Global growth at four-month low, but stocks rally

Reuters | Updated On: March 06, 2013 02:11 (IST)
Global economic growth slowed to a four-month low in February, according to service sector surveys on Tuesday, but China's pledge to boost government spending to achieve 7.5 percent growth this year may help support activity in Europe and the United States also.

Growth was led by the vast US services sector, where it accelerated to its fastest pace in a year in  February, helped by a pick-up in new orders and demand for exports.

But France, Spain and Italy dragged the euro zone into a deeper downturn, earlier data showed, highlighting a widening chasm between these countries and prosperous Germany.
Meanwhile, data on China's increasingly important services sector showed that growth cooled in February and was in line with slower factory activity that suggests a modest rebound in the country's economy this year.
"Although the rate of expansion eased to a four-month low, the loss of momentum was only slight and improving inflows of new business raise the chances of a near-term reacceleration," said David Hensley, director of global economics coordination at JPMorgan.
The Global Total Output index, produced by JPMorgan with research and supply management organizations, slipped to 53.0 in February from 53.2 in January, comfortably above the 50 mark that divides growth from contraction.
A global index covering services firms edged down to 53.3 last month from 53.4. A similar manufacturing PMI released on Friday fell to 50.8.
On Wall Street though, China's policy announcement and the good data on the US service sector combined with supportive Federal Reserve monetary policy all combined to lift the Dow Jones industrial average to a record high, eclipsing the previous intraday high reached in October 2007, when the world was heading toward the financial crisis.
Stocks in Europe also surged, with the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index hitting its highest closing level in 4-1/2 years, boosted by corporate outlooks and expectations for continued stimulus from global central banks, even as Europe's troubled economy deteriorated further.

CHINA PLEDGE

In China, outgoing Premier Wen Jibao, speaking at the opening of the annual session of parliament, announced record-high government spending for 2013. The plan is the blueprint for the incoming administration led by Xi Jinping, who will formally take over as president at the end of the session, with Li Keqiang taking over as premier.
As part of the measures announced on Tuesday to promote growth, the Ministry of Finance said China would boost fiscal spending in 2013, raising the fiscal deficit target to 2.0 percent of gross domestic product, its highest since 2010 and up from 1.6 percent in 2012.
China's economy, the world's second biggest, grew by 7.8 percent in 2012, its slowest pace in 13 years.
The HSBC Services Purchasing Managers' Index for China showed a pullback in growth in February, with the index falling to 52.1 from January's 54.0, after seasonal adjustments. The services sector accounts for 46 percent of China's economy.
Qu Hongbin, HSBC's chief China economist, attributed the pull-back in services growth in part to a clampdown on wasteful state spending by Beijing, such as forbidding officials from hosting extravagant meals.
Distortions from the Lunar New Year holiday, which fell in February this year as opposed to January in 2012, may also have contributed to swings in the PMI data even though the series is seasonally adjusted.
"We expect a continuous modest improvement of service sector growth in coming months, thanks to healthy labor market conditions and the ongoing recovery of manufacturing growth," he said.

U.S. SERVICE SECTOR SURPRISE

In the United States, the services sector, which dominates the economy, posted its fastest pace of growth in a year in February. The expansion came even as the federal government is tightening spending and consumers are adjusting to a decline in disposable income following an increase in the payroll tax at the beginning of the year.

The Institute for Supply Management said its services index rose to 56 from 55.2 in January, exceeding economists' forecasts for 55. It was the highest level since February 2012. A reading above 50 indicates expansion.

"This was no question a positive number," said Michael Woolfolk, senior currency strategist at BNY Mellon. "It reflects improvement and reinforces the view that the economy continues to improve and should contribute to gains that have driven the stock market to a new record."

The measure of the backlog of orders was at its highest since May 2011 at 54.5 against 49. But the employment index weakened slightly, edging down to 57.2 from 57.5 in January.

EUROPE STRUGGLES

In Europe, economic gloom continued to be the message of the day, however.

Purchasing managers indexes showed that France, Spain and Italydragged the 17-member euro zone into a deeper downturn in February. Markit's Eurozone Composite PMI, a broad gauge of activity at thousands of companies across the euro zone, fell to 47.9 from 48.6 in January. A reading below 50 indicates contraction.

A reading of 53.3 for Germany's PMI stood in sharp contrast to the reading of 43.1 for the French PMI.

The outlook for the euro zone depends largely on whether Germanycan keep up its economic growth and offset weakness in the bloc's next three biggest economies - France, Italy and Spain, according toChris Williamson, chief economist at PMI compiler Markit.

He said that "seems a tall order, meaning hopes of a return to growth for the region by mid-2013 are now looking too optimistic."

Britain's services PMI, which accounts for the bulk of its economy, hit a five-month high of 51.8 last month from 51.5 in January, beating the median forecast of 51.0 in a Reuters poll.

Copyright @ Thomson Reuters 2013
http://profit.ndtv.com/news/international-business/article-global-growth-at-four-month-low-but-stocks-rally-319042

CORE EDUCATION..HAMMERED DOWN...

MUMBAI, FEB 27:  

Core Education and Technologies has moved SEBI seeking a probe into the high volumes of trading in its shares that led to a steep fall of 81 per cent in share prices.The stock fell from a high of Rs 300 to a low of Rs 56.55, in just three days.“We would like to request your office to assist the company in conducting your investigation in such unusual high volume and price movement…,” the company said in its letter to the market regulator.The technology-enabled education solutions provider has also sought the market regulator’s assistance in providing appropriate price circuits for its scrip. This is to prevent “further damage and repose shareholders and all stakeholders’ confidence,” it added.Though the stock is not traded under F&O list directly, since it is a part of CNX-IT, which has derivatives contracts, no circuit filter is applicable to the stock.

TUMBLES CONTINUOUSLY

Last Monday, the company’s shares fell by more than 62 per cent on market talks that lenders were diluting shares pledged by the promoters. The prices recovered by noon on Tuesday, after it clarified that pledged shares were not sold in the market. On Wednesday, it fell further by 46 per cent to close at Rs 60.30.“Further, we would like to clarify on the rumours of promoters pledged shares being sold, that we have confirmed with all the financial institutions that none of them have sold the pledged shares and that they continue to hold the same,” it said. However, today IFCI sold 36.95 lakh shares.On Monday, Cresta Fund informed the exchanges that it sold 28.16 lakh shares or 2.4598 per cent stake in the company on February 25. After the sale, their holding reduced to 2.3572 per cent.On Tuesday, SEBI Chairman in Hyderabad, U.K. Sinha, said: “Whenever we worry either through our own surveillance mechanism or through other medium that somebody has tried to manipulate the market, we take action.” rajesh.kurup@thehindu.co.in

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/markets/core-education-moves-sebi-for-probe-as-stock-crashes-81-in-3-days/article4459326.ece

Sugar firms DECONTROL NEWS....

Jitendra Kumar Gupta  |  Mumbai  February 19, 2013 Last Updated at 22:48 IST

Sugar firms eye decontrol as fundamentals hit

Due to higher costs and lower prices, analysts are bearish on most north-based firms

Worries of sugar companies making less profit, as costs are rising and prices falling, have led to a sharp correction in their share prices. The stocks of Bajaj Hindusthan, Balrampur Chinni, Shree Renuka Sugars and EID Parry are down 17-30 per cent over three months as compared to the Sensex’s 5.6 per cent rise.
Nor are the near- to medium-term prospects of most companies any sweeter. The only development which could revive sentiment is if the government goes ahead with decontrol of the industry.
Sugar prices have fallen from a peak of around Rs 39 a kg in August 2012 to the current levels of Rs 34 a kg. And, the cost of sugarcane procured by the companies has gone up 16-17 per cent compared to the earlier season. This has taken place while there is surplus sugar in the country and it is also difficult to sell abroad, given lower international prices.
A Fitch group company, India Ratings, says it has a negative outlook for sugar manufacturing companies for 2013, considering likelihood of a deterioration in their financial profile. It said the operating margins of companies in 2013 were likely to be below the 2012 levels (of 13 per cent), as sugar margins (October 2012-September 2013) might fall to Re 1 a kg or lower. Thus, the financial leverage (debt to operating earnings of 4.8 times in 2012 and 3.9 times in 2011) is expected to worsen. This is based on financial statements of 18 listed companies.
The concern is more for companies based in the north. Recently, Uttar Pradesh raised its State Advised Price (SAP) for cane by Rs 40 a quintal (100 kg), to Rs 280 a qtl. This is the highest in India and far more than the central government’s Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of Rs 170 a qtl. Uttar Pradesh is estimated to produce a third of the country’s output in sugar season 2013 and is home for Bajaj Hindusthan, Balrampur Chini and Dhampur Sugar Mills, among the major players in the country. Cane accounts for 85-90 per cent of operating cost and based on the new SAP, the cost of producing sugar is likely to be Rs 33-34 a kg, far more than the ruling price (on an average, companies are able to recover a kg of sugar from every 10 kg of cane).

No wonder, analysts have downgraded most north-based sugar companies in the past two to three months. “With the higher cane cost at Rs 280 a qtl and sugar prices at par with the cost of production (Rs 33 a kg), we believe earnings from the segment (sugar) for Bajaj Hindusthan would continue to remain dismal,” said Sanjay Manyal analyst at ICICI Direct in a note this month. The analyst is expecting the company to report a Rs 153.4 crore loss in the sugar season ending September 2013.
Similarly, in the case of Balrampur Chini, HDFC Securities’ analyst has reduced the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amorisation (Ebitda) estimates by 39.4 per cent and profits by 83 per cent for FY14, due to higher cane cost. Dhampur Sugar, too, is expected to report a loss in its sugar business.

At this juncture, given the surplus in global and domestic markets, chances of a recovery in sugar prices are diminishing. The Indian sugar industry is expected to produce 24.3 million tonnes in season 2013, as against the consumption of 22.5 mt, a surplus of 7.8 mt (considering an opening stock of six mt), not small at a third of annual consumption.
In this situation, Maharashtra-based companies such as Shree Renuka Sugars and south-based ones such as EID Parry could be in a better position. In Maharashtra, the cost of production is Rs 30-32 a kg. Renuka is much more diversified, with large exposure to sugar refining, where margins and volumes are still comfortable. However, for Renuka, the worry stems from its high debt levels and not from the operating performance, as about half its operating profit goes towards paying interest cost.
In this backdrop, the only hope for companies is decontrol of the industry. Led by news of it being a possibility soon, the share prices of sugar companies have risen in the past two days. If decontrol is implemented in the manner in which the industry hopes (removal of levy sugar), it could help reduce the pressure on companies’ working capital and inventory, strengthening their finances in the long run and improving market sentiment. Linking of cane costs to realisation will make things better but as it is a sensitive issue, a resolution on this is not likely soon.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/markets/sugar-firms-eye-decontrol-as-fundamentals-hit-113021900787_1.html

Canadian Solar to Buy Four Solar Projects..

Canadian Solar to Buy Four Solar Projects for $37 Million

By Tina Davis - Dec 29, 2012 2:42 AM GMT+0530

Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ), a solar-panel maker, agreed to buy four solar-power projects fromMEMC Electronic Materials Inc. (WFR)’s SunEdison subsidiary for C$37 million ($37.2 million). Canadian Solar completed the purchase of two projects, capable of generating about 24 megawatts direct current, and is buying two other Ontario solar power plants with a capacity of about 22.5 megawatts, according to a statement from the Guelph, Ontario based-company today. It also has the option to buy a fifth project at a later date. The company may own more projects in the future, instead of just selling panels and developing facilities, Canadian Solar Chief Financial Officer Michael Potter said in a Dec. 10 interview. It’s developing about 260 megawatts of projects in Ontario that it expects to sell for C$1.3 billion during the next 18 months, he said. “We are very pleased to announce this transaction with SunEdison, which further demonstrates Canadian Solar’s ongoing investment and commitment to the Ontario solar energy market, and continues Canadian Solar’s growth of its global solar project portfolio and higher margin total solutions business,” Shawn Qu, chairman and chief executive officer, said in the statement today. The two projects purchased are expected to be fully operational by the end of next year. They account for about $20 million of the price, according to a Canadian Solar representative who asked not to be identified because of company policy. The other projects may be running by late 2013 or early 2014. The transaction settles litigation filed last year between the two companies. Each of the five projects has a 20-year power purchase contract under Ontario’s Feed-in-Tariff program, Canadian Solar said. Canadian Solar fell 3 percent to $3.27 at the close in New York. To contact the reporter on this story: Tina Davis in New York at tinadavis@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Tina Davis at tinadavis@bloomberg.net

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-12-28/canadian-solar-completes-38-million-buy-of-ontario-projects.html

FISCAL CLIFF - LEADERS...!!!!

REX NUTTING Archives | Email alerts

Nov. 21, 2012, 12:55 p.m. EST 10 people who led us to the ‘fiscal cliff’ Commentary: From Laffer to Obama, they fed our greed and guilt By Rex Nutting, MarketWatch

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — With our political leaders locked in a fiscal struggle that threatens to throw the economy off a so-called cliff and into recession, you might be wondering how we got to this place.

Remember that this supposed fiscal cliff is the direct result of two contradictory impulses in American life: Greed and guilt. Greed for low taxes, a strong military, a strong safety net and lots of government spending for everyone. And guilt that we weren’t paying our way. Read “Stop calling it a ‘fiscal cliff’”

All of us (or almost all) had a role in this melodrama, either benefiting from the spending or from the lower tax rates. Despite our culpability, it took strong national leaders to foster the heady mix of greed and guilt that brought us to this spot.

Here are the 10 people most responsible for bringing us to the edge of the fiscal cliff:

 

Arthur Laffer. Laffer was the economist who proved the existence of the free lunch. His Laffer Curve showed, in theory, that cutting tax rates would actually increase tax revenue. He gave intellectual cover to those conservatives who wanted to cut taxes, but who didn’t want to be seen as contributing to a big deficit. He gave them a guilt-free way to cut revenue.

There’s only one problem: Laffer’s ideas didn’t pan out in practice: Tax cuts don’t pay for themselves. Tax cuts are a major cause of our $16 trillion national debt.

Pete Peterson. If there’s one person who we can blame for making us feel guilty about the federal deficit, it’s Peterson, a hedge-fund billionaire who was a cabinet secretary in the Reagan administration. Peterson founded, funded or supported most of the institutions in Washington devoted to publicizing the problem of the deficit, including the Concord Coalition, the Peterson Foundation, The Fiscal Times, and the anti-deficit documentary “I.O.U.S.A.”

Without Peterson’s billions and the guilt it bought, the deficit would be a fringe issue.

Bill Clinton. President Clinton made budget surpluses look easy. The budget was in the black the last four years of his administration. What’s worse, he made surpluses look like a sure thing.

Clinton’s surpluses were partly the result of Washington going on a serious budget diet, with higher taxes paired with moderation in spending. But it was the booming economy — and higher taxes on capital income — that turned the modest deficits of the early Clinton years into surpluses.

By the time Clinton left office, politicians were beginning to talk about perpetual surpluses, in exactly the same way that hucksters on Wall Street were talking about a perpetual bull market. And with exactly the same outcome.

Alan Greenspan. Greenspan was a high priest of both guilt and greed. He had always warned Congress about the dangers of the deficits, but his biggest failure as Federal Reserve chairman was the day in 2001 he told Congress that the worst thing it could do was pay down the debt because that would destroy the Treasury market and the Fed’s power to control the economy.

That was the day he endorsed the Bush tax cuts. The Maestro’s endorsement gave intellectual cover to the conservatives who wanted to cut taxes, but who didn’t want to feel guilty.

Greenspan also catered to our greedy side as a serial bubble-blower. He inflated the housing bubble in the 2000s by keeping interest rates low and by refusing to regulate the shadow banking system.

George W. Bush . No one is more responsible for racking up our debt than Bush. He campaigned in 2000 promising to cut taxes in order to avoid paying down the national debt. And when the recession of 2001 arrived, he said tax cuts would revive the economy. And when the economy didn’t revive, he cut taxes some more. Tax cuts for all occasions. And it was all guilt-free

Dick Cheney. While Bush was busy cutting taxes, Cheney was busy planning the war on terror. For the first time in our history, we sent our military into battle without raising taxes at home to help pay for it. It added trillions to the debt.

David Lereah. Lereah was the chief economist for the National Association of Realtors and was perhaps the most enthusiastic and public cheerleader for the housing bubble. Even after the bubble began to deflate, Lereah still insisted that real-estate investments would never lose money.

Of course, Lereah didn’t cause the bubble all by himself, but he does embody the greed that engulfed the real estate industry, the Wall Street banks that profited from it, and the homeowners who took on more debt than they could ever hope to repay.

Grover Norquist. As the head of a powerful lobbying and campaign-finance organization, Norquist forced almost every Republican officeholder to sign a pledge to never raise taxes under any circumstance. If anyone declined to sign or dared to violate the pledge, Norquist would back a primary challenger. The threat worked.

The Norquist pledge blocked any possibility of a budget deal between Democrats and Republicans over the past two years. Democrats insisted that any plan to balance the budget must include more revenue as well as spending cuts, but Republicans held solid against any tax increase.

There are signs that Norquist could be losing his hold on the party. Several Republicans won elections this year without signing his pledge, and several incumbents have said they don’t feel bound by the pledge any more.

Barack Obama. Obama may be the perfect representative of our age, because he encapsulates our national schizophrenia over the budget. He honors both the greed and the guilt. He presided over the largest deficits in history, including a large fiscal stimulus, bailouts of the auto industry, and an expansion of the safety net.

But Obama also lectures us about the need for the government to tighten its belt, even during a recession. He wants to raise taxes, if only on a few, and he’s expressed willingness to cut into the great middle-class entitlements. It was Obama’s administration that first suggested the bargain in 2011 that created the fiscal cliff.

John Boehner. The House speaker is trapped in Grover Norquist’s world. He’s a pragmatic legislator who accepts that the government needs more revenue, but his caucus in the House doesn’t agree. In the summer of 2011, Boehner nearly forced the nation to default on its debt because he couldn’t deliver the votes necessary to raise taxes.

In the end, Boehner was forced to punt the problem down the road. Today’s fiscal cliff showdown is the result of Boehner’s inability to lead the House Republicans to a deal.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/10-people-who-led-us-to-the-fiscal-cliff-2012-11-21?pagenumber=5

MASKS--EURO BANKS AT DANGER LEVELS....

Sat, Oct 27, 2012 at 11:30

The immeasurable risk European banks may be hiding

There is growing concern among policymakers and analysts that the true extent of European banks' debt problems is being masked. There is growing concern among policymakers and analysts that the true extent of European banks' debt problems is being masked.

Sir Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, became the most high-profile policymaker to date to warn of the dangers of banks putting off foreclosures in a speech Tuesday night.

His stern warning to UK banks that they need to drop the "pretense" that some of their bad debts will be repaid was coupled with the statement that they have "insufficient capital" to deal with losses which have remained undeclared.

Essentially, what seems to have happened is that banks across the euro zone have put off foreclosures on weak businesses - a process known as forbearance. This has been enabled by low interest rates across the region and rescue packages which have injected unprecedented amounts of liquidity into the banking system and helped keep struggling economies afloat.

The scale of forbearance is hinted at in relatively low rates of company insolvencies.

In the UK, despite the recession, insolvency rates are similar to 2002, when the economy grew by 1.6 percent, according to government figures.

Greece's problems have been well flagged - yet just five Greek companies were declared insolvent in 2011, the year it was forced to seek a bailout from international lenders, fewer than in 2007, when its economy was still growing.

This persists across the euro zone, with the weakest economies sometimes experiencing its lowest insolvency rates.

In 2011, the number of insolvencies per 10,000 companies was lowest in Greece, Spain, Italy and Portugal, according to calculations from Creditreform.

However, as Nigel Myer, director of credit strategy at Lloyds, pointed out, the extent of this is "effectively invisible" and "almost impossible to quantify." Decisions are made by individual banks and they do not have to declare them under accountancy rules.

Putting off foreclosure could be dangerous not only because it masks the true state of businesses, but because it could mean a faster rate of insolvencies if banks decide to change their policies in response to a worsening economy, with potential damage to employment figures and the broader economy - and to the banks themselves.

"To the extent that forbearance has taken place, a worsening economic environment in these countries could lead to a faster rate of deterioration in asset quality than might be inferred from reported numbers," Myer warned.

Of course, delaying the repayment of non-performing loans can be positive for the economy, particularly in the short-term.

"It has allowed companies to survive and people to be employed," as Myer pointed out. "It also very likely supports tax receipts and reduces the need for social security support."

Sir Mervyn's warning does not chime with other influential figures in the UK.

Andrew Bailey, a member of the Bank's Financial Policy Committee and head of prudential regulation at UK regulator the Financial Services Authority, thanked the banks for their actions earlier in October.

The European countries least likely to be affected by forbearance following worse-than-expected economic data are Switzerland, Austria and Denmark, according to Myer, who suggested spreads in Swiss banks and the recent rally in Danish spreads should be supported by worries about forbearance.

Written by Catherine Boyle, CNBC. Twitter: @cboylecnbc.

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/world-news/the-immeasurable-risk-european-banks-may-be-hiding_773101.html

Focus on RELCAPITAL 24, 2012 7:11 PM

“ZERO COST- NEVER LOSS” MODEL

Not even a single day I could make Rs 1000/- for the last 20trading sessions. The reasons could be many. I call it like STORIES.

In my earlier trading days I never lost money on any given day for two months in a row.

Now there is lot of confusion, mis-reading the screen and wrong calculations…what not many things are generating tabulating for confusion. The turbulence in the mind is heavy and forcing me to take un-necessary positions causing me to PAY for IT.

I lost heavly during Jan-12 boom. I asked every body to buy in the market from last week of Dec-11 but unfortunately I kept a short position in TATASTEEL. I converted the day position in to a night position, paid heavy penality. The next day unfortunate position was taken, instead of covering the old one, we took another short position. The market zoomed like any thing. The beauty part is we lost our TWO internet connections. Calling the broker to square off the positions lead to Rs 15000 loss. So kept for one more day..loss is mounting…brick batting…blame game…Sleepless nights…everything crystallized to a loss of Rs55000 LOSS. I still remember the trauma. The suffering is heavy but I didn’t lost my smile on my face. Because I have not opted the position but failed to manage.

I have very good experience in managing my positions….MY TALL CLAIM…

Now I am not getting the confidence due to my On & Off screen management and readings…

At one time when my energies are high…I thought of building an empire for the deserving people ...needs to be supported…all is DREAM…the reality is …I am in requesting position….

The FACT is I have tremendous and stupendous STOCK MARKET knowledge…but behaving like a Stupid…loosing all opportunities for want of some thing…I have No eligibility to do any sacrifice…Only to take on the Challenges…

The WINNER is the one who accepts Challenges and convert them into success stories…where as the loser will succumbs to pressure an seek sympathy  from the …

The CAPACITIES are built on CONFIDENCE to ACHIVE and the Bench Marks of Success CYCLES goes…on..

I HAVE A DREAM OF CONVERTING MY SHARES INTO “ZERO COST- NEVER LOSS” MODEL. I STARTED WITH ONE AND WILL ADD….

Transgene Biotek Ltd.

Business Standard news coverage on Transgene Biotek Ltd. Transgene in pact with Dr Reddy's for obesity drug

Press Trust of India / Mumbai Jan 07, 2010, 20:42 IST

Biotechnology firm Transgene Biotek today said it has signed a pact with Dr Reddy's Lab to manufacture a drug named, Orlistat used in treating obesity.

The company has entered into a licensing and technology transfer agreement with Dr Reddy's Laboratories for the out-licensing of a technology to manufacture Orlistat, Transgene Biotek said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Under the terms of the compact, effective in due course of time, Dr Reddy's would gain worldwide rights to a unique technology to produce and commercialise Orlistat active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) which is developed exclusively by Transgene Biotek.

"The new alliance combines Transgene Biotek's technology with Dr Reddy's manufacturing skills, and extensive global sales and marketing capabilities" the company said.

Transgene Biotek would receive an upfront payments for certain commercial milestone, and royalties on the sale of Orlistat API in all countries worldwide.

Orlistat is used in the treatment of obesity, including weight loss and weight maintenance.

Transgene Biotek comes up with novel drug for colon cancer

BS Reporter / Mumbai Apr 26, 2010, 15:47 IST

Transgene Biotek has expanded its cancer drug pipeline by coming out with a novel drug for colon cancer. The drug is based on Transgene's proprietary technology platform using a humanised monoclonal antibody. Transgene has developed monoclonal antibodies, which efficiently kill colon cancer cells without harming normal cells.

According to a report from Economic Intelligence Unit, by 2020, 9.7 per cent of new cases of cancer in the world will be from colorectal cancer making it the third highest incidence cancer after lung and breast. Cancer accounted for 7.9 million deaths in 2007, about 70 per cent in low and middle income countries

http://www.businessstandard.com/india/news/transgene-biotek-comes-upnovel-drug-for-colon-cancer/92428/on

Transgene Biotek to raise up to Rs 500 cr via markets Press Trust of India / New Delhi Oct 01, 2010, 14:06 IST

Biotechnology firm Transgene Biotek today said it will raise up to Rs 500 crore through various domestic and international fund raising instruments.

The company's board, at its meeting held on September 30, has decided to raise Rs 500 crore through various domestic and international fund raising instruments, including foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs), global depository receipts (GDRs) and American depository receipts (ADRs), Transgene Biotek said in a filing to Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

The fund raising would be subject to the approval of shareholders, it added.
     
The board also decided to increase the authorised capital of the company to Rs 75 crore from the present Rs 20 crore.
     
Shares of Transgene Biotek were today trading at Rs 59 on the BSE in late afternoon trade, up 3.69 per cent from its previous close.

Transgene in the red

BS Reporter / Hyderabad May 18, 2011, 00:00 IST

Transgene Biotek Ltd reported a net loss of Rs 2.85 lakh for the three months ended March 31, 2011, mainly due to Rs 51 lakh additional expenditure on account of currency fluctuation. Sales revenues were Rs 7.23 crore, while expenditure was Rs 6.58 crore. The profit and revenues in the same quarter of 2009-10 were Rs 15.55 lakh and Rs 1.1 crore respectively.

For the full year of 2010-11, the company registered a net profit of Rs 14.84 lakh, a decline of 61 per cent from Rs 38.16 lakh in the previous fiscal. Revenues during the year grew nearly three-fold to Rs 10 crore (Rs 3.98 crore). The bulk drug division accounted for 70 per cent of its annual revenues, with the rest coming from diagnostic services.

Transgene sells tech to TSS Export

BS Reporter / Chennai/ Hyderabad Nov 24, 2011, 00:00 IST

City-based Transgene Biotek Limited, a biotechnology company, has announced the sale of technology for recombinant human erythropoietin (rh-EPO) to TSS Export GmbH FZE, one of the group companies of Germany-based TSS group, for $5 million (Rs 26 crore).

The technology transfer and the sale of this technology is expected to be completed within 5-6 months. KK Rao, managing director of Transgene Biotek, said, “This transaction fulfils the pledge we made earlier this year to focus on revenue generation whilst monetising the sale of under utilised bio-generic drug assets, those developed by the company during the last 7-8 years, but which we now feel do not fit into our new agenda for sustained growth.”

Transgene Biotek recently commenced commercial manufacturing of DHA (Docosahexaenoic acid), an omega-3 fatty acid, which has seen explosive growth in the nutraceuticals and health supplements market.

The company is in the process of expanding its in-house infrastructure to augment production capacities for DHA and other APIs, and hopes to start commercial manufacturing of its second API (active pharmaceutical ingredient), called Tacrolimus. It is in discussion with a number of manufacturers in Europe and North America for strategic partnerships to manufacture and distribute these products, the release said.

Transgene Biotek joins hands with FII, to delist shares

The company is in the process of sending the postal ballot to all its shareholders seeking their approval

Press Trust of India / Mumbai Oct 07, 2012, 12:03 IST

Pharmaceutical company Transgene Biotek has announced that Mauritius-based Stream Value Fund has agreed to join hands on a long-term basis to support its drug discovery activity, in return for equity participation and certain rewards on drug licensing or sale.

Last week the Hyderabad-based company said it is offloading undisclosed quantum of stake to a foreign institutional investor as a result of which the company's shares will be delisted from domestic stock exchanges.

The company is in the process of sending the postal ballot to all its shareholders seeking their approval.

If delisting is successful, the management of Transgene said, it will enjoy enhanced flexibility without requirement to comply with a long list of regulators' rules and regulations which often hinder efforts to speed up the drug development process.

Transgene has a pipeline of more than six molecules in development - both novel bio-technology and bio-generic drugs, the release said.

The two recent animal studies on its oral insulin project have yielded exceptional results that give rise to confidence that Transgene will soon be in strategic partnership with a large pharma company, the company said.

Transgene Biotek to delist from Indian stock exchanges

Apart from Bombay Stock Exchange, the company is also listed on Luxembourg Stock Exchange

Press Trust of India / New Delhi Sep 04, 2012, 14:38 IST

Biotechnology firm Transgene Biotek today said that its board of directors has decided to delist its shares from Indian stock exchanges.

"The board of directors of the company at its meeting held on September 3, 2012, inter alia, has decided to delist the equity shares of the company from the all the recognised Indian Stock Exchanges," Transgene Biotek said in a filing to BSE.

Apart from Bombay Stock Exchange, the company is also listed on Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

Transgene Biotek said its proposal to delist is subject to approval of shareholders of the company and statutory approvals.

The company, however, did not assign any reason for the delisting.

Shares of Transgene Biotek were today trading at Rs 11.25 per scrip in the afternoon trade on BSE, up 4.85% from its previous close.

 Founded in 1991 by Koteswara Rao, the Hyderabad-based company is among the first biotechnology companies in India.

It has products in the therapeutic areas of cancer, auto immunity and other bio-generics apart from drug delivery devices for ailments such as diabetes and HIV infection.

FII to pick stake in Transgene Biotek

As a result of which the company's shares will be delisted from domestic stock exchanges

Press Trust of India / New Delhi Sep 10, 2012, 17:52 IST

Transgene Biotek today said it is offloading undisclosed quantum of stake in the company to a foreign institutional investor as a result of which the company's shares will be delisted from domestic stock exchanges.

Last week the company had announced that its board has decided to delist its equity shares from all the recognised Indian Stock Exchanges.

"Our announcement in the recent days has been triggered by an approach by a SEBI-registered FII to join hands with Transgene's promoters on a long term basis. This is to support company's drug discovery activity in exchange for equity participation and certain rewards on drug licensing or sale," Transgene Biotek said in a filing to BSE.

Without disclosing details such as the name of the FII or the quantum of stake to be offloaded, the company said one of the preconditions set by the investor that has approached it to support drug discovery activity was delisting.

"The investor shall join the promoter group and shall have a seat on the board, both events only, after the completion of delisting process," Transgene Biotek Managing Director KK Rao told PTI in an emailed response.

He further said the investor is backing the promoters in the delisting process for acquisition of the listed shares.

Transgene Biotek 's board has approved an exit price not lower than the floor price of Rs 25 per share.

In the event of the delisting being successful, the new management of Transgene will enjoy enhanced flexibility. It may at some point choose to increase exposure to western markets (besides Luxembourg), the company said.

As per latest data available on BSE, till the quarter ended June 2012, the promoters held 36.83% stake in the company. Out of a total public shareholding of 63.17%, FIIs held 6.99% stake.

The company further said that the lower market value of the company's stock despite progress of its product pipeline was also one of the reasons behind the proposed delisting.

The two recent animal studies on the company's oral insulin project for diabetes have yielded exceptional results that gives rise to the confidence that soon it would be in strategic partnership with a large pharma firm, it said.

"Yet we continue to see erosion in company value accompanied by perceived investor pessimism, and this has led to the approval by the board for de listing," Transgene Biotek said.

Shares of Transgene Biotek today closed at Rs 11.41 a scrip on the BSE, up a steep 4.97% from its previous close.