Page 2079 - Business Finance
Railways plans to be flexible on flexi-fare
The flexi-fares in Indian Railways may soon be discontinued in 15 trains in which monthly occupancy is less than 50 per cent throughout the year.According to a proposal, the loss due to removal of flexi-fare in these 15 trains is expected to be around Rs 22.41 crore, however, Indian Railways expects that increase in occupancy by 15 per cent after removal of flexi-fares may compensate the loss and increase in occupancy may, in fact, generate additional revenue.Sources said the proposed changes are based on Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Report that had recommended rationalisation of flexi-fare system to improve occupancy in trains.In addition to this, the Railways is also considering a proposal to discontinue flexi-fares during the pre-defined lean period of three months in 32 trains where unidirectional monthly occupancy has been between 50-70 per cent throughout the previous year. The loss due to removal of flexi-fare in these 32 trains is expected to be Rs 40 crore. However, .
Talks with airlines for flight operations from Jharsuguda:
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Wednesday said talks are on with major airlines for flight operations from the Jharsuguda Airport, a day after chief minister Naveen Patnaik requested the prime minister for introduction of new flights from the airport. Talks are on with major airlines - Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet - for operations from the Jharsuguda Airport, the Petroleum minister, who hails from the state, told reporters here. Patnaik on Tuesday in a letter to the PM had also drawn his attention to Air Odisha "abruptly suspending" its flight operation from Jharsuguda Airport since October 6. Air Odisha got the tender for flight operation from Jharsuguda Aiport after the first round of bidding under the regional air connectivity scheme the Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN). "If necessary, steps will be taken to cancel its flight contract and a fresh tender will be floated for a regular flight from the Jharsuguda," Pradhan said. The Union minister said the Ministry of ...
India will need USD 4.5 trillion for quality infrastructure: Niti Aayog CEO
India needs to spend around USD 4.5 trillion till 2040 to develop infrastructure in order to improve economic activity, Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant said on Wednesday.Addressing an event, Kant further said, "In India we start the project without adequate preparation. We must learn the art of perfection from Japan where not a single thing changes when they start any project."The current trend shows that India can meet around USD 3.9 trillion infrastructure investment but there are certain public-private partnership (PPP) projects which are in arbitration because they were taken up without adequate homework, he stressed."Track record of the last four years in the sector across railways and airport shows that all the spending came from the government. It is better to create an infrastructure through government spending but as the projects complete government should soon move out of it because they are extremely poor at operation and maintaining infrastructure," Kant noted.India achieved a
Plea by Amrapali CMD, 2 others for visiting homes on Diwali rejected by SC
The Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed the plea of the Chief Managing Director (CMD) of Amrapali real estate group Anil Sharma and two other directors seeking permission to visit their homes to celebrate Diwali and other festivals with their family members.The apex court directed that the CMD and two other directors would continue to stay in the Noida hotel under police surveillance. It asked Amrapali to furnish the full and final disclosure about the companies they hold and money transaction that they conduct within the group's companies and outside.A division bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Arun Mishra and also comprising Justice Uday Umesh Lalit, asked the CFO (Chief Financial Officer and CA (Chartered Accountant) of the real estate company, to file an affidavit about the salary and benefits they are getting from the company, keeping in view the report submitted by the forensic auditors that said that they are getting huge benefits from Amrapali.The court fixed the ...
First-ever India-US Dialogue on Intellectual Property begins
The first ever India-US Dialogue on Intellectual Property was launched here Wednesday to deepen bilateral strategic cooperation on IP policy. The dialogue was launched by US Chamber of Commerce's Global Innovation Policy Center (GIPC) and Ficci in partnership with the US-India Business Council. It will be convened annually, alternating between New Delhi and Washington, DC. "Together, experts from both countries developed a stronger understanding of uniform IP frameworks and how to create solutions in a collaborative way. The dialogue recommendations will be shared with both governments to deepen strategic cooperation on IP policy," a statement said. The discussions during the dialogue included a focus on joint opportunities and challenges related to the whole spectrum of IP, including patent filing, regulatory landscape, copyright and infringement, technology transfer, and enforcement. "India has an opportunity to get ahead and form the basis on which it can drive domestic growth and .
United Spirits Q2 up 69% to Rs 258.7 crore
Liquor major United Spirits on Wednesday reported a 68.97 per cent jump in standalone net profit to Rs 258.7 crore for the quarter ended September 2018 helped by improved sales performance. The company had posted a net profit of Rs 153.1 crore in the July-September quarter a-year ago, the Diageo-controlled firm said in a regulatory filing. Its revenue from operations during the quarter under review was at Rs 7,128.2 crore, up 14.70 per cent compared to Rs 6,214.6 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal. According to USL, it "reported net sales increased 14 per cent delivered through the continued strong performance of the Prestige and Above segment, an improved performance in the popular segment as well as benefitting from lapping the impact of the highway ban in the same period last year." Commenting on the results, USL CEO Anand Kripalu said, "We have delivered robust gross margin improvement both in the quarter as well as the first half, driven mainly by savings ..
Govt committed to economic reforms: PM
The government is committed to economic reforms to ensure an environment that fosters investments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Wednesday after India climbed in the World Bank's ease of doing business ranking. "Delighted at yet another rise in India's 'Ease of Doing Business' rank. We are unwavering in our commitment towards economic reforms, which will ensure an environment that fosters industry, investment and opportunities," the prime minister tweeted. In a big boost for his government, India climbed another 23 points in the World Bank's ease of doing business ranking to 77th place, becoming the top ranked country in South Asia for the first time and third among the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India China and South Africa) countries.
Tata Hitachi to invest Rs 250 crore in 2 years
Infrastructure and mining equipment maker Tata Hitachi has lined up Rs 250 crore investment over the next two years in West Bengal and Karnataka despite cost and margin pressure it is facing now, a top official said Wednesday. "We will invest Rs 250 crore in plants of Kharagpur in West Bengal and Dharwad in Karnataka over the next two years," Tata Hitachi managing director Sandeep Singh said Wednesday. He, however, did not elaborate on investment break-up between the two plants. Tata Hitachi has closed down Jamshedpur plant and its capacity has been transfered to Kharagpur site with enough provisions for expansion, he said. Tata Hitachi is the leading investor at Vidyasagar Industrial Park, Khargpur. Singh said this year the company was facing higher cost and margin pressure due to rise in input cost and rupee depreciation. Tata Hitachi is a joint venture between Tata Motors and Japanese outfit Hitachi Construction Manchinery Co with 40:60 per cent shareholding. To ...
Mondelez sets up $15-mn technical centre in Thane
Chocolate and confectionery firm Mondelez International, that makes Cadbury, Wednesday inaugurated its 10th global research, development and quality technical centre in Thane, which has been set up with an investment of USD 15 million. The facility is a part of the company's USD 65-million investment in its worldwide technical centre network to accelerate growth and innovation. The centre will focus on two critical categories for the company - chocolates and beverages - not only in India but around the world. "This is our 10th technical centre in the world and critical part of our global R&D network in the future that will support our business into the next phase of growth," Mondelez International chief growth officer Tim Cofer told reporters here. The other centres around the globe are located in New Jersey in the US; Curitiba in Brazil; Bournville and Reading, both in the UK; Wroclaw in Poland; Singapore; Suzhou in China; Saclay in France and Munich in ...
Tata Motors reveals turnaround plan for Jaguar Land Rover after loss
MUMBAI/BENGALURU (Reuters) - India's Tata Motors Ltd on Wednesday announced a turnaround plan for its luxury car unit Jaguar Land Rover which has been hit hard by trade tensions between China and the US, low demand for diesel cars in Europe and worries over Brexit.
OPEC oil output rises to highest since 2016 despite Iran - Reuters survey
LONDON (Reuters) - OPEC has boosted oil production in October to the highest since 2016, a Reuters survey found, as higher output led by the United Arab Emirates and Libya more than offset a cut in Iranian shipments due to U.S. sanctions.
Syndicate Bank Q2 net loss at Rs 1,543 cr on higher bad loan provisions
State-owned Syndicate Bank Wednesday reported a net loss of Rs 1,542.54 crore in second quarter ended September 30, mainly due to rise in provisioning for bad loans. The bank had posted a net profit of Rs 105.24 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal. Its net loss stood at Rs 1,281.77 crore in the first quarter this fiscal. Total income of the bank also fell to Rs 5,888.87 crore for the reported quarter, as against Rs 6,419.21 crore in the same period a year ago, Syndicate Bank said in a regulatory filing. The bank's bad loans rose for the quarter with gross non-performing assets (NPAs) hitting 12.98 per cent of the gross advances at September-end 2018 from 9.39 per cent at the same time in 2017. Net NPAs also rose to 6.83 per cent as against 5.76 per cent a year ago. In value terms, the gross bad loans (or NPAs) stood at Rs 27,131.14 crore as on September 30, 2018 as against Rs 20,176.64 crore by end of September 2017. Net NPAs were at Rs 13,321.30 crore as against Rs ...
Saudi budget deficit shrinks as revenues surge
Saudi Arabia's budget deficit dropped sharply in the first nine months of 2018 on the back of a surge in oil and other revenues, the finance ministry said on Wednesday. The OPEC kingpin, which has introduced economic reforms aimed at reducing its dependence on oil, has benefited from a sharp rebound in energy prices on world markets. The budget shortfall in the first three quarters of 2018 was $13.1 billion, a 60-percent drop from the same period last year, the ministry said on its website. Oil revenues rose 47 per cent year-on-year to $120.6 billion while non-oil income jumped 48 per cent to $56.3 billion, it said. The kingdom, the world's top crude oil exporter, has posted a budget deficit every year since oil prices crashed in 2014. In the past four fiscal years, it posted a total shortfall of around $260 billion and has projected a deficit of $52 billion for 2018. The ministry said that expenditure in the first nine months of 2018 rose by 25 per cent to $190 billion. The rise in ..
BIZ-WB-RANKING-TABLE
India's rank jumps 23 notches to 77th in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business 2019. Following are the 10 parameters which the World Bank took into account while rating India. The table below shows improvement in various parameters. 2016 2017 2018 1. Starting a Business 155 156 137 2. Dealing with Construction Permits 185 181 52 3. Getting Credit 44 29 22 4. Protecting Minority Investors 13 4 7 5. Paying Taxes 172 119 121 6. Getting Electricity 26 29 24 7. Registering Property 138 154 166 8. Trading Across Borders 143 146 80 9. Enforcing Contracts 172 164 163 10.
Slowing Chinese demand, supplies to weigh on rubber prices in 2019: association official
MUMBAI (Reuters) - Natural rubber prices are unlikely to recover in 2019 from their lowest level in more than two years as demand growth is faltering in top consumer China amid rising supplies, the Association of Natural Rubber Producing Countries (ANRPC) said.
Preview: European banks braced for fallout from EU stress tests
LONDON (Reuters) - Italian banks are expected to be in focus again when results of the latest stress test of top European lenders are released this week, a health check that could force laggards to raise capital or ditch assets.
Goyal's 'gift': Railways takes on airlines by offering discounts
To give airlines a run for their money, the Indian Railways plans to lure more passengers by revoking the flexi-fare scheme in some trains and offering discounts in others.
Walmart India to spend $500 million to open 47 stores: report
(Reuters) - Walmart Inc's India unit will invest about $500 million to open 47 stores in the country by 2022, CNBC-TV18 reported on Wednesday, citing the Press Trust of India news agency.
Iraq oil minister says crude price 'fair', aims to hike output capacity
BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's new oil minister Thamer Ghadhban said on Wednesday the current price of crude was "fair" and that the country, OPEC's second-largest producer, would act responsibly in providing ample supplies to the market.
Global funds raise U.S. stock holdings to multi-year highs
LONDON (Reuters) - Global investors raised exposure to U.S. assets in October, increasing holdings of American stocks to the highest in at least five years and snapping up bonds, with fund managers optimistic Wall Street can avoid a full bear-market reversal before 2019.