Production ramp up key for Cairn India
Shareholders of Cairn India Ltd cheered the company’s latest oil discovery on Tuesday. This comes on the back of clarity from the government that oil companies can conduct exploration activity in development blocks. Cairn India’s shares rose by 1.57% in a weak market on Tuesday.
Cairn India’s press statement mentions that “technical evaluations indicate about 10 metres of gross oil column within that particular formation”. According to an analyst, unless the size of the reservoir is known, it’s difficult to ascertain the exact impact on the company at the moment. In fact, the company has maintained that the oil volumes in place and the potential resource base associated with this discovery are under evaluation.
(Sources: Business Standard, Livemint, Moneycontrol, Hindu Business Line, DNA India)
AirAsia India to lower fares, but at a price
It's the ultimate irony. While travellers are waiting for really low fares from AirAsia India, Indian carriers are waiting for it to begin operations so that they can increase their ancillary revenue by charging more for things like check-in baggage.
Indian carriers have been planning to reduce the current domestic free check-in baggage allowance of 20 kg to 15 kg. But the only reason they have not done this so far is the fear of being asked to reverse the move by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The aviation regulator had asked airlines to stop charging extra for pre-selection of seats last year.
Airlines pointed out that the charging for pre-selection of seats is a common global practice but that is not allowed in India.
(Sources: Times of India, Economic times, Air Asia, Worldnews, India Everyday)
CAD seen at 4.4% of GDP
Like Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) today pegged India’s current account deficit (CAD) at 5 % of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2012-13 but projected it to be much lower, though still elevated, at 4.4 % in the current financial year.
In its outlook for 2013, the Manila-based multilateral agency expects the CAD to come down to 3.7 % in 2014-15. If that be the case, the CAD would be above 4 % of GDP for three continuous years, beginning 2011-12.
ADB said financing the CAD would be a challenge for the government in the present environment of sluggish domestic growth and global uncertainty.
(Sources: Business Standard, Economic Times, Indiatimes, India Everyday, News Hour 24)
Kerala's annual Plan pegged at $ 3.12 billion
The annual Plan for 2013-14 for Kerala has been finalised at $ 3.12 billion. The Plan was finalised at a meeting between Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, and Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy.
Ahluwalia in a statement on Monday said the state had grown at 8 % during the 11th Plan and in 2011-12; it grew at 11.5 per cent. However, negative growth in agriculture was a matter of concern and it should focus on accelerating growth in this sector.
(Sources: Business Standard, the Hindu, Smart Investors, Financial Express, Indian Express)
PM leaves for Germany, to seek greater business ties
Ahead of his visit, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said he intends to seek greater business ties with Germany as India continues to take steps to boost domestic investments, attract foreign capital and spur the economy back to its long-term growth potential of eight per cent.
Singh, who left for Berlin on a three-day visit, said Germany is also a key partner for India in areas like infrastructure, manufacturing, science and technology, higher education, vocational training and clean and renewable energy.
Germany is India's largest economic partner in Europe and one of the key global partners for trade, investment and technology. Indo-German bilateral trade had registered an increase of 18.4 % and reached Euros 18.37 billion in 2011. However, due to global economic slowdown, bilateral trade saw a dip of 5.5 % last year.
(Sources: Press Trust of India, Indian Express, Moneycontrol, IBNLive, India Everyday)
Car sales fall 7 percent in FY13, first drop in a decade
Car sales in India fell an annual 6.7 % in the financial year that ended in March, their first fall in a decade, and sales during March fell an annual 22.5 %, the fifth consecutive monthly slide, an industry body said on Wednesday.
Automakers sold 180,675 cars in India last month, according to data from the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), as sluggish economic growth continued to weigh on demand in the once-booming market.
Sales of motorcycles dropped 8.3 % in March to 779,878 vehicles, SIAM said, and showed flat growth over the financial year. Truck and bus sales were down 6 % in March at 84,956 vehicles, and fell 2 % during the year.
(Sources: Economic Times, Indian Express, Reuters India, Business Standard, Yahoo News)
Yamaha opens fifth global R&D centre in India
Japanese two-wheeler major Yamaha Motor Company (YMC), which on Tuesday announced the establishment of Yamaha Motor Research & Development India (YMRI) at its Greater Noida facility, is looking at leveraging India as a procurement hub to source components for its two-wheeler operations globally. India would be the fourth regional procurement hub for Yamaha worldwide after China, Japan and the Asean.
Yuh Motoyama, senior general manager, engineering section (motorcycle business operations), said, “The research and development (R&D) unit is an integrated development centre, the second such for Yamaha globally. The vendor base in India is strong and cost-competitive and the potential to source parts from here for our operations globally is very promising.” YMC had inaugurated its first integrated development centre in Asean in Thailand last year.
(Sources: Economic Times, World News, Business Standard, Indian Express, Business World)
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