Indian Economy - News & Updates - Archive
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Please continue in this thread: https://defence.pk/forums/showthread.php?t=5804
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Bushroda
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Thanks Neo, so here we go
Previous discussion on this page
https://defence.pk/forums/showthread.php?t=1418
____________________________________________________________
Asian invasion begins
By Mark Hinchliffe, June 13, 2007
CourierMail, Australia
http://imageshack.us
AUSTRALIA is set for an invasion of Chinese and Indian cars and the return of several nameplates missing for some years.
Indian company Mahindra is about to relaunch in Australia with the Pik-Up ute.
It joins a growing list of new or returned marques in the Australian market after the re-introduction last year of Fiat and Dodge, Hummer and Skoda this year while Cadillac and Chinese brands wait in the wings.
Mahindra was last in Australia in the late 1980s with the Bushman, but the importers went broke and left buyers stranded. The Indian company now realises it has to regain the faith of Australian car buyers.
It is certainly well placed to launch an assault on our market, as it is on markets around the world.
Mahindra now has manufacturing plants in five countries and is selling vehicles in South Africa, Europe and Malaysia.
In April it tackled the biggest market in the world, the US, with three models. And now the company has set its sights on Australia.
In a move which showed the importance of the occasion, automotive sector president Dr Pawan Goenka attended the national launch of the Pik-Up at Bowral, southwest of Sydney last week.
Recently named "Man of the Year" by India's Autocar Professional Magazine, Dr Goenka said Mahindra was investing in the future.
"We will spend more money on research and development in the coming years than we have spent in the previous 60," he said.
Mahindra vehicles will be imported in Australia by TMI Pacific which is owned by the Tynan family of Sydney.
Chairman Michael Tynan began selling Mazdas in 1966 and now operates five dealerships selling 11 different brands.
Tynan, who is also deputy president of the NRMA, said they had previous import experience in the boating industry, but this was their first car importing venture.
TMI Pacific has spent $5 million over two years in testing, market research and securing ADR compliance for the Mahindra product.
He said their research showed country of origin would have little to no impact, at least on rural consumers.
He said they took the Pik-Up to field days in Orange in country NSW last year and had no adverse comments about its Indian origin.
"As we suspected, given the diverse origins of vehicles in Australia generally, the Mahindra's Indian roots seem to be of least concern," he said.
Like China, India is a powerhouse economy, well poised to pounce on the international automotive industry.
It is the fourth largest economy in the world based on gross domestic product and has 9 per cent annual economic growth.
Its car industry has experienced 8 per cent growth in the past three years and 30 per cent export growth in the past five years, although that has been off a low base.
Other car companies, such as Suzuki, have manufacturing plants in India producing cars mainly for the domestic market.
Mahindra also has entered joint ventures with Renault to produce the Logan small car for the Indian market and International to produce trucks.
Mahindra has 67 per cent market share of the local pick-up market and 40 per cent share of the SUV market.
With two new plants in India expected to boost annual production to a million cars within five years, it is no wonder Mahindra is looking to sell its vehicles on the world market.
Previous discussion on this page
https://defence.pk/forums/showthread.php?t=1418
____________________________________________________________
Asian invasion begins
By Mark Hinchliffe, June 13, 2007
CourierMail, Australia
http://imageshack.us
AUSTRALIA is set for an invasion of Chinese and Indian cars and the return of several nameplates missing for some years.
Indian company Mahindra is about to relaunch in Australia with the Pik-Up ute.
It joins a growing list of new or returned marques in the Australian market after the re-introduction last year of Fiat and Dodge, Hummer and Skoda this year while Cadillac and Chinese brands wait in the wings.
Mahindra was last in Australia in the late 1980s with the Bushman, but the importers went broke and left buyers stranded. The Indian company now realises it has to regain the faith of Australian car buyers.
It is certainly well placed to launch an assault on our market, as it is on markets around the world.
Mahindra now has manufacturing plants in five countries and is selling vehicles in South Africa, Europe and Malaysia.
In April it tackled the biggest market in the world, the US, with three models. And now the company has set its sights on Australia.
In a move which showed the importance of the occasion, automotive sector president Dr Pawan Goenka attended the national launch of the Pik-Up at Bowral, southwest of Sydney last week.
Recently named "Man of the Year" by India's Autocar Professional Magazine, Dr Goenka said Mahindra was investing in the future.
"We will spend more money on research and development in the coming years than we have spent in the previous 60," he said.
Mahindra vehicles will be imported in Australia by TMI Pacific which is owned by the Tynan family of Sydney.
Chairman Michael Tynan began selling Mazdas in 1966 and now operates five dealerships selling 11 different brands.
Tynan, who is also deputy president of the NRMA, said they had previous import experience in the boating industry, but this was their first car importing venture.
TMI Pacific has spent $5 million over two years in testing, market research and securing ADR compliance for the Mahindra product.
He said their research showed country of origin would have little to no impact, at least on rural consumers.
He said they took the Pik-Up to field days in Orange in country NSW last year and had no adverse comments about its Indian origin.
"As we suspected, given the diverse origins of vehicles in Australia generally, the Mahindra's Indian roots seem to be of least concern," he said.
Like China, India is a powerhouse economy, well poised to pounce on the international automotive industry.
It is the fourth largest economy in the world based on gross domestic product and has 9 per cent annual economic growth.
Its car industry has experienced 8 per cent growth in the past three years and 30 per cent export growth in the past five years, although that has been off a low base.
Other car companies, such as Suzuki, have manufacturing plants in India producing cars mainly for the domestic market.
Mahindra also has entered joint ventures with Renault to produce the Logan small car for the Indian market and International to produce trucks.
Mahindra has 67 per cent market share of the local pick-up market and 40 per cent share of the SUV market.
With two new plants in India expected to boost annual production to a million cars within five years, it is no wonder Mahindra is looking to sell its vehicles on the world market.
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Bushroda
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Will India's real estate bubble burst?
By Mark Kleinman, Asia Business Editor
Last Updated: 12:49pm BST 12/06/2007
It seems destined to become one of the most ostentatious symbols of India's emerging wealth. Situated in the heart of Mumbai, the new $500m (£255m), 28-storey home of Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries and one of India's richest men, will tower above its surroundings: on one side, a view over the Arabian Sea; on the other, a panoramic perspective across Asia's biggest slum.
This juxtaposition of wealth and extreme poverty underlines the vast potential of India's burgeoning real estate industry, into which hundreds of millions of dollars are being poured every month.
This week, one of India's biggest property developers, DLF Universal, is undertaking the biggest domestic share offering to date, with a fundraising target of about $2.4bn.
Run by one of the country's wealthiest people, Kushal Pal Singh, DLF is expected to be valued at about $23bn once the listing, handled by banks including Citi and Merrill Lynch, is completed. The flotation on India's National Stock Exchange will not be DLF's first attempt, having aborted an effort to list last August amid concerns about its valuation.
DLF has ambitious plans to use proceeds of its IPO to accelerate its expansion by swallowing a larger chunk of the demand for new residential and commercial property.
advertisementIndia's economic growth last year was more than 9pc, its second-fastest level since the country gained independence from Britain in 1947.
India's young and increasingly wealthy middle-class are buying homes at an unprecedented rate. Property analysts expect demand for at least 20m new homes in five years. The overall real estate market is forecast to be seven times larger by 2015. Foreign investors, including 3i and Blackstone, the private-equity groups, have signalled an intention to grab a slice of the Indian economy with funds dedicated to infrastructure projects, which most analysts consider to be the most urgent requirement.
A property boom in India is potential good news for hordes of British retailers and leisure companies, such as Mothercare and Whitbread looking for development opportunities.
"India's real estate opportunity is genuine, large and will last a long while - a prospect not lost on developers and capital providers," said Ashish Jagnani, a Mumbai-based real estate analyst for Citi.
Since the beginning of last year, at least eight companies with an emphasis on the Indian property market have listed in London. Yesterday, seven of them were trading beneath the price at which they listed. In total, the companies have a market value of well over £1bn.
Among the glut of Aim-listed Indian property funds to have underperformed in share price terms is Trinity Capital, which raised £238m when it floated at 100p in April 2006. Despite being fully-invested in a range of commercial, hospitality and residential projects, the share price has continued to trail behind at around 90p.
Some analysts warn of the risk of a bubble in Indian real estate prices that could undermine growth prospects for the whole market.
Yesterday, a fund set up to invest in non-performing Indian assets, Dhir India Investments, announced plans to list on Aim and tap into a market for distressed assets estimated by PricewaterhouseCoopers to be worth $50bn.
But if bearish predictions of a real estate bubble are accurate, that pile of distressed assets could turn into a mountain as tall as Mr Ambani's new home.
By Mark Kleinman, Asia Business Editor
Last Updated: 12:49pm BST 12/06/2007
It seems destined to become one of the most ostentatious symbols of India's emerging wealth. Situated in the heart of Mumbai, the new $500m (£255m), 28-storey home of Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries and one of India's richest men, will tower above its surroundings: on one side, a view over the Arabian Sea; on the other, a panoramic perspective across Asia's biggest slum.
This juxtaposition of wealth and extreme poverty underlines the vast potential of India's burgeoning real estate industry, into which hundreds of millions of dollars are being poured every month.
This week, one of India's biggest property developers, DLF Universal, is undertaking the biggest domestic share offering to date, with a fundraising target of about $2.4bn.
Run by one of the country's wealthiest people, Kushal Pal Singh, DLF is expected to be valued at about $23bn once the listing, handled by banks including Citi and Merrill Lynch, is completed. The flotation on India's National Stock Exchange will not be DLF's first attempt, having aborted an effort to list last August amid concerns about its valuation.
DLF has ambitious plans to use proceeds of its IPO to accelerate its expansion by swallowing a larger chunk of the demand for new residential and commercial property.
advertisementIndia's economic growth last year was more than 9pc, its second-fastest level since the country gained independence from Britain in 1947.
India's young and increasingly wealthy middle-class are buying homes at an unprecedented rate. Property analysts expect demand for at least 20m new homes in five years. The overall real estate market is forecast to be seven times larger by 2015. Foreign investors, including 3i and Blackstone, the private-equity groups, have signalled an intention to grab a slice of the Indian economy with funds dedicated to infrastructure projects, which most analysts consider to be the most urgent requirement.
A property boom in India is potential good news for hordes of British retailers and leisure companies, such as Mothercare and Whitbread looking for development opportunities.
"India's real estate opportunity is genuine, large and will last a long while - a prospect not lost on developers and capital providers," said Ashish Jagnani, a Mumbai-based real estate analyst for Citi.
Since the beginning of last year, at least eight companies with an emphasis on the Indian property market have listed in London. Yesterday, seven of them were trading beneath the price at which they listed. In total, the companies have a market value of well over £1bn.
Among the glut of Aim-listed Indian property funds to have underperformed in share price terms is Trinity Capital, which raised £238m when it floated at 100p in April 2006. Despite being fully-invested in a range of commercial, hospitality and residential projects, the share price has continued to trail behind at around 90p.
Some analysts warn of the risk of a bubble in Indian real estate prices that could undermine growth prospects for the whole market.
Yesterday, a fund set up to invest in non-performing Indian assets, Dhir India Investments, announced plans to list on Aim and tap into a market for distressed assets estimated by PricewaterhouseCoopers to be worth $50bn.
But if bearish predictions of a real estate bubble are accurate, that pile of distressed assets could turn into a mountain as tall as Mr Ambani's new home.
Bushroda
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Education, Technology and the Future of India
Bill Gates, CXOtoday
Mumbai, Jun 12, 2007
For me and anyone else who is passionate about using technology to help create opportunities for people, trends in India today are tremendously exciting and encouraging.
As everyone knows, the nation has become a global leader in information technology and other high-tech fields such as pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, and telecom-based business services. These sectors have contributed to the economy's rapid growth since 2003, which has lifted many millions of people out of poverty. Continued growth could alleviate suffering and expand opportunities for millions more. One day, we may look back on India's progress during this decade as one of the great humanitarian achievements of our time.
Equally exhilarating is how India's rise may influence the global community. The world will be a safer place if other nations can learn from the achievements of what is not only the largest democracy, but also one of the most pluralistic cultures. The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, has said it well: India's success will renew humanity's faith in liberal democracy, in the rule of law, in free and open societies. The entire world has a big stake in India's future.
The Power of Indian Skills and Talent
It seems to me that the India miracle, if you will, demonstrates the wisdom of sustained investment in the primary asset of any modern economy: people. During the nearly 60 years since independence, India's investments in human development have reduced hunger, increased literacy, and improved healthy conditions. Education investments have produced world-class scientists, engineers, and technicians. They, in turn, have fuelled the growth of Indian technology companies and attracted many global technology leaders, including Microsoft.
People have been the key to Microsoft's success in India, and our experience may be illustrative. We entered the country 17 years ago, working closely with the government, IT industry, academia, and the local developer community. Over the years, the people of Microsoft India have had end-to-end responsibility for the development of many Microsoft technologies. They have made important contributions to many other products, including Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office system.
We currently employ more than 4,000 people across 6 business units in Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune and Chennai, and we continue to expand our presence. Outside the United States, Microsoft's India Development Centre is our second largest product development facility. Two years ago, we opened Microsoft Research India, where scientists and engineers work to advance the frontiers of knowledge in computer science and related fields, often in collaboration with India's academic community. These teams have demonstrated India's great capacity for innovation by filing for 100 patents during the past two years. Other India units play major roles in our worldwide customer support, consulting services and management of our internal information systems.
Beyond our direct presence, Microsoft also contributes to India's growth through the thousands of local partners, large firms and small, that develop and sell products and services based on our software platform. This year, 35 Indian companies qualified for the Forbes 2000 list of the world's biggest corporate giants. Among them were four valued Microsoft partners: Tata Consultancy, Infosys Technologies, Wipro and Satyam Computer Services. Microsoft is extremely proud to be a part of the economic transformation that these and other highly successful Indian companies have helped bring about.
Sustaining Growth, Broadening the Opportunity
How can India best sustain its rapid growth and broaden opportunity for all its people? Much has been written about the need for sharply increased investments in highways, airports, power plants and other infrastructure. Economists also point to a need for regulatory reforms and better public services provided more transparently. These are important challenges.
Also, from my perspective, investments in human capital should continue to be a high priority, especially efforts to further alleviate hunger, reduce illiteracy and improve public health.
Threats to health such as HIV/AIDS, for example, could upset much of India s recent progress. The estimate is that less than one per cent of adults are infected, but because of India's large population, the number is among the highest in the world.
Education at every level remains crucial for continued growth. Output of college and university graduates is impressive in absolute terms, and has been a great source of economic strength, but India cannot afford to become complacent. The nation now faces an acute shortage of skilled workers, as Infosys and other employers have warned recently. Education spending as a percentage of GDP lags far behind that of countries such as South Korea and Taiwan. Yet, one could argue that India needs a skilled and educated workforce even more than the so-called Asian Tigers do. They accelerated their development through manufacturing, primarily, while India's focus on services and technology makes its workforce skills especially critical.
As many others have said and as the government has recognized in its budget plans, India urgently needs to build more primary and secondary schools, improve teaching and ensure that more children attend school, especially in rural areas. Higher education needs to be expanded and upgraded. Top-tier institutions are overrun with applicants, while skill levels among graduates of some other colleges do not meet world standards or the needs of employers. By one estimate, 25% of all new engineering graduates lack the skills to be employable in the IT industry, despite its dire need for workers.
Microsoft is committed to helping improve Indian education. Over the past several years, we have been engaged in many collaborative efforts, mainly focused on advancing the instructional uses of technology and expanding access to computers and computer skills. For example, our Project Shish currently works with more than 10 state governments, bringing computer skills training to more than 120,000 teachers so far. We have helped enhance learning opportunities available to students in slum and rural schools through support for Digital Study Hall, a project that records and distributes DVDs of classes led by India's best grassroots teachers. And to help overcome a scarcity of classroom computers, Microsoft Research India has developed Windows Multipoint, a technology that enables several students to work on a single PC.
In higher education, our efforts have included the Developer Platform Evangelism Academy, which has provided professional development to more than 1,000 IT and engineering faculty members at 51 Indian colleges. To help recent engineering graduates transition from school to careers, we recently began working with the Indian government and industry on an online employability portal. It will enable graduates to assess their skills, complete appropriate training and connect with prospective employers.
Technology and India's Future
Besides being an important tool in education and a growth sector of the Indian economy, information technology can aid social and economic development in many ways. Wide deployment of computers, software and telecommunications helps boost productivity and reduce transaction costs in many sectors, strengthening economic growth. Computers, mobile devices and software can help expand the quality and availability of health care and other public services, as well as education.
A lack of access to technology, on the other hand, can hinder development. More than 30 years after the invention of one of the most versatile and empowering technologies of our time, the personal computer is readily available to only 1 billion of the world's more than 6 billion people. Microsoft's founding vision of a computer on every desk and in every home is a reality for the roughly 1 billion people living near the top of the global economic pyramid. But the digital revolution has yet to spread very far in many rural areas, impoverished communities and developing countries, including India.
Disparities in technology access are troubling, for as the global economy is increasingly computerized and moves online, social and economic development becomes even more difficult in the places and for the people left behind, on the less fortunate side of the digital divide. This is a problem that Microsoft and others in the information technology industry have been working to address.
Microsoft's ultimate goal is to bring the benefits of technology to every person. Toward that end, we have set our sights on an ambitious milestone: With governments and other partners, we aim to deliver the power of information technology to 1 billion more people worldwide by the year 2015. We are expanding several technology training and assistance programs.
And we recently introduced the low-cost Microsoft Student Innovation Suite of software products, including versions of windows, Microsoft Office, Learning Essentials and Microsoft Math. Although we invested many millions of dollars to develop these products, the suite will be available tom students for about Rs.127, through government programmes in India and many other developing countries as part of targeted programmes that provide PCs to disadvantaged students.
We are taking these and other steps because, as industry leaders and simply as human beings, we believe that all 6 billion people who share this planet deserve a chance to realize their full potential. We are especially excited to be working toward realizing this vision in India, where progress on many fronts is already well underway.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Although, I've covered this piece of news in the previous thread this is an update for people who happen to miss the last thread.
Bill Gates, CXOtoday
Mumbai, Jun 12, 2007
For me and anyone else who is passionate about using technology to help create opportunities for people, trends in India today are tremendously exciting and encouraging.
As everyone knows, the nation has become a global leader in information technology and other high-tech fields such as pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, and telecom-based business services. These sectors have contributed to the economy's rapid growth since 2003, which has lifted many millions of people out of poverty. Continued growth could alleviate suffering and expand opportunities for millions more. One day, we may look back on India's progress during this decade as one of the great humanitarian achievements of our time.
Equally exhilarating is how India's rise may influence the global community. The world will be a safer place if other nations can learn from the achievements of what is not only the largest democracy, but also one of the most pluralistic cultures. The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, has said it well: India's success will renew humanity's faith in liberal democracy, in the rule of law, in free and open societies. The entire world has a big stake in India's future.
The Power of Indian Skills and Talent
It seems to me that the India miracle, if you will, demonstrates the wisdom of sustained investment in the primary asset of any modern economy: people. During the nearly 60 years since independence, India's investments in human development have reduced hunger, increased literacy, and improved healthy conditions. Education investments have produced world-class scientists, engineers, and technicians. They, in turn, have fuelled the growth of Indian technology companies and attracted many global technology leaders, including Microsoft.
People have been the key to Microsoft's success in India, and our experience may be illustrative. We entered the country 17 years ago, working closely with the government, IT industry, academia, and the local developer community. Over the years, the people of Microsoft India have had end-to-end responsibility for the development of many Microsoft technologies. They have made important contributions to many other products, including Windows Vista and the 2007 Microsoft Office system.
We currently employ more than 4,000 people across 6 business units in Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune and Chennai, and we continue to expand our presence. Outside the United States, Microsoft's India Development Centre is our second largest product development facility. Two years ago, we opened Microsoft Research India, where scientists and engineers work to advance the frontiers of knowledge in computer science and related fields, often in collaboration with India's academic community. These teams have demonstrated India's great capacity for innovation by filing for 100 patents during the past two years. Other India units play major roles in our worldwide customer support, consulting services and management of our internal information systems.
Beyond our direct presence, Microsoft also contributes to India's growth through the thousands of local partners, large firms and small, that develop and sell products and services based on our software platform. This year, 35 Indian companies qualified for the Forbes 2000 list of the world's biggest corporate giants. Among them were four valued Microsoft partners: Tata Consultancy, Infosys Technologies, Wipro and Satyam Computer Services. Microsoft is extremely proud to be a part of the economic transformation that these and other highly successful Indian companies have helped bring about.
Sustaining Growth, Broadening the Opportunity
How can India best sustain its rapid growth and broaden opportunity for all its people? Much has been written about the need for sharply increased investments in highways, airports, power plants and other infrastructure. Economists also point to a need for regulatory reforms and better public services provided more transparently. These are important challenges.
Also, from my perspective, investments in human capital should continue to be a high priority, especially efforts to further alleviate hunger, reduce illiteracy and improve public health.
Threats to health such as HIV/AIDS, for example, could upset much of India s recent progress. The estimate is that less than one per cent of adults are infected, but because of India's large population, the number is among the highest in the world.
Education at every level remains crucial for continued growth. Output of college and university graduates is impressive in absolute terms, and has been a great source of economic strength, but India cannot afford to become complacent. The nation now faces an acute shortage of skilled workers, as Infosys and other employers have warned recently. Education spending as a percentage of GDP lags far behind that of countries such as South Korea and Taiwan. Yet, one could argue that India needs a skilled and educated workforce even more than the so-called Asian Tigers do. They accelerated their development through manufacturing, primarily, while India's focus on services and technology makes its workforce skills especially critical.
As many others have said and as the government has recognized in its budget plans, India urgently needs to build more primary and secondary schools, improve teaching and ensure that more children attend school, especially in rural areas. Higher education needs to be expanded and upgraded. Top-tier institutions are overrun with applicants, while skill levels among graduates of some other colleges do not meet world standards or the needs of employers. By one estimate, 25% of all new engineering graduates lack the skills to be employable in the IT industry, despite its dire need for workers.
Microsoft is committed to helping improve Indian education. Over the past several years, we have been engaged in many collaborative efforts, mainly focused on advancing the instructional uses of technology and expanding access to computers and computer skills. For example, our Project Shish currently works with more than 10 state governments, bringing computer skills training to more than 120,000 teachers so far. We have helped enhance learning opportunities available to students in slum and rural schools through support for Digital Study Hall, a project that records and distributes DVDs of classes led by India's best grassroots teachers. And to help overcome a scarcity of classroom computers, Microsoft Research India has developed Windows Multipoint, a technology that enables several students to work on a single PC.
In higher education, our efforts have included the Developer Platform Evangelism Academy, which has provided professional development to more than 1,000 IT and engineering faculty members at 51 Indian colleges. To help recent engineering graduates transition from school to careers, we recently began working with the Indian government and industry on an online employability portal. It will enable graduates to assess their skills, complete appropriate training and connect with prospective employers.
Technology and India's Future
Besides being an important tool in education and a growth sector of the Indian economy, information technology can aid social and economic development in many ways. Wide deployment of computers, software and telecommunications helps boost productivity and reduce transaction costs in many sectors, strengthening economic growth. Computers, mobile devices and software can help expand the quality and availability of health care and other public services, as well as education.
A lack of access to technology, on the other hand, can hinder development. More than 30 years after the invention of one of the most versatile and empowering technologies of our time, the personal computer is readily available to only 1 billion of the world's more than 6 billion people. Microsoft's founding vision of a computer on every desk and in every home is a reality for the roughly 1 billion people living near the top of the global economic pyramid. But the digital revolution has yet to spread very far in many rural areas, impoverished communities and developing countries, including India.
Disparities in technology access are troubling, for as the global economy is increasingly computerized and moves online, social and economic development becomes even more difficult in the places and for the people left behind, on the less fortunate side of the digital divide. This is a problem that Microsoft and others in the information technology industry have been working to address.
Microsoft's ultimate goal is to bring the benefits of technology to every person. Toward that end, we have set our sights on an ambitious milestone: With governments and other partners, we aim to deliver the power of information technology to 1 billion more people worldwide by the year 2015. We are expanding several technology training and assistance programs.
And we recently introduced the low-cost Microsoft Student Innovation Suite of software products, including versions of windows, Microsoft Office, Learning Essentials and Microsoft Math. Although we invested many millions of dollars to develop these products, the suite will be available tom students for about Rs.127, through government programmes in India and many other developing countries as part of targeted programmes that provide PCs to disadvantaged students.
We are taking these and other steps because, as industry leaders and simply as human beings, we believe that all 6 billion people who share this planet deserve a chance to realize their full potential. We are especially excited to be working toward realizing this vision in India, where progress on many fronts is already well underway.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Although, I've covered this piece of news in the previous thread this is an update for people who happen to miss the last thread.
Bushroda
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- Apr 13, 2007
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Jones Lang LaSalle, Former Trammell Crow Entity Merge Indian Operations
June 12, 2007
By Dees Stribling, Special Correspondent
Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. and the Indian business entity formerly known as Trammell Crow Meghraj have struck an agreement to combine their operations in India. The new entity will be known as Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj and will have about 2,800 employees in India with offices in 10 cities.
The combined firm, which will have 44 million square feet under management across India, will have its head office in Delhi. The merger enables Jones Lang LaSalle, which has about 160 offices in more than 450 cities worldwide, to add scale in India and its fast-growing economy.
According to Jones Lang LaSalle, the new entity aspires to exceed $100 million in revenue by 2009 and aims to establish offices in five more Indian cities by then. The company also plans to introduce new service lines, including a hotel division, corporate capital markets, debt and derivatives, asset management and mall management.
TCM was formerly an equity partnership between Trammell Crow Co., which was recently acquired by CB Richard Ellis Inc.; Meghraj Group, a private financial services company; and Sundown Group, a real estate investment company in the United Kingdom. Both Jones Lang LaSalle and TCM's senior management will hold leadership positions within Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj, and all current employees will be integrated into the combined organization.
June 12, 2007
By Dees Stribling, Special Correspondent
Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. and the Indian business entity formerly known as Trammell Crow Meghraj have struck an agreement to combine their operations in India. The new entity will be known as Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj and will have about 2,800 employees in India with offices in 10 cities.
The combined firm, which will have 44 million square feet under management across India, will have its head office in Delhi. The merger enables Jones Lang LaSalle, which has about 160 offices in more than 450 cities worldwide, to add scale in India and its fast-growing economy.
According to Jones Lang LaSalle, the new entity aspires to exceed $100 million in revenue by 2009 and aims to establish offices in five more Indian cities by then. The company also plans to introduce new service lines, including a hotel division, corporate capital markets, debt and derivatives, asset management and mall management.
TCM was formerly an equity partnership between Trammell Crow Co., which was recently acquired by CB Richard Ellis Inc.; Meghraj Group, a private financial services company; and Sundown Group, a real estate investment company in the United Kingdom. Both Jones Lang LaSalle and TCM's senior management will hold leadership positions within Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj, and all current employees will be integrated into the combined organization.
Bushroda
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Let feel-good touch all, says Montek
Business Standard, Mumbai June 13, 2007
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia today said the government is formulating a strategy to double the growth in agriculture and called for sweeping reforms in education and health to make the surging economic growth truly inclusive.
For a long time, inclusive growth was taken to be poverty alleviation. Today, more than poverty alleviation, inclusiveness goes beyond to the perception of everyone feeling that they are getting a share of the action and getting upward social and economic mobility, he said after giving away the Business Standard Awards at a glittering function attended by a galaxy of business leaders in Mumbai.
The reforms in higher education and health should be similar, he said, to what happened in industry 16 years ago.
Ahluwalia said the concerns of overheating of the economy are valid, especially against the backdrop of the rising inflation a few weeks ago. However, with the inflation coming down in the recent weeks, the real worries are over.
He pointed out how the GDP growth is no longer a concern; the current debate is confined to whether it will grow at over 9 per cent, or, he said in a lighter vein, at as low as 8.5 per cent.
On the downside, Ahluwalia pointed out that, in spite of the achievements of software companies, the skill shortage has to be recognised as a major crisis situation. This is where reforms in the higher education sector have to play a major role, he said.
According to him, the government has recognised that infrastructure is the single most important lever to keep the growth momentum high, and expressed happiness that the concerns are shared by the chief ministers of various states.
Traditionally, we tend to think that policy issues are discussed at the national level, but at the state level, there is a large degree of freedom to influence the levers of agriculture, infrastructure, and other social sectors, said Ahluwalia.
He exhorted Indian industry to support the fundamental growth pillars of Indian economy in order to sustain growth. While we do our bit to raise consciousness, industry needs to lend its support, he said.
Earlier T Thomas, the chairman of Business Standard Ltd, said India is lucky to have, in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Ahluwalia, two eminent non-political economists steering its policy framework.
The CEO of the Year award was given to Bharti Group Chairman Sunil Mittal for being at the forefront of Indias phenomenal telecom growth. Receiving the award, Mittal said one can reasonably expect to be declared the entrepreneur of the year when one grows from a $5 million company to a $5 billion company in 10 years.
However, he said, it was a proud moment for someone in Bharti to be recognised as the CEO of the year. He said he was glad he got it now, for, having moved on from being the CEO with effect from April this year, this was his last chance of winning the award.
K V Kamath, the CEO and MD of ICICI Bank, who received the Banker of the Year award for transforming ICICI bank into a retail juggernaut, thanked Team ICICI for its efforts.
The award for the Equity Fund Manager of the Year was won by Anup Bhasker, a former fund manager at Sundaram BNP Paribas and now the head of equities at UTI Mutual, while the honour of the Debt Fund Manager of the Year went to Ritesh Jain, head of fixed income at Kotak Mutual.
Bharat Heavy Electricals won the Star PSU of the Year award, Parsvnath Developers was declared the Star Unlisted Company (the company was listed in November 2006), Siemens India won the Star MNC award and Manugraph India won the Star SME. The Most Innovative Company of the Year award was given to Moser Baer.
Chevrolet Aveo U-VA won the BS Motoring Car of the Year award and Hero Honda CBZ X treme was chosen the BS Motoring Bike of the Year.
Business Standard, Mumbai June 13, 2007
Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia today said the government is formulating a strategy to double the growth in agriculture and called for sweeping reforms in education and health to make the surging economic growth truly inclusive.
For a long time, inclusive growth was taken to be poverty alleviation. Today, more than poverty alleviation, inclusiveness goes beyond to the perception of everyone feeling that they are getting a share of the action and getting upward social and economic mobility, he said after giving away the Business Standard Awards at a glittering function attended by a galaxy of business leaders in Mumbai.
The reforms in higher education and health should be similar, he said, to what happened in industry 16 years ago.
Ahluwalia said the concerns of overheating of the economy are valid, especially against the backdrop of the rising inflation a few weeks ago. However, with the inflation coming down in the recent weeks, the real worries are over.
He pointed out how the GDP growth is no longer a concern; the current debate is confined to whether it will grow at over 9 per cent, or, he said in a lighter vein, at as low as 8.5 per cent.
On the downside, Ahluwalia pointed out that, in spite of the achievements of software companies, the skill shortage has to be recognised as a major crisis situation. This is where reforms in the higher education sector have to play a major role, he said.
According to him, the government has recognised that infrastructure is the single most important lever to keep the growth momentum high, and expressed happiness that the concerns are shared by the chief ministers of various states.
Traditionally, we tend to think that policy issues are discussed at the national level, but at the state level, there is a large degree of freedom to influence the levers of agriculture, infrastructure, and other social sectors, said Ahluwalia.
He exhorted Indian industry to support the fundamental growth pillars of Indian economy in order to sustain growth. While we do our bit to raise consciousness, industry needs to lend its support, he said.
Earlier T Thomas, the chairman of Business Standard Ltd, said India is lucky to have, in Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Ahluwalia, two eminent non-political economists steering its policy framework.
The CEO of the Year award was given to Bharti Group Chairman Sunil Mittal for being at the forefront of Indias phenomenal telecom growth. Receiving the award, Mittal said one can reasonably expect to be declared the entrepreneur of the year when one grows from a $5 million company to a $5 billion company in 10 years.
However, he said, it was a proud moment for someone in Bharti to be recognised as the CEO of the year. He said he was glad he got it now, for, having moved on from being the CEO with effect from April this year, this was his last chance of winning the award.
K V Kamath, the CEO and MD of ICICI Bank, who received the Banker of the Year award for transforming ICICI bank into a retail juggernaut, thanked Team ICICI for its efforts.
The award for the Equity Fund Manager of the Year was won by Anup Bhasker, a former fund manager at Sundaram BNP Paribas and now the head of equities at UTI Mutual, while the honour of the Debt Fund Manager of the Year went to Ritesh Jain, head of fixed income at Kotak Mutual.
Bharat Heavy Electricals won the Star PSU of the Year award, Parsvnath Developers was declared the Star Unlisted Company (the company was listed in November 2006), Siemens India won the Star MNC award and Manugraph India won the Star SME. The Most Innovative Company of the Year award was given to Moser Baer.
Chevrolet Aveo U-VA won the BS Motoring Car of the Year award and Hero Honda CBZ X treme was chosen the BS Motoring Bike of the Year.
Bushroda
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India's biggest IPO is launched
Teipei Times, NEW DELHI
Tuesday, Jun 12, 2007
SECOND ATTEMPT: DLF Ltd, the nation's largest real estate firm, first tried to go public last year, but scrapped the offer amid a stock market meltdown
India's top real estate company, DLF Ltd, began taking orders from investors yesterday for its initial public offering (IPO) of shares in what will likely be India's biggest IPO ever.
DLF is offering 175 million new shares to the public in a price band of 500 rupees to 550 rupees. If all shares are subscribed, the company will raise between 87.5 billion rupees (US$2.1 billion) and 96.25 billion rupees depending on the cut off price.
A successful listing would boost the net worth of chairman K.P. Singh and immediate family members, who together own 97.4 percent of the company, to more than US$18 billion.
The sales end on Thursday, and the stock is expected to list on the Bombay Stock Exchange as well as the National Stock Exchange by the end of this month.
India's largest IPO until now was that of Britain's Cairn Energy, which listed its Indian subsidiary on the local stock exchanges last December.
India's booming economy, which is growing at close to 9 percent annually, has seen property prices soar in recent years, bringing windfall gains to companies like DLF that hold large land reserves on the outskirts of major Indian cities. Those were bought from farmers at rates much lower than the current market price.
The growth in the property market has slowed in recent months because of high prices and a series of interest rate hikes, but most analysts and research groups feel the lull is temporary.
DLF's IPO is expected to be subscribed at the higher end of the price band, making it a US$23 billion company in terms of market capitalization.
DLF, the country's largest real estate firm in terms of the area it has developed, first tried to make a public offer last year, but scrapped the plans amid a stock market meltdown and disputes with minority shareholders.
Teipei Times, NEW DELHI
Tuesday, Jun 12, 2007
SECOND ATTEMPT: DLF Ltd, the nation's largest real estate firm, first tried to go public last year, but scrapped the offer amid a stock market meltdown
India's top real estate company, DLF Ltd, began taking orders from investors yesterday for its initial public offering (IPO) of shares in what will likely be India's biggest IPO ever.
DLF is offering 175 million new shares to the public in a price band of 500 rupees to 550 rupees. If all shares are subscribed, the company will raise between 87.5 billion rupees (US$2.1 billion) and 96.25 billion rupees depending on the cut off price.
A successful listing would boost the net worth of chairman K.P. Singh and immediate family members, who together own 97.4 percent of the company, to more than US$18 billion.
The sales end on Thursday, and the stock is expected to list on the Bombay Stock Exchange as well as the National Stock Exchange by the end of this month.
India's largest IPO until now was that of Britain's Cairn Energy, which listed its Indian subsidiary on the local stock exchanges last December.
India's booming economy, which is growing at close to 9 percent annually, has seen property prices soar in recent years, bringing windfall gains to companies like DLF that hold large land reserves on the outskirts of major Indian cities. Those were bought from farmers at rates much lower than the current market price.
The growth in the property market has slowed in recent months because of high prices and a series of interest rate hikes, but most analysts and research groups feel the lull is temporary.
DLF's IPO is expected to be subscribed at the higher end of the price band, making it a US$23 billion company in terms of market capitalization.
DLF, the country's largest real estate firm in terms of the area it has developed, first tried to make a public offer last year, but scrapped the plans amid a stock market meltdown and disputes with minority shareholders.
Bushroda
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Emerging India / Eco-fuels key to sustaining growth
The Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan
The following is the third and final installment in the second part of a series of articles on new developments in India, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence this year.
The Ganges Delta, located at the mouth of the great Ganges River running through eastern India, has numerous islands and shoals in a vast expanse of coast several hundred kilometers from side to side.
One of them is Gosaba Island, home to an expanse of virgin mangrove forests and where inhabitants make their living from traditional farming. A notable anti-global warming device has emerged on the island located about 110 kilometers from Kolkata.
At her house's kitchen, blue flames rose as Malina Majumder, 48, lit a gas stove with a match. The stove was connected by a hose to a concrete tank buried in the front yard.
The tank is a device to generate biogas. All Majumder has to do is stir kitchen garbage and cow dung in water and pour the mixture into the tank. The mixture ferments in due course to generate methane gas.
"The fire is very strong. It cooks well with no smoke. It's very helpful," she said.
The island has almost no telephone service, and until June 1997 it had no electricity supply either. Basic daily transportation is by rickshaw.
But the methane gas energy source generation, which took advantage of local underdeveloped conditions, has changed islanders' life dramatically.
According to the International Energy Agency, renewable energy sources accounted for 37.4 percent of India's energy consumption in 2004-- against 34.1 percent for coal and 22.2 percent for oil--a phenomenally high level compared with other countries.
The trump card here is cow dung. The dung from the cattle that Hindus revere as god is processed into solid fuel after being dried in the sun. The fuel has long been appreciated in India.
The Indian government saw the potential of this traditional fuel as a solution to two problems--energy supply and global warming. A team of experts in West Bengal State, where Gosaba Island is located, has developed a convenient and relatively cheap gasifier. The island is now designated as a model district for utilization of renewable sources of energy.
A woody biomass-based power plant that uses wood chips as fuel and solar power generation equipment has been installed on the island. As a result, electricity is now supplied to about 10,000 islanders living in five villages.
Despite continued economic growth for India as a whole, 78 million households--or 56 percent of Indians living in agricultural areas--have no electricity. The Indian government has set a goal of reducing the number of villages with no power supply from the current 122,400, to zero by 2009, and supplying electricity to all households by 2012. Of the 122,400 villages without power, 25,000 are in areas where power transmission cables are difficult to install. There is a possibility that power could be supplied to these villages if they use garbage effectively for power generation, as Gosaba Island has done.
India has refused to commit to implementing the Kyoto Protocol, which calls for mandatory reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, by denouncing it as "the ego of industrial nations that impedes the growth of developing countries." But in anticipation of a future energy shortage, India has been showing a keen interest in developing renewable energy sources.
India has surpassed Japan to rank fourth in the world in energy consumption. According to a report compiled by the Indian government's Planning Commission, the country's energy consumption will quadruple over a period of 25 years from 2006 to 2031 if the national economy continues to grow at an annual pace of 9 percent.
Cow dung is not the only energy source the nation has to rely on. India had a wind-power capacity of 4.43 million kilowatts at the end of 2005, the biggest in Asia and the world's fourth largest.
Indian New and Renewable Energy Minister Vilas Muttemwar is optimistic about the results of efforts to develop renewable energy sources. The minister says future technical innovations will "bring down the cost, and the day will come when all these sources will be cheaper than other power [sources]."
Industrial nations as well as newly industrializing countries, both of which are tasked with tackling the same difficult issues as India, are paying attention to India's challenge--decreasing reliance on fossil fuels for energy supply while maintaining momentum in economic growth.
The Yomiuri Shimbun, Japan
The following is the third and final installment in the second part of a series of articles on new developments in India, which celebrates the 60th anniversary of its independence this year.
The Ganges Delta, located at the mouth of the great Ganges River running through eastern India, has numerous islands and shoals in a vast expanse of coast several hundred kilometers from side to side.
One of them is Gosaba Island, home to an expanse of virgin mangrove forests and where inhabitants make their living from traditional farming. A notable anti-global warming device has emerged on the island located about 110 kilometers from Kolkata.
At her house's kitchen, blue flames rose as Malina Majumder, 48, lit a gas stove with a match. The stove was connected by a hose to a concrete tank buried in the front yard.
The tank is a device to generate biogas. All Majumder has to do is stir kitchen garbage and cow dung in water and pour the mixture into the tank. The mixture ferments in due course to generate methane gas.
"The fire is very strong. It cooks well with no smoke. It's very helpful," she said.
The island has almost no telephone service, and until June 1997 it had no electricity supply either. Basic daily transportation is by rickshaw.
But the methane gas energy source generation, which took advantage of local underdeveloped conditions, has changed islanders' life dramatically.
According to the International Energy Agency, renewable energy sources accounted for 37.4 percent of India's energy consumption in 2004-- against 34.1 percent for coal and 22.2 percent for oil--a phenomenally high level compared with other countries.
The trump card here is cow dung. The dung from the cattle that Hindus revere as god is processed into solid fuel after being dried in the sun. The fuel has long been appreciated in India.
The Indian government saw the potential of this traditional fuel as a solution to two problems--energy supply and global warming. A team of experts in West Bengal State, where Gosaba Island is located, has developed a convenient and relatively cheap gasifier. The island is now designated as a model district for utilization of renewable sources of energy.
A woody biomass-based power plant that uses wood chips as fuel and solar power generation equipment has been installed on the island. As a result, electricity is now supplied to about 10,000 islanders living in five villages.
Despite continued economic growth for India as a whole, 78 million households--or 56 percent of Indians living in agricultural areas--have no electricity. The Indian government has set a goal of reducing the number of villages with no power supply from the current 122,400, to zero by 2009, and supplying electricity to all households by 2012. Of the 122,400 villages without power, 25,000 are in areas where power transmission cables are difficult to install. There is a possibility that power could be supplied to these villages if they use garbage effectively for power generation, as Gosaba Island has done.
India has refused to commit to implementing the Kyoto Protocol, which calls for mandatory reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, by denouncing it as "the ego of industrial nations that impedes the growth of developing countries." But in anticipation of a future energy shortage, India has been showing a keen interest in developing renewable energy sources.
India has surpassed Japan to rank fourth in the world in energy consumption. According to a report compiled by the Indian government's Planning Commission, the country's energy consumption will quadruple over a period of 25 years from 2006 to 2031 if the national economy continues to grow at an annual pace of 9 percent.
Cow dung is not the only energy source the nation has to rely on. India had a wind-power capacity of 4.43 million kilowatts at the end of 2005, the biggest in Asia and the world's fourth largest.
Indian New and Renewable Energy Minister Vilas Muttemwar is optimistic about the results of efforts to develop renewable energy sources. The minister says future technical innovations will "bring down the cost, and the day will come when all these sources will be cheaper than other power [sources]."
Industrial nations as well as newly industrializing countries, both of which are tasked with tackling the same difficult issues as India, are paying attention to India's challenge--decreasing reliance on fossil fuels for energy supply while maintaining momentum in economic growth.
Bushroda
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2007
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- 1,880
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Finnair to start direct Mumbai-Helsinki flights
Mumbai, June 13 (IANS) Finland's national carrier Finnair is all set to start direct flights between Helsinki and Mumbai from June 27, Christer Haglund, senior vice president of the airline, said here Tuesday.
"Starting from June 27, Finnair will connect Mumbai to Europe in the fastest and most convenient service five times a week with the most competitive return fares," Haglund said at a news conference.
"Apart from providing the latest wide-bodied Airbus A340 crafts, Finnair will cater to Indian tastes and preferences with Indian cabin crew, to make Indian passengers feel at home."
Haglund said Finnair has decided to focus on India as a major Asian hub of its operations.
"Finnair commenced operations from to India with three flights a week to Delhi in October 2006, and in less that eight months, we will be operating 12 flights a week to India.
He also termed the Mumbai-Helsinki flights "environment friendly".
"With a flight time of just over eight hours, the Mumbai-Helsinki flights will be environmental friendly as there will be no refuelling stops on Europe's most modern fleet of aircraft."
The senior vice president said that the airline's economy class passenger load to Asia had increased by 80 percent, and the business class by 40 percent.
"We foresee an enormous potential in the Asia market, particularly in the Indian sector, though the revenue from the Asian market in the last fiscal was just five percent of the airline's total revenue."
Mumbai, June 13 (IANS) Finland's national carrier Finnair is all set to start direct flights between Helsinki and Mumbai from June 27, Christer Haglund, senior vice president of the airline, said here Tuesday.
"Starting from June 27, Finnair will connect Mumbai to Europe in the fastest and most convenient service five times a week with the most competitive return fares," Haglund said at a news conference.
"Apart from providing the latest wide-bodied Airbus A340 crafts, Finnair will cater to Indian tastes and preferences with Indian cabin crew, to make Indian passengers feel at home."
Haglund said Finnair has decided to focus on India as a major Asian hub of its operations.
"Finnair commenced operations from to India with three flights a week to Delhi in October 2006, and in less that eight months, we will be operating 12 flights a week to India.
He also termed the Mumbai-Helsinki flights "environment friendly".
"With a flight time of just over eight hours, the Mumbai-Helsinki flights will be environmental friendly as there will be no refuelling stops on Europe's most modern fleet of aircraft."
The senior vice president said that the airline's economy class passenger load to Asia had increased by 80 percent, and the business class by 40 percent.
"We foresee an enormous potential in the Asia market, particularly in the Indian sector, though the revenue from the Asian market in the last fiscal was just five percent of the airline's total revenue."
Bushroda
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India Inc to hire more in Q3: Manpower
Posted online: Wednesday, June 13, 2007 at 0000 hours IST
NEW DELHI, JUN 12: As India's economy gains strength, hiring by India Inc is expected to remain strong in the third quarter this fiscal with 42% corporates planning to recruit more, a survey by global employment consultancy firm Manpower said on Tuesday.
As per the survey, out of 4,925 employees from 30 cities belonging to seven core sectors interviewed, 42% expected an increase in staffing levels in the Q3 2007. While 3% anticipate a decrease, 42% are expecting no change, putting the countrys employment outlook at 39%.
The increased hiring is expected to be driven by sectors such as services, manufacturing and retail.The BPO and IT boom along with growth in retailing is spurring the services sector. It is also seeing a lot of consolidation and with economy booming, the sector is showing a lot of growth, Manpower India executive chairman Soumen Basu told PTI.
Commenting on the survey, he said India Inc will need to translate its hiring intent of 39% into actual hiring and give the opportunity to the right talent. It should also look at how it can widen its talent base and make more skills available. In India, rejection l estate; mining and construction; transport & utilities; public administration and education; wholesale & retail trade and manufacturing.
PTI
Posted online: Wednesday, June 13, 2007 at 0000 hours IST
NEW DELHI, JUN 12: As India's economy gains strength, hiring by India Inc is expected to remain strong in the third quarter this fiscal with 42% corporates planning to recruit more, a survey by global employment consultancy firm Manpower said on Tuesday.
As per the survey, out of 4,925 employees from 30 cities belonging to seven core sectors interviewed, 42% expected an increase in staffing levels in the Q3 2007. While 3% anticipate a decrease, 42% are expecting no change, putting the countrys employment outlook at 39%.
The increased hiring is expected to be driven by sectors such as services, manufacturing and retail.The BPO and IT boom along with growth in retailing is spurring the services sector. It is also seeing a lot of consolidation and with economy booming, the sector is showing a lot of growth, Manpower India executive chairman Soumen Basu told PTI.
Commenting on the survey, he said India Inc will need to translate its hiring intent of 39% into actual hiring and give the opportunity to the right talent. It should also look at how it can widen its talent base and make more skills available. In India, rejection l estate; mining and construction; transport & utilities; public administration and education; wholesale & retail trade and manufacturing.
PTI
Bushroda
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Brazil, India demand lower U.S. farm subsidies
Want `real' cuts in advance of trade negotiations, or risk another setback to WTO Doha round talks
Jun 12, 2007 04:30 AM
BRADLEY S. KLAPPER
Toronto Star, Associated Press
GENEVABrazil and India have challenged the United States to offer "real" cuts in the amount of subsidies paid out to American farmers or risk another setback in the World Trade Organization's long-suffering round of global commerce talks.
The administration of President George W. Bush has not budged on farm subsidies since an October 2005 offer to cap them at $22 billion (U.S.) annually, but now needs to go as far as halving that figure to salvage a new global trade deal by the end of the year, Brazil and India said yesterday.
"The U.S. has to deliver," Indian Trade Minister Kamal Nath told reporters after top officials from more than 20 developing countries met at the trade organization's Geneva headquarters.
The talks, known as the Doha round, have struggled since their inception in Qatar's capital largely because of wrangling between rich and poor countries over eliminating barriers to agricultural trade. Critics of the subsidies say they unfairly deflate international prices, making it impossible for poorer countries to develop their economies by selling farm goods abroad.
Having already missed numerous deadlines, negotiators are currently aiming for year's end to wrap up a trade treaty designed to add billions of dollars to the world economy and lift millions of people out of poverty.
Brazil and India, which co-lead the trade organization's emerging economies bloc, meet next week with the U.S. and the European Union in Germany for discussions that have been described as crucial for the six-year-old talks.
Brazil has proposed a limit of $12 billion (U.S.) on American farm subsidies, Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said.
Indian Trade Minister Kamal Nath said many of the countries at the meeting wanted U.S. assurance that spending would not increase from a current estimated level of $11 billion.
Gretchen Hamel, speaking for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, said even the current U.S. proposal is generous compared to the intransigence shown by leading developing countries.
"The question in the negotiations is not whether (we) should improve our October 2005 offer, but whether there is enough on the table from other countries to warrant us maintaining our current proposal," she told Associated Press in an e-mailed statement. ``Neither in agricultural market access nor in (manufactured goods) have we seen such a level of ambition.''
The U.S. and the 27-country EU have repeatedly said they will make no further concessions on agriculture as long as such major emerging countries as Brazil, China and India refuse to open up their markets to manufactured products.
Want `real' cuts in advance of trade negotiations, or risk another setback to WTO Doha round talks
Jun 12, 2007 04:30 AM
BRADLEY S. KLAPPER
Toronto Star, Associated Press
GENEVABrazil and India have challenged the United States to offer "real" cuts in the amount of subsidies paid out to American farmers or risk another setback in the World Trade Organization's long-suffering round of global commerce talks.
The administration of President George W. Bush has not budged on farm subsidies since an October 2005 offer to cap them at $22 billion (U.S.) annually, but now needs to go as far as halving that figure to salvage a new global trade deal by the end of the year, Brazil and India said yesterday.
"The U.S. has to deliver," Indian Trade Minister Kamal Nath told reporters after top officials from more than 20 developing countries met at the trade organization's Geneva headquarters.
The talks, known as the Doha round, have struggled since their inception in Qatar's capital largely because of wrangling between rich and poor countries over eliminating barriers to agricultural trade. Critics of the subsidies say they unfairly deflate international prices, making it impossible for poorer countries to develop their economies by selling farm goods abroad.
Having already missed numerous deadlines, negotiators are currently aiming for year's end to wrap up a trade treaty designed to add billions of dollars to the world economy and lift millions of people out of poverty.
Brazil and India, which co-lead the trade organization's emerging economies bloc, meet next week with the U.S. and the European Union in Germany for discussions that have been described as crucial for the six-year-old talks.
Brazil has proposed a limit of $12 billion (U.S.) on American farm subsidies, Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said.
Indian Trade Minister Kamal Nath said many of the countries at the meeting wanted U.S. assurance that spending would not increase from a current estimated level of $11 billion.
Gretchen Hamel, speaking for the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, said even the current U.S. proposal is generous compared to the intransigence shown by leading developing countries.
"The question in the negotiations is not whether (we) should improve our October 2005 offer, but whether there is enough on the table from other countries to warrant us maintaining our current proposal," she told Associated Press in an e-mailed statement. ``Neither in agricultural market access nor in (manufactured goods) have we seen such a level of ambition.''
The U.S. and the 27-country EU have repeatedly said they will make no further concessions on agriculture as long as such major emerging countries as Brazil, China and India refuse to open up their markets to manufactured products.
Bushroda
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The new passage to India, business class
· Foreign executives pour in as salaries soar
· Shortage of local talent for boming economy
Randeep Ramesh in New Delhi
Wednesday June 13, 2007
The Guardian
Three years after rejecting the chance to work in India because the country was too poor and chaotic, Andrew Levermore, a retail executive who had worked in South Africa and Britain, was persuaded by a powerful Mumbai business family to set up India's first western-style hypermarket.
"I came round when I saw their vision. They were dead serious and yes I had to make some lifestyle adjustments but [it was] too good an opportunity too miss. Of course the salary compared favourably with home." Now on the brink of rolling out another 28 stores, Mr Levermore, 44, is convincing two more expats to leave jobs in the west and work in India. "I have just hired my head of operations from Sainsbury's and there's another [foreign hire] for buying and merchandising."
Mr Levermore is part of a new passage to India. As the economy booms, there is not enough talent to fill the expanding number of middle management positions and more western expatriates are taking senior positions. Recruitment consultants say Indian workers are asking for so much foreigners are being "priced back in".
"It's happening very quickly now," says Kris Lakshmikanth, chief executive of Headhunters India. "We are seeing more than 15% of management and skilled positions being filled by expats. In hotel management there's a step change required and we can only get that from abroad. In the airline industry, 50% of pilots are foreign. A few years ago they made up just 5% [of the workforce]." Salaries for chief executives have doubled in the past few years and now range from £125,000 to £600,000. Senior managers can expect £100,000 a year. The head of public relations at an Indian corporation earns £40,000.
Bharti Airtel, the country's biggest mobile operator, says foreign managers were once rare but are now as good value as Indian staff. Sunil Bharti Mittal, the company's founder, told reporters last month his company had begun to hire "expats who cost less than Indian managers".
Andrea Stone, head of marketing at Bharti's software arm Telesoft, joined on local terms in 2005. She said her salary was "good enough to live well [in Delhi]". "I brought skills they did not have. One was that I had worked in Britain, Hong Kong, Japan and Germany and could deal with overseas clients. The other was motivating teams of young dynamic people."
The real challenges, says Ms Stone, come when you leave the office. "You can't walk outside easily. It's too hot and there are not that many parks. Also Delhi does not have a public transport system, which is hard. You can't pop out for Marks and Spencer food. But you cope."
The travails of living in the developing world appear to pale beside the money to be made there. Foreign companies are also importing their brightest and best to India. Cisco Systems, the US technology giant, transferred seven top managers to its Bangalore office this year. The head of Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever in the country is a South African. The boss of Goldman Sachs is an American.
Of the 3 million Indian students who graduate each year, Indian industry admits, only 15% could be employed in multinationals. Recruiting and retaining skilled Indian workers is becoming harder and more expensive than ever. Pay packets are getting fatter faster in India than anywhere else in Asia. According to a study by human resources company Hewitt Associates, average salary increases in India are running at more than 14% a year, compared with about 8% in China and slightly less in South Korea and the Philippines.
But many companies say that in the scramble to scale up, they need foreign help. Reliance Industries, India's biggest private company, is spending £2.5bn to create a chain of superstores across India. Its retail division now employs 100 expatriates in senior management who bring "invaluable global experience". These skills, said chairman Mukesh Ambani, were crucial in creating Reliance's signature convenience stores. "We were ahead of the world in creating [these]. When Tesco went to California it chose to use the same model. That shows how we benefit [from foreign talent]."
· Foreign executives pour in as salaries soar
· Shortage of local talent for boming economy
Randeep Ramesh in New Delhi
Wednesday June 13, 2007
The Guardian
Three years after rejecting the chance to work in India because the country was too poor and chaotic, Andrew Levermore, a retail executive who had worked in South Africa and Britain, was persuaded by a powerful Mumbai business family to set up India's first western-style hypermarket.
"I came round when I saw their vision. They were dead serious and yes I had to make some lifestyle adjustments but [it was] too good an opportunity too miss. Of course the salary compared favourably with home." Now on the brink of rolling out another 28 stores, Mr Levermore, 44, is convincing two more expats to leave jobs in the west and work in India. "I have just hired my head of operations from Sainsbury's and there's another [foreign hire] for buying and merchandising."
Mr Levermore is part of a new passage to India. As the economy booms, there is not enough talent to fill the expanding number of middle management positions and more western expatriates are taking senior positions. Recruitment consultants say Indian workers are asking for so much foreigners are being "priced back in".
"It's happening very quickly now," says Kris Lakshmikanth, chief executive of Headhunters India. "We are seeing more than 15% of management and skilled positions being filled by expats. In hotel management there's a step change required and we can only get that from abroad. In the airline industry, 50% of pilots are foreign. A few years ago they made up just 5% [of the workforce]." Salaries for chief executives have doubled in the past few years and now range from £125,000 to £600,000. Senior managers can expect £100,000 a year. The head of public relations at an Indian corporation earns £40,000.
Bharti Airtel, the country's biggest mobile operator, says foreign managers were once rare but are now as good value as Indian staff. Sunil Bharti Mittal, the company's founder, told reporters last month his company had begun to hire "expats who cost less than Indian managers".
Andrea Stone, head of marketing at Bharti's software arm Telesoft, joined on local terms in 2005. She said her salary was "good enough to live well [in Delhi]". "I brought skills they did not have. One was that I had worked in Britain, Hong Kong, Japan and Germany and could deal with overseas clients. The other was motivating teams of young dynamic people."
The real challenges, says Ms Stone, come when you leave the office. "You can't walk outside easily. It's too hot and there are not that many parks. Also Delhi does not have a public transport system, which is hard. You can't pop out for Marks and Spencer food. But you cope."
The travails of living in the developing world appear to pale beside the money to be made there. Foreign companies are also importing their brightest and best to India. Cisco Systems, the US technology giant, transferred seven top managers to its Bangalore office this year. The head of Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever in the country is a South African. The boss of Goldman Sachs is an American.
Of the 3 million Indian students who graduate each year, Indian industry admits, only 15% could be employed in multinationals. Recruiting and retaining skilled Indian workers is becoming harder and more expensive than ever. Pay packets are getting fatter faster in India than anywhere else in Asia. According to a study by human resources company Hewitt Associates, average salary increases in India are running at more than 14% a year, compared with about 8% in China and slightly less in South Korea and the Philippines.
But many companies say that in the scramble to scale up, they need foreign help. Reliance Industries, India's biggest private company, is spending £2.5bn to create a chain of superstores across India. Its retail division now employs 100 expatriates in senior management who bring "invaluable global experience". These skills, said chairman Mukesh Ambani, were crucial in creating Reliance's signature convenience stores. "We were ahead of the world in creating [these]. When Tesco went to California it chose to use the same model. That shows how we benefit [from foreign talent]."
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Engg education and businesses from India and the US plan for collaboration
By Team Mangalorean - Mangalore
http://imageshack.us
Mangalore June 13: Leaders of engineering education and engineering businesses from US and India, along with several government dignitaries met at an Action Planning Forum for Indo US collaboration in engineering education, hosted by Kris Gopalakrishnan, Managing Director and CEO-Designate of Infosys at their Mysore Campus on June 3 to June 5, 2007.
Infosys offered outstanding hospitality at their state-of-the art facilities of their Leadership Institute to the 81 participants who included several directors, deans of engineering, vice chancellors as well as over 25 business representatives. Prof. N. Balakrishnan, Associate Director, Indian Institute of Science and Dr. Frank Huband, Executive Director, American Society for Engineering Education, welcomed the participants on behalf of the organizers. Prof V.S. Arunachalam, Former Scientific Advisor to Defence Minister, Dr. T. Ramasami, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology and Dr. D. Acharya, Chairman of All India Council for Technical Education, gave keynote addresses.
The goal of the Forum was to develop an action plan for improving the quality and global relevance of engineering education in India and in the US. Of particular concern to the participants was the lack of interest in science and engineering in the US, the inadequate preparation of engineering graduates in India, the shortage of students pursuing Ph.D. programs in engineering in India and the need to encourage and support women and underrepresented minorities in engineering careers in both countries. The participants discussed several successful and promising models of collaborations which have potential for scaling up. This was the first of two forums organized by the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) and the newly formed Indo US Collaboration for Engineering Education (IUCEE). The preliminary recommendations from the Mysore Forum will be developed further at the second Forum to be held at the National Academy of Engineering in Washington DC on August 29 to 31, 2007.
One of the key outcomes of these action planning forums could be the establishment of an Indo US Engineering Faculty Institute with four thrust areas: curriculum and delivery, quality and accreditation, research and development, and innovation and entrepreneurship. Cross cutting themes for these thrust areas are industry needs and global relevance. This Institute would help improve the preparedness of the large number of faculty in engineering colleges in India and in the US to address the needs of the global economy. Another outcome could be the development of an Indo US Engineering Student Network for facilitating student internships and interactions as well as providing students access to high quality learning materials. Expectations are that the Student Network will be linked to the Global Student Forum currently sponsored by ASEE and International Federation of Engineering Education Societies (IFEES).
The resulting sustainable collaborations are expected to lead to clear mutual benefits to India and to the US. Benefits to India include an increase in the number of qualified engineering faculty, access to better curricular experiences for students, better employability of engineering graduates with skills needed by industry, increase in the research activity and increase in the production of Ph.Ds. in engineering colleges. Benefits to US include opportunities for global experiences for faculty and students, collaborative research, development and entrepreneurship in emerging technologies of global relevance, as well as access for US universities and companies to more and better prepared engineering graduates.
Initial support for the planning was obtained from Infosys, Deshpande Foundation, Indo US Science and Technology Forum as well as the corporations Hewlett Packard, National Instruments, Dassault Systemes, Microsoft, Autodesk, Agilent Technologies and UGS. Faculty, administrators and alumni of Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) played a major role in initiating the collaboration at the Pan IIT 2006 Conference held in Mumbai in December 2006. The US Embassy as well as the International Federation for Engineering Education Societies (IFEES) and the Indian Society for Technical Education (ISTE) were also important partners.
The US delegation led by Dr. James Melsa, President-Elect of American Society for Engineering Education, visited New Delhi after the Mysore Forum. They met with President Abdul Kalam as well as the US Ambassador David C. Mulford to brief them about the recommendations from the Mysore Forum and to seek their advice. A small team of the participants, led by Barbara Olds, Associate Vice President, Colorado School of Mines visited Punjab Engineering College in Chandigarh (alma mater of Kalpana Chawla, the Indian born astronaut who died in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster), for the nomination a faculty member, Uma Bathra, as Member-at -Large for Society for Women Engineers.
By Team Mangalorean - Mangalore
http://imageshack.us
Mangalore June 13: Leaders of engineering education and engineering businesses from US and India, along with several government dignitaries met at an Action Planning Forum for Indo US collaboration in engineering education, hosted by Kris Gopalakrishnan, Managing Director and CEO-Designate of Infosys at their Mysore Campus on June 3 to June 5, 2007.
Infosys offered outstanding hospitality at their state-of-the art facilities of their Leadership Institute to the 81 participants who included several directors, deans of engineering, vice chancellors as well as over 25 business representatives. Prof. N. Balakrishnan, Associate Director, Indian Institute of Science and Dr. Frank Huband, Executive Director, American Society for Engineering Education, welcomed the participants on behalf of the organizers. Prof V.S. Arunachalam, Former Scientific Advisor to Defence Minister, Dr. T. Ramasami, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology and Dr. D. Acharya, Chairman of All India Council for Technical Education, gave keynote addresses.
The goal of the Forum was to develop an action plan for improving the quality and global relevance of engineering education in India and in the US. Of particular concern to the participants was the lack of interest in science and engineering in the US, the inadequate preparation of engineering graduates in India, the shortage of students pursuing Ph.D. programs in engineering in India and the need to encourage and support women and underrepresented minorities in engineering careers in both countries. The participants discussed several successful and promising models of collaborations which have potential for scaling up. This was the first of two forums organized by the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) and the newly formed Indo US Collaboration for Engineering Education (IUCEE). The preliminary recommendations from the Mysore Forum will be developed further at the second Forum to be held at the National Academy of Engineering in Washington DC on August 29 to 31, 2007.
One of the key outcomes of these action planning forums could be the establishment of an Indo US Engineering Faculty Institute with four thrust areas: curriculum and delivery, quality and accreditation, research and development, and innovation and entrepreneurship. Cross cutting themes for these thrust areas are industry needs and global relevance. This Institute would help improve the preparedness of the large number of faculty in engineering colleges in India and in the US to address the needs of the global economy. Another outcome could be the development of an Indo US Engineering Student Network for facilitating student internships and interactions as well as providing students access to high quality learning materials. Expectations are that the Student Network will be linked to the Global Student Forum currently sponsored by ASEE and International Federation of Engineering Education Societies (IFEES).
The resulting sustainable collaborations are expected to lead to clear mutual benefits to India and to the US. Benefits to India include an increase in the number of qualified engineering faculty, access to better curricular experiences for students, better employability of engineering graduates with skills needed by industry, increase in the research activity and increase in the production of Ph.Ds. in engineering colleges. Benefits to US include opportunities for global experiences for faculty and students, collaborative research, development and entrepreneurship in emerging technologies of global relevance, as well as access for US universities and companies to more and better prepared engineering graduates.
Initial support for the planning was obtained from Infosys, Deshpande Foundation, Indo US Science and Technology Forum as well as the corporations Hewlett Packard, National Instruments, Dassault Systemes, Microsoft, Autodesk, Agilent Technologies and UGS. Faculty, administrators and alumni of Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) played a major role in initiating the collaboration at the Pan IIT 2006 Conference held in Mumbai in December 2006. The US Embassy as well as the International Federation for Engineering Education Societies (IFEES) and the Indian Society for Technical Education (ISTE) were also important partners.
The US delegation led by Dr. James Melsa, President-Elect of American Society for Engineering Education, visited New Delhi after the Mysore Forum. They met with President Abdul Kalam as well as the US Ambassador David C. Mulford to brief them about the recommendations from the Mysore Forum and to seek their advice. A small team of the participants, led by Barbara Olds, Associate Vice President, Colorado School of Mines visited Punjab Engineering College in Chandigarh (alma mater of Kalpana Chawla, the Indian born astronaut who died in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster), for the nomination a faculty member, Uma Bathra, as Member-at -Large for Society for Women Engineers.
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