Diversified conglomerate ITC has raised the prices of select cigarette brands like Classic and Gold Flake Kings by up to R10/pack in the wake of hike in excise duty on cigarettes in the Budget.

"Prices of select ITC Cigarette brands have been increased and new stocks are expected to hit the market shortly," an ITC spokesperson said.

The benchmark BSE Sensex gained over 61 points in early trade today on sustained and selective buying by funds and retail investors ahead of RBI's policy meet.

Continuing yesterday's winning streak, the 30-share index rose further by 61.03 points, or 0.24 per cent, to 25,784.19, with all the sectoral indices, led by auto and banking, trading in positive zone with gains up to 0.62 per cent.

Bajaj Auto gains 2.2 percent after Barclays upgrades the stock to "overweight" from "equalweight".

Barclays says all the bad news appears to be priced in.

Demand for two-wheelers in India will accelerate to 12 and 12.3 percent for FY15 and FY16 as macro factors improve along with new launches, it says.

India's largest realty firm DLF has sought shareholders' approval to raise up to Rs 5,000 crore through private placement of non-convertible debentures.

In a filing to the BSE, DLF informed that shareholders nod has been sought through postal ballot for reducing borrowing power of the company's board of directors to R30,000 crore from earlier R50,000 crore.

Air India is planning to tweak its daily service to Australia, to cut losses.

In August 2013, it had launched a daily service connecting Delhi with Sydney and Melbourne in a single trip. Now, the airline would operate separate flights to Sydney and Melbourne, with reduced frequency.

The government today tabled a bill in the Lok Sabha to empower market regulator Sebi to deal with the menace of ponzi schemes, but the legislation curtailed its powers related to search and seizures compared to those provided in the ordinance that it replaced.

The government today tabled a bill in the Lok Sabha to empower market regulator Sebi to deal with the menace of ponzi schemes, but the legislation curtailed its powers related to search and seizures compared to those provided in the ordinance that it replaced.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have won many hearts in Nepal when he announced India’s offer to provide a $1-billion concessional loan to that country amid thundering applause, but the objective of the Indian government is to lessen the increasing influence of China over the Himalayan nation.

The whopping credit line of $1-billion or Nepali rupee 10,000 crore is expected to be utilised in several developmental projects that Nepal wants to undertake in future, such as building power plants, roads and dams.

With less than two months to go for implementation of the new corporate governance norms, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has warned India Inc to comply or face the music. The capital markets regulator has ruled out extension of the October 1 deadline. Nearly 1,000 companies are yet to comply with some or the other provision of the corporate governance norms.

Kotak Mahindra Bank plans to raise up to Rs 300 crore through infrastructure bonds, rated 'AAA/stable' by CRISIL. The rating agency said given the exemption from statutory reserve requirements and priority sector obligations, these bonds would be cost-effective.

The bonds will improve the bank's asset-liability profile.

HDFC Bank Ltd. inaugurated four new branches in Chhattisgarh to take its number of branches in the state to 55.

Of the new branches, two had come up in Raipur and one each in Bilaspur and Korba, a press statement issued by the bank here said. All the branches are urban and will offer the full range of world-class banking solutions to meet the needs of the local population.

Inviting Real Estate Agents, Job Placements Agents, Educational Institutes, Software Service Providers, Real Estate Builders, Marriage Bureaus, Travel Agents, Restaurant Owners, Health & Fitness Centers and other Local Businesses to Post a FREE Classified Advertisement on Cootera.com Classifieds Website.