Rupee derivatives trading takes off
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India's decision to open up the rupee derivatives market had a salutary effect on the money market with a number of deals -- actually worth over Rs 600 crore -- having been registered on the first day itself. Corporate deals accounted for Rs 500 crore.

Standard Chartered Bank became the largest transacting agent with nine to 10 deals worth more than Rs 250 crore. Its first interest rate swap in Indian rupees was with ICICI and Deutsche Bank for a period of six month. The bank is also understood to have put through the largest interest rate swap deal of over Rs 100 for a General Electric group company.

Other banks active in the fray are HSBC Markets, Deutsche Bank, ABN Amro and Credit Lyonnais and among the Indian banks, HDFC Bank and TimesBank

An interest rate swap is a contract between two parties exchanging interest rate liabilities for a fixed period, while the forward rate agreement is a contract exchanging interest payments after a specified period. 
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DoT cellphone service by year-end
New Delhi: The department of telecommunications will enter the cellular telephone business throughout the country by the year-end.

DoT secretary Anil Kumar said the government would also invite fresh bids for the third operator in each cellular circle while DoT will enter as the fourth operator. 
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Credit to software units notified as priority
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India has notified that bank credit to software units with a credit limit of Rs 1 crore will be considered as a priority sector advance.

The RBI has also clarified that while loans to the food and agro-processing sector, satisfying the criterion of small scale industry, should be included under SSI advances, loans to larger industries in this sector will be reported as a separate segment under the priority sector. 
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Sahara India gets RNBC registration
Mumbai: Sahara India Financial Corporation has been granted a certificate of registration by the Reserve Bank of India as a residuary non-banking finance company.

The company will be the second largest residuary non-banking finance company after Peerless General Finance and Investments.

Unlike non-banking finance companies, RNBCs have severe restrictions on their deployment of funds. 
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Peerless registration held back
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India has held back the registration of the Calcutta-based Peerless General Finance and Investments as a residuary non-banking finance company.

The RBI is understood to be not happy with the goings on at the Peerless General Finance.

Peerless General Finance does not figure in the list of 611 companies granted fresh certificate of registration or where grant of certificate is pending. It also does not figure in the list of 1,105 companies whose applications have been rejected.

RBI sources say the company has been put under watch.  
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H1-B visa processing stopped
Calcutta: The United States visa office has stopped issuing visa applications under the H1-B category for the time being. The US immigration office said that the ceiling fixed for the financial year 1999 of 1,15,000 H1-B visas has already been reached and as such, the US Immigration and Naturalisation Service will not approve any new applications for work permits commencing on or before 30 September. The office will however, accept new applications but will not process them before 1 October.  
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Ruling against cigarette companies
Miami: The tobacco industry in the United States suffered a setback when a Florida jury ruled that smoking causes diseases such as lung cancer and the US cigarette makers hid the dangers of their products from the public.

The jury waived off defence arguments that smokers can quit any time and ruled that smoking is addictive while ordering the biggest tobacco companies in the US to pay unspecified damages. The defendants were RJ Reynolds Tobacco Co, Philip Morris Co Inc, Loews Corporation's Lorrillard Tobacco Co Liggett Group, the Brown & Williamson unit of British American Tobacco and the Council for Tobacco Research and Tobacco Institute.   
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