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GHCL
Acquires UK's Retail Firm For Rs 233 cr
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Chemical
and textiles company GHCL Ltd has acquired
UK's leading retail home textile chain
Rosebys for about Rs 233 crore ($50 million).
In a filing on the Bombay Stock Exchange
the company said it acquired 100 per cent
equity in Rosebys through its overseas
wholly-owned subsidiary. Earlier this
month, the GHCL board had given its nod
for acquiring the UK-based home textile
retailer, which has a turnover of approximately
Rs 980 crore ($210 million) and over 300
stores in UK. The two companies had entered
into a Memorandum of Understanding, subject
to completion of due diligence and other
necessary formalities. Following this
acquisition, GHCL would become a fully-integrated
home textile company with presence across
spinning, weaving, product design and
development, sourcing and distribution
to retail stores.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, July 31, 2006
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India
Inc Spends More on Capital Goods
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Corporate
India has just completed a thriving growth
cycle. Higher turnover resulted in larger
margins, which in turn resulted in bigger
investment - spending on purchases of
fixed assets increased sharply in 2005-06
(ET July 24) - and bigger investment has
led to a rise in expenditure on technological
upgradation. This is reflected in sharp
rise in capital goods import. Apparently,
this would suggest that Corporate India
is finally using up its foreign exchange
earnings to drive growth. The economic
reform and subsequent quest for higher
competitiveness had put our industries
in desperate need for new technology and
high quality inputs, but cost of such
changeover proved a roadblock earlier.
The upsurge in external trade now has
given them the opportunity to acquire
better technology and high quality raw
materials. India's external trade is growing
rapidly. Exports have grown 23% in dollar
terms last year over 2004-05 while imports
have risen 27.7%. Big brothers of India
Inc have done even better. An ET survey
of 100 large companies found that their
aggregate exports have grown 27% in 2005-06.
Aggregate imports increased 35% during
the same period. Larger part of the rise
in imports, of course, was due largely
to a sharp rise in imports of raw materials
which accounts for more than three-fifths
of India Inc's total imports. But, what
is significant is that imports of capital
goods and stores and spares have increased
at a much faster rate last year - imports
of capital goods increased 63% against
35% rise in raw materials. The share of
capital goods in total imports as a result,
has gone up from 7.4% in 2004-05 to 9%
in 2005-06. A 9% share in total imports
may not look very impressive, but the
sharp rise in actual import does. For,
higher capital goods import not only indicates
acceleration in the rate of project implementation,
but it suggests strengthening of the competitiveness
of industries too. Indian industries depend
heavily on foreign sources for technological
upgradation - higher expenditure on capital
goods import will thus, give a boost to
their upgradation exercise and competitiveness
by extension. Reliance Industries which
spent Rs 9,427 crore of its cash flow
towards purchases of fixed assets in 2005-06,
for example, has sharply increased its
capital goods import.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, July 31, 2006
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M&M
to Set up Assembly Unit in Egypt
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Mahindra
& Mahindra has signed a long-term agreement
with Bavarian Auto Trading Company, an
Egyptian automobile manufacturer and trader,
for setting up a completely-knocked-down
(CKD) assembly unit in Egypt. M&M has
already made inroads into Egypt's tractor
market by exporting products from its
Jiangling plant in China. "The CKD unit
will be set up by the end of the year.
The entire investment for setting up the
plant will be made by the Egyptian partner,"
said Pawan Goenka, president (automotive),
M&M. The unit will make Scorpio and Bolero
utility vehicles and pick-ups for the
local and neighbouring markets. Bavarian
will be responsible for the distribution
and after-sales of Mahindra vehicles in
Egypt. "Initially, the venture will target
the Egyptian market. The idea is to eventually
use Egypt as a base for the neighbouring
markets," said Goenka. The market for
utility vehicles and pick-ups in Egypt
is estimated at 50,000 a year. According
to industry sources, M&M's Egyptian facility
should roll out 2,000 units in the first
year of its operations. Bavarian Auto,
one of the leading vehicle-makers in Egypt,
is also assembling and selling cars for
BMW and a few Chinese car-makers. Egypt,
like the neighbouring West Asian terrain,
is ideal for use of utility vehicles and
pick-ups. M&M already exports its vehicles
to West Asian markets including UAE, Qatar,
Kuwait and Oman. The other global markets
for M&M include South Africa, Europe and
Uruguay. M&M does not sell pick-ups in
India.
Courtesy:
Business Standard, July 31, 2006
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Survey
Paints Rosy Picture For Core Sector
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Coal,
electric power, oil & gas, crude oil,
steel and aluminium are the major core
sector segments that are projected to
record higher growth rate in the current
financial year, compared to the growth
rates recorded in the last fiscal. The
higher projection for this year will translate
into improved prospects for growth for
a range of industries in the engineering,
non-engineering and the services sectors,
according to the latest Core Sector Survey
brought out by FICCI. The FICCI Core Sector
Survey, based on responses from industry,
allied industry organisations, associations,
government and public sector undertakings,
reveals that the coal sector is projected
to grow at 6.5 per cent-7 per cent in
April-March 2006-07 compared with a growth
of 6.4 per cent during the corresponding
period of the previous year. Likewise,
electric power is slated to grow at 5.5
per cent-6 per cent (against 5.1 per cent);
oil & gas 0.8 per cent-1.4 per cent (-1.4
per cent); crude oil 0.5 per cent-1.2
per cent (-5.2 per cent); steel 7 per
cent-8 per cent (6.5 per cent and aluminium
8 per cent - 9 per cent (7.8 per cent).
It also confirms that the core sectors
can attain projected growth rates and
may even record higher growth than projected
in the coming years provided some of the
basic issues pertaining to each individual
sector are addressed. Some of these issues
relate to inverted duty structure, anomalous
import tariff, rising prices of basic
raw materials with inadequate availability.
Inadequate power and power cuts, poor
quality of coal and unstable supply have
become the major hurdles for user industries
in the core sector. Linkages between supplying
coal fields and powerhouses, transportation
bottlenecks in case of coal and cement
over long distances, continued environmental
problems, increase in water cut and increase
in water oil ratio in few developing fields
and less than anticipated production from
enhanced oil recovery projects in the
case of oil and gas, high taxes at all
levels - Centre/ State/ local (over 70
per cent of ex-factory price) for cement,
higher excise duty on steel and anti-dumping
duties on steel are some of the sector
specific issues and constraints.
Courtesy:
The Hindu, July 31, 2006
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British
Insurance Major to Outsource Jobs to India
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Hundreds
of Liverpool-based jobs in insurance major
Norwich Union are to be moved to India,
said the company. Norwich Union, one of
Liverpool's biggest employers, has announced
that it is closing its Water Street base,
with the loss of 321 jobs. The insurance
giant admitted some of the work would
be transferred to existing call centres
in India. The company, owned by insurance
giant Aviva, cited the growth of online
sales as a reason for the decision to
move jobs to India. Its city centre office
would shut by the end of October. A company
statement said Norwich Union would try
to find alternative jobs at the Moorfields
office or Sheffield. Of the 321 redundancies,
180 work in motor insurance customer services,
40 in home insurance and the rest in a
range of support and office roles. The
company said 45 Norwich Union Life staff,
and a small number of IT and HR staff
in the Water Street base were not included
in the job losses. In 2004, the company
announced plans to create 7,000 jobs overseas
by the end of 2007. Andy Case, national
secretary for finance union Amicus, said,
"We are shocked by this announcement which
will be a massive blow to our members
and to the local community. "Norwich Union
Direct is a successful operation and we
are deeply unhappy that the hard work
of staff is being repaid in this way.
"Some of this work is being off-shored
and we do not believe that a business
case can be made for this." Simon Machell,
chief executive of Norwich Union Insurance,
said, "It is always a difficult decision
to close any part of our operation with
the resulting impact on people and jobs,
but we have to remain competitive in a
constantly changing market. "We will do
everything we can to provide support and
possible redeployment for the people affected,
and to keep the number of compulsory redundancies
as small as possible."
Courtesy:
Hindustan Times, July 30, 2006
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Spices
Exports up Rs 48.91 cr in Q1
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Spices
exports from the country increased by
Rs 48.91 crore during the first quarter
of the current financial year to Rs 620.15
crore, while it declined by 6,544 tonnes
in quantity. Total exports during the
April-June quarter of 2006-07 stood at
83,375 tonnes (89,919 tonnes during the
year-ago period). The increase in value
could be attributed to the good performance
by value-added products such as spice
oils and oleoresins, mint products, and
curry powder, paste and condiments. The
contribution of these items in terms of
value was Rs 280.48 crore, around 45 per
cent of the total exports of Rs 620.15
crore. This has increased by Rs 12.68
crore from Rs 267.80 crore. Though there
was a decline in exports of mint products
to 2,650 tonnes (2,798 tonnes) in April-June
2005-06, the unit value increased from
Rs 464.52 a kg to Rs 543.77 a kg. Cumin
continued to increase, following short
supply from other origins. Shipments of
this item increased sharply to 7,500 tonnes
(2,066 tonnes). Similarly, garlic was
up at 8,500 tonnes (5,638 tonnes), and
ginger increased from 1,419 tonnes to
2,450 tonnes. Exports of vanilla increased
to 55 tonnes (17 tonnes). Exports of pepper
and cardamom (small) increased during
the first quarter , but their unit value
dropped. The thrust given to exports of
value-added products has, in recent years,
started yielding positive results, Spices
Board sources told Business Line.
Courtesy:
www.thehindubusinessline.com, July 27,
2006
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Two
Indians Among World's Top 25 Consultants
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After
IT professionals and corporate honchos,
its the turn of Indian business consultants
to gain recognition in the global arena.
N Chandrasekaran of the country's largest
IT firm Tata Consultancy Services and
global management consultancy Bain & Company's
Ashish Singh have figured in the 'Top
25 Business Consultants' list published
by the US-based Consulting Magazine. N
Chandrasekaran started his career in TCS
19 years ago and after advancing in the
managemant ranks spearheaded a major Tata
quality initiative, the results of which
formed the basis for expansion of its
development centres around the world.
Chandrasekaran is involved in the creation
of new business models considered vital
for Tata's future. The other Indians on
the list of top Business consultants,
Ashish Singh, co-founded three of Bain
and Company's business practice units
- Software, Media & Entertainment and
Pharmaceuticals.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, July 27, 2006
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Chennai
is Fast Becoming The Sum of All Parts
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In
Chennai, scores of auto component firms,
including the ones in the SME sector,
are charged with a new spirit of entrepreneurship.
For years, they were constrained by the
absence of large vehicle units and limited
export\outsourcing opportunities. The
rejuvenation of the auto sector in the
state was due to strong factors like excellent
work culture, skilled workforce, copious
supply of technical manpower and high
quality consciousness and cost competitiveness
of the local units. What has unlocked
and stirred their entrepreneurship is
the entry of global MNCs such as Ford,
Hyundai, HM-Mitsubishi, Visteon, Delphi
and now BMW. Together, the car makers
- Hyundai, Ford, Mitsubishi have invested
over $1bn (in terms of on-the-ground investments)
in greenfield projects, with the major
chunk of $600m coming from Hyundai. The
entry of these MNCs has transformed Chennai
into a motown to an extent that it is
now being called the Detroit of South
Asia. However, an industry veteran pointed
out: "It is a misnomer to call Chennai
as the Detroit of this region. While Chennai
has been gaining in strength as a major
auto hub, Detroit is actually stumbling
and is a dying auto capital." From not
a single car over a decade back to over
three lakh cars a year, Chennai has come
a long way."For every $100m the auto majors
invested, the component suppliers too
would have invested an additional one-third
of that to further strengthen the value
chain," say industry sources. The unstinted
support from local suppliers also enabled
the auto majors make a headstart in their
local content (80-90%). "Companies like
India Pistons, Wheels India, Brakes India,
Sundaram Clayton and Rane Group have really
contributed in critical areas of facilitating
the growth of Chennai as a major auto
hub," said the former head of an auto
major in Chennai. "These Tier I suppliers
have in turn developed a strong Tier II
network down the chain," he added. Further,
the home-grown ancillaries are equally
equipped with the best practices and compete
with global suppliers of OEMs, which have
set up facilities near these MNC automobile
plants. The SMEs are also taking part
with pride in the outsourcing boom, enabling
companies such as Ford to export components
to developed markets. "In some sectors,
the state had burst upon the national
scene virtually overnight. In less than
five years from 1995, Tamil Nadu went
from producing no cars to being the production
base of three top ranking international
automobile producers," states a Harvard
University study.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, July 27, 2006
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Indian
Autos Make it Big in Brighton
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The
humble Indian auto-rickshaw has become
the "ride of one's life" and the "vehicle
of choice" 10 days after it started plying
in resurgent Brighton, Britain's most
elegant and popular seaside resort in
the 19th century. And its Swedish-Tamil
importer is adamant the auto has a glittering
future across Europe. It runs on CNG,
has trademark open sides and the facility
to dribble through traffic-clogged roads
across the continent. So, the auto is
on a roll, businessman Dominic Ponniah
assured TOI. Passenger figures appear
to attest to this. Each of Ponniah's 12
autos in Brighton do at least a thousand
miles a week. By year-end, Ponniah will
import 100 more autos from India for a
planned roll out in London and other major
British and European cities. By this time
next year, say admiring observers, the
auto may have become India's biggest palliative
contribution to European city-planners'
biggest headache - supplying cheap, fast,
eco-friendly transport. Before then, however,
Ponniah will have Euro-fitted his autos
with blankets and hot-water bottles, an
innovation he hopes will take the Indian
vehicles into the realm of Euro-friendly
vehicles. The auto's success may be measured
by the lyrical words of Brighton residents
like Maria. She said her first auto ride
was "joyous and so much cheaper than a
taxi I plan to do it again and again".
And she added, in what is expected to
be the British Indian auto's ad tagline,
"It's green too, even though it's in every
colour. What more can I want?"
Courtesy:
The Times of India, July 27, 2006
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Indian
Firms Conclude 24 Outbound Acquisitions
in May-June
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Indian
entrepreneurs continued their overseas
shopping spree with homegrown firms concluding
24 outbound acquisitions out of a total
of 58 during May-June period, industry
chamber Assocham said. The mergers and
acquisitions were mostly in engineering,
IT-ITES, pharmaceuticals and energy sectors.
There were three outbound deals in each
of these areas in the two-month period,
the chamber said quoting its Eco Pulse
study. Corporates such as Wipro, Tata
Motors, Nicholas Piramal, Larsen & Tubro,
Raymond's and Lupin Laboratories led the
acquisition race overseas, it said. In
recent acquisitions, NIIT Technologies
Ltd (NTL) took over UK-based insurance
solutions provider ROOM Solutions Ltd
for about $25 million in an all-cash deal,
Godrej Beverages and Foods acquired Nutrine
Confectionery company for about Rs 250
crore and Lupin Ltd purchased 51 per cent
stake in Belgium's Artifex Finance CVA,
the report said. On the domestic front,
cement, IT&ITES, telecom, pharmaceutical
and retail sector witnessed maximum number
of deals. Energy sector accounted for
eight deals, followed by engineering and
technology (IT & ITES) sector with six
deals each. Pharmaceuticals sector struck
out five deals during this period and
Telecom and FMCG sector witnessed four
deals each, it said. - PTI
Courtesy:
www.thehindubusinessline.com, July 27,
2006
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Iron
Ore Production Doubles in 5 Years
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Iron
ore production in the country has almost
doubled during the past five years, with
the private sector's share in total production
showing marked improvement. Exports also
have gone up by around 260 per cent during
this period, according to the figures
placed by the Ministry of Mines in Parliament
on Wednesday. According to Government
data, the share of private sector in the
total iron ore produced in 2001-02 was
41,128 thousand tonnes (47.69 per cent).
The private sector's share has improved
significantly since then, touching 95,437
thousand tonnes in 2005-06 out of a total
production of 1,54,250 thousand tonnes,
accounting for 61.87 per cent. The share
of public sector companies came down from
52.31 per cent in 2001-02 to 38.13 per
cent in 2005-06. Overall production grew
by 78.89 per cent, from 86,226 thousand
tonnes in 2001-02 to 1,54,250 thousand
tonnes in 2005-06. Export of iron ore
witnessed a quantum jump from 23,086 thousand
tonnes in 2001-02 to 83,166 thousand tonnes
in 2004-05, marking a growth of 260.24
per cent.
Courtesy:
www.thehindubusinessline.com, July 27,
2006
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India's
Earnings From Foreign Tourism Doubles
in Three Years
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Reflective
of India's growing popularity as a tourist
destination, the country's earnings from
foreign tourists has almost doubled between
2002 and 2005. The foreign exchange earnings
from inbound tourism, estimated at 2923
million dollars (approx 13153.5 crore)
in 2002 rose to 5731 million dollars (approx
25789.5 crore) in 2005, showing a growth
of 96 per cent in three years time, Union
Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni
told Rajya Sabha in reply to a question.
Soni said her Ministry has taken several
initiatives for promoting arrivals of
foreign tourists and increasing earnings
from tourism that include the 'Incredible
India' campaign, creation of world class
collaterals, centralised electronic media
campaign, focusing on growth of hotel
infrastructure and direct cooperative
marketing with airlines, tour operators
and wholesalers overseas. Orissa: The
Centre has identified the Bhubaneshwar-Dhauli-Puri-Konark
circuit in Orissa for development as a
major tourist draw. Soni said the Government
has sanctioned Rs 720.09 lakh during 2005-06
for integrated development of the circuit.
In reply to another question, the Minister
said MoUs have been signed between the
Orissa Government and three hotel companies
for setting up star hotels in the state.
Star hotels are proposed to be set up
in places like Bhubaneshwar, Puri, Konark,
Paradeep, Duburi, Jharsuguda, Satapda
and Barakul within three years. Soni also
told the House that her Ministry had prepared
a 20-year perspective tourism plan for
Orissa, which has been sent to the State
Government for their guidance.
Courtesy:
The Hindu, July 26, 2006
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12,793
Indians Use eBay as Their Primary or Secondary
Source of Income
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New
research released by eBay India, India's
leading online marketplace, shows that
nearly 31 per cent of eBay sellers or
12,800 Indian entrepreneurs including
many businesses, make a primary or secondary
source of income selling on eBay India.
An independent survey was conducted in
June 2006 by AC Nielsen with eBay sellers
across USA, Canada & Asia-Pacific. Indian
entrepreneurs are rapidly embracing the
internet in search of successful online
business opportunities with around 38%
of the current eBay India sellers quitting
their jobs to sell on eBay! As many as
9% of eBay sellers see eBay as their primary
source of income. Gautam Thakar, Country
Manager, eBay India Marketplace says,
"India is a nation of entrepreneurs and
they are embracing the internet & eBay
to find cost-effective and simple solutions
for creating an online business and accessing
more customers. eBay provided them with
a global marketplace and access to 203
million potential buyers. The zero upfront
investment required to start an eBay business
attracts the entrepreneur in every Indian
and has helped thousands of Indians join
the 1.3 million eBay sellers who make
their livelihood on eBay."
Courtesy:
agencyfaqs.com, July 26, 2006
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Now,
India a Hub For Design Outsourcing
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In
a small basement office in south Delhi,
some 20 designers are busy sketching the
outlines of new product lines for global
giants - the likes of Whirlpool and Reckitt
Benckiser - and, in the process, redesigning
the face of outsourcing in India. "While
some of these products are being designed
with the Indian consumer in mind, a major
chunk is for the global audience," says
a 20-something designer, working on a
new washing machine design. Offshoring
of jobs to India - which started off with
callcentres and back-office jobs like
accounting - has today spread to include
high-end product design work and even
packaging and graphic designs . As manufacturers
look at reducing costs and product development
cycles, India is fast emerging as the
new-age design board for MNCs. The result:
MNCs like Whirlpool, GE, LG, Philips and
Bosch are setting up research and design
centres in India. And some others like
Reckitt are offshoring design work to
Indian design houses. "Outsourcing design
jobs to India started in a small way,
but is going to be big. This is the latest
trend in the world of manufacturing. A
product is today conceived in the US,
designed in India, manufactured in China
and sold in markets across the globe,"
says Anuj Prasad, chief designer at Delhi-based
Desmania Design. While consumer electronics
manufacturers and FMCG firms lead the
pack in outsourcing design work to India,
Prasad says a growing number of multinationals
are fast waking up to the potential of
this market. The expertise of Indian designers
in 3D modeling and plant engineering in
sectors like aerospace, automotive and
industrial design has already caught the
attention of leading companies from both
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