Industry body sees 40% import tax on sugar

India may impose an import tax of at least 40 per cent on white sugar to arrest a sharp fall in local prices of the sweetener, industry officials said on Thursday. India, the world's top consumer of white sugar, had last year withdrawn a 60-per cent import tax on the commodity when output fell 44 per cent to 14.7 million tonnes, turning the country into a big importer and helping New York raw sugar futures surge to their highest in 29 years in February. "Imported sugar sells much lesser than our production cost," said M N Rao, deputy director general of the Indian Sugar Mills Association. "At least a 40 per cent duty will give some respite," he said, and added the millers would not mind the earlier duty rate of 60 per cent. Imposing the duty again would help mills pay a good price to cane farmers and encourage higher cultivation, industry officials said. Farm Minister Sharad Pawar said India may take a decision "in a week or so" on re-imposing duty on sugar imports, a Press Trust of India report in the Financial Express newspaper said on Thursday. Millers in India have been demanding a duty on refined sugar imports as the prices of the sweetener fell in local markets by about 30 per cent in the last four months, the report said. For a timeline on changes in India's sugar import regime, analysts say India could slap an import tax on sugar before the start of its 2010/11 season in October, to protect farmers and millers from a flood of imports as global prices crash. On Wednesday, August white sugar in London ended $15.10 lower at $456.80 per tonne on long liquidation amid improved global sugar production outlook. The global sugar market will see a surplus of about 5 million tonnes this year, 30 per cent more than previously expected, even as consumption rises, though India is unlikely to export any excess sugar soon, industry sources said.

ERP implementation at Sail's Rourkela plant

Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) is set to enter the first phase of the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation to be inaugurated tomorrow. The ERP centre-1 will manage information and functions in a modular software package as well as common data-base and will seamlessly integrate all business functions. It would go live at RSP from April, 2011, RSP sources said here today. The system will improve accuracy and reliabiliy of cross-functional information and facilitate the integration of different functions that would help in reducing costs and facilititating day-to-day management. The ERP system will also help in adapting to best practices and uniform reporting according to global standards apart from leading to benefits like inventory control, time reduction, reaching out customers and vendors and improving productivity of processes and personnel, the sources added.

Sensex ends up 201pts

The markets have again firmed up in what is turning out into a fairly choppy afternoon session. With the Asian markets having a lacklustre session and the European markets opening soft, our domestic markets seem to be attempting to find their feet. The Sensex is now quoting at 16654, higher by 82 points or 0.4% and the Nifty is at 4995, up 25 points. The midcap sector is quoting at 6759, higher by 0.2%, and the smallcap sector is at 8496, up 0.4% Reliance Communicatons has extended its gains and has now soared 10% at Rs 153. ONGC has strengthened 3.6% at Rs 1185 and Bharti Airtel has added 3.5% at Rs 266. Reliance Infra, Hero Honda and L&T are the other significant gainers. And RIL is trading flat at Rs 1011. On the losers side, Tata Power has weakened by 2.2% at Rs 1231, Hindalco has shed 1.5% at Rs 141 and Jindal Steel has lost 1.4% at Rs 623. The market breadth is positive. Out of 2823 stocks traded on the BSE, there are 1500 advancing stocks as againt 1210 declines.

Hindujas plan up to $1 bn Saudi IPO of Petromin

Indian family-owned Hinduja Group plans to launch lubricants maker Petromin's initial public offering in Saudi Arabia to raise $800 million to $1 billion this year, group officials said on Wednesday. The group also plans to build 10,000 megawatt of thermal power in India over five years, an official told reporters.

Food processing sector growing at 14.9%

India's food processing sector, which was growing at about six per cent four years ago, is now expanding at nearly 15 per cent annually, Union Minister Subodh Kant Sahay said today. The country processes about 10 per cent of the total food produced and by 2015 it is expected to rise to 20 per cent, the Minister of State for Food Processing said. He said the sector has a huge potential, particularly in the European markets, where there is good demand for ready-to-eat food. To grow rapidly, the sector requires an investment of Rs 1 lakh crore, he said. Sahay, who was here for the Twenty20 finals of the Jharkhand Premier League match, said there was a need for a separate food processing policy and that he would "soon talk to state governments in this regard." He said there was a huge potential for the food processing sector in Jharkhand, which does not have a single unit for perishables in the state, but the state government has not shown any interest. "We set up a food park in Ranchi over a year ago, but unfortunately, the state government has not been able to grant a sub-lease of 50-60 acre till now," he said.

Top c.banks not planning shift out of euro - govt sources

Some of the world's richest central banks will not stop investing in the euro, supporting its reserve status, despite the sovereign debt crisis hammering the euro zone's currency, government sources said. Official sources in Brazil, India, Russia, Japan and South Korea told in separate interviews that their reserve currency portfolios were too big to change without affecting markets, and there were no alternatives in the near term to the liquidity of the euro and the U.S. dollar. The four countries control nearly a quarter of the world's $8.09 trillion in foreign exchange reserves. Global market sensitivity to reserve management was highlighted last week after the Financial Times reported that China was reviewing its euro zone bond holdings because of growing concerns about gaping deficits in countries such as Greece and Portugal. A Chinese government official told Reuters last week after the report that China's goal of diversifying its reserves will not change. The euro fell and stocks skidded, but later recouped some of their losses after China said on Thursday the report was groundless, adding that Europe will remain a major target of its enormous portfolio. Like China, sources in other countries told Reuters they were not going to walk away from the euro. "Even if the dollar or the euro is in trouble, is there anywhere else to invest? Not really. There needs to be a certain degree of liquidity," said a senior Japanese government official, who asked not to be identified because of the political sensitivity of the issue. "Currencies of countries with capital controls won't work too. That leaves us with very few options," the official said. Japan's $1.05 trillion in reserves is second only to China's $2.45 trillion.

Reliance Comm: getting proposals to invest in equity

"The company evaluates such proposals, in line with the company's policy to constantly endeavour to enhance overall shareholder value," the No. 2 Indian telecoms firm said in a statement to the stock exchange.Earlier, a newspaper report said Abu Dhabi's Etisalat was in advanced talks to buy a quarter of Reliance Communications for 180 billion rupees ($3.8 billion).