Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Financial News Flash


Stock Exchanges in India Extend Trading by 55 Minutes to Lure Investors India’s two largest stock exchanges will extend trading time by 55 minutes as the two bourses compete to attract overseas investors.

India's Sensex Index Advances, Snapping Longest Losing Streak in Six Weeks India’s benchmark stock index rose, snapping its longest losing streak in six weeks. Infosys Technologies Ltd. led software exporters higher after saying it opened a development centre in Brazil. Bharti Airtel Ltd. gained.

Reliance Natural Questions Ambani Family Agreement If Gas is Not Supplied Reliance Natural Resources Ltd. told India’s Supreme Court that a 2005 family agreement dividing the Reliance group between the billionaire Ambani brothers should be annulled if a gas supply deal was not honored.

DLF to Combine Unit With Founding Family's Business to Boost Rental Income DLF Ltd., India’s largest developer, plans to combine its commercial buildings unit with a business owned by the founding family to increase rental income.

Communist State Plans First India Islamic Bonds as Dubai Crisis Cuts Funds Kerala, the communist-ruled Indian state that relies on Middle East remittances for a quarter of its economy, plans to sell the nation’s first Islamic bonds next year to help pay for infrastructure projects.

Sugar Purchases by India Halt on High Prices, Rail Wagon Shortage at Ports India, the biggest sugar consumer, hasn’t bought the commodity from abroad in the past 45 days as high global prices and a shortage of rail wagons deter buyers, worsening a domestic shortage.

ONGC's Refining Unit to Raise $2.1 Billion to Add Capacity, Build Plant Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd., a unit of India’s biggest energy explorer, plans to borrow about 100 billion rupees ($2.1 billion) to boost capacity by 51 percent and build a petrochemical plant.

Government Bonds Decline on Speculation India's Rates to Rise on Inflation India’s 10-year bonds fell, pushing yields toward the highest level in more than a year, on speculation economic growth and accelerating inflation will prompt the central bank to increase interest rates.

Orchid Chemicals to Eliminate Long-Term Debt After Selling Unit to Hospira Orchid Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd. plans to eliminate long-term debt with the $400 million it will receive from the sale of its generic injectable drugs unit to Hospira Inc.

Japan's Sumitomo Metal May Buy Stake in Bhushan Steel's East India Plant Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd. may buy a stake in Bhushan Steel Ltd.’s proposed mill in eastern India as Japan’s third-largest steelmaker joins global rivals in tapping demand for auto and construction steel in the South Asian nation.

Intel Is Sued by U.S. for Using Market Position to Stifle Chip Competition The U.S. Federal Trade Commission sued Intel Corp., the world’s largest computer-chip maker, for illegally using its dominant market position for a decade “to stifle competition and strengthen its monopoly.”

European, U.S. Stocks Advance Ahead of FOMC's Decision on Interest Rates U.S. and European stocks rose on speculation the Federal Reserve will say it plans to hold its benchmark interest rate at a record low for an extended period to sustain the global economic recovery. Oil and metals rallied as the dollar fell.

Glass-Steagall Renewal Sought by McCain, Cantwell to Avert Future Bailouts U.S. Senators John McCain and Maria Cantwell unveiled legislation today to reinstate the Depression- era Glass-Steagall Act that separated commercial and investment banking, to rein in the size of Wall Street firms in response to the financial crisis.

Gold Buying by Central Banks Sends Sell Signal as Past Haunts Future Price Some of the biggest buyers of gold may be sending the strongest signal to sell it, if past performance is indicative of future results.


Microsoft Adds Choice of Browsers to Settle European Union Antitrust Cases Microsoft Corp. ended more than a decade of antitrust disputes with the European Union by giving consumers a choice among Web browsers.

Fed May Say Economy Strengthening as It Repeats Pledge to Keep Rates Low Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke was named “Person of the Year” by Time magazine today for leading the “most-powerful, least-understood government force shaping our lives,” Managing Editor Richard Stengel said.

source: Bloomberg