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Sunday,
June 22, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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FDA clears
biotech asthma drug Stock
exchanges allowed to refund base money
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Outsourcing
to India ‘can grow to $50b’ Bajaj Auto
opens office in Dubai PTDC
offers nine more properties Star
offloads stake in news business Graphic: Weekly stock movement (13-06-2003 to 20-06-2003)
Sops to
foreign carriers resented
Forex
reserves cross $ 82 b
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FDA clears biotech asthma drug
Washington, June 21 The antibody-based drug Xolair, given by injection once or twice a month, was developed by Genentech Inc, the world’s second-largest biotechnology company; Novartis AG, Europe’s third biggest drug maker; and Tanox Inc, a small Houston-based biotech company. Aimed at treating moderate to severe asthma triggered by allergies, Xolair works by disabling a naturally occurring antibody called IgE that triggers the release of chemicals that cause inflammation. Xolair treats the underlying cause of asthma triggered by allergies, rather than the symptoms that inhaled corticosteroids address, the companies said. Sales of Xolair should begin by early to mid-July, said Shelley Schneiderman-Ducker, a spokeswoman for Genentech. At a wholesale price of $433 a vial, Xolair’s annual cost per patient will probably work out between $10,000 and $12,000 per year. “It’s on a par with other biologics on the market,” said Schneiderman-Ducker. “I don’t think it’s meant to replace existing therapies,” said Dr Paul Ratner, who was one of the physicians who conducted the multi-site clinical study at the Sylvana Research Associates in San Antonio. The studies showed that a Xolair injection, which lasts 30 days, reduced the number of asthma exacerbations and emergency room visits, Ratner said. He expects Xolair to be used when conventional asthma therapies are not working. An FDA advisory panel voted unanimously last month that Xolair’s benefits in preventing asthma outweighed its risks, which agency staff said could include a higher cancer risk. In studies, 0.5 per cent of Xolair-treated patients developed cancer, compared with 0.2 per cent of patients given a placebo, but there was no evidence linking the malignancies to the drug. Because of that the market size will be relatively “limited,” Gibbons said, estimating it could generate up to $500 million a year in revenue at a peak with the current approved uses. Ratner, who conducted the study at the Sylvana Research Associates, said he expects the Xolair to have expanded uses after additional studies. Possible uses include treating children with asthma brought on by allergies and allergies without asthma, he said. Genentech, based in South San Francisco, California, will split profit on US sales of the drug roughly 50-50 with Novartis. Tanox will receive a royalty on sales of Xolair.
Reuters
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Stock exchanges allowed to refund base money Ludhiana, June 21 In a circular to all stock exchanges, SEBI has maintained that it has received representations from the stock exchanges with a request to refund the base money capital in view of the insignificant volumes at the exchanges. SEBI had prescribed absolute base money capital for various stock exchanges in 1993 and this amount was doubled in 1996. The Ludhiana Stock Exchange has base money capital of Rs 4 lakh from each member, including Rs 1 lakh in cash and Rs 3 lakh in the shape of bank gurantee, fixed deposits or shares. The members of the exchange have been pressing for the refund of the base money capital since the business on the exchange had come to a halt. SEBI has directed that the exchanges, having average daily turnover of less than Rs 1 crore for the past three consecutive months from the date the circular (issued on June 18), may maintain the base money at Rs 1 lakh. Besides, the exchanges which have the average daily turnover of less than Rs 1 crore for any three consecutive months after the date of this circular would also be eligible to maintain it at Rs 1 lakh. The excess of the money over Rs. 1 lakh may be refunded to the member who has been inactive at the exchange for the past 12 months and has not carried out any transaction during the past 12 months. There are no investor complaints and arbitration cases pending against the member. The exchange will retain and debit to the base money the amount of any complaint or claims of investors against the member. The circular has further pointed out that if the average daily turnover of the exchange exceeds the prescribed level of Rs 1 crore for a period of one month at any time after the date of circular, the exchange will enhance the requirement of the base money of the members back to the level stipulated in January, 1996, and will obtain undertakings from the members . SEBI has directed the stock exchanges to make necessary amendments to the rules and regulations for the implementation of the decision. Refund of base money capital had become an election issue at the last election of the Board of Directors of the Ludhiana Stock Exchange and candidates had promised with the members that they would take up the issue with SEBI after the election.
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Outsourcing to India ‘can grow to $50b’
Washington, June 21 But despite the assurances the US administration gave to visiting Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Arun Jaitley to allay his country's fears on this, indications are that political opposition to offshore outsourcing is still high among the uncertainties that could slow that projected growth, according to the study. During his visit to Washington this month Jaitley raised the issue of state legislation banning outsourcing of technology jobs to India with US Trade Representative Robert Zoellick, who assured him that the federal government considered these measures as a "bad policy" and "is trying to resist it". The Brean Murray report says software and service exports from India for the country's fiscal year ending in March, 2003, were up 26 per cent to $9.5 billion. The strongest growth was in business-process outsourcing, also called IT-enabled services, which jumped 59 per cent to $2.3 billion. The report is bullish on the stocks of firms such as Infosys, Wipro, Satyam, Cognizant, Syntel and Ebookers (for which Brean Murray is a financial adviser) and says India is the preferred destination for offshore outsourcing because of its strengths in cost savings, the English language advantage, reference sites, scalability and government policy. InformationWeek.com, an online business news website, says US companies' need to maintain a complex software infrastructure combined with the pressure to cut budgets will force them to make offshore outsourcing a strategic necessity.
IANS
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Bajaj Auto opens office in Dubai
Dubai, June 21 “Opening of the Dubai office at the Jebel Ali free zone is part of the company’s efforts to double the exports in the next couple of years with the target for this year set at $ 100 million,” Rajiv Bajaj, Joint Managing Director, Bajaj Auto, told reporters. Though the company had virtually no exports only four years ago, last year it exported about 94,000 vehicles in both two and three-wheeler segments, he said. Seventy per cent of the exports were to countries in the subcontinent, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, where in a short time, the company had emerged as market leaders, he added. Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Managing Director of Jebel Ali Free Zone, said all support would be extended to Bajaj for realising a quantum jump in its exports, particularly to countries in the region and to North and East
Africa. PTI
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PTDC offers nine more properties Chandigarh, June 21 The decision was taken by the Cabinet Sub-Committee, headed by the Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, at a meeting here. The state government had already decided to disinvest its share in the PTDC properties through strategic partners. Karvy Investor Services Ltd, Hyderabad, had been appointed global adviser for the proposed disinvestment. The PTDC is one of the five units of the state government, in which it has decided to disinvest its share. According to the disinvestment plan, the sale of properties of the corporation will take at least two or three months, since there will be some more properties even after the sale of second set of properties. Ms Vini Mahajan, Director-cum Secretary, Directorate of Disinvestment, Punjab, said the nine properties which had been cleared by the sub-committee were Garden Tourist Complex, Kapurthala, Pincassia Tourist Complex, Ropar, Gulmohar Tourist Complex, Pathankot, Sukhchain Tourist Complex, Jalandhar, Surajmukhi Tourist Complex, Khanauri, Marigold Tourist Complex, Sanghol, Tourist Complex, Faridkot, New Property at Aam Khas Bagh, Sirhind, and land at Dasuya. In April, the Director of Disinvestment, Punjab, had initiated the process of disinvestment in four properties of the PTDC, including holiday home schemes with properties at Dharamsala, Goa, Mussoorie, Manali and Jaipur, Amritsar International Hotel, Queen’s Flower Tourist Complex at Neelon in Ludhiana and Tourist Complex at Wagah in Amritsar. According to officials, the due diligence process for these properties was almost over. An official said financial bids were expected to be invited by the end of this month for these four properties. The employees union in the PTDC claimed that the Punjab Government had already announced voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) for about 400 employees of the corporation without any consultation with it. A large section of employees had already applied for it but the government had neither provided funds for the scheme nor relieved the employees from duty. According to Ms Vini Mahajan, the government had called applications for VRS, but the funds would be arranged only after the final sale of the PTDC properties. She said, “As per the disinvestment process, the dues of employees will be settled from the receipt of disinvestment. Till the final sale of properties, hotels and restaurants of the corporation will remain functional.”
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Star offloads stake in news business
New Delhi, June 21 Star has created a new company for news operations in India, called Media Content and Communication Services, in which it has taken a 26 per cent stake. The remaining 74 per cent equity has been offloaded to resident Indians, including AV Birla group chief Kumaramangalam Birla, Equus Advertising chief Suhel Seth, Hindustan Times’ Vir Sanghvi, DSP Merill Lynch chief Hemendra Kothari, noted lawyer Raian Karanjiwala and ousted Britannia Managing Director Sunil Alagh’s wife Maya. Industry sources said most of these people have invested in Star in their personal capacities and not through the companies they represent. They said both Birla and Kothari have acquired 25 per cent stake each in Star’s Indian news operations. The remaining 24 per cent is divided between the other high-profile investors.
PTI
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rc
by K.R. Wadhwaney Sops to foreign carriers resented The Civil Aviation Ministry has offered better playing field to foreign carriers, which has led to resentment in the national carriers, Air-India and Indian Airlines. The ministry, which has seen considerable political and bureaucratic changes, has offered more advantages to foreign carriers. Thailand, for example, has been allowed to conduct flights to Chennai, Bangalore, Varanasi, Gaya and Guwahati. The extended freedom to Thai Airways will greatly affect the interests of Indian Airlines in southern India. The Chennai-Bangkok operations, for example, will be considerably affected. What is worse is that India has not gained any additional entry point in Thailand. Indian Airlines argued against the grant of additional rights to Thai Airways. But surprisingly, Air-India played a dubious role by maintaining silence over the issue since it does not operate flights to Bangkok from Chennai. Several other carriers, like Malaysian Airlines, Gulf Air, Sri Lankan Airways, Emirates, Kuwait and Oman Air, have been given additional facilities.
AI-IA rivalry Even after the change of minister, the intense rivalry between A-I and AI persists. Air-India, for example, has been picking up domestic passengers on discounted fares.
New association The Air-India Pilots Guild has been derecognised. But a new A-I pilots’ association, supported by a powerful faction in the airline, has come up.
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Jute MSP up Henkel stake CII pact LIC award Firms raided SBI Life MoU approved OIL profit |
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