Indian stocks to watch - Dec 21

GLOBAL MARKETS ROUNDUP 
    * Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange fell 0.5
percent. The MSCI-Asia Pacific index, excluding Japan 
, is down 0.78 percent.  
    * Asian shares slid on Friday after a Republican proposal to
fend off a U.S. fiscal crunch failed to get enough support,
deepening uncertainty over prospects for the negotiations to
avert automatic spending cuts and tax increases set to start in
January.  
    * U.S. stock index futures fell sharply after U.S. House of
Representative Speaker John Boehner conceded that his tax bill
designed to help avert the "fiscal cliff" lacked the votes to
pass. 
 
    FACTORS TO WATCH 
    * India foreign exchange reserves data (1130 GMT)
    
    INDIAN STOCKS TO WATCH
For additional press items double click 
NOTE: Reuters has not verified third-party stories and does not
vouch for their accuracy.
    
    TOP NEWS
    * U.S. House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner faced
an embarrassing setback on Thursday when he failed to unite his
Republican lawmakers behind an effort designed to extract
concessions from President Barack Obama in year-end "fiscal
cliff" talks. 
    * India's upper house of parliament approved the
long-awaited banking amendment bill as the country seeks to
attract foreign investment and increase the number of lenders in
the country. (Reuters) 
    
    ENERGY/COMMODITIES
    * The government's stake sale in Steel Authority of India
Ltd may take place in February, but there is still no
clarity on the sale for Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd, according to
a senior government official. (Business Line)
here
     * The telecom department (DoT) is set to approve Reliance
Industries' demand that it be allowed to test voice
services on its upcoming fourth generation (4G) networks.
(Economic Times)
here
    * Separately, SEBI has rejected a third attempt by Reliance
Industries, the country's largest private sector firm, for an
out-of-court settlement of insider trading charges, unidentified
sources were quoted as telling The Economic Times.(Economic
Times)
here
    
    FINANCIAL
    * India will soon make it mandatory for foreign investors to
declare their source of funds while investing in sensitive
sectors, a senior finance ministry official said. (Economic
Times)
here
    * Six bulge bracket private equity (PE) funds have been
short-listed to purchase a 70 percent stake owned by private
equity fund Warburg Pincus in the unlisted Alliance Tire Group ,
three people with direct knowledge of the development said.
(Economic Times)
here
    * The Shriram Group has moved its non-financial businesses
worth 45 billion rupees to anew holding firm,Shriram Venture,
to meet Reserve Bank of India (RBI) norms and apply for a
banking licence, a top official of the Chennai-based firm said.
(Mint)
here
    
    INDUSTRIAL
    * Adani Enterprises Ltd set the floor price for a
planned sale of 23 million shares by promoters at 282 rupees per
share. (Reuters) 
    
    RETAIL
    * IKEA has asked the government to reconsider the
decision to bar it from selling several products in its proposed
stores in India and wants its original proposal to be approved
in entirety, a person familiar with the development
said.(Economic Times)
here

    TELECOMS
    * The telecom department has estimated the exchequer will
get a minimum of 397.98 billion rupees if the government sells
all airwaves that are put up for sale at the base price during
the next round of spectrum auctions in March 2013. (Economic
Times)
here
  
    AIRLINES
    * A bid by grounded Indian carrier Kingfisher Airlines
 to renew its operating licence, which expires at the
end of the year, will not succeed until it submits a turnaround
plan, a senior aviation regulatory source said on Thursday.
(Reuters) 

    AUTOS
    * The board of Mahindra & Mahindra has given its
loss-making truck subsidiary, Mahindra Navistar Automotive Ltd
(MNAL), three years to turn around the business, Pawan Goenka,
president of the automotive and farm equipment business told
analysts in a conference call. (Economic Times)
here
  
    PHARMA
    * Sanofi said its Merial unit signed an agreement
to buy the animal health business of drugmaker Dosch
Pharmaceuticals to boost its presence in the growing Indian
market. (Reuters)

Posted in: STOCKS TO WATCH