India to focus on agriculture at WTO
Sao Paulo: After a round of talks with the Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim, the Minister for Commerce, Kamal Nath, has said that agriculture is a prime concern for the new Indian government.

Pointing out that it was a Congress government that signed the WTO's Uruguay Round agreement, Nath said India looked forward to further development, but only as long as the country's concerns were taken care of.
Back to News Review index page  

India lauds role of the G-20
New Delhi: India has assured the G-20 that it would like to further strengthen and consolidate the group. The Commerce and Industry Minister, Kamal Nath, at the G-20 meet in Sau Pololo, said the new Government attached the "highest priority" to India's role and responsibilities in the group of countries whose coming together on agriculture represented a major development in the new WTO milieu. "When the history of negotiations is written sometime in the future, the emergence and the role of G-20 will be perceived as an important step forward in the negotiating strategy of developing countries," the minister said, addressing the meeting.
Back to News Review index page 

MTNL slashes broadband and ADSL rates
Mumbai: Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) is set to launch two new schemes - Plan 500 and Plan 1000 - for its fixed line users. The schemes would be offered in the two circles of Mumbai and Delhi by June 16. MTNL has further slashed its broadband tariffs on Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) mode (a high-speed internet accessibility technology) and is offering internet connectivity for around Rs 299 per month.

MTNL is levying Rs 299 per month under its Deluxe plan and is offering a free data download of 100 MB, while under its Deluxe Saver plan it would levy Rs 999 per month and offer free data download of 750 MB. Under Premium plan, the telephony major would charge a monthly rental of Rs 1,999 (with a free download of 1.25 GB) and Rs 2,999 (2.5 GB free download) under Premium Saver plan.
Back to News Review index page  

CII-Ascon survey: Services sector continue growth
New Delhi: The domestic services sector will continue its growth, according to the latest survey of the sector conducted by the Association Councils (Ascon) of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The survey, which covers the period between April 2003 and March 2004, said that the fastest growing sector was cellular telephones, which grew by more than 106 per cent in 2003-04, way higher than in 2002-03 when the industry grew by 90 per cent. The survey forecast for the next six months is a growth of about 90-100 per cent. Besides, housing finance also grew with sanctions of home loans rising by over 30 per cent during the year under review.

The survey also points out that tourist arrivals have increased by more than 17 per cent. The survey estimates that this year, tourist arrivals will rise by another 15-20 per cent. Similarly, the domestic software industry grew at 15 per cent, up from the 13 per cent growth recorded in the previous year. ITeS-BPO also rose by 54 per cent. Software exports also registered an increase of 27 per cent, up from 26 per cent during the last fiscal. According to the survey, the domestic software industry is expected to grow at 10-15 per cent over the last six months while the ITeS-BPO sector is expected to grow by more than 50 per cent. Software exports will rise by more than 20 per cent. India's rising import and exports was reflected in a good year for the air cargo industry. Overall, the air cargo industry grew by eight per cent, while exports of air cargo rose by 11 per cent.
Back to News Review index page