The Hindu Business Line : Weekly News Round-up

Three upcoming PSU refineries, units coming under the STPI scheme and 100 per cent export-oriented units were some of the beneficiaries of the amendments moved by the Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, to the Finance Bill 2008 in the Lok Sabha.

Public sector oil refineries at Bina, Bhatinda and Paradip would be entitled for seven-year tax holiday benefit, if they commence refining before March 31, 2012.

Software units under the Software Technology Park of India scheme and export oriented units would get one more year of income- tax exemption up to March 31, 2010.

Basic customs duty on newsprint has been brought down to 3 per cent from 5 per cent. Full basic customs duty exemption has been allowed on cut and polished coloured gemstones and rough synthetic gemstones.

Packaged cement with price above Rs 250 a bag (of 50 kg) would attract excise duty of 12 per cent of retail sale price, against current specific duty rate of Rs 600 a tonne.

The Finance Minister imposed 15 per cent export duty on specified primary forms and semi-finished products, and hot rolled coils/sheet; 10 per cent on specified rolled products including cold-rolled coils/sheets and pipes and tubes and 5 per cent on galvanized steel in coil/sheet form.

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The RBI last hiked the Cash Reserve Ratio by 25 basis points to suck out Rs 9,000 crore from the system.

This is the second hike in CRR, the portion of deposits that banks have to keep with the RBI, this month.

With this hike, the CRR will touch 8.25 per cent.

The RBI kept all its key rates unchanged.

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Hindustan Unilever Ltd reported a 3 per cent dip in net profit for the quarter ended March 31, 2008, to touch Rs 380.95 crore from Rs 392.89 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal.

Net sales grew by 19.1 per cent to touch Rs 3,793.94 crore during the quarter, against Rs 3,184.32 crore in the year-ago period.

************** Even after making a provision of $100 million for marked-to-market losses on its overseas credit derivatives exposure, ICICI Bank posted a 39 per cent rise in net profit to Rs 1,150 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2008, from Rs 825 crore last year,

The bank's net interest income for the quarter increased by 29 per cent to Rs 2,079 crore from Rs 1,609 crore.

************** Reliance Industries Ltd is set to acquire majority stake in an oil block in Peru. The company is understood to have recently inked an agreement with Pan Andean for acquiring stake in Block 141 in Peru.

Sources told Business Line that an agreement has been signed between RIL and Pan Andean and now necessary approvals from higher authorities in Peru is awaited.

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Bharti Airtel last Monday announced a 43 per cent reduction in STD rates for its 62 million mobile subscribers across the country.

Airtel subscribers will be able to make domestic long distance calls at a flat rate of Rs 1.50 a minute compared to Rs 2.65 a minute at present.

The company also reduced roaming rates from Rs 1.75 a minute to Re 1. The new rate will be effective from April 30 across all tariff plans.

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The Indian Space Research Organisation last Monday put into orbit a record ten satellites, including Cartosat-2A.

The PSLV-C9 launcher delivered nine other satellites - the experimental Indian Mini Satellite IMS-1 and eight tiny commercial satellites - into a 637-km near-Earth orbit.

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HDFC's net profit for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2008 amounted to Rs 768.12 crore, against Rs 550 crore in the corresponding year-ago quarter. The net profit is inclusive of a one-time gain of Rs 202 crore from the sale of shares in HDFC Ergo General Insurance.

Interest income increased to Rs 2,240 crore from Rs 1,527 crore last shown in the year-ago quarter.

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In a blow to Tata Teleservices and Reliance Communications, the Supreme Court has asked the two companies to pay up Rs 700 crore to Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd as access deficit charges on limited mobile phones.

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Reliance Communications recorded a 46.8 per cent rise in net profit to Rs 1,503 crore for the quarter ended March 2008 from Rs 1,024 crore in the year-ago period.

Net revenues for the quarter were up by 35 per cent at Rs 5,311 crore against Rs 3,937 during the same period last fiscal.

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State Bank of India posted 48.18 per cent growth in net profit at Rs 6,729 crore in 2007-08 against Rs 4,541 crore in 2006-07.

The net profit in the fourth quarter amounted to Rs 1,883 crore against Rs 1,493 crore, showing a growth of 26.12 per cent. The operating profit went up to Rs 4,373 crore from Rs 3,969 crore in the same quarter last year.

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Inflation rose to a 42-week high of 7.57 per cent in the 12 months to April 19, higher than the previous week's annual rise of 7.33 per cent, largely on account of an increase in food, metal products and industrial fuel prices, official data showed.

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Compiled by M.J. Madhavan
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