Daily News Roundup - Dec 7 2011

Mahindra & Mahindra plans to more than double the output of its much sought after premium SUV, XUV 5OO to 4,000 units within the next 6 months. (ET)

Ranbaxy Laboratories launched a generic version of Caduet, used for treating cardio vascular diseases, in the US market, as part of an agreement with Pfizer. (ET)

Hindalco Industries has plans to double its capacities with an investment outlay of over US$5bn. (ET)



ONGC has given a no-objection certificate to British oil firm Cairn Energy’s sale of a majority stake in its Indian unit to Vedanta Resources, paving the way for conclusion of the US$8.7bn deal. (ET)

In a major realignment, Wipro Technologies is consolidating into a single business operations unit its quality and information systems, global delivery and business application services functions to streamline delivery and simultaneously bring in greater automation at the back-end. (ET)

Gitanjali Gems has acquired the Hong Kong-based jewellery company Crown Aim for an undisclosed amount through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Aston Luxury Group. (BL)

Reliance Commercial Finance, the lending division of Reliance Capital, is planning to step up lending to the small and medium enterprise and the infrastructure segments. (BL)

GAIL (India) Ltd has tied up a five-year term loan of US$100mn from Bank of Tokyo - Mitsubishi UFJ. (BL)

Shasun Pharma Solutions Limited, subsidiary of Shasun Pharmaceuticals Limited, has received close to Rs32mn grant from the UK government’s investment package, which is meant to generate more job opportunities in the region. (BS)

Reliance Industries Ltd is in talks with cable operators to buy or take on long-term lease their fibre optic capacity to use the capacity acquired to roll out broadband wireless access, 4G and high-speed internet services. (BS)

Dhanlaxmi Bank has signed an MoU with LIC to facilitate the electronic transfer of policy payments to policyholders. (ET)

Axis Bank is looking to scale up its retail operations by cashing in on the demand in smaller cities and increasing the share of retail loans to 30% of total loans from the current 21% in the next three years. (ET)
Economy Snippets

The Power Ministry is trying to garner the support of the Planning Commission for abolition of Customs duty on imported coal, which is expected to be countered by the Finance Ministry in light of the revenue implications. (BL)

The Government is in the advanced stages of finalizing a ‘Mission Plan' for aluminium to enhance per capita consumption of the metal in India and facilitate better exploitation of bauxite and coal resources. (BL)

Bank lending to the priority sector grew at a mere 10% in October this year, on an annual basis, on account of lower offtake by agriculture and MSME segments as well as decline in micro credit. (ET)

The government is unlikely to raise subsidy further this fiscal on imported fertilizers, especially DAP and MoP, despite industry demand for it on the grounds that high global prices and the weak rupee have made shipments costlier. (ET)

The IMF has released US$3.96bn in rescue funds for Greece, giving a nod to new Prime Minister Lucas Papademos's commitment to a tough reform programme. (ET)