Companies pay half of their profits as taxes: survey

A survey was conducted by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and consulting firm PricewaterCoopers (PwC) India over companies paying the tax in India. The survey says that Indian companies contribute almost half of their profits as taxes to the government’s kitty, according to media report.

As per the survey the tax paid by the 41 Nifty companies is equal around 10% of the government’s tax receipt. Manufacturing sector companies are paying around 47 per cent of their profit as taxes to the government.

The contribution from the financial sector in around 40 per cent. While the rest amount have been paid by the companies other than the manufacturing and finance companies.

BSE Sensex down 441 points

On the first day of the week the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) shed around 441 point till afternoon. While previous week the BSE was closed at 10 thousand mark and all the indices were seen in green.

The shine in the stock market faded due as BSE Bankex, Realty index and Meal index were seen in red. Till the afternoon the BSE was at 9,607 points and the BSE Bankex has slumped 7.3% to 4,474. The Realty index has shed 7% at 1,521, and the Metal index has plunged 6.7% to 5,698.

Govt okays further revision in pay for PSU officers

The government of India has decided increase in salary and allowances for central public sector enterprises on Monday. The hike in their salaries would be over and above the hikes announced last year, according to media reports.

Around four Public Sector Undertakings officers would be benefited. The cabinet meeting headed by the Prime Minister approved to improve the salary structure of officers at board level and below, along with supervisory staff.

The Committee of Ministers headed by the home minister P Chidambaram had forwarded the recommendations on the salary revision of PSU officers, over which the cabinet took the decision for hike the salary structure. The announcement will be good news for the public sector undertaking officers.

Indians holding Swiss bank accounts be declared: Advani

The BJP leader L K Advani on Sunday held a press conference in Delhi over the wealth deposited in Swiss bank by Indians, according to media reports. He says if his party wins, he would force all Indian citizens to bring their wealth back to India.

Advani said, "I had written to PM about issue of Indians holding Swiss Bank accounts." Advani also demanded that the assets of Indians holding Swiss bank accounts be declared.

On Friday, the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) Friday joined the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) in demanding that the government should ask the Swiss authorities to divulge the names of Indians who have stashed away ill-gotten money in secret bank accounts there.

Speaking at the press conference Adavani reportedly said that there are more than Rs 25 lakh crores were deposited by Indians in Swiss Bank. Many countries have been now looking for more option over Swiss bank accounts by their nationals.

Honda launches new Activa scooter in India

Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. (HMSI) on Friday launched the new version of its gearless scooter Activa. Honda has decided to quit the geared scooter segment in India, according to media reports.

The company will phase out its Eterno 150cc model this year. The company will not focus only on the gearless scooters and establish its brand value in the gearless scooter segment.

The new version of Honda Activa costs around Rs. 39,800 (ex-showroom, Delhi), and is powered with 110 cc engine. It comes with 15 per cent increased margin compared to its earlier version. The Honda Activa will give mileage of 64 km a litre as per the company test and it would give 55 km a litre to customers.

Reliance MF buys 5.23% stake in FT from Fidelity

Reliance Mutual Fund the Reliance-Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) company bought 5.23 per cent stake in Financial Technologies, the promoter of India’s largest commodity exchange, Multi-Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) on Saturday, according to media reports.

Reliance Mutual Fund bought shares from the Fidelity group at Rs 502.50 per share. And the deal values Financial Technologies (FT) at Rs 2,304 crore. There is rise in the price of shares of FT. On Saturday the share went up by 8.69 per cent to Rs 567 on Bombay Stock Exchange. The company has seen market capitalisation of Rs 2,602 crore, the BS reports.

Spice Group pulls out of Satyam bidding process

The government-appointed board of Satyam Computer Services has ruled out any change in the bidding process, even as the BK Modi-promoted Spice group threatened to pull out of the race to buy the scam-hit firm, citing lack of transparency, according to media reports.

Spice Group has been arguing that the Government-appointed board should go for an open auction process for sale of stake in Satyam. Preeti Malhotra, Executive Director of Spice Innovative Technologies, said "if the Satyam board re-looks at our concerns, then, we will like to be a part of the bidding process".

India Needs Further Economic Stimulus: Ahluwalia

The deputy chairman of the Planning Commission of India, Montek Singh Ahluwalia told media in Delhi on Saturday that India would need further economic stimulus packages. The government of India may declare further packages for the economy.

The government would pump more money into the system to check the impact of the global crisis on Indian economy. The government data shows a that there was positive impact of the stimulus packages on various sectors.

There is improvement in the infrastructure sectors, which was affected due the global crisis. The stock market on Friday was seen in green. Indices related to all the sectors were received good response in the stock market.

Further packages would help to bail out many sectors from the clutches of the global financial crisis. However, GDP growth is expected to be below the seven percent.

China beats India on IT index

According to the Global Information Technology Report 2008-09, India climbed down to the 54th rank from the 50th spot in 2007-2008 and China overtaken India. China ranked 46 in the Network Readiness Index.

India has, however, dropped from the 44th position in 2006-2007 to 54th this year. The report was issued on March 27. The global slowdown could be the major reason for the decline in India's ranking. Denmark and Sweden continued to top, the US continued at the third position despite the economic slowdown that hit it last year.

Inflation slips to 0.27 %

The rate of inflation has dropped further to 0.27 per cent for the week ended March 14 from 0.44 per cent in the previous week.

The inflation rate is seen at the zero level but there is no respite to the common people. The wholesale price index (WPI) has dropped by 17 basis points. The slide from high inflation rate to zero would be a concern for Indian economy.

The fall in the inflation may be due the fall in the international crude price and lack of proper demand for the goods and services. There is impact of the global slowdown on the economy and household economy.

RBI Governor D. Subbarao commenting on the WPI date said to media that while the decline to 0.27 per cent in the second week of March was a positive feature, there should not be any fear of the economy slipping into deep deflationary cycle.

Bongaigaon Refinery to merge with Indian Oil

The government of India has approved a proposal for merging Bongaigaon Refinery and Petrochemicals into its parent company, the state-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), according to media reports.

IOC gets govt nod for merger on Wednesday. IOC owns about 74 per cent in BRPL. The amalgamation will be effective from March 25 following order with the registrar of companies in Shilong and Mumbai.

Shareholders of BRPL will get four shares of IOC for every 37 shares they held. The merger follows the government's decision to sell its stake in BRPL and Chennai Petroleum Corp Ltd to IOC.

HDFC cuts retail prime lending rate

Housing Development Finance Corporation Limited (HDFC), the country’s largest housing finance company, has announced a 50 basis points reduction in its retail prime lending rate (RPLR) to 14%, on Wednesday.

The cut in the RPLR would be effective from Wednesday, according to media reports. HDFC cut the benchmark lending rate for the second time in three months. The cut in RPLR will be in favor of the existing floating rate customer.

The customers will have two options in order to get the advantage from the cut in the RPLR. Either they can reduce their EMIs or reducing the number of the installments.

Sensex overcomes volatility to end above 9700

The Indian stock market was ended at a strong note on Wednesday. Most of the indices seen overcoming from the negative figures on the day.

The BSE Sensex closed at provisional 9,704.52, higher by 233.48 points on Wednesday. There was good response to 30 share index in the intraday. All the sectors were seen in surging while realty was at the top with a gain of around seven per cent.

The Nifty ended at provisional 2994.05, up 55.35 points or 1.88 per cent over Tuesday’s close. The NSE benchmark saw a high of 2996.50 and low of 2923.30 during the day.

SBI officers to go on nationwide strike on Apr 8-9

The officers of India's largest lender the State Bank of India will go on a two days nationwide strike on April 8 and 9 to press for hiring officers and revising pay scales, according to media reports.

The President of All India State Bank Officers' Federation T N Goel told media that there was a shortage of seven thousand to eight thousand officers in the country. Goel added that around 25 percent branches have only one officer, where as each branch requires minimum two officers.

There is also demanding for improvement of pension scheme, revision of pay scales, regulated working hours, among other things. The officials may go on indefinite nationwide strike in May if their demands are not met.

Nano - people's car launched in Mumbai

The people's car and world's cheapest car - Nano was launched in Mumbai on Monday (23 March 2009). The declaration by Tata Motor in 2003 of delivering cheapest car came to true in 2009.

The company had organized big-bang commercial launch in Mumbai. Many people witnessed including top businessmen and leaders have witnessed the launch of Nano car in Mumbai. There are good responses heard over the car.

This was a big occasion for India, Tata Motors and Indian auto industry to have a cheapest and popular car - Nano. The booking for Nano may touch to 10 lakh units as it has been anticipated. After the big-bang commercial launch of the Nano in Mumbai, Tata Motors is drawing up ambitious plans for an international roll out of the low-cost small car.

Bank Muscat sells 81 pc of its stake in HDFC Bank

Bank of Muscat said on Sunday that it has sold 81 per cent of its stake in HDFC Bank the India's second largest private sector lender, according to media reports. The bank has received pre-tax profit of around Rs 507 crore from the sale.

In a regulatory filing to the Muscat Stock Exchange, Bank Muscat said up till now it has "sold approximately 81 per cent of its stake in HDFC Bank, India. The pre-tax profit on the sale of this stake is approx 39 million rials."

Reliance set to ink pact with fertiliser cos for KG block gas

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) is set to sign gas sale and purchase agreement (GSPA) with the identified urea plants sometime next week, according to media reports.

It is expected that the production of gas from the D6 block in Krisha Godagari Basin would begin in next two weeks. The D6 gas producers - RIL and its partner NIKO are expected to sign ink a GSPA with twelve fertiliser companies next week, media reports quote.

The prospective buyers include Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers (RCF), Nagarjuna Chemicals and Fertilisers, IFFCO, KRIBHCO, Chambal Fertilisers, Tata Chemicals, Indo-Gulf Fertilisers, and companies fed by GAIL (India) Ltd’s Hazira-Vijaipur-Jagdishpur pipeline.

Tata Motor's Nano - A dream car

Finally the day has come, March 23 - Tata Motors to launch much awaited 'Nano Car'. The company has prepared huge event in Mumbai for the launch.

According to media reports, for the celebration of Nano launch the company has spend huge amount to organize a event. The company has also assigned the event management to a well known event management company for the launch event of Nano in Mumbai on March 23.

The Nano car was in news across last year. Its journey from Singur to Gujarat was ever be remembered by the people. Even after much proetests in West Bengal, the car project finally completed and would hit Indian roads.

The project would have started its production of Nano cars from its Singur plant. But due to the protest the Nano project has moved from Singur, West Bengal to Gujarat. However, first batch of Nano cars would be delivered from Uttarakhand plant.

People would find interest to see the cheapest car in the world. The Nano car project would make a middle class family eager to have their own car.

Three companies submit EoI to Satyam

L&T, Spice Corp and Tech Mahindra have submitted their expression of interest (EoI) to participate in the open auction to acquire 51 per cent of controlling stake in Satyam Computers Services.

According to media reports iGATE decided not to participate in the process of auction for Satyam' stake. The three companies have expressed their interest.

The Spice Corp spokesperson confirmed that the company submitted the EoI with proof of availability of cash of Rs 1,500 crore. Tech Mahindra also presented cash proof along with the EoI for the auction.

Tatas eyeing 10 lakh Nano bookings in two weeks

The world's cheapest car, Nano to hit Indian market on March 23. Just are couple of days the dream car of Tata Motors would be seen on Indian roads.

According to media reports, the company is likely to book a whopping 10 lakh cars in the first fortnight starting March 23. In 1995-96, the Fiat Uno got 2.90 lakh bookings in India, which was considered as best bookings record in India.

The first batch of Nano cars will roll out from the Pantnagar plant in Uttarakhand, which has a capacity to produce only 3,000 cars per month.

India’s GDP to slowdown this, next fiscal too: IMF

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects India’s economy to slow down to 6.25 per cent GDP growth this fiscal and further to 5.25 per cent in 2009-10, reflecting the ‘deteriorating’ global outlook.

There is impact of the global slowdown in India. The projection of by IMF indicates that the impact of global slowdown would remain in 2009-10 also. The international crude price have been seen at stable in the international market.

The current account deficit is projected at about three per cent of GDP this fiscal, primarily due to a markedly higher oil import bill. For 2009-10 the current account deficit is forecast to narrow to 1.5 per cent of GDP reflecting lower oil prices and weaker domestic demand.

Montek brushes aside fears of deflationary phase in economy

Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Thursday allayed fears of the country sliding into a deflationary phase and termed the current low level of inflation as good for the economy.

The annual inflation rate in India has touched to ever lowest to 0.44 per cent. The deflation like situation would be there in the nation if the fall in the inflation continues for six months.

The fall of inflation from double digit to zero level was what big concern for the economy. The anti-inflationary measures by the RBI and the central fiscal policies curbed the high inflation rate. However, the retail price index was not down as the wholesale price index.

BJP's IT Vision Document for Indian IT sector

Its election time in India and parties gearing up for Indian General Elections and Assembly Elections. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced its IT vision 30 pages document. It is reported that the IT vision of BJP is getting attention of IT firms in India.

According to media reports, most IT firms opine that the IT Vision of BJP is a good omen for the domestic IT industry. The IT sector in India has been buckling under the pressure of the global meltdown.

The announcement of the IT vision of BJP would be favourable for Indian IT sectors. It announces creation of 12 million IT-enabled jobs for rural India; providing of laptops to 10 million students at Rs 10,000 per piece; immediate implementation of VoIP; protection of domestic hardware manufacturers against imports and promotion in the usage of open source software.

There is need to pay more attention for to protect the IT sector from the global financial crisis. And the foremost duty of the government which comes into the power would be protecting the job loss and market. All the sectors are affected due to the global slowdown and need special attention to check the impact of global slowdown.

Inflation drops to 0.44% a historic low

The annual inflation rate in India has touched the historic low of 0.44 per cent for the week ended March 7. Previous week the inflation was recorded at 2.43 per cent.

The Wholesale Price Index for all commodities stood at 226.7 (WoW). Earlier, the lowest figure of annual inflation of 1.13 per cent was recorded on Feb 2, 2002. The current rate of annual inflation is historic one, but there might not be huge fall in retail price index.

The inflation rate last year was 7.78 per cent. It seems that the India is ready to welcome the deflation saying bye to the inflation. There is not the imminence of deflation, but the possibility of negative inflation persisting for a good six months.

Deflation can also come due to high base effect, which is an impact of high inflation last year on the current level of the rate of price rise, Goldman Sachs said, according to media reports.

Nokia to lay off 1700 worldwide

The world's largest mobile phone maker Nokia will be trimming its workforce by 1,700 employees worldwide, as part of the company's cost cutting efforts, according to media reports.

The world's top mobile phone maker Nokia said the job cuts will affect several sectors, including its devices and markets units, the corporate development office and global support functions.

These measures are part of its previously announced plans to adjust business operations and cost base in accordance with market demand and safeguard future competitiveness.

Nokia last year remained the No.1 cell phone maker selling 468 million handsets, up 7 percent on 2008. It employs 128,400 people worldwide.

BPL Mobile is now Loop Mobile

BPL Mobile Communications has changed its name to Loop Mobile following the expiry of its brand-use agreement with the BPL Group owned by TPG Nambair, according to media reports. -

BPL Mobile communication is one of the oldest mobile telecom services providers in the country. The telecom brand, which has been in existence since 1995, with a subscriber base of around 2.1 million users across Mumbai.

The BPL Mobile Director and CEO Sanjeev Chachondia says the new name of appeals to the youth of the country. Chachondia said the change in brand would not give rise to any issues, as there was no change in ownership or shareholding.

Maytas Infra seeks more time for Hyderabad Metro Project

Maytas Infra Ltd, promoted by the family of beleaguered Satyam Computer Services founder B Ramalinga Raju, has approached the Andhra Pradesh government for three months of extension for financial closure of Hyderabad Metro project.

The deadline for achieving financial closure of Rs 12,132 crore Hyderabad Metro project came to an end on Tuesday. The company will now have to submit a Rs 240 crore bank guarantee and will get a 60-day breather by paying penalty, the media reports quote.

Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL) Chairman CVSK Sarma said Maytas had sought a six-month extension.

ICAI extends deadline for PW auditors in Satyam Case

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) today, has extended the deadlines given to four auditors of Price Waterhouse (PW) to respond to the show-cause over the Satyam Scam.

For the second time the ICAI has extended the deadline for PW auditors. On Tuesday the president of ICAI, Uttam Agarwal said the PW auditors had requested for “reasonable and realistic time considering the volume of records.”

The ICAI had issued notices to members of PW, Bangalore in January 10 seeking explanationation over auditing process of PW in Satyam case. P Shiva Prasad, CH Ravindranath, Srinivas Talluri and S Gopalakrishnan are given additional time till April 2 to reply to the show-cause notices issued by ICAI.

LIC Housing cuts rates for existing borrowers

LIC Housing Finance Limited has announced a further cut in interest rates of 75 basis points for its existing home loan borrowers following a reduction in its cost of funds, according to media reports.

According to the company, interest rates for existing customers would be reduced on EMIs falling due on April 1, 2009, payable on May 1, 2009. It is good time for the existing borrowers of LIC Housing Finance Limited and they need to pay less towards their home loan.

For the second time the LIC Housing has reduced the interest rate in past three months. LIC Housing had earlier reduced 75 basis points for its existing home loan borrowers on EMIs due from January 1, 2009.

PC, laptop sales down 19 per cent in the third quarter

The sale of desktop computers and laptops dropped by 19 per cent in the third quarter, the last three months of 2008. It is the impact of the global slowdown on Indian market.

The Manufacturers Association for Information Technology (MAIT) on Monday announced its quarterly industry performance review. According to the association the 1.4 million units of desktop computers and notebooks were sold in the third quarter.

The sale indicates a decline of 19 per cent. The consumption of servers fell 49 per cent in the third quarter, with only 21,000 units being sold. The association expects that the sale may increase in January-March this fiscal year.

Satyam loses 46 customers to rival tech firms

Satyam Computer Services loses 46 customers due to the fraud in the company. The clients of Satyam have moved their outsourcing contracts to rival tech firms like - TCS, IBM, Wipro, and Accenture.

Satyam has from around over 600 existing customers across the globe. And the loss of projects would be hit the business of the scam hit company. The financial bidding for the company depends on the business the comapany does.

Satyam's clients - Applied Materials, Kansas State Bank, Telstra, Emerson, Nissan, State Farm Insurance and Sony have reportedly either moved out of their projects, or are in process to shift their on going projects to other outsourcing vendors.

HCL Tech wins $350-m deal from Reader’s Digest

IT services firm HCL Technologies has bagged around Rs 1,780 crore ($350-million) IT outsourcing services order from The Reader’s Digest Association Inc (RDA), according to media reports.

The tenure of the contract would be seven years and the annual run rate is $50 million. The contract will also include taking some of RDAs employees on to HCLs rolls.

HCLs solution to RDA is based upon creation of globally focused business transformation centre of excellence (CoEs) for global fulfilment, marketing, digital interactive, and shared business services leading to media, publishing, and entertainment domain led innovation.

RBI to buy back bonds on two days this week

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will buy back bonds from the bond market on two days this week. The RBI would buy bonds totaling Rs 20, 000 crore on Monday and Thursday through Open Market Operation (OMO) auction.

Under Open Market Operation the RBI undertakes to buy and sell Government Securities from participants in the financial markets. The operations could be undertaken on an outright basis or repurchase agreements. The objective of OMO is to absorb or provide liquidity in the market.

The RBI also announced market-friendly securities for the scheduled Rs 10,000 crore auction to be held on March 20, 2009. The bonds to be auctioned are the 6.72% 2014 bond for Rs 4,000 crore and the 6.05% 2019 bond for Rs 6,000 crore, according to media reports.

Marginal hike in jet fuel prices

State-owned oil firms have raised the price of aviation turbine fuel (ATF) marginally by Rs 158 per kilolitre on an average, according to media reports.

The price of ATF in Delhi will be Rs 27,275 per kl instead of earlier price of Rs 27,106 per kl. In Mumbai the price will be Rs 28,023 per kl, before the rise the price was Rs 27,861 per kl. This is the second time since September last year that the public sector oil firms have raised ATF prices.

The rate of the ATF depends on the crude price in the international market. The price of ATF rose to Rs 71,028.26 per kl (in Delhi) in August as the international crude price touched a historic high of $ 147 per barrel.

Infosys to hire all to whom call letters have been sent

It's really a good news for those got call letter from the IT major Infosys. According to media reports, Infosys would employ all those candidates to whom call letters have already been sent.

Due to the global slowdown, many IT companies have been giving back step toward fresh recruitment. Infosys co-chairman Nandan Nilekani informed media that all the call letters that have been sent out will be honoured.

This is a great respite for all those have received call letters from the company and have not joined so far. They might be in speculation that the global slowdown hit their jobs.

Satyam says bidding gets good response

The board of directors meeting of Satyam Computers was held on Friday and reviewed the responses from bidders. The company has received a good response from Indian and global companies apart from the private equity firms.

Larsen & Toubro, Tech Mahindra and BK Modi’s Spice Corp are among other bidders in the race. It is noteworthy that these three companies are the shareholders of the company. Former Chief Justice of India S P Bharucha will oversee the bidding process of Satyam Computers.

Tata Communications drops option of rights issue

Tata Communications, formerly VSNL, has drooped the option of rights issues as of now and will incur capital expenditure of (capex) of $ 400-500 million in 2009-10, according to media reports.

The company has also clarified that it has no cash crunch. Srinivasa Addepalli, the Corporate Strategy Senior Vice President informed to media that the company has raised $ 350 million long term debt including bonds.

Tata Communications had differed its decision for a Rs 1,000 crore rights issue besides raising additional debt. The company had also approached its major stakeholders - the government and Tata Sons over the rights issue.

Inflation drops to 2.43 per cent from 3.03 per cent

Inflation drops further to 2.43 per cent for the week ended February 2008 from 3.03 per cent previous week. The annual inflation rate has touched the seven year low figures. There is decline in the Wholesale Price Index.

The fall in the inflation rate will give big respite to the economy as well as household economy. The reduction in the fuel price by the government, could be the major reason for the decline in the inflationary rates.

Last year the inflation rate had touched the double digit figures. There is stability in the global crude market and its prices. Any rise in the crude price in the international market would have impact on Indian economy.

9.2 mn new mobile users in Feb 09

The number of mobile users has been increase day by day. A growth of 3.43 per cent is recorded in the mobile subscribers in February 2009 in India.

According to the data complied by Cellular Operators’ Association of India (COAI), the total GSM subscriber base in the country rose to 277.16 million in February from 267.54 million in January 2009.

Bharti Airtel has topped in adding new subscribers in India. In February 09, Bharati Airtel's subscriber base rose to 91.11 million. Vodafone-Essar added about 2.6 million customers to its total subscriber base.

The company has achieved a growth of 4.9 per in its subscribers while Idea Cellular, AV Birla-promoted, witnessed a rise of 3.75 per cent in its subscriber.

SkodaAuto launches Superb variant

SkodaAuto, a part of Germany-based Volkswagen Group, on Tuesday launched an all-new version of its sedan Superb in the Indian market.

Superb has 1.8 litre 160 bhp turbocharged petrol engine, automatic seven-speed great box and costs around Rs 19 lakh in India.

It also has some extra features such as a front and rear parking sensor, pedal shift for the seven-speed gearbox and eight front and rear seat airbags.

The company also aims to launch a new small car in the coming years and would be priced below its entry-level model Fabia in Indian market. Skoda sold 522 Superb in the last 11 months (April-February 2009), is looking to sell at least 1,000 units in 2009.

TRAI slashes fee for telcos, STD and local calls will be cheaper

The STD and local calls from mobiles will become cheaper up to 20 per cent. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has reduced the termination charges.

The termination charge is a charge paid by operators each other for every phone call. The TRAI on Monday announced 33 per cent reduction in charges operators pay each other. The TRAI said that telecom companies will pay a termination charge of 20 paise a minute compared with 30 paise at present.

Calls will be cheaper from 1st April. However, calls made to India from overseas will cost a bit more (less than a cent/minute) from April, as Trai has allowed Indian telecom companies (telcos) to charge foreign operators up to 33% more for terminating overseas calls in India, according to media reports.

Car sales rise 22% in Feb

Passenger car sales rise 22 per cent in February, after a consistent drop since September 2008 on year-on-year basis. Due to the global meltdown, there were drop in sales since September last year.

Society of Indian Automobile Industry (SIAM) has complied the data with shows the rise of 22 pen cent in the sales passengers cars in India. 1.15 lakh unit passenger cars were sold in the month of February. But there is fall in sale of commercial vehicle in India.

Maruti’s sales rose 19% to 70,625 units and Hyundai posted an increase of 45.3% to 21,215 units in February in the domestic market. But a few auto makers such as General Motors, Mahindra Renault, Skoda and Toyota saw their sales dip last month compared with the corresponding month, a year ago.

Nano launch: Tata Motors, PSU banks tie-up

Tata Motors targets the rural market for its small car 'Nano' launch in this month. Tata Motors' aggressive push towards PSU banks in the last few weeks is a clear strategy to strengthen its rural presence as PSU banks have significant market penetration in these areas, CNBC- TV 18 reports.

The one- lakh car may good response in the rural areas and semi-urban areas of the nation. It seems that the company is expecting huge sale in those areas. The finances schemes would help middle class families to go for Nano.

Tata Motors has tied up with Punjab National Bank, Corporation Bank, Central Bank, Bank of India, and State Bank of Patiala. Nano will launch on March 23.

Subhiksha MD has to pay Rs 1.76-cr PF dues

Subhiksha Trading Services said its managing director R Subramanian will need to pay Rs 1.76 crore immediately in provident fund dues, according to media reports.

It is reported that Provident Fund Commissioner, Chennai has begun a 7-A enquiry for determining the EPF dues of Sibhiksha. The EPFO in Chennai would attach the property of Subramanian for the collection of dues.

The company said that it was unable to pay salaries and arrears to its 15,000 employees from October last year. However, the company made it clear that it has repaid a loan of Rs 15 crore to one of its shareholders, the media reports quote.

Raju sent to CBI custody for 7 days

Ramalinga Raju the former Chairman of Stayam Computers and seven others accused Satyam scam have been sent to CBI custody for seven days. A court in Hyderabd on Moday has granted to CBI their custody.

They would be produced in court at 4 p.m. on March 17 upon the completion of custody period. Besides Ramalinga Raju, his brother Rama Raju, the former Chief Financial Officer of the company Srinivas Vadlamani and Price Waterhouse auditors S. Gopalakrishnan and Talluri Srinivas would be in the custody of CBI.

Karnataka IT exports to fall by 5 per cent: Officials

Karnataka is the IT state of India as it accounts of one-third of India's total IT export. But the IT export from the state is expected to fall by 5 per cent in this fiscal.

Ashok Kumar C Manoli, IT Secretary of Karnataka told media that the due to the global meltdown the IT export of Karnataka would fall by five per cent for the year 2008-09 with comparing the figures of previous year.

In 2007-08, the state received Rs 56,500 crore from the IT export. Major companies of India and based in the state had great contribution in the IT export from the state. This time due to the global crisis the export would hit.

The state is also hub for ITES, BPO, KPO companies besides IT majors of the country. But the global slowdown hit all most all the companies. The companies have been adopting cost cutting measures to check the impact of the global financial crisis.

TCS likely to lay off 1,300 staffers

India's IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) will lay off around 1,300 employees over next few months, according to media reports. The company has around 1.3 lakh employees.

TCS is one of teh major IT companies in India. Due to the global meltdown, the IT companies in India have been adopting cost-cutting measures and improving productivity. In order to minimize the impact of the global financial crisis, companies need to have more strategic plannings.

The lay offs in IT majors reveal the impact of the global slowdown on their business. If the situation continues then the number of job loss would be higher than the speculated figures.

4 lakh diamond polishers lose jobs in Gujarat

Indian diamond industry is worse hit due to the global slowdown. According to officials figures, 4,317 diamond units out of total 6,547 units were closed in Gujarat. Around 4.13 lakh workers become job-less.

Due to the global financial crisis the demand for diamond fell in the international market. In Gujarat there are 7.10 diamond workers and they are one the edge. The workers associated with the industry have no other option or source of the income.

The job loss due to the global crisis has triggered a spate of suicides claiming over 40 lives in Gujarat alone. The situation would become further worse if the interest of the industry and worker are protected.

Will inflation rise again?

The inflation dropped to around 3 per cent in this year from double digit mark in last year. The fall in the inflation is good for the economy but the question is whether it will remain or increase again. The question may be obvious but experts believe that the inflation may rise again.

In order to check the impact of the global financial crisis the government had come up with three stimulus packages. On the other hand, RBI has lowered the repo and reverse repo rate. In order to tackle the liquidity crisis, the RBI had been changing the repo and reverse repo rate since December last year.

These two would be the great factor to boost the inflation rate in India. As due to the excess velocity of currency in the market, the prices would go up. "Too much money chasing to too few goods", can be said in economics term.

Through the stimulus packages the government has also pumped money into the system and meanwhile the election dates are declared. Another concern would be there is fall in the wholesale price index but the retail price index is not decreased. Experts believe that the inflation may rise again and the nation may see another high rise in inflation rate.

ICICI Bank slashes interest rates on new home loans

The ICICI bank delcared cut in the new home loan rates by 25-50 bps, according to media reports. Recently the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) made changes to repo and reverse repo rate. In order toe check the liquidity the RBI had been changing the repo rates since December last year.

According to the new floating rate structure for home loans less that Rs 20 lakhs the interest rates would be now at 9.75 per cent as against 10 per cent earlier. For loans between Rs 20-30 lakhs the rate has been reduced to 10 per cent from 10.5 per cent. And for loans of Rs 30 lakhs and above the interest rates reduced to 11.5 per cent from 12 per cent.

Earlier, the IDBI Bank has slashed the rates on new home loans. It's customers can avail home loans

upto Rs 20-lakh for 9.75 per cent per annum and loans above Rs 20-lakh at 10.25 per cent.

Satyam gets SEBI's approval to sell 51 per cent stake

Satyam Computer Services on Friday received approval from SEBI to facilitate a global competitive bidding process enabling it to sell 51 per cent stake in the company to a strategic investor, accroding to media reports.

The selected investor will be issued fresh equity of 31 per cent and upon a successful closing of the subscription, the investor will be required to make a mandatory minimum public open offer to purchase a minimum of 20 per cent of the company's share capital.

Shares of the company had closed at Rs 35.10, down 7.51 per cent on the BSE yesterday.

Govt approves 29 FDI proposals

The Government of India on Wednesday approved 29 Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposals worth Rs. 616.08 crore and deferred decisions on 19 other FDI proposals.

The Government has permitted AAPC Singapore Pte Ltd. to invest Rs. 365.78 crore in an Indian company for constructing, developing, owning and managing low-budget hotels in the country. The amount of the companies is around 60 per cent of the total FDI amount approved by the government.

The government has allowed Bulk Handling to bring in Rs. 90 crore through FDI for making downstream investments. Likewise, Cinema Capital Ventures Fund — the country’s first regulated venture fund in the media and entertainment sector — has been permitted to fetch Rs. 50 crore in foreign exchange for investment in the fund.

Inflation drops to 3.03 per cent from 3.36 per cent

Inflation dropped to 3.03 per cent for the week ended 21 February from 3.36 per cent. Wholesale price index for all commodities down by 0.1% for the week ended 21 Februrry.

The slide in the inflation rate and WPI are the good indication for the Indian economy. Considering the easing inflationary pressure the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the interest rates on Wednesday.

The RBI of India said it was lowering the repo rate, at which it lends to banks, to 5% from 5.5%, effective immediately, according to media reports. Last year the inflation had touched to double digit mark.

New service tax policy for SEZ units

The Government of India has declared a new notification on the levy of service tax for Special Economic Zones (SEZ) developers and units on Tuesday. As per the notification, SEZ developers and units will get an exemption on service tax.

The government has allowed companies located in SEZs to claim service tax refund for services availed outside the tax-free export zones. SEZ developers are also permitted to do the same. They need to first pay the service tax, and then file for refunds within six months of actual payment of service tax.

The SEZ Act was passed by the Parliament in June 2005, the law came into effect in February 2006, though some states, like Gujarat, had passed provincial SEZ legislation in 2004 itself.

Use of Internet in business development

Internet is bless to the world of business, it will help your business grow. The advancement of technology helps entrepreneur to function their activities smooth and complete their tasks in online. Internet ends the geographical barriers, your can expand your business across the globe.

The users of Internet have been growing. In India, in 2007 the Internet users per cent was around 3.7 per cent. There were 188,600 broadband subscribers as of 1Q/2004 per WMRC. Internet users perform may activities including accessing information on websites, Online Banking, Online Trading, Online TV, chat, etc. The business is incomplete without the usage of Internet and access for online information.

Internet is the paradise for the businessmen, where they have everything to learn and implement. They can track the live stock market, go for online trading, live business news etc., Even a live stock ticker a website will be very useful for investors and businessmen to take decision over their investment or to track their returns.

Businessmen can access the live stock market and performance of indices, business news on Online TV. Investors need to keep update themselves each and every hour in this competitive world and they need to get best deal in the market of uncertainty.

Hexaware to cut salary by 2-10 per cent

The IT major, Hexaware Technologies may cut salary by 2 to 10 per cent in a bid to control costs and further improve current utilisation, according to media reports. There is huge impact of global slowdown on Indian companies.

The company also plans to give the 350 employees ‘time-off’ to improve their skills and get re-trained in skills, which are in demand. These are some of the cost cutting measures adopted by many companies in India.

The impact of the global slowdown on India companies is clear visible as companies find new ways for cost cutting measures. "Jobs must be protected even if it means some reduction in compensation,"said Pranab Mukherjee recently.

Indian mobile market: 612 million mobile users in India by 2012

India is the second largest mobile market and hub for the telecom companies. The service providers have the opportunity to shine by increasing their mobile subscribers. Indian youth are passion about latest mobiles and gadgets.

In this huge techie world, the mobile got its popular platform in India. Mobile subscribers look for the advanced features in newly introduced mobiles in the market. Text SMS is one for most popular means of communication among mobile subscribers. Irrespective of age all mobile users use Text SMS and multimedia sms.

According to Business Monitor International, a renowned London-based research firm, 612 million mobile subscribers by 2012 will help India clock a mobile teledensity of roughly 51% by 2012.

Telecom service providers have been chalking out various marketing strategies to attract mobile subscribers by slashing traffic, introducing packages plans, package rate for group Text SMS etc.,

Mobile mania in India is on its peak. New feature mobile sets are now fashion icons for youth and define their style and class. After iPhone, 3G enabled sets finding their ways to Indian market. The rise in mobile subscribers shows that India is becoming popular destination for many telecom companies.

RPL in 1:16 merger with RIL

Relinace Petroleum(RPL) merges with Relinace Industries(RIL), as the boards of the both have approved the merger. The board have agreed merger of the two firms, with a swap ratio of RIL one RIL share for 16 RPL shares.

The merger will be effective from 1st April 2008, while the record date is was not announced yet. There merger will have impact on the share holders too. Experts said that the swap ratio was positive for the RPL share holders.

The impact of the merger was seen on the shares of the both. It is expected that the merger would have also some impact on the trade too.

Indian rupees at record low against US Dollar

Indian rupees is seen at record low at around 51.92 on Monday. In the first day of the week there was volatile in the value of rupees against dollar.

The rupees was closed at 51.92 on Monday and on Friday the rupee touched the mark of 50 against dollar. For last six moths there has been volatile in the exchanges rates. Its the impact of the world forex where the currencies have been traded with ups and downs.

In order to make the rupees strong further in the forex market the Reserve Bank may sale the foreign currency from its reserve. However, the fall in the value of rupees against dollar would not a good indication for the economy.

The Indian rupee is the third-worst performer in the past 12 months among the 10 most-traded Asian currencies, with a 22 percent loss, as the worsening global economy spurred global funds to dump local stocks.