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Indian expats saw it coming

Indian expatriate executives seem to have taken the Dubai debacle in their stride and think that this was a bubble waiting to burst and many had actually anticipated this.

India’s stand on climate change gets Sarkozy stamp

India’s stand on climate change got a major boost on Saturday with French President Nicolas Sarkozy asserting that New Delhi will not be a deal-breaker at the upcoming Copenhagen meet on climate change.

Technical snags hit online CAT exams

The first-ever computer-based online Common Admission Test of the Indian Institutes of Management got off to a troubled start on Saturday with the server crashing in some centres, forcing the authorities to reschedule the examination for those affected.

BPOs take a call from tier II & III cities

This is an internal shift. The Indian BPO sector is expected to touch overall revenue levels of $6.8 billion by 2013.

Tata Motors returns to profit on JLR savings

Tata Motors on Friday surprised the Street by reporting a consolidated net profit of Rs 21.78 crore for the September quarter against a net loss of Rs 942 crore in the same quarter last year.

Exporters still confident of the transhipment hub

The Dubai debt crisis may have mauled global equity markets, but Indian exporters are putting on a brave face.

Realtors could be affected if the crisis persists

The Dubai financial crisis would largely bypass the Indian real estate sector for now. Only companies that have receivables from UAE-based buyers and under-developed projects in the emirate could be affected.

MIRAGE!

Indian stock markets, companies and the government on Friday held their breath as concerns grew of reduced global capital inflows as a fallout of the $59-billion debt rescheduling sought by Dubai’s government-run investment company, Dubai World. Across the globe, there was a flight to safe havens as investors, worried about the prospect of a state default on its debt, accumulated dollars. In the process, commodities fell the most since July in one day and the MSCI emerging market index slipped by a sharp 2.6% on the London market....

More PE-backed firms line up for IPOs despite poor peer show

With the revival of the stock markets, private equity-backed companies have begun tapping the market for initial public offerings (IPOs) with gusto. About 16 PE-backed companies have filed draft red-herring prospectus this year to enter the booming market, which has grown more than 70% after March.

Stiff lending rules make India Inc

Though the banking sector is awash with excess liquidity, Indian companies are too cautious with mergers & acquisitions.

Corus dents Tata Steel results; H2 seen better

Tata Steel Ltd—India’s largest and the world’s eighth-largest steel company by output—on Thursday announced a consolidated net loss of Rs 2,719.80 crore for the second quarter ended September.

HC: arbitrary cut-off for 2G licences illegal

In what could prove a major setback to telecom minister A Raja and an embarrassment for the UPA government, the Delhi High Court has held as illegal the telecom department’s arbitrary advancement of a cut-off date for licence eligibility in 2007. This benefited eight companies, who were awarded licences in January 2008. Of them, Unitech Wireless and Swan Telecom have since sold stakes to foreign telecom majors at huge valuations. This arbitrary advancement left the applications of 16 companies, including that of AT&T of the US, in limbo.

Subbarao: boring banking needs new models

RBI governor D Subbarao said India cannot afford “boring banking” and banks cannot afford to continue with “stickiness and non-transparency in lending rates”.

Pitroda resolves spectrum row; 3G auctions on track

Auctions for the third generation (3G) spectrum will be held for all four vacant slots across the country when the government kick-starts the process from January 14.

Lens on power equipment imports

The government has begun the legwork for restricting the surging Chinese power equipment imports and strengthening the market position of state-run equipment supplier Bhel.

Finance panel for 12% GST

The proposed goods & services tax could turn out to be a far more benign impost than anyone expected. In what would amount to a radical tax reform, the 13th Finance Commission is understood to have arrived at a revenue-neutral rate of around 12%, at least 4 percentage points lower than what most believed the combined Centre-state rate would be. According to official sources, in a technical paper the commission is going to release shortly, it would also recommend a substantial broadening of the tax base by including hitherto untaxed...

Nilekani pitches UID to offset bogus ration cards

Even as agriculture minister Sharad Pawar revealed on Tuesday that over 1.5 crore bogus ration cards have been unearthed in the last two months alone, Nandan Nilekani is...

Sensitive sectors to see tougher FDI scrutiny

In a significant departure from current norms, foreign direct investment in some strategic sectors is being moved out of the automatic approval route.

Steel ministry: Centre should license mining

In a move that could fast track multimillion-dollar investments in the mineral sector, the Union steel ministry has proposed that licensing the mining of all strategic minerals—including....

Modi to sell Hot Spot chain

BK Modi-led mobile handset retail chain Hot Spot will soon be up for sale. Started four years ago to sell multi-brand handsets and accessories, the chain has around 600 stores across 70 cities. It is expected to break even in four to six months, which is when the promoters are planning to exit. Sources in the know said the Modis are looking at a valuation of Rs 1,000-1,500 crore, although market sources peg it at Rs 600-700 crore. So far, the promoters have invested around Rs 200 crore in the venture. Company officials said Hot Spot currently loses around Rs 1.5 crore every month, which is significantly down from the Rs 4.5-crore bleed six months ago.

Gold and Sensex likely to test 20k by fiscal-end

On Monday, the price of gold touched an all-time record of Rs 17,534 for 10 grams on the Indian commodities market. On the same day, the Sensex reached 17,180.18, rising by 158 points.

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