Page 3425 - Business Finance
Temasek to invest in UST Global
: UST Global, a leading digital transformation solutions company, today saidTemasek, a global investment company, would invest $250 million and acquire a minority stake in the company. 'Definitive agreements' in this regard have been reached between UST and Temasek, the Singapore headquartered company, UST Global officials told reporters here. Temasek is the first institutional investor in UST Global, which is valued at north of $1 Billion, making it the first homegrown unicorn in Kerala IT scene. The investment marks a milestone for UST Global, whose technologies and solutions have helped drive rapid digital progression for its clients. Sajan Pillai, CEO, UST Global, said as the physical and the digital worlds converge, the current leaders of the physical world seek to adjust to the new digital realities and to new emerging competition. UST is perfectly positioned to provide this digital bridge, he said. "The partnership with Temasek will allow us to further ourreach so
Rupee touches 19-month low, ends at 68.61 per dollar
Weakening for the third consecutive day, the Indian rupee touched a 19-month low of 68.70 per dollar on Wednesday due to rising crude oil prices and the ongoing trade war concerns.
UCO Bank stresses on recovery
Uco Bank is mainly focussing on recovery in order to return to profit, its top officials said here today. The state-owned bank is aiming to recover bad loans of around Rs 4,000 crore this fiscal, Uco Bank MD and CEO R K Takkar said on the sidelines of its AGM. "We are looking at various avenues but the main one is recovery. Our provisioning coverage ratio at more than 60 per cent is quite healthy. So once resolutions under the NCLT happen, either through OTS (one-time settlement) or normal recovery channels, it will help us in not only reducing our NPAs but also writing back some of the provisions depending on the haircut we will have to take," Takkar said. He was also hopeful of the bank registering profit and coming out of RBI's Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) framework in the next two years. RBI had initiated PCA against the city-based bank in May in view of its high NPA and negative return on assets (RoAs). Uco Bank has exposures to nine of the 12 large stressed ...
Punjab cabinet approves disinvestment of loss making PSUs
To bridge revenue and fiscal deficits and raise funds for the cash-crunched state exchequer, the Punjab Cabinet today approved the disinvestment of three ailing PSUs. The process of divestment of the loss-making Punjab Communications Limited (PUNCOM), Punjab Financial Corporation (PFC) and Punjab State Industrial Development Corporation (PSIDC) will be carried out by a core group of officers, to be set up under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary, along with a Transaction Adviser. This was revealed here by an official spokesperson after a meeting of the Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, which took the decision based on the recommendations of Punjab Governance Reforms and Ethics Commission (PGREC). Besides the Chief Secretary, other members of the Core Group would include Principal Secretary Finance, Principal Secretary to Chief Minister, Administrative Secretary of the concerned Department and Managing Director of the concerned PSUs. The committee has been ...
NCLAT declines to stay ElectroSteel's delisting
The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) today refused to stay the delisting process of debt-ridden firm ElectroSteel Steel under the resolution plan by its bidder Vedanta Ltd. A two-member bench headed by Chairman Justice S J Mukhopadhaya refused to stay delisting of Electrosteel Steel, over the plea filed by Renaissance Steel, whose bid was rejected by the Committee of Creditors (CoC) of the debt ridden firm. The appellate tribunal said that any steps over Electrosteel would be subject to the outcome of its final decision. The NCLAT is already hearing a petition filed by Renaissance Steel, challenging the Vedanta's bid for Electrosteel. Earlier, on May 30, the NCLAT had allowed Vedanta Ltd to make an upfront payment of Rs 5,320 crore to lenders for acquiring Electrosteel Steels. The bench had also clarified that this payment would be subject to the outcome of the petition filed by Renaissance Steel challenging Vedanta's bid. "It is made clear that if the appeal preferred .
Maha clears notification for 'annual startup week'
The Maharashtra State Innovation Society, the nodal authority responsible for implementing the startup policy, has decided to host an annual startup week, to be held every February, following the state cabinet passing a resolution in this regard today. The event aims to provide startups with a platform to showcase their products and services in exchange for government work orders that enable startups to demonstrate 'proof of concept', according to the notification. The state government had launched the Maharashtra State Innovative Startup Policy in February this year, with the vision of catalysing the growth of an innovation-driven entrepreneurial ecosystem to achieve wholesome and inclusive socio-economic development. This also would help pave the way for access to the business-to-government market segment for startups in the long-term, it said. The policy will also handhold select promising startups to expand to overseas markets. In addition, this would modernise ...
Cabinet apprised of the MoU between India and Indonesia on Technical Cooperation in the field of Railways sector
The MoU will provide a framework of cooperation for focused approach in following key areas:-
BSE SME aims to list 300 firms on its platform by Dec
The BSE SME Platform hopes to list 300 companies on its platform by December this year, a senior exchange official said. "As on today 254 SMEs are listed on BSE SME platform having a market capitalisation of Rs 21,000 crore. Nearly 46 companies have filed for listing, of which 20 SMEs have received approvals and we hope that 300 SMEs will get listed on our platform by December 2018," BSE SME head Ajay Thakur told PTI on the sidelines of panel discussion on 'International MSME day' today. Despite the carnage in mid-cap scrips witnessed in the recent past, the SMEs showed lot of progress and the sector is growing rapidly. We are looking at more and more SME companies from tier II and III cities to come forward and list, Thakur said. "MSMEs need to adopt disruptive thinking to take better advantage of the growth dividend opportunity," opined an expert panel at the Edelweiss SME Lending-BSE MSME Day. Union minister Suresh Prabhu, in a message, pointed out that MSMEs are the
Most sugar stocks fall despite ethanol price hike by govt
Most of sugar stocks fell today even as the government hiked ethanol price by almost Rs 3 per litre in a bid to give higher price for sugarcane. Balrampur Chini fell 0.82 per cent to Rs 66.25, Shree Renuka Sugars slipped 1.57 per cent to Rs 12.55, Bajaj Hindushtan Sugar dipped 2.32 per cent to Rs 6.74, Thiru Aroonan Sugars tanked 2.39 per cent to Rs 26.55. However, Dhampur Sugar advanced 0.89 per cent to Rs 84.80. The government today decided to raise price of ethanol, used for doping in petrol, by almost Rs 3 per litre to Rs 43.70 in a bid to cut India's oil import dependence as well as give higher price for sugarcane. The sugar industry and even NCP supremo Sharad Pawar had demanded a higher ethanol price to improve the liquidity of cash-starved mills and enable them clear cane arrears. Sugar mills are incurring losses as prices have fallen below production cost on account of record output of 31.5 million tonne in 2017-18 season as against the annual domestic demand of 25 million ...
Exclusive: Thyssenkrupp nears JV compromise deal with Tata Steel - sources
DUESSELDORF/FRANKFURT/LONDON (Reuters) - Thyssenkrupp and Tata Steel are nearing a 15 billion euro ($17.4 billion) deal this week to combine their European assets into a global steel giant, sources familiar with the talks told Reuters.
Indian language Internet users to reach 536 million by 2021
The number of Internet users in Indian languages is expected to reach 536 million over the next four years, contributing 35 per cent of $4.4 billion digital ad spend in the country, says Internet search giant Google.
AllBank hopes to come out of PCA in 2020
State-owned lender Allahabad Bank is targeting to come out of the prompt corrective action (PCA), imposed on it by the Reserve Bank of India in the wake of the deterioration of its health, by 2020, a top bank official said. The bank, whose gross NPA stood at Rs 26,562.76 crore at the end of March 2017-18, is hoping to recover around Rs 5,500 crore in the current fiscal, UCO Bank executive director N K Sahoo said at the sidelines of Allahabad Bank's AGM here today. Sahoo chaired the AGM after the erstwhile CEO and MD of Allahabad Bank Usha Ananthasubramanian's power was taken away after being accused in a CBI chargesheet in the Nirav Modi case. "A roadmap has been submitted to the (finance) ministry. If everything goes well as per our projection, we are expecting to come out of PCA by March 2020," he said. "We expect Rs 3,000 crore recovery through resolutions in NCLT courts and another Rs 2,000 crore through normal recovery process and Rs 400-500 crore through asset ...
Gold shines, silver rebounds on firm global cues
Gold prices rose by Rs 105 to Rs 30,545 per 10 grams at the bullion market here today following good investor offtake as well as local buying interest amid bullish global cues. Silver prices, too, went up by Rs 135 per kg on increased offtake by industrial units. Standard gold (99.5 per cent purity) moved up by Rs 105 to end at Rs 30,545 per 10 grams from Tuesday's level of Rs 30,440. Pure gold (99.9 per cent purity) also rose by a similar margin to close at Rs 30,695 per 10 grams against Rs 30,590 earlier. Silver (.999 fineness) rose by Rs 135 to end at Rs 39,625 per kg as against Rs 39,490 previously. Globally, gold prices slipped to a new six-month low as the dollar strengthened, making bullion more expensive for buyers using other currencies. Spot gold was down by 0.1 per cent at USD 1,257.99 an ounce in early trade. In other precious metals, spot silver was down by 0.3 per cent at USD 16.20 an ounce.
Govt approves 2 more strategic oil storages
The government today decided to set up two more underground crude oil storages in Odisha and Karnataka to increase emergency stockpile cover by 12 days to 22 days. The Cabinet has approved setting up of 4 million tonne(MT) storage at Chandikhole in Odisha and 2.5 MT storage at Padur in Karnataka, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal told reporters here. He however did not give details of the cost or the timelines, saying this is just an in-principle approval and detailed engineering will decide the two factors. The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The storages will be additional to the existing rock caverns to shore 5.33 MT of crude -- Visakhapatnam (1.33 MT), Mangalore (1.5 MT) and Padur (2.5 MT). "The total 5.33 MT capacity under Phase-1 of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) programme is estimated to supply approximately 10 days of India's crude requirement according to the consumption data for 2016-17. "Cabinet's approval for establishing additional 6.5 MT SPR ...
Govt hikes ethanol price to Rs 43.7/L to boost production for fuel blending programme
The government today hiked price of ethanol, used for doping in petrol, by almost Rs 3 per litre to Rs 43.70 in a bid to cut India's oil import dependence as well as give higher price for sugarcane. India, which is over 80 per cent dependent on imports to meet its oil needs, has mandated blending of up to 10 per cent ethanol in petrol but inadequate availability has restricted this to under 4 per cent. Higher price for ethanol extracted in the process of making sugar from sugarcane will incentivise higher ethanol production. The higher price for this grade of ethanol produced from C-molasses will be for sugar marketing year starting December 2018, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal told reporters after a meeting of the Union Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. For the first time, the government also fixed the price of ethanol produced from intermediary or B-molasses at Rs 47.49 per litre -- a move that would help mills divert cane juice for ethanol manufacturing during surplus .
Anup Chandra Pandey to be next UP chief secretary
Senior IAS officer Anup Chandra Pandey will be the next chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh, a senior official said today. Pandey had played a key role in the investors summit organised in February this year by the state government. A 1984 batch IAS officer, Pandey, who presently is the UP Industrial and Infrastructure Development Commissioner, will take charge from Rajive Kumar who retires on June 30, an official spokesperson said here. Pandey presently is also the additional chief secretary (institutional finance) and chairman of the Greater Noida authority.
Sunil Subramaniam elevated as Sundaram AMC's MD
Sundaram Asset Management Company Ltd today said its Chief Executive Officer Sunil Subramaniam has been elevated as the company Managing Director with immediate effect. Subramaniam, who is also on the Board of Sundaram Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd, replaces Harsha Viji, a statement said here. "The Sundaram brand has stood for trust over the past 60 years and under Sunil's able leadership the company will reach new heights", Viji was quoted as saying in the statement. Subramaniam is also on the Board of Sundaram Asset Management Singapore Pte. Ltd. In the last three years, Sundaram Asset Management's AUM (assets under management) grew more than 72 per cent from Rs 22,169 crore on July 1, 2015 to Rs 38,166 crore on May 31, 2018. "We are growing on all fronts. But my focus going forward will continue to be the retail investor", Subramaniam said on his elevation. 57-year-old had Subramaniam joined the company in September 2005 and has held several positions, ...
Oil marketing companies tumble up to 8 pc as crude oil prices rise
Shares of oil marketing companies (OMCs) fell up to 8 per cent today as crude oil prices increased in global markets. Crude oil was trading higher by 0.83 per cent at Rs 4,855 per barrel in futures market today. Reacting to this, the scrip of Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd settled for the day at Rs 277.05, down 7.45 per cent per cent over its previous closing price. The stock of Indian Oil Corporation tanked 6.18 per cent and was quoted at Rs 156.25 at the end of today's trading session while Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) was quoted down 8.04 per cent at Rs 383.65 on the BSE. At the Multi Commodity Exchange, crude oil for delivery in July rose by Rs 40, or 0.83 per cent, to Rs 4,855 per barrel in a business turnover of 2,121 lots. Analysts said speculators built fresh positions after oil prices rose in Asia as the US pressured allies to stop buying Iranian crude. This mainly led to rise in crude oil prices in futures trade here. "Downstream oil and gas companies have ...
NSE to conduct mock, live trading sessions on DR site next month
Leading exchange NSE today said that it will conduct live and mock trading sessions on its disaster recovery site next month for various segments. A disaster recovery (DR) site is necessary for all critical institutions like exchanges so that operations can be done in a smooth and seamless manner if any extraneous event affects the functioning of the main trading centre in Mumbai. According to three separate NSE circulars, the mock trading sessions will be conducted from the disaster recovery site on July 7 and live trading sessions on July 9 and 10. The exchange "shall be conducting trading sessions (mock and live)" from its DR site, NSE said. The segments for which trading sessions will be held include 'Securities Lending and Borrowing Market', 'Debt Trade' and 'Mutual Fund Service System Trade'. The exchange has requested its members to actively participate in the mock trading sessions to check the connectivity and to avoid login problems in live trading sessions from the DR ...
Australia Stocks end softer
Investors focused on the simmering trade tensions are awaiting more clarity from the White House on its plans. President Donald Trump signaled he may take a less confrontational path toward curbing Chinese investments, backing down from earlier reports that the U.S. would bar Chinese money in certain technologies.