For retail investors, who had suffered big losses in the mayhem that started in January 2008, this is certainly a good news. Since mid-March, when the Sensex was languishing at 8,000 levels, there has been a sharp change in the mood. Markets have risen over 100 per cent. Even returns from mutual funds have improved substantially.
Mobile devices are now enabling people to network on the move. Users are logging on to popular social networking sites like Facebook, Orkut and Twitter using the general packet radio service technology on their mobile phones to stay in touch with their friends and acquaintances.
For high networth individuals, IRFs could be a good hedge against loans or existing fixed deposits.
Qualcomm, the $11.14-billion digital wireless communications products and services provider, will introduce its low-cost video game console -- Zeebo -- in India by 2010. The company will also launch in India its FLO TV, which is size of an iPhone and currently available in the US.
The findings are part of the Kelly Global Workforce Index, which obtained the views of approximately 100,000 people in 34 countries covering North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific.
BATA is expanding fast through large-format stores and increasing its focus on institutional business.
The suggestion for this special pay was part of a memorandum that the All India IIT Faculty Federation submitted to the Ministry of Human Resources and Development (MHRD) on August 23, stating that the pay structure proposed is unacceptable and a threat to the IIT system.
In 2008, any question about job offers drew grim looks from B-school students and professors. This year, the smiles are back. The premier Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and other prominent B-schools like XLRI Jamshedpur are confident that 2009 will be better than 2008.
While retaining the basic exemption limits at Rs 1.6 lakh (for individuals), Rs 1.9 lakh (for women) and Rs 2.4 lakh (for the retired), the slabs have been hiked substantially.
For 33-year-old Amit Lakhmani, the chief executive officer of Kolkata-based wireless and internet value-added service provider Max Mobility, embarking on a business outside of the then booming manufacturing and services sector was a natural choice.
With the rural segment accounting for 60 per cent of sales for fast moving consumer goods companies and 40-50 per cent for consumer durables manufacturers, the government's admission of sowing having fallen almost 20 per cent due to the weak monsoon, and declaring 161 districts as drought-prone, has put these sectors under a cloud.
These companies are also reinforcing their product line, changing product offerings, focusing on 'recession-proof' sectors like pharma and healthcare, education, telecom and utilities to tide over the dip in volumes.
After the initial struggle, ITC Foods is finally making its presence felt through its parent's distribution muscle.
GE India, the $2.8 billion industrial giant, plans to invest $6 billion till 2015 in medical systems, services and IT tailor-made for rural India. Also, GE, the parent company, is looking at making India the sourcing hub for aerospace parts and healthcare products and is in the process of developing a supply chain for this.
Given the cut-throat competition in the FM radio space, radio companies are always on the look out for newer, untapped areas. And perhaps that is the reason why major radio stations such as Big FM, RadioCity and Fever FM have descended on the World Wide Web as well as the mobile platform.
Reduced EMIs may be very appealing to borrowers because of a lesser burden on a monthly basis, but there is a catch to it. If the tenure remains unchanged, there is a higher interest outgo.
Experts say the biggest expenditure for a retailer is real estate, followed by manpower and sales and advertisement expenses.
In an attempt to reduce costs, India's biggest wine producer, Indage Vintners, has started closing its regional offices, while centralising all sales and marketing activities at its headquarters in Mumbai.
According to Mayank Saksena, head -- transactions, Kolkata, Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj, "From January onwards, we have been tackling an increase in live enquiries in Kolkata. The rate of enquiries is significantly higher than in cities such as Hyderabad. Chennai, Pune and Bangalore, primarily because Kolkata has a large number of old business houses that have been occupying prime spaces in the central business district."
After dropping "Kolkata" from Indian Premier League team Kolkata Knight Riders, actor Shah Rukh Khan has started discussions with Nokia, Sahara, the Anil Ambani group, and several other companies to sell the team he bought just over a year ago for Rs 300 crore, and exit the business.