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March 23, 1999 StanChart to recast and resize itself despite union pressure Even as the last batch of the 800 targeted employees prepares for the golden handshake, SCB shrugged off any effect of the union's non-cooperation on the day-to-day business. StanChart is in touch with the RBI, "which fully understood the bank's position". Maharashtra abolishes octroi, VAT; deficit pegged at Rs 10.95 billion The state government would compensate the municipal councils for octroi. The state has imposed a turnover tax at one per cent on sales tax and surcharge at 10 per cent on gross tax on manufacturers and importers, besides rationalising various other taxes. India's exports to cross five per cent in 1998-99 Exports during January 1999, the latest figures available, were valued at $ 2.85 billion, up by 8.51 per cent in the same month the previous year. Bankrupt J&K steps up measures to cut expenditure Dr Farooq Abdullah has slashed allowances of ministers and officials like unlimited free car rides, telephone, travel, security to boost the coffers by Rs 500 million annually. THE REDIFF BUSINESS SPECIAL Room for optimism as Budget sops stir housing sentiment Opinions vary on the likely impact of the Budget incentives on the property market, but developers agree that the moment stamp duty and land ceiling laws are repealed, the housing industry will reactivate itself. THE REDIFF BUSINESS COLUMNISTS Second impressions: Budget brings bread and butter issues into sharp focus The continuation of liberalisation and implicit rejection of the mantras of the swadeshi lobby is a feature of the Budget that bodes well for industrial growth in the immediate future, says Dilip Thakore. OTHER REPORTS Rs 30 million make-up for 15-year-old birds of Indian Airlines! Out with faded upholstery, frayed carpets, yellowing bulkheads and creaking panels. Introducing cabins brightened with new age lamination paints and designer, aesthetic interiors. 'We've to keep the aircraft spick and span. We are in a competitive environment, after all,'' an official of the national carrier said. Daewoo, Hyundai not to hike Matiz, Santro prices ''We have to wait for the demand to pick up before making any upward revisions on the price tag. We expect a demand upsurge around August-September 1999 and that would be the time when we might hike prices,'' Hyundai Motor India's president A P Gandhi said. And now, rural banks to strike work, on March 26, 27 About 70,000 employees and officers of 196 RRBs with 14,581 branches are demanding implementation of sixth and seventh bipartite wage revision settlements. 
• BSE: Sensex 3713.18; up 40.5 points • NSE: Nifty 1063.00; up 3 points • Forex: Rs 42.40 vs $ Rs 46.11 vs euro Rs 68.93 vs pound Rs 36.06 vs yen (100) March 21-22, 1999 NDC to bail out cash-strapped states; bear pay hike burden differently, FM tells states Yashwant Sinha told the National Development Council that the Fifth Pay Commission's recommendations alone were not responsible for the poor fiscal health of the states. The erosion began much earlier, he said. Brownback pilots bill in Senate to suspend sanctions for five years Since the new bill has the backing of democrats and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, its passage is guaranteed. However, this would not ensure the flow of high-tech to India and Pakistan. Defections-weary parties keen on consensus on Goa's industrial policy The political parties have highlighted control of wasteful expenditure, promotion of eco-tourism and the services sector, and infrastructure building with private participation to tide over the slowdown. FIPB clears Rs 6.8 billion investment proposals CGF Investment of the Hutchinson Group will issue non-convertible preference shares totalling Rs 1.65 billion. Citicorp Finance will increase its paid-up capital by Rs 425 million and Alcatel Development Centre by Rs 35 million. GE Plastics will increase its equity in Advanced Engineering to 60 per cent. Elf Gas will up its stake to 100 per cent in Rayseed India. Divestment panel advocates sale of STC and Hindustan Steel Works, laments govt apathy The government's unilateral decisions have eroded the credibility of the Disinvestment Commission, said G V Ramakrishna. SUNDAY SPECIALS UP to leverage 'India's Detroit' to tap $ 20 billion toy market The UP government would create India's first Toy City in Greater NOIDA, a fast developing suburb of Delhi where as many as 120 industrial plots had already been allotted to prospective toy-makers. Neckermann, Europe's largest mail order house, to source garments from India Indian industry must participate in international fairs to understand global trends. India's good quality products come at competitive rates, the prices are among the lowest, the company said. Madras ranks among the least expensive cities to live in Madras is ranked 148, followed by Volgograd, Blantyre and Harare. Tokyo and four other cities in Japan and China have the world's highest cost of living for foreigners. Besides Moscow at sixth place and London at eighth, all the top ten cities are in Asia. FOCUS: THE OTHER SIDE OF BIHAR Under 4 per cent economic growth likely during Ninth Plan period The politically volatile state could not generate more than Rs 8 billion against its targetted resource of Rs 54.62 billion in the Eighth Plan. So it had slashed down the target of resource mobilisation to Rs 28.37 billion for the Ninth Plan. OTHER REPORTS Assocham pats SEBI for easing corporate norms The chamber feels the SEBI's move may revive the capital market by giving employees a sense of ownership and motivation. T Thomas, ex chief of HLL & Glaxo, to head Lafarge in India Thomas Farrell, Lafarge's country manager, will be the chief executive officer of the Indian operations. The other board members are expected to be announced soon.
• GDR Weekly Review: Skindia GDR index moves up 2 pc to 653.32 March 20, 1999 SEBI okays easier life for corporates: several norms eased Companies in demat mode can fix any value they like for intial public offerings. Mutual funds can trade in derivatives. Kumarmangalam Birla will head a panel on corporate governance. ESOP norms have been made corporate-friendly. Brokers gear up for New Millennium market Since e-broking is not legal in India, the wait is on for laws. Once they get enacted, stockbrokers hope e-broking will click. THE REDIFF BUSINESS INTERVIEW 'Competition never did anybody any harm' 'People in insurance in India today have been trained in India and by Indians. I have not heard anywhere that the people in the Indian insurance sector are not up to it like anyone else, says Albright & Wilson chairman and former chairman of Royal & Sun Alliance, Sir Christopher Benson. OTHER REPORTS Zee 'amputates' itself to get rid of 'corrupt' executives After sacking senior officials on charges of bribery, Zee Network's president Vijay Jindal said, ''Just as a human body has to go through numerous phases of healing, curing and even amputation, similarly organisations too have to undergo a continuous churning process retaining the good and expelling the evil." Ford Motor to pump Rs 10 billion into India Eighty-odd global vendors of Ford will set up bases in India for servicing the C-195 Fiesta-based car. Ford Credit would expand its portfolio to finance the new car to be rolled out by the year-end. Serve the poor, reach the rural areas, PM urges insurance companies Even as Vajpayee urged the states to support GIC's new schemes, insurance employees announced plans of a strike the day after the introduction of insurance bill in Parliament.
• BSE: Sensex 3672.63 • NSE: Nifty 1062.90 • Forex: Rs 42.40 vs $ Rs 46.38 vs euro Rs 68.98 vs pound Rs 36.17 vs yen (100) March 19, 1999 India may get $ 1.3 billion ADB loan for power projects ''Our strategy is to leverage commercialisation of state electricity boards and improve their financial efficiency. The duration of repayment is 15 to 20 years," an official of the Asian Development Bank said. SEBI meet to finalise moves on ESOPs, primary issue pricing and credit rating agencies Top SEBI officials said the board will not consider imposing any more norms on software and infotech companies whose scrips have recently shot up at the stock exchanges. Flurry of interest rate cuts evokes mixed reactions The biggest beneficiary of rate cuts would be the government itself, since it is the biggest borrower, say economy observers. THE REDIFF BUSINESS SPECIAL Between the lines: Budget and capital gains Transfer of shares and securities. Indexation. Bonus shares. Insurance gains. Buyback. Stock options. A N Shanbhag takes a close look at the Budget provisions for long term capital gains. OTHER REPORTS UTI and Aussie company Amp tie up for infrastructure investments UTI and Amp propose to launch an Indian Infrastruture Fund which is expected to invest upto $ 500 million in power generation, transportation, oil and gas exploration, telecommunications and urban infrastructure. Panel moots uniform sales tax for petro products The parliamentary committee said the uniform sales tax will check diversion of stocks marked for one area to other areas. It also underlined improvement of efficiency levels in public sector oil companies. Slowdown to affect savings, GDP growth rate will be 4.5 pc in 1999-2000: I-Sec paper Tthe household sector would continue to prefer risk-averse investment avenues for their savings. There is no sign of an economic revival in the near future, as indicated in the slow non-food bank credit off-take, the discussion paper said.
• NSE: Nifty 1074.60, up 14 points • BSE and forex market remained closed on account of Gudi Padava. March 18, 1999 India develops hybrid basmati rice, eyes higher forex earnings, mulls tie-up with Japan India could take up custom production of special varieties of rice for Japan if the latter enters into a long-term contract for rice production and supply. No additional govt borrowings this fiscal, says RBI The RBI said there won't be any objection to development financial institutions' plans to convert themselves into commercial banks or non-banking financial companies, if all the guidelines and rules are adhered to. Dunlop employee's suicide sparks unrest; Bengal govt urges Centre to act against Manu Chhabria Trade unions and the Opposition in West Bengal have joined defunct Dunlop's troubled employees to pressure the state government to expedite the proposed takeover. THE REDIFF BUSINESS INTERVIEW 'Indian stock market is healthy, safe, transparent and more stable than most markets of the world' 'We are capable of sustaining a good run and I see no reason why the future should not be excellent for quality Indian paper. I am sure more Indian companies will also go to Nasdaq for listing. Yes, we are in for a great new future for Indian scrips,' D R Mehta, India's chief regulator of the stock markets, tells Pritish Nandy. OTHER REPORTS Lok Sabha okays first stage of Budget Opposition members sought a strict control on government expenditure and said that austerity measures were a must in the wake of economic crisis. Goa objects to Reliance-Salgoancar power project "How can we allow it when RSPL has sought a clearance for a combined cycle project but now wants to start it with an open cycle?" asked S R Sharma, Goa's chief secretary. Day six: gas burns, ONGC tries to fix Fire-fighting efforts continued. Today, ONGC spoke about insurance cover for its equipment. IDBI, ICICI cut lending rates IDBI cut the minimum short-term lending rate by 50 basis points to 12.5 per cent.
• BSE: Sensex 3672.71; down 71 points • NSE: Nifty 1060.65, up 7.5 points • Forex: Rs 42.41 vs $ Rs 46.58 vs euro Rs 68.98 vs pound Rs 35.68 vs yen (100) March 17, 1999 Direct TV aspirants find path to Indian homes not-so-direct Secrutiy threat perceptions, revenue misconceptions, governmental dithering, cable TV segment's opposition and lack of laws have collectively kept DTH TV's delivery date in India indefinitely on hold. I-tax sleuths seek to bust Calcutta's Rs 10 bn money laundering racket The investment companies are real, maintain books, conform to laws. But the shareholders are bogus, even fictitious. Equity prices are manipulated and, presto, black money gets bleached to white. A special cell is likely to zero in on the ingenious scamsters. THE REDIFF BUSINESS SPECIAL Scheming to break Indians' bond with gold India is the world's biggest consumer of the yellow metal. Whether a small interest incentive lures the jewellery owners to banks for gold certificates and bonds remains to be seen, says A N Shanbhag. OTHER REPORTS Government agrees to 26% cap on foreign equity in insurance firms The amended Insurance Regulatory Authority Bill, mostly on the lines suggested by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, is likely to be moved by Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha before Parliament breaks for a recess on March 19. Kerala greens vs Enron: Irinavu project sparks row over naptha as fuel Environmentalists allege that the project, located in a thickly populated area, violates the norms laid down by environment ministry in 1994 and the Coastal Zone Regulation Act. Naptha, they told Rediff On The NeT, will damage the environs. Cash-strapped Air-India not to cut salaries "It's true that we are looking for ways to come out of the financial crisis. But that does not mean that we are planning to cut the salary of our employees," Air-India's spokesperson told Rediff On The NeT. Hiten Dalal, eight others get seven years RI in Canfina case The special court acquitted three others inlcuding Bhupen Champak Dalal, Tej Kumar Ruia and J P Gandhi because of lack of evidence. Arabian Sea fire rages, ONGC steps up damage-control efforts The ONGC team and the Coast Guard team along with two experts from Houston-based Cudd Pressure Inc are working round-the-clock at the oil platforms to control the fire.
• BSE: Sensex 3744.18; down 40 points • NSE: Nifty 1053.15, down 21 points • Forex: Rs 42.40 vs $ Rs 46.06 vs euro Rs 68.68 vs pound Rs 35.82 vs yen (100) March 16, 1999 Maruti board meet details under wraps; turnover to dip 7 pc, hopes pegged on new plant The new plant will make 100,000 cars per annum, taking the MUL's overall figure to 450,000. The resulting economies of scale are expected to cushion the impact of price cuts of last December. Foreign investment authority by mid-April; SSIs to tie up with European units At present, foreign investors have to get 27 approvals which are time-consuming and obstruct work. The authority would address this problem. THE REDIFF BUSINESS SPECIAL Fizzy cocktail of glamour and clamour The Coke-Pepsi fight for higher share of the Indian market is spilling over from cricket fields and cinemas to street-side restaurants and pan-dukaans. Chilling news: they allegedly copy ads, steal each other's star endorsers, fudge market statistics -- anything, it seems, is fair in the cola war. THE REDIFF BUSINESS COLUMNIST A case for taking calculated risks in rate cuts There is a need to keep real interest rates positive at all times. For high domestic savings are a sine qua non in a developing economy like India. At 26 per cent, the savings rate is fairly high but not comparable to South Korea and China, says R C Murthy. OTHER REPORTS Income tax summons issued against Suzuki officials, Saito gives sleuths the slip Charging that the Maruti chairman has fled from India, an official said, "When a company is earning a lot from India and is in a partnership with the Indian government, why can not it pay taxes and make proper declarations? We will not let this go on.'' Automatic route to be enlarged soon, says Bakht The government will simplify the procedure for setting up foreign companies' liaison and branch offices in India, besides easing exchange controls. Foreign investment in real estate and insurance is also being considered. India, China to resolve dumping row, foster trade; potential for harbour ventures seen Zhen Hila, the multi-billion dollar Chinese harbour machinery company, has bid for participating in the harbour development programmes in India. ONGC fire rages on, US team reaches site Four other wells of the unmanned oil platform B-121 -- A, B, C and F -- have been put off, hitting the oil production in the region. RSS calls for review of WTO provisions The WTO functions on the lines prescribed by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, which are ideologically tuned only to safeguard the interests of developed nations, often at the expense of developing ones, the Sangh Parivar has charged at its national convention. • BSE: Sensex 3783.71; spurts 81 points • NSE: Nifty 1073.95, up 1.3 points • Forex: Rs 42.41/42 vs $ Rs 46.42 vs euro Rs 68.85 vs pound Rs 35.96 vs yen (100) March 8-15, 1999 Archives
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