$200 billion FED lifeline may boost Indian markets

$200 bn Fed lifeline may boost Indian markets

The surprise move by US Federal Reserve to lend up to $200 billion in treasury securities is likely to act as a booster for the Indian markets tomorrow. The bellwether Sensex rallied by 344 points from the day's low on Tuesday.

Buoyed by the Fed action, the US stocks rallied the most since January. The S&P 500 climbed 24.39 points, or 1.9 per cent to 1,297.76 at 10:13 am in New York. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 238.86, or 2 per cent, to 11,979.01.

The Nasdaq Composite Index rose by 39.83 points, or 1.8 per cent to 2,209.17. Thirteen stocks gained against every one that fell on the New York Stock Exchange. The US stock futures rose following the Fed announcement, which came after the close of Indian markets.

With the key benchmark American indices reacting positively to the Fed action, the local markets can expect a strong rally tomorrow, according to analysts.

The Fed's move is intended to ease the gridlock in credit markets, which has cast its shadow on all global markets since late last year. The Fed plans to provide loans through auctions and increase swap lines with foreign central banks.

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REC lists with 19 % premium on BSE

REC lists with 19 pc premium on BSE

Mumbai (PTI): State-run Rural Electrification Corp on Wednesday got listed at Rs 125 on the Bombay Stock Exchange with a premium of 19 per cent over its issue price of Rs 105.

Within minutes of listing the company touched a high of Rs 128.40 and a low of Rs 120.25 on the BSE.

On the National Stock Exchange the scrip got listed at Rs 129.90, with a premium of 23.7 per cent over its issue price.

The scrip witnessed good trading volume and as much as 65.54 lakh shares exchanged hands on the NSE and over 68.65 lakh shares got traded on the BSE.

Later, REC parted with some gains and was trading at Rs 123.75 on BSE and at Rs 123 on NSE at 0956 hrs.

The company, which hit the capital market with 15.62 crore equity shares on February 19, raised Rs 1,640 crore. The issue got oversubscribed more than 27 times.

The company had set the IPO price band at Rs 90-105. The issue constituted about 18.18 per cent of the fully diluted post-issue capital of REC.

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Mutual Funds News 12 March 2008

JM Financial MF launches FMF Series X

JM Financial Mutual Fund launched JM Fixed Maturity Fund - Series X - Quarterly Plan 1. The investment objective of the fund is to generate regular returns through investments in fixed income securities normally maturing in line with the time profile of the respective plan. Each series will have regular and institutional plan. The scheme offers investors growth option and dividend option under both the plans.

 

ICICI Prudential MF files an offer document

Name of Fund: ICICI Prudential Interval Fund III

Scheme: It is a debt-oriented scheme.

Objective: The primary objective of the scheme to generate optimal returns consistent with moderate levels of risk and liquidity by investing in debt securities and money market securities.

Investment options: Investors under the ICICI Prudential Interval Fund III have a choice of retail option and an institutional option. The investors will have sub options of cumulative and dividend with dividend payout and dividend reinvestment facilities.

Asset Allocation: The scheme will invest 30-100% of its portfolio in money market instruments. The scheme will invest 0-70% in government securities issued by Central and or state government and other fixed income / debt securities including but not limited to corporate debt and securitised debt. Debt securities may include securitised debt, which may go up to 70% of the portfolio and derivative instruments to the extent of 50% of the net assets of the scheme. Average maturity of the securities will be in line with the maturity profile of the plan.

Face Value: Rs 10.

Entry Load: There will no entry load charged for the scheme.

Exit Load: The scheme charges an exit load of 0.2% on redemption of units anytime other than the specified transaction period.

Minimum Investment Amount: The minimum investment amount under retail option is Rs. 5000 and in multiples of Re.1 thereafter. Under institutional option, the minimum investment option is Rs 2 crore in multiples of Re 1 thereafter.

Minimum target amount: Rs 2 crore

Benchmark Index: CRISIL Liquid Fund Index

Fund Manager: Mr. Chaitanya Pande

 

DSP Merrill Lynch MF extends NFO period for two FMP

DSP Merrill Lynch mutual fund has extended the new fund offering (NFO) period of DSP Merrill Lynch Fixed Maturity Plan- 13 months Series 1 and DSP Merrill Lynch Fixed Maturity Plan 3 Months Series 6 from 11 March to 12 March 2008. The issue is open for subscription from 5 March 2008. Both the schemes are close-ended income scheme. The NFO price for the fund is Rs 10 per unit. The minimum investment amount under regular plan will be Rs. 25,000 and in multiples of Re. 1 thereafter for both the schemes. Both schemes will have the investment under institutional plan will be of Rs.1 crore and in multiples of Re. 1 thereafter.

         

Exit Load Revision under Birla Income Plus

Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund has revised the load structure of Birla Income Plus Currently the scheme charges an exit load of 0.60% for investment upto Rs 1 crore and redeemed within 6 months. Effective March 10, 2008 the fund would charge an exit load of 0.75% for investment upto Rs. 10 lakhs and redeemed within 6 months.

         

Max New York Life unveils Lifeline health insurance plan

Mangalore: Max New York Life Insurance on March 11 unveiled its Lifeline health insurance plan in Mangalore. Max New York Life Insurance, said that the `Lifeline' series comprises three distinct groups of solutions such as `Medicash Plans', `Wellness Plans' and `Safety Net'. `Lifeline' series brings long-term insurance coverage for hospitalisation, surgeries and critical illness. It also gives coverage for largest range of ailments.

 

ABN Amro MF launches ABN Amro FTP - Series 10 Plan F

ABN Amro Mutual Fund launched ABN Amro FTP - Series 10 Plan F. The Investment objective of the Scheme would be to achieve growth of capital through investments made in a basket of fixed income securities in line with the duration the Scheme. The scheme has two plans-regular and institutional plans. The scheme offers growth, dividend option (Calendar Monthly, Calendar Quarterly, Calendar Half Yearly, Calendar Yearly, and Dividend on Maturity Option).

 

ING MF changes the name of its schemes

ING mutual fund has decided to change the names of the below mentioned schemes. The changes will be effective from 15 March 2008. ING Select Stocks Fund changed to ING Core Equity Fund. ING A.T.M. (Against the Market) changed to Fund ING Contra Fund. ING Income Fund-Short Term Fund changed to ING Short Term Income Fund.

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Mutual funds - Upcoming Dividends Funds- 12th March 2008

Recent Dividends announced by Mutual Funds : -

Standard Chartered MF declares dividend

Standard Chartered Mutual Fund has announced 16 March 2008 as the record date for declaration of dividend under dividend option of Standard Chartered Quarterly Interval Fund-Plan A. The AMC plans to distribute entire appreciation in the NAV of dividend option of retail and institutional plan till 16 March 2008 as dividend. Standard Chartered Quarterly Interval Fund-Plan A is an interval income scheme. The investment objective of the scheme is to seek to generate returns by investing in a portfolio of debt and money market instruments.

 

ICICI MF declares dividend under interval plan

ICICI Mutual Fund has announced 17 March 2008 as the record date for declaration of dividend under dividend option of ICICI Prudential Interval Fund Quarterly Interval Plan II.

The fund house has decided to distribute 100% of surplus available as on record date. The NAV for the scheme was Rs. 10.1958 as on 10 March 2008.

ICICI Prudential Interval Fund Quarterly Interval Plan II is a debt oriented interval scheme. The investment objective of the scheme is to seek to generate optimal returns consistent with moderate levels of risk and liquidity by investing in debt securities and money market securities.

 

HDFC MF declares dividend

HDFC Mutual Fund has announced 17 March 2008 as the record date for declaration of dividend under dividend option of HDFC Fixed Maturity Plan 90 Days December 2007 under HDFC Fixed Maturity Plan Series VI.

The fund house has decided to distribute 100% of surplus available under its both retail and wholesale plans as on record date. The NAV for the scheme was Rs. 10.2065 as on 10 March 2008.

HDFC Fixed Maturity Plan 90 Days December 2007 is a close-ended income scheme. The investment objective of the scheme is to seek to generate income by investments in debt, money market instruments, and government securities.

 

ICICI MF declares dividend

ICICI Mutual Fund has announced 13 March 2008 as the record date for declaration of dividend under retail dividend option of ICICI Prudential Interval Fund II Quarterly Interval Plan E.

The fund house has decided to distribute 100% of surplus available as on record date. The NAV for the scheme under retail option was Rs.10.2041 as on 5 March 2008.

ICICI Prudential Interval Fund II Quarterly Interval Plan E is a debt oriented interval scheme. The investment objective of the scheme is to seek to generate optimal returns consistent with moderate levels of risk and liquidity by investing in debt securities and money market securities.

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Economy News 12 March 2008

Rupee at 40.45 against US dollar

In sync with the recovery in stock markets, the Indian rupee on March 11 gained by 3.50 paise to close at 40.45/46 against the greenback. At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the domestic unit resumed sharply lower at 40.58/59 a dollar against Monday's close of 40.4850/4950 per dollar.

Forex dealers said the initial weakness in rupee was mainly due to early fall in the benchmark Sensex which fell by nearly 185 points on sluggishness in Asian indices. The rupee premiums on forward dollar ended slightly well on stray paying pressure from banks and corporates. The benchmark six-month forward dollar premiums payable in August ended at 14 - 16 paise, slightly better from 13-1/2 - 15-1/2 paise on Monday and Far-forward maturing in February also edged up at 30 - 32 paise from 29-1/2 - 31-1/2 paise.

 

India's January industrial output up 5.3%

India's industrial output rose 5.3% in January from a year earlier, slowing sharply from the previous month's upwardly revised 7.7%, data showed on Wednesday.

The figure was dragged lower by sluggish growth in manufacturing and mining sectors.

Growth has fallen from double-digit levels seen last year as the impact of tight monetary policy and a strong rupee capped demand.

Manufacturing production rose 5.9% in January from a year earlier, compared with a provisional annual growth of 8.4% in December.

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Industry News 12th March 2008

Price-fixing probe hits airlines

Several international airlines have been raided by European Commission officials investigating price-fixing on flights between Europe and Japan. Germany's biggest airline Lufthansa confirmed that its offices in Frankfurt had been searched.

Sources at Alitalia quoted by Reuters said that the Italian flag-carrier had also been raided. Surprise searches happen at an early stage in investigations and do not imply any wrongdoing by the companies. It is not clear, how many other airlines are under suspicion. Lufthansa explained the motive behind the raid on its offices.

 

Mutual funds in purchasing mode

Mutual funds (MFs) bought shares worth a net Rs 336.30 crore on Monday, 10 March 2008, compared to their selling of Rs 51.50 crore on Friday, 7 March 2008. MFs' net inflow of Rs 336.30 crore on 10 March 2008 was a result of gross purchases of Rs 1355 crore and gross sales Rs 1018.70 crore. The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 51.80 points or 0.32% at 15,923.72 on that day. MFs were net sellers of shares worth Rs 599.60 crore in this month, till 10 March 2008.

 

Users offered ad tracking choice

Broadband provider TalkTalk has confirmed that it will allow customers to 'opt in' to Phorm's controversial new advertisement system. TalkTalk is one of three UK ISPs to sign up to the Webwise service which sees user's surfing habits tracked.

It has decided not to offer the service by default but rather to allow users to choose whether they want it. It follows 1,000 people signing a Downing Street online petition saying the system breaches customer privacy. It believes that there is a two-fold benefit for customers.

         

Soya touches upper circuit

Mumbai: Soyabean and rapeseed/mustard seed touched the upper circuit, while chilli closed near its four per cent lower circuit. Jeera declined 1.52 per cent to Rs 9,410 per quintal on weak spot markets. Pepper fell 1.36 per cent to Rs 14,733 per quintal on steady export demand. After the recent rally, turmeric was down 0.66 per cent to Rs 3,301 per quintal. Mustard seed was up 3 per cent to Rs 628 per quintal on concerns over production being hit due to recent rainfall in the growing areas. Kapas and sugar increased 2.18 per cent and 1.67 per cent to Rs 519 per 20 kg and Rs 1,519 per quintal. On MCX, mentha futures gained 4 per cent to Rs 454 per kg, while was fell 2.69 per cent at Rs 594 per quintal. MCX registered a turnover of Rs 7,905 up to 5 pm, while it was Rs 3,691 crore in NCDEX.

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International Markets on 11th March 2008 - US Market goes frenzy in Fed fueled rally

US Market goes frenzy in Fed fuelled rally

US Market was in its happiest moods in months today, Tuesday, 11 March, 2008 after Federal Reserve infused some good rally through its comments. The Fed announced its plans to increase liquidity by expanding its securities lending program. Crude oil almost kissed the $110 mark. Nine of the major economic sectors finished in positive territory. Financials posted a huge gain while Healthcare finished as the sole sector in negative territory.

The Dow Jones industrial Average ended the day with a huge gain of 417 points at 12,157. The Nasdaq Composite Index, finished higher by 86 points at 2,256. S&P 500 finished higher by 47 points at 1,320. Twenty-nine out of thirty Dow stocks ended in the green today led by Citigroup. The stock soared by almost 9% today on Federal Reserves plans. Other financial stocks like American Express, JP Morgan also posted handsome gains. Boeing was the sole decliner of the day.

The Federal Reserve announced today that it was taking coordinated steps with other central banks to boost liquidity in financial markets. Also, it announced that as per its Term Securities Lending Facility (TSFL), the Fed will lend up to $200 billion of Treasury Securities to primary dealers secured for a term of 28 days, rather than overnight. The borrowers will be able to pledge a variety of collateral ranging from federal agency debt to private AAA rated residential mortgage backed securities.

With this news, the strong rally started in the market since the very start of the day. Financials led the rally throughout the day with gained steam for the whole day. The thrifts and mortgages group saw the steepest rise, as traders bet the ability to use mortgage backed securities stands to benefit the group the most.

The technology sector also modestly outperformed the broader market. This came in the face of lowered earnings guidance from Texas Instruments.

Healthcare sector ended lower today after WellPoint said it expects its full year 2008 income to be much lower than consensus expectation.

All Indian ADRs ended in green today. ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank were the two topmost gainers going up by 12% and 10% respectively.

Crude prices shot up once again today. Prices rose after the dollar remained under pressure after Federal Reserve Chairman said that Fed is making efforts to alleviate increasing strains in financial markets that are curtailing credit available to homeowners and companies. Crude-oil futures for light sweet crude for April delivery today closed at $108.75/barrel (higher by $0.85/barrel or 0.8%) on the New York Mercantile Exchange. They earlier surged to $109.72 a barrel, the highest since trading began in 1983.

Volume on the New York Stock Exchange neared 1.9 billion, and advancing stocks outran those declining 5 to 1. On the Nasdaq, 1.1 billion shares were exchanged, and advancers overtook decliners 3 to 1.

For tomorrow, The weekly inventory report on crude and crude products by EIA is the only economic report due for the day.

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MF investors cash in on free entry

MF investors cash in on free entry

Retail investors are capitalising on the New Year gift from Sebi, which mandated that no entry load should be charged on direct applications received by a mutual fund. An increasing number of retail investors are now approaching asset management companies directly. According to CAMS, a registrar that processes 60% of MF transactions in the country, 8% of applications in 2008 so far were made directly. It used to be 3% earlier.

Applications via the internet and those directly submitted to the AMC or its collection centre (without the intervention of any distributor) are considered as direct investing. However, the increasing trend of direct investing spells bad news for financial distributors, who will miss out on the entry load and trailing commissions. (Trailing fees are basically the commissions charged to the schemes assets and are usually in the range of 0.25-0.50% pa).

Driven to the wall, distributors have found a way to circumvent the regulation and are getting direct applications processed through them. How does it work? First, the distributor will get letters from investors stating that their investments are solicited through them.

Then, the distributor would submit the application form to the AMC, along with this letter. While in normal cases, direct investing would not entitle the distributor to any trailing commissions, in the above case, the distributor gets the trailing fees. The investors dont mind signing the letter as it would save them both paperwork and time. Besides, they will not be charged any entry load either.

Under normal circumstances, direct investing should improve profitability of AMCs as they dont have to pay trailing commission to distributors. Yet, MFs have not gone the whole hog and promoted direct buying.

There is only a handful of fund houses with internet buying options today. Online brokers like ICICIdirect and kotakstreet, who distribute schemes of multiple fund houses, charge entry loads and are no different from an offline distributor.

AMCs are not keen to collect applications the direct way, either. According to industry sources, investors normally visit the office of an AMC with their application and ask if the scheme under consideration is a good choice. To steer clear of such hassles, the AMCs are willing to let distributors do the paperwork on their behalf.

The intent of waiving the entry load was to reduce the cost for an MF investor. And that purposes seems to have been served. On their part, distributors are either launching or planning to launch no load funds in India.

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Market's Meltdown delays UTI AMC`s public issue plans

The market meltdown has taken its toll on the proposed initial public offering (IPO) of UTI Asset Management Company (AMC) as the countrys third largest mutual fund has delayed its offer due to differences in the valuation of the company for the pre-IPO deal.

The IPO, the first by a mutual fund house in India, is delayed, said a source familiar with the development. As per the earlier schedule, the IPO was to hit the market this month.

Now, the AMC is looking at a possible date next month for the IPO, whose size was pegged at Rs 1,800-2,400 crore, the source said.

Turbulence in the secondary market, which has seen the Sensex dipping by 24% since its January peak, as also Emaar MGF and Wockhardt Hospitals withdrawing their IPOs due to weak investor response, is primarily responsible for the UTI mutual funds decision to delay its offer.

Investment banking sources said because of the current market conditions, it has become difficult to do the pre-IPO placement as financial investors have quoted 7-8% of the total assets under management (AUM) of the UTI AMC as valuations.

The management of the AMC is not comfortable with selling at these valuations, considering the recent highly-priced deals that were struck in the mutual fund space.

Last week, Standard Chartered Bank sold its mutual fund business to IDFC for $205 million, which amounted to 5.67% of its AUM as on February-end.

Earlier, in December 2007, Reliance Capital Asset Management sold a 5% stake for Rs 501 crore to Eton Park, a global hedge fund.

This deal valued Reliance Capital AMC at 13% of its assets managed at that time.

The UTI AMC, which is the third largest assets manager after Reliance Capital Asset Management and ICICI Prudential, manages assets worth Rs 52,46471.4 crore.

The Mumbai-headquartered AMC will be offering less than 5% of its equity to a single investor as per its pre-IPO strategic stake sale plans.

National Australia Bank, Japans Shinsei Bank and private equity giant Blackstone are keen on investing in the AMC, given the immense growth potential of the sector.

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Corporate News 12th March 2008

BILT aims big in power sector

Ballarpur Industries Ltd (BILT), wants electrifying growth in his group businesses quite literally so after paper it is now power. Most of the 100 megawatt that the company produces now is used for captive consumption by the 2 BILT plants but now Thapar is ready with a blueprint to energise his power subsidiary, BILT Power. BILT Power will soon be renamed Avantha Power and Infrastructure Ltd. The company plans to double capacity from the existing 100 megawatts by 2008 end and by 2011 hike capacity to 1500 megawatts. To achieve such targets BILT Power is already bidding for 2 IPP projects worth a hugely sum of Rs 5000 crore. A debt equity ratio of 70:30 is what the management would be comfortable with and organising finance for it should not be a challenge.

The entire paper space is extremely attractive and worst case; people are looking at 12-15 per cent growth for BILT. At this point the way markets treated some of these companies, it will be a little adventurous on part of co to do something like that but overall, BILT on its core biz looks quite attractive. In the past BILT has had limited exposure in merchant power but now it wants to ride on the power bandwagon.

 

Tata Steel announces Consolidated Q3 results

Tata Steel Ltd has announced the following Consolidated unaudited results for the quarter ended December 31, 2007:

The Company has posted a Profit after minority Interest & Share of Profit of Associates of Rs 14155.40 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2007 as compared to Rs 10546.10 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2006. Total Income has increased from Rs 60717.60 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2006 to Rs 320960.30 million for the quarter ended December 31, 2007.

 

Birla Corporation declares suspension of operations

Birla Corporation has declared suspension of operations with effect from 10.00 p.m. yesterday night i.e. 11 March 2008 at the company's units: Durgapur cement works and Durga hitech cement, Durgapur in view of persistent acts of lawlessness and continuous defiance of lawful & reasonable instructions of the management by the workmen.

The company made this announcement during the trading hours today, 12 March 2008.

 

Federal Bank ties up Birla Sun Life

Kochi: Federal Bank and Birla Sun Life Asset Management Company on March 11, declared a strategic alliance under which Birla Sun Life's mutual fund products will be distributed via the bank's select branches. The distribution of mutual fund products of Birla Sun Life is one more step in that direction.

         

Listing of equity shares of Rural Electrification Corporation Ltd

Trading Members of the Exchange are hereby informed that effective from March 12, 2008, the equity shares of Rural Electrification Corporation Ltd (Scrip Code: 532955) are listed and admitted to dealings on the Exchange in the list of 'B' Group Securities. For further details please refer to the notice no 20080310-25 dated March 10, 2008 & notice no 20080311-18 dated March 11, 2008.

         

ITD Cementation fixes Book Closure for Dividend & AGM

ITD Cementation India Ltd has informed that the Register of Members & Share Transfer Books of the Company will remain closed from April 25, 2008 to April 30, 2008 (both days inclusive) for the purpose of payment of dividend & Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Company to be held on April 30, 2008.

         

Uttarakhand cancels MoU with ICICI Lombard within hrs

The Uttarakhand Government today signed a Memorandum of Understanding with ICICI Lombard for providing cover to farmers, but cancelled it on technical grounds within hours. Principal Secretary Rural Development Vibha Puri Das signed the MoU with ICICI Lombard for providing insurance cover to farmers in the presence of Cooperative Minister Bishan Singh Chufal. Under 'Narayan Krishak Kavach Yojna', the family of farmers were to be given Rs 50,000 in the event of his death due to any unnatural cause like road accident. However, within hours of signing the MoU, Cooperative Minister Bishan Singh Chufal canceled it on technical grounds. Some points in the MoU were not clear, a press note said quoting Chufal. An inquiry will also be conducted to ascertain as to why competitive bids were not invited in this regard, Chufal said. Interestingly, the minister during the signing of MoU termed the scheme as very good for the farmers.

 

Fulford India fixes Book Closure for Dividend & AGM

Fulford India Ltd has informed that the Register of Members & Share Transfer Books of the Company will remain closed from April 09, 2008 to April 16, 2008 (both days inclusive) for the purpose of payment of dividend & Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Company to be held on April 16, 2008.

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Northgate Technologies - Press Release 12th March 2008

Northgate Technologies - Press Release

Northgate Technologies Ltd has informed that Globe7 HK Ltd, a diversified Web 2.0 development Company, and Tencent Holdings Ltd, owners of China's largest Internet portal, have announced a strategic partnership for building and marketing a student-oriented social networking platform for China.

Called Longhaier, the Internet portal will offer online forum, campus information and gates, and other interactive Web applications, and also will provide extensive information on study abroad, job placement and scholarship opportunities, the Companies said.

"We are delighted to work with a Company of Tencent's stature, and we believe this Internet portal can be both a highly popular and useful to young people simultaneously," said Clayton Haswell, president and CEO of Globe7.

Longhaier will offer opportunities for teenagers and students to share their lives and communicate with each other. The site will help students prepare for academic testing; find jobs, and will also provide online communities, gaming and entertainment.

"We are pleased that Globe7 has chosen QQ to market Longhaier," said Mr. Martin Lau, president of Tencent Inc. He said Longhaier will contribute to the popularity of other QQ products, such as QQ Instant Messenger, QQ Mail and QQ Games. "This will be a great opportunity to showcase our promotional strengths and showcase our approach to building a friendly Internet community."

Tencent has successfully created a large Internet community with QQ.com, which has wide popularity, particularly among young Internet users. QQ is a leader in expanding ways of using the Internet.

Globe7's parent Company, India-based Northgate Technologies Ltd, created BharatStudent, one of India's largest and fastest growing social networking sites, with an emphasis on students and education.

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Himalya International - Press Release 12 March 2008

Himalya International - Press Note

Himalya International Ltd has announced that Himalya entered domestic specialty food market with a bang launching four brands; 'Himalya fresh' 'American Harvest' 'Bufalabella' & 'Uno Italiano'.

Himalya has launched its range of products at India's Premier Food Show 'AHAAR' at Pragati Maidan New Delhi (March 10-14).

Under 'Himalya Fresh' it has launched Fresh Mushrooms, IQF Frozen Vegetables like asparagus, Red and Yellow Peppers and Edamame's (Green Soybeans), IQF Frozen Fruits like Blueberries and Three berry mix.

Under its brand 'Bufalabella' it has launched Buffalo Mozzarella cheese, Ricotta and Mascarpone, Italian Pizza cheese & cottage cheese.

Under 'American Harvest' range it is launching Canned Soups (Cream of Mushrooms, celery, Broccoli and vegetable Minestrone) Chocolate coated Almonds, Almond clusters, Roasted almonds etc., Dried fruits like Apricots, Kiwi, Strawberry, Apples etc., Coffee creamers of different flavors, Chocolate bars and Cereal Bars, Breakfast cereals. All these products are specially packed for Himalya and imported from United States of America. Under Italian range it is launching Extra Virgin Olive oil and Pure Olive oil & Pasta under its brand 'Uno Italiano'.

It shall be launching Frozen Breaded Appetizers like Breaded cheese, Breaded Mushrooms, breaded Eggplant, Breaded cauliflower etc., & Fruit Yogurts from its new plants within next three months.

Himalya International has made its mark as Quality Food Processor in North America where it entered eleven years back with its frozen foods and is now ready to satiate burgeoning Indian demand for healthy and premium products.

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Tata Steel - Press Release 12th March 2008

Tata Steel - Press Release

Tata Steel Ltd has announced that following Press Release about the Consolidated Financial Results of the Company for nine months ended on December 31, 2007:

"Report on Financial performance:

Quarter ended December 31, 2007

* Turnover

Excluding turnover of Tata Steel UK of Rs 23,867 crores for the quarter, turnover registered an increase of Rs 2,157 crores. The increase was mainly due to increases in Tata Steel Indian operations (Rs 472 crores), Natsteel (Rs 1,135 crores) and Tata Steel Thailand (Rs 554 crores). The increase in Tata Steel Indian operations were primarily due to increase in prices, whereas the increase in Natsteel and Tata Steel Thailand was attributable to both price increases as well as increase in volume.

* Total Expenditure

Total expenditure for the quarter ended December 31, 2007 amounted to Rs 28,967 crores, (including total expenditure of Rs 22,808 crores of Tata Steel UK), against Rs 4,325 crores during the previous year.

* Material cost

The material cost excluding of Tata Steel U.K of Rs 11,253 crores increased from Rs 1,919 crores in the previous year same period to Rs 3,003 cr during the current year. While Increase in volume of operations as well as increase in prices of inputs (scrap) consumed by Natsteel resulted in an increase of Rs 887 crores, Tata Steel Thailand contributed Rs 226 crores to the increase on account of increase in volumes. Increase in Natsteel group is also due to increase in purchases of raw materials by TS Resources Australia for use by Tata Steel India.

* Other Expenditure

The Other expenditure excluding that of Tata Steel UK (Rs 5,053 crores) was Rs 1,395 crores in Q3 FY08 against Rs 1,133 crores in Q3 FY07. The increases were in Tata Steel Thailand, Natsteel and the Indian operations. While the increase in Indian operations by Rs 58 crores was mainly due to increases in conversion charges for converting chrome ore and manganese ore to ferro chrome and ferro manganese / silico manganese, the increases in Natsteel and Tata Steel Thailand were mainly on account of increased volume of operations. Major company wise breakup of the other expenditure is shown below:

-------Other Expenditure Q3 Fy08 Q3 Fy07 Inc/(dec) ---------

Tata Steel 1,008 950 58

Corus 5,053 - 5,053

Natsteel 161 112 49

TSTH 159 93 65

TSAH 13 16 (3)

Others 201 92 109

Eliminations & Adjustments (146) (129) (17) ------------------

Total 6,448 1,133 5,314 ----------------------

* Interest:

The interest charges (net) were Rs 1,081 crores in Q3 FY08 (Rs 96 crore in Q3 FY07). Other than interest charge of Rs 606 crores of Tata Steel UK, remaining Increase is mainly due to increase in borrowings, to fund acquisition cost of Corus, by various entities Including TSAH and Tata Steel India.

* Exceptional items:

The employee separation compensation was Rs 65 crores in Q3 FY08 (Q3 FY07: Rs 50 crores). The discounting rate changed from 7.50% to 8.00% In Q3 FY07 reducing the charge for employee separation in the last financial year while the discounting rate remained at 8.00% in the Q3 FY08 increasing the charge for employee separation compensation in Q3 FY08 against Q3 FY07.

Due to rupee appreciation against major foreign currencies in Q3 FY08, the Company had a net exchange gain of Rs 45 crores.

The actuarial gain on funds for employee benefits amounted to Rs 145 crores for the quarter ended December 31, 2007. The gain represents reduction in pension liability arising out of higher discount rate, reflecting improved yields on bonds. The gains or losses from employee benefits is required to be accounted for, through the P&L Account under Indian GAAP while this is adjusted through reserves under IFRS.

The Profit after tax inclusive of share of profits of associates and net of minority interest, accounted to Rs 1,416 crores for the quarter ending December 31, 2007 compared to Rs 1,055 crores for the corresponding period of the previous year.

Earnings per share for relevant periods are given below:

------- Q3FY08 Q3FY07 -

Basic earnings (before exceptional items) 21.22 19.04

Diluted earnings (before exceptional items) 19.12 19.04

Basic earnings (after exceptional items) 23.27 18.19

Diluted earnings (after exceptional items) 20.40 18.19 ----------

 (Not annualized)

Nine months ended December 31, 2007

* Turnover

Excluding turnover of Tata Steel UK of Rs 73,676 crores for the nine months, turnover registered an increase of Rs 4,200 crores. The increase was mainly due to increases in Tata Steel Indian operations (Rs 1,339 crores), Natsteel (Rs 2,372 crores) and Tata Steel Thailand (Rs 1,066 crores). The increase in Tata Steel Indian operations were primarily due to increase in prices, whereas the increase in Natsteel and Tata Steel Thailand was attributable to both price increases as well as increase in volume.

* Total Expenditure

Total expenditure for the nine months ended December 31, 2007 amounted to Rs 85,079 crores, (including total expenditure of Rs 68,576 Cr of Tata Steel UK), against Rs 12,990 crores during the previous year.

* Material cost

The material cost excluding of Tata Steel UK of Rs 35,409 crores increased from Rs 6,227 crores in the previous year same period to Rs 8,062 crores during the current year. While increase in volume of operations as well as increase in prices of inputs (scrap) consumed by Natsteel resulted in an increase of Rs 2,014 crores, Tata Steel Thailand contributed Rs 663 crores to the increase on account of increase in volumes. Increase in Natsteel group is also due to increase in purchases of raw materials by TS Resources Australia for use by Tata Steel India.

* Other Expenditure

The Other expenditures excluding that of Tata Steel UK (Rs 15,199 crores) were Rs 3,789 crores in 9m FY 08 against Rs 3,059 crores in 9m FY07. The increases were primarily in Tata Steel India (Rs 348 crores), Natsteel (Rs 102 crores) and Tata Steel Thailand (Rs 180 crores). While the increases in Natsteel and Tate Steel Thailand were attributable mainly to increase in volume of operations, the increases in Indian operations were mainly due to increases in Conversion charges for converting Chrome ore and manganese ore to ferro chrome and ferro manganese / silico manganese Major company wise breakup of the other expenditure is shown below:

--------- Other Expenditure 9m Fy08 9m Fy07 Inc/(dec) -

Tata Steel 2,871 2,523 348

Corus 15,199 - 15,199

Natsteel 394 292 102

TSTH 451 270 180

TSAH 45 16 29

Others 396 258 139

Eliminations & Adjustments (368) (301) (68) ----------

---Total 18,988 3,059 15,929 ----------------------------------

* Interest

The interest charges (net) were Rs 3,358 crores in 9mFY08 (Rs 224 crores in 9mFY07). Other than interest charge of Rs 2,236 crores of Tata Steel UK, remaining increase is mainly due to increase in borrowings, to fund acquisition cost of Corus, by various entities including TSAH and Tata Steel India.

* Exceptional items

The employee separation compensation was Rs 177 crores in 9mFY08 (9mFYO7: Rs 113 crores). The discounting rate changed from 7.50% to 8.00% in nine months ended December 31, 2006 reducing the charge for employee separation in the last financial year while the discounting rate decreased from 8.25% to 8.00% in the current financial year increasing the charge for employee separation compensation in the current financial year.

A contribution of Rs 150 crores towards development of sports infrastructure has been recognized as an exceptional expenditure during the current fiscal year.

Due to rupee appreciation against major foreign currencies in the current financial year, the company had a net exchange gain of Rs 689 crores mainly due to revaluation the for loans and deposits. This has been recognized as an exceptional income during the nine months ended December 31, 2007.

The actuarial gain on funds for employee benefits amounted to Rs 6,117 crores for the nine months ended December 31, 2007. The gain is on account of recovery on bond yields used to discount scheme liabilities, and recovery in asset values of the scheme funds. The gains or losses for employee benefits is required to be accounted for, through the P&L Account under Indian GAAP while this is adjusted through reserves under IFRS.

The Profit after tax inclusive of share of profits of associates and net of minority interest, amounted to Rs 11,118 crores for the nine months ending December 31, 2007 compared to Rs 3,213 ‡rores for the corresponding period of the previous year.

Earnings per share for relevant periods are given below:

----- 9mFY08 9mFY07 -----------------------

Basic earnings (before exceptional items) 76.48 58.44

Diluted earnings (before exceptional items) 73.05 58.44

Basic earnings (after exceptional items) 183.28 56.46

Diluted earnings (after exceptional items) 172.74 56.46 --------

(Not annualized)."

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Investment Basics - 10 Investment Basics to invest in the market

Start early

Investing is easy once you know how. That's why starting early gives you an extra edge, to learn from mistakes and experiment with various investment techniques and asset classes. As you grow older, you can take limited risks with equities and would prefer to invest in debt too.

Also, every year that you postpone investing towards retirement, the annual savings you need to make to reach your financial goal will keep on rising. For instance, to get Rs 10 lakh at the end of 20 years, if you start now you will need to invest Rs 13,879 annually but if you start 10 years later, the annual investment will shoot up to Rs 56,984.

 

Know yourself

Invest in shares or mutual funds based on your needs and after doing proper homework. Don't buy something because your neighbour believes he has a winner on hand, or your broker is issuing a big buy report on a stock.

Carefully choose securities that fit your profile. It is important to relate the risk perceived in a given security not only to returns, but also to your attitude towards risk. It is important to understand your emotions towards money and comfort levels with risk. For instance, what would be your reaction if your stock investments plummet by 35 per cent in a month? How would that affect your medium term or long term plans?

 

The risk/return trade-off

There is no harm in assuming a big risk in the quest for higher long term returns, and your profile does not preclude taking of such risks. Equities promise higher long term returns but the period taken to realize these returns too can be uncertain. As far as debt mutual funds are concerned, they are more stable tenure but returns are much lower. As an investor, you should be able to judge whether the perceived risk is worth taking in order to get the expected return and whether a higher return is possible for the same level of risk (or a lower risk is possible for the same level of return). Smart investing will involve choices, compromises and trade-offs. And you have to decide the combination of factors that suit you best.

 

Don't overpay for growth

Seek out shares that are capable of delivering sustainable earnings growth but don't fall into the trap of overpaying for growth. Even the best growth stock may not deliver dream returns if your purchase price was too high to begin with. Warren Buffet, one of the most successful investors in the world, said back in 1983: "For the investor, a too high purchase price for the stock of an excellent company can undo the effects of a subsequent decade of favourable business developments." So growth riding on the back of a reasonable purchase price may be a good motto to stick with.

 

The reinvestment risk

If it suits your plan, choose a fund that reinvests your dividends or interest. That won't leave you exposed to the risk of reinvesting the amount at equivalent or higher returns for the same level of risk. Such alternatives are more than often not easily available. The reinvestment risk is implicitly defined for a debt instrument. Yield-to-maturity, which is the actual yield on a bond if held to maturity, may be a familiar term to those who invest in fixed income. But few know that this YTM assumes that each interest cheque received by the investor is reinvested at the coupon rate. In reality, however, most investors are probably spending this interest on fullfiling current needs. So even if investors are getting a coupon of 18 per cent on a semi-annual debt instrument, their YTM is much lower.

 

Beware of the law of averages

The average, or mean, acts like a powerful magnet that pulls stock prices down sharply, often causing returns to deterioriate after they exceed historical norms by substantial margins. Stocks display runaway tendencies by appreciating sharply. Subsequently, prices may plateau causing disappointment. In such a situation, investors may profit from selling out earlier than originally planned. And if the fundamental story is still intact, you could even buy back your shares at a lower price. So stay tuned to any short-term movements in the stock market that affect your stocks. However, if your goals are long term, don't get into the trading mode, where you compromise on the big picture for short-term gains. It is important that you still think long term. As Benjamin Graham, author of the investment classic The Intelligent Investor wrote: "In the short term, the stock market is a voting machine-reflecting a voter registration test that requires only money, not intelligence or emotional stability-but in the long run the market is a weighing machine.

 

A trend may not be your best friend

The psychology of the stock market is not only based on how investors judge future events, but also on how they react to the immediate past. There is a tendency among common investors to buy shares of those companies or sectors that have performed well very recently. It is critical that you assess where you are in the cycle during any bull run. That's because what may seem to be an everlasting phenomenon eventually turns out to be illusory. It will be replaced by another, equally compelling one. And as an investor, you are left with shares bought at the peak of a cycle.

Like Burton Malkiel, the author of A Random Walk Down Wall Street has to say: "It is not hard, really, to make money in the market… What is hard to avoid is the alluring temptation to throw your money away on short, get-rich-quick speculative binges."

 

Time marches on

Time can dramatically enhance the value of your starting capital through the magic of compounding. At 10 per cent annually, the annual incremental capital accumulation on a Rs 10,000 investment is Rs 1,000 in the first year, is over Rs 2,300 by the 10th year, and just under Rs 10,000 by the 25th year. After 25 years, the total value of the initial Rs 10,000 is Rs 108,000, a ten-fold increase in value. Give your investment all the benefit of time that you can afford. Choosing an investment plan that automatically reinvests your dividends and interest is also a way to benefit from the power of compounding.

 

Evaluate your future

A lot of investing is about how you see your future, financially speaking. We all make certain assumptions while estimating our future needs, and how we intend to meet those needs. But circumstances can change. Hence it is important that you review your portfolio at least once a year. Also try to evaluate the performance of your investments against the level of risk you are assuming for achieving the returns you want. And when necessary re-balance your portfolio to stay on track with your long term financial goals.

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Investment Basics- Age & Investment Plan

Your Age And Your Investment Plan -- A lifecycle guide to investing

Age plays a key role in determining your investment profile. Hence, constructing a portfolio that suits your age is essential. By mapping your age and your background, you can establish a portfolio that comprises of different asset classes, in differing proportion. For example, if you are five years away from retirement, with no major savings for a post-retirement life, then you would build a portfolio comprising fixed income instruments. Similarly, a 24-year old would focus on parking investments in riskier investments like equities, since time is on his side.

We have constructed profiles based on your age and some assumptions. Then we have constructed a break-up of investments that can be used as a guide. You may wish to fine-tune this to meet your own requirements.

While reading through these profiles, please note that these are typical attributes and are not absolute. Again, your risk profile changes depending on how you perceive yourself too. A senior citizen with no dependents, but with lots of savings, may find it perfectly okay to take on more risk. Similarly, a young person but with many dependents and lots of financial liabilities may be more conservative than other people his age.

We have assumed that tax liabilities have been provided for, and the suggested investment break-up is for the net funds available. Broadly, you can classify investments in to cash and bullion, fixed income instruments, equities and mutual funds. Cash and bullion are taken as one, as both are equally liquid and widely used as a means of savings. Savings would also include funds in your bank savings accounts

Apart from pure equities and fixed income instruments, mutual funds are popular investment vehicles. We have classified mutual funds separately since the risk of investing in funds is relatively lower. Moreover, balanced funds juggle between debt and equity making an all-inclusive classification difficult.

Age : 22-30 years

Profile:
You are single or are married but with no kids. Dependents are not an issue at this stage and your focus is on creating a sizeable corpus of investments for the future. Incomes typically grow at a fast rate annually. The ability to take risk is high and losses in the short term are acceptable. You can invest in equities with a time frame of about 5-6 years which protects you from short-term fluctuations.

Category	%
Cash and bullion	10
Fixed income instruments	30
Equity shares	40
Mutual funds-equity growth	20

Age : 31-45 years

Profile:
You are now married and your family size has expanded, with two kids. Your parents are now dependent on you for emotional and some financial support. The focus is on consolidating your investments, making them more secure. The ability to take risk is there but to a limited extent. Limiting losses is a priority. Building on a corpus of funds for children's education becomes a priority now.

Category	%
Cash and bullion	10
Fixed income instruments	40
Equity shares	30
Mutual funds-equity growth	20

Age : 45-60 years

Profile:
This is the age when retirement blues set in. Children's college and higher education make demands on your funds. You must also ensure that your retirement plans are in place, if you have not done it already. Hence, risk taking ability as a whole diminishes considerably.

Category	%
Cash and bullion	10
Fixed income instruments	50
Equity shares	20
Mutual funds-equity growth	20

Age : Beyond 60

Profile:
You are taking life easy, some introspection, spending time with the family and maybe doing some part time work. Or like some workhorses, you are still engaged as a full time consultant with your ex-employer. The ability to take shocks is extremely limited and you should lower your exposure to equities. Your prime criterion should be to have a higher proportion of fixed income investments and stay liquid to meet any medical emergencies.

Category	%
Cash and bullion	10
Fixed income instruments	70
Equity shares	10
Mutual funds-equity growth	10

To Learn Capital Market Basics go to - Here

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Indian Markets on 11th March 2008

Markets end with decent gains

After opening in the red, the markets recovered quickly and traded higher for most part of the day. While the Sensex was up 199.43 points or 1.25% at 16123.15, the Nifty was up 65.50 points or 1.36% to close at 4865.90. The broadmarket indices outperformed the benchmark indices as the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices gained 3.32% and 3.76% respectively. The market breadth was positive as A/D ratio was 3.5:1 on the BSE. NSE cash turnover was Rs.15732.69cr vs Rs.16449.74cr yesterday.

Sectorally, barring the IT Index, all the BSE Indices ended with gains. The BSE Realty, Capital Goods and Power indices performed well as they surged in excess of 5% today. The top performers from the index pivotals included DLF, L&T, ACC and Ranbaxy. The top losers were Maruti Suzuki, Satyam Comp, HDFC and Cipla.

Barring any adverse global cues, Indian markets could continue to move up further in the coming sessions. Big corrections usually have sharp upward rallies in between. We nevertheless continue with our strategy of going slow on positional long term investments till we see signs of a confirmed sustainable uptrend. Short term trading positions with strict stop losses can however be entered into to take advantage of any further rally.

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