New Delhi/Zürich, Sept 11
Swiss drugmaker Novartis told the Supreme Court of India it had demonstrated the improved efficacy of its cancer drug Glivec as the final hearing began on Tuesday of a patent case that could change the rules for the country's healthcare sector.

A patent would recognise Novartis' property rights, in a blow to generic drugmakers who supply medicines to 1.2 billion Indians and to poorer nations across the world, although generic forms of Glivec launched before 2005 would stay on the market.

"We’re giving something new to the patients," Gopal Subramanium, a lawyer for Novartis, told the Supreme Court as he argued for patent protection for Glivec — used to treat chronic myeloid leukaemia and some gastrointestinal cancers.

The hearing was expected to last for at least two months.

India's $12 billion drug market is seen by Big Pharma as a huge opportunity, but major Western drugmakers are wary of the level of protection for intellectual property in a country where generic medicines account for more than 90 percent of sales.

Novartis took its case to the Supreme Court after Glivec was refused a patent on the grounds the drug was not a new molecule but an amended version of a known compound. Novartis has challenged this clause of the Indian Patents Act.

SMALL FRACTION OF SALES: A loss for Novartis in the case would not have a big financial impact, since India is never likely to account for more than a small fraction of Glivec's global sales, which totalled $4.7 billion last year. The real concern for the industry is that a rebuff would confirm India as a country where patents are exceptionally hard to secure.

Critics of the big Western pharma groups — who include international aid groups and Indian generic drug manufacturers — say a win for Novartis would jeopardise the supply of cheap medicine to hundreds of millions of people in India and around the world, since India is the world's biggest exporter of cheap generic drugs.

Novartis says it needs certainty about the legal position if it is to invest in India over the long-term. — Reuters

New Delhi, September 11
Homegrown auto major Tata Motors announced its foray into Indonesia on Tuesday with the setting up a wholly-owned Jakarta-based subsidiary and plans to launch its vehicles in 2013.

The company will foray into both passenger and commercial vehicles through its 100 percent owned subsidiary PT Tata Motors Indonesia, the auto major said in a statement.

“Indonesia is a key market for Tata Motors, which has a wide range of products from small cars to buses in passenger vehicles and from 0.5T mini-trucks to 49T heavy trucks in commercial vehicles,” it added.

Tata Motors is also evaluating options for setting up a manufacturing base in Indonesia to serve the country and the ASEAN region, adding commercial launch and local assembly would happen in 2013. Significant investments will also be planned for component localization, the company said without elaborating.

On the company’s product launch programme for the Indonesian market, Tata Motors executive director (commercial vehicles) Ravi Pisharody said: “Based on customer feedback, we will progressively introduce relevant passenger and commercial vehicles, backed by appropriate distribution and service infrastructure such that we are closest to our customers“.

Tata Motors is also participating in the 20th Indonesia International Motor Show, starting in Jakarta on September 20. It will display 14 Tata passenger and commercial vehicles, being considered for introduction in Indonesia progressively. The display includes a special green pavilion of Tata CNG vehicles, whose need is growing in Indonesia, it said.

By the time of the launch in 2013, PT Tata Motors Indonesia will have about ten to 15 dealers nationwide, offering sales, service and spare parts.

“Over a period of three years, PT Tata Motors will set up a country-wide network of about 60 full-service dealers, about 100 other workshops and about 300 more spare parts retailers,” the company added. — PTI

New Delhi, September 11
India has approved eight foreign investments in drugmakers worth US $333 million in total, signalling the finance ministry may be winning a battle to open up the country's fast-growing markets and giving a boost to global drugmakers hungry for growth.

As a condition of its approval, however, the government said the foreign companies including US-based Pfizer and Germany's B-Braun would have to continue producing cheap drugs and maintain spending in ongoing R&D projects run by their Indian partners for five years.

Since becoming finance minister last month, P. Chidambaram has directed officials to fast-track FDI as part of a drive to revive investor confidence after India's economy grew at its slowest pace in nearly three years.

Proposals had been delayed for months due to a lack of clarity over government policy, with some government bodies expressing concerns that medicine prices might rise after a few Indian drugmakers sold businesses to overseas rivals.

In all, Chidambaram approved 21 FDI proposals totalling Rs 24.1 billion on the recommendation of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board. — Reuters

Mumbai, September 11
Indian gold importers preferred to stay on the sidelines as prices hovered near its peak, and traders waited for US Federal Reserve's decision on possible measures to stimulate the economy.

At 1:05 p.m., the most-active gold for October delivery on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) was 0.06% higher at Rs 31,925 per 10 grams, very near to previous session's peak of Rs 32,043.

"We’re waiting for the FOMC (US Federal Open Market Committee) to speak tomorrow... everybody is on wait and watch," said Ketan Shroff, director at Pushpak Bullion, a Mumbai-based wholesaler.

The chances that the Fed would launch another round of quantitative easing this week have jumped after disappointing U.S. employment data, which pushed up spot gold on Friday to above $1,740 for the first time since the end of February.

Easy monetary policy benefits gold, which attracts investors worried about potential inflation risks associated with cash printing by the central bank.

India, the world's biggest buyer of bullion, celebrates Ganesh Chaturthi next week and festivals will continue till November. Investors also eyed the movement in the rupee for direction. The rupee plays an important role in determining the landed cost of the dollar-quoted yellow metal.

Silver reached another peak in a steady session following the yellow metal.

Silver for December delivery on the MCX was 0.06 percent higher at 64,017 rupees per kg, after hitting a peak of Rs 64,215. — Reuters

New Delhi, September 11
A cash and carry joint venture between Wal-Mart Stores and Bharti Enterprises plans to add 3-5 stores by end of the year, a spokeswoman for the world's largest retailer said Tuesday.

US retail major Walmart operates 17 cash and carry, or wholesale stores, in India in partnership with Bharti Enterprises, which owns India's top mobile telecoms operator Bharti Airtel Ltd.

Foreign ownership regulations in India do not allow global hypermarket and supermarket chains such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Carrefour SA to set up shops in the country and tap the over $450 billion retail market.

Foreign players are, however, allowed to operate wholesale stores.

In December last year, the government backtracked on its decision to allow such chains to own 51% in India's multibrand retail sector after a huge political backlash.

Walmart also plans to ramp up the headcount at its unit, @WalmartLabs, in Bangalore to about 200 by end 2012 from 125 now, Jermey King, chief technical officer of Global e-Commerce, Walmart.com, told reporters. The unit's job is to help Wal-Mart capture more online sales from the proliferation of smartphones and social networking. — Reuters