19.04.2009

International

• Excerpts from a Pentagon report as reported in today's TOI
  
• Pakistan is likely to disintegrate into fiefdoms controlled by Islamist warlords and terrorists.  Pakistan’s fragmentation into warlord-run fiefdoms that host Al Qaida and other terrorist groups would have grave implications for the security of its nuclear arsenal; for the US-led effort to pacify Afghanistan; and for the security of India, the nearby oil-rich Persian Gulf and Central Asia, the United States and its allies. 
  
• Pakistan has 173 million people and 100 nuclear weapons, an army which is bigger than the American army, and the headquarters of Al Qaida sitting in two-thirds of the country which the government does not control.
  

Finance & Economy

• Is colour having anything to do with presenting corporate image?  Should companies be bothered about colour while presenting their corporate image?
  
• Psychologically, colours trigger how people feel and perceive. And sometimes, they even manipulate people to buy. By using a particular colour in its communication, a company projects its maxim. Again, ads in colour are read up to 45% more often than the same ads in black-and-white. It’s also proven that precise use of colour can improve comprehension by 70%. Over half of the Sensex companies predominantly use blue as their corporate colours. 
• In general, blue exudes emotions such as trust and security and goes by the never-get-us-wrong true blue moniker. Blue also implies fiscal prudence.  Let us take a look at what the other prominent colours are associated with:
  
• Red: is known to activate the pituitary gland, which increases heart rate causing one to breathe rapidly. This response makes red energetic, provocative and attention grabbing. 
  
• Yellow: Research suggests that the eye sees bright yellow before any other colour, which makes them important for point-of-purchase displays. 
  
• Orange: exudes vitality, which works wonders in healthcare.
  
• Brown: is earthy and symbolises durability and stability. Brown also tends to hide dirt, which makes it suitable for some trucking and industrial firms. 
  
• Black: is serious, bold and powerful.
  
• D&O liability insurance
  
• It stands for Directors & Officers liability insurance.  It typically covers top executives from being held personally liable in the event of misleading financial statements and mismanagement of funds. It also guards companies in case of litigation payments made on behalf of its directors or officers.
  
• At present less than 10% of the companies listed on BSE sensex have this cover in place.
  
• In India, while it's compulsory for the mutual funds and insurance brokers to take liability covers, there is no such restriction on listed companies. At present, the premium for a D&O policy is as low as 0.5% of the total cover. 
  
• Romania was the first country in the European Union (EU) to make D&O insurance compulsory for all corporations. 
  
• Brazil requires foreign companies to compulsorily purchase a locally-issued D&O insurance policy to protect their local subsidiary's directors and officers from litigation. 
  
• In the US, a survey revealed that 46% of those suing the directors were shareholders, 30% were from employees while customers and clients constituted 12%. 
  
• Teledensity in our metros
• Chennai: 111%; Mumbai: 90%; Delhi: 83% & Kolkata:67%.
• Inflation at record lows
  
• Annual inflation dropped to 0.18%—the lowest since annual records for inflation started in 1977-78—on account of a high base effect, or high index numbers in the corresponding week last year. 
  
• What is credit information business?
  
• Credit information companies inform banks whether a prospective borrower is creditworthy or not based on his past payment track record. 
  
• At present in India only CIBIL is allowed to operate by the RBI to maintain credit histories of insurance and telecom customers.  But it is now reported that it has permitted three more companies to do that business: Equifax Credit Information Services, Experian Credit Information Company, and Highmark Credit Information Services. 

Sport

• IPL
• The first day's action saw Mumbai Indians beating Team Chennai by 19 runs.  And Royal Challengers beat Rajasthan Royals.
  

Miscellaneous

• What is a prebituary? 
  
• A prebituary is an obituary composed or published prior to a person’s death — it is a writeup of the lifetime achievements of famous personalities to mark their 65th birthdays. Most newspapers and media networks keep such obituaries of famous people ready. 
  
• What is Burundanga? 
  
• Burundanga is the other name of the drug Scopolamine, used for criminal activities like rape or robbery. The drug is passed on to the victim through business cards, pamphlets, etc. Even if the skin, through touch, absorbs just a very small quantity of the drug it has the desired effect. The drug is also administered through tablets added to drinks. This is known as the ‘dating drug’.