|
|
|
|
|
Hero MotoCorp stock plummets over 7%
Audi rolls out next generation A4 at Rs 27.3 lakh
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Re set to scale record peak
Gold at lifetime high of Rs 29,695
Cellular operators warn of 100% tariff hikes
Basel III not too burdensome for India: Goldman
NCR India focusing on customised ATMs
|
|
Hero MotoCorp stock plummets over 7%
New Delhi, May 3 Hero Motocorp was among the biggest losers today on the BSE Sensex as it fell 7.6 per cent to close at Rs 2072. Several other auto stocks including Maruti took a beating. According to analysts at Ambit Capital, Hero MotoCorp’s margin performance for the quarter was below expectations. Ambit Capital in a note said that it is concerned of the rising competition in the two wheeler space, particularly from Honda Motorcycles & Scooters India. “We believe Hero MotoCorp as the most susceptible to increasing competition in the domestic motorcycle market emanating from Honda Motorcycles’ aggressive expansion plans and the expected launch and aggressive pricing of its commuter bike (Dream Yuga) in May 2012. Similarly in the scooters space, the commissioning of a new facility by Honda has increased supplies bringing down the waiting period for its popular Activa model and impacting the growth rates for Hero and other players’ scooter volumes”, it said. In the post results conference call with analysts, the Hero management said it does not see any significant building up of inventories at the dealer level and it remains comfortable at three weeks level. For FY2013, the company expects the industry to grow at 9-10% and Hero MotoCorp to grow faster than the industry (little over 6.8 million units). The company expects to launch around 7-8 new models/variants every year. On the exports front, the company aims to touch 1 mn units sales mark by FY2017 (as against 0.17 million units in FY11). The company’s current two- wheeler capacity is around 6.6 million units. which is expected to be ramped up to 7 million by July/August 2012. The company is likely to announce details of a new plant in the next couple of days for meeting the incremental demand from FY14 onwards. In a report, Kotak Equities said the firm’s operating margins was impacted by the adverse impact of the yen’s appreciation. Other concerns include a likely hike in petrol prices, which could impact volume growth and increased competitive intensity. The report added the company paid a Rs45/share dividend in FY2012, which was below consensus expectations of Rs100/share and could raise concerns about its intentions to acquire companies/assets abroad to fulfill its ambitious export plans. The company indicated it would maintain a 40% dividend payout ratio in future. The report said the firm’s management had indicated it would continue to outpace industry growth in FY13 as well, with the launch of the Passion X Pro and 125cc Ignitor bikes over the coming months.
|
||
|
Audi rolls out next generation A4 at Rs 27.3 lakh
New Delhi, May 3 The Volkswagen Group company which now trails just the BMW in the premium car segment has priced the new A4 is priced at Rs 27.85 lakh onwards (ex-showroom Delhi). The company claims the new A4 offers 10-25 per cent better fuel efficiency across the range than its earlier generation model and continues to offer bigger interior space, with the longest wheel base in its category. "We’re already the segment leader with the A4. We aim to build our volumes even faster in the upcoming third quarter of the year”, said Audi India head Michael Perschke. |
||
|
The Reserve Bank of India was seen stepping in to defend the currency via dollar sales for a second consecutive session on Thursday, which helped slow the pace of falls, but not expectations the rupee could head to the record low levels of 54.30 to the US dollar hit last December. The central bank's hands are seen tied because of India's relatively low foreign exchange reserves and a widening current account deficit aggravated by foreign capital leaving the country. — Reuters
|
||
|
Gold at lifetime high of Rs 29,695
Gold closed higher by Rs 35 at Rs 29,695 per 10 grams over the previous close. Silver, however, lacked necessary follow up support and declined by Rs 400 to Rs 56,200 per kg on reduced offtake by industrial units. Traders said that gold raced to record high levels as stockists and retail customers preferred to park their funds in the precious metal amid weak stocks and foreign exchange markets. Gold of 99.9 and 99.5% purity rose by Rs 35 each to new peak level of Rs 29,695 and Rs 29,555 per 10 grams, respectively. Sovereign remained steady at Rs 23,750 per piece of eight grams. On the other hand, silver ready remained under selling pressure and lost Rs 400 to Rs 56,200 per kg and weekly-based delivery by Rs 375 to Rs 56,710 per kg. Silver coins continued to be asked at last level of Rs 66,000 for buying and Rs 67,000 for selling of 100 pieces. — PTI
|
||
|
Cellular operators warn of 100% tariff hikes
New Delhi, May 3 While the umbrella body of the CDMA telecom operators, AUSPI, shot off a letter to the finance minister criticizing the TRAI proposals the GSM operators’ apex body COAI said mobile tariffs could go up by 100% if the government decided to implement TRAI’s proposals. On Wednesday the telecom company bosses including Bharti Airtel chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal, AV Birla group chairman K.M. Birla, Vodafone Group Plc CEO Vittorio Colao and Telenor Group president & CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas had met Mukherjee and other senior cabinet ministers and pointed out that regulator's proposals were “flawed, retrograde and regressive” and its implementation would harm consumer interests. Bharti Airtel’s Sanjay Kapoor, who also heads COAI, said that tariffs across the industry would double, while dismissing TRAI’s own calculations of up to 2 paise per minute in terms of call rates. The GSM biggies are sticking to their earlier demand of the auction price being indexed to the base price of the 2010 3G auction. TRAI has proposed an auction base price of Rs 3,622 crore for every megahertz of nationwide spectrum in the 1800 Mhz band compared to a price of around Rs 380 crore in the 2008 2G sale. Vodafone’s Marten Pieters said if the government were to accept TRAI’s pricing math, India would be forced to pay 48 times higher price than any country across the world. COAI also warned of extensive litigation and a no-show in the auctions in case the government did not heed its pleas. |
||
|
Basel III not too burdensome for India: Goldman
New York City, May 3 Goldman says private banks are already "well above" the capital requirements, while public lenders are "close to or have crossed the core 8 percent Tier 1 hurdle." However, pension liabilities would need to be adjusted to meet the RBI's directive to adjust the shortfalls in defined pension benefits against common equity by January 2013, Goldman says. That would have an impact on net worth of about 2% to 5% for Indian lenders, Goldman estimates. — Reuters |
||
|
NCR India focusing on customised ATMs
Chandigarh, May 3 With a focus on collaborating with leading banks — state-owned as well as private — for rolling out ATMs custom made for the rural market, the company is looking at a substantial growth in its business. Noting the ATM industry in India is still under developed as compared to other countries, with ATM penetration in India being just 63 ATMs per million people, NCR India is also focusing on creating more and more custom-based ATMs for the emerging rural market. NCR India MD Jaivinder Gill said in the past one year the industry definitely had a more rural focus. “As compared to just 30% of the ATMs installed in rural areas previously, over 40% of new ones have been set up in these areas during the last year. As the banking industry moves into the hinterland, we too are busy customizing ATMs and hardware that are more suited for the rural population. As a result, we’ve developed solar powered ATMs for rural areas where power supply is a problem; multilingual ATMs that guide rural consumers to use the machine; ATMs using biometrics to help these customers operate the machines; SIM stream ATMs that help in connecting with a bank’s server by using GSM technology; and, now ATMs for the blind,” he said.
|
||
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Looking to further strengthen its market position after overtaking Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz as the second largest premium carmaker in the country, Audi India on Thursday launched the next generation A4 sedan
After the power-packed group of telecom company honchos met Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and officials from the Prime Minister’s Office on Wednesday over the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s recommendations on the 2G spectrum auction base prices, cellular operators have intensified their attack on the regulator and warned of grave consequences for subscribers.
Mumbai, May 3
New Delhi, May 3