The Indian rupee fell marginally by two paise to 63.12 against the dollar in early trade Tuesday (28 January) at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market on increased demand for the greenback from importers ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's policy review.The Indian rupee had lost 44 paise to close at 10-week low of 63.10 against the dollar in Monday's (27 January) trade amid fears that further stimulus tapering by the US Federal Reserve will hit capital inflows.Forex dealers said besides increased dollar demand from importers ahead of the RBI policy review, weakness in other currencies overseas against the American unit put pressure on the rupee, but a higher opening of the domestic equity market capped the fall.Meanwhile, the benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex recovered by 53.76 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 20,761.21 in early trade.(PTI)
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The Narendra Modi government was responsible for "abetting and pushing" the 2002 Gujarat riots while the Congress government tried to stop the 1984 riots, Rahul Gandhi said on Monday (27 January) but offered no apology for the anti-Sikh violence.Pitted against Modi in a virtual Presidential-style contest in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Gandhi said he was not scared of him and claimed that Congress will defeat BJP.Making a direct attack on Modi, he said, "the fact of the matter is that innocent people died in 1984 and innocent people dying is a horrible thing and should not happen. The difference between Gujarat and 1984 was that the government of Gujarat was involved in the riots."Asked in an interview to Times Now as to how he could say that when Modi has been given a clean chit by the courts, Gandhi said, "... he was the Chief Minister when the Gujarat riots happened....The government in Gujarat was actually abetting and pushing the riots further."Seeking to differentiate the role of governments during the anti-Sikh riots in Delhi and 2002 in Gujarat, he said, "the simple difference is that in 1984, the government was not not involved in the massacre of people. In Gujarat it was."He insisted that the Congress government in 1984 "was not aiding and abetting the riots" but had tried to stop the violence.When pressed further on how he could attack Modi on the Gujarat riots, Gandhi said, "it is not me. It is a large number of people who saw actively the government of Gujarat being involved in the riots."I mean, people saw it. I am not the person who saw it.Your colleagues saw it. Your colleagues told me. They saw the administration actively attacking the minorities."To questions whether he would apologise for the 1984 riots and whether he felt that there was no need for it, Gandhi said, "First of all, I wasn't involved in the riots at all. It wasn't that I was a part of it."The questioner said Rahul Gandhi has avoided the whole question about whether he was open to PM's post and avoiding a difficult contest.In reply, Gandhi referred to his speech at the AICC meet here and said announcing a PM candidate before an election is "announcing your PM without asking your MPs. It is not actually written in the Constitution."Q: You did that in 2009.A: No, we didn't.Q: Of course, you did.A: What we did in 2009 was that we had an incumbent Prime Minister. The PM won the election. The MPs decided that the Prime Minister will continue.He avoided direct reply to questions on whether political parties should be brought under the purview of RTI, saying Parliament should decide on it if political parties are unanimous on this. "My position is that the more openness, the better."Asked why Congress protected former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan despite a judicial commission's indictment, Gandhi said the party had taken action wherever corruption was involved.He said he made his position clear on Chavan after the Maharashtra Cabinet had rejected the judicial commission's findings.On corruption charges against Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, he said, "there is a legal process.Follow it and conclude it."With regard to performance by Aam Aadmi Party, he said, "there are things how they have reached out to people. Don't take that away from them."To questions about dynasty politics, Gandhi said he said he is "absolutely against the concept of dynasty. But it happens in BJP, SP, DMK and Congress everywhere."He said he was being personally attacked because he is doing things that are dangerous to the system.At the same time, he admitted that "some Congress men were probably involved in 1984 anti-Sikh riots and they have been punished for it".Q: Will you apologise on behalf of Congress party?A: I think that riots, as all riots, were a horrible event. Frankly, I was not in operation in Congress party.(PTI)
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The restrictions on gold imports will be reviewed by March end, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said on Monday (27 January)."I am confident that by the end of this year we will be able to revisit some of the restrictions on gold import but we will do so only when we are absolutely sure that we have a firm grip on the current account deficit," he said while addressing tax officials at the Customs Day here.To contain the rising gold imports, the government had increased customs duty on the yellow metal three times in 2013. The levy currently stands at 10 per cent.Besides, the Reserve Bank has also linked imports of the metal to exports amid a widening CAD and depreciation of the rupee.Gold imports, which touched a high of 162 tonnes in May, fell to 19.3 tonnes in November in the wake of a series of curbs by both the government and the RBI.The imports in December was a "little higher" than in November, Finance Secretary Sumit Bose told reporters.(PTI)
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The rupee hits 62.90 in early trade, its lowest level since 22 November, as Asian stocks trading with heavy losses. The pair last trading at 62.77/78 vs Friday's (24 January) close of 62.66/67.Dealers will closely watch for RBI intervention at current levels after the RBI was suspected to have sold dollars in late session on Friday.The RBI to decide on rates on Tuesday (21 January). While the consensus still is towards no hike in policy rates, RBI chief Raghuram Rajan's comments will be closely watched for future rate trajectory after his recent hawkish comments.Scotiabank says looking at the next key topside level of 63.90, the top of the November move higher in USD/INR, ahead of the pivotal 64.00 point.(Reuters)
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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who faced flak for his protest in the heart of the capital, on Satursday (25 January) said the Constitution does not prevent the Chief Minister from holding a dharna."I read the Constitution, couldn't find anywhere that a Chief Minister cannot hold 'dharna'," he said on criticism to his two-day dharna outside Rail Bhavan.He also charged that "the media is getting paid to do negative stories on AAP."Kejriwal's role in leading a protest while holding constitutional office has came under the scrutiny of the Supreme Court which on 24 January slammed law enforcing agencies for allowing unlawful assembly of supporters of the Chief Minister in the heart of national capital.In his Republic Day address at Chhatrasal Stadium here, the Delhi Chief Minister said the Jan Lokpal Bill is almost ready and will be passed at a special session in Ramlila Maidan in February.Holding that security of women in the national capital is "highly compromised", he said the government has formed a committee under the Chief Secretary for the formation of 'Mahila Suraksha Dal' in the city."Women security in the national capital is highly compromised. It is our utmost duty and priority to provide security to women. We have formed a committee under the Chief Secretary for formation of Mahila Suraksha Dal," he said.He said that it may not have powers like the police but the force will work like security guards stationed outside buildings and housing societies."They will provide security to women. We will have retired army personnel, police and home guards as members of suraksha dal," he said.Kejriwal also said the committee under the chief secretary will make provisions to ensure that rapists are sent to jail within 3 to 6 months. (PTI)
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Over the last five years, India has witnessed a surge in Japanese companies entering the country. From 700-odd companies in 2009 to over a 1,000 in 2013, the rise is noteworthy. Many large infrastructure projects such as Delhi-Mumbai Industrial corridor with its first Japan Industrial town at Neemrana in Rajasthan have seen over 40 Japanese companies invest in it, SriCity Integrated Business Town near Chennai and a high level of interest has been expressed in a similar initiative near Pune. The MSME sector is also focussing on automotives and consumer electronics lately. With consumer goods major Unicharm, Kagome and Kose Cosmetics among others, who have set up shops either on their own or jointly with reputed Indian companies; Japan is looking forward to foray into the FMCG sector as well. Unlike Indian business houses that take on high risks without paying much attention to data, Japan has been globally successful in undertaking market and industry research projects, spending huge resources in feasibility and pilot studies ensuring a high percentage of success. Japan is one of the largest market research consumers, after US. Many Japanese research firms have already set up their Indian offices or are associated with Indian firms. Tokyo-headquartered consulting powerhouse RJC Research Inc has forged business ties with Gyan Research and Analytics to gain insights and business intelligence about Indian markets. This is an opportunity for RJC Research to help Japanese companies understand the complex Indian market and its needs. It will also provide intelligence to Indian companies looking at business opportunities in Japan. Gyan Research and Analytics has joined forces with the firm to provide in-depth understanding of the country's economy and its market mechanisms. It brings with it more than 100 years of combined experience of senior management working in areas of investment research, insurance, customer analytics, knowledge management, strategic and IT consulting.
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India's economy is projected to grow at a slower-than-expected rate of 5.3 per cent this year, according to a United Nations report which said the country's slowdown may have bottomed out.The UN World Economic Situation and Prospects 2014 (WESP) report said a mild recovery in investment as well as stronger export growth will help in the gradual GDP pick-up.It said the Indian economy, which accounts for over 70 per cent of total output in South Asia, slowed further in 2013.The growth was held back by weak household consumption and sluggish investment, the report added.Full-year growth decelerated to 4.8 per cent in 2013 from 5.1 per cent in the calendar year 2012.It said external conditions continued to be challenging as the Indian economy experienced significant capital outflows, which led to a sharp depreciation of?the rupee."While India's slowdown may have bottomed out, the recovery is likely to be slower than previously expected.Economic activity is forecast to expand by 5.3 per cent in 2014 and 5.7 per cent in 2015," the report said.It said the gradual pick-up in GDP growth is likely to be supported by good monsoon, recovery in investment and stronger export growth on the back of improved global conditions.The report further said that global economic growth is expected to increase over the next two years with continuing signs of improvement.The global economy is projected to grow at a pace of 3 per cent in 2014 and 3.3 per cent in 2015, compared to an estimated growth of 2.1 per cent in 2013."The euro area has finally ended a protracted recession.Growth in the United States strengthened somewhat. A few large emerging economies, including China and India, managed to backstop the deceleration they experienced in the past two years and veered upwards moderately. These factors point to increasing global growth," the report said.It said the central government is unlikely to meet its target of reducing the deficit to 4.8 per cent of GDP in the current fiscal year 2013/14,?since growth is below projections and the depreciation of the rupee pushes up the subsidy bill.On consumer price inflation, the report said India will witness a slight dip in inflation at 9 per cent in 2014 from 9.7 per cent in the previous year. Inflation could dip further to 8.1 per cent in 2015, it said."While the Reserve Bank of India is expected to maintain its focus on inflation, it is unlikely to raise policy rates considerably given the ongoing weakness in investment and growth. Should inflationary pressures ease in 2014 and the external financial environment stabilise, the RBI is likely to loosen monetary conditions," the report added.Among emerging economies, declines and volatility in capital inflows have been most pronounced in Asia.Portfolio equity inflows to India registered significant falls.Declines of capital inflows were found to be more acute in countries like Brazil and India because of the relatively high degree of liquidity in these markets, accompanied by sharp depreciations of the local currencies.Economic growth in South Asia remained lacklustre in 2013 as a combination of internal and external factors hampered activity, particularly in the region's?major economies such as India, Iran and Pakistan.The region's total gross domestic product?grew by 3.9 per cent in 2013, the slowest pace in almost two decades, after increasing by 4.2 per cent in 2012.Growth is forecast to pick up gradually to 4.6 per cent in 2014 and 5.1 per cent in 2015, supported by stronger external demand, a mild recovery in domestic?demand in India and improved economic conditions in Iran.In the United States, fiscal tightening and a series of political gridlocks over budgetary issues weighed heavily on growth.The US labour market and housing sector continued to recover and the country's GDP is expected to increase by 2.5 per cent in 2014.The report stressed that the risks associated with a possible bumpy exit from the quantitative easing programmes by the US Federal Reserve threaten the global?economy."Efforts by the Fed to pull out of quantitative easing programmes could lead to a surge in long-term interest rates in developed and developing countries," the report added. (PTI)
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The rupee dropped further by 31 paise to 62.24 against the American currency in late morning deals today on persistent dollar demand from banks and importers.The rupee resumed lower at 62.12 per dollar as against the last closing level of 61.93 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) Market.It dropped further to 62.25 before quoting at 62.24 per dollar at 1045 hours. It hovered in a range of 62.10-62.25 per dollar during the morning deals.Sustained demand for the US currency from banks and importers in view firm dollar overseas mainly affected the rupee value, a forex dealer said.In the global market, the US dollar was recovering from its drop against most major rivals following global slowdown concerns that led investors to shove the greenback lower.Meanwhile, the Indian benchmark BSE-30 share barometer Sensex dropped by 125.72 points of 0.59 per cent to 21,247.94 in the late morning trade.(PTI)
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The rupee is at a two-week low tracking weak regional equities. The pair is at 62.13/14 versus Thursday's (23 January) close of 61.9275/9375 and intraday high of 62.19, the highest since 9 January.Local shares fell 0.4 per cent in early trade.Local shares are under pressure after comments from Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan suggested that interest rates may continue to remain high.The yen and Swiss franc held firm early on Friday (24 January), having charged higher overnight as worries about a slowdown in China and turmoil in some emerging markets spurred demand for the safe-haven currencies.(Reuters)
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The rupee is lower tracking Asian forex weakness, pair at 62.01/02 versus 23 January' 2014, close of 61.8150/8250. Local stocks trading with losses, down 0.2 percent. Dealer tips 61.80-62.10 band for session with exporters coming in at this spot range. The Canadian dollar wallowed at four-year lows early on Thursday after the Bank of Canada all but begged the market to sell the currency, while sterling took off as investors priced in an earlier start to rate hikes in the UK. (Reuters)
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