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Thursday, 20 June 2013

NERVOUSNESS HAS A POINT...

The markets are right now in severe bear grip as the world sell off is coupled with domestic problems.
The markets saw a serious sell off due to the tapering of the QE support from FED. 
The fact is that the US markets and the economy is doing good so will be the markets in future. 
This is a KNEE JERK reaction to a statement which was inbuilt in the system for quite some time. 
The markets tend to react for these kind of a situations but the deep pockets make a bottom fishing 
to garner large chunks of quantities of QUALITY STOCKS. 
I have mentioned earlier when the BUDGET presentation is over, 
we can seriously expect LOW cuts in major stocks. 
The HIGH cuts registered in many quality stocks but the other just participated for a better OFF-LOAD.The Indian markets like other Asian Markets strongly depend on the developed markets. 
We will do well in future but the other local problems like CAD and Rupee 
Depreciation needs to be sorted out. 
The regular/senior market participants might have remembered that the small and
 medium companies 4- years back gone for an extent to file cases against the BANKS for mis-selling the PRODUCTS when first RUPEE depreciated steeply to 57 level.
 Now Rupee may stabilize around 57 +- two rupees for next 2 years.

The short time situation is quite favourable to BEARS especially those who shorted in BANK stocks. 
The RBI may cut rate cut in JULY-13. The bottom level buying in these stocks arround these level can offer decent returns over next one year. The INVESTMENT cycle in INDIA has damped due to RBI cautious approach. 
The approach is due to fear and the INFLATION concerns. 
This is approach is going to change in coming weeks.

We can expect news about AMBUJA cement,or news related to 
CEMENT industry is building. 

As we speak the numbers, the Nifty has very good support at 5500 level provided 
Reliance stays above 763 level. The banking stocks surged with rate cut anticipation 
and they doomed but the other stocks like Bharati, RCOM, IDEA, RIL, Dr Reddy, 
SUN, LUPIN, CIPLA, Maruti, AmbujaCement and Cairn shall not fall below 3% of their current levels

AMBUJA CEMENTS NEWS--PREDICTED

Ambuja's minority holders losers: analysts

Say restructuring is detrimental to minority shareholders as Ambuja will part with its huge cash balance Top brokerages said the complex deal between Ambuja Cements and ACC is unfavourable to Ambuja’s minority shareholders.

In a multi-layered transaction, Swiss cement maker Holcim, which holds majority stakes in both the Indian firms, will increase its stake in Ambuja to 61.3% from the current 50.01% once Ambuja buys Holcim’s 50.1% stake in ACC. Currently, Holcim owns 50% stakes in Ambuja and ACC.
“Prima facie the restructuring is detrimental to minority shareholder of Ambuja Cement as Ambuja Cement will be parting away with its huge cash balance of Rs 35 bn (Rs 3,500 crore), which is more than 90% of its CY12 cash on books, without any EPS (earnings per share) accretion,” said Emkay Global in a report.
At 12:45 pm on Thursday, Ambuja shares were down 11.2% at Rs 169.65. ACC shares had fallen 3.9% at Rs 1,183.
“Holcim has restricted minority shareholders' choice by using Ambuja ’s cash for ACC’s stake. The cash could have been used alternatively for a buy-back,” said Credit Suisse, in a client note.The investment bank said Ambuja’s proposal to buy an additional 10% stake in ACC over the next 24 months will make it a ‘net-debt company’. Deutsche Bank said Ambuja faces the risk of its valuations getting the discount of a holding company.Analysts said minority shareholders of ACC have got a better deal than those of Ambuja’s.
“ACC minority shareholders benefit from merger synergies, the creeping acquisition by Ambuja for a 10% stake in ACC over the next two years, which should support ACC prices; and Holcim’s direct stake of 50% in ACC reduced to an indirect stake of 30%,” said Credit Suisse, which said ACC’s minority shareholders benefit at the margin in the transaction.
Brokerage Jefferies said, “We expect a de-rating of ACEM (Ambuja) on 'holding company discount' concerns and prefer ACC as it would benefit from the proposed cost saving initiatives and ACEM’s proposal for a 10% creeping acquisition in ACC.”

http://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/ambuja-s-minority-holders-losers-analysts-113072500350_1.html

LIC-INFOSYS and making Money techniques....

Jul 15, 2013, 10.27 AM IST

Want to be a good trader and investor? Learn from LIC

At the end of December 2012 quarter, LIC held 4.16 cr shares of Infosys representing 7.2% stake. By the end of March quarter, this was down to 3.42 cr shares representing 5.96% stake and in the just released June-ending quarter, its gone back up to 3.86 cr shares representing 6.72% stake.

Anuj Singhal

Intriguing headline right? LIC, the biggest institutional investor of Indian equities a savvy trader? Well that ladies and gentlemen is the fact and the institution has proved it so right with the biggest of blue chips Infosys and this despite remaining essentially a large long-term shareholder. So what am I saying?Let’s take a look at LIC’s investments in Infosys over the last 3 quarters and try to see what it is up to.   At the end of December 2012 quarter, LIC held 4.16 cr shares of Infosys representing 7.2% stake. By the end of March quarter, this was down to 3.42 cr shares representing 5.96% stake and in the just released June-ending quarter, its gone back up to 3.86 cr shares representing 6.72% stake. What’s the big deal you would ask? The big deal is that by cutting its stake LIC part protected itself from that ill fated 22% fall Infosys had after Q4 results and by buying after that fall, it managed to participate in the rally that followed, especially the 10% thumbs up stock got after Q1 results. Let’s try to put some numbers here.

LIC sold 74 lakh shares between December to March. Stock moved between Rs 2700-2900 during that period so let’s assume an average price of Rs 2,800 for that period. After Q4 numbers, stock collapsed to Rs 2,300. And with an average price of Rs 2,200-2,400 for the quarter, let’s take the average price of Rs 2,300 for the quarter in which LIC bought 44 lakh shares. And now of course, the stock is back to Rs 2,800

So just for those 44 lakh shares, LIC managed to sell at highs and buy at lows with a difference of Rs 500/share that translates into Rs 220 cr of trading profit. Keep in mind LIC is a long term shareholder and would have paid no tax on the shares it sold and the shares it acquired last quarter for sure will again be held for long time.

Of course, LIC had its own compulsions last quarter as I had written here it had to raise money for the plethora of PSU paper that hit the market, but let’s give credit where it’s due. It managed to play a counter consensus trade successfully for 2 straight quarters. And that’s the whole premise even if you hold a share with a very long term horizon, sometimes a minor churn or tweaking in portfolios isn’t a bad idea

Disclaimer: The author of this article does not invest/trade in stock markets including derivatives. His only exposure to stock markets is via the stock options given to him by his employers as part of his compensation. All views expressed in this blog are my personal views and my channel does not subscribe to the same.

You can track his views on www.themarketinternals.blogspot.com

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/cnbc-tv18-analyst-markets/want-to-begood-traderinvestor-learnlic_917478.html#toptag

RATE CUT or NO RATE CUT....

Business Standard  |  New Delhi  July 14, 2013 Last Updated at 21:40 IST

RBI's dilemma intensifies

CPI and IIP head in opposite directions

Going by the release of the quarterly balance of payments numbers on June 30, and the numbers for the index of industrial production (IIP) for May and the consumer price index (CPI) for June last Friday, it appears that a new principle is in place. If the news is good, announce it during market hours. If it is bad, wait until the market is closed. The IIP and CPI numbers certainly warranted this caution. Together, they suggest that even as growth is decelerating, inflation is actually accelerating. Looking at the IIP, the index declined by 1.6 per cent relative to May 2012, sharply below consensus estimates, which were anticipating a small positive number. It has to be kept in mind that the positive growth seen during the past two months was almost exclusively attributable to garments, the growth in which slowed to a mere 14.3 per cent during May, still putting the April-May growth rate at a rather striking 50.6 per cent! Most of the other industry groups continued with their sluggish performance of the past several months. Whichever way the numbers are looked at, they show no signs of a recovery under way, belying the confident assertions to this effect by government spokespersons. These numbers provide early indications that growth projections for the current year will have to be scaled down from their already modest levels.
On the other hand, consumer inflation has accelerated somewhat, clocking almost 9.9 per cent over June 2012, about half a percentage point higher than the previous month. As has been the case for so long now, the main reason for this is food. Strikingly, the drivers of food inflation seem to have shifted from non-cereal items to cereals, which saw prices increase by almost 18 per cent. As regards the prices of manufactured goods, there has been something of a disparity between increases recorded by the CPI and the wholesale price index (WPI), for which the numbers for June will be announced on Monday.
These patterns make the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) decision on July 30 even more difficult. The recent depreciation of the rupee has already been highlighted by it as a renewed source of inflationary pressure, constraining the room for further interest rate cuts. Today's WPI numbers will provide an indication of how much dynamics have impacted inflation through higher prices of imports. If there is a reversal in the recent downward trend in both headline and core inflation, it will almost certainly stay the RBI's hand on July 30. In fact, unless RBI Governor D Subbarao's successor decides to follow a completely different tack for monetary policy, it is looking increasingly likely that the interest rate reduction cycle that began in April 2012 and reduced the repo rate by a cumulative 125 basis points has ended. In which case, the fundamental question has to be raised: where is the trigger for a recovery going to come from? With the government's attention currently distributed between the food security ordinance and finding ways to finance the current account deficit, that question is clearly not getting the priority it deserves. And, it will not wait until 2014 for an answer.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/rbi-s-dilemma-intensifies-113071400668_1.html

HDFC,M&M, IndusInd Bank...MULTI FOLD RISE in 5YRs....

FII-favoured stocks like HDFC, M&M, others log up to 7-fold surge in five years

By PTI | 14 Jul, 2013, 02.26PM IST

NEW DELHI: A clutch of 20 stocks, which have been favoured by influential Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) over the past five years, have clocked up to seven-fold surge in their valuations in this period, says a new report. 
These stocks, where the FII exposure has been mostly rising, include housing finance giant HDFC, automaker M&M, private sector lender IndusInd BankBSE -1.24 % and drugmaker Lupin, as per the report by investment banking major Morgan Stanley. 
"Of the top 100 stocks in India by market cap, the top 20 purchases by FIIs over the past five years delivered an average return 21 times more than the 20 least-purchased (or most sold) names by FIIs," said the report. 
According to data collated by Morgan Stanley, the highest return among the top 20 stocks bought by FIIs came from IndusInd Bank (784 per cent), followed by GlaxoSmithkline Consumer (774 per cent), Lupin (523 per cent), M&M Financial (429 per cent), Yes Bank (per cent) andMotherson SumiBSE -0.62 % (317 per cent) saw substantial returns on a 5-year trailing basis. 
Counters including Marico, Tata MotorsBSE 2.31 %, Ultratech Cement, Colgate-PalmoliveBSE -0.53 %, REC, Zee Entertainment and HDFCBSE -0.38 % saw gains in 107-280 per cent range. On the other hand, the 20 most-sold stocks by FIIs, including JP Associates, BHELBSE 0.91 %, Tata SteelBSE 0.57 %, RCom, JSW SteelBSE -0.31 %, Bharti AirtelBSE 1.65 %, Ranbaxy and ABB, have seen about 16-49 per cent value decline. 
"Often, when we engage in a debate on India's macro, we are reminded of the reason why foreign investors first came to India: it was largely to own companies that were well managed and whose stocks were reasonably valued - the macro environment was not the reason to buy Indian stocks. 
"The past five years has brought this reason back to the forefront. The macro has been challenging, to say the least, yet several stocks have delivered notable returns," the report said.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/stocks-in-news/fii-favoured-stocks-like-hdfc-mm-others-log-up-to-7-fold-surge-in-five-years/articleshow/21068824.cms

PNB,BOB,CANARA,..PSU bank shares bleed!! ANY RELIEF...

Chandan Kishore Kant  |  Mumbai  June 24, 2013 Last Updated at 22:44 IST

PSU bank shares bleed in first half

Outlook remains bleak, with waning rate cut hopes; experts continue to ride private banksShares of public sector banks (PSBs) are bleeding and the pain in the free-falling counters appears far from getting over. Market participants remain wary, continuing to prefer their private counterparts even in the current state of the markets. At a time when India’s benchmark stock indices have lost less than five per cent of their value so far this calendar year, state-owned banks have lost 20-45 per cent.
The country’s largest lender, State Bank of India (SBI), witnessed an erosion of close to 20 per cent. Punjab National Bank (PNB) andBank of Baroda (BoB) saw declines of 26 per cent and 37 per cent, respectively. Mid-cap and small-cap lenders such as Allahabad Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, IDBI Bank and Union Bank of India have lost as much as 43 per cent in these six-odd months. Navneet Munot, chief investment officer (CIO) at SBI Mutual Fund, says, “State-owned banks will continue to test patience. Asset quality remains a concern and in such a bad macro-economic scenario, PSBs always feel the heat.”
According to market experts, the sudden currency depreciation and rise in 10-year bond yields have postponed the likelihood of any rate cuts. “Despite a good monsoon, the sharp rupee fall might nullify the benefit of rains. We were expecting the green shoots of falling inflation and a good monsoon would come in September-October but things have gone for a toss,” says Ambareesh Baliga, managing partner, global wealth management, at Edelweiss Financial Services. He says one should not buy bank stocks in such a market, as one could expect lower levels for both PSB and private bank counters.Asset quality has always been the biggest contributor in valuation differentiation among PSBs and private banks, believes Kaushik Dani, head of equities at Peerless MF. “With a fear of slowdown and declining growth, asset concerns will only worsen for state-owned banks,” he says.
Dani continues to prefer private banks. He says in terms of profitability, restructuring and asset quality, private lenders would continue to score over their state counterparts.This year so far, against an average erosion of 30 per cent in the share value of PSBs, those of private entities such as HDFC, Axis and ICICI  have lost only about eight per cent. Kotak Mahindra Bank and IndusInd Bank have gained about eight per cent.
According to Vaibhav Agrawal of Angel Broking, “Some of the PSBs are available at dirt-cheap valuation. With positive guidance from RBI on restructuring and inflation coming down, I believe one should take a basket approach on buying into these counters. Asset quality is not getting worse and there is some sort of stabilisation in NPAs (non-performing assets).”The S&P BSE Bankex today closed at 12,775.43, about 11 per cent lower from where it started the year. The presence of private banks in the index arrested the sharp fall. Else, the probable impact could be ascertained from the 20 per cent sharp fall in the S&P BSE PSU index so far this year.
http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/psu-bank-shares-bleed-in-first-half-113062400883_1.html

Health Care--Mobile phones --lot to happen...!!!

Sreelatha Menon  |  New Delhi  June 22, 2013 Last Updated at 21:48 IST

Mobile phone: Medically yours

Bihar's model of health care through mobile phones is finding many takers

Many things may be going wrong in India, but the one thing that has gone right is the reach of the mobile phone. It has bridged the divide between the rural and the urban areas, the rich and the poor.
Governments, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and phone companies are realising the potential of the mobile phone as a tool to achieve development goals, that hitherto human intervention could not achieve. This has meant the inception of a partnership with mobile phone companies and a revenue model that profits the state, people and the company.
A year ago, Bihar started using the mobile phone to bring down maternal and infant mortality rates, and to train the otherwise poorly trained and unpaid health workers, called Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs). This mobile phone-based health intervention is being lapped up by governments in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh and might soon be included in the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). The ASHA health workers in Bihar have been taking lessons on maternal health and child care, through a mobile academy, by dialing a certain number to accesshealth care courses voluntarily, at a rate of 50 paise per minute. About 7,000 health workers completed courses and received certificates.
In another programme called mobile kunji (key), running across Bihar, mobile phone companies have alloted a common number that enables health workers to carry information necessary for pregnant women to their homes on their mobile phones.
This is, of course, paid by the government at the same rate (50 paise). In the initial round in eight districts of Bihar, health workers accessed the service for a total of 31,000 hours, helping telecom companies generate a revenue of over Rs 11 lakh.
These programmes were rolled out in Bihar in partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and an NGO, BBC Media Action, besides all telecom companies in the state.
The mobile kunji has audio lessons told by "Dr Anita", a fictitious doctor, who travels with ASHA health workers to every home.
"Dr Anita" speaks to health workers in Bhojpuri, as she explains the preparations a woman must make during the ninth month of pregnancy. She also gives all necessary tips to prevent mothers from keeping them safe during child birth.
The project involves a deal between mobile phone operators in the area, and BBC Media Action, which is implementing the programme in Bihar. According to the deal, companies charge just 50 paise a call. And it also gives a share of the earnings to the implementers of the programme, making the project sustainable and self-funded.
R Geetha, NRHM director in Madhya Pradesh, says the state would soon be rolling out the programme, too.
The mobile phone-based intervention is also being rolled out in Odisha and Uttar Pradesh. Recently, NRHM Secretary Anuradha Gupta also talked of plans to adopt this model all over India.
The BBC Media Action zeroed in on Bihar because 90 per cent of health workers had cell phones, says Priyanka Dutt, a project manager for BBC Media Action in India.
The sustainability of the model is the USP of the whole service. Airtel, Vodafone, Idea, Reliance, Tata and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) cover 95 per cent of the mobile phone market in rural Bihar. These companies gave the NGO a common short code - 57711. Different numbers can be added to this code that suggest different lessons to be given orally to the women.
All operators, except BSNL, give the NGO/state a revenue share. In five years, the implementing agency, NGO or state, would not need any money for the scheme, as the revenue share would be sufficient to run it, says Dutt.
The other service provided by companies is a 90 per cent discount on a value-added service (VAS). Though the VAS rate is Rs 6 per miniute, they charge only 50 paise, as companies are desperate to reach the rural consumer, explains Dutt. N Rajaram, chief marketing officer, Bharti Airtel, said, "The company wants to bridge the gap in access to health care through its products and services, which makes a happy triangle: state, companies and people."

http://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/mobile-phone-medically-yours-113062200626_1.html

Equities, Commodities, Currencies..CRACK DOWN....

Shishir Asthana  June 21, 2013 Last Updated at 13:56 IST

Feature: 5 reasons you need to run faster than FIIs

Trading in equities, commodities, currencies or any other asset class is often compared to surfing. One needs to be at the top of the wave and know when to get out

Trading in equities, commodities, currencies or any other asset class is often compared to surfing. One needs to be at the top of the wave and know when to get out, before the wave comes crashing and crushing everything beneath it. One such wave swept the globe on Thursday after Big Ben struck at the stroke of midnight India time. 
Nearly $1 trillion was lost in global equities after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke spoke of reducing his bond buying programme. While analysts continued in their state of denial, FIIs were busy selling their holdings in global markets. They did so in India too with the intensity not seen in recent times. 
The impact was not only felt in the equity markets but also in the bond markets which led to the rupee plummeting against the dollar. The general message across broking houses and media was that FIIs were running away. 
For a trader, it is important to get out of the door faster than others do. FIIs have been the main buyers over the last few years, even as Indian traders and investors ponder over the logic forinvesting in a dismal fundamental scenario. Access to cheap money, thanks to the freebies being on offer in the US, Europe and Japan, saw equity and bond markets being flushed with funds. While these monies have entered various economies, their exit is a bottleneck. There are fewer buyers who are willing to give these FIIs an exit. 
However, this time around, FIIs have invested in some of the most fundamentally strong and liquid scrips on Indian bourses. Thus, it will be relatively easy as compared to their earlier escapades. But exit they will as Bernanke has clearly stated that he will start closing the liquidity tap sooner than expected. 
As the water seems to be settling after the first wave, there is no doubt that there is more coming. One needs to be on top of the next wave when it comes. 
Here are five reasons that can result in the next big wave:
 
1) The US government has only said that it will start tapering bond buying, it has yet to start doing it. Impact on markets when unwinding really starts can be severe 
2) The rupee falling to historic lows can put India’s credit rating at risk. Indian government has been relying onFII flows to keep its head above water; if these stop or, even worse, are reversed, there will be fewer tools to stem the rupee fall then. India’s ratings are just a notch above junk. Once downgraded many funds, as per their charter, will have to exit the country 
3) With the new ministers taking important positions, and the performing ministers preparing the party for elections, governance will at best be in maintaining status quo 
4) Little can be expected in terms of reforms for the remaining part of the year; if at all only populist measures like the food bill will be cleared which will further impact the bloated deficit 
5) Gold prices have come down sharply in the current wave of sell-off. Lower prices will lead to more buying as investors finds gold the safest form of investment in times of crisis and in a declining interest rate scenario in the country. This will keep the pressure on the current account deficit, despite all measures by the government.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/feature-5-reasons-you-need-to-run-faster-than-fiis-113062100372_1.html

ON LINE VIEWERS INCREASED...PHENOMINALLY

Press Trust of India  |  New Delhi  May 9, 2013 Last Updated at 16:08 IST

Indians watch over 3.7 bn videos online a month

Report says online video audience in India grew by 69% to 54.02 mn viewers in March 2013 compared to 31.94 mn viewers in March 2011

Helped by rising number of people viewing videos on Internet, India's online video consumption has doubled to 3.71 billion videos per month in the past two years, a report by global digital research firm comScore said.Online video consumption in India stood at 1.86 billion per month as on March 2011. As per the firm's Video Metrix report, total online video audience in India grew by 69% to 54.02 million viewers in March 2013 compared to 31.94 million viewers in March 2011.

India currently has over 137 million Internet users."Total online video consumption has doubled in the past two years to 3.7 billion videos per month. This dramatic growth has been driven by a sizable increase in the number of online video viewers, in addition to increasing consumption per viewer," comScore said.

Google web sites, driven primarily by viewing at YouTube, ranked as the top online video property in March this year with 31.5 million unique viewers, followed by Facebook (18.6 million) and Yahoo sites (8.2 million), it added.
Video ad platforms VDOPIA (6.4 million viewers) and TubeMogul (5.5 million viewers) rounded out the top five, highlighting that these platforms can deliver reach similar to that of the top video content networks, comScore said."The rapid online video growth we're witnessing in India represents a significant opportunity for both marketers and media companies in India," comScore India Senior Director Kedar Gavane said. Even in the mature markets of the US, online video has become one of the hottest sectors of because of the value marketers place on video ad inventory, he added."As the Indian online video market begins to realise the value of its existing inventory while continuing its growth in viewers and consumption time, there will be substantial upside for the key players in this market," Gavane added.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/indians-watch-over-3-7-bn-videos-online-a-month-113050900484_1.html

ONLY BOOM TIMES...5yrS HIGHs

Reuters  |  London  May 7, 2013 Last Updated at 13:39 IST

World shares near five-year high on growth optimismInvestors are now waiting for a batch of April data from China, the world's second-largest economy, for more clues on global growth World shares hit their highest level in almost five years on Tuesday as last week's strong U.S. jobs report continued to fuel optimism about the health of the global economy.

Japanese stocks jumped in a delayed reaction to the data because Tokyo had been closed for a public holiday on Monday. The head of the European Central Bank added to the positive mood by saying it was ready to cut rates again if needed. Australia's central bank also did its bit to help the economy, cutting rates to a record low on Tuesday and signalling it could do more, helping shares. 

"I think the markets are going to continue going higher, the S&P hit another record high yesterday, the DAX is getting closer," said Neil Marsh, strategist at Newedge. 

"From a very low base, everyone is fairly optimistic that things are going to improve and if they don't, you've got the added backdrop from (ECB President Mario) Draghi that he'll do whatever it takes to push the euro zone economy forwards." 

The Nikkei stock average soared 3.7% and the MSCI global index, which tracks stocks in 45 countries, rose 0.3%, both the highest since June 2008.

European equities also nudged up as trading gathered momentum, bolstered by a crop of better than expected corporate earnings and with the German DAX index closing in on its own record high of 8,151,57 set back in 2007. 

Monday's comments from Draghi that the ECB would cut rates again if needed, including pushing its key deposit rate into negative territory, kept downward pressure on the euro as it hovered little changed on the day at $1.3075. 

The prospect of negative euro zone rates continued to underpin the bloc's bond markets too with the benchmark German Bund a tick lower on the day at 146.15. 

The main focus for Asian currency markets was the Reserve Bank of Australia's policy meeting, at which the bank decided to lower its cash rate by 25 basis points to a record low 2.75 %. 

Markets had priced in a 50-50 chance of a rate cut, and the decision sent the Australian dollar down to a two-month low of $1.0810 and helped Australian shares trim earlier losses. 

Investors are now waiting for a batch of April data from China, the world's second-largest economy, for more clues on global growth. Chinese trade data will be released on Wednesday, inflation on Thursday and money supply and loan growth expected from Friday.

 http://www.business-standard.com/article/international/world-shares-near-five-year-high-on-growth-optimism-113050700290_1.html

Internet grows to over 252 million domain names....

BS Reporter  |  Bangalore  April 10, 2013 Last Updated at 00:35 IST

Internet grows to over 252 million domain names in 2012

6.1 million new domain names added in Q4 of CY12, says VeriSign Domain Name Industry brief

About six million domain names were added to the internet in the fourth quarter of 2012, bringing the total number of registered domain names to a little more than 252 million worldwide across all top-level domains (TLDs).
According to the latest issue of VeriSign’s Domain Name Industry Brief, the increase of 6.1 million domain names in the quarter ended December 31, 2012, equates to a growth rate of 2.5 per cent over the preceding quarter. This also marks the eighth straight quarter with greater than two per cent growth. The worldwide registrations have grown by 26.6 million, an increase of 11.8 per cent over the previous year.
The Domain Name Industry Brief, which is published by VeriSign, a provider internet infrastructure services, provides statistical and analytical research on the domain name industry.
According to the report, the .com and .net domains totalled around 121.1 million at the end of 2012, representing a growth of 6.4 per cent year-on-year. As of December 31, 2012, the base of registered names in .com equaled 106.2 million, while .net equaled 14.9 million, VeriSign, said in a statement. It said the new .com and .net registrations totalled 8 million during the fourth quarter of 2012. The .com and .net renewal rate during this period was 72.9 percent, slightly up from 72.5 per cent reported in the third quarter of 2012.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/technology/internet-grows-to-over-252-million-domain-names-in-2012-113040900185_1.html

GOLD FALLS..FALL FURTHER

Gold at risk of falling to $1,200 per ounce: BofA Merrill Lynch

By Reuters | 16 Apr, 2013, 07.12PM IST

Bank of America Merrill Lynch said on Tuesday that gold may fall to $1,200 per ounce before prices stabilize.
Downward pressure on gold prices has been heavily influenced by the current macro economic environment, it said."Fears of disinflation combined with news of potential central bank gold selling have been enough to trigger this dramatic sell-off," BofA analysts said.
The bank noted that although central banks have been easing, much of the additionalfunding has been parked in excess reserves, making gold a somewhat less viable investment proposition.
The bank saw no compelling reason to increase exposure to gold right now, considering muted inflationary pressure and rising nominal rates across maturities on the U.S. yield curve, which will raise opportunity costs to hold gold.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/gold-at-risk-of-falling-to-1200-per-ounce-bofa-merrill-lynch/articleshow/19579351.cms

Trader admits fraud in $1 billion Apple stock scheme

Trader admits fraud in $1 billion Apple stock scheme REUTERS:  APR 16 2013, 10:57 IST

A former Rochdale Securities trader whose unauthorized purchase of about $1 billion of Apple Inc stock caused the demise of the financial services company pleaded guilty on Monday to wire fraud and conspiracy.David Miller, 40, entered his guilty plea before U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna Martinez in Hartford, Connecticut.

Miller faces a maximum 25 years in prison when he is sentenced on July 8, but under a plea agreement he could receive a term of five to eight years. The Rockville Centre, New York resident is free on bond.

"What happened here was out of character for a kind and generous family man who has lived an otherwise law-abiding and good life," Miller's lawyer Kenneth Murphy said. "He deeply regrets what he has done and the harm it has caused to other people, including the former principals and employees at Rochdale."The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a related civil fraud lawsuit against Miller on Monday.Prosecutors said Miller bought 1.625 million Apple shares on October 25, 2012, the day the maker of iPads, iPods and iPhones planned to report third-quarter results, hoping to profit if the company's share price rose.

But they said Miller falsely told Rochdale that the trade was for a customer that had in fact ordered just 1,625 shares.When the bet backfired, Rochdale was on the hook for $5.3 million of losses on the extra 1,623,375 shares, leaving the Stamford, Connecticut-based company undercapitalized, the SEC said in court papers.According to prosecutors, Miller also defrauded another brokerage by inducing it to sell 500,000 Apple shares, hoping to partially hedge against the purchase he had made at Rochdale. Court papers did not identify the second brokerage.The SEC said as a result of Miller's bets, Rochdale ceased operations and its staff left or was fired in November 2012. On February 25, Rochdale asked Connecticut, the SEC and other regulators to withdraw its registrations.

Rochdale is not a defendant in either case and was not accused of wrongdoing. Daniel Crowley, who had been Rochdale's president, could not be reached on Monday for comment.At the time of the loss, Rochdale was the home of prominent banking analyst Richard Bove. He later joined Rafferty Capital Markets LLC.The cases are U.S. v. Miller, U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut, No. 12-mj-00288; and SEC v. Miller in the same court, No. 13-00522.

APPs...ABSOLUTE MONEY...

App-solutely Brilliant! SHARAD RAGHAVAN:  APR 15 2013, 12:47 IST

The news of the 17-year-old boy who sold his app to Yahoo for $30 million is just the tip of the iceberg. App development is big business and young entrepreneurs in India are already monetising their apps in a big way

A few weeks ago, an extraordinary story from the usually technical world of technology made waves across the globe. A 17-year-old boy in London sold an app he had created—called Summly, it was a news aggregator that served up news stories in quick bites on smartphones—to Yahoo for the whopping amount of an estimated $30 million.

What stunned the world was not only the amount, which, to be sure, was huge, but also that the boy in question, Nick D’Aloisio, was so young. Becoming an overnight millionaire at a time when most of the West is struggling with youth unemployment? It’s the stuff fairy tales are made of. But, given that consultancy and research firms like Gartner expect mobile phone sales to grow 21.9% by 2017 from the estimated 900 million they are now and tablet sales to grow a whopping 303% in that period, it is clear that the app market will give birth to many other similar success stories.

As an example, just consider the fact that when the Apple Store opened in 2008, it had just about 500 apps—today, there are more than 800,000. Google’s Play Store, similarly, has over 700,000 apps. This market creates a great opportunity for youngsters to apply their talents and monetise them, and a lot of that is happening in India.

Startup Village is India’s first public-private partnership model tech business incubator. Located in Kerala, it has incubated a number of companies designing apps for Apple, Android and even BB10. “On the monetisation side of BB10, I don’t have full data as of now but the indications seem promising. For instance, one of the young teams updated me that they have started seeing revenues in the first month itself (for BB). They made approximately $128 dollars in the first month. We will see the story emerging well over the next couple of months. But the initial indications does look good in my opinion,” says Sijo Kuruvilla George, CEO, Startup Village.

Elaborating on this growing trend, he says, “There is a game developer by the name of Jim who develops games for iOS platforms. They are witnessing good revenues and the company has become operationally profitable in less than a year with just this one game of theirs. Ether IT solutions is also a game development company that is witnessing pretty good monetisation from mobile app-based game development. Another entrepreneur that is seeing good monetisation that I know is John Paul of Plackal.”

And some of these apps are gaining international recognition as well. Plackal’s JusWrite app, for example, won a prize at the Samsung Smart App Challenge 2012. JusWrite allows you to take notes and organise tasks on your smartphone or tablet just as you would on a real notepad. Write down tasks, categorise them, set priority, mark as ‘completed’, set a reminder and much more, all using a stylus or digital pen on a smartphone or tablet.

Kode Blink Tech Apps, another Startup Village-incubated company, recently launched its latest iPhone app, PinGeo. The app is designed for those of us who are absent minded, or those of us who are easily caught up with having fun with friends. It allows you to ‘Pin’ locations to visit before you start your trip. The app alerts you when you are near the ‘Pin’ed locations, it also tells you the distance to the location. So, the next time you go to the mall looking for something specific to buy, but get distracted by friends, here’s an app to help you keep to your plan.

While there is no data yet about whether PinGeo is making money, the previous app by Kode Blink Tech definitely is. That app, called Traffic Qatar, was reportedly downloaded by 3% of Qatar’s population. The app creates a platform for both government and vehicle owners by providing details on traffic violations, fine, alerts, updates and also allows customers to pay of their fines. According to news sources, the company is expecting a turnover of R2.5 crore from the Qatar market itself.

According to Dhanan Sekhar Edathara, managing director of Dhanew Research, incubation centres like Startup Village are important sources of advice for young entrepreneurs. “One of the first important decisions I took at that time (in 2012) was to partner with Qburst to port Dhanew Research’s popular android game Tic Tac Toe NeO to iOS, a decision that was largely influenced by discussions with Sijo (of Startup Village). The iOS version of Tic Tac Toe NeO registered 29% growth in monthly active user base in February 2013, underlining the fact that it was a solid business decision,” Edathara explained in a blog post.

Such is the great business opportunity created by apps that it has spawned a side business of companies whose single purpose is to create apps for companies. One such company, with a young, dynamic team is AppStudioz, founded by Saurabh Singh, also the co-founder of TechAhead Software. In the company’s own words, AppStudioz “specialises in giving your app idea a concrete shape with a guarantee of excellence, quick turnaround and cost-effectiveness.” And this doesn’t seem to be just empty boasts. Charging around $10,000-15,000 for an app that would take a month’s effort to make, and anywhere between $50,000-60,000 for more resource intensive apps, the company claims to be one of the cheapest options out there. Singh expects the company to rake in revenues of $2 million.

While some experts fear that the explosion in apps is a bubble—which, like any other tech bubble will burst—the fact of the matter is that the going is great while it lasts. Expect to see many more innovative apps and overnight millionaires in the near future.

http://www.financialexpress.com/news/appsolutely-brilliant-/1102703/0