BUDGET 2000
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
COMMENTARY
GOVT&ECONOMY
Y2K: BIZ FEATURES
INDIA & THE WTO
CREDIT POLICY
BIZ IN THE USA
CARS & MOBIKES
MANAGEMENT
CASE STUDY
BIZ-QUIZ
USEFUL INFO
ARCHIVES
NEWSLINKS
SEARCH REDIFF

German minister, Premji discuss cooperation in infotech

Joschka Fischer, Germany's foreign minister, met with Azim H Premji, chairman, Wipro Corporation, on Wednesday to get a first-hand impression of India's information technology industry and its potential for business with German companies in software services.

Premji outlined the potential for rapid growth of the Indian IT industry from $3.9 billion in software exports in 1999-2000 to $50 billion in 2008, as estimated by a recent Nasscom-McKinsey study.

He said the New Economy offers an unprecedented growth opportunity to the world, and more particularly to the developed countries, to increase their pace of growth.

In this context, the Indian software industry could assist the German economy in leveraging the scarce IT resources for their enhanced growth.

Wipro is currently operating with several German companies, including Deutsche Bank, Infineon, Baxter, Becker GMBH, and is poised to expand operations by opening an office in Germany and investing in training in German language skills.

Wipro pioneered the offshore development centre business model where companies outside India outsource their software development requirements to India. Through an ODC, Wipro is executing a large project involving high-tech work on GSM Networks for a global datacom company located in Germany.

Wipro at present has 150 engineers working on various projects. Ninety per cent of the work is done by engineers located at Bangalore, and just a small team of Wipro engineers in Germany help implement the solution. For another major customer, Wipro is facilitating access of online information to trading desks.

Premji welcomed the German government's initiative to benefit from India's competence in software development. He conveyed to the minister that Indian software companies did not require immigration visas or "green cards" to do business in Germany.

He suggested that an experiment could be taken up to empower local offices to issue German business visas that would be valid for a period for 18 months, instead of the existing three months.

This will provide adequate flexibility for business professionals from Indian companies to move back and forth from Germany to complete software projects within a stipulated time-frame.

Fischer invited Premji to visit him and other public leaders in Germany, and take their discussions forward in identifying areas where German companies and the Indian IT industry can mutually collaborate and benefit from the extensive requirement for software development in Germany in the immediate future.

Wipro shares fall on May 18

On Thursday, shares of Indian diversified firm Wipro Limited dropped nearly six per cent after the firm's weightage was cut in Morgan Stanley's India Index on Wednesday, dealers said.

On the Bombay Stock Exchange, Wipro was down 5.71 per cent at Rs 2,230, off a low of Rs 2,207.

Analysts said the level was a good entry point for value buyers as the downside looks limited.

"It could at a maximum drop down to Rs 2,000 or even to Rs 1,800 in an extreme case, but would jump back as the fundamentals don't justify that price," said an analyst with a domestic brokerage.

He said he was beginning to regard the stock as an "accumulate" prospect based on an estimated earnings per share or EPS of Rs 22 for 2000/01.

Wipro shares have been steadily declining and as of Wednesday's close of Rs 2,365, they were down 75.42 per cent from the all-time closing high of Rs 9,624 on February 21.

Wipro Limited is a leading software firm with presence in consumer products as well.

On Wednesday, index services firm Morgan Stanley Capital International announced that it is reducing Wipro's weightage to 30 per cent.

"Wipro's market capitalisation weighting will be reduced to 30 per cent as its liquidity is relatively modest for its size and due to its low float (approximately 15 per cent)," MSCI said.

Reuters

ALSO SEE

The Textbook CEO: An interview with Azim Hasham Premji

Work harder, smarter, and India will offer whatever you want: Premji

Forbes names Wipro's Premji as richest Indian

Azim Hasham Premji on the Power of the Mind in the Infotech Era

Web site of Wipro Corporation

Business