The centre has moved towards meeting its target of raising Rs 5,000 crore through disinvestment in PSUs in 1998-99, with the PMO clearing the divestment proposals of VSNL, IOC, Gail and Container Corporation of India. The proposals will now be taken up by core group of secretaries to finalise modalities like the pricing mechanism of GDRs and sale of shares in the domestic market.

NCAER sees GDP at 5.5 per cent:

The National Council for Applied Economic Research has predicted a GDP growth rate of 5.5 per cent and inflation rate of 8.2 per cent for the current fiscal. The post-budget forecast based on the council's macro-economic model for India, suggests a nominal GDP growth of around 14 per cent and M3 growth of about 16 per cent. A comparison of the post-budget forecast with that of the comprehensive package forecast made prior to the budget reveals a decline of almost a full percent in the projected GDP growth for 1998-99.

RBI hikes coupon on14-day, 91-day T-bills:

The Reserve Bank on Friday signalled higher interest rates by raising the coupon on the 14-day and 91-day treasury bills by 52 basis points and 42 basis points respectively. But despite the raise in interest rates, a substantial portion of the auctions devolved on the central bank as well as primary dealers. The hike in the short-term instruments is being seen as a precursor to a raise in the cut-off yield of the 364-day treasury bill.

Maruti strike called off:

The Maruti Udyog employees' union on Friday called off its proposed one-day strike, which was slated for Saturday, following assurances from industry minister Sikander Bakht, general secretary Mathew Abraham said. Abraham said Bakht has assured a `package' for the union. The union had threatened to go on strike protesting the MoU signed between the centre and Suzuki Motor Corporation in June to resolve disputes.

Exide Products to be merged with Exide Industries:

Rajan Raheja has decided to mergestorage-battery company Exide Products with the automotive batteries flagship Exide Industries. The decision comes after a series of difficult years for the storage-battery industry, which has been plagued by excise duties and slow growth in the power and other infrastructure sectors.

DPC seeks $300m term-loan from IDBI:

Dabhol Power Company on Friday made a presentation before IDBI's top brass for its 1,444mw phase-II expansion and sought a $300-million rupee term-loan, up sharply from the $96 million availed by it in setting up phase-I. The company said it wanted to achieve financial closure by December 31. The project cost incurred on phase-I was $1.079 billion, while for phase-II, it is estimated at $1.8 billion. Bankers say following sanctions, the company is looking to reduce its reliance on foreign-currency loans.

MSEB may give escrow facility for Bhadravati plan:

The Maharashtra State Electricity Board may provide escrow facility to the 1,082mw coal-based Bhadravati power projectbeing promoted by Ispat Industries, as the counter-guarantee offered by the centre to fast-track power projects does not cover risk on rupee debt and payment by the electricity board for buying power. The facility will cover the debt portion and the monthly tariff payable by MSEB to the power company.

Air-India board gives nod to issue bonds:

The Air-India board on Friday gave its approval to raise substantial amounts, including about Rs 100 crore through private placement of bonds, via financial instruments in the international market. These measures are necessary to meet the national carrier's aircraft loan-repayment commitments and other financial obligations.

ATR-HAL bid tipped to bag IA deal:

A joint bid by the French-Italian conglomerate ATR and Bangalore-based Hindustan Aeronautics is likely to bag Indian Airlines' $90-million 50-seater aircraft contract, people in the know of the matter say. Apart from the bid being the lowest, the factor which may find favour with the airlineis that a domestic company would be involved in the aircraft's production.

ITC braces for Y2K problem:

Tobacco major ITC is working on a contingency plan to ensure critical data is preserved and business unaffected by the millennium bug. The company is relying on the universally-accepted model of awareness, assessment, renovation, validation and implementation to tackle the problem.

CBDT clarifies on capital-gains tax:

The Central Board of Direct Taxes has clarified doubts among investors on the computation of capital-gains tax with respect to dematerialised shares where the first-in-first-out calculation method is adopted. Finance-ministry sources say a key clarification is that the method will be applied account-wise.

Bourses' heads to approach Sebi over registration issue:

Stock-exchange heads will approach markets regulator Sebi for an out-of-court settlement on the issue of registration fees without, however, prejudice to the pending court cases. They felt the feesshould be linked to brokerage and not to turnover.

HDFC first-quarter net up 19%:

HDFC said on Friday that its net profit has risen 19.39 per cent to Rs 65.55 crore in the current fiscal's first quarter, compared with Rs 54.90 crore posted in the same period the previous year. Higher growth in loan approvals and disbursals has powered the profit growth.

NatWest not to sell 20% stake in HDFC Bank:

The UK-based NatWest Group said on Friday that it will not sell its 20 per cent stake in HDFC Bank in the immediate future. The statement follows proposals made by international financial institutions and investor groups to NatWest after it announced reduction in its Asia activities. NatWest was reported to have expressed its desire to sell its stake in HDFC Bank following the group's decision to move out of its Asian operations.

Committee finds brokers-banks nexus in securities scam:

The committee set up by the Reserve Bank to probe the multi-crore securities scam has found a closenexus between brokers and certain banks. This enabled brokers to have an access to funds and undertake transactions to their benefit, the minister of state for finance MR Janarthanan informed the Lok Sabha on Friday.

`India will not sign CTBT':

Prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Friday said the country will not budge from its position on the nuclear issue, ruled out New Delhi signing the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty under the nuclear powers' dictates.Panel cautions centre against borrowings:

A parliamentary panel report has warned the centre that its failure to contain the fiscal deficit will lead to a hardening of interest rates. The report said a high deficit will make the centre pre-empt available scarce capital.