05.02.06:

MICE – meetings, incentives, conventions and events – market all over the world is in excess of $300 bln. Indian inbound MICE market is about $35 million in the first 9 months of the current year, which is 30% more than the same period last year. The paper carries a guide (special report) on the business capitals of the world.

EPFO corpus figures as of October 2005:

Central govt. securities 22,471 crs.State govt. securities 16,860Special deposit schemes 53,534Financial institutions 29,494Public account 30,012Total corpus 1,52,643 crs.

06.02.06:

In any initial public offer of shares, retail investors enjoy a quota of 35%, QIBs enjoy a quota of 50% and the rest 15% is reserved for HNIs ie., high networth individuals.

Iranian foreign minister Manoucher Mottaki. India’s consumer durables market is of the size of Rs. 20,000 crores. Colour

TV market occupies the largest chunk of this to the extent of about 60-70%. India’s luggage market is of the size of Rs. 600 crores. Soft luggage segment

is growing at 25% as against hard luggage segment which is growing at 5%. BSNL and MTNL put together have 4 crore fixed line subscribers. IPTV

subscribers globally are likely to cross 120 million by 2010 and Asia Pacific will comprise 47% of it, with India being a major market.

India will be a fab market for semiconductors by 2015 accounting for about 11% of global consumption from around 1.8% now according to an ISA India Semiconductor Association report. The Indian electronics equipment manufacturing is growing at a rate 5.5 times more than the rest of the world.

India as of today has only about 130 qualified actuaries and most of them are over 60 years of age. In paper dated 09/03/06, the figure is stated as 207 actuaries with 95 of them being over the age of 60. Hence IRDA is considering allowing the actuaries to work till 65.

Upto 300 planes are expected to be acquired by Indian carriers over 5-7 years. LIC chairman AK Shukla. LIC assets 500,000 crores. Largest FI in India. Education cess introduced in 2004-05 budget. The basic principle of levying

any cess is to earmark the proceeds for a specific purpose and treat it as additionality to existing resources.

Inward reinsurance is the business of reinsuring risks of foreign insurance companies.

SK Jain, NPCIL CMD. Gujarat’s ports are expected to handle close to 90 mln tones of crude oil in the

next five years, which would go up to 130 MT in 2015-16 and nearly 153 MT by 2020 from the current 69 MT.

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Area under wheat and rice cultivation is estimated to come down from 170 mln hectares to 100 mln hectares by 2020. India needs to double its food grain output from 200 mln tones in the next 14 years.

India is currently importing half a million tones of wheat to beef up domestic supplies. Only about a third of the total food grain production is procured by the government at the fixed support price of Rs. 640 per tonne this rabi.

Pinctada margaritifera is a species of oyster used in pearl culture in Andaman and Nicobar and it has the potential to produce the most expensive and rare black pearls.

07.02.06:

Atomic Energy Commission Chairman is Anil Kakodkar. He opposes putting fast breeder programme under safeguards by IAEA.

The market size of industrial air fans is about 350 to 400 crores. 50% of it is in unorganized sector.

Domestic beer market is projected to be 100 mln cases this year. MCX daily average turnover is about Rs. 4000 crores currently. Centre’s tax collection target in 2005-06 is 2,73,466 crores. Education cess

target is 6,975 crores India has 349 universities, 16000 colleges. Only 9% of the population in the

18-23 years age bracket are enrolled in any of these institutes. Enrollment ratio in higher education is 83.2 in US and 15.8 in China.

US consumer currently accounts for 25% of the global economy. Current savings rate in Indian economy is 29.1% of GDP. The states in India have spent three times what was spent by the Centre on 5th

Pay Commission implementation. Wheat stocks are only 5.1 mln tones at February 2006 beginning. Well below

the buffer stock norm. Wheat production is estimated to be 74-75 mln tones as against 72.11 mln tones last year.

Local retail market is of Rs. 40,000 crores size. In India retail is growing @ 35-40%.

51% FDI in single brand retail is allowed recently. Domestic clothing market is about 1.5 times the export market. Clothing market size is 35,000 crores. India’s clothing exports account for 30% of all total exports.

08.02.06:

Economy growth: o Manufacturing sector is expected to grow at 9.4% and o Agriculture sector is expected to grow at 2.3% in 2005-06.o Services sector – 9.9%

GDP figures:o Total GDP at constant prices for the year is expected to be Rs.

25,86,587 croreso Per capita income is expected to be Rs. 20,813 – up 5.9% from last

year’s Rs. 19,649.o NNP – Net National Product is likely to be Rs. 23,04,043 crores up

7.6% from last year’s 21,41,776 crores There are about 40 tax havens all over the world.

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Election Commissioner Navin Chawla is in the eye of storm for accepting donations from a few Congress MPs for trusts run by him and his wife.

DK Mehrotra is Managing Director of LIC. Chairman is AK Shukla. Total assets of LIC are of 500,000 crores.

This year 52 lakh PAN numbers were issued – of which 99% were issued in 10 days.

Committees on updating insurance laws – Law Commission and KP Narasimhan committees. At present insurers have to bring in a minimum capital of Rs. 100 crores and have a maximum 26% FDI for their ventures in India.

In India’s bourses algorithmic trading accounts for about 40% of the total volume.

Infrastructure news:o According to official estimates, India has an annual funding

requirement of $15bn for developing its infrastructure.o Takeout financing: Banks could extend long term loans for

infrastructure projects for 10-15 years. Banks keep this loan in their books for a certain maturity (say 5 years) and then transfer it to the FI which had the risk appetite to take longer tenor loans in its books.

o The Golden Quadrilateral – the country’s largest expressway project, aims to connect Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata through four to six lane expressways running 6000 kms.

o Centre approved five mega power projects: of 4000 MW each Sasan in MP Akaltara in Chattisgarh Karwar in Karnataka Mundra in Gujarat Ratnagiri in Maharashtra

o Country-wise transmission losses are about 40% of the total power produced in the country.

o Cell phone subscriber base is 62 mn. As per section 80-1A of the IT Act, companies in infrastructure sectors like

power, roads, energy get a 100% tax exemption for a period of 10 years in succession.

IBM’s Power6 chip, due in mid 2007, will run at speeds between 4 and 5 GHz, at least double the speed of current power chips found in server computers.

09.02.06:

Tariff Commission is for capping LNG margins at 1%. Currently this margin stands at 2.5%.

IOC Chairman is S. Behuria In case of Delhi and Mumbai, the government allowed 74% private equity

participation with 49% foreign equity. In the case of green field airports foreign equity is permitted upto 100%.

Under the new guidelines on phone tapping, the telecom companies will be required to formally acknowledge an interception request from law enforcement agencies within two hours.

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Alang and Sosiya ship breaking yards in Gujarat are considered the biggest among the ship breaking units in the world. Currently under the threat of losing out to neighbouring countries. 5 % customs duty and 16% excise duty.

GAIL and NTPC have not been able to tie up gas supply for the Dabhol power project. 2184 MW plant size.

Indian Banks Association Chief Executive is HN Sinor. The system of single benchmark PLR for every bank was introduced in 2003.

APGENCO is taking up two mega power projects – one at Krishnapattanam (2400 MW) and another at somewhere on the Hyderabad-Karimnagar highway (2100 MW). The proposed gas trunk line from Kakinada to Gujarat is expected to pass through the Hyderabad-Karimnagar highway somewhere.

10.02.06:

SEZ policy: Exports from the SEZs are projected at $5 bln in 2005-06 from the 948 units operating out of them. Setting up of SEZs is made simple. SEZs will get 100% tax exemption for 10 years within a block of 15 years. The rules provide for up to 100% sale of SEZ products in domestic tariff areas after payment of customs duty. So far approvals have been given for setting up of 117 zones spread over 15 states and two union territories.

Railways’ net internal revenue generation is expected to be Rs. 11,500 crores in 2005-06. This is nearly 65% more than Rs. 6,393 crore fund balance in 2004-05.

Govt. to setup defence offset agency:o An offset is a mechanism to partially compensate (offset) the

significant outflow of a buying country’s resources in large purchases of foreign goods and services by either re-investing a part of the money or placing orders locally.

o The offset clause will apply to all capital acquisitions of Rs. 300 crores and above across three categories – buy, buy and make and buy-make and transfer technology by Indian defence establishments.

o Initially 30% of the indicative cost of acquisition will be the minimum value of the offset. What this implies is any vendor supplying equipment of munitions worth Rs. 300 crores or more will have to either invest Rs. 90 crore in the country or purchase stuff worth the same amount from local suppliers.

Farm panel for Indian Trade Organization:o National Commission on Farmers (NCF) headed by MS Swaminathan

has suggested setting up the ITO.o It has strongly recommended the segregation of subsidies to farmers

into two categories – those meant for providing life and livelihood saving support to small farmers and those which could be deemed as trade-distorting in the global market.

o The NCF was setup in November 2004 to go into various issues related to food, agriculture and allied fields.

o Total exports of agricultural products is estimated at Rs. 34,654 crores in terms of value in 2002-03, constituted only a small proportion about 6.18% of the total output of this sector which was reckoned at Rs. 5,60,516 crores in that year.

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Rural power scheme (Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana) unviable: Plan Panel

o The ambitious Rs. 16,000 crore plan is unviable economically.o Out of 10,846 villages scheduled to be covered in 2005-06 only 1941

villages have been covered so far.o The plan targets for 2005-06 under the yojana aim at electrification of

60 lak households, including 17.88 lakh below poverty line households.

o Scheme launched in April 2005 to provide electricity access to 7.8 crore rural households in five years and electrify all 2.34 crore BPL households.

Interesting facts and figures about shipping industry in India:o Repair and maintenance of ships on foreign shores is known as dry

docking – is essential every 2.5 yearso The world’s sea-borne trade expanded from about 3.3 bln tones in

1986 to almost 6 bln tones in 2004. o The share of India’s international trade carried by Indian vessels fell

from 35.5 % in 1990-91 to just 13.8% in 2003-04.o For nearly two decades India’s gross tonnage (GT) has been

languishing at around 7 million tones. It surged to 8.31 million tones between Jan and December 2005, due in large measure to the new tonnage tax system. Under this system, the shipping companies are mandated to maintain 20% of their profits for vessel purchases.

o Over 37% of the vessels are more than 20 years old; another 19% are between 15 and 19 years old.

o Indian shipping industry will need $3 bln at current prices in the next five years to replace its ageing fleet.

We are presently consuming about 0.4 bln tones of coal every year for energy consumption.

India’s share of renewable energy is just 6%. Total renewable energy in India will be 8000 MW by the end of March 2008.

Germany has come out with an Energy Act in 2000 that mandates generation of 50% of total requirement from wind by the year 2030.

11.02.06:

The STT (Securities Transaction Tax) was applied in lieu of long term capital gains tax.

The mutual fund industry has over Rs. 200,000 crores in total assets as on January 2006.

BSNL Chairman: AK Sinha MTNL Chairman: RSP Sinha 1995-96 deposit of Rs. 3000 crores in Post Office Monthly Income Account 2005-06 deposits of over Rs. 30,000 crores despite the decline in interest rates

from 13% to 8% during the period. India levies 70% import duty on wheat to curb wheat imports. Opec oil capacity to climb as demand gains, says IEA:

o The Internal Energy Agency is Paris based and represents OECD nations.

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o World oil demand of 1.78 mln barrels a day – growth 2.1%o Total 2006 consumption is expected to be 85.1 mln barrel a dayo Effective OPEC spare capacity is only 1.4 mln barrels a day

Net savings in Asia currently at $400 bln are being used to finance deficits in the US and EU countries. UNESCAP – UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific is exploring ways to utilize the savings in the region for financing infrastructure projects which require about $500 bln a year.

India’s current share of 0.5% in global tourist traffic is expected to double to 1% in the next five years.

o Inbound tourism has been growing at 15% to 17% in the past two years.

o India’s foreign exchange earnings from overseas tourists rose 20% in 2005 to $5.73 bln, up from $4.76 bln a year earlier.

o Overseas tourist arrivals during the year rose 13.2% to 3.91 mln. Non residential energy consumption in India grew thrice as fast as China’s

during the 1990s, although the latter’s economic growth distinctly higher. Chinese govt. has already announced a program for all their cities to reduce their buildings’ energy use by 50% by 2010 and by 65% by 2020. There is no such program in India.

13.02.06:

FRBM Act mandates reduction in the level of public debt to 0.5% of the GDP. At present the Govt. guarantees the payment of the sum assured and bonuses

on LIC policies. All derivative trades routed through the recognized stock exchanges will not

be treated as speculative transactions. This was announced in the previous budget – 2005-06.

While subsidies on cooking gas are proposed to be phased out through gradual hike in retail prices, it would be restricted to only target consumers for kerosene.

At present subsidies on LPG are about Rs. 220 a cylinder, kerosene is sold at a subsidy of Rs. 12 a litre.

Retirement funds:o Unlike PFs, superannuation (SA) and gratuity funds are not governed

by the Union Labour Ministry.o A year ago, PFs along with SA and gratuity funds were alloed to invest

5% of their new inflow in stocks.o SA funds, unlike PFs are not compulsory.o The total size of the SA and gratuity funds in the country would be 10-

15% of the Rs. 2,50,000 crore PF sector. Army Chief: General JJ Singh Navy Chief: Admiral Arun Prakash Airforce Chief: Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi France already depends on nuclear power for nearly 80% of its requirements. It is predicted that 100 million new urban middle class consumers will become

potential air travelers by 2010. Power Trading Corporation CMD: TN Thakur

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India and China signed a historic agreement to enable their public sector oil giants to work together to maximize existing energy potential in their domestic oil and gas market, and also that they don’t end up competing among themselves in a third country.

Digital imaging market is of the size of Rs. 1000 crores – 2.5 lakh units. The old analog film based market is of Rs. 200 crores size.

Service tax collections:o Expected to be 23,500 crores in 2005-06o Target in the next year could be 40-50% over revised estimates.o The services sector in the economy accounts for more than 50% of the

GDP; is estimated to have grown at 10% during the current year.o At present there are 81 services in the tax net.

Customs duty on fuel is 5%. Nearly 4000 MW of gas based power production capacity remains unutilized

due to fuel crunch. Another 6500 MW of gas based power projects hang in limbo for the same reason.

Over the last year LNG prices in the international markets have risen from $4 per mmbtu to $12 per mmbtu.

In the current year over 15 MT of coal had to be imported to avert a power crisis. The power sector will face a coal shortage of 30 MT; to meet which at least 20 MT of coal has to be imported.

The Chennai-Trichy-Madurai oil pipeline spanning a distance of 683 KM is the longest petroleum products pipeline in a single state.

The GDP figures this year have been revised – partly due to the fact that the base year has been shifted from 1993-94 to 1999-2000

Securitization: is a two stage process in which a bank sells its asset or a pool of assets to a special purpose vehicle. The SPV in turn issues tradable securities that represent claims on the cash flows of the assets. Such asset sales enable banks to transact more business without augmenting their regulatory capital, as they would not have to maintain capital for the assets so disposed of.

Credit enhancement: is the support provided including through cash collaterals, to enhance the credit rating of the securitized assets.

Indo US trade:o Growth rate of India’s trade with US is 23.5%; the same as that of

China’s, albeit on a much smaller base.o NASSCOM estimates – more than 70% of the India’s software service

exports of $12 bln in 2004-05 were directed to North America – primarily US.

o China’s trade with US is $285 bln; while India’s is $26 bln.o In 2005 while China’s imports from the US grew around 20%, India’s

imports grew around 30%.o US has a share of more than 12% in India’s total trade; while India’s

trade with US is 1%, against China’s 12%.

14.02.06:

VSNL owns about 770 acres surplus land in various metros.

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Clemenceau: the controversial French ship which is headed for India for dismantling.

The Army Chief Gen. JJ Singh opposed the Central Govt. proposal for a census on communal lines in the armed forces. The Centre’s plans to address the grievances of hard-line Muslims by ordering a community specific survey of the armed forces and other secular professions ran into stiff weather with this stand of the Army Chief.

Aviation scene in India:o It is estimated that India will have 300 more aircraft by 2014o Last year nearly 19 mln seats were sold by domestic airlines.o The booking statistics indicate a 36% increase in domestic travel in the

first three quarters this fiscal. The full year may end with a 45-48% growth.

o Domestic traffic is growing at about 15-18% per annum.o Aviation Turbine Fuel accounts for about 35% of the operating

expenses of airlines.o Delhi and Mumbai account for nearly 50% of the total airline traffic.o For flying aircraft abroad, a company has to be at least 5 years old.o Each minute of additional flying costs nearly Rs. 2,100 for an Airbus

320 plane. The PM is talking of adding an additional 1,50,000 MW of power capacity in

the next seven years. India’s largest retail mall is going to come up in Delhi (NCR) by DLF with

about 4 mln sft. On completion it would be one of the top 10 largest malls in the world.

Readymade garments market is Rs. 43,000 crore in size. Children’s wear constitutes about 17%, pegged at 7,310 crores. Organized retail of kidswear accounts for only Rs. 500 crores. 30% of India’s population is below the age of 15 years.

There are about 17000 Indian students in Britain as against 80,000 in US. Mobile markets:

o India is set to become the world’s fastest growing mobile market.o India will add a whopping 358 mln mobile subscribers between 2006

and 2011.o By 2011, Asia-Pacific region will account for 50% of the world’s

entire mobile subscriber base, with a staggering 1.067 bln subscribers.o China has been adding about 4-5 mln mobile users per month, a figure

India achieved in December 2005.o China began mobile services in 1988.

India is expected to import about $3.5 bln IT hardware in the current fiscal. The total value of computers and peripherals sold in the country is expected to

be about $6.5 bln (Rs. 29,250 crore). The software and ITES sector account for 10-15% of the total computer

hardware sales in India. Electronics production is pegged at $11.2 bln (Rs. 50,000 crore) and accounts

for 1.7% of India’s GDP. At present the cash reserve ratio is at 5%. Combined fiscal deficit of the Centre and States is about 8%.

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15.02.06:

Mauritius wants currency for Indian Rupee – considering the strong links between the two countries and the recently concluded FTA. The average spend of tourists visiting Mauritius is estimated to be around $1000. The Indian Rupee is accepted in Nepal and is traded by bankers in HongKong.

Amortization rules for Mutual Funds: Under the current regulations, asset management companies can spend upto 6% of the income generated from an initial fund offering for expenses related to the issue – to be amortized over three to five years. The move is to make the funds charge these expenses upfront.

Mukesh Ambani’s RIL has plans to invest upto Rs. 30,000 crore in retail sector.

Colgate is India’s number 1 brand. Followed by Lux and Dettol. The Supreme Court has asked the Central and State govts. To compulsorily

register marriages – even by amending the rules and procedures within three months.

The seven member committee headed by Justice (Retd.) Rajindar Sachar; its mandate is to prepare a report on the current “social, economic and educational status of Muslim community in India”.

Broiler chicken production in Kerala is about 40,000 tonnes a year and almost the same quantity is imported from other states to meet the poultry meat demand in Kerala.

About 67% -- that is $12 bln – of the total Indian IT services and BPO exports are accounted for by the US. 35,000 Indian professionals are working in the US. They pay about $500 mln in social security cuts every year. As they never use the benefit – because of the rule that an individual has to stay in the country for 40 quarters i.e., 10 years – the US gets to keep the money. US has Totalization Agreements with 21 countries whereby it refunds such contributions to the countries irrespective of the period of stay of the professionals. So far the US has refused to sign such an agreement with India.

Almost half of the total GDP of Rs. 32,00,000 crore comes from rural economy in India.

Countries such as Namibia and Egypt have productivity three times that of India.

Employers in India have a corpus of about Rs. 90,000 crore in superannuation funds which are predominantly invested in government bonds.

Currently foreigners and non-residents are not allowed to invest directly in the Indian stock markets. Their investments are carried out via a participatory note, or p-note, through a foreign institution which is registered with SEBI.

INTUC has suggested the formation of workers’ capital trust to channelize the Rs. 6.5 lakh crore savings made by workers in the form of contributions.

For every 1000 kg of freight, Indian Railways on an average carries 450 kg of dead weight. For the same freight trains In many western countries carry less than 200 kg dead weight.

US accounts for nearly half the consumption of world oil and natural gas. Insurance companies in India must invest 75% of their funds in fixed income

securities.

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Banks have to park 25% of their net demand and time liabilities in government bonds as SLR.

16.02.06:

Indo-French ties:o India’s own uranium deposits are too limited to permit nuclear power

capacity of more than 10,000 MW.o France’s Areva has standardized nuclear plants of 1,350 MW capacity

as against Japanese, Russian and American standardization of 1000 MW. Areva has now moved up to 1600 MW capacity.

o In the 1990’s Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG) decided not to sell any nuclear power plant or materials to countries that did not accept full scope safeguards.

o Mittal’s bid for Arcelor of France is €18.6 bln– against the troika of France, Luxembourg and Spain. Arcelor is Luxemburg based while Mittal Steel is Netherlands based.

o Since 1991, India received about $36.7 bln in FDI. Of this France has invested a paltry 2.67% of $768 mln.

o Groupe Pernod Ricard, the world’s second largest wine and spirits company – is French.

o World wide market of 151 mln Colour Picture Tubes. Videocon acquired Thomson to become a CPT biggie in the world.

o Defence: India bought six Franco-Spanish Scorpene submarines last year MICA – short range air defence system Mistral class – amphibious landing ship. US has a competing

USS Trenton for a lower price.o Clemenceau – the asbestos laden ship being proposed for dismantling

in India. It is supposed to be highly polluting in nature. A raging controversy in India now.

o India’s exports to France are estimated at €3 bln. Imports are even lower and hence India has trade surplus with France.

Last year the Railways ferried over 600 mln tones of cargo across India – including a tenth of it through containers. Railways is targeting to attain 100 mln cargo movement through containers in the next five years.

The overall travel market in India is growing by over 20%. Last year nearly 19 mln domestic air trips were taken, and about 6.2 mln international tickets were issued. This year the domestic numbers are expected to surge by at least 50% and international air travel is tipped to touch the 7 mln mark.

There are 7 law universities in India. Three of them are stated to be reputed. The new age management guru Deepak Chopra says – “ You need to run the

business like a family and nurture emotional bonding” Iran-Pakinstan-India gas pipeline is $7 bln project. 2100 KM long. The gross enrolment ratio in elementary education was 82.5% in 2002-03. Indian software market:

o Software services generated over $17.2 bln in exports in 2004-05.o The industry contributes over 4% of India’s GDP and nearly 20% of its

exports.

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o Global market for software products is pegged at $180 bln.o 346 Indian companies are engaged in product development.o S/w product development has the potential of generating revenues to

the tune of $7 bln and creating 1 mln jobs by 2010. The range of the discounts for selling NPAs of banks in India is 10 to 50%. 2005 saw an unprecedented spurt in global crude prices – 45% On cooking fuels alone the subsidy is estimated to increase to Rs. 26,000 cr.

ONGC doled out Rs. 12,000 cr towards the subsidy bill while the GoI has issued Rs. 11,000 cr worth of oil bonds to cover the subsidy.

Palayamkotan in Tamilnadu and Njalipoovan in Kerala – famed for bananas. Kerala has three international airports – Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and

Kozhikode. Iron and Zinc deficiency – a very serious health problem for India. India is believed to have the world’s largest conglomeration of malnourished

people – with half the country’s children reporting underweight.

17.02.06:

Gargil-Mukherjee formula: Distribution of plan assistance to states is governed by this formula. According to this formula, 60% weightage is given to population of a state. Now the indication is that this weightage should be brought down to 25%.

National highway are proposed to be developed in the next 7 years with an investment of Rs. 1,75,000 cr.

Women consumer:o Women account for 80% of total gearless scooter market which is

estimated at about 1 mln units per annum.o Only 3% of entire women population is on roads i.e., coming out of

home on work.o Women account for 18% of the workforce.

Hector Ruiz is CEO of AMD. ADM, USA’s largest biodiesel manufacturer has become the first MNC to

setup a $2 mln biofuel plant in India. What is biofuel? Gas or liquid fuel made from plant material i.e., biomass.

Hyderabad gets the $3 bln fab city promoted by SemIndia a consortium. Jurong of Singapore is the master planner of the fab city. Project produces different kind of chips from silicon wafers to solar power and display panels.

The top 5 large Indian IT players account for 44% of the country’s total software exports; 16% comes from tier II firms.

BCSBI – Banking Codes and Standards Board of India is promoted by RBI to ensure that banks follow the standard set by the banking industry.

The ratio of judges for million population is the lowest in India. The Law Commission in its 120th report had recommended 50 judges per million population.

In the calendar year 2005, M&A activity in India reached Rs. 1,04,202 cr. Customs duty exemption is currently available for mega power projects i.e.,

1000 MW or more. Implementation of energy conservation measures has the potential to save

23,000 MW leading to a saving of Rs. 100,000 cr in fresh investments.

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There are about 7,242 companies listed in BSE – of which only about 2,500 are actively traded.

Reverse book building process: A floor price is fixed by the company and the remaining shareholders are asked to bid at a price at which they want to tender their shares.

The Indian equities markets rose 42% in the calendar year 2005.

18.02.06:

BCCI telecasting rights:o Nimbus Communications (lead by Harish Thewani) has bagged all

terrestrial and global satellite broadcasting rights of BBCI for the next four years – 2006 to 2010 for a bid of $612 mln (Rs. 2,775 cr).

o The TV advertising revenue per annum in India is in the range of Rs. 5,500 cr.

o Every year 165 days of cricketing would be there -- 55 ODIs and 22 tests

o To recover its bid price, the company would have to have a $4.84 mln ad revenue per day.

Karnataka has attracted an investment of about Rs. 2,127 cr in IT in the first nine months of this fiscal.

IT exports are expected to touch Rs. 37,000 cr ($8.2 bln) this fiscal by March 2006.

Printing industry generally grows at twice the rate of the GDP growth. In India thus it is expected to grow at about 14-15% annually. In digital printing, an image is created directly from the digital media. Offset has an intermediate cylinder to transfer the ink.

Investments in US debt by various countries:o India $12.6 blno China $257 blno Japan $685 blno UK $234 bln

Texas Power Generation (TPG) is planning to setup a 1600 MW coal based power station in Chhattisgarh.

Prashanto Banerjee – CMD of GAIL C. Ranagarajan Committee on fuel pricing is pitching for trade-parity model

for fuel pricing instead of the current import-parity model in place. Special Coffee Term Loans – over 30% of the borrowers have not been able to

avail the Coffee Relief Package (CRP) announced in May 2005 by the GoI. The cumulative indebtedness of the growers is about Rs.626 cr for the last three years. Coffee market faces a glut globally. The CRP says that borrowers have to pay 33% of the interest burden while government and banks would shoulder two thirds interest burden.

Coffee Board Chairman – G.V. Krishna Rau H5N1 virus causes avian flu. Spreads to humans also. Killed or forced the

culling of 200 mln birds across the Asia, Middle East, Europe and Africa. Infected 169 people, killing 91 and is steadily mutating.

Linolenic acid found in vegetable oils is the cause food to become stale or rancid. The less acid content the better.

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19.02.06:

Bird flu in the recent attacks is reported for the first time in India at Nawapur, Maharashtra.

o India produces 50 bln eggs annually. o The poultry industry in the country (including egg production) is

estimated to be over Rs. 10,000 cr.o AP has the largest poultry industry in India accounting for Rs. 2700 cr.

Almost 4 cr eggs per day and 2 cr broilers are sold every month.o High Security Animal Disease Laboratory is in Bhopal.

Retail markets:o Unorganized retail market is pegged at Rs. 5,83,000 cr.o Organized market is Rs. 5000 cr.o Worldwide total retail market $225 bln of which only $7 bln is in

organized sector.o The sector is set to grow at a rate of 25-30% in the next couple of

years.o Returns in the sector in India range from 12-15% while in developed

countries it is 3-4%.o The urban population in the country will grow by 85 mln in the next 10

years.o The demand for skilled manpower in this sector is pegged at 2.5 mln

by 2010.o Retail industry accounts for 11% of India’s GDP of which only 3% is

organized.o The GoI permitted 51% FDI in retail trade of single brand stores under

the Govt. Approval route.o India is the second most populous country in the world and fourth

largest economy in terms of purchasing power. The attrition rate among employees of BPO sector is:

o 30-40% front-end employeeso 20-25% for middle level managemento 15-20% for top management

Investments by ITES sector in tier II cities has exceeded Rs. 2,500 cr and growing at 40%, according Nasscom

Biotech industry is of the size Rs. 4,745 cr. Growing at 37%. Nutrine holds about 28% of the market share in the sugar-boiled confectionery

market estimated at Rs. 800 cr annually. At present only 25% of the water of Yamuna is being used. Bharat Nirman: The agenda of the GoI to spend Rs. 1,74,000 cr to:

o Provide safe drinking water to 55,067 villages by 2009o Connect every village by telephone by Nov 2007o Provide 60 lk houses for rural pooro Provide all-weather roads to remaining 66,802 habitations by 2009o Provide irrigation to an additional 1 cr hectares by 2009o Provide electricity to the remaining 1,25,000 villages by 2009

- 13 -

After a review of the progress made by Bharat Nirman, PMO concluded that it is not possible to achieve the last two of the above targets.

Detariffing in insurance: what this means is that the general insurers will be at liberty to fix their own premium for any insurance policies they sell.

Generating more loans for the small and marginal farmers: The GoI with a view to do this is likely to announce a fund of the size of Rs. 10,000-15,000 cr. The idea is to help NABARD provide low-cost refinance support, specially to cooperative banks and RRBs.

In the recent Palestinian Authority elections, Hamas won 74 of the 132 parliament seats. Ismail Haniyeh – Hamas Prime Ministerial candidate. President is Mahmoud Abbas of Al Fatah party.

Mr. Harsha Chawda is India’s first officially recognized test tube baby.

20.02.06:

ADC – Access Deficit Charge is a cess imposed on long distance and mobile calls and passed on to BSNL to subsidize its services in rural areas. Under the new regime ADC will be about 2% of the adjusted gross revenue (ARG) and will be applicable on all fixed lines and mo bile calls.

Coffee:o India allows 100% FDI in coffee processing and warehousing.o Over 75% of India’s coffee crop is presently shipped out, essentially in

green bean form.o Domestic coffee consumption is estimated at 75,000 tonnes which is

less than 20% of the country’s crop.o Tamilnadu alone consumes 4/5th of the country’s offtake.

E-Bay:o Has 181 mln users worldwideo It has 1.7 mln users from India.o In 2005 over $44 bln goods were traded and revenues were $4.55 bln

Best bakery case:o On March 1, 2002 a mob attacked Best Bakery in Vadodara and killed

14 people in post-Godhra riots in Gujarat.o All the 21 accused in the case were acquitted in the case.o NHRC filed SLP in SC for retrial and SC ordered retrial outside

Gujarat.o Additional Sessions judge Abhay Thipsay of Mumbai is conducting

the trial. Indian private airlines:

o Air Deccan – Captain GR Gopinatho Kingfisher Airlines – Vijay Mallyao Go Air – Wadia group promotedo Indigo – Rahul Bhatiao Jagson Airlines – UK Boseo Jet airways – Naresh Goyalo Sahara Airlines

Denim manufacturers in India:o Arvind Mills 110 mln metres

- 14 -

o Arvee Denim 60 mln metreso Raymond 40 mln metreso With Raymond now merging with Belgian denim maker UCO NV, it

becomes an 80 mln metres business. PC market in India:

o Has grown by 26% year on year to cross 4.3 mln units.o Overall desktop market grew by 19%.o Notebooks grew by 148% to reach 4,74,000 units

Drugs for curing avian flu:o Oseltamivir Ranbaxyo Tamiflu (oseltamivir) – Roche | only these two are effective against

the H5N1o Relenza (zanamivir) - - GSK | strain of influenza.

Company Law Board Chairman : S. Subramaniam Loss Prevention Association, the country’s premier risk management service

provider is getting merged with GIC. With the opening up of the insurance sector, LPA lost its relevance and has not been performing its original functions for quite some time now.

India’s share in world trade is only 4%. World GDP has risen from $40.7 trln in 1999 to $55.5 trln in 2004 FRBM Act envisages a reduction in the GOI budget deficit of 0.3% annually,

prospectively reducing the deficit to 3% of the GDP by 2008/09. In addition it mandates an annual reduction of 0.5% in the revenue deficit with a view to eliminating it by 2008/09.

Reliance Petroleum Limited operates Asia’s largest oil refinery with 33 MTPA capacity at Jamnagar in Gujarat. With a new project for 27 MTPA envisaged it will become the biggest refinery in the world.

21.02.06:

FCCB issues:o Total FCCB issuance from India in calendar year 2005 is estimated to

be at around $4 bln out of a total of $10.25 bln from Asia excluding Japan.

o In the first two months of 2006, corporates have already raised $1.4 bln out of total Asia Pacific region’s $1.9 bln

o In 2004, cumulative Indian FCCB issuances stood at $2.28 bln. India signed nuclear pact with France for civilian nuclear cooperation by

agreeing to place its nuclear facilities acquired in future through international cooperation under IAEA safeguards.

IT & ITES exports from the country would touch $26 bln for the current fiscal up from the $17.8 bln achieved last fiscal. The industry is targeting $60 bln in exports by the year 2010 which would involve creation of 9 mln jobs.

Domestic beer consumption is placed at 100 mln cases (of 7.8 litre each) this yer.

InBev the world’s largest brewer by volume. ISRO’s commercial arm is ANTRIX The semiconductor market in India is estimated to be around $1.2 bln in 2005. Warren Buffet is Chairman of Berkshire Hathaway.

- 15 -

IIM-A Director is Bakul H. Dholakia CST collections in 2005-06 are estimated to be Rs. 18,000 crore Service tax is part of the divisible pool of taxes. States get 30.5% share in the

divisible pool. As of now there are 11 SEZs in operation in 9 states and UTs; new approvals

for setting up SEZs have been given forf over 40 projects in 13 states; proposals have been received in 11 cases for establishing SEZs.

The overall public sector savings have become positive at 2.2% of GDP in 2004-05. The savings by PSUs is actually over 4% of GDP. The figure is 2.2% is arrived at after netting out Centre’s revenue deficit.

The effective average tax rate paid by corporates is at 20-22%. The gross fiscal deficit of the Centre and States combines is down to 7.5% of

GDP as compared with 10% GDP just a few years ago. The current subsidy on kerosene has been estimated at abour Rs. 15,000 cr

while that on LPG is Rs. 11,000 cr. 76% of the LPG subsidy goes to urban consumers and 40% of the total LPG

subsidy benefits the top 6.75% fo the population by income. Domestic credit is growing nearly by 30%. Banking: Deposits comprising over 75% of lendable resources have gone up

only 16% (Rs. 2,71,890 cr) so far in the current fiscal year. The incremental credit deposit ration is well over 100 with loan growth far exceeding the deposit growth at 25.6% (Rs. 2,82,072 cr)

SBI Chairman: A.K. Purwar India’s tax GDP ratio was below 10% in 2004-05. India’s entertainment industry size is Rs. 22,200 cr Piracy and downloads have reduced the music buying resulting in industry

shrinking to Rs. 100 cr from Rs. 130 cr three years ago. Entertainment industry is likely to grow at 18% annually to reach Rs. 58,800

cr by 2010 according to a KPMG report. A Rs. 13,000 cr program is being drawn up to restructure co-operatives in the

country. There are about 20 co-operative management institutes in the country. Mutual Funds manage over Rs. 75000 cr of equity assets which is 35% of the

Rs. 2 lakh cr managed by the MF industry. STT is 0.075% on delivery based transactions and 0.015% on non-delivery

based transactions.

22.02.06:

BCTT – Banking Cash Transaction Tax. Govt. expects a little over Rs .300 cr from the levy this fiscal. Banks impose a 0.1% cash withdrawal tax on individuals and businesses withdrawing amounts exceeding Rs. 25,000 and Rs. 100,000 respectively on a single day from their accounts.

There are over 40 cr savings bank accounts. UB Group of Vijay Mallya controls over 60% of the country’s spirit and beer

market. The size of M&A deals in 2005 is about $20,165 mln compared to $9,840 mln

in 2004. From 2009 foreign banks would be allowed to buy into Indian banks. Bank deposits growth averaged about 15% so far this fiscal.

- 16 -

Bad loans in the system aggregate to over Rs. 1,35,000 cr. At present tax is deducted at source if interest pay out is more than Rs. 5,000. Inflows from FIIs average a billion dollars a month. Regulations require banks to compulsorily invest 25% of deposits in

government bonds and additional 5% in cash reserves. Banks this year have lent more than Rs. 78,154 cr more than their deposits

allow. Bank deposits have grown over four and half times – from Rs. 4,21,000 cr in

1996 to Rs. 20,00,000 cr this month. Ben Bernanke is the Federal Reserve Chairman of the US. The World Economic Forum ranks India’s private sector competitiveness at 31

out of 117 countries; its public institutions come 52. India’s foreign debt comes at less than 20% of GDP. World Bank survey ranks India on ‘ease of doing business” at 116 out of 155

countries.

23.02.06:

Beer market: UB and SAB Miller account for 80-85% share of the domestic consumption.

The market for instant mixes is pegged at around Rs. 155 cr. The MFA Multi Fibre Agreement that came to an end on January 1st 2005 has

opened up a plethora of opportunities for the Indian textile industry. The current penetration of laser printers in India is about 5% in unit terms in

the total printer market. NASSCOM has estimated the Indian mobile gaming market to grow at a

CAGR of 89.1% to touch %205m in ’09 from $16m in ’05. Effective corporate tax liability is about 20-22%. Corporate book profits are

estimated to be about Rs.300,000 cr. Karnataka is the first state in the country to offer agriculture loans to farmers

at a rate of 6%. After the 1998 Pokran tests the nuclear powers led by US imposed sanctions

against India. Negative protection: When the import duty on a product is lower than the

VAT/Sales Tax applicable on domestic sales of that product, its indigenous producers face negative protection.

Coffee: 25% of the average annual crop of 275,000 tonnes is consumed in India. Rest is exported. India’s per capita consumption is 54 gm a year. In south India it is 240 gm. A Coffee Board study estimates that each of tonne of beans consumed in Indai generates at least 10 semi-skilled jobs.

Technical education and IT:o Karnataka 46,000 graduates per year 118 collegeso Andhra 83,000 236 collegeso TN 80,000 250 collegeso Maharashtra 48,000 155

IT exports:o Karnataka Rs. 27,000 cro TN Rs. 11,000 cro AP Rs. 8,270 cr

- 17 -

NASSCOM McKinsey study projects IT exports to reach $60 bln by 2010. Currently only 25% of the technical graduates are suitable for employment in

the offshore IT industry. Bangalore has about 35% of the s/w service professional in the country. In FY ’06, the mobilization of small savings is projected at Rs. 94,000 cr. India currently has about 1 mln online investors. RBI guidelines say that a domestic scheduled bank has to lend to the priority

sector (including agriculture, weaker sections and SSI) about 40% of their net bank credit.

Livestock insurance scheme: Cabinet cleared the scheme targeting to insure 15 lk animals with an estimated expenditure of Rs. 120 cr. GoI will subsidize 50% of the premium. Subsidy restricted to two animals per beneficiary.

Allontoic acid: the crucial element in providing chicken with the resistance against bird flu.

MCX exchange turnover is Rs. 5500 cr per day. Gold:

o Global consumption of gold dropped by 25% in the last quarter of 2005.

o Total supply of gold in 2005 hovered around the 4000 tonne mark.o India imported close to 650 tonnes of gold while Dubai imported

around 520 tonnes in 2005.

24.02.06:

Cairn Energy: Scotland based. Has assets in Bangladesh, Nepal and India. India’s internet penetration is kept at 6.7 mln users. The e-recruitment industry is estimated to be worth Rs. 200 cr. The total

recruitment market is pegged at Rs. 1300-1400 cr. Philips curve: seeks to highlight the trade-off between inflation and

unemployment. Iraqi President: Jalal Talabani US has 64 nuclear reactors spread across 34 states. Lebanese President: Emile Lahoud Lebanese Premier: Fuad Saniora Leasing charge for an A320 ranges between $200,000 to 2,50,000 a month.

A321 comes for about $250,000 to 300,000. An A320 costs about $70 mln a piece. The CRD in CRDi stands for common rail direct injection DIAGEO is the world’s largest spirits company – UK based The IMFL led Indian spirits market is estimated at 125 mln cases annually. The ISD calls are going to be cheaper because TRAI has reduced the ADC

from March 1. ADC on outgoing calls kept at 80 ps from Rs. 2.50 ps while the ADC on incoming calls is kept at Rs. 1.60 ps from Rs. 3.25 ps per minute.

The move to a revenue share form of ADC will help remove the distinction between local and long distance calls, enabling even private players to move towards a One-India tariff regime. ADC unnecessarily complicates the funding mechanism for rural services – it is primarily meant to compensate BSNL for its below cost services in rural areas.

Indian Railways is stated to be six times more energy efficient than road transport.

- 18 -

LNG prices in the last one year have gone up from $4 per mmbtu to $12 per mmbtu.

This year some 15 mt of coal had to be imported to avert a power crisis and projections are that next year we may have to import about 20 mt of coal to avert a crisis.

Currently dividend distribution tax is at 14.07%. All companies seeking listing on any of the US bourses have to be SOX

(Sarbanes Oxley Act) compliant. National Institute of Virology is in Pune National Institute of Communicable Diseases is in Delhi. Gold:

o India’s consumer demand for retail investments in gold has jumped 34% to touch 134.7 tonnes in 2005

o India’s demand for gold jewellery stood at 589 tonnes in 2005.o Total global gold consumption stood at 3,754 tonnes in 2005.

Foodgrain production:o 209.3 mln tones in 2005-06 as against 204.6 mln tones in 2004-05o Wheat 73.1 mln tones from 72 mln tones.o Rice 87.9 mln tones from 85.3 mln tones.o Oil seed production is at 26.4 mln tones.

25.02.06:

Railways Budget:o Against a target of 635 mln tones for the year, IR may transport about

668 mln tones for the current year earning Rs. 36,490 cr.o Gross traffic receipts for the current year would touch Rs. 54,600 cr

exceeding the budget estimates by 7%.o IR is likely to set up a 22000 cr SPV for the construction of the freight

corridoro Freight traffic is expected to get Rs. 40,320 cr in 2006-07 out of a total

of Rs. 59,978 cr projected from the traffic receipts.o Passenger traffic revenue is expected to touch Rs. 19,658 cr in 2006-07

from Rs. 18,210 cr o IR has achieved good performance by loading an additional 4-8

tonne /wagon to overcome wagon shortage and thus carry 18.5% more freight than last year, yielding about Rs. 5000 cr additional revenue.

o Estimated to clock a gross traffic receipts of Rs. 54,600 cr in 2005-06.o Freight loading target of 726 mn tones for 2006-07

RBI guidelines say that no foreign bank can have more than 5% stake in a domestic bank.

Present rate of interest on income tax refunds is 8%. Refunds have to be made within four months of filing returns.

J & K factions:o Hurriyat lead by Mirwaiz Umer Farooqo JKLF Yasin Maliko People’s conference Sajjad Lone

- 19 -

Bhagalpur communal riots: Happened in 1989 when more than 1000 people died. Nitish Kumar, CM of Bihar has ordered a judicial commission to look into the incident.

BSNL:o With the new ADC regime, BSNL is set to see the ADC amount

coming down to Rs. 3,335 cr in 2006-07 from the current 5,340 cro BSNL revenues are at Rs. 33,450 cr in 2004-05o Has 40 mln fixed lines and over 17 mln mobile subscriberso Broadband customers are about 4.5 lakho It is adding over one million mobile subscribers every month.o One India offers STD calls from fixed line phones to anywhere in the

country at Rs. 1 per minute while local calls are charged at Rs. 1 for three minutes. Monthly rental for this being Rs. 299.

Disk storage systems and storage software market is about $115 mln in India. Indian animation market is around Rs. 1,270 cr in 2005. Subsidies in Indian economy:

o Oil Rs. 3,644 cro Fertilizer Rs. 16,000 cro Food Rs. 26,200 cro Total Rs. 47,432 cr

Centre’s borrowings in 2005-06 are expected to be Rs. 1,10,291 cr as compared to Rs. 90,365 cr in 2004-05.

Wheat imports:o Govt. may import an additional 1.5 to 2 mt in the current yearo Wheat consumption pegged at 74.5 mt in 06-07 while the harvest is

pegged at 73 mt.o Ration shops and government schemes require about 18 mt of wheat

every yearo NSSO survey shows a declining trend in per capita consumption of

cereals and rise in per capita consumption of high-value products. Even then demand for wheat is high because of growing population and urbanization.

Indian broiler market accounts for 30 mln broilers a week, translating to Rs. 8000 cr to 9000 cr.

The five proposed mega power projects would require about Rs. 70,000 cr investment. That means a debt component of about Rs. 45,000 to 50,000 cr.

SBI has about 35 mln transaction per day of which about 1 mln have shifted to alternative channels like ATMs. SBI is seeing a growth of 15% every motnh in ATM transactions.

Daily turnover in commodity futures market is touching Rs. 10,000 cr. Indian traders in commodity markets still cannot hedge risks with regard to

weather and freight – two of the most popular financial hedging instruments in the world.

POSCO and Mittal steel have planned 12 MT steel plants in India. Former in Orissa and latter in Chattisgarh.

IOC turnover is about $35 bln. Cumulative loss of oil marketing companies is about Rs. 18,000 cr.

- 20 -

India is third fastest growing domestic aviation market in the world. Our domestic and international markets are expected to expand by 30% to around 20 mln passengers each.

India consumes nearly 3.5 mln tones of ATF annually. ATF consumption is growing 15% in comparison to petroleum products which typically grow at 2-3%.

26.02.06:

The Government intends to build 276 ports and 111 shipping units with an investment of Rs. 55,000 spread over 20 years.

SAIL Chairman: VS Jain SAIL has five integrated steel plants: Bhilai, Bokaro, Durgapur, Rourkela and

Visakhapatnam Telephones:

o During the first 10 months of this current fiscal a total of 31.41 mln subscribers were added by all the players.

o Gross subscriber base for the fixed and mobile telephony is currently at 130 mln including 80.61 mln mobile subscribers at the end of January 2006.

o Whenever tariffs are reduced, traffic increases by 30%.o Projections are that India will have about 250 mln subscribers by the

year 2007. Highway sector:

o New programs for highway sector envisaged at $40 bln. This will be done through PPP route.

o Chairman NHAI: Santosh Nautiyalo Govt. decided to construct expressways of about 1000 km at an

estimated cost of $5.7 bln in the next six years. Kolkata is going to get the country’s first book mall “Barnaparichoy” at an

estimated investment of about Rs. 200 cr. Jointly being developed by Bengal Shelter Housing Development and Kolkata Municipal Corporation.

Forex reserves:o Total forex reserves are at $141.2 bln as of February 17.o Foreign currency assets at $134.8 bln o Value of gold reserves at $5.6 blno Value of SDR reserves at $3 mln o Outstanding stock of CDs (Certificate of Deposits) Rs. 34,432 cro Outstanding stock of CP (Commerical Papers) Rs. 16,173 cr.o WMA: Ways and Means Advances – a temporary borrowing facility

with the central bank to meet the government’s revenue mismatches. Central govt. has not been resorting to WMA at all for the last one year.

o Centre’s surplus cash balances parked with the RBI are at Rs. 20,900 cr.

Power sector: 11th plan:o Envisaged to add 62,000 MW capacity including

- 21 -

o 5000 MW from NCE sectoro 16000 MW from Hydroo 38,000 MW from Coal based thermalo 3000 MW nuclearo 6000 MW from LNG or gas

At present India’s adult literacy rate is at 61.3% H5N1 virus was first detected in Republic of Korea in December 2003. Brazil’s official news agency: Agencia Brasil

27.02.02:

Subsidy for cooking fuel is estimated to be Rs. 26,000 cr. It is over Rs. 200 per cylinder and almost Rs. 12 per litre of kerosene.

The floods in Mumbai, MP and Gujarat in July 2005 have caused an insurance loss of Rs. 3,800 cr and total damages of Rs. 15,000 cr.

The insured losses in India on account of natural catastrophes amount to nearly 1% of the total insured catastrophic losses of $83 bln worldwide. India accounts for 0.67% of the total non-life premium worldwide but has never had any major catastrophic insurance loss.

US which accounts for 43% of the non-life premium generated worldwide has catastrophic losses amounting to $65 bln i.e., 78% of the total losses of $83 bln.

Boeing and Airbus sold a total of 2057 planes in 2005 may get combined orders probably for 800 planes this year.

According to Boeing estimates, India will need close to 500 planes over the next 20 years.

Car markets worldwide in 2005:o US 16 mln unitso Western Europe 14.5 mlno East Europe 2.98 mlno Japan 5.89 mlno China 5.7 mlno India 1.11 mln

Indian pharma industry size in 2005 was Rs. 23,000 cr A Doctor in US creates 13 papers for every patient he sees. There are 34.6 lakh posts in GoI. Only 31 lakh posts are filled. The GoI announced that for designated BPL families across rural India free

electricity connections (not free power) would be supplied to provide power for all by 2012. This will be done under the Rs. 4000 cr Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana.

Chemicals sector contributes to 17% of the country’s industrial production. A second Palace on Wheels train is given in principle approval by the GoI. It

costs Rs. 24 crs to build that train. It will be operational in 2007. As of June 2005, out of 648 live projects, 79 projects had both time and cost

overruns. FBT collections till January were Rs. 2,744 cr. BCTT collection till January were Rs. 221 cr

- 22 -

In terms of MER (Market Exchange Rate) India is the 11th larget defence spender. In PPP (Purchase Power Parity) terms India comes in third, right behind China and the US.

NREGP: National Rural Employment Guarantee Program aims to provide 100 days of guaranteed paid employment every year to every household whose adult members come forward to do unskilled manual work. Initial allocation Rs. 11,000 cr. Estimates for the total cost are anywhere between 20,000 to 40,000 cr annually.

Banking industry in India is saddled with Rs. 60,000 cr of NPAs. Out of this only $500 mln worth of NPA are brought by investors.

Small cars priced in the range of Rs. 2.5 lakh to 4.5 lakh now account for over 75% of car sales in the country.

Passenger vehicles are taxed at the peak excise duty of 24%.

28.02.06:

Nuclear deal with US: The deal entailed identifying in phases, a number of thermal reactors as civilian facilities to be placed under IAEA safeguards, amounting to roughtly 65% of the total installed thermal capacity.

Mullaperiyar dam height: Supreme Court has allowed raising the water level of this dam in Kerala from 136 ft to 142 ft. Kerala has persistently opposed raising the dam’s water level located in Idukki district on the ground that it would endanger five downstream districts on Kerala side. Also on environmental concerns for the Periyar Tiger Reserve. The SC allowed the TN govt to carry out the necessary repairs of the dam before the water level is raised to the maximum of 152 ft.

Hyderabad has currently about 1100+ four/five star rooms. Likely to grow to 4,450 during the mid-term.

Viva carnival: Goa’s most colourful and celebrated festival. If Mittal Steels bid for Arcelor of France succeeds, it will create a 135 mln

tonne steel giant dominating markets across Americas, Europe and Africa. China is the largest steel market in the world. There are about 10,000 ATM’s in the country? Primary capital markets raised Rs. 90,000 cr during April-January 2005-06.

Of this 62,000 cr was from domestic market while 28,000 cr was from overseas markets.

The MSS (Market Stabilization Scheme) and LAF (Liquidity Adjustment Facility) are the instruments with RBI to pump liquidity into the system, with auctions and sale and repurchase of government bonds.

The number of CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lamps) consumption has gone up from 7 mln units to 50 mln units in the last four years. Estimates reveal that energy conservation measures have the potential of saving 23,000 MW leading to a saving of Rs. 100,000 cr in fresh investments. CFL lamps have long life 8000 to 15000 hours instead of 750 to 1000 hours of normal lamps.

India is the largest exporter of castor oil in the world. Produces about 3.65 lk tonnes of castor oil a year. China exports value added products from castor oil; India has not been able to do so, content with exporting castor oil to China.

Local procurement price of wheat is Rs. 650 per quintal; while the import price of wheat is Rs. 900 per quintal.

- 23 -

Economic Survey:

Bank credit to industry has skyrocketed 45.7% in the current year. There is huge increase in agricultural credit – 30%.

Goal is to raise the tax-GDP ratio to 13% by 2008-09. Budgeted tax-GDP ratio for 2005-06 is 10.5%.

The economic survey highlights three risks for the rather rosy forecast of 8% growth: inflation, interest rates and fiscal stance.

Food grain production is estimated at 209.32 mln tonnes this year. Capital formation (investment in the sector as a percentage of GDP) in the

farm sector went down from 2.2% in the late 90s to only 1.7% in 2004-05. There has been a sharp fall in irrigated area under food crops. The annual

growth rate in agriculture is pegged at 2.3% in 2005-06 down from 10% in 2003-04.

There are only 7500 regulated mandis in the country. The index of crop yields was lower overall dropping from 160 in 2003-04 to

156 in 2004-05. Targeted flow of institutional flow of credit into agriculture for the current

year is Rs. 1,41,000 cr. Vaidyanathan Committee recommended a package of Rs. 13,596 cr for the

revival of the cooperative sector. SHGs cover only 242 lk familities at an average loan disbursement of Rs.

3,044. India has the second largest number of HIV/AIDS patients. At any time there are 25 lk cancer cases in India. Govt. is committed to increase public spending on health to 2-3% of the GDP. There is a sharp fall in mandays lost due to strikes and lockouts – from 30.26

mln in 2003 to 23.87 mln 2004. In the first 9 months of 2005-06 industrial strife claimed only 7.3 mln mandays.

Combined expenditure of Centre and States on education has come down from 3.74% of the GDP in 2003-04 to 3.49% of the GDP in 2004-05 despite a commitment by government to gradually increase expenditure to 6% of the GDP.

Elementary education system meets the needs of 20.9 cr children in the age group of 6 to 14.

Enrollment in tertiary education system (university and college system) is 99 lks.

Number of schools as at 2003-04 is 1.45 lks. India’s milk production is above 90 mln tonnes 2004-05. Egg production

45,201 mln. Fish output 6.304 mln tonnes. India consumes 15 mln tonnes of pulses annually but grows only 12-14 mt. Combined fiscal deficit of the Centre and States is 8% of GDP. High gross domestic savings 29.1% in 2004-05. Goss domestic investment

32%. The balance would be met from current account deficit of 2.9% of GDP. Cumulative indirect tax burden on goods is over 30%, including a 12.5% VAT

rate and 16.32% excise duty. Average annual growth of 22% in tax revenue. Number of assessees whose annual income is more than Rs. 10 lk are around

80,000!!!

- 24 -

Inflation as on February 11, 2006 is 4.02%. The combined revenue deficit of all states is likely to shrink to 0.7% of the

GDP this year from 1.4%, while fiscal deficit is expected to decline to 3.1%. Outstanding liabilities of the states at 33.3% of the GDP or Rs. 10,40,834 cr as

per RE 2004-05 are estimated to be 32.7% of the GDP at Rs. 11,52,530 cr this year.

Current account deficit now stands at 3% of the GDP. Exports are expected to touch $150 bln by 2009. Merchandise exports are expected to touch $92 bln by this fiscal end .

So far the 8% sell-off of government stake in Maruti is the only divestment done this fiscal.

VAT is not implemented by 8 states and UTs. Commodity markets in India:

o NCDEXo MCXo NBOT – Indore based.o NMCE – (National Multi Commodity Exchange) Ahmadabad based.

Indian equity market capitalization is – 2540 companies with 24.7 lk cr. Primary debt issuances were abysmally low at 66 cr in 2005 calendar year. In

contrast bonds of Rs. 50,000 cr were placed in the private placement market. Companies raised over Rs. 30,325 cr in equities markets in 2005. TFP Total Factor Productivity is the ratio of real output to a weighted sum of

the inputs used in the production process. Survey says that there is a decrease in the growth rate of TFP.

In January 2006, cabinet approved 100% FDI through the automatic route for captive coal mining in the iron, steel and cement sectors apart from power sector which has always enjoyed this benefit.

Computer penetration rate in India is 7 per 1000, a fourth of what it is in China.

The infrastructure sector alone requires about $150 bln investments by 2010. National Maritime Development Program seeks to up the capacity of major

ports from the present level of 397.5 mt per annum to 650 mt per annum by 2008-09.

Cargo handled at major ports registered a 12.4% growth in the current fiscal. Customs and excise duties on petroleum products constitute 40% of the total

customs/excise collections. Under the current subsidy regime, the government spends Rs. 3.65 ps to

provide Rs. 1.00 ps subsidy to the poor. This means, of the projected Rs. 46,358 cr the government will spend on three major subsidies viz., food, fertilizer and petroleum, the poor will get only Rs. 12,000 cr.

The government’s subsidy bill is projected to fall to 1.31% of GDP in the current fiscal.

India is the biggest shopper of phosphoric acid in the world. NHDP: National Highway Development Program. There are VII phases. In

Phases 1 & II the main source of finance was the fuel cess. III-A covers an upgradation of over 4,000 km of national highways at estimated cost of Rs. 22,000 cr. The other phases involve huge private investment.

Airports: Internal freight traffic grew at 11.7% while domestic cargo grew at 6.6%. Passenger traffic increased 18% and 24.2% respectively. Private airlines now account for over 68.9% of the domestic traffic.

- 25 -

India’s roads, airport and port sectors require over Rs. 2,60,000 cr investments in the next six years.

As of December the private sector accounts for 54% of the total phone connections in India. Total number of telephones has risen to 125 mln as of December 2005. Overall tele density has risen to 11.32% in December. By 2007 the number of phones are targeted to reach 250 mln.

- 26 -

01.03.2006: Budget Paper

02.03.06:

The 1993 serial blasts in Mumbai killed nearly 300 people. Cine star Sanjay Dutt is an accused in the case. Abu Salem has confessed to delivering arms and ammunition to the cinema hero.

Chief Election Commissioner: BB Tandon SNC Lavalin: The Canadian company is in news because of a corrupt deal

between itself and the Kerala State Electricity Board. SNC Lavalin was entrusted with the job of modernizing three hydro-electric projects in the State viz., Pallivasal, Sengulam and Panniyar at an outlay of Rs. 374.50 cr. Post modernization audit of the projects revealed that the efficiency of the projects had not been helped at all the by the work undertaken by the Company. The case is entrusted to CBI by the Kerala Govt.

The Global norm on IT spend is about 6 to 7% of the turnover. In India the IT spend is about 1 to 2%.

India and US are trying to double their bilateral trade in three years time to $40 bln. In 2005, India’s exports to US are at $18.80 bln and US exports to India are at $7.96 bln. Total bilateral trade in 2005 is thus at $ 26.766 bln. India has a $9.5 bln trade surplus with US.

America accounts for 5% of the population of the world. Of the 3.5 cr children in the secondary schools only 99 lk make it to an

institute of higher education. Put another way only 9% of the population in the age group of 18 to 23 years is enrolled in any of higher education institutions.

In 2006-07, the education cess is expected to bring in Rs. 8,746 cr which is a little more than 50% of the total expenditure on programs financed by the cess – SSA and mid day meal at Rs. 17,892 cr.

Madras University is one of the oldest universities set up following Sir Charles Wood’s Education Dispatch. Set up on the model of the London University on September 5, 1857 by an Act of the Legislative Council of India.

Liquor: Centre’s cumulative tax incidence on BIO (Bottled in origin) brands varies between 212 to 525% as compared to 65% in China and Thailand.

Air India wants bigger exposure in fuel hedging market: o AI has currently government approval for hedging 10% of its offtake,

which translates to about 6 lk barrels annually.o Price of the jet fuel which was averaging US cents 114 per gallon in

2003-04 is now around 201 per gallon.o AI’s fuel bill was Rs. 2200 cr with about 55% of the fuel uplifted

overseas. Air transport witnessed a high growth rate of 24% in 2004-05. In 2004, some

25 mln Indians took to the skies within India while about 6 mln traveled abroad.

Govt. plans to spend about Rs. 40,000 cr for the upgradation of 25 airports. Wheat imports:

o Australia has won the wheat import contract.

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o Methyl-bromide is the fumigant that India uses and insists on for phyto-sanitatry reasons.

o Imported wheat is coming cheaper at Rs. 8700 per tonne as against Rs. 9450 per tonne it would cost according to FCI’s open market rate.

o Hot weather makes wheat yields less.o India is likely to consume 74.5 mln tonnes of wheat in 2006-07 while

the local harvest is pegged at 73 mln tonnes.o India’s exports constitute only 0.8% of the world exports; but with a

CAGR of 12 to 15% the country is likely to be the fourth or fifth largest economy in the next 15 to 20 years.

03.03.06:

Indo-US relations:o India agreed to demarcate 65% of its nuclear facilities – 14 of the 22

reactors for IAEA safeguards. US President agreed to work with his Congress to make the required changes in the domestic laws for treating India as a de facto nuclear state.

o NSG – Nuclear Supplier Group comprising 45 nuclear supplier states has an agreement to coordinate its export controls governing transfers of civilian nuclear material and nuclear related equipment and technology to non-nuclear weapon states.

o India and US agreed to double their bilateral trade to $40 bln in three years time. US is the largest trading partner for India. America’s trade with China is to the tune of $300 bln while that with India at the end of 2005 is at $20 bln.

o A 1000 MW plant would require about 150-200 tonnes of Uranium each year. Given the projected planned capacity of 40,000 MW there would be requirement of 6000 MT per year once the total capacity is commissioned. Against that India’s present production capacity is nearly 200 tonnes/year.

Tourism:o The to and fro traffic between the two countries is expected to grow by

about 20% over the next one year currently valued at over $1 bln in revenues.

o Of the 3.9 mln foreign tourists who visited Indian shores in 2005, US offered the biggest numbers of about 5 lakhs.

o In 2005 overall foreign tourist inflow registered around 14% growth in numbers over 2004.

o The Supreme Court has ruled that in a telecom service, sale confines to sale of

handsets only. Hence transfer of right to use can be there only in handsets and not others.

Telephones: Carrier Access Code (CAC) code regime allows consumers to choose their carrier while making long distance calls.

India is adding about 4 mln to 5 mln mobile subscribers every month. NASSCOM pegs the size of the Indian animation market at Rs. 1270 cr in

2005 and projects a CAGR of 35% to increase to 4,233 cr by 2009. Till now the education cess collection was far below the projected:

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o In 2004-05 projected at Rs. 7,260 cr while collection was Rs. 4,173 cr. In 2005-06 projected at Rs. 11,145 cr while collections are projected at Rs. 6,975 cr.

LIC has about 11 lakh agents. Revenue deficit reduction target of 1.1% for 2007-08 would be a challenge, as

it would come on top of the 0.5% reduction budgeted for 2006-07. At present occupancy level of AC I and II tier classes is 47% and 58%

respectively. Passenger earning increased from 8% to 14%. IOC is the country’s biggest oil refiner and marketer, controls 10 of India’s 18

refineries and processes about 1.1 mln barrels of crude per day. At present captive mining of coal is allowed only for internal consumption of

companies engaged in production of iron and steel, generation of power and making of cement.

Indira Rajaraman, RBI Chair Professor at NIPFP:o Moving on to the FRBM timetable. The fiscal deficit is projected to go

down from 4.1% this year to 3.8% next year. This is about where it needs to be, to reach the eventual target of 3% in 2008-09. But that target is in the Rules, not in the Act, and can itself be shifted. What cannot be shifted is the revenue deficit target of zero in 2008-09, which is enshrined in the Act. Starting from 2.6% of GDP this year, the revenue deficit has to be 1.7% next year. Instead, it has been budgeted at 2.1% which will backload the revenue deficit reduction to more than 1% of GDP in each of the final two years.

Indian agriculture:o Banes:

Heavy dependence on monsoon showers Declining investements Lack of effective marketing and distribution system

o GCF in agriculture, forestry and fishing together stood at Rs. 67,561 cr in 2004-05.

o The private sector continues to provide more than 70% of total investments going into agriculture.

o During April-Nov 2005, India exported $5.7 bln worth of agricultural and allied products.

o Share of agricultural goods in total exports is declining – from 11.2% in April-Nov 2003 it has come down to 9.7% this year. Key reason for this being fall in wheat exports.

o Wheat stock buffer norm is 4 mln tonnes.o Sugarcane is the most widely produced cash crop in Indiao India is among the biggest producers, consumers and suppliers of tea in

the world. SHGs – Self Help Groups:

o An SHG is formed when a number of rural people come together to pool their savings, creating a huge corpus of money. The model revolves around a number of these groups jointly saving and then linking it to a bank, these funds saved are placed in a group deposit account. The group then borrows from the bank, using its saving and group guarantee as collateral. NABARD has even provided a

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subsidized refinancing scheme to encourage banks to support the SHG lending schemes.

Jose Manuel Borroso: President of European Commission. Basudeb Banerjee: Chairman of Tea Board World cotton production in 2005-06 is forecast at 24.9 mt. Francesco Frangialli: Head of the World Tourism Organization

04.03.06:

FIIs, foreign companies and ADR/GDR holders together own about 25% of India’s market cap – up from 17% share at the beginning of 2005.

The combined market cap share of central govt., state govt., and govt. undertakings has shrunk to 31% from about 38%.

India’s internet population poised to reach 100 mln by 2007-08 from the current 38.5 mln.

ONGC, Reliance Industries and Great Eastern Energy have discovered over 6 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of gas reserves below the coal seams. Coal Bed Methane CBM

Pfizer the American pharma giant is world’s leader in pharma business with about $51.3 bln revenues.

India has an estimated demand of 4 mln spindles; against this domestic textile machinery manufacturers are able to supply only 2 mln spindles. This has resulted in our market becoming a top export market for China.

Total merchandise exports from India are at $81 bln in 2004-05. Merchandise imports are at $77 bln in the same year. India’s total commercial services trade is at $80 bln in 2004-05.

05.03.06:

The cabinet approved a revised air services agreement with Australia. This will lead to a opening up of the sky between the countries and enhance the number of air services to a significant extent.

John Howard: Australian Prime Minister The total stock of money in the country is at Rs. 25,80,002 cr. Weekly

Statistics Supplement of the RBI. The US economy grew by 4.4% last year. The Indian basket of crude now costs about $60 China’s defence spending this year is budgeted at $35.3 bln. Chinese military

is 2.5 mln strong. Chen Shui-bian is Taiwan’s President.

06.03.06:

CDC – British Government’s arm for investing in the private sector in developing economies.

Wen Jiabao: Chinese Premier How does an ARC (Asset Recovery Company) make money?

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o Typically an ARC buys bad loans, and but instead of paying cash, it issues security receipts (SRs) to the bank which sells the loan. The ARC then services the loan out of the recovery it makes on the loans. First, it charges a 2% management fee which is built into the final redemption of the SRs; second, if ARC manages to recover more than the value of SRs it had issued to buy out the loan, then it keeps back a slice of the extra recovery.

Roche: F Hoffmann La Roche is a Swiss drug maker. Interferons are proteins released in the body in response to viral infections and

are key to fighting viruses. Roche gets first product patent for Hepatitis C drug (Pegasys) – this marks the

arrival of product patents in pharmaceuticals in India, which according to multinational drug makers, is key to investment in drug research in the country.

Sam Pitroda is the Chairman of the National Knowledge Commission. What are FII sub-accounts?

o They are investment funds from abroad which route their money through an FII into the Indian stock markets.

The motor car industry is estimated to have contributed about Rs. 2,800 cr as excise revenues in 2004-05.

The Govt. has projected excise collection for 2006-07 at Rs. 119,000 cr, up 6% from Rs. 112,000 cr estimated for 2005-06.

The nationalized banks had collective capital adequacy ratio of 13.2% as on 31.03.05.

Total net capital support provided by the government to banks stands at Rs. 22,808 cr.

Total investments by banks in government securities at present stands at Rs. 7,00,595 cr.

India’s overall car exports have grown from 82.896 to 150,406 over the last three years.

India and US have earmarked a three year $100 mln corpus to fund joint cooperation in agricultural education and related R & D.

MAT – Minimum Alternate Tax introduced in 1983 u/s 80 VVA of the IT Act. It is the amount of tax that a profitable company has to pay even if it is not liable to pay any tax as per the normal tax computation.

KP Narasimhan committee on insurance: appointed to recommend a comprehensive law on insurance sector. It had submitted its report to the Govt.

Peter Mandelson: European Trade Commissioner. OPEC pumps about 40% of world’s oil. Current production quota of 28 mln

barrels per day. Surat’s textile industry accounts for 65% of India’s manmade fabric

production. Abhijet Sen panel: on fertilizer industry. Faroe Islands: is in North Atlantic and is a self governing administrative unit

of Denmark. PM is Joannes Eidesgaard. Visited India.

07.03.06:

Australia has 40% of the world’s Uranium deposits.

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Godhra Incident: Sabarmati Express train carnage in which 59 persons were burnt alive on February 27, 2002. Lalu Prasad Yada, the Railway Minister had appointed Justice U.C. Banerjee Committee to look into certain technical aspects of the train carnage including the cause of the fire in S-6 coach of the train. This Committee gave a finding that “it was just an accident.”

The hard boiled candy market (sweets) is estimated to be 750/800 cr annually. The overall domestic confectionary market, including gums and chocolates is

pegged at Rs. 16,00 cr. March 8: International women’s day. In India 80% of the working women are working in primary sector. Only 50%

of the Indian women are literate as compared to 65.5% men. Room AC market is of the size Rs. 2600 cr. India’s organized travel solutions market (luggage) is worth Rs. 600 cr. Endogenous tourism: Revolves around the culture and craft of a location,

while seeking to create livelihood opportunities for the local community. It is proposed to take up 50 villages with core competency in handicrafts, handlooms and culture to promote endogenous tourism.

The employee base of IT-ITES sector is at 1 mln. Expected to be 1.1 mln this year.

Only 10% of India’s population is insured. Small Savings Schemes:

o Govt. budgeted (2006-07) for SS collections of 90,400 cr.o Post office deposits: 64,350 cro KVP and NSC: 9,900 cr.o PPF: 11,000 cr.

The Twelfth Finance Commission has recommended that states aim to achieve revenue balance by 2008-09 and reduce the gross fiscal deficit to gross state domestic product ration to 3% by 2009-10.

In India the cost of transacting in stock markets is at 0.65% while in HongKong it is 0.43%.

RH Patil Committee on debt market reforms ABR: Advanced Burner Reactors burn plutonium from irradiated fuel from

reactors. China accounts for 18% of GHG emissions; India 4% while US accounts for

25%. WHO World Health Report released:

o 530,000 women die at child birth in a year all over the world.o 10.6 mln children die before they attain 5 years.o 136 mln births worldwide every year.

Annual World Press Freedom Index released by “Reporters sans Frontiers”, a France based organization. For the year 2005, it ranked Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Ireland and Netherlands as top countries based on the degree of freedom enjoyed by journalists and news organizations.

PK Gupta: Chairman NHB National Housing Bank N. Balasubramanian: Chairman SIDBI India’s mobile subscriber base is currently at 84 mln. India is the third largest producer of tobacco but accounts for only 3.5% of

global leaf trade.

08.03.06:

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As per SEBI guidelines, promoters have to bring in at least 20% contribution if an unlisted company does an IPO. This 20% is locked in for three years. Anything over and above this 20% is also subject to a lock-in for one year.

Aviation seats available per day:o 2005 January 80,500o 2006 January 112,000

Bharti is the largest cellular operator in India with a total subscriber base of 19.74 mln while Reliance Infocomm comes second with about 19.4 mln.

SBI’s ATM network is 5700 strong; largest in Asia-Pacific region. What is super-critical technology in power sector?

o Conventional thermal plants have thermal efficiency (energy produced per unit of energy input) in the range of 30-35% only with most Indian plants operating in the range of 30-32%. Super-critical technology allows this efficiency to go up to 45%.

o The technology is based on the super critical property of water, and hence the name. At a pressure beyond 225 bar in a boiler, water transforms into steam instantaneously.

Central tax collection figures till Febrary end:o Gross tax collections Rs .2,89,621 cr (2,38,868 cr)o Corporate tax collection: 70,590 cr (55,252 cr.)o Income tax (including STT, FBT, BCTT) collection: 47,960 cr.o Service tax: 18,195 cro Customs: 57,431 cro Excise: 95,445 cr

09.03.06:

Incometax Department has collected data on 15 lakh HNIs in 2004-05 totalling 11 lakh crore – a third of India’s GDP.

Stephen Harper: Canadian PM UN annual budget is about $10 bln. 191 member General Assembly. Agricultural credit has increased above the target to Rs. 1,25,309 cr in 2004-

05. Is expected to cross the target of Rs. 1,41,500 cr set for 2006-07. The construction industry is currently having an order book position of more

than Rs. 45,000 cr in the last 12 months. The order-book-to-sales ratio has also improved for most companies significantly.

FIIs bought $10.7 bln worth of securities in Indian markets last year. They have bought $2.96 bln so far in 2006.

The current account deficit for a country implies that a country’s economy functions on borrowed means or when other countries essentially finance the economy.

The Centre’s R&D expenditure is less than $3 bln a year, which is less than half of what leading MNCs spend. Indian industry’s R&D expenditure is also much lower at $1 bln for the full private sector. According to Kiran Karnik, Nasscom president.

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The packaged software market in the Asia-Pacific region is expected to grow by 11.1% this year to touch $13.4 bln according to IDC. India is set to achieve an annual growth of 20.3%.

SPTF: Special Purpose Tea Fund being setup by the Tea Board with Rs. 4,700 cr. Planning Commission may approve a 25% subsidy for this fund from the GoI as against the 40% that the Tea Board is expecting. This fund will operate over a period of 15 years.

OPEC countries: 11 nation cartel. Many of them have repeatedly said that prices of oil are optimal in the $40 - $50 range per barrel. Its current output quota is about 28 mln bpd.

10.03.06:

Senior Citizens Savings Scheme could get about in the current year Rs. 18,000 cr compared to Rs. 15,000 cr in 2005-06.

With the addition of new Nuclear plants, the nuclear power generation could touch 7,280 MWe in the next five years.

NPT identifies a country as Nuclear Power only if it had exploded a nuclear weapon or other nuclear explosive devise prior to 1st January 1967.

H. Kuroda: Asian Development Bank President. Direct tax arrears as on April 1, 2005 were Rs. 98,614 cr. Indian Railways permits an average 20.5 tonne axle-load for carrying freight.

Axle-load is the maximum allowable weight per pair of wheels for a given section of rail track. It is a function of strength of the track, which, in turn, depends on the length and weight of the rails, the density and the structure of sleepers, train speed, ballast and the strength of the bridges. US permits 30.5 tonnes, Australia’s BHP Billiton Iron Ore Railroad achieved 37.5 tonnes.

NALCO (CMD CR Pradhan) has been approached by Indonesia to take over its alumina plant. Nalco is one of the largest exporters of alumina globally. Exports one mln tonnes of the ore annually.

DSE-ECRI Indian Coincident Index: reflects the collective movements in income, output, employment and sales in the economy and is a robust measure of overall economic activity.

Viability Gap Funding or Grant means a grant one-time or deferred, provided under this Scheme with the objective of making a project commercially viable. The scheme refers to the scheme for support to PPP in infrastructure projects announced by the MoF, Dept. of Economic Affair in July 2005.

11.03.06:

In India out of 50,000 hectares of total grape cultivation, only 1000 hectares comprise grape cultivation.

The total size of the FMCG sector is Rs. 56,500 cr in 2005. It is expected to rise to Rs. 92,100 cr in 2010.

At present urban India accounts for 66% of total FMCG consumption, with rural India accounting for the remaining 34%.

There are about 700 to 800 mln email accounts worldwide now. About 400 mln of them are slow accounts.

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In rural India, household borrowing has outpaced household repayment by Rs. 30,236 cr. This indicates an increase in net debt levels in rural India.

In rural India, the overall amount of cash borrowing stood at Rs. 55,119 cr. US uses phosphine as the phyto-sanitary agent while India uses methyl-

bromide. Carnauba waxed pears and apples are in US market. India is the largest importer of pulses in the world.

12.03.06:

The EPFO is one of the largest funds in the world covering close to 4 cr employees in the organized sector.

Fresh inflows into the EPFO corpus are about Rs. 15,000 cr per annum. Moonlighting: refers to earnings generated from working outside the formal

line of duty. Timeshare industry:

o Total investment in the Indian time share industry is pegged at $220 mln.

o There are 40 time share companies in India, 80 resorts and 4000 units and 200,000 members.

o The global market size of timeshare is 5,425 resors in 95 countries , 6.7 mln owners in 200 countries, $10 bln sales volume in 2004.

All integrated steel manufacturers in India use the blast furnace route to produce steel; only Essar Steel uses the Electric Arc Furance route.

Mr. Matti Vanhanen: Prime Minister of Finland. India is currently the fastest growing telecom market in the world. There are

already 80 mln cell sites in the country and this number is expected to quadruple to 250 mln in the next couple of years.

The total online ad pie in the country is projected to grow to around Rs. 750 cr by 2010. It is currently at Rs. 100 cr.

The size of the organized retail market in India is $180 bln. It is only about 4-5% of the total retail market in the country.

Dr. R.A. Mashelkar is DG, CSIR VK Garg: CMD of Power Finance Company There are 23 indians in the global billionaires list of 793 prepared by Forbes

magazine. Wal-Mart Stores is the world’s largest retailer: $282.5 bln turnover. Retail is the second largest employer in India after agriculture. Presently the Indian retail – both organized and unorganized seem to be

employing about 21 mln people, which is about 7% of the total employment. Less than 22% of the rural households borrowed from banks. Vaidyanathan Committee on reforming the cooperative banking system. Bank finance met only 35% of India’s growing GDP needs. In highly

developed countries the quantum of bank lending was 70-75% of the GDP, according to P. Chidambaram, Finance Minister.

According the FM, the advances to farm sector may touch Rs. 2 lk cr by the end of 2006-07, well above the targeted Rs. 1.75 lk cr.

Basudeb Banerjee: Tea Board Chairman Tea markets:

o The seven nation SAARC account for 60% of the world black tea exports.

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o India is the largest producer and consumer of tea.o Srilanka is the worlds largest exporter of tea.

Gross shipping tonnage in India as on March 1, 2006 is 8.3 mln GT with about 715 ships.

Rakesh Mohan committee studied and recommended the tonnage tax system for shipping companies.

14.03.06:

Uranium enrichment: is a process in which the content of energy producing uranium 235 is increased from natural ore stage 0.7%. Low enrichment of 3% is enough for operating reactors to produce electricity. A bomb needs 90% enrichment or more.

Chief Justice of India: YK Sabharwal There are 1.84 cr cases pending in subordinate courts in India of which 1.62 cr

cases pertain petty criminal cases. Foreign exchange earnings from tourists were pegged at around Rs. 5,358 cr in

the first two months of 2006. In calendar year 2005, the country received 3.9 mn foreign tourists, a jump of around 14% over last 2004.

Special 301: is a provision under US law that identifies countries violating the copyright regime and pressurizes them to enforce strict IPR regime.

A year after the introduction of product patent regime, the operating profits of the MNC pharma companies are on the upswing.

AP Electricity sector: Sales to agriculture sector have steadily increased over the years, from 3,377 MU in 2002-03 to 3,798 in 2004-05.

o Sales for 2005-06 are expected to have exceeded 5000 MU. McMohan Line: is between China and India. Power shortage is already resulting in economic loss at an estimated level of

about 1% of the GDP: Dr. RK Pachauri, DG of TERI. Churchil: “democracy is the worst form of government, except all the others.” Law of the sea: the international convention determining who has access to

offshore oil and other maritime mineral rights. Only 20% of US oil comes to them from the Middle East. Banks and HFCs are on course to meet the targeted financing of 2.75 lk rural

dwelling units in the FY 2005-06 under the Golden Jubilee Rural Housing Finance Scheme.

15.03.06:

Microfinance: Small loans that help poor people who wish to start or expand their small businesses but, are not able to get banks to lend to them.

CAIRN energy estimates in-place reserves in excess of 3.5 bln barrels in the Rajasthan block – the biggest oil find in India in the last two decades.

Currently the private label apparel business is estimated at Rs. 1000 cr. annually and growing at 20-30%.

Motor vehicles sales: April 2005 – February 2006o Passenger Cars 7,71,116 7,30,455o MCs 4,97,280 4,25,077o Two-wheelers 6,00,877 5,19,900o CVs 35,049 29,411

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Foreign banks have to lend 32% of their net bank credit, of which advances to small scale industries sector should not be less than 10% of their net bank credit.

Sugar production:o According to latest estimates, the country may produce about 185 lk

tonnes of sugar. PTC: Pass Through Certificates are different from SRs (Security Receipts).

PTC are issued by banks to securitize a pool of regular loans. India’s exports: Apr 05-Feb 06

o Exports $88.7 blno Imports $126 blno Trade deificit $37.5 blno Oil import bill $39.6 bln compared to 26.5 bln

Board of trade headed by Kumaramangalam Birla

16.03.06:

Plea bargaining: envisages a defendant admitting to guilt to avoid prosecution for a bigger offence or an accused admitting and not fighting the prosecution case in exchange for leniency.

The Bangalore IT industry forks out a wage bill of nearly Rs. 9000 cr annually on an employee community of 3 lk plus.

The Indian Stamp Act, 1899 is going to be amended to make unsecured loan recovery easier. So far if promissory notes are inadequately stamped, there is not way they could be valid as legal documents. But with the proposed amendment, if adequate duty is paid even at a later date, they would be valid legal documents.

Negative grant: is money paid to the Govt., by private parties rather vice-versa to bag a contract project.

Fairtrade fortnight: is a world-wide campaign that aims to highlight the plight of farmers in the developing world who are often exploited by middlemen and receive an unfair price for their produce.

Overseas student population in UK: In 2004-05 the total number of students from countries outside of Britain increased to 318,400. Of this students from India are at 16,685.

India has 60 mln English speaking people. Of them there is PC literacy for 54 mln.

Iron ore:o India is Asia’s third biggest economy.o Iron ore production would surge to 862 mln tonnes by 2020 from the

present 143 mln tonnes.o India aims to boost its steel production to 110 mln tonnes by 2020

from the current level of 38 mn tonnes.o India has reserves of about 22 bln tonnes of iron ore, of which nearly

45% cannot be mined as the deposits were located in environmentally sensitive areas.

o The country’s iron ore production makes up about 11% of the world’s output.

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o Last year India exported 76 mln tonnes of iron ore, with China alone accounting for 68 mln tonnes.

The MFA which governed the global trade in textiles and clothing since 1974 ended in Dec 2004.

The productivity of cotton measured by yield has been found to be lower than in many countries. The level of productivity in China, Turkey and Brazil is over 1 tonne/ha, while in India it is only about 0.3 tonne/ha.

World economic growth this year will beat the IMF’s forecast of 4.3%. Rodrigo Rato is IMF Chief.

17.03.06:

UN created a new 47 member Human Rights Council in place of the Geneva based 53 seat UN Human Rights Commission. The council is to conduct periodic reviews of the human rights records of all UN members, beginning with those elected to the council.A major improvement over the commission is that the Council will convene as and when needed to make interventions in a timely manner. The Commission met only for six weeks in a year but the Council would be required to hold at least three meetings a year lasting a total of at least ten weeks.

Indian Health scenario:o As against the ideal ratio of 1:500 the bed-population ratio is

1:1333(1991).o Only 0.9% of the GDP is spent for health against WHO’s

recommendation of 5%o Only 9% of the 1 bln population are covered under health schemes.o An estimated 2mn beds are required against 0.7 mln available and 700

hospitals of 250 beds each are needed every year. The addressable global market in infrastructure managed services (IT space) is

%66 bln, while India’s exports in this space amounts to about $1 bln and the domestic market is estimated to be about the same size.

Bulge bracket bank: is a firm which straddles the complete rane of financial services, including investment banking, securities trading and investment management across global markets. Goldman Sachs, Merill Lynch and Morgan Stanley are considered the three bulge bracket banks in the world.

Indian govt. spends six rupees to deliver one rupee to the target beneficiary. There are 35 cities in India with a population of over 1 mln. The hotel industry is reeling under a shortage of over 1.25 lk rooms across the

country; is expected to build around 155 hotels in various cities in the country to bridge the demand supply gap.

According to a NASSCOM study, the IT industry adds 100-110 sft of office space/employee while the BPO industry adds 80-90 sft / employee.

The retailing industry is the second largest employer in India and contributes to about 4% of the GDP.

The outcome budget to be tabled in Parliament today would give a detailed break down of how the sums meant for each development programme would be spent in the course of the year.

India’s textiles exports stand at over $13 bln. Garments must be around half of the total exports. For Indian companies the per piece realization is close to $4 as against just $3 for Chinese products.

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18.03.06:

Internationally the trade in ornamental fish is estimated to be about %5.26 bln with an average 6% growth per year. Of this India accounts for less than 0.01%.

Russia has agreed to supply 60 tonnes of Uranium fuel to India. Kudankulam nuclear power plant is being built with Russian assistance. The interest rate on EPF contributions is currently at 8.5%. Indian and Air India are proposed to be merged creating the country’s largest

carrier with nearly 130 aircraft and a significant share in the global market. Worsted suitings market in India is estimated to be about Rs. 1300 cr. Embraer is a Brazil based commercial jet manufacturer. The software testing market in India is estimated at $800 mln; is expected to

cross $2 bln by 2007. The global market for software testing is expected to touch $13 bln by 2007.

Michael Duke: Wal-Mart International’s Chief. According to NCAER, an estimated 47.5 lk artisans make hundreds of

handicraft items. According to a 1995-96 NCAER survey, the handicraft sector produced goods worth Rs. 26, 213 cr. Thousands of goldsmiths in India make ornaments worth $70 bln for Indian women.

In 1700 AD, India’s share of world income was 22.6%, which was almost equal to Europe’s share. In 1952, India’s share declined to 3.8% only.

The Indian Handicraft Export Council has estimated the export of handicraft goods to touch Rs. 32,700 cr by 2010.

MFI – Micro Finance Institutions:o They borrow from banks at 15% and in turn charge higher rates to their

clients. What is a fund of funds:

o Unlike a regular mutual fund scheme, the FoF mobilizes funds and invests this in other mutual fund schemes.

19.03.06:

Cement accounts for about 7 to 10% of construction cost for a typical middle class flat. Typically housing construction requires about 40 to 45 bags of cement per 100 sq. ft and 3 to 3.5 kg of steel per 100 sq.ft which translates to Rs. 70 sq. ft for the cement and Rs. 100 sq. ft for steel.

Zari in India began as a family kept secret in Surat District of Gujarat. All zari before the 1970s was only made in that town and traded to saree makers throughout India.

Mangala Rai: is DG of ICAR Indian Council for Agricultural Research. India’s livestock accounts for 15% of the world’s livestock population. Hyderabad has over 18 lk vehicles running on its roads and this number is

doubling every five years. With only 6% of its total area making up raods, traffic jams are a common sight. While a normal city has 70% of its population using its public transport, it is only 44% in the case of Hyderabad.

22.03.06:

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Jet Airways is trying to acquire Sahara Airways for Rs. 2300 cr. The deal ran into rough weather with the Govt. Monopoly per se is not an offence in India now.

High quality terry towels are used in mostly in resorts, spas and luxury homes in the West. Globally the market for such products is estimated to be at $ 1 bln.

The biotechnology sector saw a growth of 30% and touched 2300 cr in size this fiscal 2005-06. According to Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, certain regulatory issues that are impacting the industry’s growth relate to:

o Discoveries in geneticso The conduct of clinical trialso Approval process of new drugs etc.

Nirpendra Misra is the new TRAI Chairman National Institute of Science Communication and Information Resources

(NISCIR) is developing a digital database of the country’s biodiversity and cultural heritage to support the prior existence of genetic material originally found in India. UN convention on biodiversity (CBD). Knowledge in public domain is not patentable.

Offshore banking: relates to the international banking business involving non-resident foreign currency denominated assets and liabilities. Such banking operations cover only non-residents, and do not include, domestic banking.

At present a railway wagon roughly costs about Rs. 20 lks. A goods train with 45 wagons costs about Rs. 9 crs

MM Lakhera: Andaman & Nicobar Lt. Governor India despite being the largest producer of pulses, still imports pulses. In India wheat production accounts for 75 mln tonnes while pulses production

is around 15 mln tonnes in a crop year. Renditta count: refers to the quantity of silk cocoon required to produce one

kg of silk yarn

23.02.06:

Cement makers from abroad who have stepped into India recently include:o Holcim (Switzerland) thru Gujarat Ambuja & ACCo Lafarge (France) thru Raymondo Italcement (Italy)o Heidelberg (German) thru 50% Indorama

In the past 10 years cement consumption has grown by 7.5% per annum. In 2005 India was after China the second largest cement consumer with

around 135 mln tonnes. For Dubai Tourism has emerged as the leading contributor to the economy

accounting for about 18% of the GDP directly and an estimated 28% indirectly, clearly outshining the revenues from oil sector.

The domestic jeans market is estimated at 32 mln pairs annually and growing at 12/15%

Indian IT industry size is $36 bln. Of this the domestic market contributes about $6 bln.

The Entertainment & Media industry size is about Rs. 35,300 cr. Is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19% touching Rs. 87,300 cr by 2010.

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The textile sector is set to create 1.35 mln jobs in AP by 2015. Of this 719,000 will be created in spinning, weaving and garmenting.

By 2010 textile exports are set to touch $40 bln and domestic consumption is set to touch $45 bln.

CRM is a much misused word – to describe IT systems for sales, customer care and marketing promotions. But the larger and more holistic view of CRM, ‘managing your customer’ involves a cohesive view of branding, promotions, communication, customer touch points – and may very well include issues such as packaging.

RFID uses radio frequency waves to transfer data between a reader/scanner and a movable item to identify, track or locate it.

Sugar output is likely to be about 21-22 mln tonnes by the year to September 2007. India’s sugar output in the year to September 2006 is likely to be about 18.5 mln tonnes from about 13 mln tonnes a year ago.

There are about 450 sugar mills in India.

24.03.06:

Sonia Gandhi resigned as Chairperson of the National Advisory Council and also as the Lok Sabha MP. This is to preempt the disqualification she would have attracted in the hands of the President on the recommendation of the CEC, on holding an office of profit while being an MP. Chiltern Hundreds and the Manor of Northstead in England – a person occupying the position of a steward of either of these two areas – the so-called ‘offices of profit’ – would be disqualified from serving as an MP.

Rural India facts and figures:o 784 mln people in 2005; 157 mln householdso 17% of villages account for 50% of rural populationo Per capita annual income is Rs. 9,800o Installed rural base of TVs is 15 mlno Infrastructure is improving rapidly:

Previous 50 years: 40% of villages connected by roads Next 10 years: Another 30%

o 59% village tele-densityo Approximately 3/4th of the able but underemployed workforce resides

in rural India. SLR is the mandated proportion of liabilities that each bank has to keep in the

form of cash, gold or unencumbered approved securities. CRR is the cash that each bank has to keep with the RBI in proportion to its

total demand and time liabilities. EPFO has 4 cr subscribers. India spends only about 1/4th on transmission in comparison to generation of

electricity. The Govt. plans to add around 100,000 MW of generation capacity by the year

2012 through central and state power utilities and private investors. An investment of about Rs. 71,000 cr has been envisaged to evacuate the above quantum of power. Out of this PGCIL plans to invest about Rs. 50,000 cr on its own while private investors are expected to chip in with the rest.

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The total number of projects awarded on BOT basis in the roads sector till end 2005, is 37.

There are currently about 19 licensed power traders in India. Of the 580 bln units of power generated only 12 to 13 bln units are traded i.e.,

only about 2 or 3% of total generation is traded. The country faces peak shortage of about 12%. There are more than 8 lakh credit linked NGOs in the country having access to

micro finance and the total credit disbursed through them was Rs. 4,863 cr in 2005-06.

Unlike other silk producing nations like Thailand which have limited cocoon production and resort to drying and storing the cocoons for use in the non-producing season, India uses green(fresh) cocoons for producing silk yarn

India has annual production of about 15,000 tonnes of silk and has the potential to produce about 2000 tonnes of pupa oil which finds application in industries like lubricants and paints.

US domestic inventories:o Crude oil 338.6 mln barrelso Gasoline 221.6 mln barrelso Distillate fuel 126.7 mln barrels (includes diesel & heating oil)

25.03.06:

The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) was founded in 1974 to keep nuclear technology that was transferred for peaceful purposes from being directed towards weapons development by states like India, which developed atomic weapons after the NPT came into effect in 1970.

RR Parkon is a company that manufactures MLPS – Multi Level Parking Systems. MLPS costs range from 1.5 lk to Rs. 3.3 lk per car.

Indian food processing market is estimated at 12 – 13000 cr. India is the world’s largest producer of milk and dairy products with a vast

population of cattle. Suzlon Energy:

o MD Tulsi Tantio According to him the country loses 45,000 MW of power every day

due to unharnessed potential of wind energy.o Power constitutes 20-25% of the textile industry.o The gear box market for wind turbines is growing at 40% globally.

There are only about three or four players in that market. Domestic car entertainment market size is about Rs. 1000 cr. Frost & Sullivan estimates the global MRO – Maintenance, Repair and

Overhaul market to be around $37 bln. Asia accounts for 8% of this. India’s MRO market is of $615.3 mln size.

Indian Institute of Packaging an autonomous body under the Union Commerce Ministry is the only institute in the world other than Michigan State University to offer courses in packaging.

Vizag HPCL refinery capacity is going to be increased to 15 mln tonnes per annum.

Chairman HPCL: M.B. Lal The WPI is currently at 196.6 points Coal:

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o Total proved reserves is 93 bln tonnes.o Indicated reserves 117 bln tonneso Inferred reserves 38 bln tonnes.

According to an estimate tendu leaf gathering generates 150 mln man days of employement during the agricultural lean season.

Since tobacco is a demerit crop, the govt. is keen on bringing down the cultivation from 2.5 lakh hectares to 1.5 lakh hectares.

AP is the largest producer of tobacco and chillies. S. Sundaresan: Chairman, Forward Markets Commission 2004-05: turnover in commodities market stood at 5.71 lk cr. Till March 15 this year it touched 19.5 lk cr. India imports 73% of its crude oil requirement and spend around Rs. 1,10,000

cr annually on oil imports. Nearly 30% of all exports from India are covered under the DEPB scheme.

26.03.06:

SBI owns between 75 and 100% of its associate banks. SCs comprise 16.23% of the country’s population while STs comprise 8.16%.

As against 27% of the general population living below the poverty line, SC population below that level in rural areas is 36.25% and 38.47% in urban areas. The corresponding figures for ST are 45.86% (rural) and 34.75% (urban).

It is estimated that crime against business costs the UK economy over £18 bn each year.

The coming assembly polls in five states are estimated to cost about Rs. 2000 cr. as against the EC’s norms of Rs. 400 cr.

Detariffing in insurance is expected to enable consumers to negotiate on rates and improve service levels.

The major constraint to the growth of the insurance market today is poor market penetration. Market penetration is a mere 3.3%.

India has a middle class as large as that of the total population of the US 295 mln and is growing at 25 mln per year.

Indian Railways is the second largest employer in the world. Germany is hosting the soccer world cup in June 2006. National Rainfed Area Authority and National Fish Development Board are

going to be setup in India shortly. Agricultural credit has been increased from Rs. 80,000 cr to 1,40,000 cr in

2005-06. The $21.25 mln Dubai World Cup is the world’s riches horse race.

27.03.06:

The size of the ministry is capped at 15% of the strength of the assembly in India.

Maharashtra: The tiff between the agro rich and politically strong Western Maharashtra and the impoverished Vidarbha and Marathwada regions has always been the hallmark of the state’s polity.

There are over a million BSNL PCOs scattered across the country.

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In the past BSNL PCOs contributed 20-25% of revenue for the company. The duty on imported scotch whiskeys ranges between 212% and 525% now. The total market size for SMB software is pegged at Rs. 770 cr. TB infect 18 lakh people and kills 3.7 lakh people every year – according to

World Economic Forum. These figures are for India. The rate of detecting TB in the country stands at 66% as against the WHO standard of 70%.

In India there are about 5 mln international tourists and 400 mln domestic tourists per year.

Foreign banks may be allowed in rural areas.o The present WTO commitment is to allow a minimum of 12 branches

for foreign banks in a year.o As many as 32 foreign banks operate in India with a total of 215

branches.o Foreign banks are prohibited from owning more than 5% of an Indian

bank.o To operate in India foreign banks have to obtain a licence under

Section 22 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949. For branch expansion, a licence under Section 23 of the same Act is required.

o Foreign banks should lend 32% of their net bank credit to priority sector.

o According to industry estimates there are only 28,000 bank branches in 7 lakh villages in the country. The NSSO survey points out that there are only 6 branches for every 100,000 people.

The total size of the NPAs of public sector banks is estimated to be Rs. 2000 cr.

Reportedly IOC’s borrowings alone add up to Rs. 25,000 cr. It is currently seeing an under recovery of Rs. 23,000 cr.

Plea bargaining has been recently introduced in India by an amendment to the CrPC effective January 2006.

Indian Handicrafts expots have notched upto Rs. 13,000 cr last year and is tipped to cross Rs. 14,000 cr in 2005-06. Handicrafts is the second largest employment segment after agriculture. Country has set a target of Rs. 39,000 cr for exports by 2009-10.

28.03.06:

104th Constitution amendment: gives the States the right to take steps that would ensure advancement of socially and educationally backward classes, the SCs and STs in private education institutions as well. The constitutional amendment route was taken as the Supreme Court has ruled in the Inamdar case that the government could not set quotas in private institutions.

The ministry of food processing estimates the size of the food processing industry at Rs. 3,150 bln ($70 bn).

Centre buys time with SC on Islamic courts: The petitioner in the PIL before SC contended that matters relating to Imrana’s status (she was raped by her father in law and told by a fatwa issued by the Islamic seminary Darul Uloom of Deoband in UP to treat him as her husband) of marriage and dissolution of marriage were squarely covered by the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act 1937. He said a parallel Muslim judicial system or Nizam-e-Qaza was sought to be introduced by the setting up of Darul Qaza (courts) at

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various places in India and that these had actually started functioning as parallel courts of justice.

The total exports of textiles and apparels are pegged at about $13 bln and expected to touch $50 bln by 2010.

Globally the real estate business accounts for assets of over $50 trillion. The share of real estate in India’s GDP has increased to 7% from 5.25% in 2002-03 which is still considerably lower than the 15% share of real estate in developed economies.

The premium sportswear market is of the size Rs. 1000 cr. New Balance, the American company is joining the likes of Reebok, Adidas and Nike for a share of this market.

The 125 cc market is the fastest growing motor cycle market in India today. The market size of generic drugs in Europe is $6.5 bln. Second largest after

the US market. Most pharma companies reinvest 12-14% of their revenues back into R&D. The proportion of women entrepreneurs in the small scale sector is very low at

10%. According to the third census of the SSI sector for 2001-02, the total number of women entrepreneurs in the SSI sector is 10.6 lk.

Diageo is the world’s largest premium drinks company. The Indian market consumes 1.6 mln cases of vodka per year of which 4 lk

cases are Smirnoff. There are about 9,128 stock brokers in the country in 2004-05. 41.3% of them

are corporate members. The proposed national grid of electricity (to be completed by 2012) will result

in an inter-regional transmission capacity of 37,150 mw up from the current capacity of 9,500 mw.

An estimated 50% of the small and marginal farmers routinely dispose of their produce in distress sales.

The recent bird flu has similar characteristics of the 1918 pandemic that killed 20-40 mln people worldwide.

Exporters of iron ore, cereals, sugar and petroleum products are on warpath as the govt. has withdraw these products from the “Target Plus” scheme which provides additional incentives for incremental exports.

29.03.06:

During 2005-06, FMCG major HLL spent 10.3% of its sales revenue on advertising, which is more than Rs. 1000 cr.

Texas Instruments CEO Richard Templeton:o By 2010 India will have around 300 mln mobile subscribers and they

are expected to touch 500 mln by 2015.o The Indian entertainment industry is estimated to be around $10 bln.o Chip consumption in India currently at $3.6 bln is set to grow to $36

bln in a decade. BSNL:

o Is witnessing the surrender of fixed line connections to the tune of around 3 mln lines every year.

o The telco has 40 mln fixed line users.

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o To stem the tide, it has come out with prepaid land lines to be launched by April end.

Lighthouse hiring: refers to the resorting to proactive hiring by companies to garner talent.

A. Viswanath: Central PF Commissioner. EPFO is going to have a second fund manager in addition to SBI.

Cost audits are ordered on specific companies in a sector which have a turnover of more than Rs. 10 cr. The cost auditing data is expected to reveal the real extent of profit companies traders make.

Office of profit issue: The constitutional provision in Article 102 provides for holding an office of profit under the government as a disqualification for election to and for being a Member of Parliament.

Life insurance penetration is about 5.5% in industrialized countries as against about 2% of GDP in India.

When-issued market: allows transactions in govt. securities that have been authorized for issuance, but are not issued yet.

Almost 80% of Indian coffee is exported. Coffee crop is effected by white stem borer pest.

Typically organic farm products cost five or six times more compared to the inorganic products.

30.03.06:

Indian economy has contributed about 3.2% of total incremental global growth recorded in 2005.

The global GDP composition measures the absolute size of an economy with respect to GDP, while on the other hand the global GDP growth composition measures the incremental growth recorded by an economy with respect to the overall incremental growth in world GDP as a whole, in a particular year.

At present, spectrum quota per licence area for GSM players is upto 10 MHz while it is capped at 5 MHz for CDMA operators.

Incometax Department is on a Rs. 1000 cr National Datacentre project The security solutions market in India is estimated to be around $30 mln (Rs.

132 cr.) and is expected to touch $120 mln (Rs. 528 cr) by 2010. Organized retail industry size is estimated at Rs. 40,000 cr. Under the existing guidelines, central sector projects costing Rs. 100 cr and

above are considered by the PIB Public Investments Board. Now profitable PSUs are brought out of the PIB leash – only those PSUs which have low budgetary support from the government and which would not seek sovereign guarantee for their expansion plans would be allowed this facility. Navaratna’s investment in one project is limited to Rs. 1000 cr. The same is Rs. 500 cr and Rs .250 cr respectively for miniratnas I and II respectively.

Core sector spend up 106% in X Plan:o The infrastructure segment is expected to see investments of Rs.

4,35,600 cr over the next three years, as compared to Rs. 3,32,000 cr during the past three years.

o Hydro power projects have a large construction component of almost 70% as compared to 20% in thermal power projects.

Captive mining of coal likely to aid privatization:

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o At present, mining and sale of coal is carried out only by Coal India Limited and its subsidiaries. An exception is made only in some core sectors like power, iron and steel and cement for internal consumption. What is now being envisaged is an enabling notification that would allow private mining companies to apply for a mining lease directly, mine the coal and sell it for a price to power, iron and steel and cement companies.

India International Coffee festival will be held in February 2007.

31.03.06:

The GoI spends about Rs. 1447 cr on printing currency notes. India produces the largest volume of bank notes in the world, at a third of the cost of production compared with the established leaders. Hence India is offering to print foreign currency notes.

In the 2001 stock market scam involving Ketan Parekh, the MMCB (Madhvapura Mercantile Cooperative Bank), an Ahmedabad based multi-state cooperative bank, suffered massi ve loss as the funds of the bank were siphoned out by the accused persons in connivance with the bank’s top management.

Manipur CM Okaram Ibobi is reported to have paid extortion money to some militant outfits. He had publicly justified it as an occupational hazard of the politics of the state).

According to a report prepared by KPMG for NASSCOM, the total demand for IT professionals is estimated to be 11.2 lakh by 2009, against a supply of 8.85 lakh, leaving a shortfall of 2.35 lakh people.

The liquid handwash category market is around Rs. 35 cr. High end lubes: The top-end synthetic oils segment is currently less than 1%

in a 1 mln tonne lube market in India. IT services: Currently the domestic services segment accounts for only 30%

of the IT/ITeS sector wshile the rest comes from software exports. While the domestic market is growing at about 25%, the exports market is growing at 30% and is expected to touch almost $60 bln by 2010.

The size of India’s e-governance market in terms of transactions is estimated to be $4.58 bln while the size of the US market is almost $123 bln.

DoT seeks FIPB reply on stake sale to Orascom:o The question is whether Hutchison Telecommunications International,

an investor in Hutch Essar required an FIPB approval prior to selling a minority stake to Orascom, especially if such a shareholding change in the holding company triggers changes in indirect sharehilding of Hutch Essar.

o National Security Advisor MK Narayanan wrote a letter to DoT saying that Orascom’s acquisition of 19.3% equity in Hutch International is a threat to national security as Orascom is a dominant mobile operator in Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Overall engineering exports of goods and services from India are at $15.9 bln in 2004-05.

Indian animation industry is expected to touch $950 mln by 2009. Indian advertisement industry size is Rs. 13,200 cr.

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Seven ultra mega power projects each with about 4000 MW capacity are being built across the country with an investment of Rs. 105,000 cr. The govt. is hoping that competitive bidding will result in a tariff of Rs. 1.60 to Rs. 1.80.

About 1,45,185 KM of roads are proposed to be built by 2009 under the Bharat Nirman program to benefit an estimated 66,802 unconnected habitations in the country. All villages with a population of 1000 are to be provided an all-weather road by 2009 under the program.

The govt. has decided to import an additional 1.5 mln tonnes of wheat to ensure adequate buffer stocks in the wake of downward revision of wheat production estimates to 73.06 mln tonnes and fears of damage to the crop due to utimely rains.

Wheat procurement target this year is at 16.2 mln tonnes.

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01.04.06:

In 2005, FII inflows in equities totted up to $10.7 bln and in the first three months of 2006, this figure has already touched $4 bln.

Outdoor advertising (bill boards)o The Indian market for outdoor advertising is about Rs. 1,100 cr.o Hyderabad’s share is only Rs. 56 cr compared to Mumbai’s Rs. 440 cr

and Chennai’s Rs. 140 cro Mumbai has about 3000 signboards while Chennai, Hyderabad and

Bangalore sport 3000, 2000 and 1500 respectively. Technical textiles segment currently is worth $4 bln; is expected to double

next year. Rough estimates say that Delhi has Rs. 60 cr worth of health tourism and the

country has a potential of $2 bln market by the close of the decade. The 93rd constitutional amendment gives states the right to make special

provisions by law for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward class, SCs and STs in matters of admissions to educational institutes, including private educational institutes.

K. Ramalingam: Chairman AAI Airports Authority of India Oil refining is the new hotspot; glut fears flare up: In 1979, global refining

capacity had touched a peak of 79.5 mln barrels per day. Refining margins for crude have gone up to $5-10 /bbl for complex refinaries.

According to the Finance Minister, the banking system finances 35% of GDP in India against over 70% in developed countries.

Just about 3% of Indian population has health insurance. LIFFE London Futures and Financial Exchange, the only global marketplace

for refined sugar has finally put India on deliverable list of countries from Oct 2006 contract.

India is one of the world’s largest producers of horticulture items with output topping 110 mln tonnes. The country produces over 70 mln tonnes of vegetables with the balance being fruits. Vegetable cultivation is spread over six mln hectares and accounts for slightly over 3% of the total area under cultivation.

NCDEX already offers futures trading in two commodities – coffee and silk. It has recently decided to allow futures trading in potatoes and Onions. Futures trading was banned in the 1960s by the GoI. But it has made a comeback recently.

Gujarat accounts for over 60% of castor cultivation in the country. Silk production:

o Silk is produced in two different methods: mulberry silk and eri silk. India is the world’s second largest producer of silk; is home to both varieties. Production of non-mulberry silk is currently pegged at less than 5% of the total output. Eri silk output accounts for over 80% of the non-mulberry production in the country. India’s eri silk output is pegged at 1800 tonnes compared to 13,000 tonnes of mulberry output. Eri silk moth can be reared on both castor and tapioca plantations.

02.04.06:

India’s mobile subscriber base is around 75 mln.

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VAT has got Chattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, MP and Rajasthan in its fold now from this financial year – bringing the total number of states that have introduced VAT to 27. The only two states that have not yet introduced VAT are TN and UP.

The planning commission has set up a high-powered committee to review the existing TV broadcasting system in the country and come up with a blue print for digitization of the sector.

The GoI is gearing up for a full-fledged open skies agreement with ASEAN. US Internet penetration:

o 39 mln American households still do not have Internet access. That means that only 64% of the households are connected.

o The growth of the Internet in the US has stalled.o Near 100% of the households have a TV, 83% have a DVD player and

78% have a cell phone.

03.04.06:

$10 bn is what is earned by MNCs, NRIs & foreign lenders in 2005-06 from Indian markets either by way of dividends, interest etc.

Liquidity crunch may lead to easier FCB norms: The pressure on banks had built up owing to the scorching credit growth of 31% in the fiscal which just ended. In contrast , the average build up in deposits at 18% has not kept pace with the spiraling loan growth.

There is automatic approval route for ECBs of up to $500 mln. For fiscal 2005-06 corporates may end up accessing ECBs of close to $20 bln. The internal ceiling for ECBs fixed by the government for 2006-07 was initially $12 bln but was raised to $18 bln by the end of last year.

The govt. is likely to make it mandatory for telecom operators to get prior approval of FIPB in case the existing foreign investor/promoter sells more than 10% of its equity to another foreign company, directly or indirectly through a holding company abroad.

For the monetary policy manager, the larger flow of ECBs would mean more need to sterilize the flows. In other words, the inflows need to be mopped up by the Central Bank by releasing rupee funds which are directed to the gilts markets. If such flows are not sterilized, it can lead to problems of money supply, inflation and currency management.

Spain is the world’s top destination for MICE segment. Meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions.

Children’s wear constitutes about 17% of the total Rs. 43,000 cr apparel industry.

Recently the 39th annual Ad Club awards – popularly known as the Abbys was held at Mumbai.

Mr. T. N. Manoharan: President ICAI Institute of Chartered Accountants India.

04.04.06:

The largest acquisition so far in the IT space in India has been Oracle’s acquisition of Citigroup’s stake in banking product company i-flex for $593 mln.

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FIIs have so far bought $4.01 bln worth of stock in Indian bourses in 2006. Safety exception clause in Nuclear Suppliers Group:

o The clause allows export of nuclear fuel to countries that don’t have UN approved safeguards only if it is to prevent or correct “ a radiological hazard to public health and safety” which cannot reasonably be met by other means.

The proposed merger between Alcatel and Lucent will create the largest company with a combined revenue of over $25 bln.

Indian patent scene:o Among the Indian entities, CSIR ranks as a key patent acquirer of US

patents.o For the year ended March 2005, of the 495 US patents issued to Indian

residents in 2004-05, 266 were granted to foreign assignees.o Foreign assignees are those where the Indian R&D operation is part of

a multinational set-up and the patent is assigned to the parent company. RPL to cash in on spurt in oil demand:

o According to Mukesh Ambani, the world’s energy needs will be 50% higher in 2030 compared to current levels and around 55-60% of this increased demand would be met from conventional sources like oil and gas.

o By 2030, the world would be consuming over 16 bn tonnes of oil equivalents – 5.5 bln tonnes more than current levels.

o Demand for oil will reach over 90 m barrels per day in 2010 and around 115 mb/d in 2030.

Joint Forest Management policy – in this the local community is given a significant role.

27% of the forest land in India (ie., 1,73,31,950 hectares) is managed by the local community through 84,632 JFM committees. However, less than 1 cr people are involved in the JFM, while those who live off forests wholly or in part, number 27.5 cr.

India’s external debt to GNP ratio stnds at 22%, while China’s stands at about 15%.

India is the world’s largest producer of mangoes and accounts for over 45% of the global output. Competition to Indian mangoes comes mainly from Philippines and Mexico. Saudi Arabia is the largest importer of Indian mangoes accounting for 2300 tonnes worth Rs. 7.47 cr.

Irradiation, considered to be more effective than heating as a means of preserving food

05.04.06:

SK Sharma panel has mooted converting 10 to 20% of the personnel in the investigation wing of the IT Department to a uniformed force every year and supplying them with weapons as is done for customs officials.

Mutual Funds through their new fund offerings or otherwise have collectively collected close to Rs. 25,000-30,000 cr. during FY06.

BPOs leverage brand for financial research thrust:

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o The rapid growth of the FRA business in India can be attributed to the desegregation of the equity research industry in the US from investment banking. After New York district attorney Eliot Spitzer asked investment banks to delink research from investment banking, the former is no longer profitable on its own. Consequently, US investment banks have moved offshore to India to cut down costs and retain profitability.

o As of now between 3,000 and 5,000 people are employed in the FRA industry.

The background screening business which was non-existent till a few years ago is now estimated to be about Rs. 75-100 cr. a year, thanks to large number of fake resumes.

SBI commands 35% of the forex market in India. SBI handles 60% of the central and state governments transactions. The RBI

made a provision in 2001 for state governments to shift their accounts in times of emergency.

Round tripping: Indian companies routing their money trhough foreign locations mainly to avail tax benefits – something that the Chinese have mastered. Nearly half of China’s FDI inflows is round-tripping.

India has seen 46 IPOs so far in 2006 that were scheduled to raise about Rs. 8,233 cr.

The mutual fund industry has assets under management of over Rs. 2,17,707 cr. compared to just Rs. 80,000 cr in March 2003.

With 3.5 lakh hectares of orchards, AP is the largest producer of mangoes in the country. The state exported about 2100 MT of mangoes last year.

06.04.06:

In 2006-07, the net collections in the NSSF (National Small Savings Fund) are expected to be about Rs. 90,000 cr.

CIBIL: Credit Bureau of India Limited, provides reports relating to the credit history of consumers to its members like banks.

Aviation: Typically the December-January period marks the high season for air travel and most airlines record high passenger load factor.

ESPN Star Sports (ESS) has bagged the exclusive rights for the forthcoming FIFA World Cup. ESS has been selling ad spots of 10 seconds duration at Rs. 30,000.

o In cricket, where India does not figure, the ad spot will be sold for Rs. 4,000 to 5,000.

o India Pak ODI ad spots cost about Rs. 3 lakh per ten seconds. Madikeri: The headquarters of India’s main coffee growing district of Kodagu

in Karnataka. In 2005, global flat panel (TV and PC) market grew by 130%. According to a CII-McKinsey study, the medical tourism industry is expected

to bring in $2 bln (Rs. 8,800 cr) by 2012. Assembled PC sales were 34% of the total PCs sold in India in 2005-06. IOC:

o The loss on kerosene is currently at Rs. 14.17 per litre and on every LPG cylinder is Rs. 199.

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o IOC has a total pump network of 15,247 pumps. World economy: was growing at 5.1% two years ago. Last year estimated to

have grown at 4.5%. Planning Commission estimates that leakages in food subsidy are at 36.38%

and diversion of food grains to unintended beneficiaries was 21.45%. Out of 14 mln tonnes of food grains issued for BPL families in 2003-04, only 5.93 mln tonnes was delivered.

As per the existing norms, Railways has to share the cost of constructing overbridges on level-crossings with state governments in the proportion of 50:50.

In India over 160 districts are affected with naxal problem. The spend on e-government is estimated at $480 mln in 2003-04 and $300 mln

in 2002-03. There are 17 primary dealers for G-sec market. Only 17% of India’s hydel potential is realized while another 5% is under

developement. 30,956 MW out of 150,000 MW. FCV tobacco: Flue Cured Virginia tobacco is used in cigarettes.

o The KLS Karnataka Light Soil tobacco – also called Mysore tobacco in pre-independence days, is in great demand the world over because it is a neutral filler which can go into different blends. It is also stated to be less carcinogenic.

India exported buffalo meat and meat products worth Rs. 1615.59 cr in 2004-05.

07.04.06:

The government is planning to unplug the FDI cap on insurance and let foreign insurers to set up shop with up to 100% equity in special Economic Zones.

Reid & Taylor: Registered a 30% growth. Rs. 200 cr brand. 15% market share in the Rs. 1300 cr worsted suiting segment.

Gold loses its shine to other must-haves:o Rising consumerism and aspirations of millions of middle-class

Indians could have a possible adverse impact on gold usage according to WGC.

o India’s annual gold consumption is pegged around 800 tonnes to 825 tonnes.

o Typically old gold consumption is placed around 150 tonnes.o India is forced to import over 80% of its gold requirement.o India’s gold exports account for about a fourth of its total jewellery

exports, which is largely cut, polished diamond jewellery and jewellery made of other gems.

PMS: Portfolio Management Services is roughly a Rs. 500 cr industry. There are two types of PMS services – discretionary and non-discretionary. While in case of the former, the fund manager invests clients’ money on his behalf, in case of the latter, the investment discretion is left to the investor itself. As per SEBI norms, a portfolio manager needs to have a minimum networth of Rs. 50 lks with an experience of five years in the field of fund management.

The global pharmaceutical outsourcing market, which currently stands at $24 bln could reach $53 bln by 2010.

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India has 31% market share in the sales of certified emission reductions followed by Brazil at 13%. The prevailing rate for CER is around E6 ro E5 per tonne of carbon.

Organized car rental players in India: SIXT, AVIS, Hertz Last year music companies in south India earned an estimated revenues of Rs.

2 cr from ring tones and private FM stations. The Indian ad industry is worth Rs. 13,200 cr. NPCIL estimates that following the Indo-US nuclear deal, anywhere between

20,000 to 40,000 MW of nuclear power generation capacity could be added over the next 10 years.

In April 2005 to February 2006 period, cement dispatches were 127 MMT (Million Metric Tonnes)

o Cement exports increased 32% to 5.4 MMT in the same period. Indian petroleum market:

o Indian market size is 40 mln tonnes/ yearo Number of petrol pumps is about 31,500 o Diesel is the largest selling petro product in India accounting for about

35% of total petroleum products consumed in the country. Model Concession Agreement:

o MCA is a policy document that outlines the role of all stake-holders involved in the PPP projects.

o It contains all terms and conditions for award of BOT projects in a particular sector.

In cities like HongKong and Tokyo, railway network authorities earn as much as 40% of their total revenue from non-fare activities. Indian Railways has a dismal 4% contribution like that.

Indian Railways’ total revenue for 2005-06 is between Rs. 50,000 cr to Rs, 60,000 cr.

The private life insurance industry as a whole clocked about Rs. 26,286 cr as First Premium Income.

The Indian agriculture sector while employing 65% of the people in rural areas, contributes a mere 26% to the country’s GDP.

08.04.06:

SC hammer heavy on Goa Governor too: After Bihar, the constitutional conduct of yet another governor – SC Jamir – has come under judicial scanner when the SC on Friday referred to a Constitutional Bench a petition filed by former Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar challenging dismissal of his government.

Homologation is a technical term, derived from the Greek homologos for "agree," which is generally used in English to signify the granting of approval by an official authority. This may be a court of law, a government department, or a professional body, any of which would normally work from a set of strict rules or standards to determine whether such approval should be given. The word may be considered very roughly synonymous with accreditation, and in fact in French may be used with regard to academic degrees. Certified is another possible synonym, while to homologate is the infinitive form.

Luxury goods market:

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o There are over 1.6 mln households in the country with an annual income of over $100,000. They spend Rs. 4 lakh per annum on an average, on luxury and upscale brands, according to Indian Luxury Trends 2006.

o The market opportunity for luxury brands is close Rs. 64,000 cr in India.

o According to Capgemini-Merrill Lynch World Wealth Report 2005, India has about 70,000 HNIs with at least $1 mln in financial assets.

o The global market for luxury goods is about $166 bln.o Consumers of luxury brands can be classified as:

Arrived: 49%. Most affluent people. Actualised Ascetic: 15%. Self made people. In their 40s and

50s. Shun ostentatious display. Climbers: 19%. Eager to own and project a lifestyle of the rich

and famous. Lack the discretion that comes from proper grooming and exposure.

Laggards: 17%. Traditional small and medium sized business families. Nonchalant about luxury consumption.

Construction majors in India:o Punj Lloyd, Gammon India, Hindustan Construction Company, L&T,

Patel Engineering The catering market in Hyderabad is estimated to be Rs. 500 cr and growing at

40%. Domestic tourists contribute about Rs. 44,403 cr to the Rs. 62,436 cr strong

Indian tourism sector. Foreign tourists and NRIs traveling to India chip in just Rs. 11,683 cr, while outbound tourists contribute Rs. 6,350 cr.

The tourism industry employs 38.6 mln people directly and indirectly. In absolute terms the number of tourism related jobs in the country stands at 21.5 mln.

SMEs queue up to lend biotech a helping hand: The idea is to find local answers to the nearly Rs. 400 cr worth of recombinant biotech products, India imports each year fo ruse in sectors like health, leather, textiles and oil exploration.

SME is one that employs less than 500 people according to Biotech department. The commerce ministry defines an SME as one with an investment of not more than Rs. 1 cr.

World’s largest financial services group is – Axa. It is about to enter the Indian asset management business with a local partner.

BMPS Banca Monte Dei Paschi Di Siena is one of the oldest banks in the world set up in 1472.

The Annual Supplement to Foreign Trade Policy (for 2004-09):o Focus Market Scheme: yet to be finalized. Aims to tap non-traditional

markets more aggressively.o Focus Product Scheme: promises 2.5% additional import entitlement

for exporters shipping value-added fish, leather products, stationary, handlooms and handicraft items.

o EPCG scheme: allows imports of capital goods at 5% customs duty subject to the fulfillment of export obligations which could range from six to eight times of the duty saved on capital goods imported under

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the scheme. The export obligation has to be met over a period of time, depending on the category of industry seeking exemption under the scheme.

o DEPB scheme: The incidence of basic customs duty is neutralized on the import content of export product. This is provided by way of grant of duty credit against the export product at specified rates. The passbook is issued after exports. The exporter is given a DEPB at a pre-determined credit on the FOB value. The DEPB allows import of any items except the items which are otherwise restricted for imports.

o Mr. K. T. Chacko is the DG of Foreign Trade. India has about 23,000 ATMs. Indian basket crude touches currently an all time high of $64.6 per barrel. In

2005-06 it was $55.72 a barrel. India’s natural rubber production touched a record level of 8,03,000 tonnes in

2005-06. Productivity of natural rubber stood at a record 1796 Kg per hectare per year

during 2005-06. Sugar industry: Fobbing costs: pertain to the various port handling and

stevedoring expenses borne by exporters, including unloading sugar from factory trucks to the port godowns, and loading it on bags prior to unloading in the mother vessel.

09.04.06:

At present the government needs at least 11 years to handle a patent application. Govt. plans to trim it to anywhere between 6 months to 5 years.

Patent Corporation Treaty: makes it possible to seek patent protection for an invention simultaneously in each of the a large number of countries by filing an international patent.

The key constraint in filing patent application is the fees. $10,000 and above. As of now the Patent Act does not allow filing of patents for just software

algorithms or programmes unless they have been created to be embedded in a hardware device.

Toilet soap market in India is of Rs. 4,900 cr. Per capita consumption of soap in India is 440 gms. It is 1100 gms in Brazil. The Indian Postal Department with 150 years of lineage has a huge network of

1,60,000 post offices. Of them atleast 1,20,000 are considered unremunerative. Postal Department has an annual deficit of Rs. 1400 cr.

Air India has a fleet size of 33 as of now. North Korea hints at return to N-talks: the stalled six nation talks on its

nuclear program. It has refused to return to the table since November, demanding the US first lift financial sanctions imposed over charges of counterfeiting the US dollars and laundering money.

Japan has just over 22,000 licensed lawyers as against a 1 mln in US. Energy: India EU Panel:

o Setup in June 2005. Its focus has been on the common energy issues that face the two regional giants, and they include renewable technologies, coal, and even India’s participation in ITER (International Thermo Nuclear Experimental Reactor) project.

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o $100 bln is needed investment for energy sector in India between 2007-12.

o The Kyoto protocol requires industrialized countries to reduce their GHG emissions by 8% of their 1990 levels between 2008 am 2012.

10.04.06:

Some investment banks in Wall Street: Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, JM Morgan Stanley, Lehman Brothers, UBS, CLSA (part of France’s Credit Agricole), Barclays

At the moment India is the sixth largest aid provider to Afghanistan, having, till now, pledged $550 mln for its reconstruction.

CleanFuel USA one of the largest gas stations in US has drawn up investment plans for India because of the 300% growth in the off-take of auto LPG in 2005 over the previous year with a consumption of about 70,000 tonnes per annum.

Auto LPG is expensive as it does not enjoy any subsidy. But for retro-fitment, the cost of switchover to auto LPG is lower at around Rs. 10,000 as aginst Rs. 35,000 for CNG.

SEDF SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility is based in Dhaka and is a multi-donor facility managed by IFC. The objective is to reduce poverty through SME development.

Pochampalli saris, Darjeeling tea to get patent stamp: In association with the Office of the Development Commissioner, Ministry of Textiles, NIFT is undertaking documentation and registration of the states unique handicrafts that deserve to be protected under Geographical Inidcations.

Symbian has a worldwide installed base of around 58 mln. The Indian handset market saw sales of 32 mln handsets in 2005 which is

expected to touch 50 mln units in 2006. In 2005, international VISA cardholders spent Rs. 5,400 cr in India, a jump of

31% over the previous year – accounting for 20% of all tourism spends in India. In Asia Pacific, 62% of all card purchases at the point of sale are made using Visa cards.

Mr. YSP Thorat: Nabard Chairman and MD

11.04.06:

Passenger car sales in India: Top three in 2005-06o Alto 1.59 lko Indica 1.11 lko Santro 1.09 lk

Today over 90% of the cars sold in India are with a price less than Rs. 5 lk The global IMS (Infrastructure Management Services) market is estimated at

$200 bln and the Indian market is around $5 bln. The domestic IT market is expected to reach $4.3 bln (around Rs. 19,000 cr)

in 2005-06 from the $3.5 bln (around Rs. 15,400 cr) in 2004-05. India’s oil import bill has hit a record $43.8 bln during 2005-06 registering an

increase of 46.84% due to high global prices. The previous year’s oil import bill was far lower at $29.8 bln.

India’s services trade is estimated at around $100 bln

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India’s merchandise imports are at $140 bln. India’s exports during 2005-06 were at $100.6 bln Thus total foreign trade volume stands at $340 b ln In Zero based budgeting, all the expenditure demands of a specific department

have to be justified afresh every time. This cuts out unnecessary expenditure which may otherwise persist for years.

India has a total of 12,476 police stations. According to World Bank figures, the ICOR (Incremental Credit Output

Ratio) – a measure of the investment needed to produce a given amount of GDP for China is high and rising. It is 5.4 for China in 2002 while it is 3.5 for India and is falling. India’s show is considered good.

China spent as much as 1.44% of GDP on R&D in 2005; India spent 1% of GDP in 2004.

It is estimated that over the next 25 years, almost 45% of the power generated in the world will depend on nuclear fuel. – David L Calhoun, CEO of GE Infrastrucutre.

Indian Textile sector:o The overall textile output has grown nearly 20% to stand at $40 bln. o Textile exports, which were growth at close to 10% before quotas were

removed in 2005, have grown nearly 20% to clock revenues of $13 bln for the calendar year.

o Export estimates for the fiscal year reckon that textile exports could generate $15 bln for the year ended March 31, 2006.

o Currently the textile sector employees, directly or indirectly, 3.5 cr people. Industry sources reckon that nearly 1 cr additional employment can be generated over the next two years, with India stealing a march over China.

12.04.06:

MNCs now big in India: There are now 14 MNCs in India whose value of investment in their Indian listed subsidiaries are more than $1 bln as against 4 who were in the billion dollar bracket in India last year.

India is the third largest cement market in the world. Second largest is China. Normal commission offered by domestic air carriers to their sales agents is

around 6%. Cutlery market in India is worth Rs. 125 cr – both organized and unorganized. About 7 mln people traveled abroad in 2005. Four national players in tourism market: SOTC, Thomas Cook, Cox & Kings

and Raj Travels. It is estimated that SSIs and SMEs in the country today employ 20 mln people

and contribute 40% to the export revenue. According to an estimate, cost over-run in the case of NHDP-II (7,274 km)

alone would be over Rs. 18,250 cr, significantly up from the sanctioned cost of Rs. 37.388 cr. The awarded costs of the NHDP-II projects in 2005 reflect an average of Rs. 6.4 cr per km as against the sanctioned cost of Rs. 5.14 cr per km at 2002 prices. Going by historical time and cost over-runs, the cost per km might exceed Rs. 7.65 cr per km. NHDP Phase I & II was launched in 1999 covering a length of about 14,000 km at an estimated cost of Rs. 54,000 cr at 1999 prices.

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IPDY Program: Internship Programme for Diaspora Youth provides a unique forum for students and young professionals of Indian origin abroad to share their views, experience and expectations from India.

In calendar 2006 the total volume of public issues is expected to be about Rs. 45,000 cr.

IFC may finance trading in CER: The carbon credit market in India is of the order of 1.5 bln tons of carbon dioxide emissions out of a global market size of 5.5 bln tons. The size of the total carbon credit market is $y7 – 15 bln globally at the prevailing price of $ 5 – 10 per ton of carbon dioxide emissions according to IFC International Finance Corporation.

Jefferson Muzzle awards: given by a freee speech group to those if considers the most egregious violators of constitutional rights in the past year. Awarded to Google and President Bush.

13.04.06:

Tassos Papadopoulos: Cyprus President. Visting India. The average transaction size (ticket size) in supermarkets is much lower at Rs.

250 to Rs. 400 in a supermarket format as compared to Rs. 1000 to Rs. 1500 in a department store or mass merchandise store format.

The microwave market in India stood at 5.5 mln units in 2005. AP is the country’s biggest guzzler. The state accounts for nearly 20% of the

beer consumption in India. Jet’s annual revenue per aircraft is about $25 mln. There is growing investor interest in the 100 odd special economic zones

proposed to come up across the country. There are more than 9 lakh employees in public sector banks including SBI. SME sector constitutes about 95% of industrial units and about 40% of total

industrial output. Its direct and indirect export potential stands at about 38%. With about 3.6 mln SSI registered units employing close to 2 cr people, its employment potential is next only to the agriculture sector.

India has about 250 PSUs under the Centre, 1200 under the state governments and about 100 at the municipal level. In contrast, China has 3,60,000 PSUs out of which 1,40,000 were privatized. These were contributing about 98% of China’s GDP.

The poultry industry size in India is about $7.8 bln. Because of bird flu the estimated loss in the last two months is put at $2.2 bln.

There are 123000 poultry farmers in India and about 70% of them are in a dire situation.

India moved up one place to be at 29th place in world export rankings. (2005) India is the world’s 17th largest importer during 2005. In merchandise goods, Germany ($970.7 bn) is the largest exporter followed

by US ($904.3 bln) and China ($762 bln). In imports US ($1732.7 bln) is on top, followed by Germany ($774.1 bln) and

China ($660.1 bln).

14.04.06:

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The Grameen Bank of Bangladesh, which revolutionized micro-finance and empowered millions is stepping into India. Grameen founder Mohammad Younus who had quit his job as a teacher to pioneer micro-finance will be in India next month for the launch.

Postal Funds to eye equities: For the first time the GoI has allowed postal department to invest in stocks. About Rs. 10,000 cr will be drawn from the Rs. 30,000 cr post office insurance fund to put in stocks. The DoP (Department of Posts) has Rs. 3.2 lk cr as public deposits and Rs. 30,000 cr as post office insurance fund (POIF). Currently the postal department has earnings of Rs. 6,500 cr and expenditure of Rs. 7,900 cr.

The postal department is the largest network in the world with over 1.55 lk post offices with over 89% of them in rural areas. It has over 5.5 lk employees.

The 1999 hijack of IC 814 flight in December. Mr. Jaswant Singh had taken along with him Maulana Masood Azhar, Mushtaq Ahmad Zaragar and Omar Shiekh who were housed in Indian jails and handed them over to the Taliban regime.

Organized beauty care market in India is worth Rs. 3000 cr. The biotech industry is seeing talent requirement around areas such as R&D,

clinical and contract research. Not so much of activity is seen in drug discovery.

Mutual fund equity assets have finally crossed the magical mark of Rs .1 lk cr. As per the latest AMFI data, 45% of Rs. 2,32,000 cr mutual fund industry comprised equity assets.

For the fiscal 2005-06 the Indian banking industry has lent over Rs. 397,000 cr.

Clayton M Christensen: the guru of Disruptive Innovation and Business Strategy.

Wind power:o The installed capacity of wind turbines pan-India is put at 3,500 MW

plus.o Costs Rs. 4.5 to 5.5 cr per MW.o Estimates peg our potential wind power capacity at an impressive

45,000 MW, assuming 1% land availability in the identified, wind-rich areas. However the technical potential is said to be limited to just about 13,000 MW assuming 20% grid penetration by wind-farms.

o The increasing length of their blades would enable the turbines to utilize more wind and produce more power at lower cost.

o Traditionally, in wind turbines, the axis of rotation is horizontal. Vertical axis turbines, now in the works, promise to rev up generation, and reduce wear and tear.

White label cards: Unlike co-branded cards (which as the name suggests, as an association between a card company and a brand), a white label card is used to help smaller entities, notably banks and financial institutions to launch cards leveraging on the strength of a bigger player.

India has over 14 mln credit cards in circulation. ATM/Debit cards outnumber the credit cards by a ratio of 2:1. Credit cards are growing at about 20% per annum.

N. Balasubramaniam: CMD of SIDBI. Chen Shui-bian: President of Taiwan

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15.04.06:

LIC has sold a 1 cr policies in March, earning a premium of Rs. 6000 cr. With this it achieved a distinction of having sold more insurance policies in a single market than any life insurance company in the world.

Telecom companies have roped in a whopping 24.86 mln customers during the six months ending March 2006.

116 of the 126 airports in India managed by the AAI make losses. MEA Official booked for human trafficking:

o Rakesh Kumar, a 1972 batch IFS officer who while working as DG of ICCR is reported to have entered into a criminal conspiracy with one Mr. Har Gulab Singh and one Mr. Shiv Kumar Sharma to facilitate illegal trafficking of nine individuals to Berlin. According to CBI, Kumar and others empanelled a cultural group styled as ‘Mehtak Punjab di’ with ICCR. Subsequently a 15 member dance troupe was sent to Germany in September 2005. Out of this nine members went missing on arrival in Berlin and the allegation was that they were taken there with a mala fide intention of being smuggled into Europe.

Modi for raising dam height:o The Modi government of Gujarat is confident of winning over Ms.

Medha Patkar and her supporters’ unscrupulous and frivolous arguments for stopping the construction of the dam to 121.92 metres from the present 110.64 metres, on the basis of the Supreme Court observation that in case of a lapse by any state in carrying out relief and rehabilitation measures, a time bound direction can and should be given in order to ensure the implementation – but putting the project on hold is no solution.

The market size of the tooth powder category is Rs. 250 cr approx. Automobile sales in 2005-06:

o Passenger car sales 11.43 lk 10.61 lks 8%o Motor Cycles 58.15 lk 49.64 lks 17%o Two wheelers 70.60 lk 62.10 lks 14%o CVs 3.50 lk 3.18 lks 10%o Total 89.10 lk 78.97 lks 13%

PC sales in 2005-06 Quarter ending December:o Desktops & laptops 11 lks 18%o Desktops 9.67 lkso Laptops 1.25 lks

The industry body MAIT expects over all PC sales in the year 2005-06 to be more than 44 lks units.

HR managers say that February to June is the period when there is maximum churn in employee movement. Hopping between jobs.

China’s road map to market economy: Joseph Stiglitzo As China has moved toward a market economy, it has developed some

of the problems that have plagued the developed countries: special interests that clothe self-serving arguments behind a thin veil of market ideology.

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o Some will argue for trickle-down economics: don’t worry about the poor, eventually everybody will benefit from growth. And some will oppose competition policy and strong corporate governance laws: let Darwinian survival work its wonders. Growth arguments will be advanced to counter strong social and environmental policies: higher gasoline taxes, for example, will kill our nascent auto industry.

The packaging industry in India is a Rs. 65,000 cr industry. Of this pharma packaging is about Rs. 25,000 cr.

Very low IT penetration has accorded India a lowly 40th position in the World Economic Forum’s Annual IT index. Internet penetration is a miniscule 4.5% as a percentage of total population.

Fossil fuels the culprit: Arun Firodia, Chairman, Kinetic Groupo By the end of the century the sea level may rise by 7 feet indundating

the coastal cities where 60% of the world’s population lives.o The world, by 1900 was generating 1 bln tonnes of GHGs. This went

up 7 bln tonnes by 1995.o An average tree absorbs about 5 kg of carbon dioxide in one whole

year. But a motor car emits about 20 kg of CO2 in just one day. Zinc prices are about $3000 per tonne compared to $1200 per tonne a year

ago. China’s foreign reserves which have already overtaken those of Japan’s are at

$875.1 bln at the end of March. FDI at $14.25 bln. First quarter trade surplus at $23 bln.

16.04.06:

According to estimates, demand from the IT/ITES sector alone is expected to be 150 mn sq ft. across the major cities by 2010.

Poultry industry lost almost Rs. 8000 cr in the last two months because of bird flu scare.

India consumes 13 cr eggs and 1 cr kg of chicken a day. Auto component exports in 2005-06 were at $1.8 bln mark. The total output

of the auto component industry is valued at $10 bln. It has grown by over 15% from $8.7 bln.

17.04.06:

Indo-Pak talks on water, tourism from Tuesday:o Wullar barrage issue: Known as Tulbul navigation project. India’s

plans were to build the barrage on river Jhelum in J & K, which Pakistan objected to claiming it violated that 1960 Indus water treaty. It was stalled following objections by Pakistan 1986.

o Baglihar project: Being constructed on the river Chenab by India. The issue is being examined by World Bank’s Swiss water specialist Raymond Lafitte who was expected to announce his verdict later this year.

o Kishenganga project: India refused to accede to Pakistan’s request to halt the project saying that Islamabad wants to stall them and drag the negotiations.

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London stock exchange’s AIM Alternative Investment Market. It offers all the benefits of being traded on a public market but within a regulatory environment designed specifically for smaller companies. The investors in this market are HNIs who have the appetite to take risks and invest in smaller growing companies.

Major logistics firms across the world adjust their flight schedules to serve India better.

Malls and hotels are switching from high speed diesel to palm styrene as the fuel for captive power plants. The fuel bill for the plant is expected to be halved – from Rs. 12 per unit for HSD to Rs. 6 per palm styrene. A bio-oil unit would cost Rs. 4.5 cr per MW to setup.

The total Internet business in India is worth Rs. 2200 cr. The Internet and Online Association of India (IOAI) has projected that online shopping will increase to Rs. 2,300 cr by FY07. According to the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), there are 38.5 mln Indians online today and it is expected that the users will grow to 100 mln by 2007-08.

The SEZ rules say that the current area stipulated for SEZs in the IT, BPO and biotech sector is 25 acres or 10 hectares of land with 1 mln sft of covered area.

ONGC top profit- making company in India despite subsidy weight: The company has posted a profit of Rs. 14,175 cr (up 9%) in 2005-06 despite a whopping subsidy pay-out of Rs. 11,958 cr last fiscal. ONGC ended up selling crude at an average price of $42 per barrel.

Indian refiners have been selling fuel at globally benchmarked prices since April 2002, when the APM was formally dismantled. Fuel in India is sold at adjusted import parity price which includes notional costs like freight, insurance, duties etc.

Among the cities of the world in terms of the quality of life Zurich topped the charts and was followed by Geneva and Vancouver.

If a banker returns a cheque issued by a customer wrongfully, it would invite penal action under Sec. 31 of the NI Act, 1881.

Liquidity management operations available to RBI:o Reverse repo: the rate at which RBI blots out excess liquidity in the

system, by the sale of short-term securities – generally of a few days’ maturity.

o Repo rate: the rate at which RBI infuses liquidity with the purchase of short-term securities.

At present only those companies which plan to invest in infrastructure related projects are allowed to go in for ECB. The govt. has expanded the annual cap on ECB to $18 bln from $15 bln from this fiscal.

18.04.06:

Crude hits $70 a barrel; Indian basket now at $65. Companies are already making losses of about Rs. 5 per litre on diesel and Rs. 3 per litre on petrol sales.

The Central Information Commission, in a move that is likely cause widespread furore, has turned confidential assessment orders of the income tax department into public documents that can be released to the world at large.

McDowell is the world’s leading Brandy seller. Its No. 1 Brandy sold in 2005 full year about 5.3 mln cases up 15.5% on 4.6 mln cases the previous year.

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Monoclonal antibody is emerging as fast growing segment especially n oncology and auto-immune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis etc. In India there are about 3 mln cancer patients and about 7 lk new cases added each year of which 2.3 lakh are tobacco related.

ISRO Chairman G. Madhavan Nair India is the fastest growing telecom market in the world. 8 M&A deals were

struck in Jan-March 2006 worth over $2 bln. In India there are whopping 15 cr middle class individuals of which 60% are

below 35 years – a segment which is increasingly depending on processed foods.

Bank loans to builders have shot up 84%; educational loans 76% and credit card loans 53%.

Urban households spend about 41% of their monthly per capita consumption expenditure on food and about 37.1% on expensive high-end goods and services. Rural households spend close to 55% of their monthly per capita consumption expenditure on food.

Cereal consumption used to be as high as 14% to 15% of monthly per capita consumption expenditure in the 90’s but it has now come down to around the 10% mark.

The Industrial Disputes Act 1947 provides the machinery and outlines the procedures for the settlement of industrial disputes. Amendments to the IDA in 1976 and 1982 allowed employers to retrench workers with prior approval of the government. The number of man days lost due to strikes and lockouts between 2000-04 was 133.24 mln.

Gold touches 25 year peak, at Rs. 9000 per 10 gm. Experts attribute the continuing rise in gold prices to a higher demand of about 4000 tonnes as against supply of 2500 tonnes. Bullion dealers say the demand is led by fund managers and not driven by consumer offtake.

“The New World” a historical drama starring Colin Farrel about the colonization of New England, is going to be the first movie that is being screened in Japan with the newly developed computerized fragrance system.

19.04.06:

Music on mobile:o Current size of mobile music industry is at Rs. 500 cr.o Projected size by the ned of FY06 Rs. 720 cr.o Current size of legal conventional music Rs. 700 cr.o Expected additions to mobile music subscriber base in FY06: 60 mln.

About 5 mln new subscribers join the mobile bandwagon every month. Private power developers have been given a break from tariff-based

competitive bidding by the Govt. The exemption will be applied to those projects which submit a PPA to the ERC before September 06.

The existing gap between availability and requirement is 8%, at peak hours it is as high as 12.5%.

Conservative estimates suggest that out of the 41,000 MW captive power capacity, nearly 4000 to 5000 MW could be tapped by the grid, while the Forum of Regulators says that nearly 10,000 to 15,000 MW can be tapped for use by the grid.

RBI’s monetary policy:

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o To regulate credit quality, the provisioning norms for personal loans, loans against shares, commercial real estate loans and residential housing loans beyond Rs. 20 lks have been increased from 0.4% to 1%.

o This measure will make loans costlier in these respective categories. Additionally, risk weight on exposures to commercial real estate has been increased to 150%.

GSPC seeks strategic partner for operations:o It has struck gas reserve to the tune of 20 tcf equivalent to $50 bln in

their KG basin blocko GSPC has 80% stake in the KG basin block renamed as Deen Dayal

block. 20% is shared by GeoGlobal and Jubilant Enpro.o KG basin despite proven gas reserve has been difficult to operate

owing to high pressure and temperature. Iran is the world’s fourth largest crude oil exporter. Vietnam is likely to emerge as the largest exporter of cashew nuts in the world

replacing India. IN 2005-06 Indian cashew nut exports were estimated at around 1,14,143

tonnes. Sdfsd

20.04.06: Reliance strikes oil in KG basin:

o The oil find, the first in the KG basin is estimated to have reserves of 1 bln barrels which could translate to 60 mln tonnes. In place reserves of a bln barrels at a 45% recovery could lead to revenues of $1.8 bln per year for 15 years considering an oil price of $60/bbl.

o Most of the large finds in the last four years have been of natural gas. The last oil find was made by Cairn at Barmer.

VolksWagon – AP controversy:o Dr. Shuster Helmuth Wolfgang, former India head of VW, and Alaga

Raja Jagdeesh are accused of cheating AP government of Rs. 11.67 cr for setting up a VW car manufacturing unit. They informed the GoAP wrongly that VW decided to setup the car manufacturing unit at Visakhapatnam and advised them to take part in the equity of Vasishta Wahan, setup for establishing the joint venture plant. The company was floated on behalf of VW without its authorization. The CBI so far could recover only Rs. 5 cr. of the money.

The Indian healthcare industry is worth $22 bln. Free hand on pricing likely for companies on R&D track:

o The new pricing mechanism will allow companies which invest at least 3% of their annual sales turnover or Rs. 50 cr a year on R&D to charge higher margins on their price controlled drugs. According to the new drug policy.

The revised estimates for direct tax collections of the centre is Rs. 1,70,077 cr. The RE for indirect tax collections is Rs. 2,00,064 cr. Centre to setup 13 inland ports at a cost of Rs. 850 cr:

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o In an attempt to boost trade with the neighbours, 8 inland ports would be setup along the Bangladesh border, followed by 4 on the Nepal border and 1 on the Pakistan border.

FDI jumps 40% to $7.5 bln in 2005-06:o FDI in 2004-05 stood at $5.3 bln.

According to AAI passenger traffic at Indian airports would grow to 60 mln during 2006-07. In a year or two, the traffic is expected to touch 80 mln. AAI is building 150 new parking bays at various airports.

Retail credit for the entire banking sector stands at Rs. 1,90,000 cr.

22.04.06:

Currently the WPI does not include services that account for about 50% of our GDP. Hence GoI is gong to come out with a Service Price Index to correct the skew in WPI.

The recent changes in the IT Act are expected to bring about a fall in the tax assessees base by about 39 mln or around 65% of the existing tax base for the year 2005.

GoI is importing a massive 3 mln tonnes of wheat (approx. costing Rs. 2400 cr) to meet the shortfall.

Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is the new buzzword in IT world. This is a technology that allows developers to reuse some of the code built into applications rather than creating all over again from the ground up.

India has a base of 20 mln DVD/VCD players with an expected growth by another 7 mln during 2006-07.

In Surat, 9 out of the world’s 11 diamonds are cut and polished. At the current level of $155 bln India is the 5th largest holder of foreign

exchange among emerging markets after China, South Korea, Taiwan and Russia.

Captive coal producers have been told by GoI not to sell surplus output. This decision comes against the backdrop of 100% FDI that was recently permitted in captive blocks.

Big companies get great deals on mega insurance:o Two years ago there were only 13 companies which bought mega risk

policies. A year ago, the number went up to around 22. Now there are as many as 30 companies which are buying mega risk cover directly from international market.

o Mega risk policies, which were introduced in ’99, were allowed for large companies – defined as those with a maximum probable loss of Rs. 1050 cr in any location or total assets of over Rs. 10,000 cr.

Sugar output for the current year is expected to be about 190 lk tonnes as against 127 lk tonnes last year.

23.04.06:

Maharashtra okays farm loan by credit societies:o Credit societies in the state will be able to access Nabard’s refinancing

at 6%, to which the state government will give a 2% subsidy. This will allow credit societies to offer credit to farmers at 4% rate of interest.

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o Credit societies are not within the purview of Section 80(p) of the IT Act. Therefore, they will not have to pay IT, unlike urban cooperative banks who have for the first time been brought under the IT Act.

Oil Bonds issued by GoI:o The government issued oil bonds to public sector oil companies to

liquidate the claims with the oil pool account.o The bonds were issued to liquidate the outstanding claims of the oil

companies on the Oil Coordination Committee under the abolished administered price mechanism (APM).

o The oil pool account is a complex mechanism of surplus or shortfall from cross subsidies in the petroleum sector and differences between the international and domestic oil prices.

Excellent usage of English by Raghu Krishnan while writing on Raj Kumar:o Whenever I thought of Raj Kumar, that association remained with me

of grace under pressure, of courtesy in a crisis, of serenity in any situation, of a smiling response to the utmost provocation.

Panama Hat: The elegant headwear woven from palm fibre is traditionally made in Ecuador.

24.04.06:

According to SEBI, the number of registered FIIs in the country as on April 21, 2006 is at 898; up from 685 a year ago on March 31, 2005.

Soft dollars: describes payments made by FIIs to Indian brokers, which are outside the ambit of the normal brokerage charges. These payments are legitimate but are of a discretionary nature and are over and above the normal commission charges.

Iran-Pak-India gas pipeline is 2100 KM long and is expected to cost about $7 bln at current rates.

The Indian courier industry is worth Rs. 4000 cr. ET Commodity Index constitutes 50 commodities from different categories

having a significant weightage in terms of the production value. Salva Judum:

o In order to restrict the Naxal movement, the government of Chattisgarh has come out with this program. It is an anti-naxal movement by the local population.

Gazprom is the world’s largest gas producer and supplier of a quarter of Europe’s gas.

25.04.06:

Mr. B. Lal: Director General, Indian Meteorological Department. Rainfall has been divided into five categories:

o If rainfall is less than 90% of the average, it is called deficient.o Rainfall between 90% and 98% of the average is called below normal.o Between 98% and 102% of the average is called near normal.o Between 102% and 110% is called above normal.o Over 110% is called excess.

Domestic IT and ITES market:

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o Touched around $10.2 bln (Rs. 22,000 cr) in FY05 and is expected to touch $12.4 bln in FY06 growing at 22%.

Decline of the American power?o It is arguable whether China would be able to confront the American

behemoth as a competing global power for the following three reasons:o 1. America’s economic strength rests not simply on its economic size,

which is diminishing in relative terms and fraught with huge deficits, but on invisible ‘dark matter’ which generates bottomless global appetite for dollars and ensures a higher return on American assets relative to the rest of the world.

o 2. Huge disparities in average per capita income would remain between America and other potential world powers. A large economy with higher per capita income gives America unique access to large revenues to enhance its strategic military strength even as tax rates and tax funded welfare benefits are kept low. This techno-economic clout, combined with its excellent university and R&D network, has opened up a vast and growing technological gap between US and the rest of the world.

o 3. While traditional empires were founded and sustained through military conquest, modern powers are hegemonic. Although American hegemony has declined in recent years, it nevertheless enjoys far greater legitimacy than China in its present political form can ever hope to command.

The general category (in reservations for education and employment) is believed to be between 12% and 17% of the population. They have no meaningful political representation.

Recasting WPI:o Current base year is 1993-94; proposed to be 2000-01.o Current number of items in the list is 435; proposed to be increased to

1,100.o Presently skewed totally in favour of manufactured goods with 63.75%

of index.o Services contributing about 52% of the GDP totally neglected.

26.04.06:

GoI is proposing to hike the excise duty on ATF to 16% from 8%. Global spa industry is estimated to be worth $10.7 bln. Routine maintenance costs account for almost 89% of the IT budgets in

organizations. US is the biggest pharma market estimated at $181 bln. The US market

constitutes over 27% of the global pharma market pegged at $640 bln. Money laundering:

o Broadly refers to the process by which money or other assets obtained as proceeds of crime are exchanged for “clean money” or other assets with no obvious link to their criminal origins.

Proven reserves of coal in India are estimated at 92 bln tonnes. RIL said discoveries in KG basin would produce 40 mmscmd of gas from

mid-2008.

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Purchasing Managers Index:o ABN Amro PMI is the first ever type of PMI in India.o It is a composite indicator designed to provide a single-figure snapshot

of the health of the manufacturing sector. It serves as a reflection of the mood in the manufacturing sector, while it also helps in determining the direction in which the manufacturing sector is heading.

o It is a traditional type of leading indicator, which is computed across most of developed countries in the world. It is calculated identically to most of the PMIs across the world, like American ISM PMI.

o The index measures the overall output, new orders, new export orders, work backlog, stock of finished goods, employment situation, output prices, input prices, suppliers’ delivery time, quantity of purchases, and stocks of purchases in the manufacturing sector.

The GoI is considering setting up of 50,000 MW of hydel power over the next 15 to 20 years which is 1.5 times the total capacity setup, approximately 32,000 MW since independence till date.

The proposed Pipavav shipyard (promoted by Sea King Infrastructure Limited of Nikhil Gandhi and IL&FS) is expected to be the largest in India and among the top 10 shipyards in the world in the league of Hyundai and Samsung of Korea, Damen of Holland, Aker Masa in Finland and Izhar of Spain.

Gustav Humbert: Chief of Airbus. Fiery Chilli pricess spell profit for growers: Chillies crop in India:

o Almost all of India’s crop is traded at Guntur, with AP accounting for between 50 to 60% of the volumes.

o Peak arrivals in Guntur are in the region of 1 lk bags a day of 40 kg each.

o The decline in chilli acreage resulted in a 25% drop in crop size from the normal level of 10 lk tonnes a year to 7.5 lk tonnes.

o Currently the crop size is estimated at 6.75 lk tonnes.

27.04.06:

Ayodhya: 6 December 1992: is a posthumous work of late Sri. P.V. Narasimha Rao. In this work, he explains as to why he could not take pre-emptive action or impose central rule in UP at that time.

Uzbekistan offers gas exploration rights to India:o Uzbekistan is one of the top 10 largest producers of gas.o Islam Karimov: Presidento It is estimated to have 594 mln barrels of proven oil reserves and 66.2

tcf of natural gas reserves. India’s per capita consumption of cola still remains at 10 servings per year

(that is each person cola 10 times in a year), while Pakistan’s and SriLanka’s is 25 and 30 respectively.

Juices are being pushed by traders and importers as the margins for these are about 10-15% compared with the 5-8% margins they get when dealing with colas.

Imax screen size is 72 ft X 93 ft. (hxw) Global retailers:

o Sears, Carrefour, Coles Myer and Metro

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o Wal-Mart, GAP, JC Penny and Target In US Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) are a major draw. These trusts

control assets aggregating to $500 bln. By 2010 consumer spending in D&E (Developing and Emerging) markets is

set to overtake that in developed countries reaching over 55% of global consumer spend in PPP terms.

Airline business:o The MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) market in India,

currently is estimated to be worth $615.3 mln.o India’s total fleet of airplanes, which currently stands at 215, will more

than double to about 500 planes in 2010.o India’s MRO market currently accounts for 1.6% fo the global MRO

market. Roopa Purushothaman co-authored the “Dreaming with BRICs: The Path to

2050”. Along with Dominic Wilson. Over the last two years Open Access regulations have been issued in most

states, however there are only 7 open access customers in the country so far. Monstanto’s tiff with GoAP:

o The company sold Bt cotton seeds in AP. o The seeds supplied by the company appear to have failed in Warangal

District in last year’s Kharif season in about 25000 acres.o GoAP banned the Mech 162 and Mech 184 varieties of seeds being

sold by the company.o GoAP states that it is not against the GM technology but against the

malpractices of the company.o GoAP demands Rs. 3000/- per acre of failed crop for its farmers.o Crop statistics:

2005-06 Kharif 22.24 lk bales of cottong production against 21.9 lk bales during the same period last year.

Crop area came down to 9.73 lk hectares compared to 11.78 lk hectares.

AP Tobacco auctions: (excellent price realization on good demand)o Sold over 68 mln kgs of FCV tobacco in the current round so far.o 2006 crop size of FCV tobacco is 147 mln kg down from 153 mkg for

2005 crop.o Average price realization touched Rs. 46.81 kg almost 18% higher than

Rs. 40 of last year.o Three reasons:

Brazil’s crop is expected to be down by 10% from last year’s level of 700 mkg.

EU is contemplating removal of subsidies for this crop, which could entail an exit from tobacco in a few years.

After a slump in 2001 and 2002, domestic offtake of tobacco stabilized last year in India.

28.04.06:

Real estate projects can attract FDI up to 100%, subject to certain riders which were spelt out by the government in April ’05.

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RIL refining margins for crude are about $7.5 to $8 a barrel. US sets pace for Central Asian power grid move:

o Under the plan, a regional power grid stretching from Almaty to New Delhi will be fed by oil and gas from Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan and hydropower from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Torpedoes:o Light weight variety weigh around 200 kg and can carry 40 kg

explosives.o Heavy weight variety can carry around 200-300 kg of explosives.

Dell is a $56 bln company. Foreign telecasting companies’ revenues are likely to be taxed:

o According to the task force on emerging issues in non-resident taxation (constituted by the Finance Minsitry):

FTCs will be liable to pay tax in India if they have a permanent establishment (PE) here. Normally, a PE refers to a fixed place of business. Alternatively, a dependent agent who has the authority to conclude contracts, also constitutes a PE.

In the case of FTCs, the advertising sales agent who secures an order has the authority to conclude contracts, will constitute the PE.

IPO grading by SEBI:o The grading assigned to a particular IPO represents a ‘relative

assessment of the fundamentals of that issue in relation to the universe of other listed equity securities’.

Wheat procurement and import:o Last year 18 mt of wheat was procured while this year government

expects to procure only 14 mt of wheat vis-à-vis the norm of 17 mt stock in central pool by July 1.

o Reasons for deficits in wheat stocks currently: For the past few years India’s wheat production has been

stagnant. LY 72.1 mt. Expected this year 73.1 to 74 mt. Increase in demand due to increased consumption of wheat in

southern states Presumption of delayed monsoon this year has led to

speculation in the futures market Due to government’s policy of removal of restrictions on

stocking limits, some private traders have been purchasing wheat from farmers at prices far above the support prices and stocking it.

It is estimated conservatively that wheat yields can be increased to 3.5 t/ha which would raise production to 93 mt without area expansion.

NTPC currently generates more than 25% of the total electricity produced in the country and operates about 20% of the total installed capacity.

Hyderabad is about to host the 39th annual Asian Development Bank meeting. It is expected to cost Rs. 26 cr.

Dabba trade hots up:o Dabba trading – equivalent of bucket shops in USA has ballooned to

almost Rs. 4000 cr daily as brokers and speculators illegally bet on Nymex every evening.

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o Two types of trading overseas contracts: Those with a legitimate source of dollars. They open an

account at Nymex through brokers here and settle in Nymex as well.

Second, are traders who use Nymex prices as the basis for betting on arbitrages between India and US every evening. The money is squared locally. This kind of activity is illegal.

Pakistan is the second largest tea importer in the world while India is the largest producers of the commodity.

29.04.06:

Louis Vuitton set for India foray:o Louis Vuitton Malletier (LVM), the world’s largest brand in fashion

and leather goods is entering India by acquiring an existing company. OPD market: Outsourced Product Development market in India is estimated

to be around $3 bln and is expected to touch $11 bln by 2009. In India around 2 bln text messages are sent out by subscribers every month. Mobile telephony: India is placed 7th all over the world in mobile tele-density.

After China, USA, Russia, Japan, Brazil and Germany. This year India is likely to be the 4th largest overtaking Japan, Brazil and Germany.

Clause 49 of SEBI’s listing agreement:o It came into force from 1st Jan ’06.o Stipulates that if the chairman of a company’s board is non-executive

director, one third of the board has to comprise Independent Directors; and if the chairman is an executive director then the proportion of Ids goes up to half.

Coal production:o Gets a leg up with Rs. 2,629 cr funding.o Emergency plan to step up production to overcome an estimated

shortage of 95 mln tonnes of coal by 2012.o Till now, 94 captive blocks have been allotted to producers. Now 59

more blocks are in the pipeline. Warren Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway currently trades at $88,000 a share. English usage: In defence of English language.

o It obviously serves their selfish vote-bank politics to maintain the duality and keep the masses mired in linguistic parochialism.

Boom puts truck rentals on a roll:o The buoyancy in truck rentals and freight rate is attributed to the twin

factor of a buoyant economy and curb on the extent on overloading following the Supreme Court ruling last November. Trucks which were earlier carrying 15-18 tonnes per trip now only can carry up to 10 tonnes.

NSDL (National Securities Depository Limited) manages 76 lk investor accounts in its custody and securities valued at $591 bln or Rs. 26 lk crore.

A depository holds securities such as shares, debentures, bonds or government securities in electronic form.

The IPO scam:

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o The financiers used their own funds and IPO financing provided by banks to bid for the retail shares. The financier, through operators, created thousands of fictitious accounts and applied for the shares. Once the stocks were allotted, the shares from accounts were transferred before listing into the financiers’ DP account.

PSU banks to get Rs. 2,500 cr subsidy: On short term crop loans extended to farmers:

o Nearly 12% of all loans flow to agriculture.o NPAs in agriculture are at 15%.o Crop loan: The short term loan which is provided for 15 month period

and is meant for meeting the needs like seed, fertilizer, labour and cattle feed. The farmer can repay the loan after the harvest of the crop.

Hedge funds drive Indian market volatility:o The number of hedge funds operating in India is not known; as they

function through the participatory notes (P-Notes) route.o It is estimated that about 40% to 50% of the funds invested by foreign

portfolio investors is hedge fund money.o While the amount of hedge fund assets invested in Asia has gone up to

$113 bln in 2005, compared with the $15 bln five years ago, it is still less compared to the $1 trillion invested in the US.

o Hedge funds are short term traders who scout for opportunities in various markets and move their funds from region to region.

The food ministry is considering a move to cut import duty on wheat from 50% to allow foreign grains to enter the Indian market.

The government has cleared setting up of nearly 60 AEZs. Agriculture Export Zones.

Oil seeds:o Currently the domestic turnover of the oilseeds sector is about $16 bln.o Indian oil seeds production is estimated to be about 32.7 mln tonnes.o India is an important contributor to global oilseeds production,

occupying about 6% of the overall world oilseeds production and is also the fourth largest contributor towards the edible oil industry.

o Estimated palm oil seed production: Malaysia (15.35 mt) and Indonesia(15.30 mt).

Kavya Viswanathan: teen age writer of “How Opal Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got a Life” gained notoriety for plagiarizing the work of Megan McCafferty.

30.04.06:

Mortgage lending has surged by an average 35% in the past six years, making it the fastest growing segment of the Indian banking industry.

Patent war: India vs. China:o While Indian inventors were granted 495 patents in the US in 2004-05,

China had 943 patents to its credit.o The cost of obtaining a patent ranges from $10,000 to $20,000.

UGC Chairman: Sukhdeo Thorat What are dollar stores?

o Where everything sells for either Rs. 44 or Rs. 99.

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Hyderabad to host the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJCAI) from January 6 to 12, 2007.

How to increase coffee consumption in the country?o Brazilian marketing expert Carlos Brando gives the panchtantra for

brewing two times more caffeine.o 1. Make labeling totally transparent so that the consumer knows

exactly what kind of coffee powder she is getting and how much chicory – if any – is mixed in it.

o 2. Make coffee more competitive vis-à-vis the other hot beverage i.e. tea.

o 3. Simplify the process of making coffee at home for the housewife.o 4. Get across to the consumer through the medical fraternity the

health-enhancing qualities of coffee.o 5. Use the already existing and vibrant coffee culture as a platform to

boost in-home consumption.o Annual per capita consumption of coffee is 54 gm!.o Annual consumptions of coffee:

India 58,000 tonnes Brazil 9.60 lk tonnes USA 12 lk tonnes – world’s largest

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01.05.2006:

There are about 207 mln households in the country. Among durables TV has the maximum penetration with nearly 42% of

households overall using it, including 29% of all rural households. Barely 11% of the households have a telephone and just 1% have a personal computer. Penetration of air conditioners is below 1% and that of washing machines is less than 5%.

Last year 1,50,000 people visited India for medical tourism and almost a 30% growth is expected this year.

Beer market:o Mild beer (with less than 6% alcohol) is about 35% of the Indian beer

consumption pegged at 107 mln cases (7.8 litre each). Kingfisher is the leader in this segment with 70% share.

o Strong beer is about 65% of the Indian beer consumption. Haywards 5000 is the market leader in this segment.

The cost of drug development is estimated at $1 bln and clinical trials on humans – a critical phase in new drug development – accounts for 40% of the total cost.

The output of the Indian chemical industry was at $32 bln in 2005-06, amounting to 2% of the global chemical industry.

We have proven reserves of over 13 bln tonnes of iron ore – amongst the highest in the world.

It was noted that about 25% of the food grains, fruits and vegetables are destroyed due to bacterial infection and pest infestation. Hence the need for irradiation.

Currently India exports over Rs. 163 bln worth of agro and processed foods and ranks 39th in the world for processed food exports and 15th for processed vegetables.

India has the dubious distinction of being the diabetes capital of the world with 32 mln cases of diabetes. The total diabetes drugs market in India is estimated at Rs. 1100 cr. The insulin segment of this is pegged at Rs. 320 cr.

02.05.06:

Disgorgement:o It implies returning or paying back the money made through illegal

methods to investors or people who have been impacted by such an action. GoI asked SEBI to consider the option of directing those who manipulated the quota for retail investors in IPOs to buy back shares from the market and allocate it to investors who missed out.

Whisky markets:o India has emerged as the largest international whisky market toppling

the US by volume.o China has emerged the largest beer market two years back.o India’s whisky market is 60 mln cases (9 litre each).o US has three different varieties of whiskies – Bourbon, American and

Scotch. Sells about 48-50 mln cases.

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Luxury crystal market in India will be close to Rs. 400 cr in 2007 and will grow at 100% for the next three years. International crystal brands – Swarovski, Daum, Lalique and Baccarat.

Non-carbonated beverage market size is Rs. 615 cr. Worldwide big players in sports management – IMG, SFX and Octagon. ATF price is around Rs. 41,950 per KL up from Rs. 37,900 last month. SS Mehta is the new CII, Director General. Emerging markets in a role reversal:

o The biggest risks to emerging markets are external, ranging from the Federal Reserve raising rates in an overheated US housing market to the possible contagion from financial vulnerabilities of smaller developed countries such as Iceland and New Zealand.

o Dedicated emerging market equity funds have attracted moe than $30 bln in net inflows this year, already surpassing record inflows of $25 bln for all of 2005. Moreover, many global funds are increasingly investing in emerging markets.

Power scene in India:o Commercial losses of power utilities have shown an upward trend:

2004-05 Rs. 22,558 cr. 2005-06 Rs. 22,569 cr. 2006-07 Rs. 23,924 cr. (projected)

Bivoltine or temperate sericulture is practiced in countries like China. Silk worm rearing in India needs an ambient temperature of 25 degrees to 27 degrees. Karnataka is the country’s largest silk producer accounting for about 60% of the nation’s output.

03.05.06:

Tata Tea’s SPV (Tata Tea (GB))to buy JEMCA of Czech Republic. This will make Tata Tea and Tetley together control 35% of the global tea market.

1985 bombing of the Air India’s Kanishka: On June 23 killed all on board on the Montreal-London flight. Only Inderjit Singh Reyat has been convicted. He was sentenced to 5 years in prison in 2003 after striking a plea bargain under which he was convicted on lesser charges of manslaughter and with assiting in the construction of the bomb. Canada announced the launch of a probe into the bombings.

Indian beer market:o Currently growing at 14-15% per annum.o World leading beer brands: SAB Miller, Scottish & Newcastle and

Fosters. These three are already in India. InBev and Anheuser-Busch are expected to unveil their India forays shortly.

o Per capita consumption of beer is very low at 07. litres. Clayton Christensen the guru of Disruptive Innovation defines it as: When the

level of technological progress is far above what the customers actually need and can use, the phenomena of overshooting creates the opportunity for an upstart to come n with something that is cheaper, simpler and good enough for a set of customers who don’t need the advanced functionalities. This trend is disruptive innovation.

India has 360 million workers. There are 26 mln government employees. And there are 20 mln workers with EPF accounts. UTI’s new pension plan is

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a boon for poor workers. It is the Finance Minister’s brainchild. With a contribution of Rs. 50 per month.

International Grains Council:o Worldwide trade in wheat is likely to be 112 mln tonnes this year up

by 2 mln tonnes due to increased purchases by China and India.o World wheat production in 2006 is going to be 598 mln tonnes.o World wheat consumption in 2006-07 is forecast at 614 mln tonnes.o The IGC is an inter-governmental body based in London, which

provides statistics and analysis on crops such as wheat and maize. Asian Development Bank:

o Estd. In 1966 with HQ in Manila. Is owned by 65 member countries – 47 Asia Pacific nations and 18 non-regional members. Japan and US are the largest shareholders with 15.8% each of total subscribed capital.

o Highest policy making body is the board of governors. They comprise one representative each from the member countries. Governors elect the 12 member Board of Directors. The President manages the business of ADB.

04.05.06:

The domestic medical equipment market is pegged at Rs. 5000 cr with MNC players like GE, Philips and Siemens being the active players.

The GoAP’s e-procurement platform is the largest in the government sector in the country. It hosts 13,591 tenders valued at Rs. 33,974 cr in 8 government departments, 13 PSUs, 57 Urban Local Bodies and 5 Universities.

India has 85 commercial banks, accounting for 78% of assets, 3000 cooperative banks and 196 regional rural banks.

Today’s edition has a special report on power sector.

05.05.06:

Flats at NCPA in Mumbai’s Nariman Point – for long the real estate benchmark in South Mumbai were recently sold at Rs. 40,000 per square foot.

The official shortage of housing units in India is 19.4 mln units. Top six cities in the country account for more than 40% of home loans. District administration officials of Sitapur in UP, desparate to meet

procurement targets have started offering gun licences to any farmer who sells FCI just 250 quintals of wheat. But farmers are still not buying into the idea, because open market offers them more money than FCI.

In the two-wheeler market, motorcycles form 80% of total sales whereaxs scooters constitute around 15%.

Cricket balls:o Meerut’s Sansparels Greenlands (SG) cricket ball faces danger of

being hit out of the ground.o Australian made Kookaburra balls may soon be used in place of SG

balls in Test cricket. Indian workforce:

o India has 400 mln workforce.

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o Unorganised sector has majorityo Only 30 mln are in the organized sector.

Global staffing industry is $72 bln industry. Worlds leading staffing agencies: Adecco, PeopleOne, Manpower, Vedior,

Randstad, Kelly, Staff Service The National Urban Renewal Mission estimates that India’s urban population

will rise from less than 28% of the population in the 2001 census to 40% by 2021 as a result of liberalization.

According to NSSO each Indian consumes on an average around 5 kgs of wheat every month.

India needs 17 mln tonnes of wheat annually for its ration shops. India needs 75 mln tonnes of wheat annually to feed its population. India’s sugar production is expected to touch 22 mln tonnes in the year to

September 2007 from around 19 mln tonnes this year.

06.05.06:

Fitness First is the world’s larges health club chain. It is about to enter India. Francois Pinault: owner of Pinault-Printemps-Redoute (PPR) and famous as

Bernard Arnault’s sparring partner, will be in India. PPR owns Gucci and YSL among a string of other luxury fashion labels.

According to IAMAI Internet and Mobile Association of India, the Internet user base will grow from 39 mln in 2006 to 100 mln in 2007. In India that is.

India has over 400,000 workers in the gulf countries. The agenda for new towns: Kala S Sridhar

o The existing urban areas of the country are expected to contribute about 65% of GDP by 2011.

o The requirement of funds for providing infrastructure is estimated to be more than Rs. 8,000 cr for cities with more than a million population and less than Rs. 1000 cr for cities with less than a million, according to the ministry of urban development.

o The basic definition of an industry cluster is a geographical concentration of industries that gain performance advantages through co-location and share specialized infrastructure, labour markets and services.

o According to PM India requires about $150 bln in the next few years for infrastructure.

US has a current account deficit of $805 bln that is 6.4% of the GDP Countries with current account surplus:

o Japan $163.9 blno China $158.6 blno Oil rich gulf countries $196 bln

Asia warms up to possibility of a single currency:o The ADB has said that an ACU, which would be made up of basket of

currencies, would not be traded and would simply be an indicator of the stability of participating countries.

ASEAN countries: Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia, Combodia, Malaysia, Laos, Singapore, Myanmar

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Iran has registered an oil bourse on the Persian Gulf island of Kish I nwhich oil would be sold in euros. The market will be the fifth oil market in the world after New York, London, Singapore and Tokyo.

07.05.06:

The investment rate in India is 30% of the GDP and has been largely funded by domestic savings, according to Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

The ‘after dinner treats’ market is about Rs. 1200 cr in India. Approximately 50% of the Indian population is between 18-34 years. RH Patil Committee recommended to develop a strong bond market in India.

The FM says that GoI is committed to implementing the committee’s recommendations.

Iranian Nuclear stand-off:o The Franco-British draft of the UNSC resolution is opposed by

Moscow and China as they oppose invoking Chapter 7 of the UN Charter which makes the resolution describing the Iranian enrichment as threat to international peace and security mandatory.

Lee Scott: Walmart’s Chief Executive. Zero Coupon Bonds are allowed in India only on and after June 1st 2005. A

ZCB feature is that no payment and benefit in respect of such bonds is received or receivable before maturity or redemption. ZCBs are allowed to be issued by infrastructure capital companies, infrastructure capital funds and public sector companies.

Living on the edge: A fact laden report on health in India:o At the present stage of India’s health transition chronic diseases

contribute to an estimated 53% of deaths and 44% of disability-adjusted life-years lost.

World’s costliest wine so far:o A Jefferson selection – a 1787 Chateau Lafite marked with the initials

Th. J that apparently never got shipped – (a single bottle) fetched more than $156,000 in 1985.

First Kashmiri film in 39 years:o Aarshid Mushtaq’s Akh Daleel Loolech or “A Story of Love” is the

first Kashmiri film after 39 years.o Maenzraat or “The Night before the Wedding” the last Kashmiri film

was made in 1967.

08.05.06:

Government holding in BSNL and MTNL is 100% and 56% respectively. What is meant by public holding a company?

o It refers to retail shareholding or shares owned by individual shareholders. It excludes banks, FIIS, mutual funds and other financial institutions like LIC.

Scotch Whisky Association and EU define whisky as a product made of cereals and matured at least for three years. Indian whisky on the other hand is made from molasses through a continuous distillation process with a maturation period of 24 hours.

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Vijay Mallya’s UB group controls 55% of the Indian spirits market pegged at 138 mln cases (9 litres each) annually. Of this whisky’s market is 74 mln cases.

The salaried class is estimated to be close to 57 mln which covers employees in both the state owned and private firms.

Local mutual fund industry has assets under management to the extent of Rs. 2,30,000 cr.

Pakistan Nuclear waste dumping:o Dera Ghazi Khan, Bagalchur is the place where Pakistan is dumping

nuclear waste. There are protests against the dumping. Govt. aided NGOs told to reserve jobs:

o NGOs receiving more than 50% of their expenditure from the central government have been asked to provide 49.5% reservation to SCs/STs and OBCs.

The share of diesel vehicles currently is 31% in India. Expected to rise to 45% within the next 2-3 years and to 45-50% by 2010.

The merger of Air India and Indian would create a large airline with a fleet of 130 planes and revenues to the tune of $3.5 bln.

What is creative outsourcing:o Content is present in may forms like journals and books, but making

that content visually interactive and intelligent is called creative outsourcing.

There are about 140 mln telecom subscriber in the country. Includes mobile as well as landline.

The total area currently under contract farming in the country is about 7 mln acres. Total cultivable land in the country is 400 mln acres.

Kevan Watts: Chairman Merrill Lynch International. China produced 9 bln fresh flowers in 2005-06; is the global leader in that

segment.

08.05.06:

SEBI has allowed listed companies to mobilize funds from the domestic market through private placement of securities to QIBs. This is likely to spur local mop-up. Each company can raise total funds only up to five times of its net worth in a single financial year.

FTA Checkso In a bid to protect farmers, the government is likely to insist on a

negative list in all free trade agreements including the proposed pacts with ASEAN and West Asian countries. Tariff Rated Quotas (TRQs) would also be weaved into such agreements, highly placed sources in government said.

BSNL gets 65 paise per minute for carrying MTNL’s NLD traffic. There is currently a stand-off between MTNL and BSNL over carrying of NLD traffic. MTNL is going to float enquiries with private network providers for carrying its NLD traffic – a move which is estimated to save it about Rs. 500 cr per annum.

Globally the issuance of FCCBs has touched $39 bln this year. FCCB market offers companies premium on the existing prices which range

anywhere from 30 to 70% as compared to the equity markets. FCCB is a

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quasi-debt instrument, which is convertible into the company’s equity shares at the option of the investor, at a specified strike rate.

Shunglu Panel: set up by the PM to review rehabilitation work in the Narmada Valley. Expected to submit its report by June 30th.

Currently there are 2 lakh timeshare holders in India. NKC National Knowledge Commission headed by Sam Pitroda was

constituted to provide guidance for reforms for the 21st century knowledge society, which includes education sector.

Satellite insurance:o INSAT 2E is the only insured desi satellite.o Making a satellite costs Rs. 250 cr.o Launching costs Rs. 300 to 350 cr.o Premium on insurance during the first six months 20% of satellite

making cost.o Premium after risk period 3-4%.

10.05.06:

The next president of the Antwerp based Diamond High Council, Hoge Voor Diamant (HRD), world’s apex body in diamond trade could be an Indian with the body recently ratifying the election of five Indians to its 11 member board.

Indian diamond industry is worth Rs. 70,000 cr. Total Colour TV sales in the country 8.3 mln units in 2005. Out of this flat

CTV sales account for 3.6 mln units. Indian spirits industry sales:

o Whisky 74 mln caseso Rum 32 mln caseso Brandy 22 mln caseso Gin 3 mln caseso Vodka 3 mln cases

Michael Giffin: Chief of NASA, USA Chandrayan –I will be India’s first unmanned scientific mission to the moon.

The objective is to investigate the distribution of minerals and chemical elements and high-resolution three-dimensional mapping of the entire lunar surface.

CIE Council of Indian Employers is the apex body of employers in the country. Contributes to strengthening the industrial relations, labour and social policies within the tripartite framework of the government. Sarthan Behuria (Chairman IOC) has become the Chairman of CIE.

India’s total IT exports this year stood at $23 bln. Only 2.5 cr Indians file IT returns. This means that less than 3% of the 100 cr

people show up on IT radar. Henry hub – a natural gas pipeline hub in Lousiana often serves as a

benchmark for wholesale natural gas prices. In India natural gas is being sold at a subsidized price of $1.6 /mmbtu to

fertilizer and power consumers. ONGC signed a long term contract with Torrent group for $4.7/mmbtu. International LNG spot prices are hovering at $9 to $10 / mmbtu. Naphtha prices are at $20/mmbtu.

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A harmonized GST would hike the tax/GDP ration to 25% from the current 16%.

11.05.06:

Phantom stocks or stock appreciation rights (SAR):o It is a contractual right for a notional equity allotment to the

employees. The allotment is notional as no actual shares are transferred to the employees. Under the contract, the employee is entitled only tot eh value of the stock appreciation during the specified period agreed under the contract.

UN Human Rights Commissiono India elected to the UN 47 member council. A member requires 2/3rd

majority to get elected.o Current distribution of seats:

Asian group 13 African group 13 LAC 8 Western & Ors 7 Eastern Europe 6

JCI Joint Commission International is a global leader in improving quality of healthcare. It assesses the quality of various parameters of the health services being offered by hospitals across the world (on about 1033 parameters). Its certification is considered the gold seal for quality in hospitals worldwide.

Hospitality boom pinches foreign airlines: On an average each international flight generates demand for 10-12 hotel rooms for the crew. As per industry estimates, Delhi and Mumbai between them generate demand for 8,000 hotel rooms per week from foreign carriers.

India’s oil import bill zooms 52% to $45 bln:o Up 52% from $29.26 bln to $44.64 bln in 2005-06.o Imports of crude 99.4 mln tonneso Imports of petroleum products 11.67 mln tonneso Domestic consumption of oil products 111.92 mln tonneso Domestic demand for diesel 40.15 mln tonnes; over 40% of total

petroleum product consumption. IRDA to standardize mediclaim reporting:

o Code prescribed by the ICD International Classification of Diseases of WHO to be adopted for reporting data by hospitals.

o The Tariff Advisory Committee (TAC) fixes the tariff for almost 70% of the non-life insurance business in the country. Those products that are tariff based come under the TAC, and the others are regulated by IRDA. The detariffed regime presently extends only to marine and miscellaneous insurance.

Gini coefficient: measures inequality. Limits to economic growth: Arun Maira

o As countries industrialise they increase their ‘global footprint’, which is the pressure they put on the earth’s resources. The footprints of Europe and Japan are about 4.7 global hectares per person and the

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USA’s is 9.7. India’s footprint at present is 0.8 and that of China is 1.6.

12.05.06:

Reliance Industries has started extracting glycol, one of the building blocks of polyester, from alcohol. As a result bulk spirit (rectified spirit) costs 30% more. This is hitting IMFL industry. Nearly 4 to 4.5 litres of alcohol goes into a case of IMFL manufacturing.

Tourist arrivals in India touched 4 mln in 2005 and it is expected to cross 6 mln in 2006. Currently tourism contributes $5.4 bln (Rs. 24,300 cr) to the Indian economy. GoI plans to take this to $10 bln (Rs. 45,000 cr) in three years.

The Planning Commission has recommended a raise in the expenditure on education and health from 0.9% of the country’s GDP to 2% in the coming plan.

Bombay High North of ONGC produces 270,000 barrels of oil per day. RIL refinery at Jamnagar:

o After the completion of the project, it will be the refining capital of the world. 1 out of every 50 barrels of oil refined will be from Jamnagar. That is 2% of the world’s total crude refining.

Special Economic Regions:o The main difference between an SEZ and an SER would that the state

and central government would develop the necessary infrastructure in the regions where private companies can then setup the units. In an SEZ the private developer creates the infrastructure. GoI is planning to setup five to six such regions in the country.

Agriculture is the prime sector in the economy, and the biggest full and partial job provider, contributing about 20% to India’s GDP and supporting 65% of her population. According to GoI figures about 260 mln Indians are still living below the poverty line, most of them in the rural sector.

Quotas: A futile exercise: Manoj Panto Organized industry accounts for only 10% of the total employment.

90% is in unorganized manufacturing sector and in agriculture.o Even under the current system of reservations the Supreme Court has

ruled that merit cannot be disregarded in reservation in professional courses.

13.05.06:

Red corner notice: Interpol issues this on request from countries. It is like an international arrest warrant.

Indonesia is the world’s most populous Islamic nation. Kaushik Mehta became the first Indian to be elected as vice-president of the

Antwerp based Diamond High Council, Hoge Raad Voor Diamant (HRD). Its President is Jacky Roth, a leading businessman.

Currently only 7-8% of Indians of college-going age actually manage to cross the 10+2 state to get into the tertiary level of education. The average for the developed world is 40%.

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According to RBI figures the total deposits mobilized by banks amounted to Rs. 21.36 lk crores as on April 28.

BG India, part of the international energy giant BG Group, is planning to set up three subsidiaries for natural gas distribution and transmission operations in A.P., Karnataka and TN.

RIL kicks of gas production work at KG basin in AP: The company is looking at gas production up to 40 mmscmd by mid 2008. Typically this much of gas could generate 10,000 MW of power, 20 mt of urea and electrify 40-50 townships.

GM forests can meet demand for paper says academic:o It is estimated that close to half of India’s wood imports go in for

production of paper. India’s annual wood imports are in excess of $1 bln. Forests in India which account for about 2% of the country’s land mass have to meet the demand of 18% of the world’s cattle population (in India) and 15% of the human population.

15.05.06:

GMR Energy has a 99% stake in Vemagiri Power Project in AP. Transfer Pricing:

o TP is described as the price charged by one group company to an associated enterprise for an international transaction relating to supply of goods, services and property. The law says income accrued from such a transaction should be at an arms’ length price.

Merchant Bankers functions:o Planning a public issue; forming the capital structure of the company;

undertaking due diligence of the company’s operations and drafting the offer document.

o Some of the established players in merchant banking include DSP Merrill Lynch, JM Morgan Stanley, Kotak Mahindra Capital, SBI Capital Markets, ICICI Securities, Enam and others.

India tops in intangibles:o Study of 25 leading bourses finds India a class apart.o Intangibles accounted for enarly $251 bln in market value in the case

of listed Indian companies. Almost 62% of the world’s business is intangible representing $19.5 trillion of the $31.6 trillion global market value.

o The research calculated intangible value as the stock market value of an enterprise minus the value of its tangible assets as stated in the balance sheet.

AP grape cultivation:o The area under grape cultivation had come down from 2,800 hectares

in 1999 to 2000 hectares now.o A farmer gets a yield of 10 tonnes from an acre.o AP produced 85,000 tonnes of grapes this year.o Due to soil conditions and irrigation problems, a farmer in AP has to

shell out Rs. 1 lk per acre, while his counterpart in Maharashtra needs to spend only Rs. 30,000 only.

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Mahinda Rajapakse: Sri Lanka’s President. Trend-Meter: Mobiles Cycle past in sales …2005-06 FY

o Mobile handsets have overtaken bicycles as the number one consumer product across the country pushing bicycles to the number two spot.

o The market for bicycles is expected to be in the region of 12-15 mln units per year.

o Among the other top non-FMCG products CTVs market size is pegged at 8.5 to 9 mln units

o The market for motor cycles is pegged at 5.8 mln units. Floor Space Index: is the total area of building to the gross area of the lot on

which it is located. According to SIAM (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers) the

passenger vehicle sales in the domestic market were up by 15% in April 2006 and stood at 94,765 units as against 82,496 units in April 2005.

The Economist Intelligence Unit has ranked IIM-A 69th amongst the top 100 business schools in the world in 2005.

Equator principles:o Essentially these principles aim at setting up a financial industry

benchmark for management of environmental and social risks encountered in project financing.

India exported 9 mln tonnes of cement against the total production of around 150 mln tonnes.

Cement accounts for less than 10% of the total cost of a house. The country has 22 stock exchanges. NSE and BSE account for almost 100%

of the turnover. The original goal of the Regional Stock Exchanges (RSE) was to enable

regional companies to access local capital and local investors in trade in these stocks.

Oil pricing issue: Under the current scenario the ability of the upstream companies like ONGC to invest in exploration gets compromised by the subsidy hit that they have to bear. There is little incentive to invest in alternative fuels like ethanol and biodiesel if oil prices are low, even if it’s an artificial low. – Amit Bhandari

Minimum land area norm for IT SEZ goes:o A minimum built up area of one lakh square metre would be adequate,

the eGoM headed by Defence Minister decided here recently.o According the existing SEZ rules, IT sector SEZs require 10 hectares

of land. The finance ministry has demanded that this be increased to 25 hectares.

16.05.06:

In-licensing the rage in pharma:o Through in-licensing agreements, domestic pharmaceutical companies

can add patented products from foreign companies to their own product portfolio.

Globally LCD market is expected to grow by 30 mln units, grabbing 15% market share of the total CTV segment by 2007. The industry target for plasma TV globally is 7 mln units by 2006.

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Asset securitization norms bit banks:o The RBI guidelines on securitization of standard assets issued earlier

this year – prohibiting banks to book profits upfront on the sale of assets through securitization has affected players like Citi, StanChart and ICICI Bank.

o At about $6 bln, the Indian securitization market is less than 1% of the $80 bln US market.

o In securitization, banks would see assets to a special purpose vehicle for immediate cash payment. At a following stage, the security interests representing the claims on incoming cash flows from the SPV would be sold to third party investors.

o Banks like ICICI, HDFC were securitizing their assets to foreign banks. PSBs are not major sellers in the market because they do not have as large a retail portfolio like private banks.

Mr. Ong Keng Yong: Secretary General, ASEAN ASEAN has a market of 530 mln people but accounts for only 6% of the

global exports.

17.05.06:

Church body gets to play censor board on “Da Vinci Code”:o The Hollywood film, based on Dan Brown’s best-selling novel of the

same title, features an American Professor played by Tom Hanks, and a French female detective who uncover a conspiracy in the Catholic Church to conceal a relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene.

Nagaland Insurgency problem:o In the charter, the NSCN(IM) has sought unification of Naga-inhabited

areas, greater rights over natural resources, symbols of sovereignty, separate representation in the UN, joint defence of the state comprising Indian and Naga army besides others.

BSNL has over 3.5 crore fixed line subscribers and around 1.8 crore mobile users.

ISRO’s satellite based telemedicine network which started in 2001 on an experimental basis, is aimed at linking remote/rural district hospitals with super-speciality hospitals in major cities via INSAT.

Dabhol power company is now called Ratnagiri Power. It’s new promoter is Chandan Roy. It plans to setup the first LNG stream to be up and running by November 2006.

18.05.06:

FDI in airports:o The Centre may soon permit FDI up to 74% in the modernization of

existing airports. This move is significant in the context of restructuring of Delhi and Mumbai airports where FDI was restricted to 49%.

o According to present norms, 100% FDI is permitted in greenfield airports where as in modernization of airports, this limit is 74%.

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USA is the world’s biggest coffee-consuming market with a per capita consumption of 10.2 kg.

Medical Transcription is a $250 mln industry in India. Globally it is a $12 bln industry.

The Govt. has expanded the number of engineering college seats in the country to 4,95,000 with around 1,450 colleges. Out of this only about 2,25,000 graduates have the requisite skills and training to be employed by IT companies according to T.V. Mohandas Pai, Director, Infosys Technologies.

Centre likely to develop natural gas market:o M.S. Srinivasan: Secretary, Petroleum & Natural Gaso The GoI is going to initiate a nationwide gas grid, trans-border trade of

natural and liquid gas. The share of natural gas in the Indian energy matrix is expected to increase from 9-10% at present to around 25% over the next 25 years.

The total market value of FII ownership of Indian markets now exceeds $113 bn. In contrast the value of mutual fund holding is only $27 bn, and the value of holdings of banks and financial institutions is around $41 bn.

The Central and State government together have achieved a tax/GDP ration of around 16%.

Only a few high income states in India are contributing to 54% of the industrial GDP and about 50% of the services GDP.

19.05.06:

Indian pharma industry is looking at touching $25 bln over the next five years going by the annual 9% growth in the $4.5 bln sector.

Grid frequency is a real-time measure of the extent to which states are adhering to their allocations for drawing power from generating stations within the region.

Export of agri products and marine items works up to nearly $10 bln, and the government is keen to boost exports from this sector.

20.05.06:

Gobally the sourcing business stands at over $420 bln of whch outsourcing accounts for $120 bln.

The mobile user base in India currently is at 97 mln (April end). The replacement market for handsets will be over 19 mln handsets i.e., around 20%.

21.05.06:

FIIs influence 10% of volumes in derivatives market and 10% volumes in cash market according to the Finance Minister P. Chidambaram

22.05.06:

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RIL will begin full-year production from the KG basin from the fiscal year ending March 31, 2010, after spending Rs.176 bln ($4.1 bln) in the next few years.

India-ASEAN FTA: Apart from the 850 items on the negative list, all other items would be eligible for concessional import duty in India.

India imports more than 5 mln tonnes of edible oil and bulk of it comes from Malaysia and Indonesia.

The six States of AP, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Delhi and UP account for two-thirds of the country’s fastest growing beer consumption market.

Indian LPOs slip into consolidation mode:o Despite challenges in the industry, the opportunity is estimated at $200

bln in the US alone, notwithstanding the equally high potential European market.

IT savy India continues its upward climb:o Computer shipments in the country have breached the 4.6 mln mark,

up 30% in fiscal ended March 2006.o HP continued to be the market leader with a share of 18% followed by

HCL (14%) and Lenovo (9%). Metals in Indian herbal products not harmful, says Sastra study:

o The global herbal market, which include medicines, health supplements, beauty and toiletry items, is estimated to at $62 bln. Out of this, the market for herbal medicines alone is estimated at $5 bln and is expected to reach $16 bln by 2005.

Who are lead independent directors?o She sets the meeting agenda, coordinates meetings, and facilitates

interactions between independent members and management. She also plays referee in choppy times.

GAIL plans to import 7 lk tonnes of LNG:o During the current year they are expected to import at least 9 to 10 spot

LNG cargo.o According to them, there will be a demand for gas even at $10 level

provided it is lower than the price of naphtha. India has under 20,000 ATMs; which works out to 18 ATMs / mln people.

Compare this with the global average of 221 ATMs / mln people. India has about 30 ATMs per 100 bank branches, versus a global average of 192 per 100 branches.

Special Purpose Tea Fund is meant for replantation and rejuvenation of old tea bushes and spread over a period of 15 years.

GoI has kept a target of 200 mln kg of tea exports in 2006-07. In a fusion reactor, particles are rammed together to form a charged gas called

a plasma, contained inside a doughnut shaped chamber called a tokamak by powerful magnetic coils.

23.05.06:

WHO Chief Dr. Lee Jong Wook died due to brain hemorrhage. The tourism industry in India is expected to generate $124.4 bln (over Rs.

5,44,500 cr) of economic activity by 2015.

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Many studies in the US and Europe have shown that the coast is still the favourite destination of 63% holidaymakers, and 85% of tourism related revenues are generated by coastal destinations.

Why did markets fall recently?o The futures section of the derivatives offers a huge scope to leverage –

buy shares by just depositing 20-30% of the value as margin. This has become very popular and India’s derivative market is 4-5 times the cash market, with the futures market around 80% of the derivative market, the rest being options.

o The kind of fall witnessed on May 19th causes more pressure in futures market due to leverage positions. This caused futures to quote at steep discount to cash, creating another problem. With futures quoting at a discount, FIIs and Institutions started selling in cash and buying futures. This was to exploit the discount in the futures markets.

24.05.06:

29.05.06:

Basel Norms: o For banks which are active globally, it is imperative to bolster their

capital in accordance with the supervisory standards and guidelines formulated by the Basel Committee.

o The committee which was constituted by Central Bank Governors of a Group of 10 countries in 1974 under the aegis of the Bank of International Settlements (BIS) has, over the years set out standards for capital measurement.

o The BIS is regarded as the bank for central banks and is based in Basel in Switzerland.

65% of the cost incurred in rural marketing is in transportation and not necessarily manpower.

NAM summit is set to happen in September in Havana, Cuba. Commercial Vehicle market:

o The industry which produced about 3.5 lk CVs in 2005-06 will roll out an additional 2.35 lk units by 2008 for an investment of Rs. 3,500 cr.

The GoI has approved a total of 67 SEZs of which 16 are operational. Most the remaining ones are likely to be in operation in the next two-three years.

The postal department has a network of 1,55,000 post offices all over the country. Small savings mobilized by the department are to the tune o fRs. 3.2 lk crore.

What is non-fund based income for a Bank?o The non-fund based income comprises of revenues from both financial

commitment and services rendered. Financial commitment includes guarantees, letters of credit and banker acceptances.

30.05.06:

FIIs, MFs & Banks can trade in commodities:

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o GoI has finally signaled its approval in principle to the participation of FIIs, MFs and Banks in the commodity markets, a senior government official said.

o Banks are currently barred from the commodity business except for dealing in bullion.

Singapore:o President: S.R. Nathano PM: Lee Hsien Loong

Medical tourism in India:o Indian hospitals have added fringe benefits to treatment and given birth

to a $2 bln medical tourism industry.o India has the advantage of one of the lowest doctor-patient ratio in the

world. India Inc warms up to clause 49 norms:

o The deadline for implementing the new norms ran out on April 15.o Currently Clause 49 is applicable to all companies seeking listing for

the first time, seeking in-principle approval for such a listing and all existing listed companies which have had a paid up capital of Rs. 3 cr and above or net worth of Rs. 25 cr or more at any point of time in its existence.

Equity linked debentures arrive in India:o Citicorp Finance to float a Rs. 250 cr paper; a first of its kind in the

country.o It helps an investor in debt, capture the upside of the equity market.o Borrowed from the international financial markets. o The return on the debenture would be linked to Nifty or a basket of

stocks. India produces 200 technology specialists for every one mln of its population

each year as opposed to the US which produces 750. Group on recasting the WPI to include 1200 items in the revised WPI series.

Presently the WPI series consists of just 435 items, fails to capture the massive structural changes that have occurred in the economy over the last few years.

There are about $90 bln worth of funds tracking commodities globally. India is 29th competitive nation; US tops the list:

o India moved 10 notches up to 29th position from 39th position last year, in the global competitive survey of 61 national and regional economies.

o The World Competitiveness Yearbook 2006, published by Switzerland based International Institute for Management Development (IMD), analyses and ranks the ability of nations to create and maintain an environment that sustains the competitiveness of enterprises.

Of the total rubber consumed in the country, the share of reclaimed or recycled rubber is less than 10%.

AP Govt. plans swanky fish mall in Hyderabad:o Though the state produces 4 lakh to 5 lakh tonne of fish, only 4% to

5% of it is domestically consumed. Assam accounts for 60% of the tea produced in India. The British pioneered

tea growing in the 1820’s in Assam, which became the world’s single largest tea-growing region.

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31.05.06:

What are Class I towns?o Towns with one lakh to 10 lakh population.o Metros are towns with more than 10 lakh population.

Metros contributed to 28.7% or Rs. 15,761 cr of the total FMCG consumption in the country.

What are discount malls?o They primarily constitute factory outlets of various brands in

categories such as apparel, cosmetics, electronics et al. DVD market in India is Rs. 750 crore strong. It stood at 2.5 mln units in 2005,

is expected to grow to 4 mln units this calendar year i.e., about Rs. 1000 to 1100 cr.

India contributes about 28% of the world’s knowledge pool according to SQL Star CEO Narendra Shukla.

The two digit Standard International Trade Classification SITC divides export products into more than 90 categories.

President Harry Truman of US used to have a sign on his desk saying, “The buck stops here.”

In a 1960 edition of New York Herald Tribune, columnist Richard Harkness defined committee as “ a group of the unwilling, picked from the unfit, to do the unnecessary.”

The global average rate of lending by MFIs stands at 33%, while in the case of Peru it is 70%, say banking sources.

Edumund Daukoru: President of OPEC and Nigerian Oil Minister. OPEC has a 28 million bpd ceiling on oil production. Indian rubber industry comprises 32 tyre factories, about 250 medium scale

units and 6000 small scale units manufacturing every conceivable rubber product from toy balloons to aero tyres. The industry has an annual turnover of Rs. 12,000 cr. It is concerned with the terrible increase in natural rubber price from Rs. 72 a kg (December 2005)to Rs. 120 a kg now.

AIDS has killed more than 25 mln people worldwide since it was first recognized in 1981. UNAIDS says that HIV virus which precedes the disease infected more than 65 mln people over the same period.

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01.06.06:

Voice against quota on ur cell:o “koi chota nahin, koi bada nahin … hum darenge nahin, hum bhujenge

nahin..” is the song that is being used by anti-quota protesters as their ringtone for their cell. This is the first ringtone protest in India and perhaps the third such effort all over the world.

o The first such protest was in Philippines last year after opponents of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo tapped into a recording of clandestine conversation.

Sino-Indian border problem:o India says China is illegally occupyin g43,180 Sq.Kms of J&K

including 5,180 Sq. Km illegally ceded to China by Pakistan under the Sino-Pakistan boundary agreement in 1963. On the other hand China accuses India of possessing some 90,000 Sq. Km of its territory mostly in Arunachal Pradesh.

The market for super premium Vodka category in India priced upwards of Rs. 2,500 per quart, is estimated at 6,000 to 7,000 cases annually and growing at about 30%.

The Indian art market, estimated between Rs. 850 – 1000 cr per annum, is growing at 35% annually.

India’s GDP grew 9.3% in the fourth quarter of 2005-06 and by 8.4% in fiscal 2005-06 as a whole.

The Indian securities market which grew by about 50% in 2005 and had risen almost 25% early 2006, attracted more than 900 foreign institutional investors.

India’s textile exports to US stood at $4.8 bln against China’s $22 bln plus.

02.06.06:

FIFA world cup watchers: While the world cup was watched by about 75 mln Indians last time, this year the event is expected to garner a significantly higher viewership which is likely to be to the tune of 115-120 mln.

Tanker spills oil, sinks off Karwar coast: Ocean Seraya, a Singapore registered vessel had hit the rocks on Monday night due to rough weather and next day the spill was reported from the stranded ship.

Arind’s branded apparel operations is the second largest in the country after the AV Birla managed Madura Garments.

ICICI Knowledge Park, spread over 200 acres, has seen an investment of Rs. 45 crore over the last five years. Companies like GVK, Matrix Albany, Nektar and US Parmacoepia have leased space in the park for their research driven activities. The park is at Hyderabad.

India has 47 STPIs at present. It is proposed to setup two STPs for each north eastern state to make it a new ITES destination.

ITES is expected to grow at a rate 50% or more in the coming years. ITES industry is poised to touch $26 bln by2009-10 and $10 bln by 2006-07.

There are about 11.4 lakh local PCOs in the country currently. The market for consumer security systems is currently at Rs. 250-300 cr and is

expected to grow at over 30% a year.

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More than 800 international arrivals were registered across the globe in 2005 and tourism related economic activity of $620 bln was generated for the same period.

GCET Global Code of Ethics for Tourism is a comprehensive set of principles, which aims at providing guidance to stakeholders in tourism development, central and local governments, local communities, the tourism industry and its professionals.

India’s gross tonnage (GT) in shipping has increased to 8.59 mln GT as on 01.05.2006 according to the Union Shipping Ministry.

With about 17% of the world’s population, India has only 0.02% of the world’s air traffic.

OBC yearly per head consumption fares well with others:o An ET exclusive article. Good.

FAO will set up cell in Hyderabad:o The cell will be set up in ANGRAU and will help facilitate technical

collaboration in various research fields. Army fings Manipur rats:

o The Indian Army fighting a different enemy – rodents.o Bamboo in the region flowers once in 48 years, attracting rats, which

feed on the flowers and seeds and multiply rapidly, posing a threat to local farmers.

03.06.06:

World stock market indices names:o Japan Nikkeio Hong Kong Hang Sengo South Korea Kospio Singapore Straits Timeso India Sensex & Niftyo London Ftseo Paris CAC

JSPL bags Bolivia mine:o Jindal Steel and Power Limited bagged the development rights for the

20 bln tonne reserve El Mutun iron ore mine in Bolivia.o It is estimated to have a total reserve of 40 bln tonnes.o It is the first such acquisition by an Indian company anywhere in the

world. According to estimates the US healthcare economy is worth $1.6 tln and

growing. While the market for LCD screens has been growing at a whopping 200% per

annum, plasmas has been growing at 135% in India. It is estimated that 41% of India’s IT exports come from the SME segment. Biotechnology industry in the country is growing at a rate of 40% annually. GAIL sells entire LNG spot cargo from Algeria:

o The LNG equivalent to 80 mscm procured from Sonatrach, Algeria was received at Dahej on May 20.

Private sector Prudential ICICI dethroned UTI from the MF perch. Leading MFs by the size of their AUM are:

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o Prudiential ICICIo UTIo Relianceo HDFCo Franklin Templeton

NRI is now the no. 1 non-resident lender:o In the quarter ended December 2005, NRI deposits accounted for 28%

of India’s outstanding external debt while multilateral organizations formed 26.8% of total debt.

o In Rupee denominated deposits the exchange risk is borne by the individual depositor, unlike the FCNR deposit where the risk is borned by the bank.

As Americans and other look at this Gordian knot of public policy problems, we should learn one thing from the example of Tony Snow: the vision of an “ownership society” espoused by Bush is simply not plausible. – Brandford Delong on pension reform. He is arguing against contributory pensions saying that workers do not contribute to them in spite of there being benefits.

Private banking: Citibank unveils a private bank for HNIs with $10 M or more. India’s private banking market is reckoned to have grown by 50-100% YoY during the past three-four years.

Apple crop in India:o Last year’s production is 540,000 tonnes. Bumper production.o This year expected to be less than half of that in view of bad weather.o Harvest begins in July and ends by early October.o Experts say continuous low temperatures coupled with regular spells of

snowfall in winter are essential for apple trees for a good yield. The spring should be free of hail.

AP Mango crop:o With its 3.5 lakh hectares of orchards, AP is the largest producer of

Mangoes in India.o Mango exports from the state were at about 2100 tonnes last year with

the lion’s share of it going to Middle East and South East Asia. NYSE agreed to buy Euronext for $9.96 bln in cash and stock. Euronext is

Europe’s second largest stock exchange, operating bourses in Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels and Lisbon.

04.06.06:

Top four football clubs in England (the leading contributor of players in the coming world cup) are:

o Chelsea 16 playerso Arsenal 15o Manchester United 12o Liverpool 9

HRD ministry to assess quality of school level learning:o It has set up a committee headed by Krishna Kumar, Director NCERT

to recommend the manner in which a system that would actually test how much a student has learnt can be established in the place of the

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currently existing ‘learn by rote and reproduce at examination time’ system.

Shanghai Cooperation Organization:o Is a group of Central Asian countries that has called for a withdrawal

of US forces from Afghanistan. In the fruit-based drinks category the market leaders are:

o Coca Cola’s Maaza 33%o Parle’s Frooti 27%o PepsiCo’s Slice 13%

05.06.06:

Futures margin under lens:o In the cash section, the investor can borrow from the broker but the

leverage normally is no more than 2.5 times the funds invested. But in the futures market, the investor can leverage (borrow) upto seven times the margin money put upfront.

Kheer Bhawani:o Is an annual festival of Kashmir Pundits held at the revered Hindu

shrine, 35 kms east of Srinagar. Ambush marketing:

o Nike to mute Adidas’ thunder here. Samsung India pipped consumer durable giant LG to lead the fast-growing

categories of LCD TV and Plasma display panels, according to the ORG-GFK sales figures for the January-April period.

Nuclear power plans of Reliance:o Recently India took the giant leap forward in its nuclear power

generation when its 16th nuclear power plant and second 540 mw pressurized heavy water reactor, Tarapur Atomic Power Plant went critical. Once the electricity produced by this plant is synchronized to the western grid, the country’s total installed capacity of nuclear energy will go up to 3,890 mw from the existing 3,350 mw.

Flash memory card market:o The Indian market is estimated to be around Rs. 180-200 cr with an

annual sales of 1.8-2 mln units.o Globally, it is estimated to be $22 bln by 2006 as against $16.4 bln in

2005. US Patent my only hope: Young scientist:

o Apurv Mishra from Orissa, the inventor of the world acclaimed Glabenator, which costs less than Rs. 1,500 says so.

o The device is a simple computer that enables the people having disabled hands, legs and mouth to express their feelings without much movement from their seats.

o He bagged the third prize in the engineering and science category in the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) held in USA. It is considered to be world’s largest pre-college scientific research based competition which draws 1500 participants across the globe from 47 member countries.

The illusion of spectrum scarcity: Jaideep Mishra

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o Although the electronic spectrum is finite and limited, it can be virtually non-depleting for practical purposes.

o We need to leverage recent advances in spectrum management practice to make way for flexible and open access.

o The hype about 3G did lead to soaring, massively inflated bids.

06.06.06:

Fuel shock: Petrol up by Rs. 4/litreo The new trade parity pricing regime is in line with the Rangarajan

Committee report, which had recommended lowering of protection level for refineries and a more transparent system to provide subsidies.

RBI says 77% of foreign capital inflows is volatile.o This is the first time that RBI has defined what is meant by volatility in

foreign capital inflows with respect to India.o According to RBI, volatile foreign inflows comprise portfolio

investments and short term trade credit.o Short term trade credit is what is extended to importers by suppliers of

goods and services from abroad. Sachar panel’s term extended till October:

o The Rajinder Sachar Committee studying the status of Muslims in the country and their representation in various walks of life, was set up in March 2005 by PM to prepare an exhaustive report on the social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community in India.

Islamic militia seizes Mogadishu, capital of Somalia. Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, chairman of the Islamic Court Union, said his forces have fought off secular alliance warlords and occupied Mogadishu.

07.06.06:

There were just under 100,000 five star hotel rooms in the country, a number which falls well short of the total hotel rooms in most European countries.

Nanotechnology is set to become a $1 bln global industry by 2012 according to our President, Mr. Abdul Kalam.

The fact is when domestic refineries are assured import-parity prices, they enjoy unwarranted rents.

Exxon is the biggest US company by far. Yet its global oil production is only 4.1 mln barrels per day (mbd). Russia’s mostly public sector companies produce 9.3 mbd and Saudi Arabia’s Aramco produces almost 10 mbd.

Globalization does not ensure the takeover of the world economy by the western MNCs. On the contrary, it enables Third World companies to become global giants, thrashing western MNCs. In this manner globalization is creating a more equitable spread of world economic power. – Swaminathan Anklesaria Aiyar.

Football is the world’s most popular sport and also probably the most globalized sport.

It is estimated that the size of the counterfeit market (of all products in India) is about Rs. 15,000 cr per annum.

India’s postal department:o 152 year old department

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o Delivers 1575 cr mails every yearo Network of 155,000 post offices.o Has the largest postal network in the world.

08.06.06:

The Union Cabinet has decided to give complete autonomy to oil companies to revise prices as per the trade parity formula.

Data reveals that the proportion of women employed for wages increased from 12.7% in 1990 to 17.5% in 2003.

Reliance Retail plans to open 5500 outlets across the country. IBM:

o Is the global leader in servers with 33% share, middleware (18%) and services (7%).

The overall facilities management market is pegged at Rs. 5000 cr. GSPC strikes gas in KG Basin again:

o In its fourth well in KG-17. Oil is flowing at 862 barrels per day. Gas is flowing 4.8 million standard cubic feet per day. (Is it cubic feet or cubic meters?)

o It is expected that production can commence from December 2008.o GSPC has also received permission from the Centre for laying a 3000

KM long pipeline from Kakinada to Gujarat. Rising skyline may point to falling economy:

o The strange linkage of a rising skyline and a falling market could be because a booming economy leads to easy credit leading to large capital investments. Loans from banks and easy money from the capital market often help real estate firms to alter the city’s skyline. Often by the time these structures are complete, the cycle has turned. The money made from stocks has also gone into property purchases, inflating prices to unheard of levels.

The subsidies on the LPG and SKO would add up to Rs. 25,000 cr per annum. The Indian government is estimated to spend about $100 bln in public

procurement each year. E-procurement is expected to lower procurement costs by 10%. This would translate to about Rs. 45,000 cr savings. Hence the Cabinet Secretary made it mandatory for all the state governments to purchase through e-procurement from April 2007.

Private companies flock to set up agri terminal markets:o Terminal markets will backward link the producers to the retailers and

forward link the retailers to the consumers in the domestic markets. The retailers will provide demand-based consumer feedback from the urban and semi-urban areas.

AP tobacco crop production:o In the current year is about 140 million kg.

09.06.06:

Abu Musab al-Zarquawi, the top al-Qaeda leader of the insurgency movement in Iraq is killed in a Baghdad air raid by US forces.

Bharat Forge is the world’s second largest forging company.

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NASSCOM has come out with a test to test the competence of people seeking jobs in the BPO sector. Called the Nasscom’s Assessment in Competence (NAC). Currently only abut 25% of technical graduates and 10-15% of general college students are suitable for employment in offshore IT and BPO industries respectively.

DAE to set up uranimum mining plants in AP:o The country has uranium deposits to produce 10,000 MW of energy.

However, we are producing only 3,300 MW of nuclear energy.o By 2030, the DAE is targeting to generate 40,000 MW of energy

through its latest uranium development programme.o Hyderabad based Nuclear Fuel Complex has developed a unique

certified reference material for thorium oxide powder and Titanium half alloy hydraulic tubing for Light Combat Aircraft.

o According to DAE, it will take another 20 years for India to commercially produce thorium.

SEZ experience:o The 15 functioning SEZs have attracted private investment of only

about Rs. 2,200 cr and their share in exports is dismal. o In China SEZs were available only to foreign investments; not exports.

While 2003-04 IPOs contributed only 15% to total capital raised, in 2004-05 their share increased to 56%, though it declined to 40% in 2005-06.

Petroleum adulteration according to recent government estimates is worth over Rs. 15,000 cr. Hence with a view to curb adulteration, govt. asked oil companies to use GPS to control quality in tanks. GPS is supposed to monitor the movement of oil trucks from depots to retail outlets. To be done by March 2007.

Nabard chairman Mr. YSP Thorat:o Only 27% of people get some form of institutional credit and 22% get

credit from money lenders while the remaining 51% have absolutely no access to credit in agriculture.

India’s fast expanding passenger vehicles market is expected to nearly double to more than 2 mln units by 2010.

There are only an estimated 5000 to 6000 Bengal tigers left in the world today down from 100,000 in 1900.

Sea food exports from India have crossed $1.5 bln mark in 2005-06. ET infrastructure survey:

o Investment in infrastructure has increased from less than 3% of the GDP a few years back to about 5% now. However, it remains well below the level of 8-10% seen in other countries. Total investment counted as infrastructure was estimated at Rs. 1,46,400 cr during FY06, up by about 20% over the year before.

o An infrastructure project effectively requires the developer to take an interest rate call for a 15-20 year period.

o Roads: The average distance covered by a truck on the highway is just

200 km/day, against the potential 350-400 km/day. Vehicle fleet grew from a mere 3 lakh in 1951 to 6.7 crore in

2003 and to an estimated 9 crore now.o Power:

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Current power shortage is estimated to be at 12.5% peak time and 8.3% overall in the country.

This is based on the need of 55% of the population which has access to power.

The current installed capacity of power stands at 124,000 MW of which 66% is thermal based and 26% is hydel power.

The current transmission capacity stands at 9000 MW which is expected to go up to 30,000 MW by 2012 at an investment of about Rs. 71,000 cr.

AT&C losses remain at 40% and as high as 62% in some states. Aggregate annual losses for utilities were more than Rs. 25,000

cr for the last reported year.o Airports:

From 180-200 aircraft in March 2006, total aircraft with Indian carriers could to over 500 by 2010 or over 2.5 times , if plans announced by various airlines are to be believed.

o10.06.2006:

NCDEX, MCX and NMCE together have about 2000 members, excluding common members.

Official Secrets Act on its way out:o The second Administrative Reforms Committee headed by Veerappa

Moily has made a strong pitch for the Act’s removal from the statute books.

The country produces about 240 lakh bales of cotton per year. The PC market in India is about 5 mln units a year at present, is growing at 28-

30% annually and is set to double in the next few years. If imports and exports grow at the current rate, the trade deficit is likely to

touch $60 bln from around $45 bln currently. ONGC’s OVL had an investment plan of $7 bln in oil and gas exploration

over the next few years. The ongoing Sagar Samriddhi is the biggest offshore exploration programme worldwide, to be conducted by a single operator.

Ethanol to save 40 cr litre petrol:o US is expected to increase ethanol production capacities at 20-30%

annually.o In 2005, the world ethanol production was just over 40 bln litres. This

is expected to rise to just under 80 bln litres by 2010, which means a substantial addition to capacities. By 2010 ethanol may represent 4% of global petrol consumption.

o India imports 70% of its fossil fuel requirements. With a 5% addition of ethanol to petrol, which will become mandatory across the country October, we should be able to save 40 cr litres of petrol.

o In India, a litre of alcohol should be one and a half times the price of one kg of sugar for cane to be diverted from sugar to ethanol production. One tonne of sugarcane produces 70 litres of alcohol, which amounts Rs. 1750 at Rs. 25 per litre. The same tonne of sugarcane produces 105 kg of sugar, earning Rs. 2100 at Rs. 20 per kg. When the rates of 105 kg of sugar and 70 litres of alcohol match, then diversion of cane from one to the other will happen.

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India Inc’s overseas mop-up tops $17 bln:o In what has turned out to be a fiscal year marked by the biggest ever

debt capital raising effort by India Inc., local firms raised a record $17.13 bln from overseas markets, including a high of %5.21 bln through FCCB offerings.

Indian Coffee plantations:o Over 98% of the country’s coffee holdings are cultivated by small

growers and four fifth’s of India’s coffee is exported.o While the all-India per-ha average yield for Arabica is 700 kg, the

small grower’s yield in 30% of traditional areas is only around 300 kg.11.06.2006:

The ready to drink segment, which comprises of Rs. 10 cr of the Rs. 65 cr branded oral rehydration solutions, is growing at over 100% and is likely to grow at over 150% in the next five years.

Banking statistics: as at May 26th o Total outstanding bank credit Rs. 14,93,115 cr.o Aggregate deposits mobilized by scheduled commercial banks: Rs.

21,36,263 cr.o Total stock of money in the system is Rs. 27,81,098 cr.

There are over 600 mln SC, ST and OBC members in India. There are only 130 mln upper caste Hindus in India.

World Cup football:o In 2010 South Africa will be hosting it.o 2006 WC sponsors will put out US $40 mln to become “Official

Sponsors” and there are no less than 16 official sponsors.

12.06.06:

Sebi nod seen for short selling by institutions:o To allow short selling by institutional investorso Kicking off a revised stock lending and borrowing schemeo To start delivery based settlement option contracts and higher margin

calls in futureso Short selling to be permitted in F&O stocks with NSE and BSE as the

authorized intermediaries Brokers to face more service tax:

o So far the brokers have been deducting the stamp duty that they have to pay from their brokerage income and then paying tax. Now they fear that the Excise Department may demand tax on that component also in view of the new rules talking about ‘gross’ consideration.

In November 2005, government issued notification for increasing FDI in telecom sector from 49% to 74%. It envisaged that the majority of directors, chairman, managing director and CEO should be resident Indian citizens.

Integrated guided missile development programme:o Missiles developed under the programme include Prithvi, Agni, Akash,

Trishul and Nag.o Prthvi has a strike range of 150 km or more and has been inducted into

the armed forces.

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Kerala is a leading umbrella making state in the country along with Mumbai, Kolkata and Delhi.

According to AC Nielsen studies, the size of the premium soaps category is Rs. 1196 cr in value terms with a CAGR of 9.8% and in volumes, it is 60,300 tons with a CAGR of 9.7%.

According to CII-McKinsey study, the Indian healthcare delivery market is expected to grow from $18.7 bln in 2002 to $45 bln in 2012.

Big IT companies spend about 5-7% of their turnover on training and the small firms spend about 1-2%.

2005-06 fertilizer subsidies Rs. 17,253 cr. Rural credit accounts for only 15% of all bank credit. Of the Rs. 11,24,300 cr

lent by commercial banks as on end March 2005, only Rs. 1,60,479 cr went to rural India.

Punj Lloyd and Whessoe of UK have joined hands to complete the Dabhol LNG terminal by Ratnagiri Gas and Power, earlier owned by Enron India.

13.06.06:

14.06.06:

Ministers’ panel nixes pvt sector quota move:o The GoM (Group of Ministers) set up to examine the issue has, for all

practical purposes, junked the proposal.o Their report noted that “the political desirability, political feasibility

and the legality” of amending the Constitution need to be carefully examined – a euphemism for putting the entire issue, as a member of the GoM put it, in the cold storage.

Medicines to 30-70% cheaper:o The policy ready for Cabinet approval extends price control, currently

restricted to 74 key ingredients and formulations derived from them, to 354 drugs on the essential list.

o The prices of medicines presently under price control, accounting for a quarter of the pharmaceutical market, would be frozen at their current levels for a year after which drug makers would be allowed to charge a higher margin of 150% of cost of production from the present level of 100%.

Customs officials estimate that fuel smuggling is now a Rs. 2000 cr business. India hogs global aviation eyeballs:

o According to estimates by a top analyst at the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the investment needed by the Indian aviation industry is around $90 bln in the next 24 years and this provides big opportunities for investors world-wide.

o Mr. Giovanni Bisignani is Director General, IATA Indian American hotel owners own more than 20,000 hotels in the US,

representing over 50% of the economy lodging properties and nearly 40% of all hotel properties.

Indian Pizza market is estimated to be Rs. 2 bln in size.o Investment for a typical Papa John’s pizza outlet ranges from Rs. 80 lk

to Rs. 1.4 cr. and break even could take 2-3 years. AMWAY India is a wholly owned subsidiary of the $6.2 bln Alticor.

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o It is targeting a sales turnover of Rs. 700 cr this year against the Rs. 633 cr in 2005.

o Currently it has a network of 4.5 lk plus active business owners across the country.

o Almost 85% of the products sold by Amway India are now manufactured in the country through five third party contract manufacturers.

Nokia of Finland is the world’s largest mobile manufacturer. Product engineering outsourcing services business is estimated at $7 – 12 bln

globally. India rides globalization wave; drives relocation business to 30-40%:

o More diverse: It is not just the usual US, UK story. Asian expats are rising.

o Gender-bender: More women expats are coming in.o Beyond class, it’s mass: Not just top executives, firms are bringing in

mid-lower level expats as wello Hardship premium: With global workers wanting to work here, India

no longer gets tagged as hardship posting.o Pay gap narrows: With rising salary levels in India, difference

between expat and native salary is lesser. India has highest levy on oil prices across Asia Pacific:

o Excise collections from petroleum products saw a 6% growth in 2005-06 when it went up to Rs. 48,900 cr from Rs. 38,200 cr in 2004-05.

o Projected excise revenue from petroleum products in 2006-07 is a high Rs. 62, 873 cr.

o The petroleum sector on the whole contributed to 25.5% of the total central exchequer.

The US fed rate is currently at 5%. In India the benchmark repo rate (rate at which RBI lends to banks) is 6.75%.

For a fixed income investor, a bond yield of 5% in a developed market with inflation of below 2% is far superior to a return of 7.5% in an emerging economy with inflation of around 5%.

Dynamism in gas pricing:o The right pricing is of the essence to better allocate resources for gas,

which accounts for a poor 8% of India’s energy mix.o Production is put at just about 87 mmscmd; but demand is estimated to

be at least 50% higher, and rising.o Also effective supply is no more than 74 mmscmd, after providing for

internal consumption, extraction of LPG and flaring.o One estimate puts the investment requirement for a pan India gas

network at a whopping $44 bln. What is brand equity?

o The unique capability which allows a brand to earn a higher premium than other generic products in the same category – Rajrishi Singhal

It is estimated that for every 100 girls that enroll in schools in rural India, only 40 reach class IV, 18 reach class VIII, 9 reach class IX and only 1 makes it to class XII.

One bale of cotton approximately is equal to 170 kg.

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15.06.06:

ONGC is in talks with Qatar Investment Authority for an equity participation in the Mangalore LNG project. Qatar has recently agreed to suppy 1 mln tonnes of LNG for MRPL’s LNG plant.

The total alcohol production in India (from Molasses) stood at 18,425 lakh litres in FY06, against the cumulative requirement of 30,067 lakh litres.

Mr. Milon Banerjee is the Attorney General of India. The total market size of white spirits (Gin, Vodka et al.) is estimated to be

1.81 mln cases in FY 2005-06. Currently the ad spend in the US is estimated at $15 bln and is expected to

grow to $26-30 bln by 2010 and $120 bln by 2015. Tala Hydroelectrici project: 1020 MW is going to be commissioned in July

2006. It is in Bhutan. The power is going to be traded in India by PTC. The fifth economic census:

o 73% of the total labour force in the country is still confined to the farm sector, which contributes only a little more than 20% of the country’s GDP.

o Only 1.4% of the total number of enterprises (42.12 million) in the country employ more than 10 people. This indicates the lack of right employment opportunities in the non-farm sector.

16.06.06:

The Economic Census:o Is carried out by the Central Statistical Organization.o Is a complete count of all entrepreneurial units in the geographical

boundaries of the country, and is more reliable than any sampling exercise.

o The first such exercise was done in 1977.o Plantation sector still employs 73% of the total labour force of the

country of 375 mln. A shade under 100 mln workers are employed in industrial and services sectors of the economy.

o 51% of the total employment in non-agricultural jobs are in rural areas and 49% in urban.

o Overall, contrary to popular perception, employment rates for the non-agro sector has actually grown faster in rural areas than in urban areas.

The long term solution suggested by the Planning Commission for mitigating the adverse impact of the rising oil prices on the GDP of the country:

o Rationalize the tax burden on oil products over timeo Remove fat which may exist in pricing mechanisms which give the oil

companies an excessive margin,o Realizeo efficiency gains through competition at the refinery gate and retail

prices of petroleum productso Pass on the rest of the international oil price increase to consumers,

while compensating targeted groups below the poverty line as much as possible

Peak oil:

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o Peak oil is the point at which about half the oil reserves in the world have been produced. Peak oil is not the end of oil. It is the end of cheap oil.

o Today world-wide demand is 40,000 gallons per second.o Big Oil believes that there is enough oil going to meet the energy

hungry nations.o An estimated 2.2 trillion barrels of oil still remains as reserves world-

wide, compared to the 1 trillion barrels already extracted.o In what may seem a complete paradox, consumers in India pay the

highest fuel price in the Asia Pacific region even though oil companies bleed. Simple, the government pockets almost 50% of the sale price as taxes even as it doles out huge subsidies in the federal budget.

Bio fuels are expected to polay only a small part in substituting for oil, perhaps not more than 10% and possibly as high as 20% with major environmental impacts.

Hydrogen is a myth. It is an energy carrier, not an energy source, and thus must be made from another form of energy. – Fridley.

Global consumption stands at 85 million b/d of oil, or over 30 bln barrels per year.

The current production stands at about 250 millions barrels of ethanol per year.

Petronet LNG seals deal with Gorgon:o For supply of 2.5 mln tonne LNG from the Chevron led Gorgon gas

project in north-western Australia.o The quantity is meant for the proposed Rs. 2000 cr LNG re-

gasification terminal at Kochi.o The 25 year contract will begin operating from 2010. The Kochi

project is scheduled to go on stream in the Sep-Dec quarter of 2009.o Capacity of the Kochi project scaled up to 5 mln tonneso Dahej terminal in Gujarat gets its gas from Rasgas of Qatar. The basic

rate for this is $2.53 per mmbtu.17.06.06:

A recent World Bank study said people are paying Rs. 6-7 per KL of water. This is primarily because close to 50% of water is lost in cities through leakages and theft.

Gas find off Myanmar:o ONGC and GAIL found a huge gas field in Block A-3 offshore

Myanmar.o In that venture, they have a 30% stake together.o 57.6 million cubic feet of gas per day during testing found.o South Korea’s Daewoo is the operator.o It is adjacent to Block A-1 where 4 to 6 tcf of gas reserves were

previously found. OVL and GAIL together hold 30% in this A-1 also. Gas price set to see a hike in next 5 years:

o As per recent studies, gas prices are set to move up to $13 to $14 per mmbtu in the next five years.

o APM gas is sold at a paltry $2.3 per mmbtu.

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o Gas produced by private players like British Gas or Reliance is selling close to $5 per mmbtu.

o Planning Commission estimates that power plants cannot afford gas beyond $4 per mmbtu. It says that only coal is the viable option.

o 82% of the crude production in the world is traded internationally. Drug price control:

o The GoI proposal to extend price control from the present 74 bulk drugs and formulations to 354 drugs under the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) is bad.

o R&D investment is already a paltry 5% of the turnover.o Public health spending is a paltry 0.9% of the GDP at present.

Brazil and bio fuel:o It can produce bio fuel cheaper than any one else in the world. In fact

Brazilian ethanol can remain competitive even if crude oil falls to $39/barrel.

o OECD estimates that while US ethanol production from maize would become viable at oil prices above $44, other estimates range between $65 and $145.

o In 2005, Brazil produced 16.5 bln litres of fuel ethanol (45.2% of the world’s total) with USA a close second at 16.2 billion litres or 44.5% of the total.

18.06.06:

Delhi Metro plans new global consultancy arm:o It has prepared DPR (Detailed Project Report) for Bangalore (Rs.

5,747 cr) and Hyderabad (Rs. 4,206 cr) metro projects. Phone phishing:

o In this, the fraudsters typically use a phone call to extract financial information from users.

o If information like personal identification number, password, or other valuable personal information is given out, they can steal the consumer’s identities and access their accounts.

Retail market swears by dal-chawal and atta:o The market demand for flour alone is about Rs. 15,000 cr while that

for other cereals is Rs. 10,000 cr. The securities market scams need remedial actions, and not just automatic,

routine punishments: -- Sandeep Parekho It’s time the tribunal (Securities Appellate Tribunal) came out with

judgments appropriate to the securities markets which need remedial action, rather than act as some form of an automatic penalty reducing machine, which ti appears to be degenerating into.

o If every possible remedy had to be written into the statute books, we would be living in a world with millions of rules but hardly any law.

The football (currently played in FIFA world cup) weights about a pound and is made of 14 polyurethane panels bound together with a thermal process. The plan to embed a tracking system based on a wireless microchip in the centre of the ball was given up by FIFA.

19.06.06:

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Participatory Notes:o Government sources said the share of PNs as a percentage of total

foreign portfolios investments is down to 30% from a high of 40% last year.

o In 2005 alone, 50% of the net FII inflows of $8.5 bln was seen as PN led money.

o PNs are like contract notes issued by FIIs based in India to overseas investors who may not be eligible to invest in the Indian stock markets or who want to trade anonymously. These contract notes are issued against an inderlying security – which are stocks, facilitating the holders of such instruments to gain in terms of income and capital appreciation.

According to Access Markets International (AMI), a there are over 7 mln SMEs in India. There are 1.9 mln SMEs with one or more computers.

India is third in VISA power in Asia-Pacific:o There are around 140 mln bankable customers in India.o Retail sales volumes (RSVs) – spends by customers in point of sales

terminals are growing at the rate of 61% to $5.37 as on March 2006.o RSV figures of other countries:

Korea $129 bln Japan $103 bln Australia $75 bln Taiwan $25 bln Hong Kong $20 bln New Zealand $9.4 bln Thailand $7.6 bln Singapore $5.89 bln

o There are 3,06,000 POS terminals in India as March 2006.o ATM transactions have seen a 47% rise to 432 bln as on March 2006.

Experts assert that design industry in India is currently at Rs. 500 cr. LAF operations are conducted twice daily by RBI. RIL and Essar too seek oil bonds. There are over 10 cr mobile phone users in India. Indian Railways is trying to

come out with SMS based ticket booking and home delivery of tickets. Both NTPC and GAIL are exploring ways to meet the RGPPL’s 2.1 mmt

annual LNG requirement from Qatar through state owned Petronet LNG. Drug Price Control:

o Government’s control over drug pricing in India had begun in the context of the Sino-Indian war. But a structured price control mechanism was first instituted in 1979 with the issuance of the first DPCO based on the recommendations of the Hathi Committee.

o The DPCO was subsequently revised in 1987 and in 1995, leading to reduction of the scope of controls.

o Currently, there is no price control on about 75% of the retail pharma market.

20.06.06:

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World trade grew at a high 9% in 2004; 6% in 2005 and is expected to grow 7% in 2006.

India China to reopen trade through Nathu La:o Trade through Nathu La accounted for about 80% of the total border

trade volume between China and India in the early 1900s. But the trade was suspended following the Sino-Indian war in 1962.

o Tibet autonomous region imports from and exports to India via Tianjin, a port city in the north which is thousands of kilometers away.

o This reopening means that China has implicitly agreed to recognizing Sikkim as part of India.

Organized retail is pegged at a mere 3% in India. Globally movie merchandise accounts for a whopping $9 bln. “Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and

leave a trail” – Emerson First High Definition digital film in Malayalam:

o “Moonnamathoral” produced and released by the Thrissur based production house Emil and Eric Digital.

o The HD format does not come cheap but is expected to cut the production cost by nearly 30 to 35% as the shooting does not involve films and prints.

India’s Wholesale Price Index: Primary articles group has a weight of 22.03% and the manufacturing sector has a weightage of 63.75%.

Towards rational pricing of oil:o India is likely to increase its consumption from 2.6 MBD per day in

2004 to 5.2 MBD by 2030.o Overall global demand is projected to increase from 82.1 MBD in 2004

to 115.4 MBD in 2030.o The government would do well to look at options by which the subsidy

on kerosene and LPG could be targeted in a more focused manner, so that it is only those below the poverty line who can benefit from the subsidized prices. It is entirely possible for the government to introduce a system of smart cards by which households identified as BPL can receive a certain quantity of subsidized kerosene and LPG every month.

Blu-ray disk from Philips:o These are written and read using a shorter wavelength blue laser rather

than the longer wavelength infra red and red lasers used in standard CDs and DVDs. It means a sharper laser focus, and a huge increase in storage capacities. One can store 25 GB on a single disc.

o Pixel Plus 2 imaging: It means picture resolution of up to 1,250 lines and 2,048 pixels

per line, quite unlike the standard television picture made up of 576 lines and 720 pixels per line.

A serious structure problem with the Indian employment scene:o From the early 1970s to 2004 there has been only a 17% decline in the

workforce engaged in agriculture (accounting for about 53% of the workforce). On the other hand, the share of agriculture in the total GDP has declined faster from around 50% in early 1970s to around 21% in 2004.

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Petronet LNG:o The share of natural gas in Indian energy basket has been limited by

supplies from domestic availability and is currently at 9% compared with the global average of 23%.

o Dahej LNG terminal started operating at full 5 MMPTA capacities from April 2005 and has received 78 LNG cargoes during the year 2005-06.

o Expansion of Dahej terminal from 5 to 12.5 MMPTA expected to be complete by December 2008.

o LNG terminal at Kochi 2.5 MMPTA with provision for upgradation up to 5 MMPTA. The terminal is expected to be completed by end 2009.

21.06.06:

Printing market:o India’s printing market size is Rs. 5000 cr. It is largely dominated by

the offset printing industry.o India’s printing market is projected to grow to about $17 bln by 2010

from an estimated $11 bln in 2005. o While digital printing worldwide made up over 6% of the $600 bln

printing market in 2005, about 3-4% of India’s total market is digital right now.

o Publishing makes up about 15% of the total printing market. America’s Chairman is our Chairman – SSA Aiyar:

o The Wall Street Journal recently quoted experts as saying that the correlation between the Dow Jones index and the emerging market indices could be as high as 90%. Some other studies put the correlation at 80%.

o Investors in India pay no tax on dividends or capital gains, both of which are taxable abroad.

Securitization is the method of issuing bonds based on the various revenues thrown off by intellectual property.

22.06.06:

PSUs can take a call on JVs, fresh floats:o The cabinet is set to discuss the Arjun Sengupta Committee Report,

which has proposed that the holding company of a profit making PSU could be empowered to transfer assets, float fresh equity and divest shareholdings in their subsidiaries, provided the PSU falls within the category of Navratna. PSUs are now likely to be governed by Presidential directives.

Stored information is growing at a CAGR of 60% on disk arrays. We live in an increasingly connected world where there are over 900 mln internet users and 2 bln mobile subscribers. – Joe Tucci, CEO of EMC.

SEZ as real estate: Solving the tax muddle is key:o Under Art. 243 of the Constitution, states can declare urban areas as

industrial townships, which allow common facilities to be set up.

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These townships can be run by industry associations as against local civic bodies.

o For multi product SEZs the processing area, where manufacturing and service industries can be set up, is now supposed to be 35%, up from 25% earlier, while social infrastructure can be built in the remaining 65%.

Transfer pricing simplified: Domestic IT firms need safe harbouro Finance ministry decision to increase the threshold limit for

compulsory scrutiny of cross-border transactions to Rs. 15 cr will simplify the complex transfer pricing rules.

o Detailed TP regulations were introduced in the IT Act from 2001. “There are but two families in the world as my grandmother used to say, the

haves and the have-nots” the observation in Dan Quixote by the 16th century novelist Miguel de Cervantes is the first usage of the phrase “the haves and the have-nots”.

A little Mao for Rahul Gandhi:o Mao Dze Dong set off the cultural revolution in China. In that

President Liu Shaoqi died in prison, chained like a dog, Deng Xiaoping was sent to work on a remote tractor factory while his son was crippled after being pushed out from a fourth floor balcony.

Financial supply chain management works at freeing the working capital tied up in the purchase-to-pay cycle.

Gas hydrates struck in Godavari basin:o R & D work is in progress to develop a commercially viable

technology to produce natural gas from gas hydrates, which is so far not available anywhere in the world.

Mega power plants to boost cement production:o Fly ash is used as raw material in cement manufacturing companies

and comprises about 30% of its weight.o Of the current production of about 140 million MT about 84 mln MT

cement is being produced using fly ash.o Each ultra mega power project will be of 4,000 MW capacity and will

use about 12 MT of coal producing about 1.2 MT ash as waste.23.06.06:

LCD monitor industry is growing by 100%. Rs. 440 cr market is expected to grow to Rs. 1260 cr by the end of 2006.

India is the largest producer of cotton and has the highest loomage in the world.

Sports management companies:o IMG, World Sport Group, Percept D`Mark Sports Management,

Nimbus Sport and Globosport. Towards an effective PDS: Suman Billa

o Crop insurance policy to be in place; farmers’ vulnerability to falling prices can be minimized.

o Procurement should always be capped and against a pre-fixed quota for each state with explicit priority given to small and marginal farmers.

o Fix normative cost for every unit of grain that the FCI handles, instead of reimbursing costs incurred as actuals.

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o Replace the outdated APMC (Agricultural Market Price Committee) system and create fully functional commodity exchanges with forward trading.

o Provide essential infrastructure like all weather roads, timely and adequate supply of power and water, sufficient warehousing, cold storage facilities and ramp up on technology for increasing productivity and value.

o Aggressively target the poor and introduce practices like food coupon system.

IBRD study on ports to look at investments:o The government’s aim is to double capacity at major ports from the

present level of 400 mln tonnes to 800 mln tonnes over the next five years.

ET Result Survey:o Survey of financial results of the various companies declared for 2005-

06:o The overall picture shows that companies are gaining from growing

turnover, but worries remain on the expenditure front.o While no difference can be discerned in the sales growth, the net profit

growth (excluding banks and oil companies) shows an 18% increase in FY06 compared to 14.4% in the previous year.

o The picture that emerges is that companies are growing their topline and are in a comfortable zone. A growing topline is a healthy sign since it indicates that demand remains strong.

o Steel: While players in the value added steel segment were able to

safeguard their margins better, growth in volume is likely to be stronger this year, as expanded capacities kick in.

Volumes went up but sales did not. Steel prices first fell by almost 35% and then recovered by almost the same amount. Prices of iron ore are up by another 19% this year, on top of the 71% increase last year.

o OIL & GAS: High crude prices and freeze on prices of petro products have eaten into the profits of oil companies. The net profit of the sector fell 5% in FY06. While PSUs took the biggest hit, private player Reliance escaped almost unscathed. Reliance wasn’t affected much because during FY06, it had very limited sales in the retail market and sold only LPG to oil marketing companies.

o Banking: Banks are finding the going tough, notwithstanding an over

30% growth in non-food credit and a booming economy. In FY06 profit growth for banks was around 12% even as bank portfolios grew at an average of 20% over the previous corresponding periods.

Margin pressures coupled with higher interest rates led to banks recording an over 30% fall in operating profits in FY06.

Staff expenses on an average were up 16% for the period under consideration.

Biofuel may push up grocery prices:

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o The government has announced plans to implement the second stage of the ethanol programme, which aims to supply ethanol blended gasoline across the country from the 2006-07 sugar marketing year. This would require about 600 mln litres of ethanol to blend with gasoline at 5%. IN the third stage, the plan is to increase the ethanol blending ratio from 5% t0 10%.

24.06.06:

Mittal closes in on Arcelor:o This merger will create world’s largest steel company.o Consolidated revenues of $72 bln and EBITA of $13 bln.o Annual capacity of 115 MT, three times of its nearest competitor.o Leadership positions in five of nine major markets in the world.

Cell generations:

Technology Generation Access speed ApplicationUMTS 3G 384 kbps to 1 mbps Mobile TV,

BankingEDGE 2.75 G 100 kbps MMS, InternetGPRS 2.5 G 48 kbps Limited MMSGSM 2 G 14 kbps Voice/SMS

Welfare schemes put grain stocks under pressure:o NREGA (National Rural Employment Guarantee Act), presently being

implemented in 200 districts across the country. The SGRY (Sampoorna Gramin Rozgar Yojana) continues in its original form in the remaining 385 districts.

o On an average some 18 mln tonnes of wheat were ploughed into these programmes every year by the governments.

World Wealth Report by Cap Gemini and Merrill Lynch:o India has now 83,500 HNWIs (with assets of Rs. 4.5 cr and above)

compared to 70,000 in 2004.o The number of HNWIs across the world has gone up to 9 mln

compared to 4.5 mln in 1996.o Ultra HNWIs (those with financial assets of Rs. 135 cr plus) now stand

at 85,400 in the world. Frost and Sullivan study says demand for electronic goods in India will reach

over $363 bln by 2015 from the current $28 bln MTNL set to put WiMAX on the high speed route:

o WiMAX allows throughputs at speeds up to 75 Mbps. It can be used for fixed and mobile broadband.

o 3G services allow throughput at speeds up to 2.4 Mbps. GSM offers Edge technology that gives throughput speeds up to 348 kbps.

o WiMAX has a range of up to 20 km, while WiFi has a range of only 300 feet.

Alstom to take BHEL through super critical plant formation:o French equipment major Alstom, the technology and project partner

for BHEL’s Rs. 25,000 cr super critical power plants, will develop

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eight power plants across the country. Alstom has secure this contract for a technology transfer fee of Rs. 5000 cr.

TATA Motors is the country’s largest truck and bus maker. Bank reach now at 35.5%:

o The penetration of banking services in India now stands at 35.5%.o Of a total of 191, 963,935 households in the country, only 68,230,642

households avail themselves of banking services, according to census data.

Only 46% of the country’s total 12.73 cr cultivators have been issued Kisan Credit Cards up to March 2006.

25.06.06:

The estimated food consumption in 2015 is likely to be in the range of Rs. 9000 to 10,000 bln nearly double Inida’s total food consumption in 2003-04 that was estimated at approximately Rs. 4,760 bln. These prices are having the base of 1993-94.

The PE investments in food companies till last year have been few and far between, because it is difficult business and even large companies like HLL and ITC with all their distribution strength and marketing muscle have failed to crack the food puzzle.

Tourism:o Domestic and outbound travel for 2005 are growing by over 20% to

400 mln and 6.5 mln marks respectively.

26.06.06:

Centre says talks with Naga faction fruitful:o The Naga outfit (NSCN-IM) made the case for a ‘federal relationship’

with the Indian Union. It has argued that the nature of this relationship should be incorporated in the country’s Constitution as well as the separate one for Nagaland.

o The interlocutor for the Naga talks is Mr. K. Padmanabhaiah.o Mr. Isak Chishi Swu is Chairman; and Mr. Thuingaleng Muivah is the

General Secretary of NSCN-IM.o The Centre began talks with the NSCN-IM in 1997 after the two sides

agreed to a cease fire. Kachaithivu Agreement with Sri Lanka:

o Under this agreement, the fishermen of both the countries were fishing freely in the waters of each others.

o But Sri Lankan navy is posing problems for Indian fishermen and this has given rise to calls for scrapping this agreement by Puthia Tamizhagam (PT) of Dr. K. Krishnaswamy.

Reliance’ Retail foray:o The Company has publicly said that it will invest over $750 mln in

retail business.o The actual investments may be in the $5-6 bln range.

Luxury car makers in India honk for diesel:

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o The share of diesel vehicles is around 31% in India currently and could rise to 45% in the next 3-4 years.

o While diesel powered cars are common in Europe, they haven’t caught on in the US.

o According the JD Power, global diesel light vehicle sales will increase from 12.5 mln in 2003 to 27 mln in 2015, with India one of the key Asian markets for this trend. Europe will see its share grow from 46% to 55% by 2010.

Singapore tourism efforts:o The Sentosa island project. o Singapore has set an ambitious target of 17 mln tourists and spending

S$30 bln by 2015, as against 8.94 mln and S$10.8 bln spent in the year 2005.

The Indian mobile games market is currently valued between $8 mln and $10 mln as of December 2005. It is expected to reach $250 mln by 2010.

Dabbawallahs undergo image mak-over:o With 5000 employees, whose average age is 52 years, it has already

achieved six sigma certification.o Has a base of 2 lakh customerso Mr. Gangaram Talekar is the General Secretary of the Association.o One employee handles about 40,000 transactions in three hours

without any error. According to industry estimates the container traffic in India is expected to

double to 10 mln TEUs by 2010-11. Mining rights for POSCO:

o POSCO is billes as the world’s most efficient steel producer. Its innovative Finex smelting technology uses low-cost iron ore and coal to bypass costly coke and sintering process.

o The RK Dang committee has called for priority captive ore blocks back to back with lumpy investments in steel.

27.06.06:

Ramdoss seeks to corner quota glory:o According to Article 340, the Centre constituted the first Backward

Classes Commission in 1953, which submitted its report in 1955 recommending 70% of seats in technical and professional institutions and job reservation to OBCs.

BSNL burns out its radio capacity for new cell lines:o Telecom industry sources consider a 70-80% utilization as ideal t oget

the best output. The ITeS sector in the country currently employs around 4.15 lakh people

with exports touching $6.3 bln (Rs. 28,000 cr) in FY06, recording a growth of 37%. The sector is expected to record exports of $8.5 bln (Rs. 38,000 cr) in FY 2007.

Belated move on disinvestment:o The long stalled disinvestment programme has received a fresh lease of

life with the Cabinet clearing 10% equity sales in Nalco and Neyveli Lignite Corporation.

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Lessons from the market crash: M.R. Mayyao Some measures suggested by the author to increase the number of RIIs

(Retail Individual Investors) currently at no more than 20 mln to 50 mln by 2010 are:

The minimum percentage of public offer for entitlement of listing should be raised from 25% of the issued capital to at least 40%, as against 60% in operation till February 1993.

The share of RIIs should be raised from 35% to 45% of the public offer and the share of QIBs and NIIs pegged at 45% and 10% respectively.

As RIIs are hardly conversant with the intricacies of book building process, the offer to them may be made at a fixed price only after the offer price is fixed by the book-building process.

In case of further issues by the listed companies, there is no need to take the book-building route.

Special attention needs to be focused on mobilizing resources into equities from the semi-urban and rural areas.

Provide a minimum shareholding of 25% of the issued share capital within a period of not more than two years.

The level of investments by FIIs in equities in a company needs to be examined de novo and their investment can be pegged at a level of not more than 49% of the issued equity capital of a company.

Life insurance penetration is less than 3% of the GDP and health insurance is much lower.

CO2: Bury & be done:o Japan hopes to slash greenhouse gas emissions by burying CO2.o Japan emits 1.3 bln tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, making it one of

the world’s top offenders.o Capturing CO2 and injecting it underground is prohibitively expensive

costing up to 6000 yen ($52) per tonne.

29.06.06:

Tax breaks may return with municipal bonds:o The government has given the go ahead for the introduction of the

bonds that will carry an 8% tax free rate of return to be floated by the municipal bodies across the country, with government guarantee.

IIRM to set up risk management course:o Currently 29 companies have obtained licenses for offering insurance

products in the country.o Insurance penetration in India is a paltry 5%; hence there is large scope

for selling personal insurance products. RIL requests GI license for Jamnagar oil, KG basin gas:

o From the company perspective a GI license for the diesel produced at the Jamnagar refinery and gas from the KG basin would help Reliance establish a distinct identity for the products. Over a period of time, the distinct identity could help Reliance in charging a premium for these.

o GI stands for geographical identity.

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The GoI has approved as many as new Nuclear Power plants to be set up in different parts of the country.

As of now India has 15 nuclear power plants which function under the NPCIL. Cement majors at a global level:

o Cemex of Mexicoo Lafargeo Holcimo Heidelbergo Italcementi

Almost 30% of the total 151 mln tonnes cement capacity in India is in the hands of multinational cement majors.

India moves up renewable energy ladder index:o The share of wind energy in India’s total power generation capacity is

miniscule at slightly over 2%.o Technological improvements have improved the average PLF to 30-

35% as against 12% several years ago in wind power generation.o India has a technical potential of 12,875 MW for wind power.

‘Charter Mark’ rating for government departments:o The initiative to accord ‘Charter Mark’ aims at implementing good

governance.o Spearheaded by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public

Grievances (DARPG), the initiative is similar to UK Government’s Charter Mark, a scheme launched in 1992 for recognizing and encouraging excellence in public service.

30.06.06:

Farm debt set to do down thanks to Doc:o Govt. plans Rs. 4K crore relief for Vidarbha distressed farmers.o Cooperatives have already been crying out loud for a support of close

to Rs. 22,000 cr and have been unable to give loans to farmers at 7% interest rate for loans of upper limit Rs. 3 lakh as announced in the 2006-07 budget. The government has indicated that it would make Rs. 2,500 cr available to banks as farm interest rate subsidy but has not yet disbursed any funds.

Bandwidth costs may drop; IT breathes easy:o At present six international cables carry bandwidth to India – these can

be accessed from seven locations, which are called landing stations. These cables are owned by VSNL, Barti and Reliance. This number will go up to 8 as landing stations of two new cables of Reliance and BSNL are currently under construction.

DGH pulls up Niko on KG gas reserves:o DGH says that RIL’s gas reserves at D6 blocks stand at 11 trillion

cubic feet (tcf). Aiyar rubbishes govt. decision on wheat import:

o Of the 70 mln tonnes of wheat produced in the country, it has a marketable surplus of around 35 mln tonnes.

G4 reviving efforts for permanent UN seats:o India, Japan, Germany and Brazil are the G4 countries

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Air-India set to join Star Alliance:o Star Alliance, the world’s largest airline grouping, currently runs

16,930 daily flights to 842 airports in 152 countries around the world. PC sales cross the 5 mln mark:

o Sales grew 32% in FY06o Four metros accounted for 33% of total PC purchasedo The next four cities grew fastest, clocking 50% growtho Other smaller towns registered a growth of 35%.

Bond with the best: Link guarantee to municipal reforms:o The funds requirement for urban infrastructure is placed at nearly Rs. 3

lk cr over the next ten years.o Indeed, in the US, over 70% of the urban infrastructure is financed

through municipal bonds, which have a higher market capitalization than corporate bonds.

o In developed markets, nearly 80% of municipal revenues come from property taxes.

Private players can soon invest in N-projectso The GoI is now targeting 40,000 MW nuclear capacity by 2030 but its

budgetary priorities in nuclear matters lean towards the military and R&D in thorium.

RBI puts forth new hedge accounting norms for banks:o RBI has proposed new accounting standards for bankso Standards to distinguish between bank’s exposure to derivatives for

purposes of hedging versus speculationo New accounting standards expected to remove subjectivity out of

deciding whether exposure is a hedge or noto Norms are in line with central bank’s move to introduce international

accounting standards into Indian scenario.

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01.07.06:

Shareholders of Arcelor dump SeverStal offer:o Arcelor had recommended acceptance of share and cash from

Mittal valuing at about $32.3 bln which would create a group with 3,20,000 employees producing about 116 mln tonnes of steel annually, accounting for about 10% of the world market.

Carrefour eyes India ground:o The French retail giant, the second largest in the world is exploring

entry into India. Asian BPO sector to see 6 mln new jobs: UNDP

o UNDP’s APACC Human Development Report tracks global trendso India accounts for over 40% of global BPO marketo Asin edge: highly skilled, low cost workers; agering population in

the Westo Rising inter-Asia migration is a key contributor of forexo The global outsourcing market has grown phenomenally from $570

bln in 2002 to an estimated $1.2 trillion in 2006. Hoda suggests sops for mining to attract more FDI:

o The Hoda committee has recommended major changes in the mining policy, including seamless grant of licenses from reconnaissance stage to actual mining, auctioning of delineated mines and granting security of tenure to mining companies.

AGAG bids for all 10 CBMs:o CBM-III round of bidding was launched on February 23, 2006 to

supplement natural gas production and offered 10 blockso RIL already operates 5 CBM blocks covering 4,000 sq. km in

three States – MP, Rajasthan and Chattisgarho So far, ONGC, RIL and Great Eastern Energy have discovered

over 6 tcf of gas reserves below the coal seams Fed rates for dummies:

o Fed rate is the benchmark rate that banks use to fix the rate of interest they charge each other for overnight funds.

o Fed discount rate is the rate at which banks and other institutions borrow from the lending facility provided by several regional federal banks in the US.

Duty cut ushers hectic wheat import activity:o With the GoI slashing import duty on wheat to 5% from 50% and

opening up imports for private companies, there is lot of activity taking place now.

02.07.06:

Haryana choses Kumharia for N-power plant:o It would North India’s first nuclear power plant.

Beer guzzling heads towards north:o The overall growth in Indian beer industry during lat year was

around 14% and the total beer industry sales was around 108 mln cases.

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o The per capita consumption of beer is 0.7 litre per annum but industry experts predict that this may rise to around 20 litres in next 10 years.

o The reasons for the growth of the beer industry in North: Punjab government has moved from auction system to retail

license system – result: more retail outlets in the state In Punjab prices have come down drastically from Rs. 80 a

bottle to Rs. 45 Long pending demand of the industry for delinking beer

from hard liquor Mr. Nathan Myhrvold:

o Perhaps is the world’s first invention capitalist, in his own words.o He is the guy who keeps buying patents from all over the world.

Competition is the key: Indian Retail sectoro NCAER estimates say 2006 is when India’s consuming class will

rise to 75 million households with incomes between Rs. 45,000 and Rs. 2,15,000 per annum.

o Actually India’s middle class of 445 mln strong is more than USA’s entire population

03.07.06:

Municipal bonds:o The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation was the first urban local

body to raise funds through municipal bonds.o As of now bonds worth less than Rs. 1500 cr have been issued by

the Indian municipalities.o An estimate by the Central Urban Development ministry puts the

immediate requirement of municipalities at Rs. 28,500 cr to finance a shelf of basic projects.

o The GoI has decided that the bonds would have a coupon rate of 8% and be tax-free.

Centre shuts the SEZ door on trading units:o Since the government wants to provide a thrust to manufacturing

and infrastructure through SEZs, the mood is against trading companies finding a place in these zones.

o Under the SEZ Act, units located in these zones are eligible for full tax holiday for the first five years, 50% tax exemption for the next five years, and benefit on ploughed back profits for another five years.

Putting private equity to work in India:o More than 30 funds totaling $4 bln are currently scouting the

country for deals.o Successful PE firms will be those that learn to:

Exercise the discipline of building relations Spotting emergent opportunities Quietly influencing outcomes; and Betting on human capital

Time the government quit the mandis:

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o Studies in IFPRI have shown that employment guarantee schemes are much more cost effective in protecting the poor than PDS.

o In fact, to make sure that one rupee worth of income support reaches the poor, it takes the government to spend more than Rs. 6.8 through PDS and only about Rs. 1.8 through employment guarantee shceme.

Self-driven India mocks at global cycles:o Among the emerging economies, the structure of the Indian

economy makes it the least vulnerable to global growth or lower US consumption expenditure.

o In fact, India has one of the highest private consumption-to-GDP ratios, compared with most other key emerging economies like China et al.

04.07.06:

The extent of counterfeits for FMCG brands in India is estimated to be about 5%.

PE and VC funds have crossed $3.4 bln in investments in the first six months of 2006, zipping past the $2.2 bln private equity investment figure in the whole of 2005.

Hyderabad’s air traffic grew at 42% in 2005-06 to touch 4.05 mln, close to Kolkata’s.

In 2005-06, the GoI spent Rs. 9988.57 cr on the SSA program. This is about 87% of the funds allocated.

Cairn energy:o Have been around for more than 12 years and have pumped in

more than $1 bln investment.o The current operated production across South Asia stands at

105,800 boepd (barrel of oil equivalent a day). The total entitlement to Cairn is 28,300 boepd in India and Bangladesh. In India, Carin’s total entitlement is 14,500 boepd.

o In India it accounts for 8% of the total crude production in the country.

Infrastructure projects on average require about 4 years from concept to commissioning – Vinayak Chatterjee, Chairman, Feedback Ventures.

05.07.06:

Surfing statistics: Net is now a masses’ place:o Almost 41% of the online Indians prefer an Indian language web

site over English.o Internet shopping has quietly become a Rs. 3,500 – Rs. 4000 cr

market, with almost 28% or 5.9 mln people buying something online in the last one year.

o With around 10% of the urban Indian population hooked onto the Net, and almost half of all computer using Indians (around 50 mln) on Net, Internet is virtually at an inflexion point.

Outsouring is passé, cos now bet on co-sourcing:

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o It is an investment relationship marked by shared objectives, shared risks and shaed rewards between two companies, one of which is a service provider.

Lean travel season:o July and August are considered as the lean travel season and most

airlines have come out with attractive fares to woo travelers. Job hopping up as commitment drops:

o What could help? The organizations need to work on improving communication at work place, the way superiors behave with their people has to change to enhance commitment levels. The policing act also needs a change.

FII inflows dive to $2.6 bn in H1:o FII net inflows have declined by 42.7% to $2.60 bn during the first

six months of 2006 as against $4.54 bn recorded for the corresponding period in 2005.

Riddhi Siddhi Gluco Biols, India’s largest starch player wants govt. support for corn-based ethanol:

o Out of the estimated 600 mln tonnes per annum of corn produced globally, 285 mln tonnes is from the US and 140 mln tonnes is from China. India’s maize production is very small at 13-15 mln tonnes.

FDI did not spart growth in China:o Prof. Yasheng Huang urged India to look at primary education and

health, social investments, rural industrialization and labour market flexibility as means to grow.

o While China’s present growth is investment-driven, which is not sustainable in the long run, India’s growth is productivity-driven, which is considered good.

o In China growth did not happen because of FII flows; FII flows followed growth there. The growth happened because of China’s social investments made during the 1970’s.

E&P licensing regime:o Estimates suggest there is as much as 10 bln tonnes of oil in place

in Indian waters. Not all of it may be recover able, but even if actual output is no more than 1 BT of oil, it would equal the amount produced at Bombay High, India’s biggest oil field, in the last three decades.

China is the 4th largest economy in the world after, the US, Japan and Germany.

Air traffic set to zoom in ’06-08o With the anticipated good performance of the world economy,

airline traffic is projected to rise by 6.1% in 2006, 5.8% in 2007 and 5.6% in 2008 according to the UN ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization).

Diamond trade buckls under liquidity crunch:o Hike in raw material costs, dwindling demand from US cause

pressureo Export of polished and rough diamonds took a diveo Buying jewellery comes low in consumer’s priorities

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o Volatile economy worsens diamond market06.07.06:

Parent to hike Tata Steel stake by 7% via pref issue:o Tata Steel is India’s largest private sector steel plant with over 5

mln tonnes capacity, which is likely to go up to over 8 mln tonnes with the ongoing browfield expansion at Jamshedpur.

o Lakshmi Mittal announced the setting up of a 12 mln tonne steel plant in Jharkhand.

Cos’ exposure in NFOs likely to be capped:o In the US households hold 77% of mutual fund assets.o In 2004-05, only about 1.4% of household savings got allocated to

the capital market including mutual funds. Mr. Roh Moo-Hyun is President of South Korea. ‘Hautel Couture’ comes to town:

o Hautel coutoure is about customized botels with an eye on deisgn and details.

Cellular cos go t opanchayats:o Tata Teleservices has approached Panchayati Raj ministry for

distribution of its serviceso India has over 100 mln mobile users with a teledensity of about

13%o The urban teledensity today is 31% and is quite saturatedo The density in rural India is 2% and this is where the operators are

rushing too The India market is projected to double by 2007 and hit 500

million by 2010o There are about 2 lakh panchayats in the country

Engg. Sector is not alone in attrition:o While the attrition rate among engineering graduates is still around

20-25%, it is as high as 45-50% among the non-engineering graduates employed in the IT industry.

India supplying more au pairs:o The au pair will stay at home and eat at the same table as the

employer.

07.07.06:

HCL Tech cuts $780 mln outsourcing deal:o In what is billed as the biggest outsourcing deal so far for an Indian

company, it has entered into a deal with Skandia, the 151 year old financial services firm. This deal has outdone the one entered into by TCS’ $255 mln deal with ABN Amro of last year.

India’s generation Y (those born after 1979) is passing out of colleges and entering the work force. 54% of India’s population is under 24 years.

In the IT and ITES sector 83% of the workers are under 30 years. In the old economy sectors like FMCG, durable goods, they comprise 50% of the work force, against 30% 8-10 years ago.

Congress leaders want wheat futures stopped till UP polls:

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o The argument agains futures trade has inherent flaw. Even if one assumes that the entire stock of wheat open position in wheat futures is hoarded, it would just be 1% of the total production. The rise in price for items like wheat and pulses has actually been caused by a production shortfall and shift in demand pattern.

Bihar figures:o Bihar’s debt-GSDP ratio today stands at around 62%.o 42% of the population below the poverty lineo 48% literacyo Only 10.3% households electrifiedo Bihar has the largest population of young people in India with

about 58% of its population below 25 years of age. Mr. Pawan Kumar Chamling is Sikkim’s CM RIL petro retail takes a drubbing:

o RIL has a huge fixed cost with over 3,000 people on its rolls for the fuel retail business

o The company has invested about Rs. 5,000 cr in the business largely on the back-end technology, equipment as well as land acquisition

Healthcare is a $4.5 trillion industry across the globe. Entry level BPO salary in India is 35-60% lower than low-cost countries. ITC’s e-choupal:

o The platform literally connects rural India to the world. It provides the farmer with access on weather reports customized to his region, lends best farming practices, provides goods and services like farm implements, fertilizers to banking and insurance products at his doorstep. And the basket of services continues to expand.

o ITC (agri business division) CEO S. Sivakumar is the chief architect of this project.

o The project has witnessed a capex of Rs. 200 cr and revenue expenditure of Rs. 150 cr, could see outlays of Rs. 5,000 cr over the next five to seven years.

o It was launched in June 2000. It is the largest initiative among all internet based interventions in rural India.

Foreign oil majors keen to buy stake in GSPCo The size of the KG basin natural gas reserve is placed at 20 tcf,

enough to supply 70-80 mln cubic metres/day of natural gas.o GSPC is an unlisted government company of Gujarat. Govt. of

Gujarat holds 95% stake in it. The remaining is held by other state government companies.

Japan has the lowest broadband rates:o Countries that have internet access of 256 kbps or above more than

doubled from 81 countries in 2002 to 166 countries in April this year.

o The price of accessing the net fell by about 40% on average worldwide.

08.07.06:

LNM spots fresh mettle, eyes Orissa for project:

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o 12 mln tonnes Greenfield steel plant in the state with an investment of Rs. 40,000 cr.

o The Orissa Directorate of Geology and Mines have estimated total iron ore reserves (proven, probable and possible) in the state to be in the region of 5.5 bln tonnes.

o It is expected that iron ore requirement for this project would be 600 mln tonnes for a 30 year lease period.

o Mr. Arjun Munda, Jharkhand CM says that steel production today is about 35 mln tonnes in India. To reach the projected target of 110 mln tonnes, we need more number of Mr. Mittals.

Indo-US N-deal:o Will work out a 123 agreement, which is a bilateral civil nuclear

cooperation agreement to set ou the terms and conditions of the cooperation.

ICICI Knowledge Park at Hyderabad:o CEO Ms. Deepanwita Chattopadhyayo Built on 200 acres of land, companies are allowed to build

customized R&D centres in modular units or land plots.o Recognized as scientific and industrial research organization with

customes and excise waiverso Has wet labs and incubation space over 40 acres ready for hiringo Plans of setting up innovation seed fund for start-up companies

ICICI Bank eyes franchisees for rural gain:o There are about 6000 blocks in rural India.o So far they have been able to establish 8000 touch points.

Bangalore infrastructure:o Population of 7 mlno Vehicle population of 24 lakh.

Two wheelers 18.11 lakh Four wheelers 3.87 lakh Autos .80 lakh

Textile ministry freezes fresh loans under the TUFS:o TUFS Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme introduced in 1999

for a period of five years. o Intended to facilitate induction of modern technology in the textiles

industry, provides 5% interest reimbursement on the loan availed under it.

o In a major setback to the textiles industry, the MoT has asked banks and financial institutions to stop sanctioning fresh loans under the scheme.

o The approved budget estimate under the scheme is Rs. 535 cr against the estimated requirement of Rs. 1515 cr.

o TN tops the charts as the largest beneficiary and Gujarat is second. Globalisation pundit no more:

o Theodore Levitt, the former Harvar Business Review editor who coined the term ‘globalisation’ has died.

o He first used the term in a 1983 HBR article about the emergence of standardized low-priced consumer products. He defined globalization as the changes in social behaviours and technology

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which allowed companies to sell the same products around the world.

09.06.06:

Filing returns likely to turn less of a 'taxing' matter: IT department is planning to raise threshold for filing returns from Rs. 1.5

lakh to Rs. 2.5 lakh Form 16 AA issued by employer to employee to double as IT return form Certificate to be given to salaried employees without agricultural or

business income. IOC fights adulteration with automation:

The total cost incurred by the company on the automation project is Rs. 380 cr.

Gross refining margins for the first quarter could be as high as $8-9 /bbl IOC is currently losing Rs. 6-7 per litre on diesel and Rs .3-4 per litre on

petrol. A formula for failure:

Success usually comes through failure How to help your team get comfortable with taking risks and learning from

their mistakes:■ Formalize forums for failure■ Move the goalposts■ Share personal stories■ Bring in outsiders■ Prove yourself wrong, not right■ Celebrate smart failures

GM is still the world's No. 1 automaker by marketshare. Yet its worth is only $16.5 bln compared with $170 bln for No.2 Toyota Motor Corp.

10.07.06:

NSE waves red flag to HDFC Bank’s guarantees:o This comes from concerns over a high concentration of limits with a

single bank.o Over 70% of broker guarantee in the stock market are issued by HDFC

Bank. Over a third of domestic internet users are spending anywhere between 30

minutes and 2 hrs everyday on the internet – 71% of TV viewers spending the same time. Indian Online 2006 a survey conducted by ET in partnership with JuxtConsult.

Indian fruit juice market is Rs. 300 cr worth and is growing at a 30% growth rate.

Of the Rs. 1,500 cr non-carbonated drinks market, fruit drinks comprise about Rs. 1,250 cr, whiel the rest are fruit juices. This segment is growing at 45%.

New drug policy doesn’t go down well with pharma coso Industry feels policy will control half the market instead of the 7-8%

that is statedo Drugs will be controlled on economic basis rather than essentialityo Only specific medicine strengths have been brought under control

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BPO salary: No effect on India’s cost-competitiveness

Country SalaryIndia $200-250 pmPhilippines $400-450Thailand $400-450Malaysia $750Singapore $8-10 per hour

India’s commodity market size is Rs. 11,32,000 cr. Govt. to simplify ADR, GDR rules:

o Originally framed in 1993o The govt. recently permitted ulisted companies to make a sponsored

ADR/GDR issue.o A sponsored issue is one where one or a group of investors commit

themselves to subscribe to the entire offer to prevent under-subscribing of the offer.

Reckless on AIIMS:o Valiathan committee set up by govt. to ascertain what ails AIIMS.

Setup some time agao. Report awaited. Will loan waiver help farmers?

o Is not good strategy as it benefits a small proportion of farming community who has access to institutional credit, cripples the banking system and penalizes hoest borrowers and rewards defaulters.

11.07.06:

CBDT moves to shield tax payers:o The AIR (Annual Information Return) so far captured 18 lakh high

value transactions by individuals totaling Rs. 13 lakh crore.o The proposal of the Board is that no notice can be issued by anybody

unless it is authorized by the Commissioner of Incometax. ONGC’s Gabon oil bid may hit $1 bln

o OVL has expanded its portfolio significantly in the last year. It has eight overseas assets and is actively seeking more opportunities across the world. With a long term target of acquiring 60 MTPA of equity oil and gas overseas by 2025, OVL is currently working towards a goal of 20 MTPA by 2010.

Harley rides uncle sam to India:o Currently the customs duty on motorbikes is 60%.

Bombay has a population of 1.3 cr. After Agni, INSAT 4C joins crash party:

o The failure means a loss of Rs. 256 cr, including Rs. 160 cr on launch vehicle and Rs. 96 cr on the satellite.

o While ISRO insures the satellites it places unsing other’s launch vehicles, it doesn’t opt for cover fo launches made in India.

o This could be because of high premiums which range over 25% of the sum insured.

Retailers plan brand alliances:

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o Globally several retailers have a co-branding partnership with large brands since sales from modern formats constitute more than 80% of total retail sales. While in India, modern formats today constitute only 3-5% of total retail sales.

TN likely to open doors to outside distillers, brewers:o TASMAC (Tamilnadu State Marketing Corporation) control the liquor

trade in the state. It may open doors to outside distilleries and breweries, lifting an unofficial ban on import of alcoholic beverage products from other states imposed by the previous government.

Aviation hits air pockets with scarce cockpit crew:o There are around 30-35 pilot institutes in India today with quite a few

of them inactive.o An amateur captain needs 7 years trainingo It costs Rs. 14 lk for a commercial licensceo There are 2,500 commercial pilots in India.o There are 190 aircraft in India.

ITC moves in for carbon trading kill:o According to the UN Kyoto Protocol, organizations reducing emission

of greenhouse gases (measured as an equivalent of CO2) can register with the CDM Board of the UNFCCC to obtain CERs (Certified Emission Reduction) certificates. Each CER certificate is equivalent to reduction in emission or removal of one tonne of CO2.

o These certificates are tradeable in international market with countries that do not meet GHG reduction tgargets. In layman’s language, this is called carbon trading.

o The first CDM project approved in India was that of Gujarat Flourochemicals for destroying harmful HFC-23 gas.

The subsidies from Centre and State governments put together account for 14% of GDP (about $100 bln) and much of these go towards pampering the middle class.

12.07.06:

15.07.06:

Crude surge, BOJ hike pull down markets: The Bank of Japan hiked its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points,

ending a six year zero interest regime. Ladies too root for Lamborghinis:

The company produced only 250 cars for the first 40 years of its existence. It has cranked up its numbers recently:

■ 1300 in 2003■ 1590 in 2004■ 1600 in 2005■ 2000 in 2006 (targeted)

Chennai basks in tease n tickle ads: Mr. Digen Verma ushered in the concept of teaser ads in India in 2001.

Branson's Virgin telco to say hello: via the Mobile Virtual Network Operator route.

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The MVNO service, which is currently being offered in European and US markets, offers telecom services without owning a network infrastructure or spetrum. It involves a marketing and branding outfit which buys airtime from an existing mobile service provider that owns equipment and license rights for thse services.

Persisting current account deficit may hit FII inflow: The RBI's BoP figures show that the current account deficit of the

economy has almost doubled to $10.6 bln in 2005-06, up from $5.4 bln in the previous year. At the current level of the deficit, it works ot to about 1.3% of the GDP. It was 0.7% of the GDP in 2004-05.

India 'powerless': learns to live with power cuts The peak deficit stands at 12%. It will touch 16% by the end of this fiscal.

Genetically Modified vs. Gene sequencing and Gene pyramiding: The revolution which is aimed at breaking the productivity stagnation

barrier for wheat and rice is based currently on technologies such as gene sequencing and gene pyramiding. These make the transgenic crops not only obsolete but grately reduce the risk of environmental harm and potential adverse health effects associated with GM crops.

The new frontier is called genomics and the new agricultural technology is called Marker Assisted Selection of MAS.

Gne pyramiding – the process of combining into a single genotype a series of target genes identified among different plant parents in order to reduce development of resistance in targeted insect pests.

Encourage PPPs: But set clear rules: The most complex form of PPP is the co called viability gap funding

model. This involves choosing a private ector service provider for projects which are commercially unviable, based on the lowest subsidy which the government has to provide. The Mumbai Metro is being funded on the viability gap funding model.

According to latest estimates, teledensity in rural areas is only 1.87% as compared to 40.65% in urban areas.

Most banks fail to meet stipulated agri loan target: Stipulated target is 18% of total loans. As per the priority sector norms, banks have to lend 40% of net bank credit

to priority sector which includes among others, agri loans, SSI loans, and home loans up to Rs. 10 lakh. Of this, they have to lend 18% to agriculture.

Eco Securities keen on exploring desi potential for carbon credit: The US accounts for 30% of global emissions, while India contributed about

3% of the global greenhouse gases against the global average of 5.2%.

16.07.06:

CST rate may drop to 3% from October: Overall US sales of vehicles is about 16.6 mln units in the first half of 2006. UB sets up £1.6 mln bulk scotch unit in Scotland:

o Scotch whisky is expected to be matured for at least three years according to Scottish rules before it can be exported.

ONGC purchases mega policy worth Rs. 26,000 cr from NIC:o For its onshore assets. Premium is Rs. 18 cr per annum.

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o For its offshore assets it pays a premium of Rs. 198 cr.o Mega policies cover all risks including fire, machinery breakdown,

loss of profit due to fire, and loss of profit due to machinery breakdown. The covers are generally customized and exclude some risks.

Tourism ministry okays home-stay policy:o There are about 1285 approved budget hotels across the country with

about 51,000 rooms apart from guest houses, dharmasalas and devasthans in the unapproved sector.

America alone has 326 skiing and Alpine resorts, 6.8 mln Americans ski down hill, while 1.9 mln ski cross country

17.06.06:

18.07.06:

Tatas, Suzuki to use same Fiat diesel engine:o The Fiat 1.3 litre diesel engine is in high demand because there are

very few options in the compact end of the diesel segment. Global IT majors:

o IBM, EDS, Cap Gemini and HP The G-8 countries include:

o US, Russia, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan PPF collections

o In FY 06 grew by 5.5% to top Rs. 12,330 cr. Exploration boom is equipment boom:

o Aban Loyd, GE Shipping and Shipping Corporation are the biggest players in the offshore space in India.

o The global fleet of jack-up drilling rigs is estimated at 384, of which only 49 rigs have been built in the past 20 years.

o Drilling rig rentals are currently at $100,000 per day. Net NPAs of Indian banks are down to less than 2%, because of aggressive

provisioning. Basel II capital adequacy framework kicks in from March 2007. The coming credit cycle slow down:

o Debt funded consumption, which has been driving GDP growth over the past three years, will be hit by the rise in the cost of capital and consequent slowdown of the credit growth cycle.

o Commercial credit to GDP has increased to 47% as at end June 2006 from 35% in January 2003. Credit outstanding has increased by almost $190 bln to $380 bln over the past three years.

Interview with Sushil Kumar Shinde, Union Power Minister:o The Central government’s policy provides for 12% free power to home

states. States where Hydro plants are being set up.o 12,700 MW is the installed capacity of gas turbines. This is operating

a PLF of about 55%. Thus about 5,000 MW of gas turbine capacity is stranded for want of gas.

o In the spot market, the landed cost of LNG works out to over $10 per mmbtu resulting in cost of generation exceeding Rs. 4 per kwh.

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o Coal based thermal capacity is presently about 68,500 MW and the requirement of coal is 336 mln tonnes for 2006-07.

o In 2005-06, 11.226 mln tonnes of coal was imported. This year plans are afoot to import 20 mln tonnes.

o Private sector participation in power transmission has been opened up since 1998. The first such scheme is PGCIL-TATA’s joint venture for the transmission lines from Tala power project in Bhutan. Guidelines encouraging competition as well as tariff based bidding have been issued in April 2006.

Fear zone: Oil prices zoom on militant attacks, political rift:o Average availability in global oil market slips by 2.2 mbpd to 8 mbpdo Iraq yet to stabilize after the US invasiono 1/4th of Nigeria’s daily output shut after militant attackso Russia sees a 60% rise in oil output to 9.6 mbpd

19.07.06:

Check IT if you are on swipe mode:o Tax sleuths to track those running up bills over Rs. 2 lakhs on their

credit cards.o The highest number o fcases where PAN was not being quoted related

to credit card transactions. PMS profits set to attract just 10% tax:

o Proft generated through portfolio management services will be treated as investment income, and attract short-term capital gains tax of 10%.

o Roughly Rs. 7000 cr is churned annually by the PMS market. BPOs gingerly brace up for life after tax sops:

o The BPO industry is growing at 37% - 40% a year with revenues of $6.3 bln during 2005-06. This is expected to cross $8 bln by March 2007 with an employee base of over 500,000.

The Royal Enfield motor cycle was first manufactured in 1892 in UK. Jobh Naisbitt is author of ‘Mind Set’; he is a futurologist. India is adding more than 5 mln new telephone subscribers every month and is

in the top five list of coutries having a subscriber base of over 100 mln telephone connections.

Dark age: Power woes to haunt cities:o The all India peak shortages would be at an average of 16.3% or

18,913 MW. Regional variations in peak shortages is expected to range from 21.6% peak deficit in the northern region to only 3.3% deficit in the north eastern region.

20.07.06:

India’s share in global life insurance basket doubles:o From 0.5% of the world’s life insurance business in 2000, India today

accounts for 1.02% of the world’s premium.o World’s life insurance premium increased by 3.9% in real terms, to

$1974 bln.o India’s total life insurance premium in dollar terms works out $20 bln.

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o The growth of life insurance in India works out to 8.9%.o An average Indian spends $22.70 a year on buying life insurance as

against a world average of $299.50. Gary Hamel: is labeled by The Economist as the world’s reigning strategy

guru. Self help groups:

o The cumulative number of ‘linked’ groups crossed the 2 mln mark and the amount disbursed is about Rs. 10,000 cr.

21.07.06:

Crude oil spoils RIL’s margins in first qtr:o RIL processes 660,000 barrels per day

Sixth pay panel announced:o 5.5 mln employees of GoIo In 2006-07 the GoI will pay Rs. 50,000 cr as pay and allowances to its

employees.o This works out to 1.56% of the GDP for 2005-06 at current prices.

AIDS to shave off 0.9% of GDP:o AIDS could lower India’s GDP growth rate by as much as 0.9%. The

growth of per capita income would, in turn be depressed by 0.56%.o The prevalence of HIV infection, which can lead on to AIDS is

estimated at 0.9% of the adult population (5.2 mln at the end of 2005). Pilot pinch

o India has about 50 training aircraft operated by 15 clubs. Globalisation’s assassin: Branko Milanovic

o Between 1980 and 2002, average annual per capita income growth in the rich world (defined as the “old” OECD members) was almost 2%, compared to just 0.1% in the 42 least developed countries.

o If globalization, which has so enriched the world’s wealthiest countries, is to continue, governments must find ways to increase incomes more evenly.

22.07.06:

What is a free port?o Is one which is exempt from customs regulations where goods can

land, stored and even be processed into manufactured goods. Duty is levied only if the goods are moved from the free port into the adjacent territory.

o Mundra Port being built by Adanis may become India’s first free port. What is feeding exercise?

o Many international brands are doing pre-launch brand building, or ‘feeding exercise’ in marketing parlance.

Salwa Judum movement’s founder is Mahendra Karma. India Russia plan 1000 Brahmos missiles:

o The name of the missile is derived from the rivers Brahmaputra and Moskva rivers.

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o Both the countries intend to make 1000 of these missiles over the next 10 years through a joint venture company. Nearly 50% of them are expected to be sold in the international market to third countries.

o Brahmos is the world’s only supersonic cruise missile.o The 2.5 tonne Brahmos has a strike range of 290 km and has a

maximum speed of mach 2.8 (one km per second). Budget airlines will have own niche in Delhi

o India currently has four low cost domestic carriers. Over half a dozen more are expected to take wings over the next one year.

o The current airport terminals in Delhi have the capacity to handle around 16 mln passengers.

o Delhi airport currently manages around 600 flights daily with passenger traffic growing by over 27% in 2005.

Japanese ready their investment floodgates:o Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro) Chairman and CEO Mr.

Wantanabe. Farm growth via market regulation:

o At present it is the intermediaries who corner much of the value generated by the farm sector, either by supplying inputs, or by marketing the produce.

o Patent holding seed companies are the worst exploiters of farmers.o Alternative marketing avenues via co-ops and public agencies must be

provided.o According to an independent study by IIM-Bangalore, the price

obtained by a farmer for his produce varies from 24% to 58% of the actual price paid by consumer.

o Certain innovative marketing mechanisms put in by states include for the benefit of both prducers and consumers include:

Apni Mandi in Punjab Rythu Bazar in AP Uzavar Sandies in TN

Sugar companies sour over falling market cap:o The total turnover of the industry is about Rs. 20,000 cr with the total

capital employed at about Rs. 16,000 cr. Fertilizers imports set to balloon:

o Fertilizers imports to go up with acute foodgrain estimates for 05-06o This has increased pressure to produce more foodgrain this year.o Country may end up importing to the tune of $360 mlno For normal foodgrain production, fertilizer use may go up 7%.o A record breaking 20.5 mln tonnes of nutrients overall were consumed

last year, 9% more than the previous year.

23.07.06:

ITeS going boom boom:o According Nasscom, the total addressable market for global offshoring

is approximately $300 bln, of which $110 bln will be offshored by 2010. India has the potential to capture over 50% of this.

I-Day nerves: Railways gear up:

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o The railways carry over 600 cr passengers annually.o As many as 6 mln passengers travel in the Mumbai suburban railways.

(Is it every day?) Gulf Cooperation Council countries:

o Saudi Arabiao Kuwaito Bahraino Qataro UAEo Oman

The Navy war room leak case:o Four naval officers were suspended after allegations that they had

leaked classified information relating to the planned purchase of sophisticated equipment.

o Three men were so far arrested: Abhishek Verma, Ravi Shankaran and Kulbhushan Parashar

India’s Export-Import scene:o India is the world’s 29th largest exporter in 2005; up from 30th position

in 2004.o India is the world’s 17th largest importer in 2005; up from 24th position

in 2004.o Widening current account deficit; grew 52.7% over its 2004-05 level,

to touch $39.6 bln in 2005-06.

24.07.06:

Govt. tells SBI to take a hard look at biz model:o The SBI group has franchise of over 13,000 and has a share of 18% of

the total deposits and advances in the banking system. Operation Sukoon:

o Air India’s evacuation operations for Indians stuck in Lebanon consequent to Israel’s bombing of Lebanon.

o The Indians were evacuated to Cyprus from Lebanon and from there flow into India.

Elite Indians slake thrust with Sake:o Sake is a Janpanese alcoholic beverage with alcohol content of 13 to

16%. Can be served either hot or cold.o Sake import into the country is close to 10,000 cases, each containing

12 bottles. This is a significant figure when compared with the import of wine which is just over 100,000 cases.

M&M in talks with retailers for farm supply pact:o Tomatoes, onions and bananas, which along with potatoes form about

50% of the total fruits and vegetables produced in the country. Avoiding fiscal disaster II: Sixth pay panel needs new guidelines

o According to a World Bank report in 2003, public sector wages were higher by 1.3 times for engineers to 2.5 times for service workers.

Vishing:o As opposed to phishing, so called vishing relies on voice over internet

protocol (VOIP) telephony. The perpetrators take advantage of a quirk

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in VOIP that allows subscribers to have a telephone number that appears to be based in a city, such as Los Angeles, even though they may be anywhere in the world.

25.07.06: ADAG’s Mumbai metro loses track:

o The projected cost of Reliance Energy Metro project is around Rs. 215 cr per km as against Delhi Metro’s cost of Rs. 120 cr per km.

o REL is seeking a viability gap funding of Rs. 650 cr which is 26.7% of the projected cost of Rs. 2,356 cr, as against the maximum allowable of 20%.

Pakistan building nuke reactor: reporto At 4 to 5 kg of plutonium per weapon, the stock of 200 kgs of

plutonium that can be produced by a 1000 MW nuclear power plant can allow the production of over 40 to 50 nuclear weapons a year.

Bourbon whisky:o Is distilled from a mash of corn, malt and rye and aged in charred oak

barrels. Shareware: Cityscape now to have fewer telecom towers:

o Telcos can slash costs by 50-60% by sharing tower infrastructure.o 75% of all mobile network towers are unshared in India.o India requires at least another 100,000 new towers in the next four

years or so. INCOIS:

o Indian National Centre for Oceanic Information Services is based in Hyderabad.

Sixth pay commission:o While the American government employs 8.1% of its population as

public servants, India’s figure is only 2.4%.o The state bureaucracy in developed nations, on average, is much larger

(about 10% of the population) than the developing countries (about 4.5%)

o Of the 5 million central government employees, 94% are in the clerical and Class IV category where productivity levels are admittedly very low.

o Another 15 million work for state governments and PSUs. FinMin rejects move to rasie cotton imort duty:

o Import of cotton amounted to only 12 lakh bales in 2004-05 and this amounts only 7% of India’s consumption of 180 lakh bales.

Lifting of textile quota: India to gaino Agreement on Textiles and Clothing (ATC) was dismantled in January

2005. Denmark meets about 20% of its energy requirements from wind energy.

26.07.06:

RBI monetary policy:o RBI raised the short-term rates by 25 basis points.o Bank rate is the medium term rate – is unchanged at 6%.

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o Repo rate – the rate at which RBI lends to banks or infuses funds into the system is raised 6.75% to 7%.

o Reverse repo rate – the rate at which RBI mops up funds from the system or borrows from the system is raised from 5.75% to 6%.

Pharma companies to tap kiranas for OTC:o Pharma companies land up paying higher business margins of 30% to

their traditional business channel – chemists.o In contrast, the kirana merchants may settle for less margins.o OTC segment is estimated to be Rs. 3000 cr.

Rubber gets equity bounce:o The daily trading volume in Kerala is estimated to be Rs. 600 cr with

Kottayam, a key rubber hub, alone accounting for Rs. 130/140 cr. Hotel room rents rise on demand:

o Currently there are 90,000 to 100,000 hotel rooms (3 to 5 star category) in India.

o Another 150,000 rooms need to be added in the next five years, considering the rate of growth in demand.

Agriculture accounts for 20% of India’s GDP, yet it accounts for 60% of employment – predominantly in rural areas.

FIIs didn’t trigger market upsets; FM asks invetors not to panic:o The share of FIIs in total turnover in the NSE and BSE was 13.41% in

2005-06. The share of market value of FII investments in BSE market cap stood at 15% in 2005-06.

Neglect of exploration led to risig crude rates:o Outside the national oil companies of the OPEC countries, the biggest

oil companies globally are Exxon-Mobil, BP and Shell.o Between 2001 and 2005, these biggies spend only $16.7 bln on

explorations.o In the same period they paid out dividends adding up to $122 bln and

spent $77.8 bln on share buybacks. Loan to value ratio: Housing loans

o The percentage of loan sought by a borrower against the price of the purchased property.

o Typically industry-wide LTV stands at 80-85%.o Typically 55% of the total deposit base of banks comprises term loans.

Of this, nearly 50% comes from long-term deposits. Domestic coal supply situation improves:

o Coal supply situation improves due to imports by power utilities and more production.

o Increased hydro power supply due to monsoon reduces coal needs.o Thermal power stations at Panipat, Ahmedabad request temporary

reduction or diversion to other plants.o Imports of coal are now set to be lower at 16 MT as compared to 20

MT projected earlier. REL’s Mumbai Metro gets FinMin nod:

o REL maintains that the Mumbai Metro costs are not comparable with those of the Delhi Metro for the following reasons:

The Mumbai project is quite small covering about 12 km whereas Delhi Metro runs to 65 km.

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Delhi Metro was built with soft loans from the JBIC while the Mumbai Metro has no such soft funding optiosn available

Delhi Metro had the full backing of the government and the railways, while Mumbai Metro lacks these.

Delhi Metro enjoyed tax benefits not available to Mumbai Metro.

ASEAN to end FTA talks with India:o India refused to bring down its negative list of items which are to be

excluded from the FTA below 852.o ASEAN wants this list to be no more than 60 items.

0.9% India’s share in world exports:o In calendar 2005, India’s exports were worth $90 bln which is

approximately 0.89% of total global exports worth $10,121 bln.o In 2005 top exporters were:

Germany $971 bln US $904 bln China $762 bln Japan $596 bln

Yield, not acreage holds key to higher agricultural production:o Aggregate foodgrains production has grown by 4% during the last four

years between 2001 and 2004, but the gross area under major crops declines by 0.7% during this period.

o In actual terms, the per hectare production of wheat increased by a massive 427 kg from 2281 kg in 1990-91 to 2708 kg in 2000-01.

27.07.06:

109 coal blocks await captive mining:o 109 coal blocks have been identified for allocation under captive

mining route with total reserves of over 30 bln tonnes.o If all these coal blocks come under full production by the end of the

11th five year plan, the total coal production under captive route would increase to about 200 mln tonnes annually from the present level of 14 mln tonnes.

Govt. strikes down RIL’s price formula for gas sale to Dadri:o RIL contracted with RNRL to supply 28 MMSCMD at 2.34 per

mmbtu.o Dadri power plant is a 7,840 MW plant proposed in UPo Govt’s objection is to the way the gas sale contract was signed between

RIL and RNRL as it was a part of the demerger agreement and was signed at a time when RNRL was a subsidiary of RIL. This the govt says is against the principles of production sharing contract that requires the seller and buyer to conclude an arms length contract.

JD Rymbai is Meghalaya’s CM. He is currently facing dissidence lead by his predecessor DD Lapang whom the dissidents want back in power.

Move to revoke MP’s expulsion comes a cropper:o Moves to seek the revocation of the explusion of the 11 MPs who were

caught in the ‘cash-for-questions’ scandal are opposed by the Left and the Congress.

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o 10 LS members and 1 from RS.o PK Bansal committee probed into this affair.

RS Pathak Commission is looking into the Iraqi oil-for-food scam: India itching to take on Pak at ARF:

o Asian Regional Forum is setup in 1994. Aims to foster constructive dialogue and consultation on political and security issues including confidence building measures, disaster relief, counter-terrorism and preventive diplomacy.

o Has 26 members. High rates to burn out SME capex:

o Corporate capex to GDP is estimated to be 8.7% in FY07, marginally up from 8.4% for FY06. It was 10.6% in 1996.

Market velocity:o Value of shares traded divided by market cap.o In a bull market this is a positive sign as it indicates that investors are

holding on to stocks.o In a volatile market this means that traders are stuck with deals and

therefore have little choice but to hold on to stocks longer than they would otherwise prefer to.

Top R&D spending countries by GDP in 2005:o Sweden 4.3%o Finaland 3.5%o Japan 3.1%o US 2.7%o China 1.2%o India 0.8%

India’s oil refining capacity has gone up from 115 m tonnes to 132 m tonnes in five years, while the cement sector has seen capacity shoot up from 128 m tonnes to 156 m tonnes in the same period.

Banks bet big on small businessmen:o Banks are now looking at increasing the share of SME advances to

20% of their total net bank credit from the current level of 14%.o As of March 31, 2006 the total bank credit to SMEs stood at Rs.

1,53,489 cr, up by 28% from the previous year’s lending figure of Rs. 1,19,768 cr.

China is attracting $40 bln FDI in manufacturing and infrastructure every year aginst India’s $3 bln.

High cost of reneging: MSEB should have bought out Enrono The price per unit after revival of Dabhol plant is at Rs. 7.o The spot rate for LNG in international market is at $ 7/mmbtuo Far cheaper would have been the 2.1 mln tonnes of LNG that Enron

had contracted for 20 years with Oman and Abu Dhabi. India’s cardamom market:

o Cardamom season – Augsut to Septembero Kumily in Kerala and Bodinayakkanur in TN are major markets.o Cardamom Licensing and Marketing Rules permit charging only 1%

commission by traders. No cleaning and grading charges can be collected.

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o Now traders are collecting it; causing heartburn for growers.o Production touched 12,540 tonnes last year against 11,415 tonnes in

the previous year. Record.o Lion’s share of cardamom production is mopped up by domestic

market in the country.o Exports are just at 875 tonnes valued at Rs. 27 cr.o Due to adverse weather conditions this year, the production is expected

to be 30-40% short.o Last year growers have complained about Gautemalan cardamom

entering India via Nepal.

28.07.06:

Have the Doctor in your pocket: Wireless tech allows patients to access Doctors 24 hours a day

o One out of every five heart cases recorded is from Indiao 10% of urban Indians suffer from coronary artery diseaseo 50% of heart attacks happen to people under 55 yearso Heart attack is 3-5 times more common among diabetics

Iron ore exports question now stalls mineral policy:o During the year 2004-05, the country produced 142.71 mln tonnes of

iron ore with domestic consumption of 66.85 mt and the rest as exports.

o In 2005-06, production is expected to increase to 165 mt with domestic consumption going up to 85.80 mt, a growth of over 34% over last year’s figures. This is slated to grow further as the country plans to add 110 mt of steel capacity by 2019-20.

Maharashtra may pay up Rs. 5.50 per unit of Dabhol Power:o The GoI has decided to waive customs and CVDs on naptha for DPC.

This is how the power is going to cost Rs. 5.50 per unit against Rs. 8 per unit.

o Power from gas based plants would cost anywhere between Rs. 2.50 per unit to Rs. 3 per unit and even if gas is bought from the spot market, power though more expensive would still cost anywhere between Rs. 4 and Rs. 4.25 per unit.

Oil sands holds the key:o Global demand for petroleum was 78.7 mln barrels/day in 2003, which

increased to 82.5 million bpd in 2005.o Canada, the world’s second largest country also has the second largest

reserves of oil, pegged at 179 bln barrels whereas production is just 3.05 million bpd.

o Oils sands are a mixture of clay and bitumen (15%)o It takes about 1.16 barrels of bitumen to yield 1 barrel of crude oil

Crude finish:o India cannot produce enough of ethanol for her alternative fuel

programme as most of the cane is required for processing sugaro India manufactured about 1 to 1.2 million KL (kilo litres) of ethanol.

In absolute terms this is much less than India’s petroleum consumption of about 110 million tonne per annum.

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o Value added products manufactured by the chemical industry that use ethanol as the feedstock range in value from $650-3000 /t; if ethanol is used as fuel, its value is just $500 /t.

o According to industry sources, the same amount of cane juice can be used for 2 kg of sugar or 1 kg of ethanol.

29.07.06:

FDI could face security block:o As of now, there is no legislation in India that bars foreign investment

for security reasons. In future, all tenders floated by PSU companies would have enabling clauses by which the government could intervene and disqualify a company for security reasons.

US imposes sanctions on 2 Indian companies: Penalty for transferring dual use products for Iranian missile program

o Companies that face US sanctions cannot receive US government contracts, assistance or military trade.

US has emerged as the 3rd biggest military supplier to India, after Russia and Israel.

All cheque clearing houses may be merged into a company:o The Government is considering merging all the 1030 cheque clearing

houses in the country into a company.o Of the 1030 clearing houses, 16 are managed by RBI and the rest by

commercial banks.o 55 of the centres have mechanized operations, where only MICR

cheques are used. Capital account convertibility, as the Tarapore committee defined it, is the

freedom to convert local assets into foreign financial assets and vice-versa at market determined rates.

30.07.06:

Second Tarapore Committee would do well to take a look at some facts before submitting its report to RBI:

o Interest payments account for about one-third of the revenue receipts.o In the global forex market, the daily turnover is about $3 trillion. A

negligible poroportion of this is backed by real transactions in goods and services; the rest is all capital search of arbitrage and speculative opportunities for making money.

The stalled WTO talks may spell the biggest loss for India’s booming service sector:

o India is a net exporter of services, while it has always remained a net importer of goods – by a huge margin – due to heavy dependence on imported crude oil.

o While Mode 4 deals with issue of visas, or movement of natural persons, as it is known in WTO parlance, Mode 1 deals with outsourcing.

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o The position to be adopted by India – rescuring services and NAMA liberalization by brokering a compromise on agriculture which looks as of now.

o What’s surprising is the fact that it was not the developing countries, but the US and the EU sqauabbling among themselves, which was the primary cause for suspension of the Doha round negotiations.

o Doha and HongKong declarations mandated reduction or elimination of tariff peaks, tariff escalation and NTBs particularly on products of developing countries’ export interest.

31.07.06:

Feel the power of plastic fuel:o HLL plans to reuse plastic waste by coverting into an industrial fuelo Lafarge has long been using hazardous wastes including plastic as fuel

in its kilns in Europe and America. The use of this fuel reduces production costs considerably and also delivers environmental benefits such as minimizing global carbon dioxide emissions by prevention of fossil fuel resources.

Now resolve your disputes online:o The number of pending cases in Indian courts is 3 crore.o Every year 1.6 crore new cases are registered of which 1.4 crore are

solvedo Cases handled by the Indian Council for Arbitration (ICA) have

increased 20 times in the last 10 years.o National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) is drawing up policies that

would help people file complaints related to domain names online. Model education bill caught in Centre-State tussle

o The Centre said it would provide 75% funding for elementary education for states which adopt the model bill, while those that don’t will receive only 50% of the funding as per the MOU signed between the states and the Centre for the universalisation of education program.

Quest for power:o Elasticity ratio between electricity generation and GDP growth for

India is estimated to be aboutg 1.5. It means that for every percentage point increase in GDP, power supply has to grow by 1.5%. And with 8% GDP growth, Electricity must grow by 12% to meet all the demand.

o In terms of total units of power generated, the growth is from 5.1 billion units in 1950 to 616 billion units in 2005-06, which corresponds to a growth of 9.2% per annum.

o Total power generation in India in a year is worth more than Rs. 100,000 cr. Of this, power worth about Rs. 35,000 cr is lost.

o The 35-40% loss contrasts with global norm of 12-14%.o Total ash generated in India per year is about 100 mln tons.o A consumption of 500 units by a household would require about 300

kg of coal burning per month, or 10 kg per day. This would produce more than 300 kg of CO2, apart from several other pollutants.

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01.08.06:

UNIFIL: is one of the oldest peacekeeping operations of the UN. Its nearly 2000 troops and 50 unarmed military observers are tasked to maintain a ceasefire along the 70 mile (121 km) UN Blue Line between Israel and Lebanon, by patrolling, observing and reporting violations.

The market size of stand alone gourmet restaurants is about Rs. 10 bln in India.

CAC: Carrier Access Code is the system of numbering codes that will empower every end-consumer to choose his NLD and ILD carrier.

Work stress affects fertility:o India accounts for a tenth of total infertility cases worldwide.

Estimates suggest that there are close to 28 to 30 million couples in the country who are in the fertile age bracket but do not beget children.

FD hike may eat into small savings pie:o With Rs. 3 lakh crore as the total deposits being added to the system

every year and split equally between FDs and savings, this would mean that FDs would rise to Rs. 175,000 cr and the total increase to Rs. 325,000 cr.

WTO talks:o India rejects US bid to revive peace clause:

Peace Cluase in agriculture trade prevented countries from challenging subsidies provided by developed countries on agricultural exports at the WTO.

The US has been trying to reactivate the clause which expired on January 31, 2004, since it resulted in agriculture exports being challenged by countries like Brazil and Canada.

o The implications of the Doha Round collapse: The collapse of the round means very little for India: Manoj

Pant, Professor, CITD, JNU After the Uruguay round the main gain for India has

come from the quota removal regime in textiles. Nothing has changed now in this regard. The other export gains have come from IT services, which are independent of the WTO agreements since the GATS modalities are still to be discussed and finalized.

India’s problems are agricultural sector are related to domestic, not trade, issues. About 82% of the agricultural subsidies under contention in the DDA are given to three classes of products: beef products, dairy products and cereals, where India has little stakes.

India’s protection of its agricultural sector has been crucial for political economy reasons.

Rupa Chanda, Professor, IIM, Bangalore: The differences in this round differ from the Uruguay

round in one major aspect – today the developing countries are far more united. They have forged stronger coalitions, which have held their ground, notwithstanding differences among members and efforts to divide them. And several of them have greater

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bargaining power today given their rapidly growing economies and importance in global trade.

Who loses from this breakdown?o The LDCs who depend on a few agricultural

commodities for exports. Moreover, these countries have few alternatives outside the WTO. Their bargaining power outside a multilateral regime would be weaker.

India is not affected because:o India clearly had defensive interests in

agriculture.o The talks were unlikely to address some of

India’s key concerns. These include, for instance, the growing use of non-tariff measures on India’s agricultural and industrial exports and the misuse of antidumping provisions.

o Unlike smaller countries, India can explore alternative forums. Bilateral agreements and FTAs and CECAs.

Biswajit Dhar, Prof. And Head, Centre for WTO Studies, IIFT: In sharp contrast to the earlier rounds, this Doha round

is more complex:o Issues pertaining to the implementation of the

Uruguay round commitments were included.o The mandate required WTO members to deepen

and widen their commitment to trade liberalization.

o A set of new issues, which included investment, competition policy, transparency in government procurement and trade facilitation, were taken up for possible incolusion in the negotiations.

o The development-related concerns of the developing and the LDCs were included as the guiding principles of the negotiations.

All evidence indicates that the DDA needs more time to fruition.

The lesson that members should learn from the Doha round is that trade policy reforms involves a gradual process and that agreements cannot be reached by imposing artificial deadlines.

02.08.06:

Capital strength: Desis beat MNCs in use of money:o For every rupee invested in the business, Indian companies generate

Rs. 4 worth of sales against one-and-a-half bucks generated by global biggies.

o Capital employed turnover is the ratio of average capital employed to annual sales, which is multiplied by 365 to represent it in days.

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o Negative working capital turnover, means that customers or suppliers are financing sales.

Govt. proposes uniform stamp duty across states:o The Centre has asked states to impose a uniform 5% stamp duty across

the country. Perelman may get Fields Medal:

o Fields Medal is the math equivalent of Nobel Prize awarded once in 4 years to under-40 geniuses.

o Poincare conjecture: is central to topology or rubber-sheet geometry, that looks at properties of surfaces that don’t change no matter how yhou twist or stretch them. Since 19th century, topologists have known that two-dimensional spheres are the only surfaces that have this invariant property. How about 3-D surfaces? It’s wrt to them theat Poincare conjecture says that as just as there is only one 2-D surface that has no holes, there is likewise only one 3-D space, technically called a manifold, on which not all loops can be contracted to a point.

Escondida is the world’s biggest private copper mine in the world. It is in Chile.

Indian art takes off:o From garnering just about Rs. 100 cr in 2003, the total Indian art

market has now touched around Rs. 1000 cr. SEBI takeover code to help M&As:

o The code aims to create a level-playing field for shareholders of listed companies and bring about greater transparency in trading of stocks in the secondary market.

o The 2006 changes seek to align the code with the new listing agreement relating to minimum public shareholding.

o The changes will ensure protection of investor interest in the listed companies.

Hot cuppa: India’s Q1 coffee exports up 32% in volume:o Exports for the previous fiscal of 05-06 touched $356 mln, some 9.6%

excess of the stipulated target of $325 mln for the year.o Domestic consumption of coffee is around 30% of India’s annual crop.o Arabica beans start arriving in November-December, Robusta arrivals

peak in February-March.

03.08.06:

Delhi to be marketers’ delight:o Delhi is not just the biggest consumer market in India, at an annual

consumer spend at Rs. 64,309 cr, but is also right on the top of the top 10 table on growth in absolute consumer spends for 2007-08 compared to 2006-07.

From mass to class, RIL woos marquee brands:o Analysts estimate the market for luxury and high-end clothing in the

country at Rs. 1,500 cr. and that for accessories at another Rs. 1500 cr. Coke is still top global brand:

o Interbrand, the global brand consltancy firm and Businesweek have announced the list of 100 best global brands of 2006.

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o Coca-cola with a brand value of around one-tenth the GDP of India ($67 bln) has retained its position at the top despite a 1% drop in its brand value.

IITian bests 20,000 peers to Code4Bill:o Code4Bill was initiated as recognition of India’s leadership in

nurturing world class technical talent and was aimed at pre-final and final year students pursuing various technical streams across India.

o It is a Mircosoft initiative. Singapore years for more access:

o Seeks duty sops for 752 items and liberal rules of origino Singapore has demanded that the ROO guiding the CECA should be

made less stringent like the one agreed to by India in its FTA discussion with the ASEAN.

Don’t blame futures trade:o Futures give early warning of shortages. They improve price

transparency and thus prevent middlemen from creaming off the lion’s share.

Blowing up fiscal responsibility: Rajani Shuklao In 1991 had to shamefully ship the gold in the public coffers to raise

some loans abroad.o Officially implemented by the present government from July 2, 2004,

the FRBM mandates gradual elimination of government borrowing for any other purpose than public investment by 2009, and restricts the total amount of such borrowing per year to no more than 3% of GDP three years from now.

o In 2004-05, the latest year for which data is readily available, as a proportion of GDP, the revised estimate of consolidated revenue and fiscal deficit of the Centre and the states were 4.1% and 8.4% respectively.

IMS – Infrastructure Management Services market is big – at 12% to 20% of the total IT spend – and growing. Its size is estimated by various analysts to be anywhere between $80 bn and $140 bn on the total IT services market of $640 bln.

Not Hot Air: Wind energy players wait for giant leap:o The wind energy sector is estimated to have grown 100% and 40%

respectively in 2004-05 and 2005-06 and the industry is estimated to grow at over 30% this year.

o According to estimates, India presently has an installed wind energy capacity of roughly 5500 MW but the fact also remains that the country has tapped only a miniscule percentage of its capabilities in wind energy.

o At the end of 2005, the installed capacity in Asia was only slightly more than 5000 MW while it was as high as over 40,000 MW in Europe and nearly 10,000 MW in US.

The world bank estimates that between 2005-10, India will have to invest 3.06% of GDP every year to build infrastructure and it will have set aside 3.82% of GDP to maintain existing infrastructure.

04.08.06:

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Govt. tells banking majors to go slow on interest rake hikes:o Under present regulations, banks are empowered to freely price their

loans and deposits. Natwar helped relatives bag Iraq contracts:

o The RS Pathak Commission report states that the ex-minister used official powers to introduce his relatives to Iraqi oil minister.

Sepah: is the elite revolutionary guards under the direct command of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

AP the lodestar for IT/ITES cos:o STPI expects s/w exports from AP to grow by 30% to 35% this year

and end at Rs. 16,000 cr to Rs. 17,000 cr. o Last year s/w exports stood at Rs. 12,521 cr. occupying the 3rd place

after Karnataka and TN.

05.08.06:

Ms. Erika Vohman won this year's $50,000 St. Andrews Prize for the Environment for her innovative work. She came up with different varieties of coffee alternatives.

Cobra Beer to relaunch Gen. Bilimoria Wines:o India's wine market is estimated at 5 mln bottles a year – equivalent to

around 200 people sharing one bottle. Wine makes up less than 1% of India's $1.8 billion alcoholic drinks market. But the wine market is growing at 25-30% a year.

Paintscape: International brnads vying for a share in the retail boom:o International paint brands:

Nippon, Jotun, Akzo, Nobel, Dupont, Basfo Indian brands:

Asian Paints, ICI India, Goodlass Nerolac and Berger.o The paint industry has been growing at the rate of 13-15% in the last

few months due to a boom in infrastructure, housing and rising income levels.

Engg. offshoring to be next big money spinner:o Spending on Engineering services was $750 bln in 2004, and is

projected to grow to $1.1 trillion globally by 2020. Building sustainable energy security:

o What is peak oil? It means the end of cheap oil and an end to economies

organized around the increasing availability of cheap oil. Peak oil or topping point, is the highest amount that can ever be

pumped.o The insurance industry, which takes over $2 trillion in annual

premium, and is bigger than the oil industry, is now a major player in addressing climate change since they have to pay billions out in insurance as cities flood, cyclones such as Katrina uproot entire communities and heat waves kill.

Beta no help in stemming losses in volatile market:o Beta of a stock is a measure of its volatility or systematic risk of a

company's stock compared to the market as a whole.

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06.08.06:

Traces of toxin in soft drinks: studyo The report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) on

pesticide content in soft drinks has said it found considerabale traces of malathion in at least 50% of the samples it collected from the national capital region for the study.

Reliance set to storm into retail space:o The company has planned some 1000 hypermarket and 1500 super

markets in the first phase which should complete by the end of next year.

o Hyper market – 1 to 1.5 lk sq. feet Nasscom – Booz Allen Hamilton study:

o The next frontier for India is globalization of engineering services. Indian IT companies have a $40 bln opportunity by year 2020 from engineering services and the country’s share of off-shored engineering services, which is currently 12% can be increased to 30% in the same period.

Ideators see innovation opportunity in Indiao Consultants peg the contribution of manufacturing to the world’s GDP

at over $20,000 bln a year, employing about 350 mln people worldwide.

India’s cotton exports to hit 5-m bales:o Crop output this year is expected to be 24.5 mln bales against the

estimated 24.4 mln bales.

08.08.06:

Tata Steel, Australian firm in Building JV:o Houses and office complexes may be made of steel in a few years’

time.o In terms of thermal efficiency, steel buildings reflect 95% of the

sunlight and absorb only 5%, making them much cooler than the conventional buildings that absorb almost 80%.

National varsities to give brand India a global push:o Missions abroad to be eligible for assistance under the Market Access

Initiative (MAI)o Proposal to increase assistance to Rs. 1 cr from current Rs. 50 lko Additional funds to be available for each market & product per annumo Assistance to open showrooms abroad hiked from 25% to 33%.o More support, not exceeding 25% for period of 3 years also proposedo Capital support to exporters to increase productivity

Farmers to have a stake in growth:o The government has already cleared some 115 SEZs. More

applications likely to be cleared in due course. The commerce ministry said last week that the overall limit of 155 SEZs, decided by the

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empowered group of ministers may also be reviewed given the massive response from the industry.

Figuring it out: No relief on oil front:o While the world consumes 84 mbd of curde a day, spare pumping

capacity is estimated at a tiny 1.5 mbdo The worldwide oil demand would rise up by 1.2 mbd to touch 84.8

mbd.o The fact is that hedge funds have been investing heaviliy in energy

markets. Estimates by the IEA show that such investments went up from a lowly $3 bln to a whopping $90 bln in 2005.

Perspectives: How do we check rising prices:o Ajit Ranade:

A reintroduction of ECA will only create artifical scarcity, and result in corruption and black market

For rising price of wheat, the reasons are: The supply of wheat has been unable to keep pace with

the rising demand To add to this, the structural deficit was the failure of

the procurement program. Blaming exchanges for the high prices is like blaming

the messenger for the bad news. Price stability can be achieved only if we face up to

some long-term structural factors.o Mahesh Purohit:

The burden of central and state taxes must be adjusted when the global prices go beyond a level

o Narendra Gupta: Chief of Strategy, NCDEX The problem of less than efficient markets today are being

corrected by futures trading The ECA really has little to do with the higher prices today

which appear to be guided by lower supply relative to demand. Wheat for example is harvested in April and then stored for the

rest of the year Further, when announcement of wheat imports was made, if

wheat was being stored it should have flooded the market, which did not happen. This clearly shows that for such a broad commodity like wheat, hoarding is not really feasible.

Exchanges through efficient price discovery do provide demand supply equilibrium for future thereby prompting farmers to shift from one crop to another purely on market dynamics.

A barrel of oil contains 42 gallons of crude. Legal tiff derails Sikkim hydro projects:

o As per existing regulations, tariff based competitive bidding is a must for projects above 100 MW.

Banks outsource NPA recovery:o The SARFAESI Act was enacted to enable banks and FIs to realize

long-term assets, manage problems of liquidity and asset-liability mismatches. It empowers banks to take possession of securities and

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sell them to reduce NPAs. As much as 30% higher valuations are recovered by banks if they outsource the recovery of their NPAs to private agencies.

It’s a deposit deluge in banks this year:o According to RBI data, fresh term deposits raised by commercial

banks between April 01 and July 21 this year amounted to Rs. 1,27,166 cr as compared to Rs. 48,666 cr in the same period last year.

09.08.06:

EPFO looks to widen net:o The schedule of industry restrictions be done away witho Establishments having 10 employees or more to be brought under the

ambit of EPF scheme in place of the present 20 employee norm.o Wage limit of Rs. 6500 per month be dispensed with; allowing those

with lower wages also to be covered under the schemeo The fund has over 24 mln subscriber members.

Talking moms to be P&G brand ambassadors:o Word of Mouth (WoM) marketing is defined as a strategy of gathering

volunteers to try products and send them out to talk up their experiences with the people they meet in their daily lives.

Locations World to spread film shooting abroad:o The current Indian film outbound spend is between Rs. 80 cr to Rs.

100 cr. and is expected to grow to Rs. 250 cr in three years. Only women judges to try rape cases?

o 66% of cases of sexual assault go unreported because of social stigma, lack of resources for legal redress, or even harassment and fear of revenge.

o The conviction rate is abysmally low at 4%, mainly because of non-collection, tampering or destruction of evidence on the part of the police.

10.08.06:

Unregistered funds likely to get more leeway:o Sub-account: includes foreign corporates, funds, or portfolios

established outside India, on whose behalf investments are made in India by an FII registered with SEBI.

o There are four categories of sub-accounts: Broad based sub-accounts where number of investors has to be

20 and no investor can hold more than 10% in the fund. Such funds can hold upto 10% of the equity of a local stock.

Corporate sub-account can own upto 5% in an Indian stock Foreign individual sub-accounts which can hold up to 5% in an

Indian company Proprietory sub-account – a structure which an FII can use to

invest in its own money. HCL Insys to join digital retail bandwagon, open 100 stores:

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o According to industry estimates, the market size of digital lifestyle products is around Rs. 2,500 cr which would go up to between Rs. 10,000 cr and 12,000 cr by the year 2010.

Telecom boom rubs off on small players:o The subscriber base of telecom in India has touched 106 mln as of June

30, 2006. RIL may dip into PSU facilities:

o RIL may soon be allowed to use infrastructure facilities set up by PSU oil companies like IOC and GAIL to store and move its petroleum products.

o Savings could be achieved through optimization of CST on LPG and SKO.

o RIL will have to enter into pacts with Indian Oil and Petronas and East India Petroleum

o RIL has to obtain sales tax exemption in non-VAT states for inter-oil company transactions

o Govt. would consider legal opinion of experts before any agreement. Oil companies may be slapped with Rs. 1000 cr in dues:

o As excise dues on LPG and Keroseneo LPG and SKO are highly subsidized and a huge difference exists

between the refinery gate price and the retail priceo FinMin calculates tax on the refinery gate price, which oilcos are

resisting as they sell the fuel at much lower priceso CBEC has set up a committee to look into the valuation of LPG and

SKO Liquor taxation policy to evolve under EU gaze:

o Centre looking at ways to rationalize taxes levied by state governments on alcoholic beverages

o Follows a threat by EU to haul India to the WTO over the high level of state taxes

o Currently basic customs duty is 100% on wines and 150% on spiritso A joint working group set up by the Centre has come out with a deraft

model policy on taxation of alcoholic beverages and efforts are on to take the process forward.

o EU grouse is that market access for its liquor companies is affected due to the high level of taxes imposed by state governments. That India’s tariff regime on liquor had a variety of discriminatory indirect taxes and fees imposed by the states, which goes against the ‘national treatment’ for imports as required under the GATT and WTO.

11.08.06:

Beverage companies seek standards for inputs, not for products:o Industry says colas are too complex in nature for standardso The proposed standard which called IS 2346, has been under

discussion for the last three years. The standard defines the quality norms which all carbonated drinks need to meet.

Ads with tall promises will be a thing of the past:

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o In an effort to make sure punchlines don’t cross the line, the department of consumer affairs is working on a legislation to curb misleading advertisements and communications.

o As per estimates, the fake products industry in India is worth around Rs. 20,000 cr.

C-DoT seeks limelight with wireless internet:o Wi-MAX, defines as the worldwide interoperability for microwave

access by the WiMAX Forum, provides wireless broadband access as an alternative to cable and DSL. Wi-MAX enables broadband access at a download speed of up to 75 Mbps through wireless.

How on earth can we live together? Arun Mairao Blind economic progress cannot show the way: new paradigms of

progress, governance and leadership are required in India and elsewhere.

o New institutional forms, based on lateral coordination rather than vertical control are required to bring people together to collectively shape the future they want.

o The political and financial system should not overemphasize the hard side of economic growth side-lining the soft side of equity.

Should India allow FDI in retail?o FDI in retail improves growth prospects: Rajiv Kumar, Director and

CE, ICRIER The arguments against FDI in retail:

This will prevent the growth of domestic organized retail industry

It will result in closure of small retail stores It will disrupt the social community and the given way

of life. These arguments don’t hold water.

o Competition will help domestic retailers India is consumption led economy with private consumption

contributing about 60% to the Indian GDP as compared to 42% for China and 52% for Japan. The Indian retail market is about $300 bln.

Bimstec Nations to speed up FTA negotiations:o India and the six other BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for

Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) countries have decided to speed up their FTA negotiations and are looking at a possible deadline of February 2007.

12.08.06:

The real problem is impure groundwater:o Thus far, there are two laws that regulate pesticides in India. The

Insecticide Act, 1968 under the Union Ministry of Agriculture and The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

o While the IA mandates registration of pesticides, the PFA mandates the MRLs (Maximum Residuary Levels) that are set for India.

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UK freezes assets of 19 suspects, Pakistan arrests 7 people:o The plan to explode aeroplanes flying between UK and the US,

intended to use British sports drinks by mixing it with gel like substance.

o The suspected terrorists planned to use peroxide based solution that would ignite when sparked by a camera flash or another electronic device to blow up the planes.

Goody the tiger bigs adieu:o Goody the smiling tiger mascot of Goodlass Nerolac is being retired.o Other famous mascots include:

Gattu of Asian Paints (retired in 2002) Maharaja of Air India – planned to retire but brought back on

strong public outcry Incremin’s “Goodness grow-cious” giraffe The Murphy baby HMV’s all time classic image of man’s best friend – dog.

Air Deccan’s workforce slimmsest at 70 per aircraft.o Employees per aircraft, has been an important factor of efficiency as a

lower ration helps airlines keep costs at check, especially when the industry faces downturn.

Govt. focus now on urban employment generation:o The govt. expects that the present momentum of exports, close to 21

mln jobs will be created in urban India between 2006-10.o The govt. expects exports to increase manufacturing sector’s share in

GDP from the present 17% to 24-25% over the next couple of years.o One job in manufacturing sector creates three jobs in the service sector.

RBI pays Rs. 8,404 cr to govt.o Higher earnings from overseas investments boosts amount by 55%.

Consumed by trivia: Roots of political bankruptcyo MPs can articulate the aspirations of their constituents only when they

know what those are, in the first place. Such knowledge is a function of the democratic vigour with which they engage local communities in everyday politics. Unfortunately, grassroots politics has currently come to be the exact opposite of functional democracy. Patronage networks, centred on traditional hierarchies and primordial identities of caste and community, have been the basis of political mobilization. Unless that changes, Parliament will continue to be the institutional shell of a trivialized and dysfunctional democracy, even as more and more people take recourse to extra-institutional, politically violent forms of politics.

13.08.06:

14.08.06:

Asset reconstruction companies:o International distressed asset players trying to enter India:

Matlin Patterson of UK Concordia

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VF Corp may slip into volumes biz:o VF Corp, owner of Lee and Wranglers, is angling for the mid-priced

shelveso Talks on with Reliance Retail to firm up entry strategy for brands like

Hero and Riderso The home grown brands like Flying Machine and Spykar dominate the

economy segmento The industry estimates suggest that the domestic jeanswear market

could be around 80 mln pieces annually with the unbranded players in the Rs. 150/300 mass bracket accounting for most of it.

Airlines to sell ad space, within and without:o Ad revenues generated from allied activities can reach 10% of total

revenueo Some airlines are still wary of this opportunity as they think it can

dilute their brand value

15.08.06:

Jet, Sahara work to salvage merger deal:o The 2220 cr deal.

If it isn’t secure, FDI won’t be welcome:o Once the new law is enacted, the government would have the powers

to prohibit any foreign participation in Indian businesses, if it is suspected that the move would affect national security.

Sting fallout: Parties rally behind MPo Demand stringent action against TV channel that aired offending tapeso Eight-term tribal MP from Nandurbar Manik Rao Gavit denied ever

having met the mafia leader The cycle goes on, gets swanky:

o Fancy cycle segment accounts for almost 40% of the total production of 1.6 crore units produced in India.

Govt. plans carpet bomb in realty:o The urban development ministry is considering to regulate property

transactions by imposing a new system of calculating real-estate value on the basis of actual usable area – carpet area.

Futures and organized retailing: V. Shanmugamo Organized retailers having strong potential synergies with the

commodity futures industry should complement each other in remedying the ills in the commodities marketing system that results in higher prices.

o Characteristics of efficient markets: Should provide a common platform to the participants, hassle-

free order matching process between the buyers and tge sellers from across the country, perfect delivery mechanism, real-time price dissemination, access to quality warehousing systems, help the players to hedge their price risks, and aid dissemination of fundamentals to the players in the market.

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Futures markets provide all these in a single stroke persuading the entire value chain to tune up its efficiency with the added advantage of advance price discovery.

Exploring the export option:o Large business houses are now finding it profitable to dabble in the

export arena – spurred by liberalization and reformso Reforms in infrastructure, taxation, labour etc along with cut in

transaction costs will make investing in exports viableo The returns on investment of corporates is higher on overseas sales

than locally.o The export intensity of the private corporate sector (manufacturing

exports per unit of sales) has almost doubled from 13.37% in 1998-99 to 24.23% in 2004-05.

16.08.2006:

PFs can buy oil bonds:o There are indications that the bonds would be SLR eligible and would

be tradable.o Put simply, investments in these bonds would count towards their SLR

ratio of banks. This enables banks to buy these bonds at a later stage when they have adequate liquidity.

How high is high for pesticide residue levels:o The EU for instance, has the most stringent norms in the world for

aflatoxins levels – toxic compounds produced by aspergillus flavus species – in nuts like groundnuts, pistachios and cereals.

Now prove your metallurgy:o Up to 30,000 people required in this sector in the next 10 years.o Currently, India’s per capita consumption of steel is only 30 kg per

person and there is no reason to believe that the consumption will not grow to 330 kg per person in line with the developed countries.

About 54% of India’s population is aged less than 24 years. They are actually driving the demand.

Banks tap overseas funds for desi lending:o Overseas depostis and borrowings rose 15% from $54.7 bn in Dec

2004 to $62.8 bn in Dec 2005. The rise in domestic deposits has not kept pace with credit requirements.

o The growth in international assets of banks is attributed to the rise in nostro balances held abroad. Nostro balances are balances held with correspondent banks abroad by Indian banks.

Colas: The media are guilty too: SSA Aiyaro Besides, the actual pesticide level, according to government surveys, is

3,080 times higher in milk, 69,700 times higher in vegetables and 111,600 times higher in fruit than in the proposed cola standards. The maximum permitted level for tea leaves is almost 60,000 times higher. These are treated as priority items, unlike colas, which are held to be inessential.

Uniform norms for acquiring land: Raghav Chandrao In the US an Interagency Land Acquisition Conference was established

in 1968 by the attorney general. This voluntary organization

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comprises representatives from federal agencies engaged in acquisition for public purposes. Its main aim is to establish uniform policy standards for land acquisition and to formulate guidelines to make land acquisition fair and efficient.

o Market value is broadly identified as the price the property would have fetched on the effective date of appraisal, on the open competitive market, from a willing and reasonably knowledgeable buyer, who is not under any compulsion to buy or sell, giving due consideration to all available economic uses of the property at the time of appraisal.

o The government should ensure a standing mechanism for consultations, rule making and setting of uniform standards for land acquisition. This holds the key to future investments in the infrastructure sector.

Riding the freeway: Insurance sector detarrifingo Detarriffing or free pricing is expected to be there in non-life insurance

sector from January 2007.o There is no reason for a country that spends Rs. 1,50,000 cr on health

care to have a health insurance business of only Rs. 2,000 cr. Economy to clock 8% growth 4th year a row:

o The rate of growth of population has come down to 1.6% as per the estimates provided by the Economic Advisory Council. This means a sustained rise in per capita income of 6.4%, which is unprecedented.

Aviation insurance costs may not increase:o Insurers expect better security system to cut down premium priceso Airlines spend at least $8.36 bn a year on risk managemento Aviation premiums are 15.5% higher than what it was before 9/11o Domestic market for insurance seen at Rs. 350 cr.o Global aviation insurance pegged at more than $5 bn.o According to industry estimates, the domestic market for aviation

insurance is pegged at Rs.350 cr.17.08.06:

Ads take baby steps in offshoring:o Indian advertising industry is of the size of Rs. 13,000 cr.o Globally advertising outsourcing business is estimated to be worth a

stupendous $280 bln of which $50 bln is estimated to be in creative and production alone, according to a January 2006 report “Outsourcing in Advertising: Is India the Destination Next?”

The year of microfinance bashing?o In India, the average per capita GNP works out to $650 or Rs. 30,000 a

year i.e., an annual family income of about Rs. 1.5 lakh.o By March 2006, around 1.6 mln SHGs are reported to have been linked

to banks. At an average of 15 members per SHG, this amounts to 24 mln families. However, this may be exaggerated.

o A more careful assessment results in a a liberal estimate of some 11 mln families served – just 15% of the total of 192 mln families in the country.

18.08.06:

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RBI nixes fin sector automatic route:o Approved financial activities include:

merchant banking underwriting portfolio management asset management venture capital financial consultancy stock broking credit reference agency credit rating leasing and finance forex broking money chaning busines housing finance custodial services micro and rural credit

Prices of common drugs to dip sharply:o An earlier government study found that trade margins are the highest

on generic generic drugs – those that are sold primarily by the name of the active ingredient, say paracetamol, rather than by a brand name, say crocin.

Brnason flies in Virgin Comics:o Virgin Comics is a collaboration between Deepak Chopra, Shekhar

Kapur and Richard Branson.o The global media and entertainment industry is expected to touch $1.3

trillion in the next 7 years. Stretch retailing:

o The idea is to take the store to the people through franchise vehicles. Budget movies have to stir up success:

o Typically a big budget movie in India spends 10-20% of its production costs on promoting the film. For small budget movies, anything that costs under Rs. 5 – 6 cr to produce, success comes with a huge price tag, with marketing expenditure upwards of 40%, and sometimes even as high as 60% of the production costs.

The PC market in India is estimated to touch 6 mln units in 2006, recording a growth of over 30%.

The market size of laser printer is estimated to be around 3 lakh units.

19.08.06:

FDI registers 47% growth in Q1 FY07”o India attracted FDI to the tune of $1.74 bn during April-July 2006,

registering a 47% growth over the inflow during the corresponding four months of the previous year.

o This is a substantial rise compared to $1.8 bn FDI received by the country during April – July 2005.

President signs the OoP Bill:

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o The parliament constituted JPC with 15 members with a 4 point terms of reference:

To examine in the context of the settled interpretation of the expression 'office of profit' in Article 102 of the Constitution and the underlying constitutional principles therein, and to suggest a comprehensive definition of the office of profit.

To recommend, in relation of the office of profit, the evaluation of a generic and comprehensive criteria which is just, fair and reasonable and can be applied to all states and union territories.

To examine the feasibility of a law relating to the prevention of disqualification, as was the case in the UK, and considered by the Constitution (45th amendment) Act, 1976.

Allies nail UPA on Liberhan Commission's extension:o The MS Liberhan Commission, setup by the PV Narasimha Rao

government 10 days after the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, was entrusted with the task of inquiring into the demolition and the circumstances that led to it.

Try leveraging brands online, create incentives:o The current 40 mn internet users base in India is set to cross the 100

mln mark by 2007 end.o Organized retail constitutes about 3% of total retail and is poised to

reach 15-20% in the next few years, which translates into a 40% CAGR.

o India has a Rs. 1000 cr premiumwear market. Trivitron makes pitch for medical equipment SEZ:

o Indegenous medical technology equipment business is estimated to be worth $2 bn in India.

o Imported equipment accounts for $1.7 bn.o It is estimated that 70% of the product features in the imported medical

equipment are simply irrelavant to the Indian context and that indegenisation can result in cost savings of 30% to 50%.

More science institute plans on CSIR platter:o CSIR is examining the idea of setting up a chain of Indian Institute for

Science and Education (IISERs). PM firm on labour reforms in textile:

o India's performance in the post-quota regime has improved drastically and investment in the sector has shot up from around Rs. 15000 cr in 2004-05 to over Rs. 30,000 cr in 2005-06. Textile exports in the financial year are expected to touch $19.6 bn compared with $17 bn in 2005-06.

20.08.06:

Indian Railways performance:o Railways had a market share of 89% freight and 69% of passengers in

1951. That’s now slipped to 35% and 20% respectively.o Railways are four to five times more fuel efficient than the roadways.o Ideally the Railways should have a market share of freight volumes at

60%, not 35%, as it is today. If IR had a market share of freight

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volumes at 60%, it would have translated into saving petroleum products worth Rs. 7,500 cr per year.

o Analysts predict that the transport sector is set to grow by 10% should the economy grow at 8% a year. IR will not be able to cope with cumulative freight volume growth of 10% per year for the next 10 years. Its present base is 700 mln tonnes a year.

o Capacity augmentation is a serious problem. Carrying capacity per wagon has already increased to 65 tonnes. This can’t increase any more.

o Losses in passenger traffic have been contained by increasing length, seating capacity and occupancy of trains. This can’t go on.

o Six freight corridors needed. Development of new lines on busy routes should be taken up as interim measure.

Rajiv Gandhi Akshay Urja Diwas: Is observed on August 20, 2006.o Figures and facts reeled out by Mr. Vilas Muttemwar, Minsiter of State

for Non-Conventional Energy Sources: India’s wind energy potential - 70,000 MW Hydel potential - 1,50,000 MW Solar energy potential - 5 trillion MW The PM has stated that he expects 50,000 MW to be generated

through non-conventional energy sources by the year 2030. We have already achieved 8,600 MW upto March 2006. And India has the capacity to generate 2500 MW yearly. At this rate, by the end of the 11th plan, we will cross the 20,000 MW mark.

India is 4th in the world in tapping wind power, 5th in small hydro power and second in biogas plants.

Waste energy potential is 5000 MW.

21.08.06:

Labour unions to go ahead with anti-govt stir:o The trade unions opposed any changes in labour laws in the textile

industry and the suggestion made by the group of ministers.o Trade unions opposed giving a blanket exemption to the textile

exporting industry from the provisions of the IDA, amending the IDA to proscribe any strike in textile exporting units and changes in the Factories Act allowing weekly working hours to be increased from 48 to 60 hours.

US appeals court rejects Bhopal gas victims’ plea for damages:o The chemical plant of Union Carbide was shut down after deadly

methyl isocynate gas leaked from it on December 3, 1984 killing 2660 people and seriously affecting the health of another two lakh.

DoT wants Rs. 2000 cr more for infrastructure:o All telecom companies pay 5% of their adjusted gross revenue towards

the USOF (Universal Service Obligation Fund), which is used for building and supporting telecom infrastructure in rural India.

o Under the current norms, the USOF can only be used to support fixed line services.

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Drugs pricing:o Generic generic drugs are only 7% of the market. They have unusually

high trade margins. Focus on efficiency of capital

o ICOR: Incremental capital output ratio is the capital needed for an output one. It is currently 3.7 in the Indian economy i.e., to produce an output of one, 3.7 times capital is needed.

o The goal of optimal efficiency of capital demands the gross value of output being the closest to the capital employed, and not the farthest, but this is not what is happening.

o Irrespective of how profits are maximized, enhancing efficiency of capital by way of physical output vis-à-vis the capital employed should receive close and constant attention.

Bank CEOs as independent directors?o Naina Lal Kidwai of HSBC bank had to forego her independent

director position in a Fortune 500 company (Nestle) just because she is a bank CEO.

o Clause 49 of the listing agreement stipulates that an individual who holds 2% or more of the block of voting shares of the company cannot be appointed as an independent director.

Bull run forces investors to shun open offers:o According to SEBI regulations, if a company’s ownership in another

company exceeds 15% of the equity capital in the target company, the acquiring company has to make an open offer to the retail shareholders of the target company.

Govt. seeks industry support in WPI revision:o Govt. wants to expedite revision of WPI with 1100 items being

included in the manufacturing segment.o The weightage of manufacturing items under WPI is expected to be

63-64%.o Govt. may bring in legislation to seek industry’s cooperation.o The reason for choosing 2000-01 as the base year is that the consumer

price index (CPI) is also calculated with same year as the base.o It is now being proposed that WPI should be revised every 5 years so

as to get a more clear picture of actual inflation rates. Nobel prizes announcement:

o Would be announced in the first two weeks of October.o Value is 10 mln kronor or $1.4 mln.

22.08.06:

India's BPO industry:o is $7bln and employs about 500,000 people.

Will Indian roads see pink Cadillacs?o If cosmetics giant Mary Kay is here, can the famed rewards plan be far

behind?o Mary Kay, which has been selling in more than 30 markets globally,

employs more than 1.6 mln direct sales agents. Wow! Young Indians to nearly double by 2020

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o According to a joint TeamLease Services – Indicus Analytics report, the age group of 25-39 years is projected to grow by about 43% to 35.8 cr in 2020 from 25.1 cr in 2006.

o The 60+ age group will grow by 60% from the current 8.1 cr to 12.9 cr.

The next connectivity revolutiono Even after 15 years of economic reforms, most consumer durables do

not exceed 60 mln in total sales till date.o The number of cars on the road is less than 10 mlno Two wheelers less than 50 mlno Refrigerators less than 60 mlno Total TV sets sold have not yet touched 100 mln.o Mobile phone connections have touched 150 mln mark and are

growing at the rate of 5 mln per month. What is U hypothesis?

o It states that the female participation rates in the workforce are, on an average, higher when an economy is organised around family-based production. The hypothesis further argues that with economic growth and increased urbanization, participation of women in workforce generally declines as women stay home and men go out to work. But at still higher levels of per capita income, which enhances overall capacity building in terms of better access to education, female participation rises again.

Andhra to test flood-tolerant riceo The new rice variety, Swarna sub 1, has a gene that allows rice plants

to survive complete submergence in water for up to two weeks. Budget hotels offer rooms with a view

o In the Rs. 10,200 cr hotel industry, SME hotels account for a turnover of Rs. 350 cr. These are primarily the one and two star hotels in the country with approximately 9500 rooms and a total of 260 hotels across the country.

o The premium segment hotels account for the highest turnover in the industry at Rs. 5,600 cr.

23.08.06:

24.08.06:

Curbs on banks' exposure to VCFso RBI said banks cannot hold more than 30% of the paid up capital of

the investee company.o The RBI has made it mandatory for banks to seek its prior approval

before investing more than 10% in equity capital or units of a VCF. If wellness means water, Tatas mean business:

o The US market for bottled water is growing at over 10%, compared with the $68 bn carbonated soft-drinks market that saw growth plunge by 0.2% in 2005.

o The bottled water market around the world is demarcated into three categories – purified water, source water, and enhanced water.

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o Globally Group Danone and Nestle dominate the bottled water market.o In the energy drinks segment, globally there is one clear leader –

Austria's Red Bull. Mr. Rodrigo de Rato is MD of IMF Road ahead: Fuel cess may haunt you till 2030

o the cess on petrol and diesel was introduced in June 1998. The collections from the cess go mainly towards financing highway projects and repayment of loans. Loans raised for road sector projects alone was over Rs. 6,018 cr in 2005-06 necessitating the move to extend the application period of the cess.

Future perfect: Commodity volumes top equities nowo It took only three years for the commodity markets to achieve a

turnover of Rs. 12,000 to 13,000 cr in India. On the other hand the capital market turnover has come down to Rs. 25,000 to 30,000 cr following the recent crash.

Demise of the development round: Joseph Stiglitzo Development round in world trade – opening up opportunities for

developing countries to grow and reduce poverty.o Brazilian sugar based ethanol costs far less to produce than American

corn based ethanol.o The principle of countervailing duties has been recognized: when a

country gives subsidies, others can impose a tax to offset the unfair advantage given to that country's producers.

Economic outlook brightens: TT Ram Mohano The IMF's World Economic Outlook (April 2006) had proejcted a

growth of 4.9% and 4.7% respectively for calendar years 2006 and 2007 respectively.

o An IMF study in 2000 had estimated that a $5 rise in oil prices reduces global output by a mere 0.25% over four years. The recent WEO estimates that a $10 rise in the price of oil would cause US output to decline by 0.5% over eight years.

Chilli futures lack spiceo Presently about 2.5 lakh bags (of 40 kg each) of chillies are lying in the

cold storages in Guntur market. And arrivals are about 25000 bags a day.

o The arrivals begin in January and go on till June.o In the just ended season output was about 8.5 lk tonnes, almost 40%

lower than the yearly average. PMO forms panel on iron ore exports

o The 13 bn tonnes of haematite ore available in the country can get exhausted in the next 20 years, going by the growth of 10% seen in the steel industry.

o Industry experts say that of the 140 mn tonnes of iron ore produced in India, about 85 mt are exported and 85% of this is in the form of fines.

8 PSUs seek navaratna status:o The qualifying criteria for PSUs to be rated as navaratnas depends on

six ratios, according to the Department of Public Enterprises guidelines.

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o These include net profit to net worth, manpower cost to total cost of production or cost of services, earning per share and inter-sectoral performance.

Approval for Indian arms of Singapore banks put on holdo The CECA with Singapore provided giving QFB (Qualifying Full

Banking) status to three Indian banks on a reciprocal basis. QFB status will allow Indian banks, already operating in Singapore to raise retail deposits and establish 15 centres. Banks will also be allowed electronic funds transfer, clearance and establishment of local ATMs.

o SBI has not been given the QFB status by Singapore so far because of rating issue. The rating is not with SBI, but India's sovereign rating, which is not investment grade. Since SBI's rating cannot be higher than the country's ratings, it fails the MAS (Monetary Authority of Singapore) test.

25.08.06:

Very light jets (VLJ) seek landing slotso VLJ cos Eclipse and Adam of US bet big on India's HNI spending

power.o Eclipse's VLJ will weigh 1603 kg and costs barely $1.5 mln and can

carry 6 people. It requires a runway of only 701 metres and can land on private airstrips, small runways like those in SEZs, industrial parks and sea ports.

o India has an airport infrastructure of 334 airports. DoT to fund new defence link

o Release of 45 Mhz offers potential for 100 M new connectionso DoT proposes to build an alternate network for defence costing Rs. 210

cr for the army, Rs. 620 cr for the air force and Rs. 145 cr for the navy. Software testing business:

o In India is estimated to be about $700 mln next year from $200 mln in the year 2003-04.

Good cover: credit card cos line up to partner LICo There are around 20 mln credit cards in the country. Of this number,

around half of them would be unique credit card holders.o LIC has a customer base of 190 mln policies and around 90 mln unique

customers. NHB mulls reverse mortgage loan for the elderly

o It is estimated that the market for reverse mortgage products in the country is about Rs. 5000 cr.

o Senior citizens opting for reverse mortgage on their homes will get monthly income against it while remaining the owners of their homes. The lending cos will in turn float the loans as mortgage backed securities, which are tradable products.

Indian equity market not swaying to Fed rate tuneso Performance of Indian equity largely independent of US Fed rate

swingso ETIG study examined relationship between Fed funds rate and Sensex

from January 1991 to July 2006.

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o A negative correlation of 0.1 implies that the two events are almost independent of each other

o The India Inc growth story seems to be due to domestic factors rather than external ones.

Cotton production is estimated to be about 260-275 lakh bales this year. Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh are the leading producers.

26.08.06:

29.08.06:

Hot Job: India Inc recruiting fire-fighters in droveso The demand for fire engineers has led to setting up of new institutes.o College of Fire Technology, Ahmedabado Delhi Institute of Fire Engineeringo Institute of Fire and Safety Technology, Kochio National Institute of Fire and Safety, Kochio National Centre for Professional Training, Keralao National Fire Academy, Vadodara

What next for Indian arbitration?o There are 13 judges for every million people in India, compared to 51

in Britain and 107 in the US. o Recent reports indicate that over 30 mln cases are currently pending

resolution in India. Does India need a semiconductor industry?

o India's consumption of electronics is growing from about $10 bn in 2004 to over $300 bn in 2016 and of semiconductors from about $1 bn in 2004 to over $40 bn in 2016.

o Indian semiconductor industry had a turnover of $3.2 bn in 2005 with an engineering workforce of around 75,000. It is estimated to touch $43 bn by the year 2015 and provide jobs to 7,80,000 profressionals with a CAGR of 30% for this period.

o India's electronic equipment consumption which was estimated at around $28.2 bn in 2005, is expected to reach $363 bn by 2015 growing at a CAGR of 29.8%.

o Indian electronic equipment domestic consumption was $10.99 bn in 2005 and projects an opportunity to touch $155 bn by 2015.

o India's total semiconductor consumption in 2005 was about $2.8 bn; it is expected to exceed $36 bn by 2015.

Robusta to get a push up the Indian value chaino 11th plan to remove discrimination against robusta; Indian variety

fetches a premium of $400-500 per tonne.o India's coming 2006-07 coffee crop is projected at 300,300 tonnes, the

break-up being 196,600 tonnes of Robusta and 103,700 tonnes of Arabica.

30.08.06:

Many promoters go on a buying binge

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o Under SEBI guidelines, promoters of a company can acquire up to 5% of the equity capital through the creeping acquisition route in a year.

Ambanis, Birlas now eye carbon credit tradeo India is considered one of the largest beneficiaries in the trade

accounting for about $5 bn or 31% of the total world carbon trade through the Clean Development Mechanism

Meet on Naxal menace today:o The multi-pronged approach of the Central Govt. to tackle Naxal

menace includes: Providing financial assistance to affected states under the police

modernization and security related expenditure schemes Ensuring deployment of adequate central paramilitary forces on

no cost basis Sanctioning of additional India Reserve battalions for states Recruiting maximum persons from affected areas Supply of mine-protected vehicles to neutralize landmine

attacks Air support to naxal affected states for evacuation of casualties

and movement of security personnel Strengthening of intelligence in states and streamlining of

sharing and collection of information 40% recruitment in central forces from border areas affected by

militancy or Naxalism to wean away youth from the path of Naxalism.

States have been asked to undertake recruitment drives to fill up vacancies in police stations in Naxal-affected areas

Centre has ordered deployment of SSB along the Indo-Nepal border

States asked to formulate rehabilitation policy and organize programmes through mass media to counter Naxal propaganda

Global brands face trial by fireo In many instances admitting to a product defect can actually have a

positive rub-off on the brand, say marketing expertso Besides survival in a global market, brand majors have to counter

image hits due to product recallso Self-regulation and voluntary admission are two of the popular

strategies in useo In India, consumer forums are pitching for laws to protect interests of

buyers and increase awareness Notebooks tell strong Q2 story

o The segment has shipped over two lakh (2,19,000) notebooks in the single quarter i.e., Q1 2006-07

Singapore tourism beckons Indian coso BTMICE accounted for 25% of the 8.94 mln global visitors to

Singapore last year and it hosted some 5000 business events IITs, IRMA to study impact of futures on agriculture

o FMC on its own has found a correlation between price discovery through futures trading and trends in production of some agri-commodities.

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Fuel prices in for quarterly reviewo The govt. had allowed oil companies to revise retail prices on a

fortnightly basis when the APM was first decontrolled in April 2002. Winds of change

o Christopher Cox is Chairman of SEC Securities & Exchange Commission of the US

o According to SEC estimates, there are 8,800 hedge funds with $1.2 trillion of assets and account for 30% of all US equity trading volumes

UNCTAD software to detect inverted dutyo An inverted duty structure occurs when the import duties on a finished

product is lower than duties on raw materials used 50 Indian cos eyeing AIM to raise $3 bn

o London based Alternate Investment Market (AIM) started in 1995, requires no minimum requirements for initial equity, minimum public float, market capitalization, trading history and profitability for companies to list.

31.08.06:

Chrys cap buys 5% in UTI Bank o The total banking assets of the country are estimated to be in the region

of $600 bn and UTI bank's assets are around $12 bn Videocon in talks to buy Thai CRT

o Globally the total market of CRT is around 135 mln units and over 95% of the total televisions are sold in India is CRT based.

o The penetration of TV is at only 40 mln units on a base of 200 mln households.

New norms framed to wipe out defence scandalso No negotiations would be conducted with the L-1 vendor identified in

a multi-vendor situation in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Central Vigilance Commission

Kerala tourism takes on blue hueo In the next three months, the hills and ravines of Munnar, the tourist

hot spot in Kerala, will be swathed in a blue blanket with the blooming of Neelakurinji ( a rare blue flower) – a phenomenon that happens once in 12 years.

FIPB sounds warning on courier FDIo At present 100% FDI is allowed in courier industry. The department

of posts is urging for reduction of this limit to 49% since the entire responsibility of fulfilling the universal service obligation (USO) in the segment lies on it while the courier companies do not share the USO costs.

IIFCL's semi-sovereign debt float gets RBI vetoo India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited was set up in January

this year to provide long term debt finance for infrastructure projects in public and private sector, as per a plan announced in budget 2005.

Faster and more inclusive growtho Considering the prevailing socio-economic structure and the nature of

our polity, the challenges for achieving more inclusive growth are much greater than for stepping up the GDP growth rate, says CH

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Hanumatha Rao, Chairman of CESS Centre for Economic and Social Studies, Hyderabad.

Don't cry for steelmakerso There are problems with the proposition that export of raw material

should be banned so that local users of that raw material could thriveo Mining and making the graded ore available is a legitimate commercial

activity that creates jobs and incomeso The present policy of giving steel plants captive mines is wholly

wrong-headed and destroys value. Golden carrot may be on cards for auto cos

o The scheme envisages rewarding the companies that achieve a prescribed level of energy efficiency target in the form of tax credits over a specified period of time for actual output.

o Currently, India consumes 0.16 kg of oil equivalent (kgoe) per dollar of GDP expressed in purchasing power parity.

Indian sea food exports collide with EU againo The problem of cadmium contamination in cephalopods has been

detected from the products caught off the Gujarat and Maharashtra coasts.

01.09.06:

Indians take to the skieso The growth in domestic air-traffic is three times that of international

traffic, which grew by 16%.o About 22.5 mln passengers flew in Q1 (domestic and foreign)

compared to 16.3 mln in the same period last year.o AAI has forecast that traffic at Indian airports will grow to 205 mln by

2011-12 up from 73.3 mln in 2005-06.o An estimated investment of Rs. 110,000 cr will be needed to cater to

this surge in demand. Kondpalli toys

o The toys are made out of special wood called “telliponki”, a variety which is specially grown in the land earmarked for this purpose in villages surrounding Kondappali.

eBay India to unite small retailers on its platformo eBay has over 2 mln registered users in India with about 1500

transactions per day.o The domestic e-commerce market is doubling every year, and is slated

to grow to Rs. 2300 cr this fiscal from Rs. 1180 cr in the earlier year. Media houses upset over TRAI's tariffs

o Typically a channel gets around 60% of the revenues from advertisements and the balance from subscriptions.

Online travel sites are a rageo The online travel industry is growing at 125% (CAGR) annually;

generates revenue of $300 – 500 mln; is around 2% of the entire travel industry.

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o Entire travel industry in India is estimated to be about $20 to 50 blno Online travel industry in India is expected to become a $2 bn industry

by 2008. Small is in: IT outsourcing deals in fragmented bytes

o The average IT spend in 2006 is pegged at 2% of corporate revenues. The median growth in IT spending on a dollar basis was 4.1% in 2005.

Animation cos innovate to fight resource cruncho Color Chips and RVML (RACE) have training academies for

animation in Hyderabad. Indian economy

o The tax to GDP ratio, an indicator of how well the government is tapping into a growing economy, will rise to 11.2% in the current fiscal, from 10.5% in 2005-06.

Why minimum wage is low in Indiao The NREGS guarantees 100 days of employment at the rate of Rs. 60 a

day.o According to World Bank, the rupee equivalent of a dollar can buy

goods and services valued at about five times what a dollar can in America.

Scientific illiteracy on insecticides: P. Chengal Reddy, Chairman of Indian Farmers Federation

o Indian agriculture losses are estimated at Rs. 60,000 cr due to pests.o The market for insecticides in urban areas is around Rs. 2000 cr every

year. Only 25% of India's population live in urban areas.o Crop medicine market (insecticides, fungicides, herbicides) in India is

Rs. 3,800 cr. Human medicines market is around Rs. 23,000 cr.o The number of pesticides used by Indian farmers are 179 as against

755 in US and 600 in EU.o One ppb is equivalent of 1 second in 32 years.

Indian insurance industry o Life insurance market: It grew 41% to Rs. 35,896 cr in FY06o LIC is topper with 70.1% market share, while Bajaj Allianz is second

followed by ICICI Prudential.o General insurance: Gross premiums were up 16% during FY06 to Rs.

20,378 cr. India INC improves capital efficiency, ICOR down to 0.58

o ICOR is defined as (capital employed – previous year's capital employed) / (value of output – previous year's value of output).

IATA trims loss estimate for industry from $3 bn to $1.7 bno Total fuel bill forecast for the current year is $115 bn. This projection

is based on the average oil price of $68 a barrel. Green light: Power for all at low cost

o The Kirit Parikh committee submitted its final reporto Salient features:

Allowing private players in coal industry through an amendment of the Coal Nationalization Act, 1973

Creation of real competition in the petroleum sector through a corrective pricing strategy

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Improving efficiency at the distribution level by reducing the AT&C losses

Independent regulators for individual energy sub-groups03.09.06

Good Money : Bad Moneyo Hawala mode remains the backbone of the sub-continent’s parallel

economy, variously estimated at 30% to 50% of the white economy.o Stats available with the IMF pegs global money laundering at above

$590 bn.o Market players variously estimate the hawala industry at around Rs.

2000- Rs. 3000 cr for both black and white transactions.o Hawala has various names:

Fei-Chien – China Padala – Philipplines Hundi – India Hui Kuan – Hong Kong Phei Kwan – Thailand

WiMax stands for World Interoperability for Microwave Access Zepter, Avon, Tupperware and Amway are direct selling companies The US market for all passenger vehicles is about 17 mln per annum Stress at workplace

o One fourth of the employees worldwide find their jobs stressful.o In India studies show 43% of corporate India stressed.o 66% of Indian CEOs are under stress.

Indian cinema industryo The southern four language film markets produce about 300 to 350

movies in a year for a budget of up to Rs. 1200 cr.o AP has the highest number of theatres in the country with about 2200

halls.04.09.06

Govt. to bat for India Inc’s global acquisitions:o India now stands 15th in terms of outward direct investment by

developing countries with Hong Kong topping the list with $405 bn followed by Singapore with $101 bn.

VC arms eye equity in new pharma retail JVo The organized pharma retailing sector in India has an annual turnover

of Rs. 35,000 cr. Natwar Sing faces ED music

o Justice RS Pathak Inquiry Authority absolved Mr. Sing and his son of having made any personal financial gains from the transactions under the UN oil for food programme.

o The Pathak report has indicted both Mr. Singh and his son for having misused their position in the Congress party to help those known to them in the procurement of oil coupons under the UN sponsored programme run by the Saddam Hussein government.

Savings up in debentures, deposits

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o Gross financial savings accounted for 16.7% of GDP in 2005-06 as compared to 13.8% in 2003-04.

o In the year 2005-06, 4.9% of total financial savings found their way into a category called ‘shares & debentures’.

o Investment in small savings accounted for just 12.3% of financial savings as compared to 19.5% in the year 2004-05.

Money supply on a new higho M3 is a broad indicator of money in the system. It grew by 20% yoy

as of August 18th.o A money supply growth that matches the nominal GDP growth is

considered healthy as it absorbs the total output generated in the economy.

Convertibility in stageso In the case of ECB the committee has recommended scrapping end-use

restrictions and raising the automatic approval limit to first $750 and subsequently to $1 bn.

o Similarly it recommended that companies could invest up to 400% of net worth, up from the current 100%.

Better safe than sorryo Non-performing assets are now down to less than 5% and there’s no

doubt the banking system is in much better than in 1997 when Tarapore submitted his first report.

o The revenue deficit has grown 49% in the first four months of the year compared to just 2% in the comparable period last year.

Re-work tax treaty with Mauritius?o The Indo-Mauritius tax treat (DTAT) was first signed in 1982. The

main provision was that no resident of Mauritius would be taxed in India on capital gains arising out of sale of securities in India.

For an effective oil & gas regulatoro A committee more often than not, it could be said, is a group of the fat,

fifty-ish and seemingly unfit people, and appointed by the decidedly unwilling people to suggest policy panacea which may well be obvious!

Presently India is having a port capacity of 573 mln tonnes. It can be increased to double that if an investment of Rs. 50,000 cr is made in the next five years.

05.09.06:

India requests US for service provider visao The proposed Social Security Dual Taxation Avoidance Treaty –

popularly known as totalisation agreement – would be beneficial for Indian professionals as they can avoid payment of 16.5% tax on their earnings.

Preparing for the big leap: Educational institutions must sharpen their focus on vocational training

o Of all children who enroll in schools, over 50% drop out by class VII and 70% by class X.

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o Vocationalisation of secondary education, introduced in 1988 at the +2 stage, did well initially but later lost steam. At the university level, career oriented courses were introduced in 1994, but have never been popular.

06.09.06

GCMMF to fuse liquid mild brandso The cooperative dairy sector sells about 35-36 lakh litres of liquid milk

in various brand names in including Amul, the flagship brand. Cell operators rely on voice based revenues

o At present the average non-voice based revenues of wireless operators is around 8-10% of mobile revenues, whereas in developed markets it is around 17-18%.

o Churn rate measures the number of disconnections divided by the number of customers.

BSNL, MTNL eye undersea cable bizo There are only four bandwidth providers in India – VSNL, Reliance,

BSNL and Bharti. There are 33 in London, 32 in US and Germany, 24 in France and 14 in South Korea.

Frost and Sullivan to assess STP prospects in townso STP units are exempt from income tax and enjoy a host of other tax

breaks and infrastructure facilities. Brand patent is serious business

o The $ 1 mln plus big bucks legal process outsourcing business is driving India to move at a fast pace on the patent front with four of the intellectual property bhavans at Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata set to become online by April 2007.

o Globally there are now 1200 IP specialists from 140 countries with a major chunk of 40% coming from the US alone.

o During 1995-2005, patent output in India grew from 64 patents in 1995, to a whopping 519 by the end of 2005.

Total outbound travel from India is about 8 mln passengers of which 10% are semi-urban leisure travelers.

Royalties on coal to spiral 15%o The increase in coal royalties is expected to enrich 7 states by about

Rs. 800 cr.o At present, the Centre fixes the royalty on a per tonne basis for three

years which is payable to state governments.o The new system is going to be ad valorem based.

Participatory Noteso One of the reasons why PNs exist is because foreign individuals and

corporates are not allowed to invest directly in Indian market. Also, some categories of investors such as hedge funds may find registering bothersome since they are interested in a limited number of stocks.

Green fuel plans pick up paceo India is the fourth largest producer of ethanol, behind US, Brazil and

China with a total capacity of 2.6 bn litres.o Duty paid ethanol imported in to the country costs Rs. 29 per litre.o Local sugar factories are gunning for about Rs. 27 per litre

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o According to industry estimates, the alcohol industry buys 800 mln litres, chemical companies buy 900 mn litres, potable alcohol another 800 mn litres and now oil companies need another 580 mln litres.

07.09.06

Direct selling: Laggard or Big Potentate?o The Indian direct selling industry is a dwarf compared to its Asian

counterparts. Though the figure of over 13 lakh direct sellers generating over Rs. 2000 cr in sales, in itself, looks impressive, it is just 0.05% and 0.01% of what all of Asia employes (2.5 cr people) and sells (over Rs. 184,000 cr) respectively.

Should government be deciding individual channel prices?o CAS was renotified on July 31, 2006 and is operational from

December 31, 2006.o It has left bouquetisation to broadcasters and MSOs to work out.

US TV shows most ad-clutteredo Worldwide TV today continues to account for over 40% of total global

advertising expenditure.o In India, clutter levels are way below the average global clutter which

stands at 484. India ranks 32nd with a clutter level of 311. New vistas: i-banks on a hiring spree

o The total pool of i-bankers in the country is expected to be around 250-300.

IBSA to host three-way pacto India, Brazil and South Africa framework may morph into PTA or full

blow FTA. PTA=Preferential Trade Agreemento Mecosur includes Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay and Argentina

Carin faces GDH music over reserveso While the production sharing contract allows companies to declare an

oil or gas find, the reserve figures can be announced only after it is certified by the DGH.

Cabinet to soon vet airport regulator bill ahead of House OKo At present AAI manages 126 airports across India, which includes 89

domestic airports, 11 international airports and 26 civilian enclaves located at defence airfields.

o An airport that handles more than 15 lakh passengers annually would qualify as a major airport.

Bid waiver for merchant power plantso Projections by the CEA show that even if the 10th Plan capacity

addition target of 32,804 mw is met, the all India peak shortages would be at an average of 16.3% or 18,913 mw.

Going slow on convertibilityo PNs have come to dominate FII inflows in recent years – in 2005-06,

they accounted for around 80% of all incremental FII inflows. ONGC bets on term oil rig contracts

o ONGC is currently operating a number of jack-up rigs, which are smaller than deep water rigs.

o Deepwater rigs are hired around $125,000 per dayo Jack-up rigs are hired around $60,000 per day.

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o ONGC currently operates close to 30 offshore drilling rigs – about 8% of global fleet, putting it among the largest operators.

o The global fleet of offshore drilling rigs is close to 550. Supply to the Kochi terminal of Petronet LNG may get stalled

o Expected to go on stream in 2009.o Environment protection problems faced by the Gorgon Gas project in

Australia. AP Tobacco crop size hiked up to 150 m kg including nature’s bounty.

o Penalty for unauthorized and excess crop, at present, is levied at the rate of 15% of value plus Rs. 2 per kg.

Productivity slows down in US but wages go upo Productivity is the key factor determining rising living standards.

Strong growth in output allows businesses to pay their workers more without having to raise the cost of their products, which fuels inflation. But the current data raise concerns because they show wage pressures rising as productivity growth slows.

08.09.06:

India rings loud & clearo The total number of cellular mobile connections the world over has

crossed the 2.5 bln mark.o India accounted for over 10% of the total growth over the last 12

months. Zee’s Siticable plans pan-India presence

o Siticable is currently present in 35 towns with a total subscriber base of 6.7 mln subscribers. While it’s the largest, it’s still not the dominant MSO in the country.

Bologna Processo Seeks to create common European education area.

Suicide epidemic among farmers: M. Rajivlochano Despite low returns and high uncertainties, only 29% of the farmers in

Maharashtra and other parts of the country, as per the 59th round of NSSO Survey, said that they did not like farming because the profits were not high enough and only 7% said that farming was a risky enterprise. Most of them, some 61% still reported that they liked farming.

The rules of reconstruction: Graciana Del Castilloo When wars end, countries confront a multi-pronged transition.

Violence must give way to security for inhabitants; lawlessness and political exclusion must give way to the rule of law and participatory government; ethnic, religious, or class/caste polarization must give way to national reconciliation; and ruined war economies must be transformed into functioning market economies that enable ordinar people to support themselves. These tasks make economic reconstruction fundamentally different from ‘development as usual’. To succeed, the transition to peace requires demobilization, disarmament and reintegration of former combatants, as well as reconstruction and rehabilitation of services and infrastructure.

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Pawan bats for phased cuts in iron ore exportso As per industry projections, steel production in the country is slated to

grow to over 130 mln tonnes, much ahead of targets set in the national steel policy.

o Last fiscal, the country produced 165 mt of iron ore and exported 64% of it.

BHEL super critical plans face threato India doesn’t have indigenous capability to manufacture the 800 mw

super critical systems.o BHEL tied up Seimens for power generators and Alstom for boilers.

Ethanol blending on from Nov 1: Deorao Oil marketing companies will have to procure almost 60 cr litres of

ethanol for blending with petrol to promote green fuel in the country.o The energy equivalent price of ethanol works out to Rs. 15.60 a litre,

taking one-year peak petrol cost of Rs. 26 per litre. Satellite images expose scars in Indian tea plantations

o Over 70% of India’s bushes are over 50 years old. Darjeeling produces around 550 kg tea per hectare annually against 2100 kg produced by Kenya, which has new plantations.

11.09.06:

Networking: Ringing in mobile communitieso Around 3 mln mobile subscribers are connected to GPRS, out of the

total of over 118 mln.o Compared to around 30 mln Internet users, India has around 118 mln

mobile connections and is adding over 5 mln per month. Attrition no tension for govt. units

o HAL currently has about 30,000 employeeso ISRO has about 16,200 employeeso Their attrition rates are very low – 1 to 5%.

Rake in the moolah by being speech specialistso India has only 1500 registered audiologists compared to the 1.2 lakh in

the US.o The symptoms of stuttering and stammering disorder first appears

between the ages of 2.5 years and 4 years and nearly 1% o fthe general population suffer from this disorder.

IT cos stock up on goodies abroado Outbound deals this year at $820 mln surpassed inbound dealso Inbound deals (where international cos acquire Indian companies) are

pegged at $784 mno Domestic deals are pegged at $150 mn

Lead bank appointments for infra projects relaxedo The present cap of 25% on debt financing by a financial institution, to

qualify as a lead banker may be dropped altogether. Instead, the FI with the highest debt exposure in a project may automatically qualify as the lead manager for a project.

o In infrastructure projects undertaken under the PPP route, the government often also provides viability gap funding of up to 20% of

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the total project cost. However, this is not provided unless the other funds are tied up for projects.

o A lead banker does the documentation work required for a project and works out funding programmes with other banks and institutions.

The world has had enougho Globally the airlines reported a loss of $18 bn in 2001 most of its

resulting from reduced traffic arising from a fear of flying.o To make all the 7000 odd civilian aircraft of US, missile proof by

deploying electronic decoy systems, it would cost about $11 bn Basel II Norms

o The implementation of these norms stipulated by the Basel committee of the Bank of International Settlements will require more capital for banks in India.

Currently the banking sector is reported to have an exposure of over Rs. 70,000 cr to the SME segment in India.

Education’s share in states’ total budgetary allocation declineso The govt. is projected to spend 6% of the GDP on education, half of

this on primary and secondary education alone.o The share of education in individual’s consumption basket has gone up

from 2% in 2000-01 to 2.3% in 2004-05.o All the states in India have allocated just 7.2% of their aggregate

budgetary expenses on education in 2005-06. PMS on their mind: Brokers eye BPO staff

o Currently about 14% or about Rs. 5.5 lk cr of the total GDP of the country goes into financial savings.

o The size of the PMS market is estimated to be at over Rs. 10,000 cr.14.09.06:

Govt. to ease off on ECB capo The current aggregate cap of $18 bn on all such ECB loans set for this

fiscal may be relaxed.o The total non food gross bank credit to industry has risen at almost

29% in 2005-06 and is moving at the same rate this year also.o In the last fiscal corporates have raised over $17 bn through the ECB

route. RIL takes ethanol plunge in Brazil

o India currently has to import up to 30% of its requirement of industrial alcohol.

o In Brazil the cost of producing ethanol is one third of that in India. Reform process has run out of steam: Mulfold

o The World Bank has ranked India 134 out of 175 countries for the difficulties of establishing or operating a business.

Search for ‘enhance water’: A Tata Tea storyo At $80 bn, the carbonated soft drinks market in the US is the world’s

largest. Amul to be largest liquid milk brand, globally

o The GCMMF, the apex marketing body of dairy cooperatives sells about 35 lakh litre Amul brand liquid milk per day throughout India.

Mobile population

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o Mobile population is estimated to reach almost 5 times as much as Cable & Satellite TV in the next three years

o With it the mobile operators’ value added services kitty will swell to over Rs. 3000 cr by 2009, up from Rs. 1100 cr currently.

Neela Kurini bloom takes Munnar to new higho The Nilgiri tahr is the only mountain ungulate south of the Himalayas

Telcos won’t ring in cable benefits soono BSNL now has 8 lakh broadband customers and is targeting 1 cr over

the next few yearso The cables going westwards from India to Europe include

SMW-3 80 Gbps Flag 80 Gbps SMW-4 1280 Gbps Falcon 2560 Gbps

o The cables going to Asia are SMW-3 80 Gbps Flag 80 Gbps Tata Indicom 5120 Gbps i2i 8400 Gbps SMW-4 1280 Gbps

o BSNL has nearly 1 bn minutes of ILD traffic per year. Engineering: The Third Wave

o Spending on Engineering Services was $750 bn in 2004 and is projected to grow to $1.1 tn globally by 2020.

o In fiscal 2005, $10-15 bn of engineering services was offshored. The market is expected to grow to $150-225 mn by 2020.

o The country’s share of offshored engineering services, which is currently at 12% is expected to increase to 30% in the same period.

o By 2015, India’s GDP is likely to grow 2.5 times the current size. Currently it is about Rs. 25 lakh crores.

o To truly deliver the potential India reuires as many as 2.5 lk engineers.o India currently employs about 35000 engineers in engineering services.

The DSE-ECRI coincident index reflects the collective movements in income, output, employment and sales in the economy and is thus a robust measure of overall economic activity.

15.09.06:

Tata Tea to sell stake to fund Glacaeu buyo The SEBI guidelines permit promoter groups to buy only up to 5% in

their companies each year without having to make an open offer. Rs. 120 cr Tata brand bag just bulges

o Companies that use the Tata brand name directly, for eg., Tata Steel, Tata Tea and others, contribute 0.25% of their turnover or 5% of profit before tax , whichever is less.

o The other group companies that don’t use the Tata name directly, like Indian Hotels, contribute 0.15% of their turnover.

o Only profit making companies make these brand payments.

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o Tata brand is valued at Rs. 24,396 cr. This is the value of Tata brand along with its sub brands.

Welcome change: Have a clear cut policy on ATF saleso Estimates suggest that the price of ATF could fall by as much as a

quarter with global firms selling it in domestic airports.o The Indian prices of ATF are generally 30% higher than those abroad.o The bottom line is that the whole practice of gross, open ended

subsidies and cross-subsidies on oil products needs to be dumped. It’s time we put paid to glaring price distortions.

Is politics dominating economics?o Since 1995 developed countries have been replacing export subsidies

by domestic production and income subsidies.o Various estimates place the total value of agricultural subsidies at over

$250 bn. Power sector on the up swing

o The Govt. has plans to add 100,000 MW generation capacity by 2012.o From a capacity addition of 6000 MW to 7000 MW a year, the country

has to shift gears to achieve the addition of over 15000 MW per year.o 7 ultra mega generation projects proposed at

Chattisgarh Gujarat Maharashtra MP Karnataka AP and Orissa

o The national electricity policy says competition will determine the price rather than any cost plus exercise.

o It will enhance regional power transfer capacity to about 37000 MW at an investment of $16000 mln

o At present India is placed 6th in the world energy market.o Its per capita consumption is expected to go up from 606 kwh in 2006

to 1000 kwh by 2012.o The total generation capacity as on July 31, 2006 is 1,26,838 MW.

Hydro 32,975 Coal 68,988 Gas 13,581 Diesel 1,201 Nuclear 3,900 Renewable 6,190

o The state electricity grids have been connected through 220 KV network with neighbouring states to form a zonal grid. Zonal grids have been interconnected by 400 KV and by 765 KV lines. The era of 765 KV transmission began in 2006 and is expected grow quickly with the expected addition of huge capacitates in near future.

16.09.06:

New measures signal a sea change in business: Banking

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o In the past the Indian Banks Association used to fix the benchmark service charges, a practice which was discontinued in 1999 as it was seen to be inconsistent with competition.

Gujarat’s dying Soudagiri art to get new lease of lifeo Soudagiri art involves printing different vegetable dyes on cotton, after

which a special technique is used which gives it a fine look and feel. LPOs cash in on patent outsourcing

o It is estimated that legal process outsouring segment of the Indian BPO industry is worth about $60-80 mn. It is also estimated that the industry has about 50-60 firms that employ about 700 lawyers.

New giants amid aged titans: IMF voting rightso Current quotas are roughly determined by a country’s GDP, openness

to trade and reserves. Coffee consumption in India

o Annual consumption which was around 60,000 tonnes during 1980-2000, of late has touched 80,000 tonnes.

17.09.06:

India’s plantations work the impossible dreamo The conventional wisdom is that natural rubber grows best at altitudes

of 1000 ft and tea at over 3000 ft.o The Indian plantation sector employs over 5 mln people in remote

areas where alternate jobs are scarce. AP wants Centre to boost funding for agriculture

o The state has about 3 cr acres of arable land.o Currently 60 lk acres of land are under irrigation and in the next three

years 1.6 cr acres of land will get assured water. World Bank stresses need to invest in youth

o There are 1.3 bln people between ages of 12 and 24 living in the developing world.

o Young people make up nearly half of the world’s unemployed.o About 130 mln people in the 15-25 age group cannot read or write.o The world economy is currently performing better than expected, with

growth of 5.1% forecast for this year. India is young with about 45% of the population below 20 years. Great Indian gold rush

o About 8 mln marriages take place every year in India.o Annual gold demand in India is around 650 tonnes while global

demand is around 2500 tonnes.

18.09.06:

Virtual wheels spell big bucks for design companieso Auto industry’s search for faster product development may spell

billions of dollars in offshoring revenues for Indian software and design prototyping companies.

o And estimates currently peg its value at just $100 mln.o Virtual manufacturing can cut product development time by 25%.

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Citi, HDFC working to build deeper tieso Citi group holds over 12% equity in HDFC, after it acquired 9.27% in

the company from the secondary market last May. Telangana liberation day

o September 17, 1948 was the day when Telangana was liberated from the rule of Nizam of Hyderabad. The Nizam agreed to merge his state with the Indian Union.

New horizons in pharma sectoro Global pharma market is estimated to be $550 billion. Of this Indian

market size is estimated to be $6 billion. India’s share is estimated to be growing at 10% per annum.

o One estimate puts the Indian pharma industry size at Rs. 50,000 cr.o Vaccine sales in 2004 were placed at $386.3 million.o The diagnostics market was placed at $138.2 million.

Philips to setup new HQ in NCR by 2008o Philips has 5 divisions operating in India – lighting, consumer

electronics, domestic appliances, medical systems and semi-conductors.

o All the divisions currently being operated from various places are proposed to be brought under one roof in Delhi.

Future group ropes in McKinsey to script growtho Future group (Pantaloon) is aiming to take its turnover to Rs. 30,000

crore by 2010 from the current Rs. 2000 cr.o Proposes to increase its manpower strength to 1,50,000.

India’s demand for wind energy is placed at 45,000 mw. Of this currently only about 4000 mw is in place.

Private and foreign banks feel the pinch as wage climbo The average operating expense for foreign banks has shot up from Rs.

564 cr to Rs. 707 cr per bank. Indian Railways has managed a U-turn to earn profits of Rs. 15,000 cr in

2005-06 – the second largest profit earner after ONGC. Gem and Jewellery exports are slated to touch $20 bn by 2007. Labour reforms are back on radar

o Right now industrial units employing more than 100 workers have to mandatorily seek government approval for closing down their operations.

o According to a World Bank study introduction of contract labour system increases the employment opportunities in the manufacturing sector by 30%.

o There are around 154 labour laws meant to ensure the welfare of workers. Majority of these laws affect the workers in the organized sector who constitute around 3 cr workers out of the total workforce of 40 cr.

o The previous NDA government appointed a Labour Commission headed by Ravinder Verma, the second since independence. It submitted an exhaustive report on labour reforms about three years ago. However consensus eluded in effecting labour reforms.

PM moves to bring power projects on track

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o Against the targeted capacity addition of 41,110 mw in 10th Plan, the country was able to add only 26,997 mw.

o In the 11th plan, the target is likely to be fixed at 60,000 mw.o PM asked his Economic Advisory Council Chairman Mr. Rangarajan

to take charge of monitoring achievements against targets and resolve problems in the sector without further delays.

Big company is better for lower interest costso According to an RBI study, it was found that companies with turnover

of more than Rs. 1000 cr could manage to contain the rise in interest costs to about 2.3% only.

RBI weekly statistical supplement as of September 1st 2006o Forex reserves $165.13 bno Aggregate deposits mobilized by scheduled commercial banks Rs.

22,51,701 cr.o Bank investment in government and other approved securities Rs.

7,68,491 cr.o Credit extended by scheduled commercial banks Rs. 15,92,628 cr.o Total stock of money in circulation Rs. 28,90,535 cr.

NELP VI (New Exploration and Licensing Policy) for oil and gas explorationo 165 bids received for 55 blockso Total investment in the pipeline is pegged at $8-10 bno Innovation in this round is the move to do away with the practice of

assigning maximum bid weightage to upfront commitments in drilling and seismic surveys.

o Most of the country’s sedimentary basins remain unexplored.o Estimates suggest that up to 10 bn tonnes of crude and 1 tcm of gas

may be waiting to be discovered. An emerging interactions economy: John Chambers

o Consumer spending in India is growing at 9%.o India’s telecom network is the 5th largest in the world and 2nd largest

among developing economies.o The telecom industry directly contributes 2.7% of India’s GDP.

Is the commodity boom peaking?o The US is currently running a current account deficit of 6% per annum.o Index funds have $80 bn under management from close to negligible

funds in the 1980s.o Total investible funds in the world are a whopping $150 trillion. Of

this amount, roughly half is held by banks, slightly more than a quarter in bonds and a little less than a quarter in stocks.

o Alternative investments where most hedge funds, commodity trading advisers and index funds reside, currently comprises a mere 0.2% of total investment funds.

FIIs and the convertibility hurdle: Rajrishi Singhalo FIIs have pumped in close to $45.20 bn in Indian stock markets.o Under the current regulations FIIs cannot cancel and rebook their

forward contracts. Once they have booked a contract, they cannot wriggle out of the pact, even if the market moves the other way.

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o This resulted in movement of the hedging mechanism offshore, to Singapore where there is a ‘non-deliverable forwards’ market. In this market the FIIs can hedge their exposure.

o At last count the daily turnover for rupee dollar deals in the NDF market was over $100 mn

19.09.06:

MoD shoots down US encryption softwareo Afrmed forces officers have objected to the proposed use of bulk

encryption units (BEU) software from CISCO for encrypting internal communications of the armed forces.

Product ads rules TV channelso The number of feature-based ads have shot up from a mere 164 to a

whopping 1734 in the last two years in India. A growth of almost 1000%.

o There are over 35000 ad spots across channels every day. Beer business growth in India

o In the first five months of FY 2006-07, the beer market has grown by 26%.

Cell cos to be taxed on international roaming serviceso Every call made in India by overseas visitors on roaming network will

be chargeable to service taxo Telecom accounts for 45% of the total annual service tax collections.o The government collected about Rs. 11,000 cr in service tax from the

sector last fiscal.o Out of the total telecom industry revenues of Rs. 60,000 cr,

international roaming is just about Rs. 1,200 cr. Graduation tourism turns new money-spinner

o With more than 2 lakh Indian students traveling overseas to study every year, graduation tourism is picking up.

o Of the 6 mln people going abroad annually, 55% are corporate travelers and 25% are leisure trip makers. The remainder are people visiting friends and family abroad for students.

India’s mortgage BPO biz to touch $1.1 bln by 2010o The total value of mortgage BPO delivered from India is estimated to

jump to $1.1 bn by 2010 from just $100-150 mn at present.o The global mortgage BPO market is currently $10-11 bn with industry

estimates pegging it about $22 bn by 2010. As per WHO norms, one hospital bed is needed for every 300 lives. Cos get closer to colleges to fill job requirements

o Around 500,000 engineering and science students graduate each year from more than 1500 colleges across the country.

o Only 30-35% of all graduates in the country can be productively employed by Indian IT companies, estimate HR professionals in IT companies.

BSNL, BEML among six new mini-ratnas

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o BSNL, BEML, Hindustan Latex, Engineering Projects India Ltd (EPIL), Rashtriya Ispat Limited (RIL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) are given the mini-ratna status.

o The status given them the freedom to make investments up to Rs. 500 cr in both joint ventures or subsidiaries as well as on capital expenditure. This is without government nod.

Foreign banks are better off says RBIo For very Rs. 100 lent, public sector banks incur a 75 basis point higher

cost compared to foreign banks.o Nearly 60% of the loan portfolios of most public sector banks are

linked to their respective PLR. Reduce the WPI weightage for sugar: argues Kushagra Nayan Bajaj

o To survive Indian sugar industry needs to get a minimum margin of around Rs. 475 per quintal for converting sugarcane into sugar.

o The private sector contributes 55.6% of the total sugar production in India.

o The average Indian consumers 1.5 kg of sugar in a month. Redefining NAM in the new world: MK Venu

o Developing countries have accumulated fresh forex reserves worth over a trillion dollars in the past three to four years.

o Trade among south-south countries has grown at about 15% annually in the past three years even as world trade has grown at a meager 5%.

o Today 43% of all trade in the developing world is accounted for by south-south nations.

India a global auto manufacturing hub?o India is among the three largest manufacturers of compact cars,

alongside Japan and Brazil.o In Japan the transit time from the factory to the ship is just 48 hours.

For Maruti in India, it takes two months.o The total value of auto manufacturing is currently put at $34 bn. The

newly proposed Automotive Mission Plan proposes to take it to about $145 bn by 2016.

o The component industry is currently placed at $10 bn. Let’s not gas around

o The US produces approximately 25% global carbon emissions, even as it holds less than 5% of the worlds population.

o Transportation sector accounts for 25% of GHG emissions worldwide.o Petroleum consumption globally is growing at 2% per year.

Videocon has SEZ dreamso Government sources say that the proposed 150 SEZs would give

employment to over 7 lakh people. Investment in infrastructure alone would be about Rs. 4000 cr. in each of the 30 multi-product SEZs, thus accounting for a total investment of Rs. 2 lk crore.

Government told to wash its hands of NURM, secondary educationo Finance Ministry raises concerns over projects with massive fundingo 58% of the 1.38 lk secondary schools in the country are run by the

private sector.o The share of the private unaided schools has increased from 15% in

1993-94 to 24% in 2001-02.

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20.09.06:

Arcelor-Mittal, SCI JV on cardso Partners to hold 50% each in the JV which will be registered in Indiao Arcelor-Mittal produces 110 million tonnes of steel at 26 locations

across the world.o It consumes around 175 to 180 million tonnes of iron ore annually,

most of its sourced from Brazil.o It also requires huge quantities of coking coal – around 60 to 70

million tonnes at the rate of 0.6 tonne for every 1 tonne of steel produced.

o The JV will help the company cut transportation costs of iron ore. DoT puts FIPB rider on foreign investors

o Telcos may require FIPB nod if the foreign stakeholder is entitled to have a nominee on its board of directors. This is irrespective of the foreign component in the telecom venture.

HFCs may be allowed to tap insurance, PFs of resourceso The government may soon permit housing finance companies to tap

provident funds and insurance companies for raising resources.o They may also be allowed to raise long-term hedges to help them

reduce their financing costs. Schumi’s last lap puts bookings for Shanghai F-1 on fast track

o The 37 year German F-1 racer Michael Schumacher (who announced his retirement from F-1 racing recently) is touted as the most charishmatic driver since Ayrton Senna, who crashed to death at Imola in 1994.

PM to meet TNA MPs on efforts to resolve the ethnic conflicto PM is slated to meet the MPs from Sri Lanka.o The conflict has so far claimed 65,000 lives since 1983.

All India penetration for toothpastes is 49%, for shapoos it is 38% and for skin-creams it is 22%.

Riding retail boom: Railways in talks with AVB Groupo India loses Rs. 50,000 cr every year due to an inefficient vegetablexs

and fruit supply chain system.o Of about 400 mln tonnes of freight in agri products, the railways has a

share of only 50 mln tonnes. UB plans wine foray

o The still nascent domestic wine consumption is pegged at 7.5 lk cases annually; but growing at 20-30% YOY.

Reliance and Chevron now eye retail marto Reliance Petroleum is developing a new $6.1 bln refinery with a

capacity to refine about 580,000 barrels a day. This coupled with the existing refinery capacity of about 660,000 bpd will make it the largest refiner in the world at one site.

Reinventing Bretton Woods ‘brats’o IMF has 184 member countries.o The IMF board has taken an in principle decision to increase the quotas

(voting power) of four countries – China, South Korea, Mexico and

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Turkey, as part of the first stage of broader process of quota reform over the next two years.

NAM has 116 countries as members. The slippery slope: A fall in oil price highlights the traps in commodity

investmento The IEA reckons that OPEC has no more than 2 mln bpd of spare

capacity – just over 2% of global demand.o That is too small a cushion to compensate for dramatic disruption in

supply from Iran (which supplies 3.9 mbd), Nigeria (2.3 mbd) or Iraq (2.1 mbd) and barely enough to make up for another terrible hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico (1.5 mbd).

Slow fast clearanceo Till July 2006 end, the RBI cleared cheques worth Rs. 88,80,997,62 cr,

which is about Rs. 50,000 cr more than last year. This is in spite of having an RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) mechanism in place.

o Money parked in savings bank accounts across banks rose to Rs. 14,000 cr from Rs. 4,000 cr last year.

AT&T gets nod for long distance services in India RLS (Reliance Life Sciences) stars contract research of biopharmaceuticals

o The Indian biotech industry’s share in global market is just 1.1%.o In the international market, the combined US and EU biogeneric

market is expected to reach $21 bn by 2015.o The global biotech market is currently pegged at $52 bn.

Biocon launches new drug for head and neck cancero Head and neck cancer accounts for 30% of all cancer cases in India.o The market size for monoclonal antibodies in India is around Rs. 50 to

60 cr. This market is expected to almost tripel in value over the next 6 eyars from $10.3 bn in 2004 to $30.3 bn.

OECD Secretary General : Mr. Angel Gurria Cairn Energy to begin oil drilling this week

o Ravva field has oil reserves of 70 mbd as per initial estimates.o The recent revised estimates put the reserve level at 300 mbd.o In Rajasthan, Cairn Energy made a discovery of an estimated 20 mn

tonnes of oil, the biggest in India in 22 years. AI-Indian merger on track, says Patel

o The merger of Air India and Indian would churn out a mega carrier with a fleet of about 130 aircraft.

Blogs coin new money talko India has 28 mln internet users and 86% of these users browse blogs,

says Juxt Consult, an online research company. ETFs face swings & bounces here

o AUMs (Assets under management) of domestic ETFs rose to Rs. 1,563 cr in August from Rs. 868 cr in March.

o AUMs of international ETFs have risen to $487 bn.o The number of ETFs has grown to 596 in June from 336 in 2004.

Car productiono GM is the world’s leading producer of automobiles with about 9.05

mln vehicles produced in 2005.o Toyota comes next with 8.23 mln vehicles.

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21.09.06:

Cos run for political cover, insurers refuse to play ballo Insurance cover for investments in third world countries hard to come

by in international finance marketso ONGC Videsh first bought a $750 mn political cover for its exposure

in Sudan from a state-owned company.o Political risk cover (also called CEND cover – confiscation,

expropriation, nationalization and deprivation of assets) typically protects a corporation from its assets being confiscated, expropriated or nationalized by the local government.

Largest home budget pie goes for daily breado An average socio-economic class household in urban India spends Rs.

1,22 lakh per annum or Rs. 10,204 per month.o Percentage spends are:

36% on grocery 26% on rent and utilities 2.7% on loan repayment 4.1% on savings

With a strong economy and rising incomes, consumer goods are expected to see buoyant demand in the coming 3 to 4 year period. Rural and semi-urban India is expected to play a large part in this demand account for 65% of color television demand, 48% for mobikes, 33% for refrigerators and 11% for cars.

Global liquor brands plan assault with bottled-in-India Scotcho The Indian spirits market size is 120 mln cases per annum.

Bell or EADS; Copter deal to be decided in Dec ‘06o After 2 years of evaluation, the defense ministry may soon decide on

the supplier for 197 helicopters for the Indian Army.o The new copters will replace the Chetak and Cheetah helicopters.o The deal is estimated to cost about $500 mln. The government will

buy 60 copters off the shelf, while the remaining 137 are to be manufactured by HAL with 100% technology transfer from the chosen company.

Airlines to reap honeymoon buckso India’s outbound traffic, growing at 20-25%, comprises largely of

honeymooners apart frfom leisure and business travelers. TAG unveils India’s first in-store TV network

o An in-store TV network is an advertising platform that enables advertisers to influence consumers within the retail environment.

Dr. Reddy’s bets big on pharma outsourcingo Globally the pharma outsourcing market is estimated at $35 bno Presently India’s share in this business is about $400 mln and is

expected to grow to $1 bn soon. India’s first stem cell transplant centre to treat killer diseases

o LifeCell to launch facility in Chennaio Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that retain the ability to produce an

identical copy of themselves when they divide and differentiate into other cell types.

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Tax spurt points to profit pick-upo Latest advance tax paid by the corporate sector showed a growth of

30% over last year.o Net direct tax collections have recorded a growth of 37.7% to reach Rs.

70,748 cr in April-Sep 2006-07. Urea shortage: No food for fields

o Urea consumption is going up; but manufacturers are not willing to scale up production, due to the differential pricing in feedstock (natural gas). As against the subsidized price of $3 per mbtu, for the increased production they have to buy it at $12-$13 per mbtu.

o An increase of every dollar in price of gas leads to an increase of Rs. 1000 per tonne in the cost of urea.

o This year India will import more than 3 mln tonnes of urea.o World trade in Urea is pegged at 26 mln tonnes.

Is India finally flying? Arvind Panagariayo Without rapid expansion of the unskilled labour intensive industry,

progress towards reduction and transition to a modern economy will remain far slower than is feasible.

o The economy has grown at a phenomenal 19% per annum in current dollars in the last three years.

o In 1990-91 the GDP in current dollars was $317 bn. During the last three years it has increased to $800 bn

Exponential e-commerceo The e-commerce industry in India is expected to grow to a size of Rs.

2,300 cr by 2007 agasint the present Rs. 1200 cr.o 29% of Indian internet users book airline tickets online and this figure

is expected to touch 46% by next year.o Online rail ticket booking stands at 39% of the total bookings.o There are 4.6 mln online banking users in INdia. This figure is

expected to touch 16 mln by 2007-08.o E-ticketing penetration is low in India at 17% as against the world

average of 49%.o India has 20,000 ATMs as against 300,000 ATMs in US.

PCB industry poised for greater growtho Indian market for electronic products is currently at $25 bn and

growing at 30%; is expected to touch $90 bn by 2010. NTPC plans to triple production by 2017

o NTPC plans to increase is generation capacity to exceed 75000 MW by 2017 from its current 26,194 MW.

22.09.06:

Gujaratis create gold bisuit cruncho On an average Gujarat consumes about 200-250 tonnes of gold a year,

out of the total imports of 800 tonnes into India.o India is the world’s largest buyer of the metal.

AIDS drug tenofovir’s price set to crasho Its inventor and US patent holder Gilead struck non-exclusive

licensing deals with four more Indian drug makers.

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o At present there are about 5.5 mln AIDS patients in India. Schneider switches on deal for Anchor unit

o Schneider Electric India is eyeing Anchor Electrical’s switches division. If the deal goes through Schneider will have an estimated market share of 40% in the switches and sockets market of India, which is currently pegged at Rs. 1000 cr.

Family biz beats professional cos fair and squareo Family owner companies in India has outperformed professionally

managed companies over the last five years, reveals and ET analysis of the BSE-100 companies.

o However, professionally managed Indian companies that are not owned by MNCs have fared slightly better than family-owned ones on the growth indicators during the same period i.e., 2001-2006.

OVL, Sinopec buy Omimex for $850 mno ONGC Videsh Limited and China’s Sinopec have acquired Omimex

de Colombia.o Omimex has oil and gas operations exclusively in Colombia, with

gross-proved reserves of more than 300 mn barrels of oil. Current production is approximately 20,000 bpd.

Mumbai police wants to monitor cyber cafeso They fear that the cyber cafes may be misued by anti-nationals.o This is significant in view of the recent conclusion by them that 7/11

blasts in Mumbai were funded by Al Qaeda and executed by LeT. Moto-monsters to race to India

o A number of key motorcycle manufacturers are planning to roll out high-end bikes in the 500cc plus range in India in 2007.

Lotto eyes 10% market share by 2010o India’s sports shoe market is estimated to be Rs. 600 cr in size.

Branded stationery market in India is valued at around Rs. 500 cr, while the global export market is estimated to be around Rs. 10,000 cr.

MNC pharmas to pay for data exclusivityo An inter-ministerial panel is about to recommend that local copies of

MNC drugs have to wait for three to five yearso The domestic industry wants the government to wrest something in

return from the US backed MNC drug makerso They want benefit-sharing deal on all patented drugs which use

biological resources and traditional knowledge of Indian origin. Risk-averse MNCs move India up the value chain

o India may receive $500 mn in three years as MNCs shift value chain from China and the West.

o Value chain is the set of activities spanning procurement of basic raw materials to the distribution of the final product.

Hotels lose out manpower to BPO and retail sectorso The average staff turnover at 5-star deluxe hotels in India is at 29%,

while it is much higher at 32%, 43% and 47% for 4-star, 3-star and 2-star hotels respectively.

Catch them young, ICAI tells govt.o ICAI as lobbying the govt to introduce commerce as a subject from 8th

or 11th standard onwards.

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o Currently around 7500 to 8000 CAs pass out annually.o There is a shortage of 25,000 to 30,000 professionals in the country.

Software piracy down but more measures neededo Software piracy in India dipped by about 2% to 72%.o In China it did so by 4% to 86%.

Minimum investment criteria set for SEZso To set up a multi-product SEZ, the investor has to have a net worth of

Rs. 250 cr and the minimum investment required is Rs. 1000 cr. A multi-product SEZ will be allowed 25,000 houses, a 250 room hotel and a hospital with 100 beds.

o To set up a sector specific SEZ, the applicant’s net worth has to be Rs. 50 cr while the minimum investment criteria is Rs. 250 cr. Sector specific SEZs would be allowed to have 7500 houses, hotels with a total of 100 rooms and 25 bed hospital and schools and other educational institutions over 25,000 sq meters.

o IT SEZs require a net worth criteria of Rs. 100 cr. More government projects are on time now

o A quarterly status implementation project report of the Centre shows that of the 742 projects, 245 were on time while 269 were behind date.

o In the last 10 years, cost overrun with respect to originally approved cost has declined from 47% in 1996 to 17.4% in 2006.

Buying into NBFCs becomes toughero Foreign banking groups will find it more difficult to buy into dormant

finance companies to make inroads into financial services.o At present, a foreign institution requires $50 mn to start a wholly

owned NBFC, $5 mln where the stake is between 51% and 75% and $0.5 mn where the stake is less than 51%.

o To qualify as an NBFC 50% of the income should be from finance activities.

FIPB core group to look into Guardian-MRL rowo Guardian wanted to part ways with the local partners in Gujarat

Guardian by buying out their stake in the local venture and start operations on their own.

o Press Note 1 provides protection to domestic industries working in partnership with foreign companies by enjoining the foreign companies to get an ‘No Objection Certificate’ from their local partners for starting new wholly owned ventures.

o Modi Rubber Limited is objecting to Guardian starting its operations in India as Gujarat Guardian is a joint venture. Guardian is willing to buy out the local partners in the JV, but there are disagreements over pricing.

State of affairso India is placed at 134, out of 175 in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing

Business Rankings What is convergence?

o Delivery of different servies through one platform or same service through multiple mediums.

Food imports need not be an anathema: Dhanmanjiri Sathe

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o Self sufficiency should mean the capacity to buy goods globally rather than the capacity to produce them domestically

o If import was acceptable with respect to Onions, there should be no reason to cry hoarse over wheat imports

o Balance between the interests of farmers and consumers needs to be achieved.

Has the NELP been successful?o To determine its success or failure, we should at the fine print of the

bids: What is the profit share offered by the bidder at various

investment multiples What is the work programme like How much cost-recovery the bidder wants etc.

o The ability and track record of the bidders to deploy and manage technologies to discover oil are critical to the success of any prospecting programme.

SEZs as a Chinese puzzle: Narender Panio Globalization is not just about glamorous economic activities that can

be generated simply by reducing grade barriers. It is also about investing to help the less successful sectors benefit from a global market.

o The Mekong model of globalization laid emphasis on building connectivity.

o The National Stock Exchange is the 3rd largest exchange in the world and the BSE is 5th largest.

Taking the LEEDo Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design is a US rating.o According to Indian Green Building Council, structures with LEED

certification are set to see a growth of 10 mln sft from the current 20,000 sft.

o Energy efficient buildings can save up to 27% of total energy costs annually.

What is 3G and typically what services it can offer?o 3G is high speed mobile broadband access with a speed of more than

384 kbps which can go upto 2 mbpso Possible services are: high-speed internet access, videophone, video

stgreaming, high-speed video messaging, music downloads and mobile TV.

Amaranth’s holding in Indiabulls arm hangs in balanceo Amaranth, a US based hedge fund has taken a big hit on account of

hyper volatility in natural gas prices. Its assets under management have plunged to $4.6 bn from $9.2 bn in a month.

PSU oil firms set to anchor petrochem investments areaso After SEZs, it is the petrochemicals, petroleum and chemical

investment regions (PCPIRs).o Each such hub would be set up in an area of 250 sq km and 40% of it

will be the minimum processing area. AAI seeks mini-ratna status for autonomy

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o Category I mini-ratna status would give the freedom to invest up to Rs. 500 cr in a single project without going to the Government.

o Category II status would give the freedom to invest up to Rs. 250 cr in a single project without Govt. approval.

Tea production in Indiao South India produced 227 mln kg of tea in 2005o North India produced 701 mln kg.

India now wants more power on IMF boardo India is seeking quotas on IMF board based on the GDP on PPP

(purchasing power parity) basis.o India’s current GDP is at $750 bn. On PPP terms, it is the 4th largest

economy in the world.

23.09.06:

IRDA against sovereign backing for LIC planso IRDA has recommended that the government should withdraw its

guarantee for LIC policies. The sovereign guarantee provides comfort to over 16 crore policy holders of LIC.

o LIC has a share capital of only Rs. 5 cr.o Under the LIC Act, 95% of the surplus earned goes to policy holders

and 5% to the government as dividend.o LIC needs about Rs. 7000 cr to meet the stipulated 150% solvency

margins. Kerala cola ban order gets HC thumbs-down

o The High Court of Kerala has struck down the ban orders imposed by the Kerala government on Coke and Pepsi holding that the state government does not have such powers to impose the ban.

o It held that such a power can only arise as a result of wider policy decision and should emanate from parliamentary legislation.

Band of Baroda in JV talks with Nippon Insuranceo RBI stipulates that banks cannot hold more than 49% in an insurance

venture. Therefore, it is on the lookout for a third partner. IBA committee to review Banking Regulation Act

o As per section 10(1) C of the BR Act, a bank chief cannot serve as a director on another company.

o It was using this clause that recently Naina Lal Kidwai, CEO of HSBC has been denied approval for continuing on the board of Nestle.

Ladakh wants to move on, renew trade links with Central Asiao Ladakh region in J&K remains cut off from the rest of the world for

almost half the year as Zoji La and Rohtang passes are closed due to extreme winter conditions.

I-flex to build, buy or ally in KPO marketo I-flex is best known for its Fexcube, a core banking software used by

over 280 financial institutions across the world. Heart diseased in India

o The incidence of heart diseases is the highest in India. We have over 30 mln cases of heart diseases. WHO studies suggest that by 2012, 50% of the world’s heart attack victims in the world will be Indians.

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o Genetic disposition of Indians has been identified as a prime cause for early onset of heart problems.

o Apollo Hospitals and US based John Hopkins Medicine International are going to undertake a collaborative study to detect the gene responsible for cardiac problems.

Telcos get a tough call from Traio Trai suggested that revenue from the sale of handsets bundled with a

tariff plan should be included in the AGR (adjusted gross revenue).o Telcos typically pay anywhere between 6 to 10% of AGR per annum

to the Government. 5.5 lakh chemists unite to take on biggies

o Chemists and drug retailers have come together to form a holding company along with subsidiaries in various states to give a tough competition to the big time retailers to protect their market share in the Rs. 25,000 cr retail drug business.

o The number of unorganized pharmacists in the country has been growing at about 8 to 9% per annum. They together control about 90% of the retail pharma business.

World Bank is now 450 strong in Indiao Having set up in 2001 in Chennai, its first accounting office outside the

US, it has increased its strength to 240 subsequently.o Now World Bank Chennai office covers loan and disbursement

services, budget analysis, treasury management, internal audit and infotech in addition to other administrative functions.

o The head count is slated to go up to 450 shortly. Lubricant’s business

o Lubricants form 2% of the consumption basket of a vehicle.o Globally 80% lubricant sales are outside the petrol pump while in India

it is 70%. India’s oil import bill

o India imports 70% of its oil requirement.o The import bill in the current year is estimated to be $62 bn as against

$45 bn last fiscal. Policy daze puts $1 bn power FDI flow on hold

o The existing norm of allowing 100% FDI in power and other infrastructure projects has run into problems as holding companies governing such project cannot have more than 49% FDI. This anomaly in policy came to light when the FIPB found that two of its guidelines were in conflict with each other.

Ansari enjoys stay in spaceo Ms. Anousheh Ansari is the first woman tourist in space.o She paid $20 mln for her trip to the ISS.

Bharat Nirman programmeo The programme is on track with four components – roads, houses,

power and phones – exceeding the targets fixed.o The programme seeks to provide villages with electricity, all-weather

roads, potable water and telephones by 2009. About 60 lakh new houses are to be constructed and 1 cr hectares to be brought under irrigation.

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24.09.06:

Revenue loss on account of the new SEZ policy is pegged at Rs. 1,70,000 cr by the Finance ministry.

Indian Arto Indian art prices have appreciated by leaps and bounds in recent times.

In this week’s Sotheby’s and Christie’s auctions, 5 works of Indian artists have made it to the million dollar mark.

o The highest price was fetched by F.N. Souza’s ‘Man with Monstrance’.

o Top Indian artists on the basis of annual appreciation in the price of their works:

Ram Kumar, Tyeb Mehta, Jogen Chowdhury, Manjit Bawa, V.S. Gaitonde, FN Souza, A. Ramachandran, Akbar Padamsee, Aripta Singh, Jehangir Sabavala, Jagdish Swaminathan, Rekha Rodwittiya, Krishen Khanna, Laxma Goud, Rameshwar Broota in that order.

Ramzaan food basketo Iftar is the evening mealo Sehri is the meal taken before dawn

Business planso For every 100 people who have fantastic great ideas, only 10 can

convert the idea into a sensible plan and of this, only 3 truly believe in what they have written down and of these, only probably 1 has some chance of success.

Chiria iron mines in Jharkhando It has over 2 bn tonnes of iron ore.o The lease agreement between SAIL and Jharkhand government is in

legal battle. Hewlett-Packard phone tapping troubles

o The Chairman of the company Ms. Patricia Dunn had to resign amid admissions by the company that it hired investigators who obtained telephone records to uncover who was leaking confidential information from the computer maker’s board room meetings.

o Pretexting – is the practice of masquerading as someone else to obtain personal records.

Hybrid carso Toyota is the pioneer in introducing hybrid cars – cars that run on

gasoline and electricity, with its Prius sedan. Sony batteries

o Recently (last month) Dell and Apple have recalled almost 6 mln of Sony made laptop batteries as they are found to be having a manufacturing defect. They were found to be susceptible for catching fire.

Mobile handsets saleso Worldwide 1 bn handsets are expected to be sold this year. Of them

nearly 100-150 mn are expected to be voice-enabled handsets. Healthcare industry in India

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o It is expected to grow in size to Rs. 200,000 cr by 2012 from Rs. 86,000 cr in 2001.

o The health tourism market is expected to go up to Rs. 10,000 cr by 2012 from the Rs. 1,518 cr in 2004.

Water problems in Indiao It is estimated that 50% of water supply in urban India is unaccounted

for.o It is remedying the supply side inefficiencies that holds promise rather

than addition of new infrastructureo Even a small country like Combodia supplies 100% of its citizens with

24 hrs water supply in Phnom Penh Delhi’s population is 23 mln. The Government has announced plans worth

Rs. 26,000 cr to give a thorough makeover for the city. It is said that historically Delhi has been built and rebuilt over 8 times.

25.09.06:

Foreign VC cos may get access to Indian realtyo The present policy provides (as per Press Note 2 of 2005) for 100%

FDI in the realty sector including housing, commercial facilities, resorts city and regional level infrastructure. This is subject to a minimum capitalization of $10 mn for fully-owned subsidiaries and on the condition that the minimum area to be developed under each project is 10 hectares for development for serviced housing plots and a built-up area of 50000 sq. mtrs for construction development projects.

Finance Ministry rejects sops for fab city project in APo The Information Technology Department had asked for many

incentives for the chip makers, including equity participation, interest-free loan and income-tax holiday. Sops at par with SEZs were also proposed. But the finance ministry objected fearing revenue loss.

RDX seizure in Kashmiro 11,000 Kg of RDX was seized in the state of Kashmir during the last

six years (i.e., 2000-2006). DGSE of France

o General Directorate for External Security, is an espionage organization like CIA of US or RAW of Inida

Desi retailers gain as MNCs fear to kneado 60% of the grocery basket is still unbranded; hence the opportunity for

brand creation is huge.o Indian foods industry size is pegged at Rs. 27,258 cr. and is growing at

9%. Cell retail market in India

o The market size is pegged at Rs. 75,000 cr. and is growing at 20%.o In comparison, the consumer electronics and appliance market looks

paltry, at just Rs. 25,000 cr. BSNL comes up with bundled offer – ‘docking’

o BSNL prepaid cellular users with existing landline connenctions will be able to recharge their cell phones and pass on the reacharge cost to their landline bills. BSNL calls this ‘docking’.

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Mobiel value added serviceso The Indian market for VAS currently stands at Rs. 400 cr and is

expected to grow to Rs. 4000 cr by 2010. o It is expected that from the current 7-10%, VAS could account for 25%

of the Indian cellular revenues by 2010. Life Insurance Corporation of India

o Was nationalized in 1956.o Private players were allowed into insurance in 1999, six years after the

Malhotra Committee called for private entry. NDSSP – National Data Survey on Savings Patterns

o According to it, 45% of the total household savings are with the top 10% income earners.

Abhijit Mahalanobiso Indian American scientist (working for Lockheed Martin) is a

recognized and respected leader in pattern recognition, signal and image processing with specific emphasis on automatic target recognition (ATR).

Sethu channel projecto Envisages dredging a ship channel across the Palk straits between India

and Sri Lanka. Once operational, the channel could be used by ships to sail between the east and west coasts of India without circum-navigating Sri Lanka.

o It is estimated that ships will savae up to 424 nautical miles (780 km) and up to 30 hours in sailing time.

Ports in Indiao There are 185 non-major ports in India.

India ranks 5th globally in ethanol productiono India’s ethanol production is currently at 1.75 bn litres.o India’s total annual consumption of petrol is 10 bn litres. Of this about

5% (0.5 bn litres) will have to be doped with ethanol from November 1st 2006 as per directions of GoI.

Viceroy of Indiao Is the name of the luxury train, run by the Britain based GW Travel

between Mumbai and Darjeeling. The trip costs between Rs. 4.96 lakh to Rs. 11.5 lakh

o The other well known luxury train is the ‘Palace on Wheels’, running between Rajasthan and Delhi.

Air cargo market in Indiao Is growing rapidly; risen from Rs. 4.9 lk tonnes in 2000-01 to over 14

lk tonnes in 2004-05.

26.09.06:

Land for SEZs: Farmers’ interest gains groundo The Board of Approval had taken a decision that not more than 10% of

the land acquired for building SEZs can be double-cropping land. Shipping business families in India

o Sheths of GE Shippingo Ruias of Essar Shipping

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o Khataus of Varun Shippingo HK Mittal of Mercator Lines

CDMA handset marketo The market size is estimated to be at Rs. 5000 cr.o CDMA operators are adding close to 1.5 mln new subscribers per

month. Indian Cricket

o An investment of Rs. 750 cr is being made over four years for giving a thorough make-over to Indian cricket by BCCI and Nibus’s upcoming sports channel.

MRO business in civil aviation in Indiao The business is expected to grow over the next five years to generate

$400 mln in revenues. Market research in India

o India is the fastest growing market in the world for market research. It is growing at 31% (2005); but the size is still small at Rs. 492 cr.

SSA, mid-day meals come under PM’s lenso The number of out of school children has been reduced from 2.5 cr to

96 lakh since the commencement of the SSA (Sarva Siksha Abhiyan) programme.

o For the year ended March 2005, the CAG has pointed that out of the 3.4 cr children in the country 1.36 cr aged between six and 14 years remained out of schools.

LIBORo Currently libor is hovering around 5.4%

Police reformo The Government has reportedly been pondering on enacting and

enforcing the Soli Sorabjee Committee’s draft Police Bill.o Replacing the antiquated Police Act of 1867 with a new omnibus law

that is consistent with the demands of a modern democracy would bring about a paradigm shift.

Advantage Indiao India and the RDEs (Rapidly Developing Economies) offer the

manufacturing companies located in them better capital productivity by about 40% to 50% higher when compared with similar plants in more developed economies.

Indian aviation boomo In the first five months of this fiscal year domestic air traffic has grown

by as much as 49% over the same period of the previous year.o Domestic prices of aviation fuel are hovering at Rs. 46,000 per kl.o The price of ATF for flights leaving India costs only Rs. 33,400 per kl.o Of India’s population of 1080 mln, only 8 mln Indians are flying today.o 74% FDI is allowed in telecom sector, but in aviation it is only 49%.

Commercial credit in Indiao According to a McKinsey study, in FY 2005 corporates only had a

share of 43% of commercial credit given out by banks in India. Russia has 88,000 millionaires Raising money by SMEs

o SMEs currently contribute to around 40% of the domestic exports.

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o Borrowers end up having a net gain of up to 2% by resorting to ECBs.o Cost of raising ECBs works out to around 10% for a 3-5 year loan.

The post-hedge cost works out to 0.5 to 0.75%.o Loans to SMEs have grown 15-20% annually, while SMEs account for

around 10% of the $10 bn odd of ECBs raised by Indian companies. Padmini passes away

o A popular actress of yesteryears. She along with her elder sister Lalitha and younger sister Ragini were called the Travancore sisters.

o Her role as a dancer in ‘Thillana Mohanambal’ pairing with Shivaji Ganesan had won critical acclaim.

o She was nicknamed ‘Natiyaperoli’ -- a great light of dance. Singapore pushes for more Temasek stake in ICICI Bank

27.09.06:

TRAI for auction, fixed fee in 3G spectrum allocationo 3G spectrum to be allotted circle-wiseo Auction is preferred routeo Each operator to get 5 MHz initially for 3G serviceso WiMAX spectrum to be offered at a fixed price

Cimate changeo Global warming has added 0.2 degrees celcius per decade over the past

30 years according to a study conducted by NASA.o The study said that the earth was now within about 1 degree celcius of

the maximum estimated temperatures of the past million years. National security and Chinese investment

o The Chinese have been planning a whopping Rs. 61,000 cr investment in 13 Indian ports.

o They are also involved in a strategic port – Gwadar Deep Sea port in Pakistan.

o Indian security establishment fears that allowing Chinese investment poses a threat to national maritime security, as these ventures could give the Guojia Anquan Bu, the Chinese ministry of state security, a base to operate.

o CPM demands that the investments should be allowed. Shinzo Abe is the new Japanese Premier. He succeeds Junichiro Koizumi. He

is the first post World War II born politician to become Premier. “Blood Diamond” threatens Surat diamond industry

o “Blood Diamond” is a Warner Brothers film based on a story abuot the business of conflict diamonds and how its perpetrators used the profits to fund terrorist cells to establish brutal dictatorships in poor African nations.

o Surat’s diamond industry (Rs. 45,000 cr in size) comprises 6000 small and big diamond cutting and polishing units which employ around 7 lk people.

o 9 out of world’s 11 rough diamonds are cut or polished in Surat. The Amir Khan starrer “Rang De Basanti” nominated for Oscars, says the

Film Federation of India. US Business holding pattern

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o Of the 13.2 mn housinesses in the US, 90% are family owned and managed.

o About 200 of the Fortune 500 companies are family owned. SEZs – Special Economic Zones

o There are 3000 SEZs in the world. India has 14 of them operational and 60 approved SEZs. China has 54.

Drug price control on ‘abnormal’ rise in priceso The GoI (Government of India) is in the process of asking companies

to lower the prices of drugs which are outside price control, but have recorded a price increase of above 20% in any given 12 month period, which is deemed as ‘abnormal’.

India tops the BRIC brat packo India is the leader of the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India and China group)

pack when it comes to business competitiveness, according to the 2006 Global Competitiveness Report of the World Economic Forum.

o The toppers in the list are Switzerland, Finland and Sweden.o Contrast this with the World Bank (International Finance Corporation)

report placing India at 134 of 175 countries in ease of doing business! Housing price index adds to comfort level

o The government’s move to launch a housing price index is welcome.o The index will help prospective buyers get a fix on how property prices

have moved over time. o They can then take a call on whether to wait for the down-cycle or to

buy fast before prices rise still higher. Branded tea business in the country is of Rs. 4,000 cr in size. Cost of retailing

o In emerging market the cost of retailing is relatively lower with rent, labour and other expenditure barely being 25% of the operational costs, as compared to developed markets where it is about 55%.

Banks may get more time to turn Basel II compliant Andrew Fasto

o Is the former Enron CFO (Chief Financial Officer), whose off-the-books deals led to the collapse of Enron.

o Enron was ranked 7 on the Fortune 500 list of companies before the revelations of financial mismanagement triggered its fall. The collapse cost investors billions of dollars

o It was after this collapse along with some other financial scandals that US has passed the Sarbanes Oxley Act which subjected companies to stricter financial disclosure norms.

28.09.06:

Airline industry losseso Airline industry’s losses in India (all airlines put together) are

estimated to be around Rs. 2200 cr. for the current year.o The Civil Aviation ministry is concerned that a repeat of the post-1991

boom and bust cycle does not repeat itself, in which a number of private players including East-West, Damania and ModiLuft airlines went down.

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3G spectrum allocationo Circle-specific reserve price for 3G bidding is finalized by TRAIo Reserve price is fixed as Rs. 80 cr for Category A, Rs. 40 cr for

Category B and Rs. 15 cr for Category C circles. o The operators will have to pay 1% of adjusted gross revenue per

annum as spectrum fee for 5 MHz of spectrum.o TRAI has also recommended a national frequency management board

to provide long-term vision and planning for spectrum availability. TCS changes pricing model

o It started using the success based pricing in some of its outsourcing contracts.

o Time and material pricing: Most of the Indian software industry operates on the basis of a fixed hourly rate, referred to in industry parlance as time and material pricing.

o Outsourcing contract: In a typical outsourcing contract of the type taken by consulting firms like Accenture tend to promise clients specific quantum of process improvement, cost reduction and revenue enhancement. If these outcomes are reached, the software firm gets to share a part of the upside.

BCCI revenueso It has clocked a revenue of Rs. 430 cr in FY 2005-06.o It is sitting on a pile of Rs. 590 cr cash.

Auditing may turn must for all property dealso CAs to certify property has not been undervalued to save registration

fee Reservation quota implementation from June next year

o The oversight committee headed by Veerappa Moily to prepare a roadmap for implementing the 27% reservation for OBCs in educational institutions under the central government has suggested setting up of three new IIMs, IIT-like institutions and public-private partnerships to fund the expansion.

o The 27% reservation for OBCs will necessitate a 54% seat expansion to ensure that the number of general category seats in institutions is not affected.

Marad killings: Judicial report finds Muslim League guiltyo The Judicial Commission headed by Justice Thomas P. Joseph to

enquire into the massacre of nine persons, mostly Hindus in Marad, Kerala on May 2, 2003 has found that the Indian Union Muslim League and the National Democratic Front, a Muslim outfit as having played a role in the massacre.

o The Marad massacre had its roots in two earlier incidents. A minor incident in December 2001 had flared up into a communal riot in January 2002. The commission report finds that the 2003 issue was a one sided attack on Hindus, exploiting the revenege of close relatives of those killed in the 2002 riot.

Champions Trophyo The cricketing spectacle is scheduled to be played between October 5th

and Novermber 5th.

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o The television viewing universe has close to doubled from 35 mln in the 2003 World Cup to about 65 mln currently.

Grey India bags India’s first Euro Effieso Grey Worldwide India has bagged the country’s first Euro Effies, a

bronze for Ministry of Tourism’s Incredible India campaign for 2005 in travel & tourism category.

o Effies is advertising effectiveness award, and not just judging the creative content of the campaign. It judges the campaign’s stated objectives and evidence of performance of those goals.

o Effies sit right next to Cannes, Clio and D&AD as far as being the gold standard for advertising world.

Consumer durables in Indiao About 60% of the domestic demand is met through local

manufacturing and the rest through imports. Tamilnadu plans spiritual tourism drive

o Tamilnadu has around 4000 well-known temples and the Tamil diaspora who visit these destinations are fuelling the growth of pilgrimage tourism for the state.

Telecom companies may lose licence over poor identity checko As at end May 2006, nearly 23.5 mln of the existing subscribers

(31.26% of the user base then) had been verified. o The country’s mobile user base is around 124 mln as at August end.o The subscriber verification is a daunting task for the telcos and they are

demanding the government to put in place a suitable legislation to prevent / deter submission of false or incorrect information by subscribers and also take action against errant retailers who do not comply with the process requirements.

Anti-virus software varietieso Signature based technology: identifies finger-prints unique to each

virus, updates a database, and when it finds a virus, it cleans.o Heuristic based technology: identifies viruses based on the suspicious

behaviour, and usually doesn’t maintain a complete database. Usually it doesn’t differentiate between legitimate and suspicious acts and raises false alarms.

Search engines in vogue as the latest promo toolo According to IAMAI, there are about 65 mln people who use search

engines in India and the market size for search engine advertising is estimated at Rs. 236 cr.

o India still forms only a small fraction of this big $10 bn global opportunity, which is expected to touch j$23 bn in the next four years.

Reliance Industry’s – Government of India gas pricing disputeo The Government feels that the natural gas sale price should be based

on open bidding process.o The PSC says that the valuation should be on ‘arms length basis’,

which is defined as sales made freely in the open market, between willing and unrelated parties.

o A committee was constituted by the Government to look into the dispute and the DGH has been providing secretarial assistance to the committee.

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Indian retail marketso The rural market accounted for 70% of the market and consumed 20%

of FMCG, whereas the 30% of urban market consumed 80% of FMCG in India.

o Currently there are 30 mln retail outlets but modern retailing is a mere 4% of all retail.

Information technology consumptiono China uses $21 bn of IT for domestic consumptiono India consumes only $7 bn in contrast.

29.08.06:

Clearing Corporation of India Limitedo It is the clearing and settlemtn body for all transactions in government

securities and foreign currency. FDI inflows and outlows

o FDI inflows into India are 81% higher than the amount foreign portfolio investors have brought since January this year.

o Outbound FDI is much higher than FDI inflows. For FY06, while inflows amounted to $5.5 bn, FDI outflows were at $7 bn.

Mandal Commission and reservation for OBCso The Mandal Commission that looked into the issue of extending

reservation for OBCs has based its recommendations on the 1931 census to make out a case for reserving 27% of the seats in government jobs and educational institutions.

o Round 2003 of the NSS (National Sample Survey) states that non-Muslim OBCs comprised a mere 23% of the total population.

Indian spices productiono The Spices Board is mulling a retail foray. The total spices retail

market is estimated to be at Rs. 8000 cr.o India is the leading producer of several spices

Red Chilli (6.25 to 6.5 lk tonnes) Pepper; we are facing lot of competition from Vietnam Cardamom (12,500 tonnes) Turmeric (6 to 7 lk tonnes). Exports about 50,000 tonnes

Power generation in Indiao Total power generation in India is pegged at 16.5 bn kwh as compared

to 39.1 bn kwh in China and 740 bn kwh in the US. The easiest places in the world to business – Singapore, New Zealand, US,

Hong Kong and the UK. China’s overseas trade

o Is expected to touch $400 bn by 2010. Currently it is at $158.2 bn in FY05.

Economic revival in Europe puts heart into Asian exporterso Europe’s economy grew at an annualized rate of 3.6% in the second

quarter.o The EU accounts for about 21% of India’s total exports in 2005o The US accounted for about 16% of India’s total exports in 2005o The rest of Asia excluding Japan about 26%.

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30.09.06:

ITDC (India Tourism Development Corporation) scouts for overseas partner to battle rivals

o Current it operates 6 duty-free-outlets in international airports at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Calicut and Goa.

Azim Premji Foundationo Today it reaches out 16,600 plus schools, nearly 3 lk children and

about 60,000 teachers with a team of 250 professionals and over 1000 paid field volunteers.

Indian primary education scenarioo India has 200 mln kids below the age of 14.o 20 mln of these children are not in school at all.o 35% of the kids in Standard V cannot read and write.o 25% of the teachers don’t put in an attendance but collect full pay.o According a survey by Azim Premjo Foundation, 75% of the teachers

want to do good work. Monica Bedi sentenced to 5 years in prison in a passport forgery case. Selection process of UN Secretary General

o A candidate has to be recommended by the Security Council to the General Assembly.

o This recommendation can be made only when a candidate secure at least 9 votes in the 15 member Security Council without any vetos.

o Only one candidate can be recommended by the council to the General Assembly.

Veraval, the frozen fish trading capital of Indiao It is a small town barely 10 km away from the Hindu pilgrimate town

of Somnath in Gujarat. It currently exports about 1,22,000 tonnes (worth Rs. 934 cr) of frozen fish to various parts of the world.

Indian Housing scenarioo A recent report has estimated that by 2030 India will need up to 10 mln

new housing units per year.o Currently there is a housing shortage of 20 mln units.

Urban joblessness in India (2004-05)o The unemployment rate in urban areas is at 45%.o In the rural areas it is at 17%.o Labour Force Participation Rate (LPFR) is defined as the number of

persons/person-days of labour force per 1000 persons/person-days. It has increased by nearly 2% for males and about 3% for females in the rural areas during the period 1999-2000 to 20004-05.

Drought relief package announced by the Government of Indiao The Union cabinet cleared a Rs. 16,978.69 cr comprehensive

rehabilitation package for the 31 perennial drought-struck districts countrywide, spread across AP, Karnataka, Kerala and Maharshtra.

o Of this 10,579.43 cr would be subsidies and Rs. 6399.26 cr would in the form of loans to farmers in the highly suicide-prone districts.

Oil industry development cess

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o The annual amount collected under the Oil Industry Development Act exceeds Rs. 5000 cr.

o So far under the Act an amount of Rs. 55,966 cr had been collected (till March end 2005).

o These funds are likely to be used for minimizing oil marketing companies’ losses on account of selling cooking gas and kerosene below the cost price.

o The Oil Industry Development Board was constituted in 1975 to provide financial assistance for the development of the oil sector in the country.

GDP (Gross Domestic Product) figureso GDP data is released periodically by the Central Statistical

Organization.o GDP rate is inching up to 9% now. The economy grew at a rate of

8.9% in Q1 (First Quarter April-July of this financial year)o The headline inflation rate is also stabilizing at 4.56%.o The growth is spurred by basically manufacturing growing at 11.3%.

The performance of the other secotors is: Trade & transport 13.2% Agriculture 3.4% Construction 9.5% Finance, Insurance 8.9% Mining 3.4%

Current account in BoP (Balance of Payments) dips into deficit in Q1o Currently the current account deficit is at $6.2 bn against as surplus of

$1.8 bn in previous quarter and a deficit of $3.6 bn last year.o Capital account surplus is at $11.9 bn o Hence the BoP ended with a surplus of $6.4 bno What are invisibles in the BoP parlance?

Income from software exports and remittances by NRIso Exports during the quarter were at $28 bn ($23 bn)o Imports were at $46 bn ($38 bn)o Trade deficit at $18.5 bn ($13.6 bn)o Inflows throu FDI were higher than inflows through FIIs during the

quarter. Foreign nations may not get home remedies sans royalty

o The Government in association with Ayush, has prepared a database of 1,06,000 traditional medicines and will soon put them in the public domain to pre-empt any kind of international patents on Indian medicine.

Uncle Sam to enter Indian realtyo The housing sector contributed to $2 trillion to the US economy last

year, accounting for 16% of growth. Delhi’s power problems

o Peak power demand is presently hovering around 3,500 mw and is expected to increase to 5,900 mw by 2010 when Commonwealth Games would be held.

o At present the peak shortage is varying around 500 mw to 800 mw.

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o Delhi generates less than 25% of what it consumes. Hence increase in generation is what is badly needed.

Post offices may retail on behalf of bankso 80% of post offices are in rural areas (approx 1,25,200 in number)

Bimstec countrieso Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand

The first Hedge Fundo As early as 1920s Benjamin Graham has managed a hedge fund,

according to Warren Buffeto He was differing with the view expressed in the magazine “Financial

History” which stated that the first hedge fund was started in 1949 by Alfred Winslow Jones.

Dr. Ivo Pitanguy o He is the world’s plastic surgery guru.o He slams beauty fads.

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