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| INDUSTRY Tata groupscaling that mountain of debt Ravi Kant tipped to be Tata Motors VC; Telang MD Soft-spoken Telang is a 'people's man' INTERVIEWS/FEATURES Hyundai i20 bags to safety rating COMMERCIAL VEHICLES CONSTRUCTION & AGRI MACHINERY Superbike grey market to wane, say makers All the bike you'll ever need! Ducati's carbon fibre frame-up! HMSI to Stun with fuel injection! BWM S1000RR: Redefining the litreclass superbike | ALLIED INDUSTRIES FINANCE & INSURANCE LUBRICANTS & ALTERNATIVE FUELS INTERNATIONAL NEWS US expected to own 70% of restructured GM GM all but certain to file for Chapter 11 GM pulls closer to bankruptcy as bondholders spike exchange offer Fiat chairman says Opel takeover 'a lottery': Report Guangdong Chinas new auto centre ECONOMY & FINANCE Market sizzles, Sensex gains 520 pts Economic reforms the next stimulus: Pranab
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| INDUSTRY Go To Top Daily News & Analysis (Web Edition) The Indian auto sector, which enjoyed double-digit growth rates over the recent years, faced a difficult last fiscal with falling sales, slowing assembly lines and a huge build-up of overcapacities. Though the fourth quarter of FY09 was less brutal and showed signs of improvement, automakers are keeping their fingers crossed for the future. In a free wheeling chat with DNA, Pawan Goenka, president of automotive business for Mahindra & Mahindra, Sudhir Rao, chief operating officer at Renault India and Harish Sheth, chairman and managing director of Setco Automotive spoke about the prospects, pitfalls and the road ahead for the sector. Sindhu Bhattacharya moderated the discussion. Excerpts: Is slowdown over for the automobile industry? Pawan Goenka: Most people think auto recession is over but it can come back if we become complacent. Things began to slide last April when commodity price hike started, followed by imposition of differential excise duty in June and then the global meltdown in September. In the first half of 2008-09, industry grew by 6% but in Q3 it was down 21%. Though Q4 has been much better with degrowth at only 6% but this is against initial expectations of 15-20% growth. Thus last fiscal was still 20% short of what we had planned. All signals are indicating we had four good months and should not worry now. But I am still cautious. Many factors have contributed to the reversal and I don't think any of them has stabilised or cannot be reversed any time. Cenvat cut by 4% was passed on mostly to customers; commodity prices have really softened; interest rates are down to 11-13%; lots of schemes have been put in place by the government (such as the bus buying scheme, JNUURM) to generate demand. But a lot of these measures can be reversed if there is a feeling that the sector is on its way to revival. Right now, we are on oxygen and need to ensure that the oxygen supply continues. Harish Sheth: I agree. Positive signs have emerged in the last three months but we need to wait till the Budget. Also, we need to look at infrastructure because its state affects the commercial vehicle industry. The decline in commercial vehicle (CV) sales is bottoming out and slight uptrend is coming back. But still, for the CV industry to reach 2007-08 levels (not 2008-09) would take time. Production of 2009-10 would be less than 2007-08. In 2010-11 it may be able to match 2007-08. For component makers, growth will come from a combination of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), exports and after-market strategies. Sudhir Rao: Left to itself, this market would again go into downturn, so stimulus is still required. Car consumers are still fairly financially over extended with lot less money in hand. In a global comparison, there is greater availability of retail financing in India than in the rest of the world, so that's good news. But hasn't discounting helped? Not maybe for CVs, but for cars and two-wheelers it has been discounts galore! Rao: That's' what I meant that free forecast is a downturn unless you push through discounting. Goenka: Discounts can never be for long term, they can perhaps be only for a month or so. That's not how you can manage the business. So, no natural traction in such situations. Rao: We need stimulus through infrastructure push, fundamental growth...in my view it will take 18-24 months. A lot of overcapacity has crept in, especially in cars. Did we overestimate demand? Were we prepared for cyclical downturns? Sheth: Demand in most sectors, including passenger cars, is cyclical. India is a largely agricultural economy and whenever good monsoon happens it creates demand from rural areas. So year-on-year we tend to create capacities believing that next year would be better than previous and if there is any setback it would be temporary. We must find ways to create demand, cannot always look towards the government for help. Goenka: Yes, there is tremendous overcapacity in four-wheelers and two-wheelers. Firstly, demand estimates of a year-and-a-half ago are not true. Medium & heavy commercial vehicles sold 2,61,000 units in 2007-08 but dropped to 1,74,000 in 2008-09 against estimates of closer to three lakh units. So, instead of increasing by 8-10% they have fallen by 33%. For cars, three companies have 85% market share while the remaining 13 are eyeing 10% market share each in 5-6 years...clearly many of them will be disappointed in these targets. Everyone has planned capacities on certain growth and market share projections which are no longer true. Even the two million car market projection for 2010 is very unlikely because we have lost a year. We were 1.3 million in 2007-08, should have been 1.5 million in 2008-09 but remained at 1.3 million only. In CVs when each new entrant was planning new projects in 2005-06, we had planned knowing there were two predominant players and the market is very big (2.6 lakh was to become 5 lakh by 2014-15) with CAGR of 6-7% and everyone said there was room for a dominant third player. So five, six new players came in with plans to build capacity and become that third dominant player, but now one or perhaps no one would become that third dominant player. Everyone came in to build 40,000-50,000 units capacity but now they won't do it. Rao: Some companies are actually operating at only 30-40% of their capacities. This overcapacity can only vanish if a lot of MNCs use India as export base. I don't think the market can go to two million unit level in the next 18-24 months to absorb this capacity. This is a very dangerous situation...don't know of any industry anywhere in world which makes money in such a situation. The government needs to play its role in making India competitive. Many companies have concerns over long-term sustainability of Indian competitiveness. Is contract manufacturing feasible in such a situation? Should companies faced with idle capacities be looking for MNCs to come and make their products here? Goenka: Contract manufacturing only circulates capacity. Whether Nissan makes the 'A-Star' in Chennai or outsources it to Maruti Suzuki, it is still merely circulation of capacity at the global level. We must understand that auto-industry capacity has to go up in chunks, it cannot increase linearly. For example, I cannot add press shop for making 10,000 more vehicles, a paint shop for less than two lakh vehicles is sub-optimal. At any point there will always be overcapacity for a new plant even if all factors were right. Sheth: The government has a role for CVs. Vehicles more than 15-year-old should be scrapped which means scrapping two years of production. Then, overloading - it has stopped in some states but not everywhere -- needs to be banned. The government has approved these two policies in principle but needs to implement them. So, will export growth help? Goenka: Right now, Indian manufacturing is not competitive compared to many other low-cost countries including China. In India, vehicle manufacturing costs are 21% more than China! Is there a lot of cost engineering/value engineering being done now? Rao: Basic cost mentality in India is pretty strong. Indian auto practices, our basic cost DNA are good except when compared to China. The controllable cost factors inside the factory are already world-class but outside environment adds to costs. 'Just In Time' cannot be practiced very effectively in India. Then, cost of attrition also hurts. You can't build skills and have a smooth flowing organisation in absence of human stability. Now, vehicle design is coming into focus and a design re-engineering kind of movement has begun. Goenka: For any automotive OEM, 70-75% of costs are material costs, 5-8% personnel costs, 11-12% expenses and 3-4% depreciation costs. The biggest chunk is material cost and most value/design engineering happens in this area. All the time, we meet stricter emission norms, add features without really raising vehicle prices. This has been possible due to constant value engineering. Personnel costs have risen due to very high salary increases -- this element should start coming down. Because we have had a very good run, organisational structure has become a bit fat -- we will slowly get to a more lean structure which may lead to attrition or growth without adding people. SIAM has given conservative growth estimates for 2009-10. Do you think any growth will happen at all this fiscal? Goenka: Cannot disagree with SIAM. Passenger cars should grow at 5-7%, two-wheelers at 3-5% while CVs would remain flat. Right now, there is no reason to question this forecast. In the Budget, the existing stimuli should not be withdrawn and the differential excise gap should be narrowed. why was excise anomaly introduced? Goenka: The government wanted to incentivise buying of more fuel efficient vehicles. But arbitrary cut-off of 4 million vehicle length has no meaning. Also, it is a total misnomer that lower engine capacity means higher fuel efficiency. You could have a very efficient 1.6 l engine and a very inefficient 1.4 l engine! But then, I don't have a clear answer on what criterion can be used to incentivise lower fuel consumption. We are not asking for uniform excise duty but to make the gap smaller and find a direct correlation with fuel consumption. Emission criterion is already covered by emission laws. Rao: All artificial aberrations should be removed. Auto product cycles are planned over a long time and just because someone happened to luck out, that manufacturer should not get a price advantage. http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1259592&pageid=2 TATA GROUPSCALING THAT MOUNTAIN OF DEBT Satish John Mint (Web & Print Edition) Mumbai: In an interview last fortnight to The Sunday Times of London, Ratan Tata, chairman of the $62.5 billion Tata group, alluded to a bone-dry situation in terms of access to credit. He was referring to the global cash crunch that was hindering the refinancing of a $3 billion bridge loan Tata Motors Ltd had taken in March 2008 to buy the iconic Jaguar and Land Rover brands from Ford Motor Co., and squeezing funding for the operations of Corus Group Plc.Mumbai: In an interview last fortnight to The Sunday Times of London, Ratan Tata, chairman of the $62.5 billion Tata group, alluded to a bone-dry situation in terms of access to credit. He was referring to the global cash crunch that was hindering the refinancing of a $3 billion bridge loan Tata Motors Ltd had taken in March 2008 to buy the iconic Jaguar and Land Rover brands from Ford Motor Co., and squeezing funding for the operations of Corus Group Plc.While it may not have a major impact on profits (plant sales were at cash cost), this is a setback as it will be more difficult to cover fixed costs and is likely to involve a shutdown cost, say Pradeep Mahtani and Thomas P. Wrigglesworth, analysts at Citigroup Global Markets, in a report. The Corus acquisition helped Tata Steel become the worlds sixth largest steel maker but the worries mount. Tata Steel has closed service centres in UK, plans to sell aluminium smelters in Europe, and also an 80% stake in Teesside Cast Products in order to restructure Corus operations, the Citigroup analysts wrote. The TCP stake sale was expected to raise $480 million but is unlikely to go through as the buyers have cited financial difficulties. Tata Steel has to repay $795 million in FY10 (fiscal 2010) and $1.3 billion in FY11. While cash as of December 2008 was $1.1 billion, planned FY10 capex is $1.2 billion. Analysts say that if push comes to shove, Tata Sons, the main holding company, has the financial flexibility to support group companies in extreme cases such as a significantdrying up of the debt capital markets or deterioration in the domestic and or the globaldemand environment, according to Kotaks Nathan. We believe the Tata group of companies would generate Rs100 billion in free cash flows in FY2010E, against Rs117 billion in debt coming due for repayment/refinance, he added in the report. In another balance sheet analysis of the Tata group last January, Bijal Shah of IIFL Research wrote about the group spending nearly $19 billion in the past few years. The sudden deterioration in the global economic environment and credit markets has understandably created an unforeseen strain on group financials. During these changed times, the groups businesses have become more circumspect. In an email to the chief executives of Tata group companies in late 2008, Ratan Tata wrote: We have found ourselves in a situation where the plans we had of converting short-term debt to equity, and raising equity to handle these transactions, were all in peril. Shah, in his 15-page analysis of the group, zeroes in on the nub of the problem, identifying why the group is at risk. With 62% of its revenues earned outside India, the group is no doubt highly geared to the global economy; and therein lies the unknown risk. While its UK operations have hit a speed breaker, closer home Tata Motors capacity build-up is moving as per plan. The launch of the Tata Nano, dubbed the worlds cheapest car, grabbed newspaper headlines globally. And the success of its so-called world truck, with a launch slated for later this month, will ultimately decide the firms fate in the short term. The two projects are expected to burn a lot of cash in the short run. The new launches, including a bus plant at Dharwad in Karnataka, came at a cost. There has also been pressure on the working capital front, which increased by Rs18,000 crore between April and December of 2008, wrote Srinivas Rao, Amyn Pirani and Anup Kulkarni, research analysts at Deutsche Bank. The way out for the group may be to divest some investments. Tata Motors has assets it can use to unlock value. Its incremental borrowing capacity is at close to Rs11,500 crore, and the company can additionally raise Rs2,000-2,500 crore through stake sales in subsidiaries including Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicle Co. Ltd, Tata Construction and Projects Ltd, and Tata Technologies Ltd to repay a part of the loan, says the Kotak report. In an interview with Mint earlier this year, Ishaat Hussain, a member on the board of Tata Sons, referred to how the group prepared itself by borrowing money much before it was required. He also said that the group is now focusing on its funding requirement for 2010. Getting the funds is just one part of the business needs, In his letter to the groups CEOs, Tata had asked for belt-tightening across companies. His five-point charter was to improve operational efficiency, aggressively implement an internal cost framework, drastically reduce operating expenditure, defer non-essential capital expenditure and capacity expansion, and put on hold any plans for acquisitions unless considered strategically critical. http://www.livemint.com/2009/05/27205502/Tata-groupscaling-that-mount.html RAVI KANT TIPPED TO BE TATA MOTORS VC; TELANG MD MV Ramsurya, Lijee Philip & Abhinaba Das The Economic Times (Web & Print Edition) The countrys oldest conglomerate is fortifying itself to face the future, with new teams to steer its flagships, Tata Motors, Tata Steel and Tata Consultancy Services. The succession at the three companies is being closely followed by investors and competitiors alike: Tata Motors, Tata Steel and TCS together account for more than 76% of the total revenue and about 74% of profit at the Mumbai-based business conglomerate. The three together grossed a combined market cap of Rs 108,069 crore at Wednesdays closing. SOFT-SPOKEN TELANG IS A 'PEOPLE'S MAN' Lijee Philip The Economic Times (Web Edition) Prakash Telang, Tata Motors executive director of commercial vehicle division, is called the shopfloor man in the company with a passion for automobile engines and an eye for the smallest detail. Copyright 2008, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| CARS, SUVs, MUVs Go To Top Chanchal Pal Chauhan The Economic Times Honda Siel Cars India president and CEO Masahiro Takedagawa has been managing activities of the Honda group in India and Asia Oceania region for the past three-and-a-half years. Mr Takedagawa outlines Hondas plans for India and the launch of the premium small car , Jazz. Excerpts:
How are you revamping your distribution and after sales network, particularly outside the metros? As much as 50% of Honda Siel market is in the NCR and Mumbai. We have 106 dealerships now, compared to 55 when I had joined Honda. We are willing to expand our network in the tier-two and three cities. Also, we plan to start 10 more dealerships this year. We are focusing on the service network since the quality cannot be assured in local service centres. Copyright 2008, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" HYUNDAI I20 BAGS TO SAFETY RATING Business Standard (Delhi Print Edition) Hyundais premium compact car i20 has bagged the highest score in safety tests conducted by the European New Car Assessment Programme or NCAP. NCAPs five star has been bestowed on the i20 due to its exceptional performance in test parameters like adult occupancy, child protection, pedestrian protection and safety assist. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| COMMERCIAL VEHICLES Go To Top PTI See this story in: The Hindu Business Line (Web Edition), The Indian Express (Web Edition), The Financial Express (Delhi Print Edition) Mumbai: Eicher Motors on Wednesday said its net profit for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 stood at Rs 6.16 crore, while it had a net profit of Rs 19.46 crore in the corresponding period previous fiscal. The commercial vehicles business of the company was transferred on a 'going concern' basis to VE Commercial Vehicles Ltd (subsidiary of the company) with effect from July 1, 2008. Hence, the current quarter figures are not comparable with the figures of corresponding previous quarter, Eicher Motors said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange. Total income from operations stood at Rs 89.84 crore for the quarter under review. However, it had a total income from operations at Rs 659.42 crore for the corresponding previous quarter. Shares of Eicher Motors were trading at Rs 290.25, up 2.44 per c ent on the BSE. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blnus/02271145.htm http://www.indianexpress.com/news/eicher-motors-q4-net-at-rs-6.16-crore/466710/ The Hindu Business Line (Web & Print Edition) Mumbai: MAN Force Trucks, the joint venture between Germany-based MAN AG and Pune-based Force Motors, is launching its latest range of heavy trucks and tippers in the popular 25-tonne long haul cargo truck category, and in the 40-tonne tractor trailer category. The company has unveiled the new models to its dealers across the country and will soon start mass-marketing. "Due to the high level of local content, and high degree of in-plant manufacturing, the company is enabled to offer leading edge technology products at competitive Indian prices," said a release from the company. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/05/28/stories/2009052850650200.htm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| CONSTRUCTION & AGRI MACHINERY Go To Top | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2/3 WHEELERS Go To Top The Economic Times New Delhi: Bike companies are vying with each other for the high-volume 100cc segment dominated by market leader Hero Honda. Five out of every 10 two-wheeler sold in India are 100cc bikes. Indias fastest growing two-wheeler company, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI), and Bajaj Auto, are both going to make their presence felt in the segment this year, which has 50% share of the 74.37-lakh two wheeler market. Copyright 2008, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" The Economic Times Mumbai: Honda Motorcycles and Scooter India on Wednesday launched three bikes, CBR10000RR Fireblade, CB1000R and CBF Stunner, here. The company has set a target to sell 1.25 lakh CBF Stunner bikes this year. "Last year, we sold 80,000 units," Honda President and CEO Shinji Aoyama told reporters here. Copyright 2008, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" The Statesman Kolkata: Bajaj Auto has launched its new model of Pulsar 180 DTS -I motorcycle. It is an upgraded version of Pulsar 150 DTSI bike and its unique features include, a five-speed toe-gear shifter, a 37 mm front fork, tubeless tyres for a superior ride and a unique 3-D logo. The new model is available in all the Bajaj showrooms across the country.
By the end of 2010, the company is expecting a 40 per cent increase in market share in West Bengal and north eastern regions. http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=12&theme=&usrsess=1&id=255906 SUPERBIKE GREY MARKET TO WANE, SAY MAKERS Neha Rishi Daily News & Analysis Mumbai: Superbike makers see the end of the grey market for their products in India, believing a small difference between the prices in the grey market and in Indian showrooms will have riders opting for the later.
The bikes are priced between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 13 lakh ex-showroom across India, while their cost in the grey market starts around Rs 8.5 lakh. Naresh Kumar Rattan, operating head (sales & marketing) and general manager, Honda Motorcycle & Scooters India said that sports bike culture is still in its nascent stages in India. "With more players entering, the market base will go up eventually. In Europe and USA around 8 lakh units of superbikes are sold annually," he said. According to Sanjay Tripathi, division head (product planning & strategy), Yamaha India, the talk of setting up a Formula 1 track in the country will also help this segment grow, as it will give a boost to the racing culture. Yamaha has sold 120 units since its entry in December 2007, while Suzuki has sold 50 units of the Hayabusa and 24 units of the Intruder within four months of its entry in December 2008. Rattan said Honda is looking at selling around 100 bikes in a year's time. Suzuki expects to sell 250 units this calender year. While Tripathi maintained Yamaha will not service grey imports, Rattan said Honda will in future service bikes brought through this route as well. http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1259605 ALL THE BIKE YOU'LL EVER NEED! Adil Jal Darukhanawala The Economic Times, Zigwheels Top end biking, and I genuinely mean top end bikes as we would the big rollers Seems Honda has a cure or an antidote to everything they do. Best of both worlds has long been a very prudent mantra employed by the Big H and in India if you truly want your biking to be super, easy, quick and highly manoeuvreable yet safe then I suggest you go for the CB1000R over all the other bikes in the premium segment. Again I say this with the rider that you want to use your bike fairly regularly and not just for the one weekend in a month blast and in this application no bike comes close to this super naked roadster. Probably the one reason for its rakish good looks was that it wasn't styled in Japan! Hell hath no fury than the Japanese scorned but hey this is something which Honda genuinely needed to do given the fact that the super naked streetfighter category took off with two iconic European bikes in the guise of the Ducati Monster and the Triumph Speed Triple. Throw in the oh so sexy MV Agusta Brutale to this growing bunch and Honda knew that it had to have a reason to get into this category. Home town rivals Yamaha and Kawsaki already had their large litresized naked roadsters but these weren't in the same league stylistically as the Italians so it was natural that Honda Italia were brought into the project, given the brief and told to come up with a bike which had to be right up there on the emotional quotient while packing in traditional Honda virtues of great build, reliability, easy handling, good manoeuvreability and pride of ownership. In a nutshell let me fill you in on what this bike is all about on the hardware front. Using an aluminium backbone chassis onto which is hung a tweaked for torque version of the very same 998cc inline four-cylinder liquid-cooled engine which powered the 2007 Fireblade. You can't crib that the bike doesn't have the pedigree or the poke given that this fuel injected 16-valve dohc mill punches out 123 bhp at 9600rpm and 100Nm of torque at 7200rpm, this is on par with some of the large saloons sold in India. For the record, the Suzuki SX4's 1.6-litre engine delivers 102bhp, the 2.0-litre Chevrolet Optra Magnum pumps out 120bhp, the Mitsubishi Lancer Cedia 2.0-litre makes 115bhp and Honda's very own 1.5-litre City iVTEC makes 118bhp. What should be impressive is not just this peak power figure but the overwhelmingly superior power-to-weight ratio which places the CB1000R in the league of not these saloons but right up there in the BMW 3 and 5 series shaming league! A bike endowed with mega performance capability also needs strong and sure anchors to help arrest forward thrust should the need arise and for that it comes equipped with twin 310mm dia 4-piston disc brakes on the front wheel coupled to a single 256mm dia disc on the rear wheel. The bike wears 17-inch Bridgestone Battlax BT015 tyres on both ends, the front being a 120/70 while the rear is a 180/55. Top quality upside down front forks and a pretty competent monoshock rear end make up the suspension. Taking Pirelli's "power is nothing without control" punchline, all this performance punching is possible thanks to the fine manners the Hornet has been endowed with. Starting with its strong frame and the low mass centralization which many miss out but is key to the nimble handling and leech like stability of the machine, this bike makes you believe you are corner carving on a Bajaj Pulsar with ten times the power! If you are serious about your bike riding then you will quickly understand what I have outlined. This is a bike which is so neutral in its handling yet so nimble in its directional changes that even your grandma could ride it if she was so inclined to show the young hotshots a thing or two! The riding position is yet another delight, the ideal raltionship between seat height, flat handlebars and perfectly positioned foot pegs deliver you a stance with which you can do the business against the more illustrious of superbikes on sale in India and feel like giant killer Rossi in the process. The suspension is perfect for our roads and also our traffic but the overall dynamic ability whether accelerating hard or scrubbing off velocity is both rock steady and stable. I could go on and on but then there is the small matter of truly encapsulating all what this bike stands for and it is this: it is all the bike a diehard motorcyclist would ever need for regular real world usage, especially in this country. In fact this is probably the best naked bike by any OEM in the world and it is a sentiment which isn't mine alone but also echoed by many likeminded counterparts the world over. Ride it and you'll never stop raving about it. Now have to stop cause a long delayed trip to the bank manager beckons, for the simple matter of a loan to buy this bike. Copyright 2009, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" DUCATI'S CARBON FIBRE FRAME-UP! Adil Jal Darukhanawala The Economic Times, Zigwheels The Losail circuit in Doha, scene of this year's MotoGP season opener, the Qatar Grand Prix saw the Ducati Desmosedici GP09 bike of 2007 World Champion Casey Stoner destroy all opposition to score a third win on the trot for rider and bike in this desert race. The pace was there all right as Stoner brooked no nonsense from all comers and that included reigning world champion Valentino Rossi on the factory Yamaha. Losail has one of the longest straights on the MotoGP calendar and Ducati power has always been exploited to good effect. However this year at Losail he also had at his disposal a chassis, or should that be non-chassis as we shall gather as we move along, that seemed to defy everything Ducati had done before and also seems to be a precursor not just to racing motorcycles but also to overall motorcycle design and construction. Ducati's trademark approach in motorcycles has been two-pronged. The first has remained the desmodromic valve actuation in the top end of the engine while the second has been its adherence to the trellis frame. While Honda and others have licked the issue of valve float and modern day metallurgy has made valve springs able to withstand high revving pressures, Ducati has continued with making the desmodromic valve actuation even more tellingly effective. Not for no reason does the 800cc vee-four motor in the Desmosedici race bikes of Casey Stoner and Nicky Hayden make them the kings of grunt in MotoGP. To look at how frame design has evolved on the Ducati race bikes one has to start with the Desmo GP03 which was unique in having a rear swing-arm that was attached directly to the vee-four motor. Here the swing-arm pivot and the suspension linkages were connected directly to the engine casing without any means of attachment to the main frame. Things evolved further on the GP07 Desmo whose main frame was totally detached from the rear subframe! Here we began to see the vee-four engine as the central element of the motorcycle. The GP09 Desmo though breaks complete ground for Ducati in that it is now formed in carbon-fibre as a monocoque unit which connects the engine to the steering head. This sort of design and construction also helps to incorporate the airbox in one single unit and this has major ramifications elsewhere in the performance stakes as we shall see. In fact it seems that there is now a strong airbox which connects engine to the headstock and in so doing dispenses with the traditional frame as we used to know it. As top flight motorcycle racers are always seeking that nth degree of feel while squirting open the throttle out of corners, the frame can also be engineered to provide varying levels of rigidity with a degree of flex built into it. Ducati says that these sorts of varying torsional characteristics could be achieved by the simple expedient of altering the type, the number and the directional orientation of the carbon-fibre strands. Before we sign out, one more tiny detail needs to be mentioned. Ducati's racing team had also prepared a cast aluminium stressed airbox chassis for the GP09 should its rivals have protested the carbon-fibre structure. Thankfully nothing of that sort happened but on road going bikes it could be this rather than the at present costly carbon-fibre chassis. Who says innovation is in short supply in motorcycling? Not at Ducati for sure and one can't resist a chuckle at the thought of how could the Japanese have missed out on such a simple idea given their mega R&D budgets and huge human resources? Forza Ducati! HMSI TO STUN WITH FUEL INJECTION! Adil Jal Darukhanawala The Economic Times, Zigwheels There is something to be said about a leader pushing the technology envelope and no one stands out as glaringly as the leader in the motorcycle world than Honda. And this time round it is its wholly-owned Indian subsidiary Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India which is gearing up to launching its first ever fuel injected motorcycle on the market. The time is just about right to get a fuel injected machine on to the market much before the onset of the BS IV emission norms due to take effect next year but even more importantly you have to see the context in which HMSI is ushering in its delectable Stunner in fuel injected form. HMSI makes the Stunner for India in carbureted form but right from day one this bike has been made here in the firm's Manesar facility in fuel injected form for sale in Europe. The European version has been branded as the CBF125 and it has impressed one and all in its class as a good and reliable entry level motorcycle on the continent. Of course the operating conditions in Europe are totally different from what is played out in India but given the fact that Hero Honda couldn't truly push its Glamour FI in the minds of consumers, this move by HMSI to act as a responsible leader and take a bold move is to be welcomed. The new Stunner FI to be launched will maintain its impeccable build quality and good looks while replacing its Keihin carburetor with a Honda PGM-FI unit which while it might not result in blazing acceleration, the company suggests that it would have a smoother power delivery, enhanced fuel efficiency and a greater top-end whack. Of course, one cannot be riding a plain jane bike in glamorous European cities like Milan irrespective of how fast or slow it is. Design cues on the CBF125 are, as a result, contemporary, sporty and distinctive. The bike has done well in Europe, no doubt, but what does it bring to India? The world may just be returning to the prudent side of transport, but that has always been the bedrock on which the best selling bikes have sold in India. What is special is that the CBF125 a.k.a. Stunner FI brings these concepts that we are so familiar with (of course with a premium price tag, probably the one thing which HMSI will have to confront massively), and given that we think very highly of the carbureted Stunner itself (it was adjudged the ZigWheels 125cc Bike of the Year), the new machine would raise the bar technologically and also bring a new found appeal to the discerning motorcyclist who wants smoothness, reliability and a pleasurable ride. Copyright 2009, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" Varad More The Economic Times, Zigwheels Back in June 2002, the very first Bajaj Pulsar 180 TV commercial sent a shockwave through the biking community in India leaving all bikers wondering what the new Pulsar would be. Enter 2009 - the fourth generation Pulsar 180 DTSi is an entirely new motorcycle. Do not mistake it to be a mere cosmetic upgrade as she packs in some serious new equipment within its frame. Already a market leader in the premium motorcycle segment in India, Bajaj Auto's latest assault in the form of the 2009 Pulsar Edition promises to keep the company perched on top of the performance bike segment. Before we get into the technical nitty-gritty's of the new bike, one critical improvement needs to be mentioned. The overall quality of parts on this new breed of bikes from the Pune-based bikemaker has improved significantly compared to the first generation Pulsars. The plastics, fittings and other cycle parts have a sturdy feel to them and the new Pulsar is definitely a well-puttogether motorcycle. However, the finish on certain parts like indicator holders and the side panel locks could have been better. Once the sight reaches the trademark Pulsar fuel-tank, first thing you notice is the addition of tank shrouds that it borrows from the bigger Pulsar 200 DTSi. Couple that to the beefy 37mm front telescopic suspension (borrowed from the Bajaj Auto's flagship product, the Pulsar 220 DTS-Fi) and what you get is a more aggressive-streetfighterlike Pulsar 180 "Ditsy". The ergonomics on the new Pulsar 180 too have been altered to complete the new bike's sporty appeal. The view from the seat also gets more lively and spirited with the white-dial digital console and the clip-on handlebars from the 220. The splitseat from the bigger Pulsars further adds to the new bike's charm. But as mentioned earlier, there is a lot more to the new Pulsar 180, than what meets the eye. The wheelbase is increased by 25mm (from 1320mm to 1345mm) while sharing the handling duties with the double-downtube chassis is the oval-section swingarm taken from the Pulsar 200/220 inventory. The fatter swingarm and well-tuned suspension have added a great amount of stability and handling dexterity to the Pulsar 180, making it an extremely well-balanced motorcycle in its class. Unlike the norm with bike-makers in India, Bajaj Auto has actually given this new Pulsar 180 additional firepower to go with its rekindled spirit. The 178cc motor has been tuned further and it now makes 17.02PS of power at 8,500rpm. The performance-centred tuning on the new Pulsar 180 makes it one of the quickest bike's off-the-line in its class. And even though the bike weighs two kilogrammes more than the Pulsar 200 DTSi and makes marginally less power, she still manages to post times comparable to the 200. During our test for the 0-60km/h run she posted an acceleration time of 4.64 seconds and the 100km/h mark came in just 14 seconds. Very impressive! Staying true to its sporty roots and stylish aura, the fourth generation Pulsar 180 does away with the kick lever and the heel-toe gear shifter seen on the earlier models too gets trashed for a sportier toe-shift lever. The fatter MRF rubber too comes directly from the larger Pulsars and works absolutely fine. All in all it's a very good effort from Bajaj Auto to capitalize on the Pulsar lineage and strengthen the Pulsar brand even more. Priced also very very competitively, this sort of an upgrade to the original top end Pulsar is only good news for its very many fans. Want to know more about the new Pulsar's performance, fuel efficiency and handling? Log on to www.zigwheels.com for the full roadtest report. BWM S1000RR: REDEFINING THE LITRECLASS SUPERBIKE Abhishek Nigam The Economic Times, Zigwheels BMW has always been known for whacky but practical bikes. Its latest creation the S 1000 RR is no different. BMW Motorrad's highlyanticipated new entrant in the supersport motorcycle sector made its debut at last weekend's Monza Italy round of the World Superbike Championship. The litre class is already stacked with one of the best Japanese and European machines already, so BMW really had its work cut out while developing the new bike. The company's main objectives were to produce a stiff yet agile chassis, with top handling and supreme traction. The aim was also to reduce the weight of the motorcycle to an absolute minimum. The engine has a very compact cylinder head and is narrow in shape. Following the example of BMW's Formula 1 engines, the two intake and exhaust valves per cylinder are made of extra-light titanium and are operated by very small, and equally light, single cam followers. The motorcycle also boasts a newly-developed sports ABS featuring four different modes at the touch of a button: 'RAIN' when faced with varying riding conditions such as wet roads, 'SPORT' for regular road conditions, 'RACE' when on a race track with supersport tyres and 'SLICK' when on a race track with slicks. The rider also has the choice of various engine characteristics, again, at the touch of a button. These features combined with the DTC (Dynamic Traction Control system) ensures that active safety is significantly enhanced when braking with the Race ABS developed specifically for the S 1000 RR. With a power output of a 193 PS @ 13,000 rpm and a maximum torque of 112 Nm, this seems to be the most powerful litre sportsbike on paper atleast. And with a dry weight of 183 kg and a power to weight ratio of 1.05 kg/hp the S1000 RR looks to be the baddest litre of them all. The bike also features a short rear-end muffler, presilencer and electronically controlled interference pipe flaps, as well as a fully controlled exhaust gas manifold and two three-way catalytic converters. While it aides performance greatly, it also makes sure the acoustics are taken care of. Design-wise, the S1000R is best described as a quirky mix of good and bad bits. The overall design however has a short, low front end and compact rear, emphasising balanced proportions. The new S 1000 RR will be available in four finishes: Mineral silver metallic, Acid Green metallic, Thunder Grey metallic and - based on the BMW Motorrad racing colours, Alpine White/Lupine Blue/Magma Red. The serial production machine BMW S 1000 RR is already available to order in BMW Motorrad dealerships with deliveries expected at the end of the year following its 5th December launch. Copyright 2009, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. 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| HINDUJA FOUNDRIES TO TAP RIGHTS ISSUE FOR FUNDS Chandra Ranganathan & Hemamalini Venkatraman The Economic Times Chennai: Hinduja Foundries plans to raise Rs 40-50 crore through a rights issue, to meet its working capital needs and repay debt, sources close to the development said. Copyright 2008, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved" Business Standard Cummins India, a 51 per cent subsidiary of Cummins USA, the worlds largest independent diesel engine designer and manufacturer, has recorded 36.5 per cent rise in net profit for the year ended March 31, 2009. For the financial year 2008-09, the net sales of the company were Rs.2, 861 crore as against Rs.2, 330 crore in the year-ago period. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ALLIED INDUSTRY Go To Top Business Standard See similar story in: The Hindu Business Line, The Hindu, The Statesman, Asian Age, Yahoo India, The Times of India, The Financial Express Chennai: Tyre giant MRF has ended the lockout at its Arakkonam factory, 70 km from here, from now. It was imposed on May 17, as a sequel to a sit-in strike by workers since May 9. However, the workers union says their members will not resume work and it will proceed with filing a petition in the Supreme Court against the management. The lockout was a sequel to a sit-in strike by workers at the factory in Arakkonam (workers at MRFs Puducherry factory joined, though not those in the other units) from May 9. The company said the lockout was lifted from the first shift and about 1,000 workers reported for duty. It is expected that the Arakkonam factory will return to full level of operations in the next few days, it added. The MRF United Workers Union (MUWU), which claims the majority of workers are with it it is not the recognised union says the demands remain the same. These being reinstatement of workers allegedly dismissed for taking its membership, its recognition and wage discussions. It says the recognised union, the MRF Arakkonam Worker Welfare Union (MAWWU), is pro-management and has lost worker support. V Prakash, its legal counsel, told Business Standard a meeting called by the district collector to resolve the issue on Monday had failed. The Collector asked us to go back to the Madras High Court, since the government is helpless on the issue. We dont have a choice but to file a petition in the Supreme Court. The main plea would be recognising the union, said Prakash. The union said many of the workers were arrested for protesting in front of the labour department office. The HC had, on May 19 directed the two unions MUWU and MAWWU and the MRF management to maintain the status quo, subject to the management taking a decision on a recent wage settlement agreement. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/mrf-lifts-lockout-at-tn-factory/359414/ http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/05/28/stories/2009052850610200.htm http://www.hindu.com/2009/05/28/stories/2009052856011300.htm http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=12&theme=&usrsess=1&id=255907 http://www.asianage.com/presentation/leftnavigation/news/business/mrf-lifts-lockout-at-tn-plant.aspx http://in.biz.yahoo.com/090527/50/batn4w.html http://www.financialexpress.com/news/mrf-employees-resume-work-at-arakkonam-plant-after-lockout/466982/ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FINANCE & INSURANCE Go To Top Abhineet Kumar Business Standard See similar story in: The Times of India, The Telegraph, mint Mumbai: The countrys largest truck maker Tata Motors, which had raised Rs 4,200 crore last week through the issue of secured non-convertible debentures (NCDs), has completed the process of raising around Rs 4,800 crore ($1 billion) more through the external commercial borrowing (ECB) route. The documents have been signed with the bankers in Mumbai, Hong Kong and Dubai and the process has been completed, said a banker familiar with the development. Announcing that the company had completed its fund raising for repayment of the bridge loan taken to acquire British marquee car brands Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR), Tata Motors said this was achieved by extending the final maturity of $1 billion by 18 months up to December 31, 2010. Over 20 lenders, including two new banks, participated in this agreement, leading to an oversubscription of 47 per cent of the extended loan, the company said. Last June, the auto maker availed of a $3-billion (around Rs 14,319 crore at todays exchange rate) bridge loan to finance its JLR acquisition from the Ford Motor Company. The amount is due for payment on June 1. In January, it said that it had repaid $1.11 billion from the proceeds of the rights issue and a stake sale in Tata Steel and Tata Teleservices to other group companies. The remaining $1.89 billion (about Rs 9,017 crore) is due for repayment on June 1. The company raised Rs 4,200 crore last week through NCDs and it was in the process of raising the remaining amount of about Rs 4,800 crore. Citigroup and JP Morgan were the lead managers to the $3-billion loan, which was raised with the help of other banks too, such as SBI, Standard Chartered, BNP Paribas and Tokyo Mitsubishi UFH. Citigroup is also the lead manager of this issue. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/tata-motors-concludes-refinancingjlr-loan/359393/ http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090528/jsp/business/story_11030127.jsp http://www.livemint.com/2009/05/27222150/Tata-Motors-rolls-over-11-bi.html?h=B | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LUBRICANTS & ALTERNATIVE FUELS Go To Top Business Standard See similar story in: The Times of India Energy giant Royal Dutch Shell has come up with a major restructuring initiative which could affect as many as 24,000 jobs. British daily The Times reported that "up to 24,000 jobs are at risk in Shell after the oil group unveiled plans for a major restructuring". The company unveiled a series of changes in senior management roles and responsibilities, mainly aimed at sharper focus on operating performance and technology. In a statement, the firm said the changes would be effective from July 1, 2009. Commenting on the restructuring move, Peter Voser, who takes over from Jeroen van der Veer as the chief executive officer on July 1, said it would increase accountability in the company. The "new structure will increase accountability in the company, and improve Shell's performance on delivering new projects and developing new technologies," Voser said in the statement. He also pointed out that the changes would accelerate the firm's plans to reduce complexity, corporate overheads and costs, among others. http://business.rediff.com/report/2009/may/27/bcrisis-shell-revamp-may-hit-24000-jobs.htm http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/Shell-unveils-mega-overhaul/articleshow/4586410.cms PTI See this story in: The Times of India Oil prices rose to six-month high on Wednesday as an increase in US consumer confidence fuelled optimism that the world's largest consumer of oil is emerging from a severe recession. Traders were also watching an Opec meeting in Vienna amid expectations the oil cartel isn't likely to cut production. Benchmark crude for July delivery was up 67 cents to $63.12 a barrel by midday in Europe in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/Crude-at-63/articleshow/4586486.cms
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| INTERNATIONAL NEWS Go To Top Bloomberg See this story in: Business Standard Shanghai: Chinas provincial authorities may slow the central governments attempts to consolidate the auto industry and create a giant automaker to rival Toyota Motor Corp. and Volkswagen AG in the worlds fastest growing car market. The central government intends to combine the nations 14 largest automakers into 10 by 2011 as part of plans to curb competition and create larger players able to invest in developing more sophisticated vehicles. Consolidation will only be possible if local authorities are prepared to endanger jobs and taxes by surrendering control of carmakers set up under Communist reforms dating back to the 1950s. The provincial governments are a tremendous obstacle for industry consolidation, said Michael Dunne, managing director of JD Power & Associates China, an automotive consultant. Beijing has some leverage, but not enough to make the call. The central government wants to pare the countrys more than 100 automakers as provincial support for unprofitable companies has squeezed margins industrywide. Overall profit at the countrys 19 biggest automakers fell 48 per cent in the first quarter, even as national vehicle sales rose 3.9 per cent. In contrast, Europe has seven major automakers and the US has three. Chinas automakers are too fragmented to compete with overseas companies, said Ricon Xia, a Daiwa Institute of Research (HK) Ltd analyst in Shanghai. Persuading some provinces to allow mergers is vital for the overall industry. Fragmented Market: SAIC Motor Corp, Chinas biggest carmaker, had a 19 per cent market share last year and built 1.79 million vehicles. Of these, at least 80 per cent were through ventures with Volkswagen and General Motors Corp By contrast, Toyota City, Japan-based Toyota, the worlds biggest automaker, made 9.24 million vehicles. It had a 46 per cent share of its domestic market, excluding minicars. Volkswagen, Europes biggest automaker, built 6.23 million vehicles last year. Some consolidation has begun. Shanghai-controlled SAIC Motor bought Nanjing Automobile Group Corp last year in the biggest takeover to have taken place in Chinas auto industry. Nanjing City and Jiangsu province only agreed to sell after demand plunged, according to media reports at the time. Its vehicle sales fell 38 per cent in 2007. It was very complicated because they didnt like each other, said Ashvin Chotai, managing director of Intelligence Automotive Asia Ltd, an automotive consulting company in London. The deal took a long time. Integration costs following the 2.1 billion yuan ($308 million) takeover also contributed to a 49 per cent decline in SAIC Motors first-quarter profit. Short-term problems are normal, said SAIC spokeswoman Zhu Xiangjun. The merger with Nanjing has gone very smoothly. She didnt say if further deals were planned. SAIC Motor climbed 3.3 per cent to 14.60 yuan at the close of trading in Shanghai. The stock has more than doubled this year. Chinese automakers may agree deals that fill holes in their product line-ups, said Daiwas Xia. Guangdong provinces Guangzhou Automobile Group Co, for instance, last week agreed to buy 29 per cent of Hunan Changfeng Motors Co, controlled by Hunan province, to add sport-utility vehicles to its range. US EXPECTED TO OWN 70% OF RESTRUCTURED GM Micheline Maynard Business Standard See similar story in: The Tribune, Daily News & Analysis, The Pioneer, The Statesman, The Times of India The government will hold a large share of a restructured General Motors after the company emerges from bankruptcy protection, and will provide GM with about $50 billion in financing so that it can reorganize, people with direct knowledge of the situation said Tuesday. The Treasury Department will receive about 70 per cent of the new GM, while the United Automobile Workers union will hold 17.5 per cent through its retiree health care fund. The fund also would receive warrants for an additional 2.5 per cent of stock in the new GM, with a price to be determined later, potentially giving it a total of 20 per cent. That is about half of the stock that the UAWs fund, called a Voluntary Employee Beneficiary Association, or VEBA, was expected to receive under plans drafted earlier this spring. The figures were outlined to union leaders in Detroit, who met Tuesday to consider a new agreement between the UAW and GM. Bondholders will receive about a 10 per cent stake of the new company, and others will receive a smaller percentage, these people said. A person briefed on the matter told DealBook on Friday that the UAWs health care fund would get substantially less than the 39 per cent of GM that it had previously expected to receive. GM, which has already received $19.4 billion in financing from Treasury, would get another $50 billion or slightly more in debtor-in-possession financing, which it would draw upon during its reorganisation. The Treasury plans to create a new version of GM with its most attractive assets, like Chevrolet, Cadillac and some of its manufacturing operations. The rest of GM would be sold or liquidated. GM is expected to seek Chapter 11 protection on Monday, the deadline set by the Obama administration for the companys restructuring, although the initial set of papers could be filed over the weekend, allowing for the first court hearings next week, these people said. The $50 billion-plus figure includes $7.6 billion that GM, which drew another $4 billion in federal financing on Friday, told the Treasury last week that it would need to operate after June 1.Assuming the governments plans come about, the Treasury would own 70 per cent of GM and share a 10 per cent stake of Chrysler with the Canadian government, once the two companies emerge from bankruptcy protection. GM is awaiting the results of an exchange offer with its bondholders, who must decide by 12:01 am on Wednesday whether to exchange $27 billion in bonds. Few bondholders are likely to accept the offer, which called for them to receive about 41 cents per $1 in bonds. GM has said it would seek bankruptcy protection if it does not receive 90 per cent support from bondholders, which analysts saw as a near impossibility. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/us-expected-to-own-70restructured-gm/359389/ http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20090528/biz.htm#5 http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1259498 http://www.dailypioneer.com/178980/US-may-own-70-in-GM.html http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=12&theme=&usrsess=1&id=255901 http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/US-may-own-70-stake-in-GM-Report/articleshow/4585098.cms GM ALL BUT CERTAIN TO FILE FOR CHAPTER 11 Agencies See this story in: The Economic Times Detroit: General Motors , the company that put tail fins on a Cadillac and was once the nation's largest employer, moved to the edge of bankruptcy Wednesday as debtholders refused a last-ditch deal. Crosstown rival Chrysler hoped to pull off a quick exit from Chapter 11 and prove there is hope yet for a leaner Detroit. At the Jack Maxton Chevrolet dealership in the Columbus, Ohio, suburb of Worthington, it appeared to be business as usual Wednesday even as GM contemplated bankruptcy. GM PULLS CLOSER TO BANKRUPTCY AS BONDHOLDERS SPIKE EXCHANGE OFFER The Economic Times New York: A General Motors Corp bankruptcy filing is now certain after the carmaker failed to persuade bondholders to trade their debt for equity in a new company, said lawyers and analysts. FIAT CHAIRMAN SAYS OPEL TAKEOVER 'A LOTTERY': REPORT Agencies See this story in: The Economic Times, The Hindu Business Line
HAPPIER WITH IMPORTED CARS
Seventy-seven poll respondents who own a foreign car said they were happy with it versus 69 per cent of American car owners. Owners of US-made cars were also less likely than those who own imported vehicles to think the manufacturer of their car will still be in business in three to five years. Almost nine in 10 - 87 per cent - of foreign car owners who responded to the poll by Harris Interactive said they thought the company that makes the vehicle they drive will still be in business in three to five years, while among owners of US cars, only 70 per cent thought so, the poll showed. Harris Interactive surveyed 2,401 US adults between April 13-21 for the poll and made the results public on the eve of a bankruptcy court hearing for Chrysler, one of the big three American car dealers together with General Motors and Ford. GUANGDONG CHINAS NEW AUTO CENTRE See this story in: The Hindu Business Line
The southern province had 250 billion yuan of vehicle production last year, the central bank said. Carmakers in the province manufactured 8, 79,400 passenger cars last year, it said. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| RUPEE UP, TRACKING EQUITY GAINS The Hindu Business Line Mumbai: The rupee gained by over 20 paise, tracking the gains made by equities. But month-end dollar buying by oil companies capped the gains, said forex dealers. The rupee opened higher at 47.56. During the day, it traded in a range of 47.65-47.80, before closing higher at 47.71 against the previous close of 47.93. "There were rumours that Reliance Petroleum was buying dollars. Also, the gains in the stock market were more on account of domestic buying ahead of the futures settlement and not due to foreign inflows. Custodial banks were seen selling dollars,'' said a forex dealer with a private bank. In the overseas market, the forward dollar was stable to strong against other currencies, the dealer added. In the forward market, the six-month premia closed unchanged at 3 per cent and the 12-month at 2.47 per cent (2.46 per cent). http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/05/28/stories/2009052851880601.htm MARKET SIZZLES, SENSEX GAINS 520 PTS The Hindu Business Line Mumbai: The Finance Ministers remark that the Government would increase its infrastructure spend and ensure cheaper credit saw stocks rise again on Wednesday. His remarks coincided with encouraging global cues and a bit of short covering, all of which took the Sensex up 520 points. Global stocks rose on positive US Consumer Confidence data. The benchmark index closed up 3.83 per cent at 14,109. The broader S&P CNX Nifty gained 3.87 per cent. Several emerging markets went up on positive global cues, and Indian stocks also followed, said Mr Apurva Shah, Head of Research, Prabhudas Liladher. Nikkei was up by 1.37 per cent, while Hang Seng rose 5.26 per cent on Wednesday. Both realty and banking stocks rallied strongly and witnessed heavy buying, following the Finances Minister comments, said a dealer. Metal stocks too witnessed heavy buying on the back of news of rising global copper prices, said dealers. Wednesdays upsurge could also be termed as a bounce back rally as the markets had fallen substantially on Tuesday, said Mr Shah. People have got cash and those who have been left out are now jumping in seeing a fall in the market, said Mr Devesh Kumar, Managing Director, Centrum Broking Pvt. Ltd. MFs, FIIs net buyers There was substantial buying by mutual funds and foreign institutional investors (FIIs) in the cash segment and to some extent there was short covering also, said a dealer at the Emkay institutional dealing desk. The short covering is ahead of the May F&O expiry day which is Thursday. Domestic institutions (including mutual funds) were net buyers of equity for Rs 686 crore, and FIIs for Rs 370 crore, according to the data on the NSE. Money flow into emerging markets, especially into India, is really strong, and this is the reason for the market volatility of the past few days, said the head of research of a broking firm: The fundamentals are not really of importance, it is mainly the money flow which is driving the markets. The market breadth was positive, with 2,346 stocks advancing and only 459 declining on the BSE. Among the stocks that advanced on the BSE, the majority belonged to the B-group. More than 1,400 stocks advanced in this category. The appetite is moving towards non-Sensex stocks in the past few days of trading, said the head of research of a broking firm. All the indices on the BSE were in the green. The highest gainers were Realty at (6.09 per cent), Bankex (5.42 per cent), Power (4.89 per cent), PSU (4.71 per cent), Metal (4.67 per cent), Capital Goods (4.24 per cent), and Consumer Durables (3.60 per cent), and Oil & Gas (3.46 per cent). http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2009/05/28/stories/2009052852070100.htm ECONOMIC REFORMS THE NEXT STIMULUS: PRANAB Business Standard New Delhi: Putting forward the broad economic agenda for the next five years, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said the next round of stimulus for growth would be in the form of economic reforms, and the government has already identified the plan of action. Sustained stimulus to growth can be harnessed by the next round of economic reforms. We have a broad plan of action in mind, Mukherjee told reporters in his first press conference after taking charge as finance minister on Monday. We need to seize the opportunity presented by the current circumstances to push long-pending reform measures, he added. He declined to spell out details of the package but said the government would come out with short- and medium-term vision statements for Indias economic growth, after consultations with various stakeholders. With the Congress-led alliance securing a majority in the recent general elections, analysts are hoping that the government will push less forward reforms agenda in key sectors like banking, finance and insurance. Government to borrow more Meanwhile, with economic growth expected to slow to around 6 per cent in fiscal 2010 from an estimated 7.1 per cent the previous year, Mukherjee said the government would increase its spending to restore growth and employment through additional borrowing. "We are committed to restoring growth and employment and that would not have been possible without increased spending funded by incremental borrowing. This would need to be continued in 2009-10, he said. The borrowing calendar released by the government shows that the central government is scheduled to borrow Rs 3,62,000 crore in 2009-10 to meet the fiscal deficit gap of 5.5 per cent of Gross Domestic Product. The Centre has already borrowed Rs 6,000 crore more in the last two weeks than what was planned in the borrowing calendar. Even as government is planning to borrow more in the current fiscal, Mukherjee said, We are equally committed to the process of fiscal consolidation over a period of, say, two to three years. Under the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act (FRBM), the government should have reduced its fiscal deficit to 3 per cent of GDP by 2008-09, but the interim budget estimated the gap at 6 per cent of Indias output growth. The applicability of the FRBM Act has been kept in abeyance for some time as the government cut taxes and increased spending to counter the global economic crisis. Prophets of doom have been unduly focusing on increased public spending and the consequent increase in the revenue and fiscal deficits in the recent past. We are hopeful that an early return to our recent growth performance will help us come back to our preferred path of fiscal prudence, he said. Common man schemes to be strengthened Even as the new government will pursue economic reforms to boost growth, Mukherjee said the full budget for 2009-10 would focus on strengthening various schemes aimed at benefitting the common man. Broadly, the election results have vindicated the strategy of inclusive growth, so the aam aadmi will remain the focus of the proposals, as in the past, he said. The Congress-led UPA implemented rural employment guarantee scheme in all districts that promised 100 days of employment at a specified minimum wage. In addition, the previous government waived farm loans to the tune of Rs 60,000 crore. Without specifying the nature of the schemes, Mukherjee said, We will strengthen the various inclusive elements in the coming budget. The Congress party in its election manifesto has promised to extend the employment guarantee scheme to all urban areas and increase allocation of subsidised rice/wheat under the public distribution system (PDS). It is not clear whether the government will decide to implement this in the current year itself or not. Government to push for doing away with budget scrutiny The government will request political parties represented in the Parliament not to undertake the scrutiny of the budget proposals by the Parliamentary Standing Committees, so that the budget process is completed by July 31. As soon as Parliament begins, I will talk to all leaders of political parties and if they agree to dispense with the scrutiny by standing committees, that would help me complete the entire exercise by 31 July, Mukherjee said. The budget is scheduled to be presented in the first week of July. Under current norms, after the general budget is presented in the Parliament, it is discussed in two stages. In the first phase, broad outlines of the Budget and the principles and policies underlying it, are discussed. After this, the Parliament goes into a brief recess, where Demands of Grants of various departments are discussed by various standing committees comprising parliamentarians, who are required to present their reports within a stipulated period of time. After this process, the Appropriation Bill and The Finance Bill are introduced passed. http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/economic-reformsnext-stimulus-pranab/359397/ Last Financial closing
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