FM to meet regulators ahead of budget

Finance Minister P Chidambaram will meet financial sector regulators tomorrow to seek their inputs for the Budget with a view to improving investment climate and boosting economy.

"He (Chidambaram) will chair the meeting of Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) on January 31," sources told PTI.

The high-level FSDC, which comprises heads of RBI, Sebi, IRDA and PFRDA, coordinates the working of regulators and looks at economic and financial issues.

With most PSU banks reporting a rise in non-performing assets (NPAs), the meeting is likely to focus on recovery of loans, financing of infrastructure projects in oil, power and real estate sectors, sources said.

The bad loans of PSU banks rose to Rs 143,000 crore (Rs 1.43 trillion) as on September 31, 2012 from Rs 112,000 crore (Rs 1.12 trillion) as on March 31, 2012.

The meeting will also review the initiatives taken by the RBI and Sebi for strengthening corporate bond market with a view to help India Inc raise long-term funds in a cost-effective

manner.

Though India has a very advanced G-sec (government securities) market, corporate bond market is relatively under-developed.

Among other things, issues like slowing growth, persistent inflationary pressures, rising gold imports and growing fiscal and current account deficits will figure during the discussions, they said.

The financial sector regulators likely to attend the meeting include RBI Governor Duvvuri Subbarao, Sebi Chairman U K Sinha, Pension Fund and Regulatory Development Authority (PFRDA) Chairman Yogesh Aggarwal and secretaries in the Finance Ministry.

Chidambaram will present the Budget proposals for 2013-14 in the Lok Sabha on February 28.