The Hinduja Group-promoted business process outsourcing firm HTMT Global Solutions has set aside Rs 400 crore (Rs 4 billion) to close two acquisition deals in the US by the end of this year.
We will not be in the ultra-low-cost car segment. Our focus will be on the A1 and A2 segments, which are growth areas in which many of the new players like Nissan, Volkswagen or Toyota are planning to enter. Our entry-level car will remain the Maruti 800.
In addition to the showroom discounts that ranged from Rs 12,000 on Maruti 800, Rs 11,000 on Alto and Rs 18,000 on Wagon R and Estillo, it offered an additional discount of about Rs 4,000 to such employees. This year, it has stopped financing the scheme. Instead, it has tied up with Axis Bank that offers financing at 10.75 per cent with repayment periods of three to five years (market rates are currently at 14 -15 per cent).
India's four-wheeler sector may post a flat profit growth in the first quarter due to a rise in input costs. The cost of automobile steel, which constitutes about 40 per cent of the total raw materials, rose by more than 25 per cent during the three-month period. Prices of raw materials like aluminium, copper, rubber and fuel also appreciated significantly.
With prices of oil forecast to touch $200 per barrel this year, auto makers in the country have launched a slew of options that are not just fuel efficient but also easy to maintain. Battling the rising fuel bill is premium car maker Honda Siel, who will launch the country's first hybrid car - the Civic hybrid shortly.
Roughly 70 per cent of the country's car owners may cringe at the rise in fuel prices, but the rising cost of petrol and diesel does not appear to have put the brakes on the market for luxury cars, even though they deliver a measly mileage in single digits. Till April, sales of luxury cars, defined as those costing Rs 40 lakh and more, touched 4,000 units the same as the number of cars sold for the whole of 2007.
Electronics, IT goods makers HCL Infosystems, HP, LG Electronics and Zenith are raising prices of personal computers (laptops and desktops), LCDs and plasma TVs, and IT peripherals for the first time this year by as much as 13 per cent to offset higher cost of inputs triggered by a falling rupee. The move may nudge inflation further crimping consumer spending.
UK-based GlobalLogic, a leading offshore software development company, plans to acquire two to three companies in the outsourcing product development (OPD) space in emerging markets like India and China as well as established markets. The company is particularly exploring an acquisition in south India.
The I&M programme will entail a nationwide comprehensive programme to test and certify, at frequent intervals, a vehicle's 'road worthiness'. The programme gains importance as more than 100,000 people die each year from road accidents in the country, roughly 10 per cent of the world total.
The broad idea is to help freshers and high-potential employees develop soft skills not generally taught at universities, and simultaneously increase retention rates in an industry that has attrition rates between 30 and 50 per cent. The industry, according to Nasscom estimates, accounts for almost $11 billion and employs slightly over 700,000 professionals (in terms of direct employment).
The auto sector is doing well in India, despite stock market meltdown, emerging signals of industrial slowdown and rising costs.
By June 2009, the $6 billion Mahindra & Mahindra group will open its new $116 million automobile design and development facility called the Mahindra Research Valley spread over 150 acres in Mahindra World City in Chennai. Primarily, this R&D facility will cater to M&M's design needs, and later may consider doing similar high-end work for other OEMs.
That is not out of choice, but because of the new European Union norms for automobile recycling, which comes into effect in 2010, and prescribes that once a vehicle is destined for the scrap heap in the EU territory, 80-85 per cent of its parts ought to be recyclable or reusable. That means every component -- batteries, airbags, catalytic converters, and auto plastics -- have to be safely disposed.
Amongst cars sold in the mid-size category (domestic sales) between April 2007 and March 2008, diesel variants outsold petrol car models roughly in the ratio of 7:3. That means over 70 per cent of the over 1,79,493 mid-size cars sold in the domestic markets were diesel models. Diesel mid-size cars on an average are priced 15.5 per cent more than the petrol variant. Overall, the mid-size category, petrol and diesel models included, grew by 14.6 per cent.
With an eye to the large and growing market for their products, Indian auto component and tyre companies are making a beeline to set shop in Europe (especially Eastern Europe). Just last month Apollo Tyres announced that it was setting up a euro 200 million green field venture outside Hungary. And Delhi based Amtek Auto will set up a production base which will come in to operation in 2009 in Romania.
Now, a growing number of well-heeled private citizens are buying armoured vehicles for their safety, providing a profitable new business stream for companies like Jalandhar-based Laggar Industries and automaker Hindustan Motors. The annual market is about 500 vehicles, of which 30 to 40 are bought by private citizens.
Speaking on the cancellation of the deal, Joe Bowman, chief executive officer of Ultra Motors, said, "The opportunity cost of selling electric vehicles in India does not fit strategically under this joint agreement. We intend to create shareholder value and positively impact those markets where we operate. We have come to believe India is one of the largest markets in the world. So we are looking forward to develop it independently."
German luxury carmaker BMW is evaluating over 100 component manufacturers in India to outsource engines and chassis for its global manufacturing operations, according to a board member. "We are impressed with the quality of die casts and forgings in India that we use for our global operations. The quality of products from second- and third-tier is impressive," said Ind Herbert Diess, who is on the BMW AG board.
"The compact petrol 1.2 litre car will be configured to international markets and will not compete with the small cars available in India. Depending on market conditions, we will import the hybrid version from Japan later," M Takedagawa, president and CEO, said on Monday.
Last week, US aircraft manufacturer Boeing signed an agreement with Tata Automobile Limited Manufacturing Solutions, a wholly-owned Tata Motors subsidiary, for manufacturing structural components for Boeing's 787 Dreamliner airplane programme.
© 2025 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances