Regulator Sebi said on Monday that the additional margin of 10 per cent clamped on short sales stands withdrawn from July 6. Executive director LK Singhvi said Sebi would impose additional margins to curb excess volatility, effective July 6. The move will provide safety and check volatility, he said. Sebi will also lift its ban on short sales from July 6.

NSE cuts trading time: NSE said on Monday it would reduce trading hours for its capital-market segment by half an hour from July 1. The market will open at 10 am, compared with 9.30 am at present but close as usual at 3.30 pm, an NSE statement said. The exchange said it was cutting trading hours as it had received representations from its members that the current start was too early.

Lubrizol may acquire BP's additives division worldwide: The United States-based Lubrizol Corporation is believed to be close to acquiring British Petroleum's additives' division worldwide. The move, analystssay, will strengthen Lubrizol's presence in Europe. It will not have much of an impact in the country, they said. BP has a tieup with the Tatas in the lubes' segment, which will continue irrespective of the planned acquisition.

ONGC net jumps 32 per cent to Rs 2,678 crore: ONGC said on Monday that its net profit in the 12-month period to the end of March, 1998, soared 32 per cent to Rs 2,678 crore, versus the prior year's Rs 2,037 crore. Sales jumped 15 per cent to Rs 15,224 crore from the prior year's Rs 13,235. The corporation has declared a dividend of 25 per cent.Godrej Soaps net slumps 66% to Rs 9 crore: Godrej Soaps said on Monday that its net profit in the 12-month period to the end of March, 1998, slumped 66 per cent to Rs 8.53 crore, compared with the prior year's Rs 25.05 crore. The firm has declared a dividend of Rs 1.3 a share, versus the prior year's Rs 2.8 a share.

Chowgule Steamships posts Rs 22 cr losses: Chowgule Steamships said on Monday that it posted Rs 21.6 crorenet losses in the 12-month period to the end of March, 1998, versus the prior year's net profit of around Rs 16 crore. Income from operations was up 3.2 per cent from Rs 82.2 crore to Rs 84.97 crore.

JK Industries 15-month net at Rs 26 crore: The tyre maker JK Industries said on Monday that its net profit in the 15-month period to the end of March 1998 was Rs 26.07 crore. Sales stood at Rs 1,553.54 crore, up 17.3 per cent on an annualised basis over the prior year. The firm has declared a dividend of 22.5 per cent.

Sundaram Clayton 10-month net slumps to Rs 10 crore: Sundaram Clayton said on Monday that its net profit in the 10-month period to the end of March, 1998, crashed to Rs 9.76 crore, compared with the prior period's Rs 19.47 crore. Sales sunk to Rs 130 crore, versus the prior period's Rs 210.66 crore. The firm has declared a dividend of Rs 2 a share.

Tata Telecom PAT up a whisker: Tata Telecom said on Monday that its profit after tax in the 12-month period to the end ofMarch, 1988, was Rs 1.36 crore, compared with the prior year's Rs 1.36 crore. Sales stood at Rs 176.58 crore, versus the prior year's Rs 152.73 crore.

Oman India sews up pact with consortium of bankers: Oman India Fertiliser has sewed up a pact with Banque Nationale de Paris, JP Morgan and Arab Bank Corporation to finance the debt portion of its $1.2- billion ammonia/urea complex in Oman. The company, which is a joint venture between Oman Oil Company, RCF and Khribco, hopes to achieve financial closure by October 31, 1998, after the consortium extends funds by September-end.

Sensex up 121 points: Shares on the Bombay Stock Exchange closed with strong gains on Monday buoyed by buying interest from foreign as also local investors in pharmaceutical, software and fast-moving consumer goods' scrips, dealers said. The market sentiment has also improved following news that the US has started a dialogue with India to resolve the issue of economic sanctions after the nuclear tests. The Sensex posteda smart recovery of 120.74 points, closing its Monday's innings at 3,289.56 points.

Sensex may go down to 2,800 points: Jardine Fleming India Securities chief Robert M Gibson said on Monday that the bell-wether BSE 30-Share Sensitive Index could bottom out around 2,800 points. The market, he said, could find support at 2,800 points, as India, unlike other Asian countries, had a wide selection of firms which were managerially, financially and fundamentally sound. The rupee, he said, would stablise at Rs 44-45 a dollar.

Rupee ends firmer on import cancellation: The rupee ended firmer against the dollar on Monday on month-end cancellations by importers, dealers said. The rupee closed at 42.53-54 a dollar, versus Friday's close of 42.63-66.

RBI spikes banks' plea: The Reserve Bank has rejected banks' plea to cut export-refinance rates on all incremental exports to 9 per cent from 11 per cent. The central bank is supposedly averse to the cut as it feels that exporters may find itdifficult to meet the target to qualify for concessional credit. Bankers had pleaded for shelving the one-time concessional export-financing scheme, saying that export-refinance rates should, instead, be slashed to 9 per cent.

Steep hike in 5-year coupon likely: The Reserve Bank may hike interest rates in the medium term by 55-60 basis points to ensure the success of three government papers' auction. The centre intends to mop up Rs 5,500 crore in the July 1's auction. Dealers feel that the three-year paper, which is expected to raise Rs 2,500 crore, will sail through with ease, while the five-year paper, which is expected to raise Rs 2,000 crore, may face hurdles.

LIC's Life Fund crosses Rs 1,00,000 crore: LIC's Life Fund increased 20.59 per cent to touch Rs 1,05,832.89 crore in 1997-98. Total premium income was up 18.55 per cent to Rs 19,252.07 crore, while investment income jumped 20.23 per cent to Rs 11,296.32 crore. Sale of individual new policies spurted 8.5 per cent to Rs 1.33 crore.

Sixproduction-sharing oil deals to be signed today: Union petroleum and natural gas minister VK Ramamurthy will on Tuesday oversee the signing of the first six production-sharing contracts out of the 18 exploration blocks offered to the private sector. The centre had cleared these blocks on May 15, three days after the five nuclear tests, in its bid to lessen the impact of sanctions. Five United States-based oil multinationals, Cairne Energy of Australia, Tullow Oil of Ireland were among the firms that were cleared.