Other Briefings
RBI Governor Asks for Interest Rate Reform, Pitches Regulatory Changes
Dec. 6 – The governor of the Reserve Bank of India asked banks to raise deposit rates and lower lending rates on Friday to improve the efficiency of Indian banks against global competitors. “We need to raise the level of national savings and channel those savings into investment. This means banks need to raise the […]
India’s Rising Account Deficit Not Cause for Worry
Nov. 15 – Despite comments earlier this month by Reserve Bank of India Governor Duvvuri Subbarao expressing concern over India’s growing account deficit, the Ministry of Finance has implemented new regulatory changes that allow increased levels of investment from foreign institutions. Last month India doubled the amount that foreign institutions can invest in government treasuries […]
India’s Food Inflation Drops to One-Year Low
Nov. 11 – India’s food inflation, as measured by the wholesale price index (WPI), slowed to 12.3 percent for the week ending October 30, according to official data released by the Ministry of Commerce on Thursday. The new rate is an improvement over the 12.85 percent reported the week prior and marks the fourth straight […]
Two Gov’t Departments Warn Against Opening Up Retail to FDI
Nov. 10 – Two government departments are warning against opening up multi-brand retail to foreign direct investment in an effort to slow momentum towards opening the sector following U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to the country. According to the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, the government should not allow more than 18 percent […]
NGOs in India No Longer Need to Renew Tax Concession Status
Nov. 8 – India’s Central Board of Direct Taxes announced on Wednesday that non-governmental organizations, charitable institutions and other groups that are eligible for tax benefits and can issue tax benefit receipts to those who give donations will no longer need to renew their tax concession status every three years. In line with the mandate […]
India’s MFIN Agrees to Cap Interest Rates at 24 Percent in AP
Nov. 5 – India’s Micro-Finance Institutions Network (MFIN) agreed to collectively cap their interest rates at 24 percent in Andhra Pradesh, a state in southern India. Banks – state-owned and privately held, foreign and local – have over US$6 billion dollars (Rs.27,000 crore) worth of exposure to microfinance companies in India, which currently borrow at […]
RBI Hikes Interest Rates for Sixth Time this Year
Nov. 3 – India’s central bank raised interest rates on Tuesday for the sixth time this year, but said that rates will probably remain stable for the next three months. The Reserve Bank of India, which has tightened its monetary policy the most in Asia this year, increased the repurchase rate, or lending rate, by […]
RBI to Issue Draft Guidelines for NBFCs by January
Nov. 2 – The Reserve Bank of India said on Monday that it will release draft guidelines for the entry of new banks into the country’s banking market by January, something India’s non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) have been requesting for a while now. “Based on the comments and suggestions received from various parties and discussions […]
