GoM on AI recovery to meet next month
New Delhi, July 5 (PTI) The Group of Ministers, which is reviewing the recovery path of Air India, will meet next month to discuss the infusion of Rs 1,200 crore as equity and review the steps taken by the national carrier for achieving a turnaround.
“First, we will discuss about the turnover strategy and the entire revival plan of the company within the organisation and also with the employees’ unions. After that, we will brief the GoM (Group of Ministers) meeting next month,” Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel told PTI here.
The GoM, headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, was earlier slated to meet this month. Besides Patel, its other members are Home Minister P Chidambaram and Law Minister Veerappa Moily.
Government has pumped in equity worth Rs 800 crore in the last financial year and plans to infuse Rs 1,200 crore more this year.
Iran to stop subsidised petrol sales from Sept
Tehran, July 5 (AFP) Iran is to halt the sale of subsidised petrol from late September as part of plans to phase out subsidies on energy products, ISNA news agency reported today.
“Based on decisions taken, from the second half of this (Iranian) year (late September), the rationed petrol sales will be stopped,” said Mohammad Royanian, head of Iran’s fuel transportation organisation, quoted by ISNA.
Iranians are currently allocated 60 litres of petrol a month at a subsidised rate of 10 US cents. These sales would be stopped, according to Royanian, who did not reveal the new price.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has proposed to phase out subsidies on energy goods that directly or indirectly cost the government as much as USD 100 billion a year.
‘Food inflation easing, will fall to 5-6 pc in due course’
New Delhi, July 5 (PTI) The government today said food inflation has started easing and will fall to an acceptable level of 5-6 per cent in due course, even as the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance and Left Parties went ahead with a nationwide strike to protest against rising prices.
“Food inflation is going down. It will take some time before it really comes into a range which is acceptable to the government and which is good for the people,” Finance Secretary Ashok Chawla told reporters on the sidelines of a conference on state highways here.
When asked what would be an acceptable range of food inflation, he said it would be 5-6 per cent.
The Finance Secretary’s statement came on a day when the Opposition NDA and Left Front staged protests against rising inflation and the hike in fuel prices announced by the government last month.
IMF extends new USD 20 bn credit line to Poland
Washington, Jul 3 (AFP) The International Monetary Fund has extended a “precautionary” USD 20 billion credit line for Poland as the country copes with a fragile global economic recovery.
The IMF executive board approved a Polish request for a one-year Flexible Credit Line, the IMF said in a statement yesterday.
“The Polish authorities intend to treat the arrangement as precautionary and do not intend to draw from the FCL,” said the 187-nation institution, based in Washington.
Poland had already benefited, between May 2009 and May 2010, from the IMF credit line reserved for countries with strong track records and “designed for crisis prevention.
US stocks sink after mixed jobs report
New York, July 3 (AFP) US stocks posted modest losses as investors digested a mixed June employment report showing the economy shed more jobs than expected and a surprise dip in the unemployment rate.
Paring earlier losses, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 46.05 points (0.47 per cent) to 9,686.48 in closing trades.
The tech-rich Nasdaq composite index slid 9.57 points (0.46 per cent) to 2,091.79 and the S&P 500 index, a broader measure of the markets, shed 4.79 points (0.47 per cent) at 1,022.58.
“The jobs report showed the unemployment rate and the drop in jobs were better than expected, while private-sector job growth and average hourly earnings were below expectations,” Charles Schwab & Co analysts said in a client note.
Job market not growing fast enough for big rebound
Washington, Jul 3 (AP) A second straight month of lackluster hiring by American businesses is sapping strength from the economic rebound.
The jobless rate fell to 9.5 per cent in June, still far too high to signal a healthy economy. It came in slightly lower than the month before only because more than a half-million people gave up looking for work and were no longer counted as unemployed.
The private sector added just 83,000 jobs for the month.
Looked at from that angle or almost any other, from a teetering housing market to falling factory orders, the recovery is limping along as it enters the year’s second half.
And that is when the benefits of most of the government’s stimulus spending will begin to wear off.
The fate of the economy will hinge on whether it can stand on its own.
Global economic worries hit Indian market
Mumbai, July 3 (PTI) Global economic apprehensions of a slowdown in manufacturing growth in the coming months on debt crisis in Europe pulled down the BSE benchmark Sensex by 114 points during the week.
Metal shares slid sharply on heavy selling. The BSE-Metal index fell 500.58 points or 3.36 per cent, after the Conference Board, a US-based research group, corrected its April 2010 gauge to assess the outlook of China’s economy.
IT shares dropped on profit-taking in view of dismal US economic data, while banking stocks moved down on rate hike worries (RBI raised key rates after market closed on Friday).
However, capital goods, small-cap, mid-cap and oil & gas sectors firmed up on good support as exports rose for the seventh straight month in May 2010, growing at a rate of 35 per cent per annum to USD 16.1 billion.
Select centres freights up on less position of trucks
New Delhi, July 3 (PTI) Freight rates for the ten metric tonne pay load section for select destinations rose in the local truck transport market today on less position of trucks compared to the cargo movements.
Transporters said, increased arrivals of cargo along with tight availability of trucks in the market, pushed up some of the centres freight rates.
Delhi to Hyderabad and Goa freight rates rose by Rs 1,000 each to Rs 34,000 and Rs 39,000.
Rates to Vijayawada and Mysore also went up by Rs 1,000 each to Rs 36,000 and Rs 49,000.
Elsewhere, other centres freight rates maintained their overnight levels on some support.
Neyveli strike intensifies, leaders go on indefinite fast
Cuddalore, July 3 (PTI) The strike at the Neyveli Lignite Corporation intensified today with some trade union leaders, owing allegiance to the DMK and Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), going on an indefinite fast.
About 14,000 regular employees of NLC are on an indefinite strike since Wednesday night as conciliatory talks on the extent of arrears remain deadlocked.
An agreement was reached over the percentage of increase in wages and allowances that fell due on January 1, 2007. The management has agreed to pay 25 per cent fitment benefit of the basic pay from January 1, 2007, three per cent additional increment and three per cent additional weightage from September 1, 2009, and 40 per cent common allowance from January 1, 2010.
But the trade unions are demanding the payment of additional increment from January 1, 2007.
NLC produces nearly 2,000 MW of power daily.
New Cos Bill likely to be in winter session: MCA secy
Mumbai, Jul 3 (PTI) The new companies Bill, pending approval of the Parliamentary standing committee, is expected to be tabled in Parliament by this year-end, corporate affairs secretary R Bandyopadhyay said here today.
“The committee will submit its report soon. The corporate affairs ministry will take some time (two-three months to study it) and we are hopeful that we will have a new Act by the year-end,” Bandyopadhyay told reporters on the sidelines of an event here.
Against the backdrop of the Satyam scam, the government geared up to frame a new legislation to address the regulatory loopholes in the existing Companies Act.
“The new Bill will also address several investor concerns, including creating a framework to empower them,” Bandyopadhyay said, adding the ministry is starting an investor awareness scheme under which over 3,000 workshops will be conducted across the country.
