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NCAER questions RBI rationale
RIL Q1 profit up 10 per cent
at Rs 2,547 cr
Commit more to R&D, PM tells industry
HPTDC to tie up with private hotels
DoT seeks settlement of FDI norms
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New Delhi, July 20 Acting on a petition from Reliance Communications seeking to recover Rs 85 crore from BSNL, telecom tribunal TDSAT has directed the PSU to file its reply in six weeks.
“Airtel Mega” launched in Punjab
Tata Motors’ arm develops LNG tractor-trailer
Rupee gains ground
BANK ACCOUNT
CORPORATE RESULTS
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NCAER questions RBI rationale
New Delhi, July 20 The central bank had maintained that the 0.25 per cent hike in the reverse repo and repo rates on June 9 was to curb inflationary expectations, rising US Fed rates and a sharp rise in housing prices. "It appears that the specific reasons advanced for the recent hike in policy rates appear inadequate. A contrary view of keeping the rates unchanged taking advantage of low inflation is equally strong," the National Council of Applied Economic Research said in its monthly report. The NCAER pointed out that while "all commodity-based" inflation was heading to cross the 5 per cent mark, core inflation was still below 2.7 per cent in May, 2006. The main drivers of overall inflation were mineral oil prices and food prices, it said. The mineral oil price composite index has had an average annual growth rate of about 15 per cent for the past two years, which is also the long-term average inflation for this group of products, the NCAER said. "Therefore, a significant effect of world oil price inflation is already built into core inflation," the NCAER said. In the absence of credible ways to find expected inflation, independent of monetary policy action, the RBI may follow the US Federal Fund rate, it said, but added that there were contrasting movements in long-term returns on US government bonds and those issued by the RBI. During January 2005 to March 2006, the fed rate rose to 5.6 per cent from 2.3 per cent, while the yield on 10-year bonds remained almost unchanged, increasing from 4.2 per cent to just about 4.7 per cent, the NCAER said. Besides, the US dollar appreciated only marginally from 1.5 USD per SDR to 1.47 USD per SDR, it added. "The Fed, therefore, was able to contain inflationary expectations so that long term rate which affect investment decisions were left broadly undisturbed," it said, adding that the results of the RBI action were not as satisfactory. The reverse repo rate was increased from 4.5 per cent in January, 2005, to 5.5 per cent in March, 2006, and now to 5.75 per cent, but the 10- year yield on government bonds increased from 6.7 per cent to 7.9 per cent while the rupee-SDR rate remained practically unchanged, the NCAER said. "Does this imply that economic agents have accepted the RBI's premise that inflation will rise and this led to an opposite outcome from what the RBI expected," it questioned. Almost all commercial banks have announced increases in lending rates, which might retard investment momentum, the NCAER apprehended. On the rising housing prices, the NCAER said that the hike in policy rates could not have been merely due to trends in housing loans.— PTI |
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RIL Q1 profit up 10 per cent
at Rs 2,547 cr
Mumbai, July 20 Total income (net of excise) increased to Rs 24,566 crore for the first quarter in 2006-07, up 36.64 per cent from Rs 17,978 crore during Q1 FY 05-06, the leading petrochemical firm said. The company's turnover rose 32 per cent to Rs 26,166 crore for the quarter ended June 30 from Rs 19,884 crore during the same quarter in 2005-06. "It has been an excellent quarter for RIL. All our businesses have recorded robust performance in a very challenging environment. I am very excited about RIL's future as we continue to commit our cash flows in expanding our existing and new businesses," RIL Chairman, Mr Mukesh Ambani, said. Production of oil & gas and petrochemicals, including toll conversion, saw an increase of 7 per cent and stood at 3.52 million tonnes during the quarter against 3.29 million tonnes for the corresponding previous quarter. Exports of manufactured products stood at Rs 13,270 crore registering an increase of 86 per cent, as compared to Rs 7,144 crore in Q1 FY 05-06. The company reported a 14 per cent rise in operating profit at Rs 4,281 crore against Rs 3,760 crore for the first quarter in FY 05-06.
— PTI
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Commit more to R&D, PM tells industry
New Delhi, July 20 Addressing a meeting of the Council on Trade and Industry, the Prime Minister called upon the industry captains to pay attention to the rehabilitation of displaced people at the time of acquisition of land for industrial projects and on creation of employment opportunities. “We have had some trouble in recent months relating to displaced persons and this should be avoided. We must be careful and avoid such controversy especially in the case of special economic zones and industrial parks,” he said while hinting at clashes between displaced people and the police in Punjab, Orissa and Jharkhand. Complementing the industry for increasing investment, he urged them to look for investment opportunities in the neighbouring countries, including the South- East Asia and Easter regions. Expressing concern over low investment in the R&D sector, the Prime Minister said: “ In R&D, the proportion of public: private investment is 30:70. We need to reverse this because it is investment in R&D which can keep you ahead in competition.” For example, he said, the Indian textile industry had not adequately benefited from the dismantling of the Multi-Fibre Agreement due to poor investment.
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HPTDC to tie up with private hotels
Shimla, July 20 The HPTDC has received request from eight hoteliers of Manali, Mandi, Kangra and Shimla for a tie- up. The HPTDC has proper infrastructure in terms of networking and marketing offices all over the country and is keen to rope in private sector under its umbrella. However, the tie-up will only be with hotels which are not in direct competition with the HPTDC units or where it does not own a hotel. In certain cases, the request to the HPTDC from tourists is for budget category while it only has premium rooms and vice versa. In such cases, the HPTDC will book the tourists in private hotels with whom there is a tie-up. "The hotels will, however, have to meet the standards of the HPTDC as we will allow them the use of our infrastructure," explained Mr Tarun Shridhar, Managing Director, HPTDC and Director Tourism. "The HPTDC will get about 15 to 20 per cent of the earnings which the private hotels will get through our network," he said. Another proposal that the HPTDC is introducing is a tie-up with some unique properties that have heritage importance or different kind of ambience. "These hotels will be affiliated with us, but they will have to strictly adhere to the HPTDC as the name of the government unit would be involved," said Mr Shridhar. In certain places like Bir in Kangra, which has emerged as the ideal site for para-gliding in the world, the HPTDC does not have a unit and it is keen on a tie-up with private hoteliers here.
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DoT seeks settlement of FDI norms
New Delhi, July 20 While the Home Ministry has been persistently opposing both above mentioned positions, the DoT is not in favour of granting further extension to the telcos as it is affecting its other priority areas of functions, which are related to clarity in FDI norms. The Cabinet had set October 2 as the deadline for telcos to comply with new guidelines. Therefore, it is expected that no more extension will be given to the operators. The main issues of current guidelines which have been a bone of contention between Home Ministry and DoT are remote access, appointment of foreign CEOs in Indian telecom companies and separate security norms for companies with 49 per cent foreign equity and those with up to 74 per cent FDI.
— PTI |
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BSNL told not to disconnect Reliance's signal
New Delhi, July 20 Meanwhile, TDSAT's outgoing Chairman Justice N. Santosh Hegde also directed BSNL not to disconnect its signal to Reliance Communications in the intervening period. Reliance Communication's counsel R. S. Prabhu requested the tribunal to assure them that BSNL would not disconnect its signal on this basis as the matter is sub judice. Earlier the tribunal had issued notices to BSNL and the DoT on this issue. Reliance had prayed for a direction from the tribunal to BSNL to settle bills (worth Rs 85 crore) raised by it and waive Rs 6.82 crore fine imposed on it. The dispute pertains to payment of interconnect usage charge (IUC) under an agreement in January 23, 2003, for interconnectivity in different circles.
— PTI |
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“Airtel Mega” launched in Punjab
Chandigarh, July 20 Mr Rajiv Jaitly, CEO (Mobility), Bharti Airtel Limited, Punjab Circle, said: “We intend to make available home phones to all customers through Airtel Mega ". Airtel Mega operates on the GSM network and will be available in post-paid and pre-paid tariff plans. In the first phase, Airtel Mega will be available in Chandigarh, Mohali, Panchkula, Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar and Patiala. By the end of September, it will be available in other major towns and villages of Punjab.
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Tata Motors’ arm develops LNG tractor-trailer
New Delhi, July 20 TDCV, formed after the acquisition of Daewoo Commercial Vehicle by Tata Motors in 2004, has pioneered the design, development and manufacture of the new LNG tractor, under an arrangement sponsored by the Korea Gas Corporation, Tata Motors said. The Korea Gas Corporation would put the vehicle on test- drive during the second half of the year with a view to introducing it to the industry at large in 2007, it said.
— PTI |
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Mumbai, July 20 The rupee's bounce was also credited to a rebound of 346 points in the equity market. The rupee opened strong at Rs 46.80/83 a dollar from overnight closing of 46.99/47.00 a dollar. Oil prices too moved lower from last week's record peak of $78.40 a barrel. The country imports about 70 per cent of its oil and high oil prices could widen its trade deficit, exerting pressure on the rupee, forex dealers said. "Lower oil prices, a strong turnaround in equity markets and dollar's slide overseas were the main factors for the rupee's turnaround". — PTI
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Punjab & Sind Bank IPO by year-end
Manoj Kumar Tribune News Service
New Delhi, July 20 “We have urged the Finance Ministry to convert the majority stake of government in the bank into preferential shares to meet the capital adequacy stipulations under Basel-II norms. To expand our business, we have raised Rs 100 crore from a tier-II issue and are now planning to bring out an initial public offer in the third or first quarter after watching the volatile market,” said Mr G.S. Matta, Executive Director of the bank. At present, the Government of India is a 100 per cent shareholder in the bank, which has a capital base of Rs 783 crore. The bank has proposed to convert around Rs 553 crore into preferential shares to improve its EPS (Earning per share) before approaching the market. The bank has to meet the capital adequacy ratio of 9 per cent under the Basel-II norms whereas it is presently 12.83 per cent. The bank hopes to collect Rs 100 crore through an IPO. “We have posted Rs 26.87 crore net profit in the first quarter this fiscal as against Rs 5.95 crore registered during the corresponding period last year. We are gearing to increase the annual business volumes of the bank to Rs 35000 crore this year from Rs 28,000 crore last year, while doubling the net profit,” said Mr Matta. As part of the restructuring plan, said Mr Matta, the bank had decided to re-locate about 40 loss-making bank branches, besides merging branches. About 400 of the 818 branches of the bank are in Punjab alone. The bank has also tied up with Western Union to tap the vast market of NRI remittances in Punjab. Canara Bank net up Canara Bank has posted a marginal rise in net profit to Rs 190.93 crore for the quarter ended June 30 (Q1 FY 06-07) as compared to Rs 186.90 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2005 (Q1 FY 05-06). The bank said its total income had increased by 23.78 per cent to Rs 2,770.95 crore for Q1 of FY 06-07 from Rs 2,238.58 crore in Q1 of FY 05-06. Union Bank of India The Union Bank of India has posted a 31 per cent drop in its net profit of Rs 166.81 crore for the quarter ended June 30 as compared to Rs 240.39 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2005. However, the total income of the company increased by 22 per cent from Rs 1491.45 crore in Q1FY06 to Rs 1830.72 crore for Q1FY07. The bank operates through 138 branches in India.— Agencies |
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Ranbaxy Q1 PAT up at Rs 121 cr
New Delhi, July 20 In the USA, the company recorded an increase of 8 per cent in sales over the corresponding quarter at $89 million (over Rs 400 crore), which was led by the launch of Simvastatin tablets 80 mg with 180-day exclusivity, its CEO and Managing Director Malvinder Mohan Singh said. The consolidated sales of the group increased to Rs 1,446.4 crore for the second quarter in 2006-07, up 7.3 per cent from Rs 1347.9 crore in Q2 of FY'06, the company said. For the six months ended June 30, the group reported a 12 per cent rise in the consolidated profit after tax which stood at Rs 192.5 crore against Rs 172.1 crore a year ago. The consolidated sales of the group for the January to June period rose to Rs 2,721.7 crore, up 9 per cent from Rs 2,486.2 crore during the same period last year. In India, sales for the quarter stood at $67 million, up 4 per cent from the corresponding period in FY'06. Nicholas Piramal
Pharmaceutical company Nicholas Piramal India Ltd has posted a decrease of 5.78 per cent in net profit after tax and exceptional items of Rs 51.00 crore for the quarter ended June 30 as compared to Rs 54.13 crore for the same quarter in 2005-06. The total income (net of excise) increased 4.93 per cent to Rs 401.89 crore for the first quarter ended June 30 from Rs 382.98 crore a year ago. The group posted a profit after prior period items of Rs 53.86 crore for the quarter ended June 30, where as the same was at Rs 50.20 crore for the same quarter last fiscal. Gujarat Ambuja net up
Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd has reported an over two-fold increase in net profit at Rs 303.89 crore for the quarter ended June 30 as compared to Rs 145.17 crore for the corresponding quarter in FY 05-06. The total income (net of excise) rose to Rs 1,124.25 crore for the June quarter in 2006-07, up 53.24 per cent from Rs 733.63 crore in the same quarter in FY 05-06, the leading cement company said. The group reported a consolidated net profit (after minority interest) of Rs 360.07 crore for the quarter ended June 30 where as the same was at Rs 171.18 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2005. Bhushan Steel & Strips
Bhushan Steel & Strips (BSSL) has reported a 57 per cent increase in its net profit at Rs 62.25 crore for the first quarter ended June 30 as compared to Rs 39.57 crore during the corresponding quarter last year. The company's operating profit was up by 49 per cent at Rs 148 crore. The company's net sales during Q1 FY07, registered a 6 per cent increase at Rs 787.55 crore as against Rs 742.54 crore in Q1FY06. Raymond Q1 net dips
Apparel manufacturer Raymond Ltd has reported a 38.27 per cent decline in net profit at Rs 11.61 crore for the quarter ended June 30 as compared to Rs 18.81 crore for the corresponding quarter in FY 05-06. However, the total income (net of excise) rose 14.01 per cent to Rs 298.47 crore for the first quarter in 2006-07 from Rs 260.78 crore in Q1 FY 05-06, the company said. Apollo Tyres
Apollo Tyres Ltd has reported a 2.57 per cent decline in net profit at Rs 16.26 crore for the quarter ended June 30 as compared to Rs 16.69 crore for the corresponding quarter in the year 2005-06. The total income (net of excise) however rose to Rs 757.37 crore for the first quarter in 2006-07, up 33.26 per cent from Rs 568.32 crore in Q1 FY 05-06, the tyre manufacturing company said.
— Agencies |
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Naukri.com
plans IPO
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