Reliance Industries has proposed a four-berth Rs 13,000-crore greenfield port combined with a 2,000mw LNG-based power plant in Hazira. The port facility alone will cost Rs 5,829.6 crore. RIL, in consortium with Elf Acquitaine Gaz and Tractebel, is one of the three bidders shortlisted for a mega port project based in south Gujarat.

Star chief allays retrenchment fears:

Star India chief executive officer Rathikant Basu on Wednesday assured the Star TV staff that there would be no retrenchment in case consolidation talks between Zee and Star materialise. Basu said that talks were being held between owners of the two channels towards a consolidated strategy for the entire network.

Jet Airways ED stabbed:

Jet Airways executive director Saroj Dutta was on Wednesday stabbed by three unknown assailants at his residence. Dutta was repeatedly assaulted with sharp weapons by the assailants, who ransacked his home and left. A police officialattributed the assault to robbery.

Corporate Monitor

Investment plans may impact Colgate profits:

An increase in marketing investments made by Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd will have an impact on near-term profits, company chairman S Peter Dam said at the company's annual general meeting on Wednesday. He told shareholders that the performance for 1998-99 should therefore be viewed in the context of the investment plans.

Birla Corp takes up recast plan:

Birla Corp Ltd has undertaken a major exercise aimed at restructuring its businesses to maximise value and concentrate on its core strengths, chairman KC Mittal said on Wednesday at the company's annual general meeting. He said consultants have already done a preliminary study of the existing operations.

Goetze to float overseas arm:

Goetze (India) Ltd, part of the Escorts group, is floating an overseas corporate firm to handle the company's exports as well as trading in non-company products to take advantage of theglobal opportunities. The company also proposes to buy back shares in one or more tranches.

Fag Precision to double production:

Fag Precision Bearings has recorded a 2.35 per cent increase in turnover in the first five months of the current fiscal and is anticipating an export turnover of Rs 45 crore as against Rs 12 crore in the previous fiscal. The company expects to double production capacity and has invested Rs 15 crore for the same.

SAIL seeks partners for alloy steels plant:

SAIL is scouting about for joint venture partners for some units of the Durgapur-based Alloy Steels Plant. According to sources, SAIL is exploring the possibility of private sector participation to help it make an investment of Rs 60 crore for ASP in the form of additional facilities.

Market Pulse

OTCEI to add 500 scrips:

OTCEI has identified 500 scrips which will be put on the permitted segment of the exchange. These include the 364 existing blue chips listed on the NSE. OTCEI managingdirector Joseph Bosco said the exchange had identified 257 additional NSE scrips and 100 B1 and B2 group stocks listed on the BSE.

UTI picks up 2% of SBI:

UTI's holdings in SBI have increased between March 31, 1998 and the book closure in August from 4.27 per cent to 6.26 per cent. This means that during this period, UTI mopped up over 1 crore shares of SBI. Analysts point out that UTI will be make huge gains as and when market sentiment picks up as foreign funds are big buyers of SBI.

Paper, auto ancillary stocks spurt:

Even as punters unwinded long positions on Wednesday with the Sensex dipping by 23.52 points to close at 3,138.66, there was a sudden wave of buying in auto ancillary and paper stocks. Institutional interest saw stocks like Lumax, Laxmi Auto, Nippon Denro, Motherson Sumi, Sona Steering, Paper Products, ITC Bhadrachalam and TNPL locked at the upper end of the price bands on the NSE.

Banking & Finance

Two-year gilts auction on Sept 28:

The ReserveBank has announced the auction of a two-year government paper on September 28. The Rs 3,000-crore issue is intended to mop up the rupee funds that banks will receive through the Resurgent India Bond proceeds. Dealers said the new paper might see a coupon of 11 per cent to 11.40 per cent at the auction. With this the government will borrow about Rs 60,000 crore out of a gross budgeted programme of Rs 79,000 crore.

Rating for privately placed debt likely:

Rating may be mandatory for privately-placed debt may become mandatory

The Department of Company Affairs is expected to make credit rating of privately placed debt mandatory. According to rating industry sources, the DCA will pass an order to this effect in the next few months.

RBI to limit forex liability in hedging:

The RBI has decided that it will not allow Indian corporates to take unlimited forex liability for hedging their commodities in the international market. A high-level RBI committee is currently framing guidelines for thesame, which will be issued shortly.

Economy & Infrastructure

Five-year tax exemption for R&D:

The private sector companies investing in scientific research and development-oriented work will be granted tax exemption for five years. According to a Department of Scientific and Industrial Research announcement on Wednesday, the facility is being extended by the government to give a fillip to all-round R&D activities.

Politics & Policy

Rs 11,600cr plan outlay for state:

The Planning Commission on Wednesday approved an outlay of Rs 11,600 crore as Maharashtra's annual plan for 1998-99 as against an outlay of Rs 8,393 crore in 1997-98. Maharashtra's plan outlay is the largest among all states.

France recognises India as N-power:

France recognised India as a nuclear power because of its progress in the nuclear field but wants it to sign the comprehensive test ban treaty, president of French national assembly and former prime minister Laurent Fabius said in New Delhion Wednesday. Leading a six-member delegation of French MPs Fabius said. "Imposition of sanctions was not an appropriate response. We are trying to discuss with the Indian government the ways for nuclear disarmament."

A correction:

Apropos the report in The Financial Express dated September 15, stating that SB Mookerjee has been appointed the additional solicitor general of India, it was mentioned incorrectly that Mookerjee is a partner in the solicitor firm of Mukherjee & Biswas. He has clarified that he is in no way connected with the firm Mukherjee & Biswas, except that he is briefed in numerous cases by the firm like other solicitor firms.