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Mukesh Ambani caps salary at Rs 15 cr; other top guns get hike
25 May 2010, 1545 hrs IST,PTI

NEW DELHI: Reliance Industries chief Mukesh Ambani has capped his salary for the second straight year at Rs 15 crore, less than half of what he isET ranking: India's Top 100 CEOs
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eligible to draw, while rest of the RIL top brass got a pay hike in FY'10.

"The Chairman and Managing Director's compensation has been set at Rs 15 crore as against Rs 39.36 crore that he is eligible as per the shareholders' approval, reflecting his desire to set a personal example for moderation in managerial compensation levels," RIL has told its shareholders.

The remuneration for 2009-10 fiscal to Mukesh Ambani, the country's richest person with a net worth of $29 billion and fourth wealthiest in the world as per Forbes magazine, is still higher than any other director of Reliance Industries.

But, all the existing executive directors of the company saw their pay packages increase from the levels in 2008-09, as per the latest annual report to the shareholders.

PMS Prasad, who played a crucial role in RIL's legal battle with Anil Ambani group and became executive director in August last year, saw his remuneration rise to Rs 1.53 crore.

The company's total managerial remuneration rose to Rs 40.90 crore in 2009-10, from Rs 38.21 crore, while commission paid to non-executive directors fell from Rs 1.89 crore to Rs 1.75 crore.




Google, Sony among world's most r: Survey
24 May 2010, 2107 hrs IST,PTI
eputed companies

NEW YORK: Internet search titan Google and electronics giant Sony are among "the world's most reputed companies", as customers have placed a lot ofET ranking: India's Top 100 CEOs
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faith and trust in these firms, says a study.

The world's most reputed companies list compiled by the US-based brand and reputation management consulting firm Reputation Institute has been topped by Google followed by Sony.

The list is made on the basis of admiration, trust and good feeling that consumers have towards a company.

Entertainment and media firm The Walt Disney Company and German luxury car maker BMW have been ranked at the third and the fourth place respectively while auto maker Daimler/ Mercedes-Benz secured the fifth place in the world's 28 most reputed companies.

"Top rated Sony and Google were consistently strong around the world, with Sony scoring among the top five in all regions and Google in four of the five regions. Google did not make it into Asia's top five," the survey said.

In the Asia region, The Walt Disney Company got the top rank, followed by Daimler/Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Sony and Singapore Airlines.

The list has 12 American companies while there are three each from Germany and Japan.

Besides, technology giant Apple bagged the sixth rank, handsets maker Nokia (seventh), Sweden's retailer IKEA (eighth), car-manufacturer Volkswagen (ninth) and Chip maker Intel (10th).

"Technology has a powerful grip on the global rankings. Companies like Google, Sony, Apple, Nokia, Intel, and Microsoft have earned our trust and respect because they are all-pervasive solution-providers that affect our daily lives," said Reputation Institute Chairman Charles Fombrun.

Fombrun added, "Disney's global mind-share as an entertainment provider is remarkable, as is the admiration with which consumers hold auto-makers BMW and Daimler/Mercedes-Benz. They are power-houses of reputation- building around the world."

The report also found that Apple, Ford, Google, Nestle and Sony enjoyed better reputation globally compared to their home markets.

The survey was conducted on 600 largest companies from 27 countries, out of which 28 were selected for the list.

Others on the list are Microsoft (11th), Johnson & Johnson (12th), Panasonic (13th), Singapore Airlines (14), Philips Electronics (15th),IBM (17th), Hewlett-Packard (18th), Nestle (20th), Honda Motor (24th), Coca-Cola Company (25th) and Procter & Gamble (27th).
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Airtel raises Rs 8,500 cr loan to pay for 3G licence


New Delhi: Country's largest mobile operator Bharti Airtel is learnt to have raised about Rs 8,500 crore from a consortium of financial institutions, including State Bank of India, to pay for third generation mobile spectrum.

According to sources, HDFC and HDFC Bank have agreed to part finance the amount that Bharti has to pay the government for 3G spectrum by May 31. Bharti won the bids for 13 circles, including Delhi and Mumbai, for Rs 12,295 crore.

The loan is spread over six years and carries an interest rate in the range of 8-9 per cent, sources said.

Last week, SBI Chairman O P Bhatt had said the bank had set aside Rs 20,000 crore for financing the cost of 3G spectrum licence.

However, amount commitment made by individual financial institutions could not be ascertained.

When contacted Bharti Airtel declined to comment.

Bharti will offer 3G spectrum in AP, Karnataka, TN, UP (W), Rajasthan, West Bengal, HP, Bihar, North East, J&K, Assam, Delhi and Mumbai.

Bharti may have to pay more later if it wins some of the licences for the ongoing Broadband Wireless Access auction.

In March, Bharti tied-up USD 8.5 billion to finance the acquisition of Kuwait-based Zain Telecom's African assets.

Bharti Airtel shares were trading at Rs 263.55, down 0.96 per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange.



Sensex ends flat on weak cues from European market

Mumbai: The country’s equity indices erased all the gains it made during the early session to end the day flat following weak cues from the European markets. During the early trading session, domestic markets were up sharply cheering the news of reconciliation between the Ambani brothers.

The 30-share Sensex of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) added 23.94 points to close the day at 16,469.55, while the broader S&P CNX Nifty of National Stock Exchange (NSE) gained 12.80 points to end the day at 4,943.95.

Earlier during the trading session, Sensex had gained over 300 points following positive cues from the Asian markets. But then the European markets played spoilsport. Dealers in the markets say, European stocks and US index futures dropped while copper and oil retreated on concern that the turmoil from Europe's debt crisis has further to run. Government bonds rose and the euro snapped three days of gains.

"While the support declared by European leaders and the International Monetary Fund quelled concerns of sovereign risk spreading, Greece's ability to refinance near-term debt remains a risk," said John Wilson, head of the Australian unit of Newport Beach, California-based Pimco. "Other developed countries in this 'ring of fire' are Ireland, Spain, France, US, UK, Italy, Portugal and Japan."

Among the Asian markets, Nikkei 225 was down by 0.27% closing the day at 9,758.40 its lowest in last 5 months as investors remained wary about taking on more risky assets without assurance that a recent stock slide is over. Hong Kong and China stocks closed with marginal gains.

Ajay Parmar, research head at Emkay Share and Stock brokers said, "Though it is difficult to predict the markets for the short-term, markets are likely to remain volatile in the coming days. With markets closing with minimal gains after witnessing a rise of over 300 points during the day it shows the markets are under-pressure."

Market participants say that continuous selling from the FII in the last few days will have negative impact. "If this kind of non-stop selling continues then it will be big concern for the markets," added Parmar.

In May, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have been net sellers to the tune of over $1.67 billion. On Monday, the FIIs sold stocks over Rs 1,000 crore while domestic institutional investors (DII) were net buyers at Rs 1,100 crore in the market.