Opening Bell, 7 June | Markets extend rally

Mumbai: Finally the government has woken up, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid out ambitious infrastructure development plans to boost the sagging economy, reports Wall Street Journal India. Under the plan, the government will award contracts for building two ports and three airports, and will add 18,000 megawatts of power-generation capacity in FY13.

Asian markets extended gains on Thursday morning as investors hoped monetary easing in the US and Europe would counter the growing global economic slump, reports MarketWatch. The Nikkei Stock Average was up over 1%, Hang Seng gained 1.6% and Shanghai Composite advanced 0.6%.

In United States, Fed official said late Wednesday that the door remained open for more easing should conditions require such a move, reports Financial Times. The European Central Bank also signaled it could cut interest rates next month, but kept interest rates unchanged at 1% in a meeting on Wednesday. Wall Street indices rallied over 2% each.

In India, the government appears to have made up its mind to increase excise duty on diesel cars to neutralize the advantage of the state subsidy that has caused vehicle owners to favour cars fueled by diesel because it is cheaper by Rs 30 per litre, reports Mint. The decision may be taken before the monsoon session of Parliament begins sometime in July.

Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd will be in focus after it inked a drug deal with European biotechnology firm Merck Serono to jointly develop and manufacture bio-similar compounds to treat cancer, reports Mint. Merck will handle the commercialization aspect in most parts of the world and will pay Dr. Reddy’s royalties.

Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd will buy out its partner Imperial Hospital based in Bangalore upping its stake from 51% to 100% for around Rs 100 crore to enhance its reach and patient connect in the city, reports Business Standard. Apollo had already increased its stake to 90% in Imperial Hospital and Research Centre, and the acquisition will be completed in three years.

Tata Steel Europe will get cheap coal from the Benga coal project in Mozambique, which is 35% owned by the company’s Indian parent and the rest by Rio Tinto, Australian mining giant, reports Business Standard. The coal from Benga will feed Tata Steel Europe’s operations and will help optimize production.

State Bank of India is launching a personal loan scheme against property loans at interest rates lower than that of peers, reports Economic Times. SBI is offering personal loan at 11.25% to existing home loan customers to attract existing home loan customers of other banks, at a time when property prices are rising.

Videocon Telecommunications Ltd. is planning to inject Rs 486 crore in Punjab to extend its coverage across the state, reports Business Standard. Videocon has 1.2 million customers since it began operations in Punjab in 2010. The company also plans to expand its business in other circles - Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai and Tamil Nadu as well.

Lastly, Magal who has been the Fake Jhunjhunwala, an anonymous writer behind ‘The Secret Journal of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala’ a popular parody blog met up with the real Jhunjhunwala of Dalal Street, reports Economic Times.