Reliance emerges as the largest private sector firm
Mumbai: Reliance Petroleum Ltd. (RPL) has emerged as the largest private sector company in India, in terms of sales in its first year of commercial production, surpassing that of parent company. RPL registered sales of Rs 23,457 crore for the first nine months (April-December) of 2000-2001, which is higher than Reliance Industries Ltd.(RIL)'s sales of Rs 21,564 crore during the same period.

RPL is now amongst India's top-five most valuable companies with a market-capitalisation of around Rs 33,000 crore ($7.1 billion). Its net profit crossed Rs 1,000 crore and was at Rs 1,167 crore for the nine months. RIL has recorded a net profit of Rs 2,106 crore in the first nine months of 2000-2001. The company exported products worth Rs 4,714 crore, making it India's top manufacturer exporter based on just the first nine months results.

In the third quarter, RPL earned a net profit of Rs 441 crore on a turnover of Rs 9,149 crore for the period ended December 2000. Other income was Rs 71 crore. Interest costs on borrowings were Rs 271 crore and depreciation provision was Rs 172 crore.
Back to News Review index page 

Telco results puts Q3 net loss at Rs 121-crore
Mumbai: Tata Engineering & Locomotives Company Limited (Telco), country's leading automobile maker has reported doubling of its losses to Rs 121.4 crore during the third quarter, from Rs 60.4 crore during the same period last year.

For the nine-month period ended December 2000, the losses add up to a whopping Rs 353.8 crore, that exceeds company's paid-up equity base of Rs 255.9 crore. The company had reported a loss of Rs 59.9 during April-December 1999.

Net sales during the third quarter tumbled 25.6 per cent to Rs 1,762 crore from Rs 2,368.9 crore last year. Other income, however, recorded a five-fold increase from Rs 5 crore to Rs 31.3 crore during the period. Sales during the April-December period fell to Rs 5,459.2 crore from 6,019.1 crore to Rs 5,459.2 crore during the period. Other income declined from Rs 104.8 crore to Rs 85.6 crore during the period.

Telco has said that the financials for the third quarter and the first nine months are not strictly comparable with the previous year as its machine tool and growth division and gearbox and axle divisions has been spun off into subsidiary.
Back to News Review index page 

Shaw Wallace clears up ICD liabilities
Kolkata: Shaw Wallace has paid up Rs 140 crore to some 97-odd creditors and re-negotiated a rollover with others to make SWC a virtually debt-free company. Under a Calcutta High Court-approved scheme, the liquor major has liquidated all its inter-corporate deposit (ICD) liabilities.

A sum of Rs 116 was already lying in a escrow account with court-appointed special officers and the remaining Rs 29 crore was added to the disbursals from internal accruals.

The company's last year's balance sheet showed a total debt liability of Rs 230 crore, including ICDs. Now with Rs 140 crore paid off in one day, another Rs 85-crore debt and interest has been rolled over after successful negotiations with creditors. SWC has already settled dues of 17,000 fixed deposit-holders amounting to Rs 22 crore.
Back to News Review index page 

Overnite Express teams up with US Post for Saarc region
New Delhi: Overnite Express, in a deal that is first of its kind is tying up with the United States Postal Service (USPS) as its sole associate for the Saarc region. Mr. O P Rajgarhia, chairman and managing director of Overnite Express, has said that strategic alliance with USPS will see the launch a new brand - US Smart Sewa. As part of the US Smart Sewa, Overnite will charge a flat rate of Rs 500 for any package weighing up to 250 grams and use the USPS network to deliver to any destination in the US.

Targeted at non resident Indians, students and small and medium businesses, the US Smart Sewa will collect all packages at the Overnite hub in Delhi and fly them to the USPS hub in New York, and the USPS network takes care of the delivery. The Indian alliance is part of USPS’ global strategy of teaming up with "commercial companies" to take its range of services international.
Other USPS partners worldwide include Hanjin Express in South Korea, Overseas Courier Service in Canada and the PACC in central America and the Caribbean.

To start with, Overnite plans to focus on India but will eventually cover the entire Saarc region.
Back to News Review index page 

Nike to diversify in to apparel business
Bangalore: Nike is set to diversify in to apparel business as a part of its business expansion plans for India. Apparel business has immense potential in India and Nike wants to use this opportunity to increase its market share substantially, a company official has said.

Nike, entered India in 1996, has been designing and manufacture products engineered to meet the sporting needs of athletes across various categories -- like running, tennis, basketball, soccer, golf, cross-training and all condition gear meant for the rugged outdoors and extreme weather conditions for sports like mountaineering, river-rafting, mountain-biking among others. The company has achieved as much growth in apparel as in footwear in Europe. The company has been launching an average of 30-40 new footwear and about 100 new apparel styles per annum.

Nike recently shifted its corporate headquarters to Bangalore, where it will have its marketing office, apparel export base and product design centre. It also opened its largest Indian showroom in Bangalore recently on a 3,500-sq ft area.
Back to News Review index page 

AMD unveils 850 MHz Duron processor in India
New Delhi: Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), a global microprocessor major has announced the launch of 850 MHz Duron processor in India, targeted at the desktop segment. The processor would be aimed at the value desktop segment mainly comprising the homes and low-end corporate users.

The company has also announced the availability of Unified Memory Architecture, integrated graphics chipsets aimed at enabling personal computer manufacturers to provide Duron processor-based systems in the sub Rs 46,000 segment. UMA chipsets include the graphics processing engine on the chipset, removing the need for standalone graphics card in the PC.

This integration helps PC manufacturers to reduce graphics costs, allowing them to provide richer configuration in the PC. The company expects PCs featuring UMA graphics to be offered from Compaq and HP amongst others vendors.
Back to News Review index page 

Unitech gets Rs 90-crore road contract
New Delhi: The Delhi state government has awarded a Rs 90-crore contract to Unitech, a real estate and construction group, for three road projects in Dwarka and is further expected to announce another major road project for the private sector. The projects seek to have a network of good quality roads in the Dwarka City. Work on the Dwarka project would commence next week and is will be completed in the next 18 months.

Rs 450-crore Unitech group has also been awarded two more road projects last month, which include the Rs 40-crore state highway between Gadodara and Bajipura in Gujarat valued at Rs 40 crore and the Science City Complex at Kapurthala in Punjab, valued at Rs 20 crore.

The company recently handed over a 30-km long Hubli-Dharwad bypass project on NH 4 in Karnataka. Unitech also handed over a 60-km stretch out of an 80-km stretch it is building between Karnal and Ambala, earlier this year. The project costing around Rs 300 crore, is being built in joint venture with LG Construction of South Korea.
Back to News Review index page 

Trent to foray into food retailing
Mumbai: Trent Limited, a Tata group company, has decided to foray into food retailing with tentative plans of opening 100 grocery stores in the western and northern regions of India. The proposal, which was approved by the company board of directors, would involve entry either by an appropriate acquisition or a start up through a greenfield project.

The company would invest up to Rs 40 crore over a five-year period in the project. The stores to be set up will be in self-service supermarket formats, selling food and non-food items, including wet groceries. The company has estimated that currently the Indian market is worth about Rs 3,00,000 crore mainly dominated by small independent retailers.
Back to News Review index page 

BASF to amalgamate with Cynamid Agro
Mumbai: BASF board of directors has approved the scheme for amalgamation of Cynamid Agro Limited (CAL) with itself effective January 1, 2001. The share exchange ratio has been determined at two equity shares of BASF India Ltd. of Rs 10 each fully paid up for five equity shares of CAL of Rs 10 each, fully paid up by the board of directors. Post merger, the equity base would be Rs 28.189 crore and BASF India will rank fourth amongst the MNC's in the crop protection moving up from seventh in current rankings. CC Chokshi & Co and NM Raiji & Co did the valuation.
Back to News Review index page 

Thermax introduces cost-cutting measures
Pune: Thermax Limited has launched a major cost cutting drive as part of its restructuring exercise. The exercise will entail bringing down material costs, employee-related costs, manufacturing and operational processes.

The company has set up 25 task forces led by senior managers to address the cost-saving measures. The proposed action includes measures such as coordinated sourcing of common items for better terms and economies of scale, fixing of costs based on market realities, rather than cost-plus method and monitoring outstanding on a daily basis to keep down accounts receivables. The company will be also be implementing ERP packages, across all businesses by the end of the next financial year to help track costs and strategise its pricing.

With the proposed measures, Thermax Limited hopes to break even by the end of the year or post a modest profit. The top-line growth is expected to come from the company's new initiatives in energy and environment management.
Back to News Review index page 

KPL International sets up office in Shanghai
New Delhi: KPL International Ltd.has set up an office in Shanghai, China to facilitate the import of chemicals into India and the export of a wide range of items to that country. KPL International engaged in international agency business already represents 20 large overseas companies in India, some of which are also represented by the company in other Saarc countries.

Kanoria Chemicals and Industries Ltd. (KCIL), a flagship company of the group has three plants, in Ankleshwar and Ahmedabad in Gujarat and one at Renukoot in Uttar Pradesh, which manufacture a wide range of chemicals, including chlro-alkalis, chlorine derivatives, organic chemicals, paint intermediates and agrochemicals. The Shanghai office would import chemicals, which do not compete with KCIL's product-line. The company is currently handling business worth Rs 150 crore which is expected to rise to Rs 300 crore in three years and further go up to Rs 500 crore in five 5 years. Kanorias are amongst the larger players in the chemicals industry in the country.
Back to News Review index page