http://www.pdicai.orgThe latest news and journals from all over the world.Copyright 2005 - 2006 Feedpedia.com. All rights reserved.cement companies in India, which are on an expansion spree, have found a helping hand in private equity (PE) firms for funding their business plans. In the last couple of months, the industry has witnessed high demand for PE funding.In one of the largest PE deals this year, Baring Private Equity Asia has invested about $260 million (Rs 1,440 crore today) in Lafarge India for a 14 per cent stake in the cement firm. The funding from Baring Asia will be used to double Lafarge India?s capacity at its Chhattisgarh plant.Another company that is in discussion for fund-raising is Heidelberg Cement India, a subsidiary of German multinational Heidelberg Cement. According to reports, Bain Capital is conducting a due diligence to pick about 10 per cent in Heidelberg Cement India.http://www.business-standard.com/article/finance/cement-makers-line-up-for-pe-deals-to-fund-expansion-113052200631_1.html23 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTSony Corp cut its Sales Targets for digital cameras, smartphones and tablets by 13-17 per cent for the year to end-March 2015, but said there were "encouraging" signs of a revival in its electronics business.CEO Kazuo Hirai told a press briefing on Wednesday that Sony would assess a proposal from its biggest shareholder, billionaire Daniel Loeb's Third Point LLC hedge fund, that the group should sell up to a fifth of its music and movies business, which includes artists such as Adele and hit franchises like Spider-Man.Loeb argues a partial spin-off of Sony Entertainment would free up cash to help the struggling electronics division and could boost Sony's stock price by 60 per cent.Third Point's "proposal is one that affects a core part of Sony's business and the direction of our management, so the Sony board will give it thorough consideration before replying to Loeb," Hirai said.http://www.business-standard.com/article/international/sony-to-assess-spin-off-plan-cuts-sales-targets-113052300027_1.html23 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTA number of Indian technology startups are turning to overseas accelerators in search of mentoring and access to capital despite a plethora of domestic choices. These firms, with businesses ran-ging from personal healthcare services to specialised networking platforms, are joining Singapore and US-based accelerators that offer assured funding and links to a global customer base."Sitting in Mumbai, you can only think about going global, not feel it happening," said Kranti Agarwal, co-founder of Tushky Events & Entertainment, an online service that lists fun things to do around a city. Last week, the Mumbai-based venture was chosen to join the latest batch at 500 Startups, a US-based accelerator.http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/indian-technology-startups-prefer-foreign-companies-for-global-exposure-assured-funding/articleshow/20161074.cms21 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTYahoo! is buying blogging network Tumblr for about $1.1 billion as chief executive officer Marissa Mayer seeks to lure users and advertisers with her priciest acquisition to date. Tumblr, headquartered in New York, will continue to host its more than 108 million blogs, while CEO and founder David Karp, 26, will remain in charge of the website, "as per the agreement and our promise not to screw it up," Sunnyvale, California-based Yahoo said today in a statement.Mayer, CEO of the biggest US Web portal since July, is betting that Tumblr will help transform Yahoo into a hip destination in the era of social networking as she challenges Google and Facebook in the $17.7 billion display ad market. The price she's paying ? about a fifth of Yahoo's $5.4 billion in cash ? underscores the deal's importance to Mayer's turnaround effort, according to Zachary Reiss-Davis, an analyst at Forrester Research.http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/internet/yahoo-bets-on-tumblr-for-a-bigger-social-splash/articleshow/20160557.cms21 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTA Bangladesh factory where Walmart Stores Inc and Inditex SA inspectors spotted cracks in the wall this month is still making Wrangler shirts for the world's largest apparel maker, US-based VF Corp.VF confirmed on Saturday it was still using Liz Apparels to make its clothing following an inspection ordered by the factory owner, Nassa Group, on May 12. VF, whose other clothing brands include North Face, Timberland and Nautica, said its philosophy was to "stay and improve" working conditions."We are in daily contact with the facility and VF's leadership is closely monitoring the status in this facility and others in our Bangladesh supply chain," the company said in a statement to Reuters.http://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/bangladesh-factory-banned-by-walmart-still-makes-wrangler-shirts-113052100030_1.html21 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTYahoo Inc.?s board has approved a $1.1 billion acquisition of Tumblr Inc., a service that hosts 108 million blogs, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.Tumblr would continue to operate as an independent business and a deal may be announced as early as Monday, the people told the newspaperhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/yahoos-board-approves-11-billion-purchase-of-tumblr-wsj-says/2013/05/19/696bdc94-c0ba-11e2-8bd8-2788030e6b44_story.html20 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTIt would not be an exaggeration to say that the biggest and most effective ambassadors of China in India are the CEOs of domestic telecom and power companies. More than two years ago, when the department of telecommunications issued a diktat to all mobile operators to conduct security checks on all imported telecom network equipment, which led to delays in supplies, Tata Teleservices (TTSL) was the first to complain. For, in the CDMA mobile segment there are no vendors other than China?s Huawei and ZTE. In GSM, where apart from TTSL, Anil Ambani?s Reliance Communications forayed post-2008, all contracts have been awarded to the Chinese vendors.http://www.financialexpress.com/news/chinese-firms-dominate-telecom-power-sectors/111791720 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTCorporate India announced merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions worth $1.66 billion in April, with inbound deals being the flavour of the month as foreign firms continued to show interest in Indian businesses. According to audit and advisory firm Grant Thornton, the total value of M&A deals in April was valued at $1.66 billion through 39 deals compared to $1.97 billion by way of 60 transactions during the same period of last year.Though there was a decline in M&A value on a year-on-year basis, there has been a significant increase in inbound deals and this trend is likely to continue in the coming months.http://www.financialexpress.com/news/-m-a-tally-at-1.66-bn-for-april-inbound-deals-rise-/111798520 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTMany duped savers at Spanish lender Bankia are shunning a state-supervised compensation scheme in favour of expensive lawsuits, prolonging a mis-selling scandal and complicating efforts to restore faith in the banking system.The disputes over mis-selling at Bankia and other nationalised banks have created a major headache for the government as it tries to take the next step in their rescue, imposing large losses on holders of junior debt.http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/05/20/bankia-idUSL6N0E10JV2013052020 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTInternet retailer Amazon.com Inc. will be called back to the British parliament to clarify how its activities in the UK justify its low corporate income tax bill, two lawmakers told reporters. Amazon will follow search giant Google, which attended another grilling by parliament's Public Affairs Committee ( PAC) over its tax affairs on May 16. A report earlier this month raised questions over Google's earlier assertions that its UK-based staff don't sell to customers.http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international-business/after-google-amazon-to-be-grilled-on-uk-tax-presence/articleshow/20103051.cms18 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTDell has reported a 79 percent slump in quarterly profit as personal computer sales continued to slide, with people moving to smartphones and tablets.The firm ? which it the world?s third largest PC maker ? is currently at the centre of a takeover battle between its biggest shareholders and the company?s billionaire founder, Michael Dell.He wants to buy back all the shares, taking the company private and turning it into a business-oriented information technology services provider.http://www.euronews.com/2013/05/17/dell-s-profit-dives-as-takeover-battle-rages/18 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTEuropean Union car sales rose in April for the first time since September 2011, adding to signs that the 27-nation bloc?s recession may be short-lived.Registrations of new passenger cars in the EU increased 1.7 percent from the year-earlier period to 1.04 million vehicles, the Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers? Association, or ACEA, said today. Four-month sales fell 7.1 percent to 4.03 million vehicles.http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-17/europe-car-sales-post-first-gain-in-19-months-on-germany.html18 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTApple, the world's most valuable technology company, has lost its edge among investors, according to the latest Bloomberg Global Poll. Hedge funds sold large stakes of the iPhone maker's stock in the first quarter, Apple shares are down 40% from last year's high and the company paid higher interest rates for a recent bond sale than Microsoft ? in a PC trumps Mac moment. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/hardware/apple-seen-losing-its-innovation-magic-by-71-in-global-poll/articleshow/20113266.cms18 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT Three years after private equity firm Actis and the salt-to-steel conglomerate Tata Group formed a $200 million JV -- with an ambitious plan to spend ten times of that sum ($2 billion) in building roads over five years -- the venture is coming to an end. Actis is set to pull out of the JV and the Tatas have agreed to buy them out, said multiple sources aware of the ongoing transaction. Currently, Tata Realty & Infrastructure (TRIL), a 100% subsidiary of Tata Sons, owns 65% of the venture called TRIL Roads Pvt Ltd while Actis owns the rest. TRIL was Tata Sons' initial vehicle for its foray into infrastructure and real estate development.The Tata-Actis disengagement is likely to get concluded within the next one monthhttp://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/banking/finance/finance/tatas-pe-fund-to-buy-out-actis-from-its-road-jv-with-tatas/articleshow/20098625.cms17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTBaring Private Equity Asia is taking a 14 per cent stake in the India unit of Lafarge SA, the France-based cement-maker. This would be the largest PE investment in the sector here. Lafarge said it had signed an agreement to raise ^200 million ($260 million or Rs 1,427 crore) through the capital increase subscribed by Baring PE and representing a 14 per cent minority stake in its Indian subsidiary, Lafarge India Pvt Ltd.In 2010, PE major Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR & Co) had bought a 21 per cent stake in an unlisted entity of Dalmia Cement (Bharat)-Avnija for Rs 750 crore. http://www.business-standard.com/article/finance/baring-pe-asia-to-invest-260-mn-in-lafarge-india-113051500621_1.html16 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT Almost five years after Lehman Brothers Holding filed for bankruptcy, triggering the global financial crisis, managers of the bank's estate are demanding millions of dollars from retirement homes, colleges and hospitals. After selling most of its assets, Lehman now says it was shortchanged by scores of non-profits that were forced to pay to exit derivatives, which were unwound after the firm filed for Chapter 11 protection.The Buck Institute for Research on Aging, California, gave Lehman $2 million in October 2008 to cancel a swap contract used to manage fluctuating interest rates. Lehman says it wants $12.1 million more and has assessed at least an additional $4.7 million in interest, the research centre said in its most recent financial statement.http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international-business/lehman-brothers-goes-beyond-grave-for-millions/articleshow/20057134.cms15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTThe new Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Roberto Carvalho de Azevedo, will face a Sisyphean task in breathing life into the comatose Doha Round that has been under negotiations since its official launch in November 2011.The talks have failed to make much progress, made worse by fragmentation due to a spaghetti bowl of preferential trade agreements (PTA), many of which have been signed or are under construction. The international community?s challenge now is to resurrect trade multilateralism, because PTAs are not the best option; the bigger partners often get the better of the smaller parties in these treaties.That is why multilateralism needs to be resuscitated. But that calls for a fresh approach.http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/todays-paper/tp-opinion/whither-global-trading-system/article4715484.ece15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTSony shares rocketed on Wednesday after a US hedge fund called on the company to sell off part of its entertainment unit, in a rare bid by a foreign investor to penetrate Japan?s staid corporate culture. The Tokyo-listed stock was up 11.56 per cent to 2,094 yen by the morning break, hitting its highest levels since mid-2011 after they dropped below 1,000 yen last year for the first time since the era of the Walkman. Daniel Loeb, whose hedge fund company Third Point has been amassing a stake in Sony, proposed selling off as much as 20 per cent of the Japanese giant?s entertainment arm, which includes profitable movie and music divisions.http://dawn.com/2013/05/15/sony-shares-surges-after-us-fund-proposes-spin-off/15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTTata Steel Ltd is not the only company to have made a massive non-cash write-down on its foreign business. Many top Indian companies that have gone on a frenzied foreign acquisition drive in the past few years have had to write down their investments, as the value of those have collapsed due to sluggish business conditions.For example, Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), which bought a German polyester firm called Trevira for Rs 440 crore in 2004, which filed for bankruptcy protection by 2009. The company was later sold off by a local bankruptcy court. RIL wrote off the entire investment in the company. http://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/indian-companies-facing-the-heat-in-foreign-acquisitions-113051500017_1.html15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMTIn April this year, when India's largest IT services provider, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), announced the acquisition of France-based Alti, it hinted towards the next area of focus for the industry: continental Europe. Europe, excluding the UK, is still an under-penetrated market for IT players. However, one company which has successfully leveraged its India offshore centre for clients in Europe is Paris-headquartered Capgemini. It's a rare feat as after Dublin-headquartered Accenture, which has over 80,000 employees in India, Capgemini is only the second European company to have set up a base in the country.http://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/capgemini-takes-india-route-to-growth-113051401128_1.html15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT