The rupee continued to rule higher against the American currency for the eighth straight session as it rose 11 paise to 66.10 in early trade at the Inter-bank Foreign Exchange on Monday on increased selling of the US currency by exporters and banks. Forex dealers said that besides sustained selling of the American unit by exporters, the dollar's weakness against some currencies overseas and a higher opening of the domestic equity market supported the rupee. The local currency had appreciated by 12 paise to settle at 66.21 against the greenback on Wednesday. Forex market remained closed on Thursday and Friday on account of Id-e-Milad and Christmas, respectively. The currency had gained by 88 paise in the past seven days
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As Chinese consumers cut back on gold purchases for a second year in a row, nowhere is the slowdown being felt more than in the country's once-bustling jewellery manufacturing and retail hub of Shuibei. Gold demand has taken a hit from a slowing economy and Beijing's anti-corruption drive, which has cut demand for luxury products, but there are fears of a more protracted loss of confidence among buyers in the world's top consumer of the precious metal. With buying in No 2 consumer India also soft, another year of weak Chinese demand would help pile more pressure on global gold prices languishing near six-year lows. The hundreds of jewellery stores in Shuibei, a district of Shenzhen only a short hop over the border from Hong Kong, have seen business take a downturn since a buying boom peaked in 2013 as once-voracious Chinese consumers turn cautious. "They don't have confidence in gold now given the weak prices, so demand won't pick...
In 2004, Khitish Kumar Pandey took 10,000 rupees ($150) out of his pension and put it into a savings plan run by India's embattled Sahara conglomerate. The Sahara agent told him his money would triple in 10 years. Sahara India Pariwar (family) had become one of India's most successful companies over the past three decades with this kind of financial alchemy, turning tiny deposits into dreams for small farmers, rickshaw pullers and food vendors with little financial knowledge. Pandey, a 78-year old resident of Patna, said the Sahara agent promised him his money would grow to roughly 30,000 rupees when the time deposit matured in October of last year. His investment documents contained a sample illustration showing how a 10,000 rupees deposit would increase to 25,940 rupees over 10 years, or about 10 percent a year. But when Pandey went to the Sahara ranch to redeem his deposit, the office told him he could have 15,000 rupees immediately - if he agre...
From reading news to playing games, people use Facebook for various reasons but those who use the social media site to meet new people are the most dependent on Facebook overall, says a new study. The more people use Facebook to fulfill their goals, the more dependent on it they become, the study said. However, Facebook dependency - whether it is for news, games, feedback on your posts or meeting new people - is not necessarily bad as it is not equivalent to an addiction, explained the researchers. To identify dependency factors, the researchers studied 301 Facebook users between the ages of 18 and 68 who post on the site at least once a month. They found that people who perceive Facebook as helpful in gaining a better understanding of themselves go to the site to meet new people and to get attention from others. Also, people who use Facebook to gain a deeper understanding of themselves tend to have agreeable personalities, but lower self-esteem than others. ...
Wipro on Wednesday said it buying business process outsourcing provider Viteos Group for $130 million or nearly Rs 850 crore (at 66 rupees per dollar). Somerset, New Jersey-based Viteos, a leader in shadow-accounting services, employs over 400 people, Wipro said. "Viteos licenses its proprietary platform which offers transformation and integration of post-trade operations. This platform can be leveraged to launch solutions across other segments of capital markets. These technology-based solutions will bring in non-linear and higher revenue realization," Wipro said in a statement. Viteos provides customized processing and integrates post-trade operations across every asset class, currency, border or structure for the alternative investing management industry in the US, Europe and Asia. "Our strategy is to invest in industry vertical platforms which will provide platform-based services to our clients in transaction/outcome-based pricing models. Viteos will...
Google likely to make its self-driving cars unit, which will offer rides for hire, a stand-alone business under its parent company, Alphabet Inc, next year Google is said to be in talks with automaker Ford Motor Co to help build the Internet search company’s autonomous cars, Automotive News reported, citing a person with knowledge of the project. The contract manufacturing deal, if finalised, is expected to come during the annual International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas during the first week of January, Automotive News said. (http://bit.ly/1MsCGQ3) Declines comment on speculation A Google spokesman told Automotive News that the company would not comment on speculation, although Google officials confirmed that the company was talking to automakers. Earlier this year, Google began discussions with most of the world’s top automakers and assembled a team of traditional and non-traditional suppliers to speed efforts to bring self-driving cars to t...
Google's CEO Sundar Pichai is on his maiden visit to India in his capacity as CEO of the company. On Wednesday, he gave a keynote at a special event organised by the company called Google for India and on Thursday he addressed the students of Delhi's SRCC college. He's shown an unwitting commitment towards his home country and also has made few announcements regarding India. Here are the top 10 things he said at SRCC. 1. Pichai reiterated that Google was in talks with telecom operators and regulatory authorities in the country to bring Project Loon to India, especially for rural areas which lagged in connectivity. Overall he focussed on an India first focus. " We do work hard to bring our services to India. We're working hard to bring project Loon. Increasingly we also do thing first in India like YouTube Offline which started in India and is now in 77 countries. It is a goal to build things here. We do things we can build here at scale which wil...
What's the device you use for work? Chances are, it is a laptop. Or a computer. Fret not, everyone uses one, so there's nothing special about it. To get work done, most people need a notebook or a full-fat desktop, with a nice and spacious keyboard, a big screen, powerful processor and so and so forth. Now, the tablets are also getting there. Or rather ought to be getting there. They were always portable, they have nice screens and battery life and now they are becoming powerful and come with an assortment of accessories that offer decent input options. Microsoft, in the last few years, has proved this, with its very capable Surface line of tablets. But now, Apple wants its share of the pie. It believes that it can do the same with the iPad. Its new iPad Pro is being billed as this productivity-centric tool, a tool that Apple claims can help you get your work done and also kick back and consume content with great alacrity. Has Apple succeeded or ...
"Autonomous vehicle technology will prevent accidents and will greatly reduce injuries and fatalities," said Padilla, who was behind the 2012 bill that established a range of safety standards of autonomous vehicles. "I firmly believe that we have a responsibility to facilitate the deployment of fully autonomous vehicles sooner rather than later. I authored the bill to encourage the development of autonomous vehicle technology because doing so is a moral imperative. This technology will save lives of real people, young and old." Also on Thursday, California Lt. Gov Gavin Newsom issued a statement saying that the proposed regulations "may prove too onerous, create road blocks to innovation, and may ultimately drive the development of this promising industry to other states. Although the DMV is already a year behind schedule, I look forward to intensified dialogue between the state, manufacturers, and the public to improve the regulations. We m...
Motorola's Moto G was launched in 2013. Since then, it has become one of the most iconic smartphones in the world. It may not be in the league of the iPhone -- though some think it is -- or the Galaxy S, but in its own unique way it has changed the market significantly. It has shown that mainstream phones can also be good, can offer the kind of solid experience that once used to be the domain of high-end phones and has, by and large, offered consumers seamless and "pure" taste of Android. This also makes the Moto G -- and here we are including all Moto G versions released in the last three years -- one of the best selling phones of recent times. But the Moto G, away from all the glare and love it gets from Android fans, particularly those who love Pure Android, is also one of the most unassuming and unremarkable phone. In 2013, Motorola finalised a particular type of design for the Moto G and since then neither its hardware nor its design has ...
Claiming herself to be an incarnation of goddess Durga,controversial godwoman Radhe Maa may soon face police action for hurting religious sentiments. The action comes on the basis of a petition moved by a Phagwara, Punjab resident which came up for hearing on Wednesday in Punjab and Haryana High Court. The High Court while admitting the petition has directed the Kapurthala police to take appropriate action against her within a period of three months. ADVERTISING "The court has directed SSP Kapurthala to take action against Radhe Maa if she is proven guilty within three months," petitioner's advocate Krishan Dadwal said. The petitioner Surender Mittal had told the court that Radhe Maa by claiming to be an incarnation of goddess Durga misled the people in the name of religion. The petition also said that Radhe Maa reaches the Jagran (congregation of devouts) dressed as goddess which hurt his religious feelings. The complainant also said that he ...
Although the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM) is not new to companies in Maharashtra, it has achieved a larger significance in the context of 'Make in India' where continuous improvement and quality will be a key differentiator, said Subhash Desai, Minister for Industries, Maharashtra, at the International Conclave on Total Quality Management held recently in Mumbai. The theme of the conclave, attended by over 150 industry professionals from India and overseas, was 'Best practices for Performance Excellence'. "Make in India is our slogan, but to do that, we need to work towards other important goals such as Make in Maharashtra, bringing about ease of business procedures and licensing systems and tapping our skilled human resources," Desai said. The state, which contributes 15 per cent to India's GDP and has a 35 per cent share in the country's exports, has been a leader in industrial development and continues to be one. However...
The country's upstream oil giant ONGC, leading downstream oil marketing company IOC, power equipment maker Bhel, steel behemoth Sail and mining biggie Coal India were on the list of Maharatna public sector companies that were awarded for their outstanding performance in various fields at the India Today PSUs Awards in New Delhi on Monday. The categories for the awards included best global presence, most eco-friendly, best in R&D, HR excellence, fastest growing and most valuable. Navratna companies that won awards in these categories included Bharat Electronics Limited, upstream company Oil India Limited, downstream Bharat Petroleum, Rural Electrification Corporation and Power Grid Corporation. The third category of public sector companies for the awards were included in the Miniratna list. The awardees included RITES Limited, hydro power company NHPC, Cochin Shipyard and Power Grid Corporation. The fourth list of public sector companies selected for the awa...
Snapping the three-day losing run, gold prices recovered by Rs 40 to Rs 25,640 per 10 grams at the bullion market on Thursday, largely due to fresh purchases by jewellers and retailers, even as it retreated overseas after the US Fed lifted interest rates. Bullion traders attributed the recovery to emergence of buying by jewellers as well as retailers. They said a fall in gold prices in the global market after the US Fed announced a 0.25 per cent hike in interest rates, which boosted the dollar and dented the appeal of the precious metals, capped the gains. Globally, gold fell 0.4 per cent to $1,068.50 an ounce and silver shed 0.92 per cent at $14.04 an ounce in Singapore. In the national capital, gold of 99.9 per cent and 99.5 per cent purity edged higher by Rs 40 each to Rs 25,640 and Rs 25,490 per 10 grams, respectively. It had lost Rs 400 in last three days. The sovereign, however, remained steady at Rs 22,200 per piece of eight grams in limited deals. Silver rea...
The government has deferred its plan to impose two per cent levy on domestic and international air tickets from January 1 next year as the Draft Aviation Policy is expected to go for Cabinet approval only around mid-January. The Ministry is preparing the draft note for the Cabinet at present, which is likely to be ready by December 25, following which it will be sent for inter-ministerial comments, Civil Aviation Ministry sources said on Thursday. The Government in the revised draft policy, unveiled on October 30, has proposed 2 per cent levy on all domestic and international air tickets to raise funds for boosting regional air connectivity. The proposal earlier was to come into effect from January 1. "As per procedure, various ministries concerned including Finance, Home, Defence, Law, MEA among others will be given 15 days time for their comments," they said. "In all likelihood, the draft note will be sent to the Cabinet for its approval around Janua...
Scrips of MphasiS, Mastek, Firstsource Solutions and Zen Tech gained 7.57 per cent, 3 per cent, 8.5 per cent and 8.64 per cent, respectively in intraday trade. Among largecap stocks, Infosys added 1.05 per cent to Rs 1,110. TCS ended 1.38 per cent higher at Rs 2445.75, while Tech Mahindra and Wipro gained 1.08 per cent and 0.09 per cent, respectively. HCL Tech added 1.74 per cent to Rs 863.60. The stocks rose on hopes that volatility in the currency market may halt now that the Fed rate hike is done and dusted. A strong dollar will help IT companies contain cross-currency headwinds. Cross Currency headwinds is a term used to indicate a possible loss in revenues due to volatility in currency cross between rupee and dollar. The US central bank's policy-setting committee on Wednesday raised the range of its benchmark interest rate by a quarter of a percentage point to between 0.25 per cent and 0.50 per cent, ending a lengthy debate about whether the economy was ...
SC for testing of Maggi at Mysore, stays proceedings in NCDRC New Delhi: Maggi noodles will now be tested in an accredited laboratory at Mysore and not in Chennai as sought by the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC), the Supreme Court on Wednesday said while staying the proceedings in the case pending in the apex consumer body. "It is directed that the Local Commissioner, appointed by the NCDRC, shall send samples earlier collected by him to the Mysore laboratory for tests. "The test reports, including earlier ones, shall be produced before this court. In the meantime, the NCDRC shall not proceed," a bench of justices Dipak Misra and Prafulla C Pant said. The court passed the order when senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for Maggi manufacturer Nestle India Ltd and Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, representing the Centre, agreed that the samples be sent for testing to the Mysore lab instead of Chen...
GST rate will most likely be much less than 18%: Jaitley Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Wednesday it was almost certain that the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST) rate would be much less than 18 per cent. percent levy under the GST Bill is fair and the issue is "resolvable". GST is intended to create a single market and boost commerce in India's $2 trillion economy, but the bill, which was passed by the lower house of parliament, has been blocked in the upper house where Prime Minister Narendra Modi's nationalist coalition lacks a majority. The opposition Congress party wants to cap the rate of GST at less than 20 per cent, scrap a proposed state levy and create an independent mechanism to resolve disputes on revenue sharing between states.
Sensex near day's high led by auto shares; Fed meet eyed M arkets have extended gains amid firm global cues, and are on track for third straight day of gains. Meanwhile, market participants across the globe are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the US Federal Reserve's two-day meet which ends later today. At 12:30 pm, the S&P BSE Sense is higher higher by 201.39 point at 25,529 and the Nifty 50 has gained 54.50 points at 7,775.40. According to Angel Broking's morning report, "Yesterday’s upmove was very much on our expected lines as we had mentioned about few positive developments on smaller degree charts. Our first target of 7,700 was met during the session and considering the ongoing momentum, a possibility of extending this move towards 7,750 – 7,800 cannot be ruled out. The report further adds, “Traders holding long positions should now trail their stop loss higher at 7,620 (tad below yesterday’s low of 7,625.10). We witnessed a lot of...
MUMBAI: The BSE Sensex rose over 39 points to trade at 25,190.12 in early trade on Tuesday with increased buying by participants leading to across-the-board gains, even as the retail inflation moved-up to 5.41 per cent in November amid mixed Asian cues. Retail inflation rose to 5.41 per cent in November, 4th straight month of uptick as prices of vegetables, pulses and fruits went up further to push the rate of price rise above the Reserve Bank's comfort level. The 30-share index advanced by 39.77 points or 0.15 per cent to trade at 25,190.12 as all sectoral indices, led by oil&gas, healthcare, realty, consumer durables, PSU and metal, were trading in the positive zone with gains of up to 0.60 per cent. Recommended By Colombia The gauge had gained 105.92 points in the previous choppy session. On similar lines, the NSE Nifty was quoting 13.90 points or 0.18 per cent higher at 7,663.95. Brokers said value buying in recently battered blue-chip stocks...