Rupee weaker
Mumbai: The rupee closed marginally weaker by about five paise to end at 46.39 against the dollar on Tuesday. It had closed at 46.3325/3450 on Monday.
Forwards Market: The six-month ended at 2.40 per cent (2.35 per cent) while the twelve-month forward ended at 1.95 per cent (1.91 per cent).
G-Secs: The 7.37 per cent 2014 paper closed at yield of 6.23 per cent. The 11-year benchmark closed at the yield of 6.35 per cent at a price of Rs 108.20.
Call rates: Ruling at about 4.30-4.40 per cent.
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Flexcube to be deployed with South African Postbank
Mumbai: South African Post Office bank (Postbank) has deployed Flexcube, the flagship product of i-flex Solutions, for processing its retail banking transactions. According to a release, the bank is one of South Africa's largest banking entities catering to 60 lakh customers with operations out of 1,100 post offices across South Africa.
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HDFC increases fixed rate loan band
Mumbai: The Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) has increased the interest band on its fixed rate loans to 7.75 per cent-8.5 percent, from the earlier band of 7.5 per cent-8.5 percent, citing likely hardening of interest rates in the long-term. Interest rates of the floating rate products and the retail prime-lending rate have not been changed.

According to its statement, HDFC says that it is in the business of long-term housing loans and when it lends at fixed rates for periods as long as 15 to 20 years, it needs to keep in mind the long-term outlook on rates in order to avoid any possible mismatch.
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Govt notifies the Senior Citizen Savings scheme
New Delhi: The Government has notified the 'Senior Citizen Savings Scheme,' with effect from August 2. The scheme will be available initially through designated post offices. The scheme was initially structured for citizens of 60 years of age and above. But now, even citizens who have retired under a voluntary or special voluntary retirement scheme and have attained the age of 55 years are also eligible to invest so long as certain conditions are met.

The deposits for the scheme can be done in multiples of Rs 1,000 subject to a maximum of Rs 15 lakh. It would carry an interest of 9 per cent per annum (taxable). The maturity period of the deposit would be five years, extendable by another three years. The Scheme provides for premature withdrawal after a period of one year. However, this would be subject to certain deductions. Non-resident Indians and Hindu Undivided Families are not eligible to invest in the scheme. The investments in the scheme will be non-tradable and non-transferable. However, nomination facility will be available.
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RBI: Steering committee to implement Basel II norms
Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India plans to set up a steering committee to enable the implementation of the Basel II norms for capital adequacy of banks. According to officials, the steering committee would have smaller focused sub-committees for each of the three pillars of Basel II with members representing interests of all stakeholders. The main benefit of Basel II will flow from the greater awareness of risk that it will instill in the banks. It also has in-built incentives for improved risk analysis, risk management systems, allocation of capital and pricing of risk. Achieving sophistication in their risk management capabilities might enable banks to improve the quality of their asset portfolio.

Importantly, Basel II permits banks a choice between Standardised Approach and Internal Ratings Based Approach towards measurement of capital requirements for credit risk. Internal Ratings Based Approach differs substantially from the Standardised Approach to the extent that banks' internal assessments of key risk parameters serve as primary inputs to capital calculation. The new norms require a lot of disclosures of risks and the risk management practices. Data sharing is also very crucial under the new norms. With effect from the current financial year, banks in India will be maintaining capital for credit risk and market risks on the lines of Basel I.
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Allahabad Bank raises FCNR, NRE rates
Kolkata: The Allahabad Bank has raised the interest rates on foreign currency non-resident (FCNR) deposits and non-resident (External) Rupee (NRE) term deposit with effect from July 28. The revised rates for US dollar are 2.16 per cent (earlier 2.08 per cent) for one year to less than two years, 2.89 per cent (2.79 per cent) for two years to less than three years, and 3.35 per cent (3.28 per cent) for three years.

In the case of Pound deposits, the revised rates are 5.04 per cent (4.99 per cent), 5.16 per cent (5.12 per cent), and 5.24 per cent (5.20 per cent) for respective maturities. For Euro deposits, the bank has fixed interest rates at 2.17 per cent (2.14 per cent), 2.61 per cent (2.56 per cent), and 2.96 per cent (2.91 per cent). The revised rates for NRE term deposits are: 2.40 per cent (earlier 2.33 per cent) for one year to less than two years, 3.14 per cent (3.04 per cent) for two years to less than three years, and 3.60 per cent (3.53 per cent) for three years.
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Bank of India pays Rs.33.85 crore dividend
Mumbai: Bank of India has paid a final dividend of Rs.33.85 crore to the Government of India for the financial year 2003-04.
M.Venugopalan, Chairman, and Managing Director, Bank of India, handed over the dividend cheque to the Finance Minister, P.Chidambaram, said a press release.
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