WASHINGTON - PRESIDENT-ELECT Barack Obama said the US economy seems destined to get worse before it gets better and he pledged a recovery plan 'that is equal to the task ahead'.

Mr Obama also said in an interview broadcast Sunday that the survival of the domestic car-making capacity is important, yet any bailout must be 'conditioned on an auto industry emerging at the end of the process that actually works'.

MUMBAI - INDIA'S top vehicle maker Tata Motors Ltd said on Sunday it would pass on a 4 per cent reduction in India's central value-added tax to its customers.

The Indian government on Sunday announced an across-the-board cut in the ad valorem cenvat (central value added tax) rate on all products other than petroleum and products where the rate was already less than 4 per cent.

NEW DELHI - INDIA on Sunday announced an extra US$4 billion (S$6 billion) in spending to shield the country's economy from the impact of the global financial crisis.

The government said it would also ensure a substantial increase in expenditure for next year's budget. The new measures follow a cut in interest rates by India's central bank on Saturday to stimulate the economy, which has been hit by the global recession.