BS Reporters In Mumbai, New Delhi

Stories by BS Reporters In Mumbai, New Delhi

Govt asks state-run banks to cut rates

Govt asks state-run banks to cut rates

Rediff.com   3 Apr 2009

Some banks made it clear that banks have to make commercial decisions. "There is a limit to which we can reduce the deposit rates because of competing investment products such as small savings instruments," said a bank chief. With banks unable to lower deposits rates, lending rates were unlikely to drop significantly. A banker is said to have talked about the fact that companies that are unable to sustain themselves during the present downturn would face many risks.

Satyam employees fear job loss after takeover

Satyam employees fear job loss after takeover

Rediff.com   3 Apr 2009

"The situation is bad. Some people are leaving and some are being asked to leave. And more important, several positions are remaining vacant. The selected candidates for these posts are not coming," said an associate, as the employees are called. "There is talk now that the new company, whichever that is, will cut at least 10,000 jobs gradually. We are praying that this is unfounded," a senior associate said.

PM for scrutiny of tax havens

PM for scrutiny of tax havens

Rediff.com   3 Apr 2009

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said India is in favour of sharing tax information and monitoring tax havens more closely.

Satyam: IBM, WL Ross tie-up buzz gets stronger

Satyam: IBM, WL Ross tie-up buzz gets stronger

Rediff.com   2 Apr 2009

The buzz refuses to die down even though other PE players, investment bankers and analysts say such an alliance is highly unlikely. Wilbur Ross, meanwhile, is understood to have completed the due diligence of the scam-tainted IT company. When contacted, a company official declined comment.

Bharti, AXA likely to end mutual fund tie-up

Bharti, AXA likely to end mutual fund tie-up

Rediff.com   1 Apr 2009

While a company spokesperson said Bharti would either dilute its stake or exit the venture, the fund house is trying to rope in a bank to strengthen its distribution network. In addition, an asset management venture is seen to have closer links with banks, which are looking to offer a wide range of financial products.

Citi cuts home loan rates

Citi cuts home loan rates

Rediff.com   1 Apr 2009

The bank, which had announced a similar cut in January, will see its mortgage prime rate fall to 13.75 per cent from April 1. In a statement, the bank said that the benefit will be available to all its existing customers on floating rate loans. A bank spokesperson said that, depending on loan tenure and amount as well as the customer's relationship with the bank, he could get a loan at up to 50 basis points lower than the benchmark rate.

Fiscal lesson: Money scarce, use it wisely

Fiscal lesson: Money scarce, use it wisely

Rediff.com   31 Mar 2009

The aggression shown by corporate houses till not a long ago has given way for consolidation in the backdrop of current economic downturn and the companies in the next fiscal, beginning tomorrow, would need to focus on growing their core businesses and conserving the resources, global consultancy firm PwC executive director Sanjeev Krishnan told PTI.

Television news channels look for fresh capital

Television news channels look for fresh capital

Rediff.com   30 Mar 2009

Industry estimates show that the business news channels generate about Rs 300 crore a year in advertising. However, with the economic slowdown, ad revenue is expected to drop by about 15-20 per cent this year.

Teams from bidders camp at Satyam HQ

Teams from bidders camp at Satyam HQ

Rediff.com   27 Mar 2009

The bidders had started sending teams from departments like human resources, finance and legal, who were holding discussions with their counterparts at Satyam, the sources added. The Satyam stock was up 4 per cent at Rs 42.20 on BSE. It had dropped a little over 10 per cent in the past month. "Between this week and next week, there will be several meetings between various bidders and company officials," confirmed Satyam's Hari Tallapalli.

Mahindra eyes full pie in 2-wheeler biz

Mahindra eyes full pie in 2-wheeler biz

Rediff.com   25 Mar 2009

The Mumbai-based company will take on Hero Honda, Bajaj Auto and HMSI and will have models in the 100cc, 125cc and 150cc mobike segments, and also in the ungeared low and high-powered scooter segments. Hero Honda has a 60 per cent share of the motorcycle segment, while HMSI commands a 58 per cent of the scooter market. Anand Mahindra said: "Our two-wheeler project is complete; we have already begun marketing the fleet in Bangalore."

Satyam presents bidding plan to Sebi

Satyam presents bidding plan to Sebi

Rediff.com   25 Mar 2009

The Satyam board said corporate governance, a clean record, management and organisational ability in operating a global company will be considered, apart from the financial bid and other technical criteria. The bidders will furnish an irrevocable and unconditional performance bank guarantee of Rs 100 crore to guarantee the deposit of funds required for the preferential allotment and the requisite escrow amounts for the public offer within four days of being selected.

Heavy taxes hit art business

Heavy taxes hit art business

Rediff.com   24 Mar 2009

The financial meltdown and heavy taxes on works of art imported or sold in India has caused many art galleries to shut down in recent times.

Satyam: L&T, Spice, Tech Mahindra in; iGate out

Satyam: L&T, Spice, Tech Mahindra in; iGate out

Rediff.com   21 Mar 2009

Board to meet investment advisors Goldman Sachs and Avendus today.

Nano's delivery may normalise only in June

Nano's delivery may normalise only in June

Rediff.com   21 Mar 2009

The supply of Tata Motors' much-awaited small car, the Nano, is going to be well below the demand for quite some months.

Lenders want Maytas Infra recast

Lenders want Maytas Infra recast

Rediff.com   20 Mar 2009

The newly appointed (by the government) board members, O P Vaish and Ved Jain, said the company and its lenders were expected to reach an agreement in this regard by March 25. The board met in Hyderabad under the chairmanship of Vaish and sought information on the state of the company and the various projects it was implementing and negotiating. Vice-Chairman B Teja Raju and Additional Director B Narasimha Rao were present.

What an IBM-Sun deal could mean for India

What an IBM-Sun deal could mean for India

Rediff.com   19 Mar 2009

The news of global IT giant IBM buying Sun Microsystems has been doing the rounds for years. So, despite the Wall Street Journal reporting that an approximately $6.5 billion buyout is imminent, analysts remain sceptical.

India to attack 'protectionist policies': Pranab

India to attack 'protectionist policies': Pranab

Rediff.com   16 Mar 2009

As the problem of job losses in the domestic economy continues to grow, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will again take up the issue of "protectionist policies" by advanced countries during his G-20 tour. The Union government feels that these policies will add to the massive job losses in the country, especially in labour intensive sectors engaged in exports.

After CEO, Sony TV loses business head, others

After CEO, Sony TV loses business head, others

Rediff.com   6 Mar 2009

On February 18, CEO Kunal Das Gupta had put in his papers. Company sources say around a dozen senior executives also resigned with Almeida on Thursday. Based on viewership ratings, Sony TV is currently a distant fourth in the rankings of entertainment channels, behind Star Plus, Colors, and Zee TV.

Broadband connections to be faster

Broadband connections to be faster

Rediff.com   3 Mar 2009

Trai has fixed a minimum 'contention ratio number' of users who can share the same bandwidth. Earlier, there was no such restriction on operators and they were offering the service at a contention ratio of 1:80 to 1:100 (which means the same bandwidth would be used by 80 to 100 customers). Under the new guidelines, the contention ratio for broadband at home has been fixed at 1:50 and for business at 1:30.

Reliance-RPL merger: Analysts see RIL benefits

Reliance-RPL merger: Analysts see RIL benefits

Rediff.com   28 Feb 2009

Cash flows from RPL will help Reliance to step up investments on explorations. Reliance Industries, which owns the world's biggest refinery complex, is looking at additional cash flows, tax benefits, continuity of export status and other synergies in its attempt to merge Reliance Petroleum with itself, after a 54 per cent decline in stock prices.