July 29, 2012

Biz Quizzard 435

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week July 23 - 28. Hope you enjoy it.

1. Japanese FMCG firm Unicharm has roped in which celebrity as brand ambassador for its sanitary napkin brand 'Sofy’?

2. Which company has entered into a binding merger agreement to buy Canadian coal firm CIC Energy for Canadian dollar (CAD) 116 million (over Rs 600 crore) in an all cash deal?

3. Which MNC last week said it has acquired premium personal care brand Yardley's businesses in the UK and other select European nations for an undisclosed amount?

4. Which Indian auto company has entered into a 50:50 joint venture with US-based, all-terrain vehicles major Polaris Industries to produce personal vehicles out of a greenfield facility?

5. Which MNC has roped in Bollywood actor Deepika Padukone as brand ambassador for it’s yet to be launched scooter in India?

6. Which entertainment and sports solutions firm has sold 50% stake in its brands business to Platinum Rye Entertainment, a US entertainment marketing company?

7. Which company has acquired a majority stake in Chennai-based e-learning solutions company Axis V for an undisclosed sum?

8. Which MNC has rolled out its new multi-grain family drink product Nutriful in Andhra Pradesh?

9. Israel’s Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (TPI) will enter India through a joint venture (JV) with which MNC and set up its first manufacturing facility at Sanand in Gujarat?

10. In what is a first in the history of Indian two-wheeler industry, which MNC will export sports bikes to Japan from India?

11. What milestone has Facebook crossed in India?

12. Which airline has agreed to pay $80 million in cash for full ownership in Indonesia's Batavia Air?

13. Which company last week said it has acquired education content provider Edurix, a move that will help strengthen its education and learning business?

14. Apple Inc last week released the latest version of the operating software for its Macintosh computer. What has it been branded as?

15. Samsung Electronics India has launched the RS844CRPC5H, a new refrigerator. What is its claim to fame?

16. Which MNC has unveiled what it says is the world’s fastest internet connection through its ultra-high speed service, offering lightning-fast access of one gigabit per second?

17. Which MNC will buy fingerprint sensor technology developer AuthenTec Inc for about $356 million?

18. BMW has roped in which celebrity as its first brand ambassador in India?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 435 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

July 22, 2012

Biz Quizzard 434

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week July 16 - 21. Hope you enjoy it.

1. Which MNC has appointed Seema Modi as its India managing director?

2. Which business group has unveiled a regional airline, Mantra Airline to connect smaller cities?

3. Which company has acquired 100 per cent stake in British security firm The Shield Guarding Company Limited for Rs 167 crore (£19.5 million)?

4. Which company has topped the list of Best Companies to Work for in India, by ET and Great Place To Work Institute?

5. Ace archer and member of the Indian Olympic Contingent for the London Olympics 2012, Deepika Kumari, has joined which company as a manager in its sports department?

6. In which location is the first Hyatt Place outside the US likely to come up at?

7. Youth channel MTV has tied up with which company to launch co-branded adventure bikes?

8. Which well-known ‘human-potential guru’ died at a hospital in Idaho last week at the age of 79?

9. Joy Chakraborthy has resigned as the CEO of which media company after a brief span of eight months?

10. Which MNC has picked Google’s Marissa Mayer to become its new CEO?

11. Which MNC has posted its first quarterly loss in 26 years after it went public?

12. Which advertising agency in India has launched a new division, TRIP?

13. In association with which company has Google India launched a programme named Google Web Academy?

14. Which MNC has bought Sparrow, makers of the email apps for iPhone and the Mac?

15. Akshay Kumar and Sonakshi Sinha feature in the TVC (currently on air) of which beverage brand?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 434 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

July 15, 2012

Biz Quizzard 433

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week July 09 - 14. Hope you enjoy it.

1. Ranbaxy Laboratories has roped in cine stars Sonali Bendre and Trisha Krishnan as brand ambassadors for which brand?

2. Which MNC last week said it has received the EuroFinance Treasury award for implementing its treasury architecture software integrating operations across 20 nations and swift work on managing debt of around $13 billion?

3. Which company will acquire US-based Triumph Engineering, which provides engineering and technical services to aviation, energy, and oil and gas industries?

4. Arvind Rao has resigned as the managing director and chief executive of which company?

5. Eight Indian companies feature in the list of world’s 500 largest companies compiled by Fortune magazine, including two of them in the top 100. Name the two companies?

6. Which business group’s retail initiative DIGIWorld has unveiled its new brand identity and brand repositioning 'DW'?

7. Which company has entered into a backend joint venture with 2 Sisters Food Group (2SFG), a UK-based meat-processing company to introduce chilled and frozen foods at its food & grocery outlets?

8. Which MNC last week said it would buy Perceptive Pixel, a developer of large touchscreen displays whose customers include cable network CNN?

9. Which company has announced its foray into the air care category with a new brand, ‘aer’?

10. Which hotel chain has announced its partnership with the Public Diplomacy Division of the Ministry of External Affairs for its “India Is” initiative?

11. Which MNC has teamed up with Theo Mueller Group, the largest privately held dairy business in Germany, to enter the fast-growing US yogurt market?

12. Which company has announced the sale of its wholly-owned subsidiary Myra Mall Management Company to Jaydev Mody-owned Providence Educational Academy?

13. Which company has acquired Malaysian company Henikwon Corporation Sdn Bhd for an undisclosed amount through its Malaysia-based wholly-owned subsidiary, Tamco Switchgear?

14. What milestone has BMW India’s Chennai plant crossed recently?

15. Which beer maker has launched a new drink with spicy taste under the label of Indus Pride?

16. South Africa-based drugmaker Adcock Ingram has acquired which Indian pharma company for Rs 480 crore?

17. Which MNC has agreed to buy Britain's Aegis Group in a £3.16 billion ($4.9 billion) deal to create a global media and marketing network to challenge WPP?

18. British fashion brand Superdry, worn by celebrities such as David Beckham and Pippa Middleton, is coming to India through a tie up with which company?

19. Which MNC has appointed P Balaji as VP and MD for its India operations?

20. Which celebrity has signed up to be the brand ambassador of Kalyan Jewellers, one of India’s leading jewellery retail chains?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 433 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

July 8, 2012

Biz Quizzard 432

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week July 02 - 07. Hope you enjoy it.

1. Which MNC has announced a cash award of Rs 20 lakh to any of the country’s sportsperson winning a gold medal in the forthcoming Olympic Games to be held in London?

2. Tata AIG Life Insurance has been rechristened. What will it be known as?

3. UK-based casual dining restaurant chain PizzaExpress has kicked off the process of starting its India operation, almost eight months after signing a 50-50 joint venture partnership with which business family?

4. Which well known footwear brand has rolled out a new tagline 'Walk in comfort, wear in style' in India?

5. Italian sportswear maker Fila has roped in which celebrity as its first ever brand ambassador in India?

6. Robert Diamond last week stepped out as the CEO of which MNC bank over the Libor rate scandal?

7. Hero MotoCorp last week launched a new 125 cc motorcycle. What has it been branded as?

8. Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) has crossed which sales milestone recently?

9. Pramod Bhasin, former president and CEO of Genpact, and the daughter of which business personality have set up a skill development company, Skills Academy?

10. Which Indian company last week said that Harvard Business Review has featured it as one of the six most successful sales and marketing companies in the world?

11. Eros International and Mediaone Global Entertainment have tied up with which company to launch 500,000 mobiles to celebrate the release of Rajnikanth’s next film Kochadaiyaan?

12. Which MNC last week reportedly agreed to buy mapping startup UpNext, the latest sign of increased competition with tech rivals such as Google Inc and Apple Inc.?

13. Which radio channel has launched Freedom Radio, an internet radio channel, to celebrate its 11th anniversary?

14. In its first overseas acquisition, which company has bought Bilthoven Biologicals in the Netherlands for a total consideration of over Rs 550 crore?

15. Sri Lankan tea company Dilmah has set up its first exclusive T Bar in India, their eighth in the world. Which city?

16. Publicis Groupe has become 100% owners of which legendary advertising agency?

17. Which business group has signed an agreement to buy the Terrace Bay Pulp Mill in North Western Ontario, Canada?

18. Which automobile MNC has appointed Philipp von Sahr as its new India chief?

19. Which adman-turned-entrepreneur has just launched Mobocracy, an agency that specialises in providing creative solutions for mobile phones?

20. Which tyre maker has unveiled a new logo and advertising campaign targeting the young and urban customer?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 432 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

July 1, 2012

Biz Quizzard 431

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week June 25 - 30. Hope you enjoy it.

1. Which Indian business group will sell stake in its China manufacturing unit to China Power New Energy Development Co. Ltd. for 3.4 billion rupees?

2. Which MNC bank’s arm has agreed to pay Rs 1,200 crore to buy a majority stake in Continuum, a wind energy firm, highlighting the increasing interest of US private equity firms in Indian renewable assets?

3. In what is claimed to be a first-of-its-kind initiative between a university and a business house, which business group has decided to build an India Centre in Olympic University?

4. Which company is test marketing an after-wash laundry brand known as Magic in Andhra Pradesh, that the company claims reduces water usage by two-thirds?

5. Which city has been named the most competitive city in India in a new Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) research report?

6. Which company has bagged the title sponsorship for the ODI series between India and Sri Lanka starting on July 22?

7. Mindshare and which MNC have announced the launch of Mobile Garage, a venture designed to use the MNC's mobile expertise to supercharge the use of mobile by Mindshare's global client base?

8. Which FMCG company has recently launched global artificial sweetener brand Nutrasweet in the Indian market via its healthcare arm?

9. Which MNC last week named chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg a director, elevating the first woman to a board that has seven men?

10. Which business personality is this year’s recipient of the Rockefeller Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award?

11. Chennai-based real estate developer TVH has roped in which celebrity as brand ambassador for all its new projects?

12. Which company has entered the nutraceuticals space with HiOwna-Junior, a nutrition supplement drink for children?

13. Sudhanshu Vats, a vice-president at Hindustan Unilever, has been appointed group CEO of which media company?

14. Google last week unveiled a $199 handheld tablet computer that features a 7-inch screen and is designed to help the company vie with Apple, Microsoft and Amazon.com. What has it been branded as?

15. McDowell’s No. 1 has signed up which celebrity as brand ambassador for its soda extension?

16. Which company was awarded the Global Performance Excellence Award by Asia Pacific Quality Organization in Chicago on June 18?

17. Which MNC has named Ramesh Jayaraman as its India head?

18. Which pharmaceutical MNC has appointed Aijaz Tobaccowalla as managing director in India?

19. Which cosmetic major has launched internationally renowned British model and actor Lily Cole as its first-ever global brand ambassador?

20. Tata Chemicals has roped in which well known personality to endorse its ‘i-Shakti’ brand of unpolished pulses?

21. Which MNC is the official timekeeper for the London Olympics 2012?

22. Which MNC has signed a three-year partnership with football club Arsenal which will allow it to utilise the club’s merchandising, hospitality and content rights in five countries, Nigeria, Zambia, Ghana, Uganda and Rwanda?

23. Which in-car entertainment brand has finally set up shop in India, through a joint venture (55:45) with its current India partner AutoSonics India?

24. Which company has acquired Travelguru, the Indian arm of US travel services provider Travelocity, to become the largest provider of hotel bookings in the country?

25. Which Indian hotel is the only one from the Asian continent to feature in the top 10 list of world’s best-reviewed hotels in Expedia’s annual “Insiders’ Select” ranking?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 431 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli