L&T revives alumina project talks, may cede majority stake to Pechiney
Larsen & Toubro, the engineering, construction and cement major, has decided to revive the one million tonne alumina project which it was forced to defer when partner Alcoa of USA chose to walk out from the venture in 1995.

Stroh enters pacts to make bottled beers in India
The Detroit-based Stroh Brewery Company, the first American company to license the production of an international beer brand in India, has formed alliances with two more Indian companies to sell beer in bottles.

HPCL first-half net rises 25% to Rs 435 crore
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) has notched a 25.47% increase in net profit to Rs 435.44 crore between April and September this year, from Rs 347.05 crore in the first six months of the 1997-98 fiscal.

  AOL net triples, sees momentum continuing
  National Insurance accords its rating mandate to Icra
  Crisil H1 net up 8% to Rs 6 cr
  Procter & Gamble first-half net leaps 31% to Rs 15 crore
  Madras Cements H1 net jumps to Rs 40 cr
  Cipla first-half net spurts 25 per cent to Rs 56 crore
  Indian Rayon H1 net slips to Rs 81 crore
  Arvind Mills net plummets
  Dena Bank net edges up 7% to Rs 66 cr in first half
  Raymond first-half net sky-rockets to Rs 35 crore
  Appellate authority strikes down Sebi's order on Sterlite-Templeton shares row
  Tata Electric net up a shade to Rs 184 crore
  Marico H1 net up 19% to Rs 20 cr
  Syndicate Bank operating profit spurts to Rs 103 cr
  IDBI net crawls up to Rs 705 crore; IFCI profit plunges to Rs 68 crore
  Hindalco H1 net jumps 19% to Rs 273 cr
  Chemplast Sanmar posts Rs 8.76 cr profit in H1
  Other income propels BILT in the first half
  Equity dilution to hit Nagarjuna Fertilisers
  Tisco bottomline slides to Rs 96 cr in free fall