OPEN OFFERS
Astra Pharma fixes floor price of Rs 825 for AstraZeneca open offer
ASTRAZENECA Pharma India's Swedish parent has fixed a floor price of Rs 825 per share for its fresh open offer. The latest bid is to acquire the remaining 8.4 per cent of shares in the company. The offer will be open from July 19 to July 23. ... More

CORPORATE DISPUTES
Polaris files counter claim against Indonesian bank — Arbitration proceedings to begin soon
ARBITRATION proceedings on the commercial dispute between Polaris Software Lab Ltd and Bank Artha Graha, Indonesia, is likely to proceed in the second half of 2004. Pending the outcome of the case, the management is not able to estimate the ... More

OVERSEAS BORROWINGS
Essar Oil to raise $207 m via FCCB
ESSAR Oil Ltd has decided to raise $207 million through the issue of Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCB), the company has informed stock exchanges on Monday. The funds will be utilised for completing its 10.5-million-tonne refinery under ... More

AWARDS & HONOURS

ACCOUNTANCY
Company secretaries to form global body
THE company secretary institutes of Bangladesh, Pakistan, Kenya and India have decided to join forces under aegis of International Federation of Company Secretaries (IFCS). At a roundtable to discuss the issues concerning the profession held here ... More

ENVIRONMENT
SRF clears Rs 12.7-cr proposal to cut gas emission
SRF Ltd is keen to reduce emission of trifluoromethane (HFC-23) from the company's chemical business plant at Bhiwadi in Rajasthan. To this end, the board of directors has cleared a capital expenditure proposal worth Rs 12.7 crore (phase-I) for ... More

HUMAN RESOURCES
Employee referrals popular among HR managers
ALTHOUGH companies are experimenting with a whole range of hiring options such as job fairs, recruitment agencies and online ads, HR managers would still bet their last rupee on employee referrals programmes, which they say, have given them the ... More

`L&T's young staff need to grow with the company'
THE man who says he keeps track of all the 65 businesses of Larsen & Toubro only because he has spent 40 years with the company and has seen many of these units develop from scratch, is now concerned about the shifting loyalties of its young ... More

NEW PROJECTS
DM Wall System to launch new products
DM Wall System Co (P) Ltd, a Korean company manufacturing aluminium composite panels (ACP) for building exteriors, is expanding its manufacturing facility at Sriperumbudur, near Chennai. The new product lines will include interior panels and ... More

ALLIANCES & JOINT VENTURES
Elder Pharma, Reliance Life tie up for skin care products
BEAUTY may not be skin-deep, but the skin it seems, holds glowing prospects for pharmaceutical companies. In an effort to strengthen its foray into the skin-related or dermatology-segment - Elder Pharma Ltd has tied-up with Reliance Life ... More

INTERVIEW
`Sensex may touch 7,000-mark in six months'
MOTILAL Oswal Securities hopes to be at the forefront of the intermediation business, offering services that meet the diverse requirements of its clients. It, however, lays special emphasis on research, which, feels Mr Raamdeo Agarwal, ... More

STANDARDS & BENCHMARKS
Six Wockhardt units get USFDA approval
The Mumbai-based drug company, Wockhardt Ltd, has got the US regulatory approval for six of its manufacturing plants at Aurangabad, Waluj and Ankleshwar. Company officials told Business Line that this would strengthen it's aggressive ... More

OUTLOOK
Yamaha Motor hopes to break even by next year — To invest Rs 400 cr
YAMAHA Motor India today said that it has plans to invest Rs 400 crore over the next three years towards developing new products, sprucing up manufacturing and creating awareness for its brand. According to Mr Hiroyuki Yanagi, the new CEO and ... More

GCMMF aims at Rs 500-cr rise in sales
Last fiscal, the federation posted a 50 per cent growth in consumer pack export volumes but its overall export turnover fell 40 per cent. More

Avery India to focus on top-end machines
AVERY India Ltd, the weighing machines manufacturer, expects growth in organised retail marketing to push sales. The company, which has stopped making manual balances, will focus on the top end, according to its Managing Director, Mr Jairaj ... More

Post-Priyamvada Birla era — MP Birla group may be handed over to trust
THE reins of the MP Birla Group, which has diversified interests in cement, jute, chemicals, cables, and other industries, may be handed over to a trust following the recent demise of Priyamvada Birla, chairman and wife of the late MP Birla, on ... More

PERFORMANCE
A turnaround year for Agro Tech Foods
LAST fiscal has been a turnaround year for Agro Tech Foods Ltd (ATFL), a subsidiary of global food major ConAgra. The company's net profit during the year, after payment of Rs 6.2 crore towards settlement of the Mantralayam undertaking belonging ... More

PEOPLE
Rajinder Kumar is Ranbaxy's R&D head
FOLLOWING the exit of Dr Rashmi Bharbhaiya, President, Research and Development (R&D), from Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, the company has appointed Dr Rajinder Kumar as the new head. Dr Kumar, who was previously with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), will ... More

NEW PRODUCTS & SERVICES
Maruti unveils Esteem variant — Prices it Rs 40,000 less
MARUTI Udyog has reduced prices of its new look Esteem by at least Rs 40,000 in a bid to increase its share in the rapidly growing mid-size sedan market. The base model of the new Esteem (petrol) has been priced at Rs 4.25 lakh (ex-showroom, ... More