India ranked 52 in 2011 index against its position at 53rd among 125 nations a year ago.
It is now clear that the revised takeover code and the Bimal Jalan committee report will not be implemented soon and in the same form, since the finance ministry wants to seek industry views on these two sets of recommendations this month, before the market regulator could take a decision.
In the Budget for 2011-12, the government revised the tax mop-up target for 2010-11 to Rs. 4.46 lakh crore for direct taxes and Rs. 3.36 lakh crore for indirect taxes.
In an environment vitiated by strong arm tactics of some microfinancial institutions, financial inclusion could be a business opportunity.
Kaushik Basu, chief economic advisor in the finance ministry, said, "All I can say is, we are very serious about fiscal consolidation, and intend holding on to our fiscal targets, even if the crude price rises on a sustained basis."
The government will reserve the right to decide on the cost recoverability of royalty from Cairn India's block in Barmer while clearing Cairn Energy's sale of its Indian subsidiary to Vedanta Resources.
This activity will allow us to identify those jurisdictions where either the legal framework is not good enough or practices are not good enough and, therefore, information is not flowing.
There was a time when gas was offered to India at a cheaper price but we could not close those deals.
After prospects of a higher subsidy outgo on food and fertilisers, the government is faced with the spectre of a higher petroleum subsidy. Rising crude oil prices and its inability to increase fuel prices is all set to spoil the government's subsidy calculations. The country meets 80 per cent of its crude oil demand through imports.
As India's investment rate is estimated to decline this financial year, industry chamber CII has asked Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to give a boost to investments in the forthcoming Budget, but economists believe a rollback of stimulus may continue.
The company is also looking to expand the supply of gas by roads and is evaluating creation of small storage hubs along the highways.
G-20, the grouping of developed and emerging market economies, will focus on food security but issues concerning India like rising prices of vegetables may not come up for discussions at a meeting in Paris next week.
The finance ministry said it would wait for RBI guidelines, a development which will provide much relief to ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank. Both are already known as Foreign Owned Indians Controlled entities, after foreign investment in them rose much above 50 per cent, following new norms of calculations by the commerce ministry.
The finance ministry seems to be gung ho about economic growth next financial year. It may peg this at nine per cent for 2011-12 in the Economic Survey, likely to be tabled in Parliament on February 25, even as the Reserve bank of India (RBI) hinted at a lower figure.
Indian companies with exposure to Egypt are keeping their fingers crossed as the Arab Republic is faced with a massive unrest.
As the debate on revealing names of those who had stashed money abroad was hotting up, a Parliamentary panel grilled finance ministry officials on why the confidentiality clause was put in tax treaties in the first place.
A series of rises in petrol price following its decontrol on June 25 last year has increased the state governments' earnings from value added tax on petrol by around 21 per cent.
Amid decelerating manufacturing growth, the Reserve Bank wants the government to come out with measures in the Budget to give a boost to the sector, which can employ surplus labour from agriculture.
Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has opposed the proposal of a new pipeline from Kakinada to Srikakulam floated by Andhra Pradesh Gas Infrastructure Corporation (APGIC). RIL has argued that gas availability for the pipeline is uncertain and will not contribute to the development of a national gas grid.
Despite raising petrol prices by around Rs 2.95 a litre - the second-biggest increase in this calendar year so far - public and private retailers are losing Rs 50 crore a day on selling the auto fuel.
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