Inflation fell for the third consecutive week to over four-month low of 5.44 per cent for the week ended May 5 as some food items like moong, sugar, flour and spices coupled with oilseeds turned cheaper.
As the UPA government completes third year in office at the Centre, the official data on inflation released would give some respite to the ruling coalition, which drew flak from the opposition and some allies on rising prices.
Wholesale prices-based inflation had stood at 5.66 per cent in the previous week and 4.37 per cent in the corresponding week last year.
Earlier, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh exuded confidence that his government will further bring down inflation to 5 per cent in the next couple of months.
"The inflation rate is 5.5 per cent now and we will bring it down to the level of 5 per cent. I hope we will succeed on this front in the next couple of months," he said on the sidelines of a function at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Admitting that high prices of essential commodities were a cause of concern, Singh said that efforts would be made to moderate the spiralling prices. "There is concern about prices. We will moderate it. It is already coming down," he said.
Among essential items during the week, prices of pulses like moong, barley, condiments and spices, sooji, sugar, flour and maida declined.
However, prices of eggs, masoor, fruits and vegetables, arhar, bajra, imported edible oil and butter became expensive.
Courtesy : Expressindia.com
Inflation at 5.44 pc, PM hopeful
May 19, 2007, 7:42 amMicrosoft to buy Web ad firm for $6 bn
May 19, 2007, 7:35 am
Microsoft Corp. said on Friday it would buy a Quantive Inc. for $6 billion, paying an 85 percent premium to snap up one of the last large independent companies in a consolidating Web advertising market.
In the biggest acquisition ever made by the world's No. 1 software maker, Microsoft said it would pay a Quantive shareholders $66.50 a share, a hefty premium to the company's closing share price of $35.87 on Thursday.
Shares of aQuantive shot to $63.95 in morning Nasdaq trade while Microsoft fell 1.1 percent to $30.64.
The all-cash deal tops a dramatic one-month consolidation spree across the online advertising market sparked when Google Inc. agreed to buy DoubleClick for $3.1 billion.
Yahoo Inc. followed by snatching up the 80 percent of Right Media it did not already own in a deal valued at $680 million. This week, WPP Group said it would acquire 24/7 Real Media Inc. for $649 million.
Ahead of the wave, French advertising giant Publicis agreed to buy online ad agency Digitas in December for $1.3 billion.
Microsoft of Redmond, Washington said it would acquire aQuantive, based in nearby Seattle, to expand its push into Internet advertising through aQuantive's tools for serving up online ads and tracking their impact.
"This deal takes our advertising business to a new level, and we are committed to earn a bigger slice of that $40 billion pie that's growing," said Kevin Johnson, president of Microsoft's platforms and services division, on a conference call with analysts.
Microsoft said it expects the deal to close in its next fiscal year starting July.
The company said the deal would add revenue and operating expense in fiscal 2008, but said it will not change its outlook for operating income or earnings per share next year.
ValueClick Inc., the last sizable independent player in the online advertising market saw its shares jump as much as 12.5 percent in pre-market trade to $31.36 from $27.88.
Microsoft beat other competitors for aQuantive, saying there are only a small number of companies with enough advertising assets to help it gain scale in the business.
AQuantive helps advertisers target online ads through its Atlas technology unit and offers Web-site development services through its design agency Avenue A/Razorfish.
It also operates an online advertising network that connects buyers and sellers and provides behavioral targeting for advertisers of Web site users.
Microsoft said the deal would allow it to strengthen ties with advertisers, ad agencies and Web site publishers.
The purchase also provides Microsoft more depth in building a new generation of advertising in markets like video-on-demand and Internet Protocol Television, as well as cross-platform ad delivery across traditional and new media formats.
Courtesy : Expressindia.com
In the biggest acquisition ever made by the world's No. 1 software maker, Microsoft said it would pay a Quantive shareholders $66.50 a share, a hefty premium to the company's closing share price of $35.87 on Thursday.
Shares of aQuantive shot to $63.95 in morning Nasdaq trade while Microsoft fell 1.1 percent to $30.64.
The all-cash deal tops a dramatic one-month consolidation spree across the online advertising market sparked when Google Inc. agreed to buy DoubleClick for $3.1 billion.
Yahoo Inc. followed by snatching up the 80 percent of Right Media it did not already own in a deal valued at $680 million. This week, WPP Group said it would acquire 24/7 Real Media Inc. for $649 million.
Ahead of the wave, French advertising giant Publicis agreed to buy online ad agency Digitas in December for $1.3 billion.
Microsoft of Redmond, Washington said it would acquire aQuantive, based in nearby Seattle, to expand its push into Internet advertising through aQuantive's tools for serving up online ads and tracking their impact.
"This deal takes our advertising business to a new level, and we are committed to earn a bigger slice of that $40 billion pie that's growing," said Kevin Johnson, president of Microsoft's platforms and services division, on a conference call with analysts.
Microsoft said it expects the deal to close in its next fiscal year starting July.
The company said the deal would add revenue and operating expense in fiscal 2008, but said it will not change its outlook for operating income or earnings per share next year.
ValueClick Inc., the last sizable independent player in the online advertising market saw its shares jump as much as 12.5 percent in pre-market trade to $31.36 from $27.88.
Microsoft beat other competitors for aQuantive, saying there are only a small number of companies with enough advertising assets to help it gain scale in the business.
AQuantive helps advertisers target online ads through its Atlas technology unit and offers Web-site development services through its design agency Avenue A/Razorfish.
It also operates an online advertising network that connects buyers and sellers and provides behavioral targeting for advertisers of Web site users.
Microsoft said the deal would allow it to strengthen ties with advertisers, ad agencies and Web site publishers.
The purchase also provides Microsoft more depth in building a new generation of advertising in markets like video-on-demand and Internet Protocol Television, as well as cross-platform ad delivery across traditional and new media formats.
Courtesy : Expressindia.com
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