Corporate Announcement

Government plans to strip the Reserve Bank of India of its powers to regulate government bonds, but leave the central bank in charge of other money market instruments, three government sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Indigo is preparing to launch an initial public offer (IPO) of at least $400 million in first quarter (April-June) of the next financial year (2015-16). According to sources, the airline is expected to net a record profit of up to Rs 22.2 bn this fiscal (2014-15), mainly due to low oil prices.

Banks owed nearly $6 billion by Bhushan Steel Ltd could extend the maturity of the Indian steelmaker's debt under a central bank scheme that would spare the lenders from booking hefty provisions, bankers said.

Wockhardt notified that there were no findings by US FDA with respect to data security and control measures in laboratory and manufacturing at its Chikalthana facility in Aurangabad. However, the US drug regulator is yet to notify its final decision to concerned stakeholders, and the process may typically stretch between three to six months.

The government has firmed up a list of PSUs to be divested next fiscal, starting with BHEL in April, in a bid to meet the Rs 410 bn stake sale target for 2015-16. At the current market price, sale of over 12.23 crore shares in BHEL would fetch around Rs 32 bn to the exchequer.

Crompton Greaves is close to selling 35% stake in its consumer durables business to private equity firm Advent for $300 million. The transaction with Advent has valued the consumer business at Rs 80 a share though an official announcement from Crompton is still pending.

The battle for the control of Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers (MCF) seems reaching a climax, with rival bidder Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Corporation willing to sell its stake in MCF. The open offer from Zuari group has got an approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). The Competition Commission of India (CCI)'s nod is pending.

Anil Ambani is ready to make his debut in the defence sector with a subsidiary of Reliance Infrastructure set to bid for two major military chopper contracts worth over $3 billion. Sources said that Reliance Infrastructure has tied up with a European manufacturer through one of its subsidiaries and has responded to a request for information (RFI) by the Indian Navy.

Sources with direct knowledge share that private equity firm, TPG Capital has put its 20% stake in Shriram City Union Finance on the block. TPG is in talks with several private equity players like KKR, Apax, GAAP, Warburg Pincus, to name a few, sources shared.

SAIL has undertaken modernization and expansion at five of its steel plants to augment its crude steel production capacity to 21.4 MTPA. The indicative investment for the current phase of expansion is estimated at Rs 619 bn.

Usha Martin has received shareholder approval to issue 34.28 mn warrants (at a maximum price of Rs35 a warrant) to its promoters on preferential basis. Shareholders have also approved Rs 4bn non-convertible debentures issue on private placement.

The government is likely to give nine coal mines to state-run Coal India Ltd (CIL) in case the ongoing scrutiny establishes that there was cartelisation in the recent auction for these blocks.

PVR ties up with Vatika Group for 26 Cinema screens in Gurgaon, Jaipur & Ambala estimated investment Rs.300 Cr.

Mahindra World City, an integrated city set up jointly by the Mahindra Group and the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (Tidco) near Chennai, expects to attract Rs 500-600 Cr investment in the next two years.

 

Symphony Ltd on got a stay order from the High Court of Gujarat against Wim Plast Ltd which is launching ‘Cello’ brand air cooler models in India, said to be similar to the registered designs of Symphony’s models. 

ICICI Bank exits Russia, sells subsidiary IBEL on Mar 17.

 

IDBI Bank Sold 10.72% Stake In CARE in open market since December 23, 2014 for Rs.446.3 Cr

 

Axis Bank cuts deposit rates by 25 bps. 

US Federal Reserve moved a step closer to a much anticipated first rate hike since 2006 by removing "patient" from its language.

As part of a supplementary 2015 budget, the Germany government will give local communities some EUR 3.5bn from a new fund of "special assets" along with an added EUR 1.5bn in 2017.

Japan exports rose 2.4%YoY in February. Exports to China, Japan's largest trading partner, tumbled 17.3%YoY. 

Ratan Tata sees bright future for JLR; JLR posted a record full-year retail sales of 462,678 units in 2014, which was double that of 2008 figure.

Jindal Power wants govt to honour coal auction outcome; Kept waiting by the government on the allocation of two coal blocks won by Jindal Power.

Mphasis launches 'Next Labs' for innovation around emerging technologies.

Tata funded a £150-million automotive research centre to come up in UK targeting pioneering automotive research, in central England.

Department of Telecom (DoT) issued a notice to Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilisers and Chemicals demanding INR 27.5bn in licence fee, interest and penalty for its VSAT and ISP licences.