BUSINESS
RBI will have to consider not just inflation, but also exchange rate and liquidity
Thanks to the RBI’s defence of the rupee, liquidity is now in deficit and short-term rates have inched up so that the effective policy rate hike is more than the actual 140 basis points hike in the repo rate this year
BUSINESS
Why the RBI’s forex umbrella is getting buffeted by dollar winds
Despite most Asian units weakening sharply in July and August, the rupee showed resilience, even appreciating briefly in August, However, the US Fed’s latest rate hike, which was more hawkish than anticipated, has turned the tide decisively against the Indian unit
BUSINESS
Fed action to hit flows to India but long-term allocations bullish, says Sharma of Edelweiss Wealth
With Europe and China allocations being relooked at, India can stand to gain as fund managers are bullish on the medium-to-long term prospects of the country.
BUSINESS
Interview: With banking aspiration intact, Piramal Capital aims to double its book in 4-5 years, says MD Sridharan
The company has started getting some recoveries from the retail book of DHFL and has written back Rs 430 crore into P&L so far.
BUSINESS
Bank Nifty outperforms with 25% gain. Investors should watch out for deposit trends
Banking shares have outperformed the broad market and most sector indices in the past three months on the back of growing optimism over balance sheet growth
BUSINESS
India’s small firms will remain a thorn in bank balance sheets
Over the years, the government has helped small businesses, but they remain at the mercy of any adverse turn in the economy. The next challenge they will face is elevated input costs and high interest rates
BUSINESS
Decadal low forward dollar premiums could be slow to rise back
Expectations that the RBI won’t need to match up the intensity of the US Fed in rate hikes have strengthened the view that the interest rate differential is set to narrow further in the coming months. A narrowing interest rate differential reduces the benefit of buying dollars in the future.
BUSINESS
Investors hoard dollars on a bleak outlook, shows Bank of America survey
More than half the fund managers surveyed said they were underweight on equities and overweight on cash in the latest survey
BUSINESS
AT-1 bonds are back, but will they bring perpetual pain again?
The main risk in investing in such bonds is that only the issuer has the discretion to redeem them early.
BUSINESS
RBI’s moment of truth on exchange rate is upon it
The over $10 billion drop in the forex reserves in a single month shows that the central bank is doing whatever it takes to reduce the pressure on the rupee
BUSINESS
Interview: RBI needs to ease off forex intervention, says Standard Chartered’s Sahay
A weak currency could complicate the inflation outlook but the RBI is rightly focused on curbing inflation through rate hikes, says Anubhuti Sahay, who believes that the latest data on gross domestic product growth won’t sway the central bank towards a pause
BUSINESS
Zerodha reaches the cusp of moderation after 12 years of scorching growth
While founder Nithin Kamath supports the tightening of regulations, he says the short-term impact on business cannot be ruled out. Superior technology has been its distinguishing factor but Zerodha, too, has faced glitches. In July, some demat accounts were said to have been hacked
BUSINESS
RBI has a long drive ahead on path to 4% inflation target
While economists expect inflation to average about 5 percent in FY24, the RBI would consider it a win only when the coveted 4 percent medium-term target is achieved.
BUSINESS
Let the markets decide the need for bank privatisation
The debate about bank privatisation has at its core the difference between market expectations and social goals
BUSINESS
Home loan lenders must tread carefully in developer loans as they look for margin boost
Investors are taking an optimistic view on HFCs, both on the growth front due to a housing market revival and on asset quality, with troubled project loans getting resolved.
BUSINESS
RBI faces a core challenge in its journey to drive inflation below 6%
Core inflation has climbed and remained above 6 percent for over a year now and it could make the RBI work harder to bring headline retail inflation into the 2-6 percent band even if other factors such as base effect and easing commodity prices drag it down
BUSINESS
A strong second step must follow RBI’s first one in digital lending
A new age fintech is unlikely to match the banks’ robust underwriting and risk management capabilities, even though it may have access to plenty of data about the borrower
BUSINESS
Why affordable housing finance companies seem expensive to investors?
The affordable housing finance market grew 20 percent in FY22 and is likely to grow by 18 percent in the current financial year, according to Care Ratings Ltd. That is faster than the banking sector’s home loan growth of 13 percent in FY22 and the 11 percent growth for HFCs.
BUSINESS
Q1 marks growth phase for India’s banks but warts are visible too
The top five banks by asset size accounted for half of the reduction in provisions and 53 percent of the drop in bad loans. This means small lenders are yet to recover completely
BUSINESS
Bond yields weigh on Q1 profits for banks, but road ahead looks smoother
With inflation easing and the rupee strengthening, there may not be a sharp jump in bond yields
BUSINESS
Five charts that show Indian consumers are optimistic but won't turn big spenders
Indian consumers are more optimistic than before about the prospects of employment and income. But inflation is adding a layer of caution when it comes to spending.
BUSINESS
As the credit cycle turns up, banks shouldn’t go overboard on lending
Even as small borrowers are more vulnerable to the double whammy of elevated input costs and rising borrowing costs, bank lending to them is at its fastest pace in many years
EARNINGS
SBI Q1 result | Net profit of Rs 6,068 crore, misses street estimates
SBI Q1 results: The mark-to-market hit dragged SBI’s non-interest income down massively to a mere Rs 2,312 crore for the reported quarter compared with Rs 11,802 crore a year ago
BUSINESS
As RBI gives an umbrella for rupee, bonds are left in the downpour
The benchmark 10-year government bond yield rose roughly 10 basis points while the rupee appreciated as the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das highlighted inflation concerns after announcing a 50 bps hike in the repo rate.
