The Hindu Business Line : Weekly News Round-up

The Union Government, last Thursday, approved a new open market sale scheme for wheat and rice in order to keep grain prices in check ahead of the upcoming festival season. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs decided to allocate wheat under the open market sale scheme both to State Governments and Union Territories as well as bulk consumers, such as roller flour mills. About 50 lakh tonnes of wheat would be channellised under the scheme between September and March. Another 10 lakh tonnes will be allocated to States and Union Territories as additional above-poverty-line quota, a senior Food Ministry official said.

The annual Wholesale Price Index-based inflation rose 12.63 per cent during the week ended August 9, above the previous week's year-on-year rise of 12.44 per cent, Government data showed last Thursday. The official WPI for `All Commodities' for the week ended August 9 rose to 240.7 points, up from 240.4 points for the previous week. The annual inflation rate was recorded at 4.24 per cent during the corresponding week of the previous year.

Mr Ratan Tata, Chairman of the Tata Group of companies, made it clear here last Friday that Tata Motors would not hesitate to pull out of Singur, the location of the Rs 1 lakh Nano car project, if the employees of the company and the ancillary units continued to face violence and disturbance. While addressing newspersons at the end of Tata Tea Ltd's annual general meeting here, he said the company would not want to come to an area where, they are unwanted. He said he had no doubt that the relocation of the factory would cost the company and its shareholders heavily but observed that it will also hit hard West Bengal.

It is not just corporations, banks and traders, but also individuals who can hedge their foreign exchange risks when trading in foreign currency futures commences this month-end on National Stock Exchange. NSE goes live with currency futures from August 29. Currency futures are standardised foreign exchange contracts traded on recognised stock exchanges, for buying or selling one currency against another on a specified future date at a specified price. Parents paying for their children's overseas education, students raising funds for themselves, persons getting remittances from abroad, and even the outbound traveller can benefit from this facility

Asset Reconstruction Company (India) Ltd, collector of distressed assets in the country, has started buying non-performing retail loans, including home loans. The company has launched the new service from August 15 under a new division called `Arms'. Arms will act as a recovery agent for banks and other retail lenders, competing with private agencies which are now offering this service.

Mahindra & Mahindra has agreed to pick up majority equity in a joint venture it will form with China's Yancheng Tractor. The new venture will hold the divested tractor business of the Chinese company. M&M will hold 51 per cent equity in the joint venture, through its Mauritius-based subsidiary, Mahindra Overseas Investment company. It will pay $26 million for the stake.

Compiled by M J Madhavan
Podcast by S. Vasudevan