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AI open bidding not to NEW DELHI, Nov 7: The Central Vigilance Commissioner’s ban on post-tender negotiations will continue despite Mr N Vittal agreeing to.......more
Clinton signs $ 435m WASHINGTON, Nov 7: U.S. President Bill Clinton has praised advocates....more Professionals from MUMBAI, Nov 7: Three professionals—Mr K P Balaraj, Mr Sumir Chadha and Mr Raj Dugar— from....more Canara Bank not to go MUMBAI, Nov 7: Public sector Canara Bank has decided not to go for Initial Public Offer (IPO) of its ....more |
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I am impressed with MUMBAI, Nov 7: The World Bank chief James D Wolfensohn has expressed satisfaction over a range of steps taken by Maharashtra Government on financial and developmental programmes in the state, some of which are aided by the bank.......more Govt meeting with MUL NEW DELHI, Nov 7: Government today called off the proposed meeting with the management of Maruti Udyog in its bid to settle industrial unrest in the auto company and said it would not interfere in the ongoing tussle with the employees who are on a stike for more than a month now......more KARACHI, Nov 7: Pakistani stocks were down in early trade on Tuesday in the absence of institutional support that also discouraged fresh retail inflows, dealers said.......more WTO’s Moore says more LONDON, Nov 7: China needs to do more work to join the World Trade Organisation, Mike Moore, Director-General of the Organisation, told a conference in London yesterday....more |
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AI open bidding not to dilute CVC tender norms NEW DELHI, Nov 7: The Central Vigilance Commissioner’s ban on post-tender negotiations will continue despite Mr N Vittal agreeing to Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie’s proposal for open bidding for divestment in Air India and Indian Airlines. "Mr Arun Shourie’s proposal for open bidding does not cover the post-tender negotiations. The ban on post-tender negotiations would continue", Mr Vittal told UNI on the sidelines of an MMTC function yesterday. The Disinvestment Minister has mooted the proposal for open bidding for Air India disinvestment with the objective of realising higher valuations for the national carrier. Under the proposal, yet to be cleared by the cabinet committee on disinvestment, the bidders will be asked to improve upon the highest bid even after the close of the bids on November 10. The fact that the CCD has not cleared Mr Shourie’s proposal would not come in the way of the bidding process. "This could be worked out at the time of signing the shareholders’ agreement", official sources in the DoD said. The CVC had imposed the ban on post-tender negotiations with a view to checking manipulations in Government deals even after the bids are completed. Mr Vittal is firm on maintaining these guidelines. Besides arguing that the mechanism proposed by the Disinvestment Department for open bidding would not run contrary to his no post-tender guidelines, Mr Vittal said, "Mr Arun Shourie is a man with a clean image". He said Mr Shourie had given examples of many foreign countries including Britain where the open bidding has resulted in higher realisations in disinvestments. (UNI) |
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Clinton signs $ 435m debt relief package WASHINGTON, Nov 7: U.S. President Bill Clinton has praised advocates of debt relief for the world’s poorest countries while signing into law a foreign aid bill providing 435 million dollars for debt servicing. The money will be sent to the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF), which jointly administer the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries initiative (HIPC) Trust Fund. It will be used to pay off the lenders of up to 20 qualifying countries by the end of the year. The 435-million-dollar total marks a victory for Clinton and debt relief advocates, such as U2 lead singer Bono, who lobbied Congress to fully fund the U.S. contribution. Clinton had pledged 920 million dollars for HIPC assistance four years ago, but last year, Congress approved 110 million dollars. The funding delay had held up debt relief programmes for Bolivia and Burkina Faso. Clinton said it was not only good for the global economy to relieve debt but a moral imperative for rich nations to assist the poor during times of plenty. "Our nation is taking this important step today," he said, "because we understand that making the global economy work for everyone is not a political nicety but an economic, strategic and moral necessity. "Here in our nation, this will be remembered as a time of great plenty. But we cannot forget that for too many in the world, it is still a time of astonishing poverty. Nearly half the human race -2.8 billion people - lives on less than two dollars a day." The funding also will give the green light to the IMF to apply 800 million dollars from its gold-reserves sales to debt relief. In July, the European Union committed 950 million dollars to debt relief over the next two years, with 734 million allocated to the HIPC Trust Fund. At a White House ceremony, Clinton praised his debt relief allies in Congress, members of Non-Governmental Organizations working for debt relief, African aid advocates, as well as international advocates ranging from Pope John Paul II to Bono. Most of the 11 countries approved for debt relief are located in sub-Saharan Africa, which Clinton said became saddled by "dictators who have now fled the scene". The qualifying countries include Benin, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Honduras, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Senegal, Tanzania, Cameroon and Uganda. A total of 31 billion dollars in debt relief has been committed to 20 countries over the next several years. The countries must design a debt relief plan and comply with strict economic targets set by the IMF to receive relief. Debt relief can make a huge difference for many countries by giving them the ability to free up hundreds of millions of dollars used to make interest and debt service payments. The extra money could be used for education and infrastructure improvements, Clinton said. The foreign aid Bill, which allocates a total of 14.9 billion dollars, also includes 100 million dollars of development aid that will go to Serbia on the condition it cooperates with the international war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in the Hague. It would be the first U.S. aid sent to Serbia since Yugoslav strongman Slobodan Milosevic stepped aside last month. (DPA) |
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Professionals from Goldman
Sachs form MUMBAI, Nov 7: Three professionals—Mr K P Balaraj, Mr Sumir Chadha and Mr Raj Dugar— from international research and analytical firm Goldman Sachs have formed a US dollar 140 million venture capital fund with the support from global leaders like Goldman Sachs, Sun Technology and Capital Z Investments. The fund, westbridge capital, will primarily focus on cross-border Indian technology companies that leverage international markets for earnings. It plans to invest in Information Technology (IT) and IT-enabled products and services as well as companies developing breakthrough technologies and internet-based products and services. Mr Subhash Arora, the co-founder of the HCL Group of Companies and Techspan, is an operating director of the fund. Besides institutional investors like Merrill Lynch, Fidelity, Reuters and Tibco, individuals like Suhas Patil, Arjun Malhotra, B V Jagadeesh, Rajat Gupta and Lakshmi Mittal have also invested in the fund. Mr Sumir Chadha, Managing Director, said that the fund would help the Indian entrepreneurs building successful global business particularly in the US market through our team’s experiences, powerful investor base and our advisory council of leading entrepreneurs and industrialists. So far, the fund has invested about US dollar 2 million in intercept consultancy firm, a Chennai-based IT company. Several other proposals including wireless technology are in the process of evaluation for investment by the fund. (UNI) |
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Canara Bank not to go for IPO of its equity MUMBAI, Nov 7: Public sector Canara Bank has decided not to go for Initial Public Offer (IPO) of its equity shares in the current financial year. According to bank officials, the postponement of the IPO after March next year was taken in light of the sluggish conditions in the capital market and it would provide time for the bank to improve its balance sheet. The bank which had the net Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) at 7.09 per cent in 1998-99, has fixed a target of 4 per cent NPAs by the end of March 2001. In 1999-2000, the NPA was 5.28 per cent. The bank also fixed its net profit at Rs 500 crore for the current financial year as against the profit of Rs 236 crore recorded as on March 30, 2000. Officials said that the performance in the first half of the current year was in line with the projected figures and the deposits and advances of the bank are likely to grow by 17 to 20 per cent during the year. The bank is currently engaged in upgrading the existing hardware and software systems along with expansion of branch network in order to improve the level of customer service. (UNI) |
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I am impressed with Maha
Govt’s white paper: MUMBAI, Nov 7: The World Bank chief James D Wolfensohn has expressed satisfaction over a range of steps taken by Maharashtra Government on financial and developmental programmes in the state, some of which are aided by the bank. "I am very impressed by Maharashtra Government’s white paper on its financial position introduced in October 1999 and want to convey my admiration for the steps taken over the fiscal management of the state", Wolfensohn told reporters after his meeting with Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh at the latter’s official residence here today. Terming the meeting as a "positive step" towards further development in Maharashtra, the WB chief said the plans adopted by the State Government were "appropriate" and it was a wonderful start for his trip to India. The meeting, which commenced at 8.15 am and ended at 9.35 am, included a presentation and discussion over the steps taken by the state in the developmental issues of power, water supply, forest management, population, healthcare (AIDS), roads and also the WB funded Mumbai Urban Transport Project (MUTP). Asked whether Maharashtra was abiding by conditions laid down by the WB, Wolfensohn said there was some misconception about the bank and its policies and that his job was to support the Chief Minister on developmental issues and not run his Government. Wolfensohn, who also met Reserve Bank of India Governor Bimal Jalan, said he was satisfied with the apex bank’s policies and that "it was doing a great job". Referring to the state’s recent decision to trifurcate of the State Electricity Board (MSEB), Wolfenson termed it as a step in the right direction. It may be recalled that the ruling DF trifucated MSEB at a specially convened cabinet meeting on Saturday ahead of the WB team’s visit to the metropolis. The WB had put on hold loans to Maharashtra pending introduction of power reforms in the state. Over WB’s participation in the much hyped Sardar Sarovar Project, Wolfensohn made it clear that the international body was not involved in the next phase of the project. Besides Deshmukh, Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal State Finance Minister Jayant Patil, Energy Minister Padmasinh Patil and some other cabinet members along with a battery of high-level officials including Chief Secretary Arun Bongirwar were present at the meeting. (PTI) |
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Govt meeting with MUL management called off NEW DELHI, Nov 7: Government today called off the proposed meeting with the management of Maruti Udyog in its bid to settle industrial unrest in the auto company and said it would not interfere in the ongoing tussle with the employees who are on a stike for more than a month now. We are closely monitoring the situation and will take suitable action at an appropriate time. But, we will not intervene in the matter at this moment, Heavy Industries Minister Manohar Joshi told PTI here. He, however, said there would be no formal meeting with the management on the issue. There was no meeting with the MUL management today and no such meeting has been called at a later date, he said when asked about the proposed meeting with the management as announced by his Junior Minister V B Kathiria yesterday. Kathiria had said yesterday that Joshi and top officials of the ministry would meet the management representatives on Tuesday. MUL, India’s largest car maker, is an equal joint venture between the Government and Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan. (PTI) |
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KARACHI, Nov 7: Pakistani stocks were down in early trade on Tuesday in the absence of institutional support that also discouraged fresh retail inflows, dealers said. The Karachi Stock Exchange’s key 100-share index was down 6.94 points, or 0.46 percent, at 1,514.17 points at 0519 gmt. Losers led gainers 28 to 16 on a turnover of 14 million shares. "There is very little interest in the market, but it appears that the market will maintain its current level," said Shuja Rizvi, a dealer at Investcap Securities. He said that some were selling Pakistan state oil on lack of support from the institutions. The PSO shed 2.50 rupees to 160.60 rupees, Hub Power Co Ltd fell 10 paisas to 18.20 rupees, while Pakistan Telecommunications Co Ltd slipped 20 paisas to 24.90 rupees. (REUTERS) |
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WTO’s Moore says more work to be done on China LONDON, Nov 7: China needs to do more work to join the World Trade Organisation, Mike Moore, Director-General of the Organisation, told a conference in London yesterday. Moore said that although China would join the free-trade body, there was a question as to whether it would be a matter of "weeks or months". "More flexibility, a new burst of political energy is required if China is to join soon," Moore told the conference, organised by the Royal Institute for International Affairs. China inched closer to joining the World Trade Organisation after talks in Geneva, the home of the WTO on Monday, but some of the thorniest legal issues have yet to be resolved despite progress in informal multilateral talks. "There is still a lot of work to be done in Geneva to reach agreement," Moore said. Closed-door talks with Mexico, the last country with which Beijing must reach a bilateral deal before it can join the 139-nation bloc after 14 years of trying, continued yesterday. Without a final agreement, WTO Spokesman Keith Rockwell said. But a separate informal meeting of the WTO working party negotiating the terms of China’s accession was "constructive and businesslike", Rockwell added. Formal multilateral talks to wrap up the legal framework are likely on Thursday, though it is highly improbable that China’s vast market will win WTO status before the end of the year. Agreement was reached on seven of the 11 legal issues that will form the basis of China’s accession terms. "The admonishment that was handed out last time had been taken on board," Rockwell said, pointing to progress on agricultural and industrial policy and subsidies, intellectual property and quotas for goods imported under special tariffs. But some of the trickiest areas — trading rights, anti-dumping rules, non-tariff trade barriers and safeguards covering China’s transition to WTO status — remain unresolved. There has been speculation China was deliberately dragging its feet as a negotiating tactic to exact last-minute concessions and win extra time for its ailing state firms to prepare for the rigours of competition under WTO rules. China’s top negotiator in the talks said, however, that the world’s most populous nation was not trying to buy time before enacting the most far-reaching reforms since it opened its communist economy to the outside world in 1978. "To what we have committed to we should implement 100 percent, no problem," Long Yongtu told Reuters television. "But we cannot go beyond our WTO agreements. We are only requesting accession to the WTO, not accession to WTO-plus." China has insisted it still hopes to enter the bloc by the end of this year after resolving outstanding issues with the EU last month and winning the backing of the US Senate in September, despite opposition from human rights groups. But long has sought to avoid being tied to a deadline and told the washington post last month that the middle of 2001 would be more realistic. "We hope to wrap up as soon as possible but I think we should not set a time limit," he said. (REUTERS) |
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