The Pradhan Mantri Bharat Joro Pariyojna (PM-BJP) has finally taken off. Bidding was completed for seven sections worth Rs 2,799-3,110 crore on Tuesday. PM-BJP covers 10,000 km or roughly Rs 40,000-crore worth of road projects. Sources told ET that since no single company is to get more than one project, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is likely to award the Meerut-Muzaffarnagar to NCC-Mytas and the Bharatpur-Mahua project to Madhucon-Srei. Three bids have come in for the Rs 250-crore, 55-km Bharatpur-Mahua (Rajasthan) project. Madhucon-Srei JV has asked for the least capital grant of Rs 96 crore, with Rs 61 crore as the NPV grant. Apollo-JIL-DSC-LOR JV has asked for a total capital grant of Rs 175 crore, with an NPV grant of Rs 97 crore. Gammon has bid a figure of Rs 267 crore for the total grant and Rs 162 for the NPV grant. Four JVs have bid for the Rs 483-crore, 110-km Mahua-Jaipur (Rajasthan) project. IJM is the likely winner, having bid a total grant of Rs 99 crore and NPV grant of Rs 66 crore. Gammon has asked for a total grant of Rs 177 crore and an NPV grant of Rs 108 crore. NCC-Mytas JV has bid Rs 232 crore as total and Rs 148 crore as NPV capital grant. Apollo-JIL-DSC-LOR JV has the highest bid of Rs 318 crore as total capital grant and Rs 177 crore as NPV grant.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 15, 2004

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After lapping up Alpharma to make an entry into France, the Ahmedabad-based pharma major Zydus Cadila Healthcare is now surfing the Spanish market for an acquisition. The company is learnt to have initiated talks with some small-sized generic companies for the proposed acquisition. Sources familiar with the developments said Zydus Cadila is currently holding negotiations directly with the companies and has not appointed any merchant banker for assisting it in the proposed acquisition. Sources close to the company said Zydus is looking for a company with a reasonably big product basket so that it could start off its operations there straight away with some market share. Besides this, Zydus Cadila is planning to file dossiers for another 10-12 products in France this year. Besides the Spanish acquisition plans, Zydus is also learnt to be negotiating with the German pharma major Altana Pharma for expanding the scope of the business of their 50:50 joint venture, Zydus Altana Healthcare Ltd. Zydus currently supplies only the intermediates for Altana's protonix drug. Sources said Zydus is now negotiating for bagging the supply of the API (active pharma ingredients) for this drug as well.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 15, 2004

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On Tuesday, software major Infosys officially became a billion dollar company. Or $1.1 billion to be precise. For those more comfortable with crores, that's over Rs 4,800 crore in revenue for the year 2003-04. While declaration of corporate annual results are normally boring affairs, Infosys did it with a flourish few could have matched. The company brass, from chief mentor and chairman N.R. Narayana Murthy down, turned up in blue T-shirts that carried the legend - Infosys: A Billion Dollar Company. For once, the usually reserved Narayana Murthy let fly the superlatives. "With an income of just $40,000 in the first year and $120 million in 1999, we have become the fastest IT company to reach this goal," he said. Founded in 1981, Infosys went public in 1993 when there were few takers for its shares. Narayana Murthy explained: "If you bought one share for Rs 95 in 1994, at present rates it would be something like Rs 88,000."

Courtesy: Hindustan Times, April 14, 2004

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Reliance Group has emerged as India's largest wealth creator in the private sector for the financial year 2003-04. The group has increased its shareholders' wealth in terms of market capitalisation by Rs 50,606 crores. Its market capitalisation has increased from Rs 44,362 crores as on March 31, 2003 to Rs 94,968 crores as on March 31, 2004. RIL, in a statement issued here said that, according to a study carried out by the Centre For Monitoring Indian Economy, the Tata Group and the Bharti Group are second and third amongst the 'Largest Wealth Creators' in the private sector.Tata Group's market capitalisation increased by Rs 36,964 crores while that of telecom major Bharti Group rose by Rs 23,463 crores. The "Top 10 largest wealth creators" for the year 2003-04 together added market capitalisation worth Rs 1,80,391 crores. In the 'Individual Companies Category', Reliance Industries Ltd has emerged as the 'Largest Wealth Creator' amongst the private sector companies. During the 12 month period ended March 31, 2004, RIL - the flagship company of the Reliance Group, has seen its market capitalisation surge by Rs 36,529 crores. Its m-cap has increased from Rs 38,603 crores as on March 31, 2003 to Rs 75,132 crores on March 31, 2004. At the second position, Bharti Tele-Ventures Ltd. has added wealth in terms of m-cap to the tune of Rs 23,417 crores followed by Tata Motors at the third slot at Rs 11, 866 crores.

Courtesy: The Asian Age, April 14, 2004

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Close on the heels of acquiring Daewoo Commercial Vehicle Co in Korea, Tata Motors has signed an agreement with a Russian company to assemble 5,000 trucks annually in Russia. The company signed the agreement on Monday with Russian company S K Prom, an automobile manufacturer in Sverdlovsk region, for the assembly of trucks at the Urals plant. "The plant plans to assemble 400 Tata-407 and Tata-613 trucks before the end of 2004," the company's general director Pavel Chernavin was quoted as saying by news agency Interfax. The agency said that the first trucks should be ready by May. Tata Group's V Krishnan told UNI on phone from Mumbai that the initial deal for 400 trucks was valued at $3.5 million. However, he said exact details about the agreement can be known only after the company's team returns from Russia. He said, the agreement marked a major foray of the company in Russia where currently it does not export vehicles.

Courtesy: The Pioneer, April 14, 2004

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At a time when US, Inc. is gripped by poll fever and stricken by the BPO backlash, the $3 billion Qualcomm, global pioneers in CDMA technology, is hiring afresh in India. San Diego-based Qualcomm is locating a brand new software development centre in Hyderabad and putting in place a 100-member local developer team. Qualcomm, at present, has a business development arm in India that operates as an international division of Qualcomm's California-based business development group headed by Mr Jeff Jacobs, son of Qualcomm founder and CEO, Mr Irwin Jacobs. Qualcomm officials said, "The upcoming Hyderabad software complex will be involved in writing software that goes into Qualcomm's CDMA chipsets which run all CDMA handsets worldwide." Incidentally, Qualcomm's offshore development centre in Hyderabad will be a division of Qualcomm Inc. It will directly report to Qualcomm's chipset division in the US, which accounts for more than 50 per cent of Qualcomm's $3 billion global revenues. Company sources said the Hyderabad centre will be involved in designing BREW-enabled software applications. BREW (Binary run time & environment in wireless) is the latest CDMA digital wireless technology platform that is slated to power bulk of all future CDMA mobile phones worldwide. Qualcomm has recently inked agreements with Tata Teleservices and Reliance Infocomm for developing and implementing BREW-based applications on CDMA mobile phones, a Qualcomm source said.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 14, 2004

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Chennai, April 13: India's business process outsourcing (BPO) segment, a virtually non-existent space a few years ago, has grown to $2 billion now. The industry expects a steady growth in this segment, as India is still a favourable destination for back office jobs because of its well-developed communication infrastructure, stable business environment and highly skilled technical talent pool. According to a recent study by the BPO committee of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham) and International Data Corporation (IDC), certain limitations of countries competing in this space have put them a shade behind India. China has limitation in terms of English-speaking capability. Mexico is good for low-end jobs. Canada and South Africa are costlier than India. In order to overtake India in BPO, they will have to overcome these disadvantages. The question, however, is: How long can the Chinese power be curbed? It has the potential to become a major BPO power in the world, according to ICRA. The main strengths of China in the global outsourcing market are its manufacturing prowess and rising IT competence. The Chinese Government is proactive towards the BPO sector. For instance, it has invested over $5.4 billion in nine universities to promote English language and other skill sets. Today, most clients want to look at offshoring. The obvious reason is to reduce operating costs, by up to 50 per cent in some cases, since hourly rates for workers in Asia and other emerging markets are anywhere between 30 and 75 per cent lower than they are in the U.S. According to an estimate by Forrester Research, 3.3 million U.S. service-industry jobs will go offshore in the next 15 years. Phaneesh Murthy, CEO, iGATE Global Solutions, feels jobs will migrate to where it can be done best. There are, no doubt, factors that benefit Indian companies. What will this mean to India in the next 2-5 years? According to a few IT analysts, global sourcing is causing downward price pressure on all service providers, domestic and foreign. To compete on the price front with Indian companies such as Infosys Technologies and Wipro Technologies, the U.S. service providers will need to open centres in India and elsewhere.In spite of added advantages, the industry still feels a threat to the Indian BPO. The fact is that workers' unions in the West have begun a huge campaign against jobs being shifted to low-cost centres. This pressure is also proving a major threat to India. In the present scenario, Indian companies should continue to deliver value to customers and further improve upon that by way of productivity and effective gains, says Shiva Ramani, Chief Executive Officer, Slashsupport. The focus should be on quality and not the cost being the driver for new businesses, he feels. Going forward, BPO, in which companies contract for services ranging from HR record keeping to basic accounting and airline reservations services, will explode, from $ 110 billion in 2002 to $173 billion in 2007, according to Gartner. In the future, the focus will be less on offshoring discrete processes within a department and more on moving the entire (all of HR, for example) offshore. In future, the situation for BPO companies is going to be tough, says the Assocham-IDC study. The players will have to deal with business-critical issues such as the upfront capital requirements, increasing competition, declining pricing and the much needed market reach in prominent geographies. To hedge their bets, smart companies will focus on developing a true global delivery model, hiring multiple vendors in multiple locations, depending upon which can provide the best quality at the best price for each service.

Courtesy: The Hindu, April 14, 2004

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United Nations has accredited the Netherlands-based Det Norske Veritas (DNV) to validate projects in developing countries, which are targeted at reducing green house gas emissions. Such projects, upon validation, would become eligible to receive funds from the developed nations. C Kumaraswamy, Green House expert and Product Manager, DNV, Bangalore, said at a press conference here today that the company was the first to get the accreditation from UN's Climate Change panel. Climate change had emerged as a major international concern and all the countries that signed the Kyoto Protocol on clean development mechanism had agreed to reduce their emission levels by five per cent from the levels persisting since 1999, he said. The protocol had also provided for extending financial assistance to projects in the developing countries, which emit less gases, he added. To be eligible for the assistance, the projects had to be validated and certified by authorised bodies like DNV he said.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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EDS, one of the world's largest outsourcing services companies, and Tata Consultancy Services, Asia's biggest software services firm, are in the race to buy US insurance giant Phoenix's 100 per cent stake in its Bangalore-based BPO outfit Phoenix Global Solutions, industry sources said. EDS, which already has a large operation in the country, is believed to be conducting due diligence of the outfit's operations and financials. "They are close to it, but TCS is also there," the sources said, adding that EDS may well pip the Indian software giant and clinch the deal. The development comes in the wake of consolidation in the domestic BPO industry, sparked off last week by IBM's acquisition of Daksh, the Gurgaon-based BPO firm. Global companies eager to acquire capacities to take advantage of the boom in outsourcing are targetting small and medium-sized firms, who lack financial muscle to withstand competition. Sources said the Indian outfit is a leading player in the financial services sector, especially insurance, with facilities in both Hartford and Bangalore. The US parent has been looking to sell its stake in the Indian outfit for more than two years now. Mindtek, owned by TAIB Bank, was in talks to buy the firm through a share swap in 2002, but the talks did not lead anywhere.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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Close to $5billion worth non-performing assets (NPAs) are expected to be resolved by banks in the next 12-18 months, said a Ernst & Young (E&Y) study. In its latest 'Global non-performing loans report '04,' E&Y has said that the development of a framework for asset management companies and a strong potential for economic growth in the country, India could see NPA transactions worth $5bn over the next 12-18 months. By many measures, India appears to be succeeding in addressing its NPA problem, when compared with other Asian countries. As far as the Asian region is concerned, E&Y estimates that the region has succeeded in removing NPAs worth more than $1trn since the late '90s crisis.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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India is set for record harvests after the best monsoon in a decade and Asia's third largest economy is on the cusp of higher growth, thanks to low interest rates and rising capital inflows. The government's quarterly economic statement released on Friday said prospects for the agriculture sector, which directly supports almost 70 per cent of Indians, brightened considerably after last year's above normal June-September monsoon. "The estimated food grains production this year is set to cross the peak performance of 212.02 million tonnes and is poised to touch 212.20 million tonnes," the statement said. "The production of crops such as pulses and oilseeds has improved considerably." The report forecast oilseeds production at a record 24.9 million tonnes - a shot in the arm for the world's largest importer of edible oils.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, in its study "Fair Globalisation" claims that contrary to the general belief, India, after a decade of reforms has become "a more open economy than the world's two largest economies: the United States and Japan." The assertion is based on the increase in the share of merchandise and services export in the GDP. The share of India's external merchandise trade in GDP has gone up from 11.7% in 1991 to 22.6% in 2002. During the same period the share of external services trade has increased from 3.3% to 7.7% of GDP. For the US, the share of external merchandise trade as percentage of GDP was 15.5% in 1991 and 18.2% in 2002, while external services trade moved from 4.1% to 4.7%. While for Japan, the share of share of external merchandise trade as percentage of GDP was 15.8% in 1991 and 18.9% in 2002, while external services trade moved from 3.7% in 1991 to 4.3% in 2001. The FICCI study does reveal that Indian economy has integrated rapidly into the global economy since the reforms of 1991. FICCI president YK Modi said, "India's extent of integration with the global economy has gone up sharply since early nineties." Talking about the rationale of this study, Mr Modi said, "We decided to carry out this research as India was often referred as a closed economy, which has not opened up much. The research certainly beats that myth."

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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Domestic demand boosted by the best monsoon rains in a decade helped India's industrial output to soar in February and analysts said factories would continue to enjoy strong growth in the months ahead. Government data released showed industrial output in February was 7.4% higher than the same month a year before, when growth had registered at 7%. Output was also 7.4% higher in January '04 and analysts say the February figures show the sector is on course to achieve a 7% growth estimate for the year to March. Industry accounts for nearly a quarter of India's gross domestic product (GDP). The capital goods sector, which reflects the level of industrial activity, grew by 24.7% in February compared with a 5.1% rise in February '03. The manufacturing sector was 6.7% larger in February compared with 7.1% growth in the year-ago period. "The manufacturing sector is performing much better than the previous years," said Indranil Pan, economist with Kotak Mahindra Bank. Between April and February, industrial output grew 6.7%, compared with 5.8% growth in the same period one year before. The economy is on a high, estimated to have grown by 8.1% in the year to March '04, boosted by a rebound in the farm sector and solid growth in manufacturing and services. Nearly 70% of Indians depend on the farm sector, so a bumper harvest puts more money in their pockets to splurge. Demand for mobile phones, cars, televisions have shot up as consumers also enjoy decades-low interest rates and attractive hire-purchase schemes.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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Automakers have every reason to be excited by the burst in consumer spending in the just concluded fiscal year. The biggest gainer in real numbers in FY '03-04 was the compact car or B segment where some 70,000 more cars were sold. The numbers rose from 2,99,525 in FY '02-03 to 3,69,600 cars, translating into a 23% growth. Following in close succession is the mid-size C segment cars where some 46,700 units have been added to the previous year's tally. It has raced up by 50% from 92,638 to 1,39,400 units in FY '03-04. The third area of significant opportunity is the relatively young executive sedan segment. Also called the D segment, it has leapfrogged by 101% from 8,237 cars in FY '02-03 to 16,576 units. The rise in the sales of the Maruti 800, India 's first small car, is another indicator of the regular upgradation of two wheeler users to an entry level car, driven largely by softening of prices and ease of car finance at attractive terms. Similarly, among the mid-size cars, the Accent and Indigo are the clear leaders, ahead of competition by miles. In fact, the difference in numbers between the Hyundai (28,231) and Tata (28,000) cars is very marginal. The Honda City, powered by its new look model, has surged ahead from 11,992 units in FY 02-03 to 18,384 units, while the Ikon has grown from 14,961 to 20,881 units. Honda Accord has topped the charts among the premium or E segment cars with sales of 2109 units.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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Indian pharma companies, in the herbal and ayurvedic segment, eager to tap the $60 billion herbal drug market may soon have to pass a new regulatory hurdle for export of their medicinal plant based products. A new quality code, Good Agricultural and Collection Practices (GACP), has been drafted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to ensure production of herbal medicines which are of good quality, safe, sustainable and which would not pose any threat to either people or the environment. It would soon be imperative for the governments to enforce GACP in their drug regulatory system before permitting any such drug to be marketed in their respective countries. "The GACP guideline is a result of a long-term need for the promotion of organic cultivation of the plants that would ensure better quality of raw materials. WHO has recognised that herbal medicines, popularised in the international markets by India and China, could be the natural answer to many ailments. However the international body has tracked a significant rise of patients experiencing negative health consequences caused by the use of herbal medicines. In addition to patient safety issues, WHO has taken note of the fact that there is a risk that a growing herbal market and its great commercial benefit might pose a threat to biodiversity through over-harvesting of the raw materials for herbal medicines and other natural health care products.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 13, 2004

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Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is learnt to have joined the race to acquire Hughes Software Systems, the Delhi-based telecom software services company, in which its existing promoters News Corp has invited bids to divest its entire 55 per cent stake. The stage is now set for an aggressive fight between potential bidders for Hughes Software management control since several multinational firms, both strategic and financial investors, have shown interest in acquiring the company. Sources familiar with the development said that TCS is pitching in with an aggressive bid since the company is keen to develop its telecom practice which already contributes to over 20 per cent of its total revenues with clients like British Telecom, Singapore Telecom and NTT of Japan. Hughes Software is a leading player in the IT outsourcing market which provides services to more than 180 customers worldwide, in the telecom infrastructure, communication service provider and business process outsourcing sectors.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 12, 2004

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The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Ltd has discovered gas reserves at Khedabari village in Sonamura sub-division of West Tripura district with a production capacity of over two lakh cubic metre per day, Director (Exploration) of ONGC, Y.B Sinha today said. The discovery of gas is very important in view of the 280 MW power plant coming up in the area near Monarchak being established by North-East Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO), he said. Sinha said the ONGC would soon start seismic survey in Mizoram and striking oil in Nagaland. He said more than 300 tonnes of Oil were produced every day from Nagaland but the activity of ONGC was stopped during 1994-95 due to Naga insurgency, but it would resume soon. The Director said the ONGC had discussed the matter with the Central Government and Chief Minister of Nagaland and both have shown interest in this regard. He said the latest business stewart survey has recognised ONGC as the biggest wealth creator (Rs 22630 crores) in the country over the period 1998-2003. Sinha said disinvestment of 10 per cent equity share has made the ONGC more stronger which according to him is a very successful experiment.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 12, 2004

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The country's largest carmaker Maruti Udyog is getting aggressive about its diesel project now. The company is learnt to be in negotiations with Peugeot of France to set up a dedicated facility to manufacture diesel engines for passenger cars and sports utility vehicles. Peugeot already supplies diesel engines to Maruti for the Zen and Esteem models. However, shortage of Peugeot engines have affected sales of the Zen diesel in the past. Suzuki officials have, meanwhile, said they want Maruti to have its own capability for the production of diesel engines. Though details of the project can't be confirmed, the unit is most likely to be set up as a joint venture with French vehicle maker. The proposed unit is learnt to have the blessings of Maruti's parent, Suzuki Motors of Japan, as well. It will not only meet Maruti's requirement but will also service other vehicles manufacturers in India and exports. "The project would be similar to what Hindustan Motors is trying to do," says a source close to the development. Hindustan Motors' has emerged as one of the largest suppliers of engines and power trains in India and its client list includes Ford Motors and General Motors India (GMI). At present, diesel-powered vehicles account for just 5% of Maruti vehicles sold in India against the industry average of 15%. The company plans to narrow this gap.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 12, 2004

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If the Hindi blockbuster Border popularised the lines Subhe ka nashta Jaisalmer mein, Dopahar ka khana Jaipur mein aur Raat ki daawat Delhi mein, Bangalore-based Karuturi Floritech is seeking to do the same in the floriculture industry through a trucking service which aims to provide farm-fresh flowers in distant markets like Nagpur and New Delhi. The new service which has already run once from Bangalore will connect key floriculture centres. "The service aims to make available fresh flowers to both wholesalers and retailers. While trucking costs were 20% less than that of air freight, the flowers sent by truck fetched around 40% premium as dispatches by air suffered from a break in cold chain, leading to loss of freshness. The company aims to source produce also from only areas adjoining Bangalore but also from other regions like Kolhapur and Sangli besides Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 12, 2004

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With an eye on the international pipeline projects Gail (INDIA) Ltd has entered into a marketing pact with DuPont India. Accordingly, DuPont will help Gail in identifying international customers specially in Turkey, Iran, China and other Asian countries for its pipeline projects, in return, Gail will use the three layer polyethylene pipe coating system in India and abroad. The agreement will see Gail using DDG system as a preferred choice for all its pipeline projects in India and abroad. Gail is already using DDG system in its Dahej-Vijaipur pipeline project. DDG system comprises DuPont Fusabond adhesive products, DuPont Nap-Gard epoxy powder and Gail's high-density polyethylene resin all of which are used in pipe coating. "DuPont and Gail have been working together for the past few months to develop customised polyehylene compounds and resins offered under the alliance," said Proshanto Banerjee, CMD, Gail (India). The DDG three-layer polyethlene system is one of the most advanced and widely used coatings for steel pipes. It is also considered to be environment friendly.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 12, 2004

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India's traditional industry of pickle is set to get a major boost with the government considering establishment of a food park here to facilitate business in the sector. A food park will go a long way in giving a fillip to the sector", Delhi's industry minister Mangat Ram Singhal said here. He assured that around 300 acre land will be earmarked to develop a pickles food park which will ensure that all units and related set-ups function under a single roof. He said there had been a major upswing in exports which have risen a massive 45.4 per cent to 56,384 tonnes in 2002-03 from 38,758 tonnes in the previous fiscal. This year exports are expected to be over 65,000 tonnes. According to the latest official data, the value fetched have also been on the rise and was a significant Rs 154.16 crore during the period against Rs 120.34 crore in 2001-02, an increase of 28.3 per cent.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 12, 2004

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Prof Jagdish N Sheth needs no introduction. He's spent close to quarter of a century teaching in the US with institutes like MIT, University of Illinois and Columbia University. Known as the father of relationship marketing, he is, at present, professor of marketing at the Emory University. He was in New Delhi to deliver a lecture on 'The New Frontiers in Brand Building'. Here are his views on the strengths and weaknesses of Brand India.

What is your perception of the current feel-good factor that apparently is making India shine?

It is for the first time since Independence that a conscious effort has been made to bring in a semblance of national identity in India. All this while, India has had a diffused identity. There may be a degree of hype in the current feel-good factor, but personally, I welcome it because in the current phase of a marketing-led global world, nations do need to have a distinct brand identity. And they do need to make concerted efforts to expand the awareness of their brand.

What steps does India need to take to strengthen its brand appeal globally?

India must reposition and restructure its economy to be globally competitive. No country has become an economic superpower without strong exports. The key to their success has been exports to the most demanding markets. However, to succeed in the most demanding markets, a country has to be globally competitive, which in turn means having better products and services at competitive prices. India should identify the sectors or industries it could develop a global edge in. It may also need to align itself with one of the triad powers - US, European Union or ASEAN for a strong market to push its products in.

Given the fact that EU is a self-sustained group and ASEAN isn't too keen on India, does India have too many options on this count?

Political alignments are increasingly being determined by economic concerns. And since EU is more or less a consolidated group, India won't fit in there. ASEAN also, doesn't look very assuring. The US is certainly a very good option and India has already started making the right moves to get close to the economic superpower. The incumbent government seems to have zeored in on the US. And it serves the purpose for both the countries as their economies can complement each other in more ways than one.

Which are the sectors India can attain a global edge in?

Information Technology sector has fared well so far, but that's because of the cost advantages that Indian companies enjoy. The second phase of evolution for the IT industry may be difficult as it will require huge investments as well as consolidating on core competencies. Nevertheless, IT remains an industry Indian companies can do well in. India, however, must focus on its export strengths. Diamond industry, dairy, processed food, pharma and textiles are some areas where Indian manufacturers can score. In services, organised retail looks like an attractive proposition but the sector may soon be overpowered by American and British retailers. WalMart is already keenly looking at India. However, India may tighten its hold on R&D, healthcare and hospitality.

Why is Brand China's perceived value greater than that of India globally?

China has a very strong army of brand ambassadors in the form of non-resident Chinese. This group is not only selling China well outside, but is also a major investor in the Chinese economy. As is known, three-fourths of the FDI that China gets is thanks to non-resident Chinese. Whereas India has completely failed in tapping this resource. NRIs, till the recent past, were a completely detached group. The incumbent government has taken some welcome steps to strike a friendly chord with them. NRIs in the US and Europe are a very resourceful group, both economically and politically, and their strengths, if leveraged judiciously, will open up an additional channel to access these markets. But that's not the only strength that China has. The country is pretty much stronger than India on infrastructure and manufacturing fronts. Their quality standards are much more superior. India needs to set global production and manufacturing standards instead of domestic ones if it wants to compete globally.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 12, 2004

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India 's coffee export for 03-04 fiscal is estimated to have increased by 5.72% in value terms and by 6.10% in terms of quantum as compared to fiscal 02-03, according to the provisional Coffee Board statistics. In quantum terms, the Coffee Board estimates that at least 220,000 tonnes were exported during the 03-04 fiscal, up from 207,333 tonnes shipped out during 02-03. The final figure could even be higher as the Coffee Board issued shipment-permits for 236,241 tonnes during fiscal 03-04, as compared to permits for 208,126 tonnes during the previous fiscal of 02-03. Figures of actual shipments for '03-04 fiscal are provisional since exporters take a few weeks to submit proof of shipments to the Coffee Board. In value terms, the Coffee Board estimates that a dollar-value realisation of 247.28 million could have been achieved during 03-04, up from $233.88 million for the previous fiscal.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 09, 2004

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It's India's turn to get rich by caring for the world's sick and needy. A Rs 10,000 crore opportunity in 'medical tourism' lies in wait for upmarket hospitals in exotic locations around the country, a report from CII and McKinsey says. Many hospitals are well placed to position themselves as ideal health spots for those who fail to manage expensive healthcare accounts in the developed world, the report says. It estimates a Rs 5,000 crore to Rs 10,000 crore market for ''upmarket tertiary hospitals'' by 2012, or 3 to 5 pc of the existing healthcare delivery market. In a break from tradition, CII and McKinsey do not limit this potential revenue-earning to bio-medicine or naturopathy. Says Dr Naresh Trehan, chairman of CII's National Healthcare Committee, ''Compared with most developed countries such as the UK or the US, treatments like those for dental problems or major procedures like bypass surgery or angioplasty in India come at a fraction of the costs elsewhere.'' Cardiac Surgery in India, for instance, costs one-tenth of the bills many foot for a similar procedure in North America. Medical tourists are already visiting India, the report highlights, but its size is small and largely confined to patients from West Asia and South Asia. It could grow rapidly if the industry re-orients itself to actively attract non-Indian patients. Were Indian hospitals to also provide health insurance, an additional Rs 390 billion could be gathered in from the rich and middle classes. Also, public spending could double from Rs 170 billion. And if the pharma industry does as well as it is expected to, the healthcare market here could expand to Rs 2,320 crore from Rs 1,030 today, it finds.

Courtesy: The Indian Express, April 09, 2004

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ONGC Videsh (OVL), which has been on an acquisition spree last year, has done it again. This time round, OVL has struck black gold in Angola. The company has acquired a 50% stake in a deep-water offshore block in the west African country by buying out Shell's entire equity for $600m. OVL and Shell Development Angola BV on Thursday announced that they have reached an agreement for OVL to acquire Shell's entire interest (50%) in the deep-water offshore block 18 in Angola, including the Greater Plutonio development. Oil industry sources say that OVL, a 100% subsidiary of ONGC, was competing with China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) to acquire Shell's stake in the block. "Although several leading energy majors were in the fray in the first round, the final competition was between the Chinese energy major and OVL," sources said. ONGC CMD Subir Raha told ET, "It's the oil hot spot in the world today and we are glad to have made a foray there." The African crude is already being used by Indian refining companies like IOC. Says an oil industry source, "IOC is already using the Cambinda oil found in Africa for its refineries."

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 09, 2004

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Surveys by revenue authorities across the country to track service tax defaulters appears to have yielded results. Over 1.5 lakh new service tax assessees have been added to the existing base and revenues have doubled to Rs 7,750 crore in fiscal '03-04. Actual revenues so far are Rs 550 crore lower than the revised estimate of Rs 8,300 crore. With data still being collated - given that several banks are yet to report collections - the total realisation may turn out to be higher than Rs 7,750 crore. A shortfall vis-a-vis revised target, at best, could be marginal, reckon officials. With 1.5 lakh new assesses added to the list till the end of March this year, the total assessee base is now close to 3.8 lakh. Ten new services were brought under the net last fiscal and the government originally fixed the revenue target at Rs 8,000 crore. This was 60% higher than the budget target of Rs 5,000 crore in '02-03. According to latest estimates, service tax revenues in '03-04 touched Rs 7,750 crore compared to the actual collection of Rs 3,855 crore in '02-03. Bulk of the revenues still come from telephones, stock exchange and insurance which were brought under the net when the tax was imposed for the first time. Revenues from telephone services and insurance were estimated at Rs 3,024 crore and Rs 1,044 crore in the revised estimates for '03-04. Among telehone service companies, BSNL's contribution has been substantial, with the company paying up over Rs 728 crore as service tax.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 09, 2004

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Tata Motors registered 42.9 per cent growth in sales at 3.14 lakh units in the year 2003-04 against 2.19 lakh units in 2002-03. "This is the highest-ever sales achieved by the company in a fiscal year. Total sales for the month of March '04 were 34,714 units, an increase of 26 per cent over 27,547 units sold in March '03," the company said. Commercial vehicle sales in March '04 stood at 17,803 vehicles, an increase of 51.2 per cent over 11,772 vehicles sold in March last year. Cumulative sales stood at 1,52,282 vehicles in the domestic market during the fiscal, representing an increase of 43.7 per cent over 1,05,960 vehicles sold in last fiscal. In the passenger vehicles, the company registered its highest-sales ever in the domestic market in the month of March at 15,065 units.

Courtesy: The Pioneer, April 09, 2004

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Canadian insurance major Sun Life Financial Inc plans to invest over $100 million in its life insurance and asset management joint ventures in India to tap business opportunities and said it was open to acquire Indian mutual funds at "right price". The financial sector company would also scout for pension funds business in India, dwelling on the performance of life insurance business, he said "the life insurance JV with Aditya Birla group has shown aggressive performance till now and we are raising targets and would invest further to support business". Sun Life had invested about $100 million in the country and could double it in the next few years, he said, adding "we are eager to raise our stake in insurance JV from current 26 per cent to 49-51 per cent as when the Indian regulations permit for higher foreign holding".

Courtesy: The Times of India, April 07, 2004

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Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) crossed the $10 billion-mark in turnover in 2003-04 on the back of six oil and gas discoveries and a turnaround of its subsidiary Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals. As a group, ONGC's market capitalisation exceeded $28 billion. The company's overseas arm ONGC Videsh acquired 49 per cent stake in two exploration blocks in Libya, and 60 per cent interest in one exploration block in Syria. A major gas discovery was made in January in Myanmar 's offshore Block A-1, in which OVL holds 20 per cent equity.

Courtesy: The Times of India, April 07, 2004

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Vizag Steel has registered a record turnover of Rs 6,174 crore with a 22 per cent growth over the previous year and a highest ever net profit of Rs 1,521 crore during the financial year 2003-4. The gross margin increased by 84 per cent to Rs 2,023 crore while the net profit (Rs 1,521 crore) rose by 192 per cent over Rs 521 crore earned last year. The domestic sales rose by 21 per cent to Rs 5406 crore while exports increased by 28 per cent to Rs 768 crore during the year. On the production front, 4.05 million tonnes of hot metal, 3.51 mt of liquid steel and 3.17 mt of saleable steel were produced during the year to mark the best yearly performance since inception, a company release said here on Sunday. The company, which became a zero-debt one since November last and contained interest outgo to Rs 50 crore, also achieved marked improvement in labour productivity to 262 tonnes per man year, the best among the Indian integrated steel plants, it said. The company, having a plant capacity utilisation of 110-120 per cent, aimed to utilise inherent untapped potential by investing in different areas to produce growth oriented products as also in expanding production capacity in future. It also focused on widening its product-mix and stabilisation of special steels production, it said.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 06, 2004

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Indian exports to Germany registered a 3 per cent increase in euro terms to 2.65 billion euros or about Rs 14,000 crore during the last calendar year. Exports to Germany have increased despite constant decrease in the demand of handmade carpets, silk or home furnishings and shoes in Germany, according to a release by Indo-German Export Promotion Project (IGEP).

Courtesy: The Pioneer, April 06, 2004

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Mahindra & Mahindra has posted a 34.8 per cent rise in sales for the fiscal 2003-04 at 1,15,782 vehicles as against 85,835 in 2002-03 while its flagship sports utility vehicle Scorpio at 23,976 units posted a whopping 103.3 per cent rise over the previous fiscal. The utility vehicles sales including Scorpio rose 32.7 per cent at 91,436 vehicles during 2003-04 against 68,858 during the previous fiscal, the company said in a release. The light commercial vehicle (LCV) sales for 2003-04 were slightly higher at 7,003 vehicles against 6948 vehicles during the previous year. Sales in the three-wheeler segment during the last fiscal stood at 17,343 vehicles as against 10,029 in 2002-03. Utility vehicles sales in March 2004 were 9,029 units as compared to 8,879 in the previous fiscal while the LCV sales stood at 811 vehicles as against 517 units in March 2003. Scorpio sales were up at 2,259 vehicles during March 2004 over 1,792 vehicles in the comparable period of the previous fiscal while three-wheeler sales rose to 1,660 vehicles as compared to 1,220 in March 2003, the company said.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 06, 2004

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MMTC's group turnover, including its subsidiary MTPL, Singapore, is all set to reach Rs. 10,000 crores in 2003-04 while its profits are projected at Rs. 75 crores. Briefing media persons on the provisional annual results, the Chairman and Managing Director, S. D. Kapoor, said MMTC itself would record the highest ever turnover of Rs. 9,200 crores, a growth of 48 per cent over last year when it registered Rs. 6,226 crores. On the export front, the company is expected to record an earning of Rs. 1,930 crores. Export of mineral products increased to Rs. 1,443 crores during the just ended fiscal from Rs. 1,245 crores last year. Export turnover from jewellery exhibition was estimated at Rs. 50 crores. Significantly, Mr. Kapoor said that imports turnover at Rs. 6,770 crores was the highest ever by the company and higher even than its total turnover in 2002-03. Domestic business of Rs. 500 crores spurted by 213 per cent over the last year. The company sold metal products in the domestic market to net in Rs. 404 crores against Rs. 65 crores last year.

Courtesy: The Hindu, April 06, 2004

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Corporate India employs just about as many software professionals as the software industry itself. The number of employees working in captive or in-house IT departments of user organisations which are non-IT firms, is around 280,000. As compared to this, the 'pure' IT sector - the IT companies - employ about 288,000 employees, according to Nasscom . If one looks at demand for IT professionals from just the domestic market, the user firms are clearly the big employers. The number of IT professionals in IT firms catering to domestic market is only 28,000 or one-tenth of those employed in captive IT departments. Interestingly, the employee strength of this captive segment is marginally higher than the number of employees in pre IT companies catering to the global market. This indicates that there is considerable potential for business process outsourcing (BPO) for domestic companies in case the companies having captive IT departments decide to outsource. The number of employees in captive IT departments have been growing at a high compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25 per cent in the last four years.

Courtesy: The Economic Times, April 06, 2004

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State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) made six oil and gas discoveries in 2003-04, the year when the gross turnover of the company and its subsidiaries crossed $10 billion. "During the year, ONGC made six discoveries - East Lakhibari (oil) in Assam, Sonamura (gas) in Tripura, Degam (oil) in Gujarat, Sitarampuram (gas) in Andhra Pradesh, NMT-2 (gas) in Western Offshore and G-4 in Bay of Bengal," a company press release said. The onshore finds are being brought into production, and development plans were being prepared for the offshore ones. Offshore discoveries in D-1 and Vas