2. 2G spectrum scam: SC asks
Centre to file affidavit by 20th
Nov. The UPA government , which is facing a slew of bad news
over the 2G scandal, received a major blow on Thursday
when the Supreme Court asked the Centre to file an affidavit
by Saturday to explain why the prime minister did not act on
the petition seeking sanction to prosecute former telecom
minister A Raja.
In a direction that could considerably erode the legitimacy of
the government leadership, the court said mere showing of
files on the issue would not do and that a senior officer has to
state on oath the reasons for the delay in acting on the
petition. This will ensure that the prime minister remains in
focus over the 2G spectrum sale.
The assault on the prime minister’s teflon image is bad news
for the ruling dispensation as it has been trying hard to
prevent the misdemeanours of individual ministers from
staining the government. Sensing an opportunity to hit the
government where it hurts the most, the Opposition on
Thursday mounted a major offensive against the prime
3. Rising high: Women hold 25% of
leadership positions at PepsiCo
By PepsiCo's global standards, its India number of 25%
is also not quite there. It's less than PepsiCo US (35%),
PepsiCo China (30%) and PepsiCo UK (25%). And it's
far away from its ultimate objective -- gender parity.
"Over the next few years, as more women enter the
workforce, we will be happy if we can get near 50%,"
says Pavan Bhatia, head of human resources, PepsiCo
India. "Our focus is to build an inclusive culture. The
numbers will come."
Chadha says PepsiCo India is working towards having
more women in senior roles, across functions. A
mindset like that is smashing some long-standing
barriers. For the first time in its 20-year history, PepsiCo
India has a woman as its chief financial officer (CFO) --
a position that is considered a male bastion in the
corporate sector.
4. Dell profit and margin top Wall
Street estimates
Dell Inc reported better-than-expected profit and
margins and raised its yearly outlook for operating
income growth, but sales came in below Wall Street's
forecast despite solid demand from large corporations.
The personal computer maker reported net earnings for
the third quarter ended October 29 of $822 million, or
42 cents a share, up from $337 million, or 17 cents a
share, in the year-ago period.
Excluding items, Dell earned 45 cents a share, better
than the average analyst estimate of 32 cents a share,
according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Revenue rose 19 percent to $15.4 billion, below Wall
Street's estimate of $15.76 billion.
5. A380 fleet needs to change 40
Rolls-Royce engines: Qantas
About 40 Rolls-Royce engines used in the
world’s fleet of Airbus A380 aircraft may need to
be replaced to ensure safety after one such
engine partly disintegrated mid-flight this month,
Australia’s Qantas said.
That would represent about half of all Rolls-
Royce engines currently in service on A380
aircraft, the world’s largest passenger plane with
a list price of around $350 million each.
A Qantas A380 with 466 people on board made
an emergency landing in Singapore on Nov. 4,
after one of its Rolls-Royce engines partly
disintegrated mid-flight after an oil fire. Since
then, airlines have sought to replace their
6. The US core PPI falls in Oct,
largest drop in 4 yrs
The Labor Department said on Tuesday the core
Producer Price Index, which excludes food and energy
costs, fell 0.6 per cent -- the biggest drop since July
2006 -- after edging up 0.1 per cent in September.
Economists polled by Reuters had expected core PPI to
gain 0.1 per cent in October.
The headline PPI index rose 0.4 per cent last month,
well below economists' expectations for a 0.8 percent
increase, after gaining 0.4 per cent in September.
Concerns that low inflation could spiral into a damaging
phase of deflation prompted the Fed this month to ease
monetary policy further, a step that will see it buy $600
billion worth of government bonds through the middle of
2011.
7. EU chief plays down comment
on euro survival
European Union President Herman Van
Rompuy played down on Thursday his
comment that the future of the 27-nation
union was at stake because of debt problems
experienced by some countries, such as
Ireland.
Van Rompuy said in a prepared speech that
his statement this week that the EU was "in a
survival crisis" had referred to the situation
from April and May when Greece's ballooning
budget deficit brought the euro zone to the
brink of a crisis.
