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GDP growth at 8.4 pc exceeds estimates
Full rupee float only after regulatory mechanism in place: Bansal
Infosys mulls SEZ in Chandigarh
RIL plans agro stores in WB
Now Indian IT cos on talent hunt abroad
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Punjab, Haryana stall ethanol-blended petrol, rues Murli Deora
India, Pak agree to trade on both sides of Kashmir
Hyundai-SBI pact
Dabur Foods to pump in Rs 100 crore
Sensex sheds
388 points
B.K. Goenka award for AP Solvex
CORPORATE RESULTS
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GDP growth at 8.4 pc exceeds estimates
New Delhi, May 31
The 8.4 per cent growth is higher than earlier estimates of 8.1 per cent GDP growth during 2005-06. As per revised estimates by the Central Statistical Organisation, the GDP grew by 8.5 per cent in the first quarter of FY'06, 8.4 per cent in the second quarter, 7.5 per cent in the third and 9.3 per cent in the fourth quarter. Agriculture sector growth bounced back to 3.9 per cent from a meagre 0.7 per cent in 2004-05, bringing the government closer to achieving its target of 4.0 per cent growth, according to the latest government data released today. Manufacturing and services sector continued to post strong performance during the year, which was blotted only by a decline in mining and social services. "Agriculture sector has shown improvement... the revision in farm growth is not unusual," Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia told reporters. The economy is on the path to sustained high-growth trajectory, he said, adding there were no signs of overheating and all macro indicators were in "reasonably okay shape". The manufacturing sector grew by 9.0 per cent from 8.1 per cent and construction by 12.1 per cent as against 12.5 per cent in 2004-05. Trade, hotels, transport and communication expanded by 11.5 per cent from 10.6 per cent, while financial services, insurance, real estate and business services grew by 9.7 per cent in 2005-06 as against 9.2 per cent a year ago. Dr Ahluwalia said the power sector remained an area of concern. Rising oil prices could also affect the economy, he said. In rupee terms, GDP at factor cost at constant prices stood at Rs 25,95,339 crore. National income is estimated at Rs 23,25,282 crore during 2005-06, a rise of 8.6 per cent over that of 2004-05. Per capita income in real terms during 2005-06 rose 6.9 per cent to Rs 21,005. Farm sector during the fourth quarter in 2005-06 posted a robust growth of 5.5 per cent as against a dismal 1.5 per cent in the same period previous fiscal. This was one of the main reasons for the 9.3 per cent growth in fourth quarter last fiscal compared to 8.6 per cent in the year-ago period. — PTI
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Full rupee float only after regulatory mechanism in place: Bansal
New Delhi, May 31 India needs to strengthen its economy and insulate it from shocks created by market volatility before it can move to greater capital account convertibility, said Minister of State for Finance, Mr Pawan Kumar Bansal here at Assocham today. A six-member Central bank committee is currently looking at a proposal by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to move to greater capital account convertibility and is due to unveil a roadmap by the end of July. "What is needed is to strengthen the Indian economy and insulate it from the shocks of volatility in stock markets and foreign exchange market... We have to create conditions congenial for that (convertibility)," Mr Bansal said. Notably, the stock market has fallen about 20 percent from a record high set on May 11, amid a sell-off in Asian stock markets on concerns that increasingly risk-averse foreign investors will pull out of emerging markets as US interest rates rise. The Indian rupee has also come under pressure, hitting a three-year low today as equity investors sold shares and converted their rupees into dollars. Its fall has in turn hurt bond prices as traders have become nervous that currency weakness could lead to higher interest rates. Mr Bansal said India needed to put in place a regulatory mechanism for rupee convertibility and noted it had already been liberalising regulations on capital flows by easing rules about external commercial borrowings and foreign exchange management. But, the country needed to reduce its fiscal deficit before opting for a full currency float. India's fiscal and revenue deficits were still a matter of concern. India's fiscal responsibility law stipulates that the Central Government must eliminate the revenue deficit by 2008-09 and bring down the fiscal deficit to 3 per cent of GDP. The fiscal deficit was 4 per cent in 2005-06. He ruled out to put out any time frame by when the announcement would be made for capital account convertibility.
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Infosys mulls SEZ in Chandigarh
New Delhi, May 31 Kolkata: The West Bengal Government will provide around 100 acres of land to IT major Infosys Technologies Limited in the satellite township of Rajarhat for setting up a software development facility. Industry Secretary Sabyasachi Sen told reporters after a meeting with a high-level team of the company at the state secretariat that Infosys had made a preliminary survey of the area between Rajarhat and the airport to zero in on a suitable plot for the project. “It has asked for a minimum of 100 acres in that stretch. They have made their survey and will tell us about its requirement,” Mr Sen said. To a question if the price of the land had been settled, he said Infosys had no problem with any price that the state government would quote. The company would inform the state government about its decision in due time. — PTI
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RIL plans agro stores in WB
Kolkata, May 31 However, unlike Tata Motors or the Jindals, Reliance Industries in order to enter into the retail business in the Marxist- ruled state, plans to join hands with Mr. Harsh Neotia, Chairman of the Gujarat Ambuja Group for the obvious reason of his close association with the ruling Left Front leaders, particularly with Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacherjee Though no formal agreement in this regard had so far been signed between Mr. Neotia and Reliance Industries, sources said a formal meeting between Mr. Ambani and Mr. Neotia had already taken place to discuss the preliminary aspects of the mega deal. Under the proposed agreement, sources said, Rs. 3,000 crore would be invested in the project which was also likely to generate about 40,000 jobs within two years. Under the project as many as 22 agro retail stores would be set up in cities and towns of the state where the Ambuja group had its presence, sources said, adding that in each of these stores a large portion of raw materials would be procured from local farmers at attractive prices. Elaborating the reason of real estate giant Ambuja Group’s proposed diversification into the retail business, sources said since the Reliance Group had already made similar tie- ups in some other states, including Gujarat and Maharashtra, in order to utilise the available infrastructural facilities of the local player, it was looking for a capable partner in West Bengal too to fulfil its longstanding ambition in this regard.
— UNI |
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Now Indian IT cos on talent hunt abroad
Washington, May 31 The firms are launching the global recruiting effort because of labour shortages in the country as the companies are expanding beyond data entry and back-office processes into areas such as design, research and development, and sophisticated business applications that require highly skilled workers, according to a report in The Boston Globe. Currently, more than 10,000 American expatriates work in India for Indian information technology consulting and other outsourcing firms, a number that is expected to grow, said Forrester Research in Cambridge Vice- President (Asia Pacific research) John McCarthy. Leading software provider Infosys Technologies Ltd will spend $100 million over the next year to hire and train 25,000 workers and college graduates from around the world, including from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd of Bangalore will add 30,500 employees over the next year, including 1,000 from the USA. As these firms scour the world for highly skilled talent, they have also promised to pay the prevailing wage for new hires in Japan, the USA and England. According to the Globe report, Infosys will train 300 graduates it recruited from American colleges this summer to acquaint them with the firm’s culture and with their Indian colleagues. The new employees will receive a starting salary of $55,000 after completing a six-month course at the firm’s training facility in Mysore. They will then start full-time jobs in the company’s offices in Texas, Arizona, Massachusetts, New York, Illinois, or California. Meanwhile, American firms seeking to reduce labour costs are stepping up offshoring efforts and will be sending more white-collar jobs abroad. — UNI
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Punjab, Haryana stall ethanol-blended
New Delhi, May 31 In a letter, Mr Deora said it was essential to ensure uninterrupted and assured supply of ethanol through the removal of obstacles in its free inter-state movement. This had assumed particular significance, he said, in view of the spiralling prices of crude in the international market. The EBP programme with 5 per cent ethanol doping in petrol is being implemented in 10 states, namely UP, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Punjab, Gujarat, Goa, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Uttranchal and the three Union Territories ,namely Chandigarh, Daman & Diu and Pondicherry in the first phase. Oil companies and ethanol suppliers have alleged that some states have imposed high rates of taxes on ethanol, besides the levy of import and export `pass fee’ which hamper inter-state movement of ethanol, besides making its cost prohibitive. Some states have imposed restrictions on supply of ethanol for the EBP programme, which adversely affects its smooth implementation. Petroleum Ministry after consultation with the Law Ministry has claimed that ethanol, a denatured anhydrous alcohol falls within jurisdiction of the central government in terms of taxes. The Supreme Court, in the case of Bihar Distillery and another v/s Union of India and Synthetic and Chemical Ltd v/s. State of UP had confirmed this position, it claimed. The minister regretted that despite the clear legal position that ethanol falls within the domain of the central government, some state governments, contrary to the Centre’s policy of blending the petrol with ethanol, had imposed restrictions on its supply and also levied various taxes, thereby hampering implementation of this programme. He urged the Chief Ministers not to put any procedural restrictions on supply of industrial alcohol/ ethanol, its sale and distribution meant for blending with petrol. Besides, the states should not levy any imposts-excise, entry tax, export or import fee or any other kind of levy, which does not fall within the jurisdiction of the state government or ethanol meant for blending with petrol.
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India, Pak agree to trade on both sides of Kashmir
Islamabad, May 31 An understanding about the list of products to be traded between the two sides was reached during the second technical- level talks held here recently. During the parleys held after both sides reached an agreement in New Delhi early this month to allow intra-Kashmir trade via truck services, Pakistan agreed to import Kashmiri carpets and shawls, lentils, apricot, almond, coriander, saffron from Jammu and Kashmir. India, on its part, agreed to import marble, apricot, rice, onion and garlic from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The value-added products were not included in the list of proposed tradable items on the pretext that it would be difficult for both sides to differentiate between Kashmiri and non-Kashmiri products, the Dawn newspaper quoted officials as saying. Under the proposed treaty, commercial trucks are expected to start plying on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad route from July. — PTI
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Hyundai-SBI pact
New Delhi, May 31 As a part of the scheme, the SBI will provide car loans at 90 per cent of the on-road cost for all Hyundai cars at lower rates to all central PSE employees across the country, the company said.
— PTI |
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Dabur Foods to pump in Rs 100 crore
Kolkata, May 31 “The vision 2010 has been formulated in order to become a leading integrated player in the fruit processing industry,” Dabur Foods CEO Amit Burman said. “We have chalked out a 5-point strategy to
achieve Rs 500 crore turnover by 2010 and toward this we will need an investment of Rs 100 crore over the said period,” he added. Out of the total proposed investment, almost 50 per cent would be made at the Siliguri fruit processing unit that currently deals with pineapple processing for export. A sum of Rs 25 crore had already been invested.
— PTI |
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Sensex sheds
388 points
Mumbai, May 31 However, improved performance on the country’s GDP front saw the markets recovering some lost ground to end at 10,398, down 388 points from the previous close. In the broader markets, the Nifty slipped 3.6 per cent or 114 points to end at 3,071.
— TNS
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B.K. Goenka award for AP Solvex
Chandigarh, May 31
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Tata Chemicals profit dips 42 pc
Mumbai, May 31 The company attributed the decline in net profit to higher tax outgo and one-time expenditure of more than Rs 25 crore. Total income, however, grew to Rs 753.09 crore in the fourth quarter 2005-06 as against Rs 719.56 crore during the same period in 2004-05, company Chief Financial Officer P.K. Ghose said. The Board of Directors has recommended payment of dividend at Rs 7 per share on shares of Rs 10 each, aggregating to Rs 171.69 crore, including dividend tax. NTPC profit down
National Thermal Power Corporation has posted a 31.7 per cent decline in net profit to Rs 1,566.3 crore for the quarter ended March 31, as compared to Rs 2,293.4 crore for the corresponding period in the previous fiscal, showing a fall of 31.7 per cent. Its total income (net of electricity duty) has increased by 1.88 per cent to Rs 7,914.6 crore for Q4 FY-06 from Rs 7,768.3 crore in Q4 FY-05. It has posted a increase in net profit to Rs 5,820.2 crore for the year ended March 31, as compared to Rs 5,807.0 crore for FY-05. The total income has increased from Rs 25,541.4 crore in FY-05 to Rs 28,753 crore for FY-06. The company's Board has recommended final dividend at the rate of 8 per cent of paid-up equity share capital, in addition to the interim dividend paid at the rate of 20 per cent of paid-up equity share capital in February this year. Meanwhile, the Board of Directors of the company has approved a proposal to take over Government of India-owned Badarpur Thermal Power Station (BTPS). Falcon Tyres
After coming to the fold of the Ruia group, Falcon Tyres Limited registered growth of nearly 300 per cent in its net profit for 2005-06. Falcon Tyres registered a net profit of Rs 3.63 crore as against Rs 92 lakh in 2004-05. The total turnover of the company for 2005-06 stood at 255.63 crore against Rs 219.86 crore in 2004-05. In the last quarter of this financial year (Jan-Mar 06), the company earned a net profit of Rs 1.39 crore, 11 times more than the preceding year (Rs 12.61 lakh). The company announced 25 per cent dividend for its shareholders. Dr Reddys’ Labs
The Board of Dr Reddys Laboratories Ltd today recommended issue of bonus equity shares to the shareholders at the ratio of 1:1, including American Depository Shares. The company said it has posted a net loss of Rs 14.01 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2006, as compared to net loss of Rs 8.75 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2005. Its total income (net of excise) has increased from Rs 375.99 crore in Q4 FY 04-05 to Rs 524.98 crore for Q4 FY 05-06. It has posted a net profit of Rs 211.12 crore for the year ended March 31, 2006, (FY 05-06) as compared to Rs 65.46 crore for the year ended March 31, 2005, (FY 04-05). Total Income (net of excise) has increased from Rs 1,629.04 crore in FY 04-05 to Rs 2,136.57 crore for FY 05-06.
— Agencies, TNS
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CPI-IW at 120
The index, which tracks the prices of a specified set of consumer goods and services and provides a measure of inflation, registered the highest increase of four points at Raniganj. It increased by three points in another six centres, including Surat, Srinagar, Pune, Silchar, Tripura and Guwahati. The index rose by two points in 20 centres and decreased by one point in five centres, Labour Bureau sources said. — PTI Indian Bank Wockhardt Suzlon plan Zinc price up |
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