International Business Machines (IBM) unveiled a ‘brain-like’ computer chip that is the size of a postage stamp and capable of processing massive amounts of data while handling inputs from different sources. Unlike normal chips that work on pre-written paths, it is capable of processing data in real time, helping it perform human-like functions such as assisting people during natural disasters via a robot. Built on Samsung Electro-Mechanics’s 28nm process technology, the chip consumes 70 milliwatts of energy. The chip aims to bridge the divide between computers and the brain’s high cognitive power and low energy use.Hitting A BumpGeneral Motors (GM) failed to convince a Georgia judge to dismiss a lawsuit over the death of a 29-year-old woman that helped trigger the recall of 2.59 million cars over faulty ignition switches. Cobb County state court judge Kathryn J. Tanksley rejected GM’smotion to dismiss the revived suit at a hearing, and set a trial date for April 2016. The suit, brought by the parents of Brooke Melton, who died in a 2010 crash of a Chevy Cobalt, was settled in September 2013. But the Meltons filed a fresh complaint in May, claiming defects had been concealed.Big SnubFour Silicon Valley companies — Apple, Google, Intel and Adobe — have failed to persuade a US judge to sign off on a $324.5 million settlement to resolve a lawsuit by tech workers, who accused the firms of conspiring to avoid poaching each other’s employees. In a ruling, US district judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, said the class action settlement was too low, given the strength of the case against the companies. There is “substantial and compelling evidence” that late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs “was a central figure in the alleged conspiracy”, Koh said. The judge provided details, including anecdotes involving Jobs and other Valley executives, to show why she thought the workers deserved more.Takeover BattlePrivate equity giant TPG Capital Management made a $3.1 billion approach for Australia’s Treasury Wine Estates, a source said, setting the scene for a possible bidding war for the world’s No. 2 winemaker with rival KKR. A week after KKR and Rhone Capital proposed an A$5.20-a-share offer for Treasury, the owner of the Penfolds, Lindemans and Wolf Blass brands said it received a second identical unsolicited approach from a global private equity firm, which requested anonymity.Joint EffortFrench drugmaker Sanofi and MannKind have agreed to a worldwide licensing deal to develop and market inhaled insulin drug Afrezza for adults with diabetes. The companies plan to launch Afrezza in the US in the first quarter of 2015. Under the terms of the agreement, MannKind will receive an upfront payment of $150 million and potential milestone payments of up to $775 million. Sanofi and MannKind will share profits and losses on a global basis, with Sanofi retaining 65 per cent and MannKind the rest.Speed BrakerVolkswagen’s $6.68 billion cost-savings plan hit a major setback after labour leaders forced the management to axe detailed proposals drawn up by consultants at McKinsey, sources with knowledge of the matter said. The move underlines the extent to which relations between the management and workers have soured at Europe’s biggest carmaker, which is struggling to raise profits amid stagnating emerging markets and low growth at home. However, the cost-cutting target still stands, the sources said.New Flight PathSaddled with twin crash investigations, growing competion from Middle East carriers, losses and debt, Malaysia Airlines will delist from the Kuala Lumpur stock exchange as part of a government bid to rescue the embattled flag carrier. State investment firm Khazanah Nasional Berhad, which owns 70 per cent of the airline, is planning to buy out small shareholders as a first step to overhauling the airline. “The proposed restructuring will require all parties to work closely to undertake what will be a complete overhaul,” it said in a statement. Shareholders will vote on the plan at an extraordinary general meeting. Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines will continue to operate all current flights.Fresh TroubleGlaxoSmithKline (GSK) faces new allegations that it bribed Syrian doctors and officials to boost sales of its medicines. GSK said it would investigate the new claims involving its staff and local distributors. This, at a time when a court in Shanghai sentenced a British corporate investigator, Peter Humphrey and his American wife and business partner Yu Yingzeng, to two and a half years in prison for illegally obtaining private records of Chinese citizens and selling the information to clients, including GSK.Report CardChina’s buoyant exports pushed its trade surplus to a record in July, fuelling optimism that global demand will help counter pressure on the domestic economy from a weakening property sector. While manufacturing appears to have picked up in the world’s second-largest economy, unexpected weakness in the services sector has renewed concerns about the growth outlook. The weak housing market remains China’s biggest risk, posing a drag on the broader economy and investor confidence.Call DisconnectedChina has excluded Apple from a list of products that can be bought with public money because of security concerns, a report said. Apple products like iPad and MacBook were omitted from the government procurement list distributed in July. The Apple exclusion makes it the fourth major foreign company to face hurdles in the Chinese market. China has recently told government departments to stop buying antivirus software from US firm Symantec and Russian firm Kaspersky Lab. Microsoft Windows 8 was also excluded from government purchases in May this year.(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 08-09-2014)
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The rupee is trading at 60.02/03 versus its Friday's close of 60.0850/0950, as the dollar makes losses versus most other Asian currencies.The rupee is seen holding in a 59.80 to 60.30 range during the session. Demand for the greenback from oil refiners looking to meet month-end demand is expected to limit any sharp downward pressure on the USD/INR pair.Most Asian currencies stronger against the dollar.Traders will monitor the domestic share market for clues on the direction of foreign fund flows. The BSE Sensex is up more than 250 points.Asian share markets edged cautiously higher while the dollar stayed under pressure ahead of packed week of economic data that will test investor hopes for a pick-up in the US and global economies.(Reuters)
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The workforce reduction that began three years ago is now behind us”— John Chen, CEO, BlackBerry, in a memo to employees, declaring the company is, in fact, ready to begin modest hiring in certain areas of business“There are no signs of industrial development in West Bengal”—Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus, Tata Sons, at an interactive session “Perhaps he (Ratan Tata) has lost his mind... He should rather focus on other hobbies like flying an aeroplane”— Amit Mitra, finance minister, West Bengal, in response to Ratan Tata’s comment on the state’s lacklustre industrial scenario “BSNL will not be allowed to die”— Ravi Shankar Prasad, telecom minister, vowing to revive state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam“We’re not lacking something that we need”— Jeff Bewkes, CEO, Time Warner, at a conference, making clear that he doesn’t believe Time Warner needs to combine with any other big company“It’s our pound and we’re keeping it, come what may”— Alex Salmond, first minister, Scotland, indicating that an independent Scotland will use sterling even if a formal sterling zone is rejected by the UK government“HBO rocks, and we are honoured to be in the same league”— Reed Hastings, CEO, Netflix, after the digital entertainment company topped HBO in subscriber revenue“There are few places in the world other than India and the US where the son of a tea seller in a small-time town can rise to be the prime minister (Narendra Modi) or the child of a Kenyan father can rise to be the president (Barack Obama)”—Chuck Hagel, US defence secretary, while talking about the opportunities available in the two countries, on a visit (This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 08-09-2014)
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Traders in Maharashtra have rejected the State Government's proposal to substitute the controversial LBT (local body tax) with a new levy.In a joint release issued late last night, President of Federation of Associations of Maharashtra (FAM) Mohan Gurnani and Vice-President of Thane Small Scale Industry Association (TSSIA) Sandeep Parikh said they are opposed to the Government proposal of "new tax" in lieu of LBT.They said representatives of industry and trade from all the 26 municipal corporations in the State met with Government officials here yesterday.At the meeting, Sudhir Srivastava, Additional Secretary (Finance) and Nitin Kareer, Commissioner, Sales Tax explained the proposed new tax.The industry bodies deliberated the Government's proposal at length. Post-discussion, representatives from all the 26 corporations decided to reject the new tax proposal, the release said.The new levy lacks clarity and has multiple rates. Its implementation may lead to cascading effect, it said.Gurnani and Parikh said the Government should accept the traders' demand to subsume LBT into VAT (value-added tax).LBT is a tax imposed by local municipal corporations on the entry of goods into a "local area for consumption, use or sale". It is supposed to replace octroi.(PTI)
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The death toll in the GAIL pipeline fire tragedy in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh rose to 16 with an injured succumbing on Saturday (28 June), while six persons were battling for life with severe burns, police said.At least 15 persons were killed and nearly two dozen others injured when an apparently leaking gas pipeline of GAIL caught fire and triggered a blast in Nagaram village in the coastal district, about 560km from here, on Friday (27 June)."A baby girl, who was undergoing treatment for severe burns, died on Saturday at a private hospital in Kakinada. With this the toll in the incident rose to 16," East Godavari District Superintendent of Police G Vijay Kumar told PTI over phone.The SP said 20 others who suffered burn injuries were undergoing treatment at different hospitals. The condition of at least six of them remains critical as they have suffered around 80 per cent burns.The leaping flames from the pipeline passing through the village in Mamidikuduru mandal quickly swept through nearby houses and coconut plantations, leaving behind a trail of destruction.Leaking gas had enveloped some areas of the village and the tragedy occurred when a tea shop vendor lit up a stove, setting off a blast, police had earlier said.(PTI)
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The narendra Modi government has instructed its ministries not to file suits against each other. Welcome as it is, the move should be only the first step in the much-needed reform of the government’s litigation policy. To be sure, one such policy exists, dating back to 2010; it says the easy approach of ‘let the courts decide’ must be ‘eschewed and condemned’. That rule is followed more in the breach. The new diktat must not meet that same fate. Government litigation, say lawyers, eats up the lion’s share of courts’ time. A similar policy on appeals must be implemented. Appeals, especially in tax, should not be resorted to simply because the avenue is open. The government should dissuade its companies from not honouring commitments knowing that the dispute resolution in India takes years. — Abraham C. MathewsA Cracking Diwali?For the second time in a row, the statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) or funds that banks have to mandatorily invest in government securities (G-Secs) has been cut to 22 per cent. Mint Road had cut the SLR to 22.5 per cent in June. While there may be no immediate cut in bank lending rates, the feeling is that Mint Road has adopted a wait-and-watch policy. Had it gone for a cut in its key rates — repos rate or cash reserve ratio — at this stage, it might be seen as being hasty given the upside pressures on inflation despite its recent moderation. In any case, the two are blunt instruments. It’s better to cut the SLR; in effect, banks need to invest less in G-Secs and have more to lend to India Inc (for the record, the surplus over the minimum SLR is now about six per cent). Diwali is just two months down the line! — Raghu MohanA Taste Of Its Own MedicineThe insurance laws (Amendment) Bill that aims to hike FDI in insurance to 49 per cent is stuck for the moment. While the Lok Sabha has cleared it, the Congress-dominated Rajya Sabha is planning to send it to a Select Committee. Essentially, that means Narendra Modi’s first major reform has hit the skids. He will not be in a position to impress the US when he visits the country in September. The current Bill has 97 amendments to the original one introduced by the UPA in 2008, which the BJP had successfully stalled. The Congress argues that the current Bill is very different from the original one. The BJP government, on its part, is seeking a time-bound scrutiny by the committee so that the Bill gets passed soon. In case that happens, the Bill could get passed in the Winter Session. — Anup JayaramConflicting CountsPoverty estimates in the country have always been debatable. According to the Rangarajan Committee, 29.5 per cent of Indians are living below the poverty line. Earlier, the Suresh Tendulkar panel had estimated the proportion of such people to be 21.9 per cent. Now, the World Bank says there are just 100 million Indians below the poverty line. It has revised its earlier estimate of 400 million poor based on the purchasing power parity index in 2005. Statistically speaking, this means less than 10 per cent of Indians are poor. The danger with these differing figures is that they become the basis for rollout of the government’s welfare programmes. A more reliable method would be to engage the country’s 25,000-plus gram panchayats in identifying households that are really poor and then plan and roll out welfare schemes. The human touch is always better than statistical estimates in such matters.— Joe C. MathewA Cloud Over The MonsoonWith the Met department lowering its forecast for June-September rainfall to 87 per cent of the long period average, the worry lines on farmers’ foreheads are growing. Given the trickle-down effect of scanty rainfall on inflation and the economy and the fact that climate change is an alarming reality, there has been much talk of scaling down dependence on monsoon by expanding irrigated farmland. Currently, 50 per cent of India’s farmlands have no access to irrigation. But that will take time. Meanwhile, in some pockets new varieties of wheat and rice that need less water have been tried out successfully. Elsewhere, moisture sensors are being used so that farmers know when is the right time to sow. Till the time our farmlands get access to irrigation, the crying need of the hour is more such low-cost solutions that can provide some respite to rain-deprived farmers. — Chitra NarayananRisky RoutePower majors Adani Power, Tata Power and Reliance Power are looking at acquiring the operational power plants of distressed players in their hunt for growth. With 50,000 MW of generation capacity up for sale, any serious player with a long-term horizon must go for the kill at a time when assets are priced at their lowest. However, a look at the balance sheets of these companies suggests they are taking a huge risk. Take, for instance, Adani Power which has bought the 1200 MW Udupi power plant from Lanco Infratech for Rs 6,000 crore. The company has a debt of Rs 22,317 crore, with cash and bank balance of just Rs 412 crore. The company should be careful in charting such a growth path, for it may throw its finances out of gear. — Neeraj ThakurNeighbourhood WatchPrime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Nepal, the first by an Indian prime minister in 17 years, was part of his outreach policy in the neighbourhood. Modi offered a $1 billion line of credit to the land-locked country. But two key agreements, the Power Trade Agreement (PTA) and Power Development Agreement (PDA), were not signed. The dispute over the PTA was that it allowed only the Indian government and entities to build hydropower projects in Nepal. That needs to be sorted out before the agreement is signed. It must not be forgotten that in Nepal, China too is interested. After all, the Himalayan rivers can generate a potential 42,000 MW of power. While Modi’s outreach is commendable, the Indian government needs to sign the deals too. That will be the test of true diplomacy. — Anup JayaramHandset HighnessesHomegrown handset maker Micromax recently claimed it had displaced Samsung as India’s largest selling mobile phone brand. Though Samsung was quick to trash the claim, one thing is clear; the Indian brand has come up strongly to pose a challenge to the Korean handset maker. Some say Micromax may do to Samsung what the latter did to Nokia not too long ago. Adding to the heat are other local players like Karbonn besides Chinese and Taiwanese handset makers that have been launching smartphones at attractive price points with all the hardware features of hi-end handsets. As things stand now, even if Samsung hasn’t lost the number one spot yet, it may soon do so to one of the Indian or Chinese players in the volume game. The moot question is: Will Micromax be able to main its leading position for long? It can if it follows and improves upon the Samsung strategy of staying ahead of the consumer expectation curve and giving them full freedom in selecting not just the model but even software specs. — Sachin DaveThe REIT Thing For RealtyWith the SEBI guidelines for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT) and Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvT) in place, an effective instrument for investment in realty and infrastructure projects has been finally legalised. REITs will operate in commercial real estate through special purpose vehicles in which they must hold a controlling stake of more than 50 per cent. In many areas, the SEBI norms are sweeter than what the Budget promised. For instance, SEBI has fixed the starting minimum asset value for a REIT and InvT at Rs 500 crore or more, while the Budget proposals had suggested Rs 1,000 crore. The initial offer has to be Rs 250 crore or more. Today, commercial/office realty is in a slump while urban infrastructure is starved of funds. Now, these instruments will ensure a funding pipeline, which could be as large as $20 billion over the next year. - Gurbir SinghRinging In A New Marketing StrategyAt 2 pm on August 12, the newest darling of tech street, Xioami, put 20,000 units of its Mi3 smartphones on Flipkart. Within seconds the phones got sold out. Xiaomi phones are exclusively being sold on the e-commerce platform in India. And it has shrewdly been selling the phones in small batches, creating a buzz. This was the fourth batch. Xiaomi is not the only one to enter into exclusive deals with Flipkart. Motorola was the first one to come riding on an exclusive arrangement with Flipkart with its Moto X, G phones. And taking a leaf out of the the phone companies marketing manual, Author Chetan Bhagat and his publisher Rupa too have entered into an exclusive arrangement with Flipkart for his latest book, Half Girlfriend. According to Jagdish Sheth, 4 As are essential to marketing — Acceptability, Affordability, Accessibility and Awareness. But looks like making a product inaccessible can work too! — Chitra Narayanan(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 08-09-2014)
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Production at the 1,466 megawatt Kondapalli power plant of the Lanco Group in southern India has fallen "slightly" after a blast on Friday (27 June) at a pipeline supplying it with gas, a spokesman for the company operating the plant said.Lanco Group, which operates the plant in Andhra Pradesh, is now sourcing gas from an alternate line, the spokesman said.More than a dozen people were killed on Friday after a blast at a gas pipeline operated by state-owned energy company GAIL (India) Ltd.(Reuters)
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Industrial licenses would be required only to make items such as tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles; defence aircraft, space aircraft and parts; warships of all kinds; and arms and ammunition and allied items of defence equipment, parts and accessories.According to an official, this clarification would help to attract investments from private companies.Those companies who are making equipment, casings and other smaller items and are not fully integrated as weapon system have been left out of this list, defence sources said."Items not included in the list would not require industrial license for defence purpose. Further, it is clarified that dual-use items, having military as well as civilian applications, other than those specially mentioned in the list, would also not require industrial license for defence angle," the Ministry of Commerce and Industry said in a statement.Defence items are covered under compulsory licensing under the Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951.The official said the industry had raised the issue as there was confusion over several dual-use products."This clarification will also help in attracting more investments in the sector," the official added.51% FDI Cap To Boost Defence IndustryMeanwhile, a government source said today that raising foreign direct investment cap to at least 51 per cent in the defence sector will help India become a major manufacturing and export hub, reducing dependency on imported equipment."India can be a game-changer only by allowing at least 51 per cent FDI in the sector. With access to critical technology, the domestic companies will be able to manufacture products indigenously and make India a global defence manufacturing and export hub," said a government source.India imports defence equipment worth over USD 8 billion annually. It is one of the largest defence importers in the world with only a minuscule component of exports.Allaying concerns of few domestic industries, the sources said that the proposal mooted in the draft note has enough safeguards to protect this sensitive sector."Giving controlling stake to a foreign player will be an incentive for them to bring modern technologies in India.Besides making India as their manufacturing centre, they will also export from here. It would lead to creation of jobs," said a source.While the government is holding inter-ministerial consultations, intense lobbying is being witnessed within the major industry chambers, the sources said. A section of the domestic industry, with less than 1 per cent share in the sector, holds a view that the FDI should be restricted to 49 per cent, while another view is that without a majority stake why would the global investor invest in India, they added.They said that caping FDI to 49 per cent is not going to help. It would be a status-quo type situation."India should not lose this chance. To become self-reliant in defence sector, 51 per cent FDI must be allowed. Between 2001 and August 2013, 49 per cent foreign investment (26 per cent FDI + 23 per cent FII) was allowed. During this time, India has attracted only USD 5 million investments, which is lowest in any sector," the source said.Between 2001 and 2013, India has received about USD 320 billion in foreign investment. The figures clearly reflect that India has not received any investment when the cap was 49 per cent.The sources also argued that due to sagging economies in the West, multi-national companies want to expand their manufacturing base in Asia and India can become a major centre for that."Now the country cannot afford to miss the bus. Fixing foreign investment cap to 49 per cent will not help in getting modern technologies. Figures are clearly reflecting that 49 per cent foreign investment has not changed anything. It will be a game spoiler," they added.
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