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Friday, August 30, 2013
Daily News Roundup - Aug 30 2013
Reliance Industries and its partners in the KG-D6 block — BP Plc and Niko Resources — have received Government approval to invest US$4bn in the R-Series gas-field in the block. (BL)
SREI Group is looking for acquisition opportunities in distressed power and road sectors. (BL)
The NSEL Investors Forum has urged the broking community to halt trading for one day on the Multi Commodity Exchange. (BL)
With the depreciation of the rupee and a rise in crude oil prices beginning to pinch them, airlines in India have begun raising fares. Jet Airways has started levying a surcharge of US$50 on the economy class fare on its Gulf flights. SpiceJet, is planning to increase the surcharge on its domestic flights. (BS)
SpiceJet is in talks with Airbus to acquire A320neo narrowbody aircraft. (BS)
ING Vysya Bank said it had increased interest rates on deposits by 25-50 basis points, effective August 28. (BS)
The commodity market regulator has now stumbled on information that a firm controlled by the group has been trading on FT-promoted MCX in violation of government guidelines. (ET)
Idea Cellular has applied for unified licences to provide voice and data services in seven circles and said it will comply with the telecom department’s guidelines on roaming agreements. (ET)
State Bank of India raised interest rates by up to 1.5% on bulk deposits of over Rs10mn. The interest rate for bulk deposits for tenors of 7 to 60 days will be 9%. (ET)
A 3-day block closure in Tata Motors’ Jamshedpur plant has begun. The closure, which will be observed from August 29 to 31, was aimed to prevent unnecessary build-up of inventory as well as at dealers’ end. (ET)
The REC is coming out with the tax-free bond issuance. Through this route, REC plans to raise Rs10bn, with an oversubscription option of Rs25bn. (BS)
A significant part of SAIL’s capacity expansion project, worth around Rs190bn, may miss the revised deadline of 2013-14. (BL)
Economy Snippets
The petroleum ministry has finalised a shale oil and gas exploration policy, which will be tabled before the Cabinet soon after the oil minister approves it. (ET)
The government is considering a radical plan to direct commercial banks to buy gold from ordinary citizens and divert it to precious metal refiners in an attempt to curb imports. (ET)
The Commerce Ministry has asked the Finance Ministry to include export credit in priority sector lending of all banks to boost overseas sales. (ET)
Credit ratings agency Moody’s has said the food security bill will weaken government finances and deteriorate country’s macroeconomic situation. (ET)
Nifty rolls smoothly...above 5400
The Indian equity market ended with strong gains on Thursday amid F&O expiry. Overnight gains in the US and the Asian markets propped up the benchmark indices to open with a positive gap. From there on the benchmark indices just continued rallying on account of short covering across the markets.
Sector-wise, major short covering was witnessed in the realty and infra stocks as the Congress was now eyeing for the contentious Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill. Parliament is likely to take the Land Bill for discussion. The Land Acquisition Bill seeks to provide a fair compensation and rehabilitation to land owners in both rural and urban areas for land that is acquired for developmental projects.
Among the other major gainers were, oil and gas, metals, FMCG, capital goods and the auto stocks. Even the mid-cap and the small-cap stocks witnessed some buying momentum.
On the currency front, the slide in the rupee came to a halt after the RBI decided to open a foreign exchange swap window to meet the daily dollar requirements of the three public sector oil marketing companies which guzzle US$8-8.5bn every month, for the import of an average of 7.5 mn tonnes of crude oil.
The telecom sector also was in action on Thursday, commenting on the sector, Amar Ambani, Head of Research at IIFL, said, telecom operators posted robust rev/min improvement in Q1 FY14 and he expect companies to continue to benefit from sustained effort to reduce promotional/discounted minutes over past few quarters. Although uncertainty still persists around issues like one time spectrum charge, renewal fees etc, he believes current valuations factor in potential payouts from the same. We believe that worst may be over from stock perspective and recommend BUY on Idea and Bharti.
Finally, Sensex closed at 18401 up 404 points, while Nifty closed at 5,409 up 124 points over the previous close.
Sesa Goa, Hindalco, HDFC, Lupin, Kotak Bank, Bharti Airtel, Dr Reddy’s Labs, HCL Tech and NMDC were among the top gainers in the Nifty, while, PNB, Ultratech Cem, Coal India, Infy, SBI and Ranbaxy were among the top losers.
The advance-decline ratio favoured the bulls. On the BSE, 1274 stocks advanced against 990 declining stocks, while 138 remained unchanged.
The INDIA VIX was down 9% at 29.41. It hit a day’s high of 32.44 and low of 28.83.
Step back into safety
You will either step forward into growth or you will step back into safety." - Abraham Maslow
August is behind us and thank God it ended with a bang after whimpering around most days of the month. We are into the September series and ‘Septaper’ will be on every investor’s mind. The situation in Syria remains under watch by investors. Prime Minister David Cameron said that Britain would not participate militarily in any strike against Syria as the UK Parliament voted against the same.
We have the GDP numbers which will be announced after market hours today which will give some more reason perhaps for pessimism to rise even further given the prolonged slowdown.
The outlook is a flat start. The rupee which recovered smartly on Thursday will continue to keep investors on tenterhooks. Speculation on the GDP numbers could cause the indices to taper towards close. Global cues are nothing much to write about.
Around noon, the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will make a statement in Parliament on the state of economy and touch on the rupee's sharp swing against the dollar.
Jindal Steel & Power will remain in focus as it will consider buyback of shares. Aanjaneya Lifecare will consider fund raising.
Reliance Industries and its partner BP Plc won approval to invest $3.18 bn in R-Series gas field in KG-D6 block, says media reports. Report said that RIL-BP plan to bring satellite fields in KG-D6 block to production.
Petroleum Minister M Veerappa Moily met Finance Minister P Chidambaram to discuss possible solutions including Rs 3-4 per litre hike in diesel prices and cut in duties.
Rural Electrification Corp is planning to raise Rs50bn through issue of taxfree bonds. The issue opens on August 30 and closes on September 23, says report.
In coal block scam, the apex court directed CBI to conclude the probe against all companies, which were allocated coal blocks, by December this year and ordered it to file the status report by October 22.
Verizon Communications Inc and Vodafone Group Plc restarted talks over possible buyout of the British firm's stake in their US wireless joint venture.
The Lok Sabha has debated and passed two land-mark laws; the food bill and an updated version of the 19th-century legislation governing land acquisition. The ‘Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation & Resettlement Bill, 2012’ seeks to give a fair deal to farmers losing their land, especially multi-crop land, to industrial needs. But industry complained the law would push cost and timeframe for setting up new enterprises.
The Dow added 0.11% while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index was marginally. The Nasdaq notched up 0.75%. Asian stocks are mixed. Japan's Nikkei is down half a percent while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is marginally up. South Korea's Kospi index and China's Shanghai index have gained ~0.5%. Brent crude prices fell 1% to $113.97 a barrel.
In US, the nation's second-quarter gross domestic product grew at a 2.5% annualized pace, according to a revised estimate from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. Jobless claims fell last week to 331,000.
Indonesia's central bank on Thursday raised its benchmark interest rates by 50 basis points to 7%, a move intended to support the declining rupiah and reduce the country's CAD.
While, Brazil's central bank on Wednesday raised its key lending rate by a half percentage point, to curb worrisome inflation despite parallel concerns over the pace of economic growth. In a widely expected move, the central bank's monetary policy committee voted unanimously to raise the ‘Selic’ interest rate to 9% from the previous 8.5%, the fourth increase since April.
A radical but a seemingly effective idea to curb gold imports by RBI might see the light of day shortly. India is considering a plan to direct commercial banks to buy gold from ordinary citizens and divert it to precious metal refiners in an attempt to curb imports and take some heat off the plunging currency.
Results watch: BRAND HOUSE,Color Chips, Dunlop India, EL Forge, Lee & Nee Soft, PREMIER ENER, S Kumar Nation, Shakti Press, UCIL Leasing.
Trends in FII flows: The FIIs were net sellers of Rs2.48bn in the cash segment on Thursday, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net sellers of Rs758mn, as per the provisional figures released by the NSE.
The foreign funds were net sellers of Rs11.99bn in the cash segment on Wednesday, according to the SEBI figures.
Corporate snippets
Reliance Industries and its partners in the KG-D6 block — BP Plc and Niko Resources — have received Government approval to invest US$4bn in the R-Series gas-field in the block. (BL)
SREI Group is looking for acquisition opportunities in distressed power and road sectors. (BL)
The NSEL Investors Forum has urged the broking community to halt trading for one day on the Multi Commodity Exchange. (BL)
With the depreciation of the rupee and a rise in crude oil prices beginning to pinch them, airlines in India have begun raising fares. Jet Airways has started levying a surcharge of US$50 on the economy class fare on its Gulf flights. SpiceJet, is planning to increase the surcharge on its domestic flights. (BS)
SpiceJet is in talks with Airbus to acquire A320neo narrow body aircraft. (BS)
ING Vysya Bank said it had increased interest rates on deposits by 25-50 basis points, effective August 28. (BS)
The commodity market regulator has now stumbled on information that a firm controlled by the group has been trading on FT-promoted MCX in violation of government guidelines. (ET)
Idea Cellular has applied for unified licences to provide voice and data services in seven circles and said it will comply with the telecom department’s guidelines on roaming agreements. (ET)
State Bank of India raised interest rates by up to 1.5% on bulk deposits of over Rs10mn. The interest rate for bulk deposits for tenors of 7 to 60 days will be 9%. (ET)
A 3-day block closure in Tata Motors’ Jamshedpur plant has begun. The closure, which will be observed from August 29 to 31, was aimed to prevent unnecessary build-up of inventory as well as at dealers’ end. (ET)
The REC is coming out with the tax-free bond issuance. Through this route, REC plans to raise Rs10bn, with an oversubscription option of Rs25bn. (BS)
A significant part of SAIL’s capacity expansion project, worth around Rs190bn, may miss the revised deadline of 2013-14. (BL)
Economic Snippets
The petroleum ministry has finalised a shale oil and gas exploration policy, which will be tabled before the Cabinet soon after the oil minister approves it. (ET)
The government is considering a radical plan to direct commercial banks to buy gold from ordinary citizens and divert it to precious metal refiners in an attempt to curb imports. (ET)
The Commerce Ministry has asked the Finance Ministry to include export credit in priority sector lending of all banks to boost overseas sales. (ET)
Credit ratings agency Moody’s has said the food security bill will weaken government finances and deteriorate country’s macroeconomic situation. (ET)
Global Data Watch: Private Sector Credit (MoM) (Jul) AUD, Private Sector Credit (YoY) (Jul) AUD, Construction Orders (YoY) (Jul) JPY, Housing Starts (YoY) (Jul) JPY, Retail Sales (MoM) (Jul) EUR, Retail Sales (YoY) (Jul) EUR, Nationwide Housing Prices s.a (MoM) (Aug) GBP, Nationwide Housing Prices n.s.a (YoY) (Aug) GBP, KOF Leading Indicator (Aug) CHF, Unemployment (Jul) EUR, Current Account Balance (Jul) EUR, Consumer Credit (Jul) GBP, M4 Money Supply (MoM) (Jul) GBP, M4 Money Supply (YoY) (Jul) GBP, Mortgage Approvals (Jul) GBP, Net Lending to Individuals (MoM) (Jul) GBP, Consumer Confidence (Aug) EUR, Business Climate (Aug) EUR, Economic Sentiment Indicator (Aug) EUR, Industrial Confidence (Aug) EUR, Services Sentiment (Aug) EUR, Consumer Price Index (YoY)Preliminar EUR, Unemployment Rate (Jul) EUR, Retail Sales (YoY) (Jun) EUR, Consumer Price Index (MoM) (Jul)Preliminar EUR, Consumer Price Index (EU Norm) (MoM) (Jul)Preliminar EUR, Consumer Price Index (EU Norm) (YoY) (Jul)Preliminar EUR, Consumer Price Index (YoY) (Jul)Preliminar EUR, Producer Price Index (MoM) (Jul) EUR, Producer Price Index (YoY) (Jul) EUR, Federal Fiscal Deficit, INR (Jul) INR, Gross Domestic Product Quarterly (YoY) (Q1) INR, Gross Domestic Product (MoM) (Jun) CAD, Gross Domestic Product Annualized (QoQ) (Q2) CAD, Personal Income (MoM) (Jul) USD, Core Personal Consumption Expenditure - Price Index (MoM) (Jul) USD, Core Personal Consumption Expenditure - Price Index (YoY) (Jul) USD, Personal Consumption Expenditures - Price Index (MoM) (Jul) USD, Personal Consumption Expenditures - Price Index (YoY) (Jul) USD, Personal Spending (Jul) USD, Chicago Purchasing Managers' Index (Aug) USD, Reuters/Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index (Aug) USD
Happy days are here again for MCX
Shares of Multi Commodity Exchange of India ( MCX) hit an upper circuit of 5% for the ninth consecutive trading session, at Rs355.20 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) with no sellers.
The counter has rallied nearly 50% from its record low of Rs238 registered on August 19 this year, after the company said it has no exposure to crisis-hit National Spot Exchange Limited ( NSEL), which had to settle dues worth Rs5,600 crore to investors.
MCX and NSEL are totally different entities with no financial commitments or exposure to each other whatsoever. The company is in full compliance with the directive of the Forward Markets Commission (FMC), the commodity markets regulator, on investments, loans and advances.
The company is a debt-free company and has a net worth of Rs1,214 crore in the quarter ended June 30.
At 3.15 pm, MCX was trading at Rs355.20, up by 5.00%, with a volume of 2210 shares trading on BSE.
Market may open flat to slightly higher
The market may open flat to slightly higher as most Asian stocks rose. Trading of CNX Nifty futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates a flat opening on the domestic bourses today, 30 August 2013. On the macro front, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) will unveil data on gross domestic product (GDP) for Q1 June 2013 today, 30 August 2013. India's GDP grew a dismal 4.78% in Q4 March 2013. The GDP grew 5% in the year ended 31 March 2013, the weakest in a decade, as falling domestic and overseas demand, crumbling domestic infrastructure facilities, bureaucratic delays in approvals for industrial projects and high borrowing costs choked investments in the economy.
Infrastructure and realty stocks will be in focus as the path-breaking Land Acquisition Bill, which seeks to provide just and fair compensation to farmers while ensuring that no land can be acquired forcibly, was passed by the Lok Sabha with overwhelming majority on Thursday. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2012 stipulates mandatory consent of at least 70% for acquiring land for Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects and 80% for acquiring land for private companies. The bill, which will replace over a century-old law, proposes compensation that is up to four times the market value in rural areas and two times the market value in urban areas. The bill was passed with 216 votes in favour and 19 against.
State Bank of India (SBI) said after market hours on Thursday, 29 August 2013 that the interest rate for bulk deposits for the tenors 7 days to 60 days will be 9% per annum and for the tenor 61 days to less than one year will be 8.25% per annum with effect from 31 August 2013.
Sesa Goa said after market hours on Thursday, 29 August 2013 that the board of directors of the company at its meeting held on 29 August 2013 approved allotment of equity shares to the shareholders of Sterlite Industries (India) (Sterlite), The Madras Aluminium Company (MALCO) and Ekaterina (Ekaterina) pursuant to the Schemes of Amalgamation and Arrangement.
To the shareholders of Sterlite a total of 194.45 crore shares were issued, 3 Sesa Goa shares being issued for every 5 existing Sterlite shares. To the Shareholders of MALCO, 7.87 crore shares, 7 Sesa Goa shares being issued for every 10 existing MALCO shares. To the Shareholders of Ekaterina 7.23 crore shares, 1 Sesa Goa share being issued for every 25 existing Ekaterina shares.
Consequent to the aforesaid allotments, the paid up equity share capital of the company stands increased from Rs. 86.91 crore to Rs. 296.46 crore. Sesa Goa will apply to the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange in India (together, the Indian Stock Exchanges) for listing approval for the new Sesa Goa shares and expects to receive the final listing approval within three to four business days. Thereafter, Sesa Goa will apply to the Indian Stock Exchanges for trading approval for the new Sesa Goa shares and expects to receive the trading approval within a further two to three business days. The new Sesa Goa shares are expected to begin trading on the Indian Stock Exchanges on the next business day in India after trading approval is received.
Hindalco Industries turns ex-dividend today, 30 August 2013, for dividend of Rs 1.40 per share for the year ended March 2013.
NHPC turns ex-dividend today, 30 August 2013, for a final dividend of Rs 0.60 per share for the year ended March 2013.
A recovery in the battered rupee, a slide in oil prices triggered by US President Barack Obama's comments on Wednesday, 28 August 2013, that he hasn't yet decided whether to launch an attack on Syria and weaker-than-expected report on US durable-goods orders which raised expectations that the Federal Reserve may delay plans to reduce its monetary stimulus to the US economy, aided a rally in Indian stocks on Thursday, 29 August 2013. The S&P BSE Sensex jumped 404.89 points or 2.25% to 18,401.04 on that day, its highest closing level since 26 August 2013.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 248.18 crore on Thursday, 29 August 2013, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.
Most Asian stocks rose after the UK parliament voted against military strikes on Syria. Key benchmark indices in South Korea, Indonesia, Taiwan and China rose by 0.31% to 0.89%. Key benchmark indices in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan fell by 0.09% to 0.8%.
Japan's consumer prices increased at the fastest pace since 2008 in July, adding to signs that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is making progress in pulling the economy out of 15 years of deflation. Consumer prices excluding fresh food climbed 0.7% from a year earlier, the statistics bureau said today in Tokyo.
US stocks rose as data showed the economy expanded at a faster pace in the second quarter and concerns over Syria eased. Gross domestic product rose at a 2.5% annualized rate, up from an initial estimate of 1.7%, Commerce Department figures showed Thursday in Washington. Jobless claims in the week ended August 24 dropped 6,000 to 331,000 from a revised 337,000 the week before that was higher than initially reported, the Labor Department said
The prospect of imminent military strikes on Syria receded as the UK and France said they favor waiting for the results of a United Nations investigation into alleged use of chemical weapons. The US which says it has evidence that Syria's government was responsible, won't act without allies, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said.
Investors across the globe are eyeing the next policy meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) scheduled next month, with their focus squarely on the timing of tapering of Federal Reserve's bond purchases. The FOMC holds a two-day policy meeting on 17-18 September 2013 to decide on interest rates in the United States. The US central bank currently buys $85 billion a month in US debt and mortgage-backed securities in a bid to hold interest rates low and encourage economic growth. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has on several occasions stressed that the tapering process is dependent on an improvement in data. Fed's bond-buying program has kept global markets flush with liquidity in recent years.
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
- Positive start – no convincing turnaround
He's turned his life around. He used to be depressed and miserable. Now he's miserable and depressed. - David Frost
It’s an F&O expiry week and the usual volatility associated is more or less expected. Speculation remains on whether the ‘Septaper’ will happen; in other words whether
the Federal Reserve will pull back on asset purchases in September.
The outlook is a positive start to begin with. The rupee, which closed at 63.20 on Friday will remain in focus. Asian stocks are in the green after a fall in US home sales raised hopes that Federal Reserve may not reduce economic stimulus next month. Data showed new home purchases in the US plunged in July by the most in three years.
Back home in India, the GDP number, the broadest measure of economic activity, will be closely eyed and is expected later this week.
Finance Minister P Chidambaram during the weekend reassured FIIs and banks
that once the rupee’s slide was curbed and stability returns to the currency markets, interest rates would start falling, according to a report.
FIIs were eager to know what new steps and policy action the government is taking to ensure stability in the market, the report added.
US indices ended mixed last week. The Nasdaq added 1.5% and the S&P 500 rose slightly, while the Dow Jones fell for the third straight week.
Japan's Nikkei 225 index was trading marginally higher and so was Hong Kong's Hang Seng index. South Korea's Kospi index rose 0.7% while China's Shanghai index was flat.
ITC will be closely eyed as the company board is meeting on Wednesday to consider a proposal for demerger of West Indian Match Company’s (Wimco) arms.
Hexaware Technologies will remain in focus after private equity major Baring Asia announced it was set to acquire the company in a deal worth US$465mn.
Thanks to a double whammy of high crude prices ($105/barrel) and a weak rupee, IndianOil, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation are up against fuel losses of Rs 140,000 crore this fiscal, a report stated.
The government is counting on recent big-ticket deals and a pickup in acquisitions to keep dollars flowing while it tries to rein in the current account deficit, says a report.
The Prime Minister’s Office is in favour of opening up the fast growing e-retail sector to foreign direct investment — a move that will allow global majors such as Amazon and eBay to invest in the country, says a report.
Results watch: C&C Const, Ikab Securities, Indsil Hydro, Krebs Bio, Oasis Sec, Priyadarshini Spn, S Mobility, Spectrum Foods, Surya Indl.
Trends in FII flows: Overseas investors have pulled out nearly Rs 30bn from Indian stock market in a week. The FIIs were net sellers of Rs1.48bn in the cash segment on Friday, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers of Rs7.55bn, as per the provisional figures released by the NSE.
Global Data Watch: Summer Bank Holiday GBP, Nationwide Housing Prices n.s.a (YoY) (Aug) GBP, Nationwide Housing Prices s.a (MoM) (Aug) GBP, 10-y Bond Auction EUR, Durable Goods Orders (Jul) USD, Durable Goods Orders ex Transportation (Jul) USD, Dallas Fed Manufacturing Business Index (Aug) USD, 3-Month Bill Auction USD, 6-Month Bill Auction USD
In other news in the media:
Faced with slowing demand for heavy commercial vehicles, light commercial vehicles and passenger cars, Bosch, has embarked on a cost- cutting exercise to improve margins and profitability. (BS)
Reliance Industries Ltd and its partner, BP, announced a new gas condensate discovery off the east coast. (BS)
Jindal Steel and Power Ltd has acquired a majority stake in Gujarat NRE Coking Coal, the Australian subsidiary of Gujarat NRE Coke, which would enable it to secure resource supply and minimise risk in prices. (BS)
Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, would decide on its investments plan for a third facility in Gujarat at a board meeting next week, amid a sales slump in the home market. (BS)
ONGC has decided to go ahead on its own to develop its deep-sea block in the Krishna Godavari Basin, as its over-a-year-long hunt for a suitable partner has yielded no results. (BL)
ONGC Videsh Ltd is set to buy US energy major Anadarko Corp’s 10% stake in a Mozambique gas field for US$2.6bn this week. (BL)
Indicating a shift in its business strategy, Ranbaxy could withdraw from some global markets in the near future, while consolidating in others. (BS)
Maruti Suzuki India Ltd is working at making an operational integrated R&D centre in Rohtak. (BS)
Jindal Steel and Power Ltd has secured five exploration licences for iron ore mining in African countries. (BS)
National Stock Exchange has sold off almost its entire stake in MCX over the past three weeks to insulate itself from the current controversy. (ET)
Wipro has asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to seek the Obama administration’s intervention to remove provisions in a proposed US immigration bill that are discriminatory towards Indian IT firms. (ET)
Gail India is negotiating with Qatar to secure 3mn tons of LNG at a price lower than the offered US$14 per unit, and is offering to help Qatar Petroleum acquire 5% equity in Petronet LNG. (ET)
Oil India plans to invest in Petronet LNG’s upcoming 5 MT LNG terminal on the east coast. (ET)
The Cabinet Committee on Investment is likely to set the ball rolling for 28 stalled mega power projects, involving investments of Rs1.72tn. These projects, slated for discussion at the CCI meeting, are expected to get cleared. (BS)
The government is planning to a give easier exit window to foreign investors in construction, housing and township projects, hoping to spur greater equity inflow into the debt burdened sector and help faster completion of delayed projects. (ET)
An internal department of telecommunications panel is learnt to have proposed creation of a new body to regulate both telecom and broadcast sectors, with greater teeth than the existing regulator, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India. (BS)
Faced with a steep fall in the value of rupee, the Reserve Bank of India would scrutinise all pending applications, including that of Apollo Tyres, in the light of revised norms for outward investments. (BS)
Monday, August 26, 2013
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Friday, August 23, 2013
Bharti Airtel in talks to sell Sri Lankan operations: report
Bharti Airtel is in talks to sell off its Sri Lankan operations to Abu Dhabi's Etisalat, Media report said.
According to reports, Standard Chartered Bank is advising the Indian company in the transaction.
Bharti Airtel has been valued between $110 mn and $130 mn.
Airtel reportedly said as a policy it didn't respond to market speculations.
The company, which entered the Sri Lankan market in 2009 as the country's fifth operator, offers 2G, 3G and 3.5G services in the island nation
Market may open flat
Trading of CNX Nifty futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates a flat opening on the domestic bourses today, 23 August 2013. Asian stocks rose on Friday, 23 August 2013, after reports from Europe to the US boosted confidence in global economic recovery.
ICICI Bank after market hours on Thursday, 22 August 2013, said it has increased base rate by 0.25% to 10% per annum with effect from 23 August 2013. With effect from 1 July 2010, interest rates on new loans and advances, including consumer loans, are determined with reference to base rate. ICICI Bank has also announced an increase of 0.25% in its benchmark prime-lending rate and in its Floating Reference Rate (FRR) for consumer loans (including home loans) with effect from 23 August 2013. These benchmark rates are used for determining interest rates on loans and advances sanctioned upto 30 June 2010. The fixed rate customers will not be impacted by the above revision and their contracted rates will remain unchanged, ICICI Bank said.
Housing Development Finance (HDFC) will reportedly increase its retail prime lending rate by 0.25% with effect from Friday, 23 August 2013.
IT stocks will be in focus as rupee closed at a record low against the dollar on Thursday, 22 August 2013. A weak rupee boosts revenue of IT firms in rupee terms as the sector derives a lion's share of revenue from exports.
Dr Reddy's Laboratories announced after market hours on Thursday, 22 August 2013, that it has launched Divalproex Sodium Extended - Release Tablets, USP (250 mg and 500 mg), a therapeutic equivalent generic version of Depakote ER (divalproex sodium) Tablet, Extended Release in the US market on 19 August 2013. Dr. Reddy's ANDA for Divalproex Sodium Extended- Release Tablets, USP was approved by the United States Food & Drug Administration (USFDA). The Depakote ER brand and generic had combined US sales of approximately $194 million for the twelve months ended 30 June 2013 according to IMS Health data.
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said on Thursday that revival and encouragement of growth will continue to be the focus of the government. Chidambaram said that stronger growth will, in course of time, alleviate many of the challenges that India faces today. He said that there is no cause for the panic that seems to have gripped the currency markets and that is feeding into other markets.
Chidambaram believes that the rupee is undervalued and has overshot what is generally believed to be a reasonable and appropriate level. Capital inflows will, in due course, correct the position. India's debt indicators are within prudent limits. India does not have excessive public debt (Central and State Governments taken together). The overall public debt to GDP ratio has declined from 73.2% in 2006-07 to 66% in 2012-13. The economy's external debt is only 21.2% of GDP. India's reserves are $277 billion.
India's inflation could accelerate in the current fiscal year due to the rupee's sharp depreciation, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in a report on Thursday. The pass-through of the depreciation of the rupee exchange rate by about 11% in the four months of 2013-14 is incomplete and will put upward pressure as it continues to feed through to domestic prices, the RBI said in its annual report for 2012-13. Risks on the inflation front are still significant, the RBI said. The rupee's weakness could also increase subsidy payouts for fuel and fertiliser in 2013/14, the central bank said. However, the report said normal monsoon rains in India have taken a major risk off the horizon" but said a close vigil was necessary after food prices showed an upsurge during April to July. If high food inflation persists into the second half of 2013-14, the risks of generalised inflation could become large, it said. India's current account gap, which widened to a record high of 4.8% of GDP in the fiscal year to March 2013, is likely to ease in the current fiscal year but may continue to be much above the sustainable level, the report said. Global risks coupled with domestic structural impediments have dampened prospects of a recovery in 2013-14, and posed immediate challenges for compressing the current account deficit, it said. The central bank's report added that utmost attention is needed to contain risks to financial stability arising from deteriorating asset quality of banks.
Key benchmark indices surged on Thursday, 22 August 2013, after data showed a pickup in manufacturing activity in euro zone and China. The S&P BSE Sensex jumped 407.03 points or 2.27% to 18,312.94 on that day, its highest closing level since 16 August 2013.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 1277.64 crore on Thursday, 22 August 2013, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.
Asian stocks rose on Friday, 23 August 2013, after reports from Europe to the US boosted confidence in global economic recovery. Key benchmark indices in China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia and South Korea were up by 0.12% to 2.28%.
Factory output in the euro area is improving more than economists estimated and the fewest US workers in more than five years applied for jobless benefits, reports yesterday showed.
US stocks edged higher on Thursday after a monthly average of jobless claims fell to a more than five-year low in the US, and as manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index readings from China and Germany indicated expansion.
Thursday, August 22, 2013
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