The year-on-year inflation rate, measured by the Wholesale Price Index, rose to 1.94 per cent in the week-ended September 4 from 1.81 per cent in the previous week.

IPCL divestment

The department of chemicals and petrochemicals is proposing to complete the disinvestment process of IPCL by December-end. According to officials, the Government is hopeful of completing the bidding for the 25 per cent stake in IPCL and declaring results in three months.

India complains to WTO

India has conveyed its concern to WTO over, what it calls the "unilateral" trade measures resorted to by strong nations against the weaker ones with the objective of gaining market access. The measures under national laws of advanced countries may increase in the future and strain the multilateral trading system.

Supreme Court ruling

In a significant ruling having a bearing on thousands of civil cases, the Supreme Court has held that the period of limitation runs fromthe date of the decree and not from the date when the decree was actually drawn up and signed by the judge.

DoT to expand telephone network

With private basic telephone service providers failing to take off in most circles, DoT has decided to go in for a massive expansion of the basic telephone network in the country.

M3 growth declines

The year-on-year money supply growth declined to 17 per cent (Rs 1,49,047 crore) as on August 27, 1999, from 19.2 per cent (Rs 1,65,375 crore) a fortnight back. Net bank credit to the government amounting to Rs 54,758 crore and net bank credit to the commercial sector totalling Rs 63,712 crore, constituted the major chunk of the source of the M3 growth.

PSU executives defer strike

Officers of 17 public sector undertakings, including NTPC, IOC, BHEL and VSNL on Sunday deferred their proposed nationwide strike by a over a month. The executives union of the profit-making PSUs had threatened of go on a nationwide strike on September 23 and 24seeking certain changes in their revised pay-scale announced by the Government recently. The strike has been deferred to October 31.

Escorts Yamaha to dilute stake

Escorts Yamaha Motorcycles, a 50:50 joint venture between Escorts group and Yamaha Motor Corporation of Japan, will dilute 25 per cent stake through induction of fresh equity in the current fiscal, a top company official said.

HCL-Comnet offers 5% equity to staff

HCL Comnet has announced an employee stock option scheme, offering shares of its parent company HCL Technologies at $13.5 per share. "30 per cent of employees will be given 5 per cent of HCL Technologies' shares," sources said.

NTPC's Pipavav stake

The move by the NTPC to take equity in Pipavav LNG project may generate protests. ONGC, GAIL, BPCL and IOC are of the opinion that NTPC cannot pick up a stake in another venture when it has already committed itself to sourcing LNG from Petronet's Dahej terminal.

Cheminor's ranitidine to hit US byDec

Cheminor Drugs, part of the Dr Reddy's group, expects to hit the US generics market with its ranitidine (75 mg) tablets by December 1999.

-- Compiled by Mukund Sharma