Asian Lite News Archive

Category: MARKETS

  • Tesco record a loss of £6.4bn

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    Tesco has reported the worst results in its history with a record statutory pre-tax loss of £6.4bn for the year to the end of February. That compares with annual pre-tax profit of £2.26bn a year earlier reports BBC. It is the third year in a row in which the supermarket giant has reported falling profits.…

  • Asking prices for houses reach record high

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    A shortage of homes and high demand for properties have combined to drive asking prices to a new record high, according to Rightmove. The property website said new sellers’ asking prices increased by 1.6%, or £4,381, month-on-month in April to reach £286,133 on average across England and Wales reports Sky News. The figure beats a…

  • How to build and protect your brand image?

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    Amit Dasgupta provides the expert tips to build and protect your brand image Who am I? The question lies at the very heart of human enquiry. On a basic level, it refers to identity. In other words, it seeks to answer what we do and what we stand for. I could be seen, for instance, as…

  • Moody’s pegs India growth at 7.5%

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    A week after it revised its outlook on India to positive from stable, international credit rating major Moody’s pegged India’s growth at 7.5 percent for 2015. “India’s economy is on a cyclical upswing. Forward looking indicators suggest domestic demand is gathering momentum,” said Faraz Syed, associate economist, Moody’s Analytics. According to the ratings agency, low…

  • India assures a modern tax regime

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    Arun Kumar    India’s Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has assured foreign investors that the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was working on a more modern tax regime as part of ongoing reforms to increase investment and reduce regulations to realise double-digit growth. “In order to realise double-digit growth we need to undertake a number of…

  • Target double digit growth: Jaitley

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    To reap the dividend of India’s “major demographic shift”, the country has to target a double digit growth rate, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said . “India is on the brink of a major demographic shift, with the proportion of working-age population between 15 and 59 years likely to increase from 58 percent in 2001 to…

  • World Bank pegs India’s growth at 8%

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    The World Bank has forecast India’s growth accelerating to 8 percent for the next fiscal and said the country is well-placed in a region that has not only logged the highest economic expansion but would benefit the most from cheap oil. According to the bank’s South Asia Economic Focus report, which is released twice a…

  • India Inc. can outsmart Chinese : Havells India

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    By Gokul Bhagabati   With manufacturing at the core of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” campaign and labour costs in China eating into margins, India’s electrical goods manufacturers see little threat today from cheap imports, says Havells India chief Anil Rai Gupta. “The competition will be there. But the threat of unhealthy competition is…

  • Modi in Hannover

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      Prime Minister Narendra Modi got down to business, meeting top German CEOs, immediately after his arrival in Hannover  as part of his two-day visit to Germany. Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was also part of the round-table with the CEOs. “Movers & shakers of German economy/industry meet with PM @narendramodi,” tweeted the external…

  • Jaitley happy with Moody report

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      Sixteen months after it warned of a downgrade, ratings agency Moody’s  raised its outlook on India to positive, hoping for further steps from the Narendra Modi government to push growth. The finance ministry said this was significant and promised more. “India has grown faster than similarly-rated peers over the last decade due to favourable…

  • Modi, Merkel to open Hanover 2015

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      The country will have a unique opportunity to present the ‘Make in India’ initiative and its technological prowess at the world’s largest industrial fair Hanover Messe, German Ambassador to India Michael Steiner said here. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will jointly inaugurate on Sunday this year’s Hanover fair where India…

  • RBI leaves policy rates unchanged

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      India’s central bank  kept its key policy rates and the reserve ratios unchanged in line with the predictions, while awaiting more robust data on inflation and action from commercial banks to soften their cost of credit to alter its stance. Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan, who conducted the first bi-monthly review of…

  • Morgan Stanley sees ‘Achhe Din’ for India

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    With the rural wage growth coming down to a nine-year low at 5.5 percent this January and inflation seemingly stabilizing, India is bracing for a long period of higher sustainable growth and lower prices, financial services firm Morgan Stanley said. “We are more constructive on inflation outlook and we expect the retail price index to…

  • India plans big for Africa

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    By Ranjana Narayan   As India plans big for the India Africa Forum Summit in October, inviting all the 54 countries for the first time to its soil, it has reached out in many small but important ways to several of the countries for capacity building, not the least being helping Rwanda make optimal use of…

  • Saudi influence on oil price to decline

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      With Saudi Arabia moving beyond its long-held role as a simple exporter of crude oil and reshaping itself as a supplier of refined petroleum products, the kingdom will be less able to influence prices and balance global oil markets, a study says. The paper, published in the journal Energy Policy, examined the growth of…

  • Resurgent India driving Asian growth

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    By Arun Kumar With India-US relations stronger than ever since the election of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the two countries have become drivers of growth across the region and around the world, according to a senior US official “If there is one overarching positive trend that is driving the energy and optimism across South Asia,…

  • Osborne to unveil pre-election Budget

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    In his last one before elections,George Osborne is to set out his tax and spending plans in the Budget later. The chancellor has pledged “no giveaways” or “gimmicks” in his speech, which will be delivered at 12:30 GMT. Reports suggest the UK’s finances may be boosted by a £6bn windfall as a result of low…

  • US Fed to raise interest rates?

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    By Arun Kumar    The US central bank kicked off a policy meeting that ends  amid speculation about when the Federal Reserve will raise US interest rates – a move that would impact both advanced and emerging markets like India. The Wall Street Journal suggested that the Fed “is about to inject uncertainty back into financial…

  • Reliance Industries tops in assets

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    Mumbai-based conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd. heads the list of India’s top 10 companies ranked in terms of their asset base as on March 31, 2014, parliament was informed on Tuesday. In a written reply to the Rajya Sabha, Corporate Affairs Minister Arun Jaitley said Reliance Industries with an asset base of Rs.3,67,583 crore was ranked…

  • What influenced Rajan’s rate cuts?

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    By Biswajit Choudhury  The second unscheduled cut  – within two months – in the repo rate at which the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lends to commercial banks was not as unexpected as the first in January. Indeed, it could even be called expected after the weekend’s historic announcement by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in…

  • Victory for UK and Single Market

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    An historic verdict by the General Court of the European Court of Justice powerfully reaffirmed the principle that Single Market rules prevent any discrimination against countries outside the Eurozone and that legislation agreed by all 28 member states trumps policy by the European Central bank . The Court found in favour of the first of…

  • Lok Sabha pass insurance bill

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    The Lok Sabha on  passed the insurance sector amendment bill, which seeks to hike the foreign equity cap on domestic companies from 26 percent to 49 percent, despite opposition protests. Formally called the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, it seeks to replace an ordinance that was promulgated earlier. The bill now faces a crucial test in…

  • Mood mixed at Moody’s

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      Global credit rating agency Moody’s Investors Service on  said India’s budget for 2015-16 is credit positive for corporates and a mixed bag for the banks. The increase in service tax, however, is credit negative as it would increase the production cost for Indian corporates, the agency said. “Measures designed to reduce and rationalise taxes,…

  • India’s growing appetite for luxury brands

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    By Nivedita A growing clientele with an appetite for luxury products makes India a conducive market for global fashion designers to make inroads, says British designer Alice Temperley, whose creations have been worn by the likes of The Duchess of Cambridge, Halle Berry and Jennifer Lopez. She has launched her fashion brand Temperley London in…

  • RBI cuts repo rate by 25 basis points

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    With the inflation rate coming down to below eight percent by January 2015 as targeted and likely to be below six percent by January 2016, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reduced the repo rate by 25 basis points, said bank Governor Raghuram G. Rajan. The much awaited reduction in key interest rates by…

  • Banking sector need reforms: Jaitley

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      India needs to conceive several reforms in the banking sector, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said here. “There is a need to get the best talent into the system. There is a need for far greater autonomy being given to them (public sector banks),” Jaitley told reporters on the sidelines of the two-day banking retreat.…

  • ? Indian aviation in turbulence

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      By Rohit Vaid   India’s civil aviation industry faced turbulent weather in 2014 even as two new airlines with foreign collaborators joined the five scheduled operators to trigger a price war that squeezed margins further, with falling fuel costs giving some respite in later months. The Tatas-promoted AirAsia, in collaboration with the Malaysian budget carrier…

  • Manmohan Singh predicts 8% growth

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      Former prime minister Manmohan Singh said India can achieve a growth rate of 8-9 percent given a ‘national consensus’ on methods to take advantage of a globalised world. “I think that even though many other emerging economies are not doing too well, India has an opportunity to move towards a growth rate of 6-7…

  • 4G helped Europe’s mobile industry

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      Europe’s rapid transition to 4G service has helped the recovery of the mobile industry, according to a new GSM Association (GSMA) report “Mobile Economy: Europe 2014”, published . The financial outlook of the mobile industry showed signs of improvement in 2014 because of the positive impact from 4G deployments after years of significant revenue declines,…

  • India climb China in corporate governance rankings

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    India has emerged as the leader in global developing markets for having the clearest and most comprehensive policies on corporate governance, according to a latest study. Scoring more than China, India is at par with Malaysia and Australia ranking 4th across 25 markets globally and is at the 2nd spot in the Europe-Middle East-Asia (EMA)…

  • India business reforms impress World Bank

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    A new World Bank Group report finds that has India set the pace for regulatory reform in South Asia since 2005 with 20 measures – the largest in the region. India was followed by Sri Lanka with 16 reforms while three countries – Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan – focused their efforts on adopting modern electronic…

  • Oil prices may put Modi on reform mode

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    By Saroj Mohanty  One single international development that has not received the kind of play it deserves in the Indian media but is keenly watched in policy-making and strategic circles is the falling prices of oil – despite the geopolitical uncertainties in the Middle East and Nigeria – whose impact could be felt in government…

  • India to grow at 5.5% this year: Rajan

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    India is hoping to achieve 5.5 percent, or little more, growth rate this year, said Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan. “Next year we will go into sixes and hopefully sevens the year after,” he said while addressing students of Indian Business School (ISB) here Thursday. Rajan said that without thinking of major…

  • Infosys posts robust growth

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      Beating market estimates, IT bellwether Infosys Ltd Friday reported robust net profit and revenue growth in rupee and dollar terms for the second quarter (July-Sep) of this fiscal (2014-15). Net profit for the quarter (Q2) under review increased to Rs.3,096 crore, posting growth of 28.6 percent year-on-year (YoY) from Rs.2,407 crore year ago and…

  • Modi asks states to grab $100 bn investment

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      Prime Minister Narendra Modi  asked the states to grab the $100 billion worth of investments that have resulted from his summit-level interactions with Japan, China and the US. “(A total of) $100 billion investments from Japan, China and America have applied for visa. Now it is the turn of the states to capitalise on…

  • Yahoo! fires 600 techies in India

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     Internet giant and search engine Yahoo! is giving ‘pink slips’ to about 600 techies here to trim its workforce in India and consolidate its core engineering activity in the US. Though Yahoo! India R&D centre here declined to confirm, a source in the know of the development said that about 200 lateral/senior employees have, however, been…

  • India set to grow@6.5%: IMF

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    With India’s growth increasing on rising business confidence and stronger manufacturing activity since the April-May general election, it’s expected to grow faster in the rest of 2014 and 2015, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). India is “projected to grow at 5.6 percent in 2014 and pick up further to 6.4 percent in 2015…

  • India Inc upbeat

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    The confidence level of corporate India is improving in line with a slight turnaround in the economy, industry surveys showed Monday. And companies expect overall economic situation to become better in the near term, they said. The Business Confidence Index in the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) survey stood at 72.7,…

  • Zuckerberg follow Nadella to India

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      Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg will be visiting India next week to attend a summit. Zuckerberg will also meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to sources. His visit comes three months (July, 2014) after the visit of Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of the social networking giant, to the country, which is the second biggest…

  • Modi inspires investor confidence

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      Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “extremely successful” US visit, especially his meeting with top business leaders there, has seen a US-India business body committing to $42 billion investment in India with many lauding the “Gujarat model” of development. In a survey following Modi’s five-day visit, the US-India Business Council (USIBC), in a survey, found that…

  • Increase in India’s domestic air passenger demand

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    Travel industry body International Air Transport Association (IATA) said India’s domestic market increased by 7.4 percent in August over the previous year. “Results for the last two months have been solid, perhaps an early sign of improvement as a result of the new business-supportive government regime,” IATA said in a statement. According to IATA, India’s…

  • Modi hard sells India to CEO’s

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      Hard selling India with assurances of a business-friendly environment and a stable and simpler tax regime, Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited top US business to come and invest in India. Addressing the US-India Business Council comprising 300 top US companies doing business with India here Tuesday, he promised to replace bureaucratic red tape with…

  • India’s software technology exports increase

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    By Sujit Chakraborty  India’s exports from the Software Technology Parks (STP) across India are rising at a pace of 8 to 10 percent annually and would further increase in the upcoming years as the industry spreads across the country, a senior sector official said. “There are huge software technology markets across the world and India’s…

  • Modi will market Brand India

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    By Ranjana Narayan When Prime Minister Narendra Modi sits down to breakfast with the CEOs of top US companies Monday, he will be speaking to them with the knowledge and authority of a business honcho who knows what he wants and can possibly market India as an investment destination better than anyone else. The prime…

  • Business on top in Modi’s US agenda

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi leaves Thursday on a five-day much anticipated visit to the US, during which he will address the UN General Assembly and also hold a summit meeting with US President Barack Obama which would see trade and investment high on the agenda. The visit to the US caps a month of fast…

  • Vodafone CEO positive about India

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    British telecom major Vodafone Group Chief Executive Officer Vittorio Colao  said the mood of the international investors about the new Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in India is positive but “quick decisions” will provide the necessary impetus to the companies. “Some of the steps taken by the government are good and investors like it. The mood…

  • Alibaba debuts at NYSE

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    China’s e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Friday morning rang the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), marking its initial public offering (IPO) on Wall Street. Alibaba set its IPO price at $68 per American Depositary Share Thursday evening, raising $21.8 billion, Xinhua reported. The IPO is believed to be the biggest in US…

  • Tea goes cold in India

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     Erratic weather, scanty rains and high temperatures this summer have impacted tea production in India, as evident from 18 million kg (average) lower yield during the first six months of 2014. “Changing weather pattern in north India, especially in the eastern states resulted in tea production declining 22 million kg first half of this year…

  • Google on Indian online market

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    Indian online market set to explode: Google study With the Indian online market set to explode, telecom companies stand to generate an additional revenue of $8 billion and EBITDA of $2.9 billion over the next three years, a joint study by Google and AT Kearney has forecast. India will witness a major mobile explosion with…

  • Rupee drops to five-month low

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    Indian rupee was trading at a five-month low Friday, dropping to 61.70 to a dollar, as foreign funds continued to sell their stocks and fresh concerns emerged over the situation in Iraq. After plunging to its lowest level since March 5 with a drop of as much as 38 paise over the previous close, the…