SECTORS ALERT – 30.06.2014
* AUTOMOBILES: Hyundai Motor has announced benefits of up to 30,000 rupees
per car for government and public sector undertakings' employees. German
major Volkswagen is lining up a slew of budget cars to take on Indian market
leaders MARUTI SUZUKI INDIA and Hyundai Motors. India has made anti-lock
breaking system mandatory on all new models of commercial vehicles, with
effect from April.
* BANKING: State Bank of India Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya has come out
in favour of allowing banks to use gold deposits as cash reserve ratio or statutory
liquidity ratio. RBI has asked banks and financial institutions to submit data on
wilful defaulters of 2.5 mln rupees and above for Oct-Dec 2014 to credit
information companies and not to the central bank. RBI has advised credit
information companies to adopt Credit Information Bureau's method of
calibrating credit scores from 300 to 900 within six months.
* DEFENCE: The Centre may increase the defence allocation in the Budget by at
least 20% to an estimated 2.24 trln rupees in 2014-15 (Apr-Mar).
* ECONOMY: Financial Services Secretary G.S. Sandhu said that the Union
Budget will aim at bringing the Indian economy back to a high growth trajectory.
* FINANCIAL SERVICES: RBI has asked Indian financial institutions to register
with US authorities and obtain a Global Intermediary Identification Number by
Dec 31.
* GOVERNANCE: The project monitoring group under the Cabinet Secretariat has
decided to digitise all applications for clearances relating to forest, environment
and others by March. The new government may increase the plan expenditure
for the current financial year by around 110 bln rupees in the Budget, which
would be around 2% higher than what was provided in the previous Budget.
* INDUSTRY: The Maharashtra government has decided to give highest priority
to use of water for drinking purposes alone and avoid diversion to
industries. Rural Development Minister Nitin Gadkari has said the government
will not compromise the interest of farmers on the resettlement, rehabilitation
and compensation clause in the Land Acquisition Act.
* INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: Essar Group's Shashi and Ravi Ruia plan to raise
36 bln rupees through the sale of Aegis Business Process Outsourcing's US and
Philippines operations to Paris-based Teleperformance.
* JEWELLERY: Gem and jewellery industry in India has asked the government to
extend the interest subvention of 3% to the sector.
* LAW: The Narendra Modi government is considering the option of formally
approaching the judiciary to find a way to deal with tricky litigation and disputes
that are holding up investments.
* MEDIA: The Government is set to classify set-top boxes as 'telecom network
equipment', thus exempting them from various taxes and duties.
* MINING: Iron ore mining in Goa is unlikely to resume in 2014 as the state
government is busy tweaking the policy to meet requirements of the Supreme
Court order.
* OIL: The government is mulling tax cuts on petrol and diesel to cushion
consumers from rising prices.
* PHARMACEUTICALS: The Centre intends to revive India's active
pharmaceutical ingredient or bulk drug market by formulating a separate policy,
which will promote the industry internationally, apart from catering to local
needs.
* POWER: The government is likely to give power and transmission projects due
to be commissioned this year a Section 80-IA tax holiday in the coming Budget.
* REGULATORY: The government is considering empowering commodity market
regulator Forward Markets Commission with search and seizure powers, similar
to that of the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
* RETAIL: The BJP government is likely to put the proposal to open up e- commerce to foreign direct investment on the back burner.
* TAXATION: The Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in
Maharashtra has proposed to introduce a new tax to abolish the controversial
local body tax in 26 municipal corporations, excluding Mumbai's. India and the
US have agreed to implement a foreign tax compliance law and asked banks and
financial institutions to register by this year end to report accounts and assets
held by US citizens.
* AUTOMOBILES: Hyundai Motor has announced benefits of up to 30,000 rupees
per car for government and public sector undertakings' employees. German
major Volkswagen is lining up a slew of budget cars to take on Indian market
leaders MARUTI SUZUKI INDIA and Hyundai Motors. India has made anti-lock
breaking system mandatory on all new models of commercial vehicles, with
effect from April.
* BANKING: State Bank of India Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya has come out
in favour of allowing banks to use gold deposits as cash reserve ratio or statutory
liquidity ratio. RBI has asked banks and financial institutions to submit data on
wilful defaulters of 2.5 mln rupees and above for Oct-Dec 2014 to credit
information companies and not to the central bank. RBI has advised credit
information companies to adopt Credit Information Bureau's method of
calibrating credit scores from 300 to 900 within six months.
* DEFENCE: The Centre may increase the defence allocation in the Budget by at
least 20% to an estimated 2.24 trln rupees in 2014-15 (Apr-Mar).
* ECONOMY: Financial Services Secretary G.S. Sandhu said that the Union
Budget will aim at bringing the Indian economy back to a high growth trajectory.
* FINANCIAL SERVICES: RBI has asked Indian financial institutions to register
with US authorities and obtain a Global Intermediary Identification Number by
Dec 31.
* GOVERNANCE: The project monitoring group under the Cabinet Secretariat has
decided to digitise all applications for clearances relating to forest, environment
and others by March. The new government may increase the plan expenditure
for the current financial year by around 110 bln rupees in the Budget, which
would be around 2% higher than what was provided in the previous Budget.
* INDUSTRY: The Maharashtra government has decided to give highest priority
to use of water for drinking purposes alone and avoid diversion to
industries. Rural Development Minister Nitin Gadkari has said the government
will not compromise the interest of farmers on the resettlement, rehabilitation
and compensation clause in the Land Acquisition Act.
* INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: Essar Group's Shashi and Ravi Ruia plan to raise
36 bln rupees through the sale of Aegis Business Process Outsourcing's US and
Philippines operations to Paris-based Teleperformance.
* JEWELLERY: Gem and jewellery industry in India has asked the government to
extend the interest subvention of 3% to the sector.
* LAW: The Narendra Modi government is considering the option of formally
approaching the judiciary to find a way to deal with tricky litigation and disputes
that are holding up investments.
* MEDIA: The Government is set to classify set-top boxes as 'telecom network
equipment', thus exempting them from various taxes and duties.
* MINING: Iron ore mining in Goa is unlikely to resume in 2014 as the state
government is busy tweaking the policy to meet requirements of the Supreme
Court order.
* OIL: The government is mulling tax cuts on petrol and diesel to cushion
consumers from rising prices.
* PHARMACEUTICALS: The Centre intends to revive India's active
pharmaceutical ingredient or bulk drug market by formulating a separate policy,
which will promote the industry internationally, apart from catering to local
needs.
* POWER: The government is likely to give power and transmission projects due
to be commissioned this year a Section 80-IA tax holiday in the coming Budget.
* REGULATORY: The government is considering empowering commodity market
regulator Forward Markets Commission with search and seizure powers, similar
to that of the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
* RETAIL: The BJP government is likely to put the proposal to open up e- commerce to foreign direct investment on the back burner.
* TAXATION: The Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in
Maharashtra has proposed to introduce a new tax to abolish the controversial
local body tax in 26 municipal corporations, excluding Mumbai's. India and the
US have agreed to implement a foreign tax compliance law and asked banks and
financial institutions to register by this year end to report accounts and assets
held by US citizens.
