The Hindu Business Line : Wednesday, May 23, 2007

INSIGHT
Forex as a monetary tool
To save itself the problem of stabilising the foreign exchange market at a cost, the Reserve Bank of India can use the Capital Outflow Mechanism. If the capital outflow can be augmented, the problem of excess liquidity will be automatically solved. More

FOREX
`Price action in rupee market seems to have overextended'
Variation in exchange rates does not pose a risk to growth in the near term, according to Mr N.S. Paramasivam, Head of Forex & Treasury, Essar Group. Speaking to Business Line on issues surrounding the strengthening rupee, he said that ... More

Oil cos: Rupee gain softens impact of crude prices
The rupee appreciation has had a beneficial impact on oil marketing firms as their purchase prices are benchmarked to international product prices. More

Foreign investments - value subtracting?
Forget CAC11, or, for that matter, CAC1 - the two reports on the road map for capital account convertibility. The real issues are different. Some weeks back, the country's forex reserves crossed $200 billion. There were the usual ... More

Rupee gains on strong inflows
The rupee strengthened by around 10 paise on Tuesday against the greenback on strong dollar inflows. The domestic currency opened at 40.61/63, touched an intra-day high of 40.52/54 and finally closed at 40.57, against Monday's ... More

INSURANCE
FDI hike in insurance: `No assurance, but not ruled out'
The Government has "not ruled out" raising the current 26 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) cap in insurance sector, according to the visiting Lord Mayor of the City of London, Mr John Stuttard. "We got no assurance, but it was not ruled ... More

FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE
South Malabar Gramin net up at Rs 21 cr
The net profit of South Malabar Gramin Bank has gone up by 26 per cent to Rs 21.54 crore (Rs 17.03 crore) for 2006-07. The total business grew by 20 per cent to Rs 3,144 crore. It recorded a credit deposit ratio of 123 per cent with 90 per ... More

Manappuram General Finance profit rises 168%
Manappuram General Finance and Leasing, a Kerala-based NBFC, has posted an after-tax profit of Rs 1,061 lakh during the financial year 2006-07 as against Rs 395 lakh in the previous fiscal, an increase of 168 per cent. The gross income rose ... More

SOFTWARE
Austrian co in talks with co-op banks for e-passbooks
For offering e-passbooks to customers More

GENERAL INSURANCE
Iffco-Tokio ties up with Assist America
For travel emergency assistance services to policyholders More

Panel on health insurance for senior citizens formed
To suggest commercially viable schemes, offer solutions More

PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS
BoI signs pact with MCX arm for warehouse lending
To charge concessional rate of 10.5%; hopeful of exceeding target soon More

Central Bank of India files draft prospectus
Central Bank of India has filed the draft red herring prospectus with SEBI for its proposed public issue. The bank is offering through the issue 80,000,000 equity shares of Rs 10 each through the book building route. This includes 4,000,000 ... More

FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
Global majors investing in micro finance institutions
After playing second fiddle to other financial institutions for long, micro finance institutions (MFIs) have started figuring prominently on the radar of global financial majors for investments. The trend is catching up fast as three ... More

GOVT BONDS
Bond prices fall by 10 paise
Bond prices fell on Tuesday by about 10 paise (yields went up by two basis points) on profit booking by investors. "Since the liquidity was comfortable and the call rates had also come down, market players feared announcement of ... More

SHORT TERM INSTRUMENTS
Call rates end lower
The inter-bank call rate closed lower at 7.60-7.80 per cent (7.9-8.1). In the first one-day repo auction under LAF, the RBI received and accepted one bid for Rs 225 crore. There were no bids in the reverse-repo auction. In the ... More

TRADE & LABOUR UNIONS
SBI assn opposes merger
The SBI Associate Banks Officers' Association is opposed to the proposed merger of the seven associate banks of the SBI with the main bank, as "the associate banks are functioning well and there is no need for such a move." ... More

SOCIETY & DEVELOPMENT
HSBC initiative for AIDS-affected
As a part of corporate social responsibility, HSBC Global Resourcing has pledged $25,000 towards the support for 24 orphaned children suffering from HIV/AIDS. These children are part of Sivananda Rehabilitation Home (SRH), an organisation based ... More

NEW PRODUCTS & SERVICES
Union Bank unveils biometric cards
Union Bank of India has launched biometric cards to facilitate `door step banking' in rural areas. The bank has tied up with Financial Information Network and Operations Ltd (FINO) and Cashpor Micro Credit to launch a pilot ... More