Page 1161 - Business Finance
Himachal woos Karnataka firms to invest in hill state
Pitching for investments in diverse sectors in the hill state, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday urged companies based in Karnataka to extend their operations to the northern region.
Now both external, internal trade under Commerce & Industry Ministry
The government's decision to bring internal and external trade under the commerce and industry ministry will ensure better coordination, and help in promoting growth of both segments of the trade, an official said. The government Wednesday renamed the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) as the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). With this, the issues concerning promotion of internal trade, including retail trade; welfare of traders and their employees; matters relating to facilitating ease of doing business; and startups will dealt by the DPIIT under the ministry. Earlier issues related to internal trade was looked after by the consumer affairs ministry. "Now, both the external and internal trade issues will be handled by one ministry," the official said. The DIPP was so far framing policies only related to foreign direct investment. The move assumes significance as Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu in April last year had asked .
Anthem speeds up pharmacy benefits launch, shares jump 10 percent
(Reuters) - Anthem Inc surprised Wall Street on Wednesday by moving up the launch of its in-house pharmacy benefits management business, sending shares 10 percent higher as investors welcomed the decision after rival health insurers signed multibillion-dollar deals joining forces with PBMs.
Boeing shares soar on profit, aircraft forecast but storm clouds loom
(Reuters) - Boeing Co shares jumped on Wednesday as the world's largest planemaker raised its profit and cash flow expectations for 2019 amid a boom in air travel, while indicating it had overcome supplier delays that snarled 737 production last year.
Global Markets: Stocks rise on Apple, Boeing before Fed statement
NEW YORK (Reuters) - World stocks and the dollar rose on Wednesday ahead of policy guidance from the Federal Reserve, with results from Boeing and Apple and data that showed U.S. private sector jobs increased more than expected in January reassuring investors.
Chanda Kochhar terminated by ICICI Bank, four months after she quit as CEO
Chanda Kochhar, who had resigned as CEO and MD of ICICI Bank nearly four months back, was terminated on Wednesday and all her entitlements were revoked by the bank.The action by the bank came six days after the CBI booked her along with her businessman husband Deepak Kochhar and Videocon MD Dhoot and a few others for criminal conspiracy in an alleged loan fraud case. In a statement issued by the bank on the findings of the Enquiry Report of Justice (Retd) BN Srikrishna, ICICI Bank said: "Following the receipt of the Enquiry Report, and due consideration of the Enquiry Report and the conclusions thereat, after due deliberations, the Board of Directors decided to treat the separation of Ms Chanda Kochhar from the bank as a 'Termination for Cause' under the bank's internal policies, schemes and the Code of Conduct, with all attendant consequences (including revocation of all her existing and future entitlements such as any unpaid amounts, unpaid bonuses or increments, unvested and ...
Gold eases off eight-month peak as investors brace for Fed
(Reuters) - Gold inched lower on Wednesday but stayed close to its highest in more than eight months as the dollar ticked up on better-than-expected U.S. private-sector jobs data and investors waited to hear about the Federal Reserve's decision on monetary policy.
Wall Street gains after Apple, Boeing results
(Reuters) - U.S. stocks jumped on Wednesday, as relief after Apple Inc's earnings and an upbeat report from Boeing Co eased nerves as investors waited for updates from the Federal Reserve and U.S.-China trade talks.
Investcorp enters India by acquiring IDFC's PE, realty investment management biz
Investcorp, which manages alternative investment products, Wednesday said it has started operations in India by acquiring private equity and real estate investment management business of IDFC Alternatives. The acquisition, already approved by the Securities and Exchange Board of India, is expected to close on January 31, 2019. "This transaction will mark Investcorp's entry into India and is in line with the firm's long-term strategy of expanding its investment footprint and client franchise globally," the company said in a statement. The combined assets under management (AUM) of the Indian private equity and realty estate businesses are about USD 430 million. The PE business currently has two active funds. The team focuses on investing in consumption driven businesses within the healthcare, consumer products, financial services, food and agriculture, media and telecom sectors. The real estate business also has two active funds. The current funds provide structured senior credit within
Indian Oil Q3 profit plunges 91%
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) on Wednesday reported a 90.9 per cent plunge in net profit for the third quarter ending December at Rs 716.82 crore caused by inventory losses on account of falling oil prices.
E-biz FDI rules: Flipkart, Amazon continue to push for Feb 1 deadline extension
Two days before the new e-commerce rules kick in, e-commerce giants Walmart-backed Flipkart and Amazon are still hopeful of an extension to the February 1 deadline and are making last-ditch efforts to convince the government that more time is needed for revamping operations. According to multiple industry executives, these two companies continue to engage -- directly as well as through associations and trade bodies -- with government officials seeking to convince them to push the deadline. In December, the government had announced new regulations - under Press Note 2 - that would bar online marketplaces with foreign investments from selling products of the companies where they hold stakes and ban exclusive marketing arrangements. Another provision states that the inventory of a vendor will be seen as controlled by a marketplace, if over 25 per cent of the vendor's purchases are from the marketplace entity, including the latter's wholesale unit. These changes are expected to hit Amazon
Coal India likely to buy back shares worth Rs 1,065 crore
The proposed buy back of shares by Coal India Ltd (CIL) is likely to be worth Rs 1,065 crore and nearly 72 per cent of the amount will go to the government, company sources said on Wednesday. The government currently has around 72-per cent stake in the mining major. Earlier in the day, CIL had announced that its board will meet on Monday to consider and approve buy back of shares of the company. "Board meeting of the company is scheduled on Monday, the February 4, 2019 interalia to consider and approve buyback of the fully paid up equity shares of the company having face value of Rs 10 each," the company said in an exchange filing. The buy back exercise will take place in two steps, the sources said. "First, Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd, South Eastern Coalfields Ltd and Northern Coalfields Ltd (all CIL subsidiaries) will buy back their shares worth Rs 355 crore each from the parent," one of the sources said. Thereafter, Coal India will buyback own shares from shareholders out
Ministry of Corporate Affairs to probe allegations against Dewan Housing: sources
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's Ministry of Corporate Affairs will look into allegations of financial mismanagement against Dewan Housing Finance Corp Ltd (DHFL), two government sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.
Heritage Foods posts 20% growth in net profit
Heritage Foods Ltd (HFL) on Wednesday reported a growth of 20 per cent in net profit during the third quarter which ended in December 2018.
Tomin Thachankery removed as KSRTC MD
The Kerala government Wednesday removed senior IPS officer Tomin J Thachankery as the Managing Director of the crisis-hit Kerala State Road Transport Corporation. Kochi city police commisisoner M P Dinesh has been appointed in his place. Thachankery, who is the state crime records bureau ADGP, was holding the additional charge of the corporation. The decision to remove Thachankery was taken at the cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday, a government release said. The loss making corporation had recently terminated 3,861 empanelled (temporary) bus conductors following a direction from the high court. The KSRTC had registered a record collection of Rs 45.2 crore, a three fold increase, in collection from its Nilackal-Pamba service at Sabarimala this year against Rs 15.2 crore during the same period last year. The Opposition Congress-led UDF members had raised the termination of the KSRTC employees in the state assembly and walked out Monday
Probe agencies to go after all accused in Chanda Kochhar case
In further trouble for former ICICI chief executive, Chanda Kochhar, and others, the government is understood to have cleared the decks for its investigating agencies and regulatory bodies to take appropriate action as they deem fit against all the accused in the controversial Videocon loan case filed by the CBI last week.
Cong demands independent time-bound probe into allegations against DHFL
The Congress on Wednesday demanded an independent time-bound probe into allegations of irregularities by non-banking finance company DHFL in the name of slum development and rehabilitation in Maharashtra. Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi asked why the RBI, SEBI and the Finance Ministry are not initiating investigation into the alleged "scam" involving "siphoning of Rs 31,000 crore". She also alleged that the government continues to "pressurise" the RBI to lend more money to non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) by absolving transparency and accountability. She also claimed that donation records of BJP do not share the PAN details of such companies as mandated by the Election Commission. "The Congress demands an independent investigation of the charges that have been revealed through this expose and an explanation to the country as to how such a huge financial scam has been once again ignored by the Ministry of Finance," she told reporters, referring to the 'sting' by a ...
Srikrishna panel indicts Chanda Kochhar; ICICI Bank to recover bonuses, stop retirement benefits
In a major embarrassment for ICICI Bank, an independent enquiry has indicted former CEO Chanda Kochhar for violating various regulations, and the lender has decided to stop all unpaid retirement benefits and also recover bonuses paid to her since 2009. The leading private sector lender, which had given a clean chit to Kochhar in the Videocon loan matter, will also treat her resignation as 'Termination for Cause'. The latest development comes days after the CBI filed an FIR naming Kochhar and others in the alleged quid pro quo in extending Rs 3,250-crore loan to Videocon Group. An independent enquiry panel led by Justice (Retd) B N Srikrishna observed that Kochhar violated bank policies and other rules and regulations. Based on the findings of the panel, the ICICI Bank board has advised to take "further actions as may be warranted in the matter". Meanwhile, ICICI Bank CEO Sandeep Bakhshi said in analyst call that the bank has put out a statement about Kochhar, and the lender's role ...
Government announces hike in emoluments for science scholars
After widespread protests seeking revision of research stipends for science scholars, the government has announced a hike in the monthly emoluments, claiming that the move will directly benefit 60,000 fellows.
McDonald's delivers global growth as U.S. challenges persist
(Reuters) - McDonald's Corp's strong performance outside the United States drove better-than-expected results in the final quarter of 2018, as it battled punishing competition at home with initiatives ranging from $1 coffees to Uber Eats deliveries.