The Hindu Business Line : Thursday, August 30, 2007

FOREX
Rupee ends on firm note
The rupee slightly appreciated against the dollar on Wednesday buoyed by the upswing in the stock market. The currency opened weak at 41.35/37 but gained during the day to close at 41.10/11, against the previous close at 41.16/17. The rupee also ... More

NBFCS
Fullerton India taps housewives
New Delhi, Aug 29 Fullerton India Credit Company, a non-banking finance company, has launched a marketing programme named ‘Parivaar Laxmi’, which is an incentive-based referral system for housewives. This programme is ... More

CONSUMER FINANCE
Retailers bet on easy finance schemes for niche home needs
Consumers take to easy loans for furniture, furnishings and mobiles More

FINANCIAL MARKETS
Views differ on gold’s response to sub-prime woes
Trade still bullish on prospects, awaits Fed rate decision More

RBI & OTHER CENTRAL BANKS
RBI fiat on Govt remittances
More

PRIVATE BANKS
DCB meet to allot shares on preferential basis
Hopes to double balance sheet size by March 2009 More

PUBLIC SECTOR BANKS
Andhra Bank drive on ‘kiddy bank’
Andhra Bank is very aggressive on the ‘kiddy bank’ account. Departing from the usual ‘Customer Meet’, Andhra Bank has this year commenced a month-long ‘AB Celebrations 2007’ drive to create awareness about the ... More

FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
IDFC plans Rs 14,000-cr mop-up in domestic market
Pact with USAID for sanitation project More

GOVT BONDS
Bond prices down 14 paise
The bond yields rose by two basis points on Wednesday on worries of a possible cash crunch in the banking system. The prices fell by 14 paise. The total traded volumes on the order matching system were Rs 1,290 crore (Rs 1,935 crore). The 7.49 ... More

CRR & BANK RATES
CRR cut: May be by November
Banks are likely to find a cash reserve ratio (CRR) cut handed out to them this year as a Diwali bonus. The RBI has Rs 1,95,000 crore of their money stashed away as interest- free ‘deposits’. This is what a 7-per cent CRR ... More

CREDIT MARKET
Retail lending up 30%
Chamber wary of rise in delinquencies More

Film financing: Banks sing regional tune
Mumbai, Aug 29 Banks are keen on increasing their exposure to regional cinema with more and more big-banner Bollywood filmmakers producing such movies and the kind of growth potential they see in this sector, say media analysts. Among regional ... More

SHORT TERM INSTRUMENTS
Call rates close at 6.2%
The inter-bank call rates closed at 6.10-6.20 per cent on Wednesday. In the first reverse repo auction, the Reserve Bank of India received and accepted 16 bids for Rs 29,280 crore. There was no repo bid. The CBLO market saw 418 trades aggregating ... More

T-bills auction fully subscribed
The Reserve Bank of India has announced the auction of Rs 5,500 crore Treasury Bills of which Rs 4,000 crore wase the Market Stabilisation Scheme (MSS) amount. In the 91-day T-bill, the notified amount was Rs 3,500 crore, of which Rs ... More

MORTGAGE
Did ‘fair value’ fail in sub-prime crisis?
Tomes have been written about the sub-prime crisis in the US and its effect on international markets. Stock markets have tanked and many hedge funds have closed some funds and laid off people. To the layman, however, the mechanism is too ... More

String Real Estate to ramp up operations
Chennai, Aug. 29 String Real Estate Information Services, provider of back office transaction processing support to the US-based mortgage lenders, will ramp up its operations in Chennai and start centres in Tiruchi and Madurai.By March ... More

Job loss likely in mortgage handling BPOs
Hyderabad, Aug. 29 As a fallout of the sub-prime crisis in the US, India may witness loss of jobs in thousands in back-end offices that are involved in processing of mortgage business, according to Mr Stephen E. Roulac, Chief Executive Officer ... More

TRADE & LABOUR UNIONS
Bank unions plan strike on Sept 12
Mumbai, Aug. 29 The United Forum of Bank Unions has called for a one-day strike on September 12 in order to press for the implementation of the memorandum of understanding signed with Indian Banks’ Association. Mr H.N. Sinor, ... More

M-COMMERCE
YES Bank bets on mobile phone for micro-fin biz
Explores tie-up with global software provider along with Accion More

INTERVIEW
Why did SBI pick up State Bank of Saurashtra to kick off consolidation?
Chennai, Aug 29 For a very long time, SBI associates have remained in the shadow of the giant parent while many comparative banks overtook the associates and became much bigger.Although small and dependent on the parent bank for ... More

BUSINESS MODELS
Bank consolidation not inevitable — Multi-tiered model still relevant
Bank consolidation is again in the news. The boards of State Bank of India (SBI) and State Bank of Saurashtra (SBS) are reported to have approved the merger of the latter with the former. Predictably, and almost axiomatically, the merger ... More