Sensex tumbles 405 pts on weak Re, coal block scams

 Mumbai: The BSE Sensex plunged to 2-week low of 17,196.47 Thursday, down 405 points as investors sold stocks amid weakening rupee, allegations of massive losses to the government in coal blocks allocation and shaky overseas markets.

Of the 30 Sensex scrips, 28 tumbled. All the 13 sectoral indices closed in losses, with realty, power, banking, capital goods, metal and refinery stocks being hit hard.

Market heavyweight Reliance Industries dropped 4.15 percent, and Infosys by 1.39 percent. The two carry 20 percent weight on the Sensex.

The rupee's sharp decline against the US dollar to Rs 51 level worried investors that it will inflate government's import bill, especially on account of oil, worsening fiscal deficit situation.

Besides, reminiscent of the 2G spectrum allocation scam, the Comptroller an Auditor General (CAG) said in a draft report that the government lost Rs 10.67 lakh crore on account of allotment of coal blocks to 100 private and public sector companies without auction during 2004-2009.

However, CAG later informed the Prime Minister that media reports on alleged coal scam were "exceedingly misleading".

Sensex moved in a narrow range till late afternoon, but last hour selling pulled it down sharply to 17,196.47, erasing 405.24 points or 2.30 percent. In last two days, it had risen 328.34 points or 1.90 percent.

Similarly, NSE 50-scrip index Nifty tumbled 136.50 points or 2.54 percent to two-week low of 5,228.45.

"A mix of domestic and global factors hurt investor sentiment. The leakage of a draft CAG draft report weighed markets down. The Indian rupee weakened against the US dollar further spooked sentiments," said Paras Bothra, Research Head, Ashika Stock Brokers.

Globally, European markets were trading weak, adding to investor woes, he said.

As per Sebi data, FIIs bought shares worth Rs 651.70 crore yesterday.

Asian stocks were down in early trade after a survey showed China's manufacturing has shrunk. Key indices in China, Singapore and South Korea finished with marginal losses, although Hong Kong, Japan and Taiwan ended with gains.

European markets were trading sharply lower in the afternoon. CAC (France), DAX (Germany), FTSE (UK) were down by up to 1.52 percent. The US index futures too were indicated weak opening today.

Major losers from the Sensex pack were Jindal Steel (7.26 percent), DLF (5.01 percent), Tata Steel (4.55 percent), Tata Power (4.42percent), Reliance (4.15 percent), ICICI Bank (3.84 percent), L&T (3.76 percent), SBI (3.27 percent), BHEL (3.24 percent), Hindalco (3.13 percent), Bharti Airtel (2.63 percent), HDFC Bank (2.48 percent), Bajaj Auto (2.36 percent), NTPERCENT (2.31 percent), M&M (2.19 percent), Maruti Suzuki (2.19 percent), Tata Motors (2.17 percent), Cipla (2.06 percent), ITC (1.75 percent), Sterlite (1.60 percent), Gail India (1.55 percent), HUL (1.48 percent), Infosys (1.39 percent) and Wipro (1.25 percent).

However, Coal India shot up 2.40 percent and Hero Motoco 0.48 percent.

Among the sectoral indices, the BSE-Realty fell 4.25 percent, Power - 3.62 percent, Bankex - 3.41 percent, Capital Goods - 3.37 percent, Metal - 3.29 percent, Consumer Durables - 3.15 percent, Oil&Gas - 2.74 percent, Auto - 1.89 percent and PSU - 1.48 percent.

The total market breadth turned negative as 2,019 stocks finished with losses, while 879 stocks ended with gains. The total turnover declined to Rs 2,984.72 crore from Rs 3,302.43 crore yesterday. 

PTI 

First Published: Thursday, March 22, 2012, 16:19

Springhill Group Home :Demand For Personal Care Aides Expected To Grow

As the American population grows rapidly, the field of healthcare becomes alert of the upcoming strong demand for senior healthcare providers.

Personal care providers do not really do physically invasive therapies and are not under the supervision of a nurse, there are no existing federal qualifications in place for this profession.

However, nursing aides are required by government to have certain certifications to ensure their capabilities. It is an essential measure to protect the senior population. For instance, a caregiver who is not alert may effectively endanger his charge and lead to disastrous results.

Several states do have regulations in place to address the caregiving sector. In California, each county has to keep a record of healthcare providers that consists of background checks and referrals. While in Washington, aides should have finished 75 hours of basic training and pass an exam.

However, others seem to be more focused on direct care providers in general when establishing relevant legislation. Actually, most of the elderly only needs assistance in day-to-day activities and do not need a medical professional to look after them. This is where the legislators need to address.

Creating policies that concern caregivers is essential to the long-term care policy of any country. With the growing number of elderly people, the need for safe and effective caregiving for seniors is imperative.

  

Springhill Group Home : Fake Pokemon Games Top App Store

Apple’s reputation for protecting big-time developers has suffered yet another rap as a fake Pokemon game that does not even work was approved for sale on their App Store and even managed to rank 2nd on the iTunes charts.

Considering the developer’s description of the app as ‘just like the original’ as opposed to the terrible user ratings, the whole thing is simply a scam.

The Pokemon Yellow app first appeared in the App Store of iOS this weekend and tons of users quickly jumped at the thought that Nintendo finally joined in the app sector, never mind that the developer name under the app is a certain ‘House of Anime’. Soon enough, people who bought the 99-cent app ended up disappointed as they discovered the game does not work because it’s just an unauthorized copy.

The developer, Daniel Burford aka House of Anime, also authored other questionable apps like YuGiOh+ and Digimon+. In his entries, he is claiming that ‘all copyrights and trademarks are owned by their respective owners’, obviously taking intellectual property rights lightly.

And most of the people who downloaded the game does not even know the it’s not official, which just shows how popular the Pokemon franchise is even after 10 years of being in the market and its first appearance in the Game Boy.

User reviews that rated the app with just one star and commented that the game does not do anything except display the title screen. And according to further reports from victims, it crashes on practically every device. It won’t be surprising if the game’s code only contains a bit of user interface to show that splash screen.

The scam has put into the spotlight Apple’s current approval procedures and guidelines that app developers always deem as mysterious and strict. Since a fake game passed their app review, Apple’s policy is not so thorough after all. They do not seem to perform any kind of legal or technical check prior to putting an app for sale on their iTunes

While it is understandable that Apple will not be able to do an extensive copyright search for each app submitted on them as it would be very difficult for reviewers to handle tons of submissions each day, it is also not good to just rely on complaints from copyright holders before they find out there are infringing apps on their store.

Fortunately, there are lessons to be learned from both parties involved after this incident. For one, Apple should not be lax in their security procedures that protect developers like Nintendo from scammers. Moreover, this should be a good proof for Nintendo that there is a lucrative market if they will only invest in making iOS versions of their bestsellers.

Eventually, Apple noticed all the commotion and pulled out the offending game from their store. Good thing they offered a refund for everybody who was tricked — just contact their customer service desk.

  

Springhill Group Home: Housing Prices Decline In China

Housing prices in Chinese cities has decreased while the government still curbs the property market, according to figures from their biggest real estate website last week.

China Real Estate Index System, connected with SouFun Holdings, issued an alert that property prices has last month has marked the biggest fall since September.

Prices of residential houses slip in 72 out of 100 cities surveyed by the firm in the previous month which is 12 more than in January. It basically dropped by 0.3%, according to SouFun. The average housing price is now at USD 1,390 for one square meter, compared to the rates in January.

The report from CREIS shows that the decline size is set to be even bigger in the coming months as more developers offer discounts.

According to a manager of Beijing WorldUnion Properties Consultancy, there is a possibility that the market may bottom out on the middle of the year and price declines might pick up pace. They are estimating that house prices could slide 20-30% on average this year and that the fall will affect the whole nation, including the 3rd- and 4th-tier cities that are previously less affected.

Several developers in China are permitting first-time homeowners to postpone their downpayments in order to boost their sales. Sellers did advance the 20% left, something that buyer don’t have to return for up to 3 years.

Although there has been a widespread price fall, deals in Shanghai and Beijing have rebounded in February. Despite of this, property developers are still pessimistic. While the market correction continues, several developers of property is set to alter their business portfolios to adapt in the changes.

According to the China Real Estate Index System, housing prices in 100 prime cities in China is significantly lower for the 6th consecutive month in February. This decline in housing prices has increased in February, showing that the nation’s real estate market is facing a negative outlook inspite of pressures in a cash-starved developer.

Wen Jiabao has earlier said that China will not waver on its control in the real estate sector and its efforts to reduce the prices to a more manageable level.

Housing prices is expected to continue falling in the coming months as it is becoming obvious that the government will not alter their tightening in the near future and those developers will be launching more projects. The real estate market will likely stay challenging this year but the possibility of a collapse is low while their cities prove to be resilient. 

  

Springhill Group Care Will Open Branch on South Korea

Sometime in the second quarter of this year, springhill group will open a new branch in South Korea. Springhill group Korea will provide many services in the area with new opportunities for those around. Springhill group south Korea will bring new life to the south Korean areas. There will be many career openings in the area as well as new opportunities for everyone alike. The branch will as stated earlier, become open sometime in the second quarter of this year and will expand the company by growing into a more international company. This will bring more opportunities to many areas and will increase the workforce of the company. Springhill group is a growing company and will continue to expand over the years. You can try to contact the group for more information or read about them on news sites. They are trying to expand their market so that they can bring an influence to south Korea and make it so that their company gets bigger every day. By expanding, they are offering many new jobs and careers while also trying to obtain more customers in new, international areas around the world. Opening up a branch in south Korea is a big step for this company and will influence many.