The bond market is not in a mood to reason with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on keeping yields low. The 10-year bond yields continued to rise for the fourth straight session to close at 6.202 per cent from its previous close of 6.135 per cent. The yield was at 6 per cent a week ago. The RBI wants the yields to remain at 6 per cent, but bond dealers say the central bank will have to step up its bond-buying programme.
The central bank bought the 10-year bonds at 50 paise above the prevailing rate, and brought down the yields from 6.08 per cent to 6 per cent mark.
However, the RBI is still not in a mood to issue an OMO calendar, which was the expectation in some sections of the market.
The paper seems to be suggesting strongly that the tight target range be maintained even as the central bank is all set to miss the target range for three consecutive quarters because of the Covid crisis.
Economists praise Das for his pragmatism and willingness to face challenges head on. And in doing so with the finesse of an able administrator.
According to the Trends and Progress Report of the RBI, 98 per cent of frauds in terms of value were related to loans, and their occurrence was spread over several previous years.
The RBI governor is focused on growth, and keeping rupee slightly depreciated is part of that 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' strategy.
A bunch of CEOs in their mid-30s and early 40s are trying to rectify the scenario where shady lending applications trap hapless borrowers with astronomically high interest rates and even bodily harm if the money was repaid. Anup Roy reports.
The spreads between state development loans and equivalent-maturity government papers have started widening, and market participants don't expect them to contract anytime soon. The rise in spreads is a direct measure of market displeasure than a rise in yields.
The central bank is the money manager of the government, and not a guarantor of any debt.
Apart from navigating the bank through the Covid crisis, Jagdishan may also have to deal with the latest development on the auto loan lending practice scam. He will be expected to deliver consistent profit growth of 20 per cent-plus quarter after quarter, irrespective of the operating environment.
Move can also bring a huge change in the way business is done in India, where firms use multiple current accounts, often for even individual projects, making them difficult to monitor.
For the first time, the value of card and mobile payments of Rs 10.57 trillion was more than ATM withdrawals of Rs 9.12 trillion in Q4 of fiscal 2019-20. In the months of lockdown, the gap may have widened further, but cash could be back in vogue when the situation normalises.
Economists caution that the underlying cause could be an alarming drop in demand -- something that's not good for economic growth.
The bonds were available for seven years. Since these were not traded in the secondary market, redemption took place at maturity.
Going by the strict criteria set, only Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Haryana qualify for such extra borrowing, as of now.
While efforts are being mounted on a war footing to arrest its spread, COVID-19 will impact economic activity in India directly through domestic lockdown. The second-round effects, it said, would operate through a severe slowdown in global trade and growth.
The RBI on Friday said it will give banks Rs 1 trillion through targeted long-term repo operations (TLTROs), of up to three-year maturity, to deploy in "investment-grade corporate bonds, commercial paper, and non-convertible debentures over and above the outstanding level of their investments in these bonds as of March 27, 2020."
The volume in the anonymous trading platform, NDS-OM, was Rs 7,210 crore - less than half the normal volume, but not as bad as the start of the day indicated.
The idea is to keep the RBI's information technology (IT) infrastructure in top shape to run the payments and settlement system uninterrupted 24x7, and run the full gamut of RBI functions from the secured data centres, as nearly 14,000 RBI staffers, except the senior-most management, work from home.
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