Indian banks set to increase foreign operations
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Indian banks are going to increase their foreign operations, with an eye on the rapidly expanding NRI and corporate financing business in foreign markets. Some of India's leading banks are preparing to augment their foreign operations in the present fiscal. The State Bank of India (SBI) is in the concluding stages of introducing its overseas offices. SBI had been given the consent by the Singapore monetary authority to begin 25 branches in the country.
According to SBI's chief general manager T C A Ranganathan, SBI would set up three branches in the preliminary phase and would be focussing mostly on NRI remittance and corporate lending business among other services. "We are presently engaged in the site-selection process to set up the new offices and the branches are expected to get operational in the coming few months," Ranganathan added. India's biggest private sector lender ICICI Bank will start four new offices in US, in New Jersey, Texas, California and Illinois.
HDFC Bank also plans to increase its foreign operations. As per PTI sources, HDFC has already procured the required regulatory approvals to set up an office in Bahrain. Presently, it has representative offices in Dubai and Toronto.
An HDFC official said, "The Bahrain branch is ready to function and we expect it to be operational by August. We are planning many new offices this fiscal." HDFC is planning to set up a branch in Hong Kong and also a representative office in Kenya, he further added.
Source : IBEF |
India Inc upbeat about production: CII survey
Majority of CEOs of India's top notch companies are optimistic about their top line growth, assures a survey undertaken by CII. The survey suggests these companies expect a smooth run in terms of production at their companies for this fiscal, despite rising input and interest costs affecting the net profit margins. Some of the big league companies in the snap poll included ICICI Bank, Bajaj Auto, TVS Motor GE India, and HUL, with heavyweights like CII President and ICICI MD and CEO KV Kamath, TVS Motor Chairman and MD Venu Srinivasan, Bajaj Auto Chairman Rahul Bajaj, Ashok Leyland MD R Seshasayee, participating in a big way.
About 50 per cent of CEOs surveyed said they were unruffled by the impact of increasing cost of production, while 18 per cent were not. About 39 per cent of respondents said they were coping with an increase of 10 per cent in, while 32 per cent said they were experiencing an increase of 10-20 per cent in the cost of production.
Despite the not-so-steady economic outlook owing to the inflationary climate reflected in the rise in global commodity prices, the economic scene may not be so bleak, the survey said. Resisting the tentative streak in overall industrial and GDP growth, the manufacturing sector is expected to maintain a positive focus on the medium to long-term goals. Large capacity addition plans as part of the larger investment plans in the pipeline, could be worth as much as US $ 700 billion in the next three years, CII said. The services sector, though experiencing reduced profitability in most segments continues to be in good health, CII pointed out.
Source : IBEF |
| Industrial production to see 10 per cent growth in FY 2008-09 |
According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), India is likely to see 10 per cent growth in industrial production during fiscal year 2008-09, up from 8.3 per cent in the last fiscal. In its recent report, CMIE has stated "We expect growth in industrial production to accelerate to 10 per cent in 2008-09 compared with the 8.3 per cent growth recorded in 2007-08." The leading sectors fuelling this growth would be machinery, chemicals and transport. Apart from these sectors, metals, non-metallic mineral products and textiles would also augment the industrial growth.
"The industry is creating fresh capacities at an aggressive pace and, as these new capacities get commissioned, supplies would increase to meet the soaring demand. As a result, we believe that the current slowdown seen in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) numbers is a short-term phenomenon that would be reversed by the middle of 2008-09," the report stated.
"The chemical industry will show modest growth. It would grow from 10.4 per cent in 2007-08 to 13.2 per cent in 2008-09," the report said. In the current financial year, the cement industry would grow by 11.5 per cent, the report added.
In fiscal year 2009, the machinery industry is likely to grow by 22 per cent and the transport sector by 10.2 per cent. Moreover, increased capacity expansion along with greater consumption of metals is expected to further raise the growth of the basic metals sector by 12.6 per cent.
Source : IBEF |
Exports in June : An update
India’s exports during June, 2008 were valued at US $ 14664 million which was 23.5 per cent higher than the level of US $ 11870 million during June, 2007. In rupee terms, exports touched Rs.62790 crore, which was 29.7 per cent higher than the value of exports during June, 2007. Cumulative value of exports for the period April- June, 2008 was US $ 42846 million (Rs.178480 crore) as against US $ 35033 million (Rs.144358 crore) registering a growth of 22.3 per cent in Dollar terms and 23.6 per cent in Rupee terms over the same period last year.
India’s imports during June, 2008 were valued at US $ 24452 million registering a growth of 25.9 per cent over the level of imports valued at US $ 19424 million in June, 2007. In Rupee terms, imports increased by 32.2 per cent. Cumulative value of imports for the period April- June, 2008 was US $ 73275 million (Rs.305265 crore) as against US $ 56506 million (Rs.232855 crore) registering a growth of 29.7 per cent in Dollar terms and 31.1 per cent in Rupee terms over the same period last year.
Oil imports during June, 2008 were valued at US $ 9033 million which was 53.4 per cent higher than oil imports valued at US $ 5890 million in the corresponding period last year. Oil imports during April- June, 2008 were valued at US $ 25526 million which was 50.2 per cent higher than the oil imports of US$ 16996 million in the corresponding period last year.
Non-oil imports during June, 2008 were estimated at US $ 15420 million which was 13.9 per cent higher than non-oil imports of US $ 13534 million in June, 2007. Non-oil imports during April- June, 2008 were valued at US $ 47748 million which was 20.9 per cent higher than the level of such imports valued at US $ 39510 million in April- June, 2007. The trade deficit for April- June, 2008 was estimated at US $ 30429 million which was higher than the deficit at US $ 21473 million during April- June, 2007.
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Airbus, Boeing see sharp growth in Indian demand
Despite a slowdown in the economy and the aviation sector, Airbus and Boeing have projected a sharp growth in the demand for aircraft in India. Close on the heels of Boeing predicting that India will need 1,001 aircraft in the next 20 years, Airbus has forecast that the sector will require 1,100 aircraft in the next 25 years.
Says Justin Dubon, regional press manager for Airbus, "India is a promising market for us. Our forecast takes into account the industry's near-term challenges, including surging fuel prices and slowing air traffic growth. Yet, we foresee a strong demand for aircraft because India is the third largest in terms of purchasing power parity. It is also projected to be the seventh largest economy by 2017." It has predicted that the Indian market will need 1,100 passenger and freighter aircraft valued at $105 billion over the next 25 years. Since 2005, Airbus has bagged over 295 orders from Indian carriers valued roughly at $22 billion.
The aircraft manufacturer, popular for its A 300s family of aircraft, has many clients in India, including Kingfisher, which has placed an order for 64 aircraft, Air Deccan (72), Jet Airways (10), Indigo (100), Indian (43) and GoAir (10).
Boeing, on the other hand, has orders worth $25 billion from Indian carriers. That include 68 aircraft orders from national carrier Air India, 63 from Jet Airways, 30 from SpiceJet and three from the Indian Air Force. Dinesh Keskar, senior vice-president, sales, Boeing, told FE , “Amongst the Asian countries, India tops the chart in the requirement of commercial planes. India will need 1,001 new aircraft (passenger and freight) worth more than $105 billion at current list prices, over the next two decades,” Keskar adds that the company's growth projection considers today’s market environment. But he, however, sees a correction happening in the next 12-15 months in terms of a slow growth in the sector. “Second, there will be more bilateral air agreements between India and other countries for international travel. The sector will see further liberalisation,” he adds.
Source: The Financial Express |
STC RECORDS HIGHEST EVER TURNOVER
The State Trading Corporation of India Ltd (STC) has achieved the highest ever first quarter turnover of over Rs 4200 crore as per the provisional unaudited financial results for the period Apr-Jun ’08 taken on record by the Board of Directors of the Corporation in its meeting held on 30.07.2008 at New Delhi. The total turnover reflects a growth of 53% over the quarter a year ago and has also surpassed the proportionate MOU target despite there being no imports of wheat during the quarter.
During the period, the Corporation earned a trading profit of Rs 39 crore which is 47% higher than the quarter a year ago. The Profit before Tax of Rs 23 crore is also marginally higher than the previous year. STC continued with its domestic operations involving direct procurement of tea from small growers and processing thereof. These operations are being extended further by enlisting more growers and taking another processing unit on long term lease. STC is also undertaking paddy procurement operation on minimum support price on behalf of FCI under Custom Milled Rice (CMR) scheme announced by the Govt. of India. STC has made significant progress in developing bio fuel business. It is planning an entry in mining and power generation activities very shortly. Thus, as the year progresses, the business activities of STC are likely to accelerate further.
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