The Hindu Business Line : Wednesday, August 06, 2003

Sami Labs sees big money in herbal products
OVER a year since it opened the domestic innings in herbal nutraceuticals, Sami Labs aims to be a market leader in the field. The Rs 75-crore Bangalore-based company that was mainly into research and export of standardised herbal products until ... More

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Moser Baer changes auditors
OPTICAL media maker, Moser Baer India Ltd (MBIL), today said its statutory auditors, S.R. Batliboi & Co, have resigned, a development that pulled down the stock of the company by about 20 per cent. MBIL said its Board of Directors has ... More

Tata Motors: Engineering a name change and mindset too
IT is a name change being engineered across three plants, 22,000 employees and numerous dealers. The objective: a new corporate image for Tata Motors that makes the exercise as much watched by the market as by Bombay House. The countdown has ... More

Satnam bags contract to supply rice to Taj Group
SATNAM Overseas Ltd, an emerging foods company with a dominant presence across global basmati rice markets through its flagship "Kohinoor" brand, on Tuesday announced the signing of an exclusive agreement with the Taj Group of Hotels to provide ... More

BSES declares 10 pc quarterly dividend
BSES Ltd on Tuesday declared a 10 per cent dividend, amounting to Re 1 per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2003. The announcement follows BSES' board decision on July 28 to pay its 1.2-lakh shareholders a dividend every quarter instead of ... More

JK Ind sells bulk drug unit
J.K. Industries Ltd (JKI) on Tuesday said that the company has exited from the bulk drug business by selling its wholly-owned subsidiary — J.K. Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Ltd to TEVA Pharmaceuticals of Israel. JKI officials declined to ... More

Ford launches `cheapest' Ikon variant Flair
FORD India on Tuesday launched an under Rs 5-lakh fully featured Ikon variant Flair to draw customers from the high volume B plus segment. "We expect car owners in the B plus segment to switch over to our car because of our competitive pricing ... More

L&T Oman bags Rs 42-cr order
L&T Oman LLC, the Gulf-based subsidiary of Larsen & Toubro, has bagged a Rs 42 crore order in Oman, for a flyover for the Muscat Municipality of the Sultanate. The flyover, also known as an interchange or an elevated corridor, is to be built ... More

Management change at Devaki Hospital
THERE has been a change in the management of the Chennai-based Devaki Hospital following a meeting of the board of directors on July 31. At the meeting, the powers of the erstwhile Managing Director, Ms Chitra Chokalingam, were revoked, ... More

Indo Gulf Fert to delist from SEs

CORPORATE DISPUTES

Herbertsons issue to be resolved in 2-3 weeks
THE Herbertsons issue involving United Breweries Chairman, Mr Vijay Mallya, and Mr Kishore Chhabria is expected to be finally resolved in the next two-three weeks. Mr Mallya is set to take over Mr Chhabria's 43 per cent stake in Herbertsons. ... More

Escorts Heart due diligence still on, says Merlion
EVEN as the current rift in the Nanda family over the divestment of equity stake in Escort Heart Institute and Research Centre (EHIRC) remains unresolved, Merlion India Fund, the proposed buyer of the stake, on Tuesday said that it is still ... More

Police search Senitini Ceramica MD premises
POLICE have searched the office and residential premises of Mr T. Seshagiri Rao, Managing Director of Sentini Ceramica (P) Ltd, and seized certain documents following a search warrant issued by the IV Metropolitan Magistrate here. The search ... More

AWARDS & HONOURS

Award for Coats India
BANGALORE: Coats India's stall has been adjudged the best stall at the Garmentech 2003 expo which concluded here on Monday. The thread manufacturing major displayed its range of products for the apparel and embroidery industry at the ... More

COURTS/LEGAL ISSUES

Hike in wheeling charges by APTransco — Grindwell silicon carbide business to feel the pinch
THE silicon carbide business of Grindwell Norton Ltd (GNL), the Rs 225-crore abrasives and silicon carbide manufacturer and Indian subsidiary of the French transnational group de Saint-Gobain, is currently faced with a major uncertainty owing to ... More

CORPORATE BONDS

KSRTC bond issue rating indicates `inadequate safety'
"While better inflows from the State are likely to improve KSRTC's margins in the medium term, increasing competition and inability to align fares with cost would dampen the corporation's profitability going forward." More

RESTRUCTURING

ITI plans to sell Rae Bareli plant, redeploy staff
ITI currently has Rs 1,500 crore worth of orders in hand and the order book is likely to swell further in the second half of the current fiscal. More

NEW PROJECTS

Reuters plans new content centre in India
INFORMATION vending firm Reuters plans to set up a new content production facility in India in its bid to cut costs, Reuters officials told Business Line from London. "The new content capability facility will handle data in raw state ... More

ALLIANCES & JOINT VENTURES

Hikal in pact with US co for export of anti-depressant
BULK-DRUGS maker Hikal Ltd is understood to have entered into an agreement with a US-based pharmaceutical company to supply Gabapentin, a $2-billion anti-depressant that is going off patent. Hikal sources confirmed the development but declined to ... More

Waterbase ties up with US co for high-end seafood
WATERBASE Ltd, a Rs 120-crore integrated aquaculture company, has tied up with a leading US brand for processing and supplying value-added, hi-end seafood products, according to its Chief Executive, Mr Ashok Nanjapa. The company has tied up ... More

INTERVIEW

`We are now an interest earning company': BHEL Director
THE last two years have seen a turnaround in the finances of Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL). Its order-book has expanded sizeably and the cash-surplus position has turned it into an interest earning company. In this interview with Business ... More

IPOS

PFC's public offer hits roadblock again
POWER Finance Corporation's (PFC) renewed attempt to float an initial public offering (IPO) for 10 per cent of its equity has hit a roadblock. In a meeting held on August 4, chaired by the Power Secretary, Mr R.V. Shahi, the Power Ministry has ... More

DIVERSIFICATION

Sabre Cap enters mutual fund business, ropes in Samir Arora
SABRE Capital headed by Mr Rana Talwar, former CEO of Standard Chartered Plc, which recently took over Centurion Bank, on Tuesday announced its entry into mutual fund business in India. Sabre has roped in Mr Samir Arora of Alliance Capital to ... More

OUTLOOK

Daimler hopes to sell 1,600 Mercedes cars
Mr Hans-Michael Huber, Managing Director and CEO, DaimlerChrysler India, told Business Line said that the company is confident of selling close to 1,600 Mercedes passenger cars in the current year, as compared to about 1,150 units sold in ... More

Havell's eyes Rs 60-cr turnover from exports
THE E2E solution provider, Havell's India Ltd, in the Power Distribution Equipment (PDE) space is targeting an export turnover of Rs 60 crore in the current fiscal. The company is confident of achieving this target, particularly in the light ... More

Stagnant markets likely to impact Ford India exports
FORD India, which exports more cars than it sells domestically, could see a sharp drop of nearly 29 per cent in exports during 2003 because of the stagnant markets in the US, South America and South Africa. "Our export market is not growing as ... More

Century Textiles to refocus on domestic market
CENTURY Textiles and Industry Ltd will refocus attention on the domestic market, and reduce its exposure to the export market primarily because of a downturn in the overseas market. The company had cut production in its textile mills by 25 per ... More