Ministry in a fix over SDF access:The steel ministry is in a fix over the demand made by new steel-makers for access to the Steel Development Fund, a soft loans corpus managed by the Centre-controlled Joint Plant Committee. Ispat, Essar, Lloyds and Jindal have threatened to go to court if they are denied the facility. SDF loans charge an average interest of 6 per cent, which is far less than what is charged by banks and institutions.

Glaxo to gain from drug shift: Glaxo India is likely to reap substantial "cost benefits" following the shift of anti-AIDS bulk drug zidovudine to the life-saving drugs category. Zidovudine will now attract zero customs duty as against the earlier concessional 20 per cent. Glaxo, it is believed, which imports most of its zidovudine requirements for the domestic market, will show direct improvements in earnings.

Reliance dumping claims refuted: Reliance seems to have again landed in troubled waters, this time local polyester staple fibre (PSF) manufacturers have decided to oppose dumping charges made by company against purified terepthalic acid (PTA) imports. According to an official of the PSF firms' forum, considering the fact that there is only one local PTA producer, the duty imposition curtails price determination by market forces. The anti-dumping cell of the commerce ministry is expected to begin a probe into the matter this week.

Kerala picks 11% in Petronet Kochi: The Kerala Government has picked up a 11 per cent stake in the Rs 1,500-crore, 2.5-million-tonne Petronet LNG venture in Kochi. Sources in Petronet LNG said the government had communicated its decision couple of days ago. The state will have to shell out Rs 50 crore to pick the stake.

Spic project under cloud: Spic group, four years after signing a pact with the Tamil Nadu Government, is still struggling to get an escrow cover for its 525mw coal-based thermal power project to be set up in Tuticorin. Moreover, sources say, institutions are unwilling to provide assistance unless it gets escrow cover from the state electricity board.

TMB issue hots up: The tussle between the Chennai-based Sterling group and the Nadar community over control in the Tamil Nadu Mercantile Bank has reached a flashpoint with the Reserve Bank saying it had not "outrightly rejected" the plea for transfer of shares to Sterling group. Sources said RBI would consider the request for transfer of shares by Sterling "once the TMB board makes a reference for acknowledgment by the RBI".

New India Assurance rating: New India Assurance has been assigned an initial rating of `A' (excellent) by international rating agency AM Best. This is for the first time that an overseas agency has rated a domestic state-owned insurance company. The rating is of particular importance to New India as it have 40 overseas arms.

Deutsche Bank, BankAm cut deposit rates: Deutsche Bank, and BankAm on Thursday announced a 25 to 50 basis points cut in their deposit rates. The revisions are the first by foreign banks following RBI's decision to cut CRR, bank and repo rates. ABN Amro Bank, ANZ Grindlays Bank, HongkongBank, Citibank, and Standard Chartered Bank are expected to take a decision on deposits rate and PLR reductions over the next few days.

Vysya, ING tie up: Vysya Bank has teamed up with HongKong-based ING Financial Services International (Asia) to set up a consumer-finance firm. Chairman KR Ramamoorthy said on Thursday that the new firm would provide financial assistance to all retail segments. ING will hold 51 per cent, while Vysya Bank will hold the balance.

Senses sheds 38 points: The euphoric post-budget rally finally took a breather on Thursday after operators unwinded their positions ahead of the end of settlement at the Bombay Stock Exchange. The Sensex, which had gained 339.29 points in three consecutive days of rally, shed 38.46 points to close at 3601.96 on Thursday.