Asian Lite News Archive

Category: Investment

  • China unveils ‘Made in China 2025’

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    China’s State Council has unveiled a national plan, dubbed “Made in China 2025”, focusing on promoting manufacturing, Xinhua news agency reported. The plan was authorised by Premier Li Keqiang, the report stated citing a government notice issued in this connection. “Made in China 2025” is the first 10-year action plan designed to transform China from…

  • Indian businesses explore Ethiopia

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    By Hadra Ahmed   A delegation of Indian investors from various sectors came on a three-day visit here during the course of which they met Ethiopian officials to discuss multi-sector projects that would benefit the two countries and strengthen the long standing Ethiopian-Indian diplomatic and socio-economic relations. The 24 business delegates came from sectors including IT,…

  • Seoul offers $10 bn for smart cities

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      South Korea offered to provide $10 billion for infrastructure projects in India, including smart cities and railways, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with President Park Geun-hye here on Monday and the two countries decided to elevate their ties to a special strategic partnership. Both sides agreed to increase their defence and security…

  • South Korea offers India $10-bn fund

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    By Rohit Vaid    As Prime Minister Narendra Modi commenced his two-day visit to Seoul , South Korea has offered to set up a $10-billion fund to support several of his ambitious projects, from bullet trains to smart cities, the country’s envoy to India Joon-gyu Lee has said. “My country is offering India a financial package…

  • Modi bags $22 bn in new business

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    India is ready to do business and is constantly improving the ease of doing business, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday at the India-China Business Forum here that saw 21 business agreements worth $22 billion being signed. In his address to the India-China Business Forum, Modi said that India offers historic opportunity for Chinese…

  • HSBC launches £400m SME support package

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    HSBC – which is moving its retail division to Birmingham – has launched its most ambitious package of support for the city’s small and medium-sized companies (SMEs). The bank has unveiled a £400 million SME fund in the region, one of more than 40 funds to support smaller firms across the country. The newly announced…

  • New research centre at Warwick for steel industry

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    Scientists developing stronger and lighter steels to meet the demands of the 21st century will have access to the latest research facilities, thanks to a deal between Tata Steel and the University of Warwick. An agreement has been signed between Tata and the university’s Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) which marks the next stage in the…

  • HSBC doubtful of returns from Indian equities

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    Finding Indian equities markets to be the most over-owned in Asia, HSBC Global Research has now assigned the country “underweight” status, meaning thereby that it expects the returns to be below normal in the short-to-medium term. “In a report titled “The Flying Dutchman: India – Gravity Sets In”, the research arm of HSBC said the…

  • Bank of England cuts growth forecast to 2.5%

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    The Bank of England has cut its 2015 growth forecast from 2.9% to 2.5%, and for next year from 2.9% to 2.6%, as governor Mark Carney unveiled his quarterly inflation report. And he told MPs interest rates would rise only in about a year’s time. Mr Carney also said deflation could emerge during the year,…

  • Modi wants to take the silk route with China

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that he wants to work on a roadmap to qualitatively upgrade economic relations with China. He also said that he was open to discussing regional connectivity, including the Silk Road concept, with Chinese leaders. “I look forward to working out a roadmap for qualitatively upgrading our economic relations and…

  • India’s luxury goods market short of trained hands

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    By Biswajit Choudhury Take a stroll in an upmarket mall or fashion street in India and you’ll find swanky showrooms of a host of global luxury brands. Yet, just 30 percent of the top 500 names in the business have a presence in India. One reason: Lack of qualified staff, experts maintain. In the $14-billion…

  • Royal Enfield acquires UK-based chassis manufacturer

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    Motorcycle manufacturer Royal Enfield said that it has acquired UK-based chassis and components maker Harris Performance Products. According to the company, the acquisition will enhance its engineering and product design capabilities for its new generation of products and platforms. “Their proven expertise, deep insight and understanding of motorcycling will be invaluable for us in our…

  • India shouldn’t give in to anti-GM dissent

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    By Vivian Fernandes  With the European Union expected to approve import of 17 more genetically-modified food products by the end of May, opponents in India like Greenpeace will have a weaker case to stall permission for commercial cultivation of GM crops. But they are unlikely to give up their resistance. Unless the courts come to…

  • Building the pillars of good governance

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    By Shrimoyee Bhattacharya and Sujaya Rathi  The second budget of the Narendra Modi government has been presented. The Smart Cities programme and 500 habitations under the National Urban Rejuvenation Mission (NURM) together have been allocated Rs. 6,000 crore (approximately $1 billion). This is more than one third of the total allocation under the Ministry of…

  • US approves Arctic drilling

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    The US has granted conditional approval to energy giant Shell to begin oil drilling in the Arctic waters off the coast of Alaska. The interior department wrote in a statement, issued on Monday, that Shell could begin drilling in the Chukchi Sea once several environmental conditions are met, including a sign-off from agencies assessing the…

  • Modi and Manmohan index

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      The economy rebounded; exports and imports declined, foreign-exchange reserves grew; coal production, electricity generation and petroleum consumption rose, non-performing assets (NPAs) in banking soared. There are great similarities between Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first year in office – which he completes on May 26 – and the corresponding first year of his predecessor, Manmohan…

  • US business urged to seize India’s potential

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    By Arun Kumar  With India moving quickly on its commitment to reform, the new Indian ambassador to the US, Arun K. Singh, has expressed confidence that American business and industry will seize the potential to reinforce India-US strategic ties. “We are in a very momentous phase of our relationship,” he said in an address Wednesday…

  • India one of world’s fastest growing economies: IMF

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    By Arun Kumar  India’s growth rate is expected to rise to 7.5 percent this year and next, making it one of the fastest growing economies in the world, according to the IMF’s latest economic health check. The other Asian giant China’s economy is slowing to a more sustainable pace – 6.8 percent GDP growth in…

  • HSBC considering moving HQ out of London

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    HSBC has said it is considering moving its headquarters out of London. The bank said the review followed “regulatory and structural reforms” since the financial crisis reports BBC. HSBC’s board has asked its management to “look at where the best place is for HSBC to be headquartered in this new environment,” the bank said. “The question…

  • Indian businesses exploring Ghana

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    By Francis Kokutse  A 20-member Indian business delegation is currently on a visit to Ghana to explore business opportunities in this West African nation. The delegation has been brought by Ghana’s High Commissioner to India, Sam Pee-Yalley. Indian High Commissioner in Accra, Jeeva Sagar, asked the businessmen “to take Ghana seriously because the country is…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • India a land of great opportunities: Modi

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a busy schedule at Hannover , meeting top German CEOs — including of Daimler, Voith, Metro AG and Bombardier Transportation — whom he told that India is a land of great opportunities. Modi, who flew down to this German city after his two-day visit to France, also unveiled a bust…

  • 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…

  • Saudi keen to Make in India

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    By Ranjana Narayan Saudi Arabia, the largest supplier of crude oil to India, is keen to participate in the Make in India initiative of the Narendra Modi government and has asked its business people to explore the opportunities in India under the scheme, the kingdom’s envoy has said. “I think it is a very good…

  • Modi launches bank for small firms

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    Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a bank with a corpus of Rs.20,000 crore to extend credit of up to Rs.10 lakh to small businesses and regulate micro-finance institutions, to promote their growth, add to the country’s output and create jobs. The move is aimed at benefiting some 58 million small businesses in the country, who…

  • 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…

  • Modi’s visit to Canada to boost trade

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    By Mohammed Shafeeq   Canada expects Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit in April to help accelerate finalization of trade and investment agreements between the two countries, a Canadian diplomat has said. Sidney Frank, Canada’s Consul General in Bengaluru, said that the Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPPA) and the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) will have…

  • 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…

  • Australia to join Asian bank

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    Australia has decided to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which will allow it to become a founding member of the bank, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said. In a joint statement with Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and Treasurer Joe Hockey, Abbott said the MoU would enable Australia “to…

  • 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…

  • The Superconnected Birmingham

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      Birmingham has become one of the UK’s ‘Superconnected Cities’, with more than 800 local businesses being awarded grants to help them acquire a faster and more reliable internet service. The grants are worth up to £3,000 and are available to businesses to help them upgrade their internet connections, allowing them to be much faster…

  • Jaguar Land Rover to invest £600 million in UK

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    Jaguar Land Rover has today reaffirmed its long-term commitment to the West Midlands, with confirmation of a £600m investment in the region to support product creation and advanced vehicle manufacturing. The largest single investment has been made at the company’s Castle Bromwich plant, where over £400m has been spent in new and upgraded facilities to…

  • India needs to be energy independent : Modi

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    Stressing on energy security, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said India will have to be independent in this area and seek new avenues to replenish existing sources in a bid to serve the growing appetite of the people. “We need to be independent when it comes to providing our people with energy,” Modi said,…

  • Spectrum auction concludes

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     After 19 days of rigorous bidding, the auction of airwaves for telecom operators concluded, with officials initially placing the figure of cumulative bids at over Rs.100,000 crore. auction was conducted for 800 MHz, 900 Mhz, 1800 MHz and 2100 MHz covering both mobile telephony and broadband, including 4G. Till Tuesday, the government had received cumulative…

  • Qatar ink six agreements with India

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    India and Qatar inked six agreements, including one on transfer of sentenced prisoners, as visiting Emir of Qatar Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi here . The Emir, who is here on a two-day visit, was in the morning accorded a ceremonial reception at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan.…

  • 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,…

  • Obama vows L-1B visa reforms

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    By Arun Kumar   Declaring that “America is proudly open for business”, President Barack announced plans to reform the L-1B visa category to allow global corporations to temporarily move workers to the US in a faster, simpler way. “And this could benefit hundreds of thousands of non-immigrant workers and their employers; that, in turn, will benefit…

  • India’s African opportunity

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    By Francis Kokutse  A recent upsurge in infrastructural developments across Africa might well turn out to be a boon for Indian companies. A new report by the international accounting firm, Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC) has confirmed that infrastructure spending in sub-Saharan Africa will exceed $180 billion by 2025, and this seems to fit into the Exim…

  • Yahoo shuts China operations

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    Internet giant Yahoo Inc. is withdrawing its remaining operations in China, laying off over 200 employees and shutting down its Beijing research centre, a media report said. The company said it informed employees of the job cuts, The Wall Street Journal reported. The Beijing office, Yahoo’s only physical presence in mainland China, was mostly made…

  • India poised for fast growth: Lagarde

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      Internation Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde  said India was on its path to becoming the world’s fastest growing economy, as she bagan her two-day visit to the country. “Wondeful to be back in vibrant India – poised to become world’s fastest growing large economy,” Lagarde tweeted, as the multilateral funding institution predicted…

  • India needs habitable cities

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    By Sanjiv Kataria  Ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced his government’s plans to create 100 smart cities, there is a rise in the clamour by chief ministers to get the tag. From Ajmer to Allahabad and from Salem to Srinagar, the list of contenders grows, even as India gives shape to a plan and…

  • 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…

  • 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…

  • Crucial spectrum telecom auction to begin

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    The finance ministry is expected to closely watch the e-auction of radio frequency spectrum, our airwaves, for telecom operators that commences, seen as crucial for the government to be able to meet its fiscal deficit target of 4.1 percent of GDP. A mock auction was conducted Tuesday. “It went off smoothly. We are all set…