* AUTOMOBILES: Renault-Nissan alliance in India plans to spend 20 bln rupees on capacity expansion.
* AVIATION: Ministry has decided to do away with the policy mandating airlines to fly to certain far-flung regions of the country. Airports Authority of India has brought to the civil aviation ministry's attention, several moves by the GMR INFRASTRUCTURE-led consortium that runs the New Delhi airport, that were not in keeping with terms of agreement between Delhi International Airport and Airports Authority of India.
* DIVESTMENT: The government is planning to mop up 400 bln rupees from divestment in public sector companies in 2013-14 (Apr-Mar), an official in the Department of Disinvestment said.
* EXCHANGE: National Stock Exchange to exclude SIEMENS and WIPRO from Nifty effective Apr 1. The two shares will to be replaced by NMDC and INDUSIND BANK.
* FINANCE: According to a post by the government's Press Information Bureau on social networking site Twitter, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram will meet his state counterparts Thursday to resolve impending issues over implementation of the Goods and Services Tax.
* GOVERNMENT: Is set to revise downwards the budgetary expenditure for 2012-13 by 9% to 13.6 trln rupees from the initially estimated 14.9 trln rupees, and peg the size of Budget 2013-14 at roughly the same level as the revised figure for this fiscal.
* MUTUAL FUNDS: Of the 607.32 bln rupees worth of incremental flows into mutual funds in January, 56% came through direct plan schemes. Tata Capital Growth Fund has invested 1.2 bln rupees for a 14% stake in Star Health & Allied Insurance Co.
* OIL & GAS: Oil marketing companies are waiting for nod from Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Veerappa Moily, to raise petrol price by 1 rupee and diesel price by 50 paisa. The companies fear that political considerations may deter their plans to raise rates.
- Oil marketing companies may not raise fuel prices together on one day, as this may amount to cartelisation. Bankers have refused Haldia Petrochemicals' promoters' demand to lend further capital to the venture without turning the existing debt into equity.
* REGULATORY: SEBI has frozen bank accounts and attached assets of two Sahara group companies.
- The Reserve Bank of India has set up a technical committee to study facilities and services provided to exporters under the chairmanship of Executive Director G. Padmanabhan.
* TAXATION: Income Tax Department is looking at ways to relax and simplify rules for tax collection and credit associated with foreign investments into India , especially via external commercial borrowings.
* TELECOM: Department of Telecommunications has issued notices to BHARTI AIRTEL, Vodafone and RELIANCE COMMUNICATIONS to pay additional revenue share for spectrum usage from 2008 onwards.
- Supreme Court has asked Central Bureau of Investigation to identify by today a team of officials that will analyse the Nira Radia tapes relating to the 2G scam. Uninor has said it has dramatically narrowed its losses to 4.37 bln rupees in Oct-Dec, from 48.96 bln rupees in the year ago period. Central Bureau of Investigation is seeking legal opinion to move court to appeal for cancellation of UNITECH Managing Director Sanjay Chandra's bail.
