Asia Africa Intelligence Wire articles from November 2004, page 9

Asia Africa Intelligence Wire archives from November 2004

DisTechnology sets sights on new products, markets.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: ZURINNA RAJA ADAM ..HL: DisTechnology sets sights on new products, markets ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 537 ..PG: 08 ..PU: BT ..TX: MODEM manufacturer DisTechnology Holdings Bhd expects to raise RM15 million...

'Turning Subang into LCC hub can help create jobs'.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: KANG SIEW LI ..HL: 'Turning Subang into LCC hub can help create jobs' ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 1029 ..PG: 08 ..PU: BT ..TX: AIRASIA Bhd has appealed to the Government to look at the contribution of...

Ann Joo 9-month net profit soars 134pc.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: ..HL: Ann Joo 9-month net profit soars 134pc ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 243 ..PG: 08 ..PU: BT ..TX: STEEL stockist Ann Joo Resources Bhd saw a 134 per cent surge in its net profit to RM54.1 million for the...

Upside bias may continueto exert its influence.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: BERNARD ..HL: Upside bias may continueto exert its influence ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 446 ..PG: 08 ..PU: BT ..TX: THE November contract on Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Bhd ended at 910.50 last Friday....

Ireka to save 30pc in interest with new loan.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: RUPINDER SINGH ..HL: Ireka to save 30pc in interest with new loan ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 479 ..PG: 09 ..PU: BT ..TX: MAIN board-listed company Ireka Corp Bhd said a RM240 million loan package it signed...

Lion Industries poised to trace out full potential.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: S.N. LOCK ..HL: Lion Industries poised to trace out full potential ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 354 ..PG: 09 ..PU: BT ..TX: THE Kuala Lumpur Composite Index (KLCI) staged a mild consolidation in the morning...

Success Transformer offering 8m shares.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: ..HL: Success Transformer offering 8m shares ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 255 ..PG: 09 ..PU: BT ..TX: SUCCESS Transformer Corp Bhd yesterday signed an under-writing agreement appointing Public Merchant Bank...

PECD expects improved results.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: ..HL: PECD expects improved results ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 223 ..PG: 09 ..PU: BT ..TX: MAIN board-listed PECD Bhd registered a net profit of RM382,000 and a revenue of RM28.70 million for the 15-day...

Intermediate supportstands at RM1,370.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Times (Malaysia)) Byline: W.Q. MUN ..HL: Intermediate supportstands at RM1,370 ..ZO: B-ALL ..LE: 503 ..PG: 15 ..PU: BT ..TX: Long-term: Bearish Short-term: Consolidation mode with downside bias Momentum index: +70 Relative...

AUSTRALIAN SHAREMARKET FLOATS TO DOUBLE IN 2004.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) SYDNEY, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - The number of sharemarket floats for calendar 2004 is set to more than double last year's result with a buoyant market expected in 2005, financial services group PricewaterhouseCoopers said....

INDIA, EU TO EXTEND PACT FOR COOPERATION IN CIVIL AVIATION.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) NEW DELHI, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - India and the European Union on Monday decided to extend an agreement to continue cooperation in the civil aviation sector, especially in safety, security and air traffic management, for...

INDIAN, LAOTIAN INDUSTRY CHAMBERS AGREE TO COOPERATE.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) VIENTIANE, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - The Indian industry chamber CII and its Lao counterpart have agreed to cooperate in industrial and technological advancement, exchange professional experience and information about...

BBC Monitoring News Prospects for Tuesday 30 November 2004.
November 30, 2004... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Main Stories at 0200 gmt UKRAINE: Watching developments as country's supreme court considers claims that the presidential election was fraudulent; opposition MPs to propose parliamentary...

Ugandan president says condoms should be "last resort" against AIDS.
November 30, 2004... (From BBC Monitoring International Reports) Excerpt from report by Milton Olupot and Josephine Maseruka entitled "Museveni opposes condoms in schools" published by Ugandan newspaper The New Vision web site on 30 November The...

(AEAGC) Agincourt reports 16m at 9.33 g/t gold.
November 30, 2004... (From RWE) Sydney - Tuesday - November 30: (RWE Australian Business News) - Agincourt Resources Ltd reports that infill and extensional drilling has continued to substantiate the Williamson resource model. RC drilling to the north...

INDIAN PROMOTERS OF PRISM CEMENTS BUY OUT FOREIGN STAKES.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) MUMBAI, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - Indian promoters of Prism Cements (BSE:PRIS) have bought out the entire 8.38 per cent holding of foreign promoters F L Smidth & Co and IFU of Denmark in the company, taking their stake to...

SINGAPORE NEWSPAPER HIGHLIGHTS - NOV 30, 2004.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) SINGAPORE, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - Highlights of today's newspapers: THE STRAITS TIMES - ASEAN leaders began their summit in Laos yesterday by sealing key pacts to push the pace of economic integration within the...

MALAYSIA AIRLINES BOOKS SHARPLY HIGHER NET PROFIT IN H1.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - Malaysia Airlines (MAS) (KLSE:MASM) has booked a net profit of RM159.29 million (US$41.92 million) for the six months ended 30 September 2004, a jump of 351 per cent from a net loss of...

BRUNEI KEEN TO INVEST IN INDONESIA'S AGROINDUSTRY.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) VIENTIANE, Laos, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono held bilateral talks with Sultan Hasanal Bolkiah of Brunei Darussalam here on Sunday, during which the latter pledged to increase his country's...

Sensex near record high: Gains 122 points at 6157.77.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - THE stock market put aside the woes of the Ambani brothers, to take the Sensex up to a thumping 122-point joy ride. The market opened smartly and though the first hour of trading was slightly...

Reliance scrips too make gains.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - SHARES of Reliance group companies also managed to turn around on Monday after the hammering of the previous week. Brokers attribute this to value buying. Market is also speculating that the...

AUSTRALIA MAY HAVE 'INNOCENTLY' ASSISTED WMD PRODUCTION: SENATOR.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) SYDNEY, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - Australia may have "innocently" exported nuclear technology to parties with weapons of mass destruction (WMD) programs, Defence Minister Robert Hill said today. Senator Hill did not...

INDONESIA MUST BOOST RELIANCE ON SOLAR ENERGY: EXPERT.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) JAKARTA, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - The time has come for the Indonesian government to set aside an adequate budget to take advantage of solar cells to meet the rising demand for energy, an energy expert said here Monday. ...

RENAULT SA TO BUILD ENGINE PLANT IN BUSAN, S. KOREA.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) SEOUL, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - French auto giant Renault SA, the parent company of Renault Samsung Motors, will build an additional engine plant at an investment of 200 billion won (US$190 million) in the southeastern port...

PERTAMINA MORE THAN DOUBLES PRICE OF FUEL GAS IN INDONESIA.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) JAKARTA, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - Indonesia's state oil and gas company, Pertamina, on Monday raised the price of fuel gas to Rp1,550 (US$0.17) per liter, up from Rp700 per liter. "The new price began to take effect at...

INDONESIA WILL NEED US$72 BLN TO BUILD INFRASTRUCTURE: PRESIDENT.
November 30, 2004... (From Asia Pulse) VIENTIANE, Nov 30 Asia Pulse - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said Indonesia would need US$72 billion to develop infrastructure facilities such as roads, railways, ports, airports, power plants, clean water systems...

Vesting powers with Mukesh: 'Anil's investment plans forced Reliance Ind board'.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - RELIANCE Industries' Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Mr Anil Ambani's political involvement and his act of committing the company to large investments without taking the RIL board into...

Mukesh allays fears of investors.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - MR Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, today said the recent loss of market cap of the Reliance group companies was an aberration, something that was not expected...

Reliance Energy board to meet today.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - RELIANCE Energy Ltd's board of directors will meet here on Tuesday to consider the resignations of six of its directors and related issues, the company told stock exchanges on Monday. The...

Interest rates unlikely to fall further: RBI report.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - THE Reserve Bank of India has alerted banks that interest rates may have bottomed out and are unlikely to decline any further during the financial year 2004-05. In its report on the 'Trend and...

Anil sends emotional e-mail to employees of RIL.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) "We are not inheritors. We have built this company along with our father. We are his (Dhirubhai Ambani's) partners. It has almost been like a joint venture." Mumbai, Nov. 29 - THE Ambani controversy was today...

ONGC to join hands with Norway's Statoil for deep sea drilling.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - OIL and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) is set to dump Transocean and Dolphin Drilling and may team up with Statoil of Norway in its hunt for oil and gas in the deep-sea, where the exploration...

Blue Dart plans to divest shares in arm.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - BLUE Dart Express Ltd has informed the Bombay Stock Exchange that the company is seeking the consent of shareholders pursuant to Section 293(1)(a) of the Companies Act 1956, to divest up to 100 per...

Rupee rises to 7-month high.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - THE rupee strengthened to a seven-month high on Monday riding on the back of large foreign investment inflows and a dollar weakening against major currencies. The absence of dollar purchases by...

Satluj Jal in pact with Konkan Rlys for tunnelling project.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - IT's an unusual pooling of resources between the railway and the power sectors. Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd (SJVNL), a joint-sector hydel generation company, has entered into an agreement...

Aurobindo buys Dee plant.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) HYDERABAD: Aurobindo Pharma Ltd has purchased the sterile plant of Dee Pharma Ltd under an auction for sale conducted by the Delhi High Court for a consideration of Rs 3.8 crore. Announcing this in a press...

Coal India arm likely to come out with IPO.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) An eight-member expert committee has been set up for recommending a roadmap for the coal sector in India and restructuring of CIL. New Delhi, Nov. 29 - HAVING gone public with oil and power companies such as ONGC...

IOC to build LPG bottling infrastructure in Mauritius.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Drawing a parallel with its business in Sri Lanka spearheaded by Lanka IOC, which has already taken control of 25 per cent market share in the retail market, the sources said that the company expected to do better in...

Leather, textiles export drive duplex board demand.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Chennai, Nov. 29 - DEMAND for packaging material, particularly duplex boards, is set to increase, boding good for board manufacturers - large and small. Export growth in a host of industries such as leather, textiles...

Ranbaxy wins Abbott lawsuit; launches clarithromycin in UK.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - FOLLOWING a favourable ruling by a court in the UK against a lawsuit filed by the US-based Abbott Laboratories, Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd has launched clarithromycin in the UK market. Abbott...

'Cos must get Cenvat credit for cess paid on natural rubber'.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - THE domestic tyre industry has urged the Finance Ministry to allow tyre companies to avail themselves of central value added (Cenvat) credit on the cess paid on natural rubber. In its...

Shop for your career at recruitment malls.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Bangalore, Nov. 29 - IMAGINE walking into a five-lakh sq ft mall where the world's leading employers are vendors, jobs or careers are the products on offer, and job seekers are customers. "The day is not far away...

Meeting with successful bidders soon on Delhi, Mumbai airports revamp.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - THE proposed modernisation and restructuring of Delhi and Mumbai airports is all set to move ahead with the Government-appointed financial consultants scheduled to hold a pre-bid conference with...

Non-performing assets of banks on the decline: Report.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - THE asset quality of scheduled commercial banks (SCBs) has shown a remarkable improvement in 2003-04, according to the RBI report on 'Trends and Progress of Banking in India' released on Monday. ...

Govt yet to decide on Virgin proposal.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - A QUESTION mark hangs over the proposed investment by Virgin Atlantic into the domestic aviation sector, as the Government is yet to take a firm view on whether such investment is permissible....

Pre-budget discussion with industry on Dec 10.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - THE Finance Ministry is to hold pre-budget discussions on the Union Budget for 2005-06 with various segments of industry and industry associations from December 10. Besides the Chairpersons...

ISRO telemedicine meet in March.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Bangalore, Nov. 29 - ISRO has planned to organise the country's first international meet on telemedicine and telehealth in Bangalore next year. IntelmedIndia-2005 will be held during March 17-19 with...

Court refuses search warrant against Lodha.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Kolkata, Nov. 29 - THE Chief Judicial Magistrate of Alipore, in South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, Md Mumtaz Khan, today refused to pass any order of search warrant against Mr R.S. Lodha, a member of the...

Biocon awaiting USFDA nod to generic bio-insulin.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Hyderabad, Nov. 29 - CLOSE on the heels of launching the world's first recombinant human (r-DNA) insulin, Biocon Ltd is now waiting for the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to spell out its regulatory policy...

Housing finance not reaching poor yet: Minister.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - HOUSING finance disbursements have registered a 10-fold growth over the last eight years to touch Rs 50,000 crore in 2003-04, the Minister for Urban Employment and Poverty Alleviation, Ms Kumari...

Local, retail advertisers dominate radio.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - THE verdict is finally out. FM radio stations have managed to attract a set of advertisers quite different from the traditional television and print media. According to the first report of...

FX logo: Delhi HC dismisses plea from 20th Century Fox.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - THE Delhi High Court has dismissed a petition filed by Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation over the use of mark 'FX' against Essel Group's ASC Enterprises Ltd and Zee Telefilms Ltd. FX...

Sugar confectionery sector cuts adspend.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - IT appears as if the slackening growth rate of the Rs 1,600-crore sugar confectionery industry has had an adverse impact on this category's advertising spends as well. For the first time in the...

DoT asks Reliance to surrender excess spectrum.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - THE Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has asked Reliance Infocomm to surrender excess radio frequency in Haryana on grounds that the company had not reached the required level of subscriber...

Recommendations on accounting standards to be notified soon.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - THE accounting standards (AS) recommended by the National Advisory Committee on Accounting Standards (NACAS) may get the legal sanctity by December this year. Mr Prem Chand Gupta, Minister of...

Qatar Airways to fly non-stop to Beijing.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - QATAR Airways has become the first West Asian carrier to launch non-stop scheduled flights between Qatar's capital Doha and the Chinese capital Beijing. The first flight touched down at Beijing...

Fewer foreign students in Washington DC varsities.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Washington, Nov. 29 - THERE has been a 10 per cent drop in the number of foreign students attending colleges and universities in Washington D.C. which is very much in line with a study that shows a nationwide...

Linux Bangalore 2004 to be held this week.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Bangalore, Nov. 29 - LINUX Bangalore 2004, India's largest annual free and open source software (FOSS) event, will be held from Wednesday to Friday. It will feature speakers from the Indian industry, the US, Europe...

Infovision planning Rs 100-cr expansion.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Kolkata, Nov. 29 - INFOVISION Software Pvt Ltd, eastern India's largest medical transcription company, today unveiled expansion plans that would entail an investment of Rs 100 crore in phases. The company's...

TCS identifies potential markets for new product.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - HAVING gained significant expertise in development of solutions for international securities trading, clearing and settlement, TCS has come out with its own product, e-Clear Settlement, which is...

Synaptris setting up UK office.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) CHENNAI: Synaptris Inc, the software products arm of San Jose-based Cybernet Software Systems Group, is setting up an office in the UK. Currently, Synaptris has presence in the US, Bulgaria, Singapore and India. ...

Cadence Systems migrates GCC operations to India.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Hyderabad, Nov. 29 - CADENCE Design Systems, a leading electronic design automation (EDA) and engineering services provider, has completed migration of its global customer care centre to its facility in Noida near...

Advertisers' connect to Indian diaspora in US.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - IT'S not just the domestic markets that Indian companies wish to target. The growing Indian diaspora in the US is also becoming an attractive market for players such as Jet Airways, ICICI Bank,...

IFCI posts Rs 64-crore operating profit in H1.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - IN a turnaround of sorts, IFCI Ltd has reported an operating profit of Rs 64.18 crore for the first six months of the current fiscal, against an operating loss of Rs 99 crore during the...

Gilts lacklustre.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) MUMBAI: In the bond market on Monday, prices of Government securities went up by about 20 paise towards the end of trading hours after lacklustre trading throughout the day. News of the Finance Ministry being...

Holiday frenzy keeps US retailers hopeful.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Washington, Nov. 29 - RETAILERS and retail outlets have not exactly opened the champagne bottles to celebrate sales for the holiday season; but if the first weekend after Thanksgiving is anything to go by, there is...

Housing needs of poor remain unaddressed.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Although growth in credit to the housing sector has been robust since the late 1990s, the economically weaker sections experience around 90 per cent shortage in housing. Mumbai, Nov. 29 - WHILE the volume of home...

IOB looking at acquisitions for growth.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - UNABLE to swim against the merger tide hitting the public sector banks, the Chairman and Managing Director of IOB, Mr S.C. Gupta, has now decided to stroke his way along with the rest of the...

Ennore multi-user coal terminal: Bidder gets stay.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Chennai, Nov. 29 - ONE of the bidders of the multi-user coal terminal at the Ennore port has got a stay order from a court and one unqualified bidder has gone to the court against the pre-qualification criteria and...

Large retail exposure may impact banks' asset quality.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - THE Reserve Bank of India has expressed concerns over the implications of the rapid rise in retail lending by banks. In its report on 'Trends and Progresses in the banking sector', released on...

TVS group hives off logistics division into separate co.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Chennai, Nov. 29 - T.V. Sundram Iyengar and Sons Ltd, the parent company of the TVS group, has hived off its logistics division into a separate, wholly owned subsidiary company. The new company, TVS Logistics...

Budget secrets.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) The Budget documents are treated as highly classified until they are laid on the table of Parliament. The really secret part contains tax proposals. Any insider knowledge can help some private parties make money....

Time for media introspection.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) The credibility of the Indian electronic media took a battering because of the partisan reportage of general elections earlier this year. If the television media is indeed to play a more proactive role in the...

Silver surfers.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) THE Microsoft CEO, Mr Steve Balmer, during his recent visit to India pledged to localise software here and urged the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, to take steps to increase computer penetration in the country....

Nuclear challenges in contemporary world: Deterrence, disarmament and proliferation.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) As disparate the nations are, so are their nuclear weapon strategies. While most abide by the rule of non-proliferation, some, despite being part of the NPT, have leaked their knowledge to suspect nations. A...

Bankable trends.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) BANKS, ESPECIALLY THOSE in the public sector, are doing well having "significantly" cleaned up their balance-sheets even while improving the spreads. The Reserve Bank of India's Report on Trend and Progress of...

IBA told to rectify faulty areas in Kisan Credit Cards scheme.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - THE Reserve Bank of India hassaid that it has asked Indian Banks' Association (IBA) to take remedial action on some of the issues pertaining to Kisan Credit Cards (KCC), primarily to improve the...

RIDF deposits down 44 pc in 2003-04.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - DEPOSITS received by Nabard from commercial banks toward the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) declined by 44 per cent to Rs 2,159 crore during 2003-04 compared to Rs 3,857 crore the...

Micro-finance: Creating value for the poor.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) IN RECENT years, the banking sector has undergone a paradigm shift. An important element of the banking sector transformation has been the emergence of micro-financing (MF) as an innovative savings and loan mechanism...

Taxing sports bodies.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) This is with reference to the editorial "Be a sport, don't tax" (Business Line, November 15). There cannot be one law for the BCCI and another for other sports associations. If your suggestion is to amend the law, it...

N. India mills scramble for sugarcane supplies.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) New Delhi, Nov. 29 - AFTER a gap of nearly five years, a fresh 'sugarcane war' has seemingly broken out in the North, prompted by a combination of scarce crop availability and State Governments' renewed populist...

Vaghela opposes developed nations' subsidy for cotton.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Mumbai, Nov. 29 - A severe criticism of the high levels of financial support extended by developed economies to their farm sector became the common refrain of speakers at the inaugural session of the 5-day plenary...

Joint Liability Group: A key initiative.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Byline: its own admission, the RBI report says: "The SHG-bank linkage programme A PILOT project to offer bank funds to small and marginal farmers and village artisans has been recently seeded by Nabard (National...

Low participation hits Coonoor tea auctions.
November 30, 2004... (From Business Line) Coonoor, Nov. 28 - THE auctions conducted by the Coonoor Tea Trade Association (CTTA) here on Sunday evoked poor response from the buyers. "The attendance by the buyers was low and their participation still...