Daily Sector Report : 07.06.2012

[rupeedesk]

Daily Sector Report : 07.06.2012

SECTORS ALERT (07.06.2012)

* AUTOMOBILE: Finance ministry has asked automobile companies to furnish details of their investments and inventories by next week following demand
for hike in excise duty on diesel cars.
    -BMW expects slower demand in the Indian automotive market amid uncertain economic conditions.
    -Audi has launched its compact luxury car Audi Q3 in India , priced between 2.6-3.1 mln rupees exshowroom, Maharashtra .
    -Pune-based realty company, DSK Group has acquired the licence to assemble, market and sell South Korean superbike brand Hyosung.
    -Finance ministry has asked automobile makers to provide production and sales data of diesel vehicles, even as the industry protested any move to
raise excise duty on such vehicles.
    -There are indications that the government seems to have made up its mind to increase excise duty on diesel cars.

* AGRICULTURE: Farm yields are unlikely to suffer, even if planting is delayed by 10 days, due to a shaky start of the monsoon.  India plans to sell 98,000 tn wheat to Glencore International Plc to cut inventories.

* BANKING: Government has amended rules to make loan sanctioning mechanism transparent in public sector banks.

* CEMENT: Prices of cement have gone up by 10-15 rupees to 300 rupees a bag in select regions, even as demand recovery remains uncertain. Birla Corp plans to set up a cement plant in Ethiopia .

* COAL: Central Bureau of Investigation is set to begin field investigations into the alleged coal block allocation scam.

* CORPORATES: Sequoia Capital may sell most of its stake in Amalgamated Bean Coffee Trading with returns in the range of 16-18% on its investment.
Government plans to make mandatory for companies to report their efforts for sustainable development under the Companies Act.

* ECONOMY: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has said there is no need to panic over the slowdown in growth, and on the higher fiscal and current
account deficits.

* FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS: PNB Gilts has got Securities and Exchange Board of India nod to offer portfolio management operations.

* GOVERNANCE: The government is likely to take up Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority Bill today. Finance ministry is set to unveil a new single window clearance for exporters.

* INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY: Computer manufacturers, who rely heavily on imported parts, have begun raising prices due to the rupee's fall, and are
warning of more pain if the Indian currency does not recover.

* INFRASTRUCTURE: At a meeting convened by Prime Minister Singh to set targets for the sector for 2012-13, projects for adding 17,957 MW power
generation capacity and awarding Mumbai Elevated Rail Corridor project, three new greenfield airport projects, and two new major ports were finalised.

* MEDIA: News Corp has entered into a pact with ESPN Inc under which a unit of the former will buy ESPN's entire 50% stake in ESPN STAR Sports.

* OIL AND GAS: Swan Energy is in talks with some state-owned oil and gas companies for selling a small stake in its upcoming floating LNG unit at
Pipavav in Gujarat .

* POWER: Cash-strapped power distribution companies have steeply cut purchase of costly power from open market which may lead to load shedding. Power ministry is planning to allow pass through of fuel costs, but will prescribe a limit beyond which a developer cannot pass through the cost to the consumer. US-based GE Energy is focussing on localising products for the Indian wind energy sector.

* RETAIL: Private equity firm Samara Capital is close to investing 1.8 bln rupees in Ludhiana-based apparel retailer Monte Carlo Fashions.

* TELECOM: The auction of 2G spectrum may be delayed as the government may file a petition in the Supreme Court for an extension of the time-line. IDEA CELLULAR's chief operating officer has written to the finance ministry saying that the GSM spectrum allocated to TATA TELESERVICES should be taken back.

By RUPEE DESK
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