Delhi has 1.38 lakh millionaires

: Delhi has more households earning over Rs 10 lakh a year than any other city in India, but Chandigarh has the largest concentration of such families with every seventh household there having a seven-figure annual income.

Contrary to what you might expect, even ranked by the absolute number of households with incomes of Rs 10 lakh or more per year, the metros aren’t all on top of the list, with Chennai ranked 9th, Hyderabad 12th and Kolkata a lowly 26th.

On top of the list are Delhi with 1.38 lakh such households and Bangalore with 1.05 lakh families. Mumbai comes in third at just over one lakh millionaire households, but if you add the roughly 74,000 millionaire families that Thane has to Mumbai’s tally, it would jump right to the top of the list.

Rupee to appreciate to 36-37 per dollar - Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley on Tuesday said Indian currency will appreciate further to reach the level of Rs 36-37 per dollar by the end of next year.

"Indian rupee will be appreciating further. We expect rupee to reach to the level of Rs 36-37 per dollar by the end of next year," said Morgan Stanley's Managing Director Jonathan Garner.

He said long-term capital inflow and India's growth would result in appreciating Indian rupee over the period. "Exchange rate appreciation is happening in many emerging markets and not in India alone," Garner said.

Cautious on India's share valuation which is currently trading at 22 times, he said, 'some easing is possible'.

New Low in Karnataka Politics

‘Gowda resorted to black magic’

he former Chief Minister B. S. Yeddyurappa on Monday charged the former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda and his sons with resorting to “black magic” to finish him off. “I am facing a threat to my life. I know the places where they did pujas under black magic. I will write to the Home Department on Tuesday complaining against the black magic of Mr. Gowda and his sons. They will be responsible if anything happens to my life,” he said.

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Dollar Crisis : Economic Pearl Harbour

If China abandons the dollar for the euro, Americans will surely suffer. So far, that prospect has sparked mainly U.S. indignation <Link>

Small Exporters hit hard by Rising Rupee

As the cry for help due to the rising rupee becomes louder from various industry quarters, Finance Minister is under increasing pressure to intervene and provide monetary and fiscal relief.

The Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Thursday met textile exporters in the presence of public sector banks and took the pleas of garment exporters on board.

The government has tailored a specific export package for the sector increasing the duty rebate called drawbacks. It will cost the Finance Ministry about Rs 5,000 crore but exporters say it is simply not enough.

The duty rebate will give exporters a saving of about three per cent of their revenues. But this is nothing compared to the 20 per cent hit they have taken because of the stronger rupee.

Small players most hit

"It is only large players that are able to manage costs to some extent as well as diversify into the branded segment. Small players dominate the textile and apparel sector with high volumes and low profitability, where the real cutting back is taking place," said Premal Udaani of Kaytee Corporation.

The Indian garment exporters are finding it tough to compete in the American market especially at a time when the US economy has started slowing down. If an Indian shirt was selling for $10 in the US last year, now because of a stronger rupee it costs about $12.

The net result is that India's textile exports sector, which is the biggest single employer outside agriculture, has started cutting back on jobs and even laying off workers.

"Tirupur, Mumbai and Delhi have been witnessing factory closures and the workers are being sent on extended leave. It is tough to give a figure but over the last 3 to 4 months, I would say about 70,000 people have been let go and about 70,000 have not been hired so directly or indirectly employment is affected," said Rahul Mehta, President, Clothing Manufacturers Association of India.

Duty drawback

"The duty drawback is the only genuine measure otherwise there has been no real benefit given. The smaller players are simply shutting shop. This is the worst possible time for the textile industry in India," Udaani added.

The Indian textiles also have to compete with cheaper products from Pakistan, China and Bangladesh where exporters face a much more liberal tax structure.

The companies say old customers in the US are now considering switching loyalties, which would mean that India's export slowdown could last for a very long time.

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BA Systems EN 3500 - Made in India Internet Router

India is more of a Software Player in the Global IT Market. Here and there, some good initiatives are taken. Congrats to the BA Systems which has successfully developed the First Internet Router in India.

Janata's Guide to Stock market

The Indian Stock Market defies all logic : It rises when everybody expects to fall and falls when everybody expects to rise. Market Manipulation is rampant. Here is a Janata's Guide to the Stock Market:


Once upon a time in a village, a man appeared and
announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys
for Rs10/-.

The villagers seeing that there were many monkeys
around, went out to the forest and started catching
them. The man bought hundreds at Rs10/- and as supply
started to diminish, the villagers stopped their
effort. He further announced that he would now buy at
Rs20/-. This renewed the efforts of the villagers and
they started catching monkeys again. Soon the supply
diminished even further and people started going back
to their farms. The offer rate increased to Rs25 and
the supply of monkeys became so little that it was an
effort to even see a monkey let alone catch it.

The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at
Rs50! However, since he had to go to the city on some
business, his assistant would now buy on behalf of
him. In the absence of the man, the assistant told the
villagers. Look at all these monkeys in the big cage
that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at
Rs35 and when the man returns from the city, you can
sell it to him for Rs50." The villagers squeezed up
with all their savings to buy the monkeys. Then they
never saw the man nor his assistant, only monkeys
everywhere!!

Welcome to The Stock Market !

ICICI Bank fined for hiring goons to recover loan

Several Banks have been using the goons as a tactics to recover their bad debtors. But now, the Indian courts have given a stern warning against this by fining ICICI to the tune of Rs 55 laks.
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UAE to deport 4,000 Asian workers after strikes

Last Saturday, A set of Indian labourers who have been working under stressful conditions had revolted and carried out a strike, angering the UAE authorities. The UAE authorities have now responded harshly by deporting them back to India.

Analysts point out that labour laws in the UAE have evolved, but more attention needed to be paid on the contracts governing salaries and working conditions of employees operating in the economic free zones.

So far, the contract in the free zone, such as the one existing in Jebel Ali, is signed only between employers and employees. In general, its copy is neither sent to the UAE’s Labour Ministry nor the Indian embassy or consulate for attestation. Because the contract is usually drafted in Arabic, Indian workers, unacquainted with the language, end up signing it, often without the full knowledge of its contents. Consequently, they become parties to a binding contract, on terms which they later find hard to implement.

Sources in a voluntary organisation that operates in labour camps, but did not wish to be identified, said that unskilled workers in the UAE earn a monthly salary anywhere between Dirham 650 (approximately Rs.7,000) and Dirham 800 (around Rs 8,500).

However, the rising inflation in the country is drying up the saving capacity, especially among blue collar expatriates, sharply increasing financial and social pressures on them.