Daily News Roundup - Dec 20 2011

Mahindra & Mahindra will showcase its Korean subsidiary Ssangyong's vehicles Rexton and Korando for the first time in India during the upcoming Auto Expo next month.
(ET)

Deregulation of interest rates on non resident term deposits has triggered an interest rate war among banks, with small banks like South Indian Bank and Federal Bank increasing deposit rates.(ET)

India Infrastructure Finance Company ( IIFCL) plans to launch a US$1bn infrastructure debt fund by the end of February.(ET)

Mukesh Ambani, the chairman of Reliance Industries is in talks to buy Network 18, the television and internet company, the Wall Street Journal said quoting people familiar with the situation.(ET)



Redington (India) Ltd will acquire 25.97 % stake of its overseas business holding arm Redington International Holding Ltd from private equity fund Investcorp for US$113mn.(BL)

Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals has tied up with a consortium of three Indian banks to raise US$100mn through external commercial borrowings to redeem outstanding foreign currency convertible bonds of US$117mn.(BL)

Dissatisfied with its growth in India and profitability in Europe, pharma-major Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd said it is taking measures to "fix and rejuvenate" the situation.(BL)

Tata Consultancy Services is investing Rs6bn in the first phase of its software development facility in Nagpur.(BL)

HCL Technologies has bagged an infrastructure outsourcing contract from global biopharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca. (BL)

Mundra Port and Special Economic Zone has increased its revenue share offer for the Rs37bn mega container terminal project. It has increased its share to 5 % from the earlier offer of 1.5 %, which was rejected by the Chennai Port Trust as being very low. (BL)

Nestle India Ltd plans to invest nearly Rs5bn on a mainly Maggi noodles and confectionary-manufacturing plant in Gujarat next year.(BL)

Saudi billionaire prince Alwaleed bin Talal, an investor in some of the world’s top companies, has bought a stake in Twitter for US$300mn, gaining another foothold in the global media industry.(BS)

The Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) has rejected a proposal by Mauritius-based Axiata Investments 2 India Ltd, part of Asian telecom giant Axiata Group, to increase its stake in Idea Cellular by acquiring shares from the stock exchange.(BS)

Kingfisher Airlines will join oneworld from February 10, making it the first Indian carrier to join a global airline alliance.(BS)

Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Limited is moving away from cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and diabetes to focus on new chemical entities (NCEs) related to unmet needs like anti-infectives for surgical infections apart from pain and dermatology for optimising business growth.(BS)
Economy Snippets

The government has approved the Rs23.5bn package for weavers in the crisis-ridden handloom sector, Commerce, Industry and Textiles Minister Anand Sharma said in a statement in Lok Sabha.(ET)

The Government agreed to fast track clearances for some mega infrastructure projects, including some in the crucial power sector, to arrest the slowdown in growth and uplift business sentiment.(BL)

Unfazed by the setback to plans for FDI in retail, the government is moving ahead with a proposed hike in the foreign investment cap in different broadcasting services like Direct-to-Home and cable TV networks to a uniform 74 %. (FE)

CMIE has said the current account deficit may climb to 4.9 % of the GDP, at US$47bn billion, in the December quarter.(FE)