Economy

By IANS New Delhi : India and Brazil signed three pacts covering infrastructure, poverty alleviation and sports as External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee wrapped up a visit to South America's largest nation. Mukherjee, on a three-day visit, held talks with his Brazilian counterpart Celso Amorim in Brasilia and discussed a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues, Indian officials said here.

By DPA, Tokyo : Tokyo stocks gained Wednesday morning in the wake of the strong overnight gains on Wall Street. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average soared 283.18 points, or 4.01 percent, to 7,338.16. The broader Topix index of all first- section issues was rose 22.08 points, or 3.14 percent, to 725.58. In currency markets, the dollar was stronger against the yen and euro.

By IANS, New Delhi : Engineering and construction major Larsen and Toubro (L&T) Thursday said it has got orders worth Rs.700 crore from various customers for construction-related works.

By IANS, Kolkata : Life insurance player Tata AIG and public sector Allahabad Bank joined hands Wednesday to provide mortgage insurance facilities to the bank's housing loan customers. Announcing this here, Allahabad Bank executive director J.P. Dua said, "We recognise the need to offer our customers the best of products and services beyond core banking. The tie-up for mortgage insurance is a significant step in that direction." The bank already offers similar facilities to customers through a tie-up with the state-owned Life Insurance Corp (LIC).

By IANS, Hyderabad : Beleaguered former Satyam Computer founder-chairman B. Ramalinga Raju is in this city and has no intention to avoid the process of law, his lawyer S. Bharat Kumar claimed Thursday. “My client B. Ramalinga Raju is very much available in Hyderabad. He denies reports appearing in a section of media that he is absconding or has fled from the country,” Kumar said in a statement. Kumar said Raju engaged his services to represent him in the legal matters pertaining to his statement to the Satyam board Wednesday.

By Xinhua, Kuala Lumpur : Malaysia Airlines (MAS) Wednesday signed a code-sharing agreement with Jet Airways and plans to seal a deal with it for a maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) joint venture in Hyderabad, India, by February end, its chief executive officer Idris Jala said here. The airline, which is also Malaysia's national carrier, was hopeful that India's Jet Airways would become its anchor tenant, Jala said after signing the code-sharing agreement with the Indian airline .

By SPA Riyadh : The activities of the First Saudi Forum for the technologies of exploring and producing petroleum and natural gas will start here tomorrow. The Three-day forum is organized by King Abdulaziz City for Sciences and Technology (KACST) in cooperation with the ministry of petroleum and mineral resources. The Forum will provide an opportunity to the concerned governmental authorities and companies to discuss issues pertaining to exploration and production of oil and natural gas.

By IANS, Mumbai : Realty major DLF announced Wednesday its promoters would sell close to 168 million shares or about 10 percent of their stake in the company to infuse capital in its subsidiary DLF Assets Ltd (DAL). The company which would hope to raise about Rs.39.7 billion as per the scrip's Tuesday's closing price of Rs.236.25 at the Bombay Stock Exchange also said that the money would be used to buy out D.E Shaw's stake in DAL. This was disclosed to the stock exchanges in a regulatory filing. The deal is supposed to be completed in bulk transactions Wednesday.

By IANS,

By IANS, Chennai : Soft drinks major Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages (Coca-Cola India) may substitute the imported lemon juice for its newly-launched Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh lemon drink with a local variety, but not immediately. "It takes time to identify the farms and to grow the kind of lemon fruit we need. Currently we import the juice," company chief executive T. Krishnakumar told IANS on the sidelines of a press meet here Monday to announce the launch of Minute Maid Nimbu Fresh.

By IANS, Tehran : Iran is plannig to cut imports from 100 European companies in response to Western sanctions against its oil exports, a media report said Wednesday.

By IANS, Thiruvananthapuram : IBS Software Services, a provider of information technology (IT) solutions to the travel, transportation and logistics industry, has signed an agreement with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines for providing a crew management solution. The company said here Thursday the airline will gradually replace the existing mainframe system with IBS crew management solution AvientCrew. AvientCrew will help KLM manage all aspects of their crew operations - from planning vacations and roster systems, to tracking performance.

By IANS, New Delhi : The ban on cement exports imposed last month is being lifted given the slack season ahead, but restrictions on shipping rice outside will continue, India's Commerce Secretary G.K. Pillai said here Tuesday. "June and July is the monsoon period. Nobody constructs houses in this period," Pillai told reporters on the margins of a conference on global trade talks organised by the International Chamber of Commerce.

By IANS, Hyderabad : A city court Saturday extended the judicial custody of disgraced founder and former chairman of Satyam Computer Services B. Ramalinga Raju and three other accused in the firm's massive scam to Feb 7. Sixth additional chief metropolitan magistrate D. Ramakrishna extended the custody of Ramalinga Raju, his brother and former managing director B. Rama Raju and former chief financial officer (CFO) Vadlamani Srinivas by a week.

By IANS, Mumbai : Indian equities markets slipped back into the red Friday after starting in the green. About an hour into trade, a key index was ruling 0.48 percent below its last closing figure. The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensitive Index (Sensex), which opened at 10,036.8 points, higher than its 10,003.10 point close Thursday, was at 9,955.12 points, 0.48 percent or 47.98 points above its previous close. The S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) was at 3,078.05 points, 0.14 percent down from its last close of 3,082.25.

By IANS, Dubai : Qatar's national carrier Qatar Airways will be adding Kozhikode in Kerala to its list of Indian destinations from June 15. “Our new route to Kozhikode further demonstrates our commitment to India and we are extremely pleased to see the route selling well with just a week to go for the launch,” Qatar Airways chief executive Akbar Al Baker said in a statement. The new daily flights will depart the Qatari capital of Doha at 11:10 p.m. local time and reach Kozhikode at 6 a.m. The return flight will take off from Kozhikode at 7 a.m. and land in Doha at 8:45 a.m.

By Gyanendra Kumar Keshri, IANS,

By IANS, New Delhi : Hindustan Construction Co. Ltd, an infrastructure development company, has bagged a Rs.3.4 billion order from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to construct a highway near here, the company announced Tuesday. The order will be for constructing a 4.4-kilometre elevated six-lane highway at Badarpur off National Highway 2 (Mathura Road) near Delhi on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis, the company said in a statement. The concession period is for 20 years including the estimated construction period of 24 months.

By IANS, Bangalore: The bank rates were raised March 19 by 25 basis points to contain the wholesale price index (WPI) inflation rate, which shot up to 9.9 percent in February, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor D. Subba Rao said late Monday. "Given the inflation pressures and given the growth is consolidating, some normalisation was required. Both the repo rate and reverse repo rates were increased by 25 basis points to contain the inflationary pressures," Rao told reporters here.

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By IANS, Chennai : Promoters of the city-based Murugappa Group have increased their stake in their flagship company, the Rs.17.62-billion Tube Investments of India Ltd (TI), to a controlling 51.64 percent. The recently de-listed group outfit Parry Agro Industries also acquired TI shares in the open market to take its stake to 34.67 percent.

By IANS, Chennai : Commercial vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland Ltd Wednesday reported a 63 percent fall in its December sales over the corresponding month previous year. In a statement, the company said it sold 2,321 units last month as against 6,340 units a year ago. Production fell 86 percent to 960 units during the month from 7,110 units in December 2007. However, Ashok Leyland exported 901 units last month, up from 852 units shipped out in December 2007.

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By IANS Noida : Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath Thursday said he has raised with EU trade commissioner Peter Mandelson the issue of European NGOs' accusation of India breaching labour laws and human rights. "The government is enquiring into it and we want to ensure this is looked at in a correct perspective, and I have written to Peter Mandelson that the (Indian) government views this very seriously," Kamal Nath told reporters on the sidelines of an event here.

By IANS,

By IANS, Mumbai : Indian equities markets were off to a weak start Friday with a key index opening lower than its last closing figure. The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensitive Index (Sensex) opened at 8,943.78 points, lower than its 9,042.63 point close Thursday. About 10 minutes into trade, it was at 8,922.28 points, 1.33 percent or 120.35 points lower higher than its previous close. At the same time, the S&P CNX Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) was at 2,754.35 points, 1.25 percent down from its last close of 2,789.35.

Lalit K. Jha,IANS, New York : As fear of prolonged recession gripped traders, US stocks continued to tumble for the second consecutive day Thursday, with the benchmark Dow Jones Industrial Average dropping by 443.48 points. Dow has lost some 929.49 points after Nov 4 US presidential election, which was won by Barack Obama, thus making it the worst ever crash in percentage terms in two consecutive trading days after the crash of October 1987.

By IANS, Chennai : The Hyundai Motor India Employees Union, which served a strike notice last week over a contentious labour union election issue, has decided to defer the agitation till the management declared elections for the Worker's Committee. The union Nov 19 served the notice demanding recognition after the management of Hyundai Motor India, the country's second largest car manufacturer, decided to hold elections for the Workers Committee. "Though we have given a strike notice effective from Dec 5, we have decided to wait," union general secretary Y.S. Chinnaraja told IANS.

By IANS, New Delhi : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Thursday urged the government to take strong and immediate action against those behind the financial fraud at leading IT firm Satyam Computers. The two parties described the over Rs.70 billion (Rs.7,000 crore) scam as the biggest corporate fraud in the country and said the entire episode raised serious concerns about the very legitimacy of Indian market.

By IANS, Mumbai : Six years after promising Indians a car that meets both their aspirations and budgets, Tata group chairman Ratan Tata Monday dedicated the little Nano to the country with bookings slated for April 9-25 and deliveries from July. "We are keeping our promise," the soft-spoken Tata told the army of media teams from India and overseas, which converged at the Taj Mahal Palace and Towers hotel that was at the centre of world attention when terrorists struck last November.

By IANS Kozhikode (Kerala) : Bread and bun will become costlier from next week in the northern districts of Kerala. The price of a 300-gram loaf will go up from Rs.10 to Rs.12 while bun will be costlier by Re.1. Instead of Rs.4, it will be sold at Rs.5. The price hike was announced by All Kerala Mechanised Bakery Owners Association here Tuesday.

By IANS,

By IANS,

By IANS, Dubai : Gulf Arab stock markets have been declining since last week despite the surging oil prices that normally support the regional stock indices, Xinhua reported.

By IANS, Mumbai : A benchmark index of Indian equities scaled the 20,000-point mark Tuesday, fuelled by some impressive buying by foreign funds and overall positive mood in other markets.

By IANS, New Delhi : Raghuram Rajan, professor of economics at the University of Chicago, was Monday named honorary economic advisor to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Rajan, a former chief economist of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), will hold the rank of secretary, Government of India. He was earlier the chairman of a high-powered committee the prime minister set up on financial reforms, that was tasked to frame a series of recommendations to make India a financial powerhouse over the next five years.

By IANS, New Delhi : India will achieve an economic growth of at least 7 percent this fiscal despite the global slowdown, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Tuesday while promising more resources for areas like infrastructure and public services. "In last one year our economy was affected and our growth rate declined to about 7 percent," the prime minister told the Lok Sabha, replying to the motion of thanks on President Pratibha Patil's address to both houses of parliament.

By IANS Kolkata : The West Bengal government Wednesday formed an environmental expert committee to monitor all activities in East Midnapore's Nayachar Island for locating there a chemical hub after Nandigram was abandoned for the project in the face of stiff resistance from villagers.

By Mehru Jaffer, IANS, Vienna : Gregory L. Schulte, US ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), expects the India-specific safeguards agreement to be approved by the agency's board of governors at the special meeting to be held here Aug 1. Asked to intervene at a press conference addressed Friday by Christopher Hill, US assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Schulte said it was a hypothetical question whether Pakistan would vote against India at the Aug 1 meeting or not.

By IANS, Bangalore : India's third largest IT bellwether lost more employees than it could hire during the third quarter this fiscal, a senior executive admitted Wednesday. "Yes, our net addition of employees was less than gross addition in the global IT services and products business due to slowdown and attrition in the third quarter compared to second quarter," Wipro human resources head Pratik Kumar told IANS here.

By IANS, London : The head of Jaguar Land Rover says the Tata-owned luxury brands have a “brilliant future” but that they must outsell “bland” foreign cars first. “We do need to up our game as the competition gets tougher every year. If I needed confirmation of this, I got it when I looked at the cars on the street here this morning,” JLR Chief Executive David Smith said.

By IANS, New Delhi : India's oil marketing companies will improve their grievance redressal systems by Oct 2 and commission toll-free numbers for filing complaints, it was decided Tuesday at the review meeting called by Petroleum Secretary R.S. Pandey. The meeting, a follow-up of the one chaired by Petroleum Minister Murli Deora Aug 19, was attended by IndianOil Corporation chairman Sarthak Behuria, petroleum ministry additional secretary S. Sundareshan, and the marketing directors and senior officers of the ministry.

By IANS, New Delhi : The overseas arm of state-run Indian upstream oil major, Oil and Natural Gas Corp, Wednesday announced that more than 96 percent of shareholders of the Leeds-based Imperial Energy have accepted its offer for acquisition at $1.89 billion. In a regulatory statement to the London Stock Exchange, ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL), the overseas arm of ONGC, said it has received acceptances from 96.8 percent of shareholders of Imperial Energy for its offer of 12.50 pounds per share, before the deadline of 1 p.m. London time, for confirmation of shareholder intention.

By IANS, Mumbai : Three promoters of wind power major Suzlon Energy have sold approximately 70 million equity shares, representing 4.5 percent of the paid-up capital of the company. As per Wednesday's opening price, the sale amounts to Rs.688.8 crore. The funds generated through the stake sale will be ploughed back into the company either in form of debt or equity. The promoter holding after the sell-off will be reduced to 53.08 percent of the paid-up capital.

By IANS, Shimla : Mumbai-based ship building major ABG Shipyard Ltd has been allotted three hydroelectric projects in Himachal Pradesh after global bidding, an official said Thursday. "The government has allotted three out of five major hydropower projects to ABG Shipyard Ltd of Mumbai. The bids for the projects were invited last year," the official said. The projects allotted to ABG Shipyard Ltd are the 126 MW Bardang, 102 MW Rashil and 104 MW Tandi, all located on the basin of Chenab river.

By IANS Mumbai : The bulls have taken charge at India's financial markets, with the benchmark index hitting yet another record high Thursday in early...

By Xinhua Kuala Lumpur : A Qatar firm will build a $4.55 billion oil refinery in Manjong in the northern Malaysian state of Perak, the media reported Monday. A memorandum of understanding was signed Sunday between the Perak government and Gulf Petroleum (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd Sunday formalising the deal. The project will be developed over three phases. It will comprise an oil refinery, a petrochemical plant and storage facility. It is expected to be completed in three years.

By IANS, New Delhi : Telecom watchdog Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Wednesday recommended to the government granting of separate licences to operators who do not have their own spectrum for offering mobile services but have a tie-up with an existing player to do so.

By IANS, Mumbai : Power transmission major KEC International Ltd has bagged a Rs.1.11 billion ($27.75 million) contract from the Power Grid Corp of India. The project entails supply and construction of 400 KV transmission powerlines on turnkey basis, the company announced here Tuesday. "The total length of the lines is 160 km. They will be passing through Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal," a KEC spokesperson told IANS. The project envisages the construction of supply towers, line materials, erection and commissioning of transmission lines.

By IANS, New Delhi : An Indian spends just Rs.440 or less than $10 per month on food, says a government survey released here Friday. An Indian living in rural areas, however, spends even less - only Rs.363, while his urban counterpart Rs.517 per month, an official report here said Friday. “Average monthly per capita consumer expenditure was Rs.695 in rural India and Rs.1,312 in urban India,” said the National Sample Survey Organisation's (NSSO) report - Household Consumer Expenditure in India-2006-07.

By DPA, San Francisco : The US Department of Justice is looking into the advertising and search alliance between Microsoft and Yahoo, the companies said Friday. Yahoo and Microsoft, which trail a distant second and third respectively to Google in the internet search market, announced their deal in late July in a bid to combine forces and challenge the web giant.

By Arun Kumar, IANS Washington : As the world discusses a new agreement to fight global warming, the US says nuclear energy will be a "key piece of the equation" for the future of India's contribution to adjusting climate change. "There is no question that nuclear power has to be part of the solution," a key advisor of President George Bush told reporters Wednesday at a White House briefing on the UN conference on climate change underway at Bali, Indonesia.

By NNN-KUNA Kuwait : The Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) has announced it will soon sign a loan agreement worth 16 million Kuwaiti dinars (USD 59 million) to contribute in the financing of a traffic dam project in Sudan. KFAED said in a statement Thursday the project aims to meet the demand for electric power and reducing the cost of electricity production through the establishment of a dam and a hydroelectric station on the Nile River.

By IANS, Raipur : The country's largest steel maker Tata Steel Tuesday reported a 14 percent fall in sales in the October-December quarter over the corresponding period uin 2007. According to an official statement, the company's total sales during the period stood at 1.07 million tonnes. The fall was attributed to the impact of the global meltdown. However, the steel major registered a 27 percent growth in the long product sales in the third quarter at 480,000 tonnes. The hot metal and crude steel production also went up during the quarter.

By IANS, New Delhi : India Wednesday offered a 10 percent stake in Petronet LNG Ltd, the state-run procurer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), to Qatar. Petroleum Minister Murli Deora made the offer to visiting Qatari deputy premier and energy minister, Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, at a breakfast meeting here. The offer was made after the Arab kingdom agreed to increase LNG supply to India. Qatar has already assured India of additional supply of 600,000 tonnes of LNG to India, its largest customer.

By IANS,

By IANS, Bangalore : Infosys Technologies Ltd has posted net profits of Rs.14.32 billion for the second quarter (July-September) of this fiscal (2008-09), registering 30.2 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth and 10 percent sequentially under the Indian accounting system. In a notification to the stock exchanges here Friday, the IT bellwether said its consolidated revenue for the quarter under review (Q2) was Rs.54.18 billion, posting by 32 percent YoY growth and by 11.6 percent sequentially under the Indian accounting system.

By Arun Kumar, Washington : With an economic freedom score of 54.6 out of 100, India has been ranked 128th freest economy in the 2015...

By IANS, New Delhi : Global meltdown and falling demand have forced Arcelor-Mittal to delay by two years their proposed steel projects in Orissa and Jharkhand, estimated at $20-25 billion, its India head said here Wednesday. "The top reason is economic downturn," Vijay Bhatnagar, the chief of India operations, told reporters on the margins of a steel industry seminar organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

By IANS New Delhi : Amadeus, a leading global technology and distribution partner to the travel industry, Monday announced that Deccan, India's first and fastest-growing low-cost carrier (LCC), will now be able to market and sell all its flights on the Amadeus system. Travel agents will have access to all Deccan availability and fare classes, a statement from Amadeus said.

By IANS,

By IANS, Thiruvananthapuram : The ailing Kerala government-owned Steel Complex Ltd (SCL) at Kozhikode will be now managed by public sector Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) as a joint venture project. "The agreement to this effect would be inked on May 3 at Kozhikode," state Industries Minister Elamaram Kareem told reporters here Tuesday. This will be SAIL's first venture in the state. At present, it only has a steel depot at Kochi. The SCL, set up in 1972, registered profits for just two years during 1985-87.

By IANS, New Delhi : A proposal from global steel-maker Arcelor-Mittal to set up a holding company in India for various projects was among 13 proposals on foreign direct investment worth Rs.15.27 billion ($380 million) cleared by Finance Minister P. Chidambaram. According to an official statement Friday, the proposals had been earlier recommended by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

By IANS Tuticorin (Tamil Nadu) : Ahead of Russian Prime Minister Victor Zubkov's visit to India Feb 12, Anil Kakodkar, chairman of India's Atomic Energy Commission, has said that the Russian-aided Koodankulam nuclear plant in Tamil Nadu will begin power generation in March. The project is getting delayed because Russia has to take into account Nuclear Supplier Group's concerns, officials said here.

By IANS, New Delhi : For the Indian government, that is contemplating a hike in fuel prices, Friday brought more disturbing news as the annual inflation rate breached the eight percent mark to reach 8.1 percent for the week ended May 17. At this level, the inflation, as measured from data on official wholesale price index, was the highest in three-and-a-half years. The latest rise was due to a 0.6 percent increase in prices of food articles during the week under review.

By IANS, Kolkata : Home appliances manufacturer Godrej & Boyce is planning to expand its portfolio by manufacturing cooking ranges and water purifiers, a company official said here Thursday. "We have identified other areas where we can get into, like cooking products and water products," George Menezes, chief operating officer of Godrej Appliances, told reporters at the launch of the company's Eon range of LED Televisions. He said the company is already into the water products segment in a small way and would be looking into cooking appliances like chimney in the future.

By IANS, New Delhi : After a string of reductions, state-run oil companies Sunday raised aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices by at least 1.69 percent, or Rs.162 per kilolitre (kl). Jet fuel will cost Rs.27,275 per kl in Delhi from Sunday midnight as against Rs.27,106. The price will go up to Rs.28,023 in Mumbai from Rs.27,861 per kl, an official of Indian Oil Corp (IOC) said. This is the second time since September last year that the oil firms have raised ATF prices. They earlier had raised prices by 3.3 percent Jan 16.

Panaji: Maggi noodles will be banned in Goa from Monday, as it was not proper to take risks with people's lives, Chief Minister Laxmikant...

By IANS, New Delhi : The government late wednesday decided to further reduce prices of transport fuels and cooking gas. "It has been decided to reduce the price of petrol by Rs.5 a litre, of diesel by Rs.2 a litre and LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) by Rs.25 per cylinder," External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told reporters after a meeting of the Cabinet Committee of Political Affairs (CCPA).

By IANS, Kolkata : A glimmer of hope emerged Wednesday to end agitation over the small car project of Tata Motors at Singur in West Bengal with the Trinamool Congress, which is spearheading the farmers' protests, agreeing for talks with the state government.

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By IANS New Delhi : The Indian government Thursday approved setting up of a financial inclusion fund (FIF) and a financial inclusion technology fund (FITF), with a total outlay of Rs.4 billion ($100 million) for the next five years. FIF aims at economic betterment of the poor, while FITF will invest in information technology aimed at promoting financial inclusion. A committee on financial inclusion headed by C. Rangarajan had recommended the two funds. Rangarajan is also chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council.

By IANS, Kolkata : Tea garden workers in West Bengal will get a daily wage hike of Rs.13.10 in phases that would take their present daily wage to Rs.67 in 2010-11. The agreement over the hike was reached Saturday at a tripartite meeting between the tea plantation companies, workers unions and government representatives. The participants of the meeting were members from West Bengal Labour Commission, Coordination Committee of Plantation Workers (CCPW) and Consultative Committee of Planters' Association (CCPA), which was formed by the tea garden owners.

By IANS, New Delhi : Passenger car-sales in the domestic market soared 22.06 percent in the first eight months this fiscal while two wheeler-sales jumped 17.63 percent, according to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). The data released by SIAM Tuesday showed that utility vehicle-sales rose 12.15 percent during April-November, while multi-purpose vehicles reported a growth of 31.46 percent in sales. Also, the sales of mopeds, scooters and motorcycles grew by 29.54 percent, 15.12 percent and 17.79 percent, respectively.

By IANS, Lucknow : Energy generation has emerged as the most sought-after investment destination in Uttar Pradesh, according to a senior state government official. "While companies evinced keen interest in setting up projects in Uttar Pradesh, the best response has come for the power sector," said Cabinet Secretary Shashank Shekhar Singh.

By IANS, New Delhi : India had an estimated 16.5 million service enterprises in 2006-07, with 60 percent of them in rural areas and 90 percent in the form of sole proprietorships, official data showed Friday. The data, which helps government frame policies, assists demographers and gives key inputs for marketing strategies by the corporate sector, also showed that 33.5 million people worked in the service sector, 54 percent in rural areas.

By IANS Ranchi : New steel projects in Jharkhand are finding the going tough as companies are moving the courts over allocation of iron ore mines. The Jharkhand government has recently signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with 52 companies in steel, power and other sectors. Most of the MoUs were signed in the steel sector. But the state government has recommended iron ore mines be given only to seven companies. Major steel companies Arcelor Mittal and Tata Steel are still waiting to get the iron ore mines of their choice.

By Pupul Dutta, IANS, New Delhi : A niche market for superbikes is quietly picking up pace in India, with enthusiasts increasingly seeking that tantalising rush of adrenaline, undeterred by the high prices of these roaring mean machines. Yamaha, the Japanese biggie, alone has sold about 125 superbikes, YZF R1 and MT01, since its launch in December 2007. Suzuki with masterpieces like Hayabusa and Intruder has sold about 100 of them since 2006, while Honda and Ducati are others in the market.

By IANS New Delhi : The Supreme Court Wednesday restrained the Gujarat High Court from hearing two public interest lawsuits (PILs), allegedly filed to stall the Jan 15 launch of the country's biggest initial public offering (IPO) by the Anil Ambani-promoted Reliance Power Ltd (RPL). A bench of Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan stalled the Gujarat High Court proceedings on a petition by RPL seeking transfer, either to the Bombay High Court or the apex court, of the petitions filed against it Tuesday in Gujarat.

By IANS, New Delhi : Optical media equipment major Moser Baer's power subsidiary Moser Baer Projects Private Limited (MBPPL) Wednesday said it has attracted an investment of Rs.1,350 crore from Blackstone. The company, which is building a number of thermal, solar and hydro power projects, plans to commission 5,000 MW by 2016. "This will enable us to deliver reliable and affordable power that India needs to support its continued economic growth," said MBPPL Founder Deepak Puri. Blackstone officials said the energy sector is an attracttive long-term investment destination.

By IANS, Dubai : Gulf-based carrier Emirates will launch its non-stop services between Dubai and Tokyo March 28 followed by flights to Amsterdam, Prague and Madrid. "Tokyo is the first of a number of exciting route launches in 2010 for Emirates. After Tokyo's March 28 launch, we will also start similar services from Dubai to Amsterdam starting May 1, Prague July 1 and to Madrid from Aug 1," Emirates' senior vice president for commercial operations Richard Jewsbury said in a statement Friday.

By Xinhua Yangon : India's state-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp Videsh Ltd (OVL) has signed production-sharing contracts with Myanmar to explore natural gas in three deep-sea blocks in Myanmar's western Rakhine offshore areas, official media reported here Wednesday. According to the contracts signed in Nay Pyi Taw with the state-run Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) during a visit to Myanmar of India's Petroleum Minister Murli Deora, gas exploration will be conducted at blocks AD-2, AD-3 and AD-9 off the Rakhine coast.

By IANS, Ahmedabad : Gas marketing major Gail India is planning to establish a series of wind power projects in Gujarat during the current fiscal, a senior official said Tuesday. "The company has invited bids for setting up wind power projects of 4.5 to 5 MW capacity each on a turn-key basis. The projects will come up at sites where there is sufficient wind potential," the GAIL official, who did not want to be named, told IANS. The winners of the bids will have to establish wind power turbines, produce and supply power and ensure maintenance for 20 years.

By IANS, Mumbai : A key Indian stock market index crashed by over 950 points Wednesday, but staged an impressive recovery following regulatory interventions across the globe to cushion the financial crisis that has gripped international financial markets. A meeting of Union cabinet, presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, also discussed the turmoil in the Indian capital markets and the impact of the global financial crisis on the Indian economy, following which it was decided to set up an expert committee to suggest possible action.

By IANS, Mumbai : A benchmark index for Indian equities Friday was trading weak in morning trade amid dull cues from other Asian bourses. The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 17,036.55 points, was ruling at 16,980.5 points, 41.83 points or 0.25 percent down from its previous close at 17,022.33 points. At the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty was ruling at 5,099.55 points, down 0.21 percent from its previous close. Broader markets indices were flat.

By IANS New Delhi : Finance ministers and secretaries of the eight member nations of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) have decided to accord priority to a development fund that aims to support the marginalized people in the region. "I would urge all of you to come to an agreement on the terms of reference so that the Development Fund can be used for activities supporting the development goals of other countries," India's Finance Minister P. Chidambaram told the second meeting of SAARC finance ministers and secretaries here.

By IANS New Delhi : Reliance Industries' proposal to establish a multi-product special economic zone (SEZ) in Maha Mumbai is to get an extension by a year from the government to enable it to reduce its size to 5,000 hectares to comply with new SEZ rules. "We would extend the Maha Mumbai SEZ for one year with the reduced size to 5,000 hectares ... The file is currently under process in the ministry," Commerce Secretary G.K. Pillai told reporters here Wednesday.

By IANS, Mumbai: A benchmark index of Indian equities markets was up Tuesday, trading 97 points higher in afternoon trade.

By IANS Mumbai : India's Civil Aviation Ministry has set a target of having 500 operational airports in the next 12 years, according to a report by Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation (CAPA). CAPA said this will include the ongoing redevelopment of currently unused airports or little used airports and development of greenfield and cargo airports. Presently, India has only 80 fully functional airports equipped to handle scheduled commercial, charter and defence services.

By Arvind Padmanabhan

IANS

Berlin : Despite some recent remarks by Beijing, the contentious issue of Arunachal Pradesh did not figure in the talks between Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Chinese President Hu Jintao here Thursday. Manmohan Singh, in fact, lauded China as India's "greatest neighbour".