Finance & Market

The truckers' strike, which entered the second day, can push inflation by 50 basis points on account of shortage of perishable goods and panic buying by traders, said economic think tank National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER).

Indian FY09 exports could fall short of the government's target of about $200 billion by over a tenth as the global downturn eases demand for domestic products overseas, the chief of an exporters' lobby group said on Tuesday.

Sanyo Electric Corp. is considering cutting up to 1,000 domestic workers in the next few months, as it scales back unprofitable businesses ahead of an expected buyout by Panasonic Corp., a press report said Tuesday.

After a negative start, the market rallied into the positive territory only to tumble again after an hour as lack of triggers kept the bulls away at the sidelines. However, after moving in a somewhat listless manner till a little before noon, the market moved up sharply into the positive zone once again and held on to its gains for around a couple of hours before it faltered on heavy selling across sectors.

Oil held near $49 a barrel on Tuesday as Israel's deepening incursion into Gaza and a dispute between Russia and Ukraine over natural gas heightened concern about supply disruptions.

The Sensex, which had plunged sharply into the red a little past mid afternoon, has bounced back smartly into the positive territory now thanks to heavy buying in some blue chip stocks.

British retailer Marks & Spencer is set to cut more than 1,000 jobs in stores, its head office and support functions following disastrous Christmas trading, The Times web-site reported on Monday.

The fiscal and monetary measures announced by India last week will enable power companies easier access to funds at lower rates, helping bidders of viable mega-power projects, industry officials said.

The government will focus on utilisation of refinance facility extended to IIFCL to provide Rs 75,000 crore for the infrastructure sector projects with a view to arrest economic slowdown, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman, Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on Monday.

The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday admitted a petition filed by Pepsico India Holding today challenging the Kerala High Court judgment that denied sales tax exemption to the soft drinks major.

The Government on Monday contemplated taking tough action, which includes invoking the National Security Act (NSA), against an 'adamant' union of oil PSU executives, which pressed for an indefinite strike on Wednesday and refused a dialogue on demand for higher wages.

An Indian investor has offered to buy the entire equity of Egyptian medical equipment firm Alexandria Medical Services for 100.8 million Egyptian pounds ($18.3 million), the stock exchange said on Monday.