The International Air Transport Association (Iata) has
downgraded its profit expectations for Asia-pacific carriers by $US300m to $US2
billion due to a weak first quarter performance.
This was less than half the $4.9 billion profit that
the region delivered in 2011 and a quarter of the $US8 billion achieved in
2010, the airline umbrella group said.
“Asian carriers make up about 40 per cent of the
global air cargo business and the weakness of this market in 2011 was the
reason why there was a large decline in the region’s profits,” it said. “There
has been little sign of the region’s airlines benefiting from the modest upturn
in cargo markets this year. “The slowdown in the Chinese and Indian economies
is another factor in the slow growth environment.”
Howver, the region was expected to benefit from
stronger growth in aggregate passenger and cargo traffic this year, as a result
of the rebound in demand in the Japanese market following the tsunami and
earthquake last year.
A global market rally over a
promised European bailout of Spanish banks faded on Monday, as investors
worried the country might have trouble paying the money back.
Finance ministers from the 17
countries that use the euro said they were willing to lend Spain up to
(EURO)100 billion ($125 billion) after Madrid said it would need help to shore
up banks felled by bad real estate loans. Spain has not said exactly how much
of that it will tap, but markets were initially cheered by the fact that it was
finally owning up to needing help.
Early gains were largely lost,
however, as analysts warned the deal would not spell the end of Europe's debt
crisis. Some worry that the Spanish government, which is responsible for paying
the money back, will struggle with the extra debt.
The government will try to get the
money back from the banks, but if it cannot do so, it will have to borrow on
international markets, where its borrowing rates are high.
After an initial 5 percent surge,
Madrid's Ibex stock index closed down 0.5 percent. France's CAC-40 ended the
day down 0.3 percent to 3,043 and the FTSE index of leading British shares fell
0.1 percent to 5,432. The DAX in Germany eked out a 0.2 percent gain to end at
6,141.
ASIAN MANAGEMENT
Asian banks will have a tough time meeting new global
liquidity rules because of a shortage of assets such as top-rated government
debt that can be converted into cash quickly, according to KPMG.
Lenders that fall short of the liquidity regulations,
to be implemented under an international framework by 2015, may be forced to
cut lending or compelled to hold more low-yield retail deposits, eroding their
profitability.
Under the framework, known as Basel III, lenders
including Hong Kong's Hang Seng Bank Ltd and Singapore's DBS Group Holdings
must hold top-quality liquid assets that could meet all their net outflows over
30 days during times of acute market stress. As fiscally disciplined Asian economies
have much lower levels of government debt than Western markets, there may not
be enough of such assets to go round.
Australia has said it will help its banks get round
this issue by allowing them to tap a liquidity facility run by the country's central
bank.
Hong Kong is proposing that the rules will only apply
to its ‘core’ banks whose operations pose a higher level of liquidity risk to
its financial system.
Asian stocks rose, with the
regional benchmark index on course for its biggest gain in almost five months,
as China’s trade data beat estimates and investors speculated
a bailout for Spain’s banks will help ease Europe’s debt crisis.
China Cosco (1919)
Holdings Co. jumped 11 percent in Hong
Kong as China’s rising imports and
exports boosted prospects for shipping lines. Canon Inc. (7751), a
camera maker that gets about 31 percent of sales from Europe, rose 3.5 percent
in Tokyo. Sumco Corp. surged 14 percent after the maker of silicon wafers for
semiconductors posted operating profit that beat estimates. Gauges of
volatility fell across the region. “The bailout will keep companies that borrow
from Spanish banks from going down all together,” said Kiyoshi
Ishigane, a Tokyo-based senior
strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co., which oversees the
equivalent of $70 billion. “In China, overseas demand is stronger than expected.”
BANKING
The euro was poised for its biggest daily rally against the
dollar in almost eight months on Monday, after Spain secured help for its debt-stricken banks and as Chinese economic data
was not as bad as the market had feared.
The euro zone decided to lend its fourth-largest
economy up to 100 billion euros ($125 billion) to reassure investors and
prevent the threat of a bank run in case Greece's crisis heats up again after
elections this coming weekend. This saw the euro spike almost 1 percent to
$1.2635, pulling away from a near two-year low of $1.2288 hit earlier this
month. Early in the session, it rose as high as $1.2672 on stop-loss buying,
hitting its highest level since May 23.
"Euro zone leaders rose to the occasion. They had
no choice. The Spanish bailout means Europe will not permit 'runs' to sink
their banking system," said David Kotok, chairman of Cumberland Advisors.
Against the yen, the single currency also rose as high
as 100.90 yen, its highest level in more than two weeks to last settle around
100.60, still up 1.2 percent on the day.
"The market welcomed the fact that the euro zone
took pre-emptive steps. The amount of support is big enough to satisfy
investors," said Yunosuke Ikeda, senior strategist at Nomura Securities.
With an agreement to bail out Spain's struggling
banks, Europe again avoided a financial meltdown in a debt crisis that is in
its third year. But Europe still faces far bigger challenges that threaten the
Continent and with it, the world economy.
The most urgent of those concerns is being driven by
events in a country at the other edge of the eurozone: Greece. While the
Spanish banking rescue will be expensive - as much as $125 billion - it will be
well within the means of a European emergency fund established for just such
purposes.
Far harder to calculate are the costs if, after Greek
elections next Sunday, the new government reneges on the bailout Greece
negotiated with its European lenders a few months ago. That could lead to a
withdrawal from the eurozone, threatening that currency union, which has
largely benefited more prosperous members like Germany.
What is more, the Spanish bailout will do little to
address European banks' addiction to the borrowed money they have depended on
for their daily financing needs.
BUSINESS
Wal-Mart Stores Inc — the world’s
largest retail operator — has flagged India, Brazil, China, and South Africa in
addition to Mexico, as countries that represent the highest corruption risk in
a global review.
Lawyers for Wal-Mart said they were
retained to review the retailing giant’s policies in Mexico, Brazil and China,
and later recommended the company also evaluate its operations in India and
South Africa. The lawyers referred to those five countries as regions where the
risk was the greatest, according to the lawmakers.
The company has acknowledged it is
investigating bribery allegations involving its Mexican operations, and that it
is conducting a global review of its anti-corruption compliance programme, but
has not provided details.
Two Democrat lawmakers investigating the
company — Representatives Elijah Cummings and Henry Waxman — said in a letter
that Wal-Mart had asked its lawyers to expand the review to a worldwide
assessment of the company’s anti-corruption policies.
Anil cable unit float okayed
The Singapore stock exchange has
approved Reliance Communications’ plans to float an initial public offering
(IPO) for its undersea cable unit that could raise over $1 billion.
Reports said Reliance Communications
(R-Com) could float the IPO in four to five weeks but this could not be
confirmed.
The float will help Anil Ambani’s R-Com
to pare its debt of roughly $7 billion that the firm has been looking to trim.
In a communication to the stock
exchanges, R-Com said, “On April 10, 2012, the company announced that it was
evaluating a potential IPO after listing in Singapore of its subsea
telecommunications infrastructure network business through a Singapore business
trust. On June 12, 2012, the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited
granted an ‘eligibility to list’ to the business trust subject to the requisite
conditions being satisfied.”
R-Com shares ended the day 2.62 per cent
higher at Rs 68.60 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
BUSINESS
MANAGEMENT
THE impact of the eurozone debt crisis on Scotland’s
economy will be laid bare this morning when figures show the private sector
grew in May at its slowest pace since the start of last year.
The Bank of Scotland’s purchasing managers index (PMI)
says a slowdown in the global economy, triggered by Europe’s sovereign debt
crisis, is taking its toll on Scots firms, with manufacturers reporting a fall
in orders and service sector firms posting a “sharp drop” in growth.
Donald MacRae, chief economist at Bank of Scotland,
warned: “Growth in the private sector of the Scottish economy slowed sharply in
May. The Scottish economy is struggling to maintain growth momentum in the face
of the global slowdown.”
The PMI dropped from 53.5 in April to 50.8 in May,
barely remaining above the 50 mark that indicates growth.
Concerns over the effect on the Scottish economy of
the eurozone debt crisis are echoed at a UK level by figures out today from
accountancy firm BDO, which show the crisis has cast a “dark shadow” over
long-term growth prospects by undermining confidence.
Vodafone Group Plc (VOD)’s South
African unit Vodacom should lead its African expansion if it is to narrow the
gap with MTN Group Ltd. (MTN), which has capitalized on its rival’s inertia to
build a business three times its size, Investec Asset Management said.
MTN has built a customer base of 173
million users across 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East since the
Johannesburg-based mobile-phone company began in 1994. Vodacom, started that
same year, has 47.8 million subscribers, 60 percent of whom are in South Africa
with the rest in Tanzania, Lesotho, Democratic Republic of Congo and
Mozambique.
Vodafone, which has lost the
position as the world’s largest mobile-phone company to China Mobile Ltd.
(941), should consider selling its African units to Vodacom (VOD), giving it a
single entry into the continent, said Rob Forsyth, who helps manage the
equivalent of $90 billion at Investec Asset Management in Cape Town. The
Newbury, England-based operator sells services through businesses in Ghana,
Kenya and Egypt, which together have more than 63 million customers, according
to its website.
FINANCE
G20 leaders fear second meltdown
As world
leaders descend on the luxury resort of Los Cabos, on Mexico’s Pacific coast,
the political turmoil enveloping Greece and the eurozone has again left them
facing the prospect of another major global financial crisis. For the
second successive G20 summit, the crisis afflicting Greece and
the single currency will dominate proceedings, with the irritation of
international leaders towards their eurozone counterparts likely to be near the
surface as Britain and the US look for definitive action to halt the downward
spiral.
In the run-up to last November’s summit in Cannes,
George Osborne, the Chancellor, warned that leaders had six weeks to save the
euro.
At that summit, Silvio Berlusconi, then Italian prime
minister, fell asleep during key negotiations and Nicolas Sarkozy, then French
president, was more interested in photo opportunities with Barack Obama.
Meanwhile, Greek politicians were publicly humiliated before being effectively
forced to drop plans for a referendum.
Shriram Transport targets vehicle finance disbursement of Rs 21000 cr
Shriram Transport Finance Company Ltd has set
itself a target of disbursing vehicle finance of Rs 21,000 crore during
the current financial year as against Rs 19,000 crore in 2011-12, according to
Mr Umesh Revenkar, Managing Director.
After inaugurating Shriram Automall in
Bheemunipatnam in Visakhapatnam district on Saturday, he said the company was
the leading financier for used (second-hand) commercial vehicles in the
country.
“The big transport companies get finance
from the banks, but the small and single-vehicle operators come to us. They buy
mostly used vehicles. We provide them vehicles in good condition in our
automalls. They also get finance at reasonable rates,” he said.
He said during 2011-12, the company
had financed 6 lakh vehicles (old and new) and during the current
financial year, the number could rise to 6.5 lakh. “The market is steady
at present. It is likely to improve in future,” he added.
Mr Revenkar said by 2014 the
company would have 50 automalls. The company had received a good response to
its vehicle auctions held in different towns and cities.
Shriram Transport Finance Company
Ltd has set itself a target of disbursing vehicle finance of Rs 21,000
crore during the current financial year as against Rs 19,000 crore in
2011-12, according to Mr Umesh Revenkar, Managing Director.
INDIA
BUSINESS
The government will be setting aside RM180 million in
the form of various loans for the betterment of local Indian entrepreneurs,
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak announced yesterday.
From the RM180 million, he said, RM150 million would
be reserved through RM10 million from each of the participating 13 banks under
the Budget 2012 SME Financing Fund, RM10 million SME soft loans from Malaysian
Industrial Development Finance (MIDF), RM5 million under the Business
Accelerator Programme and RM5 million under the Enrichment and Enhancement
Programme meant for business start-ups and microenterprises.
In addition to the RM150 million, Najib (picture)
said TEKUN Nasional would set aside RM30 million to provide microcredit loans
to young Indian entrepreneurs under the Young Indian Entrepreneurs Development
Scheme (SPUMI).
“Through this dedicated RM180 million fund for the
Indian community, the government will manage to assist more Indian entrepreneurs
to obtain loans, to start up or expand their businesses.
“In the Malaysian Indian Economic Conference (MIEC)
blueprint memorandum discussed with me recently, there are three major issues
that Indian businesses feel are preventing them from realising their full
potential.
“The first is a legacy issue of negative credit
history including bankruptcy and blacklisting. The second involves the various
challenges faced in obtaining adequate and timely credit. And the third is for
Indians to win contracts from government and government-linked companies
(GLCs),” the prime minister said at the gala dinner organised in conjunction
with the MIEC in Seri Kembangan.
American businesses are lobbying with
political parties here to build a consensus on stalled economic reforms such as
liberalisation of foreign direct investment (FDI) in sectors like multi-brand
retail, aviation and insurance, and for expeditious introduction of a Goods and
Services Tax (GST). The American Chamber of Commrece in India [ Images ] (Amcham) led a delegation for a meeting with
Bharatiya Janata Party [ Images ] (BJP) president Nitin Gadkari [ Images ] last week, and pressed for opening of crucial
sectors for FDI or raising the FDI cap, those in the know said. Representatives
from Intel, Accenture, IBM, AT&T, Hewlett-Packard [ Images ], Bank of America, Cargill, GE Transportation and
Boeing India were among those present, as well as officials of the US embassy.
In the three-hour meeting, US representatives tried to get the principal opposition party on board regarding pending reform measures, sources said. They say Gadkari told them his party was ready to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh [ Images ] and finance minister Pranab Mukherjee [ Images ] to discuss FDI reforms, but the government does not approach the opposition to discuss these issues.
When asked, BJP officials said the meeting had discussions on over all macro-economic issues and not specific reform measures. They said Gadkari assured the US representatives that the fundamentals of the Indian economy were intact. They blamed India's economic downturn on governance issues rather than structural matters.
In the three-hour meeting, US representatives tried to get the principal opposition party on board regarding pending reform measures, sources said. They say Gadkari told them his party was ready to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh [ Images ] and finance minister Pranab Mukherjee [ Images ] to discuss FDI reforms, but the government does not approach the opposition to discuss these issues.
When asked, BJP officials said the meeting had discussions on over all macro-economic issues and not specific reform measures. They said Gadkari assured the US representatives that the fundamentals of the Indian economy were intact. They blamed India's economic downturn on governance issues rather than structural matters.
INDIA
MANAGEMENT
Mahindra Satyam has filed
a suit against its former Board of Directors,
certain employees and audit firm PriceWaterhouse, claiming around Rs 275 crore as damages from the previous management.
In its suit, the IT company said it has lost nearly Rs 3,000 crore revenue and Rs 70 crore profit due to actions of previous management and auditors.
"The plaintiff company suffered a loss on account of several customers cancelling or terminating contracts with the plaintiff company. The company suffered a loss of Rs 2,966.49 crore and consequent loss of profits from the said contracts. The company is entailed to recover Rs 70 crore from the defendants," Mahindra Satyam said in the petition filed in the city civil court. The new management of the city--based IT firm also sought Rs 51 crore towards the expenses for Forensic Audit conducted after the fraud-hit company was taken over by them. "The company paid in all a sum of Rs 51.72 crore to the entities and agencies among others, for the purpose of irregularities in the financial statements and operations of the plaintiff company when it was under the control of previous management. The plaintiff company is entitled to recover the amount," the petition said.
In its suit, the IT company said it has lost nearly Rs 3,000 crore revenue and Rs 70 crore profit due to actions of previous management and auditors.
"The plaintiff company suffered a loss on account of several customers cancelling or terminating contracts with the plaintiff company. The company suffered a loss of Rs 2,966.49 crore and consequent loss of profits from the said contracts. The company is entailed to recover Rs 70 crore from the defendants," Mahindra Satyam said in the petition filed in the city civil court. The new management of the city--based IT firm also sought Rs 51 crore towards the expenses for Forensic Audit conducted after the fraud-hit company was taken over by them. "The company paid in all a sum of Rs 51.72 crore to the entities and agencies among others, for the purpose of irregularities in the financial statements and operations of the plaintiff company when it was under the control of previous management. The plaintiff company is entitled to recover the amount," the petition said.
Over the years India's growing demand for airline
travels has shaped the market competition for profitable customer service. It
gave rise to airline companies but with a variety of organizational rules and
corporate ethics. Some are progressive when it comes to making earnings, while
others stick to fundamental management and planning.
Amidst the inconsistency of the economy, and a fragile
rivalry, are the inevitable losses financially of airline companies. Whether it
is a local or an international firm, several airlines' big bosses admit and
complain about the setbacks created by a stagnant market and the booming
competition. Given this stern competition, one company humbly stood against the
whipping of the storm. It managed to deliberately increase its profit but at
the same time maintain its prowess of good customer service. And in every
company or a corporation, there's always a leader, the driving force of
success. The "brains" that function to carry the company through the
test of time.
INSURANCE
The
Reliance Capital stock is on a roll. The stock rallied 14% in the last five
trading sessions on reports that overseas companies are lining up to buy a
stake in its general insurance business. Mint on Friday reported that the
company has begun talks with Italy’s Generali Group to sell 26% stake in its
general insurance business. Canada’s Intact Insurance Co. and Germany’s
HDI-Gerling International Holding AG are already in talks to buy a stake in its
general insurance arm. Meanwhile, another report by Business
Standard says
that the company is looking at the option of merging Future Group’s general
insurance business with itself. The developments can lead to two different
propositions to the company.
A simple stake sale will infuse fresh funds into the
company. The company can use the funds to further reduce liabilities and fund
the general insurance business. As on March 31, the company had Rs. 23,443 crore worth of liabilities. In an earnings conference call in May, the company’s management said the general
insurance business may need a capital infusion of Rs.
100 crore in the next one-two years. The general insurance business is still
making losses. It posted a pre-tax loss of Rs. 248
crore in the March quarter.
The Capital Market Authority (CMA) mandates all
insurance companies to insure different kinds of vehicles and not to select
some categories and reject others.
The CMA has specified minimum percentage for certain
types of vehicles to be included in the auto insurance portfolios of the
insurance companies licensed for this type of insurance. The types of vehicles
include taxis, driving education, lease vehicles, in addition to gas cylinder
truck and water tankers.
As per the Auto Insurance Law, all registered vehicles
should have Third Party insurance and insurance companies should accept to
provide coverage for different kinds of vehicles. To ensure selection of
certain types by insurance companies, CMA approved certain percentages for
different types of vehicles.
The portfolios of the auto insurance company should
include (2.5%) for taxis and driving education vehicles, (0.75%) for lease
vehicles, (0.75%) for the gas cylinder trucks and water tankers.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Salim al-Salmi, Chief Executive
Officer (CEO) of CMA said that the issuance of this circular comes within the
regulatory role played by CMA to ensure proper enforcement of different laws that include the Auto Insurance Law,
which made it mandatory for all vehicles to have auto insurance.
INTERNATIONAL
BUSINESS
Global airlines maintained their profit forecast for
2012 on Monday but the industry was braced for Europe's debt crisis to worsen
and wipe out the benefit of cheaper oil.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA)
left this year's global airline profit forecast unchanged at $3 billion, or 0.5
percent of industry revenues, at a summit of airline chiefs being held this
year in Beijing. That stable outlook, however, masks a widening gap between
regions with only North and South America set to improve, as well as worries
that cargo traffic might take a hit from the economic crisis spilling over from
Europe.
The outlook echoed expectations previously reported by
Reuters.
The Geneva-based grouping of some 240 airlines
regularly issues forecasts for an industry whose activities are seen as a
barometer of indicators such as business confidence and trade.
Director General Tony Tyler told IATA's annual meeting
that business was improving for American carriers, many of whom have been
keeping a tight lid on capacity.
"The rest of the world is seeing reduced
profitability. For European carriers, the business environment is deteriorating
rapidly resulting in sizable losses," Tyler said. The pessimism stems
mainly from the worsening debt crisis in Europe, he noted.
As the industry gathered at the weekend, euro zone
finance ministers agreed to lend Spain up to 100 billion euros ($125 billion)
to shore up its teetering banks.
As one eurozone country after
the next succumbs to the fevers of the debt crisis, Germany -- the region's
biggest -- seems so far to have remained largely immune.
However, the latest data suggest that the robustness of the German economy could now also be faltering, even as the Bundesbank continues to give it a clean bill of health.
All of the key economic data last week surprised to the downside. New car registrations -- a gauge of demand in one of the most important sectors of the German economy -- dropped by 4.8 percent in May.
Industrial orders in Germany fell by a bigger-than-expected 1.9 percent in April and industrial output was down even more by 2.2 percent.
The monthly trade data disappointed, too, with exports down 1.7 percent and imports dropping 4.8 percent in April.
For Germany's traditionally export-driven economy, such signs are worrying.
It already went briefly into reverse at the end of last year, contracting by 0.2 percent in the final quarter. But it appeared to shrug off the momentary downturn again quickly, expanding by 0.5 percent in the first three months of this year thanks to robust exports and healthy consumer spending.
However, the latest data suggest that the robustness of the German economy could now also be faltering, even as the Bundesbank continues to give it a clean bill of health.
All of the key economic data last week surprised to the downside. New car registrations -- a gauge of demand in one of the most important sectors of the German economy -- dropped by 4.8 percent in May.
Industrial orders in Germany fell by a bigger-than-expected 1.9 percent in April and industrial output was down even more by 2.2 percent.
The monthly trade data disappointed, too, with exports down 1.7 percent and imports dropping 4.8 percent in April.
For Germany's traditionally export-driven economy, such signs are worrying.
It already went briefly into reverse at the end of last year, contracting by 0.2 percent in the final quarter. But it appeared to shrug off the momentary downturn again quickly, expanding by 0.5 percent in the first three months of this year thanks to robust exports and healthy consumer spending.
LOGISTICS
Oman’s largest 3rd Party Distribution Centre now
operational at Barka — By Conrad Prabhu — MUSCAT — Leading logistics services
provider Al Madina Logistics Services plans to set up a network of major
warehousing and distribution centres in key cities across Oman – a move that
will further consolidate its position as one of the largest supply chain
management firms in the Sultanate.
According to top official of the closed joint stock company, new distribution centres are planned in Sohar, Nizwa, Salalah and Duqm. The facilities will be modeled on the lines of the company’s newly launched, state-of-the-art, flagship facility at Barka, currently ranked among the largest of its kind in the Sultanate.
“We plan to invest in developing modern distribution centres, based on the ‘third party logistics’ (3PL) concept, in these cities. The facilities will be constructed and brought into operation during 2012-2013 year,” Mahmood Sakhi al Balushi, Chief Executive Officer, said. In comments to the Observer, Al Balushi said the planned investments underscore a period of strong growth across the logistics and warehousing sector in Oman, fuelled by robust demand for high-quality warehousing and storage space.
According to top official of the closed joint stock company, new distribution centres are planned in Sohar, Nizwa, Salalah and Duqm. The facilities will be modeled on the lines of the company’s newly launched, state-of-the-art, flagship facility at Barka, currently ranked among the largest of its kind in the Sultanate.
“We plan to invest in developing modern distribution centres, based on the ‘third party logistics’ (3PL) concept, in these cities. The facilities will be constructed and brought into operation during 2012-2013 year,” Mahmood Sakhi al Balushi, Chief Executive Officer, said. In comments to the Observer, Al Balushi said the planned investments underscore a period of strong growth across the logistics and warehousing sector in Oman, fuelled by robust demand for high-quality warehousing and storage space.
Express courier company DTDC is
targeting up to 35 percent increase in top-line growth to Rs 550 crore in
2011-12 on a jump in core business revenues.
“We closed last year with Rs 425 crore
and expect a 30-35 percent growth in our top-line this year which should take
us to about Rs 550 crore,” DTDC’s Executive Director Mr Abhishek Chakraborty
told PTI here.
He said the company expects revenues
from the e-commerce vertical within the flagship express courier space to more
than double this year, while international business will grow by nearly 45
percent.
Serving the business-to-consumer
e-commerce space, which is growing very rapidly in the country, requires some
special logistical capabilities and it accounts for two percent of the company
revenues at present, Mr Chakraborty said.
“Given the growth of e-commerce, we will
have a 100 percent growth in this space this year and a similar one in the next
three to four years,” he said, adding that in five years, e-commerce will
account for over a tenth of the company’s total revenues.
The international business, both inbound
and outbound cargo, constitutes for 13 to 14 percent of revenues at present and
the company is aiming to grow it up to 20 percent in five years, Mr Chakraborty
said.
MANAGEMENT
In line with its plans to launch the Sovereign Wealth
Fund (SWF) in the second quarter, the Federal Government will announce its
management team next week.
The Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Finance
Minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, revealed this to THISDAY in Arusha,
Tanzania, during the annual meetings of the African Development Bank (AfDB).
Asked to disclose identities of the team members,
Okonjo-Iweala said: "You know the selection process was very competitive
but I cannot divulge the names of the management team. It will not be nice for
me to do that before the names are officially announced."
An official of the Ministry of Finance however told
THISDAY that nearly all the members of the management team are Nigerians.
The government had recruited the chief executive
officer, chief investment officer and the chief risk officer through a
selection process conducted by KPMG.
KPMG, one of world's leading management consultancy
firms, was appointed by the government to hunt for the key officers that will
manage the fund, which will be under the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority
(NSIA).
The advertisements were placed in local and
international media by KPMG some months back, calling for qualified personnel
to apply for key positions to manage the operations of SWF. World's leading
investment banks - Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan Chase - were
among the institutions eyeing the job of managing the SWF.
Despite several barriers to entry and risks involved,
cloud computing is gaining traction, as it offers numerous potential benefits
to organisations of all sizes. However, while the benefits of cloud computing
may outweigh the risks, this does not mean that the risks can simply be
ignored. In order to leverage the benefits of the cloud without falling foul of
regulations and compliance legislation, it is vital to firstly implement sound
data governance and effective data management processes. One of the most
attractive benefits of the cloud model is its ability to lower initial
implementation costs. Accessing new technologies therefore becomes an
operational expense as opposed to a large capital expense, and internal IT
costs can be dramatically lowered. The cloud also offers greater scalability
and flexibility, reduced time to deploy new applications and services, and can
help organisations to standardise services and technologies. For the Small
Medium Enterprise (SME) market, the cloud offers access to technologies that
were previously unavailable and unaffordable due to high purchasing cost. This
model also has the potential to offer a ‘try before you buy’ approach that
ensures solutions are fit for purpose before they are adopted wholesale into an
organisation. This then improves user adoption rates, which potentially
improves performance of the organisation. In terms of data management, cloud
solutions also ensure automatic data backups, which support compliance and
redundancy objectives.
MARKETING
French market research
firm, Ipsos, may be a late entrant in the Indian market, but its founder,
chairman and CEO of the group, Didier Truchot
believes that in the next five years, it has the potential to become a
significant player in the country.
India currently contributes 1.5% to its global revenues of 1.4 billion euros (roughly US$ 2 billion) in 2011. With the value of market research in India at a mere 20 cents per capita versus $1 in China, $3 in Brazil and $20 in France, Truchot said the scope of growth is immense in markets like India.
"I'm not saying I'm targeting $20 in India, all I'm saying is the importance of market research in India would grow in the future. India is today 1.5% of the global revenues of Ipsos, which is much more than what it was two years ago and much less than what it will be in five years," Truchot told TOI, without revealing the internal target. The 66-year-old, who is also an economist, believes that market research is currently 'under-valued' in India, a situation, he feels, will correct in the future and would result in a higher compensation for employees working for market research firms. While over the years, the gap in compensation packages in market research firms and other firms like advertising had narrowed down to zero in some markets like France, in markets like India, there is still scope for improvement.
India currently contributes 1.5% to its global revenues of 1.4 billion euros (roughly US$ 2 billion) in 2011. With the value of market research in India at a mere 20 cents per capita versus $1 in China, $3 in Brazil and $20 in France, Truchot said the scope of growth is immense in markets like India.
"I'm not saying I'm targeting $20 in India, all I'm saying is the importance of market research in India would grow in the future. India is today 1.5% of the global revenues of Ipsos, which is much more than what it was two years ago and much less than what it will be in five years," Truchot told TOI, without revealing the internal target. The 66-year-old, who is also an economist, believes that market research is currently 'under-valued' in India, a situation, he feels, will correct in the future and would result in a higher compensation for employees working for market research firms. While over the years, the gap in compensation packages in market research firms and other firms like advertising had narrowed down to zero in some markets like France, in markets like India, there is still scope for improvement.
Experian Marketing Services, a
leading provider of data, analytics and marketing technologies, today announced
an expanded relationship with Adrea Rubin Marketing, Inc., the life and health
insurance marketing leader. This relationship makes Adrea Rubin Marketing a
preferred provider of Experian Marketing Services' ChoiceScore to the life and
health insurance vertical.
ChoiceScore helps marketers identify
and more effectively market to underbanked consumers. Using the most
comprehensive array of noncredit data available from Experian, including
consumer demographic, behavioral and geo-demographic information, ChoiceScore's
custom models offer users the ability to select specific consumers based on
potential risk.
"Experian Marketing Services is
a long-time, trusted partner. Their richness of data is excellent, and they
have valuable predictive tools that help marketers in the insurance vertical be
successful," said Adrea Rubin, chief executive officer, Adrea Rubin
Marketing. "Expanding our relationship with Experian will help us better
serve the life and health insurance industry to reach underserved consumers
with new products and services."
ODISHA BUSINESS
Even as iron ore output in India’s top producer Odisha
slipped by 18 percent, the steel companies have started importing pellets to
meet their raw material requirement.
Iron
ore production came down by nearly a fifth to 60 million tonne during 2011-12
against 73 million tonne reported in the previous financial year. This was due
to less evacuation of the iron fines stacked at the mines pit head, said the
industry sources. “Because of sharp hike in export
duty along with higher rail freights amid poor global demand, the miners are
unable to evacuate the fines and thus production is getting affected in Odisha,”
R K Sharma, secretary general of Federation of Indian Mineral Industries (FIMI)
said while speaking about raw material availability to steel units.
Due to supply problems of iron ore
lumps, which can be directly fed to steel plants to produce steel, some
manufacturers have started buying pellet from outside. Recently, Bhushan Steel imported
55,000 tonne of iron ore pellet from Brazil. It is waiting another vessel with
a load of 23,091 tonne pellet by 12 June. Similarly between February and April,
Steel Authority of India (SAIL) ordered 157,750 tonne of iron ore pellet from
Mangalore plant of Kudremukh Iron Ore Company Ltd (KIOCL) through Paradip port.
The decks seem to be clearing for the ambitious Rs
60,000-crore coal-to-liquid (CTL) project proposed by Jindal Synfuels Ltd, a
subsidiary of Jindal Steel & Power Ltd (JSPL). The project envisages a
production of 80,000 barrels of oil per day and will be located at Durgapur in
Angul district.
The
Odisha government has decided to sign an MoU soon with the project proponent
for a period of nine years. "The draft MoU to be signed
with Jindal Synfuels is ready. It has been decided that the MoU tenure shall be
for nine years with a clause that after every three years, the project will be
reviewed. The company has to submit milestones to be achieved in three years
and in six years to the industries department”, an industries department source
said.
The CTL project needs 4000 acres of
land and the state government has decided to provide at least 50 per cent land
to Jindal Synfuels without waiting for benchmarking and other detailed
analysis.
A host of milestones have to be
achieved within three years from the date of MoU execution- finalisation of
land and water assessment by state owned Industrial Promotion & Investment
Corporation of Odisha Ltd (Ipicol), securing prospecting license for Ramchandi
coal block allocated for the project, exploration of the coal block and
commencement of land acquisition activities.
RETAIL
Retail sales in the U.S. probably
declined in May for the first time in a year as slower employment and subdued
wage gains damped demand for automobiles, economists said before reports this
week.
The projected 0.2 percent decrease last month would
follow a 0.1 percent gain in April that was the smallest this year, according
to the median forecast of 62 economists surveyed by
Bloomberg News ahead of Commerce Department figures due June 13. A measure of
the cost of living fell last month for the first time in two years, reflecting
cheaper gasoline prices, other data may show. Limited payroll growth and
unemployment exceeding 8 percent may make it tough for consumer spending to improve after a first-quarter pace that
was the fastest in a year. At the same time, lower prices at the gasoline pump
are providing relief for Americans and also helping contain inflation, giving
the Federal
Reserve more room to stimulate the economy should Europe’s debt crisis
worsen. Limited payroll growth and
unemployment exceeding 8 percent may make it tough for consumer spending to improve after a first-quarter pace that
was the fastest in a year. At the same time, lower prices at the gasoline pump
are providing relief for Americans and also helping contain inflation, giving
the Federal
Reserve more room to stimulate the economy should Europe’s debt crisis
worsen.
In a first, online travel company Expedia is planning
to open retail outlets for the Indian market. This is a strategy it has not
adopted anywhere else worldwide.
However,
it is not the first online travel company to have offline presence in India.
MakeMyTrip has 54 stores across India. Yatra.com has 23 outlets, including one
in Kathmandu, which it refers to as ‘Yatra holiday lounges’. In
a contrast scenario, traditional travel companies like Cox & Kings and
Thomas Cook are looking at online as an important tool for growth and remaining
relevant. A senior travel industry expert said, “Companies have to go for a
hybrid model and have a healthy mix of both online and offline if they want to
compete and get a wider market share.”
Expedia’s plans for offline retail
outlets may have been triggered by restrictions in the Indian market, including
poor broadband penetration and problems related to online payment. While noting
Expedia had become a familiar name in the online travel space, Vikram Malhi,
the company’s country head, confirmed plans to set up offline retail stores.
SUPPLY CHAIN
Sonata
Software, a leading IT consulting and software services provider, announced
that it has been featured in the April, 2012 report by Forrester Research Inc.,
a leading research and advisory firm. In the report 'The Move to an Asset-Based
Services Play', Forrester has highlighted SonnetSCOR - Sonata's BI solution
accelerator for supply chain & logistics - as an example of IT services
moving towards an asset-based services play. Sonata has also been featured in
the report for leveraging its inorganic strategy, specifically its joint
venture with the TUI Group, for adding on vertical-specific assets for the
Travel & Tourism vertical. SonnetSCOR - built as per Supply
Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) standards - reduces cost through better
insights into supply chain effectiveness for companies in the manufacturing
& distribution business through Key Performance Indicators (KPI) and
dashboards. Sonata's repertoire includes Global Distribution Systems (GDS),
Connect for the travel industry and Enterprise Application Value Accelerator
(EAVA), a solution accelerator built on Microsoft SharePoint that enables
enterprises unlock the value of their ERP.
Cargo
theft continues to plague global supply chains, resulting in
billions of dollars in direct losses , downstream costs and derailed
efficiencies, noted FreightWatch
International, a global logistics security solutions provider, in
one its reports on cargo thefts in the US.
Even though cargo theft is a universal problem, very
few countries take the effort to track, analyse and take remedial measures to
check the menace. In US, for example, the Cargo Theft Report released last week
by CargoNet has noted that there was a 17% increase in reported annual cargo
theft incidents at the close of 2011 (1,215) over that of last year (1,035),
The agency estimates the total value of loss to the tune of $130,000,000 due to
cargo related thefts during the period.
"There were more metal cargo thefts recorded in
the first quarter of 2012 than all of 2010 and more than half in 2011,"
said FreightWatch in an April report titled "Cargo Theft and the Metal
Industry."
The agency, which had been tracking cargo theft rates
since 2006, said the theft of metal, specifically copper, is a growing trend
worldwide.
"Theft of copper in bulk from the supply chain is
occurring around the globe, not to mention the rampant stealing of valuable
metals from infrastructure such as power stations , rail lines, and even home
exteriors," Freight-Watch said in the report, adding that criminals in
some countries are prone to extreme measures of violence.
______________________________________________________________________
Source of
Information for this issue : Google alert accessed on 11th and 15th June 2012, Google search accessed on 18th June 2012 & The Telegraph Newspaper accessed on14th June 2012.
We welcome your suggestions
in improving this information updating service.
Knowledge
Is Power. Be Informed, Be Knowledgeable, Be Powerful.
Best wishes
Compilation
Sabita Sahu, B.A., PGDCA, MLISc,
Professional Library Trainee
Sabita Sahu, B.A., PGDCA, MLISc,
Professional Library Trainee
Concept, Layout and
Editing
Rajashekhar Devarai
Chief Librarian
Chief Librarian
Information and
Documentation Division, Chanakya Central Library
Asian School of
Business Management
Shiksha Vihar Bhola,
Barang Khurda Road,
Chandaka
Bhubaneswar-754012
Tel:0674-2374832, 2374833
Sabita Sahu : Professional Library Trainee and R.S.Devarai : Chief Librarian, Knowledge and Information Services Unit, Chanakya Central Library, Asian School of Business Management, Bhubaneswar. chieflibrarian@asbm.ac.in ; www.asbm.ac.in
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