Shares of ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and HDFC Bank on Friday tumbled as much as 4.5 per cent in morning trade following accusations that the lenders have indulged in money laundering.
The improving outlook for the power sector has caught the interest of dividend yield funds. In the first four months of the current financial year (2023-24, or FY24), five of the six largest dividend yield funds have shown a notable increase in their exposure to stocks within the power sector. Some have even introduced new stocks to their portfolios.
Shares of Bajaj Finance sprinted 4.7 per cent to Rs 7,732 per share on the BSE in Thursday's (January 4) intra-day trade as the non-bank finance company's (NBFC's) December quarter business update reflected minimal impact of the Reserve Bank of India's ban on two of its lending products. The shares, eventually, ended 4.4 per cent higher at Rs 7,710 per share as against 0.69 per cent gain in the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex. The NBFC's asset under management (AUM) topped the Rs 3-trillion-mark at the end of December 2023, swelling by roughly Rs 20,700 crore (35 per cent year-on-year) to hit Rs 3.11 trillion-mark.
From the Sensex pack, Jio Financial Services fell the most by 4.99 per cent. Reliance Industries, Power Grid, Larsen & Toubro, JSW Steel, HCL Technologies, NTPC, Tata Steel, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services and HDFC Bank also declined. IndusInd Bank, Infosys, UltraTech Cement, ICICI Bank, Nestle and Axis Bank were among the gainers.
Nearly 90 per cent of the stocks comprising the National Stock Exchange Nifty 500 Index and 49 of the 50 stocks that make up the Nifty50 are trading above their respective 200-day moving averages (DMAs). The 200-DMA is considered one of the most relevant trend indicators by investors and traders. They believe that stocks and indices trading above this key level exhibit strength and are likely to rally, while those trading below this level are viewed as bearish, with the stock/index expected to see a selloff.
In a recent note, the global brokerage firm said India now commands a weight of 19 per cent in the above-mentioned portfolio as compared to 18.2 per cent in September 2023. India, it said, is a large liquid market and remains a counter-weight to North Asia if a slowdown in the West occurs and China's recovery disappoints.
The country's largest private sector lender, ICICI Bank, today said credit offtake will pick from July putting pressure on lending rates.
ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Infosys, M&M, Tech Mahindra, Tata Steel, SBI and Maruti were also among the gainers. On the other hand, IndusInd, TCS, Titan and Asian Paints declined.
From the Sensex pack, Infosys, Hindustan Unilever, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, Larsen & Toubro, Asian Paints, Nestle, Axis Bank, Wipro and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the major gainers. JSW Steel, State Bank of India, Tata Steel, Bajaj Finserv, UltraTech Cement, IndusInd Bank, Tata Motors and Bajaj Finance were the major laggards.
Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded from early lows to settle higher on Wednesday following buying in Reliance Industries, Larsen & Toubro and ITC and positive trends in Asian and European markets. The 30-share BSE Sensex rose by 173.22 points or 0.26 per cent to settle at 66,118.69. The index opened lower and fell further to a low of 65,549.96 in morning trade.
Srei Infra Finance group chief financial officer Sanjeev K Sancheti described the asset as a good buy as it is a fully secured debt.
ICICI Bank, the country's largest private lender, on Wednesday ruled out any interest rate hike in the near future and said it was rebalancing its portfolio.
Among the Sensex firms, Bajaj Finance jumped the most by 4.64 per cent. Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Asian Paints, UltraTech Cement, ICICI Bank, NTPC, JSW Steel and Tata Steel were among the major gainers. Infosys, Mahindra & Mahindra, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, IndusInd Bank and HCL Technologies were the major laggards.
India Inc's net profit as a percentage of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) is just shy of reaching 5 per cent, bolstered by strong earnings growth in the second quarter of 2023-24. Analysts interpret this as an indication that a corporate profit upcycle is in progress, with projections suggesting that this share could exceed 8 per cent within the next five years, driven by bullish earnings growth expectations. "We believe we are only halfway through a profit cycle, with the profit share in GDP rising from a low of 2 per cent in 2020 to about 5 per cent currently, and likely heading to 8 per cent in the coming four to five years. "This implies about 20 per cent compounding of earnings growth. "Underscoring this forecast is the start of a new private capex cycle, under-geared balance sheets, a healthy banking system, lower corporate tax rates, improving terms of trade, and structural consumption demand outlook albeit somewhat offset by likely consolidation in government deficit," said Ridham Desai, managing director, head of research, Morgan Stanley India in a note.
ICICI Bank on Friday tied up with Europe's financial powerhouse Fortis for offering asset and wealth management, estate planning and corporate services to Non-Resident Indians worldwide.
If you think that revenue officials are going berserk, acting on their own, while the government chants the mantra of 'ease of doing business', you would be wrong. These moves appear to have full official backing, points out Debashis Basu.
In Chanda's defence, one can always say, why would the Videocon Group take care of her husband as a quid pro quo to get a loan? After all, the group has taken money from the entire banking industry and ICICI Bank's share in the pie is not even 10 per cent. So, if it had a quid pro quo with Chanda to get the money, it must have had similar arrangements with other banks, too. If this is not the case, one must accept that it had got money from all banks, including ICICI, without any under-the-table conditions, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Top Indian private sector lender ICICI Bank, which owns nearly 68 percent of the insurer, is selling up to 181.34 million shares in the IPO.
However, total income of the bank on a consolidated basis rose to 31,914.82 crore as against Rs 30,190.54 crore a year ago.
Both the issues will be floated simultaneously either this month or the next month, subject to regulatory approvals, ICICI chief financial officer Vishakha Mulye said.
From the Sensex pack, Mahindra & Mahindra climbed 3.81 per cent and Axis Bank advanced 2.68 per cent, followed by Tata Motors, Larsen & Toubro, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, Reliance Industries, Maruti, IndusInd Bank and Sun Pharma. Asian Paints, Tech Mahindra, Nestle, Hindustan Unilever, Kotak Mahindra Bank and ITC were among the laggards.
Foreseeing Indian economy back on a high-growth trajectory in the coming months, ICICI Bank is looking at expanding its fund-generation profile and revenue streams to capitalise on the forthcoming opportunities. Since 2007, as the global and Indian economic environment has changed rapidly, the bank has focused on a conscious strategy of capital conservation, risk containment and efficiency improvement.
Banking industry sources said the move by the lender is pre-emptive to protect its interest.
Leading private sector bank ICICI Bank has opened an office in South African city of Johannesburg with an aim to capitalise on India's growing ties with African countries.
From the Sensex pack, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, Larsen & Toubro, Maruti, Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bajaj Finance, Nestle, Power Grid and HDFC Bank were the major gainers. Jio Financial Services, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, Tech Mahindra, ITC, UltraTech Cement and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the laggards.
MD Chanda Kochhar says the facility 'has the potential to increase security and convenience'
ICICI Securities will be the first subsidiary to be listed, followed by two insurance subsidiaries and the home finance business, he added.
On resolution of stressed cases, she said ICICI Bank has been taking the lead in several cases and was the first bank to refer a case to NCLT
Kochhar is required to assist the investigating officer of the case in taking the probe forward and her statement will be recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
In 2007-08, ICICI Bank was accused for violating RBI guidelines relating to opening of deposit accounts.
rediffGURU Dev Ashish answers your personal finance and mutual fund queries.
Shah Rukh Khan's image and popularity with the Non-Resident Indian segment will further reinforce ICICI Bank's global identity, the bank said in a statement.\n
Credit card spending has hit a record high of Rs 1.4 lakh crore in May, the latest data from Reserver Bank of India showed. The total spending or outstanding dues on credit cards, which remained rang-bound throughout the year in the previous fiscal, have been rising by 5 per cent month on month this year. Similarly, the number of cards in use has also jumped by more than 5 million since January and crossed 87.4 million in the reporting month, making this also an all-time high in May, according to the RBI data.
Car loans from ICICI Bank, the country's largest private sector lender, would be 50-75 basis points (bps) cheaper, while those from IDBI Bank would cost 100 bps less.
General insurer ICICI Lombard has structured the first ever weather insurance cover for a maximum sum insured of Rs 1.5 crore (Rs 15 million) for Gujarat Heavy Chemicals in the event of loss of salt production due to unseasonal rainfall at its Nagapa
Nine of the 10 most valued firms faced a combined erosion of Rs 1,87,808.26 crore in market valuation last week, with HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries taking the biggest hit amid an overall weak trend in equities. Last week, the BSE benchmark tumbled 1,538.64 points or 2.52 per cent amid concerns that the US Federal Reserve might raise interest rates further to curb inflation. Fresh foreign fund outflows also dented investor sentiments. Barring ITC, all 10 firms, including Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, ICICI Bank and Hindustan Unilever, were the laggards.