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rakeshmalik · #**751** 6th March 2008, 07:37 PM

Iran ready to sign tri-nation gas pipeline deal

Mumbai, March 06: Iran has said that it is ready to sign the India-Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline deal, but technical issues between India and Pakistan is hindering the process.

"We are ready to sign the agreement as soon as possible," Iranian deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Affairs Mohsen Talaei told reporters here.

"Everything is okay from our side (regarding the pipeline). There are some technical issues between India and Pakistan," he said.

The India-Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline, which is dubbed as the 'peace pipeline', is stuck over issues such as price and transition fees, he said.

"We are finding a balancing point on price and transition fees," Talaei said. All the three parties are trying to find the solution, he added.

"We are sure we will get a result soon if the individual parties involved take their own decisions," he said, referring to the US influence on India.

According to estimates, the gas deal is worth USD 22 billion. Under the proposed accord, India would import 5 million tons of liquefied natural gas a year for 25 years.

rakeshmalik · #**752** 6th March 2008, 07:53 PM

UKIBC launches Gen Next India initiative in Edinburgh

London, Mar 06: The UK-India Business Council (UKIBC), which supports the promotion of bilateral trade between the two countries, has launched its Next Generation India initiative in Edinburgh.

The Next Generation India programme fosters networks between young professionals of any nationality with an India connection.

The Edinburgh launch is the first regional chapter of the Next Generation network and is aimed at engaging young professionals to build their own networks, gain a new insight into both markets and connect between India and the UK.

Sharon Bamford, UK India Business Council chief executive, said: "Next Generation India will help position 'modern' India in the minds of the young executives and professionals and also strengthen the business, trade and investment ties between India and the UK in the future."

She said that the initiative emphasised the enterprise, entrepreneurship, talent and ideas emerging from India and the UK. It will seek to engage the "next generation" of both countries and highlight business opportunities emerging from the Indian market.

Aditya Kedia, IT developer at Aegon Asset Management, Edinburgh, and Next Generation advisory board member said, "A local chapter of the Next Generation network in Edinburgh is a step towards bringing together like-minded young entrepreneurs who will play an active role in shaping the future economy."

"I am confident that Next Generation India will help open young professionals' eyes to 'Opportunity India' and build sustainable links with one of the largest and fastest growing markets in the world," UK India Business Council chairman, Lord Karan Bilimoria said.

The UKIBC operates under the Indo-British partnership, created in 1993 by the then British and Indian Prime Ministers.

rakeshmalik · #**753** 6th March 2008, 10:18 PM

3 Indian women on Forbes richest list

New York, March 06: Ahead of the International Women's Day, three Indian women have powered their way to the Forbes list of global billionaires.

The three Indian women include Savitri Jindal (shown in photo) having a net worth of USD 8.2 billion, Bennett, Coleman & Co's chairperson Indu Jain at USD 4.4 billion and Anu Aga of the Thermax group with a net worth of USD 1.1 billion.

France's Lilince Bettencourt is the world's richest woman with a net worth of USD 22.9 billion, placing her at the 17th position on the list led by Warren Buffet, who is worth USD 62 billion.

However, the Indian women featuring on the list are way behind as compared to their male counterparts in terms of the ranking. Savitri Jindal ranks at the 110th place on Forbes Billionaires list that has 1,125 members.

Indu Jain, the 71-year-old chairperson of media powerhouse, has been placed 236th on the list, while Anu Aga ranks 1,014th.

Aga took over as chairperson of Thermax, the maker of energy, environment management systems, in 1996 after the death of her husband Rohinton, stepped down in 2004 in favour of daughter Meher, the magazine said, adding that she is still on board and is involved in social causes.

Besides, Savitri Jindal has been the chairperson of O P Jindal Group since husband Om Prakash's death in 2005.

"Her four sons, Prithviraj, Sajjan, Ratan and Naveen, run the USD 8 billion (sales) steel, power empire. Sajjan, the most ambitious, says he plans to invest USD 15 billion in aluminium, cement and infrastructure over the next three years. Youngest, Naveen, who last July inked a $2.1-billion deal to mine iron ore in Bolivia, is a Member of Parliament," the Forbes magazine added.

rakeshmalik · #**754** 6th March 2008, 10:20 PM

India to have 1 mn new jobs in 2008: Survey
6 Mar, 2008, 2128 hrs IST................................MUMBAI: The hospitality, health and education sectors are likely to replace the IT/ITeS sector as leading job creators in the country, which will have over 10 lakh new work opportunities in 2008, a survey revealed on Thursday.

India will add 10,25,800 jobs, a tad lower than 10,30,000 jobs in 2007, predicted the Ma Foi Employment Survey 2008 released here.

"The traditional job creating horses like IT and ITeS sectors have been replaced by hospitality, health and education sector," Ma Foi Management Consultants managing director K Pandia Rajan said while releasing the survey.

Ma Foi is the largest human resource service provider and staffing company in India. It has been conducting the employment survey since 2004.

rakeshmalik · #**755** 7th March 2008, 06:59 AM

Indian billionaires over three times richer than Chinese ones

New York, March 06: The wealth amassed by Indian billionaires is more than 3.5 times those in China, even as the world's most populous nation saw the highest number of newcomers joining the billionaire club over the past one year.

Despite China seeing a maximum 28 people joining the ranks of those with at least USD one billion, India has managed to retain its position as Asia's biggest source of billionaires.

With 19 newcomers, India has 53 billionaires with a combined wealth of USD 340.9 billion, according to the Forbes list of world's billionaires released today.

In comparison, China has 42 billionaires - second highest in Asia - with a combined wealth of USD 95 billion.

India and China are followed by Hong Kong (26), Japan (24) and Australia (14) in terms of number of billionaires.

Last year, India had overtaken Japan as the biggest Asian nation in terms of number of billionaires. Japan has slipped even below China and Hong Kong this year.

Besides, India also holds the honour of having the largest number of four billionaires in top ten - NRI steel baron Lakshmi Mittal (4th), Mukesh Ambani (5th), Anil Ambani (6th) and KP Singh (8th).

In the top ten, there are two Americans - Warren Buffet at the top and Bill Gates at third - and one each from Mexico (Carlos Slim Helu at second), Sweden (Ingvar Kamprad at 7th), Russia (Oleg Deripaska at 9th) and Germany (Karl Albrecht).

However, India still remains way below the US in terms of total number of such people, which has as many as 469 billionaires worth a total of USD 1.6 trillion. There are 656 non-US billionaires worth a total of USD 2.8 trillion. Among BRIC countries, Russia has the highest number of billionaires (88) with a combined wealth of over USD 470 billion. Brazil boasts of 18 billionaires worth USD 65.1 billion.

rakeshmalik · #**756** 7th March 2008, 07:20 AM

Tata seeks three billion dollars loan for JLR deal: Report

London, March 06: Indian conglomerate Tata Group firm Tata Motors, which is in advanced discussions with US car maker Ford to buy its luxury brands Jaguar and Land Rover, is seeking loans of about three billion dollars to fund the proposed deal, media report in London said.

Quoting people familiar with the matter, Financial Times said that Tata Motors is seeking loans of about three billion dollars to fund its planned purchase of Jaguar and Land Rover marques as the firm moves closer to sealing the takeover.

"India's second-largest car maker has assigned Citigroup and JP Morgan, its financial advisers on the acquisition, to arrange the financing with a range of other international and domestic banks taking part in the talks," the newspaper said in a report published on its online edition.

According to the report, the loan that is expected to be mostly short-term bridge financing, is bigger than anticipated purchase price of the deal, estimated at about two billion dollars.

Alongside Citigroup and JP Morgan, other banks interested in shouldering part of the loan include Standard Chartered, State Bank of India, Bank of Tokyo and Mitsubishi UFJ, Mizuho Financial Group and Calyon, it said.

The paper reported that Tata's efforts to begin raising financing for the deal comes amid expectations that the transaction will be closed in coming weeks once negotiators work through agreements covering engine supply, intellectual property and Jaguar and Land Rover's pension funds.

"... part of the loan could be used for working capital for Tata Motors 'but the jury is out' on the details," the report said quoting people familiar with the deal.

"They said details such as how the refinancing of the bridge loan into longer-term instruments would be organised, were still being ironed out," it added.

rakeshmalik · #**757** 7th March 2008, 08:53 AM

Moscow has more billionaires New York

Moscow, March 06: Moscow is home to 74 billionaires with an average wealth of USD 5.9 billion each, placing it above New York, while Russia is second only to the US in the number of super rich according to Forbes magazine's latest annual rich list.

As compared to Moscow's 74, New York has 71 billionaires, followed by London with 36, Istanbul with 34, and Hong Kong with 30.

In addition 35 more Russians have crossed the USD 1 billion mark in the past year due the continued rise of the rouble against the greenback.

"Sixteen years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia, with 87 billionaires, is the new no 2 country behind the us, easily overtaking Germany, with 59 billionaires, which held the honour for six years," according to Forbes.

The Unites States accounts for 469 (42 per cent) of the world's billionaires.

However, none of the Russian billionaires could come close to NRI steel tycoon L N Mittal, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, his younger brother Anil Ambani and DLF's K P Singh who are the world's 4th, 5th, 6th and 8th wealthiest persons.

Topping the list of Russia's billionaires is Oleg Deripaska with USD 28 billion, placing him ninth in the world, ahead of the more famous owner of Chelsea football club Roman Abramovich with USD 23.5 billion in 15th spot.

Deripaska's holding company basic element owns huge assets in insurance, auto manufacture, and aluminium and is now exploring investment opportunities in India.

Forty-five-year-old second wife of Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov, Elena Baturina remains Russia's richest woman. Forbes estimates that she has added USD 1.1 billion to her personal wealth in the past year, bringing it up to USD 4.2 billion. Baturina founded Inteko in 1991, which became Moscow's largest construction firm in the years after her husband became

slah04 · #**758** 7th March 2008, 09:02 AM

Hi Rakesh

I am a new entrant to the forums of Traderji but I am amazed by the sheer wealth of information that you put up everyday and endlessly. Kudos to you and your tireless energy!

spiritunit · #**759** 7th March 2008, 09:24 AM

Hi Rakesh, you put some good effort, but I suggest write your own views and do not copy, paste from other sites...

rakeshmalik · #**760** 7th March 2008, 02:21 PM

breaches 5% mark for first time in 10 months

New Delhi, March 07: The wholesale price-based inflation rate breached the 5% mark for the first time in 10 months, mainly driven by higher prices of food items like fruits, vegetables, milk and cereals along with some manufactured goods.

The inflation rate stood at 5.02% for the week ended February 23, up from 4.89 per in the previous week. It was at 6.02 % a year ago, according to the wholesale price index data released on Friday.

The is the first time in the last 10 months that inflation has breached RBI`s tolerance level of 5 %, vindicating the cautious approach adopted by the Reserve Bank in its quarterly monetary review in January.

"It was going to happen because of the oil prices and may remain at this level (5%) for some time," Prime Minister`s Economic Advisory Council member Saumitra Chaudhuri said.

The data captures the impact of higher petroleum prices on commodities. On February 14, the government had increased prices of petrol and diesel by Rs 2 and Re 1 a litre respectively.

Concerned over the rising prices, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had told Parliament that the Government was committed to maintaining "reasonable" price stability at 4-5 %.

"We are committed to reasonable price stability but we will not be a party to maintain the so-called price stability by neglecting the prices that ought to be paid to our farmers," Singh had said.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram too, during his interaction with the chambers, had said: "One of the reasons why inflation is still a threat is food prices in India."

The endeavor of the Government would be to maintain a growth of 9% and inflation rate at 4 %, he had said.

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