Prof. Amartya Sen, an Indian expert on poverty and hunger and who is the Master at Britain's Trinity College in Cambridge, today won the Nobel Economics Prize. He was awarded the prestigious prize for his contributions to welfare and development economics, “which have helped in the understanding of the economic mechanisms underlying famines and poverty”, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in its citation. Prof. Sen, 64, becomes the sixth Indian to get the Nobel Prize and the first Asian to merit it for Economics. “His contributions ranged from axiomatic theory of social choice over definitions of welfare and poverty indexes, to empirical studies of famine,” the citation by the Academy said.

Santro booking orders cross 15,000-mark

Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) announced that it had received 15,470 customer orders against full payment in the first phase of booking which closed on October 12. The company has thus crossed its target of 10,000 vehicles set at the time of Santro's launch on September 23. Of these, the highest number of orders have been received in the North with 5,507 full-payment customer orders. The South was close behind with 5,061 customer orders.

Stocks surge on rumours of short sale ban

A spate of rumours from a ban on short sale to granting Section 80M income-tax benefits to corporates investing in Unit Trust of India's (UTI) US 64 pulled equities up sharply on Dalal Street in afternoon trade. Equities bounced back in the second half of the session leaving a majority stunned on Dalal Street as the bears rushed to cover the positions as speculation of banning and special margins on short sale gained momentum. The Sensex ended the day at 2890.72 gaining 58 points (2.07) per cent.