Stars at the party by Deepika

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Shanti Dynamite is more sexiest then Sunny Leone

Britain's leading Asian newspaper Eastern Eye annually compiles a list of the 50 sexiest Asian women. With the likes of Priyanka Chopra, Kareena Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Aishwarya Rai and many others prevailing as some of the hottest women in Asia, Shanti Dynamite has come nothing short of a blast as she just joined the exclusive list of 50 most sexiest women from Asia. 

Shanti Dynamite was ranked at number 48 as a latest entrant, by beating Bollywood most controversial actress Sunny Leone, Veena Malik and Poonam Pandey. The top 3 are Katrina Kaif who tops the rank, Priyanka Chopra coming second, and Drashti Dhami third. Playboy popular TV star Shanti Dynamite who hosts adult chat show in UK , she began her career as a teenager, starting as a glamour model on the popular hotel Voyeur, A UK based topless show and she is all set to enter Bollywood. 

Clearly delighted, Shanti Dynamite said: "I'm hugely flattered. That's a nice surprise and a lot of fun to hear. Who wouldn't want to have a title like this bestowed on them! A big shouts out to everyone who voted for me." 

Shanti Dynamite spokesperson Satish Reddy said, "Yes I have been handling Veena Malik and Poonam Pandey and now I am happy that Shanti had made her entrant into the list very soon. I am lucky that my client got listed in top 50 Asia's Sexiest Women list." 
Other notable stars in this year's list include Sonam Kapoor (5), Parineeti Chopra (14), Sophie Choudry (21), Mehreen Syed (22), Sunidhi Chauhan (28), Ankita Lokhande (29), Hina Khan (31) and Shreya Ghoshal (43). The oldest women in the list were Bollywood icons Madhuri Dixit (23) and Sridevi (40). 

DATSUN to be sold in India by NISSAN

Japanese auto major Nissan Motor Co will sell its upcoming small car Datsun Go and other models from the Datsun range on its own in India and not through its country sales and service partner Hover Automotive. "Selling the Datsun Go and future Datsun models through Nissan Motor represents a natural evolution of the company's operations in India, which are well recognised in the market," Datsun Global Head Vincent Cobee said in a statement. Cobee said an expanded model range.

BMW cars to cost more

German luxury car maker BMW today said it will increase prices of its vehicles in India by up to 10 percent from January 2014 as part of its sustainable and profitable growth strategy. The price increase from 7 to 10 percent will be across the BMW and MINI product range effective January 1, 2014, the company said in a statement. "At BMW Group, we believe that both profitability and growth are essential for a win-win situation at the end. We are making price decisions with all due care and consideration ensuring that they pay off in the long run," BMW Group India President Philipp von Sahr said. In August this year, the company had increased the prices of its vehicles by up to 5 per cent citing higher import costs due to declining rupee. At present, BMW sells a range of vehicles in India, including compact luxury car 1 series, sedans 3, 5, 6 and 7 Series, along with SUVs X1, X3, X5 and sports car M Series, which are priced between Rs 20.9 lakh and Rs 1.78 crore. BMW Group's luxury compact car, the Mini series is currently available between Rs 23.7 lakh and Rs 33.2 lakh (ex-showroom).

No single increase in diesel price

Even as the Union government considers deregulating diesel prices, petroleum minister M Veerappa Moily today informed that there will be no single stroke price rise in diesel prices but the government will increase diesel prices will be in a phased manner every month by 40-50 paise. “Diesel deregulation is fully on track. But we have no plan to do increase diesel prices in single stroke. There will be increase in diesel prices by 40-50 paise every month,” said Moily during an ONGC event at Jambusar near Bharuch today. When asked about the under recoveries of the oil public sector units, Moily maintained that several measures are being taken to bring down the under recoveries and diesel decontrol is a part of it. Notably, last week Moily had stated that the Diesel sector will be deregulated in six months to bring down the under recoveries on sale of diesel. The government on had in January this year allowed oil marketing comapnies (OMCs) to increase diesel prices by up to 50 paise per litre every month. Moily dedicated the country’s first exploratory shale gas well (JMSGA) of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) at Jambusar in Cambay Basin on Tuesday. Moily maintained that with the beginning in the shale gas exploration in the country, India can look forward to reduction in oil imports. “We have carved out a roadmap, that in 2020, 50% of our (oil) imports should be reduced, and by 2025, 75% of our imports should be reduced and by the year 2030 we should become energy independent,” Moily said during his address at the rig no. E 1400-VII. “This step can bring real freedom to the people of the country. Mahatma Gandhi’s land can bring real economic freedom to the people of this country,” he said. Moily further expressed confidence that India has potential to become the third country to become net exporter of oils after US and Canada. “Shale gas, CMB, these are all unconventional gas. This comes with the latest technology. The US, which was struggling for oils, and its appetite for oil has several times driven them to gulf war too. But now in six years they have become net exporter from net importer of oil,” said Moily. “Same thing happened in Canada. May be our country, India too will be the third country to lead in this technological war,” he added.

RIL bank guarantee issue to be resolved soon

Petroleum Minister M Veerappa Moily today said he is confident of resolving the issue of securing USD 135 million in bank guarantees from Reliance Industries within a fortnight to enable the company to charge higher gas price from April 1. "I am confident of settling the bank guarantee issue with Reliance within a fortnight," Moily told reporters when asked if he would set a timeline for resolving the vexed matter. According to the ministry, while the proposed bank guarantee would secure the government's interests on one hand, the higher pricing would protect the interests of RIL on the other. The bank guarantee is being sought as the government feels that the steep fall in KGD6 gas output is not because of geological reasons, as is being claimed by RIL, but on account of the company's hoarding gas with to make a windfall gain from next April when gas prices will be doubled. If the hoarding allegations are true, the bank guarantees would be encashed with interest for the period from April 1 to the date the charges are proved. Moily met investors, financial institutions and analysts here last night ahead of the forthcoming NELP Round X auctions beginning mid-January. He said unlike the flurry of negative news regarding the issues between the government and RIL, the only major issue is the arbitration settlement, which is pending with the courts now. "We have, over the past few months, cleared as many as USD 7 billion worth investment proposals submitted by RIL," the minister said, adding that the media was only headlining the negative news. Moily said he expects the Supreme Court to appoint a third arbitrator at the earliest so that the issues between the nation's largest private company and the government could be resolved at the earliest. The ministry had recently asked RIL to provide a bank guarantee of USD 135 million every quarter to get a higher price for natural gas from April 1. The guarantee will be encashed if it is proved that RIL hoarded gas or deliberately suppressed production at the Dhirubhai-1 and 3 (D1&D3) -- main gas fields in its Eastern offshore KG-D6 block. It will cover the difference between the current gas price of USD 4.2 per million British thermal units and the proposed new rate of USD 8.4 per million Btu. The ministry had earlier proposed that RIL should be forced to sell gas from the D1&D3 fields at the current rate until it is proved that the 80 per cent fall in output was due to natural reasons or it makes up for the shortfall in production since 2010-11. The penalty in the form of the lower gas price would have been the second imposed by the ministry on RIL for falling short of the stated production targets. It had already levied a USD 1.8 billion penalty for the output drop and the issue is before arbitration. Gas production from the D1&D3 fields has fallen to less than 10 million standard cubic metres per day from the peak of 54 mmscmd in March 2010. Production has been lower than the target since the latter half of the 2010-11 fiscal and it should currently have been 80 mmscmd, as per the 2006 investment plan.

TDS Refund will delay for 2013-14

Income tax department will delay payment of TDS for assessment year 2013-14.According to sources govt will delay large crunch of refund to taxpayers as govt wants to show less deficit.Govt thinks if return will be given on time then Govt have less funds,therefore rating agencies will get chance to downgrade the rating of Indian Economy.Downgrading of economy will effect FII Investment.whereas experts wants govt to pay interest with of return with the same rate it charge from Taxpayers.Lets see it will increase interest rate on refund or not.

NHPC seeks Navratna status

State-owned NHPC, which has embarked on ambitious expansion plans, has approached the government seeking 'Navratna' status that would provide the power producer more leeway in investment decisions. The move comes at a time when NHPC, the country's largest hydel power generator, has firmed up plans to foray into thermal, solar and wind energy segments."We have submitted the proposal seeking Navratna status to the government," a senior official told. The proposal was submitted to the Power Ministry, which has forwarded the same to the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE), the official said.DPE, the nodal agency for public sector undertakings, comes under the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises. According to the official, Navratna status would provide the company with more autonomy and flexibility in deciding on investments. Currently, NHPC is a 'Mini Ratna Category-I' enterprise. Established in 1975, the company has an authorised share capital of Rs 15,000 crore. The company raked in a net profit of Rs 2,348.22 crore in the last financial year. 'Navratna' status provides for greater autonomy and more powers to the company's board, especially on investment decisions.Among others, the board of a 'Navratna' company can decide on investments worth up to Rs 1,000 crore in a single project without going for government approval.As per the guidelines for such entities, the ceiling on investment to establish financial joint ventures and wholly owned subsidiaries in the country or overseas shall be 15 per cent of the company's net worth in one project limited to Rs1,000 crore. At present, there are about 14 Navratna companies. NHPC has an installed power generation capacity of 5,702 MW, including 1,520 MW implemented through joint ventures. Seven projects, having total capacity of 4,095 MW are under construction.Moving forward with its diversification agenda, NHPC would be developing a 1,320 MW thermal power project alongwith Chattisgarh government in that state. Besides, plans are on the anvil for developing grid connected 50 MW wind and 100 MW solar power projects. "NHPC has been allowed to plan, promote and organise an integrated and efficient development of power through conventional and non-conventional sources in India and abroad," Director (Finance) A B L Srivastava had said earlier.

FPIs to get registration within 10 days

Making it easier for overseas entities to invest in Indian markets, Sebi has proposed grant of registration to them within 10 days of application under the new Foreign Portfolio Investor (FPI) regime.The FPIs would be allowed to invest across a host of the capital market segments, including in shares, debentures,warrants, mutual funds, collective investment schemes, derivatives, treasury bills and government securities. Besides, they can also invest in the commercial papers, security receipts of asset reconstruction companies, perpetual debt instruments, non-convertible debentures, infrastructure debt funds and Indian Depository Receipts.However, one FPI can hold a maximum of 10 per cent equity shares in a company, subject to the applicable sectoral caps.Under the proposed FPI Regulations, which were approved by Sebi's board yesterday and would be notified soon, various investor classes like FIIs (Foreign Institutional Investors) and QFIs (Qualified Foreign Investors) would be clubbed into one single category to be known as FPIs.To make it easier for FPIs to invest in Indian markets,the new norms also provide for a permanent registration tothem, while Sebi has also exempted the lowest-risk foreign investors (such as government entities, sovereign funds and multilateral agencies) from any registration fees.The new norms come at a time when concerns are being raised about flight of overseas funds away from Indian markets, which was known as among the most attractive investment destinations across the world till a few years ago.The regulations governing foreign investors have been streamlined to make Indian market a more attractive investment destination and include easier entry norms and cost-effective operational framework for the foreign entities.As per the draft FPI Regulations, 2013, the FPIs would need to apply for registration through Designated Depository Participants (DDPs), which would need to dispose of the application within ten days of its receipt.In case of additional information being sought for the registration, the application would be required to be disposed of within 10 days of such details being furnished. The applicants can approach Sebi for any grievance with regard to their application, while they would be required to be given a "reasonable opportunity" to remove any deficiencyfound in their application before it being rejected. An applicant can apply to Sebi for a reconsideration within 30 days of its application being rejected. The draft norms also stipulate that FPIs would need to transact in securities only through registered stock brokers, except for transactions in securities governed by RBI regulations (such as government bonds), open offers, buyback or delisting offers and divestment of shares. To ring-fence the new regulations from possible misuse,the FPIs would need to be from countries that are member of global bodies like Financial Action Task Force (FATF), IOSCO(International Organisation of Securities Commissions).Besides, the entities from any country against which bodies like FATF have issued warning for AML/CFT (Anti MoneyLaundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism) deficiencies would not be allowed to register as FPIs.As per the draft regulations, FPIs would need to inform Sebi about any penalty, pending litigations or proceedings orinvestigations for which action may have been taken or can be taken by an overseas regulator against it.The FPIs would also need to obtain separate and distinct Permanent Account Number (PAN) from the Income Tax Department.In case the same set of ultimate beneficial owners invest through multiple entities, all such entities would be treated as part of same group and their investments would be clubbed together for the purpose of 10 per cent cap.They would also need to maintain propers books of accounts and records, while entities having opaque structuresto hide identity of beneficial owners would not be allowed to register as FPIs.The Sebi can also order inspections on suo motu basis or upon receipt of any complaint, to ensure that propers accounts and records, including telephone records and electronic records and documents, are being maintained, or to ensure compliance with the applicable norms. The Sebi would also be entitled to recover from the concerned entity the expenses incurred for the purposes of inspections and investigations.

Indian rail to charge difference of fare from pre-book tickets

Railways increases passenger fare and freight tariff by about 2 per cent to offset the financial burden arising out of increased input cost. Railways is expected to mop up about Rs 1250 crores from the hike in the last six months of the current fiscal, sources in the ministry said. The suburban and non-surban fares would, however, remain untouched. The decision on the fresh round of hike has been taken under the system of fuel adjustment component (FAC) about which an announcement was made in the 2011-12 rail budget. Railways has taken into account the additional burden of 7.3 per cent increase in diesel price and about 15 per cent in electricity hike. While the fare of AC and sleeper class will be increased by about 2 per cent, the freight rate will go up by 1.7 per cent, as per the decision. Railways has imposed 15 per cent levy as the busy season charge on all commodities from October 1 and the FAC-linked revision is likely to take effect from October 10. Another round of rail fare hike from October 7th: According to the budget proposal, the fuel component is segregated from tariff as FAC and the railways is expected to revise the passenger and freight tariff after every six months taking into account the input cost and the prevailing market condition. According to the calculation, railways will have to bear a burden of Rs 1,250 crore due to increased energy and input cost in the next six months. The cross-subsidy for passenger service is currently touching Rs 26,000 crore in a year. Railways Minister Mallikarjun Kharge had said yesterday that "fuel adjustment component (FAC) was announced in the budget and as per the budget proposal it should have been implemented from October 1. The file containing the FAC proposal has come to me and I am examining it and a decision will be taken shortly." The then Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal had announced the implementation of FAC-linked revision in only freight tariff from April 1. As regards passenger fare, since it was revised in January this year, so it was not touched then.

India 11th most favoured for MNC headquarters'

India hosts about 158 large global companies having a revenue of USD 1 billion or more, making the country the 11 most favoured destination for setting up of a multinational corporation headquarters, says a report. According to an analysis by McKinsey Global Institute, as many as 158 global large companies have their headquarters in India with a combined revenue of USD 898 billion. The US topped the chart with 2,123 large firms having their headquarters in the country with a combined revenue of USD 15,221 billion, followed by Japan (1,028 firms, USD 7,347 billion), China (577, USD 5,449 billion), Germany (462,USD 3,788 billion) and United Kingdom (358, USD 2,818 billion),constituting the top five. The top 10 most favoured destinations for setting up an headquarters of a global MNC include: France which hosts 236 firms's headoffice, Australia (203), Canada (194), Italy (179) and Russia (165). India was ranked 11th in the list followed by South Africa, Switzerland, Taiwan and Brazil.At present, there are some 8,000 distinct large companies worldwide with revenue of USD 1 billion or more, and three out of four are based in developed regions, Mckinsey said. This situation is likely to undergo a sea-change as by the year 2025, an additional 7,000 companies would grow to this size (revenue of over USD 1 billion) and seven out of ten of these new entrants are likely to be based in emerging regions, the Mckinsey report added. Currently, the US, Canada, and Western Europe account for 11 per cent of the world's population but are home to over 50 per cent of large company headquarters. In comparison, South Asia is home to 23 per cent of the world's population but only 2 per cent of the world's large companies' headquarters. As per the report, by 2025, nearly half of the Fortune global 500 companies are likely to be based in developing countries including India. "As Japanese and South Korean companies became formidable global competitors in the past half century, new players from emerging markets such as Chinese telecom networking giant Huawei, Brazilian aircraft manufacturer Embraer and India's industrial conglomerate Aditya Birla Group are asserting their presence," it said adding "many more are soon to follow". According to the report, companies from emerging regions are growing faster than their counterparts from the developed world not only on their home turf but also in overseas markets. It cited the example of the aggressive expansion of India's Tata Motors into Europe in the past decade.

Telcos that lost permits may not get chance to bid

Telecom companies whose 2G permits were cancelled by the Supreme Court may not get another chance to bid for spectrum in the next round of auction, according to official sources. Inter-miniterial panel Telecom Commission has accepted the recommendation by a Department of Telecom (DoT) committee to remove the eligibility rule that allowed such companies to participate, the sources said. The DoT committee has suggest that the eligibility condition would require modification with respect to quashed licences as there would be no such licence holder in the next auction. It has suggested that any eligible entity can participate as new entrant or existing licence holder. This view is different from the one given by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) for the third round of spectrum auction. It recommended that "eligibility conditions prescribed in the recently held auctions (November 2012 and March 2013) should be retained for the upcoming auction". The DoT committee has said however that it is "of the view that the eligibility condition would require modification with respect to quashed licencee as there would be no quashed licencee in the next auction. This will have to be suitably incorporated in the NIA". According to sources, Telecom Commission has upheld the views of DoT panel, saying that "Recommendations of DoT's committee may be accepted". TC is expected to take final view on all recommendations of Trai on October 29 which will be then send to Empowered Group of Ministers on spectrum, headed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram, for final decision. In February last year, the Supreme Court had cancelled 122 telecom licences in the 2G spectrum allocation case. They covered 22 licences of Uninor, 21 of Loop Telecom, 21 of Sistema-Shyam, 15 of Etisalat DB, 6 of S Tel, 21 of Videocon, 3 of Tatas and 9 of Idea Cellular. They were able to get benefit of government decision to set-off the amount they paid for impacted permits against final price they had to pay for spectrum in auctions. Uninor, Sistema Shyam, Videocon and Idea Cellular were among those companies that were allowed to adjust the licence fee they paid for quashed licences. Loop Telecom, Etisalat DB, S Tel and Tata Teleservices have so far not participated in auctions. Foreign investor in Loop Telecom, Khaitan Holdings Mauritius Ltd, has filed international arbitration against Indian government seeking damages of about USD 1.5 billion in the matter. Meanwhile, TC has given in-principle approval to spectrum trading recommendation of Trai which would allow telecom firms to take spectrum from other companies.

ATMs may run dry on shortage of guards

There may be cash crunch at ATMs this festival season on account of shortage of armed staff in private security agencies that provide logistics services to banks. The number of armed security guards in cash handling agencies have come down to one-third of what it was 6 months ago hitting the logistics operations, as per an industry estimate. Besides, many of them are expected to go on leave during the festivals - Navratri, Dussehra, Diwali and so on - adding to the woes of cash logistics firms. A number of ATMs are now being loaded with cash every fifth day, instead of every two days earlier, say industry officials. "There could be cash crunh in ATMs, due to shortage of armed guards at various companies. The increase in loading time to once every 5 days, is an indicator to that." said an official at a logistics company. However, according to a public sector bank official, lenders are taking adequate measures to feed in extra cash in ATMs taking into account additional demand for money during the festival season. About Rs 15,000 crore cash is moved on behalf of banks everyday, according to Cash Logistics Association. The fall in armed security guards is because of various reasons including the fact that police in many states have raised objections on the issue, saying that private arm licence cannot be used for purpose other than defined by the law, said the association. This has lead to staff crunch with cash logistics firms, which don't get a formal licence to operate armed services for cash logistics. Currently, cash van security involves people who have private licence for carrying arms and are mostly from UP, Bihar and Rajasthan. According to cash logistics firm SIS Prosegur's Managing Director Rituraj Sinha, discussions between government and banks have happened on the issue many times but the issue remain unresolved. "We may have to stop the cash logistics services if the issue is not sorted soon. Looting incidences have stalled fear among cash logistics companies," he said. Cash van looting incidents have gone up to one incident per month in 2012-13, compared to just one in three months in 2011-12, he said. Cash Logistics Association's Secretary General N S G Rao is of the view that the Indian Arms Act 1959 should be relaxed to suit the requirements in bigger cities. There are over 1 lakh ATMs across the country. Of these, nearly one third are in rural and semi-urban areas

Samsung launches Galaxy Trend @8490

Samsung has silently introduced a new smartphone in India named "Galaxy Trend".

The phone is listed on the Samsung India eStore for Rs 8,700, while the phone is available for purchase on e-commerce stores like Flipkart and Snapdeal for Rs 8,490. There is officially no word on the availability of the smartphone from Samsung. 

Features
The Galaxy Trend has a 4-inch display with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. 
It is a dual SIM phone and is packed with a 1500mAh battery.

Running Android 4.0 OS, the phone has a 3 megapixel rear camera. It has an internal memory of 4GB, which is expandable up to 32GB.

The phone is powered by a 1GHz processor coupled with 512MB RAM.

Invest & Gain from National Pension Scheme

The pension scheme launched by the PFRDA is the cheapest market-linked retirement option available in India. Here's how you can invest in this low-cost scheme.

Who is eligible? 
All Indian citizens between 18 and 60 years of age can invest in the NPS.

What are the charges?

The NPS funds can charge a maximum of 0.25% of the amount as fund management charges in a year. This makes the NPS the cheapest market-linked financial product in the country

 Mini SIPs is a bad idea Given that many of these are fixed charges, contributing small amounts is not very costeffective. Don't go by intermediaries' claims since are only trying to boost their income. Ten contributions of Rs 500 each will be charged Rs 260, or 5.2% of the investment. However, if Rs 5,000 is invested at one go, the charge will be Rs 26, or 0.52% of the amount.

Decide your asset allocation The NPS offers three types of funds and you can divide your corpus between these as per your risk appetite. However, the exposure to E class equity funds cannot exceed 50%. If the asset allocation is not specified, the investor's age decides the equity exposure. Up to 35 years, the allocation to equities is 50%. This is reduced every year by 2% after the investor turns 35, till it becomes 10% by the age of 55. You can also opt for the Lifecycle Fund by choice.

Choose a pension fund manager 

The retirement savings of government employees are managed by the LIC Pension Fund, SBI Pension Fund and UTI Retirement Solutions. The general public can choose from any of the eight pension fund managers. You can switch from one fund manager to another, but will have to continue with the new fund for at least one year before you can switch again. If you do not specify your choice of fund manager, then by default, your money will be managed by the SBI Pension Fund, the largest pension fund.

 Get a PRAN

 Go to a point of presence service provider (POP-SP) and apply for a permanent retirement account number (PRAN). Nearly 9,000 bank branches and post offices act as POPSPs. For a detailed list, go to: www.npscra.nsdl.co.in/pop-sp.php You will get a receipt number. Use it to track the status of your PRAN application at: //cra-nsdl.com/CRA/JSP/sim/Sub-RegStatSearchTile.jsp. In a few days, the Central Record-keeping Agency (CRA) shall send your PRAN card and account details. You can then make a contribution (minimum Rs 500) in any fund of your choice.

Sensex falls due to fed stimulus withdrawal fear

The BSE Sensex slumped over 300 points, while the Indian rupee traded with over 0.5 per cent cut on Monday as investors feared further rate hikes by the Reserve Bank following Friday's surprise. Analysts said RBI governor Raghuram Rajan may raise policy rates again after shocking markets by increasing them in only his first meeting, signaling he is willing to risk prolonging what is already the lowest economic growth in years in order to quash persistent inflation. "If he goes ahead and hikes further, which I think he might, then it might affect growth. But ultimately, if you have to bring down inflation, there is no other option," said A. Prasanna, economist at ICICI Securities Primary Dealership Ltd in Mumbai. Global brokerage Nomura now expects the RBI to raise the repo rate by another 50 basis points in 2013-14 to take it to 8 per cent. Not surprisingly, bank stocks led the declines, with the NSE banking index falling around 4 per cent. Other rate sensitive stocks such as realty, down 2.5 per cent, and auto, down 1 per cent, also pressured markets. PSU lenders like Bank of Baroda (down 5.5 per cent), Punjab National Bank (down 4.8 per cent) and SBI (down 4.4 per cent) were the top three losers on the 50-share Nifty benchmark. Private lenders Axis Bank and ICICI Bank also dropped around 4 per cent. Realty major DLF extended losses and traded down 4 per cent. DLF shares had plunged 12 per cent on Friday. Market analyst Sarvendra Srivastava said Friday's session was a minor setback for bulls and 6,150-6,200 is still in reckoning. Deven Choksey, managing director of KR Choksey told NDTV that this is a corrective phase, but it's unlikely that markets will fall beyond 5,750-5,800. "I don't see the rupee depreciating beyond a point. So, there's little risk of withdrawal of money from the system, especially after Fed's surprise move last week." As of 10.50 a.m., the Sensex traded 289 points lower at 19,975, while the broader Nifty declined 91 points to 5,921. The rupee traded down 0.5 per cent at 62.54 after earlier slipping to 62.60 per dollar.

Gold-Silvers Falls

Advertisement Gold prices eased in listless trade at the domestic bullion market on reduced off-take from stockists and traders as well as lack of local buying interest at the existing levels. Silver also declined owing to speculative selling. Standard gold of 99.5% purity moved down Rs. 20 to close at Rs. 30,260 per 10 gm from Thursday's level of Rs. 30,280. Pure gold of 99.9% purity went down by Rs. 25 to finish at Rs. 30,405 per 10 gm from Rs. 30,430. Silver ready (.999 fineness) slipped by Rs. 220 to conclude at Rs. 51,595 per kg from Rs. 51,815 on Thursday. "Trading in gold was dull as global cues were also not supportive. Traders are resorting to a wait-and-watch approach," dealers said. At the overseas front, gold fell on investors profit taking as the rally after the Federal Reserve's surprise decision to maintain monetary stimulus ran out of steam. In London, spot gold was bid lower at $1,357.71 an ounce in early trade, while spot silver bid down at $22.72 an ounce.

Corporates dislike Rajan's first gift to Economy

India Inc today said a rate cut by the bank would have helped ameliorate sentiments as businesses are "reeling" under a tight liquidity crunch due to high cost of capital. "High interest rate has been identified as a major barrier to boosting growth. The increase in the repo rate has come as a surprise to us. While industry is disappointed, reduction of interest rates charged and availability of credit remain a plea and we are confident RBI will keep this in their sights going forward," Ficci President Naina Lal Kidwai said. Maintaining its hawkish stance, RBI today unexpectedly raised the policy rate by 0.25 per cent as it kept its focus on controlling inflation, which it felt would be above the expected levels in the current fiscal. "The increase in repo rate could have been avoided as industry is already reeling under pressures of high cost of capital and low availability in a tight liquidity situation. Industry would have liked reduction in headline rates," CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said. The repo rate or the short term lending rate has been increased by 25 basis points to 7.5 per cent from 7.25 per cent with immediate effect. "Contrary to expectations, the RBI has chosen to further tighten the monetary stance giving a clear signal that fighting inflation is its core priority. RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has acted in a cautious manner, the financial markets were perhaps expecting too much from him," Assocham President Rana Kapoor said. Rajan, in his maiden policy review, however, eased liquidity though a reduction in the marginal standing facility rate, at which banks borrow from the central bank, by 0.75 per cent to 9.5 per cent. "The reduction in MSF by 75 bps is encouraging as this is working as the short term interest rate," Banerjee said. Rajan kept the cash reserve ratio (CRR), the portion of deposits that banks are required to maintain with the RBI in cash, unchanged at 4 per cent. "The RBI has admitted that industrial activity continues to remain sluggish and even consumption demand is now starting to weaken in the economy. In such a scenario, a positive signal by way of a cut in the repo rate would have helped perk up sentiments," Kidwai said. At the same time, the RBI reduced the minimum daily maintenance of CRR from 99 per cent of the requirement to 95 per cent effective from September 21, a move aimed at inducing liquidity into the system. "More worrisome is a liquidity crunch which is being witnessed and which may lead to further hardening of interest rates. State Bank of India has already done it and our worry is that more banks may follow suit," Kapoor said.

Reserve Bank of India raised repo rate by 25 bps to 7.5 percent in its mid-quarter policy review. The move sent shockwaves through the investor community which culminated into sharp sell-off in the equity market. The policy, however, reduced the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate by 75 basis points from 10.25 per cent to 9.5 percent and lowered the minimum daily maintenance of the cash reserve ratio (CRR) from 99 percent to 95 percent of the requirement, effective from the fortnight beginning September 21, 2013. Consequently, the reverse repo and Bank Rate rates stand adjusted to 6.5 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively. The RBI ruled out additional change in minimum daily maintenance of the CRR but clarified that further actions need not be announced only on policy dates. Reacting to the policy announcement, the rupee fell 1 percent, bond yield rose to 8.3 percent, and share prices of banking stocks witnessed a sharp decline . Benchmark indices gave up all the gains accumulated in anticipation of a growth-oriented RBI policy and the positive outlook post Fed's no-taper policy on September 18 . Contrary to market expectations, the new governor Raghuram Rajan's maiden policy came in as hawkish, primarily because it maintained the traditional apex bank's views on (controlling) inflation. The RBI noted that WPI inflation, which had eased in Q1 of 2013-14, has started rising again as the pass-through of fuel price increases has been compounded by the sharp depreciation of the rupee and rising international commodity prices. "What is equally worrisome is that inflation at the retail level, measured by the CPI, has been high for a number of years, entrenching inflation expectations at elevated levels and eroding consumer and business confidence," Rajan's policy stated. Most of the economists polled by CNBC-TV18 were expecting the RBI to bring down the daily requirement to 90 percent of CRR, while a few expected it to come down below 90 percent. Jahangir Aziz of JPMorgan had opined that MSF should be brought back to its old level and instead repo rate should be hiked by about 50 bps. In a bid to control liquidity, the RBI had last month restricted banks from borrowing at 7.25 percent from the repo window. It had forced them to borrow at a higher rate of 10.25 percent from MSF.

Read more at: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/rbi-ups-repo-rate-by-25-bpsinflation-concerns-cuts-msf_953423.html?utm_source=ref_article

the Reserve Bank of India raised repo rate by 25 bps to 7.5 percent in its mid-quarter policy review. The move sent shockwaves through the investor community which culminated into sharp sell-off in the equity market. The policy, however, reduced the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate by 75 basis points from 10.25 per cent to 9.5 percent and lowered the minimum daily maintenance of the cash reserve ratio (CRR) from 99 percent to 95 percent of the requirement, effective from the fortnight beginning September 21, 2013. Consequently, the reverse repo and Bank Rate rates stand adjusted to 6.5 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively. The RBI ruled out additional change in minimum daily maintenance of the CRR but clarified that further actions need not be announced only on policy dates. Reacting to the policy announcement, the rupee fell 1 percent, bond yield rose to 8.3 percent, and share prices of banking stocks witnessed a sharp decline . Benchmark indices gave up all the gains accumulated in anticipation of a growth-oriented RBI policy and the positive outlook post Fed's no-taper policy on September 18 . Contrary to market expectations, the new governor Raghuram Rajan's maiden policy came in as hawkish, primarily because it maintained the traditional apex bank's views on (controlling) inflation. The RBI noted that WPI inflation, which had eased in Q1 of 2013-14, has started rising again as the pass-through of fuel price increases has been compounded by the sharp depreciation of the rupee and rising international commodity prices. "What is equally worrisome is that inflation at the retail level, measured by the CPI, has been high for a number of years, entrenching inflation expectations at elevated levels and eroding consumer and business confidence," Rajan's policy stated. Most of the economists polled by CNBC-TV18 were expecting the RBI to bring down the daily requirement to 90 percent of CRR, while a few expected it to come down below 90 percent. Jahangir Aziz of JPMorgan had opined that MSF should be brought back to its old level and instead repo rate should be hiked by about 50 bps. In a bid to control liquidity, the RBI had last month restricted banks from borrowing at 7.25 percent from the repo window. It had forced them to borrow at a higher rate of 10.25 percent from MSF.

Read more at: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/rbi-ups-repo-rate-by-25-bpsinflation-concerns-cuts-msf_953423.html?utm_source=ref_article

Reserve Bank of India raised repo rate by 25 bps to 7.5 percent in its mid-quarter policy review. The move sent shockwaves through the investor community which culminated into sharp sell-off in the equity market. The policy, however, reduced the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate by 75 basis points from 10.25 per cent to 9.5 percent and lowered the minimum daily maintenance of the cash reserve ratio (CRR) from 99 percent to 95 percent of the requirement, effective from the fortnight beginning September 21, 2013. Consequently, the reverse repo and Bank Rate rates stand adjusted to 6.5 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively. The RBI ruled out additional change in minimum daily maintenance of the CRR but clarified that further actions need not be announced only on policy dates. Reacting to the policy announcement, the rupee fell 1 percent, bond yield rose to 8.3 percent, and share prices of banking stocks witnessed a sharp decline . Benchmark indices gave up all the gains accumulated in anticipation of a growth-oriented RBI policy and the positive outlook post Fed's no-taper policy on September 18 . Contrary to market expectations, the new governor Raghuram Rajan's maiden policy came in as hawkish, primarily because it maintained the traditional apex bank's views on (controlling) inflation. The RBI noted that WPI inflation, which had eased in Q1 of 2013-14, has started rising again as the pass-through of fuel price increases has been compounded by the sharp depreciation of the rupee and rising international commodity prices. "What is equally worrisome is that inflation at the retail level, measured by the CPI, has been high for a number of years, entrenching inflation expectations at elevated levels and eroding consumer and business confidence," Rajan's policy stated. Most of the economists polled by CNBC-TV18 were expecting the RBI to bring down the daily requirement to 90 percent of CRR, while a few expected it to come down below 90 percent. Jahangir Aziz of JPMorgan had opined that MSF should be brought back to its old level and instead repo rate should be hiked by about 50 bps. In a bid to control liquidity, the RBI had last month restricted banks from borrowing at 7.25 percent from the repo window. It had forced them to borrow at a higher rate of 10.25 percent from MSF. jhini.phira@network18online.com Watch Video Source: CNBC-TV18 1 0 inShare Share on Tumblr SHARE . EMAIL Coolpix for every occasion - Sponsored Ad It's smart to save money. It's smarter to save energy. - Sponsored Ad Related News No revival till 2014 polls; rate hike to hit infra: Gammon Short term rates will continue to stay high: SBI chairman Ship is safe in harbour, but it is made to sail in the sea Free Commodity tips ways2capital.com/free-trial/ Free Commodity tips 2 days trial. Call now 08962000225 Product Suppliers www.hktdc.com Connect with over 120,000 suppliers from Hong Kong, China and Taiwan Ads by Google More from Moneycontrol Buy YES Bank, says Sudarshan Sukhani (Moneycontrol) Prefer IDFC, Tata Global Beverage: SP Tulsian - Moneycontrol.com (Moneycontrol) L&T a long term bet: Rakesh Tarway (Moneycontrol) Nifty may slip to 5550, says Mohit Gaba (Moneycontrol) Arttd'inox gives steel products the designer edge (Moneycontrol) More from the web The Best Way to Optimize Your Retirement Portfolio (Compare 429 Credit Cards - Apply for the Best Credit Cards) LinkedIn Part 3 – How to set up a great LinkedIn profile! (Author Marketing Experts, Inc.) MACAU – A day of high life in Macau (TTGmice) Who’s Winning ‘Mobile Wars’ (Beyond the Book) Modern slavery generates profit of over $32 billion (WALK FREE) Recommended by Set email alert for SBI Yes Bank HDFC Bank ICICI Bank Tags: CRR, RBI , MSF, inflation, liquidity, repo rate Expect no fireworks from RBI today; may ease MSF: JPMorgan Cannot let guard on rupee, inflation slip: C Rangarajan Post Your Comments Comments 28 Is Raghuram Rajan's policy following the same hawkish stance as his predecessor? Type your message here DILEE New Member 0 Follower Overall it is a good policy stance taken by Rajan, Market is poised to go down and it was expected that any thing comes out of the meet would be taken negativeley. Neverthless banks will never go back to the level we have seen in July and expect they will recover sooner that later. 4 hrs 5 min 25 sec ago vuppala194 8 Platinum Member 386 Followers The upping of Repo Rate is meaningless, as it cannot and never did influence FOOD INFLATION in last 2 1/2 years of Subba Rao`s hawkish Policy. But, that said, during these 2 1/2 years, Banks` profitability continued to remain when interest rates were going up almost every 2 months once. So, Banks` profitability will not be affected at all by Repo Rate Hike. They will maintain their present margins. The easing of liquidity will only add to their loanable funds and loans - and therefore, adds to their Profits. Hence, the adverse market reaction especially towards banking sector is meaningless. Banks will be healthy wherever NPAs are less. Only NPAs and not Repo rate will be the criterion. Thus, all private sector Banks will continue to do well - even better - after this Monetary Policy review. 5 hrs 57 min 56 sec ago Show all messages GET QUOTE Most Popular Top News Sensex, Nifty flat ahead of RBI policy; Ranbaxy loses 5% Sensex, Nifty off day's low on Raghuram Rajan's comments Fed move may have set stage for deeper correction Buffett lauds Ben but laments lack of investment bargains Govt must return Air India to Tatas: Jitendra Bhargava DIPP tells Walmart to invest in India before 2014 elections RBI ups repo rate by 25 bps on inflation concerns, cuts MSF Sensex falls; RBI cuts MSF rate by 0.75%, ups repo by 0.25% The party's on in emerging markets-here's why Why is India's healthcare system in such a sorry state? How technology can save India's vanishing generation Embrace Innovations founder on keeping Indian infants warm MOST RECENT India's primary health care needs quick reform What does it take to make healthcare more accessible? Click Here! Action in State Bank of India News Short term rates will continue to stay high: SBI chairman Sep 20, 15:30 Views Exit SBI, says Prakash Diwan Sep 20, 14:15 News Continue to see extreme liquidity tightness: SBI head Sep 20, 10:30 Technicals SBI closes above 50-Day Moving Average of 1679.39 today. Sep 19 News SBI ups lending rate to 9.8%, makes loans costlier Sep 19, 14:45 Views Book profits in SBI, says Rajesh Agarwal Sep 19, 14:30 Announcements SBI to revise rates upward Sep 19, 08:45 Views Hold SBI with a long term view: Phani Sekhar Sep 16, 18:00 Views Exit SBI around Rs 1800-1900, advises Nooresh Mirani Sep 16, 18:00 Views Shardul Kulkarni positive on L&T, SBI, ICICI Bank Sep 06, 19:00 Views Bet on SBI, may rise 8-10%: Atul Badkar Sep 06, 12:00 Technicals SBI closes above 30-Day Moving Average of 1616.23 today. Sep 05 Views Buy SBI; target Rs 1700: Shardul Kulkarni Sep 05, 16:00 Views Exit SBI, says SP Tulsian Sep 05, 14:30 Views Hold State Bank of India; target Rs 134: Firstcall Research Sep 05, 13:15 News Rajan talks about deepening mkts, plugging leakages: SBI Sep 04, 20:30 Views Sell SBI around Rs 1500, advises Sanjeev Agarwal Sep 04, 17:30 Views Stay away from banking stocks: Gautam Chhaochharia Sep 04, 10:45 News SBI raises stake in Indonesian subsidiary to 99% Sep 03, 08:00 News New banks: RBI zeroes on 5 for panel to screen applications Sep 02, 19:00 Set SMS Alerts on SBI Related Stories More from Find out: India's property trends for April-June 2013 7 important reasons to review your financial plan Other Headlines Exit SBI, says Prakash Diwan SBI, ICICI, HDFC twins fall 5-7% on RBI's surprise move Video of the day News Videos Sep 20 2013, 17:24 No revival till 2014 polls; rate hike to hit infra: Gammon - in Business Sep 20 2013, 12:35 Continue to see extreme liquidity tightness: SBI head - in Business Follow moneycontrol.com Facebook Twitter Google Plus RSS Wap SMS SMS Alert iPad iPhone Blackberry OVI Android Window Explore Moneycontrol STOCKS A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Others MUTUAL FUNDS A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Live Sensex Public Sector Banks Market Statistics Plan Insurance Global Market Business News Mutual Fund Best Portfolio Manager Bse Sensex Nse Nifty Share Market Live Commodities Price Silver Price/Rate in India Gold Price/Rate in India Crude Oil USD to INR Bank Fixed Deposits Company Fixed Deposits Small Savings Schemes Bonds Budget: 2011, 2012, 2013 RBI Credit Policy News Archive Financial Glossary Message Board Moneybhai Latest Movie Songs India`s Premiere Technology Guide History India Latest News IBNLive News News in Hindi Cricket News Latest Videos Business Technology News & Videos MTV India Online Study Material Restaurants in Delhi Online Shopping in India Singapore Airlines Onions Ranbaxy Laboratories Gold Fitch Group Attari Eveready Industries India MCX Stock Exchange Mergers and acquisitions Heavy Engineering Corporation Rss Feeds Site Map | About Us | Contact Us | Feedback | Advertise | Bookmark | Disclaimer | Privacy Statement | Terms of Use | Careers Copyright © e-Eighteen.com Ltd. 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Rajan effect: EMI increases,market falls

The EMIs on your home, car and personal loans are likely to increase, as a hawkish Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan belied expectations on Friday by raising the repo rate, on which banks base their lending rates, by 0.25 percentage points to 7.50%.Soon after, Pratip Chaudhuri, chairman of State Bank of India, India's largest commercial bank, said he expected lending and deposit rates to go up.
This will greatly disappoint consumers, especially as it comes just ahead of the festival season when many buy cars, two-wheelers, TVs and other consumer durables with bank loans.
But Rajan, like his predecessor D Subbarao, is determined to rein in inflation, which, at the wholesale level, rose to 6.1% in August, above the RBI's comfort level of 5.5%.
At the retail level, it was at the still high level of 9.52% last month.
The stock markets had been hoping for a rate cut to generate demand and spur growth, which had fallen to a new low of 4.4% in the April-June 2013 quarter.
Hope belied, the benchmark BSE Sensex crashed 600 points within minutes of the RBI announcement after 11am before regaining some lost ground. But it still closed 382.93 points down at 20,263.71.
The rupee, which had rallied smartly to 61.77 per dollar on Thursday after falling to an all-time low of 68.85 on August 28, ended the day 46 paise down at 62.23 per dollar.
Sanjay Bhargava, general secretary of the Chandni Chowk Sarv Vyapar Mandal, a traders' association, said the RBI move to increase rates would definitely hit spending during the festive season.
"We will have to offer deeper discounts to woo buyers. But how can discounts help when buyers don't have money?"
Justifying the decision to hike the repo rate, Rajan said, "Inflation is high and household financial savings are lower than desirable." 

the Reserve Bank of India raised repo rate by 25 bps to 7.5 percent in its mid-quarter policy review. The move sent shockwaves through the investor community which culminated into sharp sell-off in the equity market. The policy, however, reduced the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate by 75 basis points from 10.25 per cent to 9.5 percent and lowered the minimum daily maintenance of the cash reserve ratio (CRR) from 99 percent to 95 percent of the requirement, effective from the fortnight beginning September 21, 2013. Consequently, the reverse repo and Bank Rate rates stand adjusted to 6.5 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively. The RBI ruled out additional change in minimum daily maintenance of the CRR but clarified that further actions need not be announced only on policy dates. Reacting to the policy announcement, the rupee fell 1 percent, bond yield rose to 8.3 percent, and share prices of banking stocks witnessed a sharp decline . Benchmark indices gave up all the gains accumulated in anticipation of a growth-oriented RBI policy and the positive outlook post Fed's no-taper policy on September 18 . Contrary to market expectations, the new governor Raghuram Rajan's maiden policy came in as hawkish, primarily because it maintained the traditional apex bank's views on (controlling) inflation. The RBI noted that WPI inflation, which had eased in Q1 of 2013-14, has started rising again as the pass-through of fuel price increases has been compounded by the sharp depreciation of the rupee and rising international commodity prices. "What is equally worrisome is that inflation at the retail level, measured by the CPI, has been high for a number of years, entrenching inflation expectations at elevated levels and eroding consumer and business confidence," Rajan's policy stated. Most of the economists polled by CNBC-TV18 were expecting the RBI to bring down the daily requirement to 90 percent of CRR, while a few expected it to come down below 90 percent. Jahangir Aziz of JPMorgan had opined that MSF should be brought back to its old level and instead repo rate should be hiked by about 50 bps. In a bid to control liquidity, the RBI had last month restricted banks from borrowing at 7.25 percent from the repo window. It had forced them to borrow at a higher rate of 10.25 percent from MSF.

Read more at: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/rbi-ups-repo-rate-by-25-bpsinflation-concerns-cuts-msf_953423.html?utm_source=ref_articleThe EMIs on your home, car and personal loans are likely to increase, as a hawkish Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan belied expectations on Friday by raising the repo rate, on which banks base their lending rates, by 0.25 percentage points to 7.50%.

the Reserve Bank of India raised repo rate by 25 bps to 7.5 percent in its mid-quarter policy review. The move sent shockwaves through the investor community which culminated into sharp sell-off in the equity market. The policy, however, reduced the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate by 75 basis points from 10.25 per cent to 9.5 percent and lowered the minimum daily maintenance of the cash reserve ratio (CRR) from 99 percent to 95 percent of the requirement, effective from the fortnight beginning September 21, 2013. Consequently, the reverse repo and Bank Rate rates stand adjusted to 6.5 percent and 9.5 percent, respectively. The RBI ruled out additional change in minimum daily maintenance of the CRR but clarified that further actions need not be announced only on policy dates. Reacting to the policy announcement, the rupee fell 1 percent, bond yield rose to 8.3 percent, and share prices of banking stocks witnessed a sharp decline . Benchmark indices gave up all the gains accumulated in anticipation of a growth-oriented RBI policy and the positive outlook post Fed's no-taper policy on September 18 . Contrary to market expectations, the new governor Raghuram Rajan's maiden policy came in as hawkish, primarily because it maintained the traditional apex bank's views on (controlling) inflation. The RBI noted that WPI inflation, which had eased in Q1 of 2013-14, has started rising again as the pass-through of fuel price increases has been compounded by the sharp depreciation of the rupee and rising international commodity prices. "What is equally worrisome is that inflation at the retail level, measured by the CPI, has been high for a number of years, entrenching inflation expectations at elevated levels and eroding consumer and business confidence," Rajan's policy stated. Most of the economists polled by CNBC-TV18 were expecting the RBI to bring down the daily requirement to 90 percent of CRR, while a few expected it to come down below 90 percent. Jahangir Aziz of JPMorgan had opined that MSF should be brought back to its old level and instead repo rate should be hiked by about 50 bps. In a bid to control liquidity, the RBI had last month restricted banks from borrowing at 7.25 percent from the repo window. It had forced them to borrow at a higher rate of 10.25 percent from MSF.

Read more at: http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/rbi-ups-repo-rate-by-25-bpsinflation-concerns-cuts-msf_953423.html?utm_source=ref_article

GANESH CHATURTHI

Ganpati Bappa Moraya

Trai recommends cut in mobile spectrum floor price

The telecom regulator today recommended sharp cuts in reserve prices for the next round of spectrum auctions after previous efforts at selling the airwaves failed.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) also said no spectrum would be reserved for existing players when their licences expire and suggested that airwaves can be traded.

TRAI slashed the combined spectrum auction reserve price in the premium 900 MHz band in the circles of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata by about 79 per cent to Rs 650 crore per MHz against Rs 3,074.18 crore per MHz earlier.

The maximum reduction of 81.38 per cent is in the Mumbai circle, where the floor price has been reduced to Rs 262 crore per MHz compared with Rs 1,404.28 crore per MHz of spectrum, as per the regulator's previous recommendation.

It recommended an about 60 per cent cut in the pan-India reserve price for the third round of 2G spectrum (1800 MHz) auctions compared to its previous suggestions.

TRAI has proposed Rs 1,496 crore per megahertz of airwave frequencies in the 1800 Mhz band in a minimum lot of 5 MHz for new players, which comes to Rs 7,480 crore, compared with its earlier suggestion of Rs 18,200 crore.

The government is required to conduct the third round of spectrum auction for 1800 Mhz to comply with a Supreme Court order. The entire spectrum freed from the cancellation of 122 licences in February 2012 in the 2G spectrum allocation case has to be auctioned.

Asked if the reserve price was too high last time, TRAI Chairman Rahul Khullar said, "Yes...please understand the approach has completely changed from the previous pricing regime."

The regulator has suggested a lower reserve price even in service areas where spectrum was sold in November 2012.

When asked about the relief, if any, for telecom service providers that bid in the November auction, Khullar said, "We are only recommending reserve price and it is not the final price. Let market-determined price come through auction then we will decide what to do."

The regulator has denied any reservation of spectrum for existing players Airtel, Vodafoneand Loop Mobile in the auction of 900 Mhz, as proposed by the Empowered Group of Ministers on spectrum, headed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram.

The government has to auction the premium 900 Mhz band being held Airtel, Vodafone and Loop in some circles as their licences expire in the second half of 2014. No priority will be accorded to these licensees, the regulator said.

TRAI has not recommended auction for CDMA spectrum. The regulator has proposed allowing trading of spectrum by those who buy airwaves through auction.