New Delhi : Sports goods manufacturer Adidas said Monday that its merchandise sales during the just concluded Euro-2008 football tournament had exceeded that registered during the May-June Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket fest.
Adidas was the official kit supplier for two IPL teams - Delhi Daredevils and Mumbai Indians - and had received an "overwhelming" response for its exclusive collection around the two teams, a company statement said.
BlackBerry stock sinks as new device is no iPhone 4 ‘killer’
By Gurmukh Singh, IANS,
Toronto : Less-than-glowing first reviews of the new BlackBerry Torch 9800 launched Tuesday by Research In Motion Ltd (RIM) to catch up with Apple's iPhone 4 sank company shares more than four per cent on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
RIM's troubles over security concerns also deepened Tuesday when Saudi Arabia reportedly banned BlackBerry from this week. The United Arab Emirates has already announced to ban BlackBerry email, messaging and web services from Oct 11 on the grounds that RIM smart phones send users' data to its centres overseas.
Banks wrote off Rs.140,266 crore loans, say unions
By IANS,
Chennai : The banking industry's profits are being used for writing off bad loans and for provisioning for bad loans. The employees are...
Equity markets flat in early trade
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equity markets, which opened slightly lower Tuesday, were flat in early trade. There was selling pressure on banking, FMCG and oil stocks but buying interest in power, capital goods and realty stocks.
The 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, opened with a loss of 15.19 points at 14,562.68 points. Ten minutes into trading, it had wiped out the loss and reached 14,630.51 points, a gain of 52.64 points or 0.36 percent from ts closing figure Monday.
Air Arabia slashes fares on Bangalore-Sharjah route
By IANS,
Bangalore : Air Arabia Thursday announced new fares for its Bangalore -Sharjah route, starting from Rs.1,340, exclusive of taxes.
Air Arabia, a low-cost carrier of the United Arab Emirates, launched services from Sharjah to Bangalore in October 2007 and has recorded an average seat factor of 82 percent, the airline's commercial department head A.K. Nizar told reporters here.
Bank mergers to affect India’s insurance sector
By V. Jagannathan, IANS
Chennai : Bank mergers in India are likely to impact the insurance sector as many insurers have select banks as their bancassurance partners.
Bancassurance is the sale of life, pension and investment products through the branch network of a bank.
The recent merger announcement of HDFC Bank and Centurion Bank of Punjab Ltd is expected to impact the business of Aviva Life Insurance Co Ltd and ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co Ltd.
Centurion Bank is the bancassurance partner for these two insurers.
Torrent Power to pay Rs.663 mn in dividends
By IANS,
Ahmedabad : Torrent Power Ltd Thursday announced payment of Rs.663 million as dividend to its shareholders for the fiscal year 2008. This works out to nearly 12 percent, a jump from four percent dividend announced by the company last fiscal.
The company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that the decision on the dividend was taken by the board at its meeting Thursday. Last year, the company disbursed Rs.189 million in dividends.
Air Arabia offers special fares for Indian passengers
By IANS,
New Delhi : Sharjah-based budget airline Air Arabia Monday announced lucrative packages for its Indian passengers to travel to Greece, Egypt, Jordan and the Gulf region this summer.
Apart from the new competitive return fare of Rs.10,973 between India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the airline is also offering discounts for its Indian passengers on their hotel stay in the Gulf country and other perks like car assistance, free baggage up to 30 kg and sightseeing tours.
Three Indian NGOs shortlisted for $1 mn Alcan Prize
Montreal, Sep 28 (IANS) Three Indian non-governmental organisations have been short-listed for the $1 million Alcan Prize for Sustainability 2007, for promoting and implementing sustainable development.
Alcan and International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) Thursday announced the shortlist of candidates. Ten organisations were selected from a field of over 155 entries from 53 countries around the world.
France, Kenya ink $10 mn agreement
By IANS,
Nairobi: France and Kenya have inked an 8.4-million euro (about $10 million) deal to support radio network and coffee development in this African nation.
Petrol rates cut by over Rs.2 per litre from Aug 15
New Delhi : In an Independence Day gift of sorts, petrol will be cheaper by at least Rs.2.18 per litre, including local levies, effective...
SJVNL’s net sales up by seven percent
By IANS,
Shimla : Hydropower major Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (SJVNL) has achieved more than seven percent growth in its net sales during the first quarter of this fiscal from its maiden project in Himachal Pradesh, a company's top official said Friday.
"During the first quarter of this financial year, we have recorded more than 7 percent growth in the net sales from the operation of 1500-MW Nathpa Jhakri hydropower station over the corresponding period of last year," H.K. Sharma, chairman and managing director of SJVNL, told IANS.
Budget 2015-16 – Short on real(ty) expectations
By Vinod Behl,
The progressive and forward looking budget for 2015-16 demonstrating pro-growth and pro-investment themes scores high on revitalizing the economy but is low on realty revival, with the real estate sector being only an indirect beneficiary.
India’s exports up 1.1 percent in December
By IANS,
New Delhi : After registering a decline for two successive months, India's merchandise exports were marginally up 1.1 percent in December at $12.690 billion, as against $12.825 billion during the like month of last fiscal.
Cumulatively, the exports grew 17.1 percent during the first nine moths of the fiscal to $131.990 billion against $112.737 billion during the corresponding period of the previous fiscal, official data showed Monday.
The government had already admitted that the target of $200 billion set for the current fiscal would remain unmet.
Explore possibilities of sugar export, says Modi
New Delhi : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called for exploring all possibilities for export of sugar to address the current supply-demand...
Sensex closes 523 points up
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equity markets closed with a huge gain Friday.
The 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, which opened at 13,234.53 points, touched a high of 13,684.27 before closing at 13,635.40 points. It went up by 523.55 points or 3.99 percent compared to its closing figure Thursday.
The S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange, which opened at 3,962.95 points, closed at 4,092.25. It went up by 145.05 points or 3.67 percent from its previous close.
Bush’s ethanol dreams make corn a hot commodity
By Frank Brandmaier, DPA
Washington : When Americans fire up their grills for late summer barbecues over the next few weeks, a cloud will be hanging over them in the form of higher prices for steak, chicken and ribs.
The reason can be found in the rapid rise in the cost of corn, which is used not only as food for animals that provide meat but also as an important basic ingredient used in the production of ethanol in the US.
Dubai to host Middle East financial services exhibition
By IANS,
Dubai : Dubai will host the first Middle East International Banking, Financial Technology and Services Exhibition and Conference (MEFX) that is expected to offer a platform for product and knowledge exchange, WAM news agency reported Wednesday.
Organised by the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), the exhibition will be held at Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre June 1-3.
Growth has not trickled down to poor: Ansari
By IANS
New Delhi : Vice-President Hamid Ansari Friday said the fruits of high economic growth rate achieved by India had not witnessed fair distribution yet and that extent of wealth accumulation at the top was more impressive than the reduction of poverty at the lower strata of the society.
Abu Dhabi, Dubai lead UAE real estate boom
By Aroonim Bhuyan, IANS,
Dubai : The booming real estate industry in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) grew at 1,200-1,500 percent between 2000 and 2007, new figures reveal.
According to figures released by Dubai's Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) and Dubai Land Department (DLD), this west Asian metropolis and the UAE capital of Abu Dhabi led this boom with 4,047 real estate and related companies between them.
This includes 1,588 companies and contracting offices in Dubai, and 1,588 management, investment and real estate development companies in Abu Dhabi.
Dhaka’s international airport loses $57 mn annually
By Xinhua
Dhaka : Bangladesh loses over four billion taka (around $57 million) annually as more than 60 percent passenger-handling capacity of Dhaka's Zia International Airport (ZIA) remains unutilised.
Aviation experts and industry insiders said the earning of Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) from ZIA would be tripled if the airport's full capacity could be utilized, as more international airlines want to operate from here, The Daily Star reported Sunday.
Wipro eyes large deals to drive non-linear growth
By IANS
Bangalore : Buoyed by its robust growth in the second quarter of fiscal 2007-08 on all fronts, global software major Wipro Ltd is bracing up for more multi-million dollar deals across verticals to drive non-linear growth.
Wipro chairman Azim H. Premji told reporters here Friday the company was investing in SoA (systems on architecture), BPO (business process outsourcing) platform, consulting and other areas to bid for large deals and drive non-linear growth significantly.
High unemployment in eurozone
By IANS/DAPD,
Luxembourg: The economic slowdown in Europe has kept unemployment in the eurozone at a record high.
“We are still begging for meals 30 years after migration,” Why are Kashmiri Pandits...
On September 18, hundreds of Kashmiri Pandits held a protest demonstration at Jagti township in the outskirts of Jammu city against the delay in the payment...
UK bankruptcy applications up 12 percent
By KUNA,
London : The number of people facing bankruptcy in the UK climbed in the first quarter of this year, official figures showed Friday.
A total of 13,080 people applied for bankruptcy during the first quarter of the year, up 12 percent compared to the previous three months, according to the figures released by the British Ministry of Justice.
India’s factory output logs fastest growth in decade, up 16.8 percent
By IANS,
New Delhi: India's industrial production registered a better-than-expected growth of 16.8 percent in December to log the fastest expansion in a decade, helped by a strong showing by the manufacturing sector that saw its output surge 18.5 percent.
The high growth comes against the backdrop of a 0.2-percent decline registered in the index of industrial production (IIP) in December 2008, as per latest data released by the Central Statistical Organisation
Wall Street falls on swine flu, banking fears
By DPA,
New York : Major US stock indices fell for a second straight day Tuesday as concerns over the economic impact of a growing swine-flu outbreak and the state of US banks overshadowed a massive jump in consumer confidence.
There were 64 confirmed cases of swine flu in five US states, and alerts have been raised across the globe. In Mexico, where the outbreak originated, more than 150 people have died of an influenza-type illness.
Delta Air Lines Inc led a drop in travel shares on Wall Street.
Cocktail of Bollywood and business at Lakme Fashion Week
By Shweta Thakur, IANS
Mumbai : With international buyers and style experts all set to mark their presence, the Lakme Fashion Week (LFW) brings hope for good business. And when a fashion fiesta takes place in tinsel town, a brush with celebrities is not unexpected.
The autumn-winter edition of the fashion event that starts here Saturday is a joint initiative by Lakme, a cosmetics brand of Hindustan Unilever Ltd, and IMG, a leading international event management firm.
Markets back in the green, Sensex up 1.18 percent
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equities markets soared back into the green in the afternoon trade Friday after plummeting in morning session. A key index was ruling 1.18 percent above its previous close an hour before the closing bell.
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensitive Index (Sensex), which opened at 8,103.75 points, was at 8,294.59 points, 1.18 percent or 96.67 points higher than its previous close.
Similarly, the S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) was at 2,609.65 points, 1.28 percent down from its last close of 2,576.7.
Lucknow Biotech park to train women farmers
By IANS,
Lucknow : Free training programmes will be provided to women farmers by the Biotech Park here to enable them to apply new technologies to increase agricultural yield, an official said Monday.
"We will be launching training programmes to hone the skills of women farmers from Sep 7," said P.K. Seth, CEO of the Biotech Park.
"Though the programmes will be open to women farmers from across the state, initially we will enrol farmers from Lucknow and its adjoining districts," an official at the Biotech Park said.