Tag: ASSOCHAM

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Kharcha paani

Only 50,000 security guards for country’s ATMs?

After shocking incident of woman being attacked inside a Bangalore ATM, a survey finds that most ATMs are woefully under-protected.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

A few years ago, there was a spate of bank robberies across the country’s top banks. Now, a more pressing issue has made us all sit up and take notice. Last week’s shocking, violent assault on a woman inside an ATM by a man who downed the shutters and assaulted her for money, has sent shock waves across India.

The immediate question asked was: where was the security guard who is mandatorily supposed to be stationed outside each bank’s ATM? If there had been a guard present, the unfortunate incident would not have occurred. The woman in question is said to have suffered a temporary paralysis on her right side, after the attack.

Taking a cue from the public’s shock and outrage over the brazen assault, ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India) commissioned a survey to check the security preparedness of bank ATMs across the country. The results were startling: there is a shortfall of nearly 1.5 lakh security guards across the country for ATM operations.

ATM“Of about 1,25,000 ATMs in the country, only 50,000 are guarded while only 1.15 lakh are covered by CCTVs. The shocking incident at Bangalore underscores the need for recruitment of security guards at expeditious speed to ensure that all the ATMs are properly guarded and equipped with security gadgets, other than CCTVs,” said DS Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM, while releasing the survey paper. “While recruitment of guards and manning all the ATMs 24/7 may be time consuming and costly, the quick answers lie in using hi-tech security gadgets like automatic alarms, improvement of camera footage and even setting up central monitoring rooms from city-to- city requiring a perfect coordination between the banks and the police authorities,” said the paper.

“At least in big cities, banks should encourage and promote use of credit cards and more and more merchandise outlets should be covered by plastic money so that the use of hard cash is reduced. This would not only help reduce security risks, but also help the economy capture the transactions and thus, reduce unaccounted money,” said Rawat.

The direct spin-offs would also be felt on the increasing demand for the private security industry which has been growing at the rate of 25 per cent in the past five to seven years, showing the significance of security installations in most manufacturing hubs. In the major installations of petroleum, petrochemicals, power (including nuclear power, steel, cement), railways, airport and seaports, the public-private-partnership is required. But the costs of securing people and vital installations are going to increase, because things cannot be left to chance any more, Rawat added.

 (Pictures courtesy www.ndtv.com, news.in.msn.com)

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Kharcha paani

Less shopping for Mumbai this year?

Survey says that the economic slowdown, job uncertainties and high interest rates are likely to dampen festive shopping this year.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

This Diwali, there is every chance of shopping malls in the city doing really thanda business. Shopping malls, which are already suffering from relatively less footfalls, are expected to see a sharp decline of 35 to 40 per cent in footfalls in the ongoing festive season as the economic slowdown, high interest and job uncertainties have dampened the shopping spirit this year. This was revealed by an ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry) survey.

The survey, titled ‘Shopping malls fail to draw footfalls this festive season’ indicated that economic slowdown, galloping inflation and interest rates have upset the festival shopping plans of all the consumers this festive season. The ASSOCHAM team interacted with about 650 leasing managers, representatives of malls’ management, strategists, marketers and supervisors in Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Ahemdabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Chandigarh and Dehradun. However, Mumbai’s shopping spirit was found to be better than that of Delhiites (33 per cent), Ahmedabad (31), Chennai (30), and Hyderabad (27).

less diwali shopping this year?Commenting on the trend, DS Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM said, “The trend is on expected lines as the economic recovery is rather slow and consumer confidence is low.”

As per the ASSOCHAM estimates, roughly 250 to 300 malls came up in the country over the last two years but 70 to 80 per cent of the spaces in these malls lie vacant. The economic slowdown has landed especially heavily on the shopping malls. The survey further reveals that the slowdown, job cuts and devaluation of the rupee against the dollar is also making imported raw material and finished goods costlier. It will also impact consumer spending in a significant way. The currency fluctuation is a major challenge for the consumer electronics industry because imported consignments come at a higher cost. The dinnerware and cookware companies have already started offering attractive offers and discounts to boost sales, adds the survey.

More than 47 per cent of the total mall space in nine cities is vacant, the survey found.  Delhi-NCR tops the list with 55 per cent of malls being vacant, followed by Mumbai at 52 per cent, Ahmedabad at 51 per cent and Chennai at 50 per cent. In order to lure retailers, many developers started giving rent-free period for up to six months for big brands.

While some malls are operating at 60 per cent occupancy, others are struggling with less than 20 per cent. “Vacancy levels are due to poor location, poor design and poor parking facilities while some are operating at 60 per cent occupancy,” the survey said. The industry is also facing problems like multiple taxes, lack of clarity in policies and shortage of experts in areas such as supply chain and store management.

Both retailers and consultants seem convinced that the mall magic seems to have disappeared in a puff of smoke on the back of the economic slowdown, poor revenue models, low footfalls-to-sales conversion and lack of special purpose malls, adds the survey.

(Pictures courtesy www.thehindubusinessline.com, news.in.msn.com)

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Kharcha paani

Mumbai will spend less this Diwali: Survey

City is second to New Delhi in probable cut in Diwali spending; inflation and shaky job situation are the reasons.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Diwali will be upon us in November, but it seems that worried Mumbaikars are practicing thrift already.

A country-wide survey conducted by ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry) and released recently reveals that this Diwali, there will be a 40 per cent cut in most households’s festive budgets, with Delhi-NCR topping the list. The survey sample includes a majority of middle and lower income families.

The reasons given for slashing their Diwali spends were: rising monthly expenses due to high inflation, less job opportunities, shrinking real wages, and staggering costs of food commodities that are commonly used during Diwali.

Titled ‘High prices dampening the festive spirit’, the survey was conducted under the aegis of ASSOCHAM and showed that over 72 per cent respondents from middle and lower middle income families would spend nearly 25 per cent of their monthly salaries on Diwali for shopping, sweets, gifting, apparel etc. Delhi-NCR is on top of the chart projecting curtailment of festive budget thanks to eroding purchasing power, while Mumbai ranks second, followed by Ahmedabad, Kolkata and Chennai.
 The survey was conducted over two months beginning August to September 2013 in major cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Chandigarh, Dehradun etc. A little over 200 persons were selected from each city on an average. 
“The skyrocketing prices of essential commodities have left the aam aadmi  hard pressed. Be it sweets, dry fruits, crackers, pulses, dairy products, fruit or vegetables, the prices have registered large increases this year compared to the Diwali of last year. Even gold, the much sought-after item during this festive season, stays in the range of Rs 30,000 per 10 gm compared to Rs 22,000 last Diwali,” said DS Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM.
The survey reveals that the high income group remains unaffected from rupee fall, double digit food inflation. However, a large number of lower and middle income groups indicate that they are finding ways to cut back spending now or indicating they will do so in the future, noted the survey. A majority of respondents said that they plan to spend fewer amounts on this festive season as the prices on average of most of the gifts and traditional Indian sweets have gone up by 55 per cent, while the value of saving has gone gown by almost 15 per cent. Revisions in interest rates by banks have also sent their EMIs soaring, further eroding their monetary power, adds the survey.
Most of the respondents plan to cut down on personal expenses or go bargain hunting to keep their festive budgets in control. Over 57 per cent of the respondents will buy only on sale or discounts, 12 per cent will buy fewer gifts and the rest 2 per cent will buy a group gift. Only a small percentage feels that festivals are the time to splurge, even as discounts remain the biggest attraction for most buyers.
Over 76 per cent of respondents said that monthly grocery bills have jumped to about Rs 7,000, compared to Rs 4,000 in the last 12 months. The prices of vegetables and bakery products have also risen in the last few months. Obviously, this will affect the Diwali celebrations. Milk, butter, sugar, dry- fruits, flour and labour charges all go into making sweets. On the other hand, dry fruit and sweets are the most expensive items in Diwali.
The survey adds that the rates of ghee, sugar, edible oils, atta and spices have also registered increases of around 25 per cent to 35 per cent during the past one year.
(All figures courtesy ASSOCHAM. Picture courtesy webylife.com)
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Kharcha paani

Bollywood comes home as rupee falls

A report on impact of sliding rupee on overseas shooting reveals that producers are opting to shoot within the country.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

That the sliding Indian rupee is causing problems to everybody is apparent, but it has taken its toll also on one of the country’s biggest industries – the film industry.

Used to shooting in exotic locales, Bollywood film producers are now wary of fixing schedules that need an overseas shooting spell. This finding comes from a report by ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry in India), which reveals that producers are now preferring to shoot within India or in less expensive foreign destinations.

“Bollywood films’ influx towards exotic foreign location has registered a significant decline to the extent of 30 to 35 per cent in the last four months due to the falling Rupee,” says the paper on ‘Weak rupee dampens spirits of Bollywood film-makers in foreign locations’. DS Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM said, “Due to a fall in the Rupee, Indian filmmakers are not just restricting their shooting outside, but are opting  [to shoot] within the country rather than going abroad. There will be more cut-down in the number of films shot abroad, especially medium or low budget films, and producers will opt for less expensive destinations in South East Asia, Middle East and South Africa.”

shooting in indiaIt turns out that spending by Indian producers to overseas locations has fallen sharply in recent months, as they are looking for cheaper options, or places offering better incentives within India. So, the influx of Indian filmmakers towards foreign locations has decreased by over 30 per cent.

“For film-makers, the cost turns out to be much higher from foreign countries mainly from USA, UK, Germany, France, Sweden, Italy, Ireland and Denmark in Europe.  Indian film producers are also reducing the number of days [of shooting] and looking to offset those costs by opting for shorter duration stays and looking at budget accommodation options,” Rawat said.

There are certainly some changes in travel patterns as a majority of filmmakers are opting for non-dollar destinations such as Sri Lanka, Dubai, Bali and Phuket, or sticking to domestic destinations such as Kashmir, Kerala and Goa, adds the ASSOCHAM paper. The paper further points out that the demand for destinations like Kashmir, Kerala, Ladakh, Goa, Himachal and Sikkim have seen a spurt in Indian filmmakers.

Over the past four months, travel costs and accommodation have gone up by around 25 to 30 per cent. The falling Rupee is definitely resulting in a slowdown in foreign location and spending abroad amongst Indian filmmakers.

(Pictures courtesy www.ifilmindia.com, www.voanews.com)

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Trends

Fine dining gets dearer as rupee falls

Sliding rupee hits imports and impacts eating out at five star hotels and restaurants. Drinks and spirits become costly, too.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

It’s not just the prices of onions that are making us cry. Rising inflation and the sliding rupee are taking away the joy of shopping or even going out over the weekend. And among those rethinking their recreational habits are the people who indulge in fine dining quite regularly.

rupee slideAs per a survey conducted by trade body ASSOCHAM (Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India), five star hotels and fine dining restaurants have registered a significant decline to the extent of 20 per cent in the last three months due to the falling rupee. Releasing the ASSOCHAM paper on ‘Weak rupee dampens spirits of fine dining restaurants’, DS Rawat, Secretary General, ASSOCHAM said, “Due to a fall in the rupee, five star hotels and fine dining restaurants are revising their menu card rates as the weak rupee pushes up prices of imported food ingredients and spirits.”

With negative market sentiments of an economic slowdown and weak rupee, the fine dine market segment may lose its sheen. The paper further highlights that the fine dining market registered a decline of over 20 per cent than last year in the major metropolitan cities like Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Chennai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.

The paper further points out, “Due to the rupee depreciating against major foreign currencies, prices of imported products have shot up by as much as 30 to 35 per cent. Some restaurants import 85 per cent of its ingredients from Japan, France, Italy and Thailand for its signature dishes.”

Rawat added that premium hotels and restaurants use imported olives, olive oils, legumes, meats like salmon, tuna steak, porkfish sushi roll pepperoni and turkey ham, Italian and French cheeses, fine wines and spirits to tickle the taste buds of Indians. Nearly 45 to 60 per cent of the food cost of specialty restaurants, depending on their cuisine, accounts for the cost of imported food products. “The rupee devaluation has majorly impacted imports, from meats and seafood to cheese and legumes. Nearly 60 per cent of the food produces at specialty restaurants are imported and does not have local substitutes here in India. As a result, restaurants are bound to revise the prices of their menus,” adds the paper.

The current size of the Indian food industry stands at Rs 2,50,000 crore per annum and is expected to grow at 12 per cent to touch a staggering Rs 4,25,000 crore by 2018. The size of the gourmet food market in India is Rs 7,500 crore, growing at a CAGR of 20 per cent. The market is expected to cross Rs 15,000 crore by 2015. The Indian gourmet food market includes fine dining restaurants, café markets as well as food retail.

The availability of imported ingredients is another factor for growing demand for fine dining restaurants. Ingredients such as truffles, artichokes, asparagus, Australian lamb and Norwegian salmon have found their way into the Indian food and beverage space. The paper also highlights that imported spirit prices increased between 7 per cent and 12 per cent in the last three months, where bars and nightclubs have also seen a similar slump.

                                                                                                                                                           (Pictures courtesy louisekwoods.wordpress.com, www.finediningindian.com, www.theunrealtimes.com)

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Trends

Young and the restless investing in realty

Majority of urban young are shying away from investing in gold and stocks, preferring real estate amidst a global slowdown.
by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

With the rupee showing further signs of a slide, and stocks and mutual funds becoming a riskier investment proposition, about 85 per cent of the urban working class is preferring to invest in real estate, finds a survey.

The survey, titled ‘Rise in demand for real estate in urban cities’ was conducted by premier industry body ASSOCHAM (Associated Chambers of Commerce) in the metros – Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata – and other cities such as Pune, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. The survey sample included directors of companies, officers/managers in Central/State bodies, teachers and self-employed professionals like lawyer, CAs, doctors, consultants, druggists and small traders. A unanimous thought to emerge from the survey was that a global slowdown and a weak rupee have started casting a shadow on stocks.

The Mumbai city skyline is seen from a s“Over 1,500 respondents felt that investments in real estate, residential and commercial properties are found to be lucrative and much safer these days as such investments are completely insured as against those in gold, stocks and mutual funds,” the survey found. “As many as 82 per cent said that real estate should be the preferred investment option compared to gold and other traditional investment instruments.

“According to them, investment in yellow metal is not as profitable as that of real estate, as they expect that gold prices to further fall. The recent fall in prices has led many to believe that funds can face increased redemption pressures because of the general change in belief that gold is a safe haven. This trend has slowly changed in the country, especially among the investment-savvy class.”

Releasing the survey on Sunday, June 30, the ASSOCHAM Secretary General, DS Rawat said, “About 78 per cent of the urban working class remain keen to park their surpluses in buying residential properties in view of better connectivity, infrastructure and basic facilities and they attach not much preference towards buying commercial properties as these properties are beyond their means which involve higher volumes of investments. On the other hand, about 22 per cent working class and professionals give preference to the commercial properties especially in tier I and tier II cities as they feel that within one or two years, prices of commercial properties will also jump up substantially to get them an attractive premium.”

The survey also revealed that the  maximum concentration of real estate investments from urban working class and professionals are seen towards residential properties in emerging tier II and III cities which include Jaipur, Bhiwadi, Rishikesh, Haridwar, Nainital, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Sonepat, Panipat, Pune, Nasik, Jaipur etc. Moreover, this is also indicative of the fact that buyers in tier II and III cities are looking for quality development and developers with proven track records are reaping the benefits on those given scale of expectations. Over 62 per cent respondents from the professionals’ lot chose real estate properties in Tier I cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, entire NCR, Hyderabad and Bangalore for maximum returns.

Expressing their opinion about the investment in stock markets, a majority of respondents felt that with global slowdown most of the corporations are rationalising the salary structure of their employees with emphasis on cost cuttings, thus dampening the spirit of investment in capital markets.

Nearly 200 respondents, however, still favour stock markets to park their funds and feel that it can give them best returns in a shorter and longer time. They expressed hope that in future, stock markets will bounce back and catch investors’ attention as usual.

As far as urban working class, the investment in gold is concerned, the survey has revealed that the fall in gold and jewellery prices have discouraged the working class to invest in it.

More than half of them said they would prefer to stay in rented apartments and instead, invest in their tier II and tier III city home town for better appreciation potential. About 78 per cent of those working professionals with double income, who bought a house in a metro city, wanted to invest in their home town for a second home.

(Pictures courtesy www.vakilhousing.com, india.nydailynews.com)

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