India's economy is expected to grow 6.4-6.7 per cent during the current financial year driven by strong domestic demand, even as geopolitical uncertainty poses downside risks, the newly appointed CII president Rajiv Memani said on Thursday.
Industry body CII on Thursday made a case for pushing reforms in sectors like land, labour, and agriculture by the Modi 3.0 government to accelerate economic growth, which is estimated to be around 8 per cent in the current financial year. CII president Sanjiv Puri said a lot of policy interventions in the past have put the economy on "a much stronger wicket". "The growth rate is poised to touch 8 per cent during the current year, marking the fourth consecutive year of above 7 per cent + growth.
CII on Thursday objected to any mandatory reservation for socially underprivileged in the private sector even as it forecast 8.3 per cent GDP growth target for this financial year.
B Muthuraman said while the Indian industry must seek to make growth inclusive and sustainable and must work towards addressing various inequalities in society, affirmative actions cannot be made mandatory.
The Indian automotive industry has the potential to reach a size of $33 to 40 billion by 2015 from the current $6.7 billion, chairman of 'CII Auto SCM India 2004,' M Lakshminarayanan, said in Chennai on Friday.
The Confederation of Indian Industry and ASEAN on Monday set up two task forces in pharmaceuticals and agriculture and food processing to prepare a strategy document to outline a roadmap for cooperation in these sectors.
B Muthuraman, vice chairman, Tata Steel, has been elected as the vice president of CII.
National Innovation Council (NIC) Chairman Sam Pitroda on Monday said the council will launch its Rs 5,000-crore venture fund aimed at supporting small enterprises by March.
The Confederation of Indian Industry is organising 'Digital Maharashtra', an IT convention in Pune on November 29 to showcase the business climate and investment opportunities for the infotech industry in the state.
Industrialist and MP Rahul Bajaj on Wednesday added a new dimension to the debate over black money, saying it funds political parties.
Tough measures need to be taken to make Air India "survive and thrive", global airlines body IATA said on Wednesday, asking the government to take a cue from the merger of two state-owned Japanese carriers which slashed jobs and operations to come out of bankruptcy.
Confederation of Indian Industry has asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to fast track economic reforms, which in turn would boost investments and accelerate growth, chamber's new president Adi Godrej said on Thursday.
The current global financial crisis dominated the India Economic Summit's (IES) pre-event conference. The three-day event, being organised jointly by the World Economic Forum (WEF) and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) from Saturday, would make its debut in this city after 26 years. The summit, an annual event, is usually held in New Delhi.
The government is in talks with pharmaceutical companies for ensuring availability of cancer drugs at a minimal price at their low-cost pharmacy chain Jan Aushadhi stores across the country.
However, economists call the deficit target not feasible, given the current global crude oil prices.
'We are going to need more technical people in government.' 'You can't expect a generalist to understand the complicated world of financial engineering.' 'I regret to say that most of our politicians have no competence to deal with these things. Nor is there a willingness to learn.'
SEBI chairman C B Bhave on Friday said the market watchdog is planning to introduce more currency derivatives products, beginning with options, to give a wider choice to investors.
Sebi's latest direction is against floating any new product.
American companies have so far not evinced any interest in investing in the huge Indian infrastructure market, which is estimated to be worth over $200 billion, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel said on Tuesday.
'Most probably we will be going to campuses in January after we assess the situation. Since there is a slowdown and if the situation improves, we will be going to campuses,' says Infosys CEO and Managing Director S Gopalakrishnan.
Union Home Minister P Chidambaram urged the captains of Indian Confederation of Industries to invest in naxal-affected areas too for the upliftment of the country.
Fast food chain McDonald's India is planning to continue with its expansion and will open 40 more restaurants across the country during 2009-10.
The world's largest mobile operator by revenue, Vodafone, which operates in India with a joint venture with Essar Group, on Monday said it will invest more in India as it sees more opportunities in the country.
"We have already put up draft rules of the IT (Amendment) Act on the website and have also received comments ... We are trying to finalise the rules within a month," Department of Information Technology (DIT) Secretary R Chandrashekhar told reporters on the sidelines of a CII conference in New Delhi on Monday.
The Reserve Bank is in touch with various banks to understand why lending rates are not coming down despite the central bank cutting policy rates, even as the bankers expressed inability to lower the rates when bond yields remain high.
Stressing the need for the government to take more steps for boosting growth, noted industrialist and Godrej Group chief Adi Godrej on Thursday said the Indian economy needs a lot more liquidity to sustain its growth momentum.
US-based global investment banking major Goldman Sachs on Tuesday said it would invest one billion dollar in India for expanding operations in sectors like real estate and infrastructure.
Kicking off its Rs 25,000 crore (Rs 250 billion) mega retail plans, Reliance Industries announced on Friday that its first store will come up in Hyderabad in September, which will be a vegetable and food store.
The country's second largest software exporter Infosys Technologies on Thursday said the domestic IT industry is likely to grow by 15 per cent this year against 30 per cent growth last year in the wake of global slowdown.
Amid opposition from the private sector to reserving jobs for SCs and STs, the government on Tuesday said it will not impose quotas on India Inc, but only wanted more "affirmative action" from the industry for the socially underprivileged.
The government will continue the policy of equitable burden sharing between the state, oil companies and consumers for absorbing the impact of the upward spiral in global oil prices.
SEBI chief M Damodaran on Wednesday said "standards are required" when companies, including those from the oil sector, give out information in public domain.
Optimism about the Indian economy makes it all the more necessary for the country to be prepared to face competition from nations like China and the United States, Wipro Chairman Azim Premji said on Friday.
Power Minister Anant Geete said on Friday that the Electricity Bill, aimed at improving the power sector, would be considered in the forthcoming Budget session of Parliament beginning on February 17.
Kingfisher Airlines chief Vijay Mallya on Saturday said the company would make a bid to buyout the entire stake in Air Sahara.