India’s central bank hikes cash reserve ratio
By IANS,
Mumbai : India's central bank hiked the cash reserve ratio (CRR) for banks by another 25 basis points Tuesday in a bid to contract money supply and contain price rise, but kept all other key rates unchanged.
Announcing the annual monetary and credit policy for the current fiscal, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Y.V. Reddy said the CRR was being further hiked to 8.25 percent, after a 50 basis points hike announced earlier.
Mahindra and Mahindra acquires electric car maker REVA
By IANS,
Bangalore/Mumbai : Automobile major Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) Wednesday announced it has taken 55.2 percent stake in electric car-maker REVA through a combination of equity purchase and fresh capital infusion of Rs.45 crore ($10 million).
Post acquisition, the Bangalore-based REVA will be renamed Mahindra REVA, spokespersons of both the companies told reporters here.
M&M's automotive sector president Pawan Goenka will be nominated as the new entity's chairman.
Pakistan looks to India for green energy know-how
By IANS,
New Delhi : While bilateral relations between Pakistan and India may not be very cordial at the moment, businessmen across the border have found a new area for collaboration - alternate energy.
About 30 Pakistani companies sent representatives to Delhi during the Renewable Energy Expo 2008 that ended Saturday to scout for new technology and expertise to skirt over chronic energy shortage in that country.
Gold hits $1,000, stocks take a tumble
By IRNA
New York : Stock markets dropped sharply on Thursday, extending Wall Street's losses for a second day, as investors grappled with a precipitous decline in the dollar, poor retail sales, and an uneasy milestone: $ 1,000 gold.
The bad batch of economic news underscored concerns about a recession.
The Standard & Poor's 500-stock index shed 1.7 percent within minutes of the opening bell, and the Dow Jones industrials lost more than 200 points, as investors fled to commodities and government bonds.
Nokia to bid for Nortel assets
By IANS,
Toronto : Dying Canadian telecom giant Nortel has put up its optical networking and carrier ethernet business for auction.
Toronto-based Nortel has been selling its businesses bit by bit to pay off its creditors after it sought and got bankruptcy protection in the US and Canada in January after last year's huge losses. Nokia Siemens Networks, which failed to acquire Nortel's next-generation wireless business in July, has once again entered the bidding process - jointly with the equity firm Equity Partners.
Tata Tele MD wins telecom person of the year award
By IANS,
New Delhi : Tata Teleservices Managing Director Anil Sardana has received the Voice & Data Telecom Person of the Year 2010 award.
Sardana has been recognised for his per second billing schemes which created new opportunities for mobile customers.
Bharti Chairman Sunil Mittal has won the award for Global Telecom Leader for 2010 for the acquisition of Zain Telecom. The company has access to Zain's African mobile services operations in 15 countries, with a total customer base of over 42 million.
Sensex collapses below 13,000 mark again
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equity markets suffered huge losses by early Thursday afternoon, with metal, realty, power and capital goods stocks under heavy selling pressure.
At 12:30 p.m., the 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, was down by 666.50 points or 4.88 percent at 12,998.12, compared to its closing figure Wednesday. It had touched a low of 12,965.89 earlier.
At the same time, the broader based S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange was down by 188.00 points or 4.84 percent at 3,895.35.
Saudi Aramco may boost Japan’s Showa Shell stake
By NNN-KUNA
Tokyo : The state-run Saudi Arabian Oil Co., or Saudi Aramco, may increase its stake in Showa Shell Sekiyu KK if the Japanese oil distributor decides to broaden the scope of its business, a major business daily here reported, citing Vice President Adil Al-Tubayyeb.
"We are extremely happy with our affiliation with Showa Shell," Al-Tubayyeb said in an interview with the Nikkei Shimbun this week. "We are a long-term investor. We don't look at short results," Al-Tubayyeb was quoted as saying.
Triveni Engineering in pact with General Electric
By IANS
New Delhi : US-based General Electric Co's (GE) oil and gas business has entered into a partnership here Monday with Triveni Engineering and Industries Ltd (Triveni) to tap the country's fast-growing high speed reciprocating compressor market, used widely in the oil and gas sector.
Commenting on the strategic partnership, Dhruv M. Sawhney, chairman and managing director, Triveni, said: "We see a buoyant oil and gas market in India in the coming years. We looking at a Rs.5 billion market per annum with a growth of 25-30 percent a year."
Sensex opens weak, down 212 points in morning trade
By IANS,
Mumbai : A benchmark index for Indian equities Wednesday fell deep into the red soon after opening, and was ruling 212 points lower than its previous close about an hour later.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 16,802.39 points, was ruling at 16,663.01 points, 212.75 points or 1.26 percent down from its previous close at 16,875.76 points.
At the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty was ruling at 4,997.7 points, down 1.35 percent from its previous close.
Biocon to market new breast cancer drug in India
By IANS,
Bangalore : Biotechnology major Biocon Ltd will market Abraxane drug of the US-based Abraxis BioScience in India for treating breast cancer, a top company official said here Friday.
To be priced at about $400 (Rs.17,200) per 100mg vial in India, the drug will be cheaper by 60 percent than in the US where it is sold at $1,000 (Rs.43,000) per vial of same measure.
Abraxane will be the second oncotherapeutics drug Biocon will be marketing after the launch of its proprietary antibody Biomab for the treatment of head and neck cancers.
Chidambaram confident of raising $450 bn for infrastructure
By IANS
London : India's Finance Minister P. Chidambaram Friday said he was confident of raising $450 billion required for infrastructure development in the country over the next five years.
India’s industrial output falls 2.3 percent in March
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's industrial output fell for the third consecutive month in March by a steep 2.3 percent compared to the corresponding month last year, according to government data released Tuesday. This was the third fall in four months.
Production in the manufacturing sector declined 3.3 percent during the month under review from the year-ago period, showed data released by the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) under the statistics and programme implementation ministry.
Court ruling on Morgan Stanley to ‘reassure’ MNCs: Nasscom
By IANS
New Delhi : A verdict given by India's apex court Monday on the tax issues relating to global investment major Morgan Stanley's BPO unit has given "reassurance" to other multinationals running similar operations in the country, a leading IT industry body said Tuesday.
Vedanta scouting for partner to build steel plant
By IANS
Mumbai : Non-ferrous metals giant Vedanta Resources is scouting for a suitable international or domestic partner to set up a 10 million tonne (MT) capacity steel plant in Orissa in India.
"We are impressed at the growing consumption of steel in India and are keen to enter this key sector. We are planning to set up a 10 million tonne steel plant at Keonjhar district of Orissa. We hope to find a suitable partner this year so we can commission it by 2012," Anil Agrawal, Chairman of Vedanta Resources, told IANS Wednesday.
Shilpa Medicare to sell cancer drug in Europe
By IANS
Mumbai : Karnataka-based pharmaceuticals firm Shilpa Medicare Ltd said Friday that it would sell its cancer drug in Europe.
The European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines (EDQM) has given a green signal for the sale of Oxaliplatin EP, prescribed in the treatment of colon and rectal cancer, the company said here.
The EDQM has granted its certificate of suitability (COS) for the drug. The firm said it was the first in India and fifth in the world to get a COS from EDQM.
World summit aims at closing gaps in finance market rules
By DPA,
Washington : The leaders of the world's top economic powers are expected to agree Saturday to close off all gaps in the regulation of world finance markets following a financial crisis that is threatening to plunge the global economy into recession.
The government heads of the Group of 20 nations gathered Friday night in the White House for a dinner hosted by US President George W. Bush and are expected to sign off on the agreement at an historic summit Saturday.
WIEF”s Kuwait Declaration applauds Amir”s decent living fund initiative
By KUNA,
Kuwait : Delegates of the Fourth World Islamic Economic Forum (WIEF) applauded Thursday "the generous commitment" of USD 100 million by His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah for the establishment of a food security fund to assist the poorest within the Muslim.
Sensex ends 70 points down in volatile trade
By IANS,
Mumbai : Despite strong global cues, a key index of the Indian equities markets ended a volatile trading session 70 points in the red Monday as investors remained cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's mid-year policy review Tuesday.
The sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 16,808.05 points, shut shop at 16,740.50 points -- 70.31 points or 0.42 percent lower than Friday's close at 16,810.81 points.
The index had hit a high of 16,938.88 points around noon, but fell back into the red to hit an intra-day low of 16,706.08 points.
Delhi-Mumbai corridor project gains momentum
By IANS
New Delhi : The ambitious project to build a $90 billion Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) jointly by India and Japan reached an advanced stage of negotiations Monday with the visit of a high-powered business delegation led by Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Akira Amari.
Vijaya Bank opens 40 new branches, 80 ATMs
By IANS,
New Delhi : The state-run Vijaya Bank Friday opened 40 new branches and 80 automated teller machines (ATMs) across the country on the occasion of its 81st foundation day.
New regulator for airports in place by March 31
By IANS,
New Delhi : A new aviation regulator - the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority (AERA) - will come into effect by March 31 this year, according to a ministry official.
"AERA has been notified in the gazette. It has to be in place by March 31," the official told IANS Friday. Once AERA becomes operational, Indian airports will have a tariff regulator in line with international practices.
The AERA Bill 2007 received the cabinet nod in May 2007, but was cleared by parliament only in October 2008. It was given clearance by the president late last month.
‘Farmer suicide report a cover-up’
By Anurag Dey
Kolkata: With agrarian distress being a major crisis accounting for thousands of farming lives every year, the latest data by the National...
India’s external debt jumps 30 percent to $221 bn
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's external debt jumped 30.3 percent to $221.2 billion at the end of March, due mainly to the weakening of the American dollar, the finance ministry said Thursday.
At the same time, the foreign exchange reserve cover for the country's external debt continued to be high, up from 117.4 percent during 2006-07 to 140 percent during the next fiscal, the statement by the finance ministry said.
General Motors launches new Chevrolet Captiva
By IANS,
New Delhi : Auto major General Motors India (GM) Friday launched the automatic version of its Chevrolet Captiva sports utility vehicle (SUV), priced at Rs.2.03 million (ex-showroom Delhi).
The SUV that was first launched in 2008 comes with a common rail diesel powertrain.
"The new Chevrolet Captiva Automatic+ brings superlative comfort and ease of driving combined with unbeatable value, safety, security and luxury to our customers,” GM president and managing director Karl Slym said.
US Barreling Into Recession
Washington, Feb 3 (Prensa Latina) Oil has placed a critical role in the US current economic downfall and will continue to drain the nation for years to come, writes Michael T. Klare, professor of Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire Collage.
The author of Resource Wars and Blood and Oil says the great economic mega-bubble arose in the late 1990s, when oil was cheap, times were good, and millions of middle-class families aspired to realize the "American dream" of buying a house in the exurban areas..
Australia sticks to ‘No uranium supply to India’ stand
By IANS,
New Delhi : Australia Thursday repeated its stand of not supplying uranium to a non-nuclear non-proliferation treaty country like India, but indicated it was open to cooperating with New Delhi on dual use items.
Visiting Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said: "The Australian government policy is not to supply uranium to non-nuclear non-proliferation treaty countries. That policy approach is of long standing and well known."
Nasdaq to merge with OMX group
By DPA
Stockholm : New York based Nasdaq and the OMX group that operates stock exchanges in the Nordic and Baltic region Friday announced plans to merge their operations.
‘Global to local only way to fight financial crisis’
By Joydeep Gupta, IANS,
Viterbo (Italy) : The worst of the global financial crisis is not over because governments have no strategy to fight it, says Walden Bello, winner of the alternative Nobel Prize in 2003.
The solution, he says, is to move from an export-oriented globalised economy to one that produces for local and national markets.
"Only that will address overcapacity in the real economy, the root cause of the current crisis," said Bello, executive director of the Bangkok-based organisation Focus on the Global South.
Growth has not trickled down to poor: Ansari
By IANS
New Delhi : Vice-President Hamid Ansari Friday said the fruits of high economic growth rate achieved by India had not witnessed fair distribution yet and that extent of wealth accumulation at the top was more impressive than the reduction of poverty at the lower strata of the society.
Declining oil prices will not lower inflation: Report
By IANS,
New Delhi : The recent decline in global oil prices will not lower India's rate of inflation, which will remain "stubbornly strong" in the coming days despite monetary tightening by the central bank, said economic analysis provider Moody's Economy.com Tuesday.
“The recent decline in global oil prices will not help cool consumer price inflation in India because energy prices - subsidised by the government - are still well below international market levels,” Sherman Chan, an economist with Moody's Economy.com said in a report.
‘Strategic plan’ needed to boost India-China business ties
By M.R. Narayan Swamy, IANS
Beijing : Indian and Chinese business leaders should develop "a strategic plan" to strengthen business alliances and collaboration to turn the two countries into the world's dominant economic powers, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Monday.
"I would suggest a three-pronged strategy for the chambers of industry and commerce of both countries to achieve these objectives," the prime minister told the India-China Economic Trade and Investment Summit here, unveiling his economic vision for the Asian giants.
OPEC crude price falls to $57.65
By DPA,
Vienna : The price for crude oil produced by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) fell to $57.65 Friday, the oil cartel said Monday.
One barrel (159 litres) of OPEC crude cost $2.27 less on Friday than on Thursday, when it stood at $59.92.
The price of OPEC oil has fallen 60 percent since the start of July, when it stood at $140.73.
OPEC calculates an average basket price based on 13 important brands produced by its members.
Apple’s third generation iPhone launches in India
By IANS,
New Delhi/Gurgaon : Reminiscent of the craze that follows the release of Harry Potter books, crowds lined up outside a Gurgaon mall and a few shops in Delhi to pick up the latest Apple iPhone that went on sale at midnight Thursday in India. And no one was daunted by the Rs.30,000-plus price.
The Apple iPhone 3G (third generation) was launched across India by telecom majors Bharti Airtel and Vodafone.
Brussels to host Europe-India pharmaceutical conference
By IANS,
Brussels : Brussels-based Europe India Chamber of Commerce is organising a two-day pharma roundtable in the Belgian capital starting Sunday, with the participation of over 70 pharmaceutical companies from Europe and India.
Speaking to EuAsiaNews, chamber secretary general Sunil Prasad said the roundtable was the first of its kind being organised here and would bring together leading drug manufacturers from India and Europe.
Sensex up 162 points in noon trade, Asian cues help
By IANS,
Mumbai : A benchmark index of the Indian equities rose 162 points in noon trade Monday with a healthy buying interest seen across the board.
Equity markets in the green early afternoon
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equity markets were in the green early Monday afternoon. Capital goods, realty and power stocks were in demand.
At 12:30 p.m., the 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, was at 14,392.90, up 117.96 points or 0.83 percent from its closing figure Friday. It had touched a high of 14,403.65 points earlier Monday.
At the same time the broader based S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange was up by 35.25 points to 4,347.10.
Food inflation eases to 16.23 percent
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's annual food inflation dipped to 16.23 percent for the week ended May 22 from 16.49 percent in the previous week, official data released Thursday showed.
Data on the wholesale price index (WPI) released by the commerce and industry ministry showed both food and non-food index dropped 0.1 percent each during the week under review.
Fuel prices slowed 12.08 percent during the week against a 12.33 percent increase in the last week.
The primary articles index was up 15.9 percent, compared to a rise of 16.19 percent during the previous week.
External commercial borrowing norms likely to be eased
By IANS,
New Delhi : The government is exploring options to ease norms for external commercial borrowings (ECBs) to enable firms go for faster capacity building, a senior finance ministry official hinted here Monday.
“Yes, you cannot rule out the possibility of easing ECB norms,” Ashok Chawla, secretary in the Department of Economic Affairs (DAE) in the finance ministry told reporters when asked how companies would access funds to finance infrastructure projects.
TRAI initiates discussion on FDI limits in broadcasting
By IANS
New Delhi : The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Monday initiated a dialogue among industry stakeholders to examine foreign direct investment (FDI) limits for the broadcasting sector.
"Foreign investments have an important role in the economic development as an important source of funding. Foreign investments have other benefits also such as bringing in new technology, international best practices and access to export markets," TRAI said in a statement.
India’s first field gene bank for litchis set up in Bihar
Patna: Aiming to conserve and improve the quality of litchis, the sweet and juicy summer fruit has acquired its first field gene bank in...
Pan-India number portability will enhance customer satisfaction: COAI
New Delhi: The implementation of pan-India mobile number portability (MNP) has been one of the important points of the National Telecom Policy 2012 and...
Mukesh Ambani’s SEZ and 26 others get government nod
By IANS
New Delhi : The government Thursday cleared the way for development of 27 special economic zones (SEZ) in the country, including Mukesh Ambani's multi-product SEZ in Navi Mumbai.
Uttar Pradesh to get two 500 megawatt power plants
By IANS,
Lucknow : The Uttar Pradesh Power Generation Corp Ltd will set up two 500 megawatt power plants at Obra in Sonbhadra district, about 500 km from Lucknow, a top company official said Friday.
"The government has just given us the green signal for installing the two units in Obra," company managing director Alok Tandon told IANS.
He said the two power units would cost around Rs.50 billion. About 200 hectares of land has been identified for the project.
Godrej Properties plans residential project near Chennai
By IANS,
Chennai : Mumbai real estate developer Godrej Properties Monday said it will jointly develop a mid-market residential project near here in association with the city-based cutting manufacturer Addison.
As per the deal, Godrej Properties has acquired the developmental rights on a 12.57-acre plot owned by Addison.
"We will promote a mid-market residential apartment project after getting the necessary approvals," said Godrej Properties chief operating officer K.T. Jithendran.
NLC unions to go on strike from July 18
By IANS,
Chennai : The Pattali Thozhil Sangam (PTS), the PMK-backed workers union at Neyveli Lignite Corp Ltd (NLC), and 10 other unrecognised unions Saturday called an indefinite strike from July 18 to demand an early wage revision.
However, the major union in the company, the DMK-backed NLC Workers' Progressive Union (NLCWPU), has announced that it would not take part in the strike.
"We are not participating in the strike as the management has agreed to the worker's demands," R. Gopalan, general secretary of NLC Workers' Progressive Union (NLCWPU), said Saturday.
Tanla Solutions to build Buzz for Outcast TV
By IANS
Mumbai : Tanla Mobile, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hyderabad-based wireless major Tanla Solutions Limited, has signed an agreement with Outcast TV, a content developer for the wireless audience, to build "Buzz", their media personalisation platform.
Tanla Mobile specialises in wireless application development, mobile billing and messaging solutions.
Double digit inflation hits equity markets hard
By IANS,
Mumbai : The higher than expected inflation figure of 11.05 percent hit Indian equity markets hard, almost as soon as it was announced Friday. All markets slumped as inflation hit a 13-year high.
At 12 noon, the 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, was down by 176.40 points or 1.17 percent at 14,911.59. It had touched a low of 14,884.66 minutes before that.
The market breadth was negative. On BSE, 627 shares advanced, 1,688 declined and 77 remained unchanged.
Indian shares rise on strong global trends
By IANS
Mumbai : Buoyed by firming global markets, Indian shares Thursday showed a strong upward trend, with finance and cements stocks pulling up a key index by 1.43 percent in a broad-based rally.
Union Bank completes farm loan-waiver process
By IANS,
Kolkata : Union Bank of India (UBI) Tuesday announced that it has completed the process of waving farm loans across 1,600 rural, semi-urban and urban branches all over India before the June 30 deadline.
The bank's list has names of 268,000 farmers who are eligible for a waiver of debts totalling Rs.7.13 billion.
It found 84,000 farmers eligible for 25 percent relief, which amounted to Rs.2.48 billion.
Kolkata branches gave an amount of Rs.23.42 million to 686 farmers and identified 30 farmers eligible for relief amounting to Rs.1.04 million.
PM wants Indo-Russian trade to hit $10 bn by 2010
By Manish Chand, IANS
Moscow : Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Monday made a strong case for scaling up bilateral trade to $10 billion by 2010 and called for more Russian investment in the country during a two-day visit here.
At a meeting of Indian and Russian businessmen, Singh stressed the need for increased contacts between the business communities of the two countries that have been hobbled by visa problems.
Meltdown continues at Indian capital markets
By IANS
Mumbai : Weak global trends negatively impacted Indian stock markets and a key index tumbled a further 182 points Tuesday.
The 30-share sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) closed at 19,079.64 points, down by 181.71 points or 0.94 percent.
The broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) closed at 5,742.30 points, down by 34.7 points or 0.60 percent.
The BSE metal index crashed by a further 247 points, BSE capital goods index lost 226 points while BSE Bankex lost 155 points.
Anil Ambani to set up solar power plants in Rajasthan
By IANS,
Jaipur : Industrialist Anil Ambani of the Reliance Group is keen on setting up more solar power plants in Rajasthan.
Photographs take centrestage at Saffronart winter online auction
By IANS,
New Delhi : Modern art made a comeback and photographs took centrestage at Saffronart's Winter Online Auction of modern and contemporary art that grossed total sales of Rs.140 million (US$ 2.9 million).
Nearly 740 registered bidders from 35 countries vied for the art works on sale.
The auction also saw an interest in Indian photography and world auction records were set for nine photographers - Dayanita Singh, Raghu Rai, Prabuddha Dasgupta, T.S. Nagarajan, T.S. Satyan, Annu P. Matthew, Swapan Nayak, Prashant Panjiar and Ryan Lobo, a release issued by Saffronart said.
Sensex fluctuates between red and green
By IANS,
Mumbai : A key Indian equities index, which gained more than 186 points an hour into Monday's trade, shed the gains later and was fluctuating between the red and green territories in the afternoon session.
About 90 minutes before the closing bell, the 30-scrip Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) sensitive index (Sensex), which opened at 11,065.1 points, was down 31.84 points or 0.29 percent to rule at 10,991.25 points.
Similarly, the S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE), lost 0.19 percent from the previous close to trade at 3,377.9 points.
Infosys net declines marginally in fourth quarter
By IANS,
Bangalore : Infosys Technologies Ltd. posted a net profit of Rs.1,600 crore (Rs.16 billion) for the fourth quarter (Jan-March) of the fiscal 2009-10, registering a marginal decline of 0.9 percent year-on-year (YoY) as per the Indian accounting standard.
In a regulatory filing, the IT bellwether Tuesday said its consolidated income for the quarter under review (Q4) grew by 5.5 percent YoY to Rs.5,944 crore (Rs.59.44 billion) from Rs.5,635 crore (Rs.56.35 billion) a year ago under the Indian accounting standard.
Equities end red, key index down 150 points
By IANS,
Mumbai : Despite opening strong, Indian equities markets shed values once again Friday on weak global cues and a key index finished with losses of more than 150 points.
Overnight US markets closed in the green but a key index of the New York Stock Exchange actually went even below Oct lows before bouncing back on short covering. Asian markets too were showing gains Friday morning when Indian markets opened.
Japan’s DoCoMo to buy 26 percent stake in Tata Teleservices
By IANS,
New Delhi : Japan's leading mobile telecom operator NTT DoCoMo will pick up a 26-percent stake in Tata Teleservices for $2.7 billion (Rs.13,070 crore/Rs.130.7 billion), it was announced Wednesday.
DoCoMo will also make an open offer to acquire at least 20 percent of the outstanding equity shares of Tata Teleservices Maharashtra, part of the $62-billion Tata group, India's largest industrial house.
BJP for subsidised food grains to poor
By IANS,
Bhopal : The Bharatiya Janata Party Saturday called upon the central government to provide subsidised food grains to the poor across the country since the 'have nots' are reeling from ever increasing prices of essential commodities.
Addressing a huge gathering on the launch of the Mukhya Mantri Annapurna Yojana (Chief Minister's subsidised food scheme), senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu said that it was a boon for the poor families and the other states as well as the central government should introduce this scheme in the entire country by amending the constitution.
Lok Sabha nod for bill on welfare of unorganised sector
By IANS,
New Delhi : Parliamentary approval was Wednesday accorded to a bill that aims to extend social security cover and other benefits to nearly 95 percent of the country's workforce that is said to be in the unorganised sector.
The Unorganised Workers Social Security Bill, 2008, was passed by the Lok Sabha, the lower house, Wednesday. The Rajya Sabha, the upper house, had passed the bill in October.
Black money: Disclosers to get immunity under FEMA, PMLA
New Delhi : The government on Monday said immunity from prosecution would be given under specific laws to those declaring undisclosed foreign assets under...
Indian firms lead in new projects in Ghana
By Fakir Hassen, IANS,
Johannesburg : India now boasts of the highest number of new projects in Ghana, several notches above the west African country's historically largest trading partner, South Africa.
India has 17 registered new large projects in Ghana, just one ahead of China, according to the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC).
Havells to spend Rs.2 bn on capacity expansion
By IANS,
Kolkata : The $1.2-billion (Rs.48-billion) electrical and power distribution equipment company Havells India would invest Rs.2 billion this fiscal for capacity expansion, said a top company official here Friday.
"We will invest Rs.2 billion on capacity expansion this year," said Havells' joint managing director Anil Gupta. "Out of this, Rs.400 million will be spent on expanding capacity of cable wire. Another Rs.400 million will be invested for miniature circuit breaker (MCB) expansion in Himachal Pradesh."
The fund for expansion would be raised through internal accruals.
Dr Reddy’s net up 89 percent in 2008-09
By IANS,
Hyderabad : City-based drug major Dr Reddy's Laboratories Monday reported 89 percent jump in net profits to Rs.850 crore ($167 million) in 2008-09 from Rs.450 crore the year before.
The total income of the company grew 39 percent to Rs.6,940 crore last fiscal from Rs.5,000 crore in 2007-08, the company said in a regulatory filing.
Dr Reddy's, which booked a forex loss of Rs.63.4 crore for the fiscal, owed its growth to the successful launch of the generic version of GlaxoSmithKline's Imitrex in November 2008. The drug is used to treat migraines.
Zylog to offer Internet voice services
By IANS
Chennai : City-based software services company Zylog Systems Ltd will soon offer voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) services by partnering with a leading US company.
"We are contemplating to become a service provider and focus on the retail segment. The current players are catering to the enterprise segment," Sudarshan Venkatraman, chairman and CEO of the company, told IANS.
Markets holding firm on IT stocks rally at afternoon trade
By IANS,
Mumbai : The Indian equities market extended its gains in afternoon trade on the back of rally in IT stocks. Metal and realty stocks also led the gaining rally.
Positive cues from global markets boosted domestic bourses Wednesday. Other Asian markets that opened before the Indian markets, were trading higher.
At 1:20 p.m., the 30-share sensitive index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) was up by 149.68 points or 0.93 to 16,303.34. It had gained 260.14 points when it hit the day's high of 16,413.80 in early trade.
Bank employees go on nationwide strike
By IANS,
Kolkata/New Delhi : Over 800,000 employees of 50,000 bank branches across India went on a two-day strike beginning Wednesday to press for their six-point charter of demands, including stopping of privatisation and merger and acquisition of public sector banks.
"Banking operations have come to a standstill. Once the strike is over, we will sit together and chalk out our future course of action," said Rajen Nagar, national president of All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA), which is participating in the strike called by the umbrella body United Form of Bank Unions (UFBU).
UST Global expands in Chennai
By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram : California-based UST Global, a leading provider of IT services and solutions to international clients, has opened a new development centre in Chennai with an investment of $12 million.
The 43,500 sq ft facility, which was opened by US Consul General in Chennai David T. Hopper, is the third in India for the Aliso Viejo-headquartered company after Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi. It intends to seat some 1,500 professionals.
The company's facility at the Technopark centre here employs nearly 3,000.
Blame inflation, Ravana goes thrice-costly
By IANS,
Raipur : Dussehra organising committees are facing the heat in Chhattisgarh this year as inflation has made more than thrice-costly the effigies of demon king Ravan, his brother Kumbhkaran and son Meghnad which shall be burnt on Dussehra, Oct 9.
Even the families that have been involved for decades in making the effigies for Dussehra are worried whether this year their ready-made effigies would be sold because of high price-tags driven by increased raw material cost, including that of bamboo.
Spanish firm to look for oil near Falklands
By IANS/EFE,
Madrid : Spain's Repsol YPF is planning to begin exploring for oil in Argentine waters near the Falkland Islands late this year, CEO Antonio Brufau said.
The Falklands, known to Latin Americans as the Malvinas, were the object of a brief war between Argentina and Britain in 1982.
"We're now in the phase of contracting the oil rig," Brufau said, adding that the consortium will go ahead with its plans even though exploration in that area is not easy and the probability of success is very "low or limited".
Ford India to launch small car in India
By IANS,
New Delhi : Ford India Friday said it will launch a small car in 2011 in order to tap the growing market for compact cars in the country.
"The launch will be a game changer. It will take us into the centre of Indian market," said Ford Motor executive vice president for Asia Pacific John Parker.
The car will be priced between Rs.3-4 lakh. "It will be in the range that 70 percent Indian consumers buy," Parker told reporters on the sideline of the annual convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).
It’s official: India’s economic growth sliding to six-year low
By IANS,
New Delhi : The Indian economy is expected to log its lowest growth in six years and fall to 7.1 percent for the current fiscal, against 9 percent in the previous year, as per official projections on national income released here Monday.
The estimates, compiled by the Central Statistical Organisation, said growth figures for all the three main components of the national income, namely agriculture, manufacturing and services, were expected to fall during the current fiscal.
Sensex closes 72 points higher, paring intra-day gains
By IANS,
Mumbai : Despite profit booking, a benchmark index of Indian equities closed 72 points higher Monday on the strength of metal, power, realty and select pharma and oil stocks.
No fuel hike now, will ask more money for oil firms: Deora
By IANS,
New Delhi : Petroleum Minister Murli Deora Monday said he will meet Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to ask for more compensation for the state oil marketing companies suffering losses due to fuel subsidy, and added there was no provision for hike in fuel prices in the short term due to inflation.
"We are trying not to increase the auto fuel prices," Deora told reporters here. He said any decision would be taken only after the Kirit Parikh committee on the pricing policy submits its report. The committee is likely to submit its report this week.
Ban on corn exports may be lifted
By IANS,
New Delhi : The ban on corn exports may be lifted next month if the crop in Bihar has not been badly affected by the floods there, the government said Friday.
“We are looking at the crop in Bihar. The prime minister has called a meeting today to assess the damage to the crop. If there is no significant damage, I don't think there will be a problem," agriculture minister Sharad Pawar told reporters on the sidelines of a business meet.
However, restrictions on shipments of cheaper grades of rice will continue.
Indian equities open strong on sentiments
By IANS
New Delhi : Indian equities opened strong for the second successive day Thursday as sentiments turned positive on account of US interest rate cuts and pep talk by authorities on the strong fundamentals of the Indian economy.
The sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) opened higher by 326.91 points at 17,920.98 points, against the previous day's close at 17,594.07 points and rose higher to 18,096.31 points within minutes.
Equities markets stay in the red
By IANS,
Mumbai : The Indian equities markets stayed in the negative zone early Tuesday afternoon. Banking, realty and consumer goods sectors were under selling pressure.
At 12:30 p.m. the 30-share benchmark sensitive index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, was trading at 17,290.04 with a loss of 144 points. Since its opening, it had touched a high of 17,367.13 and a low of 17,256.29 points.
At the same time, the S&P Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange was trading at 5,107.45 points with a loss of 50.25.
Suzuki hopeful of another India outing
By IANS,
New Delhi : Even as Japan succumbed to a 3-2 defeat against India in the Asia-Oceania Group 1 Davis Cup tie, veteran Takao Suzuki is nursing dreams of playing in India again.
"It is big a thing to play in a Davis Cup, so to lose here is really disappointing. Hopefully, I will be there when the team comes here next time," Suzuki said.
The 32-year-old draws positive out of the tie considering that both Kei Nishikori and Go Soeda made Rohan Bopanna and Prakash Amritraj sweat for their wins.
Neera, palm tree juice that could go Amul way
By P.S. Anantharaman, IANS,
Ahmedabad : A special filtration technique to enhance the shelf life of Neera, a sweet juice tapped from the palm tree, could help make it available to people all over the country.
The technique, which ensures better distillation of the juice, is dedicated to Gujarat's Neera and Talpadarth Gramodyog Sangh at Kalgam in Valsad district.
Public companies to park 60 percent surplus cash with state banks
By IANS,
New Delhi : With the government reiterating that public enterprises will have to park 60 percent of their reserves with state-run banks without calling for competitive bids, several companies fear they will lose large amounts of money over the deposit.
After a meeting Tuesday between Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and chiefs of state-run companies, Oil and natural Gas Corp (ONGC) chairman R.S. Sharma said the companies would end up losing huge chunks of cash since they were not calling for bids for depositing.
ONGC alone will lose Rs.3-4 billion annually, he said.
Sensex down 204 points in afternoon
By IANS,
Mumbai : A key Indian equities index fell sharply about an hour before the closing bell Friday, and was ruling 204 points below its last closing figure.
Around 2.33 p.m., the 30-scrip benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange, Sensex, which opened at 16,915.96 points, was ruling at 16,636.65 points, down 206.89 points or 1.23 percent.
The S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) also slipped into the red at 4,949.1 points, down 1.06 percent.
Choon-Kuhn Kwon is new head of POSCO-India
By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : POSCO-India, which is setting up a $12-billion steel plant in Orissa's Jagatsinghpur district, Friday announced that it has appointed Choon-Kuhn Kwon as its new chairman and managing director (CMD).
The 55-year-old Kwon, one of the directors of the South Korea-based parent company POSCO, is well acquainted with the Jagatsinghpur project and has been associated with it since its conceptualisation, a company statement said.
Kwon stayed in Paradip and Bhubaneswar for more than two years and worked for the project, it added.
PM panel pitches for separate manufacturing policy
By IANS,
New Delhi : A top panel set up by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has sought a separate policy for the manufacturing sector, currently growing sluggishly. The panel, which submitted the report Saturday, has justified the need for a manufacturing policy, saying it will accelerate industrial growth.
“The policy will ensure focussed attention by the government to various aspects to achieve the goals of manufacturing and employment generation,” said a senior official in the prime minister's office (PMO).
Sensex 97 points lower in morning trade
By IANS,
Mumbai : A benchmark index of Indian equities Friday was ruling 97 points lower in morning trade. However, smaller sized scrips saw buying.
MindTree acquires majority stake in Aztecsoft
By IANS,
Bangalore : Global IT service firm MindTree Ltd is acquiring around 33 percent equity (1.5 million shares) in Aztecsoft Ltd for Rs.1.72 billion ($43 million) for a majority stake in the Bangalore-based software firm, the company said here Friday.
In a notification to the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the Rs.7.6 billion MindTree said it would also make an open offer to Aztecsoft's shareholders to buy an additional 20 percent equity holding. Morgan Stanely India has been appointed to manage the open offer.
Sensex soars in early trade
By IANS,
Mumbai: A benchmark index of Indian equities Monday soared in opening trade.
Children’s stories now on Reliance mobile
By IANS,
Mumbai : Reliance Communications Tuesday started a new service offering children's stories on its voice portal.
Through the portal, customers can now listen to stories of Panchatantra, Vikram aur Betal and Tenali Rama.
Subscribers can also choose to set these tales as their caller tunes.
"The essence of these stories lies in their timelessness as, even today, they can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike. We are pleased to recreate this experience," said Anil Pande, head of RCom's value added services.
Status quo seen in Indian central bank’s first bi-monthly review
By Gyanendra Kumar Keshri,
New Delhi : The stage is set for the first bi-monthly monetary policy review of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)...
Telecom subscriber base growth dips in May
By IANS,
New Delhi : Over 11 million telephone connections were added in May, though the increase was slightly less than that registered in the previous month, India's telecom regulator said Friday.
"A total of 11.44 million telephone connections (wireline and wireless) have been added during May as compared to 11.75 million connections a month before," Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said in a statement.
Loan waiver fails to satisfy Kerala farmers
By IANS
Kozhikode : The farmers of Wayanad, which is in the grip of an agrarian crisis, feel that the waiver of agricultural loans announced in the union budget alone will not provide the needed relief to the farmers.
They say that if the government is to waive only agricultural loans it will not have any great impact on the farm sector as only a waiver of all types of loans taken by the farmers would help them.
Northrop Grumman opens India office
By IANS
New Delhi : Eyeing India's burgeoning defence market, US aerospace major Northrop Grumman Corporation has opened its country office here to showcase its range of military hardware and software.
"India represents one of Northrop Grumman's largest potential growth markets for defence products in Asia," said John Brooks, vice president of business development for Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems and president of Northrop Grumman International Inc, at a media briefing here.
Google resorting to austerity measures: WSJ
By IANS,
New York : Feeling the pinch of the global economic slowdown and the US recession in particular, Google, the internet search engine giant, is resorting to austerity measures, The Wall Street Journal has reported.
Prominent among them include cutting new projects, ratcheting back spending, chipping away at perks and reducing employee strength. Such measure from Google, which is known for its generous perks, has come as a surprise to many industry watchers.
Non-cooperation costs Saarc nations business worth $8 bn
By IANS,
Dhaka : Sheel Kant Sharma, South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) secretary general, says nations in the region miss business opportunities worth $8 billion a year due to non-cooperation and could double the amount of investments they attract by checking corruption.
If 'unofficial' businesses in the region could be checked, business opportunities worth three to four times the amount would have been created, Sharma said at the "Saarc: Short Window of Opportunity" conference organised here Wednesday by the Bangladesh Enterprise Institute (BEI).
Decision on fuel price rise next week: minister
New Delhi(IANS) : Faced with spiralling global oil prices and political opposition to raising transport and cooking fuel prices, India is likely to take a call next week, according to the petroleum minister.
"I cannot say 100 percent, but we will try to resolve it next week," Petroleum Minister Murli Deora told reporters on the sidelines of the India-Africa Hydrocarbon Conference here Wednesday.
Deora is slated to meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Wednesday at a tea for conference participants.
Australian team on business, education mission to India
By Neena Bhandari, IANS
Sydney : Premier Morris Iemma of New South Wales (NSW) is leading a high-level business and education mission to India and China to generate new investment opportunities for the state in the world's emerging economic superpowers.
India has become the fastest growing export market for NSW. Iemma said: "The mission is a great opportunity to promote Australian and NSW companies in the increasingly competitive Indian market."
Steel production needs to be doubled: Minister
By IANS,
New Delhi : India needs to double its steel production from the current 55 million tonnes in five years if it wants to bridge the demand-supply gap, Minister of State for Steel Prathap Annayyagari said here Wednesday.
"During the last five years, the growth in the demand for steel has averaged to around 10 percent. To meet this growing demand, the steel sector has to double its production in the next five years," Annayyagari said at a seminar organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here.
Gujarat’s Mundra car SEZ to be ready by early 2009
By IANS
Mumbai : The Mundra Port & Special Economic Zone Ltd (MPSEZ), a car export terminal in Gujarat, will be ready and operational by early 2009.
The company has already signed an agreement with Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) for exporting 250,000 units per year last month, according to the MPSEZ CEO Sandeep Mehta.
It has entered into an exclusive agreement with MSIL and it would be open to similar deals for car exports with other automobile manufacturers, Mehta said at the India Maritime Summit here Wednesday.
India Inc loses $1.25 bn due to Gujjar stir
By Anuradha Shukla, IANS,
New Delhi : India's corporate sector has lost some $1.25 billion since May 23 due to the ongoing Gujjar stir, apart from cancellations of at least 75 trains by the railways, as per estimates by official agencies and industry chambers.
The losses are in addition to the physical damage to train tracks because of the stir called by the Gujjars to demand Scheduled Tribe status in Rajasthan with support from people of their community in adjoining states.
Reserve Bank asked to cut lending rates, boost liquidity
New Delhi, Oct 2 (IANS) In order to pump liquidity into the market, an industry lobby Thursday requested the central Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to reduce cash reserve ratio and repo rate by 1 percent.
In its recommendation, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) has requested RBI to permit banks to borrow against government securities and provide dollars directly to oil companies, rather than routing them through the market for buying crude.
Offer subsidies to exports sector: Assocham
By IANS,
New Delhi : The government should announce subsidies to the crisis-hit exporters in the forthcoming foreign trade policy to make India's exports sector more competitive, the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham) has said.
"Subsidies need to be extended to Indian exporters by substantially reducing excise and local levies and other export duties," Assocham president Sajjan Jindal said in a paper submitted to Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma.
The government will announce the foreign trade policy for the next five years Aug 27.
Union Bank of India to expand operations
By IANS
Chennai : Mumbai-headquartered Union Bank of India (UBI) is on a network expansion spree, a top official of the bank said here Friday.
"The bank will be adding around 600 more outlets to our existing 2,516 branches during 2008-09. The bank will also recruit around 4,000 employees in different cadres," P.Y. Nagar, general manager of UBI, told the media here after launching the reverse mortgage product, Union Reverse Mortgage (URM).
He said UBI has not closed down any of its branches since the day reforms in the banking industry started.
Cabinet nod to investment pacts with Ethiopia, Mozambique
By IANS
New Delhi : The Indian cabinet Friday approved bilateral investment promotion deals with Ethiopia and Mozambique.
Jeddah meeting asserts need for oil production, refining investment
By NNN-KUNA,
Jeddah : The Jeddah Energy Meeting has stressed the importance of boosting investments in oil production and refining, as well as seeking other energy resources.
Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Nuaimi, reading a final communique at a news conference at the conclusion of the one-day meeting, said it was important to strengthen transparency in international stock markets as well as the development of legislation of investment funds.
Sri Lanka cuts petrol price after court order
By IANS,
Colombo : Sri Lanka on Wednesday reduced the price of petrol by over 18 percent following an order from the Supreme Court, which heard a public interest case filed by a Buddhist monk and an opposition legislator.
Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva Wednesday accepted a price reduction formula put out by the country's treasury that will bring down a litre of petrol from Rs.122 to Rs.100 from midnight Wednesday.
China opens nuclear power sector to foreign investors
By Xinhua
Beijing : China has opened up its nuclear power generating sector to domestic and foreign investors.
YSR invites US investment citing Fab City
By IANS
Washington : Visiting Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy has invited US companies to invest in his state, saying it would become digitally-driven with the setting up of the semiconductor manufacturing facility Fab City.
HCL Technologies profit dips 3.92 percent
By IANS,
New Delhi : IT services provider HCL Technologies Ltd Wednesday said its net profit dipped 3.92 percent to Rs.2.5 billion during the July-September quarter, compared to Rs.2.64 billion in the same period last year.
The total income, however, zoomed 6.94 percent to Rs.12.25 billion in the quarter under review from Rs.11.46 billion of the year-ago period, a company statement said.
HCL's net income dipped 1.9 percent to $75.9 million from $77.4 million.
The total revenue surged 17.6 percent to $504.7 million in the second quarter from $429 million.
Markets soar on opening, Sensex up 336 points
By IANS,
Mumbai : A key index of the Indian equities markets soared at opening bell Wednesday, rising more than 332 points within five minutes of trade.
The benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, which opened at 15,168.18 points was ruling at 15,502.63 points, 336.87 points or 2.23 percent higher than Tuesday's close.
The S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) too gained ground, moving up 1.94 percent to rule at 4,639.25 points around the same time.
Pawar takes backseat as opposition demands adjournment motion on price rise
By IANS,
New Delhi : Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar Wednesday took a backseat as MPs debated whether the Lok Sabha should allow adjournment motions, which entail voting, moved by the opposition over the rising food prices.
Pawar, whose ministry has a major role to play in arresting the rising prices, was not present in the first leg of the debate that began soon after the house proceedings started at 11 a.m.
India, Libya sign economic, cultural pacts
By IANS
Tripoli : India and Libya have signed several agreements, including one on promoting investments, during Indian External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee's visit to this north African nation.
Are microbes the answer to the energy crisis?
By IANS,
Washington : Microscopic organisms could be the answer to the looming fuel crisis in the not too distant future.
These biological factories can turn out unlimited supplies of inexpensive, eco-friendly biofuels as an oil-substitute, according to a study.
Among alternative fuels, ethanol is the current king. Almost all ethanol produced in the US is fermented from readily available sugars in maize. Ethanol from maize has also been blamed for rising food prices.
Tata Motors team in Dharwad for Nano project
By IANS,
Bangalore : A Tata Motors team visited Dharwad district Sunday to inspect the land offered by the Karnataka government for relocating the Nano small car project from Singur in West Bengal.
Tata Motors managing director G. Ravi Kant and senior officials of the company met Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa ahead of the site visit to discuss the slew of promises by the state government for setting up the Nano plant.
Tata Motors wants 1,000 acres of land for Nano as it is an integrated project. Karnataka has agreed to provide the land and other facilities.
US calling card firm to tap Indians in North America, Gulf
By Himank Sharma, IANS,
New Delhi : US-based calling card company Aryty - a slang for "all righty" or "no worries" - is setting up operations in India to tap the growing market for remitting prepaid phone minutes among the Indian diaspora in the US, Canada and the Gulf.
"Sending just a few dollars of prepaid mobile phone credit to your family and friends in India will allow them to call you whenever they want to talk to you," said Harbinder Narula, vice president for India and the Middle East for Aryty.
UK arm’s investments rated high, says ICICI Bank
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's largest private bank ICICI Bank Ltd said in a regulatory statement Monday that 98 percent of its UK subsidiary's non-India investment book is rated investment grade and above.
"ICICI Bank UK Plc has zero exposure to US sub-prime credit, whether directly or through credit derivatives such as collateralised debt obligation (CDO) or credit linked note (CLN) or credit default swap (CDS)," the statement said.
Indian markets watchdog removes curbs on foreign funds
By IANS,
Mumbai : In a bid to bring some cheer to the equities market, India's markets watchdog Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Monday removed some curbs on foreign funds like the 40 percent cap on participatory notes and overseas derivative instruments.
The regulator also decided to review the entire working of foreign institutional investors (FIIs) in the country and said a policy paper will soon be floated to invite comments and suggestions from all stakeholders.
Ambani stresses imparting skills to Indian youth
By Parveen Chopra, IANS,
New York : Two key areas India must focus on are education at all levels and giving skills training to the youth entering the work force, Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani said here.
Speaking at the annual fundraising gala of the American India Foundation (AIF) at Waldorf Astoria hotel Wednesday, after being honoured for his economic and philanthropic commitment to India, Ambani praised the organisation which announced its commitment to expanding its vocational training programme in the country to 100,000 urban unemployed youth.
Intel India builds Centrino mobile platform for global market
Bangalore, May 17 (IANS) Intel India Development Centre (IIDC) of the world's largest chipmaker, Intel Inc, has played a major role in designing, developing, testing and validating the Centrino mobile platform for the consumer and enterprise markets worldwide.
"The mobility group of the IIDC was involved in the development of the Centrino mobile platform, contributing about 70-80 percent of the new processor. Our development centres in Israel and the US chipped in to fabricate the chipsets for OEMs and ODMs," Intel India mobility group director Sandeep Shah told reporters here Thursday.
Six core industries grow 3.5 percent in October
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's six core sectors grew 3.5 percent in October compared to the same month last year, according to data released by the commerce and industry ministry Friday.
The six sectors have a weightage of 26.7 percent in the index of industrial production (IIP) -- the barometer statistic which gauges the growth rate of Indian industry.
While petroleum refinery production registered a growth of 7.2 percent, cement production grew by 5.3 percent, coal by 5 percent, and electricity by 4.7 percent in October.
Raheja Developers launch Rs.45-bn engineering SEZ in Gurgaon
By IANS,
New Delhi : City-based realtor Raheja Developers Wednesday said it would set up an engineering-focused special economic zone (SEZ) in Gurgaon on an investment of Rs.45 billion.
Spread over an area of 255 acres in Gurgaon, the SEZ has already received approval.
"Engineering sector in India is an integral part of the manufacturing activity and is estimated at Rs.1,200 billion in 2004-05 and has been growing at a 11 percent," the company said in a statement.
Wall Street bounces back after record plunge
By IANS,
New York : The US markets rallied Tuesday, a day after the benchmark Dow Jones plumbed to a 26-year low.
Market analysts said the Wall Street recovery could be due to investor belief that the three major US automobile manufacturers would get some kind of a bailout package from the federal government.
General Motors, Chrysler and Fords Tuesday submitted a $34 billion bailout package proposal to save them from bankruptcy.
Textile industry to get cotton at cheaper, global rates: Dayanidhi Maran
By Pupul Dutta, IANS,
New Delhi : The textile industry can heave a sigh of relief as the government plans to make available cotton at international prices that are 10-15 percent lower than the domestic cost of the fibre.
Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran said that though paying the minimum support price (MSP) is an obligation which the country owes to the farmers, the textile industry will be insulated from the high cost.
"MSP is a must. But we will sell cotton (to the textile industry) at (lower) international prices," Maran told IANS in an interview.
Markets trading on dull note, Sensex slips
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equities were trading on a dull note Thursday with global markets back in the red after ending positive a day earlier. This pulled down a key index 0.89 percent below its last closing.
Analysts said the market had already discounted a fall in India's annual inflation rate, which fell further to 3.36 percent for the week ending Feb 14.
The 30-scrip Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) sensitive index (Sensex), which opened at 8,905.56 points, was at 8,823 points shortly before noon, a fall of 79.56 points or 0.89 percent from its previous close.
French group Accor to open hotel in India
By IANS
New Delhi : French hotel group Accor Hospitality Thursday said its first budget hotel in India will open in April this year.
The 271-room hotel, which will be operated under the brand name of Ibis, will be located in Gurgaon near Delhi.
"With increasing business activity in many Indian cities, we foresee strong growth in the demand for value driven accommodation by international and intra-regional business travellers," said Michael Issenberg, managing director, Accor, Asia Pacific.
Equity markets flat in early trade
By IANS,
Mumbai : Indian equity markets, which opened lower Monday, were trading flat soon after. There was selling pressure on metal, auto and select power stocks.
The 30-share benchmark index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), the Sensex, opened with a loss of 62.05 points at 14,594.64. Ten minutes into trading, it was at 14,605.03 points, still with a loss of 51.66 points or 0.35 percent from its closing figure Friday.
At the same time the S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange was trading at 4,401.65 with a loss of 11.90 points from its previous close.
India’s central bank moves to free another $200 bn
By IANS,
Mumbai : A day after asking commercial banks not to withhold credit to the corporate sector, especially small firms, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Tuesday said another Rs.200 billion ($4.18 billion) would be released for the needs of mutual funds.
The central bank said it would conduct a special 14-day repo (repurchase of securities) at a coupon rate of nine percent for a notified amount of Rs.200 billion to enable banks meet the liquidity requirements of mutual funds.
Markets end in green, Sensex up 240 points
By IANS,
Mumbai : A key index of Indian equities markets, which opened higher Tuesday on strong global cues, retained the momentum throughout the trading session and ended 240 points up from its previous closing.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened higher at 16,255.42 points, closed at 16,454.66 points (provisional), up 240.47 points or 1.48 percent.
Similarly, the Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) also ended in the positive zone at 4,892.5 points, up 1.74 percent from the last close.
India’s aviation sector to take off in 2010
By P.Vijian, NNN-Bernama,
New Delhi : India is hosting an international aviation exhibition next month which the country hopes will spur its domestic airline industry which has suffered sluggish growth last year following the global economic downturn.
The Indian Aviation 2010 exhibition in Hyderadab from March 3 to 7 -- the second edition of the show -- is expected to draw 115 international exhibitors, including aerospace giants like Airbus, Boeing, Eurocopter, GE Aviation and Hawker Beechcraft.
Nigerian state oil firm, French group sign financial deal
By Xinhua,
Lagos : Nigeria's state-run oand French group Elf Petroleum Nigeria Limited (EPNL) have signed a 1 billion-U.S. dollar financial deal, the NNPC said Friday.
Under the deal, the EPNL will finance NNPC's upstream operations in the NNPC/EPNL joint venture projects in 2008 with repayment and compensation in cash, a NNPC statement said. The repayment was made with oil in the past.
The EPNL is the first partner to sign agreement with NNPC on financing arrangements.
Another British company acquired by Indian unit
By IANS
London : In yet another Indian acquisition of a British company, the Swindon-based engineering company Sauer-Danfoss has been purchased by the Bangalore-based Dynamatic Technologies Ltd.
India’s inflation rate inches up to 0.7 percent
By IANS,
New Delhi : India's annual rate of inflation inched up to 0.7 percent for the week ended April 25 from 0.57 percent the week before, official data showed Friday.
Among the three main commodity groups, the indices for manufactured products and primary articles rose 0.3 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively, during the week under review.
The index for fuel, power, light and lubricants remained unchanged at its previous week's level of 323 (provisional).
UAE’s oil reserves to last 92 years: report
By Xinhua,
Abu Dhabi : Oil reserves of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) will last for 92 years at the current production level, Gulf News daily reported Saturday quoting the latest report.
According to a survey by global oil major British Petroleum (BP), titled 2008 BP Statistical Review of World Energy, the UAE's proven oil reserves stand at 97.8 billion barrels, accounting for 7.9 percent of the world's total reserves of 1.24 trillion barrels.
The proven reserves of the Middle East are 755 billion barrels, representing 61 percent of the world's total, BP said.
Maytas seeks more time for Hyderabad Metro project
By IANS,
Hyderabad : Maytas Infra has requested the Andhra Pradesh government for an extension of time for the Rs.8,132-crore Hyderabad Metro Rail project, the company said Thursday.
The city-based infrastructure company's statement comes amid reports that the state government has decided to scrap the agreement it signed with a Maytas-led consortium last year in view of its "incapability" to achieve financial closure.
Oil slips below $116 on strong dollar
By Xinhua,
New York : Oil prices resumed their descent Friday, as the US dollar surged to a six-month high against the euro and expectations of slowing global demand offset supply concerns over a fire on key Turkish pipeline.
The US dollar enjoyed a powerful rebound against the euro, after the European Central Bank and the Bank of England both left their benchmark interest rates unchanged, which made traders found reasons to sell.
The central banks' actions boosted speculations that economies around the world are slowing and would further dampen demand for oil.
Godrej ties up with Tyson to tap Indian poultry market
By IANS,
Pune : With an eye on the $3 billion Indian poultry market, Godrej Agrovet Ltd has signed a joint venture with US-based Tyson Foods Incorporated, one of the world's largest meat processors and marketers.
The new company will be called Godrej Tyson Foods and will cater to the growing demand for quality poultry in India with processed and value-added chicken products. The joint venture was signed Monday.
The venture will make use of the processing and product development expertise of Tyson with Godrej's strong supply-chain management in India.