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Sunday,
July 6, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Soft
interest rates to continue: Jalan
Textile,
cycle units eye Pak markets |
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Air Canada
resumes flights from Oct 27 Mumbai, July 5 Air Canada will resume flights to India with a daily non-stop service between Toronto and Delhi effective October 27.
Danger
of slums and bird-hits ROUND-UP Forex
reserves fall by $215m Labour trouble at DCM Ropar plant Fruit processing plant for Akhnoor BPCL net profit surges 81 pc NCAER pegs 5.83 pc growth
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Soft interest rates to continue: Jalan New Delhi, July 5 At the same time, he observed that there was scope to increase the economic growth rate by 2 to 3 per cent, although there were no proposals to upwardly revise the growth projections by the Central Bank in the immediate future. “We will monitor the situation regarding monsoon and inflation. We expect inflation to ease over time”, he said on sidelines of a function organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). Describing the economic situation as “good” with good monsoon, he pointed to a situation where some experts were actually talking about managing the problem of surpluses from an “economy of shortage”. “There is no great problem. Liquidity is good. Interest rates are good. Inflation is not too bad, monsoon is good”, Dr Jalan said, adding that there was scope for speedier reforms of the financial sector in the backdrop of comfortable economic situation. On the soft interest regime he said the bias would continue. “It continued yesterday. It continues today”, he said. The slack season credit policy of the RBI announced in April has fixed the overall growth rate at 6 per cent. Speaking at the function of the ICAI, he said in the past when the interest differential between India and the developed world was to the extent of 500 to 600 basis points, it did not translate into a large inflow of investment into India. However, at present, when the interest rate differential has narrowed down, the level of investment has grown. This was reflective of the fact that the correlation between the interest rates and investment and inflows was much more complex. With the growth of financial markets across the world, the various instruments of monetary and fiscal policy came into conflict with stronger intensity than in the past. In the context of financial and accounting frauds witnessed in the recent times in the US, he said the accounting profession needs to be more transparent and truthful. “The deepening of the financial markets, the growth of the pension and insurance funds and the like means that chartered accountants have to be much more watchful and independent and pay greater attention to compliance”, he said.
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Textile, cycle units eye Pak markets Chandigarh, July 5 Mr Vinod Thapar, president of the Federation of Knitwear Textile and Allied Industries Association, said there was a tremendous scope for the export of low-cost textile items like sweaters and shawls to Pakistan and even Afghanistan from this region. Some manufacturers from Ludhiana had already been exporting to Pakistan and Afghanistan via Dubai but the direct route would increase the trade manifold. He claimed that at present from Punjab alone, items worth about Rs 40 crore worth items were exported to Afghanistan via Dubai. The industry has appreciated the efforts of Mr Ilyas Ahmed Bilour, head of the Pakistani business delegation. Mr Bilour has reportedly said both countries are doing trade worth $ 2 billion through Dubai, Singapore and other routes. According to industry leaders, direct trade would benefit the consumers and traders in both countries and trade could cross $ 5 billion. They said from Punjab alone the knitwear, cycle and cycle parts, engineering and agricultural implements worth Rs 700-800 crore could be easily exported to Pakistan. The knitwear and engineering exporters associations have decided approach the Centre to press upon it that trade should be opened. They said since Lahore was just 30 km from the Indian border, traders and consumers of both countries would benefit in a big way with the opening up of the trade route. They claimed that manufacturing centres like Ludhiana and Amritsar would be the biggest beneficiaries from the opening up of trade. Mr Rajinder Jindal, president of the Engineering Exporters Association of India, claimed that cycle and cycle parts, auto parts and other light engineering goods could be easily supplied to Pakistan at a much lower price in comparison to other countries. The Steel Re-rollers Association of Mandi Gobindgarh also felt that the industry which was going through a bad phase could be revived once the trade with Pakistan was opened. Mr Sham Lal, a trader at Mandi Gobindgarh, said it would be cost effective to export to the Pakistan market.
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Mobiles, not just a fashion statement How can a used mobile phone be junked in India, a country where recycling is a norm? Slim is in and the older models of mobile phones are being sold off at throwaway prices. Sleek ones are becoming more of a fashion statement and adorn the waist belt of the upper and the middle-class segment. The older bulky models that once occupied the centrestage of the cellphone revolution in India, however, have not been trashed altogether. They have meandered their way into the hands of the less privileged. Their journey from the white-collared to the grime-collared has been instant though, thanks to this year’s Budget that made mobile phone affordable for them. Rickshaw-puller, milkman, washerman, grocery-boy and their ilk are now flaunting the status symbols of the yesteryears. Those handsets are still in working condition and are serving the purpose of this lower income group. Says Ram Samuj, a plumber: “I purchased this handset from one of the markets in Chandigarh for Rs 1,500. Add to it the pre-paid card cost of Rs 200 and I have a device that helps me to liaison with clients, sanitary hardware shops and casual labourers that I employ. My business has increased twofold. He exclaims, “ Zindagi badal diya hamari is mobilewa ne.” In fact, the latest market gag is that migrant workers from UP and Bihar are preferring cellphones to transistors as the most-sought after gadget now. Munna Lal, a roadside vendor at Ludhiana, uses his old Philips handset to remain connected to his family at Farrukhabad in UP. Similarly, Ahilaya Devi, who sells pickle mangoes at apni mandi, has an old Siemens handset to keep her connected. Her daily transactions are frequently interrupted by phone calls from her husband, a rickshaw-puller. Her husband also owes a mobile phone and rings up on and off to enquire about the days’ proceedings from Ahilaya. “Because of the mobile phone, both of us can remain in touch,” she proclaims. Visit any rehri-market and you’ll come across one or two shops that deal in used handsets. A lot of well-to-do persons also visit such shops to purchase such handsets for their workers and drivers. “Old models can cost anywhere between Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 with one month of battery warranty,” says a second-hand mobile phone dealer who identifies himself as Binda. More than 55 per cent of cellphones sold in India are being purchased by lower to middle income groups, says Alcatel. As per the company’s report there are 20 to 25 per cent purchasers in A- segment, 35 to 40 per cent in A+ segment, 15 to 20 per cent in B/B+ segment, 5 to 10 per cent in C segment and more than 5 per cent in D segment. The gist of these figures is that the upper middle class segment is no longer the potential market. A- and A+, that is the low-end segment, is where the future of the cellular phone lies. Jyoti Parkash, a mobile phone dealer from Chandigarh, says new models are churned out every month and this has led to high rate of handset redundancy. “Handsets do not have resale value and that is what has given a boost to the purchasing power of the lower-end segment. He also avers that pre-paid cards have played a significant role in enhancing the cellphone acquiring power among the A-class segment. A vintage handset with a pre-paid card and voila, you have a talk-anywhere-wage-earner. Pre-paid card has its own advantage. No cumbersome applications forms are required to be filled, the connectivity is instant and there are no rentals and STD/ISD comes pre-activated. Pre-paid option started off as an alternative for those who were either inconsistent callers or frugal by nature. Interestingly, with the passage of time, pre-paid card created its own niche segment — the lower-end users, who usually are cash-strapped. According to the Cellular Operators’ Association of India (COAI) figures pre-paid subscribers now constitute 63 per cent of the total subscriber base and over 80 per cent of the new additions. These lower-end users are the key contributors to this figure. “Prepaid card is convenient and is meant for those who want to be upwardly mobile and at the same time cost-conscious. This option enables the user to monitor his or her calling behaviour, that is frequency of use since they are time-bound and calling is restricted,” says Vedulla Venkata Ramana, a reader in management studies from the University of Hyderabad, who even conducted a case study on this segment. With low-end segment joining the SIM march in India more dynamically, it appears cellphone revolution has reached the grassroots level, albeit with a rider. The Indian cellphone grey market gets a breather now since most of the second-hand handsets come sans bill.
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Air
Canada resumes flights from Oct 27
Mumbai, July 5 The flight between India and North America will cut at least three hours of travelling time. The service will be operated by a 282-seater Airbus A340 aircraft and to promote this new service the airline is offering a special introductory fare till July 17 for travel until November, 2003, starting as low as Rs 47,500, the airline said in a release here today. The
flight (AC051) will leave Toronto at 5.15 pm and arrive Delhi at 5.45 pm
the next day. On the return leg the flight (AC052) will depart at 1.10
am and arrive at Toronto at 6.10 am the same day.
— PTI
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bb
Exide issue HMT net down Indal ups stake IDBI option Alembic division Corpn Bank IL & FS dividend Escotel plan |
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