 |
Wednesday,
January 2, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
|
Fiscal deficit mounts to 79,133 cr till Nov Euro finally becomes a reality
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Britain cannot lead outside
euro zone, says Peter Hain A-I launches online ticket reservation Consumer bodies fear hike in phone rentals US-64 NAV erosion to hit banks most Economic slowdown hits auto industry
2001 not so good for software units
Garment exporters seek withdrawal of charge IFCI gets Rs 200 cr from LIC
2002 likely to prove better
HFC’s scheme for loans to SS units
|
|
Fiscal deficit mounts to 79,133 cr till Nov New Delhi, January 1 According to the Controller General of Accounts (CGA), fiscal deficit during April-November amounted to 68 per cent of the budgeted Rs 1,16,314 crore. The fiscal deficit during the first eight months of last year was lower at 57.8 per cent of the budgeted figure. Centre’s deficit mounted mainly on account of lower tax revenues at Rs 66,521 crore although government was able to increase non-tax revenues and curtail expenditures to a greater extent. Total receipts was relatively lower at Rs 1,21,475 crore till November, which amounts to 46.9 per cent of the targeted Rs 2,58,909 crore for 2001-02. Total expenditures was slightly higher at Rs 2,00,608 crore, which accounts for 53.4 per cent of the budgeted Rs 3,75,223 crore. Revenue deficit of the Centre increased to 59,270 crore which is 75.2 per cent of the budgeted target of 78,821 crore. Primary deficit overshot the annual target of Rs 4,014 crore by almost five-folds to touch Rs 19,333 crore till November 2001. On account of the higher deficit, centre’s market borrowings increased to Rs 71,933 crore till November as against the targeted Rs 77,353 crore. On the receipts side, Centre’s revenue receipts was lower at Rs 1,10,472 crore, which was only 47.7 per cent of the targeted Rs 2,31,745 crore. Tax revenue fell short of expectation at Rs 66,521 crore in the first eight months as against Rs 1,63,031 crore for the entire fiscal while non-tax revenue were relatively higher at Rs 43,951 crore. Non-debt capital receipts amounted to Rs 11,003 crore till November as against the targeted Rs 27,164 crore. On the expenditure side, government’s non-plan expenditure was relatively lower at Rs 1,48,205 crore in the first eight months as against the budgeted Rs 2,75,123 crore. Plan expenditures was relatively higher at Rs 52,403 crore, which accounted for 55.1 per cent of the targeted Rs 95,100 crore. While financing its deficit, government borrowed Rs 1,825 crore from external sources while mopping up another Rs 77,308 crore from domestic markets. Of the total domestic financing, market borrowing amounted to Rs 71,933.2
crore. |
|
Euro finally becomes a reality London, January 1 More than 15 billion bank notes and 52 billion coins-worth £405 billion were produced for the historic switchover in 12 European countries — Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Spain, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Portugal. But, three EU nations- Britain, Denmark and Sweden— have steered clear of the euro so far. The new currency prompted celebrations in many capitals on the stroke of midnight last night. Berlin: Europeans spent their way into a new era today after the midnight launch of notes and coins of the euro currency that will be shared by 300 million people and is hoped to cement peace and prosperity on the continent. A project with its roots in the rubble of the second World War, the 12 euro zone countries began swapping currencies like the Italian lire, the French franc and the German mark for what will be the most widely used common money since the Roman Empire. Europeans queued at cash machines to get their hands on their first crisp new euro notes as fireworks across the currency area, stretching from the Arctic Circle to the Greek islands, heralded what leaders called an historic day. BRUSSELS: It wasn’t altogether easy to find any euros to spend in the political heart of Europe, just eight hours into the life of the new currency. The receptionist at the Renaissance Hotel, a stone’s throw from some of the massive glass European Commission buildings, was reluctant to part with any, and then not quite sure how to. She certainly was not going to give out a 500 euro note. This did not mean the dispensers were any happier to release their bounty. The first took a taste of this reporter’s card before spitting it out in disgust, while at the second bank it was not even possible to gain access to the dispensers. “Anomaly,” the electronic sign on the door control unit flashed as the card was inserted. But at the Avenue des Arts branch of Deutsche Bank, the cash dispenser was more generous, offering two crisp new 50 euro notes and a note to the effect that this was worth 4,034 francs.
Reuters, PTI |
|
Britain cannot lead outside euro zone, London, January 1 With 12 of the 15 European Union nations taking the plunge and adopting euro coins and notes on new year’s day, Britain’s is the biggest European economy outside the common currency. Despite being constantly pressed in a BBC radio interview, Hain refused to be tied down on when Britain might hold a referendum on joining the euro. “You can’t pluck a referendum date out of thin air,’’ he said. But he did concede: “I doubt that in the end it’s possible to run a sort of parallel currency economy. I doubt that, but time will tell.” He said it would be difficult for Britain to lead from the front in the European Union. “If we want to be the decisive leading power, it’s difficult to see how we could be that if we ruled ourselves out of joining the single currency forever.’’ Hain forecast that the
release of euro notes and coins across the continent would help Britons make up their minds about the new currency.
Reuters |
|
A-I launches online ticket reservation New Delhi, January 1 The step undertaken by Air-India is a major stride in e-marketing. The new year gift from Air-India is initially only for passengers travelling out of India and will be later extended to all countries to which the flagship carrier operates. Passengers can book tickets by logging on to www.airindia.com and pay through credit cards. The tickets will be delivered within 48 hours. The facility was launched at a function here with dummy tickets being booked for Civil Aviation Minister Syed Shahnawaz Hussain and Air-India Chairman and Civil Aviation Secretary A.H. Jung to New York. Mr Hussain, who was present, said Air-India was the first airline in the world to make profits despite the post-September 11 recession in the Aviation industry. Air-India was making profits even as 13 carriers across the world had been grounded, he added. Air-India is going to provide special ‘Web Only’ fares for those making bookings on the internet. Besides, “very attractive” Restricted Fares, there will also be IATA-approved Unrestricted Fares. Passengers who purchase tickets through Air India’s website will have their credit cards processed through ICICI’s Payment Gateway Service which ensures maximum confidentiality, Air-India officials said. In the introductory period, those buying tickets on the web will get free membership to Air-India’s Frequent Flyer Programme and double mileage points. Travel business is the number one online consumer spending segment with more than two million business travellers having spent $ 3 billion online in 1999 and the figure all set to grow to $ 20 billion by 2004, according to surveys. |
|
Consumer bodies fear hike in phone rentals Chandigarh, January 1 “The decision to slash the STD rates is a move taken to combat competition. The government or BSNL could have taken this decision earlier in the consumer interest, which they did not,” said Col S.N. Aggarwal, convener of the Federation of Telecom Consumer Advocacy Groups of India (FOTCAG). “The decision, which is likely to benefit the consumer, should have been taken earlier if they wanted to act as a regulator in the interest of the consumer. Now, it is more in their own interests,” he added. The slashing of the STD rates is likely to cause losses to the tune of Rs 3,000 crore. The government has stated that these would be recovered as with decline in rates, the number of users would increase. “But BSNL is now corporatised and it might soon start working on the details and end up increasing monthly telephone rentals,” said Mr Randhir Verma, co-convenor of the FOTCAG and president of the Chandigarh Telecom Subscribers Association. Blaming the government as well BSNL for not acting in this regard earlier, he said: “If they think that they can now recover the losses by increasing the number of users, the same could have happened earlier also. Since they are no longer in a position to enjoy monopoly, this announcement has come”, he said. TRAI will organise a seminar on “Tariffs for telecommunication services” on January 3, where the consumer associations will take up this issue. “We also want that before taking such decisions, the consumer associations should be consulted to make the decisions foolproof and in the interest of the consumer,” Mr Verma said. Twelve consumer organisations registered with TRAI will take up these issues. Apart from the assurance about not hiking the monthly telephone rentals, other issues to be taken up at the seminar are: the Consumer Advocacy Groups’s (CAG) idea of formal links between the regulatory authority, i.e. TRAI and the CAGs, the expectations of the consumer bodies of the internal structures within the regulatory authority for the representation of consumer interests and the role played by these internal structures, the involvement of CAGs in the regulatory processes, particularly in tariff setting. |
|
US-64 NAV erosion to hit banks most Mumbai, January 1 The public sector banks had invested in US-64 at the rate of Rs 14 per unit in July 2000 for tax-free dividend in July 2001, analysts said. However, the drastic fall in the current NAV of the scheme and their acquisition costs indicates that the big investors, who are only allowed to exit at the NAV price, are likely to suffer losses of about 60 per cent on their investment in US-64. “We were shocked when the UTI announced an NAV of US-64 at Rs 5.81 last Saturday which is going to put us under great financial pressure,’ said a treasury head at a leading public sector bank. The UTI had declared an NAV of the US-64 at Rs 5.81 on Saturday last as against the purchase price of Rs 14 by banks. Although the NAV rose sharply yesterday and quoted above Rs 6, it makes little difference’, a senior bank official from another nationalised bank said. Large investors like corporates and public sector banks and institutions suffered the first setback when the UTI froze repurchase in July, 2001 and allowed partial repurchase at guaranted rates only for retail investors. Large investors were allowed to repurchase at the NAV-based price which is in the range of
Rs 5.80 minus the exit load. According to rough estimates, the investment of public sector banks in the US-64 scheme is likely to be around Rs 2,000 crore as per the purchase cost of which the value as per the current NAV has declined to Rs 800 crore, they said. The UTI is suffering from a fund-crunch due to lack of fresh sales and increased redemption pressures as a result of poor NAV of US-64.
UNI |
|
Economic slowdown hits auto industry New Delhi, January 1 The commoner’s two-wheelers remained under strain on account of poor scooter sales. However, the booming motorcycle market, which accounted for 60 per cent of the segment, kept attracting young customers with sleek and fuel-efficient models to overcome the slump in the two-wheeler segment. The growing demand for motorcycles also forced scooter makers like Kinetic and LML to foray into motorcycle manufacturing which resulted in rich dividends. Commercial vehicles too drove downhill as demand from both the private and public sectors fell. However, growth in sales of medium and heavy vehicles, used mainly in infrastructure sectors like cement and steel as well as transportation, in the later part of the year could be interpreted as a slight resurgence in the sluggish economy. The commercial vehicle business witnessed power, comfort and features as the driving forces with two of the major manufacturers, Telco and Ashok Leyland and Swedish major Volvo, rolling out new and advanced models. Sales of high-priced but highly efficient multi-axles vehicles increased which showed a change in customer demand and the trend of things to come in the future, especially after completion of the ongoing massive Golden Quadrilateral Highway programme. The year witnessed stiff competition between Hero Honda, which commands 50 per cent motorcycle market and Bajaj, which enjoys 50 per cent share in the overall two-wheeler industry. Both the companies rolled out new models to capture a larger pie of the growing motorcycle market. Others like TVS Motor Company, Yamaha and Royal Enfield followed suit. Another striking feature of the domestic two-wheeler industry was the changing face of joint ventures as foreign partners detached themselves from their
Indian counterparts. While Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corp. exited from TVS-Suzuki Ltd, another Japanese giant Yamaha bought out its Indian partner, Escorts Ltd. Scooter makers like Kinetic and LML launched motorcycles with modern engines in alliance with South Korea manufacturers Hyosung and Daelim. The two-wheeler market was also gripped by the fear of cheap imported Chinese motorcycles. However, the initial hysteria about these motorcycles died out due to the customer concerns about their quality and after-sales service.
PTI |
|
2001 not so good for software units
Bangalore, January 1 And there were enough lessons to be learnt. Jolted by the downturn, especially in the US, which accounts for more than 60 per cent of India’s software exports, IT firms faced intense price pressure and groped for directions in an unsettling year of 2001. “A few Indian companies have done better than competition worldwide — these Indian companies have grown and remained profitable”, says S. Gopalakrishnan, Deputy Managing Director and Head (Customer Service and Technology), Infosys Technologies Limited. But the growth has been lower than in the past two years due to the global economic slowdown, says the official of the Nasdaq-listed domestic software giant, who notes that Indian software companies are part of the global economy and are also affected by business cycles.
PTI |
|
Garment exporters seek withdrawal of charge New Delhi, January 1 Terming the charge as “arbitrary and unjustified,” the All-India Garment Exporters Common Cause Guild said over 1,600 units existing in all phases at Udyog Vihar had been served notices to either pay or face cancellation. “This is said to be a demand of Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) pending since 1975 which the HSIDC did not pay for reasons best known to the authorities. In this process, the owners holding duly executed conveyance deeds of freehold property rights are being compelled to shell out nearly Rs 100 crore for External Development Charges,” the exporters said in a letter to the Chief Minister. It is also not been clarified as to why this alleged demand payable to HUDA since 1975 was kept pending till 2001, they said. |
|
IFCI gets Rs 200 cr from LIC New Delhi, January 1 With LIC’s investment, the total fund infusion in IFCI touched Rs 800 crore and prompted the FI to relaunch its fixed deposit scheme “Family Deposit” offering an attractive 8.5-9.5 per cent interest rate, a top company official said here. So far, the government has extended Rs 400 crore, while IDBI and LIC offered Rs 200 crore each. “IFCI has so far received Rs 800 crore of the total Rs 1,000 crore financial package announced by the government. We are awaiting Rs 200 crore from SBI any time from now,” the IFCI official said. LIC has invested in 20-year debenture of IFCI at a coupon rate of 10.7 per cent and having a call option at the end of five years with RBI approval, he said. There is also an option of conversion of the debt to equity at the discretion of LIC, he added. He said the Capital Adequacy Ratio of the FI has now gone up close to the RBI stipulated 9.0 per cent from the earlier 6 per cent.
PTI |
HFC’s scheme for loans to SS units Chandigarh, January 1 While stating this here today, a spokesman of the corporation said that small scale units could avail capital subsidy at the rate of 12 per cent subject to maximum subsidy of Rs 4.80 lakh for induction of technology. Tiny units with less than Rs 10 lakh investment in plant and machinery can avail subsidy up to Rs 96,000 on a maximum loan of Rs 8 lakh. Tiny units with investment in plant and machinery between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 25 lakh can avail maximum subsidy of Rs 2.40 lakh on a loan of Rs 20 lakh. The spokesman said that the scheme would be in operation for a period of five years. Cases covered under the Technology Development and Modernisation Scheme would also be eligible for capital subsidy subject to conforming to the norms stipulated under the new scheme. He said that HFC had also reduced effective rate of interest for tiny and small scale units with effect from December 3 last. The new effective rate for loans up to Rs 25 lakh was 13.5 per cent per annum. For loans above Rs 25 lakh, the rate of interest was made 13.75 per cent, he said.
TNS India 8th in world
telecom sector Barrackpore (West
Bengal) Sikdar said at present the total number of telephone sets in the country was nearly four crore while in December 1997, it was 1.32 crore. Inaugurating a Modern Remote Switch telephone exchange at Ghola in North 24 parganas district, he said the entire West Bengal would be connected by telephone by the end of the 2002-03 financial year.
PTI Handicraft exports fall New
Delhi As per provisional data with the Export Promotion Council for handicrafts, exports of handicrafts in rupee terms declined by over 17 per cent during the first eight months of the fiscal at Rs 3649.75 crore compared to Rs 4415.38 crore last year. Zari and Zari goods posted the sharpest decline of over 41 per cent with exports pegged at $ 14.76 million as against $ 25.16 million during April-November last year.
PTI |
bb
Tenure extended Nahan Foundry LIC scheme |
 |
| Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir | Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs | Nation | Editorial | | Business | Sport | World | Mailbag | In Spotlight | Chandigarh Tribune | Ludhiana Tribune 50 years of Independence | Tercentenary Celebrations | | 121 Years of Trust | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | Suggestion | E-mail | |
In video
(
