Inflation shoots to 8.01 per cent
The inflation rate shot up by 0.56 percentage points to touch 8.01 per cent in the week ended December 9 due to the sharp increase in the prices of primary articles. The point-to-point inflation rate based on the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) for all commodities (base: 1993-94 = 100) continued its rise to stand above 8 per cent mark from 7.45 per cent in the previous week and a mere 2.53 per cent a year ago.

Lower import duty for 7ACA sought
Indian Drug Maufacturers Association (IDMA) has called for encouraging domestic production of bulk drugs for which facilities exist in the country. IDMA, in its pre-budget presentation, has further called for facilitating import of intermediates not manufactured in the country and has recommended concessional duty of 10 per cent on certain bulk drugs. It has asked for hiking the import duty on 7 Amino Cephalosporin C (7ACA) to 35 per cent from the current 25 per cent.

Registration for service providers
The finance ministry is toying with the idea of introducing compulsory registration of service providers in a bid to check tax evasion and widen the tax net. According to sources, although there were practical difficulties in this regard, the scheme may be introduced on a selective basis in the budget.

GAIL opens longest LPG pipeline
Operations from the Jamnagar-Loni pipeline, the longest in the world, commenced on Sunday at Nasirabad near Ajmer in Rajasthan with petroleum minister Ram Naik assuring industry of quick gas supplies within the next three years. Mr Naik said the government was now hoping to provide every industry in the country with gas supplies on demand within the next three year.

Coal wage agreement signed
The sixth National Coal Wage Agreement was signed in Delhi on Satursterday by the joint bipartite commitee for coal industry (JBCCI) comprising the managements of Coal India Ltd and Singareni Collieries Ltd, besides five the central trade unions, a CIL spokesman said in New Delhi on Sunday.

Gurcharan Das on Zodiac board
Zodiac Clothing is putting in place high-level strategies to take the organisation into new levels of growths. It has inducted on its board former Procter & Gamble chief Gurcharan Das and former Hindustan Lever chairman SM Dutta. Besides, Mr Abid Hussain and German banker Berhard Steinrucke have also been inducted on the board. HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh is on the board as alternate director.

FIIs net sellers in equities
FIIs were net sellers in equities at Rs 498.5 crore ($106.6 million) for the week ended December 22. According to Sebi data, FIIs were net sellers also in debt to the tune of Rs 6.2 crore ($1.4 mn) for the week.