Despite gold prices hitting record highs, analysts aren't gung-ho about the outlook for gold financiers Muthoot Finance and Manappuram Finance. This, they said, was due to intense competition from banks, coupled with stagnating loan books and likely pressure on margins.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday asked private sector companies to clear dues to small businesses within 45 days and admitted that the central departments and enterprises are also not making payments to them on time. She conceded that the Centre, states and state-owned enterprises too have outstanding dues to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The minister said that at a meeting with big businesses here two days ago, she had appealed to them to ensure that the dues of small businesses, who are the backbone of the economy, are cleared on time.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday held a review meeting on credit guarantee scheme with heads of public sector banks, and asked them to expedite loan disbursement under the Rs 3-lakh crore ECLGS for MSME sector, hit hard by coronavirus-induced lockdown. The meeting on Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme (ECLGS) was held through video conference, and the minister appreciated the efforts of banks in execution of the scheme.
The finance ministry on Wednesday reimposed expenditure curbs on ministries and government departments for July-September quarter. There will be no spending restrictions on the ministries of health, rural development, agriculture, MSME (micro, small and medium enterprises) and railways as part of a two-pronged strategy. "The existing guidelines for expenditure control have been reviewed. "Keeping in view the evolving situation arising out of Covid-19 and anticipated cash position of the government, it is felt essential to regulate Quarterly Expenditure Plan (QEP)/Monthly Expenditure Plan (MEP) of specific ministries/departments for July-September, 2021," the Department of Economic Affairs in the finance ministry said in a notification.
No longer a discretion of the tax administrator, the audit of returns filed by taxpayers is now based on a selection by algorithms, notes Tarun Bajaj.
ICICI Bank, the second-largest private sector lender and state-owned Indian Bank on Monday raised their lending rates across all tenors in anticipation of a rate hike by the RBI later this week. The rates have been increased across all tenors under the marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) system, a move that will make EMIs expensive for those who availed loans benchmarked against the MCLR. Under the revised rates, effective August 1, ICICI Bank's one-year MCLR has increased by 15 basis points or 0.15 per cent to 7.90 per cent, while the overnight MCLR rose to 7.65 per cent, as per information posted on the bank's website.
While the Narendra Modi government has stuck to its stand that pending payment is Rs 12,343 crore, MSMEs calim outstanding amount is Rs 2-3 trillion. Moreover, MSME ministry's SAMADHAN portal has been of little help.
Rane's tour is being seen a major show of strength by the BJP ahead of the crucial BMC polls, due early next year.
The Congress on Thursday accused the central government of evading a debate on India-China border face-off and asked why the Modi government has been running away from the issue.
Further, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the banks have sufficient liquidity, and efforts are being made to ensure that due payments are released to the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector by large corporates.
Punjab National Bank on Monday allayed concerns about its exposure to Adani companies and noted that its loans to the group are diversified into 8-9 companies, which are generating sufficient cash. Atul Kumar Goel, the bank's MD & CEO, in a post-earnings call said total exposure to Adani group, so far, stands at Rs 7,000 crore, of which Rs 2,500 crore is in the airport sector. He further said there is "no worry as the exposure is not very big" and that the bank is keeping an eye on the development that is taking place.
The scheme is the biggest fiscal component of the Rs 20-lakh crore Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan package announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman last month.
The approval for provisioning of Rs 20,000 crore as subordinate debt to provide equity support will benefit 2 lakh stressed MSMEs.
Bank credit offtake is expected to pick up following normalisation of economic activities aided by the government thrust on public expenditure in current fiscal year, a report said. According to the Care Edge report, the gross non-performing assets (GNPA) ratio hit a six-year low of 5.9 per cent in FY22 but remained above the pre-asset quality review of 2015-16. However, it said, India's NPA ratio is one of the highest among the comparable countries despite gradual decline.
India's economy is projected to slow to 6.5 per cent in the fiscal year starting April but will remain the fastest growing major economy in the world as it fared better in dealing with the extraordinary set of challenges the globe has faced, the Economic Survey 2022-23 said on Tuesday. India's gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 6.5 per cent in 2023-24 compares with an estimated 7 per cent expansion in current fiscal year (April 2022 to March 2023) and 8.7 per cent in the previous year. Like the rest of the world, India too faced an extraordinary set of challenges in tightening financial conditions and supply chain disruptions from a prolonged war in Europe but "withstood them better than most economies", the annual document detailing the state of the economy said.
'The most important expenditure in the Budget that indicates employment generation is infrastructure.'
Shifting to floating rate deposits can work as an anaesthetic gel for some customers, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
'Till now, we were under tremendous stress. The economy was not recovering, the financial cycle was not moving and the banks were not supporting.' 'With the government pumping in money to the banks and asking the NBFCs to give priority to the MSME sector, there will be a revival.'
The finance minister chaired a meeting through video conference with major private banks and NBFCs to ensure effective rollout of ECLGS and uninterrupted liquidity to Indian MSMEs in this difficult time.
In his address after more than 75,000 people were given appointment letters for various government jobs in the first tranche, Modi acknowledged the challenges facing the economy the world over with many countries hit by a record inflation and unemployment and said India is making every effort to come out of the situation unscathed.
State Bank of India, India's largest lender, on Thursday slashed interest rates on working capital loans to micro, small and medium enterprises by 0.5-1 per cent effective from December 16.
State-owned Punjab & Sind Bank is targeting salary accounts to boost the share of low-cost deposits. Swarup Saha, managing director and chief executive officer of the New Delhi-based lender, tells Manojit Saha that the bank may see gross non-performing assets (NPAs) fall below 8 per cent if there is resolution of the stressed assets.
In a multi-city protest on Monday, a large number of company secretaries (CS) and chartered accountants (CAs) came together to seek extension of the deadline for annual filing due to glitches in the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) portal. According to the Companies Act, firms are supposed to submit Form AOC 4 for filing of the balance sheet within 30 days of holding the annual general meeting (AGM). This deadline was over on October 29.
Agra has long been known for the Taj Mahal, but it is also a manufacturing hub filled with micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) that make everything from electronic components to metal products, from paints and chemicals to footwear. And five years after the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the MSMEs here complain that while the indirect tax regime has been transformative, cutting out the need to file multiple taxes, its biggest drawback has been the delay in credit refunds. Whoever you speak to - MSME owners, tax lawyers, or industry bodies like the National Chambers of Industries and Commerce (NCIC), Agra Footwear Manufacturers and Exporters Chamber (AFMEC) and Agra Shoe Manufacturers Association (ASMA) - they all emphasise that the GST continues to face some key challenges.
The Congress on Friday promised that if the party is voted to power in Gujarat, where assembly elections are due by the yearend, it would waive farm loans of up to Rs 3 lakh and provide free electricity for 10 hours daily to farmers in the state.
'India has formed tremendous resilience and still a strong growth.'
The RBI panel has also recommended a government-sponsored 'fund of funds' of Rs 10,000 crore to support the venture capital and private equity firms investing in the MSME sector.
The Indian Army will not let China change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) "unilaterally" and its current deployment along the frontier was not seen before, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Monday, rejecting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's criticism of the government's handling of the border row.
'You cannot start an MSME again.' 'It is not like a Yes Bank that someone comes and saves the bank.' Once the shutter is down for an MSME, nobody will come to its rescue.'
The government has only taken a pause and more measures will be announced in the days to come to help sectors hit by the coronavirus outbreak and also to make India 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur said. Since the outbreak of the pandemic, the government has taken several steps to mitigate the hardships of the people due to lockdown and support growth, Thakur told PTI in an interview.
'Government's focus should be on the expenditure side in this Budget, not so much on the taxation side.'
The finance minister has emphasised on the quick disbursal of additional loans to MSMEs, to simplify process, formats and documentation.
A court in Mumbai on Wednesday granted anticipatory bail to Union minister Narayan Rane and his MLA son Nitesh Rane in a case of allegedly making defamatory and misleading statements about Disha Salian, the former manager of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput.
The eight-member committee under Sinha will also examine the factors affecting the timely and adequate availability of finance to the sector.
Jaitley slams Rajan for MSME banking crisis statement, says postmortem is easier than action
On November 12, 2021, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) decided to ring in uniformity in asset classification and income recognition across all lending institutions. Shadow banks, or non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), like commercial banks, are to test non-performing assets (NPAs) on a daily basis and upgrade them to "standard assets" only when interest and principal arrears are settled by borrowers. This is going to create all manner of headaches for shadow banks and their clientele. Says Y S Chakravarti, managing director and chief executive officer (CEO), Shriram City Union Finance: "NPA levels will go up, especially of small borrowers.
The department, which carries out a number of searches against other high income sectors like real estate, manufacturing and sales, has for the time put its scanner on the sector which accounts for about 45 per cent of the manufacturing output of the country.
Parents of celebrity manager Disha Salian have written to President Ram Nath Kovind seeking action against Union Minister Narayan Rane, his MLA-son Nitesh and others for allegedly spreading fake news about their daughter's death and defaming the family.
Exporters on Thursday demanded fiscal incentives, tweaking in customs duties on certain products and credit at affordable rates in the forthcoming Budget to boost exports and create jobs. In a pre-budget virtual meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) said the depreciation of the rupee against the US dollar is affecting exports' competitiveness and the sector requires more support. "Creation of employment is the biggest challenge faced by the country...We would urge the government to provide fiscal support to units which provide additional employment in the export sector," the exporter's body said.
After unveiling a range of relief measures - primarily targeting the MSME and business segment - on Wednesday, Sitharaman is expected to, in her second tranche of financial stimulus, focus on the poor and farm sector.
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