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BHEL
stake-sale put on hold: Left
New
Delhi: Plans
to sell-off a 10 per cent stake in Bharat Heavy Electricals
have been put on hold because of opposition from the government's
Left allies.
Congress
party president, Sonia Gandhi, has asked the communist
parties to resume coordination meetings with the government
in the light of this decision. The communist parties will
take a collective decision on rejoining the meetings.
The
communist parties, whose support is key to the ruling
coalition's parliamentary majority, oppose the sale of
the stake in BHEL, saying it diverges from the governance
agenda they agreed with the government.
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Inflation
close to 4 per cent
New Delhi: Inflation reached up to 3.97 per cent during
the week ended September 24 from 3.75 per cent a week
ago, due to a hike in prices of industrial fuel and manufactured
products.
Though
inflation neared 4 per cent during the week, it was still
much lower than 7.33 per cent a year ago.
During
the week, global crude oil prices hovered around $64-65
a barrel as Hurricane Rita weakened and the expectation
of a damage to refinery capacity in the US Gulf receded.
The
point-to-point Wholesale Price Index (WPI) stood unchanged
at previous week's level of 196.5 points although the
fuel and manufactured products group indices were up by
0.2 per cent each. WPI was at 189 points a year ago.
Primary
articles' group index declined to 195.5 points due to
fall in prices of food and non-food items. The index was
190.3 points a year ago.
Food
articles' group index was down to 195.5 points due to
lower prices of mutton and fruits and vegetables (four
per cent each) and fish-inland (one per cent).
But
prices rose for condiments and spices (three per cent)
and bajra, barley and maize (one per cent each).
Non-food
articles' group index declined to 180.8 points owing to
lower prices of sunflower (nine per cent), groundnut seed
(four per cent), raw jute (three per cent), copra (two
per cent) and niger seed and safflower (one per cent each).
However,
prices rose for fodder (nine per cent), gingelly seed
(three per cent), raw tobacco (two per cent) and raw rubber,
linseed and rape & mustard seed (one per cent).
Fuel,
power, light and lubricants group index was up to 314.6
points due to higher prices of furnace oil (five per cent).
The index was 281.7 points a year ago.
Manufactured
Products' group index rose to 171.2 points as prices rose
for food, textiles, leather, rubber, basic metals and
machinery. The index was 167.9 points in the year ago
period.
A
whopping 35-per cent rise in prices of unblended black
tea leaf pushed up the Food Products' group index to 178
points.
However,
coconut oil and oil cakes became cheaper by two per cent
and rice bran oil and groundnut oil by one per cent.
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No
import of sugar says government
New
Delhi:
The government said there would be no further import of
raw sugar as output prospect appears bright. It said it
is exploring possibility to raise export quantum of the
sweetener to encash high international price.
Sugar
mills imported 24-lakh tonnes raw sugar in 2004-05 as
domestic sugar production came down to 130-lakh tonnes
due to deficient rains in previous two years.
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PMO
reprimands oil ministry on ONGC
New
Delhi:
The prime minister's office has reprimanded the petroleum
ministry for adding conditions even after prime minister
Manmohan Singh had approved ONGC's Rs25,000-crore investment
in LNG, power and petrochemicals project at Mangalore.
The PMO ordered implementation of the project as per the
original approval.
The
PMO had on July 15 approved Mangalore Refinery and Petrocemicals
(an ONGC subsidiary) as the implementing agency for the
entire project, with ONGC providing finances and guarantees.
The Petroleum Ministry on August 17 had ordered that financing
of the project and role of MRPL be decided in consultation
with it.
Later,
when the PMO learnt of the fresh conditions it sent a
censure to the oil ministry asking for immediate deletion
of the conditions and following of the PM's order in totality.
Post
this, petroleum secretary S C Tripathi informed the PMO
that paragraph two (that mentioned the new conditions)
of the August 17 order had been withdrawn and fresh orders
were being issued. But even after one month, revised orders
had not yet been issued.
ONGC
had last year signed a memorandum of understanding with
Karanataka government for projects worth Rs25,000 crore
but could not proceed due to objections from the oil ministry.
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US
and Chinese officials to meet in Beijing
Beijing:
US
and Chinese oficials are meeting on October 12 and 13
in Beijing for talks on a pact that potentially could
restrict China's textile and clothing shipments to the
United States through the end of 2008.
The
pact includes items from yarns to garments. China wants
the pact to expire at the end of 2007 and cover fewer
products than the United States has proposed.
The
outcome of the negotiation is bound to have an impact
on Indian textile sector.
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