SEBI panel recommends short selling by institutions
Mumbai: A Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) committee has recommended that institutional investors like FIIs and mutual funds should be allowed to short-sell shares in the market like retail investors. Short selling means selling a stock, the seller does not own at the time of trade.

For this SEBI's secondary market committee has recommended that stock exchange's clearing house should act as intermediary for lending and borrowing of securities. Custodians, banks and financial institutions can also lend securities. It said initially short selling be permitted only in those stocks in which derivative products are available.

However, SEBI has said naked short sales would not be permitted, which means that investors would be required to honour their obligation of delivering the securities at the time of settlement.
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Oriental Containers declares 10 pc dividend
Mumbai: Oriental Containers has declared a dividend of 10 per cent on equity shares for the year ended June 30, 2005. The shareholders have also authorised the company to mortgage its properties in favour of bankers for secured term loans.

The company, promoted by Somani Group, manufactures lethographic metal containers, pilfer proof closures and aluminium collapsible tubes.
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India Infoline to raise Rs100 crore
Mumbai: India Infoline plans to raise Rs100 crore through an issue of optionally convertible bonds of Rs80 crore to DSP Merrill Lynch Capital and a preferential allotment of 11.76 lakh shares to Bennett Coleman & Co of face value of Rs10 each at a price of Rs170.

The company's board has also approved the acquisition of Marchmont Capital Advisors Pvt. Ltd.
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UTI AMC announces plans to grow AuM
Mumbai: Fund house UTI Asset Management Company has announced plans to buy a controlling stake in a technology company, set up its own call centre and own a distribution company as part of a strategy to grow its assets under management to Rs62,000 crore by March 31, 2010 from Rs25,000 crore at present.

Announcing this after its first meeting with its four sponsors — State Bank of India, Life Insurance Corporation of India, Bank of Baroda and Punjab National Bank, U.K. Sinha, managing director and CEO of UTI AMC, said the sponsors had also expressed their desire to run the AMC as a board-driven company with full autonomy in decision-making.

UTI AMC also plans to target NRIs and other overseas investors by launching offshore funds, which would invest in the Indian equity markets, Sinha added.
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Dainik Jagran plans IPO by Jan
Mumbai: Jagran Prakashan (JPL), publishers of the country's highest circulated newspaper Dainik Jagran, is planning an IPO by January 2006.

A portion of the proceeds would be earmarked for acquisitions and joint ventures in the media business, for which JPL already has a board-appointed committee examining the subject. The 26 per cent equity stake in JPL, which Independent News & Media PLC acquired in June for Rs150 crore, would fall to 20 per cent after the IPO. But the Irish company has agreed to stay locked in at a minimum 75 per cent of that 20 per cent for the next three years, senior JPL officials said.

JPL's requirement of funds for newly stated plans is more than Rs300 crore and the eventual IPO size won't be limited to this figure; that depends on inflows through the book building process.
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Gail to consider issue of interim dividend on Jan. 12
Mumbai: Public sector gas major Gail India has said it was considering a proposal to issue an interim dividend at the meeting of its board of directors on January 12.

The company has fixed January 17, 2006, as the record date for the purpose of payment of interim dividend, if approved, by the board, it said. Gail India has expanded into gas processing, petrochemicals, liquefied petroleum gas transmission and telecommunications and has extended its presence in power, liquefied natural gas re-gasification, city gas distribution and exploration & production through equity and joint ventures participations.
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