'Corporates now have multiple funding sources beyond banks, and many are sitting on large cash reserves.'
India's forex reserves increased by $4.496 billion to $702.28 billion for the week ended October 17, as the value of gold reserves rose further, the RBI said on Friday.
Gold has emerged as the most stable asset during episodes of geopolitical stress, and crude oil has been more sensitive than others when it comes to regional conflicts and sanctions, according to a report in the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) monthly bulletin. Silver and the United States Treasury have showed moderate reactions.
India, the world's fourth largest economy, is set to maintain the 'goldilocks' phase with tailwinds of good growth, low inflation and robust banking performance as well as reform initiatives poised to sustain the economic pace witnessed during 2025.
Fitch Ratings on Thursday raised India's GDP growth forecast for the current fiscal to 7.4 per cent, from 6.9 per cent, on increased consumer spending and improved sentiment boosted by GST reforms.
India's retail inflation, which has stayed below the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) 4 per cent target in recent times, is likely to remain benign in the coming months, RBI Deputy Governor Poonam Gupta said in a speech, on Friday, which was uploaded on the central bank's website on Tuesday. Headline inflation dipped to multi-year lows of around 1.5-2.8 per cent in late 2025.
The Indian banking sector could be due for a rise in profitability after several quarters of net interest margin (NIM) compression. The Q2FY26 results suggest NIMs have bottomed out.
The recent policies that have been announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will allow banks to fully use its capital, funding profile to keep business at an equilibrium level, which otherwise was getting skewed towards retail, said K V Kamath, chairman, Jio Financial Services.
Sebi is working with other regulators to expand the CAS framework.
Among the Sensex constituents, Asian Paints, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Tata Steel, Maruti Suzuki India, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Tata Consultancy Services, ICICI Bank, Bajaj Finance, UltraTech Cement, Mahindra & Mahindra and Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles were the laggards. However, Eternal, Titan, Adani Ports, Bharat Electronics Ltd, State Bank of India, Bajaj Finserv, NTPC and Bharti Airtel were among the gainers.
But selectively, with regulatory scrutiny and special approval, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
NCP (SP) MLA Rohit Pawar has filed a discharge application in connection with the Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank (MSCB) 'scam' case, claiming the predicate offence has been closed and no money laundering case is made out.
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
A preview of the 2026 IPL season, highlighting the challenges faced by defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru, the redemption quests of legacy teams, the relevance of veteran players, and the emergence of future stars.
The Supreme Court has directed the government to raise awareness, compensate, and protect vulnerable individuals who have lost money in cyber scams. The court's remarks came while granting bail to an accused in a cybercrime case, emphasizing the need for public education and cybersecurity awareness.
'LIC will reduce but not fully exit its stake in IDBI Bank, which remains an important bancassurance partner,' says LIC of India' MD and CEO R Doraiswamy.
'Despite the large number of missiles and drones we have already launched, we still possess reserves and missile cities whose doors have not yet been opened,' says Iran's Consul-General Saeid Reza Mosayeb Motlagh.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Trent, Larsen & Toubro, Reliance Industries, InterGlobe Aviation, Maruti, ITC, Adani Ports and Bharat Electronics were among the biggest laggards. In contrast, Eternal, ICICI Bank, Tech Mahindra, State Bank of India and Tata Consultancy Services were among the gainers.
The rupee witnessed its worst single-day decline in around two months since November 21, 2025, due to demand for dollars among importers, said dealers. The maturing short positions in the non-deliverable forwards market further weighed on the local currency.
Precious metal prices surged in futures trading, with silver hitting Rs 2.93 lakh per kg and gold nearing Rs 1.68 lakh per 10 grams, driven by safe-haven demand following US-Israel strikes in Iran and retaliatory attacks.
Net foreign direct investment (FDI) remained negative in November 2025 for the third consecutive month, mainly due to high repatriation, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its January bulletin.
Strong domestic growth will continue to draw foreign investment into the Indian economy, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Tuesday. He said this was reflected in recent free trade agreements and investment commitments by large technology companies.
A senior Maoist commander, Papa Rao, surrendered with his team in Chhattisgarh, signalling a significant blow to Left-Wing Extremism in the region. This event underscores the impact of sustained security pressure and rehabilitation efforts on the Maoist movement.
Banks cannot treat compliance as a quarter-end activity, and must have stronger operational discipline and data governance throughout the year, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Deputy Governor Swaminathan J said in a speech at the Third Annual Global Conference of the College of Supervisors.
The relation between a regulator and its regulated entities is collaborative and not adversarial with the common objective of maintaining the stability and credibility of the financial system. However, the action on regulated entities like penalties and business restrictions are the last resort, Reserve Bank of India (RBI)'s governor Sanjay Malhotra said on Friday.
'There is no shortage of fuel whatsoever.' 'India is stock surplus as far as petrol and diesel are concerned.'
The RBI added roughly 3 tonnes in 2025, taking its gold reserves to 879 tonnes as of January 31, 2025.
Macroeconomic data, global geopolitical developments and rising concerns over AI-related disruptions are likely to dictate sentiment in the stock market next week, even as investors may remain cautious amid ongoing volatility, according to analysts.
Gold prices are expected to remain volatile next week as investors track geopolitical developments in the Middle East and key macroeconomic data releases that could shape the sentiment in the domestic market, analysts said.
The IMF on Monday raised India's growth projection to 7.3 per cent for fiscal 2025-26, up 0.7 percentage point from its October forecast, on the back of better-than-expected performance of the economy. The Washington-headquartered multilateral lending agency has also revised India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth forecast to 6.4 per cent for fiscal year 2026-27 beginning April 1, 2026, from its earlier estimate of 6.2 per cent.
India's forex reserves dropped by $2.334 billion to $700.236 billion during the week ended September 26, according to the RBI data on Friday.
Bank lending to companies is expected to go up in the coming quarters because the difference in interest rates between corporate bonds and bank loans has narrowed. In addition, recent policy reforms by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), including allowing domestic banks to do acquisition financing, are expected to give further support to corporate lending, analysts said.
Reserve Bank Governor Sanjay Malhotra on Friday said the central bank does not target any band for the rupee in the forex market, and allows the domestic currency to find its own correct level.
Gold prices fell by Rs 400 to Rs 1.6 lakh per 10 grams in the national capital on Thursday amid weak global trends and receding expectations of an interest rate cut by the US Federal Reserve.
'We have seen that stablecoins lack the basic attributes of money, their advantages are neither unique nor unambiguous and their risks are all too real.'
India's main inflation measure, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), is set for another major update, even though it has been in its current form for only about 15 years.
With the Iran war escalating sharply and crisis deepening in the global energy market, India on Monday unveiled a coordinated plan to support exporters and shippers caught in the fallout.
Private-sector lender Federal Bank on Friday announced that New York-based Blackstone will invest Rs 6,196.51 crore in the bank through its affiliate Asia II Topco XIII Pte Ltd via a preferential issue on a private placement basis.
The Reserve Bank will hold a special meeting of its rate-setting committee on November 3 to prepare a report for the government on why it failed to keep retail inflation below the target of 6 per cent for three consecutive quarters since January. The six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) headed by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das will prepare the report on reasons for failure to meet the inflation target as well as the remedial measures the central bank is taking to bring down prices in the country. "Under the provisions of Section 45ZN of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act 1934... an additional meeting of the MPC is being scheduled on November 3, 2022," RBI said in a statement on Thursday.
India's household debt climbed to 41.3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) at the end of March 2025, marking a sustained rise from its five-year average of 38.3 per cent, with consumption-related loans accounting for bulk of the borrowings, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its Financial Stability Report.
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