Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Inflation Rate reached Lowest Level in over Two Years in India
Inflation rate based on the wholesale price index fell to 6.55% in January, 2012, the lowest level in over two years, strengthening the argument for monetary policy easing by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) amid a slowing economy. It was 7.47% in December, 2011, and 9.47% in January, 2011. At the present level, inflation has fallen to the 6-7% level faster than the government prediction of March. The moderation in January was led by a fall in food inflation with prices in the manufactured and primary food segment also falling due to a good harvest. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said inflation will be around 6% level by March 2012. Inflation in manufactured products, however, remained high. Inflation in this segment was at 6.49% last month compared to 5.32% in the year-ago period. Price pressure was higher in case of iron (18.5%), metals (12%), chemicals, edible oil and beverages and tobacco (9% each). Inflation in the fuel and power segment stood at 14.21% in January. Economists said inflation would have probably eased further had it not been for the falling rupee, making imports more expensive. Economists also warned of pressures ahead. They pointed out that the government had not passed on the higher oil and gas prices to end-consumers. These may be raised after the assembly polls. Similarly, if the next monsoon is disappointing, there may be fresh pressure on food inflation.
GSTN will be soon Implemented : Pranab Mukherjee
Lingamaneni Group announced launch of New Airline Air Costa
The Vijayawada-based Lingamaneni group, which has interests in the realty and infrastructure business, announced the launch of a new airline, Air Costa. Lingamaneni Estates Private Ltd, popularly known as LEPL, said that it had secured the go-ahead from the Union civil aviation ministry to operate flights in the southern part of the country. Air Costa could be the first airliner in the country to operate on the regional routes, particularly in tier-II cities like Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam and Tirupati. The new airlines will be headquartered at Vijayawada with the corporate offices located in Hyderabad. According to company chief executive Captain N B Kakarala, the upcoming airline will begin with five flights initially. He said that the company had plans to link most tier-II cities in south India through their airline. The first aircraft will take off some time in May or June. He, however, did not reveal the volume of investment nor whether it was a joint venture.
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Monday, February 6, 2012
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Indian Retailers reported highest loss to theft in World
Indian retailers reported the highest loss of stocks to theft in the world for the fifth year in a row in 2011, with about half of the loss attributed to shoplifting by customers. India's shrink rate, or loss of stocks because of thefts by customer, employees and suppliers, as a percentage of sales was 2.38%, costing local retailers Rs. 3,470 Crore, according to the fifth annual edition of the Global Retail Theft Barometer, an annual survey conducted by the Centre for Retail Research in Nottingham, UK, and underwritten through an independent grant from Checkpoint Systems.
The study was conducted across 43 countries between July 2010 and June 2011. In India, it covered 100 retailers, of which 60 were part of modern chains and 40 from the unorganized sector.
The biggest contributor to losses was thefts by customers, accounting for 47.6% of the total, followed by pilfering by employees at 25.5%. The losses have, to be sure, declined 12.5% from a year earlier, according to the study. To reduce thefts, retailers in the nation are spending more money on security solutions. Companies have also minimized their losses by providing more training to employees and assigning responsibilities on team and store managers for losses.
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