Japanese companies keen to establish telecom gear test labs in India

Japanese companies are keen to establish telecom gear test labs in India even as the government prepares to invite bids from private lab operators to pave the way for local testing from July 2014. Japan, however, wants the telecom department (DoT) to share the vulnerability levels of Indian mobile networks and privacy laws on protecting the intellectual property rights (IPRs) of global network gear suppliers. This is because all imported network gear will be subject to security check by a local test lab before deployment in Indian telecom networks from next July.

"Japanese companies want to understand the attack situation in Indian telecom networks and the privacy regulations, and whether there would be implications on the testing standards," a top official of the Japan embassy wrote in a letter to the DoT, a copy of which was reviewed by ET, said.

The Japanese embassy's communique comes at a time when the telecom department has decided to mandate the upcoming Telecom Testing & Security Certification (TTSC) centre to invite bids from organisations in the private, public and joint sectors keen to set up telecom gear test labs in India.

According to a separate internal telecom department note, the government plans to "shortlist four potential telecom gear test lab builders" after techno-commercial assessment of bids. The TTSC, which was originally expected to shoulder-testing responsibilities, will now confine its role to only framing the testing standards and certifying private labs operating in India.

"Since the volume of testing would be huge, given that $4-billion (Rs 25,000 crore approx) of active telecom equipment is inducted into Indian telecom networks every year, it would be impossible for TTSC to singlehandedly certify such equipment," says the telecom department note.

The note adds that "TTSC would prescribe the testing standards and tools which accredited test labs would have to adhere from July 2014". The TTSC will charge accreditation fees for such services.

"Worldwide, test labs check the firewalls embedded in telecom equipment based on the vulnerability profiles of telecom networks," said a top official representing a leading European network vendor.

"But a key issue that the government must address while framing the testing standards is mandating the test labs to maintain the confidentiality of IPRs owned by various system vendors since they would have access to multiple IPRs by virtue of being accredited testing agencies," he added. The gear testing business is seen as a huge opportunity, given the sheer volume of equipment that gets deployed in Indian telecom networks annually. Software companies Tech MahindraBSE -0.07 % and WiproBSE -1.11 % have already evinced an interest to the DoT proposal to set up test labs.

Japanese Business Sentiment about Bangalore Positive. But Infira has to improve.

Bangalore has to improve its infrastructure and governmental procedures have to be accelerated to enable more Japanese businesses to come in, Ambassador of Japan to India Takeshi Yagi said.
Speaking to Express at the National Japan Day celebration hosted by the Consulate of Japan, Yagi said Japanese businessmen have a positive opinion about doing business in Bangalore. There are around 240 Japanese companies in Karnataka, most of them in and around Bangalore. “I had conversations with Japanese business people this time and their opinion is positive. But it will be all the more better if government procedures are accelerated and infrastructure improved,” he said.
In May this year, Japanese motorcycle manufacturer Honda started production of commuter bikes at its Narsapur plant with a capacity of 18 lakh units a year, making it the company’s largest plant in the world. “The number of Japanese companies has increased by 40 in the last two-three years, which is a very steep increase. This shows Japanese investment in Bangalore and Karnataka has been increasing,” Yagi said.
On Friday morning, Yagi met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and they discussed the business environment in Bangalore. On Siddaramaiah’s proposed high-speed rail link between Bangalore and Mysore, Yagi said it was not a priority. “We have started a feasibility study for another stretch between Mumbai and Delhi. For now, we need to focus on this stretch. Based on this experience, we will examine the possibility of a Bangalore-Mysore link, but there’s nothing concrete now.”
Bangalore has joined the list of investment destinations for Japanese business interests, Yagi said. “There are five centres of Japanese investment here - in and around New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and now Bangalore and Gujarat,” he said.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which is extending financial support to various infrastructure and developmental projects, is ready to cooperate with India based on needs and proposals from this side, he said.
When asked what the extent of financial support to the mega 560-km Chennai-Bangalore Industrial Corridor would be, Yagi said: “The entire master-plan for the project will be completed in about a year. We have been extending a sizeable volume of financial cooperation to many other projects and the same is likely for this.”

Japanese arts win many hearts at city festival

The three-day Japan festival concluded on Sunday with the screening of Japanese animation movie 'Children Who Chase Lost Voices' in the evening. According to the organizers, over 10,000 people visited the festival held at Ahmedabad Management Association (AMA).
The festival included workshops on traditional Japanese arts such as Ikebana, Bonsai and Origami. "Over 1,000 persons, including many school kids and senior citizens, participated in these workshops spread over two days", said Mukesh Patel, president, Indo-Japan Friendship Association (IJFA).

"I really enjoyed the Ikebana workshop. It was a good experience to learn about Japanese art of flower arrangement", said 70-year-old Pravina Parekh.
Over 15 documentaries on introduction to Japan were also showcased along with seven award-winning Japanese films. "I had never seen a Japanese movie before. I enjoyed watching Shodo Girls, it was a moving story", said Sheetal Jain, homemaker who had come with her teenage son. Japanese tea ceremony demonstration and exhibition of Japanese dolls and crafts was also done as part of the festival.
Japanese people living and working in Ahmedabad too came for the festival to have some homely experience. "The organizers are showed traditional art and culture of Japan which will help people of Gujarat understand our country better and increase cooperation", said Naoshi Terasaki, project manager, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The organizers have decided to make the festival an annual affair from 2014. Earlier, two editions were held alongside Vibrant Gujarat summit.

Many South Korean companies doing surveys to invest in India: Seok-Gu Jang

After a dip in the last two years, trade volumes between India and South Korea look a lot more promising in the next year. More Korean companies have begun looking at India, and are conducting studies for investing in India. R N Bhaskar met Seok-Gu Jang, the consul general at the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) in Mumbai, to seek his view on bilateral relations between the two countries. Edited excerpts.

There were hopes in 2011 that total trade between South Korea and India could cross $30 billion by 2016. Would you like to revise these estimates today?Trade relations between our two countries took on a more positive note in 2010 when we signed the CEPA (Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement) in 2010, which included the free trade agreement (FTA). It allowed for more focus on trade, reduction of import tariffs and we saw bilateral trade swelling to around $17 billion in 2010, and then to $20 billion in 2011. That was perhaps our best year. Then the economic slowdown in India began to hit us. We slipped to $18.9 billion in 2012, and have just reached $14.9 billion during January-October this year. It looks as if our figures could turn out to be lower than 2012 as well.
So, where is the silver lining?Most of our exports are of auto parts, steel plates, petroleum products and electrical goods among others. All of them are closely related to the global economic climate. India, too, witnessed a slowdown during those years. But now, with the economic climate likely to improve in India during the coming months, we are quite optimistic about bilateral business between both our countries picking up. But that does not mean that our country will resume investments in a big way. During recession, Korean companies invest very conservatively. We see that conservatism easing. But it has not gone completely.
What are the biggest challenges you face?Many Korean companies which had invested in China in the past are now looking at relocating themselves. In the beginning the market there was large and labour was cheap. But now labour has become expensive. So we are trying to find new locations for our companies engaged in the manufacture of textiles, footwear and a host of other things. We would like to do more in India, but conditions are not yet ripe for making that decision. For the time being we have begun shifting such industries to Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. We think India is important – both politically and economically. We can make competitive products given the lower wages in India. And many Korean companies have already been doing their market surveys in this country.
India has excellent skills in areas relating to technology and science. It is a large market as well. Moreover, together, we can even explore markets in Africa. And we know that we are best in this middle ground. We are aware that China is already India’s largest trading partner. China wins markets on the basis of price. At the other end of the spectrum you have Japan – excellent quality and significantly higher prices. We come in between. We are the nut in the nutcracker. However, we think in the field of smart phones, we could emerge as a world leader.

Kawasaki introduces two high-end motorcycle models for India

The Z1000 (above) and the Ninja 1000 are pried at Rs12.5 lakh each.

Mumbai: India Kawasaki Motors (IKM), the local arm of Japanese two-wheeler maker Kawasaki, launched two high-end motorcycles—the Z1000 and the Ninja 1000—in Pune on Monday, priced at Rs.12.5 lakh (ex-showroom, Pune and Delhi).

The bikes will be imported from Japan and sold through Kawasaki’s existing showrooms in Pune and Delhi.

“The Indian high-end motorcycle market offers tremendous growth opportunities,” said Yuji Horiuchi, managing director, India Kawasaki Motors, in a statement.

According to him, the company received encouraging response to its recently launched flagship models Ninja ZX-14R and ZX -10R. “To further strengthen our presence in the country, we are now launching two more global products targeted at specific audiences,” he said.

Kawasaki has a tie up with Bajaj Auto Ltd for some of its less expensive models, the Ninja 300 and 650. These bikes are assembled at Bajaj’s factory in Chakan, Pune, and sold and serviced through its Probiking showrooms.

Ties with India changing, says Japanese consul general

Chennai: Contending that India has emerged as a favourable destination for Japanese investors and TN among the most desired destinations for Japanese companies, Japan consul general Mas­anori Nakano underscored the need to take Indo-Japanese relations to a higher level by strengthening the ties between the two countries.
For long, India–Japan cooperation had been in the form of Overseas Deve­lopment Assistance (ODA) but the emerging character of India’s economy has altered the nature of the ties. Japanese businessm­en h­ave started viewing In­dia as a favourable destination for investment and TN as a most desired state. “The stro­­ng and sustainable gro­wth of India during the last decade has opened the prospect for ge­n­uine economic partnersh­ip as well as for more Ja­pa­ne­se inve­stments in In­d­ia,­” he said.
“I believe that the visit of their majesties (Emperor Aki­hito and Empress Mic­hiko) has great significance in taking a new step forward to the next 60 yea­rs after having completed th­e 60th anniversary of Ja­p­an-India diplomatic rel­atio­ns last year,” says Nakano who presided over the birthday celebrations of the Emperor, which falls on December 23, held un­der the aegis of the Jap­a­nese consulate here.
Recalling the role of India’s National Disaster Response Force, in its first overseas mission, in working painstakingly to hunt for the victims of the great east Japan earthquake, br­a­ving cold weather in M­ar­ch 2011, he said both countries have exhibited their war­mth through sentime­nts of standing by ea­ch ot­h­er at times of ne­ed.
According to him, Japan was also keen on participa­ting in the infrastructure development of the st­at­­e. Presently, ODA was be­i­ng extended to the ongoing Chennai metro rail project.

Japan and India hold joint naval exercise in Indian Ocean

India's INS Ranvijay guided-missile destroyer. (Photo/US Navy)

Facing a common threat from the Chinese maritime expansion, the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) and Indian Navy launched a joint naval exercise near the coast of Chennai, one of India's most populous cities, between Dec. 21-22, according to the Beijing Times.
The exercise in the Indian Ocean will help prepare both navies against enemy submarines and surface combat vessels, the Tokyo-based Kyodo News said. During the drill, the Indian Navy mobilized the INS Satpura, a Shivalik-class stealth multi-role frigate, INS Ranvijay, a Rajput-class guided-missile destroyer and INS Kuthar, a Khukri class corvette, while the JMSDF deployed its Maizuru-based Escort Flotilla 3 composed of two frigates, the JDS Ariake and JDS Setogiri.
The Hindu, a New Delhi-based paper, stated that another exercise will be launched by the two countries' respective coast guards near the coast of western Japan's Kochi prefecture. For the exercise, the Indian Coast Guard will send three vessels, one fixed-wing aircraft and one helicopter. It will be launched as an anti-piracy exercise, but analysts claim that the two nations will be considering China as the main potential threat to their maritime security, the Beijing Times said.
Fearing that the People's Liberation Army Navy may expand its sphere of influence into the Indian Ocean, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also expressed interest in buying a US-2 amphibious aircraft from Japan during his visit to Tokyo in May.
Japan meanwhile has been working to form an new partnership with India to contain the Chinese maritime expansion from east and south. Tokyo has also made strides to win support from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to condemn Beijing for the establishment of its new air defense identification zone.

Aadarsh Licensing Agency brings Japanese Cat “Angel Cat Sugar” to India

Aadarsh Pvt. Ltd, is a house of solutions for all printing and publishing requirements. Aadarsh, will now represent the most exciting and charming frictional feline character “Angel Cat Sugar”, a Japanese character in India.
Angel Cat Sugar TM is a popular character by the original creator of “Hello Kitty”, Yuko Shimizu. Angel Cat Sugar was first introduced in Japan in year 2002, in Europe it was seen in 2005 and in 2010 it came to US. Since then this cute character has made a phenomenal impact on the licensing world by ruling over everyone’s heart.  In year 2012, Angel Cat Sugar celebrated her 10th anniversary worldwide.
Angel Cat Sugar is a white female kitten owning a crown on her head, angel wings on her back and is the princess of Angel World with the secret right to the kingdom throne. With the power to heal hurt feelings and make everyone happy, she is shy and quite and prefers music, books and outdoor activities.
N. K. Krishnanand, Head – Licensing & Publishing, Aadarsh Pvt Ltd, says” We are happy to bring “Angel Cat Sugar” to the children of India. Angel Cat Sugar will guide children to believe and fulfill their dreams and to stay happy in any given circumstances. Angel Cat Sugar with its global reach is sold in more than 40 countries worldwide with an astounding global market size of around $30 million per year. We believe that this character will be loved and enjoyed by all the children of India and soon it will become children’s favorite character.”
“In publishing, Angle Cat Sugar‘s books are sold by Scholastic in the North America. The activity books are also published in Thai, Dutch, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Canadian French. The Picture book series in Japanese are translated in various countries, which are adored by all, N. K. Krishnanand added.”
In October 2009, a game was released for the Nintendo DS and PC titled “Angel Cat Sugar” in the UK and Germany and Angel Cat Sugar och stormkungen in Sweden. The game play included mini-games and puzzles and was targeted at pre-teens.
ACS with its staggering range of merchandise categories like Publishing, Stationary, Baby goods, Plush dolls, Toys, Gifts, Apparel, Bedding, Bags, Board games, Shoes, Umbrella, Mobile contents & PC/Nintendo Games is indeed a customer delight.

Karnataka to host Partnership Summit from Jan 27

Karnataka government will host the next year’s Partnership Summit in Bangalore. The state government, ministry of commerce and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) would jointly organise the flagship event of the government of India from January 27-29, Siddaramaiah, chief minister of Karnataka announced today.
After discussing the issue with Anand Sharma, minister for commerce and industry, here, he said the prime ministers of Japan and government of India would be invited to participate at the Summit. Besides, heads of the two countries, Rahul Gandhi, vice president of Congress would also address the Summit, he said.
The event is being held in Bangalore for the first time, which will also be attended by several key policy makers, ministers and companies from India and abroad, Sharma added.

Suzuki likely to press the pedal on Maruti stake

In a move aimed at streamlining control and integrating operations with its Indian subsidiary, Japanese auto major Suzuki Motor Corporation is considering increasing its stake in Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.
A key Japanese merchant banker that represents Suzuki is understood to have made presentations to some of the institutional investors that own equity in the joint venture to gauge their response.

SMC, which currently owns a 56.2 per cent stake in MSIL, is considering a range of options to increase its holding in the Indian company.

It could look at a share buyback, which would mean an open offer, buying from the market or going for creeping acquisition of shares (up to five per cent every year).

It could also opt for preferential issue of shares.

With a 40 per cent share of the domestic automobile market, MSIL is India’s largest car maker.

Its market capitalisation currently stands at Rs 53,791 crore (Rs 537.91 billion).

The Maruti Suzuki scrip on Thursday rose 2.97 per cent from its previous close to end the day at Rs 1780.70 on BSE.

When contacted, MSIL Chairman R C Bhargava said: “I do not know if they are considering some such thing.

“They are the promoters and can increase their stake if they want.”

Institutional investors currently hold 13.31 per cent in the company -- Life Insurance Corporation leads with an 8.21 per cent stake; HSBC Global has 1.32 per cent, ICICI Prudential 1.67 per cent and Credit Suisse 2.11 per cent.

Suzuki currently has a cash reserve of Rs 39,600 crore (Rs 396 billion).

If it decides to follow the lead of Unilever and increase its holding in its Indian arm to 75 per cent, it will have to shell out about Rs 10,000 crore or Rs 100 billion (on the basis of Thursday’s market value).

However, if it goes for share buyback, its payout will be higher because it will have to offer a premium over the market price.

Given a weak market environment, global corporate giants have increasingly been looking at raising stake in their Indian subsidiaries, especially through the share buyback route.

Unilever plc, for instance, has increased its stake in Hindustan Unilever from 52.4 per cent to 67.28 per cent through share buyback.

Earlier, as part of its strategy to increase presence in fast-growing emerging markets, the company had announced spending $5.4 billion to raise stake in the Indian arm to 75 per cent.

Also, only a few days ago, GlaxoSmithKline Plc announced it would increase its 50.7 per cent holding in its Indian pharma unit to 75 per cent through an open offer -- a deal for which it would have to pay $1 billion.

According to sources, Suzuki’s rationale in looking to strengthen its control in Maruti Suzuki is the Indian company’s growing importance in SMC’s global operations.

MSIL, which accounts for nearly 50 per cent of its total unit sales and 25 per cent to sales revenues, is Suzuki’s largest overseas subsidiary.

Since 2007-08, MSIL sales have been higher that parent SMC’s home-market sales.

The parent company had earlier this year shifted to MSIL the responsibility of producing and marketing vehicles to countries in Africa, West Asia and Southeast Asia.

“Suzuki has transferred to Maruti Suzuki the responsibility of producing and marketing cars to Africa, West Asia and some Southeast Asian markets where it doesn’t have operations. Suzuki will focus on Europe, China and the rest of the markets,” Bhargava had told Business Standard.

Also, Maruti Suzuki is working to make operational an integrated research and development centre in Rohtak.

The test tracks at this centre would be longer and have better technical capabilities than those of SMC in Japan.

When the Rohtak testing facility and R&D centre go on stream (in two-three years), the Indian company would start designing, developing and testing SMC vehicles for the African, West Asian and some South Asian markets.

Yamaha Motor India’s NTGP winner to participate in World Technician GP 2014 in Japan

	December 19, New Delhi: The fourth edition of the National Technician Grand Prix (NTGP) 2013 organised by Yamaha Motor India, concluded with the announcement of winners at Hotel Stellar Gymkhana, Greater Noida a few days ago. The three-day contest saw 25 finalists from across India compete for the title of ‘No.1 Yamaha Technician’ in India for 2013. Masaki Asano, managing director along with Ravinder Singh, VP (Strategy & Planning) and Roy Kurian, VP (Sales & Marketing) from Yamaha Motor India Sales, felicitated the winners. Alam Ansari of M/s Auto Zone, Vapi, Gujarat, won the first prize while the second and third prize were awarded to Ram Awadh of M/s Choubey Motor Works, Etawah, UP and Meenakshi Sundaram S of M/s Alagendran Autos, Madurai, Tamil Nadu respectively. In the nationwide contest which aims at strengthening the role of customer service engagement, over 700 contestants from across India vied for the title and an opportunity to represent Yamaha Motor India in the World Technician Grand Prix 2014 in Japan. From the regional round, 100 winners were selected for the five zonal rounds. From the zonal rounds 25 winners (5 from each zone) were selected to compete in the final round which concluded on December 14. The contest is designed to judge the contestants’ skill in the areas of ‘proper service knowledge’, providing service that ‘communicates the image of the Yamaha products’ and providing amiable customer service. To judge the level of these skills, the contestants are tested in theory, troubleshooting, repair on actual motorcycles and skill of dealing with customers (customer and vehicle reception). The winners are decided based on cumulative points earned in these three test areas. Speaking on the occasion, Yamaha Motor India Sales’ Ravinder Singh said, “We have witnessed an encouraging number of participation of technicians this year. This highlights the fact that more and more dealerships and technicians are realising the importance of holistic development in today’s customer-centric market scenario. Yamaha acknowledges the importance of an engaging service network. The company has always successfully strived to not only offer its customers an exciting and excellent product line to choose from, but also provide them with excellent value-added services and best-in-class customer aftersales experience. This contest seeks to raise the service mechanic’s consciousness of their importance in the Yamaha business, stimulate the desire for improvement and strengthen the Yamaha Service. With such unique initiatives, we go one step ahead to accomplish customer delight instead of mere customer satisfaction and create differentiation for ourselves.” The National Technician Grand Prix (NTGP), which was first held in India in 2010, is part of the Yamaha Technical Academy program promoted by Yamaha Motor Co, Japan and the cornerstone of Yamaha’s Technical Training Program. Yamaha's YTA Instructors combine comprehensive technical model information from the Yamaha Factory with ‘real-world’ diagnostic and troubleshooting skills developed over many years of actual dealership experience

Hitachi to make India base for building equipment

NEW DELHI: Japan’s engineering and electronics major Hitachi would expand its construction machinery and power electronics products business in Africa, Middle East and South East Asia by making India a base for these segments.
The group, which plans to invest 70 billion Yen (Rs 4,700 crore) by the financial year 2015-16, would bolster the businesses supported by production for consumption in India by increasing localization component, said Hitachi Executive Vice President and Executive Officer Junzo Nakajima.
“We would strengthen the partnership with the local India partners and as a part of that, human resource pool of the India would be utilized for that,” said Nakajima.
Hitachi is expanding its Ahmedabad based Hitachi Hi-Rel Power Electronic Ltd, which produces industrial power electronics.
Moreover, the company is starting a new factory for power metallurgy and friction materials by Hitachi Chemical at Neemrana in Rajasthan. In Neemrana, Hitachi is also setting up its first solar power generation unit in India.
“We would have new R&D centre in Bangalore for construction machinery,” he said, adding that Hitachi would also open an automotive device manufacturing facility in Chennai and the construction for this has been started.
“Keeping these bases in India, we would like to expand our business in Africa, Middle East and South East Asia,” Nakajima said here during a press meet at Hitachi Social Innovation Forum.
Hitachi has so far invested approximately 35 billion Yen (Rs 2,300 crore) in India.
The group has recently acquired ATM services provider Prizm Payment Service. The company is looking to expand its footprint in the Indian IT sector through acquisitions.
“We would like to do more acquisitions like we have done in case of Prism. If you look at IT-related other acquisitions, in 2011 also we had acquired Hyderabad based Sierra Atlantic,” he said adding that the group would continue to look at more such opportunities.
Moreover, Hitachi India Managing Director Ichiro Iino said the company would in January 2014 bid for the railway signaling systems of the Delhi-Mumbai section of the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) project.
He further informed that Hitachi was seriously looking at an opportunity to supply nuclear power plants in India. It has a JV with US-based GE for its nuclear power business called as GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy.
On Hitachi’s growth in India this financial year, Iino said: “We expect the Hitachi India’s revenue for financial year 2013 to grow in double digits.”
In FY 2012-13, Hitachi’s 59 per cent revenues came from Japan and 41 per cent from overseas. India’s contribution was around 1 per cent. Hitachi is now aiming at least 50 per cent revenue to come from overseas by FY 2015-16 and to increase, India’s share up to 3 per cent. -PTI

"Currency swap will strengthen Indo-Japan ties"

Indian Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Thursday said the bilateral currency swap arrangement between the Reserve Bank of India and Bank of Japan will further strengthen the bilateral financial cooperation between the two Asian nations.

"On 18.12.2013, RBI Governor Dr. Raghuram Rajan signed on behalf of the Reserve Bank of India the Agreement on bilateral currency swap arrangement between RBI and Bank of Japan," Chidambaream said in a statement on Thursday.

"Under the Agreement, the facility of currency swap has been enhanced from USD 15 billion to USD 50 billion. Earlier, the terms had been agreed between the Indian and the Japanese sides and the Government had authorized RBI to sign the Agreement," he said.

The Union Finance Minister said: "Government believes that this measure will further strengthen the bilateral financial cooperation between Japan and India.”

The Indian government on Wednesday approved the enhancement of the bilateral currency swap arrangement between the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Bank of Japan from US$15 billion to US$ 50 billion.

Suzuki to set up export headquarters in India

Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp. will shift its entire export operations for the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and South-East Asia to India by the end of the next fiscal year, said R.C. Bhargava, chairman of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.
"Suzuki's overseas marketing division functions on a territorial basis. All of them will shift to India with export headquarters being set up at our office in Vasant Kunj," Bhargava said in a phone interview on Monday. "People from Suzuki's overseas operations will be based out of here."
The entire process should be completed by the end of 2014-15 and the export headquarters will report to Maruti Suzuki, he said. Suzuki Motor owns 56% of Maruti Suzuki.
Increasing salaries and an ageing population is making Japan lose its cost-competitiveness, Bhargava said.
A rise in exports to emerging markets is providing a degree of comfort to Indian auto makers at a time when demand in the bigger markets such as Europe and North America has slowed.
The Renault-Nissan alliance, Hyundai Motor Co. and Ford Motor Co. have sharpened their focus on manufacturing and exports from India to offset rising input costs in their domestic markets. The rupee's depreciation against the dollar has also boosted exports from India.
For any company, its cost base becomes very important when it comes to exploring overseas markets, said Abdul Majeed, automotive practice leader at consulting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.
"In Suzuki's case, India makes more sense as they are fairly big in size here and know that if they have managed to understand the psyche of Indian customers, they could be successful in other markets as well," Majeed said. "Moreover, India is strategically located and its proximity to ports makes it suited for exports."
Bhargava said the export headquarters will focus on laying foundations for building sales networks in preparation for future market growth in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and in India's neighbouring countries.
"The main risk comes in the form of currency movements when you are looking to develop new markets. It exposes you to a lot of volatility. We need to study this very carefully," Bhargava said.
Maruti, which exports 10% of its production, aims to increase it to 15% in the near-term and raise it further to 20-25% in the medium to long-term.
Suzuki, which has sold cars made in Japan in Latin America, plans to introduce global models from India in that market.
India has been driving Suzuki's growth, with Maruti contributing 40% of the parent's net profit. In contrast, Suzuki has pulled out of the US market and its sales have suffered in Europe and Japan.
As the firm gears up to increase its presence substantially in export markets, it has created two new departments in Maruti's international marketing team. While one department will look after markets such as Latin America, South-East Asia, Oceania and Europe, the second will focus on the Middle East and North America. Mint reported this on 17 May.
With demand for Suzuki's vehicles shrinking in other markets, it makes sense for them to look for future growth avenues, said an automobile analyst, who declined to be named as he is not authorized to speak to reporters.
"Having said that, one also needs to understand that Suzuki is not a big auto company globally and it is known for its bikes. In the car segment, its pedigree in the passenger vehicle segment remains small cars," the analyst said. "So, they need to expand in the markets, which are raw and where customers would look to buy their vehicles."

Honda Vezel Japan sales to begin soon

 

Honda will start selling the new Vezel SUV in Japan soon. The all-new Vezel SUV was revealed at the Tokyo Motor Show earlier this year. 

 

The Vezel is equipped with high-quality interiors with coupe-like personal space for the front seats and, thanks to the original centre-tank layout with a large cargo space good for three regular golf bags while using the rear seats, thanks to its 453-litre capacity.

 

It will be offered with a 1.5-litre petrol and 1.5-litre diesel motor option and a hybrid-variant of the Vezel SUV in Japan, the hybrid variant will be equipped with SPORT HYBRID i-DCD, Honda’s next-generation Hybrid System that combines a 1.5-litre direct injection engine with a high-output motor to deliver high power equivalent to that of the 2.0-litre engine. 

 

The Vezel will also get additional features such as an electronic parking brake, and automatic brake hold function. 

 

The new Honda Vezel SUV is due to be launched in Europe in 2015. The Vezel, originally planned to be introduced in India in 2015, is unlikely to make it here due to the weak rupee. Honda says bringing the Vezel to the Indian market would work out to be too expensive, and considering the fate of too highly priced models like the last-generation Jazz, the carmaker will be loathe to repeat the same mistake.

Japanese WASHOKU reception in India

UNESCO has announced that traditional Japanese cuisine, or "Washoku" has been added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list. In part to celebrate this recognition, H.E. Mr. Yoshimasa Hayashi, Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF, Government of Japan) hosts a special reception this evening to announce that "Washoku" has been recognized as UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage here in New Delhi, one of Japan's most important markets.
The reception will feature Japan's initiative "Oishii Japan - JAPANESE FOOD SEASON" to promote Japanese food in India during October 2013 to February 2014, in collaboration with Bollywood Actress Ms Gabriela Bertante, who loves Japanese food. The evening shall also highlight the attractions of Japanese food, including a demonstration of the versatility of Japanese food by showcasing unique vegetarian Japanese sushi recipes, in association with culinary students from the Institute of Hotel Management, Delhi, Pusa. Some traditional Japanese arts such as the tea ceremony, will be demonstrated, and the Taj Mahal Hotel New Delhi will serve the best of Japanese cuisine to guests to this special reception.
One of the key features of "Oishii Japan - JAPANESE FOOD SEASON" in January 2014 is the Cool Japan Festival 2014, to be held in Mumbai during 17-19 January. About 10 companies are expected to join this event to showcase Japan and Japanese food. Oishii Japan will have a dedicated presence by serving the best of best Japanese cuisine to the many visitors who are expected to enjoy Japanese food and culture.
The Oishii Japan is expected to reach many Indians, and will set the stage for the further development of Japanese food in India. Now "Washoku" has been added to the UNESCO Intangible Culture Heritage list, and with more and more Japanese restaurants opening in India, it is expected that more will enjoy Japan's unique cuisine "Washoku".
Notes to Editor
About the "JAPANESE FOOD SEASON ~ Oishii Japan in India" Project brought to India by The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF, Government of Japan)
The project kicked off on 17 October 2013 at the Embassy of Japan, New Delhi where culinary students of the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa experienced the art of making sushi during a special workshop by Chef Asano from Tokyo Sushi Academy. This was followed by a hands-on Sushi class at the Institute of Hotel Management, Mumbai on 18 October 2013.
Another highlight of "Oishii Japan - JAPANESE FOOD SEASON" has been the Japanese Restaurant Season where select Japanese restaurants in New Delhi and Mumbai offered Japanese course menus at a special prices for three weeks from 19 October to 10 November. Set Meals were offered at attractive prices and the menus included Signature Specialties such as Yakitori, Teppanyaki, Sushi and desserts like Green Tea and Wasabi Ice-cream. Participating restaurants included some of the most well-known Japanese food venues, in New Delhi: Megu (The Leela Palace), Izakaya, Guppy by Ai, Sakae Sushi and Asia 7, and in Mumbai: SanQi (Four Seasons Hotel Mumbai), India Jones (The Trident), Kofuku, Aoi, Umame, and Sushi and more.
During 17-19 January 2014, Mumbai will also witness another exciting season of the tremendously successful "Washoku by Oishii Japan", as part of the Cool Japan Festival 2014 a Japanese street food festival at High Street Phoenix, Lower Parel. The festival attracted over 100,000 people last year, and will see some very exciting Japanese brands participate, showcasing their products, for all to experience some very amazing Japanese entertainment.
The BBC GoodFood Japanese recipe contest results will be announced during this event. The most innovative recipe will win a trip to Japan.

India-Japan business meet to be held in Greater Noida

NOIDA: UP-NCR is all set to host the Indo-Japan business summit at Greater Noida's Expo Center soon. Around 15,000 delegates are likely to participate in the event while 1,000 Japanese investors consisting of businessman, industrialists and ministers will explore investment opportunities in Noida, Greater Noida, Yamuna Expressway and other areas of the state.

The chairman of all three authorities, Rama Raman, has been nominated as the nodal officer to host the event. Raman had earlier supervised the ADB meet successfully. UP government officials said this mega-event will help boost the Indian economy as many business tie-ups are expected during the meet.

Earlier, the event had been planned between December 15 and 18, but as the venue was decided too late it had to be postponed to March, 2014. "We got a good experience by hosting the ADB meet, so this time we are more confident to cater to 15,000 delegates who will be participating in the event," said Noida Authority chairman Rama Raman.
Industrialists and developers are upbeat at this development and said that hosting such an event is another feather in UP's cap. "This region is making its space on the global map for hosting such international events," said Vijay Gupta, CMD Orris infrastructure and member Assocham.
Senior government officials said this event will help in exchange of business models and bring crores of investment. "Since Noida is a window of the state to everyone outside, we hope that this will attract Japanese investment in the region," said Anil Sharma, CREDAI president and CMD Amrapali group.

Maruti takes workers on familiarisation trip to Japan

Maruti Suzuki India is walking extra mile to improve relationship with its factory workers by taking union representatives on a familiarisation trip to parent Suzuki Motor Corp's (SMC) facilities in Japan, over a year after being hit by a violent labour unrest.

While the first batch of the union members of the company's Gurgaon plant, Maruti Udyog Kamgar Union (MUKU) left the country on Saturday for a week-long trip, it is understood that a similar batch of workers from the Manesar plant will undertake a similar tour sometime next year.

"We will be meeting SMC Chairman Osamu Suzuki, representatives from their unions, as well as HR department people during our visit to Japan," MUKU general secretary Kuldeep Janghu said.

Commenting on the purpose of the trip, Janghu said: "It will help us know their systems better. It will also help us understand them better so that things which happened a year-ago do not ever happen again."

The 15-member delegation would also witness the functioning of various departments in Suzuki's facilities, including production manoeuvres, he added.

When asked about the development, Maruti Suzuki India Chairman R C Bhargava said: "We have been doing such activities for the last 25 years. During the visit, the union delegation would meet Japanese workers, union representatives and would also see manufacturing processes in the Suzuki factories."

Maruti had witnessed a violent labour unrest at its Manesar plant last year in July, in which one senior executive was killed. Following the incident, the company had fired 546 workers.

Janghu added that a similar delegation from the company's Manesar plant may also visit Japan in next couple of months.

Easier to have sustainable growth in India: Hitachi Solutions

The political and economic issues between China and Japan could well augur well for the IT industry in India.

Hitachi Solutions, which opened a development centre in Hyderabad, has said that it is easier to have sustainable growth in India, which is among the countries like Vietnam, Myanmar and the Philippines it is looking for expansion and growth. He found China a difficult place.

Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, Masakazu Kuji, President of Hitachi Solutions America and Executive Officer Hitachi Solutions, said that the two countries (Japan and China) had some issues in political and economic spheres.

The Global Development Centre will cater to the company’s US and UK clients in the area of Microsoft Dynamics that offers financial, supply chain and human capital management solutions. The Hyderabad and Chennai development centres together have 300 seats. They presently employed 200. The number could grow to 500 by 2015.

Hitachi Solutions contributes 20-25 per cent of Hitachi’s IT business of $19 billion.

Telangana factor

The company said the local political issues (referring to the Telangana tussle) did not come in the way as it searched for a location for the centre.

Hitachi Solutions India President and Chief Executive Officer Ananth Subramanian said the empirical evidence showed that the place was still ideal for operations. “We had faced no problems in getting Government permissions. And you find skilled human resources here,” he said.

India, Japan Seriouslty Examining jointg LNG Procurement

India and Japan, two of the world's biggest buyers of liquefied natural gas (LNG), will in next three months look at buying the fuel jointly so as to hammer down high prices.
"We want to combine our buying powers to get better price," Oil Secretary Vivek Rae told reporters on sidelines of the 8th Asia Gas Partnership Summit here.

The two nations, who feel LNG sold to Asian countries is priced more than that supplied to consumers in Europe and the US, had in October last year agreed to carry out a joint study to examine ways to mitigate increasing import costs in Asia as well as to maintain stable supplies of LNG to the region.
In September, they agreed to work together towards the development of LNG markets that will enable effective, stable and globally competitive LNG procurement.
"We are seriously examining joint procurement of LNG," Rae said. "In three months we hope to examine if joint procurement is possible and work out modalities."
Asked if a joint tender can happen in three months, he said, "May be."
India, the seventh largest LNG buyer in the world, and Japan, the biggest importer of liquid gas, currently buy the gas separately. This bring to the market huge competing demand, pushing the prices up.
New Delhi has been pushing for LNG buyers forming a forum to better negotiate price with suppliers in the Middle East, Africa and Australia.
Speaking at the conference yesterday, Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily had asked large consumers in the region like China, Japan and Korea to forge an Asian buyers block to extract price discounts.
Despite 70 per cent of LNG being consumed in Asia, energy suppliers sell fuel to the region at a rate which is higher than the so-called premium markets of Europe.
"We understand that its not only demand supply imbalance, which govern prices for Asian markets. There are other elements too which determine the Buyer-Seller relationship," he said yesterday.
Moily had discussed the idea with Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Toshimitsu Motegi when he visited Tokyo in September.
India wants LNG price to be mutually acceptable for both producers and consumers.
Since the prices of individual contracts signed on a bilateral basis are confidential, there are no reliable price indices that accurately reflect the LNG supply and demand balance in the region at this point.

Japan's Royal Couple Meet Leading Personalities at IIC

Fifty-three years after they laid the foundation of India International Centre as Crown Prince and Princess, Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko today visited Delhi's intellectual hub where they interacted with leading personalities from various fields.

The royal couple, who is here on a six-day visit, spent nearly an hour at India International Centre and met Tata Group's Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata, former Attorney General and Chairman of IIC Soli Sorabjee, Congress leader Karan Singh, scholar Kapila Vatsyayan, former Union Minister Ashwani Kumar and M G K Menon among others.

Some of the people, who were at the foundation laying ceremony of the IIC over a century ago, were also present today during the visit of the royal couple.

IIC members spoke about the activities of the institutions to the royal couple who expressed happiness over its transformation as an intellectual hub.

An exhibition of photographs commemorating their 1960 visit was also put in place at the IIC.

Cradled by the vivid green of the Lodi Gardens in central Delhi, IIC is a non-government institution widely regarded as a place where statesmen, diplomats, policy makers, intellectuals, scientists, jurists, writers, artists and members of civil society meet to initiate exchange of new ideas and knowledge.

Its purpose, stated in its charter, was "to promote understanding and amity between the different communities of the world".

The royal couple had arrived here on Saturday, their first visit to any South Asian country.

Yesterday, the Emperor met top leadership of the country, including President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, during which various issues relating to bilateral ties figured.

The relations between India and Japan are on the upswing as both the countries have expanded mutual cooperation in diverse areas, including trade and commerce, in the last few years.

Tomorrow, the Emperor and Empress are leaving for Chennai.