Thursday, May 16News That Matters

Year: 2013

20 stocks that can give over 20% returns in 2013 – CitiGroup

Stocks
CitiGroup has recently issued a report providing 20 stocks that could give you 20 percent return in 2013.  It is of the view that investors should look at several small themes for stock picking rather than one grand one. "These include a) falling interest rates - but moderate falls from here; b) continuing government policy/pricing action - and a little more on the execution side; c) maintaining a currency hedge - it's a vulnerability; d) moderating consumer demand; e) positioning for a recovery - albeit one that will be gradual, U rather than V-shaped; and f) an improving global outlook," the report says. A major portion of the 20 stocks come from the largecap space. But after the sharp correction in the midcap space in 2013, it has picked up a few stocks that could generate decent retur...

NRE Fixed Deposit – Good investment option for NRIs

NRI
If you are an NRI & looking for a safe investment option in India, then you should consider investing in NRE Fixed Deposits . RBI has de-regulated the interest rates on NRE fixed deposits and banks are now offering an interest rate of 8.5-10% p.a as against 2-4% earlier.  Also, weaker Indian Rupee makes these deposits more attractive. Benefits / Features of NRE Fixed Deposit (NRE FD) Attractive interest rates (between 8.5 - 10 % p.a) Lucrative exchange rates (if you want to convert USD/GBP etc to Indian Rupee) Tax free interest in India fully repatriable (both principal and interest earned can always be converted back to your foreign currency) 1-10 years tenor range Current Rates on NRE Fixed Deposits (NRE FD) (Latest) - See Post How to Open an NRE Fixed Deposit (NRE FD) If ...

Apply online for PF transfer and withdrawals from July 1 2013 : EPFO

News, PF
EPFO is launching an online facility to apply for EPF Transfers & withdrawals on July 1 2013. EPFO's Central Provident Fund Commissioner Anil Swarup told reporters at PHD conference - "We have decided to set up a central clearance house which will be operational on July 1. This will enable subscribers to apply online for settlement of the withdrawal and transfer of funds claims," "The biggest problem faced by the subscribers is transferring their accounts on change of job. This central clearance facility will expedite the process", he added. "The onus of getting the detail of the PF account verified from employers would be on the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) in the new online system for transfer and withdrawal claims," Swarup said. Over 50 million subscribers of the r...

SP Tulsian picks 5 midcap ideas for 2013

Stocks
On CNBC-TV18's Investor camp, SP Tulsian of sptulsian.com picked five stocks from the midcap space which should be on investor's radar in 2013. The carnage seen in midcap stocks in the last couple of months has scared investors. Yes Bank , Zee Entertainment , Apollo Hospital , Tata Global and MCX are five midcap stocks which one can consider for 2013 or March 2014, till elections are being announced. These stocks are likely to get migrated to the largecap category in next 5-15 years. Yes Bank -  Yes Bank is the fourth largest private sector bank. There is confidence with respect to their corporate governance. The bank is likely to see earnings per share (EPS) of Rs 35-36 for FY13. They are consistently posting growth of 18-20 percent in topline. Zee Entertainment - Zee Entertainme...

Interest Rate cut on small savings scheme – PPF, NSC, PO MIS interest rates revised

News
Government has cut interest rates on small savings scheme marginally by 0.10% for 2013-2014.  The revised interest rates will be applicable with effect from April 1, 2013. The decision is in line with the recommendations of Shyamala Gopinath Committee, which had suggested that returns should be in sync with market rates determined by the returns offered by other securities. 1) The interest rate on Public Provident Fund (PPF) has been reduced from 8.8% to 8.7%. 2) The interest rate on National savings certificates (NSC) having maturity of 5 and 10 years has been reduced to 8.5% and 8.8% respectively, down 0.10% each. 3) The interest rate on Senior citizens savings scheme (SCSS) has been reduced to 9.2%, down from 9.3%. 4) The interest rate on Monthly income schemes (MIS) of 5 year maturit...

E-filing of Income tax return mandatory if income exceeds Rs 5 lakhs

News
The government has now made electronic filing of returns mandatory for taxpayers with a taxable income above Rs 5 lakh. Taxpayers with annual income of over 5 lakh will now have to file their returns in electronic form online. Last year government has made the e-filing of returns compulsory for taxpayers with a taxable income above Rs 10 lakh. DON't PANIC Electronic e-filing of returns is easy. For filing the return online, having Digital Signature is NOT Compulsory. Returns can be filed with or without digital signature. In case the returns are filed with digital signature, no further action is required.  In case returns are filed without using a digital signature, tax payer needs to send ITR-V (Acknowledgement) to the Income Tax department. IMPORTANT Note -  Total Income is NOT equal...

Offer for Sale (OFS) – things you should know – process explained

Bonds
In recent news, you must have heard about government companies like NTPC, Oil India, NMDC etc raising money via Offer for Sale (OFS). In this post, I have tried to explain the details regarding OFS, its process mechanism, how it is different from traditional IPO / FPO route and whether it is beneficial to retail investors. What is OFS? OFS stands for Offer for Sale & it is similar to FPO (Follow-on Public offer). It provides an exchange based bidding platform to promoters to sell/dilute their holdings in listed companies in a transparent manner. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) by a circular CIR/MRD/DP/18/2012 dated 18 July 2012, has permitted the Stock Exchanges to provide a separate window, i.e. apart from the existing trading system for the normal market segment, t...

Highlights of Indian Union Budget 2013-2014 (Quick Summary )

News
Highlights of Union Budget 2013 – 2014 Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram presented Budget 2013-14 in the Lok Sabha today on 28-Feb.  He said that India will become USD 5 trillion economy, and among top five in the world by 2025. I have quickly summarised the major highlights of this budget on one page for your quick read. Major Highlights of this Budget are :  Fiscal deficit seen at 5.2 point of GDP in 2012/13        Fiscal deficit seen at 4.8 point of GDP in 2013/14  No Change in Income Tax Slabs Tax credit of Rs. 2,000 for income upto Rs. 5 lakh 10 %  surcharge on persons with taxable income of over Rs 1 crore Direct Taxes Code (DTC) bill to be introduced in current Parliament session Income limit for the tax-saving Rajiv Gandhi Equity Savings Scheme (RGESS)  is raised t...

Soon, you may have Reliance Bank, L&T Bank, Birla Bank

News
Soon you may have Reliance Bank, L&T Bank, LIC Bank, Birla Bank.  After almost ten years, RBI is set to issue fresh banking licenses. Last licenses were issued to Kotak Mahindra Bank & Yes Bank in 2003-2004. RBI has now issued final guidelines for new bank licenses which will allow corporate & business groups with sound credentials to enter into banking business. Corporate houses like Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, Larsen & Toubro, Tatas, Mahindra and Mahindra, Life Insurance Corporation, Aditya Birla Group and NBFCs Shriram Transport, Religare, SREI, Reliance capital have shown interest to enter the banking business. Although the document does not mention how many licences will be issued, it is likely 4-5 new banking licences will be issued. A.  The key features of RBI guid...

PFC Tax free Bonds 2013- Tranche II – Details & Review

Bonds
In this week, there is wave of seconf tranche of Tax free bonds. PFC, HUDCO, REC, IRFC are launching second round (tranche) of tax free bonds, Power Finance Corporation (PFC) has come out with Tranche II of the tax free bonds after having raised Rs 700 crore in Tranche I in Dec 2012. About the Company PFC is engaged in financing and promotion of power generation, transmission and distribution including renewable energy projects throughout the country. State electricity boards are the primary borrowers. A lot has been talked about the bad health of the SEBs. However, PFC being a government owned organisation, investors may not be too concerned about the financial health of the company even if the default from the SEBs continues. PFC posted a net profit of Rs 1,117 crore for the third quart...