Indian banking system safe, but NPAs may shoot up, says RBI

The banking system is safe, sound and resilient, but the gross non-performing assets (NPA) ratio may increase from 8.5 per cent in March to 12.5 per cent by March 2021 under the baseline scenario, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) estimates. The GNPA ratio could worsen to 14.7 per cent under a “very severely stressed scenario,” the bi-annual Financial Stability Report (FSR) said, but banks are better capitalised and the risk of contagion loss due to interconnectedness is lesser now than what it was a year ago. Read more

Govt wanted to dilute bankruptcy law: Urjit Patel on what led to the rift

Former Reserve Bank of India Governor Urjit Patel has revealed that moves directed towards diluting bankruptcy law led to disagreements between the Union government and the central bank, according to a report by Bloomberg. In a book released Friday, Patel — who headed the RBI between September 2016 and his unexpected resignation in December 2018 — said the government seemed to lose interest in the law in during the year when he resigned. Read more

India's economic recovery hinges on moratorium duration: Chris Wood
The decision on whether to extend the moratorium on loans till December 2020-end will be a crucial factor in determining the pace of recovery for the economy, banks and the real estate market in India, wrote Christopher Wood, global head at Jefferies. As regards economic recovery, Jefferies’ expects real GDP to contract 5 per cent this fiscal year. Read more

PL to begin from Sept 19 in UAE, final on Nov 8: chairman Brijesh Patel

The eagerly-awaited Indian Premier League will start on September 19 in UAE with the final slated on November 8, IPL Chairman Brijesh Patel said on Friday. The IPL has been made possible by the ICC's decision to postpone the October-November T20 World Cup in Australia owing to the Covid-19 pandemic due to which the host country expressed its inability to conduct the event. Read more

Gold was headed on Friday for its biggest weekly gain in more than three months as it steadied near a nine-year high, benefiting from a weak dollar and inflation expectations due to stimulus for virus-battered economies. Prices have risen more than 4% this week, putting gold on course for its longest winning streak since late 2011. Read more

Moody's downgrades Hero FinCorp ratings; outlook revised to negative

Moody's has downgraded Hero FinCorp Ltd's foreign and local currency issuer ratings from “Baa3” to “Ba1” due to severe impact of economic shock triggered by Covid-19 pandemic. The outlook has been revised to negative from ratings under review. Indian NBFCs are expected to be affected by the shock given the extensive disruptions to India's economic activity. Read more

China threat to free world; US engagement with country has failed: Pompeo

The Trump administration took a hammer to one of the most significant Republican foreign policy achievements in the past five decades on Thursday, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declaring US engagement with China a dismal failure. Pompeo called for the free world to induce change in China, making an overt appeal for a new coalition of democratic nations to force the Chinese Communist Party change direction or face isolation. Read more