SATYAM CHAIRMAN LETTER...

I am here with providing a link to a copy of letter submitted to the board of directors of satyam. I think, this would be biggest corporate fraud in india....

http://ibnlive.in.com/pdf/RRaju-resignation-letter.pdf

Politics & the Nation

• CIC sits in judgment over Supreme Court's interpretation
• It is perhaps the first ever instance in India when an interpretation (ofcourse not strictly judicial; but administrative) given by the Supreme Court itself was under judicial scrutiny -- albeit in another forum, the Central Information Commission.
• The CIC ruled that Supreme Court has to disclose whether or not judges have been filing their declaration of assets and liabilities.
• Read this interesting report.

Finance & Economics

• Do you have any idea about the number of cell phone towers in the country?
• Reportedly there are over 3 lakh of them.  
• NRIs keep sending money by tons to India.
• Look at this graphic which gives quarterly remittance details over the last couple of years.

International

• Global Innovation Index
• INDIA has slipped to the 41st position from 23rd last year in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2008-09, says a study by industry body CII and B-School INSEAD. The US has topped the rankings once again, followed by Germany, Sweden and the UK. Look at the other members in the top 10.  
  
• Russia -Ukraine gas dispute leaves much of Western Europe cold
• Russian energy giant Gazprom decided to cut exports through Ukrainian pipelines by a fifth in a row over unpaid bills. Russia stopped supplying gas to Ukraine last week.
  
• The row between Russia and Ukraine has been simmering for weeks. Gazprom says Ukraine owes it money; Ukraine says it has paid its debt. The two sides have also failed to agree on the price Ukraine should pay for gas in 2009.
  
• A similar row between Gazprom and Ukraine at the beginning of 2006 led to gas shortages in several EU countries. 
  
• Had India been in the position that Russia is currently (look at this map to understand what I am saying: majority of Russia's gas exports happen through Ukraine), could we have acted the way Mr. Putin has acted?  Calls for lot of guts.  That's the way Mr. Putin is.  I really admire the guy.  Last heard, he has a lion or tiger cub for a pet and keeps himself very fit through regular exercising.  Hallmarks of a strong man; really.
  

Environment

• LOHAFEX and OIF
• This is an experiment that is well worth watching out for.  Its goal is carbon sequestration.  In the context of the world emitting about 7 Gt of carbon every year into the atmosphere, this experiment holds lot of promise and is being keenly watched.
• Read the details of the experiment here.
• US announces largest protected marine area
• It has identified a huge area that totals to 500,000 sq km of sea and sea floor encompassing Marianas Trench, volcanic arc and northern coral reefs.
• Commercial fishing and mining will be banned in this identified area.
  
• BTW, do you remember anything about Marianas Trench?  It is the deepest area of ocean on the planet.

Society

• Entertaining ideas of a 'side kick' or 'stepney'?
• I am referring to illicit relations or affairs out of marriage here.  
• Be very careful.  I am sure you would be; if you see how far a woman can go to 'secure' you for herself.
• Though this makes a very sad reading; more for its gruesomeness than for anything else, it's worth a read for its oddity.  Do so here.

Language lesson

• I used the word 'stepney' in the above noting.
• You will not usually find that word in most of the dictionaries.  Puritans will even frown at its usage.  It is used mostly colloquially as slang to refer to a woman with whom one has an illicit relationship.  Does it really exist?
• A search led me to this article in The Hindu about it.  Very interesting.  Read on...
• chaperone
• Noun: One who accompanies and supervises a young woman or gatherings of young people

Obituary

• Adolf Merckle
• GERMAN billionaire Adolf Merckle committed suicide by throwing himself under a train.  His holding company owes banks about € 5 billion ($6.7 billion), owned stakes in HeidelbergCement and drug wholesaler Phoenix Pharmahandel. 
  
• His estimated $9.2-billion fortune put him 94th on Forbes’ list of the world’s richest people.

All About markets...

• How many in India have invested in stock markets?
• Household savings invested in shares and debentures are less than 2% of India’s gross output and only about 10% of household financial savings.
• How does a falling stock market affect the economy as a whole?
• Afalling stock market makes it difficult for companies to raise fresh capital by way of equity. Such a market dries up domestic liquidity and blocks access to foreign debt as well.
• Fear of further losses on Indian stocks forces foreign investors on our bourses to sell out and repatriate their money. When they buy dollars and take their money out, they reduce domestic liquidity and depreciate the currency.
• How would rupee depreciation hurt domestic liquidity?
  
• Unwarranted depreciation of the rupee will hurt domestic liquidity in three ways. Few fresh external loans would be contracted. External loans accounted for over Rs 80,000 crore last fiscal. 
  
• Indian companies that have to roll over their existing foreign loans would take rupee loans in India, convert the money into dollars and take out this money. This would suck out liquidity and further depreciate the rupee. 
  
• A declining rupee would make the Indian stock and debt markets unattractive for fresh foreign flows. The return in dollars on their investment would be the rupee rate of return less the rate of depreciation of the rupee. All the government’s plans to bump up domestic liquidity by allowing greater FII flows into the domestic market for corporate as well as government debt would come unstuck.
• ECB (External Commercial Borrowing) norms relaxed
• With a view to help the corporates overcome the liquidity crunch the government has relaxed the ECB regime. 
  
• The revised rules provide for companies to pay a higher interest of upto 500 bps (5%) over the six-month LIBOR (London Inter Bank Offer Rate) on external commercial borrowings (ECBs).
  
• Companies can bring in the proceeds immediately and can also use dollar borrowings for rupee expenditure. ECBs up to $500 million per borrower per financial year would be permitted for rupee expenditure or foreign currency expenditure for permissible end-uses under the automatic route. The norm of a minimum average maturity period of seven years for ECBs of more than $100 million for rupee capital expenditure by borrowers in the infrastructure sector has been dispensed with.
• For the fiscal ended March 31,2008, Indian corporates had made overseas borrowings of $ 30.95 billion. This is as against borrowings of $25.35 billion in the previous fiscal. In the current fiscal, between April and August, corporates had borrowed $8.12 billion.
• We may not after meet the fiscal and revenue deficit targets. Admits the finance minister.
• As per the Budget estimates, the government should reduce fiscal deficit — excess of total expenditure over total income, excluding market borrowing — to 3% of GDP and revenue deficit — difference between the current expenditure and current receipts — to 1% of gross domestic product.
• The Fiscal Responsibility & Budget Management (FRBM) Act mandates the government to cut fiscal deficit to 3% of GDP by 2008-09, or 0.3% every year. The Act also mandated scrapping revenue deficit by 2008-09.
• By August, the government’s fiscal deficit had touched 87.7% of the fiscal target while revenue deficit has exceeded the target by 77.4%.
  
• Mr Chidambaram admitted that all states have fared better than the Centre in terms of reducing fiscal and revenue deficits. The combined fiscal deficit of all states stood at 2.7% by March 2008, well below the 3% target. States together have a revenue surplus of 0.56%.
• A look at banking statistics for a bird's eye view of the lending and deposit scenario
  
• Loans given by banks rose by Rs 64,937 crore to Rs 26,07,404 crore during the fortnight ended October 10, deposits raised went up only Rs 27,221 crore to Rs 34,69,359 crore. Investments in government bonds, on the other hand, dipped Rs 6,324 crore to Rs 9,80,916 crore.
• A look at government's initiatives for improving higher education in the country:
• The government will create 12 Central universities, adding to the existing 18. Rs. 3,280 crore (about $73 million) has been allocated from the budget for this. It announced that it would create 30 “world-class” universities, eight new Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), and seven Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) in the coming five years. Other plans include enhancing the salaries of college and university academics — by as much as 70 per cent.
• But none of India’s 348 universities is ranked among the top 100 in the world.
• Take a look at this very good article that gives a glimpse of the challenges being faced by higher education in India and what needs to be done before spending money on it.
  

24 September 2008

1. India, Uzbekistan resolve to step up bilateral trade
1. Bilateral Trade between these countries in first half of year is $40 million
2. The sources said the bilateral trade turnover grew by 8 per cent in 2007 at $64.4 million, with exports from Uzbekistan to India at $9.5 million and exports from India at $54.9 million.
3. he efforts should continue for investment cooperation in processed food and agricultural products, information technology, petrochemicals, fertilisers, ferrous and non-ferrous metals and it also agreed to explore possibilities and facilitate investments in these sectors through mutual consultations.
4. The Commission also noted the possibilities to set up joint ventures in the area of gas-based petrochemicals and fertilisers in Uzbekistan.
2. India Pakistan to announce cross LoC trade
1. When Prime Minister Manmohan Singh meets Pakistan president Asif Ali Zardari on the sidelines of the United Nation General Assembly, they will have at least one substantive announcement to make on cross LoC trade. The two leaders are likely to announce the date for the beginning of trade across the border at two crossing points—the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad route and the Poonch-Rawalkot route—when they meet in New York .
2. The joint working group on cross LoC CBMs, which met in New Delhi, finalised the modalities for cross-border trade bringing to an end a negotiations that started in 2005. The initiative is aimed specifically at resurrecting trade between Kashmir and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
3. Today India and Pakistan prepared sensitive list of items to be traded between Pakistan occupied Kashmir and Indian Kashmir. Items are not disclosed yet.
4. All the goods which were manufactured or grown in and around the areas will have a zero tariff.
5. Both countries are working out modalities for infrastructure development between the areas, such as checkpost, widening of roads etc. CBM will hold good only when Pakistan bounds and accept for non firing across LOC. Don’t forget recently Pakistan opened fire across LOC several times.
6.  Cross border trade will occur in two areas:

                                                               i.      Srinagar – muzzafarabad

                                                              ii.      Poonch – Rawalkot Routes

23 September 2008

• World Congress on Disaster Management
• It is conducting for the first time in india at hyderabad
• Participated by the 50 countries
• Main objective of this meeting is to exchange the information, knowledge and technology between the countries for effectively managing the Disaster that occur naturally and man made.
• Swelling Ranks of the poor in india
• According to the latest World Bank report, the actual number of poor people in India has increased by 39.8 millions in absolute numbers during 1981-2005.
• 
  
• 42.2 per cent or four out of 10 Indians were poor in India in 2005 at an income of about Rs 50 per day. Estimated by world bank.
• What can Rs 50 (equivalent to $1.25) a day fetch in India, when a kg of atta and rice costs upwards of Rs 20, a kg of sugar Rs 20, a kg of dal Rs 45 and the cheapest cooking oil (palm oil) Rs 50 a litre? The poor, indeed, have been hit the hardest.
• Even the Asian development Bank posted 54.8% of Indian population is still poor based on PPP (Purchasing Power Parity). The statistics is based on 1 $ at 2005. The currency rate taken as 44 rupees. But don’t say that, 1 $ will purchase the same worth of goods in USA as in India for 44 rupees. Calculation is based on 15.6 rupees for 1 $
• My comments
• From the above figures it is clear that, the UPA government has not done anything for the poor in the last four years. Disgusting situation. Calling UPA as “aam aadmi” Government, but why the same aam aadmi did not able to get the fruit of their policies. Think UPA… Nuclear deal may not bring the people BPL to above. Redifine yourself at least in the next elections and come out with some other captions.
• EU favours talks with India on tax regime for wines & spirits
• The European Union on Monday said that it would request WTO-consultations with India on its domestic tax regime for spirits and wines for Goa, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.
• Goa adds an import and ‘label-recording’ fee to the cost of imported wines and spirits. While the custom tariff for imported bottled wines and sprits at the Indian border is already as high as 150 per cent, discriminatory internal taxation in some Indian States adds further to this burden on importers, the EU said.
• The Indian market for spirits is one of the largest in the world, amounting in 2007 to about 130 million nine-litre cases. The corresponding figure for wine is 1.5 million nine-litre cases.
• Last year, EU exports of spirits to India were about €57 million, out of a total €7 billion exported to more than 150 countries. EU exports of wine to India were about €11 million out of a total €6 billion in 2007.

WB in Loss

• Hot topic of Bengal singur will soon come to an end, as the vendors of tata plant started to shift the equipment.
• Do you want to know, why I mentioned as a loss? Huhhh.. answer is : TATA has started nano project at singur as a mother unit which will roll out 2.5 Lakhs NANO cars per year. Anyway the mother unit is going to be shifted either in Karnataka, Mumbai or in Harayana based on the matching of sops.
• The 1000 NANO is going to be rolled out from UTTARAKHAND in the middle of oct 2008. I guess Mamata has certainly got mass vote bank. Disappointing to Gopala Krishna Gandhi.
• Enlarge G8 for the World Isuues said France
• French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for adding new members to the exclusive G8 and the UN Security Council so they can more effectively deal with problems that continue to defy efforts by Western governments.
• Sarkozy said in an address to the UN General Assembly that the UN Security Council, currently with 15 members, and the world's group of eight leading industrialised nations (G8) should be enlarged to reflect demands of emerging countries.
• The G8 in particular could become the G14, with new members like China, India, Mexico, South Africa and Brazil, the emerging economic powers among developing countries. The group currently comprises of the United States, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, Japan, Britain and Russia.
• The G8 in particular could become the G14, with new members like China, India, Mexico, South Africa and Brazil, the emerging economic powers among developing countries. The group currently comprises of the United States, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, Japan, Britain and Russia.
• Though Russia is a member of the G8, its relations with the West were stressed over its invasion of Georgia in August and US Republican presidential candidate John McCain had even called for ousting the Russians from the G8.
• Italy will host next year's G8 summit and will propose a major reform to the group, Sarkozy said.
• Dubai to host first world  Pearls forum
• The Dubai Pearl Exchange, a subsidiary of the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC), has announced that it would host the first-ever World Pearl Forum here February 17-19 next year, with the objective of bringing together the global pearl sector, and addressing ways to grow the worldwide market for pearl jewellery, according to a DMCC statement.

Weekly Round Up 14th to 21st September 2008

1. Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc has filed for bankruptcy protection, making it the largest casualty of the global credit crisis, and given its assets at the time of filing, Lehman surpassed WorldCom as the biggest US Bankruptcy filing.

 

2. The boards of Bank of America Corp and Merrill Lynch & Co. struck a deal last Sunday in which the former would sell itself to Bank of America Corp for roughly $50 billion.

A combination of the two is expected to create a global financial service behemoth involved in everything from fixed-income trading to stock underwriting to credit cards.

 

3. Tata AIG Life, an insurance venture between Tata Sons and American International Group, has sought to re-assure its policyholders that the Wall Street turmoil would not have any "immediate material impact" on the company.

AIG got a $85-billion lifeline from US Federal Reserve to help it come out of its financial mess. The Tatas and AIG have two insurance ventures in India - Tata AIG Life and Tata AIG General. In both these entities, Tata Sons holds 74 per cent and AIG has 26 per cent.

 

4. Reliance Industries Ltd has been able to flow crude oil for the first time from its offshore asset in Krishna-Godavari Basin, on schedule.

Sources said the company has started crude oil production off the Andhra Pradesh coast and an announcement is expected to be made by the company's Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Mukesh D Ambani, on Sunday.

 

5. State Bank of Saurashtra formally merged with State Bank of India. Announcing the merger the Chairman of State Bank Group, Mr O.P. Bhatt, said there were no plans for the merger of the other six associates with the bank in the immediate future.

 

6. The Government has allowed Indian editions of foreign news and current affairs magazines stipulating a 26-per cent foreign direct investment ceiling.

Magazines such as Time and Newsweek will now be able to publish Indian editions, as long as they follow the FDI ownership cap and rope in an Indian partner.

 

7. Tata Motors said last Thursday the Karnataka Government was willing to offer 1,000 acres of land and other incentives to the company if it had plans to relocate the Nano small car project to the State.

The Tata Motors Managing Director, Mr Ravi Kant, said the company was actively looking at alternative sites and needs around 1000 acres of land for an integrated plant.

 

8. The turbulence in the global equity markets echoed not only in the domestic equity markets, but also in the currency market, with the rupee crashing to an intra-week low of 46.97/98. The rupee opened last Monday at 45.52/54 and fell to a low of 46.97/98 on Wednesday, a level last seen in July 2006. It closed at 45.83 on Friday, netting a loss of 31 paise during the week.

 

9. In a blow to Ranbaxy Pharmaceuticals Ltd, the US Food and Drug Administration has blacklisted about 30 generic drugs being manufactured by the company at its Dewas and Paonta Sahib plants in India. The US drug regulator said that it had taken the decision after the two units owned by Ranbaxy failed to meet the standards specified under the current Good Manufacturing Practice requirements of the US Government.

While the FDA has not imposed a ban on the drugs or sought a withdrawal of the medicines from US drugstores, it has issued an Import Alert, under which US officials may detain any products manufactured at its two facilities.

12 August 2008

12 August 2008
1. BHEL bags EEPC top export award
· Supplied 250MW of thermal units to Jindal and also obtained 200cr contract for the development of hydel power in Vietnam.

2. Indian – ASEAN Free Trade Pact
· Ministerial meeting conducted at Brunei.
· Free Trade agreement to be signed first in 2005 and then again in 2007 but missed the deadlines.
· Bilateral trade between india and ASEAN in 2006 touched $28.7 billion
· http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/08/12/stories/2008081250730800.htm

3. Law commission Chairman – A R Lakshmanan
· Government appointed chairman to submit the report on acid attacks. Submitted report. Highlights to improve the punishment from existing to 10 years.

4. 2008 AIDS Conference
· Held in Mexico City. India is in 3rd position after South Africa and Nigeria.
India-ASEAN FTA in concluding stage?
The trade negotiations committee (TNC) comprising top officials from India and the ten-member bloc is meeting, probably for the last time, today in Brunei to give a final push to the FTA and seal the deal.
The FTA is now scheduled to be implemented from January 1, 2009 after it is ratified by the governments of all ASEAN member countries and India. The FTA negotiations, launched in 2003, were initially scheduled to be concluded by 2005-end.
The FTA talks had reached a stalemate last year due to disagreement over reduction of import tariffs on palm oil by India. Malaysia and Indonesia, the world’s two biggest exporters of palm oil, wanted India to make steeper tariff reduction commitments in both crude palm oil (CPO) and refined palm oil (RPO). In January this year, India offered to reduce tariffs on CPO to 43% and RPO to 51%, which the ASEAN agreed to.
When the agreement looked ready to be sealed, Indonesia raised a new demand that tariffs on CPO should be reduced to 20% and RPO to 30%, which created a fresh hindrance. Indonesia also presented a big negative list of items which it wanted to be excluded from the FTA.
This conclusion is very much needed for india in order to have greater market for exporting Indian products and services. Though WTO Geneva talks failed, but certainly this must have given india more ozzing.