German sports carmaker Porsche has made EUR 6.8 billion by buying long Volkswagen options. The money was made in only six months ended Jan 31, 2009.

Porsche went long in VW while others shorted the company, including German billionaire Adolf Merckle, 74, who lost $400 million by shorting the VW shares, who later apparently committed suicide by stepping into the path of a train in his home town of Blaubeurennear in southwestern Germany. Read the full story

Tata Motors has just launched the Tata Nano 5-door car in Mumbai that costs only $2,000.

Tata Motors says the car will not be profitable for at least 6 years, and hopes to have a European ready model by 2011.

The Tata Nano currently does not comply with US emissions or safety standards.

It has drum all-round breaks instead of front discs, and only has basic panels such as the speedometer, fuel, and odometer gauges. The wheels measure at only 12-inches. The vehicle can impressively travel up to 90km per hour.

The Tata Nano comes in three variants as outlined below

* Tata Nano Standard (BSII* and BSIII*): The standard version, in three colour options, single-tone seats, and fold-down rear seat.

* Tata Nano CX (BSII* and BSIII*): In five colour options, with heating and air-conditioning (HVAC), two-tone seats, parcel shelf, booster-assisted brakes, fold-down rear seat with nap rest. Read the full story

Very simply, the BlackBerry Pearl Flip phone is now available in India from Vodafone. It features a SureType keyboard, 2MP camera, and other more simple features. Complete specs can be found at GSMArena.

China has announced it will begin to issue licenses to companies for its 3G mobile network for over $40 billion in government contracts. The Chinese infrastructure will include C and WCDMA, and TD-SCDMA. It is more likely China will opt for extensive use of the TD-SCDMA standard as it was developed by China and therefore China would avoid paying royalties. The Chinese government has awarded 3G contracts mainly to domestic Read the full story