Platinum Investment Takes 5.16% Stake In Unitech

Australia's Platinum Investment Management Ltd has raised its stake in Unitech Ltd to 5.16% over the past month by investing $125 million, a person familiar with the matter said Monday.

Before the transaction, the Australian fund held a 1.19% stake in the company and the person, who spoke to Dow Jones Newswires on condition of anonymity, said Platinum may continue to raise its holding in the Indian property developer.

Platinum acquired the stake in phases from the open market, Unitech earlier said in a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange, but didn't provide details like the cost of the transactions.

Unitech is among companies which face investigations over a 2008 government allotment of licenses to provide mobile telecommunication services.

According to the Central Bureau of Investigation and a federal audit body, the licenses were sold deliberately at prices sharply below market levels, resulting in huge losses to the government.

Unitech Wireless Ltd was one of the companies that got the licenses. Unitech later sold a 67.25% stake in the telecom business to Norway's Telenor ASA for about 61.36 billion rupees, and Unitech Wireless now offers services under the Uninor brand.

Despite its telecom troubles, analysts expect Unitech's shares to offer good returns in the near term, given its land bank.

"The discrepancy between Unitech's stock price and land valuation is wide at the moment," Saurabh Kumar and Gunjan Prithyani, analysts at J.P. Morgan, wrote in a recent report.

The stock has declined 60% since September and property prices in two of its key markets--Gurgaon and Noida--have been rising, they said. "The stock is trading at a 40% discount to its land value, which we believe is cheap," they said.

Price Correction Expected in Mumbai Residential Segment

A study by rating agency Crisil has forecast a fall in home prices in Mumbai as interest rates inch upward. However, the National Capital Region, where prices are still 15-20% lower than their peak levels in 2007, will continue to see an appreciation in real estate, it said.

“In Mumbai, falling demand, owing to diminished affordability, and rising interest rates will trigger a decline in prices in 2011. Property prices soared by 43% in 2010 in the city’s three major supply pockets. Prices thus surpassed their peak values, attained in the first half of 2008, by 26%,” the report said, adding that prices in Mumbai will fall by 8-10% in 2011.

Earlier last week, real estate firms like Jones Lang LaSalle India and Cushman & Wakefield had forecast a correction in real estate prices in 2011. “A likely increase in interest rates by the Reserve Bank of India will subdue demand and depress housing prices in Mumbai in 2011. In NCR, relatively better affordability will prop prices despite any increase in interest rates,” said Nagarajan Narasimhan, director – Crisil Research.

In Mumbai, the extent of the price decline would vary widely by area. Prices in premium locations like South and Central Mumbai, which have an excess supply of houses priced at more than Rs 5 crore, would decline by 15-20% over the next 12 months. Prices will decline more moderately, by about 6%, in areas like Vasai and Virar, where affordability would be relatively better, Crisil said.

Crisil Research studied the price trend in three major supply pockets in Mumbai and NCR—western suburbs (Goregaon, Malad, Kandivali and Borivali), Thane (Ghodbunder Road), and central suburbs (Dombivli and Kalyan) in Mumbai, and Noida and the outskirts of Ghaziabad and Faridabad in NCR. Accounting for more than 50% of total planned supply in each city, these major supply pockets would represent the trend in housing prices in the whole city. Mumbai and NCR would together account for more than half the 1.5 billion sq ft housing supply planned in India’s 10 leading cities up to 2013.

Britain Asks India to Open up Retail Sector

Britain wants India to open up retail sector and further liberalise defence and financial services to promote economic growth and deal with the food security problem. The issues are likely to come up for discussion during the visit of UK’s Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Vince Cable who is arriving in India on January 17 on a three-day visit along with a 50-member business delegation. “We want to talk to the government about opening up areas of retail, defence where this debate is going on… Defence Minister yesterday made announcements about the private sector’s involvement in the defence sector,” British High Commissioner to India Richard Stagg told reporters.

At present, the government allows 51 per cent FDI in single brand retail and 100 per cent in the cash-and-carry (wholesale) formats, while FDI in multi-brand retail is prohibited. In defence and insurance sectors, 26 per cent FDI is permitted. The UK has strong expertise in areas like retail, infrastructure, energy, financial services and defence. The visit is aimed at further identifying opportunities for British and Indian companies to work together to realise ambitious goals of economic growth in areas like infrastructure development, Stagg said.

Besides, Cable would chair the meeting of the US-India Joint Economic and Trade Committee (Jetco) with Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma. It was set up in 2005 to tackle trade and investment barriers on both sides and promote business links. The 6th Jetco meeting was held on 4 February last year in London. Cable would also attend the launch of British India Infrastructure Group which would be co-chaired by Permanent Secretary of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Martin Donnelly and Finance Secretary Ashok Chawla.

“There are enormous opportunities available in India’s infrastructure sector. British companies have expertise in the sector and can help in the infrastructure development of the country,” Stagg said. The government has planned to invest USD 1 trillion in the infrastructure sector during the XII Five-Year Plan (2012-2017). Besides, Cable would hold meetings with Road and Transport Minister Kamal Nath and Minister for Corporate Affairs and Minority Affairs Salman Khurshid.

“Cable will also look at corporate governance which is very important particularly at a moment when we move towards more global standardisation. We see more opportunities for both countries to work more closely together in this regard,” Stagg said.
During 2009-10, India-UK bilateral trade stood at USD 10.6 billion.

Slowdown Hit Indian Retail Sector can Witness Growth in 2011: Fitch

After going through a downturn, the Indian retail sector is likely to show positive results this year with several firms witnessing buoyant sales, improved capital management and stable margins, according to ratings agency Fitch. “Retailers in the country are likely to benefit from buoyant sales, improved working capital management and stable margins,” Fitch India said in its report ‘2011 Outlook: Indian Retail’. The retail sector had suffered massively during the 2008-09 downturn with many firms closing stores and holding back on expansion.

The report said the total debt is expected to increase in most cases to fund growing capex requirements as companies focus on cementing their market share and retail footprint. “However, debt levels are likely to be supported by higher operating profits and consequently leverage levels should remain stable and are likely to improve,” it said.
The agency also said it expects liquidity to remain comfortable, led by efficient working capital management.

“Improvements are expected from better inventory management and lower lease deposit levels,” it added. Besides, retail firms are likely to witness stable operating margins this year, depending on each company’s choice on product category. “This, in addition to economies of scale, private label sales mix and discounts from suppliers will help strengthen margins,” the agency said. The report also said small retailers and new entrants are likely to go more aggressive this year, while large players are also likely to face lesser risk in executing their expansion plans.

“Given the size and scale achieved by larger retailers such as PRIL and Shopper’s, their capex execution risk has reduced considerably in line with their reduced pace of expansion,” the report said.

Realty report: Mumbai, Pune, Delhi

Recently, a 1,650-sq ft, 3-BHK apartment located at Cuffe Parade in Mumbai, was transacted at a price of around Rs 8.40 crore which was inclusive of a covered car parking space. This is a secondary sale trans-action. The apartment located on the 9th floor of the building has an exclusive view of the Arabian Sea.

Cuffe Parade is an up market and most sought after residential and commercial locale in South Mumbai which houses many old residential buildings quoting rates in the range of Rs 34,000-85,000 per sq ft, depending on the location, floor, view from the apartment and age of the building . Prominent commercial projects located here are the IDBI Towers, World Trade Centre, Maker Arcade as well as the Vivanta by Taj-President .

PUNE

A garden-facing, 3-BHK apartment with a saleable area of 1,500 sq ft at the project Yuthika by Paranjpe Schemes was sold for a total amount of Rs 83 lakh. This comprises charges for registrationstamp duty, society formation, MSEB, as well as an exclusive parking space. The premium residential project at Baner consists of 2- and 3- bedroom apartments with good layouts, specifications and opulent amenities at an affordable price range.

The project is currently quoting Rs 4,300 per sq ft for non-garden-facing apartments and Rs 4,600 per sq ft for garden-facing ones. The project assures possession in the next 24-30 months from now. The area has seen good amount of development in the past few years and scores on approachability from the rest of the city, making it a good residential option.

DELHI

In one of the recent transactions in Defence Colony a 2,050 sq ft apartment located on the third floor of a three-storey building, was transacted for Rs 6.15 crore which is inclusive of a car-parking space. The owner of the house has exclusive terrace rights. This unit comes with luxury bath fittings, Italian marble flooring and imported kitchen fittings. Defence Colony, located in the southern part of the city, is one of the key residential zones.

The location commands a premium in terms of property prices as it is well connected with other parts of the city and has a mature F&B retail market. Defence Colony has witnessed an 36% appreciation in capital values over 2009 end.

Hospitality Chain Choice Hotels to come up with More than 60 hotels in India

Banking on the growing economy and rapid infrastructure development in India, international mid- scale hospitality chain Choice Hotels plans to open more than 60 hotels in the country over the next three years, a top company official said. The chain plans to add around 20-30 hotels in the country every year. “Our target is to open 20-30 hotels every year in India for the next 2-3 years. In 2011, we plan to open 14 hotels mainly in tier II cities. All are in various stages of construction. We are looking at a double-digit growth in India,” said Vilas Pawar, CEO, Choice Hotels India.

The US-based firm, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Choice Hotels India (CHI), currently operates 28 hotels in the country through the franchise route. “The mid-scale segment has a huge potential in India and is expanding due to rise in the number of budget conscious domestic business and leisure travellers,” Pawar said. The hotel chain, with a tariff size ranging from Rs 2,000-7,000 per night depending on the location, operates in the country across five brands — Sleep Inn, Comfort Inn, Quality Inn, Clarion and Cambria.

These hotels are in various destinations, including New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kodaikanal, Lucknow, Faridabad, Amritsar, Pune, Nashik, Haldwani, Tuticorin and Vijayawada. Choice runs 6,200 hotels across 12 brands globally — Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn Clarion, Cambria Suites, Mainstay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Ascend Collection, Econo Lodge and Rodeway Inn.

Carlson to Open 100 More Hotels in India by 2015

Global hospitality major Carlson, which runs 5-star hotel Radisson, plans to open 19 more hotels in India by the year-end and 100 by 2015 with a total expected headcount of 30,000 by then, a company official said. The US-based hotel chain currently employs around 10,000 people across its 34 hotels (3,234 rooms) in India.

“We plan to open 19 more hotels this calender year. These hotels will help generate 6,000 employment opportunities,” said Hubert Joly, president and CEO, Carlson Hotels. The company has already signed management contracts for about 54 hotels, of which 19, with a total of 2,670 rooms, will open this year. The total project cost of these 19 hotels is estimated at around Rs 2,250 crore.

Of these 19 hotels, 11 are Radisson to be opened in Agra, Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Chennai, Ghaziabad, Goa, Greater Noida, Haridwar, Hyderabad, Ranchi and Rudrapur, Joly said. While two Country Inns will come up at Gurgaon and Mussourie, one Park Inn will be opened in New Delhi (CBD) and five Park Plazas will open at Bangalore, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, and New Delhi (Dwarka).

Park Plaza is in 3-4 star hotel segment and Country Inn and Suites and Park Inn are in the mid-segment. About 90 per cent of the hotels are operated, globally, through management contracts and franchise model. “We are quite optimistic about the India’s tourism and travel growth story. We see India as a strategic destination with enormous opportunity and hence plan to scale-up our operations here,” Joly added.

Scam Hit Adarsh Housing Society Faces Demolition Threat

The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests has ordered the removal of the scam-tainted Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society building in Mumbai within three months. In a press release issued on Sunday, the Ministry said it has decided to remove the entire structure as it is ‘unauthorised’ and as no clearance under the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification, 1991, was obtained.

The Ministry had considered the other two options of removal of that part of the structure in excess of the floor space index or recommending that the Government take over the building for a public use to be determined later. Jairam Ramesh, minister of state for environment and forests, said the option of removal of part of the structure was rejected since it would have been ‘tantamount to regularising or condoning an egregious violation of the CRZ (Coastal Regulatory Zone) Notification’.

The other option was rejected on the grounds that even though the final use may be in the public interest, it would still be tantamount to regularising a violation of the CRZ Notification. Besides, there would be substantial discretionary powers that would vest with the State or Central Government in case of takeover. Ramesh said that any other decision would have diluted the strong precedents that have been set in judgments of the Supreme Court and different High Courts and that ‘ignorance of law can never be an excuse for non-compliance’.

The Adarsh society, which was originally meant for allotment to Kargil war heroes and their families, has been the centre of a controversy on charges that several politicians, bureaucrats and army men were allotted flats there. It is also alleged that the building got speedy approvals for land allotment. Post the revelation, Ashok Chavan, the then Maharashtra chief minister, was forced to step down from his post. The matter is being currently investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

Ansal sells properties worth Rs 1,714 cr in Apr-Dec 2010

NEW DELHI: Realty firm Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Ltd today said it sold properties worth about Rs 1,714 crore in the first nine months of this fiscal and its sales realisations improved by 24 per cent compared to the year-ago period.

“The total sales booked in the first nine months of the 2010-11 fiscal is 15.81 million sq ft aggregating sales value of Rs 1,713.79 crore,” the company said in a presentation, outlining the operational updates.

The average sales realisations have improved by 24 per cent to Rs 1,084/sq ft in the first nine months of this fiscal as against Rs 872.81/ sq ft in the year-ago period.

The company had set a target to book sales of 16 million sq ft in the current fiscal, out of which 15.81 million sq ft has already been booked, it added.

Out of the total sales booked, the hi-tech township ‘Sushant Golf City’ in Lucknow and ‘Esencia’ in Gurgaon contributed 8.63 million sq ft and 2.31 million sq ft, respectively.

In terms of location, Uttar Pradesh accounted for 60 per cent of the sales booking, followed by Haryana at 33 per cent. The sales was maximum in plots at Rs 623.54 crore, followed by villas at Rs 475.4 crore.

Ansal API has a 301.78 million sq ft of total saleable area in-hand, out of which 83 million sq ft valuing Rs 6,926 crore has been sold till the third quarter of this fiscal.

In the first six months of the current fiscal, Ansal has reported 54 per cent increase in its net profit to Rs 61.55 crore against Rs 39.89 crore in the corresponding period of this fiscal.

Realty companies’ financial woes to mount

MUMBAI: The woes of realty developers may not ease anytime soon as pressure to repay debt and redemption of quasi-equity instruments continue to be a major task for them.

Repayment of structured quasi-equity instruments totalling Rs 3,000 crore held by foreign investors is due in the next couple of months and this is expected to stress already cash-strapped developers.

Redemption of these instruments is likely to coincide with developers’ loans that were rescheduled by banks two years ago and are now expected to come up for repayment around March.

As external commercial borrowings are not allowed in the realty sector, some cash-strapped developers had placed non-convertible debentures with non-banking finance companies, listed these debentures and then offered these to foreign investors.

At least four developers, three from Mumbai and one from Bangalore, had raised over Rs 1,000 crore almost a year ago through this route. These funds raised by some realtors through quasi-equity instruments around three years ago went to supporting their ongoing projects and land acquisitions.

However, most of these foreign investors may not be interested in converting these instruments into equity and hold stake in these realty projects, given the weakening demand for residential units and possibility of a fall in prices, analysts said.

“Builders will find it difficult to repay overseas investors since few local banks are willing to take large exposures. With the stock market entering a bearish phase, the prospects of IPOs are also dim,” said a senior official of a realty fund.

In a few cases, the matter may boil into legal disputes. “However, many of the structured papers are not enforceable debt and foreign investors may be left with little recourse,” he said.

Consensus on a fall in realty prices hereon is getting stronger as almost all the market participants, including consultants who undertake sales of these projects on behalf of the developer for a fee, have also estimated at least 15% correction.

Mumbai, the country’s financial capital that led the appreciation in realty prices in the past 12 months, is now expected to lead the correction in property prices owing to buyers’ resistance to higher prices, rising interest rates, tightening of credit, and an excess supply scenario.

An indication of this has already come through falling numbers of registrations at stamp duty and registration offices across Mumbai. After gaining nearly 40% in the past one year, residential property prices in Mumbai have already surpassed their last peak witnessed in 2007 and scenarios are almost similar across major locations such as the National Capital Region , Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Interest rates that have started moving higher are impacting affordability and delaying decision making and all of this is not allowing the demand to get converted into sales since the past two quarters.

Parsvanath Aims Big-Plans to Generate Revenues Worth Rs 13000 Crore by 2013

Parsvnath Developers, New Delhi-based real estate company, is planning to generate revenues worth Rs13,000 crore in the next two years. The company, which currently has debt of Rs1,100 crore, also plans to become completely debt-free by March 2013. The revenues were Rs455 crore during first six months of the current fiscal.

“About 80 million square feet (msf) is on fast-track execution, which we plan to complete by March 2013. Out of this, 40 msf is pre-sold and will generate Rs4,000 crore for us. The remaining 40 msf will generate another Rs9,000 crore. So as of now, we are focusing to complete the 80 msf and generate large cash for the company. The moment we achieve this, our balance-sheet will be completely debt-free with large cash reserves,” said Pradeep Jain, chairman, Parsvnath. The company owns a total of 195 msf. The properties are mainly located in Delhi and the National Capital Region.

On debt reduction plans, Jain said, “Our debt position is very comfortable. From a peak of Rs2,200 crore, we are almost half at around Rs1,100 crore as of now. By the end of this calendar year, we hope to bring the debt at around Rs500-600 crore.” The current debt-equity ratio of the company stands at 0.43%.

“Debt servicing will be done completely through internal generations and no fundraising at the parent company level is on the cards as of now. Also, funds already raised on the special purpose vehicle level and through the forthcoming deals will not be utilised for the repayment of the debt. We may monetise non-core assets if required,” Jain said.

The company may monetise its properties in Cochin, Mysore, Chennai, Palghat, Nanded and Coimbatore if required depending on the valuations. There are no concrete plans as of now. The company last week also entered into a project level private equity deal worth Rs 100 crore with Sun Apollo. It has picked up a 49.9% stake in the Parsvnath Buildwell Pvt Ltd, the SPV developing Exotica in Ghaziabad spread over 31 acres. The deal proceeds will be used for project implementation as well as marketing.

US Based Developer Donald Trump Plans Luxury Residential Tower in Mumbai

US billionaire real estate developer Donald Trump is entering the Indian property market with a luxury residential tower in Mumbai, more than two years after announcing plans to expand in the south Asian nation. Trump, who has joined with Mumbai developer Rohan Lifescapes Pvt for his first venture in the country, expects to start marketing the project by March, quoted Donald Trump Jr., Trump’s son and executive vice president at the Trump Organization LLC in the report.

“We are doing a very luxury project with Rohan Lifescapes and we’ll be in India later this quarter to launch it officially,” he added. He declined to give further details on the project. The Trump development is being built on the site of a former hospital in south Mumbai, in a neighborhood dotted with jewelry stores, the only Porsche showroom in the city and next to a Mercedes showroom, said two people familiar with the matter, who declined to be identified before an official announcement.

Rohan Lifescapes focuses primarily on redevelopments. It has more than 60 projects spread across 54 sites, according to its website. It has developed more than 20 million square feet of homes and offices and is currently developing 3.45 million square feet of projects in Mumbai, according to its website. “Our entry has to be in Mumbai and that’s where everything is going on right now in terms of the high-end real estate,” the younger Trump had said earlier. The billionaire has branded buildings from skyscrapers in Manhattan to condominiums in Tijuana, Mexico, Trump World in the South Korean capital Seoul and the Trump Towers Istanbul

Arabian co, Simplex Infra get contract to build World One

MUMBAI: Lodha Developers has awarded civil construction contract of its proposed world’s tallest residential building, World One, to a joint venture of West Asia-based Arabian Construction Company and Simplex Infrastructures  The contract is worth 450 crore and is scheduled to be completed in 38 months.

The project at Lower Parel in central Mumbai has been in the news ever since it has been launched in June. There have questions over the status of approvals from the ministry of environment and the director general of civil aviation.

However, according to the company, the construction contract for the tower has been placed as it has received the approvals. “We have all the necessary approvals, including from the ministry of environment and the director general of civil aviation and the construction of World One will kick off from the first week of February,” said Abhisheck Lodha, managing director of Lodha Developers. The DGCA nod is needed because of the builiding’s height.

With a height of 450 metres, World One will surpass the current tallest residential building Q1 at Gold Coast in Australia that is 323 metres high.

Arabian Construction has constructed some of the tallest buildings in the world, including 100-storey Princess Tower and Pentominium in Dubai.

Parsvnath to cut net debt by nearly 60%

MUMBAI: Realtor Parsvnath Developers expects to cut net debt to 7 billion rupees by December as revenues from projects start to flow in, a top official said on Monday.

“We expect the net debt to reduce further in the current financial year, but this would not be substantial. By the end of this calendar year, we expect a substantial reduction to around 700 crore (7 billion rupees),” Chairman Pradeep Jain told Reuters in an interview.

As on Dec. 31, 2010, the company’s net debt was 11 billion rupees, he said, adding the reduction would be affected through internal accruals and revenues from ongoing projects.

The company would also look at increasing property prices in select projects by 5-10 percent across north India . These would be in Delhi, National Capital Region and nearby areas, he said without elaborating. “Earlier, during the slowdown time, prices declined… and now, after the revival, the prices are expected to go up.”

Parsvnath has a land bank of about 195 million square feet (18.12 million sq metres), of which 80 million square feet has been on fast track for completion, he said.

STAKE DILUTION

The New Delhi-based developer is not looking at diluting stake or roping in private equity firms in the company. However, it would continue to look at investments at project levels. “Going forward, if any good opportunity comes, or any good private equity proposals come (at project level), definitely we are happy to look at it. It is not that we are very aggressively looking, and there is nothing expected to be concluded in the short term.”

The company is also planning to develop 4.5 million square feet of residential properties and 0.5 million square feet of commercial ventures on the recently won Railway land. In Nov 2010, Parvsnath had won a bid for 38.3 acres (15.50 hectares). Jain declined to comment on the investments for the project stating it as “confidential”.

The company is waiting for approval for the special purpose vehicle set up for the rail land development in which it is looking at roping in foreign direct investment. The company, however, has already engaged architects and consultants and started work on the project. “I think it would take another two months’ time to work out the planning, which needs to be submitted for approvals.”

Declining to provide an outlook for its Oct-Dec quarter, Jain said “the quarter looks good.” At 3.19 p.m., shares of the company were trading lower by 3.33 percent at 52.20 rupees in a steady Mumbai market.

Over 27-Fold Rise in India Bulls Consolidated Net Profit

Indiabulls Real Estate Ltd today reported more than 27-fold jump in its consolidated net profit to Rs 76.61 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2010, against Rs 2.76 crore in the year-ago period.

Net sales rose to Rs 399.66 crore in the third quarter of this fiscal from Rs 37.46 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year, Indiabulls Real Estate said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange .

The total expenditure increased sharply to Rs 284.07 crore in the third quarter of 2010-11 fiscal against Rs 72.86 crore in the year-ago period, due to higher expenses on land, plots and constructed properties.

NRI’s Seek Better Policies for More FDI Inflow in Punjab

Punjab needs to follow Gujarat’s lead and improve its “poor” policies if it wants to attract more investment from overseas Indians, NRIs at an investment meet here today said. “I do not see any major schemes or major development from Punjab or the state government which really helps (in getting NRI investments),” said Punjabi NRI Satinder Dhiman, who migrated to the US from Jalandhar 22 years ago.

“It will be logical for the state government to look into it as lot of (NRI) money is out there,” he said at the 8th ‘Punjabi Pravasi Bharatiya Divas-2011′ NRI investors’ meet here, adding that real estate, education, services and IT are the potential sectors where NRI investments could flow in. Another NRI, Mahendra Khari , the President of the International Punjabi Chamber for Service Industry (IPCSI), pointed out that unlike other states like Gujarat, the Punjab government was not efficient in propagating polices or taking initiatives to attract foreign investment.

“In Punjab, they (Punjab government) do not have much PR exercise like Gujarat… I have not seen much support from state functionaries like NRI help centres, professional support, etc.. It (support) is at a personal level (rather) than any other level,” rued Khari, who is based in the UK. The Punjab government, too, thinks there is scope for more investment by NRIs in the state.

“I am not satisfied (with the scale of NRI investment in Punjab)… There is always a room on the top… There is a scope for improvement (in terms of investment)… I want more and more (NRI) investments should flow in the state,” Punjab Industry and Commerce Minister Manoranjan Kalia told reporters here. According to Kalia, Punjab has received Rs 5,000 crore of FDI in the last four years in several sectors.

The state accounts for just 0.42 per cent of the FDI inflows into the country, with the majority of the foreign direct investment witnessed in the manufacturing, warehousing (Bharti-Walmart), IT, real estate and pharma sectors. Though data on the investment by Punjabi NRIs is not yet available, the bulk of their funds went into the IT, real estate, education and agri-processing sectors. The strength of the overseas Punjabi NRI community is estimated at around 10 million, which is mainly concentrated in Britain, North America, South-East Asia and the Middle East.

DLF Delays Plan to Increase Maintenance Fee

DLF has deferred its plan to charge a hiked maintenance fee by three months, with the change likely to be implemented only from April. This decision was taken on Tuesday after RWA representatives told the developer that they would pay more only if they are satisfied and convinced that DLF can meet their expectations. A group of residents from different RWAs would meet the DLF officials next week and submit their demands pertaining to maintenance works in the residential colonies.

It is expected that the revised maintenance fee would be raised from Re 1 per sq yard to around Rs 2.70. Sources said residents’ committees would present a budgeted cost of amenities required in their areas so that the developer can take steps to improve them. Those who attended the meting said that DLF will have to provide desired quality services in the next two months and based on its performance, the RWAs would take a call on the revision of maintenance charges. Participants in the meeting registered their dissatisfaction over the present security and maintenance and suggested that residents should spell out the benchmarks for maintenance in their respective areas.

“We have asked the developer to prove that they are capable of providing quality services and only then we would allow the prices to be hiked,” said one of the participants. R P Singh, a representative from DLF-III RWA said they are ready to pay more, provided the developer ensures good quality services for residents. Sudhir Kapoor, general secretary of DLF City RWA added, “The next meeting will have the representatives with some more concerns of their respective colonies. The maintenance process in the DLF colonies need to be transparent so that residents feel satisfied about the revised fee that they are paying. At present, the maintenance is not satisfactory.”

On their part, the DLF officials reportedly told the RWA representatives that they need to hike the maintenance fee since the cost of everything has increased and even the labour wage, which was Rs 2,300 in 2004, has now increased to Rs 4,400. Parimal Bardhan, president of DLF-I RWA said, “We have told the developer that maintenance and security services are not up to the mark and need a lot of improvement. There has been an agreement that DLF would now join hands with the RWAs and provide quality services.”

Another RWA representative, J C Kapoor, said the developer has admitted that the services are not up to the mark. “We are going to discuss this issue in the next meeting. A committee has been formed by DLF and I, being a member of this committee, will raise the issues of our colony,” he added.

CCI Probe against DLF Gets Compat Approval

The Competition Appellate Tribunal (Compat) today refused to stay the proceedings of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) against real estate major DLF and permitted the competition watchdog to go ahead with its inquiry. DLF had approached Compat against the CCI probe into the complaints raised by some of its customers over alleged “abuse of dominant position” by putting “discriminatory and abusive clauses” in the apartment agreements provided to the allottees of two of its high-profile projects in Gurgaon, Haryana.

Early this month, the Delhi High Court also refused to grant a stay on the CCI investigations against DLF. The petitions before CCI, filed by associations formed by some of the customers of premium residential projects like Park Place and Belaire, complain that DLF failed to deliver the residential projects on time and put “discriminatory and abusive clauses” in the apartment agreements provided to the allottees. It also says the builder is abusing its dominant position in the market.

The two projects are expected to have a total of 2,200 flats, priced between Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 3 crore each, making the total worth of the apartments in the range of Rs 4,500-5,000 crore. The projects, which started in August 2006, were expected to be completed in three years, but the developer extended the deadline to April 2011. The director general (investigations) of CCI, who gave his findings to the commission recently, is known to have endorsed the charges made by the allottees against DLF.

Global property investments to hit $380 bn in 2011

LONDON: Global direct real estate investment is forecast to rise 20 percent this year to $380 billion, led by a sharp rebound in the United States , with total volumes still about half the market’s 2007 peak, a report said.

Investments in commercial real estate, mainly offices, malls, and industrial properties, had reached $316 billion in 2010, a 50 percent jump from an eight-year low of $209 billion in 2009, property consultancy Jones Lang LaSalle said.

Investment volumes soared to $759 billion at the market’s peak in 2007, before the property bubble burst and helped trigger the 2008 global financial crisis.

“Barring further sovereign debt crises or financial shocks, the momentum of 2010 is expected to continue over the next 12 months and we predict global volumes for 2011 should increase by 20 to 25 percent,” said Arthur de Haast, head of the firm’s International Capital Group.

For 2011, Jones Lang expects volumes in the Americas region to jump 40 percent to $135 billion from last year, and for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and Asia Pacific regions to rise by between 10 and 15 percent to $150 billion and $95 billion, respectively.

“The Americas’ recovery has mainly been underpinned by investor interest in core gateway cities like New York, Washington DC, San Francisco and Rio de Janeiro,” said Steve Collins, a Jones Lang managing director.

In the United Kingdom , Europe’s largest market, 2010 volumes were up by 46 percent to $49 billion, as investors targeted London, which is viewed as a transparent and more liquid safe haven from economic and financial uncertainties elsewhere, the consultancy said.

A number of major Asia Pacific markets also posted significant growth in 2010 volumes, including a 219 percent year-on-year jump in Singapore , 77 percent in Australia, 41 percent in China, and a 28 percent in Hong Kong .

Arabian co, Simplex Infra get contract to build World One

MUMBAI: Lodha Developers has awarded civil construction contract of its proposed world’s tallest residential building, World One, to a joint venture of West Asia-based Arabian Construction Company and  The contract is worth 450 crore and is scheduled to be completed in 38 months.

The project at Lower Parel in central Mumbai has been in the news ever since it has been launched in June. There have questions over the status of approvals from the ministry of environment and the director general of civil aviation.

However, according to the company, the construction contract for the tower has been placed as it has received the approvals. “We have all the necessary approvals, including from the ministry of environment and the director general of civil aviation and the construction of World One will kick off from the first week of February,” said Abhisheck Lodha, managing director of Lodha Developers. The DGCA nod is needed because of the builiding’s height.

With a height of 450 metres, World One will surpass the current tallest residential building Q1 at Gold Coast in Australia that is 323 metres high.

Arabian Construction has constructed some of the tallest buildings in the world, including 100-storey Princess Tower and Pentominium in Dubai.