Ficci plan to boost Japan investment

The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) is working on a comprehensive action plan to promote Japanese investments in the Northeast.

“There is a huge latent potential for investment in infrastructure projects in the Northeast. We have identified specific projects like the trilateral highway connecting Thailand, Myanmar and India, as well as a ring road along the international border connecting all the states of the region. However, these projects can be completed in time only if companies from Japan invest in them,” Ranjit Barthakur, the chairman of Ficci’s Northeast Advisory Council, said.

Ficci had, in a paper presented at a round table conference in New Delhi recently, proposed a workable solution to develop the region. Development of the power sector and a major revamp of connectivity infrastructure are the crucial ingredients of this solution.

The paper, India’s North East Frontier — The Bridge from Asean to India, envisions a road map for exponential development of the region by addressing issues in sectors like power, roads and railways.

It also identified opportunities to improve India’s connectivity with the Southeast Asian countries.

Among the proposals being discussed is one to develop an economic corridor, which would include 53 wayside amenities-cum-rural integration facilities, to provide a unique platform to develop rural economies of the region.

The centres would also provide facilities for logistics, travel amenities, industrial areas and real estate development.

“Other areas, which could be very attractive to Japanese firms are inland waterways, airports, border townships, hydro-electric power and highway amenities,” Barthakur said.

Ficci also lauded the Centre for inviting Japanese investment in a strategically important region like the Northeast.

The chamber said Japan has been a reliable and trusted partner, especially in infrastructure development in India, with the Delhi Metro being the showpiece project of this partnership.

“The pace of infrastructure development, including roads, railways and power, et al, in the Northeast, has been very slow and the Japanese funds and expertise would re-energise the development of infrastructure in the region,” he said.

The chamber stressed that world class infrastructure needs to be developed in the Northeast to truly realise its potential as the gateway to the Southeast Asian markets.

Daiichi Sankyo pledges bold action on Ranbaxy production problems

Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co Ltd said it would step up support of Indian drugmaking arm Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd and send personnel to help resolve problems at a factory that US regulators have banned from supplying pharmaceutical ingredients. "We have already put a lot of effort into our support but that has not been enough," Manabu Sakai, senior executive officer at Daiichi Sankyo, told an earnings briefing on Friday. "We want to go back and prepare a more aggressive, more drastic response." The US Food and Drug Administration last week banned Ranbaxy's Toansa plant, a key supplier of ingredients to the generic drugmaker's US factory, from sending its products to the United States due to manufacturing violations. Sakai said it was inevitable the incident would affect Daiichi Sankyo's earnings but was unable to give concrete numbers. The company is not thinking about reducing its stake in Ranbaxy, he added, although financial support would be among the actions it will look at. The US Food and Drug Administration last week banned Ranbaxy's Toansa plant, a key supplier of ingredients to the generic drugmaker's US factory, from sending its products to the United States due to manufacturing violations. It was the fourth Ranbaxy plant to be shut out of the U.S. market. "There's been a steady increase in the things that we need to do," Sakai said, adding Daiichi Sankyo would dispatch additional personnel to the plant to help sort out problems. Daiichi Sankyo's shares are down nearly 10 percent since last week's news on the Toansa plant. On Friday, they rose 2.7 percent to 1,723 yen, bouncing from a five-month low hit the day before.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/business/daiichi-sankyo-pledges-bold-action-on-ranbaxy-production-problems-1369503.html?utm_source=ref_article

Japan's Daiichi Sankyo Co Ltd said it would step up support of Indian drugmaking arm Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd and send personnel to help resolve problems at a factory that US regulators have banned from supplying pharmaceutical ingredients. "We have already put a lot of effort into our support but that has not been enough," Manabu Sakai, senior executive officer at Daiichi Sankyo, told an earnings briefing on Friday. "We want to go back and prepare a more aggressive, more drastic response."

Sakai said it was inevitable the incident would affect Daiichi Sankyo's earnings but was unable to give concrete numbers. The company is not thinking about reducing its stake in Ranbaxy, he added, although financial support would be among the actions it will look at. The US Food and Drug Administration last week banned Ranbaxy's Toansa plant, a key supplier of ingredients to the generic drugmaker's US factory, from sending its products to the United States due to manufacturing violations. It was the fourth Ranbaxy plant to be shut out of the U.S. market. "There's been a steady increase in the things that we need to do," Sakai said, adding Daiichi Sankyo would dispatch additional personnel to the plant to help sort out problems. Daiichi Sankyo's shares are down nearly 10 percent since last week's news on the Toansa plant. On Friday, they rose 2.7 percent to 1,723 yen, bouncing from a five-month low hit the day before.

Samsung is most trusted brand in India: Study

South Korean consumer electronics major Samsung is India's most trusted brand followed by Sony of Japan and the homegrown salt-to-steel multinational Tata, says a study report released Thursday. The 'Brand Trust Report 2014' says: "Samsung has grown steadily in trust ranks over the last four years - fifth in 2011, fourth in 2012, second in 2013 and has reached India's most trusted rank this year. "When a brand focuses on its trust with intensity, apart from trust the brand gains in market-share, product premium and acceptance of new products as an automatic by-product. Samsung's strategy of focusing on the core intangibles of its brand is evident from its climb to leadership in BTR 2014," said N. Chandramouli, chief executive officer, TRA (formerly known as Trust Research Advisory). Hewlett Packard emerged as the most trusted brand in technology, Hero in automobiles and LIC in banking, financial services and insurance sector. Chandramouli said this year's study involved 15,000 hours of fieldwork covering 2,500 consumer-influencers across 16 cities in the country and generated five million datapoints and 20,000 unique brands from which the top 1,200 brands have been listed in this year's report. These brands have been classified into 284 different categories as against 213 categories in 2013.

Citizens across India protest nuclear deal with Japan during Prime Minister Abe's visit

During Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's Jan. 25-27 visit to India, where he and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh met to discuss a range of issues including the two countries' pending nuclear energy agreement, several thousand citizens across the country had a message to share: PM Abe was welcome in India -- but his nuclear technology was not.
Demonstrations against the proposed India-Japan nuclear agreement, which aims to allow Japan to export nuclear reactors to India, were held on Jan. 25, which was observed as a national day of protest against the agreement. The demonstration events were organized in conjunction with a campaign launched by the New Delhi-based Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament and Peace (CNDP), a network of anti-nuclear and peace organizations across India that was formed in November 2000 to urge both India and Pakistan to dismantle their nuclear weapons programs.
According to CNDP Research Consultant Kumar Sundaram, protests were organized in the cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Chennai, as well as locales where new reactor projects are proposed, including Koodankulam, Jaitapur, Mithi Virdi, Fatehabad, Chutka and Kovvada.
Sundaram told the Mainichi that most demonstrations drew between 80 and 125 participants, with the largest taking place in Jaitapur -- near the site of a proposed large nuclear power plant project -- where more than 3,000 farmers and other residents marched for eight kilometers.
Many of the protesters held signs created by the CNDP that read "Mr. Abe, You are welcome to India -- Nukes are not! NO to India-Japan," and "No More Fukushima," which were written in Japanese and English, and translated into several Indian languages.

The CNDP also asked for international solidarity with its campaign via Facebook, encouraging overseas supporters to send photos of themselves holding the signs, which were then printed out to create giant collages that were displayed at the protest sites. Support for the campaign was received from several countries including Germany, France, the United States and Japan, with a solidarity demonstration also held in Tokyo.
The Tokyo event took place on the evening of Fri. Jan. 24 outside the prime minister's official residence. It was organized by a local citizens' group known as 'Beautiful Energy,' whose members have gathered there every Friday night since September 2011 -- rain or shine -- to light candles and display messages calling for an end to nuclear power alongside other various organizations and individuals.
In attendance at the Tokyo event was Yukiko Kameya, a former resident of Futaba, Fukushima Prefecture, who evacuated to Tokyo following the nuclear disaster of March 11, 2011, and has been a regular participant at the weekly Friday night anti-nuclear demonstrations. She authored an open letter to Prime Ministers Abe and Singh urging that the nuclear pact be scrapped, which was delivered the following day to both the Indian Embassy and the prime minister's office in Japan.
"Prime Minister Abe: As a representative of Japan, are you able to take responsibility for India?" Kameya's letter read in part. "Even if you say things like 'I can assure you that there have never been, and will never be health problems, and the situation is under control,' or 'the contaminated water is entirely blocked,' none of these things are happening in reality. Please reconsider the nuclear issue that is at root here -- as well as what it would mean to bring this issue into another country."
According to Sundaram, the CNDP 's opposition to the binational nuclear deal is based on three grounds: that the pact goes against global anti-nuclear trends in the wake of the Fukushima accident; entrusts nuclear energy to an unregulated sector in India with an extremely poor safety track-record; and sets a dangerous precedent for nuclear disarmament, insofar as India has not signed on to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
"New reactors are being built by depriving farmers and fisherfolk of their farmland, irrigation water and traditional livelihoods. These projects would destroy some of the world's most pristine and fragile ecosystems," Sundaram explained. "This is a struggle between the world's largest corporations and mightiest governments vs. the most poor and vulnerable people, who are left with no other option but to fight back. Several million people are going to be directly affected because of such eco-destructive projects."
Although the two prime ministers did not end up finalizing a nuclear-related agreement during the recent visit, they did pledge to continue negotiations aimed toward swiftly concluding one. (By Kimberly Hughes, Staff Writer)

India Japan to jointly buy LNG

India and Japan, two of the world's biggest buyers of liquefied natural gas, may this month sign an agreement to look at jointly procuring LNG so as to cut prices for the fuel.

GAIL India Ltd, the nation's biggest natural gas distributor, may this month sign a memorandum of understanding with Japanese utility Chubu Electric Power Co to jointly procure LNG.

"We are discussing with them (on the agreement) and shortly we will be able to sign a MoU," GAIL Chairman and Managing Director B C Tripathi told reporters here.

The agreement will be for cooperation in natural gas sector - from LNG sourcing to shipping and supply. "It will be for all-round cooperation," he said.

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 2012 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 last year, they agreed to work together towards the development of LNG markets that will enable effective, stable and globally competitive LNG procurement.

India, the seventh largest LNG buyer in the world, and Japan, the biggest importer of liquid gas, currently buy the gas separately. This brings to the market a hugely 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.

Chubu President Akihisa Mizuno last week said in Tokyo that the Japanese utility aims to sign an agreement with GAIL to launch talks on potential joint purchases of LNG and cooperation in areas such as shipping.

Asian prices are now more than four times the cost of natural gas in the United States.

Tripathi said GAIL has tied up 6 million tonne a year of LNG from the US beginning 2017-2018 and the company is planning to sell the entire volume to the domestic market.

GAIL is looking to trade 1 million tonne a year of the US LNG via its Singapore office.

It has signed a 20-year terminal service agreement with Richmond, Virginia-based Dominion to lift 2.3 million tonne of LNG from the Cove Point project.

GAIL also has a contract with Cheniere Energy to import 3.5 million tonne a year of LNG from the Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana.

Japan’s Dentsu bets big on India, other foreign markets

Dentsu Inc, Japan’s biggest advertising agency that recently secured a ₹500-crore advertising contract from the Congress party for the coming general elections, aims to generate at least 55 per cent of its revenue from outside its slowing home market.

Acquisition

Last year, the company had acquired UK-based Aegis for $4.8 billion (₹30,060 crore today) which it expects to help its expansion in overseas markets.

Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN), which oversees Dentsu’s operations outside Japan, formally started operations on January 1 this year, and will remain focussed on China and India, officials said.

Last year, Dentsu India had acquired an 80 per cent stake in Webchutney, a leading digital agency, and 51 per cent holding in Taproot India as part of its strategy to strengthen operations in the country.

“Acquisitions are an integral part of our group strategy. We do not acquire for the heck of acquiring, or because some of our rivals are doing so. It has to be strategic in nature, and fill a certain criteria with its capability,” Ashish Bhasin, CEO, DAN South Asia, told Business Line.

Growth in 2013

Despite the shaky economy, Dentsu India reported 60 per cent growth in 2013 over the previous year, and continues to scout for talent.

“We are always talking to prospects, talking all the time,” Bhasin added.

The Dentsu India group has appointed Simi Sabhaney as the new CEO of its advertising and communications agency, Dentsu Communications. Sabhaney was earlier with Ogilvy & Mather as President, Bangalore and Chennai.

The acquisition of Aegis has already started reaping benefits, with Dentsu cornering contracts away from rivals such as Publicis Omnicom

Of late, Dentsu has been on a global acquisition spree. On January 17, DAN acquired Polish social media group Socializer for integration into its Isobar brand.

On January 7, Dentsu bought a Sydney creative agency Oddfellows, which is the creative agency for Toyota’s retail advertising.

Trading desk service

Dentsu and Aegis also set up a trading desk service in Japan this month, called Dentsu Audience Network.

The driving force behind the launch is the use of real time bidding, which refers to the buying and selling of ad impressions on websites in real time through automatic bidding.

Suzuki to own Gujarat plant, make vehicles only for Maruti

Betting on the long-term potential of the Indian market, Suzuki Motor Corporation of Japan on Tuesday decided to take over the setting up of a plant in Gujarat proposed by subsidiary Maruti Suzuki India.
Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) will invest in the plant through wholly owned unit Suzuki Motor Gujarat Pvt Ltd (SMGPL), which will manufacture vehicles exclusively for Maruti Suzuki India (MSI). "Four-wheeler passenger vehicles and components will be manufactured at the Gujarat plant. The new company will manufacture vehicles only for Maruti Suzuki," SMC Chairman and CEO Osamu Suzuki told reporters in Delhi.

MSI announced in 2012 plans to invest Rs 4,000 crore to set up its third plant on a 700-acre site near Mehsana by 2015-16 with a capacity of 2.5 lakh units in the first phase. Last year, the company said the plant had been delayed due to the slowdown in the automotive market.

Suzuki to own Gujarat plant, make vehicles only for Maruti

The decision to change the plant ownership was approved by the boards of SMC and MSI, in which the Japanese firm held a 56.21 per cent stake on December 31.
SMGPL will produce vehicles in accordance with MSI's requirements and sell them at a price that would "include only the cost of production plus adequate cash, net of tax, to cover incremental capital expenditure requirements." Suzuki said the move will be a win-win situation for both SMC and MSI and would allow the Indian arm to focus on its sales and service network.
"Maruti can invest surplus cash in expanding marketing network...The current network can do 1 million units, but it it has to increase to 1.5 million or 2 million. It needs to be doubled," Suzuki said. SMC can extend "co-operation in production" so that Maruti can focus on the network, he added. "Suzuki Japan, Maruti Suzuki and Suzuki Gujarat will form one group and the benefits will be shared between the three partners," Suzuki said.
Another reason for SMC to own the Gujarat plant was the 'distance' between Gujarat and Haryana, where MSI's plants are located. Setting up a new company to look after production was considered better because most of MSI's current employees don't speak Gujarati, Suzuki said.
"Our capital will be available for investing on other purposes like strengthening sales and marketing, research and development," MSI Chairman RC Bhargava said. "At the same time, the vehicles will be sold to MSI by the Suzuki subsidiary without any return on capital employed."
Investors, however, did not take the development positively. MSI shares tanked 8.12 per cent to Rs 1,563.20 at the close on the BSE.