By IANS,

Bangalore : Amid growing world demand for alternative energy vehicles, India’s leading utility vehicles maker Mahindra & Mahindra Wednesday forayed into the electric car segment, acquiring a 55.2 percent majority stake in Reva Electric Car Co Ltd.

The strategic deal for an unspecified amount includes a fresh equity infusion of Rs.45 crore (Rs.450 million/$10 million) by Mahindra into the Bangalore-based Reva.

By IANS,

New Delhi : Pharma company Jubilant Organosys Wednesday said it has repaid $69 million debt and it expects to meet all its debt obligations due next year on account of strong growth.

The company has made the repayment for foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) worth $50 million along with the $19 million yield to maturity (YTM). The FCCBs were due for redemption on May 24.

By IANS,

New Delhi : State-run Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL) Wednesday said its net profit plummeted 85.16 percent to Rs.757.53 crore during January-March quarter from Rs 5,104.04 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago.

The company's total income, however, increased by 24.2 percent to Rs.31,766.32 crore for the quarter ended March 2010 from Rs.25,577.63 crore in the year-ago period.

The oil marketing company's net profit stood at Rs.1,301.37 crore for the year ended March 2010 as against Rs.574.98 crore in previous fiscal, a whopping increase of 126.33 percent.

By IANS,

Mumbai : A benchmark index for Indian equities Wednesday closed 365 points higher on the back of strong global cues and with traders covering short positions.

The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 16,069.78 points, ended at 16,387.84 points, 365.36 points or 2.28 percent up from its previous close at 16,022.48 points.

The Sensex had fallen almost 2.71 percent Tuesday amid a global sell-off.

By IANS,

New Delhi : The Indian government Wednesday gave its nod to the appointment of merchant bankers and intermediaries to ensure smooth handling of disinvestment in state-run enterprises.

The government has targeted revenues of Rs.40,000 crore from disinvestment in public sector undertakings in fiscal 2010-11.

"The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today (Wednesday)approved the appointment of merchant bankers and other intermediaries to disinvestment transactions involving offer for sale or fresh issue by the company," said an official statement.

By IANS,

Thiruvananthapuram : Kerala Industry Secretary T. Balakrishnan, who is of the rank of additional chief secretary, appears to be in trouble over his remark early this week seemingly favouring soft drink giant Coca Cola.

The state cabinet Wednesday directed chief secretary to inquire and submit a report on his junior's statement on the closure of the company's bottling plant in Plachimada in Palakkad district about six years back.

By IANS,

New Delhi : India's largest farmers' cooperative will collaborate with the Coconut Development Board (CDB) to market select value-added coconut products inside the country and abroad under the NAFED brand.

A tripartite agreement to this effect is expected to be signed in the next fortnight by NAFED (National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd), the CDB and the coconut product processors. The three parties held a meeting here Wednesday to fine-tune the details.

By IANS,

Mumbai : A benchmark index for Indian equities Wednesday extended its morning gains during the last hour of trade and closed 357 points higher than its previous close.

The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 16,069.78 points, ended at 16,379.63 points (provisional), 357.15 points or 2.23 percent up from its previous close at 16,022.48 points.

By DPA,

Paris : Industrial nations are emerging more quickly than expected from their worst recession in the post-war period but the upswing is bypassing the labour market, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said Wednesday.

In its spring economic outlook, Paris-based OECD said that prices were remaining stable in the recover.

"The growth dynamic is intact," the OECD said, while cautioning that the upswing could be jeopardised by the acute crisis facing a number of nations' budgets.

By IANS/WAM,

Abu Dhabi : Land and real estate transactions in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) showed a whopping increase of 550 percent in April 2010 from the corresponding period last year.

Transactions in Abu Dhabi in April 2010 were worth a total of 12.3 billion dirhams ($3.3 billion). Property transactions amounted to 11.9 billion dirhams, while the total sales price topped 241.2 million dirhams.

In March 2009, the transactions were worth only about two billion dirhams, Uwaidha Al Qubaisi, acting executive director of municipal services sector, said.