The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	RIL acquires shale gas assets in US for $1.3 bn Tribune News Service/PTI Mumbai/New Delhi, June 24 Reliance Industries today said it would pay $1.3 billion to acquire 45 per cent stake in Pioneer Natural Resources' shale gas assets south of Texas — its second purchase in the US in three months. RIL will pay $1.315 billion to Pioneer and its partner Newpek LLC to get 45 per cent of about 263,000 net acres of Eagle Ford Shale, the company said in a statement. The acreage in south of Texas has 10 trillion cubic feet of resource potential, according to Pioneer, which will continue to be operator at the property. Shale gas is natural gas stored in organic-rich sedimentary rocks. It is considered an unconventional source as the gas may be attached to or "absorbed" onto organic matter. The Eagle Ford Shale currently produces 28 million cubic feet per day of gas from five wells and Pioneer believes the acreage can support drilling of over 1,750 wells. RIL said it will pay $263 million up front and fund $1.1 billion of Pioneer and Newpek LLC's future drilling costs. The deferred payment will be made over four years. RIL had bought 40 per cent interest in Atlas Energy Inc's Marcellus shale-gas assets in Pennsylvania in April for $1.7 billion. Pioneer had 84 per cent interest in the Eagle Ford Shale formations while Newpek LLC had the balance 16 per cent. Post RIL entry, Pioneer would hold 46 per cent and Newpek LLC 9 per cent. "This transaction represents another significant milestone in RIL's efforts to grow its North American shale gas operations," company executive director PMS Prasad said. Additionally, RIL and Pioneer have executed definitive agreements to form a midstream joint venture that will service the gathering needs of the upstream joint venture. RIL's subsidiary, Reliance Eagleford Midstream LLC, will pay $46 million to acquire a 49.9 per cent interest in the joint venture. "Pioneer and Reliance will have equal governing rights in the joint venture and Pioneer will serve as operator." Shale gas, also called unconventional gas, is the industry term to describe the fuel trapped in shale formations, coal beds and impermeable sandstone rock.
	Food inflation rises to 16.9 per cent New Delhi, June 24 Annual food inflation rose to 16.90 per cent for the week ended June 12 on high prices of pulses, vegetables and milk. The annual rate of price rise of food items in the previous week was 16.12 per cent. Prices of pulses for the week were higher by 34.14 per cent over the corresponding week last year, while that of milk rose by 21.12 per cent on an annual basis. However, prices of potato and onion were down by 36.99 per cent and 22.42 per cent, respectively. On weekly basis, prices of vegetables rose by 8.06 per cent, that of condiments and spices by 3 per cent. Urad, moong and tea became expensive by 1 per cent each over the previous week. However, mutton price was down 2 per cent, and sea fish and arhar was cheaper 1 per cent each over the week. High food inflation is primarily driving up the overall inflation, which was 10.16 per cent in May. — PTI
	Service tax on air tickets from July 1 New Delhi, June 24 Domestic and international air fares would rise by Rs 100 and Rs 500, respectively, from July 1 with the government issuing a notification to bring air travel into the service tax ambit. The government had proposed in the 2010-11 Budget that 10 per cent service tax be charged on air travel aiming at raising Rs 600 crore and Rs 1,000 crore annually. It had proposed to expand the scope of air transport services to attract service tax to include domestic journeys and international journeys in any class. The notification, issued by the Department of Revenue on Tuesday, said that for domestic travel, "10 per cent of the gross value of ticket or Rs 100 per journey, whichever is less" would be charged from passengers travelling in any class - business or economy. For international journey, it would be "10 per cent of the gross value of the ticket or Rs 500 per journey, whichever is less, for passengers embarking in India for an international journey in economy class." The measure would come into effect from July 1, the notification said. A service tax of little over 12 per cent is already imposed on foreign travel by business or first class since the past several years. The move to impose the tax in this year's budget was opposed by all Indian carriers as well as the global airlines body, International Air Transport Association which sought a rollback of the service tax, describing it as "unacceptable" and "counter-productive". Following this, the government decided to cap the hike at Rs 100 for all domestic travel and Rs 500 for economy-class foreign travel, leaving the tax on upper class international journeys as it is. — PTI
	Petro prices likely to go up New Delhi, June 24 An increase in the rates of petrol and, possibly, diesel looks imminent with a panel of ministers set to meet tomorrow for deciding on the fuel pricing policy. An Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) may go with Oil Minister Murli Deora's proposal to free petrol prices from government control, which would trigger a hike of Rs 3.73 a litre, official sources said here. There was near-unanimity in the eight-member EGoM on bringing about market-linked prices for petrol, a fuel generally used by the well-off, but it remains to be seen if the Rs 3.73 per litre hike would come into effect immediately or in two equal instalments. However, sources said that freeing diesel prices was out of the question because the fuel was used by the transport and agriculture sector and, therefore, had close links with the inflation rate. Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar are said to be against decontrolling diesel rates, and the EGoM may settle for a nominal hike instead. Diesel prices may be raised by Rs 2 per litre instead of the Rs 3.80 hike needed to make it market-linked, they said. Also on the cards is a Rs 25 per cylinder hike in domestic LPG rates and a marginal increase in kerosene prices, but these would have to pass the muster of Banerjee and Pawar. With global crude oil trading at below $80 a barrel, Deora is seeing this as the last opportunity to usher in reforms in the sector which, otherwise, would need Rs 74,300 crore in doles to bridge the gap between retail prices and import costs. — PTI
	Ban on milk import from China extended New Delhi, June 24 India today extended the ban on import of milk and milk products from China for another six months, according to the foreign trade office. The items prohibited for import into India from the neighbouring country would include chocolate and chocolate products, candies, confectioneries and food preparations with milk as an ingredient. The ban was notified by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) in the Commerce Ministry. Imports of milk and milk products from China have been prohibited since September, 2008. Though the DGFT has not cited any reason for the ban, it is understood it was over fears of Chinese milk containing melamine, a deadly chemical, sources said. — PTI
	IDFC gets status of infrastructure finance company Mumbai, June 24 Infrastructure Development Finance Company (IDFC) today said the Reserve Bank has classified the company as an infrastructure finance company, which will help the term lender access cheaper resources. IDFC has been classified by the Reserve Bank of India as infrastructure finance company within overall classification of Non-Banking Finance Company (NBFC), the term lender informed the Bombay Stock Exchange. The status given to the company would allow it mobilise funds at lower cost and get flexibility in the infrastructure lending, sources said. In February, RBI had created a separate entity for NBFC — Infrastructure Finance Companies (IFCs) — as infrastructure plays a critical role in the growth of economy. IFCs are not subject to the borrower limits, which restrict NBFCs from lending to any single borrower by 10 per cent of its owned fund, and any single group of borrowers by 15 per cent of its owned fund. Recently, RBI allowed these companies to raise money from overseas markets through the automatic route. As such, IFCs can now raise external commercial borrowings (ECBs) up to 50 per cent of their owned funds automatically. So far, they could do so only under the approval route. — PTI
	Apple sells 3m iPads in 80 days Houston, June 24 Apple sold its three millionth iPad 80 days after its introduction in the US and just two days before the release of the company's new iPhone 4 for which there have already been 600,000 pre-orders. Apple said that iPad is a revolutionary and magical device with a colour touchscreen that allows users to connect with their applications, content and the Internet in a more intimate, intuitive and fun way. "People are loving iPad as it becomes a part of their daily lives," said Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO. "We're working hard to get this magical product into the hands of even more people around the world, including those in nine more countries next month," he added. Developers have created over 11,000 exciting new applications for iPad. The iPad will run almost all of the more than 225,000 applications on the App Store, including those already purchased for iPhone or iPod touch. The announcement comes amid supply problems, which have slowed sales across the country. Apple is now selling about a million iPads a month. The Cupertino company said it had sold its first million about a month after the April 3 kickoff, and its second million by May 31. — PTI
	ADB: Yuan can become alternative to US dollar New Delhi, June 24 The Chinese yuan has the potential to be an alternative to the US dollar and help create a multi-currency global reserve system, says an Asian Development Bank report. A joint report by the ADB and the Columbia University's Earth Institute released today says the global crisis is likely to accelerate the yuan/renminbi policy liberalisation. "The internationalisation of the renminbi has the potential to become an alternative to the US dollar- as did the euro - and help nudge the global reserve system toward a multi-currency reserve structure," the report notes. The yuan is in focus internationally, following last week's announcement by the Chinese central bank that it will move towards a more flexible currency. The decision came in the face of increasing international pressure, especially from the US, to reform the yuan. Since then, the focus has been on the yuan, which has climbed higher in the spot market. The ADB-financed study by 17 monetary experts, including the Noble laureate Joseph Stiglitz, asserts that a globalised yuan may play very important global and regional roles, provided that China successfully improves its monetary policy mechanisms. As per the report, simulations show that once the yuan becomes more convertible, it can gradually grow to become an international currency - "sharing from about 3-12 per cent of international reserves by 2035". In the wake of the global financial meltdown, and dramatic rise of other currencies against the US dollar, questions have been raised about the sustainability of the US unit as a global reserve currency, with some experts even calling for the replacement of the greenback. Interestingly, a recent study by the Reserve Bank of India mooted the idea of floating the rupee as a global currency. According to the ADB report, re-balancing in the global economy can result in a need for a wider range of currencies to settle trade and investment in the future. "With Asia's growing economic clout, the region should increase economic integration and policy coordination to smooth the transition to a multi-currency reserve system," the ADB study emphasises. — PTI
	MTS crosses 5m user base mark Tribune News Service New Delhi, June 24 Sistema Shyam TeleService Limited’s (SSTL) mobile telephony brand, MTS, yesterday said it has crossed the five million subscriber base mark and promised to offer new voice and data services. The subscribers include over 100,000 users of its wireless Internet service "MBlaze". "Five million subscribers have given us a special place in Indian telecom sector and we are determined to offer them new voice and data products," said Vsevolod Rozanov, president and CEO of SSTL. The company also launched a comprehensive new pre-paid tariff plan for its voice and data services on the occasion. Its "win win pack" offers customers a wide array of services, including local and national calls and a SMS pack, and will be available at an introductory price of Rs 399, though its cost is Rs 530. The packs include a special value voucher of Rs 150 offering talk time of Rs 200 and an STD pack worth Rs 58, offering 120 minutes of national calling. MTS also launched a new package for its data services "Unlimited MBlazer", which offers unlimited data access for 30 days at Rs 999 to its new and existing customers. SSTL is a joint venture between Sistema Russia and the Shyam Group of India. It has spectrum to provide services in all the 22 circles across the country, but is currently providing voice-based services in only 11 circles.
	Toyota apologises for massive recalls Toyota (Japan) June 24 Toyota Motor Corp. president Akio Toyoda bowed deeply and apologised to shareholders today for the troubles caused by massive global recalls of the company's cars. Toyoda was facing shareholders for the first time since the Japanese automaker's reputation for quality was damaged by the quality crisis that started last October. Again bowing deeply after the remark, Toyoda also said the company was doing its utmost to improve quality control and thanked shareholders for their support. Toyota, the world's biggest automaker, has been working to patch up its reputation after more than 8 million vehicles were recalled worldwide over reports of unintended acceleration and other defects. — AP
	ING exits Kotak Bank New Delhi, June 24 The Dutch financial services major ING today exited private sector lender Kotak Mahindra Bank by selling its entire stake in a block deal for Rs 801.1 crore. ING has sold its 3 per cent financial investment stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank, the spokesperson of the Netherlands-based group told PTI. ING sold about 3.06 per cent stake in Kotak Mahindra Bank through open market transactions at an average price of Rs 750.7 per share, according to data available with the National Stock Exchange. — PTI