Shree Cement net down 55%
Kolkata: Shree Cement registered a 55 per cent decline in net profit to Rs 1.9 crore in the three months ended 31 March 2002, over Rs 4.3 crore in the corresponding period last year.

Net sales at Rs 143.6 crore in the period under review registered a 4.4 per cent growth over Rs 137.5 crore in the corresponding period last year.

Other income stood at Rs 15.4 lakh in the quarter under review compared to Rs 16.7 lakh in the corresponding period last year.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation during the quarter under review improved by 19 per cent.

Profit before interest, depreciation and taxes was higher Rs 27.15 crore in the period under review compared to Rs 21.5 crore in the corresponding period last year. After accounting for Rs 8.9crore (Rs 10.9 crore) as interest outgo and Rs 7.7 crore (Rs 6.3 crore) as depreciation costs, profit before extraordinary items stood at Rs 10.4 crore (Rs 4.3 crore).

The company has a paid-up capital of Rs 34.83 crore.
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Bayer sues J&J over aspirin
New York: Bayer Corp has filed suit against rival Johnson & Johnson, accusing it of falsely advertising that low doses of aspirin were as effective as full-dose aspirin in warding off heart attacks.

Bayer Corp said J&J misled consumers in a campaign for its St. Joseph brand of aspirin, which comes in an 81-milligram dose one fourth the dose of standard 325-milligram aspirins sold by Bayer and other firms.
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Reliance can bid for IPCL
New Delhi: The disinvestment ministry is unlikely to stop Reliance Industries from participating in the disinvestment of IPCL.

Parliamentary panel had questioned the go ahead to RIL in the light of the accusation that it violated the Official Secrets Act.

The disinvestment ministry cleared RIL on the ground that charge against it doesnt concern national security and, therefore, cannot constitute a ground for disqualification.
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RBI okays ICICI Bank, ICICI merger
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India has approved the merger between ICICI Ltd and ICICI Bank, paving the way for the creation of the country's largest private-sector bank, with Rs 1 trillion in assets.

The approval is subject to certain conditions.

The merged entity, to be called ICICI Bank, will have to comply with cash reserve requirements and statutory liquidity reserve requirements, including liabilities pertaining to ICICI from the date of merger, the RBI said.

ICICI officials said the merger would be made effective from 30 March 2002.

RBI also said the merged entity will have to comply with capital adequacy, asset classification income recognition and provisioning requirements.
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Raymond net profit down 66.91%
Mumbai: Raymond has posted a 66.91 per cent drop in its net profit at Rs 88.11 crore for the financial year ended March 2002 as compared to Rs 266.32 crore in the previous fiscal.

The board has recommended a 45 per cent dividend (30 per cent in 2000-01) for the fiscal 2002, the company said in a release.

The net sales were down by 33.07 per cent at Rs 975.12 crore for period under review as against Rs 1,457.06 crore in 2000-01.

The company could not achieve the targetted growth rate, both in domestic and export markets, the release said adding domestic sales were five per cent higher this year.

The files division fared well despite a general recessionary conditions both in India and abroad, it said.

The denim market improved significantly with rise in domestic and international demand and this division's manufacturing capacity would grow by 11 million metres to 16.5 million metres by June end, it said.

The company has divested its steel and cement divisions in September 2000 and January 2001 respectively. Hence, results for 2001-02 were not comparable to those for 2000-01, the release added.
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A-I to hire consultant for business plan
Mumbai: Air-India will appoint a consultant to develop a business plan.

Air-India has appointed a committee to evaluate the fleet acquisition plan and it is now expected to submit its report next month.
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Polaris Software plans acquisition
Chennai: Polaris Software is planning to acquire a company in the US.
Polaris, despite a fall in its quarterly net profit and prevailing recessionary trends, is upbeat about its future.
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Glaxo India Q1 net rises 49%
Mumbai: GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals January-March net profit jumped 49 per cent on the year, beating forecasts.

The company posted a first-quarter net profit, after exceptional expense, of Rs 227.9 million, compared with Rs 152.8 million a year earlier.

Net sales grew 9.2 per cent to Rs 2.84 billion from 2.60 billion.

It had an exceptional expense of Rs 30.2 million on an employee separation scheme and retirement benefits.

The company, formed in October by the merger of Glaxo India and SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals, attributed the performance to three key factors.

"Significant growth in sales and profit has been achieved due to a sharper focus on the profitable pharmaceutical brands, tight control on cost of goods and synergies from integration," managing director Venkatraman Thyagarajan said in a statement.
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TVS Motor Q4 net jumps 448 per cent
Chennai: TVS Motor reported that its profit soared 448 per cent in January-March from a year earlier.

Net profit rose to Rs 232 million from 42.3 million in the same period last year.

Net sales at TVS, which in October ended a two-decade-old joint venture with Suzuki Motor, came to Rs 5.76 billion.

Motorcycle sales at TVS soared 67 per cent by volume in the fourth quarter, reflecting surging demand for its new 110 cc, four-stroke Victor model launched in August.
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Nalco not to be privatised
Angul: National Aluminium Company (Nalco) will not be privatised, according to minister for mines Ram Vilas Paswan.

Paswan told plant executives and workers that apprehensions about the company being privatised were without any basis.

Pointing out that the government held 87 per cent stake in Nalco, the minister said even after disinvesting 30 per cent of the equity, the government would still have total control over the company with 57 per cent stake.
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Philips India clears merger of 3 cos
Mumbai: The board of Philips India has approved the merger of Punjab Anand Lamp Industries, Philips Glass India and Electrical Lamp Manufacturers with the company.

The board of directors of the other three companies also gave their nod for the merger, Philips India said in a release here and added that the appointed date of merger is proposed to be 1 April 2002.

Shareholders of PALI would be entitled to receive 11 equity shares of Philips India for every 10 shares held by them in Punjab Anand Lamp Industries.

Philips Glass Ltd's shareholders would get one equity share of Philips India for every seven shares held by them in Philips Glass India Ltd while no shares would be issued in case of ELML as it is a wholly owned subsidiary of the company and instead would be cancelled.
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Deccan Aviation to buy 10 choppers
Bangalore: Indias largest air charter company, Deccan Aviation, has firmed up a $15 to 20 million programme to buy 10 helicopters.

The company is also roping in former tennis ace and UN messenger for peace Vijay Amritraj to join the board of directors.

Currently, the charter company operates a team of seven helicopters and two turbo-prop planes.

The company has written both to Eurocopter, the Franco-German manufacturer and US based Bell company, to give their best offers for this acquisition plan.
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Philips back in black
Mumbai: Philips India bounced back into the black in the first quarter of 2002 with a profit of Rs 19 crore.

The company had posted a loss of Rs 6.4 crore in January-March 2001.

Sales and other operational income rose 7.8 per cent to Rs 373.6 crore in the previous quarter, while interest costs fell 51 per cent to Rs 2.3 crore.
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Burroughs Q1 net up 87%
Mumbai: Burroughs Wellcomes net profit surged 87 per cent to Rs 4.8 crore in Q1 thanks to a cost control and improved margins.

Net sales grew 18 per cent to Rs 39 crore. The company said growth had to be viewed in the context of depressed sales in the corresponding quarter last year due to destocking by the trade.

Total expenditure rose 11 per cent to Rs 34.8 crore while operating margin more than doubled to 11 per cent of sales from 5 per cent of sales.
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Canfin Homes net rises 12%
Bangalore: Canfin Homes, the housing finance arm of the Bangalore-based Canara Bank, has reported a 12 per cent rise in its net profits for the fiscal 2001-02.

Net profits stood at Rs 19.81 crore compared to Rs 17.71 crore. The board of directors of CHL has recommended a dividend of 25 per cent against 23 per cent.

For the fourth quarter ended 31 March 2002 CHL had net profit of Rs 5.54 crore (Rs 4.77 crore) a rise of 16 per cent on a year-on-year basis.
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Daikin Shriram plans Rs 50-cr project
Hyderabad: Daikin Shriram Airconditioning is planning to set up a Rs 50-crore greenfield project for manufacturing ACs.

This will be the companys 26th manufacturing base. The company in its first year of operation has recorded a net profit of Rs 33 lakh and a turnover of Rs 84 crore. Daikin Shriram achieved a market share of 9.5 per cent in the small split AC segment last year, which is a 1.5-lakh unit industry.
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Jisco debt downgraded
New Delhi: Icra has downgraded the rating of the Rs 150-crore non-convertible debenture programme of the Jindal Iron & Steel Co to lbb (so) from la-(so), indicating inadequate safety.

The rating has also been placed under "rating watch", having negative implications, an Icra release said.

The rating is based on the unconditional and irrevocable guarantee from IFCI for payment of principal and interest on debentures.

The rating of Jisco has been downgraded following the downgrade of rating of long-term debt instruments of IFCI, the Icra release also said.
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Crisil net profit up 35.17%
Mumbai: Credit Rating Information Services of India (Crisil) has recorded a 35.17 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 13.07 crore for the fiscal ended 31 March 2002, compared to Rs 9.66 crore in the previous fiscal.

The board recommended a 65 per cent dividend (Rs 6.50 per share) for the fiscal 2002 as against 55 per cent declared in the last fiscal, a Crisil release said.

Income from operations in the reporting year was higher at Rs 66.77 crore (Rs 43.97 crore in FY-01) while other income was lower at Rs 1.60 crore (Rs 1.68 crore), it added.

The board also appointed Roopa Kudva, who joined Crisil in 1992 and took charge of ratings business couple of years ago, as an executive director.
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McDowell to launch Derby Special whisky
Bangalore: McDowell & Co. Ltd is unveiling a new whisky brand, Derby Special, by June this year.

Derby Special may be launched in the market in the prestige plus segment, priced slightly above the company flagship, No.1 McDowell's whisky.

The company has announced the proposed launch of a vodka-based cocktail, Shotz, which will be a variant of the Romanov brand. It is also poised to be launched later this year.
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Philips plans to source PC monitors from India
New Delhi: Philips India Ltd is planning to source computer monitors and launch cellular phones as part of its new thrust on the IT and telecom sectors.

The company is in talks with various Indian companies for manufacture of colour monitors.

Philips will not directly produce colour monitors, but will source the monitors from manufacturers who will have to use Philips' components.

Philips launched its colour monitors for the booming personal computer market in the country last year and claims it has cornered three per cent of the market, estimated at about 1.6-1.7 million units annually.
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M & M plans major export foray
Chennai: Mahindra and Mahindra is planning major foray into the export market including an entry into Europe this year.

The company has so far exported at least 8,500 tractors to the US through its subsidiary, Mahindra USA Inc and is targeting to export 20,000 to 30,000 tractors by the year 2010 to various countries, including Europe and USA.

Besides USA, the company is presently exporting tractors to countries like Egypt, Nepal, Bangaladesh and Sri Lanka. The company had an arrangement with a South Korean firm to supply tractors to the US market under the Mahindra brand name.

In the year 2001-02, the company exported 3521 tractors as against 1986 units in the previous year, achieving a record growth of 77 per cent. Of this, exports to US alone accounted for 3153 units as against 1456 units in 2000-01.
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IndiaGames in pact with US Co
New York: IndiaGames and PTN Media, a US-based developer and marketer of branded handheld products, have signed an agreement to develop games for wireless devices including mobile phones for the international market.

IndiaGames is one of the world's leading developers of wireless games with over 70 mobile games developed across Pocket PC, J2ME, BREW and other platforms. It has close to 100 clients across the US, Europe and Asia.

IndiaGames Ltd is India's first dedicated game development company.
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JD Edwards to invest in India
Mumbai: ERP software vendor JD Edwards has drawn up plans to invest around $10 million in India.

The company is also establishing its sales and marketing distribution network in the country.

The ERP market in India is dominated by German company SAP. In order to dent SAPs dominance, JD Edwards plans to tap the small and medium enterprise (SME) market with competitive pricing model.
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Himachal Futuristic to place $100 m privately
Hyderabad: Himachal Futuristic Communications Ltd (HFCL) has decided to tap both the domestic and overseas capital markets before the second quarter of current fiscal year.

HFCL proposes to raise funds to the tune of Rs 395 crore by way of domestic offerings and $100 million from the offering in the international market.

The company plans to deploy the proceeds in upgrading its existing facilities, expansion, modernisation, corporate restructuring and other business purposes including working capital requirements. The HFCL board approved a resolution to raise funds to the tune of Rs 395 crore from the domestic capital market by way of issue of shares or share warrants and up to $100-million from the overseas capital market by issue of global depository receipts, American depository receipts or Euro bonds.

The company proposes to offer 3-crore equity shares or share warrants of Rs 10 each at a price of not less than Rs 79 per share to promoters and others, enabling the company to raise funds to the tune of Rs 237 crore.
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