South Block

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General Motors India is mulling bringing back its Opel brand in the niche segment of the domestic car market, months after it slammed the brakes on local manufacturing of products of the marquee early this year.The company is thinking of re-launching the Opel market in the wake of a possible revival of fortunes of German technology here with the entry of the likes of BMW and Volkswagen.

“There is a possibility of re-introducing the Opel in the niche segment,” a company source said.

GM, which had shifted its focus to the Chevrolet brand after the global acquisition of the erstwhile Daewoo, has found the Daewoo’s technology not only cost-efficient but much more suitable to the Indian market. “If and when the company brings back any Opel badge, it would definitely be not in the lower-end of the market,” the source added.

Earlier this year, GMI had announced stopping of local production of the mid-sized sedan Corsa, the last of the Opel stable to be produced in India. It had struggled nearly a decade to carve out a niche in India with the Astra, the Corsa, the Sail and the Vectra—from the Opel range.

With an estimated $8bn spent on overseas mergers, acquisitions and expansion, 2006 turned out to be a year of global consolidation for India Inc and Indian multinationals became a reality. So much so that India — which is itself seeking huge doses of foreign investment — is for the first time witnessing its companies invest more capital abroad this year than the inward flow of overseas investments, placed at around $5bn.

From large business groups such as the Tatas, Reliance Industries and Ranbaxy to smaller firms with turnover as less as $1m, an unprecedented effort was made in 2006 to expand abroad for global integration and economies of scale.

“It is with much enthusiasm that I underscore — Indian industry has grown wings. Globalisation has given a new meaning and dimension to India Inc,” said Commerce Minister Kamal Nath recently, while releasing a book on Indian multinationals.

“Many Indian firms have slowly and surely embarked on the global path, leading to the emergence of Indian multinationals. Indian industry has crossed domestic frontiers and established a credible presence in markets abroad.” It is not that all global acquisitions are large, says a recent joint study by industry chamber the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and risk management and financial analysis firm Credit Rating Information and Services Ltd (CRISL).

Both smaller and large companies were on a buying binge, says the study, adding the average size of acquisition for pharmaceutical firms, for example, was $61m — the largest valued at $777m and the smallest at $1.2m. “The government, particularly the regulator — Reserve Bank of India (RBI) — has played a facilitative role in the strategy of internationalisation of the Indian corporate sector,” said D S Brar, chairman of the CII committee on MNCs.

“The build-up of foreign exchange reserves estimated at $140bn helped. But companies themselves saw greater synergies looking outward,” Brar, who fashioned the overseas acquisition drive of pharmaceuticals major Ranbaxy Laboratories in the 1990s, said. In the past three months alone, Indian firms sought to strike some mega deals in the overseas market — the Tatas bid a whopping $18bn for Anglo-Dutch steel-maker Corus, Videocon bid $695m for South Korea’s Daewoo Electronics and ONGC Videsh bid $425m for Omimex de Colombia.

The other big-ticket transactions included Tata Tea’s acquisition of US food and beverage firm Energy Brands for $677m, Aban Loyd’s buyout of Norwegian oil major Sinvest for $425m and Suzlon Energy’s acquisition of Belgium’s Hanson Transmission for $565m.

“India recently displaced Japan as the second-largest investor in the UK,” said the Duke of York, Prince Andrew. “Indian businesses investing in the UK have increased from 19 four years ago, to over 100 today.”

But there was unprecedented consolidation within the country as well. The value of mergers and acquisitions in India jumped to $9.5bn this year from $5.37bn in 2005, according to industry studies. In the process, India’s share in global deals also jumped to 1.30 per cent from 0.72 per cent. In fact, the perception among global entrepreneurs about India’s business environment also improved during the year. “India has improved its position by two places in the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) rankings for 2006-07 coming in 43rd — well ahead of Brazil (66), China (54) and Russia (62),” said World Economic Forum recently.

The year also saw the information technology sector, which has been the success story for India since the 1990s, continuing to post robust growth of 30 per cent with revenues of $40bn.

Similar growth was witnessed in industries like telecommunications, automobiles, aviation, retail trade, hospitality and transportation.

Overall, the corporate sector continued to show buoyancy - evident from the second quarter results for this fiscal — where profits after tax grew 49.5per cent, against 25.8 per cent in the previous figure, said a CII study. Looking ahead, analysts expect the current trend of consolidation, both within the country and outside, to continue - as has been suggested by rating agency ICRA Ltd.

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A prominent US senator met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday in an effort to allay concerns that a new joint nuclear pact could put New Delhi at odds with Iran.

Senator Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican, said he urged Singh to move ahead with the deal because it would benefit both India and the US.

New Delhi is concerned about a non-binding clause, inserted by the US Congress, that directs the White House to determine whether India is co-operating with Washington’s efforts to confront Iran about its nuclear programme.

Under the deal, the United States agreed to supply the Indian power industry with fuel and technology, reversing 30 years of US atomic policy.

In exchange, India has agreed to place 14 civilian nuclear plants under international inspections. Eight military plants would remain off-limits.

There are fears that the deal could limit India’s right to reprocess spent atomic fuel and employ other sensitive nuclear technologies.

Specter, the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said “the United States will be flexible in negotiations” on the agreement.

Cutting across the party line, several top leaders, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Opposition leader Lal Krishna Advani, wished former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on his 82nd birthday here on Monday.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was among the first of the many dignitaries to greet Vajpayee. Dr. Singh presented him a bouquet and wished him a long life.

Vajpayee thanked Singh saying such gestures help bridge political gaps.

“I am thankful that the Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh) came to wish me. Such relations should go ahead. We do meet in Parliament otherwise, but his coming to my residence to wish me is a nice gesture,” said Vajpayee.

Senior BJP leader L K Advani also wished him at his Krishna Menon Marg residence along with scores of party workers.

Colourful bouquets and sketches were presented to the political leader, as people, including children, stood in queues outside his residence to greet him.

Party President Rajnath Singh, former National Security Advisor, Brajesh Mishra, and senior BJP leaders all wished long life to octogenarian leader.

Recognized all over for his mesmerising oratory, Vajpayee was one of the founder members of the Bharatiya Jan Sangh, which later transformed into the BJP. He began his parliamentary innings in 1957.

He is recognised as a moderate face of the BJP and has been the binding force in the opposition National Democratic Alliance coalition.

Conferred by the President with “Padma Vibhushan”, Vajpayee’s tryst with Prime Ministership began in 1998.

His first stint as the Prime Minister lasted only for 13 days, the second for 13 months, but he came back in 1999 to complete a five-year term at the head of a multi-party coalition. It was under his leadership that India conducted its second nuclear test at Pokhran in May in 1998.

Initiating the peace process with Pakistan, Vajpayee went to Lahore with the inaugural bus ride from Delhi.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sounded a wake-up call to the laidback, red tape-bound bureaucracy on Sunday, saying a sea change is needed in the industrial environment to make the sector investment-friendly.

“Why does Lakshmi Mittal or Ratan Tata have to buy foreign companies to establish a global presence when there is so much opportunity here? Why do they choose foreign shores over domestic turf ? Is it because of our industrial environment, procedures, bureaucracy and red tape that entrepreneurs shun domestic opportunities? We have to give up our chalta hai attitude,” the PM said. He also referred to Mittal’s Bengal connection and wondered why a man who began his career in the state doesn’t produce a kilo of steel in India — despite his group being the world’s largest steel producer.

Singh urged one and all to help put the country on the growth fast track to catch up with the new industrialising economies in Asia. “Today, steel consumption in China is 10 times that of India. The demand for steel will rise with faster growth, infrastructural development and modernisation of agriculture. Our challenge is not only to meet domestic demand, but to become a major exporter,” the PM said.

Singh referred to the National Steel Policy that envisages doubling of steel output by 2012. To make this possible, SAIL will pump in Rs 37,000 crore by 2010, of which Rs 9,592 crore will be spent on the integrated steel plant in Burnpur, the PM said.

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A massive growth in passenger traffic, mainly due to low fares and more number of planes on the Indian sky, marked an accident-free aviation scene in 2006, which also saw a botched Jet-Sahara takeover deal and the mega merger of the two state-owned airlines taking shape.

The year also saw the handing over of two major airports at Delhi and Mumbai to private sector-led Joint Venture firms for modernisation, despite protests by airport employees and Left parties. However, the roadmap for modernisation of Kolkata and Chennai airport was far from being finalised.

Air-India and Indian placed orders for 68 and 43 aircraft respectively, as did the private carriers for a large number of planes, which have already started arriving.

Major initiatives were taken to improve and enhance the aviation infrastructure, with the work on upgradation and modernisation of several of the 35 identified non-metro airports across the country beginning at a rapid pace.

In the face of high fuel prices hitting their bottomlines, all major carriers, including Air-India and Indian, formed the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), which several experts feared could lead to cartelisation in the aviation industry.

While terror threats abroad made air travel cumbersome due to restrictions on items that can be carried in hand baggage, fog, as usual during winters in Delhi and other northern airports, played havoc with arrivals and departures of flights though for fewer days than in the past.

A far worse scenario was witnessed at London-Heathrow where the airport was virtually closed with large number of flights being cancelled and others delayed.

If your festive shopping fever is dampened by thoughts of traffic snarls, try the cyber superhighway. E-bazaars are decked up for the festive season and the good news is that customers, trying to avoid crowded shopping malls and parking problems, are driving past and even stopping to shop on the Internet.

E-commerce is booming in the country with a newfound confidence in online shopping, and it is clear that consumers of all ages and backgrounds are now using the World Wide Web to shop, says the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI).

“This season means good news for e-tailers who hear the jingle on their cash registers as they expect their revenues to double and the traffic to go up by over 75 per cent. There has been a huge increase in consumer confidence when it comes to online shopping,” says IAMAI President Subho Ray.

IAMAI says India’s e-commerce market will zoom to Rs 2,300 crore by the end of the current financial year that ends in March, 2007, representing a 95 per cent rise over the year.

Akin to the multi-storied malls, websites and online stores are sporting the festive look with Santa Claus, snowman, ginger bread man, and snowflakes and lots of bells ringing.

Adding low value items like Santa carvings, scented candles, gift hampers and more, Fabmall.com has designed a special store to rope in buyers. It is retailing wines, plum cakes, Christmas cakes, flowers, Christmas trees and related books, music and movies to match the mood.

“We have launched a digital camera store to coincide with the New Year. This store has all leading camera brands and almost all models offer discounts — with discounts on some models going up to 43 per cent until the New Year. There are other promotions running especially on winter wear and books,” says Fabmall.com Chief Operating Officer K Vaitheeswaran.

Pantaloon Retail (India) Senior Manager E Retailing Rahul Sethi said: “For the festive season, we have launched a new property called ‘half off’ where we are offering 50 per cent discount on the maximum retail price on select products. The products change every week.”

In a bid to delight the customer, online shopping sites have also come up with unique delivery models. For this Christmas season, Chennaibazaar.com offered gifts delivery service by Santa Claus personally on Christmas Eve.