Rupee rise may hurt Indian tea exports - minister

(Reuters) - Indian tea exports are likely to be hurt by the rupee's strength against the dollar, the junior trade minister said on Saturday.

"Indian tea exports have undoubtedly come under pressure due to the appreciation of the rupee," Jairam Ramesh told reporters in Kolkata.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Alcan agrees to sell Utkal alumina venture stake

(Reuters) - Alcan did not disclose terms of the transaction, which it expects to close in the third quarter of 2007. Hindalco owns the other 55 percent of Utkal, which was established in 1992 to develop a new bauxite mine and alumina refinery in the Indian state of Orissa.







Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

BP Shuts Largest Crude Unit at Whiting Refinery in Indiana, Person Says

(Bloomberg) -- BP Plc is shutting down the largest
of three crude units at its Whiting, Indiana, refinery, the
biggest refinery in the U.S. Midwest, a person familiar with the
plant's status said.

The unit, which can process 250,000 barrels of oil a day,
is being shut for unplanned maintenance, the person said. A date
for the restart of the unit has not been determined.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Indian firms eye Devon's West Africa assets - sources

(Reuters) - Four state-run Indian oil firms are weighing up whether to enter the race for some of the West African oil and gas assets held by U.S.-based Devon Energy, sources close to the potential bids said on Monday.

A source said exploration firm Oil India Ltd. and refiner Indian Oil Corp. (IOC) were jointly evaluating data for a possible non-binding bid for Devon's Angolan assets and "would submit a bid if the data meets expectations".


Read more at Reuters Africa

"Losers club" sought to derail India deal-Vodafone

(Reuters) - Arun Sarin, the chief executive of global wireless operator
Vodafone Group Plc , called for greater transparency in
India's merger approval process to defeat backroom efforts by
vested interests to manipulate India's political bureaucracy.




"I really did not expect people -- the 'good and great' of
India -- to be calling cabinet secretaries, ministers, to say,
'You have to unwind this deal, because we want a piece of it,'"
Sarin told a conference of Indian business and academic leaders
taking place in Silicon Valley this weekend.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Sugar Futures Fall in New York on Speculation Global Oversupply Will Widen

(Bloomberg) -- Sugar declined in New York on
speculation that rising Brazilian and Indian production will
widen a global surplus.

World production will exceed demand by 9.8 million tons this
year, according to London-based ED&F Man, the biggest trader of
the sweetener. Brazil and India, the largest producers, are
growing more sugarcane partly to meet rising demand for the
alternative fuel ethanol.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Korea Exchange, Datung, PECD and Yue Yuen: Asia Ex-Japan Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may rise or fall
in Asian markets, excluding Japan. This preview includes news that
broke after markets closed. Prices are from the local market's last
close. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.

Abbott India Ltd. (BOOT IN): The Indian unit of U.S.-based
Abbott Laboratories said fiscal second-quarter profit rose 35
percent. Net income increased to 183 million rupees in the three
months ended May 31, the company said in a statement to the Bombay
Stock Exchange. Abbott India slid 0.6 rupee, or 0.1 percent, to
497.6.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

WTO Negotiations Break Down on Disagreements Over Farm Aid, Import Duties

(Bloomberg) -- Negotiations among four key World
Trade Organization governments collapsed today, increasing the
likelihood of failure in broader talks on an agreement that
would add billions of dollars to the global economy.

For the first time, negotiators from the U.S. and the
European Union and teamed up and accused their Indian and
Brazilian counterparts of being intransigent and offering
nothing new to unblock trade talks that have dragged on for
almost six years. India and Brazil blamed U.S. and European
unwillingness to cut farm aid and import duties on commodities.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Corn, Soybeans Fall in Chicago on Speculation Rain to Boost Midwest Crops

(Bloomberg) -- Corn and soybeans fell in Chicago on
speculation that rains forecast in the next three days will
replenish soil moisture in the eastern Midwest after two months of
hot, dry weather threatened crops.

Some fields from South Dakota to Indiana may get as much as 2
inches (5.1 centimeters) of rain before hot weather returns on June
24, said John Dee, president of Global Weather Monitoring in
Mohawk, Michigan. A second storm may bring more rain by June 29,
improving conditions for corn pollination and soybean flowering,
Dee said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Corn, Soybeans Tumble on Speculation Rains in U.S. Midwest to Boost Crops

(Bloomberg) -- Corn in Chicago tumbled 4.7 percent,
the most in 11 weeks, and soybeans declined on forecasts for
Midwest rain that may add moisture to the soil and improve
prospects for recently seeded crops.

Parts of Ohio, Indiana and southern Illinois will get as
much as 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) of rain in the next 24 hours,
and rainfall will be above normal in the next 10 days,
Meteorlogix LLC said. Weather models show rain will fall in
Indiana and Ohio on June 22, Cropcast Ag Services said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Indian Explorers Lose Oil Rigs as Mexico, U.K. Step Up Offshore Drilling

(Bloomberg) -- Indian oil explorers led by Oil &
Natural Gas Corp. are losing rigs to rivals in countries such as
Mexico and U.K. as higher prices spur drilling, a report by
service provider Baker Hughes Inc. shows.

The number of rigs used in India slipped to 81 in May from
86 in January, Baker Hughes said in a monthly report on its Web
site June 15. At the same time, the worldwide total excluding
the U.S., Canada, Sudan and Iran, increased to 1,007 from 972.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

ICICI Bank Lifts Indian Rupee Forecast as Central Bank May Allow Gains

(Bloomberg) -- ICICI Bank Ltd., India's biggest
lender by market value, raised its forecast for the Indian rupee
because the central bank has accepted that a flood of investment
will strengthen the currency.

Trade Minister Kamal Nath aims to double foreign direct
investment into India to $30 billion this year. More funds may
flow in as ICICI Bank prepares to raise as much as 175 billion
rupees ($4.3 billion) at home and overseas in the nation's
biggest share sale.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Raw Sugar Falls in New York as India May Export as Much as 500,000 Tons

(Bloomberg) -- Sugar in New York fell for the seventh
time in eight sessions after India, the world's second-largest
producer, may export as much as 500,000 metric tons of the
sweetener in the year starting Oct. 1.

Indian Sugar Exim Corp., an industry-funded trading company,
won a contract to ship 200,000 tons to Dubai-based Al Khaleej
Sugar, Asia's largest refiner, Vinay Kumar, a Sugar Exim
spokesman, said today in a phone interview. The company said it
hopes to secure more orders when it starts shipments in December.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Indian Bonds Drop on Concern Increase in Auctions to Drain Funds at Banks

(Bloomberg) -- Indian bonds fell for a third day on
concern an increase in debt auctions will drain the spare funds
at banks, the biggest buyers of government securities.

Investors demanded higher yields at a 90 billion rupee
($2.2 billion) debt sale yesterday, pushing 10-year yields to
the highest in a week. The government will today sell 65 billion
rupees of treasury bills and 50 billion rupees of two-year notes.
The central bank said last week it will raise the amount of
treasury bills it will auction this week by more than 50 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Corn Futures Fall as Rains May Relieve Dry Conditions in Eastern Midwest

(Bloomberg) -- Corn futures fell in Chicago on
speculation that rains will boost prospects for crops threatened
by dry conditions in the eastern Midwest, including Illinois,
Indiana and Ohio.

As much as 1 inch of rain may fall through the weekend in
eastern Midwest fields that have received 25 percent of normal
rainfall the past month, said John Dee, president of Global
Weather Monitoring in Mohawk, Michigan. An additional half-inch
may fall over most of the Midwest early next week, Dee said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

India Rupee to Fall From Nine-Year High, Deutsche, Goldman Sachs Forecast

(Bloomberg) -- The Indian rupee may decline from a
nine-year high because the nation's central bank will sell the
currency to protect exports, according to Deutsche Bank AG and
Goldman Sachs Group Inc.

Options are also signaling the two-month rally is poised to
stall. In November, the last time the premium on calls granting
the right to buy rupees was as big as it reached this week,
India's currency lost 1 percent within two weeks, posting its
biggest weekly drop since July.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Dr. Reddy's posts strong Q4 net on generics sales

(Reuters) - MUMBAI, May 18 - Indian drug maker Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd. versus a loss of 236 million rupees reported a year ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News