HDFC Life`s Annuity Plan for early retirement Planners

HDFC Standard Life Insurance Company (HDFC Life) has come up with a single-premium annuity products for those who want to plan their retirement in advance, reported PTI. Under 'HDFC Life Pension Guaranteed Plan' one has the choice to decide on the annuity rate at the date of purchase of the policy, which can go up to as high as 13 per cent, said Srinivasan Parthasarathy, Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Actuary and Appointed Actuary, HDFC Life.

"Customers need not wait for their retirement to decide on the annuity rate. The deferred annuity option gives the early planners the choice of a guaranteed annuity rate at the time of the purchase," he said. "Those planning in advance for their retirement are rewarded by way of higher annuity rates, which could beas high as 13 per cent depending upon the deferment period," Parthasarthy added. The annuity product comes in two variants of single life basis for self and a joint life basis for self and spouse.

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Punjab National Bank says detects $1.77 Billion worth of Fraudulent Transactions

India's Punjab National Bank said on Wednesday it had detected "fraudulent and unauthorised" transactions worth about $1.77 billion at one of its branches in Mumbai.

The bank said in a statement the transactions were "for the benefit of a few select account holders with their apparent connivance" and that "based on these transactions other banks appear to have advanced money to these customers abroad."

The bank did not name the people involved but said it had reported the deals to law enforcement agencies and would decide whether it faces any liability arising out of the transactions later.

PNB shares fell as much as 5.7 percent in early trading on Wednesday.

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आरबीआई का बट्टाखाता ऋण से निपटने के लिए संशोधित दिशानिर्देश जारी

भारतीय रिजर्व बैंक (आरबीआई) ने गैर निष्पादित अस्तियों (एनपीए) या बट्टाखाता ऋण के तेजी से समाधान के लिए एक संशोधित रूपरेखा पेश की है। इसे दिवाला एवं दिवालियापन संहिता (आईबीसी), 2016 के निर्दिष्ट मानदंडों के साथ मौजूदा दिशानिर्देशों के अनुरूप बनाया गया है। आरबीआई ने सोमवार को जारी की गई एक अधिसूचना में कहा है कि नए दिशानिर्देश में बैंकों की प्रभावी परिसंपत्तियों की पहचान व सूचना के लिए एक ढांचा निर्दिष्ट किया गया है।

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आरबीआई की अधिसूचना में कहा गया, "दिवाला एवं दिवालियापन संहिता (आईबीसी)2016 के अधिनियमन के मद्देनजर मौजूदा दिशानिर्देशों को प्रभावी परिसंपत्तियों के समाधान के अनुरूप एक सहज ढांचे से बदलने का फैसला किया गया है।"

संशोधित ढांचे के हिस्से के तौर पर बैंक को तत्काल चूक के आधार पर प्रभावी ऋण खातों की शुरुआत में पहचान करनी होगी। इनकी डिफाल्ट अवधि के आधार पर प्रभावी संपत्तियों के वर्गीकरण को विशेष उल्लेख खातों (एसएमए) के रूप में करना होगा।

केंद्रीय बैंक ने कहा कि सभी ऋणदाताओं को प्रभावी परिसंपत्तियों के समाधान के लिए बोर्ड की मंजूरी वाली नीतियों को शामिल करना होगा, जिसमें समाधान के लिए समयसीमा भी शामिल है।

SAIL Invites Bids for outright sale of Alloy Steels Plant

State-run SAIL today invited bids from companies for strategic sale of its Alloy Steels Plant at Durgapur.The government had last year cleared outright sale of state-owned SAIL's three special steel units -- Salem Steel Plant, Alloy Steels Plant and Visvesvaraya Iron and Steel Plant.Bids for Alloy Steels Plant in Durgapur are to be submitted by April 11, 2018."Alloys Steels Plant (ASP) of SAIL is proposed for strategic divestment and the company has appointed SBI Capital Markets Ltd (SBICAP) as its transaction advisor to advice and manage the process," the steel maker said in a stock exchange filing.

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The bidding process is to implemented through open competitive bidding route, it said.As part of the strategic disinvestment, Alloy Steels Plant will be transferred to the strategic investor, on a going concern basis, which is by way of slump sale through business transfer agreement."The strategic investor will be appointed through a competitive bidding process, which shall be handled by the Government of India and its functionaries including, but not limited to, SAIL and Ministry of Steel," said the preliminary information memorandum for inviting bids.

The total capacity of the Alloy Steels Plant is 2.46 lakh MT per annum of liquid steel and 1.84 lakh MT per annum of saleable steel.Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) has five integrated steel plants, a ferro-alloys plant and three special steel plants.

DLF`s Q3 Consolidated Profit Rises to Rs 4,111.95 cr

Real estate major DLF on Tuesday reported an exponential rise in its consolidated net profit for the third quarter of 2017-18 to Rs 4,111.95 crore.

According to the company, its consolidated net profit increased on the back of "one-time, exceptional pre-tax gain of Rs 8,569 crore due to restatement of DLF's investment in DCCDL".

COnsequently, the Q3 consolidated net profit rose to Rs 4,111.95 crore from Rs 98.88 crore reported during the corresponding period of FY17.

The company reported "a one-time exceptional gain on account of restatement of the DLF' s investment in DCCDL at fair market value..."

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"Certain other revaluation, impairments and provisions relating to valuation of certain assets, land parcels and investments have also been accounted for," the company said in a statement.

"The non-annualised EPS for the quarter was Rs 22.93 including one-time, exceptional gain. Net Bank Debt for DLF (consolidated, ex-DCCDL) stood at approx. Rs 5,500 crore."

The "DDCDL CCPS" transaction was completed in December 2017, as a result of which the promoters of the company received the consideration of Rs 8,900 crore (approx.) against the sale of shares and Rs 1,600 crore (approx.) towards buy back of "CCPS".

Subsequently, the shareholders of the company had approved a preferential allotment of "CCDs and Warrants" to the promoters for total consideration up to Rs 11,250 crore.

The promoters have infused Rs 9,000 crore in the company against allotment and the "balance amount of Rs 2,250 crore will be infused in the company over the course of 18 months".

As per the statement, the company has utilised the proceeds to primarily prepay a "substantial portion of its outstanding debt".

"The company has already repaid debt of Rs 7,100 crore (approx.) till date. DLF Limited remains confident to become net debt zero by end-FY19," the statement added.

Wall Street Advances; Investors lock on Inflation Data

Wall Street climbed on Tuesday for a third straight session, buoyed by Amazon.com and Apple, while investors focused on inflation data on Wednesday that could upset the market's fragile recovery - or clear the way for additional gains.

Amazon.com rose 2 percent while Apple added 1 percent, both helping the S&P 500 shake off a negative open to the session and climb 0.26 percent by the close.

Investors said data on US consumer prices and retail sales due out on Wednesday will be key to where stocks move in the short term. Inflation and interest-rate fears sparked a stock market rout after US jobs data was released on Feb. 2.

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Rob Haworth, a senior investment strategist at US Bank Wealth Management, said the market's recovery from a negative start earlier in the session was a good sign, but that it remained too soon to predict the market's return to stability."We think we're going to be volatile for a few more trading days at least, as the market sorts out what's really been going on," Haworth said.

Among the biggest movers was sportswear retailer Under Armour, up more than 17.36 percent on strong quarterly sales, and AmerisourceBergen, up 9.30 percent after the Wall Street Journal reported Walgreens was seeking to buy out the drug distributor.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, a voting member in the central bank's rate-setting committee this year, said the recent stock market sell-off and jump in volatility will not damage the economy's overall strong prospects.

Following a slump into correction territory last week, the S&P 500 has recovered 3.2 percent in the past three session. It remains down 7.3 percent from a record high on Jan 26 and is currently priced at levels first reached in early December.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.16 percent to end at 24,640.45 points, while the S&P 500 gained 6.94 points to close at 2,662.94.

The Nasdaq Composite added 0.45 percent to 7,013.51.

Nine of the 11 major S&P indexes rose, led by real estate, up 0.54 percent.

Sensex Crosses 35000 as govt Moves to Contain Fiscal Deficit

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Indian stocks crossed new milestones on Wednesday on hopes of a corporate earnings recovery and the government’s effort to limit a fiscal slippage in the current financial year. However, high crude oil prices and interest rate hikes by foreign central banks remain key risks to the rally.

The BSE’s benchmark Sensex closed at 35,081.82 points, up 310.77 points, or 0.89%, crossing the 35,000-point mark for the first time. The National Stock Exchange’s Nifty ended at 10,788.55 points, up 88.10 points, or 0.82%.

Early on Wednesday, the government pared its additional borrowing programme in the year to 31 March to Rs20,000 crore from the Rs50,000 crore it announced last month, giving investors hope that the fiscal slippage will be contained. The fiscal deficit reached 112% of the full-year budget in November. Investors have also been fretful that the government may stray off the fiscal consolidation path in the 1 February budget, its last before the 2019 general elections.

The abatement of some of these worries, along with optimism of an earnings recovery, continued to pull in money. Analysts are expecting the first signs of a rebound in corporate earnings growth in the December quarter owing to the favourable effect of a low base a year ago and higher consumer spending in the festive season.

Those expectations have overriden concerns over high valuations. Currently, the Sensex is trading at 20.39 times expected earnings for the next 12 months.

“High valuations will be justified once economic revival and earnings growth start catching up,” said Dhiraj Sachdev, who helps manage Rs11,252 crore at HSBC Asset Management.

Opening bell: Asian Markets open Higher; Bharti Airtel, Ultratech Earnings in Focus

US stocks end higher; Asian shares surge in early trade

Stocks traded higher on Wednesday, following the release of stronger-than-expected quarterly results from some of the biggest US companies.

Stock indices in Asia on Thursday bounced back from declines in the last session, tracking substantial overnight gains on Wall Street. Investors also awaited a raft of China data, as well as interest rate decisions from South Korea’s and Indonesia’s central banks due later in the day.

Newgen Software IPO gets 70% subscription on Day 2

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The initial public offering (IPO) of IT firm Newgen Software Technologies was subscribed 70% on the second day of the share sale on Wednesday.

Amber Enterprises IPO fully subscribed on Day 1

The Rs600-crore initial share public offering (IPO) of Amber Enterprises was fully subscribed on the first day of its bidding.

Puravankara to invest Rs600 crore on low-cost housing project

Realty firm Puravankara Ltd said it will invest Rs600 crore to construct an affordable housing project in Bengaluru.

Amalgamation scheme: Tata Power shareholders’ meet on 19 February

Tata Power said it will convene shareholders’ meeting on 19 February to seek approval for the proposed amalgamation of four group entities with the company.

HUL Q3 profit rises 28% to Rs1,326 crore

Hindustan Unilever Ltd posted a 28% rise in its third-quarter profit, underpinned by higher sales from its personal care business.

Earnings corner

Adani Power, Bharti Airtel, Hindustan Zinc, Mastek, Yes Bank and UltraTech Cement are among the companies that will be announcing their December quarter earnings on Thursday.

Budget 2018: Long-term Capital gains on Equities—is a Bird in hand Better?

What happens if, in the forthcoming Union Budget 2018, a tax is reinstated on long-term capital gains (LTCG) on listed shares? After an initial shock, the stock markets should stabilize. Domestic investors will realize that equities yield better post-tax returns than other asset classes and India will continue to be a part of the emerging market portfolio of foreign investors.

Once the chaos dies down, the focus will shift to whether revenue increases for the government, which is the underlying objective of any tax proposal.

Here, the question is if LTCG will be imposed in addition to the securities transaction tax (STT) or in place of it. If it is an additional levy, STT collections will continue to add to revenues, while LTCG will be the icing on the top. The worst that can happen is tax collections from equities don’t increase much.

If LTCG replaces STT, then that decision makes sense only if the government is confident of earning more from LTCG than what it makes from STT, on a sustained basis. What could make this difficult? Capital gains are like having a rich mineral underground. Till it is extracted, it is of no use to the tax authorities.

Investors must sell shares they have held for 12 months or more to earn gains and then pay LTCG tax. Now, under STT, they are paying tax when they buy or sell shares. With a tax on long-term sale, investors have one more variable to consider apart from their investment outlook influencing their selling decision. If they decide to delay selling, that delays tax revenue to the exchequer.

Also, when they sell shares, it does not necessarily mean the entire gains get taxed. Indexation will be available. Depending on when they bought the shares, the acquisition cost will be padded up to account for inflation. That can lower the taxable gains. And then there is capital loss as well; they may have shares or other eligible assets that have been sold at a loss. The tax laws allow investors to offset certain losses they have suffered from their gains, to arrive at net gain and therefore the tax payable. If they have losses that have not been set off against gains, they can carry them forward to offset in future years.

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The government can’t calculate potential gains and losses in advance, as that depends on the date of purchase, how listed shares move throughout the fiscal year, all of which eventually will determine net gains (or losses) in the taxpayer’s hands. When P. Chidambaram first introduced STT in the 2003-04 budget, he said that his calculation showed STT can result in a win-win situation. That implied that the revenue lost from exempting the tax would be made up by STT.

The thing about STT is that it is collected in both good and bad years for investors. The tax collection happens automatically at source. The tax department would be spending very little money on auditing this revenue, relative to the amount earned. But LTCG relies on the taxpayer to calculate and pay tax, and declare it in the tax returns. Scrutiny requires more effort from the tax department.

Then there is tax planning, a legitimate way used to lower tax liability. In capital gains, this can involve timing the sale of an asset or selling a pool of assets with gains and losses, to lower the tax outgo. There is the illegal side too, which was seen in cases that had come to light before LTCG on listed shares was abolished. Taxpayers with capital gains would enter into sham transactions showing a capital loss, allowing them to lower their net gains.

Opening bell: Asian Markets Open Higher; HDFC, Novartis India in News

US stocks end higher; Asian markets follow suit

US stocks rose to all-time highs on Wednesday as a gain in chip stocks propelled the tech sector higher.

Major Asian markets traded higher on Thursday, following the stronger lead seen on Wall Street. Investors in the region will also keep an eye on Caixin’s China services and composite PMI later in the morning after the Caixin manufacturing PMI beat estimates and the country’s official PMI met expectations.

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RBI to issue new Rs10 notes in chocolate brown colour

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will shortly issue new Rs10 notes under the Mahatma Gandhi series. The central bank has already printed around 1 billion pieces of the new Rs10 note.

HDFC to keep Rs1,575 crore from HDFC Standard Life IPO as special provision

Housing Development and Finance Corp. Ltd (HDFC) will make a special provision of Rs1,575 crore, using a part of the proceeds from the initial public offering (IPO) of HDFC Standard Life Insurance.

Novartis’s diclofinac injection flagged by health ministry panel

A health ministry panel has raised concerns about the safety of painkiller injection diclofenac marketed by drug maker Novartis India and made by Themis Medicare Ltd, after Troikaa Pharmaceuticals alleged that the painkiller injection contains Transcutol, which damages kidneys.

Reliance Industries likely to see big cash flow boost, says CLSA report

Reliance Industries Ltd is likely to see a big cash-flow boost as projects of over $40 billion start to deliver in full swing this fiscal while capex falls, international brokerage house CLSA said on Wednesday.

Sebi allows commodity bourses to raise transaction charges

Capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has allowed the commodity derivative exchanges to keep the highest transaction charge in turnover slab of any contract at a maximum of double the lowest charge in the same segment.

New launches boost Skoda volume 30% in 2017

Volkswagen Group company Skoda said its sales spiked 30% to 17,438 units in 2017 over the previous year, driven by the latest launch, the Kodiaq SUV, besides rollout of three refreshed versions of its popular sedans.

Tata Motors MD tells staff to bolster accountability, performance

Homegrown auto major Tata Motors Ltd managing director and chief executive officer Guenter Butschek has called employees to bolster accountability and drive performance within the organisation as the firm seeks to build on the positives of its turnaround drive that is expected to be completed by March.