BANGALORE: Canada's move to resume anti-dumping proceedings against Indian monumental black granite imports has left the industry so bitter that some of the exporters do not want to do business with the North American nation. "We are not interested in doing business with Canada anymore as we are being subjected to all kinds of indignities. They seem to doubt our bona fides," All India Granites and Stone Association vice-president Y R Shah said.Canada had imposed anti-dumping duties on monumental black granite stones in 1993 following a complaint from granite monument makers in Beebee town bordering the US. Though anti-dumping duties had lapsed in 1998, a complaint had been lodged with Canadian government leading to initiation of re-investigation procedures.

Thomas Cook's French package

MUMBAI: Thomas Cook (India) Ltd, India's premier holiday company, jointly with Air France, one of the world's finest carriers, has launched Destination France for holiday seekersthis summer. Ashwini Kakkar, CEO and MD, Thomas Cook, said here today that the company is committed to bringing new and unusual holidays to the Indian traveller.

``Namaste France and Bonjour is one novel way of letting you discover France as you like it,'' he said. Namaste France is part of Bonjour which is a comprehensive catalogue of hotels, sightseeing, entertainment shows, theme holidays and excursions which enable one to discover every part of France. France is the first destination in the world attracting 75 million tourist annually, which is more than its entire population. The tie-up with Thomas Cook with its wide network of offices and France's national airline is looking at tapping the growing holiday market by offering a wide range of exclusive tours to France at affordable prices, he added.

GIC's NPA

MUMBAI: The General Insurance Corporation (GIC) has recorded the lowest percentage of non-performing assets (NPA) at 4.08 per cent among the financial institutions during 1997-98. Theinstitution had an investment portfolio of Rs 16,728 crore at the end of March 1998. The NPA of the institution had steadily grown from 2.29 per cent during 1996 to 4.08 per cent during 1997-98. It was 2.45 per cent during 1996-97. Delhi-based Industrial Finance Corporation of India has recorded the highest percentage of NPA which was pegged at over 8 per cent during the year. Among the financial institutions, the ICICI Ltd had recorded an NPA of 7.60 per cent, IDBI had pegged its NPAs level at 7.50 per cent.