Page 1258 - Business Finance
NMDC restarts production from Telangana sponge iron unit
State-owned iron ore miner NMDC Tuesday announced resumption of operations at its sponge iron unit in Paloncha, Telangana. "Sponge Iron Unit (SIU), Paloncha of NMDC has recommenced its operations today with lighting up of plant after a long gap of shutdown due to administrative reasons," the company said in a statement. The plant has started with 50 per cent of its rated capacity due to the shutdown. "However, the plant will be operated at 80 per cent capacity...to achieve breakeven of the expenditure and costs involved," it said adding that the existing capacity of the plant is to produce 100 tonne per day of good quality sponge. The resumption of operations at Paloncha plant will add value to the steel market supported by NMDC, it said.
Rajan pitches for greater trade collaboration across borders in South Asia
Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan on Tuesday made a strong pitch for greater trade collaboration among countries in South Asia, including India and Pakistan, and said neighbours should shed fears about Indian dominance as competition would take care of those concerns. Speaking here at a session on strategic outlook for South Asia during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting 2019, the Chicago University professor said India shares with its neighbours a variety of strengths and challenges. Like its neighbours, job creation is a big challenge for India as well, he said, adding that the country has done exceedingly well in the recent past and there is no reason why it should not continue to grow. Harmonisation also at times create problems as seen in the European Union where excess harmonisation has led to concerns now but South Asia can do a lot more better on that front, he noted. "We have seen Germany and France used to be at each other's throat but they began collaborating ...
UBS sets gloomy tone for Europe's banks
ZURICH (Reuters) - UBS warned of a tough start to 2019, after reporting an outflow of funds from its flagship wealth management business at the end of last year, sending a shiver through the European banking sector.
Imran Khan meets Qatari Emir in Doha
Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan met Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani here on Tuesday, the second and last day of his visit to the conuntry.
EU fines Mastercard 570mn euros for cross-border obstruction
European anti-trust authorities fined Mastercard 570 million euros ($648 million) for obstructing merchants' access to cross-border card-payment services, the European Commission said on Tuesday.
Govt must boost liquidity in realty sector; create Rs 2,000 cr fund for stalled projects: NAREDCO
Realtors' body NAREDCO Tuesday demanded that the Centre should take some steps in the coming Budget to boost liquidity in the sector post NBFC crisis and create a Rs 2,000 crore dedicated fund to complete stalled projects. On the GST, the association welcomed setting up of a group of ministers (GoM) to consider rationalisation of rate. It demanded that the GST should be brought down to 5 per cent with input tax credit (ITC) for affordable housing from 8 per cent, while for other projects the rate should be 8 per cent with ITC from the present 12 per cent. "After the implementation of realty law RERA, the amount of fund required to develop a project has gone up three times as 70 per cent of the money collected from sales needs to parked in an escrow account. NBFCs were funding the sector in a big way to meet this increased fund requirement," NAREDCO's President Niranjan Hiranandani told reporters while discussing pre-budget memorandum submitted by it. "After the liquidity crisis in ...
IL&FS crisis: Ratings of 6 MF schemes under Icra scanner
Icra Tuesday placed ratings of six mutual fund schemes "under watch with negative implications" due to their exposure to debt-ridden Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services (IL&FS). The schemes under watch are HDFC's and UTI's banking as well as PSU debt funds, UTI's bond and dynamic bond fund, Aditya Birla Sun Life's short-term opportunities fund and HDFC's short-term debt fund, the rating agency said in a statement. The rating action takes into account the deterioration in the credit quality of the underlying investments of these schemes driven by their exposure to special purpose vehicle (SPV) of IL&FS. "Icra will continue to monitor the portfolios of these schemes regularly and take appropriate rating action as and when required," it said. Icra noted that these six schemes have exposure to IL&FS SPV -- Hazaribagh Ranchi Expressway or Jharkhand Road Projects Implementation Company or Jorabat Shillong Expressway. The default risks by various SPVs have increased
Tesla to begin Model 3 deliveries in Europe
Electric vehicle maker Tesla has received the go-ahead to begin its Model 3 deliveries in Europe, less than a week after it announced laying off 7 per cent of its full-time employees to reduce costs and increase profits.
At Rs 1050.85 crore, railways' COFMOW clocks best-ever output
Clocking its best-ever performance, railways' centre for procuring advanced machine tools COFMOW has achieved Rs 1050.85 crore output in the current fiscal, a statement said Tuesday. It said the unit's performance for machinery procurement is Rs 634.14 crore, an increase of 97 per cent over the last year. Its rolling stock works is Rs Rs 416.71 crore, which is a rise of 128 per cent. The financial figures for COFMOW or Central Organisation for Modernisation of Workshops are till January 15, 2019. "This will support Indian Railways drive for modernisation of its rolling stock manufacturing and maintenance infrastructure, and soon, to come in terms of the National Policy for Advance Manufacturing (NPAM) and Industry 4.0," the statement said.
Myntra taps 9,000 kirana stores in 50 cities to boost last-mile delivery
Flipkart-owned ecommerce platform Myntra that saw 80 per cent revenue fall in FY2018 has doubled down on last-mile delivery, tapping into over 9,000 kirana stores across 50 cities to fast deliver packages.
Businesses, govts must invest in reskilling to address job loss worries: Wipro CEO
Businesses and governments must invest in reskilling the workforce to address anxiety over impending job losses, Wipro CEO Abidali Neemuchwala said Tuesday. Speaking at a session here at the World Economic Forum's annual meeting, he said businesses must also improve their ability to assimilate cultures. To this end, Wipro is recruiting locally everywhere in the world, hiring as many people in the US, for instance, as it typically hires in India, he said. By 2025, the fifth generation (5G) of mobile telephony technology will be rolled out in 110 countries, bringing unprecedented benefits for consumers, businesses and society, Ken Hu, Deputy Chairman and Rotating Chairman of Huawei Technologies, said at the same panel discussion. In Globalization 4.0, "I believe there will be more focus from business benefit to social value," Hu said, citing the potential of technology to make life better for people living with disability, provide more widespread access to banking services, and grow ...
Renault board to replace Ghosn on Thursday
French carmaker Renault said Tuesday that it would hold a board meeting Thursday to name a replacement for its boss Carlos Ghosn, who remains in custody in Japan over alleged financial misconduct. Sources close to the discussions told AFP that the company would put forward Thierry Bollore to replace Ghosn as chief executive and Michelin chief Jean-Dominique Senard as board chairman. Ghosn currently holds both roles. Renault, part of a powerful alliance with Japanese carmakers Nissan and Mitsubishi, officially declined to comment on Ghosn's replacement, beyond confirming Thursday's board meeting. A trade union source said the meeting would take place at 10:00 am (0900 GMT) on Thursday. Ghosn has already been stripped of his positions as chairman of Nissan and Mitsubishi in the wake of the allegations. The French government, Renault's biggest shareholder with a stake of more than 15 percent, is particularly keen to see the company appoint a new leader. Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire ...
Paris in the spring for Ikea's new city store format
PARIS (Reuters) - Swedish furniture giant Ikea said on Tuesday it will open its first store in the heart of Paris on May 6 as part of its global strategy to launch smaller city centre outlets to meet changing shopping habits.
Hong Kong Market drops 0.7% on growth fears
The International Monetary Fund has warned a further slowdown in global growth in the face of growing trade tensions. The Fund in its latest World Economic Outlook has downgraded its global growth forecast for 2019 to 3.5% and 3.6% for 2020 - 0.2% and 0.1% respectively below its previous prediction. The fund warned that Britain leaving the European Union without a deal and a greater than expected slowdown in China could spark a further deterioration in sentiment and hit global growth, exasperating risks already posed by the deterioration in US-China relations. The IMF called on countries to resolve cooperatively and quickly their trade disagreements and the resulting policy uncertainty, instead of raising barriers further and destabilising an already slowing global economy.
China Market falls on gloomy global growth outlook
The International Monetary Fund has warned a further slowdown in global growth in the face of growing trade tensions. The Fund in its latest World Economic Outlook has downgraded its global growth forecast for 2019 to 3.5% and 3.6% for 2020 - 0.2% and 0.1% respectively below its previous prediction. The fund warned that Britain leaving the European Union without a deal and a greater than expected slowdown in China could spark a further deterioration in sentiment and hit global growth, exasperating risks already posed by the deterioration in US-China relations. The IMF called on countries to resolve cooperatively and quickly their trade disagreements and the resulting policy uncertainty, instead of raising barriers further and destabilising an already slowing global economy.
Cognizant's D'Souza named chairman of WEF IT and Electronics Governors community
Tech firm Cognizant on Tuesday said its Vice Chairman and CEO Francisco D'Souza has been named Chairman of the IT and Electronics Governors community at the World Economic Forum's annual meet in Davos, Switzerland. "The IT and Electronics Governors community is a group of business leaders dedicated to ensuring the long-term sustainability of their industry and society. "A key focus for the community in 2019 will be addressing the industry's challenge of trust and being responsible stewards of data and the many technologies and markets of industry firms, including artificial intelligence," Cognizant said in a statement. D'Souza said that the IT and Electronics Governors community is an effective platform to help the industry address some of the challenges that arise with technology becoming central to business and daily life. "I look forward to working with my peers to identify our agenda and advance key industry initiatives in 2019," he said. The World Economic Forum annual meet in ...
AdvantEdge Founders announces Rs 300 cr consumer technology fund
Early-stage venture capital firm AdvantEdge Founders Tuesday announced Rs 300 crore fund for consumer technologies with a focus on mobility. The firm expects to close Rs 100 crore commitment from investors by March and rest of the Rs 200 crore within this year. "AdvantEdge Founders Fund II has already received commitments of Rs 100 crore from its existing Fund I anchor Limited Partners (LPs) and is on track to secure additional commitments of Rs 200 crore," AdvantEdge Funders said in a statement. Fund II is targeting a first close by March 2019. "We are looking to bring on board leading players in the auto mobility ecosystem including OEMs, component manufacturers, mobility solution providers and aftermarket auto distributors as limited partners in this sector focussed fund," Kunal Khattar, Managing Partner, AdvantEdge Founders said. He said that the fund "aims to close the remaining Rs 200 crore within this year". The firm said that new business models driven by shared mobility, ...
India raises trade deficit, discusses RCEP with China
India on Tuesday raised with China its concerns over the widening trade deficit and doubts over the Beijing-proposed free trade pact, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
High GDP growth, regulatory reforms will boost Indian insurance sector: Moody's
The Indian insurance industry will grow strongly on the back of robust GDP growth and evolving regulations, US ratings multinational Moodys said on Tuesday.
IIFL taps Rs 2000 crore NCD issue to diversify fund sources
The Rs 2000 crore India Infoline Finance (IIFL) secured and non-secured non-convertible debentures (NCD) issue at a high coupon rate is carried to diversify the sources of fund after commercial paper market squeezed post IL&FS crisis, a top company official said. "There will be rise in cost. But, we want to diversify the sources of fund even there will be rise in average cost of fund," IIFL group managing director R Venkataraman told PTI on Tuesday. The NBFC was trying to reduce its dependence on commercial paper which has a share of 24 per cent out of its total fund pool. The average cost of fund is presently at 8.64 per cent as on H1FY19'. Company estimates the additional rise in cost will be 10-15 basis points post NCD issue. The issue offering coupon rate of between 9.5 and 10.5 per cent per annum depending on tenure opened on Tuesday will stay open till February 20. The base issue size is Rs 250 crore with greenshoe option of Rs 1750 crore. Owing to rise in cost