JANUARY ECONOMY


  • Nagesh Pydah is Oriental Bank's CMD - Oriental Bank of Commerce (OBC) has a new Chairman and Managing Director in Mr Nagesh Pydah.Prior to this appointment, Mr Pydah was an Executive Director at Punjab National Bank (PNB). He succeeds T.Y.Prabhu.
  • ONGC, GAIL sign pact for marketing gas - State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and GAIL India (GAIL) on Monday announced that they had reached a landmark agreement to ensure mutual business growth in the areas of natural gas as well as petrochemicals.The two PSU giants signed a number of agreements and exchanged documents in this regard in the presence of the ONGC Chairman and Managing Director R. S. Sharma and GAIL Chairman and Managing Director B. C. Tripathi.
  • Fourth Electricity East Summit -   Current Plan is expected to see the addition of 62,374 MW of power generation capacity and projects for creating a capacity of 66,000 MW are now under implementation, Union Minister of Power Sushil Kumar Shinde said. The private sector was poised to have a majority share of the sector — at least 52 per cent (against 32 per cent) by the next Plan period beginning April 2012, he said.
  • Sri Lanka to become regional financial hub:Sri Lanka is proactively engaged in the process of becoming the regional financial hub, Central Bank of Sri Lanka Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said.Presenting the road map monetary and fiscal sector policies for 2011 and beyond, he said this was a gradual process.
  • Jindal Saw inks pact with Rajasthan Govt: Jindal Saw announced that it had inked a lease pact with Rajasthan Government to mine iron ore for 30 years from a deposit containing an estimated 180 million tonnes of resources.
  • India-China direct service from FedEx:FedEx Express, a subsidiary of world's largest express cargo company FedEx Corp, on Wednesday announced the launch of its direct services from India to China, giving a further boost to trade ties between the two countries.The newly dedicated cargo flight, to be operated with an Airbus 310 aircraft five times a week, will connect its Asia Pacific hub at Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou in Southern China with Mumbai and New Delhi. “This flight would provide direct communication from India to Asia,an improved transit time, and 160 tonnes of cargo a week. The new flight will offer Indian businesses the benefits of additional outbound capacity to Asia,'' FedEx Express India, vice-resident Kenneth F. Koval said.
  • SMEs present Rs.50,000-crore funding opportunity for banks: Crisil - There is scope for banks to increase their lending to SMEs by Rs.50,000 crore, reveals a Crisil study on the funding patterns of 2,000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in India.The study indicates that while banks have been lending to the SME sector, they still have significant scope for increasing lending to the sector.The funding opportunity is greater for smaller SMEs in which turnover is less than Rs.500 lakh.
  • Mega food parks to be set up in Kerala: The scheme for setting up of mega food parks under the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, launched two years ago, has been extended with a view to attracting more entities into the food processing sector. The government has invited proposals from prospective groups in various States, including Kerala.he government has launched the fresh effort to rope in more players in various States. Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Bihar, Orissa, Rajasthan, Jammu & Kashmir, Chhattisgarh and Tripura are among the other States where the scheme is being offered now.
  • IMF pegs India's GDP growth at 8.75 %: Projecting India's economy to grow by 8.75 per cent in 2010-11 with a moderation to about 8 per cent during the next fiscal, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has highlighted elevated inflation and complications in macroeconomic management as the near-term challenges confronting the authorities and called for further monetary action by the Reserve Bank of India to contain the price spiral.
  • Darjeeling tea production at record low:Erratic weather conditions coupled with low productivity has led Darjeeling tea producers to close the year 2010 with a low crop of only around 7 million kg which is among the lowest in history. There are 87 tea estates in Darjeeling with 17.5 lakh hectares under cultivation.Chairman of Darjeeling Tea Association (DTA) Sanjay Bansal told The Hindu that according to official estimates, output is around 7.74 million kg. While the crop has been dwindling for sometime, the output in 2010 would be the lowest in the 150-year-old history of Darjeeling tea.
  • Bajaj Allianz launches package for SMEs: Bajaj Allianz General Insurance has launched Commercial Package Policy, a comprehensive insurance for small and medium business enterprises (SME). The policy covers all major risks in a single policy. It also provides employees under group personal accident and workmen's compensation cover. It offers a sum insured of up to Rs.99 crore, making it suitable for both industrial and non-industrial commercial enterprise.
  • India to replace US as 2nd largest economy by 2050 PwC: India is poised to overtake the USA and emerge as the World's second largest economy on purchasing power parity basis by 2050 and has the potential to supersede China to the top spot, says a report published by PwC.
  • Birla Corporation plans to set up cement plant in Assam: Birla Corporation, flagship company of the M. P. Birla Group, is planning to set up a one-million tonne cement plant in Assam at an investment of around Rs.450 crore. The company signed a memorandum of understanding with the Assam Mineral Development Corporation.
  • $15 b target set for India-South Africa bilateral trade : Buoyed by the massive growth recorded in trade between India and South Africa, and the huge potential it holds for the future, the two countries have decided to set a target of achieving $15 billion bilateral trade by 2015.The two countries are also set to breach the $10 billion two-way trade target by next month, 23 months ahead of schedule. Mr. Sharma was speaking in Johannesburg during the inauguration of the first branch office of state-run commodity trading enterprise MMTC. Mr. Sharma, who met the South African President, Jacob Zuma, on Monday, will also have a bilateral meeting with South African Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies.
  • Shriram Life ties up with TN coop bank: Shriram Life Insurance Co. Ltd. (SLIC), a joint venture between Shriram Group and Sanlam Group of South Africa, has inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Tamil Nadu Co-operative State Agriculture & Rural Development Bank Limited.
  • Malegam panel proposes 24% cap on interest rate on MFI loans: Aimed at reviving the crisis- ridden micro finance sector, a Reserve Bank of India Committee on Wednesday suggested that micro finance institutions (MFIs) be allowed to charge a maximum interest of 24 per cent on small loans which cannot exceed Rs.25,000.
  • SAIL signs MoU with Hindustan Prefab: Steel Authority of India Ltd. (SAIL) on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Hindustan Prefab Ltd. (HPL) for jointly exploring the techno-economic viability of carrying out the business of prefabricated structures in steel and cement.
  • India-South Korea set $30 b trade target by 2014:Seeking to take the India-South Korea trade ties to a new level, both countries on Thursday agreed to set a $30 billion bilateral trade turnover target to be achieved by 2014.
  • L&T divides businesses into nine verticals: Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is reorganising its businesses into nine empowered verticals or operating units in addition to its five existing subsidiaries. The nine companies will act like ‘independent companies' (ICs) going forward.Addressing the media here on Monday, L&T Whole-time Director and Advisor to Chairman and Managing Director J. P. Nayak said, “We are trying to bring about a transformation.
  • Trade target set at $25 b with Indonesia: India and Indonesia, seeking to take their partnership to the next level, have agreed to begin negotiations for concluding a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) and set a bilateral trade target of $25 billion by 2015 against $11 billion last fiscal.
  • International Customs Day celebrated:The Customs Commissionerate, Cochin, celebrated International Customs Day at the Rajiv Gandhi Indoor Stadium,Kochi.The theme for this year's customs day was ‘knowledge, a catalyst for customs excellence'.The meeting was attended by S.V. Iyer and A.P. Sudhir, former members of CBEC as chief guests. Vineet Ohri, Chief Commissioner of Kerala Zone, presided.
  • Abengoa ties up with BHEL: Spanish company Abengoa on Thursday announced that it had signed an agreement with Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL) and formalised a strategic partnership to jointly undertake Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) projects in India.
  • GDP growth for 2009-10 revised up to 8%: India's GDP (gross domestic product) growth stands revised upwards to 8 per cent for 2009-10 from the 7.4 per cent expansion estimated earlier for the fiscal, mainly on the strength of better showing by sectors such as manufacturing and services.
  • Call for early conclusion of Doha Round talks: Trade ministers of India, Brazil, South Africa (IBSA) and China met on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum at Davos on Friday and reviewed the current status of the Doha Round of WTO negotiations and exchanged views on the need to conclude it at the earliest.The Indian delegation was led by Union Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma while China was represented by its Trade Minister Chen Deming, Brazil by Antonio Patriota and South Africa by Rob Davies.
  • India-China trade surpasses target: Bilateral trade between India and China exceeded the two countries' $60 billion target last year, driven largely by rising Indian imports of Chinese machinery that have left a record trade imbalance of $20 billion in China's favour.Figures released for last year showed that bilateral trade in 2010 reached $61.7 billion, with Chinese exports to India touching $40.8 billion.This marked a 43 per cent jump in trade volume from last year, when the recession reduced two-way trade to $43 billion. In 2008, China became India's largest trade partner with $51.8 billion in bilateral trade.
  • Unlimited ATM service from Federal Bank: Federal Bank will allow its customers unlimited withdrawal of cash from ATMs (automated teller machines) of other banks from January 26.Now, a bank customer can, using his/her bank's ATM card, make up to five transactions from other banks' ATMs. For every transaction beyond five, the customer has to pay Rs. 20 as fee. This is in accordance with an RBI's directive. However, Federal Bank would allow its customers to make any number of transactions from other banks' ATMs and the Rs.20 fee was being waived effective from Republic Day.