Daily Excelsior...Business

Chilgoza, pistachio slip on fresh arrival

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Prices of chilgoza and pistachio fell in the range of Rs 10-15 per kg in the wholesale dry fruit market today on increased arrivals ...........more'

Exhibition to Commemorate Russia’s First Indologist

MOSCOW, Jan 19: The History Meuseum of Yaroslavl, an old city 230 kilometres north of Moscow, is hosting an exhibition in memory of Gerasim Lebedev, the first Russian scholar of Indian .....more

Konyukhov prepares for first solo circumnavigation of Antarctica

SYDNEY, Jan 19: Fedor Konyukhov, first and so far the only person in the world to have reached the five extreme Poles of the planet, is in for a next extreme voyage........more

Jeera prices down on ample supply

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Jeera prices declined by Rs 100 per quintal in the wholesale kirana market today on increased arrivals against reduced demand.However, prices of other commodities remained flat in scattered deals.Jeera common and dollar fell by Rs 100 each at Rs 10,600-11,000 and 10,900-11,000 per quintal respectively ......more

Menthol up on seasonal demand

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Menthol prices went up in the range of 3-5 per kg in the chemical market today on seasonal demand.Menthol varieties bold crystal, flake .....more

Freights rates rise on busy cargo movements

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Freight rates for the nine metric ton payload section rose in the local truck transport market here today due to busy cargo movements against less availability of lorries.......more

Shakkar up on fresh demand

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Shakkar prices registered a gain of Rs 10 per quintal in the wholesale gur (jaggery) market here today on fresh buying interest......more

Rice sela, bajara prices fall on ample supply

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Rice sela and bajra prices fell in the range of Rs 5-10 a quintal in the wholesale grain market today on increased arrivals amid restricted offtake.Marketmen said selling pressure from stockists amid increased supply mainly pulled down rice and bajra prices.However, prices of other grains remained flat in sporadic deals.In rice section, sela prices moved down from .....more

Sasken Q3 net dips to Rs 3.8 crore...........

Select pulses prices firm up..........

India, China sign major agreement in railway sector .......

Chilgoza, pistachio slip on fresh arrival

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Prices of chilgoza and pistachio fell in the range of Rs 10-15 per kg in the wholesale dry fruit market today on increased arrivals against reduced offtake.

Chilgoza raw-new prices declined by Rs 10 to Rs 390 per kg from Rs 400 per kg.

Pistachio Irani and hairati prices slipped by Rs 10-15 to conclude at Rs 450-470 and Rs 480-510 per kg respectively.

Traders said prices fell due to increased stocks against reduced offtake by local parties and stockists.

Following were today’s quotations per 40 kg bag: Almond (California) new 8,500 Almond (gurbandi) 5,400 Almond (girdhi) 3,350, Almond kernel (California) 300-305 Almond kernel (gurbandi) (kg) 300-350 and Abjosh Afghani 5,500-12,000.

Chilgoza raw-new (1 kg) 390chilgoza (roasted) (1 kg) 750cashew kernel 1 kg (no 180) 440-450cashew kernel (no 210) 385-390cashew kernel no.(240) 320-325cashew kernel (no 320) 280-285cashew kernel broken 2 pieces 255-260cashew kernel broken 4 pieces 245-250cashew kernel broken 8 pieces 150-220copra (qtl) 4,350-4,550coconut powder (25 kg) 1,100-1,900dry dates red (qtl) 2,400-5,800fig 3,500-12,000kishmish kandhari local 5,300-5,500kishmish kandhari special 11,000-14,000 kiahmish indian yellow 2400-2600kishmish indian green 2,800-4,500pistachio Irani 450-470pistachio Hairati 480-510pistachio Peshawari 530-570pistachio dodi (roasted) 275-300walnut new 110-190walnut kernel new (1kg) 350-500.(PTI)

Exhibition to Commemorate Russia’s First Indologist

Timed to the Year of Russia in India (2008), the exhibition is a joint project of the Yaroslavl History Museum, the city Orion Roerich Society and the Jawaharlal Nehru Cultural Centre, affiliated to the Indian Embassy in the Russian Feredation, RIA Novosti agency reported.

Gerasim Lebedev (1749-1817) was Russia’s first Oriental scholar and the first to introduce India to Russian and European Orientologists as a research subject.

The exhibition demonstrates authentic documents pertaining to Lebedev’s life, his scholarly books and Russian and Indian books about him.

''Its timing to the Year of Russia in India is a symbolical tribute of Yaroslavl to one of its people, who did so much for Indian studies,'' Vladimir Izvekov, Director of the History Museum said at the opening reception.

Many scholarly works came from Lebedev’s pen, including the monograph 'An Unbiased Contemplation of Eastern India, its Holy Rites and Folk Customs', which is regarded as an 18th century encyclopaedia of India, a country known only from hearsay and fabulous accounts before.

Lebedev laid the foundation of scientific studies of India. He deservedly regarded it as the cradle of the world civilisation. ''India was the first land to disseminate the human race all about the globe, as many ethnologists testify,''he wrote.

An excellent researcher, musician and stage performer, Lebedev established the first European-style stage company in India as he lived there in 1785-97. He translated the best-known European dramas into Bengali and compiled several linguistic study books.

Once back in Russia, he also published a Bengali-Russian dictionary.

India cherishes the memory of the first Western researcher to study it. Kolkata, for one, has a Gerasim Lebedev Street. (UNI)

Konyukhov prepares for first solo circumnavigation of Antarctica

SYDNEY, Jan 19: Fedor Konyukhov, first and so far the only person in the world to have reached the five extreme Poles of the planet, is in for a next extreme voyage.

Konyukhov, 56, after climbing Mount Everest, rowing across the Atlantic Ocean, hiking to both North and South Poles, cycling the length of Russia from Vladivostok to St Petersburg, is preparing for the first solo circumnavigation of Antarctica staying south of 45 degrees latitude.

A member of the Russian Geographic Society, Konyukhov will set off from Albany on January 26 on a voyage previously deemed too dangerous to attempt.

Konykhov will spend all but a few days of his 25,000 km epic in the danger zone. The boundaries of the course for the new Antarctica Cup are the 45 and 60 degree lines of latitude, passing the three great southern capes of Horn, Agulhas and Leeuwin.

The Russian, aboard the 27 m maxi yacht Alye Parusa, will have to contend with the world's strongest average winds, mountainous seas, fog and icebergs on a route south of such far-flung outposts as Macquarie Island, Kerguelen and the Falklands, The West Australian reported.

Round-the-world yacht races presently include rules to minimise competitors' exposure to the Roaring Forties and Furious Fifties after a number of competitors, the most famous being Tony Bullimore, who had to be rescued when venturing too far south in bad weather.

The World Sailing Speed Record Council will ratify the voyage, if completed, to provide a benchmark for others to beat in a 2009 race being planned as the highlight of centenary celebrations of Albany's Princess Royal Sailing Club.

Konyukhov, who has four world circumnavigations to his credit, said the race around Antarctica was the last great challenge in offshore sailing.

''I have always treated the Southern Ocean leg as the most extraordinary, risky and beautiful part of the voyage,'' he said, adding, ''I have considered previously the challenge of rounding Antarctica non-stop and the Antarctica Cup offers this opportunity.''

''To me racing around Antarctica is about sport, adventure and history.''

(UNI)

Jeera prices down on ample supply

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Jeera prices declined by Rs 100 per quintal in the wholesale kirana market today on increased arrivals against reduced demand.

However, prices of other commodities remained flat in scattered deals.

Jeera common and dollar fell by Rs 100 each at Rs 10,600-11,000 and 10,900-11,000 per quintal respectively on fresh arrivals from Rajasthan.

Following were today's quotations (in Rs per quintal):

Ajwain 5,200-7,500 Black pepper common 15,000-15,200 Betelnut (kg) 105-115, cardamom brown Jhundiwali)16,700-16,800 and cardamom brown (Kanchicut) 18,000-21,000.

Cardamom small (kg): Chitridar 475-560, cardamom (colour robin) 610-630, cardamom bold 630-650, cardamom extra (bold) 680-700 and cloves (kg) 300-315.

Chirounji (new) (kg) 165-200

Dry mango 4,500-22,000

Dhania 4,300-7,000

Dry ginger 7,400-10,000

Kalaunji 7,500-8,000

Mace-Red (kg) 480-500

Mace-Yellow (kg) 460-465

Methiseed 3,500-4,000

Makhana (per kg) 165-210

Nutmeg 270-290

Poppyseed (KG Turkey) 395

Poppseed (KG MP-RAJ) 395-425

Poppyseed (KG U.P.) 350-365

Red chillies 2,700-7,000

Soya bari pariwar (20 kg) 350-400

Saffron (kg) Irani 105000-107000

Saffron (kg) Kashmiri 124000-132000

Soanf 4,400-11,000

Turmeric 3,300-4,600

Tamarind 8,00-1,200

Tamarind without seed 2,000-3,500

Tea (kg) 65-120

Watermelon kernel 8,600-8,700

Jeera common 10,600-11,000

Jeera dollar 10,900-11,000. (PTI)

Menthol up on seasonal demand

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Menthol prices went up in the range of 3-5 per kg in the chemical market today on seasonal demand.

Menthol varieties bold crystal, flake and mentha oil prices moved up to Rs 608, Rs 590 and Rs 500 from previous levels of Rs 605, Rs 585 and Rs 495 per kg respectively.

Traders said seasonal demand against restricted supply from Uttar Pradesh mandies pushed up menthol prices.

Following were today's quotations in Rs:

Ammonia bicarb (25 kg) 365 Ammonium chloride (50 kg) 2,100, acetic acid (1 kg) 42, boric acid technical (50 kg) 4,200-4,700, borex granular (50 kg) 2100.

Caustic soda flake (50 kg) 1200 citric acid (50 kg) (China) 2,650-2,800 citric acid deshi (50 kg) 2,600-2800, camphor slab (1 kg) 170-175, camphor powder (1 kg) 155, glycerine (1 kg) 78-80, hexamine (1 kg) 82, hydrogen peroxide (1 kg) 31-32, mercury (34.5 kg) 29,000, menthol bold crystal (per kg) 608 menthol flake (1 kg) 590 and Mentha oil (1 kg) 500.

Paraffin wax (50 kg)Iran 2,900-3,000

paraffin wax (50 kg)China 3,600

paraffin wax (50 kg) Indian 3,250

residue wax (p tonne) 30,000

soda ash (50 kg) (Tata) 880

soda ash (50 kg) (Gujarat) 870

soda ash (50 kg) (Dcw) 870

soda ash (50 kg) (Birla) 870

Sodium Nitrite (50 kg) 1400-1525

Sodium silicate (Qtl) 950-1100

stable bleaching powder (shriram) (25 kg) 310 stable bleaching powder (chambal) 340

stable bleaching powder (modi) 310

tartaric acid france (1 kg) 420

thymol (1 kg) 420

titanium dioxide (ttk) (1 kg) 100

titanium dioxide (k-brand) (1 kg) 90

titanium dioxide (china) (1 kg) 90

titanium dioxide (TR-92) 108

titanium dioxide (rc-822) (1 kg) 108

oxalic acid (pcpl-red) 50 kg 2500

oxalic acid (pcpl-blue)50 kg 2500

Zinc oxide (kg) 125-135. (PTI)

Freights rates rise on busy cargo movements

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Freight rates for the nine metric ton payload section rose in the local truck transport market here today due to busy cargo movements against less availability of lorries.

Delhi to Kochi and Thiruvananthauram freight rates moved up by Rs 500 each at Rs 43,500 and Rs 46,500 respectively.

Rates to Chennai went up by Rs 500 from Rs 30,500.

Following were today's freight rates in Rs per truck load of nine metric ton:

Ahmedabad 11,000 Hyderabad 24,000 Mumbai 18,000 Vijayawada 26,000 Baroda 12,000 Bangalore 29,000 Pune 19,000 Mysore 31,000 Surat 13,000 Pondicherry 34,000 Kanpur 9,000 Coimbatore 38,000 Kolkata 24,000 Chennai 30,500 Ludhiana 8,500 Kochi 43,500 Chandigarh 6,000 Thiruvananthapuram 46,500 Jaipur 4,500 Goa 25,000 Indore 12,000 Gwalior 6,500 Patna 20,000 Guwahati 39,000. (PTI)

Rice sela, bajara prices fall on ample supply

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Rice sela and bajra prices fell in the range of Rs 5-10 a quintal in the wholesale grain market today on increased arrivals amid restricted offtake.

Marketmen said selling pressure from stockists amid increased supply mainly pulled down rice and bajra prices.

However, prices of other grains remained flat in sporadic deals.

In rice section, sela prices moved down from Rs 1,825 -1,900 to Rs 1,820-1,895 a quintal on slackness in demand.

Rice ir-8 too slipped from Rs 1,200-1,250 to conclude at Rs 1,190-1,240 a quintal on increased supply.

Bajra traded lower at Rs 610-620 from Rs 620-630 a quintal. (PTI)

Sasken Q3 net dips to Rs 3.8 crore...........

BANGALORE, Jan 19: Sasken Communication Technologies Limited today reported a dip in third quarter net profit at Rs 3.8 crore compared to Rs 12 crore for the same period in the last fiscal.

Revenues for the December quarter went up by eight per cent to Rs 141.3 crore, the Bangalore-based company said in a statement.

The telecom research and development and support outsourcing firm added seven new customers in the quarter.

"The consolidation of Sasken's business verticals to focus on handsets, semiconductors and networks, which was implemented in Q3, has made us better prepared to address the business context we are operating in," the company's chairman and CEO, Rajiv Mody, said. (PTI)

Select pulses prices firm up..........

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Gram dal and rajmah chitra prices firmed up in the range of Rs 25-50 per quintal in the wholesale pulses market today on short supply against better offtake by stockists.

However, prices of other pulses moved in a tight range on small bouts of trade and remained steady.

Marketmen said poor supply from producing regions amid increased demand pushed up gram dal and rajmah chitra prices.

Gram dal local and best prices closed at Rs 2,450-2,600 and Rs 2,650-2,800 from the Rs 2,400-2,550 and Rs 2,600-2,760 a quintal on poor supply.

Rajmah chitra Pune and China too found fresh support on paucity of stocks and quoted higher at Rs 3,125-3,825 and Rs 3,525-3,825 a quintal respectively. (PTI)

India, China sign major agreement in railway sector

NEW DELHI, Jan 19: Signalling the onset of a major phase of cooperation between the two giant railway systems of the world, Indian Railways has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that would give a fillip to its plans for modernisation and technological upgradation.

The MoU, signed in the Chinese capital Beijing this week during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit, is valid for three years and envisages development of rail related programmes of mutual interest, consultations, training and visits to each other’s facilities.

Dr. Singh and his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao were present when the MOU was signed between Railway Board Chairman K C Jena and Mr. Liu Zhijun, the Chinese Minister for Railways.

A ministry official said Indian Railways would seek Chinese expertise in areas like raising of speed on existing routes, development of world-class stations and heavy haul operations.

Another area where China could provide assistance is development of multimodal logistics parks, besides Research and Development.

The official said the Chinese Railways’ experience in the areas of signalling and telecommunication, traction supply, high axle load operations, design and maintenance practices, track machines and multi-modal transport in the railway sector would be of benefit to Indian Railways.

Indian Railways has, of late, made tremendous progress in different sectors of its operation, resulting in a phenomenal turnaround, and has now embarked upon a major plan for its modernisation, technological upgradation, capacity enhancement and development of world class services.

"The MOU signed with China will further facilitate progress in these directions," the official pointed out.

During the Prime Minister’s visit, detailed discussions on all aspects of railway sector were held between Mr Jena and Mr Liu.

"The Chinese side was very enthusiastic on cooperation with Indian Railways and assured all possible assistance and follow up. In near future, the concerned officials from the Chinese Railways will visit India to firm up the details and modalities of mutual cooperation," he said.

Chinese Railways carries the highest level of freight traffic in the world and also a very high level of passenger traffic. It has undertaken considerable network expansion, speed raising, modernisation and technology upgradation during the last 10 years and has a very ambitious programme for the next decade too. (UNI)

Reliance to invest $1.14 bn in Orissa gas finds

NEW DELHI, Jan 18: Reliance Industries will invest 1.139 billion dollars in putting to production the gas fields it has discovered off the east coast, a DGH official said.

Reliance has submitted an initial development plan (IDP) for six gas discoveries in the NEC-25 block in Orissa, envisaging a production rate of 35-40 million standard cubic meters per day.

"We have received the IDP and will be discussing certain issues with Reliance. The development plan in all likelihood will be approved by April," the official said.

Reliance has not detailed a production schedule from the six discoveries where it estimates a total potential of 8.2 Trillion cubic feet, of which 1.1 Tcf is recoverable.

The investments projected in IDP would be for drilling 12 developments wells along with production facilities and the onshore receipt terminal, he said.

Gas from NEC-25 will flow after Reliance puts its coveted KG-D6 fields off the Andhra coast on production. Reliance is investing 5.2 billion dollars in developing Dhirubhai-1 and 3, the first two of the 16 gas discoveries in the 7,645 sq.Km KG-D6 block. Initial output is likely to be 40 million standard cubic meters per day (mmscmd), which will be raised to 60 mmscmd in 2009-10.

Gas production from the block will peak to 80 mmscmd in 2011-12 and remain at that level till 2016-17, after which it will fall to 60 mmscmd in 2017-18 and to 40 mmscmd in 2018-19.

The official said Reliance is separately investing 2.284 billion dollars to produce up to 40,000 barrels per day of crude oil from KG-D6 from March 2009.

RIL was previously targeting oil production from KG-D6 in February/March this year but has changed the schedule to keep the third quarter of 2008 deadline for first gas from the predominantly gas rich block, the official said.

The oil discovery is estimated to hold 68 million barrels of reserves and initial targeted production will be in the range of 30,000 to 35,000 barrels per day and planned plateau rate of 40,000 barrel per day.

Block KG-DWN-98/3, popularly known as KG-D6, was awarded to Reliance and its 10 per cent Canadian partner Niko Resources in the country’s first round of international bidding of oil and gas blocks in 1999.

The official said Reliance was working overtime on its Krishna Godavari basin oil and gas field to meet the targets.

A total of 17 of 18 planned wells for the development of Dhirubhai-1 and 3 fields are now drilled and awaiting completion.

Construction of the onshore terminal, laying the grid of natural gas pipelines and installation of the offshore facilities are all progressing to enable production from the Dhirubhai gas fields to commence in 2008, he said. (PTI)