9 JULY 2016

Ø  India and Mozambique signed an agreement under which India will buy pulses from the African nation to plug its shortfall and to contain prices. The agreement came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi.

Ø  The government has invited merchant bankers to help it sell minority stakes in 51 companies, including RIL, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and L&T, and is looking at exiting them within three years. The Specified Undertaking of UTI (SUUTI) has investments in these 51 listed as well as unlisted companies, like Hindustan Unilever, ITC Ltd, Jaiprakash Associates and a host of Tata Group firms. Government holds minority stake in these companies through SUUTI, which was formed in 2003 as an offshoot of erstwhile UTI, and is looking at selling them either through an OFS, block deal, bulk deal or regular sale through stock exchanges.