1.Tata Steel to Take Rs 6.5k cr Writedown – TOI
Tata Steel on Thursday said it is likely to write down a total of Rs 6,500 crore for the 2014-15 fiscal mainly due to impairment of a unit in the UK, a part of its European operations, and a coal project in Mozambique.
The company expects to recognise a non-cash writedown of the goodwill and assets in the consolidated financial results in the fourth quarter for the year ended March 31, 2015 of approximately Rs 5,000 crore, mainly relating to the Long Products UK business in Tata Steel Europe which will now be fully impaired, the company said in a BSE filing.
Read the rest of the Times of India article here.
2.Goldman Invests $250m in Nitesh JV – TOI
Wall Street bellwether Goldman Sachs announced $250-million investment with property developer Nitesh Estates, to form a joint venture to acquire income yielding commercial and retail real estate assets in India.
The details of the joint venture were not disclosed but it is understood that Goldman will hold 74%, leaving Nitesh with 26% in the JV entity . The investment bank’s balance sheet has assets estimated at over $900 billion. Goldman Sachs is active in investing across different sectors of the Indian economy and has deployed more than $2 billion in India since 2006.
Read the rest of the Times of India article here.
3.India Ranks 100 on Human Capital Index, Finland Leads Pack – PTI
India has been ranked at a lowly 100 position on the global Human Capital Index, which measures countries on development and deployment of human capital. Finland has topped the 124-nation list.
India is ranked lower than all its BRICS peers -- Russia, China, Brazil and South Africa -- and smaller neighbours like Sri Lanka, Bhutan and Bangladesh. But Pakistan follows at 113.
4.Include Entertainment Tax in GST: Film Industry – ET
With the Goods and Services Tax (GST) legislation facing further delays, the film industry is hoping for the government to pay heed to its demand and include the entertainment tax collected by local bodies in the proposed indirect tax system.The GST Bill, in its current form, allows local bodies such as panchayats and municipalities to levy and collect the tax. This tax would be above the state and central GST on entertainment. The Film & Television Producers Guild of India has urged the government to fully subsume local bodies’ entertainment tax under the proposed GST. Its concern isn’t about the money involved, which isn’t too much, but the difficulties in dealing with hundreds of local bodies.
Read the rest of the Economic Times article here.
5.WPI Inflation Dips to Record (-) 2.65% in April – PTI
Deflationary pressure continued for the sixth month in a row with inflation dropping to a new low of (-)2.65 per cent in April, mainly on account of decline in prices of fuel and manufactured items even as food prices increased.
Inflation, as measured on the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), has been in the negative zone since November, 2014.
In April last year, it was 5.55 per cent. The deflationary trend has bolstered the case for a rate cut by the Reserve Bank, as retail inflation has also eased and industrial production is down, experts said. Industrial output had slowed to 5-month low of 2.1 per cent in March.
The data reinforces our expectation of a high probability of 0.25 per cent rate cut in June 2 RBI policy.
– Aditi Nayar, ICRA Senior Economist
6.Bad Loans Haven’t Peaked Yet: Rajan
Bad loans in the banking system might not have peaked yet, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan said on Thursday, adding the central bank was working with lenders to recognise and address these non-performing assets (NPAs). He was speaking at a news conference after the central bank’s board meeting in Goa.
Owing to an economic slowdown, the ratio of bad
loans at Indian banks has doubled through the past three years, a worry for a
country hoping to spur a revival in credit to key sectors such as
infrastructure.
That has prevented banks from lending more, despite two interest rate cuts by RBI this year (totalling 50 bps).
Read the rest of the Business Standard article here.
7.Are the Markets Close to Bottoming Out? – BS
Nifty can slip to 7,500 and faces strong resistance at 8,350 levels on the upside, analysts say.
Despite the huge 723-point fall on May 6 and another 630-point plunge in the S&P BSE Sensex on May 12, the intermittent recovery in the markets has been quite sharp. While the bears pulled down the 30-share benchmark by around 1,566 points during May, the index has, in fact, gained nearly 1,761 points till May 14.
Simply put, the S&P BSE Sensex has gained 195 points, or is 0.7 per cent higher as compared to its close on April 30. However, the month has been choppy for the markets due to the steep fall and the ensuing recovery.
Going ahead, analysts expect the markets to remain range-bound over the next couple of quarters. The probability of rate hike by the US Federal Reserve going ahead, coupled with euro-zone fears especially Greece besides any rise crude oil prices would keep rupee/dollar rates volatile and thus the Indian markets as well, they say.
Read the rest of the Business Standard article here.
8.For Daiichi, Side Effects of Ranbaxy Refuse to Wane - FE
Japanese drug firm Daiichi Sankyo might have exited its India investment last month, seven years after it entered the country through the acquisition of Ranbaxy, but the bitter aftertaste lingers.
Last month, Daiichi sold its entire stake in the Sun-Ranbaxy combine, posting a negative cash flow of ¥36.7 billion ($308.35 million/Rs 1,962.8 crore as per the current exchange rate) from Ranbaxy’s investing activities. One would think this marks an end to Daiichi’s attempts at cutting losses, but a clause may hold it liable for penalty payouts to the tune of $325 million for seven years.
As per the contract between Sun Pharma and Daiichi Sankyo regarding the merger of Ranbaxy into Sun Pharma, Daiichi Sankyo could be required to indemnify Sun Pharma for 63.5% of penalties and damages,etc, arising from quality issues of Ranbaxy prior to the closing date, which are paid to US federal or state governmental authorities by Sun Pharma or Ranbaxy, with a maximum cap amount of $325million. This obligation lasts for seven years from the closing date (March 24, 2015).
– Daiichi Sankyo said.
Read the rest of the Financial Express article here.
9. Hilton’s Devpt Head Quits, More Exits Likely -DNA
Hospitality giant Hilton Worldwide’s development operations in India are undergoing changes. Its head of development for India is believed to have put in his papers, and this is likely to trigger more exits, going forward. Industry sources privy to the development told dna that Rajesh Punjabi, vice-president of development for Hilton Worldwide’s Indian operations, has quit the organisation and is serving his notice period.
Details of Punjabi’s new endeavours are not known yet, but industry sources said he is set to hit the entrepreneurial road with his own venture.
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