Sensex recovers 130 points ahead of RBI policy

 

After two sessions of losses, the benchmark BSE Sensex rose over 130 points in early trade on Tuesday on fresh spell of buying by participants ahead of RBI’s monetary policy review. 

The 30-share index, which had lost 559.50 points in the previous two sessions, recovered by 130.79 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 29,253.06, with consumer durables, FMCG, oil & gas, auto and banking sector stocks leading the rise. 

On similar lines, the National Stock Exchange index Nifty gained 26.00 points, or 0.30 per cent, to 8,823.40 in early trade. 

Brokers said besides mixed trend at other Asian bourses and overnight gains in the US markets, selective buying by cautious funds and retail investors ahead of RBI’s policy review due later in the day influenced sentiments. 

Among other Asian markets, Hong Kong Hang Seng moved up 0.24 per cent, while Japan’s Nikkei shed 0.27 per cent in early trade today. 

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 1.14 per cent higher in Monday’s trade.

Gold drops Rs. 180 on low demand, global cues

 

Gold prices on Tuesday fell by Rs. 180 to Rs. 28,270 per ten gram at the bullion market, snapping its two-day rising streak, as demand from jewellers and retailers eased at prevailing levels amid a weak global trend.

Silver, however, recovered by Rs. 450 to Rs. 38,450 per kg on increased off-take by industrial units and coin makers.

Traders said besides fall in demand at existing levels from jewellers and retailers at domestic markets, a weak global trend as investors weighed prospects for higher U.S. interest rates mainly kept pressure on gold prices.

Gold in New York, which normally sets price trend on the domestic front, fell 0.72 per cent to $1,273.80 an ounce in Monday’s trade.

In the national capital, gold of 99.9 and 99.5 per cent purity plunged by Rs. 180 each to Rs. 28,270 and Rs. 28,070 per ten gram respectively. The precious metal had gained Rs. 350 in the previous two trading sessions.

Sovereign, however, continued to be traded at last level of Rs. 24,000 per piece of eight gram in limited deals. On the other hand, silver ready recovered by Rs. 450 to Rs. 38,450 per kg and weekly-based delivery by Rs. 50 to Rs. 38,000 per kg.

Meanwhile, silver coins enquired at previous level of Rs. 63,000 for buying and Rs. 64,000 for selling of 100 pieces.

Rupee up 15 paise against dollar

 

The rupee strengthened by 15 paise to 61.65 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on increased selling of the American currency by exporters ahead of RBI’s policy review.

Dealers said increased selling of the dollar by exporters and a higher opening in the domestic equity market supported the rupee but the greenback’s rise against some overseas currencies capped the gains.

The rupee had gained six paise to close at 61.80 against the American currency in yesterday’s trade on fag-end selling pressure from banks and exporters due to a weak dollar in the overseas markets.

Rupee gains 13 paise to end at nearly 1-week high against U.S. dollar

 

Bucking the weak trend in stocks, Indian rupee on Tuesday strengthened 13 paise to end at nearly one-week high of 61.67 against the greenback on persistent selling of dollars by banks and exporters on a day the RBI kept interest rates unchanged.

The rupee opened higher at 61.65 per dollar as against the yesterday’s closing level of 61.80 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market. It moved up further to 61.61 per dollar on initial selling of dollars by banks.

However, it fell to 61.84 per dollar in the afternoon on fresh demand from some banks before closing at 61.67 per dollar, showing a gain of 13 paise or 0.21 per cent from its last close.

The rupee has now gained by 19 paise, or 0.31 per cent, in two days and has closed at its strongest level since 61.41 on January 28, 2015.

The local currency moved in a range of 61.61 per dollar and 61.84 per dollar during the day.

“Foreign inflows and hopes of rates cuts in the future continued to support the local currency. Foreign investors were net buyers of $120.68 million in Indian markets yesterday and purchased a total $6.818 billion in 2015,” said Admisi Forex India, Director, Suresh Nair.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) earlier today left repo rate unchanged at 7.75 per cent, but cut SLR by 50 bps to 21.50 per cent from 22 per cent.

In international Forex markets, the widely-tracked dollar index was down by 0.05 per cent against a basket of major global rivals.

In the Tokyo market, the dollar was lower against the yen on Monday, with investors seeking to take profits on overnight gains in the greenback.

In the New York market, the Canadian dollar, Norwegian krone and Russian ruble rose against the U.S. dollar yesterday as oil prices fluctuated.

Meanwhile, the Indian equity benchmark Sensex dropped by 122.13 points, or 0.42 per cent, to close at nearly two-week low of 29,000.14.

“Some banks were selling dollars in the market which helped the rupee trade strong against the U.S. dollar. The trading range for the spot USD/INR pair is expected to be within 61.20 to 62.20,” said Veracity Group, CEO, Pramit Brahmbhatt.

Meanwhile, the forward premia recovered sharply on fresh paying pressure from corporates.

The benchmark six-month premium payable in July ended higher at 222.5-224.5 paise from 218-220 paise yesterday and forward contracts maturing in January 2016 also rose to 428- 430 paise from 417-419 paise.

The Reserve Bank of India fixed the reference rate for dollar at 61.7389 and for Euro at 69.9378.

The rupee eased against the pound to 92.89 per pound from 92.82 per pound previously while moved up against the euro to 69.99 per euro from 70.02.

However, the rupee ended steady against the yen to 52.51 per 100 yen.

Sensex falls to two-week low; bank shares slip as RBI holds rates

 

Markets fell for the third straight session with the benchmark Sensex today slipping 122.13 points to end at nearly two-week low of 29,000.14, weighed down by rate-sensitive banking and realty shares after the RBI disappointed markets by not lowering interest rates. 

In highly volatile trade, the BSE Sensex opened higher and rallied to 29,253.06 in early deals. However, it entered the negative terrain after the RBI policy was announced and even dipped below the 29,000-mark to touch low of 28,900.41. 

However, the bluechip index managed to gain some ground and closed at 29,000.14, down 122.13 points, or 0.42 per cent. 

The gauge has now lost 681.63 points in three days and closed at its weakest since 28,888.86 on January 21, 2015. 

On similar lines, the 50-share NSE index Nifty finished 40.85 points down, or 0.46 per cent, at 8,756.55 after moving between 8,726.65 and 8,837.30 intra-day. 

RBI today left interest rate unchanged at 7.75 per cent, but cut the statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) - the amount of funds that lenders must set aside — by 50 basis points to 21.5 per cent of deposits from February 7. 

“Markets showed their disappointment on the outcome of monetary policy,” said Bonanza Portfolio, Associate Fund Manager, Hiren Dhakan. 

Among prominent banking stocks, Axis Bank, SBI, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank fell up to 4.95 per cent. 

Sectorwise, the BSE Banking index suffered the most by falling 2.61 per cent largely on the fall in stocks post the RBI policy announcement. 

In other sectoral indices, BSE Realty index fell 1.43 per cent, Healthcare index (0.92 per cent), Power index (0.68 per cent) and Auto index (0.66 per cent) among others. 

In the 30-share Sensex constituents, 16 ended lower and 14 gained, helping the benchmark indices trim losses. 

Meanwhile, oil firms were in better form with Reliance Industries up 3.25 per cent and ONGC up 2.64 per cent after a rebound in international crude prices. 

Globally, a rise in European stocks at opening and a mixed trend at the other Asian markets also influenced the trading sentiments here, a broker said. 

Meanwhile, Foreign Portfolio Investors sold shares worth a net Rs. 629.97 crore on Monday as per provisional data.

Videocon, BPCL consortium discover oil off Brazil coast

A consortium of Videocon Industries, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. (BPCL) and Brazilian state-owned company Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) has announced ‘significant’ discovery of oil, off the coast of Brazil.

“The well 3-SES-186 was drilled 103 km from the city of Aracaju, Brazil, and 10 km from the discovery well in 2,467 metre of water. The well will be drilled to 6,060 metres. This accumulation is part of the exploratory project in the deepwater Sergipe-Alagoas basin,” Videocon said.

Petrobras operates the consortium with 60 per cent interest in partnership with IBV-Brazil (an equal joint venture of Videocon Industries and BPCL), which holds the remaining 40 per cent.

“The result obtained in this well confirms the extension of the light oil reservoirs previously discovered by the ‘Farfan’ discovery well.

In addition, the well found presence of a new light oil accumulation with a total thickness of 68 metres in shallower reservoirs,” Videocon added.

Videocon Group Chairman V.N. Dhoot, when contacted, declined to comment on the size of the discovery but said, ‘it’s naturally huge’.

“The discovery of new hydrocarbon accumulations will further add to the hydrocarbon resources already indicated in the said blocks. 

The large scale and volume and light oil discovery will enable one of the lowest cost producing giant oil fields in the world,” Mr. Dhoot added.

ACC Q4 net up 18 per cent

 

Leading cement manufacturer ACC reported an 18 per cent rise in its net profit for the fourth quarter of 2014 at Rs. 326 crore. This was largely aided by a tax reversal of Rs. 184.35 crore (Rs. 35.85 crore in the year-ago period).

The company which follows the calendar year, reported a 3 per cent rise in net sales for the quarter at Rs. 2,762 crore. The company profit from operations for the period declined to Rs. 110.38 crore (Rs. 206.72 crore) and the operating margin declined 420 basis points to 9.2 per cent. These were impacted by high raw material and freight costs.

For the year 2014, ACC reported a 6 per cent growth in net profit at Rs. 1,161.82 crore while net sales grew 5.4 per cent at Rs. 11,480.31 crore. The Board of directors has recommended a final dividend of Rs. 19 per share, which with the earlier interim dividend of Rs. 15 takes total dividend for the year to Rs. 34.

A statement from the company said cement selling price improved 4 per cent in 2014 and sales volume was marginally higher at 24.2 million tonne (23.9 million tonne). ACC’s limestone mining operations at Chaibasa and Bargarh plants were temporarily suspended during the fourth quarter following a Supreme Court order. “As per the New Mining Ordinance of January 2015, we expect these operations to commence shortly,” the company statement said.

“Based on the present condition, we see a modest but steady revival for the Indian economy in 2015 leading to some improving trends in all sectors of the economy with a positive impact on demand for cement,” the statement said.

On the Bombay Stock Exchange, ACC reacted by 1.02 per cent to close trade at Rs. 1,510.6 on Tuesday.

Porsche launches new 911 Targa

 

 

Luxury sports car manufacturer Porsche has announced the launch of its latest generation of 911 Targa in India. The company launched the new Targa 4 and Targa 4S, both part of the Porsche 911 family. 

In Maharashtra, 911 Targa 4 is priced at Rs.1.52 crore while 911 Targa 4S is priced at Rs.1.75 crore. 

According to a company statement, Targa 4 is powered by a 3.4-litre engine and accelerates from 1-100 km an hour in 4.8 seconds. Targa 4S with a 3.8 litre engine reaches 100 kmph in 4.4 seconds. 

The new 911 Targa follows the design of the original model from 1965, and boasts the contemporary sportiness of the seventh 911 generation, a company statement said. The vehicle comes with a movable roof section above the front seats and a wraparound rear window with no C-pillar. 

“The 911 is a sports car which has won more races than any other brand and in this latest evolution, I believe it has never looked more spectacular,” 

Anil Reddi, Director, Porsche India said in a statement. “The car’s arrival here in India signifies a new chapter in the legendary model’s evolution and I am incredibly proud and excited to welcome it.” 

Porsche is a division of Volkswagen Group sales India and the models sold in India include 911, Boxster and Cayman sports cars, Panamera sports sedan, Macan and Cayenne SUVs.

Lenovo profit dips on Motorola acquisition

 

 

Computer maker Lenovo Group said its latest quarterly profit declined 5 per cent, reflecting its acquisition of the unprofitable Motorola mobile phone business. 

Lenovo said on Tuesday it earned $253 million, or $2.30 per share, in the three months ending in December. Revenue rose 31 per cent to $14.1 billion. 

The profit decline reflected the integration of Motorola into Lenovo. The acquisition closed in October and Lenovo included two months of Motorola’s operations in its results. 

Lenovo said its transformation into a supplier of a mobile devices and enterprise products was proceeding quickly. The company said mobile devices accounted for 24 per cent of its revenue, while the share contributed by sales of its traditional personal computers declined from 81 percent to 65 per cent.

Indians can invest up to $2,50,000 annually overseas

 

In mid-January, India’s foreign exchange reserves touched a new life-time high at $322.135 billion, driven by higher foreign fund inflows and lower Forex outgo on the back of a massive fall in global crude prices. File photo

Encouraged by foreign exchange reserves touching record levels, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday doubled the annual overseas investment ceiling for individuals to $2,50,000. 

“On a review of the external sector outlook and as a further exercise in macro-prudential management, it has been decided to enhance the limit under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) to $2,50,000 per person per year,” the RBI said in its Bi-Monthly Monetary Policy Statement. 

In view of the worsening current account deficit and a volatile rupee, the RBI had in August 2013 reduced the ceiling from $2,00,000 to $75,000 per person in a year under the LRS. Consequently, with improvement in Forex situation, it was raised to $1,25,000 in June 2014. 

The LRS allows residents to acquire and hold shares, debt instruments or other assets outside India without prior approval of the RBI. 

In mid-January, India’s foreign exchange reserves touched a new life-time high at $322.135 billion, driven by higher foreign fund inflows and lower Forex outgo on the back of a massive fall in global crude prices. 

Foreign funds had been pumping more and more dollars into Indian equities ever since the new government assumed charge in May. 

In 2014, FIIs pumped in $16.15 billion into Indian equities while they have exhausted the cap of $30 billion in Government securities. They have parked $32.5 billion in corporate bonds, which is 64 per cent of their cap of $51 billion. 

Foreign direct investments (FDI) in the country rose by 22 per cent to $18.88 billion during the eight months of the current fiscal. The amount was $15.45 billion in the April-November period of 2013-14. 

India’s current account deficit narrowed to 1.9 per cent of GDP in the first half of current fiscal from 3.1 per cent of GDP in the corresponding period of 2013-14.

Obama budget could hit investment abroad

 

U.S. President Barack Obama

U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday sent to Republican-controlled Congress a $3.99-trillion budget proposal, which is likely to face opposition there especially regarding the policies to levy a one-time 14 per cent tax on the $2-trillion in profits currently held overseas by U.S. corporations.

The President hopes to use a significant part of this tax revenue, derived largely from technology and pharmaceutical corporations, to finance infrastructure spending on America's “crumbling roads and bridges.”

Though Republicans reacted negatively to the proposal they did not completely reject Mr. Obama’s serious offer on corporate tax reform, possibly owing to the fact that Republican Party members have in the past mooted the idea of a “repatriation tax” to finance infrastructure spending.

Yet opposition to the budget proposals is likely to focus more on what was described as Mr. Obama’s firm left-ward move in terms of higher taxes on wealthy Americans and increased spending to boost the incomes of the middle class through spending on sectors such as education.

The Obama administration, however, emphasised that the proposals for higher taxes and spending would offset each other to an extent and thus would not contribute to increases in the deficit.

With Congressional wrangling over deficit-reduction, cuts to safety net programmes such as Social Security and fears of automatic, “sequestration” cuts now on the backburner, the Obama administration appeared to have fixed “middle class economics,” a major theme of the President’s State of the Union address this year, in its sights.

While Mr. Obama’s proposals this week could theoretically reduce income inequality and improve middle-class welfare over the longer term, observers here noted that there was “virtually no chance” that Congress will adopt the tax increases that he has proposed.

His “move to the left” may also raise concerns in the camp of former Secretary of State and potential 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, who may fear that this could open her up to Republican arguments that a vote for her would be a vote for a potential fiscal crisis.

Australian dollar skids to 6-year low after RBA shock

 

A Sydney businessman walks into the light outside the Reserve Bank of Australia, on Tuesday. Asian stocks sagged on Tuesday amid lingering growth concerns, while the Australian dollar plumbed six-year lows after the Reserve Bank of Australia cut interest rates to a record low.

RBA cuts to record low 2.25 pct, pushing Aussie down 2 per cent; New Zealand dollar also hammered, eyes on central bank speech; Generally stronger tone to yen

The Australian and New Zealand dollars weakened further in early trade in Europe on Tuesday after a sell-off following the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA's) surprise decision to cut interest rates.

The outlook for both Antipodean currencies has worsened in recent weeks with concerns about growth generating expectations of generally looser monetary policy, but the RBA's decision still came as a shock to many. 

Another burst lower as Europe came on line brought the Aussie's losses on the day to more than 2 per cent. It hit an almost 6-year low of $0.7635 while the kiwi fell 1.5 per cent to $0.7185, its lowest since early 2011. 

"Its a big move and I think any bounce should be sold into," said Graham Davidson, a spot trader with National Australia Bank in London. 

"Generally when the RBA move, they tend to cut a handful of times. The feeling is of an economy where there is no source of growth, almost of despair." 

Interest will now swing to a speech by New Zealand central bank chief Graeme Wheeler on Wednesday. 

"The only currency I would buy the Aussie against is the kiwi," Mr. Davidson said. "The RBNZ has been hiking but I think they will have to backtrack on that and Wheeler may take a softer tone tonight." 

Against the yen, the Aussie was down 2.5 per cent at 89.43 yen, dropping below support at 90 yen for the first time since February 2014. 

While the euro was steady against the dollar at $1.1350 , the yen continued a recent run, rising 0.3 per cent against the dollar to 117.21. The euro, too, was down 0.25 per cent against the yen at 133 yen.

Awaiting the European Central Bank's launch of bond-buying in March, German 10-year government bond yields fell below the Japanese equivalent and a number of dealers said they saw value in the yen currently. 

"There is a feeling that the Japanese could stay on hold on any further monetary easing," said one dealer. "That is helping it and in general we had come a long long way and much attention has switched to the euro."

Loan recast: Raghuram Rajan spurns bankers call for extension

Virtually rejecting the demand for extending the loan restructuring window beyond April 1, 2015, the Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan on Tuesday said the practice of forbearance should end to increase investor confidence in banks’ balance sheets.

“To build the confidence in banks’ balance sheets, we have to come to an end of forbearance. We have to put banks on the right track,” Mr. Rajan told reporters at the customary post-policy interaction, when asked if the RBI is considering to extend the deadline.

“I do not think the answer is to pretend and extend or extend and pretend, it is ‘to call a spade a spade’,” said the academic-turned-author-turned central banker.

The RBI in May last year announced that from April 1, there would be not any room to restructure loans and that banks would have to treat any recast loan as a bad asset and make mandated provisions.

Fearing a hit on their balance sheets — banks have to provide more for a bad asset compared to a restructured loan — lenders have been requesting for an extension in the deadline citing weak macro-economy and the resultant stress in corporates’ clash-flows leading to defaults.

Mr. Rajan said better investor confidence in balance sheets would help banks raise the much-required capital, especially given that the system is migrating to the capital-intensive Basel-III system under which they need over Rs. 5.3 trillion in additional capital.

The Governor further said that RBI had given “enormous amounts of new flexibility” for the banks to put projects back on track.

“Do what is needed, including making new loans if necessary, to complete a project but move on beyond that,” Mr. Rajan told the banks.

The restructured assets in the system had increased to 6.2 per cent as of September 2014, against 5.9 per cent in March 2014, according to the RBI’s financial stability report. The State-run banks are the worst performing ones on the asset quality. The overall stressed assets — NPAs and CDR loans — are over 10.5 per cent as of the September quarter.

Already, some lenders such as Axis Bank and Federal Bank had said they would see a spike in restructuring during the last quarter as the window comes to a close.

Petrol price cut by Rs. 2.42/litre, diesel by Rs. 2.25

 

  This is the 10th straight reduction in petrol price since August and sixth in diesel since October.

After the price cuts, petrol price is the lowest since September 2010 while diesel is cheapest since March 2013.

Petrol price was on Tuesday cut by Rs. 2.42 per litre and diesel by Rs. 2.25 a litre in step with fall in international oil prices. 

Petrol in Delhi will cost Rs. 56.49 a litre from Tuesday midnight as compared to Rs. 58.91 now. Similarly, diesel will cost Rs. 46.01 per litre as against Rs. 48.26 at present. 

This is the 10th straight reduction in petrol price since August and sixth in diesel since October. Despite reductions, petrol will cost more than ATF, which is of superior quality and used in aircraft.

A litre of jet fuel or aviation turbine fuel costs Rs. 46.51 per litre in Delhi. 

New rates of petrol and diesel will be effective Tuesday midnight, Indian Oil Corp, the nation’s largest fuel retailer, announced in New Delhi. 

After the price cuts, petrol price is the lowest since September 2010 while diesel is cheapest since March 2013. 

ATF has a higher octane than petrol and diesel is a heavier fraction in the distillation process. Traditionally, auto fuels being of lesser quality than ATF would cost less. 

Four consecutive excise duty hikes since November, totalling Rs. 7.75 a litre on petrol and Rs. 7.50 on diesel, have however, reversed this. 

But for these, the cumulative reduction of Rs. 17.11 per litre in petrol price in 10 cuts since August and Rs. 12.96 a litre on diesel since its deregulation in October, would have been higher.

Petrol and diesel prices were last cut on January 17, 2015 by Rs. 2.42 and Rs. 2.25 a litre respectively. 

“Since that price revision, international prices of both petrol and diesel have continued to be on a downtrend and the rupee-U.S. dollar exchange rate has appreciated. The combined impact of both these factors warrant a decrease in retail selling prices of both petrol and diesel,” IOC said.

Spurt in vegetable prices next month may be spoiler for inflation, warns RBI

 

 Inflation, excluding food and fuel, declined for the second consecutive month in December.

Seasonal spurt in vegetable prices next month could partly reverse the benefits of low global oil prices reducing inflation and increasing disposable incomes, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) warned on Tuesday.

“The sharp reduction in oil prices as well as in inflation is likely to increase personal disposable incomes and improve domestic demand conditions in the year ahead,” the central bank said in its monetary policy document.

Inflation, excluding food and fuel, declined for the second consecutive month in December. This was largely on account of the declining prices of transport and communication since August, reflecting the impact of plummeting global crude oil prices, and softer commodity prices more generally.

“However, seasonal increases in vegetable prices, which typically set in around March, have to be monitored carefully,” the RBI said, adding that the retail inflation is likely to be around the target level of 6 per cent by January 2016.

The upside risks to inflation stem from the unlikely possibility of significant fiscal slippage, uncertainty on the spatial and temporal distribution of the monsoon as also the low probability but highly influential risks of reversal of crude prices due to geo-political events, it said.

Referring to economic activities, it said the revision in the base year for GDP and calculation methods will mean some revision in GDP numbers for 2014-15 as well as in forecasts.

However, RBI has retained the baseline projection for growth (using the old GDP base) at 5.5 per cent for 2014-15 and 6.5 per cent for next fiscal.

RBI said advance indicators of industrial activity, like indirect tax collections and expansion in order books point to a modest improvement in the months ahead.

“Policy initiatives in land acquisition, as well as efforts underway to unlock mining activity and to widen the space for FDI in defence, insurance and railways, should create a more conducive setting for industrial revival,” it said.

Faster clearances are also helping in resuscitating stalled projects and the “improvement in business confidence” is visible in a pick-up in new investment intentions, especially in transportation, power and manufacturing.

Overall, the RBI added that the growth prospects will be contingent upon a turnaround in investment and a durable improvement in the business climate to complement the upsurge in business optimism.

IT industry opposes Obama’s move to tax overseas earning

 

IT industry and the Republican leadership has opposed U.S. President Barack Obama’s move to tax overseas earnings, saying that this is bad for global competition of U.S. companies.

“The proposal to tax companies’ overseas earnings, rather than making our tax code simpler and more competitive through reform, is an area that gives us significant pause,” the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), president and CEO Dean Garfield said in a statement on Monday.

“Today’s dysfunctional tax code traps nearly USD 2 trillion in sales revenue overseas instead of putting that money to work here growing businesses and hiring people,” he said.

“We urge the Administration and Congress to give our broken tax code a complete reboot so that our innovative technology companies can continue to drive America’s economic growth by leading the global marketplace,” Mr. Garfield said.

Noting that Mr. Obama is right to focus on economic growth and job creation for the middle class, ITI said, that his approach is wrong.

He said, “Certainly, focusing on STEM education programs, smart infrastructure projects to build a modern transportation system, and fixing our broken immigration system would drive undeniable economic benefits for the country.” 

“The Budget closes loopholes that perpetuate inequality by allowing the top one per cent of Americans to avoid paying any taxes on their accumulated wealth and uses that money to help more young people go to college,” he added.

Later in a news conference Jason Furman, top economic advisor, said the proposal that Mr. Obama is making would be mandatory on all overseas earnings.

“As a result, it raises money — USD 270 billion over 10 years — as opposed to a repatriation holiday would lose money. This is part of a plan to reform the tax system. So on a going-forward basis, you would have a 19 per cent minimum tax on all the earnings of foreign subsidiaries of US corporations,” he said.

Congressman Charles W. Boustany said that the President’s new plan to finance roads and bridges is problematic because of its high rates and immediate effective date, denying businesses the ability to plan ahead with a phase-in period.

“This will weaken American competitiveness and encourage more American companies to relocate to more favourable tax environments abroad. We need comprehensive tax reform that will lower overall corporate rates and encourage growth, not a six-year band-aid that won’t fix these problems in the long term,” he said.

Sensex ends 60.68 points lower at 29,122

 

 

Nifty below 8,800 ahead of RBI policy

In volatile trade, domestic markets slipped for the second successive session with the benchmark Sensex on Monday falling nearly 61 points to over one-week low of 29,122.27 on caution ahead of the RBI policy review tomorrow.

On similar lines, the 50-share NSE index Nifty, after moving both ways, slipped below the crucial 8,800-mark and settled down 11.50 points, or 0.13 per cent, at 8,797.40.

Profit-booking in recent outperformers, disappointing earnings from some bluechip companies and mixed global cues also weighed on the stock market sentiment, traders said.

Meanwhile, manufacturing sector activity in January slipping from December’s two year record-high as new orders, both from domestic and international sources, continued to grow but at a slower pace, accoding to a monthly HSBC survey.

The BSE Sensex, after commencing on a lower note, continued its decline and slipped below the 29,000-mark to touch intra-day low of 28,958.52 on sustained profit-booking.

However, the benchmark Sensex managed to enter the positive terrain briefly to touch the day’s high of 29,268.13 but late-selling again pushed it back to close at 29,122.27, down 60.68 points, or 0.21 per cent. This is its weakest closing level since 29,006.02 on January 22, 2015.

The Sensex had tumbled 498.82 points last Friday, logging its second biggest single-day fall this year.

In the 30-share Sensex pack, 17 closed with losses, while 13 others led by Axis Bank, Hindalco, Wipro, L&T, GAIL, Sun Pharma, TCS, Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki and BHEL ended higher.

Major laggards include Bharti Airtel, Dr Reddys, HUL, ICICI Bank, ITC, Sesa Sterlite, Tata Steel and Coal India.

Sectorwise, the BSE FMCG sector index suffered the most by falling 1.77 per cent, followed by Oil & Gas index (0.54 per cent), Metal index (0.47 per cent) and Healthcare index (0.23 per cent).

However, Capital Goods, IT, Consumer Durables, Teck, Auto, Power, Realty and Banking indices ended higher.

Meanwhile, provisional data showed that Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) sold shares worth net Rs. 771.55 crore last Friday.

Rupee rises 6 paise against dollar ahead of RBI policy

 

Ahead of RBI credit policy, the Indian rupee on Monday ended 6 paise higher at 61.80 against the American currency on fag-end selling pressure from banks and exporters due to a weak dollar in the overseas markets.

The rupee resumed lower at 62.00 per dollar as against last weekend’s level of 61.86 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex). It moved down further to 62.01 per dollar on initial dollar demand from banks.

However, it recovered immediately to end at 61.80 per dollar on selling of dollars by banks and exporters, showing a gain of six paise or 0.10 per cent.

Intra-day, it hovered in a range of 61.76 and 62.01.

The dollar index was down by 0.14 per cent against a basket of major global rivals.

“Rupee appreciated against the Dollar to start the week on a positive note supported by dollar sales and foreign inflows. Rupee’s gain came after speculation that RBI could cut rates to help boost economic growth fuelled expectations of foreign fund inflows,” said Admisi Forex India Pvt. Ltd., Director, Suresh Nair.

In the international market, the greenback met with selling pressure earlier in the morning, in line with the weak tone it has exhibited since Friday when weaker-than-expected U.S. GDP figures for December quarter helped moderate he currency market’s expectation for higher interest rates.

A downbeat reading for China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers index Sunday also prompted selling of the U.S. dollars.

Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex recovered from initial losses but ended lower by 60.68 points or 0.21 per cent at 29,122.27.

Veracity Group, CEO, Pramit Brahmbhatt said, “Investors traded cautiously ahead of RBI credit policy which will be announced tomorrow. After unexpected rate cut last month, RBI is expected to keep interest rates on hold tomorrow, although some of the market players are being optimistic and are expecting further rate cut.”

The trading range for the spot USD/INR pair is expected to be within 61.40 to 62.40, he added.

The forward premia declined further on sustained receipts by exporters.

The benchmark six-month premium payable in July ended lower at 218-220 paise from 222-224 paise on last Friday and forward contracts maturing in January 2016 also fell to 412- 419 paise from 421.5-423.5 paise.

The Reserve Bank of India fixed the reference rate for dollar at 61.8840 and for Euro at 69.9413.

The rupee firmed up further against the pound to 92.82 per pound from 93.33 previously and recovered against the euro to 70.02 per euro from 70.22.

The rupee also moved up to 52.51 per 100 yen from 52.59 previously.

Gold prices rise for second day on jewellers’ buying

Extending its gains for the second straight day, gold prices rose by another Rs 100 to Rs 28,450 per ten gram in the national capital on Monday on pick up in demand from jewellers even as the metal weakened overseas. 

Silver, however, met with resistance and declined by Rs 350 to Rs 38,000 per kg. 

Traders said some buying by jewellers and retailers in view of ongoing wedding season mainly influenced gold prices but a weak global trend as investors weighed prospects of higher US interest rates, limited the gains. 

Globally, gold in Singapore traded 0.3 per cent down at USD 1,280.58 an ounce and silver shed 0.5 per cent at USD 17.16 an ounce. 

In Delhi, gold of 99.9 and 99.5 per cent purity were up by Rs 100 each to Rs 28,450 and Rs 28,250 per ten gram respectively. It had gained Rs 250 in the previous session on Saturday. 

Sovereign remained flat at Rs 24,000 per piece of 8 grams. 

On the other hand, silver ready declined by Rs 350 to Rs 38,000 per kg and weekly-based delivery by Rs 185 to Rs 37,950 per kg. 

Meanwhile, silver coins maintained a steady trend at Rs 63,000 for buying and Rs 64,000 for selling of 100 pieces.

Sensex trims its initial losses, down 41 points

The S&P BSE benchmark Sensex trimmed its initial losses but was quoted still lower by 41 points in the late morning trade due to selling in Banking and FMCG sectors despite buying in Capital Goods, Consumer Durable and IT sectors. 

The sensex opened lower at 29,143.63 and dropped further to 29,024.92 on weak Asian cues coupled with foreign capital outflows before quoting at 29,142.45 at 1100 hrs, still showing a loss of 40.50 points or 0.14 per cent from its last weekend’s level. 

The 50-share Nifty also moved down by 6.95 points or 0.08 per cent to 8,801.95 at 1100hrs.

Major losers were Dr. Reddy’s Lab (2.42%), Coal India (2.24%), HUL (1.97%), Bajaj Auto (1.92%), ICICI Bank (1.70%), Bharti Airtel (1.68%), HDFC Bank (1.25%) and ITC (1.25%). 

However, Sun Pharma at 2.45 per cent, Hindalco 2.11 per cent, Maruti 2.11 per cent, Wipro 1.73 per cent, Larsen 1.53 per cent, M&M 1.50 per cent and Cipla 1.26 per cent showed a rise.

Foreign portfolio investors sold shares worth a net Rs. 771.55 crore on last Friday as per provisional data. 

Asian equity markets were trading lower as data showing China’s manufacturing sector remaining in a poor state dampened investors’ spirit. Key indices in China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Indonesia were off 0.11 per cent to 1.16 per cent while indices in Taiwan and Singapore were up 0.09 per cent to 0.54 per cent.

Rupee down 9 paise against dollar

 

 Dealers attributed the domestic currency’s fall to increased demand for the American currency from importers and a lower opening in the domestic equity market.

The rupee weakened by nine paise to 61.95 against the dollar in early trade on Monday at the Interbank Foreign Exchange due to high demand for the U.S. currency from importers.

Dealers attributed the domestic currency’s fall to increased demand for the American currency from importers and a lower opening in the domestic equity market but the dollar’s strength against other currencies overseas, limited the gains.

The rupee had ended steady at 61.86 against the American currency in the previous session on Friday due to mild-selling of dollars by banks and exporters.

Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex fell by 136 points, or 0.47 per cent, at 29,046.95 in early trade.

Maruti Suzuki sales up 14% in January

 

Maruti Suzuki India reported total sales at 1,16,606 units in January 2015. File Photo 

Country’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) on Monday reported 13.9 per cent increase in total sales at 1,16,606 units in January 2015 as against 1,02,416 units in the same period last year.

The company said its domestic sales increased by 9.3 per cent during the month to 1,05,559 units as against 96,569 units in January 2014.

Sales of mini segment cars, including, Alto and WagonR, declined by 7.3 per cent to 35,750 units as compared to 38,565 units in the year-ago month, MSI said in a statement.

The company said sales of the compact segment comprising Swift, Estilo, Ritz and Dzire rose by 7.5 per cent to 45,881 units in January this year as against 42,669 units last year.

MSI said sales of its compact sedan Dzire Tour rose by 33 per cent during the month under review at 1,378 units as against 1,036 units in January 2014.

The sales of company’s mid-sized sedan Ciaz, which was launched in October 2014, stood at 6,005 units. The company had sold 191 units of SX4 sedan in January 2014. There was no sale of premium sedan Kizashi during the month.

Sales of utility vehicles, including Gypsy, Grand Vitara and Ertiga, rose by 35 per cent at 6,432 units in January this year from 4,763 units in the corresponding month last year.

Sales of vans — Omni and Eeco — rose by 8.2 per cent to 10,113 units in January this year as compared to 9,345 units in the same period of previous year.

Exports during the month rose by 88.9 per cent to 11,047 units as compared to 5,847 units in January last year, it added.

Hyundai cuts price of Tucson fuel cell car

 

 

To compete with models from the likes of Toyota Motor Corp

Hyundai Motor Co said it will lower the price of its Tucson fuel cell electric vehicle by 43 per cent in South Korea and consider cutting prices of the car overseas to compete with models from the likes of Toyota Motor Corp.

The South Korean automaker, the world's fifth biggest when paired with sister Kia Motors Corp, hopes to popularise fuel cell cars in its home market by cutting the price of the Tucson ix to 85 million won ($77,189).

In developing more environmentally friendly technology, Hyundai has long trumpeted fuel cell electric vehicles over battery-powered alternatives, but the high price tag and a lack of refuelling stations have been roadblocks to adoption.

South Korea has only one hydrogen fuelling station, with another to be opened in the first half of this year and a government goal to increase the number to 200 by 2025.

The carmaker said it had sold only 200 electric vehicles so far, including in the United States and to European governments.

“A significant price cut in the fuel-cell driven Tucson line of vehicles will allow higher supply volume for fuel-cell vehicles in general by making them more affordable for consumers,” Hyundai said in a statement on Monday.

In December, Japanese rival Toyota launched its Mirai fuel cell sedan with a pre-tax price tag of 6.7 million yen ($56,934). Toyota said on Jan. 15 that it planned to sell at least 3,000 Mirai fuel cell sedans at least in the United States by the end of 2017.

Hyundai Motor Group has said it would invest 11 trillion won in eco-friendly car development by 2020 and launch its second fuel cell model by 2020.

Royal Enfield January sales up 43% at 28,927 units

 

Eicher Motors on Monday said its motorcycle division Royal Enfield reported a 43 per cent jump in total sales in January at 28,927 units as against 20,232 units in the same month last year.

During January 2015, the number of motorcycle units exported jumped by 82 per cent to 770 units as against 424 units in January 2014.

The company said the sales of its vehicles with engine capacity up to 350cc increased by 46 per cent at 25,799 units against 17,639 units in the same period a year ago.

The sales of its vehicles with engine capacity exceeding 350cc increased by 21 per cent at 3,128 units as against 2,593 units in January last year. 

Bajaj Auto motorcycle sales fall 12% in January

 

Bajaj Auto Limited said exports rose four per cent during the month to 1,42,992 units. File Photo 

Bajaj Auto on Monday reported 12 per cent decline in motorcycle sales at 2,46,955 units in January 2015.

The company had sold 2,81,390 units in the year ago period, Bajaj Auto Ltd (BAL) said in a BSE filing.

BAL said exports rose four per cent during the month to 1,42,992 units from 1,37,644 units in the same period a year ago.

In the commercial vehicles category, its sales stood at 41,791 units, up 14 per cent, as against 36,781 units in January 2014.

The total vehicle sales of the company during last month stood at 2,88,746 units, down 9 per cent, as against 3,18,171 units in the same month a year ago, the statement added.

Tata Motors’ sales up 5.19% in January

 

Tata Motors on Monday reported a 5.19 per cent increase in total sales at 42,582 units in January, as against 40,481 units in the same month last year.

Domestic sales of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles grew by 5.35 per cent at 38,621 units as compared to 36,657 units in January 2014, Tata Motors said in a BSE filing.

Sales of passenger vehicles in the domestic market in January stood at 13,047 units, up 18.89 per cent from 10,974 units in January 2014.

In the commercial vehicles segment, domestic sales remained flat at 25,574 units during the month, the company said.

Exports during the month stood at 3,961 units, up 3.58 per cent as against 3,824 units in the year-ago month.

Yamaha Motor India sales rise 21% in January

 

Yamaha Motor India on Monday reported 20.82 per cent rise in domestic two-wheeler sales at 39,309 units in January.

The company had sold 32,534 units in January 2014.

Commenting on the sales performance, Yamaha Motor India Sales Vice President (Sales & Marketing) Roy Kurian said, “The incessant growth reinforces our belief in our business and strategic outlook.

“We are happy with our gradual growth and are extremely positive about 2015 with our new launches and innovative customers connect programmes.”

He added that leveraging on the same, the company would garner major sales.

Sounding bulling about the future, Mr. Kurian said, “We are eager to replicate and improve upon our last year’s achievements in 2015 too.”

Microsoft slashes XBox prices

 

 Microsoft Xbox 360 is on display at the the annual Microsoft shareholder meeting. File photo

Microsoft has slashed prices of its popular gaming console ‘XBox’ by 19 per cent to Rs. 12,990 as the tech giant looks to expand its footprint in India’s gaming market.

The 4GB version of the standalone XBox 360 was earlier being sold for Rs. 15,990.

Similarly, Microsoft has also reduced the price of 4GB Xbox 360 with Kinect to Rs. 21,990 (from Rs. 26,990) and 250GB Xbox 360 with Kinect to Rs. 29,990 (from Rs. 31,990), Microsoft said in a statement.

“Since its launch, Xbox has been instrumental in providing a gaming experience like never before to fans across the world,” it added.

The company will also bundle two games - Call of Duty: Black Ops II and Call of Duty: Ghosts - and Xbox Live Gold membership for a month for buyers of Xbox 360 500GB (priced at Rs. 19,990).

For the quarter ended December 31, 2014, Microsoft sold 6.6 million XBox units, with strong holiday season performance.

According to a FICCI-KMPG report, the gaming industry in the country is estimated to have grown from Rs. 700 crore in 2008 to Rs. 1,920 crore in 2013. It is further projected to touch Rs. 4,060 crore by 2018.

The gaming market in the country is in the nascent stage, with mobile games accounting for the lion’s share. The Indian gaming console market was estimated to be worth Rs. 750 crore in 2014, according to market insiders.

There are estimated to be about 6-7 million regular gamers, who don’t own a console but access these devices at other places like a friends’ house and the number is growing at a steady pace.

XBox competes with likes of Sony’s Playstation and Wii globally.

SpiceJet, Jet Airways jump on aviation fuel price cut

 

Shares of Spicejet and Jet Airways rose by up to 7 per cent.

Shares of Spicejet and Jet Airways rose by up to 7 per cent on Monday after jet fuel (ATF) price was cut by a steep 11.3 per cent.

SpiceJet’s scrip gained 6.75 per cent to Rs. 23.70 at the BSE. Similarly, Jet Airways surged 5.58 per cent to Rs. 543.50 — its 52-week high.

ATF price was on Sunday cut by a steep 11.3 per cent and now costs less than diesel.

A price cut in aviation turbine fuel (ATF), or jet fuel, by 11.27 per cent or Rs. 5,909.9 per kilolitre to Rs. 46,513.02 per kl in Delhi was announced by oil companies on Sunday.

The reduction, which followed possibly the steepest ever cut of Rs. 7,520.52 per kl or 12.5 per cent effected from January 1, has led to ATF becoming cheaper than even diesel.

Jet fuel constitutes over 40 per cent of an airline’s operating costs and the price cut will ease the financial burden of cash-strapped carriers.

Macro-economic indicators favour rate cut by RBI, say bankers

 

 RBI is scheduled to undertake its sixth bi-monthly monetary policy review, 2014-15 on Tuesday. File photo

With inflation under control, bankers believe that macroeconomic indicators are conducive for a further rate cut of 0.25 per cent by RBI on Tuesday, even as some expect the central bank to maintain a status quo.

The improving fiscal situation, in the wake of a record Rs. 22,577 crore garnered from CIL stake sale, and weakness in manufacturing sector are among pointers towards a possible cut in rates, experts said.

However, some bankers said the RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan may go for a status quo and would like to wait for cues from the Budget presentation on February 28 before undertaking any rate cut.

RBI, which last month announced a surprise rate cut of 25 basis points after maintaining a hawkish monetary stance for 20 months, is scheduled to undertake its sixth bi-monthly monetary policy review, 2014-15 on Tuesday.

According to bankers and economists, there is room for further rate cut by RBI as retail and wholesale inflation rates have remained benign.

The concerns on fiscal deficit front have also eased, especially after the government last week garnered a record Rs. 22,577 crore through disinvestment of 10 per cent stake in Coal India Ltd.

While lowering the policy repo rate to 7.75 per cent from 8 per cent, RBI had also said on January 15 that further rate cuts would depend on inflationary expectations and improvement in the fiscal situation.

“My expectation is that the RBI may go for status quo as no new data have come post January 15. RBI Governor would like to wait till Budget before taking any action on rate front,” Bank of Maharashtra Chairman and Managing Director Sushil Muhnot told PTI.

While the retail inflation slipped to 5 per cent in December, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) inflation remained near zero level (0.1 per cent).

The government’s fiscal situation is expected to improve further with more disinvestments.

So far, it has realised over Rs. 24,000 crore with just two disinvestment share sales, including SAIL’s Rs. 1,719 crore late last year.

It targets to raise a total of Rs. 43,425 crore from disinvestment in the current fiscal, ending next month.

Citing favourable macroeconomic conditions, the government and the industry have also been asking for further rate cuts to lower the cost of capital, while concerns were expressed last month on Rajan maintaining a highly hawkish monetary stance.

Even after last month’s rate cut, many had said that RBI’s move was “too little and too late”, while many bankers and experts have forecast overall lowering of rates by up to one percentage points in the coming months.

Oriental Bank of Commerce’s chief Animesh Chauhan said most macroeconomic indicators favour a rate cut and he hopes that the RBI Governor would consider a rate cut on February 3 by 25 basis points.

Last month, Mr. Rajan had said that the further easing of rates would depend on “data that confirm continuing disinflationary pressures”.

“Also critical would be sustained high quality fiscal consolidation as well as steps to overcome supply constraints and assure availability of key inputs such as power, land, minerals and infrastructure,” Mr. Rajan had said.

State-run IFCI’s Managing Director Malay Mukherjee said, “There is a widespread expectation of rate cut but RBI has all the data and will take a decision in its wisdom.”

PSU banking behemoth SBI also said in a research report that RBI may go for a “token cut” in interest rates in its upcoming policy review.

Bank of Baroda Executive Director Rajan Dhawan said that if there is credible fiscal consolidation, the rates will start coming down.

“With inflation coming down, I believe all rates such as deposit and lending rates will come down to more credible levels soon. I cannot second guess RBI, as it is their prerogative, but I feel when you have stable, low inflation, the policy rates have to come down,” Mr. Dhawan said.

“I think the RBI is waiting and watching to see the impact of all the measures that they and the government have taken...it will definitely result into lower rates in the future,” he added.

BRIC nations, US help Apple close gap with Samsung: IDC

 

 

An iPhone 6 in a mobile shop in Moscow. File photo.

Tech giant Apple managed to close the gap with rival Samsung after nearly 3 years at number two position in the global smartphone market as iPhone sales increased in Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) as well as the US, says IDC. 

The US-based maker of iPhone and iPad managed to close the gap with Korean electronics major Samsung in the October-December quarter on the back of its larger iPhone 6 and reduced the volume gap to just 600,000 units. 

“Having spent 11 quarters prior to Q4 2014 as the number two smartphone vendor in terms of shipments, Apple managed to close the gap to a near tie with Samsung in the fourth quarter,” IDC said. 

Click here to read about Samsung and Apple neck-and-neck 

 

Apple’s shipment volumes had trailed Samsung’s by over 33 million units during the same quarter in 2013, it added. 

Samsung lead the global smartphone market, shipping 75.1 million handsets in the fourth quarter of 2014 with 20.1 per cent market share, closely followed by Apple at 74.5 million smartphones and 19.85 market share, IDC said. 

“An elevated consumer appetite for big-screen devices, as well as Apple’s push in China and other countries, saw iPhone sales up 44 per cent in the US and up 97 per cent in the BRIC countries,” the IT research firm said. 

Continued success from Apple, coupled with the ongoing challenges facing Samsung, could enable Apple to overtake Samsung this year, it said. 

“Samsung’s challenges have not only come from Apple, but also from the increasing number of low-cost Android OEMs that are putting out products at much lower margins,” it added.

In order for Samsung to retain its share at the top, it will either have to accept lower margins from here forward or revamp its high-end strategy to compete with Apple, IDC said. 

In terms of total smartphone shipments globally, vendors shipped a total of 375.2 million units during the fourth quarter of 2014, resulting in 28.2 per cent growth compared to the 292.7 million units shipped in Q4 2013 and 11.9 per cent sequential growth above the 335.3 million units shipped in July-September 2014, IDC said. 

For the full year, the worldwide smartphone market saw a total of 1.3 billion units shipped, up 27.6 per cent from little over a billion in 2013.

Spain, India hold talks on cooperation in railway sector

 

Spain is keen to partner with India in the railways sector, particularly high-speed rail category, Minister of State for Commerce Jaime Garcia Legaz said in New Delhi on Monday

“We had a meeting with the Railway Board of India, and the meeting was successful. We feel that cooperation in the railways sector is important for our two nations,” the Minister said, stressing on cooperation in high-speed train network.

“Spain has the second largest high speed train network in the world after China and the gap is closing fast,” he added.

The Minister, speaking at a CII conference, said other areas of interest for Spanish companies to invest in India were renewable energy and construction of highways.

“With almost 25 per cent of our energy coming from renewable sources, Spain has the highest percentage of renewable energy in Europe. We are eager to have India also increase its renewable energy production,” Mr. Legaz said.

Mr. Legaz also confirmed that the delegation would meet Union Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu to discuss the Smart Cities project.

“We are going to meet him tomorrow. The ‘Smart Cities’ project is one of the key areas of expertise, and Barcelona is one such example of the ‘Smart Cities’ project,” he added.

He said investment of Spanish companies in India stands at about 4 billion euro.

Hamid Ansari urges industry to ensure equitable growth

 A file photo of Vice-President Hamid Ansari. Photo: Sandeep Saxena

Growth and equity are inseparable and the corporate sector as well as the government must play critical roles to ensure sustainable and inclusive growth in India, Vice-President Hamid Ansari said in Mumbai on Monday. 

“Empirical evidence shows that growth without equity is not sustainable in the long run. On the other hand, desired levels of equity or inclusion can not be attained without rapid and sustained growth. Hence the solution is not in 'either or' but 'in both'“ Mr. Ansari told a gathering of industrialists in Mumbai. 

He was speaking at a Symposium on Wealth & Value Creators organised by Indian Merchant's Chamber (IMC), a 108-year-old industry association. 

The function was also attended by Maharashtra Governor C. Vidyasagar Rao and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. 

“We have attained self reliance in most agricultural products and are even exporting them. Our service sector is counted among the best in the world, manufacturing has grown and diversified into hi-tech areas. India's share in global trade and investment has been on the upward trend, albeit modestly. In these endeavours, the public and private sector have made valuable contributions to the national growth and development agenda,” Mr. Ansari said. 

“The task, however, is by no means accomplished. We still have the dubious distinction of being home to the largest number of poor in the world. Inequality in social and economic terms is a stark reality. Unemployment is rampant. Hunger, malnutrition, disease, illiteracy and homelessness still affect a large section of our vast population,” the Vice-President added. 

He said India's manufacturing capabilities and service sector should grow in terms of quality and quantity, if the country would like to match the levels of other developing countries such as Brazil and China. 

“Given the size of our economy, our share in global trade and investment also should be much higher,” Mr. Ansari said. 

Speaking at the gathering Mr. Fadnavis said, India needs to eliminate poverty but the instrument has be growth. “We must create wealth and also there should be distribution of wealth. It means every one must get a chance to create wealth,” he said.