Fund raising via debt placement dips 25% to Rs 1.22 lakh cr

 
New Delhi: Fund-raising by Indian companies through private placement of debt securities or bonds dropped 25 percent to Rs 1.22 lakh crore in the first half of the current fiscal (2013-14).

According to a report by Prime Database, firms garnered a total of Rs 1,22,091 crore during April-September period of the current fiscal, a slump from Rs 1,62,352 crore mobilised in the same period of 2012-13.

The report attributed slump in funds mop-up to less capital raised by the financial institutions and banks.

In debt private placements, firms issue debt securities or bonds to institutional investors to raise capital.

In the entire 2012-13, Indian companies had raked in a staggering Rs 3.5 lakh crore, the highest in 12 years.

As per Prime Database, financial Institutions and banks mobilised Rs 58,744 crore in the six months ended September 30, 2013, a plunge of 31 percent from the year-ago period.

Funds garnered by private sector firms also declined 14 percent to Rs 51,271 crore.

"Mobilisation by State Financial Institutions also went down by 39 percent to Rs 1,251 crore, mobilisation by PSUs was also lesser by 12 percent at Rs 9,692 crore and mobilisation by State Level Undertakings saw a major fall by 75 percent to Rs 1,133 crore," the report said.

Sector-wise, financial services segment continued to dominate the market, collectively raising Rs 84,879 crore or 69 percent of the total amount; power ranked second with a 10 percent share (Rs 12,025 crore).

The highest mobilisation through debt private placements during the period was by Power Finance Corp (Rs 12,158 crore), followed by LIC Housing Finance(Rs 9,822 crore), HDFC (Rs 9,610 crore), Rural Electrification Corp (Rs 8,150 crore) and Power Grid (Rs 7,092 crore).

Nikkei off 0.5%, retreats from 6-month high

Tokyo: Japan's Nikkei share average stepped back from six-month highs on Tuesday morning, with a bounce in the yen denting exporters while financials retreated after their recent earnings-led rally.

The Nikkei dropped 0.5 percent to 15,082.35 in mid-morning trade, moving away from 15,273.61 hit on the previous day, the highest since May 23 when it reached a 5-1/2 year high of 15,942.60.

The broader Topix shed 0.5 percent to 1,236.06.

"Investors have started becoming risk on, but the market has risen too fast so they are staying cautious until there are more cues about Fed's tapering," said Takuya Takahashi, a strategist at Daiwa Securities.

Markets continue to watch out for any clues as to when the U.S. Federal Reserve will start unwinding its $85 billion-a-month stimulus programme, although many in the markets now see any move unlikely until March.

Financials lost ground after rising on Monday on their recent strong earnings. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (8316.T) shed 1.7 percent, while Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (8306.T) declined 0.9 percent and Mizuho Financial Group (8411.T) slid 0.5 percent.

Exporters were weaker after the dollar pulled back against the yen, reflecting expectations the Fed will maintain its easy-money policy for a while longer after dovish comments last week from incoming Fed chief Janet Yellen.

Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T) dropped 0.5 percent and Advantest Corp (6857.T) fell 1.7 percent.

The yen was up 0.1 percent at 99.925 yen to the dollar, adding to a 0.2 percent rise overnight to end a two-day run of losses.

Last week, the yen hit a two-month low of 100.315 yen to the dollar, driven by a risk-on mode in global markets and comments from Finance Minister Taro Aso that Tokyo should retain currency intervention as a policy tool. The Nikkei gained 7.7 percent last week, it's biggest weekly rise in four years.

A weaker yen sharpens Japanese exporters' competitiveness overseas and bumps up their dollar earnings when repatriated.

The Nikkei has rallied 45 percent this year, driven by the government's expansionary fiscal and monetary policies.

Ratan Tata elected to East-West Centre board

Washington: Noted Indian business leader Ratan N. Tata has been elected to the Board of Governors of the East-West Centre, a US think tank promoting better relations and understanding among people of US and Asia Pacific.

Tata, Chairman Emeritus of Tata Sons, is returning to the board after serving several terms between 1993 and 2004, the Honolulu, Hawaii-based centre announced Monday. He takes the place of Tarun Das, former chief mentor of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Tata was elected with Takeshi Niinami, CEO of Japan`s Lawson, Inc. Both will serve three-year terms.

Tata, who headed the Indian industrial powerhouse the Tata Group until his retirement in 2012, chairs two of the largest private-sector philanthropic trusts in India and is a member of the Indian Prime Minister`s Council on Trade and Industry.

He also serves on the board of trustees of Cornell University and the University of Southern California, as well as the board of directors of Alcoa, among numerous other board positions.

Established by the US Congress in 1960, the East West Centre serves as a resource for information and analysis on critical issues of common concern, bringing people together to exchange views, build expertise, and develop policy options.

Nokia shareholders expected to approve Microsoft deal

Nokia shareholders are expected to approve the sale of its mobile phone business to Microsoft on Tuesday, with the deal's financial benefits likely to outweigh resistance from a minority of investors upset over the sale of a Finnish national icon.

Nokia agreed in September to sell its devices and services business and license its patents to Microsoft for 5.44 billion euros after failing to recover from a late start in smartphones.

The sale, which is expected to close in the first quarter of next year after regulatory approvals, is set to boost Nokia's net cash position to nearly 8 billion euros from around 2 billion in the third quarter and allow it to return cash to shareholders, possibly through a special dividend.

Without the loss-making handset business, the remaining company will earn over 90 percent of sales from telecom equipment unit Nokia Services and Networks (NSN) and will also include a navigation software business and a trove of patents.

Since the Microsoft deal was announced, Nokia shares have doubled, closing at 6.00 euros on Monday.

Last year, they fell as far as 1.33 euros, a level not seen since 1994, on worries the mobile phone business would burn through cash before it could ever catch up with rivals such as Samsung Electronics (005930.KS) and Apple Inc (AAPL.O).

Billionaire and activist investor Daniel Loeb said in October that he had taken a position in Nokia and that he expects a "meaningful portion of the excess" cash from the Microsoft deal to be returned to investors.

While approval from shareholders is considered a done deal, Tuesday's meeting, which starts at 2:00 p.m. (1200 GMT) in Helsinki's Ice Hall arena, will also be a chance for some shareholders to vent their dissatisfaction.

The sale of the mobile phones business, Finland's biggest brand and at one point worth 4 percent of national GDP, came as a shock to many Finns. The company's success helped to transform Finland from a backwater economy in the shadow of the Soviet Union into a high-tech powerhouse.

At Nokia's last regular shareholders' meeting, many shareholders took to the microphone to question CEO Stephen Elop's strategy, particularly his 2011 decision to adopt Microsoft's Windows Phone software over Nokia's own Symbian or Google's (GOOG.O) widely popular Android operating system.

Elop stepped down when he announced the agreement with Microsoft, his former employer, and is due to return to the Redmond, Washington company when the deal closes.

Finnish tabloids have called him a "Trojan horse", although most analysts have been sympathetic, saying there were few good options for the company by the time he was hired in late 2010.

One Finnish businessman and former Nokia manager had set up a group called Nokita, translated as "bet higher" in Finnish, in an attempt to outbid Microsoft. He said on Monday that he failed to find enough investors.

"Of course there was a bit of a patriotic idea behind my plan, but there was also the calculation," said Juhani Parda, who believed Nokia's devices business could be worth around 23 billion euros in three years by adopting Android in addition to Windows Phone. "I think 5.44 billion is definitely good for Microsoft. I'm not sure it's the best deal for shareholders."

RBI mulling merits of FII limits in govt bonds

 
New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India is examining the pros and cons of relaxing limits for foreign institutional investors (FII) in government bonds, a senior finance ministry official said on Wednesday.

The comment by Arvind Mayaram, the economic affairs secretary at the finance ministry, came in response to a question from reporters about whether India was considering lifting FII limits in order to qualify for inclusion into benchmark global bond indices.

India will also consider allowing local companies to issue rupee-denominated bonds abroad, marking a new step in the internationalisation of the rupee. International Finance Corp, the private sector arm of the World Bank, last month launched a $1 billion rupee-linked bond.

RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan had earlier said that Indian official are speaking to the index compilers about potential inclusion of domestic debt.