Consulting and outsourcing firm Capgemini has laid off nearly 100 employees at its Chennai centre.
The pink slips were issued for employees mostly in the middle management positions. This comes on the back of reports that said Capgemini sacked 600 employees in Hyderabad and Pune. The company has nearly 20,000 people working in India.
An employee said the layoff across centers was because of the overall economic slowdown, which was impacting the company’s project flow and clients.
“While some clients have ramped down on the size of contracts, other projects, like the Lehman Brothers account closed after the company’s collapse. Apart from the middle management, some employees on probation were also asked to leave,” said the employee at one of the company’s locations, who did not wish to be named.
When contacted, Capgemini India’s chief people officer Cyprian D’Souza said through an email, “India is central to our global delivery model and we are in the process of mapping our existing skills with the business in hand and the business outlook. The economic condition is tough and no company is immune to its effects.”
D’Souza added that the industry was seeing an overhaul within all the affected verticals. “The process though tough, has to be undertaken to align our business with global economic realities, optimise operational efficiency, ensure financial health and enable future growth.”
For the first quarter of 2009, Capgemini group posted consolidated revenues of Euro 2,205 million, up 0.9 per cent compared with the year-ago period.
Agencies
Showing posts with label economic slowdown. Show all posts
Showing posts with label economic slowdown. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
ING cuts 750 jobs due to economic slowdown
Dutch financial services group ING Groep NV will cut 750 jobs, or 7 percent of its US workforce, as part of a global programme to cope with the economic slowdown, ING spokesmen said on Tuesday.
"As many companies in the United States we need to align operations with market conditions," ING spokesman Dana Ripley said. US companies such as Bank of America Corp have announced job cuts in the past few months to deal with slowing business activity and the U.S. Labor Department said last week that employers cut payrolls by 524,000 in December.
ING will cut the jobs during the first quarter across all its U.S. banking and insurance operations and it will also not fill 170 vacancies in the United States, Ripley said. ING currently has about 11,000 US employees people and a total global workforce of 130,000.
The US job cuts are part of a global initiative to bring costs and operations in line with market conditions as ING said in November, ING spokesman Raymond Vermeulen said. He declined to say if there could be job cuts outside the United States. ING posted a third quarter loss of 478 million euros ($635.6 million) due to 1.5 billion euros of impairments, making it ING's first quarterly loss ever.
Agencies
"As many companies in the United States we need to align operations with market conditions," ING spokesman Dana Ripley said. US companies such as Bank of America Corp have announced job cuts in the past few months to deal with slowing business activity and the U.S. Labor Department said last week that employers cut payrolls by 524,000 in December.
ING will cut the jobs during the first quarter across all its U.S. banking and insurance operations and it will also not fill 170 vacancies in the United States, Ripley said. ING currently has about 11,000 US employees people and a total global workforce of 130,000.
The US job cuts are part of a global initiative to bring costs and operations in line with market conditions as ING said in November, ING spokesman Raymond Vermeulen said. He declined to say if there could be job cuts outside the United States. ING posted a third quarter loss of 478 million euros ($635.6 million) due to 1.5 billion euros of impairments, making it ING's first quarterly loss ever.
Agencies
Saturday, December 27, 2008
Caretel Infotech hires 600 people for BPO operations
Dalmia group company Caretel Infotech is upbeat about the opportunities in the BPO space and has hired about 600 people, even while others are handing out pink slips to employees amid the current slowdown.
"In last 30 days, we have recruited 619 employees for our various projects from metros and even small towns like Chindwara at Rajasthan for our Kisaan Call Centre Project. For our various assignments, we will be recruiting more and more people from all over India and train them for the future," Caretel Infotech Chief Executive Officer Amit Roy said in a statement.
The company also said it is looking at the downturn as as an opportunity to bag more deals, both in the country and overseas.
"We are looking at this slowdown as an opportunity and have started international outsourcing process for some part of the US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand to manage the slowdown impact. We have also increased our national clientele as we have bagged assignments from reputed brands like DDA ... and soon will close a DTH service provider in India," Roy said.
Caretel has 13 business centres in India and employs over 6,000 people. It is now expanding its operations overseas and is targeting a significant growth from its global clients.
For our international clients, we will be hiring 200 or more people in near future, he added.
Source: Agencies
"In last 30 days, we have recruited 619 employees for our various projects from metros and even small towns like Chindwara at Rajasthan for our Kisaan Call Centre Project. For our various assignments, we will be recruiting more and more people from all over India and train them for the future," Caretel Infotech Chief Executive Officer Amit Roy said in a statement.
The company also said it is looking at the downturn as as an opportunity to bag more deals, both in the country and overseas.
"We are looking at this slowdown as an opportunity and have started international outsourcing process for some part of the US, Europe, Australia and New Zealand to manage the slowdown impact. We have also increased our national clientele as we have bagged assignments from reputed brands like DDA ... and soon will close a DTH service provider in India," Roy said.
Caretel has 13 business centres in India and employs over 6,000 people. It is now expanding its operations overseas and is targeting a significant growth from its global clients.
For our international clients, we will be hiring 200 or more people in near future, he added.
Source: Agencies
Thursday, December 25, 2008
World Bank rejects Satyam's demand for an apology
The World Bank has rejected Satyam Computer Service’s demand to withdraw a statement by which the organisation imposed an eight-year ban on any business with the IT major.
Satyam Computers had earlier asked the international lender for an apology for its statement on the IT major's failure to give proper documentation on fees charged for sub-contractors, and asked the Bank to withdraw the statement.
"The Bank stands by its statement issued on its Indian website on December 23," the India spokesperson of the World Bank Sudip Mazumder said.
The World Bank had said on December 23 said that "Satyam was declared ineligible for contracts for providing improper benefits to Bank staff and for failing to maintain documentation to support fees charges for its sub- contractors."
Asked if the Bank would apologies as demanded by Satyam, he said any comment if at all had to come from the headquarters in Washington, but the Bank stands by its statement.
He said "It will be in appropriate to comment on Satyam's statement since I have not received it or read it."
It is important to note that these developments are based out of our headquarters in Washington and are not related to Bank's India Programme," Mazumder said.
Within two days of the Bank's announcement, Satyam had formally requested the World Bank to immediately withdraw those statements and asked it to "issue a new statement apologising to Satyam for the harm done to the company due to the Bank's actions."
Satyam, which is already reeling under a crisis over aborted acquisition of two firms promoted by family of Chairman Ramalinga Raju, advised the Bank that the IT firm would evaluate all options in view of both the Bank's "inappropriate" public statements and its response to Satyam's requests.
"Satyam usually does not comment publicly on matters involving our customer relationships. However, the inaccuracy and inappropriateness of the World Bank's public statements regarding Satyam has forced us to issue this brief statement in order to set the record straight," it added.
The issue will now come up for discussion at the December 29 Board meeting of the company, against which the Bank has imposed an eight-year ban.
Source: Agencies
Satyam Computers had earlier asked the international lender for an apology for its statement on the IT major's failure to give proper documentation on fees charged for sub-contractors, and asked the Bank to withdraw the statement.
"The Bank stands by its statement issued on its Indian website on December 23," the India spokesperson of the World Bank Sudip Mazumder said.
The World Bank had said on December 23 said that "Satyam was declared ineligible for contracts for providing improper benefits to Bank staff and for failing to maintain documentation to support fees charges for its sub- contractors."
Asked if the Bank would apologies as demanded by Satyam, he said any comment if at all had to come from the headquarters in Washington, but the Bank stands by its statement.
He said "It will be in appropriate to comment on Satyam's statement since I have not received it or read it."
It is important to note that these developments are based out of our headquarters in Washington and are not related to Bank's India Programme," Mazumder said.
Within two days of the Bank's announcement, Satyam had formally requested the World Bank to immediately withdraw those statements and asked it to "issue a new statement apologising to Satyam for the harm done to the company due to the Bank's actions."
Satyam, which is already reeling under a crisis over aborted acquisition of two firms promoted by family of Chairman Ramalinga Raju, advised the Bank that the IT firm would evaluate all options in view of both the Bank's "inappropriate" public statements and its response to Satyam's requests.
"Satyam usually does not comment publicly on matters involving our customer relationships. However, the inaccuracy and inappropriateness of the World Bank's public statements regarding Satyam has forced us to issue this brief statement in order to set the record straight," it added.
The issue will now come up for discussion at the December 29 Board meeting of the company, against which the Bank has imposed an eight-year ban.
Source: Agencies
MphasiS asks 1,300-1,500 employees to relocate or quit
IT services firm MphasiS has asked all 1,300-1,500 employees at its Noida office to either move to a low-cost location or quit.
Most of the employees have quit or are in the process of quitting the firm. Only a few have decided to shift to another centre, informed four former employees who quit recently.
MphasiS, majority-owned by EDS that was acquired by HP this year, offers outsourcing services in financial services, healthcare, communications, transportation, consumer & retail industries and has over 28,000 people on its rolls. It set up the Noida centre in 2005 for BPO operations and has over 1,000 BPO employees, besides some IT employees.
The four former MphasiS employees ET spoke to said the company had told the BPO employees about three months ago to decide between quitting or relocating to other MphasiS centres such as Indore and Vadodara. All employees were given time till December-end to decide and were not given any reason behind the move.
A company spokeswoman said that MphasiS continues to work out of the Noida centre. “We continue to shape our operations as per our client needs, and have recently set up a new centre in Vadodara.
MphasiS is known for its sensitive HR policies and the interests of its employees are a priority,” she said. The spokeswoman did not comment on the decision to relocate people.
Besides giving the option to relocate, MphasiS had invited rival firms such as HCL, ExlService Holdings and Tech Mahindra to recruit from among its employees.
One of the four ex-employees, who bagged a job with one of these firms, said most BPO employees at the Noida centre had managed to find another job.
However, those in the IT services business were not so lucky. One former IT employee at Noida said the company informed the team about a month ago that they need to find another job. “They also said that if we quit early, we will get our retention bonus, which was due later, with our November salary,” he said, adding he is yet to find another job.
Earlier this month, MphasiS opened a 400-seat BPO centre in Vadodara. The company had said it plans to increase the number of seats to 800 seats and employ 2,500 people within a year.
Source: Agencies
Most of the employees have quit or are in the process of quitting the firm. Only a few have decided to shift to another centre, informed four former employees who quit recently.
MphasiS, majority-owned by EDS that was acquired by HP this year, offers outsourcing services in financial services, healthcare, communications, transportation, consumer & retail industries and has over 28,000 people on its rolls. It set up the Noida centre in 2005 for BPO operations and has over 1,000 BPO employees, besides some IT employees.
The four former MphasiS employees ET spoke to said the company had told the BPO employees about three months ago to decide between quitting or relocating to other MphasiS centres such as Indore and Vadodara. All employees were given time till December-end to decide and were not given any reason behind the move.
A company spokeswoman said that MphasiS continues to work out of the Noida centre. “We continue to shape our operations as per our client needs, and have recently set up a new centre in Vadodara.
MphasiS is known for its sensitive HR policies and the interests of its employees are a priority,” she said. The spokeswoman did not comment on the decision to relocate people.
Besides giving the option to relocate, MphasiS had invited rival firms such as HCL, ExlService Holdings and Tech Mahindra to recruit from among its employees.
One of the four ex-employees, who bagged a job with one of these firms, said most BPO employees at the Noida centre had managed to find another job.
However, those in the IT services business were not so lucky. One former IT employee at Noida said the company informed the team about a month ago that they need to find another job. “They also said that if we quit early, we will get our retention bonus, which was due later, with our November salary,” he said, adding he is yet to find another job.
Earlier this month, MphasiS opened a 400-seat BPO centre in Vadodara. The company had said it plans to increase the number of seats to 800 seats and employ 2,500 people within a year.
Source: Agencies
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Over 65,000 jems and jewellery workers may be laid-off
The cgems and jewellery industry has already laid-off 65,000 workers and might be forced to lay-off a like number in the next two months, an industry official said on Tuesday.
"The Indian gems and jewellery sector was forced to lay-off 65,000 workers between August-October. Due to the ongoing economic slowdown and slump in demand, there could be a further lay-off of 65,000 workers in the next two months," Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council's (GJEPC) Chairman, Vasant Mehta, told reporters here.
The sector has also been afflicted by a significant dip of 34.25 per cent in exports in November, Mehta said.
There was a danger of many units shutting down, he warned, adding that by January, the exact number of units closing down would be known.
India's gems and jewellery sector contributes 55 per cent of the world's export in terms of value and over 75 per cent by carats and number of pieces.
In November, the sector witnessed a decline in exports by 34.25 per cent at USD 987.10 million from $1,501.27 million during the year-ago period, he said.
"At the manufacturing level, exports of cut and polished diamonds are down by 20.18 per cent as compared to the same period last year," he said.
The gems and jewellery industry witnessed a drop of over 20 per cent in its order books during April-October as compared to the same period last year.
The situation could be much worse in November and December, he said.
Source: Agencies
"The Indian gems and jewellery sector was forced to lay-off 65,000 workers between August-October. Due to the ongoing economic slowdown and slump in demand, there could be a further lay-off of 65,000 workers in the next two months," Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council's (GJEPC) Chairman, Vasant Mehta, told reporters here.
The sector has also been afflicted by a significant dip of 34.25 per cent in exports in November, Mehta said.
There was a danger of many units shutting down, he warned, adding that by January, the exact number of units closing down would be known.
India's gems and jewellery sector contributes 55 per cent of the world's export in terms of value and over 75 per cent by carats and number of pieces.
In November, the sector witnessed a decline in exports by 34.25 per cent at USD 987.10 million from $1,501.27 million during the year-ago period, he said.
"At the manufacturing level, exports of cut and polished diamonds are down by 20.18 per cent as compared to the same period last year," he said.
The gems and jewellery industry witnessed a drop of over 20 per cent in its order books during April-October as compared to the same period last year.
The situation could be much worse in November and December, he said.
Source: Agencies
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
World Bank warns of a very deep global recession
Economic growth prospects for both high income and developing countries have deteriorated substantially and the deep global recession cannot be ruled out, the World Bank said on Tuesday.
The international banking crisis that erupted in September 2008 after more than a year of less acute financial turmoil has substantially reinforced the cylical downturn that was already under way, the bank said a report devoted to assessing economic prospects for 2009.
``Following the insolvency of a large number of banks and financial institutions in the United States, Europe and the developing world, financial conditions have become much tighter , capital flows to developing countries have dried up and huge amounts of market capitalization have evaporated,'' the bank said.
The bank predicted world economic growth will be 2.5 per cent in 2008 and 0.9 percent in 2009. It said developing countries will likely grow 4.5 percent next year, down from 7.9 per cent in 2007, while growth in high income countries will turn negative.
Even if the strong measures governments took to restore confidence in the international banking system work and credit begins to thaw, a number of developing countries are likely to be subjected to substantial strains, possibly including bank failures and currency crises, the bank said.
``In these very uncertain circumstances,” the bank said, ``policy makers must place a premium on reducing the likelihood of domestic turmoil by reacting swiftly and forcefully to emerging difficulties, including, if necessary, seeking assistance from the International Monetary Fund.'''
The IMF provides rescue packages to countries experiencing financial crises while the bank, its sister institution, lends money or makes grants for development projects.
``People in the developing world have had to deal with two major external shocks, the upward spiral in food and fuel prices followed by the financial crisis, which has eased tensions in commodity markets but is testing banking systems and threatening job losses around the world,'' said Justin Lin, the bank's chief economist ``Urgent steps are needed to help reduce fallout from the crisis on the real economy and on the poorest.''
In response to the crisis the bank said it was increasing its support for developing countries, through new spending commitments of up to $100 million over the next three years. The bank said its private sector arm, the International Finance Corp, would help by providing trade financing, helping banks recapitalize or aiding infrastructure projects facing financial distress.
Source: Agencies
The international banking crisis that erupted in September 2008 after more than a year of less acute financial turmoil has substantially reinforced the cylical downturn that was already under way, the bank said a report devoted to assessing economic prospects for 2009.
``Following the insolvency of a large number of banks and financial institutions in the United States, Europe and the developing world, financial conditions have become much tighter , capital flows to developing countries have dried up and huge amounts of market capitalization have evaporated,'' the bank said.
The bank predicted world economic growth will be 2.5 per cent in 2008 and 0.9 percent in 2009. It said developing countries will likely grow 4.5 percent next year, down from 7.9 per cent in 2007, while growth in high income countries will turn negative.
Even if the strong measures governments took to restore confidence in the international banking system work and credit begins to thaw, a number of developing countries are likely to be subjected to substantial strains, possibly including bank failures and currency crises, the bank said.
``In these very uncertain circumstances,” the bank said, ``policy makers must place a premium on reducing the likelihood of domestic turmoil by reacting swiftly and forcefully to emerging difficulties, including, if necessary, seeking assistance from the International Monetary Fund.'''
The IMF provides rescue packages to countries experiencing financial crises while the bank, its sister institution, lends money or makes grants for development projects.
``People in the developing world have had to deal with two major external shocks, the upward spiral in food and fuel prices followed by the financial crisis, which has eased tensions in commodity markets but is testing banking systems and threatening job losses around the world,'' said Justin Lin, the bank's chief economist ``Urgent steps are needed to help reduce fallout from the crisis on the real economy and on the poorest.''
In response to the crisis the bank said it was increasing its support for developing countries, through new spending commitments of up to $100 million over the next three years. The bank said its private sector arm, the International Finance Corp, would help by providing trade financing, helping banks recapitalize or aiding infrastructure projects facing financial distress.
Source: Agencies
Is the slowdown, an opportunity in itself?
The current slowdown will also give an impetus to many technologies, some of which include Green IT, cloud computing, graphics and Web, writes Anil Chopra, editor at Cybermedia.
Media the world over is predicting this to be the worst economic slowdown ever. But then, people who have lived through various economic cycles would easily be able to split the hype from reality, and tell that while the causes of a slowdown vary, their impact is usually similar in nature. We can easily apply this formula to the current slowdown and predict that this one is no different from the previous one or the one before that.
Let's look at the slowdown of 2001, which happened due to the great dot com bust and compare it with the current one. Much before it actually happened, people predicted that there was a dot com bubble just waiting to burst, and bring with it a recession. But nobody of course could in their wildest of dreams predict the disaster that followed and brought down with it the US and world economy-the Sep 11 attack on WTC. Markets crashed, demands dipped, giving rise to higher unemployment, pink slips, and company closures.
Now let's come to the current slowdown. Much before it started, people knew that it would be caused by the US sub-prime crisis. Nobody however, had predicted that it would be so bad that many leading multi-national banks and financial institutes would go bankrupt. But the results of the current slowdown remain similar to the previous one-job cuts, stock market crash, dip in market demands, and the like.
So the key learning from slowdowns is that they're a way for markets to correct themselves and provide everyone an opportunity to think about the next big thing. After the dot com bust, the web emerged stronger than ever. Today everyone's going gaga over Web 2.0, social networking, and the benefits it provides. The humble server room transformed itself into a powerful data center to host business critical applications, and e-Commerce became a standard practice amongst most enterprises. The WTC attack reduced air travel, giving a boost to video conferencing, and also made DR and BCP common practice amongst enterprises.
Likewise, the current slowdown will also give an impetus to many technologies, some of which include Green IT, cloud computing, graphics, web, etc. We've talked about ten of them along with their likely future impact in this month's cover story.
It's also forcing CIOs to reduce their IT purchase and focus more on improving efficiencies within their existing IT infrastructures. We've talked about the impact of the slowdown on enterprises at length in our IT strategy guide for CIOs along with tips on how to survive the slowdown.
Lastly, the good thing about a slowdown is that it reduces complacency and forces people to think differently and identify new opportunities. So why should it be different during the current slowdown? Our IT careers story this time explains just how bad is the job market and areas that are growing.
So treat the slowdown as an opportunity and take yourself to the next level. All the best and wish you a fulfilling new year ahead!
Source: Cybermedia
Media the world over is predicting this to be the worst economic slowdown ever. But then, people who have lived through various economic cycles would easily be able to split the hype from reality, and tell that while the causes of a slowdown vary, their impact is usually similar in nature. We can easily apply this formula to the current slowdown and predict that this one is no different from the previous one or the one before that.
Let's look at the slowdown of 2001, which happened due to the great dot com bust and compare it with the current one. Much before it actually happened, people predicted that there was a dot com bubble just waiting to burst, and bring with it a recession. But nobody of course could in their wildest of dreams predict the disaster that followed and brought down with it the US and world economy-the Sep 11 attack on WTC. Markets crashed, demands dipped, giving rise to higher unemployment, pink slips, and company closures.
Now let's come to the current slowdown. Much before it started, people knew that it would be caused by the US sub-prime crisis. Nobody however, had predicted that it would be so bad that many leading multi-national banks and financial institutes would go bankrupt. But the results of the current slowdown remain similar to the previous one-job cuts, stock market crash, dip in market demands, and the like.
So the key learning from slowdowns is that they're a way for markets to correct themselves and provide everyone an opportunity to think about the next big thing. After the dot com bust, the web emerged stronger than ever. Today everyone's going gaga over Web 2.0, social networking, and the benefits it provides. The humble server room transformed itself into a powerful data center to host business critical applications, and e-Commerce became a standard practice amongst most enterprises. The WTC attack reduced air travel, giving a boost to video conferencing, and also made DR and BCP common practice amongst enterprises.
Likewise, the current slowdown will also give an impetus to many technologies, some of which include Green IT, cloud computing, graphics, web, etc. We've talked about ten of them along with their likely future impact in this month's cover story.
It's also forcing CIOs to reduce their IT purchase and focus more on improving efficiencies within their existing IT infrastructures. We've talked about the impact of the slowdown on enterprises at length in our IT strategy guide for CIOs along with tips on how to survive the slowdown.
Lastly, the good thing about a slowdown is that it reduces complacency and forces people to think differently and identify new opportunities. So why should it be different during the current slowdown? Our IT careers story this time explains just how bad is the job market and areas that are growing.
So treat the slowdown as an opportunity and take yourself to the next level. All the best and wish you a fulfilling new year ahead!
Source: Cybermedia
Monday, December 8, 2008
Booster shots for global meltdown victims!
As the global economic slowdown spreads, countries after countries have announced rescue packages. The United States has so far committed $8.317 trillion to tackle the crisis. The United Kingdom, France, Russia, China and the European Union also have announced various stimulus packages.
Here’s a look at the specific fire-fighting measures announced by various countries.
United States
President-elect Barack Obama crafting $175 bn package to create 2.5 million jobs
President George Bush signed a $168 bn, 2-yr stimulus into law in early 2008
Package includes tax rebates of up to $600 per individual earning $75,000 gross income
Declared two stimulus packages worth $ 1.5 billion
Financial Package One
Bill to disburse $700 bn in stages
After the first $250 bn is authorised, President could request another $100 bn
Final $350 bn could be cleared by a further act of Congress
Financial Package Two
Fed will purchase up to $600 billion more in mortgage-related assets
Fed will lend up to $200 billion to the holders of securities backed by various types of consumer loans
Fed will buy up to $100 billion in direct obligations from mortgage giants
US Govt Measures
Up to about $1.8 trillion in Fed purchases of top-rated US dollar commercial paper under a facility launched in October
Up to about $1.9 trillion in new Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) guarantees for banks
Up to $800 billion in Fed support for mortgage and consumer credit markets
Up to $600 billion in Fed purchases of US dollar commercial paper and certificates of deposit under a Money Market Investor Funding
Up to $900 billion in Fed Term Auction Facility loans was offered to meet financial institutions' cash needs
Unlimited commitments to lend through discount window to banks and broker dealers(totaled $296.82 billion as of Nov. 19)
$700 billion for the Treasury to buy equity stakes in financial institutions
Treasury, the FDIC and the Fed have agreed to shoulder up to $249.3 billion in losses from a Citigroup portfolio
Unlimited temporary Fed currency swap lines with the Central banks, Fed maintains $165 billion in swap lines with other banks
Up to $50 billion from the Great Depression-era Exchange Stabilisation Fund
At least $26.57 billion in Treasury direct purchases of mortgage-backed securities since September
$200 billion to backstop Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Up to $144 billion in additional MBS purchases by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
AIG will get up to $152.5 billion in support from Treasury equity purchases
$300 billion for the Federal Housing Administration to refinance failing mortgages
$4 billion in grants to local communities to help them buy and repair homes
$29 billion in financing for JPMorgan Chase's government-brokered buyout of Bear Stearns & Co in March.
France
President Sarkozy unveiled a $32.9 billion stimulus plan
Targeting investment projects rather than directly aiding consumer
Measure to boost GDP by 0.6% by 2009
French package will cost 1.3% of GDP, will push budget deficit to 3.9%
Budget deficit will be above the European Union’s 3% limit
EU allowed the exceed budget limits in 2009
United Kingdom
Prepared a $29.06 bn package centering around consumer tax cut
Announced a range of tax cuts and govt spending over 18 months
Package includes 2.5% cut in VAT to 15%, postponement of corporate increase
Package will increase public borrowing to $178.6 bn next year, nearly 8% of Britain’s GDP
Germany
Unveiled plans worth 31 billion euros or 1.25% of GDP
Govt refusing to deliver tax cuts to help stimulate economic growth
Package will generate investments and new contracts worth over 50 billion euros over 2 years
New lending of up to 15 billion euros will be introduced, strengthen its lending activities
Russia
Unveiled $20 billion economic stimulus package
Package includes cut in profit tax to 24% from 20%
Govt sanctioned state-run banks to support industry with billions of dollars of soft lending
European Union
Fiscal boost amounting to 200 billion euros($260 bn), nearly 1.5% of EU’s GDP
EU commission urges member-states to commit 170 billion euros to their own rescue package
Considering system of guarantees and loan subsidies where credit is tight
Aid to SMEs increased to 30 billion euros from 10 billion Euros
China
Introduced stimulus package worth 4 trillion yuan ($586 bn)
Package mainly for govt spending on infra projects and earthquake-related relief work
Stimulus package to boost domestic demand through 2010
VAT rule changes allows companies to deduct the cost of core investment expenses
Govt increased export tax rebates for wide range of products
Australia
More than $ 12 bn for auto industry, family benefit and domestic residential backed mortgage market
Japan
$51 billion package for new govt spending
Package includes payout to families, tax break on mortgages
South Korea
$25 billion announced till date to ease financial crisis
Taiwan
$30 billion for domestic investment and consumption
Shopping voucher handout about Taiwan dollar 3,600 per citizen
Argentina
President announced $3.7 billion plan to deal with spreading financial crisis.
Source: Agencies
Here’s a look at the specific fire-fighting measures announced by various countries.
United States
President-elect Barack Obama crafting $175 bn package to create 2.5 million jobs
President George Bush signed a $168 bn, 2-yr stimulus into law in early 2008
Package includes tax rebates of up to $600 per individual earning $75,000 gross income
Declared two stimulus packages worth $ 1.5 billion
Financial Package One
Bill to disburse $700 bn in stages
After the first $250 bn is authorised, President could request another $100 bn
Final $350 bn could be cleared by a further act of Congress
Financial Package Two
Fed will purchase up to $600 billion more in mortgage-related assets
Fed will lend up to $200 billion to the holders of securities backed by various types of consumer loans
Fed will buy up to $100 billion in direct obligations from mortgage giants
US Govt Measures
Up to about $1.8 trillion in Fed purchases of top-rated US dollar commercial paper under a facility launched in October
Up to about $1.9 trillion in new Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) guarantees for banks
Up to $800 billion in Fed support for mortgage and consumer credit markets
Up to $600 billion in Fed purchases of US dollar commercial paper and certificates of deposit under a Money Market Investor Funding
Up to $900 billion in Fed Term Auction Facility loans was offered to meet financial institutions' cash needs
Unlimited commitments to lend through discount window to banks and broker dealers(totaled $296.82 billion as of Nov. 19)
$700 billion for the Treasury to buy equity stakes in financial institutions
Treasury, the FDIC and the Fed have agreed to shoulder up to $249.3 billion in losses from a Citigroup portfolio
Unlimited temporary Fed currency swap lines with the Central banks, Fed maintains $165 billion in swap lines with other banks
Up to $50 billion from the Great Depression-era Exchange Stabilisation Fund
At least $26.57 billion in Treasury direct purchases of mortgage-backed securities since September
$200 billion to backstop Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
Up to $144 billion in additional MBS purchases by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac
AIG will get up to $152.5 billion in support from Treasury equity purchases
$300 billion for the Federal Housing Administration to refinance failing mortgages
$4 billion in grants to local communities to help them buy and repair homes
$29 billion in financing for JPMorgan Chase's government-brokered buyout of Bear Stearns & Co in March.
France
President Sarkozy unveiled a $32.9 billion stimulus plan
Targeting investment projects rather than directly aiding consumer
Measure to boost GDP by 0.6% by 2009
French package will cost 1.3% of GDP, will push budget deficit to 3.9%
Budget deficit will be above the European Union’s 3% limit
EU allowed the exceed budget limits in 2009
United Kingdom
Prepared a $29.06 bn package centering around consumer tax cut
Announced a range of tax cuts and govt spending over 18 months
Package includes 2.5% cut in VAT to 15%, postponement of corporate increase
Package will increase public borrowing to $178.6 bn next year, nearly 8% of Britain’s GDP
Germany
Unveiled plans worth 31 billion euros or 1.25% of GDP
Govt refusing to deliver tax cuts to help stimulate economic growth
Package will generate investments and new contracts worth over 50 billion euros over 2 years
New lending of up to 15 billion euros will be introduced, strengthen its lending activities
Russia
Unveiled $20 billion economic stimulus package
Package includes cut in profit tax to 24% from 20%
Govt sanctioned state-run banks to support industry with billions of dollars of soft lending
European Union
Fiscal boost amounting to 200 billion euros($260 bn), nearly 1.5% of EU’s GDP
EU commission urges member-states to commit 170 billion euros to their own rescue package
Considering system of guarantees and loan subsidies where credit is tight
Aid to SMEs increased to 30 billion euros from 10 billion Euros
China
Introduced stimulus package worth 4 trillion yuan ($586 bn)
Package mainly for govt spending on infra projects and earthquake-related relief work
Stimulus package to boost domestic demand through 2010
VAT rule changes allows companies to deduct the cost of core investment expenses
Govt increased export tax rebates for wide range of products
Australia
More than $ 12 bn for auto industry, family benefit and domestic residential backed mortgage market
Japan
$51 billion package for new govt spending
Package includes payout to families, tax break on mortgages
South Korea
$25 billion announced till date to ease financial crisis
Taiwan
$30 billion for domestic investment and consumption
Shopping voucher handout about Taiwan dollar 3,600 per citizen
Argentina
President announced $3.7 billion plan to deal with spreading financial crisis.
Source: Agencies
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