India Briefs

SPECIAL REPORT

* The Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment declared Sterlite's Rs 445 crore offer to be the winning bid for Hindustan Zinc. The other bidder in the fray was Indo-Gulf of the AV Birla Group.

* State Bank of India announced a reduction in its prime lending rate and medium term lending rate by 50 basis points, to 11 per cent and 11.5 per cent per annum respectively. The bank has also cut interest rates on deposits by 25-75 basis points across various maturities.

* A shift in spot rates over the end of the financial year pushed the rupee down to a fresh closing low of 48.7975/8025 to the dollar. The last time the domestic currency closed at a new low was on February 25, when it ended at 48.7875/7925 after shrinking to a record low of 48.88 during intra day trading.

* MTNL has reported a 30 per cent increase in domestic long-distance traffic, in the past two months after STD rates were slashed. Growth for Hughes Tele.com has been about 10-15 per cent in this period. Unlike MTNL, Hughes has been focusing on corporate customers.

* HDFC Standard Life Insurance has slashed premium rates on its term insurance cover by as much as 40 per cent, making it among the cheapest in the sector. According to industry sources, it is only a matter of time before other private players also follow suit.

* Responding to international competition and technological advancement, the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee, in the first of such clearances, has permitted Mahyco to commercially release three of the four genetically modified hybrid cotton varieties developed by them.

* Arvind Mills and its five subsidiaries together reported a net loss of Rs 740.82 crore during the 18 months ended September 2001. The net loss of these companies for the 12 months period ended March 00 was Rs 338.75 crore.

* As part of its international ambitions, Life Insurance Corporation(LIC) is in advanced stage of negotiations with US insurance major Nationwide to start operations in California and New York and later expand to other states.