Hutchison to unveil GPRS services
Mumbai: The Hutchison group plans to introduce general packet radio services in all its seven circles enabling the fastest Internet service on mobile phones.

At present, Hutchison has operations in New Delhi, Kolkata and Gujarat through its affiliates, in addition to the Mumbai circle. The company is planning to launch cellular services in Karnataka, Chennai and Andhra Pradesh in the second quarter of the next financial year.
Hutchison is yet to finalise the technology partner for the GPRS project. BPL Mobile has recently launched GPRS with a fixed monthly tariff of Rs 750 per subscriber for unlimited usage.

Siemens, Nokia, and Motorola are currently offering GPRS-enabled handsets at a starting price of Rs 10,000.

Cellular operators will be able to connect ATMs of banks through the network. This will do away with the need for leased lines that are currently used by banks to connect ATMs.
Back to News Review index page  
Custodian appointed for Baroda Coop Bank
Ahmedabad: The Gujarat registrar of cooperative societies (RCS) has appointed B A Luhar, the joint registrar with the state cooperative department, as the custodian of Baroda People's Cooperative Bank Ltd.

This appointment of Luhar follows the resignation by the bank's 12-member governing board.

The BPCBL governing board, after deciding to resign, had also sent an application to the State Bank of India asking the latter to suspend BPCBL from the clearing house, following which cheques issued by BPCBL customers were not being honoured.
Back to News Review index page  

LIC annuity to be relaunched on Feb 1
Mumbai: The annuity products of the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) -- Jeevan Dhara, Jeevan Suraksha and Jeevan Aksha -- will be reintroduced on February 1, at a reduced interest rate varying between 200 and 250 basis points.

LIC will also offer term assurance rider to those taking the revised Jeevan Dhara product, wherein the policyholder would get life cover through term assurance during the deferment payment period.

The annuity products have been off the shelve since 24 December.

Prior to discontinuation, Jeevan Dhara offered an assured rate of interest varying between 10.7 per cent and 11.3 per cent in accordance to the period of deferment.

The pension products of LIC were discontinued on 24 December when the LIC found it difficult to meet the high rate of assured returns, given the sharp fall in the rate of returns on government papers.
Back to News Review index page  
IDBI to offer 26% stake in bank to strategic partner
Kolkata: The Industrial Development Bank of India has decided to offer 26 per cent stake in IDBI Bank to a strategic partner.

IDBI - which currently holds 57 per cent of the bank's equity - needs to bring down its stake to 40 per cent before 31 March following the new bank licensing norms.

By divesting 26 per cent stake of the bank to a partner, IDBI will be able to bring down its stake in the bank to around 42-43 per cent immediately.
Back to News Review index page  

Peerless unveils insurance-linked plan
Kolkata: Peerless General Finance & Investment Ltd (PGFIL) has launched its first insurance-linked savings product targeted at expanding its existing four crore customer base with its alliance partner Iffco-Tokio General Insurance Ltd (ITGIL).

PGFIL's three-year fixed deposit scheme will now offer free critical illness and accidental death insurance cover through four options titled silver, gold, platinum and royale.

Depositors will not be required to undergo medical examination and would receive a Peerless savings card along with facilities such as premature withdrawal, loans, nomination and withdrawal in cash or cheque.
Back to News Review index page  

Cipla Q3 net up 17%
Mumbai: Ciplas October-December net profit rose 17 per cent over a year earlier, driven by strong exports.
Cipla reported a net profit of Rs 62.65 crore on sales that rose 32.8 per cent year-on-year to Rs 366 crore.
Exports more than doubled to Rs 139 crore from Rs 68 crore a year ago. Domestic market sales rose about nine per cent.

Cipla's expenditure jumped from year-earlier levels due to higher manufacturing costs and the setting up of new plant facilities in Goa. Material consumption costs rose 30.5 per cent while other expenditure jumped 78 per cent.
Back to News Review index page  
Escotel to invest Rs 1,100 cr
New Delhi: Escotel is planning to invest Rs 1,100 crore for starting cellular services in four new circles of Punjab, UP (east), Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh.

The four new circles being a greenfeild operation for Escotel, will initially be funded primarily by shareholders funds and debt.

The company is looking at a 1:1 debt-equity structure for these new circles.

Escotel expects to launch services in all the new circles by mid-2002.

The company, this month, announced a strategic tie-up with Airtel for sharing cellular infrastructure in their common circles.
Back to News Review index page  

Bharti to issue shares in demat
New Delhi: Bharti Group will allot the proposed entire public issue of 18.5 crore equity shares, through 100 per cent book building route, in compulsory dematerialised mode as per Sebi guidelines.

The company has already signed a tripartite agreement with BVTL, registrars to issue, National Securities Depository and Central Securities Depository seperately so that equity shares can be alloted to all succesful bidders mandatorily in demat form.

Out of the total offering, 25 per cent has been reserved for retail investor applying for 50 equity shares upto 1000 shares, while 60 per cent would be reserved for qualified institutional investors and balance 15 per cent for non institutional and high net worth individuals applying for above 1050 equity shares and in multiples of 50 thereafter.
Back to News Review index page  
MICO's buyback opens
New Delhi: Motor Industries (MICO), the Indian subsidiary of German auto ancillary giant Robert Bosch GmbH, is launching its third buyback offer on 21 January aimed at buying back two lakh equity shares at Rs 2,500 per share totalling Rs 50 crore.

The programme, which ends on February 4 2002, entails buying back these shares having a face value of Rs 100 in a bid to dispense with cash reserves.

The buyback offer price of Rs 2,500 per share is a premium of about 10 per cent over the present price of the MICO scrip, which closed at Rs 2279 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on 19 January.
Back to News Review index page  

Bharat Forge Q3 net up 56.96%
Mumbai: Bharat Forge has posted a 56.96 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 6.31 crore for the third quarter ended December 2001 compared to Rs 4.02 crore for the same period last fiscal.

The total income for the period dropped marginally to Rs 111.58 crore from Rs 112.32 crore in third quarter of 2000-01.

The financial performance for the two quarters were not comparable due to the demerger of investment and windmills division in 31 March 2001.
Back to News Review index page  

Lafarge to cut jobs
Kolkata: Lafarge has decided to downsize its employee strength in India through voluntary retirement scheme.
Lafarge currently employs around 2,000 people for its Indian operation. The company is looking at pruning employee strength by around 10-15 per cent. The VRS scheme will be offered to employees across all categories including the managerial personnel.

Lafarge has three plants in Eastern India, one in Sonadih, near Raipur in Chhattisgarh, another at Jojobera in Singhbhum district of Jharkhand and the third at Arasmeta in Chhattisgarh.
Back to News Review index page  
Norsk to sell Utkal stake to Indal-Alcan
Kolkata: Norsk Hydro has agreed to sell its entire 45 per cent equity stake in Utkal Alumina International Ltd to Indian Aluminium Company Ltd and Alcan Aluminium Company of Canada, at a price of about $ 6 million.

Norsk Hydro representative on the UAIL board O'lali, who was managing director, has stepped down, paving the way for the Indal-Alcan combine to appoint a new managing director. The board also accepted the resignation of N. K. Choudhary as chairman of UAIL.
Back to News Review index page  

TCS launches eIBS
Mumbai: Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has launched an integrated brokerage solution for the derivative market called eIBS.

eIBS offers business functionality across participants including the trading member, professional and custodial clearing members as well as depository participants.

eIBS can connect a broker to a range of stock exchanges and market segments over wireless and wire line networks, enable risk management and close derivative clearing and settlement deals, track histories and manage collateral with customisable billing and margining.

The suite has three components Matrix, a multi-market multi-exchange trading and risk management solution; Precision, a clearing and settlement solution as well as Techsure, a depository participant back office solution.
Back to News Review index page  

LG Electronics to launch new audio products
Kolkata: LG Electronics India Ltd has firmed up plans to launch a range of audio products within the next six months.

The LG brand of audio products to be introduced in the Indian market would be priced in the range between Rs 7,000 and Rs 30,000.

LG also plans to introduce 12 new colour television (CTV) models during the year.
Back to News Review index page