GLOBAL MARKETS ROUNDUP
* Nifty futures on Singapore Exchange
rose 0.7 percent, while the MSCI-Asia Pacific index excluding Japan rose 0.6 percent.
* U.S. stocks slipped in light trading on Monday, pulling back from recent five-year highs ahead of an earnings season expected to be weak.
* Asian shares rose on Tuesday but were capped by concerns over global growth prospects, especially in the world's second-biggest economy China, and expected weak U.S. corporate earnings.
FACTORS TO WATCH
* U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke start a two-day visit to India
* India civil aviation minister at Economic Editors' conference. (0600 GMT)
* India Power Minister to address press at Economic Editors Conference. (0830 GMT)
* India oil minister and company officials at Economic Editors Conference. (0930 GMT)
INDIAN STOCKS TO WATCH NOTE: Reuters has not verified third-party stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
TOP NEWS
* The IMF sharply lowered its forecasts for India and predicted "less buoyant" growth in the near- and medium-term for Asia as a whole, cautioning any cool down in China's investment surge will add to the drag on regional and German manufacturers. (Reuters)
TELECOMS
* Long-established Indian mobile operators face a total surcharge of at least 270 billion rupees ($5.2 billion) to continue using the airwaves. (Reuters)
FINANCIAL
* Indian companies directly invested $1.4 billion overseas in September, lower than $1.9 billion a month ago, data from the central bank showed on Monday. (Reuters)
* Fitch Ratings says in a new report it expects Indian banks to face sustained asset quality weakness over the next few quarters although most have a reasonable buffer to withstand increased stress.
* Bank of Baroda and Punjab National Bank
on Monday announced a reduction in home loan rates and a waiver in processing fees on retail loans, a move aimed at growing their retail book at a time when there is poor demand for loans from corporates. (Economic Times)
* The private equity arm of Standard Chartered Plc
has invested $32 million in India's Varun Beverages, the companies said in a joint statement. (Reuters)
* Blackstone Group
has paid $100 million for a 12.5 percent stake in India's International Tractors Ltd (ITL), it said on Monday, in a bet on the modernisation of India's farms. (Reuters)
ENERGY/COMMODITIES * Reliance Industries'
key gas producing fields off India's east coast could be exhausted in five years, Morgan Stanley analysts said in a report. (Reuters)
* Reliance Industries has scaled down investment on the flagging gas fields in KG-D6 block by almost $3 billion to $5.92 billion on back of an unexpected drop in reserves, sources with direct knowledge of the development said. (Economic Times)
* NMDC
decided to cut iron ore prices by up to 11 per cent for October, said chairman C S Verma. (Press Trust of India via Business Line)
* Tata Steel Ltd
is strengthening domestic operations to beat the slowdown in Europe and other developed markets that's been exacerbated by the slump in Chinese demand, said CFO said Koushik Chatterjee. (Mint)
* State oil firms have slashed petrol rates marginally by 56 paise per litre because of significant appreciation in the rupee against dollar and softening of international oil prices. (Economic Times)
* Petronet LNG has allowed gas firm GAIL
to use annually 2.5 million tonnes capacity at Petronet's liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant at Dahej in western India for importing the fuel, its chief executive A. K. Balyan said on Monday. (Reuters)
* India's Aban Offshore
said it got a three-year contract from Petronas Carigali, with estimated revenues at about $152.75 million. (Reuters)
* Neyveli Lignite
said it entered a 51:49 joint venture with Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam to set up a 1980 mw coal-based thermal power project in Uttar Pradesh. (Reuters)
* New Delhi's power regulator DERC started a process to adjust the tariff structure to bring down monthly bills of low-end consumers by up to 18 percent. (Economic Times)
AIRLINES * Air India
is awaiting approval from the government for a 74-billion-rupee ($1.4 billion) bond sale, Chairman Rohit Nandan said on Monday. (Reuters)
INFRASTRUCTURE
* The government is hopeful of garnering about 1 trillion rupees investment in the highways sector through electronic tendering of projects, Road Transport and Highways Minister C P Joshi said. (Economic Times)
* The government is planning to build 10-15 greenfield airports and modernising 50 others in the non-metro cities over the next few years. (Economic Times)
RETAIL
* IKEA pushed ahead on Monday with a plan to open its first stores in India following the relaxation of rules on sourcing from local suppliers. (Reuters)
* Liquor barons Vijay Mallya and Kishore Rajaram Chhabria agreed on an out-of-court settlement on Monday to end their corporate dispute over ownership claims of Officer's Choice, the largest selling whisky brand in India. (Times of India)
* The Finance Ministry will soon take up the proposal of UK-based footwear and accessories retailer Pavers England, which has proposed to invest 1 billion rupees to set up single brand retail stores in India. (Economic Times)
* The Reserve Bank of India is open to looking at increasing the limit on international e-commerce transactions currently set at $3,000, a top official said. (Economic Times)
* VLCC is buying Malaysian counterpart Wyann International in a 1-billion rupees -plus deal that will give it access to Southeast Asian market and Asia rights for American cosmetics brand Skin Nutrition, two officials with direct knowledge of the development said. (Economic Times)
AUTOS
* Logistics operations and production at the plant of the Indian unit of Hyundai Motor
were hit following a strike by workers of TVS Logistics Services, which handles the car manufacturer's logistics, according to union sources. (Business Line)
IT
* Raising its concerns over visa problems being faced by IT professionals in the UK, India said the proposed visa measures by Great Britain may affect profitability and competitiveness of Indian companies. (Economic Times)
HEALTHCARE
* Apollo Health and Lifestyle Ltd, a unit of India's largest hospital chain Apollo Hospitals
, plans to spend 2.5 billion rupees over the next three to five years to drive a five-fold increase in the number of its branded healthcare clinics, said AHLL marketing head Ravindra Pai. (Mint)
* Panacea Biotec
is betting big on hospitals and may tap private equity funding for expansion, said Rajesh Jain, joint managing director. (Business Standard)
NOTE: Reuters has not verified third-party stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
OTHER FACTORS TO WATCH * Indian debt/FX factors to watch
* Euro on defensive as Spain aid seen in limbo
* Oil dips on growth concerns; Middle East fears support
* Foreign institutional investor flows
* For closing rates of Indian ADRs
(Compiled by Manoj Rawal; Editing by Rafael Nam)
((rafael.nam@thomsonreuters.com)(+91-22)(6180-7425)(Reuters
Messaging: rafael.nam.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
Keywords: MARKETS INDIA STOCKS/PRE OPEN