SpiceJet chief the man of the moment at Modi-Trump meet
MMNN:28 Jun 2017

Starting a week before Trump's inauguration in January, SpiceJet has placed orders for 225 planes with Boeing, which is worth more than $22 billion He is the man you didn't see at the Rose Garden presser by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump, but heard about there. And his company's big deal with an American company has the whole town from the White House to US congress talking. He is the man Vice-President Mike Pence sought out on Tuesday from a hall full of top business executives from India and the US at the annual summit of US India Business Council and met him backstage before taking the podium. "He greeted me by my name and said, 'Look. I know about the company and I know about the order that's been placed by your company," Ajay Singh, the soft-spoken chairman and managing director of SpiceJet, who got a shout-out from Trump at the Rose Garden presser, said in an interview to Hindustan Times. "I was pleased to learn about an Indian airline's recent order of 100 new American planes, one of the largest orders of its kind, which will support thousands and thousands of American jobs, the president had said, with the prime minister by his side, without naming either Singh or SpiceJet. Starting a week before Trump's inauguration in January, SpiceJet has placed orders for 225 planes with Boeing, which is worth more than $22 billion and which will, according to a US government certification, create 132,000 jobs. The first planes will start arriving in 2018, with the last in 2024. Ads by ZINC In Singh's telling, it was Boeing's idea to let the US government know of the deal once work go under way on Modi's visit. It seemed like a good idea, and as it wound around the corridors of power in New Delhi and DC, it got even better, picked up backers and, finally, the PM's office asked for a note. Singh says he never expected this kind of attention when he placed those orders turning around a company he had built and left and came back to rebuild, from near bankruptcy - "when I took over the company (in 2015) its stocks were at Rs 12 each, and they are now at Rs 125; (we have) done well". Sure, well enough to be cited as an example of opportunities for American companies in the Indian growth story and find mention in the Fact Sheet issued by the White House after the meeting of the two leaders listing the highlights of the cooperation between the two countries. In their short meeting backstage at the USIBC event, Singh said Pence expressed the desire to visit SpiceJet offices when he travels to India - on Prime Minister Modi's invitation, which he said he has accepted - at a date to be determined. Later on Tuesday, Singh was on Capitol Hill to meet lawmakers. So how does it feel? "It's great, fantastic," Singh said, leaning forward in his seat in the coffee shop of a hotel in downtown DC, "It's a great testament to what SpiceJet has achieved.and we are glad were a part of his whole .. important meeting."

Robots are coming: What jobs will still be around in 20 years?
MMNN:27 Jun 2017

A study by Oxford University examined 702 common occupations and found that some jobs - telemarketers, tax preparers and sports referees - are at more risk than others including recreational psychologists, dentists and physicians. The robots are coming, the robots are coming! Regular reports warn us that an automation apocalypse is nigh. In January, a McKinsey & Company study found that about 30% of tasks in 60% of occupations could be computerised and last year, the Bank of England's chief economist said that 80m US and 15m UK jobs might be taken over by robots . Of course, not all jobs are created equally. In 2013, a highly cited study by Oxford University academics called The Future of Employment examined 702 common occupations and found that some jobs - telemarketers, tax preparers and sports referees - are at more risk than others including recreational psychologists, dentists and physicians. In the past, reports of the death of human jobs have often been greatly exaggerated, and technology has created a lot more jobs than it has wiped out. It's called the "Luddite Fallacy", in reference to the 19th century group of textile workers who smashed the new weaving machinery that made their skills redundant. Further, in the last 60 years automation has only eliminated one occupation: elevator operators . While there have been optimistic predictions that new technology would increase prosperity and lower drudgery, very few of us are working the 15-hour work week that, in 1930, the economist John Maynard Keynes predicted would be the norm for his grandkids. If anything, we're working 15-hour days. Today's technological revolution is an entirely different beast from the industrial revolution. The pace of change is exponentially faster and far wider in scope. As Stanford University academic Jerry Kaplan writes in Humans Need Not Apply : today, automation is "blind to the colour of your collar". It doesn't matter whether you're a factory worker, a financial advisor or a professional flute-player: automation is coming for you. Before we get too deep into deep into doom and gloom, it's worth stressing that automation isn't synonymous with job losses. Speaking to me over the phone, Frey was quick to point out that his work doesn't make any explicit predictions such as "47% of US jobs will disappear". It simply says that these jobs are exposed to automation. In other words, the jobs themselves won't entirely vanish; rather, they will be redefined. Of course, as Frey concedes, "from the perspective of the worker there is not much of a difference" between work disappearing and being radically redefined. It's likely they'll lack the new skill sets required for the role and be out of a job anyway. Professor Richard Susskind, author of The Future of the Professions and Tomorrow's Lawyers , echoes this distinction. "What you're going to see for a lot of jobs is a churn of different tasks," he explains. "So a lawyer today doesn't develop systems that offer advice, but the lawyer of 2025 will. They'll still be called lawyers but they'll be doing different things." So which professions are at greatest risk? Martin Ford, futurist and author of Rise of the Robots: Technology and the Threat of a Jobless Future , explains the jobs that are most at risk are those which "are on some level routine, repetitive and predictable". Telemarketing, for example, which is highly routine, has a 99% probability of automation. according to The Future of Employment report; you may have already noticed an increase in irritating robocalls. Tax preparation, which involves systematically processing large amounts of predictable data, also faces a 99% chance of being automated. Indeed, technology has already started doing our taxes: H&R Block, one of America's largest tax preparation providers, is now using Watson , IBM's artificial intelligence platform. Robots will also take over the more repetitive tasks in professions such as law, with paralegals and legal assistants facing a 94% probability of having their jobs computerized. According to a recent report by Deloitte, more than 100,000 jobs in the legal sector have a high chance of being automated in the next 20 years. Fast food cooks also face an 81% probability of having their jobs replaced by robots like Flippy, an AI-powered kitchen assistant which is already flipping burgers in a number of CaliBurger restaurants. Ford, the futurist, classifies resilient jobs in three areas. The first is jobs that involve "genuine creativity, such as being an artist, being a scientist, developing a new business strategy". Ford notes: "For now, humans are still best at creativity but there's a caveat there. I can't guarantee you that in 20 years a computer won't be the most creative entity on the planet. There are already computers that can paint original works of art. So, in 20 years who knows how far it's going to go?" The second area is occupations that involve building complex relationships with people: nurses, for example, or a business role that requires you to build close relationships with clients. The third area is jobs that are highly unpredictable - for example, if you're a plumber who is called out to emergencies in different locations. You can see these parameters at play in the jobs The Future of Employment identifies as least at risk of automation, which include recreational therapists, first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, repairers, occupational therapists and healthcare social workers. While being in a creative or people-focused industry may keep your job safe for the next 10 years or so, it's very hard to predict what will happen 20 years into the future. Indeed, Susskind stresses that we should be wary of downplaying just how much computers might change the working world. She says she believes that the 2020s are going to be a decade not of unemployment, but of redeployment. Beyond that, however, the picture is far less clear: "I don't think anyone can do long-term career planning with any confidence." As Susskind notes, "we make assumptions about the indispensability of human beings", but machines are already doing things we thought only humans might be able to. They're composing original music , for example, and beating professional players at complex board games with creative moves. They're even helping us with our relationships with God. While the clergy only has a 0.81% probability of automation, according to data from The Future of Jobs, Susskind believes even algorithms might one day replace the ordained. As he notes, there are already apps like Confession which offer "drop-down menus for tracking sin". While we've been doing a lot of robot-bashing, it should be noted that automation isn't the only phenomenon having an impact on the job market. Saadia Zahidi , head of the education, gender and work system initiative at the World Economic Forum (WEF), says that we "shouldn't forget that there are other drivers of change". A 2016 WEF report identified such drivers as climate change, the rise of the middle class in many emerging markets, aging populations in certain parts of Europe and East Asia, and the changing aspirations of women as factors that will have significant impacts on jobs. "It's really the coming together of these various drivers of change that then leads to disruptions in the labor market," Zahidi notes. The report warns that we're going to see significant ramifications from automation very soon. Zahidi explains: "The next three years will be a period of flux and a period of relatively higher losses than gains. This is not meant to be alarmist in the sense that there will be heavy job losses. But if we do nothing then this will be where we end up." Automation may also exacerbate gender inequality, Zahidi says. Women don't make up a large proportion of people who are going into science, technology, engineering and math (Stem) and IT fields, which are likely to be the areas in which jobs will grow. On the other hand, Zahidi notes, there do tend to be more women in care-related professions, such as healthcare and education, which are at a lower risk of automation. In the long run, women may actually end up faring better from technological change. A recent PricewaterhouseCoopers report found that a higher proportion of male than female jobs are at risk of automation, especially those of men with lower levels of education. Related: Why robots should be taxed if they take people's jobs | Robert Shiller Justin Tobin, founder of the innovation consultancy DDG, says he believes: "More and more independent thinkers are realizing that when being an employee is the equivalent to putting all your money into one stock - a better strategy is to diversify your portfolio. So you're seeing a lot more people looking to diversify their career." Faith Popcorn, a futurist, echoes the idea that we will all have to become as agile as possible and "have many forms of talent and work that you can provide the economy". In the future, she says, we'll all have seven or eight jobs, with the average adult working for a number of companies simultaneously rather than working for one big corporation. "We're in the midst of this huge sweeping change that is going to impact all levels of society," Popcorn warns. Predicting the future is Popcorn's livelihood, and she's made herself a bit of a legend over the years doing so, but even she seems a little unsettled by the pace of change today. As she tells me with a world-weary sigh, it "just makes you want to have some more tequila".

RBI reconstituted Overseeing Committee
MMNN:23 Jun 2017

Agencies, Mumbai The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) has reconstituted the Overseeing Committee (OC) to include five members from two earlier to expedite resolution of stressed assets in the banking system. The three new members of the OC are: MBN Rao , YM Deosthalee and S Raman. Mr Raman will join the OC on September 7. So far, the committee had only two members "Pradeep Kumar and Janki Ballabh. Kumar is the Chairman of the OC.

Are half-baked anti-profiteering rules a nightmare in the making?
MMNN:21 Jun 2017

Businesses are worried whether anti-profiteering rules under GST would lead to witch-hunting by taxmen In the current format, the government's anti-profiteering rules on the goods and services tax (GST) raise more questions than answers. While the intent is to curtail inflation post-GST implementation, the notification suffers from a lamentable lack of clarity on many aspects, increasing uncertainty for businesses. To begin with, the law would be applicable to all businesses irrespective of their nature or revenue. Since businesses are already struggling to brace for the 1 July deadline, tax experts say it would have been better if these provisions were restricted to those having oligopolistic markets or ones where a significant inflationary spiral is expected due to GST. "The concern at this point in time is whether the sweeping provisions provided in the law can be effectively enforced without affecting business confidence. Also, every reduction in tax rates or increase in input tax credit may not lead to a corresponding reduction in prices as there could be simultaneous upward movement of costs of raw material or forex swings," said MS Mani, senior director (indirect tax) at advisory firm Deloitte India.

Retro tax on Cairn: I-T dept orders recovery of Rs 10K cr, to seize shares in Indian firm
MMNN:19 Jun 2017

The Income Tax Department has ordered coercive action against Cairn Energy Plc to recover Rs 10,247 crore of retrospective tax after the British oil firm lost a challenge to the move before an international arbitration panel. The department ordered taking away $104 million dividend due to it from its remaining stake in the erstwhile subsidiary Cairn India (now called Vedanta Ltd) and another Rs 1,500 crore of tax refund due to it, a top source said. This follows an international arbitration panel last week deciding not to entertain a plea by Cairn Energy seeking injunction against the coercive action to recover the tax. The source said the tax department will now move to take over the 9.8% shareholding Cairn Energy had in Cairn India. In an emailed statement, Cairn Energy confirmed the tax department's move. "On June 16, 2017 the Indian Income Tax Department (IITD) issued an order to Vedanta India Ltd (VIL) directing it to pay over any sums due to Cairn. Sums due to Cairn from VIL now total USD 104 million, including historical dividends of $ 53 million and a further dividend of $ 51 million after the merger of CIL and VIL," it said. The company said however that it will continue with the international arbitration proceedings against the retrospective tax demand. "Cairn is seeking full restitution for (UK-India Bilateral Investment Treaty) Treaty breaches resulting from the expropriation of its investments in India in 2014, the attempts to enforce retrospective tax measures and the failure to treat the Company and its investments fairly and equitably," it said. The company said it has a high level of confidence in its case under the Treaty and, in addition to resolution of the retrospective tax dispute, its claim seeks damages equal to the value of the Group's residual shareholding in Cairn India at the time it was attached (approximately $1 billion).

US Fed raises key interest rate to 1.0-1.25%, unveils cuts to bond holdings
MMNN:15 Jun 2017

The decision lifted the Federal Reserve's benchmark lending rate by a quarter percentage point to a target range of 1.00% to 1.25% The Federal Reserve raised interest rates on Wednesday for the second time in three months, citing continued US economic growth and job market strength, and announced it would begin cutting its holdings of bonds and other securities this year. The decision lifted the US central bank's benchmark lending rate by a quarter percentage point to a target range of 1.00% to 1.25% as it proceeds with its first tightening cycle in more than a decade. In its statement following a two-day meeting, the Fed's policy-setting committee indicated the economy had been expanding moderately, the labour market continued to strengthen and a recent softening in inflation was seen as transitory. The Fed also gave a first clear outline on its plan to reduce its $4.2 trillion (3.28 trillion pounds) portfolio of Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities, most of which were purchased in the wake of the 2007-2009 financial crisis and recession. "The committee currently expects to begin implementing a balance sheet normalisation programme this year, provided that the economy evolves broadly as anticipated," the Fed said in its statement. The central bank said it would gradually ramp up the pace of its balance sheet reduction and anticipates the plan would feature halting reinvestments of ever-larger amounts of maturing securities. The Fed said the initial cap for Treasuries would be set at $6 billion per month initially and increase by $6 billion increments every three months over a 12-month period until it reached $30 billion per month in reductions to its holdings. For agency debt and mortgage-backed securities, the cap will be $4 billion per month initially, increasing by $4 billion at quarterly intervals over a year until it reached $20 billion per month. US stocks rose after the Fed announcement, while the dollar reversed some of its earlier losses. "The Fed announcing an update to their reinvestment principles leaves September open. The start of balance sheet runoff and the fact that they haven't slowed their projected path of rate hikes suggest they can do both balance sheet and rate hikes at the same time," said Gennady Goldberg, interest rate strategist at TD Securities. Fed Chair Janet Yellen was holding a press conference at 2:30pm EDT (1830 GMT). Eyes on inflation The Fed has now raised rates four times as part of a normalization of monetary policy that began in December 2015. The central bank had pushed rates to near zero in response to the financial crisis. Policymakers also released their latest set of quarterly economic forecasts which showed temporary concern about inflation and continued confidence about economic growth in the coming years. They forecast US economic growth of 2.2% in 2017, an increase from the previous projection in March. Inflation was expected to be at 1.7% by the end of this year, down from the 1.9% previously forecast. A retreat in inflation over the past two months has caused jitters among some Fed officials who fear that the shortfall, if sustained, could alter the pace of future rate hikes. Earlier on Wednesday, the Labor Department reported consumer prices unexpectedly fell in May, the second drop in three months. The Fed's preferred measure of underlying inflation has retreated to 1.5%, from 1.8% earlier this year, and has run below the central bank's 2% target for more than five years. Expectations of any fiscal stimulus in the near term from the Trump administration have also waned with campaign promises on tax cuts, regulation rollbacks and infrastructure spending either still on the drawing board or facing hurdles in Congress. Interest rates are seen rising one more time by the end of this year, according to the median projection of the forecasts released with the Fed's policy statement, in keeping with the previous forecast. Estimates for the unemployment rate by the end of this year moved down to 4.3%, the current level, and to 4.2% in 2018, indicating the Fed believes the labour market will continue to tighten. The median estimate of the long-run neutral rate, which is seen as the level of monetary policy that neither boosts nor slows the economy, was unchanged at 3.0%. Minneapolis Fed president Neel Kashkari dissented in Wednesday's decision.

WPI inflation in May cools to 5-month low of 2.17%
MMNN:14 Jun 2017

Inflation based on the wholesale price index fell to a five-month low of 2.17% in May, mainly because of a sharp drop in prices of vegetables. In December, the reading was 2.10%. WPI inflation was 3.85% in April and (-)0.9% in May 2016. Pulses and cereals saw a slower growth in prices. The wholesale price index (WPI) for the month is based on the new base year 2011-12, which was revised last month from 2004-05, with an aim to reflect the macroeconomic picture more accurately. The slowdown in wholesale inflation comes against the backdrop of retail inflation easing to a multi-year low of 2.18% in May. Government data showed that prices of food articles shrank by 2.27% in May on an yearly basis. The inflation print for vegetables read (-)18.51 %. While potato saw a deflation of 44.36 %, for onion, it came in at 12.86 %. The rate of price increase was 4.15 % in cereals, down from 6.67 % in May last year. Protein-rich pulses turned cheaper in May as prices fell by 19.73 %. Eggs, meat and fish saw a price decline of 1.02 % annually. The index basket of the new series has a total of 697 items, including 117 for primary articles, 16 for fuel and power and 564 for manufactured products. There was acceleration in prices of fuel and power (11.69 %) and manufactured products (2.55 %). However, the price rise in sugar, which falls under the category of manufactured items, slowed to 12.83 % in May, from 23.12 % a year earlier.

Google's Gboard to now recognise hand-drawn emojis, suggest phrases as you type
MMNN:13 Jun 2017

Google rolled out the Gboard for more than 200 languages, besides expanding support for languages like Hawaiian, Maori and Belgian French. Thanks to the latest update of Google's Android keyboard, you will now be able to draw the emoji you wish to send across. The update makes the Google keyboard, called Gboard, more user-oriented on Android devices. To start with, you can draw emojis which you are struggling to find on the emoji keyboard. "In the emoji search box, you can now tap the emoji handwriting icon to draw emoji directly onto the screen. Your drawing will automatically be recognised and show results for your favourite emoji," Google said in a blogpost on Tuesday. In the latest update, Gboard has taken predictive typing to next level. It now suggests phrases that could follow, instead of words, as you type. Google gave an example: Try typing "looking forward" and Gboard suggests "to seeing" or "to it" as you type. This is supported in English today and will be rolling out to more languages soon. The Google Search on Android phones will now show multiple, more interactive result cards. Google rolled out the Gboard for more than 200 languages, besides expanding support for languages like Hawaiian, Maori and Belgian French

India's plan to develop Iran's Chabahar port yet to see light as US weighs sanction
MMNN:10 Jun 2017

Western manufacturers are shying away from supplying equipment for an Iranian port that India is developing for fear the United States may reimpose sanctions on Tehran, Indian officials say, dealing a blow to New Delhi's strategic ambitions in the region. Lying on the Gulf of Oman along the approaches to the Straits of Hormuz, the port of Chabahar is central to India's hopes to crack open a transport corridor to Central Asia and Afghanistan that bypasses arch-rival Pakistan. India committed $500 million to speed development of the port after sanctions on Iran were lifted following a deal struck between major powers and Tehran to curb its nuclear program in 2015. But the state-owned Indian firm that is developing Chabahar is yet to award a single tender for supplying equipment such as cranes and forklifts, according to two government sources tracking India's biggest overseas infrastructure push. US President Donald Trump denounced the nuclear agreement on the campaign trail, and since taking office in January has accused Iran of being a threat to countries across the Middle East.
Swiss engineering group Liebherr and Finland's Konecranes and Cargotec have told India Ports Global Pvt Ltd, which is developing the deep water port, they were unable to take part in the bids as their banks were not ready to facilitate transactions involving Iran due to the uncertainty over US policy, the two officials said in separate conversations with Reuters. These firms dominate the market for customised equipment to develop jetties and container terminals. One official said the first tender was floated in September, but attracted few bidders because of the fear of renewed sanctions. That fear has intensified since January. "Now the situation is that we are running after suppliers," one official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of matter. A Konecranes spokeswoman declined to comment beyond confirming the company was not involved in the project. Cargotec and Liebherr did not respond to requests for comment. Some tenders have been floated three times since September because they failed to attract bidders. A Chinese firm, ZPMC, has since come forward to supply some equipment, the same Indian official said.

Banks can now lend more, cheaper home loans likely
MMNN:8 Jun 2017

The reduction in the amount banks have to set aside (also called a provision) also mean lower home loan rates.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday made it possible for banks to lend more to home-buyers, and at lower rates, in a move that should benefit customers as well as real estate developers. The central bank did this by reducing the amount of money banks have to set aside (as security) on home loans. Previously, they had to set aside 0.4% or Rs 400 per lakh. This has now been reduced to 0.25%, or Rs 250 per lakh. Combined with the cut in the statutory liquidity ratio (the portion of deposits which banks have to invest in government securities) by 50 basis points, or 0.5 percentage point, this means banks now have that much more capital to lend. The reduction in the amount banks have to set aside (also called a provision) also mean lower home loan rates. The central bank also reduced the so-called risk weightage on home loans of between Rs 30 lakh and Rs 75 lakh to 35% from 50%, and over Rs 75 lakh to 50% from 75%. Risk weights are used to calculate the minimum amount of capital that must be held by banks to reduce the risk of insolvency. This could make bigger home loans less expensive (typically loans above Rs 75 lakh were up to 0.5 percentage points more expensive, in terms of interest than other loans). "When risk weightage drops it means the banks have that much more money to lend. If it has dropped by one third it means the cost of doing business comes down which makes it possible for banks to then cut interest rate and pass it on to the borrowers," said Rajeev Ahuja, chief operating officer, RBL Bank Ltd. The reduction in rates will be higher for bigger ticket size loans which are already more expensive when compared to loans of lower value. Currently, the interest rate on home loans above Rs 75 lakh is higher. For instance, SBI offer an interest rate of 8.35% for loan amount below Rs 30 lakh while for loan above Rs 75 lakh the interest rate is at 8.65%. RBI's decision was prompted by an understanding of the multiplier effect of home loans, according to N.S. Vishwanathan, deputy governor of RBI. His reference is to the fact that an increase in home loans means more home sales, which will benefit real estate developers, and companies in the construction, cement and steel businesses at one end, and companies in the furniture and appliance businesses at another. "Delinquencies (are) generally among the lowest in home loan segment....It has been decided to reduce risk weight on certain categories on home loans and also the standard asset provisioning," Vishwanathan added. According to Vishwanathan, reduction of statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) by 50 basis points will help banks in achieving 100% liquidity coverage ratio by January 2019. These two factors together will bring buoyancy to the home loan segment. Credit to the housing segment has increased by 13.4% year-on-year at the end of April. Banks are focusing on affordable housing as demand from other sectors of the economy has dried up and to take advantage of incentives offered by the government to home buyers. Many banks have reduced their home loan rates. The government on 31 December announced the Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme for Middle Income Groups, where interest subsidy of 4% was granted on housing loans of up to Rs 9 lakh and 3% on housing loans of up to Rs 12 lakh. According to a report by CLSA India Pvt., housing sales could rise from Rs7 trillion in financial year 2017 to Rs17 trillion by fiscal 2024 on the back of market growth and impetus to affordable housing. "The decision to reduce the risk weights for home loans over Rs. 30 lakh category will release capital for the banking industry and is a positive move," said Arundhati Bhattacharya, chairman of State bank of India (SBI). Banks have already been aggressively cutting rates in the home loan segment. SBI, the country's largest lender, for instance, has already cut its one-year marginal cost of funds based lending rate (MCLR)--the rate linked to its home loans--to 8% currently from 9.20% in April 2016, when MCLR first came into effect.

15th meeting of GST Council in Delhi tomorrow
MMNN:2 Jun 2017

Union Minister for Finance, Defence and Corporate Affairs, Arun Jaitley, will chair the 15th meeting of the GST Council here tomorrow.
The meeting, to be held at Vigyan Bhavan, is important because it is likely to finalise the rates of tax and cess to be levied on the commodities remaining after the fitment exercise in the 14th GST Council Meeting, Ministry of Finance said in a statement today. Besides, approval of amendments to the draft GST Rules and related Forms are also on the agenda of the one- day meeting. The meeting is likely to be attended by the Finance Ministers of different states/UTs besides senior officers.

Cabinet may decide on FIPB abolition today
MMNN:24 May 2017

The Union cabinet is expected to clear a proposal on Wednesday to allow direct approval to foreign investment proposals by ministries as part of the government's efforts to expand the ease of doing business.
In the latest push for ease of doing business, the Union cabinet is expected to allow direct approval to foreign investment proposals by ministries. The likely clearance of the proposal on Wednesday can also speed up the much-needed investment process amid the Narendra Modi government's desperate push for job generation. During this year's Union budget presentation, finance minister Arun Jaitley had announced that the decades-old Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), which clears proposals up to Rs 5000 crore, would be scrapped. India has opened up most of the sectors to enable foreign companies to set up shop in the country. This in turn has reduced the utility of the FIPB. "The Cabinet is likely to take up the proposal of abolishing FIPB at its meeting on Wednesday," official sources said. The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, DIPP, will act as the nodal body for all foreign investment proposals, a source added. The FIPB was initially constituted under the Prime Minister's Office in the wake of economic liberalisation in the early 1990s. It vets sectors such as defence and retail trading. After the abolition of the FIPB, sources said, ministries concerned will clear FDI proposals.FDI inflows touched a record $60.1 billion in 2016-17, as the Narendra Modi government eased rules to lure global conglomerates to enter India. In the last three years, the government has eased 87 FDI rules across 21 sectors to accelerate economic growth and boost jobs.

Tata Motors cuts up to 1,500 managerial jobs
MMNN:24 May 2017

Tata Motors says blue collar or worker jobs have not been impacted as part of the exercise.
Tata Motors said on Tuesday it has reduced its managerial workforce by up to 1,500 people domestically as part of an organisational restructuring exercise. "The reference (total managers) on which we started (the exercise) was in the vicinity of 13,000...we do see as far as the white collar population is concerned, an overall reduction in the vicinity of 10-12% (up to 1,500)," managing director and chief executive Guenter Butschek told reporters here. He was speaking after announcing the company's earnings for the fiscal 2016-17. The company joins a growing number of organisations adopting such strategies for a variety of reasons, ranging from cutting the flab to automation. These job cuts, which have led to concerns on 'jobless economic growth' in various quarters, have been across multiple sectors, including capital goods, banking & finance, and information technology. Engineering, procurement and construction major Larsen and Toubro had announced shedding of 14,000 jobs in the first half of FY17, HDFC Bank has also reduced its workforce by over 10,000 in the second half of FY17 alone. In the IT segment, the country's largest private sector employer, some estimates have pegged the job losses at over 50,000. The Tata Motors management, however, said blue collar or worker jobs have not been impacted as part of the exercise. With the aim to reduce the number of managerial levels to 5 from the earlier 14, the top automaker undertook a review during the last financial year and identified the possibilities for restructuring. "We underwent a very detailed exercise in terms of the roles, the requirements and the fitment of the roles etc. It was a very comprehensive exercise which we rolled out over a 6-9 month period which also factored in performance and leadership qualities," the company's group chief financial officer, C Ramakrishnan, told PTI. Terming it as a "holistic fundamental review", he said the programme has been completed now and the company will be coming out with a new structure soon. Officials said the exercise was carried out with a view to get ownership and accountability within the organisation and not to cut costs. While some of the affected employees were given voluntary retirement option, some were transfered to a services arm -- Global Delivery Centre, the officials said. However, they did not quantify the number of people moved to the services arm which is based out of Pune.

Enough is enough: SC orders sale of Sahara's Rs 34,000 crore Aamby Valley
MMNN:17 April 2017

The Supreme Court today asked Bombay High Court's official liquidator to sell the Rs 34,000 crore worth of properties of the Aamby Valley owned by the Sahara Group and directed its chief Subrata Roy to personally appear before it on April 28.
"Enough is enough. You cannot say something today and resile tomorrow," a bench, comprising Justices Dipak Misra, Ranjan Gogoi and A K Sikri, said, taking strong note of non- submission of over Rs 5,000 crore by the Sahara group.
The bench also cautioned Roy from playing with the court's order and said non-compliance of its order would invite the wrath of the law and ultimately he will be at his own peril.
The bench asked the official liquidator, attached with the Bombay High Court, to auction the Aamby Valley properties, estimated to be worth Rs 34,000 crore, and directly report to it.
The bench also directed Roy and his group as well as SEBI to provide all necessary details relating to the properties to the official liquidator within 48 hours.
Meanwhile, the top court restrained one Prakash Swamy, who has filed an affidavit with regard to the sale of Sahara hotels in the USA, from leaving India and asked him to deposit Rs 10 crore as fine with the market regulator SEBI.
Swamy will also have to appear in person in the apex court on April 28.
The Supreme Court had on April 6 warned the Sahara Group that if it failed to deposit Rs 5092.6 crore in SEBI-Sahara refund account by April 17 in pursuance of its order, it will be "compelled" to auction its property at the Aamby Valley in Pune.
The top court had told the group that no extension of time would be granted for depositing the amount.
The observation had come when the lawyer mentioned an interim plea seeking extension of time for depositing the money in the SEBI-Sahara refund account.
The court had also observed that it had clearly told the group that a "substantial amount" must come in the refund account.
"Whatever you do, we had told you that a substantial amount must come. Otherwise we will be compelled to put up Aamby Valley for auction," the bench had said, noting "What matters is the money coming in the kitty." The apex court had on February 28 said "in case, the substantial amount is deposited, this court may think of extending the time, otherwise appropriate direction shall be issued".
The court had last month ordered an international real estate firm, which had shown willingness to buy Sahara's stake in New York-based Plaza Hotel for USD 550 million, to deposit Rs 750 crore in the SEBI-Sahara refund account, instead of the apex court registry to show its bonafide.
The top court had earlier directed attachment of Sahara Group's prime property for realisation of money to be paid to its investors.
It had also asked the group to provide it within two weeks the list of "unencumbered properties" which can be put up for public auction to realise the remaining over Rs 14,000 crore of the principal amount of around Rs 24,000 crore that has to be deposited in the SEBI-Sahara account for refunding the investors.
The court had on November 28 last year asked Subrata Roy to deposit Rs 600 crore more by February 6 in the refund account to remain out of jail and warned that failure to do so would result in his return to prison.
It had on May 6, 2016 granted a four-week parole to Roy to attend the funeral of his mother. His parole has been extended by the court ever since. Roy was sent to Tihar jail on March 4, 2014.
Besides Roy, two other directors -- Ravi Shankar Dubey and Ashok Roy Choudhary -- were arrested for failure of the group's two companies -- Sahara India Real Estate Corporation (SIRECL) and Sahara Housing Investment Corp Ltd (SHICL) -- to comply with the court's August 31, 2012 order to return Rs 24,000 crore to their investors.
However, director Vandana Bhargava was not taken into custody.

WPI inflation falls to 5.7% in March due to easing fuel prices
MMNN:17 April 2017

Inflation based on the wholesale price index slipped to 5.70 per cent in March due to easing fuel prices and cost decline of manufactured goods even as food prices hardened.
The WPI inflation, reflecting the annual rate of price rise, in February was 6.55 per cent. In March 2016, the print came in at (-)0.45 per cent.
According to official data released on Monday, food prices saw a sharp rise of 3.12 per cent in March compared to 2.69 per cent in the previous month.
This is primarily because of a steep price jump in vegetables where inflation stood at 5.70 per cent. As for fruits, the figure was also high at 7.62 per cent, while for egg, meat and fish, it was 3.12 per cent.
Fuel inflation declined to 18.16 per cent, from 21.02 per cent in February.
The manufactured items witnessed some softening in price rise, with inflation at 2.99 per cent in March, as against 3.66 per cent in the previous month.
The government also revised upwards January inflation to 5.53 per cent from the provisional estimate of 5.25 per cent.
Earlier this month, the Reserve Bank had left key policy rate unchanged at 6.25 per cent for the third review in a row citing upside risks to inflation. It had, however, increased the reverse repo rate -- which it pays to banks for parking funds with it -- by 0.25 per cent to 6 per cent, narrowing the policy rate corridor.
For 2017-18, it projected retail inflation to average 4.5 per cent in the first half and 5 per cent in the second half.
Data released last week showed that retail inflation touched a five-month high of 3.81 per cent in March on costlier food items and non-food products like fuel and light. RBI frames its monetary policy stance on the basis of retail inflation.

Flipkart raising $1.4 bn from Microsoft, Tencent, eBay shows Indian e-commerce is going strong
MMNN:10 April 2017

India's first and largest home-grown e-commerce player has moved to the centrestage with a funding of $1.4 billion from Tencent, eBay and Microsoft.
The transaction values Flipkart at $11.6 billion. This comes at a time when investors, concerned over the profitability and rising competition, are marking down the company's valuation. In February, Morgan Stanley mutual fund had marked down the valuation of the company for the fifth time to around $5.37 billion. Compare this with the $15 billion value the company commanded in 2015.
The latest round of funding has been viewed with much positivity by the trade primarily because many expect this to help the company get wings to soar and take on deep-pocketed Amazon.
The funding only shows that the ecommerce story in India is going strong and that there is market growth in the sector, said Paula Mariwala, partner, Seedfund and co-founder, Stanford Angels. "What did not work was the economics of acquiring customers and customer services. This development shows that the fundamentals of the growth story is intact and ecommerce continues to be a solution for products, consumers and marketers who want to reach out to consumers," said Mariwala. The funding only goes on to prove that the promise held out by the sector still holds true, she added.
The sector is ripe for correction and funding of this kind will buoy the sagging sector which is seeing many players bleeding on account of intense competition and the discounts game to attract customers. "The sector is right for course correction be it in furniture, food delivery or digital wallets. There are too many players across segments in the e-commerce space and it is time for the stronger players to consolidate their position with mergers and then becoming a stronger contender," says Arvind Singhal, chairman and managing director of Technopak Advisors, a retail industry consulting firm.
When one player dominates the market and the others are struggling to survive, it does not bode well for the industry per se and also the consumers, says an analyst.
The government has given a fillip to digital payments post-demonetisation which has further helped the ecommerce sector. People are adopting the digital medium faster than ever. The India story has got stronger with a large number of people using the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) platform developed by the National Payments Corporation of India. All this will only help ecommerce players to penetrate deeper into the market.
Under these circumstances, when a home-grown player like Flipkart gets a helping hand, it is a win-win situation for the company and its investors. "I don't think Flipkart qualifies to be called a home-grown player any more," said an analyst, pointing out to the fact that not just Flipkart but most ecommerce players are no longer run by the promoters but the investors who are keen on growth and not in a hurry to exit the market.
By the end of this year, more consolidations in the e-commerce sector is expected. "Consolidation is one solution to growth. It is happening all across the country," said Anil Talreja ,Partner, Deloitte Haskins & Sells. He said, in the ecommerce sector, there is always an issue with regard to startups and sustainability. If you are not in a position to sustain yourself and get a helping hand and subsume into that, it is a way to growth, he said.
According to another analyst, the biggest asset in the space is connect with customers. In this case, Flipkart is a company with this asset already. "The funders are willing to pump in money so as to enlarge the customer base and get loyal ones on board," the analyst said.
However, Singhal points out the development proves the sector has enough space for more than large players. "People have been speculating on the demise of Flipkart or its merger with partners not of its liking. This funding only goes to show that there is space for more players in the market," said Singhal.
What is curious about the Flipkart deal is its buying out eBay's India operation while the latter makes an investment in Flipkart. eBay, a first mover in the category, had lost much of its sheen and was not in the race at all for some years now. "It has had a face-saver with its buy-out by Flipkart and also by making an investment in Flipkart," said Mariwala.

With demands not yet met, petrol pumps threatens to take off every Sunday
MMNN:10 April 2017

With the government yet to decide on their demand for higher commission, the petrol pump owners have threatened to take off every Sunday. As per the report 'The Times of India' the petrol pump owners have also threatened to observe May 10 as 'No Purchase Day'.
In January, amid tussle between banks and petrol pumps, the central government had declared that the pump dealers and customers would not have to pay transaction cost after owners of petrol pump owners threatened to stop taking cards. A day before, the associations had threatened of not accepting debit or credit cards, even though there was no such notifications from the Reserve Bank of India on the matter.
Speaking to reporters, one of the petrol pump owners had said that for each payment on credit cards, the banks charged 1 percent. Speaking to reporters, Delhi Petrol Dealers Association president Anurag Narain had said that banks had levied a fee of 1 percent, due to which petrol pumps have an option but to stop EDC machines from operating.
The pump owners, who were not willing to pay such a huge amount, had voiced their concern in public and had promised to retaliate in kind against these banks. Some banks like ICICI Bank had however late on Sunday announced they had not issued any such orders and were not imposing any such charge.
Coming in their support, the Tamil Nadu Petroleum Dealers Association had also said it received a notice from banks saying that a Merchant Discount Rate of one percent will be taxed on all transactions done at the retail fuel outlets.
In a response to this, the associations had announced to stop digital payment for fuel on the day. Later in the night, the announcement was taken back, following intervention by authorities.

Fake rent receipt won't help you lower tax burden anymore

  For as long as anyone can remember, producing fake property rent receipt, often from parents and relatives, has been an easy way to lower tax burden.
Such cavalier disregard for tax rule was overlooked by most employers as well as taxman, who possibly felt it was a minor transgression. Perhaps, not anymore.
The income tax department now has good reason to insist on proof from the tax payer showing that he is indeed a genuine tenant, staying in the property in question.
A salaried employee receiving 'house rent allowance' from the employer could escape paying tax on at least 60% of this amount by generating sham rent receipt.
However, according to a recent tribunal ruling, the assessing officer can now demand proof - such as leave and licence agreement, letter to the housing co-operative society informing about the tenancy, electricity bill, water bill etc. - in allowing a lower taxable income as computed by a salaried employee.
"The ITAT (Income Tax Appellate Tribunal) ruling has now laid down the criteria for the assessing officer to consider the claim of a salaried employee and if necessary question its justification. This will put the onus on the salaried class to follow the rules in availing the tax rebate," said Dilip Lakhani, senior tax advisor, Deloitte Haskins & Sells LLP.
Understandably, none of the required documents are available with salaried employees submitting fake rent receipts. There may not be any actual rent outflow from the person as he may be staying in his family home and collecting a receipt signed by his father. Even if a person is a genuine tenant, the amount mentioned in the receipt may be more than what's paid. This will not pose a problem if the person receiving the rent is outside the tax net. There are several instances where a person may be staying separately but claiming to pay rent to a relative owning another property in the same city; or, one of member of the family claiming a loan repayment deduction while another submitting a false rent receipt to evade tax.
Given the widespread practice of paying tax on only a small slice of HRA, it's unclear how far tax officials would go in questioning such claims and pinning down salaried employees.
However, ITAT Mumbai's decision to strike down the HRA exemption claim of a salaried individual for rent paid to her mother could set a precedent.
"Technology and stricter reporting system may make it easier for the (income tax) department. For instance, there was a time when many never bothered to pay tax on interest earned from bank fixed deposits. Today, it's almost impossible. In case of HRA exemption, the assessing officer may crosscheck whether the address mentioned in the ITR form is the same as the property on which rent is paid," said a tax officer.
The Tribunal ruling comes a few months after the government's decision to cap the loss on property bought with borrowed money. Till now, a person paying an interest of, say, Rs 3 lakh on a loan (he took to buy the property) and earning Rs 1.2 lakh as rent could show the difference of Rs 1.8 lakh as 'loss' and set it off against salary income to pay lower tax.
In the last Union budget it was laid down that such losses for an individual tax payer cannot exceed Rs 2 lakh.

SBI hikes transaction charges; customers decide to boycott bank on April 6

  After five years, the country's largest lender State Bank of India has decided to raise charges on various transactions through ATMs.
Some SBI customers have taken to social media to protest the hikes and called for a "no transaction day" on April 6.
They are also sharing the a text message calling for the boycott on April 6 and subsequent protests on April 24- April 26, if the bank does not remove the charges.
SBI has implemented a new list of rules for millions of its customers across India. Right from the introduction of an increased minimum balance to various new transaction charges. The new changes have been implemented from April 1.
Even customers of the six new banks that merged with SBI will have to follow this new list of rules. With the central bank introducing these new charges, there is a high probablity that other private sector banks will follow the suit and increase their banking charges.
The move came after private banks like ICICI, HDFC and Axis bank announced similar changes.
Banks including HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank began charging a minimum amount of Rs 150 per transaction for cash deposits and withdrawals beyond four free transactions in a month.
The charges would apply to savings as well as salary accounts effective from last month.

Not in talks with Paytm, Flipkart for sale: Snapdeal

  E-commerce marketplace Snapdeal on Wednesday firmly denied that it was in talks to sell the firm, after Mint newspaper reported the company was in talks with domestic rivals for a potential sale.
Mint had reported Snapdeal was in talks with Paytm and Flipkart for a potential sale, quoting sources.
"Snapdeal categorically denies having had any such discussion. The information is incorrect and without basis. We are making decisive progress in our journey towards profitability and all our efforts are aligned in this direction," a spokeswoman said in a written statement.

China, India led slowdown in coal power development, says report

  China's clampdown on new coal projects and a reluctance by backers to provide further funds in India are mainly responsible for last year's drop in the amount of coal-powered generation capacity under development, environmental groups said in a report.
Greenpeace, the Sierra Club, and CoalSwarm found global pre-construction planning fell 48% and new construction starts dropped 62% last year compared with 2015, according to the report, titled "Boom and Bust 2017: Tracking The Global Coal Plant Pipeline."
China last year imposed restrictions on further expansion of coal-power capacity amid increasingly low utilization rates at existing plants, according to the report. In India, the ministry of power said in June that the country had enough coal-fired plants to meet demand through 2019, while a draft National Energy Plan, released in December, said no further coal power capacity beyond that currently under construction will be needed until at least 2027.
In China and India, 68 gigawatts of construction is frozen at more than 100 project sites, according to the report. The research also found that coal plant retirements are taking place at an unprecedented pace, with 64 gigawatts of retirements in the past two years, mainly in the European Union and the US.
Meanwhile, the report identified 10 "hot spot" countries including Turkey, Indonesia, Vietnam and Japan, that have failed to develop their renewable-energy sectors in step with their peers while continuing to build and plan new coal plants.

SBI Justifies Penalty For Not Keeping Minimum Balance

  Facing a backlash for levying penalty on non-maintenance of minimum balance in accounts, State Bank of India, the country's largest lender, on Wednesday justified its move saying the bank needs to impose some charges to balance the "burden" of managing a large number of no-frills Jan Dhan accounts.
The bank also said it has not received any "formal communication" from the government for re-considering the penalty and it will take a call "if something comes". It also clarified the penalty would not apply to Jan Dhan accounts.
Last week, the country's largest bank decided to reintroduce penalty on non-maintenance of minimum balance in accounts and also revised charges on other banking services.
The new charges would be applicable from April 1. The move by the state-run banking major has faced a lot of criticism, including from the opposition parties.
"Today, we have lot of burden such as we have 11 crore financial inclusion or Jan Dhan accounts. To manage such a large number of Jan Dhan accounts, we need some charges. We have considered many factors and after analysing carefully, we have taken this step," State Bank of India chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya told reporters here on the sidelines of a national convention of women entrepreneurs.
As per the list of revised charges of SBI, failure to maintain monthly average balance (MAB) in accounts will attract a penalty of up to Rs. 100 plus service tax.
In metropolitan areas, there will be a charge of Rs. 100 plus service tax, if the balance falls below 75 per cent of the monthly average balance of Rs. 5,000. If the shortfall is 50 per cent or less of the MAB, then the bank will charge Rs. 50 plus service tax.
The charges and monthly average balance varies according to the location of bank. It is minimum in case of rural branches.
Ms Bhattacharya said that all the banks have minimum balance requirement for account holders and SBI as such has the lowest minimum balance requirement.
She said the penalty was there earlier also and State Bank of India was the only bank to withdraw it in 2012.
"Our analysis have shown that most of the account holders maintain more than Rs. 5,000 on a monthly basis and so they do not have to worry about any penalty," Ms Bhattacharya said.
She clarified that the penalty on non-maintenance of minimum balance will not be applicable on Jan Dhan accounts.
Asked about the government's direction to the bank to reconsider the decision, SBI managing director (national banking) Rajnish Kumar said the bank has not received any communication on this issue.
"There is no formal communication. We will see if something comes," Mr Kumar said.
Under the revised charges, withdrawal of cash from ATMs will attract a charge of up to Rs. 20 if the number of transactions exceeds three from other bank's ATMs in a month and Rs. 10 for more than five withdrawals from State Bank of India ATMs.
However, SBI will not levy any charge on withdrawals from its own ATMs if the balance exceeds Rs. 25,000. In case of withdrawal by its customers from ATMs of other banks, there will be no charge if the balance exceeds Rs. 1 lakh.
"We are charging as people go to ATMs, withdraw cash and give it to somebody who in turns deposit it into the bank. This type of transaction involves a cost which is not known to public as bankers do not levy any charge on the customers."
"There is some cost involved in printing cash, in transportation, counting and providing security to cash. The cost is borne by the tax payers. There is a cost in installing an ATM and so we feel the charges are very reasonable," Ms Bhattacharya said.
She said the customers must use alternate channels like mobile, internet to do their transactions.
"We do not see there is a requirement for an household person to withdraw cash through ATMs for more than four times. Daily cash requirement is more for people doing businesses and we want them to use mobile and internet banking to do transactions," she said.
While addressing the convention, Ms Bhattacharya said the bank so far has given loan worth to Rs. 1,60,000 crore to the MSME sector.
"This year alone we have done more than Rs. 10,000 crore. We wish to do around Rs. 16,000 crore of Mudra loans by the end of this financial year," she said.
At present, nearly 55 per cent of the bank's balance sheet comprises retail segment and balance is to large segment.
"I have no problem at all if I am able to tilt that more in favour of retail. I would love to do that. Of course large segment needs support because of that you would have the airports ... the roads you have today, for defence you are going to set up an SME and for that you need steel, cement.
"So, the large sector also needs support from the bank. But that does not mean that we (banks) are not there for you (retail segment)," she said.

Watch out Ola, Uber's battle for market share in India is getting aggressive

  Ever since the taxi hailing application company Uber gave up on the Chinese market a few months back following intense competition from the local player Didi Chuxing, it became more or less clear that the focus for the US-based firm will now shift to the Indian market.
But here too, the world's largest startup company boasting a valuation of $69 billion, realises the growing competition from the domestic player Ola.

In China, Uber couldn't stand up to the growing onslaught from the deep-pocketed Didi, prompting the former to eventually merge its business in the Dragon nation.
With Uber exiting China, the company has got enough room now to focus on India.
As a recent Bloomberg report says, "India will be crucial in terms of both demonstrating success in large international markets and long-term growth potential".
Unlike Didi Chuxing, Ola, Uber's rival here, doesn't have deep pockets. Backed by venture capitalist, Ola has a war-chest of $1.2 billion, while Uber will divert a big portion of $10 billion it raised from Didi into the Indian market.
With the battle lines clearly drawn, Uber has been fast expanding in India and now has presence in 28 cities and handled 5.5 million rides per week in August, says the Bloomberg report.
While India's market is poised to grow at $10 billion, Uber has been making a strong pitch to enter other transport areas besides the traditional cab service via its mobile app.
According to a report in Mint, Uber plans to introduce buses and mini-vans for people through its ride-hailing app, and the service would be called Uber Everything.
"The next big innovation that the company plans to introduce is Uber Pool in buses and mini-vans," Mint report said.
The new initiative would be similar to its UberHop service, which functions more like a scheduled bus service, the report says.
Uber also looks to increase employee base at its Bengaluru engineering centre and also plans to recruit a million drivers over the next two years.
Last month, Uber also said it is betting big on its enterprise offering -- Uber for Business (U4B) -- to drive its growth in the country. In the nine months of operations, Uber for Business has seen a 50 percent month-on-month growth and the company is looking at scaling the offering further.
'Uber for Business' also allows corporates to automate uploading of employee lists and information that ensures only authorised employees have access to the company's U4B account.
"U4B was developed to provide an enhanced experience to companies, and employees, wanting to use Uber's global network for work travel. The U4B platform also includes a versatile and powerful travel dashboard that business administrators can use to manage budgets, enforce ride policies, and monitor usage and spends," Uber Asia Pacific Head (Uber for Business) Arjun Nohwar said.
Further, the US tech heavyweight is also making an aggressive drive into meal delivery backed by a wave of staff recruitment with plans to enter at least 22 new countries and take on local rivals.

India's forex reserves rise to $371.99 bn last week; overseas currency assets at $346.71 bn

  India's foreign exchange reserves went up to $371.99 billion as on 30 September, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced.
According to data released by the RBI on Friday, the reserves stood at around $371.99 billion as on 30 September as against $370.76 billion as on 23 September.
On 30 September, the foreign currency assets stood at $346.71 billion, gold at $21.40 billion, special drawing rights at $1.48 billion and the reserve position in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at $2.38 billion.
The reserves as on 23 September comprised of foreign currency assets at $345.24 billion, gold at $21.64 billion, special drawing rights at $1.49 billion and the reserve position in IMF at $2.39 billion.

Automation threatens 69% jobs in India: World Bank

  Automation threatens 69% of the jobs in India, while 77% in China, according to a World Bank research which has said that technology could fundamentally disrupt the pattern of traditional economic path in developing countries.
"As we continue to encourage more investment in infrastructure to promote growth, we also have to think about the kinds of infrastructure that countries will need in the economy of the future. We all know that technology has and will continue to fundamentally reshape the world," World Bank president Jim Kim said.
"But the traditional economic path from increasing productivity of agriculture to light manufacturing and then to full-scale industrialisation may not be possible for all developing countries," Kim said in response to a question at the Brookings Institute during a discussion on extreme poverty on Tuesday. "In large parts of Africa, it is likely that technology could fundamentally disrupt this pattern.
Research based on World Bank data has predicted that the proportion of jobs threatened in India by automation is 69%, in China it is 77% and in Ethiopia, the percentage of jobs threatened by automation is 85%," he said.
"Now, if this is true, and if these countries are going to lose these many jobs, we then have to understand what paths to economic growth will be available for these countries and then adapt our approach to infrastructure accordingly," Kim said.
He said one child policy could have been reason of sharp decline in child stunting and malnutrition, which is now at 10%.
"The one child policy could have been part of it, but anyway the point is, that if you look at educational outcomes and things like child stunting, India is at 38.7% child stunting, they are literally walking into the future with 40% of their workforce probably being unable to compete in the global digital economy, whereas China over the years has brought it down very, very low," Kim said.
"In India, it is probably partly because of sanitation that children are often in a just constant diarrheal stage, because of open defecation. There is a lot of different pieces of it. But I have been saying to the leaders of these countries that have these high stunting rates, there is like an emergency for you, you have got to tackle it," Kim said.

Better Targeting Of Kerosene Subsidy Is Government's Next Agenda: Arun Jaitley

  After the initial experiment in food and fertiliser, better targeting of kerosene subsidy is next on government agenda to plug diversion and black marketing of the fuel, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said.
"Kerosene in some parts of the country is used as fuel, and in many parts... is misused. There is a huge amount of diversion... So, states are making efforts to become kerosene free because of a lot of diversion taking place," he said at an event of the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi today.
He specifically made a mention of Union Territory of Chandigarh and Haryana trying to become kerosene free.
"That's one of the next items which is on the agenda as far as rationalisation is concerned, but there is still a section of society which uses kerosene as a fuel and therefore, you have to find a mechanism (as to) how to deal with the kerosene problem," he said.
With an aim to take PDS kerosene to the targeted beneficiary, it has been decided to implement the direct benefit transfer in kerosene (DBTK) in 39 districts in 2016-17. The districts spread across nine states have been identified in consultation with local governments, including Punjab, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
Giving examples of on-boarding of various government schemes on DBT, he said the government is now experimenting in various areas.
"Somewhere fertiliser is being experimented, somewhere food... One of the the great advantages would be to plug leakages, eliminate corruption and duplicacy and better targeting of subsidy," Mr Jaitley added.
It helps the government reach the targeted section more effectively and save money in the process that can be used for social programmes or alternatively, other developmental activities, he said.
"We are in the initial stages of various areas of implementation and I think the apprehensions which existed a couple of years ago have been to a large extent adequately addressed. Direct payment through this whole process of identification is slowly going to become the rule and not resorting to it would be an exception," he said.
"The whole idea is that in reaching the weakest section, the leakages takes place and only a small fraction reaches the targeted entity, and I think we will be able to get over that curse."