Today's Hot Stories - December 22, 2012
10 Headlines for Today(1) Astra missile test-fired successfully
(2) Stone-pelters warn of turbulence if Guru is hanged
(3) Obama nominates Kerry Secretary of State
(4) IIFCL tax-free bond issue opens on Dec. 26
(5) Vodafone seeks licence extension for 3 circles
(6) Cognizant to acquire 6 German cos
(7) National Bridge Championship: Formidables regains Ruia Gold Cup
(8) Australian Open ups prize money for early losers
(9) National shooting championship: Shreyasi rides on big lead, traps gold
(10) US professor nominated for Nobel Peace prize dies
5 Stories for Today
(1) Direct Cash Transfer system a ‘pure magic’: Chidambaram
(2) Egyptians vote on disputed constitution
(3) Gulf Oil completes Houghton acquisition
(4) Germany remains India's top trading partner within Europe
(5) Standard &Poor’s sees India’s growth at 6.5 per cent in 2013
(1) Direct Cash Transfer system a ‘pure magic’: Chidambaram
Describing the proposed Direct Cash Transfer scheme a ‘pure magic’ that brings a big responsibility on banks for its implementation, Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday asked bankers to work with the government to make the scheme a success.
“Through this unique benefit transfer scheme, money when it is released, will instantaneously be credited in the bank account of the beneficiary, leaving no scope for corruption and pilferage. That is why I describe it a pure magic,” Mr. Chidambaram told a function in Jaipur.
“We will roll out the scheme from January 1st in some districts with some schemes but by the end of the year, we hope to cover all the districts and all the schemes,” he said.
The Finance Minister asked the bankers to get ready for effective implementation of the scheme.
“It is a bigger responsibility that rests on bankers. I appeal to all banks to work with the government to make the revolutionary scheme a success,” he said.
Speaking at the golden jubilee year celebration of State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, the Minister emphasised on the need to expand the reach of banking sector to every nook and corner of the country.
He advocated granting loans to the poor and small scale businessmen.
“Banking and banking services are the rights of people and I want to make every citizen of the country to believe this. Every citizen has a right to seek loan depending upon his economic situation and capacity to repay the loan.
(2) Egyptians vote on disputed constitution
Egyptians were voting on Saturday in the second and final phase of a referendum on an Islamist-backed constitution, but there was little indication that the result of the vote will end the political crisis in which the country is mired.
The vote comes a day after clashes between supporters and opponents of Islamist President Mohamed Morsy in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria. It was the latest outbreak of street violence in more than four weeks of turmoil, with the country divided first over the president’s powers then over the draft constitution.
The clashes in which opponents of Islamists set fire to cars and dozens of people were hurt illustrated how the new constitution, regardless of whether it is adopted or not, is unlikely to ease the conflict over the country’s future.
Saturday’s vote is taking place in 17 of Egypt’s 27 provinces with about 25 million eligible voters. The first phase on Dec. 15 produced a “yes” majority of about 56 per cent with a turnout of some 32 per cent, according to unofficial results.
“I came early to make sure my ‘no’ is among the first of millions today,” oil company manager Mahmoud Abdel-Aziz said as he waited in line outside a polling station in the Dokki district, part of Giza province but also in the greater Cairo area. “I am here to say ‘no’ to Mr. Morsy and his Muslim Brotherhood,” he said.
Another Giza voter, accountant and mother of three Sahar Mohamed Zakaria, had a different take on Saturday’s vote.
“I’m voting ‘yes’ for stability,” she announced.
In part, Egypt’s split has been over who will shape the country’s path nearly two years after the ouster of Hosni Mubarak nearly two years ago.
An opposition made up of liberals, leftists, secular Egyptians and a swath of the public angered over Mr. Morsy’s 5-month-old rule fear that Islamists are creating a new Mubarak-style autocracy. They accuse the Brotherhood of monopolizing the levers of power and point to the draft charter, which Islamists on the Constituent Assembly rammed through despite a boycott by liberal and secular members. They are calling on supporters to vote “no.”
Mr. Morsy’s allies say the opposition is trying to use the streets to overturn their victories at the ballot box over the past two years. They also accuse the opposition of carrying out a conspiracy by former members of Mubarak’s regime to regain power.
(3) Gulf Oil completes Houghton acquisition
Hinduja Group’s Gulf Oil Corporation Ltd. (GOCL), through a step-down subsidiary structure in the United Kingdom and the U.S., has completed the acquisition of 100 per cent stake in Houghton International Inc. for $1.045 billion after satisfactory conclusion of regulatory approvals.
GOCL will operate Houghton, a strong player in industrial lubricants sector, as a separate company and the rest of Gulf’s operations will leverage Houghton's extensive base of industrial customers to offer them complete range of lubricants.
Synergies
Houghton will also leverage Gulf’s existing global network. “There are various other synergies that can be achieved in manufacturing, strategic sourcing and distribution,” Gulf Oil said.
(4) Germany remains India's top trading partner within Europe
Germany has emerged as the top trading partner of India within Europe with around $23.8 billion or 18.3 billion euro turnover during 2011-12, according to the latest figures of the Commerce and Industry Ministry.
Speaking about this, German Ambassador to India Michael Steiner said the figures showed clearly that the Indo-German trade relations were at an all-time high. “Within the European Union, Germany remains in the pole position for trade with India. This is welcome news for both our countries. The figures also show that trade between India and Europe is at an all-time high. The potential to further increase the economic ties between Europe and India is immense. We should make full use of it,” he added.
Mr. Stiener said conclusion of the currently negotiated Free Trade and Investment Agreement between the European Union and India in due time would be a tremendous boost for both economies. “It would also be the right signal to the international markets in times of crisis,” he added.
Germany has been pushing for an early conclusion of the India-EU free trade agreement (FTA) saying it will be mutually beneficial and in line with the current reforms of the Union Government. “The two sides need to shift to a final effort to get the FTA done. The FTA is in the interest of Europe and India,” Mr. Steiner had said recently.
The India-EU free trade agreement, officially dubbed as the Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA), seeks to sharply reduce tariffs on goods and liberalise services and investment provisions. Talks for the agreement were to conclude in 2011 but differences between the two sides on the level of opening of the market delayed the BTIA. The two-way trade stood at $91.3 billion in 2010-11. A recent FICCI report said that trade between the two sides was likely to more than double to exceed $207 billion by 2015, if the trade pact was formalised.
Mr. Steiner said the only complaint he had with India-German relationship was that they had not been able to fully exploit the huge potential the two nations hold. “The sky is the limit,” he said.
(5) S&P sees India’s growth at 6.5 per cent in 2013
‘The ball is in the policymakers’ court to sustain recovery in global economy’
Global rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has said that it expects India to grow by 6.5 per cent during 2013, amidst the possibility of global economic recovery continuing during the year.
For China, S&P expects the growth rate to move back to the 8 per cent level in 2013, after it slipped to 7.4 per cent in the third quarter of 2012.
In a report on global credit outlook for 2013, S&P said that “the ball is in the policymakers’ court” to sustain the recovery in global economy.
Noting that there is “not much room for error in the global economy” in 2013, the S&P economists said it had been through a very challenging period in recent years.
This included “the near total collapse of the financial system in 2008 and the very deep global recession that followed at the end of 2008 and the first-half of 2009.”
“The global economy started recovering in mid-2009, and that recovery at a global level has pretty much continued. We expect it to continue into 2013, but it is a fairly precarious situation.
“Precarious because the recovery process, the healing, deleveraging, balance sheet recovery, and economic recovery, is still working its way through the system,” Standard & Poor’s Chief Global Economist Paul Sheard said.
Mr. Sheard said that S&P expected a “soft landing” in China, while its forecast for India was a 6.5 per cent growth in 2013.
“We have one major economy continuing to recover in our base case scenario. We see China going through a so-called soft landing. What it means is that China was growing at a very rapid pace, sometimes too rapid, after the financial crisis.
“Average year-on-year growth since the third quarter of 2008 has been 8.9 per cent though it’s ticked down a bit this year. Chinese policymakers needed to rein in an overheating economy,” Mr. Sheard said.
During the process, growth had decelerated from 12 per cent at one point to 7.4 per cent in the third quarter of this year, he said adding that deceleration of the Chinese economy was probably bottoming out and growth would probably move back closer toward 8 per cent entering 2013.
S&P said that it expected rating stability and even some positive trends in the emerging world, while the global growth would also be positive next year at little under 3 per cent.
The rating agency said that many emerging Asian economies were using their growth productively to strengthen their infrastructure, and thereby increase long-term growth potential, while still maintaining manageable debt burdens.
“So we could see some upgrades in parts of the emerging world,” it said, without naming the countries.
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