Indian stocks to watch-Nov 19

GLOBAL MARKET NEWS
* Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange rose 0.29
percent. The MSCI-Asia Pacific index excluding Japan
was up 0.53 percent.
* Hope that U.S. politicians would find common ground to
steer clear of the "fiscal cliff" boosted stocks on Friday,
though the gains were not enough to offset the week's losses.

* Asian shares rose on Monday, boosted by a positive tone in
U.S. equities last week, while the yen fell to a near
seven-month low against the dollar on expectations a new
government after next month's election in Japan may deliver more
stimulus.

FACTORS TO WATCH
* Day 1 of the RBI-ADB conference on managing capital flows.
RBI deputy governor Subir Gokarn and H.R. Khan, as well as
executive director Deepak Mohanty will attend the event.
* C. Rangarajan, head of the Economic Advisory Council to
the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will speak at an event hosted
by the Export-Import Bank of India and will address a press
conference. (0530 GMT)
* Finance Minister P. Chidambaram will be in Bangalore for a
meeting with the chief ministers of South Zone states and chiefs
of state-run banks and financial institutions.

INDIAN STOCKS TO WATCH
For additional press items double click
NOTE: Reuters has not verified third-party stories and does not
vouch for their accuracy.

TOP NEWS
* India is planning to announce the finalised amendments to
the controversial rules on tax evasion for foreign investors in
the next 7-10 days, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said on
Friday, without specifying the details of what will be
announced. (Reuters)

FINANCIAL/REGULATORY
* Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in the banking space may
require clearance from fair market watchdog, Competition
Commission of India (CCI), as well as the sector regulator,
Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Business Standard reported, citing
an unidentified key CCI official. (Business Standard)
here
* Hong Kong-based private equity firm NewQuest Capital
Partners expects to invest about $140 million in India, hoping
to capitalize on the so-called secondary opportunities in the
country, said Amit Gupta, partner and head of the India business
at NewQuest. (Mint)
here

ENERGY/COMMODITIES
* The ministry of coal has issued deallocation letters for
eight coal blocks after a decision by the inter-ministerial
group. Among companies affected by the deallocation were Grasim
Industries, Gujarat Ambuja Cement, Electrotherm,
and Kesoram Industries. (Times of India)
here
* Zuari Industries has signed a memorandum of
understanding to set up an $800 million manufacturing facility
in the United Arab Emirates. (Reuters)

RETAIL
* Italy's Luigi Lavazza Spa is looking for a strategic
partner or even an outright buyer for its Indian coffee chain
Barista five years after acquiring it, and has begun preliminary
talks with potential partners and buyers, said a person with
direct knowledge of the situation. (Economic Times)
here

* Uttam Galva group has acquired majority stake of about
58.35 percent in ailing Lloyds Steel and plans to
invest additional 3.8 billion rupees in the steelmaker to turn
around the company, Uttam Galva Steels' Deputy
Managing Director Ankit Miglani told Press Trust of India. (PTI
via Economic Times)
here
* InterGlobe Enterprises Ltd, which runs budget carrier
IndiGo, plans to launch a university with a Canadian partner,
University of Waterloo, and open retail stores in a joint
venture with Swiss retailer Dufry AG as part of a
diversification effort, chairman Rahul Bhatia said in an
interview. (Mint)
here

AIRLINES
* Aviation minister Ajit Singh on Saturday ordered a probe
into the pricing mechanism of airlines, saying "there must be
some reasonableness and limit." (Times of India)
here
* Air India has launched the first tranche of its
74 billion rupees ($1.3 billion) 19-year bond sale. The 5
billion rupees tranche is being placed with the Employees'
Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). (Reuters)

NOTE: Reuters has not verified third-party stories and does not
vouch for their accuracy.

OTHER FACTORS TO WATCH
* Indian debt/FX factors to watch
* Yen extends drop, hits 7-month low vs dollar
* Oil rises on Middle East conflict, Gulf of Mexico fire
* Foreign institutional investor flows
* For closing rates of Indian ADRs

(Compiled by Manoj Rawal; Editing by Rafael Nam)