Daily News Roundup - March 30 2009

Indian Oil Corp has set a target of commissioning projects worth Rs300bn during the next fiscal.(BL)

Reliance Industries formally signs gas sale and purchase agreements with 12 urea manufacturers in a move that may result in annual fertilizer subsidy savings of Rs30bn for the Centre.(BL)

Tata Motors looking to set up a truck manufacturing plant in Myanmar. (BS)

ONGC set to sign deal with Reliance Industries on rig utilization.(TOI)

Mahindra & Mahindra is working on the cargo version of its recently launched multi-purpose vehicle Mahindra Xylo.(BL)

Low-cost airlines SpiceJet and Jet Airways have reduced fuel surcharge on air tickets. (BS)

BHEL says it has received a Rs3.5bn contract from Nuclear Power Corp.(FE)

Central Bank of India reduces its benchmark prime lending rate by 0.50% to 12%. (BS)

Parsvnath goes slow on hotel expansion, pushes back its plans to buy new land for hotels and projects by 12-18 months. (BS)

Reliance Industries set to begin gas production from the KG basin in the next 24 to 48 hours. (ET)

Spice Group pulls out of Satyam bidding process.(BL)

DoT may undertake a special audit of Bharti Airtel’s accounts for the year 2007-08 to examine allegations of irregular revenue reporting by the company to pay lower fees to the Government.(BL)

SBI hints at rate cuts in next financial year.(FE)

TVS group plans to form new finance company.(BL)

Essar Oil will soon diversify into retailing of liquefied petroleum gas for automotives.(DNA)

Unitech reschedules, repays Rs6-7bn debt due by March.(BL)

Japanese two-wheeler major Honda says it will exit the geared scooter market in India.(FE)

Sun Pharma gets USFDA approval to market generic Topamax, topiramate tablets. (BS)

IL&FS Financial Services has acquired a14.5% stake in Maytas Infra. (ET)

Essar Oil fuel sales turn profitable for the first time. (BS)

SAIL, Tata Steel and JSW Steel, are witnessing a revival of demand following improved consumption from construction and automobile sectors. (ET)

Lupin has picked up 51% stake in Philippines’ Multicare Pharmaceuticals, a branded generic-drugs company with a presence in women’s health and child care.(BL)

Glaxo, Sanofi-Aventis to buy-out majority stake in Shantha Biotec. (ET)

Vishal Retail to raise Rs500mn through debt to invest in inventory and stock. (ET)

Jet Airways looking at leasing out more aircrafts. (ET)

Sophia Power, Adani Power, KSK Power and Monnet Ispat are in the race for participating in NMDC’s thermal coal venture. (BS)

CESC to complete land acquisition for its proposed 1,000 MW coal-based power plant at Neulapoi in Orissa’s Dhenkanal district within three months. (BS)

Gitanjali Gems scraps its plan to set up a SEZ in Nanded, Maharashtra. (BS)

Jet Airways, which had slashed 18-20% of its fleet capacity in the winter schedule (October-February), may look at reducing capacity if the current air traffic slips further.(DNA)

Matrix Labs likely to delist shares.(BL)

Walt Disney Company to hike its stake in UTV Global Broadcasting by purchasing additional 10% stake for Rs329.7mn. (ET)

GSPC to start scouting for LNG supplies by year-end.(BL)

MMTC to launch currency futures market in July.(FE)

Tata Tech eyes PE funds, may dilute 12%.(TOI)

Forex reserves rose by US$5bn to US$254bn in the week ended March 20.(BL)

Prime Minister has ‘advised’ the Reserve Bank of India to further cut interest rates.(BL)

TRAI has proposed that stake sale for new telecom licensees may be eased. (BS)

DoT seeks Finance Ministry’s views on stake sale by new telecom companies.(BL)

Ministry of civil aviation asks domestic carriers to pay Rs4900 per flight as common infrastructure charge to GMR Hyderabad International Airport. (ET)

Government asks automobile makers to roll back all price hikes announced during the last couple of months. (ET)

Central Board of Excise and Customs has proposed to end double taxation on software sales. (ET)

Container traffic fell 26% in Jan’ 09.(Mint)

Government may defer implementation of accounting standard-11.(BL)

India's infrastructure sector output grew 2.2% in February from a year earlier, above an upwardly revised 1.5% in January, according to government data.(FE)

Growth in the Rs450bn organized retail industry has slowed to 5% in the fourth quarter of 2008-09.(FE)

With just days left for fiscal 2008-09 to end, the Railways are unlikely to meet the freight loading target of 850mn tonnes.(FE)

PC sales see first yearly drop of 1% to 8mn units in CY08.(DNA)

Banks parked nearly two-thirds of the incremental deposits that flowed into the banking system in the last six months in investments (mostly Government securities) than lend it to the commercial sector, an analysis of RBI data reveals.(BL)

Banks have been prevented from charging any fee for cash withdrawals using ATMs issued by other banks from April 1 onwards.(FE)