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Global Business |Update|
(A weekly update on Global Business )
Skyline Business School
Hauz Khas Enclave, New Delhi 110 016
Tel: 2686 4848, 2686 6968

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Issue 126

Global Business Update
(26th August’09---1st September’09)

Contents

Global Corporate

1 Dell gives upbeat sales outlook
2 Boeing 787 to fly by year's end
3 Apple unleashes Snow Leopard OS
4 Cider maker buys Tennent's lager
5 Honda Motorcycle to ramp up production
6 General Motors expands in China
7 Toyota pulls plug on US factory

Global Outsourcing

8 First New England Invests In Military Outsourcing
9 Pomeroy sees earnings drop for 2Q
10 NewMarket Technology announces $33 million outsourcing agreement with WBA
11 IBM lands major BP outsourcing deal
12 Foster's Group, Wipro in Talks on IT Outsourcing Deal
13 Indian outsourcing majors in talks for $1 billion Exxon deal

Global Economy

14 More growth for China factories
15 House price rise hits 5-year high
16 US economic contraction unrevised
17 Indian economy continues to grow
18 Economy Likely to Come Out of Recession Says ICAEW
19 Oil prices bounce back above $70
20 More signs of US economic growth

Global Markets

21 Stocks in Asia dip in choppy trade; China slides
22 DBS, Julius Baer likely bidders for ING’s private banking units
23 US stocks unchanged despite data, oil slides
24 China stocks tumble; yen jumps after election
25 Report: Bank of America offering to repay some aid
26 Volatile stocks right choice for returns: Morgan Stanley

Global Corporate

1 Dell gives upbeat sales outlook
Dell has reported another decline in quarterly profits, but says it now expects its revenues to improve through the second half of the year. Net profits at the US giant totalled $472m (£290m) in the three months to 31 July, down 23% on a year earlier, but ahead of market expectations. Dell's revenues for its second quarter fell 22% from last year to $12.8bn. Global computer sales have been knocked by the worldwide recession, as customers cut back on their spending. Dell released its results before the end of Thursday trading in New York, sending its shares up 7% at the close.
27th August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

2 Boeing 787 to fly by year's end
The first flight of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner will take place by the end of 2009, the company has announced. Boeing also said it hoped to deliver the first plane for service in the last quarter of 2010. There have been a series of delays in the development of the aircraft, and it is now running almost two years behind its original schedule. Boeing chairman Jim McNerney said the extra time would enable the remaining work to be completed. The design details and implementation plan are nearly complete, and the team is preparing airplanes for modification and testing he said. The delay was partly caused by an area within the side-of-body section of the aircraft which needed to be reinforced, Boeing added.
26th August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

3 Apple unleashes Snow Leopard OS
The latest update of the Apple Mac operating system OS X, known as Snow Leopard, went on sale on Friday. The software - available only as a DVD, not a download - was originally due to hit shops in September but Apple brought it forward at the last minute. The system will go head-to-head with Microsoft's latest operating system, Windows 7, due for release in October. Both will also compete with a system from Google, called Chrome OS, set for release in the second half of 2010. Google will offer an entirely new operating system, whilst Windows 7 and Snow Leopard are refinements to existing systems. Apple recommends that owners of older Intel-based Macs that are running the older Tiger OS, should purchase an upgrade which costs £129 ($169 in the US). The package comes bundled with various other pieces of software, such as iWork, Apple's Microsoft Office competitor.
28th August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

4 Cider maker buys Tennent's lager
The Dublin-based C&C Group has bought Tennent's lager in a deal worth £180m. C&C, which makes Magners cider, has acquired the Irish, Northern Irish and Scottish businesses of Anheuser-Busch InBev, including the Tennent's brands. The cost of the merger between Anheuser-Busch and InBev is thought to have forced the company to sell some of its assets. Tennent's is Scotland's leading lager, accounting for 55% of pub sales. C&C said the deal made good business sense. The firm makes the cider brands Bulmers and Magners, as well as a range of niche spirits and liqueurs. Along with Tennent's lager, it has also acquired the Wellpark Brewery in Glasgow and distribution rights for brands including Becks and Stella Artois.
29th August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

5 Honda Motorcycle to ramp up production
Two-wheeler maker Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) on Friday said it will invest over Rs 200 crore this fiscal in ramping up capacity and upgrading all models to Bharat Stage-III emission norms. The company is also looking to produce bikes above 250 cc category in India. Within this financial year we will upgrade all our models to BS-III emission norms compliant and for that we will invest over Rs 100 crore in our Research and Development (R&D) activities, HMSI President and CEO Shinji Aoyama said on the sidelines of SIAM annual convention in New Delhi.
29th August 2009, www.financialexpress.com

6 General Motors expands in China
General Motors has signed up to a 2bn yuan ($293m; £180m) joint venture with the Chinese state-owned carmaker FAW to make light trucks and vans. The vehicles will initially be sold in China under the FAW brand, but could in future be exported under the GM brand. They will be produced at existing FAW facilities in the cities of Changchun and Harbin. GM sold 818,442 vehicles in China in the first six months of 2009, compared with 1,094,561 in the whole of 2008. Demand was particularly strong for its minivans and other small vehicles.
31st August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

7 Toyota pulls plug on US factory
Toyota is pulling out of a production plant in the US it jointly owns with General Motors (GM), the first time it has abandoned a factory. The world's largest carmaker will stop production at the Fremont, California-based New United Motor Manufacturing plant in March 2010. GM announced earlier this year that it would withdraw from the venture. Toyota said: Over the mid to long-term, it just would not be economically viable to continue production. he firm will move production to its other plants in the US and in Japan.
31st August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

Global Outsourcing

8 First New England Invests In Military Outsourcing
Ranger International Services Group Inc. has acquired military outsourcing company US Logistics Inc. and picked up new investors along the way. First New England Capital, a previous backer of Ranger, has re-invested in the deal, while Argosy Investment Partners and Plexus Capital have come onboard for this transaction, according to Argosy Founding Partner Kirk Griswold. Ranger, a platform for buying aviation-related businesses, bought CAV International Inc. earlier this year. US Logistics and CAV have combined revenue of over $100 million and over 1,000 employees. More acquisitions are expected. First New England Principal Seth Alvord said this is a step up in the product offering and diversification” that “gives us exposure on the commercial side. Backing Ranger International Chief Executive Steve Townes was somewhat familiar ground for Argosy.
26th August 2009, www.tutorial-reports.com

9 Pomeroy sees earnings drop for 2Q
Pomeroy IT Solutions bounced back into the black for its second quarter, after a first-quarter loss, but earnings and revenues were down from year-ago levels. The tech company posted second-quarter net income of $324,000, or 3 cents per share, compared to $1.5 million, or 12 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Net revenues fell to $100.8 million from $155 million. In its first fiscal quarter, Pomeroy reported a $600,000 loss.

Excluding charges, Pomeroy had 17 cents in earnings per share for the quarter, compared to 19 cents in second-quarter 2008.
28th August 2009, www.bizjournals.com

10 NewMarket Technology announces $33 million outsourcing agreement with WBA
US systems integration company NewMarket Technology and its wholly owned subsidiary NewMarket Colombia, have announced a three-year, $33 million outsourcing agreement with Colombia-based WBA Telecommunications, under which WBA will outsource substantially all of its current operations to NewMarket Colombia. This is NewMarket's second major outsourcing agreement signed in 2009. NewMarket previously announced a similar agreement in Shanghai, China earlier in 2009.
29th August 2009, www.tradingmarkets.in

11 IBM lands major BP outsourcing deal
IBM has won a five-year contract to manage the SAP applications for oil and gas giant BP. Terms of the deal were not released, but IBM said its contract is the largest of several awarded by BP (NYSE: BP) as part of the British company’s efforts to consolidate the number of vendors it uses to meet its IT needs worldwide. The other winners of BP work were three Indian firms: Infosys Technologies, Wipro Ltd. and Tata Consultancy Services. IBM’s deal calls on Big Blue’s Global Business Services division to manage and improve BP’s SAP software, which facilitates the gas company’s business operations across the globe. Germany-based SAP (NYSE: SAP) is one of the world’s leading developers of software for business-wide applications. Large companies such as BP often need software modified or created to precise specifications to meet business needs. IBM’s Global Services unit will oversee the process of optimizing BP’s computer systems.
30th August 2009, www.bizjournals.com

12 Foster's Group, Wipro in Talks on IT Outsourcing Deal
Australia's Foster's Group Ltd. said Friday it is in talks with Wipro Ltd. to outsource some of its information technology operations in the U.S., the U.K. and Australia, as the beer and wine maker tries to cut costs and consolidate its technology requirements by hiring a single service provider. This would be the third such deal that Wipro, India's third largest software exporter, has received or is close to receiving in as many days. The potential deal underscores recent comments from Indian software companies that the pressure on the outsourcing industry is slowly easing, after the global slowdown squeezed growth in the past few quarters.
27th August 2009, www.tutorial-reports.com

13 Indian outsourcing majors in talks for $1 billion Exxon deal: report
ExxonMobil is in talks with Indian technology firms including L&T Infotech and HCL Technologies Ltd. and multinational vendors to outsource IT contracts worth up to $1 billion, the Economic Times reported on its Web site Friday, citing a U.S.-based person familiar with ExxonMobil's outsourcing strategy.
28th August 2009, www.tutorial-reports.com

Global Economy

14 'More growth' for China factories
China's manufacturing sector continued to recover in August, two separate monthly surveys have indicated. The China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing's purchasing managers' index rose to a 16-month high of 54 points in August, up from 53.3 in July. With any figure above 50 indicating growth, this was the sixth month of expansion. A separate manufacturing index compiled by HSBC also rose. The government's stimulus spending is continuing to lift factory output. First launched in November of last year, Beijing is spending $586bn (£370bn) between now and the end of 2010 on housing and infrastructure projects across the nation, and post-earthquake reconstruction in the south west of the country.
1st September 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

15 House price rise hits 5-year high
House prices in England and Wales rose by 1.7% in July compared with June - the biggest monthly leap in value since July 2004, the Land Registry said. Every region recorded a monthly rise in prices, with the average home valued at £155,885, the analysis found. But prices were still 11.7% lower in July than they were in the same month a year earlier and sales were also down. The annual drop in prices was sharpest in the North East of England but at its most shallow in Wales. The Land Registry, which records all completed property sales in England and Wales, is widely regarded as producing one of the most authoritative house price reports, although it does lag behind data from lenders. It compares the price of properties sold now with the price paid when they were sold previously. However, repossessions and property transfers following a divorce are excluded from the sample.
31st August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk

16 US economic contraction unrevised
The US economy shrank at an annual pace of 1% between April and June, unchanged from an initial estimate released last month, according to the latest data. Analysts had been expecting a downward revision, with some forecasting a contraction of 1.5%. The second quarter figures were a significant improvement on the 6.4% contraction between January and March. US growth figures are revised frequently and the different estimates can vary significantly.
28th August 2009, www.bbc.co.uk