'Tube light fittings' are not eligible for cenvat credit as 'capital goods'

Cenvat Credit : "Tube Light Fittings" classified by seller under Chapter 94 of Tariff are ineligible for credit as 'capital goods'

Gujarat HC affirms sec. 80-IB(10) relief even when both land and development project weren’t in name

IT: In view of order passed in case of CIT v. Radha Developers [2012]341 ITR 403/204 Taxman 543/17 taxmann.com 156 (Guj.), Tribunal was justified in allowing deduction claimed under section 80-IB(10) to assessee-builder in respect of developing a housing project even though neither land nor development permission was in name of builder

HC remands case as Tribunal had disposed appeal on merits without considering issue of pre-deposit

CST & VAT : Where Tribunal directed assessee to deposit 20 per cent of tax amount and granted stay against recovery of outstanding demands till final disposal of appeal and thereafter it without any request from either sides disposed of appeal on merits, appeal was placed back before Tribunal for re hearing on issue of pre deposit

HC admitted plea for winding-up as petitioner proved his claim with recovery certificate issued by D

CL: Where respondent-company failed to repay loan taken by it as a result of which recovery certificate was issued in favour of lender, winding up petition filed by petitioner-investor against respondent company was to be admitted

Valuation adopted by Custom Authorities for import of raw material couldn't be assumed a ALP for TP

IT/ILT: Value of import of raw material accepted by customs authorities cannot be accepted as arm's length price as per provisions of Act

Government To Stop Gas Supply To Deepak Fertilizer

The government will stop supply of KG-D6 gas to phosphatic and potassic (P&K) fertiliser plants of firms like Deepak Fertilizer Ltd and restrict supply of cheaper domestic gas to urea manufacturing units only.



The Fertiliser Ministry last week wrote to the Oil Ministry seeking immediate stoppage of 0.5 million standard cubic meters per day of gas from Reliance Industries' eastern offshore KG-D6 field being sold to P&K fertiliser plants.



"We received a two-page letter from them (Fertiliser Ministry) on Friday. We will act on it," a senior Oil Ministry official said.



An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) headed by the then Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had in early 2012 put on hold the proposal to suspend supply of KG-D6 gas to P&K plants of Deepak Fertilizers, Gujarat State Fertilizer Corp and Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilizer till May 25, 2012.



The Department of Fertiliser was asked to calculate the gains made by companies using KG-D6 gas in manufacture of fertilisers other than urea. The gain made in manufacture of P&K fertiliser using cheaper gas, was to be recovered from these units.



However, the Department of Fertiliser did not formulate the guidelines for the same and natural gas supplies to P&K plants continued for almost two years beyond the stipulation laid by EGoM.



The official said now the Department of Fertiliser has written to the Petroleum Ministry seeking stoppage of gas to P&K units.



In view of limited supply of domestic gas, the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG) had in December 2011 proposed to stop domestic supplies to the phosphorus and potash (P&K) fertiliser units.



It had proposed to EGoM that "The allocation to Deepak Fertilizer may be cancelled and MoPNG be authorised to cancel any other KG-D6 allocations for P&K plants or any allocation in which KG-D6 gas is being used for P&K fertiliser. Further, KG-D6 gas allocations in the future, be made only to urea fertiliser plants."



However, the EGoM modified this to say that, "The supply of KG-D6 gas to P&K plants (Deepak, GSFC and RCF) may be suspended till guidelines as proposed by DoF as issued. Further, KG-D6 gas allocations in the future should only be made to urea fertiliser plants."



Later, the EGoM kept this decision in abeyance till May 25, 2012, the official said.



Fertiliser plants that face supply cut will have to substitute domestic gas with costlier imported liquefied natural gas (LNG).



The official said that total domestic gas supply to urea making fertiliser plants will continue to be maintained at 31.5 mmscmd as had been decided by EGoM in 2013. This included 0.5 mmscmd gas being consumed by P&K plants.

Source:-http://profit.ndtv.com

Disputes Swamp India’S Port Sector

No other infrastructure sector has witnessed such a raft of contractual disputes as has India’s ports sector , particularly facilities owned by the central government. While the award of port contracts to private firms is announced with much fanfare, those that fall by the wayside due to defaults often don’t get any mention at all.

Recently, Mormugao port decided to scrap a contract awarded to Gammon Infrastructure Projects Ltd for building a facility to handle coal. The port, one of the 13 owned by the central government, unilaterally cancelled the deal as the government of Goa, where the port is located, delayed granting permission to establish the facility on pollution grounds.

Mormugao port cited Gammon’s failure to tie up funds for the project within the stipulated period as the reason for the cancellation. Gammon says that two lenders had agreed to fund the project, provided it had the approval of the Goa Pollution Control Board to start construction. Infrastructure lenders always insist on environment clearance as a precondition for approving loans.

The decision of the port authority took Gammon Infrastructure by surprise because it had sunk a few crores for pre-project activities such as preparing a detailed project report. Gammon went to the court and got the cancellation stayed.

Essar Ports Ltd, a part of the diversified Essar Group, has been waiting since November 2009 to start constructing a 10-million-tonnes (mt) capacity coal terminal, which it had won in a public auction at Paradip port on the eastern coast. The forest clearance for the project came in July 2012, a key milestone that allowed the firm to start constructing the facility.

Till today, Essar hasn’t been able to start constructing the facility because Paradip port is yet to hand over the project site to the firm, citing a court case.

A consortium led by Singapore-listed commodity trader Noble Group Ltd walked out of a deal to set up a 10 mt capacity iron ore berth at Paradip port because by the time the forest clearance for the project came in July 2012, the project had become unviable due to cost escalations. The agreement for the project was signed in July 2009.

Anil Agarwal-promoted Sterlite Industries (India) Ltd exited a deal to build a multi-purpose berth for handling clean cargo including containers at Paradip port, stating that a three-year delay in getting forest clearance rendered the project unviable.

In a separate case, Gammon Infrastructure Projects had sought Rs.350 crore as compensation from Mumbai port for failure to fulfill obligations that have delayed the opening of a container terminal the firm is building there. Gammon has completed the construction of the berth for the Rs.1,228 crore project but is unable to start operations because the port is yet to complete dredging work and hand over the entire back-up area required to store containers.

Gammon is also awaiting security clearance from the government for buying cranes from overseas makers for loading and unloading containers at the terminal.

Gammon had earlier placed an order with China’s state-owned port container crane maker Shanghai Zhenhua Heavy Industries Co. Ltd (ZPMC) for six quay cranes and 20 rubber tyred gantry cranes worth Rs.500 crore. But Gammon had to cancel the order with ZPMC after the government denied security clearance to the Chinese firm to supply the gear.

The government has now introduced new rules that require equipment suppliers to cargo terminals to get security clearance from the government. So far, such a clearance was applicable only to port developers selected through a competitive bidding process.

Gammon has now given the names of all the top crane makers to the government for security clearance ahead of placing order to avoid delays.

There are at least seven different court cases filed by terminal operators, challenging the decision of the port tariff regulator to cut rates for the services provided. Some of these cases have dragged on for years with no settlement in sight.

There are also instances where projects have collapsed due to non-fulfillment of contractual obligations by the port authorities, notably a container loading facility run by ABG Infralogistics Ltd at Kandla port.

Such disputes have often delayed the implementation of the much-needed capacity expansion plans at the ports owned by the Indian government, hurting investor sentiment. In comparison, the development of ports outside the control of the Indian government has progressed at a much faster pace since they are seen to be relatively free from such disputes.

The situation calls for the setting up of a dispute resolution mechanism that can settle disputes quickly as and when they occur before they reach a point of no return.

The port authorities would be better off focusing on the growth aspirations of their ports rather than wasting time and effort in non-productive work.

It is also equally important to have all clearances, including environment, forest and coastal regulation zone, in place before projects are put to tender. This would avert uncertainties surrounding the projects and cost escalations arising from delayed.

Source:- carbonpositive.net

Mobile Phone Imports Up 0.5Pc In 9 Months

The mobile phone imports into the country increased by 0.5 percent during first three quarters of the year 2013-14 over the same period of last year.

The imports of mobile phone into the country during July-March (2013-14) were recorded at $477.289 million against the imports of $474.924 million during July-March (2012-13), according to the data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

Similarly the mobile phone imports into the country during the month of March 2014 decreased by 41.99 percent and 21.23 percent when compared to the imports in March 2013 and February 2014 respectively.

The mobile phone imports during March 2014 stood at $44.82 million against the imports of $77.261 million in March 2013 and $56.901 million in February 2014, the data revealed.

It is pertinent to mention here that the country's overall trade deficit narrowed by 5.49 percent during first three quarters of current fiscal year as exports expanded by 6.06 percent while imports witnessing slight growth of 0.86 percent as compared to the same period of last year.

On year-on-year basis, the trade deficit decreased by 11.98 percent in March 2014 when compared to the deficit of the same month of last year, according to the latest data of Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS).

Source:- brecorder.com

Nucleus Software Exports Net Profit Rises 21.79% In The March 2014 Quarter

Sales rise 17.77% to Rs 60.51 crore Net profit of Nucleus Software Exports rose 21.79% to Rs 11.01 crore in the quarter ended March 2014 as against Rs 9.04 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2013.

Sales rose 17.77% to Rs 60.51 crore in the quarter ended March 2014 as against Rs 51.38 crore during the previous quarter ended March 2013.

For the full year,net profit rose 48.53% to Rs 55.09 crore in the year ended March 2014 as against Rs 37.09 crore during the previous year ended March 2013. Sales rose 19.20% to Rs 241.11 crore in the year ended March 2014 as against Rs 202.28 crore during the previous year ended March 2013.

Source:- business-standard.com

Market May Open Flat To Slightly Higher

Trading of CNX Nifty futures on the Singapore stock exchange indicates that the Nifty could gain 5 points at the opening bell. Canara Bank, Emami, Piramal Enterprises among others will announce their January-March 2014 quarter results today, 5 May 2014.

Grasim Industries' consolidated net profit after minority interest (before exceptional item) rose 11% to Rs 679 crore on 10% growth in revenue to Rs 8419 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q4 March 2013. The Q4 result was announced after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014.

There was an exceptional gain of Rs 204 crore on the sale of Grasim's stake in Alexandria Carbon Black and Thai Carbon Black in Q4 March 2013.

Grasim Industries' consolidated net profit (before exceptional item) declined 17.12% to Rs 2072 crore on 5% growth in revenue to Rs 29324 crore in the year ended 31 March 2014 (FY 2014) over the year ended 31 March 2013 (FY 2013).

Despite the prevailing economic slowdown during the year, volumes have been augmented in all the businesses viz. VSF, Chemical and Cement, driven by the commissioning of new capacities, Grasim Industries said. An overcapacity in the VSF business globally and Cement business in India has impacted the realisations and profitability, the company said in a statement.

With regard to its future business outlook, Grasim Industries said that in the VSF sector, margins are likely to remain under pressure in the near term due to overcapacity in China. The slowdown of new capacity additions in China should lead to improvement in industry utilization, the company said. With additional capacity coming on stream, the company is well equipped to further consolidate its leadership position in the industry, it added. In Cement, the demand growth for the industry should gradually recover to 8% on improvement in the economic environment, Grasim Industries said in a statement.

Grasim Industries' board of directors at its meeting held on Friday, 2 May 2014, recommended dividend of Rs 21 per share for FY 2014.

Tata Motors' total sales (including exports) of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles fell 34% to 33,892 vehicles in April 2014 over April 2013. The company's domestic sales of Tata commercial and passenger vehicles declined 36% to 30,670 units in April 2014 over April 2013. The company's sales of commercial vehicles in the domestic market fell 36% to 23,229 units in April 2014 over April 2013. LCV sales fell 43% to 14,804 units in April 2014 over April 2013, while M&HCV sales declined 16% to 8,425 units in April 2014 over April 2013. Sales of passenger vehicles were lower by 36% to 7,441 units in April 2014 over April 2013. Sales of the Nano/ Indica/ Indigo range were down 37% to 5,653 units in April 2014 over April 2013. The Sumo/ Safari/ Aria/ Venture range sales fell 33% to 1,788 units in April 2014 over April 2013. The company's sales from exports registered a decline of 10% to 3,222 units in April 2014 over April 2013. Tata Motors announced sales figures after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (Sun Pharma) after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014, announced that, as a part of its manufacturing consolidation in the US, it has notified the Workforce Development Agency for the State of Michigan regarding its decision to cease manufacturing operations and close the Detroit (Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories,Ltd.) facility located at Elijah McCoy Detroit, Ml, USA. The company has provided the requisite advance written notice of the facility closure to the employee union and all affected employees, Sun Pharma said in a statement.

Sun Pharma said it has ensured that the impacted employees get compensated with more than their regular entitlement under the severance package. They will also receive other support services including outplacement assistance, the company added. The rest of the employees are continuing through mutually consented arrangements, Sun Pharma said in a statement.

Sun Pharma said it has undertaken necessary measures to ensure business continuity of the products being manufactured at this facility. The manufacturing of these products is being transferred to other units and all necessary steps have been taken to avoid market shortage, the company said. Sun Pharma said it expects a negligible impact of this development on its FY 2015 consolidated revenues.

Separately, Sun Pharma after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014 in a clarification with regard to news item titled "Sun-Ranbaxy merger runs into legal wrangle" said that it was neither served the notice of the hearing nor it was aware of such hearing being held nor it is served with the copy of the court order, so the question of submission of court order to the exchanges doe not arise, Sun Pharma said.

Ranbaxy Laboratories after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014 in a clarification with regard to news item "Sun-Ranbaxy merger runs into legal wrangle" said that the company has neither received any Notice nor appeared/represented before the Hon'ble High Court in regard to aforesaid Court case. Further, the company has also not been served the Order of the Hon'ble Court, Ranbaxy Laboratories said.

Reliance Communications' (RCom) consolidated net profit fell 48.51% to Rs 156 crore on 4.78% decline in total income to Rs 5671 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q4 March 2013. The company's consolidated net profit rose 55.8% to Rs 1047 crore on 2.5% rise in revenues to Rs 22321 crore in the year ended 31 March 2014 (FY 2014) over FY 2013. The company announced Q4 result after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014.

The company's consolidated net profit rose 43.9% to Rs 156 crore on 5% rise in revenue at Rs 5671 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) gained 0.4% to Rs 1852 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013. EBITDA margin stood at 32.7% in Q4 March 2014, amongst the highest in the industry, with strong contribution from both India and Global businesses.

Revenue of India operations rose 0.3% to Rs 4649 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013. EBITDA of India operations rose 3.2% to Rs 1659 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013

Revenue of global operations rose 15.7% to Rs 1261 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013. EBIDTA of global operations stood at Rs193 crore in Q4 March 2014, EBIDTA margin stood at 15.3% in Q4 March 2014.

RCom generated operational cash flow (EBITDA) of Rs. 1852 crore in Q4 March 2014, paid net finance charges of Rs 907 crore and invested Rs 467 crore on capex during the quarter. It remains free cash flow (FCF) positive and this is expected to continue, company said.

Among its key performance indicators (KPIs), revenue per minute (RPM) was stable at 43.2 paisa. Voice RPM at 33.0 paisa. During the year, the company has significantly improved RPM with tariff hikes and strong focus on paid and profitable Minutes.

Average revenue per user (ARPU) rose 2.4% at Rs 128 in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013. The total MOUs was up by 0.4% at 102.3 billion in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013.

The total data traffic was up 20.5% to 50,251 million MB in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013. The traffic has increased due to increase in data subscribers and higher data usage per customer

The total data customer base has grown 3.3% to 37.4 million in Q4 March 2014 over Q3 December 2013, including 12.9 million 3G customers in Q4

Ashok Leyland reported 21% decline in total sales to 5897 units in April 2014 over April 2013. Total sales of medium and heavy commercial vehicle (M&HCV) fell 14% to 4523 units in April 2014 over April 2013. Total sales of light commercial vehicles (LCV) declined 39% to 1374 units in April 2014 over April 2013.

Reliance Capital's consolidated net profit rose 1% to Rs 267 crore on 9% growth in total income to Rs 1848 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q4 March 2013. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014.

Reliance Capital's consolidated net profit rose 59% to Rs 747 crore on 14% growth in total income to Rs 7544 crore in the year ended 31 March 2014 (FY 2014) over the year ended 31 March 2013 (excluding one-time capital gains on stake sale in RCAM in FY 2013).

Reliance Capital's net worth rose 4% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 12483 crore as of 31 March 2014.

The company had a net debt equity ratio of 1.82 as on 31 March 2014. It continues to enjoy the highest ratings of 'A1+' by ICRA and CRISIL, for its short term borrowings program and 'CARE AAA' by CARE for its long term borrowing program, Reliance Capital said in a statement.

As on 31 March 2014, the total assets of the company stood at Rs 45528 crore, an increase of 12%.

Reliance Capital said the company has not raised any fixed deposits from the public.

Deepak Nitrite's net profit surged 68.25% to Rs 15.85 crore on 16.13% growth in total income from operations to Rs 360.61 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q4 March 2013. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014.

Deepak Nitrite's net profit rose 1.32% to Rs 38.32 crore on 24.54% growth in total income from operations to Rs 1269.62 crore in the year ended 31 March 2014 (FY 2014) over the year ended 31 March 2013 (FY 2013).

Deepak Nitrite's board of directors at its meeting held on Friday, 2 May 2014, approved 5-for-1 stock split. The board also approved issue of bonus shares in the ratio of 1:1. Also, the board approved payment of dividend of Rs 10 per share for FY 2014.

Power Finance Corporation announced after market hours on Friday, 2 May 2014 that the board of directors of the company at its meeting held on 2 May 2014, has approved conduct of postal ballot seeking approval of the shareholders on the slew of proposals including raising of resources through private placement of non-convertible debentures, enhancement of the borrowing power for the purpose of business of the company, authorization to the board of directors for mortgaging and/or creating charge on the assets of the company for securing borrowings for the purpose of the company and .fixation of 9 May 2014 as the cut-off date for reckoning voting rights of the shareholders.

R Systems International said that its board will meet on 10 May 2014 to discuss and review business operations of the company.

AstraZeneca Pharma India said that its board will meet on 5 May 2014, to consider seeking approval of shareholders of the company through postal ballot, for the voluntary delisting proposed by AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals AB Sweden, promoter of the company, in terms of Securities and Exchange Board of India (Delisting of Equity Shares) Regulations, 2009.

Pfizer's net profit fell 3.66% to Rs 56.03 crore on 2.46% decline in total income from operations to Rs 274.48 crore in Q4 March 2014 over Q4 March 2013. Net profit fell 56.11% to Rs 220.85 crore on 6% rise in total income from operations to Rs 1111.80 crore in the year ended March 2014 over the year ended March 2013.

Pfizer's revenue for the quarter was Rs 251.69 crore as compared to Rs 252.19 crore in the same period last year. The revenue for the year was Rs 1004.27 crore as compared to Rs 947.98 crore last year.

Excluding the transitional support for sales of certain animal health products, the pharmaceutical revenue for the quarter registered a growth of 6% to Rs 251.69 crore as compared to Rs 237.24 crore in the same period last year. Similarly the revenue for the year registered a growth of 5% to Rs 961.80 crore as compare to Rs 915.06 crore last year.

The profit before tax and exceptional items for the year grew by 21% to Rs 339.58 crore from Rs 279.65 crore last year.

Financial Technologies (India) (FTIL) said that its board met on 2 May 2014 and took note on the progress on the divestment of 24% stake in MCX, since the last board meeting held on 25 April 2014. The board was to deliberate on the final bidder at board meeting held on 2 May 2014.

However, in the light of developments of MCX releasing executive summary of the Report of special audit conducted by PWC, some of the bidders have requested for the full report and also further information about MCX. Their request has been sent to MCX by the Company's Merchant Bankers. In view of this, the bidders have not submitted the binding bids.

Accordingly, the board has decided to meet again on 10 May 2014 to review the progress on the divestment of 24% stake in MCX, FTIL said in a statement.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) next undertakes monetary policy review on 3 June 2014. The RBI left its main lending rate viz. the repo rate unchanged at 8% after a monetary policy review on 1 April 2014, as consumer-price inflation eased to a two-year low and as the rupee firmed up against the dollar.

A major near term trigger for the stock market is the outcome of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The 36 days long voting process began on 7 April 2014 and will conclude on 12 May 2014. The results will be declared on 16 May 2014 after which India will get a new government. The term of the current Lok Sabha expires on 1 June and the new House has to be constituted by 31 May.

Key benchmark indices settled marginally lower amid a choppy trading session on Friday, 2 May 2014. The S&P BSE Sensex was down 13.91 points or 0.06% to 22,403.89 on that day, its lowest closing level since 16 April 2014.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 386.95 crore on Friday, 2 May 2014, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.

Asian stocks fell on Monday after a private gauge of Chinese manufacturing contracted for a fourth month, missing market estimates. Key benchmark indices in China, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong declined 0.08% to 1.42%. Indonesia's Jakarta Composite rose 0.17%. Markets in Japan and South Korea are closed today and tomorrow for holidays.

China's manufacturing contracted in April for a fourth month, according to a private survey, signaling the risk of a deeper slowdown in an economy already projected to expand this year at the slowest pace since 1990. A purchasing managers' index was at 48.1, HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics said in a statement today. That compared with 48 the previous month. Numbers below 50 indicate contractions.

Growth in China's services sector accelerated slightly in April as new orders held steady, an official survey showed, an encouraging sign of strength in an economy that otherwise faces a cloudy outlook. The purchasing manufacturing index (PMI) for the services industry edged up to 54.8 last month, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Saturday, up marginally from 54.5 in March. A reading above 50 in PMI surveys indicates growth on a monthly basis, while a number below that threshold points to a contraction in activity.

US stocks eased on Friday as concerns about more violence in Ukraine prompted profit-taking ahead of the weekend and offset optimism about the fastest job growth in more than two years.

The labor market shifted into a higher gear in April with payroll gains showing the most widespread advance in two years, a sign the US economic expansion is on the verge of speeding up. The 288,000 increase in employment marked the biggest upside surprise since February 2012 and followed a 203,000 rise the prior month, Labor Department figures showed in Washington. An index measuring the share of industries hiring climbed to 67, the highest level since January 2012. The jobless rate dropped to 6.3%, the lowest since September 2008.

The Federal Reserve will likely bring its massive bond-buying program to an end in October, and only after that will it consider when to raise rates, a top Fed official said on Sunday. "I personally expect us to end that program in October," Dallas Federal Reserve Bank President Richard Fisher said in an interview on Fox News. "Then we have to see how the economy is doing, including these broader measures of unemployment and where we stand before we can talk about how we might move the short-term rate," he added.

In Europe, a monthly meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England's (BoE) for monetary policy review is scheduled on Thursday, 8 May 2014.The European Central Bank (ECB) will hold monetary policy meeting on Thursday, 8 May 2014, in Brussels, Belgium.

Source:- business-standard.com

Indian Textile Exports To Peru May Quadruple By 2015’

India presently exports textiles worth US$ 55 million to Peru, and this amount could increase by four times by the end of 2015, said deputy director of the Synthetic & Rayon Textiles Export Promotion Council of India (SRTEPC) Srijib Roy, at the recently concluded India Business Conference and Exhibition of Textile Industry (INTEXPO Peru 2014), held in the Peruvian capital city of Lima.

Mr. Roy explained that currently textile entrepreneurs in Peru purchase raw materials from other countries at high prices and it would be an advantage for them if they import textile and raw materials from India, especially fabrics for garments, reports Peruvian news agency andina.

According to the SRTEPC official, India can offer Peruvian entrepreneurs high quality products at competitive prices, and purchasing Indian textile and raw materials could be beneficial to both the countries.

Mr. Roy also informed that during the two-day event, 11 textile entrepreneurs from India managed to generate business deals worth US$ 1.85 million with Peruvian businessmen.

Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL) vice president Raul Barrios said that the visit of the 11 Indian textile entrepreneurs to Peru would help accelerate talks for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two nations which would increase trade relations between India and Peru.

Organized by the SRTEPC, with the support of Indian Embassy in Lima and the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL), the INTEXPO PERU event was aimed to provide an opportunity to Indian entrepreneurs to establish trade contacts with Peruvian textile and apparel enterprises.

Exhibitors from India showcased various products such as polyester yarn, viscose yarn, organic cotton yarn, acrylic yarn, polyester threads, viscose threads, cotton fabrics, polyester fabrics, linen fabrics and more, during the two-day event.

Source:- fibre2fashion.com

Coffee Exports In April Up 11% At Rs 535 Cr

India's coffee exports rose by over 11% in value terms at Rs 535.83 crore in April this year on better realisation following firm global prices, according to the Coffee Board.

Coffee shipments from India -- the world's fifth biggest exporter -- stood at Rs 480.77 crore in the corresponding period of last year.

However in volume terms, coffee shipments fell by over 4% at 31,836 tonnes in April this year from 33,211 tonnes of shipments in the year-ago period.

"The export realisation remained as high as Rs 1,68,362 per tonne in April, 2014, against Rs 1,44,762 per tonne in the year ago because of better global prices," a senior Board official said.

But the volume of coffee exports from India remained lower last month as domestic traders held back stocks anticipating recovery in global prices, which have firmed since February on likely drop in production in the world's largest coffee producer Brazil, the official added.

According to the Board, the global coffee prices have already risen by more than 80% this year owing to concerns over drought conditions in Brazil and an outbreak of coffee leaf rust plant disease in Central America.

During last week of April, arabica-quality coffee prices at New York had touched 219 US cents on April 24 -- the highest since February 2012. Robusta futures price for July had risen to $2,156 a tonne from $2,086 a tonne.

The Board official said that harvesting of coffee in the country has got over now. Overall domestic production is expected to be in line with the Board's estimate of 3,11,500 tonnes for 2013-14 crop year (October-September), down by 2.1% from 3,18,200 tonnes produced in 2012-13. India exports coffee largely to Italy, Germany, Belgium, Jordan, Turkey and Russia, among others.

Source:- business-standard.com

Rupee Trading A Tad Weak At 60.17

The rupee was trading a tad weak at 60.17 against the dollar at 3.37 p.m. local time on emergence of fresh dollar demand from banks and importers.

The domestic unit opened strong at 60.10 per dollar against the previous close of 60.15 on the back of weakness in the dollar index.

The rupee hovered in the range of 60.00-60.19 per dollar.

Call rates, bond yields

The overnight call money rate (the rate at which banks borrow money from each other to overcome short-term liquidity mismatches) opened sharply higher at 8.35 per cent against the previous close of 7.50 per cent.

The yield on 10-year benchmark 8.83 per cent bond, maturing in 2023, softened a tad to 8.78 per cent against Friday's close of 8.8 per cent. Bond prices rose to Rs 100.27 from Rs 100.13. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.

Source:- thehindubusinessline.com

Sale of hypothecated vehicles by NBFCs on default of borrowers was liable to VAT under West Bengal V

CST & VAT : When, with a view to recover dues, assessee-bank/NBFC sold vehicles owned by borrowers on default in repayment of loan, assessee acted as 'agent' of borrowed and fell within definition of 'dealer' and was liable to VAT

AO’s action of allowing sec. 80-IB relief in haste without making proper inquiry calls for sec. 263

IT : Where Assessing Officer even though taking a view that there existed possibility of violation of approved building plan, allowed assessee's claim for deduction under section 80-IB(10) as assessment was getting time barred, it being a case of non-application of mind, Commissioner was justified in setting aside assessment in exercise of revisional power under section 263

Storage loss of 17% of production wasn't legitimate'; HC denied remission of excise duty on storage

Excise & Customs : Remission of Excise duty cannot be allowed in respect of storage loss of 895 quintals viz. 17 per cent of sugar; only storage loss upto 0.5 per cent is condonable

Payment of interest by an Indian Bank to PSU at a higher rate was deductible as it wasn’t opposed by

IT : A bank would be entitled for deduction of excess rate of interest paid to PSUs if same were in consonance to RBI circular

HC affirms deduction of 25% for labour charges for work contract in absence of any books of account

CST & VAT : Where assessee was engaged in execution of works contract and it had not maintained books of account and had also not produced bills and vouchers pertaining to labour charges, Assessing Authority was justified in allowing deduction towards labour charges and like expenses to an extent of 25 per cent as per rate specified under Entry No. 14 of Table given below rule 3(2)(m) of Karnataka Value Added Tax Rules, 2005

ITAT remanded case to examine allowability of development exp. to real estate developer in view of A

IT : Matter needed readjudication where issue as to whether development expenses could be allowed under applicable accountancy standards and commercial principles remained unexamined

Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation Act, 1961 is Constitutionally valid

Banking Laws : Since objective of DICGC Act is to protect interests of small depositors when banks in which their deposits are held gone into liquidation, classification between depositors having deposits of less than Rs. 1 lakh and beyond is certainly based upon an intelligible differentia and has a rational nexus with objective, thus, is not in violation of article 14 of Constitution of India

HC restores appeal as assessee failed to appear in proceedings due to his counsel's fault in noting

Excise & Customs : Where non-appearance was because legal counsel had mistakenly noted date of hearing as 30-8-2012 instead of 30-7-2012, appeal dismissed for default in appearance could be restored; assessee cannot be made to suffer for any bona fide error of his counsel