State-run Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has proposed a 50:50 partnership to operate 1432 closed petrol pumps of Reliance Industries (RIL), having 15 per cent fuel market share by the closing date of March 2008.

Other firms including Royal Dutch Shell, Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) have also shown interest in partnership with Reliance.

The private firm suffered huge losses in early 2008 due to difference in retail price of petrol and diesel sold by public sector oil companies and other private firms leading to closure of RIL's petrol pumps.

Housing finance firm, LIC Housing Finance (LICHF) slashed home loan interest rates by 75 basis points, covering all existing customers who have availed loans at different maturities.

LICHF Chief Executive Officer, RR Nair, said, "The incremental cost of funds has come down to around 8.25-8.75 per cent, as against over 11 per cent in October. So we have decided to pass on the benefits to existing customers."

The new home loan interest rates would be applicable from April 1 in the range between 10-10.50 per cent across various maturities as compared to earlier interest rate of 10.75-11.25 per cent.

Siemens VAI Metals Technologies, one of the world's leading engineering and plant-building companies for the iron and steel industry, has won an order worth euro 200 million from public sector Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL).

The order is for public sector steel major SAIL's upcoming new steel mill, which will be built at the company's Bhilai unit.

For the latest awarded contract, Siemens VAI will engineer and supply three LD converters with a tapping weight of 180 tons.

State-run National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) on February 26 paid an interim dividend worth Rs 4.01 billion to the administration.

After getting the cheque from the NMDC chairman, Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan, Union Minister for Steel, Chemicals and Fertilizers, praised the company (NMDC) for its excellent performance.

Mr. Paswan stated that NDMC’s 4 million ton steel plant in Chhattisgarh would come sooner than schedule.

Government's auditing regulator, the Controller and Auditor General (CAG) has pointed out some serious fallouts in the accounts of some government departments. CAG, in a report on government's accounts for 2007-08, tabled in parliament on Friday, holds responsibility to the finance secretary and the expenditure secretary for the report preparation and anomalies.

The report by CAG, pointing misuse of funds, maintains, "Union Government made a provision for transfer of central plan assistance of Rs51,259 crore directly to state/district level autonomous bodies... for implementation of centrally sponsored schemes."

Due to inefficient management and slowdown in Aviation industry under the impact of global slowdown, Indian Railways, country's largest transporter, posted 13.17 increases in its revenue in the period between April 2008 and 2009.
 
Railways’ revenue stood at Rs 64,876.34 crore compared to Rs 57,327 crore in the same period last year. Railways posted 13.64% increase in freight and 11.82 per cent increase in passenger revenue, as per official statement of Railways Ministry.