1. Indian Oil signs first annual deal to buy up to 3 million tonnes US oil
• Indian Oil Corp, the country`s top refiner, has signed its first annual deal to buy up to 3 million tonnes or 60,000 barrels per day of US oil.
• State-run IOC had previously purchased US oil from spot markets and signed a mini-term deal in August to buy 6 million barrels of U.S. oil between November to January.
• IOCL chairman Sanjiv Singh said the annual contract will begin from April.
• He declined to give the name of the seller and pricing details citing confidentiality.
2. InfyTQ app
• The country`s second-largest IT services firm Infosys launched the `InfyTQ` app.
• It is a digital platform to offer learning and engagement experiences to engineering students in the country.
• InfyTQ is a free platform open to all engineering students in their third and fourth years across India.
• The platform encourages holistic development by imparting technical as well as professional skills, helping them become industry-ready.
3. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will pay Rs 28,000 crore as interim dividend to the government
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will pay Rs 28,000 crore as interim dividend to the government.
• This money will help the Centre meet its revised budget estimates that include an allocation for the first-ever income transfer to farmers.
• With this interim transfer, the government will get a total Rs 68,000 crore from the central bank in the current fiscal.
• The RBI had transferred Rs 40,000 crore to the government in August 2018.
• This will be the highest receipt from RBI in a single financial year for the government, exceeding the Rs 65,896 crore it received in FY16 and Rs 40,659 crore in FY18.
4. EPFO moots hiking EPF interest rate to 8.65% for FY18-19
• The Central Board of Trustees of the Employees` Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) has recommended increasing the interest rate on Employees` Provident Fund for 2018-19 to 8.65% as against 8.55% in the preceding year.
• The move, once approved by the finance ministry will benefit six crore EPFO subscribers.
• Epfo will have a surplus of Rs 151 crore as on date after doling out higher interest rates. Finance ministry will have to give it`s go ahead to the interest rate declared by EPFO following which it will be notified by the labour ministry.
• The CBT is a tripartite body with representatives from the government, employers and trade unions headed by the labour minister. It is the apex decision-making body of the EPFO. The 8.65% rate is higher than that available on government small savings schemes, the return on which is benchmarked to market rates.
• EPFO has an active subscriber base of more than 60 million and manages retirement savings of over Rs 11 lakh crore.
The EPFO provided a five-year-low rate of interest of 8.55% for FY18. It pegged the rate at 8.65% in FY17 and 8.8% in FY16. It provided 8.75% interest in FY14 and FY15. The rate of interest was 8.5% in FY13.