1.Govt Proposes to Take Away RBI Governor’s Veto Power in Deciding Monetary Policy - LiveMint
The finance ministry has set the stage for a new era of monetary policy formulation in the draft of the Indian Financial Code (IFC) it released on Thursday. However, the move could potentially spark a confrontation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), given that the latest draft proposes diluting the influence of the apex bank, particularly its governor.
The revised draft circulated for public discussion proposes to vest the Union government with the right to appoint four members to the seven-member monetary policy committee (MPC) of the RBI.
At the same time it is taking away the veto power of the RBI governor on monetary policy changes; instead it proposes to vest the governor with a casting vote in the event of a tie in the MPC. The deadline for receiving comments is 8 August.
2.Wipro Q1 Net Profit Rises 4% to Rs 2,188 cr - PTI
Country’s third-largest software services firm, Wipro posted four per cent growth in its net profit at Rs 2,187.7 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2015. The company had reported a net profit of Rs 2,103.2 crore in the year-ago period, Wipro said in a statement.
Its total income rose 10.5 per cent to Rs 12,894.8 crore for the said quarter from Rs 11,669.4 crore in the April-June 2014 quarter.
The firm’s IT services revenues, which account for a dominant chunk of the city-based firm, saw a sequential growth of 1.1 per cent to $ 1.79 billion in the said quarter, meeting its revenue guidance of $ 1,765 million to $ 1,793 million.
For the July-September 2015 quarter, Wipro expects its IT services revenues to be in the range of $ 1,821 million to $ 1,857 million.
3.Lupin Buys US Generics co for $880m - TOI
The country’s third-largest drug company Lupin is buying privately-held US generics company GAVIS Pharmaceuticals and Novel Laboratories (Gavis) for $880 million to strengthen its presence in its largest market, the US. It will also give Lupin access to a host of specialty generic drugs and niche products, mainly in dermatology, gastro-intestinal and injectables. Specialty and complex generics is the hottest section of the pharma market globally, commanding steep valuations, with even Big Pharma chasing them.
At over 9x market capitalization/sales, the deal is the biggest pharma overseas acquisition by a domestic company in recent years. Gavis had sales of $96 million in FY14 and over 250 employees. The deal, which is cash-free and debt-free, widens the company’s pipeline in dermatology and controlled substance products. It will be funded by a bridge loan, with Rs 10 crore from existing cash reserves deployed for it.
The deal follows three other acquisitions this year by Lupin aimed at building its presence in Latin America and Russia.
4.Japan’s Nikkei Buys Financial Times in $1.3 billion deal - Reuters
Japanese media group Nikkei has agreed to buy the Financial Times from Britain’s Pearson for $1.3 billion, putting one of the world’s premier business newspapers in the hands of a company influential at home but little known outside Japan.
The deal, struck after Nikkei beat Germany’s Axel Springer to the prize, marks the biggest acquisition by a Japanese media organization and is a coup for the employee-owned firm which lends its name to the main Japanese stock market index.
In the Financial Times it has acquired an authoritative global newspaper that commands strong loyalty from its readers and has coped better than others with the shift to online publishing. It was one of the first newspapers to successfully charge for access to its website.
Established in 1884 and first printed on pink paper in 1893 to stand out from rivals, the FT has employed some of the leading figures in media and politics, including Robert Thomson, Chief Executive of News Corp, former British finance minister Nigel Lawson and Ed Balls, an adviser to former British prime minister Gordon Brown.
5.There’s a Bull Market in Unlisted Shares, Too - ET
Tata Sons is among several unlisted companies that have seen a surge in demand and a resultant rise in share prices over the past year. Tata Technologies, RBL Bank (Ratnakar Bank), Tamil Nadu Mercantile Bank, ICICI Prudential Life, and Lux Industries, to name a few, have appreciated 50-60% in the past year, beating listed equities, which yielded about 10% at index levels.
Institutions such as RBL Bank, ICICI Prudential Life, UTI Asset Management and HDFC Standard Life are amassed by investors in hopes that these companies would go for listing in future.
6.Cairn India’s Merger With Vedanta May Fall Through - BS
Billionaire Anil Agarwal’s plans to merge his two India listed companies, Vedanta (earlier known as Sesa Sterlite) with oil producer Cairn India, might fall through with two large minority shareholders — Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and Cairn UK Holdings — deciding to vote against the move.
Corporate lawyers say with a majority of the minority shareholders saying no, the proposal will not pass the muster in shareholders’ meeting.
The promoters own 60 per cent stake, while LIC owns 9.06 per cent stake in Cairn India. UK-based former promoter, Cairn Holdings, owns another 9.82 per cent in the company
Shareholders of Cairn India, like LIC, had earlier objected to a cheap loan worth $1.25 billion granted by the company to its parent, Vedanta. The promoters had used the cash to repay its $10 billion acquisition of Cairn India from Cairn in 2010
7.Hyundai Plans to Invest Rs 4.5k cr for New Plant - TOI
Nearly two decades after setting foot in India, Korean car major Hyundai has decided to pump in fresh investment of over Rs 4,500 crore for a new factory to boost its production capacity to over a million vehicles.
Hyundai has been facing a capacity crunch at its existing facility near Chennai, but is now “close” to finalizing a new premises which will house the new factory. States lobbying with the Korean company include Gujarat, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh. The lobbying has been hectic after Hyundai Motor Group’s global chairman Chung Mong-koo said in May that the company is “reviewing” plans for a new factory in India. He had said this after meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Seoul.
Hyundai has been beefing up its product portfolio and new cars include the Elite i20 premium compact, Xcent entry sedan and the recently-launched Creta compact SUV.
8.Karan Singh Named MD in Bain India Rejig - TOI
In a top-level rejig at Bain & Company India, Karan Singh, who leads the Asia-Pacific healthcare practice at the global consultancy major, has been appointed MD. The incumbent, Sri Rajan, has taken over as the chairman, replacing Ashish Singh, who will focus on his role as head of the firm’s global healthcare, besides continuing to sit on the global board.
Karan Singh was part of a four-member team which set up the India practice in 2006, along with Sri Rajan, Ashish Singh and Vivek Gambhir. Bain India, currently the fastest growing startup in Bain’s history, is now larger than the consultancy’s China operations in terms of the number of people employed and is said to be growing in double-digits.
9.Italian Luxury Sportscar Maker Ferrari Files for U.S. IPO - Reuters
Italian sportscar maker Ferrari has taken a step closer to a stock market listing in New York, as its parent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) seeks to boost its own coffers to fund an ambitious 48 billion euro ($53 billion)investment plan.
FCA said on Thursday Ferrari, the marque famous for its “prancing horse” logo and its Formula One racing team, had filed a request with U.S. regulators for a New York initial public offering.
The Maranello, northern Italy-based maker of typically red models such as the 488 GTB and the 1 million euro LaFerrari, could attract a market value of at least 10 billion euros, according to Sergio Marchionne, FCA chief executive and Ferrari chairman. Some analysts said it could be half that.