Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams, Chapter 307
Palash Biswas
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Ambani Gas Dispute | ||||||
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Gorshkov bargain on |
| OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT |
New Delhi, July 29: The “At the present stage, only negotiations are going on. Nothing has been decided finally,” Antony said. |
Anil for early end to dispute |
| OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT |
New Delhi, July 29: Anil Ambani has decided to push for a quick resolution of the gas dispute with his brother Mukesh. Reliance The A It “Since According The The Sources Earlier, The While Meanwhile, Anil met officials in the finance ministry to explain his position and lobby for support. Sources |
Mukesh refuses to join issue with Anil on family pitch
PTI
NEW
DELHI: RIL Chairman Mukesh Ambani today refused to be drawn into a public
quarrel with his younger brother Anil, who accused him of seeing no
mother Kokilaben in settling their disputes.
"We do not wish to
comment on baseless, malicious and wrong accusations," said a spokesperson for
Mukesh Ambani, when asked about Anil's statement that his elder brother did not
visualise any role for mother Kokilaben in settling disputes.
Anil
had also accused RIL of forgetting the vision of their father and Reliance
founder-chairman Dhirubhai Ambani "in pursuit of corporate greed."
'CBI clean chit is proof of covering up Omar's role'
Vohra today rejected Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's resignation, which
Omar had submitted on Tuesday after the opposition Peoples Democratic
Party linked him to a 2006 prostitution racket.
Email this storyPost-Godhra killings: SC asks SIT to complete probe by Dec 31
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday gave another five months to
Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by it to complete the probe
into the alleged role of Gujarat CM Narendra Modi, his cabinet
colleagues and ...
Orissa passes Vedanta University Bill with amendments
Thursday passed Vedanta University Bill - 2009 after a marathon debate
that began on Wednesday by simple voice vote with some amendments.
KalingaTimes - Express Buzz - Times of India - The Statesman
It's official: Anil Ambani group to build Metro-2 tooExpressindia.com - 20 hours ago Mumbai Two months after Anil Ambani's Reliance Infrastructure-led consortium emerged the sole bidder for the city's second Metro rail corridor, ... Reliance Infra Q1 net up 25 pcEconomic Times - 2 hours ago 30 Jul 2009, 1819 hrs IST, PTI MUMBAI: Anil Ambani group firm Reliance Infrastructure on Thursday reported a net profit of Rs 316.57 crore for the first ... FIIs up ante on Ambani stocks; small investors pull outHindu - Jul 25, 2009 On the other hand, the Anil Ambani group's Reliance Power saw the shareholding of both FIIs and domestic individual small investors remain unchanged during ... Sensex lacklustre ahead of July series expiryEconomic Times - 7 hours ago Anil Ambani has again upped the ante in the long-standing and controversial gas supply row with his elder brother. The Opposition is crying foul against the ... Economy can't be held hostage by Ambanis bros: GovtTimes of India - - Jul 18, 2009 While the stinging comments could seriously hurt the pride of the Ambani brothers, it is also a serious setback to Anil Ambani's claim over an agreed supply ... Financial services sector has bright future: Anil AmbaniEconomic Times - Jul 21, 2009 21 Jul 2009, 1622 hrs IST, PTI MUMBAI: Painting a bright future for the Indian financial services sector, Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) Chairman, ... Options open on listing of Reliance Entertainment: Anil AmbaniEconomic Times - Jul 15, 2009 15 Jul 2009, 2053 hrs IST, PTI NEW YORK: Industrialist Anil Ambani on Wednesday hinted at listing his group's media and entertainment business Reliance ... Anil Ambani's AGM speechIndian Express - Jul 29, 2009 A warm welcome to each one of you to the 9th Annual General Meeting of our company. It has been a little over three years since we first came together to ... |
Govt plans to get black money backTimes of India - 19 hours ago NEW DELHI: Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that the government, as promised before the general elections, was working on ... Trade policy: Anand Sharma to consult PranabHindu - 18 hours ago NEW DELHI: Union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma on Wednesday announced that he would be meeting Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and ... Mukherjee snubs CPI-M on nuclear doctrinePress Trust of India - 2 hours ago New Delhi, July 30 (PTI) Snubbing the CPI-M in the Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said the country had rejected its nuclear doctrine ... Pranab holds meeting with Petroleum, Law MinistersHindu - Jul 28, 2009 ... and industrialist Anil Ambani over the gas dispute, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday held a meeting with Petroleum and Law Ministers here. ... Steps on to get back money stashed abroad: PMHindu - 4 hours ago The Prime Minister referred to Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee's remarks on Wednesday stating that he (Mr. Mukherjee) had"specifically dealt" with the ... Pranab remains upbeat on growth, but with fingers crosseddomain-B - 8 hours ago Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday told the Rajya Sabha yesterday, "We have ended 2008-09 at 6.7 per cent. I do hope that we will be able to ... egom on 3G telephony may meet tomorrowHindu - 1 hour ago ... Group of Ministers on 3G spectrum are likely to hold their first meeting on Friday under the chairmanship of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. ... Efforts on to break TMC-Congress deadlockHindu - Jul 27, 2009 “Pranab Mukherjee [Union Finance Minister and president of the West Bengal Pradesh Congress Committee [WBPCC]] and Keshava Rao [general secretary of the All ... BJP attacks Krishna, alleges foreign policy not safe in his handsIndian Express - 2 hours ago Government fielded Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to intervene in the debate. For the FM to intervene in the debate when the External Affairs Minister ... |
Mkts close flat; oil & gas, pvt banks dip, FMCG, power upMoneycontrol.com - Jul 27, 2009 On the one side, FMCG, realty, power, metal and select telecom stocks witnessed buying interest while on the other side, oil & gas, private banking and ... India's Billionaire Feud Flares UpForbes - - 4 hours ago He was alluding to an ongoing natural gas supply dispute between the brothers that has now reached the country's Supreme Court. Anil's accusation, made at a ... Cairn to commence oil production from Rajasthan in AugustLivemint - 9 hours ago Cairn's Rajasthan oil fields will bring down India's oil import bill by $6.8 billion or 7%, Goldman Sachs said, adding that peak output from the fields is ... Gas sector needs clear-cut policiesEconomic Times - Jul 29, 2009 Most oil and gas companies have to pump in equity investments into such projects at the initial stage till there is a discovery. ... RIL net slips 12% as refining margins halveEconomic Times - Jul 24, 2009 The availability of gas in India will double in December when RIL production reaches a peak level of 80 mmscmd. Deepak Pareek, an analyst with Angel Broking ... Andhra Pradesh govt to bid for oil and gas blocks under Nelp-8Livemint - - Jul 27, 2009 This would make Andhra the second state in India after Gujarat to bid for oil and gas blocks through Nelp. Energy hunt: Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS ... OIL eyes acquisition of blocks in India, abroadHindu Business Line - - Jul 28, 2009 Its upstream counterpart Oil and Natural Gas Corporation led the way with Rs 429 crore. Unlike in the past, OIL and ONGC will now only have to support the ... IOC-OIL JV close to acquiring Gulf KeystoneTimes Now.tv - Jul 29, 2009 IOC and OIL, who had overseas ambitions, were in December 2005 allowed by the government to jointly bid for oil and gas properties. ... Top oil companies to report lower Q1 profitsEconomic Times - Jul 22, 2009 Reliance, the country's largest listed company with a market value of $60 billion, began pumping gas from its vast, newly developed field off India's east ... India looks for gas in distant Papua New GuineaThaindian.com - 6 hours ago It had ultimately unsuccessful talks with Exxon Mobil but now has begun discussions with InterOil, an integrated private oil and gas firm with licences in ... |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Next |
Anil Ambani puts Deora in gas chamberEconomic Times - Jul 28, 2009 MUMBAI: Anil Ambani on Tuesday launched a bare-knuckled verbal assault targeting Murli Deora, India's petroleum minister and an old friend of Dhirubhai ... Under UP welfare garb, SP pushes Anil case in HouseEconomic Times - 18 hours ago All this while, his party colleagues kept gunning for petroleum minister Murli Deora, demanding his resignation for meting out “a grave injustice to UP”. Mr ... RIL-Niko invest $5.98 bn in KG-D6: DeoraSify - Jul 27, 2009 Reliance Industries (RIL) and its Canadian partner Niko Resources have invested '5.98 billion in the oil and gas fields in the Krishna Godavari basin block ... Government gets first share of profit from KG-D6 gas fielddomain-B - 43 minutes ago The government has earned its first profit share from Reliance Industries' eastern offshore KG-D6 gas fields, with the operator and its Canadian partner ... No bowing to pressure on IPI pipeline project: DeoraHindu - Jul 20, 2009 The problems included finalisation of tariff, transportation cost and security concerns, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murli Deora said in the Rajya ... Deregulation of oil prices with human face: DeoraHindu - Jul 12, 2009 Photo: PTI Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Murli Deora (right) interacts with Bohra industrialists and traders at an international exhibition at the ... Marxists & BJP find common cause in petroleum pricingEconomic Times - Jul 21, 2009 Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Murli Deora failed to respond to queries from Opposition on the government's policy for pricing petroleum products ... Deora: decontrol of oil prices will hit common manHindu - - Jul 5, 2009 With the international crude oil prices on the rise this is not the time to decontrol, according to Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Murli Deora ... FDI inflow risesCalcutta Telegraph - Jul 27, 2009 New Delhi, July 27: Reliance Industries and its Canadian partner Niko Resources invested $5.98 billion in the oil and gas fields in the Krishna Godavari ... Rationalise tax on petrol, diesel: DeoraHindu - Jul 3, 2009 NEW DELHI: Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Murli Deora has written to Chief Ministers of all States to rationalise the tax structure on petrol and diesel ... |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Next |
Gas sector needs clear-cut policies
ET Bureau
THE
ongoing gas debate in the country has thrown up a fundamental question that
needs to be answered right away. Are we in a state to decontrol the sector
completely, given the huge gap between demand and supply? The government’s
dilly dallying on policies which tend to impact the returns for the investor
will only be counter-productive and detrimental to the growth of the sector. In
2008-09 the total gas demand stood at an estimated 200 million standard cubic
metre per day (mmscmd) as against a supply of 119 mmscmd, including imported
LNG.
The
scenario is set to change now that Reliance Industries has begun gas production
from the Krishna-Godavari region. As per initial estimates, gas production
should double by the end of this financial year. But then, demand from
fuel-starved consumers across major sectors like power, fertiliser, city gas,
steel, auto among others is expected to shoot up with the economy growing at at
least 7% plus in the near future.
The
policies in the gas sector today are both confusing and woolly. Having opened up
exploration almost ten years ago when the government invited bids for
exploration and production under its new exploration licensing policy (NELP) for
the first time, it has now developed cold feet on some of its basic tenets,
namely marketing and pricing of gas. This is bad news for a sector that is in
its infancy. Uncertainties and policy rollbacks leave investors completely
nervous particularly in such a risky business which involves large capital and
long gestation periods.
It
is a well known fact now that the government has laid down a utilisation policy
for gas producers. This has prioritised customers — fertilisers followed
by power (existing plants), city gas, petrochemicals and LPG—which in the
government’s wisdom, should have the first right to any new gas. While the
government may be right in fixing allocations for specific industries, the
decision to do so mid-way and only in parts is questionable.
A
mention of the utilisation policy was made in the NELP policy document but
specifics of such a policy were not spelt out at any stage over the last decade.
Even till a year ago, petroleum ministry officials had different interpretations
to what the utilisation policy was all about. Some at that point were of the
view that this was with regard to whether the fuel was to be sold within the
country or exported. Consequently, however, the government made it clear that it
would determine how much of gas was to be given to which sector.
But
the utilisation policy that determines which consumer should get how much of
this scarce natural resource is only limited to a part of the gas being produced
by Reliance Industries from the Krishna-Godavari basins. Gas is supplied by
several companies including Cairn, ONGC, Petronet LNG, Shell among others.
However, the utilisation policy has been restricted to only RIL’s new gas.
If the government’s utilisation policy stems from the fact they need to
play a more proactive role, given the huge demand-supply gap, then it needs to
have a more uniform approach. For instance, the government could take into
account all the gas produced in the country (by both public and private
companies) and allocate the fuel as per the priority.
The
matter is complicated even more as the country does not have a well-laid out
pipeline network and so several consumers even in priority sectors may not get
the gas at all. Take, for instance, the fertiliser companies in Tamil Nadu which
may still have to use expensive naphtha as there is no connecting pipeline that
can transport the gas to their plants.
Governments
and regulators normally need to play a role when the market is functional so
that demand and supply can determine price for a product. So while the
government’s role in forming a utilisation policy is understandable what
perhaps is questionable is the manner in which the government has gone about
implementing these policies.
Policies
on pricing of gas, which are crucial for both the government’s profit
share and the investor too remain a grey area. Can we treat all consumers
(long-term and short-term) equally? Is it right to treat consumers with stranded
capacities (where money has already been invested) and green field capacities
alike? Are all consumers across sectors such as industry, power and fertiliser
alike? The government will have to take a call on all these issues before it
goes about asking investors to put their money in India’s gas sector.
An
investor in the sector has to deal with high risks as it is full of
uncertainties and finding money for such investments is certainly more
difficult. Most oil and gas companies have to pump in equity investments into
such projects at the initial stage till there is a discovery. Lenders are
normally reluctant to provide debt till there is a surety that the money will
fetch returns. The success rates have been moderate and exploration of oil and
gas in the country has been far from optimal. The last few rounds of NELP has
seen a steady decline in the number of bids from private and international
companies despite the fact that India’s largest gas and oil finds, i.e.,
RIL’s KG basin and Cairn’s Barmer have begun production.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Comments-Analysis/Gas-sector-needs-clear-cut-policies/articleshow/4833071.cms
IOC Q1 net profit at Rs 3,682.83 crore
| Font Size |
Agencies
Posted: Jul 30, 2009 at 1343 hrs IST
Mumbai
Indian Oil Corporation reported a net profit of Rs 3,682.83 crore for the first quarter ended June 2009.
The company had a net profit of Rs 415.13 crore in the corresponding period a year-ago.
Total income of the state-run company declined to
Rs 60,683.97 crore in the April-June quarter from Rs 89,148.57 crore in
the corresponding period last fiscal, IOC said in a filing to the
Bombay Stock Exchange.
In March 2009, IOC merged Bongaigaon Refinery and
Petrochemicals (BRPL) with itself. Hence the figures of the
corresponding period last fiscal are not comparable with that of the
quarter under review.
Average gross refining margin was USD 7.36 per bbl, against USD 16.81 per bbl in the June quarter last fiscal.
The company's revenue from sale of petroleum
products stood at Rs 52,853.68 crore against Rs 79,172.81 crore in the
same quarter last year.
Shares of IOC were trading at Rs 549.50, up 2.81 per cent in the afternoon trade on BSE.
WASHINGTON — Americans are more likely to disapprove than approve of
how President Barack Obama dealt with the racially tinged dispute
between a white Cambridge, Mass., police officer and a well-known black
Harvard scholar — with disapproval especially strong among white
voters, according to a poll released Thursday.
The July 16 arrest
of Henry Louis Gates Jr. for disorderly conduct in his own home sparked
a national debate over racial profiling and police conduct. The
controversy intensified after Obama last Wednesday said police "acted
stupidly" when they arrested Gates, who is a friend of his.
The
poll by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center found that 41 percent
disapproved of Obama's handling of the Gates arrest, compared with 29
percent who approved. The poll also found the incident and Obama's
reaction saturated the public consciousness. As many as 80 percent of
Americans said they are now aware of Obama's comments on the matter.
The
president's approval ratings fell, especially among working class
whites, as the focus of the Gates story shifted from details about the
incident to Obama's remarks, the poll said. Among whites in general,
more disapprove than approve of his comments by a two-to-one margin.
The
poll was conducted Wednesday to Sunday last week. Among those
interviewed on Wednesday and Thursday, 53 percent of whites approved of
Obama's job performance. This slipped to 46 percent among whites
interviewed Friday through Sunday as the Gates story played out.
Obama's overall job approval in the poll was 54 percent, down from 61 percent in a mid-June Pew poll.
White
House aides had sought to play down the president's comment, but the
subsequent outcry and constant commentary reached such a pitch that
Obama acknowledged publicly that he should have been more diplomatic
with his words.
"Over the last two days as we've discussed this
issue, I don't know if you've noticed, but nobody has been paying much
attention to health care," Obama told reporters on Friday when he
surprised them in the White House briefing room to revisit the Gates
issue.
Gates, who is black, was taken into custody by Cambridge
Sgt. James Crowley, who is white, after Crowley accused him of
disorderly conduct for protesting the policeman's actions in responding
to a mistaken report of a possible burglary at Gates' home. The charges
were later dropped.
White House aides said it became clear the matter was not going away.
So
Obama made phone calls to each participant and invited them to join him
for a beer at the White House. The meeting is set for Thursday evening.
Pew
re-contacted 480 of the poll respondents on Monday, July 27, to ask
them more questions about the Gates matter. They found that people are
divided as to who should be blamed for the Gates arrest: 27 percent
blame Gates and 25 percent Crowley. Another 13 percent of respondents
say both or neither are at fault.
A separate poll said almost a
third blame both the scholar and the sergeant. An NBC News/Wall Street
Journal poll found 27 percent think Gates was at fault, 11 percent
blamed Crowley and 29 percent said each was equally at fault.
The
Pew poll of 1,506 adults was conducted July 22-26. It has a margin of
error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. For the re-interview survey
of 480 adults on July 27, the margin of error is plus or minus 5.5
percentage points.
The NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll of 1,011
people was conducted Friday through Monday. It had a margin of error of
plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
Centre looks to avoid face-off with ADAG
ET Bureau
talking and posturing, the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani (ADA) Group and the
Union government seemed to be
the KG Basin gas dispute.
While a government official hinted that
the Centre may modify its special leave petition (SLP) filed in the Supreme
Court on the KG basin Gas dispute, Anil Ambani on Wednesday requested the
petroleum ministry and Reliance Industries, controlled by elder brother Mukesh
Ambani, to work towards a speedy resolution of the issue.
An
official directly involved in the legal process told ET NOW that the government
would file an application for leave at the Supreme Court to modify the SLP.
“There is a wrong perception that has gone out that the
government is entering a private dispute between the two brothers ; so, some
changes may be made to the SLP to dispel that perception,” he said,
requesting anonymity.
The changes in SLP may pertain to the
petroleum ministry’s statement on the MoU. The ministry has, in its SLP,
stated that the MoU between the two brothers should be declared null and void.
But the view emerging from the law ministry and legal counsels is that it is
this statement that has given rise to all the trouble.
A day after
firing the first salvo at Reliance Industries (RIL) and the petroleum ministry
at the RNRL annual general meeting on Tuesday, ADAG chairman Anil Ambani
requested the petroleum ministry and elder brother firm RIL to join him to seek
an expeditious final hearing of the legal dispute.
Mr Ambani, while
addressing a media conference call on Wednesday, said RNRL informed the
petroleum ministry and RIL that RNRL’s counsel will request the Supreme
Court on Thursday to take up the matter for final hearing on September , 1,
2009. “Since the petroleum ministry has reiterated on several occasions
that the matter is of national importance, RNRL hopes that they would also agree
to our request for an expeditious final hearing of the matter, and will not be
misguided by RIL—who we believe only want to delay the matter indefinitely
to the detriment of public interest,” Mr Ambani said.
“I
will be personally happy to be proven wrong if RIL also agrees to our request
tomorrow — if they genuinely want the matter to be resolved expeditiously
,” he added.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Energy/Oil-Gas/Centre-looks-to-avoid-face-off-with-ADAG/articleshow/4836182.cms
Creating a subaltern stimulus
ET Bureau
Generally, three types of income
transfer strategies - providing cash grants, distributing vouchers, and giving
cash for work - are used in
distribution of free cash to targeted beneficiaries; vouchers are denominated in
money terms or in physical quantities of specific commodities; and cash for work
is the distribution of money to perform physical labour.
India has
mainly experimented with the cash for work model and the National Rural
Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), is an example.
One way to create a
subaltern stimulus is to broaden the NREGA to other productive sectors: for
example, extension to the farm sector will mean that the government pays Rs 100
to cultivators to hire field workers and the balance wage is paid by the
farmers.
Besides employing unemployed workers, this is also likely
to make the farm sector more competitive. Moreover, inclusion of
conditionalities is expected to account for specific and general contextual
details of local areas. Generally, conditionalities are decided on a
case-by-case basis and are included to reduce specific types of poverty and
disadvantage; deal with different types of risk; incentivise desirable types of
consumption and promote positive spending; develop markets for products and
services; remove social, market, and administrative discrimination that prevent
the poor to engage more fully in development processes; and achieve goals
emanating from wider public interests.
Extension of NREGA (called
NREGA plus) to other productive sectors combined with conditionalities as
add-ons (e.g., additional cash or vouchers for children regularly attending
school) provides an opportunity to design a development doctrine, in the way
used by Andreas Faludi, whose core consists of NREGA plus and cash transfer with
alterable conditionalities surrounding the core. The conceptual foundation of
the doctrine is provided by Amartya Sen’s entitlement theory - that lack
of access to food (goods and services), rather than failure in food supply leads
to famines.
The reinvented development doctrine has several
advantages. First, apprehensions about outflow of capital from productive
activities to meet domestic shocks and stresses (eg, serious health ailments)
are expected to be reduced. Second, multiplier effects on agriculture and
livelihoods are likely to increase the demand for local goods and services.
Third, administrative cost will be less, corruption opportunities reduced, and
the need to establish complex monitoring mechanisms will be eliminated. Fourth,
the life of the poor will become dignified.
They will no longer have
to stand as supplicants before development administrators. Additionally, women
and the aged will be empowered if the cash transfer is made in their favour.
Finally, increased choices available to the poor will account for variations in
preferences for goods and services from poor to poor (eg, family decides how
much to spend on food and education).
Some of the intensively
investigated transfer programmes are: Oportunidades (Mexico), Social Protection
Network (Nicaragua), Bolsa Escola and PETI (Brazil), Family Assignment Program
(PRAF - Honduras), Chile Solidario (Chile), and Program of Advancement through
Health and Education (Jamaica). Brazil has a bunch of transfer programmes.
The BPC is a continuous cash benefit programme that transfers cash,
unconditionally, to the extremely poor with disabilities; the PETI transfers
cash to eradicate child labour from hazardous and dangerous activities; the
Bolsa Familia is the main conditional cash transfer programme targeting poor
families with income less than $40; the Bolsa Escola targets children between
six and 15 years of age; the Bolsa Alimentacao fights infant mortality in poor
families; the Auxilo Gas compensated poor families after ending food subsidies
in 2001; and the Cartao Alimentacao was created to provide food security to the
poor in 2003.
The Mexican government started the Oportunidades in
1997 (then called Progresa) to replace traditional supply-side subventions with
demand-side interventions through direct cash transfer to poorest families with
conditionalities, such as enrolment of children in schools. Evaluation of the
Mexican programme has showed that most important reductions in poverty took
place among the poorest households and substantial general equilibrium welfare
impacts by switching to a better targeted transfer
scheme.
Implementing the NREGA plus is likely to pose several
challenges. Simple and transparent targeting is expected to be a major issue. An
innovative way could be to conduct a referendum, with a yes/no option, to
determine eligible beneficiaries. We trust the local community and if they feel
that a family requires help, perhaps that is the best decision.
Moreover, robust delivery mechanisms and transparency about
peoples’ entitlements will require creative solutions based on the lessons
learnt from the implementation of development programmes during the last 50
years. Furthermore, development administrators will have to understand that
people are capable of exercising their judgements to make best use of the money.
Additionally, politically difficult choices will be required because
secure regular source of funding can only be found by collapsing several
programmes. Finally, appropriate conditionalities and other institutional
responses - to regulate misuse of money (eg, alcoholism, gambling) - will
require innovative policy responses.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Opinion/Creating-a-subaltern-stimulus/articleshow/4835926.cms
Emotional Reliance Out Burst!
PRANAB Set to Bail Out
Murali Deora!
Ruling Hegemony Defends the Cup Boards Full of Skeletons!
anil Ambani Demand to Probe HUGE SCANDAL UNHEARD!
A two-day debate in parliament on a controversial India-Pakistan joint
statement that sought to delink terrorism from dialogue ended Thursday
with the government reiterating that there was no dilution in its stand
on countering cross-border ...
Questioning clearance by junior Oil Ministry officials to the
near four-fold hike in costs to Rs 45,000 crore for gas fields by
Mukesh Ambani-led RIL, Anil Ambani demanded a probe into the "huge
scandal."
"I am deeply concerned that RIL's capital expenditure
of nearly Rs 45,000 crore on KG-D6 fields as confirmed in Parliament by
the Petroleum Minister and which is nearly 33 per cent of India's total
defence budget was cleared by a management committee..." he said in an
e-mailed interview.
"The committee comprised of one junior level
official each from the Petroleum Ministry and Director General of
Hydrocarbon and two representatives of the contractor (RIL)...talk
about conflict of interest," he said, adding that any expenditure above
Rs 150 crore by any arm of government goes to the Cabinet Committee of
Economic Affairs for approval.
Given the incredibly high stakes involved, the
Comptroller and Auditor General and Central Vigilance Commission should
examine relevant facts and find out if capex was overstated, Anil said,
pointing that budgeted expenditure of RIL for peak production of 40
mmscmd was only Rs 12,000 crore in 2004.
Anil alleged that Petroleum Ministry,
particularly after the changes in 2006 (when Murli Deora took over as
minister), was colluding with RIL in its quest to make "super-normal
profits of Rs 50,000 crore" at the cost of power and fertiliser
sectors.
Meanwhile,the Supreme Court refused to take up a gas dispute between
Reliance Industries and RNRL for final hearing on September 1,
rejecting the prayer of Anil Group company for expeditious proceedings.
In Indian parliament, the Ruling Hegemony and the Adjusted Co Opted SC ST OBC and Minority EUnuchs continue the hate Pakistan campaign Diluting all major Basic and economic Issues! Thus, Disinvestment of Oil Companies in Profit has become a continuous Economic Process with wings of Manipulated MANDATE!
Reliance saga threatens to EXPOSE the political ECONOMY Naked, thus the discussion is preempted in every forum and brancjes of so called DEMOCRACY!
Pranab, ultimately takes CARE to defuse the HUGE SCANDAL!
What does he deal with?
just see!
Ruling out war as an
option, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday reinforced Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh's position that
Pakistan but made it clear that there was no surrender by the government on the
issue of combating cross-border terrorism.
"Neither have we succumbed
to terrorism nor will we stop talking," Mukherjee told the Lok Sabha during a
debate on issues arising from the Prime Minister's foreign visits, including his
trip to Egypt where he met Pakistan Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani. Action on
terror was independent of any composite dialogue, he asserted.
"The
NDA did it. The UPA did it. This is the way the world of diplomacy moves,"
Mukherjee said while reminding Parliament that over the last 10 years,
governments across the political spectrum in India kept talking to Pakistan
despite brief disruptions after terrorist attacks.
"We can't erase
Pakistan. It's going to exist. War is no solution," Mukherjee said while
underlining the importance of keeping talks going with
Pakistan.
Mukherjee, who was foreign minister when the Mumbai attacks
took place, clarified that talking did not mean the resumption of a full-fledged
dialogue.
"Keeping channels open does not mean surrendering our
position on terrorism," Mukherjee stressed, adding that Pakistan must act
credibly and verifiably to dismantle the terrorist infrastructure operating from
it's soil.
During his intervention in the debate on Wednesday,
Manmohan Singh asserted that there was no dilution or rupture of national
consensus on terrorism emanating from Pakistan but made it clear that the only
alternative was to continue the engagement with Islamabad.
What a COVER UP game played by our ELECTED Representatives!
A bench headed Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan said it
will decide on the date of final hearing on September 1 when it will
consider various petitions related to the dispute.
The RNRL prayer came up for mentioning and the
company's counsel Mukul Rohtagi requested that final hearing be taken
up on September 1 as the entire Bombay High Court record was before the
apex court and nothing was left to be filed.
"All parties are here," he said, referring to Mukesh Ambani-led RIL, the government and gas users.
RIL counsel Harish Salve, however, questioned the need for early final hearing, saying "what public interest would this serve?"
The court enquired whether the petitioner wanted
interim arrangement on the September 1 or the final order, Rohtagi said
that RNRL was not looking for interim arrangement.
At this point Salve requested the court that there should be complete silence from all parties as people are going to the media.
Additional Solicitor General Mohan Parasaran said the government also wanted early resolution of the dispute.
The court said it will try to give an early date but the first week of September is not possible.
Seeking early resolution to the gas supply dispute
involving Mukesh Ambani led RIL and Oil Ministry, Anil Ambani said that
his group firm RNRL would approach the Supreme Court for final hearing
on September 1.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on
September 1 cross-appeals by both Ambani group firms, as also a
petition by the Petroleum Ministry against a Bombay High Court order
that asked RIL to supply gas to RNRL at USD 2.34 per mmBtu against the
officially prescribed USD 4.2 per mmBtu.
Economic Times reports:
The Supreme Court  Thursday said, it will give a short date to expedite the decision pertaining to the Krishna-Godavari basin gas Indusgtries Ltd (RIL) and Anil Ambani’s Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL). “The matter will be taken up on Sep 1. On that day we will give a short date for early decision in the case”, said a bench headed by Chief Justice KG Balakrishnan. The court in its brief order said, “List the matter on Sep 1 for directions”. RNRL counsels Mukul Rohatgi and Mahesh Agrawal mentioned the matter before the bench seeking an early decision in the case. In its mentioning note, the RNRL said, “we will be requesting honourable court (SC) to clarify/direct that the main petitions (RIL and RNRL) may also be taken up for final hearing and disposal on and from Sep 1, 2009, the date already fixed by the court”. The court inquired from RNRL counsel whether the the petitioner want an interim order of the court in the case? Rohatgi then replied, RNRL was not looking for any interim order but final disposal of the matter. Rohatgi further said, all the records of the Bombay high court were before the apex court. It may look into those and decide the matter expeditiously. However, if any party want to file any additional document, they are at liberty to do it, said Rohatgi. Rohatgi further submitted that all the concerned parties were here. They should not have any difficulty in fast tracking the case. RIL counsel Harish Salve did not objected to the plea. He however, drawn attention of the court towards the procedural difficulty in constituting a three judge bench to hear the case. All these will take time and matter may go up for final disposal after Diwali holidays in Oct, said Salve. The court is scheduled to resume on Oct 19 after Diwali holidays. However, RNRL counsel Rohatgi wanted the case should be given a primacy and decided in the month of Sep itself preferrably within 20 days from Sep 1 onwards as the apex court is scheduled go for the Durga Puja holidays from Sep 21 onwards. Government’s counsel and additional solicitor general Mohan Parasaran also did not objected to the plea of RNRL. After hearing all the three concerned parties, the court said, in order to fast track the matter, it will give a short date on Sep 1. On July 20, a two judge bench of the apex court had issued notices to RIL and RNRL on a Special Leave Petition filed by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural gas seeking quashing of the Bombay high court order directing RIL to supply gas to RNRL at $2.34 per mmBtu. The government in its SLP had said, the high court contradicted its gas allocation policy that favoured priority sectors like fertiliser and power. The Union government also sought the MoU between the Ambani brothers, according to which the Anil Ambani-led ADA Group is entitled to a share of the gas from the KG basin, to be quashed on the ground that the Ambani brothers don’t own the gas. The court seeking replies from both RIL and RNRL on centre’s SLP had posted the matter for further hearing on Sep 1 before a three judge bench. The main petitions, however, were filed earlier in the apex court by both RIL and RNRL. Subsequentlu government had also moved a SLP in the apex court on the issue. RIL had moved the apex court challenging the Bombay High Court order that asked it to supply 28 mmscmd of gas to RNRL at USD 2.34 per mmbtu. Reliance Industries Ltd in its appeal had alleged that the High Court had erred in deciding the three term s -- quantity, tenure and price of gas supply -- to power plants of RNRL affiliates. RNRL on the other hand appoched the Supreme Court against the part of the high court judgment. RNRL had said, the high court while directing that the Gas Supply Agreement ought to be amended should have given final and effective directions for amendment of such agreement to make it bankable. | |
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Energy/RIL-RNRL-row-SC-to-give-short-date-for-early-decision-on-Sep-1/articleshow/4838645.cms
Govt considers up to 74 pc disinvestment in HMT Bearings Ltd
The government is planning to offload stake in HMT Bearings Ltd (HBL) and
is scouting for joint venture partners in some other
to revive sick units.
"Disinvestment up to 74 per cent equity in HMT
(Bearing) is under consideration of the government," Minister of State for Heavy
Industries and Public Enterprises Arun Yadav said in a written reply to a query
in Lok Sabha.
HBL, set up in 1964, is 97 per cent held by HMT Ltd
and makes ball and roller bearings.
On whether the government has
any proposal to reduce its equity in other companies, Yadav said, "the
government has invited expression of interest (EoI) for joint venture partner in
Tungabhadra Steel Products Ltd, Triveni Structural Ltd, Nepa Ltd and Hindustan
Cables Ltd, which may have an impact on government's equity in these PSEs."
The minister said the government has provided funds worth Rs
5,521.73 crore for 12 units including HMT (Bearings) Ltd, Andrew Yule and Co,
Bridge and Roof Co Ltd, Heavy Engineering Corp Ltd and Braithwaite and Co Ltd.
Further, Yadav said the government did not have any fixed target to
revive sick units for the current Five Year Plan period or in the current
financial year.
Yadav added that the department undertakes
restructuring of Central Public Sector Enterprises under its administrative
control in line with the overall Public Sector Policy of the government.
So far, 27 loss-making PSE cases have been submitted to the Board
for Reconstruction of Public Enterprises (BRPSE) which has given its
recommendations in all cases.
Out of these 27 PSEs, the government
has approved revival or restructuring for 15 of them and joint ventures/closure
for 4 of them.
Yadav added that the department undertakes
restructuring of Central Public Sector Enterprises under its administrative
control in line with the overall Public Sector Policy of the government.
So far, 27 loss-making PSE cases have been submitted to the Board
for Reconstruction of Public Enterprises (BRPSE) which has given its
recommendations in all cases.
Out of these 27 PSEs, the government
has approved revival or restructuring for 15 of them and joint ventures/closure
for 4 of them.
Mittal not mulling acquisitions in India
ArcelorMittal chief L N Mittal has said he will not give up his
Rs 1 lakh-crore India projects though he is disappointed at the delays
the company is facing in securing regulatory approvals.
"We are not going to give up," Mittal said, expressing disappointment at the "progress made so far."
ArcelorMittal wants to cash in on the demand for
steel in India but said it is constrained by the delays in getting
mining and environmental clearances for the projects.
"We are losing the opportunity of participating in
India's growth. We are committed to the country. We have been working
on this project for several years. We have a team already in India
which is all the time working on it," he said over phone.
Asked if the company is considering acquisitions, Mittal said, "takeover is not the idea for India."
The world's largest steel producer is working on
modalities to set up two 12-million tonnes per annum steel mills, one
each in Jharkhand and Orissa.
"I think we are in constant dialogue with all the
government authorities and bureaucrats. Whenever I have a chance I
appraise them of the progress that we are making," Mittal said
Overseas borrowing rises four-fold to $1.9 bn in June
Indicating some recovery in the global scenario, overseas borrowings by India
Inc have increased phenomenally by nearly four-fold to USD
The total overseas loans raised by 48 companies through external
commercial borrowings (ECB) moved up from USD 494 million in May to USD 1.9
billion in June, according to the ECB data, released by the RBI today.
Of the total overseas borrowings, USD 573 million were raised
through automatic route and USD 1.3 billion was mopped up through approval
route.
"This is in consistent with the recovery in the global
scenario," rating agency Crisil Principal Economist D K Joshi said.
The ECB data for June showed that most of the companies raised
overseas funds for import of capital goods, modernisation, projects, among other
things.
HDFC Bank Economist Jyotinder Kaur said it is largely due to
pull and push factor in favour of India.
"While the push seems to be
supported by stabilisation in international financial markets, the robustness in
Indian economy is creating the pull factor," she said.
Out of USD
1.9 billion, the National Aviation Company of India Ltd (NACIL) borrowed USD 830
million through approval route for import of capital goods, while DLF mopped up
USD 300 million during the month.
Food inflation goes up by 1.2% in just one week
Higher vegetables and pulse prices pushed up the country's food
inflation by 1.2 per cent during the week ended July 18, giving no
relief to consumers, even as the overall price level for the seventh
week in a row remained below zero.
The maximum increase was seen in the wholesale price
of vegetables, which rose by 4.9 per cent, followed by pulses that went
up by 4.2 per cent and meat/egg/fish rose by 3.5 per cent in just one
week, according to official data.
Food inflation rose even as India's annual rate of
inflation fell marginally to minus 1.54 per cent for the week ended
July 18 from minus 1.17 in the previous week.
According to economists, prices of vegetables are
ruling high due to short supply of key items like tomato amid delayed
monsoon in most states.
Similarly, prices of most pulses are ruling high
owing to supply-demand mismatch. Currently, there is a shortage of four
million tonnes of pulses in the country, they said, adding the impact
of late monsoon on the planting of Kharif pulses is also weighing on
prices.
In the pulses category, the wholesale prices of
arhar (tur) went up 9 per cent, gram by four per cent, moong and masur
by three per cent each and urad by two per cent during the week in the
wholesale market, the data showed.
Currently, arhar has breached a psychological mark of Rs 100 a kg in most retail counters in the country.
Consumers are hit badly as retail prices of most
food commodities are ruling about 50 per cent higher than the wholesale
market, experts said.
According to the data, the wholesale price of
mutton has also shown a sharp rise of about 14 per cent, while some
cereals like maize and ragi have increased marginally by one per cent
each during the week ended July 18.
However, the prices of condiments and spices showed a decline of 1.4 per cent, it said.
The country produced about 233.88 million tonnes of
foodgrains in 2008-09, compared with 230.78 million tonnes in the
previous year.
Price rise in pulses worry Pawar
The government attributed the skyrocketing prices of pulses toless production and supply and said there is a "little serious
problem".
"The problem is because of less production. Even this
year also, the areas where we generally get pulses have less rain.
These are essentially rain-fed areas and that's why definitely there is
a little serious problem," Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar told
reporters on shooting prices of pulses like arhar dal, which is now
selling around Rs 90 a kg.
Pawar, however, said the government would take
measures to resolve the problem. "Actually it's a question of
availability.... We are also working on how to resolve it. We are
consulting some of the states. We are in process of making some
schemes," he said.
But the minister declined to share details,
fearing repercussion in markets. "I do not want to disclose it now,
because it will create impact or repercussion in some market." India
has produced 14.66 million tonnes of pulses in the 2008-09 season
against its annual domestic consumption of over 18 million tonnes. The
gap between demand and supply is bridged through imports.
According to the official data, retail prices of
pulses have shot up by up to 40 per cent in major cities across the
country. Arhar rates have gone up to Rs 88 a kg in the national capital
from Rs 63 a kg just a month ago.
Pensionary benefits only after 20 years of service: CAT
Government employees can claim pension only if they have completed a
minimum of 20 years of service, the Central Administrative
held.
"The applicant, Mukesh, cannot claim pension, only for the
reason that he had opted for the VRS. Qualifying service is essential for a
government servant to claim pension as there is no relaxation permissible," the
CAT, headed by Vice Chairman M Ramachandran, said.
The Tribunal
passed the order on a plea of a Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) employee who
alleged that he had not been given the pensionary benefits after he opted for
voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) and sought directions for
relief.
The CAT noted that the pension scheme was there as per the
Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules and minimum incumbency of 20 years of
service was required for a person to claim pension as a matter of
right.
"Since Mukesh had to his credit only 10 years of service, it
would not have been possible for the DTC to extend him the pension benefits,"
the Tribunal said.
"Mukesh had been given the benefits legally due to
him and as authorised by the scheme," the CAT said, adding, that the provident
fund and the gratuity was refunded to him.
Mukesh had been in service
as a conductor with DTC from 1982 and he had opted for VRS in 1993. He was
grieved after he had not been given the pensionary benefits following
retirement.
'India’s foreign policy not based on whims of one party'
Even as the ruling UPA emphatically and vociferously defended
the signing of the recent India-Pakistan joint statement in
Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led opposition
walked out of the Lok Sabha on Thursday afternoon, specifically
protesting on the issue of Balochistan and the de-linking of terror
from the composite dialogue process.
Defending Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's stand on the
statement, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who was an external
Affairs Minister not too long ago, said India’s foreign policy was an
extension of national interest, and New Delhi had not compromised on
this at any stage in the past or at the recent Red Sea resort summit
meeting.
“Our stand on terror remains undiluted. Our
country’s foreign policy is not based on the whims of one political
party. We have not compromised India’s sovereignty,” said a highly
charged Mukherjee in spite of constant heckling from the opposition
benches. Stating that India’s foreign policy is of nearly 5000 years
standing, Mukherjee echoed Dr. Singh’s stand on the joint statement
saying that it was necessary.
“Pakistan must dismantle the terror mechanism
operating from its soil. India is not interested in Balochistan. The
reference to Balochistan in the Indo-Pak Joint statement was a
unilateral mention by Pakistan," Mukherjee added.
In apparent reference to an opposition jibe that
the present government was made to ink the joint statement in Egypt
because of pressure from Washington, Mukherjee said there was no
pressure from anyone or any country.
The opposition BJP took on the government saying
that they did not believe that the UPA felt that foreign policy was an
extension of national interest.
Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani asked what was
the need for the government of the day to agree to have Balochistan
mentioned for the first time in a joint statement by India and
Pakistan?
Endorsing former External Affairs Minister
Yashwant Sinha’s warning that India would find it very difficult to
live down this particular aspect of the joint statement for years to
come, Advani said it was not enough to say that New Delhi’s hands were
clean on the issue. He said the government’s reply did not justify the
inclusion of Balochistan in the statement.
When External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna
endorsed the Prime Minister and Mr. Mukherjee’s stands on the joint
statement and on the issues of terror and Balochistan, the BJP said
there was no point in participating in the debate any further and
walked out.
The government’s defence of the joint statement
came after Congress President Sonia Gandhi and party General Secretary
Rahul Gandhi came out in full support of Manmohan Singh.
Addressing the meeting of the Congress
Parliamentary Party (CPP) here on Thursday, Sonia said, "The party
fully supports and welcomes the Prime Minister's reply on the Indo-Pak
joint statement."
"Talks with Pakistan can resume once it actually
takes action on terror and not allow its soil to be used for anti-India
activities," she added.
Supporting the Prime Minister's statement,
Congress spokesperson Manish Tiwari said: "The party had made its stand
very clear on PM''s reply. I don''t think that after the Party
President has spoken, there is any need for anyone to add or subtract
from it."
Several parliamentarians complimented Dr. Singh
for his convincing speech in the Parliament on the Indo-Pak joint
statement, at the dinner hosted by Sonia Gandhi for the party MPs on
Wednesday.
Party General Secretary Rahul Gandhi also praised
Dr. Singh by describing his speech as convincing. "The speech was very
good and the Prime Minister is always convincing," Rahul had said.
Intervening in Wednesday's debate on the Indo-Pak
joint statement in the parliament, Singh said it was "in our vital
interest to make sincere efforts to live in peace with Pakistan" and
emphasized that India wanted good relations with Pakistan.
Singh said: "Unless we talk directly to Pakistan,
we will have to rely on third parties to do so. That route has severe
limitations as to its effectiveness".
He, however, added that "despite the best of
intentions, we cannot move forward if terrorist attacks launched from
Pakistani soil continue to kill and injure our citizens, here and
abroad. That is the national position."
Action to recover black money in Swiss banks initiated: PM
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh told the Rajya Sabha on Thursday
that "action has already started" for getting back black money
belonging to Indians from Swiss banks.
His remark came after Prakash Javadekar (BJP) sought
to know from the Prime Minister what the UPA government was doing to
bring back the money within 100 days.
As Javadekar's supplementary was not related to
the main question on G-8 meeting, Chairman Hamid Ansari asked him to
stick to the subject.
But, the Prime Minister stood up and said,
"yesterday when Finance Minister was replying to the Finance Bill in
this House, he specifically dealt with this aspect and had said that
action has already started on it."
Gujarat High Court approves petition seeking RPL-RIL merger
PTI
It’s official: Anil Ambani group to build Metro-2 too
AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat High Court Reliance Petroleum Ltd (RPL) with Reliance Industries The court however, stayed its order for two weeks after three shareholders requested time to approach a higher authority. Justice Jayant Patel, hearing the petition filed by RPL for approval to merge RPL with RIL, observed that the share exchange ratio of 16 RPL shares for one of RIL, proposed by the company was just, while the Valuation and Fairness Report of the merger was fair. The court also rejected the objections raised by three shareholders- Vishweshwar Raste, Sailesh Mehta and Rasiklal Maradia- that the report submitted by RPL in the court had weaknesses. The three raised questions on the infirmity of the valuation report submitted by RPL in the court. They questioned the share exchange ratio proposed by RPL saying that it was improper as there was no mention in the valuation report how the ratio was worked out. They also alleged that the valuation report was not done by an independent agency. | |
Express News Service
Posted: Jul 30, 2009 at 2355 hrs IST
Mumbai Two months after Anil Ambani’s Reliance
Infrastructure-led consortium emerged the sole bidder for the city’s
second Metro rail corridor, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development
Authority’s executive committee awarded it the Rs 8,250-crore contract
on Wednesday. Reliance Infrastructure is already building the first
Metro corridor from Versova to Ghatkopar via Andheri.
“The bid they submitted was a reasonable one and we’ve
awarded it to them after evaluation,” said Dilip Kawathkar, joint
project director (PR). Reliance Infrastructure will spend Rs 5,952
crore, with the Centre providing a viability gap funding (VGF) of
Rs1,532 crore and the remaining Rs 766 crore coming from the MMRDA.
The 32-km corridor, with 27 elevated stations,
will run from 5 am till midnight after commissioning. “The letter of
intent is expected to be submitted in a couple of days. We expect them
to sign the concession agreement by September 15,” said Ratnakar
Gaikwad, metropolitan commissioner.
This elevated design for the corridor has seen
several protests from residents of Juhu, Vile Parle, and Linking Road.
MMRDA officials say an underground route involves too high a cost; it
would mean getting all designs passed again from authorities.
Two roads were cleared for development under the
extended Mumbai Urban Infrastructure Project - Vasai to Kaman via
Sativali (15 km) and Arnala to Ambadi via Virar, Kaner and Shirsad (19
km). A rail over-bridge will be built along with a link road on the
first corridor at Vasai. “The development of a 34-km road network and
the bridge will cost Rs 285 crore,” Kawathkar said.
The committee named Louis Burger Inc as
consultants to study the feasibility of developing 14 underground
stations between Colaba and Bandra, in the third Metro corridor.
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Its-official-Anil-Ambani-group-to-build-Metro2-too/495698/
Nothing personal, strictly business: Anil Ambani
ET Bureau
In
an exclusive interview to ET, Anil Ambani says Mukesh “has already made it
amply clear, both within the family, and externally, that he does
any further role for my respected mother in resolving this matter or any other
matter.”
There’s
nothing personal, it’s strictly business, says
Anil Ambani,
chairman of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani
Group,
a day after he lashed out at his
elder brother and Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) chairman Mukesh Ambani, and the
petroleum ministry. Speaking exclusively to ET’s Soma Banerjee on what
forced him to deliver that impassioned speech, Mr Ambani says his "respected
elder brother’s" stand on the K-G basin gas sharing dispute subverts what
all group patriarch Dhirubhai stood for. Petroleum ministry’s intervention
is a throwback to the "licence-raj" era, says Mr Ambani, asking why the ministry
chose to intervene in the issue only after the Bombay High Court ruled in favour
of his stand.
Excerpts:
What
were the factors that played on your mind when you were preparing for the
speech?
There was emotion, sentiment and regret...but
thankfully, no anger. And above all, there was great sadness, and even greater
pain.
Sadness...that to enforce the gas supply agreement in the
interests of shareholders in my group, I have been left with no choice but fight
a court case against my very own respected elder brother — the person who
I most looked up to, loved and respected, second only to my beloved
parents.
Sadness... reflecting on the proud legacy of trust and fair
play on which Reliance Industries was founded by my visionary father Dhirubhai
Ambani, and how far RIL appeared to have moved away from those original
values.
Sadness... that today, gas produced by RIL was flowing to
others, before it could be used within the group - simply because RIL, for four
long years, has denied us a bankable supply agreement on the terms that my
respected elder brother and I shook hands on, with the blessings of my mother
Kokilaben Ambani, who is God for me.... As I prayed before the meeting and
sought blessings of Lord Shiva and my father from heaven, I asked them
forgiveness.
Is this entirely a
corporate dispute and not at all a personal one? Was the MoU ever discussed at
the company boards?
I am quite surprised by the question. If
the MoU was not discussed and approved by the RIL board, how did the entire
reorganisation of the Reliance Group, including the scheme of demerger, take
place in the manner that it did? How did RIL's board publicly thank my respected
mother for facilitating the reorganisation in that fashion? How did RIL, even in
its unilaterally executed version of the Gas Supply Agreement of January 2006,
incorporate every aspect of the gas supply arrangements as recorded in the MoU?
And how did board minutes filed by RIL before the Bombay High Court reflect that
the board was provided full and complete knowledge of the MoU? All information
relating to the gas supply arrangements are in the public domain. We are not
keeping anything hidden.
Are you
open to putting these differences aside and starting a fresh dialogue with your
brother to take both the businesses ahead?
I have already
spoken to my elder brother personally and requested him in the interests of over
8 million shareholders of my companies to arrive at a fair and amicable
solution. I was disappointed at the outcome. It is undoubtedly frustrating, but
my respected late father, my only guru, taught me - by lesson and example - not
to be daunted by adversity, but to diligently pursue my karma, and leave the
results in God's hands.
How do you
interpret the supreme court's notice to RIL and RNRL?
As per
the legal advice received by us, RIL cannot sign any new contract. In case RIL
proceeds with signing of new contracts, we will take appropriate legal steps to
protect our interests.
Have you
tried resolving the matter at your personal level after the Bombay High Court
order? Was there any meeting with your mother who played a crucial role in the
family settlement?
I have, at every stage, made sincere
efforts to amicably resolve all issues, but to no avail. To give you just one
example, I offered to personally appear at a time and place of the Bombay High
Court's direction, at an hour's notice, and sit across a table with my respected
elder brother to amicably resolve all issues. Unfortunately, RIL's counsel
informed the court that it was not convenient for my brother to participate in
any such discussions.
My respected elder brother has already made it
amply clear, both within the family and outside, that he does not visualise any
further role for my respected mother in resolving this matter or any other
matter.
What is the way forward?
And how do you think policy loopholes could be plugged to avoid such cases in
future?
There is only one way forward: Contractual
obligations have to be respected and honored. There are no policy loopholes to
be plugged. What has to be curbed are attempts to subvert policy to benefit RIL.
I am also concerned that the Petroleum Ministry's stance is, in effect, that it
will solely decide: who should sell gas, to whom, at what price, in what
quantity, and when... without any heed to commercial considerations or
contractual provisions!
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Markets/Analysis/Nothing-personal-strictly-business-Anil-Ambani/articleshow/4836111.cms
Govt stake sales to please market; no deficit cure
REUTERS
MUMBAI: Power firm NHPC Ltd will kick
off a $1.25 billion IPO next week in the first share sale by a state company
since the Congress party's
investor hopes for pro-market reforms.
Despite opposition from labour
groups and leftist parties, the government is forecast by some watchers to
offload roughly $5 billion a year in state shares, which could hearten a bond
market worried about fiscal responsibility but do little to address a yawning
deficit and $90 billion borrowing plan.
Uncertainty over how stake
sale proceeds can be used also clouds the outlook for any benefit to government
finances.
"It is not a
huge amount given the size of the government borrowing. But I think it could
substantially change sentiment in the debt market," said Abheek Barua, chief
economist at private sector lender HDFC Bank.
"What the market is
likely to price in is the prospect of larger disinvestments going forward," he
said.
Investors are expected to lap up shares in government firms,
given attractive pricing, a record of outperformance relative to IPOs by private
firms, and a roaring stock market run since March that has been fueled by an
influx in foreign funds.
NHPC opens its IPO on August 7 in what would
be the first for a state firm in India since Feb. 2008. Oil India is expected to
follow with a $500 to $600 million issue in September.
Also in the
works could be a multi-billion-dollar IPO by telecoms firm Bharat Sanchar Nigam
Ltd and secondary offerings by power equipment maker Bharat Heavy Electricals,
Rural Electrification Corp, trading firm MMTC Ltd and mining firm NMDC
Ltd.
"Government deals typically have done well. Government a couple
of times has been credited with reopening the IPO markets," said Vedika
Bhandarkar, head of India investment banking at JPMorgan.
The
pipeline of equity from state firms promises to top the record $6 billion raised
from government asset sales between 1999 and 2004 when the pro-business
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was in power. During that period, shares were sold
in firms such as Oil and Natural Gas Corp and Maruti Suzuki.
Since
then, the government raised just $1.4 billion as allies of the ruling coalition
and labour unions thwarted plans for stake sales.
"We could see
issuances in infrastructure, power, mining and agricultural sectors followed by
banks and insurance companies," said A. Murugappan, executive director at ICICI
Securities.
FIIs bet big on real estate stocks
TNN
COIMBATORE: FIIs, who resumed their
buying spree after a brief pause in the run up to the Budget, are placing their
bets on realty stocks. FIIs,
billion so far this year, have increased their stakes substantially in top
realty companies in three months, boosting prices of stocks in the sector.
FIIs have more than doubled their stake DLF, in the country's top
real estate company. FII holding in DLF stands at 15.4% for June, the highest
since its listing. FIIs have more than trebled their stake in Unitech, which has
raised $900 million between April and June.
BSE Realty index, which
is among the top performers in the current rally, gained most last week moving
up 13.3% while sensex registered 4.3% increase. The rally was led by DLF, which
zoomed 18.3% followed by HDIL and Unitech that gained 15.9% and 14.3%
respectively.
"Stock prices (of realty firms) had corrected 90-95 %
from their peaks. But the latent demand (for property) is still high," says
Gopal Agrawal , head, equity, Mirae Asset global investments. "Now , big
investors have come in and realty firms have also reduced debt and as a result
equity values have gone up."
FII holding in Unitech, the country's
second largest property developer have jumped from 5.96% in December to 22.79%
in June, the highest exposure in more than three years. FII stake in the top two
realty majors has hovered between 6-8 % in the past two years. FIIs have also
increased their stakes in Indiabulls Real Estate (from 41.73% in March to 61.71%
in June), Housing Development and Infrastructure and Orbit Corporation.
“Most of the sector's problems started due to lack of
liquidity. But when global liquidity began easing out in early April the risk
appetite went up," reckons Sameer Narayan, head, equity, Fortis Investments. Top
realty companies are on a capital raising spree to reduce debt levels. They have
raised $2.7 billion in stake sale in last few months and others are in the
process of raising capital.
Morgan Stanley includes Rel Infra and DLF in its focus list
ET Bureau
KOLKATA:
Research firm Morgan Stanley has included Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group firm
Reliance Infrastructure and realty major DLF in its focus
to favour infrastructure stocks over others in the industrials segment.
"With an $8 billion order book and its 45% stake in Reliance Power,
Reliance Infrastructure may be the cheapest way to play the infrastructure story
in India," says a Morgan Stanley analyst in a research note.
"Companies engaged in building infrastructure should witness
upgrades to earnings given the increased focus on that sector from the
government," adds the Morgan Stanley note.
Adani Power IPO subscribed 7 times 30 Jul 2009, 1955 hrs IST, PTI |
The initial public offer of Adani Power on Thursday got subscribed nearly seven
times on the third day of the offer today with most of
institutional investors.
The Adani Power issue, the second biggest
public offer after that of Reliance Power in 2008, attracted good investor
response and received bids for over 170.69 crore shares against 24.87 crore
shares on offer, achieving a demand for 6.86 times the shares on
offer.
The portion reserved for qualified institutional investors got
subscribed 13 times, non-institutional investors and retail investors 2.16 times
and 0.55 times respectively for the shares on offer.
The issue, which
has roped in leading institutional investors like Credit Suisse and T Rowe Price
International Inc, is the first issue to have anchor
investors.
Anchor investors, the qualified institutional investors
for whom bidding process is carried out a day before the issue opens, has
subscribed to 5.28 crore shares at Rs 95 a piece.
Marketmen said the
attractive price band of the IPO enthused investors besides the overall recovery
in the secondary market that is getting reflected in the primary
market.
The price band of the IPO has been fixed between Rs 90-100
and the company plans to raise Rs 3,160 crore at the upper end of the
band.
India Inc plans IPOs worth more than Rs 16,000 cr: Study
ECONOMICTIMES.COM
With global recession showing signs of
easing combined with an upsurge in the stock market, India Inc is going on an
expansion binge and is
worth more than Rs 16,000 crore, mainly in sectors such as infrastructure,
IT/ITeS, hospitality and textile, according to a study carried out by
Assocham.
As per the Assocham Financial Pulse (AFP) analysis of the
emerging IPO trends for the remaining part of the current fiscal, infrastructure
has emerged as the top sector with more than Rs 10,000 crore to be mopped up
from the primary market by nine companies in the sphere of power, energy,
shipping and construction.
Assocham president Sajjan Jindal says,
‘During first half of 2009, due to the superior performance of the Indian
stock market -- second only to China in the Asia-Pacific region -- companies are
weighing higher expectations from renewed investor sentiments to raise funds
from the primary market.”
As venture capital investment in
India has also dropped nearly 72 per cent during the first half of 2009, Indian
companies are seeking to finance their activities through the IPO route, says
the study.
Among the infrastructure sub-sectors, power sector has
been found to be the leading fund raiser with an estimated sum of Rs 6,236 cr to
be raised from the forthcoming IPOs. The study stated that the power companies
are adding huge investments for their capacity addition, leading to an increased
demand for funds.
Major runners looking to raise funds through IPO in
power generation & supply sector business are NHPC Ltd, Adani Power Ltd,
India Bulls Power and Usher Eco Power Ltd.
The dismal performance on
the power generation front has a tremendous scope for catching up to the likes
of China, which is adding capacity at the rate of about 1,00,000 megawatt a
year. India has not been able to add even 10,000 megawatt in any single year.
Several companies in the private sector are coming to invest in the sector to
take advantage of a fast-developing market.
In the energy sector, Oil India Ltd, engaged
in the activities of oil exploration, drilling & refining, is next to power
sector opting for public listing in the current fiscal with an expected amount
of Rs 1,400 crore. It is followed by the JSW group which is planning to raise Rs
1,000 crore for its infrastructure and logistics business.
Among
other expected forthcoming public offers in the infrastructure sector, ARSS
Infrastructure Projects Ltd and Godrej Properties Ltd, engaged in business of
housing, civil construction and real estate, are likely come up with Rs 870
crore public offer, while Pipavav Shipyard Ltd is planning to raise Rs 700
crore.
IT/ITeS is the next major sector after infrastructure which
plans to raise funds through public offers of Rs 4,858.60 crore by 2009-10. In
this segment Excel Infoways Ltd has emerged as a big runner with other players
like Euro Multivision Ltd, Radiant Info Systems Ltd and Infinite Computers
Solutions (India) Ltd.
Among other major sectors which are planning
to raise funds from the capital market by the end of FY’10 are hospitality
(Rs 301.12 crore), gems & jewellery (Rs 300 crore) and textiles (Rs 275
crore).
NHPC IPO: First issue of state-run firm in 17 months
PTI
NEW
DELHI: State-run power company NHPC on Tuesday said it plans to raise up to Rs
6,048 crore through sale of shares in a price-band of Rs 30-36
first by a PSU after the UPA assumed office for a second term.
This
is also the first stake sale by a state-run company in 17 months after REC went
public in February 2008 to raise over Rs 1,600 crore.
"We have
decided a price band of Rs 32-36 for the IPO," NHPC Chairman and Managing
Director S K Garg told a news channel.
The issue will open on August
seven and close on August 11. The company would sell 168 crore shares comprising
of five per cent stake divestment of the government and infusion of 10 per cent
fresh equity.
The company plans to raise between Rs 5,040 crore and
Rs 6,048 crore from its IPO.
The public issue is also the by a
government-run entity since the September 2008 global financial meltdown. There
have, however, been five issues by private sector companies.
SAIL plans to raise fund via FPO
PTI
NEW
DELHI:The country's largest steel producer, SAIL, is mulling issuing fresh
equity by way of Follow-on Public Offer to part finance its Rs
expansion project.
"We may look at issuing additional equity to part
fund our capital expenditure," SAIL Chairman S K Roongta told reporters here
today after announcing the first quarter results of the company.
The
government currently owns 85.82 per cent stake. Besides, about 4.59 per cent is
with the Life Insurance Corporation of India and the rest is with the
public.
SAIL shares today ended the day at Rs 175.65, up 3.26 per
cent over the previous close on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
However,
Roongta did not specify any time-frame for the Follow-on Public Offer
(FPO).
FPO is a way of raising funds by offering additional shares
after a firm has had an initial public offering.
The firm has a
capital expenditure programme of about Rs 10,300 crore for the current fiscal,
half of the amount would come from debt.
A sum of Rs 1,300 crore has
been raised during the first quarter itself. The company hopes to maintain a
debt-equity ratio of 1:1 in the current fiscal.
Meanwhile, in a
written reply to the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Steel A Sai Prathap said
that SAIL has an outstanding loan of Rs 8,796.87 crore as on June 30, 2009, and
would be repaid in full by the year 2042.
"The loan burden is
expected to go up during the implementation of (expansion) projects," he
added.
SAIL is in the process of expanding its annual production
capacity to about 23 million tonnes by 2012 from the present 14 million tonnes.
Roongta said that the company "is firming up plans to take it to 26 million
tonnes" thereafter.
With pace of projects under expansion picking up,
the capital expenditure during the quarter at Rs 2,469 crore was more than three
times higher than incurred in Q1 of fiscal 2008-09.
Sonia silences party snipers, strongly backs Manmohan
| Font Size |
Agencies
Posted: Jul 30, 2009 at 1609 hrs IST
New Delhi
Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Thursday strongly backed Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh on the issue of the Indo-Pak joint statement and told
partymen that there should be no confusion or misunderstanding on it
among them.
She also said that India's foreign policy vis-à-vis Pakistan has not changed.
"Till Pakistan shows concrete steps on anti-terror
front there is no point of dialogue," she told a Congress Parliamentary
Party meeting in New Delhi, a day after the Prime Minister addressed
Parliament on the issue of the joint statement with Pakistan in Egypt.
Resumption of dialogue with Pakistan depends upon
whether it fulfills its promises on taking action against perpetrators
of Mumbai attacks and does not allow its soil to be used for terror
activities against India, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari quoted
Gandhi as saying in the meeting.
Asked if the party fully endorsed the Prime
Minister's statement in Parliament on Wednesday, another party
spokesman Abhishek Singhvi said Singh had spoken extensively on the
issue.
On whether the party would now back the statement
and whether it would be wrong for the party not to defend him, Singhvi
said, "It is a loaded question" and walked away.
He said Gandhi also touched upon issues like the
Bill on Food Security and Education in the meeting and exhorted the MPs
to be in touch with their constituents.
Those who attended the CPP meeting included the
Prime Minister, Leader of the Lok Sabha Pranab Mukherjee, Cabinet
ministers and over 200 MPs.
At the meeting, Gandhi stressed on the need for fulfilling the commitments made by the party to the people during the elections.
She also asked the ministers to give attention to
the problems of party workers and the aspirations of the people in
their constituencies.
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Sonia-silences-party-snipers-strongly-backs-Manmohan/495971/
MNCs steering clear of IIT/IIMs?
TNN
NEW
DELHI: The economic slowdown has also slowed down campus hiring of IIT/IIM
graduates by multinational corporations but this is not the case
private sector companies who have increased it.
A written reply by
Kapil Sibal in the Rajya Sabha shows that while in 2008, MNCs hired 3,031
IITians through campus selection, Indian private sector companies employed only
1,621 students.
But in 2009, hiring by MNCs fell dramatically to
1,606, whereas there was a marginal increase by Indian private sector companies
who hired 1,718 students.
A similar trend can be seen in six IIMs.
In 2008, MNCs hired 920 students whereas Indian private sector companies
employed 493 through campus interview. This year, hiring by MNCs came down
substantially to 497 but that by Indian companies increased to 658 students.
In case of IITs, all seven suffered loss when it came to hiring by
MNCs. In 2008, 643 students of IIT, Kharagpur, were selected by MNCs through
campus selection. But it came down to 44 in 2009. Even IIT, Delhi, suffered a
substantial loss — from 633 in 2008 to 390 in 2009.
IIT,
Madras, was also among the major losers — from 458 in 2008 to 282 in 2009.
But IIT, Kharagpur, made up by increased hiring by Indian private sector
companies — from 334 in 2008 to 586 in 2009. If not for IIT, Kharagpur,
there is decline in hiring by Indian private companies in other IITs.
As for IIMs, the one in Calcutta suffered a big loss when it came to
campus placement to MNCs — from 240 in 2008 to 121 in 2009.
The hiring by MNCs in IIM, Ahmedabad, also came down from 155 in
2008 to 92 in 2009. In IIM, Bangalore, hiring by MNCs came down to 119 in 2009
from 203 in 2008.
IIM, Lucknow, saw a nearly 50% loss from 169 in
2008 to 82 in 2009. Asked about steps to attract talent in public services,
Sibal said recruitment is done in a very transparent manner through a selection
process in which all the relevant attributes of the applicants including their
intellectual abilities are evaluated to ensure that the selected candidates are
best suited to discharge the functions as would be assigned to them.
SBI Q1 net profit up 42 pct at Rs 2,330 cr
| Font Size |
Reuters
Posted: Jul 30, 2009 at 1705 hrs IST
Mumbai State Bank of India, the country's
largest lender, reported a 42 per cent rise in quarterly profit,
beating forecasts, on gains from trading in bonds and currencies.
The bank, which along with its associates controls
almost a quarter of Indian bank loans and deposits, said on Thursday
net profit rose to Rs 23.3 billion ($480.4 million) in fiscal first
quarter ending June, from Rs 16.41 billion reported a year ago.
That beat a Reuters poll forecast of a net profit of Rs 20.1 billion for the fiscal first quarter.
State Bank, which has close to 12,000 branches across India and abroad, has the lowest cost of funds among the nation's lenders.
The bulk of its funds comes from savings bank
deposits that pay annual interest of 3.5 per cent, compared with 11.75
per cent a year it charges on loans to its best customers.
Shares in State Bank, which the market values at
$21.8 billion, have risen 31.6 per cent so far this year compared with
a 58.6 per cent rise in the main share index <.BSESN> and a 50.6
per cent increase in the bank index.
Stocks up 1.4 pct; SBI, ICICI gain
| Font Size |
Reuters
Posted: Jul 30, 2009 at 1655 hrs IST
Mumbai Equities shrugged off a shaky start and
rose 1.4 per cent on Thursday, snapping a three-day fall, as investors
covered short positions on the final day of monthly derivatives and
strong overseas markets provided support.
Sentiment across Asia and Europe was lifted after
China's central bank pledged to maintain loose monetary policy to
support economic recovery and ensure sustainable credit growth without
resorting to heavy-handed quotas to rein in a surge in lending.
Fears that China may seek to regulate credit
growth had dragged down Chinese stocks 5 per cent on Wednesday and
weighed on markets across the globe.
Even though possible regulatory action in China
was unlikely to affect India directly, investors used it as an excuse
to take profits on a recent rally after some results from top firms
disappointed during the week, traders said.
However, on Thursday, government-run State Bank of
India reported a better-than-expected 42 per cent jump in quarterly
profit, boosting its shares 4 per cent to Rs 1,722.80.
The news also helped private-sector lender ICICI
Bank, which rose 3.1 per cent to Rs 755.35, while rival HDFC Bank added
3 per cent to Rs 1,459.80.
Other major gainers included top mortgage lender
Housing Development Finance Corp, which climbed 4.3 per cent to Rs
2,464.75, while consumer-goods firm Hindustan Unilever advanced 5.2 per
cent to Rs 281.85 after falling 10.3 per cent over the previous two
sessions.
"The futures and options expiry helped the market
today. Overseas markets were up too," R.K. Gupta, managing director at
Taurus Mutual Fund, said.
"Also, some company results yesterday and today have come in above expectations, giving a fresh confidence to investors."
The 30-share BSE index ended up 1.41 per cent, or
214.50 points, at 15,387.96, with 22 stocks advancing, after falling as
much as 0.7 per cent during trade.
Upbeat earnings reports in the past few weeks have
driven global stock markets higher and prompted investors to take on
more risk in their portfolios as they grow increasingly confident that
the world economy is on the path to recovery.
However, India's benchmark is little changed this
week following its 14 per cent rise over the previous two weeks as
disappointing results from Reliance Industries, Hindustan Unilever, Sun
Pharmaceutical and Tata Steel weakened the market momentum seen since
mid-July.
Sun Pharmaceutical fell 3.6 per cent to Rs
1,145.25, while Reliance Industries, which has the most weight in the
main index, eased 1.4 per cent to Rs 1,899.90 on Thursday.
In the broader market, gainers led losers 1,521 to 1,175 on relatively light volume of 392.7 million shares.
The 50-share NSE index rose 1.3 per cent to 4,571.45.
India's wholesale price index remained negative in
annual terms in mid-July but analysts said inflation would soon return
and the central bank was right to leave interest rates steady at a
policy review this week.
Most Asian markets recovered from lows on
Thursday, with Japan's Nikkei rising 0.5 per cent, while MSCI's measure
of other Asian markets was up 0.9 per cent.
At 1024 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was up 1.4 per cent.
Oil firms see big fall in profits
 Shell's fall in profits has been seen industry wide |
Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon Mobil have
both reported a big fall in quarterly profits, due to the sharp decline
in oil prices since mid-2008.
April-to-June profits at Anglo-Dutch group Shell slumped 70% from a year earlier to $2.3bn (£1.4bn).
Exxon's profits for the same period declined 66% to $3.95bn.
Global
crude prices hit a record $147 a barrel last year, before falling back
as the world recession took hold. US light crude is currently about
$64.
Shell's sales for the quarter totalled $63.9bn, down 51% on a year earlier, while Exxon's declined 46% to $74.5bn.
Cost cutting
Looking ahead, Shell's chief executive Peter Voser said global demand for oil remained "weak".
"Shell
is adapting to this new situation, and we must do more. We are
sharpening our focus on delivery and affordability," he said.
 |  Conditions are likely to remain challenging for some time, and we are not banking on a quick recovery  Sheff chief executive Peter Voser |
The company said it would continue to cut costs after achieving
savings of $700m in the first half of 2009. It said it had now trimmed
20% of senior management positions.
Despite the fall in
profits, Shell said it would be maintaining its dividend to $0.42 per
share, an increase of 5% from a year ago.
Oil analyst Nick
McGregor of Redmayne Bentley, told the BBC that the only disappointment
from Shell's results was the fact its crude production was down 6% from
a year earlier.
"Production figures are closely watched, and I
think this fall was down to external factors, such as Shell's Nigerian
output being cut [due to the attacks on oil facilities in the
country]," he said.
"It simply means Shell hasn't been able to
pump as much oil as it would like, which contrasts with BP's figures
earlier in the week, as BP's production was up."
'No quick recovery'
Exxon said its quarterly crude production was down 3% from a year earlier, and that weak oil demand remained.
"Global
economic conditions continue to impact the energy industry both in the
volatility of commodity prices and reduced demand for products," said
Exxon chairman and chief executive Rex Tillerson.
World oil
prices fell back from record highs last summer as the global economic
bubble burst, and the recession took hold, sparked by the crisis in the
credit markets.
Crude prices fell as low as $30 a barrel at the start of the year, but have since recovered to around the $63 level.
Shell's
profits are reported under the current cost of supply basis. Excluding
one-off items, including reduced staff healthcare costs in the US, its
latest quarterly profits totalled $3.2bn, ahead of market expectations.
"Conditions are likely to remain challenging for some time, and we are not banking on a quick recovery," added Mr Voser.
Shell and Exxon's results come two days after fellow oil giant BP also reported a big fall in profits.
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Protest held against Indian mine
 Bianca Jagger has led protests against Vedanta |
Activists have demonstrated outside
the annual general meeting of British mining company Vedanta,
protesting against its plans for a mine in India.
The Kondh
tribe says the opening of the bauxite mine will destroy a large part of
the Niyamgiri Mountain in the eastern Indian state of Orissa.
An elder of the tribe was to attend the meeting, while environmental campaigner Bianca Jagger protested outside.
They have appealed to investors to stop Vedanta going ahead with the mine.
Vedanta says the project is ethically and environmentally sound.
| We have been living in harmony with this mountain, these forests, these animals for generations. Vedanta has been here for less than 10 years. Sitaram Kulisika, Kondh tribe elder |
Ms Jagger is supported by UK-based campaign groups, including ActionAid and Survival International.
They
held a demonstration outside the meeting the venue of the Vedanta
meeting in London, with a yellow digger to illustrate the kind of
mining assault they say the firm will launch on the Niyamgiri hills,
which many tribal peoples believe to be sacred.
Way of life
ActionAid
bought a single share in Vedanta for tribal activist Sitaram Kulisika
so that he could attend the meeting on behalf of the Kondh tribe.
"Last
year Vedanta directors promised not to mine without our consent. I am
here to request all shareholders to honour that promise and save our
livelihood and our god," he said ahead of the protest.
"We have
been living in harmony with this mountain, these forests, these animals
for generations. Vedanta has been here for less than 10 years.
 Critics say that the Vedanta operation is a social and environmental disaster |
"They cannot tell us what is best for our future."
Ms Jagger
has called on investors, including the Church of England and some
borough councils, to rethink their involvement with Vedanta.
The Church has shares in Vedanta worth £2.5m ($4.1m).
Mining giant Vedanta is based in the UK but has most of its operations in India.
It
is about to start mining bauxite in the Niyamgiri hills, to be
processed at a refinery that has already been built in the area.
Bauxite is used to make aluminium.
The company and its Indian partner have been accused of forcing people to move from the land.
Vedanta
has said it is committed to developing the project "in line with the
best international standards for environmental management", and has
noted that the project has been approved by India's Supreme Court.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8170328.stm
There is scope for banks to reduce lending rates: Subbarao
ET Bureau
Unlike
his predecessors,
RBI governor D
Subbarao
is quite direct on what action
banks should take place on the interest
 |
stressed on the central bank’s efforts to work in a transparent manner.
Following his monetary policy meeting with chairmen of banks, Mr Subbarao
addressed the media on RBI’s take on the economy and what transpired in
his meeting with bankers . Excerpts: (
Watch
)
On
the scope for bank lending rates to come down...
There is
scope for a reduction in lending rates within the policy rate adjustment already
done by RBI. Even if we take into account the inflation rate and returns to
depositors, the lending rate should be around 9.5%, but they are 10.5% and
above... so there is scope for banks to reduce lending rates. We have also said
in the policy statement that as deposits mature and get re-priced, the cost of
funds will go down for
banks and they will have room for reduction of
lending rates.
On when can the
market expect a reversal of the exapansionary monetary
policy...
We will look at non-oil imports, we will look at
credit growth, we will look at inflation and we will look at manufacturing.
However, it will be inappropriate and improper to speculate on the future. We
have been debating to exit strategies in our internal meetings, but are not in a
position to give any more details. In fact, central banks around the world have
been talking of exit strategies... you must have heard Fed chairman Ben
Bernanke’s statements and US president Barack Obama’s roadmap.
On the math behind RBI’s 6%
growth rate estimate...
We debated a lot internally on the
growth rate for the economy. Besides numbers, we also looked at when the
forecasts were made. Several of the forecasts were made before the monsoon
situation became clear. But let us first consider the risk factors for the
economy. A lot will depend on agriculture. We all know the rainfall situation at
present is 19% below normal. The foodgrain production-weighted rainfall index
number is at 69 against 129 at this time last year. The agriculture performance
could spill into industry and services, with a lag effect. Exports have been
negative for the past eight months. Although exports only account for 15% of the
economy, they are significant, but they will depend on the state of the global
economy. Lastly, investments (in the economy) also have to pick up, although
some bankers said credit from the housing and retail side have picked up. (
Watch
)
On
RBI’s stance on open market operations...
We will follow
the calendar that we have laid out in respect of OMOs and MSS desequestering.
But let me clarify that the calendar is only indicative. It is very difficult to
predict liquidity, but we do try to estimate it regularly. Should the numbers
deviate from our estimates, we will tailor the OMO programme accordingly. But,
by and large, we will stick to the calendar. We want to give the market as much
certainty as we have, but cannot give you what we do not have.
On the need for a government
roadmap for fiscal consolidation...
The government has given a
number of 6.8% for the current year and I believe in the medium-term policy
document, there are numbers for the next year and the year after.... we have
said it will be good for the economy, the government, the central bank for
everybody if those numbers are fleshed out. They have to be backed up by
expenditure and revenue numbers. Also, in the process, the focus is on the
quality of fiscal adjustment, i.e, how much do you spend on capital expenditure
and how much do you spend on plan expenditure. Since I have been with the
finance ministry in the past, now I can step back and speak more comfortably
about fiscal adjustments from the Centre. But, it’s really the quality of
fiscal adjustments that will be important. We do not expect market borrowings to
be higher than what was mentioned in the Budget. Even the fiscal implications of
the measures announced this week are small. Having said that, should there be
any increase in borrowings from the government, RBI should (be able to) manage
that.
On analysts’ concerns
that restructuring is dressing up of books...
The focus on
restructuring is not to hide anything. It is to provide liquidity to sectors
that would have found it otherwise unviable. It’s so that they can get
over difficult conditions and get back to business. Besides, its not that
restructuring does not require provisioning. In fact, we are providing floating
provisioning facility to banks for the restructured assets. So, the risk
management systems are still in place. Some of the restructured loans could turn
sour, but bankers tell us these are at acceptable levels. However, there is no
proposal to extend the restructuring deadline from hereon. On continuation of
floating provisions facility, we have an open stance and are awaiting
international norms.
On the
weakening correlation between CPI and WPI inflation indices...
Historically, the CPI has tracked WPI. The last time when I
had come for the April policy, we had done some research which showed that the
tracking has somewhat lagged. Now, we find that the correlation between CPI and
WPI is further weakening. I had said earlier that all four CPI indices are at an
elevated level and in the past month have moved up. So there is concern over
prices that ordinary consumers are seeing in the market and that is a concern
that we have kept in our mind while formulating this policy.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/Economy/Policy/There-is-scope-for-banks-to-reduce-lending-rates-Subbarao/articleshow/4832549.cms
Current market rally raises optimism
ET Bureau
MUMBAI
- The recent market rally supported by quarterly earnings, liquidity and global
cues is not yet considered as a bull-run but market men
buying as they see good days ahead. There will not be any crisis like situation
barring a few corrections in the
market.
On July 28, S&P CNX Nifty
touched a high of 4,599 from a low of 3,918 on July 13. Unlike the post election
rally which was based on sentiments without any fundamentals, the current rally
seems to have spawned optimism among traders and brokers. According to
provisional figures, on Thursday around 12.10 pm Nifty rollover was around 70
per cent. It signifies that traders expect good time
ahead.
Further, Relative Strength Index is
at 54.48 per cent as against the ideal RSI of 50 per cent. This means that the
market is a little overbought. In post election rally, the RSI was above 70 per
cent.
According to Alex Mathew, head -
research, Geojit BNP Paribas, 4,394 is a very good support level for Nifty.
“In another two trading days this level is expected to be touched.
Irrespective of that, long terms investors should start buying taking advantage
of market corrections.”
Dealers feel that market could
correct by 5 per cent to the maximum possible extent. “Short term traders
can go ahead with a stop loss, which should be equal to one-third of their
targeted profit on any scrip. However, long term investors can get into market
right now. They need not to be worried over day to day market movement,”
said Rajesh Jain, Head - Research, SMC
Global,
For example, JSW Steel, a largely
recommended stock, touched a low of Rs.475 but is currently quoting at Rs.697.
“Such short term movement hardly impacts a long term investor,”
added Jain.
Fertilizer stocks are
currently available at attractive valuations, with all stocks being traded at
less than 10x PE. Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizers as well as Chambal
Fertilizers & Chemicals are good bets, suggests Geojit’s Mathew who
also advises PSU banking stocks like State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank
and Bank of Baroda along with to Reliance
Industries.
Some stocks as suggested by
SMC’s Jain, wherein one can buy at the current levels with long term
perspective are, SBI, Jaiprakash Associates, Tata Power, Power Finance
Corporation, Polaris etc.
Meanwhile, market optimism has once
again brought back penny stocks into the lime light. “Penny stocks
supported by dependable promoters’ background, is worth buying. Going
forward, one can expect very good returns from these stocks,” said Manish
Innani, a NSE listed member and founder of Prayas
Securities.
Geometric in the software space and
MRF in auto ancillary space are two stocks with significant future potential,
said Innani.
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