NEWS HEADLINES

GENERAL


1)In a bid to promote two-way engagement and build better
understanding with the overseas Indian community, a uni-
que institution - Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra - will come up in
New Delhi by next year.

CORPORATE / INDUSTRY

2)Biocon Ltd, India's biggest biotechnology company, agreed
to sell a majority stake in its German unit AxiCorp GmbH
for e40 million (Rs 263.2 crore) because it didn't need the
company's services to sell Biocon's insulin products in the
European nation after an alliance with the world's biggest
drug maker Pfizer Inc.

3)Auto component maker Motherson Sumi Systems Ltd(MSSL)
on Thursday said it will merge three group firms with itself
as it looks to consolidate its business. The company, which
has set a target of becoming a $5-billion entity by 2015,
said its board of directors has approved the merger of Sumi
Motherson Innovative Engineering (SMIEL), MSSL Global
Wiring and India Nails Manufacturing with itself.


MONEY & BANKING


4)Paring all of its initial gains, the rupee closed flat on
Thursday at 44.43/44 against the US currency due to late
dollar demand from importers, in tandem with local equities
amid increased capital outflows.

5)The interest rate on saving bank deposits, the last bastion
of administered rate of interest, is set to be deregulated,
with the Reserve Bank of India(RBI) kicking off a discussion
for a market driven rate. The rate has remained at 3.5
per cent since March, 2003.

6)India's largest private lender ICICI Bank Ltd on Thursday
announced a 44% rise in its net profit in the fourth quarter
(Q4) ended 31 March, bolstered by growth in fee income
and lower provisions for bad loans, even as it saw a loss in
treasury revenue and a rise in operating expenses. Net
profit for the quarter stood at Rs 1,452 crore, up from
Rs 1,006 crore in the year earlier. Provisions during the
period declined 61% to Rs 384 crore from Rs 990 crore.

7)Strong growth in advances, coupled with a robust jump in
net interest income, buoyed Bank of Baroda's net profit
in the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2011. Net profit
for the quarter increased 43 per cent to Rs 1,294 crore,
against Rs 906 crore in the corresponding quarter last
year.


INSURANCE


8)Insurance sector regulator IRDA has decided to appoint research
organisations to analyse the pattern of claims to help the re-
gulator put a lid on the insurance fraud in the healthcare sec-
tor.

9)Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance group is in talks to
buy out Bharti in the life insurance firm Bharti Axa Life.
Reliance, which has spelt out its aspirations to build a
financial services empire, is understood to be in advanced
stage of negotiations with the Mittals-led Bharti which has
been looking for an exit for the past one year.


MARKETS


10)Indian shares dropped for the fourth day, shedding 0.8% in
a choppy session on Thursday as monthly derivatives contracts
expired and high inflation strengthened expectations of a tight
monetary stance by the central bank. Reliance Industries ex-
tended losses a day after an oil ministry source said the
energy giant could face a penalty for falling short of the
targeted gas production at its D6 block off the east coast.
The stock, which weighs the most on key indexes, slipped
1.4%, taking losses for the year to date to 8.2%. The 30-
share BSE index fell 0.81%, or 156.67 points, to 19,292.02
points, with 25 components closing in the red. It had
started higher.


MUTUAL FUNDS


11)The popularity of exchange-traded funds, or ETFs, worldwide
in the past two years is now rubbing off an Indian investors,
too. In the year ending March 31, 2011, when assets under
management (or AUM) of most product categories of local
mutual funds either shrank or remained unchanged, money man-
aged and investor folios under ETFs, including gold-backed
schemes, more than doubled.

12)Having run out of new equity themes, mutual fund (MF)
houses are trying to jump on to the commodity wagon. Fund
houses are either latching on to gold, the only commodity
they are permitted to launch funds on, or launching funds
underlaid by global commodity stocks.


CORPORATE SCORE


13)BANGALORE-HEADQUARTERED biopharmaceutical company,
Biocon Ltd has registered a 25 per cent rise in its net profit
to Rs 101 crore in the fourth quarter of financial year 2010-
11 as compared with Rs 81 crore in the corresponding period
last year.

COMMODITIES


14)Gold advanced to a record after the US Federal Reserve
pledged to keep interest rates near zero to bolster the re-
covery, weakening the dollar and boosting demand for precious
metals as an alternative investment. Immediate-delivery gold
gained as much as 0.4 per cent to $1,534.05 an ounce, and
traded at $1,532.53 at 10:05 a.m. in London.

15)Food inflation went up to 8.76% for the week ended April 16,
raising fears of another hike in the key policy rates by the
Reserve Bank in its annual policy to be announced next week.

16)Despite soaring gold prices, jewellers are gearing up to meet
the demand from consumers on Akshaya Tritiya, which falls on
May 6. Though prices of 22 carat gold used in making jewellery
have gone up by 30% year on year, jewellers, in expectation of
good sales, have introduced new offers and schemes to attract
consumers. Some are offering advance booking to neutralise
the impact of rising prices. Gold coin sales, which have
picked up in the recent months, also earn good revenue for
jewellers.

17)GOLD set a new record at Rs 22,470 per 10 gms today on
brisk buying by stockists and jewellers for the upcoming
'Akshaya Tritiya' and marriage season, driven by a record
rally in global markets. Silver also surged Rs 3,400 to
Rs 72,000 a kg. The white metal had hit a record level
of Rs 74,300 on April 25.

REAL ESTATE


18)Mumbai home sales dropped to a two-year low in the first
quarter as record prices and interest rates at the highest
since 2008 crimped demand, increasing the number of unsold
units to a record, according to Liases Foras Real Estate
Rating & Research.


COMMUNICATIONS


19)Telecom tariffs may fall again as sector regulator Trai begins
the review of interconnect charges, or the amount one mobile
operator pays another for using the latter's network to orig-
inate, terminate or transit a call. These charges constitute
about 75% of the total call cost.


INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY


20)Polaris Software Lab Ltd has reported a 26 per cent increase
in net profit to Rs 58 crore for the fourth quarter ended
March 31,2011 as against Rs 46 crore for the corresponding
quarter, last year. Revenue increased by 25 per cent to
Rs 438 crore (Rs 351 crore).

21)Hexaware Technologies has reported an almost five-fold in-
crease in net profit for the first quarter ended March 31,
2010 as it increased billing rates for services rendered
and gained from currency volatility. Net profit for the mid-
size IT services company stood at Rs 53.8 crore against
Rs 11.6 crore in the same quarter a year ago.


INTERNATIONAL


22)The Bank of Japan (BoJ) kept monetary policy unchanged on
Thursday even as it lowered growth forecasts and estimated
the economy tipped into recession early this year, disappoint-
ing analysts who felt the grim readings after last month's
earthquake called for more policy easing.

23)TOP Asian car makers Honda Motor and Hyundai Motor painted
vastly different portraits on Thursday, with Hyundai turning in
a stellar quarterly performance while Honda struggled to over-
come supply woes after Japan's earthquake.