Global Markets & News-The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Contact Your Financial Adviser Money Making MC

http://moneymakingaimsee.blogspot.in
https://www.facebook.com/moneymakingmc

8 November 2016

OVERNIGHT MARKETS AND NEWS

Dec E-mini S&Ps (ESZ16 -0.14%) are down -0.18% on profit-taking after Monday's sharp rally and on caution ahead of today's U.S. presidential election results. European stocks are down -0.14% after German Sep industrial production fell by the most in 2-years. Losses in European stocks were limited as bank stocks rallied, led by a 5% jump in with Credit Agricole SA, after it said quarterly profit doubled y/y and bond-trading income surged. Asian stocks settled mostly higher: Japan -0.03%, Hong Kong +0.47%, China +0.46%, Taiwan +0.30%, Australia +0.13%, Singapore +0.69%, South Korea +0.26%, India +0.48%. China's Shanghai Composite rallied to its highest in 9-3/4 months on expectations for a Clinton victory in today's U.S. presidential election, which is seen as positive for trade policies between China and the U.S. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The dollar index (DXY00 +0.03%) is down -0.02%. EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is down -0.01%. USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is up +0.30%.

Dec 10-year T-note prices (ZNZ16 +0.06%) are up +3 ticks.

German Sep industrial production fell -1.8% m/m, weaker than expectations of -0.5% m/m and the biggest decline in 2 years.

The China Oct trade balance was in surplus by +$49.06 billion, smaller than expectations of +$51.70 billion. Oct exports fell -7.3% y/y, weaker than expectations of -6.0% y/y. Oct imports fell -1.4% y/y, weaker than expectations of -1.0% y/y. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

U.S. STOCK PREVIEW

Key U.S. news today includes: (1) Chicago Fed President Charles Evans speaks on the economy and monetary policy in a Q&A at the Council on Foreign Relations, (2) Sep JOLTS job openings (expected +32,000 to 5.475 million, Aug -388,000 to 5.443 million), (3) the Treasury's auction of $24 billion of 3-year T-notes, (4) U.S. Election Day.

Notable S&P 500 earnings reports today include: CVS Health (consensus $1.57), Johnson Controls, DR Horton (0.77), Expeditors (0.65), Endo Intl (0.82), Concho Resources (0.19), TripAdvisor (0.52).

U.S. IPO's scheduled to price today: none.

Equity conferences this week include: Credit Suisse Health Care Conference on Mon-Tue, Bernstein Technology Innovation Summit on Mon-Tue, Robert W. Baird Global Industrial Conference on Mon-Thu, Daiwa Investment Conference on Tue, EEI Financial Conference on Tue, Evercore Technology Conference on Tue, Stephens Fall Investment Conference on Tue, Hart Energy Publishing LLLP Executive Oil Conference on Tue, Baird Global Industrial Conference on Wed, RBC Technology Internet Media and Telecommunications Conference on Wed-Thu, Wells Fargo Technology, Media & Telecom Conference on Wed-Fri, Citi Financial Technology Conference on Thu, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey Financial Technology, Business & Government Services on Thu. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

OVERNIGHT U.S. STOCK MOVERS

Best Buy (BBY +2.30%) was downgraded to 'Sell' from 'Hold' at Evercore ISI.

Priceline Group (PCLN +3.94%) rose 5% in pre-market trading after it reported Q3 adjusted EPS of $31.18, higher than consensus of $29.86.

Fabrinet (FN +3.55%) jumped 8% in after-hours trading after it reported Q1 non-GAAP EPS of 80 cents, above consensus of 71 cents, and then said it sees Q2 non-GAAP EPS of 78 cents-80 cents, higher than consensus of 69 cents.

Marriott International (MAR +2.14%) fell nearly 3% in pre-market trading after it said it sees Q4 EPS of 80 cents-85 cents, weaker than consensus of 86 cents.

Align Technology (ALGN +2.48%) gained over 1% in after-hours trading after it reported Q3 adjusted EPS of 63 cents, higher than consensus of 52 cents.

Hertz Global Holdings (HTZ +7.26%) plunged 25% in after-hours trading after it lowered guidance on 2106 adjusted Ebitda to $575 million-$625 million from an August 8 view of $850 million-$950 million.

Depomed (DEPO +1.02%) dropped over 10% in after-hours trading after it reported Q3 adjusted EPS of 28 cents, weaker than consensus of 36 cents, and then lowered guidance on full-year Ebitda to $152 million-$160 million from a prior view of $175 million-$190 million.

Resolute Energy (REN -1.51%) lost over 6% in after-hours trading after it reported an unexpected Q3 loss of -$1.24 a share, well below consensus of a profit of 55 cents.

Cray (CRAY +2.02%) slid nearly 9% in after-hours trading after it reported a Q3 adjusted EPS loss of -49 cents, wider than consensus of 35 cents.

News Corp. (NWSA +2.78%) rose nearly 4% in after-hours trading after it reported an unexpected Q1 adjusted profit of 1 cent, better than consensus of breakeven.

OPKO Health (OPK -0.51%) lost nearly 1% in after-hours trading after it reported Q3 revenue of $298 million, below consensus of $322 million.

Microchip Technology (MCHP +3.34%) gained 1% in after-hours trading after it reported fiscal year Q2 adjusted EPS of 94 cents, higher than consensus of 87 cents, and said it sees Q3 adjusted EPS of 85 cents-95 cents, above consensus of 84 cents.

Kindred Healthcare (KND +6.71%) slumped 15% in after-hours trading after it lowered guidance on full-year adjusted EPS to 70 cents-8- cents from a prior view of 80 cents-$1.00. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

MARKET COMMENTS

Dec E-mini S&Ps (ESZ16 -0.14%) this morning are down -3.75 points (-0.18%). Monday's closes: S&P 500 +2.22%, Dow Jones +2.08%, Nasdaq +2.43%. The S&P 500 on Monday closed sharply higher on the improved prospects for Mrs. Clinton to win Tuesday's U.S. presidential election after the FBI on Sunday said she did nothing illegal in the handling of her emails. There was also strength in mining stocks after the price of copper climbed +1.96% to a 7-3/4 month high.

Dec 10-year T-notes (ZNZ16 +0.06%) this morning are up +3 ticks. Monday's closes: TYZ6 -13.0, FVZ6 -7.75. Dec 10-year T-notes on Monday closed lower on reduced safe-haven demand with the rally in stocks and on increased expectations for a Fed rate hike with the higher odds for Mrs. Clinton to become president after the FBI's announcement on Sunday absolving her of legal responsibility for her email server.

The dollar index (DXY00 +0.03%) this morning is down -0.022 (-0.02%). EUR/USD (^EURUSD) is down -0.0001 (-0.01%). USD/JPY (^USDJPY) is up +0.31 (+0.30%). Monday's closes: Dollar index +0.716 (+0.74%), EUR/USD -0.0100 (-0.90%), USD/JPY +1.34 (+1.30%). The dollar index on Monday closed higher on the improved prospects for a Clinton win in Tuesday's U.S. presidential election, which boosted U.S. stocks and bolstered the chance for a Fed rate hike next month. USD/JPY rallied on reduced safe-haven demand for the yen after stock prices rallied sharply.

Dec crude oil prices (CLZ16 -0.53%) are down -7 cents (-0.16%) and Dec gasoline (RBZ16 -0.50%) is -0.0038 (-0.28%). Monday's closes: Dec crude +0.82 (+1.86%), Dec gasoline -0.0096 (-0.70%). Dec crude oil and gasoline on Monday settled mixed with Dec gasoline at a 1-1/2 month low. Crude oil prices were undercut by the rally in the dollar and by reduced gasoline supply concerns after Colonial Pipeline restarted its largest gasoline line that had been closed for 6 days after a fire and explosion in Alabama. Crude oil prices were boosted by a 5.0 magnitude earthquake that struck near Cushing, OK, delivery point of WTI futures, which prompted some pipeline operators to shut down operations there as a precaution. Crude oil prices were also boosted by comments from OPEC Secretary General Barkindo who said that Russia is "on board" with an OPEC agreement to limit production to help rebalance the market.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Big Boys Cut Debt under Pressure from Lenders-The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Contact Your Financial Adviser Money Making MC

http://moneymakingaimsee.blogspot.in
https://www.facebook.com/moneymakingmc

8 November 2016

 

Ruia Brothers (The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions)

A week ago, an industrialist told us that the entire family of a very large, first-generation industry house is making plans to move abroad permanently. The only hiccup was a court order that bars two members of the family from going abroad. His own family too is planning to migrate, he says. While global investors consider India in a ‘very sweet spot’ (Mark Mobius), offering a variety of investment opportunities, why are several industrialists looking outward? The answer is interesting. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

None of them has plans to abandon the business opportunity presented by India. In fact, many have aggressive growth plans in retail business and are eyeing defence contracts as a big opportunity. They just want to be foreign citizens, which, they believe, offers some protection from the draconian provisions of statutes such as the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and even the Companies Act, especially if they have to make a Vijay Mallya-type exit.
 

There is some merit in this strategy. Despite the prime minister’s intention to improve ease of doing business rules, some things haven’t changed. Indian investigation and enforcement agencies, armed with draconian powers, follow the practice of arrest and imprisonment first, before issuing a basic show-cause notice. A foreign citizenship in such situations ensures some protection from deportation until a proper case is made out. On the other hand, since scores of countries offer citizenship to those who make substantial investments (the investment threshold differs for each country), this also indicates how much of Indian money stashed overseas has not returned, despite the tough provisions of the PMLA. 

The good news, however, is that it is no longer business-as-usual, in India. Although political funding in India remains dependent on anonymous donations, one hears that thequid-pro-quo for such help, these days, is to find buyers for massive distressed assets and ensuring smooth deals. The pressure to sell is coming from two sources. Private and foreign banks are taking a tough stand against powerful, but over-leveraged, conglomerates, often pushing them to sell non-core assets that have buyers. This has benefited public sector banks (PSBs) too. 

The second big nudge has come from court orders. The Supreme Court, which is hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) on gargantuan bad loans of PSBs, is being increasingly tough on business. It is important to remember that these sales are happening even before the new bankruptcy law actually kicks into action. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

After Subrata Roy of Sahara spent over a year in jail, the flamboyant Vijay Mallya, literally, escaped overseas to avoid a similar fate, promoters of Unitech were arrested before they agreed to redeem their commitment to flat-buyers and Ravi Ruia of Essar, one of India’s largest groups, has been barred from going abroad. Like the Unitech group, Jaiprakash Associates (which sold its cement business to the Aditya Birla group for Rs15,900 crore and two hydro power plants for Rs9,200 crore), which has not even repaid investors in their fixed deposit programme, has also been shedding assets, under intense pressure from lenders. Several others in the realty business have sold assets to complete delayed projects and deliver on their promise to flat-buyers. Many of these decisions were hastened after cases wound their way to the Supreme Court leaving little room anymore to game the slow judicial system. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

All this has been labelled as India’s biggest ‘fire-sale’ of assets and, although it has been on for two years, it was earlier restricted to smaller companies or minor businesses of large conglomerates. Early this year, the economic research wing of State Bank of India estimated that nearly Rs2 lakh crore of assets would be sold by companies, in addition to a paring of Rs47,813 crore of debt by 270 companies in 2015. Essar and the Anil Ambani group that constitute half this estimate were not even part of the study. Many politically powerful groups continued to wait and watch while the government was embarrassed before the courts on the bad loans issue. That powerful conglomerates are feeling the pressure to sell large assets to effect substantial reduction in their debt is the big change in 2016. 

Essar Oil’s sale of 98% of its oil assets to a Russian consortium led by the State-owned Rosneft (includes United Capital Partners and Trafigura) for Rs83,000 crore is expected to help settle a slew of global and Indian debts and payments. We learn that this debt had become an international embarrassment for India with payments to a neighbouring country having stalled. Essar’s full-page advertisements and media interviews after the transaction do not reveal that the sale would not have happened without some tough, backroom negotiations and enormous pressure on the group to sell. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Essar had originally planned to sell only 49% of Essar Oil to Rosneft but has sold off nearly its entire stake and also added assets, including a port, to sweeten the deal. StanChart Bank, which took a haircut on its payments, is a big beneficiary, followed by ICICI and Axis Bank. Essar Steel, where PSBs have a bigger exposure would probably be the next Essar company on the radar. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The Anil Ambani group has been on a big selling spree too. Most recently, it sold 51% of the telecom tower business of Reliance Communications to Brookfield Infrastructure Group of Canada, for Rs11,000 crore. This is in addition to significant stake sales in electricity, mutual funds, insurance and cement. Talks are also on to sell infrastructure, media and entertainment assets as well to cut borrowings that were in excess of Rs1,21,000 crore. 

The Tata group, despite the return of Ratan Tata as executive chairman of Tata Sons, may see some big decisions very soon in Tata Motors and Tata Steel. The UK acquisition of Corus is now bleeding the Indian operations and it would be hard for the Indian board to justify losses of over one million pounds a day on the UK operations. In fact, this may be the next big battleground at the Tatas, since Cyrus Mistry remains executive chairman of the two companies and has made his views clear. 

The notorious GTL group (formerly Global Tele, which was deeply involved with Ketan Parekh in the 2000-01 scam) belonging to Manoj Tirodkar is, finally, feeling some heat after bouncing back in different avatars and with different names. The Economic Times reports that the company, and its assets, are likely to be auctioned by February 2017. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Apart from the Essar group and Anil Ambani’s Reliance, among the most indebted corporate groups already facing repayment problems are: Lanco (headed by a Congress MP notorious for the pepper-spray episode in parliament) and Videocon. Many of India’s largest companies, including Tata Steel, GVK, GMR, Bharti Airtel, Jindal Steel and Power, and others, like Lanco and Suzlon, have all sold off some assets, but a lot more is needed from them. 

 Several others have been forced to convert loans to equity and the lenders are seeking to auction controlling stakes. ABG Shipyard is an example. In another case, that of Hotel Leelaventure, the entire loan was sold by State Bank of India to an asset reconstruction company, which has forced the chairman Vivek Nair and co-chairman Dinesh Nair (his brother) to accept a 93% cut in salary (from Rs2.42 crore to Rs17.12 lakh in Vivek Nair’s case), reports Business Standard. Hopefully, banks will force this on other severely indebted companies that are struggling to service interest costs. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

This multi-pronged action by lenders could not have happened without India’s crony capitalists being told, in no uncertain terms, that they will have to pay up and the bankers being assured that there will be no interference in their recovery efforts. It is a pity that PSBs have not taken advantage of this new environment as yet but they could be pushed into action soon. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

India's gold demand drops 28% in Q3: World Gold Council-The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Contact Your Financial Adviser Money Making MC

http://moneymakingaimsee.blogspot.in
https://www.facebook.com/moneymakingmc

8 November 2016

India's demand for gold in the third quarter (July-September) dropped by 28 per cent to 194.8 tonnes, the World Gold Council said in its report on Tuesday.

The Indian demand was around 271.1 tonnes during the corresponding quarter in 2015.

In terms of value, India's Q3 2016 gold demand was Rs 55,970 crore, a drop of 12 per cent compared to the similar quarter in 2015 when it stood at Rs 63,660 crore.

"While an elevated price level was an obvious factor for the drop in volume, other issues appear to have had an impact on demand -- such as the trade strike following the introduction of excise duty, the regulation on PAN card for purchases above Rs 2 lakh and the subdued sentiment on gold buying when the income disclosure scheme was running," said Somasundaram PR, Managing Director, India, World Gold Council. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The World Gold Council has projected the full year demand to be in the range of 650-750 tonnes. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"Good monsoon and a drop in the gold price ahead of Diwali augur well for strong seasonal demand in Q4 that will likely restore the demand trajectory to normal levels," Somasundaram said. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Total jewellery demand in India for third quarter of 2016 was down by 28 per cent at 154.7 tonnes. Also, total gold investment demand for the quarter under review fell by 30 per cent at 40.1 tonnes. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Globally, gold demand reached 993 tonnes in the third quarter of 2016, 10 per cent less than in the similar period in 2015. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"Net inflows into Exchange-traded products (ETPs) helped drive a sharp increase in investment demand, but this was not enough to offset falls in other areas, notably jewellery and purchases by central banks," the statement said. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"We continued to see flows into gold-backed ETPs in Q3, taking year-to-date inflows at the end of September to 725 tonnes. Institutional investors have looked to hedge against uncertainty stemming from geopolitical risk, including Brexit, the US presidential race and the potential impact of elections in France and Germany next year (2017)," said Alistair Hewitt, Head of Market Intelligence at the World Gold Council. 

"In addition, negative interest rates -- a theme ever present this year -- continued to underpin institutional demand," he added. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Seven Indian missions' websites 'hacked', data dumped online: Report -The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Contact Your Financial Adviser Money Making MC

http://moneymakingaimsee.blogspot.in
https://www.facebook.com/moneymakingmc

8 November 2016

Two hackers allegedly from the Netherlands claimed to have broken into seven Indian High Commission websites, publishing online the login details, passwords and database containing names, passport numbers, email-IDs and phone numbers of people of Indian origin, media reported on Monday. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

According to a report in E Hacking News website, the Indian High Commissions where data breach happened are in South Africa, Libya, Italy, Switzerland, Malawi, Mali and Romania.

The hackers with Twitter names Kapustkiy and Kasimierz L later dumped the database on Pastebin.com (which later removed the details). The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"I am from the Netherlands. I've found several SQL on their websites and I reported it. But they ignored me so I dumped there db [database]," one of the hackers told E Hacking News in an email. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The hackers allegedly leaked details of 161 Indians living in South Africa, 35 in Switzerland, 145 in Italy, 305 in Libya, 74 in Malawi, 14 in Mali and 42 in Romania.

The Indian Embassy in South Africa (http://www.hcisouthafrica.in/) was the first one to be hacked. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The Indian Embassy in Bern (Switzerland) was the second target (http://indembassybern.ch/) which had three databases with 19 tables with total 35 entries and login details with passwords. 

"The compromised data includes the name, last name, email id, address, college and a course where students are enrolled," the report added.

In Italy, the hackers entered into three databases with 149 entries, including the name, email-id, telephone numbers and passport numbers. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

There was no official explanation from the Ministry of External Affairs on this development.

SQL (Structured Query Language) injection is one of the most widely exploited web application vulnerability used by hackers to steal data from online businesses' and organisations' websites. 

This web application vulnerability is typically found in web applications which do not validate the user's input. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

"As a result, a malicious user can inject SQL statements through the website and into the database to have them executed," www.netsparker.com reported.

Earlier this year, there were multiple reports that websites of seven Indian embassies were hacked and defaced by a group claiming to be from Pakistan.The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Nifty, Sensex may head higher – Tuesday closing report-The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Contact Your Financial Adviser Money Making MC

http://moneymakingaimsee.blogspot.in
https://www.facebook.com/moneymakingmc

8 November 2016

I had mentioned in Monday’s closing report that Nifty, Sensex would be directionless. The major indices of the Indian stock exchanges rallied on Tuesday and closed with gains of around 0.48%-0.55% over Monday’s close. However, the rally was based on lower NSE trading volumes. The trends of the major indices in the course of Tuesday’s trading are given in the table below: The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Major Indices (The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions)

Indian equity markets were trading on a flat note during the mid-afternoon session on Tuesday as investors remained cautious ahead of the US presidential election. Profit booking after Monday's gains triggered selling pressure in healthcare, capital goods and IT (information technology) stocks. However, close to the end of the trading session, optimistic investors ensured a rally on thinner trading to close with minor gains over Monday’s close. On the NSE, there were 617 advances, 849 declines and 59 unchanged. On the BSE, there were 1,354 advances, 1,528 declines and 126 unchanged. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

IT, banking, pharma and auto stocks faced resistance at higher levels. Oil-gas, textile, aviation and media-entertainment stocks were trading down due to selling pressure, according to market analysts. FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) and power stocks traded with mixed sentiments, while cement stocks traded firm on buying support from traders.

Ceat Limited, an RPG Group company, on Monday reported a 1.55% rise in its consolidated net profit to Rs106.92 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2016 as compared to Rs105.28 crore in the corresponding period last year. On a consolidated basis, the tyre maker's revenue stood at Rs1,419 crore in the three months ended September 30, up by 5.7% on a year-on-year basis. EBITDA stood at Rs194 crore from Rs192 crore on a year on year basis, while margins were at 13.7% during the quarter. "In this quarter, our overall sales volume grew by over 13 percent on a year-on-year basis. This was led by double-digit growth in both domestic and exports segments aided largely by our focus on the passenger segments. Margins have seen slight decline year-on-year, predominantly due to price cuts taken during the previous quarters," said Managing Director Anant Goenka. On the products front, the company launched puncture safe tyres for bikes - a first in India, and fuel smart series for passenger cars, a statement added. The company’s shares closed at Rs1,305.95, up 7%, on the BSE.

Assurance, tax and advisory firm Grant Thornton's business confidence report has revealed that policy reforms and the upcoming implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has buoyed India Inc's hopes of a rise in exports during the coming quarters. According to the latest Grant Thornton International Business Report survey, 38% respondents said they expect an increase in exports. The result shows a three point jump than the previous quarter, when 35% voted for an increase in exports during Q2 2016. Only 13% of the surveyed had positively responded to the expectations of a rise in exports during Q1 2016. "Ongoing policy reforms measures and the upcoming implementation of GST, coupled with the stability in Indian currency and its competitiveness, has led to an increase in optimism over rise in exports in the coming quarters," Harish HV, Partner - India Leadership team, Grant Thornton India LLP, told IANS. "GST is expected to have a positive impact as it will reduce the cost of logistics and hasten-up the movement of cargo. On the global front, the rise in manufacturing cost in China is also expected to lead to a cost advantage for Indian exports." This is also likely to keep the Indian rupee stable in the currency market and keep attracting investments from foreign institutional investors. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Private sector ICICI Bank Ltd on Monday said it closed the second quarter of the current fiscal with a net profit of Rs3,102.27 crore as compared to Rs3,030.11 crore for the same quarter last year. In a regulatory filing in BSE, the bank said it its total income has increased from Rs16,106.22 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2015 to Rs22,759.08 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2016. During the quarter, the bank launched the Unified Payments Interface, or UPI and  enabled  UPI  based  transactions  on  its’  mobile  banking  applications  -‘iMobile’  and  ‘Pockets’.  The bank now has over 200,000 Virtual Payment Addresses on UPI. The bank is also working on tie-ups with several merchants to enable UPI-based ‘person-to-merchant’ transactions.  The  bank  recently became  the  first  bank  in  India  to  successfully  exchange  and  authenticate remittance  transaction  messages  and  original  international  trade  documents using block-chain technology. On Tuesday, the bank’s shares closed at Rs283.20, up 1.60% on the BSE. The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

The top gainers and top losers of the major indices are given in the table below:

 

Top Gainer (The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions)

The closing values of the major Asian indices are given in the table below: The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions

Asian Indices (The Total Investment & Insurance Solutions)