Finance Ministry keen on selling 10 pc govt stake in Indian Oil in Nov

The Finance Ministry wants to sell 10 per cent of the government's stake in Indian Oil Corp (IOC) by end of the month in a bid to achieve its Rs 40,000 crore disinvestment target.

So far, the government has raised about Rs 1,325 crore from stake sales in six companies.

"We want to push the IOC stake sale first, within November itself. This will pave the way for disinvestment of other oil sector PSUs like Engineers India," a senior Finance Ministry official said on Sunday.

IOC shares closed at Rs 213.20 on the Bombay Stock Exchange on Friday. They have fallen 43 per cent from the 52-week peak of Rs 375 on January 18.

At the current price, the sale of 19.16 crore IOC shares, equivalent to 10 per cent of the government's holding in the company, would fetch more than Rs 4,000 crore, which is 10 per cent of this financial year's disinvestment target.

Last month, the Department of Disinvestment put off overseas roadshows for the IOC stake sale following opposition from the company and the Petroleum Ministry, which cited poor market conditions. The roadshows were planned in London, US, Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai.

Citibank, HSBC and UBS Securities are among the five merchant bankers selected to manage the oil retailer's share sale.

IOC Chairman RS Butola had written to the Oil Ministry in September, saying, "Current share price of IOC, already undervalued, may not fetch the fair value in the prevailing uncertain environment and investors in all probability are likely to factor in huge discount in their assessment of share price."

A share sale under present conditions could fetch a low price and would further dent IOC's efforts to raise loans for crude oil imports.

The government held a 78.92 per cent stake in the country's largest oil refiner as of September 30.

IOC posted an 82.5 per cent drop in net profit to Rs 1,683.92 crore for the July-September quarter after losses from foreign exchange and sales of diesel, cooking gas and kerosene below cost.

The government plans to sell 10 per cent in Engineers India. At the current market price of Rs 175.10, the sale of 3.36 crore EIL shares would fetch about Rs 600 crore.

Tata, SIA incorporate airline venture

The new company is a joint venture between Tatas and Singapore Airlines , with Tata Sons Ltd holding he majority 51 per cent stake and the Singaporean aviation major having the remaining 49 per cent equity.

As per information available with the Corporate Affairs Ministry, the new company was incorporated on November 5 with a total paid up capital of Rs 5 lakh and has been registered in New Delhi.

The incorporation documents have been signed by three directors -- Prasad Menon, Kersi Rustom Bhagat and Mukund Govind Rajan.

The incorporation follows approval from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) late last month for the proposed investment of USD 49 million by SIA in the joint venture, where Tatas are making initial investment of USD 51 million as per their shareholding structure.

Earlier, the JV received Corporate Affairs Ministry's approval to use the name 'Tata SIA Airlines Limited'.

The process of incorporating a new company for this joint venture started with registration of the name, followed by submission of various other documents, including the Article of Association, and details of the company's board of directors, share capital, business areas etc.

Tata SIA Airlines is among the first major companies to be incorporated under the new Companies Act, 2013.

The two partners are making an initial investment of USD 100 million to launch the airline, which may take off next year after getting all the clearances required.

This is the third attempt by Tatas and SIA to enter the Indian civil aviation sector.

Tatas have a long history of association with civil aviation in India.

JRD Tata had started Tata Airlines in 1932, which was later in 1946 renamed as Air India and was subsequently nationalised in 1953.

In February this year, Tatas also announced a partnership with Malaysia's AirAsia for a low-cost carrier in India, wherein Arun Bhatia's Telestra Tradeplace is third partner.

Tatas and Singapore Airlines have assured the government that control of their proposed venture would always remain in Indian hands, while seeking approval to offer full-service passenger services on both domestic and international routes.

The initial board of the new carrier will have three members, which would be later expanded to six members with six nominees of Tata group.

The JV would also provide air transport carriers for both passengers and freights as well as supporting services to air transport, like operation or airport flying facilities, radio beacons, flying control centres and radar stations.

GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals Q3 net declines 33.73 per cent

GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals (GSK) has reported a 33.73 per cent decline in standalone net profit at Rs 100.95 crore for the third quarter ended September 30.

The company had posted a standalone net profit of Rs 152.34 crore in the same period previous financial year.

The company follows January to December financial year.

The drug firm's total income declined by 7.02 per cent to Rs 666.02 crore in the July-September quarter, compared to Rs 716.37 crore during the same period last year.

GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals shares were trading at Rs 2,448 per scrip at the Bombay Stock Exchange in the afternoon trade, down 1.33 per cent from their previous close.

Godrej Consumer Products Q2 net up 22.39 pc at Rs 194.97 cr PTI

 
Godrej Consumer Products has reported a 22.39 per cent increase in consolidated net profit at Rs 194.97 crore in the second quarter ended September 30.

The company had reported net profit of Rs 159.3 crore in the same quarter last year.

Godrej Consumer's net sales in the quarter under review was at Rs 1,957.38 crore, an increase of 22.51 per cent against Rs 1,597.64 crore in the corresponding period last year, the company said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

"Our robust operating performance is a result of continued focus on strengthening our position in our core categories. We continue to be aggressive in launching new innovations that have been well accepted by our consumers," Godrej Group Chairman Adi Godrej said.

Elaborating further, he said: "The overall market outlook remains turbulent and uncertain. We remain watchful, agile and prudent. We will continue investing judiciously for the longer term to improve our position, create competitive advantage and emerge stronger than ever before."

Overall expenses of the company in the quarter were at Rs 1,686.35 crore, up 22.70 per cent against Rs 1,374.32 crore in the same quarter last year.

Shares of Godrej Consumer were trading at Rs 858 apiece in the afternoon trade, up 0.51 per cent from their previous close on BSE.

Trade deficit narrows as exports rise 13.47% in October

India's exports rose 13.47 per cent to $27.27 billion in October while imports fell 14.5 per cent, helping narrow the trade deficit.

Imports stood at $37.8 billion, leaving a trade deficit of $10.56 billion as against $20.2 billion in October 2012, official data showed.

"This is a consistent growth in exports...The US is doing extremely well and Europe is also doing well," Commerce Secretary S R Rao told reporters here.

Gold and silver imports in October fell to $1.3 billion from $6.8 billion in the same period last year.

In April-October, exports grew by 6.32 per cent to $179.38 billion, while imports during the period contracted by 3.8 per cent to $270.06 billion.

Rao expressed confidence that the country would achieve the $325 billion target for the current fiscal.