HZL cuts zinc prices by Rs 9,300

NEWS DIGEST

Hindustan Zinc on Monday cut prices of high-grade primary zinc products by Rs 9,300 a tonne to Rs 1,86,000, a company official said.

The company had last cut prices June 3. Prices of other zinc products have also been cut by Rs 9,300 a tonne, the official said. Lead prices have been cut by Rs 400 a tonne to Rs 60,700 a tonne.

Zinc prices have been reduced in line with softening global metal prices, the official said. On Monday three-month zinc contract on the London Metal Exchange quoted at $3,280 a tonne in early trade compared with the previous close of $3,320.

The metal, used as an anti-corrosive agent, had touched a record high of$3,970 a tonne on May 11. Hindustan Zinc shares closed at Rs 507 on the Bombay Stock Exchange, down 1.8 per cent from Friday. (CMW)

NCDEX puts 10% margin on guar

The National Commodity Derivatives Exchange of India has imposed concentration margin of 10 per cent on its members, the exchange said in a notification on Monday.

The margin would be applicable on members having net open position exceeding 14,000 tonne in guar seed contracts from close of business on Monday.

MCX starts trading in Sep Brent crude oil

The Multi Commodity Exchange said in a circular that Brent crude oil September contract will be available for trading from Monday. The daily price limit will be 4 per cent and the delivery centre will be at Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust in Mumbai, it said.

India's crude oil basket rises to $67.17

India's crude oil basket was at $67.17 a barrel on Friday, up by $1.35 a barrel from Thursday in line with the rise in global crude oil prices, data from the petroleum ministry said.

Crude for July delivery on Friday ended $1.28 higher at $71.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The price of India's crude basket had hit an all-time high of $71.13 a barrel on May 2. India's crude oil basket has averaged $67.16 a barrel in June so far, compared with $66.29 in May and $67.15 in April.

The basket comprises Oman-Dubai sour grade of crude and Brent dated sweet crude in a 58:42 ratio. Brent crude closed at $71.63 a barrel, while the Dubai and Oman benchmarks were at $65.13 and $66.08 respectively, the data released on Monday said.

Gujarat cuts commodity trade stamp duty

Gujarat has reduced stamp duty on commodity trade, spot as well as futures, to Re 1 on a transaction of Rs 1,00,000. Earlier, the state administration levied a stamp duty of Rs 10.

"Before 2006-07 state budget, the stamp duty on commodities trade was calculated on unit basis and a duty of Re 0.10 was charged per unit of trade. One unit was roughly equivalent to around Rs 75,000," an industry source said.

However, in the budget, the government raised the stamp duty to a whopping Rs 10 on a transaction of Rs 1,00,000.

"The hefty hike in stamp duty was seen as destabilising commodities business in Gujarat, as it was higher than neighbouring states like Maharashtra," the source said.

But, following strong representations from industry officials and commodities traders, the state administration decided to reduce the stamp duty to Re 1. "Now the duty structure is equivalent to Maharashtra," the sources said.

Though there has been no official confirmation of the reduction in stamp duty, sources said a formal notification detailing the date as to when the new duty would be applicable is expected in the next couple of days. Gujarat is one of largest growers of groundnut in India and also an important centre for bullion trade.

MCX, India Post tie up for Gramin Suvidha Kendra

The Multi Commodity Exchange of India and India Post have set up the first Gramin Suvidha Kendra at Jalgaon in Maharashtra, the exchange said in a release on Monday.

The project will act as a single-window service providing information for all pre- and post-harvest requirements of the farmer.

Farmers and traders will send their queries to the Gramin Suvidha Kendra through the postal department in his village, and MCX will procure the answer online, said the release.

MJ College sub post office in Jalgaon will be the nodal centre to address the needs of the farmers in the district. The same model will be replicated at the national level, the release said.

The project will, in future, provide a platform for online spot trading of farm produce besides knowledge sharing on agricultural practices, the release said. MCX is providing the infrastructure, including trading computer terminals and Internet access at Jalgaon, it said.