Allegations of cartelisation continue to swirl around the cement industry. India’s trade practices regulator MRTPC on Tuesday ordered a probe into the business practices of 14 leading cement manufacturers. These manufacturers colluded to hike prices, alleges a preliminary report by MRTPC’s investigative wing. Meanwhile NW 18 reports quoting a government aide that the probe has got a prima facie proof of cartel in cement price. He added that cement cartel case will come up for hearing Oct 25.

The panel issued notices of inquiry against these companies after its investigation wing — the Director General of Investigation and Registration (DGIR) — submitted its preliminary report. The companies have time time till October 25 to reply to the charges. The companies include Birla Corporation, Zuari Cement, Binani Industries, ACC, NCL Industries, Gujarat Ambuja Cement, Grasim Industries, Sanghi Industries, Saurashtra Cement, JK Cement, India Cement and Ultratech Cement.

ACC, Grasim and India Cement declined to comment. The CEO of a firm indicted by the panel told ET on condition of anonymity: “The charges are all baseless. How can you have cartels when there is a shortage of cement in the country?”

The DGIR analysed prices, demand, capacity utilisation and expansion in 2005 and 2006 to find if price increases were justified. The DGIR did not buy the argument that costlier raw materials and the tight demand-supply situation sparked the price rise. The DGIR concluded that price increases were for reasons other than higher production cost, which according to its calculations, came to about Rs 7 for 50 kg.

In contrast, between April 2005 and March 2006, the price of a 50 kg bag rose by over Rs 50 in the Delhi market. The increase in Mumbai was identical in the same period. The price rise thus far exceeded the increase in input cost, says DGIR.

The report also said that the Cement Manufacturers’ Association (CMA) served as a platform for discussing price-related issues. The body has various zonal marketing committees where top company executives are present. This gives them enough opportunity to meet and decide pricing and marketing strategies, says DGIR. The CMA managing committee held three meetings during 2005-06, when “exorbitant price increase” was noticed, the DGIR said.

CMA secretary general EN Murthy, however, denied the charges. “Cement manufacturers don’t discuss prices at CMA meetings. CMA’s policy is to discuss industry-related issues other than prices,” he told ET.

According to Ansal API marketing president Kunal Banerji, construction cost, which was about Rs 800 a sq ft two years back, has gone up to about Rs 1,300, partly because of costlier cement and demand for high-quality construction. Cement price is just one component, he said. Cement production rose to 141.81 million tonnes in 2005-06 from 127.57 million tonnes a year ago, a growth of about 11% that exceeded the government’s target of 136 million tonnes.

The cement industry found itself at the centre of a political controversy earlier this year, when it came under pressure to hold prices. Industry minister Kamal Nath and finance minister P Chidambaram called for ‘moderating’ price increases. The budget also imposed differential duty on cement depending on price, though it was modified later. Initially, for a 50 kg bag of cement priced below Rs 190 the proposed excise duty was Rs 350 per tonne, while the initial budget proposal was Rs 600 per tonne for bags priced above Rs 190.

Later, the higher duty was changed to 12% ad-valorem instead of Rs 600 per tonne. For bags priced below Rs 190 the duty remains Rs 350 per tonne. The FM has recently said that the government was not contemplating a price freeze.

ITC has touched an intra day high of Rs 163.45 and an intra day low of Rs 152. Currently, the share is quoting at Rs 163.45, up Rs 11.20, or 7.36%. It is trading with volumes of 2,409,804 shares, compared to its 5-day average of 915,047 shares, an increase of 163.35%. Yesterday the share closed down 0.65% or Rs 1.00 at Rs 152.25.

Credit Suisse has initiated coverage on the stock with price target of Rs 188. Credit Suisse says that ITC has underperformed the markets by 41% in last 12 months. ITC is likely to surprise positively in cigarette profit growth. Also another reputed brokerage CLSA has upped ITC price target to Rs 184 and upgraded it to Buy from Underperform.

Our 12-m target price of Rs184/sh (earlier Rs150) is based on sum of parts. The key reason for the target price upgrade is the 6% increase in earnings and upward revision in our target cigarette business PE to 17x, due to more confidence on cigarette volume trend. Cigarette business accounts for 70% of sum of parts. With the target price offering 20% upside we upgrade the stock to BUY, says CLSA.

ITC also plans to enter home and personal care segment, besides scaling up its FMCG business in an apparent move to reduce dependence on the cigarette business, which it forecasts to face stiff challenges in the future, news reports had indicated.

Without setting any time-frame for venturing into the home and personal care segments, the company plans to sell such products through a network of 6,400 web kiosks and 18 supermarkets. The company would aggressively scale up its activities in the FMCG sector, in which it aims to be a leading player. Bullish on the FMCG sector, the company said the key demand drivers would be the rising disposable incomes, relatively low levels of per capita consumption, growing urbanisation, favourable demographic profile and the increased penetration of organised retail.

Aberdeen positive on Infosys, TCS, Satyam and realty stocks

Adrian Lim, Investment Manager, Asian Equities, Aberdeen Asset Management, said that there have been long-term buyers in tech stocks. He said that he is positive on Infosys, TCS and Satyam. Most of the management teams of the IT companies continue to focus on delivering a quality service to their clients and that should more an offset the short-term negative impact of a strong rupee. He further said that rupee concerns are over-rated.

About Indian scenario, he said that India is playing catch up with Emerging Markets peers in short-term. He is positive on banking & financial services and he expects good numbers from HDFC bank. He is also positive on Indian real estate stocks over next few years. Valuation levels have priced in a lot of good news, so if you do not hold property stocks, it maybe a difficult time to get in at a reasonable valuation point but the sector has got very strong fundamentals and we are optimistic over the next few years, he said.

Strength in the Q1 numbers would make a strong case for selective revisions upwards for the full year ending March ’08, he believes.



Have seen 3-5% higher pricing in contract renewal & over 5% higher pricing in new contracts: TCS

TCS lost 258 bps on margins due to Rupee; made up 206 bps on hedging. It made up 206 bps on margins via forex hedging and made up 213 bps via productivity on wage hike front. TCS factored in 40/$ in hedging. It started taking more than 1-year view on currency. Made up 206 bps on margins via forex hedging. TCS made up 213 bps via productivity on wage hike front.

TCS have seen 3-5% higher pricing in contract renewal and over 5% higher pricing in new contracts. Q1 saw a pricing increase of about 60 bps. It witnessed a volume growth of 7.6% QoQ. Financial and operational management helped in posting good quarters S Ramdoria added.

TCS onsite business is about 54%, offshore is about 41% ands the balance is through global delivery. Company has linked variable pay to company's team performance. Revenue growth is coming across all client categories. Improved billing, operational efficiencies and movement to offshore are few levers for margin improvement. BFSI share increased by 180 bps.

TCS will focus on Latin American, Europe and India but the management is (not sure about Europe). TCS geographical reach of clients is as follows. North America-51.5%, UK/Europe-30%. Pressure on margin may continue depending on Rupee.

Most of currency impact is now behind us. It expect to get 5% hike in new contracts.TCS is working on 20 deals worth over million, some are over 0 million. Chilean acquisition is delivering well and margins are good. The company will focus on organic growth but it will be premature to comment on group company merger.Diligenta has margins in single digit; expected to move to double digit in 12-18 months.FNS is doing extremely well; bank of china order based on FNS. Chile acquisition is also doing well.
Deal pipeline is very strong, S Crematoria added

The company is planning 12-15% wage hike for the year. It has capped attrition rate at 10.5-11.5% over last 4 quarters. TCS financial solutions revenue is based on license fee, maintenance contracts. Margins of TCS financial solutions would be 5-10% higher than overall. The company will be able to sustain the low attrition. Financial SBU will have 5-10% higher margins than average TCS margin . It expects atleast 40% of existing clients to renegotiate in FY 08.



Infosys set to acquire Philips Global's finance BPO for assured revenues of $ 200 Mn spread over 5 years

IT major Infosys Technologies is set to acquire Philips Global’s finance and accounts BPO for an assured revenue of $ 200 million spread over five years, says report in BS. Infosys will be taking over the subsidiary along with all the costs in the similar manner that TCS had acquired the operations of the Pearl Group in the UK. Once the takeover is completed, Infosys will bring down costs and restructure operations to make it a paying proposition.

This will be Infosys’ second acquisition in its 25-year history, after it had acquired Expert Information Services in Australia for around Rs 104 crore ($ 22.9 million) in 2003.

The acquisition of Philips will bolster the capabilities and reach of Infosys’ BPO, enabling it to deliver round-the-clock. Philips’ F&A captive has operations in Chennai, Warsaw (Poland) and Bangkok. The global staff strength of the captive is around 1,500 with 500 employees working out of the Chennai centre, which was set up in 2004.

Infosys’ BPO has close to 11,000 employees and has posted a top line of around Rs 662 crore and a net profit of Rs 151 crore in FY07.

Infosys, the country’s second largest software services exporter, currently has cash reserves of $ 1.4 billion. No official comments were available from the company. Usually conservative in the M&A game, the company has grown to $ 3.5 billion and employs around 71,000 professionals.

In the recent past, it was rumoured to be bidding to acquire Capgemini. The company officials have predictably been non-committal and maintained that they will go ahead and acquire it, if it fits into the Infosys’ game-plan.



Maintain Overweight on IT services, Infy, TCS Nos in line, most of Rupee rise over, raised FY08 Sensex EPS forecast to Rs 860: UBS

Manishi Raychaudhuri, Executive Director of UBS Securities said we have Overweight on IT services despite rising Rupee. Infy, TCS numbers are in line. Fundamental strength in the business remains intact. Billing rates may improve and we may be in the last leg of Rupee appreciation. Most of the Rupee rise is over and Rupee is seen at 40/$ by year-end. We are looking at 18-19% over top line & bottom line growth.

Telecom, Cement, Cap Goods & Engineering sectors are likely to outperform. However, Automobile, Oil companies could report negative earnings growth for the quarter. Earnings forecasts have gone up from 18-19% to 23% in FY08. For full year, we forecast for 20% growth for FY08 and 20% in FY09, Manishi added.

He further said Sensex FY08 EPS forecast has gone up from 821 to 860. We remain bullish and our Sensex target is of 15000. We have increased weight on Autos and partly on banks. Market has seen worst of interest rate increases, may see few more CRR hikes. CVs & tractors segment will be less affected by interest rates.

Capex cycle is likely to do secularly well in next 2-3 years. Most of our Overweight is on the capex cycle plays. We are bullish on banks with larger exposure to corporate not retail. We do not have any exposure to real estate companies in modern portfolio, Manishi concluded.



Satyam bags 4 large orders from Singapore and Australia

Satyam Computer Services has recently bagged four major deals in Singapore, Australia and UAE. Two of these deals from Singapore government are primarily outsourcing and IT services contracts. For Emirates Bank, the global IT giant will implement a ubiquitous Enterprise Financial Management solution which will help the bank in having better efficiencies and control at the Emirates Bank Group level and also augment their business strategy for continuous enhancement of their internal processes. This solution will enable integration of support functions and build best-in-class organizational processes.

All these deals are among the largest hauls to-date in the specific regions following its participation in recent public and private tenders. In Australia, the company will deliver Application Development and Maintenance and Consulting Services to one of Australia's largest transport provider.

"We mine almost 17% of our revenues from ROW region (Row consists of all geographies other than Europe and Americas). The outsourcing forecasts in the coming years are promising in this region," said Virender Aggarwal, Director and Senior Vice President of APAC and MEIA.

Satyam has bagged two multi-year outsourcing and IT services contracts from the Singapore government. The company is addressing the on-going initiative by Singapore to outsource its government IT needs to reap the full gains of technological revolution and sizeable macroeconomic benefits, Under these agreements, the company will have end-to-end responsibility for application management and maintenance of new and existing systems. In addition, the company will consult the respective government departments on future technology directions and business practices. In some cases, the company will also provide them with business transformation initiatives in order to yield optimum business results.

On July 17th, Emirates Bank signed a strategic contract with the company to implement an end-to-end Enterprise Financial Management (EFM) solution for itself. This solution is critical to the bank's business needs and will create and implement a single source of financial data. The contract will assist in meeting the requirements of various entities that form part of Emirates Banking Group, the solution will be based on Oracle Financials and the contract is a large multi-year one.



TCS battles Rupee war successfully, mitigates forex risk via pricing & productivity

Two-and-a-half billion dollars. That's how much TCS has hedged to protect itself from losses from a rising Rupee. But in the June quarter it has managed to mitigate the impact of Rupee appreciation.

Q1 Highlights:

Forex hedges at $ 2.5 billion

Adds 6 clients worth over 0 million

Volume growth of 7.6%, pricing growth of 0.6% (QoQ)

Rupee impacted by 6.6%, negative impact of 258 bps

Wage hikes reduced margins by 208 bps

Mitigated forex risk via pricing, productivity, SG&A improvement

Hedging gains largely offset rupee impact at net level

Offshore contribution at 41.1% Vs 41.3% (QoQ)

Adds 54 new clients Vs 43 new clients (QoQ)

Adds 5,512 net employees Vs 5,827 (QoQ)

Other income at Rs 151.6 crore Vs Rs 89.79 crore (QoQ)

Top client grew at 4.15%, BFSI grew 5.5% (QoQ)

Attrition rate at 11.5% Vs 11.3% (QoQ)




Renault declines comment on possible tie-up with Bajaj Auto

Renault has declined comment on possible tie-up with Bajaj Auto. The company said that it is open to any Indian partner for small car project. Renault sees opportunity to source components worth Euro 100 million per year soon.

Renault management further said that Mahindra-Renault will add 15 cities to its retail network of Logan. The company has added second shift for Logan production.

Earlier, there was a news that Nissan Renault may partner with Bajaj Auto for its $ 3000-car project in India. The partnership to build a small car could have been a part of a larger alliance between Renault and Bajaj Auto covering commercial vehicles. While Bajaj Auto is keen to enter the passenger segment, Nissan Renault boss Carlos Ghosn recently announced it would develop a small car with a price tag of $ 3,000 using Indian expertise. The car is Renault’s big pitch for global volumes after the Logan and will be positioned below it.

Renault already has two separate joint venture partnerships in India with Mahindra & Mahindra. Mahindra Renault, a marketing company largely, is in-charge of selling Renault’s global low-cost sedan Logan in India. The two partners, along with Renault’s sister company Nissan, are also putting up a greenfield plant in Chennai that will be used by all three. Renault is also setting up a powertrain plant in India as a 100% subsidiary.



L&T bags another order from Tata Steel worth Rs 980 Cr

After the recent order from Tata Steel worth Rs. 1070 crore, L&T has today bagged yet another order from Tata steel for Rs 980 crores for the supply and installation of blast furnace for its project in kalinganagar, orissa.

Yesterday Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T)-led consortium bagged orders worth Rs 1070 crore for Supply & Installation of Sinter Plant and other packages from Tata Steel. Today Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T) has bagged an order for Rs 980 crores for the supply and installation of Blast Furnace from Tata Steel for its project in Kalinganagar, Orissa.

Tata Steel is setting up the 6 Million Tonnes Per Annum (MTPA) integrated steel plant in Kalinganagar Industrial Complex at Duburi in Jajpur district of Orissa, to be completed in two phases of 3 MTPA each. L&T will supply and install the Blast Furnace as a part of the first phase of this Greenfield project. Having a capacity of 3.2 MTPA this blast furnace will have a useful furnace volume of 4300 Cu.m and would be the largest Blast Furnace in Tata Steel and the first of its kind in India. This is scheduled for completion in 40 months. L&T’s scope covers detail engineering, supply, erection and commissioning of mechanical, electrical & Instrumentation systems along with site services comprising of civil, structural & sheeting works.

L&T along with its international consortium partners Paul Wurth Italia and India are presently executing EPC (Engineering-Procurement-Construction) projects for construction of Blast Furnaces of 3800 Cu.m for the expansion of Tata Steel, Jamshedpur.L&T has attained & sustained leadership position along with its international consortium partners in supply & installation of iron making facilities on EPC (Engineering-Procurement-Construction) basis.




Suven Life Sciences plans $ 45 Mn expansion, to grab large market share in custom chemicals synthesis market

Suven Life Sciences is planning to scale up its drug discovery development and support services (DDDSS), ET report says. The idea is to grab a large market share in the custom chemicals synthesis market to service the fast growing clinical trials business in India.

Towards this end, it has lined up a $ 45 million (Rs 202.5 crore) expansion plan for this fiscal. The expansion will be largely funded from money raised through banks. The DDDSS and R&D units will come up near Hyderabad. “We will invest $ 25 million in the drug discovery and development support services, which will become functional over the next 24 months. Besides this, we are also planning to invest $ 10 million for the proposed R&D centre,” Suven Life Sciences CEO Venkat Jasti.

The R&D centre at Pashamylaram near Hyderabad, will work on finished dosage forms and preparation of abbreviated new drug applications. It is expected to commence operations in April-May 2008.

“The returns from this business will help the company scale up its innovative research initiatives and establish a much larger capacity for manufacturing innovator products after clinical trials,” a senior industry analyst said. Some of the other companies producing chemicals according to tailor-made needs of large innovator drug companies (or custom chemical synthesis) are Shasun Chemicals and Drugs, Nicholas Piramal and Dishman Pharmaceuticals.

The expansion plans also include setting up a generic drug manufacturing facility over 20 acres in the Pharma City at Vizag. The company will spend $ 10 million for this facility, which will start rolling in another 18-24 months. Future products — partly generic and partly regulated chemical entities — will be made at this facility.

Suven Life Sciences hived off its clinical trials operations into a separate entity last year. The company clocked revenue of Rs 114 crore in 2006-07. “We have not considered a dilution of our equity stake in the company so far, private equity players have shown interest in our company on several occasions,” Jasti said.



Krishna, Godavari and now Cauvery, Reliance strikes gas again

Reliance Industries have struck gas again.The company has sent a discovery notice to the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons and the DGHC is assessing the extent of the discovery.

Sources say that the discovery has been made in the Cauvery basin.This would be Reliance's first success in the Cauvery basin. The company has already made a series of discoveries in the K-G basin, where Reliance made the world's largest gas find in 2002.

Officials at Reliance Industries could not be contacted for details but sources say that the discovery is "very significant". Reliance is expected to make an announcement today.

Prabhat Awasthi, Head of Research of Brics Securities says he is disappointed with Infosys top line, since margin surprised positively. According to him consensus forecast for Infosys FY08 EPS will correct more than the guidance at Rs 80-81. Infosys stock doesn't look expensive on FY09 basis, he adds.

Awasthi further says good numbers are expected from metal companies, especially steel. Don't expect too many positives from aluminum companies. We are looking at 17-18% overall earnings growth for FY08.

There are moderate expectations from autos due to lower volumes. We don’t expect compression in bank net income margins and watch non-performing assets. RIL petro chemical margins to be offset by refining margins. May see positive bottom line surprise from telecom companies. Not many triggers for laggards such as auto and it to perform in the short term, he added.

Dabur Foods has merged with Dabur India because their businesses have similar themes - health and wellness. Dabur Foods got into business 10 years ago with orange and tomato juices. Though the business is growing well and the company is worth Rs 250 crore.

Dabur Foods thinks it can extract more juice from its portfolio of health and convenience products, by merging with Dabur India, the parent company that has a range of ayurvedic fixes to make one look and feel good.

Health and wellness are the twin themes that the merged entity will focus on. However, in the past, Dabur Food hinted at roping in a strategic investor or floating an IPO. The merger has put all such speculations to rest. Instead of unlocking value by demerging the profitable foods business, Dabur has moved in the other direction.

Analysts say Dabur is betting big on foods in the long run. Especially when Dabur Foods is clocking 35% growth compared to other businesses like personal care that are growing at 14-15%. That's some food for thought.

Madhu Terdal, CFO, GMR Infrastructure, said that the company is looking to grow organically as well as inorganically. The company is looking for the inorganic growth in Energy and Airport and for acquisitions in these sectors globally.

He further said that the company is not bidding for Sweden airport at this time. About it, he said that as a company, we don’t do one-off kind of opportunities and Sweden was like that. The company is looking for opportunities of acquisition in Europe. But the company does not have specific targets that the company should win airport projects.

About airport projects in EU, he said that Istanbul’s main airport has reached a peak of capacity of passengers and it earned a revenue of Euro 88 million last year and it is growing at 45-50% for last 2 years. The company will take over the Istanbul airport in next 3 months.

Because of the IPO and market capitalization going up of the company, they are having opportunity to leverage as the company is having enough capital. He further said that the company is awaiting outcome for Tamilnadu SEZ shortly.

The stock has had a great run and was also up smartly today. The company recently won a hotly contested tender for construction of a new terminal at the Sahiba Gokcen International Airport (SGA) at Istanbul, Turkey. The build-operate-transfer project involves construction of terminal with a 10 million capacity in 30 months besides managing the existing domestic and international terminals (with passenger capacity of 3.5 million per annum.

The consortium (GMR - 40%, Insaat Sanay San Ve Tic A.S Turkey (Limal) — 40% and Malaysian Airport Holdings Berhad — 20%) will pay a total concession fee of Euro 1.93 billion (approx. Rs 11,000 crore) to the Turkish goverment authority over 20 years to run the airport. The GMR consortium won against competition that included major airport operators like Fraport — Germany, Venice Airport — Italy, TAV - Turkey and Chicago Airport - USA.

With the win, GMR will now have three airport projects under its belt. It is already expanding the New Delhi airport at a cost of $ 1.5 billion by 2010 in time for the commonwealth games.

The company's Hyderabad airport, being built at a cost of $ 500 million, will be ready next year. Apart from just running the airport, GMR will also develop the real estate around these airport to build shopping complexes and facilities for passenger. There is an estimated 5000 acres available for development around the Delhi airport, which will be up for development.

The latest bid in Turkey is expected to hasten the progess of GMR as an airport infrastructure company. This far, when it bid for airport projects in India, it has had to bring in foreign partners to show experience in building airports. As the company is planning to bid for a new airport in Chennai and other modernisation programmes of airports across the country, it may well get a chance to go alone citing its experience.

DLF mkt cap gits Rs 1 lakh Cr mark; DLF 10th Co to hit mkt cap of Rs 1 Lakh Cr

DLF has touched an intra day high of Rs 590 and an intra day low of Rs 567. Currently, the share is quoting at Rs 589.20, up Rs 17.45, or 3.05%. It is trading with volumes of 79,07,598 shares. Yesterday the share closed down 0.51% or Rs 2.95 at Rs 571.75. The company has now entered the elite club of Rs 1 lakh crore mark and it is the 10th company to enter this club.

Motilal Oswal has recommended a buy rating on DLF with target price of Rs 674. Target price is at a 25% premium to estimated NAV of Rs 539 per share. The company's recent IPO was the biggest in the country so far.

The reports indicate that DLF, India's largest real estate company, is the best proxy for playing the promising domestic real estate opportunity. We are excited about DLF’s dominant presence in emerging segments of premium apartments, commercial offices and retail, which are highly profitable businesses with strong entry barriers.

Thus, DLF is relatively better placed to face the challenging macro environment, which, in our opinion, will encourage lower risk premiums going forward.





Revenue impacted by Rs 287 Cr due to Rupee rise; BPO margins down from 21-22% to 16-17%: Infy

Infosys management said due to Rupee rise impacted revenues to the extent of Rs 287 crore. Growth in North America has been at 7.5% while in Europe it has been at 8.5%. The Rupee appreciation impact was on EPS as well as on margins. We absorbed 7% cost increases and margins were impacted by only 3.5%. Visa cost was up 1% while wages were up 2.5%. Volume growth of 6.9% witnessed in Q1.

OPMs could be impacted by 100-200 bps in FY08. The company has factored in Rs 40.58 on the exchange rate. They are seeing 9.3% growth in non top-10 clients. 26000 employees will be added in FY08. The company has added 10 $ 1 million clients in Q1.

The offshore wages were up 12-15% and onsite was up 5-6%. Almost 73% of the company's revenues come in Dollar terms, 13% in Pound and 5% in Euro terms.

All round growth is seen in all geographies. We are seeing 3-4% improvement in billing in new contracts. We mitigated 4.5% from 7.3% hit on the margin. We have $ 4 billion target in FY08 for revenues. Pricing has been stable with an upward bias. Utilization increased by 1.5% for Q1, the compan says. There will be no price rise assumed in guidance. BPO business could be significantly impacted by Rupee rally. Consulting grew by 22% which forms 4.9% of revenue. Subprime exposure is less than 1%.

Infosys said that the company is comfortable with high of 70% and low of 80% utilisation. Meanwhile the Infosys management declined to comment on Capgemini acquisition. The company is actively looking at US, Europe for inorganic growth.

The company is hedging for short-term to cover 2 quarters. Company has hedged $ 925 million as of June end agianst $ 470 million QoQ. The Rupee is likely to move between 39-41/ $ in the short-term.

Margins from BPO business are down from 21-22% to 16-17%. Tax sops for BPOs should be continued for next 5 years. Price of renegotiated financial deals seen 1.5 % higher.






Mkt reactions on Infy earnings: FY08 guidance of Rs 78-79 in line with market expectations

Devesh Kumar, Centrum Finance said Infosys' muted earnings guidance will not go down well with the markets. I expect the stock to correct. Sentiment for all dollar driven companies may turn negative post the Infosys guidance.

Vibhav Kapoor, IL&FS said Infosys FY08 guidance of Rs 78-79 is in line with market expectations. We need some more clarity on the other income component. Overall, the business seems to be doing well & I expect the company will beat full year guidance. A bounce is expected in the Infosys stock as there could be some short covering. The stock should settle between Rs 2,000-2,100 in the short-term.

Nilesh Shah, Envision Cap said Infosys stock is fairly valued at current price. Case for contraction of premiums enjoyed by Tier-I IT companies. Frontline tech sector is expected to underperform in next 1-2Q. Market should look at this quarter as a one off event.

Going ahead, currency will not be a spoilt sport. Infy is likely to trade below 25x FY08 EPS for the next 2 quarters. Probable P/E range for Infosys to be 23-25x. Actual FY08 EPS could inch towards Rs 80. Infy could trade between 23-26 times over the next 6 months. Tech sector will not provide a meaningful growth to investors, Nilesh added.






Ranbaxy gets a jolt in Pfizer row; Loses Lipitor patent case in Ireland to Pfizer

Pfizer's global battle against Ranbaxy to protect the patent rights of its blockbuster drug Lipitor has taken a fresh turn with the Dublin High Court giving a ruling in favour of Pfizer, stating that Ranbaxy’s generic atorvastatin will be infringing on Pfizer’s patent rights, reports the Business Standard.

The decision prevents Ranbaxy from launching its drug before the basic Lipitor patent expires in November 2011 in Ireland, a million market for Lipitor.

“We are confident of our position and will file a timely appeal against the court ruling,” a Ranbaxy spokesperson said.

“Today’s decision is yet another affirmation of the strength of the intellectual property behind Lipitor,” said Pfizer General Counsel Allen Waxman.

“It is also an important outcome for Pfizer and other medical innovators, who invest in high-risk research to develop life-saving medicines, and for the patients who benefit from those medicines,” he said.

Ranbaxy is involved in a legal battle with Pfizer in more than 17 countries, including the United States, over patent infringement of Pfizer’s Lipitor.

A couple of months ago, a Norway court had ruled in favour of Ranbaxy on the same case when it invalidated four patent claims of the US pharma giant.

Lipitor had brought in revenues worth .89 billion for Pfizer in 2006. Ranbaxy, which spent about million during 2004-05 to fight the patent battle related to Pfizer’s Lipitor, also has high stakes in the legal battle.





Banks send an SOS to RBI - bring back the borrowers; interest rates have peaked, says HDFC Chairman

Banks have seen the lowest loan growth in six years and bankers are clearly a worried lot. A group of big bankers have approached the Reserve Bank of India to take some action to bring back the borrowers.

In the past 3 years the banking industry has seen its loans gallop by 30%, every year, but now, in just one quarter, bankers are watching this trend grind down to just 24%. With loan growth hitting a 6 year low, sources say three or four big bankers from the private and public sector, have made an informal representation to the Reserve Bank, to tackle this situation.

Sources say these bankers have pointed out that corporate have for many years now preferred foreign loans because of the high cost of Rupee loans. But this year even retail borrowers have started shying away leaving them with little business. They have therefore suggested that the RBI look at moderating interest rates

They have also requested the RBI to reduce risk weights on certain sectors like real estate, home loans and hospitality as this can help them reduce rates on these loans and boost demand.

Though the first quarter traditionally is a slow month for loan growth, bankers say that sanctions have dropped too sharply and they expect disbursals to remain subdued in the second quarter as well.

Bankers are also complaining that the high cost of bulk and retail deposits are squeezing their margins. Bankers hope that the RBI will take some concrete steps in the review of the monetary policy on July 31.

Interest rates have peaked. So says veteran banker and Chairman of HDFC, Deepak Parekh. He says RBI is unlikely to hike interest rates further.

Parekh said, “Inflation is under control, I’ve always said that interest rates have peaked. It’s unlikely to go up further but they've stabilised at the moment. I don’t think that interest rates will come down drastically, but the chances of going up are also remote.”





Dow loses 148 points on earning concerns, subprime jitters; Oil briefly tops $ 73/bbl

US stocks fell sharply on Tuesday, sending the Dow Jones Industrial Average down by 148 points, with investor enthusiasm hit right at the outset of earnings season after both Home Depot Inc. and Sears Holdings lowered their forecasts. Concerns about housing and credit markets were revived by a possible rating action on subprime mortgages from Standard & Poor's. Financials came under pressure after S&P said it put $ 12 billion worth of subprime mortgage-backed securities on CreditWatch negative.

Two hedge funds owned by Bear Stearns were brought near to collapse due to their heavy exposure to the subprime mortgage-backed securities. Adding to the jitters about housing, home-building bellwether D.R. Horton Inc. early Tuesday said quarterly orders for new homes fell 40% from a year earlier and that it expects to post a loss after impairment charges. The dreary outlooks suggested that the sluggish housing market may dampen consumer spending.

The outlooks followed Monday's news that aluminum producer Alcoa Inc.'s second-quarter sales missed estimates and that printer manufacturer Lexmark International Inc. slashed its second-quarter earnings forecast. Together, the reports dispirited investors who had been counting on corporate America's performance giving a boost to the stock market, which has been stuttering in recent weeks.

Crude oil prices briefly topped the $ 73 a barrel adding to the market's nervousness, while a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke failed to shed light on the central bank's plans for interest rates. Bond prices soared, pushing down the 10-year Treasury note's yield to 5.03% from 5.16% late Monday. The plunge in yields failed to boost stocks, largely because the decrease was caused by worries about the housing market rather than confidence that inflation is easing.

The Dow fell 148.27, or 1.09%, to 13,501.70, near its low of the session. Broader stock indicators also declined. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 21.73, or 1.42%, to 1,510.12, while the Nasdaq composite index was off 30.86, or 1.16%, at 2,639.16.

Declining issues outnumbered advancers by nearly 3 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where consolidated volume came to 3.20 billion shares, compared to 2.68 billion shares Monday.

In European trading, Britain's FTSE 100 fell 1.22%, Germany's DAX index fell 1.39%, and France's CAC-40 fell 1.40%.

HDFC Bank Q1 Net Profit at Rs 321 Cr vs Rs 239 Cr

HDFC Bank has announced its numbers. The Q1 Net Profit is at Rs 321 crore vs Rs 239 crore. Q1 CNBC-TV18 Poll saw Net Profit at Rs 316.5 crore.

The bank earned total income of Rs 2,641.7 crores for the quarter ended June 30, 2007, as against Rs 1,795.2 crores in the corresponding quarter ended June 30, 2006. Net revenues (net interest income plus other income) were Rs 1,558.1 crores for the quarter ended June 30, 2007, an increase of 40.5% over Rs 1,108.6 crores for the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

The bank added 69 branches during the quarter ended June 30, 2007 taking the branch network to 753 outlets in 320 cities from 535 outlets in 228 cities in June 2006. As of June 2007, the number of debit cards issued by the bank were over 4.3 million, while credit cards issued crossed the 3 million mark. Portfolio quality as of June 30, 2007 remained healthy with net non-performing assets remaining stable at 0.4% of advances.

During the quarter ended June 30, 2007, the bank had obtained the Board and shareholder approvals to raise equity capital of US$ 1 billion or Rs. 4200 crores, whichever is higher, either as domestic public offering or as public or private offerings in one or more international markets. Approvals from the Board and shareholders were also obtained to allot 1,35,82,000 equity shares of Rs. 10/- each at a premium of Rs. 1013.49 per share on a preferential basis to Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd. (HDFC) aggregating Rs. 1390.1 crores. The said allotment to HDFC was done on June 29, 2007.

The Bank's Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) was at 13.1% as of June 30, 2007, of which Tier I CAR was 9.2%.




HSBC raises ratings on ICICI Bk, HDFC Bk from Neutral to Overweight; Also puts Overweight on Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank and Corporation Bank

HSBC has raised its ratings on ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank from Neutral to Overweight. It has raised price target on ICICI Bank to Rs 1,108 while it has raised price target on HDFC Bank to Rs 1,270.

HSBC has also puts Overweight on Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank and Corporation Bank.

New equity issuances in FY08 are likely to be more positive for new private banks as market share continues to rise However, we prefer state-owned banks as the convergence in operating ratios suggests an unjustified discount, the report by HSBC says.

They have raised ratings on ICICI Bank, and on HDFC Bank (Underweight to Neutral). However, we perceive larger
potential upside in state-owned banks where we rate Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank and Corporation Bank Overweight. UTI Bank and ING Vysya Bank both rated Underweight have the largest potential downsides.

"A key risk factor is further increase in NPL provisions, particularly in state-owned banks where they stay below the long-term mean. Another risk is possible decrease in NIMs when deposit re-pricing gathers pace," the report adds.

The following target prices are applied to a 12-month horizon as they have roll forward the target date by a
quarter to June 2008.


Bank of Baroda - Raises target price to Rs 379
Canara Bank - Revises target to Rs 369
Corporation Bank - Raises target price to Rs 419
HDFC Bank - Revises target price to Rs 1,270
HDFC - Revises target price of Rs 1,985 points to a very small potential upside, retain Underweight rating
ICICI Bank - Raises target to Rs 1,108
ING Vysya Bank - Raises target price to Rs 231 and retain Underweight rating
Punjab National Bk - Revise target price to Rs 591 and retain Neutral rating
SBI - Raise target price to Rs 1,506 but estimate limited potential upside and retain Underweight rating
UTI Bank - Raises target price to Rs 577 but retain Underweight rating






Two wheeler companies gear up for the festive season with premium segment bike models

Two wheeler makers are waiting for the festival season to bail them out from the slow down. And, they are banking on innovative and premium segment bikes. The auto industry has seen a slowdown for last 3 months. Manufacturers are looking to the festive season for relief. They are banking on new launches. TVS has launched the Apache 160 cc and will launch another two or three bikes in the coming months.

R Chandramouli, Sr VP, Sales, TVS Motors said, “Commuter segment there is a decline. So focus is on premium segment. We are launching models from October in phased manner, first in October, then in January and so on...”

The second largest player, Bajaj Auto's, first all new platform will be launched in September. More will follow. The bike priced at Rs 40,000 will replace the 100 cc Platina. It will be manufactured at Bajaj's new facility in Pant Nagar.

Rajiv Bajaj, MD, Bajaj Auto said,” Our chosen route to beat this slowdown is the product centric route, bring in a new product that will really bring the consumers back. At the need of the day, it is profitability, how much you sell. So the product we will launch in September will reverse the downtrend for us.”

Hero Honda has delayed the opening of its new plant in Haridwar, because of the slowdown. Others like Bajaj and TVS say the way forward is to launching new, innovative and premium segment products for better margins and profitability. So much so, TVS is working on CNG and LPG technology for its bikes.






Not just a small car - Ratan Tata promises a crossover model, a new-generation Indica, Indigo and Sumo to drive growth

As if building the Rs 1 lakh car wasn't enough, Ratan Tata has promised more launches in the next two years. At the company's 62nd AGM, Chairman Ratan Tata said Tata Motors has plans to launch four passenger cars and a truck.

He said the company would launch a new model, which would be a mix between an SUV and a car. Also on the cards is a new generation truck and, of course, a new generation Indica, Indigo and Sumo.

Ratan Tata is also positive the company will roll out its Rs 1 lakh car in the 1st half of 2008. And while rising costs remain a concern, Ratan Tata says the company will tide over it.

Ratan Tata added that Tata Motors might consider listing some of its profit making arms. The company has 21 profit making subsidiaries of the total 30 across the world.





Bharti, Ericsson set to ink $ 1.5 bln deal

In what will be the biggest network outsourcing and rollout deal globally, Bharti Airtel, India’s largest mobile operator, is set to ink a contract with Swedish telecom major Ericsson estimated to be worth about $ 1.5 billion, reports the ET. This will be Bharti’s second billion dollar deal with Ericsson in less than a year.

When asked on the issue, a top Bharti executive refused to confirm the deal amount, but said it would be much bigger than the recent network expansion contract with Nokia Siemens, valued at US$ 900 million. “Ericsson discussions are ongoing — we will announce it once we reach an agreement,” the executive added.

Sources said the deal with Ericsson was likely to be spread over a three year period where the Swedish network major will be entrusted with design, planning, supply, installation, commissioning and upgrading of Airtel network in 15 telecom circles. It will also involve implementation and project management, handling of local logistics and materials as well as system integration for the base station sites, in these 15 circles, sources added.

The ownership of the networks built by Ericsson will be with Bharti and the actual payment is linked to utilisation of capacity and fulfilment of agreed quality of service parameters. Besides, the contract will also help Bharti to continue its focus and channel its resources and expertise to its core areas of product innovation, value added services, marketing, branding & pricing, while leveraging Ericsson’s expertise in network management.

This will also mark Bharti’s fourth major outsourcing deal with Ericsson in as many years. In February 2004, Bharti signed a similar agreement with Ericsson valued at over $ 400 million to build and manage networks across 13 circles, followed by a $ 250 million deal in June 2005 to provide managed services and expand its GSM/GPRS network in 15 circles. Bharti then topped it up with a $ 1 billion network expansion deal with Ericsson for the same 15 circles in August 2006.

At the same time, Bharti has also signed four network outsourcing deals with Nokia (now Nokia Siemens Networks following the merger of the network arms of both Nokia and Siemens early this year). In May 2004, it had signed a three-year deal with the Finnish company valued at 5 million to build and manage networks across 5 circles, topping it with another $ 125 million three-year agreement in August 2005 for GSM/EDGE expansion in eight circles and followed it up by another deal in October 2006 for the same eight circles for 0 million.

However, the latest $ 900 million deal with Nokia Siemens goes beyond mere network expansion in the eight telecom circles. As per the deal, Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) will also enhance Bharti’s national and international long distance network with 1.8 million Next Generation Network (NGN) ports. Besides, NSW will also provide the platform for increasing the company’s capacity for its international prepaid Calling Card 4.5 million new users.






Suzlon fund use under lens to find whether it has utilised public money for purposes other than what it was meant for

Wind power major Suzlon Energy may soon have to be ready with some hard explanations, including non-repayment to the company of about Rs 2,200 crore by assorted debtors and other entities to whom the company had made advances, reports the ET.

Minister for corporate affairs Prem Chand Gupta has ordered an inspection into the account books of all the subsidiaries of Suzlon Energy to find out whether Asia’s largest wind turbine manufacturer has utilised public money for purposes other than what it was meant for. Suzlon Energy has confirmed that it has received a communication from the government and is co-operating with it.

The inspection is part of a wider exercise the ministry had started last year to scrutinise all initial public offers (IPOs) since 2004 to find out if anyone has utilised public money for purposes other than those stated while raising funds.

A Suzlon spokesperson told ET, "We do confirm that we have received communication from the concerned government authority on the subject. In adherence to our strict governance policies, we are co-operating with the authorities and are providing them with the required information with complete honesty and transparency. However, we believe that it would be inappropriate for us to comment any further on the matter at this point of time."

The inspection of Suzlon subsidiaries follows a report by the Mumbai registrar of companies (RoC) and the regional director that said an inspection was needed to allay doubts about certain entries in its balance sheet for the fiscal ended 2006. After a technical scrutiny of the balance sheet, the RoC wondered why advances to certain parties have not been paid back to the company.

Also, debtors have not paid a large sum to the company back in cash or kind. This has raised questions and apprehensions that the company may have diverted Rs 2,200 crore to various parties. Therefore, an inspection under Section 209 A of the Companies Act was needed, the RoC said.

The company had hit the primary market towards the end of 2005 to raise funds for its expansion plans. It has different arms for producing wind turbine towers and generator units in India besides its overseas subsidiaries.

The ministry wants to allay suspicion and ensure that investor interest is protected at a time when the market is testing new highs. The government’s scrutiny will cover a large number of companies as a string of IPOs had hit the market in the past three years. They include the IPOs of Reliance Petroleum, Reliance Communication, Mahindra & Mahindra, TCS, Sun TV, IL&FS Investsmart, Deccan Aviation, Biocon and Jet Airways.







Sunil Mittal's partnership with TeleTech may soon be disconnected as TeleTech looks to wind up from Indian market

Sunil Bharti Mittal’s 5-year old BPO partnership with USA's TeleTech Inc may be on the verge of being disconnected and quite literally so. TeleTech may walk out the Indian market altogether.

When USA's TeleTech Inc came to India in 2002, it called on India's biggest telecom player - Sunil Mittal. A joint venture partnership followed and by 2003. TeleTech India grew to a 3000 seater BPO offering voice and non-voice support in sectors like Telecom, banking and finance, healthcare and travel and retail. 4 years later, the headcount's still the same, but the 5-year-old partnership could possibly be at its fag end.

Sources say that TeleTech Inc. maybe looking at winding up from India by selling its 60% stake in TeleTech India. While TeleTech USA has still not commented on a potential deal, joint venture partner - Bharti Enterprises says, it does not comment on market speculation. And the company in question - TeleTech India, says that its majority shareholder - is not selling any stake. In contrast, sources claim that TeleTech Inc has been scouting for buyers for a while now. But the response from buyers may not be overwhelming - considering that many BPOs are up for sale.

Recently Blackstone bought out Intelenet for $ 210 million and now it is learnt that Citigroup global services too may be on the block for about $ 1.2 billion.

So what's driving the valuation game and what can TeleTech expect?

TeleTech's valuations are not known but experts say that it will be revenue based. That's because BPOs command a valuation of about 1.5 times the revenues. Valuations are also margin dependent.

Last year the industry's margins were an average 30 to 40%. But with the Rupee appreciating against the Dollar and increased competition from countries like Philippines and Ireland margins and hence valuations are under pressure. Reason enough for many promoters like TeleTech Inc wanting to opt out while the going is still strong.

Govt Panel recommends hiking anti-dumping duty per truck tyre to $ 135, Govt currently levies anti-dumping duty of $ 99 per truck tyre

Govt Panel has recommended hiking anti-dumping duty per truck tyre to $ 135. Govt currently levies anti-dumping duty of $ 99 per truck tyre. Anti-dumping duty hike is mooted to curb Chinese tyre imports.

Import of radials for commercial vehicles from China reached an all-time high in the first quarter this fiscal and it looks like it is just the tip of the iceberg. As per industry estimates, from a nominal 11,000 tyres per month in 2004, tyre imports have shot up to 68,000 per month in the first quarter this year, raising its share from 1.2% to over 8%. The increase is despite the provisional anti-dumping duty imposed on imported bias tyres from China and Thailand in October last year.

However, Chinese tyres are fast losing their shine in India. The price advantage of Chinese tyres, which was already under pressure due to imposition of provisional anti-dumping margin on truck, bus tyres and increase in reference price for valuation of import duties on passenger car radials- is now set to have waned further.

The Chinese authorities also have withdrawn the 5% export subsidy and increased freight charges by 20% for export to India.

India currently imports 85,000 CV tyres and 125,000 radial tyres for passenger cars and MUVs a month, almost 4% of the total consumption of tyres in India. Of the total imports, 70% is imported from China.

Despite provisional anti-dumping measures and the recent increase in reference price by the customs authority, imports were gaining pace in last 3 months due to Rupee appreciation.





Don't expect large-scale price increases, retail prices may not move up much, expect cement demand to be much higher in FY09, FY10, Grasim & Ambuja Cement top picks: Macquarie

Rakesh Arora from Macquirie said price increases have been reported by Rs 2-3. We do not expect large-scale price increases. Retail prices may not move up much, cement companies may raise. We are bullish on cement companies, 15-25% ahead of consensus estimates.

Greenfield expansions are getting delayed which is positive on demand-supply equation. First capacity increase will come from Grasim. Forecasting 5 MT of cement shortage this year. We expect cement demand to be much higher in FY09, FY10. Grasim & Ambuja Cement are our top picks. Ambuja’s price target is at Rs 168.




No signs of top being formed in the mkt, can go higher: Ramesh Damani

Ramesh Damani, Member, BSE, said that there are no signs of top being formed in the market, the market can go higher. There is good value across Small, Mid and Large cap segments.

He further said that public participation in the market is very low while there are some signs of excess in private equity market. About market liquidity, he said that concerns of liquidity tightening over next few months remains.

The companies with 15-20% growth are available at single digit price-earning ratio, he quoted. This is not a bad time to put fresh money into the market, he finally said.





Vedanta puts India Foils on block, value seen at Rs 250-300 Cr, deal works out at Rs 88/shr

Vedanta group company India Foils, the country’s largest aluminium foils maker, is on the block, report says. Vedanta has appointed KPMG to scout for potential suitors for the unit, which it bought from the BM Khaitan group in 2000. India Foils could be valued between Rs 250 crore and Rs 300 crore due to its market leadership and technology advantage.

At market price of India Foil at around Rs 9 per share, the Rs 250 crore deal works out to be Rs 88 per share.

The move comes as parent Vedanta Resources sharpens focus on being a commodity player, reducing exposure to high-expertise, value-added categories. An official Vedanta spokesperson declined to comment. The Kolkata-based India Foils accounts for a fifth of the Indian foil market, catering to consumer goods and pharmaceuticals industries. Last year, the company posted sales of Rs 237 crore, a growth of 24% as an expanding retail sector boosts demand for packaged goods.

The Anil Agarwal-promoted Vedanta, which owns mines and smelting units across the world, wants to consolidate its mining strengths and exit downstream areas. The $ 6.2 billion major is India’s largest producer of zinc and the second-biggest producer of copper. It is also a large producer of aluminium with a capacity of four lakh tonne, marginally behind Hindalco’s 4.10 lakh tonne.

Though the foils segment commands double the margins, volumes here are not large enough. High technical expertise and uninterrupted electricity supply make it a niche area for metal companies. It is typically considered an expert category; hence, most integrated companies don’t want to have foils as they can’t devote much focus on it.

Apart from Vedanta, the other large integrated aluminium player in India is Hindalco Industries. The 40,000-tonne local foil market is currently served by other players such as PG Foils and Ess Dee Aluminium.

India Foils, which has also had a technical collaboration with France’s Pechiney, had last year attracted interest from the world’s largest aluminium company, Alcoa. But it couldn’t be confirmed whether Alcoa is still interested.

Hindalco and Sterlite were once locked in a closely fought battle for India Foils, when metal prices had stagnated and companies moved into high-value categories to counter the slump. Commodities typically function in a cycle and the trend reversed in 2002 after China emerged as the largest consumer of steel and non-ferrous metals. This was also the time when Hindalco consolidated its position in another downstream unit Indal, which was earlier jointly owned by Canadian major Alcan.




India scraps additional customs duty on imported wines & spirits following a complaint by European Union & US in WTO

India has withdrawn Additional Customs Duty instead of State Excise on imported wines and spirits. The Customs Duty on liquor will now remain at 150%, while that on wine has been increased from 100% to the maximum-permissible rate of 150%.

Commerce Secretary GK Pillai told that the government had collected Rs 26 crore from the tax that has been withdrawn. But he expects the government to gain Rs 200 crore on account of cheaper imports.

States will now tax liquor coming from outside their territory, regardless of whether it is imported or locally produced.

The European Union had moved the Dispute Settlement Panel of the WTO complaining of discrimination. It had said that India’s discriminatory taxes were inflating prices of imported spirits and wines by 280% to 550%.




Controversy surrounding BSNL's mega GSM tender likely to resolve, 7.5 Mn lines will be reserved for ITI in Western sector

The controversy surrounding BSNL’s mega GSM tender is likely to be resolved today, when the company's board meets to take a final decision. It is learned from sources in the department of telecom that the 3-G component of the tender is likely to be scrapped. That will bring down the size of the 63 million GSM tender by almost half. It will also bring down the tender price to around $ 90 per line. Sources say a fresh tender for the 3-G portion is likely to be floated at a later date.

Telecom Minister A Raja has decided to disconnect most of the calls taken by his predecessor. But political motives could mean a huge setback for the state owned company BSNL since Raja's moves may stall BSNL's mega GSM tender.

A Raja who had triggered a price renegotiation debate with the lowest bidder Ericsson now wants the 3-G component of this tender to be scrapped, a decision which is likely to be taken by the BSNL board.

3-G, which forms 50% of the 63.5 million lines GSM tender will be scrapped reducing the tender to about 30 million lines. About 7.5 million lines will be reserved for ITI in the Western sector and 22.5 million lines will be set up by Ericsson and Nokia.




Temasek will buy a 4.99% stake in Bharti Airtel, Bharti Enterprises to maintain 45% stake

Singapore government’s investment arm Temasek Holdings will acquire 4.99% stake in the country’s largest private telecom company, Bharti Airtel, as part of separate but possibly back-to-back transactions that will also see Vodafone selling 5.6% in the company.

The net impact of these transactions will be that the shareholding of Bharti Enterprises, the holding company of India’s largest private telco, will rise marginally from its current 45% and the Temasek-Singapore Telecom combine’s holding (Temasek is the largest shareholder in Singtel) will go up to 36%. Temasek deal is worth a little over Rs 8,198 crore (about $ 2 billion).

SingTel holds 30% stake while Vodafone holds 5.62% stake in the telecom major. Other Shareholders, as on Mar 31 include Citigroup Global Markets Mauritius with 1.31% stake, Growth Fund of America with 1.11% stake, CLSA Merchant Bankers with 1.45%, LIC with 1.28% and Morgan Stanley with 1.85%.

Bharti and Vodafone had earlier this year announced that the Newbury-based telco will sell 5.6% equity in Bharti Airtel for $ 1.6 billion in two tranches before November 2008.

This will be Temasek’s second investment in a telecom company in India after it bought 9.9% in Tata Teleservices. Temasek Holdings, the largest shareholder (56%) in Singapore Telecom, holds just over 30% stake in Bharti Airtel.

Bharti executives said despite the deal with Temasek, there will not be a dilution in the promoters’ stake in Bharti Airtel. This implies that the parent company Bharti Enterprises will continue to maintain a controlling interest of a little over 45% in Bharti Airtel. This is because Temasek is indirectly picking up large chunk of the 5.6% stake that British telecom major Vodafone is offloading in Bharti Airtel.

“Vodafone has given us 18 months’ time to buy back its 5.6% direct stake in Bharti Airtel. At the same time, Temasek is picking up stake in one of the Bharti group companies, which translates to a 4.99% indirect stake in Bharti Airtel. Temasek is indirectly picking up the stake that Vodafone will offload. Therefore, net-net, there is no change in the overall shareholding — Bharti Enterprises continues to maintain a controlling interest of over 45% in Bharti Airtel through its subsidiary Bharti Telecom,” a Bharti spokesperson said.

Vodafone had picked up 10% stake in Bharti Airtel in 2005 for $ 1.5 billion. However, following its acquisition of a majority stake in Hutch-Essar for $ 10.9 billion, Vodafone had entered into a share sale agreement with Bharti to sell back the 5.6% direct stake in Bharti Airtel for $ 1.6 billion (Vodafone will continue to hold its 4.39% indirect stake in Bharti Airtel). “The shareholding will be transferred in two tranches, the first before March 31, 2008 and the second by November 2008,” Vodafone had said in May 2007 in a statement after announcing its annual results for the year ended March 31.

Himatsingka Seide acquires 80% stake in Divatex Home Fashions (NY) for $ 53 Mn, Divatex reported $ 151 Mn revenues in 2006

Himatsingka Seide has completed the acquisition of an 80% stake in Divatex Home Fashions Inc. New York. This was consequent to signing definitive agreements in New York on July 01, 2007.

The enterprise value for the transaction was $ 75 million. The company has acquired the 80% stake through its wholly owned subsidiary, Himatsingka America Inc., and will pay $ 53 million for this stake.

Divatex reported revenues of $ 151 million for the year ended December 31, 2006 with an EBITDA of $ 14 million. Divatex was established in 1991 by Avi Gross and Ayelet Gross. It is among the top three distributors of bed linen products in the US.

This acquisition follows the acquisition of Giuseppe Bellora SpA, Italy in February 2007. It is in line with the Himatsingka strategy to forward integrate globally by acquiring high-end brands and large distribution networks in the home textile space. As Divatex is a large distributor of bed linen products, there will be significant synergies for sourcing requirements from the new $ 100 million bed linen facility of Himatsingka at the Hassan Special Economic Zone in Karnataka. The facility has commenced trial production and is likely to commence commercial production in July 2007.

Himatsingka America Inc is headquartered in New York and operates a large warehousing and distribution facility out of South Carolina.

Shrikant Himatsingka, Executive Director, said "Over the past year, Himatsingka has made significant investments in M&A, green field initiatives and organic expansions in its pursuit to emerge as an integrated global home textile company. Having completed two international acquisitions of Giuseppe Bellora and Divatex with combined revenues of approximately Rs 800 crore and the commencement or production at the Rs 400 crore bed linen facility, the company is positioned to achieve consolidated annualized revenues of over Rs 1000 crore. We will continue to explore opportunities for inorganic growth in the branded home textile space."

Dinesh Himatsingka, Managing Director said "Himatsingka will continue to create and strengthen its manufacturing capabilities in India while enhancing its global distribution strengths through acquisitions."




Subhash Projects & Marketing blooms on bagging water project in desert state

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 260.05 and a low of Rs 250 during the day and closed at Rs 260.05. It touched a 52-week high of Rs 273 on 3 January 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 100.40 on 24 July 2006.

The Subhash Projects & Marketing scrip had risen 7.51% over the last one month to 2 July 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.64%. The company had outperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 43.68% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 16.16%.

The share price had declined from Rs 234.55 on 31 May 2007 to Rs 221.80 on 19 June 2007. It gained since then to Rs 247.70 on 2 July 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 34,488 shares in the past one quarter.

The company's current equity is Rs 6.23 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 2.

The current market price of Rs 260.05 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 14, by a PE multiple of 18.57.

Subhash Projects & Marketing announced after market hours on Monday, 2 June 2007, that the company bagged a Rs 267-crore order from PHED, Jodhpur, Rajasthan for work related to supply of water from Jawai & Hemawas Dams (Pali district) to Pali town.

In April 2007, Subhash Projects had bagged power projects worth Rs 309 crore from Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation, Hubli Electricity Supply, and Power Grid Corporation (PGCIL), on a turnkey basis.

Subhash Projects & Marketing’s net profit rose 4.29% to Rs 13.38 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 12.83 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales surged 84.02% to Rs 268.61 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 145.97 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Net profit soared 107.22% to Rs 43.62 crore in the year ended March 2007 (FY 2007) as against Rs 21.05 crore in FY 2006. Sales jumped 120.79% to Rs 808.44 crore FY 2007 as against Rs 366.15 crore in FY 2006.

The company announced the Q4 March 2007 and FY 2007 results during market hours today.

Subhash Projects & Marketing is an engineering, construction and project management company. Its services include water management, power generation, power transmission and distribution, environmental engineering, infrastucture development and engineering consultancy & services.




Real-estate counters stir on the approaching DLF listing

Sobha Developers was up 4.27% to Rs 971.10, Ansal Housing & Construction 2.15% to Rs 245.20, Indiabulls Real Estate 4.34% to Rs 435.00 and Parsvnath Developers 8.54% to Rs 351.45.

DLF debuts on the bourses on Thursday, 5 July 2007. The company had priced its IPO at Rs 525 per share. The price band for the IPO was Rs 500 to Rs 550. At Rs 525 per share, the IPO was priced 159 times its year ended March 2007 EPS of Rs 3.30. Each DLF share has a face value of Rs 2.

Though property prices have stabilised in recent months, they have nearly tripled over the last three years in some cities.

Sobha Developers' net profit surged 69.59% to Rs 61.90 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 36.50 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales jumped 82.67% to Rs 357.30 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 195.60 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Ansal Housing & Construction’s net profit advanced 71.83% to Rs 13.30 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 7.74 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales rose 31.62% to Rs 54.03 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 41.05 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Indiabulls Real Estate reported a net profit of Rs 6.01 crore on total income of Rs 14.39 crore in the quarter ended March 2007. It notched a net profit of Rs 13.12 crore on total income of Rs 27.06 crore in the year ended March 2007 (FY 2007).

Parsvnath Developer’s net profit showed a massive rise of 253.5% to Rs 132.44 crore in Q4 March 2007 as compared to Rs 37.4 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales increased 68.4% to Rs 399.72 crore in Q4 March 2007(Rs 237.33 crore).




European number rings for Patni Computer Systems

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 524.40 and a low of Rs 515 during the day and closed at Rs 516.10. It touched a 52-week high of Rs 572.95 on 29 May 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 251 on 21 July 2006.

The Patni Computer Systems stock had declined 7.18% over the last one month to 2 July 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.64%. The scrip had outperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 36.14% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 16.16%.

The share price had declined from Rs 541.75 on 14 June 2007 to Rs 493.50 on 25 June 2007. It rose since then to Rs 514.20 on 2 July 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 1.49 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The company's current equity is Rs 27.74 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 2.

The current market price of Rs 518.35 discounts its annualized Q1 March 2007 EPS of Rs 34.6 (based on consolidated results as per US GAAP), by a PE multiple of 14.98.

Patni Computer Systems announced during market hours today, 3 July 2007, that it had acquired Europe-based Logan-Orviss International (LOI), a leading independent specialist telecommunications consulting services company.

The consideration for acquisition includes an upfront cash payment on completion of the transaction as well as performance-linked incentive payments on achieving financial targets over a three-year period. LOI ended with revenue of euro 11.8 million in 2006.

Logan-Orviss International will become Patni’s telecommunications consulting & advisory practice, and will be led by Brendan Logan and Colin Orviss, the firm's co-founders.

Patni Computer Systems had announced on 11 June 2007 that it had formed a strategic partnership in UK with Clear Technology, a provider of software solutions for the insurance and financial services industries. Under the terms of the agreement, the company will provide process consulting and system integration services to Clear Technology. This will support Clear Technology in its efforts to fully capitalise on growing demand for its insurance and financial services solutions.

The company's net profit declined 6.09% to Rs 95.99 crore in Q1 March 2007 as against Rs 102.22 crore in Q4 December 2006. Sales dipped 0.49% to Rs 266.59 crore in Q1 March 2007 as compared to Rs 267.91 crore in Q4 December 2006.

Patni Computer Systems provides information technology services and solutions to customers operating in various industry segments. The group operates in seven segments: insurance services, manufacturing, financial services, software vendor, product engineering services, telecom and other.




IDFC mopped up on fund-raising plan

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 135.80 today, which is a lifetime high for the scrip. Its low was Rs 131.15 during the day and closed at Rs 131.70. It had touched a 52-week low of Rs 43.35 on 24 July 2006.

The Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC) scrip had declined 16.07% over the last one month to 2 July 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.64%. The scrip had outperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 71.17% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 16.16%.

The share price had declined from Rs 116.10 on 5 June 2007 to Rs 105.60 on 13 June 2007. It had risen since then to Rs 133.60 on 2 July 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 16.19 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The company's current equity is Rs 1128.47 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 10.

The current market price of Rs 133.60 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 4.4 (based on consolidated results) by a PE multiple of 30.36.

As per the reports, IDFC is planning to shortly raise about $500 million through a qualified institutional placement.

On 25 April 2007, the board of directors of the company had approved a plan to raise capital through issue of equity or quasi-equity instruments upto $ 500 million subject to the approval of the shareholders.

Meanwhile. IDFC has decided to increase its equity stake in equity brokerage SSKI Securities to 66.6%, from 33.33%, the company informed the stock exchanges recently

IDFC's net profit rose 15.69% to Rs 85.09 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 73.55 crore in Q4 March 2006. Operating income jumped 59.6% to Rs 410.38 crore.

Net profit was up 23.22% to Rs 462.87 crore in the year ended March 2007(FY 2007) as against Rs 375.64 crore in FY 2006. Operating income advanced 50.1% to Rs 1,505.74 crore.

IDFC is positioned as a specialised intermediary in infrastructure financing. It also offers non-fund-based products such as guarantees, debt-syndication, and advisory services on project and financial structuring.





Himatsingka Seide gets snapped on shopping for US linen

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 131.80 and a low of Rs 121.45 during the day and closed at Rs 121.95. It had touched a 52-week high of Rs 150 on 29 January 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 86 on 24 July 2006.

The Himatsingka Seide stock had risen 6.94% over the last one month to 2 July 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.64%. The company underperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 3.10% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 16.16%.

The share price rose from Rs 108.95 on 22 June 2007 to Rs 117.95 on 2 July 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 16,704 shares in the past one quarter.

The company's current equity is Rs 48.72 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 5.

The current market price of Rs 122.95 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 5.60 by a PE multiple of 21.95.

Himatsingka Seide said before trading hours today, 3 July 2007, that it has acquired an 80% stake in US-based Divatex Home Fashions Inc. for $53 million. The enterprise value of the transaction is $75 million, it said.

The company has acquired the 80% stake through its wholly owned subsidiary, Himatsingka America Inc

Divatex is among the top three distributors of bed linen products in the US. It is headquartered in New York and operates a large warehousing and distribution facility out of South Carolina. Divatex reported revenue of $151 million in the year ended December 31, 2006 with earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $14 million

In March 2007, Himatsingka Seide acquired a 59.74% stake for euro 20 million (including euro 7 milion of long-term debt) in Giuseppe Bellora SpA, Italy. It had acquired the stake from a private equity firm and the promoter family. In addition, it infused an incremental euro 3.75 million as fresh equity to increase its stake in the Italian firm to 70% Giuseppe Bellora is a pan-European luxury brand in the bed linen segment

The company's net profit declined 24.77% to Rs 8.90 crore Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 11.83 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales rose 14.1% to Rs 43.17 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 37.82 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Net profit rose 13.04% to Rs 54.61 crore in the year ended March 2007 (FY 2007) as against Rs 48.31 crore in FY 2006. Sales advanced 15.83% to Rs 174.16 crore FY 2007 as against Rs 150.36 crore in FY 2006.

Himatsingka Seide is a 100% export oriented unit (EOU), manufacturing and marketing natural silk fabric.





Hero Honda Motors stalled as sales slump in June 2007

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 696.90 and a low of Rs 686.05 during the day and closed at Rs 688.55. It had touched a 52-week high of 809 on 3 July 2006 and a 52 week low of Rs 565 on 19 April 2007.

Hero Honda Motors stock had dipped 3.65% over the last one month to 2 July 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.64%. The company underperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 4.85% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 16.16%.

The share price had fallen from Rs 732.35 on 31 May 2007 to Rs 653.70 on 18 June 2007. It had recovered later to reach Rs 690.80 on 2 July 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 53,353 shares in the past one quarter.

The company's current equity is Rs 39.94 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 2.

The current market price of Rs 690.90 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 43, by a PE multiple of 16.06.

After trading hours on Monday, 2 July 2007, Hero Honda reported 8.4% decline in sales in June 2007 to 2.55 lakh units.

Hero Honda Motors net profit declined 27.02% to Rs 195.00 crore Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 267.19 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales rose 17.01% to Rs 2,639.58 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 2,255.88 crore in Q4 March 2006.

The net profit declined 11.68% to Rs 857.89 crore in the year ended March 2007 (FY 2007) as against Rs 971.34 crore in FY 2006. Sales rose 13.61% to Rs 9,899.96 crore in FY 2007 as against Rs 8,713.98 crore in FY 2006.

Honda Motors announced on 12 June 2007 that the company has decided to close its register of members and share transfer books from 12 July 2007 to 24 July 2007 (both days inclusive) for the purpose of annual general meeting (AGM) to be held on 24 July 2007 and ascertaining the entitlement of members for payment of dividend of 850%, i.e., Rs.17 per equity share of Rs 2 each for FY 2007




Sluggish June 2007 sales do not dent Tata Motors

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 694 and a low of Rs 684 during the day and closed at Rs 687.95. It had touched a 52-week high of 974.80 on 17 January 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 635 on 12 June 2007.

The scrip had dipped 8.45% over the last one month to 2 July 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.64% over the same period. The company underperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 0.43% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 16.16%.

The Tata Motors share price had risen from Rs 641.35 on 12 June 2007 to Rs 684.40 on 26 June 2007. It fell since then to Rs 669.75 on 29 June 2007 before recovering to Rs 684.05 on 2 July 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 3.60 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The company's current equity is Rs 385.43 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 10.

The current market price of Rs 688 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 56.3 (based on consolidated results) by a PE multiple of 12.22.

Tata Motors registered a 2% fall in vehicle sales to 44,317 units in June 2007. Exports rose 5.5% to 5,482 units. Sales of commercial vehicles fell 0.7% to 21,417 units in June 2007, from 21,565 units in June 2006, while sales of cars and utility vehicles dropped 5.7% to 17,418 units in June 2007. The announcement was made after trading hours on Monday, 2 July 2007.

Reports last month suggested that the company had cut the production of passenger cars by 20% at its Pune plant.

Tata Motors net profit rose 25.89% to Rs 576.72 crore in Q4 March 2007, from Rs 458.11 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales moved up 20.11% to Rs 8267 crore (Rs 6882.75 crore).

Net profit was up 25.15% to Rs 1913.46 crore in the year ended March 2007, from Rs 1528.88 crore in FY 2006. Sales jumped 33.31% to Rs 27535.24 crore in FY 2007 as against Rs 20654.35 crore in FY 2006.

Tata Motors said on 21 June 2007 it would raise $450 million (approximately Rs 1,836 crore) by issuing appropriate securities in the international markets. The company has also kept open a greenshoe option.

The funds would be utilised to meet product development expenses apart from other unspecified corporate purposes. The move is part of the Rs 12,000-crore (around $2.6 billion) investment plan that the company intends to make over the next three to four years. The expansion is primarily aimed at meeting the projected rise in demand in domestic and international markets in the future.

The company is into manufacturing of light, medium and heavy commercial vehicles. It also manufactures passenger cars, utility vehicles, excavators and machine tools.




Bonus engineering is on Valecha Engineering's road ahead

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 277.40 and a low of Rs 259.40 during the day and closed at Rs 271.55. It had touched a 52-week high of Rs289.70 on 7 February 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 125 on 24 July 2006.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 25,610 shares in the past one quarter.

Valecha Engineering scrip had gained 3.89% over the last one month to 2 July 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.64% over the same period. The company outperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 27.96% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 16.16%.

The share price had risen from Rs 236.85 on 18 June 2007 to Rs 268.85 on 26 June 2007. It had declined later to reach Rs 252.20 on 2 July 2007.

The company's current equity is Rs 7.95 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 10. The book value is Rs 203.80 per share.

The current market price of Rs 274.40 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 38.01 by a PE multiple of 7.21.

Valecha Engineering announced on Monday, 2 June 2007, after market hours that a meeting of the board of directors of the company will be held on 30 July 2007, to take on record the unaudited financial results for the quarter ended 30 June 2007 and to consider issue of bonus shares.

Valecha Engineering’s net profit declined 95.21% to Rs 1.05 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 21.90 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales rose 61.40% to Rs 80.91 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 50.13 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Net profit inched up 3.51% to Rs 27.75 crore in the year ended March 2007 (FY 2007) as against Rs 26.81 crore in FY 2006. Sales surged 63.70% to Rs 247.81 crore in FY 2007 as against Rs 151.38 crore in FY 2006.

Valecha Engineering said on 18 April 2007 that it bagged new projects worth Rs 100 crore. These projects include road works at New Delhi, Punjab, & Arunchal Pradesh and construction job for Delhi Metro Rail Corporation. This takes its order book position close to the Rs 1000- crore mark.

Valecha Engineering has over the past undertaken turnkey projects for highways, bridges, canals, tunnels, dams and commercial real estate as well as for airports. The company focuses on road projects

Aide says SAIL to cut product prices Rs 700-800/tn today

A report by NW 18 indicates that SAIL will cut product prices by Rs 700-800/tn today. SAIL has cut the prices of flat products by Rs 500-1,000/tn. A recent report by Emkay Stock Brokers stated that they expected steel prices to weaken during 2Q F08 due to (a) Rupee appreciation vis-à-vis US dollar, (b) global softening of steel prices, (c) start of monsoon season resulting in lower construction activity, and (d) increased imports from China.

SAIL has already announced a reduction of upto Rs300/t on various products citing lower appetite of market to absorb current prices. However, we believe the softening is a temporary phenomenon and the prices will rebound once the monsoon is over and demand for steel picks up. We remain positive on the steel cycle given both demand pull and cost push which will likely result in stable price during FY08, the report mentions.

However, they believe that the demand will pick up once the monsoon season ends and construction activity starts again. Given India’s GDP growth target of 9% for FY08 and FY09, we believe the Indian steel industry is likely to witness strong growth. There might be a short-term correction in the steel stocks owing to the factors mentioned above. However, any such weakness in the stock prices should be seen as an opportunity to buy. We remain positive on the steel cycle and favor Tata Steel, SAIL and JSW Steel as our top picks in the sector, the report adds.





IFB Industries washes and rinses clean on sparkling Q4 March 2007 net profit

The results were announced during market hours today, 2 July 2007.

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 27.65 and a low of Rs 26 during the day and closed at Rs 27.65. It had touched a 52-week high of Rs 29.95 on 3 November 2006 and a 52-week low of Rs 14.50 on 4 April 2007.

The IFB Industries scrip had risen 32.47% over the last one month to 29 June 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.73%. The company outperformed the market over the last one quarter gaining 34.40% compared to the Sensex’s appreciation of 12.07%.

The share price had risen from Rs 17.20 on 21 June 2007 to Rs 23.05 on 29 June 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 6,977 shares in the past one quarter.

The company has current equity of Rs 18.04 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 10.

The current market price of Rs 27.65 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 19.55 by a PE multiple of 1.41.

IFB Industries' net profit rose 1,143.27% to Rs 21.26 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 1.71 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales surged 67.14% to Rs 88.85 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 53.16 crore in Q4 March 2006.

The company reported a net profit of Rs 35.26 crore in the year ended March 2007 (FY 2007) as against net loss of Rs 13.80 crore in the previous year ended March 2006 (FY 2006). Sales moved up 26.85% to Rs 324.75 crore in FY 2007 as against Rs 256.02 crore in FY 2006.

IFB Industries manufactures consumer durable products like dryers, washing machines, microwave ovens, dishwashers .




Allying with German company is Gujarat Alkalies & Chemicals' winning strategy

The company made the announcement during market hours today, 2 July 2007.

The scrip had touched high of Rs 156.45 and a low of Rs 142.40 during the day and closed at Rs. 152.60.

The stock had an average daily volume of 1.96 lakh shares on BSE in the past one quarter.

Gujarat Alkalies & Chemicals has 7.34 crore outstanding shares of a face value of Rs 10 each.

At current price of Rs 151.60, the scrip trades at a PE multiple of 5.96, based on year ended March 2007 EPS of Rs 25.4.

The Gujarat Alkalies & Chemicals scrip had fallen 2.93% in the one month to 29 June 2007 versus the Sensex's 0.73% rise. It added 23.81% in the past three months against the Sensex's 12.07% return.

The stock had a hit 52-week high of Rs 195 on 15 September 2006 and a 52-week low of Rs 107.10 on 8 March 2007.

Gujarat Alkalies & Chemicals’ net profit rose 44% to Rs 38.89 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 27.01 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales moved up 12.6% to Rs 262.13 crore in Q4 March 2007 (Rs 232.72 crore).

Net profit dropped 5.8% to Rs 186.56 crore in the year ended March 2007 as against Rs 197.97 crore in FY 2006. Sales jumped 10.7% to Rs 1,044.84 crore in FY 2007 (Rs 944.10 crore).

The state-run Gujarat Alkalies & Chemicals is the largest producer of caustic soda in the country with a total capacity of 3.58 lakh tonnes per annum. The company exports its products to USA, Europe, Australia, Africa, Far & Middle East countries, China and South Asian Markets.






L&T's dual role gets critical acclaim

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 2,275 which is its all-time high and closed at Rs 2234.90. Its low so far during the day was Rs 2,190. It had touched a 52 week low of Rs 978.50 on 24 July 2006.

The L&T scrip had risen 9.88% over the last one month to 29 June 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.73%. The company outperformed the market over the last one quarter, gaining 35.63% compared to the Sensex’s gain of 12.07%.

The share price had risen from Rs 1,870.85 on 13 June 2007 to Rs 2,166.05 on 25 June 2007. It declined later to Rs 2146.20 on 27 June 2007, before recovering to Rs 2,196.05 on 29 June 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 2.02 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The company has a current equity of Rs 56.66 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 2.

The current market price of Rs 2,251.90 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 70.80 (based on consolidated results) by a PE multiple of 31.80.

Faced with an acute shortage in engineering and equipment capacity for the power sector, the government is keen to develop an alternative to Bhel as the key equipment supplier for upcoming power projects. India is slated to add more than 78,000 mega watt (MW)over five years to meet Power For All goal by 2012.

It is estimated that Bhel would have the capacity to meet only 60% of the requirement from its present facilities. Promoting L&T as a clone of Bhel would ensure both competition and additional capacities. L&T has already tied up a joint venture for 800 MW boilers with Mitsubishi and is in advanced stage of discussion regarding turbine and other equipment with Toshiba, Japan.

This move by the government, however, would put spade to NTPC's plans of diversifying into equipment manufacturing. National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) chairman V Krishnamurthy has written to the prime minister's office (PMO) that L&T should be considered as Bhel's clone and NTPC should focus on its core business of power generation.

If the proposal is accepted, L&T could be offered power projects on an negotiated basis as was done earlier in case of Bhel. This would ensure that L&T's investments in manufacturing gets assured customers.

The proposal has been mooted to develop a competitive power equipment market in the country with large players in both public and the private sector. It would also help to eliminate severe shortages of equipment in the market as sole supplier Bhel's order book is full for next five years hampering progress several generation projects.

On 21 June 2007, L&T had won a key contract valued at over $94.95 million for construction of two ships from BigLift Shipping of the Netherlands, a part of the Spliethoff Group. Production of the ships is scheduled to commence in June 2008 and the vessels shall be delivered by March 2010. The vessels will be able to carry all kinds if dry cargo as well as project cargoes and heavy lift in the most efficient manner.

L&T had said on 19 June 2007 that its joint venture with Eastern Contracting LLC had bagged a Rs 610-crore order from Victory Heights Golf Residential and Development LLC, United Arab Emirates, to build a residential property in Dubai Sports City. The project is to be completed in 660 days from the date of commencement.

The company's net profit jumped 50.11% to Rs 700.77 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 466.85 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales climbed up 35.01% to Rs 6,248.24 crore in Q4 March 2007 (Rs 4,627.87 crore).

Net profit scaled up 38.62% to Rs 1,403.02 crore in the year ended March 2007 as against Rs 1,012.14 crore in FY 2006. Sales rose 19.31% to Rs 17,578.84 crore in FY 2007 (Rs 14,733.85 crore).

On 25 June 2007, L&T said its board will meet on 3 July 2007 to consider declaration of special dividend for the year ending March 2008

L&T is one of the largest engineering conglomerates. It manufactures a wide range of engineering products like earthmoving, industrial and chemical machinery, switchgears, valves and welding alloys.






L&T may get Bhel-II status; Govt keen to develop alternative to BHEL as key equipment supplier for upcoming power projects

L&T may get Bhel-II status; Govt keen to develop alternative to BHEL as key equipment supplier for upcoming power projects

Private sector engineering major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) may well be promoted as Bhel-II if the current thinking in the government is anything to go by, reports the ET. Faced with an acute shortage in engineering and equipment capacity for the power sector, the government is keen to develop an alternative to Bhel as the key equipment supplier for upcoming power projects. India is slated to add more than 78,000 mw over five years to meet Power For All goal by 2012.

It is estimated that Bhel would have the capacity to meet only 60% of the requirement from its present facilities. Promoting L&T as a clone of Bhel would ensure both competition and additional capacities. L&T has already tied up a joint venture for 800 mw boilers with Mitsubishi and is in advanced stage of discussion regarding turbine and other equipment with Toshiba, Japan.

This move by the government, however, would put spade to NTPC’s plans of diversifying into equipment manufacturing. National Manufacturing Competitiveness Council (NMCC) chairman V Krishnamurthy has written to the prime minister’s office (PMO) that L&T should be considered as Bhel’s clone and NTPC should focus on its core business.

“The government should consider encouraging L&T as an alternative source of manufacturing of power equipment instead of NTPC venturing into it. I envisage a somewhat different but more exciting role for NTPC,” Krishnamurthy said in his letter.

NMCC recommendations are important as prime minister Manmohan Singh had asked it to give views on the proposal of ministry of power for setting up a manufacturing facility by NTPC for power equipment.

If the proposal is accepted, L&T could be offered power projects on an negotiated basis as was done earlier in case of BHEL. This would ensure that L&T investments in manufacturing gets assured customers.

The proposal has been mooted to develop a competitive power equipment market in the country with large players in both public and the private sector. It would also help to eliminate severe shortages of equipment in the market as sole supplier Bhel’s order book is full for next five years hampering progress several generation projects.

NMCC has said that NTPC equipment model is not practised elsewhere in the globe and therefore the power producer should focus on generation and could consider forging alliances with either Bhel or L&T to undertake balance functions of a power plant. These may include coal handling, ash handling and piping work and developing institutions for project engineering and project management.

For main equipment such as boilers, turbine and generators, the responsibility should lie with Bhel and L&T, NMCC chairman has said.Mr Krishnamurthy has also asked PMO’s permission to examine the status of L&T projects independently in consultation with ministries of power and heavy industries so that necessary support could be extended for its fast-track competition.






Hindalco Industries unmoved by plans to secure future

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 163.95 and a low of Rs 158 during the day and closed at Rs 158.45. It had touched a 52-week high of Rs 192.75 on 1 November 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 125.25 on 7 March 2007.

The scrip had risen 13.70% over the last one month to 29 June 2007 compared to Sensex’s return of 0.73%. The company outperformed the market over the last one quarter, gaining 22.91% compared to the Sensex’s gain of 12.07%.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 13.36 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The company has current equity of Rs 122.71 crore, with each share of a face value of rupee one.

The Hindalco Industries share price had jumped from Rs 140.85 on 31 May 2007 to Rs 171.10 on 26 June 2007. It declined later and settled at Rs 160.15 on 29 June 2007.

The current market price of Rs 161.15 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 25 by a PE multiple of 6.44.

Hindalco Industries announced during market hours today, 2 July 2007, that the company has entered into a joint venture (JV)agreement with Mahanadi Coal (MCL), a subsidiary of Coal India, and with Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC), for Talabira II and III coal blocks in Orissa. The joint venture company (JV) is expected to be formed in the next 3-6 months and the company will have 15% shareholding, with MCL holding 70% and NLC holding 15%.

The JV is expected to commence coal mining of 20 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) by late 2009-early 2010. At full capacity, Hindalco will evacuate 3 mtpa for end use in the captive power plant to operate the smelter in its project Aditya Aluminium in Orissa. The JV is subject to the final approval of the government of India and the respective boards.

On 15 May 2007, Hindalco Industries through its wholly-owned subsidiary AV Metals Inc. acquired 7.54 crore (100%) common shares of Novelis.

Promoters now hold a 31.05% stake in Hindalco after the company made preferential allotment of 6.75 crore shares to promoters in April 2007 at Rs 172.87 a piece. Before the preferential allotment their holding was just a little over 27%. Their stake will go up further if and to the extent promoters exercise option of conversion of warrants into equity.

Hindalco Industries' net profit rose 15.17% to Rs 721.30 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 626.30 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales were up 29.84% to Rs 4,748.90 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 3,657.40 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Net profit rose 54.90% to Rs 2,564.30 crore in the year ended March 2007(FY 2007) as against Rs 1,655.50 crore in the previous year ended March 2006(FY 2006). Sales jumped 60.69% to Rs 18,313.00 crore in FY 2007 as against Rs 11,396.50 crore in FY 2006.

Hindalco Industries, a flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group, is a leading producer of aluminium and copper.





Investors lend support to IFCI's search for strategic investor to lend a helping hand

The company made the announcement after market hours on Friday, 29 June 2007.

IFCI said it would also take on record its audited financial results for the quarter ended June 2007 on the same day.

The scrip had touched a high of Rs 60.50 today which its 52-week high and closed at Rs 59.60. Its low was Rs 56.55 during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 7.73 on 24 July 2006.

The stock had an average daily volume of 1.33 crore shares on BSE in the past one quarter.

IFCI has 63.99 crore outstanding shares of a face value of Rs 10 each.

At the current price of Rs 59.50, the scrip trades at a PE multiple of 4.21, based on its year ended March 2007 EPS of Rs 14.1.

The IFCI scrip had gained 18.81% in the one month to 29 June 2007 versus the Sensex's 0.73% rise. It added 66.37% in the past three months against the Sensex's 12.07% return.

IFCI would come out with a public announcement inviting interested parties for the proposed 26% stake. As per the plan, strategic investors will have to make bids within a month of the announcement being made public. Thereafter, IFCI will shortlist some investors.

The state-run lender is seeking a strong partner, be it an Indian entity or from overseas, which can add value to the company.

The 26% stake sale is part of IFCI's aim of being a world-class term-lending institution and not converting itself into a bank.

Currently, Life Insurance Corporation is the single-largest shareholder with 8.4%, followed by IDBI Bank at 5%. A large chunk of 26% stake is held by the public, another 21.8% is with foreign institutional investors, and 13.6% is held by private corporate entities.

The state-run lender reported a net profit of Rs 668.43 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against a net loss of Rs 1.11 crore in Q4 March 2006. Income from operations rose 41% to Rs 1052.62 crore.

Net profit was Rs 898.02 crore in the year ended March 2007 compared to a net loss of Rs 74.10 crore in the year ended March 2006. Income from operations rose 21% to Rs 1989.73 crore

IFCI's principal activities are project financing, providing financial services and comprehensive corporate advisory services. The company also provides equipment finance, equipment credit, equipment leasing, corporate loans, short-term loans and working capital loans to meet the specific needs of corporates.





On touching base in US, Welspun Gujarat Stahl Rohren takes off

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 239.35 today, 2 July 2007, which is a record high for the scrip. It had hit a low of Rs 222.95 during the day and closed at Rs 238.05. It had touched a 52-week low of Rs 46.60 on 25 July 2006.

The Welspun Gujarat Stahl Rohren scrip had jumped 24.11% over the last one month to 29 June 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.73% over the same period. The company outperformed the market over the past quarter, gaining 113.67% compared to the Sensex’s rise of 12.07%.

The share price had risen from Rs 175.65 on 13 June 2007 to Rs 221.90 on 29 June 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 13.49 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The company's current equity is Rs 70.33 crore, with each share of a face value of Rs 5.

The current market price of Rs 231.30 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 10.20 by a PE multiple of 22.67.

Welspun-Gujarat Stahl Rohren announced during market hours today, 2 July 2007, that it plans to build a manufacturing facility in Little Rock, Arkansas, US, on a 140-acre site adjacent to the Little Rock Port authority.

The $100-million facility, once completed, will be capable of producing 3,00,000 tonnes of tubular steel pipes annually for use in the oil and gas industry. The company will hire about 300 workers and hopes to bring production by spring 2008.

With majority of its production exported to the US, the company has a very strong presence in the US. The company currently has manufacturing facilities in Dahej and Anjar in Gujarat, India.

On 11 June 2007, the company had bagged Rs 1,166-crore export orders for the supply of line pipes overseas. The new orders have taken the company's pending order book position to approximately Rs 5,166 crore.

On 14 April 2007, Welspun Gujarat Stahl Rohren had decided to raise Rs 215 crore by issuing convertible or non-convertible securities, warrants to promoter group.

The company's net profit soared 113.92% to Rs 41.50 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 19.40 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales were up 13.06% to Rs 728.10 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 644.00 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Net profit soared 132.63% to Rs 142.60 crore in the year ended March 2007(FY 2007) as against Rs 61.30 crore in FY 2006. Sales jumped 46.38% to Rs 2,678.50 crore in FY 2007 as against Rs 1,829.80 crore in FY 2006. <> Welspun Gujarat Stahl Rohren’s business include production and coating of high grade submerged arc welded pipes and electric resistance welded pipes.





Bajaj Auto fends off weak sales in June 2007

The announcement was made by the company on Sunday, 1 July 2007.

The scrip had touched a high of Rs 2,147 and a low of Rs 2,081 during the day and closed at Rs 2129.20.

The stock had an average daily volume of 1.16 lakh shares on BSE in the past one quarter.

Bajaj Auto has 10.11 crore outstanding shares of face value of Rs 10 each.

At the current price of Rs 2,128, the stock trades at a PE multiple of 16.98, based on year ended March 2007 (consolidated) EPS of Rs 125.3.

The Bjaja Auto scrip had fallen 4.29% in the one month to 29 June 2007 versus the Sensex's 0.73% rise. It declined 12.23% in the past three months against Sensex's 12.07% appeciation.

The stock had hit a 52-week high of Rs 3,175 on 13 October 2006 and a 52-week low of Rs 2,063 on 19 June 2007.

Bajaj Auto said vehicle sales in June 2007 fell 12% to 1,87,624 units, from 213,918 units in June 2006. Its motorcycles sales dipped 12% to 1,62,253 units, from 1,83,549 units, and sales of all two-wheelers dropped 12% to 1,64,758 units, from 1,88,231 units.

Sales of three-wheelers slid 11% to 22,866 units from 25,687 in June 2007. The company’s exports rose 42% to 48,675 units from 34,369.

Bajaj also said it will launch a new motorbike in September 2007, with an initial sales target of 50,000 units a month by January 2008.

Bajaj Auto’s net profit declined 11.1% to Rs 308.31 crore in Q4 March 2007, from Rs 346.97 crore in Q4 march 2006. Sales moved up 6.8% to Rs 2,313.55 crore in Q4 March 2007 (Rs 2,165.86 crore).

Net profit scaled up 10.1% to Rs 1,237.10 crore in the year ended March 2007 as against Rs 1,123.27 crore in FY 2006. Sales jumped 24.2% to Rs 9,520.41 crore in FY 2007 (Rs 7,667.90 crore).

Bajaj Auto manufactures two- and three-wheeler vehicles. Its other activities include insurance and investment business.

On 17 May 2007, the board of Bajaj Auto approved a demerger scheme, splitting group into three separate entities with the creation of two new companies. As per the demerger scheme, the company's various businesses including auto manufacturing and other strategic businesses such as wind energy, insurance and financial services, would be demerged into two newly incorporated subsidiaries: Bajaj Holdings and Investment (BHIL) and Bajaj Finserv (BFL).

The manufacturing business would vest in BHIL and other strategic businesses would vest in BFL. After the demerger, for each share of Bajaj Auto, the shareholders would continue to hold one share of the company with face value of Rs 10 and would also be allotted one BHIL share of Rs 10 face value and one BFL share of Rs 5 face value.

As part of the restructuring, BHIL would be renamed Bajaj Auto and the existing Bajaj Auto would be renamed as Bajaj Holdings and Investment.





With June sales submerging Maruti Udyog, share price leaps up

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 788.40 and a low of Rs 742.55 during the day and closed at Rs 771.35. It had touched a 52-week high of Rs 991.40 on 3 October 2006 and a 52-week low of Rs 691 on 24 July 2006.

The Maruti Udyog stock had declined 9.12% over the last one month to 29 June 2007 compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.73% over the same period. The company underperformed the market over the last one quarter, declining 9.34% compared to the Sensex’s gain of 12.07%.

The share price had declined from Rs 825 on 28 May 2007 to Rs 719.40 on 12 June 2007. It had gained since then to Rs 768.60 on 20 June 2007 before dipping again. It had settled at Rs 743.10 on 29 June 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 1.92 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The company has a current equity of Rs 144.46 crore, with a face value of Rs 5.

The current market price of Rs 783.10 discounts its FY 2007 EPS of Rs 54.06, by a PE multiple of 14.48.

Maruti Udyog said during market hours today, 2 July 2007, that it sold 59,917 vehicles in June 2007, up 24% from 48,425 vehicles sold in June 2006.

Maruti Udyog is 54.2 % owned by Japan's Suzuki Motor Corporation and sold 56,000 units in the domestic market in June 2007, up 25.5% from 44,626 units in June 2006. It exported 3,917 units in June 2007, up 3% from 3,799 units in June 2006.

On 4 May 2007, the government divested its entire holding in Maruti Udyog (MUL) by selling the residual 10.27% stake for Rs 2360 crore to a clutch of banks and insurance companies, at an average price of Rs 797 a share. In all, 32 financial institutions and mutual funds were allotted shares in Maruti.

Maruti’s net profit rose 24.3% to Rs 448.56 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 360.92 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales advanced 35.2% to Rs 4429.76 crore in Q4 March 2007 (Rs 3277.01 crore).

Net profit jumped 31.4% to Rs 1,561.98 in the year ending March 2007 (FY 2007) as against Rs 1,189.05 crore in FY 2006. Sales scaled up 21.6% to Rs 14,653.89 crore in FY 2007 (Rs 12052.24 crore).





Investors see red despite Kernex Microsystems signalling bonus

The scrip hd hit a high of Rs 261 and a low of Rs 244.90 during the day and closed at Rs 244.90. It touched a 52-week high of Rs 264 on 29 June 2007 and a 52-week low of Rs 123 on 3 April 2007.

The Kernex Microsystems scrip had gained 78.19% over the last one month compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.73%. The company outperformed the market over the last one quarter rising 104.48% compared to the Sensex’s gain of 12.07%.

The share price had declined from Rs 193.65 on 8 June 2007 to Rs 166.25 on 14 June 2007. It gained since then to Rs 257.75 on 29 June 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 45,900 shares in the past one quarter.

The company has a current equity of Rs 11.36 crore, with a face value of Rs 10.

The current market price of Rs 244.90 discounts the FY 2007 EPS of Rs 5.62 by a PE multiple of 43.57.

After trading hours on Friday 29 June 2007, Kernex Microsystems India's board approved issue of 1:10 bonus shares.

Kernex Microsystems' net profit rose 58.2% to Rs 0.87 crore in Q4 March 2007 as against Rs 0.55 crore in Q4 March 2006. Sales declined 50.4% to Rs 5.42 crore in Q4 March 2007 compared to Rs 10.93 crore in Q4 March 2006.

Kernex Microsystems manufactures, instals and maintains anti-collision systems as well as conceptualizing, designing, and developing certain railway safety and signal systems for Konkan Railways Corporation .





GMR Infrastructure splits shares, hits all-time high

The company made the announcement on Saturday, 30 June 2007.

The scrip had touched a high of Rs 768.95 today, which is its all-time high. It had touched a low of Rs 729.80 during the day and closed at Rs 764.90. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 205 on 24 August 2006.

The stock had an average daily volume of 4.41 lakh shares on BSE in the past one quarter.

At the current price of Rs 758.55, the scrip trades at a PE multiple of 8428.3 based on its year ended March 2007 EPS of Rs 0.09.

The GMR Infrastructure scrip had gained 50.36% in the one month to 29 June 2007 versus the Sensex's 0.73% rise. It added 107.63% in the past three months against the Sensex's 12.07% return.

GMR Infrastructure acquired 99.99% equity share capital of GVL Investments (GVL) in the year ended March 2007.

The company reported net profit of Rs 12.37 crore on sales of Rs 22.01 crore in Q4 March 2007.

Net profit declined 91.89% to Rs 2.88 crore in the year ended March 2007 as against Rs 35.55 crore in FY 2006. Sales slipped 41.9% to Rs 33.39 crore in FY 2007 (Rs 57.44 crore).

GMR Infrastructure's principal activity is to generate, transmit and distribute electrical power. It is also into development, maintenance and operation of airports and roads.




Spentex's Czech-company-takeover yarn is good and true

The scrip had hit a high of Rs 41.65 and a low of Rs 38.10 during the day and closed at Rs 40.30. It had touched a 52-week high of Rs 76.85 on 27 December 2006 and a 52-week low of Rs 35.75 on 4 June 2007.

The Spentex Industries scrip had gained 0.79% over the last one month compared to the Sensex’s return of 0.73% over the same period. The company underperformed the market over the last one quarter, declining 29.85% compared to the Sensex’s gain of 12.07%.

The share price had rose from Rs 37.85 on 21 June 2007 to Rs 38.30 on 29 June 2007.

The scrip had an average daily volume of 24,780 shares in the past one quarter.

The company's equity capital is Rs 71.47 crore with a face value of Rs 10.

The current market price of Rs 38.75 discounts the annualised EPS of Rs Rs 5.54 in the quarter ended December 2006 by a PE multiple of 6.99.

At its meeting held on Saturday, 30 June 2007, Spentex Industries' board of directors approved the purchase of Schoeller Litvinov k.s. (Schoeller) in Czech Republic. The company made this announcement before market hours on Monday, 2 July 2007.

The acquisition of Schoeller was made for $25 million. The transaction will enhance the top line of the company by about euro 55 million and add another euro 6 million per year in cash flows. Schoeller is a leading yarn manufacturer in Europe with operations in Germany, the Benelux countries, France and the Czech Republic with customer base spread across European Union.

Spentex's net profit jumped 116.9% to Rs9.24 crore in Q3 December 2006 compared to Rs 4.26 crore in Q3 December 2005. Sales surged 164.1% to Rs 191.85 crore in Q3 December 2006 as against Rs 72.65 crore in Q3 December 2005.

On 15 February 2007, Spentex Industries had acquired 14,500 shares in Amit Spinning Industries through the open market route on 1 February 2007 and 2 February 2007. Post-acquisition, Spentex Industries shareholding in Amit Spinning Industries stands at 50.96%

Spentex Industries is one of the largest yarn manufacturers in the country.