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| Thursday, August 2, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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US-64
redemption begins
Exports
decline 4.63 pc in June Rs 1,000
cr bailout plan for IFCI |
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Australia
changes visa rules Maruti
to launch used car business Canada
3000 Airlines starts operation Uttaranchal
to revive tea industry 229
companies identified as vanishing PACL
makes 1 cr net profit in Q1 BPL
expects 15 pc growth Electronics
hardware exports up 84% National
power grid to be put in place
IFCI
posts 27.80 cr net loss in Q1
PHDCCI signs MoU
with ICC
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US-64 redemption begins New Delhi, August 1 The new redemption scheme of US-64 will remain open till May 31, 2003. The fresh redemption scheme, aimed at restoring investor confidence on the country’s largest mutual fund, has been arrived at by working out a Line of Credit arrangement by UTI with banks and financial
institutions to address the immediate liquidity problems of the country’s largest mutual fund manager. The shock announcement on July 2 has created a major controversy and has already cost the job of the then UTI Chief P.S. Subramanyam who is currently in custody and undergoing questioning on UTI’s investment in the underrated Cybersapce stocks. It is learnt that UTI has worked out a Line of Credit with banks and FIs to the tune of Rs 1500 crore to meet the fund requirements for US-64 redemptions. However, the open-ended scheme would not be open for new sale as the UTI top management is of the view that scheme’s corpus needs to be within manageable levels. There is mounting pressure on Finance Minister, Yashwant Sinha, who is being held squarely responsible for the fiasco by a vociferous Opposition. Questions are being raised about the Finance Ministry’s role in major redemptions by corporates worth around Rs 4,800 crore during April-May this year. Finance Minister has held the top brass of the UTI responsible for the fiasco and maintained that the Finance Ministry was kept in the dark about the investment decisions of the fund manager. In earlier instances also the government had bailed out the UTI through state-funded support. In June 1999, the then Vajpayee government had pumped in Rs 3,300 crore into the ailing US-64 scheme through a revenue neutral arrangement. The money was pumped in through an arrangement which involved government picking up select PSU stocks in US-64’s portfolio, while UTI in turn, reinvested the sum earned in government securities.
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Exports decline 4.63 pc in June New Delhi, August 1 The exports for June were valued at $ 3294.96 million as against $ 3455.05 million for June in 2000-2001. According to latest trade data, the performance when seen over the first three months of the financial year recorded a 1.76 per cent increase over the same period in the previous year. The figures for April-June 2001-2002 was $ 10523.83 million as against $ 10341.79 million in the previous year. In rupee terms, the exports were Rs 49,357.81 crore, which is 8.20 per cent higher than the value of exports during April-June 2000-2001. India’s imports during the period under review was valued at $ 12447.72 million, representing a decline of 2.40 per cent over the level of imports valued at $ 12753.45 million in April-June 2000-2001. Oil imports during the period was $ 3897.10 million which is 0.97 per cent lower than oil imports valued at $ 3935.41 million in the corresponding period last year. Non-oil imports during the period at $ 8550.62 million was 3.03 per cent lower than the level of such imports in the corresponding period of 2000-2001. Imports during June, 2001 were valued at $ 4015.15 million which was 0.56 per cent higher than the level of $ 3992.92 million in June, 2000. In rupee terms the imports increased by 5.76 per cent. The trade deficit for April-June, 2001-2002 was estimated at $ 1923.89 million which was lower than the deficit at $ 2411.66 million during April-June, 2000-2001.
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Rs 1,000 cr bailout plan for IFCI
New Delhi, August 1 After a meeting of Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha with top brass of FIs and banks, government approved the bailout through convertible debentures with a maturity period of 20 years and IFCI having a “call option” to repay it before the stipulated time. “After detailed discussions, the government has approved infusion of Rs 400 crore in IFCI immediately. This will be by way of convertible debenture, with a maturity of 20 years, that will qualify for Tier-I capital,” U.K. Sinha, Joint Secretary in Ministry of Finance, told reporters here. “Other stakeholders will consider it favourably for infusion of another Rs 600 crore in a pro-rata basis depending on their shareholding pattern,” he said, adding the rate of interest on the Rs 1,000 crore debt issue was yet to be decided but it would be at the “ususal rate”. Of the total fund infusion, about Rs 720 crore would be set aside for increasing capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of the FI to over nine per cent from the present 6.2 per cent, IFCI Chairman P.V. Narasimham said.
PTI
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Australia
changes visa rules Chandigarh, August 1 Mr Naresh Gulati, Managing Director of Oceanic Consultants, disclosed that the department of immigration and multicultural affairs would now closely examined the applicant’s financial ability before issuing any visas. Mr Gulati said new regulations have made the visa process extremely transparent and less time consuming. Mr Gulati said the changes include the mandatory IELTS score, demonstrating a stronger financial ability to undertake studies in Australia, a good academic employment history in India and the usefulness of the proposed studies in the applicant’s career.
TNS
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Maruti to launch used car business Gurgaon, August 1 The Project Vistaar is a package of four business to be developed as a single service business in an integrated manner. The components, auto finance, insurance distribution, corporation leasing and fleet management and used car business, were selected for the holistic package after a number of business options were generated and examined. The keynote to the Project Vistaar is that the four business will be implemented at the counter of the authorised Maruti dealers. The sources said the project is expected to benfit both retail and corporate customers. The retail customers will benefit from the one-stop shop concept when he goes to buy a new car. If the customer has an older vehicle he can trade it with transparent, hassle-free valuation of his old car. Once he decides to purchase a new car, he can get a competitive rate for auto finance and the benefit of value-added service added into a single EMI, and insurance through the Maruti co-branded insurance brokerage. |
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Canada 3000 Airlines
starts operation Chandigarh, August 1 Canada 3000’s inaugural flight from Delhi to Vancouver, using the polar routes, will commence from October 2, 2001. Canada 3000’s inaugural flight to Toronto will depart from Delhi on October 12. The Airbus A340-300 will operate the latest technology in-flight entertainment system, with every passenger seat equipped with its own video screen. Canada 3000 will also introduce direct services between Mumbai and Toronto on November 5. The service will be operated by Canada 3000’s long-range Airbus. Flights between Mumbai and Toronto will make a one-hour transit stop at London Gatwick en route Canada. There are currently no direct scheduled flights between India and
Canada. The introduction of Canada 3000’s services will revolutionise the air service between the two
countries. Canada 3000’s polar services between Delhi-Toronto and Delhi Vancouver will provide the fastest way between India and North
America. Canada 3000 Airlines starts
operation
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Uttaranchal
to revive tea industry Kasauni (Kumaon), August 1 However, an ambitious plan is being prepared by the new government to rejuvenate the cultivation of tea. About Rs. 200 crore is expected to come in annually from this industry by the end of 2010. Addressing a gathering of tea cultivators and technical
experts at a seminar on tea cultivation held here this week, Mr R.S. Tolia, Principal Secretary, forests, horticulture and rural development, said the tea gardens would prove the most important sphere of employment. “We want every hill family to be a part of this industry,” he added. In the hills, there is open space in front of the houses, and tea can be grown there, reviving production. Processing plants will be set up at several places in the hills so that tea leaves from every garden can reach it in the shortest possible time. There is a proposal to establish a big tea processing unit at Kausani which hosts the biggest tea estate of Uttaranchal. This unit will be a joint venture of the Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam and a private investor. It will also improve the quality of tea produced in Uttaranchal. The KMVN signs a bond for thirty years with land holders and provides employment to two persons of the family willing to give a minimum of one hectare for tea plantation at the rate of Rs 53 per day all throughout the year. Additional land provides opportunity of employment to other members of the family also. In addition to this, Rs 1200 per year is also given to the land holders as lease amount for the first eight years (except for the first three years) and the amount goes on increasing further in the next years. Normally, a tea garden once planted survives for 150 years. Hundreds of farmers have offered their land for tea cultivation. According to the detail, there are plans to increase tea cultivation adding 550 hectares in Nainital district, 950 hectares in Champavat, 1,660 hectares in Almora, 730 hectares in Bageshwar, 1000 hectares in Pithoragarh, 1010 hectares in Chamoli, 250 hectares in Rudraprayag, 100 hectares in Tehri 100 hectares in Uttarkashi and 700 hectares in Dehra Dun district. Although, one may not find Uttaranchal tea in the big markets but it is available in markets of the state. There is a need to strengthen the marketing of Uttaranchal tea outside the state and
abroad.
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229 companies identified as vanishing New Delhi, August 1 “A total of 229 companies, as identified by SEBI, have vanished after collecting funds from the capital market. Prosecutions have been launched against 112 such companies and 26 such firms are under liquidation”. Of the 229 fly-by-night companies, Gujarat topped the list with 65 cases, only to be followed by Delhi with 33 and Andhra Pradesh with 22 cases.
PTI
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PACL makes 1 cr net profit in Q1 Chandigarh, August 1 This is in spite of the fact that the company had to bear an additional power cost of Rs 1.25 crore due to a hike in the power tariff in this quarter in comparison to the corresponding period of the previous year. Sales have increased by almost 17 per cent in this quarter over that of the corresponding period of last year to Rs 47 crore. Production during this period was 20137 tonnes. In the year 2000-2001, the company had earned a cash profit of Rs 567 lakh on and a year before suffered a cash loss of Rs 14.77 crore. The current quarter results have established the revival of the company. Mr G.S. Sandhu, MD, PACL, said the improvement has been possible because of better realisation and cost-cutting measures adopted by the company. Financial restructuring has also paid dividends in the form of lower interest.
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BPL expects 15 pc growth Chandigarh, August 1 Mr Saxena said BPL expects 15 per cent growth in turnover by the end of this financial year compared to last year turnover which was Rs 1851 crore. The region holds 30 per cent share in the total revenue of the company. On the Color Television segment which has seen a decline in its market, Mr Saxena said, this year the situation is likely to improve. CTVs account for 70 per cent share in our total sales, and this year we expect the sales of CTVs to increase from 1 million to 1.25 million, he said .
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Electronics
hardware exports up 84% New Delhi, August 1 In absolute terms, the exports during 2000-01 worked out to Rs 4798.74 crore as against Rs 2600 crore in 1999-2000. In a position paper prepared by the Electronics and Software Export Promotion Council (ESC), it is shown that Singapore, Hong Kong and South Asian countries continue to be the major destination of exports from India, accounting for as much as 42.79 per cent of the total exports Releasing the study to the media, Executive Director of ESC, D.K. Sareen said that in absolute terms, exports to Singapore, Hong Kong and South Asian countries stood at Rs 2053.18 crore which was 25.13 per cent in value terms as compared to the previous year. There was a spurt in India’s market share in this promising market which went up by 25.13 per cent as against a slide of - 5.18 per cent in the previous year.
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National
power grid to be put in place New Delhi, August 1 Responding to supplementaries during question hour, Mr Prabhu said a comprehensive legislation to curb power theft is also under consideration of the government. Prabhu said presently the government was working on redistribution of power generation from the power surplus Eastern region to other parts of the
country. |
sti
IFCI posts 27.80 cr net loss in Q1 New Delhi, August 1 The sharp 268 per cent fall in profits was due to decline in income from operations to Rs 635.55 crore and a higher provisioning of Rs 26 crore towards bad and doubtful debts and investments, IFCI said in a release. The loss before provisioning for bad debts stood at Rs 1.78 crore as against a profit of Rs 41.90 crore last fiscal. IFCI made a 2.6 per cent higher provision at Rs 26.02 crore last quarter as compared to Rs 25.36 crore during the same period last fiscal.
Mahavir Spinning Mahavir Spinning Mills Limited has posted a net profit of Rs 7.01 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2001, showing a decrease of 48.27 per cent over the corresponding quarter of the last year. The sales of the company have, however, increased marginally from Rs 172.22 crore during the corresponding quarter last year to Rs 176.60 crore during the quarter ended June 30, 2001.
Chambal Ferti Chambal Fertilisers and Chemicals Ltd, today reported a 47 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 20.47 crore for the quarter ended on June 30, 2001, as against Rs 13.93 crore during the same period last
year. Swaraj Engines Swaraj Engines Ltd has posted a net profit of Rs 27.50 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2001 as against Rs 25.50 million in the
corresponding period last fiscal. TVS Suzuki TVS Suzuki Ltd (TSL) has increased its profit before tax to Rs 13.76 crore during April-June 2001, an increase of 80 per cent as compared to the previous quarter in spite of a drop in turnover of 7.6 per cent. Turnover for the quarter was Rs 407.09 crore against Rs 440.39 crore in January-March 2001. Kothari Pioneer MF Kothari Pioneer Mutual Fund has changed its name to Pioneer ITI Mutual Fund. The change in the name as the HC Kothari Group, one of the founder partners of the venture sold their stake in The Investment Trust of India (ITI) . Informing this, Mr Vivek Reddy, CEO stated in a press release that the names of all the schemes will now reflect “Pioneer ITI” instead of “Kothari Pioneer”. The new name of the Trustee will be Pioneer ITI Mutual Fund Private Ltd and the Trust will be known as Pioneer ITI Mutual Fund.
TNS, Agencies
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Entrepreneur Coop Bank ITGI Indian Bank NIIT strategy VSNL protest Gold bonds scheme |
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