Daily Sector News Today – 04.12.2017
* AUTOMOBILE: Nissan Motors has initiated arbitration proceedings against India seeking more than $750 mln as tax incentives dues from Tamil Nadu. Domestic vehicle sales of Hyundai Motor India in November were up 10% on year at 44,008 units. Ford India's total sales in November were up 28.6% at 27,019 units from 21,004 units in the corresponding month last year.
- The government has come out with a draft notification to amend Central Motor Vehicles Rules to prevent registration of BS-IV compliant automobiles built before Apr 1, 2020, beyond Jun 30, 2020.
* AVIATION: The government plans to sell international and domestic operations of Air India and its subsidiaries in the next 6-8 months, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said. The government is said to have decided that the sale of Air India will involve its core aviation assets packaged with low-cost subsidiary Air India Express and AI-SATS, a groundhandling joint venture with Singapore Airport Terminal Services.
* BANKING: As many as eight public sector banks have decided to raise capital from the market within four months as part of the 2.11-trln-rupee recapitalisation plan.
* CORPORATE: JSW Infrastructure, Essar Ports, Shapoorji Pallonji Group, IMC, and Royal Vopak NV have submitted Expressions of Interest to acquire Sterling Port in Dahej that is controlled by Sandesara Group. A special Central Bureau of Investigation court has ordered the attachment of two bank accounts and 13 properties connected with beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya in the US.
* ENERGY: Small scale manufacturers of components for wind turbines are being squeezed by the relentless fall of wind energy tariffs in successive auctions, according to a petition filed by the Indian Wind Energy Association in the Supreme Court, whose admissibility will be decided today.
* MINING: The government has notified the Mineral (Auction) Amendment Rules, 2017, which will ease the auction norms for mineral blocks in the country and help attract more bidders.
* OIL AND GAS: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Dinesh Kumar Sarraf as the chairperson of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board. Oil ministry is consideringa a proposal to privatise 11 prime fields of OIL & NATURAL GAS CORP that will saddle India's flagship explorer with mature blocks nearing the end of their productive lives. The Centre plans to allow the use of petroleum coke only in sectors that absorb sulphur emissions in manufacturing process and is working on increasing customs duty on fuel to discourage its imports.
* POWER: Consumers will be able to change their power suppliers just like telecom services after proposed amendment to the existing Electricity Act is approved, Union Minister RK Singh said.
* REGULATORY: Securities And Exchange Board Of India is working on compliance norms that companies going through the insolvency process must stick to so as to ensure that interests of stakeholders are not compromised.
* STEEL: Fitch has forecast a demand growth of around 5% for the Indian steel sector in 2018, driven mainly by sustained increase in government infrastructure spending as the 2019 general election draws near.
* TAXATION: The Delhi High Court has issued notice to the Centre and the Goods and Services Tax Council on a plea filed by Honda Siel Power Products challenging the government's notifications which have brought its petrol engines under a 28% tax slab. The six-member panel of industry representatives, formed to provide inputs for fresh set of changes in goods and services tax, wants an extension of the composition scheme, a benefit that is currently available to small traders, manufacturers and restaurants, to services as well.
- The government will look at revenue from goods and services tax for a few more months before taking a decision on whether to cut import duty on gold from the current 10%, Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia today said. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is likely to present Feb 1 the first Budget post rollout of goods and service tax and the current government's last full Budget.
- The government has ruled out possibility of any review in the GST regime for restaurants, amid intense lobbying by a section of eateries to restore the benefit of input tax credit.
* TELECOMMUNICATION: The Department of Telecommunications has outlined detailed procedure for telecom operators to undertake mobile re-verification of foreign nationals and non-resident Indians. It has instructed companies to operationalise the process for these subscribers by Jan 1. Tata Teleservices is looking to offset telecom infrastructure commitments by offering its 26% stake in a local joint venture to controlling shareholder American Tower Corp for discontinuing rentals.
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- The government has come out with a draft notification to amend Central Motor Vehicles Rules to prevent registration of BS-IV compliant automobiles built before Apr 1, 2020, beyond Jun 30, 2020.
* AVIATION: The government plans to sell international and domestic operations of Air India and its subsidiaries in the next 6-8 months, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha said. The government is said to have decided that the sale of Air India will involve its core aviation assets packaged with low-cost subsidiary Air India Express and AI-SATS, a groundhandling joint venture with Singapore Airport Terminal Services.
* BANKING: As many as eight public sector banks have decided to raise capital from the market within four months as part of the 2.11-trln-rupee recapitalisation plan.
* CORPORATE: JSW Infrastructure, Essar Ports, Shapoorji Pallonji Group, IMC, and Royal Vopak NV have submitted Expressions of Interest to acquire Sterling Port in Dahej that is controlled by Sandesara Group. A special Central Bureau of Investigation court has ordered the attachment of two bank accounts and 13 properties connected with beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya in the US.
* ENERGY: Small scale manufacturers of components for wind turbines are being squeezed by the relentless fall of wind energy tariffs in successive auctions, according to a petition filed by the Indian Wind Energy Association in the Supreme Court, whose admissibility will be decided today.
* MINING: The government has notified the Mineral (Auction) Amendment Rules, 2017, which will ease the auction norms for mineral blocks in the country and help attract more bidders.
* OIL AND GAS: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Dinesh Kumar Sarraf as the chairperson of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board. Oil ministry is consideringa a proposal to privatise 11 prime fields of OIL & NATURAL GAS CORP that will saddle India's flagship explorer with mature blocks nearing the end of their productive lives. The Centre plans to allow the use of petroleum coke only in sectors that absorb sulphur emissions in manufacturing process and is working on increasing customs duty on fuel to discourage its imports.
* POWER: Consumers will be able to change their power suppliers just like telecom services after proposed amendment to the existing Electricity Act is approved, Union Minister RK Singh said.
* REGULATORY: Securities And Exchange Board Of India is working on compliance norms that companies going through the insolvency process must stick to so as to ensure that interests of stakeholders are not compromised.
* STEEL: Fitch has forecast a demand growth of around 5% for the Indian steel sector in 2018, driven mainly by sustained increase in government infrastructure spending as the 2019 general election draws near.
* TAXATION: The Delhi High Court has issued notice to the Centre and the Goods and Services Tax Council on a plea filed by Honda Siel Power Products challenging the government's notifications which have brought its petrol engines under a 28% tax slab. The six-member panel of industry representatives, formed to provide inputs for fresh set of changes in goods and services tax, wants an extension of the composition scheme, a benefit that is currently available to small traders, manufacturers and restaurants, to services as well.
- The government will look at revenue from goods and services tax for a few more months before taking a decision on whether to cut import duty on gold from the current 10%, Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia today said. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is likely to present Feb 1 the first Budget post rollout of goods and service tax and the current government's last full Budget.
- The government has ruled out possibility of any review in the GST regime for restaurants, amid intense lobbying by a section of eateries to restore the benefit of input tax credit.
* TELECOMMUNICATION: The Department of Telecommunications has outlined detailed procedure for telecom operators to undertake mobile re-verification of foreign nationals and non-resident Indians. It has instructed companies to operationalise the process for these subscribers by Jan 1. Tata Teleservices is looking to offset telecom infrastructure commitments by offering its 26% stake in a local joint venture to controlling shareholder American Tower Corp for discontinuing rentals.
