Airbus will lunch A400

The head of European plane maker Airbus is preparing to ditch its A400 M military transport project which is bogged down in talks with clients, a German press report said on Tuesday. But a German official said the intention was to press on with the programme. Thomas Enders reportedly told a group of Airbus directors last month he "no longer believed in pursuing the programme" and had begun to prepare for it to be terminated, the Financial Times Deutschland (FTD) said. Lists of engineers to be transferred from the A400 M to the development of two other key aircraft, the A380 superjumbo and the A350 , have already been drawn up, the newspaper added. The German defence ministry, however, said it aimed to continue with the programme and hoped talks could still be wrapped up the end of the month. "We... will continue to clarify the necessary details for a continuation of the programme with the industry until the end of the month," a ministry spokesman said. He added that state secretaries from the seven countries planning to buy the plane were planning to meet in mid-January. An Airbus spokesman said it hoped to wrap up the A400 M negotiations "positively and constructively" by January 31. Airbus and its parent group, the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS), have been in discussions over cost overruns for several months with the seven countries. A total of 120 aircraft had been ordered for around 20 billion euros (29 billion dollars) but clients are being asked to pony up billions more to cover unexpected costs. The Financial Times Deutschland said Enders estimated the chances of reaching an agreement at around 50-50. And the German boss "is not ready to threaten the civil aviation division, which is doing well, just for the A400 M," a source close to the matter was quoted as saying.

Bangladesh has enough fertilizer stock said industrial minister

The industries minister said yesterday there is a surplus stock of urea fertiliser for the Irri-Boro season as the government has ensured adequate supply of the important agro-inputs before the season starts this month. "We have the highest stock of urea fertiliser than the previous years', which also exceeds the present demand for this agro-input for the Irri- Boro season. We have tried our best to ensure enough supply of fertiliser before the massive rice-farming activities start," said Dilip Barua. "The local production of fertiliser has increased, while the imports and dealers' stocks are also satisfactory," he added. He was speaking at a meeting with the leaders of Bangladesh Fertiliser Dealers' Association and importers at his ministry. At present, the local demand for urea fertiliser stands at 12.75 lakh tonnes for the January- March period, while the local manufacturers would produce 3.95 lakh tonnes during this period. At the same time, the dealers have a stock of 2 lakh tonnes, shows industries ministry data. "The government has a stock of over 7.21 lakh tonnes now," the minister said. The demand for urea fertiliser would be around 4.44 lakh tonnes in January, of which around 1.35 lakh tonnes would be met from local production, while the government has an allocation of 5.84 lakh tonnes for the month. The government will also import 2.34 lakh tonnes for the season. Barua said the demand for Triple Super Phosphate (TSP) would be 6.7 lakh tonnes, while the demand for Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) is 2.63 lakh tonnes for this year. He said the government would import around 8. 51 lakh tonnes of urea fertiliser from three Middle East countries through international tenders this year. At the same time, around 8 lakh tonnes of urea fertiliser would be procured through government-to-government negotiations and Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company Ltd. The minister stressed the need for proper and transparent distribution of fertiliser at the field level by increasing transport facilities. Kafil Uddin Ahmed, adviser to the association, said the government should ensure better transport facilities and modernise the Mongla seaport, which is essential for proper and timely distribution of imported fertiliser across the country. The association leaders also demanded the government ease the loan repayment conditions to help them continue support for the agriculture sector.

Tata Nano is making for US market

The maker of the Nano, the world's cheapest car, said Tuesday it was developing a version of the vehicle for the US market with a larger engine and higher safety standards. "We also recognise there is a market not only in developing countries, but possibly for a low-cost car in developed markets," the chairman of Nano manufacturer Tata Motors, Ratan Tata, told reporters at the Delhi auto show. "For the US, we need a car that will have a larger engine, which needs additional crash tests, modifications, and we're in the process of doing this." The basic Nano, a stripped-back four-door vehicle launched at the Delhi show two years ago, costs about 2 ,500 dollars, while the top-end model with additions such as air-conditioning and a rear wiper costs 3 ,700 dollars. Tata received 206 ,703 bookings for the car when it began accepting reservations in April last year, but waiting lists are long because of difficulties in setting up a production plant. The Nano has sparked a race to create other ultra-low-cost cars for the Indian and other emerging markets.