Mar 5: Services sector loses steam

Mar 5: Services sector loses steam

A cotton carder uses a traditional carding tool to make quilts and mattresses at a workshop in Allahabad

Govt has banned cotton exports with immediate effect, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said on Monday, as the world's second-largest exporter of the fibre moves to conserve supplies for local mills.

India is the world's second largest producer of cotton and most of its shipments go to China, the world's largest user of the fibre.

A technician opens a pressure gas valve inside the Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) group gathering station on the outskirts of Ahmedabad

State-controlled insurer LIC bought 157 million shares in Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC ) in the run-up to the mega auction last week.

A company filing said, LIC owned 433.5 million shares or 5.06% before the auction.

According to the company's shareholding pattern as on December 31, 2011, the insurer had only 276.39 million shares or 3.23% stake, which means the additional 157 million shares or 1.83% were bought by the insurer in the run-up to the auction.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) logo is pictured outside its head office in Mumbai

There is still room for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to cut the cash reserve ratio (CRR) for banks, RBI Deputy Governor Subir Gokarn said in an interview to a TV channel.

The RBI cut the CRR, or the proportion of deposits that banks must maintain with the central bank, by 50 basis points to 5.5% on January 24 but kept its key policy rate unchanged.

Workers load metal pipes onto a truck at Noida, located in Uttar Pradesh

Counting of votes in the Assembly elections in the five states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur and Goa, considered "mini general elections", will be taken up tomorrow.

The results will decide the fate of candidates in a total of 690 assembly seats --- 403 in UP, 117 seats in Punjab, 70 in Uttarakhand, 60 in Manipur and 40 in Goa.

Exit polls show Mulayam Singh's SP gaining grounds in UP.