Zee Entertainment Q1 net down 6.26 per cent at Rs 210.57 crore

Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd on  Friday reported 6.26 per cent decline in consolidated net profit at Rs 210.57 crore for the first quarter ended June 30, 2014-15, due to fall in other income. 

The company had reported consolidated net profit of Rs 224.64 crore in the same period of the previous fiscal. 
Consolidated total income from operations stood at Rs 1,085.7 crore during the April-June quarter of the current fiscal, up 11.55 per cent compared with Rs 973.25 crore in Q1, 2013-14, Zee EntertainmentBSE -2.58 % said in a BSE filing. 

Other income in Q1, 2014-15 was Rs 38.95 crore as against Rs 72.17 crore in the year-ago period. 

The company's total consolidated revenue from advertising grew by 17.36 per cent to Rs 622.1 crore while revenue from from subscription increased by 4.40 per cent to Rs 442.77 crore. 

Chandra said: "During the quarter, the industry has seen a positive rub-off effect of Election spending on the TV ad spends. In this backdrop, we expect television media industry to continue on its double-digit path." 

Microsoft to scrap Android-based Nokia X, cut down 18,000 jobs

 Microsoft is planning to scrap off Nokia X and cut down 18,000 jobs next year.

The company is planning to replace their Android based Nokia X with a window phone, which is expected to launch next year.

Microsoft devices chief Stephen Elop said that they are planning to deliver additional lower-cost Lumia devices by shifting select future Nokia X designs and products to Windows Phone devices, The Verge reported.

He added that they expect to make this shift immediately while continuing to sell and support existing Nokia X products.

The shift means any future Nokia X handsets will run Windows Phone, resulting in the end of Microsoft's Android efforts.

The shift also shows that Microsoft is working to boost Windows phones, Elop said that they would be particularly focused on making the market for Windows Phone

Volvo sees Q2 profit up 21 percent, sales flat

Swedish truck maker AB Volvo says profit in the second quarter jumped 21 percent on the back of cost savings, efficiency schemes and streamlined production.

Net profit in the April to June period jumped to 2.5 billion kronor ($365 million) from 2.1 billion a year earlier. Sales were marginally down at 72.6 billion kronor compared with 72.8 billion kronor the same period last year.

CEO Olof Persson said in a statement Friday that truck sales have developed particularly well in North America and Japan with increased market shares during the quarter, but that was offset by declines in South American and the sluggish European market.

He said ongoing restructuring schemes and an efficiency program launched last year are working as planned for the Goteborg-based company.

Rolta's owned subsidary of Rolta Americas LLC raises USD 300 million

Rolta India announces the sucessful pricing of 8.875% Senior Notes in the international markets.

Rolta India Limited (“Rolta”) announced the successful pricing of 8.875% Senior Notes (the “Notes”) in the international markets, aggregating to USD 300 million by its wholly owned subsidiary, Rolta Americas LLC. This offering was oversubscribed by more than 8 times with Order Book of over USD 2.4 billion with demand from a high quality investor base (over 200 accounts globally), split among asset managers (79%), banks (12%), and others (9%). The offering was well-subscribed across geographies, with Asia contributing to 47% of the demand, US contributing to 35% of the demand and European investors accounted for 18% of demand. The Notes have a tenure of 5 years and are guaranteed by Rolta and its key subsidiaries. The Notes have been rated as S&P: BB- / Fitch: BB-. The proceeds from the Notes will be used for refinancing existing debt, to meet working capital requirements and for general corporate purposes. The Notes will be listed on the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Ltd. (SGX-ST). Commenting on the success of the offering, K. K. Singh, Chairman and CEO of Rolta said, “We are very pleased to have received such an overwhelming response from investors once again. It is very gratifying that Rolta’s business model and its IP-led solutions approach have inspired confidence in some of the world's largest and most sophisticated investors.” Barclays and Citigroup, acted as the Joint Lead Managers to the Notes offering. DLA Piper and Davis Polk Wardwell were US counsels to Rolta and to the Joint Lead Managers, respectively.Trilegal advised the Joint Lead Managers on matters of Indian law.

Syntel Q2 Net up 24.8 pc at $59.3 mn

IT services firm Syntel today reported a 24.8 per cent rise in net profit at $59.3 million for the second quarter ended June 30, 2014. 

The NASDAQ-listed firm had posted a net profit of $47.5 million in the year-ago period, it said in a release. 

Revenue for the second quarter rose by 13 per cent to $228.3 million against to $202.5 million in the second quarter of 2014. It follows January-December fiscal. 

Its revenue increased by four per cent sequentially from $219.5 million in the first quarter of 2014. 

During the April-June quarter, Banking and Financial Services accounted for 49 per cent of total revenue, with Healthcare and Life Sciences at 17 per cent, Retail, Logistics and Telecom at 16 per cent, Insurance at 15 per cent and Manufacturing at three per cent. 

During Q2, Syntel spent $4.3 million in CAPEX, largely in support of campus infrastructure, and finished the quarter with cash and short-term investments of $769.8 million. 

Reliance Infrastructure Q1 PAT seen down 5.5% at Rs 354 cr

Reliance Infrastructure's total income is expected to decline 17.3 percent to Rs 2,711 crore in June quarter compared to Rs 3,279 crore in same quarter last year.

Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group Company  Reliance Infrastructure  will announce its first quarter (April-June) earnings today. According to CNBC-TV18 poll estimates, analysts expect standalone profit after tax to fall 5.5 percent year-on-year to Rs 354 crore. Total income is expected to decline 17.3 percent to Rs 2,711 crore in June quarter compared to Rs 3,279 crore in same quarter last year. However, operational performance is likely to be strong with the operating profit rising 8.2 percent on yearly basis to Rs 476 crore and margin increasing 410 basis points to 17.6 percent in the quarter gone by.   Analysts say continued decline in contribution from EPC segment led by a declining order book has impacted revenue visibility, which is a concern. Infact, EPC revenues in FY15 may get impacted due to prolonged delay in the large capacity projects of Chittrangi, Krishnapattnam and Tilaiya. Margin of EPC division needs to be watched. Current order book of the company stood at Rs 7,500 crore and the management expects EBITDA margin to be maintained in the 8-10 percent range. The regulator in September 2013 approved Rs 2,800 crore as the quantum of regulatory assets recoverable by Reliance Infrastructure. This will be recovered along with the carrying cost at SBI PLR at Rs 965 crore per year for the next six years, say analysts. The company also received a cross subsidy surcharge of Rs 149 crore for Q4FY14 and Rs 140 crore in Q3FY14. The company is likely to report a weak Q1 numbers due to weak E&C (revenues may fall by 25-30 percent Y-o-Y), higher interest costs and lower treasury income.

Gold dips on profit-taking, safe-haven bids support after plane crash

Gold dipped on Friday on profit-taking after a sharp overnight jump, but the metal is being supported by a wave of risk aversion after a Malaysian airliner was downed in eastern Ukraine, killing nearly 300 people.

Gold, seen as an alternative investment during times of geopolitical uncertainty, rose about 1.5 percent in the previous session after news of the plane crash, which a Ukrainian official said was caused by a missile fired by pro-Russian militants.

The incident sharply raises the stakes in a conflict between Kiev and pro-Moscow rebels that has been going on for months, and has escalated tensions between Russia and the West.

Spot gold slipped 0.1 percent to $1,315.40 an ounce by 0254 GMT. Asian shares sagged in early trading and a drop in Treasury yields pressured the dollar after news of the downed Malaysian airlines jet sent investors scurrying into defensive assets.

However, the metal is still down nearly 2 percent for the week, following a six-week winning streak, as fears of financial troubles in a Portugal bank fade and as investors worry about a sooner-than-expected hike in U.S. interest rates.

In a measure of investment sentiment, SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings fell 2.69 tonnes to 803.34 tonnes on Thursday.

Among other precious metals, palladium was trading near its highest since 2001 after the United States imposed its toughest sanctions yet on Russia, the biggest producer of the metal, over Moscow's failure to curb violence in Ukraine.

Wipro gains 3% on strategic alliance with Canada's ATCO

Wipro, a global information technology, consulting and business process services company, entered into a strategic alliance with Canada-based ATCO.

Investors continued to buy shares of  Wipro on Friday after global information technology, consulting and business process services company entered into a strategic alliance with Canada-based ATCO. The stock gained more than 3 percent. As part of this alliance, Wipro will provide total outsourcing solutions to ATCO in Canada and Australia. This arrangement is projected to result in revenues of over CAD 120 million (USD 112 million) to Wipro annually, for the next ten years (up to December 2024). "Focus will be to enable ATCO to enhance their competitiveness by deployment of strategic solutions and efficient delivery of IT services," said Anand Padmanabhan, chief executive - energy, natural resources and utilities. Wipro’s IT services delivery model will be further strengthened in North America and Australia by ATCO I-Tek, a subsidiary of ATCO with a presence in both these geographies, which will now become a part of Wipro for an all-cash consideration of CAD 210 million (USD 195 million). ATCO I-Tek has been providing IT Services to ATCO for the past 15 years, said the company in its filing.

TCS declares interim dividend & special dividend

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd has informed BSE that the Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on July 17, 2014, inter alia, have declared an interim dividend of Rs. 45 per equity share of Rs. 1 each of the Company, which includes special dividend of Rs. 40 per equity share.

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd has informed BSE that the Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on July 17, 2014, inter alia, have declared an interim dividend of Rs. 45 per equity share of Rs. 1 each of the Company, which includes special dividend of Rs. 40 per equity share.Further, the Interim Dividend will be paid to the equity shareholders of the Company on August 08, 2014.