India to ink services pact with Asean next month: PM
India on Monday said it is ready to ink a free trade agreement on services and investment with the 10-member Asean next month, ahead of a commemorative event in New Delhi to mark the 20th anniversary of its "Look East" policy and 10 years of summit-level partnership.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh informed this to leaders of the Southeast Asian countries at the Asean-India summit in the Cambodian capital.
PM Singh said that the India-Asean car rally and the Asean sailing expedition of the Indian Naval Ship Sudarshini "highlight the importance and the potential for connecting India and Asean by sea, surface and air links".
India and the Southeast Asian grouping are also building a Trilateral Highway to connect Myanmar, Thailand and India. The roadway is to be completed by 2016 and will help boost road trade in a major way. India is contributing in a major way to its construction.
The Trilateral Highway would connect Moreh (Manipur) in India to Mae Sot in Thailand.
(Sources: Economic Times, Times of India, Financial Express, Indian Express, Business Standard)
GoM finalises land Bill, to go to Cabinet soon
Acquisition of land for private purposes would require the consent of 80 % of the owners, goes the Bill finalised today, according to sources.
Under consideration of a Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, it will soon be placed before the Cabinet and is expected to make it to Parliament’s winter session.
(Sources: Business Standard, NDTV, Outlook India, Indian Express, Worldnews)
IIP growth likely to be in 2.5 - 3.5 % range in October: Dun and Bradstreet
According to research firm Dun and Bradstreet, Index of Industrial Production (IIP) is likely to yield positive growth during the month of October this year partly due to low base and added that IIP growth is expected to remain in the range of 2.5-3.5 % during October.
Industrial output in September contracted by 0.4 % due to poor performance of the manufacturing sector and decline in consumer as well as capital goods output.
The economic growth rate slipped to a nine-year low of 6.5 % in 2011-12. The Reserve Bank had projected 5.8 % growth rate for 2012-13.
(Sources: Economic Times, Indiatimes, Hindu Business Line, Zeenews, i4u)
Anti-bribery investigations: Won’t tolerate any violation, says Walmart
Walmart India, in the first detailed statement after its parent company reported it was investigating charges of violation of US anti-bribery laws here, has said it will not tolerate non-compliance at any level of the company as it builds retail operations in the country.
The company said it was committed to complying with all laws and regulations and was in the process of implementing a number of specific, concrete actions to strengthen its compliance programme in India.
But domestic retailers felt it was difficult to open stores in India without greasing palms of officials.
Retailers in India require dozens of licences from various government agencies to open stores and most of these permissions are hard to come by without greasing palms. It would be difficult for Walmart, or indeed any other multinational, to keep its operations completely 'bribery proof', said retailers
(Sources: Economic Times, Times of India, Indiatimes, Zeenews, IBNLive, NDTV)
French cookware maker Le Creuset fourth to seek fully owned single brand retail
French cookware maker Le Creuset has proposed to start a fully owned single brand retail venture in India, becoming the fourth multinational retailer to do so after the country allowed 100% foreign ownership in single-brand retail in January.
Le Creuset is only the fourth overseas company to apply for 100% FDI in the single brand retailing after UK-based shoemaker Pavers England, US-based accessories retailer Fossil Inc and Swedish furniture and homeware maker IKEA.
(Sources: Economic Times, Indiatimes, IBNLive, NDTV, Moneycontrol, Zeenews, i4u)
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