FDI in retail: Retailer shares rally

MUMBAI: Shares in retailers jumped on Friday after the government moved to open up the supermarket sector to global giants, a decision seen prompting a flurry of investments and tie-up opportunities for local players.

The government on Thursday approved 51 percent foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail, paving the entry of international firms such as Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour into the $450 billion market.

"FDI in multi-brand retail would benefit capital-constrained retailers such as Pantaloon Retail," Wall Street bank JPMorgan said in a research note on Friday.


"Accelerating the pace of investment in the supply chain to meet demands of increasing scale and enhancing efficiencies... besides expertise of foreign retailers."

Shares in Pantaloon Retail (India) jumped as much as 18.2 percent, Shopper's Stop rallied 11.4 percent, and Trent, part of the salt-to-steel Tata Group conglomerate, rose 17.2 percent.

In comparison, the BSE Sensex was down 0.7 percent at 9:35am (0405 GMT).

The government said late on Thursday that would also raise the cap on foreign investment in single-brand retailing to 100 percent from 51 percent.

The new rules may commit supermarkets to strict local sourcing requirements and minimum investment levels aimed at protecting jobs, according to local media.

Bollywood's Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has baby girl

Nov 16 (Reuters) - Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has given birth to a baby girl, her husband Abhishek Bachchan announced on Twitter on Wednesday.

While the baby's father just said "it's a girl", her proud grandfather Amitabh Bachchan -- a veteran actor and head of Bollywood's most famous family -- could barely contain his joy.

"I AM DADA (grandfather) to the cutest baby girl!!" the 69-year-old Bachchan tweeted.

No further details were immediately available.

Rai, 38, a former Miss World, has been married to actor Abhishek Bachchan for more than four years and the star couple had been fending off baby rumours for months before the pregnancy was confirmed in June.

The Bollywood actress had been expected to give birth to her first child in November, and the Indian media followed her pregnancy obsessively.

She was admitted to a Mumbai hospital on Monday night.

Rai, who often features on "most beautiful" lists, won the Miss World crown in 1994. She went on to build a successful Bollywood career with hits such as "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam" and "Devdas".

She has also worked in Hollywood films such as "The Pink Panther 2" and is a regular at the Cannes film festival.

This is the third grandchild for Amitabh Bachchan. His daughter Shweta has two children.

It’s a girl for Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

(Reuters) - Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has given birth to a baby girl, her husband Abhishek Bachchan announced on Twitter on Wednesday.

While the baby's father just said "it's a girl", her proud grandfather Amitabh Bachchan -- a veteran actor and head of Bollywood's most famous family -- could barely contain his joy.

"I AM DADA (grandfather) to the cutest baby girl!!" the 69-year-old Bachchan tweeted.

No further details were immediately available.

Rai, 38, a former Miss World, has been married to actor Abhishek Bachchan for more than four years and the star couple had been fending off baby rumours for months before the pregnancy was confirmed in June.

The Bollywood actress had been expected to give birth to her first child in November, and the Indian media followed her pregnancy obsessively.

She was admitted to a Mumbai hospital on Monday night.

Rai, who often features on "most beautiful" lists, won the Miss World crown in 1994. She went on to build a successful Bollywood career with hits such as "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam" and "Devdas".

She has also worked in Hollywood films such as "The Pink Panther 2" and is a regular at the Cannes film festival.

This is the third grandchild for Amitabh Bachchan. His daughter Shweta has two children.

Kingfisher Airlines soar 8% ahead of board meeting

MUMBAI: Shares of Kingfisher Airlines today soared about 8 per cent higher on the bourses, ahead of a board meeting of the company, being held in the midst of a financial turbulence engulfing the carrier. 

The stock jumped 7.88 per cent to Rs 21.20 on the BSE, while it was up 7.63 per cent up at Rs 21.15 at the NSE in early morning trade. 

It had hit an all-time low of Rs 17.55 on Friday amid concerns over its mounting debts and rising operating costs. 

The airline's board was scheduled to meet today to take stock of the company's financial position. 

At 1315 hours, the stock was trading 5.34 per cent up at Rs 20.70 at the BSE. 

Kingfisher had suffered a loss of Rs 1,027 crore in 2010-11 and is estimated to have debt of over Rs 7,000 crore. 

Its shares are trading over 75 per cent below its one-year peak level of Rs 90.40, scaled on November 10, 2010. 

State Bank of India, one of the main lenders to the carrier, has said that Kingfisher would have to raise fresh equity to the tune of Rs 800-1,000 crore, if the banks were to consider a second restructuring of the existing debt or extending fresh advances. 

Besides SBI, the lenders include ICICI Bank, IDBI Bank, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India,UCO Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce and State Bank of Mysore. 

Together, these banks now hold a 23.4 per cent stake in the airline. The airline has cancelled several flights over the past few weeks.