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| 03. INVESTMENT UPDATES |
| Sebi to address RBI concerns on foreign investment in MFs |
| Business Standard: April 05, 2011 |
New Delhi: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) will address the concerns of the central bank while framing the guidelines for allowing foreign individual investors to invest directly in registered mutual funds.
The guidelines, which will be in place by mid-May, will also ensure that the subscription process is as simple as possible.
A senior finance ministry official said Sebi was working on the guidelines in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
RBI has been worried over the high share of portfolio funds in overall capital inflows as they are prone to sudden stops and reversals. It has also been insisting on strict adherence to know-your customer (KYC) norms for investments from abroad.
The official said the guidelines would address these concerns.
At present, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) are allowed to invest in mutual funds.
“The group on capital inflows, in July last year, suggested general permission for foreign institutional investments. It has been decided that the recommendations will be implemented in stages, beginning with mutual funds,” he said.
The group on foreign investment, headed by the current Sebi Chairman, U K Sinha, who was UTI Mutual Fund chairman that time, recommended an overhaul of the regulatory framework. The panel proposed doing away with different categories such as FIIs, foreign venture capital investors and non-resident Indians (NRIs).
In the Budget, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced the government’s intent to liberalise the Portfolio Investment Scheme to allow Sebi-registered mutual funds to accept funds for equity schemes directly from foreign investors who meet the KYC norms. Sebi will issue the guidelines to implement the move while RBI will rewrite the Fema Inbound Investment Regulations. |
| Gujarat adds 1570 MW power capacities in FY11 |
| Business Standard: April 06, 2011 |
Mumbai/Ahmedabad: Country achieves highest ever capacity addition in the power sector
In the year 2010-11, Gujarat added power generation capacities to the tune of 1570 MW, nearly 10 per cent of the total capacities added in the country during the year.
Sushilkumar Shinde, union minister of power informed that the country has achieved highest ever capacity addition in the power sector at record 15,795 MW for the year 2010-11. Of the total capacities added during the year in Gujarat, Gujarat Industrial Power Corporation Limited (GIPCL), a state-promoted power company had added 250 MW for its lignite-based power plant at Surat during the first quarter of the year. Adani group's Adani Power commissioned a total of 1320 MW of coal-based power generation capacities at its Mundra Power plant.
In a statement issued, the minister informed that for the first quarter of the fiscal, the capacity addition stood at 2065 MW, while in the second quarter the capacity addition was 2870 MW. Third quarter witnessed sharp jump in the capacity addition with 4795.5 MW of new capacities being added during the period and in the fourth quarter the capacity addition was 2430 MW. Giving further details about the new capacities added, the statement informed that 690 MW of capacities were added in the hydro power sector, while 890.5 MW of capacity addition was seen in the gas/LNG fuelled facilities. However, in the forth quarter of the fiscal Nuclear Power Corporation commissioned had 220 MW of nuclear power facilities in Karnataka. The prominent companies which added to the capacity included NTPC, Adani Power, Reliance Power and Tata Power. |
| Nestle India to set up ninth facility in Himachal Pradesh |
| The Hindu Business Line: March 11, 2011 |
Chennai: Nestle India has chosen Himachal Pradesh for its ninth manufacturing facility in the country. The new facility to manufacture chocolate and noodles may entail an investment of “anywhere between Rs 400 to 500 crore”.
Besides, Nestle also plans to add capacity to its existing units in Punjab, Haryana, Goa and Karnataka; and a new R&D facility in Haryana. Overall, the company has budgeted investment of Rs 1,800 crore in the next two to three years, said Mr Antonio Helio Waszyk, Chairman and Managing Director, Nestle India.
Fielding questions from the media at a press conference here to announce the launch of its new Nescafe Sunrise and TV commercials featuring film star couple Surya and Jyotika, he said the company has already invested Rs 360 crore of the proposed investments in a new facility that's coming up at Nanjangud to manufacture instant noodles and another Rs 500 crore on its Goa facility, where it manufactures confectionery.
Answering a question on the company's target share of the noodles market, he said, “Nestle is not fighting for a piece of cake. I am here to bake a new cake for ourselves.” According to him, the coffee business “is not big enough for Nestle”. Nescafe was lagging behind Nestle's other products in the market till October 2010. However, after the brand's new campaign featuring Deepika Padukone, it started performing well, he said, adding that Nescafe is now the market leader with 37 per share.
Nestle procures coffee berry entirely from India. To a question on whether there is cost pressure and whether the company would consider increasing prices, he said there is remarkable inflation in the prices of coffee berry, “mounting pressure on our margins”. However, the company's plan is to introduce a new technology in manufacturing so as to increase yield, in the first place. “Secondly, we will introduce a range of value-added products and finally, of course, may increase the prices,” said Mr Waszyk. |
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