Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance Industries is expected to buy out a fifth of LyondellBasell's $27 billion gross debt and seek a rollover of the balance after acquisition, as a step towards gaining the confidence of creditors in its plans to acquire the world's third largest petrochemical company, sources familiar with the developments said.
When United States-based drug major Merck bought Schering-Plough early this month, it decided to go off the beaten track. Instead of having one managing director for the merged entity, it decided to retain both: Naveen A Rao will continue to head Merck's subsidiary MSD Pharmaceuticals in India and K G Ananthakrishnan will retain his position as MD of Schering-Plough's subsidiary Fulford India.
The Year of India in Russia - as 2009 is officially known - has helped India Inc get into a long bear hug with the Russian consumer. They are lapping up everything - from Ratan Tata's marquee cars to Vijay Mallya's whisky.
After two years of waiting, Tata Steel will get alternative land in Vietnam for building a 4.5 million tonne a year steel plant with an investment of $5 billion. Decision to allocate 725 hectares comes after a long delay.
India saw one of the worst terrorist attacks in November last year, when Mumbai was under siege for four days. Little under a year later, Indians perceive rising food prices as a bigger threat than terrorism.
India's largest private conglomerate is looking to integrate some of its smaller businesses with their respective flagship companies, with a view to leveraging the value of the entities and increase cost efficiency.
Anil Agarwal-controlled Sterlite Industries has got a leg-up in its takeover battle for bankrupt copper miner Asarco in the United States. A district court in Texas has allowed Sterlite to argue for its amended bid of $2.56 billion, which was earlier rejected by a lower court.
The company feels valuations are low and the demand would later rise.
Till a few months ago, hiring was a strict no-no for investment banks. On the contrary, they were scaling back staffing plans in India given the dearth of merger and acquisition activity and stagnant capital markets.That is changing rapidly with a rising number of deals fuelled by strong growth in the markets and an improving economic environment.
The company aims to book a profit of over Rs 250 crore from the open market sale, said two sources familiar with the development.
Last month saw 30 companies filing their draft red herring prospectuses with the market regulator for initial public offers , a sharp increase from six in August and three in July this year. The Securities and Exchange Board of India received eight filings in September last year, the month the Lehman Brothers meltdown brought the world economy to its knees.
Nova's new owner has decided not to pursue this project.
A German bankruptcy court has sold off Reliance Industries' polyester making subsidiary Trevira GmbH to two local entrepreneurs for an undisclosed amount.
M&As are back on the radar for Indian companies, but with two vital changes. First, the average size of the deals are much smaller compared to the earlier years; and second, overseas acquisitions have taken a backseat.
Promoters Narendra Patni and his younger brothers Gajendra and Ashok hold equal stakes totalling 48.3 per cent in India's sixth largest software exporter.
For its Singapore trading desk, the company aims to hire a few top level executives in a few weeks. The desks in London and Houston will also recruit more executives for finding opportunities in those markets. The company has another trading desk in Dubai. An RIL spokesperson declined to comment on the expansion of trading desks.
No one is saying the steel industry is out of trouble. The financial crunch continues, and coupled with high cost of input, severely affected the first-quarter profits of steel companies. But most agree with Tata that the signals are encouraging.
European wind turbine makers interested; deal could be $1 billion. The company aims to raise about $1 billion from the sale of a 61.28 per cent stake, said two banking sources.
JSW Energy aims to generate 11,390 Mw in the country by 2015. The company has tied up with two consortiums of lenders, led by IDBI Bank and State Bank of India, respectively, for the loans. It had recently filed a draft red-herring prospectus for a Rs 3,000 crore (Rs 30 billion) public offering with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India.
Prices of key inputs up 44% to 74%; analysts expect earnings squeeze after a quarter or two.