Kenwood, Sparx to acquire 25 per cent in Matshusita's JVC for ¥30 billion; report
Mumbai: Kenwood Corp along with its leading shareholder Sparx Group Co, will acquire a combined 25 per cent stake in Victor Co of Japan Ltd - popularly known as JVC - newspaper reports said.

Kenwood, which makes car navigation system and audio visual products, and Sparx, an investment fund company, will spend ¥30 billion to subscribe to new shares to be issued by the struggling consumer electronics maker JVC, the newspaper reported.

Under the deal, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd , which holds a 52-per cent stake in the company would lower it to 39 per cent and take the loss-making company off its consolidated accounts.

After the transaction, Kenwood would hold a 10 per cent stake in JVC while Sparx would own a 5 per cent stake.

The world's largest consumer electronics maker Matsushita would raise 30 billion yen ($250 million) by issuing 20 billion yen worth of new shares to Kenwood and 10 billion yen worth of new shares to Sparx Asset Management.

JVC and Kenwood had reached a preliminary agreement to merge under a holding company as early as June 2008, but the two firms are set to continue talks on the matter since there is still resistance within JVC against the plan, the sources said.

Matsushita, the world's largest consumer electronics maker, has been trying to reduce its JVC stake, worth about 48.5 billion yen, because its persistent losses have been weighing on its group-based earnings performance.

Yokohama-based JVC expects a net loss of 10.5 billion yen for the current business year to March 2008, after posting a 7.9 billion yen loss a year earlier. (Read More)
Back to News Review index page  

Rain Calcining completes $595 million acquisition of CII Carbon of US
Mumbai: Rain Calcining Ltd has completed its $595 million acquisition of CII Carbon, LLC (CII). The all-cash acquisition was made by Rain/CII Holdings, Inc., a subsidiary of the company, on July 19, 2007, the company said in a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

With this acquisition, Rain Calcining has become the largest manufacturer of calcined petroleum coke in the world, the statement said.

The combined entity would constitute the world's largest producer of calcinated petroleum coke, with production of just over 2.4 million tonnes per annum and annual sales of $550 million, it said. (Read More)
Back to News Review index page  

China starting more flights to India by October
Beijing: Air China, which operated four weekly flights between Beijing and New Delhi, today announced its plans to start operating daily flights between Beijing and New Delhi starting 31 October, in view of the growing traffic between the two countries.

Air China had commenced a thrice a week service to India one year back and earlier in March this year added one more service.

It also plans to introduce two brand new Airbus 330s with 30 business class seats and 256 economy class seats to ply on the Beijing-Delhi sector.

Another international carrier, China Southern, will join the Chinese flag carrier to start three flights a week to Delhi from Guangzhou, which has over 3500 Indians. (Read More)
Back to News Review index page  

Court revives shareholder lawsuits over Vioxx against Merck
A US federal appeal court has revived lawsuits brought against US drugs multinational Merck & Co by its shareholders for concealing the health risks of its blockbuster arthritis painkiller Vioxx.

The shareholders allege that Merck deliberately concealed the high risks of heart attack, stroke and death among users. Merck faces some 7,000 outstanding lawsuits connected to Vioxx, with estimated potential liabilities around $5 billion.

Vioxx was launched in 1999 and became a best-selling anti-inflammatory drug, used primarily to treat arthritis, earning the drug giant $2.5 billion a year.

In September 2004 Merck finally withdrew Vioxx, which had earned after a study found it could double the risk of heart attacks.

The appeals court has sent the lawsuits back to the New Jersey federal judge who had dismissed them in May 2006. It said US district judge Stanley R Chesler should have allowed the plaintiffs to amend their original complaint with additional material.

Juries in cases surrounding claims of injury and death have found that Merck failed to provide adequate warnings about the health risks associated with Vioxx. (Read More)
Back to News Review index page  

ArcelorMittal to acquire automotive steel business of French company
Mumbai: ArcelorMittal, the world's biggest steel maker, will acquire French major Vallourec's two steel tube-making units for an undisclosed sum, as it expands its presence in the automotive sector.

The two units - Vallourec Pricision Soudage and Vallourec Composants Automobiles Vitry - manufacture welded steel tubes and tubular components respectively for the automotive industry, ArcelorMittal said in a statement.

VPS has an annual capacity to produce 1,00,000 tonnes, the statement added.

Arcelor Mittal has signed an agreement with Japan's Nippon Steel for tapping emerging markets. In China, it has a joint venture with Baoshan Iron & Steel Co in Shanghai while in Brazil it has teamed up with Usiminas. (Read More)
Back to News Review index page  

China hikes interest rates for a fifth time since April 2006
Mumbai: China raised its benchmark interest rates for a fifth straight time since April last year amidst a series of other tightening measures aimed at keeping inflation in check and cooling the world's fastest-growing major economy.

The People's Bank of China directed commercial banks to increase base one-year deposit and lending rates by 0.27 percentage points. The one-year benchmark deposit rate will move up to 3.33 per cent from 3.06 per cent while the one-year lending rate will rise to 6.84 per cent from 6.57 per cent.

The increase came a day after the government reported that annual growth accelerated to 11.9 per cent in the second quarter, the fastest rate in 11-½ years, from 11.1 per cent in the first quarter.

It is the fifth time that the central bank raised interest rates since April 27, 2006. The People's Bank has also raised banks' reserve requirements eight times since June 2006.

The rate hikes follows a Chinese cabinet statement that the government plans to cut tax paid on interest income to 5 per cent from 20 per cent beginning August 15. The reduction is aimed at encouraging Chinese investors to keep their money in banks rather than pumping it into the country's booming stock market. (Read More)
Back to News Review index page