Sensex up 22 pts,Nifty 5 on Asia cues

Similarly,the wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty inched up by 5.05 points,or 0.09 per cent,to 5,325.45.

Refinery,consumer durable and realty sectors stock led the gains.

Brokers said selective buying by funds,driven by a firm trend on Asian bourses mainly boosted the trading sentiment.

In Asian region,the Hong Kong8217;s Hang Seng index gained 0.26 per cent,while Japan8217;s Nikkei index traded marginally up by 0.01 per cent in opening trade.

The dow jones industrial average index had ended 0.32 per cent higher on Friday8217;s trade.

Stocks More on Sun Pharma

Company INFO More on Sun Pharma

MARKETS-INDIA-STOCKS/PRE-OPEN:Indian stocks to watch-Aug 13

GLOBAL MARKETS

The Nifty futures on Singapore Exchange fell 0.08 per cent,while the MSCI Asia-Pacific index excluding Japan fell 0.03 per cent.

The Samp;P finished slightly higher on Friday to run its streak to six straight sessions,but activity was light and gains were slight as the market enters a seasonally slow period.

Asian shares steadied on Monday but gains were limited by investors turning cautious about a slowdown in global growth.

FACTORS TO WATCH

India8217;s Tata Steel expected to report quarterly profit fell sharply,hurt by weaker demand and prices in Europe,where it operates two thirds of its 28 million tonnes global capacity.

Coal India,the worlds largest coal miner,expected to report a single-digit rise in first quarter profit.

RBI Governor Duvvuri Subbarao is due to give a speech on India in a globalizing world: some policy dilemmas in an event organised by the State Bank of Kerala in Thiruvanathapuram.

INDIAN STOCKS TO WATCH

FINANCIAL/REGULATORY

India8217;s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expects a better performance from the economy this fiscal year even as private economists cut growth forecasts for Asia8217;s third largest economy,citing a drought and policy gridlock.

We shouldn8217;t draw unwarranted conclusions. This year we will see better than 6.5 percent gross domestic product growth of last year,he said on Saturday.

The finance ministry is working on a series of steps to revive investor sentiment and clear bottlenecks in key infrastructure projects,a top official in the ministry told Economic Times on the condition of anonymity.

The initiatives,a priority for new Finance Minister P Chidambaram,include clearing bottlenecks in key sectors such as roads,power and energy,measures to speed up disinvestment and steps to revive capital markets.

Fitch Ratings,which recently lowered India8217;s credit outlook to negative,has said that possibility of downgrading the country8217;s sovereign rating is more than 50 per cent in the next 12-24 months.

The Reserve Bank of India and other domestic agencies are seeking details from British financial regulator FSA about HSBC and Standard Chartered whose outsourcing of key oversight jobs to India has come under U.S. regulatory probe,sources close to the development said.

Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor K.C. Chakrabarty said on Saturday domestic corporate loan restructurings were not being conducted in an objective manner,saying the process favoured state-owned banks and large corporate borrowers.

HDFC Bank is not mulling a rate cut on its auto loans offering as done by rival State Bank of India SBI,in the near future,said senior executive vice president and business head for vehicle loans Ashok Khanna.

India8217;s foreign exchange reserves rose to 289.152 billion as of Aug. 3,from 288.650 billion in the previous week,the central bank said in its weekly statistical supplement on Friday.

EARNINGS

Reliance Communications on Saturday reported a smaller-than-expected 3 per cent rise in quarterly profit,weighed down by higher finance costs,in what was its second straight quarter of profit growth.

Oil amp; Natural Gas Corp reported a higher-than-expected 48 per cent jump in quarterly profit,as the company benefited from higher crude oil prices and foreign exchange fluctuations.

Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd posted a wider quarterly loss on Friday,hit by foreign exchange losses and the lag between selling petroleum products below cost and receiving a government subsidy.

Kingfisher Airlines,which used to be India8217;s second biggest carrier but is now struggling with crushing debt,posted another quarterly loss on Saturday and shed no light on any potential funding lifeline.

Siemens India said April-June net profit fell 76.5 per cent to 364.2 million rupees from a year ago.

ENERGY/COMMODITIES

The European Commission said it had received an anti-dumping complaint by European steel producers8217; group Eurofer against imports of stainless steel wires from India.

India8217;s Goa state plans to cap its iron ore output at 45 million tonnes per annum due to its limited infrastructure,the mining department head said,down 18 per cent and likely to cut India8217;s depleted exports further.

Water levels in India8217;s main reservoirs in the week to Aug. 9 were at 42 per cent of capacity,down 10 percentage points from a year ago,government data showed on Friday,filling faster but still reflecting this year8217;s weak monsoon.

Tata Power is looking at overseas opportunities in transmission business as the domestic market at present offers limited scope for private participation in this segment,a top company official said.

Utilities drawing excessive power from the grid will soon have to pay congestion charges,with the National Load Despatch Centre introducing a levy and setting lower limits to prevent a repeat of the recent breakdowns.

Reliance Industries has sold its 25 per cent stake in an oil block in Yemen to Indonesia8217;s Medco Energi for about 90 million,industry sources said.

In an effort to get at least 25-30 per cent coking coal from indigenous sources,SAIL has approached the government seeking allotment of more coal blocks,director of raw materials amp; logistics A K Pandey said.

Concerned over delays in execution of small steel projects worth about Rs 700 billion ,the Steel Ministry has sought cooperation of ministries like mines and environment and the states in removing various hurdles.

Jindal Steel and Power plans to begin production from two of its overseas coal mines in Indonesia and Mozambique by month-end,a development which will ensure supply of inputs for the existing and upcoming projects,a senior company official has said.

BHEL plans to undertake capital expenditure of 10 billion rupees this year for internal modernisation and expansion of different sectors,the company chairman B Prasada Rao said.

NMDC 8216;s board is expected to give its nod next week to acquire 26 per cent stake in Brazilian iron ore company Amplus for around 10-15 million,a senior company official said.

The government will take away airwaves from existing GSM operators such as Bharti Airtel,Vodafone and Idea Cellular in early 2013 and complete their resale by the middle of next year as it implements the controversial proposal to refarm spectrum held by incumbents.

TELECOMS

The government has decided to allow foreign companies to bid in the upcoming 2G spectrum auctions on their own without a domestic partner,hoping to ensure higher participation in the process.

The government will take away airwaves from existing GSM operators such as Bharti Airtel,Vodafone and Idea Cellular in early 2013 and complete their resale by the middle of next year.

The finance ministry will strongly object to a plan to give away mobile phones to every family below the poverty line,arguing the cash-strapped government cannot afford the Rs 70-billion scheme,a top ministry official said

MEDIA

Interpublic Group is close to acquiring the largest digital marketing agency in India,called Interactive Avenues IA,people familiar with the development said.

AUTOS

Japan8217;s Honda Motor Co has bought a 3 per cent stake it did not already own in its Indian car unit from local firm Usha International in a deal worth 1.8 billion rupees 32.5 million,ending a partnership of more than 16 years.

Maruti Suzuki,which will take a decision on reopening of its Manesar plant on Monday,will operate the violence-hit facility under police protection when production resumes,according to a senior Haryana Police official

Mahindra amp; Mahindra plans to start selling its branded vehicles in Russia within two years as it looks to make the country an important export destination,President of the Automotive and Farm Equipment Sectors unit Pawan Goenka told analysts in a conference call last week.

Mahindra amp; Mahindra wants to overtake Tata Motors as the biggest auto company in Sri Lanka in the next two years,the vice president of international operations for the automotive and farm equipment unit Pradeep Kumar said.

RETAIL

Italian jewelry brand Damiani has approached the government for permission to enter the country8217;s single-brand retail sector after filing an application with the Foreign Investment Promotion Board FIPB,according to an official.

PHARMA

The government said it will spend nearly two per cent of GDP on health care sector in its 12th five year plan,Union Minister of State for Planning,Science and Technology Ashwani Kumar said.

Ranbaxy Laboratories has started shifting production of its generic version of the world8217;s bestselling drug Lipitor from the U.S. to its new manufacturing facility in Mohali,the company8217;s CEO and MD Arun Sawhney said in a post-results briefing.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries is eyeing for acquisitions in countries such as Brazil,Mexico and Russia,with a view to enhance presence in these emerging markets,Managing Director Dilip Shanghvi told analysts in a conference call.