The telecom space will be under the radar in India after Russia- based Sistema Telecom sent a notice to the union government, invoking the right to protect its investment under a bilateral treaty. The Russian company is the majority shareholder in Sistema Shyam TeleServices which operates the MTS mobile network. This is the first such challenge by an overseas company after the Supreme Court revoked 122 telecom licenses.
The US markets ended in the green after consumer confidence surged to a 12-month high and crude prices eased, reports MarketWatch. Crude futures on Nymex slipped to $106/bbl. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed above the psychological 13,000 level for the first time since 2008. The S&P 500 climbed 0.3%, to 1,372.18, the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.7%, to 2,986.76. The Conference Board reported its gauge of consumer confidence which rose to 70.8 in February.
Asian markets edged higher on Wednesday morning tracking positive cues from Wall Street. Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average was up 0.6%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.1% and China’s Shanghai Composite was trading flat, reports MarketWatch.
DLF plans to hive off its power assets to reduce debt which stands at Rs 22,748 crore as of December quarter. Four suitors have shown interest in its wind power assets so far. DLF expects to raise Rs 1,000 crore from the sale of its wind power business.
Vendanta Aluminium will need public consent first before it gets environmental clearance for the Orissa project. The company has been planning to build an alumina refinery and power plant for the past two years in Orissa. Government has asked Vedanta to have a public hearing on expansion plans first, but company officials are seeking waiver on grounds that hearing were conducted twice before.
Essar Oil will be in focus after it lost a Rs 3000 crore insurance claim on its Vadinary refinery in its overseas arbitration against United India Insurance. Essar had invoked its industrial insurance policy that included advance loss of profits shortly after the cyclone damaged its refinery in Gujarat in 1998. The construction was scheduled to be completed in 1999. However, the tribunal held that Essar refinery in Jamnagar would not have started the production in the given time.
The government can take some breather on the deficit front after it decided to raise Rs 12,400 crore via a five percent stake sale in ONGC, reports Business Standard. The government is expected to sell 427.77 million shares and the floor price is expected to be fixed at Rs 290 (a small premium to Tuesday’s closing price) through an auction mechanism.
Kingfisher Airlines which has been teetering on the brink of bankruptcy is looking at an equity infusion of $500-600 million through a mix of fresh funds and capital from banks, reports Economic Times. The management of Kingfisher expects money to flow in from private equity players and investments from foreign airlines if the government changes the investment rules.
Lastly, the Indian Premier League is turning out to the be the biggest sporting event for the national cricket board with Rs 900 crore IPL insurance cover which is more than double the Rs 150 crore cover for the World Cup, reports Business Standard. The Board of Control for Cricket in India is seeking Rs 900 crore as event cancellation policy for the fifth season of the T20 tournament.