Mahyco expects to get the nod soon to commercially market Bt brinjal

Manufacturer of genetically modified seeds, Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company Ltd (Mahyco) is expecting to receive approval for commercially marketing Bt brinjal seeds soon. Before the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) formally approves Bt brinjal in india, Mahyco launched an awareness programme in Ahmedabad on Wednesday.

Unveils Xenon XT

In the last 14 months, Tata Motors and Fiat together have launched five products — Indigo CS, Sumo Grande, Palio Diesel, Indica Vista and Linea.

On Wednesday, the duo unveiled Xenon XT (cross terrain), a lifestyle four-door, 5-seater pickup.

For FY10, Tata and Fiat together have slated five more launches — Nano, Grande Punto, another vehicle which will be a cross between an SUV and MPV, a new Indigo and a yet-to-be-named Fiat car.

The idea behind these launches is to create a strong portfolio and spur an excitement in the market to stimulate demand.

Budapest - The US-based circuit board manufacturer Jabil Circuit is to lay off 900 workers at its plant in Hungary, the firm revealed on Wednesday.

Jabil, which currently employs some 4,000 in Hungary, told the local news agency MTI that its decision was due to falling orders.

The news came the day after Hungary's official economic statistics office forecast that 105,000 jobs would be lost this year.

Of these, 12,000 will be in the automotive sector and 10,000 in construction. Anna Adamecz, a department head at Ecostat, said that 60 per cent of redundancies will be due to falling demand in export markets.

With the aim to prevent inventory build-up in the midst of ongoing slowdown in the domestic market, Honda, the Japanese car major would continue to cut its India output by over 45 per cent for the next six months.

It was confirmed by the company that its planned release of hatchback Jazz in the Indian market is on schedule. The company is also thinking to increase the prices of its various models.

Tokyo - Honda Motor Co announced Monday that it would appoint a new president in June to deal with a sales slowdown caused by the yen's surge against other major currencies and the dwindling consumer appetite amid the global economic downturn.

Japan's second-largest carmaker plans to promote Senior Managing Director Takanobu Ito to president. The decision was expected to be approved at a shareholders' meeting in June, Honda said.

In light of the highly uncertain global economic conditions, Hewlett-Packard, world’s largest PC maker, has instituted pay cuts for all of its employees worldwide.

Almost all departments, including sales and administration divisions, will be affected by the company's "work-sharing" plan, initially implemented for certain workers and factories, in order to avoid layoffs.

The company, however, feels that a company-wide workforce reduction is not the best solution for the current global economic crises.