India Briefs

Continuing dollar demand from importers and foreign institutional investors pushed the Indian rupee to a new lifetime low of 47.70 per dollar on the last day of the week. Foreign funds continue to be dollar buyers.

Dealers said redemption pressures and expectation of more rate cuts in the United States, reinforced by this week's terror attacks, could be causing a shift to U.S. treasuries.

India's key share index , the Sensex, tumbled through the week amid fears of escalating tension in the region as the U.S. prepared to retaliate against the terror attacks.

Analysts said foreign funds were among the heavy sellers. There were also worries about rising oil prices on the Indian economy as the country imports nearly 70 percent of its crude oil requirements. Brokers said persistent weakness in the Indian currency also spooked sentiment.

Industrial growth slipped to 2.6 per cent in July this year from 5 per cent in the same month last year. The downward trend was led by a poor show in manufacturing and mining indices.

Bajaj Auto is in talks with Italian two-wheeler major Aprilia for a technical collaboration for high-end scooters. The Pune-based company is expected to finalise a technology pact with Aprilia soon. However, the company has ruled out any financial tie-ups with Aprilia.

Tata Engineering has reported a 12.5 per cent rise in sales of commercial vehicles in August. The improvement was particularly evident in higher volumes of medium and heavy commercial vehicles which rose by 26.3 per cent.