* ONGC : loses out on acquisition of Uganda oil field to China's CNOOC
* SHREE CEMENT : gets approval from CERC to start inter-state trading in power
produced at its merchant plant.. Current installed capacity 260mw, addtnl
300mw to be added by end of year
* MAHINDRA SATYAM : looking at Nordic & Italian mkts to offer value engineering
services to help reduce cost of production
* FUTURE GRP : looking to offload stake in non-core biz to raise money needed
to fund expansion plans
* TATA MOTORS : official says co aims at topping its record Feb sales of 39k
trucks & buses
* SBI : Chairman says open to overseas acquisitions if synergies in biz
* UNITED SPIRITS : reduces total debt to Rs 55bn from Rs 73bn & expects lower
interest costs
* AUTO SECTOR : India auto exports in Apr-Feb grew 16% @ 1.64mn units.. also
major auto makers plan 1-3% hike in pxs from April due to new emission norms
and to offset rising input costs
* RANBAXY : Delhi HC turns down Bristol Mayers Squibb plea to ban Ranbaxy from l
aunching generic version of hepatitis B drug Baraclude with global sales of
$191mn for qtr ended Oct 2009
* UNITECH : under ED lens over licence obtained under 2G
* OIL MKTING COs : Fin Min says may provide more compensation to OMCs to meet
losses if oil Min deregulates auto fuel pxs & raises cooking fuel pxs in
FY11.. petrol & diesel pxs to go up by 41p and 26p from April in 13 cities as
they wwitch to Euro IV compliant auto fuels
* CIPLA : Bayer files patent infringement case against co to stop it from
selling generic version of cancer medicine Nexavar
* ADAG GRP : invests ~$7mn in Reverse Logistics, a reverse supply chain
solutions co based in Blore
* CUMMINS INDIA : bags order for 460 natural gas engines
* VOLTAMP TRANSFORMERS : Salam International Investment Co of Qatar agrees to
increase its stake in the Co frm 34% to 100% as per statement to Qatar Exch
Corporate News – Industry trends
– The Delhi High Court has turned down a plea by US pharma major Bristol-
Myers Squibb to ban Ranbaxy Laboratories from launching a generic, or
copycat, version of its patented hepatitis B drug Baraclude. (ET)
– Zain Telecom’s board cleared Bharti Airtel’s proposal to buy its African assets
for US$10.7bn, marking the Indian company’s first successful attempt to
acquire operations in Africa after two failures. (BS)
– All car makers are planning a 1-3% raise in prices from April 1, on account of
new emission norms and also to offset rising input costs; the rise is expected
to be a minimum of Rs2,000 on a mini car, going up to Rs71,000 on a highend
luxury sedan. (BS)
– Coal India, GAIL and Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilisers are in the process of
forming a gasification joint venture, which will produce ammonium nitrate
and urea from a coal washery unit at Talcher in Orissa soon. The investment
size may be in the region of over Rs20bn. (DNA)
– The management of Bosch Ltd reached an amicable settlement with the
employees’ union at its Bangalore plant; though details of the settlement were
not known, company sources said management had agreed to give an
increase of Rs8,000 per month in their CTC, more than double the Rs3,600
paid in the previous settlement four years ago. (BS)
– Shree Cement has got the CERC approval to start inter-state trading business
in power it produces at its merchant plant. The company has 260MW stalled
captive power generation capacity and is in the process of putting up an
additional 300MW merchant capacity, which is set to go on stream in a few
days. (BS)
– The rate for the gas pipelines of Reliance Gas Transportation India Ltd and
GAIL India would be decided soon by the Petroleum and Natural Gas
Regulatory Board. “The two consultants Ernst & Young and Crisil will evaluate
the proposals submitted by the two companies and give a report to the Board,
(which) will finalise after studying the report in the following two weeks,” said
a board official. (BS)
– Alok Industries has raised Rs4,600mn through placement of shares with QIB.
(BS)
– The Japan Bank of International Cooperation has signed an agreement with
ICICI Bank under which it would provide a loan of around Rs 4,600mn to support
trade finance. (BL)
– BHEL's electronics division in Bangalore has delivered the first set of railway
equipment, the IGBT-based traction control equipment, for use in locomotives
that haul high-tonnage goods. (BL)
– The tyre industry, the largest consumer of natural rubber, has urged the Centre
to allow duty-free import of at least two lakh tonnes of natural rubber on a
priority basis, preferably through a Government agency. It has also asked for a
differential customs duty structure allowing imports at a lower duty of about
7.5% to facilitate imports during the lean months of natural rubber production.
(BL)
– The auto pack has put up a strong show on the advance tax front this fiscal,
with payouts of most auto majors registering increases between 19 and 1,524%
on a YoY basis; The fourth instalment (March 15) payouts increased 115-576%
for most companies on the back of pick-up in sales in January and February this
year, as customers rushed to beat an expected hike in prices soon after the
Budget. (BL)
Economic/Regulatory development
– The Reserve Bank of India indicated another round of policy rate increases with
Governor D Subbarao suggesting more monetary tightening to manage
inflationary expectations; “It is better to act now. It is possible that some growth
may be sacrificed in the near-term,” he said at the convocation ceremony of
Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research. (BS)
– Petrol and diesel could cost marginally more in 13 cities, as public sector oil
retailers gear up to market BS (Bharat Stage) IV fuels; Petroleum Secretary, S.
Sundareshan, while stating that cleaner fuels will be available in the 13 cities
from April 1, said the introduction of the BS-IV specification will add 41 paise a
litre to the refinery cost of petrol and 26 paise to the cost of every litre of diesel.
(BL)
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