Newsmaker of the last fortnight: Akhilesh Yadav, Pratik Pota, Chhavi Rajawat, Pradeep Sindhu and Punitha Arumuga.

The benchmark resumed lower at 17,598.42 and hovered in a range of 17,691.96 and 17,008.77 before settling the week at 17,503.24 - a net loss of 133.75 points or 0.76 per cent.

While Sahara India Parivar, promoted by Subrata Roy, is likely to bounce back due to its proximity to the Samajwadi Party, Reliance ADAG Chairman Anil Ambani is expected to see more opportunities in power and infrastructure projects in the state.

Congress leaders quickly rushed to insulate their star campaigner in Uttar Pradesh and general secretary Rahul Gandhi from criticism, saying that a wide variety of factors were to blame for the multiple disaster.

Counting is on in the five states - Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur, Uttarakhand and Goa - where polls were conducted during the last two months.

Large chunks of our 'mind space' are taken up by big events, and the government's annual Budget is truly like an assault on Everest - lots of base camps, sherpas carrying in demands and requests from the praja to the raja.

Starring: Shahabuddin Yaqoob Quraishi, Vikram Gandhi, Romesh Wadhwani, Matthew Shattock, George M. Keune

If 2011 was full of signs of an economy decelerating - high inflation, a slowdown in manufacturing and rising inventory of unsold apartments - this year will hit Indians where it hurts the most: home finances.

In some bright news on the manufacturing front, the purchasing managers index (PMI) in December logged in the best rise since June, indicating that all is not lost on the growth front.

An unprecedented total of 226 million shoppers visited stores and web sites, compared with 212 million in 2010, according to a poll taken by the BIGresearch company for the NRF.

Another study, a report by think-tank Demos entitled 'Good Growth', suggests that Britain is one of the worst places to live in Europe.

Quick takes on major events of the last fortnight

The signals are ominous. As a BT-Gallup MBA Survey of corporate India reveals, the Indian business house faces powerful threats that may erode its historical strengths. Is the pessimism about their future justified? Or is it unfounded? An assessment.

Though metal and realty sectors have shown a recent rally, it is not advisable to buy them yet. Here's why you should wait before picking them up.

Apart from the M&A activity, which saw the birth of JetLite and Kingfisher Red, many carriers are signing agreements with regional players, like the GoAir-MDLR Airlines pact.

As if the rising interest rates were not worrying enough, now be prepared for the sting of higher service charges. The financial sector in the country has been battling rough weather for a while now.

The only way to master the art of stock investing—low risk and high returns—is to take the time-tested route of long-term investing.

For too long now, the pension sector has been a woefully neglected stepchild for everyone—government, regulators and investors. Now, hopefully, the first step towards pension reforms has been taken.

Reeling from an onslaught by the Taliban and crippled by an electricity crisis, businesses in Pakistan are forced to survive in a world fraught with risk and uncertainty.

The only one with the coveted family name to be heading a group business, Noel N. Tata is seen as one of the more likely candidates to step into Ratan Tata's shoes. But has he done enough?