Flashback 2013: What made news in the business world

For an economy growing at its slowest pace in a decade, 2013 was an action-packed year. It saw inflation dip to a three-year-low and the Sensex touch its life high. Here's a look at what else made news through the year -

Jan 1, 2013: Sensex rises to 19,581 points: The BSE Sensex rose on the first trading day of 2013 after the US averted the looming 'fiscal cliff' in a last-minute deal, with hopes of a rate cut by the RBI beginning to gather steam. The benchmark Sensex rose 0.79 per cent, or 154.10 points, to end at 19,580.81 after earlier hitting its highest level intraday since April 27, 2011.

Jan 2, 2013: Chidambaram says current account deficit worrying: India's record current account deficit is "worrying," Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said and hinted at cutting gold imports to bolster weak external accounts. Data had shown the deficit has widened to 5.4 per cent of gross domestic product in the September quarter, driven by falling exports.

Jan 8, 2013: Fitch renews warning on India's outlook: The ratings agency reiterated its "negative" outlook on country's sovereign credit rating, citing concerns about slowing economic growth, persistent inflationary pressures and an uncertain fiscal outlook.

Jan 10, 2013: Vijay Mallya outlines revival plan for Kingfisher Airlines: Shares in the grounded carrier rose after a letter sent to staff from Chairman Vijay Mallya outlined plans for a revival to be funded with  Rs 650 crore from his UB Group. The airline filed its plan to regulators in late December.

Jan 14, 2013: Inflation at three-year low, hopes of a rate cut rise: Headline inflation slowed to its lowest level in three years, hardening expectations for an interest rate cut by the central bank later in the month. The wholesale price index (WPI) rose an annual 7.18 per cent in December, the slowest since December 2009.

Jan 14, 2013: Controversial GAAR norms deferred to April 2016: The government said it will delay by two years implementation of controversial rules on tax avoidance to 2016, a decision which earned a positive market reaction. The General Anti-Avoidance Rules, aimed at companies and investors routing money through tax havens such as Mauritius, had been earlier scheduled to be implemented from April 2014.

Jan 17, 2013: Govt asks retailers to raise diesel prices: The government told fuel retailers to raise the price of subsidised diesel in small amounts every month in an attempt to prop up public finances without causing a popular backlash before elections. The government called for increases of about 5o paise-per-litre each month.

Jan 21, 2013: Import duty on gold raised: The government raised the import tax on gold by 2 percentage points to 6 per cent to curb purchases and rein in a ballooning fiscal deficit.

Jan 29, 2013: RBI cuts repo rate by 25 basis points, first move in 2013: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lowered its key policy rate by 25 basis points to 7.75 per cent for the first time in nine months, but struck a cautious note on further easing as it waits to see how the government's upcoming budget aims to bring a bloated fiscal deficit under control.

Feb 11, 2013: MCX-SX starts trading, setting up battle with NSE: The newly formed stock exchange MCX-SX attracted thin volumes as it started trading shares. The value of shares traded on the MCX-SX in its first day was just  Rs 69 lakh, compared with Rs 9,457 crore on the National Stock Exchange.

Feb 19, 2013: RIL, BP to invest $5 bn to boost D6 gas field output: Reliance Industries and UK partner BP plan joint investment of more than $5 billion over the next three to five years to boost declining output at a key natural gas field off the country's east coast.

Feb 20, 2013: AirAsia, Tata Sons form joint venture to launch airline: The Malaysian budget carrier, owned by Tony Fernandes, sought the government's nod to own 49 per cent in a proposed joint venture with Tata Sons and Arun Bhatia of Telestra Tradeplace.

Feb 26, 2013: Railway budget sets tone for austerity year: Railway Minister Pawan Bansal's Budget defied speculation of a second round of hikes in basic passenger fares after a 21 per cent hike in January. But there was a nearly 6 per cent hike in freight traffic rates and additional charges on some passenger tickets, mostly for wealthier passengers.

Feb 28, 2013: Budget 2013 - Chidambaram increases spending, taxes the rich: Finance Minister P. Chidambaram unveiled a surge in spending, despite expectations of an austerity budget to shore up the government's finances, imposing new taxes on the rich and large companies to fund a dash for growth ahead of an election due by next year.

Apr 1, 2013: Novartis loses landmark patent case: The Supreme Court dismissed Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG's attempt to win patent protection for its cancer drug Glivec. The decision sets a benchmark for intellectual property cases in India, where many patented drugs are unaffordable for most of its 1.2 billion people, and does not bode well for foreign firms engaged in ongoing disputes in India, analysts said.

Apr 2, 2013: Ambani brothers move past feud: The billionaire brothers said they will share a fibre optic network for their rival telecoms companies. This was their first business tie-up since ending a long-running feud three years ago. Reliance Industries, controlled by Mukesh Ambani, said it will pay  Rs 1,200 crore to younger brother Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications for use of its fibre optic network.

Apr 5, 2013: Sensex at 18,450 - lowest level since November 2012: The Nifty and Sensex fell as concerns that foreign investors would exit some of their holdings continued to hit blue-chips. Indexes had fallen for three consecutive sessions, with the Nifty ending the week down 2.3 per cent to post its biggest weekly loss in two weeks.

May 20, 2013: Chidambaram says will take more steps to cut gold imports if needed: Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said India will take more steps if necessary to curb gold imports after the country's overseas purchases of gold and silver shot up 138 per cent in April. The spike in gold imports has increased pressure on the country's trade and current account deficits.

May 3, 2013: RBI cuts repo rate, warns of little room for more: The Reserve Bank of India cut repo rate to 7.25 per cent, by a quarter point for the third time since January but said there is little room for further policy easing, disappointing investors and putting the onus on the government to revive a moribund economy.

May 21, 2013: iGate sacks CEO over undisclosed relationship: IT outsourcing company iGate Corp sacked Chief Executive Phaneesh Murthy in May after a company sexual harassment investigation revealed that he had not disclosed a relationship with a subordinate.

Jun 1, 2013: Infosys recalls Narayana Murthy as chairman: After grappling with disappointing results and loss of market share, Infosys recalled founder and former chairman NR Narayana Murthy to act as executive chairman for five years.

Jun 7, 2013: Ambani brothers in $2.1 bln telecom tower sharing pact: RIL, controlled by Mukesh Ambani, would lease up to 45,000 mobile masts from mobile carrier Reliance Communications in a deal valued at more than  Rs 12,000 crore over the lifetime of the contract, the companies said.

Jun 12, 2013: Apollo Tyres-Cooper Tire deal: Kanwars-led Apollo Tyres agreed to buy US-based Cooper Tire & Rubber for about $2.5 billion in a deal that would make it the world's seventh-largest tire maker and reduce its dependence on a slowing Indian auto market.

Jun 27, 2013: Current account gap at record 4.8 per cent of GDP: The country's current account deficit hit a record high 4.8 per cent of gross domestic product in the fiscal year that ended in March, fuelled by rising imports of oil and gold, but was lower than an expected gap of 5 per cent, giving a boost to the battered rupee.

Jul 1, 2013: RBI receives 26 applications for new bank licences: Applicants include Reliance Capital, controlled by billionaire Anil Ambani, and Aditya Birla Nuvo, part of the diversified Birla conglomerate.

Jul 3, 2013: Food security scheme launched: The government launched a $22 billion welfare scheme to give cheap food to hundreds of millions of people, a centrepiece of the ruling Congress party's plan to win a third term in elections due by May 2014. Under the plan, the government will sell subsidised wheat and rice to 67 per cent of its 1.2 billion people.

Jul 16, 2013: Foreign investment rules eased for various sectors: The government relaxed foreign direct investment rules in a broad swathe of industries including telecoms, single brand retail and oil and gas in a bid to lure capital inflows, prop up a sliding currency and rev up growth. In a meeting of senior cabinet ministers, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh cleared plans to allow 100 per cent FDI in telecom sector.

Aug 1, 2013: National Spot Exchange halts forward trading: Shares in Financial Technologies slumped 64.5 per cent after a commodity exchange it owns, National Spot Exchange, suspended trade in most of its forward contracts and deferred payments on client trades.

Aug 1, 2013: Govt eases retail sector rules: India eased sourcing and investment rules for the retail sector in a renewed attempt to attract foreign supermarket chains such as Walmart Stores and Tesco.

Aug 2, 2013: India revokes GSK cancer drug patent: India revoked a patent granted to GlaxoSmithKline Plc for breast cancer drug Tykerb, a decision that follows a landmark India court ruling disallowing patents for incremental innovations. However, the Intellectual Property Appellate Board upheld a patent granted on the original compound, citing innovative merit.

Aug 28, 2013: Rupee nears 69; posts biggest day fall in 18 years: The rupee slumped to a record low near 69-a-dollar on growing worries that foreign investors will continue to sell out of India. The pummelling in markets sent the rupee reeling 3.7 per cent to an all-time low of 68.85 with the unit closing just a touch off that, at 68.80/81 per dollar, its biggest single-day fall since October 1995.

Aug 30, 2013: PM tries to quell crisis fears: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh sought to quell fears of a currency crisis as economic growth fell to a four-year low, while the government raised prospects of joint intervention with other countries following the rupee's crash to record lows.

Sept 4, 2013: New RBI chief raises hopes with action plan: Raghuram Rajan started his term with a bang, announcing a spate of measures to support the embattled rupee and unveiling a raft of steps to liberalise financial markets and the banking sector. Rajan outlined plans to attract more funds from overseas by subsidising hedging costs for banks and making it easier for importers and exporters to hedge currency risk.

Sep 10, 2013: Sensex surges 727 points on Rajan's steps: The index registered its biggest single-day gain since May 2009, as receding fears of a US-led military strike on Syria and a sturdier rupee sparked hopes about foreign investor flows. The foreign buying comes after new RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan announced measures to support the rupee and open up markets.

Sep 18, 2013: Singapore Airlines, Tata to establish airline: The companies plan to initially invest a combined $100 million to start the full-service airline, with Tata Sons owning 51 per cent and Singapore Airlines, Asia's second-biggest carrier by market capitalisation, the rest.

Oct 30, 2013: MCX founder Jignesh Shah resigns from board: The founder and vice chairman of Multi Commodity Exchange resigned from the board of the exchange he built from a start-up in 2003 into the country's biggest commodities bourse after group firm National Spot Exchange came under investigation over suspected violations of rules.

Nov 12, 2013: PepsiCo says to invest $5.5 billion in India by 2020: The company's plans come after rival Coca-Cola said in June last year it would invest a total of $5 billion between 2012 and 2020 to grow its business in Asia's third-largest economy.

Dec 10, 2013: Mukesh Ambani, Sunil Bharti Mittal ink deal to share infra: Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio Infocomm and Sunil Mittal-headed Bharti Airtel announced a comprehensive arrangement for sharing telecom infrastructure, a partnership that will help them reduce costs they incur on their respective networks.

Dec 17, 2013: Tesco readies first foreign supermarket investment: Britain's Tesco Plc will be the first foreign supermarket to venture into India's $500 billion retail sector after the company announced it has applied to buy a 50 per cent stake in Tata Group's Trent Hypermarket.