Business Standard

Stocks are mounting in Maharashtras cooperative sugar factories, after traders halted lifting the commodity because of a continuous fall in its price. They fear prices may soon bottom out due to the huge supply of sugar for January.

Salaried taxpayers with no other income could get a respite from filing tax returns. The income-tax (I-T) department is open to examining a proposal to exempt them from the annual chore.

The proverbial light gleamed at the end of the tunnel today for Lavasa Corporation. The ministry of environment & forests agreed to consider clearance to the companys hill-side project near Pune, subject to stringent conditions.

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is formulating a far-reaching immunity scheme to prompt the repatriation of unaccounted money parked overseas. The proposed scheme could be one of the major announcements of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjees forthcoming Budget speech.

Tata Steel, which has announced a follow-on public offer (FPO) to raise up to Rs 3,500 crore, will not be drawing close to half the debt tied up for its 3-million tonne Jamshedpur plant expansion. Instead, it will use the money, Rs 5,000 crore, for Phase-1 of its 3-mt Kalinganagar steel plant in Orissa.

Government bonds fell today amid fears of sharper-than-expected monetary tightening by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its third-quarter review of monetary policy next week. The market has so far factored in a 25-basis point (bp) increase in key policy rates after the sharp dip in Novembers industrial production figures. The index of industrial production grew by a meagre 2.7 per cent the lowest in 18 months.