Economy

India, Japan to strengthen investment, trade ties

Tokyo: India and Japan on Friday agreed to further strengthen investment and trade ties by ensuring faster implementation of ongoing projects. Both the countries have agreed to support planned initiatives and projects in this year designed for strengthening business partnership to be organized by Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), a joint statement by Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma and Japan's Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Toshimitsu said in Tokyo on Friday.

Sharma is here in Tokyo to attend "India Investment Roundtable" jointly organized by his ministry's department of industrial policy and promotion and Confederation of Indian Industry.

The statement both the countries have agreed to deepen discussion on concrete measures on India-Japan Investment Promotion, reaffirming the expansion of investment as being essential for the global, strategic and complementary economic relationship between the two countries.

The Delhi Mumbai Industrial Development Corridor (DMIDC) is the largest infrastructure project under implementation. Out of the 12 greenfield projects, eight are along the DMIDC and master plan for seven of them have been completed. ...more    

S&P affirms negative outlook on India

Mumbai: Ratings agency Standard & Poor's affirmed India's sovereign rating at 'BBB-minus' with a 'negative' outlook, reiterating there was a one-in-three chances of a ratings downgrade over the next 12 months, a statement said on Friday. S&P said the government's ability to prop up investment growth remained uncertain. The ratings agency, however, said there was scope to upgrade the sovereign ratings if the government unleashes public and private investments to...  

Osborne praises Chidambaram's efforts to revive economy

London: Finance Minister P Chidambaram's reform push to revive Indian economy and restore investor confidence was on Thursday lauded by British Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, who said he has done a great job. "When it comes to India, I think Mr Chidambaram has done a great job at telling and showing the world that India is open for business," Osborne told select Indian journalists after his meeting with...  

Gold falls to three-week lows on stronger dollar

London: Gold fell for the fifth straight session on Wednesday, hitting a three-week low as the dollar strengthened to a six-week high versus the euro after weak euro zone data. While gold has recovered around 7 per cent from a two-year trough of $1.321.35 an ounce hit in mid-April, its safe-haven appeal has been battered by record-high US equities and signs of an improving US economy. Spot gold fell 0.8...  

Nifty, Sensex end at highest level since January 2011

Mumbai: The BSE benchmark Sensex on Wednesday rose over 158 points in early trade on sustained buying by funds and retail investors, mainly in realty, banking, auto and metal sector stocks. Also, the wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty, regained the 6,000 points level by surging 41.10 points, or 0.69 per cent, to 6,036.50. Rising for the second straight session, the BSE's 30-share barometer rose by 158.19 points, or 0.80...  

Indian food industry to touch Rs 408,040 crore by 2018

Mumbai: The current size of the Indian food industry stands at Rs 247,680 crore per annum and is expected to grow at 11 percent to touch a staggering Rs 408,040 crore by 2018, an official said in Mumbai on Tuesday. In terms of market segments, the Quick Service Restaurants and casual dine-in formats account for nearly three-fourths of the total chain and cafes make up 12 per cent, with fine...  

Finance Ministry sees room for easing of rate by RBI

New Delhi: Encouraged by the declining trend in inflation, the Finance Ministry on Tuesday made a case for further rate cut by the Reserve Bank to boost sagging growth. "I think we need to look at statement made by RBI Governor during the last policy review where he had stated that RBI is closely monitoring inflation figures and if there is dramatic change in inflation figures then RBI will take...  

'New Pak govt will inherit effects of policy inertia'

Islamabad: Nawaz Sharif's emphatic victory at the hustings in Pakistan will provide him sufficient room to shape his party's own agenda, the global rating agency Moody's said but warned the new government will inherit the effects of overall policy inertia. The rating agency also said any flare up in relations with India could impact Pakistan's credit fundamentals. "(Nawaz Sharif's) PML-N's near majority should provide it with sufficient political room to...  

April inflation slows to 4.89 pc, lowest since Nov 2009

New Delhi: The headline inflation dropped to its lowest since 2009 in the month of April at 4.89 per cent, a level seen comfortable for the RBI to persist with monetary easing to revive a flagging economy. April's reading is well below the 5.50 per cent estimated by analysts in a Reuters poll. The wholesale price index, India's main inflation measure, rose an annual 5.96 per cent in March. The...  

Rupee down 8 paise against dollar in early trade

Mumbai: The rupee on Tuesday lost eight paise to 54.81 against the dollar in early trade on the Interbank Foreign Exchange market due to higher demand of the US currency from banks and importers. Forex dealers said dollar strengthening against other currencies in the global market also put pressure on the rupee. The domestic currency had closed higher by seven paise at 54.73 yesterday on fresh dollar selling by exporters...  

Tata Steel shares fall on $ 1.6 billion impairment charge

Mumbai: Tata Steel Ltd shares fell as much as 2.5 per cent on Tuesday morning after it said it will book a $1.6 billion impairment charge for the financial year ended March 31. The company said it is taking the charge due to weak economic and market conditions in Europe. Tata Steel shares were down more than 2 per cent as of 9:30 am. The steel maker made the announcement...  

Sensex ends flat, shrugs off 41-month low inflation data

Mumbai: Major equity benchmarks consolidated in trade today and closed flat shrugging off 41-month low April WPI inflation number of 4.89 per cent, way below RBI's comfort zone. The Sensex closed at 19722.2 up 30.62 points and the Nifty ended at 5995.40, up 14.95 points. About 1162 shares advanced, 1206 shares declined and 146 shares were unchanged. Key gainers in the Nifty were Ranbaxy Labs, Bank of Baroda, Sun Pharma,...  

Pak's economy is the top priority for Sharif: Dr Hasan Askari Rizvi

The people of Pakistan have reposed their faith in Nawaz Sharif and his PML(N) party. As Pakistan faces an uphill battle against Taliban terror, a large number of radicalised and unemployed youth in a stuttering economy, is he the man for the job? What will be his equation with the Pakistan army which has forced him off power in the past. What will it mean for the future of Indo-pakistani...  

MFN status to India by new Pak govt will be a positive step: KC Singh

Nawaz Sharif is very much seen as an insider of the anti-India Punjabi establishment of Pakistani politics. So will it be easier for him to steer Pakistan to path of friendship with India? Which issues are likely to be resolved more easily and which ones are likely to be stumbling blocks for both sides? Former diplomat KC Singh joined IBNLive readers for an interaction on the issue. Q. How will...  

Gold falls, near 2-week low as dollar firms

London: Gold fell 1.2 per cent on Monday, holding near its weakest level in two weeks, as the dollar firmed on signs of an improving US job market and as holdings in exchange-traded funds slipped again. Bullion's safe-haven appeal has been dimmed by speculation the Federal Reserve could scale back its aggressive monetary stimulus after recent US labour market data pointed to a steady recovery trend in the world's largest...  

RBI puts restrictions on gold imports by banks

Mumbai: With gold imports putting pressure on the current account deficit, the Reserve Bank on Monday imposed restrictions on import of the yellow metal by banks. "To moderate the demand for gold for domestic use, it has been decided to restrict the import of gold on consignment basis by banks, only to meet the genuine needs of exporters of gold jewellery," the RBI said in a statement. As per a...  

India's exports up 1.6 pc at $ 24.16 bn in April

New Delhi: Country's merchandise exports grew by 1.6 per cent to $24.16 billion in April this year, whereas imports increased by 10.9 per cent. Imports during the reported month stood at $41.95 billion. Exports in April 2012 stood at $23.7 billion, while imports were at $37.8 billion. Due to high imports, the trade deficit rose to $17.8 billion, Commerce Secretary SR Rao told reporters on Monday. Rao attributed the widening...  

CPI inflation slows to 9.39 per cent in April

New Delhi: After better than expected industrial production numbers, which came at 2.5 per cent for the month of March, inflation has also hit a 13-month low. Consumer Price Index for the month of April is at 9.39 per cent against 10.39 per cent in March. Rural inflation was also seen going down at 9.16 per cent as compared to 10.41 per cent in March. Food prices for consumers rose...  

Sensex plunges as dollar firms up; ITC leads FMCG slide

Mumbai: Key equity benchmarks plunged 2 per cent on Monday, the biggest single day fall in more than a year, with brokers attributing the crash to profit taking after the recent run up. Signs of a recovery in the US economy also made investors jittery as they feel a portion of global liquidity flows could ease as the Federal Reserve starts tightening its monetary policy. The BSE Sensex closed at...  

Sensex ends 40 points up in special trading session

Mumbai: The BSE benchmark Sensex on Saturday gained 40 points in a special two-hour trading session as investors indulged in selective buying of bluechip stocks tracking gains in healthcare and metal sector shares. The 30-share index, which had regained 20,000 level after over three months on Friday, added another 39.70, or 0.20 per cent to settle at 20,122.32. Similarly, the broad-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty rose by 12,50 points,...