devices originally founded in Jena in 1846 by Carl Zeiss,
S R LUTHRA INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT
Ernst Abbe and Otto Schott.
MERGER of thoughts
BUSINESS FACTS
• Yasuo Hamanaka was the chief copper trader at
Sumitomo Corporation and was also known as “Mr.
Copper” because of his aggressive trading style and “Mr
Five Percent” because that is how much of the world’s
yearly supply he controlled. He was convicted of fraud and
sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment in 1996, when
Sumitomo incurred a loss of 1.8billion dollars in
unauthorised copper trading through London Metal
Exchange.
• Fanta was created by German branch of Coco cola
during the WW II due to restrictions on shipping between
Germany and the US. German bottling plant could not get
Coca cola syrup. CEO Max Keith needed a product to keep
the plant in operation and devised a fruit flavoured drink
made from the available ingredients.
• Prize Petroleum is Hindustan Petroleum
Corporation’s oil exploration arm.
• Surface cleaning brands; DABUR: Dazzl, Reckitt
Benckiser: Harpic, Lizol, Colin and Easy Off Bang;
Hindustan Unilever: Domex.
• US based advertising agency WIEDEN+Kennedy
(W+K) coined the punchline ‘Just Do It’.
• Leading brands in Perfetti Van Melle’s portfolio
include the flagship Alpenliebe, Mentos, Center Fresh,
Big Babol, Happydent White and Clormint.
• Lemon Tree Hotel Company owns the brands-
Lemon Tree and Red Fox. Lemon Tree is a four star hotel
brand and Red Fox is a budget hotel chain.
• Madura garments has a brand for youth called
Allen Solly Young.
• Peter Drucker’s first book – ‘Concept of the
Corporation’ was a study of General Motors.
• The Carl Zeiss Company is a German manufacturer
of optical systems, industrial measurements and medical
INDIA
Sep08
• The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has established
a ‘core library’ of minerals at Akwali village in
Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan to systematically
•
•
•
•
•
• Preserve the samples and obviate the need to re-drill
the areas which have already been explored.
• The former Chief-Justice of India, Yeshwant Vishnu
Chandrachud, passed away recently. He was in the
majority bench that decided in favour of Indira Gandhi
Government in a landmark ‘Habeas Corpus case’.
• The Gujarat freedom of religion act providing for
stringent punishment in cases of religious conversions
through force, lure or deceit has come into force.
• The Union Cabinet approved the renaming of
Lucknow Airport as Chaudhary Charan Singh
Airport by way of paying tributes to the former Prime
Minister.
• India’s first bullet proof passenger train- the
Lumding-haflong train was introduced by North East
Frontier Railway for its journey in the troubled-torn
hilly terrain of North Cachar hills district of Assam.
• Observing that content of the advertisement of AXE
Dark Temptation deodorant, currently being aired, is
‘indecent and vulgar’, the Ministry of Information and
broadcasting has requested the Indian broadcasting
foundation to advise its member channels to avoid
broadcasting it to avoid punitive action.
1

Titbits
• The Axe body spray brand was launched in
France in 1983 by Faberge which became a part
of the Unilever Group in 1989.
• The first volume of the Oxford English
Dictionary was published in 1884 in England.
WORLD
• The Union Government has decided to allow private
sector managed provident fund and superannuation
trusts to directly invest up to 15 percent of their investible
funds in shares of companies on the BSE or NSE from
April1, 2009.
• The Manmohan Singh cabinet has cleared a proposal
to invest Rs 200 crore on exploration of uranium to
increase fuel supplies to atomic energy generation stations.
This would add another 75,000 tonne of uranium resources
to the country’s nuclear power programme.

• Harry Potter’s author J K Rowling earned more than any • India is ranked 41st in industrial competitiveness,
other celebrity, accounting to the annual Celebrity 100 faring poorer than Thailand, Malta and Malaysia, a United
list, complied by Forbes magazine. Rowling took home Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO)
$300 million last year. report said. Singapore tops the UNIDO list followed by
Ireland, Switzerland, Japan and Belgium.
• Jaipal Reddy, a 39-year old immigrant from Hyderabad,
has set up “Salaam Namaste” radio station in Houston
• The age-old post office is set for a makeover. The
to help build a bridge between Pakistanis and Indians
global consultant MsKinsey & Co has been engaged to
kept apart by old animosities.
suggest revamp measures. The government has also
appointed ad agency Ogilvy and Mather (O&M) for a
• Indian-origin Judge Navanetham Pillay has been named
branding exercise.
the United Nations’ new Human Rights Commisioner.
• Economic Briefing Paper: ‘Modelling Olympics
• The 15th SAARC Summit organised at the Sri
Performance’ a report by management consultancy
Lankan capital of Colombo on August 2-3 has adopted
PricewaterhouseCoopers, had forecast a medals tally of
Colombo Declaration, titled “Partnership for growth of
six for India at Beijing Olympics.
our people”. The declaration dwelt at length on terrorism
and issues such as trade promotion and measures to face
• Ginger Hotels no-frills hotel brand owned by Root
the challenges posed by climate change.
Corporation (wholly owned subsidiary of Indian Hotels
Company), would invest Rs 100 crore to add six new
• Dr.Arvind Subramaniam, a Senior Research Fellow
hotels in 2008, Ginger Hotels opened its first New Delhi
of the Peterson Institute for International Affairs in
property in collaboration with IRCTC as Ginger Rail
Washington DC, has published ‘India’s Turn’, a thought-
Yatri Niwas.
provoking book on India’s macroeconomic developments.
The book deals with the transformation of India from a
• Godrej–Hershey Foods and Beverages, the JV set up to
sleepy giant in the first three decades since Independence
jointly market confectionery, snacks and beverages in
to its present rate of growth since 1991.
India, is planning a relaunch of one of its brands Nutrine,
for which it has signed a multi-crore endorsement deal
with India ODI captain MS Dhoni. In addition to Nutrine,
ECONOMY AND BUSINESS other brands in the Godrej Hershey’s portfolio include
• Dr C.Rangarajan, former governor of the Reserve beverages Jumpin, XS and Sofit, Milk mix and Godrej
Bank of India and erstwhile Chairman of the Prime Tea, among others.
Minister’s Economic Advisor Council, has been
nominated as member of Rajya Sabha.
Indian Investors of Morgan MF are safe
• Accenture and the Indira Gandhi National Open
Morgan Stanley is presently managing 2 funds. The
University (IGNOU) will jointly develop a diploma
major one being a close ended equity diversified fund
programme designed to help grow the outsourcing industry
launched in ’94 and the other and open ended diversified
by providing comprehensive training and career
equity fund. The decision of MS to convert itself from an
opportunities in business process outsourcing (BPO).
2
investment bank to a retail bank has led Indian investors to
think that things are not going well at the organisation.
Although the company is yet to formally announce the impact
on its various operations, industry sources say that this
decision will give stability to the company and since the
Indian AMC is registered in India and regulated by SEBI,
investors need not worry.
TAGLINES OR TEASERS!
With communication changing drastically and
chatting becoming an important part of our day, it is not
surprising that most of us pay attention to the tiniest of the
details like- What would be our Tagline of the day!?!
Some people do it to let friends and acquaintances
know about the latest updates in their lives, some just to make
people smile and kill the stress arising out of hectic lifestyles,
some as indicators of their moods i.e.: Pleasure, Anger, Panic-
stricken, Relaxed etc., some to express things that cannot be
expressed explicitly and some make it into a game.
Boss: Accidental genius @ work.
Super Boss: Self-proclaimed genius @ work.
Subordinate of ‘Boss’: I am @ work.
So friends next time you write a tagline, be sure why
exactly you want to put it up!!!
“PROJECT ARYAVARTA”
Project Aryavarta is an economical and energy
efficient space launch vehicle for inter-planetary space
missions using ion and solar electromagnetic propulsion, a
technique which has been used for the first time. It uses solar
energy to cut down on fuel consumption and will help propel a
satellite from on orbit to another using minimal energy.
It will also execute multiple tasks without having to
launch new satellites for various missions. And by making it
possible to rectify or modify part of a satellite, Aryavarta will
also enhance the life span of a satellite thereby cutting down
on space debris. This project is Rushi Ghadiwala’s
(Aeronautical engineering student,Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel
Institute of Technology,Vasad) dream project designed under
guidance from none other than former President APJ Abdul
Kalam. Rushi is the project director of the mission; has a team
of 15 other scientists from across the world and have designed
the project in just 2 and half years.
Secret of Michael Phelps’s success
Phelps was diagnosed with ADHD when he was 9
years old. He used a combination of medication and
behavioural therapy. He was so hyperactive that he never
used to keep his mouth shut and was constantly asking
questions of jumping from one place to another. The reason
Phelps did not get tired was because his body did not produce
enough Lactic acid which is the main reason for tiredness
among athletes. Michael Phelps revealed that his mother made
him learn to swim so that he would not drown while on a
holiday and it was later on that he got involved in competition.
His childhood bullying was a major thrust for his success.
Kids used to pick on him and torment him. There was a time
when his baseball hat was thrown out of the window and
almost all the time his teachers used to doubt on his abilities,
going to the extent that once his teacher told him that he won’t
ever be successful. And every time someone said that, he
worked even harder to prove them wrong and achieve
something none has ever done. According to Phelps,
swimming helped him focus and stay on track and overcame –
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity and this grew out of it.
SWAMI VIVEKANANDA
We are responsible for what we are, and whatever
we wish ourselves to be, we have the power to make
ourselves. If what we are now has been the result of our own
past actions, it certainly follows that whatever we wish to be
in future can be produced by our present actions; so we have
to know how to act.
LEE IACOCCA
Apply yourself. Get all the educations you can, but then, by
God, do something. Don’t just stand there, make it happen.
Quick Facts about Currency Futures Trading on NSE
After having successfully completed mock testing,
NSE braced itself to launch much eagerly anticipated currency
futures trading in India. Mr. P. Chidambaram, Honourable
Union Finance Minister inaugurated currency futures trading
at 8.45 am on 29th August 2008 on NSE, India’s largest stock
exchange. NSE will go in the history of the currency futures
trading as the first exchange in India to start foreign currency
futures in India.
Currency future is a standardized futures contract like
any other stock and commodity futures contract with currency
as the underlying instrument. Essentially, it is a contract or an
agreement to buy or sell any currency at a specified future date
viz. contract expiry date. As the contracts are traded on
recognized exchanges, the performance guarantee is assured
by the exchange.
3
Here is a quick guide on currency futures trading on NSE:
Exchange Timing: 9.00 am to 5.00 pm.
Currency Pairs: Initially only USD/INR currency pair would
be available. Subsequently NSE may introduce other currency
pairs based on the statutory guidelines and approvals from
RBI and SEBI.
Contract Size: Size is set at 1000$ per lot (contract).
Contract Maturity: The currency futures contracts would be
available for maturity period from one month to 12 months
period. (total 12 monthly contracts)
Quote: Currency futures would be quoted in INR with a tick
size (incremental value) of 0.25 Paisa.
Margins: NSE would stipulate initial margin and maintenance
margins as per its existing practice of levying SPAN
(Standardized Portfolio Analysis of risks) margins based on
the daily volatility in the foreign exchange currency markets.
MTM (Mark to Market): Like stock and commodity futures,
currency futures would involve daily MTM (mark to market)
margins. MTM would be worked out on the basis of daily
closing prices of currency futures as declared by NSE.
Settlement of MTM would take place on T +1 basis as is
presently done in equity derivatives segment. NSE has laid out
suitable mechanisms to pay in/pay out daily MTM margins
from the brokers. NSCCL (National Securities Clearing
Corporation Limited) would be responsible for the entire
clearing, settlement and risk management functions.
Settlement Price: Final settlement price of the currency future
contract would be decided as per the exchange rate fixed by
RBI on the last trading day of the contract. Settlement would
take place in cash in terms of INR.
Position Limits: Upper limit on maximum permissible open
position has been capped at 25 million dollar.
Permissibility: Initially only resident Indians are allowed to
trade in currency futures. It is expected that as the market
matures, other participants viz. NRI and FII would also be
allowed to trade in currency futures.
Miscellaneous: Other vital issues such as taxation aspects on
the profit and loss, STT (Securities Transactions Tax),
brokerage charges and other duties such as stamp duty are not
yet clear.
A collection of facts by The Globalist
1 India has 10 of the 30 fastest-growing cities in the world. -
International Herald Tribune
2 The Russian city of Sochi, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics,
is located 24km from Abkhazia - a Georgian province invaded
by Russia last month. - Washington Post
3 Half of the 750 million sub-Saharan Africans live on less
than $1 (R7.70) a day. - The Economist
4 Archeological records say early homo sapiens were fishing
the waters of Lake Turkana in Kenya about 50 000 years ago.
- Lonely Planet
5 The average US car is parked for more than 20 hours a day. -
Booz Allen Hamilton.
6 Sanyo has developed a waterless washer that instead uses
high-powered air, or ozone, to wash clothes. - Wall Street
Journal
7 With about 20 million residents, Sao Paulo is South
America's largest city. - UN Population Division
8 The US population grows at a rate of one person every 11
seconds. - US Census Bureau
9 For much of geological time a land bridge linked Britain to
the rest of Europe. - Financial Times
10 The last vestiges of land between Britain and France were
finally submerged about 7000 years ago. - Financial Times.
Very well said:
Being ignorant is not so much a shame as being
unwilling to learn.
Benjamin Franklin.
Sources:
Times of India, Surat Edition, September’ 08.
http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?
fSectionId=2515&fArticleId=4587419
http://financialtraining.in/currencyfutures/quick-facts-about-
currency-futures-trading-on-nse/
Prep-talk September ’08.
4
Edited and Complied by :

Hiral Randeri, Jiten Panchal, Khushboo Lakdawala, Nidhi

Shukla, Srikant Prabhu.

BIRTHDAYS IN OCTOBER

RAVI: 5th, HUSAIN- NAILESH: 8th

MADHUKRITI: 10th, KHUSHBOO: 12th

SUDHIR- 19th, VIPUL: 22th,

NIRALI-HEMALI: 25th, SNEHAL: 28th