Daily News Roundup - Mar 30 2011

Swan Telecom and Loop Telecom were used as fronts by the ADAG and Essar Telecom, respectively, to get 2G spectrum illegally during the tenure of former telecom minister A Raja, the CBI has told the Supreme Court. (BS)

With the US market recovering fast and a positive turn in business environment, TCS sees increase in pricing that might be more visible in FY12. (BL)

RBI has questioned the valuation and structure of the deal cut by Axis Bank to buy Enam Securities. (ET)


PNB has allotted 1.51mn shares to the Centre on a preferential basis at an issue price of Rs1,218.82 per share of Rs10 each. (BL)

Cairn India will complete the first full year of producing oil from its Rajasthan block with a net profit of around Rs66bn on March 31. (ET)

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved a proposal for Rs45bn FDI in Hero Investments by two private equity firms – BC India Investors II, part of Bain Capital and Lathe Investment Pvt Ltd. (BL)

M&M plans to take 100 of its top vendors to South Korea in May this year as it aims to integrate sourcing operations and launch Ssangyong’s products in India. (ET)

Ashok Leyland took its first step into the high-volumes business of light commercial trucks, unveiling its 1.25-tonne payload vehicle, christened ‘Dost'. (BL)

Idea Cellular is looking to launch 3G services in the eastern part of the country by the first quarter of next fiscal. (BL)

Aurobindo Pharma is going in for large-scale automation of its manufacturing processes as part of a corrective action plan to reduce manual intervention. (BS)

Puravankara Projects Ltd has announced a Rs17bn luxury residential project at Pallikaranai in the suburbs of Chennai. (BS)

Lanco Infratech has raised debt of Rs55bn from a consortium of financiers led by PFC to finance its upcoming 1,320 MW power generation unit in Chhattisgarh. (ET)

SKS Microfinance has securitised microfinance loans worth Rs6.1bn. (BS)

Essar Energy has signed an agreement with Shell to buy its Stanlow refinery in UK for US$350mn. (ET)

BPCL has said it may defer its diversification into petrochemicals and power, as the company finds it tough to raise the required funds. (FE)

McNally Bharat has bagged a Rs1.2bn order from Neyveli Lignite Corp for construction related works. (FE)

NDTV and Star India announced an airtime sales alliance between them, under which Star will conduct advertising sales for all channels under the NDTV bouquet. (FE)

JCB India launched a new Bharat Stage III emission-compliant diesel engine for its off-road vehicles. (BL)

GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals is looking to control its problem of "expired stocks", even as the company targets 15-20% growth this year. (BL)

SBI has started a pilot ‘affordable housing' initiative in Mumbai in association with few builders operating in the segment. (BL)

United Bank of India is looking to offer merchant banking and syndication services by next fiscal. (BL)
Economy Snippets

India’s core infrastructure industries grew 6.8% in February yoy. (ET)

FDI registered second consecutive decline in February, 2011, dipping by 30% yoy to US$1.2bn in the backdrop of financial turmoil in Europe. (ET)

The government approved a short-term loan of Rs50bn for Food Corporation of India, which will help the organization meet its working capital requirements this fiscal. (ET)

The government approved a one time grant-in aid of Rs3.8bn as Budgetary support for implementation of GPS-aided Geo Augmented Navigation system. (ET)

The coal ministry will set up a committee to speed up land acquisition and statutory clearances for new and existing projects as part of its plan to boost production in 2011. (ET)

South Africa invited investments from India mainly in the manufacturing sector as the African nation has announced tax benefits to the investors in this area. (ET)