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India
Wins WTO Probe Into EU Tariff Scheme
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GENEVA:
The World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreed on
Monday to an Indian demand for a probe into
special trade deals granted by the European
Union to countries fighting drug trafficking.
India
says preferential treatment for 12 Latin American
countries, including cocaine producers Colombia,
Peru and Bolivia, as well as India's neighbour
Pakistan, breaks international rules against
trade discrimination.
The
EU programme is designed to help countries fight
the drugs trade by encouraging the development
of other businesses. The scheme, which also
covers countries the European Union deems to
be complying with certain labour and environmental
standards, has been running for several years.
But
it was the inclusion of Pakistan in late 2001
that prompted India to bring its complaint before
the Geneva-based WTO's disputes body, trade
officials said. According to Indian diplomats
in Geneva, the special terms given to Pakistan
to sell goods such as clothing and textiles
in the 15-nation European Union were costing
India over $300 million a year in lost trade
because its own industries could not compete.
"Effectively they are picking our pockets to
pay Pakistan," said one diplomat.
The
European Union had opposed the setting up of
a special WTO panel to rule in the row when
India first called for a probe in December,
but under WTO rules, a panel is automatically
appointed at the second request.
Courtesy:
Reuters, January 28, 2003
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| Agriculture
& Processed Food Exports Rise 23% |
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Three
Indians in Most Respected Business Leaders
List |
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NEW
DELHI: Agricultural and processed
food exports rose a healthy 23% during
April-October 2002, pushed mainly by a
greater demand for non-basmati rice, meat
and meat products.
"During
the seven month period, exports of products
handled by us reached Rs.66.25 billion
as compared to Rs.53.81 billion worth
in the same period in 2001, helped mainly
by a major increase in non-basmati rice
exports and meat," Anil Swarup, chairman
of the Agricultural and Processed Food
Products Export Development Authority
said.
Export
of non-basmati rice rose by 141% to Rs.13.84
billion against Rs.5.74 billion during
April-October 2001. APEDA does not directly
handle exports of India's prized aromatic
long-grained basmati rice, though it helps
exporters to promote it in existing and
new markets.
In
the case of meat and meat products, there
was a 32% increase to Rs.8.25 billion
from Rs.6.27 billion in the corresponding
period in the previous year.
Despite
widespread drought in India following
the failure of the monsoon last year,
export of fresh fruit increased 12.5%
from Rs.1.98 billion to Rs.2.23 billion
while fresh vegetables rose from Rs.3.11
billion to Rs.3.40 billion, an increase
of nine%.
By
setting up a warehouse in the Netherlands
for storing floriculture exports before
auctions helped India realise a much better
value for its prized blooms. During April-October,
floriculture exports rose 59% from Rs.680
million worth in 2001 to Rs.1.04 billion.
One
of the biggest producers of fruit and
vegetables, India is trying to boost the
food processing sector to reduce post
harvest waste from current high levels
of around 30%.
Courtesy:
IANS, January 25, 2003
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Three
Indian chief executive officers -- Mukesh
Ambani of Reliance Industries, Nandan
Mohan Nilekani of Infosys Technologies
and Ratan Tata of the Tata group -- have
figured in this year's list of World's
50 most respected business leaders.
Mukesh
Ambani, chairman and managing director
of Reliance Industries, is ranked joint
33rd with Gianni Agnelli of Fiat. Nandan
Nilekani is jointly ranked 45th with Jorge
Geradu Johannpeter of Geradu. Ratan Tata
is ranked 50th in the list.
Two
Indian companies figure among World's
90 most respected companies -- Infosys
at 85th and Reliance at 87th place. Financial
Times published the list on Tuesday based
on a global survey and research by Price
Water House Coopers.
The
most respected 12 Indian companies are
Reliance Industries, Infosys Technologies,
Hindustan Lever, Tata Engineering and
Locomotive, Dr Reddy's Labs, Wipro, Larsen
and Toubro, Ranbaxy Laboratories, ITC,
Tata Iron and Steel, Gujarat Ambuja Cements
and TVs Suzuki.
Reliance
Industries also figures among the top
ten most respected companies in the energy
and chemical sector Incidentally, Reliance
is the only company from the Asia-Pacific
region to make it to this list.
Reliance
and Infosys are also the only two Indian
companies that feature in the list of
global companies that create the most
value for their shareholders. Reliance
is ranked at 36th position with Vokswagen
of Germany. Infosys is jointly ranked
43rd with Samsung of Korea.
Courtesy:
PTI, January 21, 2003
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Economic
Recovery Likely to Continue
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The
DSE-ECRI Indian Leading Index, a precursor of
Indian economic recessions and recoveries, rose
to 181.1 in October '02 from 172.3 in September.
Its growth rate also jumped to 20.1% in October
from 11.5% a month ago.
These
movements in the leading index suggest that
the economic recovery is expected to continue
at least in the near future. The leading index
has grown in double digits since May '02 and
has been on the rise since the last quarter
of '01, foretelling the pick-up in economic
activity that we have already witnessed in '02.
Robust
growth in the economy is also reflected in the
growth rate of the DSE-ECRI Indian Coincident
Index that rose by 6.5% in August, 2.8% in September
and by 4.6% in October '02. This conforms to
the 5.8% GDP growth recorded in the July-September
quarter of the '02-03 fiscal despite zero growth
in the agricultural sector. Healthy growth at
over 6% was also witnessed in the index of industrial
production in September and October although
it slipped somewhat to 3.7% in November. The
redeeming factor in November, however, was the
strong growth in capital goods production at
9.6% compared to 1.9% a year earlier, while
growth in consumer goods - both durables and
non-durables - slowed.
On
the external front, trade growth continues to
be strong with exports surging to over 15% in
November and its cumulative growth rising to
15.7% for the April-November period. Imports
exhibited the same strength, rising to 14.3%
in April-November from a year earlier. The continuation
of this robust performance now depends largely
on the global scenario and its repercussions
for the Indian economy as a whole.
Courtesy:
TIMES NEWS NETWORK, January 21, 2003
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SIDBI
Teams up with US Fund for $40-M VCF
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CHENNAI:
Small Industries Development Bank of India has
signed an MoU with Washington-based Small Enterprises
Assistance Fund to set up a $40m venture capital
fund exclusively for small enterprises.
In
its first phase, the fund will have a corpus
of $25m, of which Sidbi would contribute $5m.
Multinational financial institutions will fund
the rest. It is expected to become operational
in three months. PB Nimbalkar, chairman, SIDBI
said that the fund will open up financial avenues
that were so far closed to small enterprises.
Courtesy:
Times News Network, January 18, 2003
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MUMBAI:
Driven by fears that a war in Iraq may force
them to repatriate, Indians based in the Gulf
are sending their money home, swelling foreign
exchange reserves to record levels and shoring
up rupee sentiment.
India's
forex reserves, the world's seventh largest
at $70.75 billion and equivalent to 14 months
of imports, could top $80 billion by March,
analysts said.
More
than three million of India's 20 million overseas
Indians work in the Gulf and interest rate differentials
of nearly 200 to 250 basis points between the
rupee and foreign currency deposits were an
added attraction.
The
record reserves have encouraged global rating
agency Moody's to declare it may raise the country's
forex debt rating from "Ba2" in February. Such
an upgrade would boost inflows from expatriates
and foreign investors buying Indian assets,
traders said. Overseas workers also drew comfort
from India's dismantling of some its archaic
capital controls and make forex repatriation
easier, said MR Madhavan, analyst at Bank of
America.
Courtesy:
Reuters, January 16, 2003
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| Gail
Signs Pact with Iranian Firms |
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Rupees
Rise Against Dollar |
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NEW
DELHI: Gail India and National Iranian
Oil Company (NIOC)/ National Iranian Gas
Export Company (NIGEC) on Thursday signed
a memorandum of cooperation covering various
activities in natural gas, CNG and LNG
sectors.
Gail
chairman Proshanto Banerjee and NIOC/NIGEC
managing director R Javadi here signed
the memorandum of cooperation. The two
companies agreed to set up joint teams
to study and develop project opportunities
in identified areas of cooperation, a
release said.
Courtesy:
PTI , January 16, 2003
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Expatriates'
remittances and rising trade inflows have
helped the partially convertible rupee
to rise 0.55 per cent against the US dollar
in 2002, its first annual gain in more
than a decade, and 2.3 percent to 47.94/95
from its all-time low hit in mid-May.
Data
from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) shows
expatriates' deposits have risen nearly
$1.6 billion to $26.73 billion in the
first six months of the current year to
March. In the December quarter, deposits
may have grown by $1 billion to $1.5 billion
after an aggressive rate cut by the US
Fed Reserve in November, traders estimate.
Their remittances are expected to exceed
another $1.5 billion before the financial
year ends in March.
Courtesy:
Reuters, January 16, 2003
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'India
to be One of World's 10 Largest Auto Markets
by '10'
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BANGALORE:
Japanese automotive giant Toyota believes India
would be one of the 10 largest automotive markets
in the world by the year 2010 and it is working
out a suitable strategy for this country, a
top company official said.
Executive
Vice-President of Toyota Motor Corporation,
Yoshio Ishizaka said on Monday that the Japanese
company has unveiled an action plan to capture
15 per cent of the worldwide automobile market
in a decade 2010.
Ishizaka
said the Indian market has huge potential and
the country has been "positioned" in the company's
global strategy. Quoting experts, he said the
Indian automobile market is expected to increase
to 1.2 million units by 2005.
Courtesy:
PTI, January 13, 2003
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| Fox-Pitt
Rated HDFC the Best-Managed FI |
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ICICI
gets RBI Clearance to Foray Overseas to
Woo NRI Deposits |
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Fox-Pitt,
Kelton's (FPK) latest survey of Asia's
Best Managed Banks has identified Housing
Development Finance Corporation (HDFC)
as the best managed financial institution
in India and among best in the region.
This is by virtue of its superior cost
management, strong mergers and acquisitions
(M&A) track record and good corporate
governance.
Among
the top 44 banks, five Indian banks featured.
HDFC occupied no 6 slot, HDFC Bank 9,
ICICI Bank 21, SBI 31 and BoB 38.
ICICI
Bank found itself in third position. Its
low score is on account of poor financial
performance, judged on an ability to deliver
risk-adjusted revenues. Among the public
sector banks, State Bank of India management
is rated better than Bank of Baroda, reflecting
a management that is able to deliver better
financial performance. It has demonstrated
the ability to manage in a changing environment
by controlling cost and changing its loan
mix.
HDFC
scored the highest on corporate governance
with transparent disclosures and a focus
on shareholders' interests.
Courtesy:
www.businessstandard.com, January 13,
2003
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New
Delhi, January 13. India's leading
private sector bank, ICICI Bank has obtained
RBI clearance for foraying into UK, Canada,
China, Dubai and Singapore targeting NRI
deposits and trade accounts.
The
move is part of the broader strategy to
shore up its overseas business to 15-20
per cent of the bank's total business
in five years, ICICI Bank officials said
on Monday.
ICICI
Bank joint managing director, Lalita D
Gupte told PTI that the bank has already
obtained RBI nod for setting up subsidiaries
in UK and Canada, open a branch in Singapore
and representative offices in China and
Dubai (UAE). "There is lot of opportunity
in trade. Also there is the NRI diaspora.
We have come up with specialised products
for NRIs," she added.
ICICI
Bank, which is listed in New York Stock
Exchange, already has a representative
office in US but intends to expand its
network. Although ICICI Bank started its
'NRI Services' in January 2002, the last
two months has witnessed a 20 per cent
jump in NRI deposits.
Courtesy:
Press Trust of India
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Pharma
sector may post 10-15% growth in '02-03
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BANGALORE:
Indian pharmaceutical industry is likely to
see 10-15% increase in sales, production and
exports in '02-03 despite adverse conditions
globally. The industry witnessed a 15% increase
in sales last year ('01-02) and 13% in the year
before ('00-01), according to Ernst & Young's
global pharmaceutical report.
In
'01-02, the Indian pharma market was valued
at $4.5bn, representing 1.6% of the global market,
and is growing at an annual rate of 8-9%. Pharma
companies produce a complete range of finished
medicines, numbering about 60,000 and roughly
400 bulk drugs.
In
India, the pharma sector is one of the fastest
growing science-based industries. The Indian
industry produces nearly 8.5% of the world's
drugs and is among the top 15 drug manufacturing
countries and fifth largest manufacturer of
bulk drugs. About 24,000 companies are currently
producing bulk drugs and finished pharmaceuticals
- about 300 are in the organised sector, 15,000
are in small scale sector and the remaining
are small players.
Courtesy:
TIMES NEWS NETWORK, January 09, 2003
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Non-agri
GDP Growth Breaches 7% Mark
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The
GDP estimates for the second quarter (July-Sept)
of '02-03 released last week, show that, at
least for now, the forces of recovery in the
business cycle have overpowered the impact of
poor monsoon.
The
non-agricultural GDP growth rate crossed the
7% mark for the first time in ten quarters,
and thus largely maintained the growth momentum
of the first quarter. However, calculations
show that a close to 6% growth in H1 has still
not insured us fully against the possibility
of a growth lower than 5% for 2002-03 as a whole.
The
agricultural sector grew 4.4% in the first quarter
and accounted for 18% of the growth in overall
GDP. In the second quarter, the growth vanished
in agriculture, but the strength of recovery
in the manufacturing sector and the continuation
of robust performance of the services sector
resulted in the overall growth of 5.8%. During
the first half of 2002-03, the services sector
has accelerated considerably to 7.6% growth
compared to a growth of 6% in the same period
of last year.
Courtesy:
TIMES NEWS NETWORK, January 06, 2003
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SBI,
Canara to Set up JV Bank in Moscow
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CHENNAI:
"Commercial Bank of India", a joint venture
of State Bank of India and Canara Bank, is expected
to commence full-fledged operations in Moscow
by March end next.
Disclosing
this to reporters after inaugurating a renovated
branch of Canara Bank here, its executive director
N Kantha Kumar said clearance from the Russian
authorities was awaited for starting the new
bank, the first such joint venture between the
two banks. The bank would have an equity of
$20 million in the ratio of 60:40 by the SBI
and his bank, he said and added that the bank
would handle finances pertaining to exports
and imports from and to India.
He
said Canara Bank was also looking at the prospects
of starting a deposit taking company at Shanghai
in China in addition to the one at Hong Kong
known as International Finance Ltd. A bank representative
had already been sent to Shanghai to study the
feasibility for opening such an establishment
there, he said.
Courtesy:
PTI , January 05, 2003
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RBI
Investment in Overseas Securities up 64%
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MUMBAI:
The Reserve Bank of India's investment in overseas
securities has gone up 64% since March, even
as forex reserves have risen by a modest 25%.
According
to the latest data, RBI's investment in overseas
securities, which stood at $13.97 billion in
March 2002, rose to $22.97 billion by the end
of November. Of the $12.57-billion growth in
forex reserves during the March-November period,
71% has been invested in overseas paper. Despite
the surge in forex reserves, the RBI has chosen
to maintain the liquid component of reserves
in the form of currency and deposits, at around
$40 billion, for the third consecutive month.
The
central banks' investments in currency and deposits
with foreign banks has gone up 72% ($4.36 billion)
from $6.06 billion in end-March 2002 to $10.42
billion in November. The value of gold reserves
(11.5 million troy ounce) went up from $3 billion
to $3.3 billion.
Courtesy:
TIMES NEWS NETWORK, January 02, 2003
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Exports
Grow 15.62 Per Cent in November
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New
Delhi, January 1: The country's exports
clocked a 15.62 per cent growth during November
2002, over 50 per cent higher than the figure
of 9.62 per cent recorded during October 2002.
As a result, the April-November 2002 period
registered an impressive 15.65 per cent growth.
Reflecting a pick up in the industry, imports
posted a substantial increase of 28.95 per cent
during November 2002 and of 14.25 per cent during
April-November 2002 over the respective corresponding
periods in the last fiscal. This pushed up the
trade deficit to $6.24 billion during April-November
2002.
Exports
during April-November 2002 were valued at $32,865.10
million against $28,418.08 million during April-October.
Exports during November 2002 were valued at
$4,135.09 million against $3,576.32 million
in the previous month.
Courtesy:
www.indianexpress.com, January 2, 2003
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