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India’s forex reserves
MUMBAI, Dec 13: India’s foreign exchange reserves surged ahead by over USd one billion for the second time within a month and crossed the USd 97 .........more US
shrimpers to seek WASHINGTON, Dec 13: Shrimpers in the southern United States will soon ask the Bush administration to slap duties on shrimp shipments from...more Cold weather heats oil prices, gold soars CHICAGO, Dec 13: Oil prices heated up on Friday, with crude prices surging past 33 a barrel as forecasts for a cold weekend in the US northeast ....more SHIMLA, Dec 13: The royal delicious apples of Himachal Pradesh are on their way to Singapore and Dubai from this small little hill......more |
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Banks urged to give DEHRADUN, Dec 13: The banks should adopt transparent system of credit ratings of the companies, on the basis of which credit is offered at flexible ....more Bush backs strong US dollar, links to economy WASHINGTON, Dec 13: President George W Bush on Friday sought to come to the verbal rescue of the US dollar as it touched record lows,......more NSW
looks for closer CHENNAI, Dec 13: The Australian state of New South Wales looks forward to sharing opportunities in the knowledge- ....more A N Choudhary Chairman of college of textile technology KOLKATA, Dec 13: President and CEO Jaya Shree Textiles Rishra Amar Nath Choudhary has been appointed....more |
India’s forex reserves race past USd 97 bn MUMBAI, Dec 13: India’s foreign exchange reserves surged ahead by over USd one billion for the second time within a month and crossed the USd 97 billion mark. During the week ended December 5, record inflows saw a further accretion to the foreign exchange reserves by USd 1,449 million and stood at USd 97,520 million, according to Reserve Bank of India’s weekly statistical supplement. During the week ended November 21, forex reserves had recorded inflows of USd 1,710 million. Going by the current level of inflows, forex reserves should touch USd 100 billion mark by this month end, dealers said. The foreign currency assets during the reporting period rose by USd 1,331 million at USd 93,479 million. RBI said gold reserves grew by USd 118 million due to revaluation to reach USd 4,038 million while special drawing rights remained unchanged at USd three million respectively. Reserve Tranche Position (RTP) with the international monetary policy increased by USd five million at USd 1,224 million. The RTP may change, from time to time, due to India’s transactions under financial transaction plan with the IMF. RBI said the loans and advances for Central Government maintained their nil balance while that for State Governments grew by Rs 335 crore to Rs 6,218 crore. Aggregate deposits of scheduled commercial banks for the fortnight ended November 28 grew by Rs 10,895 crore (0.8 per cert) at Rs 14,03,322 crore while bank credit also increased by Rs 4,711 crore to Rs 7,66,636 crore. Food credit grew by Rs 1,023 crore at Rs 36,461 crore, and non-food credit rose by Rs 3,688 crore at Rs 7,30,175 crore in the fortnight, RBI added. (PTI) |
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US shrimpers to seek duties on rising imports WASHINGTON, Dec 13: Shrimpers in the southern United States will soon ask the Bush administration to slap duties on shrimp shipments from Thailand, Vietnam, China and possibly elsewhere to stem fast-growing imports of the shellfish, a US industry official said on Friday. "We are filing by the end of the year" for punitive duties, said Deborah Regan, spokeswoman for the southern Shrimp alliance. The industry group, representing shrimpers in Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, north Carolina, south Carolina and Texas, complain several countries have flooded the US market with pond-raised shrimp at below-market prices. The imports eliminated more than 200,000 American jobs from 2000 to 2002, Regan said. She said imports from Thailand, China and Vietnam — the top three shrimp exporters to the United States — would be included in a petition to be filed with the US commerce department by Dec 31. She left open the possibility other countries would be targeted. Industry estimates put total imports at 5 billion to 6 billion annually in the United States. Shrimp became the top-selling seafood in the United States last year, overtaking Tuna, the longtime king. The Bush administration will be asked to place the duties as the 2004 US Presidential and Congressional elections come into view. The eight southern states are important to republican political aspirations. Foreign interests, as well as US shrimp distributors, wholesalers and restaurants, already are gearing up to fend off any duties. Wally Stevens, president of the Boston-based American seafood distributors association, said in a telephone interview it was less expensive to produce pond-raised foreign shrimp than to catch American wild shrimp. "It’s the difference between technology versus hunting. It’s very, very difficult for a hunted resource to compete with a manufactured resource," Stevens said. The United States is too cold for large-scale shrimp farming, Stevens said, especially since countries with warmer climates can produce two or three crops a year. Stevens said that to compete, the American shrimp industry should promote the "distinct characteristics and uniqueness" of wild-caught shrimp. Regan countered that the southern shrimp alliance was waging a new marketing campaign, but "that’s not going to stop the flood of unfair trade." (AGENCIES) |
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Cold weather heats oil prices, gold soars CHICAGO, Dec 13: Oil prices heated up on Friday, with crude prices surging past 33 a barrel as forecasts for a cold weekend in the US northeast bolstered expectations of strong energy demand. In other featured commodity markets, gold and platinum futures rallied as the US dollar resumed its slide, sending investors bolting for the safety of hard assets. At the New York mercantile exchange, crude oil and heating oil futures ended sharply higher on forecasts for a cold spell in the US northeast. Private forecaster meteorlogix predicted temperatures in the region would be 4 to 8 degrees fahrenheit below normal on Saturday and Sunday. In its six- to 10-day outlook, meteorlogix called for near to below normal regional temperatures. "We’re still in this weather-related buying frenzy," said Jim Ritterbusch, president and analyst at Ritterbusch and associates. "It’s like the old war-fear premium we had going into the weekend before the Iraq war, but now it’s a supply-fear premium." Nymex January crude settled 1.19 higher at 33.04 a barrel after peaking at 33.20. London brent crude was up 93 cents at 30.50. Nymex January heating oil ended 4.08 cents higher at 92.56 cents a gallon. Nymex January gasoline ended 3.66 cents higher at 90.04 cents a gallon. Crude prices have risen sharply this week after the season’s first big winter storm hit the US northeast last weekend. Natural gas prices have rocketed around 40 percent since Nov.25. Declining winter inventory levels have been bullish. The most recent US Government data released on Wednesday showed US crude stocks down a hefty 6.4 million barrels from the previous week, though distillate and gasoline supplies were higher. As the northern winter progresses, oil markets will be watching for signs of what OPEC may do when it meets again on Feb 10, in Algiers. OPEC agreed last week to leave official output flat at 24.5 million barrels per day. However, OPEC ministers have been indicating the cartel may cut production early next year. From Cairo, OPEC president Abdullah Al-Attiyah of Qatar reiterated that view on Friday, saying that OPEC could cut output at its February meeting to head off any second-quarter 2003 surplus. At the comex in New York, gold and platinum surged as investors snatched up physical assets as more stable alternatives to the skidding US dollar. Traders took a remark by US Treasury Secretary John Snow that the dollar’s decline was "orderly" as a green light to send it to a new low against the euro, which touched 1.23 for the first time since its 1999 launch. "The dollar is losing value and therefore every dollar price you see is likely to go up, including prices of commodities," said Jason Bonanca, vice president and foreign exchange analyst at credit Swiss first Boston in New York. Comex February gold closed 4.70 higher at 410.10 an ounce, just 3 below Wednesday’s nearly eight-year high at 413.30. Gold got some extra safe-haven support from a report that the university of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index dropped to 89.6 in December from 93.7 in November. January platinum bolted 11.80 higher to 819.40 an ounce, at one point topping 821.90, the highest price since March 1980. The weak dollar helped lift platinum prices well above 800 an ounce this week. Platinum is used in automobile catalytic converters to reduce tailpipe pollution, and global emissions rules have been tightening. South African producers have cut production and will miss output targets because the strong rand has made it uneconomical to export and invest in new projects. (AGENCIES) |
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SHIMLA, Dec 13: The royal delicious apples of Himachal Pradesh are on their way to Singapore and Dubai from this small little hill state that produces about two hundred odd different varieties of this fruit and has come to be known as the ‘apple bowl of India’. The first consignment of the delicious red and golden apples was flagged-off by HP Food and Civil Supplies Minister Singhi Ram from Parwanoo today. The fruit was dispatched in refrigerated containers to Mumbai port from where these would be shipped to Dubai and Singapore. The HPMC managing-director C R B Lalit said here today that the duration of the agreement for the export of apples and other processed food products by HPMC was for a period of three years.He said that this was for the first time that HPMC had entered into such an agreement. The apples were loaded onto the containers from the Himachal Pradesh Horticultural Produce Marketing and Processing Corporation Ltd (HPMC), cold storage at Parwanoo. The apples are being exported as part of an agreement entered by HPMC with M/S, UA Agro-Corporation of Almora in Uttranchal. The Almora based firm has tie-ups with Non-Resident Indian (NRI) importers in Singapore and Dubai.The agreement between the firm and hpmc was signed on December 2 this year. (UNI) |
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Banks urged to give loans on basis of credit rating DEHRADUN, Dec 13: The banks should adopt transparent system of credit ratings of the companies, on the basis of which credit is offered at flexible rates to the borrowing company, says the Uttaranchal chapter of Indian Industries Association(IIA) . At a bank-industry ineterface meet held here yesterday, representatives of the industry said that the basic objective of such a rating exercise should be to inform the borrowing units about the area where their performance has fallen below the credit rating parameters and to counsel the units to perform better. They said that banks should adopt a flexible system of charging interest rate on the basis of credit rating, depending upon the type of industry, working of a particular unit pertaining to that industry and other factors which affect the working of the unit. Mr Pankaj Gupta, president of the IIA, Uttaranchal, said in his welcome address that banks should take over only such number of units which they can conveniently handle. "We hope that there would be an overall change in the attitude of the banks and the curent situation of comfortable liquidity will provide an opportunity for banks to transform ideal liquidity into investable resources for growth," he said. "It is important that the interest charged by the banks should be comparable with other countries," Mr Gupta said. Various speakers said that the Credit Deposit Ratio (CDR)of banks in Uttaranchal was only 25.2 per cent as against the national average of 54.6 per cent. This, they felt, was unfair on the industry since it resulted in the flight of capital from the state. Suggestions were given to bankers that they should devise policies which would attract new investment in Uttaranchal and result in improvement of the CDR. Representatives of Uttaranchal Government, bankers and industrialists attended the day long interface. (UNI) |
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Bush backs strong US dollar, links to economy WASHINGTON, Dec 13: President George W Bush on Friday sought to come to the verbal rescue of the US dollar as it touched record lows, suggesting a strengthening US economy should lend support to its value. The president made his comments after Treasury Secretary John Snow said the currency’s decline had been "orderly," which fueled new declines to a record low against the euro. Bush was asked about snow’s remarks and whether he favored intervention to support the dollar. "My answer to that question about the dollar is that this Government is for a strong dollar and that the dollar’s value ought to be set by the market and by the conditions inherent in our respective economies, and our economy is very strong and is getting stronger," he said. Bush, heading into his re-election campaign, has frequently asserted the US economy was gaining steam. On Friday, he reiterated longstanding US policy favoring a strong dollar. "The stated policy, and not only the stated policy but the strong belief of this administration, is that we (should) have a strong dollar," he said. Snow said in a television interview the dollar’s decline in foreign exchange markets had been orderly. "This whole adjustment process has been orderly," he said in an interview with Bloomberg television. He also said the currency was stronger on a trade-weighted basis than it has been for most of the last 25 years. The dollar touched a lifetime low against the euro on friday after snow’s comments, which bearish traders took as a green light to sell the US currency. One analyst said snow’s remarks left markets thinking the Government’s strong-dollar policy was merely rhetoric and the White House was in fact content to see further dollar losses. Snow reiterated the Bush administration was hoping to see faster growth in Europe and Japan to help ease global imbalances. Economists have previously attributed the dollar’s decline in part to a large US current-account deficit. The euro reached a record high on friday of 1.2306, According to data, before drifting back to 1.2292, a gain of 0.68 percent on the day. (AGENCIES) |
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NSW looks for closer trade relations with India CHENNAI, Dec 13: The Australian state of New South Wales looks forward to sharing opportunities in the knowledge-based and value-added services sectors with India, its minister for regional development David Campbell has said. Mr Campbell, who was in the city as part of the third annual trade delegation, told reporters here yesterday that NSW had an open economy with low tariff barriers. He said the very fact that a trade delegation from NSW had visited India for the third year in succession showed the serious intent of the state to increase trade initiatives with India. Mr Campbell observed that, in the last five years, Australian exports to India had grown by 40 per cent and its imports by 46.9 per cent. Visa regulations were also very friendly towards India, he said. Representatives from about 11 corporates were part of the delegation that visited Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai. A lot of companies from his state were confident of finding a presence in the Indian markets through appoined agents. The food and beverages sector opened up a lot of opportunities, he said. Mr Campbell observed that technology transfers in the manufacture of wine was yet another potential area to work on. (UNI) |
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A N Choudhary Chairman of college of textile technology KOLKATA, Dec 13: President and CEO Jaya Shree Textiles Rishra Amar Nath Choudhary has been appointed chairman of the college of textile technology, Serampore. A chartered accountant with over 30 years experience in the textile industry, Mr Choudhary is also the president of the eastern India Textile Mills’ Association, Kolkata. He is also the Chairman of the HRD committee of the Indian Wollen Mills’ Federation, Chairman of the Eastern India Section of the Textile Institute, Manchester and a member of the manufacturing sub-committee of the Confederation of Indian Industry (eastern region). (UNI) |
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Shipping ministry in favour of giving priority to VICTT KOCHI, Dec 13: The Centre is in favour of giving priority to the Rs 2000-crore Vallarpadom International Container Transhipment Terminal (VICTT) of the Cochin port trust in terms of investment as compared to the Vizhinjam port project, Union Shipping Secretary D T Joseph has said. This was because of the infrastructure already available in the Cochin port, he told mediapersons here yesterday. The ministry had already conveyed its preference to the Kerala Government which had now come up with the new Vizhinjam harbour project of a matching investment proposal. "The success of any project depends on its financial and commercial viability. As such, huge investments in closer areas like Kochi, Vizhinjam and Kolachal will have to be seen in that context as it will be difficult to get quick returns in such investments," Mr Joseph said. Kochi was already known as the ‘Queen of the Arabian Sea’. So it should get precedence over other similar investments on the Kerala coast, he said. "We are under the impression that the State Government knows the spirit behind the Centre’s decision." Mr Joseph said the ministry had suggested to the CPT to liberalise tender regulations to make it more attractive for foreign direct investment for the container transhipment terminal which had already been delayed. Any more delay in its implementation would make it difficult for the project to take off, he added. The Centre was in favour of implementing the project under bot (build, operate and transfer) basis rather than as joint venture. The Dubai Port had also of late shown interest in taking up the VICTT, he said. (UNI) |
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China November trade surplus at 4.86 bln BEIJING, Dec 13: China posted a trade surplus of 4.86 billion in the month of November, nearly double the 2.5 billion of a year earlier, official news agency Xinhua reported, quoting customs figures. November’s trade surplus was the second-highest this year, after October’s 5.7 billion. A growing trade surplus with the United States was a key issue during Premier Wen Jiabao’s visit in Washington earlier in the week. Xinhua published the figures late on Friday. China’s exports have soared this year as more foreign firms have shifted production to take advantage of cheap labour in the world’s most populous country. Chinese factories supply key products to US retailers, but US manufacturers complain that unfair competition from China has cost them hundreds of thousands of jobs. Exports were 390 billion in the period from January to November, up 33 percent from a year earlier, while imports jumped 39 percent to 371 billion. The 11-month surplus fell more than a quarter from the same period last year, backing a view held by some Chinese officials that the country will post a trade deficit in the future. (AGENCIES) |
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Skate scooter powers up for clean getaway SINGAPORE, Dec 13: A skate scooter using fuel cells to rev up the wheels has been developed in Singapore for a cleaner ride, a research engineer said Saturday. Hanming with the institute of materials research and engineering told the Straits Times newspaper that he spent the past two months developing the prototype with Gashub power by using fuel-cell technology. The scooter, which runs on a 200-watt fuel cell, goes up to 20 kilometres per hour. Fuel cells generate electricity when hydrogen and oxygen are combined. The chemical reaction produces water and heat and is cleaner than fuel combustion, researchers said. There is considerable interest in fuel-cell research because it is seen as a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels. (DPA) GM to close financing gap of 19 billion DETROIT, Dec 13: General Motors Corp (GM) said Friday it will close the bulk of a financing gap of more than 19 billion dollars for pension plans for US employees by the end of the year. The world’s largest auto manufacturer said it will pay 4.1 billion dollars in cash to one of its pension funds if authorities green-light the sale of its shares of direct TV, owned by GM’s subsidiary Hughes electronic, to news corp. The sale could bring more than 6 billion dollars. With the potential 4.1-billion-dollar payment, GM would bring this year’s total contributions to its pension funds to 18.5 billion dollars. Other US car manufacturers have massive financing gaps in their pension funds because of an increasing number of retirees and a declining number of US employees. (DPA) |
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