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Tuesday, March 05, 2013
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Professional News
INCOME TAX
Tax department unearths over Rs 20,000 crore undisclosed income in FY12
Delhi : Income Tax Department has detected undisclosed income of Rs 20,589.75 crore in searches and surveys conducted by it in 2011-12, government said today. Minister of State for Finance S S Palanimanickam in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha said, "In the searches conducted by Income Tax Department during FYs 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12, undisclosed income of about Rs 8,101.35 crore, Rs 10,649.16 crore and Rs 14,017 crore, respectively were admitted by the persons searched."
Government to mail out 35,000 'polite' letters on income-tax returns
Delhi : The government is talking tough now. In a bid to widen the tax base and increase revenues from taxes, it is sending out a second set of "polite letters", numbering over 35,000, to income tax assessees. For now, the letters include simple queries on whether or not they have filed their income tax returns as well as the details of the filing.The letters will be converted into notices should the assessees not respond, Revenue Secretary Sumit Bose said at an event organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci).
Misc. - Indirect Tax
Failure to pay excise, service tax may lead to arrest: FinBill
Delhi : Failure to pay excise duty and service tax could lead to arrest of defaulters, as per the provisions proposed in the Finance Bill 2013 introduced by Finance Minister P Chidambaram in the Lok Sabha.As per the provisions, offences relating to excise and customs duty evasion of over Rs 50 lakh would be made cognisable and non-bailable.Similarly in case of service tax, the failure to deposit the tax amount exceeding Rs 50 lakh with the government would result in imprisonment up to seven years.The Finance Bill has proposed to introduce Section 91 to provide for power to arrest a person for specified offences, particularly non-payment of collected service tax, by an officer not below the rank of Superintendent of Central Excise.
Misc. Corporate Laws & Other Commercial Policies
Foreign Trade Policy will aim to boost exports, Says Anand Sharma
Delhi : Commerce and Industry minister Anand Sharma on Monday said that the Foreign Trade Policy will aim to boost exports by bringing down transaction costs improving access to credit and lowering the cost to credit."We are looking to have FTP after all the consultations are complete it will take at least one month because India is a big country and we don't want to rush it," Sharma said after his meeting with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) delegation on the export sector. The policy is likely to be rolled out in second half of next month.P Chidambaram on Monday also flagged the need to boost export, pitching is as the only long term solution to India's current account deficit that has touched an all time high.He promised all the help to commerce ministry in the upcoming foreign trade policy. He has already budgeted a 20% increase in the budget allocation on interest subsidy for export promotion and has raised hopes of an equally higher outgo for other schemes and incentives.
Finance & Money Markets
Government adds Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers to divestment list, aims to raise Rs 5,000 crore
Delhi : The government has decided to sell 12.5 per cent stake in fertiliser maker Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers to raise Rs 300 crore at Rs 40 a piece by March in addition to a minority stake sale in National Aluminium Company (Nalco) and Steel Authority of India (SAIL) as part of its disinvestmentprogramme. The empowered group of ministers will meet on Wednesday to decide RCF's offer price, people with direct knowledge of the development said. Responding to queries of citizens about the Budget in a Google+ Hangout on Monday, finance minister P Chidambaram said, "We have got another Rs 14,000 crore lined up where we will sell residual stake of government in non-government companies. SUUTI has three companies. There are a couple of other companies. Residual stake of the government is very little. We don't have a stake in management, we don't wish to have control. That stake is there for many years. Some of that will be disinvested too."
Why you should shift your money to Fixed Deposits post Budget  Article
Delhi : Debt investors should now make some changes in investment plans after the Budget to maximise their returns and make them more tax efficient. According to investment consultants, dividend options of short-term bond funds are not more attractive as compared to fixed deposits. It is time to increase exposure to long-term gilt funds. "It is time to invest in longterm gilt funds with 12 to 18 months time frame and move out of the dividend option of debt funds due to increase in dividend distribution tax," says Vikram Dalal, managing director, Synergee Capital Services. The finance minister has raised the dividend distribution tax ( DDT) for debt funds to 25% from 12.5%, making them tax unfriendly. finance minister's promise on containing the fiscal deficit at 5.2% has given hopes to a possible rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the near term.
SBI raises credit growth guidance to 21% for FY13
Maharashtra : Witnessing a surprise surge in retail and small & medium enterprises (SME) loan growth in the fourth quarter, State Bank of India (SBI) today raised its forecast for credit growth in the current financial year to 21 per cent from the earlier estimate of 18 per cent. Chairman Pratip Chaudhuri said the sharp rise in advances (disbursements) was a combination of year-end rush and lag effect of substantial lending rate cuts.The country’s largest lender had drastically cut lending rates by a little over 100 basis points during the second and third quarters on retail (auto and home), micro, and SME loans. It has also been aggressively taking over home loans from other banks. The bank had substantially cut lending rates for home, auto, micro, and small and medium enterprises.
FII slowdown weighs as indices now among worst performers
Maharashtra : In just a little over two months, the Indian benchmark indices have moved out of the list of the best performing markets globally to feature among the worst performers. Experts attribute this shift to macro-economic fundamental concerns and inconsistent policy decisions that have even led to a slowdown in foreign inflows — the prime drivers of the rally last year.
NHPC plunges 24% with unusual volumes
Delhi : On Monday it was the turn of NHPC to face the music at the bourses. After hitting an intra-day low of Rs 18.15 on the NSE on Monday, the stock closed at Rs 19.7, falling 24 per cent over Friday’s close. Even on Friday, it fell about 5 per cent on the NSE. Monday’s fall was accompanied by heavy volumes with 25.87 crore shares changing hands on the NSE, of which 38.5 per cent was up for delivery, indicating some value buying too at lower levels. On the BSE, another 9.85 crore shares changed hands. The mini-ratna company has clarified to the exchanges that “as far as fundamentals of the company go, there is no change that affects the major price movement. In our opinion, there is no issue in the Finance Bill which has any adverse effect on the hydro sector.”'But the midday clarification failed to arrest the slide, as the fall accelerated towards close. Arun Kejriwal of KRIS Securities said: “One should not view the NHPC saga in isolation.”
Post-Budget 2013-2014
Hike in DDT may make debt funds even more unattractive
Maharashtra : The Budget proposal to hike dividend distribution tax (DDT) on debt fund investments to 25% from 12.5% is likely to impact returns given by fixed-income schemes with a dividend component. The increase in rates is set to affect the arbitrage between post-tax returns in debt funds and fixed deposits (FDs). “The scope of arbitrage between FDs and short-term debt funds will be significantly reduced. While there won't be any exodus of money per se, investors might become more choosy and opt for FDs over debt investment as returns of debt products with dividend option will decline,” said Jimmy Patel, CEO, Quantum MF.
Direct tax proposals sensible, but need tweaking
Delhi : Buyback of shares has as many adherents as detractors. Share capital, once considered sacrosanct and beyond tinkering by company managements so as to protect creditors’ interests, can now be played around with, without the leave of the court. The US and the UK led the way. Predictably, we followed suit. The rationale trotted out for straying away from what once was considered a holy writ was the self-serving alibi that a company should be allowed to return the excessive capital to shareholders, lest it acts as a drag on returns on their investments.Our policymakers also parroted the same alibi, little realising that it would come as manna from heaven for those lapping it up with ulterior motives.
Chidambaram promises more measures to revive growth
Delhi : Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Monday promised more measures to revive growth and investment when Parliament debates his eighth budget, which has been largely hailed by economists as the best under the circumstances but has received an emphatic thumbs down from the markets. Chidambaram said the final fiscal deficit numbers for the current year could be below the 5.2% projected in the budget, and promised all help to the commerce ministry in its attempt to boost exports, which he saw as the only remedy for the high current account deficit. The commerce ministry is in the process of unveiling a new trade policy.
Commodities
Food inflation set to ease as pulses turn cheaper by 20%
Delhi : The price of pulses has dropped up to 20% in the wholesale market after rising rapidly for months, and is expected to remain bearish, calming concerns of food inflation that has been a key obstacle in reducing interest rates. India is the world's largest producer, consumer and importer of pulses, a key source of protein in vegetarian diet. According to the Indian Institute of Pulses Research, Kanpur, 17 million tonne of pulses are grown on 24 million hectare, but demand far exceeds supply, leading to imports of 3 million tonne from Australia, China, Canada, Africa and other regions. Prices are expected to remain bearish with the onset of harvesting of tur (pigeon pea), urad (black gram) and chana in the country.
Precious metals lose shine on weak demand
Delhi : Precious metals gold and silver fell on Monday, owing to subdued demand at prevailing levels amid a weak global trend. While gold declined by 10 to 30,170 per 10 grams, silver was down 50 to 55,200 per kg on reduced offtake by jewellery fabricators and industrial units. Traders said sluggish demand at prevailing higher levels amid a weak global trend mainly led to decline in gold and silver prices. In London, gold declined by $ 3.10 to $ 1,573.70 an ounce and silver by 0.24% to $ 28.51 an ounce.On the domestic front, gold of 99.9 and 99.5% purity declined by 10 each to 30,170 and 29,970 per 10 grams, respectively, while sovereigns held steady at 25,300 per piece of eight grams.
Investors Least Bullish in 4 Years Pull Cash: Commodities
Delhi : Investors cut wagers on a rally for commodities to the lowest in almost four years and pulled a record $4.23 billion from funds last week as prices erased this year’s gain on a slowdown for manufacturing in China. Hedge funds and other large speculators reduced net-long positions across 18 U.S. futures and options in the week ended Feb. 26 by 16 percent to 447,106 contracts, the lowest since March 2009, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data show. Investors are betting on a decline in copper prices for the first time since November, and reduced their crude-oil holdings by the most in 11 weeks.
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
HSBC posts pretax profit of $20.6 billion in 2012
 HSBC, Europe's largest bank, pledged to increase its dividend as strong growth in Hong Kong and other core Asian markets boosted its capital even though annual profit fell short of expectations.The bank on Monday said it made a 2012 pretax profit of $20.6 billion, down 6 percent from the previous year and below the average forecast of $22.7 billion from 28 analysts polled by Reuters. Profits were hurt by a $5.2 billion loss on the value of its own debt.
Forbes names Inditex’s Ortega world’s third richest person
 Spain’s Amancio Ortega, the co-founder of the Inditex fashion group, leapt over Warren Buffett and France’s Bernard Arnault to become the world’s third richest person on Forbes’ 2013 annual ranking of billionaires, with an estimated net worth of $57 billion. Mexico’s Carlos Slim, who has taken a hit from the slump in the share price of his America Movil telecoms group since the list was calculated as of February 14, remained the richest person with a fortune of $73 billion, and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates held on to the No. 2 spot with a net worth of $67 billion.
Repsol Sells $1.3 Billion Stake to Singapore’s Temasek
 Repsol SA (REP), Spain’s biggest oil company, sold treasury shares to Singapore’s Temasek Holdings Pte for 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) to bolster finances and protect its credit rating. Temasek, a state-owned investment company, bought the 5.04 percent stake for 16.01 euros a share, a 1.7 percent discount to the previous close, in Singapore’s largest investment in Spain, Repsol said today. Repsol’s 2.5 percent gain in Madrid made it the top performer on the MSCI EMU/Energy (MXEM0EN) index.
Apple's wristwatch-style device may bring more money than TV
 While Tim Cook has dropped hints that Apple is hard at work on a television to drive the next era of growth, the company's wristwatch-style device, still in development, may prove more profitable. The global watch industry will generate more than $60 billion in sales in 2013, said Citigroup analyst Oliver Chen. While that's smaller than the pool of revenue that comes from TVs, gross margins on watches are 60%, he said. That's four times bigger than for televisions, according to Anand Srinivasan, a Bloomberg Industries analyst. Apple, with its iconic brand and lucrative retail network, is poised to tap into the growing watch industry. Headway in the business would help compensate for slowing growth in other areas, such as iPhones and iPods.
Banking
Bad loans weigh on PSU banks as growth falters
Delhi : State-run banks remained under stress in the December quarter as high interest rates and the economic slowdown continued to bog down corporate borrowers. While this led to a deterioration of the banks' asset quality, higher provisioning expenses and muted loan and deposit growth impacted profitability. Five of the biggest state-controlled lenders — State Bank of India, Bank of Baroda%, Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank and Bank of India — together witnessed a 14 per cent growth in loans and 13 per cent growth in deposits in the third quarter. The net interest margin, the yield on advances over cost of deposits, declined about 30 basis points, compared with the year-ago period.
Parekh panel for hiking banks’ sectoral cap for power sector
Delhi : To channelise liquidity into the power sector, a proposal is being mooted for increasing the sectoral exposure limit of commercial banks and financial institutions to the power sector to 20 per cent.The proposal is being discussed by high level committee on financing infrastructure headed by Deepak Parekh.Currently, according to Reserve Bank of India guidelines, the exposure ceiling limits of commercial banks to the power sector are 15 per cent of capital funds in case of a single borrower and 40 per cent for a borrower group.“The Finance Ministry representative has suggested to make a recommendation for increasing the sectoral exposure limit to 20 per cent. He underlined the need for making adequate provisions for mitigating investors’ risks to augment investment in power sector,” said a top official of a financial institution, who was present at the committee discussions on January 28.
Economy
 India
Credible fiscal consolidation plans required: RBI
Moody's thumbs up for 'realistic' Budget 2013
Private firms set up industrial parks to meet SMEs' demand
Jet-Etihad deal: India working to assuage UAE's investments concerns; PM to visit Abu Dhabi
FinMin, CSO may both go wrong on forecast
FM's home loan incentive cheers up realty players
Nasscom panel sees $300-bn IT industry by 2020
 International
EU Chiefs demand austerity as Italy heads for new vote
Credit easing forecast to spur job gains
Roubini Says Global Equity Rally Masks Risk From Europe to U.S.
Billionaire Sheldon Adelson's Rescue Plan for Spain
China to surpass US as top luxury car market
How the Developing World Escaped the Debt Trap
German car market continues decline in February
Markets Today
NSE
5,784.25
1.50%
BSE
19,143.17
1.40%
NASDAQ
3,182.03
0.39%
USD
54.87
EURO
71.52
JPY(100)
58.85
GBP
83.12
Corporate Watch
Vijay Mallya loses crown; Pernod Ricard now India's most profitable spirits firm
Maharashtra : French firm Pernod Ricard has overtaken Vijay Mallya's United SpiritsBSE 1.81 % to become the country's most profitable spirits marketer last year, thanks to Indian consumers' increasing appetite for premium drinks. The maker of Absolut Vodka and Chivas Regal Scotch whisky crossed the $1-billion sales mark in the country in 2011-12 when its sales rose 34% to Rs 5,941 crore, making India the fourth-largest market for Pernod Ricard.
GMR exits Singapore power plant, makes Rs 1,356 crore profit
Maharashtra : Cash-strapped infrastructure conglomerate GMR is selling its entire 70 per cent stake and exiting its first independent power project (IPP) outside India, the Island Power Project in Singapore. The move is part of its ongoing portfolio churn that will help the group pare its consolidated net debt of Rs 37, 681 crore as on December 2012. .
Airtel taps global bond market to raise $1 billion
Delhi : Bharti Airtel, the world's fifth-largest mobile phone company by subscribers, on Monday approached investors in the overseas bond market to raise $1 billion, nearly two years after it first planned to undertake the offering. If the Bharti issue mops up at least $500 million, the company will be the second-largest private sector borrower to tap the global bond market this year after Reliance Industries'
Gammon may sell 24% stake in infrastructure arm
Maharashtra : Loss-making civil contractor Gammon India has initiated talks with investors to sell up to 24% stake in its listed subsidiary, Gammon Infrastructure Projects, company executives said. The 100-year-old company, which is in the midst of a severe cash crunch, is exploring the option
Mahindra & Mahindra to invest up to Rs 800 crore every year in new offerings
Maharashtra : Encouraged by double-digit growth on the back of new launches in a slowing market, India's largest utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra plans to invest Rs700-800 crore every year in new offerings in the future. Speaking at the sidelines of the new Maxximo Plus mini truck launch, Rajan Wadhera, CEO, technology, product development & sourcing (Auto & Farm Sector), and group executive board member, M&M,
Delays make Birlas look at expansion abroad
Maharashtra : The Aditya Birla Group has chalked a plan to expand capacities of all its companies globally — including Novelis, Hindalco and UltraTech — which would raise the group’s turnover from $40 billion to $65 billion in two years. The look-abroad policy also includes the acquisition of a mid-sized chemical
Tata Motors slashes Nano production, signals mega slowdown
Delhi : After scaling back production of commercial vehicles and passenger cars, Tata Motors has now slashed production of the Nano. Production of the small car at the Sanand plant in Gujarat has been cut by over 80% to around 1,500 units a month to align with lower demand amid rising inventories. As a result, the company is now operating the plant four days per week on a single shift from a six-day work week earlier.
Tata Global Beverages to spice up earnings of small growers in South
Delhi : Tata Global Beverages Ltd (TGBL) has tied up with South Indian Green Cardamom Company Ltd (SIGCCL) to help brand and market spices such as cardamom and pepper produced by small planters in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. On Monday, SIGCCL, a venture founded and run by growers in the Idukki and the high range area of Kerala and adjoining parts of Tamil Nadu,
ICRA upgrades broking industry to stable
Maharashtra : Rating agency ICRA has revised the Indian brokerage industry’s outlook to ‘stable’ from ‘negative’ on the back of improved equity cash volumes and broader based retail participation showing signs of revival among other reasons. “Equity cash volumes have shown signs of improvement in third quarter of FY12-13 and beyond. Broader based retail participation is showing early signs of returning to the markets. The cash volumes recorded for the month of January 2013 were the
Tenders & Assignment
Indian Bank
Description :Applications invited from qualified Audit Firms

for conducting forensic audit in the Bank and to find out whether there is any
indication of further fraud

Last Date : 06/03/2013

Address :Corporate Office,254-260 Avvai Shanmugam Salai,Chennai 600 014

Phone :044 - 2813 4531

E-Mail :hoinspection@indianbank.co.in
District Panchayat - Rajnandgaon
Description :Audit work by chartered accountants firms.

Last Date : 11/03/2013

Address :District Panchayat Rajnandagaon
Chhattisgarh
Panchayat And Rural Development Department
Description :Conduct Audit of annual accounts and concurrent audit of all PRIs from reputed chartered accountants firms

Last Date : 13/03/2013

Address :Room No- 21-A, II Floor, Bwing Vindhyachal Bhawan, Bhopal

Phone :0755-2550651

E-Mail :mpsteps@mp.gov.in
Zilla Panchayat - Bagalkote - Karnataka
Description :Seeking expression of Interest (EOI) from Chartered Accountant firms to provide professionals support to Gram panchayats on maintenance of Accounts in Double Entry System

Last Date : 14/03/2013

Address :Zilla Panchayat,Bagalkote - Karnataka

Phone :08354-235571
National Rural Health Mission
Description :Hiring services of chartered accountant firm for statutory audit of state health society and district health society

Last Date : 14/03/2013

Address :National Rural Health Mission
Imphal - Manipur
Industrial Investment Bank Of India Limited
Description :Providing of Qualified chartered accountant to IIBI for carrying out its accounts related work

Last Date : 15/03/2013

Address :Industrial Investment Bank Of India Limited 19, Netaji Subhas Road Kolkata - 700001

Phone :9830813610
Zilla Panchayat-Raichur Karnataka
Description :Seeking Expression of Interest from Chartered Accountant Firms to provide professionals support to Gram panchayats on maintenance of accounts in Double Entry System.

Last Date : 18/03/2013

Address :Zilla Panchayath Raichur Karnataka

Phone :08532-228448
Rural Development And Panchayati Raj Department - Raibag taluk
Description : Procurement of Services of Chartered Accountants for Accounting in Grama Panchayats in Raibag taluk in district.

Last Date : 19/03/2013

Address :Raibag taluk in Belgaum district,Belgaum - Karnataka
Rural Development And Panchayati Raj Department - Athani
Description :Procurement of Services of Chartered Accountants for Accounting in Grama Panchayats in taluk

Last Date : 19/03/2013

Address :Athani taluk in Belgaum district,Athani - Karnataka
Rural Development And Panchayati Raj Department - Ramdurg Taluk
Description :Procurement of Services of Chartered Accountants for Accounting in Grama Panchayats in Ramdurg Taluk

Last Date : 19/03/2013

Address :Ramdurg taluk in Belgaum district,Belgaum - Karnataka
Rural Development And Panchayati Raj Department - Saudatti taluk
Description :Procurement of Services of Chartered Accountants for Accounting in Grama Panchayats in Saudatti taluk in district

Last Date : 19/03/2013

Address :Saudatti taluk in Belgaum district
Karnataka
Rural Development And Panchayati Raj Department - Khanapur Taluk
Description :Procurement of Services of Chartered Accountants for Accounting in Grama Panchayats in Khanapur Taluk

Last Date : 19/03/2013

Address :Rural Development And Panchayati Raj Department,Belgaum - Karnataka
Mysore Paper Mills Limited
Description :Appointment Of Internal Auditors For The Year 2013-14.

Last Date : 20/03/2013

Address :The Gereral Manager (Finance),
The Mysore Paper Mills Limited,
16/5, Ali Asker Road Banglore- 560052

E-Mail :dirfin@mpm.co.in
Department Of Education
Description : Appointment of Charted Accountant.

Last Date : 22/03/2013

Address :Department Of Education
203/9 Nabi ullah Road Uttar Pradesh Lucknow

Phone :0522-2613776
Ajmer Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited
Description : Invited from CA professional firms, forum / registered society / groups formed by the retired personnel of power companies / erstwhile RSEB as well as retired officials / officers of accountant general to conduct internal revenue audit in subdivisions of avvnl.

Last Date : 31/03/2013

Address :City Power House,Hathi Bhata Jaipur Road,Ajmer

Phone :0 1 4 5 - 2 6 2 2 4 5
E-Mail :cao_ia@yahoo.in
Housing And Urban Development Department
Description :Request for proposal for selection of CAG empanelled chartered accountant firms for Implementation of double entry accrual based accounting system in 103 urban local bodies of state

Last Date : 10/04/2013

Address :Housing and Urban Development Department Of Odisha
1st Floor, State Secretariat, Annex- B, Bhubaneswar- 751001

Phone :0674-2391395

E-Mail :pmuhud@gmail.com
Reminders
 Tenders
Land Development And Water Resources Department 06/03/2013
District Rural Development Agency 06/03/2013
Kerala Rural Water Supply And Sanitation Agency 06/03/2013
Uttar Pradesh Bhumi Sudhar Nigam 06/03/2013
Jaipur Vidyut Vitaran Nigam Limited 06/03/2013
High Court 07/03/2013
Airports Authority Of India 07/03/2013
Gujarat Water Resources Development Co Limited 08/03/2013
Panchayati Raj Engineering Department 08/03/2013
Health And Family Welfare Department 11/03/2013
Municipal Corporation Of Delhi 11/03/2013
District Panchayat - Rajnandgaon 11/03/2013
Chhattisgarh State Co.operative Marketing Federation Limited  12/03/2013
Urban Administration And Development 12/03/2013
Notifications & Circulars
CUSTOMS
Circular No. 08 / 2013-Customs (Delhi) 04/03/2013
Regarding norms for execution of Bank Guarantee in respect of Advance Authorization (AA) / Duty Free Import Authorization (DFIA) / Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) Schemes
RBI
Notification No.RBI/2012-13/427 (Delhi) 04/03/2013
Branch Authorisation Policy - Information to be submitted by banks
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