| |
Indian
Firms Raise Huge Sum Abroad
|
| |
|
Indian
companies have raised funds around $8.83
billion from the international market
in 2005 so far. A major chunk of these
funds have been raised through Foreign
Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCB) and
Global Depository Receipts (GDR) routes.
In 2005, $5.21 billion has been raised
through equity or quasi- equity routes
and the rest around $3.67 billion raised
via debt instruments. A senior merchant
banker said in most of the cases, before
going to the international market, promoters
pep up up the stock prices in the domestic
market to get a good price abroad. He
said in GDR market, issue is priced on
the basis of closing price on Indian bourses.
So, if a company wants to get a good price
abroad, it normally rigs the price at
home. Not only this, when companies raise
money from the international market, most
of the time promoters plough that back
in the domestic market to make quick bucks.
Sometimes, a source said they get back
the fund through participatory notes (P-Notes)
with FIIs. As FIIs are not bound to reveal
name of the P-Note holders, the regulator
can not find the source of money, being
invested in the market.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 24, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Hexaware
Bags $ 5 mn Contracts From US, Germany
|
| |
|
Hexaware
Technologies Ltd Friday said it has bagged
two contracts worth five million dollars
in US and Germany for its independent
testing services. The company will be
setting up two centres of excellence for
software testing in partnership with the
US-based financial conglomerate, the company
informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. The
US company plans to outsource the maintenance
testing of the equity research application
to the company, it said. The German organisation
is planning to migrate from the legacy-
based core banking and retail banking
application to a new product. Hexaware
will partner the client to implement the
testing requirements of this project,
it added. "The practice caters to major
industry verticals and is led by experienced
consultants with strong business-technology
knowledge. The independent testing centre,
equipped with cutting-edge tools, offers
dedicated custom test labs through an
off shore delivery model," said P K Sridharan,
Executive Director and Head of India operations,
Hexaware Technologies. However, the communique
did not mention names of the US and German
companies.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 23, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Auto
Parts Firms Chart Global Route
|
| |
|
Indian
auto parts companies are increasingly
getting hungrier for overseas acquisitions.
This is a trasition from their earlier
supporting role in the global automotive
scheme. In the last 24 months alone, at
least 11 deals have been struck, with
more to come. That Omax Auto has just
appointed KPMG to scout for acquisitions
is another indicator that the appetite
remains far from satiated. According to
Ashok Taneja, president of Automotive
Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA),
"There is a clear realisation that exports
and international business are not the
same. Acquiring global customers can be
a long and tedious process. Buying out
companies abroad is an efficient and smart
way of getting global customers." Though
the domestic automobile industry provides
ample opportunities for component suppliers
to grow exponentially, they have drawn
up global plans for expansion. The most
recent announcement of such a buyout came
from the world's second largest forging
company, Bharat Forge. It bought Imatra
Kilsta AB of Sweden, along with its wholly-owned
subsidiary Scottish Stampings at an market
estimated price of Rs 250 crore. This
is Bharat Forge's fourth such buyout in
the last 21 months. Taneja adds that getting
the latest technology plays an important
role in securing big business. The challenge
of high level of competition in the developed
countries and the ability of Indian component
supplier to deliver the goods at a lower
cost has created a win-win situation.
"In the West, OEs and component suppliers
work closely to develop new products.
This has resulted in flow of know-how
to the latter. Acquiring these companies
abroad gives Indian companies access to
technology that was not available to them,"
says Vishnu Mathur, executive director,
ACMA. Even smaller companies have made
startling announcements on this front.
Casting, forging and components manufacturing
group Amtek, after acquiring three companies
in the last two years, are eyeing two
more - one each in the US and UK. Resources
for acquisitions are being raised through
the FCCB and the debt route. The industry,
according to analysts, is capable of achieving
an export revenue of $20-25 billion by
2015 and an equal amount in domestic sales.
This would mean a pan-industry investment
of Rs 5,500 crore per annum for the next
10 years.
Courtesy:
Business Standard: September 23, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Long
March: India Steels The Show in Growth
Chart
|
| |
|
Global
production of steel has picked up pace
after two months of lower growth. Latest
production figures from International
Iron and Steel Institute (IISI) for the
month of August '05 show that the steel
production is returning to previous rates
of growth as steel makers push up their
production in view of the recovery in
prices. Of course China remains top of
the heap with production increasing month-on-month
as well as on a yearly basis. India steals
the show with higher growth rates for
two consecutive months. Most of the major
producer countries, on the other hand,
continue to show declines in their production.
The global production of steel in August
'05 was 91.4m tonnes, up 7.4% as compared
to last year. This figure is also 1.2%
higher than the figure for July '05. This
figure includes 61 countries that report
to IISI and together constitute almost
98% of the global steel production. However
if we omit the production figures for
China and India, the quantity of steel
produced shows a decline of 3.1% year
on year. This decline is divided unequally
among the major producers. Japan registered
a decline of about 2%, while US steel
production went down by 8.4%. The trend
is repeated for most major producers,
nearly all of which show a decline in
production as compared to last year. However
the recovery in steel prices has bolstered
the confidence of several producers who
have increased production. Russia's steel
production went up marginally by 0.1%
as compared to last year. The overall
decline is also reduced by the increase
in production from several minor producers.
Even as the rest of the major producers
are showing a decline in their steel production,
there are two major producer countries
that are proving to be an exception to
the trend, China and India. China's output
for the month of July increased to 30.4m
tonnes, an increase of 30% over last year.
However the growth has slowed down for
the month with growth occurring at 30%
compared to over 33% for the previous
three months. Meanwhile, India's output
of 3.6m tonnes in July is an increase
of 39% over the production in last year.
This is the second consecutive month that
India has overtaken China's growth rate,
though from a much lower base. These are
by far the largest increases amongst major
steel producing countries. We cannot readily
compare China with India because of their
disproportionate sizes. The Chinese steel
industry is almost 10 times the size of
the Indian industry. Yet these two countries
are the only major producer nations showing
increase in production year-on-year. This
concentration of production in these two
countries is an indicator of the changing
dynamics of the steel industry. India
has increased it's production on an average
of nearly 2.5% per month over the last
eight months. China on the other hand
has increased steel output by 1.8% every
month during the same period. However
this is where the similarity ends. While
China's addition is equivalent to almost
half percent of the world production added
every month since the beginning of this
year, India's increase is slightly more
than 0.1% of world production per month.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 23, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Pharma
Sector to Grow 11% to Rs 60k cr: Survey
|
| |
|
The
Indian pharmaceutical industry is expected
to grow at about 11% to Rs 60,000 crore
by 2007-08 from Rs 39,000 crore in 2003-04.
This projected growth will be a result
of growth in exports of generic drugs
to regulated markets of the US and Europe.
According to a survey conducted by ASSOCHAM,
Indian pharmaceutical exports have a potential
to grow around 18% in the next two years
to take its total export volume to about
Rs 30,000 crore from the exports volumes
of Rs 15,500 crore in 2003-04. "The expiry
of patents of several branded products
in developed markets in the coming years
coupled with low production costs will
provide adequate opportunities for Indian
drugs manufacturers to capture a larger
share in the US and the European markets,"
says Mahendra K Sanghi, president of ASSOCHAM.
Globally, drugs worth $ 40 billion are
likely to go off patent in the current
year itself and another $ 70 billion worth
drugs will go off patent by 2008. "This
is against the projection of the US and
European markets which will see patent
expiry of drugs worth $65 billion. Indian
companies are expected to grab around
30% share of the increasing generic market
in pharma sector worldover," says Mr Sanghi.
According to the study, the new product
patent scenario is expected to bring about
consolidation of small players within
the domestic pharma industry. Focus on
research and development will also be
greater by domestic players who will be
faced with greater competition from the
MNC pharma companies. Indian pharma companies
can leverage their strength in terms of
low cost of production and availability
of quality manpower by tapping into unexplored
markets such as those of Africa.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 23, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
TCS
Bags Multi-Million Dollar Russian Deal
|
| |
|
Global
IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)
today bagged a multi-million dollar contract
from Russia, the first win by any Indian
company in that country. The Tata group
company has received a contract from Moscow-based
National Depository Centre (NDC) and will
offer its securities product, eClearSettleTM,
to the centre. TCS, however, refused to
divulge the financial details of the deal.
Under the contract, TCS will customise
and implement its securities product that
will provide depository, clearing and
settlement services to NDC. This is also
the entry of an Indian company into the
Russian IT market, in turn, opening up
the market for other companies, the Tata
group company said in a release here today.
N Chandrasekaran, global head (operations)
of TCS, said, 'The assignment with NDC
is strategic from two perspectives. Not
only does it reiterate the strength and
relevance of TCS' asset-based solutions
such as eClearSettleTM for global players
in the securities industry, but also extends
TCS' footprint in Russia which is one
of the emerging markets in the world.'
'With our presence in Brazil, China and
India, and now Russia, we are geared to
play a significant role in the development
and growth of the BRIC countries,' he
added. NDC is the latest customer of eClearSettleTM,
while other global depositories like Kuwait
Clearing Company, the Philippines Depository
and Trust Company, Dubai International
Financial Exchange and National Securities
Depository of India had earlier installed
this product. The Russian depository centre
is setting up a Central Securities Depository
for Russian stockmarket and employ the
solution to make that country's stock
market more liquid with low risks and
high levels of guarantees, the release
said.
Courtesy:
Business Standard: September 23, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Bharat
Forge Now Snaps up Swedish Firm
|
| |
|
Industry
sources indicate it to be a Rs 250 cr
deal. After buying out three global companies
in less than 21 months, Bharat Forge,
the world's second largest forging company,
has struck another deal. The company today
announced it had acquired Imatra Kilsta
AB, Sweden, along with its wholly owned
subsidiary Scottish Stampings, for an
undisclosed amount. According to industry
sources, Bharat Forge has paid ¤47 million
(around Rs 250 crore) for the acquisition.
But company sources refused to confirm
the figure, citing confidentiality agreements.
The flagship of the $1.25-billion Kalyani
group has bought Imatra Kilsta through
a special purpose vehicle. The Imatra
Forging group is the largest manufacturer
of front axle beams and the second largest
crankshafts producer in Europe, having
manufacturing facilities at Karlskoga,
Sweden and Ayr, Scotland. Imatra Kilsta
AB-Scottish Stampings has a forging capacity
of 100,000 tonnes per annum. With nearly
600 employees, it had an annual turnover
of over 1 billion Swedish Kroners (about
$132 million) in 2004. It is a major supplier
to leading passenger car and commercial
vehicle manufacturers Volvo, Scania, SAAB,
DAF, Perkins, MAN and Iveco. In June,
the Kalyani group had bought Michigan-based
Federal Forgings for nearly Rs 40 crore.
The company acquired a German aluminium
forgings maker in December, 2004. BN Kalyani,
chairman and managing director, BFL, said,
"The acquisition completes our global
dual shore capability. We can now produce
all of our core products -- crankshafts,
beams, knuckles and pistons at minimum
two locations worldwide and provide design
and engineering, and technology front-end
support, to customers for these products.
With this acquisition, Bharat Forge has
world-class manufacturing facilities across
eight locations - two in India, three
in Germany, one in Sweden, one in Scotland
and one in North America.
Courtesy:
www.business-standard.com, September 22,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
IBM
Sets up First A-Pac Lotus Support Centre
in Pune
|
| |
|
IBM,
the over $96bn software and hardware major,
has set up its first Asia Pacific Lotus
Technical Support Centre in Pune. Initially,
it will offer back office support to IBM
customers in Asia Pacific for Lotus software.
Over time, this may extend to the other
five brands it has in the business process
area, including Web Sphere, DB 2, Tivoli
and Rational, said Doug Cox, vice president,
workplace portal and collaboration software
technical support, IBM. "Initially, the
back office support from Pune for the
A-Pac region for just the Lotus business
processes. This could expand to the other
brands in the workplace portal and collaboration
software (WPLC) area," Cox said. This
is the first time an IBM Lotus support
centre is being set up in India. Kalpana
Margabandhu, programme director, IBM India
Software Labs, added that the Pune centre
has worked "significantly" on the Lotus
and Tivoli brands. Earlier, this service
was being provided from the US, Mr Cox
said, adding that the intention now is
to move closer to the customer. "The objective
of setting up a centre here in Pune is
that it can offer local support closer
to the customer. We had a 90% growth in
this market in the second quarter and
we believe there is growth possibility,"
he remarked, now that they have "moved
closer to the customer". Cox pointed to
IBM's investment of $1bn during '03-05
in delivering leadership in collaborative
technology. Ms Margabandhu said India
is the sixth largest of IBM's over 40
labs worldwide. In India, IBM has labs
at Bangalore, Pune, Gurgaon and Hyderabad,
which it recently brought into the fold
through its acquisition of Accenture.
IBM has 1,700 employees in its software
labs in India and the tech support team
will be formed out of a core team.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 22, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Still First Choice For Global Sourcing:
Gartner
|
| |
|
India
is still head and shoulders above the
competition in global sourcing and should
be carefully considered by organizations
selecting offshore vendors, according
to Gartner. Although more options for
external service provision are becoming
available worldwide, India remains the
market leader with a majority of essential
resources and a sufficiently robust technology
infrastructure. Gartner predicts that
by 2007, total global offshore spending
on IT services will reach $50 billion.
While External Service Providers (ESPs)
have advantages in economies of scale
and specific areas of expertise, they
do not have a magic solution for immediately
correcting flawed outsourcing processes.
Businesses must first master offshore
ESP management if they are to develop
a successful offshore ESP relationship.
The cost of labour is and will remain
a major factor in the choice of country
destination, Ian Marriott, Research vice
president at Gartner said. Gartner has
identified countries best known for their
IT-related activities (such as software
development, outsourcing and IT-enabled
services) and India is currently the clear
leader. It has the majority of essential
resources and sufficiently robust infrastructures
to deliver IT products and services successfully.
Other countries - including China and
the Czech Republic are making inroads,
but they currently lack some of the attributes
to qualify as leaders.
Courtesy:
The Hindu, September 22, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Key Engine of World Economy in Next Decade:
IMF
|
| |
|
Fund
marks up GDP growth to 7.1% for 2005 *
Exports to double by 2010
Revising
India's gross domestic product (GDP) growth
rate forecast by half a percentage point
to 7.1% for 2005, the International Monetary
Fund's World Economic Outlook said an
opening economy with a young population
and rapid growth rates could become a
key engine of world growth over the next
decade.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September 22,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
is The Fastest Growing Market For Servers
|
| |
|
India
has emerged as the fastest growing market
for servers in Asia-Pacific in the second
quarter of 2005, clocking 30 per cent
growth year-on-year, according to analyst
firm Gartner. In overall market share
of the server market in the region, India
stood at eight per cent. It is the only
market along with China in the region
where the server revenues grew, according
to the analyst firm. "India's healthy
economic conditions were reflected in
the increasing business confidence and
foreign investment during the quarter,"
Gartner said, adding the demand was strongest
in banking, finance, manufacturing and
services with Public sector also being
active. According to the firm overall
Asia-Pacific server revenue in the first
half of 2005 grew 12.9 per cent compared
to the first half of 2004. In the second
quarter alone, the growth of server revenue
was reported at 15.8 per cent year over
year. "China, Korea and Australia continue
to be the largest server markets in terms
of revenue," said Annie Chung, principal
analyst of enterprise systems at Gartner.
"Together, they contributed 67 per cent
of total Asia-Pacific server revenue in
this second quarter", Chung said.
Courtesy:
Hindustan Times: September 21, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
L
& T Bags Order For Rs 430 cr Export of
Process Plant
|
| |
|
Larsen
& Toubro Ltd (L&T) has bagged a slew of
orders valued over Rs 430 crore for plant
and equipment to countries ranging from
France to Australia. The company informed
the Bombay Stock Exchange(BSE)today. The
contracts for critical equipment such
as ammonia plants, petrochemical plants,
Liquefied Natural Gas plant and gas development
projects have been secured from leading
EPC contractors like Kellogg Brown & Root,
Bechtel, Foster Wheeler and Mitsubishi
Heavy Industries based in USA, UK and
Japan, said a company statement. The Company
will engineer, fabricate and supply stainless
steel heat exchangers and pressure vessels
for an LNG plant in Australia under a
contract from Foster Wheeler, UK. For
the Air Liquide H2 Plant in France. The
Company will supply a waste heat boiler
package. Critical equipment for petrochemical
plant-Ethylene Oxide reactors-will be
supplied to China as well as filter vessels
for downstream gasifiers. For a gas-to-liquid
plant in Nigeria. The Company will supply
waste heat boiler packages and auto thermal
reformers. The Company has also received
critical equipment orders for a petrochemical
complex in Malaysia. In an export breakthrough
to Egypt, the Company will supply critical
equipment for an Ammonia Plant, including
the ammonia converter, unitized chiller
and the secondary reformer. This order
was secured from the reputed process consultants
Kellogg Brown & Root, USA.
Courtesy:
http://www.uniindia.com, September 21,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
ONGC
Videsh Ltd (OVL) has signed an agreement
with Repsol-YPF of Spain to acquire a
30 per cent participating interest in
seven deep water blocks in Cuba. The acquisition
of the offshore blocks 25, 26, 27, 28,
29, 36 and part of block 35 will be completed
after the Cuban government formalises
the contract. Repsol-YPF - the operator
of the blocks - will be left with a 40
per cent stake, while Norsk Hydro of Norway
will own 30 per cent. The acquisition
marks OVL's first foray into the Cuban
oil and gas sector. The blocks are spread
over nearly 12,000 sq km in Cuba's exclusive
economic zone. The hydrocarbon resource
potential in the blocks is estimated to
be in excess of 4 billion barrels. An
exploratory well drilled in one of these
blocks has indicated the presence of hydrocarbons.
These blocks are in the third exploration
phase. The work during this period includes
acquiring 3000 sq km. 3-D seismic data.
Drilling wells on selected prospects will
be decided in the next exploration phase.
OVL chairman Subir Raha said, "Cuba has
drawn the attention of many international
oil companies with the proven presence
of hydrocarbons in its exclusive economic
zone. The blocks have good potential.
This deal is significant for OVL as it
would open the door for other opportunities
in the Latin American hydrocarbon sector.
With this acquisition, OVL will be present
in 13 countries." The breakthrough comes
to OVL after it had lost out to the Chinese
earlier this month the oilfields in Ecuador
owned by Encana of Canada. The opportunity
is also expected to give OVL valuable
insight into the deep sea oil exploration
technology, an area where ONGC has just
entered. ONGC has recently signed an MoU
with Norsk Hydro, a Norwegian company
which specialises in deep sea oil exploration,
for closer business co-operation. The
MoU was part of the broader co-operation
in the hydrocarbon sector between Indian
and Norwegian companies. Petroleum minister
Mani Shankar Aiyar had led the Indian
delegation.
Courtesy:
www.telegraphindia.com, September 21,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Videocon
Set For Nigerian Drill
|
| |
|
The
Nigerian government has awarded oil prospecting
licence (OPL) to Videocon Industries Ltd
for exploring blocks in that country.
The consortium led by Videocon has been
awarded OPL for block number 471 by the
Nigerian ministry of petroleum resources
under the Nigeria 2005 Licensing Round
for Oil & Gas Exploration and Production,
the company has informed the Bombay Stock
Exchange. Nigeria has put 14 new oil blocks
on offer as part of the 2005 licensing
round. This is in addition to 61 other
fields it put up for bids in March to
boost its oil output capacity. Videocon
had applied for seven blocks in Nigeria.
The company has already signed a memorandum
of understanding with Jordan to develop
four fields as part of its plans to invest
in overseas oil assets. Company officials
said, "Videocon is looking at increasing
its presence in the West Asian and African
countries to tap the oil business. We
have both the expertise and the finances
to invest in the sector." Videocon has
already signed an MoU with the government
of Khartoum province in Sudan and expects
to begin exploration work soon. The company
plans to buy up to 76 per cent stake in
an offshore Sudanese field located in
the Red Sea, which it will explore along
with a consortium of global partners.
The company is also exploring options
to invest in Ukraine. India, which now
imports 70 per cent of its crude requirement,
is aggressively looking for stakes in
foreign oil and gas projects to secure
energy supplies. "As part of the long-term
strategy, we would look at bringing this
oil back home," officials added. Videocon
owns 25 per cent of the Raava oil field
in the Krishna-Godavari basin off the
eastern coast and has bid for three blocks
offered by the government.
Courtesy:
www.telegraphindia.com, September 21,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
TCS
to Open Branch in Israel, Picks Manager
|
| |
|
Tata
Consultancy Services Limited will open
a branch in Israel within six months and
has already chosen a local manager. P.S.
Padmanabhan, executive vice-president,
TCS told business daily Globes about the
company's decision to open a branch at
a conference held here. Asked why Israeli
customers would prefer TCS to US and European
companies, Mr Padmanabhan said, "they'll
take us because of our great know-how
and experience in applying complicated
systems." "Among other things, we set
up the Swiss discounting system. We're
very strong in finances, and can compete
with large consultancy companies," he
said. Tata Consultancy is one of the world's
five largest IT consultancy companies,
competing with IBM's consultancy division,
Accenture and other companies, Mr Padmanabhan
said. Sixty per cent of TCS' business
is in the US, 20 per cent in Europe, 11
per cent in India, and 5 per cent in Southeast
Asia, he said. The IT major is also seen
as a potential candidate for acquiring
provident and mutual funds in Israel owned
by banks, the report said. The Ministry
of Finance is encouraging foreign financial
entities to buy such funds under new reforms.
"It is too early to say whether the company
will operate in Israel in this sector,"
Padmanabhan told the daily. TCS' major
areas of operations are banking and financial
services (40 per cent), industry (20 per
cent), and telecommunications (15 per
cent), the report said.
Courtesy:
The Asia Age, September 20, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Tata
Steel Plans to Set up Production Facility
in Vietnam
|
| |
|
Tata
Steel Ltd, the country's largest private
sector integrated steel company, is planning
to set up a production facility in Vietnam,
Business Standard reported, citing industry
sources. This follows the company's acquisition
of Singapore-based NatSteel last year
which has a presence in the Asia Pacific
region, including Vietnam, the paper said.
It said that Tata Steel is also eyeing
a fresh acquisition in Southeast Asia.
'Due diligence is on for fresh capacity
acquisition in the region to the tune
of two million tonnes and the deal is
expected to materialise over the next
4-5 months,' a source was quoted as saying.
A Tata Steel spokesperson said the company
is looking at many options in strategic
markets, but declined to go into any specifics,
the report said.
Courtesy:
forbes.com: September 20, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
BoI
to be 1st Indian Bank in China
|
| |
|
Bank
of India, one of the first Indian banks
to venture into China, on Monday made
a formal request to the regulatory authority
in Beijing to allow it to upgrade its
representative office in Shenzhen into
a full-fledged bank and also open another
representative centre in Beijing. "We
have formally su-bmitted a request to
the China Banking Regulatory Commission
for converting our Shenzhen representative
office into a full-fledged bank," P.L.
Gairola, executive director of BoI, said.
"We want to be the first Indian bank to
have full-fledged banking operations in
China," he said. Mr Gairola noted that
BoI, which opened its representative office
in Shenzhen in January 2003 is now qualified
to be upgraded into a full-fledged bank
under Chinese banking norms for foreign
banks. "The Chinese response has been
quite positive," he said while commenting
on his meeting with a senior CBRC official.
Courtesy:
The Asian Age, September 20, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
ABB
May Shift R&D to India
|
| |
|
Power
major ABB is planning to shift high-end
engineering research from high-cost centres
globally to India. "We will cut back on
operations in high-cost centres such as
Germany, Sweden and the US and shift work
to India," Sten Jakobsson, president and
CEO, ABB Sweden, said. These centres focus
on power technologies and automation,
among other things. The company plans
to ramp up its research operations in
India and the number of engineers employed
at its corporate research centre in Bangalore
is slated to nearly double to 500 by next
year. "The number would probably be even
more in the next couple of years. We are
increasing here and decreasing numbers
in the high cost countries," Jakobsson
said, adding that Indian engineers did,
"part of our development and engineering
work in integrated circuit control systems,
engineering core systems and processing
systems". There were also about 200 people
in engineering services within pulp and
paper industry and metals industry. "These
two areas are growing very fast," he added.
There was a dramatic increase in outsourcing
of engineering services to India, both
for development of projects within the
company and for projects ABB gets from
customers, Jakobsson said, adding that
this helped, "support and keep cost low
for our total engineering capacity. India
is a very important hub". The company
has nine corporate research centres- one
each in Finland, Germany, Poland, Norway,
Sweden, Switzerland, US, India and China.
The centre in India was opened in 2002,
followed by one in China in 2005. India
operations are currently focused on meeting
research and development demands of ABB's
software-intensive products and systems.
India is also a very important export
market for the Nordic region, which supplies
big systems such as HVDC technology here,
Jakobsson said.
Courtesy:
Business Standard: September 20, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Set to Forge Energy Alliances Across South
Asia
|
| |
|
India
is looking at the possibility of emerging
as a regional energy hub in South Asia.
It has plans to set up bilateral grids
with some of the neighbouring countries
and forge sectoral alliances with others.
While a strengthening of the existing
grids with Nepal and Bhutan is being planned,
bilateral electricity interconnections
with Myanmar for exchange of power is
high up on the agenda. According to a
senior Power Ministry official, the proposal
for a bilateral grid with Myanmar and
the issue of strengthening of transmission
links with Nepal and Bhutan are to be
taken up at the next Bay of Bengal Initiative
for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic
Cooperation (BIMSTEC) meeting. National
Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has also
initiated talks with Government authorities
in Myanmar to explore the possibilities
of setting up a gas-based power plant
in the country and wheeling the power
into India, officials said. Plans are
afoot to bring in gas from Bangladesh
to run thermal stations in the eastern
parts of the country. The possibility
of setting up a power station in Bangladesh
by an Indian utility, using Bangladeshi
gas as fuel is being looked at. The power
generated will be transmitted back to
India, officials said. Tata Power is already
in the process of setting up a 1,000 MW
gas based power plant in Bangladesh. Indian
utilities are also creating their imprint
across the South Asian regions. NTPC is
preparing for a Sri Lanka foray, while
Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL)
is already working on augmenting a crucial
transmission link in Afghanistan, officials
said. The project involves the construction
of a 220 kV D/C transmission system connecting
Phul-e Khumri to Kabul and setting up
a 220/110 kV sub station in the Afghan
capital.
Courtesy:
The Hindu Business Line: September 19,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
HPCL
Off to Africa For Retail Binge
|
| |
|
Hindustan
Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) is looking
for retail opportunities in the African
countries. It would also be setting up
a liquefied petroleum gas and a lube-blending
plants in Bangladesh shortly. The company
is in talks with a number of petroleum
giants such as the US-based Chevron, Saudi
Aramco, UK-based British Petroleum and
France-based Total for forming joint ventures
in the refining sector. M B Lal, chairman
and managing director, HPCL said the refining
sector with import parity pricing and
high margins is an attractive proposition
for these companies. He said talks with
these companies are on and it might take
some months before things get finalised.
HPCL had earlier announced its intention
to take foreign petroleum majors along
for its Rs 17,000-crore refinery and petrochemicals
complex at Bhatinda and another refinery
in Vishakapatnam. On the interest of these
companies in marketing, he said they are
keen on tie-ups for marketing, but right
now the sector is not attractive enough.
"It is not feasible to do marketing alone.
Therefore, the companies were keen to
have a supply source," he said adding
that HPCL does not need partnership in
marketing since it is already strong in
this sector. As far as looking for opportunities
abroad is concerned, Lal said among the
African countries HPCL is particularly
keen to have ties with the west African
countries that include Senegal and Kenya.
The company had conducted studies in 20
countries for opportunities in the petroleum
sector, particularly for marketing.
Courtesy:
Business Standard, September 19, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
$200,000
More For e-Choupals
|
| |
|
ITC
has become the first Indian company and
the second in the world to win this year's
$100,000 Development Gateway Award for
e-choupal initiative in rural India. ITC
chairman YC Deveshwar received the award.
Deveshwar said ITC would use e-choupals
to deliver educational services and healthcare.
ITC would supplement the $100,000 award
money with a matching contribution to
support e-choupal's educational services
programme in the coming months. The initiative
would thus get additional funding of $200,000.
ITC recently commenced a pilot project
for providing rural health services through
e-choupals. The award recognizes ITC's
e-Choupal as the most exemplary contribution
in the field of information and communication
technologies (ICT) in the last 10 years.
Its e-choupals contributed to development
priorities like poverty reduction through
its scale and replicability as the largest
information technology corporate initiative
in rural India. The e-choupal was chosen
from 135 nominations from across the world.
The award, previously known as the Petersberg
Prize, was presented today in Beijing
at the Development Gateway Forum by Frannie
Laautier, vice-president of the World
Bank Institute. Deveshwar said e-choupals
demonstrated that the private sector could
achieve synergy between creating shareholder
value and serving society. The e-choupals
at present covered over 3.5 million farmers
in 31,000 villages. When ready, the network
would cover over 100,000 Indian villages
and serve more than 10 million e-farmers.
Courtesy:
www.business-standard.com, September 19,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Rajesh
Exports Bags Rs 124 cr Order From Singapore
|
| |
|
Bangalore-based
jewellery manufacturing and export company
Rajesh Exports Limited on Friday said
it has bagged an order worth Rs 124 crore
from Singapore-based Gold Star Jewellery
Pvt Ltd. This order will be executed at
the company's manufacturing facility at
Bangalore spread over 12 acres of land
which has an installed capacity to process
250 tones of jewellery per annum, a company
release said here.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 19, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Retail
Space Seen Surging 180% by '07: Report
|
| |
|
The
total retail space in India is set to
grow 181 per cent from 32 million sq ft
as of August 2005 to 90 million sq ft
by 2007, according to a report 'Malls
of India' released by Images Multimedia
at the India Retail Forum today. This
increase would require an investment of
around Rs 40,000 crore. The organised
retail industry is growing at an average
of 30 per cent per annum and by 2010 is
expected to stand at $ 24 billion, around
10 per cent of the estimated size of the
overall retail industry, the report said.
It is also expected that at least two
or three of the Indian players would have
crossed the $1 billion mark by then. Although
there is a great deal of bullishness and
optimism about the future of the industry,
there was a note of caution sounded by
BS Nagesh, MD and CEO of Shopper's Stop
at the India Retail Forum. "India is set
to achieve in five years what other countries
did in 25 years, and the process cannot
be as smooth as we expect it to be," he
said. "Although there is a lot of innovation
and enthusiasm in the sector, what is
missing are quality assurances and caution
and risk elements." On the positive side
though, it was noticed that there was
a lot more depth in organised retail today
compared with even a few years ago with
newer categories such as petroleum and
healthcare also entering the organised
retail space in a big way. Today, the
fastest growing categories are food and
groceries at about 33 per cent and books
and music, which is growing at 24-25 per
cent.
Courtesy:
www.business-standard.com, September 17,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Now,
IIM Gets Branded in America
|
| |
|
Brand
IIM has just got stronger. After its alumni
took corporations by storm across the
world, they have now left a firm stamp
on US soil - created the IIM USA Inc.
And, they are already eyeing Europe and
Singapore. On Saturday, about 600 alumni
of the six IIMs will meet in New Jersey
to raise a toast to the first successful
step in creation of the IIM brand abroad,
incorporation of IIM-USA. The event will
also mark the beginning of the process
in other continents, the creation of Pan-Europe
IIM and in Singapore. "For the IIMs, the
timing is now right. As corporate America
embraces globalisation as a powerful engine
of growth, it is faced with the challenge
of finding versatile managers who can
help it expand and grow globally. And,
this is precisely where the IIM grads
come in," says Ashima Jain, president
of the interim body of IIM-USA Inc.
Courtesy:
The Times of India, September 17, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
M&M
Set to Buy Romanian Firm
|
| |
|
M&M
sets target of becoming 4th largest global
tractor maker over the next five years.
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), the country's
largest tractor maker, is close to acquiring
the Romanian government's 80 per cent
stake in SC Tractorul UTB SA. The Romanian
firm produces 15,000 tractors a year at
its facility in Brasov and has an additional
capacity of 18,000 engines annually. It
recorded a turnover of around Rs 250 crore
last year. Sources close to the development
said M&M had put up a financial bid nearly
a month after submitting a technical bid.
It has completed the due diligence exercise.
"The sale process is expected to be completed
within a fortnight," they added. There
was speculation that M&M had emerged as
the sole bidder for the foreign company,
which could not be confirmed. M&M executives
were not available for comments. M&M informed
the stock exchanges yesterday that it
had put up a bid for acquiring the Romanian
government's stake. The company also informed
that it was negotiating with AVAS, the
Romanian government's privatisation authority,
for the acquisition. The Romanian government
had put SC Tractorul on the block again
after Italy's Landini backtracked from
buying it. M&M, which had tried to take
over an European tractor company three
years ago, would probably manage to enter
Europe this time, sources said. In 2003,
M&M had failed to acquire Finland-based
Valtra. Recently, M&M entered China by
forming a joint venture, Mahindra (China)
Tractor Co. The joint venture's Nanchang
plant has a capacity to manufacture 12,000
tractors a year. The company will cater
to the Chinese market as well export to
the US, Australia and India. Exports to
Pakistan are a possibility.
Courtesy:
www.business-standard.com, September 17,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Indegene
Acquires US Medical Education Co
|
| |
|
Indegene
Lifesystems, a medical education, training
and marketing services company, has acquired
Medsn, a US-based medical education and
marketing company. The deal is valued
at around $7m. The acquisition has been
funded by Nadathur Holding, a private
equity firm and investor in Indegene Group.
"We have grown well in the Indian market
over the past 2-3 years and we realised
that the capabilities that we built were
translatable to other markets," said Rajesh
Nair, CEO of Indegene and now president
and CEO of the combined entity. Former
Medsn CEO Dennis Bonilla becomes president
and chief executive of the US entity.
This spurred the company to scale up to
global markets. While it had been working
with clients in the US for some time,
Indegene established its US subsidiary
in October '04. "To grow our presence
in the US, we decided that we would have
to go in for a mix of inorganic and organic
strategy," Mr Nair said. The merged companies
will operate under the Medsn name in the
US. According to Sanjay Parikh, director,
Indegene Lifesystems, the acquisition
allows Indegene to integrate backwards
and take advantage of what the company
has done in India. "We now have the capability
to offer a suite of services that Medsn
has expertise in to our clients in other
markets and we can simultaneously Americanise
some of our services for the US market,"
Mr Parikh said.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 17, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Shines as Global Firms Plan More Investment
|
| |
|
India's
booming technology and telecoms industries
will see more investment coming their
way from Asian companies such as Flextronics
and Kyocera as they tap Asia's third-largest
economy for its lower cost structure and
growing demand. Scores of global firms
such as General Electric Co. and American
Express Co. already employ thousands of
English-speaking Indian staff to do high-end
financial analytics and back-office work
at costs that are 25 to 60 percent cheaper
than in Western countries. Many companies
are either increasing their India presence
or have plans to do so within a year as
the $700 billion economy, forecast to
grow about 7 percent this year, offers
similar potential for growth as its Asian
rival China, several speakers said at
the Reuters Asia Technology and Telecoms
Summit. "India on balance is maybe the
most attractive market in the world right
now for us," Howard Charney, Cisco Systems
Inc. senior vice president, said at the
summit held in Tokyo. Charney said Cisco,
the largest maker of Internet equipment,
was seeing its Indian operations grow
at 50-70 percent compounded each year.
Adding to India's growing allure were
a Western-style legal system, high numbers
of graduate and post-graduate students
coming out of colleges each year and many
globally recognised research institutes.
"People come to India for cost (savings)
and stay for quality," said Girija Pande,
Asia Pacific director at Tata Consultancy
Services, India's top software services
exporter. India's galloping wireless industry,
the world's fastest-growing major mobile
market, has also become a magnet for firms
such as top handset maker Nokia and Nortel
Networks Corp. as they face tepid demand
in most Western markets.
Courtesy:
in.today.reuters.com: September 16, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Most Popular Destination For Offshoring:
PwC
|
| |
|
India
is currently the most popular destination
for offshoring in the financial sector,
which is likely to spread to new cities
in the country due to cost advantages,
according to a survey by leading consultancy
firm PriceWaterHouseCoopers. The survey,
Financial Services Industry: Risks and
Rewards, reflected India's popularity
for offshoring destination on the basis
of nine attributes, including macro economic
stability, regulations and labour costs
and highly skilled workforce. India's
BPO market has grown at an annual rate
of 40-50 per cent over the past few years.
Joydeep Datta, leader outsourcing advisory
with PricewaterhouseCoopers in India,
said so far offshoring has been centred
round a few key cities like Bangalore,
NCR, Chennai and Mumbai. As costs in these
places rise, others are likely to come
into the frame, maintaining the country's
overall competitiveness, he said. Worldwide,
the boom in the offshoring business in
the financial sector would double by 2008,
the survey said. Almost quarter of the
participants surveyed currently offshore
between 10 per cent to 20 per cent of
their total headcount, and in next three
years they expected further growth.
Courtesy:
Hindustan Times, September 16, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
'India
Can Become Knowledge Backbone to Global
Firms'
|
| |
|
Indian
service firms have an unprecedented opportunity
to provide the knowledge backbone to global
enterprises by delivering high-end solutions,
says a study conducted by Columbia Business
School. The study "Beyond Cost Reduction:
The Risks and Rewards of Global Services
Sourcing" provides a peek into the future
model of "knowledge hubbing" out of India.
While India's pre-eminence as an IT development
and back office centre is well established,
local firms are now increasingly becoming
the knowledge backbone of global enterprises,
the report says. The study refers to a
large financial services company, which
realised its often "sporadic and disjointed
off-shoring" to an India centre had the
fortuitous result that processes from
across the globe were housed under one
roof. "The bank's captive India centre
became a knowledge nerve centre for the
global parent," says the study conducted
by Hitendra Wadhwa and Harpreet Khurana
and funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
and the Centre for International Business
Education and Research.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 16, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Indegene
Life Buys US Pharma Services Firm
|
| |
|
The
Bangalore-based pharmaceutical market
services company Indegene Lifesystems
has acquired a leading US pharmaceutical
solutions company, Medsn Inc, signalling
consolidation in the pharmaceutical services
sector. Indegene, the country's largest
pharma marketing solutions company with
full fledged operations in the US and
Singapore, signed the takeover deal last
week. The valuation of the deal is not
disclosed. Indegene is involved in providing
a gamut of integrated scientific promotions,
medical education and business analytics
solutions to pharmaceutical and biotechnology
companies worldwide. In India, the company
has offices in Delhi and Mumbai. Medsn
is a pharmaceuticals solutions company
in the US with more than 25 top pharmaceutical
companies as its clients. By acquiring
the company, Indegene would serve the
global clients of Medsn. The acquisition
value could be more than the networth
of Medsn Inc as the current business of
the company in terms of the high profile
clients could be worth more than $200
million, said an industry source. Indegene
had developed India's largest scientific
healthcare network of more than 150,000
medical doctors, 50 medical institutions,
150 medical conferences, medical journals
and hundreds of medical specialists from
the country's leading teaching institutions.
It is a vast and credible repository of
clinical data, scientific information
and medical knowledge that is rapidly
expanding to address the needs of the
global market. Currently, Indegene has
the largest repository of medical content
in India across all faculties of medicine.
Coupled with its expertise in developing
technology applications and educational
solutions using multiple media, this repository
is leveraged to provide innovative scientific
solutions to the challenges encountered
by clients.
Courtesy:
Business Standard: September 16, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Garment
Exporter Orient Craft Buys Levi's Plant
in Spain For US$ 13 million
|
| |
|
Orient
Craft, one of India's largest garment
exporters, has acquired a Levi's plant
in Spain for US$ 13 million. Orient exports
to a wide range of international buyers
such as Ralph Lauren, Banana Republic,
Gap, Susan Bristol, Nike, Levi's and Dockers.
The machinery from the newly acquired
plant will form part of the company's
expansion plan at Manesar, near Gurgaon.
Orient Craft MD Sudhir Dhingra said, "The
state-of-the-art equipment in the plant
is comparable to the best global standards.
Its induction in the Indian textile industry
could give new dimensions to garment manufacturing."
Levi's was looking for a buyer due to
high maintenance and labour costs in Spain.
The company's deal with Levi's is the
second such significant international
venture. Earlier, Orient came up on the
global radar when it started its first
overseas facility in New York two years
ago. At present, Orient has 20 production
units spread across Gurgaon, Noida and
Okhla in Delhi. The expansion plan envisages
setting up of two new facilities at Manesar.
The company expects the expansion plans
to boost its revenue generation. Mr Dhingra
estimates the annual turnover to be in
the excess of Rs 800 crore, growing by
over one-fourth from last year. As of
now, Orient Craft manufactures and exports
about 30 lakh units of garment every month,
and aims to increase it to over 40 lakh
units after the expansion. The company's
management is also planning to raise an
IPO later this year.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times: September 16, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
FIIs
Inflows Cross US$ 8-Billion Mark
|
| |
|
There
may be a section of market players saying
that Indian equities appear over-valued
and expensive, but for foreign institutional
investors (FIIs) this is certainly not
the case.
Courtesy:
The Financial Express: September 16, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Tata
Tea to Buy Good Earth of US
|
| |
|
India's
Tata Tea Ltd is close to acquiring US
specialty tea brand Good Earth in a deal
worth less than $100 million, the Times
of India newspaper reported on Thursday.
The world's second-largest branded tea
company will buy Good Earth, which sells
herbal, fruit-flavoured, medicinal and
traditional teas, through Tetley, the
UK tea brand Tata Tea bought for $432
million in 2000, the newspaper said. "The
acquisition would help Tata Tea consolidate
its position in the specialty tea segment
as global consumption of specialty teas
is growing at a faster clip compared to
traditional black tea," the newspaper
said. Tata Tea also has plans to buy another
US specialty tea brand for about $100
million, the paper said. Company officials
were not immediately available for comment.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 15, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Praj
Bags Contract From Turkey Firm
|
| |
|
PUNE-BASED
Praj Industries Ltd, a player in the bio-fuel
segment, has been awarded a contract for
a bio-ethanol plant from Konya Seker,
Turkey. The value of the contract is around
Rs 36 crore for 2,80,000 litres of bio-ethanol
per day, said Mr Pramod Chaudhari, Chairman,
Praj Industries, on Wednesday. Mr Chaudhari
said this project is being set up for
production of bio-ethanol using sugarbeet
molasses/syrup as feedstock. The project
is planned to be completed by November
2006. He said Turkey is expected to formally
announce its fuel ethanol programme by
January 2007. He said with this Praj was
paving its way into the European markets,
where fuel ethanol programmes mandates
were being introduced.
Courtesy:
www.thehindubusinessline.com, September
15, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Exports
Clock Record Growth
|
| |
|
India's
exports during August have registered
a record growth of nearly 25 per cent.
According to the Directorate-General of
Commercial Intelligence & Statistics (DGCI&S),
exports during August are valued at $
7354.98 million ,24.91 per cent higher
than the level of $ 5887.99 million during
August, 2004. Exports during April-August,
2005-06, are valued at $ 35759.90 million
,23 per cent higher than $ 29076.46 million
during April-August, 2004-05. India's
imports during April-August, 2005-06,
are valued at $ 53191.14 million.
Courtesy:
www.tribuneindia.com, September 14, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Flextronics
to Set up Second India Plant
|
| |
|
Flextronics
International Ltd., the world's top contract
electronics maker, will invest an initial
US$ 30 - US$ 50 million to set up a second
factory in India and pump in another US$
300 - US$ 500 million over the next 10-15
years, a senior company executive said
on Wednesday. "We would like India to
be another China, if possible, but that's
going to take a lot of work as India does
not have a lot of trained resources to
work in factories," said Peter Tan, Flextronics'
president for Asia Pacific. "The growth
of manufacturing in India would be much
more challenging compared to the growth
of manufacturing in China," Tan said at
the Reuters Technology and Telecoms Summit
in Tokyo. Tan said the second factory
site, in Tamil Nadu, was on about 150
acres (60 hectares) and would make telecoms
equipment. An agreement will be signed
soon, he added. Singapore-based, Nasdaq-listed
Flextronics already has a manufacturing
plant in Bangalore and a logistics centre
in Chennai, also known as Madras. Flextronics
has more than 11 million square feet (1
million sq metres) of factory capacity
in Asia, including China, Hong Kong, Singapore,
Malaysia, India, Japan and Taiwan. It
employs 73,000 staff in the region, with
about 47,000 in China.
Courtesy:
in.today.reuters.com, September 14, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
IA
Registers Record Profit in Financial Year
|
| |
|
Indian
Airlines (IA) has registered a net-profit
of Rs 1.60 crore during July 2005-06,
the highest ever in the airline history.
In a press release issued here today IA
officials said that during the same period
last year, the airline had shown a loss
of Rs 9.85 crore. The profit has nosedived,
following an increase in the price of
Aviation Turbine Fuel. The operating revenue
of the airline was Rs 494.45 crore against
Rs 421.75 crore last year and total revenue
was Rs 494.90 crore against Rs 422.30
crore in the last fiscal period. The passenger
carriage has registered a 9.2 per cent
increase over July, 2004, the release
added.
Courtesy:
www.uniindia.com, September 14, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Indian
IT Curry Turns Red Hot
|
| |
|
Mr
Investor, if you think the Indian stock
market is red hot, think again! It is
not just the Indian equities that are
red hot, but the Indian IT mart - ever
buzzing with activity - has a far bigger
IT story to tell than just the Infosys
and Wipro stocks. It is about a large
number of small and medium sized Indian
IT firms that are hitting it big on the
global psyche and are increasingly coming
on the radar of international tech media.
At least 12 such Indian firms - some start-ups
and some already well-known for their
work or lineage - have made it to Red
Herring's first-ever Asia 100 survey.
The survey features the fastest-growing
IT trailblazers in the Asia-Pacific region
comprising India, China, Japan, Australia,
New Zealand and Russia among other countries.
The list includes companies that are slowly,
but surely, changing the rules of the
games: Applabs Technologies, Comat Technologies,
DQ Entertainment, Ittiam Systems, Jataayu,
Navin Communications, Pinstorm, Pramati,
Tejas Networks India, Bharti Telesoft,
Indiagames and Progeon. Representatives
of these companies were presented with
awards by Red Herring at a glittering
function in Shanghai last week. The inaugural
award program recognizes the most promising
and innovative private technology companies
in Asia with high growth potential. A
highly-reputed American weekly, Red Herring
magazine covers technology, innovation,
financial strategies, important personalities
and trends that are transforming the world
of business. This is the first time that
it came out with a Red Herring 100 Asia
list in recognition of what it called
"the enormous growth rate and highly innovative
companies emerging in the Asian market".
These are the red hot and young Indian
tech companies that are making it big
by exploiting frontier technologies. Contrary
to the popular perception, apart from
Progeon, there are no outsourcing firms
in the list, which is currently considered
India's sunshine industry. Progeon is
the BPO arm of Infosys with expertise
in domains such as banking, securities
and brokerage, insurance, telecom and
healthcare. Most of these companies are
developing the cutting-edge technologies
in niche segments right here in India
and in doing so, changing the rules of
the game. For instance, Sashi Reddi founded
Applabs Technologies is recognized as
a global testing, development and certification
solutions services specialist. Bangalore-based
Tejas Networks, on the other hand, develops
advanced optical networking products for
global markets. It is a privately funded
company, backed by investors such as Gururaj
`Desh' Deshpande, Battery Ventures, Intel
Capital, Sycamore Networks and IL&FS Investment
Managers.
Courtesy:
The Economic times, September 14, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Infosys
to Train Chinese Students
|
| |
|
Infosys
Technologies Ltd on Wednesday said as
part of the MoU between the company and
Government of China it would train 100
students from China. The internship program
will run from September 2005 to March
2006, the company informed the Bombay
Stock Exchange. The program involves a
three-month intensive training course
on interpersonal and technical skills
at the Global Education Centre at Mysore,
and a four-month internship at its development
center in Bangalore, it said. China Scholarship
Council along with the company has selected
100 undergraduate students in their fourth
year from leading universities in the
software engineering field. The training
will be conducted by the Education and
Research Department of the company in
association with the Infosys Leadership
Institute, it added.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 14, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Ranbaxy
Sets up 100 per cent Arm in Italy
|
| |
|
Ranbaxy
Laboratories has launched its operations
in Italy, one of the top five pharmaceutical
markets in Europe, by floating a wholly
owned subsidiary, Ranbaxy Italia SPA,
in Milan. By entering Italy, the company
is charting an organic growth route for
itself and will be introducing high quality
generic medicines from its extensive international
product portfolio by early 2006. Commenting
on the launch of its Italian operations,
Malvinder Mohan Singh, executive director
and president - pharmaceuticals, Ranbaxy,
said generic medicines have an important
role to play in serving the priorities
of the Italian government to make healthcare
more affordable and accessible to all.
"We are committed to this task and will
soon be introducing a number of products
in the country," he added. The Indian
multinational's move helps it consolidate
its presence in the top 5 European pharmaceutical
markets while recording its presence in
21 of the 25 EU countries. Italy is ranked
as the fourth largest pharmaceuticals
market in Europe after Germany, the UK
and France. The total size of the drug
market in Italy was pegged at $16.5 billion.
With the government encouraging generics
to reduce the cost of healthcare, this
segment is expected to grow rapidly in
the coming years. Additional impetus will
come from the expiry of some block-buster
drug patents, expected by 2008-2009. Ranbaxy
is currently present in over 100 countries
and has an expanding international portfolio
of affiliates, joint ventures and alliances.
The company has own field operations in
44 countries and manufacturing operations
in 7 countries. Ranbaxy is also looking
at acquiring facilities and businesses
in Europe and the US to expand its global
operations.
Courtesy:
Business Standard, September 14, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Cisco
Sees India as Most Attractive Market
|
| |
|
Cisco
Systems Inc., the largest maker of Internet
equipment, sees India at the top of its
list of markets to work in, Cisco Senior
Vice President Howard Charney said at
the Reuters Asia Technology and Telecoms
Summit on Tuesday. He saw security, Internet
telephony, storage networking and wireless
as chief technologies to drive business
at Cisco. China is often named as the
key driver for growth in many industries,
but Charney said India had an edge as
a market, with a legal system familiar
to the U.S.-based company and a strong
work force of engineers who speak English.
Cisco expects total annual revenue growth
of 10 percent to 15 percent in coming
years, while the company's compound annual
growth rates in India are 50 percent to
70 percent, said Charney, who is a member
of Cisco's office of the president. "India
on balance is maybe the most attractive
market in the world right now for us,"
he told the summmit, held at Reuters offices
in Tokyo.
Courtesy:
in.today.reuters.com: September 13, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Indian
Techies Taking Over Japan IT?
|
| |
|
Dreaming
of success, many technicians from Information
Technology (IT) superpower India, and
other countries such as Vietnam, are coming
to Japan. Softbridge Solutions Pte Ltd.,
a venture enterprise in Tokyo's Kanda
area, is inviting IT technicians from
India for a seminar to teach them Japanese
language and business practices before
they come to Japan, where they work for
Japanese companies. Prashant Jain, 37,
of India, established Softbridge Solutions
in June 2002. "The United States is saturated
as a place to export software and personnel,"
he said. So far, his company has provided
Japanese businesses with about 50 technicians.
"There are many ambitious young people
who want to graduate from good schools
and become successful," Jain said. "The
young generation will be more globally
active." Toppan Printing Co., a Japanese
printing company, has hired 10 Indian
technicians from Softbridge. They are
engaged in software development, forming
a team with Japanese employees. Toshiro
Masuda, Director of the E-business Department,
said the Indians' ability is 30 per cent
higher than that of his Japanese employees,
and personnel expenses for them are 30
per cent less. Anuj Agarwal, 29, has been
in charge of developing mobile phone content
at Toppan for two years. "In the future,
I want to return to India and set up a
company using my experience in Japan,"
he said. India, with annual economic growth
of close to seven percent, has produced
more than 100,000 highly educated IT technicians.
Many of them are seeking jobs at European
and US enterprises. But after the September
11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United
States, young technicians have increasingly
sought work at Japanese companies because
the US government is more tightly regulating
the issuance of visas to it technicians.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September 13,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Ranbaxy
Set For A Big Catch in US/Europe
|
| |
|
Ranbaxy
sees itself among the top five players
in the US generic drugs market soon mainly
on the strength of a big-ticket acquisition
that it appears poised to clinch. At present,
Ranbaxy is the eighth largest player in
the American generic drugs market. Malvinder
Singh, president (pharmaceuticals), Ranbaxy,
said the company was "on its way" to be
among the top five. Singh has just come
back from the US and is going there again
next week. "Global consolidation is going
to intensify. Our vision puts us in the
top five by 2012 but we need to do it
faster. We stand at number eight with
$1.2 billion. Between the third and the
10th, there is a gap of barely $1-2 billion,"
he said. One big acquisition will catapult
Ranbaxy up the ranks, especially as Singh
does not rule out acquiring a company
as big as Ranbaxy. "We will be looking
at front-end acquisitions in Europe and
the US while in India, we will be considering
back-end units to strengthen the vertical
integration," said Singh, declining to
divulge the acquisition target or the
time frame for it. Ranbaxy is all set
to get some more currency. On Friday,
its board cleared a proposal to raise
$1.5 billion through a US listing and
another to increase its authorised capital
from Rs 200 crore to Rs 300 crore. For
organic growth, Ranbaxy has lined up a
slew of new launches in the US market,
even though in the first half of this
year, it has launched drugs only half
as many as it had in the first half of
last year.
Courtesy:
Business Standard: September 12, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
HTMT
Sets up Shop in Mauritius
|
| |
|
Hinduja
TMT Ltd (HTMT) has set up a 350-seat business
process outsourcing facility at Ebene
Cybercity, Mauritius. The new centre is
in keeping with the overall global expansion
strategy of the company, an HTMT press
release said. "We now have close to 2,000
seats outside India across four global
locations in the US, Canada, the Philippines
and Mauritius," said K. Thiagarajan, Managing
Director and CEO, HTMT. "We also have
4,500 seats spread across eight centres
in India. Expanding our market and adding
new verticals along with growing intellectual
capital is a priority on the company's
agenda," he added. Navinchandra Ramgoolam,
Prime Minister, Mauritius, inaugurated
the new centre.
Courtesy:
Sify.com: September 12, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Global
Cos Eye Desi Immigration Firms
|
| |
|
Even
as MNCs start hiring around the world,
corporate immigration services, specially
for law firms, are gaining ground. Leading
US firms like Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen
& Loewy and LLP, for instance, have over
130 attorneys and 500 professional immigration
specialists and staff located in 25 offices
in the US, Asia Pacific, and Europe working
in partnership with clients to facilitate
the hiring and transfer of employees worldwide.
And given the fact that India provides
a huge pool of skilled immigrants, various
global law firms are looking to set up
shop here as well. "The problem so far
is that foreign law firms are not allowed
to practice in India yet and cannot set
up full-fledged law offices catering to
immigration requirements of companies
and individuals. However, various legal
entities are eyeing the Indian market
with some tying up with immigration consultants
who service Indian immigrants wishing
to move to geographies like Canada and
Australia," says Poorvi Chothani of LawQuest,
who is also correspondent attorney for
Cyrus D. Mehta & Associates, PLLC, a Wall
Street, Manhattan-based law firm practicing
in the area of US immigration and nationality
law. She also has similar tie-ups with
associate law firms in the UK, Germany
and Canada.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 12, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Excellent
Growth Projected For 18 Services in Current
Fiscal
|
| |
|
As
many as 18 service sector segments of
the Indian economy are projected to clock
"excellent growth" levels of 20-60 per
cent in 2005-06 over the previous year,
according to a Ficci survey on service
sector growth trends. Seventeen segments
are poised to achieve "high growth" of
10 per cent -20 per cent , and barely
five activities are slated to achieve
"moderate growth" (upto 10 per cent),
in the current fiscal. The survey, based
on interactions with representatives of
various service providers and operators,
service-related associations and companies
in both private and public sectors, has
showed that the segments projected to
achieve "excellent growth" are retail
trade in the organised sector (35%), road
transport service (22%), domestic air
passenger traffic (25%), international
air passenger traffic (20%), total air
cargo handled (20%), value-added government
postal services (30%), telecom subscribers
(30%), mobile subscriber (60%) and internet
users (60%) among others. The survey said
that the segments likely to experience
"moderate growth" are the overall retail
trade (9%), railway passenger traffic
(9%), railway passenger fare earnings
(6%), construction (6-7%) and music industry
(4-5%). The survey, according to Ficci,
throws up a number of issues and constraints
faced by the services sector, some of
which are common to all segments. These
include lack of adequate infrastructure,
higher incidence of taxation and duties,
and other charges. High licensing charges
and security levies add to the cost of
operations. Many states are yet to implement
Vat and sales tax continues to remain
high there. The industry chamber has suggested
that in view of the role played by the
services sector in generating income and
providing employment to millions of people
in both the organised and the unorganised
sector, there is a need for taking pro-active
liberal measures and providing incentives
including credit on soft terms.
Courtesy:
The Financial Express: September 12, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Dubai
Business Road Shows in Five Indian Cities
|
| |
|
Dubai
will conduct a series of road shows in
five Indian cities from September 12 to
highlight its economic strengths and business
advantages to the business community in
the world's second most-populous country.
The 'Dubai Business Road Shows' are being
conducted in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad
and Bangalore under the umbrella of the
Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce
Marketing (DTCM). The co-participants
of the road shows are Dubai Airport Free
Zone Authirity, Dubai Silicon Oasis, Dubai
Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dubai
Outsource Zone, Emirates Airline, and
Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority. Over 2,500
companies have been invited across five
cities, including CEOs of multinational
organisations. The DTCM will sign a Memorendum
of Understanding (MoU) with the Confederation
of Indian Industry (CII) in a bid to strengthen
commercial ties between the two countries.
The agreement will allow the organisations
to work towards stepping up bilateral
economic and industrial initiatives in
potential areas. The two partners will
focus on manufacturing, trade and investment
in key industries such as information
technology, business process outsourcing,
precious metals, pharma, aviation, food
processing, consumer durables and fast-moving
consumer goods. Mr. Khalifa Ali Buamaim,
DTCM Manager Overseas Promotions, said:
' Dubai's progressive and liberal business
environment will be highlighted during
the road shows. We are confident that
Indian business community and investors
will be able to gain meaningful insights
into the strengths and advantages of Dubai
and how it can benefit them.' The first
road show will be held in Delhi on September
12 followed by Chennai on September 13,
Hyderabad on September 14 and Bangalore
on September 15. The final road show will
be on September 16 in Mumbai which houses
the DTCM's Representative Office for India.
Courtesy:
ameinfo.com: September 12, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Sky
is The Limit, if You're an IIM Grad
|
| |
|
Come
next year, Gaurav Agarwal will be working
in London for a big investment bank. The
second year MBA student of Indian Institute
of Management, Bangalore (IIM-B) has just
been offered a whopping $1,93,000-pay
packet (Rs 84.5 lakh). This is said to
be the highest international offer ever
made across all business schools in India.
And to make it a double for IIM-B, Gaurav's
batchmate, Venkatesh Sankararaman has
been offered Rs 30 lakh per annum at the
same bank's Mumbai office. This is the
highest domestic pay packet offered, so
far, in business schools. These offers
were made after the summer internships
in April and May this year. Last year,
a student from ISB, Hyderabad broke the
record for the highest foreign pay packet
offer of $1,81,000 (Rs 80 lakh). The previous
domestic high was Rs 25 lakh back in '00,
while an ISB student was offered Rs 21
lakh last year. Some 10 out of the 45
IIM-B students, who did their summer internship,
an academic requirement at the institute,
in New York, Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong,
Nigeria, Ivory Coast and Czech Republic
and the UK, have already received offers
with an average salary of over $ 1,00,000
per annum. The number is expected to increase
with some big firms like Goldman Sachs
and HSBC likely to come out with their
offers next week. Eight students have
received offers from Indian companies.
About 180 people are doing their second
year MBA course at the institute. Sources
at IIM-B's placement cell say that the
increase in number of international offers
is largely because of companies hiking
their recruitment intake through the summer
internships route this year. Regular recruiters
from IIM-B include Goldman Sachs, Lehman
Brothers, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan, HSBC,
Barclays Capital, BNP Paribas and Bank
of America.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 10, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Indians
Just Can't Stop Buying Gold
|
| |
|
The
Great Indian Chase for profitable assets
is driving gold up the wall. In the last
three months, Indians have bought more
than 275 tonnes of gold. This is the highest
ever offtake both in volume and rupee
terms. That even beats the gold craze
which swept the country after liberalisation
in '98. And it is the same disposable
income that is chasing property across
the country as the Indian families put
their faith firmly in concrete physical
assets. The stats are mind-boggling. Compared
to the first six months of '04, India's
gold purchases are up by more than half,
says leading independent precious metals
consultancy, GFMS. Jewellery purchases
in tonnage was up by more than 40%. Industrial
demand, especially for products like jari
thread for sarees and lehengas, was up
16%. And net retail investment in gold
bars and coins was up a huge 79% over
the corresponding period in '04. All this
has pushed the global gold jewellery demand
to an all-time high of $38bn. That is
one of the most significant milestones
crossed by the world gold market in recent
years.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 10, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Tourist
Inflows up 16% till Aug
|
| |
|
Tourist
inflows, for the seven-month period ending
August '05, are up by 15.6% to 2.4m, against
2.1m tourists in the corresponding period.
Annual tourists inflows have been around
the 2.3-m mark till calendar year '03.
If the current growth rate continues,
tourist inflows can cross the 4-m mark
in '05. Foreign exchange income for the
seven-month period is up by 22% to $ 3,740m
against $3,062m. The last two years have
seen steep growth in business and leisure
travel. Industry officials say the rise
in tourist inflows is owing to the increase
in air seat capacity, coupled with an
advertising campaign by the ministry of
tourism. "Tourist inflows have continued
to grow during the non-peak season this
year. Air seat capacity has driven tourist
inflows. However, there is a lot to be
done. The aviation sector must add further
capacity and create supply ahead of demand.
Only then can India achieve the tourist
growth rates of Thailand and Malaysia.
These two countries have had a tourism
boom only due to the growth in aviation
sector," said Amitabh Kant, joint secretary,
Ministry of Tourism, adding, "India should
tap new markets in Asia, such as Korea,
Japan and China. We continue to get tourists
from historic European markets such as
Italy, France and Germany"
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 10, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Emerges as Dubai's Top Trading Partner
in Gold, Diamonds
|
| |
|
India
has emerged as Dubai's leading trade partner
in gold and diamonds, accounting for 42
per cent of the Emirate's direct trade
in precious and semi-precious stones and
metals in 2004. The growth resulted in
India overtaking the US and Iran to emerge
as the second largest overall supplier
of goods to Dubai after China. According
to figures disclosed by the Dubai Chamber
of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), the value
of Dubai's direct trade with India ( in
semi-precious and precious stones and
metals) accounted for 42 per cent of Dubai's
total direct trade of the above products
in 2004. In terms of trade flow, India
supplied 31 per cent of Dubai's imports
of the product group, 59 per cent of re-exports
and 86 per cent of exports, according
to the DCCI's Economic Bulletin. Thirty
per cent of the imports from India are
non-industrial diamonds that have been
worked but unmounted/ unset, while 11
per cent are jewellery articles. Non-monetary
gold ingots account for 56 per cent of
Dubai's total re-exports and 67 per cent
of exports to India. Mainly due to the
increased trade of gold and diamonds,
India is a very strong second to China
as Dubai's top supplier of imported goods.
It closes the gap to only 708 million
dirhams, while overtaking the US as a
top export destination and Iran as a top
re-export destination, the bulletin said.
Since 2000, Dubai's imports and re-exports
of semi-precious and precious stones and
metals had been steadily growing, with
peak rates in 2001 and in 2004. In 2004,
the product group accounted for nearly
a third (33 per cent) of the total increase
in imports and more than half of exports
and re-exports (53 per cent and 54 per
cent, respectively). Dubai's overall trade
in 2004 surged to a record total value
of 216 billion dirhams, 41 per cent higher
than the previous year's 153 billion dirhams,
mainly due to a 40 per cent rise in trade
in the semi-precious and precious stones
and metal sector, the bulletin said. Next
to India, Dubai's second largest trading
partner in the product group is Switzerland
(15 per cent), while other major suppliers
are Malaysia (6 per cent) and the UK and
Belgium (5 per cent each).
Courtesy:
The Hindu Business Line: September 09,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Ranks 5th Among World's Hotspots
|
| |
|
It's
coming of age of India on the world tourist
map. Overseas holidayers and travellers
from across the globe have put India in
the Top Five list of most attractive and
satisfying holiday destinations in the
world, ahead of several developed and
traditional hotspots like US, France,
Singapore and South Africa. According
to the latest Conde Nast Readers'Travel
Awards survey, East was the flavour of
the season among overseas holidayers,
with Italy being the only country from
the Western world to make it to the Top
Five. New Zealand was voted the favourite
holiday destination, followed by Thailand,
Australia, Italy and India. The countries
were ranked on an index of satisfaction
with travel facilities and services -
from hotels and spas to airlines and airports.
India scored mainly on account of its
hospitality facilities - which included
quality spas and hotels - while New Zealand
got top marks for scenery, environmental
friendliness and safety, ensuring its
place at number one. While Italy and France
maintained their reputation for excellent
food, US'variety of attractions were a
big hit among travellers. But holidayers
voted Sri Lanka as the 'best value for
money'destination.
Courtesy:
The Times of India, September 09, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Ericsson
Bags Malaysian Order
|
| |
|
Ericsson
said on Friday it had won an order from
Malaysian operator Maxis to expand its
3G network and upgrade it. "With this
agreement ... Ericsson will supply a significant
part of Maxis radio network infrastructure,"
the Swedish group said in a statement.
It gave no value for the contract. The
upgrade of the network will be to HSDPA,
which is a next step WCDMA technology
and offers peak data downlink rates of
up to 14 Mbps and more than twice the
system capacity, without requiring additional
radio spectrum or radio coverage.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 09, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Auto
Components Sector Grows Multiple Fold
in Seven Years
|
| |
|
The
Indian automobile components industry
is an example of a successfully nurtured
infant industry, says the 2005 UNDP Human
Development Report. Domestic content restrictions
were used to stimulate development of
the components industry, with extended
participation from international original
equipment manufacturers. The size of the
auto component industry has grown from
$2.4 billion in 1997 to $8.7 billion in
2004-05. What's more, India has emerged
as a significant exporter of parts too.
From $578 million in 2001-02, overseas
sales of Indian vendors has jumped to
$1.4 billion the last financial year.
The industry is poised to reach export
$25 billion worth of parts by 2015, according
to a McKinsey report. However, this export
success was not easy to come by. It was
preceded by a lenghty period of market
protection that incentivised foreign investors
to locate in India and ally with local
firms. These barriers were slowly reduced
in stark contrast to Latin America. Tariff
on automobiles and parts averaged more
than 30% in the mid-1990s in India, whereas
they were less than 3% in Latin America.
Thus, a fairly well-developed industry
in that region was pushed out of domestic
and regional markets by foreign car companies
using their own suppliers. International
comparisons show that the top Indian companies
are globally competitive across a wide
range of automobile component products.
Defect rates have dramatically reduced
- seven companies have been awarded the
Deming Prize for quality - and companies
are mastering new technologies.
Courtesy:
The Financial Express, September 08, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Inc Heads For British Shores
|
| |
|
The
number may be still too small to talk
about but the trend is growing by the
day. For Indian companies, UK seems to
be the new hot destination for investments.
Already about 30 Indian companies have
made investments in the UK, either by
acquiring companies or setting up own
subsidiaries there. And if the latest
studies are anything to go by, the numbers
are expected to show a significant increase
in the coming years. According to a recent
study, carried out by KPMG and commissioned
by the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF),
the sectors in which Indian companies
are investing in UK include IT, auto-components
and pharmaceuticals. The study also shows
that about 40% India's total overseas
investment flows into Europe and of this,
over 60% is headed to the UK. Increasingly
this investment is in the knowledge-driven
economy. The IT/Software sector currently
accounts for half of all investments from
India into the UK. These include major
players such as Infosys Technologies,
HCL Technologies and Wipro. Other major
Indian companies which have made investments
in the UK economy include United Phosphorous,
Bharat Forge, Gautier India and Thermax.
Indian investors say they are attracted
to the UK's pro-business, low tax environment
and position as the gateway to the European
market. They also cite UK's position as
Europe's largest e-commerce market, its
wealth of research and development facilities,
world-leading telecom infrastructure and
position of London as Europe's business
capital as further drivers behind their
investment decisions.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 08, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Outsource
Boom to Echo in Factories
|
| |
|
India
stands on the cusp of an even bigger outsourcing
boom in the manufacturing sector. A combination
of factors is helping the tilt in India's
direction. Jeffrey S. Russell, partner
Accenture Australia Ltd, said that several
US and European companies were all headed
for India. US and European companies plan
to increase the amount of goods and services
they source from suppliers in lower-cost
counties by 85 per cent within the next
two to three years, according to a study
conducted by Accenture, one of the biggest
global management consulting company.
Low-cost country sourcing has become an
issue that can no longer be postponed.
"It is a must in order to achieve a flexible
cost base," said one of the 238 respondents
in the survey. "It is critical for our
future competitiveness." Some of the sectors
in India like apparels, textiles, auto
components, gems, pharmaceuticals, jewellery
among others which need some kind of skill
set had a huge potential, said Sanjay
Dawar, partner Accenture India. In fact,
some of the global majors were looking
at India as compared to China for the
purpose of hedging the risk and also to
maintain pricing pressure on the existing
suppliers, he added. In the given scenario,
the home-grown domestic companies are
more competitive in pricing in comparison
to multinational companies as they manage
to keep the cost of production lower than
these multi-national companies.
Courtesy:
Hindustan Times, September 08, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
to Explore For Oil in Cuba's Gulf Waters
|
| |
|
India,
an importer of oil, will explore two blocks
in Cuba's Gulf of Mexico waters and is
negotiating a share of other blocks held
by Spain's Repsol, an Indian official
said on Tuesday. "Two blocks have been
given to us by the Cuban government to
explore ... We are hopeful we will find
oil," deputy Foreign Minister Rao Inderjit
Singh said at the end of a visit to Cuba.
"We are also negotiating an agreement
with Spanish company Repsol for taking
over 30 per cent of their share," Singh
told a news conference. India hopes Cuba
will approve the deal once negotiations,
which include Norway's Norsk Hydro, are
completed. Singh said India's fast-growing
economy is energy dependent. ONGC Videsh
Ltd, the overseas arm of India's state-owned
Oil and Natural Gas Corp has invested
more than $4 billion looking for oil worldwide
and now wants to explore in Cuba, he said.
"India is one of four or five countries
in the world that have deep-sea exploration
experience and that is why the blocks
and our work with Repsol interest us so,"
Jain said. The Indian government is encouraging
ONGC to bid for foreign oil assets as
domestic output has declined and energy
demand from Asia's third-largest economy
is expected to grow rapidly.
Courtesy:
The Indian Express, September 07, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Could Emerge as an 'Economic Power in
25 Years'
|
| |
|
Union
Finance Minister P Chidambaram today said
India could emerge as an economic power
in 25 years as the country would have
the demographic advantage with increase
in the working age group in the next 15-20
years. At present the country's working
age group was 15-64 years and constituted
64 per cent of the population, while children
and senior citizens accounted for 36 per
cent, he said at a function here this
evening. After 15-20 years, the working
age group population would go up in the
country, while most of the Western countries,
including China, would have more senior
citizens than the working age group, he
said. Predicting that India would have
about 82 crore working age group population
by 2015, he said if they were given good
education, good health, skilled and productive
power, the country would become a leader
in world economy. He was speaking at the
81st birth anniversary celebrations of
renowned educationist, Chandrakanthi Govindarajulu
and the the Golden Jubilee of PSGR Krishnaammal
College for Women. Observing that education
had become a business, he said the government
wanted to provide more opportunities to
the aspiring students.
Courtesy:
The Financial Express: September0 07,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
German
Engineering Major Sets up Base in Kolkata
|
| |
|
The
German engineering major, Hansa Flex International
GmbH, on Tuesday announced a new joint
venture project with JDS Technologies.
Hansa Flex holds 74 per cent in the JV
company which would deal in designing
hydraulic systems suitable for plant engineering
and complex material handling equipments.
The Indian company would initially limit
its activities to assembling imported
hardwares. But, over the next five years
it will indigenise non-typical hardwares.
The project would come up at Kolkata's
satellite town of Salt Lake. The German
Consul General in Kolkata, Mr Gunter Wehrmann
and the IT Minister, Mr Manabendra Mukherjee
were present at the inauguration of the
JV company Hansa Flex JDS Hydraulic India.
Courtesy:
The Hindu Business Line: September 07,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Tele-Density
Reaches 9.6%; 76 Lakh New Phones in 4
Months
|
| |
|
India
has achieved a tele-density of 9.6 per
cent at the end of July this year with
a net addition of 76 lakh new telephone
connection during April-July period of
2005. According to figures released by
Ministry of Communication, basic telephones
declined during the period under consideration.
Total additional phones during the current
year are accounted for by the mobile phones
only, which was 76.52 lakh. However, net
addition was 75.98 lakh due to negative
growth of basic phones, an official release
said. The mobile phone now accounts for
598 lakh, 56.46 per cent of the total
connection in the country. Private sector
grabbed the major share in the new additions
in the first four months accounting for
85 per cent of the 76 lakh phones. State
owned BSNL continues to play important
role in the rural telephony and provided
63,989 phones in the first four month
besides 1885 Village Public Telephones.
Courtesy:
The Pioneer, September 06, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Record
Cotton Output For Second Year
|
| |
|
India,
the world's third largest cotton producer,
is expected to produce a record crop for
the second straight year but lack of rains
could spoil the party, a top trade official
said on Monday. The country's cotton production
in the year to September 2006 is likely
to reach 23.5 million bales, up from 21.5
million bales a year ago because of more
area under cultivation, good weather and
extensive use of transgenic seeds. "The
crop looks excellent in most growing areas,"
Rakesh Rathi, president of the Northern
India Cotton Association, said. "The central
and western parts of the country need
one last spell of rains before harvesting
next month," Mr Rathi added. Production
could take a hit in western Gujarat, Maharashtra
and central Madhya Pradesh which have
not received much rainfall for the past
almost a month, said Mr Rathi. "But if
we get one good spell by mid-September,
then there will be no problem," he added.
The land under cotton has increased to
around 8.3 million hectares from 8.2 million
hectares last year, according to the farm
ministry. India's cotton crop, prone to
pest attacks like bollworm, has remained
largely free of pests this year because
of more use of pest-resistant genetically
modified cotton. In 2002, India allowed
transgenic cotton that contains a gene
from Bacillus thuringiensis, a bacterium
species.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September 06,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Nasscom
Sees IT Exports Growing 30-35%
|
| |
|
IT
and ITeS exports are expected to grow
by 30-35% in 2005-06, the National Association
of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom)
said on Monday. Speaking on the sidelines
of a panel discussion on infrastructure
outsourcing, Nasscom president Kiran Karnik
said: "We are seeing good traction. Export
revenues from infrastructure outsourcing
would account for $450 million in 2005-06.
Total IT and ITeS exports are expected
to grow at 30-35%." Nasscom had earlier
forecast a growth of around 30-32% in
2005-06. Last year, IT and ITeS exports
grew 34.5% to $17.2 billion. Mr Karnik
said that the global market for infrastructure
outsourcing is $200 billion, of which
60-66% can be sent offshore. Major players
in infrastructure management in India
are HCL Comnet, Wipro, TCS, Infosys and
Satyam. HCL Comnet has got the largest
operations and competes with global giants
like Accenture, EDS, IBM, CSC and so on.
"This is an opportunity for India. Even
MNCs who win large deals in infrastructure
management will move work to India," he
added. Another expert, Sudin Apte, country
manager at the global analyst firm, Forrester
Research, said: "Export of infrastructure
management services from India has been
growing at more than 100% annum. This
growth is expected to continue as the
size of the market is huge at $200 billion
and India's share is just $450 million."
Growth in outsourcing of infrastructure
management is being driven by the success
of outsourcing of application maintenance
and development. "Indian companies don't
have the capability of taking on large
IT infrastructure. They would either have
to set up huge delivery capabilities at
multiple locations or acquire them. Another
way to have a pie of this market, is to
build new services around the business,"
Mr Apte added.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September 06,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
BHEL
Gets Award From APQO
|
| |
|
Bharat
Heavy Electricals Limited on Monday said
it has won the 'Best of its class distinction'
award from International Asia Pacific
Quality Organisation (APQO). The company
is the first public sector firm as well
as the first engineering and manufacturing
organisation in the country to have won
this award, a BHEL release said.
Courtesy:
The Pioneer, September 06, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
'India
Tops in Furniture Imports'
|
| |
|
INDIA
is the world's top furniture importer
accounting for 17 per cent of the total
imports worldwide in 2004 and up to mid
2005 and retailers expect this to drive
future growth. Organised sector accounts
for Rs 800 crore worth of imports with
the furniture market growing by 12-15
per cent per annum. The industry in the
country is estimated at Rs 35,000 crore.
The organised sector forms only 15 per
cent of the total, said Mr Liyakat Ali
Khan, President, Universal Expositions
Group. The group is organising an expo
in Mumbai later this year in which apart
from the local brands, Malaysian and Milanese
brands will also participate. With the
lowering of tariffsthis year, the Government
has enabled importers to enter the furniture
market and spoil the Indian consumer for
choice. With the rationalisation of the
import duty at 38 per cent from a high
of 300 per cent, a large number of foreign
players have forayed to tap the huge potential.
According to a survey by global consultancy
firm KPMG, India has emerged as a key
FDI destination as foreign investors earn
high returns in India than other emerging
markets such as China, Brazil and Mexico.
Foreign companies will now be able to
collaborate with the smaller local companies
and take advantage of the rise in demand.
"We predict it to be the next big boom,"
Mr Khan said adding that a business exposition
Index International Furniture Fair to
be held in Mumbai from October 12 to 16
will attract a large number of leading
brands. Mr Khan predicts that manufacturing
of some of the international furniture
would start in four to five years, with
export of certain commodities such as
beanbags having already begun.
Courtesy:
www.thehindubusinessline.com, September
05, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Boomtime
For Construction Industry, Proclaims CII
Survey
|
| |
|
Heightened
realisation on the part of all stakeholders
that infrastructure will play a key role
towards pushing the GDP growth to the
desirable 8% mark has come as a boon for
construction industry. According to the
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII),
increased investment in infrastructure
has led to a surge in construction activities
and the industry is riding a growth wave
which is evident from the financial results
posted by some of the leading contractors,
showing 30% to 100% growth in the first
nine months of 2004-05. However, the industry
is faced with challenges too. A CII report
says the need to be price competitive;
adherence to safety; quality consciousness;
adapting to technological changes; developing
and using new construction materials;
and having an adequately trained manpower
are issues that the industry should look
into. There is an increase in fund outlay
for infrastructure in the Tenth Plan (2002-2007)
by the Planning Commission and most of
this is to be spent in the construction
sector. The CII report states that besides
the direct impact of this spending on
the construction sector, there will also
be ripple effect boosting demand in other
core sectors such as cement and steel
(on spending in other sectors), thereby
having a positive impact on the economy
as a whole. "The construction sector,
therefore, has to gear up fully to take
on the ever-increasing challenge," the
report added. The report states that the
Indian construction industry, ranked 12th
in the world, has the potential to emerge
as a front-runner if all construction
activities are unleashed in all sectors.
The resultant spin-offs to industry and
employment will drive the growth.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September05,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Pharma
Cos Snap up US$ 500 Million Buys Since
Jan '04
|
| |
|
The
domestic pharmaceutical sector has emerged
as one of the most aggressive overseas
investors. Since January '04, Indian pharma
companies have made 18 international acquisitions
with an aggregate deal value of more than
US$ 480 million (approximately US$ 500
million). With pharma majors such as Ranbaxy
and Wockhardt again on the prowl for big-ticket
M&As, this figure is set to rise. Significantly,
the consolidation in the global generic
industry following Teva's acquisition
of Ivax and Sandoz's takeover of Hexal
has created a huge gap between the top
two generic players and the rest of the
industry. Analysts say that if Ranbaxy
can snap up, or enter into an alliance
with, a large-sized company, it could
become the third-largest generics company
in the world. "There is a significant
opportunity for an Indian company to snatch
the No 3 position in the global generics
space and we believe that Ranbaxy has
the greatest potential to do so," says
an analyst with CLSA. Adds Sanjiv Kaul,
MD, ChrysCapital: "At the rate at which
consolidation is taking place, it is important
for a company like Ranbaxy to leverage
the M&A route to become one of the top
three generic companies in the world.
Size matters." While annual revenues of
Teva and Sandoz are in excess of $5bn,
the next level of companies - Ranbaxy,
Mylan, and Watson - all figure in the
$1.3-1.6bn range. The two biggest overseas
acquisitions undertaken by domestic pharma
companies in the past 20 months include
Matrix Laboratories' buyout of Belgium's
Docpharma for $263m and Ranbaxy's takeover
of RPG Aventis in France for $80m. The
acquisition prices in most of the deals
has, however, been more modest. Out of
the 18 deals that have taken place, 11
have been in the $5-30m range. Interestingly,
while the US is the largest generic market
in the world, the bulk of overseas acquisitions
have happened in Europe. Deals worth $445m
have been stitched in Europe. Pharma watchers
say valuations in Europe are more reasonable
as compared to the US and there is a "fit
for every pocket." Moreover, the rate
of penetration of generics is projected
to grow rapidly in the continent and it
is projected to become the second-largest
engine of growth for the generic industry.
Ranbaxy, Nicholas Piramal, Jubilant Organosys
and Glenmark have all undertaken two overseas
acquisitions each since January '04. However,
Matrix, by virtue of its $ 263m buyout,
leads the pack in terms of investment
figures. Strides Acrolab, too, has acquired
two companies but its aggregate investment
was just $7m. Overseas acquisitions have
become an integral part of the strategies
of all leading domestic pharma companies.
The objectives behind the acquisitions
may be different: some companies may use
them as entry vehicle into a new market;
others may use them to get access to manufacturing
assets. There are still others who may
use them as a tool for marketing consolidation.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times: September 05, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Biocon
Considers Overseas Listing to Aid Global
Buys
|
| |
|
Biocon,
often known as the 'Infosys of the biotech
realm', is mulling an overseas listing
in the near future. There are no decisions
yet on the actual timing or size of such
an overseas flotation, but Biocon's chairman
& MD Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw isn't ruling
out a US listing a few months down the
line to complement the company's plans
to acquire global biotech firms. "We have
not taken any decisions in so far as a
US listing goes since we've recently raised
over Rs 300 crore through an IPO. But
any overseas listing decision for Biocon
will be based on emerging offshore licensing
opportunities and provided the company
can enhance shareholder value," said Ms
Mazumdar-Shaw. She was speaking to reporters
on the sidelines of a press meet here.
"While Biocon is not considering an overseas
listing in the immediate term, any decision
in this light will be linked to plans
to go for strategic acquisitions of global
biotech companies. Biocon is scouting
for companies with good IP. We would also
be interested in a company with a good
molecule in its arsenal that we can further
develop," she added. At present, Biocon
has two subsidiaries - Syngene International
and Clinigene International. It also has
a joint venture with Cuba's CIMAB SA christened,
Biocon Biopharmaceuticals. Over the years,
Biocon has evolved from a pure enzyme
company to a fully-integrated biotechnology
enterprise focused on biopharmaceuticals,
custom research, clinical research and
healthcare. At present, Biocon's R&D budget
is roughly 15% of its Rs 728-crore annual
revenue. Over the next three years, Biocon
plans to invest some Rs 750 crore, a substantial
portion of which will be in discovery-led
research. Some of the company's prime
growth drivers will be statins, insulin
and immunosuppressants which are used
by organ transplant patients.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 05, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Mittal
Wants to be The Ford of Steel
|
| |
|
India-born
steel magnate Mr Lakshmi Mittal plans
to turn his company, rated the world's
largest, into a family dynasty to become
the Ford of steel. Mr Mittal, the richest
man in Britain, said Ford was a good model
for the company, which produces 51 million
tonnes of steel annually and was listed
last year. "The Ford brand still exists
after 100 years and it is a professionally
run company. And if any family member
has an interest in running the company,
he has an opportunity to do it," he said.
But Mr Mittal's tight grip over the company
could put off some investors, the report
said. He and his family control 88 per
cent of the shares of Mittal Steel. Global
investment banking and security firm Goldman
Sachs had last week summed up his problem
in one of the first research notes published
on the combined group. It said any valuation
of Mittal Steel should include a 15 per
cent discount because of the strength
of family control, the number of insiders
on the board (four out of nine) and the
position of Mr Aditya Mittal, Mittal's
son, who is both president and chief financial
officer. In the wide-ranging interview,
Mr Mittal also rejected any impropriety
in his donations to the ruling Labour
party, saying there was no connection
between his donations to Labour and his
business activities. It then transpired
that Mr Tony Blair had written a letter
in support of Mittal's purchase of Sidex,
the Romanian steel group. "There was no
reason for the first donation and there
was no reason for the second," Mr Mittal
said. "But I believe in Labour Party and
in Blair"s leadership," he said. Between
1989 and 2004, Mittal made 17 deals, buying
either unwanted assets of bigger steel
groups or down-at-heel state plants, the
report noted. Last October, he announced
a $17.8 billion three-way deal to bring
together the public and private companies
and merge them with America's International
Steel.
Courtesy:
The Statesman, September 04, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
' TCS
to Grow in Emerging Mkts Through ABN Deal |
| |
|
Tata
Consultancy Services today said the five-year
multi-million euro contract it bagged
from Dutch bank ABN Amro would provide
ideal platform to grow in emerging markets
in Latin America and continental Europe.
"The landmark engagement is expected to
generate committed revenues for TCS of
over 200 million euro over the next five
years," TCS said in a release. In addition
to the significant annual revenues it
would generate, this was the first multi-national
global engagement that would allow TCS
to utilise its global delivery model (GDM)
in its entirety, it said. In addition
to its large development centre in India,
over 500 consultants would work from TCS'
global delivery centres in Brazil and
Hungary. "TCS has been investing continuously
to build its global delivery model and
best-in-class execution abilities. The
milestone engagement with ABN Amro was
a complete and irrevocable validation
of our global delivery strategy," TCS
Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
S Ramadorai said. Leveraging its global
delivery model, through centres in Latin
America and Hungary, TCS would manage
a major part of ABN Amro's application
support and enhancement services for its
operations in the Netherlands, Brazil
as well as its private client business
globally. TCS would also provide application
development for the Dutch bank as one
of the top five preferred suppliers and
deliver ABN Amro's strategic banking platform.
"As part of this strategy, we wanted to
look at large contracts outside of the
us and this deal is a vindication of our
stance - we are very proud to be partnering
with ABN Amro," Executive Vice President
and Head - Global Operations, N Chandrasekaran
said. The ABN Amro contract would provide
an ideal platform to grow in emerging
markets in Latin America and continental
Europe and is a testimony to the growing
presence and impact of TCS in European
business - banking and financial services,
he said.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September 02,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
Marine
product exports from India rose 15 per
cent in value to Rs 1,437 rupees in April-June
from a year ago, according to provisional
estimates by the Marine Products Export
Development Authority. Exports also went
up 12 per cent in quantity to 88,063 tonnes
in April-June from 78,669 tonnes last
year. In dollar terms, exports rose 18
per cent to $330 million in April-June
a year ago. The European Union accounts
for the major chunk of exports from India
followed by the United States and Japan.
Shrimp and shrimp products continued to
be leading items of exports from the country
accounting for more than 50 per cent of
the export value. Frozen fish, frozen
squid, etc are the other major components
in the export basket.
Courtesy:
The Asian Age, September 02, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Now,
a Mobile Phone For Just Rs 1000!
|
| |
|
A
brand new mobile phone for Rs 1,000? Sounds
like a dream or a brand promotion? Not
really. Companies here are firming up
plans to come out with a phone that would
cost just about Rs 1000 by next year.
With 2 million new mobile subscribers
every month, India, the fastest growing
wireless market in the world, is going
one step ahead of the magic figure of
sub-$40 and aiming at a "dream phone for
the common man". Currently, the fastest
selling lowest cost mobile phones from
Nokia, Motorola and Samsung fall in the
range of Rs 2,500 -Rs 3,000. Not only
market leaders like Nokia and Motorola
but also design companies like Quasar
and Elcoteq and cellular operators too
are looking at this ultra low cost segment.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 02, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Local
IT cos Take on Global Biggies on Deal
Street
|
| |
|
Indian
IT majors are finally rubbing shoulders
with the global bigwigs for multi-billion
dollar deals. Indian tech companies like
Infosys, TCS and Wipro are prominent in
the race for $2bn deals from General Motors
and ING, while ABN Amro's $1.8bn outsourcing
deal has India's offshoring giants prominently
in the winners list. Indian firms were
hardly ever a serious player in fray for
multi-billiondollar multi-year deals and
were content with small bites of mega-deals
that global biggies like IBM and Accenture
chose to share with them. "This clearly
indicates that large offshore players
like us have a competitive business model
to deliver large, global, multi-year contracts.
The deal also signifies a trend towards
strategic global sourcing, where customers
are selecting multiple, best-of-breed
vendors to help improve efficiencies in
their IT service delivery," say Infosys
CEO and managing director, Nandan Nilekani.
"Indian firms have arrived on the large
direct offshoring deals today," agrees
Sidharth Pai, partner and managing director,
TPI India, deal manager for ABN Amro's
outsourcing. Most Indian IT firms will
attribute their new-found success to depth
and breadth of its service offerings and
world-class facilities. Analysts, however,
feel multinationals are increasingly spreading
their outsourcing contracts over a number
of service suppliers rather than going
with a single vendor, thus tilting the
scales in favour of an Infosys or a TCS.
Both agree that Indian IT firms are increasingly
being invited to the table to bid on contracts
that are global in scope and global delivery
model for IT services is surely beginning
to pick up among European blue-chip companies.
Both ING and General Motors contracts
are expected to be decided by next year,
but the process has already begun and
Indian vendors including Infosys, TCS
and Wipro are learnt to be in fray.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 02, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
to Grab 35K US Law Jobs by 2010
|
| |
|
High-end
legal services are likely to lead the
next wave of offshoring with about 35,000
lawyers' jobs likely to move from US to
countries like India by 2010. In its latest
study, prepared in July, Nasscom says
that MNCs, international law firms, publishing
and legal research firms are now increasingly
sourcing specialised legal services from
India. This is a substantial shift from
the existing outsourcing assignments such
as credit cards and online technical support.
Forrester Inc has found that at least
12,000 legal jobs have been outsourced
from US to offshore locations till 2004.
The firm projected that of the 35,000
US lawyer jobs expected to be shipped
out, 60 to 70% could be headed India's
way. By 2015, the total number of outsourced
jobs from the US could touch 79,000. ''Reports
indicate that billing by Indian lawyers
to US firms for in-house work alone ranged
from $5 million to $15 million in 2004,"
says Sunil Mehta, V-P, Nasscom. He says,
about 700 employees are estimated to be
engaged in providing legal BPO services
from India. The global spending on legal
services is estimated to be at least $250
billion and Nasscom says that the future
looks brighter. ''For a country which
churns out close to three lakh law graduates
every year, and job market still largely
supply-driven, this certainly is good
news," says Amit Bhagat, legal consultant,
Ernst & Young.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times, September 02, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Good For Long-Term Investments: US
|
| |
|
Stating
that India was an attractive destination
for long-term investments, US ambassador
to India David C Mulford today called
for further removal of restrictions to
attract more US investors. Addressing
a meeting organised by CII here, he said
that transformation of India's economy
was on and US could help India advance
this process. US private sector could
participate in India's market economy.
"However, we need to work on removing
barriers," he said. Calling for settlement
of unresolved issues and removal of restrictions
on retail and financial sector, he said
"US is not here to dictate but to make
available its assistance and help India
realising its dream of achieving higher
growth." The overall legacy problems had
undermined the image of India, he said
and urged the country to improve its image
to attract more foreign investments. "Foreign
and private banks were restricted from
their ability to grow," he said. He underlined
the need for further reforms in the financial
sector. The country's strength was its
savings habit but it had the poorest monitoring
system. It should encourage development
of capital market for long term and essential
measure need to be taken to liberalise
the market. Compared to China, he said
India was a better place for long-term
investments. "India's financial sector
is good, but it has to move faster," he
added. Mentioning that trade and investment
are linked together, he said that changes
should take place to address the long-term
disputes and issues.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September 02,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Hydrogen
Fuelled Auto Unveiled
|
| |
|
A
hydrogen-fuel powered auto-rickshaw made
its debut at the annual convention of
the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers
here on Thursday. The three-wheeler, the
product of an alliance between American-Indian
business houses forged by the United States
Agency for International Development (USAID),
is one of two such unique vehicles in
the world. The conventional combustion
engine of the three-wheeler has been converted
to use hydrogen as an alternative fuel.
The vehicle boasts of performance levels
equal to those of conventional Compressed
Natural Gas-fuelled ones. The vehicle
is on the roads of Michigan, U.S., and
the model is placed at the Bajaj headquarters
in India. It has been touted as a step
towards mitigating climate change, and
as an example of U.S.-India energy cooperation.
Bajaj Auto Ltd. of Pune and Energy Conversion
Devices of Troy, Michigan, worked together
to create the vehicle. USAID provided
$500,000 to the project.
Courtesy:
www.hindu.com, September 02, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Global
Rice Output Hit Because Of Low Indian
Production
|
| |
|
India's
lower rice crop has hit the global production
but the country's exports are giving tough
time to Thai rice in the global market.
According to quarterly international trade
report of the US Department of Agriculture
(USDA), production for 2005/06 has been
reduced since last quarter, largely due
to reductions in India. Moreover, India,
has taken a larger slice of the export
pie, focusing its efforts in the parboiled
markets Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and South
Africa, it competes virtually one-on-one
with Thailand, the report stated. Globally,
consumption will continue to outpace production
for the fifth year in a row while global
stocks will also shrink with the majority
of the reduction in China. Global prices
have continued to remain firm. While Thai
prices have retreated from the $300 per
tonne level, the government intervention
policy continues to provide support to
the market. Prices in Vietnam have strengthened
as well, with Vietnam 5% now approaching
$260 per tonne, FOB. Although Thailand
is estimated to maintain its number one
exporter slot, its dominance in the global
market has shrunk from 2004. With a smaller
crop, tighter free stocks, subsequently
higher prices, exports are expected to
be down nearly 25% in 2005. Consequently,
the usual suspects are picking the slack.
Courtesy:
www.financialexpress.com, September 01,
2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Canara
Bank to Teach China Lessons in NPA Recovery
|
| |
|
In
a first among its ilk, the state-owned
Canara Bank has offered to help China
recover its huge non-performing assets
(NPA) in the banking sector. What more,
it is also ready to teach Chinese banks
how to lend to agriculture and small scale
industries - the loan portfolio which
comes under the priority sector lending
norms in India. "I have met a few senior
bankers in China. We discussed quite a
few issues including working together
to recover the NPAs. The western banks
can bring in capital and Indian banks
can lend expertise in recovering NPAs,"
said M B N Rao, chairman and managing
director, said. The Bangalore-based bank,
which will turn 100 next year, opened
its office in Shanghai this month. Rao,
the former executive director of Indian
Bank, had played a crucial role in bringing
back the Chennai-based public sector bank
from the brink of a collapse. Indian Bank
had its net worth wiped out by accumlated
losses and piled up huge NPAs in the mid-1990s.
It is now back in the black has been planing
to tap the equity market. Rao met senior
Chinese bankers, vice chairman and president
of Bank of China, Li Lihui and senior
executive vice-president of Agricultural
Bank of China, Luo Xi in a recent visit
to China. Apart from managing NPAs and
directed lendings, he also discussed entrepreneurship
development plans with his Chinese counterparts.
According to latest official figures,
commercial banks in China reported outstanding
NPAs worth 1.28 trillion yuan ($157.83
billion) by June end this year.
Courtesy:
Business Standard: September 01, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
India
Inc's Foreign Investments Double in 4
Years
|
| |
|
With
the pace at which India Inc is expanding
its footprint abroad, the country's outward
foreign direct investment (FDI) may very
well catch up with inward FDI. In '04-05,
Indian direct investment abroad aggregated
$1.54bn on the back of a drive by manufacturing
companies to expand abroad. On the other
hand, total FDI into the country totalled
$2.32bn. According to the RBI annual report,
the phase of acquiring foreign companies,
which kicked off in the information technology
and related services sector, has now spread
to other areas. Apart from manufacturing,
the non-financial services segment accounted
for outward FDI of $230.1m, followed by
trading at $175.5m and financial services
with $6.9m. In '00-01, India's outward
FDI was just $708.3m. Maximum outward
direct investments by Indian companies
have been in the US during the period
between April 1995 and March '05. Indian
firms invested over $2 bn in the form
of equity and loans in companies (IT and
pharma) set up there. Russia, Mauritius,
Sudan (oilfields)and the UK were other
major investment destinations during the
last decade. On the inward FDI front,
Mauritius still tops the list, followed
by the US and the Netherlands. An encouraging
note, during the last fiscal, was that
the FDI flows from Germany and Japan rose
sharply. FDI flows were directed mainly
at the manufacturing sector, which received
$924m, followed by computer services at
$372m and business services ($363m). Foreign
portfolio flows at $8.8bn were also buoyant
during '04-05.
Courtesy:
The Economic Times: September 01, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
Rs
1 lakh Car From Tata to be Gearless
|
| |
|
Identifying
the automobile sector as a growth area,
Tata group said it is confident of launching
in less than three years, a proper "inexpensive"
people's car at a price tag of Rs 1 lakh.
Group chief Ratan Tata said the car will
be a "gearless" vehicle powered by a rear
engine. Brushing aside scepticism from
industry rivals, including Suzuki Motor
Corporation that such a car may not be
feasible for Rs 1 lakh, Tata was confident
that the launch would be the only answer
from him. "I hope so. Just like people
ate their words on Indica they would realise
that there is something (Rs 1 lakh car)
that can be done," Tata said. The proposed
car would be a vehicle that "will seat
four to five people and have a rear engine.
It will not be a scooter, three-wheeler
or an auto-rickshaw made into a car",
he said. Along with Indica, the new Rs
1 lakh car, whose prototypes are presently
doing test runs without a body, would
be the growth focus for Tata Motors in
the automobile sector's medium-term.
Courtesy:
The Indian Express, September 01, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
TCS
Wins Business Project From Bank in Indonesia
|
| |
|
Global
software major Tata Consultancy Services
(TCS) on Wednesday won a major business
performance consulting project from Indonesia's
oldest state-run Bank Negara Indonesia
(BNI). TCS will be implementing the Malcolm
Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence
(MBCFPE) framework for BNI, Indonesia's
third-largest bank. MBCFPE is a systematic
and holistic framework of enabling continuous
improvements of management, business,
strategic, market related and operational
processes. It provides a systems perspective
for understanding performance management.
TCS' scope will cover organisational performance,
excellence planning, deployment, assessment
and awareness, and the project will be
completed over a period of 20 months.
TCS was also involved with MBCFPE assessments
of PT Telkom, Indonesia's leading telecom
services provider. "We are pleased to
partner with TCS for deploying Malcolm
Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence.
This will help us accelerate realisation
of BNI's vision which is to be a bank
that all Indonesians can be proud of,
leading in services and performance,"
said BNI president director Sigit Pramono.
"BNI is one of the first companies in
the region to identify and embrace the
need to implement such a structured program.
We are sure that this will bring tremendous
benefits to BNI," said Girija Pande, regional
director and head, TCS Asia Pacific. "This
win will further strengthen our leadership
and delivery capabilities in Indonesia,"
he said.
Courtesy:
The Asian Age, September 01, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
TCS,
Infosys Bag Largest Outsourcing Contract
|
| |
|
In
one of the largest outsourcing deal, ABN
Amro bank has signed a 1.8 billion Euro
contract with five IT-vendors including
Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and
IBM. TCS and Infosys, India's two largest
private IT companies, would provide application
support and enhancement to ABN Amro bank
for its worldwide operations, while IBM
has been selected for IT infrastructure,
according to ABN Amro bank's notification
to Amsterdam Stock Exchange. All five
vendors -- TCS, Infosys, IBM, Patni Computers
and Accenture have been selected to supply
application development. According to
Infosys this is the single largest multi-
year multi-million Euro contract ever
won by the company and the company's share
of the overall contract includes committed
volumes in North America, Europe and Asia
Pacific. "This is a landmark deal for
Infosys," Nandan Nilekani, CEO, President
and Managing Director of Infosys, said.
This deal clearly indicates that large
offshore players like Infosys have a competitive
business model to deliver large, global,
multi-year contract. The five-year outsourcing
contract with IBM would oversee IT infrastructure
services for the bank worldwide. Under
the agreement, the company is expected
to assume management of the majority of
ABN Amro's worldwide information technology
systems including servers, storage systems
and desktops. "This is the largest deal
won by an Indian IT services company ever,"
TCS said in the notice. Announcing the
signing of a five-year global deal to
develop, support and enhance a wide spectrum
of applications for ABN Amro, Infosys
said: "Following a competitive tender,
ABN Amro Bank has reached an agreement
with the selected IT vendors to improve
the performance of its IT services and
realise significant efficiencies across
the global IT organisation."
Courtesy:
Hindustan Times, September 01, 2005
Back
to Index
|
| |
|
|
|
