US BANKRUPTCY ACTION ADDS TO ESSAR WORRIES
At a time when the oil-to-outsourcing Essar Group is
looking to raise fresh money to refinance debt and bring down interest costs,
it is faced with a bankruptcy action against one of its US units with creditors
alleging mismanagement. Essar isaddled with huge debt on its books across
companies and its plans to refinance debt, through the issue of bonds on
external commercial borrowings haven’t materialized yet. Essar has overall
term debt in the range of $ 14 bn across firms. The latest challenge for Essar
is a plea for bankruptcy filed against Trinity Coal which the group acquired in
2010.
US ECONOMY : CURRENT SCENARIO
Wal-Mart, the largest retailer in the US has given a
subdued forecast for its sales. The country has been gripped by the slowdown
since the outbreak of the crisis. Inflation and tax rate have been going
up. The picture does not look too bright for 2013 either. The US Fed and
policymakers have been printing money through their numerous QE programs.
The reason given by them has always been that the money will stimulate
the economy. But all it has done is to stoke inflation and asset prices.
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke strongly
defended the US central bank’s bond buying stimulus before Congress, recently –
saying its benefits clearly exceed possible costs.
JP MORGAN TO CUT 19000 JOBS BY NEXT YEAR
J P Morgan Chase and Co., the biggest US bank, expects
headcount to decline by as much as 19000 jobs in its mortgage and community
banking businesses by the end of next year.
HELICOPTER DEAL : CORRUPTION CHARGES
The Central Bureau of Investigations registered a
preliminary enquiry against former Indian Air Force Chief S P Tyagi, his three
cousins and 11 others over allegations of kickbacks in the purchase of 12
helicopters from Anglo-Italian defence company AgustaWestland, a unit of
Finnmeccanica SpA.
Rs 36000 mn for 12 helicopters is quite a large outlay
at Rs 3000 mn per helicopter ! It is 17.3 % of Government expenditure of Rs
207840 mn for all social services including education, health, broadcasting,
etc.
H.J.HEINZ COMPANY
Legendary investor’s latest move, the ace investor has
teamed up with Brazil’s richest man Jorge Lemann and cracked the biggest ever
acquisition deal in the food industry. The name is H J Heinz Co., the famous
ketchup maker. It was announced that Berkshire Hathaway Inc and 3G Capital
Management LLC have agreed to acquire the company for US $ 23.3 bn. Heinz has
been in existence since 144 years ! It is one of the most familiar brands in
the US and enjoys bestselling status in over 50 countries. Heinz has an
impressive track record of steady growth. The company pays out more than US $
600 m as annual dividends.
PHILIPS TO DROP ‘ELECTRONICS’ FROM NAME
Dutch manufacturing giant Koninklijke Philips
Electronics NV said, it intends to drop the word ‘Electronics” from its name as
it shifts away from consumer based entertainment towards health, well being and
lighting products.
ENTRY OF FOREIGN RETAILING COMPANIES IN INDIA
It seems that the real estate sector is on the verge
of a revival due to entry of foreign retailing companies. Starbucks and
IKEA, a Swedish furniture company are set to expand into major Indian
cities. Other foreign chains like Hennes & Mauritz, Hamleys, Lacoste
and others have geared up to expand their India presence. Expansion by these
firms is likely to increase the demand for commercial real estate. It appears
that 2013 could well witness a turnaround in the commercial real estate market.
UK’S ECONOMY
First it was US, then came countries like France and
now the UK. UK is the latest to face the axe on the credit ratings. UK’s
economy is showing hardly any signs of a full blown recovery. Any further
loosening and it could face a fresh round of downgrades. If it tightens
more, the economy will slide further into the danger zone.
FINANCIAL HEALTH OF INDIAN COMPANIES
It is believed that the financial health of Indian
companies is not as vunerable as that of their Western counterparts. But it is
not true. Take interst coverage ratio, a measure of a company’s ability to pay
interest on outstanding debt. As per data from Mint, for the 3500 companies
listed on Stock Exchange, this ratio has dropped from 5.9 times in
December 2007 to 2.7 times in the quarter ended December 2012.
SAVINGS IN INDIA : CURRENT SCENARIO
Financial savings as a percent of total household
savings have come down dramatically in India over the past few decades.
Households have increasingly preferred to invest in physical assets such as
real estate and gold rather than financial instruments like mutual funds and
equities.
INSPIRATIONAL
John Mason : Don’t be afraid to take small
steps. There’s something powerful about momentum… no matter how small. Many
times the impossible is simply the untried. I can remember a time in my life
when I was immobilized with fear, consumed with what I was supposed to do. It
seemed so huge a task, I was unable to bring myself to face it. A friend came
to me and spoke two words that broke the paralysis in my life. He said, “Do
something!” I’ll never forget day… taking some small, seemingly insignificant
steps. Momentum began to come into my life. If you are a point of paralysis in
your life because of what you feel you’re supposed to do, the words today are,
“Do something!” Don’t worry about the long-term goal right now, just take the
steps that take you past starting point. Soon you’ll get to a point of no
return. As you climb higher, you’ll be able to see much farther.
J O K E
A young businessman had just started his own firm. He
rented a beautiful office and had it furnished with antiques. Sitting there, he
saw a man come into the outer office. Wishing to appear the hot shot, the
businessman picked up phone and started to pretend he had a big deal working.
He threw huge figures around and made giant commitments. Finally he hung up and
asked the visitor, “Can I help you?” The man said, “Yeah, I’ve come to
activate your phone lines.”
THIRTY INSPIRING YEARS !!!
Dear friend :
Greetings
!
On the
2nd March 2013, MIRA INFORM completed 30
years. During this period, MIRA INFORM produced millions of Business
Information Reports on businesses and carried out various kinds of Background
Check on individuals from most of the major countries for international
clients. As we commemorate this special occasion, I would like to convey my
deepest gratitude to you, our valued clients for your unstinted faith and
support through this memorable journey. Your continuous trust has indeed
significantly strengthened our shared aspiration of creating one of Asia’s
respected Business Information Company. Mira Inform Japan Limited, Tokyo was
born on 12th February, 2013 !
The
journey of excellence is undoubtedly a tribute to our clients, partners,
associates and our dedicated employees of today and yesterday – who have
steadfastly stood by us through this voyage of change and challenge.
These 30 inspiring years have been marked by overarching VISION to serve a
larger national purpose, to live up by the strong VALUES and to nourish
internal VITALITY to create superior value for all our stakeholders and
important place in Business Information Market in India and overseas. As we
look back on the historic journey, we feel deeply touched that our Paid up
Capital was just Rs 300 in 1983 against Rs 17 mn now ! We started with Rs 1800
priced Remington baby typewriter from residence when today our aggregate
offices, company, database, brand and others are valued at huge sum ! I have
proud to have had the opportunity to lead MIRA INFORM since its’ inception.
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