Astra Zeneca offer for 44% in local arm closes
Anglo-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca on Friday concluded its open offer for an additional 43.5 per cent stake that it did not own in its Indian subsidiary, AstraZeneca Pharma India.

If the company hikes its stake to more than 90 per cent in its Indian arm, it can delist the firm from Indian stock exchanges.
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Ford expects Icon sales to grow
Ford India Ltd (FIL) hopes to sell 50,000 cars in the domestic and export markets in 2002.

In 2001, the company sold 15,200 Ikon variants in the domestic market while 28,000 Ikons were exported to Mexico and South Africa as CKD (completely knocked down) units.
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Hero to set up third call centre in Chandigarh
The Rs 7,500-crore Hero group will have its third call centre in Chandigarh with a possible capacity of 1,000 seats for catering primarily to financial services and telecom clients in the US, UK and Australia.

The group is targeting $100 million turnover in two to three years time for its ITES initiative..The group has call centres in Bangalore and Gurgaon. The third call centre will service the groups existing as well as additional clients.
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M&M To buy US-based Firm For $5 million
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) is set to buy out a Detroit-based automotive engineering company for a consideration of around $5 million. The company, which employs around 40-50 people, will act as the front-end to M&Ms ambitious international plans for the automotive engineering business. Mahindra Engineering Services (MES), currently a division of M&M, would be spun off as a separate company in about two months.
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Global firms seek licence for offshore mining
Pending a bill to permit offshore mining many global mining giants are waiting to take the plunge.

At least ten mining MNCs, including Alkem, Rio Tinto, De Beers, Anglo American, Phelsdodg, BHP Biliton and Pichney, have conveyed their interest in securing licence for reconnaissance operations in offshore fields, sources in department of mines said.

The companies are expected to apply for licences and seek investment permits through the automatic FDI approval route, after the enactment of the bill. The government had permitted 100% FDI through automatic route in the mining sector in February 01.
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Usha Beltron to use Gustav brandname for steel cords
Gustav Wolf (GW), the German steel cord manufacturer, will treat Usha Beltron as its production base in India, lending its brandname as well, as per an agreement entered into between the two companies.

The Jhawars, who have a 24 per cent stake in Usha Beltron Ltd (UBL), are promoting a Rs 120-crore project which includes the setting up of a steel cord plant at the Ranchi production unit.
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Bata to transfer Mokameh unit to BDCL
Bata India will transfer its tannery division at Mokameh Ghat to BDCL Enterprises Private Ltd as part of its restructuring.The tannery division will be transferred in consideration of BDCL alloting its shares to shareholders of Bata India..

The scheme will create possibilities for optimum growth and development of all businesses and undertakings of BIL, including Mokameh Ghat, and enable it to achieve better and more efficient management and control with greater focus and attention..
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Nelco declares dividends after seven years
Nelco Ltd, a Tata group company, has declared a 10 per cent dividend for 2001-2002 after a gap of seven years.

For the nine-month period ended March 31, 2002, the company achieved sales of Rs 91.33 crore and a net profit of Rs 1.34 crore.

The turnaround is following completion of a large order in strategic electronics business and due to sustained improved performance of the Tatanet division, the company said in a press release.
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Jagatjit Case Against JV Partner Stayed
The Delhi High Court (HC) has stayed proceedings of a civil suit filed by Jagatjit Industries (JIL) in a Kapurthala (Punjab) court seeking monetary damages from the parent company, Brown Forman Mauritius Ltd, of its joint venture (JV) Jagatjit Brown Forman India Ltd (JBFIL). The suit has been stayed till further orders.

JIL and Brown Forman have been at loggerheads for nearly four years following the break-up of their joint venture. Brown Forman had filed a winding up petition in December 1999 which has been opposed by Jagatjit on the grounds that it has claims against JBFIL.
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PSL registers a net profit of Rs 30.97crores
PSL Holdings on Friday reported a net profit of Rs 30.97 crore for the 18 months ended March 2002.

The financial figure covers the 18 month period from October 2000 to March 2002 . The company has shifted its accounting year from September to March.
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RINL global rating up
Rashtrita Ispat Nigam Ltd (RINL) has climbed up to the 68th position in the list of world's largest steel producing companies on the strength of improved peformance in production and related areas.

An official spokesman of the company said the latest bulletin of the Brussels-based International Iron and Steel Institute (IISI) has now upgraded RINL to the 68th position (producing over 3 million tonnes of crude steel in 2001) from its earlier rank of 72 (with 2.8 million tonnes in 2000).
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HZL FY'02 net profit down 59.84%
Hindustan Zinc Ltd has posted a lower net profit at 59.84 per cent at Rs 67.96 crore for the financial year ended March 31 2002 as compared to Rs 169.22 crore in the previous year.

The board has recommended a dividend of five per cent for the FY'02, the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange here on Friday.
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GE to acquire IPCL stake in India arm
General Electric plans to acquire the 49.9 per cent stake held by IPCL in the ailing GE Plastics India.

GE, which already holds 48.99 per cent stake in the Indian plastics venture through GE Pacific Mauritius, proposes to acquire another about 25 lakh shares of GE Plastics India and the Foreign Investment Promotion Board has given its permission for the deal last week, sources said here.
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New Container Terminal Shortly At Vizag
Vizag Container Terminal Ltd, the joint venture between JM Baxi & Co Ltd and Dubai Port Authorities, is setting up a deep-draught container terminal at Vishakhapatnam Port.
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Samtel expects sales to go up by 40%
Samtel Colour Ltd, India's largest integrated colour picture tube maker, said on Friday it expected sales this financial year to March to jump nearly 40 per cent as fresh capacity comes on stream and exports surge.

New Delhi-based Samtel Colour posted net sales of Rs 6.1 billion ($124.7 million) in 2001/02 and its net profit, before deferred tax, stood at 417.4 million. A 40 per cent growth from these levels would put 2002/03 sales at Rs 8.55 billion.
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Home Trade CEO's remand extended
A Wardha court has extended till June 24 the police custodial remand of broking firm CEO Sanjay Agarwal, the key accused in the Rs 25-crore Wardha District Central Co-operative Bank gilt scam.

Agarwal, who is also the main accused in Nagpur District Central Co-operative Bank's Rs 150 crore gilt scam, was produced before the additional district sessions judge Shubhada Tudankar on expiry of his PCR yesterday.
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