US-North Korea summit: Trump to meet Kim Jong-Un in Singapore on June 12

US President Donald Trump confirmed that his Singapore Summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un would take place on June 12, and said it would begin the process of denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula.
Trump's announcement came at the end of a nearly 80-minute meeting in the Oval Office of the White House with North Korean envoy Kim Yong Chol.

Kim Yong Chol delivered a letter from the North Korean leader to Trump.
"The meeting went very well. We'll be meeting on June 12th in Singapore. It went very well. It's really a get-to-know-you kind of a situation," Trump said at an impromptu press conference with the White House pool soon after the North Korean envoy left.
Kim Yong Chol arrived in Washington DC after two days of talks with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in New York.
Trump acknowledged that denuclearisation of the Korean Peninsula was going to be a long process. "I think it'll be a process. I never said it goes in one meeting. But the relationships are building, and that's a very positive thing," he said.
Confident that the North Koreans wanted to achieve this goal, he said they want other things along the line. "I think they want to do that. I know they want to do that. And they want other things along the line. They want to develop as a country. That's going to happen. I have no doubt," the US President said.
Trump said countries in the region Japan and South Korea were also involved in this. "We're involved in terms of getting everything. Everybody wants the United States. So we're going to help in the process. Without us, it wouldn't happen. But I think that you see a lot of very positive things, including with China. I think you see a lot of very positive things happening with President Xi, who has helped me quite a bit with this. So we'll see where it leads," he said.
The President went on to confirm that the summit would take place in Singapore on June 12.
"It will be a beginning. I don't say and I've never said it happens in one meeting. You're talking years of hostility, problems and hatred between so many different nations. But I think you're going to have a very positive result in the end," he added.
Responding to a question, Trump said he had never cancelled the meeting. His letter to Kim Jong-un was in response to statements coming from them.
"My letter was a response to their letter. The media forgot that. You know, the media said, 'Oh, you had a meeting, then you cancelled.' I didn't cancel the meeting. I cancelled it in response to a very tough statement. And I think we're totally over that. Now we're going to deal, and we're going to really start a process," he said.
"We are meeting with the Chairman (Kim Jong-un) on June 12 (in Singapore). It is ultimately going to be a successful process," Trump said.
The president described the letter as very interesting and nice. "It was actually very interesting because this was literally going to be the delivery of a letter, and it ended up being a two-hour conversation with the second-most powerful man in North Korea," he said.
"We talked about almost everything. We talked about sanctions," Trump added.
Based on the talks, Trump said the North Korean leader was committed to denuclearisation.
"I do think so. He'd like to see it happen. He wants to be careful. He is not going to run and do things. But I told him, to be honest with you, look, we have sanctions on; they're very powerful sanctions. We would not take sanctions off unless they did that. But the sanctions are very powerful. You're going to see how powerful sanctions are when it comes to Iran. You see what that's doing to Iran," he said.
The President said he looked forward to the day when the sanctions could be lifted
Trump, however, said the current level of sanctions on North Korea would remain. "It's going to remain what it is now. I don't even want to use the term 'maximum pressure' anymore because we're getting along," he said.
He said the United States was unlikely to offer much aid to North Korea, which would be taken care of by South Korea and Japan.
Responding to a question, Trump said he was concerned about the recent visit of the Russian foreign minister to Pyongyang.
"I didn't like it, but it could be very positive, too. I didn't like the Russian meeting yesterday. If it's a positive meeting, I love it. If it's a negative meeting, I'm not happy," he said.
Trump said they also talked about ending the Korean war. "We talked about ending the war. This war has been going on -- it's got to be the longest war -- almost 70 years, right? And there is a possibility of something like that. That's more of a signing of a document that it's very important in one way. Historically, it's very important. But we'll see. We did discuss the ending of the Korean War," he said.
The United States, Trump said, was going to ensure the security of Kim Jong-un. "We're going to make sure when this is over, it's over. It's not going to be starting up again. They have a potential to be a great country. I think South Korea, Japan and China are going to help a lot," he said.

Farmers dump produce, spill milk on roads in mass protest

Thousands of farmers gathered on the roads in agriculture-dominated states for the first day of what is supposed to be a 10-day stir for reminerative pricing — they dumped milk, vegetables and fruit on the roads.
Supplies of milk and vegetables have been hit in some places and traders fear more of this if the protest intensifies; all farmer bodies are not part of the stir. Protests were seen in various cities and wholesale markets (mandis) of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and western Utter Pradesh.

The strike call has been given by a Rashtriya Kisan Mahasangh (RKM), which says it represents 130 farmers’ national and regional associations.
They are quoting the Swaminathan committee report on minimum support prices for all produce, complete debt waiver and fixation of minimum income.
“Farmers’ plight continues despite India’s farm output having multiplied over seven decades. From an import-dependent country in the early '60s, India has become a net exporter of many agri commodities, with leadership position in many consumables. That has not come without farmers’ hard work. But, farmers have got little of the benefit of this revolution. We, therefore, have come on the street to mark our presence,” said Shiv Kumar Sharma, president of RKM.
Farmers in Punjab reportedly poured thousands of litres of milk on the roads and stopped fruit and vegetable supplies to mandis. In his unique way, the cricketer-turned-politician visited village Patto along with Congress MLAs Kuljit Singh Nagra and Gurpreet Singh and bought milk and vegetables from farmers to highlight their significant contribution in the development of the nation.
“If the country is to be saved then saving farm sector ought to be a priority,” Sidhu said adding that if the ruling NDA government at the Centre had fulfilled their pre-poll promises, the farmers would not have been in such a sorry state of affairs. Haryana also saw a cutback in supplies.

Air India no-show: Govt blames inadequate risk-taking appetite

What went wrong? Who messed it up? The day after Air India disinvestment failed to take off, government officials across ministries and departments spent hours trying to find an answer to these questions. Many of those spearheading the sale put the blame on the dealmakers and advisors for failing to attract potential bidders, others pointed at the industry for the fiasco.
But after long meetings, including in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) on Friday, the consensus by late evening was that potential bidders didn’t show any animal spirit or any spirit at all. A top government official told Business Standard that ‘’inadequacy of risk-taking appetite in the industry’’ resulted in the disinvestment process failing. According to him, nothing else or nobody else should be blamed for not receiving even a single expression of interest for buying a controlling stake in the national carrier. While businesses had shown an interest in Air India earlier, they backed out as the process progressed.
ALSO READ: No takers for Air India stake sale: Core group to meet next week
A source described the morning after as “a time of confusion and mixed feelings’’. This saga was no different, he said. So, officials dealing with the issue were heard putting the blame on ineffective communication strategy during the process for not getting bidders. “The terms of sale were very liberal, but there was no buzz created about such an important strategic sale. The failure was in terms of communicating them to potential bidders,” a senior government official said.
According to guidelines of DIPAM, the government cannot directly communicate with prospective buyers and it is the responsibility of transaction advisor to communicate the terms and generate an interest among prospective buyers. “That the seller (in this case the government) cannot directly communicate with suitors is a big hurdle, there is a need to relook at this aspect,” a second official said.

ALSO READ: Why nobody wants to buy Air India? Five key things you must know
As the process now goes back to the drawing board and the group of ministers (GoM) for further brainstorming on the future course of action, sources hinted at the impact of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) view on Air India disinvestment. In fact, the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), an economic think tank affiliated with the RSS, is learnt to have had multiple meetings with key ministers in the last one month to talk on Air India. The SJM and other Sangh Parivar affiliated organisations have also had a meeting with BJP chief Amit Shah recently and the subject of disinvestment of Air India came up. The SJM is giving final touches to a revival plan for Air India, including a proposal to privatise quite like British Airways did in 1987 through an IPO. SJM Convener Ashwani Mahajan said it’s incorrect that the Sangh Parivar was opposed to disinvestment. “We believe there could have been other ways to disinvest Air India.”
ALSO READ: Air India draws a blank: Insistence on govt control dooms privatisation
An official who’s tracked the disinvestment process, however, dismissed the idea of the RSS ideology having any play here. ‘’Often there’s an invisible fall guy when the system fails to deliver,’’ he said. According to him, senior officials had realised earlier on the interest from the industry was weak.
He also pointed out that the government would keep the Air India pot boiling to send the right signal to markets. ‘’Nothing much will actually happen, so it will be status quo for quite some time.’’ The parameters are unlikely to be changed in any significant way, another source said. “This is an election year and the Swadeshi lobby/employees have been unhappy with the exercise. So nothing new is likely.’’ It’s off by at least 18 to 24 months, he said.
Analysts and industry players believe the sale conditions, especially the government retaining a 24 per cent stake in Air India, have been a spoilsport. However, government officials cited the Companies Act 2013 to point out that minority shareholders are equity holders of a firm but do not enjoy the voting power of the firm. According to airline executives, the high fuel price environment and the structure of the deal were responsible for the flop show. “Air India is a complex property. For even a minor turnaround in its operation, there is a need for massive restructuring and capital infusion. No Indian company has the access to capital and expertise to do that and no foreign airline would commit such huge capital with minority stake,” an executive of a South Asian airline said.

Power NPAs get Allahabad HC relief for a month

The Allahabad High Court, hearing a petition by the Independent Power Producers Association of India (IPPAI) against insolvency proceedings, has directed the finance ministry to conduct a meeting with stakeholders and work out a possible solution in a month.
Insolvency proceedings should be avoided unless the company was a wilful defaulter, till a meeting was conducted by the finance ministry, the court said.

“As of now, commissioned plants worth thousands of megawatts are under severe financial stress and on the brink of becoming non-performing assets. This is due to fuel shortage, sub-optimal loading and untied capacities. These projects were commissioned on the basis of national need/demand for electricity, availability of all other essentials required in this regard.
However, due to unforeseen circumstances, these plants are suffering. Hence, simply applying the RBI guidelines mechanically by banks, financial institutions and joint lender forums will push these plants further into trouble,” according to the court.
In February, the Reserve Bank of India mandated banks to classify even a day’s delay in debt servicing as default. The notification mandates resolution proceedings for stressed loan accounts to be completed within 180 days.
The IPPAI made the RBI, the finance, coal and petroleum ministries, and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India parties to the case.
The IPPAI also felt that the RBI notification was arbitrary, irrational, discriminatory and violated Articles 14 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution, since the stressed assets in the sector were partly due to other factors.
“If after due deliberations with developers, the ministries of power, coal and finance were able to draw up a time-bound action plan, the RBI could consider the necessary dispensations based on the action plan,” said A K Khurana, director-general, Association of Power Producers.
Under Pressure
Rs 4,000 bn: Value of stressed assets in the power sector
80,000 Mw capacity of the stressed assets
Among lenders, PFC has the highest exposure of Rs 587 bn
It is followed by SBI (exposure of Rs 297 bn) and PNB (Rs 279 bn)

Global firms line up for buying Power Finance Corp's stressed assets

Close to a dozen Indian and foreign financial institutions and funds have expressed an interest in buying the stressed thermal power assets of Power Finance Corp (PFC).
Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Edelweiss, JM Financial, KKR, Lonestar-IL&FS, Resurgent Power, SC Lowy, Torrent, Varde Partners, SSG Asia, Worlds Window EXIM and NIIF are some of the financing agencies that may bid for the three stressed power projects that PFC has put up for sale.

The power major has invited expressions of interest (EoIs) for four plants where it has a debt exposure — GMR Raikheda (1,370 megawatt), KSK Mahanadi (2,400 Mw), Essar Mahan (1,200 Mw) and the Avantha group-owned Jhabua Power (600 Mw). For GMR Raikheda, five bidders have submitted binding offers — Adani Power, JSW Energy, NLC India, Torrent Power and Vedanta.
Adani Power and Vedanta have submitted EoIs for KSK Mahanadi and Jhabua as well. Among others, global financial institutions and PE-backed funding platforms of power companies such as Lone Star and Resurgent Power, which has equity participation from Tata Power, are also in the race. The EoIs for Essar Mahan would be floated soon, PFC executives said.
“There is a heightened interest among financial institutions, independent power producers and integrated utilities for these stressed assets, given the revised fixed charge emerging after possible haircuts. State generation companies and utilities should also explore this opportunity to lock in inexpensive power for SAUBHAGYA customers. It can be also utilised for phasing out old projects,” said Sambitosh Mohapatra, partner, power and utilities, PwC India.
PFC and the other lenders are expecting a haircut (which refers to write-offs) of more than 50 per cent when power assets go through the insolvency route. According to industry experts, after the haircut, most assets would be available for Rs 2.5-3 per unit, an attractive proposition for institutional financers.
Of its total loan book, PFC expects around Rs 300 billion worth of assets totalling 14,000 Mw to land in the National Company Law Tribunal.
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SBI raises lending rates by 10 bps, followed by PNB, ICICI Bank, HDFC

State Bank of India (SBI) raised its benchmark lending rates by 10 basis points (bps), followed by Punjab National Bank (PNB), ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Housing Development Finance Corp (HDFC).
Bankers said it was to pass on the rising cost of funds to customers and an effort to protect the net interest margin. As the rise was small, it would not affect demand for credit.

While SBI, ICICI, Kotak Mahindra and PNB raised their marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) by 10 basis points, HDFC raised its retail prime lending rate likewise. While the others kept the base rate unchanged, PNB raised its by 10 basis points.
SBI’s one-year MCLR, which most loans are based on, is now 8.25 per cent. Those of ICICI and PNB are 8.4 per cent and Kotak Mahindra's is 8.9 per cent.
Interest rates on all rupee loans sanctioned and credit limits renewed, other than exceptions permitted by the Reserve Bank, are priced with reference to the MCLR from April 2016.
HDFC’s revised home loan interest rates are 8.5-8.8 per cent. Up to Rs 3 million, the new rate is 8.5 per cent for women and 8.55 per cent for men. From Rs 3 million to Rs 7.5 million, it is 8.65 per cent for women and 8.7 per cent for others.
This is SBI’s second hike in MCLR this year. It had done so in March, its first rate hike since the MCLR regime was introduced in April 2016. Earlier this week, it had raised the interest rate up to 25 bps in some maturity buckets of domestic term deposits, to stay competitive in retaining money.

To keep fuel rate in check, ONGC may get dividend waiver for price freeze

As part of a long-term solution to keep petrol and diesel prices in check, the government is in talks with Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) to freeze the price of the crude oil it supplies to oil-marketing companies. According to sources, this could lead to the company getting a waiver on the dividend it pays to the Centre, which is Rs 50-60 billion on an annual basis.
Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan held a meeting with oil firms on Thursday to find ways to keep fuel prices low despite high global oil prices. The proposals before the Centre include discounts on crude oil or a windfall tax on producers such as ONGC and Oil India.

The windfall tax proposal involves oil producers paying a special tax on any revenue earned from crude oil prices crossing $70 a barrel. The revenue will be used to pay Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corp (HPCL) to absorb the fuel price hike.
A government source confirmed that one of the proposals under consideration was part or full waiver of dividend if ONGC sold crude oil to oil-marketing companies at a pre-determined ceiling price. However, this is unlikely to affect the dividend payout to other shareholders. In 20 17-18, ONGC paid a total dividend of Rs 84.70 billion, of which the government's share was Rs 57.36 billion. The government holds a 67.72 per cent stake in ONGC.
An ONGC executive said no such proposal had been made to the company.
Talking to the media on Thursday, ONGC Chairman and Managing Director Shashi Shanker said, “We had no discussions with the government regarding oil prices.” The meeting took place after Shanker made the statement, according to sources.
The plan to place part of the oil price burden on ONGC has been doing the rounds for some time. The finance ministry is not keen to cut the excise duty and was looking at alternative means to reduce fuel prices.
Till June 2015, ONGC and OIL India were bearing a share of the subsidy burden of oil-marketing companies for selling kerosene and LPG below market prices. The subsidy sharing was in the form of a discount on crude oil that ONGC and OIL India sold to oil-marketing companies. “We have done an internal assessment of the impact on government finances if a cut in the excise duty is announced. For every Rs 1 per litre cut, the Centre will have to forgo Rs 140 billion in revenue,” according to a revenue department official.
On Friday, prices of petrol and diesel were cut by 6 paise and 5 paise, respectively, to Rs 78.29 a litre and Rs 69.20 a litre. During the day, Brent crude oil was $77.69 a barrel, while the Indian basket was $75.73 a barrel.
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