Corporate news

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

Samsung and other chipmakers are expected to face EU charges about price fixing

Famous chipmakers uncluding Samsung Electronics are expected soon to face EU charges of price fixing, four people familiar with the situation said on Wednesday.

Also to face charges are Micron Technology, Elpida Memory Inc, NEC Electronics Corp, Hitachi Ltd, Toshiba Corp, Mitsubishi Electric and Nanya Technology, the people said.

"A statement of objections is expected by Friday," one of the people said, referring to a charge sheet from the European Commission, the European Union's top antitrust watchdog. A second person said the statement of objections could be sent on Monday.

Infineon said in December last year that the EU antitrust watchdog had opened formal proceedings against the company the previous February on suspicion of anti-competitive practices in the European market for DRAM products. Dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips are used in personal computers, servers, printers, personal digital assistants, mobile phones, game consoles and digital music players.

The people said the companies were expected to settle with the Commission under its new settlement procedure introduced in 2008, possibly making it the first case in which firms admit taking part in a cartel in return for a 10 percent cut in fines.

The watchdog can levy fines of up to 10 percent of a company's turnover for breaking EU law.

A formal decision is expected to come from incoming Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia, who is due to take over from incumbent Neelie Kroes later this month.

South Korean regulators in 2007 dropped an investigation into suspected price-fixing by Samsung Electronics, Micron, Hynix and Infineon.

A Samsung Electronics executive had in April 2007 pleaded guilty to price-fixing in the U.S. government's long-running investigation of the computer memory chip business

by guardian.co.uk

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

Sony quarterly profit moves to $871 million

Sony's quarterly earnings surged more than sevenfold, boosted by blockbuster movie releases, cost cuts and its mainstay consumer electronics business returning to the black.

The Japanese manufacturing icon, known for gadgets like its PlayStation 3 game console, Thursday said its net profit for the October-December quarter jumped to 79.2 billion yen ($871 million) from 10.4 billion yen a year earlier.

Sales rose 4 percent to 2.24 trillion yen on robust revenue from movies, personal computers and financial services.

In this film publicity image released by Sony Pictures, from left, Sharlto Copley, Mandla Gaduka and Kenneth Nkosi are shown in a scene from, "District 9." The film was nominated Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010 for an Oscar for best picture. The 82nd Academy Awards will be presented on March 7.

Sony said it benefited from strong worldwide theater releases such as "2012" and "Michael Jackson's This is It," as well as home DVD sales of titles like "Angels & Demons."

Since taking over in 2005, Sony Chief Executive Howard Stringer has been trying to unite the company's sprawling business, improve efficiency and rein in costs.

The maker of Bravis TVs and Cyber-shot cameras credited the ongoing restructuring and better currency exchange rates for driving its consumer products and devices division into the black.

Sony swung to an operating profit, which is generally seen as the best indication of a company's pure business performance, of 146.1 billion yen. The Tokyo-based company booked an operating loss of 18 billion yen a year earlier.

The company's PC business also did well, in large part due to higher sales of Vaio computers.

Overall demand for gaming consoles declined mainly due to lower sales of the PlayStation 2 and PSP portable device. But PlayStation 3 sales jumped more than 40 percent to 6.5 million units during the quarter, Sony said.

Sales of the PlayStation 3 surged to U.S. record in December after a 25 percent price cut ahead of the key holiday shopping season. Until the cut, the console lagged behind its rivals in large part because it came with a bigger price tag.

Sony trimmed its forecast of losses for the fiscal year ending March 2010.

It now expects a net loss of 70 billion yen, a 22 percent improvement from its previous loss forecast of 95 billion yen. It predicts an operating loss of 30 billion yen instead of a 60 billion yen loss it forecast in October.

In trading Thursday, Sony shares fell 2.2 percent to 3,075 yen, while the Nikkei 225 stock index lost 0.5 percent.

Sony reports earnings based on Japanese accounting standards.

by thestate.com

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

McDonald's leads all chains

McDonald's leads in sales again.

In the annual survey of restaurants done by QSR.com, an arm of Quick Serve Restaurants magazine which tracks the industry, the top 10 chain restaurants ranked by total sales was nearly the same in 2009 as in 2008.

Not unexpectedly, fast-food giant McDonald's again led all companies with 2009 sales of $30.025 million, up from 2008 sales of $28.750 million.

A distrant second was Subway, with 2009 sales of $9.600 million compared to 2008 sales of $8.200. It displaced Burger King in the No. 2 position. BK had 2009 sales of $9.348 compared to 2008 sales of $8.781 million.

by examiner.com

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

Nokia says it may cut 285 jobs

Nokia said today it would restructure operations at its plant in Salo, Finland, to focus production on smartphones and could cut up to 285 jobs as a result.

"Salo is a crucial part of Nokia's global manufacturing network ... our aim is to ensure the plant's future competitiveness and its special role as one best suited to the production of high value mobile devices," Juha Putkiranta, a Nokia senior vice president, said in a statement.

The Salo plant in western Finland currently employs around 2,200 people and the company said a "maximum of 285 employees" could be affected by the changes.

"Nokia will support alternative solutions, such as finding new positions at Nokia for as many employees as possible," it said in a statement on its website. Current rotational temporary lay-offs at the Salo plant would be halted by the end of June, it added.

Last month, Nokia cheered markets with news that in the fourth quarter new products had helped it win ground in the global smartphone market where it has faced tough competition from the likes of Apple's iPhone and Research in Motion's BlackBerry.

by news.yahoo.com

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

Renault will build car distribution network in India

Renault announced Tuesday it would build up a distribution network to support the launch of its new models in India.

'Today, we want to confirm our intention to be present for the long term in India,' Marc Nassif, head of Renault India, said in a statement. 'We will create a large national distribution network in the coming 30 months so that our customers can benefit from consistent service.'

The statement, made in Mumbai, came one month after Renault announced at the AutoExpo fair in New Delhi that it would launch several new models expressly for the Indian market, with a view of offering a full range of products by 2014.

By 2011, two models - the Fluence and the Koleos - are scheduled to be on the market. They will be produced in the Alliance works in Chennai.

India is the second-fastest-growing car market in the world behind China, and has become the target of a number of global car producers.

by monstersandcritics.com

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

Peugeot Citroen expects tough 2010

French car manufacturer Peugeot Citroen saw losses widen in 2009 and said cost cuts would help it weather tough trading conditions likely to persist through 2010, declining to give a forecast beyond mid-year.

Chief Executive Philippe Varin said in a statement on Wednesday the group expected the European market to decline 9 percent this year, but that efforts to drive sales, cut costs and improve capacity utilisation as well as new model launches would benefit PSA.

The auto industry faces the prospect of falling sales as the scrappage schemes European governments brought in early last year to prop up plummeting markets come to an end.

Varin said the group expected positive recurring operating income in the first half of 2010 but gave no prediction for the year as a whole.

Societe Generale analyst Eric-Alain Michelis said: "By giving a forecast only for the first half of 2010, the group is doing the bare minimum, playing it safe."

Another Paris-based analyst agreed, saying the target was "very cautious" and risked disappointing the market.

PSA posted a recurring operating loss of 689 million euros (R7.3 billion) for 2009, though its fortunes turned around in the second half when it reported a recurring operating profit of 137 million.

Restructuring charges related to a voluntary departure plan and to restructuring at its Faurecia unit were higher than forecast, the analyst said.

But the group's liquidity position of 8.6 billion euros at the end of 2009 was better than expected, he added.

At 0815 GMT, PSA shares were down 1.7 percent, lagging a DJ Stoxx European autos sector index that rose 0.5 percent.

by busrep.co.za

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

BMW had lost its pole position

BMW has lost its pole position in the luxury car segment for the second month in a row, which is a sign of intense competition brewing in the segment.

Rival Mercedes-Benz clocked 403 units (wholesale) for January, selling 130 units of the C-Class, 245 of the E-Class and 22 units of the S-Class. Another 82 cars sold were imported as CBUs.

In the same month, BMW sold 341 cars in India. Of these, 192 were 3-series, 112 of the 5-series, a single unit of 6-series and 16 units of the 7-series besides 7 units each of the X3 and X6, 2 of X5 and 4 of Z4. Even in December 2009, Mercedes had outpaced BMW, selling 334 units against 280 Beamers.

What has led to this sudden this situation, when BMW managed to lead the luxury car market for 11 months of 2009 and clocked the fastest growth of the brand anywhere in the world?

A BMW spokesperson merely said that the company’s sales performance has been in line with “our business plans. We intend to maintain momentum based on a cohesive business strategy that we have formulated for India for 2010.”

But industry watchers point to waning of interest in the swish set for BMW. “BMW has been a recent entrant in India compared to Mercedes so the sales surge that you saw in the last few months was partly due to the novelty factor. People are slowly realising the true worth of a Mercedes since the brand has done a lot to improve its image recently,” said an industry veteran.

Not just perception, some practical problems too hindered Mercedes’ progress in India last year, pushing it to the second position. First it ran out of the E-Class at some point (due to a model changeover) so neither the old nor the new model was available in sufficient numbers.

Also, Mercedes was simultaneously in the midst of a very wide ranging network restructuring and expansion exercise which affected sales for most of 2009.

BMW’s success in India has been achieved through building world class showrooms where people could come and look at its cars - it shook conventional wisdom that the super rich have their cars delivered to their driveway and therefore never visit showrooms. The company also opened ‘BMW Studios’ as brand centres at select locations. Now, Merc has caught on.

Wilfried Aulbur, the MD and CEO for Mercedes in India, says that not only has his company done a complete overhaul of dealerships in the last 8-10 months, it has already earmarked Rs 150-200 crore investment in just network expansion this year.

“We closed four dealerships last year, which is a large number for a company like ours. In Delhi, we have opened the largest showroom in Gurgaon and are also building a brand centre which will display 26 cars together at Mathura Road! This is perhaps the largest such brand centre in South East Asia.”

So what lies ahead? The competition for the top slot in luxury cars will only intensify in the coming months, since both brands are ready with a new product line-up, renewed investments in manufacturing capacity and a blueprint to enter smaller towns and cities.

by dnaindia.com

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

Sales of Tata Motors show outstanding growth in January

Tata Motors said on Monday its global sales jumped by 93 per cent in January to 85,714 units, on the back of robust demand for both commercial and passenger vehicles.

Sales of luxury brands from Jaguar Land Rover were at 16,269 units during January, up 195 per cent from the same period last year, the company said in a statement.
It said total passenger vehicles sales were 45,380 units, in January 2010, a growth of 76 per cent from the corresponding month last year.

Commercial vehicles sales stood at 40,334 units, up 115 per cent from the year-ago month, it added.

For the ongoing fiscal, total cumulative sales between April 2009 to January 2010 were at 681,480, up 13 per cent compared to the corresponding period a year ago, it said.
Passenger vehicles sales during the fiscal were down by 0.31 per cent at 359,010 units.

Cumulative sales of commercial vehicles for the fiscal were at 322,470 units, a growth of 32 per cent.

The Tata Motors Group global sales, comprises Tata, Tata Daewoo and Hispano Carrocera range of commercial vehicles, Tata passenger vehicles along with the distributed brands in India, and Jaguar and Land Rover.

by deccanherald.com

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

U.S. food makers expect faster growth from overseas makets

U.S. food makers are looking overseas for more profitable growth over the next few years as they often must rely on short-term price promotions in order to drive sales of their products at home.

Kraft Foods Inc said its recent acquisition of British chocolatier Cadbury Plc would accelerate long-term growth, even though it expects the deal to hurt 2010 results.

The largest North American food maker is already seeing erosion in its home turf, where organic revenue fell 2.7 percent in the fourth quarter. In developing markets, organic revenue rose 10.4 percent.
General Mills Inc, meanwhile, said it is encouraged by a growing middle class in emerging markets.

"We expect our international business to lead General Mills growth," Chris O'Leary, chief operating officer for General Mills' International unit, said during a presentation on Tuesday morning, which kicked off the Consumer Analyst Group of New York conference in Boca Raton, Florida.

General Mills expects its sales in China to nearly triple to $900 million in fiscal year 2015 from $306 million in fiscal year 2009. It also sees potential in markets like Russia, Indonesia and Vietnam, O'Leary said.

General Mills, Kraft and their peers have increasingly used price promotions to keep U.S. consumers buying their brands over cheaper store labels in the economic downturn.
ConAgra Foods Inc, known for foods such as Banquet frozen meals, said there is no let-up in consumers' desire to save and that prices are very important to store traffic.

"The U.S. consumer is all grown up and future growth in consumer spending will be outside the U.S.," said Edward Jones analyst Matt Arnold.

GROWTH, BUT AT WHAT PRICE?

From that perspective, Kraft's Cadbury acquisition makes a great deal of sense, Arnold said. The concern was the price the company paid, including Chief Executive Irene Rosenfeld's decision to sell off a thriving frozen pizza business in order to secure the Cadbury deal.

General Mills said it also sees opportunities to grow sales in Western Europe, noting that household penetration for products like Haagen-Dazs ice cream, Old El Paso Mexican foods and Nature Valley cereal products in that region is well below that of other parts of the world.

JP Morgan analyst Terry Bivens said he sensed "no heightened urgency" in General Mills' international focus, but the company does appear to be taking a more aggressive investment posture in emerging markets.

At home, ConAgra wants to see continued growth from products such as Ro-Tel diced tomatoes, said Consumer Foods President Andre Hawaux. He even told investors at the Florida conference about a queso cheese dip that can be made by mixing Ro-Tel with Kraft's Velveeta.

"You know it must be good for me to plug one of Irene's brands so hard," Hawaux said during a morning presentation, prompting some laughs from the crowd.

ConAgra stood by its 2010 forecast and long-term growth expectations on Tuesday. It also announced a $500 million share repurchase plan. ID:nWNAB7507
Shares of Kraft fell 2 percent in morning trade, while General Mills and ConAgra were each up about 0.3 percent.

by guardian.co.uk

[Stanislav Bernuhov]

Good signs for retail in 2010

The Indian retail sector will see a positive trend in consumer spending this year but its full recovery will take some time, according to global consultancy firm CB Richard Ellis.

"Though 2009 started on a discouraging note for the retail sector, from third quarter onwards, some movement did take place...For 2010 we hope to see a positive trend in consumer spending," CBRE Chairman and MD South Asia Anshuman Magazine said, while issuing a report 'The India Retail Market View-Second Half, 2009'.

He, however, cautioned that the sector will still take some time to fully recover.

"This (full recovery) will depend on a number of factors, including economic growth and improvement in domestic consumption, consumer sentiment, availability of retail space at competitive costs and so on," Magazine said.

The economic downturn hurt the Indian retail sector badly forcing big retail players like Subhiksha and Vishal Retail to go for debt restructuring after being plagued by huge loans and liquidity crunch.

The report said, while retailers have adjusted their expansion plans to suit current market conditions and rationalised their portfolio, no major retailers have had to downsize significantly during the second half of 2009.

On the rental side, the CBRE report said major metros like Delhi NCR and Mumbai witnessed corrections of up to 15 per cent during the second half of 2009, with retailers showing signs of scaling up expansion.

"We also expect the new trend of power-sharing between the landlords and tenants to become balanced at a point, which enables both sides to work together to ensure that shopping centres and high street locations succeed," it said, regarding the outcome for 2010.

Rentals in Delhi NCR corrected by 10-15 per cent during the second half of 2009 with prime retail spaces continuing to be in demand, with activity remaining centered around South and Central Delhi.

"In addition, an increasing number of retailers and developers are taking the minimum guarantee and revenue share route to partner each other's success," CBRE said.
The other major metro market, Mumbai, witnessed an increase in mall leasing activity across most micro markets from the end of second quarter of 2009 resulting in stabilisation of average mall rentals across most markets.

"Retailers have also shown signs of recovery by returning to the drawing board with new expansion plans amidst overall improvement in the economy," the report said.

by deccanherald.com