US shale oil firms begin to feel credit squeeze
Nearly two years into an epic oil rout, the US shale drillers that have upended global energy markets are finally feeling a credit squeeze as banks make their biggest cuts yet to their loan. Every six months, oil and gas producers and their banks negotiate how much credit they should be given based on the value of their reserves in the ground. In previous reviews, banks were willing to offer borrowers some leeway, encouraged by producers’ hedges against falling prices and their ability to keep cutting costs in step with crude’s slide that began in mid-2014. This time, with many companies’ hedges largely gone and crude prices used in the reviews as much as 20 per cent lower than six months earlier, banks are getting tough. Just a few weeks into the current round of talks, more than a dozen companies have had their loans cut by a total of $3.5 billion, equivalent to a fifth of available credit, according to data compiled by Reuters. Bankruptcy sword At that rate, $10 billion more of bank credit will disappear as a remaining $50 billion or so of credit lines come under scrutiny in talks that stretch into May. Companies and bankers contacted by Reuters declined to comment beyond their public statements due to the sensitive nature of the talks. The squeeze puts further pressure on the shale industry to sell assets, cut jobs and drilling and shrink capital spending. It also raises the risk that more companies will tip into bankruptcy. Banks are also under more pressure now from regulators to limit their energy-related risks as the downturn drags on. The next credit review in the autumn could take an additional toll if oil prices, now below $40 a barrel, do not rebound. “Any company that does not have a widely profitable base at this current price is going to find it very, very hard,” said Christian Ledoux, senior portfolio manager at South Texas Money Management. About 36 per cent of some 150 energy companies with speculative grade debt will probably default on their obligations by the end of next year if oil holds around $35 a barrel, said Tarek Hamid, senior US credit analyst at JPMorgan Chase & Co. More than 50 North American oil and gas producers have entered bankruptcy since early 2015, according to a Reuters review of regulatory filings and other data. Oil and gas producers rely on revolving credit to finance day-to-day operations and cuts force them to looks for cash elsewhere. Clayton Williams Energy Inc, for example, which had its credit line slashed to $100 million from $450 million, borrowed the difference from Ares Management LP, an alternative asset investor that charged triple the rate of the banks. Fearing that falling crude prices and reserve values could push many companies into default, companies and bankers have been also renegotiating financial performance tests and claims on assets while resetting the borrowing limits. More flexibility Some companies, including Eclipse Resources Corp and California Resources Corp, have disclosed that banks have agreed to loosen, or even suspend, minimum financial requirements to give them more flexibility. Sometimes banks rewrite clauses that might have allowed lower classes of lenders to throw borrowers into default and suddenly trigger repayment requirements and cause bankruptcies, according to lawyers and analysts tracking the talks. “Typically bank lenders don’t want second- and third-lien lenders to have that first bite at the apple,” said Lindsay Sparks, a partner at law firm Paul Hastings LLP. To the alarm of banks, some highly indebted companies, such as Linn Energy LLC, drew heavily on their credit lines ahead of their loan talks, lawyers and analysts said. A spokesman for Linn declined to comment. “This defensive measure has emerged as a somewhat surprising-and troubling-trend with broad ramifications for lenders,” said FBR & Co analyst Chad Mabry. Easier financial tests In response some banks have insisted on “anti-hoarding” provisions that would give them more say over what companies do with cash and other assets that could go toward repaying the loans. In February, Phil Rykhoek, chief executive of Denbury Resources Inc, told investors after loan talks with a syndicate of banks, that lenders agreed to easier financial tests in exchange for accepting such a provision. The “anti-hoarding” provision limits how much cash Denbury can hold before drawing more on its credit line. It was not directed at Denbury, Rykhoek said, as much as it was a new defensive by banks in response to seeing other companies draw on their lines to take lender cash with them as they approached bankruptcy. “It was very important to them,” Rykhoek said.
Cochin International Airport posts 20% growth in passenger traffic
Cochin International Airport Ltd has posted a 20 per cent growth in passenger traffic, thereby handling 77 lakh travellers in FY-16. Of this, the growth in domestic passengers was 16.66 per cent, while the international passengers constitute 23.92 per cent. The number of domestic passengers was 31.29 lakh against 26.82 lakh in the previous fiscal while the figure of international travellers was 46.41 lakh against 37.45 lakh. The aircraft movement during the period also registered a 10 per cent growth. As many as 24 airlines are currently operating from CIAL and more companies have evinced interest in staring operations shortly both domestic and overseas services. This included Vistara, Air Pegasus and Thai Air Asia’s Kochi-Bangkok service. V.J. Kurian, Managing Director, attributed the surge in traffic to the economic model that CIAL had been following. “We always practice cost effective way of functioning. This is one of the airports in the country charging the lowest fares for services offered”. The notable feature in the past fiscal was the significant increase in the domestic passengers. There had been a good increase in the tourists from North India as well as passengers from Far East countries. With the commencement of operation of new international terminal, the flight services as well as number of passengers would clock an even greater surge, he said.
Retail – The sunrise sector for employment opportunities
Few months ago, a small paanstall mysteriously appeared on the footpath near our office. I saw a young man at the helm, selling paan, cigarettes, chewing gum and some toffees. As I walked by his stall in the evenings, I occasionally bought a packet of chewing gum to encourage his endeavor. In a short time, I found that he didn’t need much encouragement from me. I saw the number of people visiting his stall grow and now he has packets of popular namkeen and chips, cold drinks and mineral water. In just a few months, I saw his stall growing significantly to cater to the office crowd in the area. He still smiles at me and offers me free chewing gum to show his gratitude for encouraging him in his early days. This young man’s journey is also the story of Indian Retail Sector which over the last decade or so has gone through a major transformation. Shedding the initial fears of large corporations displacing small shops, there is now a noticeable shift towards organized retailing. Suddenly you notice malls in every nook and corner, displaying large billboards and proudly lit up at night. Indian brands compete unabashedly with their multi-national counterparts. The unorganized retail has also stepped up, with even the small time kirana stores modernizing themselves in terms of display and operations to keep pace with the growing demands of the customers. Today, the retail sector accounts for about 22% of India’s GDP. According to a recent KPMG report on Indian retail, the overall size of the industry is estimated to be $534 billion in 2013-14 with a CAGR of 15% over last five years. Going forward, the overall retail sector growth is likely to witness a CAGR of 12-13 %, which would be worth $948 billion in 2018-19. A number of factors have influenced this dramatic growth. Growing youth population, nuclear families in urban areas, a growing middle class with rising incomes and the resulting purchasing power, and higher brand consciousness have driven the demand for retailing. Opening up of FDI has created conducive regulatory environment for the sector. This coupled with rapid real estate infrastructure development, better efficiency in supply-chain, R&D, innovation and new product development has fueled the supply side. All this translates to the many opportunities for the youth in the country. As per a report by NSDC, India will need around 56 million strong work-force for the booming retail sector. The sector will have one of the highest incremental human resource requirement of 17.35 million by 2022, offering opportunities in sales, merchandising, store management, central management and procurement. For the youth to avail the upcoming opportunities and pursue a promising career in retail industry, it is important they equip themselves with the right training as different lines of retail business require distinct skill-sets. Some skills and interests that one must have before joining the retail industry are: 1. Enjoy working with people 2. Enjoy constant customer interaction 3. An enthusiastic, flexible and positive attitude 4. Ability to step in another person’s shoes 5. Empathy and understanding towards a distressed customer Formal education is not as essential in the retail industry as it is in other areas of marketing. Many senior executives in this industry are people who were hired as retail staff. Their sincerity, hard work, enthusiasm, speed and experience,and an unwavering customer-centric focus resulted in their growth. So with the right attitude, one can easily hope to make it big in the retail industry. Typically, one can enter the retail industry as a class Xth or X11th pass out and with the right attitude and training, over a period of time,can advance to specialized jobs or management positions that offer higher remuneration. Major proportion of the employment in the retail sector is in front-end/retail assistant profiles in stores. Store operations account for 75%-80% of the total manpower employed in the organized retail sector. Although the skill requirements may seem similar across segments, the type of product retailed, format of the store and customer involvement impacts the intensity of skill requirement across various functions. Soft skills such as communication and interpersonal skills are the key criterion for employability for both the entry-level and middle-level jobs at the retail store. Retail industry in India has the potential to provide employment to a large number of youth. The latest announcement by the government to allow 100% FDI in retail (e-commerce, wholesale and in the marketing of food products) has already indicated a surge in employment opportunities in this sector. A direct result of FDI would be increase in the number as well as the formats of retail, which would result in the generation of jobs in multiple categories. This development brings with it an unprecedented need for nation-wide availability of skilled labour and an increased demand for comprehensive skills training.
People consuming more internet to shop online; leaves social networking behind: Study
Online shopping is the major reason for Indians to access internet, closely followed by social networking, revealed a recent survey on consumer insights and online buying habits conducted by American Express and Nielsen. According to the American Express and Nielsen survey titled ‘Understanding Online Consumers,’ which was conducted across six cities – Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Jaipur, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad, 98 percent Indians voted online shopping as the top reason to access the internet. Social networking came a close second with 96 percent votes. The survey also found that deals and value-for-money proposition drives Indians to shop online. 60% of respondents cited that they get enticed to shop online during discount days. Apart from comfort of buying online and ease of comparison of products, users buy products online because of cash back offers (40 percent), discount coupons (38 percent), freebies and additional offers (35 percent), the survey revealed. In a major shift of trend, the survey found that 70 percent Indian consumers prefer online shopping with cards over cash on delivery; quick and safe refunds being the key reason for their preference. When it comes to the usage of plastic money, Indian women have taken the lead in online transactions, leaving behind men across the country. 74 percent female respondent use plastic money for their online transactions on their mobiles (98 percent) and book flights online (56 percent). The survey also states that men clothing (57 percent) and footwear (53 percent) are the most frequently purchased products online. Additionally, 51 percent users living in metros intend to purchase mobile/ tablets online in comparison to 37 percent user living in Tier I cities. On an average monthly online spend of Indians is Rs 9,400 at the moment which is going to increase across cities to an overall ticket size of Rs 16,000, the survey said.
Interim relief for Flipkart: Calcutta HC stays entry tax on West Bengal e-shipments
After getting a stay from the Uttarakhand High Court over the issue of entry tax, Flipkart has sued the government of West Bengal over a similar issue. The e-commerce firm has also managed to get a favourable judgement from the Calcutta High Court, which could act as a deterrent for other states that are in the process of imposing entry taxes on goods bought online. The petition has been filed by Instakart Services that runs the logistics arm of Flipkart, EKart. The petition, reviewed by ET, alleges that the West Bengal government is imposing an entry tax of 1% on the value of each consignment which is being delivered by eKart in the state. Flipkart has argued that the levy of entry tax is without any “legal” basis. “It has also resulted in increased cost of goods and materials brought into the State of West Bengal by them for consumption or use by the end customers in the State,” said the petition, which was filed in the last week of March. The state had mandated advance payment of 1% entry tax as a prerequisite for generation of “waybills” – a requirement for delivery of shipments. In an order dated April 5, the court has said that the state cannot insist on the payment of entry tax. “As a consequence, the petitioner will be entitled to generate waybills in terms of the said rule without payment of any entry tax and if the programme or the system has to be altered for such purpose, the state is directed to do so immediately such that no inconvenience is occasioned to the petitioner in the electronic generation of waybills without payment of entry tax,” said the order, a copy of which was reviewed by ET. The state of West Bengal on the other hand had argued that since matters of similar nature from other states have reached the Supreme Court, it has applied to intervene before the apex court so that the propriety of entry tax can be decided at the highest level. A Flipkart spokesperson said in an emailed response that the stay order by the Calcutta High Court will benefit the consumers of the state who were paying additional tax for products bought online till now. “Hearing on the petition filed by Flipkart, the court has put a stay on the collection of entry tax on the goods entering the state of West Bengal. The collection of entry tax was anticonsumer and was reducing the benefits of ecommerce for the residents of West Bengal,” added the spokesperson. ET had reported in March that Flipkart sued the state of Uttarakhand for its decision to impose a 10% entry tax, calling the levy “discriminatory”.
Women outspend men in online shopping: Study
Women are scripting the success story of e-tailers in the country. They are not only outspending men while shopping online, they are also proving to be more aggressive internet-and tech-savvy gender, when it comes to buying things through their smartphones. Women are more likely to use plastic money, mobile apps and online travel portals, a study by American Express and Nielsen said. They are more active on the internet (47 hours spent per week on non-work related activities) compared to men (28 hours spent per week on non-work-related activities). And when it comes to mobile apps, there is a near universal adoption among them (98%) compared to a lower penetration among men (81%). While 74% women said they prefer using plastic money while shopping online, around 69% of men said they would rather play safe and opt for the cash-on-delivery (COD) route, revealed the report (target average age group of 33 years and average yearly income of Rs 14.8 lakh and access to the internet for a minimum of five hours a week). Interestingly, around 98% of respondents, both men and women, said they access the internet for online shopping, while 96% said they do it for social networking, followed by banking (95%), booking tickets (95%) and e-mails (95%). Plastic money is the most popular mode of payment in metros (71%), while COD has higher usage in Tier 1cities (72%), the survey said. Shopping has always been the favourite pastime for India and now it has become the “virtual pastime,” said Manoj Adlakha, VP & GM — consumer & merchant services and CEO, American Express Banking. Discounts, convenience, freedom to compare prices and cash payment are some of the compelling reasons driving people here to shop online. Around 70% of heavy internet users said they prefer shopping online due to discounts. However, the equation changes dramatically keeping in line with the marital status of shoppers. Around 69% of unmarried buyers said discount days are reason they shop online while 58% of married buyers said they do the same. When it comes to dividing resources between online and offline shopping, singles keep 63% of their budget for online shopping, while married couples tend to keep around 57%.
Plea in Bombay High Court for CBI probe into KFA’s jet fuel procurement
The Bombay high court on Monday received a petition to hear a fresh plea for CBI action against Vijay Mallya and his defunct Kingfisher Airlines over Rs 602-crore aviation fuel, which he received on credit from a public sector company between 2008 and 2010. The petition has alleged that Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) started extending credit for the sale of aviation fuel to Kingfisher Airlines in 2008, and continued to do so despite his unpaid fuel bill of Rs 602 crore. After social activist Pratap Teli first approached the HC in 2013, the CBI had in February 2014 assured the court that it had registered a criminal case against Kingfisher and would complete its “inquiry” within three to four months. The HC bench of Justices Naresh Patil and V L Achliya had disposed of the petition then after recording the statement made by CBI counsel Rajesh Desai, but kept all issues open on merits of the case. Over two years later, Teli’s counsel Aditya Pratap on Monday informed a bench of Justices Naresh Patil and A M Badar that the CBI appears to have done nothing as its probe has not progressed at all. He said, “Representations made even last December to the CBI to find out the status of the probe have gone unanswered, and the HC ought to hear the matter afresh and direct it to complete it.” The bench directed that the matter be placed for hearing after two weeks. Teli’s petition says that in 2013 he got information of how a public servant was committing an offence of criminal breach of trust under the Indian Penal Code and criminal misconduct under the Prevention of Corruption Act over the huge fuel credit to Kingfisher Airlines. Concerned at the huge outstanding amount, the ministry of petroleum had written in March 2010 that “further supplies to KFA be made against bank guarantee to cover entire outstanding dues including for the credit period allowed by HPCL”. The ministry even sent a reminder in May 2010 expressing its “concern” over the “continued outstanding of HPCL towards Kingfisher Airlines on account of ATF supplies. Almost one-and-a-half months have elapsed, HPCL has not furnished action taken report.” When Teli first gave the information to the CBI, he said the premier agency merely sat on it till he moved the HC when the CBI said it registered an FIR. But despite the February 2014 HC order, the CBI has not investigated, nor filed any chargesheet or even a closure report, his petition said. “This inaction has emboldened Mallya to leave the country” and the petitioner to move the court. The petition in the court now says, “A detailed investigation is required to unravel the real truth about how HPCL kept on giving credit in violation of public policy.”
Huawei says ready to kick off Smart City projects in India
Huawei said that it is all set to kick off a number of Smart City projects in the country in collaboration with its partners, targeting areas like Public safety, even as the Chinese telecom gear maker reckons that larger Smart Cities deployments would not happen too quickly. “I think smart city as a concept rather than a solution. In Huawei if you look at all the Indian smart cities, it’s not going to happen too quick, based on my experience with China, Dubai, and Singapore,” Joe So, CTO of Industry Solutions Enterprise Business Group at Huawei, told ET, in a recent interaction. “We are initiating a lot of projects with our partners in India. However our strategy is to be focused on certain areas rather than doing everything,” he said, suggesting that the initial focus would be on public safety. The executive also emphasized that the company is actively engaging with the Indian government to build trust and inform the authorities that the company can provide the best equipment at reasonable prices. “Just a company doing business, we want to earn the trust, because it’s not an easy with a lot of issues ahead. We want to tell you can partner with us trust us,” he added. Huawei works an infrastructure provider for ICT solutions of Smart Cities, and it will offer an open platform which will hold all the applications in vertical layers. The gear maker is also looking to collaborate with system integrators, software developers, and other partners to form a Smart Cities platform, which can be deployed across the identified cities in the country. “Our [Smart City] ecosystem is open we do not have a lot of preference. We assess the partners on their competence, suitability, and enthusiasm and willingness to invest in the solutions,” he added. The Indian government recently shortlisted a list of 20 cities, which it plans to make ‘smart’ by providing efficient physical, social, institutional and economic infrastructure. The government has defined a smart city in the Indian context as a city that provides a decent quality of life to its citizens, a clean and sustainable environment, and supports the application of smart solutions. Players like Ericsson, ZTE and Cisco are also betting big on the Smart Cities project in the country. Ericsson expects that by the year 2020, 20% of India revenue will come from its Industry and Society unit, which focuses on smart cities. Cisco, on the other hand, already closed four project proposals in Navi Mumbai, Pune, Jaipur and Lucknow, while ZTE recently signed agreements with the governments of Haryana, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh. On competition from these players, Joe said, “It’s good to have competition. I welcome the joining of companies in competition with us. I think it’s only through competition, you can prove that you have the best price for the Indian market. We are the only company on earth who are providing the complete solution on ICT infrastructure.” The executive also said that the company is continuously investing its resources in India, and considers it as one of the important markets for the enterprise business. “It’s almost the same size as China. We see there is a tremendous opportunities in India. It’s very competitive as well. This is a year of growing our enterprise business,” Joe said, adding that verticals like BFSI and Education are going to be an area of growth for Huawei this year. The company also reckons that telecom operators’ increasing investment in networks will play a crucial role and help the Smart City projects.
India keen to set up a port in Bangladesh: Nitin Gadkari
India is keen to set up a port in Bangladesh and a high-level committee will be sent to the neighbouring country in this regard, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari today said. “We are exploring the opportunity to set up a port in Bangladesh and further strengthen our ties. We have sent a committee to Bangladesh in this connection,” Union Road Transport and Shipping Minister today said. The Payra port in Patuakhali district of Bangladesh will be another major milestone between the nations, Gadkari said, addressing the media at Foreign Correspondents Club here. He, however, said a final decision will be taken after the recommendations from the committee, and investment proposals will be finalised only after that. The external affairs ministries of both sides have already held a preliminary round of talks for the port development and a delegation from the shipping ministry under a joint secretary will be visiting Bangladesh next week to study the site and prepare a detailed project report, he said. Gadkari said finer details, including investment requirements, will be worked out after the committee’s recommendations. A senior official said the proposal is to set up a port at Payra in Bangladesh and a detailed project report is ready. About Chabahar port in Iran, he said India is eyeing investments there and Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is on a visit to Iran with a high-level delegation, including road transport and highways ministry officials. Gadkari had earlier said India is looking at an investment of Rs 2 lakh crore at Chabahar port in Iran in various infrastructure projects and the investments will depend on the outcome of the negotiations on gas price as Iran has offered to supply natural gas at USD 2.95 while India wants rates to be lowered. India has already pledged to invest about USD 85 million in developing the strategic port off Iran’s south-eastern coast, which would provide India a sea-land access route to Afghanistan, bypassing Pakistan. Gadkari said that during the recent summit of heads of African nations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had expressed keenness that India should join hands with African nations for building roads and ports there. In reply to a query, Gadkari said India is keen to beef up its ties with China too.
Navi Mumbai airport: Maharashtra gives nod for issuing request for proposal
Maharashtra cabinet today gave its assent for the City Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) to issue a Request for Proposal for the proposed Navi Mumbai International airport. Replying to a debate on Mumbai and Konkan in the Assembly, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis gave this information and said four consortiums had been short-listed but one was disqualified as it did not get a security clearance. Fadnavis said the first phase, which will handle one crore passengers, will be commissioned by 2019. “The Rs 16,000 crore project is being implemented through Public-Private Participation and CIDCO has a 26 per cent stake in it. CIDCO already has 80 per cent of the land in its possession. Nearly 95 per cent of the land has been acquired through consent,” he said. Provision of Rs 40 crore will be made for development of Ambavade village, the native place of Dr B R Ambedkar, on the occasion of his 125th birth anniversary, the Chief Minister said.