| Axis Bank post-issue Esop hike in limbo |
| Special resolution falls short of 75% mark as SUUTI's voting power capped at 10% |
| N Sundaresha Subramanian / New Delhi Jan 28, 2013, 20:03 IST A proposal by Axis bank to increase the number of employee stock options (Esop) in line with the increase in its capital following its Rs 6,000 crore qualified institutional placement has hit a shareholder roadblock. The special resolution to enable Axis Bank to issue Esops up to 10% of its post-QIP share capital fell short of the requisite 75% mark. The resolution got 169.28 million or 71.71% votes in favour and 66.77 million or 28.29% votes against. A senior official familiar with the development said, “Some foreign investors have mandates to oppose all such proposals to hike Esops. In Axis’ case, since the voting rights of SUUTI(Special Undertaking of UTI) were capped at 10% due to a Banking law provision, the resolution failed.” SUUTI holds shares amounting to 22.77% in Axis. However, as on December 14, the cut-off date for the postal ballot, a provision in the Banking Regulation Act restricted its voting rights at 10%.
“Section 12(2) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, provides that no person holding shares in a Banking company …exercise voting right on poll in excess of 10% of the total voting rights of all shareholders of the banking company,” the bank said in a foot note to the postal ballot results.
SUUTI holding was 97.22 million shares (22.77%) as on 14.12. 2012 (cut-off date) and have exercised voting rights equivalent to its holding. But due to the Banking law provision only 42.69 million votes (10%) were taken into account. While this did not affect the first three resolutions, the Esop resolution failed to gather the requisite three-fourths majority as it was opposed by some institutions. LIC and other state-owned insurers own close to 13% in the company. FIIs own close to 35% with Vanguard, HSBC, Centaura, EuroPacific Growth fund and Genesis holding over 1% stakes. If the entire SUUTI votes were counted, the resolution would have passed with a majority of 77.02%. While the postal ballot notice was issued on December 17, the results were published on January 28. Days after the postal ballot notice, the Parliament amended the Banking Regulation Act empowering RBI to increase the ceiling on voting rights from 10% to 26% in a phased manner. The above amendment was notified and came into effect on January 18. Axis Bank said that following this, it has written the Reserve Bank of India ( RBI) seeking a clarification as to whether the voting rights of SUUTI has been expanded and to what extent. “As and when the necessary clarification is received from RBI, necessary alteration in the result of voting on Resolution 4 will be made, if required and depending thereon the said resolution will be declared as approved or falling short of requisite majority,” the bank said in a statement on Monday.
As part of its plan to raise its share capital through qualified institutional placement (QIP) route, Axis Bank had put four items for voting by shareholders through postal ballot. Of these, first three items related to the increase of authorised capital to Rs 850 crore, to raise Tier - I capital of the Bank by issue of equity shares not exceeding 45.8 million equity shares through GDRs / QIP issue and Preferential issue to promoters of the Bank.and proposal to raise capital through QIP and other enabling resolutions. The fourth item included a special resolution to enable issue of Esops up to 10% of the enhanced share capital. “RESOLVED FURTHER THAT the total number of options to be granted under the Scheme shall not exceed 10% of the paid-up share capital of the Bank post allotment of equity shares pursuant to the resolution at item No. 3 of this postal ballot notice dated 17th December, 2012,” it said. The resolution also sought to empower the Managing director and CEO or the remuneration committee and the human resources department to implement such scheme. According to the annual report of fy 2012, the Bank’s shareholders approved plans for the issuance of stock options to employees in February 2001, June 2004, June 2006, June 2008 and June 2010. As of 31st March 2012, 24,368,087 options had been exercised and 11,428,248 options were in force.
SLIP between lip and Esop
* Axis Bank sought shareholder approval for increasing Tier I capital
* Sought to issue up to 45.8 million shares through QIP
* Wanted to raise Esop limits to 10% of post-issue capital
* Special resolution to enhance Esops falls short of three-fourth majority
* SUUTI cast 97.22 million votes in favour, but only 42.7 million counted
* SUUTI voting curtailed due to RBI cap of 10%
* Axis Bank has written to RBI to know if the cap has been raised
If entire Suuti votes are counted, the resolution would pass through
http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/axis-bank-post-issue-esop-hike-in-limbo/204286/on |
Monday, January 28, 2013
Axis Bank- ESOP PROBLEMS...
Future in Personalized, Mobile Web..YAHOO..!!!
Yahoo’s Mayer Sees Future in Personalized, Mobile Web
By Erik Schatzker & Douglas MacMillan - Jan 25, 2013 3:24 PM PT
Yahoo! Inc. (YHOO) Chief Executive Officer Marissa Mayer said the company is working on technology that will personalize content from the Web and deliver it to people on their mobile devices. Users’ data will make it possible to create a so-called interest graph to show what people have in common, helping create a personalized Internet, Mayer said yesterday in an on- stage interview with Bloomberg’s Erik Schatzker at the World Economic Forum in Davos,Switzerland. Details such as financial quotes, news, sport scores and photos should be available no matter what device a person is using, she said. The nice thing at Yahoo is we have all of the content people want on their phones,” Mayer said. “There’s an opportunity, not only to provide that value to the end user, but also to create a great business.” Mayer has invested in wireless technology as she attempts to win users and advertising revenue from Facebook Inc. (FB)and her former employer, Google Inc. (GOOG) Since becoming CEO in July, she has updated Yahoo’s Flickr application for photos, acquired mobile- app startup Stamped and announced plans to hire engineers with expertise in smartphones and tablets. “We think about how do we take the Internet and order it for you,” Mayer said. Yahoo intends to be “a feed of information that is ordered, the Web is ordered for you and is also on your mobile phone.”
Non-intrusive Ads
Mayer, Yahoo’s fifth CEO in four years, is striving to reverse the three straight annual sales declines that resulted as Web users flocked to Facebook and Google. Since she was hired in July, shares of the Sunnyvale, California-based company have climbed about 30 percent. Advertising revenue can be generated from the personalized experience Yahoo envisions, Mayer said. She said marketing dollars always follow users. “There is a way that you can introduce advertising such that it’s not intrusive, it actually adds value to the end user, and it actually enhances the experience,” Mayer said. “And that’s what we need to work on.” Mayer also is making a point of collaborating with companies such as Apple Inc., Google and Facebook, instead of competing. “It ultimately means there’s really an opportunity for strong partnerships,” she said. Mayer has made the recruitment and retention of talent a priority. She has filled out her management bench with Chief Operating Officer Henrique de Castro and Chief Financial OfficerKen Goldman, and sought to acquire small technology startups for their experienced engineers. “Tech companies live and die by talent,” Mayer said. “I got very focused on people, building the right team, particularly the executive layer, but all through the business and also the overall environment.”
To contact the reporters on this story: Erik Schatzker in New York ateschatzker@bloomberg.net; Douglas MacMillan in San Francisco atdmacmillan3@bloomberg.net
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-25/yahoo-s-mayer-sees-future-in-personalized-mobile-web.html
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Europe's crisis not over...
Bankers, policymakers say Europe's crisis not over...
(Reuters) - International bankers and finance ministers warned on Saturday that Europe's crisis was not over even though the euro currency is now stabilised, it will take years to overcome economic malaise and mass unemployment in Europe.
After a private meeting of leading commercial bankers, government officials, central bankers and trade union officials, Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg told Reuters: "There is a clear divide between the financial markets, who think a lot of this is fixed, and the people in the real economy and particularly from our side as the governments." Unemployment in Europe would only fall from 11.8 to 11.7 percent this year, growth was stagnant, real wages were not rising in most countries and it would take countries such as Sweden and France years to reform their labour markets, he said. "So it is very dangerous to declare that the crisis is over because that would undermine the crisis insight that we need to have among the companies, among the population, among the unions, to be able to go through this process," Borg said. Sweden is not a member of the 17-nation euro zone and Borg has been among the strongest critics of the bloc's handling of its sovereign debt crisis since late 2009. International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde and Deutsche Bank co-chief executive Anshu Jain, who co-chaired the closed-door meeting on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, declined to speak to reporters.
Participants said the mood this year was far more relaxed than 12 months ago, when there was a sense of emergency about saving the single currency from break-up. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi left Davos for home before the meeting and EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn, who was in Davos, did not attend. Lagarde said in a speech on Thursday it was vital for Europe, the United States and Japan to keep up the momentum for economic reform and put their public finances in order at an appropriate pace, without crushing growth. Chinese central bank deputy governor Yi Gang, who attended the session, said he had voiced most concern about trade protectionism and the negative consequences of money-printing by the U.S., Japanese, British and other central banks.
"Protectionism is a big problem and also you see quantitative easing of developed economies is generating uncertainties in financial markets in terms of capital flow," he told Reuters in an interview. "There is too much liquidity, a glut of global liquidity. Competitive devaluation is certainly one aspect of that. If everybody is QE or super QE and you want to depreciate, what currency do you depreciate against?" One senior European commercial banker, who declined to be identified, said financial market optimism that the risk of a break-up of the euro was over had gotten ahead of reality. "The crisis is not over and the notion that tail risk is gone is a dangerous one," the banker said. The economic term "tail risk" refers to the possibility of an asset suddenly losing value due to a rare event. Rehn told Reuters the conclusion of this year's Davos meetings about the euro was "no tail risk, growing confidence, no complacency, stay the course". However, a larger-than-expected early repayment of cheap three-year loans by some euro zone banks to the European Central Bank on Friday fuelled sentiment that the worst of the single currency's debt crisis is now over and markets are stabilising. Banks are expected to repay more than 130 billion euros of crisis loans to the European Central Bank next week in a sign that at least some parts of the financial system are returning to health. The ECB made over 1 trillion euros in ultra-cheap three-year loans to banks in lending operations in December 2011 and February 2012, a process which ECB President Mario Draghi said had "avoided a major, major credit crunch".
(Writing by Paul Taylor; editing by Jason Neely)
http://in.reuters.com/article/2013/01/26/davos-eurozone-crisis-idINDEE90P03Q20130126
Huge, huge oil find in Australia...EXPLORING RESOURCES..
Huge, huge oil find in Australia Published: Saturday, Jan 26, 2013, 4:00 IST By Jonathan Pearlman | Place: Sydney | Agency: Daily Telegraph Up to 233 billion barrels of oil has been discovered in the Australian outback that could be worth trillions of dollars, in a find that could turn the region into a new Saudi Arabia. The discovery in central Australia , reported by Linc Energy to the stock exchange, was based on two consultants’ reports. The reports estimated the company’s 16 million acres of land in the Arckaringa Basin in South Australia contain between 133 billion and 233 billion barrels of shale oil trapped in the region’s rocks. The find was likened to the Bakken and Eagle Ford shale oil projects in the US, which have resulted in massive outflows and have led to predictions that the US could overtake Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest oil producer as soon as this year. Peter Bond, Linc Energy’s chief executive, said the find could transform the world’s oil industry but noted that it would cost about $300 million to enable production in the area. “If you took the 233 billion, well, you’re talking Saudi Arabia numbers,” Bond told ABC News. That would be worth $20 trillion. “If you stress test it right down and you only took the very sweetest spots in the absolute known areas and you do nothing else, it is about 3.5 billion [barrels] and that’s sort of worse-case scenario.” That would be worth $359 billion (Rs1.95 lakh crore). Australia is currently believed to have reserves of about 3.9 billion barrels of crude oil - about 0.2% of the world’s total - and produces about 180 million barrels a year. The consultants reports, based on drilling and geological and seismic surveys, did not indicate how easily the oil can be tapped or profitably produced.
http://www.dnaindia.com/money/report_huge-huge-oil-find-in-australia_1792719
U.S. Stocks -- Longest Stretch
U.S. Stocks Cap Longest Stretch of Advances Since 2004
By Rita Nazareth & Leslie Picker - Jan 25, 2013 9:00 PM PT
U.S. stocks rose for the week, capping the longest stretch of daily gains since 2004, amid better-than-estimated corporate earnings and economic data as lawmakers voted to temporarily suspend the federal debt limit. Netflix Inc. (NFLX) surged 71 percent after beating its forecast for subscriber growth and posting an unexpected profit. International Business Machines Corp. rose 5.4 percent after forecasting earnings that topped estimates. 3M Co., the maker of Scotch tape, added 1.9 percent as sales growth in Asia, excluding Japan, rose the most in about two years. Apple Inc. (AAPL) fell 12 percent, losing the title of most valuable company to Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) amid the slowest profit growth in a decade. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 1.1 percent for the week to 1,502.96. It has added 2.2 percent in eight days, the longest rally since November 2004. (SPX) The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 246.28 points, or 1.8 percent, to 13,895.98. Both measures are trading at the highest levels since 2007. “People are jumping on the bandwagon,” said Wayne Lin, afund manager at Baltimore-based Legg Mason Inc. His firm oversees $648 billion. “The earnings are better. Economic figures are trending the right way. The legislators and the administration have gotten the message that they need to work together and investors are seeing that as a positive sign.” Stocks rose as earnings at 76 percent of the S&P 500 companies which reported results so far have topped analysts’ estimates. Claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly dropped to a five-year low. The index of American leading indicators rose by the most in three months. The U.S. House voted to temporarily suspend the nation’s borrowing limit, removing the debt ceiling for now as a tool for seeking deeper spending cuts.
January Rally
The S&P 500 is poised for a third straight month of gains after advancing 5.4 percent so far in January. Energy producers and health-care companies have led the rally, adding at least 7.2 percent. The benchmark gauge is trading at 14.9 times reported earnings, below the average since 1954 of 16.5. “The trend favors the march of the bulls,” said Brian Jacobsen, who helps oversee $212 billion as chief portfolio strategist at Wells Fargo Advantage Funds in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. “If we continue to see economic improvement and financial conditions thaw, we’ll see markets marching higher.” Measures of consumer discretionary and financial shares rose the most among 10 S&P 500groups for the week, gaining more than 1.8 percent. The Dow Jones Transportation Average jumped 3.1 percent to a record. The Chicago Board Options Exchange Volatility Index, which measures the cost of using options as insurance against declines in the S&P 500, rose 3.5 percent to 12.89, after falling to the lowest level since 2007.
Defying Analysts
Netflix surged 71 percent, the most ever, to $169.56. The company, which faces increased competition from rivals such as Coinstar Inc.’s Redbox unit, posted fourth-quarter net income of $7.9 million, defying analysts’ forecasts of a loss. It also signed more than 2 million new U.S. Internet subscribers, bringing the total to 27.2 million in the U.S. Billionaire Carl Icahn, with a 10 percent stake, added to the enthusiasm when he predicted further gains for the stock after the Jan. 23 earnings report. While down from the July 2011 record high of $298.73, Netflix has more than doubled since the investor disclosed his holdings on Oct. 31. IBM climbed 5.4 percent to $204.97. Chief Executive Officer Ginni Rometty is shifting away from hardware to more profitable businesses such as cloud computing, a service that provides remote access to information. The company is also looking for more growth from developing markets such as Africa to help meet its target of $20 in earnings a share by 2015.
Google Jumps
Google Inc. added 7 percent to $753.67. The owner of the world’s largest search engine reported profit that topped analysts’ estimates as advertisers boosted spending to reach consumers during the holiday season. Advanced Micro Devices Inc. gained 16 percent to $2.85. The second-largest maker of processors for personal computers reported fourth-quarter revenue that topped analysts’ forecasts, helped by sales of chips that run servers. 3M increased 1.9 percent to $100.59. Sales from existing business rose 10 percent in the Asia-Pacific region, driven by a 16 percent gain in China, Chief Financial Officer David Meline said. Including Japan, sales in the region rose 5.8 percent, compared with a decline of 0.1 percent in the third quarter.
Higher Forecast
Procter & Gamble Co. (PG) advanced 4.7 percent to $73.25. The company, whose chief executive officer is under pressure from activist investor Bill Ackman, raised its 2013 profit forecast and posted quarterly earnings that beat analysts’ estimates after gaining market share in key categories. AT&T Inc. rose 1.7 percent to $34.02. The largest U.S. phone company posted a narrower fourth-quarter loss after customers bought a record number of discounted smartphones, including 8.6 million of Apple’s iPhones. McDonald’s Corp. (MCD) added 1.6 percent to $93.72. The largest restaurant chain by sales said fourth-quarter profit rose 1.4 percent as its dollar menu and McRib sandwich helped U.S. sales. Starbucks Corp. climbed 3.7 percent to $56.81. The largest coffee-shop operator said profit rose 13 percent in its fiscal first quarter as sales increased in the Americas and fell in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. The KBW Bank Index of 24 stocks gained 1.2 percent to the highest level since February 2011.Citigroup Inc. (C) increased 3 percent to $42.91. Bank of America Corp. advanced 4.3 percent to $11.62. Regions Financial Corp. (RF), Alabama’s biggest bank, jumped 3.5 percent to $7.69 as earnings beat estimates.
Apple Tumbles
Technology shares had the only decline in the S&P 500 among 10 industries, dropping 0.5 percent. Apple sank 12 percent, the most since 2008, to $439.88. At least 20 analysts lowered their price targets after Apple on Jan. 23 posted its quarterly results. The report underscored the rising costs of product overhauls amid competition from Samsung Electronics Co. in the saturating smartphone market. Apple surrendered the title of the world’s most valuable company to Exxon Mobil Corp. after concern over slowing growth drove the shares down 17 percent this year for the biggest loss in the S&P 500. The decline reduced its market capitalization to $413 billion, below Exxon’s $418 billion. Coach Inc. (COH) plunged 17 percent, the most since 2009, to $51.21. The largest U.S. luxury handbag maker reported fiscal second-quarter profit that trailed analysts’ estimates, hurt by lower demand in North America. Cliffs Natural Resources Inc. decreased 4.1 percent to $35.71. The biggest U.S. iron-ore producer said it will take a $1 billion writedown for the fourth quarter related to its 2011 acquisition of Consolidated Thompson Iron Mines Ltd. To contact the reporters on this story: Rita Nazareth in New York at rnazareth@bloomberg.net; Leslie Picker in New York at lpicker2@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Lynn Thomasson atlthomasson@bloomberg.net http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-25/u-s-stocks-post-weekly-gain-amid-longest-gain-since-2004.html
A sprint away from life-time high....NIFTY OUTLOOK..!!!
Index Outlook: A sprint away from life-time high
LOKESHWARRI S.K.
The Sensex is now firmly perched atop the 20,000 level. But a fresh round of celebration could be around the corner since the index is just 5 per cent away from its all-time high of 21,206 recorded in January 2008. The index is emulating its developed market peer in this regard as the Dow Jones Industrial Average is just 2 per cent short of its 2007 peak, which was also its life-time high. The performance of the Sensex and the Dow is mid-range if we consider all the global benchmarks. While some such as the Indonesian and the Philippines benchmarks are trading more than 50 per cent above their 2007 highs, the Greece General Share Index is 81 per cent below this peak.Stocks experienced a touch of vertigo last week making both the Sensex and the Nifty slump in the early part of the week. But market revived on Friday on hopes of policy rate cut in the upcoming monetary policy meet. Bout of short-covering ahead of January derivative contracts expiry on Thursday also helped the turnaround.
Movement in stock prices was largely influenced by the third quarter earnings announcements. Reliance Industries, Maruti Suzuki and Larsen and Toubro gained on a good set of quarterly numbers while Hindustan Unilever went into a vicious slide after it declared a sustained slowdown in volume growth. Tata Motors too crashed after JLR announced that December quarter earnings could be lower. The Government continued to tweak policies by increasing FII investment limit in Government securities and corporate debt, announcing that exchanges should set up an exclusive platform for debt, and hiking customs duty on gold and platinum. Cash volumes were moderate while derivative volumes rose towards the weekend. Open interest in derivatives has moved beyond Rs 1,60,000 crore as traders start betting on a reversal in market direction. If stocks do not oblige, further short covering could push the Sensex towards 21K. FIIs continue to be net buyers in stocks. The week ahead is going to be very lively with F&O expiry, monetary policy meet and a bevy of quarterly numbers thrown in.
Sensex (20,103.5)
The Sensex slid to intra-week low of 19,884 before reversing on Friday to close at 20,103. The doji-like formation in the weekly chart signifies that market participants are a trifle confused at this juncture. Daily oscillators are also losing steam while the weekly oscillators are still going strong implying that the medium-term trend continues to be up. We stay with our immediate medium-term target of 20,430 and beyond that to 21,230. As discussed last week, since the second target occurs close to the index’s life-time peak, volatility could start around this level. Medium-term view stays positive as long as the index trades above 18,600. Short-term trend in the index is sideways. The strong close on Friday can help to pull the Sensex higher to 20,234 or 20,451 in the short-term. Short-term view will turn negative only once the index closes below 19,596.
Nifty (6,074.6)
The Nifty vacillated in the range between 6,000 and 6,100 before closing almost unchanged for the week. We will retain the medium-term targets at 6,225 and 6,288 for the index. Medium-term trend deciding level will remain at 5,600. Key short-term supports for the Nifty are at 6,003, 5,970 and then 5,941. Short-term traders can hold their long positions as long as the index trades above 6000. Ability to hold this level will signify that the index can move on to 6094, 6163 or 6260 in the weeks ahead. Short-term view will turn negative only on close below 5940.
Global cues
Most global benchmarks managed to move higher and close with slight gains last week. The Japanese Government’s move to revive the economy has given a fillip to Japanese stocks with the Nikkei closing at multi-year high at 10,941. The index has gained 27 per cent since the low hit last November. If the index manages to move past 11,400, it will signal the onset of a long-term bull-market. The Dow surged 246 points last week, breaking past the hurdle at 13,600. Strong earnings from US companies could be behind this surge. Of the 142 S&P 500 companies that have declared earnings so far, 66 per cent have beaten estimates. New home sales in the US however declined 7 per cent. The Dow is now poised just a hair’s breadth away from its life-time high of 14,198 recorded in October 2007. It will be interesting to track the movement of this index once this feat is achieved.
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