19.06.2007

• Want to know more details about the Presidential election method?
• Read today’s article in ET that appeared in the 2^nd page. I couldn’t locate the direct URL for it. You are on your own there.
• By way help to those of you who are addicted to the Internet the way I am, you can actually see the article online through e-paper option of Economic Times. For this, you should register first, which is of course free. You can find the link to e-paper on the ‘Hot Links’ section on the side left menu bar on the ET website.
• Remember MRCA?
• Multi-role combat aircraft!! India is on the look out for a huge acquisition. It is planning to acquire about 126 of these fighter planes. This possible acquisition is being watched keenly by all the global aviation players.
• Some aircraft majors and/or aircraft that are keen on snatching up this order from India include:
• Lockheed Martin (US)
• Boeing (US)
• EU consortium’s Eurofighter
• Saab (Sweden) with its Grippen fighter
• Dassault (France) with its Rafale
• Russia with its MIG 35
• India’s Defence Procurement policy was given a final shape recently in September, 2006.
• US defence major Raytheon is willing to offer an advanced radar, Aesa for India’s LCA (Light Combat Aircraft), provided the US government has no objection.
• Mining policy owes
• India has reserves of over 23 bn tonnes of iron ore. It is one of the five largest sources of iron ore globally.
• The steel industry maintains that the reserves should be preserved for the fast-growing domestic sector. But the mining industry says that domestic demand doesn’t match the production and export is the way out.
• The Hoda committee recommended opening up of the sector for FDI.
• Some mining majors of the world that are eyeing the country for years include:
• Rio Tinto
• CVRD
• BHP Billiton
• First solar city of India?
• It could be Gandhinagar if the Gujarat government has its way. The state government has prepared a blueprint to make the state capital a solar city.
• Let’s learn the challenges that our defence forces face in using fuel
• They have to operate in varying temperature conditions. Nearly 1/6^th of the Army operates in high altitude areas, where diesel can be used up to freezing point. But beyond that it has to be a different fuel.
• From 0 to minus 17 degrees Celsius, they use up to 80% high grade kerosene and only 20% diesel.
• Beyond minus 17 degrees Celsius, they use 98% high grade kerosene with 2% minerals.
• What is meant by ‘queering the pitch’?
• If someone queers your pitch, they interfere in your affairs and spoil things.
• Some good stats to remember when thinking about the retail licensing that the government is toying with:
• A Crisil study finds that food and grocery items account for 74% of retail sales, and modern retail accounts for 1% of all food items.
• An inefficient supply chain ensures makes farmers receive only 35 to 40% of the retail price. A vastly more efficient supply chain, the core of successful modern retail, can both pay higher prices for farmers and lower costs for the consumers.
• The study estimates that supply chain losses are of the order of Rs. 100,000 crores.
• Dutch disease again
• We noted something about Dutch disease just a couple of days ago. Some more info that appeared in today’s First Principle:
• In the 1960’s Netherlands experienced a vast increase in its wealth following the discovery of large natural gas deposits in the North Sea. Unexpectedly, this ostensibly positive development had serious repercussions on important segments of the country’s economy – as the Dutch guilder became stronger, Dutch non-oil exports became uncompetitive. This syndrome has come to be known as “Dutch disease.”
• Although the disease is associated generally with a natural resource discovery, it can occur from any development that results in a large inflow of foreign currency, including a sharp surge in natural resource prices, foreign assistance, and FDI.
• Am I being vindicated?
• Take a look at what Bloomberg is reporting!!!
• Reporting on WTO talks it says what I have been saying for the last few months in our blogs. The future may be dominated by easier-to-deliver bilateral deals, while the multilateral process focuses on smoothing out other irritants to trade such as differences over intellectual property rights and banking laws. When the Uruguay round started in 1994, there were only 80 bilateral free trade acts. Since then, that number has more than doubled.
• What I have been saying was that regional FTAs will find favour with most of the countries. It does not mean that they will shy away from the WTO talks altogether. While they will keep making right noises, they will work together with other like minded countries to strike regional and bilateral deals.
• Bloomberg, by the way, is a top five leading global provider of data, news and analytics.