Top Business India News Stories of 24th October 2008

Daily news summary

India wants to be part of solution to financial crisis
Finance Minister P. Chidambaram once again advocated that India's economic fundamentals are strong, and said that the government is open to adopting unconventional measures to maintain financial stability. He also added that the RBI would take charge whenever necessary to ensure this. “Our financial system and economic fundamentals are strong. RBI has endorsed the assessment. India is not the cause of the global financial crisis but surely wants to be a part of the solution,” Chidambaram said.

RBI’s mid term review leads to market’s crash
Indian equities markets opened weak today and crashed around noon. A key equities index fell even below the 9,000 mark, immediately after RBI, announced to leave all key rates unchanged in its mid-term review of the annual policy for 2008-09. Portfolio strategist Manoj Krishnan said, “By announcing a slew of measures a few days before its scheduled mid-term review, the RBI had created expectations of some more measures and when they were not met today, the markets crashed.” BSE sensex opened more than 200 points down and then hit a record low of 8940.48 immediately after the RBI announced its mid-term review.

RBI disappoints market, leaves interest rates unchanged
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today left interest rates unchanged and projected a lower economic growth of 7.5-8 percent for the current fiscal in its mid-term review of the monetary policy. The RBI move indicates that India's financial system is steady regardless of challenges from overseas. Besides, the cash reserve ratio was also left untouched at 6.5 percent in the review. RBI Governor D. Subbarao said, "This mid-term review is set in the context of several complex and compelling policy challenges. The global financial system is in a crisis of unprecedented dimensions."

Computer literacy to be promoted by Intel in UP
Uttar Pradesh has teamed up with chip manufacturing biggie Intel for disseminating computer literacy. A top government official disclosed that computer labs will be set up in nearly 5,000 schools across the state. “Labs would be initially set up in various schools of Lucknow and Allahabad districts and later to other districts. This move will greatly benefit students and teachers of rural and remote areas not registered in computer training programs,” the official said. This agreement is being considered as the 1st step to make computer science a compulsory subject in the UP board.

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