The Government on Thursday ruled out a rollback of the diesel price hike even as MPs of the Left parties met Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee demanding withdrawal of the hefty rise. It is not possible to roll back the diesel price as that will raise the oil pool deficit, petroleum minister Ram Naik said. Meanwhile, trucks stayed off the roads protesting against the 40 per cent price hike.

Critical sectors to be Y2K ready

Eleven critical sectors, including power and telecommunications, will achieve Y2K compliance within 10 days, says the latest report of the National Y2K action force. Certain sectors like water supply, sewerage and health, which are under the states, need greater attention in the next two months, the report adds.

Centre privately places 11yr paper

After a series of auction issues, the Centre on Thursday announced the private placement of 12.29 per cent 11-year paper maturing in 2010 for a notified amount of Rs 3,500 crore to be held on October 22.

Centre bans select drugs

The Government has prohibited the manufacture, sale or distribution of fixed-dose combination of vitamin B1, vitamin B6, and vitamin B12 for human use with effect from January 1, 2001. Industry experts say the notification dated October 14 will impact, albeit negligibly, products like Neurobian from E Merck and Macraberin from Glaxo. E Merck, however, already has a range of line extensions which will cushion the company considerably from any adverse impact. Analysts expect the industry to challenge the government's move, though no official confirmation could be got.

Essar, FRN holders meet inconclusive

The meeting convened by Essar Steel in London on Wednesday to convince holders of its $250-million floating rate notes ended inconclusively, with the company not being able to hammer out a solution on the rollover issue. "The meeting went off smoothly," an Essar Steel release said.

Court adjourns Patents Rules case

The Mumbai high court on Thursday adjourned till November 16 hearing on the case pertaining to objections raised against amendments to the Patents Rules, 1972. IDMA in July this year had challenged the amendments to the rules.

Godrej Soaps back in black

Continuing on its turnaround drive, Godrej Soaps has posted a net profit of Rs 44.72 crore for the first half ended September 30, 1999, against a loss of Rs 7.72 crore in the corresponding period last year. Income from operations, however, dipped marginally during the period to Rs 420.87 crore, from Rs 424.78 crore.

Hoechst Marion Q2 net up to Rs 4.7 cr

Hoechst Marion Roussel has registered a 62 per cent rise in its net profit to Rs 4.7 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, 1999, against Rs 2.9 crore achieved in the year-ago period. Net sales during the period rose by 12.07 per cent to Rs 153.2 crore, from Rs 136.7 crore in the previous year.

IOC plans alliance with Bhel

Indian Oil Corporation is planning a strategic alliance with BHEL to work on specific projects both here and abroad. This could eventually lead to a joint venture between the two navratnas, people familiar with the matter say.

HFCL to divest stake in Fascel

Himachal Futuristic Company plans to offload its entire equity in the Hinduja-promoted Fascel, one of the cellular operators in the Gujarat circle. The company, which holds 10 per cent in Fascel, had reduced its holding from 33 per cent earlier this year.

MRPL ropes in Andersen Consulting

Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals, the joint venture between HPCL and the AV Birla group, has roped in Andersen Consulting for a feasibility study on the prospects of direct marketing. At present, the products of MRPL's refinery are marketed by HPCL through its vast network of retail outlets.

Jet in talks with ANZ Grindlays

Jet Airways has initiated talks with ANZ Grindlays Bank and Standard Chartered Bank to fund its proposed acquistion of 10 more next-generation Boeing aircraft at a cost of $500 million.

Hyundai Motor plans

Hyundai Motor Company, which launched its mid-size car the $1.2-billion Accent last week, has decided that subsequent model launches will be financed from part-dilution of its stake in its wholly-owned Indian subsidiary. Hyundai, which has invested $642 million in the Indian venture, does not propose to put in fresh funds till the subsidiary starts making profits.

Sensex down 106 points

A fresh wave of fears and rumours triggered an across-the-board selling on the bourses on Thursday. The only exception was Reliance. The result: the Sensex nosedived 106 points.

PSU scrips bounce back

After the infotech mania, it's now the PSU rush. After being out of favour for quite some time, public-sector companies are back in the shopping list of punters. The buying spree has led to a number of PSUs hitting new highs.

RBI directive to banks

The RBI on Thursday directed banks operating in international markets to put in place methodologies for estimating and maintaining economic capital by March 31, 2001.

GMDC plans for plant

With the commencement of work on the 250mw lignite-based power plant adjoining Panandhro lignite mines at a cost of Rs 1,340 crore in Akri Mota in Kutch on Thursday, the GMDC decided to add another 250mw in the days to come.

-- Compiled by S Hariharan