Briefly Business

Madras HC adjourns Vodafone-Essar case

Chennai: Vodafone,majority shareholder in joint venture with Essar,has filed another application in Madras High Court,asking to make SEBI a party in a case against Essars proposal to merge two subsidiaries. Essar has proposed to merge Essar Telecommunications Holdings Private Limited,which has 11 per cent stake in Vodafone-Essar,with India Securities Limited in order to find out Fair Market Value of its stake in the joint venture. The case will now come up for hearing on April 1,2011.

EFTA-India free trade deal likely this year

basel: A broad-based trade and investment agreement between India and four-nation European Free Trade Association EFTA,which includes Switzerland,is expected to conclude this year to facilitate closer economic cooperation. Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said that seven round of negotiations have already been completed. European Free Trade Association states include Iceland,Liechtenstein and Norway,besides Switzerland.

Longer jail term for destroying coins

new delhi: A bill,providing for raising of maximum punishment for melting or destruction of coins from five to seven years of imprisonment,was today passed by the Lok Sabha without a debate. The Coinage Bill 2009,which was adopted by voice vote after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee moved it for consideration and passage,amalgamates four existing laws related to coinage and revises the provisions of these Acts.

SBI to raise 1 billion through bonds

new delhi: The countrys largest lender State Bank of India SBI today said it is planning to raise about Rs 4,500 crore through bonds from overseas market next fiscal to fund growth plans. There will an issue overseas in the next financial year. It could be around one billion dollars, SBI Chairman O P Bhatt said on the sidelines of the Skoch event here. It would be raised in one go,he said.

AAI approx valuation at R80,000 crore

Hyderabad: Airports Authority of India AAI,which is planning to become a corporate,estimates its valuation to be nearly Rs 80,000 crore with strong business plans in the pipeline,its chairman V P Agrawal said on Friday. AAI,the largest airport developer of the country,however,was valued at only Rs 20,000 crore by auditing and consulting firm KPMG which was appointed to study its corporatisation plans in 2009.

Court bars Satyam from operating a/c

Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh High Court on Friday directed the Income Tax Department as well as Mahindra Satyam,which has challenged the tax demand of Rs 617 crore,not to operate the companys account till March 31. The matter has been posted to March 30 for next hearing. The interim order was passed by the Divisional bench of AP High Court,comprising Justices V V S Rao and Ramesh Ranganathan.