17-April-09 News Headlines

Corporate News Headline
•Tech Mahindra would pay Rs. 17.56 bn before the deadline of April 21 for acquiring 31 % stake in Satyam Computer for which it got the approval from the Company Law Board. (BS)
•Unitech has moved to raise USD 325 mn through qualified institutional placement route mainly to service its debt of over Rs. 80 bn. (BS)
•Suzlon Energy is seeking to reschedule payments to Portugal's Martifer SGPS SA for buying a 22.4% stake in German unit REpower Systems AG. (Bloomberg)

Economic and Political Headline
•Inflation eased to 0.18%, the lowest ever in the last three decades, even as prices of food articles like pulses, cereals and vegetable hardened during the week ended April 4. (BS)
•Industrial production in Europe contracted 18.4% in February from the year- earlier month as the deepening global recession curtailed demand for manufactured goods around the world. (Bloomberg)
•China's economy, battered by collapsing exports, grew at 6.1% in the first quarter from a year earlier, the slowest pace in almost 10 years. (Bloomberg)
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16-April-09 Mcx Settlemet Prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 14140 :: Silver 20372 :: Copper 238 :: Lead 74.55 :: Nickel 620.70 :: Zinc 74.30 :: Crude Oil 2601 :: Natural Gas 179.30 :: CPO 367 :: HO 70.70 :: SO 490.25 :: 49.76
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16-April-09 News Headlines

Corporate News Headline
•Infosys reported Q4'09 results, total revenue rose 24% yoy to Rs. 56.35 bn, and net profit increased 29% yoy to Rs. 16.13 bn. (BS)
•Tech Mahindra has raised Rs. 8.75 bn from debt securities to help fund the acquisition of the beleaguered IT firm. (BS)
•L&T had signed an agreement with Russian company Atomstroy export for co-operation on nuclear power reactors. (BS)

Economic and Political Headline
•The Domestic air traffic declined by 12.22% in the first quarter of calendar year 2009, compared with the same period last year, and by 16.21% in March when compared with the same month last year. (BS)
•The US consumer price index fell 0.4% in March from a year before, and output at factories, mines, and utilities dropped 1.5% last month, when the share of industrial capacity in use slid to 69.3%. (Bloomberg)
•The Federal Reserve said the US contraction slowed across several of the biggest regional economies last month, with some industries "stabilizing at a low level." (Bloomberg)
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15-April-09 Settlement Prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 14282 :: Silver 21093 :: Copper 240.90 :: Lead 76.90 :: Nickel 612.20 :: Zinc 74.30 :: Crude Oil 2588 :: Natural Gas 183.50 :: CPO 370.10 :: HO 69.90 :: SO 490.25 & INR 49.65
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15-April-09 News Headlines

Corporate News Headline
•The Satyam board approved Tech Mahindra's offer of Rs. 58 a share, trumping Rs. 45.90 a share offered by Larsen & Toubro. (BS)
•Pantaloon Retail to be renamed Future Markets and Consumer Group will become the holding company for two of its biggest divisions, which will be spun off and made fully-owned subsidiaries. (BS)
•Pfizer Inc has offered about Rs. 680 crore to raise its stake in its Indian subsidiary to 75% from 41%. (BS)

Economic and Political Headline
•Recession in developed economies crippled demand for Indian goods and export growth slowed to 7.3% in April-February to USD 156.6 bn from a year earlier, sharply lower from close to 20% seen in 2007-08, commerce secretary G K Pillai said. (ET)
•Prices paid to US producers unexpectedly fell in March after two months of gains, indicating the recession is keeping inflation under control. The 1.2% decrease followed a 0.1% gain in February, figures from the Labor Department showed. (Bloomberg)
•Retail sales in the US unexpectedly dropped in March for the first time in three months, raising concern the biggest part of the economy may falter once again heading into the second quarter. Purchases fell 1.1%, with declines from car dealers to electronics stores and restaurants, the Commerce Department said. (Bloomberg)
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14-April-09 Mcx Settlement Prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 14328 :: Silver 21110 :: Copper 231.95 :: Lead 73.20 :: Nickel 580.20 :: Zinc 70.45 :: Crude Oil 2448 :: Gas 183.20 :: H.O. 69.55 & INR 49.48
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13-April-09 Mcx Settlemet Prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 14376 :: Silver 21069 :: Copper 234.85 :: Lead 71.75 :: Nickel 557 :: Zinc 69.95 :: Crude Oil 2566 :: Natural Gas 181.30 :: C.P.O. 356.60 :: H.O. 71.25 :: S.O. 482.20 & INR 49.88
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13-April-09 News Headlines

Corporate News Headline
•L&T bagged order worth Rs. 6.05 bn from the Water and Steel sectors in the last quarter of FY09. (BS)
•ONGC, RIL, and IOC are stitching together an alliance to bid for developing a vast oilfield in Venezuela at a cost of USD 16-18 bn. (BS)
•SBI has reduced lending rates for new SME loans up to Rs. 5 lakh to 8% and that for loans of Rs. 5-25 lakh to 10%, SBI Chief General Manager B S Bhasin said. (ET)

Economic and Political Headline
•Inflation declined to 0.26%, the lowest ever in more than three decades, for the week ended March 28 mainly on account of food items and mineral products. (BS)
•The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment insurance exceeded 600,000 for a 10th straight week and the total collecting benefits increased to a record, signs the labor market remains weak. (Bloomberg)
•The Bank of England left the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 0.5% and said it will keep buying government bonds to fight the deepest recession in a generation. (Bloomberg)
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Holiday - Good Friday

Holiday:: Good Friday
10th April 2009
Friday
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9-April-09 News Headlines

Corporate News Headline
•ACC would invest around Rs. 29 bn in the next one year to increase its capacity to over 30 mtpa from the present 22.63 mtpa. (BS)
•Jindal Stainless is planning to raise up to Rs. 5 bn to part fund the second phase of its Rs. 57 bn Orissa project. (BS)
•IDEA Cellular is planning to invest Rs. 10 bn in Orissa in the next three years to expand its footprint. (ET)

Economic and Political Headline
•The total passenger car sales in the domestic market increased marginally in March to 1,29,358 from 1,28,098 units in the same month last year. (BS)
•The sales at the US wholesalers rose 0.6% in February for the first time in eight months, contributing to a record drop in inventories that indicates distributors are well on the way to eliminating the glut in stockpiles. (Bloomberg)
•The UK economy shrank 1.5% in the first quarter as the recession increasingly resembled the one that started in 1979 when Margaret Thatcher took power. (Bloomberg)
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Torrent Power gets Long Term Open Access Approval From CEAFor Surat Unit

Long Term Open Access (LTOA) for 500MW capacity out of 1100MW Sugen generaion project in Gujarat was already provided subject to availability of dedicated and identified system strengthening schemes.
 
However, it was informed that M/s Torrent Power has indicated that out of two LILO (Gandhar – Vapi at Sugen and Gandhar – Dehgam at Sugen –temporary arrangement] LILO of Gandhar – Vapi at Sugen is ready while other LILO of Gandhar-Dehgam at Sugen will take some more time.
 
Further, the first unit was ready for transfer of power.
 
It was discussed and decided that LTOA may be provided upto 500 MW progressively with already completed LILO arrangement viz with the commissioning of 1st unit of 365 MW LTOA may be provided for 365 MW and with commissioning of 2nd unit of 365 MW LTOA can be enhanced to 500 MW.
 
It was also agreed that the generation unit shall share the WR regional transmission charges corresponding to 365 MW on commissioning of 1st unit and 500 MW with commissioning of 2nd unit.
 
In case of any transmission constraint, suitable measures such as backing down may be required. It was also decided that M/s Torrent Power should expedite and complete the balance work of the dedicated transmission system at the earliest.

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8-April-09 Settlement Prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 14298 :: Silver 20553 :: Copper 220.85 :: Lead 66.90 :: Nickel 547.10 :: Zinc 67.80 :: Crude Oil 2538 :: Natural Gas 183.10 :: CPO 329.70 :: HO 72.25 :: SO 467.25 & INR 50.17
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EIA Crude Inventories

EIA Crude Inventories: CrudeOIL- +1.7 mnb, Distillates-Down 3.4 mnb, Gasoline- + 0.6 mnb
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7-April-09 Headlines

Corporate News Headline
•IVRCL Infrastructures and Projects bagged orders worth Rs. 3.59 bn including a project to construct a road flyover on a turnkey basis in Kolkata from the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority valued at Rs. 1.64 bn. (BS)
•HCL Technologies has entered into a six-year, multi-regional data centre services and transformation engagement with Xerox Corporation. (BS)
•Power Grid will borrow USD 2 bn from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank to part finance Rs. 550 bn investment plans till 2012. (BS)

Economic and Political Headline
•The Reserve Bank's Governor D Subbarao said that the main policy objective in the global crisis would be to arrest the moderation in economic growth and restore the eroded market confidence. (BS)
•The pace of borrowing by the US consumers fell 3.5% at an annual rate in February as fewer Americans sought credit to make purchases amid what may become the worst recession in seven decades. (Bloomberg)
•The UK manufacturing dropped 6.5% in the three months through February, the most in at least four decades as the global economic slump throttled demand for goods from cars to ceramics. (Bloomberg)

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IOB Q4 Results

IOB Q4 net profit seen up@ Rs.333 cr:Angel

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Union Bank and PNB QS Results

Union Bank Q4 net profit seen down Rs 487 cr:Angel

PNB Q4 net profit seen up @ Rs.769 cr:Angel
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7-April-09 Settlement Prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 14297 :: Silver 20502 :: Copper 220.40 :: Lead 66.45 :: Nickel 545.40 :: Zinc 67 :: Crude Oil 2495 :: Natural Gas 181.10 :: HO 70.25 & INR 49.98
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A Brief Rwind n weekly view

A Brief Rewind

* Sensex and Nifty closed the week on a positive note gaining by 2.98% and 3.29% respectively
* FII's were net buyers to the tune of Rs 530.30 crores for the month of March 09.
* Inflation rose marginally to 0.31%
* G20 triples bailout funds for nations


Technicals
 
Nifty has very strong support at 2865 & resistance at 3234. If Nifty sustains above 3250 then it would surge to 3400.
 
 
Short term calls
 
Sell Nifty sp1 3077, sp2 2980, sl 3250
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Power: Deficits Stare At Us..Why Look At Another Sector?

Elections could prove to be a lucrative proposition for captive power unit owners and merchant plant operators.
 
The State Electricity Boards are turning to the "power at any cost" mantra to minimise load-shedding during the polling months. This would mean a ready market for those wanting to sell surplus power to the grid. Lucrative tariffs during peak hours could be an added attraction.
 
Power trading firms could also gear up for a spurt in business over the next couple of months as States desperately seek electricity. Deals on the two functional power exchanges – IEX and PXIL – are also likely to see an increase.
 
In order to improve the power supply position, especially in the wake of projected demand in the election months, the Power Ministry has started monitoring the status of injection of surplus captive power into the grid. All State Load Despatch Centres have been asked to submit information on open access approvals by them and energy transaction details of captive power units on a regular basis, official sources said.
 
For grid operators, however, the prospect of most States looking to overdraw to minimise load-shedding could prove to be a nightmare. In the wake of threats to grid stability, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has stepped up vigil and has started monitoring overdraws at frequencies below 49.2 Hz (hertz) on a weekly basis.
 
"The prices on the firm and day-ahead power from traders and day-ahead power from exchanges are on the rise due to the summer setting in and increased agriculture load. The threat of a tripping of the grid due to overdrawal of electricity by constituents is very real," a senior CERC official said.
 
The prospect of elections in peak summer months has aggravated the problem for grid managers, especially with States planning to leave no stone unturned to appease consumers on the electricity front.
 
In power-starved Maharashtra, even as the demand has surged to 15,000 MW and deficit way above 4,000 MW, the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd promises no unplanned power outages. Rajasthan is procuring over 500 MW for as high as Rs 12 a unit during the coming months while Kerala has also announced a no-load-shedding policy for now.

Safe Harbor Statement:

Some forward looking statements on projections, estimates, expectations & outlook are included to enable a better comprehension of the Company prospects. Actual results may, however, differ materially from those stated on account of factors such as changes in government regulations, tax regimes, economic developments within India and the countries within which the Company conducts its business, exchange rate and interest rate movements, impact of competing products and their pricing, product demand and supply constraints.
 
Nothing in this article is, or should be construed as, investment advice.

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2-April-09 Settlement Prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 14691 :: Silver 21581 :: Copper 209.95 :: Lead 64.30 :: Nickel 527.90 :: Zinc 66.50 :: Crude Oil 2633 :: Natural Gas 192 :: CPO 326.80 :: HO 72.30 :: SO 460.05 & INR 50.35
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Dow - Nasdaq

Dow Jones New$-Treasurys are lower as a rally in global equities spurs risk appetites and dents safe-haven demands. Major even risks include ECB Trichet's press conference following its 25-bps rate cut, which is less than market had forecast. Investors also keep close eyes on G20 meeting in London. US weekly jobless claims are due at 8:30 a.m. EDT followed by factory order data at 10 a.m. EDT. Fed will conduct its third round of Tsy buying for the week later Thursday morning. The 10-year note is down 14/32 to 100 10/32 to yield 3.71% while the 30-year bond is down 26/32 to 99 8/32 to yield 3.54%. S&P futures up 17. (MOZ)
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BSE A GROUP STOCK ABOVE ITS 200 DAYS Daily Moving Avg.

BSE A GROUP STOCK ABOVE ITS 200 DAYS Daily Moving Avg.

CAIRN IND
GUJ.AMB.CEM
INDIAN OIL
INFOSYS TECH
MAH & MAH
NEYVELI LIGN
ONGC CORPN
RELIANCE
WYETH LTD
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ICICI Prud MF Announces NFO Of ICICI Prud Target Returns Fund

ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund has announced the launch of the ICICI
Prudential Target Returns Fund, an open ended diversified equity fund
on 15 April 2009. The new issue will be open for the subscription till
14 May 2009. The NFO price for the fund is Rs 10 per unit.

Features of the scheme: Investment objective: The investment objective
plan is to seeks to generate capital appreciation by investing in
equity or equity related securities of large market capitalization
companies constituting the BSE 100 index and providing investors with
options to withdraw their investment automatically based on triggers
for preset levels of return as and when they are achieved.

Investment options: The scheme offers two plans viz. retail and
institutional plan I. Retail option will have growth and dividend as
sub options with dividend payout and dividend reinvestment facilities
available under Dividend sub option. Institutional option I will have
only growth sub-option. Retail op tion with dividend reinvestment
facility will be the default option.

Minimum application amount: The minimum investment amount under retail
plan is Rs. 5,000 and in multiples of Re 1 thereafter. And under
institutional plan I, the minimum investment amount is Rs. 1 lakh and
in multiples of Re 1 thereafter.

Minimum target amount: The fund seeks to raise a minimum subscription
amount of Rs. 1 crore during its New Fund Offer period.

Asset allocation: The scheme will invest 65-100% in equity and equity
related securities with medium to high-risk profile. Up to 35% of
total asset will be devoted to debt and money market instruments with
low to medium risk.

The investments in ADR/GDR up to 50% of allocation to equity & equity
related securities maximum. The scheme may invest in derivatives up to
75% of its net assets of the scheme. Stock lending shall be up to 30%
of the net asset of the scheme.

Load structure: Entry load: For retail option, the fund will charge
entry load of 2.25% of applicable NAV for an investment amount less
than Rs 2 crore. For an investment amount of Rs 2 crore and above, no
entry load will be applicable.

While for institutional option I, no entry load will be charged.

Exit Load: For an investment amount of less than Rs 2 crore, if amount
sought to be redeemed before 6 months from the date of allotment, 1.5%
will be exit load. If the amount sought to be redeemed on or after 6
months but before 12 months from the date of allotment, 1% of
applicable NAV should be charged as an exit load. For redemption on or
after 12 months, no exit load will be applied.

For investment amount of Rs 2 crore and above, the scheme will not
levy exit load. Institutional option I may not charge an exit load.

Benchmark Index: The benchmark index for the scheme is BSE 100 Index.

Fund Manager: Sanjay Parekh will be the fund manager for the scheme.

US tech spend to fall 3.1% this year

New Delhi, April 1 Forrester Research on Wednesday lowered its outlook
on US tech purchases for 2009. It said that the purchase of IT goods
and services by American businesses and Government is expected to drop
3.1 per cent in 2009.

But there is some cheer for IT outsourcing vendors. The report
predicts that while consulting and systems integration services will
slip, IT outsourcing growth will be small, but positive at 2.1 per
cent. It could improve to 6.8 per cent in 2010.

"With the US economy dropping at an annual rate of 6.3 per cent in Q4
2008 and most professional economic forecasters reducing their
predictions for 2009 US real GDP growth, Forrester has revised its
projection for technology spending in the US to reflect these changes.
Forrester expects growth in IT investment will resume in Q4 2009 and
gather strength in 2010," the report said.

Accordingly, it has revised its initial projection of 1.6 per cent
annual rise in US business and government IT purchases, and instead
stated that the same will drop 3.1 per cent in 2009.

"In many ways, the biggest factor affecting the tech market is not the
recession but the breakdown of the financial system. The credit crunch
is still causing companies to dramatically cut back on all forms of
capital investment, including many IT goods and services, and this
will affect 2009 revenues for most IT vendors," said Mr Andrew
Bartels, Forrester Research Vice-President and principal analyst.

The data in the report focuses on IT purchasing across various
segments — computer and communications equipment, software, IT
consulting - integration services, and IT outsourcing.

Forecast by sectors
Forrester expects that US' purchases of computer equipment will drop
6.8 per cent in 2009, on top of a 4 per cent decline in 2008. However,
growth is expected to bounce back in 2010 to 7 per cent, it said.

Communications equipment demand will shift from 2008 growth, to a big
cut in 2009. "A mixture of enterprise demand for video conferencing
and mobile technologies and telecom companies demand for 3G wireless
and broadband equipment kept purchases growing 3.7 per cent in 2008.
Both factors will erode in 2009, leading to a 7.8 per cent decline,
but growth will revive modestly in 2010 to 4.8 per cent," it said.

Software purchases will decline slightly in 2009, with licence
revenues falling. The picture will improve in 2010, with growth of 6.3
per cent, it projected.

IT consulting and systems integration services too will slip in 2009.
Cutbacks in the project portfolio of most companies will lead to a
decline of 2 per cent in 2009 for such services. According to the
Forrester report, the outlook for 2010 remains positive for this
space, with 7.4 per cent growth expected next year.

IT outsourcing
However, IT outsourcing could well buck this overall gloom, clocking a
moderate growth in 2009 and 2010. "IT outsourcing turned out to be
weak in 2008, with 2.8 per cent growth as the economic uncertainty
froze potential clients, increased competition and smaller-scale
projects cut prices, and the recession caused prospects to wait to see
if prices would get even lower. These same forces will continue
through the first half of 2009, with revenues starting to improve in
the second half of 2009 and in 2010. Growth in 2009 will be small but
positive at 2.1 per cent, improving to 6.8 per cent in 2010,"
Forrester said.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/04/02/stories/2009040251640300.htm

Trade deficit rises to $115 b in April-Feb

New Delhi, April 1 The country's exports, continuing the downslide for
the fifth month in a row this fiscal, suffered a serious jolt with a
steep decline by 22 per cent at $11.9 billion in February 2009,
against $15.2 billion in the corresponding month last year.

With imports too plummeting by a huge 23.3 per cent at $16.8 billion,
($21.9 billion), India's foreign trade front groans under the
unenviable triple whammy of declining exports and imports with
cumulative massive trade deficit of $115 billion in the first 11
months of the current fiscal, against a trade deficit of $82.2 billion
for the whole of 2007-08.

Cumulative exports
In this depressing scenario, cumulative exports in the first 11 months
of 2008-09 have come to a grinding halt slowing down to 7.3 per cent
at $156.6 billion against $145.87 billion in the corresponding months
of 2007-08. But thanks to the depreciation of the Indian rupee
vis-À-vis the US dollar, in which a major portion of the export
receipts is received, the export growth in rupee terms has swollen
substantially to log a growth of 20.3 per cent.

Cumulatively, India's exports during April-February 2008-09 at $271.7
billion ($228 billion) registered 19.1 per cent growth in dollar terms
and 33.4 per cent growth in rupee terms at Rs 12,23,213 crore (Rs
9,17,179 crore).

March estimates
Official sources told Business Line here that quick estimates of March
2009 show that there would be at least 25 per cent dip as compared to
the corresponding month of 2008 when exports fetched $16.3 billion in
a single month.

Making due allowance to the high base of last March, the exports could
still be at best $12 billion or thereabouts, taking the overall export
receipts for the current fiscal at $168 billion, against the original
target of $200 billion and scaled-down target of $170 billion for
2008-09.

Outlook
Reacting to the steepest decline in exports in February 2009, the
Federation of Indian Export Organisations President, Mr A. Sakthivel,
said the combined decline in both exports and imports would impact the
manufacturing sector already reeling under slowdown. He, however,
hoped that the next fiscal would see a turnaround with likely
improvement in overseas markets.

However, Moody's Economy.com contends that "tough times for Indian
exporters will last for some time yet as giant economies such as the
US and Europe are still deep in recession".

While pointing out that the Government would continue to be under
pressure to support struggling export-oriented manufactures in the
coming months, it said that imports would also remain in negative
territory in the coming months, reflecting the still-subdued global
commodity prices coupled with a decline in domestic demand.

Import break-up
A break-up in import component shows that oil imports in February '09
at $4 billion were 47.5 per cent lower than such imports valued at
$7.7 billion in the corresponding month of '08, while cumulatively oil
imports at $89.7 billion was 26.8 per cent higher than $70.7 billion
in the corresponding period of '07.

Non-oil imports in Feb '09 at $12.7 billion was 10.2 per cent
lower$14.2 billion), reflecting the decline in the import of capital
goods and intermediates and raw materials for sustaining domestic
manufacturing activities.

Overall, non-oil imports at $182 billion were up by 15.6 per cent than
such imports valued at $157.4 billion in the 11 months of 2007-08.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/04/02/stories/2009040252230500.htm

Shipbuilding subsidy: ABG can claim Rs 1,700 cr, Bharati Rs 1,000 cr

New Delhi, April 1 ABG Shipyard can claim Rs 1,700 crore as
shipbuilding subsidy from the Government, followed by Pipavav Shipyard
(Rs 1,050 crore) and Bharati Shipyard (Rs 1,000 crore) over the next
four-five years.

Larsen and Toubro can claim Rs 375 crore, Tebma Shipyards Rs 270 crore
and the Government-owned Cochin Shipyard can claim Rs 255 crore,
according to sources in the know.

The Government, in the last week of February, approved a move to
disburse about Rs 5,100 crore as shipbuilding subsidy to domestic
shipyards for orders secured till August 15, 2007. The subsidy will be
disbursed when the shipyard concerned delivers the ships to its
customers. So, in case a buyer cancels his order due to any reason,
the shipyard will not receive any subsidy for that order.

ABG Shipyard has deliveries lined up till 2013, for which it can claim
the Rs 1,700 crore subsidy. "Based on our current delivery position, a
subsidy of Rs 120 crore is already due. The Rs 1,700-crore subsidy is
for orders that will be delivered till 2013," Mr Dhanajay Datar, Chief
Financial Officer, ABG Shipyard, told Business Line.

ABG currently has an order book of Rs 11,400 crore and says that till
date it has not seen any move to delay or cancel orders from its
buyers.
Bharati Shipyard, meanwhile, has already delivered vessels for which
the Government has to disburse subsidies of "about Rs 300 crore."

"Most of the vessels, for which we can claim the Rs 1,000-crore
subsidy will be delivered by 2011 and some by 2012," Mr V. Kumar,
Managing Director, Bharati Shipyard, said.

On whether Bharati Shipyard has seen any order cancellations from its
buyers for these ships, Mr Kumar replied in negative. "We have seen
some delays in payments but no cancellations," Mr Kumar said.

Meanwhile, there is Pipavav Shipyard, which secured orders before
August 15, 2007, but has not started delivering as yet. The domestic
shipbuilders have also demanded extension of shipbuilding subsidy
beyond 2007.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/04/02/stories/2009040251900100.htm

March redemptions halt bullish AUM numbers’ rally

utual fund AUM rose to Rs5 trillion in February from Rs4 trillion in November

Indian mutual funds may have seen an outflow of as much as Rs50,000
crore from their assets under management (AUM) in March under heavy
redemption pressure from banks before the end of the fiscal, according
to people in the asset management business.

Mutual fund AUM rose to Rs5 trillion in February from Rs4 trillion in
November. According to data available with the Association of Mutual
Funds of India (Amfi), investments in liquid or money market schemes
contributed Rs42,000 crore in January and February alone, accounting
for at least 42% of the increase.
The run-up in AUM may have been short-lived, according to people in
the mutual fund industry who didn't want to be named.
Of the Rs42,000 crore parked in liquid schemes in January and
February, at least 95% was invested for the short term by banks, which
redeemed money from such funds before Tuesday's end of fiscal 2009 in
order to maintain adequate capital on their balance sheets, these
people said.
Fixed-income heads across the mutual fund industry and distributors
told CNBC-TV18 that as much as Rs50,000 crore had been redeemed.
People at one of the country's large mutual fund houses said banks had
redeemed Rs6,000 crore of the Rs8,000 crore they had parked in its
liquid funds. More redemptions are not being ruled out, they said.
SBI Mutual Fund, too, has witnessed the redemption of Rs3,000-3,500
crore by banks from its liquid schemes, people said.
People at UTI Mutual Fund said banks likely pulled out money to the
tune of Rs3,500 crore from its liquid schemes. Companies, too, may
have withdrawn Rs5,000-6,000 crore in March.
"This is a seasonal tendency and is chiefly for tax purposes. The
money is kept for short term and will eventually come back into the
schemes," said A.P. Kurian, chairman of Amfi.

Reliance Says Refinery Fire Under Control, None Hurt

April 1 (Bloomberg) -- A fire at the coker unit of Reliance Industries
Ltd.'s new refinery at Jamnagar, Gujarat, has been brought under
control, said V.P. Patel, district administrator.

"There was a minor fire in a section of the refinery," Reliance said
in an e-mailed statement. "The rest of the refinery is operating
normally and product despatch is continuing as per schedule."

Reliance's unit Reliance Petroleum Ltd. commissioned the 580,000
barrel a day refinery in December. Together with the parent's
adjoining 660,000 barrel a day refinery, the complex is the world's
largest crude-processing unit.

"The fire was localized, contained and brought under control by the
Reliance firefighting team within 30 minutes," the company said.
"There have been no casualties or any injuries."

District collector Patel confirmed the incident in a phone interview.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601091&sid=aFFXpeIfBJBc&refer=india

Warren Buffett: US Treasuries in Bubble Territory

Warren Buffett said Treasuries are in a bubble right now. What does that mean?
A: Warren Buffett's annual letters to Berkshire Hathaway investors are
always worth reading. The letters are one part common sense, one part
business sense and one part shareholder information.

In one section, Buffett points to the current rush into U.S. Treasury
bills, notes and bonds as the latest bubble in capital markets. He
writes: "When the financial history of this decade is written, it will
surely speak of the Internet bubble of the late 1990s and the housing
bubble of the early 2000s. But the U.S. Treasury bond bubble of late
2008 may be regarded as almost equally extraordinary."

Yes, you read that right. Buffett is saying the value of U.S. Treasury
securities has been pushed to bubble levels. Certainly, panic over the
health of the financial system has pushed investors to buy dollars and
load up on Treasuries.

When investors rush to buy Treasuries, they push prices up and yields
down. In fact, at one point last year, buyers in short-term Treasuries
were willing to accept negative yields. That is, they were willing to
take back less money than they were lending, if only to be assured
that they would get most of their money back.

Adding to the risks facing Treasuries is the fact inflation could be a
side-effect of the government's massive borrowing and spending to
stimulate the economy. If inflation kicks in, Treasury prices will
likely suffer. If at the same time investors choose to escape this
safe haven, Treasury prices could be in for a big fall.

What does all this mean? It means you shouldn't lock up all your money
in long-term Treasuries.

If interest rates rise, you could see the prices of your Treasuries
fall. And remember, when buying bonds, it's a good idea to ladder your
portfolio.

Realty prices continue downward trend in oct-dec quarter

Mumbai, March 31 Property prices continued their downward trend in the
October- December quarter and the worst-hit cities include Delhi –
NCR, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Chennai, a quarterly review of property
portal 99acres.com said.

Prices at Miyapur (Hyderabad) and Rajarhat (Kolkata) registered a
decline of about 25 per cent in the quarter, the portal said.

With over three lakh listings, the report is a compilation of asking
rates (price demanded by the seller/builder/broker) of residential
apartments (2-3BHK apartments) for buy/rent. It presents a trend of
property prices and rentals across Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai,
Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune.

"I expect the trend to continue for a few more quarters until prices
bottom out and the market stabilises on the interest rate front, which
will make the market lucrative for consumers to re-enter," said Mr
Vineet Singh, Business Head, 99acres.com

Property prices in Delhi declined during the quarter
(October-December) compared to the previous quarter. Dwarka witnessed
a steep decline by 15 per cent, Noida experienced a drop of up to 20
per cent and Gurgaon saw a further decline in prices by seven to eight
per cent.

On the rental front, some localities such as Rohini, Vasundra Enclave
and Lajpat Nagar saw an increase in rentals by about 20 per cent,
while Connaught Place, Vasant Kunj, Malviya Nagar and Janakpuri
declined by about 15 per cent. Rentals in Noida dropped by about 15
per cent, while at Gurgaon it was stable, compared to the earlier
quarter.

Mumbai, Kolkata
Mumbai Realty market saw a decline in property prices. Localities such
as Bhayander (East), Vashi and Thane West saw prices drop by 10 per
cent.

Rentals in Prabhadevi and Beach Candy saw an increase by over 50 per
cent, while Dahisar, Seawoods and Kharghar declined more than 20 per
cent.

Property prices continued to decline in Kolkata in the quarter under
review and prices at EM Bypass declined by 17 per cent, while Rajarhat
saw a decline of about 25 per cent.

Rentals in Kolkata stabilised during the quarter to some extent and
some localities such as Alipore and Jadhav Pur continued an upward
trend with an increase of over 20 per cent.

Southern cities
Chennai saw a steep decline in property prices in some localities as
compared to the previous quarter with prices in Perungudi and
Valasaravakkam dropping by 15-20 per cent. Rentals too declined during
the period with Kilpauk, T. Nagar and Medavakkam registering a drop of
over 20 per cent.

Bangalore was among the first cities to be affected by the slowdown,
where property prices declined sharply during the year. However, the
October – December quarter saw some stability in prices, compared to
the previous quarter. But, rentals slipped with areas such as
Thipassandra, Maleshpalaya and Kaggadasapura, showing a decline of
over 25 per cent.

Property prices in Hyderabad declined sharply. Prices in Madhapur
dropped by 11 per cent, while in Miyapur the decline was over 25 per
cent.

Rentals at Miyapur and Nizampet corrected by over 20 per cent and
places such as Somajiguda and Madhapur further declined by over 30 per
cent.

BOP data for Q3 sounds a new warning

BoP data for Q3 sounds a new warning
The situation triggers fears of the twin-deficit problem that preceded
the onset of the balance of payments crisis in '90
Asit Ranjan Mishra
New Delhi: In yet another signal of the growing vulnerability of the
Indian economy, data for the third quarter (Q3) ended December,
released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday, shows that
some parameters have progressively deteriorated over the year and are
close to levels touched during the economic crisis of 1990, though the
cushion of a $238 billion (Rs12.14 trillion) foreign currency reserve
provides succour.
Also See Sinking Fortunes (Graphic)
With the combined fiscal deficit of the states and the Centre likely
to hit a record high of 12% of gross domestic product (GDP), the
latest data has triggered fears of the twin-deficit—current account
and fiscal deficit—problem that preceded the onset of the balance of
payments (BoP) crisis in 1990.
The latest development comes against the backdrop of an estimated loss
of half-a- million jobs and contraction in industrial growth and
exports in December and January.
India's current account deficit, or the difference between exports and
imports of goods and services, during Q3 of the fiscal 2008-09
(October-December) widened to $14.6 billion, the highest quarterly
deficit since 1990. At this level, the current account deficit in Q3
aggregated 5.43% of GDP.
The current account deficit more than offset the capital inflows into
the country, resulting in a deficit on the capital account of BoP for
the first time in a quarter in 10 years. The combined impact led to a
drawdown of India's forex reserves by $17.88 billion.
During Q3, while foreign institutional investors (FIIs) withdrew $5.7
billion, there was an outflow of banking capital, excluding deposits
by non-resident Indians (NRIs) of $6 billion from India. However, NRI
deposits increased to $1 billion, compared with $259 million receipts
during the second quarter (Q2) of fiscal year 2009.
Analysts, however, maintain that while the outlook will improve in
2009-10, the rupee could come under further pressure.
"Certainly, the balance of payments is under stress. However, we are
getting some relief on current account front as imports are also
declining. I hope FY10 will be much better on the BoP front than FY09.
We may have a small BoP surplus in FY10 compared to a deficit in
FY09," said Abheek Barua, chief economist at HDFC Bank Ltd.
The main reason for the deterioration in the current account deficit
is the sudden slump in net invisibles in Q3 to $21.6 billion, from
$25.6 billion in Q2 ended September.
Invisibles receipts registered a marginal decline of 0.6% in Q3 on
account of a decline in travel, transportation and insurance receipts
in the services category and private transfers.
Software exports, contracted by 10% compared to the second quarter
ended September.
Exports extended last quarter's slump, dropping 16% in January from a
year earlier, the biggest slide in a decade.
As a result, the rupee has rapidly depreciated, tumbling by 21% in the
last one year to touch an all-time low of Rs52.185 to the dollar on 3
March. The rupee is the second-worst performer in the period among the
10 most-used currencies in Asia outside Japan.
The Asian Development Bank in its Asian Development Outlook 2009
released on Tuesday said that India's current account deficit will
narrow to 1.5% of GDP in FY10 but then widen a little to 2% of GDP in
the following year. "Capital inflows will remain under stress
throughout FY10. A weakening capital account will put pressure on the
Indian rupee to depreciate. In FY10, a fall of about 10% in exports
and imports, will improve the trade and current account deficits,
since imports are larger than exports," it said.

Market downturn dries up ELSS dividend payouts

The stock market carnage has not spared equity linked saving schemes
(ELSS), with the dividend declared by fund houses seeing a sharp fall
in FY 2008-09 from the previous fiscal. The average dividend declared
in FY 2008-09 was 28 per cent as against 44 per cent declared in FY
2007-08.
Twenty three schemes had declared dividend in the previous fiscal
ranging between 15 per cent and 200 per cent, while this fiscal this
number has come down to 9 schemes declaring dividend from 10 per cent
to 50 per cent. Only five fund houses announced divided in 9 ELSS
schemes. These include Birla Sun Life MF, HDFC Mutual, ICICI
Prudential AMC, Franklin India AMC and Taurus. This is in sharp
contract to the earlier year when 17 fund houses declared dividend in
23 ELSS schemes.
In FY 2008-09, Taurus Libra Tax Shield ruled the roost, giving
dividend three times at 10 per cent each in December, January and
March. HDFC Tax Saver and Birla Sun Life Tax Relief 96 gave highest
dividend o f 50 per cent in March and June respectively during the
current fiscal.
In FY 2007-08, Birla Sun Life Tax Relief 96 declared the highest
dividend of 200 per cent while HDFC Tax Saver disbursed 80 per cent
dividend. The ex-dividend NAVs for these two schemes stood at Rs 86.74
and Rs 58.092 on March 25, 2008 and March 8, 2008 respectively. The
same eroded to Rs 66.86 and Rs 26.155 on June 27, 2008 and March 6,
2009.
Most of the ELSS schemes have not booked any profit and hence they
don't have any surplus income. In such conditions, declaring dividend
is nothing but a gimmick to lure investors, fund distributors said.
"Bruised by the tumbling market, investors have already seen huge
erosion in their NAVs. Declaring dividend will bring down the NAV
further," said Hiren Dhakan, mutual fund analyst, Bonanza Portfolio.
Vinay Shukla, senior vice president, India Infoline, said, "MFs are
guided by the psychology of investors who feel ELSS schemes declaring
dividend are only worth investing and performing."
"Declaring dividend also involves overhead costs, which will directly
impact the NAV of a scheme later," added Shukla.

Find attached List of divided declared on ELS schemes in 2008-09:

The following is combined FII trading data across NSE and BSE collated on the basis of trades executed by FIIs on 01-Apr-2009.

FII trading activity on NSE and BSE on Capital Market Segment

The following is combined FII trading data across NSE and BSE collated
on the basis of trades executed by FIIs on 01-Apr-2009.

FII trading activity on NSE and BSE in Capital Market Segment(In Rs. Crores)
Category Date Buy Value Sell Value Net Value
FII 01-Apr-2009 1688.99 1515.24 173.75

Domestic Institutional Investors trading activity on NSE and BSE on
Capital Market Segment

The following is combined Domestic Institutional Investors trading
data across NSE and BSE collated on the basis of trades executed by
Banks, DFIs, Insurance and MFs on 01-Apr-2009.

DII trading activity on NSE and BSE in Capital Market Segment(In Rs. Crores)
Category Date Buy Value Sell Value Net Value
DII 01-Apr-2009 622.22 610.62 11.6

1-Apr-09 Settlement Prices

Today's Settlment Prices :: Gold 15088 :: Silver 21735 :: Copper 206.90 :: Lead 62.95 :: Nickel 512.60 :: Zinc 66.15 :: Crude Oil 2426 :: Natural Gas 189 :: CPO 318.50 :: HO 66.80 :: SO 452.90 & INR 50.57
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Breaking News

Breakingnew$-ECB completes gold sales under at 35.5 tonnes.
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Stats

ISM Manufacturing PMI : 36.3 VS 35.8

Pending Home Sales m/m : 2.1% VS -7.7%

Construction Spending m/m : -0.9% VS -3.5%

ISM Manufacturing Prices : 31.0 VS 29.0
WEAK
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Breaking News

BreakingNew$-The European Central Bank said it completed the sale of 35.5 tons of gold on Tuesday
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More blood spills -- Honda offers voluntary buyouts, cutspay and production in North America

Honda offers buyouts, slashes pay in North America

Honda offers voluntary buyouts, cuts pay and production in North America

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Honda Motor Co. is offering voluntary buyouts, cutting workers' pay and imposing 13 non-production days at its North American plants to reduce its production this summer by 62,000 vehicles.

Honda spokesman Ron Lietzke said Tuesday that the buyouts will be offered to most of the Japanese automaker's 35,600 employees in the U.S., Canada and Mexico. Enhanced retirement packages are also being offered, he said.
Overall compensation will be reduced for its North American employees, with top executives experiencing the biggest cuts, Lietzke said. He would not say how much salaries would be reduced.
Bonuses will be greatly reduced or eliminated, but pay rates for production and hourly workers will not be affected, Lietzke said.
"There is a continuing need to reduce our inventory," Lietzke said. "Regardless of job title or level within our organization, each Honda associate will share the responsibility of doing what we must do to remain competitive."
Honda builds Accords and Acuras in Marysville, Ohio, near Columbus, and makes Civics and Elements at a factory in East Liberty, Ohio. The company also has an auto plant in Alabama and it makes parts in Georgia.
The 13 non-production days will fall from May through July, and employees will have the option of using vacation days or taking no pay on most of those days, Lietzke said. The company is limiting non-work days to two a month to limit the effect on employees, he said.
The company said in December it would cut vehicle production at its Ohio plants by 58,000.
Honda followed that with an announcement in January that it would reduce production in North America by 29,000 vehicles, a move that would affect plants in Ohio, as well as Ontario, Canada, and Lincoln, Ala.

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31-Mar-09 settlement prices

Today's Settlement Prices :: Gold 15064 :: Silver 21855 :: Copper 207.10 :: Lead 64.50 :: Nickel 501.10 :: Zinc 66.70 :: Crude Oil 2481 :: Natural Gas 190.90 :: CPO 311.20 :: HO 68.15 :: SO 447.20 & INR 50.72
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BSE - Index based market wide circuit breaker for theQuarter 1st April 2009 to 30th June 2009.

Dear All,
 
Trading Members of the Exchange are hereby informed that the Exchange implements on a quarterly basis (SEBI circular SMDRPD/Policy/Cir-37/2001 dated June 28, 2001) the index based market wide circuit breaker system.  The system is applicable at three stages of the index movement either way at 10%, 15% and 20%. This circuit breaker brings about a coordinated trading halt in all equity and equity derivative markets nationwide.
 
The market wide circuit breakers would be triggered by movement of either SENSEX or the NSE S&P CNX Nifty whichever is breached earlier.
 
· In case of a 10% movement of either of these indices, there would be a 1-hour market halt if the movement takes place before 1 p.m. In case the
  movement takes place at or after 1 p.m. but before 2.30 p.m. there will be a trading halt for ½ hour. In case the movement takes place at or after
  2.30 p.m. there will be no trading halt at the 10% level and the market will continue trading.
 
· In case of a 15% movement of either index, there will be a 2-hour market halt if the movement takes place before 1 p.m. If the 15% trigger is
  reached on or after 1 p.m. but before 2 p.m., there will be a 1 hour halt. If the 15% trigger is reached on or after 2 p.m. the trading will halt for
  the remainder of the day.
· In case of a 20% movement of the index, the trading will be halted for the remainder of the day.
The percentages are calculated on the closing index value of the quarter. These percentages are translated into absolute points of index variations (rounded off to the nearest 25 points in case of SENSEX). At the end of each quarter, these absolute points of index variations are revised and made applicable for the next quarter.
 
On March 31, 2009, the last trading day of the quarter, SENSEX closed at 9708.50 points. The absolute points of SENSEX variation (over the previous day's closing SENSEX) which would trigger market wide circuit breaker for any day in the quarter between 1st April 2009 and 30th June 2009 would be as under:
 

Percentage (+/-)
Equivalent Points (+/-)

10%
975

15%
1450

20%
1950

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FII trading activity on NSE and BSE on Capital Market Segment

FII trading activity on NSE and BSE on Capital Market Segment

The following is combined FII trading data across NSE and BSE collated on the basis of trades executed by FIIs on 31-Mar-2009.




FII trading activity on NSE and BSE in Capital Market Segment(In Rs. Crores)
Category Date Buy Value Sell Value Net Value
FII 31-Mar-2009 1674.34 2257.99 -583.65
 
 
Domestic Institutional Investors trading activity on NSE and BSE on Capital Market Segment


The following is combined Domestic Institutional Investors trading data across NSE and BSE collated on the basis of trades executed by Banks, DFIs, Insurance and MFs on 31-Mar-2009.


DII trading activity on NSE and BSE in Capital Market Segment(In Rs. Crores)
Category Date Buy Value Sell Value Net Value
DII 31-Mar-2009 2120.72 1081.65 1039.07

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