Religare Enterprises, a Ranbaxy-promoted group company, is looking at buying yet another London-based broking firm, for around Rs 700 crore. However the name of the firm could not be established at present. This move comes close on the heels of Religare’s 100 per cent acquisition of London-based investment banking firm Hichens, Harrison & Co for about Rs 400 crore through its subsidiary Religare Capital Markets Ltd. According to a company official, Hichens acquisition is the first in the series of several other ventures in the pipeline.
Indian brokerages have been buying assets overseas to acquire technology, learn new business practices and expand their reach. This acquisition will give Religare firm foothold in the extremely competitive international equity capital markets and will increase the scope of its institutional broking business.
Earlier, Kochi-based Geojit Securities had acquired a significant stake in Aloula, a Saudi Arabia-based broking firm, and had also set up a joint venture company in Dubai in which it holds 49 per cent. The acquisitions are expected to gather pace with cheaper available assets overseas and will make it easier to secure private equity funds and offer share placements overseas.
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Simplex Infrastructures Ltd. bagged projects worth Rs 653 crore from different segments. The orders include civil and structural construction work of Hotel Ritz Carlton, Bangalore worth Rs 139 crore; cement plant - Chandra Cement Works, Maharashtra worth Rs 116 crore from ACC; sewerage system and allied works worth Rs 175 crore from Indore Municipal Corporation; thermal power plants worth Rs 207 crore and piling works worth Rs 16 crore. The above orders have taken the total order book to around Rs 10,100 crore.
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Indian Steel Alliance (ISA), an organization of key primary steel producers in India, has agreed to halt steel exports with immediate effect to ensure domestic supplies. ISA members include Steel Authority of India, Essar Steel, JSW Steel, Ispat Industries and Jindal Steel & Power. Tata Steel is not a member of ISA. Similarly, Cold Rolled Steel Manufacturers Association (CORSMA) is also not a part of the statement made by ISA.
However halting exports may not bring in great supplies in the domestic market, but will, in turn, is an indirect move to reduce domestic prices. As halting exports is a voluntary measure and does not tantamount to a ban, all existing orders will be honored but fresh exports will be restrained. Further, long-term contracts and export commitments against machinery imported under the EPCG scheme will be met.
With brownfield expansions yet to be commissioned and greenfield projects yet to take off, the demand-supply situation has worsened, and India has turned net importer of steel during the recent quarters. The move by ISA will give much needed respite to the domestic steel users. The immediate effect of this move is that steel prices in Gobindgadh Punjab has come down by 1000 -2,000 per metric ton (MT). The prices of ingot have come down to Rs 38,500 per MT from Rs 39,800 per MT within a day. Similarly, the rates of Round (Saria) have fallen down to Rs 43,000 per MT from Rs 45,000 per MT.
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