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MOTLEY COLLECTION OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC NEWS |
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 Indian women fuel US small businesses
Immigrant women from India and other parts of the world are one of the fastest-growing segments of small business owners in the US. Women can expect to be a sizeable portion of small business owners by 2017 with 36 million immigrants of either sex having higher rates of starting new businesses than native-born Americans, according to Intuit Inc’s Future of Small Business Report, co-authored by the Institute for the Future.
Robert Fairlie, an economist who produces the Kauffman Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, notes that each month over the last three years, 310 of every 100,000 immigrant women created a business, while 220 of 100,000 native-born women did so. They do it for a lot of reasons: for flexibility to raise children, to avoid barriers that come with traditional jobs, or their skills do not translate well into Corporate America.
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 Fitch ups ratings for major Indian Banks
Global rating agency Fitch has upgraded its support ratings for several Indian banks, including ICICI Bank, HDFC, Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Bank of India and IDBI. The support rating has been upgraded from ‘2’ to ‘3’ for ICICI Bank, PNB, Canara Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Union Bank and IDBI.
For HDFC Bank, UCO Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and Allahabad Bank, the rating has been upgraded to ‘3’ from ‘4’. The new ratings reflect the Indian government’s improved ability to provide timely support to systemically important banks.
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 Hyundai plans to set up LCV plant at Pune
Hyundai Motor Corporation, Korea, plans to set up a light commercial vehicle (LCV) manufacturing plant in India. The company is understood to have chosen Chakan in Pune as the location for the new plant. According to sources close to the development, Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation has agreed to allot about 700 acres to the Korean company for its new plant in India.
An MoU between the company and the state government is expected to be signed soon. Senior Hyundai officials were in Mumbai last week to discuss the new manufacturing facility. At the new facility, the company would make one-tonne load carriers primarily targeted against the Tata Ace model, which has already made its mark in the LCV segment.
The company may also set up a powertrain (engine and gearbox) plant at Chakan, as part of its indigenisation programme. When contacted, a company spokesperson said he was not aware of any such development. But sources familiar with the development said there have been discussions between the state government and the company on the proposed project.
Though the details are yet to be known, an auto industry analyst said the investment could be over Rs 1,000 crore. Hyundai’s decision to invest in Maharashtra comes as a surprise as the company already has its passenger car facility in Tamil Nadu.
Hyundai’s move is a feather in Chakan’s cap, as this would be the second new auto plant in the district. Germany’s Volkswagen announced in November 2006, its decision to set up a Rs 1,500-crore plant on a 500-acre plot in Chakan.
Hyundai’s decision to venture into the LCV market with a one-tonne load carrier is based on a one-year market study that showcased the Tata Ace’s success story. Besides Hyundai, there are several players such as HM, Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor Company that are eyeing this segment.
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 Aircel to invest $400 million for expansion
Cellular service provider Aircel will embark on an over $400-million pan-India network expansion to double its subscriber base of 5 million over 18-24 months. Announcing Aircel’s successful test trials for 3G technology in Chennai, Jagdish Kini, group chief executive officer, Aircel, said the company was hoping to invest over $400 million in rolling out its services in other regions of the country in the next couple of years.
The company has a presence in nine telecom circles, and has obtained licences to launch services in the remaining 14 circles of the country. Last year, the company invested close to $300 million in expanding its network, he added. The company’s subscriber base has just crossed the 5 million mark, Kini said.
Aircel, now part of Malaysia’s Maxis Communications, is also gearing up for the roll-out of 3G-based services. The company said it had successfully conducted 3G interoperability on its network. The trials were conducted in association with China-based ZTE Corporation, a leading telecom equipment provider. The company said it tested a range of 3G services, including voice calls and video calls (64 Kpbs), downloading of movies pictures (384-1024 Kbps) and HSDPA-based (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) services like large data downloads and streaming movies online (at 3.3 Mbps).
Aircel has received permission to conduct such trials in Coimbatore, Bhubaneswar, Shillong and Guwahati, and expects to complete the trials before March. While the company has conducted the 3G trials in association with ZTE in Chennai, it is likely to conduct the trials in other four cities through vendors like Ericsson, Nokia and Siemens. The Department of Telecommunications has allowed existing mobile service providers to conduct 3G trials in select cities before March 31.
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more...
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April 2007
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