1. Exporters of home textiles from the handloom town of Karur fear that the strengthening rupee will severely dent shipments of made-ups, which are a key value-earner in the country's textile export basket. With the rupee having breached the psychological barrier mark of 41 against the dollar, the future export orders would not be competitive if the currency is allowed on its upward spiral. The impact of the rising rupee on textile exports would be felt over the next two months.
2. India has become the twelfth country in the world to become a trillion-dollar economy, said a report from Swiss investment firm Credit Suisse. With the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at Rs 41 trillion and the rupee appreciating to below 41 against the US dollar, Wednesday was the first day for the Indian economy to become a trillion dollar economy.
3. United Bank of India has posted a 10.9% increase in deposits and a 9.6% increase in advances for the quarter ended March 31, 2007, at the close of which its total business stood at nearly Rs 60,000 crs. It has recorded a 30.7 % increase in net profit at Rs 267 crs. The profit after providing for proposed dividend and tax thereon has been appropriated towards statutory reserve (Rs 67 crs) and revenue reserve (Rs 142 crs). It has seen an increase in operating profit from Rs 644 crs as on March 31, 2006, to Rs 719 crs as on March 31, 2007, a growth of about 12 %.The total deposits have moved up from Rs 29,250 crore last year to Rs 37,167 crore, while its gross advances have grown from Rs 15,963 crore to Rs 22,643 crs.The credit-deposit ratio has increased from 54.6 % to 60.9% as on March 2007.
4. State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur has posted a net profit of Rs 305.80 crs for the fiscal 2006-07. This is more than double the net profit of Rs 145.03 crs recorded in the previous year. Its net interest income recorded a 7.65% increase to Rs 1,068.86 crs from Rs 992.90 crs. Meanwhile, the bank has declared a final dividend of Rs 50 per share (face value of share is Rs 100) for the financial year ended March 31, 2007. If one were to add the interim dividend of Rs 50 per share, the total dividend for 2006-07 amounts to Rs 100 per share. The dividend paid for 2005-06 was Rs 65 per share. The total business has grown to touch a level of Rs 49,246 crs.
5. Crisil has said the Government's support is important to its ratings methodology though a bank's own financial and business risk profile plays a far more significant role in arriving at a rating. "Against the background of heightened investor interest and debate on the issue in global financial markets in recent months, Crisil today reiterated its stance on factoring the possibility of government support into ratings of banks and financial institutions." Though the Government has in the past infused funds into government-owned banks and financial institutions to allow them to service debt obligations, the record, according to Crisil, has been a mixed one.
6. RBI has imposed a penalty of Rs 10 lakh on SBI Commercial and International Bank Ltd for violation of KYC norms. A penalty of Rs 5 lakh was imposed for non-adherence to know-your customer norms while opening and operating IPO related accounts and not completing KYC procedure for existing accounts as per RBI instructions. It also imposed a penalty of Rs 5 lakh for the failure of the bank's internal control systems to detect the lapses. It had advised the bank to conduct internal review of IPO funding, but it failed to detect the lapses and furnished wrong compliance report to RBI.
7. Tamilnad Mercantile Bank organised recently a financial inclusion camp in all its 183 branches to provide banking facilities to sections of the disadvantaged and low-income groups, under its newly formulated `TMB Janatha Savings Bank Scheme'. Remitting a minimum amount of Rs 5, a savings account could be opened under the scheme and the bank would provide TMB Surabi ATM cards free to the customers for operating 10 debit and credit transactions in a month. They would also be provided with computerised passbooks without any cost. It also offered an insurance-linked recurring deposit scheme - Siranjeevee Recurring Deposit - as a social security with a monthly instalment of Rs 100 for seven years with a life cover of Rs 22,000 and a double accident cover of Rs 34,000.
8. PNB has indicated a capital requirement of Rs 2,500-3,000 crs for migrating to the Basel II regime next year. It is still working out the requirements on the basis of the RBI's draft guidelines. After factoring the capital-raising programme, the capital-to-risk weighted asset ratio would drop to 12.1% from the current level of 12.9 %.
9. Canara Bank has signed a MOU with the ICRA Ltd for credit rating small and medium enterprises. The MoU would facilitate extending comprehensive rating services to all the bank's SME customers. This was especially since Canara Bank was aiming to expand its advances to the sector.
10. Bank of India's Karnataka zone recorded one of the country's highest credit deposit ratio at 130% for the year ended March 31, 2007. Advances grew by 39% to Rs 2,768 crs and deposits by 27% to Rs 2,126 crs. The net NPA ratio went down to 0.61% from 2.41 % during the previous year. The priority sector advances for the year was up 23% at Rs 1,090 crs. The credit SME segment stood at Rs 895 crs, up 36%. The direct agricultural credit grew by 52 % to Rs 287 crs; retail credit by 46% to Rs 621 crs; and export credit to 33%. The bank hoped that the current year would grow in advances by 25-30%, deposits by 25% and the aggregate business to cross Rs 6,000 crs.
11. Centurion Bank of Punjab expects the Kerala High Court to pass a judgment in May in the case concerning the merger of Lord Krishna Bank. The merger will still require an RBI approval, which, subject to the court order, is expected to come in the April-June quarter.
