Edible oils tumble on ample supply........

ACC to invest Rs 3,600 cr by 2010 for capacity expansion.........

Honda expected to grow by 25 pc this fiscal .......

Sobha announces villa project near new international airport........

Gur steady in thin trade

NEW DELHI, Mar 8: There was not much activity on the wholesale gur (jaggery) today as prices moved in a tight range on alternate trading.

Marketmen said adequate stocks against lack of buying support mainly kept prices unaltered.

Following were today's quotations:

Chakku 1250-1300, Pedi 1200-1250 and Dhayya 1225-1250. Shakkar 1300-1350 and Khandsari 1450-1500.

In Muzaffarnagar: Raskat 975-1050, chakku 1125-1200 and Khurpa 1025-1050.

In Murad Nagar: Pedi 1050-1075, Dhayya 1050-1075. (PTI)

Steel prices remain quiet

NEW DELHI, Mar 8: Steel prices ruled flat on the local iron and steel market here today due to restricted supply against sporadic offtake.

Marketmen said in reduced stocks against poor demand kept the prices around last levels.

Following are today's quotations in Rs per tonne:

CTD saria (kamdhenu) 8-mm, 42,200, 10-mm, 41,850, 12-mm 40,650, 16-25 mm 31,350.

Rathi tor steel : 8-mm 42,150, 10-mm 41,800, 12-mm 40,600, 16-20 mm 41,300 and 25-32 mm 41,500.

Saria Jai bharat (iso 9002) 8-mm 42,500, 10 mm 42,000 12-mm 40,800, 16-25 mm 41,700.

Amba saria (iso-9002) 8-mm 41,900, 10-mm 41,400, 12-mm 40,600, 16-25-mm 41,100.

Amba shakti: (TMT) 8-mm 42,200, 10 mm 41,500, 12 mm 40,800, 16 to 25 mm 41,300.

M S Angle: (50x5) (50x6) 38,500, (25x3) (32x3) (40x3) 38,000, (40x5) (40x6) 38,700. Angle capital (ISI) (50X5) (50X6) 37,000, (40X5) (40x6) 37,500, (35X5) (65X6) 36,900.

Garder (joist) (150x75) 41,000 (175x85) 41,500 (200x100) 41,000 (125x70) 41,100. T-IRON (40X5) (40X6)(50X6) 40,500.

Ingot and Scrap: Bhivari 33,000, Govindgarh 33,500, Ghaziabad 33,000, Muzaffarnagar 33,100. (PTI)

Price remains flat on some support

NEW DELHI, Mar 8: Steady conditions persisted on the wholesale pulses market here today with prices by and large after hovering in a narrow groove on small bouts of buying and selling.

Marketmen said negligible enquiries by the stockists and local parties amid restricted supply, kept the prices around last levels.

Following were today's quotations (per quintal):

Urad Maharashtra 2300-2550, Rangoon 2500-2600, Urad chilka (local) 2900-3100 , best 3150-3500, dhoya local 3100-3400, best 3500-3600, Moong Maharashtra 2400-2700, Rajasthan 2100-2350, dal moong chilka local 2800-3000, best 3050-3400, moong dhoya local 2900-3100, best quality 3100-3500, masoor small 3050-3200, bold 3400-3500, dal masoor local 3700-3900, best quality 4000-4150, Malka local 3850-4000, best 4100-4250, Moth 1950-2050, Arhar Maharashtra 2750-2850, Rangoon 2600-2650, dal arhar dara 3650-3850 and patka 3800-4100.

Gram 2725-2750, gram dal (local) 3000-3100, best quality 3200-3300, besin (35 kg) shakti bhog 1210, rajdhani 1225, Rajmah chitra Pune 3300-3900, China 3600-3950, red 3200-3300, kabli gram small 2750-3500, dabra 2775-2875, imported 4600-4700, lobia 2200-2600, peas white 2150-2225 and green 2200-2250. (PTI)

Edible oils tumble on ample supply

NEW DELHI, Mar 8: Edible oils prices declined by Rs 50-350 a quintal on the wholesale oils and oilseeds market here today due to ample supply against reduced offtake.

However, sesame oils shot up by Rs 300 on paucity of stocks coupled with heavy buying by vanaspati mills.

Marketmen said increased arrivals against slackness in demand caused the fall in edible oils prices.

Mustard expeller lost sharply by Rs 350 to close at Rs 6,700 a quintal.

Crude palm oil ex-kandla also dropped by Rs 380 to conclude at Rs 5,900 a quintal on fall in prices at international market.

Soyabean refined mill delivery and palmoline rbd moved down by Rs 150 each at Rs 7,200 and Rs 7,100 a quintal respectively on poor buying interest.

Ricebran (phy) lean down by Rs 150 at Rs 5,750 a quintal on reduced offtake while cottonseed mill delivery shed Rs 100 to Rs 6,450 a quintal.

On the other hand, sesame mill delivery oils found fresh support due to paucity of stocks and climbed up by Rs 300 at Rs 8,800 a quintal.

Meanwhile, non-edible oils maintained its overnight closing price on small buying interest.

Following are today's quotation per quintal:

Oilseeds: mustard seed 2325-2500 and Groundnutseed 2700-3000.

Vanaspati ghee (15 litres tin) 885-995.

Edible oils: Groundnut mill delivery 7,700, Groundnut Solvent refined (per tin) 1250-1275, Mustard Expeller 6,700, Mustard Pakki ghani (per tin) 925-1000, Mustard kachi ghani (per tin) 975-1075, Sunflower 5,350, Sesame mill delivery 8,800, Soybean Refined mill delivery 7,200, Soyabean degum (Delhi) 7,100, Crude Palm Oil (Ex-kandla) 5,900, Cottonseed mill delivery 6,450, palmoline (RBD) 7,100, Rice bran (phy) 5,750 and coconut (per tin) 925-975.

Non-edible oils: linseed 4900 Mahuwa 4400, castor 5500-6000, Neem 3900-4000, Rice bran 3900-4050 and palm fatty 3125-3200.

Oilcakes: groundnut dehusk 770-820, Sesame 925-1125, Mustard (new) 1000-1025, Mustard 975-980 and Cottonseed 975-1100. (PTI)

ACC to invest Rs 3,600 cr by 2010 for capacity expansion

NEW DELHI, Mar 8: ACC Cement has lined up Rs 3,600 crore investment to augment its capacity to 32 million ton (MT) from 22MT per annum currently by 2010.

"We would take our capacity to 32MT per annum by 2010 entailing an investment of Rs 3,600 crore. All the investment would be done through internal accruals," ACC Cement Managing Director Sumit Banerjee told PTI.

The capacity expansion of the Mumbai-based firm would be carried out in the existing plants of the company.

About Rs 1,400 crore would be invested in expansion of its Chanda unit from 1 MT per annum to 4MT per annum. It also includes a captive power plant of 25MW per annum.

The expansion of the new Wadi plant to 4MT per annum from the current 1MT per annum would account for another investment of around Rs 1,500 crore.

The expansion of the company's Bargarh plant by 1.18MT per annum would entail an investment of Rs 523 crore. The capacity augmentation of ACC's grinding units at Madukkarai and New Wadi would together require about Rs 110 crore of investment.

Banerjee, however, ruled out possibility of an association with or acquisition of any cement manufacturer overseas.

"There is tremendous opportunity within the country. We first want to exploit that," Banerjee said.

The company is also in the process of setting up a bulk cement terminal in Pune of a capacity of 7,00,000-ton capacity per annum. It would be later increased to 1 MT per annum later. (PTI)

Honda expected to grow by 25 pc this fiscal

MUMBAI, Mar 8: Despite a five per cent slump the two wheeler automart will witness this fiscal, Honda Motorcycle and Scooters India (HMSI) today indicated a 25 per cent growth in its volume triggered by a 67 per cent higher sale from the motorcycles.

HMSI Divisional Head for Sales and Marketing N K Rattan told newsmen here that the Company expects to end the year with a total sale of 880,000 vehicles with scooters contributing 610,000 and motor cycles 270,000. In the next fiscal, the company aims to touch the figure of one million.

Mr Rattan said that the company exports will touch 37,000 units this year with the vehicles moving to 19 countries.

He said that within a short span of eight years, the company has captured 54 per cent of the market in the scooter segment with its innovative offerings and its new vehicle, Aviator, launched in the city today, will see a sale of 100,000 in the first year.

When Honda entered the market, the scooter segment was witnessing a considerable decline and it has not only revived the market, but also carved a niche. Aviator was yet another step in offering men over 30 years of age an alternative to wind through traffic hassles, which have become the order of the day in urban areas, Mr Rattan said.

With increasing standards of living, the need for products expressing strong individuality was rising and Aviator appropriately addressed this need and combined it with the utility of a scooter to fill an important gap in the consumer demand, he added.

Already, the company has sold 4,000 vehicles since its launch recently, Mr Rattan said.(UNI)

Sobha announces villa project
near new international airport

BANGALORE, Mar 8: Ahead of the opening of Bangalore International Airport at Devanahalli, real estate firm Sobha Developers today announced the launch of their largest single location project, Sobha Lifestyle, in the vicinity of the airport area.

Sobha Lifestyle is also the largest villa project by the company in the city, Shobha Developers (SDL) Managing Director J C Sharma told reporters.

Spread over 55 acres with 165 villas measuring 5,000, 7,000 and 10,000 square feet, the project is located around seven kms away from the airport.

The project cost is estimated to be around Rs 250-260 crore and is expected to be completed by the end of 2010. The land owned by Renaissance Developers is being jointly developed by Renaissance and Sobha, he said.

"In keeping with world class international airport, we also plan to offer world class residential space," he said.

Some airline companies have evinced interest in purchasing houses for housing their pilots, since the housing project was in close vicinity to the airport, Sobha Developers Director Raghav Menon said.

The villas, ranging from price points of Rs 3 crore to Rs 5.1 crore, would have state-of-the-art club house, gymnasium with sauna and jacuzzi, swimming pool, multipurpose party hall, table tennis room, reading, card and carrom room.

Other amenities include amphitheatre, tennis court, jogging track and CCTV for security. "The urban development project complies with environmental policies and conserving natural resources," he said, adding that the green component of the project includes usage of solar panels, rain harvesting and recharge of pits to replenish ground water. (PTI)