Fitch downgrades Greece

Fitch rating agency dual-headquartered in New York and London says it has downgraded Greece further into junk status, from 'CCC' to 'C'.

Terms of the day

AMC – Asset Management Company

IMD – India Meteorological Department

GMT – Greenwich Mean Time

LME – London Metal Exchange (world’s largest metal trading exchange)

NAV – Net Asset Value

CARE – Credit  Analysis and Research

ASCI – Advertising Standard Council of India

CBEC – Central Board of Excise and Customes.

GST – Goods Service Tax

FEC – (International) Friendship Exchange Council

Miscellaneous

Indirect tax collection target for 2011-12 – Rs. 3.93 lakh crore.

India’s per capita income - $1200

RBI to buy G-Secs (Government securities) worth Rs. 12000 crore through OMO (Open Market Operations) to ease the current liquidity crisis.

National Australia Bank opens first branch in India, in Mumbai.

Economic Advisory Council pegs 2012-13 growth rate at 7.5 to 8

The mining sector’s contribution to the country’s GDP is 1.2 % for the last several years.

Hero MotoCorp ties up with Eirk Buell Racing (US based) 

India committed to forging deeper relations with Japan

India is committed to forging deeper relations with Japan as part of its ‘Look East’ policy, which aims at closer integration with the East Asian region, the Minister of State for Planning, Science & Technology and Earth Science, Mr. Ashwani Kumar said during a meeting with a high level Japanese delegation at New Delhi.

Airlines allowed to directly import ATF

The Director General of Foreign Trade allowed individual domestic airlines to directly import aviation turbine fuel (ATF) by issuing a formal notification to this effect.

New MNREGA version aims to boost productivity

An operational guideline suggested for a radically improved version for MNREGA (Mahathma Gandhi Natonal Rural Employment Guarantee Act) call for “urgent measures” to convert the rural job scheme into a productivity-enhancing instrument, particularly in the agriculture sector. The Rural Development Minister, Mr. Jairam Ramesh who unveiled the new guideline prepared by a committee headed by the Planning Commission Member, Mr. Mihir Shah. The revised guideline for MNREGA 2.0 suggests the strengthening of the synergy between the job scheme and rural livelihoods especially agriculture and allied sectors, and respond to demands of the States for greater location flexibility in permissible works.

BSE launched BSE Green Index

The 20 share index is dominated by health care, finance sectors. It is expected to increase emission sensitive investing. This index is called BSE GREENEX.

Bring excise, service tax back to pre-crisis level: PM’s advisory panel

The prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) has advocated increasing excise duty and service tax to the pre-crisis level, even as it pitched for tougher action on subsidies. Expressing concern over the high fiscal deficit, which is expected to overshoot the target of 4.6 % of GDP this fiscal. Releasing the review of the economy for 2011-12, Dr. C. Rangarajan, Chairman, PMEAC, said: “The rate hike need not necessarily be done in one go, it could be done in phases”.