Rupee stable
The rupee was steady, ending the days trade at 45.2425/2450 in its value against the dollar.
Forward Market - The six months forward closed at 0.44 per cent (0.39 per cent) and the one-year forward closed at 0.54 per cent (0.48 per cent).
G-Secs- The 8.07 per cent 2017 paper closed at Rs 123.67 with a yield of 5.48 per cent. The ten-year benchmark was at Rs 117.10 at a yield of 5.17 per cent ( Rs 116.80, 5.21 per cent).
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Fitch rates L&T Holding's NCD programme as F1+(ind)
Mumbai: Fitch India has assigned F1+(ind) rating to the proposed Rs 75-crore short-term non-convertible debenture programme of L&T Holdings Ltd (LTHL). The rating is based on the `letter of comfort' provided by L&T Ltd. The F1+(ind) rating denotes `highest credit quality' and indicates the strongest capacity for timely payment of financial commitments, said the news release.
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Exim Bank will extend $2.2-b credit to African nations
New Delhi: The Export and Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) would shortly be expediting the extension of line of credit to the tune of $2.2 billion (around Rs 9,948 crore) to Egypt, Mauritius, Uganda, Botswana, Tanzania, Senegal and Zambia. This extension of credit will be as part of India's commitment to promote and encourage trade with them. This was stated by E. Barwa, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) at a seminar on `Africa-India Business Opportunities' organised by ASSOCHAM, in association with the Exim Bank.

According to Barwa, a large proportion of the proposed credit will go to those who seek to invest in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, development of agri and horticultural industries in the African region, besides infrastructure and energy. The Chairman and Managing Director of Exim Bank, T.C. Venkat Subramanian said that his bank would actively facilitate Indian investment in the African region in the form of joint ventures and wholly owned subsidiaries. Subramanian also said that the Exim Bank would be seeking partnership with institutions such as African Development Bank, World Bank, Afri-Exim Bank and the East African Development Bank so that the credit line extension is done effectively.
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UTI Bank will achieve 30 per cent growth during fiscal
Hyderabad: The Chairman and Managing Director of UTI Bank, P.J. Nayak, has said that the bank would consider plans for inorganic growth only when it failed to achieve the sort of growth rates it has been achieving in the last couple of years. He said that the current business model of organic growth had helped the bank register growth in the range of around 50 per cent.

Expressing satisfaction over the existing capital adequacy ratio of 11.2 per cent, he said the bank would achieve at least 30 per cent growth during the next fiscal without the need for raising tier-I capital. On the issue of offering board positions to HSBC, Nayak said the bank had no objection but it had not yet received any request from HSBC for board positions. HSBC had recently acquired Commonwealth Development Corporation's (CDC) holding in the UTI Bank.
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Bajaj Auto ties up with Andhra Bank for loans
Hyderabad: Under a scheme called `Bajaj Kisan Chakra' the two-wheeler major Bajaj Auto Ltd (BAL) has entered into an alliance with Andhra Bank for extending two-wheeler loans to the farming community across the country.According to the BAL regional sales manager, with the public sector banks such as Andhra Bank offering two-wheeler loans at interest rates of around 9.75 per cent, and with repayment schedules of around 60 months on a diminishing balance basis, the customers would stand to benefit by 30 to 40 per cent. Andhra Bank and BAL are aiming to generate a business of around Rs 100 crore for the next fiscal under the tie-up. The auto major itself expects to sell around 24,000 vehicles during next fiscal under the scheme.
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Red herring prospectus for public issue filed — ICICI Bank clears exposure limit hurdle
Mumbai: The draft red herring prospectus of ICICI Bank has been filed for raising Rs 3,050 crore through a book-built issue with a green shoe option of Rs 450 crore. The date of the issue is yet to be finalised. As on December 31, 2003, the bank's gross NPA, including technical write-offs, were higher at Rs 8,802 crore compared with Rs 8,414 crore as on March 31, 2003. The ratio of net NPA to net customer assets decreased to 4.7 per cent on December 31, 2003 compared with 4.9 per cent on March 31, 2003. During the nine-month period ended December 2003, the Bank sold Rs 288 crore of its bad loans to Asset Reconstruction Company (India) Ltd.

Borrowing by a single corporate group accounts for over 57 per cent of ICICI Bank's capital funds (i.e. tier I plus tier II capital), according to the prospectus.This accounts for approximately 5.2 per cent of the bank's total exposure. These exposures violate RBI norms and therefore, the bank has obtained approvals from the central bank to exceed them. According to the prospectus, the single borrower limit was breached due to the amalgamation of ICICI with ICICI Bank. Out of the 14 subsidiaries of ICICI Bank, three were loss making for the nine-month period ended December 2003. They include ICICI Securities Holdings Inc, a US-based subsidiary of ICICI Securities with a net loss of Rs 60 lakh; ICICI Prudent Life Insurance, with a net loss of Rs 152.68 crore; and ICICI Bank UK Ltd, with a net loss of Rs 5.79 crore.
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