BS Reporters In Pune, Mumbai

Stories by BS Reporters In Pune, Mumbai

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.

Real estate firms do a Nano...

Real estate firms do a Nano...

Rediff.com   27 Mar 2009

Unitech is pinning its hopes on the sub-Rs 5 lakh category of flats to counter the slowdown in the property sector. So are a host of others. Apart from Unitech, others such as Omaxe, Raheja, Tata Housing and Ansal API are planning new projects in the suburbs of satellite towns or smaller cities to target the bottom segment, to generate more cash.

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.

Nano may fetch resale premium of Rs 30,000

Nano may fetch resale premium of Rs 30,000

Rediff.com   23 Mar 2009

"The scene will be a bit like the Maruti 800 days. Those who are lucky enough to be allotted cars this year can resell it immediately at a premium of Rs 30,000 due to the anticipated shortage," an executive at a Motors dealer said. Supply, Tata Motors dealers say, would be between 40,000 and 50,000 cars, with 100,000 being the most optimistic estimate. This would mean customers may have to wait for up to two years to get delivery if all the bookings are accepted.

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.

Frooti, Appy to be costlier

Frooti, Appy to be costlier

Rediff.com   18 Mar 2009

This has come at a time when commodity prices have dropped and several companies are seeking to lower prices to boost sales. "While the recent drop in raw material prices have been an enabler, our margins are still under pressure due to several factors like operational expenses as well as production and packaging costs, which have peaked year-on-year," said a company official.

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.

Contractors shift from realty to govt projects

Contractors shift from realty to govt projects

Rediff.com   2 Mar 2009

Companies are either taking small government projects alone or bidding for larger ones with consortium partners. The companies, which had 18-75 per cent of their order books in property development, say they are facing payment delays of 20-90 days from some of the private developers, blocking their working capital requirements. Some of them take a week's advance payment from developers to execute their projects.

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.

Daiichi, Ranbaxy team to counter FDA charges

Daiichi, Ranbaxy team to counter FDA charges

Rediff.com   27 Feb 2009

The USFDA has accused Ranbaxy of falsifying data and test results of medicines. A Daiichi Sankyo statement said it takes the issue very seriously. 'Both Daiichi and Ranbaxy have formed a team to solve the issue. Ranbaxy will be responding to the FDA and will continue to cooperate with the agency.' Ranbaxy shares fell more than 18 per cent to Rs 169.85 today on the Bombay Stock Exchange, while Daiichi stock dropped about 10 per cent to yen 1,680 on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.