Bid to hike CNG price may raise transport cost

NEW DELHI: Public transport running on CNG (compressed natural gas) in cities such as Delhi and Mumbai as well as power is set to get costlier if
the government approves an oil ministry proposal to raise the price of gas under government control by as much as 33%.

Since gas under government control fuels most gas-fired power generation and CNG services, their costs will rise proportionately. Present norms allow power producers to pass on the fuel cost to consumers. The hike in city transport, however, could be moderated by the service providers such as IGL in Delhi and MGL in Mumbai who could absorb part of the increase.

Official sources said the proposal, being prepared for consideration of the cabinet, envisages raising the price of controlled gas from Rs 3,200 per thousand cubic metres ($1.8 per unit) to Rs 4,250 per thousand cubic metres ($2.4 per mBtu) in the first round. Subsequently, it is to be raised to Rs 7,500 per thousand cubic metres ($4.2 per unit) by 2013 in stages.

Government controls the price of gas from fields given to state-run explorers without bidding. Gas from joint venture fields and the quantity bought and marketed by GAIL is market-driven and costs between $4.3 and $5.65 per unit. Next is imported LNG and finally gas from Andhra offshore field of Reliance Industries Ltd.

A ministerial panel had set $4.2 per unit as the price for RIL gas and the Planning Commission wants this to be the benchmark for pricing gas from all domestic sources. The increase in the price of controlled gas is also in line with a 2005 Tariffs Commission recommendation. Prices were last revised in 2005.

State explorers ONGC and Oil India will be the main beneficiaries. ONGC alone could mop up an additional Rs 2,000 crore per year. Producer price for ONGC is proposed at Rs 3,870 per thousand cubic metres from Rs 3,200. The consumer price would be 10% higher. The government too will garner Rs 750 crore more by way of taxes and royalty in the current year. This would rise to Rs 4,500 crore in 2013 when prices are brought at par with RIL's price.

Sources said consumer price for power and fertilizer units outside north-east would be fixed at 10% above the producer price, while for the plants in that region it would be 60% of the price. Consumer price for transport and small consumers outside north-east may be fixed at 20% above the price for power and fertilizer sectors.

Sensex closes 70 points down

MUMBAI: In lacklustre trading, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex on Monday fell by over 70 points with investors adopting a cautious
approach ahead of the RBI monetary policy on Tuesday.

Market leader Reliance Industries fell over 1 per cent to extend losses for the second day.

After moving in a narrow range, the 30-share index dropped 70.31 points to close at 16,740.50.

The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty also lost 26.15 points to end the day at 4,970.90.

Trading volume declined as investors refrained from enlarging their positions ahead of the Reserve Bank's quarterly monetary policy tomorrow. Fears that the apex bank may signal interest rate hike had a negative impact on the banking and other interest rate-linked sectors like realty.

Blue-chip Reliance Industries fell 1.56 per cent to close at Rs 2,015.45.

On Friday, RIL nosedived by 4 per cent after its partner Hardy Oil said it would stop exploring a well for gas in the D9 block off India's east coast.

In the 30-BSE index-linked stocks, 16 closed with losses while 14 ended with gains.
Topics:

* Sensex
* RBI

Tata Motors plans to raise $1.7 billion for Jaguar deal

Tata Motors Ltd, India's top truck and bus maker, said on Wednesday it plans to raise about 72 billion rupees ($1.7 billion) through three simultaneous but unlinked rights issue to help fund its purchase of the Jaguar and Land Rover brands.

The company, also India's No. 3 car maker after Maruti Suzuki and South Korea's Hyundai Motor, said it expected to complete the $2.3 billion acquisition of the two brands from Ford Motor Co shortly.

Tata Motors reported a consolidated net profit of 21.67 billion rupees in the year to March 2008.

Skoda plans small car for India

Czech auto giant Skoda is stepping on the accelerator and plans five new launches in India, including its global small car that will debut next year. These introductions will see Skoda entering into new segments like multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) and the sports utility vehicle (SUV).

Speaking to TOI, Thomas Kuehl, member of the board Skoda Auto India said, “We will launch a compact car in the Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh segment, below our existing small car offering, Fabia. India will be the first global market where the car will be launched.” The new global small car is being built on a completely new platform at the company's headquarters in the Czech Republic.

The automobile growth story has prompted many global car manufacturers to make India their launch pad before entering markets like the US and Europe.

The Zen Estilo, Swift, SX4, and Dzire from the Maruti Suzuki stable and Hyundai's i10 have all had their debut in India. Maruti Suzuki's concept A-Star, that will be rolled out by year-end, will also make India debut. Skoda will first bring in MPV offering Roomster, which will be launched by the year-end. “Next year, we will launch the new Laura, Octavia and mostly likely the Fabia Combi. In 2010, we plan to launch an SUV as well,” said Kuehl.

For Skoda, part of the Volkswagen Group, India will be a key focus market. In the next five years it plans to sell 100,000 units, up from the current figure of 13,000 units.

“We expect India to be among the top three global markets for us in the next five years. Out of the 100,000 units we plan to sell, 60% of the volumes will be driven by the small car market,” said Kuehl.
Going forward, India will also emerge as Skoda's export hub for the Asean region. “We are looking for more land in Aurangabad to expand our production facilities,” is all Kuehl revealed.

On the pricing front, the company is working towards being more competitive by increasing the localisation content. At present Skoda fleet in India has an average localisation content of 15%. The company is looking to achieve 50% localisation in the next 18 months.

IT stocks rise in dull market

Action was muted for equities on Dalal Street on Wednesday afternoon after a sluggish start. Uncertain of what course the market is likely to take, investors were seen churning portfolios and booking profits in stocks that witnessed a good run-up in April.

Rising crude oil prices and dwindling FII fund flows so far this month were chiefly responsible for dampening sentiment on Wednesday, analysts said. Global cues provided little support, they added.

At 1:30 pm, the Sensex was down 134 points or 0.77 per cent at 17,239.42, making a low of 17,239.17. The high was 17,413.81.

BHEL (down 3.34%), Larsen & Toubro (2.91%), DLF (2.69%), Bharti Airtel (2.6%) and Ranbaxy Laboratories (1.88%) lead the decline.

Tata Consultancy Services (up 3.01%), Tata Steel (2%), Infosys Technologies (1.3%), ITC (2.6%) and Wipro (0.49%) were the major gainers.

The Nifty was down 37 points or 0.72 per cent at 5107.45. The index touched a low of 5101.25 and high of 5159.05.

Courtesy: www.economictimes.com

Yahoo needs to convince investors

Yahoo Inc chief executive Jerry Yang is convinced that the company he started in a Silicon Valley trailer 14 years ago is worth more than the $47.5 billion that Microsoft Corp had offered for the Internet pioneer.

Now he may only have a few months to convince Wall Street that his rebuff of Microsoft's takeover bid was a smart move and if he can't, analysts won't be surprised if Yang is either replaced as CEO or forced to consider accepting a lower offer if Microsoft comes knocking at his door again. "This squarely puts the pressure on Jerry Yang to deliver results and shareholder value," Standard & Poor's equity analyst Scott Kessler said. "You are going to see a lot of shareholders just throwing in the towel because they are going to realize it's going to take awhile for the stock to get back to where it was on Friday."

Kessler and other analysts believe Yahoo's stock price will surrender most, if not all, of its 50% gain since Microsoft made its initial offer on January 31. The anticipated sell-off would leave Yahoo's market value hovering around $30 billion. In Frankfurt, Germany, three hours before trading opened in New York, Yahoo shares fell 18.6% to 14.74 euros ($22.79).

Most analysts believe Microsoft's stock price will rise. The shares had declined 10% to $29.24 since the bid, reflecting concerns that the proposed marriage would turn into a complicated mess that would enable Google to grow even stronger. Yahoo shares finished last week at $28.67, slightly less than the $29.40 per share that Microsoft was offering before CEO Steve Ballmer agreed to raise the offer to $33 per share in a last-ditch effort to get a deal done.

Intel and AMD’s different classes of business

Intel is taking the high road and its rival Advanced Micro Devices the low one in search of market share in different business segments, according to announcements on Monday.

Intel unveiled a partnership with the Cray supercomputing company. In an industry first, their engineers will work together on creating a new supercomputer for release around 2012.

They aim to reduce dramatically processing times for intensive applications such as medical imaging, cell modelling in genome research and hurricane forecasting. The high-performance computing market was worth $11.5bn last year, according to the IDC research firm.

Kirk Skaugen (pictured left), head of Intel’s Server Platforms group, and Peter Ungaro (right), Cray chief executive, told me that synergies between the two companies’ research teams would help them solve problems where components interconnected. This was key to keeping processors fed with data and operating at maximum performance.

They would also work on how to take advantage of what is expected to be a grouping of as many as 1m processing cores in a single supercomputing system.

The two companies say they will work with academic institutions and government bodies to test their products.

Meanwhile, AMD introduced its AMD Business Class, aimed at small and medium-sized businesses. This is a new platform of chips designed to help PC makers target this segment with products. Both dual, triple and quad-core processors are featured combined with AMD and non-AMD graphics and chipsets.

Acer, Dell, Fujitsu Siemens and Lenovo all announced their support for the initiative.

TCS plans Abu Dhabi, Egypt, Oman centres

India’s largest software exporter Tata Consultancy Services will open centres in Egypt, Abu Dhabi and Oman as part of its drive to focus more on Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

At present, TCS centres are based in Dubai, Riyadh, North Africa, Morocco and Bahrain.

"The MENA region has been active in the last couple of years as the infrastructure, energy, utility and alternative sources of energy are showing strong growth and there are robust opportunities for further growth," TCS CEO and managing director S Ramadorai was quoted as saying.

The value of MENA's computer-services market is estimated at USD 50 million and the region contributes three-five per cent to the group's growth while India's share is 11 per cent.

Latin America, India and MENA countries together contribute USD 940 million to the group.

He said India's software industry is currently worth more than USD 30 billion and is expected to grow to USD 60 - 80 billion by 2010.

On the impact of rupee's appreciation against the dollar, he said it has eroded earnings of the company as most of its sales are generated overseas.

TCS gets almost 91 per cent of its sales from overseas, including 50 per cent from the US. The Indian rupee has gained around 11 per cent in the last financial year.

ICICI Bank Q4 net up 39 per cent

ICICI Bank, India's second-largest bank, on Saturday reported a 39 per cent rise in quarterly net profit, helped by a strong demand for loans.

The country's leading private-sector bank, which is also listed in New York said net profit in January-March, its fiscal fourth quarter, was 11.5 billion rupees ($287 million), up from 8.25 billion rupees a year ago.

The bank said its total income in the March quarter rose to 103.91 billion rupees from 84.95 billion rupees a year ago. Shares in ICICI Bank, which had fallen 38 per cent in the March quarter, rose 4.5 per cent on Friday to 916.15 rupees on expectations of the results topping forecasts.

Chip design mkt to touch $11 bn by '10

The Indian semiconductor design services market is forecast to grow by an annual 21.7 per cent to $11 billion by 2010, a joint study by the India Semiconductor Association (ISA) and IT research firm IDC says.

The market was valued at $6 billion in 2007. The embedded systems segment is expected to record the highest growth, followed by very large scale integration (VLSI) of transistor-based circuits into a chip, and hardware design. At $4.9 billion, revenue from embedded software accounted for around 81 per cent of the total value of semiconductor design services in 2007.

The workforce employed by the semiconductor design services industry is seen growing to 2.19 lakh in 2010 from 1.3 lakh in 2007.

ISA chairman S Janakiraman attributed the growth momentum to the increasing maturity of Indian companies, the availability in the country of advanced semiconductor tools and technologies as well as the higher confidence with regard to issues relating to intellectual property rights.

Growth rates for the sector in India are more than thrice the global average of 6 per cent. Indian companies have been increasing their expertise and capabilities in end-to-end design there is also the emergence of outsourced third-party design services companies, the report said.

The industry will see closer proximity between third-party service providers and original equipment manufacturers for end-to-end design, it added. The growth of opportunities in the domestic semiconductor market could see some localisation of product design and manufacturing, Janakiraman observed.

BMW 'Mini' not coming to India in '09

For those of you who have been waiting to lay hands on BMW’s iconic premium small car ‘Mini’, there is bad news.

The German auto major, which had announced plans to roll out the car in India in 2009, has postponed the launch, saying the market "does not appear to be viable".

"We will not be launching the Mini in India in 2009," BMW India president Peter Kronschnabl said.

The company has just finished a feasibility study that pointed out that conditions were not conducive to bring the model to India soon.

"We have taken the decision about a week back," Kronschnabl said, though adding that the decision does not mean an end to Mini’s India launch.

"We have not abandoned the plans altogether. But yes, we have certainly postponed as conditions do not appear to be viable at the moment," he said.

The high-performance Mini is an iconic brand globally and despite its small size, it carries a price tag comparable to premium cars. Originally a British car brand, it was bought over by BMW.

Though BMW has been a runaway success in the Indian market, especially after it started local assembly of 3 series and 5 series sedans at Chennai last year, the possibility of developing a great market for a ‘premium small car’ would have prompted it to delay the launch.

The company had already said it had no plans to assemble the Mini in India but rather get it in through the completely-built unit (CBU) import route, which would have meant a hefty price tag of around Rs 20 lakh.

Analysts feel that not many Indians are ready to attach status with a car that is of a small size, even though it comes at a price higher than that of a premium sedan.

"It is the mindset. However, it should be added that if launched, there would be a niche market for the car in India and some people would be willing to pay for the brand that offers luxury and features of any sedan along with an iconic status," an analyst with an auto research firm said.

Without elaborating much, Kronschnabl said the decision was not prompted by the current negative sentiments in the market due to the economic slowdown and high interest rates on retail purchasing.

"We feel that high net-worth individuals are not affected by this slowdown and the overall market for luxury cars would grow," he said.

The Mini’s absence would mean good news for BMW’s fellow German carmaker Volkswagen, which plans to launch its ‘Beetle’ model in India this year.

The Beetle, another small car that also enjoys iconic status no less than the BMW Mini, is likely to be introduced in India by VW later this year though the CBU import route and could sport a price tag between Rs 15 lakh and Rs 20 lakh.

BMW had always appeared to be hesitant in launching the Mini in India. Earlier this year, the company had said that if launched, the car may not see a national debut but would be sold only in Delhi and Mumbai.

Crude hits record $117 per barrel on supply worries

Crude oil futures surged to a new trading record of $117 a barrel on Friday following an attack on a key pipeline in Nigeria.

The rally capped a week of record highs on supply woes and the dollar's weakness relative to other major currencies. Gasoline futures also reached new record highs.

Light, sweet crude for May delivery spiked to a new trading record of $117 in after-hours electronic trading Friday after settling at $116.69 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, up $1.83 over Thursday's settlement. It was the fifth day in a row crude prices set new records.

The run-up came after the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta - the main militant group in Nigeria's restive south - said it had sabotaged a major oil pipeline operated by a Royal Dutch Shell PLC joint venture. The group promised further attacks on the petroleum industry in Africa's largest producer of crude oil.

A spokeswoman for Shell confirmed that the pipeline was leaking, and said the damage appeared to have been caused by explosives.

The contract had fallen to close to $113 per barrel in overnight electronic trading as the dollar strengthened against the euro and other currencies, encouraging some traders to lock in profits from crude recent record run.

In London, Brent crude futures rose $1.49 to settle at $113.92 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.

A host of supply and demand concerns in the US and abroad, along with the dollar's weakness, have served to support prices, even as record retail gasoline prices in the U.S. appear to be dampening demand. Crude prices have risen as much as 4 per cent this week.

“Any kind of geopolitical tension is going to pump up the market,'' Mark Waggoner, president of Excel Futures in Huntington Beach, California, told Dow Jones Newswires.

Attacks since early 2006 on Nigerian oil infrastructure by the group have cut nearly one-quarter of the country's normal petroleum output, boosting oil prices. Nigeria is a major supplier of oil to the US.

Earlier in the trading session Friday, oil's gains on Friday were limited by the dollar, which strengthened against the euro.

A stronger dollar makes commodities such as oil less attractive to investors as a hedge against inflation, and it makes oil more expensive to investors overseas. Analysts believe the weaker dollar is the primary reason oil has soared well past $100 a barrel this year. But the effect tends to reverse when the greenback gains ground.

Analysts expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates several more times this year - moves that tend to further weaken the dollar - and reason that those cuts will help propel oil to new records.

Surging crude prices have also boosted retail gasoline prices in the U.S. ahead of the Northern Hemisphere's summer driving season when prices - and demand - typically increase.

The national average price of regular gas rose 2.7 cents overnight to a record $3.445 a gallon, according to a survey of stations by AAA and the Oil Price Information Service.

May gasoline futures rose 3.15 cents to settle at a record $2.9893 a gallon after earlier rising to a new trading record of $2.9934 a gallon.

Diesel prices are also at record levels, and the spike in fuel costs in hurting U.S. consumers already feeling the effects of a slowing economy, a sluggish job market and falling home values.

``I would say that energy prices are having the most profound effect on the economy in recent memory,'' said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading Corp., in Chicago, in a research note.

In other Nymex trading Friday, May heating oil futures rose 2.49 cents to settle at $3.2923 a gallon. May natural gas futures rose 20.4 cents to settle at $10.587 per 1,000 cubic feet.

European stocks jump after Wall Street surge

European stocks rallied to a high close on Friday as Wall Street surged in response to key earnings reports from leading US companies which lessened fears about the economic slowdown, traders said.

London's FTSE 100 index of leading shares gained 1.27 per cent to end at 6,056.50 points and Frankfurt's Dax 30 surged by 2.41 per cent in value to 6,843.08 points.

In Paris the CAC 40 jumped by 2.05 percent to finish at 4,961.69. The European single currency stood at 1.5730 dollars, falling on profit-taking after striking a record peak at 1.5984 on Thursday.

US shares roared higher on Friday morning trade as investors cheered earnings reports from Citigroup, Google and other big companies indicating that ongoing financial turmoil may be winding down.

"Several big companies have placated the market's worst fears with respect to earnings," said Patrick O'Hare, an analyst said.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1.50 per cent to 12,810.04 points within five minutes after the market opening and managed to hold onto the gains heading into afternoon trade.

Internet search giant Google set the buoyant tone, reporting after Thursday's market close that profits surged more than 30 percent to 1.31 billion dollars (832 million euros) in the first three months of the year.

Tatas named world's 6th most innovative, RIL at 19th

India's two leading conglomerates, Tatas and Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Group, have made it to the league of the world's 25 most innovative companies, riding on the cheapest commercial car Nano and an aggressive growth path, respectively.

In the list of world's 25 most innovative companies released here on Friday, Tata group is ranked at the sixth position, while Reliance Industries is at 19th spot.

The list, published in the April 28 edition of BusinessWeek magazine that hit the newsstands on Friday, has been compiled by the US financial publication in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group.

Both Tata and RIL have made it for the first time to the annual list which is topped by Apple Computer, the maker of iPod music players and Mac personal computers.

Apple is followed by Internet search giant Google, Japanese auto major Toyota, industrial conglomerate General Electric (GE) and software behemoth Microsoft in the top five.

About Tata group , BusinessWeek said that "Mumbai-based conglomerate jumps onto our list for the first time, fuelled by its paradigm-busting 2,500 dollar 'Nano' car for the masses".

"The car, from its Tata Motors unit, is the world's cheapest, thanks partly to a distribution model that sells the auto in kits to entrepreneurs who assemble them for buyers."

About RIL, it noted that "the Indian petrochemicals giant made it onto our list this year thanks to fans of its aggressive growth.

"But its ambitious plans to reach into grocery retailing, which is dominated in India by small shopkeepers who have rebelled against corporate entrants, have faltered," it added.

Sensex up 235 pts on global cues

The market opened with major gains on Thursday tracking a rally in stocks overseas after corporate earnings in the US beat expectations indicating the worst of the credit crisis may be over.

Back home, technology shares led the advances as investors cheered fourth quarter results released over the past couple of days.

At 10:05 am, the Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex was up 235 points or 1.44 per cent at 16,478.79

Infosys Technologies (up 2.81%), Satyam Computer (2.63%), ICICI Bank (2.58%), HDFC Bank (2.48%) and Reliance Energy (2.24%) were the biggest index gainers.

There were no losers in the 30-share index.

The National Stock Exchange’s Nifty was up 54 points or 1.1 per cent at 4941.15.

"As expected, the better-than-expected guidance from Intel helped improve global sentiment, which was further bolstered by numbers from JP Morgan. To improve matters further, IBM posted better-than-expected numbers after market hours,” said Anagram Stock Broking in a note.

"Though our market gave up most of intraday gains Wednesday, it closed in the green, which was important. Nifty futures went into a discount of one point from a premium of 17 points, indicating some shorts. These shorts would scramble for cover in the morning, which could take the Nifty beyond the 4950 mark, where it met with heavy selling Wednesday. A level of 4980-5000 may be on the cards. We need a close above the 5020 mark to establish a higher intermediate top. With the market closed tomorrow for Mahavir Jayanti, there would be good pressure on marketmen to prune weekend positions,” the brokerage added.

Asian stocks rose for a third day, led by financial companies and consumer electronics makers, as better-than-forecast profits at US banks and LG Electronics eased concern that slowing global growth will dent earnings. The Nikkei 225 added 2.19 per cent, the Hang Seng gained 2.04 per cent and the Straits Times was 1.91 per cent higher.

US stocks rallied on Wednesday as upbeat results from technology bellwether Intel and financial giant JP Morgan Chase raised hopes that corporate profits can weather an economic downturn. Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 2.08 per cent, the Standards & Poor’s 500 Index increased 2.27 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 2.8 per cent.

Rupee gains on inflows

The rupee inched higher on Thursday, supported by capital inflows into the stock market, though dealers said RBI intervention kept a lid on gains.

The partially convertible rupee ended at 39.92/925 per dollar, off an intra-day high of 39.91, but stronger than Wednesday's close of 39.96/97. The currency market will be closed on Friday for a public holiday.

"Today we saw a tight range. Marginal rupee appreciation on the back of good equity market performance but we still continue to see central bank intervention in the lower 39.90s," said the head of trading with a foreign bank.

India's main share index ended 1.46 per cent higher to its strongest close since early March.

In the past week the rupee has moved in a range of 39.89-40.01, and the Reserve Bank of India has repeatedly stepped in to stem the currency's rise.

Annual inflation dipped to 7.14 per cent in early April, compared with a more than three year high of 7.41 per cent in late March, data released on Thursday showed.

But traders said the data had little effect on the currency market, although some still expect the central bank to allow the rupee to appreciate to lower the prices of commodity imports, such as oil.

"I don't think we can read too much into a minor dip in the inflation number this week," the trader said. "It didn't have much of an effect at all."

The trader said that he expects the rupee to trade in a narrow range ahead of the central bank's scheduled policy review on April 29.

"I still am going with a rangebound outlook. The rupee is unlikely to go beyond 39.80," he said.

Equities bank on Yes Bank results; Sensex rises 200 points

After a see-saw trade, equities rallied towards close led by advances in banking stocks Wednesday. Yes Bank’s better-than-expected fourth quarter results acted as a trigger, as it eased concerns banks may take a hit on account of forex derivative losses. Power and capital goods also firmed up in anticipation of good Q4 earnings.

However, analysts feel the market continues to be rangebound with no conclusive trend.

"The market is still directionless. The Nifty is stuck within a range of 4620-4900. The index needs to breakout on either side in order to conclude a specific trend. But what is interesting about today's session is that despite weak overseas markets, Indian equities managed to close higher. This was mainly on account of stock specific movement based on fourth quarter results. Result-based trigger will keep the market buoyant over the next few days," said independent technical analyst, Sachin Chavan.

Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensex ended at 15,790.51, up 202.89 points or 1.3 per cent. It touched an intra-day high of 15,829.59 and low of 15,464.72.

National Stock Exchange's Nifty closed at 4747.05, up 0.79 per cent or 37.4 points. The index touched a high of 4758.25 and low of 4667.50 in day's trade.

Investor interest in second rung stocks drove the BSE Midcap and Smallcap Index 1.39 per cent and 1.62 per cent higher, respectively, outperforming the benchmarks.

Investors fancied banking stocks, sending BSE Bankex up 3 per cent. Yes Bank gained 4.65 per cent after the bank's March quarter net profit doubled to Rs 64.5 crore. The bank also said it had no writedowns due to forex derivative losses as at the end of March.

Biggest contributors to the Sensex rally were HDFC Bank (up 5.5%), HDFC (4.24%), BHEL (3.74%), Tata Steel (3.44%), ICICI Bank (2.86%), Reliance Energy (2.3%) and Larsen & Toubro (2.17%).

Hindustan Unilever (down 1.39%), Maruti Suzuki (1.44%), Bharti Airtel (1.04%), Tata Consultancy Services (0.98%), DLF (0.98%) disappointed.

Market breadth on BSE showed 1,829 advances and 794 declines. On NSE, there were 878 gainers and 355 losers.

Elsewhere in the region, Japan's Nikkei fell 1 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng retreated 1.35 per cent and Singapore's Straits Times declined 1.3 per cent.

Among European markets, FTSE 100was up 0.35 per cent, DAX 30 added 0.13 per cent and CAC 40 rose 0.04 per cent.

Now, airlines levy charge for e-booking

Flying is fast getting more expensive. Within days of all domestic airlines hiking fuel surcharge, some carriers have added yet another surcharge to their ticket costs.

Low-cost carriers SpiceJet and IndiGo have started levying a web transaction (e-booking) charge of Rs 50 on each ticket, taking total levies to Rs 2,225 (for flights about an hour duration, excluding basic fares) and Rs 2,425 for longer domestic flights.

"Our cost of hosting the website by systems in US had gone up. We had been absorbing this but now felt that some part could be passed on. Hence the Rs 50 web transaction charge," said Kamal Hingorani, SpiceJet V-P. IndiGo has also levied the same charge. GoAir has had a 'service' charge of Rs 25 for a while.

IndiGo CEO Bruce Ashby said the airline had a flat transaction surcharge of Rs 100 for both call centre and website bookings for a year, starting from its launch in August 2006 and then suspended it.

"Some companies retained their surcharge for different booking channels, like call centres. Last Friday, we decided to reintroduce Rs 50 surcharge for website and Rs 100 for call centre bookings for each ticket," Ashby said.

Asked if this additional charge — coming on heels of a hike on fuel surcharge from Rs 1,650 to Rs 1,800 and Rs 2,000 (for short and medium sector) — could affect passenger flow, Hingorani said: "Primarily because of expensive jet fuel, the last quarter has been a bloodbath. We are hoping that summer vacation — from mid-April to June-end — sees a good passenger flow."

Airlines are now desperate to increase revenues from ticket sales. For instance, GoAir offers an advance seat booking facility for an extra charge of Rs 25.

Now, airlines levy charge for e-booking

Flying is fast getting more expensive. Within days of all domestic airlines hiking fuel surcharge, some carriers have added yet another surcharge to their ticket costs.

Low-cost carriers SpiceJet and IndiGo have started levying a web transaction (e-booking) charge of Rs 50 on each ticket, taking total levies to Rs 2,225 (for flights about an hour duration, excluding basic fares) and Rs 2,425 for longer domestic flights.

"Our cost of hosting the website by systems in US had gone up. We had been absorbing this but now felt that some part could be passed on. Hence the Rs 50 web transaction charge," said Kamal Hingorani, SpiceJet V-P. IndiGo has also levied the same charge. GoAir has had a 'service' charge of Rs 25 for a while.

IndiGo CEO Bruce Ashby said the airline had a flat transaction surcharge of Rs 100 for both call centre and website bookings for a year, starting from its launch in August 2006 and then suspended it.

"Some companies retained their surcharge for different booking channels, like call centres. Last Friday, we decided to reintroduce Rs 50 surcharge for website and Rs 100 for call centre bookings for each ticket," Ashby said.

Asked if this additional charge — coming on heels of a hike on fuel surcharge from Rs 1,650 to Rs 1,800 and Rs 2,000 (for short and medium sector) — could affect passenger flow, Hingorani said: "Primarily because of expensive jet fuel, the last quarter has been a bloodbath. We are hoping that summer vacation — from mid-April to June-end — sees a good passenger flow."

Airlines are now desperate to increase revenues from ticket sales. For instance, GoAir offers an advance seat booking facility for an extra charge of Rs 25.

Reliance to compensate petrol dealers

Reliance Industries will compensate its petrol pump dealers for the losses they incur while running the pumps, the company's President (Petroleum) Partha Maitra said on Saturday.

RIL had set up about 1,350 petrol pumps across the country, of which 950 were owned by the company and have been closed due to unremunerative prices. However, the remaining 400 petrol pumps run by dealers are still in operation.

Maitra said the company will keep all its 950 petrol pumps idle and take review of the situation later. The government cannot keep the present situation continue for long. Oil price in India will need to match the international prices, he said.

"This is the only segment in our business where we are making losses," he said.