current affairs material and quiz 9

8/8/2019 Current Affairs Material and Quiz 9

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11 Pages 3RD

DECEMBER 9TH

DECEMBER 2010 www.xedintellect.com

BUSINESS NEWS

ECONOMIC INDICATORS 2 COVER STORY 3 PERSONALITIES OF THE WEEK 4 BUSINESS NEWS 5-8

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 9 MISCELLANEOUS NEWS 10 GENERAL AWARENESS 11

NEWS DIGEST

IN BRIEF

PERSONALITIES OF THE WE

Learn from

yesterday, live for

today, hope for

tomorrow..

COMPILED BY

TOP 5 INTERNATIONA

ORGANISATIONS

BSE SENSEX 19242

NSE NIFTY 5766

RS/$ 45.17

(as on 9th Dec 2010)

ECONOMICINDICATORS

India, France sign

$20bn deals

COVER STORY

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS

Dhoni signs Rs 26Cr3 year endorsementdeal with UB Group

UNIQUE IDENTITY PROJECT

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Google unveils

new smartphone,

the Nexus S

XED NEWSLETTER a weekly news bul leti n


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TOP 10 HEADLINES OF THE WEEK

1. India, France sign $20bn deals.2. Small Car, Big Trouble.3. Sebi bars 4 firms for rigging stocks.4. ITC, Godfrey Phill ips India shutter factories over warning pics.5. Kings XI Punjab owe their players Rs 28 crore for the last IPL season.6. Airlines cant gang up and fleece flyers.7. Google unveils new smartphone, the Nexus S.8. Japan's economic growth revised up.9. Dhoni signs Rs 26crore 3 year endorsement deal with Vijay Mallyas UB Group.10. IIT Kharagpur gets Rs 70 lakh job offer from Facebook for US posting.

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

What Does Fiscal Deficit Mean? There is a deficitwhen a government's total expenditures exceed therevenue that it generates. Deficit differs from debtwhich is an accumulation of yearly deficits.

The fiscal deficit can be financed by borrowing frombanks or from the Reserve Bank of India, which is alsocalled deficit financing or money creation. As can beseen from the adjoining graph deficit and borrowingare in sync.

India's fiscal deficit has risen sharply in recent yearson loan waivers for poor farmers, subsidies andstimulus packages to boost the economy. The presentfiscal deficit number is big and worrisome. The financeminister put the number at 6.9 per cent of GDP.

Fiscal deficit leads to other problems:

1)Bankers predict pressure on interest ratessaying huge borrowings will suck out liquidityresulting in reduced lending.2)The large government borrowing is expected toput pressure on interest rates.3)External borrowing by the government hasnegative effects on the balance of payments.4)On the other hand, the government borrowingfrom the domestic banking system will reducethe supply of funds available to other domesticborrowers, driving the real interest rates up.5)More capital goes to the public sector andtherefore private sector may not be able to getcapital according to its requirements.A deficit of 2-4% of GDP is manageable, but USdeficit at 10.64 slows GDP growth.

Source:http://www.moneyworks4me.com/Indias-Fiscal-Deficit-Its-Implications.html

Stock Market Indices as on 9th Dec10 Values

BSE SENSEX 19242NSE (NIFTY) 5766

Current Market Rates as on 9 th Dec10 Values

Rupee / US Dollar 45.17Rupee / Euro 60.04Rupee / Pound 71.47

Gold (10 Gram) in Rs. 20144

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COVER STORY: UNIQUE IDENTITY PROJECT

Hello Mr, 5674-PQVK- 8093: We have our passport number, ration card number, pan card number, credit cardnumber, bank account number and now welcome the mother of all numbers Unique Identity Number. The UniqueIdentification Authority of Indias (UIDAI) project AADHAAR will provide a unique number to all Indians.

UIDAI Organization: It was a pleasant surprise when Nandan Nilekani of Infosys wasappointed Chairman of UIDAI. Ram Sewak Sharma, an IAS Officer who received awards fore-Governance project implemented in Jharkhand has been appointed as the DirectorGeneral. UIDAI was established in February 2009, and will own and operate the Unique

Identification Number database. The authority would create the database containing 16kinds of data entry, photographs, all 10 fingerprints and iris scans. Twelve minutes is thetime estimated for enrolment per person. Computers for the project are designed in such away that there are screens even at the rear. A citizen can see the details being entered andcan correct at any stage. Those that opt to stay out of the system will find it very inconvenient, they will not haveaccess to facilities that require you to cite your ID number.

Panacea for all ills: Unique National IDs will help address the rigged stateelections, tax evasion, widespread embezzlement that affects subsidies andpoverty alleviation programs such as NREGA. Addressing illegal immigrationinto India and terrorist threats is another goal of the program. It can reducecorruption and bureaucratic delay. A personal ID number can hugely savehassles, time and money in our new digital age. Various identity databases(voter ID, passports, ration cards, licenses, fishing permits, border area id

cards) that already exist in India are planned to be linked to it. Indians will norequire to prove their identity to various government departments over andover again. It will streamline benefits so that they reach the right people. The

numbers will eliminate duplication and attempts to obtain fake documents. Aadhaar is different because it actuallyprovides a foundation for all the other IDs. This 12-digit number will be common to all other cards which can beauthenticated anywhere in the country, online. Aadhaar will bring them into the mainstream, and by giving them anID, make them part of an inclusive growth.

Why some fear the UID: The Aadhaar project has grave civil liberty implications. It will enablethe government to profile citizens and track their movements and transactions. The UIDs will befed into a database to be shared with Natgrid (National Intelligence Grid), which includes 11security and intelligence agencies. Natgrid will provide real-time access into 21 databasesincluding bank account details, credit card transactions, driving licences, and travel records. Anintelligence official says, "Once you feed in a person's name, you will get all the details about him,

across all the databases." These include the colour of his/her car, the traffic fines to be paid, andthe last time he/she paid by card for a late-night dinner. There is no guarantee that intimatelypersonal details pre-existing illnesses, romantic relationships, anonymous donations won't beshared with other agencies.

Data Theft: All kinds of supposedly secure databases including those of India's defence ministry and the Pentagonhave been hacked. Data theft and transfer to intelligence agencies or corporations have potentially horrendousconsequences. That is one reason why many countries including the UK, US and Australia have abandoned national IDcards.

Projected costs: According to reports, UID's per person cost is estimated to have jumped from Rs 31 to between Rs450 and Rs 500. One estimate of the cost to completely roll-out National IDs to all Indian residents above the age o18 has been placed at 150,000 crore. This is astronomical for a scheme with dubious benefits.

Biometric issues: Human bodies and the features on them aren't necessarily constant over timePeople with low-quality fingerprints (construction workers) and with cataract/corneal problems canpose problems for fingerprints and iris scans. Between 10 and 60 million people could be excludedfrom UID due to such errors.

How about a single all pupose number: A liberal democracy like the USA gives everyone what is politely called asocial security number but is actually an identity number. Even the US system is an obsolete one designed for a non-digital age. India should leap-frog to a superior system tailored to the internet era. Why quote your social securitynumber in order to get another number for your bank account or credit card? In India, we get separate numbers forour bank account, ration card, passport, driving licence, credit card, inome tax PAN, voting registration and so on.This uncoordinated identification system makes for lots of duplication, paperwork and hassle. Why not have one singlenumber for all purposes?

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BUSINESS NEWS

1. India, France sign $20bn deals-TNN Dec 07

India and France on Monday unveiled plans for deals worth nearly $20 billion, almosttwice the amount signed during US President Barack Obama's visit. The majoagreements signed during the four-day visit of French President Nicolas Sarkozy includea pact between French Energy major Areva and state-run Nuclear Power Corporation ofIndia Ltd (NPCIL) for the supply of two nuclear reactors and fuel for 25 years. The deal isworth 7 billion euros ($9.3 billion).

Air India and Jet Airways signed agreements to lease aircraft from Airbus at an estimatedcost of about $3.7 billion. Areva, which signed an agreement for the construction of two nuclear reactors and supplyof fuel with NPCIL, is open to the idea of the Indian public sector company investing in its mines, CEO AnneLauvergeon said. Areva owns uranium mines in Niger, Kazakhstan, Canada, Australia, South Africa and Mongoliaamong other countries.

2. SMALL CAR, BIG TROUBL-ET Dec 03THE Tata Nano was a small car that was expected to deliver big numbers but 15months after a high-profile launch, it has encountered trouble at every turn threeinstances of the car going up in flames and a few cases of smoke emanating from it,confusion about its positioning, a rather unexpected bunch of affluent initial buyers,poor distribution reach, and financing bottlenecks. Nanos sales have dipped from 9,000units in July to 3,000 in October to just a little over 500 in November.

An ET reporter who visited Sanand on Tuesday met workers at the industrial zone whosaid production of the Nano has come to a near standstill; the number of workers there has decreased by 80% in thelast month. Many dealers say they have not picked up any fresh stock during the last two months as they were tryingto sell existing cars.

3. Sebi bars 4 firms for rigging stocks-ET Dec 03THE Securities & Exchange Board of India, or Sebi, has unearthed a nexus betweensome mid-cap companies and stock market operators who rigged the share prices ofthese firms ahead of convertible bond issues and private placements to institutionainvestors.

Late on Thursday, the regulator barred the promoter groups of Murli Industries,Ackruti City, Welspun Corporation and Brushman India from dealing in their shares

till further notice, for colluding with share trader Sanjay Dangi and his associates, and the Ashika Group in rigging the

stock price of their respective companies.

4. ITC, Godfrey Phillips India shutter factories over warning pics-ET Dec 03The countrys sprawling tobacco market will, in all likelihood, be thrown out of gear in the absenceof clarity from the Union health ministry about the type of pictorial warnings that need to bedepicted on all such products sold from December 1. Cigarette majors, including ITC and GodfreyPhillips India (GPI), have stopped production at all their manufacturing units in the country.

ITC, which makes brands like Insignia, India Kings, Classic, Gold Flake, Silk Cut, Navy Cut,Capstan, Scissors, Berkeley, Bristol and Flake, has stopped production at all its factories, includingthose at Munger, Khidderpore, Saharanpur and Bangalore. We had to stop production of cigarettes because there isno clarity in the pictorial warning which we will have to carry post-December 1, an ITC spokesman said.

5. Kings XI P unjab owe their players Rs 28 crore for the last IPL season-TNN Dec 07

Kings XI Punjabs owners, who have moved the Bombay high court in a desperate bid to get theirtermination order from the Indian Premier League rescinded, could now face more heat, this timefrom within. The franchise, owned by Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia and Mohit Burman among others,has not yet cleared the dues of its payers including big names like Yuvraj Singh and Irfan Pathan.

Sources said that Yuvraj was initially paid Rs 1 crore in August but he is still awaiting theremainder, which amounts to more than Rs 3 crore. Sources said the Indian cricket board hasraised the issue with Kings, but the latter have first demanded their share of income from IPLscentral revenue before paying the players. In their high court petition against BCCI, Kings havegiven an undertaking that they will pay the players as soon as the BCCI pays us for IPL-3. Kings

owners say the BCCI owes them Rs 22 crore for IPL-3.

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6. Airlines cant gang up and fleece flyers-TNN Dec 03The stage is set for the first-ever showdown between the government and greedyairlines over the issue of passengers being fleeced. The aviation ministry has refused toaccept the high maximum fares submitted by carriers on Wednesday in the price rangesgiven for domestic flights. Aviation minister Praful Patel told TOI that the matter could bereferred to the Competition Commission of India if airlines don't charge reasonable fares.While the ministry and the DGCA have taken a tough stance on the issue of soaring fares,industry insiders have questioned the authority under which they were doing so.

Airlines say passengers will get reasonable fares if they book in advance. The DGCA is

also learnt to be probing if fictitious bookings are taking place to manipulate fare movement.

7. India Inc brings out the goodies: Bonuses seen hitting 200%-ET Dec 07

With economic recovery well on its way, companies are again getting ready to open their pursestrings and pamper employees with Christmas and New Year bonuses and goodies. Top companiesacross sectors FMCG, consumer durables, IT, financial services, pharma and automobiles areproviding, not just generous payouts around this time but also showering employees with gifts,offers of free holidays or even flying in overseas employees so they can spend the holiday seasonwith their families. Its a way to both reward and retain their top performers.

Last year, Samsung had declared a bonus of 200% of the basic salary for employees, so this yearthey are expecting something similar. Apart from monetary incentives, some companies like Ange

Broking, for instance, plans to offer its top performers a four-five day holiday to destinations like Thailand, Malaysiaand even Switzerland with their spouse.

8. India to have N-triad in 2 yrs, says navy chief-TNN Dec 03

Only three countriesthe US, Russia and Chinaare said to have fully-operational nuclear weapon triadsthe capability to fire nuclear-tipped missilesfrom land, air and sea. India is all set to gatecrash this highly-exclusive club by2012. Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma said the triad would be complete onceits crucial underwater leg, the country's first indigenous nuclear submarine,aptly named INS Arihant or the destroyer of enemies, is commissioned in late 2011 or early 2012.

The statement comes a day after WikiLeaks revealed that American and European diplomats were alarmed aboutPakistan's production of nuclear weapons. Estimates show that Pakistan has around 70 to 90 warheads, higher thanIndia's 60 to 80.

9. Stamps to lose all their authority in 2 years-ET Dec 04

IT MAY not ring a bell for a generation fed on emails and SMSes, but those who grew up sendingand receiving letters and greetings will take note: paper stamps will be replaced by an electronicversion in another two years. Licking and sticking will be a thing of the past with India Posdeciding to use e-stamps for all its commercial services, including post cards, inland letters andregistered post across the country, 156 years after British East India Company introduced thecountrys first stamp featuring Queen Victoria.

The postal department is working with US-based consulting firm Accenture to prepare a detailed modernization planthat includes shifting to the e-stamp system, which is already in place in several developed countries. India Post,employing 5 lakh people in more than 1.5 lakh post offices, is the largest postal service in the world. The move wilhelp save printing costs and also help the department tackle the menace of forged paper stamps, which is rampant inseveral states, the official said, requesting anonymity.

10. RBI tells banks to go for foreign buys-TOI Dec 04

Reserve Bank of India Governor Duvvuri Subbarao has revived the debate on global acquisitionsby Indian banks, after a two year hiatus, suggesting that local lenders would be able to pick upsome valuable firms from the global financial wreckage. The governor tempered the likelyeuphoria, saying that banks should be opportunistic in buying in regions with business potentialand at attractive valuations, which would come with associated risk. He neither specified theregions nor valuation parameters.

The need for global expansion of Indian banks is necessitated by the rising aspirations of domestic companies to buyup assets as also rising trade with other emerging markets such as Indonesia and African nations. On treatment oforeign banks in India, he left the door wide open, saying the soon-to-be-released discussion paper would address itbut said mandating incorporation of subsidiaries alone is not necessarily the safest net.

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11. Parle surges ahead of Britannia to become leader in the Indian b iscuit market-ET Dec 06Indians Spend More On Cookies Than On Toothpastes, Skin-Care Products, Shampoos AndInstant Noodles Put Together. Parle 45% share surges ahead of Britannia 38% share to becomeleader in the Indian biscuit market as Indians spent `11,295 cr on biscuits. Parle surges aheadof Britannia to become leader in the Indian biscuit market more than on toothpastes, skin-careproducts, shampoos and instant noodles put together, and Parle Products has surged ahead oBritannia Industries to become a clear leader in the 11,000-crore-plus market, say Nielsen data.

In the first half of the current financial year, it has already spent 6,320 crore on biscuits,according to The Nielsen Company, the countrys largest market researcher. The largest piece of

this big and growing cookie now belongs to Parle Products. The Mumbai-based, 5,000-crorecompany, promoted by Vijay and Sharad Chauhan, has close to 45% share of the biscuits

market while Nusli Wadias Britannia Industries has about 38% share..

12. Investors likely to veto Hero-Honda deal terms-ET Dec 06

A number of institutional investors are set to join hands to oppose the sale of shares byJapanese auto maker Honda to its Indian joint venture partnerthe Hero groupat a discount tothe current market price, fearing that the Indian promoters will compensate the worlds fifth-largest automobile company by upping the percentage of sales they pay as royalty.Royalty refers to payments for technology. Honda, the worlds largest maker of motorcycles, willcontinue providing technology support to the Hero group even after the joint venture comes toan end. Aberdeen Asset Management, which owns 5.14% in the company, is its largestinstitutional shareholder. Honda Motors is close to selling its stake in Hero Honda to the Munjals,

snapping a 25-year partnership with the Delhi-based group.

13. IRS 2010 Q3: Top 10 magazines continue to decline in total readership-Afaqs! Dec 03

Three magazines -- Pratiyogita Darpan, India Today (Englishand Malayala Manorama (Weekly) -- in the top 10 magazineslist show gains in average issue readership. The latest quarterof IRS continues to spell bad news for the magazine sector inthe country. Pratiyogita Darpan is the only magazine in the top10 list to register growth in total readership (TR) in IRS 2010Q3. The Hindi-language monthly magazine is also one of thethree publications that have recorded an increase in theaverage issue readership (AIR) figures in this quarter.

Kumudam, which had replaced Saras Salil in IRS 2010 Q1

continues to enjoy the No. 1 position in total readership. The Hindi magazine, as per TR, has lost 11,000 readers sincethe time it was first displaced from its numero uno position in IRS 2010 Q1.

14. Walt Disney lines up six regional movies-BS Dec 02The Walt Disney Company (India) is lining up six regional movies across various genresfor Indian screens. These movies were in various stages of development, said SwatiShetty, executive director (theatrical productions and acquisitions), Walt Disney StudiosInternational Production (India).

Speaking to Business Standard on the sidelines of the Federation of Indian Chambers ofCommerce & Industrys (Ficcis) Media and Entertainment Business Conclave 2010 hereon Thursday, Shetty said Disney was looking at various genres. Storytelling is at the heart of Disneys heritage andthe new slate of releases will be of stories that will stay true to the Disney brand. You may see a slice-to-slice film likeDo Dooni Chaar ,fantasy or adventure or an out-and-out comedy, she said, while declining to disclose any time frame

for these releases.

15. Volkswagen says huge demand for Polo, Vento-ET Dec 07

German car-maker, Volkswagen sold 4,613 units of Polo and Vento in November. Itinvested 3800cr till date and will ramp production at Chakan, Pune to reduce waitingperiod of two to three months. It sold over 26,000 units across models from January-November this year.

The company has invested up to Rs 3,800 crore in India so far. The company currentlyoffers compact cars Beetle and Polo, premium sedans Phaeton, Passat and Jetta, sportsutility vehicle Touareg and the mid-size sedan Vento in the country.

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16. Cheer for consumers as SBI hikes deposit rates sharply-TNN Dec 07In a move that will cheer millions of depositors, State Bank of India on Monday announced a50-150 basis point increase in deposit rates, effective Tuesday, as part of a strategy to garnermore fixed deposits. The sharpest increase is in the shorter maturity basket of 46-90 days,where the rate has been increased by 150 basis points (100 basis points make a percentagepoint) to 5.50%. The peak rate of 8.75% will be available in the 8-10 year basket.

With others like Bank of India also increasing deposit rates, retail depositors can look forwardto their returns getting back into positive territory. When the rate of inflation is higher thanthe interest earned, the real rate of return is negative. The other good news is that SBI and BoI have left lending

rates unchanged for the time being.

17. Auto fuels set to cost 2/ L more as crude hits $90-ET Dec 08

Oil companies plan to raise petrol and diesel prices by 2 a litre after a week as crudetouched a two-year high of $90 a barrel on Tuesday, a move that will boost thefinances of state-run firms but stoke inflation. Crude oil has risen about 18% sinceJune 26, when the government last raised diesel prices and allowed public sector firmsIndianOil (IOC), Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum, which control 90% of theretail fuel market in India, to fix petrol rates themselves. Petrol prices have risen fourtimes since then.

Oil industry analysts and fund managers say the governments ad hoc policies oncompensating oil firms for retail losses are a dampener for the follow-on public offer

which is expected to dwarf Coal Indias mega issue. Any increase in fuel prices would stoke inflation as diesel powers

trucks that transport more than two-thirds of goods in India. A rise in inflation expectations can delay monetaryeasing by the central bank, forcing it to raise rates further to cool prices.

18. Effies 2010: JWT spells out how Gods feel insecure-Afaqs! Dec 07On Day Two of the case study presentations, JWT made a fair case for its campaign Even GodsFeel Insecure for Birla Sun Life Insurance that aimed at rattling optimistic, secure consumersinto comprehending the salience of life insurance. The aim of the campaign for Birla Sun LifeInsurance was to make consumers think 'If Gods can feel insecure - what about me?' andconsequently realise the importance of insurance in their lives. Thus, the idea was to portraysuccessful and wealthy individuals feeling insecure about their future.

Cricketers Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh were selected as the two main 'Gods' who would spell out theiinsecurities on screen. Firstly, because both players belong to a sports field that is equated with a religion in India andwould hence have that kind of 'God' status in the minds of the target audience. Secondly, cricket, as a career, is more

uncertain than other regular ones as it has everything to do with a player's consistency. It's a sport in which wealthand fame are a function of performance and stand a chance of coming crumbling down in an instant. Thirdly, bothSingh and Sehwag had experienced the roller coaster of success and had faced unmatched fame as well as bad times.

19. French President Sarkozy eyes civil nuclear deal with I ndia-Indiatoday Dec 06French President Nicolas Sarkozy came India-calling on Saturday on a four-day visit hoping tomix business with pleasure. And he seemed to be doing both in equal measure while keepingboth New Delhi and First Lady Carla Bruni happy.

The real reason for his coming to India is business, specifically the sale of French nucleareactors. Sarkozy praised nuclear technology as the answer to global warming in the context oongoing Cancun talks. France already produces 62,000 megawatts of nuclear energy annuallymeeting 80 per cent of its electricity needs. The EPR, which the French claim to be the best, is anew technology with one each being built in France and Finland and two in China. The 2008 dea

come after Sarkozy's became the chief guest to the 2008 Republic Day.

20. GSM players joust w ith dual tech-ET Dec 07A fresh controversy has erupted between GSM operators such as Bharti Airtel and so-calleddual technology companies such as Tata Teleservices and Reliance Communications overthe number of active customers on their networks, escalating an ongoing verbal slugfestover recent allegations by Tata Group Chairman Ratan Tata that GSM operators were

hoarding spectrum. Using unusually harsh language, Indias largest telco by bothcustomers and revenues, Bharti Airtel, along with Aditya Birla-promoted Idea Cellular saidthe regulators latest data, which captures the number of active customers on mobilenetworks, nails the canards and lies spread by a particular set of telecom operators.

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INTERNATIONAL NEWS

21. Google unveils new smartphone, the Nexus S-TOI Dec 07

Internet giant Google unveiled its second branded smartphone on Monday, the "Nexus S"made by South Korea's Samsung. Google said the Nexus S, which comes nearly a yeaafter the Nexus One, which was a critical success if not a huge commercial hit, is poweredby the latest version of Google's Android mobile operating system, "Gingerbread."

Google vice president of engineering Andy Rubin said the Nexus S would be the firstAndroid device to ship with the new version of the Android platform, used by handset

makers around the world. It will be available in the United States from December 16 from Best Buy stores and fromDecember 20 at Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy retailers in Britain, Rubin said in a blog post.

22. Japan's economic growth revised up-BBC Dec 09Japan's economy expanded faster than initially estimated between July and Septemberthanks to higher corporate spending, official figures have shown. The economy grew byan annualized rate of 4.5%, compared with the previous estimate of 3.9% announcedlast month. Despite the upgrade, economists remain cautious about the economicoutlook in Japan, which is suffering from a strong yen and falling prices. Last month, thegovernment passed a $61bn (39bn) stimulus package. This, the latest in a series ofstimulus measures, is designed to boost the country's fragile economic recovery.

Economists attribute the relatively strong growth posted in the third quarter to one-offfactors, such as sales of green cars before the end of government subsidies and smokers

buying cigarettes before a tax rise. A drop in demand in the US, Europe and China has hit exports that are alreadyunder pressure from the high value of the yen, which makes exports more expensive to overseas customers.

23. Mobile phone roaming fees 'unjustifiably high', EU says-BBC Dec 08The EU wants to get mobile roaming charges down to the same level as domestic callsPhone companies are maintaining "unjustifiably high margins" on charges for using mobileswhile abroad, the European Commission has said. It imposed a cap on the cost of calls, textsand data downloads this summer.

The European Commission wants firms to remove the difference between roaming andnational tariffs by 2015. The Commission has asked for suggestions on how to improvematters and is seeking the views of consumers and businesses on how to reach its target ofa flat charge for phone usage within the 27-EU countries. The target applies to prices forvoice calls, text and data services.

24. Microsoft plans to ramp up browser privacy-Reuters Dec 08

Microsoft Corp plans to give users of its new Internet browser the ability to stop certain sites fromgathering information from users as the company looks to head off federal online privacylegislation. The opt-in feature, called "tracking protection", is based on technology developed forMicrosoft's current browser. It was downplayed as the world's largest software company tried tobalance consumers' demands for privacy with advertisers' desire to gather data about users.

There is growing concern over websites and advertisers using technology to track sites on theInternet to build up profiles of users, generally without their knowledge or explicit consent. Last week the U.S. FederalTrade Commission backed creation of a "do not track" option that would limit advertisers' ability to collect consumers'data online. Users can build their own lists of sites to block, or subscribe to lists prepared by outside sources. The newfeature will be included in IE9. Microsoft's browser has about 60 percent market share.

25. UK trade deficit widens as imports rise-BBC Dec 09The UK's goods exports hit a four-year high in October. The UK's trade deficit in goods andservices widened in October, the latest official figures from the Office for National Statistics(ONS) have shown. The goods trade deficit widened by 0.1bn to 8.5bn, while the servicestrade surplus was unchanged at 4.6bn.

The UK's imports of goods in October were the highest since records began in 1992, the datashowed. Driven by the imports of chemicals from other European Union nations, total goodsimports rose 3.4% from September to 31.6bn. Exports of goods also rose, up 4.1% to 23.1bnthe highest level since May 2006. The growth in the UK's goods exports was led by North Sea oil.

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MISCELLANEOUS NEWS

26. Dhoni signs Rs 26crore 3 year endorsement deal with Vijay Mallyas UB Group-ET Dec 04

MS Dhoni is the new king of good times. Dhoni has signed a three-year endorsement dealwith the countrys largest spirit maker for Rs 25-26 crore with Vijay Mallyas UB Group,valued at more than Rs 8 crore a year. India is co-hosting the world cup along with Sri Lankaand Bangladesh. Dhoni, who led India to victory in the 2007 World Twenty20 championship,was rated the world's highest paid cricketer by Forbes magazine last year ahead of masterbatsman Sachin Tendulkar . The Indian captain had earned $10 million last year.

Before the UB deal, Dhonis most expensive deal was with Reebok for close to Rs 29-30 crorefor a 5-year period, which makes it about Rs 6 crore a year. He is associated with 22 brandsincluding footwear and apparel major Reebok, beverages and snacks company PepsiCo, realestate group Amrapali, telecom company Aircel and Future groups Big Bazaar retailchain. He had been also associated with UBs rival spirits maker Pernod Ricard India.

27. II T Kharagpur gets Rs 70 lakh job offer from Facebook for US posting-TOI Dec 04Facebook on Friday recruited one of its addicts from India. The website, which recently logged its 500millionth active citizen, made an offer of about Rs 70 lakh for a posting in the United States, whichhas created a buzz on all IIT campuses where annual placements are on. In the last three days, noother company, domestic or foreign, has come close to offering this kind of a compensation package.

On the offer letter, officials from IIT-Kharagpur said Facebook offered a starting salary of $90,000, arelocation bonus of $10,000 and a one-time signing amount of $25,000 to the 21-year-old from

Jamshedpur.

28. China to award own peace prize ahead of Nobel award-Reuters Dec 08

China will award its answer to the Nobel Peace Prize a day before it is bestowed uponjailed Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, giving the "Confucius Peace Prize" to a former Taiwanvice-president. The newly created Confucius prize, named after the ancient Chinesephilosopher the Communist Party has recently co-opted as its own, was suggested in anopinion piece in the popular tabloid the Global Times three weeks ago.

Lien Chan won out over five other nominees: Nobel Peace Prize winners Mahmoud Abbasand Nelson Mandela, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Chinese poet Qiao Damo and theChinese-appointed Panchen Lama, Tibetan Buddhism's second-most important figure. "Lien Chan stood out from thesix nominees as he built a bridge of peace between Taiwan and the (Chinese) mainland.

29. Indian economic grow th to overtake China's in ten years: Roubini-Reuters Dec 03In the next few years, it is possible that the growth of India might surpass that of China, withIndia maintaining a close to double-digit growth, while China might slow down to eight percent or so, said a Business Standard report on Friday quoting Roubini.

Roubini, who is known for his prediction of global financial crisis, said that Indias increasingdependence on domestic demand for economic growth has a distinct advantage over China, asthe worlds second largest economy mainly depends on exports. India faces challenges in

dealing with the structural problems that lead to high inflation, he said.

30. The Indian who claims to be the face of FacebookTOI Dec 04Meet Divya Narendra, has been featured in The Social Network ,son of an Indian immigrantdoctor couple in the US, who is involved in a courtroom battle with the worlds youngestbillionaire and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg. I spent almost one year developing the concept

and searching for programmers (along with the Winklevoss twins) to build what was then calledHarvard-Connection.com (a social network for Harvard students which was to expand to otherschools). When I heard about Mark Zuckerberg for the first time in the fall of 2003, he seemedlike a natural fit to join our team. Three months later, Facebook launched and all the time andeffort I had put into my vision had been taken away, Narendra told ET.

He is now pursuing a dual law and business degree at Northwestern Law School and the Kellogg School ofManagement, besides being the co-founder CEO of SumZero, a social network for top investors to shareideas. Facebook is not on the top of his mind. It is SumZero, a company inspired by Wikipedia. SumZero already hasmore than 4,400 analysts and portfolio managers from around the world sharing ideas and is now making oneinvestment recommendation per week from its community available to the public, he says.

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TOP 5 INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS

1. The United Nations: The UN is an international organization made up of 192member countries established in 1945 and headquartered at New York City. Iwas found after World War II to replace the League of Nations, to stop warsbetween countries, and to provide a platform for dialogue. It contains multiplesubsidiary organizations like UNESCO, IMF, WHO and UNICEF to carry out itsmissions. The pursuit of human rights was a central reason for creating the UNThe Assembly regularly takes up human rights issues. It is an internationaorganization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law,

international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, andachievement of world peace.

2. The World Trade Organisation: WTO is an international organization which supervise a large number oagreements defining the "rules of trade" between its member countries. It was created on 1 January 1995 to replacethe General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which was a series trade treaties aimed to abolish internationatrade barriers. The WTO has 153 members, representing more than 97% of total world trade.The WTO operates on a one country, one vote system, but actual votes have never been taken. Decision making isgenerally by consensus, and relative market size is the primary source of bargaining power. The WTO has two basicfunctions: as a negotiating forum for discussions of new and existing trade rules, and as a trade dispute settlementbody. The organization is currently endeavoring to persist with a trade negotiation called the Doha DevelopmenAgenda, which was launched in 2001 to enhance equitable participation of poorer countries which represent a majorityof the world's population.

3. The World Bank: The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance todeveloping countries around the world. It was established in 1944, is headquartered inWashington, DC and has more than 10,000 employees in more than 100 offices worldwide.Although World Bank and IMF, both are based in Washington, D.C., the World Bank is headedby an American, while the IMF is led by a European. It is not a bank in the common sense; itis made up of two unique development institutions owned by 187 member countries: theInternational Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the InternationaDevelopment Association (IDA).

The World Bank has a stated goal of reducing poverty and to help people help themselves and their environment byproviding resources, sharing knowledge, building capacity and forging partnerships in the public and private sectorsBy law, all of its decisions must be guided by a commitment to promote foreign investment, international trade andfacilitate capital investment. Some critics also claim that the World Bank has consistently pushed a neoliberal agendaimposing policies on developing countries which have been damaging, destructive andanti-developmental.

4. World Health Organisation: WHO is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN)that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on April 7,1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. The WHO's constitution states that itsobjective "is the attainment by all people of the highest possible level of health. Its majortask is to combat disease, especially key infectious diseases, and to promote the generalhealth of the people of the world. In addition to its work in eradicating disease, the WHOalso carries out various health-related campaigns for example, to boost theconsumption of fruits and vegetables worldwide and to discourage tobacco use. After over two decades of fighting thedisease, WHO declared in 1980 that smallpox had been eradicated the first disease in history to be eliminated by

human effort.

5. Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries: OPEC is an oligopoly. It is apermanent, intergovernmental Organization, created at the Baghdad Conference on

September 1014, 1960, by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. OPEC'sobjective is to co-ordinate and unify petroleum policies among Member Countries, in ordeto secure fair and stable prices for petroleum producers; an efficient, economic andregular supply of petroleum to consuming nations; and a fair return on capital to thoseinvesting in the industryOPEC is a swing producer and its decisions have had considerable influence oninternational oil prices. For example, in the 1973 energy crisis OPEC refused to ship oil towestern countries that had supported Israel in the Yom Kippur War or 6 Day War, whichIsrael had fought against Egypt and Syria.

Changes in the value of the dollar against other world currencies affect OPEC's decisions on how much oil to produceFor example, when the dollar falls relative to the other currencies, OPEC-member states receive smaller revenues inother currencies for their oil, causing substantial cuts in their purchasing power.

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CURRENT AFFAIRS QUIZ

1. When government's total expenditures exceed the revenue that it generates, then it is financially termedas_____________-

a. Annual Debtb. Fiscal Debtc. Fiscal Defecitd. Annual Defecit

2. Accumulation of yearly deficits is called as __________.

a. Creditb. Debtc. Fiscal Defecitd. Depression

3. Deficit financing is also known as ___________.a. Lendingb. Reservingc. Debt Creationd. Money creation

4. Which of the following have not contributed to sharp rise in the fiscal deficit of India in recent years?a. loan waiversb. subsidies

c. Rise in GDPd. stimulus packages

5. External borrowing by the government has ________effects on the balance of payments.a. Positiveb. Negativec. No effectd. minimum

6. Which of the following countries do not have Fiscal Deficit less than India.a. Russiab. Chinac. U.S.d. S. Korea

7. The Unique Identification Authority of Indias (UIDAI) is working on project which will provide a uniquenumber to all Indians. The project is named as _____________

a. ASTITVAb. PARICHAYc. PEHCHANd. AADHAAR

8. The Unique Identification Authority of Indias (UIDAI), is creating Unique Identification Number database foall Indians. The authority would create the database which will contain 16 kinds of data entry, photographs, al10 fingerprints and ________ of a person.

a. Iris Scanb. Retina Imagec. Brain Scan

d. Medical History

9. What is unique about the computers which will be used for UIDA's database collection? They have____.a. 3 inbuilt camerasb. Latest technologyc. Screens at the reard. Small size

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10. What is one of the most important reason because of which many countries including the UK, US and Australiahave abandoned national ID cards?

a. Biometric issuesb. Huge Costingc. Data Theftd. Huge Population

11. Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam the former President and world renowned scientist has a inclination towards writing andmusic. Which one of the following books is not written by him?

a. 'India 2020 : A vision for the New Millennium'b. 'Wings of Fire : an Autobiography'c. 'Ignited Minds unleashing the power within India'd. A Deccan Odyssey

12. One of the Dr. Kalam's writing was translated in english under the name My Journey". This book was acollection of:

a. Scientific Discoveriesb. Poemsc. Short Storiesd. His varied experiences as President of India.

13. Captain Gopinath who has proved his entrepreneurship skills many times by venturing into different sectorsIn which one of the following sectors he never ventured?

a. Sericultureb. Vehicle Dealershipc. Low cost Carriersd. Hotel Industry

14. WTO was creating in1995 to replace ___________, which was a series trade treaties aimed to abolishinternational trade barriers.

a. General Agreement on Tariffs and Tradeb. Breton Woods Systemc. "Land of Punt"d. General Agreements of International Trade

15. Which international organization supervises agreements defining the "rules of trade" between its membecountries?

a. UNESCOb. WTOc. World Bankd. ILO

16. WTO is an international organization which supervise a large number of agreements defining the "rules otrade" between its member countries. Which of the following is not a function of World Trade Organization(WTO)?

a. negotiating forum for discussions of new and existing trade rules,b. trade dispute settlementc. enhance equitable participation of poorer countries in International traded. Eradicating Poverty

17. Which of the following organization is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing

countries around the world?a. IMFb. IDAc. WTOd. IBRD

18. Which specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) that acts as a coordinating authority on internationapublic health is headquartered in Geneva?

a. WHOb. UNESCOc. UNICEFd. IDA

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19. "After over two decades of continuous efforts of WHO, which one of the following disease has been eradicatedfor the first time in the history?

a. Plagueb. Polioc. Chicken Poxd. Smallpox

20. Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) the permanent, intergovernmental Organizationcreated in september1960, by Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. What was the name of the

conference in which OPEC was created?a. Doha Conferenceb. Geneva conferencec. Baghdad Conferenced. Istanbul Conference

21. Who amongst the following cricketers has signed a three-year endorsement deal with the countrys largesspirit maker for Rs 25-26 crore with Vijay Mallyas UB Group, valued at more than Rs 8 crore a year?

a. Yuvraj Singhb. Sachin Tendulkarc. Gautam Gambhird. MS Dhoni

22. Which one of the following countries is co-hosting the world cup 2011 along with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh?

a. Indiab. Australiac. Englandd. South Africa

23. Who amongst the following cricketers was rated the world's highest paid cricketer by Forbes magazine lasyear ahead of master batsman Sachin Tendulkar?

a. Andrew Flintoffb. MS Dhonic. Ricky Pontingd. Sourav Ganguly

24. Which one of the following companies unveiled its second branded smartphone the "Nexus S" made by SouthKorea's Samsung?

a. Googleb. Applec. Microsoftd. IBM

25. A small car that was expected to deliver big numbers but 15 months after a high-profile launch, it hasencountered trouble at every turn three instances of the car going up in flames and a few cases of smokeemanating from it. Here we are talking about which one of the following cars?

a. Ritzb. Nanoc. Briod. i10

ANSWER KEY:

Q. A. Q. A. Q. A. Q. A. Q. A.

1 C 6 C 11 D 16 D 21 D

2 B 7 D 12 B 17 C 22 A

3 D 8 A 13 D 18 A 23 B

4 C 9 C 14 A 19 D 24 A

5 B 10 C 15 B 20 C 25 B

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