Bankers expect RBI to drop rates though there may not be any increase in aggregate liquidity as banks are parking surplus funds with the central bank. Some sectors like the small and medium enterprises, real estate have not been getting adequate funds and RBI may extend a refinance line or special facility whereby they can borrow at a subsidised rate.
Expatriate CEOs, many of whom have made Mumbai their first homes, may be unnerved by the three-day terror strike in Mumbai, but none of them feel Mumbai or other parts of India have become unsafe to live and work in.
Risk perceptions will impact India's risk-rating, say experts.
Mutual fund investors in equity schemes are not yet rushing to redeem their units but inflows have dried up substantially, said mutual fund distributors.
Dhirubhai sells. Against All Odds, a book on the life and times of Dhirubhai Ambani by advertising veteran A G Krishnamurthy, is trying to ride on the success of an earlier book on Dhirubhai by the same author.
Vijay Mallya-owned Kingfisher Airlines, which plans to raise $400 million from private equity investors, may have to settle for structured finance such as sale and leaseback or securitisation of receivables, say private equity experts in Mumbai.
Projects having loans with floating interest to take the hit. Hindustan Construction Company, GVK Group and other construction firms may have to settle for lower returns from their projects as rising interest rates are expected to hurt profitability of roads, power, ports and airports.
First-quarter results of several big companies such as Reliance Industries, Reliance Communications, Bharti Airtel and Jet Airways would have been a lot worse had they followed the Accounting Standards 11 rules prescribed by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.
Even as several SEZs are struggling to get off the ground, the Mahindras have managed to kick off their second SEZ at Jaipur, after their first one in Chennai.
Companies are reactivating their dormant fixed deposit schemes by realigning their interest rates with the market following the footsteps of the lenders. The Reserve Bank of India has raised its benchmark interest rate to 8.5 per cent - the highest in more than six years - to stem inflation, forcing the banks to raise their prime lending rate to as high as 15.5 per cent.
The Supreme Court judgment last week allowing Tata Power to retail power to consumers in Mumbai could pose a few regulatory challenges, experts feel.
After a string of foreign deals in the last few years, including Tata Motors' purchase of Land Rover and Jaguar brands from Ford for $2.3 billion this year, attempts by Indian companies to acquire assets abroad are increasingly hitting roadblocks. At least, the recent attempts by Indian companies suggest so.
The worldwide softness in the sector has ensured there are few takers for these aircraft; those who had leased the aircraft to Indian carriers will invoke a hefty penalty if the machines are sent back to them.
Akruti City, Omaxe, Sobha Developers, among other property developers, are pledging shares with lenders to provide additional security, apart from hypothecating properties to borrow funds, according to information submitted to the stock exchanges. Promoters of Akruti, Omaxe and Sobha have pledged their shares with Indiabulls Financial Services, financiers like Dubai-based BankSarasin & Co and Credit Suisse as a liquid security for loans against properties.
The Rs 9,500-crore Dharavi makeover may be postponed by a few months as the scheme will have to be amended to increase the size of the flats, to be given to slum-dwellers, from 225 sq ft to 269 sq ft, according to builders close to the development.
HR firm Hewitt Associates, however, estimates average salaries in India rose 15.2 across sectors for 2008-09 in line with the increases last year (15.1 per cent) and better than the year before (14.4 per cent) despite slowdown in many sectors. At 15.5 per cent, salaries of people in junior management (up to seven years) rose the fastest, followed by middle management (seven to 12 years) at 15.2 per cent, senior management (12 years+) at 14.5 per cent.
James Scott, Metro Cash & Carry's regional operating officer (Asia) based in Singapore, virtually lives out of a suitcase. With the regional headquarters in Hong Kong and operations across China, India, Pakistan, and Vietnam, Scott travels through the week and gets back home only on weekends.
Real estate developers are feeling the liquidity crunch -- the sources of funds are drying up even as they get squeezed from both sides: high interest rates and property prices have hurt offtake while rising steel, cement prices have pushed up input costs 20-25 per cent, which developers have to absorb for now.
The Delhi-based Parsvnath Developers received $47 million (Rs 186 crore) from twoSaffron Group funds to develop a residential and shopping complex on a now-defunct bus depot at Kurla in central Mumbai. The Mumbai-based Lodha Group got $54 million from a HDFC-sponsored, Mauritius-based fund. The fund will take a 45 per cent stake in a special purpose vehicle, which will develop projects in Hyderabad, Lodha said in Mumbai on Thursday.
Experts (forex consultants and CFOs) estimate the notional losses on derivative products in Ludhiana to be Rs 200 crore to Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion), with a prominent textile player leading the table. But no company is willing to talk about their exposure or losses. A few companies, such as Vardhman Textiles, part of the S P Oswal Group, said they had no exposure.