Forbes India Conversations in Excellence

From the sidelines of the 12th Auto Expo in New Delhi, Forbes India Conversations in Excellence, presented by Mercedes Benz powered by CNBC-TV18, brings together eminent speakers to find out their view on how they have achieved excellence.

From the sidelines of the 12th Auto Expo in New Delhi, Forbes India Conversations in Excellence, presented by Mercedes Benz powered by CNBC-TV18, brings together eminent speakers to find out their view on how they have achieved excellence.

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India goes beyond generics; innovation on steroids

India is no longer a laggard when it comes to the race of bio-innovation. It's an area every top player in the pharma space agrees upon. CNBC-TV18'S Archana Shukla reports that the pharma top-bosses in attendance at the BioAsia summit believe India's focus on relevant solutions remains its biggest advantage.

So what if India has been a slow starter in the race to churn out blockbuster new molecules? But they're also quick to point out that a lot of this innovation stems from necessity -- the necessity to come up with affordable drugs.

"We have developed many drugs that suit Indian requirements. We recently developed novel Rotavirus vaccine that is relevant to Indian disease profile" says Krishna Ella, MD, Bharat Biotech.

Also read: Dipan Mehta positive on pharma stocks

On curing India and other EMs, Sanjiv Navangul, MD, Janssen India comments, "Invested a lot in clinical trials and the understanding of science has improved."

On trying to understand what is stopping India from taking the next big plunge, Maninder Hora, Sr VP - Pharma Devpt and Manu Ops, Nektar Therapeutics says India needs an appetite for risk taking. On the other hand, Rogerio Riberio, Sr VP - Emerging Markets, GSK says, "Need to think of portfolio, because investments are huge. Need to assess where Indian companies want to be."

But every expert felt this growth spurt is sustainable only if the policy environment remains supportive. And then, there's the need to differentiate strategy from making generic drugs to taking a risk with new molecules.

"If generic is a 100 metre sprint, innovative drug is a marathon" comments Hora.

GV Prasad, CEO,  Dr Reddy's Labs says, "As a public company, I have to look at earnings growth too. Now I invest 12% in Research and Development, anything beyond that will start hurting my business. This is a delicate game of balance."

Meanwhile, experts caution that so far, on a global scale, very few generic companies like Israel-based Teva have made this transition. But it's still too early to gauge Teva's long-term success and what's good for the goose, may not always be good for the gander.

Dr Reddys Labs stock price

On February 28, 2014, Dr Reddys Laboratories closed at Rs 2901.55, up Rs 67.60, or 2.39 percent. The 52-week high of the share was Rs 2939.80 and the 52-week low was Rs 1720.50.

The company's trailing 12-month (TTM) EPS was at Rs 108.14 per share as per the quarter ended December 2013. The stock's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio was 26.83. The latest book value of the company is Rs 457.56 per share. At current value, the price-to-book value of the company is 6.34.

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U.S. stocks gain on Yellen weather comments; Dow up 0.46%

Investing.com - Investing.com - U.S. stocks climbed higher on Thursday after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen suggested harsh winter weather may have been the reason behind a string of disappointing economic indicators this year.

At the close of U.S. trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.46%, the S&P 500 index rose 0.49%, while the Nasdaq Composite index rose 0.63%.

Recent manufacturing, unemployment and other economic indicators have come in short of Wall Street expectations, leaving investors unclear if recovery has hit a soft patch or if a string of winter storms has put commerce temporarily on hold.

Speaking before the Senate banking committee, Yellen told lawmakers it was hard to say how much the recent soft data was due to rough winter weather and added that the bank would remain attentive to signals on whether the recovery is progressing in line with expectations.

Stock market investors concluded that monetary authorities do believe winter storms have bruised economic indicators somewhat, and that when spring arrives in a matter of weeks, recovery will pick up and improve corporate fundamentals in the process.

Elsewhere, the Labor Department said the number of people filing for initial jobless benefits rose by 14,000 to 348,000 from the previous week's total of 334,000. Analysts had expected an increase of just 1,000.

Also on Thursday, the Commerce Department reported that U.S. durable goods orders declined by a seasonally adjusted 1% last month, less than expectations for a 1.5% drop.

Core durable goods orders, excluding volatile transportation items, rose 1.1% in January, the largest increase since May, confounding forecasts for a 0.3% decline.

Leading Dow Jones Industrial Average performers included Verizon, up 2.51%, Goldman Sachs, up 1.48%, and Boeing, up 1.44%.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average's worst performers included McDonald's, down 0.86%, Nike, down 0.52%, and Caterpillar, down 0.51%.

European indices, meanwhile, finished largely lower.

After the close of European trade, the EURO STOXX 50 fell 0.28%, France's CAC 40 fell 0.01%, while Germany's DAX 30 fell 0.76%. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the FTSE 100 rose 0.16%.

On Friday, the U.S. is to released revised data on fourth-quarter growth, a report on manufacturing activity in the Chicago region, revised data on consumer sentiment and private-sector data on pending home sales.

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Natural gas rebounds on demand from bargain hunters

Investing.com - Investing.com - Natural gas futures plunged on a bearish supply report earlier Thursday, though bottom fishers swept in and brought prices back into positive territory on the view the asset was oversold.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, natural gas futures for delivery in April traded at $4.550 per million British thermal units during U.S. trading, up 0.19%. The commodity hit session high of $4.565 and a low of $4.447.

The April contract settled down 3.20% on Wednesday to end at $4.541 per million British thermal units.

Natural gas futures were likely to find support at $4.205 per million British thermal units, the low from Jan. 19, and resistance at $5.207, Monday's high.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said in its weekly report that natural gas storage in the U.S. in the week ending Feb. 21 fell by 95 billion cubic feet, short of market expectations for a decline of 107 billion cubic feet.

Total U.S. natural gas storage stood at 1.348 trillion cubic feet. Stocks were 905 billion cubic feet less than last year at this time and 711 billion cubic feet below the five-year average of 2.059 trillion cubic feet for this time of year.

The report showed that in the East Region, stocks were 361 billion cubic feet below the five-year average, following net withdrawals of 78 billion cubic feet.

Stocks in the Producing Region were 251 billion cubic feet below the five-year average of 775 billion cubic feet after a net withdrawal of 5 billion cubic feet.

Markets were expecting a recent cold snap would have taken its toll on supplies more than it did, which sparked a selloff until bottom fishing kicked in.

Prices also came under pressure after updated weather-forecasting models called for a return of milder temperatures across the eastern U.S.

The U.S. National Weather Service said that higher temperatures than previously forecast were expected in the Midwest from March 6 to March 10.

Prices rallied to over a five-year high of $6.493 per million British thermal units earlier in the week as frigid winter temperatures in the U.S. led households to burn a higher than normal amount of the fuel in furnaces to heat their homes.

The heating season from November through March is the peak demand period for U.S. gas consumption. Approximately 52% of U.S. households use natural gas for heating, according to the Energy Department.

Elsewhere on the NYMEX, light sweet crude oil futures for delivery in April were down 0.47% and trading at $102.11 a barrel, while heating oil for April delivery were down 1.03% and trading at $3.0070 per gallon.

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A jist of the Forbes India Art Awards

The collection displayed at the Forbes India Art Awards includesd painting, sculpture, lithographs and tapestries.

The Forbes India Art Awards held at The Leela Palace Hotel, New Delhi saw a galaxy of prominent faces from the corporate as well as art world. The Latin's inspired architecture with its formidable collection of modern and contemporary art reflects The Leela Palace Hotel, a natural choice for a partner.

Madhu Nair, a member of the owning family is the creative and design force behind this formidable collection of art. The collection includes painting, sculpture, lithographs and even tapestries. Some of the artist that you will find on display at The Leela Palace Hotel are Satish Gujral, Satish Gupta, Lita Albuquerque, Paresh Maity, Seem Kohli and Laxaman Goud. With that let's go right into the show.

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BPCL raises Rs 1,240 crore from overseas bond sale

The notes are rated at the same level as BPCL's issuer default rating of 'BBB-' as they will constitute direct, unconditional, unsubordinated and unsecured obligations of the company, says Fitch

State-run oil marketer  Bharat Petroleum today said it has raised 175 million Swiss francs (around Rs 1,240 crore) through an international bond sale at a coupon of 2.988 percent.

"We raised 175 million Swiss francs (around Rs 1,240 crore) through an overseas bond sale programme today at a competitive coupon of 2.988 percent, which is 235 basis points above the Swiss mid-swap rate, in a 5.75-year money," a BPCL spokesman told PTI here.

The RegS issue has been raised to meet working capital requirement of the company, he said.

Also read: BPCL growing better now than in H1FY14: MD Varadarajan

Lead bankers to the issue were BNP Paribas, Deutsche Bank, RBS, and UBS, he said, adding this is the first Swiss franc issue by an Indian corporate since February 2012. International rating agency Fitch has assigned BBB-/ stable rating to the issue.

The notes are rated at the same level as BPCL's issuer default rating of 'BBB-' as they will constitute direct, unconditional, unsubordinated and unsecured obligations of the company, Fitch said in a statement from Singapore.

BPCL stock price

On February 26, 2014, Bharat Petroleum Corporation closed at Rs 377.75, up Rs 5.80, or 1.56 percent. The 52-week high of the share was Rs 428.45 and the 52-week low was Rs 256.00.

The company's trailing 12-month (TTM) EPS was at Rs 66.24 per share as per the quarter ended December 2013. The stock's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio was 5.7. The latest book value of the company is Rs 230.04 per share. At current value, the price-to-book value of the company is 1.64.

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GBP/USD gains on soft U.S. consumer confidence report

Investing.com - Investing.com - The pound firmed against the dollar on Tuesday after a soft U.S. consumer confidence report prompted investors to speculate that the Federal Reserve will scale down stimulus measures at a slower clip than once anticipated until recovery picks up the pace.

Stimulus tools such as the Fed's $65 billion in monthly bond purchases weaken the dollar by driving down long-term interest rates, making stocks and commodities more attractive asset classes.

In U.S. trading on Tuesday, GBP/USD was trading at 1.6696, up 0.25%, up from a session low of 1.6643 and off a high of 1.6727.

Cable was likely to find support at 1.6584, Monday's low, and resistance at 1.6823, the high from Feb. 17.

The dollar softened after the Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index slipped to 78.1 in February from 79.4 in January, mainly due to concerns over general business conditions, jobs, and earnings.

Analysts were expecting the index to tick up to 80.0.

The present situation index rose to its highest level in almost six years, but the expectations index declined, indicating that while consumers believe the economy has improved they do not foresee further considerable improvement in the coming months.

The dollar weakened as investors speculated that the Federal Reserve will very gradually taper its $65 billion monthly bond-buying program, which weakens the dollar by suppressing long-term borrowing costs to spur recovery.

Also on Tuesday, the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller house price index rose 13.4% in December from a year earlier, the best December reading in eight years and slightly ahead of forecasts for a 13.3% gain.

Meanwhile across the Atlantic, the pound saw support after data from the British Bankers Association showed that mortgage approvals rose 57% in January from a year earlier to 49,972, hitting a 76-month high.

A separate report by the Confederation of British Industry said U.K. retail sales rose at the fastest rate since June 2013 in February. The CBI distributive trades survey rose to 37 up from 14 in January, well ahead of forecasts for an uptick to 15.

Sterling was up against the euro, with EUR/GBP down 0.14% to 0.8236, and down against the yen, with GBP/JPY down 0.08% as 170.57.

On Wednesday, the U.K. is to publish revised data on fourth quarter economic growth, as well as preliminary data on business investment.

The U.S. is to release data on new home sales, a leading indicator of demand in the housing market.

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Crude falls on soft U.S. consumer confidence report, warming trend

Investing.com - Investing.com - Crude prices fell on Tuesday after a soft consumer-confidence barometer painted a picture of a sluggish U.S. economy that will demand less fuel and energy, while weather forecasts for a warming trend sent prices dipping as well.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate crude for delivery in April traded at $101.91 a barrel during U.S. trading, down 0.89%. New York-traded oil futures hit a session low of $101.03 a barrel and a high of $102.87 a barrel.

The April contract settled up 0.61% at $102.82 a barrel on Monday.

Nymex oil futures were likely to find support at $99.41 a barrel, the low from Feb. 14, and resistance at $103.45 a barrel, Monday's high.

Oil prices slid after the Conference Board reported that its consumer confidence index slipped to 78.1 in February from 79.4 in January, mainly due to concerns over general business conditions, jobs, and earnings.

Analysts were expecting the index to tick up to 80.0.

The present situation index rose to its highest level in almost six years, but the expectations index declined, indicating that while consumers believe the economy has improved they do not foresee further considerable improvement in the coming months.

Giving oil some support were expectations the Federal Reserve will very gradually taper its $65 billion monthly bond-buying program, which weakens the dollar by suppressing long-term borrowing costs to spur recovery.

A weaker greenback makes oil an attractive commodity on dollar-denominated exchanges.

Also cushioning losses, the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller house price index rose 13.4% in December from a year earlier, the best December reading in eight years and slightly ahead of forecasts for a 13.3% gain.

Elsewhere, forecasts for warmer weather across the eastern U.S. in early March edged prices lower.

A powerful blast of cold air will shoot across the northern U.S. states this week, through in the first and second week of March, warmer temperatures may return.

Temperatures could even climb higher than once expected around March 7, according to updated weather-forecasting models, which could cut into demand for heating oil.

Elsewhere, on the ICE Futures Exchange in London, Brent oil futures for April delivery were down 0.97% and trading at US$109.57 a barrel, while the spread between the Brent and U.S. crude contracts stood at US$7.66 a barrel.

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