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Petrol price was cut by Rs 1.15 a litre on Thursday, 31 October, the second reduction in rates in a month, while diesel prices were raised by 50 paise per litre. Jet fuel or ATF prices were cut by a steep 4.5 per cent, the first reduction in rates in six months.The price changes announced by oil companies are excluding local sales tax or VAT and will be effective midnight tonight, oil companies announced.Petrol price in Delhi will be cut by Rs 1.38 to Rs 71.02 per litre, while it will cost Rs 78.04 a litre in Mumbai as against Rs 79.49 currently.The reduction comes on back of a Rs 3.05 per litre (Rs 3.66 after including VAT) cut in rates effected from October 1.Prior to that, petrol prices had since June risen seven times, totalling Rs 10.80 per litre, excluding VAT (Rs 13.06 after including state tax) as the rupee depreciated sharply against the rupee.In a parallel move, diesel price was hiked by 50 paise, excluding VAT, in line with the January decision of the government allowing oil companies freedom to raise prices in small doses every month to wipe out mounting losses.The diesel price in Delhi has been hiked by 56 paise to Rs 53.10 per litre while it would cost Rs 60.08 in Mumbai from tomorrow as compared to Rs 59.46 currently.Today's hike is the 10th since the January 17 and most of the losses on diesel sales should have been wiped out by now to make the fuel market priced. But the fall in rupee, around 25 per cent since April, has worsened the situation and losses mounted to Rs 14.50 per litre.However, the recent firming of rupee against US dollar and monthly increases have trimmed these losses to Rs 9.58. Diesel rates have risen by a cumulative Rs 5.95 this year."Prices of petrol were last revised downwards on October 1 by Rs 3.05 per litre (excluding state taxes) on account of softening of prices in international markets as well as strengthening of the rupee."Since last price change, international prices of petrol have declined marginally from about USD 113 per barrel to about USD 112. The Rupee-USD exchange rate has appreciated from around Rs 63 to a US dollar to around Rs 62. Both these factors have resulted into a reduction in prices of petrol," Indian Oil Corp, the nation's largest fuel retailer, said in a statement.IOC said exercising the January authorisation to increase the diesel prices within a small range every month, retail prices are being revised every month and today rates have been hiked by 50 paise per litre."Even after the current increase, under recovery (revenue loss) on retail diesel shall stand at Rs 9.58 per litre," it said.Besides diesel, oil firms are losing Rs 35.77 per litre on sale of PDS kerosene and Rs 482.50 per 14.2-kg domestic cooking gas (LPG). These are lower than Rs 38.32 and Rs 532.50 loss incurred last month.At current rates, IOC projected a revenue loss of Rs 71,200 crore on sale of diesel, domestic LPG and kerosene for the full 2013-14 fiscal. The industry (IOC plus other state fuel retailers HPCL and BPCL) are projected to incur an under recovery of Rs 135,900 crore."The movement of prices in international oil market and Rupee-USD exchange rate is being closely monitored and developing trends of the market will be reflected in future price changes," the statement added.Alongside, oil firms also cut rates of non-subsidised domestic cooking gas (LPG) that households buy after exhausting their quota of 9 subsidised or cheaper cylinders.Price in Delhi was reduced by Rs 49.50 per 14.2-kg bottle to Rs 954.50.This reduction comes on back of Rs 71.50 per cylinder hike to Rs 1,004 effected from October 1.Non-subsidised LPG in Mumbai will cost Rs 969 from tomorrow as compared to Rs 1,021 currently.Jet Fuel Prices Cut 4.5%Jet fuel or ATF prices were today cut by a steep 4.5 per cent, the first reduction in rates in six months.ATF prices had touched a life time high of Rs 77,089.42 per kilolitre (kl) following five consecutive increases since June as rupee depreciated against the US dollar, making oil imports costlier.However, the rupee's appreciating during last month helped trim imported cost, leading to cut in prices.Aviation Turbine Fuel, or ATF, price at Delhi was cut by Rs 3,482.16 per kl, or 4.5 per cent, to Rs 73,607.26 per kl, according to Indian Oil Corp, the nation's largest fuel retailer.Rupee appreciation against US dollar also led to two rounds of reduction in petrol rates in one month - Rs 3.05 a litre from October 1 and Rs 1.15 announced today.Since June, ATF prices have gone up by a record Rs 14,439.45 or 23 per cent in five instalments.In Mumbai, jet fuel will cost Rs 76,035.89 per kl from tomorrow as against Rs 79,716.05 per kl currently.Rates at different airports vary because of difference in local sales tax or VAT.Jet fuel constitutes over 40 per cent of an airline's operating costs and the price cut will help bring down the fuel cost of the cash-strapped carriers.No immediate comments were available from the airlines on the impact of the price reduction on passenger fares.The three fuel retailers -- IOC, Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum -- revise jet fuel prices on the 1st of every month, based on the average international price in the preceding month.(PTI)
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An income tax defaulter cannot be absolved of paying penalty by just making a voluntary disclosure after being caught for hiding the income, the Supreme Court has said."It is trite law that the voluntary disclosure does not release the assessee from the mischief of penal proceedings.The law does not provide that when an assessee makes a voluntary disclosure of his concealed income, he had to be absolved from penalty," a bench of justices K S Radhakrishnan and A K Sikri said.The apex court dismissed the plea of a company challenging the income tax department's penalty proceedings against it for not disclosing the income.The company MAK Data P. Ltd.contended it had "surrendered" the additional sum of Rs.40,74,000 after the assessing officer issued notice to it with a view to avoiding litigation.The department had initiated penalty proceedings for concealment of income and not furnishing true particulars of its income.The company contended "penalty proceedings are not maintainable on the ground that the AO had not recorded his satisfaction to the effect that there has been concealment of income/furnishing of inaccurate particulars of income by the assessee and that the surrender of income was a conditional surrender before any investigation in the matter".The bench, however, was not satisfied and rejected the plea saying voluntary disclosure of concealed income cannot be a ground to absolve it from penalty.(PTI)
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Congress president Sonia Gandhi was ranked 21st among the world's most powerful people by Forbes magazine, making her the third most influential of women leaders included in the list.German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff were the only women who figured ahead of the 66-year-old Gandhi in the list of 72 politicians, heads of state and business leaders. Gandhi was also ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who came in seven slots below her.In a separate list of the world's 100 most powerful women, Forbes ranked Gandhi in the ninth position."As president of the Indian National Congress, Gandhi heads the ruling political party of the world's second largest population," read her brief profile on the Forbes website."Rumours persist of a rift between her and soft-spoken Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, with many expecting Singh to leave office before the 2014 general elections," it said.The profile noted that Rahul, described as the "heir apparent in the nation's most famous political dynasty", had recently "snubbed Singh publicly".Singh's profile noted that the 81-year-old Prime Minister was "credited with shaping India's economic and social welfare reforms". But it also said his "quiet intellectualism renders him a timid public figure".Rahul's recent criticism of Singh over an ordinance to protect convicted lawmakers was "indicative of Singh's diminishing coterie; rumour has it he will soon resign", the profile said. Soon after the criticism, Rahul had acted to mend fences with Singh. The Forbes list was topped by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was followed in second position by US President Barack Obama."This year the votes for the World's Most Powerful went to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He climbs one spot ahead of US President Barack Obama, who held the title in 2012," the magazine said."Putin has solidified his control over Russia while Obama's lame duck period has seemingly set in earlier than usual for a two-term president ? latest example: the government shutdown mess." The most powerful people list is an "annual snapshot of the heads of state, financiers, philanthropists and entrepreneurs who truly rule the world", Forbes said.This year's list features 17 heads of state who run countries with a combined GDP of $48 trillion and 27 CEOs and business leaders who control over $3 trillion in annual revenues.(PTI)
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DLF, India's top real estate developer, posted a 27 per cent fall in its consolidated net profit for the July-September quarter, hit by slowing home sales in Asia's third-largest economy."In the current economic and high interest rate environment, the company expects a slow absorption of product in the market," DLF said in a statement to the exchange.The New Delhi-based developer, founded by billionaire K.P. Singh, said net profit for he fiscal second quarter was Rs 100 crore compared with Rs 138 crore a year earlier. The profit fell short of analyst expectations of Rs 140 crore, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Total revenue was Rs 1,956 crore, down from Rs 2,040 crore posted during the same period last year.On 30 October, Oberoi Realty, India's second-largest developer by market value, posted a 48 per cent fall in net profit for the September quarter - its worst quarterly profit decline in nearly two years - hit by a drop in sales.(Reuters)
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Tightening external funding conditions will likely weigh on growth in emerging Asia, although weaker currencies and robust domestic demand may offset some of the pain, the International Monetary Fund's top official for Asia said."A faster than expected tightening of global funding conditions could substantially affect Asia, with a larger impact on economies with weaker fundamentals and higher exposures," IMF Asia-Pacific Department Director Anoop Singh said in a round-table session in Tokyo on the region's economic outlook.Singh said countries like India and Indonesia, which are reliant on foreign capital inflows and already experiencing elevated inflationary pressures, will likely need to tighten monetary policy further."India would need to take the steps that need to be taken to bring inflation down," Singh said after the Reserve of India's decision on Tuesday to tighten monetary policy."It doesn't only have to count on monetary policy," he said. "It's important that supply measures taken ... the government is trying to act on both fronts."On Japan, he said the government's decision to raise the sales tax to 8 per cent from 5 per cent next April has been a right move and must be followed by the second stage of tax increase in late 2015 that will bring the rate to 10 per cent."As a next step, the government should outline a more specific fiscal plan" on how to achieve its goal of slashing the country's public debt-to-GDP ratio by 2020, he said.In its latest forecasts issued this month, the IMF expects emerging Asian growth of 6.3 per cent this year followed by 6.5 per cent next year, both lower than estimates made in April. (Reuters)
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Buoyed by a border defence pact signed during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit, China has said it was "inevitable" to have some kind of incidents along the boundary but it was important that both sides worked together to solve them.Problems can occur even if there is fence between two houses but at the same time there was not a single incident of firing along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China, Huang Xilian, Counsellor in the Chinese Foreign Ministry said.Compared to some borders in the world, the Sino-Indian border is peaceful, he told visiting and resident Indian journalists here at a briefing on Singh's "successful" last week visit during which the two countries signed the Border Defence Cooperation Agreement (BDCA)."Sometimes it is inevitable to have some kind of incidents along the border but what is important is that both sides together worked to solve it," he said replying to a question on whether the pact can avert incidents like in the Depsang valley in Ladakh this year in which Chinese troops pitched their tents inside Indian territory."Hyping up this issue will not help. So long both sides have intention and some mechanism as guarantor, we should be confident," Huang said.Before this agreement the border was peaceful and the BDCA is further guarantor of the peace tranquillity, he said, adding that "we should be more confident after signing this".Asked whether China was disappointed that an agreement on visa liberalisation did not materialise during Singh's visit, Huang said the two countries held talks on this issue for sometime to facilitate exchange of visits."We should always be optimistic about future" as both countries are moving forward, he said.The visa agreement was left out as India strongly opposed China's stapled visa policy. China continues to issue visas on paper to residents of Arunachal Pradesh, which it claims as Southern Tibet.Terming Singh's visit as highly successful, Huang said the rare gesture by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang of taking Singh for walk along the historic Forbidden city, home for generations of Chinese rulers was to symbolically connect the ancient civilisations of India and China together.(PTI)
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India will ask Reliance Industries Ltd to relinquish 80 per cent of its east coast deepwater D6 gas block, including five discoveries, as the energy major has not adhered to timelines for developing the area, the oil secretary said."We are waiting for the oil minister's final order," Vivek Rae told Reuters on Tuesday, referring to the instruction telling Reliance to relinquish the discoveries in the 7,645 square kilometre D6 block.The five discoveries within D6 are D4, D7, D8, D16 and D23. Rae said Reliance failed to submit reports on the commercial viability the five discoveries on time.He said the relinquished area will be auctioned in subsequent licensing rounds. The relinquished area does not contain any producing fields.Total reserves in these five discoveries in the Krishna Godavari basin are estimated to be 805 billion cubic feet, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said. The sources declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.No decision has yet been taken on the fate of the remaining three fields in the D6 block -- D29, D30 and D31 -- which are estimated to hold about 350 billion cubic feet of gas reserves, Rae said.He said Reliance had submitted commerciality declarations of the three discoveries on time but had not carried out the necessary tests.A Reliance Industries spokesman declined to comment.Natural gas output from the Krishna Godavari basin's D6 block, in which BP <BP.L> has a 30 percent equity stake, has declined to 14 million cubic metres per day (mmscmd) from 60 mmscmd at the end of 2010.The companies have cited geological complexities for the fall in output, which has been in steady decline since 2010, while the oil regulator believes they failed to drill enough wells.(Reuters)
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India’s fastest-growing states have seen the wealth of their citizens grow, but still have a long way to go when it comes to social development parametersCompiled by Team BW Graphic by Prashant Chaudhary Click here to view graphic(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 18-11-2013)
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The Reserve Bank of India plans to soon launch a 10-year savings instrument that will offer inflation-linked returns to small investors as an alternative to investing in gold."It is proposed to launch Inflation Indexed National Saving Securities (IINSSs) for retail investors in November/December 2013 in consultation with the government," the RBI said today in its Second Quarter Review of Monetary Policy 2013-14.The inflation-indexed securities for retail investors will be linked to the new (combined) consumer price index (CPI). The interest on these securities would comprise of a fixed rate plus inflation."Interest would be compounded half-yearly and paid cumulatively at redemption. These securities will be distributed through banks to reach out to the masses," the RBI said.Eligible investors would consist of individuals, Hindu undivided families, trusts and charitable institutions.The Union Budget for 2013-14 had proposed introducing instruments that would protect savings from inflation and provide an alternative to gold as an investment avenue for individuals.Both the government and the RBI have imposed a host of restrictions on the import of gold, one of the major reasons for the record high current account deficit in the previous financial year.In another decision, the RBI allowed banks to pay interest on savings and term deposits at shorter-than-quarterly intervals. Banks are currently required to pay interest on such deposits at quarterly or longer intervals. (Reuters)
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Compiled by Joe C. MathewGraphic by Prashant Chaudhary(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 18-11-2013)
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