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Arcelor Mittal : The world's largest steel maker, said on Thursday it will shut down its blast furnace number six at Seraing in Belgium until at least the end of February, Belgian media reported.
Public broadcaster RTBF said the move, which comes only eight months after the furnace was reopened, was due to the financial crisis and a decrease in demand for steel.
A spokesman for ArcelorMittal in London said he was unable to comment immediately on the report, which said ArcelorMittal had already taken similar steps at seven units in Europe.
RTBF said the firm preferred to decrease production in the face of a fall in the global demand for steel rather than reduce prices. It said the closure of the blast furnace would lead to layoffs, but not dismissals.
ArcelorMittal said earlier it was reviewing its expansion programme due to the economic downturn.
"ArcelorMittal's growth strategy remains unchanged," a spokesman said in a statement, adding, "However, the current market situation is prompting us to check the order of priority to be assigned to our different growth projects. We are currently reassessing these priorities."
Further details could follow when ArcelorMittal reports third-quarter results on Nov. 5.
Thursday's Financial Times reported that the company's eight-year $35 billion expansion plan was under review, including its $20 billion project for two new plants in India, on which work could be put back to 2012-2015.
The ArcelorMittal spokesman declined to quantify the size of the company's expansion plans.
Chairman Lakshmi Mittal said in September that the cost of the India project was running beyond $20 billion because of delays in securing regulatory approvals.
ArcelorMittal weathered the initial phase of the financial crisis as steel demand and prices were strong, but the company's shares have dropped 72 percent since their peak on June 6 as the commodity boom ended.
The company has already announced a 15 percent cut in European output as its main customers — the construction and the car industries — see sales slip.
Trade union representatives in France said management at the Fos-sur-Mer plant had told workers that it would reduce output and asked workers to take vacations of up to 16 days from November 1 and December 31. One furnace will cease work until the end of January, said Alain Nougue, a delegate from the CGT.
Another steel plant at Florange in eastern France would also stop output for the month of December, Jean-Marc Verin of the CFDT union said.
In Belgium, local press said workers had been told that ArcelorMittal plants at Genk and Chatelet would cease production for four weeks at the end of the year while facilities at Seraing and Ghent would decrease output levels.
French newspaper Le Figaro quoted French trade union officials as saying 13 European plants would temporarily stop work — including three in Germany. ArcelorMittal refused to comment on the reports.
European steelmakers warned Monday they are facing a difficult market climate as demand dries up and rival steel imports from China rise.
The Eurofer association which counts ArcelorMittal as a member said the market was oversupplied and might only rebound at the end of 2009.
Business and consumer confidence in the 15-nation area slipped to a 15-year low on Thursday as companies worried about falling sales and said they expected to employ fewer people.
"Fiscal deficit this year is likely to be more than the budgeted 3.1 per cent (Rs.1.3 trillion) due to over-exposure in terms of borrowings. In view of the exceptional circumstances and global factors, the government had to also raise oil bonds and fertiliser bonds, which are considered off-budget," Ahluwalia told reporters on the sidelines of a function.
As per the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act 2003, the fiscal deficit is required to be reduced to 3 per cent of the GDP (gross domestic product) by 2008-09 - at the rate of 0.3 per cent of GDP every year from 2004-05.
"The FRBM Act is effective and adoptable under normal circumstances. To make it a rigid prescription will be a complete misreading of the Act," Ahluwalia said.
Fiscal deficit is a measure of borrowings by the government in a financial year. In budgetary arithmetic, fiscal deficit is the total expenditure minus the sum of revenue receipts, recoveries of loans and other receipts such as proceeds from disinvestment.
The government raises resources to fund its expenditure through tax collections and borrowings from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), from the public by floating bonds, financial institutions, banks and foreign institutions.
"Even in developed countries (the US and Europe), fiscal deficits are set to go off targets this year following re-capitalisation of banks and infusion of billions of dollars and euros in their troubled financial systems," Ahluwalia asserted.
In the wake of dramatic rise in commodity and fuel prices, followed by global slowdown and financial meltdown, economies of the developing and developed countries are facing their worst-ever crisis in recent memory.
"In India, however, we have been taking proactive fiscal and monetary measures to minimise the impact of these global factors on our resilient economy. The centre has also insulated the states to a large extent by not passing off the burden of steep rise in fuel and fertiliser subsidies," Ahluwalia said.
Ahluwalia was in the tech city to receive a report on "technology enabled transformation of power distribution", prepared by IT bellwether Infosys Technologies in association with the Centre for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP), Bangalore, a non-profit research organisation.
Article Originaly Posted @ Economic Times
Trade Performance for 29 - 10 - 2008
- Buy HDIL @ 139 target 152 no sl. - Exited @ tgt, made profit Rs13/share . If traded with 250 share, then profit Rs 6500/trade. made high of 154.00 on NSE
- Buy TITAN @ 940 tgt 980 no sl. - Exited @ tgt , made profit of Rs 40/share. If traded with 100share, then profit Rs. 4000/trade. made high of 1020 on NSE again Rs. 40 profit.
Profit : HDIL - Rs 6500/trade , TITAN - Rs 4000/trade.
Approx Profit : Rs 10500/trade .
****** All Qty mentioned here is our suggested qty, that we mentioned in our Trading SMS with each call..
S Kumars Nationwide : (SKNL) reported a good increase in its consolidated net profit for the second quarter ended Sep. 30, 2008. During the quarter, the profit of the company rose 35.7% to Rs 586.4 million from Rs 432.1 million in the same quarter, previous year.Revenue earned for the quarter rose 43.3% to Rs 5,604.9 million from Rs 3,911 million in the same quarter, last year.
During the quarter, the company reported earnings of Rs 2.68 a share, registering a growth of 25.23% over same period last year.
Operating profit during the latest quarter increased 57.2% from a year-ago to Rs 1,333.1 million.
Nitin S. Kasliwal, vice chairman and managing director of SKNL said, ``The company is happy to announce a healthy financial and operating performance in a market characterized by varying and challenging conditions. Revenues for the quarter have increased by over 43% over the corresponding quarter last year.``
``During the quarter, the company has also been successful in expanding the reach of its products across segments and all the brands under the SKNL umbrella have increased their retail presence. The company would maintain its growth momentum and we are confident that we will show resilience,`` he added.
Hotel Leela Venture : Company reported a drop in standalone net profit for the quarter ended September 2008. During the quarter, the profit of the company declined 40.05% to Rs 240.50 million from Rs 401.20 million in the same quarter previous year.Net sales for the quarter rose 9.35% to Rs 1,095.00 million, while total income for the quarter rose 6.75% to Rs 1,256.90 million, when compared with the prior year period.
The company posted earnings of Rs 0.64 a share during the quarter, registering 40.74% decline over prior year period.
During the quarter, Interest cost decreased 15.67% to Rs 63.50 million while depreciation cost rose 37.21% to Rs 120.20 million over previous year period.
Net sales for the quarter rose 27.10% to Rs 8,744.80 million, while total income for the quarter rose 26.73% to Rs 8,751.40 million, when compared with the prior year period.
The company posted earnings of Rs 10.05 a share during the quarter, registering 26.89% growth over prior year period.
During the quarter, Interest cost increased 6.51% to Rs 260.00 million while depreciation cost fell 2.18% to Rs 188.20 million over previous year period.
The company has changed its accounting year from October-September to April-March. Accordingly, the current financial year shall be for a period of eighteen months i.e. from Oct. 01, 2007 to Mar. 31, 2009.
Net sales for the quarter rose 12.59% to Rs 3,497.20 million, while total income for the quarter rose 12.19% to Rs 3,512.20 million, when compared with the prior year period.
Unitech announced that Norway-based Telenor has entered into a definitive agreement with Unitech and its telecom companies (Unitech Wireless) whereby Telenor will invest over Rs 61.2 billion to subscribe to new shares in Unitech Wireless, resulting in an enterprise value of Rs 116.2 billion.Subject to the regulatory approvals, Telenor will hold upto 60% stake in Unitech Wireless.
This alliance will benefit from Telenor`s substantial experience in both high growth and mature telecom markets and Unitech`s proven track record and reputation as one of India`s most respected business groups.
Maharashtra Seamless : Announced a small rise in its standalone net profit for the quarter ended September 2008. During the quarter, the profit of the company rose 9.89% to Rs 639.10 million from Rs 581.60 million in the same quarter, last year.Net sales for the quarter surged 56.16% to Rs 6,021.70 million, while total income for the quarter jumped 57.96% to Rs 6,183.10 million, when compared with the prior year period.
The company reported earnings of Rs 9.06 a share during the quarter, registering 9.95% growth over previous year period.
During the quarter, the operating margin of the company declined 691.31 basis points to 14.71% compared with the previous year period of 21.62%.
Mahindra & Mahindra is a well diversified company having its presence in the auto sector, auto components, farm equipment, infrastructure development, telecom and software and trade and financial services. It is a leading name in the general-purpose utility vehicles market in India. The scheme of amalgamation of Mahindra Holdings & Finance (MHFL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, with the company was sanctioned by the High Court of Bombay on July 18, 2008. The scheme is effective Aug. 11, 2008 and is operative from the appointed date of Feb. 01, 2008. The accounting of this amalgamation was done as per the scheme approved by the High Court of Bombay. On account of the merger the figures for the quarter and half year of the current year are not comparable with that of the previous year, the company said.
JK CEMENT : JK Cement, the largest cement producer in India, disclosed a substantial drop in its standalone net profit for the second quarter ended September 2008. During the quarter, the profit of the company declined 75.57% to Rs 177.63 million from Rs 727 million in the same quarter, last year. Net sales for the quarter rose marginally 1.46% to Rs 3,616.16 million, while total income for the quarter rose marginally 0.90% to Rs 3,616.16 million, when compared with the prior year period. The company reported earnings of Rs 2.54 a share during the quarter, registering 75.58% decline over prior year period.
During the quarter, the operating margin of the company dropped to 14.22% compared with 28.17% in the previous year period. Interest cost increased 17.88% to Rs 101.38 million while depreciation cost rose 33.55% to Rs 133.55 million over previous year period.
In the month of September 2008, the company has commissioned a 7.5 M.W. Thermal Power Plant at Gotan and a 0.47 million ton Grey Cement Plant at Gotan.
Bank of Maharashtra : Bank of Maharashtra disclosed a steep fall in its standalone net profit for the quarter ended September 2008. During the quarter, the profit of the bank declined 22% to Rs 705.50 million from Rs 904.50 million in the same quarter, last year. Interest earned for the quarter rose 26.21% to Rs 10,741.30 million, while total income for the quarter rose 3.44% to Rs 11,363.80 million, when compared with the prior year period. The company reported earnings of Rs 1.64 a share during the quarter, registering 21.90% decline over prior year period. Bank of Maharashtra is a public sector bank. It commenced business on Feb. 8, 1936 and was nationalized in 1969. The bank now has 1,375 branches (as of 31st March 2008) all over India. The bank has the largest network of branches by any Public sector bank in the state of Maharashtra.
BPCL : Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) swung to loss for the quarter ended September 2008. During the quarter, the company reported loss of Rs 26,252.70 million compared with a profit of Rs 10,382.00 million in the same quarter last year. Net sales for the quarter surged 50.38% to Rs 378,506.90 million, while total income for the quarter jumped 49.39% to Rs 381,487.30 million, when compared with the prior year period. The company posted loss of Rs 72.61 a share during the quarter compared with earnings of Rs 28.72 a share in previous year period. During the quarter, the operating margin of the company dropped to 5.66% compared with 6.22% in the previous year period. Interest cost increased 4.35 times to Rs 5,338.10 million while depreciation cost rose 4.19% to Rs 2,419.40 million over previous year period. Bharat Petroleum Corporation, a public sector undertaking, is a Fortune 500 company involved in the business of refining, storing, marketing and distributing petroleum products. It was incorporated on Nov. 03, 1952 as a private limited company and got its current name in 1977.
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